Saja

SAJA, the South Asian Journalists Association, and SAMMA, South Asians in Media, Marketing and Entertainment Association, present the latest in their series of high-profile webcasts - via BlogTalkRadio.com - with some of the leading South Asian names in global media, arts, entertainment, politics and much more... Meet Aasif Mandvi, one of the most recognizable South Asian names working in American entertainment today. He's a star on "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" and a film and stage actor. He'll discuss his new movie, "Today's Special." From the production notes: This super-feel-good foodie comedy, young Manhattan chef Samir rediscovers his heritage and his passion for life through the enchanting art of cooking Indian food. Samir (Aasif Mandvi) is a sous chef who dreams of becoming the head chef at an upscale Manhattan restaurant. When he is passed over for a promotion, he impulsively quits and intends to go to Paris and apprentice under a master French chef. His dreams must be put aside after his fath

South Asian Journalists Association presents another in its series of 75+ BlogTalkRadio webcasts... In a bid to help journalists cover underreported issues and stories about South Asia or the South Asian Diaspora, SAJA is offering upto $20,000 in funding with its flagship SAJA Reporting Fellowships (SRF) program, now in its fifth year. If you are interested in applying for the fellowship but have questions about what kind of stories get funded, what the fellowship pays for, the timeline for completing the work, etc., join Sandeep Junnarkar, SAJA's awards and fellowship chair and Jigar Mehta, SAJA president and former SRF winner, who will provide answers to these and other questions. Ria Misra and Matt O'Brien, 2009-2010 fellows, will also be on hand to answer questions about the fellowships. More on the fellowships at http://bit.ly/srf2011 * questions to sjnews at gmail.com

South Asian Journalists Association presents a conversation with key players from the Mahindra Indo-American Arts Council Film Festival, one of the oldest, largest and most important film festivals in the South Asian diaspora. Join SAJAer ASEEM CHHABRA as he interviews AROON SHIVDASANI, founder of the festival; SOMI ROY, festival director; AJAY NAIDU, debut director and star of "Ashes" (he's also known for his roles in "Office Space" and the TV series, "Lateline"); APARNA SEN, director of "The Japanese Wife." They will discuss the festival, the state of South Asian-themed films and much, much more. Learn more about festival, which runs Nov. 10-14 in NYC: http://www.miaacfilmfest.org/

SAJA presents a conversation with Gurcharan Das, author of the international bestseller "India Unbound" and the brand-new "The Difficulty of Being Good: On the Subtle Art of Dharma. He was previously CEO of Proctor & Gamble India and Managing Director (Strategic Planning), P&G Worldwide before taking early retirement to become a full-time author. Why should we be good? How should we be good? And how might we more deeply understand the moral and ethical failings—splashed across today’s headlines—that have not only destroyed individual lives but caused widespread calamity as well, bringing communities, nations, and the global economy to the brink of collapse? In THE DIFFICULTY OF BEING GOOD, Gurcharan Das seeks answers to these questions in an unlikely source: the 2,000 year-old Sanskrit epic, Mahabharata. A sprawling, witty, ironic, and delightful poem, the Mahabharata is obsessed with the elusive notion of dharma—in its most simplistic sense—doing the right thing. Questions to saja@columbia.edu

SAJA, the South Asian Journalists Association, and SAMMA, South Asians in Media, Marketing and Entertainment Association, present the latest in their series of high-profile webcasts - via BlogTalkRadio - with some of the leading South Asian names in global media, arts, entertainment, politics and much more... Shabana_Azmi,_Davos Join us for a webcast with Shabana Azmi, one of the best-known actresses in India and the diaspora. A former member of the Rajya Sabha, India's upper house of parliament, she is a multiple national and international award winner and recently turned 60. There have been many retrospectives of her works around the world, incluidng one organized by the Film Society of Lincoln Center. The Bollywood icon is kicking off another national tour in New York for her latest theatrical project, Girish Karnad's "Broken Images," directed by Alyque Padamsee. The play is dubbed as a psychological thriller that brings out the various truths of the life of a celebrity writer. On a live webca

Join SAJA president Jigar Mehta, VP Anusha Shrivastava and other board members for a quick, informative webcast detailing how the SAJA Board works, the election process and why you should consider running for office.

SAJA, the South Asian Journalists Association, presents a discussion on writing about Pakistan with some of the folks involved in the special Pakistan issue of Granta, the legendary British magazine. Speakers include JOHN FREEMAN, editor of Granta; and writers NADEEM ASLAM and Declan Walsh (co-hosts: Hani Yousuf and Sree Sreenivasan). About the issue: "Pakistan is a nation in crisis. It is also a nation at the forefront of a literary renaissance. Granta 112: Pakistan seizes this moment to present politically subversive and nostalgic perspectives and hard-hitting reportage on one of the most discussed nations today. Granta 112 brings to life Pakistan's landscape and culture in fiction, reportage, memoir, travelogue, poetry and, in a special collaboration with the arts organisation Green Cardamom, contemporary art. Like the magazine's issues on India and Australia, Granta 112 is a critical watershed. It is also a celebration of the corona of talent writing in Sindhi, Urdu, Punjabi, Pashto and in English from wi

SAJA presents a webcast with Sunil Gulati, president of U.S. Soccer, chairman of the U.S. effort to host the 2018 or 2022 World Cup and the most influential South Asian in American sports. Fresh from Team USA's run at the FIFA World Cup in South Africa, he'll discuss the state of the sport, his career and more. He'll be interviewed by Deepti Hajela, Associated Press newswoman and former SAJA president and and SAMMA's Vijay Setlur, sports marketing instructor and former media manager for FIFA Under-20 World Cup 2007 Toronto.

SAJA, the South Asian Journalists Association, presents the latest in its 15th anniversary series of high-profile webcasts - via BlogTalkRadio - with some of the leading South Asian names in global media, arts, entertainment, politics and much more... Listen to a recording of a SAJA webcast with RAJ MATHAI, one of America's first South Asian sportscasters. Listen to the Bay Area's NBC sports director discuss his journey, the state of sports and much more. Hear the different challenges and obstacles Raj had to overcome in making his name as a minority and especially as a South Asian in a very difficult field of journalism. Two-time Emmy award winning Raj Mathai currently serves as the sports director for the NBC affiliate in the Bay Area, "NBC11." Mathai anchors the nightly sportscasts there and also hosts the weekly top-rated "Sports Sunday" program that attracts the Bay Area's highest-profile sports figures. Raj can also be seen on the network level as an occasional sideline reporter for NBC Sports during th

SAJA, the South Asian journalists Association, presents a conversation with Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, whose latest novel is "One Amazing Thing." See major praise for it below. She'll be interviewed by journalist and SAJAer LAVINA MELWANI. Jhumpa Lahiri, author of "Namesake" and "Interpreter of Maladies," winner of the Pulitzer Prize: “One Amazing Thing collapses the walls dividing characters and cultures; what endures is a chorus of voices in one single room.” Comments or questions to saja@columbia.edu

Arjia Rinpoche, Director of the Tibetan Mongolian Buddhist Cultural Center in Bloomington, Indiana, is one of the most important religious leaders to escape Tibet since the Dalai Lama. His memoirs, "Surviving the Dragon: A Tibetan Lama's Account of 40 Years under Chinese Rule" published by Rodale Book Company, is in bookstores now - and the foreword is written by the Dalai Lama. "Surviving the Dragon" is the story of Arjia Rinpoche's growing up as the reincarnated abbot in Kumbum, one of Tibet's major monasteries. As a child, he was treated like a living Buddha; as a young man he emptied latrines, but after the death of Mao Tse Tung, he rose to prominence within the Chinese Buddhist bureaucracy. When he was slated to become the tutor of the Chinese selected Panchen Lama, he fled Tibet rather than betray his Buddhist religion and his Tibetan and Mongolian heritage. Rinpoche's unique experience provides a rare vantage on this tumultuous period of Tibetan and Chinese History as well as a glimpse of life inside

SAJA presents a conversation with bestselling author Daniyal Mueenuddin of Pakistan, whose short-story collection "In Other Rooms, Other Wonders," has been named a top 10 book of 2009 by Guardian, Economist, etc - and is a finalist of The Story Prize 2009 [ http://thestoryprize.org - announced March 3, 2010] He will be talking about his book as well as taking your questions. He will be interviewed by Vibhuti Patel of Newsweek.

SAJA & SAMMA present a conversation with Indian-American jazz musician Vijay Iyer. His Vijay Iyer Trio's "Historicity" album was the most honored jazz album of the year. Among the awards: #1 Jazz/Pop Album of the Year - The New York Times #1 Jazz Album of the Year - National Public Radio, U.S.A. #1 Jazz Album of the Year - Los Angeles Times #1 Innovative Jazz Release of 2009 - Chicago Tribune #1 Best Jazz of 2009 - PopMatters.com He'll discuss his love of jazz, his career and much more. Listen to his music at Vijay-Iyer.com and follow him on Twitter: @vijayiyer.

SAJA and SAMMA present a conversation with two of the biggest stars in Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol, who are starring in "My Name is Khan." In this conversation, they join about 30 minutes into the conversation about Bollywood. See video of their chat with Aseem Chhabra (with louder audio for SRK) at http://bit.ly/sajasrk * Follow sajaHQ on Twitter: @sajaHQ

SAJA presents a conversation with Salman Ahmad, author of "Rock & Roll Jihad: A Muslim Rock Star's Revolution." With 30 million record sales under his belt, and with fans including Bono and Al Gore, Pakistan-born Ahmad is renowned for being the first rock & roll star to destroy the wall that divides the West and the Muslim world. "Rock & Roll Jihad" is the story of his incredible journey. Call in with your questions and comments. For more on the book and the band, see http://bit.ly/sajarrj

SAMMA, South Asians in Media, Marketing and Entertainment and SAJA, South Asian Journalists Association present the latest in their series of high-profile webcasts with some of the leading South Asian achievers in global media and entertainment... Jay Sean, chart-topping singer/songwriter/producer and first artist of Indian origin to top the Billboard Top 100 at #1 with "Down" (featuring Lil Wayne). Followed by Jay Sean's management and partners, Jeremy Skaller and Anjula Acharia-Bath, CEO/Co-Founder, Desi Hits! We will discuss his career, the state of the music business, and much more. He'll be taking your questions, so call in or e-mail saja@columbia.edu

SAMMA, South Asians in Media and Marketing Association; and SAJA, South Asian Journalists Association present the latest in their series of high-profile webcasts with some of the leading names in world media... Ram Gopal Varma, director of "Rann," a fast-paced drama set in the world of media in today's India; starring Amitabh Bachchan, Paresh Rawal and Riteish Deshmukh. Varma is a leading Indian film director, screenwriter and producer and a voice of the new Indian popular cinmena. Varma has directed, written and produced films across multiple genres— psychological thrillers, underworld gang warfare, politician-criminal nexus, and musicals —and in a number of languages, including Telugu and Hindi. His biggest movies include "Rangeela" (1995); "Company" (2002) and "Satya" (1998). Join us for what promises to be a lively discussion about Bollywood, cinema and the changes happening in the world of Indian arts and beyond. Follow him on Twitter: @RGVZoomin

SAJA presents a conversation with author and former UN Under Secretary-General Shashi Tharoor as he visits his former home, NYC, after becoming an elected member of India's parliament and Minister of State for External Affairs. Call and and ask questions as he discusses his work in the cabinet and India's place in the world. Learn more about him at http://bit.ly/sajatharoor

SAJA - in cooperation with AAJA, AMEJA and Columbia Journalism School - a special webcast with NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF & SHERYL WuDUNN, authors of the widely-acclaimed "Half The Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide" (and as seen on the cover of the New York Times Magazine, "Colbert Report," "Oprah," the NYT Bestsellers list). More about them and their book at http://halftheskymovement.org MODERATOR: Vibhuti Patel, contributing editor, Newsweek International and arts writer. Send your questions to saja@columbia.edu

SAJA, the South Asian Journalists Association, presents a conversation with winners of the 2009 SAJA Journalism Awards. Hosted by Jigar Mehta, SAJA Awards Chair and a video producer at the New York Times. SPEAKERS: Award winners Stewart Bell, Jonathan Foreman, Anand Giridharadhas, Kris Hundley, Sandip Roy. Learn how you, too, can produce outstanding journalism from some of the best reporters, editors and producers working today. See the results of the 2009 contest at http://saja.org