81ST OSCAR AWARD WINNING PHOTOS

A.R.Rahman's Live Tunes in Chennai

Herbie Hancock, a Grammy award winner, and AR Rahman are currently conducting a musical exploration in India with Martin Luther King's successor.A.R. Rahman as well as Jazz player Herbie Hancock, a Grammy award winner, will get together for a mega musical performance based on the motto of nonviolence in Chennai on the 24th of February 2009. Hancock who is part of the official US delegation accompanying Martin Luther King III on a 11-day tour of India would perform on a special composition by Rahman the theme of non violence. Performing with Hancock include a vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewaters, artist Chaka Khan and grand piano player George Duke."I absolutely loved the music of Slumdog. It combines the influence of several cultures," Hancock said referring to the British Danny Boyle rags-to riches film with music by A R Rahman which is in the running for multiple Oscars this year.

JADE GOODY WEDDING ON SUNDAY

British reality television star Jade Goody, who has terminal cancer, is to get married on Sunday, having made up her mind to "walk down that isle".The 27-year-old mother of two, who was told last week that she has just months to live, has left London's Royal Marsden Hospital in a wheelchair to exchange engagement rings with her lover Jack Tweed, 21, on the banks of the river Thames.Goody's friend and publicist Max Clifford said, "I spoke to Jade last night and it is all on for Sunday."The couple are hoping to get married at the plush Down Hall country house, in Hatfield Heath, Hertforeshire - a hotel housed in an Italian-style mansion dating back to 1322.Goody told The Sun: "I am going to die in this hospital, so I don't want to get married here.""But wherever we tie the knot, I'm determined to walk down that aisle."She said she has "lost my balance", which the doctors were not sure was a sign of her illness or just general weakness."But I'm hoping I will have the strength to walk on my big day. It would be so cruel to be robbed of that one last thing as well," Goody added.Goody and Tweed visited the upmarket Harrods store, where the bride-to-be picked out a wedding dress, a gift from the store's owner Mohamed Fayed."This has given her something to think about, a happy event."The wedding, the christening of her two boys, these are all positive things to focus on as opposed to the cancer and what is happening to her and what she is going through."Clifford said the star also picked out Armani suits for her two sons, Bobby, five, and Freddie, four.Goody, who became embroiled in a race row with Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty in January 2007, was diagnosed with her cervical cancer last August, which has since spread to her liver, bowels and groin.

WEIGHT LOSS TIPS

Tried everything, from long walks to Atkins diet, but still not able to squeeze into your college pants? Well, take heart, for it has been claimed that eating two bowls of cereal a day could help obese people lose weight.According to a new study carried out by experts at Oxford Brookes University, which consisted of 41 people, suggested that people who eat cereal for two out of their three daily meals could lose more than 4lb in six weeks.To reach the conclusion, the research team asked volunteers to eat only cereal for breakfast and lunch but allowed them to have whatever they wanted for dinner.They found that those who combined different varieties of cereal lost most weight but many of those who stuck to one type also weighed less by the end.The study published by the British Nutrition Foundation found that two thirds of those who ate a single cereal and 78 per cent of those who opted for a combination had lost weight by the end of the period.While those on a combined diet lost an average of 4.4lb, those who stuck to their favourite brand lost only 1.3lb."The results of this study are very interesting and further evidence of the benefits of breakfast cereal as part of a weight-management programme," the Telegraph quoted Lynne Garton, a nutritionist, as telling the Daily Express."Breakfast cereals are easy to incorporate into the diet and can contain substantial amounts of fibre, iron, folic acid and zinc as well as being low in fat.

PRABHU DAUGHTER WEDDING PHOTOS

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World to celebrate Valentine's Day with Indian roses

Come Valentine's Day, thousands of lovers across the globe, including in Europe and Australia, will exchange 'I Love You' greetings with 'Made in India' roses.Besides the roses in red, yellow and other hues, the much-hyped "Taj Mahal", a new variety of deep rose, will make its presence felt for the first time during Valentine's Day which falls on February 14.Tanflora Floriculture Infrastructure Park, a Tamil Nadu Government enterprise, plans to export about 10 million cut and Taj Mahal roses across the globe for this year's Valentine's Day."The roses are being exported to Europe, Australia and countries in Middle East and Far East. These roses will be sent to them a week before the Valentine's Day," Tanflora Managing Director Najeeb Ahmed said in Chennai.The demand for roses during this season is increasing day by day. Besides the other usual variety of roses, demand for Taj Mahal brand is high.Roses are always in high demand during the Valentine's Day season every year as more and more people express their affection towards their love through a rose, which is seen a symbol of love.Tanflora, which operates from Hosur, located near Bangalore, had exported 1 million cut roses in 2007 during the Valentine's Day and has sent 3 million flowers to markets across the globe last year.Tanflora Infrastructure Park Ltd grows roses in a 200 acre farm in Amudhagondapalli village in Hosur in Tamil Nadu.Europe, Japan, South-east Asia, Australia, Middle East, Russia and CIS countries are major markets for Tanflora, which has marketing offices in London, Frankfurt, Tokyo, Sydney and Dubai.Ahmed said the global economic meltdown did not affect the export of roses."Personally... I feel there is no impact of the economic slowdown. We will achieve our target of exporting 10 million roses.Red Giant, Red Horizon, Red Corvette, Happy Hour, Passion Royal Class, Red Palace, Bohemia, Discovery, Gold Strike, Rimini High Society, Tenga Venga Bugatti, King Fihser, Apricot Kiwi and Avalanche Classic and Duett are some of the varieties which are exported to the foreign markets throughout the year, especially during the Valentine's Day.Asked about the price of the roses, Ahmed said it depends on the varieties and the place where the rose is sold."The price of the flower depends on the variety. The price will differ from place to place. The nominal price is also one reason why foreign countries like flowers from India.The 'Taj Mahal' variety of red rose, named after the famous 17th century monument of love, was launched in Australia and London last year.The roses are grown by 25 grower-investors in each of their 5 acre green houses. The processing, packaging and marketing of the roses from all the 25 green houses is done centrally by Tanflora at its world class Central Packaging Hall at the farm.The exclusive rose variety is known for its unique colour, shape, vase life, stem length and overall vigour and is a hit among buyers in Australia and Europe.