Emma Watson Profile Biography

A witch who is charming, fun, and brainy – not as impossible as you think! One fine Halloween day a young Emma Watson donned a witch’s costume, never dreaming that one day she would actually play the role of a witch as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter film series. Incidentally, this witch loves chocolates and hates vegetables! Another aspect of the screen character that Emma has is being a brainy student who is passionate about studies. Unlike many teen stars who neglect their education and exchange books for film scripts, Emma is clear that her studies will not be affected by her film career. During shoots, she was tutored on the sets at Leavesden Studios and achieved straight-A results both for her GCSE exams and A- level exams. Emma is presently in her first year at Brown University, USA. She has roomed up with another girl in an apartment in Providence, Rhode Island.

Emma selected USA for her University education as she felt it offered a far broader scope than universities back home in UK. She learnt bout the variety of subjects offered by American Universities when she met foreign students while doing a Shakespeare course at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). As she said in an interview with the Interview magazine "For someone who has missed as much school as I have, I want to go back and discover what else there is." These past years, those discoveries were put on hold. Since age 9, Emma has been transported to the world of witches, broomsticks, spells and dragons. The reel character Hermione totally took over her real persona as Emma. For Emma there were to be no girly sleep-overs, partying late at a club or cheering from the sidelines at a football game. Instead, Hermione got early calls to sets, had to mug up reams of dialogues, don various costumes and in-between study five hours on the sets.

This dramatic change of lifestyle first began when Emma’s Oxford theatre teacher sent her for auditions for Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. After 8 auditions, Emma was selected to play Hermione, as were Daniel Radcliffe to play Harry Potter, and Rupert Grint to play Ron Weasley. The film broke box-office records, with Emma bagging the Young Artist Award. She went on to bag more awards with some of the later Harry Potter films. Even more incredible, Emma entered the Guinness Book of World Records as the highest earning actress of the decade!

All those millions of pounds have not turned Emma’s head, though, nor has her behaviour become arrogant. Emma herself once said "I have enough money never to have to work again, but I would never want that. Learning keeps me motivated." The frank teenager tries to lead as normal a life as is possible for somebody who is constantly in the spotlight. She is loyal to her friends and enjoys socializing with her pals. She loves to listen to music, her favourite singers being Justin Timberlake and Alanis Morrisette. Emma likes ballet and modern dance as well as writing poetry. In fact, at age 7 she won the Daisy Pratt Poetry Competition! Another little known fact about Emma is that she is fairly good in painting. Her favourite subjects for the canvas are portraits of people and facial expressions. She has even done a

portrait of her step brother. With her love for art, it was natural for Emma to pursue it at Brown University. She is also studying English literature and geology.

On campus, Emma can’t exactly make herself invisible like Hermione to avoid being the centre of attention as a celebrity! She does, though, try to dress down like the other students in casuals. Off campus, Emma has designed a line of clothing for ethical label People Tree. However, she is not just another big star with a temporary fascination for fashion designing merely to grab headlines. Emma has devoted a great deal of time and put forth her suggestions through her art work to the clothing line for teenagers. She also made it clear at the outset that it was not a celebrity endorsement, but a genuine support of fair-trade and ethical fashion. The range includes linen fabrics, cotton vests, scarves and hoodies. Emma’s sense of style appealed to many and she was included in Vogue’s best dressed list last year. What’s more, she became the face of Burberry and Chanel, their products making huge profits the minute Emma started endorsing them.

While Emma became an instant darling of Britain, she is actually a native of Paris, France. After her lawyer-parents divorced in 1995, Emma’s mother Jacqueline shifted to Oxfordshire, England with Emma and her younger brother Alex. Emma’s acting, dancing and singing skills were honed at the Oxford branch of Stagecoach Theatre Arts. She even performed in a few school plays. Then came those auditions which saw Emma playing out the next ten years of her life on camera through the Harry Potter series. Outside of the series, Emma has lent her voice to Princess Pea in the animated flick 'The Tale of Despereaux' and featured in the BBC drama 'Ballet Shoes'.

As for her personal life, Emma was financier Jay Barrymore’s sweetheart for two years. It is possible that the distance in miles – with Emma in USA and Jay in UK – was a cause of the split. The new rumours are that Emma is dating fellow student and Spanish musician Rafael Cebrian. On screen, Hermione and Ron fall in love in the final wizard film Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The film is being shot in 2 parts, with the first scheduled for release in November this year and the second to be released next year.

Emma is in two minds about whether or not to continue with her acting career post-Potter films. On the one hand she admits not to have a "burning passion" for acting; on the other hand she says "I’m sure I’ll still be here in 10 years, making Harry Potter 30". So while she is keener on pursuing her education, she is game to do theatre and take up a role which, as reported here, makes her feel "as strongly about as I did Hermione - like, I felt that it was life or death".

A few of Emma’s Favourites

* Favourite sports: Tennis, hockey and rounders

* Favourite stars: Julia Roberts; Brad Pitt; Renee Zellwegger

* Favourite films: Grease; The Shawshank Redemption; Braveheart; Gladiator; Shrek; 

Ocean's Eleven; Pride & Prejudice

* Favorite Harry Potter book: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw Profile

$250, a garage space and no financial backing – one would hardly regard these as strong foundations for starting an entrepreneurial venture. Not only did Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw prove that these foundations are not exactly shaky if one has the determination and hard work to launch a business, but she went on to build Biocon Ltd -a biotechnological empire - on those very foundations. What’s more, she started her venture in India, where girls are under great pressure to get married early and become homemakers and not take up jobs, least of all become independent businesswomen. Also, quite unlike what was expected of women, Kiran put forth her views in a forthright manner with no diplomatic hints. Her no-nonsense attitude and outspoken views have made a positive impact on bureaucrats, colleagues and staff alike.

It was to Kiran’s advantage that she got the immense support of her family with no insistence on a quick early marriage. Her father emphatically told her that she could get a good spouse anytime, but should never lose out on the opportunity to follow a good career especially with her great educational background. Kiran did her schooling at the Bishop Cotton Girls School and then attended Mount Carmel College, Bangalore. She also earned a graduate honours degree in Zoology from Bangalore University. She had a keen interest in brewing, her father being the chief brewmaster in United Breweries. To pursue her interest, Kiran decided to enrol for the Malting and Brewing Technology program at the University of Ballarat, Australia. On successfully becoming a brewmaster, Kiran worked as a trainee brewer in Carlton & United Beverages for four years.

Unfortunately, despite her high skills and educational background, back in India Kiran was unable to get any job opportunities as the sector was predominantly for men. Finding no success as a consultant, she returned to UK to work as a Trainee Manager with Biocon Biochemicals Limited in Ireland. Leslie Auchincloss, the owner, put forth a proposal to set up a business in India. Kiran was excited at the idea and without a second thought agreed to set up India’s first biotechnology company. Named Biocon, Kiran would have an equity stake of 70% while Leslie would have 30%. The initial idea was to extract enzyme from papaya and export it to Ireland.

One of the first steps Kiran took was to set up an office in a small garage and advertise for staff. To her chagrin, she found that instead of interviewing people, she was being interviewed by them! Few liked the idea of working for a woman, that too one who was so young (she was 25). Even more difficult was getting capital to begin the venture. Although there were government schemes for funding small scale industries, Kiran was time and again turned away from banks unwilling to give a loan to a woman with a risky venture in an unheard of field. She did eventually get a financial backer, but it took years before Kiran’s skills and vision got the company to its peak. When it eventually did, Biocon stormed the world, having grown from a small company producing industrial enzymes to a mammoth biopharmaceutical company which ventured into innovative research programs. From a $250 start-up company to a $1 billion venture, Biocon Ltd. has made a huge impact on the lives of ordinary people.

Under the mentorship of Kiran, the company focuses on insulin, antibodies and cancer vaccines with the aim to create drugs which are affordable especially to the poor of India. When TIME magazine named Kiran in its annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world, cyclist Lance Armstrong wrote "Thank you, Dr. Shaw, for treating cancer like the global crisis it has become." Kiran is a true philanthropist, donating about $2 million towards health insurance coverage for villagers in India. She also provided $10 million as funds to set up the Mazumdar-Shaw Cancer Centre in Bangalore; it will provide free treatment to poor patients. In fact, Kiran featured in Forbes magazine's list of Asia's top philanthropists.

On the personal front, Kiran’s hectic work schedule gives her little time for indulging in her favourite recreational activities – visiting art galleries (she is an avid art collector), playing golf, listening to classical music, snorkelling and watching sports. She hits the treadmill, swims and does yoga routines to keep fit, maintaining a healthy diet while at home in Bangalore with her Scotsman husband John Shaw, who is the Vice-Chairman of her company. Once she enters the corporate world, though, all those routines and diets go for a toss!

As a boss, Kiran commands a good deal of respect, as a result of which the aspect of gender never arises. Her competence, self-assurance and practical no-nonsense attitude has created a sense of goodwill amongst her employees and she has never had to face the labour problems which most companies have to deal with today. Moreover, Kiran has gained the faith of her investors by giving them good returns. As she said in an interview, "I think today I can look back and say I've certainly proved that I am not a risk prone investment."

Some Major Awards & Honours

*  Institute of Marketing Management’s Gold medal for Best Woman Entrepreneur (1982)

*  Rotary award for the Best Model Employer (1983)

*  Padma Shri (1989)

*  Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in Healthcare & Life Sciences Category (2002)

*  Australian Alumni High Achiever Award from the IDP Australian Alumni Association (2003)

*  The Economic Times Business Woman of the Year Award (2004)

*  Honorary Doctorate of Science, from Ballarat University (2004)

*  Padma Bhushan (2005)

*  Wharton Infosys Business Transformation Award (2006)

Sania Mirza Wedding

India's prolific tennis lady, Sania Mirza, is all set to say kabool next month. The Hyderabadi lass' would-be groom is former Pakistan cricket captain Shoaib Malik. Sania Mirza's wedding will be held in India, while the reception will be hosted in Lahore, Pakistan. The twosome will then settle in Dubai, where Shoib is a resident.

Post-marriage, Sania will definitely continue her tennis career with appearances at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi & the Asian Games. Her career has hit a hurdle with off-and-on injuries. At one time Sania Mirza had reached the No.18 rank in doubles (in September 2007) and No.27 in singles (in August 2007). Last year she even won the mixed doubles at the Australian Open, teaming up with Mahesh Bhupathi, to grab her first ever Grand Slam title. However, the promise she showed has faded a bit and at present Sania is at No.92.

Wishing Sania all the best as she begins a new life and hoping to see her serving many more aces in the future in the tennis arena!

Click here for Photos of Sania-Shoaib Wedding Reception: Sania-Shoaib Lahore Wedding Reception