I am Preity Zinta

Celebrity Face Recognition at Myheritage.com

Ever since I first heard about the online celebrity face recognition tool on www.myheritage.com I just knew I had to give it a try. You first have to create an account, then upload a photo of yourself and with their face recognition and mapping software they tell you which celebrity you resemble the most. Of the Indian celebrity's I am 56 % Preity Zinta and 47 % Kajol.

Of the International celebrity's my features most closely resemble Charlotte Church 66%, Heather Locklear 63 %, Joan Cusack 62 %, Jackie Kennedy 61 %, Heidi Klum 59 %, Jennifer Connoley 59 %, Gillian Anderson 56 %, Jennifer Garner 53 %, Shiri Appelby 53 %, Alicia Silverstone - 51 % and Kate Winslet 51% - quite a good looking list, I must say.

Apparently I also looked like a few guys like Matthew Perry- 63 %, Matt Damon 54 % and Jacques Villeneuve the formula one racer - 48 %. It's a good thing all these guys are the feminine type otherwise I would have been quite upset.

Many people have told me I looked a bit 'chinky' and I was not surprised to see some Chinese/Asian results also pop up like Son ye jin, Maggie Cheung and Song Hye Kyo whose picture is on the right.

Just to check the accuracy of this face recognition software, I ran Jennifer Aniston's photo to see what results the software would turn up. I found it worked quite well - another picture of Aniston turned up as her perfect celebrity double, though only with a similarity of 75 percent.

So, who's your celebrity twin ?

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10 Tips for awesome travel photos

10 Travel Photo Tips

Here are 10 tips for great travel photos to keep in mind when going on that vacation to make sure you come back with great travel photos of your holiday.

Travel photo tip 1. Travel light - A point and shoot automatic camera or camcorder will be enough. Take enough film or tapes according to the amount of days you will be away. Don't forget batteries and the charger. No need to bring bulky stuff like a tripod, lenses etc. It's a real bother keeping an eye on it all the time. Unless you are a professional photographer on a paid shoot these things just end up just sitting in your hotel room.

Travel photo tip 2. If you are travelling by plane keep the film and camera in your hand luggage. Checked baggage is put through an X-Ray machine. The strong magnetic field of the machines usually spoil the film or wipe out the memory card of a digital camera. Checked baggage also has a high chance of getting delayed or lost in transit.

Travel photo tip 3. Research the Destination - search the Internet and read guide books on the places you'd like to visit. Especially look out for Interesting monuments, festivals or parades that may be on during your visit. Plan ahead, else you'll end up with pictures of just the airport and your hotel room.

Travel photo tip 4. Make a Photo Story - take photos of family/friends and you in different moods at different places. Like - annoyed at the airport - curious in the taxi - relieved as you check in the hotel - joyous on the ski slopes - or drunk at dinner.

Travel photo tip 5. Take pictures that prove you are in a different place from home. Most folks spend thousands of dollars on a dream destination but end up with boring pics of them lying in bed in a hotel room or sitting in the grass, snow or sand that could just as easily be their own backyard. Here are some ideas of what you could include in the background behind the subject that would give a feel of being in a new place.

(a) Road Signs - which show your location, especially those in a different language or script like urdu or chinese. The weirder they sound the better.

(b) Food - pictures of you eating exotic dishes in restaurants with local decor.

(c) Street Scenes with local folks using different modes of transport. eg. a doubledecker bus in London, an autorickshaw in India or a thuk thuk in Thailand.
(d) You can pose with cops in different uniforms, police cars or cars with different license plate numbers.

(e) Local people of other races in traditional costumes. Most people may be suspicious or shy and not want to pose even if you pay them or ask nicely. In this case, click a shot of your family with the local people moving about in the background.

(f) Local markets - colourful stalls and beautiful artifacts being sold always make for great photographs. Look out for shops selling something unique like spices, dry fish or religious items.

(g) A local animal, bird, flower or tree native to the place visited like the Lotus flower in India, Gazelles in Africa or Coconut trees in the Carribean. Its obvious from the picture on the right that this girl is in Australia because of the kangaroo she is feeding.

(h) Local Architecture - if there are no famous monuments in the area you can take a photo of you with any other house or building in the area that looks old and traditional like this photo of a chinese house.


Travel photo tip 6. If you see something you really like and can't buy because its either too expensive, bulky or not for sale, Just take a photo of yourself with it like the lady on the right.

Travel photo tip 7. If you need to give your camera to someone else to click a photo of yourself make sure that you can run faster. Remember, a camera is a very resellable item and thiefs loiter about looking for such chances. Give your camera either to a fellow tourist or a person wearing high heels, visibly lame, fat, unfit or elderly. Don't trust touts who keep following you and asking if they can help. Many people insure their camera for this very reason.

Travel photo tip 8. While taking a photo of a famous monument like the Effiel Tower or Taj Mahal make sure the full building fits into the frame behind the subject. If you are too close, you'll get a background with just indistinguishable bricks or pillars like the lady in the second photo.

Travel photo tip 9. Keep the film/tapes you've finished with either in different bags or in your hotel. Just in case you lose your main camera case and film you will still have some of the photo memories in a safe place.

Travel photo tip 10. Be extremely careful when photographing religious places, veiled women and government buildings - especially areas like docks, railway or military areas. There may be no readable signboard that photography is prohibited but officials or annoyed family members may confiscate or break your camera. However, if you are a woman you may get away with it but try not to take risks.

These tips will get you those awesome holiday photos that you can show off to your colleages in office. For tips on Avoiding Common Photo Mistakes click here.

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When the elderly dance to raunchy songs

"We dance for laughter, we dance for tears, we dance for madness, we dance for fears, we dance for hopes, we dance for screams, we are the dancers, we create the dreams." - Unknown

The colorful lights and joyous beating of drums welcomed me to the celebration that is an Indian wedding. I had just entered the hall decorated with beautiful silk curtains and flowers. There in the center sat the bride and groom on two majestic thrones.

I watched the action as the DJ played the hottest bhangra numbers. On the lighted dance floor was this cute old lady in a shocking pink salwar kameez showing off some amazing dance moves to the young ladies around her. The DJ switched songs. 'Kajra re' a hindi film song with 'double meaning' lyrics came on. All the 'young girls' disappeared to their tables in a major attack of 'Kajrarephobia'. The only dancers left were a handful of toddlers and the cute old lady. All eyes popped out as the fifty-plusser shook her booty to the beat. The videographer crouched to capture some really revealing low angle shots. Everyone was being entertained by the 'mujra' when suddenly her extremely cross daughter yanked her off the dance floor.

A couple of songs later when the dance floor got re-filled our pink old lady was back. This time she dragged some of her young female relatives to acompany her. As soon as the naughty young DJ saw her on the floor he replayed 'Kajra Re'. As usual the prudish young ladies left the floor in panic. This time however there was no stopping the pink old lady who was joined by some enthusiastic 'young at heart' middle aged guys who blindly shook their hips wildly to the raunchy lyrics. It was really a sight to see and I could'nt stop laughing for days.

As for me, I spent the evening alternating between trying to pick up courage to dance alone and day dreaming of my marriage to various crushes, filmstars and pop singers. A wise man once said, "You can dance anywhere, even if only in your heart.". Many may not have the pink lady's guts or energy but I know that like myself, their souls are performing the tango, kathak and ballet all at once.

indian weddings dance kajra re life marriage

Pirates of the Caribbean 2 - Movie Review

Pirates of the Caribbean, Dead Man's Chest - 9.5/10 - Action/Comedy starring Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightly. Really awesome movie. Excellent screenplay and dialogue. Never seen before action sequences and special effects. Was laughing throughout the movie, even the gross bits. Specially liked the sword fighting sequence on the water wheel between Sparrow, Turner and Elizabeth's ex-fiance the Commodore and also the scene where Cragon the sea monster swallows ships.

Jack Sparrow meets William Turner's long lost dad Bootstrap who tells him about a key that unlocks a hidden chest that belongs to Davy Jones known as the Dead Man's Chest. Meanwhile, Davy Jones the octopus faced villain who is captain of a powerful ship called the 'Flying Dutchman' is searching for Jack who owes him a debt of eternal service. Sparrow is trying to avoid him at all costs and sails to distant lands in the Black Pearl..

Will and Elizabeth are arrested at thier wedding for helping the pirates escape. A pirate catcher from the East India Company makes a deal with Will that he will free Elizabeth in exchange for Jack's compass - which shows you where your heart's desire can be found. The pirate catcher hopes to find the 'Dead man's chest' (his hearts desire) that controls Davy Jones and gain power over the entire seas.

Will traces Jack to an island, where Jack is somehow chief of the cannibals. I really liked Johnny Depp's facepaint and costume in this scene - especially the necklace of black and white thumbs around his neck (Angoolimal). Jack pretends not to recognise Turner, who is put with the other crew members in a cage made of dead crew members bones. Eventually all of them escape on the Black Pearl. The two crewmen who dressed in ladies clothes in the previous movie join them.

When the flying Dutchman catches up with them, Jack hands over Will Turner to Davy Jones to repay his debt. Davy Jones asks for 99 more souls and gives Jack 3 days in which to fetch them in.

Meanwhile Elizabeth escapes from jail with the help of her father. She dresses as a guy and joins the crew of a ship. In Tortega, she meets Depp who is forming a new crew. Her old fiance, now down and out also joins the crew. Together they go in search of the ey and chest which contains Davy Jones' live beating heart.

At the 'Flying Dutchman', Will Turner gets Davy Jones to show him that the key is hidden around his neck during a gambling match. Later he steals the key and escapes. Somehow he turns up on the island just as Sparrow has dug up the chest. There is a long fight scene. Then a ship chase. The ship is attacked by the 'Cragon' - spelt Kraken, a huge sea monster controlled by Davy Jones.

Elizabeth realises that the sea monster is only after Jack and the rest of the crew can get away safely. She tricks Jack Sparrow by kissing him and handcuffs him to the ship, while the others escape in a small boat. Jack Sparrow jumps right into the 'beastie' sea monster with his sword as the Black Pearl is swallowed into the ocean.

The Commodore turns over the 'heart' to the pirate catcher in exchange for his previous job and wealth. The rest of the crew, Will and Elizabeth are very sad and promise to go back and rescue Jack from the depths of the earth. Captain Barbossa who was killed in the end of 'Curse of the Black Pearl' returns to help them.

The cinema was houseful, with the Audience being around 70 percent female. The jokes were too good, everyone including me kept laughing and whistling all through. The background music and sound effects were terrific and shook the movie hall. Johnny Depp's acting was A1, his voice was really sexy and I simply loved the expressions on his face. The others were fabulous too. This movie was better than the previous one, however the ending was kept open so that the third movie can be continued.

Pirates of the Caribbean Pirates Movie Dead Man's Chest Johnny Depp Orlando Bloom Keira Knightley Movie Reviews

Israel Messages to Lebanon

After reading Shirazi's email and seeing the photos of 'Israel girls writing on shells meant for Lebanon' this is what I have to say -

Kids in Israel are not as free as people in other countries who can decide whether they want to join the army or pursue some other career. In Israel national military service is compulsory for men and even women who are above 18 years. Men serve three years and women around two. Women also serve in combat positions. All Israelis are actually considered 'reserves' from the age of 15 till 49.

As you can see by the photo - a soldier is standing guard while girls are made to write on the bombs ' Hezbollah - with love from xxx'. Obviously, the kids were brought out of their homes for the specific purpose of writing the specific message on the bombs and getting photographed. Most probably bribed with ice cream to do so.

If they had sneaked in by themselves, the soldier standing guard in the photo could have easily shooed them away before they could scribble even a word - after all rockets are harmful explosive devices, no one would want to risk an accident happening. Also, as there is another photographer partially hidden in the first photo, it is quite obvious it is nothing more than a photo op.

Why would Israel want to do this ?
1. Send a message to the world through the Jewish controlled media that Israel has absolutely no regard for human lives and is willing to do anything to save their ego. 2. Indoctrinate kids and prepare them for military service.

Soldiers have no option but to obey orders and fight or risk a court martial. Their ideas about right or wrong or idealogies do not matter. In the end war is always made by the top politicians. They have the option of negotiating and calling for a ceasefire yet they only seem to want to prolong the pain and suffering on both sides. Why ? Simple. Fear leads to ever more power and control at the top.

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war bombs shirazi

Bypassing Censorship in India

As you must be knowing by now sites like blogspot, geocities and typepad have been blocked for some reason. Here are some url's through which you can access your site/ blogs which I found on wikipedia.com.

* http://pkblogs.com, www.boreproxy.com, www.hidemyass.com, www.shysurfer.com

* http://www.daveproxy.co.uk, www.ninjaproxy.com

How I Stole My Own Car

It was a beautiful Sunday morning. I turned my head towards the sky and smiled as the first drops of rain caressed my face. I sighed in relief. The monsoon had finally arrived after the past months of intense 40 degree heat. As I watched the kids from my balcony splashing about, I suddenly felt that something was not quite right.

The sharp ringing of the telephone dragged me into the darkness inside. It was Dad, with a slight tremble in his otherwise strong voice calling from the local police station. He had been on his usual morning walk when he noticed that our car was missing. On questioning the chowkidar ( colony guard) he found out to his annoyance that some ground floor neighbours had got a cop friend of theirs to tow away our car on the pretext that it was stolen.

My mind flew back to the events of the previous days. I had parked near an empty house in my colony - just a few meters away from where I usually park. When I returned the next day, I was dismayed to see that someone had dumped a load of 'malba' (construction material) both in front and behind the car. As I stood there hoping the giant heap of rocks would magically disappear, a construction worker came up to me. He had a silly smirk on his face as he jauntily told me to move the car. I asked to speak to the person he worked for, as I knew it was impossible to move the car over the enormous speedbreaker he had created. He said his boss was not available so I coolly said I would move the car later. I was absolutely unprepared for what would happen that night.

At around 9.00 pm the colony was plunged in total darkness due to a power cut. A neighbour who personally knew a constable called him over with his tow truck. Four other neighbours gathered as witnesses saying that our car was stolen, did not belong to anybody and was parked there unattended for years. The police ignored the license number which would have proved that it was registered to an address within the colony. They had togetherl conspired to distribute the hefty bribe they would collect from us when we came for our car. After abusing the colony guard who was too shit-scared to speak up, they dragged the forlorn car out of the colony gates.

The sound of my Dad yelling if I had dozed off brought me back to the present. I twisted the extension cord nervously, hoping that he did not need me to come down to the station. Images of junkies and pickpockets being thrashed by the cops while their women anxiously waited outside flitted through my mind. Dad said the car was lying in the police parking lot. He asked my brother to meet him outside the police station.

Eventually, in the evening we did get the car back safely without being fleeced by the cops. We were lucky to 'know someone' high up at the police station. He was furious at the constable for not keeping any record of the incident. He told us to immediately take away our vehicle. The car however refused to start as it had been badly banged about by the tow truck. We paid a mechanic 100 bucks to push start it and drive away.

As for those vicious neighbours, we yelled at them before parking on the far side of the colony. No point risking the windows being smashed or tires punctured. No idea why someone would do something nutsy like this. Just for the record they were a group of 'Sardars'.

India Car Police Stories

Movie Reviews - MI3, Chup Chup Ke, Humko Deewane

Here are some of the movies I watched over the past few weeks -

1. Mission Impossible 3 - 2/10 - has the same old boat chases, automobile crashes and explosions seen in a bazillion other spy films. Got really tired of watching Tom Cruise running about with his mouth half open. Best part was when his brains were fried in the end by his girlfriend.

2. Humko Deewana Kar Gaye - 2/10 - guy keeps bumping into girl in foreign locations in typical mawali style. The mismatched English dialogue inserted oddly into the storyline really put me off. Akshay Kumar should stick to action roles where he does'nt need to do any acting - a block of ice could have done a better job.

3. Chup Chup Ke - 4/10 - one of the better recent movies featuring a character that cannot hear or speak. I learnt to say I L U in sign language. Had some laughs, though watching Paresh Rawal in almost every movie is wearing me thin. Songs were ok.

4. Gangster - 2/10 - unbelievable screenplay. No gangster ( reel or real ) would live in with a girl he loves for 7 years and not 'do it' with her. Got bored and switched channels especially when the frizzy haired actress kept kissing the bottle.

5. Ankahee - 4/10 - a doctor's extra marital affair with a psycho suicidal ex Miss World. Lots of screaming and shouting, missed the end due to a power cut. Aftab is miscast as a doctor - looks more like a stockanalyst/banker.