Thank you Alicia for your immortal work.Known for her strong character and strict discipline, and revered in Cuba as one of its most important personalities, Alonso impressed audiences with her dramatic leaps and sensual style.As her eyesight failed her, she would often say, "I dance in my mind. Her international career was launched in 1938 in Broadway musicals and in 1940, she joined the Ballet Theatre of New York, now the American Ballet Theatre, becoming its prima ballerina. She was 98. She later took the name of her first husband, choreographer Fernando Alonso."The National Ballet of Cuba, a company she founded, confirmed her death." She was the only Latin-American ever to have been recognized as a "prima ballerina assoluta" -- a rare honor awarded to the most exceptional female ballerinas of their generation"Alicia Alonso is gone and leaves a huge void, but also an insurmountable legacy," President Miguel Diaz-Canel said on Twitter.. Accolades came despite a heavy handicap: Alonso was practically blind from the age of 20 after her retinas became detached. After conquering world capitals and passing through Russias renowned Bolshoi and the Paris Opera, Alonso returned to Cuba in 1948.She started dancing early, making her debut as a ballerina in Havana in 1931.Turning down myriad offers to leave the island throughout her career, she created the Academia de Ballet, which was closed in 1956 by the government of Fulgencio Batista.Debuting at the New Yorks Metropolitan Opera House in 1943 with the principal role in "Giselle," Alonso delivered lively and precise performances that brought her international acclaim. "She placed Cuba on the altar of the worlds best dancing.Alonso hung up her ballet shoes as she neared the age of 75, but remained in the studio as a demanding teacher and choreographer, always svelte and elegant in bright headscarves, lipstick and nails.She could only see shadows and, for most of her career performances, was guided by lights positioned on the stage.Her "Cuban version" of classics like "Carmen," "Sleeping Beauty," "Coppelia," "Swan Lake" and "The Nutcracker" also won praise.In a country of salsa where classical ballet was little known before her, Alonso founded the National Ballet of Cuba and developed its unique style, a blend of the islands sensual rhythms with technical precision.Even at 40, she was still able to perform the 32 fouettes of "Swan Lake. Alonso was known for being temperamental but also for her strict discipline: as a choreographer, she was known for perfectionist demands that required exhausting rehearsals.Cuba: Cuban ballet legend Alicia Alonso, who developed a new Latin-influenced style and taught well into her 90s despite being practically blind for most of her dancing career, died on Thursday." Alicia Ernestina de la Caridad del Cobre Martinez led utility lights del Hoyo was born in Havana on December 21, 1920.

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It makes them happy,” says Jackie. “We all look forward to Amitabh Bachchanji’s Diwali party. Sonali Bendre and Goldie Behl’s place also used to be a hotspot to play cards and make the most of the festive season. Sanjay Dutt too is expected to celebrate his second Diwali party after emerging from prison. We also have our puja at home with my husband and kids, but I have celebrated Diwali as a child though I am a Khan because we lived in a co-operative society,” says Farah whose close friend and colleague Shah Rukh Khan is known to host one of the most opulent Diwali bashes in Bollywood.As our B-town celebs negotiate the best route to hop from one party to the other, we ask them about the best parties in town. Speaking of card parties, Shilpa Shetty and Raj Kundra high stop light too have their taash parties during Diwali and Shilpa Shetty is said to be a novice at Poker compared to Raj.True to her signature style, Ekta Kapoor will be hosting her annual Diwali taash party at the family bungalow in Juhu. We get to mingle and meet so many people at that star-studded party every year and I play cards too. All eyes were on Salman Khan as he arrived at the party along with Mahesh Manjrekar’s daughter Saiee Manjrekar, who is set to make her Bollywood debut with Dabangg 3.With inputs from Sanskriti Media. Jackie Shroff prefers to avoid the card parties and prefers indulging in charity during the festive season. The decor and invites also have a special theme every year and Shah Rukh’s wife Gauri is known to plan each aspect of the party meticulously. I give the kids whatever they want, from sweets to crackers.It is that time of the year when the tinsel town celebrities gear up to put their best foot forward.But not everyone is game for cards. She may not reveal details about Satte Pe Satta, but she does tell us about the patte pe patta.

The party’s tempo notches up higher as the night progresses and the revelry continues until the wee hours of the morning. On Wednesday night, film producer Ramesh Taurani hosted a pre-Diwali bash for his friends, which was attended by stars such as Salman Khan, Shilpa Shetty, Daisy Shah, Saqib Saleem, among others. “My way of celebrating Diwali is to give gifts to children from orphanages and also to street children.Bachchan’s Diwali party is a regular one for Bollywood along with Shabana Azmi and Javed Akhtar’s taash parties. With the festival of lights just around the corner, the last minute planning for these high profile annual bashes are on a full swing. Farah Khan, for instance, is looking forward to playing her cards right. The invite to Mannat’s bash is a coveted one and every celeb worth their salt makes it a point to drop in during the night.Of late, Arpita Khan has been hosting her Diwali party as well and sometimes it is a Pre-Diwali party to ensure better attendance. He had a fun party last year when he came out and mouthed expletives before asking the paparazzi to drink alcohol. Diwali parties are an annual tradition where friends and family from the fraternity are invited for a lavish get together and a night of revelry. “Kunal Kohli and Akshay Kumar were at one time the biggest ‘gamblers’ in Bollywood and Akshay used to have the cards party every year. We are not sure if he is doing it this year,” says a source. Helping the needy is a good habit.

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Under the PM’s knifeAt the hospital, Tshering’s patient, a 40-year-old man named Bumthap who underwent a five-hour bladder repair surgery, told AFP he was pleased with the results. Sunday is family time. Bhutan is carbon negative and its constitution mandates that 60 percent of the country remains forested. During the week, he also happens to be prime minister in the Himalayan kingdom famous for measuring citizens’ Gross National Happiness. Nurses and hospital attendants continue with their jobs as normal.But Tshering is no ordinary doctor.Archery competitions, with liberal amounts of the local firewater, are a national craze.This, he said, serves as a reminder of his election pledge to focus on healthcare.Tshering, who trained in Bangladesh, Japan, Australia and the United States, began his political career in 2013, but his party failed to make headway in that year’s election.One of the pillars of Gross National Happiness is conservation of the environment.A case apartThe Buddhist kingdom is in many ways a case apart, benchmarking itself on happiness instead of economic growth.And on the days when he drives his car around the capital Thimphu -- instead of using his official chauffeur -- an-all-too familiar urge takes hold of him. “For me it’s a de-stresser,” said Tshering, who was elected prime minister of the nation of 750,000 people last year in only its third democratic election since the end of absolute monarchy in 2008. “Whenever I drive to work on weekdays, I wish I could turn left towards the hospital.The capital Thimphu has no traffic lights, the sale of tobacco is banned, and television was only allowed in 1999.No one at the hospital bats an eyelid as Tshering, wearing a faded lab coat and crocs, walks through the busy corridors.

After losing, King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck commanded him to lead a team of doctors and travel with the monarch’s entourage to far-flung villages to provide free medical treatment.Thimpu: It’s Saturday in Bhutan and Lotay Tshering has just completed urinary bladder repair surgery on a patient at the Jigme Dorji Wangchuck National Referral Hospital.Now as Prime Minister, he spends Saturdays treating patients referred to him and Thursday mornings offering medical Xenon/LED Reading Lights advice to trainees and doctors.”. I am just spending my weekends here,” the 50-year-old told AFP. “I will continue doing this until I die and I miss not being able to be here every day,” he added. Phalluses painted on houses to ward off evil are also a common sight.Back in the Prime Minister’s office, a lab coat hangs on the back of his chair.But the “Land of the Thunder Dragon” also has its problems, among them corruption, rural poverty, youth unemployment and criminal gangs. “Some people play golf, some do archery, and I like to operate. It is also big on ecotourism and charges a daily fee of USD 250 per visitor in high season. In the government, I scan the health of policies and try to make them better,” he said. “At the hospital I scan and treat patients. “We must now slowly put more focus on secondary and tertiary healthcare,” Tshering said.Politics, the Prime Minister said, is a lot like being a doctor.While the country has seen major improvements in life expectancy, a reduction in infant mortality and the elimination of many infectious diseases, the number of lifestyle diseases -- including alcoholism and diabetes -- is on the rise. “Now that I have been operated on by the prime minister, who is considered one of the best doctors in the country, I feel more relieved,” he said.Patients don’t have to pay directly for healthcare in Bhutan, but Tshering says that much more remains to be done despite important strides in medical treatment.

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