I’d rather be in *Hellnar* away from the big city. Where would you rather be?

36 Hours in Hyderabad, India. The 400-year-old city offers seductive history, fiery food and a dynamic high-tech scene.

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After the terrorist attacks in Mumbai in 2008, the demand for bomb-sniffing dogs in India rose so fast the country could not keep up with requests. The Washington Post reported that prior to the attacks, the Indian army had used canines primarily in restive Kashmir and Punjab. “But as insurgents and terrorists expand their targets across the country,” the paper wrote, “dogs are also being deployed to malls, metro stations, luxury hotels and other public places in India’s booming new cities.”

Two years after the Mumbai attacks, the need had yet to be filled. In 2010, “New Delhi’s police department has 32 sniffer dogs and [had] ordered 50 more … Major airports [had] increased the number of sniffer dogs by at least 50 percent since 2008,” according to the Post.

Few as they may be, these canines are highly regarded in India. As sub-Inspector Digvijay Singh told the Post, “These dogs are patriotic Indians. They are better than our men, because they don’t take bribes.”

Here, Indian soldiers show off their trained canines at Polo Grounds in Secunderabad on Jan. 8, 2010. [ via ]

Mad Men star Jon Hamm has become attached to play a sports agent in Million Dollar Arm, the drama based on the true story of how sports agent J.B. Bernstein discovered professional pitchers Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel through a reality show he staged in India with cricket players. Mayhem Pictures’ Mark Ciardi and Gordon Gray are producing with Joe Roth and Palak Patel of Roth Films. Thomas McCarthy wrote the script and the plan is to shoot in the fall. [ more ]

Beef-loving British boy band The Wanted has already rumbled with One Direction and dissed Christina Aguilera twice over. How do they feel about Britney Spears, for whom they once served as the opening act? “We signed a confidentiality thing that we should never say anything about what happened, but let’s tell it anyway,” the band’s Tom Parker told Fresh 102.7 Radio. Explained Siva Kaneswaran, “I was in the hallway with me tour manager. Basically we were looking with a laptop, trying to get WiFi, and we were facing the middle of the hallway. Her bouncers came down with her and told us to face the wall … ” ” As Miss Spears is walking through,” continued Parker. “We’re like, come on!” And yet they did. Who else would you like to dish on, The Wanted? How about Justin Bieber? “He punched Siva in the balls,” said the band’s Jay McGuinness. Noted! [ via ]