Wikileaks: Australians Call For Legislation to Protect Whistleblowers

23/03/2011 0 Comments read Features

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 23.03.2011 (IPS): Some Australians are convinced their government is sharing intelligence information with foreign powers about citizens implicated by documents released by Wikileaks.

The government’s refusal to acknowledge any hand in the case against Wikileaks’ Australian founder Julian Assange has earned the ire of students, academics, lawyers, journalists, and teachers, plus members of the community who are supporting Assange and free speech.

“The Australian government, like other western governments, is increasingly involved in activities which its citizens would renounce if they knew of them,” Julian Burnside, a human rights and refugee advocate here, told IPS.

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Bill Bennett retrospective in Mumbai

21/03/2011 0 Comments read Arts, Entertainment & Lifestyle

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 21.03.2011 (The Mid Day): The first Australian Film Festival of India (AFFI) 2011 kicks off in Mumbai on March 23 with a special retrospective of acclaimed director and producer Bill Bennet and some of the best features including award winning Samson and Delilah, Red Hill and Bran Nue Dae, each providing a unique viewpoint of indigenous Australia.

“We are looking at distributing Australian films through social networking sites to a whole new audience of vibrant, interested, international and well connected Indian audience”, Festival co-director and film entrepreneur, Peter Castaldi, told Midday.

“We are looking at Online distribution so people have the choice to watch a film when and where they want”, says Castaldi, who fell in love with India during his first visit in 2003.

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Melting pot of cultures

30/11/2010 0 Comments read Arts, Entertainment & Lifestyle, Diaspora

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 20.11.2010 (The Hindu): In a country where sushi, laksa, and pizza are a gourmet’s everyday delight, Indian cuisine is attracting a growing fan base with more Australians traveling to India and Indians migrating DownUnder.

The just released India Cookbook published by Phaidon Press comes at a juncture when Australians, eager to experiment with spices and ingredients, are seeking easy to cook recipes.

The book, designed in Sydney and printed in Italy, is a collection of a 1000 recipes written by Indian author and recipe columnist, Pushpesh Pant, and is interspersed with images of dishes photographed in London.

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