After a grand function at the Museum of Egyptian Modern Art's Al-Bab Gallery, Culture Minister Emad Abu-Ghazi and Ambassador of India R Swaminathan inaugurated two exhibitions related to the Nobel Laureate Tagore entitled "A Philatelic Exhibition on Tagore" and "Tagore in Kantha". Present were the Chairman of the Fine Arts Sector at the Ministry of Culture Ashraf Reda, the Chairman of the Egyptian National Postal Authority Tarek El-Saadani and the Director of the Maulana Azad Centre for Indian Culture Suchitra Durai. Around 300 invitees turned up for the events, including the ambassadors of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Spain, Argentina, Oman, Ireland, the Republic of Congo and Ghana and the spouses of the ambassadors of Lebanon and Palestine, students, academics, art lovers, media representatives and members of the Indian and Bangladeshi communities. The exhibitions are part of year-long celebrations to commemorate the 150th birth of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941), who was Asia's first Nobel Laureate. The philatelic exhibition consists of 20 panels of commemorative stamps and other rare philatelic objects issued by the postal departments of around 20 foreign countries on Rabindranath Tagore. Some of these items are more than a century old and belong to private collectors in India. Sekhar Chakrabarti, one of three Indian collectors who loaned objects to this exhibition, is present in Cairo as its curator. The "Tagore in Kantha" exhibition, on the other hand, includes 13 panels of traditional kantha embroidery work illustrating Tagore's short stories, songs, poems and dance dramas -- all in a style practised to this day by rural women in West Bengal, India and Bangladesh. Hassan Azzazi, associate dean for graduate studies and research and professor of chemistry at the American University in Cairo (AUC), has won the prestigious National Excellence Prize in Advanced Technological Sciences. The award, announced by the Academy of Scientific Research and Technology, recognises exceptional achievement in applied research. "This award is very significant because it recognises how my research efforts combine nanotechnology and biotechnology concepts and tools to develop innovative diagnostic and therapeutic solutions for infectious diseases", said Azzazi. "The timing of the award is also special as it comes in the post- revolution era when scientific research has been declared a national priority. I am also pleased because this award recognises the efforts of the bright graduate students in my research group", he added. Azzazi has published 16 articles in international peer- reviewed journals over the past five years. He is the founder and leader of Novel Diagnostics and Therapeutics, a research group at AUC's Yousef Jameel Science and Technology Research Center (YJ- STRC). He is also the associate dean of graduate studies and research. He is the recipient of AUC's Excellence in Research Award in 2008 and Excellence in Teaching Award in 2010. Congratulations! Our very own Opinion writer Sameh Fawzi obtained his PhD degree from the Faculty of Economics and Political Science, Cairo University. Fawzi 's thesis concerns the introduction of an unprecedented new paradigm of public policies, tackling the issue of social capital as an interdisciplinary concept and focussing on the role of the state in cooperation with civil society to build social capital in Egypt. Professors Attia Hussein, Ali Lila and Amani Massoud undertook the viva. The ambassador of Venezuela to Egypt Victor Carazo gave a reception on the occasion of the bicentennial of the Independence of Venezuela. Guests enjoyed the lovely ceremony at Shephard Hotel in the presence of the Cuban Ambassador to Egypt Otto Vaillant Frias and the former Egyptian Ambassador El-Husseini Abdel-Wahab. A prestigious launching ceremony for the recently released TV satellite channel CBC (Capital Broadcast Centre) at Hyatt Regency Hotel downtown included an exquisite dinner with a number of media figures including Lamis El-Hadidi, Editor-in-Chief of Al-Masry Al-Youm Magdi El-Gallad, Editor-in-Chief of Al-Fagr newspaper Adel Hammouda, Islamic figures Moez Massoud and Amr Khaled, TV presenter Khairi Ramadan and poet Abdel-Rahman Youssef. Filmmaker Ibrahim El-Batout 's movie Hawi has received the Critics Award in the 17th annual Rabat Film Festival (24 June to 2 July). The film was well received by the audience who described it as "very different from the typical Egyptian cinema, portraying a new picture as it elaborated social and political conditions in Egypt prior to the revolution, indicating an upcoming explosion." El-Batout is currently preparing to travel to the South African city Durban to participate in the 32nd Durban International Film Festival which is taking place from 21 to 31 July. The film will be shown twice, on Sunday 24 July and on Sunday 31 July, in competition with another 22 features. The film was first commercially screened in Egypt on 22 June in both Cairo and Alexandria after a special screening for journalists and contributing artists organised in Alexandria, making it the first film to have its premiere outside Cairo. Hawi is El-Batout 's third feature after Ithaka and Ain Shams, and has participated in numerous international film festivals around the world, starting with the Tribeca Film Festival. Hawi is written and directed by El-Batout, starring many rising stars from Alexandria including Mohamed El-Said, Sherif El-Desouki and Rania Aref, together with the well-known actress Hanan Youssef.
