Padmasri. Shobana ........... Beauty Meets Quality!!

Shobana Chandrakumar (Malayalam: ശോഭന; born March 21, 1970) is an exponent of the Bharatanatyam dance and a leading actress of South Indian motion pictures. She was born into a Malayalam speaking family from Kerala, India. Shobana is the niece of the Travancore sisters Lalitha, Padmini and Ragini, all of whom were renowned for their skill in classical Indian dance. She has acted in over 200 movies in 5 languages.
Shobana acted for the first time in a leading role in the Malayalam motion picture "April 18" in 1984, directed by Balachandra Menon. She also acted alongside the Malayalam actor Mammootty in the film Kanamarayathu (1984). Shobana won her first National Film Award for Best Actress from the government of India in 1994 for her performance in Fazil's movie Manichitrathazhu, starring Mohanlal and Suresh Gopi. She bagged a second National award for best actress in the year 2001 for her role in an English language film Mitr, My Friend, directed by Revathi. Revathi is her very close friend, philosopher and guide!

As a Dancer
Shobhana is an accomplished dancer of Bharatanatyam. She did her dance training at the Chidambaram academy in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. Her guru is the legendary Bharatanatyam dancerChitra Visweswaran Shobhana is famed for her Abhinaya, a pivotal element in Bharatanatyam.[citation needed] She performed in Kuala Lumpur before the King and Queen of Malaysia.[citation needed] Shobhana's skilled execution of dance movements and her extraordinary beauty has led many people to consider her as the most beautiful South Indian actress from the 1980s through the 1990s.[citation needed] She is often equaled to the curvaceous beauty of Indian sculptures.[citation needed] Shobhana has founded a school for classical Bharatanatyam dance in Chennai- kalarpana. She was also a part of Mani Ratnam's stage show, Netru, Indru, Naalai. In 1994, Shobana founded Kalarpana. The aim of Kalarpana is to organize annual festivals throughout India. This will include performances of nationally and globally known artistes to help raise funds that will be ploughed back into training talented artistes who are financially insecure. Under its umbrella, Kalarpana extend its support to the handicapped and the environmental movement. [1]
In 2006 January, the Indian government honored Shobana with Padma Shri title for her significant contributions to cinema and Bharatanatyam!

Personal Life
Shobana is the daughter of a doctor, Anandam and the late Mr Chandrakumar- She is single and is involved in her school as well her creative pursuits full time.

The History Of Bangalore!

Bangalore is draped over the Deccan Plateau at an altitude of 949 meters (3113 ft.) above sea level, which gives it possibly the best climate among all the cities in India. Legend has it that Bangalore got its name from the words “Bendha KaaLu” (which means boiled beans in the local language Kannada).

King Veera Ballala of the Vijayanagara kingdom was once lost in a forest and happened to stumble upon a lonely cottage. An old woman that lived there could offer the starving king only boiled beans “Bendha kaaLu” and the place came to be known as “Bendha kaaLu ooru” (ooru in Kannada means a city).

BendhakaaLooru later came to be known as BengaLooru in Kannada and Bangalore in English. However, historical evidence shows that “BengaLooru” was recorded much before King Ballala's time in a 9th century temple inscription in the village of Begur. Even today "BengaLooru" exists within the city limits in Kodigehalli area and is called as "HalebengaLooru" or "Old Bangalore."

The present day city was designed by Kempe Gowda in the year 1537. During one of his hunting bouts, which was his favourite past time, Kempe Gowda was surprised to see a hare chase his dog and thus named the place as "gandu bhoomi" (heroic place). Kempe Gowda I, who was in charge of Yelahanka, built a mud fort in 1537 and with the help of King Achutaraya, built the little towns of Balepet, Cottonpet and Chickpet, all inside the fort. Today, these little areas serve as the major wholesale and commercial market places in the city. Kempe Gowda's son erected the four watch towers to mark the boundaries of Bangalore which are traceable even today and they stand almost in the heart of the present city.

IIn the year 1638, Shahajirao Bhonsle, father of Shivaji, captured the city. In 1687, Aurangzeb's army captured Bangalore and sold it to the Wodeyars for a paltry sum of Rs.300,000. The Wodeyars then built the famous Lal Bagh in 1759, one of Bangalore's most beautifully laid out gardens. In the same year, Hyder Ali received Bangalore as a jagir from Krishnaraja Wodeyar II. He fortified the southern fort and made Bangalore an army town.

When Tipu Sultan died in the 4th Mysore war in 1799, the British gave the kingdom, including Bangalore, to Krishnaraja Wodeyar III but the British resident stayed in Bangalore.
In the beginning of the 19th century, the General Post Office was opened and the Cantonment was established nine years later in 1809. In 1831, alleging misrule by Krishnaraja Wodeyar III, the British took over the administration of the Mysore Kingdom.

Under the British influence, Bangalore bloomed with modern facilities like the railways, telegraph, postal and police departments. The first train was flagged out of the city in 1859 and five years later in 1864, the lovely Cubbon Park was built by Sankey. The end of the century saw the building of Attara Kacheri and the Bangalore Palace. The 20th century saw the arrival of the first motorcar in the city. In 1881, the British returned the city to the Wodeyars. Dewans like Sir Mirza Ismail and Sir M Visveswaraya were the pioneers to help Bangalore attain its modern outlook.

From then on, the city has grown in magnitudes, emerging into what you see and know of today. Bangalore is India's fifth largest and the fastest growing city in Asia!

Abhinav Bindra wins first ever Individual Olympic Gold Medal for India

The Big Breaking News! India's ace shooter Abhinav Bindra created history by winning the first ever individual Olympic Gold Medal for the country. It's Abhinav Bindra, Abhinav Bindra all over the Beijing shooting range. Abhinav won the gold in 10m Air Rifle event. Abhinav Bindra scored 700.5 points in the final.
Although India had won 8 gold medals in Olympics hockey, it never won any individual gold medals. This is the first time any Indian won a gold medal in an individual event. The last time India had won an Olympic gold medal was in 1980 Moscow Olympics where the hockey team had claimed the gold. The entire country erupted into joy and celebration when the reports of Abhinav Bindra's great victory flashed across the television channels.
It has been a great moment for all Indians that have been dreaming for this for decades. Emotions were high in India, as tearful people stood up when the national anthem was played in the Olympic Stadium at Beijing.
President Pratibha Patil, PM Manmohan Singh, Congress President Sonia Gandhi, BJP leader LK Advani, Sports Minister MS Gill, IOA President Suresh Kalmadi and all leaders and high level sports officials have congratulated Abhinav Bindra for making the country proud. Maharashtra CM Vilasrao Deshmukh announced a cash reward of Rs. 10 lakh for Bindra. Haryana government has announced a cash reward of Rs. 25 lakh for Abhinav Bindra. In addition, he will get rewards worth Rs. 5 lakh from MP government and a 'lifetime golden pass' from Indian Railways.
The Punjab government will give Rs. 1 crore to Abhinav Bindra for his marvelous feat. It was announced by Punjab CM Prakash Singh Badal. The Bihar government has announced a cash reward of Rs. 11 lakh for him. Bihar Government will also name a sports complex after Bindra. Cricket Board BCCI has also announced a cash reward of Rs. 25 lakh for Abhinav Bindra. It's cash and money that are being showered on Bindra after his glorious performance at Beijing.
Abhinav Bindra owed his gold medal to his parents, family and coaches. After winning the gold medal, Bindra said that he hopes that his medal would change the face of Olympics Sports in India. He also said that he became very aggressive, as he had entered the final as fourth. A proud nation salutes its great Hero. Hats off to Abhinav Bindra!