Chinatown Gates..

 

These 8 domestic-rate PERMANENT stamps are part of Canada Post’s creative new series dedicated to gates of Chinatown. Wooden or stone gates, known as paifang in Mandarin, were originally used to separate subdivisions in Chinese cities. Eventually, these gates lost that role, and their doors, remained but as monuments. In Canada today, these gates are often the most visible representation of Chinatown in the cities, symbolic of cooperation between various levels of Canadian and Chinese governments, businesses, and citizens.

Victoria’s Gate of Harmonious Interest, built in 1981, stands in the heart of Canada’s first Chinatown. The gate blends traditional and symbolic elements and features hand-carved stone lions from Victoria’s sister city, Suzhou. One pillar commemorates Chinese Canadians who fought and died in World War II.

Vancouver’s Millennium Gate, built in 2002, was inspired by the Inner City Gates of 19th-century and 20th-century Beijing. It combines Eastern and Western designs to represent the past and future of the community.

The Chinatown Gate in Edmonton benefited from the expertise of Chinese architects and craftsmanship from the sister city of Harbin. Built in 1987, the gate features traditional Chinese motifs, colours, decorative tiles and ornate lighting.

Founded in 1909, Winnipeg’s Chinatown is one of Canada’s older Chinese communities. The gate, built in 1987, is a pedestrian overpass that connects and complements the Dynasty and Mandarin buildings.

Located at the entrance to the Mississauga Chinese Centre, this city’s timber gate was constructed solely with traditional wooden studs. Cooperation between China and Canada is demonstrated in the government support and construction expertise that made this gate possible.

Toronto’s Zhong Hua Men Archway, standing at Gerrard East and Hamilton Streets in Toronto’s Chinatown East, was built. The gate honours Chinese Canadian settlers, particularly those who laboured on the transcontinental railway.

Built in 2010, the Ottawa Chinatown Gateway, featuring nine roofs, is a royal Chinese arch that can only be built in capital cities. The gate has good-luck symbols embedded within, including five Chinese coins, one of which is at least 1,000 years old!

Montreal’s Chinatown actually has four gates—North, South, East and West. The North and South gates span St. Laurent Boulevard, while the smaller East and West gates mark pedestrian walkways. The North Gate on the stamp was donated by the city of Shanghai in 1999.

For this series of stamps, 8 illustrators across the country took to their communities to create watercolour paintings of the gates. The artists highlighted the most important angle for the gate in their community, and gave each stamp a truly local feel.

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Great Filmmakers – Sayajit Ray

 

Today is Birth Anniveersary of India’s renowned Filmmaker Satyajit Ray. Satyajit Ray ( 2 May 1921 – 23 April 1992) is regarded as one of the great auteurs of world cinema. Ray was born in the city of Calcutta into a Bengali family prominent in the world of arts and literature. Ray directed 36 films, including feature films, documentaries and shorts. He was also a fiction writer, publisher, illustrator, calligrapher, graphic designer and film critic. He authored several short stories and novels.

Ray's first film, Pather Panchali (1955), won eleven international prizes, including Best Human Documentary at the Cannes Film Festival. This film, Aparajito (1956) and Apur Sansar (1959) form The Apu Trilogy. Ray received many awards in his career, including 32 Indian National Film Awards, a number of awards at international film festivals and award ceremonies, and an Academy Award in 1992. The Government of India honoured him with the Bharat Ratna in 1992.

Satyajit Ray’s Pather Panchali

 

Bhartiya Daktikit Sangstha, Kolkata issued a Stamp Booklet on Satyajit Ray during Platinum Jubilee of Outram Club. India Post has issued both definitive and commemorative stamp on Satyjit Ray. This Post is a philatelic Tribute to the greatest Indian  Film Director of all time !!

New Stamp from Qatar

Inauguration of the 1st CNG Bus

Qatar Post issued a stamp on 25th Mar 2013 to commemorate the inauguration of the 1st CNG Bus.

: Kenneth Sequeira - Dubai (UAE)

News from UK

Home Front History UK and Bletchley Park Post Office have teamed up for a tribute to World War Two re-enactors. On 25/26 May 2013 they will release a special sheet of postage stamps with a “Home Front” theme.

For more details visit : www.bletchleycovers.com 

: Terry  Mitchell :  email : terry@ltmp.co.uk

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New Stamp from India..

 

The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee  released today on 8 March, a Commemorative Postage Stamp on Sahir Ludhianvi on occasion of his birth anniversary at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.

Sahir Ludhianvi – The  Greatest Urdu Poet of all time

Sahir Ludhianvi  was a renowned Urdu poet.He died on 25 October 1980 at the age of 59 .  He was known among the young for his poetry on beauty and love. Sahir Ludhianvi had converged Urdu poetry into the film songs as well.He was a great poet and songs written by him for the films are still remembered by one and all . Here I am sharing some of his best songs he had written for Indian Cinema.

Sahir Ludhianvi

Sahir Ludhianvi was a popular Urdu poet and Hindi lyricist, who worked extensively in Hindi films. Sahir Ludhianvi is his pseudonym. He won the Film fare Award twice, in 1964 and 1977, and in 1971 was awarded the Padma Shri.

Born: March 8, 1921, Ludhiana

Died: October 25, 1980, Mumbai

Books: Selected poems of Sahir Ludhianvi

Film music credits: Mujhe Jeene Do, Dastaan, Barsaat Ki Raat, Kabhi Kabhi, Dhool Ka Phool, Dharmputra

Best of Sahir Ludhianvi

Sahir wrote lyrics for many films. Songs of Kabhi Kabhi were super hit and still unforgettable  !!

Main Pal Do Pal Ka Shayar Hoon…

 

Phaili Hui Hain (House No. 44) - Lata, Sahir, SD Burman

 

tum agar bhool bhi jao..sahir ludhianvi-sudha malhotra-mukesh-film didi

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' The Hobbit : An Unexpected Journey '

 

 

Date of Issue: 1 November 2012

‘In a hole in the ground there lived a Hobbit.’   From this humble sentence coined by J.R.R. Tolkien in the early 1930s, the novel we know today as The Hobbit was born. Its sequel, The Lord of the Rings took New Zealand by storm when  Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Sir Peter Jackson brought the trilogy to the big screen.

New Zealand is home to Middle-earth once again, with the release of the first of three films based on The Hobbit, entitled The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.

 

Miniature Sheets

The film follows the journey of title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor from the fearsome dragon Smaug. Approached out of the blue by the Wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen Dwarves led by the legendary warrior, Thorin Oakenshield. Their journey will take them into the Wild; through treacherous lands swarming with Goblins and Orcs, deadly Wargs and Sorcerers.

 

New Zealand Post will issue official stamps and coins to celebrate The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. The range of stamp and coin products not only portray the characters and themes of the film, but also reflect New Zealand as the home of Middle-earth, and are destined to be collectables for years to come.

The set of six gummed stamps features key characters from The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.

70c - Bilbo Baggins

Like all Hobbits, Bilbo Baggins is fond of his comfortable existence, but his life changes forever when he is unexpectedly swept away from his home in the Shire to embark upon an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor.

$1.40 - Gollum

Once a hobbit-like creature named Sméagol, Gollum’s body and soul have been poisoned by the power of a small, plain, gold ring that he has kept hidden deep in a dark cavern within the Misty Mountains.

$1.90 - Gandalf

One of the most powerful Wizards in all Middle-earth, Gandalf the Grey joins the quest to reclaim the Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor and the great treasure that lies within its stone halls from a fire-breathing dragon, Smaug the Terrible.

$2.10 - Thorin Oakenshield

A strong, fearless fighter and respected leader of The Company of Dwarves, Thorin is determined to reclaim his homeland and destroy the beast that brought such misery upon his people.

$2.40 - Radagast

Forgetful, easily distracted and quite eccentric, Radagast is more comfortable talking to animals than he is to people. A fellow Wizard and friend of Gandalf the Grey, Radagast is one of the guardians of the great forests of Middle-earth.

$2.90 - Elrond

One of the wisest and most ancient of the Elves remaining in Middle-earth, Elrond is Master of Rivendell, the Last Homely House East of the Sea. During The Company of Thorin Oakensield’s brief stay, Elrond provides shelter and supplies to Bilbo and the Dwarves.

Maximum Cards

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Philatelic Tributes to Hemant Kumar

 

16th June is the Birth Anniversary of Hemant Kumar. He a great singer and Music director of Indian Cinema. His songs have always charmed people of every  age group and regarded as some of the best numbers ever sung by an artiste…This post is a tribute to one of the the greatest singers…of all time whose songs will  be loved, sung, listened and played by the generations to come….Here I share some of his best numbers that have magical effect on the listener…

Golden Voices of Yesteryears

India Post issued  a set of four stamps and a Miniature sheet on May 15, 2003 to commemorate four great singers of Indian Cinema – Kishore Kumar, Mukesh, Mohd Rafi and Hemant Kumar.

 

 

Hemant Kumar ( Hemanta Mukherjee) was a singer, composer, and producer in the Hindi and Bengali film industry.  He is most known for his Bollywood songs from the 1950's and 1960's.  In his career, he recorded approximately 2000 songs.

(Happy version)

(Sad version)

Hemant Kumar was born Hemanta Kumar Mukherjee on June 16, 1920 in Benares (Varanasi).  Although he was born in Benares, his family originally hailed from Baharu in West Bengal.  When he was young, his family shifted to Calcutta.  There he grew up and attended Mitra Institution school of Bhawanipore.  After he graduated from Intermediate, he attended Jadavpur University and began studying engineering. Hemant Kumar's interest in music began early.  He sang his first song in All India Radio in 1933.  He was only 13 at the time.

It was in 1937 that he recorded his first disk.  The names of the songs were Janite Jadi Go Tumi and Balo Go Balo More.  The lyrics to these songs were written by Naresh Bhattacharya and the tune and arrangement was by Sailesh Dattagupta. 

His career as a film playback singer began with the Bengali film "Nemai Sanyas"; this was released in 1941.  After that he did playback for a number of other Bengali films.

It was SD Burman who gave him his break for the film "Jaal" (1952). The song from this film Yeh Raat, Yeh Chaandni Phir Kahan, became a big hit, and cemented his position as a major playback singer.

Hemant began to work as a music director.  He composed the music for several films, but  "Nagin" (1954) that catapulted him into national recognition as a music director.  Even today the "hook" from the song, Man Doley Mera Tan Doley has become an icon that is permanently associated with snake charmers in the Indian mind.  After the success of "Nagin" he went on to be the music director for numerous films including "Jagriti" (1954), "Bees Saal Baad" (1962), and "Khamoshi" (1969).

 

In 1955 he won the "Filmfare Award for the Best Music Director".  This was for his film "Nagin" (1954).  He won the "Presidents Gold Medal" for his film "Neel Aksher Neechay" (1959).

His last concert was in September of 1989.  He went to Bangladesh to receive the Michael Madhusudhan Award.  There he gave a performance in Dhaka.  Upon his return he had a severe heart attack and died on September 26, 1989.

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Views and Opinions

 

 

COMMEMORATING LONDON 2012 OLYMPIC

- Naresh Agarwal

I recently read an appeal in Rainbow stamp club bulletin asking to start campaigning for issuance of postal stamps by India Post on occasion of London Olympics, the biggest sport event held every four years to see the best sport personalities of the world in action. The appeal reads as under :

“It is unfortunate that India Post has not yet announced stamps to commemorate London 2012 Olympics. The philatelic community is still in doubt whether any stamp will be issued by India Post to mark this biggest sports event. So all Indian philatelists are requested to join hands and make all possible efforts to pursue India Post for a beautiful set of stamps to mark OLYMPICS 2012. WE all must start a campaign for the issue of commemorative stamps on Olympics 2012 !!”

Participation by any nation in such a great sports event is a matter of pride and honor. Further winning any medal in this event is like a dream come true. For me even participation in Olympic gives you a title of Olympian which is a very big and rich achievement.

     

 

We have seen postal authorities of most of the countries are issuing postal stamps to celebrate on this occasion. Australia for example is issuing three commemorative stamps titling “The Road to London” to honor its Olympians and also will be issuing stamps instantly for their Gold medal winners in London Olympics.

Such is the enthusiasm. Israel has planned to issue a set of 6 stamps. This shows how seriously and strongly one is connected and concerned. This connectivity acts as a motivational stuff for the participants and also for the new upcoming athletes and sports persons.

India has also been issuing stamps on many such occasion. This act of India Post has been highly appreciated by the philatelic fraternity world over and the stamps and other postal stuffs issued / released have made an impact. Many big sports persons have been honored.

Though only a few days are left, India Post has not yet declared the stamps to be issued on this occasion by it but it is believed that very nice stamps have already been designed to honor the medal winners of India in the past Olympics games. But it is not understood why such games are being played by India Post before the official start of the Olympic games. This is a serious matter and demand of the people of this state who look forward for release of good postal material including postal stamps to mark, celebrate and commemorate this event.

One must not forget that India Post has been very kind and liberal in its stamp issue policy where even a very good number of people and events of regional stature have been honored and commemorated. Olympics has a global stature and one can think what India Post must have in its store for this event. Otherwise also when whole world is doing great work to mark the event… India post, one of the biggest postal organizations can never sit behind and is expected to come out with some wonderful postal material.

In case India Post has not yet thought of this, it must act immediately to keep its and our head high. It must think that this is the right time to honor our athletes and Olympians in front of the world as stamps are considered as ambassador of any country. More over, we will be honoring our sports personalities not the British or other nationals.

Let me remind the think tank of India post that it has a big wing to promote philately and also has a philatelic advisory committee too to think on the importance of any such occasion and to decide on issuance of stamps and postal material which could commemorate such event and also help promotion and development of this hobby for which such wing has been formed. I would like to inform that there is a big group / chapter of philatelists who collect and enjoy the Olympic related stamps and other material. In India, only there is a big team of such philatelists who are hard core Olympic Stamp collectors.

I hope and have firm belief that India Post will come out with a strange but beautiful set of stamps to mark this occasion along with other related philatelic materials.

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New Special Covers..

 

Ladakh International Film Festival

Jammu & Kashmir Postal Circle, Srinagar issued 3 special Covers on 15th June 2012 to commemorate Ladakh International  Film Festival at Leh.

 

: Pradip Jain - Patna

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New stamps from USPS – Mail a Smile…

 

Date of Issue : June 1, 2012

Hi!

Here is a beautiful smiling set of stamps to be issued by USPS on 1st June 2012 featuring characters from five Disney•Pixar movies. The stamps are just wonderful and sure to fascinate one and all especially kids !! This is all for tonight …..Till Next Post…Have a nice Time !!

The new Mail a Smile (Forever®) stamps feature Disney•Pixar's unique characters who remind us of our fears and foibles, challenges and victories, and make us laugh while doing so. In 2012, their familiar faces will lift our spirits once again on stamps that remind us it's always a good time to “Mail a Smile.”

These Mail a Smile stamps feature beloved characters from five Disney•Pixar movies:
- A Bug's Life (1998)
- Toy Story 2 (1999)
- Monsters, Inc. (2001)
- Finding Nemo (2003)
- The Incredibles (2004)

This stamp sheet is a follow-up to the

Send a Hello (Forever®) stamps, a 2011 issuance featuring Disney•Pixar characters that grew out of the Art of Disney series issued from 2004 through 2008. From monsters, fish, and ants to toys and superheroes, Disney•Pixar characters have brought heart and humor to our lives for over 25 years.

Since 1995, Pixar Animation Studios has won 29 Academy Awards. Responsible for almost every major breakthrough in computer animation, the company continues to reset the bar in technology with every film. The Mail a Smile stamps are being issued as self-adhesive Forever® stamps, which are always equal in value to the current First-Class Mail one-ounce rate.

Mail a Smile Postcards !!

Mailing a smile just got easier! This booklet of 20 cards features five colorful designs with pre-printed Forever® postage. Simply write a message, address, and send some cheer !!

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