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TECHKNOW FOOD MUSIC WHAT SOCIAL MEDIA DECADENT THE SUNBURN FESTIVAL INFLUENCERS HAD TO SAY CAKES THAT TOP MOVES TO PUNE ABOUT 2016 P2 OUR LIST P3 THIS YEAR P8 Admit two Space, time, and the startup

From attempting a mission to the moon to building a engineering challenges we’ve had to work with, like getting small bike, TEAM METROPLUS looks at ventures that the rover wheels to work on the lunar surface and have made a mark globally this year designing a passive locomotion system,” he Uniphore explains. According to him, the niphore takes the future of space exploration Concert Themed dinner lead when it comes will be fuelled by private to Indian startups companies that dare to push T.M. Krishna will perform To mark the festive season, making global the envelope, though the as part of a series of Taj Coromandel hosts Unews. The company, which support of governments can special performances to themed dinner buffets with created a software to enable never be ruled out. Indus commemorate the 10th various interesting cuisines rural use speech itself has recently secured a anniversary of such as Thai, Colonial and recognition in their native launch contract for its rover Chandralekha, the founder- Middle Eastern. tongues on their phones, was Team Indus from ISRO, ensuring a spot in trustee of SPACES. Date: Till December 30 featured in TIME magazine. the final phase of the Date and Time: December Venue: Anise, Taj Rather, its founder Umesh n December 2017, competition. “In the late 90s, 28, 7.30 p.m. Coromandel Sachdev was — he was named IBangalore-based Team you had Iridium who Venue: SPACES Tel: 6600 2827 one of the 10 Millennials Who Indus intends to launch a launched a global satellite Are Changing the World. In rover with the aim of landing network, and though it did fact, he happens to be the only it on the surface of the Moon not find many takers at the Colour splash Indian and only technologist and beam back images and time, it set the foundation for to have figured in the list that video. The project is India’s the mobile revolution of Artworld showcases the features individuals from all entry into the Google Lunar today. Even companies like work of artists from walks of life. For Chennai- XPRIZE competition, which SpaceX were doing their own around India. based Sachdev, the mention challenged the best technical thing until NASA offered Address: 1/12, was only a step forward in a minds in the world to achieve them a launch contract. So, Ganeshpuram, 3rd Street long journey. this feat. that synergy is important.” Date and Time: Ongoing, Uniphore’s journey began In a chat about the future On the rate of progress in 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. in 2007 when Sachdev and his of space exploration and the space technology, he says, Tel: 2433 8691 co-founder Ravi Saraogi entities that push it forward, “Technological progress has moved to Chennai from Delhi Rahul Narayan, who heads been such that we will make it to work out of the IIT-Madras Umesh Sachdev PHOTO: SHAJU JOHN the team, explains that into outer space relatively incubation centre. Uniphore, conquering space is an act soon, though a Moon base Grill fest according to Sachdev, was a to transform human- According to Sachdev, the co- born out of humanity’s Rahul Narayan; (top) the and then a Mars base will be sort of last attempt at machine interaction, founders envisioned building curiosity to experiment, even rover necessary. Will the A2 hosts a Japanese grill entrepreneurship. “We’d had Uniphore has touched a product with a rural focus. without a specific goal in companies pushing the fest with an exclusive menu. a couple of other ventures millions of lives. Think IVR Today, Uniphore has sight. “The moment you see these are things that happen boundaries now be around Date and Time: Till January that hadn’t worked out. We systems for phone banking, successfully addressed all of Earth in one picture, in multiple lifespans.” then? Possibly not, but 1, open for lunch and dinner were just two men who’d Jan Dhan programmes or language barriers. Now, even you realise how small it is,” About the competition, investment is unlikely to be a Venue: The Park, launched our startup straight customer care services. a farmer in a remote Indian Rahul says, reminiscing which was announced 10 problem.” Nungambakkam out of college. village can carry out financial about mankind’s first years ago, and is set to But is this endeavour a Tel: 4267 6000 So we decided to give our transactions in his language ventures beyond earthly culminate next year after necessity? “Is being in next venture a shot for at Uniphore has via phone. confines, “Space is a natural multiple extensions, Rahul Antarctica necessary?” he least six months. If it didn’t touched millions of The company knew the extension for us, beyond the says that the journey has been counters. “But we’re there Cinema work, we thought we’d go product was working a couple Moon and now Mars. But long and stimulating. “We anyway, and a lot of research back and do either an MBA or lives through IVR of years after inception. And, began by trying to solve a happens there. It is the same Watch as former wrestler get ourselves corporate jobs,” systems for banking, there’s been no looking back Space is a natural technical problem, but over case here. Once a commercial Mahavir Singh Phogat he says. Jan Dhan and since. It now offers 35 global time we’ve expanded and interest is found, private (Aamir Khan) trains his But then, entrepreneurs languages, including dialects, extension for us, whittled away at the list of players will come in and then daughters Geeta (Fatima are just wired differently. customer care and has a presence in South beyond the Moon unknowns, and now the few there is no stopping them,” he Sana Shaikh) and Babita “We gun for something that services East Asia and West Asia as left are regulatory in nature. says, painting a realistic (Sanya Malhotra) to we are intent on.” And this well. “We are now working and now Mars There isn’t enough literature picture of mankind’s journey follow in his footsteps in one paid off. towards making our presence about lunar conditions and into the unknown. Dangal. Today, with over 70 felt in the Americas and there is also a lot of deliberate SOORAJ RAJMOHAN enterprise customers, and a Europe,” he says. misinformation. There are software that enables speech RANJANI RAJENDRA ,, also a lot of unique Continued on page 2 Ashwin bats for cricket film

The cricketer might be cast in part three of Chennai 600028

Ravichandran Ashwin; (below)

SRINIVASA RAMANUJAM

A recent Tamil film on cricket has attracted the at- tention of cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin, who has been making headlines since he was adjudged ICC’s Cricketer of the Year 2016. The cricketer tweeted, “What a wonderful movie Chennai 600028 II , com- cricketing commitments. If a pletely put my life on re- part three of the film hap- wind mode. Genuinely felt I pens in the future, we will could have been a part of it. surely rope him in. At the (sic)” moment, I’m just thrilled The sports-comedy flick, that the ICC cricketer of the Chennai 600028 II , turns year liked my film.” the spotlight on ‘galli’ While the first part of the cricket, and how the sport is film, released in 2007, was an integral part of the grow- hailed as a coming-of-age ing-up years of many sports film and revolved youngsters. around the competitive The film’s director, Ven- spirit between two local kat Prabhu, said, “We actu- league teams, the second ally wanted him {Ashwin} part examines how the boys, to play a small cameo in this now grown-up men, still part, but it didn’t material- manage to keep their love for ise as he was busy with his the sport alive.

CM CH-CH YK