Thinkpots

2011-12-28T12:47:00.002+05:30

New-age husbands

I was just wondering a few days back, how the situation has changed in an educated Indian household over the last few years. Men no longer are the only bread winners in the family with contribution coming in even from their better halves. It has changed for the better, no doubt and I totally support it. However, there are some buckets in this country where, still, the situation is a lot male dominated and the women folk have to do all the household chores. I have some friends who also believe in this principle as well but not me.

I think a household is run by two people working together in tandem and in harmony. Understanding each other’s shortcomings and helping each other overcome them is the fun and challenge that a couple face in their initial years. That has its own charm. Knowing the other persons quirks and responding or even handling it is exciting in itself. Yes, there might be sometimes when it gets out of control but then getting things back on track is also enjoyable.

Moms from the 70s or 80s could be aptly termed as super human beings; managing work as well as household (as the male perception had not changed much in those days). They used to get up early, cook lunch for the entire family, pack up and go to work, come back, cater to their children and finally cook dinner (again for the entire family). The male members role was simple; get up, read the newspaper while having tea (made by his wife), have breakfast (again cooked by wife dearest), go to work, come back in the evening, have dinner, watch T.V and crash out. If we compare the level of activities done by both the members in the household, the former's contribution sounds terrific, doesn’t it? And that’s why I’ve taken the liberty to call them super-moms. No doubt even those mothers who were house-wives could be termed as super-women but they atleast had a little bit of relaxation in the afternoons when they would be all by themselves (after the morning whirlwind)! But just imagine the running around that must be taking place everyday during those years.

However, things have changed in a lot of homes these days (atleast in those which I’m aware of). Husbands take an active interest in the household chores; may it be drying clothes, cleaning around the house, or even cooking. It might not be voluntary but atleast it is done with the intention of reducing the burden off their counterparts. The fact that men have started thinking in this manner is in itself a positive change and a proof of their upbringing which has been done in an environment wherein girls have been treated with equal amount of respect. So, with equal (well almost) amount of work done by both, the husband and wife, chances of one being a super human being have drastically reduced these days…:-)

The qualities of the super women from yesteryears seem to have been equally divided among men and women these days. Both work and both contribute equally in the household. That’s the way it should be, isn’t it? However, I also feel that these “new-age husbands” are also confused somewhere down the line. They would love their wives to cook for them everyday (which is definitely not possible), take care of the maids, keep themselves updated with the stock of food at home, clean-up the refrigerators etc. and on the other hand they would also like them not to stress themselves out doing all these things…:P (definitely confused). I love cooking and I help my wife a lot of times with that. I find it a great stress buster and I feel liberated looking at my creation..LOL. However, I still wish that my kids grow up to remember and say “Oh, maa ke haath ka khana”, instead of “Oh, dad ke haath ka khana,” (didn’t I mention, they are confused!).

Singing Sens(less)ation!!!

2011-11-18T15:02:00.000+05:30

I love music and I love singing…I always have. As a child I always believed that I sing really well and so, used to do it quite ritually throughout our short trips. However, this misconception of mine was broken by my music teacher when I was in 7^th or 8^th I guess. We had to audition for some group song and he asked me to step out from the group!! Me??!! Well, he said my voice was different than the group..So I contested – isn’t it a good thing that my voice stands out from the group..even Md. Rafi was discovered like that!!! He said, no, by stand out I mean, not in the right scale..Aah..I remember how furious I was then and how bad I felt after reaching home….How can he call me “besura”…..Something happens to our voice during that age..a sweet little voice suddenly sounds as if coming out of out of order gramophone..It happens to most of us and so I believed I was just a victim of time…nothing else.

I was good with lyrics as a kid (I believe I am still). So, it was natural that someone who knows his songs so well should sing well also :(…I used to be the trump card for all the uncles during our “antakshari” sessions coz I could dig out songs from any movie and starting with any letters. It has also lead to quarrels at times as well as to which team will I belong…Aah..what footage, what demand!! And my music teacher came out and told me outright to stay out of the group song???!! How could’ve the song been complete without me??!!! So I kept wondering as to why couldn’t I sing songs in the proper scale, pitch and blah blah…Then, finally one day, after observing a lot of good singers, I reached to a conclusion. I concentrate more on the lyrics, their timing and the pronunciation than the above mentioned high quality stuff that good singers concentrate on.

I was also good at singing in different voices. I used to sing in the way Kumar Sanu, Udit Narayan, S.P.B (there weren’t many singers that time as it is now). Different cassette manufacturers’ output quality would be imitated by me depending who is on top on my list at that moment. Usually I used to screw up Venus’ audio quality, coz, as per my observation (as a kid ofcourse), its cassettes had a very short life. Then I realized, all this entertaining people has cost me my lovely voice..I won’t be able to sing well now like I used to and so, I continued doing what people said I was good at (unlike my music teacher)!! Same thing happened with my guitar teacher. He asked us if anyone knew an old hindi song…and obviously me being me was the only one who knew the song..I started the song and he went bonkers and asked me to stop the next moment..:( now I tell you what happens with all these artists…they concentrate too much on the singer and play the instrument accordingly…Guys!!! Take the lead!!! Even you can become leaders..let the singers follow you…let them stick to your scale that you are playing..Not my fault…

Fortunately, I have always been surrounded by people who sing well. First it was my mom and sister, then it was a very good friend of mine and now it’s my wife. She sings very well and what could be better for a person who loves music to have a partner who loves to sing for him? So this friend of mine used to teach my some parts of a song and I would “try” singing them. Finally, I gave up. But, I designed another strategy this time….:P I observed him singing a particular song more than a couple of times and I did what we Indians are best at...I started imitating him…Lol…To my surprise I started singing that song (yes, only that song) pretty well (based on people’s opinion). The song's also my personal all time favorite, so just an incentive to sing just fine atleast sometimes. I have dared myself in doing karaoke (I have successfully sang “Hotel California” and “Nothing else matters” :O ) as well, and I sing at some of our parties at home too. But all this can happen only under two circumstances – either when I am drunk or when everyone else around me is..:P

Lot of people have told me about my "singing skills" at different stages of my life..teachers, friends, relatives etc. But I haven’t got disheartened or discouraged at all and I keep looking for that perfect scale in the songs I sing (Yeah right!!!). Actually, I get bored trying to sing properly. It’s too much of an effort, too much concentration and hardly any results. As in, you put in everything in the song and by the end of it someone comes up and asks “What’s wrong with you today?”…So why put in the effort at all? (J)..and being a Virgo, I am happy with pointing out mistakes and correcting people with their lyrics than their “sur”…However, I can make out if a singer's screwing up the song but can’t point it out for my own singing (Sigh!!!!)…So, the child in me still believes that a day will come when I get up one morning and start singing perfectly, in the right scale, right pitch, and right tune just like the great Kishore Kumar (no formal training)…LOL

Unique Hyderabad - Part II

2011-09-22T15:37:00.001+05:30

It’s been a year since we moved to Hyderabad now. And no, this is not a consolation post to my earlier post titled, "Unique Hyderabad - Part I". All the things mentioned in there still hold good and might hold good for the years to come. However, I guess we have adjusted ourselves (gave in) to the way this city operates and started liking it as well…J

They say, “Every city has its own character”. This city has a very unique character which is a bit tough for an outsider (non-hyderabadi) and it takes time for one to adjust to it..So did we. But soon we realized that it’s the fun of that character that makes the city and a better option for a better living would be to mould ourselves into that character. No we haven’t turned into the “Nawabs” attitude which almost everyone walks with over here but we have certainly grown smarter as to handle that attitude now! E.g. we have booked our cylinder a week back…it hasn’t been delivered yet…So what? . . . .aa jaayega saab!

But it’s not only this trait of hyderabadis that define them. People here are crazy!!! They celebrate each and every festival, may it be Eid, Ganesh Utsav, or Christmas with the same level of jing bang and enthusiasm..Where else will you find such secularism? I love that about this place. The whole city drowns itself in celebrations during this period. There are night food stalls during the holy month of Ramadan, the vibrant atmosphere filled with chants during Ganesh Utsav or the innumerable discounts and offers during Christmas just never lets you feel left out. It’s the “all-are-welcome” attitude of Hyderabad that draws the connect. It’s not as indifferent as other metros nor is it too intrusive like other Tier-II cities.

People here are great foodies just like me and that probably is yet another reason why I’ve started liking this place. There are uncountable options when it comes to eating out in Hyderabad! The city offers you options right from its world famous Hyderabadi Biryani to world cuisine. Specialities like haleem (available during Ramadan), gongura chicken curry, and baghara baingan, kubani ka meetha, double ka meetha (just to name a few) are some of the must try when you are here! The point that they have their own delicacies goes to prove how food crazy the people here would be.

I love the way people speak Hindi here. It is a special branch of the language in itself which is called Hyderabadi hindi…J…I knew that there was this special way in which people talk in Hyderabad (thanks to the movie “The Angrez”) but had never witnessed it. I got that opportunity last year and believe me I picked it up in no time..Lol…the hindi is a mix of Urdu and colloquial words which a non-hyderabadi will never use. Moreover, they play around with the plurals in an awesome way…kaam (work) becomes kaama (lot of work..lol), cheez (thing) becomes cheeza (things), baat (talk) becomes baata (talks) , so on and so forth…Then ofcourse, there are cute frustration words that they use, e.g. baigan mein mila diya ijjat (let me down in front of..) or swear words that are not used anywhere else in the country (not worth mentioning here :P ). Whatever it is, I find it very fascinating (my wife really gets irritated with the hyderabadi accent though).

Last but not the least, the city has given us an amazing set of colleagues and friends (some of them are pakka hyderabadi) with similar wave-lengths, likes and dislikes. I am sure we will carry the friendship throughout our lives and cherish it all through. More on these CRAZY friends in the coming days but for the moment…Lite le…J

BAN

2011-08-16T15:06:00.000+05:30

I came across an article on “ban on alcohol” for people below 25 years of age. This actor, who’s the latest heartthrob in Bollywood coz of his latest movie, had commented on it. Well, I found most of his comments quite logical. If the age limit to get married is 18 (women & 21 for men), get a learner’s license to drive is 16, to vote is 18, child labour is 14 again, then what sense does it make to increase the age bar to 25 to choose your drink?

Like that’s gonna help…People who wanna drink, they sure will..no matter what, right? I’ve heard about stories wherein people booze in a dry state like Gujarat, obviously not in public, but yeah it is sourced from the bootleggers in Gujarat..No matter what the ban, there is a way…coz there is a strong will behind it……;-) What’s the point in banning booze till 25? What happens at 25? Do you suddenly become wiser and drink sanely? The only point is, the more you ban the youth, the more they will get curious about the banned thing. They are young, energetic, enthusiastic, experimenting, and daring. They will find their way in case they want to get what they want. India is a different state today. Youngsters at 22 years are already drawing thrice as much as their dad’s last drawn salary. They are financially independent, confident, and intelligently arrogant! They do not need a license till 25 to booze if they think a couple of drinks are justified after working hard for five days. Infact, I feel that criminal offences will go on a rise in case their activities are policed because of such lame bans!

I think these are government’s weird acts that it undertakes when they see people having a lot of fun and earning a lot of money. This is a license for all the cops to earn more than their stipulated (rather meager) government salaries. Yes, it can be understood as to getting the legal marriage age to a certain level, as it is more to do with the physical aspects of the boy as well as the girl. Then again, a reality check!!! There are these surveys that are carried out by a lot of agencies…I was shocked to see the percentage of guys and gals who lose their virginity at an age as young as 12!!! Well, I am not saying that there should be any alteration in the legal age to get married, but I hope the government knows its demographics well and what’s going on with them!!! I think it will help them in a better way to make laws and enforce bans!

Bans are a common thing in a country which boasts to be the world’s biggest “democracy”….Ban on songs, ban on films, ban on minimum age to do something, ban on smoking at public places (without having adequate smoking rooms for smokers)..Recently, this movie by Prakash Jha, Aarakshan was banned in some states in India as it had some provocative dialogues…!!! If a certain movie hurts someone’s sentiments, then it makes sense to enforce a ban, e.g. Jodha Akbar was banned in Rajasthan as it had derogatory remarks about Rajputs…Justified! The movie Aarakshan revolves around the quota system introduced in India after the Mandal commission’s ruling. I believe the directors just tried to showcase the kind of problems or conversations that would have taken place in between different classes of people when this ruling was passed by the Supreme Court….Why take it so seriously?

Why can’t the government let people decide what they want to take from a movie? It is just a mode of entertainment…What percentage of people go in a cinema hall to learn about Mandal commission or for that matter any other controversial topic that a director has chosen as his plot for the movie?

Well, I understand that there is a difference in between rights and duties of people in a democratic society, but why not let people choose it? Isn’t democracy by and for the people? Freedom of speech, expression, right to information etc. is definitely to be carried out with responsibility….and I feel that citizen of India, today, is getting matured by the day, or atleast I hope so….

Monsoon

2011-07-06T13:43:00.001+05:30

There’s something magical about Indian monsoons that make me happy. I love the way everything around you changes after rains. Different hues of green (color of prosperity) soothe your eyes drawing you at peace. First rains are like God’s way of cleaning up the mess that His summers have created. The beautiful fragrance of hot, wet soil beats the best perfume by the Diors and Chanels of the world. It seems like a mother’s consolation after scolding (the summers I mean) her child. Mother nature does take care of us even though we fail miserably to reciprocate.

The romantic in me wishes to drift away on a long drive to some beautiful, scenic, and quiet place along with my wife. I think bike rides are better than cars as you can feel the rains embrace you as you move on. It’s that feeling of surrendering to nature that one might experience during a free fall from a flight (Ok..it might not be that exhilarating though). The cold from the rains is balanced evenly by the person behind your bike (depends on individual preferences…:P ). Hill stations, beaches any location is awesome enough to go and relax during monsoons. The fog settling down on the mountains, the mist lowering down on the sea makes me miss my ability to write beautiful, romantic poems (I write all sad ones..:-( )

The foodie in me craves for hot wada-pav ( Indian for burger, only far better), bhajis (not aware if anything similar is known world-wide), and steaming hot tea!! The idea of stopping by the road, having hot corn cobs (with extra masala..:-) ), trying to wade away the drops to keep your cob tasty, makes me hungry. Or just sit back at home, in your balcony watching the rains with a hot cup of coffee/tea or even better, my all-time favorite “boost”….:)… Hot vadas, bhajis etc prepeared instantly during such time taste the best (even if you manage to cook them without electricity – that’s a common thing across India; electricity goes off if it rains heavily)!

The child in me feels like going out in the lashing rains and play in the puddles on the road, splash water at people passing by, or simply jumping in and out of them. If you have someone with you, it gets even better, splash water on each other (yeah, I’ve been quite competitive since childhood.. :P ). As a child, I, along with my friends, used to play in a nearby stream during monsoons. We used to have our boats, which used to be simple leaves, and follow them through all way along the stream to the point where we had made our “port”. Oh…I miss those days so much…given an option I wouldn’t mind doing that today as well.

The professional in me, on the contrary, feels like it’s time to relax (even if I feel very fresh), sit back and work from home ….let the world move at its own pace…it’s the best to move at a pace that’s going on around you…its cold, dark, and lazy outside…doesn’t matter even if you feel fresh. Wonder how it would be now to go back to bed with my cozy blanket and read a nice novel!!!

The cynic in me plays low during monsoons. But yes, there is mud all around, you can’t walk peacefully on the road, you have to watch others more than you concentrate on your driving and blah blah…Just a matter of few days..after that its gonna be dry again for most part of the year…it’s just fine . You get wet on your way to the office (that’s exactly when it will rain – on your way to the office and back home), need to carry extra set of clothes along with your heavy laptop bags, extra pair of footwear etc…but then you stay fresh all day long! Infections, diseases, epidemics are on their all time high; no issues, as far as you keep your surroundings (and yourself) clean. Just adopt a few precautionary measures and you are all set to enjoy the beauty of Indian monsoons!

First Impression!

2011-06-08T17:02:00.000+05:30

Not long back, some of our top management guys from the U.S. had come down here for a brief period of I suppose 20 days. We, as usual, had some meetings, some parties, some lunches/dinners together, and some trainings as well! However, we had (or did they) this opportunity to share some personal/professional experiences over these “meetings.”

I came to know of what these guys think about my country. Not everyone/everything was negative but a lot of it was not definitely positive. I do not blame them completely. Everyone has problems, my country has some, and theirs would be having some. However, the point I am trying to make is, they come upfront and tell you; expect you to accept it; and not say or point out similar things about their country. Strange, isn’t it?

Moreover, they develop an overall opinion (first impression) of the whole country when they have just seen a small part of only the sixth largest city in India! Eg. One of the things that repetitively surfaced in almost all the discussions was how people do not follow traffic rules here and how there were no traffic signals!! (Didn’t I mention, they just stayed in a small area of a big city!!). Yes, one of them was of the opinion that there were no traffic signals in the city!! We explained it to him that he needs to explore the city further to experience the how Indian signals looked like. He did and was terrified the next day! His driver must’ve probably driven him through some busier areas of the city and our man got freaked out by the ‘excellent’ driving skills of Indians! Yes, people here do not have traffic sense…accepted…there are reasons for that as well…

1. There are so many people on the road…its difficult to maintain traffic sense without hitting a couple of them..so most of us concentrate on the latter part

2. Everyone around you thinks the same as mentioned above…so you do not have any other option

3. The cops have too many people to handle at a given point and hence they have stopped maintaining traffic discipline…

He is from Dallas, Texas where the reported population in 2010 was 1.2 million. The reported population in Hyderabad in 2011 was 4.01 million!!! Why won’t there be “so many people” on the road?? Isn’t it obvious??

Another common thing, they loved our food, (except for one who found our Jeera rice spicy) till the point they were full. They observed five common things that were always present on an Indian food menu (all of us are analysts…so that’s natural to come!) viz…kababs and their 5 variants…tandoori, mughlai, seekh, and few other. Now, tell me this, how many of their menus have anything other than mashed potatoes for the veggies, chicken breasts (cooked in different styles), pork ribs, beef stews and sausages for the other half of the population??? I can bet that that just one state of India can give you more recipes than the whole of U.S.A!!! If you like something, just say so. Do not pass comments which do not hold substance just in an attempt to sound humorous!

I really felt hurt when some of these things like above were pointed by these people. Afterall, I felt, it is my country. No matter, how clichéd, dirty, crowded, and unreasonable it might be…This is where I was born, where I’ve lived my whole life…I wouldn’t like anyone coming and pointing out all the wrong things all the time..Hell not!!! But yes, I went ahead and cribbed about it, which I did the exact next day, after these strong feelings of being an Indian were tickled by the Americans…I’m allowed to, hello, I’m an Indian!!!!

A Perfect Trip!

2011-04-26T13:38:00.000+05:30

My wife and I visited Gokarna and Goa in August last year. Finally, we found some time out of our busy routines as it was a stop-gap in between my jobs. A couple of our friends were supposed to join us as well, but as usual, dropped off at the last moment (and I was pretty sure that this was gonna happen!).

We’ve been to Gokarna a couple of times before but there’s something magical about this place that makes us keep going there..(Both of us can’t just get enough of it!). We stayed at our usual hotel on Om beach, Gokarna, and it was one of the most amazing experiences – lazing out at the restaurant, reading a nice novel, making fun of people on the beach, a walk or two on the beach, munching on delicious starters, and sipping slowly on chilled beer! (This is what we usually do there though)

However, the plan was to go to Goa as it is hardly at a distance of 145 kms. We booked ourselves on Konkan railway from Gokarna station to Margao as I wanted my wife to experience the beauty of Konkan ghats (and I was sure it would be at its best during monsoons). Now, Gokarna station, as we didn’t expect is a small, little platform as is shown in the old hindi movies – a typical “gaav” (village) setting with just one platform and two railway lines! It had been ages for the both of us since we saw something like that. The train, as it usually happens in India was running around a couple of hours late! So we decided to take a look around the station (we made friends with the station master as well…there was hardly anyone there!)…It was not long before, as we were still basking in the beauty of mother nature at the station that the train arrived which took us through the scenic Konkan ghats all the way to our next destination – Goa!!!

Goa is just amazing in monsoons, especially for people like me who love the rains! It has a different charm of its own. Everything is so green, so fresh that you hardly feel tired, exhausted or even bored. Everything around you looks like a newly married young girl who is just out of a shower –the freshness, the charm, the fragrance are simply too inviting!!!

So, as we were sure about our dear friends not turning up at the last moment, we’d already booked ourselves at a hotel near Calangute, North Goa which promised to be at a “five minutes” walk (read: for Ben Johnson) from the beach. The hotel turned out to be decent enough, but that was hardly our concern. Coz when in Goa, one hardly stays in the room, right? Our main concern was the five minutes walk!!! So, we decided to stay put for a day over there and then move in a hotel which would be closer (according to common man’s prudence) to the beach. What better way to commute in Goa, in case you don’t have your own cab/car? We hired a bike, a Honda activa which served as our means of movement for the rest of our stay. So, we started off on the bike looking for hotels to move in the next day and luckily found one very close to the beach ( it was pouring when we set off…and it was simply superb).

We decided to head to Baga to chill out and found ourselves sitting at a shack on the beach with chairs facing the raging sea. The atmosphere around was so eclectic that both of us didn’t mind the wet clothes (I hate sitting with wet clothes after getting wet in the rains), which dried in no time, or we just thought so. As we allowed ourselves drench in the ambience of the place (followed by beers later on…;-)), we learnt that the place played karaoke every night. My wife sings well and what could have been better than she singing to me in Goa!!! She sang a couple of songs and turned out to be the crowd’s favorite in no time…she sang a couple of more songs on public demand as well….Everything around was so happy, energetic, and vibrant that even I dared to go ahead and sing a couple of my favorites (I was forced into singing one of them by the DJ though!)….After that we headed to the most happening club in the area and to our surprise the party was still on at 3:30 a.m (especially after getting used to the 10:30 p.m curfew that we were used to staying in Bangalore). We repeated the same thing the next day as well…:-) Before we knew, we were on our way to Pune and a mixed feeling of being happy about going home and sad while leaving Goa gripped us!

The whole trip was so much fun and we were a group in ourselves. It was a combination of everything – we relaxed ourselves in Gokarna, visited some tourist spots, partied like there’s no tomorrow, roamed around in the rains on a bike, and had some of the most delicious food. All in all, it was a perfect trip for the both of us and I suddenly realize that we need to plan something similar soon!

Approaching train at the Gokarna station - not ours :-(

View from a table - not ours...:P

Similar view???...Same angle!! :)

Memories - I; Holi

2011-03-15T12:53:00.000+05:30

I spent my childhood in a “small” (as compared to the cities I lived in thereafter) and quiet township in Rasayani, near Mumbai. I have been lucky to have spent the most important years of life there as everything was just perfect for a kid over there – huge playgrounds, swimming pool, river, hills around, school, market, the activities we used to do, and what not (I really hope every child has my kinda childhood)!!!

Well, this time around during those days used to be the most exciting time in the whole year..Yes, it was the time for Holi. Holi was celebrated in a grand way in Rasayani. The township, as all other townships had separate quarters (Type – 1, 2, 3, 4 and so on). So, each “Type” of quarters had their own Holi and celebrated it their own fashion. I have stayed in Type IV, for most of my years in Rasayani, and Type IV and Type V used to celebrate the festively jointly.

This used to be the time when we would have just finished writing our Unit Test - II exams and everyone would be looking for a good, nice break from the monotonous study (not that I ever concentrated much on that) routine. I usually fared well in these exams as I knew that I hardly had any chances left in the academic year to better my scores after the disaster in earlier two exams conducted. Annual exams would be conducted in the month of April, which meant that all the fun and frolic would have to be accomplished in this month, March, and for this festival, Holi!!!

Now, almost all of you know, Holi is celebrated for two days. Day one, we light a pyre, following the folklore, and the next day we play colors. We children were responsible for the first day, where we would arrange the pyre and the resources needed for the same. Preparations for this day would start over two weeks in advance of the D-day. Every day after school (our school used to get over at 1610hrs), we would gather around the Type IV bus stop (around 1630 hrs) to discuss the modus operandi for the day. Gathering resources was the major challenge that we faced every year. By resources here, I mean dry branches of tress, palm trees, twigs, grass (we had huge farmlands surrounding our township), and anything that can be burnt (safely), with minimum usage of flammable substances (petrol, kerosene and the likes). Plotting the sourcing area, managing the logistics of the resources, maintaining them at a place, and then securing them over there were some other challenges that we handled at a very early stage of our lives. Now, when I think backwards, I feel that it all involved supply chain management principles, but simplified at a child’s level of understanding (which stuns me today)! We would manage the huge dry branches of palm trees on our bicycles, going either single or double seat (which used to hardly happen as everyone wanted to contribute equally…LOL) atleast a couple of kms from the place of celebrations. Today, I fail to recall how we ever managed that huge thing on our bicycles (when carrying a bag of around 3 kgs on the bike seems challenging).

In the evening, there would be a stock-take of the booty collected by now, usually by the seniors of the gang. Days play used to take a back seat during these “busy” times of the year. So, by late evening, after it used to be dangerous to venture out for more resources, we used to sit around and discuss as to what needs to be done more. Finally, on the day of Holi, the seniors used to make a pyre out of the gathered stuff (ours used to be the biggest pyre by the way…) and everyone from the Type IV and V quarters were invited at a particular time at night.

"Tumhari Amrita"

2011-02-03T14:43:00.000+05:30

Lights, Camera, Action….And then you would expect the characters infront of you will move around the stage performing an act. We had been to watch a play where there were lights and camera but the action was completely different. Just two tables, two chairs, two characters and lots of letters.

“Tumhari Amrita” is a 90 minutes play (act) about a rebellious girl called Amrita and a level-headed guy called Zulfi. Both the characters have been played by the veteran actors of Hindi theatre, Shabana Azmi and Farooq Sheikh. Amrita, is a daughter of a Diwan (post in British India) who seems to be born ahead of her times. The girl has an inclination towards arts and seems to be seeking for inner peace and happiness as she passes through turbulent times throughout her life. On the other hand, Zulfi is portrayed as a boy who is scared of his father and at the same time respects and loves him a lot. A person who is aware of his responsibilities and who knows what to do in life. Even he is shown making some compromises, some for his father, some for his family. There are parts when he acts selfish and he realizes only by the end of the play, the injustice or wrongs done by him towards Amrita.

Set in an era when internet was not present for communication purposes, it makes one wonder if internet has taken out the charm of waiting for someone’s letters. The whole play is in the form of recital of letters written by Amrita and Zulfi to each other throughout their lives. Skills of both the veterans are just unmatchable when they paint the characters just by reading out the letters. The voice modulations, tone, intonations are handled so beautifully that both the characters stay with you atleast for an hour after you are out of the auditorium!!!

It was such an out-of-the world experience that we started thinking if actors were really needed to fulfill a play. Do not miss a chance to catch a show if they visit your town anytime.

EGGSPERT-II

2011-01-11T19:17:00.000+05:30

It’s been more than two years since I posted my Egg bhurji recipe over here. As I advanced from one relationship status to other, egg recipes got tougher, but definitely tastier…..:-) So, today, I am gonna share yet another egg recipe, but which is tougher and as mentioned earlier, tastier than your normal egg bhurji.

Name – I call it “Stuffed Egg Pakoda” – You can call it whatever you want……

Ingredients:

Eggs (obviously)

For the dough:

Besan (Gram flour)

Jeera,

Ova (it’s found in parathas usually)

Red chilli powder

Turmeric

Salt to taste

Green chillies (finely chopped)

For the filling:

Onions – 2/3 finely chopped

Tomatoes – 1

Boiled potato – 1 mashed

Green Chillies – finely chopped

Cumin seeds, Red chilli powder, Turmeric, Garam masala, Aamchur powder (Dry Mango Powder), Tomato sauce

Salt to taste

Preparation:

Boil the eggs and keep them in cold water for about five minutes. Peel them and cut them into half. Scoop off the yolk and keep aside.

Mix all the ingredients mentioned above to the Gram flour. Take some lukewarm water and add to the mixture thus formed. Add water till the point the consistency is thick, semi-solid. Keep moving your hand through the mixture to avoid lumps.

Now, take a pan and heat some oil in it. Put the cumin seeds and green chillies. Add the finely chopped onions within 10 seconds. Sauté the onions till they turn reddish-brown. Add the tomato and sauté for some more time till the tomato leaves its water. Add the mashed boiled potato and fry for about just over a minute. Now add the masalas and fry them for about two minutes. Finally, add a little bit of tomato sauce for the zing and heat the filling for around two more minutes.

Add this mixture to the shallow of the eggs. Now, here, you can do two things:

1. Either add the mixture to the shallow of the eggs, take the two parts and dip them together in our gram flour mixture OR

2. Simply add the filling to the shallow of the egg, take this part and straight-away dip that in the gram flour mixture – Choice is yours

However, so after you are done with this, deep fry the egg (dipped in the gram flour mixture with the filling) till it turns light brown.

Serve it with tangy tomato sauce or chutney of your choice and let me know how it was…..:-)

Tip (as usual):
Add a little salt to the onions - will help them fry faster
Be careful while deep frying stuff - maintain a safe distance!

Getting Settled

2010-12-27T19:35:00.000+05:30

“Getting settled” – I am not sure if there is such a term in Queen’s English, but yes, in India it is commonly at par with getting married. I get amused by this term quite often as I fail to understand how getting married can mean “getting settled”!!! Its start of an entire new phase of your life, isn’t it???

People in India use this term at their own convenience, interchangeably with getting married. Two years down your completion of atleast one post-graduation degree, you are asked to “get settled” (GS). It usually starts at home, then your relatives and then your friends, who are already planning to GS. You should not waste time, everything should happen at a certain age, delaying something like marriage will not land you anywhere, are the common arguments that take place in a house who have a legible bachelor/ ette….

Then there will be comparisons drawn infront of you (even if you don’t like). Look at him, he was earning as much as you are, still he went ahead and got married….(Hell! It’s foolish I’d say)…which will usually get lots of accolades by your parents and relatives!!! GS, haunts you all over and finally there is rejoice and time for celebrations…no…not because you have found “the one”,,but simply because you have agreed (given the green signal - another of India's own terminology) to GS!!!

I am not of the opinion that you shouldn’t GS. But how is that people call it GS?? It is such a paradox in itself…It should be more like get started (the abbreviation still remains GS….;-) )..Settling down is something you do once you grow old and retire and pay for your children’s higher education, square-off your investments…those things, according to me are more closer to getting settled…finally…..:-)

Even I GS this year and believe me, not for one moment since then have I ever felt that I have "settled down" or "got settled" in life!!! Festivals, household chores, bills, payments, documents, signs, agreements and what not...Everything seems to be giving us a new experience each time along-with its own teachings...

This year has been the year of GS for almost 10 of my friends as well. So heres wishing all of them a very happy GS….not getting settled but getting started….and all the best!!!

Religion or Philosophy

2010-11-24T16:43:00.000+05:30

A thought crossed my mind in the morning as I was having the first tea of my day. Couldn’t handle the newspaper, so was just looking around the view (which isn’t that great) from our balcony.

What if religions were followed more as a philosophy rather than a “religion” as such? Wouldn’t the world have been a better place to live?

The word religion somehow sounds very strict to my ears. It comes with a certain set rules, principles, theories, stories (mythology) etc. which a person following that religion is expected to know. It degenerates at a certain level when, in Hinduism, people think of Brahmin- Non-Brahmin, in Islam, Shia-Sunni, in Christianity, Catholics-Protestants and what not. It somehow feels like even if we are bound by the same “religion”, there are some things that we do that others should not.

What I understand or rather believe in is, that all these rules, principles etc were made and formulated ages back. They might have been logical, scientific or even feasible to follow then. Times have changed, people have changed, society has also changed and changed for good I believe. Some practices like Sati, which was considered pretty normal some 1000 years back were seen as “social evil” by the 20th century. Yes, there was a lot of resistance before people could change their mindset, but finally even a social evil like “Sati” was stopped. Similarly, on a very low intensity, eating non-vegetarian food by a Brahmin in Hinduism was or rather still is considered as an out-of-religion thing. I am sure even this will fade out eventually, but as I said, these rules were written ages back!!! What if a Brahmin goes to a country where the locals consider chicken as vegetarian??? He/ she might face a tough time, right?

On the contrary, when we talk about a philosophy, it sounds more like an idea or a thought. You don’t seem to be bound by it. Moreover, you can choose your preferences or likes and dislikes from a particular flow of a thought process. It becomes easier as a person for us to choose and follow rather than have no choice but simply follow.

I don’t know a simple case wherein there have been riots in between followers of two different philosophers. Imagine Socrates’ and Plato’s philosophers having riots!!! But not the same with religions, Hindu – Muslim (the most famous, atleast in Asia) and then there are internal misunderstandings (within religions) as well!!! Laissez-faire seems to only be a bookish thought these days. Interference, objections, problems, insecurities seem to be the only things “guiding” religions today. I’ve never known but always heard that all religions used to live in harmony and peace in ancient times. Wonder how and why it changed!

Exciting trip!!!

2010-11-11T16:27:00.000+05:30

Pondicherry (Pondi) is a quaint little city on the eastern coast of India, around 160 kms from the capital of Tamil Nadu, Chennai. It was a French colony till 1962 and the cultural influences can still be found around the French part of the city. Small, clean houses painted in English colors and clean surroundings draw your attention.

We had been there on the weekend after Diwali for a getaway and we had an unbelievable time (the reason will follow below!). So, we had our friends coming down from Bangalore who joined us for the trip. We left early morning on Saturday and it took us around 3 hours to cover the distance. The road to Pondi is a beautiful one and has water on both the sides (most of the part). It’s a picture perfect drive with hardly any traffic which helps you to maintain your car’s speed.

Matrimandir - Auroville, Pondicherry

We checked in our hotel rooms and set out to visit the world-famous Auroville. After a tiring walk of more than 2 kms we were back to our car, thoroughly exhausted and crazily hungry. Now, I am not sure if this is a new thing there, but you have a lot of places which give you Pizzas in stone grill oven. And for some reason they call it the “perfect French-style” (Wasn’t pizza supposed to be Italian???). However, so we entered one of these places and had our fill which everyone enjoyed…Someone has rightly said, “Hunger is the best sauce”….OK…The pizza was tasty as well….:-)

However, things started going wrong in the evening when we got calls from my in-laws telling us about the cyclone, “Jal”, which was supposed to hit Pondi the next day. We frantically checked the news channels to confirm that we were in a mess!!! Rains started at night and it was pouring by morning. Heavy rains, stormy winds and water logging everywhere were the only things visible from our hotel rooms. We decided to leave early but only after checking the Auro Ashram which is located in the heart of the city (A friend of ours wanted to see it at ANY COST!!). Anyways, luckily we had missed the visitor’s timings and we had to turn back. Almost all shops and all restaurants were closed and we came to know that people were evacuated from the coast-line. Only then did we realize the gravity of the situation and we started off for Chennai.

Poor tree!

The drive back was no where similar to the one we had yesterday (though it was thrilling). Heavy winds and rains were our other companions than the cars which were rushing their heels off to some place safer. We came across a couple of trees which had blocked the entire highway as they had just experienced the wrath of nature. The waters which ran parallel to the road, now, were trying hard to meet the road. Everything around was flooded and the once calm backwaters were now raging and galloping everything that came their way. However, we reached Chennai safely even before the cyclone could catch us….:-)

All in all it was an exciting, thrilling, adventurous and fun-filled trip where I guess for the first time we could hardly be “tourists”.

This was not surrounded by water definitely, on our way to Pondi!!!

Unique Hyderabad - Part I

2010-10-19T16:18:00.000+05:30

Every city is unique in its own way. Sometimes we might find it amusing, sometimes annoying. Hyderabad is also one amongst those cities which is unique in its own way..

1. This city has maintained the misconception of being cheap in such an awesome manner that everyone who is outside Hyderabad, by that I mean, who hasn’t been staying here think that’s the case. Which let me tell you is TOTALLY wrong. Hyderabad is NOT CHEAP!!!
2. The traffic here is terrific. I used to think Bangalore is hell…but well…let me tell you…Hyderabad’s even worse. People cross the road staring at your speeding car, confident enough that you are going to slow down. However, they do not increase their speed of crossing the road. People out here have a habit of driving on the wrong side of the road (guess they believe that the chances of an accident are reduced doing this as the car coming in-front of you can directly see you!). So one has to be extremely careful while driving on their left..
3. People staying in Mumbai think Pune is laid back, people in Pune think Bangalore’s laid back, and people staying anywhere in the world will surely believe that Hyderabad is laid back. Everyone here lives in their “Nawabi” style. They think themselves as princes and that everyone else has enough time on their hands so that they can be kept waiting. You call it at 3, they will turn up at 3:30 (sometimes they cancel the plans of meeting you after keeping you waiting for 45 minutes)
4. Shop-keepers here are not aware of the “Customer king” principle as yet! They trust in God for Him to send them customers (retain them in the shop as well)..They will do their part of imparting what they know about the product (price most of the times). Apart from this, He is expected to take care!
5. The auto-rickshaws out here are another sight. They are unique for several reasons;
a. They defy the basic law of 3 seats – They write “only 4 seats” on the sides of their vehicles…where the law permits only 3!!!
b. Now, they have a funda of a shared rickshaw, wherein they stuff as much as 7 people at a time to shorter distances , thus benefitting themselves as well as the customers on cheap fares (I don’t see how though)
c. Autos here do not go by the meter system…Now you’ll say that’s just fine…No…Some of them don’t even have a meter..Now beat that!!! Which metro / cosmo in India will give you such a sight / shock???...

These are some unique qualities of this city of Nawabs and Nizams. I am on my quest to find positives about the uniqueness of this city, have gathered some, not enough for a post though…..:-)

The Reply

2010-09-16T19:15:00.000+05:30

This is a comment which I posted as a reply to one of my friend's poems on her blog. The poem on her blog is titled 'Just recovered' and you will find it here:http://bhashegonibeedu.blogspot.com/poems

You can check this link for better understanding of what is to follow in this post;

I taught you to live, pains inside your heart to relieve,
I just made you realise the facts,
Made you see the put on acts,
Showed you how people can cheat,
Leave you alone in the scorching heat!
Made you realise what dangers can trust do to you,
Why blame me if you did that with me too?
What I did was not betrayal my dear,
I'll never hurt someone who's so close to me and near.
It was just a point of no return,
Where I had to choose whether to hold your hand or let the thread burn!
I chose the later and now I realise what I've done,
I know you won't return now and the chances of that are none.
Will it help you if I you hear me cry?
Or will you see my face only the day when I die?

P.S The reply is in a similar style of writing called 'The freestyle writing'in which the poem on my friend's blog has been written

Sorrows Disposal

2010-09-13T12:56:00.000+05:30

I have spoken about this in my previous post….about a technical device called ‘Fragrance recorder’..today I feel like sharing another one…A “Sorrows Disposal device”. This device will enable you dispose off all your sorrows you have, about yourself, about your relatives, about everyone. Just press a button and you are sorted…OK..Lets call it the ‘Happiness button’.

Now, imagine, this happiness button can make you forget all your sorrows at once. How awesome would that be!!! No one in this world will ever be sad, grumpy and depressed. It can make you joyous in just a few minutes. I know everyone has their own share of lows in lives and everyone has to go through them and all that jazz..But what if we don’t wanna take that chance??? What if I don’t want to be sad ever in my life??? Shouldn’t I be given an option? This device will provide you with that option…:-)

Now, let’s return to reality and philosophy…Lol..Someone has said that there has to be a balance in this world. Happiness to sadness, life to death, peace to wars, so on and so forth….Well, in that case if everyone decides to be happy, then the balance is surely to shake us a bit….:-) A day might come when people become sad from being too happy. They might want to have something exciting in their lives than being happy all the time…Lol…I know this sounds a little odd but if you think hard, being sad is more thrilling than being happy…Heehee…You are alone when you are sad, you gotta fight your own battle, you are facing the cruel world all by yourself and most of the times you feel you can’t make it!!! On the other hand, you are surrounded by people all the time when you are happy, you have everyone you want to when you want to share your happiness (Laugh and the world laughs with you, cry and you cry alone!!!). So, in the end, people might get claustrophobic from being happy all the time…

Mmmm…in that case I guess, our device over here will not be a good product in today’s market where we need to have a balanced life (a concept long forgotten by me…;-)..). However, it can be limited to the number of uses a person can actually have to his own credit. Well, I have read that scientists have already found out the cells in human brain which trigger happy hormones. So, the day is not far when we will have this device in the market…Probably by someone like Apple….:-)

Making no-sense

2010-08-18T13:05:00.000+05:30

Sometimes I feel like letting loose, breaking free, just doing the things I want to. But I can’t!!! I am sure all of us go through these kinds of days in our lives. Then I wonder, would the Buffets, Mittals, Tatas, Birlas of the world will also be going through the same emotions as a normal individual like me does? And if they do, then what’s the difference in between me and them?
They, sitting at such commanding positions in their lives, should ideally not be facing these issues in their lives. But, then again, someone has rightly said, with great powers come greater responsibilities. They might be feeling like this probably every hour of their lives, or do they ever? I have always thought that with the kind of money they have, they can always be happy. Lots of people have tried in vain to explain it to me, that money is not the do and end all of all things. However, isn’t it justified to feel the above mentioned things if you are one of them rather than sharing the same feelings when you are not even a 1/1000th portion of what they have achieved???

Thought provoking, isn’t it? Not actually. If you believe in destiny, then you will find an answer to this after a thorough introspection. I don’t really believe in destiny and hence, I might not be able to understand ever the words I have written above. If someone says not, I really say why not!!! However, let me not confuse you anymore. Everything written above is after an aimless discussion with a friend of mine who has challenging views to mine.

I really don’t know if any of this is making sense or not, because I am going to break free in a while and I am very very excited about it…..:-)

Whenever I look around

2010-08-13T12:34:00.000+05:30

Whenever I look around, I see no joy,
I look around to see, people hating each other,
They curse; they blame and kill each other,
Is this God’s will, or just his ploy?
Whenever I look around, I see no joy.

I look around to see, burning houses,
Bodies of people moving in a sham,
In coffins of dead people they make a scam,
Leaving their relatives with no tears to cry,
Whenever I look around, I see no joy.

I wake up to a dark sun, and a light so strange,
No power to deal with, my body so drained,
Am I really His child or just a toy?
Whenever I look around, I see no joy.

Has the world been a bad place since creation?
Or is it just my imagination?
Why is everything so arid and so dry?
Whenever I look around, I see no joy.

Life can be beautiful, so have I heard,
Never have seen though, nor have experienced.
Is it always about our "own" happiness and joy? But,
Whenever I look around, I see no joy.

Tears of blood, cries of anger,
Annihilation, deaths, hatred, we don’t want any longer,
Love can be the language, it can lead us the way,
To show us a new light and a new day,
Open up happiness, don’t stay coy, so that
Whenever we look around, we see nothing, but joy!

No Honking!!!

2010-07-27T11:29:00.000+05:30

I pass this hoarding every day on my way to the office. It requests citizens to celebrate “No honking” day on the 10th of every month. I am not sure about other cities in India, but we have a lot of nice initiatives like this one in Bangalore. No honking day, Bus day, hitch a ride etc. are some of the initiatives that are carried out in public interest.
The concept of no honking, however suits me the best (if you are stuck in Bangalore’s traffic, I’m sure it’ll suit you as well). The amount of noise pollution caused by honking vehicles is simply unbelievable, leave alone the smoke these vehicles emit (I just got my bike’s PUC {Pollution Under Control} done….:-) )!!! I sometimes think that people honk as their hobby…..Got bored of doing the same mundane driving? Nothing exciting?? Blow your horn…This way they create music as well. Awesome entertainment, at the cost of all others on the road…But who cares?

A horn can be blown for various reasons;
1. When irritated with the vehicle in front
2. When generally irritated in life
3. When happy in life
4. When they get a new horn
5. When they have to signal their girlfriend to come out for a small little peek
6. When they have to show their rival gangs that they are passing by
7. To irritate people staying in calm localities
8. A newbie on the wheel etc.
So, blowing horns have different reasons. You can make out from the sound of it, what kind of a honk it is. A few years ago, pressure horns had swept the market. You can hear them today as well, even-though, they have been banned long back…But does it matter?

A thought crossed my mind as I passed that hoarding. What if vehicles didn’t have horns at all? Basic reason for a horn to be present in a vehicle is safety, right? But how many times do we see people blowing their horns for safety? (There is no such reason mentioned above!) OK, maybe, I am talking extremes here, but then, can’t they be under controlled noise levels? Why ban just pressure horns? Why not reduce the acceptable noise levels for normal vehicles. Don’t you feel horns these days are too loud? I like horns of high end cars like BMW, Audi, Mercedes etc. They seem to have taken care of my concern here. If you notice well, they aren’t as harsh as other cars in the market. Another thing that can be done is, ban horns at night. You can flash your lights if you want to signal other vehicles. Horns should be allowed only during the day (that too under controlled decibels)!!!

But, I know, I am talking things which are next to impossible, at least in my country….However, I am going to try not to honk, not only on the 10th of every month, but everyday (According to my dad, it’s a sign of a good driver!!!).

Foreign re-turn

2010-07-08T13:13:00.001+05:30

I’ve got a lot of friends who have gone ‘on-site’ to various countries, the States, Europe, Australia, Far East etc. (I’m sure everyone has friends who have done this). But have you ever noticed anything different after they come down from their ‘on-sites’?? If they go for about a few months then it might not change their behavior to that extent (btw, I’ve got friends who have changed their behavior after an on-site of 3 months as well). So I’ve noticed the following changes in their behavior;
1. They suddenly feel that India is very dirty (they'll stay on one of the dirtiest streets abroad…Reason- majority of Indian population and low rent)
2. They suddenly start following American football, rugby, golf, baseball instead of cricket, hockey (even if they don’t know anything about the aforementioned games)
3. They suddenly start mentioning temperatures in Fahrenheit (each time, they’ll convert it into Celsius and only then will they realize how hot or cold the weather is)
4. They’ll suddenly start feeling hot at 15 degrees Celsius in India (as if they were born and brought up in Alaska or Siberia)
5. They’ll miss “Florida Oranges” a lot (not knowing the fact that they are exported from Nagpur, India)
6. They’ll miss the frankies on ‘that’ particular street (they’ll miss wada-pav when abroad)
7. They’ll suddenly develop this knack of photography. Random clicks of random things will be put up all over their social networking profile….with people praising their efforts (operating a camera in India used to be boring as they wanted themselves in the snaps)
8. They’ll start loving the foreign culture (I still think it’s the other way round), their ‘open-mindedness’, laissez-faire policy (which makes them feel like running away and coming back to India) and cursing and hating the people here
9. They’ll suddenly feel that the house is too crowded even if a couple of cousins turn up (they’d have spent their summer vacations with the same cousins along-with 10 other people in one house as children)
10. They’ll still be interested in the foreign country’s politics and news even after coming back (I’m not sure if they do the same for India when they are abroad)
11. They’d suddenly get sensitive towards issues related to racism and support all activities against it (even if in India, they would have called an Afro a “kallu” or an American a “firang”)
12. They’ll suddenly get tolerant to all other religions, countries etc (even if they’d have passed a thousand comments on our neighboring countries)
13. They suddenly start having their drinks neat, faster than everyone and more than anyone present in the party (they’ll tell the reason for this themselves, but after 4 drinks…reason….we used to have a lot of parties there dude, too cold you know)
14. They miss the cleanliness and the fresh air (you can spot the same guys loitering when in India…yet they’ll crib about cleanliness)
These are a few observations that I could make out of my funny “foreign return friends”. Readers are free to contribute to this post if you have any such observations……

Men will be men!!!

2010-07-02T11:25:00.000+05:30

Men as well as women will have similar complaints with each other no matter which part of the world they belong to. Women like to say, "Men will be men"....(Aren't men supposed to be men??..Lol). Women don't understand that both the sexes have to be different from each other...(Opposites attract,right?). So, here's a short poem for all you guys who face the same complaints every time from your gals..Just copy paste this the next time there are some (un)reasonable expectations from you....:-)

We don't realize anything that's new,
Coz for us, even black is dark blue.
We don't remember our first kiss,
Coz for us, every time its a new bliss!
We don't remember your friend's (girl) name,
If they all look the same, who is to blame?
We don't realize if you are sad and feeling low,
If you don't tell us, how are we supposed to know?
We aren't very sensitive and that is true,
For if we were , then we would be just like you.
We don't like long romantic walks,
Coz for us, your presence is more important than talks.
We like to party and we like to party hard,
And we don't care if we call you later and sound like a retard.
We don't like missing our sports and our news,
Do we stop you from loving your shoes?
Given a chance we'd like to tell you some time,
We mean it when we say, "I love you" every time!!!

Mixed Feelings!!!

2010-06-08T17:44:00.000+05:30

Countering mixed emotions has really been a tough job for me off late. 5 days to go for the marriage...guess I am justified in feeling so, right? A lot of people these days don’t ask me how I am doing, but yeah, so……how are you feeling?? Believe me, I didn’t feel like anything unless all these guys hammered me with the same question time and again!!! And they succeeded eventually...Now I am having mixed feelings and I still, can’t answer how I am feeling about it….It’s tough explaining that feeling as well.
It is similar to a person who gets the man of the match award in cricket but his team loses or your best friend flunking the same exam where you aced! It’s a feeling where you are happy individually and if you check the typical human behavior of being selfish (Lol) then one shouldn’t be bothered enough. But then, these social factors make us think about others. Like in my case, I thought I had to feel something odd just before getting married…In this case I am going to be the person who gets the man of the match award as I am really happy getting married to a person I love and I have known since long now and not going and tying the knot with some random chick who my parents choose. However, now, thanks to all the people asking me that redundant question, I am feeling a little sad about the fact that bachelor days are over!!! Think, it’s scary, so many responsibilities, answering your wife, owing an explanation for small things…No…Won’t be the case here guys!!
I’ll tell you the secret word- Compatibility. Keep counter attacking the word in different ways, you will eventually find the compatibility….. :-) Simple, isn’t it?

"I am bored"

2010-05-18T14:48:00.000+05:30

“I am bored”! Every one of us must have used this sentence at-least a 1000 times in our lives to describe the awesome state of mind we are in at that point in time. Specially, during your summer vacations when you realize that you are the only one who’s jobless!
My mum always used to tell me, that she never got bored when she was young. But back then, I used to think that she was just trying to push me into doing something constructive (that’s what mums do the best, don’t they!). Today, I realize that it might have been true. The older generation didn’t have any reason to be bored!
Now-a-days we get bored because of the options available to entertain ourselves. If you get bored of the T.V get hooked to your music system, if you are bored of that, go on to your computer, if not, play video games, if not that simply sleep. I wonder what our parents used to do in their free times! Today, we cannot imagine a life without electricity. We are so dependent on it that we start feeling miserable if we have load shedding for more than 1 hour.
The options that have been provided to us have made us independent, selfish, reduced our patience as well as made us less tolerant to others. We do not need company these days. Self-entertainment choices have eaten up the chances of meeting friends and having a good time. A similar thing happened to me a couple of days back. Electricity was cut-off in our area for most of the part of the day. Then came the worst, it didn’t come at night as well. So now, with NO OPTIONS left we decided to talk and chat through the time till we usually crash out. So one discussion led to another and then we realized that only the two of us were talking. The third person, at first tried playing with his mobile, got ‘BORED’ of it, then tried to lie down with eyes closed, got ‘BORED’ of it as well, and this was happening, obviously because he was again ‘BORED’ of our talks!
What followed completely took me by surprise. He got up and started walking off! On asking the reason, we got the same answer, “I am bored”!!! It’s become so easy for us just to think about ourselves becoming selfish in the process. It’s not like we can always have discussions that will interest the other person, right? But it’s simple and it’s like this, I guess- If I am not getting entertained by you then I don’t have to subject myself to anything, even if I am at a social function or just sitting around and chatting away. Moreover, most people after being ‘bored’ end up doing stupid things. Now that there wasn’t any other option available, that friend of ours decided to go for a walk, with no lights on the street with atleast 100 dogs around!!!
I feel mom was right (moms are always right, aren’t they?....:-)). They might not have been bored anytime in their youth. I didn’t ask the question as to what did they used to do in such a situation as it never struck me that she could be saying the truth. But now, yes, the next time I meet her, will surely ask and get it posted here as “The Answer”……Lol.

8 kms - 80 mins

2010-04-16T10:54:00.002+05:30

No. That’s not a record set by anyone in slow biking. That’s the time I have taken today to reach my office. I have been breaking my own records every day. Yesterday it was 60 minutes, today it was 80! Hope the arithmetic progression doesn’t continue in the same manner!!!

Sometimes, I get amazed looking at Bangalore’s traffic. I wonder where all these vehicles come from. It is understood if it happens at peak hours, e.g. 900hrs to 1100 hrs or 1800hrs to 2000hrs, something like that. But no!!! In Bangalore you’ll find traffic anytime of the day, wherever you go, in whichever vehicle you are. Doesn’t matter. We welcome people here by displaying our awesome traffic handling capabilities.

A particular bottleneck scene is very artistic. People cramming in from all sides, throwing their vehicles on yours (no matter which type of vehicle it is). It’s like an adolescent boy trying to come close to his love interest just to have that ONE touch of hers. On the other hand, people shouting at each other, either because someone’s bumped into someone or they are too cautious and driving extremely slow. Everyone who’s behind someone thinks that they are Michael Schumaker and can make it faster and easier than their leaders through the horrible jam. Then there’s the best scene. One highlighting factor in our artist’s masterpiece of “A Perfect Bangalore Morning”, the POLICEMEN!!! No matter however grave the situation is, these people will be the coolest on roads. Perhaps, even they realize that there’s no point in controlling the traffic now. Let them solve it on their own. So, there they are!!! Standing in the middle of the road, gazing at vehicles, raising their hands sometimes (in an effort to direct traffic), and talking over their cell phones simultaneously. Must say that they are the real multi- tasking guys!!!

P.S they poke their noses in between as well.

A scary thought just ran across my mind while I was driving. If this is the situation in 2010, imagine what our grand-children would see!!! There might be 3-4 fly-overs (or even more) on top of each other leading to the same destination. I could hear them saying, “take the Level 3 fly-over here which will connect to the Level 5 fly-over going underneath the Level 2-A fly-over and then take a U-turn to connect to Level 1-D fly-over!!!” Whoa. This sounds similar to a game show called “Crystal Maze” that used to get aired on Star plus (when it was an English channel). Ask yourself if you’d be able to drive like this.
A lot has been spoken about Bangalore’s traffic and I am sure, you’ll find at-least a 100 articles on the net regarding this. But, somehow, I feel that some measures need to be taken to control this horrifying traffic, which seems to be exploding in millions every passing day!!!

Waqt nahi!!!

2010-04-08T16:02:00.000+05:30

Har khushi hai logon ke daman mein,par ek hansi ke liye waqt nahi,
din raat daudti duniya mein, zindagi ke liye waqt nahi,
maa ki loree ka ehsaas to hai, par maa ko maa kehne ka waqt nahi,
saare rishton ko to hum maar chuke, ab unhe dafnane ka bhi waqt nahi,
doston ke naam mobile mein hai, par dosti ke liye waqt nahi,
gairon ki kya baat kare, jab apno ke liye waqt nahi,
aankhon me hai neend badi, par sone ke liye waqt nahi,
dil ghamon se bhara hua hai, par roneka bhi waqt nahi,
paison ki daud mein aise daude, ki thakne ka bhi waqt nahi,
Paraye ehsasonki kya kadar karen, jab apne sapno ke liye hi waqt nahi,
Tu hi bata e zindagi, Iss zindagi ka kya hoga,
ki har pal marne walon ko, marne ke liye bhi waqt nahi!!!

"THE ROAD TRIP"

2010-03-05T11:34:00.000+05:30

A friend of mine (name mentioned below) and I’d set on a road trip over the last weekend. Thanks to my fiancé (name mentioned below as well) who forced me to do it, as I desperately needed a break from the routine…So, there we were.
We had two options open in front of us, Gokarna and Pondicherry (both routes lying in my bag). The whole plan was to go to a place which is on the coast. Now, the choice had to be made, East or West. Eventually, we decided to take up on the west coast where Gokarna lies. So we set out on our trip at 0115 hrs on Saturday, in our beloved car (which did not pose any kind of problems throughout the journey).
Gokarna is approximately 491 kms from Bangalore and takes around 11 hours (by car). There are “Rajhamsa” buses as well, which ply in between Bangalore and Gokarna. Bus takes around 12-13 hours by the same route. The journey (both by car as well as by bus) is a tiring one. However, all the stress and tiredness disappears once you reach this beautiful place. It is very similar to Konkan, Maharashtra, with regards to the beautiful palm groves, naughty rivulets, lush green grass and the typical view of Western ghats (the ghats end steeply on to the beach unlike Eastern ghats).
Gokarna is a beautiful town in the Uttar Kannada district of Karnataka and is hardly 150 kms from Goa. It is famous for the Gokarna Mahabaleshwar temple. The temple is very old and attracts millions on auspicious occasions like Mahashivratri (it being a Shiva temple). The temple is very close to the Gokarna beach, which also happens to be the main beach out of the four beaches that are present in this tiny town. The beaches you’ll find here are;
 Gokarna beach
 Kudle beach
 Om beach
 Paradise beach
There is one more called the Half-moon beach, but it can hardly be called a beach (very small stretch of sand on the sea). Now, as we were on a “Road Trip”, we did not have any reservations done with any of the hotels out there. We reached Gokarna by 1130 hrs on Saturday and straight-away went to the most famous hotel, “Namaste Café” which stands on the beautiful “Om beach”. Om beach gets its name from the shape in which it is formed. It is like the “Om” (a spiritual symbol in Hindu religion) and makes you experience the divinity and solace quite aptly, once the sun sets! However, we did not get any rooms in Namaste Café (please book your rooms about 20 days in advance), as was expected as the hotel is perpetually house-full. So we had our breakfast and moved in on to the town to find an accommodation for ourselves. Gokarna International (where we stayed on the 1st day), has been the worst hotels I must’ve stayed so far. Nothing “international” about the place and you get rooms for as cheap as Rs 325/-!!! However, we just had to dump in our bags there (as we’d already planned to spend our day on Om beach) and come back to sleep. To our luck and surprise we got a room at Namaste the very next day.
We went to Paradise beach in the afternoon by a ferry which will charge you around Rs 200/- per pax, on hard bargain. Paradise is more of a secluded and calm beach with a lot of foreigners, doing what they enjoy the most…..;)(won’t get into the details here). Its best to enjoy this beach with a couple of beers, sitting on the rocks or hammocks, watching the sun set in front of you and hearing the noise of silence. It’s a nice place for meditation, though none of us were in a mood to! Went back to the hotel, prepared ourselves for some drinks, drank like fishes and then went to take some dips in the sea!!!
We left the next day at around 1530 hrs and reached Bangalore at around 215 hrs on Tuesday. All in all, it was an awesome trip. I’d like to extend my thanks to Ranju (who forced me in to making this happen) and Vikas (my navigator, without whom the way would not have been easy). Looking forward to some more trips like these…….:)
TRAVEL TIPS:
1. Do not trust google maps (all they tell you is, take a left from this petrol pump, go xxx kms, take a right from that petrol pump). Believe me, you will never find these petrol pumps
2. Always double check on what the locals say (they might take your trip and you’ll keep running around in circles….WE DID NOT RUN!!!)
3. Carry enough water with you, as the villages and towns are quite at a distance (you might not get mineral water)
4. Carry some snacks with you (which Vikas did, very promptly….:) )
5. The road up to Davangere is very nice, try to cover it as quickly as possible. After that it narrows down and there are a lot of bad patches
6. Check the gas and air pressure before you leave
7. DO NOT DRINK AND DRIVE (issued in public interest….don’t take it too seriously…lol)
The route we took-
Bangalore-Tumkur-Sira-Hiriyur-Chitradurga-Davangere-Haveri-Sirsi-Mirjan-Gokarna

H.O.M.P

2010-02-26T18:53:00.000+05:30

There’s this amazing show on NDTV Good Times called HOMP. HOMP means Highway On My Plate. I don’t know how many of you have seen it, but I really love the show. I, myself don’t follow it very regularly (as I hardly watch any T.V), but every time I come across it accidentally, that’s it..I just get glued to it.
What an idea!!! The show is hosted by two guys, viz; Rocky and Mayur. Both are really good at what they do and they just HOG (and am sure they are good at it)!!!! The basic theme of the show is that these two guys go around places in India, trying the different delicacies that the region offers. The only difference; they try the roadside food. They give information on the styles of cooking, specialties of that region, recipes etc. The best part is that they are honest about what they feel about the preparation. It doesn’t seem like they have been paid to promote the particular place where they are eating (guess that’s because the owners are hardly bothered about their marketing).
But I think it’s a perfect job. I’d love to get into such a job one day. Two reasons make me say that;
A) I love traveling and visiting new places
B) The more obvious part, I love eating…
I mean, which company will pay you for eating and roaming??? No deliverables, no deadlines, no long working hours, no starving (coz of lack of time), nothing at all….Aah..What a life that would be! I wish someday, someone pays me to do the same….;)
So, the next time you come across this show, wait for a few moments, I am sure you’ll like it as well.

Last weekend!!!

2009-12-30T11:50:00.000+05:30

You know the times when you've waited for someone....someone special...for so long that you can't just wait to see them!!! Just to have a glimpse of that lovely face whom you've loved, whom you've been wanting to see all these days....

Well, it happened to me last weekend! Now, to tell you (those who don't know me well), I am pretty much the "unromantic", "insensitive" and the likes. I don't come up and say all lovey dovey things (this is what my gal complains). But this weekend....No....It was something different...(Well the difference is that she is now my fiancee....Lol - my apologies, I do not know how to put a grave on the 'e' in fiancee on a QWERTY keyboard). But yes, I certainly missed her and missed her lots and lots.

Moreover, when she came at my place from her excellent vacation (of which I am sure...;-) ), she asked me to find out what was different in her....There you go!!!( trick questions are better than these simple ones, I tell you). Well, anyways, the 'me' like what I am, didn't realize that she had a tattoo near her ankle! Now, come on, give me a break....Was I supposed to look at her face (which I have been dying to see) or the tattoo near her ankle? She has been wanting to get it since long now and it has come out really well.

So, there was I, trying to gauge whats new...I pointed out the new earrings, new bracelet..but hello...that's not even counted if you don't hit the bulls eye!!! And guys, I am proud of myself, I did find it out...(after several attempts though)...But ah well, what the hell! Atleast I did...I was thrilled to see it and more happy for her than myself....Just loved it.....:-)

Heights of Tolerance!!!

2009-12-18T16:03:00.000+05:30

BREAKING NEWS: Kasab denies all charges, claims forced confession- Source: The Times of India.

My friend pinged me today with this statement. Today, being a Friday had a lovely (and mind that, heavy as well) lunch and came back to the desk in a merry mood. I was startled, angry and surprised looking at this message of his. So, immediately logged on the TOI site to find the details on the news.

I was amazed to see the man denying all the charges against him on the Mumbai terror attacks. Is this some kind of a joke??? What is going on over here? It has been a year already since the horrible incident has passed and we, over here are still fighting to prove that man guilty!!! In the past one year Kasab has truly moved from the cover page on the newspapers to on some pages in between or end. Enough care has been taken care that he doesn't reflect on the front pages and in headlines anywhere (same like Telgi, if you till remember who he was). But the terrorist keeps playing his part of coming on the front pages time and again. Today, by denying all the charges, yesterday by spilling out names of the people involved in the massacre and some other with some other thing.

The man has blatantly denied all charges against him and passed ridiculous statements like he has been fixed in the whole issue. "On the night of November 25, I was roaming in Juhu. I had gone to see a movie when the local police arrested me", is what Kasab's said (Source-TOI). Is it so simple to defy our intelligence? I mean is it a game that anyone like Kasab can come and f**k around with our judicial system?

Referring to my earlier post (http://thinkpots.blogspot.com/2008/12/what-next.html), I have already written that we Indians think too much. What has US done about it if they are "so" much bothered about world peace? In fact, a perfect irony to the situation is that they find their own citizen in support of the attacks! But no, they still won't accept it. This is how "outsiders" will be! This is how they will think, this is how they'll react. There's a saying in Hindi "Apne ghar ka kachara, humein hi saaf karna padta hai", which means the garabge in ones house has to be cleaned by himself. Neighbors will not come to your rescue if, tomorrow you've got tons of it. And believe me, we have at least a thousand tons of it. We should not wait for any US to come and clean it up for us. In effect, at first we should realize that we are in garbage. The problem with us is that we don't realize that we need to do something about it. A friend of mine has commented on my earlier post. He seemed to be really very hopeful about India and the action our country takes against the attacks. Nothing was done. Just court cases, some video tapes of the attacks, a peace march on 26/11, some footage on "the only terrorist surviving" after the attacks etc. We have dignified Kasab, the media has made him a hero, and he in turn has made a fool of us. Smart guy I must say. What happens to all such hopes as my old friend had? Was he the only one to hope that my country takes an action? Certainly not. But like me and you and thousands and millions of others, we won't do anything about it. I feel ashamed of myself, ashamed of the environment, the surroundings and sometimes, I know I shouldn't be saying this but my country as well!!!

Source (Breaking News): http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Kasab-denies-all-charges-claims-forced-confession/articleshow/5351020.cms

The Village!!!

2009-12-10T18:04:00.000+05:30

I am driving down the Mumbai (Bombay)-Pune highway. I feel thirsty and so I set out in search of water. There is this village which I enter near the banks of a quiet and serene river flowing steadily, its cool breeze hitting my face. But strangely so the village is very quiet and no person can be seen on the village roads. However, there are small little huts (typical to what you find in those parts of the country) scattered over the area that the village must be covering. At one moment the whole set-up upsets me a bit as it looks pretty deserted and a scary.

But then it strikes me that India plays against Pakistan today and in which part of India would you not find a similar situation. How stupid of me! I say to myself and start walking again. There's this typical stink in the air which draws your attention time and again. The breeze is cool and the soil is wet, the roads are not muddy though. I hear some people chatting and shouting at intervals from a nearby hut.

I can see the flickering light of the T.V from the slight gap at the bottom of the door which is partially ajar. Some light from a low powered bulb is also seen against the other light. Wondering why the bulb is lit at this time of the day, I walk towards the hut eager to check out the score (forgetting my thirst for a moment). I knock on the door and it opens up with my slightest knock. A whole bunch of villagers suddenly look back at me and gape. Slightly embarrassed with the stupid action of mine, I try to cover it up with an awkward smile.

A tall, well-built guy, in his mid seventies probably gets up and smiles at me as if he was expecting me all this while. He invites me in and calls for his wife. The wife, without me asking for water gets a jug full of nice, cold water. I quench my thirst fully and then have a look at the T.V. The set is an old one, the typical black and white "Bush" generation television. I find it a bit odd and laugh at the political party's slogan of "India shining". However, there are more odd things that I experience in the next few minutes!

It's India's batting and at the crease are Sunil Gavaskar and Kris Srikkanth! I vaguely remember, that India is taking on Pakistan on this day after a gap of almost 6 years. But where are our players? I think that they are showing some old match between the two legendary rivals. The channel is tuned in to Doordarshan (not NEO Sports). I am further zapped when I see "Live" written below the famous DD logo. I can't hide my amazement any more and i jump up asking the elderly man about it.....Why are both these players at the crease? Why aren't Sehwag or Gambhir opening? I don't, however ask why are they watching DD (considering that if there's still a B&W T.V here where will the poor guys get a cable connection from).

At that question, the man smiles at me first and then there is a roar of laughter in the room. The laughter is somewhat demeaning and cruel. There is a pain in the laughter even though they are laughing to their hearts content. At that moment some of them turn towards me taking their attention away from the set. And I fall back, my head hitting the ground, everything turns black..and I pass out.

I get up to see some people standing next to me and the surroundings look like the same old hut I'd entered. I open my eyes to see the old man staring at me, his wife standing next to him. The faces, when they turned towards me were half eaten, half rotten, pale white and some even had blood all over their faces!!! The old man starts telling me the story...

The village was hit by a wrathful flood some 40 years back. Everything was annihilated and no one in the village survived. However, the love of their village brought back all the villagers after they were dead! All of them, whom you have seen today at my place are dead people. I almost pass out again at that statement, but gather the courage to ask, if even they were dead? The old man starts laughing hysterically, this time even his wife joins in. I am confused. I don't know whats happening.
He points out towards my clothes and my head. I bend down my neck to have a look at them. There is a biting pain in my neck and the left of my head. I see that my shirts torn and full of dry blood. I have a deep cut on my head and the blood around is still fresh! The man finally tells me...that I had an accident on the highway. I was declared dead after some 5 minutes of the accident and that I was continuously asking for water!!!

I fall unconscious again to wake up in my bed. I check my head first, no wound. No torn shirt as well.....:)

Indian "Ricks"

2009-09-22T18:33:00.000+05:30

Rickshaws!!!They are by far the strangest and most dangerous things running on Indian roads after the municipality buses. Almost 90% of the rickshaw drivers think that they are driving the most powerful engines on road. Most of them also think that they are driving on a private road in their courtyards or they pretend that theres no one on the road.

I had the unfortunate opportunity to travel in one of these dreadful machines a couple of weeks back. I had hurt myself in an accident after which I could not drive my bike to the office. For about two weeks I subjected myself to this torture and got my BP (Blood Pressure) shot up everyday in the morning (even before reaching the office...lol). If you have a bird's eye view of the roads these rickshaws will look like 'beetles' crawling through everywhere possible. They try to get in only such places where a man of normal prudence won't think of taking his vehicle. Guess they take it as a challenge and forget that they are not only risking their own but the passenger's life as well.

Other striking feature about rickshaw drivers are their signals. They use both, their hands as well as legs to signal that they are taking a turn. Not only that but they'll barely take it out and expect you to keep watching them while you are driving. The hand or the leg (for that matter) would hardly be visible before the whole rickshaw turns swiftly in front of you. And on top of that if one is unfortunate enough to bang into them, then God save him!! All the rickshaw drivers suddenly find a lost brother in the aggrieved rickshaw driver whos just met with an accident and they fight together against the man whos probably seen his worst enemy's face in the morning before landing in front of the Rickshaw.

Now rickshaw is also called a "rick" in most of the metros and cosmos. But I am sure this must've originated from the great city of Mumbai. I think people there are too busy even to say the whole word. Mumabai has been the birthplace of many abbreviations. Eg- S.P.D.P meaning sev puri dahi puri, rick meaning rickshaw, tripsie meaning triple seat so on and so forth. So now when anyone says a rick, it sounds smaller and faster. With that it implies the necessary dangers as well. A lot of ricks have awesome(sarcastic) music players in them. The music played in them is understood only by the rick driver and passengers try hard to guess whats been playing for a really long time now. It happens because of the beats all the songs played in a rick carry. All the songs will have "Jhankar beats" (one rot thing introduced by a cassette manufacturing company some years back). All you can make out are the same, typical beats been played with every different song. Moreover, the system has to be played only at deafening decibels. Its not only you but everyone around you who has to listen to what you are listening (sharing and caring you see). This proves that rick drivers are a kind hearted lot.

Now the most amazing and amusing part in a rick is the meter. A meter is an instrument that flashes the fare to be paid by the passenger. It is based on a distance traveled fundamental. The fares are different across different cities in India and Bangalore, I guess has the easiest system of fare calculation. However, as I've mentioned earlier I was commuting by a rick to my office everyday I noticed one thing. The distance to the office never changed, the route never changed, but I ended up paying different fares everyday. Now the company that manufactures most of the meters is called "Standard company" based out of Pune. Everyday I used to check the fare and smile at the irony. Everyday I used to try to explain in vain to the rick driver that the fare I'd paid on first day was the most perfect (as it was the least I've paid....;) ). I paid around Rs 48 (the least as I mentioned) the first day and since then I've been paying anything in between Rs 52/- to Rs 66/-. I argue everyday that it couldn't have been possible but you should know whom to argue with, when and where! Another thing to be noted is how the way you get puzzled when you look at the drivers card (In Bangalore we have this ADDLDS – Auto Driver Driving License Display System ) and you see a completely different man driving the rick. The person in the photo looks like a retro image of the person driving. This happens because the driver would have pasted his college passport size photograph in which (according to him) he looked the best ever in his life.

Anyways, thats how these amazing machines are and this is how the drivers of these machines are. Nothing will change about the way they drive, or the way they argue about money. The only thing that will change are the passengers who keep coming and moving out.

Fragrance...

2009-08-10T19:54:00.000+05:30

Fragrance, by far must be one of the most desired senses a man (sorry, a woman as well) would want to capture. I don't think there is a machine, yet, that can capture your favorite fragrance and play it for you whenever you fell like it. I am sure though, the Sonys, LGs and Samsungs of this world will not leave an opportunity to do that (innovation is the key to blue oceans strategy, right?).

Just imagine yourself sitting with a Fragrance Recorder in your room on a chilly winter afternoon and play the “water on hot soil” fragrance!!! I wonder why haven't our scientists thought about it! Hope they read my blog and start working towards it before USA takes on the patent even for my idea generation!!! Let me help you guys with some of the fragrances one would want to record on this awesome device.
Fragrance of;

1.First rains
2.Of your new car
3.Crisp notes from the ATM (my personal favorite.....;) )
4.New born baby (Johnson & Johnson in most cases in India)
5.Your favorite perfume
6.Your loved ones
7.Old / New books
8.Mum's food
9.New clothes
10.Forest and Woods

I am sure there are a lot more fragrances one would want to capture and play it later when we miss them the most. Well, this might have disadvantages as well, eg; Mum's food's fragrance when you can't actually have it can lead to disastrous effects on the user!!! But then, you'll always have an option to delete the intolerable fragrance like the one I just mentioned.

Rocking Hard!!!!

2009-05-21T14:15:00.000+05:30

It was last Friday, the 15th of May 2009, when my office colleagues and I'd decided to go out for a couple of drinks. We were five of us initially but eventually just three were left (as usual); one amongst them being me. We were still thinking about the place when we found ourselves in front of HRC (Hard Rock Cafe)- Bengaluru. I've been there more than a couple of times but my other two friends were first timers.

It was the day when the Canadian performer, Karl Wolf was gonna come down to one of the most happening places in Bangalore, HRC! So we decided to enter paying a princely amount of Rs 750/- per person (mind that there are no entry charges on normal days). However, now that we were there, we decided to experience it. The place was already house-full with guys and gals (hot) continuously walking in. So, started off with a couple of beers and to my surprise one friend of mine, guzzled down the pints faster than I did...He was having beer just for the second time in his life!Guess its the ambiance of the place that makes you to allow yourself to be drunk (just a bit-We follow traffic rules of Bangalore- “Don't drink and drive”...lolzzz). The attendant over there showed us a couple of mind-blowing tricks on the table as usual. In the midst of all this, it started raining and we'd to move inside. It seemed as if it was planned by the managers of HRC to give their customers a “different” experience. Mr Wolf was supposed to come at 9:30 p.m. He eventually arrived at around 10:15 p.m (like all celebrities) and the show started. We were told that he is from the R&B genre and to my surprise he was playing a bit of Hip-hop as well as a bit of House. I didn't know any of his songs, but who cares.....the music was awesome and the crowd was amazing. The company of my colleagues was perfect and we enjoyed ourselves to the core. One of my friends got on to the bar counter and started dancing before he was pulled down by the dangerous bouncers. Next, he offered a girl a dance and he actually danced with her!!! (And I, like a fool, stood clapping instead of shooting him on the camera...that would have been one “Kodak” moment).

We got sexy HRC tees from their merchandise section, and on my friends request, picked up the same for the both of us!!!! (I usually don't do that. But then beer can do such things to you!) Anyways, I hope the missed “Kodak” moments keep coming in life and we keep having fun at such rocking places.

"The Mosquito Theory"

2009-05-11T21:29:00.000+05:30

I don't know what's wrong with mosquitoes these days. They are everywhere and in huge numbers, waiting eagerly for you to walk in so that they can feast up on you.

Now this theory was developed by “yours truly” when I was reading a novel in my room the the other day. As a precautionary measure I keep the 'Good night' burning even when I am not asleep as I am their favourite food. I act as a human “Goodnight” for anyone else sleeping in the room (they all come and bite me leaving others at peace). I was stunned to see a mosquito sitting right on top of the machine and staring at the glowing bulb inside ( as though it was laughing at it!!!!)

Then evolved the great “Mosquito theory”! This theory talks about how the mosquitoes go through a stage of evolution exactly like humans did. That is to infer that the species get evolved with time and get used to the mosquito repellents we use at our homes. Eventually, the mosquito repellent fails to do its duty and the mosquitoes outsmart the poor old machine.

Mosquitoes, that bite are the female mosquitoes, which gather blood for laying eggs. The more they gather blood, the more number of mosquitoes will be born. A she-mosquito lays approx. around 50-300 eggs per “oviposition”(please find the meaning from wikipedia-its a long one). Now, average life of a mosquito is around 5-14 days. However, a she-mosquito can live upto a month under captivity,i.e if she is lucky enough to survive natural predators (man being the most dangerous...:)). In such a short life span it can reproduce almost twice or thrice. Thus slowly and steadily, they are getting used to the everyday “Goodnight” smell and its chemical components. The mother mosquito delivers chemically advanced mosquito every time she gives birth. Every new born mosquito is a step better than what his/ her parents were. The process can be closely paralleled to human evolution, except that these buggers have outsmarted us in their evolution speed!!!

And one such mosquito was spotted by me who was sitting on my poor “Goodnight” machine. I found the solution! Went to the market in evening and picked up a “Mortein”. It works.......;).

How it changed...

2009-03-21T18:57:00.000+05:30

I'd got this lovely poem from a very good friend of mine a few days back...Today, I am in the office...but unfortunately I don't even have time to think about this poem...So decided to post it on the blog...All thats mentioned is so true!!!

Dedicated to all working hard in corporates:

Here i am sitting in my office @ night…
Thinking hard about life
How it changed from a maverick college life to strict professional life…...

How tiny pocket money changed to huge monthly paychecks
but then why it gives less happiness….

How a few local denim jeans changed to new branded wardrobe
but then why there are less people to use them

How a single plate of samosa changed to a full Pizza or burger
But then why there is less hunger…..

Here i am sitting in my office @ night…
Thinking hard about life
How it changed…..

How a bike always in reserve changed to bike always on
but then why there are less places to go on……

How a small coffee shop changed to cafe coffee day
but then why it feels like shop is far away…..

How a limited prepaid card changed to postpaid package
but then why there are less calls & more messages……

Here i am sitting in my office @ night…
Thinking hard about life
How it changed…..

How a general class journey changed to Flight journey
But then why there are less vacations for enjoyment….

How an old assembled desktop changed to new branded laptop
but then why there is less time to put it on……….

How a small bunch of friends changed to office mates
but then why after 8'o Clock it always feel like getting late….

Here i am sitting in my office @ night…
Thinking hard about life
How it changed….. how it changed……..

I'll always love it!!!

One more like that and I'll be dead!!!

2009-02-25T18:27:00.000+05:30

There are these days which do not start on a very “not so happening note”. Today, was one of “THOSE” days!!! Had a deliverable of one project today on which I've been working my butt off for the past three weeks now. The project had already been delayed by a day because of some unforeseen circumstances. I was also told this in advance that a day extra is just “ok”. However, I was told again that it has already taken a day extra and we have to finalize it by today itself.

Cool about it! So taking the amount of work to be done in one small little day I came in early today (ofcourse to the office). I was really happy to see almost no one around...(coz usually when I come theres hardly anyone left to come...lolz). Well so I wished the day to start on a good note. Now our office (I still don't understand why) has got Openoffice installed on our systems. And the client requires deliverables in MS Office. So everytime we have a deliverable we gotta fight out the laptops for ourselves as they are only lucky ones which enjoy the privilege of having MS Office installed. So I went up to the IT guy to get the lappy issued. He replies saying that he has no idea where our team's laptop was!!! There goes my effort of coming early down the drain. I was frantically calling a colleague whom I supposed was the culprit for the missing laptop. He didn't answer the call. Luckily found the laptop in another colleague's locker. God has saved me (I thought).

Now I was supposed to work on the finalization of things today. But as usual there were some changes in the sheets. One of the companies tracker had to be changed. So had a quick small meeting and went back to operational level from a finalizing one....:( After I was done I statrted working on the better part of it,finalizations.

According to the plan I completed the work and sent across the sheets and presentations over. They immediately came back with corrections. By this time I had already closed them on the laptop. So I reopened all of them and to my horror nothing had got saved. I had to redo the whole thing again in half the time. I sent it across again. This time it came back from my boss faster than the first time (alongwith an annoying mail). I was almost losing it by then. But you know how it is. You can't really do much even if you feel like kicking myself in the balls.

Anyways, the work was done and I managed somehow to save the files. Later I come to know that the deliverable has been further postponed till tomorrow. I was just about to kill everyone in the project and later myself!!! There are still some changes which I am expected to do in the million numbered excel sheet but atleast I am being spared till tomorrow (Thanks to my “kind” bosses).

Happiness Vs Satisfaction

2009-01-14T18:30:00.000+05:30

I have been thinking over this for quite a while now. For some, this might be very simple to answer, but the more I think about it the more I get confused and entangled. Writing it down seems the best option available.

Okay, to start of with the meaning (according to me) of the two words;

Happiness: the joy you get by doing, achieving, creating, making etc. something.

Satisfaction: the feeling of content after you've done something.

Now, if we have a look at both the definitions or meanings above we can see that there is a very thin line between the both. In other words, there can be seen a kind of cause and effect relationship between the two. Happiness can give you a feeling of being satisfied, or being satisfied makes you feel happy.

Then the confusion starts. If happiness is considered good then why many people consider satisfaction bad? As in, I myself am of the opinion that you can afford to be happy but not satisfied. I don't know why but I feel that being satisfied can hamper the pace of progress. The desire in you to achieve more and more dies once you satisfy yourself. So, in this case satisfaction is pretty much parallel to satiation. Or is it? Being satisfied in ones own life; the sentence itself is so discouraging!!! On the other hand,
Being happy with ones own life; isn't there a difference between the two? Which sounds good to our ears? I bet most of you will go with the second one. Is it just the language, or is it just our perception? Again, being satisfied with what you have and being happy with what you have are also different. Somehow being satisfied cuts down all the hopes for future development and growth. The fire to achieve a target, set a goal, excel even after that doesn't seem to be working with the very use of the word.

Happiness sounds full of hope and encouragement, atleast to my ears. There is a chance of going in search of more happiness after being happy once. Being satisfied is like asking yourself, what more do you want??? Isn't this enough? Have you ever guessed, why the Will Smith movie was called “Pursuit of Happ'y'ness” (one of my favorites) and not “Pursuit of Satisfaction”?? Well, if you think about it you will find sense in this post. Then a question might be asked, why the Benny Benassi song is called “Satisfaction” and not “Happiness”? Well, I have an explanation to this as well, but would like to answer it via mails.........;). You can contact me @ sarveshdeoras23@gmail.com.

Many critics have often asked me, if a man doesn't get satisfied then where does he stop? (the question is asked just for the heck of it, remember they are critics!!!). They seem to be more convinced than I myself am about the topic.....:) Well, I would say, is there a need for a man to be satisfied ever? I mean, he can be happy with what he has achieved. Whats the need to be satisfied? He can find ways and means to be happy in life without being satisfied and stagnating his own growth and chances of being happy anytime after that, can't he?

What next?

2008-12-02T18:03:00.000+05:30

After the terror attacks in Mumbai a lot of questions were asked,eg;
1) Till when should we Indians be subjected to such attacks?
2) Why din't the officials act on information given by the intelligence?
3) Why did the meeting about the course of action take place so late during the day?

so on and so forth. But one question kept haunting me...
> Why me, my city, my country??? Why is India constantly being made a target of such horrifying terror attacks?

Are these people taking undue advantage of our tolerance or aren't we Indians capable enough to fight back terrorism and save our motherland? Its not like we do not have trained armed forces or the power to counter terrorist attacks. In the past we have proved that we are much stronger than what people would like to believe. Then what makes them gather the courage everytime and pose a different and new threat everytime??

I think, the way we handle the situation goes wrong. The way the terrorists are treated goes wrong. One of the demands which the terrorists involved in the recent attacks made was to free the fellow "Mujahiddins" in India. What if these "Mujahiddins" who are condemned of crime are not left alive??? Will it solve the problem? Atleast one of their demands in the future will not arise---To free those in India's custody!!! Indians think too much. Much more than necessary. The human rights people will still support the terrorists and question the armed forces on killing them. I do not have any grudges against the human rights commission, but their should be a sense in supporting someone's rights as a human (I don't think terrorists are humans). The government will think what will USA, the UN, the UK think. What will happen to India's image if we take an aggressive action? and God knows what all!!!

Another thing where we go wrong is waste of resources. We Indians love wastage of resources and then employ more resources to stop that wastage, eventually leading to a bigger wastage. Now everyone is behind the post-mortem of the event. Infact, today morning I heard a news on a news channel which were proving that the terrorists were definitely from Pakistan!!! (Wasn't this proved before???) Their bone of contention for proving them to be Pakistan citizens; the toothpaste, the shaving creme, the brushes as well as the radios they used were manufactured locally by some Karachi-Pakistan based company. Waste, Waste, Waste nothing else. The situation wouldn't have come up if a little confidence would have been shown on our intelligence reports. I mean whats the point in proving that they were of Pakistan origin again and again? Whom are we trying to clarify? Why do we have to clarify time and again? Why do we act so scared? Instead, an action plan can be thought of regarding the future course of action, isn't it?

And in the midst of all this the drama happens. Some political leader takes the moral responsibility of the attacks, resigns from the office and what???? What happens next? Who is to act, take further action? Who is going to be responsible further ahead? Do we really need FBI to solve our problems??? If the USA is so concerned with their counter terrorism campaign why can't they do anything about the terrorist camps in the POK??? Or even for that matter Pakistan (if there are any)? Forget even that. What steps is India going to take even if it is proved that the attacks were caused by Pakistan? Is Pak government going to take the responsibility even if we prove it to them?

People start generalising and blaming Muslims at large. Ask them to get back to their allocated land-Pakistan from India!!! I think thats foolish as India is a secular state unlike Pakistan. Another question is immediately shot at you;
> How come all terrorists are Muslims?
The answer is pretty obvious. Most terrorists are not Muslims. More appropriate would be that most of them are from countries where Muslim population is highest (Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq etc). How will you find Hindu or Christain terrorists in these countries. Moreover they are fighting for a land (again Muslim dominated) to be annexed in a Muslim country. Why will a Hindu or a Christain fight for that, if both the religions don't have the so called concept of "Jihaad"? Many of them turn towards terrorism in the wake of social issues in their country. So they become terrorists. How is Islam to be blamed at large over here???

Anyways, the blame game continues and no one knows the answers to the questions raised and where exactly is the end!!!

EGGSPERT....

2008-11-20T19:58:00.000+05:30

Yeah..Thats what I can call myself now after staying out of home for a couple of years..Eggs are interesting, both to eat as well as to cook (as they are the easiest and fastest to make..:)). The liking for trying something new everytime has taught me a lot of dishes with eggs but let's start with the very famous recipe for bhurji..

Now egg bhurji can be made in different styles according to your tastes and likes..Eg:
1)Egg bhurji-Home style
2)Egg bhurji-Hygienic
3)Egg bhurji-Unhealthy
4)Egg bhurji-Shabbir style

The last type of bhurji is a speciality of a person who's a bigger specialist at it than I am..(he owns a bhurji stall in Pune) and his bhurji remains our all time favourite food late at night when everything closes down...A lot of people from pune know it!!!

Ok so the recipe for Home stlye bhurji--
Ingredients:

Eggs-Depending on the number of people and their appetite
Green chillies
Cumin seeds (Jeera)
Onions (finely chopped)
Salt-to taste
Red chilli powder
Oil

Take a pan and heat some oil (1 tb spoon for 2 eggs). After the oil is heated properly add the cumin seeds..(TIP:put a couple of them to check if the oil is hot enough...You don't need to touch the oil..hahaha...If they make that sizzling sound then the oil is ready for the onions). Put the onions and the green chillies in some 10 seconds after the jeera. Reduce the flame if it is on high to low (this stops the onions from getting burnt). Turn the onions to a nice reddish-brown colour and add red chillies powder to it. Mix it well for around 2 mins and add the eggs. Beat them in the pan itself to whatever consistency you want. You can either have it "Kachcha Pakka" (half cooked--tastes amazing!!!my personal choice) or fully cooked till the egg breaks into small pieces. Your egg bhurji is ready to eat...

The whole process will no take more than 10 minutes and will taste yum!!!

Enjoy your bhurji..Will be back soon with other styles as well.

Crazy Times!!!!

2008-11-18T20:11:00.000+05:30

Aaaaarrggh its really very irritating when you put up the visitor's map to your site and you come to know that there are visitors from just one place. Anyways I guess I know who they are and so be satisfied with that for the moment...

Anyways so had been to Pune for Diwali. Spent some really good time with all the friends. One of the member who has been missing all this while had also got down ( another was missing though ). I must've hardly slept during those 4-5 days but never felt it till the time I sat in the flight back for Bangalore..

This was on Saturday. Had a small time party at my place and had invited Akshay (the one whos missing above) and Sunny to my place. Had relatives as well. I'd made Chicken and Paneer for everyone and believe me cooking isn't easy!!! I love it though. Well, besides the point. So had some drinks and food by 1:30 when Sunny (as usual) felt like having tea (aunty's...will tlak abt it in my next post). Actually a sensible decision as we needed to talk. Akshay was facing tough times, both on the personal and professional front.

So we decided to comfort him. We had a couple of teas by the time it was 5:45..(our ususal discussions are that long..;). Sat in the car and when all of a sudden Akshay felt like going to Mahabaleshwar (it's just a two and half hours drive from Pune). But then I thought it would've been a bit too much...So then what gave an option of Lonavala (now everyone knows where it is) and started. It was one of the most crazy time all three of us must've had...We went all the way to Bhushi dam. Had tea there (again) and came back to "TULSI". Had a wada pav and what else (chai again).

Slept the whole day but tell you what...it was worth it!!!!

Matured Friendship or Us???

2008-09-24T10:53:00.000+05:30

Had been to my hometown over the last weekend.It was a good change but I realised something which I don't think I liked a lot.It was about my friends,my gang....

It is strange to adjust your self with the changes that occur in a course of friendship,isn't it?I know these people for atleast 5 years of my life now and somehow I feel the group dynamics have been changing over period of time.I mean,I saw all fo us suddenly adjusting to the other person's time,place and convenience when it came to all of us meeting.All of us have started behaving like "true" professionals and have started adjusting to everything the other person says.Even after having a couple of drinks we din't have a heated debate on any subject.All the topics remained so neutral,without any spice in them.No disagreements,no counter facts nothing....Just simple "I don't think it's that way"!!!!Back then,everyone used to have an opinion.Not just opinion but DIFFERENT opinions.It was so interesting,so dynamic....Seemed like the flair used to co-exist in between all of us.

I think its not just that we've grown up but even our friendship has matured over time.It doesn't demand anything from anyone of us anymore.It just stays the way it is and guess thats the reason behind our complacency.Gone are the days when we used to call each other and say"Hey f***er,get your arse to Tulsi (you get awesome tea here @ Baner,Pune) in the next 10 mins.We are waiting for you"!!!!

Miss those days......

What a day!!!

2008-08-26T11:54:00.000+05:30

Got up early this morning,fresh and happy.Had a thousand things to do.All chalked up properly and planned already.Nothing could've been missed and was planning to reach office on time too(strange things happen when planned)...Had to drop a friends car at the garage and claim the insurance..Never thought people would grill you so much for giving out some chunk of cash from the huge deposit they sit upon.Yes I am talkin about the Goddamn Insurance Company.They atleast have a couple of thousand questions to ask you when you are in the utmost hurry.Moreover the car has been a transferred sale.Now the original documents are yet to come and so the official says that I cannot claim the insurance.The owner has to sign the claim.Moreover the damages are such that I was spellbound for atleast a couple of minutes.
Had to do it today anyway.So there are ways and means to get things done.Did the same.Then called up the Insurance company and told him the details for about 20 minutes.Luckily got the claim number.The official at the garage was suppoesed to photocopy the documents for his purpose.
Now everything is finally done after one and half hours of labour.I take a rick and I am almost about to reach the office.The personnel at the garage calls up again and tells me that it seems that I took his documents which were kept on the table....still haven't got why he kept them there in the first place.So the car cannot be given for repairs today if I don't go some 10kms back to the garage from my office that too before 6!!!!Imagine how nice a world it would have been if we started going home at that hour....Anyways so had to come down in a rick and pay up for something which went totally haywire...Reached late at the office(as usual,thanks to the Bangalore traffic) and got awfull looks from everyone.Even from those who to their luck came in early today!!!
Guess just one of those days where you can't do anything else than getting bugged....

Blogs everywhere

2008-08-20T17:32:00.000+05:30

I see people blogging everywhere around me and suddenly I felt like probably even I should start it too...I know people who blog for themselves,for others,for money,for knowledge sharing and all kinda stuff...I want to blog coz everyone else around me does.Its that simple.I had tried it sometime before but could not do much with it.Blogging has been improved a lot these days.It used to be a pain a few years back when I had my first stint with it.
I was bored of writing myself out on the internet,probably a bit paranoid too...but now aah well what the hell...And you have to take such good care of the words when you blog,as in no spelling mistakes and rot like that.I guess human errors should be permissible when it comes to qualifying a blog,shouldn't they??

Just to start

2008-08-20T17:01:00.000+05:30

This has been a good exercise....switching from one blog to another.I already have a blog to my name which is called adsnbrands.Thought it would be interesting to share opinions on latest ads and the dynamically changing industry.However,seems only I visit there and a trusted few whom I can actually force to visit it.
Now on this blog,I am gonna have anything and everything thats possible(ahem...leave apart the things that click the first when you read "anything & everything")...So just a vent to share something by way of blogging(aren't blogs meant for that???)...well,thats how its gonna be...So be it!!!