cafebabel.com

‘Desi Boyz’ and a German girl: am I now a bollywood star?

('Lilian Maria Pithan',) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 10:07:56 -0000

A European traveller who accidentally becomes an extra for the latest film of India's 'Tom Cruise', Akshay Kumar, winds up filming and reflects on her experience after watching the completed movie in the cinemas. Part II of a travel diary

'Desi Boyz' and a German girl: welcome to bollywood

('Lilian Maria Pithan',) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 13:23:09 -0000

By staying in a salvation army hostel in India one European traveller did not expect it to also be an agency recruiting white extras for bollywood stardom. So, are glitter, rhinestones and bared white skin the essence of a bollywood star?

India: country for European yogi?

('Buzz',) — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 13:02:37 -0000

Five European tourists and expatriates in Bangalore, the new 'Silicon Valley' of India, and Mysore in Karnataka, yoga capital of the south, tell us why they have come to India and if reality has lived up to their expectations

‘Nos plusieurs’: autistic theatre stars meet Indian epic in French documentary

('Annie Rutherford',) — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 18:00:51 -0000

In filming a theatre production performed almost entirely by young people with learning difficulties, French director Fred Soupa blurs the boundaries of what we typically perceive as ‘normal’. His ensuing documentary ‘Many Of Us’ is released in national cinemas on 28 September

Puneet Sahani: an Indian hitchhiker who will publish his love

('Miriam Franchina',) — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 04:00:00 -0000

I've been glued to the clear voice coming out of a skype conversation for over an hour. The 26-year-old Indian from the Punjab is now based in Berlin, where I met him. I need to record his weird accent, mangled by the various places he’s been living in and to appear in his upcoming book

Europe's politician loudmouths

('English language version of cafebabel.com',) — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 11:54:31 -0000

British prime minister David Cameron was accused of 'going offscript' by former foreign secretary David Miliband after a series of press conferences where he accused Pakistan of 'exporting terror'. Do Europe's eurosceptic politicians have the biggest mouths when it comes to diplomatic rows? Expression of the week

I quit Facebook - even Bill Gates did

('Astrid vW',) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 12:14:15 -0000

More than 250 million people have registered themselves on Facebook. This spectacular number will soon be surpassed; the social network is growing at a rate of 5 million users a week. Nonetheless, the giant is not unstoppable. Its critics are also multiplying, and some are choosing to log off the network for the final time

Notes: mid-twenties crisis of a journalist going round the world

('Lydia Bigos',) — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 18:22:18 -0000

The day that I turned 25, I decided to just leave everything - work, my family, the flat I rented with some friends. I bought a round the world ticket and embarked on a year-long journey. Summary of a blog recognised by as 'the best non-English language blog' at the 'Lonely Planet travel bloggers’ awards

India, the world’s largest democracy? Voted!

('Julia Karlysheva',) — Mon, 18 May 2009 11:23:46 -0000

By direct suffrage, India has just elected its representatives at the Lok Sabha, the lower house of parliament. 714 millions of voters went to the polls between 16 April and 16 May to designate 543 deputies. The new government is announced on 2 June. Latest world news

British MEP amongst others escapes Mumbai attacks

('Nabeelah Shabbir',) — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 17:26:10 -0000

Jaume Duch, European parliament spokesman, says MEPs were surprised by the 26 November attacks in Bombay, but were ‘physically well’ and waiting in the French embassy to come home

Doha, Qatar: the north-south solidarity harvest in India

('Sarah Truesdale',) — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 17:14:12 -0000

From 29 November to 2 December, UN member states discuss development aid in these times of financial crisis. There is also a crisis in international solidarity: in India, a quarter of a million live in poverty

Meru - new Second Life

Thu, 06 Dec 2007 08:00:00 -0000

The alternative to Second Life has Europe in its sights, according to Vladlen Koltun, a 27 year old professor from Stanford

Sandra Camps: Barcelona's journalist as Africa's social worker

Mon, 05 Mar 2007 12:00:00 -0000

Her reports on dwarfism and the mass tide of immigrants to the Canaries are gracing German screens - the Catalan journalist gives a voice to those without

David Calleo: 'free trade is the last great religion of the West'

Sat, 27 Jan 2007 12:00:00 -0000

On the eve of the global Davos Economic Forum, North American intellectual David Calleo describes his vision of the role Europe plays in globalisation

India: child brides to child mothers

Mon, 11 Dec 2006 12:00:00 -0000

In its sixtieth anniversary year, UNICEF reports on the children of the dalit and adivasi, the most outcast amongst the pariahs of India