Pittsburgh_Patrika_July_2018

The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
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ittsburgh atrika
Vol. 23, No: 4 July 2018
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
The Quarterly Magazine (Jan, Apr, Jul, and Oct) for the Indian Diaspora
Vol. 23 No. 4 www.pittsburghpatrika.com July 2018
4006 Holiday Park Drive, Murrysville, PA 15668
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Highlights in this issue... ... ...
Page
Trump’s Bravado Is Counterproductive
By Kollengode S Venkataraman .................................................... 2
Our Region’s First Nonstop Flight to Asia
By Kollengode s Venkataraman ..................................................... 4
The Wadhwani Institute of Artificial Intelligence
Inaugurated in Mumbai
By K S Venkataraman..................................................................... 9
Consul General of India Visits Pitt
By the Center for Asian Studies at Pitt......................................... 13
Samar Saha: Enthusiastic Organizer of Hindustani Music,
Host & Patron for Musicians
By Shailesh Surti ........................................................................ 14
Federal Indictments on Five Area Healthcare Providers
in Opioid Case
By K S Venkataraman................................................................... 22
Further Along the Kerala Coast... ...
By Premlata Venkataraman........................................................... 23
Good Bye to Swim Suit in Beauty Pageants
By Premlata Venkataraman........................................................... 28
— Paradoxes in the Age of Kali
From Nilakantha Dikshitar’s Cynical Verses ............................... 32
On the Cover: June 21, the Summer Solstice, and the International Yoga
Day. In cities and towns all over the world, Yoga enthusiasts and healthcare
lovers were in the open on their Yoga mats at the PPG Place’s courtyard.
Photo credit: Renee Rosensteel, Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership. •
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
The Quarterly Magazine (Jan, Apr, Jul, and Oct) for the Indian Diaspora
Vol. 23 No. 4 www.pittsburghpatrika.com July 2018
Phone/Fax: (724) 327 0953
4
e-mail: ThePatrika@aol.com
Trump’s Bravado Is Counterproductive
As a New York real estate tycoon and casino owner in Nevada, Donald
Trump’s management style was to keep his subordinates, competition,
vendors, clients guessing, and spring surprises in meetings to have an
upper hand. But it did not always work for him. His businesses filed for
Chapter-11 bankruptcies six times. Trump’s ad hoc working style and
blowing hot and cold unabatedly followed him to the Oval Office on appointments,
domestic and trade policies, and foreign affairs. This style is
bad for running the behemoth called the Government of the United States,
whose tentacles in military alliances, intelligence operations, business/
trading interests, are spread all over the world.
So, managing US relations with allies and trading partners, and
dealing with threats and enemies require a steady hand at the helm
to diplomatically coordinate the policies. Thousands of dedicated government
officials work for him doing the
groundwork for months, even years,
to build consensus on complex,
sensitive issues, so that in summits,
leaders can sign agreements on issues
on substance under good optics.
Trump’s adhocism on policies
makes it difficult, to put it generously,
for officials to negotiate on
his behalf. He erratically turns the rudder wheel of the huge ship of the
State with bluster, as he did in the G-7 meeting in Canada in June. The
confrontational picture describes the acrimony in the meeting.
President Trump may think — even believe — that the brashly displaying
American raw power in summits will make US allies genuflect before
him and scare hostile nations into submission. The “Sole Super Power”
sobriquet for the US will be honored by allies — and feared by enemies
— only if the US uses its power with discretion and finesse. His bluster
and bravado weaken the alliance, only making Russia and China happy.
Even in domestic politics, one wonders if Trump is helping or hurting
the GOP by his brazenness. — By KSV •

The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
Our Region’s First Nonstop Flight to Asia
By Kollengode S Venkataraman
After considerable effort, the Allegheny County Airport Authority
finally succeeded in cracking into the Asian aviation market with a
chartered nonstop flight to Shanghai, operated by China Eastern Airlines,
starting this August. One hopes that the charter nonstop flights to Shanghai
is just the beginning for Pittsburgh International to get nonstops to other
Asian destinations. It must grow into a seasonal and then regular three or
four weekly flights
all year around.
This nonstop
came with a price
tag for the region: The airport authority is pitching in up to $560,000
to subsidize the flight. This is essentially tax-payer money. That amount
will drop when Pittsburgh travelers purchase tickets, according to the
Authority’s spokesman Bob Kerlik.
In addition, the VisitPittsburgh tourism agency is kicking in another
$300,000, with another $50,000 coming from the Idea Foundry, a Pittsburgh-based
nonprofit that works with Chinese families and students to
encourage educational ties and investment.
The subsidies are part of a three-year agreement with Caissa Touristic,
the tour operator, to market and sell trips to Pittsburgh. However, the
flight currently is guaranteed for only one year.
Remember, in the heyday of US Airways at Pittsburgh International
we had daily nonstop and direct service from PIT to Paris, Frankfurt,
London, Rome, London, Milan… … And then the sky fell for us when
US Airways walked away from its hub here, only to eventually disappear
altogether from the skies. Recently Pittsburgh International inaugurated
nonstops to Europe through WOW and Condor airlines.
The Patrika has written on the need for connecting PIT to Asia with
nonstops for our region to encourage businesses to relocate here. However,
anybody who is even peripherally familiar with the commercial
aviation industry knows that the center of gravity of commercial airlines
has shifted to Asia (Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, China, and India).
The commercial airline industry will grow for the next several decades in
this region domestically, regionally, and even globally. Europe and North
America are saturated markets.
The Big Three US air carriers — United, Delta, and American
— dominate global nonstops through their hubs across the US.
Working to get American or other large European air carriers to introduce
nonstops from Pittsburgh International to Europe and Asia is just a waste
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
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of time. That is why airlines from China, India, South East Asia, and the
Persian Gulf countries has become attractive for Pittsburgh International
to get nonstops to Asian destinations.
Eastern Airlines nonstop seasonal charter service connecting
China Pittsburgh and Shanghai, China commences on August 3. This is
the region’s very first nonstop air link with China, or for that matter, the
the whole of Asia. Pittsburgh will be the arriving and departing gateway for
hundreds of Chinese tourists visiting the U.S. East Coast this summer.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for our region to become the first
medium-size city in the country as a destination for Chinese tourists,” Allegheny
County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said. “Our region’s businesses,
the airport, and our tourism industry will be the primary beneficiary of
this agreement.”
China Eastern will fly its flagship Boeing 777-300 ER, carrying 316
seats in a first/business/economy three-class configuration. The first departure
from Pittsburgh will occur the same day as its landing.
“This is huge step forward for the future, particularly for nonstop air
service to China. The charter-to-scheduled service model has been successfully
adopted in other parts of the world,” said Christina Cassotis,
Pittsburgh International Airport CEO. “We are the first U.S. market to
tap into China’s fast-growing tourism market with this type of business
model.”
Pittsburgh area travelers will be able to purchase tickets on these
flights through www.Travel2.com and www.firstinservice.com. Flights
start at just $1,098 inclusive of tax and fees. Travel2 has also put together
land packages starting as low as $990 when booked in conjunction with
these flights. For all bookings, inquiries, terms, and conditions contact
michelle@fls.com or call 310-435-3977. •
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
The Wadhwani Institute of
Artificial Intelligence Inaugurated in Mumbai
Sunil Wadhwani and his wife Nita are well known in our region’s
city and county governments and civic institutions. He was the
founding CEO of i-Gate, a global software company, known in its previous
incarnation as Mastech, a company he co-founded with Ashok Trivedi.
At the peak of his career as the CEO of i-Gate, over 30,000 employees
were on its payroll in 70-plus offices worldwide with over $1 billion in
annual revenue.
In the middle of this, Sunil took great interest in promoting Pittsburgh,
a second-tier US City, as the destination of choice for national and international
businesses to relocate or open their offices. At the same time,
Sunil Wadhwani is extreme left and his elder brother Romesh Wadhwani is extreme right.
Maharashtra’s Governor Mr. C Vidyasagar Rao is third from left and Chief Minister Mr
Devendra Fadnavis is third from right, on the stage during the inaugural function. Prime
Minister Modi is in the middle.
Wadhwani also worked with city and county elected officials to diversify
the region’s population making it attractive for immigrants, a feature that
global businesses consider desirable in their decision to relocate or open a
new office in a new place. After all, our region has all the accoutrements
needed — affordable housing, good public and private schools, excellent
medical facilities, universities, sports teams, museums, and other entertainments...
In 2015, Capgemini, a French IT services company, acquired i-Gate
for over $4 billion. Now, Wadhwani is in semi-retirement, yet active in
running SWAT, a venture capital company based in Moon, as a managing
partner, along with Ashok Trivedi.
ost of us who grew up in India and moved to the US have been
extremely fortunate. We had parents who cared for us and
“M
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
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had the means to educate us in good schools and send us to the US. Many
billions of people around the world — especially those struggling in poverty
in India and other developing countries — are not so lucky. It is up to us
to help our fellow human beings who have not been as blessed.” Sunil’s
thoughts have been drifting along these lines for quite some time.
So he decided to put a small portion of his resources to good use in
India, with possibilities of having a global impact. Joining with his older
brother Romesh Wadhwani, a California-based venture capitalist, the
two Wadhwanis each donated $15 million and founded the Wadhwani
Institute for Artificial Intelligence (WIAI). The thrust of the Wadhwani
Institute is “harnessing the power of AI to solve deep-rooted problems in
healthcare, education, agriculture, and infrastructure to accelerate social
development.” Though the institute’s beneficiaries can be global, its immediate
focus is on the Indian subcontinent and Asia, where it is most
needed, and where the impact can be high.
In March of this year, in Mumbai, the Wadhwani Institute of AI went
on-stream, with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurating
it in the presence of the Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis,
its Governor Vidyasagar and many other dignitaries. In the opening ceremony,
Modi said, “The Wadhwani AI institute is a prime example of
how the public sector and the private sector can come together with good
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
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intentions to build a world-class institute, aimed at benefiting the poor."
Sunil said, “The government of Maharashtra has committed land, but
the details are still being worked out. Currently, ten full-time employees
are working at the institute, which is likely to go to 30-plus full-time employees
specializing in AI in three years.” Around one hundred researchers
from affiliated institutes outside India will be working on AI applications
for social good at the institute.
The Wadhwani Institute, a fully independent body, will be closely
working with the University of Bombay to develop a master’s program
on Data Sciences and AI.
In a press release on the occasion, Sunil said, "AI is a game-changing
technology. There’s a lot of research being done at companies like Amazon,
Google and Alibaba, and at universities like Carnegie Mellon and MIT.
However, virtually all of that is targeted at commercial applications, and
there’s little or no research on how to use AI to accelerate social development.
Our goal is to have, within the next two years, over 100 researchers
working on leveraging AI to improve the quality of life for the bottom
two billion people in the world.” So founding this institute is gratifying
to the Wadhwani brothers and their families.
Responding to a question, Sunil said, “The institute is looking for hiring
the best AI researchers from around the world who are also passionate
about social development. Because of our location in India and our initial
focus on applying AI to social development in India and other developing
countries, most of these have been of Indian origin so far. As we expand,
we expect our workforce to become more global in nature.”
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
Continuing, he said, “We are forming partnerships with the world’s
leading AI research institutions to work together on applying AI to accelerate
social development. We have already formed such partnerships with
MIT, Carnegie-Mellon University, New York University, the University
of Washington, and the University of Southern California.
In the gala after inauguration. L to R: WIAI CEO P. Anandan, Nita Wadhwani, Romesh
Wadhwani, NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant, Sunil Wadhwani and his son Rohan.
As part of the launch of the institute in March in Mumbai, Wadhwani
Institute hosted a summit of seventy-five leading AI researchers,
social sector experts and senior government officials to identify challenges
that could be addressed using AI. Ideas discussed included using AI to
help farmers on when they should plant their seeds for best crop yields,
improving the effectiveness of community health workers, addressing high
dropout rates in rural schools, making educational content available in local
languages and dialects, and facilitating the early detection of diseases.
Indeed, ambitious objectives for social good on many fronts.
— By K S Venkataraman •
A Different Kind of Vat Purnima in Aurangabad
Vat Purnima is observed by married women in Western India on the full
moon day in May-June praying for their husbands. They tie a thread on a
banyan tree and go around the tree clockwise as part of the worship. This
year, a few men in Aurangabad,
Maharashtra observed Vat Purnima
by going around the tree counterclockwise
(see the picture).
Why men? And why counterclockwise?
A story in the next issue
on the changing social mores in
India.— KSV •
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
Consul General of India Visits
the Asian Studies Center at Pitt
The Asian Studies Center at the University of Pittsburgh was delighted
to host the Consul General of India, Mr. Sandeep Chakravorty, on March
28 th and 29 th 2018. The Consul General was invited to by the University
of Pittsburgh for a major conference “Rethinking South-South Cooperation:
India and Brazil in the 21st Century,” organized under the auspices
of the University Center for
International Studies.
In conjunction with this,
the Consul General of India
participated in a series of
events focused on the development
of Indian Studies,
toured the Indian Nationality
Room in the Cathedral
Consul General Sandeep Chakravorty facilitates
Pitt’s Chancellor Emeritus Mark Nordenberg with a
traditional Indian scarf. Extreme left is Vice Provost
of Global Affairs Ariel Armony,
15
of Learning and met with a
group of students representing
a tremendous cross-section of
interests in Indian Studies in
particular and South Asia more
broadly. Mr. Chakravorty and his staff have been extremely helpful in
working with senior leadership at the University of Pittsburgh, and with
Ms. Riva Ganguly Das, Director General of the Indian Council for Cultural
Relations, to establish the ICCR Chair in Indian Studies.
Over the course of the next five years, this important initiative will
bring leading scholars from universities in India to the University of
Pittsburgh to teach courses that focus on Indian society and culture in the
humanities and social sciences.
The ICCR Chair in Indian Studies will serve to anchor and help to
develop an important initiative. Recognizing the growth and development
of South Asia, the Asian Studies Center at the University of Pittsburgh
is committed to expanding faculty research and teaching expertise on the
global significance of this significant region of the world.
Beyond the academic significance of the “India Initiative” at the University
of Pittsburgh, the establishment of the ICCR Indian Studies Chair
will serve as an important bridge to the community.
In conjunction with this goal, Consul General Chakravorty was able
to meet representatives of Pittsburgh’s community who have contributed
to Indian studies over the years, most especially those who have played a
vital role in building and supporting the Indian Nationality Room. •

The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
Samar Saha: Enthusiastic Organizer of
Hindustani Music, Host & Patron for Musicians
By: Shailesh Surti, O'Hara Twp, PA
e-mail:shailesh.surti@gmail.com
Editor: Music lovers here know Samar and Mala Saha of Irwin as great enthusiasts of
classical Hindustani music, having enjoyed many house concerts at the Sahas’ home in Irwin.
In this engaging story, Shailesh Surti
(left in the adjacent picture) draws
out Samar Saha (right in the picture)
on his exhilarating journey from his
casual interest in Hindustani music to
serious, passionate listener, organizer,
host, and finally to patron of the music,
and more importantly, of the musicians.
The venue for this exchange
was Shailesh’s home in O’Hara Twp, with his wife Urvashi as the gracious host.
For any type of performing art — music and dance recitals, drama
and live stage performances — to flourish anywhere, one needs
art lovers, organizers, and patrons willing
to underwrite a good part of the expenses
above and beyond gate collections.
It is a well-recognized truism that “classical”
art forms simply cannot sustain themselves
merely on the basis of ticket-buying
audience support. This is the reality today
both in Indian and Western performing arts.
In the US, corporations and individual donors
make huge contributions to symphonies
and operas. In Europe, public funding for
the performing arts has been the norm. In India, without corporate and
government sponsors, the performing arts simply cannot survive.
The Indian performing arts scene here: Pittsburgh has only around
20,000 Indian-Americans, with fewer classical music
enthusiasts compared even to Cleveland, which
is demographically comparable to Pittsburgh on
many measures. Here, Sri Venkateswara Temple
has been organizing and patronizing classical Indian
music concerts — especially Karnatic music — on a
Urvashi Surti, the gracious
host of the evening.
regular basis. Other temples also have done so in
the past. Students of the Pandit Jasraj Institute of
Music have organized concerts of artistes belonging
16
Mala and Samar Saha at the Surti
residence.

The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
Our Graduates Are Going Places!
This year, almost half of Sewickley Academy graduates were admitted to
a college or university with an acceptance rate lower than 30%.
91% of our seniors were admitted to one of their
top-choice colleges.
The University of Alabama (2)
Allegheny College
Boston University
Bucknell University (2)
Butler University
University of California, Santa Barbara (2)
University of California, Irvine
Carnegie Mellon University
Case Western University
University of Chicago
Colorado College
Cornell University
University of Dayton (2)
University of Denver
Duke University
Eastman School of Music of the University of Rochester
Elon University (5)
Emory University
Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, Los Angeles
Franklin & Marshall University
The George Washington University
Georgetown University
Georgia Institute of Technology
Hamilton College
High Point University (3)
Howard University
John Carroll University
Kenyon College
University of Michigan
Northeastern University (2)
University of Notre Dame (2)
University of Oklahoma
University of Pennsylvania
University of Pittsburgh (2)
Princeton University
University of Rochester
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Tulane University
University of Tulsa
Union College, New York
University of Vermont
Villanova University
Washington and Jefferson College
Washington University in St. Louis (2)
Learn more about our college guidance program at www.sewickley.org/college.
www.sewickley.org | 412.741.2235
17

The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
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to their gharana.
Fortunately, a few individuals, on their own drive and initiative, have
been active in organizing Hindustani music concerts in Pittsburgh for a
long time. For over 30 years, Dr.
Balwant Dixit, under the banner
of the Center for the Performing
Arts of India at the University
of Pittsburgh, organized many
such events, both in Pittsburgh
and around North America with
concert tours for Indian artistes.
In the early days, Dixit also organized
Karnatic music programs
in our town.
Ustad Haidar Hassan on the shehnai accompanied
by Pt. Samir Chatterjee (tabla).
With Dixit now in retirement, Samar Saha and his wife Mala of Irwin
have taken on the mantle for organizing Hindustani music concerts.
Music lovers in our area owe the Sahas a big Thank You not only for
their enthusiastic support for the art form, but also, more importantly, for
their multi-faceted patronage for the artistes. The Sahas moved into the
Pittsburgh area fifteen years ago after Samar retired from a job in New
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
Jersey. Samar, a metallurgist by profession, joined US Steel’s R&D after
arriving
S
from New Jersey.
amar had his early schooling in Banaras where he got interested in
learning the tabla. But his father would not encourage him to go
into music. Samar used a colorful
expression to describe
how his father reacted when
he told his dad he wanted to
pursue music.
Later, his interest in classical
music blossomed when
he went to college in Kolkata.
During his tumultuous college
days in the 1960s, with
the Naxalbari Movement in Jugalbandi with Jay Gandhi on the bansuri (flute)
full swing in Bengal, Samar and Sitarist Abhik Mukherjee accompanied by Pt.
Samir Chatterjee (tabla).
managed to attend all-night
concerts of artistes of great repute. His interest in cultivating a keen
interest in music and musicians was greatly reinforced.
Samar even dabbled in western music in college. In 1975, he married
Mala -- it was an arranged marriage. Mala had her training in Rabindra
Sangeet and Hindustani classical music. So it was natural both the Sahas
are passionate about music.
The Sahas’ move to the US in the early 1970s directly as green-card
holders was quite accidental. They settled down in New Jersey. While
in New Jersey Samar became part of the Bengali Cultural Organization
Kallol.
At Kallol he introduced Hindustani cassical music concerts despite the
apprehension of some members that it might not go well with their members.
With the concerts well-liked by the members,
Samar got first-hand experience in organizing music
recitals and dealing with artistes.
The Sahas also came in contact with the tabla
maestro Pandit Samir Chatterjee and his organization
Chhandayan of New York. Chhandayan has been active
with Indian musicians of every genus, innovating
Rajyaree Ghosh. and experimenting with fusion, and tabla orchestra
with vocalists. Chhandayan selects and invites artistes to perform around
the USA.
With their long-standing association with Samir Chatterjee, Samar
and Mala snap up opportunities to invite artistes and host them at
19

The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
their home. Asish and Nidrita
Sinha of Cheswick are always
there playing key roles in the
organizing details.
Hosting artistes is not a
simple job. By nature, artistes
can be temperamental and
picky. Receiving them at the
Vocalist Sanjoy Banerjee accompanied by Pt airport, driving them around
Samir Chatterjee (tabla). and dropping them back is a
chore. But catering to their minute needs in food preferences and other
needs is a different type of challenge. Samar and Mala have mastered the
art of dealing with artistes.
Sahas have a lovely home in Irwin with a great room that can
The accommodate a small audience of up to fifty music enthusiasts to
enjoy live performances. Samar has equipped his beautifully decorated
home with a good sound system. Listening to the music is not the only
treat at his place. The ambiance of a private house concert offers wonderful
opportunities to interact with the artistes. The artistes too have said during
the post-recital interactions that the sterile and formal atmosphere in large
concert halls is no match for the instantaneous rapport they make with their
audience sitting only feet away from them in house concerts. The concert
is always followed by a scrumptious dinner, usually organized in potluck
fashion with many in the audience bringing home-cooked delicacies.
Sometimes for a well-known artist the venue is moved to a formal auditorium,
like the last concert this May of vocalist Ashwini Bhide Deshpande
at the Frick’s Fine Arts’ Auditorium in Oakland. Many instrumentalists
and vocalists, enjoying the Sahas’ hospitality at their home, have given
their best recitals. Last year we enjoyed the Sarod player Sri Atish Mukhopadhyay
accompanied
on the tabla by Sri Tejas
Tope. The other notable
program was the nearly
3 hour memorable solo
shahnai recital by Ustad
Hasan Haide. Pt. Samir
Chatterjee accompanied
him on the tabla. Reviews
of several of these
recitals have appeared
in the Patrika written by
On the Sahas love for music... continued on Page 23
L to R: The Sahas, Ashwini Bhide and her Harmonium
accompanist Kedar Naphade.
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
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The Midterm Election in Fall is Important
The mid term elections in November for the US House of Representatives
is quite important for Pennsylvanians. Why? Because as we elaborated
in the last issue, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court has redrawn the maps
for the state’s eighteen Congressional districts. This was necessitated
because of the way the Republican-controlled Pennsylvania legislature
gerrymandered the maps to give itself an 13-5 advantage over Democrats,
even though the state votes a lot tighter in elections for state-wide offices.
With the redrawn maps for the Congressional districts, congressional elections
in the state will be more competitive. It is expected that the GOP will
lose its 13-5 advantage in the US House delegates, and more likely get a
reduced lead in the House delegates, something like 10-8 or 11-7.
We hope all readers eligible to vote are already registered. If you are a
citizen and not yet registered, please register to vote and make sure your
name is in the voter list.
It is important that the American Mainstream sees our brown/beige
faces on election day patiently standing in line in voting booths to do our
civic duties. We will not be helping ourselves if we don’t even show our
faces in voting booths on election day due to our apathy. — KSV •
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
On the Sahas’ love for music ... Continued from Page 20
knowledgeable music enthusiasts living among us.
The Sahas take great pride in hosting talented, young artistes, who
give their very best in trying to establish themselves in the field. Many
of them will never forget the Sahas’ patronage. The Sahas also encourage
our own home-grown talents like vocalist young Ayan Sinha. Here are
some of the artistes who have performed at the Sahas’ place:
1. Padma Bhushan Pt. Buddhadeb Dasgupta (Sarod) opened the house concert
with his blessings for success. His son, Anirban Dasgupta, another
Sarod player played with him. August, 2012.
2. Flutist Steve Gorn — April, 2013
3. Classical Vocalist Mitali Bhowmik — May, 2014
4. Thumri, Dadra and Ghazals by Rita Ganguly and Sitarist Amie Maciszewski
— October, 2014
5. Classical Vocalist Samarth Nagarkar — May 2015
6. Thumri, Dadra and Durga Vandana Singer Rajyasree Ghosh — October,
2015
7. Sitarist Abhik Mukherji and Flutist Jay Gandhi Jugalbandi — April 2016
(during the wedding reception of the Sahas’ daughter, Elena)
8. Classical Vocalist Sanjoy Banerjee — April, 2017
9. Shehnai Haidar Hassan - son of Shehnai Nawaz Late Ut. Ali Ahmed Hussain
Khan -— May 2017
10. Sarodist Atish Mukhopadhyay — October 2017
11. Classical Vocalist Ashwini Bhide — May 20, 2018
Without letting anybody know (until now), very often, the Sahas,
like true patrons of arts, have contributed from their own resources,
a lion’s share of the
total expenses for many
of these concerts. This is
in addition to hosting the
artistes in their home for
several days before and
after the recital.
That they are Hindustani
music enthusiasts
is well-known. Further,
without any institutional
Vocalist Mitali Bhowmick with Late Pt. Ramesh Mishra support here, and on their
on Sarangi.
own strength, they are
also warm hosts, efficient organizers, and generous patrons of the art
and the artistes, all rolled into one. The Sahas are unique in this respect.
•
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
Federal Indictments on Five Area Healthcare
Providers in Opioid Case
Federal prosecutors have indicted five area physicians for illegally prescribing
Suboxone, a drug meant for treating opium addicts for mitigating
withdrawal-related problems. Buprenorphine, marketed under trade names
Suboxone and Subutex, among others, wards off the painful symptoms of
opioid withdrawal and lessens cravings. The five physicians worked as
contract employees at Redirection Treatment Advocates, LLC, (RTA) a
business engaged in rehab work for opium addicts.
The federal indictments allege, “... the defendants, working as contractors
at various locations, created and distributed unlawful prescriptions
for buprenorphine, known as Subutex and Suboxone, a drug that should
be used to treat individuals with opium addiction. The defendants are also
charged with conspiracy to unlawfully distribute buprenorphine.” The
defendants are charged also for allegedly causing fraudulent claims to be
submitted to Medicare or Medicaid for payments to cover the costs of the
unlawfully prescribed buprenorphine.”
Details of the federal indictments are here: www.justice.gov/opa/pr/
five-pennsylvania-physicians-charged-unlawfully-distributing-buprenorphine-and-defrauding.
The healthcare providers indicted in federal courts
in Pittsburgh and West Virginia are Krishan Aggarwal, 73, and Madhu
Aggarwal, 69, both from Moon Twp; Cherian John, 65, of Coraopolis;
Parth Barill, 69, of Pittsburgh; and Michael Bummer, 38, of Sewickley.
An indictment is only an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent
unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
Krishan Aggarwal, Madhu Aggarwal (OB-GYN) and Parth Barill, a
gastroenterologist, earned their medical degrees from Rajasthan, India.
Cherian John, earned his medical degree from Mumbai.
In a statement released, the US Attorney General Jeff Sessions said,
“Today we are facing the worst drug crisis in American history, with one
American dying of a drug overdose every nine minutes.”
While announcing the indictment, US Attorney for Western Pennsylvania
Scott Brady said, “Expanding the legitimate use of medication
to treat addiction is a critical part of this administration’s multi-faceted
approach to combat the opioid epidemic ravaging our communities. Yet
another vital component is the prosecution of unscrupulous practitioners
who abuse their privilege to practice medicine and dispense prescriptions
unlawfully. These indictments demonstrate that we remain vigilant in our
pursuit of physicians who ignore their oath to do no harm.”
— By Kollengode S Venkataraman •
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
Further Along the Kerala Coast... ...
By Premlata Venkataraman e-mail: thepatrika@aol.com
Driving from Coimbatore last December, we reached the Ernakulam-
Kochi metro area. The roads and streets of Kochi had the usual hustle and
bustle. Decades before, it was a much smaller, relaxed
town. As we passed a place of worship getting
a new coat of paint, we assumed they were getting
ready for the upcoming Ulsavam (festival). It was
a typical Kerala
structure. The kodi
maram (dwajasthambham),
the
ceremonial copper
flagstaff was being
The Dwajasthambham
with an Eastern Cross.
cleaned; we noticed
that it had an
Eastern Orthodox
Cross atop it. Intrigued, found that this
was a Syrian Orthodox church and they
were getting ready for Christmas! Now,
this in a snapshot, was the southern part
of Kerala!
Serene and bucolic, Cochin has been
welcoming traders, explorers and travelers
to its shores for centuries. They have left their mark — a 400-year old
synagogue, churches that resemble Hindu temples and also ancient mosques
set up by Arabic traders, long before the advent of Islam via the Turkic
invasions. The first mosque ever built in India was in Kerala.
Of course, many old and ancient temples are open for worship with
tens of thousands of devotees
offering vazhipaadu (special
worships) and fulfilling nerchas
(vows) unbroken through
very many more centuries.
This setting of various places
of worship reflecting so many
major religions is a reflection
of the makeup of the denizens
of Kochi. Hindus are 44 %
Bhagavathy Temple in Alappuzha
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A Syrian Church in Alappuzha
of the population, followed
by 38 % Christians, and 18 %

The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
Ancestral Temple in Kaladi of Adi Shankara (8th century)
Muslims. There is
very little religious
strife in this town
unlike many other
cities in India. The
high literacy rate of
98% in Kerala could
be one reason.
visit to
No this part of
the country is complete
if we do not
include a boat trip on the backwaters along the Arabian coast of Southern
Kerala. After a visit to the ancient Bhagavathy temple in Alappuzha,
near Kochi, we went into the modern resort of Punnamada to savor the
beautiful backwaters. Floating along the rivers in a small open boat with
several houseboats going past us, it was idyllic. We floated past neighborhoods
along very narrow canals barely 20-feet wide and navigable only
in motorized canoes. It was amazing how people have made a lifestyle
along this maze of intricate waterways. Though the waters were clear
and lapped gently along the sides, you could see the water hyacinth (an
invasive species of water plant) choking the waterways and affecting the
House boats like this are everywhere in the Karala Kaayals (backwaters) with coconut
palms adding to the ambience.
aquatic life beneath. One hopes they find a way to rid these pests from
destroying the natural flora and fauna of the waterways
People living in Kerala have learned to live with water. You could
see cheena valas (Chinese nets in Malayalam) dotting the seashores in
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
Kochi. (See the picture of
the nets used to catch fish.)
Now they are used mainly
as a tourist attraction. With
abundant coastlines and
backwaters, seafood is a
staple in the Kerala diet
for many. People use the
Cheena Valaa (Chinese nets) in Kochi
waterways to go to work
(see the photograph below). These special ferries worked like bus routes
along the waters.
It was a near perfect vacation, though very, very short. Soothing to
the eyes and the spirit, a vacation trip to Southern Kerala is a must for
any traveler in South India. •
South Indian Films in Silk Screen Festival
Tamil, Malayalam and Telugu films are part of this year’s Silk Screen
Festival during September 21-30. Here are the highlights:
Take Off (Malayalam): Portrays the ordeal suffered by a group
of Indian nurses captured by ISIS militants when they took over the city
of Takrit in Iraq.
To Let (Tamil): Story of a working couple with evicted from
their rental place by their greedy landlord in Chennai’s 2007 real estate
boom. Riding on mopeds, they fight against time and the prejudices of
rental property owners.
Mahanati (Telugu): This is a controversial 2018 biopic on the
legendary actress Savitri’s rise and fall in South Indian filmdom.
Dates, timings, and venue at www.silkscreenfestival.com •
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
Indian Poets Can Be Cynical, Sarcastic, and
Humorous All at the Same Time
By Kollengode S Venkataraman
Many short verses in Indian languages deal with honor, dharma, compassion,
beauty, obligations and responsibilities, romance, love, devotion
and bhakti — in high-brow and uplifting tones. But many are also known
for their dripping sarcasm, cynicism, and hard realities of life.
Here are two 4-line alliterating and rhyming Tamil verses in the latter
category. Nothing is known about the authors of these verses. (Source:
Viveka Chintamani, editor Gna. Manikkavasagam, Uma Pathippagam,
Chennai, 600 001, Year 2001). However, on the basis of the words and
phrases in them, one can say that these verses cannot be earlier than 1700
AD. With Tamil having at least 2500 years of literary history, these verses
are, therefore, relatively recent, only 300 years old. Here is the original
of the first Tamil verse:
Here is a nonliterary translation:
Once they become adults, sons won’t listen to their fathers’ advice;
After middle age, wives wearing fragrant flowers won’t
care for their husbands;
After learning from teachers, shishyas (students) do not go
looking for their gurus, and
Once cured of their diseases, people don’t seek their doctors.
In the above translation, if we replace “sons” with “children” to indicate
both sons and daughters, and “fathers” with “parents,” It will be a
lot closer to the reality of contemporary family life.
The next verse is on a topic that we all are familiar with — unsolicited
advice. As parents, friends, and employees we recognize
that unsolicited advice — even suggestions — is not welcome. This is the
case whether we give suggestions to others, or we receive advice from
others. Often, such advice breeds resentment, if not hostility, among the
people involved, whether friends, colleagues, or relatives.
Such behavior in human interactions is nothing new. Here an anonymous
poet explains this axiom using great wit, sarcasm, and cynicism.
First the original in Tamil:
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
Here again is a nonliterary translation since I don’t have the skills for
translating the poem into verse form:
A weaver bird, sitting in its cozy nest in rains, saw a monkey
getting drenched, and said,
“Why don't you build a place for yourself against the rain?”
Irritated at the advice, the monkey got mad, went wild, and
shredded the weaver bird’s nest to smithereens.
Such is the fate of those giving unsolicited advice
to the undeserved.
Asmita Ranganathan provided the sketches. •
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
Good Bye to Swim Suit in Beauty Pageants
Premlata Venkataraman
e-mail: ThePatrika@aol.com
The Miss America contest has scrapped its swimsuit competition,
striking at the most derided part of the contest. It is long overdue. Coming
in the wake of the #Me-
Too movement that exposed
sexual harassment — actually,
sexual abuse — of women in
many walks of life, this is a
blow to the outdated, voyeuristic
and prurient aspects
of beauty contests.
In recent years, viewership
interest — and corporate
Miss USA Contestants in staid Swim Suit, 1962.
30
sponsorship — in beauty
pageants have been dwindling
in industrialized societies in the backdrop of changing social mores and
attitudes between men and women and in the way society judges women.
At least in public discourse, men and women in the First World rejected
the idea of subjecting women to this kind of objectified evaluation in terms
of the size of their bust, waist and buttocks and how well they filled a
bikini. The Feminist Movement and women with professional degrees joining
the work force in large
numbers in the last several
decades have contributed
to this transformation.
Sadly, however, this
contest is gaining
feverish attention from
emerging countries like
India and China, and in
Latin America, and parts
Miss Contestants in daring swim suit, 2017.
of less developed parts of Europe. To capture a greater share in high-end
middle class markets in cosmetics and designer apparel, global companies
now sponsor these events in Asia. Never mind that it goes against the
prevailing culture of modest attire in these countries.
With the Second and the Third World aping their Western counterparts
in everything (see the swim suit photoshoot on the next page in the 2017
Miss India contest), here too, I am sure, they will ape the West by scrapping
the bikini contest, going forward.

The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
That is why it is important that Women’s Movements retain the
cultural values of their lands, even as they work towards bringing
fundamental changes to reduce gender-based violence and domestic
abuse.
There is a visual
image associated with
social workers in India.
They are called
jholiwalas and Jholiwalis,
because they
always wear simple
khadi clothes with a
cloth bag slung over
their shoulders. To
Aping the West: Femina’s Miss India contestants, 2017 in
Mumbai.
convey their important
message they always
wear simple cotton
dresses in local designs.
I am glad Miss America 2.0 did away with the swimsuit (bikini) category.
It is time women are judged not only for their attractive looks in
attractive everyday clothes, but also for their wit and intelligence. •
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
India Day on Sunday August 12, 2018
This year’s India Day gala is on Sunday, August 12, 2018 at the usual
venue — the Cathedral of Learning in Oakland — between 12:00 noon and
3:00 PM. There will be a parade (weather permitting), cultural programs,
speeches, food, and lots of items to purchase. The Indian Consul General
from New York will be the main speaker this year. An added attraction this
year is the consular desk that will provide the following consular services
for a nominal fee (payable in Money Order or Cashier’s check).
Services Offered Today Paym ent in U.S. Dollars Details
1. Attestation of Pow er of Attorney $22
2. Attestation of Life Certificate $2 A. If you already have certificate
from Pension Authorities we can
do it on the spot or
B. If not, we will issue it later
3. Attestation of Other Documents
(Passports, Driver’s License)
4. Acceptance / Examination /
Issue of Renunciation
Certificate/Declaration
$12
A. If Naturalization is
before June 1, 2010: $28,
B. If After: $178
Penalty related due to late Passport
Surrender may apply
5. Request for Birth or Marriage or
Police Clearance Certificates
6. Pre-approval of OCI/ Indian
Passports/Visas
$27,
E xcept for Police Clearance
certificate for Passports not
issued by NY Consulate: $42
Free
W ill be m ailed later. Provide pre-paid
envelope or add additional $25 dollars
Submit pre-approved docs to CKGS
(3 rd party processor)
For details, contact Rashmi Koka (412 341 4948) or Vandana
Kekre (412 963 0589)
Kavya, daughter of Bala and Aandi Kumar of Franklin Park, PA,
had her Kuchipudi rangapravesam on
Sunday, April 8, 2018 at the Marshall
Middle School auditorium in the North
Hills in the presence of 500 enthusiastic
invited guests. Kavya studied Kuchipudi
from Kamala Reddy for nearly ten
years. Her recital included, among
other items, krtis from Tyagaraja in
the raga Amrtavarshini; a Tarangam,
unique to Kuchipudi; and Annamayya’s
dasavatara krti “indariki abhayambu.” Kavya’s natural instincts for
rhythm, timings, and pauses made the recital captivating; and her postures
and abhinaya (facial expressions) were chiseled to Kamala Reddy’s wellinterpreted
choreography. A senior at North Allegheny High School,
Kavya is keenly interested in sports, travel, music and dance.— with
inputs from P Sundararaman, Allison Park. •
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
— Paradoxes in the Age of Kali
Nilakantha Dikshitar, a 17 th century Sanskrit Scholar in the Tamil
country, was in the court of the King Tirumalai Nayakkar in Madurai. He
has authored many Bhakti Sanskrit poetic works and also one on Sanksrit
grammar.
His work Kali Vidambanam (Ironies and Paradoxes of the Kali Yuga)
is known for his dripping sarcasm, cynicism and wit. Here are some of his
verses on these types. If you can read the Nagari script and also understand
Sanskrit, you will enjoy it. (Source: Sasi Kiran from the web.)
“I know him!”
“I’ve studied all his books!”
“I’m his direct disciple.”
Using phrases like these, scholars bragged about themselves.
One who wishes to win an argument
Needn’t fear, needn’t try to comprehend,
Needn’t even bother to listen to the opponent.
He just has to retort immediately.
Let the doctor prescribe medicine as he desires, but the diet
prescribed must be hard to follow.
If the patient is cured the doctor can claim credit; and
if not, he can blame it on not following the diet.
Scholars of religious codes of conduct, clairvoyants,
Pandits of the Vedas and scholars of shastras —
Why, even people who have realized Brahman —
All these are easy to find. But, a person who is aware of his own
ignorance is very rare to find. •
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
Come Home To
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Summerset at Frick Park. City Living. Redefined.
Call Melissa Reich Today 412-215-8056
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The Pittsburgh Patrika, Vol, 23, No. 4, July 2018
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