Tuesday, 11 June 2013

Current Affairs June 2013

Rafael Nadal



  • Rafael Nadal on 9 June 2013 won his 8th Men's Singles Tittle of the French Open Tennis Tournament. In the final at Paris, Nadal beat Spanish compatriot David Ferrer 6-3, 6-2, 6-3



  •  India  on 8 June 2013 offered 150 million Dollars credit to Myanmar for establishing a Special Economic Zone at Sittwe in Myanmar's Buyer's Credit Scheme under National Export Insurance Account.
 Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina 


  •  The Russian duo of  Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina lifted the Women's Doubles title. They defeated top seeded Italian's Sara Irrani and Roberta Vinchi by 7-5, 7-2.



  • Srikanth K. on 9 June 2013 clinched the Thailand Open Grand Prix Gold Badminton trophy. Srikanth defeated top seed Boonsak Ponsana
 


Bob and Mike Bryan
  • Twin brothers Robert Charles Bryan and Michael Carl Brya (Bob and Mike Bryan) won their record 14th major doubles title by defeating Michael Llodra and Nicolas Mahut of France 6-4, 4-6, 7-6 in the French Open men's doubles final.


  • The Vice President of India, Hamid Ansari on 6 June 2013 released a book entitled Dard-e-Dil Likhun Kab Tak” (in Urdu and Hindi) authored by Rukhsar Amrohvi.




Frantisek and Lucie
  • Frantisek Cermak and Lucie Hradecka won mixed doubles title at the French Open 2013. They defeated Daniel Nestor and Kristina Mladenovic 1-6, 6-4, 10-6.











Serena Williams
  • Serena Williams on 8 June 2013 won the Women's Singles title of French Open Tennis tournament. In the final, she defeated Maria Sharapova in straight sets by 6-4, 6-4

  
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Current affairs and General knowledge mock test


  1. Who has won the National Film Award 2013 best actor?

    Irrfan Khan

    Shivaji Lotan

    Vikram Gokhale

    Nawazuddin Siddiquie

    Irrfan Khan & Vikram Gokhale


  2. Who was runners up in Women's Doubles in the French Open 2013

    Kristina Mladenovic and Galina Voskoboeva

    Sania Mirza and Bethanie Mattek-Sands

    Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci

    Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina

    Nadia Petrova and Katarina Srebotnik


  3. Who has bagged the National Film Award as best actress?

    Priyanka Chopra

    Katrina Kaif

    Ananya Chatterjee

    Usha Jadhav

    Dolly Ahluwalia


  4. Who has won the "Entrepreneur of the Decade" award conferred by All India Management Association in New Delhi?

    Ratan Tata

    Mukesh Ambani

    Narayan Murti

    Sunil Mittal

    Azim Premji


  5. Who won the IPL 2013

    Mumbai Indians

    Rajasthan Royals

    Chennai Super Kings

    Kolkata Knight Riders

    Delhi Daredevils


  6. Which research center announced that it was developing the largest magnet of the world (weight would be 50000 tons)?

    NASA, USA

    Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, India

    National Chemical Laboratory (NCL) India

    CERN, Geneva

    ISRO, India


  7. 2013 French Open Mixed Doubles Runners up

    Sania Mirza and Mahesh Bhupathi

    Lucie Hradecka and Frantisek Cermak

    Kristina Mladenovic and Daniel Nestor

    Anastasia Rodionova and Santiago Gonzalez

    Lisa Raymond and Bruno Soares


  8. The Highest-Paid Female Athletes 2012 by Forbes

    Serena Williams

    Victoria Azarenka

    Sara Errani

    Victoria Azarenka

    Maria Sharapova


  9. Which film has bagged the National Film Award for best feature film?

    Spirit

    Dhag

    Vicky Donor

    Paan Singh Tomar

    Anumati


  10. The Man Booker International Prize 2013 Winner?

    U R Ananthamurthy

    Kiran Desai

    Lydia Davis

    Intizar Hussain

    Marilynne Robinson


Quiz by OnlineBankTest
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Current Affairs Online Practice Test


  1. Who won the purple cap in ipl 2013

    James Faulkner

    Mitchell Johnson

    Harbhajan Singh

    Dwayne Bravo

    Vinay Kumar


  2. Runner up in Men's Doubles Title of the French Open 2013

    Michael Llodra and Nicolas Mahut

    Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares

    Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez

    Pablo Cuevas and Horacio Zeballos

    Bob and Mike Bryan


  3. Who won the FIFA 2012 World Player of the Year

    Cristiano Ronaldo

    Andres Iniesta

    Lionel Messi

    Andrea Pirlo

    Radamel Falcao


  4. Who won Women's singles Title of the French Open 2013

    Victoria Azarenka

    Sara Errani

    Maria Sharapova

    Serena Williams

    Maria Kirilenko


  5. The World's Highest-Paid Tennis player 2012 by Forbes

    Rafael Nadal

    David Ferrer

    Roger Federer

    Novak Djokovic

    Tommy Robredo


  6. Who was runner up in men's singles Title of the French Open 2013

    Roger Federer

    Rafael Nadal

    Tommy Haas

    Novak Djokovic

    David Ferrer


  7. Who won the best young player award in IPL 2013

    Hanuma Vihari

    Sanju Samson

    Mandeep Singh

    Manan Vohra

    Virat Kohli


  8. Who won Men's Doubles Title of the French Open 2013

    Bob and Mike Bryan

    Michael Llodra and Nicolas Mahut

    Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares

    Pablo Cuevas and Horacio Zeballos

    Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez


  9. Women's Doubles champions of the French Open 2013

    Sara Errani and Roberta Vinci

    Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina

    Nadia Petrova and Katarina Srebotnik

    Kristina Mladenovic and Galina Voskoboeva

    Sania Mirza and Bethanie Mattek Sands


  10. The World's Best-Paid Soccer Player 2012 by Forbes

    Cristiano Ronaldo

    Wayne Rooney

    Lionel Messi

    David Beckham

    Luis Figo


Quiz by OnlineBankTest
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Mock test Current affairs 2013


  1. Who won Men's Singles Title of the French Open 2013

    Roger Federer

    Rafael Nadal

    David Ferrer

    Novak Djokovic

    Tommy Haas


  2. World's Highest-Paid Basketball 2012 by Forbes

    LeBron James

    Kevin Durant

    Russell Westbrook

    Dwyane Wade

    Kobe Bryant


  3. FIFA Women's World Player of the Year 2012

    Abby Wambach

    Marta

    Alex Morgan

    Birgit Prinz

    Mia Hamm


  4. Mumbai Indians won the IPL 2013 Tournament by defeating

    Sunrisers Hyderabad

    Rajasthan Royals

    Chennai Super Kings

    Kolkata Knight Riders

    Delhi Daredevils


  5. The World's Highest-Paid Athletes 2012 by Forbes

    Kobe Bryant

    Tiger Woods

    Roger Federer

    David Beckham

    Mahendra Singh Dhoni


  6. Who won the orange cap in IPL 2013

    Michael Hussey

    Chris Gayle

    Virat Kohli

    Suresh Raina

    Rohit Sharma


  7. Who was runners up in Women's singles Title of the French Open 2013

    Serena Williams

    Sania Mirza

    Sara Errani

    Maria Sharapova

    Victoria Azarenka


  8. Who scored fastest century in cricket history during IPL game

    Michael Hussey

    David Miller

    Virat Kohli

    David Hussey

    Chris Gayle


  9. World's Highest-Paid Cricketer 2012 by Forbes

    Ravindra Jadeja

    Mahendra Singh Dhoni

    Sachin Tendulkar

    Kieron Pollard

    Virat Kohli


  10. Who won Mixed Doubles Title of the French Open 2013

    Lucie Hradecka and Frantisek Cermak

    Kristina Mladenovic and Daniel Nestor

    Anastasia Rodionova and Santiago Gonzalez

    Anastasia Rodionova and Santiago Gonzalez

    Elena Vesnina and Max Mirnyi


Quiz by OnlineBankTest
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Sunday, 9 June 2013

General Knowledge Online mock test


  1. The 'Dronacharya Award' is given to?

    Sportsmen

    Coaches

    Umpires

    Shooter

    Cricketer


  2. Where did Mahendra Singh Dhoni make his ODI debut

    Chittagong

    Cochi

    Hyderabad

    Delhi

    Chennai


  3. Who was the first Indian to win an individual medal in Olympics?

    Milkha Singh

    P.T Usha

    Karnam Malleshwari

    K.D Jadhav

    Anju Bobby George


  4. With which sport is the 'Choudhury Trophy' associated?

    Formula One racing

    Cricket

    Football

    Shooting

    Circumnavigation of the earth by car


  5. Who has scored the most Test hundreds ever?

    Brian Lara

    Donald Bradman

    Ricky Ponting

    Sachin Tendulkar

    Sourav Ganguly


Quiz by OnlineBankTest

Saturday, 8 June 2013

Kiran Desai

    Kiran Desai was born in 1971 in  Chandigarh, and spent the early years of her life in Pune and Mumbai. She studied in the Cathedral and John Connon School. She is the daughter of the author, Anita Desai, who herself has been shortlisted for the Booker Prize three times
    She left India at 14, and she and her mother then lived in England for a year, and then moved to the United States.She studied creative writing at Columbia University.


Born:    3 September 1971 Chandigarh, India
Occupation:     Novelist
Nationality:    Indian
Notable work(s):    The Inheritance of Loss
Notable award(s):    Man Booker Prize 2006

Works

  • Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard  1998
  • The Inheritance of Loss 2006

Awards

  • Betty Trask Award for Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard in the year 1998
  • Man Booker Prize for The Inheritance of Loss in the year 2006
  •  National Book Critics Circle Award for The Inheritance of Loss in the year 2006

IPL 2013 General Knowledge Questions and Answers

Who became the Purple Cap winner in IPL 2013 by taking 32 wickets

A.     James Faulkner 
B.     Harbhajan Singh
C.     Dwayne Bravo 
D.     Mitchell Johnson

Ans C



The leading run-scorer in IPL 2013 tournament?

A.     Chris Gayle
B.     Suresh Raina
C.     Virat Kohli     
D.     Michael Hussey

Ans D



Who scored fastest century in cricket history during IPL game

A.     Chris Gayle
B.     David Miller
C.     David Hussey     
D.     Michael Hussey

Ans A



Who won the best young player award in IPL 2013

A.     Hanuma Vihari
B.     Mandeep Singh
C.     Sanju Samson      
D.     Manan Vohra

Ans C


Who is the winner of ipl 2013


A.     Mumbai Indians
B.     Chennai Super Kings
C.     Rajasthan Royals     
D.     Sunrisers Hyderabad

Ans A


Who won the orange cap in ipl 2013

A.     Michael Hussey
B.     Ravindra Jadeja
C.     Virat Kohli     
D.     Chris Gayle

Ans A

Friday, 7 June 2013

Sports General Knowledge Questions and Answers

The Highest-Paid Female Athletes 2012 by Forbes

A.     Serena Williams 
B.     Victoria Azarenka
C.     Maria Sharapova 
D.     Sara Errani

Ans C



The World's Best-Paid Soccer Player 2012 by  Forbes

A.     Cristiano Ronaldo
B.     Wayne Rooney
C.     Lionel Messi      
D.     David Beckham

Ans D



The World's Highest-Paid Athletes 2012 by  Forbes

A.     Kobe Bryant
B.     Tiger Woods
C.     Roger Federer      
D.     David Beckham

Ans B



The World's Highest-Paid Tennis player 2012 by  Forbes

A.     Rafael Nadal
B.     David Ferrer
C.     Roger Federer      
D.     Tommy Robredo

Ans C


World's Highest-Paid Cricketer 2012 by Forbes


A.     Mahendra Singh Dhoni
B.     Ravindra Jadeja
C.     Sachin Tendulkar      
D.     Kieron Pollard

Ans A


World's Highest-Paid Basketball 2012 by Forbes


A.     LeBron James
B.     Kobe Bryant
C.     Dwyane Wade     
D.     Kevin Durant

Ans B

Amy M Homes

      A. M. Homes; born December 18, 1961 Washington, D.C. She is an American writer best known for her controversial novels and unusual stories, most notably "The End of Alice "(1996). She now lives in New York City.

    Her work has been translated into eighteen languages and appears frequently in Art Forum, Harpers, Granta, McSweeney's, The New Yorker, The New York Times, and Zoetrope. She is a Contributing Editor to Vanity Fair, Bomb and Blind Spot.


         In June 2013 she won the Women's Prize for Fiction for her novel May We Be Forgiven.

Born:                December 18, 1961 Washington, U.S.
Occupation:      Fiction writer, memoirist, screenwriter
Nationality:       American
Notable work:   The End of Alice

Works

Novels

  •    Jack (1989) 
  •     In a Country of Mothers (1993)
  •     The End of Alice (1996)
  •     Appendix A: an elaboration on the novel The End of Alice (1996)
  •     Music for Torching (1999)
  •     This Book Will Save Your Life (2006)
  •      May We Be Forgiven (2012)
Story collections
  •     The Safety of Objects (1990) 
  •     Things You Should Know (2002)
Non-fiction
  •     Los Angeles: People, Places, and the Castle on the Hill (2002) 
  •     On the Street 1980-1990 by Amy Arbus, Introduction by Homes
  •     The Mistress's Daughter (2007)

Awards

  • Fellowships from the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation 
  • The National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship
  • The Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers at The New York Public Library
  • New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowships
  • The Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis 
  • Women's Prize for Fiction 2013 "May We Be Forgiven"

RBI RECRUITMENT OF ASSISTANTS

          Reserve Bank of India invited online application for the post of Assistant in Reserve Bank of India (RBI/Bank) from Indian citizens, citizens of Nepal and subjects of Bhutan and persons of Indian origin. Eligible Candidates who fulfill the eligibility criteria for the post may apply online through official website of RBI (www.rbi.org.in) from 30.05.2013 to 20.06.2013. Details regarding age limit, educational qualification, how to apply, pay scale, application fee are given below.

Vacancy Details:
Name of Post : Assistant
Number of Posts : 525 Posts
Salary : Rs 21419/- Per month.


Eligibility Criteria:
Age Limit : Between 18 and 28 years.
Educational Qualification : Bachelor’s Degree in any discipline with a minimum of 50% marks (pass class for SC/ST/PWD candidates) in the aggregate and the knowledge of word processing on PC. A candidate belonging to Ex-servicemen category should either be a graduate from a recognized University or should have passed the matriculation or its equivalent examination of the Armed Forces and rendered at least 15 years of defence service.

Application Fee :
Rs 400/- are to be paid by OBC and General category Candidates. SC/ST/PWD/EXS/Staff are exempted.


Selection Procedure :
Selection will be through Online Written Examinations (‘OWE’) and Interview. The ‘OWE’ will be for 200 marks and is scheduled to be held from 20.07. 2013 to 28.07.2013.

Important dates:
Online Application Start on : 30.05.2013
Last Date to apply online: 20.06.2013
Application fee deposit in Bank : from 30.05.2013 to 20.06.2013
Online Written Exam Date : from 21.07.2013 to 28.07.2013

For more details about RBI Recruitment 2013 – 525 Assistant Vacancy, please visit official website of RBI.

How to Apply :
Eligible candidates are required to apply online through official website of RBI (www.rbi.org.in) from 30.05.2013 to 20.06.2013.


Online Application

General Knowledge - Books and Authors

  • The End of Alice was written by?
     A.     Meena Alexander
     B.     Shaila Abdullah
     C.     Alfonso Cuaron
     D.     Amy M Homes 

     Ans D


  • J K Rowling  is the author of the book?
     A.     Story and Other Stories
     B.     The Casual Vacancy
     C.     The Thirteenth Woman and Other Stories
     D.     Those who had known love

     Ans B


  • "Last Man in Tower" novel is written by which one of the following?
     A.     Tulsi Badrinath
     B.     Meena Alexander
     C.     Aravind Adiga
     D.     Samina Ali

     Ans C


  • Sugathakumari is the author of the book?
     A.     The Wings of Darkness
     B.     Smack
     C.     Break It Down
     D.     Cast me out if you will

     Ans A


  • My Story is autobiography of ?
     A.     Ela Bhatt
     B.     Kamala Surayya 
     C.     Arundhati Roy
     D.     Anjali Banerjee

     Ans B

General Knowledge - Books and Authors

  • The White Tiger was written by?
    A.     Aravind Adiga
    B.     Alfonso Cuaron
    C.     J K Rowling 
    D.     Charlotte Bacon

    Ans A

  • Who is the writer of Only the Soul Knows How to Sing?
     A.     Robert Browing
     B.     William Shakespeare
     C.     Kamala Surayya 
     D.     Gabriel Constans
     

     Ans C


  • The Tales of Beedle the Bard was written by?
     A.     Henry Maine
     B.     Sugathakumari
     C.     Leo Tolstoy
     D.     J K Rowling 

     Ans D


  • A M Homes  is the author of the book?
     A.     The Mistress's Daughter
     B.     VTo Live or Not Live
     C.     A Voice for Freedom
     D.     The Toss of a Lemon

     Ans A


  • The Thirteenth Woman and Other Stories was written by?
     A.     Bertrand Russel
     B.     Lydia Davis
     C.     Henry Maine 
     D.     Anita Desai 

    Ans B

General Knowledge - Books and Authors



  • May We Be Forgiven was written by?
     A.     Anita Desai
     B.     Shaila Abdullah
     C.     Amrita Pritam
     D.     Amy M Homes 

     Ans D


  • Aravind Adiga is the author of the book?
     A.     Meeting Lives
     B.     Last Man in Tower
     C.     Man of a Thousand Chances
     D.     Those who had known love

     Ans B


  • "Master of Arts: A Life In Dance" novel is written by which one of the following?
     A.     Tulsi Badrinath
     B.     Meena Alexander
     C.     Sugathakumari
     D.     Samina Ali

     Ans A


  • Lydia Davis is the author of the book?
     A.     The Elephant
     B.     Smack
     C.     Break It Down
      D.     Cast me out if you will

     Ans C


  • The End of Imagination was written by?
    A.     Anjali Banerjee
    B.     Arundhati Roy
    C.     Sara Banerji
    D.     Charlotte Bacon

    Ans B

Thursday, 6 June 2013

General Knowledge - Books and Authors

  • Quidditch Through the Ages was written by?
     A.     Michael Goldenberg
     B.     Alfonso Cuaron
     C.     J K Rowling 
     D.     Charlotte Bacon

     Ans C

  • Who is the writer of Meeting Lives novels?
     A.     Gabriel Constans
     B.     William Shakespeare
     C.     Tulsi Badrinath
     D.     Robert Browing

     Ans C

  • Thaniyanum Snehapakshikalum was written by?
     A.     Kiran Desai
     B.     Sugathakumari
     C.     Anita Agnihotri
     D.     C H Mohammed Koya

     Ans D

  • A M Homes  is the author of the book?
     A.     This Book Will Save Your Life
     B.     Varieties of Disturbance
     C.     Where the Long Grass Bends
     D.     The Toss of a Lemon

     Ans A

  • The End of the Story was written by?
     A.     Nilita Vachani
     B.     Lydia Davis
     C.     Amrita Pritam
     D.     Kamala Surayya 

    Ans B

Tuesday, 4 June 2013

Current Affairs June 2013

Maria Sharapova


  • The Highest-Paid Female Athletes 2012 by Forbes
       Maria Sharapova
       Rank: 22
       Total Earnings:  $29 million
       Salary/winnings: $6 million
       Endorsements:       $23 million




  • After the 2013 Pakistani general election, ...... become the 18th Prime Minister of Pakistan
        Nawaz Sharif


A.M. Homes


  • American novelist A.M. Homes has won Women’s Prize for Fiction 2013 with her sixth novel, “May We Be Forgiven.” 


  • What does WED stand for?
       World Environment Day




  • World Environment Day
       June 5




    Victoria Beckham
  • What is the theme for 2013 World Environment Day celebrations?
         Think.Eat.Save


  • Victoria Beckham wins Woman Of The Decade at Glamour Awards in London 




  • What does UNEP stand for?
        United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)




Tiger Woods
  •  The World's Highest-Paid Athletes. Who earned $78.1 million in 2012
        Tiger Woods
        Rank: 1
        Total Earnings:  $78.1 million
        Salary/winnings: $13.1 million
        Endorsements:    $65 million 






  • Burundi's Lydia Nsekera became the first woman to be elected to the FIFA Executive Committee (ExCo) for a full term of four years




  • K R Kamath was re-elected as the Chairman of IBA for 2013-14 tenure




  • World's Highest-Paid Cricketer 2012 by Forbes
    Mahendra Singh Dhoni
       Mahendra Singh Dhoni
       Rank: 16
       Total Earnings:  $31.5 million
       Salary/winnings: $3.5 million
       Endorsements:       $28 million





  • Irish Author Kevin Barry "City of Bohane" won IMPAC Dublin Literary Award




  • Japan successfully tested the L0 Trains based on magnetic levitation technology the fastest in the world. It will come into commercial use in 2027.



David Beckham



  • The World's Best-Paid Soccer Player 2012 by  Forbes
        David Beckham
        Rank: 16
        Total Earnings:  $47.2 million
        Salary/winnings: $5.2 million
        Endorsements:       $42 million







  • Susan Elizabeth Rice was appointed as the National Security Adviser of US President Barack Obama
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Saturday, 1 June 2013

J K Rowling

J. K. Rowling is a British novelist, best known as the author of the Harry Potter fantasy series. The Potter books have gained worldwide attention, won multiple awards, and sold more than 400 million copies. They have become the best-selling book series in history and been the basis for a series of films which has become the highest-grossing film series in history.
    Rowling was born to Peter James Rowling, a Rolls-Royce aircraft engineer, and Anne Rowling, on 31 July 1965 in Yate, Gloucestershire, England. She attended St Michael's Primary School, a school founded by abolitionist William Wilberforce and education reformer Hannah More. Her headmaster at St Michael's, Alfred Dunn, has been suggested as the inspiration for the Harry Potter headmaster Albus Dumbledore.
    As a child, Rowling often wrote fantasy stories, which she would usually then read to her sister. She recalls that "I can still remember me telling her a story in which she fell down a rabbit hole and was fed strawberries by the rabbit family inside it. Certainly the first story I ever wrote down (when I was five or six) was about a rabbit called Rabbit.
    At the age of nine, Rowling moved to Church Cottage in the Gloucestershire village of Tutshill, close to Chepstow, Wales. When she was a young teenager, her great aunt, who Rowling said "taught classics and approved of a thirst for knowledge, even of a questionable kind", gave her a very old copy of Jessica Mitford's autobiography, Hons and Rebels.Mitford became Rowling's heroine, and Rowling subsequently read all of her books. She attended secondary school at Wyedean School and College, where her mother had worked as a technician in the science department. Rowling said of her adolescence, "Hermione [a bookish, know-it-all Harry Potter character] is loosely based on me.
    In 1982, Rowling took the entrance exams for Oxford University but was not accepted and read for a BA in French and Classics at the University of Exeter, which she says was a "bit of a shock" as she "was expecting to be amongst lots of similar people – thinking radical thoughts." Once she made friends with "some like-minded people" she says she began to enjoy herself.


Born:              31 July 1965,Yate, South Gloucestershire, England
Occupation:    Novelist
Nationality:        British
Education:         Bachelor of Arts
Genres:             Fantasy
Notable work:    Harry Potter series
Spouse(s):         Jorge Arantes (1992–95)
                        Neil Murray (2001–present)
Children            2 daughters, 1 son

Inspiration for Harry Potter

    After working at Amnesty International in London, Rowling and her then boyfriend decided to move to Manchester. In 1990, while she was on a four-hour-delayed train trip from Manchester to London, the idea for a story of a young boy attending a school of wizardry "came fully formed" into her mind. She told The Boston Globe that "I really don't know where the idea came from. It started with Harry, then all these characters and situations came flooding into my head.

Rowling described the conception of Harry Potter on her website:
    I was travelling back to London on my own on a crowded train, and the idea for Harry Potter simply fell into my head. I had been writing almost continuously since the age of six but I had never been so excited about an idea before. To my immense frustration, I didn't have a pen that worked, and I was too shy to ask anybody if I could borrow one… I did not have a functioning pen with me, but I do think that this was probably a good thing. I simply sat and thought, for four (delayed train) hours, while all the details bubbled up in my brain, and this scrawny, black-haired, bespectacled boy who didn't know he was a wizard became more and more real to me. Perhaps, if I had slowed down the ideas to capture them on paper, I might have stifled some of them (although sometimes I do wonder, idly, how much of what I imagined on that journey I had forgotten by the time I actually got my hands on a pen). I began to write 'Philosopher's Stone' that very evening, although those first few pages bear no resemblance to anything in the finished book.
    When she had reached her Clapham Junction flat, she began to write immediately. In December of that year, Rowling's mother died, after ten years suffering from multiple sclerosis. Rowling commented, "I was writing Harry Potter at the moment my mother died. I had never told her about Harry Potter."  Rowling said this death heavily affected her writing and that she introduced much more detail about Harry's loss in the first book, because she knew about how it felt.

Harry Potter

    In 1995, Rowling finished her manuscript for Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Upon the enthusiastic response of Bryony Evens, a reader who had been asked to review the book's first three chapters, the Fulham-based Christopher Little Literary Agents agreed to represent Rowling in her quest for a publisher. The book was submitted to twelve publishing houses, all of which rejected the manuscript. A year later she was finally given the green light (and a £1500 advance) by editor Barry Cunningham from Bloomsbury, a publishing house in London. The decision to publish Rowling's book apparently owes much to Alice Newton, the eight-year-old daughter of Bloomsbury's chairman, who was given the first chapter to review by her father and immediately demanded the next. Although Bloomsbury agreed to publish the book, Cunningham says that he advised Rowling to get a day job, since she had little chance of making money in children's books. Soon after, in 1997, Rowling received an £8000 grant from the Scottish Arts Council to enable her to continue writing.
    In June 1997, Bloomsbury published Philosopher's Stone with an initial print run of 1,000 copies, 500 of which were distributed to libraries. Today, such copies are valued between £16,000 and £25,000. Five months later, the book won its first award, a Nestlé Smarties Book Prize. In February, the novel won the prestigious British Book Award for Children's Book of the Year, and later, the Children's Book Award. In early 1998, an auction was held in the United States for the rights to publish the novel, and was won by Scholastic Inc., for $105,000. In Rowling's own words, she "nearly died" when she heard the news. In October 1998, Scholastic published Philosopher's Stone in the US under the title of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone: a change Rowling claims she now regrets and would have fought if she had been in a better position at the time. Rowling moved from her flat with the money from the Scholastic sale, into 19 Hazelbank Terrace in Edinburgh. Her neighbors were initially unaware that she was the author of the Harry Potter series, although according to biographer Connie Ann Kirk, "most treated her with respect and gave her the distance they would want themselves".    Its sequel, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, was published in July 1998 and again Rowling won the Smarties Prize. In December 1999, the third novel, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, won the Smarties Prize, making Rowling the first person to win the award three times running. She later withdrew the fourth Harry Potter novel from contention to allow other books a fair chance. In January 2000, Prisoner of Azkaban won the inaugural Whitbread Children's Book of the Year award, though it lost the Book of the Year prize to Seamus Heaney's translation of Beowulf. The fourth book, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, was released simultaneously in the UK and the US on 8 July 2000 and broke sales records in both countries. Some 372,775 copies of the book were sold in its first day in the UK, almost equalling the number Prisoner of Azkaban sold during its first year. In the US, the book sold three million copies in its first 48 hours, smashing all literary sales records. Rowling admitted that she had had a moment of crisis while writing the novel; "Halfway through writing Four, I realised there was a serious fault with the plot ... I've had some of my blackest moments with this book ... One chapter I rewrote 13 times, though no-one who has read it can spot which one or know the pain it caused me." 

               Rowling was named author of the year in the 2000 British Book Awards. A wait of three years occurred between the release of Goblet of Fire and the fifth Harry Potter novel, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. This gap led to press speculation that Rowling had developed writer's block, speculations she fervently denied. Rowling later admitted that writing the book was a chore. "I think Phoenix could have been shorter", she told Lev Grossman, "I knew that, and I ran out of time and energy toward the end."
The sixth book, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, was released on 16 July 2005. It too broke all sales records, selling nine million copies in its first 24 hours of release. While writing, she told a fan online, "Book six has been planned for years, but before I started writing seriously I spend two months re-visiting the plan and making absolutely sure I knew what I was doing." She noted on her website that the opening chapter of book six, which
features a conversation between the Minister of Magic and the British Prime Minister, had been intended as the first chapter first for Philosopher's Stone, then Chamber of Secrets then Prisoner of Azkaban. In 2006, Half-Blood Prince received the Book of the Year prize at the British Book Awards.
      The title of the seventh and final Harry Potter book was revealed on 21 December 2006 to be Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. In February 2007 it was reported that Rowling wrote on a bust in her hotel room at the Balmoral Hotel in Edinburgh that she had finished the seventh book in that room on 11 January 2007. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was released on 21 July 2007 and broke its predecessor's record as the fastest-selling book of all time. It sold 11 million copies in the first day of release in the United Kingdom and United States. She wrote the last chapter of the book "in something like 1990", as part of her earliest work on the entire series. During a year period when Rowling was completing the last book, she allowed herself to be filmed for a documentary which aired in Britain on ITV on 30 December 2007. It was entitled J K Rowling... A Year In The Life and showed her returning to her old Edinburgh tenement flat where she lived, and completed the first Harry Potter book. Re-visiting the flat for the first time reduced her to tears, saying it was "really where I turned my life around completely." In an interview with Oprah Winfrey, Rowling gave credit to her mother for the success of the series saying that "the books are what they are because she died... because I loved her and she died." Harry Potter is now a global brand worth an estimated $15 billion and the last four Harry Potter books have consecutively set records as the fastest-selling books in history. The series, totalling 4,195 pages, has been translated, in whole or in part, into 65 languages.


Harry Potter films
    In October 1998, Warner Bros. purchased the film rights to the first two novels for a seven-figure sum. A film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone was released on 16 November 2001, and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets on 15 November 2002. Both films were directed by Chris Columbus. 4 June 2004 saw the release of the film version of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, directed by Alfonso Cuarón. The fourth film, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, was directed by another new director, Mike Newell, and released on 18 November 2005. The film of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix was released on 11 July 2007. David Yates directed, and Michael Goldenberg wrote the screenplay, having taken over the position from Steve Kloves. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince was released on 15 July 2009. David Yates directed again, and Kloves returned to write the script. In March 2008, Warner Bros. announced that the final instalment of the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, would be filmed in two segments, with part one being released in November 2010 and part two being released in July 2011. Yates would again return to direct both films.


Books

  •  Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (26 June 1997) 
  •  Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2 July 1998)
  •  Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (8 July 1999)
  •  Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (8 July 2000)
  •  Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (21 June 2003)
  •  Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (16 July 2005)
  •  Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (21 July 2007)
  •  Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (1 March 2001) 
  •  Quidditch Through the Ages (1 March 2001)
  •  The Tales of Beedle the Bard (4 December 2008)
  •  Harry Potter prequel (July 2008), Short story
  •  The Casual Vacancy (27 September 2012)

Awards

  • 1997: Nestlé Smarties Book Prize, Gold Award for Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone 
  • 1998: Nestlé Smarties Book Prize, Gold Award for Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
  • 1998: British Children's Book of the Year, winner Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
  • 1999: Nestlé Smarties Book Prize, Gold Award for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
  • 1999: National Book Awards Children's Book of the Year, winner Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
  • 1999: Whitbread Children's Book of the Year, winner Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
  • 2000: British Book Awards, Author of the Year
  • 2000: Order of the British Empire, Officer (for services to Children's literature)
  • 2000: Locus Award, winner Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
  • 2001: Hugo Award for Best Novel, winner Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
  • 2003: Premio Príncipe de Asturias, Concord
  • 2003: Bram Stoker Award for Best Work for Young Readers, winner Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
  • 2006: British Book of the Year, winner for Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
  • 2007: Blue Peter Badge, Gold
  • 2008: British Book Awards, Outstanding Achievement
  • 2010: Hans Christian Andersen Literature Award, inaugural award winner
  • 2011: British Academy Film Awards, Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema for the Harry Potter film series, shared with David Heyman, cast and crew 
  • 2012: Freedom of the City of London

Friday, 31 May 2013

Kamala Surayya

Kamala Surayya/Kamala Das/Kamala Madhavikutty was at March 31, 1934 Punnayurkulam, Thrissur. She was a major Indian English poet and litterateur. She is well known for her short stories and autobiography. Her oeuvre in English, written under the name Kamala Das.
    She spent her childhood between Calcutta, where her father was employed as a senior officer in the Walford Transport Company that sold Bentley and Rolls Royce automobiles, and the Nalappatt ancestral home in Punnayurkulam.Like her mother, Balamani Amma, Kamala Das also excelled in writing. Her love of poetry began at an early age through the influence of her great uncle, Nalappatt Narayana Menon, a prominent writer.
    At the age of 15, she got married to bank officer Madhava Das, who encouraged her writing interests, and she started writing and publishing both in English and in Malayalam.At the age of 42, she published a daring autobiography, My Story; it was originally written in Malayalam "Ente Katha" and later she translated it into English.
   
Born              : March 31, 1934 Punnayurkulam, Thrissur
Died              : May 31, 2009 (aged 75) Pune
Occupation    : Poet, short story writer
Spouse(s)       : Madhava Das
Religion         : Islam
Genres          : Poetry, Short story


Works

English

  • 1964: The Sirens (Asian Poetry Prize winner) 
  • 1965: Summer in Calcutta (poetry; Kent's Award winner)
  • 1967: The Descendants (poetry)
  • 1973: The Old Playhouse and Other Poems (poetry)
  • 1976: My Story (autobiography)
  • 1977: Alphabet of Lust (novel)
  • 1979: Tonight,This Savage Rite (with Pritish Nandy)
  • 1985: The Anamalai Poems (poetry)
  • 1992: Padmavati the Harlot and Other Stories (collection of short stories)
  • 1996: Only the Soul Knows How to Sing (poetry)
  • 1999: My Mother At Sixty-six (Poem)
  • 2001: Yaa Allah (collection of poems)
  • My Grandmother House (Poem)

Malayalam

  • 1964: Pakshiyude Manam (short stories) 
  • 1966: Naricheerukal Parakkumbol (short stories)
  • 1968: Thanuppu (short story, Sahitya Academi award)
  • 1973: "Ente Kadha" (Autobiography)
  • 1982: Ente Katha (autobiography)
  • 1987: Balyakala Smaranakal (Childhood Memories)
  • 1989: Varshangalkku Mumbu (Years Before)
  • 1990: Palayan (novel)
  • 1991: Neypayasam (short story)
  • 1992: Dayarikkurippukal (novel)
  • 1994: Neermathalam Pootha Kalam (novel, Vayalar Award)
  • 1996: Chekkerunna Pakshikal (short stories)
  • 1998: Nashtapetta Neelambari (short stories)
  • 1999: My Mother At Sixty-six (Poem)
  • 2005: Chandana Marangal (Novel)
  • 2005: Madhavikkuttiyude Unmakkadhakal (short stories)
  • 2005: Vandikkalakal (novel)
  • 2009: Snehathinte Swargavathilukal

Awards

  • Nominated and shortlisted for Nobel Prize in 1984 
  • Award of Asian PEN anthology - 1964
  • Kerala Sahitya Academy Award - 1969
  • Sahitya Academy Award - 1985
  • Asian Poetry Prize - 1998
  • Kent Award for English Writing from Asian Countries - 1999
  • Vayalar Award - 2001
  • Honorary D.Litt by University of Calicut - 2006
  • Muttathu Varkey Award - 2006
  • Ezhuthachan Puraskaram - 2009

C H Mohammed Koya

Mohammed Koya was born at Atholi, Calicut July 15, 1927. He was an Indian politician and the tenth Chief Minister of Kerala. He served from October 12, 1979 to December 1, 1979. His term of just 54 days is the shortest term ever by a Chief Minister to this date.
    Mohammed Koya was elected into the Kerala Legislative Assembly from the Tanur constituency in 1960. On June 9, 1961 he became the Speaker of the Kerala Legislative Assembly after the sudden demise of K.M.Seethi Sahib
    He was the Education Minister in the cabinet headed by Shri E.M.S. Namboodiripad. He continued to retain his Education portfolio in succeeding ministries headed by C. Achutha Menon, K. Karunakaran, A.K. Antony till the Ninth ministry headed by P.K. Vasudevan Nair. As Education minister he was instrumental in formulating many plans that has helped Kerala reach the forefront in the education sector in India.
    On October 12, 1979 C.H.Mohammed Koya became the Chief Minister of Kerala and his term continued to December 1, 1979. Koya died on September 28 at the Institute of Medical Sciences, Hyderabad in 1983.

Born              : 15 July 1927 Atholi, Calicut
Died              : 28 September 1983 (aged 56)Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India
Political party : Indian Union Muslim League
Spouse(s)       : Amina Koya
Children         : 2 daughters and a son (Dr. M. K. Muneer)
Religion          : Islam

Books

  • Muslim Rajaneethi Kathakal 
  • Yathra
  • CHinte Prabhashanangal
  • Nabiyum Sahabimarum
  • CHinte Thoolika 
  • Thaniyanum Snehapakshikalum