Mumbai masala Newsletter for the Los Angeles Mumbai Sister City Affiliation

Website: www.sistercitiesofla.com/page1/page46/page46.html

PAMELA WRONA, EDITOR/DESIGNER

Dear Mumbai Mates, The recent Oscar season brought plenty of celebri-ties to Hollywood, including acclaimed Bollywood actor Anupam Kher, who flew in from Mumbai and walked the red carpet with the cast of the multi Oscar-nominated film, “Silver Linings Playbook.” Kher, who has more than 400 films to his credit, plays psychiatrist Dr. Cliff Patel in the film. So we were delighted that before he departed LA, we were able to invite him to LA City Hall and honor him with a Proclamation. The presentation was made by Councilman Tom LaBonge, who also serves as the chairperson of Sister Cities of Los Angeles. Kher is also committed to philanthropy in India and serves as brand Ambassador for two non-profit organizations — Pratham and Shiksa — both dealing with children’s education. We are thankful to our supporters who attended our Diwali 2012 dinner in October. Your efforts helped us send part of the proceeds to Americares and they have applied our funds to their Mobile Medical Program in the urban slums of Mumbai. The program is now in its second year, with more than 60,000 patient consultations from two vans riding a circuit and serving two catchment areas. We have exciting events planned for this year, including an Indian cooking session in the spring and a Mumbai trip planned for January 2014. We thank you for your continued interest and support. Namaste!

Mira Advani Honeycutt Chairperson, LA Mumbai Sister City

Spring 2013 Issue

Flanked by Mira Advani Honeycutt and

LA City Councilman Tom LaBonge,

Anupam Kher displays his Proclamation.

Kher shares another photo op with

Mumbai board member and

food writer Barbara Hansen

MANGO KULFI If you love the Indian ice creams at Smita Vasant’s Saffron Spot, then try her recipe for mango kulfi. It’s not the kulfi that she serves at the ice cream shop, but an easy version to make at home. Ideally, you would freeze it in cone-shaped kulfi molds, but if you don’t have those, Smita suggests using paper drink cups. Or just put the ice cream in freezer containers and scoop it out. What makes kulfi different from supermarket ice creams is that no air is beaten in. It’s just solid, delicious, creamy goodness all the way through. SMITA VASANT’S MANGO KULFI 1 pint whipping cream 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk 1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk 2 cups canned mango puree (from an Indian market) In a large bowl, combine the whipping cream, the condensed and evaporated milks and the mango puree. Using a wire whisk, blend well. Pour the mixture into kulfi molds, paper drink cups or freezer containers and freeze until solid. Turn out of the molds onto individual plates, cut into slices and serve. Makes 6 ½ cups ice cream mixture, or 12 to 15 servings, depending upon the size of the molds used. Story and photos courtesy of Barbara Hansen

Smita Vasant, owner of Saffron Spot

in Artesia, shows off some of the

shop’s delectable mango kulfi.

Diwali dinner November 2012 naya restaurant, silverlake

L to R: LA Mumbai Sister City Board members Kirk Honeycutt, Pamela Wrona, Mira Advani Honeycutt,

Kishore Vasant and Smita Vasant

We were delighted that French Consul General Axel Cruau and his wife Douréne Cassam-Chenai

attended our Diwali celebration!

Diwali dinner wines sponsored by

Raymond Vineyards, Napa Valley

and JCB Sparkling Wine

from Burgundy

Dancer Anvita Kohli

Shumon Mamoon

was one of our raffle

drawing winners

More Diwali...

L to R: Rosemary Brandenburg, Lynn Gertenbach, and Michael and Marianne Murphy

LA Mumbai Sister City Board members Cliff Meyer and Cathy Root

Diwali kids Maya and Marco Tartaglia and Rahul Yates

Diwali glamour!

Henna master Hemangi Prajapati creates an intricate design for Barbara Bottner

Sister Cities Celebrate Cultural Day at The Grove

Bollywood legend Gulshan Grover, seen

here with LA councilman Tom La Bonge

and Mumbai Sister City Chairperson Mira

Advani Honeycutt, speaks to the crowd

gathered to enjoy May’s Cultural Day

festivities at The Grove.

INDIAN CINEMA: KAHAANI Reviewed by Cathy Root and Cliff Meyer

Kahaani (2012) is a great Hindi suspense film with lots of twists and turns. On the

eve of the Durga Puja festival, Vidya Bagchi, seven months pregnant, comes to

Kolkata, determined to find her missing husband Arnab. The city is still reeling

from the unsolved mystery of a biological terrorist attack on its subway system

months earlier and consequently, when Vidya goes to the police to enlist their help,

they discount her story and urge her to return home to London. A computer wizard

by trade, Vidya uses her skills to conduct her own investigation. Aided by a few

sympathetic police officers, she uncovers the circumstances surrounding Arnab’s

disappearanceas we are drawn into this densely designed thriller, in which things

are not what they first appear to be.

Starring Vidya Balan, the DVD is available with English subtitles from Amazon or Netflix.

Opportunities for Indian Classical Music Lovers The Music Circle, at Herrick Chapel on the campus of Occidental College, continues its monthly concerts of Indian classical music: March 23: Aashish Kahn on Sarod and Swapan Chaudhuri on Tabla April 13: Uday Bhawalkar, Dhrupad Vocal and Pratap Awad, Pakhawaj May 4: FESTIVAL 2013 For tickets and additional information, visit www.musiccircle.org

LOVE INDIAN FILMS?

Mark your calendars for the 2013 Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles, taking place

April 9–14 at the Hollywood ArcLight.

For more information, visit www.indianfilmfestival.org.