Banking in Switzerland dates to the early 18th century through Switzerland's merchant trade and over the centuries has grown into a complex and regulated international industry. Banking is seen as emblematic of Switzerland and the country has been one of the largest offshore financial centers and tax havens in the world since the mid-20th century, with a long history of banking secrecy and client confidentiality reaching back to the early 1700s. Starting as a way to protect wealthy European banking interests, Swiss banking secrecy was codified in 1934 with the passage of a landmark federal law, the Federal Act on Banks and Savings Banks. These laws were used to protect assets of persons being persecuted by Nazi authorities but have also been used by people and institutions seeking to illegally evade taxes, hide assets, or to commit other financial crime.
Christoph Wolfram Blocher is a Swiss industrialist and politician who served as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council from 2004 to 2007. A member of the Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC), he headed the Federal Department of Justice and Police. As an industrialist, he became wealthy as CEO and majority shareholder in the EMS-Chemie corporation, now run by his daughter, Magdalena Martullo-Blocher.
Butter chicken, traditionally known as murgh makhani, is an Indian dish originating in Delhi. It is a type of curry made from chicken with a spiced tomato and butter (makhan) sauce. Its sauce is known for its rich texture. It is similar to chicken tikka masala, which uses a tomato paste.
Tandoori chicken is a dish made from chicken marinated in yogurt and spices and roasted in a tandoor, a cylindrical clay oven. The dish is now popular worldwide. The modern form of the dish was popularized by the Moti Mahal restaurant in New Delhi, India in the late 1940s.
The Street Parade is a techno music festival in Zurich, Switzerland. With around one million attendees, it is the world's most attended technoparade. The Street Parade takes place annually on the second Saturday in August. Officially a demonstration for freedom, love and tolerance, the parade proceeds along the northern edge of Lake Zurich.
Marco Camenisch is a Swiss anarchist and environmental activist.
Chori Chori Chupke Chupke is a 2001 Indian Hindi-language romantic drama film directed by Abbas–Mustan, with screenplay and story from Javed Siddiqui and Neeraj Vora respectively. Starring Salman Khan, Rani Mukerji and Preity Zinta in lead roles, the film's music is composed by Anu Malik and lyrics are penned by Sameer. Telling the story of a married couple hiring a young prostitute as a surrogate mother, the film generated controversy during its release for dealing with the taboo issue of surrogate childbirth in India.
Kulcha is a Persian term for a disc-shaped loaf of leavened bread. In India, this term is commonly used for regular English bread.
Priya Gill is an Indian former actress, model and beauty pageant titleholder. She won the title of Femina Miss India International 1995 and represented India at Miss International 1995. She appeared mainly in Hindi films, along with a film each in Punjabi, Malayalam, Tamil, Bhojpuri and movies in Telugu. She is best known for her role in the films Sirf Tum and Josh.
The Zug massacre took place on 27 September 2001 in the city of Zug in the canton's parliament. Friedrich Leibacher shot dead 14 people before killing himself. Leibacher was armed with a civilian version of a Stgw 90, a SIG Sauer pistol, a pump-action shotgun, and a revolver, and wore a homemade police vest.
Crime in Switzerland is combated mainly by cantonal police. The Federal Office of Police investigates organised crime, money laundering and terrorism.
The Swiss diaspora refers to Swiss people living abroad, also referred to as "fifth Switzerland", alluding to the fourfold linguistic division within the country. The Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) cares for Swiss people living abroad.
Russia–Switzerland relations are foreign relations between Russia and Switzerland. Switzerland opened a consulate in Saint Petersburg in 1816, upgrading it to a legation 90 years later. The two countries broke off diplomatic relations in 1923, when Russia was going through a period of revolutionary turmoil – and they were not resumed until 1946. Due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, relations became tense after Switzerland imposed sanctions against Russia. Russia placed Switzerland on a list of "unfriendly countries".
Ulrich "Ueli" Maurer is a Swiss politician who served as a Member of the Swiss Federal Council from 2009 to 2022. A member of the Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC), he was President of the Swiss Confederation in 2013 and 2019. Formerly head of the Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sports (2009–2015), Maurer has headed the Federal Department of Finance from 2016 to 2022. From 2019 to 2022, he was the longest-serving sitting member of the Federal Council.
Marcel Vaid is a Swiss-German musician and composer of music for film and theatre.
Regula Rytz is a Swiss historian and politician who served on the National Council (Switzerland) for the Green Party from 2011 to 2022. She concurrently served as co-president of the Green Party of Switzerland from 2012 to 2016 and as president from 2016 to 2020.
Albert Rösti is a Swiss businessman, lobbyist and politician who has been a Member of the Swiss Federal Council since 1 January 2023. He previously presided over the Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC) from 2016 to 2020 and served as a member of the National Council for the canton of Bern from 2011 until 2022. Rösti resides in Uetendorf near Thun.
Salma Baig popularly known as Kumari Naaz or Baby Naaz was an Indian actress in Hindi language films.
Although Indian cinema has been shot in a variety of foreign settings, the use of Switzerland as a backdrop for many scenes in Indian cinema, especially Hindi films, has been particularly notable for its unusual prevalence, with the country being consistently featured and involved as a setting despite its relatively large distance and small size, lack of a significant diaspora population, and location outside the Anglosphere. This has been attributed to its natural beauty, particularly the snowy mountains of the Swiss Alps which are considered an exotic locale for much of India and are heavily featured in romantic scenes, that Indian filmmakers were looking for to replace Kashmir after the security situation there deteriorated. It is estimated that around 200 Indian films have been at least partially shot in Switzerland.
