Darshana Menon - Indian Talent in Michigan

One of the the Michigan Indians who was real successful in 2008 was Darshana Menon. Darshana Menon was the winner of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa 2008 USA. Here's some information on Darshana captured in Google Maps.v(where she is from originally, where she has been and where she is today)
(Note: Anytime you want to pause then click on the arrow buttons).

New Year Celebrations at area Indian Restaurants

If you are looking to get out and celebrate on New Year's eve, you might want to consider the following Indian Restaurants:

Bombay Grille (29200 Orchard Lake Road, Farmington Hills, MI. Ph: 248-626-2982)
New Year's eve Party from 9 PM - 1 AM.
Tickets: $60/Individual $90/Couple (Includes - Dinner Buffet, Open Bar, DJ

Priya Cuisine (36600 Grand River Avenue, Farmington Hills, MI. Ph: 248-615-7700)
2009 Party (10 PM - 1 AM)

India Spice (30701 West 12 Mile Road, Farmington Hills, MI 48334. Phone: 1-248-381-5449)

Michigan loses population

(cross posted from mibazaar.com)

Census.gov is out with a population report (2007-2008) which shows that Utah led the nation with a 2.5% growth in population compared to Michigan which saw its population decline by 46,368 (0.5%).

For a look at how other states fared check out this Google Maps Mashup.

Asma Mohammed Rafi's journey ends on Sa Re Ga Ma Pa 2009

Asma Mohammed Rafi's spectacular journey came to an end on Sa Re Ga Ma Pa 2009. Asma whose mother tongue is Arabic does not know much Hindi (she is from Muscat, Oman). So she had to put in much..much more extra effort in the show and did reach the top 6 which is an achievement by itself.

Here's Asma singing "Kya Bolti tu...with Aamir Khan"

Michigan Indian Community: Mentors and Mentees wanted!

The Michigan India Chamber of Commerce (www.miicc.com) has had a fantastic 2008. With speakers such as L.Brooks Patterson (Oakland County Executive, Sujata Chadda (Registered Dietician), Mary Ann Golen (Financial expert), Harry Whalen (MEDC), and many others, the MIICC meetings have been well received by the community.

In 2009, speakers will provide chamber members and participants valuable insight and tools to help polish their professional and business skills.

We also plan to launch our mentoring program and seek 10 mentors & 10 mentees.

Mentors will be people who are:

1. Successful career professionals or business owners
2. Able to spend TWO hours per month (phone and in person meetings) with mentees
   
3. Able to guide and coach younger professionals or business owners
4. Able to maintain confidentiality
   

Mentees will be people who are:

1. Young professionals or business owners
2. Willing to take constructive feedback and guidance
3. Able to maintain confidentiality regarding discussions with mentees
4. Willing to spend time building and fostering good relationships with mentors
   

An application form be loaded on the MIICC.com website soon.

In the meantime though, if you feel that you may be a good mentor or a prospective mentee, please email me at nipa @ jenesysgroup dot com.

Good mentors are those who can commit the time and are willing to help. Similarly, good mentees are ones who are willing to take constructive feedback and learn from others.

I look forward to hearing from you if you think you may fit either requirement.

imhoblogs.com - A new blog launched by Michigan Indian Community member

Nipa Shah has just launched a new blog titled "In My Humble Opinion" which according to her is

Blogs on various topics that will create interest for readers...opinionated, yep, that's me! But I'm humble about it - lol

Ha Ha!

Check it out. Some of the interesting topics she has blogged on so far are

• McDonalds takes on Starbucks
• Mumbai Blasts make us all angry but do we Indians really want war?

Do you own/write a blog and would like the community to know about it then send us a note.

India's Techie Groom out of favor in these uncertain times

(via Hindustan Times)

"Our India Story" a film featuring Michigan Indian Community

The film "Our India Story" has been made by Keith Famie who has been working on it for last 14 months. He has filmed almost 70 hours which has been condensed to under an hour.

At Flavors of India an event celebrating Culture, Heritage and Community scheduled for December 14th (5.00pm) at Rock Financial Showplace, Grand River, Novi, there will be a premier screeening of "Our India Story" which will later be aired by WXYZ-TV Channel 7 on December 20th at 7 pm.

From HomeTownLife.com

The film features Farmington Hills landmarks.

Siriesha Mandava, who owns Priya Restaurant on Grand River in Farmington Hills, and the Jain Temple on 12 Mile in Farmington Hills are featured in the film, along with the Jain congregation.

"One of the temple members is a woman who is 104," Famie said. "She worked with Gandhi."

The story is told by the people through their interviews. Metro-Detroit Asian Indians tell their stories of arriving in America, among other topics.

Part of Famie's work was filmed in India.

"We spent 40 hours on airplanes and traveled 47,000 miles," Famie said, of the 13-day trip.

There are no commercials during the film. Funds are raised by contacting various community leaders, Famie said. He visited a number of temples and restaurants in metro-Detroit to find the interviewees.

"I'm looking for really good storytellers," he said. "I take these processes very personally. I feel that I am the voice and the ambassador for the community."

Famie is the director and producer of the film. He is also a chef and was a contestant on the 2001 reality hit TV show, Survivor: Australian Outback, where he took third place.

For more information or for event tickets priced at $75 each, call Famie at (248) 869-0096.

Does Detroit matter?

(cross posted from mibazaar.com)

Here's a Google Maps view of Auto releated jobs in United States. With all the talk about Detroit Auto Bailout, the map shows that its not just about Detroit. Fortune states that

The auto industry employs workers in every state - including Alaska and Hawaii. More than 2 million jobs - from manufacturing, to parts, to auto dealers - depend on carmakers for their pay.