Delhi

The Rashtrapati Bhavan or The Official Residence of the Head of the State is the official residence of the President of India, located at Raisina... Hill in New Delhi, India. Until 1950 it was known as "Viceroy's House" and served as the residence of the Viceroy and Governor-General of India. It is amidst an area known as Lutyens' Delhi. The construction of the building was planned for 4 years, but World War I intervened and construction required 19 years to complete. Its first occupant, Lord Irwin, moved into the premises on January 23, 1931. During the Delhi Durbar year of 1911, it was decided that the capital of India would be relocated from Calcutta to Delhi. This was announced on December 12 by King George V. As the plan for New Delhi was developed, the Governor-General's residence was given an enormous scale and prominent position. The British architect Edwin Landseer Lutyens, a major member of the city-planning process, was given the primary architectural responsibility. The palace developed very similarly to the original sketches which Lutyens sent Herbert Baker from Simla on June 14, 1912.
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The India Gate is the national monument of India. Situated in the heart of New Delhi, the India Gate was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, inspired by... the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. It was built in 1931. Originally known as the All India War Memorial, it is a prominent landmark in Delhi and commemorates the 90,000 soldiers of the Indian Army who lost their lives while fighting for the Indian Empire, or more correctly the British Raj, in World War I and the Third Anglo-Afghan War. It is composed of red and pale sandstone and granite. Originally, a statue of George V of the United Kingdom stood under the now vacant canopy in front of the India Gate, but it was removed to Coronation Park together with other statues. Following India's independence, the India Gate became the site of the Indian Army's Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, known as Amar Jawan Jyoti . Until the 1920s, the Old Delhi Railway Station served the entire city and the Agra-Delhi railway line cut right through what is today called Lutyens' Delhi and the site earmarked for the hexagonal All-India War Memorial , on Kingsway .
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Gurudwara Bangla Sahib is the most prominent Sikh gurdwara, or Sikh house of worship, in Delhi, known for its association with the eighth Sikh Guru,... Guru Har Krishan, and the pond inside its complex, known as the "Sarovar", whose water is considered holy by Sikhs and is known as "Amrit". It was first built as a small temple by Sikh General, Sardar Bhagel Singh in 1783, who supervised the construction of nine Sikh shrines in Delhi in the same year, during the reign of Mughal Emperor, Shah Alam II. It is situated near Connaught Place, New Delhi and is instantly recognisable by its stunning golden dome and tall flagpole, Nishan Sahib. Gurdwara Bangla Sahib was originally a bungalow belonging to Raja Jai Singh, an Indian ruler in the seventeenth century, and was known as Jaisinghpura Palace, in Jaisingh Pura, an historic neighbourhood demolished to make way for the Connaught Place, shopping district. The eighth Sikh Guru, Guru Har Krishan resided here during his stay in Delhi in 1664. During that time, there was a smallpox and cholera epidemic, and Guru Har Krishan helped the suffering by giving aid and fresh water from the well at this house.
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The Bahá'í House of Worship in New Delhi, India, popularly known as the Lotus Temple due to its flowerlike shape, is a Bahá'í... House of Worship and also a prominent attraction in Delhi. It was completed in 1986 and serves as the Mother Temple of the Indian subcontinent. It has won numerous architectural awards and been featured in hundreds of newspaper and magazine articles. Like all other Bahá'í Houses of Worship, the Lotus Temple is open to all regardless of religion, or any other distinction, as emphasized in Bahá'í texts. The Bahá'í laws emphasize that the spirit of the House of Worship be that it is a gathering place where people of all religions may worship God without denominational restrictions. The Bahá'í laws also stipulate that only the holy scriptures of the Bahá'í Faith and other religions can be read or chanted inside in any language; while readings and prayers can be set to music by choirs, no musical instruments can be played inside. Furthermore no sermons can be delivered, and there can be no ritualistic ceremonies practiced.
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Saif Ali Khan is an known for his work in Bollywood films. He is the son of the cricket player and last titular Nawab of Pataudi, late Mansoor Ali... Khan Pataudi, and actress Sharmila Tagore, a great-grandniece of poet Rabindranath Tagore. Having made his acting debut in 1992 with Parampara, Khan had his first success with the 1994 films Main Khiladi Tu Anari and Yeh Dillagi. After going through several years of decline throughout the 1990s, he rose into prominence with his performance in Dil Chahta Hai , which marked his professional turning point. His work in Kal Ho Naa Ho won him the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor, and he was awarded the National Film Award for Best Actor for his performance in Hum Tum . Khan subsequently had further mainstream success with films like Salaam Namaste and Race and starred in critically acclaimed projects such as Parineeta , Being Cyrus and Omkara . In 2009, Khan branched out into film production with his company Illuminati Films's first film Love Aaj Kal which became a box-office success.
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Simi Garewal is an Indian actress. She is known for her work in Do Badan, Saathi, Mera Naam Joker, Siddhartha and Karz. Simi Garewal was born in... Delhi. Her father, J S Garewal served in the army rising to the rank of brigadier. Simi grew up in England and studied at Newland House School with her sister Amrita. After spending much of her childhood in England, Garewal returned to India while a teenager. It was her felicity with the English language that induced the makers of the English-language film Tarzan Goes to India to offer her a role. A gangly 15-year-old at the time, Garewal made her debut alongside Feroz Khan in this film in 1962. Her performance here was good enough for her to receive many more film offers, and during the 1960s and '70s, she worked in several notable Indian films, working with leading directors such as Raj Kapoor in Mera Naam Joker , Satyajit Ray in Aranyer Din Ratri , Mrinal Sen in Padatik and Raj Khosla in Do Badan. She also starred opposite Shashi Kapoor in Columbia Pictures' Siddhartha, an English-language movie based on the novel by Herman Hesse.
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Raghubir Yadav is a two-time international award winner Indian stage, film and television actor, music composer, singer and set designer. Yadav... performed as an actor and singer in over 70 plays and about 2500 shows, travelling in caravans, living in tents and performing on makeshift stages in villages, towns and cities of India with the Parsi Theatre Company . He was with the Rangoli Puppet Theatre, Lucknow , performing with glove puppets. At the National School of Drama Repertory , he acted in about 40 plays in over 2000 shows. He has also contributed to music, sets, costumes and masks. He made his film debut with Massey Sahib in which Yadav played the title role. Incidentally he has never won the National Award but two International Awards as Best Actor for Massey Sahib, FIPRESCI Critic's Award, Venice Film Festival, 1986 and the Best Actor Silver Peacock, IIFI, 1987. The film also starred the noted writer and social activist, Arundhati Roy. He was seen in many milestone films in the coming decades.
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Soha Ali Khan is a Bollywood actress best known for her role of Sonia in Rang De Basanti for which she also received awards. She is daughter of... veteran Bollywood actress Sharmila Tagore, who is the great-grandniece of noted poet Rabindranath Tagore. Khan was born into the erstwhile princely family of Pataudi. She is a Muslim who has ethnic Pashtun ancestry through her Nawabs-of-Pataudi lineage from her father's side and Bengali Hindu ancestry from her mother's side. Both her father, Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, who died on 22 September 2011 was the Nawab, and paternal grandfather, Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi, are former captains of the Indian cricket team. Her mother, Sharmila Tagore, is a film actress. Her brother Saif Ali Khan is also a Bollywood actor and her sister Saba Ali Khan is a jewellery designer. She attended The British School in New Delhi and Balliol College, Oxford and earned a Masters degree in International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science. Khan is dating actor Kunal Khemu and they are said to be considering marriage in 2012.
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Iqbal Bano , PP was a highly acclaimed female Ghazal singer from Pakistan. She was best known for her semi-classical Urdu ghazal songs and classical... thumris, but also sang easy-listening numbers in 1950s films. Iqbal Bano was born in Delhi, British India. From a young age, she developed a love for music. It was a crucial moment of her life when her friend's father told Bano's father, "My daughters do sing reasonably well, but Iqbal is blessed in singing. She will become a big name if you begin her training." Her father allowed her to study music. In Delhi, she studied under Ustad Chaand Khan of the Delhi Gharana, an expert in all kinds of pure classical and light classical forms of vocal music. He instructed her in pure classical music and light classical music within the framework of classical forms of thumri and dadra. She was duly initiated Gaandaabandh shagird of her Ustad. Ustad Chaand Khan referred her to All India Radio, Delhi, where she sang on the radio. In 1952, aged 17, she married into a land-owning family in Pakistan.
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Nandita Das is an award-winning Indian film actress and director. As an actress, she is known for her performances in Fire , Earth , Bawandar ,... Kannathil Muthamittal and Aamaar Bhuvan . As a director, she is known for her directorial debut Firaaq , which has won a number of national and international awards. She has been awarded the Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the Government of France for her work.. Nandita Das was the first Indian to be inducted into their International Women's Forum's hall of fame. Das was born in New Delhi to noted Indian painter, Jatin Das, an Oriya Hindu Kayastha , and a Gujarati Jain mother named Varsha who is a writer. She went to Sardar Patel Vidyalaya, Lodhi Estate in New Delhi. She received her bachelor's degree in Geography from Miranda House and Master of Social Work from the Delhi School of Social Work. Nandita Das started her acting career with the theatre group Jana Natya Manch. She taught at the Rishi Valley School.
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Ravi Shankar Sharma , often referred to mononymously as Ravi, was an Indian music director, who had composed music for several Hindi and Malayalam... films. After a successful career in Hindi cinema, he took a break from 1970s to 1984, and made a successful comeback under the stage name Bombay Ravi. He died on 7 March 2012 in Mumbai at the age of 86. Ravi was born in Delhi on March 3, 1926. He had no formal training in classical music; instead he learned music from listening to his father sing bhajans. He taught himself to play harmonium and other classical instruments and worked as an electrician to support his family. In 1950 he decided to shift to Bombay and become a professional singer. At first Ravi was homeless, living on the streets and sleeping in Malad railway station at night. In 1952, Ravi was discovered by Hemant Kumar who hired him to sing backing vocals in Vande Mataram from the film Anand Math. Ravi gave several hit songs and received Filmfare nominations for these films: Chaudhvin Ka Chand , Do Badan , Humraaz , Ankhen , and Nikaah . He won Filmfare awards for Gharana and Khandaan .
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Mona "Mo" Best was born in India and is best known as the mother of Pete Best , who was an early member of The Beatles. Mona also had two other... sons, Rory and Vincent "Roag" Best . It was later confirmed that Roag's father was The Beatles' associate Neil Aspinall, although he was not registered as the father on Roag's birth certificate. After moving to Liverpool from India, the Best family claim that Mona pawned all of her jewellery in 1954, and used the money to place a 33–1 bet on a horse named "Never Say Die", and used her winnings to buy a house in 1957. Mona later opened The Casbah Coffee Club in the cellar of the house as a venue for Rock 'n' Roll music. It was planned as a members-only club for her sons and their friends. The club was often referred to as The Casbah Club, or The Casbah. The Quarrymen—John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ken Brown—frequently played at The Casbah instead of the The Cavern Club, which had a jazz-only policy at that time. The Casbah Club cellar—with its original decoration—still exists. In 2006, the property was accorded a Grade II Heritage listing.
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Shahid Kapoor is an Indian actor who appears in Bollywood films. He is also a trained dancer. Starting off his career by working in music videos and... advertisements, Kapoor made his Bollywood debut as a background dancer in Subhash Ghai's Taal . Four years later, he made his acting debut in Ishq Vishk and won a Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut for his performance. Following through with films like Fida and Shikhar , he had his first major commercial success with Sooraj R. Barjatya's Vivah , his biggest commercial success, and followed it up with Jab We Met and Kaminey , both of which earned him Best Actor nominations at the Filmfare ceremony, along with moderate commercial successes such as 36 China Town , Chup Chup Ke and Badmaash Company . Kapoor was born to actor Pankaj Kapoor and actor/classical dancer Neelima Azeem on 25 February 1981. Kapoor's parents divorced when he was 3. After the divorce, he lived with his mother and maternal grandparents in Junaghad. He shared a good relationship with his father and stepmother Supriya Pathak.
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Peter Eardley Sarstedt is an Anglo-Indian singer-songwriter. Sarstedt was born in India and attended Victoria Boys' School in Kurseong, in the... Darjeeling district of West Bengal. His family relocated to England in 1954. He is the younger brother of the 1960s pop star Eden Kane for whom he briefly played bass and the elder brother of pop singer Clive Sarstedt. He is best known for his 1969, UK number one hit, "Where Do You Go To ?"; a portrait of a poor-born girl who becomes a member of the European jet-set. Set to a fake European waltz tune, it reached the top chart position in 14 countries and was a minor hit in the U.S. The song was awarded the 1969 Ivor Novello Award . Other Sarstedt songs include "Beirut", "Take Off Your Clothes", "I Am A Cathedral" and "Frozen Orange Juice" . In the 1980s and 1990s Sarstedt frequently toured the UK as part of the 'Solid Silver '60s' package tours. "Where Do You Go To" was later used in the 2007 Wes Anderson films Hotel Chevalier and The Darjeeling Limited which sparked new interest in Sarstedt's music.
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Uday Chopra is a Bollywood actor, producer, and assistant director. He is the son of Yash Chopra and brother of Aditya Chopra, and worked as an... assistant director on a number of his father's and brother's movies under the Yash Raj Films banner. In 1994, he produced Yeh Dillagi starring Akshay Kumar, Kajol and Saif Ali Khan. He made his acting debut in the movie Mohabbatein. Chopra has mostly done films under his father's production house. He starred in 2004 in the action thriller Dhoom and, in its sequel Dhoom 2, released in 2006. At end of June 2011, there was speculation that Uday was focusing on film direction and had taken a break from acting. He is currently in Los Angeles learning film making at UCLA.
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Madhur Jaffrey CBE is an Indian actress and food writer who introduced the Western world to the many cuisines of India. She was born Madhur Bahadur... in Delhi, British India and was educated at Miranda House . After college, she worked for All India Radio. She then attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, from which she graduated with honors in 1957. She then met and married Indian actor Saeed Jaffrey and moved to New York City. She and Saeed divorced in 1965. They have three daughters, Meera, Zia and Sakina Jaffrey. In 1969, she married Sanford Allen, a violinist with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. She is the aunt of the British journalists Rohit Jaggi and his sister the literary critic Maya Jaggi . Madhur Jaffrey is said to have been responsible for introducing James Ivory and Ismail Merchant.
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