A Little Less Conversation

Talking Movies

2011-04-25T15:07:00.006+05:30

Almost a decade ago, a young director came along and made a movie that defined the mindset of the youth, which was far removed from the rustic ideology of the generations gone by. The movie appealed to the youth more since the central theme of the movie was friendship.

The movie had a lot to convey about friendship and love. What was special about this movie was that it was able to convey the above without getting preachy at any point. Sometime ago there was this e-mail going around in which someone had quite nicely compiled all the things that we could learn from that movie.

Freaking out and enjoying life doesn't need drugs or cigarettes
There are relationships apart from bf/gf, marriage, siblings...friendship that can be very emotional and true, which is beyond the understanding of many people
And yeah even though u may be the best of friends there is always a limit which should never be crossed
Improving your imperfections after you realize it...it always takes some time
You always don't need to show or prove your gf/bf how much u love or care about her/him, which can sound very boring and finally get you dumped
Believe in Love...true love will never let you down
Never be ashamed to go back to your old friends…they are there to understand your mistakes
Do not be afraid of others…always think that others are afraid of you (the Australian beggar)
Whenever you need your friend, remember that he is just a phone call away...distances can't separate friends..It's the friends you can call up at 4 A.M. that matter
In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends
And finally, the only unchangeable certainty is that nothing is certain or unchangeable

One of the things that I felt was missing from the above was the character of the girl's uncle. He might have gone unnoticed due to the brevity of the role but his personality was so well etched that our elders could learn a thing or two from that. One of the best parts of this character in the movie was when there is a difference between an engaged couple, he doesn't get in between them acting elderly and doling out free advice and all. He just walks off telling that they should talk it out with each other.

Even after so many years, we give this movie a watch whenever it’s showing on TV. And its still, simply awesome!

The Day I Bunked Office

2011-04-11T15:19:00.001+05:30

There are days when you get up in the morning and tell yourself that you don't want to go to office. I know I'm talking about pretty much everyday. But there are a couple of days in a year when you actually don't go.

So you just get up from the bed and soak in the unheard weekday silence for a while in absolute numbness. Then the beloved newspaper to which you never had any quality time to spare gets all the attention with some reggae music in the background which gives you a fleeting feeling that you are in a tropical island. Later you turn on the TV and hope there is that movie playing, for which you couldn't spare any time on one of your mundane days. And of course, it wouldn't be. So instead, you watch Discovery and learn that Tokyo has the largest metropolitan area in the world and by law the French can't be forced to work more than 35 hours a week!

After you are done with the TV, you just sit and stare at the objects around. There is dust on the cupboard. The pickle bottle was used as a candle stand. The door has a large key hole. The Belgian wood on the floor seems to have a couple of permanent footprints on it. There are too many wires crawling on the wall.

After looking around, you start looking in. It all looks very hazy. Not really clear. And then you see a labyrinth. You seem to be lost in it. You seem to have lost the purpose. Maybe you haven't lost the purpose but it’s just that you are tired finding a way out. You think you shouldn't have gotten into the maze in the first place.

The doorbell snaps you back but you are still in that maze. Anyways, the "dot" reads "hot" and so you eat. A full stomach and a story about liberation cause drowsiness. After sometime you are waken up by the vivid vibrations of the cell. By now you've reached the end of day. But your mind is still where it was, when the day started. A day spent in sheer vanity.

Here Today Gone Tomorrow

2011-04-06T15:04:00.003+05:30

There are some songs that you happen to listen at different phases of your life. What didn’t appear as a good song then turns out to be a great one now, like this one by the BOSS. It’s a very sad song. But so calm and mellow it really gets to you. The lyrics are interesting and depressing at the same time. One of Springsteen's best. Plug on your headphones and give it a listen.
An emotion I wish upon no man, but the strength I wish upon all.

I was bruised and battered and I couldn’t tell
What I felt
I was unrecognizable to myself
I saw my reflection in a window I didn't know
My own face
Oh brother are you gonna leave me
Wastin´away
On the streets of Philadelphia

I walked the avenue till my legs felt like stone
I heard the voices of friends vanished and gone
At night I could hear the blood in my veins
Black and whispering as the rain
On the streets of Philadelphia

Aint no angel gonna greet me
Its just you and I my friend
My clothes don't fit me no more
I walked a thousand miles
Just to slip the skin

The night has fallen, I’m lying awake
I can feel myself fading away
So receive me brother with your faithless kiss
Or will we leave each other alone like this
On the streets of Philadelphia

The Inevitable Question

2011-03-29T16:58:00.002+05:30

What is that makes one truly happy?

Whenever I sat back looking at life, this is one question that I've asked myself over and over. I guess everyone asks this question themselves at one point or the other. So is it a dream house? A dream job? A dream car, perhaps?

I guess, the answer could be all or none. It keeps changing as we grow older. The things that make us happy are harder to come by as we grow older. Probably that’s the great trap of life. The pursuit of happiness is designed in such a way that we are never meant to arrive although there is an impression or a passing thought, that we have, like a dog chasing its own tail.

So what's really the answer to this billion dollar question? Is it just making peace with whatever you got? Or as someone said does the answer lie within? Or is it just out there blowing in the wind? I guess I'll never know.

Or maybe there isn’t such a thing as true happiness at all?

The Times They Are A-Changin'

2011-03-23T17:22:00.002+05:30

There is once in a while that you hear a song and get totally swept off your feet by the sheer brilliance of the song writing. I'll bet on that everytime you hear a Bob Dylan song. This particular piece from one of his classics is simply brilliant. Its as relevant in today's brave new world as it was in the rapidly changing 60s.

Come mothers and fathers
Throughout the land
And don't criticize
What you can't understand
Your sons and your daughters
Are beyond your command
You old road is
Rapidly agin'.
Please get ou of the new one
If you can't lend your hand
For the times they are a-changin'.

A Second Chance

2011-03-19T18:03:00.004+05:30

All through our lives the toughest thing has been living up to people's expectations. As a kid it was your parent's expectations to beat the crap out of your classmates in academia. Growing up it was the expectation of your friends to be a true pal. Then parents came weighing in again, pushing you to get a stellar job that they could brag about with their friends. Then it was the girlfriends not wanting you to be like all the other men and so on. The heavier the pressure got, the bigger the magnitude of failure.

All the while, all you ever wanted was someone who would believe in you. Someone who
could have your back and tell you that you could do it.

Nobody is perfect. Everybody makes mistakes. Everybody deserves a second chance. A lucky few get a second chance. But sometimes they just don't see it and let it pass by. In the sober light of the day and after the dust has settled, all they can do is look back in vain.

The Year That Was

2010-12-31T00:41:00.002+05:30

This one is more out of desperation to shore up the numbers, to keep up to one the promises I made sometime during the year. So I sit here, with a glass of 'black' scotch, a burning stick in my hand and the ipod firmly plugged in playing oasis, to look at the year gone by.

Here it is, the record making post!

The year began with a strong conviction. I decided I was gonna fight for her. It wasn't going to be easy. I braced myself and threw in the gauntlet. And so the war began. I wasn't exactly a veteran at this, but I was gonna fight anyways. After a lot of 'bloodshed', melodrama, ruined weekends and walking in the rain, it was over. They gave in. We obliged.

I moved up a li'l, professionally. It wasn't much, but its gotta be one of the best years at work so far. Learnt a few new things, unlearnt a lot of old things. First time in a long time felt at ease and in control.

A friend went out. Although we weren't exactly weekend friends, but do miss her. I still haven't watched HP7.1

A friend came in. Thought me that impossible is actually nothing and trying is the least you could do.

A few parties with the colleagues. Discussed the political standpoint (at work), ex-flames, new flames and why in the lord's name is she so annoying.

A galore of house parties with the usual suspects. Nothing like partying with them. Its actually kinda easy when all of them have the same thing on their minds :)

And there were a lot of things I hated and a lot that I loved.

Hated the summer heat. Loved the rains. Hated the commute. Loved the conversations. Hated being alone. Loved the social networks. Hated Despicable Me. Loved Toy Story. Continued to hate pasta and love pizza. Hated running. Loved the walks. Hated the certainties. Loved the uncertainties. Hated the fights. Loved the fights.

So here I'm at the fringes of a new year, a new life, a new home and a new roommate. I'm excited. I'm scared. But I think I'll survive.

Stand By Me - 2

2010-12-24T02:24:00.002+05:30

Continued..

M. Met him graduation. A very genuine guy with a big heart, a guy whom you could count on anytime. But he was also a kinda guy, much to his undoing, who would wallow in self pity always. So naturally, we were like chalk and cheese.

He was very helpful when I entered a totally different phase of my college life. We became great buddies in pretty quick time. Then there was a girl (Dammit there is always a girl!). So some people used this and his self pitiful nature to make him walk away. It took as many as 7 years and a few shots to clear that difference. He apologized for his behavior. But like with all 'great friendship gone bad fixed after a long time', will never be the same again. Its still nice to have him around without any hard feelings.

S. She is probably the closest friend I've ever had from the fairer sex. She had my back when the chips were down. She stuck up for my good and helped me fight. But it wasn't always like that.

We got off to a very bad start. But time helped to get rid of the prejudices. She was there when I needed a friend pretty badly. She was there when no one was there. She was just there whenever I had to laugh, cry, celebrate or confide. She helped mend my broken heart. I can't ever repay her for all that. But I guess thats what friendship is about. You don't have to worry about keeping an account. When I look at her family now, my heart fills with joy. Guess, karma took care of my repayment. Just can't wish her enough.

R. More popularly A. Sometimes you meet some people and tell yourself that you are never goin' to be friends with them. And sometimes you are wrong. And those times you are glad you were wrong.

He was there without actually being there during one of the bad phases. Not giving up on me till I was back on my toes. I think its times like these you realize the true worth of a friend. You will rarely come across such guys. Someone who can make you laugh as well as laugh on themselves. You can ignore them, despise them and take them for granted. But they will always stick around. These are friends for life.

D. We'll never ever talk about the friendship that we share, with each other or with anyone. But I believe we have been great friends in a very not-so-obvious way!

He is probably the closest to what I am. We have a very similar outlook towards life. Just love all the conversations we have had when downing the drinks. Even when in the same room in mute mode we are conversing. Thats because we do think pretty much alike. And of course, watching Simpsons has never been better!

A guy with a very clear heart, unselfish and a great partner in crime. Can't make any bones in telling I miss him.

At the end, all I can say is, I've been very lucky to have had such great friends to share this life with. I might have not been a great friend to all these people as much as they have been to me, but I hope I do better.

Everyday is full of tests. Some tests of character, some tests of fortitude and some tests of friendship. And if you are lucky, you'll pull through with flying colors.

Men Will Always Be Boys

2010-12-20T00:17:00.006+05:30

I was at a menswear showroom the other day and was reading one of their in-house magazines which carried an article on how men will always be boys. It was in great humor and guess every guy can relate to it in a way. I did, in entirety!

A lot of stuff has changed in the past 10 years..you've found a job, maybe changed a few by now, you have your own bank balance, own set of wheels, possibly even your own pad and a steady girlfriend..but there are a lot of stuff which hasn't..

..the fact that you'll never be able to resist anything that moves on wheels...and that most of the time you're trying to look more serious than you're feeling because there's always a good joke lurking around somewhere...and yeah, you could give Keith Richards a run for his money, if you wanted to...you're always smarter than the next guy...saying sorry like you mean it is still a tough one...and nothing, i mean nothing, lifts your spirits like well, spirits...you really do love her but commitment scares the hell out of you...you know what they say, the only difference between men and boys is the size of their feet and the cost of their toys...the attention span is still very less when an household chore is being explained...you believe that the bedspreads have to be used on both the sides and a pillow cover isn't a mandatory accessory to have a good night's sleep...

...even after all these years, the boy inside you has just refused to grow up. Maybe it is meant to be that way ;)

You've Got (e)Mail

2010-12-08T23:03:00.013+05:30

e-mails are everywhere and have become a big part of our lives. It has lent a great deal of "voice" to our non-verbal communication. So naturally the e-mail service providers have given us enough "real" estate to "converse" and keep those tens of thousands of mails. But in my inboxes, I keep only the ones that I feel are really interesting (repeat value) and the ones which can cheer me up or make me reminisce when I look at them a few years later.

A few days ago, I was going through my inbox reading through the oldest to newest. It was like traveling time and revisiting my past. I was quite amazed reading them. As I went on reading, I could feel me "growing up" over all these years.

What one writes is a good reflection of one's personality. The words chosen, the tone used et al serve as useful parameters to gauge oneself. Probably if I wrote it today, I would sound a lot different.

Those mails took me through a spectrum of emotions. Some were cheerful. Some were exuberant. Some were filled with bonhomie. Some with hatred. Some with love. Some with despise. Some with melancholy. Some with introspection.

And found a couple of mails which have been life altering, each in its own way. I read them over and over and tried to comprehend them better. I tried to relive that moment in my head and understand what really prompted me or the other person to write whatever was written. But failed.

Maybe somewhere deep down we really don't want to know. Maybe because it's very hard to discover hard things about oneself.

Stand By Me - 1

2010-11-19T01:25:00.004+05:30

Friends have always been a very integral part of my life. Some of them have them have always been around through thick and thin. They have been like family. In-fact i've confided more often with them than I have with my family. This has not always gone down well with my family. Though, it feels nice when friends and family click. But it hasn't really being so in my case. Maybe I just didn't make it a habit of opening up with them. Maybe I wasn't ever in the comfort zone with them. Maybe its just me.

But this isn't about my family feeling hard done. This is about all the different people who have been very close friends at different points of time in my life and how they thought me a thing or two along the way.

My first close friend was V. This guy was around during a significant part of my childhood. From kindergarten to tenth grade. He was a part of all my adventures and misadventures as a child and I was his. He was a smart chap and he helped me look smart. He used to think big in that tender age and would encourage me to do the same. But as we grow older, our egos also grew and so did the distance. He tried to rekindle the friendship after a few years but then I was comfortable with how things were now than how they were then without any hard feelings. He got married last year and I didn't get an invite. I wish him well.

I met T in the most exciting times of a young man's life, the teens! This guy was an eternal optimist. He was super cool about everything. At a time where everyone was seriously making plans for career and life, this guy would sleep! That's because he would be tired cycling to college and back home! He always said that one shouldn't be too serious about life and how it would all fall into place with time! He is a doctor now :) I haven't met him in a long time. But I think I'm gonna see him soon.

The next one, S, was the least emotive among all my close friends. We had carved out an uncharacteristic friendship quite unknowingly. He opened up about things to me that he normally wouldn't with anyone, even under the extreme influence of booze! He was a very hard working person with his priorities cut out like the ten commandments. Seldom is one genuinely excited about a friend's success, but I really was when he got his first job. I knew how much it meant to him. But it all started sliding downwards soon after. He thought I squealed about something he had told me that was close to his heart. Things got nasty and that was it. We reconciled after a few years and we meet often now. But sometimes, when things change, they are never the same again.

Next, another S, is probably the sweetest guy I've ever met and he is the person I've been most rude to! His smile, naivety and weight is totally disarming. He is the kinda guy you don't have to sweat to be good friends with. He was very much there during my teen 'tragedy'. He is a great guy, with whom friendship is just waiting to happen. And even today, after almost a decade of knowing him, he still continues to amaze me with his goodness. We might not be as 'siamese' as we were doing college, but we still haven't lost the beat.

(to be continued..)

Fluttering Butterflies

2010-11-15T21:19:00.002+05:30

I'm just staring at something. Its been a while. I want to close my eyes. But scared. I wish there were some words. I take a step. And then two back. AmI sleepwalking back again? I feel numb. I try to wiggle my toes. I hope something happens. I don't want to be left in an emotional limbo.

I've forgotten a few things over the years. I want my whole life to flash in front of me once. Maybe I need a free fall. Maybe I just need to switch off the lights and stare into the soul. I hope its not too dark out there.

The Sound of Music

2010-08-25T10:21:00.001+05:30

A few days ago there was a band (Thermal & a Quarter) playing in our office. Listening to them was sheer joy. I lost trace of time. It kind of made me sit back and think about my passion for music over the years and how it’s been an integral part of my life. The passion hasn't changed, only the medium has.

I've been fascinated by music from quite a young age. But it really got to me in my teenage. I was influenced by my uncle who was a big music buff himself. At one point of time, his collection had reached at-least a 1000 tapes. So when he moved out, he passed his whole library to me. My joy knew no bounds. I remember sitting among the pile of tapes and trying to sort them out by genre. But it was all ROCK. So I sorted them out alphabetically and prepared a catalogue, which was borrowed by one of my friend, never to give it back. Grapevine has it that he used it to impress the fairer sex!

At one point of time, I used to save all the pocket money I could, to get a tape recorded, after planning the playlist meticulously. In the later years, as soon as my savings would reach Rs.125, I would rush to the old music store to buy the new bon jovi or the NSync album (Yeah, NSync indeed! In my defense they were a pretty popular boy band and I was really not that embarrassed to listen to boy bands then). I used to listen to all kinds of music ranging from ACDC to BoyZone. Janis Joplin to Madonna. Beethoven to Enigma.
My parents and friends would say that it was really frivolous of me to spend so much on music. But even then I did it, because it used to make me very happy.

As I sat there in office that day, listening to the fusion rock the band was playing, I started thinking how much their life is different from my life. The lead vocalist/guitarist told us about the places they've been around the world, the cultures they've experienced, the people they've met, the passion that they've witnessed. Wow, all that must have thought them a thing or two about life.
I looked at each of the guys and could see how much each was into whatever he was doing. Be it the guitarist, bassist or the drummer, I saw a great deal of joy on their faces. Their work was bringing them happiness and satisfaction.

As I walked back to my work, I wished, if only I could feel the same.

Looking Back

2010-07-19T15:44:00.002+05:30

I sat late in office that day. It was partly work, partly melancholy. Didn't have a clue of how I got into either of those. But whenever I stay late, I kinda slow down. The mind seems to be at ease. There is no pressure. And I kinda become nostalgic.

I felt like doing some introspection. I felt like looking back at the past 4/5 years, which arguably has been the most significant part of my life so far. So I opened up my blog archive and started reading chronologically. Blogging has been one of the best things I've done in the past few years!

The memories just flooded by. It was like traveling time and 'watching' them from the sidelines. The moments of joy, friendship, courage, frustration, love, loss, success, failures. They gave me goose-bumps. I was able to understand and find answers for some things. But there were some things which I failed to find answers for, even now.

A lot of things have changed and a lot haven't. A lot of people have come and gone. A few important ones have stayed. A lot of dreams have been shattered. A few of them have been realized. A lot of wrongs. A few rights. A lot of happiness. A few tears.

When I look back at all of it now, I wish a lot of things had turned out differently. Maybe given a chance to relive those moments, I would do things differently. I would take more risks. I would believe in myself more. I would be braver. I would express more. I would care more.
But then maybe I would just choose to relive it the same way.

Take My Breath Away

2010-05-16T04:19:00.002+05:30

Its said that "life is not the amount of breaths you take, it's the moments that take your breath away". And the funny thing is such moments are few. They can be counted on your fingers. But these few, give you enough joy to last a life time.

One of them is the day that we won a cricket match. It was the semis. My teammates played out of their skins to win it. It was an unbelievable feeling. Felt the true spirit of a team sport.

The first kiss. Sitting under the moonlight, not knowing the true sense of a kiss till then. When it happened, it felt magical. It was picture perfect.

l'l never forget the day I got my first job. More so since it came so unexpectedly. It made me realize that if you want something real bad, you'll get it. Its another thing that I somehow never got the same burning desire for anything since then.

The day I stood in the rain outside her house looking at the window. What made it memorable was that she eventually turned up at the window and came down to me.

On my 23rd birthday I wasn't with my roomies/friends. But they took quite some trouble and made sure that I got the cake at midnight.

Another day, they came to the airport just in time and did something special just because it would mean a lot to me. Just because it would make me happy.

True friends are the ones who really care for your happiness in-spite of getting nothing in return.

I got a call. She said I'm waiting at the entrance. I was on the fifth floor. I've never covered 5 floors on foot so fast. I just flew by the stairs. And there she was waiting with her back turned. I slowed as I neared her and called out her name, she turned around.

I was waiting for my baggage. She was waiting outside. I didn't want to wait for my baggage. Every second felt like a minute. Never ever have I wanted to run to some one so badly. I get my baggage and in the next moment I'm almost running through the airport lobby with the cart. I come out. The eyes are restless. Then I see her with tears held up in her eyes. I knew I was home.

All this and life is still nowhere near completion.

But I'm waiting..

Just Another Brick In The Wall

2010-05-02T20:22:00.003+05:30

6:40. Beep. Snooze. 6:48. Beep. Snooze. 6:56. Don't even dare to snooze. Flush. Shower. Clothes on the chair. Shiny shoes. iPod in left rear pocket. Bus stop. 7:25. Cab. Office. Check mails. Oh no! Oh ok! Blink. Hey sh! Breakfast. Bug. Code. Bug. Blink. Coffee. TOI. Blah Blah! Back to desk. Yes boss. What!? OK :( Code. Bug. Doh! Blink. Lunch. His chick. Her Guy. Tattoo girl. Awwww! Stroll. Blah! ZZZZZ. Code. Doh! Blink. Outside. Tea. Fag. Blah Blah! Code. Update. 5:00. Sneak out. Cab. Blah Blah! ZZZZ. 6:30. Home. TV. Zoom. Hurman. Chinese model. Garbage. Black bag. Clean house. TV. IPL. Dine. Just wheat. Patience. Threshold. Internet. Facebook. Boring. Set clothes. Shine shoes. Midnight. Silence. Introspection. Know what I don't want. Don't know what I want. Frustrating. Life. Mundane. Insignificant. Average Joe. A life less ordinary.

Tired Cliches

2010-04-25T22:22:00.002+05:30

Cliches are all over the place. As irritating as I find the existing ones, a new one is born everyday. Like IPL owners telling their players to just go out on the field and enjoy. Yah right! Don't bother winning matches! Anyways, they seem to be enjoying off the field too ;)

The one that I hate the most is "It rocks". Sachin rocks. SRK rocks. Rock rocks. This is probably the most abused word for some time now. I think the only thing that should "rock" is geology ;)

The next one is firang managers from onshore lauding the offshore team when they come over. "We can't express what great work you guys have been doing" is the line. They keep saying it till it starts sounding rhetoric. I so want to tell them to keep their invaluable words of praise with them and show us some money.

This is one has to be the most famous cliches in cricket commentary, made famous by Ravi Shastri. Anything hit flat and hard has to be described as "Woah! That went like a tracer bullet". ugh! I've heard it for almost 2 decades now.

When Tom Cruise said "You complete me" in Jerry Maguire, it was one of those "Awwwww!" lines. But it sounds so corny now. This is what over and inappropriate usage can do to a touchy line.

Politicians have been clicheing (sic) like forever now. "I'll bring change. Power. Water. Jobs. All you need". Its such a trite now that nobody even bothers to tell them so.

All said and done its just impossible to live without them I think. After all "History repeats itself"!

Anywhere But Here

2010-04-19T23:44:00.003+05:30

Forrest Gump's momma said ""Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get." She might have well been correct.

Sometimes you do not get what you wish for and sometimes you get things you didn't even wish for. And sometimes we are left in the lurch thinking whether you would ever get it or not.

Not everything we wish for can be rationalized. Sometimes we wish for things without any reasoning to it. They are driven by a strange/crazy crave within us. You look deep down inside, but fail to find any answers.

Its not easy to cope with what you get unexpectedly and what you did not get expectedly. You feel like getting outta there. Sometimes you just sit and wish for those magic shoes that would take you anywhere but here.

Love Works In Mysterious Ways

2010-03-22T15:24:00.004+05:30

What trees feel at the first smell of rainy clouds..
What a mother feels looking at her child just after birth..
What a sister feels when her borther says sorry for his mistake for which their mom dad thought she was responsible..
What a girl feels when she is walking with her guy on a cold winter night and he holds her hand..
What a father feels when his son hugs him and says i love u dad..
What a friend feels when after a huge quarrel his friend sms's "i need u yaar!"..
What a grandparent feels when his grandson remembers his birthday and gets a cake to celebrate..
What two strangers feel who have just had a great conversation in years leaving with a feeling they might not see each other ever again..
Words cannot define all these but its only love that connects us all..

Courtesy: A lovely SMS!

SAD

2010-03-17T00:48:00.004+05:30

Sometimes we are sad. Sometimes for no reason. Sometimes for too many reasons. Sometimes we try to ignore and let it through. Sometimes we do multiple 360 degree flips on the bed and still can't let it through.

Its one of those nights.

Some are sad of their poverty. Some are sad of their helplessness. Some are sad that they got too many things without trying. Some are sad because they miss someone. Some are sad by guilt. Some are sad for being incapable of love. Some are sad of losing hair. Some are sad of gaining weight. Some are sad of not finding a suitable girl. Some are sad of their failures. Some are sad for inflicting pain on others. Some are sad of the distance. Some are sad because of their job. Some are sad that they can't find a job. And some, well, are just sad.

The truth is everyone gets sad. You're not alone. When we're sad, the world seems dark and unfriendly. We feel like we have nothing to look forward to. The hurt deep inside crushes our usually good mood.

How do you beat that?

Some just feel like being alone for a little while. Some might want someone to comfort them or just keep them company while they get through the feeling. I read somewhere that most of the times it feels like it will last forever, but usually it doesn't. Its gone once you wake up in the morning.

I hope its one of those.

The Pied Piper

2010-02-24T12:45:00.004+05:30

Once in a while there comes along some one, who sort of adds color and enriches your life with their infectious gregarious personality.

When I joined the new company, things looked very different from the previous one. Teammates seemed more professional and more punctual. The managers were more hands on and more approachable. But what was missing was some fun. The bonding, the camaraderie and all that makes yout time in office a li’l enjoyable. The place was like a graveyard. They would come in and start working right away. They would think long before talking to each other. There was a deafening silence. Looked like some one was running a tight ship around. All in all it was like a dead-pan.

Then, along came Rusty. First some etymology about the name. Rusty is christened for someone who has had a bad hair day at VLCC. It’s so bad that it always looks like there is some dust settled on the head. It looks so natural (i.e. the “dust”) that you’ll think that some dusting would help. Later as the "dust" wears out a li'l, the hair looks to have caught some rust. Well, eventually the rust goes away but not the name.

It didn’t take him too long to shake up the uptight people. I guess even they were looking for an outage. He had a kind of black humor in his frolics. The best part was he didn’t think twice about making fun of himself. He always would have an anecdote or two about his goof ups which would have us in splits.

From the “free” beer that he went to have in the bud plant, to the time a cop held a gun at point blank. From the “extra small” photocopy of his PAN card to the time he sent his friend’s resignation without his knowledge. From the way he rescued my bed from simba’s omlette to the way he rescued himself from the ferocious bong girl. From the way he would say “Gucci” to all the girls’ names he just could not get right. From the blunder of the blue car to the faux pas of “stealing” the waiter’s tip. There is just no end to this!

But jokes aside. He was a guy with a big heart. He had all his morals/values in place. There was no pretence or malice in his actions. He was in a way, very self-righteous. He would go to any extent to help people. He was a very hard working and quite brilliant at it. He is every manager’s dream come true.

He quit last week. In his farewell speech, he spoke very passionately about work and life in general, in his characteristic humor for a few minutes. He spoke straight from the heart. Then I think he got a li’l overwhelmed with the situation and stopped. When he was leaving, people just flocked from all the teams around to wish him well. And my entire team just walked with him voluntarily till his car. I’ve never seen this happen with anyone before. That’s the kind of influence he had on all of us. The void wouldn’t go unnoticed.

Crossing The Line

2010-02-17T08:29:00.006+05:30

It was one of the most awkward situations I've ever been in. He could not believe what had happened. Neither could anyone in that room. There was a deafening silence. Nobody moved an inch for a few seconds, which seemed to last forever. He was shocked. He didn't know how to react to it. In fact, for starters, he didn't even sense the gravity of it. It took him a moment to get a stock of what had hit him. But we should have seen it coming. I did sense the tone. But should have done better to restrain. The other also was equally perplexed. He just couldn't believe the way he had reacted. Probably he was more hurt of the two, cause he has never done it before. And when he did it, it was on one of his best friends and a person who deserved it the least.

The most difficult part as an observer in such situations is when you have to pick a side. Not that you have to. But the mind sorta goes into a moral quandary. Who crossed the line?

If you ask me, neither did. Or maybe both. You may sit for long and dissect the situation and look for answers, but you'll never find an easy one. That's friendship.
When you are in a long friendship, things are taken for granted. You don't draw lines. Even if you draw one, over the years, it blurs. But when some unexpected incidents happen, the line thickens.
And after that things will never be the same again. You might try like mad to heal it, but just doesn't work. You might still meet and talk, but you'll feel that there is a level of discomfort. Its difficult to see eye to eye. There is something, but that just can't be discussed. You want to, but you just can't. You so wish that it had never happened.

This is one of the tragedies of a great friendship. One minute you have everything and in the next, its all gone. There is no animosity. They still wish each other good things. But that thing that makes a friendship 'great' is lost in a whisker.

As far I see it, earnestly trying not to be schmaltzy, for what its worth, its really not fair to lose it all for something that happened in a moment of madness.

The Curious Case Of The Guy In The Other Room

2010-02-08T15:41:00.002+05:30

A month ago. He would wake up at 1010. Not for the call of duty. It was for the call of an empty stomach. Get ready by 11. Get to office in 10 mins. Go and sit in the comfort zone. Mobilize people to watch a movie. Kill time till its time to take out the expensive racquet. Sweat it out on the wooden court and zoom home back in time to eat the 3 chapatis and watch that hideous guy on the 'color'ful channel. And follow it up with watching that fat english guy who is going around the country witnessing guys being hit repeatedly in the crotch or something weird like that. Amidst all this he is texting at a breakneck speed. He can put a 300wpm steno to shame. His day would fold at 2AM.

Now. He wakes up early enough to give me a run to the bathroom. This time it’s the call of duty. His ride to office isn't the do paiyyan anymore. Nor is it 10 mins. There is no comfort zone, except for the "beach" or something, besides which, he'll never have the pleasure of sitting. The racquet adorns his room's wall. Permanently. So I guess the only sweat he breaks now is in the sprint for the bus. He comes home at almost the turn of the new day. The eyes are bloodshot. All that he is interested now, is his sleep.

His life seems to have gone topsy-turvy. He didn't see this coming. Nor did he see some thing in his personal life, (has always been so very discreet about this) which seems to have reached the crux. He had got a beard going for a while. Maybe he doesn't want to be all that discreet. Yesterday he comes home around midnight, goes straight to the sink, foams his beard and gets rid of it. But there are more important things that he doesn't seem to be able to get rid off. There are a lot of things buried under the jovial carefree attitude. He seems to be disappointed with a lot of people in his life. But he doesn't seem to be blaming them. He looks helpless. His heart is in the right place. But there seem to be many external forces that are trying to displace it. He seems to be heeding to them.
I just hope he makes it out of all this unscathed.

Waiting For My Real Life To Begin

2010-01-19T14:59:00.007+05:30

It had been a long time since I had heard a song to relate to or found interesting to interpret, until I heard, 'Waiting for my real life to begin' by Colin Hay, on the way to office. This song kicked up a lot of images in my head and started playing them frame by frame. I could relate to the song so well that I could attach each line in the song with a frame in my head. I was so into the song that it seemed like all this was happening in the sub-conscious mind, until the suspension less office "RV" threw me high enough to come to consciousness.

Any minute now, my ship is coming in
I'll keep checking the horizon
I'll stand on the bow, feel the waves come crashing
Come crashing down, down, down, on me

And you say, be still my love
Open up your heart
Let the light shine in
But don't you understand
I already have a plan
I'm waiting for my real life to begin

When I awoke today, suddenly nothing happened
But in my dreams, I slew the dragon
And down this beaten path, and up this cobbled lane
I'm walking in my old footsteps, once again
And you say, just be here now
Forget about the past, your mask is wearing thin
Let me throw one more dice
I know that I can win
I'm waiting for my real life to begin

Any minute now, my ship is coming in
I'll keep checking the horizon
And I'll check my machine, there's sure to be that call
It's gonna happen soon, soon, soon
It's just that times are lean

And you say, be still my love
Open up your heart, let the light shine in
Don't you understand
I already have a plan
I'm waiting for my real life to begin

At the outset, the man (the main character) seems restless ("Suddenly nothing happened”,” Any minute now”,” check my machine"). But if you look at it closely it is the anticipation, the ambition that has come out by looking forward to the adventures that lie ahead in his new life. He is ready to take one more chance (Let me throw one more dice) for all that its worth for, because he is sure (I know that I can win) this time. He reassures her (the second character) to keep the faith in him (I already have a plan).
The part that I loved the most was:

When I awoke today, suddenly nothing happened
But in my dreams, I slew the dragon
And down this beaten path, and up this cobbled lane
I'm walking in my old footsteps, once again
And you say, just be here now

Life continues on, and our dreams end up unfulfilled; but that doesn't mean the dreams can't exist over and over again. It is the second character that says - its okay, don't worry so much about it, we can still make it happen.

The Big Apple

2009-11-23T04:45:00.002+05:30

When I set off from India, visiting new york city was at the top of my agenda. I've always being fascinated by what I heard and seen of this city. So after a lot of aborted plans due to bad weather, work and "evil" forces, I finally made it there.

Got off early from work on friday and drove straight to Boston, picked up a couple of friends and set off to the capital of the world, after running a couple of errands. The fact that we were going to stay in downtown Manhattan came as an icing on the cake, courtesy, my friend's smart sibling, who happens to work in wall street.

After 3+ hours of driving, around midnight, we entered NYC, where my eyes were thrown wide open to the breathtaking steel skyline of Manhattan. It was the one of the most beautiful things I had ever seen. But the best was yet to come.

The pace of the city was terrific. Even at 2AM the roads were filled with cars, with people driving in a hurry. One could sense the state of urgency in everything they were doing. It was truly like the "city that never sleeps".

The following day we were treated to a terrible weather. It kept raining in intervals dampening our spirits. a li'l. It took us till late in the afternoon to get out. The first stop was the wall street due to its proximity. The place was abuzz with a lot of tourists. It was lined with skyscrapers on either side, with the landmark buildings being the NYSE and the Trump building. But the main attraction was the Charging Bull, the iconic sculpture, which epitomizes the market prosperity. It was funny and shocking to find tourists grabbing the Bull's balls. I was told abut a myth that doing so, helps your cash flow it seems. If only! And no, I didn't touch anything! But in retrospection, maybe I should have.

The next stop was the Brooklyn bridge, the integral part of the NY skyline. This connects the NY boroughs, Manhattan and Brooklyn. We walked over the pathway on the bridge which spans a little over a mile. And on our way back it was dusk, making everything look so beautiful. And from there we took the subway and went to the Times Square. Its the stop to make for anyone visiting NYC.

As we came up from the subway, the sight I saw will remain fresh in my mind for a long time. I felt like walking through the wardrobe into Narnia! The lights, the energy, the huge animated billboards was just spectacular. It was truly fantastical.

I could see people from different ethnicities, cultures and walks of life. It was like the confluence of the people of the world. No wonder its sometimes referred to as the "Crossroads of the World". It was a dream come true!

After walking a round a while we went to Hard Rock Cafe, had a couple of drinks and an argument with a few drunk locals. It was fun ;)

The next day, although not very keen, we went to the Liberty island which has the statute of liberty. Considering that more than 3 million people visit this each year, we didn't want to go back and say that we went to NY, but didn't see the statue. But it was worth the visit. Its truly a wonderful piece of monument, where the woman wearing a stola, with a torch in her hand, breaking the shackles is surging ahead. Its a wholesome personification of freedom.

After getting back from the island we were treated to an awesome show of street dancing by a group of afros at the battery park. They were very acrobatic too. It was simply mind blowing.

After roaming a round a while and some shopping we got back to the apartment in the evening, waiting for a friend to head back home.

In between I went up to the roof deck. And what I saw there will probably be the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. The whole city was glowing. The skyscrapers were lit. The bridges were lit. The water underneath the bridge sparkled. I could see the city stretch far and long. The light from the headlight of the cars seemed to flowing like water. And I was all alone. It was like an unseen dream come true. But for some reason it didn't fell like complete.

However, It was the prefect view to say goodbye to the city.

Wet Wednesday

2009-10-08T09:47:00.004+05:30

The alarm kept ringing and I kept snoozing. Is it already time to be up? The light was too dim but the time was all right. When I pulled the blinders it didn't get any bright either. It was dark, hazy and raining. I was late for work. Didn't understand whether to blame the overcast conditions, the blinders or the last night's draught.

Hit the shower. Fixed my breakfast. And by the time I was halfway through the cereals I was relaxed. I was gonna be late anyways. The car was parked at a distance. I should have bought that flowery umbrella in the mall yesterday. But my ego wouldn't let me. Perhaps it wouldn't let me get wet either. Made a quick sprint to the car. Fastened the seat belts and told myself that I've got to stick to the right side throughout the day.

After a couple of turns I entered the freeway. There is a strange sound that you get when drive on freeways. Its just too difficult to drive with the windows pulled down. Not that I would. The rains had got heavier and the dark skies spelt doomsday.

As I made it to one of the main lanes I tuned into a radio station. They were playing the LZ classic 'Stairway to Heaven'. And suddenly I started feeling good about the whole rain doomsday combo. The dry leaves that were deposited under the windshield started taking off one by one, traveling along the windshield and flying away on top of the car as my foot got heavy on the pedal. It was like they were taking turns. It was harmonious.

Meanwhile there were these heavy trailers that were whizzing past me. As they passed they kicked up so much water from the road and deposited it on my windshield. It was like going through the tunnel at a car wash. But I simple love the sight of these huge long trailers.

On my way to office I get off the freeway to take a short cut which is like totally picturesque. The roads are narrow and the limit is 40. The road has beautiful country homes, a beautiful placid lake and a lot of trees on either side. A good place to take the fall foliage report.

And finally I enter the last phase. A 2 mile winding road inside the office campus to to the garage. The road, with all its curves and people trying to stick to their lane and with the wet roads, gives the quintessential adrenalin rush to go the desk with some energy. I had to park in the open roof garage and run in the rain to do the 8 hour drill of laughing at terrible jokes, nodding comprehensively at the things I don't comprehend, hearing fake accents and pretending that I love my job. hmph!

Culturally Shocked!

2009-10-06T11:43:00.003+05:30

The first steps that you take in an alien nation is always an interesting one. No matter what people have told you what to expect, experiencing it, is startling nevertheless.

It all started with the breathtaking view of the country side of NE which is as beautiful as it gets anywhere in fall i guess. Then all the rhetoric that I ever had heard began to play. Its so clean everywhere. The roads don't bump. Where are all the speed breakers? Total strangers greeting each other. And so on.

This place is like a village with all the things considered luxurious back home. I've never seen so many trees on the roadside ever before. Given an option I would have wanted to stay in a metro. But the city lights ain't far either.

The office is in a sprawling campus of 550 acres. Its more like a tree farm. Recently, an employee went for a walk in the campus's woods after lunch, only to be lost in the farm. 911 had to be dialed to rescue him!

This country likes everything big. From burgers to cars. From roads to malls. And it likes things fast. From food to sports. From cars to work. And they like it different. They call a sport football, but barely use their foot. They play world series without letting the rest of the world know about it. They prefer to be right than left when driving. They ask for cola with a lot of ice while wearing jackets and sweatshirts.

They have a clear demarcation between their person and professional lives. I've barely seen anyone work overtime. They value an animal's life as much as they value a human life. On weekends you see a lot of people setting out with their boats tagged to their car or canoes or bikes mounted on the car. They head out to a ball game very passionately with their team's shirts and caps to the stadias or the sports bars. They make mondays interesting by hosting MNL (monday night live) games. They swear by customer satisfaction. They took my friend's PS3 back after a month of its purchase because he said he doesn't like its design!

All in all, you just can't stop being amazed looking at this country.

A Ticket To Ride

2009-09-01T16:33:00.004+05:30

They were all lined up outside the shrine. I went and joined it. There were so many cutting across an entire age spectrum. From toddlers to octogenarians. If they were made to stand in an ascending order of their ages you can teach that toddler counting to a hundred!
The shrine is located in a place where hot winds blow with just a couple of hours into the sunrise. And this obviously doesn't help the already tense faces. I could see a spot of bother even on the li'l baby in front of me. The wannabe students looked very tense. They had to prove that they were going there only for academic purposes (Ah!). The corporate boys and girls were as usual nattily dressed, looked boring and pretty composed. The old timers had come meticulously dressed and with all the necessary papers neatly filed up in a folder and with the spirit of a teenager.

After total frisking we were let inside. Inside our credentials were frisked. They take "xerox" of different combinations of your fingers. Sometimes its just the middle fella indicated by the priest with careful gesturing as not to hurt any sentiments. But little do they know that the disciples would do or take just about anythng for a ticket to el dorado.
When frisking my credentials I'm told that my photograph can't be older than 6 months! You should have told me before! Atleast in fine print somewhere! But then you are not supposed to question them. I just kept staring at the "old" photograph trying to figure out the changes in my facial anatomy in 6 months. I was shocked to find the changes or rather the lack of it!
I was not the only one looking "radically different" from the photo. There was this one month old baby also. Even better there was this really ol' woman who could barely walk or see with no photos at all! Old and wise! I hope when she does use the "ticket" she wont go too far!
However the priests were kind enough to provide us with on-the-spot pictures. The only problem was that the device to do that was broke. So we were presented with a life time oppurtunity to sun bathe in the shrine! Meanwhile the father of the one month ol' baby was given the task of waking up the baby cause its eyes have to be opene when its clicked. I have to say that he resorted to some violent techniques once his lame ways were not working. Amnesty International wasn't around. It was safe.

After the dehydrated face was clicked, I awaited for my turn with the priests. Infront of me the powder puffed lady had a a tough time convincing the priest her motive. She failed miserably. The next guy came up even more needy. He began promulgating his "awesomeness" even before greeting the priest. She was naturally not impressed. I dont think he got the ticket either.
Next up was some one from the same fraternity as mine. He was eloquent with the answers. When his ticket was confirmed he started salivating and thanking the priests profusely. If it wasn't for the barrier he would have been warming their feet in a jiffy. Subservience at its characteristic best!
The lad in front of me had to take a barrage of questions since he was from a company lesser mortal. At one point of time it looked like he was defending his innocence. If the defending had continued for some more time he might have well been read the miranda law. And finally yours truly walked up and got his ticket issued before one could wink twice. Maybe working for one of the trusted institutions of uncle sam does help.
The only problem was that my old ticket was cut in half.

October Sky

2009-08-25T14:24:00.002+05:30

How often do you watch a movie and get a sense of true exhilaration? Maybe one in a hundred! My one in hundred was ‘October Sky’. It so full of spirit and letter-perfect filmmaking that I defy anyone to watch this movie without getting a tingle in his or her heart. Thrilling in the best sense of the word, traditional without being corny and with a script, photography and symbolism that could be the basis for any film maker wanting to make a classic.

A must watch for all those who believe in the triumph of true human spirit against all odds.

Water Under The Bridge

2009-06-21T02:28:00.003+05:30

It was pretty mean. Maybe I should not have said that.

I read somewhere that at any given moment, the brain has 14 billion neurons firing at a speed of 450 miles per hour. We don’t have control over most of them. When we get a chill... goose bumps. When we get excited... adrenaline. When we get angry… expletives. The body naturally follows its impulses, which I think is part of what makes it so hard for us to control. Of course, sometimes we have impulses we would rather not control, that we later wish we had.

The body is actually a slave to its impulses. But the thing that makes us human is what we can control. After the storm, after the rush, after the heat of the moment has passed, we can cool off and clean up the messes we made. We can try to let go of what was. Cause it’s being said already. Cause it’s being done already.
But then…

10 Ways to Avoid Mucking Up the World Any Worse Than It Already Is

2009-05-26T10:06:00.000+05:30

Invariably the commencement and graduation speeches are packed with “true” life experiences of the speaker or moldering quotes of great Greek philosophers. And once in a while there is a speech which breaks the monotony or the mold and makes the talk truly memorable for the graduates as the day itself.
There is the one by Steve Jobs delivered at Stanford where he urged the students to think different and to “Stay hungry, Stay foolish”. And the humorous one by the English comic Baron Cohen a.k.a Ali G at Harvard in his unique cockney slang. The great three word speech by Winston Churchill at Harrow school. And even the famous “wear sunscreen” speech at MIT that actually never happened.
But one of the very interesting ones that I came across was the one by the famous American columnist and political satirist, Russell Baker at Connecticut College.
Read the complete address below:

"In a sensible world I would now congratulate the Class of 1995 and sit down without further comment. I am sure the Class of 1995 wishes I would do so. Unfortunately for the Class of 1995 we do not live in a sensible world.
"We live in a world far more slavish in its obedience to ancient custom than we like to admit. And ancient commencement-day custom demands that somebody stand up here and harangue the poor graduates until they beg for mercy. The ancient rule has been: make them suffer. I still remember the agony of my own graduation at The John Hopkins University.
"They had imported some heat from the Sahara Desert especially for the occasion, and the commencement orator spoke for two and a half days. That was in 1947.
"Luckily, the forces of mercy have made big gains since then. The authorities of Connecticut College have suggested that for me to speak longer than 20 minutes would be regarded as cruel and inhuman punishment and that if I go as long as 30 minutes several strong men will mount this platform and forcibly remove me. But if I can finish in 15 minutes - 15 minutes! - they will let me stay for lunch. They know their man, ladies and gentleman. When I smell a free lunch, I go for it.
"So if I can do this right, you'll see the back of me before we get to minute 16. This will not be easy. Condensing a graduation speech into 15 minutes is like trying to squeeze a Wagnerian opera into a telephone booth. To do it I had to strip away all the frills. This means you don't even get any warm-up jokes. So those of you who came just for the jokes might as well leave now.
"All right, let's plunge right ahead into the dull part. That's the part where the commencement speaker tells the graduates to go forth into the world, then gives advice on what to do when they get out there. This is a ridiculous waste of time. The graduates never take the advice, as I have learned from long experience. The best advice I can give anybody about going out into the world is this: Don't do it. I have been out there. It is a mess.
"I have been giving graduates this advice ever since 1967 when I spoke to a batch of them over at Bennington. That was 28 years ago. Some of your parent were probably graduating there that day and went on to ignore my advice.
"Thanks to the genius of my generation, I told them, it was a pretty good world out there - they went forth into it, they would mess it up. So I urged them not to go.
"I might as well have been shouting down a rain barrel. They didn't listen. They went forth anyhow. And look what happened. Within a year Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy were murdered. Then Nixon took us all to The Watergate. Draft riots. Defeat in Vietnam. John Lennon killed. Ronald Reagan and his trillion-dollar deficit.
"Over the years I spoke to many graduating classes, always pleading with them: Whatever you do, do not go forth.
"Nobody listened. They kept right on going forth anyhow. And look what we have today: Newt Gingrich and Bill Clinton.
"So I will not waste my breath today pleading with you not to go forth. Instead I limit myself to a simple plea: When you get out there in the world try not to make it any worse than it already is. I thought it might help to give you a list of the hundred most important things you can do to avoid making the world any worse. Since I'm shooting for 15 minutes, however, there is no time to give you all 100. You will have to make do with 10. Short as the public attention span is these days, nobody could remember 100 anyhow. Even 10 may be asking too much.
"You remember the old joke about how television news would have reported the story of the Ten Commandments: 'God today issued 10 commandments, three of which are...'
"He is my list: 10 things to help you avoid making the world worse than it already is:
"One: Bend down once in a while and smell a flower.
"Two: Don't go around in clothes that talk. There is already too much talk in the world. We've got so many talking people there's hardly anybody left to listen. With radio and television and telephones we've got talking furniture. With bumper stickers we've got talking cars. Talking clothes just add to the uproar. If you simply cannot resist being an incompetent klutz, don't boast about it by wearing a tee shirt that says 'underachiever and proud of it.' Being dumb is not the worst thing in the world, but letting your clothes shout it out loud depresses the neighbors and embarrasses your parents.
"Point three follows from point two, and it's this: Listen once in a while. It's amazing what you can hear. On a hot summer day in the country you can hear the corn growing, the crack of a tin roof buckling under the power of the sun. In a real old-fashioned parlor silence so deep you can hear the dust settling on the velveteen settee, you might hear the footsteps of something sinister gaining on you, or a heart-stoppingly beautiful phrase from Mozart you haven't heard since childhood, or the voice of somebody - now gone - whom you loved. Or sometime when you're talking up a storm so brilliant, so charming that you can hardly believe how wonderful you are, pause just a moment and listen to yourself. It's good for the soul to hear yourself as others hear you, and next time maybe, just maybe, you will not talk so much, so loudly, so brilliantly, so charmingly, so utterly shamefully foolishly.
"Point four: Sleep in the nude. In an age when people don't even get dressed to go to the theater anymore, it's silly getting dressed up to go to bed. What's more, now that you can no longer smoke, drink gin or eat bacon and eggs without somebody trying to make you feel ashamed of yourself, sleeping in the nude is one deliciously sinful pleasure you can commit without being caught by the Puritan police squads that patrol the nation.
"Point five: Turn off the TV once or twice a month and pick up a book. It will ease your blood pressure. It might even wake up your mind, but if it puts you to sleep you're still a winner. Better to sleep than have to watch that endless parade of body bags the local news channel marches through your parlor.
"Six: don't take your gun to town. Don't even leave it home unless you lock all your bullets in a safe deposit box in a faraway bank. The surest way to get shot is not to drop by the nearest convenience store for a bottle of milk at midnight, but to keep a loaded pistol in you own house. What about your constitutional right to bear arms, you say. I would simply point out that you don't have to exercise a constitutional right just because you have it. You have the constitutional right to run for president of the United States, abut most people have too much sense to insist on exercising it.
"Seven: learn to fear the automobile. It is not the trillion-dollar deficit that will finally destroy America. It is the automobile. Congressional studies of future highway needs are terrifying. A typical projection shows that when your generation is middle-aged, Interstate 95 between Miami and Fort Lauderdale will have to be 22 lanes wide to avert total paralysis of south Florida. Imagine an entire country covered with asphalt. My grandfather's generation shot horses. Yours had better learn to shoot automobiles.
"Eight: Have some children. Children add texture to your life. They will save you from turning into old fogies before you're middle-aged. They will teach you humility. When old age overtakes you, as it inevitably will I'm sorry to say, having a few children will provide you with people who will feel guilty when they're accused of being ungrateful for all you've done for them. It's almost impossible nowadays to find anybody who will feel guilty about anything, including mass murder. When you reach the golden years, your best bet is children, the ingrates.
"Nine: Get married. I know you don't want to hear this, but getting married will give you a lot more satisfaction in the long run than your BMW. It provides a standard set of parent for your children and gives you that second income you will need when it's time to send those children to Connecticut College. What's more, without marriage you will have practically no material at all to work with when you decide to write a book or hire a psychiatrist.
"When you get married, whatever you do, do not ask a lawyer to draw up a marriage contract spelling out how your lives will be divvied up when you get divorced. It's hard enough making a marriage work without having a blueprint for its destruction drawn up before you go to the altar. Speaking of lawyers brings me to point nine and a half, which is: Avoid lawyers unless you have nothing to do with the rest of your life but kill time.
"And finally, point 10: smile. You're one of the luckiest people in the world. You're living in America. Enjoy it. I feel obliged to give you this banal advice because, although I've lived through the Great Depression, World War II, terrible wars in Korea and Vietnam, and half a century of cold war, I have never seen a time when there were so many Americans so angry or so mean-spirited or so sour about the country as there are today.
"Anger has become the national habit. You see it on the sullen faces of fashion models scowling out of magazines. it pours out of the radio. Washington television hams snarl and shout at each other on television. Ordinary people abuse politicians and their wives with shockingly coarse insults. Rudeness has become an acceptable way of announcing you are sick and tired of it all and are not going to take it anymore. Vile speech is justified on the same ground and is inescapable.
"America is angry at Washington, angry at the press, angry at immigrants, angry at television, angry at traffic, angry at people who are well off and angry at people who are poor, angry at blacks and angry at whites. The old are angry at the young, the young angry at the old. Suburbs are angry at the cities, cities are angry at the suburbs. Rustic America is angry at both whenever urban and suburban invaders threaten the rustic sense of having escaped from God's angry land. A complete catalog of the varieties of bile poisoning the American soul would fill a library. The question is: why? Why has anger become the common response to the inevitable ups and down of nation life? The question is baffling not just because the American habit even in the worst of times has traditionally been mindless optimism, but also because there is so little for Americans to be angry about nowadays. We are the planet's undisputed super power. For the first time in 60 years we enjoy something very much like real peace. We are by all odds the wealthiest nation on earth, though admittedly our vast treasure is not evenly shared.
"Forgive me the geezer's sin of talking about "the bad old days," but the country is still full of people who remember when 35 dollars a week was considered a living wage for a whole family. People whine about being overtaxed, yet in the 1950s the top income-tax rate was 91 percent, universal military service was the law of the land, and racial segregation was legally enforced in large parts of the country.
"So what explains the fury and dyspepsia? I suspect it's the famous American ignorance of history. People who know nothing of even the most recent past are easily gulled by slick operators who prosper by exploiting the ignorant. Among these rascals are our politicians. Politicians flourish by sowing discontent. They triumph by churning discontent into anger. Press, television and radio also have a big financial stake in keeping the county boiling mad.
"Good news, as you know, does not sell papers or keep millions glued to radios and TV screens.
"So when you get out there in the world, ladies and gentlemen, you're going to find yourself surrounded by shouting, red-in-the-face, stomping-mad politicians, radio yakmeisters and, yes sad to say, newspaper columnists, telling you 'you never had it so bad' and otherwise trying to spoil your day.
"When they come at you with that , ladies and gentlemen, give them a wink and a smile and a good view of your departing back. And as you stroll away, bend down to smell a flower.
"Now it seems I have run past the 15-minute limit and will have to buy my own lunch. That's life Class of 1995. No free lunch.
"My sermon is done."

Rain Down On Me

2009-04-17T23:58:00.000+05:30

The city got its first bit of serious rains of the year tonight. The locals have been wanting this more than the elections or the IPL. With the mercury ever so rising to levels never observed in almost half a century, the showers came as a much needed respite.

The most welcome rains are those that break the stinky summer sweat. It truly is one of those small things that bring great joy.
Here, when it rains, it pours. And when it pours, it takes the electricity with it. And this annoys the oldies at my house cause they can't see another of their "favorite" child sing or the evil MIL plotting something against her DIL.
But I think being "powerless" takes the attention away from the mundane things of our lives and it gets us to notice the wonder of the rains.

The experience of the tonight's rain was simply sublime.
The smell before the rains reminds me of the summer vacations of the childhood. As the rain starts to fall perpendicularly to the ground the tempo of the sound increases. This drowns out the noise of the vehicles. There is not a hint of wind. The motionless tree looks like a work of art with the aurora and the rain in its background. The rain drops weigh down the floating dust particles and nails them to the ground. I stand at the window as drops of rain ricochet from the leaves of the plants and onto my face. I just close my eyes. I feel it giving me a complete wash down and draining all the jadedness.
I feel revitalized.

A Clockwork Orange, Redux

2009-04-08T17:48:00.000+05:30

I just couldn't help writing after watching this wonderful movie from the American indie genre, Donnie Darko. The eponymous protagonist played brilliantly by Jake Gyllenhal represents all that infests the tortured head of a particular sullen boy, a schizophrenic teenager flailing and failing to find relief amid the ''normal'' crisis of adolescence. He is very reminiscent of JD Salinger's cynical anti-hero Holden Caulfield. And there is this song “Mad World” at the climax which just blows you away with its beautiful lyrics. It almost sounded like a revisit to the mood of one of my previous posts. You should probably hear this song before you continue reading to make any sense of what I'm interpreting of the song. Here is the link to the song (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MyMOi4LEr4)

I think this is the strange reality of the world we live in. You feel so isolated from the people who could be your closest friends. But you could connect to the expressionless faces of people whom you don’t know and who don’t care whether you're ok because they're worn out. They are too wrapped up in their own problems to recognize that anyone else maybe struggling to keep going.
You feel so low and so lonely that only your dreams reflect how you truly feel. And the only dreams that are any good are the ones in which you are dying. In fact you have never had better dreams because these dreams show the true you. But at the same time you want someone to realize that you are not ok and you want help but you just don’t know how to ask for help because it is so hard and that makes you feel so alone in this mad world.

All children should feel happy on their birthday but it isn’t so. When you go to school it is like everywhere else. It’s like you are invisible. No one sees what’s wrong. They "look right through me” and this hurts so bad that they don’t see you, like you and your feelings don’t matter at all.
And once again you mean nothing. It’s so funny, in a way ironic even that the dreams in which you’re dying are the best you've ever had and the thought that your life has gotten this bad is saddening. This mad world can be so painful.

I listen to this song and to me it describes how it feels when you are depressed. It’s a great song and if you took the time to listen, you would know a little of what it feels like. It sucks.

Watercooler Moment

2009-03-30T13:50:00.000+05:30

A couple of faces which looked like just out of college walked to the cooler where I was filling up. They were waiting behind me for their turn.
One told the other "Dude, I was busy all weekend arranging stuff for my grampa's 80th birthday. I still haven't bought a present for him. Any suggestions?"
The other nonchalantly says “Dude, get a coffin”.
I've never laughed so hard with strangers before!

Too Much

2009-03-23T14:26:00.000+05:30

When you were a Kid, it was mom’s handmade sweets. You stole it, hid it from your parents and siblings and binged on it until your stomach gave in and you fell sick. In college it was the heady combo of youth, booze and irresponsibility. Now as an adult, you take as much of the good as you can get … because it doesn’t come around nearly as often as it should or as you would want. Cause good things aren’t always what they seem. Too much of anything, even the sublime is not a good thing.
How do you know how much is too much? Too much, too soon. Too much information. Too much fun. Too much love. Too much to ask. Too much to give. Too much pain. And when is it all just too much to bear?

The fantasy is simple. Pleasure is good, and twice as much pleasure is better. That pain is bad, and no pain is better. But the reality is different. The reality is that pain is there to tell us something, and there's only so much pleasure we can take without getting a stomach ache. And maybe that's okay. Maybe some fantasies are only supposed to be lived in our dreams where too much is just too good.

A Clockwork Orange

2009-03-17T11:07:00.000+05:30

I travel 25kms north and back south everyday. I take the company’s generously given transport service (Did someone say that there are no free lunches?). Considering my time of travel and also the traffic, I do spend a lot of time commuting. Along the way, unless one is sleepy, there are a lot of things people do to kill time. Talk. Sense or Non-Sense, they need to talk. Joke. Bad or Worse, they (the elderly!) need to. Gossip. Fiction or Insane, they need to spread the word. (This considering that there are none from the fairer sex aboard which prompted a friend to call our cab “The Fag Express”). Music. iPod or Music Phone. Rock or Bhajan. When you are listening to loud music on your earplugs, it’s interesting to see two people converse without trying to lip read. It’s infact fascinating to see the myriad expressions of the human face and how the intricate movement of each facial muscle conveys a different sentiment.
But when you are not doing any of the above, you look out and observe. Or You think about things that you would have probably never thought about.

There are two guys filling up water from a cracked pipeline. Some would squirm at the very thought of regular filtered water. There are people walking on the road. There are vehicles on the footpath. A guy carries a bag to office. He never wore a bag to college. Some god's special day. There is a long cavalcade. They have seated god in a chariot and taking him around the city. God was bored being confined to the temple. The traffic is thrown awry. People’s hallelujah isn’t loud enough. So they are using loud speakers. Off late god isn't able to hear people's whisper.
It’s Independence Day. The tri-color is all over the place. They are beaming with immense sense of patriotism. They are spitting on a “don't spit here” sign and throwing garbage all around the waste bin except into it. IITs and IIMs were established to nurture the best brains for the service of the country. They are singing the star sprangled banner. Some one comes and says that he is making an affordable car for the common man. Elitism starts parading. Half of them are suddenly worried about the environment and the other half about congestion. They would not dare care about a common man’s dream. 'A' breaks a traffic rule and 'B' stares at him badly. 'B' had broken one yesterday and is going to break one tomorrow. This is the land of the Kama sutra. People look south when someone even mentions the dreaded 3 letter word. A lady is haggling saying that she will give only Rs.4/kg. The vendor had asked for Rs.5/kg. The same lady goes and spends thousands on a fancy dinner. It’s mid-winter. The traveler isn't settling for a non-AC bus. A nation of a billion people. One gold medal. Human eye has blind spots. Brains are not compensating. The limited vision is protecting us.

And all the while I thought strange things happened only in fictional books.

The Beauty And The Beast

2009-03-09T08:50:00.000+05:30

A long time ago, there was this boy. And there was this girl. No! I'm not going to tell you a boy-meets-girl story. It’s slightly different. But they did meet.
The boy was a li'l too hotshot for the girl. She was the 'girl-next-door' types. They became friends. The girl started having feelings for him. She liked him. But the boy never noticed. He was too hung up with the girls in his "league".
She did a lot of stuff for him. When he would miss class, she would bring him the notes. When there was no seat in the auditorium, she would give up her own. When it would rain she would give up her umbrella by lying to the boy that she has another. When there were any classes cancelled, she would inform by giving a call.
Once when they had went on an excursion, the boy was reserving a seat besides him for a girl of his "league". When the girl (girl-next-door) saw that the boy was reserving a seat besides him, she mistook that it was for her and tries to sit. In a spontaneous reaction the boy shoves the girl aside saying that it’s not for her.
The girl was crestfallen. It looked like she would cry. She just walked away. She was never the same with him again. He had failed to "see" her.
The beauty had "killed" the beast.

A few years ago, there was this same boy again. And there was this other girl. As you would have guessed by the drift of the story, this time around the girl was li'l too hotshot for the boy.
They were pretty good friends. The boy liked her. But the girl didn't consider him to be in her "league". He did stuff for her. He helped her prepare her reports. When she would be in town for work, he would take her around. He would help her in procuring notes. He helped her in her studies. He even overlooked his close friends because they were not too "fanatical" about her. Most of all, he was not what he really was.
Once he was going to meet her after a long time. He dressed up well. Picked up flowers for her. On his way to meet her it started to rain. Undeterred, he rode in the rain just to see her for a few minutes from one end of the city to the other. He thought it would be all worth it. He saw her and ran towards her and closed her eyes from behind. She just did not react the way he wanted her to. She did not even ask how he was doing. Rather she went on asking for things that he could help her with. He was crushed. Even after all that years she just didn't "see" him the way he wanted her to.
Yet again, the beauty had "killed" the beast.

What went around had come around.

We all have been the "beauty" or the "beast" at one point or the other. It’s always tough for the beauty to accept the beast. But the point is beauty doesn't have to accept the beast. All it takes is a little appreciation, little gratitude and a little love to say that you care for all that has been done to you.
We live such complicated lives. Sometimes we fail to notice the small things. And sometimes we even fail to notice big things. Because not all wounds are superficial. Most wounds run deeper than we can imagine, you can’t see them with the naked eye and so sometimes they take us by surprise. But the trick with any kind of wound is to dig down and find the real source of the injury, and once you've found it, try like hell to heal it, try to keep the beast “alive”.

The 7th Capital Vice

2009-02-26T08:14:00.000+05:30

Overturned the tuner and busted a radio. Smashed a TV screen. Broke a door. A stone was flighted and a skull was cracked. Broke a shuttle racquet and a bone while at it. Flunked a test. Smashed my spectacles. Kicked at a bi-cycle and broke its mud guard. Hammered a bike's petrol
tank and caused a dent. Used never before used words in a letter. Hit a face and got one back as a souvenir. Next time got one for free. “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned", it seems.
The root cause of all the above is same. Anger.
Every-time my ears went red, I just crashed and burned. Anger is associated with a demon no less than the Satan himself. So you can fathom its destruction.

Growing up, we are taught that there are seven deadly sins. We all know the big ones... gluttony, pride, lust. But the thing you don't hear much about is anger. Maybe it's because we think anger is not that dangerous, that you can control it. We think its ok to be angry sometimes. We even think that it must have not even made the cut, when a list of the cardinal sins was made!

But the point is, maybe we don't give anger enough credit. As far as I’ve known of it, it can be a lot more dangerous than we think. After all when it comes to destructive behavior, it did make the top seven. Maybe as a venial sin, but it did make it. So what makes anger different from the six other deadly sins? It's pretty simple really, you give into a sin like envy or pride and you only hurt yourself. Try lust or coveting and you'll only hurt yourself and one or two others. But anger, anger is the worst... the mother of all sins... Not only can anger drive you over the edge, when it does, you can take an awful lot of people with you.
So clearly, Anger is underrated.

John Mirk asks men to "consider how angels flee before them and fiends run toward him to burn him with hellfire." Simply put, the next time you are at the breaking point, think what your action can cost. Or maybe think of Homer J Simpson, Like I do!

If Tomorrow Never Comes

2009-02-18T10:32:00.000+05:30

A couple of hundred years ago, Benjamin Franklin shared with the world the secret of his success. Never leave that till tomorrow, he said, which you can do today. This is the man who discovered electricity. You think more people would listen to what he had to say. Well, not really!

I for one, is guity of this. Ever since I got my senses going (not too long ago), I've been putting off doing things at the "right" time, only to regret later. There would be one or the other trivial excuse for it. Right from not enough ink in the pen to not the "appropriate" time.

I don't know why we put things off, but if I had to guess, I'd have to say it has a lot to do with fear. Fear of failure, fear of rejection, sometimes the fear is just of making a decision, because what if you're wrong? What if you're making a mistake you can't undo?
The early bird catches the worm. A stitch in time saves nine. He who hesitates is lost. We can't pretend we hadn't been told these. We've all heard the proverbs, heard the philosophers, heard our grandparents warning us about wasted time, heard the damn poets urging us to seize the day.

Having said that, still sometimes we have to see for ourselves. We have to make our own mistakes. We have to learn our own lessons. We have to sweep today's possibility under tomorrow's rug until we can't anymore. Until we finally understand for ourselves what Benjamin Franklin really meant. That knowing is better than wondering, that waking is better than sleeping, and even the biggest failure, even the worst, beat the hell out of never trying.

Midnight Philosophy

2008-12-05T13:26:00.000+05:30

Her: I was reading your post. It's true right. God is within us. In all the good we think and feel, if not do. In retrospection, I have never thought badly about anyone or anything. Maybe I would have hurt so many by my own perception of good which in their perception would have looked bad.
It's also said that good people deserve good things. Take the case of your friend X. She is a good girl right, who used to take care of u, who is always been there for you, even you are there for her whenever she needs you. Then why is it that good people like her don’t get a good person. A million times I have felt that what I want for myself is right in front of me. But there are so many reasons stopping me from getting that. Again, is this what 'Our God' wants for us? Coz if we believed it totally that everything was in our hands, then I could have got what I wanted without having to think about my fate not wanting it, without having to become one more X, who will call you in the middle of the night and crib about her life.

Him: As I understand it, Life is not perfect. We strive for perfections with all our imperfections. Good people deserve good things has always been very esoteric to me.
You might know the kind of person u want is right in front of you. You maybe right u maybe wrong. It’s not the end of all to have a good life.
According to me, in such cases, if its meant to be and want it as badly as the other person, it will come around. Otherwise its just not meant to be, this is what I tell myself at least. If only everything turned out as we expected it to be, it wouldn't be Life. It would be very mundane.
Two people can be very good friends but they can't necessarily be a good couple. I feel.so, I'm not saying it can never happen. There is no guarantee that one way or the other it would be beautiful or misery.
Be happy. Take things as they come. Don't compare. Everyone has his own beauty. Explore it. And you will have a good life. But I do hope you would call me. Not midnight though.

Her: Why does it happen that when fate comes to you, you reject it? And when you want it, fate rejects you?

Him: I'm not a big philosopher or an 80 yr old' to answer this convincingly. But from whatever li'l I understand…
The system is designed in such a way that when something comes there is no sign that he/she/it is the one. We might think that it is the one and cling to it or put it aside n move on. That's the beauty of life, if we knew everything from the back of the hand, the purpose would be lost.
You are never on your own. You are dictated by situations, bound by commitments, or in some case u just don't see it. So you really can't blame yourself for looking the other way.
Learn to smile at these things. Don't worry what you lost. Look at what you gained.
I hope I made some sense.

Old Joy

2008-10-22T08:47:00.000+05:30

One of the ways of idling away a wintery night is to sink under a quilt, look out into the dark and reminisce the past. The childhood.
Then what actually sets in is a sense of what the romantics called the Sublime: getting lost in the years of wonder, a surrender of the self.

Quite strangely the thoughts "wander" chronologically. It starts with the times of playing cricket on the road, breaking the neighbor’s window panes. Running out in the middle of the game to watch Mithun da's action flick on doordarshan. The sheer joy of watching Tales Pin and Duck Tales on sunday mornings. Getting up at 3AM to watch cricket matches. Running back home breathlessly after school to watch the dying moments of a cricket match.
Waiting for dad to come home on a Friday evening with the new edition of the sportstar. It was actually the center-fold poster that aroused the curiosity. Reading all those Tinkles and Tintins. The rides on dad's scooter. The excitement of going out to eat Masala Dosa. Buying 10 shunti peppermints with 50 paisa on the way to the school.
Renting a VCP for a day and try squeezing in as many movies as possible. Two Raj Kumar movies for the old. Two Van Damme movies for the young. Watching Jackie Chan movies for 10 rupees at a nearby theatre.
Matching the color of the eraser, pencil, scale and other paraphernalia with that of the cute girl who sat next to you in the classroom. Fixing the class quizzes so that you look like a real smart ass to the cute girl.
Making the 5 fold paper planes with the math notes at the end of the academic year. Stripping the notebooks off their hardbound and constructing houses with them. Eventually bringing down the house by "directing" an action sequence where the hot wheel scar swirls out of control and smashes into the house.
Waiting for mom and dad to go out for groceries so that we can loot the eatables and conduct our cricket "world cup" played with the rolled up paper ball and the pencil case which served as a bat. We made sure India won most of the world cups.
Hitting a tire around. Playing cop and thief with the tires. Flaunting the bicycle. Taking it for a walk. Cycling to school. Cycling back home in record time. Watering the plants. Letting a paper boat sail in the drains and running behind it.
Working on projects like designing a missile launcher with a wood plank and 3 nails. Launching the missiles into the neighbor's garden. Testing the range of those. Redesigning to achieve a longer range.
Sending postcards with questions to 'Tinkle Tells You Why'. Waiting for the trinn of the postman's bicycle hoping that he would bring news of us winning some prizes.
Hanging out with your best friend and discussing the adventures of superman. Wondering whether there is superman's dress available in the market which would make us super. Trying to do a Tarzan and breaking my left arm, while the best friend runs away from there.
And it doesn’t end at this.

15 years since the last memory of the innocent past. Things have gone topsy-turvy. There is no more beauty in minimalistic things. Wants have become very materialistic.
There is a kind of inherent queasiness to revisiting a dormant friendship. You try to rekindle the bond but eventually it becomes clear that time elapsed is not the only roadblock standing between estranged friends.

The old joy is all the blissful joy there ever was.

Quarter-life Crisis

2008-10-14T16:35:00.000+05:30

The other day, one of my friends turned a year older into the later half of the 20s. I happily welcomed into the club and we discussed how life would get into muck from here on.
As a follow-up, a couple of days later he sent a forward which pretty much echoed the travails of being over the hill. (I feel over 25 is over the hill!)

You look at your job... and it is not even close to what you thought you would be doing, or maybe you are looking for a job and realizing that you are going to have to start at the bottom and that scares you. Your opinions have gotten stronger. You see what others are doing and find yourself judging more than usual because suddenly you realize that you have certain boundaries in your life and are constantly adding things to your list of what is acceptable and what isn't. One minute, you are insecure and then the next, secure.

You laugh and cry with the greatest force of your life. You feel alone and scared and confused. Suddenly, change is the enemy and you try and cling on to the past with dear life, but soon realize that the past is drifting further and further away, and there is nothing to do but stay where you are or move forward.

You get your heart broken and wonder how someone you loved could do such damage to you. Or you lie in bed and wonder why you can't meet anyone decent enough that you want to get to know better. Or maybe you love someone but love someone else too and cannot figure out why you're doing this because you know that you aren't a bad person. You want to settle down for good because now all of a sudden that becomes top priority. Getting wasted and acting like an idiot starts to look pathetic. You begin to think a companion for life is better than a hundred in the shack and for once you would not mind standing tall for that special someone which otherwise you had never thought of until now. You go through the same emotions and questions over and over, and talk with your friends about the same topics because you cannot seem to make a decision. You worry about loans, money, the future and making a life for yourself... and while winning the race would be great, right now you'd just like to be a contender!

What you may not realize is that every one reading this relates to it.We are in our best of times and our worst of times, trying as hard as we can to figure this whole thing out.
We call it the "Quarter-life Crisis".

P.S. I hope there wouldn't be a sequel to this, the Mid-life Crisis !

Lesson of Life

2008-07-14T09:40:00.000+05:30

Learning is an imperative part of life. And it never ceases. You learn about friendship, love and sometimes about life in general. You learn from various avenues. Sometimes from friends, parents and sometimes from yourself and sometimes even from absolute strangers.

I once learnt something about relationships from a stranger in a very subtle, implicit way. Cut to a few years, when I was still in college, one of close friend's b'day was due. So I went to a gift shop along with a few other friends to get a present. We chose something and handed over the gift to the shopkeeper to wrap it. The lady shopkeeper came over to us with a few wrapping papers asking us to choose one. The friends that had come along were looking at the covers and deliberating which one to choose. Looking at their confused faces, I told them "just choose some paper; it’s just for S anyways". The lady shopkeeper who heard this quipped "That's the mistake we often make" with a soft smile on her face. I looked at her blankly and went out. I didn't read much into it as it didn't make much sense to me then.

Later, I realized the meaning in the words of that lady. We often take people who are very close to us for granted thinking that they would understand. We fail to express our feelings thinking that they know how we feel about them. We fail to appreciate their good gestures to us thinking that it is expected from them.
That's the mistake we all often make. It’s very important to express our feelings with our close ones from time to time and at any given opportunity, because sometimes it’s just too late and we end up losing them.

As Jack Nicholson says in the movie, 'About Schmidt': Learn to appreciate what you have while you still have it.

A Midsummer Night's Dream

2008-05-05T16:00:00.000+05:30

I Dream. Its Surreal. I experience something Surreal. Its not a Dream.
Nature has a way of expressing itself. Be it its fury or beauty. Either of it leaves us in awe.

Its almost midnight. There is no electricity. The Moon is in crescent and looks like its smiling. There is a deafening silence for a second. In the next second, there is a pleasant sound. Its of the softly blowing wind and the rustling of fallen leaves. The trees are swaying rhythmically. The plants have a very subtle movement.

I see a window. There is a girl standing. I'm not alone, anymore. She seems to be playing hide- n-seek with the drapes which are moved around by the wind.
I get to the window. The breeze runs through my body. Its the softest embrace ever.

Each and every detail of the night is meticulous. Looks like the nature is conducting an orchestra. Its harmonious. Its beautiful.

I hope the night would stay.

Poetry, In Motion

2008-05-02T13:00:00.000+05:30

So far, I've had some good days. I've had some bad days. During the bad ones I've retorted to different things at different points of time. Sometimes it would be music. Sometimes it would be writing. And a lot of times "looking" into myself.

In the recent past, I've a new found interest in poetry. Yes, you read it right!
Poetry stuck a chord with me when I was listening to a U2 song which had some beautiful lines at the end. It was actually form a lovely poem penned by Rushdie.
Galvanized by this power of phrase and conversations with a friend who is "qualified" to speak about it, I've started exploring poets from the times of the "Romantic Movement" like Keats to the 20th century like Frost.

The beauty of poetry is it can be interpreted in 100 different ways by 100 different people. For example, white is interpreted as death personified by one and could be interpreted as the a symbol of peace by the other. Of course, sometimes its contextual.

Most of the poets start very young. Like Keats, who wrote most of his significant poems even before he was 24! Truly, "a thing of beauty is a joy forever". And his greatest ambition was to be "among the English Poets".

Let me quote a couple of lines from one of my favorites of Blake, The Chimney Sweeper.
And because I am happy & dance & sing, They think they have done me no injury.
I wonder where they draw their inspiration from. Is it their power of observation or introspection or were they just born to write?
Reading some of the poems of Keats, Blake et al, I'm startled by their power to move me, at my own amazement in the presence of their intelligence, craft and charm.

The Simple Truth

2008-03-12T11:43:00.000+05:30

I’ve been watching a lot of “Indie” films off late, under the influence of my brother. One of the recent ones that I watched was “2 Days in Paris”.

Succinctly, the movie is about a NY based couple (Marion and Jack) trying to rekindle their relationship with a visit to Paris, home of Marion’s parents and several of her ex-boyfriends! I found it as a smart and funny respite from most of the romantic comedies that I have watched in recent times and certainly grows on my love for movies with narrations. Adam Goldberg is at his quirky best and Julie Delpy doesn’t fail to impress on her directorial debut.

Although the movie is funny throughout, it has a very emotional and riveting ending. The closing narration by Marion about aging, loneliness and love brings out the dark and true aspects of the human life.

Marion: It always fascinated me how people go from loving you madly to nothing at all, nothing. It hurts so much. When I feel someone is going to leave me, I have a tendency to break up first before I get to hear the whole thing. Here it is. One more, one less. Another wasted love story. I really love this one. When I think that it’s over, that I'll never see him again like this... well yes, I'll bump into him, we'll meet our new boyfriend and girlfriend, act as if we had never been together, then we'll slowly think of each other less and less until we forget each other completely. Almost. Always the same for me. Break up, break down. Drunk up, fool around. Meet one guy, then another. Forget the one and only. Then after a few months of total emptiness start again to look for true love, desperately look everywhere and after two years of loneliness meet a new love and swear it is the one, until that one is gone as well. There's a moment in life where you can't recover any more from another break-up. And even if this person bugs you sixty percent of the time, well you still can’t live without him. And even if he wakes you up every day by sneezing right in your face, well you love his sneezes more than anyone else's kisses.

I feel, you might be with a person for 2 years or 20 years. But, in the end, it’s all about how you feel about it. You either want it or not. Plain and Simple.

When 2 become 1

2008-01-28T09:11:00.000+05:30

They say, In the mathematics of Love, one plus one remains one. And how true is that!

Two of my best friends took another step closer to the holy matrimony. It was a sheer pleasure to be around to witness it. It felt good or rather great to see them together, taking their 6 years of courtship towards the most fitting conclusion.

She stood there, decked up to see her dreams fall into place. He stood there, decked up and all ready to steer the relationship into its next turn. And we stood there witnessing the, friendship set to music:Love.

I've known them separately and I've known them together. And I whole heartedly feel that they wouldn't have found anyone more perfect for each other than themselves. Rhetorically speaking, they are just "made for each other". It brings great joy to see them taking owes to spend their rest of lives together.

When I say they are perfect for each other, it not without reason. They have very special qualities distinct to each other. Yet they manage to pull it off since they complement each other so well.
I wish them all the very best for all their endeavors. Salute!

And for the rest of us its still, "Its better to have loved and lost...."

Blink

2007-12-18T13:59:00.000+05:30

Its 12. Midnight. I come home. Jaded. I serve my supper. Turn on the notebook. Actually to feed the mp3 player. Turn on a movie to accompany supper. Freedom Writers. Never heard of it. Hillary Swank is in it. Not surprised! Looks like a shot at the Oscars. Race fight is on in a University. Oh, not another movie. Supper done. Exit the movie. The mp3 player is fed too. Switched off with a slide (yeah, its a 'Touch'). Switch to the tabloids. An article on fitness. Milind Soman is a demi god. Another tabloid. Vikram Pandit handling the reigns of a 200 year ol' company. Sense of pride. Yet another tabloid. India is a hilarious country with no sense of humor. Interesting. Screen saver kicks in the notebook. Milky way. Giant Jupiter. Saturn rings. Moon with its imperfections. Mother Earth. Blue. Just a dot in the scheme of things. Zephyr. Darkness. Outside. Inside. Introspection. Pink Floyd. Roger Waters. Hey you. Cry for help. Miss her. Snap back to reality. 6AM not far away. Eyes fold. Dreams. Cryptic.

Catcher In The Rye - A Redux

2007-11-23T11:01:00.000+05:30

J.D. Salinger's other fiction might be largely unread, but Catcher in the Rye starring Holden Caulfield has managed to fascinate one generation of adolescents after another for a half-century and counting.

Interesting that Iam writing about this book after a long time that I’ve actually read it. Well, it was triggered when conversing with a friend and some spare time at office.

This book has been one of the most frequently challenged by would-be book banners, and one of the most misunderstood books of the 20th century. The renowned book probably has posted higher sales figures than any other serious American novel; this is as true now, at a time when it clips along at a brisk 250,000 copies a year, as it was when it appeared in 1951.
What accounts for The Catcher in the Rye's phenomenal success? No doubt it has something to do with the way that young readers identify with Holden Caulfield, the novel's confused, desperate, funny and ultimately lovable protagonist. In his war against everything that is phony and sad, he provides an etiquette book for those who see themselves reflected in his doomed situation and a point of reference for those who have, for better or worse, moved beyond the pains of adolescence to those of adulthood.

To summarize the plotline, Holden Caulfield about to be kicked out of yet another boarding school for flunking most of his courses, decides not to wait until the end of term, and takes off for his hometown, Manhattan, a few days early. He figures he'll hole up in a cheap hotel, look up a few friends, and then arrive home on time. But Holden is deeply troubled, by the death of his beloved younger brother from leukemia, as well as the suicide of a classmate and alone in an uncaring city his already fragile psyche begins to unravel.

The book has been challenged and banned for many reasons over the years in the content advisories, though by today's standards it might not even merit a PG-13 if it were a movie (and, oddly for a book this popular, it has never been filmed). But those who challenge it, fail to see the forest for the little swearword trees. They have called Holden a cynical teenager, when in fact he is such a compassionate innocent individual, that he can hardly cope with the cynical world: so innocent and so alone that he tries to get a prostitute to just chat and keep him company! Desperately lonely, adrift in what seems to him an uncaring world, he has been through some terrible experiences and no one at all seems to have noticed that he is crumbling. This explains his emotional outbursts, cynicism and poignancy.

When you are through with the book, Salinger’s genius comes through. Considering the book was written in 1951, when "teen" and "adolescent" were barely concepts in the American mind, Salinger captured the adolescent voice and way of thinking more perfectly, and more poignantly, than just about anyone before or since. Holden Caulfield holds a place in the adolescent psyche as an exquisitely rendered character with whom nearly anyone can identify.

This is an excerpt from the book, where Holden’s imagines him to be doing something that really likes because it’s sans any “phoniness” that he has come across in his life, so often.

“Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, and nobody's around -- nobody big, I mean -- except me. And I'm standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff -- I mean if they're running and they don't look where they're going. I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That's all I'd do all day. I'd just be the catcher in the rye and all. I know it's crazy, but that's the only thing I'd really like to be.”

Catcher In The Rye, is truly, a Masterpiece.

Lessons from 'The Boss'

2007-11-07T16:48:00.000+05:30

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band held a concert recently at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Analyze this. Boss, as Bruce Springsteen is popularly known, a 58 year old singer gives you an impressive management lesson on how the best in the business can stay intimately connected to their market. Watching him perform makes you draw a parallel to a venerable aging brand (think GE, IBM, and Chevy) with a huge, rabidly loyal customer base and how they can keep getting better.

In between dancing and singing and shouting and cheering, if you pay attention there are few corporate lessons in there.

Never let your customers rest. When Springsteen performs, most of his songs end like this: "1-2-3-4!" That's because he's starting the next song before the current one has even ended. The Boss continually races to the back of the stage to change guitars, so there's no lull in the cadence of the show. In the audience, nobody sits down or gets a breather until the man on stage decides it's time. By keeping the crowd on its toes, the band keeps demand at a fever pitch -- kind of the way Apple does, with its rapid flow of new gizmos pushing older products out of the way. But with way better buzz.

Innovate. Springsteen is brilliant at expanding his brand image without ever shifting his center of gravity. His songs rarely stray from rock-'n'-roll territory, but at the Garden, he enriched the familiar with fiddles and other folksy touches. One standout song was "Reason to Believe" -- an old ballad completely reimagined as a harder-edged blues riff. Springsteen's knack for turning old material into something completely new seems like a magic touch compared with all the lame efforts to create hip, modern variations of old TV shows or movies. Instead of copying success, he creates it all over again.

Give the people what they want. Experiments get a more welcome reception when mingled with something familiar. Throughout the show, Springsteen deftly blended unembellished hits such as "Badlands" and "Born to Run," performed pretty much the way everybody knows them, with darker, topical music; after appeasing his conscience, he quickly reverted to happier songs such as "The Promised Land" (irony intended, I presume) and "Dancing in the Dark." The result: His message of protest got across without turning anybody off.

Share credit. There's been a lot of hype about Springsteen reuniting with his famed E Street Band for the first full tour since 2003, but come on -- Springsteen, the man, is the draw, pure and simple. Still, this is one maestro who spreads the glory across the stage. Not once during the show does a spotlight shine on Springsteen alone. He continually calls out "Steve," "Clarence" and the other band members. And when they bow at the end, they bow together. It's a pretty neat marketing trick to create a cult of personality around somebody known for humility. Quick -- can anyone name a CEO able to pull that off?

Set expectations. Then reset them. And reset them. And . . . The Garden concert ended after about two hours -- prompting groans in the crowd, even though it was an electrifying show. "He's getting old," one fan fretted. There were jokes about Metamucil and Geritol -- not because the Boss ever seemed tired but because this wasn't the kind of marathon, three-hour-plus jam fest he used to play in his heyday. Springsteen has driven customer satisfaction so high that he can deliver a great product and still disappoint his customers. I don't know what you do about that, but it's the kind of problem most corporations would love to have.

Love what you do. Just a hunch, but I have a feeling that Springsteen thoroughly enjoys his job -- not something you can say about a lot of people asking you to spend $15 or $100 for their products. We all know that enthusiasm is contagious, and if you're pumped about what you do, those around you are more likely to twist and shout right along with you. Not to mention keep on spending.

On a lighter note, these would definitely help in skipping a few management classes !

Loss..

2007-10-11T23:27:00.000+05:30

.. is the detriment resulting from losing something or someone. Each of us experience loss in the way of our life in one form or the other in varying degrees. Some manage to go unscathed, some get over it and few unfortunate ones are scarred for the rest of life.

Each one of us experience it in a differnt way;one might lose something or one might lose someone. What it does to the psyche can be very subjective. A few might get bogged down and few others challenge it.

One of the strange things about loss is sometimes we fail to forsee it, even though its in our capacity. We don't feel the vaccum until its really gone. We just run in a little too late. Sometimes there is not a even a hint about it. It just occurs. It leaves you in tatters.

How do you cope with it?
There are many answers and yet not a perfect one. People adopt different ways to beat it. Some think at it objectively and move on. Some sulk for sometime and then move on. Some take their time, assimilate the pain and then move on. And some just can't beat the dirge out of their minds.

As tough as each of the ways is, it helps to remember that Life is still worthwhile.

A Sunday Evening

2007-08-20T11:19:00.000+05:30

There is something about a Sunday evening.

Sunday evenings used to be a lot of fun when we were in school. Now its about sitting and ruing the fact of how to beat the Monday blues. In fact, the "pain" starts from the Sunday afternoon itself. If you can put this aside, you will see how beautiful a Sunday evening is.

When I peek out of the window, one thing that distinctly strikes me is how relaxed people look. The usual rush is invisible. Note that I'm not considering the crowded malls or the "jammed" traffic. The kids are having their unadulterated fun, quite oblivious to the fact that its back to school tomorrow morning and totally ignorant of the pending homework. Old timers enjoying their blissful Sunday walk. Families in front of TV watching the Sunday special. Fathers putting away their work and having a good time with their five year olds. The trees swaying slightly, moving rhythmically to the light breeze, as I listen to John Mayer. The sun setting and the dusk descending. There is certain sense of beauty even in the ol' piece of paper, which is rolling on the road, with the wind, stopping by once in a while as if to "look" at you. It’s a treat if there is a sporting event especially a final of a Grand Slam. The youth going out for a cup of coffee at the local chai shop and catching on the week that was. As the light fades out, people are moving indoors to wind up their Sunday.

Watching all these, eases the transition from a Sunday evening to a Monday morning.

300 Miles to Graceland

2007-08-13T10:04:00.000+05:30

I did something a few days ago, that shocked and brought a lot of “delight” to some of my friends and gave them a talking point (for once) to drag me around. I didn't do anything significant. I just went on a pilgrimage.

I don't remember the last time I took such a trip. It must have been a million years ago. But I do remember that I had thrown a lot of tantrums, the last time around.

Apparently, the plans were laid out over a month ago 'cause they knew that it would need some convincing to have me shanghaied into this. Then knew that I wasn't gonna take “improper planet alignment” or “planets residing in wrong houses” or some serpent not “liking” me, for a good enough reason.
As expected the above excuses didn't work. So they retorted to the good ol', tried and tested formula of emotional melodrama to get my head nodding the right way.

On the D-day there was nothin' much to look forward except the mode of travel, my cousin's new car. So armed with CDs of Pink Floyd, Doors and Van Halen, we hit the road at 150kmph. Slowed down to 60kmph in B'lore and the back to 150kmph till we were at God's “abode”. It was fun “horsing” the new car around at different speeds. We reached by sunset and shacked up in a lodge. It wasn't until tomorrow morning that the pain would begin.

I had drafted a simple plan for an early exit. Wake up early, beat the people 'traffic', “align” the planets, move the planets to their “homes”, charm the “vicious” serpent and get the hell out of there and salvage some weekend time.

As per the plan, woke up early and got ready. I chose to wear a 'T' and a faded torn jeans, much against my dad's desire to wrap me in dhoti. I wasn't gonna fall for that. I was already lookin' like a chump. There was some damage control needed.
Entered the temple after a longish walk. Somehow when I sat in the “battlefield”, the people were gawking at me. I thought it must be either the number of people accompanying me to the 'seat' or the torn jeans. I preferred not to look at the more pious. And then came out the 'commander', took out his mike, tuned the amplifiers and started rocking...err..chanting verses. This guy was a smart fella. He started commanding us on how to setup the things in the “warkit”. He made us do most of the work ourselves, like showering flowers, water et al. My parents kept looking at my face to spot any grimaces on my face, so that they can reprimand me later. My poker face came to the rescue here.

When I was sitting there and doing whatever I was doing, a lot of questions popped up. What am I doing? What is all this? Why are the people in so much piety? Do they really mean it? What happens when they do all this? Do they come back if their prayers weren't answered? Do they still keep their faith? Do they actually feel better by doing all this?

I've read somewhere that God resides inside everyone of us. Infact, I've read as a kid that is God is everywhere. Then why do people travel miles to see a piece of well carved stone. I have never been able to understand the ways of the people in this aspect. Or maybe I'm too incapable of understanding this abstractness or maybe my reasoning tendency gets in the way of understanding it. I'll never know.

People have scaled mountains and crossed oceans in the pursuit of god. I have kept my pursuit, if at all I believe there is one inside me, rather simple. I believe there is a way to god in every li'l thing we do. Then why waste time in going in search of something we'll never find. I would say think good, do good and feel good, you might just find him along the way.

By the end of the Q & A in my head, the puja was also pretty much over. Apparently, it didn't take much time and it wasn't painful either. It all wrapped up fine. My parents were happy with my 'performance' and I also felt a job well done.

Went back to the hotel, packed our bags and hit the throttle home thinking or rather hoping that this would be the last one or at least one of the last one of the pilgrimages, I would ever have to take.

The Lost Formula

2007-08-06T09:05:00.000+05:30

I started watching Formula 1 racing way back in 1994, although not very religiously. Those were the times when the championships were dominated by Renault and Williams, Senna had crashed and Schumacher was still a rookie.

I was introduced to it by one of my brother's friends. I would sometimes go to his house to watch it, since we didn't have Cable TV. The sport really impressed me. The sound of the cars, the speed, the acceleration, the atire and just about everything.

But that was then. A decade later I had begun to think about F1 as the Americans do.

Have you ever tried sleeping while watching a game of Football on the TV? It’s almost impossible, because every time you close your eyes and think of dreaming away to the dreamland, there's a roar from the crowd indicating that something has happened. It’s been close to just 12 secs since I thought of taking a trip to Dreamland. You are snapped back to reality to see what's going on!

Now let me tell you what actually happens when you are watching F1. Once the cars have zoomed away from the line, you have an almost constant background din, as soothing, if you turn down the sound down a bit, as the waves on the beach. And you never hear the crowd oohing or aahing, simply because there seldom is anything to ooh or aah about. (You might heard a boo when Barrichelo made way to Schumacher!). As a result of this you probably know who is going to win and you will be sound asleep by lap two. The FIA boasts of viewer ship of millions all over the world, but I wonder how many viewers were actually awake.

The big question is why so many people have tuned out of F1in recent years, and the simple answer is this: its mind-numbingly numb, You have no idea which driver is which, you can't see them doing anything other than turning a steering wheel, and when they get out, they weigh 5 kilos less and they talk like they're flatlining.

What I am trying to say is, I would want to re-discover the love for this sport and enjoy it as much as my colleague, who keeps his Sunday evening’s to watch F1 every fortnight, and I admire the car makers making machines with such cutting edge technology and design, but make it look like a race sport, not a parade of cars ooning around.

Else, if things remain this way, switching to NASCAR or Monster Truck Racing is imminent.

Older

2007-07-28T00:34:00.000+05:30

I believe there are two days in a year in everyone's life, that kinda puts them on the backfoot in retrospection. One is of course the day which ends the year and the other is the day you turn a year older (and wiser, I would say), yeah, you guessed it right, its your birthday.

Most of my friends would agree with what I would say that “its just another day”. Well, to most part, it is indeed true although my friends of the fairer sex might disagree !

Well, I, for one, on this day would think about the number (age) and do a reality check on where I stand and where do I see myself going by the time the number would become +1 or +2. I look at how much I have grown with respect to my attitude towards life. And somehow quite indifferently, I find a lot of changes, form year to year. It feels good.

Sometimes there is a tendency to compare ourselves with our peers. This might frighten you! It frightens me! But then, its imperative that you think about your life, in isolation.

Another thing I generally do is to look at the changes that have happened with respect to people around me in contrast with the years of the past. I tend to remember the past (glory days!) and look at how I had celebrated. And I see that 10 yrs ago, I would try to make it a very special day, and now its the people around me who make it a special day. They make you feel its your day. Looking back, it brings a lot of joy, remembering the wonderful people who were around and at the same time inflicts a lot of pain that they are not there anymore. But there is a certain sense of joy in the pain too.

Lost amidst such thoughts, the day folds.

To Bear Or not to Bear

2007-06-26T13:53:00.000+05:30

A few days ago, I was going through a journal which threw up an interesting article written by Azim Premji. It had something to do with ethics, human values n so on. I began reading. In the middle of the article he had quoted an interesting anecdote.

There is a milkman, Mr.S, his assistant, Mr. K and a buyer, Miss. S. (Names are changed intentionally to allude to the intended audience)

Miss.S goes to Mr.S to buy milk every morning. And apparently, for reasons unknown, Miss.S can’t help herself being rude when asking for the Milk. It’s like trying to be in-your-face rude types. But Mr.S would always give the Milk without making much ado about it, much to the surprise of the on looking, Mr.K and at times Miss.S.

This keeps happening over and over and Mr.S continues to be totally calm and composed about it. One day, Mr.K gets curious and asks Mr.S why he continues to be so polite to her, in spite of the trash she gives him. Mr.S replies by saying that being rude is her part. That is something which is imbibed in her. Why should her behavior or character dictate mine?

This made me sit up and think what would I do in such a situation? Would I react the same way as Mr.S? I told this same story to one of my cab mates and asked how she would react in such a situation. She said that she would follow the same policy as Mr.S. I asked was she sure? She answered saying that her primary concern would be to not to lose a customer. She gave all the “gyaan” on customer satisfaction and its imperativeness. She even suggested that I should be attending a couple of sessions on customer satisfaction and so on. Well, alas, I couldn’t have expected anything less from a person who is going to a B-school soon.

But I bet a million bucks that she would react differently in the actual scenario. I believe, we all draw our lines on “how much is too much” and we all have a big ego to keep. Considering these, it would be really difficult to do a Mr.S every time. Period.

What would you do in this Hamletian quandary?

9 By 9...

2007-06-10T22:51:00.000+05:30

..is the dimension of my room.

But the memories I have of it, is a million times bigger than just 81 sq.ft.

Growing up, every boy needs to have his own room. I got mine pretty late but it wasn’t late enough, not that I had issues with sharing a room with my brother. That was fun alright, well of its own kind!

When we extended our house, there were be 2 rooms, one for each of us. One had the view of the road, and the other was slightly bigger. For obvious reasons there rose a lot of contention for the former. Eventually I got the “prized” room, although I don’t remember how. It was definitely not through a toss-of-a-coin, because they have never favored me much.

This room has seen a lot of things. My happiness, my sorrows, my ups, my downs, my thoughts, my dreams and some very important people of my Life. I share a special bond with this room. There is a sense of belongingness when I’m here. I connect to it. I’m just myself.

Whenever I come home, I just rush to my room. I just look around. Then my eyes rolls on to the rack when I have arranged my invaluables, VCDs, audio CDs and books. I can make out at a glance whether anyone has touched it. If they are in anyway rearranged, they are put back in place, diligently, which is a li’l “Monicaisque”. Sometimes, sitting back, I reminisce. The times when I got my first computer, the times when I used to tap my neighbor’s telephone line, the times when I was speaking on the phone with one of my “friend”, while dad was staring at me from the window, the times when I would just turn out the lights and look out the window at the empty streets, the times when I would watch an action movie with the 5 channel dolby surround on, the times when I would just lie on the bed and look at the stars, the times of my first ball dance, the times when I stuck Bipasha’s poster on the wall inviting the ire of my mom, the Times immemorial.

I don’t know what the future beholds, but where ever I’ll be, I’ll miss this part of my home, the most.

The Art of Talking

2007-04-27T13:18:00.000+05:30

I talk. You talk. But when Nick Naylor talk’s people listen. They are mesmerized, confused, embarrassed and totally bamboozled. For all the non Independent movie aficionados, Nick Naylor is the protagonist of the Sundance featured film Thank You For Smoking. It’s a hilarious social satire that takes a hard look at political correctness. The best part of the movie is that it mines comic gold from a topic that’s not laughing matter.

Nick Naylor says “Michael Jordan plays ball. Charles Manson kills people. I talk.” Talking is what he does as the chief lobbyist of the big 5 tobacco companies. Its best summed up by the strapline of the movie “Nick Naylor doesn’t hide the truth…he filters it”. He practices an art of public relations called Spin. Spin is a term signifying a heavily biased portrayal in one's own favor of an event or situation. Naylor tells his son about winning as “it’s not a negotiation, it’s an argument”. And when his son asks what happens when he’s wrong he replies saying that’s the beauty of an argument, when you argue correctly you are never wrong. You don’t have to argue that you are right, just prove the other wrong and you will be right automatically. Now that’s what makes a spin doctor.

The funniest part of the movie is when the MOD (Merchants of Death) squad gets together for lunch and mutual support. Nick is joined by a lady from the booze lobby and another guy from the gun lobby. Once they get into an argument of which industry takes toll of maximum number of people in a year. This argument is worth watching. Naylor comes out trumps by sarcastically dismissing that it’s a great tragedy that 270 people die of boozing compared to 1200 by smoking.

One of the best parts of the movie is when Naylor is sitting with his son and arguing about ice creams.

Joey: So, what happens when you're wrong?
Nick: Well, Joey, I'm never wrong.
Joey: But you can't always be right.
Nick: Well, if it's your job to be right, then you're never wrong.
Joey: But what if you are wrong?
Nick: Okay, let's say that you're defending chocolate and I'm defending vanilla. Now, if l were to say to you "Vanilla's the best flavor ice cream," you'd say...?.
Joey: "No, chocolate is."
Nick: Exactly. But you can't win that argument. So, I'll ask you. So you think chocolate is the end-all and be-all of ice cream, do you?.
Joey: It's the best ice cream; I wouldn't order any other.
Nick: Oh. So it's all chocolate for you, is it?.
Joey: Yes, chocolate is all I need.
Nick: Well, I need more than chocolate. And for that matter, I need more than vanilla. I believe that we need freedom and choice when it comes to our ice cream, and that, Joey Naylor, that is the definition of liberty.
Joey: But that's not what we're talking about.
Nick: Ah, but that's what I'm talking about.
Joey: But... you didn't prove that vanilla's the best.
Nick: I didn't have to. I proved that you're wrong and if you're wrong, I'm right.
Joey: But you still didn't convince me.
Nick: Because I'm not after you. I'm after them.

In the next shot, they are seen on a Ferris wheel, both eating Vanilla ice cream

All in all the movie is very well made, a must watch for all those who want to sit back and get wholesome entertainment and not to mention those who like wit talk.

And yeah, Thank You For Reading.

Woh Lamhe..

2007-04-21T02:02:00.000+05:30

There comes a point in your Life, where things seem just perfect. This is of course is realized in retrospection. When you look back, you want it all back, frame-by-frame. But, alas, you can’t get even a moment of it. Those were the times you were the happiest. You enjoyed the nonchalance, irresponsibility and just about everything that came your way. But not quite now. Things have changed. People went places.

Time: Fall of 2004
Place: Pune
Actors: V, G, H, R

I was with my college friend. Then a friend of that college friend came along. I thought what a geek. He offered me some “prasad”. I thought “oh! Come on” (no offences here, it’s just me!).
Then I saw the “brothers”. One was sweating profusely. I thought “are the skies gonna come down falling ?” I saw the “other” brother. I thought “What on earth is this elderly man doing with us kids and isn’t he too old to be wearing that?”

I ended with my college friend’s friend in the hotel room. By this time the geek seemed to be much lesser geeky than I had imagined him to be. So I thought shacking up with this guy would not be too difficult. I till day can’t believe that I used to rant till 1AM in just a couple of days of acquaintance. Hmm...Good. Once went to see what the brothers were doing. One was too busy sorting his stuff out and the other was too involved in preparing something off “puri”, which in retrospection makes you think “yeah, what else?”

We moved into a flat. Although this time my roomie was V, much to the chagrin of G. He had to shack up with the 9-inch nail (no offences again, he was a very sweet man but you know the types). And the brothers put up their tent together. Three moths went in a jiffy, with all the studying, boozing on the balcony, playing TT, pulling each other’s legs, christening each other et al. A bond had formed.

Time: Summer of 2005
Place: Pune
Actor: B

Probably the most special person ever to come into my life till-date. We got acquainted really fast. And before we realized that, we were watching movies, going shopping and eating out together.
A bond had formed.

It was like living a dream. I was surrounded by such wonderful people. When I was at work, B would be there and when I came back home V, G, H, R would be there. In addition to this there was a sign, K, BD and $. All in all it was a rat pack.

With such a group, weekends were bound to be fun. Most of the times I would be with B and in times other than that we would be in one of the heavenly places around Pune. Else it would be luncheons hosted at our place or at the sisters’.

There were times I would fall sick. But with such people around, you actually wouldn’t mind it. V, G, H, R would ensure that I would see a doctor and take medicine and food at the right times. In the evening B would visit to check on me. Half my illness would vanish looking at B. It seemed like an eternal bliss. Life could not have been fairer.

But just when you tend to think that, things start disintegrating. Maybe we had more than our share. It was the turn of $ to move first. Then it was the turn of R, then B, then H, then sign. All though some of them did come back, it would never be the same. Things hit rock bottom personally and professionally. The place, for which you longed, seemed so unwanted. The fun, passion had all gone. It was curtains to the rat pack.

Looking back I feel like asking one day more of such a life. Maybe even more. But such things can never be duplicated. Quite sadly, all good things have to come to an end.

They say you live your life in a heartbeat. Maybe it’s true. It’s that one heartbeat in the midst of a million heartbeats that makes this life worthwhile.

I just don’t have words to express how much I miss all these beautiful people. I know that I’m not the nicest person around, so if I ever have hurt you guys knowingly or unknowingly, please forgive me. And I wish all of them very best on the roads that they have chartered for themselves. I think I would leave it here; my eyes are getting a li’l moist. So long!!

Kannadigas to Canadians

2007-04-12T11:45:00.000+05:30

There goes a popular joke when it comes to South Indians and their “love” towards their language. That when you hear 2 people conversing in Telugu you know that they are from AP. When you hear 2 people conversing in Tamil you know that they are Tamilians. When you hear 2 people conversing in Malayalam you know that they are Keralites. But when you hear 2 people conversing in English, yes, your guess is as good as mine, they are Kannadigas.

It puzzles me quite a lot. Why is it so?

I have stayed in Pune for 2 years, where Marathi is the local language. Seldom have I have come across 2 locals conversing in Hindi, leave alone English. Even in the office it would be Marathi most of the times. My PL would be speaking in English with me and when the PM joins in, they would hit off in Marathi, and switching would continue for the rest of the time.

In Bangalore, you will find, even speaking statistically, the majority is of non-kannadigas. You will find that most of them stick to their native language, barring kannadigas. Once one of my friend had traveled with me to Bangalore. We got down at the airport and went near the rickshaw stand. There was a Traffic police constable taking down the details of the individual before boarding the auto. I just went up to him and asked “Sir, Majesticge hogabeku”, to which he replied, mind you in these exact words “What is your name? Do you have any luggage”. I continued asking in kannada and he continued answering in English. I just looked at my friend and she was in total disbelief, more so because she is a north-Indian and they tend to have a notion that south-Indians are madraasis. And we all know how it works in Tamil Nadu when it comes to their vernacular. Well, everybody here (B’lore) speaks English and its not that I’m complaining.

When I was just thinking over, I stumbled upon a few things which could be good reasons for this. With the large influx of non-kannada speaking people, given the very accommodating nature of people here, started to speak in a language that they could understand. This persevered into their general speaking and has made a place hence. Another reason is the way things are at home. I had been to a friend’s house the other day and all they spoke was English. I met one of their neighbor’s kids and that 4 yr old was speaking such good English. And yes, his parents were speaking only in English with them. Some people, no matter whatever broken English they are speaking, do so, because they believe that it enhances their “status”. Some are so adamant that they refuse to speak in Kannada even though it’s absolutely required. Like a few days ago, I read that some kid was lost in the crowd at big mall and the authorities refused to make an announcement in Kannada!! Even though the parents were saying that the boy doesn’t understand English!! It’s utterly utterly preposterous. And the rest who do speak Kannada, it more or less sounds like Kanglish at its best. I have a very bad feeling that Kannada is soon going to be totally effed! (Please excuse my language).

The silver hair generation says that it’s the lack of pride and passion in people’s minds that is taking away the beauty of a language that is as good as any other. No matter whatever reasoning was done above over the fate of our language, I somewhere tend to accept what the oldies are saying is more rational.

When I was typing ‘Kannadigas’ in the above paragraphs, that word was getting underlined in green, meaning that there could be a spelling mistake. When I right-clicked on it, the first alternate word that was suggested was ‘Canadians’.

Do I need to say more?

Are you a racist?

2007-04-09T09:39:00.000+05:30

No, Iam not. Yes, Iam afraid Iam one.

Most of the dictionaries would describe a racist as “A person with a prejudiced belief that one race is superior to others”. After all that we heard from the Mel Gibsons, Jade Goodys, and Michael Richards’ made the world sit up and call them racists.

But, sometimes it makes me wonder, who isn’t?

In my opinion everyone is a racist at some level or the other. It resides in the minds of each and everyone, which is a direct result of the superiority we want to feel over the other person. A white looks down on a black, a black looks down on an Asian, an Asian looks inside and finds someone among them to look down on and so on. So it does make you feel that it might be an irrevocable part of every human.

Lookin’ at this from an Indian perspective, makes you ask, where do we stand? I sincerely feel we are no different from anyone in the world when it comes to racism. It’s just that we do it at different level. A North-Indian looks down on a South-Indian, a Kannadiga looks down on a Tamilian, a Tamilian thinks he is the most superior of all the South-Indians and the ‘looking-down’ chain continues.

We were all very agitated about the Jade “Not-So-Good” Goody’s racial slur on Shilpa Shetty. But come to think of it, it just seems hypocritical to me.

So where does the buck stop?

The IITs And The IIMs

2007-04-05T12:19:00.000+05:30

We all know the IITs and the IIMs have the best to offer when it comes to Engineering and Management education in India. I want to set a backdrop before I express my share of opinion about them.

The IITs were created to train scientists and engineers, with the aim of developing a skilled workforce to support the economic and social development of India after independence in 1947. The first IIT was established in 1956 in Kharagpur after the Parliament of India passed the IIT Act, declaring it as an “Institute of National Importance”. These institutes offer education in “cutting edge technology” at a very subsidized rate.

The first IIM was established in 1961 at Ahmedabad to cater to the nation’s requirement of management professionals who would help to catapult India onto the world stage. Again the IIMs are completely financed by the central GOI.

The very institutes that were started for the economic and social good of India started to witness the phenomenon of “Brain Drain”. This was mostly attributed to our country not being able to provide “good job” opportunities. And the big winner in all this was the US. They were getting brilliant minds that were educated in India at the expense of our tax payer’s money. The whole purpose of starting these esteemed institutes was lost. It must have been really frustrating. One positive way to look at it would be look at the money they helped to bring in to our country as foreign investments.

But the situation has changed now after the liberalization policies post 1990s. People are willing to stay back and do something here. People are ready to give up high paying jobs to start their own ventures.

The only way of consoling ourselves at things that happened in the past, is by looking at the kind of work that these guys did which has helped in certain aspects of changing people’s lives and making a difference to humanity in general.

Explore.Dream.Discover.

2007-04-04T19:32:00.000+05:30

I read a couple of wonderful quotes and here they are:

Dreams pass into the reality of action. From the action stems the dream again; and this interdependence produces the highest form of living.

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bow lines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dreams. Discover.

Confessions of a Confused Mind

2006-10-17T19:58:00.000+05:30

“Hang in there”…”keep trying”…”shit happens”…”whatever happens, happens for good”…Have you heard these before or have they fallen on your wax-filled ears before? If you have been hearing this for sometime now, it means, you are pretty much screwed. Unless you take it by the scruff of the neck or get real lucky, its gonna reamain pretty much the same.

I am not trying to be cynical here. Nor am I saying that all the people are phonies. I might be just speaking out of confusion and frustration. I feel saturated. I am beginning to lose patience. But they say patience is virtue. Am I in a David Lynch movie? Am I listening to Crackity Jones?

To get what you want, all you need is a strong will and a “burning” desire. Well, at least that was what I thought. It’s worked like that to me till now. But now, there are other things like fate, destiny, luck, project managers, fat guys intervening. I don’t know how to take care of them. Or do I need to just wait & watch till time takes its toll. The other day someone told me to just “hang in there, it will happen in time”. I wish I were a simian or something.

How do I alter my luck or fate? Some great person said that the harder he tried, the luckier he got. I would love to believe this. Some others say that they can’t be altered. It’s written by the One, GOD. In my current situation, I would really love to see the script. I don’t remember the last time I went to a temple. Its not that I don’t believe in GOD or anything. I don’t accept the fact that I am not in control of the things in my life. One thing I believe is in Karma. I believe everybody gets only just about what he deserves. Of late, it has made me think whether this is what I deserve? If yes, why? If no, why not?

I struggle to find answers to a lot of questions. Do the answers lie with me? Oh! No, not another question.

Those 2 SMSs

2006-10-13T14:26:00.000+05:30

I, for one, isn’t into the phenomenon of SMSing. Well, I have my own reasons for that. Iam also not the one who likes these “mushy” and “syrupy” SMS forwards. Neither very keen on the last joke made on a Sardar.

But, sometime ago I received a couple of SMSs that I really liked. They were long, yet simple and true to the core. The first one goes something like this:

Have you ever wondered what is college life about…its about the firsts for so many.. the first Independence, the first bike, the first cell, the first night out, the first crush, the first girl friend, the first kiss, the first break up, the first smoke, the first vodka, the first debonair, the first project, the first call letter, the first look of pride in parents’ eyes, the first feeling of responsibility, the first of so many and then finally the last of goodbyes.

The second one is:

Those “night outs”, those “midnight teas”, those “birthday bumps”, those “old torn jeans”, that same “rasam”, those “late night walks”, those “mother’s pickles” and that fight for them. Those “struggle for marks”..”fight with teachers”..”tears for love”..Those “B grade movies”..Those “plea for placements”..Just everything ..That’s college life..We call it “heaven”.. We are Engineers..

College life and more so our Engineering life, just couldn’t have been put in a better way. I think it takes 3 SMSs to make this one long message. But, hey! What the heck!

Things People Do (@Tech M)

2006-10-12T13:23:00.000+05:30

And how…

I’ve been working in this company for a couple of years now. In this time I’ve come across many things that have made me question the very existence of the social human behavior (leave alone the core of it!), after all the corporate “etiquette” classes you have been through. Each and every time my patience has been put to test and some times to rest. Wish I had a Barretta to deal with them or something. Here is an account of them.

1. How lifts work

There are 2 arrow buttons besides a lift. In normal human behavior, the UP arrow is pressed when you want to go up and the DOWN arrow when you want to go down. Hey! But wait. In our company it works the other way around. Lifts get filled at the zeroth floor (mind you, the canteen is in this floor) on its way to the –1 level. So when the lift actually comes down, the only thing the people who do not have enough space to get in, manage is, a sheepish smile. Leave alone the silver-hair generation, the 20 somethings find it difficult to climb 3-4 floors.
The crowd on the zeroth floor is so much that when you come out of the lift, you will feel that there is some kinda mob war going on. You are not even given a chance to make a graceful exit. If you don’t get out in 0.27secs, chances are, you might get a free “lift”!
And they have to speak loudly inside the lift. A guy at the back is trying to “communicate” to the one in front in a crowded lift, redefining the means of communication. This is especially attributed to a certain clan(You know-who) of people. Miss the Barretta.

2. The Canteen Line

If you ever wanted to see a human chain championing their own cause, you should visit our company’s canteen. Actually this is not the point. The guy who is standing behind you for his rozi-roti has to be stuck on you. You can take me quite literally here. So much so that he is on your back like a bethaal (Vikram & Bethaal fame) or something.
The people have to take 2 spoons, although they will never use the “other”. They have to take a plate and hold it in their hands before their turn has actually come.

3. Personal Space

They have to outstretch their arms without seeing if you are invading someone’s space. Forget invading, sometimes you are lucky not to suffer a serious nose blow. Please feel free to do so, but not in the canteen please. Not in such a crowded place where you can actually lose your brother or sister!

4. Telephone Etiquette

Sounds like one of the boring workshops to attend. But, believe me you will be much happier when the people around you have indeed attended this workshop.
They have to speak loudly, be it with the client, mom, dad, friend, girl friend, cousin, cousin’s friend, and the credit card company, oblivious to the fact that there are people around who are pretending to work. When you are doing so your mobile has to ring or sing nowadays. Now they have to stair at the no. for a zillion years before they actually answer it, much to the relief of the people who are still pretending to work. Some people feel so much home at work that when they are on the phone, their divine feet are on the desk. Much like Mr.Bachchan in Deewar. The Barretta, still missing.

N.B. Please excuse Ayhay. He is born with a Dolby Digital Surround System in his throat.

5. Chair Theft

Fact, Chairs have wheels. So they can be moved from one place to another. One guy comes to meet the other. The chair of the guy, who has gone to the canteen to irritate me with his flexing and bethaal antics, becomes the victim. Another fact: chairs can travel cubicles, bays and if your fortuneteller has told you that your bad luck is really bad, it might have travelled wings. Truth is Iam also guilty of this. Tell me, who doesn’t like sitting?

6. The Parking

There are lines neatly drawn out in the parking area. But they can’t seem to stick to the boundaries. They have to put it out of the “boxes” right onto the “highway”, not even aware of the inconvenience that might be causing.

7. The ATM

They go into the ATM room, and draw money. I go into the ATM room and draw money. You go into the ATM and draw money. Difference is "they" take a mini statement, change their pin, take a mini statement of the ERA a/c, try to make card-to-card transfer and do not come out till all the items given in the menu are tried out. And then draw their money, the primary motive. All this, when there are people “urgently” waiting outside to get some money. Missing a Barretta, pretty badly.

My grievances are not just this much. This is only an initial draft. When the final draft comes out I’ll be ready with a gun!!

An Inconvenient Truth

2006-10-11T19:58:00.000+05:30

Global Warming might seem like an age-old topic to write or read about. This subject crossed my head when I was reading about a book written by the former US Vice-President Al Gore and a debate going on with one of my friend. The book, An Inconvenient Truth has also been made to an eponymous titled movie.

Though the phenomenon of global warming was taken lightly initially, it has gained momentum in the last few years. A decade ago when I first had heard about this and made a trip to one my libraries looking for abstracts, I could barely find one in the journals. But today an Internet search on this subject finds a million pages. The subject has become deep rooted in public consciousness now, as much as Madonna or Gay rights are, at least in a few countries.

Perhaps all this attention is deserved. With the possible exception of another world war (N.Korea & Iran willing!), a giant asteroid, or an incurable plague, global warming may be the single largest threat to our planet. For decades human factories and cars have spewed billions of tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, and the climate has begun to show some signs of warming. Many see this as a harbinger of what is to come. If we don’t curb our greenhouse emissions, then low-lying nations could be awash in seawater, rain and drought patterns across the world could change, hurricanes could become more frequent, and El Niño’s could become more intense.

An international organization which gathers a wide range of research results from around the world as a basis for predictions on climate change, made a very grave forecast in 2001: compared to 1990, the average temperature in 2100 would rise by 1.4 to 5.8 °C, while sea levels would rise by 9 to 88 cm. In order to avert this situation, the Kyoto Protocol, which imposes reductions in emissions of greenhouse gases and other measures came into force in February 2005. In this way, Japan and other countries around the world are working to reduce emissions of Greenhouse gases. But the US of A which is the primary contributor of CO2 to the atmosphere, has not signed this owing to its effect on the economy.

Instead of blaming others, lets see how each one of us can contribute, in a small but effective way. So, here are the 10 things to do from An Inconvenient Truth.

1. Change a light

Replacing one regular light bulb with a compact fluorescent light bulb will save 150 pounds of CO2 a year.

2. Drive less

Walk, bike, carpool or tale mass transit more often. You’ll save one pound of CO2 for every mile you don’t drive!

3. Recycle More

You can save 2400 pounds of CO2 per year by recycling just half of your household waste.

4. Check your tires

Keeping your tires inflated properly can improve gas mileage by more than 3%. Every gallon of gasoline saved keeps 20 pounds of CO2 out of atmosphere!

5. Use less hot water

It takes a lot of energy to heat water. Use less hot water by installing a low flow showerhead (350 pounds of CO2 saved per year) and washing your clothes in cold or warm water (500 pounds saved per year)

6. Avoid products with a lot of packaging

You can save 1200 pounds of CO2 if you cut down your garbage by 10%.

7. Adjust your thermostat

Moving your thermostat just 2 degrees in winter and up 2 degrees in summer. You can save 200 pounds of CO2 a year with this simple adjustment.

8. Plant a tree

A single tree will absorb one ton of CO2 over its lifetime,

9. Turn off your electronic devices

Simply turning off your television, DVD player, Stereo, Computer when you’re not using them will save you thousands of pounds of CO2 a year.

10. Finally, spread the word

The above things are just a small effort for a bigger cause, a greener planet and a safer future.

My 10 Favorite Hollywood Flicks

2006-10-10T20:40:00.000+05:30

Seems like everybody is making their lists of “Bests”. So even I thought of putting in a list of the best “crap” I’ve watched in the last few years on the silver screen and my experiences with them. I have tried to put them chronologically. So here it is.

1. Gone With The Wind

You might remember this movie best for its poster, Rhett holding Scarlett. Probably the longest movie I’ve watched apart from The Ten Commandments and Ben-Hur, I think. The movie rambles on for 4 VCDs. At the end of the movie you are like “Frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn”. Thankfully the hero of the movie says it for you. Just Kiddin'!!!
The movie is based on the novel by Margaret Mitchell. The movie is about a rebellious woman Scarlett and her relations with her friends, family and her lovers set during the American Civil War. The movie is best to watch if you have the patience and the tenacity to hold up till the end. I personally feel such classics mean more when you watch them in one go. The above line is like the most memorable one ever said on the silver screen.

2. Citizen Kane

I watched this movie on my brother’s advice. I hunted for this movie in Video libraries, before I bought it. I was told that this one is like the “greatest movie ever made” in the history of Hollywood. Trust me when you are done watching it, you might just agree with them. I know, I did.
This movie is allegedly based on the life of newspaper magnate William Hearst. The protagonist (Kane) of the movie is a megalomaniac, who truly loves nothing, but power. Because of which he dies as a lonely recluse. This movie swept the Oscars and made Orson Welles a force to reckon.

3. Psycho

Watch this movie and you will fretter the next you step into the shower. That’s the genius of Alfred Hitchcock. This movie is based on a novel by Robert Bloch. But the kind of impact the movie has is incredible. Psycho is often seen as a path-breaking movie with an amazing storytelling and an even more amazing photography. The scene on the stairs is still fresh in my memories. The way the camera is moved in this scene is totally innovative for those times.
The movie is about a mentally disturbed hotel proprietor, Norman Bates and a secretary whom he kills in his motel. Psycho like any other Hitchcock Classic is timeless.

4. The Godfather

This is an adaptation of a novel by Mario Puzo of the same name. Just as the book revolutionized the literary world, the movie doesn’t fall short of its impact on the world of motion pictures. I can’t think of a movie, which has been made as good as the novel itself. This coupled with Marlon Brando’s acting, just leaves you in awe.
As a kid I remember my father and brother watching this and I had fallen asleep. Well, I was 10 then. Mafia didn’t mean more to me than a word of 5 letters! The movie is about a fictitious mafia family in New York. People say that its sequel is the best sequel ever. But I have my doubts with all due respect to Al Pacino’s acting. Quite naturally Brando won an Oscar for his acting that year.
The musical score sums up the “coldness” in the movie.

5. One Flew Over Cuckoo’s Nest

This movie is again an adaptation of an eponymous novel by Ken Kesey. This is easily Jack “Genius” Nicholson’s best performance on screen. His acting leaves you as insane as himself.
Randle McMurphy is a pretty criminal who declares himself insane to get into a mental institution to spend the rest of his life in comfort (comparatively). Apart from Jack’s insane act, the best I remember of the movie is a character that he calls “Chief”. A must watch for all J.Nicholson’s fans. This movie swept the Oscars winning in all 5 major categories.

6. Forrest Gump

This movie again like any other movie mentioned above is an adaptation of a novel. The movie was a brilliant commercial success. Tom Hanks delivers a very memorable performance. He surely is one of the best actors of our times. I watched this movie on TV, a couple of years after its release, and was totally blown away by the direction and acting.
The film tells the story of a simple man's epic journey through life, meeting historical figures and experiencing first-hand historic events while largely unaware of their significance, due to his low IQ of 75. The visual effects of Forrest meeting the historical figures is amazing.

7. The Shawshank Redemption

I have already written enough about this movie in my previos posts.

8. Braveheart

This is one of the movies which really inspired me as a kid. I didn’t like it when I watched it the first time(again with my brother), since it was a period movie. But when I watched it a few years later, I really admired it.
Braveheart is loosely based on the life of William Wallace, a freedom fighter of Scotland. The movie opens with the line “I shall tell you of William Wallace. Historians from England will say I am a liar, but history is written by those who have hanged heroes." Mel Gibson’s acting is simple comendable but he won an Oscar for his directing skills. The last scene is the most memorable one for me from this movie. He would be brought to a public square fro execution. Refusing the taunts of the executioner to accept subjectivity to the king, he yells his last word, "Freedom!”.

9. The Matrix

Put all sci-fi movies on one side and put Matrix on the other. This can be easily called the most influential path breaking action movie of our times. So much so that it got Malashri doing a Trinity in a Kannada movie !! I still remember watching the promo of The Matrix on US Top 10. I saw Neo dodging the bullets. I just looked at my brother in disbelief.

The film describes a future world in which the Matrix is an artificial reality created by sentient machines in order to pacify, subdue and make use of the human population as an energy source by growing them and connecting them to the Matrix with cybernetic implants. A must watch for all the geeks and to all those who “felt” there was something wrong with this world.

10. Gladiator

Never thought a movie in which a hero is wearing a skirt would become an all-time favorite to me!
Russel Crowe’s acting is nothing short of breathtaking. The director Ridley Scott’s effort of recreating the images of Rome and the amphitheatre is plaudable. This is one of those movies which you would like instantaneously. The dialogue delivery of Crowe is amazing. The scene in which he walks down to reveal his identity to Commodus is the high-point of the movie. A must watch to all Russel Crowe’s fans and to all those who aren’t his fans yet!!

When I was making this list there were many movies, I felt bad to have left out. But I guess this is what happens to any movie buff who goes to make a list of his “Bests”.

My Brother, Kiran

2006-10-06T22:07:00.000+05:30

Iam the kinda of person who doesn’t get influenced by people around. There have a very few people who have been able to do so. My brother has been the biggest one.

I have grown up with my brother for the better part of my Life till now. I can say that growing up with my brother has been very good, with a certain sense of satisfaction.

We were like any other brothers growing up together. Except, not actually.

The brawls, the fun, the camaraderie (at times!), the expectations from parents, teachers to match my brother in Academia (failing miserably), my own expectations to match my brother in sports (failing miserably, again), stealing snacks from kitchen, getting posters for “my side” of the wall, making missile launchers with a piece of wood and 3 nails, playing cricket, squash, T.T. as soon as mom n dad would go out of the house, yes sir, we had it all.

When I was growing up I had this habit of aping anything he would do. I tried to dress like him, used to wrap my books the same way, putting a sticker on it, arranging the books in the bag, arranging the paraphernalia inside the “geometry” box, folding the handkerchief, placing it in the pocket, keeping money in the pocket, parking the bi-cycle and many more minute things that I can’t remember now. So much so that, I used to try to play soccer with my left-foot predominantly than my right one and ended on my backside once! Somewhere I feel that I even used to try to think like him.

The movies he watched, the soaps he watched, were also religiously watched by me. I still remember many movies that I made fun of when he used to watch, but have become my all-time favorite ones after he made me watch them like Forrest Gump, Braveheart, The Shawshank Redemption, The Wonder Years and so on.

After the formative years like above, things changed. He went to college in a different city but used to come home on weekends. We used to speak at length about his friends, college, people, life and so on and so forth. We would go up to 3AM in the morning at times. I can’t actually remember what we spoke, but it was a lot of fun and education. I simply would love it. This continued even after he begun working. Even to-date Iam all ears whenever he says something about profession, life and just about anything.

It’s been a long time now that he left abroad and hasn’t come back even once. I hope to seem him soon someday and maybe catch with all the things of the past. Of course it would be difficult because we are all “grown up” now. But I hope we will connect.

And yes, will try to ape some more…Thank You, Brother…For Everything...

The Shawshank Redemption

2006-10-06T17:18:00.000+05:30

I watched the movie The Shawshank Redemption for the millionth time. And I can tell you that I can watch it a zillion times more. The difference was, this time I watched it on my Sony PSP. Small screen Big effect!!

The Shawshank Redemption is based on a Stephen King novella Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption. It’s basically a prison drama, but much different from anything else you might have seen, about how to live your day-to-day life in desperately difficult times.

I still distinctly remember the first time I watched this movie ages ago. My brother had knocked on my head and had made me watch this movie, when I actually wanted to watch Lethal Weapon!

It's simple to say The Shawshank Redemption is about hope, but it is also about faith and love. The movie is primarily about two characters Andy Dufresne and Ellis "Red" Redding. The beauty of the movies lies in the contrasting lives of Andy and Red. One is very enigmatic and hopeful and the other is hopelessly hopeless. In spite of their contrasting attitudes they connect well. The acting is just top notch from both of them. Particularly Freeman’s acting is exceptional. His performance is so unshowy that it goes totally unoticed, but it’s the soul and “voice” of Shawshank.

In 1946, a banker named Andy Dufresne is convicted of a double murder, even though he stubbornly proclaims his innocence. He's sentenced to a life term at the Shawshank State Prison in Maine, where another lifer, Ellis "Red" Redding, picks him as the new recruit most likely to crack under the pressure. The ugly realities of prison life are quickly introduced to Andy: a corrupt warden, sadistic guards led by Capt. Byron, and inmates who are little better than animals, willing to use rape or beatings to insure their dominance. But Andy does not crack: he has the hope of the truly innocent, which (together with his smarts) allow him to prevail behind bars. He uses his banking skills to win favor with the warden and the guards, doing the books for Norton's illegal business schemes and keeping an eye on the investments of most of the prison staff. In exchange, he is able to improve the prison library and bring some dignity and respect back to many of the inmates, including Red. Finally he escapes from the prison with no clue left behind. Red and Andy are united at the end of the movie after the former is paroled.

After the movie is over it makes you look back and wonder. The film is not actually about prison life. Shawshank is indeed the name of a prison and most of the movie is within prison walls and about a warden, guards, and inmates. But they are just side notes to the symphony about friendship, loyalty and most prominently “Hope”. This explains the title’s allusion to Redemption.

The memorable surprises in the film are only the icing on a carefully crafted cake. When the director spins the story upside down, it is only after we have invested our hearts and minds into these characters. Only later do we realize the plot has underlined the emotions all the while. We squeal with delight and hope as the movie folds. We feel compelled to rewind and watch it all again.

On second visits you will find insights into a plethora of nuances that crave discovery-minute expressions and missed dialogue often not caught in the first viewing. You will experience this each and every time you watch it. And every time you watch, Andy and Red’s redemption warms our hearts. Their continuing ability to hope, spontaneously rubs on us.

The last few lines of the movie just waltzes you away.

Sure I remember the name. Zihuatanejo. A name like that is just too pretty to forget.
I find I am excited, so excited I can hardly hold the pencil in my trembling hand. I think it is the excitement that only a free man can feel, a free man starting a long journey whose conclusion in uncertain.
I hope Andy is down there.
I hope I can make it across the border.
I hope to see my friend and shake his hand.
I hope the Pacific is as blue as it has been in my dreams.
I hope.

This movie gives a fresh lease of life to anyone who has lost hope. So lets “Get busy living or get busy dying”.

Champions

2006-09-12T16:09:00.000+05:30

A champion (identical to the French, from the late Latin campio) is one who has repeatedly come out first among contestants in challenges (especially the winner of a tournament or other competition) or other test, one who is outstandingly skilled in their field.

Over the last weekend I witnessed 3 champions in their own rights and fields. Martina Navaratilova, Micheal Schumacher and Roger Federer.

Martina, born in Czech Republic, winner of 18 Grand Slam Single titles, 41 Grand Slam Doubles titles, 9 Wimbledon titles and the indisputably the greatest female tennis player of all time.

Michael, born in Germany, 7 is the number of F1 world championships, 90 is the number of races he has won and by sheer weight of numbers alone, the greatest F1 Driver ever.

Roger, born in Switzerland, winner of 9 Grand Slam titles, 11 Masters titles, and the present world No.1 in men’s tennis by a distance and practically a “living legend”.

One thing is sure; you don’t become a champion overnight!! Many factors go into making a champion. Firstly they have goals and missions, coupled with a burning desire for success and a great motivation to turn their dreams into reality. But it’s not merely wanting to become the best, but certainly goes beyond that.

No champion is alike in having the same set of characters to win. Every champion has a different reason, which propels him towards the goal. Wilma Rudolph, who astonished the world with her running abilities by winning three gold medals in the 1960s Olympic games, was born with a childhood disease that forced her to wear a special leg brace until she was 11. She said, "My first goal was to get rid of that ugly shoe and walk and run like the other kids." When she discovered she had talent, she wanted to be the best, but didn't dream she would become the best in the world. The great diver, Greg Loganis, had a similar childhood problem. Mary Lou Retton admitted that she wouldn't have become a champion without her coach. Some have fought back excruciating pain to win. For Mark Spitz, it was mostly pride and fear that brought him to seven goal medals at the Munich Olympic games.

There is so much we can learn from these champs, which can help us to become a “champion” in our own rights. We can implement some of these qualities in our professional lives; instill them in our peers and subordinates and build better organizations. We must be willing to forgo temporal pleasures to achieve a more worthwhile goal.

Martina and Michael may have bid adieu, but their legends will live forever…

The American Dream

2006-05-25T18:13:00.000+05:30

Growing up watching Hollywood movies I heard the actors allusion to ‘Living the American Dream’. It took me some time to actually understand it. You ever wondered what the ‘American Dream’ is about?

The American Dream is a dream of success, fame and wealth achieved in the United States of America. It's thought to be achievable by "hard work, courage, and determination", or by "getting rich quick" The concept often involves moving upward in the social classes, and may involve icons such as car, house, partner and pet!

The concept of the American dream has had its share of criticsm from many writers and economists. The main criticism is that it is misleading. These critics say that, for various reasons, it simply is not possible for everyone to become prosperous through determination and hard work alone. The consequences of this belief can include the poor feeling that it is their fault that they are not successful.

Today I saw a person living the American Dream. It was Taylor Hicks, winner of American Idol Season 5.

American Idol, formally known as American Idol: The Search for a Superstar, is an American television show. It is a replica of the UK show Pop Idol, a singing talent contest to determine the best "undiscovered" young singer in the country.

The winner gets the title of ‘American Idol’ of course, a 5-album major record deal with Sony BMG, a summer concert tour and a track on the season’s compilation album. ufffff!!!

In the show, hosted by Ryan Seacrest, hopeful contestants are screened by preliminary panels to be selected for singing talent or humorous potential and human interest. Those who pass the prelims are potentially aired on the show. They then audition before the three main judges - Simon Cowell (one of the judges from Pop Idol), Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson - in selected cities across the United States.

I started watching American Idol just to hear the comments of Simon Cowell. His acerbic style of judging, hard to please personality was a major reason for this show becoming popular. Cowell's fame (or infamy) grew, fed by his deliberately insincere signature phrase, "I don't mean to be rude, but …". The best part was in one of the episodes when a contestant said, he has a “personality”, to which Simon replied “You have personality!! Dogs have personality!!”. This paragraph is a misfit in this post, but that’s how much I enjoyed it!!

Watching the show over for a few weeks, I was amazed by the kind of hard work that the contestants put into singing. And the kind of consistency required to come out tops is simply amazing amidst such competition. You falter once, you can pretty much expect to be voted out by the american audience, who vote in millions every week.
After 4 months of intense competition, Taylor Hicks, a guy from the Birmingham city of Alabama won the competition. He finished with his arms in the air, eyes closed, singing “Iam living the American Dream”…….

Yes, even I want to live such a Dream...

Faith v/s Rationality

2006-05-20T17:09:00.000+05:30

I lost the race of who would watch the movie ‘The Da Vinci Code’ first, to Rupa. Not that it was any of my mistake, you understand!!

Apparently the movie has run into a controversy in India like in many other nations. But here, its come to the brink of being banned. If it happens so I would be disappointed, so would be a lot of people.

So what is the ‘Da Vinci Code’ all about? I haven’t read the book myself, but going by what I have read in the newspapers, it’s about the notion of Christianity’s Holy Grail being more than a chalice from which Jesus drank at the Last Supper. It’s about a premise that Jesus married Mary Magdalene and produced children, whose descendants are alive today. The Holy Grail is the metaphorical portrayal of Mary Magdalene. This is vehemently protested by parts of the Roman Catholic Church. So, the government has asked the sensor board to have a second look.

Later it was decided that the movie would be released with an ‘A’ certificate and a disclaimer that the movie is a part of fiction. To this neither the producers, Sony Pictures nor the director, Ron Howard is ready to agree.

Of all the Christianity following nations in the world, I don’t think the producers would have expected such protests from a country like us. But when it comes to religion, people get a little ‘touchy’ about things. For Christ’s sake, it’s just a goddamn movie. If it wasn’t for all this controversy, people would have just watched the movie and completely forgotten about it. Going to the extent of banning it, would only make it look like ‘The Forbidden Fruit’.

Of the 2% of the Christians living in this country, I guess not more that 5% of the 2% would have watched the movie. And I don’t think the faith of Christianity in them is so poor that watching a fictional tale would shake their beliefs. In fact, the Vatican and even Opus Dei (the targeted sect in the movie) don’t seem to have any problem with the movie. 36 countries have reviewed this film and not banned it, so are we just coming out of Stone Age?

Is Christianity a conspiracy? Is “The Da Vinci Code” a dangerous, anti-Christian hoax? What’s up with Tom Hanks’s hair (the Japanese PM loved it)? Frankly, I don’t care. Public memory is very short. After a few months nobody would even remember what the fuss was all about. In a secular country like ours, where the government has to appease everyone, the release of this movie does hang by the Damocles’ sword. Then I wouldn’t be left with any other choice than to “unlock the code” in the print version!!

And I Don't Want to be Alone...

2006-05-17T02:42:00.000+05:30

Loneliness is about the scariest thing out there.
- Joss Whedon (Creator of Buffy)

Loneliness is and always has been the central and inevitable experience of every man.
- Thomas Wolfe

My heart is a gypsy - continuously searching for a home, fighting within itself, wondering whether it is weak or even right for that matter to be searching in the first place. Lonliness is what it feels like...
- Jenna Jameson

This is what some great people have to say about loneliness….And I’ll tell you I know what exactly they are talking about and I know so do you .

One morning you get up and the person you wish see the most is not there…you are scared...you look for a way out desperately...the harder you try, the tougher it becomes...Bang!! Lonliness hits...

In this mindset, you will be no longer able to enjoy the friendship, companionship you have. You feel like a mathematical anomaly; divided by two when alone and multiplied by three when at a social circle. Nothing feels right.

You go out just to put your mind to something else, only to fail miserably. The memories of the places you had been, the times you spent will play back and again. You just wish that this is a dream. You badly wish you wake up from your bed that very moment. Alas! Life’s not so fair.

The worst part of feeling this loneliness is that you start to feel that you are alone. There is a chain reaction of the thoughts. You start pitying yourself. I’ll tell you self pity is like the lousiest thought one should ever get.
It makes you weak. It destroys you.

There is just only one thought when you go to sleep, that tomorrow dawns a better day...where you don’t feel lonely or alone...

I'm on a wheel of fortune with a twist of fate

'Cause I know it isn't heaven, is it love or hate

Am I the subject of the pain

Am I the stranger in the rain

I am alone

And if there glory there to behold

Maybe it's my imagination

Another story there to be told

So I play, I'll wait

And I pray it's not too late

We came so far

Just a beat of a lonely heart

And it's mine

I don't want to be alone

Monty Python

2006-05-16T16:40:00.000+05:30

Monty Python, or The Pythons, is the collective name of the creators and stars of Monty Python’s Flying Circus, a British television comedy sketch show, started way back in 1969. I didn’t have a clue of who these guys are. On my recent visit to Mysore, one of my ol’ pals Prajwal gave me these 2 movies made by the pythons’ in the 70’s and promised me a good laugh. Knowin’ him for some time, I knew what kind of humour the movie had, only not exactly!!

The first one I watched was The Holy Grail.

This film is based on the King Arthur’s quest for the Holy Grail. It begins with these credits like any other movie, but very different. It has proper names at the top, but the below credit lines speak some very funny, strange, non-english lines which doesn’t make any sense. They apologise for the fault in the sub-titles only to goof up again. Read it..

We apologise for the fault in thesubtitles. Those responsible have beensacked.

Mynd you, m?bites Kan be pretty nasti...

We apologise again for the fault in thesubtitles. Those responsible for sackingthe people who have just been sacked,have been sacked.

The story begins with King Arthur (Graham Chapman) recruiting Knights of the Round Table throughout England. He is initially frustrated at his recruiting attempts several times eventually, he is joined by Sir Bedevere the Wise, Sir Lancelot the Brave, Sir Galahad called both the Chaste and the Pure Sir Robin the Not-Quite-So-Brave-As-Sir-Lancelot ,and the aptly named Sir Not-Appearing-In-This-Film (they show a baby dressed as a knight in a frame..)

Once assembled, the knights receive a quest from an animated version of God to find the Holy Grail. In their search, they encounter the perils of Castle Anthrax ,the Knights who say Ni (these guys really cracked me up!), a killer rabbit , and a gigantic cartoon monster, The Legendary Black Beast of Aaaargh. (They are saved when the animator suffers a fatal heart attack.) This reminded me of the joke that Chandler cracks in FRIENDS, that he doesn’t want to cry just because the cartoonist stopped drawing!! (when ‘Bambi’ dies).

The best part of the movies is when Arthur is at the bridge of death along with his accomplices. They are at this bridge guarded by this witch, whose 3 questions have to be answered to allow them to cross. This is what happens…

BRIDGEKEEPER: Stop! Who would cross the Bridge of Death must answer me these questions three, ere the other side he see.
LAUNCELOT: Ask me the questions, bridgekeeper. I am not afraid.
BRIDGEKEEPER: What... is your name?
LAUNCELOT: My name is 'Sir Launcelot of Camelot'.
BRIDGEKEEPER: What... is your quest?
LAUNCELOT: To seek the Holy Grail.
BRIDGEKEEPER: What... is your favorite color?
LAUNCELOT: Blue.
BRIDGEKEEPER: Right. Off you go.
LAUNCELOT: Oh, thank you. Thank you very much.
ROBIN: That's easy!
BRIDGEKEEPER: Stop! Who approacheth the Bridge of Death must answer me these questions three, ere the other side he see.
ROBIN: Ask me the questions, bridgekeeper. I'm not afraid.
BRIDGEKEEPER: What... is your name?
ROBIN: 'Sir Robin of Camelot'.
BRIDGEKEEPER: What... is your quest?
ROBIN: To seek the Holy Grail.
BRIDGEKEEPER: What... is the capital of Assyria?
[pause]
ROBIN: I don't know that! Auuuuuuuugh!
BRIDGEKEEPER: Stop! What... is your name?
GALAHAD: 'Sir Galahad of Camelot'.
BRIDGEKEEPER: What... is your quest?
GALAHAD: I seek the Grail.
BRIDGEKEEPER: What... is your favourite color?
GALAHAD: Blue. No, yel-- auuuuuuuugh!
BRIDGEKEEPER: Hee hee heh. Stop! What... is your name?
ARTHUR: It is 'Arthur', King of the Britons.
BRIDGEKEEPER: What... is your quest?
ARTHUR: To seek the Holy Grail.
BRIDGEKEEPER: What... is the air-speed velocity of an unladen swallow?
ARTHUR: What do you mean? An African or European swallow?
BRIDGEKEEPER: Huh? I-- I don't know that. Auuuuuuuugh!
BEDEVERE: How do know so much about swallows?
ARTHUR: Well, you have to know these things when you're a king, you know.

The film ends abruptly when a group of police from the 1970s interrupt the climactic battle scene to arrest Sir Lancelot for the murder of a "famous historian" very much like him earlier in the film. The Grail presumably is left in the hands of the Frenchmen in Castle Aaaargh…….

Amazingly the film was shot with a budget of $300,000 only, and even more amazingly, money was raised in part with donations from rock groups such as Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin. Worth a cause….

Now, the second one was Life of Brian.

Brian is born in the stable a few doors down from the one in which Jesus was born (a fact which initially confuses the three wise men come to praise him, as they must instead put up with his boorish mother Mandy...this was simply hilarious at the least). He grows up to be an idealistic young man who resents the continuing Roman occupation of Judea. While attending the Sermon on the Mount he becomes infatuated with an attractive young rebel, who persuades him to join one of the many fractious and bickering separatist movements plotting to strike at the Roman occupiers. His first assignment as a rebel is an attempt at scrawling some graffiti on the wall of the governor's palace. This succeeds beyond his wildest dreams when he is caught by a passing Roman guard who, in disgust at Brian's use of improper Latin grammar, reacts in a manner resembling that of an old-fasioned English grammar school teacher and forces him to copy out the 'correct' message one hundred times as 'punishment'. He ends up adorning the whole palace with his 'punishment'..this is worth a watch..

Unfortunately, a failed raid on the palace, a resulting series of unfortunate coincidences, and some meaningless babble recited as an attempt to avoid the Roman guards, leads a small army of people to come to regard Brian as the Messiah. Despite his best efforts to (a) convince people that this isn't the case and (b) try and use his influence to get people to embrace their individuality and not rely on authority figures (advice which is merely parrotted unthinkingly back at him), he is arrested, sentenced to death, crucified, and abandoned by anyone who could possibly help him. Still, got to "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life".

The scene in which Brian tries to drive away his ‘followers’ with his speech from the window is pretty interseting and funny.

Brian: 'Look, you've got it all wrong! You don't NEED to follow ME, you don't NEED to follow ANYBODY! You've got to think for yourselves! You're ALL individuals!'
The Crowd: 'Yes! We're all individuals!'
Brian: 'You're all different!'
The Crowd: 'Yes, we ARE all different!'
Man in crowd: 'I'm not...'
The Crowd: 'Shhhh!'

The song at the end of the movie, "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" is too gud and pretty true, with which eventually the movie ends with the crucified prisoners singing.

Cheer up, Brian. You know what they say.
Some things in life are bad.
They can really make you mad.
Other things just make you swear and curse.
When you're chewing on life's gristle,
Don't grumble. Give a whistle.
And this'll help things turn out for the best.
And...
Always look on the bright side of life.

If life seems jolly rotten,
There's something you've forgotten,
And that's to laugh and smile and dance and sing.
When you're feeling in the dumps,
Don't be silly chumps.
Just purse your lips and whistle. That's the thing.
And...
Always look on the bright side of life.

For life is quite absurd
And death's the final word.
You must always face the curtain with a bow.
Forget about your sin.
Give the audience a grin

Enjoy it. It's your last chance, anyhow.
So,...
Always look on the bright side of death,
Just before you draw your terminal breath.

Life's a piece of shit,
When you look at it.
Life's a laugh and death's a joke. It's true.
You'll see it's all a show.
Keep 'em laughing as you go.
Just remember that the last laugh is on you.
And...

I read somewheer that, ironically, this song was later re-released with great success, after being sung by British football fans. The increase in popularity, though, became evident in 1982 during the Falklands War when British sailors, injured in an Argentine attack, started singing it. Indeed, many people have come to see the song as a life-affirming ode to optimism.

Another interesting thing I read that the producer of the movie was George Harrison(ex-beatle). He especilally created “Handmade Films” just to produce this movie. George & many Brits apparently believed that The Pythons were the answer to Beatles in Comedy!!!

I heard there is one more to the series..The Meaning of Life. Prajwal willin’ I hope to complete the trilogy..

2006-04-10T15:14:00.000+05:30

The Unsent Letter

Dear Bambs,

These are the thoughts that cross my mind as you move away to bigger things in life. Like a flock of homesick cranes flying back to their mountain nests, we are all pilgrims on life’s journey. We keep journeying, never arriving. There is always a further bend along the road to negotiate or another road to travel. I guess this uncertainty, is what inspires us when we wake up in the morning.

I read somewhere that there are many goodbyes, we have to say, before we can say our “eternal hello”. All along our journey we have to keep letting go: Of places, people and events. Some doors close, others open. Every transition in life is the closing of one door and the opening of another. But only the ones who are ready to walk through the “opened” door can see the “eternal sunshine”.

I sincerely believe that only few of us are prepared for life’s transitions. We try to cling to what seems an irrevocable part of us. But ultimately we let go, with all the pain going’ into a hiding somewhere in our hearts. Part of us is comfortable with it, but another part resists the inevitable, causing pain.

In an excerpt from the poem “Miles to Go”, Robert Frost says,

The Woods are lovely dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

Farewell Dear…..

2006-04-03T15:11:00.000+05:30

A Bigger House

Raghu left to UK on Sunday after 2 days of hectic "rolling" around all over the place. Now that he has gone there is a big void at home.

V5 is never the same without Ayhay a.k.a Imaan . Or for that matter even if anyone of the rest are missing. Such is the bond that has developed over the past 18 months. But, I guess somewhere you have to get used to the fact that nothing is permanent but change.

One of the songs by Byrds rings in my head in such a situation.

To everything, turn, turn, turn.
There is a season, turn, turn, turn.
And a time to every purpose under heaven.
A time to be born, a time to die.
A time to plant, a time to reap.
A time to kill, a time to heal.
A time to laugh, a time to weep.

Yes, its a season of changing times.....

2006-04-02T10:55:00.000+05:30

Being Cyrus

First Punch: Being Cyrus is a offbeat subject and very artistic and may not appeal to the masses.

Those who were fortunate enough to watch Spike Jones' "Being John Malkovich" may find subtle references to the Cyrus movie other than just the movie titles!!

The interesting thing about the movie is how it speaks in subtle meatphors. Several sequences are interconnected at the conclusion to give the audience a "ohh" and "AAHHH" in thier heads. The story uncovers in a very strange way with a few dream sequences interwoven in between. The background music and the story's ambient setting give a haunting feel.

Cyrus(Saif) walks into the Dinshaw household following an Ad to work as an apprentice to Dinshaw Sethna (Naseerudin Shah) in pottery and sculpting. During his stay at the Dinshaws', he develops an intimacy with Katy(Dimple), Dinshaw's wife, who apparently believes that she is married to a loser.

Dinshaw and Farukh(Bomman) are diametrically opposite brothers, who don't feel much for each other. Thier father lives with Farukh in a Parsi locality in Mumbai. While Farokh doesn't treat his father well, Cyrus tries to befriend the old man. This is when the threads in the story begin to connect together and you slowly get a hang of the game in Cyrus' mind.

Being Cyrus is directed by Homi Adjania, and is pretty good for a debut. The movie has some sure elements of Film Noir, and has a lot of quaint mysticism.

The acting of Bomman and the Police Inspector(???) adds a lot of humour(Black) to this much serious movie. Saif is brilliant in portraying Cyrus Mistry, but you might get turned off by a lot of hamming by Dimple.

The movie got a lot of cheer for a couple of dialogues in the theatre. One was when Saif quotes Leo Tolstoy " Every happy family resembles the other, and every unhappy family is unique in its own way" in the background at the dysfunctional family of the Dinshaw's. And the other is "When the game is over, the King and the pawns go into the same box".

The first half of the movie takes you on an enigmatic ride with a major twist setting in the second half. Even though the movie has very strong characters and a conclusion that catches you off guard, I felt the movie falters at the end. Frankly, I came out of the movie "Being Stupid" and hearing a lot of strange voices in my head!!!

Bottomline: It's a movie which won't let you rest in your seat. Being Cyrus is like entering someone's mind (Think Being John Malkovich) and watching his dreams, thoughts, fears and desires. Now you take your own call to watch the movie or not!!!

2006-03-29T20:28:00.000+05:30

Brokeback Mountain

I happened to watch a movie called Brokeback Mountain a few days ago..

Spoiler/Warning: Its a high-culture gay cowboy movie...

Wonder why I went 2 watch??....damn the Academy Awards, media hype,harsha-gokul etal....
The first hour of the movie was very dreary..(shorter than the usual screen, fellow watchers more keen on Aus v/s RSA tie, intimate scenes b/n jake n heath didn't help the cause ), but in the end, it turned out to be an excellent movie(read the conversation between jake n heath below).
In an extended opening act that the film later relies on, to deliver the crux of its emotional weight, Ennis (Ledger) and Jack (Gyllenhaal) find work on Brokeback Mountain and meet while shepherding sheep along its photogenic terrain (Rupa kept screaming "wallpapers" all the time). There a romance blossoms and a bond grows between them, though it is forced into the closet once the summer ends and their independent lives shuffle forward (guys made an animated huge sigh of relief in the hall!!).
Marriage and family soil the purity of their relationship although the pull each feels towards the other doesn't dwindle as the years roll by. .. . and ends in a rather anti-climax sorts.....
The last 40 minutes of the movie was worth all the pain of the initial 90 minutes.
There were 2 kinda of audiences that came out of the movie hall.
One group, had the satisfaction of watchin' a good old fashioned love story...(of any 2 ppl!!!) and the other wonderin' "How God..How??", summed up by 2 guy frnds tellin' each other that they have watched their last movie together...:)
As for me Iam a part of both the groups!!!!
This scene alone is worth the admission price...
Ennis Del Mar: I’m gonna tell you this one time, Jack fuckin’ Twist, an’ I ain’t foolin’. What I don’t know - all them things I don’t know - could get you killed if I come to know them. I mean it.Jack Twist: Yeah well try this one, and I’ll say it just once!Ennis Del Mar: Go ahead!Jack Twist: Tell you what, we coulda had a good life together! Fuckin’ real good life! Had us a place of our own. But you didn’t want it, Ennis! So what we got now is Brokeback Mountain! Everything’s built on that! That’s all we got, boy, fuckin’ all. So I hope you know that, even if you don’t never know the rest! You count the damn few times we have been together in nearly twenty years and you measure the short fucking leash you keep me on - and then you ask me about Mexico and tell me you’ll kill me for needing somethin’ I don’t hardly never get. You have no idea how bad it gets! I’m not you… I can’t make it on a coupla high-altitude fucks once or twice a year! You are too much for me Ennis, you sonofawhoreson bitch! I wish I knew how to quit you.Ennis Del Mar: [crying] Well, why don’t you? Why don’t you just let me be? It’s because of you that I’m like this! I ain’t got nothing… I ain’t nowhere… Get the fuck off me! I can’t stand being like this no more, Jack.
Jack Twist: God, I wish I knew how to quit you!Ennis Del Mar: Well, why don’t you?

Bottomline: Its not exactly a "cinema" sorta movie....but definitely watchable once...

2006-03-29T18:15:00.000+05:30

Ay - Hoi!!!

Trying to post a comment to Viky's blog and a little time off from work has brought me to the world of Blogs, the BLOGOSPHERE.

I feel blog offers you a descent outage to pour out the angst, cheer, disappointments and most of all gives you a chance to try your hand in writing!!!

So, Here I Go........