2009: A Year Of Great Hopes And Expectations

It’s January,2009 and the New Year has arrived. Most people on this planet would have never experienced an year like 2008. Whether it was the employee, the businessman, the student or even the housewife the last half of 2008 had an impact on everyone. But let’s not discuss the bad things of 2008, most people were happy to see the end of it.

2009, the last year of the first decade of the 21st Century(considering 2000 as the first year) has on it’s shoulders a huge burden of setting things right and establishing a new world order. 2009 is a very important year for the entire world and the focus shall be on restoring the Economy and establishing world peace. Barrack Obama steps into the Oval Office a few weeks from today and the whole world has their eyes on him. The theme of 2009 is therefore a more peaceful and more united world with a balanced economy.

Here’s Wishing all the readers of DelhiPlanet a Very Peaceful And Prosperous

The Planet Wishes You A Happy And Prosperous Diwali

“Times are tough, Get Real Or Go Home“, seems to be the word that’s going around these days. We’re surely living in highly uncertain and difficult times now, but as the saying goes when the going gets tough the tough get going.

Diwali is a time when we let go of our all worries and look forward to a new start. So here’s Wishing Everyone A Very Happy And Prosperous Diwali. Hopefully good times will be back soon.

We would also like to recap our Special Diwali Issue that was published last year that talks about Superman’s Gift To India On Diwali. Check it out below.

Tags: diwali, festival, joy, lights, crackers, fun, tough, puja, lakshmi

The Festival Of Colors – Enjoy, Celebrate and Make A Change

Delhi Planet wishes all it’s readers and everyone out there A Very Happy And Colorful HOLI.

While we all celebrate and let our hair down in this mania of colors,let us also spare a thought for the less fortunate people of society who are not lucky enough to see and enjoy colors. let’s try to make a difference to society in whatever way we can. Checkout the video below, you’ll surely be touched.

Tags: holi, festival, colors, enjoy, less, bhang, food, fun

(We associate ourselves with GiveIndia.org and encourage you too use this medium to do your bit for society. You can read more about it here. )

It’s Jingle Bells Time – Some Kewl Facts About Christmas

Once again it’s that time of the year when people all across the world drown themselves in the spirit of bacchanalian revelry, forget all their worries and let their hair down all the way till the new year. This period of festivity starts off with Christmas day on 25^th December, followed by Boxing Day(Saint Stephen’s Day) on 26^th Dec, Saint John the Evangelist’s Day on Dec 27^th and culminates with the grand new year celebration on 31^st December.

If you live in India then you are fortunate to be in a country which is extremely diverse having people belonging to all kinds of religions and faiths. And one of the biggest advantages of this is that you get to celebrate a lot of festivals. So even though, christmas in India is not anywhere close to Diwali there still is a feeling of gaiety in the air, with more and more people celebrating this festival now. Many Indians settled in other countries usually come back during this period and enjoy the holiday season with their loved ones.

So while you enjoy this lovely day with kids, santa and your loved one’s you might want to take some time out and read about some interesting christmas facts. Given the fact that you would be attending a lot of christmas parties today, knowing these facts would surely help you to show off your mighty brain. So let’s check out a few:

• Christmas day is generally associated with the Birth of the Lord Jesus Christ, however it’s a little known fact that December 25^th was not celebrated as the birth of christ till 440 A.D
• In 1647, the English parliament passed a law that made Christmas illegal. Christmas festivities were banned by Puritan leader Oliver Cromwell, who considered feasting and revelry on what was supposed to be a holy day to be immoral. Anybody caught celebrating Christmas was arrested. The ban was lifted only when the Puritans lost power in 1660.
• Did you know that Christmas trees are edible. Many parts of pines, spruces, and firs can be eaten. The needles are a good source of vitamin C. Pine nuts, or pine cones, are also a good source of nutrition.
• “Jingle Bells” was first written for Thanksgiving and then became one of the most popular Christmas songs.
• In UK, it was the custom to eat goose at Christmas until Henry VIII decided to tuck into a turkey. 93 per cent of the population in the UK will eat turkey on Christmas Day; this means 11 million turkeys being cooked!
• During the Christmas buying season, Visa cards alone are used an average of 5,340 times every minute in the United States.

Now we sure hope that you are more christmas enlightened now.

The DelhiPlanet Team would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Let the Jingle Bells Rock !!!

Tags: merry, festivals, celebration, christmas, santa, jingle, bells

What Did Superman Give India This Diwali ?

It’s Diwali, the “Indian Festival Of Lights“. A time when people all across the country and Indians all across the globe adorn their houses with lights and lamps. It’s a day which people celebrate with great fervour and enthusiasm and is one of the biggest festivals in the country.

In the 21^st century this festival continues to carry forward its religious and cultural significance. While the festival is supposed to have originated to commemorate the homecoming of King Rama of Ayodhya, after a 14-year exile in the forest (thus the people of Ayodhya welcomed him back by lighting up rows of lamps), today it has become an event where people exchange gifts and pray for a better and brighter future. The lights and lamps are supposed to signify the uplifting of darkness and victory of good over the evil within.

And then there is Superman, the great american hero who embodies the noble american virtues of honesty, patriotism and chivalry. Superman is superhuman and possesses god-like powers which he uses to good effect while battling numerous villians and super-villians in the universe.

Now, wait a minute, Lord Rama and Superman, isn’t there something similar between these two. There certainly is. Both of them are superhuman but lead ordinary lives as normal humans(superman spends his time as Clark Kent, a reporter at the Daily Planet when he’s not crime-fighting). Both of them fight villians and monsters(rakshasas) to ensure world-peace. While lord rama has billions of worshippers all over the world, superman too has millions of fans across the globe. So maybe for a while we can assume that Superman is infact the modern day Lord Rama.

So what would happen if Superman visited India around the festival of Diwali. Well, he wouldn’t be welcomed the way Lord Rama was, but he would certainly use his powers to enjoy this diverse and mystical land. And maybe, he would even give India a diwali gift.

On the occasion of Diwali, DelhiPlanet is very proud to showcase the DelhiPlanet Comic Strip. A short story on Superman’s discovery of India which ends with his gift to the country (See below, click on each image to see the larger version).

Well you probably know the answer to the post title now.

DelhiPlanet has over the past 11 months aimed to emulate Superman’s Newspaper and has in the process published close to 150 articles on a gamut of topics ranging from news, current affairs, trivia, little known facts to travel tips, travelogues, stock tips, movie reviews, event reviews and much more. Our endeavour is simply to keep you informed and to try and make a difference to the world that we live in.

Here’s wishing you and your family a very Happy, Bright and Safe Diwali.

Note: We will back next month with a new set of informative articles and stories, so do check us out.

The DelhiPlanet Comic Strip was conceptualized, designed and created by DelhiPlanet and reproduction in full or in part without prior permission is prohibited. If you wish to spread the word, kindly link to the post.

DelhiPlanet is best viewed with a resolution of 1280 X 800 or more.

6 Decades Of Freedom – 6 Icons to Look Upto

15^th August, 2007, India Celebrates it’s Diamond Anniversary of Independence. While there is still a long, long way to go before the country begins to sparkle like a diamond(like it did in the past uptill the 17th century A.D ) the citizens of the country can surely take a day to look back at all that has happened and look forward to all that needs to be done, to regain the country’s past glory. This day is also a celebration of freedom, something without which no organism can live in peace.

While the country still battles illiteracy, poverty, crime, poor infrastructure and shortage of essential services there is one resource that it has no shortage of, it’s vast pool of “human resource“. Although it is really important to control the population explosion, the excess population is also an advantage. The youth population in India is one of the highest in the world and thus we have the potential to become one of the world’s leading superpowers. It is however sad to see that there are very few icons for the youth to look upto.

DelhiPlanet takes a look at 6 such icons, who have made the country proud at some point in the past 60 years. While everyone should strive to express his/her own individuality and creativity one can take inspiration from these great men/women and try and do their bit for the nation.

Mahatama Gandhi

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi better known across the world as Mahatama Gandhi was the main driver of the Indian Freedom Struggle. His concept of using non-violence as a weapon against the opponent was truly unique and different from the normal violent clashes. New Age India has once again awakened to Gandhian principles now better known as GandhiGiri(thanks to Munnabhai and his team).

So let’s drop our egos and take to GandhiGiri to solve our problems, it’ll surely make us much more friendlier and progressive.

Mother Teresa

Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu better known across the world as Blessed Mother Teresa was born in Macedonia to albanian parents but died as an indian mother to thousands of poor and sick people in the country. She is recognised for her selfless humanitarian work across the world and is one of the few indians that the nation can be proud of.

Like Mother, let us not only think about ourselves and pursue materialistic pleasures at all times, but let’s also try to make a difference to society. No matter how small your contribution is, it would always make a difference to someone.

N R Narayana Murthy

He can probably be called the Bill Gates of India and is responsible for creating one of the largest Software Services Companies in the country. Narayana Murthy’s Infosys Technologies today employs more than 50,000 people and has played a vital role in improving the economic strength of the country with good jobs for thousands of graduates.

Mr. Murthy is a great visionary who despite being the co-founder of a multi-billion dollar organization remains very simple,humble and down to earth. Let us try to dream big and achieve great things for the country while still remaining friendly, humble and thankful for everything. Being rich and famous doesn’t give anyone the right to demean others.

APJ Abdul Kalam

Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam better known to the world as Dr.APJ Abdul Kalam is one of India’s greatest scientific minds and was recently also voted as being the one of the greatest presidents of the country. Kalam has received honorary doctorates from as many as thirty universities and has been honored by the Government of India with multiple civilian honors namely: the Padma Bhushan in 1981; the Padma Vibhushan in 1990; and the Bharat Ratna in 1997.

Mr. Kalam teaches us to think and act for the progress of the nation, and truly believes that India can be a developed nation by the year 2020.

E Sreedheran

E Sreedharan also known as Metro Man, has given Delhi what no other political leader or businessman could ever give since the country gained independence. A quick,clean and efficient means of transport. The Delhi Metro is a world class metro system similar to the one’s in many other developed nations like Singapore, Spain, Austria and many others.

He was awarded with the Chevalier de la Legion d’Honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honour) by the government of France, Padma Shri by the Government of India and Man Of The Year by The Times Of India. Mr Sreedheran teaches us how to go about our jobs in an efficient manner seeking satisfaction in the work and nothing else. He also teaches us to stick to our beliefs and do what you feel is right. Although he is the Head of the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation he earns only about $1500 a month, and had to overcome government politics and bureaucracy to get the freedom to work in the way he desired(Read the article I don’t budge just to please somebody else. When politicians find they can’t interfere, they respect).

Sachin Tendulkar

Sportsman Spirit, Never Say Die Attitude, Handling Immense Pressure in the most trying circumstances, it is these qualities that the nation’s favorite son Sachin Tendulkar stands for. Sachin has given us hundreds of moments to cherish and feel proud of being an Indian. And yet, we choose to talk of dispensing with him and sacking him when he sometimes runs into a lean patch.

DelhiPlanet salutes these great men and all the others who have contributed to the success of the Nation in the past 60 years.

Here’s Wishing All the Indians out there a Very Happy Independence Day.

Tags: india, independence, sachin, sreedharan, mother, teresa, gandhi, infosys, murthy, kalam

It’s Holi-Day

Delhi Planet wishes all it’s readers and everyone out there A Very Happy And Colorful HOLI.

While we all celebrate and let our hair down in this mania of colors,let us also spare a thought for the less fortunate people of society who are not lucky enough to see and enjoy colors. Checkout the video below, you’ll surely be touched.

Valentine’s Day – Our Search and The Economics

Delhi Planet wishes all it’s readers (with and without their valentine) a Very Happy Valentine’s Day. It is said that “Behind every successful man there is a woman” ( who may or may not be his wife). Therefore keeping in mind this old saying Delhi Planet too is looking for it’s very own Ms.Lois Lane. So if you are a young,smart,outgoing and sassy delhi gal in sync with the latest and most happening events then do let us know and you might just see yourself in this picture.

The past few years have seen V-day become a major event in India and can be considered to be a global festival with millions of people across the globe celebrating it with great enthusiasm and fervour.Thus giving rise to a new term “Valentine Economics”. There’s no suprise then that the consumer segment witnesses a boom with the arrival of V-Day. Discounts,special offers, free treats etc become common place and the mood becomes similar to that of any indian festival. Now if you are planning to meet your valentine with a beautiful red rose in hand then you might want to think again. Sales of fresh flowers increases by over 48% on V-day and so does the cost. Valentine’s Day is celebrated on the same day worldwide therefore over 55 million roses – mostly red – are traded on this one day alone and if there’s anyone who makes a killing it’s your local “phoolwala” (flower vendor).

So the advice for all you couples out there is to treat everyday as valentine’s day because a rose is rose no matter what the day be.

Delhi Planet Wishes You a Merry Christmas

The Title on the left pretty much conveys the intent of this post. “Today is Christmas,Happy Holidays“

The video below(posted by the Summers Family) is really what Christmas is all about.

So here’s Wishing everyone a Warm and Funfilled Christmas from Delhi Planet.