On 8th March, the International Woman’s Day. LSG members were privileged to meet the Hon’ble Prime Minister, Shri Atal Behari Vajpayee at a tea meet at his residence. President, Ms. Madhu Neotia also handed over a manifest containing details of the visit to Israel. She briefed the Hon’ble Prime Minister about the meeting with the Deputy Defence Minister, Dalia Rabin. Members of the delegation included the LSG President Ms. Madhu Neotia, Ms. Shanti Khaitan, Ms. Sheela Kanoria, Ms. Rakhee Sarkar, Ms. Preeti Goenka, Ms. Sharda Singhania and Ms. Anuradha Kanoria.
A special retreat “The Journey Within” was organized in the beautiful environs of The Ffort Radisson. It was a journey that took us a step forward in our endeavour towards perfection. Some of the attractions were (1) NADA empowerment by Shruti, who is a renowned exponent of ancient sound and mantras, (2) Aromatherapy, (3) an introduction to New Age Food by Sandeep Nowlakha.
Has the Active Participation of Women Politicians Changed the Fragrance of Indian Politics”. Three celebrated women politicians – Smt. Sushma Swaraj, Smt. Jaya Jaitley and Smt. Subhashini Ali participated. The interface was anchored by Mr Victor Banerji. The programme held at the Taj Crystal Room was a resounding success with a record attendance by members, special invitees and media.
A rare and unique event – “The Big Dialogue” with the Hon’ble Chief Minister of West Bengal, Shri Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee was held with a large galaxy ofmembers, invitees, government dignitaries and diplomats. Mr. Ashok Vishwanathan moderated the discussions. President, Ms. Madhu Neotia welcomed the Hon’ble Chief Minister and Vice President, Ms. Parul Swarup delivered the vote of thanks. The Chief Minister was free, frank and honest in response to the questions from the large gathering and charmed the audience with his crisp and candid answers.
Interface with Shri Laloo Prasad, Smt. Rabri Devi also attended. Press and invitee were delighted to have been a part of such an enjoyable event. They were however deprived of what might have been an even more scintillating event if Ms Nalini Singh’s flight were on time.
Rendezvous with Jaya Bachchan – actress par excellence. Her presentation inspired and captivated the audience. Media person and Corporate Communicator Jayabrato Chatterjee kicked off the little tete-a-tete at The Garden.
"Woman in Cinema” – a highly interactive session with eminent panelists and film personalities in Calcutta for the Calcutta Film Festival. Some of the participants at the symposium were Ms Aparna Sen, Derek Malcolm (film critic), Shoumik Bandopadhyay, Feresth Tarepoor from Iran and Tina Mascara from the U.S. at the Bengal Club.
The Delegation to Israel – was an important initiative in promoting people-to-people contact between the two countries and the contribution to friendship and understanding. It was a fruitful visit and one that offered the LSG delegation an insight into all the stratas of society.
Pakistan High Commissioner in a substantive dialogue with Mr C R Irani at the Bengal Club.
"Summer time and the living is easy” – models showcased the creations of young designers from NIFT (Calcutta). The then unknown Celina Jaitly was the cynosure of all eyes!! Members enjoyed themselves immensely. All in all a visual treat, with nature as the backdrop.
Launch of the book-club. “I see them as wonderful vehicles for developing awareness of good books”. The first book selection of the months was ‘Difficult Daughters’ by Manju Kapoor. The newly refurbished Oxford Book Store was the venue.
