SUNDAY, JANUARY 4, 2015 (PAGE-4)

BOLLYWOOD BUZZ LIFE STYLE Bollywood controversies Selfies become cultural phenomenon From Aamir Khan's nude poster in PK, Preity Zinta's co-owner and former boyfriend Ness Wadia. Zinta filed a molestation complaint against former boyfriend Ness complain against him for allegedly molesting, abusing and Wadia to the political storm caused by Kaum De Heere, threatening her inside Wankhede stadium in South Mum- the year 2014 saw celebrities hogging the limelight with bai. Police launched a probe into the matter and record- their share of controversies. ed the statements of IPL CEO and others even as Wadia rejected the charge as 'false and baseless'. Deepika Padukone had a great year in films but locked horns with a leading daily after it posted her cleavage-bar- ing photo on Twitter. Debutante filmmaker Ravinder Ravi created political storm with his divisive Kaum De Heere, an account of the incidents of 1984 riots. The film was banned in Punjab. Indian film industry's policing authority, the Censor Board, was in a controversy after its CEO Rakesh Kumar was arrested by the CBI for allegedly taking bribes to award clearance certificate to the films. Sonam Kapoor courted trouble for her statement that bad-looking people were considered good actors in Bollywood, on a celebri- ty chat show. The chat show sparked another controversy when Anushka Sharma's fuller lips fuelled speculation that the actress had gone under the knife. The actress attracted negative comments on social networking sites. Anushka denied such speculation in a lengthy tweet, saying she used make-up techniques to make her lips look fuller for her role in Bombay Velvet. The actor further grabbed headlines when she was Clicking selfies became an urban cultural phe- as questioned by Indian cricket team's manager for staying nomenon in India during 2014 leaving auto- campaigns revolving around selfies became the coolest with rumoured boyfriend Virat Kohli during an overseas graphs outdated. Whether it was about flaunting way to connect with the youth. test match series. Declared the 2013 word of the year by Oxford Dictio- In a bizarre incident on TV, music-based reality show a new hairstyle, telling the world about a brush nary, selfie is believed to have coined by an Australian uni- India's Raw Star host and actress Gauahar Khan was with a celebrity, a party with friends or visit to a versity student in 2002. But with the rise of the social net- slapped by an audience member during the shooting of landmark place, clicking selfies was the choice working medium and the high penetration of smartphones, the series' finale for wearing short dresses despite being of millions. a Muslim. The slap video went viral and the actress said When superstar Shah Rukh Khan visited St Xavier's The craze went beyond humans as a she was "hurt and shocked" by the attack but the incident College campus in Kolkata to promote his film Happy New made her stronger. The man identified as Mohammed Akil Year, no one thrusted pen and paper before him for an monkey snatched camera from Mallick (24) is currently in police custody. autograph. Instead the ubiquitous phone was pushed near Makdee star Shweta Basu Prasad saw her name being his face for a click which was immediately shared on the British nature photographer David In a bizarre incident on TV, dragged into a prostitution racket but the actress was lat- Facebook profiles of students. er cleared off the charges. Australian cricketing legend Shane Warne was among Slater and ended up clicking selfies music-based reality show India's Mary Kom star Priyanka Chopra was hit by a contro- the first one to pronounce the death of autographs. In May, Raw Star host and actress Gauahar versy when her property in Versova, which she had leased he tweeted, After doing 5 selfies with people this morning which went viral globally. to a spa owner, was allegedly being used to run a sex rack- before 8am on my morning run/walk I've come to the con- clusion that the autograph is dead!. Khan was slapped by an audience et. The actress also slapped a legal notice on the spa own- the trend caught up only recently. The craze in India mir- er, who is now absconding. A rage across age groups, the cultural phenomenon influenced people from all walks of life - politicians, film- rored the global scene. member during the shooting of The alleged misbehaviour by Salman Khan's body- stars, sportsmen, ordinary folks and even the Pope. Dur- In the Oscar ceremony, host Ellen DeGeneres took a guards during the promotion of Kick saw the photogra- the series' finale for wearing ing the 16th Lok Sabha elections, Narendra Modi led the group selfie with A-listers like Meryl Streep, Jennifer phers boycotting the actor but the issue was resolved dur- trend as his selfies after voting, meeting his mother, etc Lawrence, Brad Pitt and Kevin Spacey. With two million short dresses despite being ing his sister Arpita's wedding. went viral with a huge number of re-tweets. Selfies, which re-tweets it created a world record. UK reported heavy Another actor to face the wrath of photographers com- mean a self-portrait photograph, became the best medi- demand for selfie-sticks' that allow camera phones to be a Muslim. munity was Shraddha Kapoor, who was slammed for being um of self-expression as it promoted a culture of self-love extended up to a metre away for group shots and rude. Sajid Khan's experiment with triple roles saw the and individual identities. panoramic images. The craze went beyond humans as a director's film Humshakals facing a lot of ridicules by the Selfies of inked fingers after voting were popular across monkey snatched camera from British nature photogra- audience and the critics for its regressive and nonsensi- social networking sites. At convocations across IITs, IIMs pher David Slater and ended up clicking selfies which went Aamir, who is known for experimenting with his looks viral globally. in films, appeared nude on the poster of his film PK with cal plot. The controversy on the film began early with and other universities, toppers clicking themselves with actress Bipasha Basu disowning the project before pro- their medals. The selfie trend also threw up awkward moments as only a radio protecting his modesty. The 49-year-old tourists posed for insensitive photographs outside the cafe actor's bold act invited shock, amusement and even a legal motions. Later, Saif Ali Khan too regretted his decision to Selfie-phones having high-resolution front-facing cam- be a part of the film. The year, however, ended on a hap- eras with and those having a 90-degree wide angle were in Sydney where gunmen had held people hostage. Even case. in Haj, conservative clerics raised their voices against pos- While the performance of Zinta's IPL team Kings XI pier note for all Salman and Shah Rukh fans as the two in demand. Data released by the Telecom Regulatory ing in front of the holy site during the annual pilgrimage. Punjab was good in the last season of the cricket extrav- superstars seems to have buried their hatchet once and Authority of India states that there were more than 95 crore Many other critics dismiss selfies for promoting a social aganza, the actors made headlines for her fight with team's for all and displayed a united front on several occasions telephone subscribers in India by the end of September. publicly. Brands were also not left behind in encashing the trend behaviour of narcissism and self-obsession.

BUSINESS HEALTHLINES Smartphones sales to grow in 2015 Children with Congenital Heart Disease When it comes to a big market forcing a crash in the price- command a lion's share of the handset market in India. In the Dr Arvind Kohli hygiene goes a long way toward preventing heart infec- line, India showed its might in the smartphones arena during July-September 2014 quarter, feature phones accounted for 68 tion by reducing the risk of a tooth or gum infection. 2014 with companies launching a plethora of affordable per cent of the total handset sales in India. Congenital heart defects are structural Most children with a congenital heart defect can be ful- devices, but it also embraced the pricey new models of iconic The smartphone market also received a huge fillip from the problems with the heart present at birth. ly active and don't need restrictions. In fact, pediatric car- iPhone with equal enthusiasm. huge uptake of the eCommerce platform. diologists encourage children to be physically active to In the new year, the Indian smartphones market is expect- After a hiatus of nearly two years, US-based Motorola made They result when a mishap occurs dur- keep their hearts fit and to avoid obesity. Such healthful ed to further consolidate its position, before emerging as the a comeback to the Indian market in February this year with the ing heart development soon after con- activities include swimming, bicycling, running, rope jump- world's second biggest market in 2016. launch of its Moto G. The choice of its sales platform was inter- ing and tennis. For a few specific heart conditions, a pedi- "Smartphones as a category is growing at a phenomenal esting. It adopted a completely online sales model partnering ception and often before the mother is atric cardiologist may advise that your child avoid some pace. The Rs 5,000-15,000 category is exploding and we expect eCommerce major Flipkart. aware that she is pregnant. Defects strenuous physical activities and junior varsity or varsity this trend to continue in 2015," Nokia India Sales (Microsoft Since then, many other handset makers have followed that competitive sports. It's best to avoid activities that cause Mobiles Oy subsidiary) Managing Director Ajey Mehta. In 2015, model, launching handsets exclusively through online market- range in severity from simple problems, grunting or straining (medically referred to as a "valsalva there could be more "intense action" in the entry-level smart- places like Snapdeal and Amazon and later introducing the such as "holes" between chambers of maneuver"). This happens when a person bears down phone market as more companies launch affordable handsets, device in the offline market. the heart, to very severe malformations, against a closed throat to increase the strength of arm or aimed at upgrading feature phone users, he added. The year 2014 also saw newer brands, especially of Chi- abdominal muscles. There's often a tendency to do this As per research firm eMarketer, India will exceed 200 mil- nese origin like Xiaomi, Oppo, OnePlus and Vivo, entering Indi- such as complete absence of one or when lifting heavy weights, doing sit-ups, push-ups or chin- lion smartphone users, topping the US as the world's second an market. The most awaited launch was that of Xiaomi, often more chambers or valves. ups, etc., but it may be harmful. Straining causes a sud- referred to as the 'Apple of China'. The Regular medical care is important for company adopted a flash sales model, put- all children, but especially for those with ting few thousand devices on sale on Flip- congenital heart disease. A child with a kart, which Indian consumers lapped up heart defect usually gets through com- within seconds. "We plan to bring in more mon childhood illnesses as quickly and devices - smartphones, Mibands and MiTV as easily as children with normal hearts. to India in 2015. We have an exciting year Sometimes parents think that their child ahead of us," Xiaomi India Head Manu Jain with heart disease will need more med- said. Globally, Xiaomi has managed to rank icine to get through an illness but this among the top five smartphone vendors, is usually not true. Also, your child which includes behemoths like Samsung doesn't need antibiotics to help prevent and Apple, within the short span of its exis- infections with a few notable excep- tence. tions (e.g., children with heterotaxy syn- The brand pull of bigger players is no dromes like asplenia or in some cases longer the key decision making factor for of Digeorge syndrome). Some parents these young customers, he said. While think that giving their child antibiotics Samsung continued to be the market before the child is very sick will prevent leader with 24 per cent share in July-Sep- the illness from getting worse. This also tember quarter, it has seen its share decline isn't true and may make the infection largest smartphone market by 2016, largely on the back of grow- as other players like Micromax and Motorola gained traction. more serious and more likely to be ing penetration of affordable smart mobile devices. Micromax had 20 per cent share, Lava and Karbonn (8 per cent resistant to the antibiotic that's given. Hemant Joshi, a Partner at Deloitte Haskins & Sells, also each) and Motorola (5 five per cent) in the said quarter. Glob- It's best to remember that prevent- said that the affordable devices may remain key going ahead. ally, Microsoft completed its $7.2 billion buyout of Nokia's hand- ing infection starts with good hygiene, "The focus will remain same on Rs 10,000-13,000 price set division, while Lenovo finished the takeover of Motorola good nutrition and common sense. Frequent hand wash- den rise in blood pressure, which adds strain on the heart; range for mass market. The price of smartphones and tablets devices unit from Google. ing (or using water-free hand washes) especially during it increases the pressure in the lungs, which can affect is definitely coming down. Also, there might be price drop of the To cater to the increasing number of tech enthusiasts, who the cold and flu season and avoiding ill contacts is a good blood flow from the body into the lungs; and it often means LTE-enabled smartphones as India is ready for a massive LTE are looking at doing more with their devices, a new brand from way to prevent illness. Try to avoid crowded settings like there's more force on the chest wall, and many congeni- deployment," he said. Micromax called Yu was introduced. China's OnePlus also shopping malls. tal heart patients have surgical scars in the chest that can According to research firm IDC, over 44 million smartphones made its India debut to cater to this growing segment. Your child should have routine care and the standard be damaged, particularly in the first year after surgery. were sold in 2013. Compared to that, handset makers have Another important development in the Indian market was immunizations that your doctor recommends for all chil- Feeding already sold over 59.3 million handsets in the January-Septem- the launch of Google's Android One handsets. Search engine dren. Your child may also need additional immunizations, Healthy babies usually double their birth weight ber 2014 period. giant Google partnered Indian handset makers Micromax, Spice such as the influenza vaccine. If your child has certain between four and five months of age. Infants and children At the beginning of the year, IDC had estimated that total and Karbonn to launch handsets priced Rs 6,399 onwards. heart defects, a special monthly immunization for a cold with congenital heart disease and congestive heart fail- smartphone sales in the country would cross 80.5 million units Unveiled for the first time globally in India, Google is planning virus (RSV) may be recommended during the winter ure or cyanosis (blueness) tend to gain weight more slow- in 2014. "Features and specification are something which can to roll out the programme to bring an affordable smartphone to months. ly. An eight-ounce to one-pound gain in a month may be be matched anytime. It is the design, user interface (UI) and the the masses across markets like Indonesia, Philippines, Pak- Most children with heart defects need periodic heart an acceptable weight gain for a baby with a heart defect. market operating price at which the product can be made avail- istan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka in the coming months. checkups. Usually, they're scheduled more often (days, Parents sometimes think children with congenital heart able, which will entice the consumer to make a choice," IDC "With several new innovations happening on the technical weeks, months) just after the diagnosis or surgery and disease need to eat special diets that are low in fat, simi- Senior Market Analyst Client Devices Karan Thakkar said. front, we will see a host of new devices with evolutionary tech- less often later. For minor conditions checkups may only lar to the low-fat diets recommended for adults with heart BlackBerry India Managing Director Sunil Lalvani is of the nical developments such as increased memory, faster proces- be needed every one to five years. Depending on your disease. In fact, since children with congenital heart dis- view that "digital" consumers are looking to do more and scout sors, higher resolution cameras etc. This will span across var- child's problem, periodic testing may be needed. ease often have poor appetites, high-calorie foods and for a better connected experience both personally as well as ious price brands thus enhancing the range of smartphones Preventing Infective (Bacterial) Endocarditis sacks can play a very important role in providing good professionally with enhanced productivity and collaboration available to Indian customers," Bindal said. * Infective endocarditis (IE - also called bacterial endo- nutrition. Don't restrict fat in the diet, particularly in the first functionalities. "People transitioning or experiencing the initial The key differentiation factor in the future for mobile hand- carditis [BED]) is an infection caused by bacteria that enter two years of life. It's needed to help children grow and stages of mobility will continue to adopt feature rich, popular set brands will include the technology development, service the bloodstream and settle in the heart lining, a heart valve develop properly. That's why lower fat milks (2%, 1 % or devices, in India this in itself is a huge opportunity with in the support and brand reliability, he added. or a blood vessel. fat-free [skim]) aren't recommended until children are two rural areas," he added. A Samsung spokesperson said it expects its sales to con- * Although IE is uncommon, children with some heart years of age or older. Feature phones, despite falling sales volume, continue to tinue to grow robustly in 2015. defects have a greater risk of developing it. Good dental (The author is Heart Surgeon SSH Jammu)