Saimers' Issue 7 May 2023
In this issue 2
Special features Travel diaries 3
Close encounters of the deer kind Special feature - Travel diaries On a Sunday afternoon, we decided to go to Buffalo Lake in University of Hyderabad. Often, we used to be welcomed by deer in the mornings behind our hostel wall. So, on this sunny day we decided to visit the lake. We were thrilled to see several deer. We took in the tranquil beauty, and as dusk fell, strolled back to the hostel. 4 The Tiger that never came for tea On New Year’s Eve, my friends and I embarked on a road trip to Chikmangalur from Hyderabad. We explored Bhadra Tiger Reserve and Ukkada Waterfalls in the Muthodi Forest. We set up a tent at a coffee farm, 1.5 kilometres from the Falls. We went to a tea shop in the evening and learnt that two days prior, a dog had been attacked by a tiger near our camping spot. That night none of us could sleep, though a local had assured us tigers only harm animals and not people. Charul DMPK, Shamirpet
Special feature - Travel diaries - Charul 5
6 A passion for heritage holidays Don’t make plans to meet Dnyaneshwar Anwate on weekends. He is most likely to be trekking, climbing hills and discovering heritage sites. Here’s what he says about a recent visit to Harihar Fort: “It was built by the Yadav Dynasty in 1636. It is also known as Harshagad and the location is about 40 km from Nashik. The Fort is in good condition. Most interesting is a series of rock-cut water cisterns in the centre.” Special feature - Travel diaries Dnyaneshwar Anwate Manufacturing, Bidar
7 Biking to paradise on earth One person you may not meet on a flight, train or bus is Adarsh Patil. Covering hundreds of kilometres, he prefers biking to, or in and around his favourite destinations – Murdeshwar, Karnataka, Rameswaram, Tamilnadu, Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir and more. In Gulmarg and Pahalgam, he chose a snow bike and an All Terrain Vehicle. His favourite quote: One day you will leave this world, so live a life you will remember! Special feature - Travel diaries Adarsh Patil Engineering, Bidar
Special feature - Travel diaries i l feature - Travel diaries - Adarsh Patil 8
9 Climbing 9999 steps to reach Girnar a mountain older than the Himalayas It all started with a visit to a friend’s family in Junagadh, Gujarat, which is home to the Girnar mountain range. Eager to reach the peak at a height of 3672 feet, and visit Guru Dattatreya temple, Saimer Nitinkumar set off at 6 am. The first 800 steps took an hour, and it was determination and well-planned hydration breaks that helped him reach the top at 2 pm. His take on the trek: “It was very difficult but the view and the atmosphere at the top of the mountain was worth all the effort.” Special feature - Travel diaries Nitinkumar Harishankar Sahu Particle Science & Engineering, Shamirpet
Life’s lessons learned from climbing forts 10 For Saimer Sagar, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is a role model. The Maratha King built over 300 forts many of which are spread across the Sahayadri mountain range in Western India. Among these, Sagar has explored Sinhagad, Rajgad, Lohgad, Visapur, Ajinkyatara and Sajjangad. Sagar’s learning from his climbing expeditions? “In life there will be both success and failure…the biggest lesson from Shivaji Maharaj is that one should have patience and perseverance. His thought and conduct are still alive even after three hundred and fifty years.” Special feature - Travel diaries Sagar Mohan Naikavadi Analytical R&D, Shamirpet
11 Special feature - Travel diaries - Sagar Mohan Naikavadi
Saimers in focus 12
Saimers in focus Mover over cashless payments and UPI, time to travel back with Mehul Jain to the coin age. Mehul is a numismatist, one who collects coins and banknotes from the world over. His collection includes coins with images of Jawaharlal Nehru, Subhash Chandra Bose and Chatrapati Shivaji, and those stamped with religious or environment conservation symbols. Mehul even has a currency which was used during the time of Mughal Emperor Humayun. While the collection may be dated, Mehul keeps track of cashless currency…and is waiting for India to launch the digital rupee. Cashing in on Coins 13 Old is Gold. Literally! In 2021, a ‘1933 Double Eagle gold coin’ was sold for a record-setting $18.9 million (Rs. 138 crore) at an auction in New York. Shoe designer and collector Stuart Weitzman sold the coin. He acquired it in 2002 after spending $7.6 million (over Rs 55 crore). He had the rare and only 1933 Double Eagle coin ever allowed to be privately owned. The coin has a design of an American eagle in flight on one side and Liberty striding forward on the other. It was the last gold coin in circulation in the United States. Source: News18 Mehul H Jain QA, Shamirpet
Saimers in focus - Mehul H Jain 14
15 Saimers in focus After recovering from Covid-19 during the pandemic, Sathwika started scrolling memes on social media to relieve stress. In April 2020, she launched a meme page called aa_bokkale_ on Instagram. Positive feedback on her memes encouraged her to take a big leap – she scripted a series of jokes, performed as a stand-up comedian at a cultural event and won an award. Her advice for those who tend to become morose: “Humour is like a lubricant for the friction you face in life. Laugh as much as you can…make people laugh.” Laughter is the best medicine! 30 mins of memeing/day…Does it keep stress at bay? Indians are spending close to 30 minutes a day on the internet just consuming the memes and over 80% have increased their meme consumption over the last one year, revealed a study by consulting firm, Redseer, in September 2022. Source: TOI Sathwika Akula Project Management Shamirpet
Excelling in Archery…with Precision, Focus, Control 16 Saimers in focus Did you know? Archery first appeared in the Olympic Games in 1900. Women competed in the 1904 Olympics, making archery one of the first sports to include events for both genders. The success of Indian Archery at International arena came in 1987 during the 5th Asian Championship held at Kolkata where Indian Men’s Team comprising Limba Ram, Shyamlal and Rajat Haldar won Bronze Medal in Men’s Team event. Indian Archers’ first appearance in Olympic Games was in 1988. Source: Archery Association of India As a child, Lakshman was fascinated by the discipline displayed by soldier characters in action films. Rifle shooting was not an option hence he chose Archery, a pursuit that calls for precision, focus and control. Lakshman cherishes the friendships he gained by being active in the archery academy and while taking part in competitions in India and abroad for over seven years. Recognising his excellence in the sport, and participation in inter-university tournaments, his college waived fees for the BBM course. “I used to be an introvert. The sport made me more open minded in meeting people and has helped in controlling anxiety,” he says. Lakshman Haveesh Mulakala Corporate Communications, Hyd
The Shuttler of Shamirpet Every day from 5 to 7 am, you will find Kondaji on the shuttle badminton court. He started playing in 2016 and the sport has transformed his life, by making him stress free and endowing him with skill, speed and endurance. He has won nine trophies at various badminton tournaments held in Hyderabad. He has been winner and runner-up in Sai Life Sciences sports events. Ask him where he likes to be and the answer is, “on the court with a racket.” 17 Saimers in focus Did you know? A shuttle is made from the left wing of a goose. The average shuttlecock weighs between 4.74 to 5.5 grams, the best of which are made from the feathers of the left wing of a goose. 16 feathers are used in the manufacture of a shuttle. During a top-level match 10 shuttles are used, with each being hit roughly 400 times. Source: Sportskeeda Kondaji Gajulapati PR&D, Shamirpet
18 Saimers in focus - Kondaji Gajulapati
Portrait of a Scientist as a Young Man His academic achievements, scientific pursuit and life’s passion are well aligned. Meet Sarju Patel, a PhD. in Biochemistry and Senior Scientist at Sai Life Sciences, Discovery Biology Lab, Massachusetts, USA. Sanju spends the first half of his workday conducting lab experiments and the other half in planning, analysing, and presenting data to other scientists at the Lab. Excerpts, gems rather, from Sarju’s interview published in HB Scientist: “I get to interact with the brightest scientists in the field and I collaborate with very accomplished professionals at Sai Life Sciences to further develop current projects. My desire is to translate my research into medical discoveries that will hopefully help people in need. I love the thrill involved in scientific adventure and being able to witness biochemical mysteries unfolding in front of my eyes.” 19 Saimers in focus Sarju Patel Biology, Boston
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A rare honour from Rashtrapathi Bhavan Meet Atharva Upadhyay, the meritorious student from the Delhi-National Capital Region who met Hon’ble President of India, Smt. Draupadi Murmu, on Children’s Day. A string of achievements brought him this rare honour. Conceptualised design of a green energy vehicle that can be powered by a wind turbine, solar panel and EV battery in a Net Zero program conducted by BP in collaboration with Atal Tinkering Labs. Participated in Macmillan Budding Scientist program at IIT Bombay. Presented a project about water pollution and application of oil absorbent sheet to clean the water. Participated in North Zone Chess competition and served as captain of the team. 21 Saimer families in focus Atharva Upadhyay Son of Puspesh Kumar Upadhyay MedChem, Shamirpet
22 Saimer families in focus - Atharva Upadhyay
The ‘Queen’ of kitchen makes waves online! Rani, the better half of Saimer Saikumar Mamidipalli loves to learn cuisines from across the states of India and whip up these recipes in her kitchen. She didn’t stop at that and instead decided to share this wealth of knowledge by posting the recipes of mouth-watering delicacies online. Today Rani runs a YouTube channel where she has already posted over 100 videos of these recipes and has close to 455 subscribers. Her work is not only being appreciated by her near & dear ones, but it is motivating hundreds of people to follow their passion and share their learnings with all. Check her YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/@saimamidipalli 23 Saimer families in focus Rani Wife of Saikumar Mamidipalli Manufacturing, Bidar
Your chance to dance! Step into the guest house at Bidar any morning, and you will be greeted by the sound of music and a bevy of ladies grooving to Zumba and dance moves. As part of recreational activities for families, Bidar Unit has organised trainers who conduct sessions for almost 30 participants, daily from 11 am to 12 Noon at Reliance Guest House. Family members of Saimers who wish to keep fit with Zumba, or just want to shake a leg can contact the HR team for more information. 24 Saimer families in focus It all started with a cassette left at home… Back in 1986 in Colombia, Beto Perez - then 16 - was teaching aerobics in his home city of Cali in the south west of the country. He had to use his employer’s chosen song list of hit US pop singles, including the likes of Madonna and Michael Jackson. But one day he mistakenly left the cassette at home. So he had to quickly think on his feet. “I had no choice but to use a mix-tape that I had in my car, and improvise from there,” says Beto. The class was an immediate hit. So he decided to stick with the Latin sounds and rhythms. From that start Beto eventually went on to launch his business Zumba Fitness. Today the Miami-based company is a household name with a reported 15 million people across 186 countries attending Zumba exercise classes every week. Source: BBC
Looking back at the last quarter 25
Bidar Darshan 26
Holi celebrations 27 Bidar Shamirpet
Republic Day 2023, Bollaram 28 Bollaram Shamirpet
Bidar Shamirpet Republic Day 2023 29
Sai Star Chef, Bidar 30
Bidar Shamirpet 31 Women’s Day Celebrations
Corporate Bollaram 32 Women’s Day Celebrations
New Year 2023 Celebration Bollaram 33
34 Diwali Celebration Corporate Shamirpet
35 Dussehra Celebration, Corporate
36 Zumba Dance, Corporate
Chitrakar, Shamirpet 37
Christmas Celebration, Shamirpet 38
Tree Plantation Drive in Chilkur Reserve Forest, Hyderabad 39
Saimer of the quarter, Shamirpet 40
Saimer of the quarter, Corporate 41
Saimer of the quarter, Bidar 42
Saimer of the quarter, Bollaram Saimer of the quarter, Manchester 43
We’d love to hear from you! How did you like Saimers’ Cafe? Do you have any feedback or suggestions? Would you like to contribute any stories for the next issue? Write to us at: saimerscafe@sailife.com Make it better together
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