DILI, TIMOR-LESTE: Nawab Mir Najaf Ali Khan, grandson of the last Nizam of Hyderabad, Mir Osman Ali Khan, recently visited Timor-Leste as part of an Indian delegation exploring new opportunities for business, investment and bilateral cooperation. The visit assumes significance at a time when Timor-Leste is seeking to expand its international economic partnerships and strengthen engagement with countries such as India. Nawab Najaf Ali Khan’s participation brought together a distinctive combination of India’s historical legacy, business interests and people-to-people diplomacy. Nawab Najaf Ali Khan is a prominent member of the erstwhile Hyderabad royal family and has been associated with heritage conservation, social initiatives and the preservation of the legacy of the Nizam dynasty. He is also the President of the Nizam Family Welfare Association. His public engagements have frequently focused on Hyderabad’s cultural heritage and the contribution of the Nizam dynasty to education, he...
Dharwad: Recently, was in Dharwad to attend the three-day exhibition, lecture cum demonstration, slides show and interaction program of Prof Babu Jattakar, veteran artist and former Principal College of Fine Arts, Karnataka Chitrakala Parishat, Bengaluru. Gods become alive in brass, copper, silver, and gold: During an informal interaction, Prof S K Pattar, Principal of Government College of Fine Arts, Dharwad made a casual reference of his former student Naveen Shankarrao Kadlaskar, who has made a big name in sculpting the idols of Gods in brass, copper, silver, and gold. The way, he was dealt with made me curious to know more and meet him. However, repeated calls were reverted with switched off mode messages. This exercise went on for a couple of days. Work pressure compels to switch off the cell phone: On the third day, Naveen Shankarrao Kadlaskar sprung a surprise and turned up and revealed the reasons behind switching off his cell phone. I...