APRIL 2014
Khaas Baat : A Publication for Indian Americans in Florida
Guest Column

EYE on Bollywood

By DR. ARUN C. GULANI

With the excitement of the upcoming IIFA Awards night in Tampa and given what I have learnt from my celebrity clientele both in Hollywood and Bollywood, I thought let's digress from the serious medical stuff and review something that is timely.

Not only are our eyes the window to our soul but they also are the first, most attractive and engaging elements of our appearance. Where else is appearance of more importance than in the world of movie stars and celebrities? And hence the emphasis on eyes!

Even though majority of these concepts apply to women, men are increasingly tinkering with similar quests too.

Maintaining my approach to innovative technology and medical information, I have tried to classify the following information in a user-friendly and lucid fashion.

So let’s breakdown the enhancement of the appearance of our eyes and its impact on those who look at us into the following categories:

Actor Ranveer Singh, who will be attending
IIFA in Tampa, poses with Dr. Arun Gulani.

Everyday Routines

Mostly applicable to women, these are everyday routines such as applying eye shadow, mascara, eyeliners and foundation.

Enhancing Everyday Routine

The above mentioned everyday routines can be enhanced with creative and learned improvements like extending the eye liner beyond the lateral canthus, emphasizing an almond shaped eye, deepening the contrast of liners vs. eye shadow. The use of augmented, eye shadow colors and bling further glamorize the look.

Medical Enhancement

Long lashes can be gained by applying Lattisse (originally invented for glaucoma); lashes also experience darkening, which is a welcome side effect in light-skinned people. Permanent eye liners can take away the everyday hassle of applications.

In olden times, women would actually put extracts of Bella Donna in the eyes to dilate their pupils as an attractive feature.

Juviderm, Collagen and Botox can be selectively used and also in creative combinations to decrease wrinkles (Crows feet), improve dark circles and make the eyes more prominent in appearance.

Surgical correction

The eyelids can be surgically corrected in cases of Ptosis (droopy lids); excessive skin (dermatochalasis) can be improved by skin-tightening techniques and Thermage. The lids can actually be designed to closely simulate certain movie stars.

Amniotic (Human Placenta) surgery can be used to correct the yellow-red lesions (from sun damage) to white of our eyes and return the sparkle to the eyes. The chronic red and tired look can be rejuvenated with dry eye treatments and combination “No-Stitch” Amniotic surgery.

Surgical enhancement

The color of the eye can be changed temporarily with contact lenses and permanently with Iris Implants (under FDA investigation) and a new laser technique that directly changes Iris color (Khaasbaat article last month).

I have even surgical placed platinum and diamond jewelry on the outside white of the eye. This can be star-shaped, heart-shaped, etc., and is a permanent jewel that is visible.

So, there you go; you now have the secrets of so many of our movie stars and their mesmerizing looks. Try them (statutory warning: only after consulting with your eye doctor).

Of course, I am biased to perfect vision, so wearing glasses on top of all of these mentioned enhancers is pretty much like wearing a veil on your face after a full hour of a makeup session. So, vision surgery comes first. The rest is just packaging!

Maybe you can have fun during IIFA trying to see which celebrity did what. You see, not everything is in the eyes of the beholder!

Arun C. Gulani, M.D., M.S., is director and chief surgeon of Gulani Vision Institute in Jacksonville. He can be reached at gulanivision@gulani.com or visit www.gulanivision.com


The College Admissions Essay – Writing About the Right Things

By Robert A.G. LeVine

Nothing creates more anxiety for college applicants than the dreaded college admissions essay. Students struggle to find compelling topics, and some purchase books with titles such as “Essays that Get People Into the Ivy League.” They seek to show something special, enlightened and poetic, but in shooting for the stars, applicants usually shoot themselves in the foot.

Picking a subject matter requires an understanding of two things: who you are, and how the admissions offices evaluate your information.

Most students confuse these two issues, concluding that they should present themselves as near-perfect candidates. In pursuing a supposed ideal, they all try to be the same things, using words like “passionate” and “hard-working.” In the process, they neglect to explain their own individuality, perhaps because they do not understand what makes them unique.

Until applications are filed, colleges know nothing about their applicants. What they really want to know is, “Who are you?” If you cannot answer this question, then you should not expect a college admissions representative to understand you or your strengths. Therefore, before attempting to write any college essay, take the time to understand yourself.

In writing the essays, a simple rule should be followed: Instead of focusing on a topic prompt that a college application “requires,” write about yourself. When you’re done, your essay will naturally answer the prompt, perhaps needing only a few additional words to satisfy the most demanding readers.

But what specifically should you say? The answer lies not in topic prompts, but in understanding how the colleges evaluate applicants. There are generally two methods of evaluation.

Major, public universities care primarily about “numbers” such as test scores and grade point averages. For the most part, they only read essays for applicants whose numbers place them “on the bubble” for admission, the applicants whose scores are not so high as to be automatic acceptances nor so low as to be automatic rejections. Here, the essay is an important determining factor. It is a writing sample, something that should demonstrate both thought and communication skill. It is important in these essays to write about yourself, pay homage to the topic (so that you don’t insult any college by submitting a generic essay), and perhaps most importantly to edit and revise carefully.

Private, selective colleges do not use essays as determinants. Rather, essays are used as supporting information in grading applicants in multiple areas, such as academics, activities, and personal qualities. Since those separate grades are the basis for determining which applicants are in the running for admission and which are not, a student’s focus should always be on how to achieve the highest possible grade in each area.

To achieve the best result, the specifics of college essays should be used to supplement and explain a student’s strengths as shown elsewhere in the application. For example, everyone knows that some students become officers of a club merely to bolster their resumes, while others treat leadership positions as opportunities to do important things. Because college applications provide limited space outside of the essays to describe years of effort and accomplishment, the essays allow you to explain and elaborate upon the many things you’ve done during high school.

Increase your chances of admission by using your essays to describe the depth and breadth of your achievements in the context of “who you are.”

Robert A.G. LeVine, president of Selective College Consulting, Inc., can be reached at (813) 391-3760, or email BobLeVine@SelectiveCC.com or visit www.SelectiveCollegeConsulting.com

homeeventsbiz directorysubscribecontact uscontentclasses/places of worship newseditorialhealthimmigration
Real ESTATEfinanceayurvedatechno cornermoviesfashionmusic/dancebooksbusinessbeatIIFA 2014art/youthastrology
NUTRITIONcuisinemotoringGETAWAYSclassifiedsarchivesBLOGFACEBOOK
Read the Editor's Blog. By Nitish Rele Classifieds Motoring Cuisine Astrology Art/Youth Books Music and Dance Fashion Movies Techno Corner Finance Immigration Health Editorial News Classes/Places of Worship Content Find us on Facebook!