Cynical Musings :|

Happy Birthday !!

2011-08-23T11:43:00.000-07:00

Happy Bday to me..

I turn 29 today. Wow ! That's amazing. One short of 30. Am i any closer to my goals? Well.. No. Am i on the right track? Well.. Yes. Am i doing interesting things? Well.. Yes

Some good things happened in this year, met some awesome people, did a few new things, absolutely no progress in a few things and deterioration in a few. Learnt a great deal about myself in the past year. The year ahead? Well .. It's going to be look ahead basically. Look ahead in career, look ahead in life, build patience and bide for your time.

And am pretty sure my time under the stars would come. It's just a question of being patient and sticking it out.

Merry Xmas

2010-12-25T11:19:00.000-08:00

Her daughter came running to her - "Mummy, mummy.. Santa claus gifted me this". It was a beautiful penstand. But looked as though someone had repacked an old gift.

The shopping mall was very crowded. Last minute christmas shopping was always maddening. She always liked doing things in a calm and methodical way. But her hubby was her exact opposite. "No Fun without a bit of last minute hurry" - he silenced her always.

"Mummy, mummy.. Look Santa gifted me this" - this time it was her son. He was proudly holding on to a santa mask. Again looked old. She grinned at her son and selected a couple of dresses to try.

"Merry Christmas Madam" - Santa claus loudly chuckled and came near her. She expectantly put her hand out for a gift. The gift was a greeting card. She tucked it inside her hand bag and opened the card in the trial room.

It was the same card she had given him years ago. Now everything made sense to her - the penstand and the mask. She flipped the card and found a small post-it.

"Merry Xmas" - it read

Happy Birthday

2010-08-23T11:19:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday to me
Happy Birthday to me
Happy Birthday dear karthik
Happy Birthday to me !

As years roll by, tears get dry, u get reminded of all obstacles covered and hurdles yet to be mounted. The race so far has been conquered alone but would there be a need for a companion to run the remaining distance? Will it be this year or is it too early yet for the companion?

Past year has seen some happy moments, some moments of sheer frustration, many moments of loneliness and despair. Not all went to plan, some plans went awry, some went absolutely right but broadly am in the right direction. With this hope, i head into new year with renewed spirit of optimism, hope and CHEER! (Hopefully less CHEER's!)

The Second Auto

2010-04-08T11:14:00.000-07:00

"Platform Number 1 ki local 7:35 ke Belapur jaane wale dheemi local hai" - she stepped out of the crowded local and pushed her way through the crowd.

"I love Mumbai city, but hate the crowd. Why should every place be so crowded" - she remembered how her ex-boy friend always hated the city and locals for its crowd. "Well this is not your small town. Yeh hai Mumbai meri jaan" - she proudly told him as they usually hurried to catch a auto rickshaw in sharing.

The auto in sharing was an entirely different animal compared to the local. It was always a demand - supply mismatch during the peak hour outside the station. This resulted in all sorts of competition where people tried to push their way into the auto. "In India, you have to compete for every seat - ranging from college seat, MLA seat to an auto seat" - he always muttered to her as they jostled their way into a auto. "Shh. Why do you crib so much. Always follow the second auto strategy" - she said.

The second auto strategy was something which she had developed and applied to everything in life. Normally auto rickshaw's come one behind the other. The impatient crowd tries to fight their way into the first auto rickshaw. So someone who targets the second auto, usually gets an assured seat. In the same way, she always shopped in the second store, ate at the second hotel and even rejected her first job and took the second offer. "But how can you tell confidently that second one is the best" - he often questioned her. She used to shrug and smile off the question.

That night, as usual she got into the second auto and dialled her husband to inform him that she was on her way. As the rickshaw passed the neighbourhood sai baba mandir, she caught a fleeting glimpse of her ex-boyfriend. There he was with his kids and wife. "A cute happy family" - she smiled. As the auto passed by the temple, her thoughts were entirely on him. "Wish he understood that the secret behind the second auto was that she hated to fight - rather to compete and lose".

Kuch Karo Na !!

2010-03-27T07:15:00.000-07:00

"Kuch karo na" - she repeated for the umpteenth time over the phone.

He sighed helplessly. "Would she ever understand the kind of effort i put in? What can i do if things do not happen my way" - he wondered silently.

There was a lull in the conversation. He checked his watch - 40 minutes since the conversation had begun. 40 minutes *60 seconds = 2400/100 = 24 bucks. "Thank heavens for 1 paise/second schemes"

"Kya soch rahe ho" - her voice cut into his thoughts. "Kuch nahi..." - he left it trailing. Gone were the days when they shared the small insignificant daily things which make up life; bosses antics, the new neighbourhood girl, the cool new gadget being launched, Wayne Rooney's hatrick, her hair which was in a mess. These days the conversation centered about getting ahead in life.

"Ahead of whom, ahead of where" - he wondered. "Why should i force things to happen - after all Franz Kafka too started his life as a clerk" - he mused.

"Tum samajte nahi ho.." - she began again. "How about - Do not view life in small periods of 3 months/6 months. Let us look at the big picture" - he wondered.
"Naah.. This would not work" - he kept quiet.

"This too shall pass.." - he took aim and planted a blow on the mosquito

Bulls eye. The buzzing and pain stopped.

"Kuch karo na.."

It had not passed!

Bye Goodnight!

2010-03-05T11:02:00.000-08:00

"Local arriving on Platform No.2 is 9:15 slow local for Belapur via Harbour Line"

Amidst the great mass of human beings assembled on Platform No.2 at VT station, he pushed his way into the train.

"No window seat as usual" - he sighed and settled in the middle seat. He liked the anonymity of the Mumbai local, a place where no one bothered about anyone. "Girls, Buses and Trains - you miss one, you can always catch the next one" - he imagined her favorite taunt and wished life was so simple.

As the train started moving out of VT, he started recollecting all the events of the day which he would share with her. The way his boss goofed up the presentation and how his CEO had planned a master-stroke to counter the competition. "Ohh.. Should also tell the John Terry story. Surely she does not read the newspapers".

"Do i tell her about the cute chick who has joined the adjacent department" - he wondered. But the very thought of a deep frown on her cute face made him see reason. "Maybe some other time. When that chick starts speaking then..".

Lost in his thoughts, he heard the huge clamour at the entrance. This was his cue - his station would come next. He got up from his seat and pushed his way through to get down and hurried off to home.

"You are late today too" - complained his wife as she opened the door. He mumbled something about appraisal time and work pressure and went to freshen up.

"You are so silent - you never share anything about your office with me" - he heard her complain as he finished dinner. "Did you marry me or the LCD tv" - she shouted. "Correction, for the tv" - he chuckled and continued watching TV. Sensing his mood, she quickly finished off her work and went to sleep.

He switched channels aimlessly and leafed through the newspapers. Finally when he had trouble keeping his eyes open, he switched off the television and prepared to sleep on the couch. Before closing his eyes, he opened his wallet and looked at her photo. She smiled at him - half amused and half sleepy. "Bye Goodnight Jaan" - he smiled back at her and closed his eyes.

Happy Birthday to Me !!

2009-08-23T22:14:00.000-07:00

As always - i will wish myself first -

Happy Birthday to Me ..

Happy Happy Birthday to Me ..

As the years keep turning over, sometimes u start feeling lost - thinking about life, progress made so far and the path ahead.. This year i do not have any doubts about the path ahead. Yeah, questions do remain about how to reach there, but broadly there are very few doubts about where to go...

And yeah, i would definitely start updating my First Love more often :)) It deserves more time and attention. So do all other love's !!

Happy Birthday Again !!

The 12th of December

2008-12-11T06:12:00.000-08:00

It had been a long tiring day at work - another day of unending running in pursuit of the Corporate Ladder.. He grabbed a cup of coffee and opened his mailbox to find a beautiful greeting card.. The Subject was "12th December" - he quickly checked his watch .. Today was indeed the 12th of December..

"Ohh Gosh !!" -he started fumbling for his mobile phone as images of this day that age flashed across his mind. They were naive college students back then unknown to the rough ways of the world. Like all good stories go, he had initiated and she did not accept immediately.

*****************************

"Would it work out ?" - his friends had often wondered. But they knew that it would indeed.. It was just a wait for the opportune moment.. Looking back 6 years later, he thanked providence for providing them the opportune moment..

"Finally u Remembered.. Come home quickly and we would take the kids out for dinner" - came her reply. He smiled as he read the message - 'Small moments like these make life worth living', he thought and got back to work.

*****************************

"It is very Difficult.." - She often used to tell him. He knew that it was tough but figured out that things would eventually work out for them. They passed out of college and got into high paying jobs in different cities.

"Promise me that you would call daily.." - he asked her. She nodded and he felt reassured. The days sped by and so did their relationship which started becoming more weaker. Slowly they realized that they were in different world's and could never migrate to a common planet.

"In an ideal world we could have been..." - she started. He got the message and cursed providence for never providing the right opportunity. "Maybe it was never meant to be ..", advised his friend and they drowned her memories in a flood of whisky.

Now 6 years later as he looked back in time he wondered "What if we had been together"? He sighed as he opened her mail and replied - "To my first love....".

"Memories are nothing but an indulgance.." - he cursed himself and went back home to his loving wife and naughty kids to get lost in the buzz of daily life ...

******************************

Lost & Found

2008-09-12T14:16:00.000-07:00

His heart skipped a beat as he saw the scrap. It was from a familiar name but not someone on his "Friends" list. It contained a link to another profile. A quick click which loaded the linked profile and his heart almost stopped working.

He could not quiet believe his eyes. He rubbed his eyes and checked up again. Yes it was him - the same long lost friend. The guy with whom he had spent his entire childhood, shared all his firsts - starting from candy, notebook, pencil, fights, cricket matches, table tennis and even crushes. The guy who was always there for him, who was his unrivaled "besttt friend" throughout school. His mind immediately started racing - would he still remember him, share the same fondness for him, the same affection and most importantly - same level of friendship.

As he eagerly scrapped his messages of friendship, he started wondering - "What's life but a collection of memories. And someone who cannot preserve the memories, hold onto the most precious people of his life is well - truly an idiot !!"

And yeah, he was already dreaming of all the things he would tell him if they ever meet him again.

Untitled

2008-09-04T11:21:00.000-07:00

He glanced at his watch - it was 11:00 PM. He sighed as he packed his laptop into the backpack and left office. The roads were empty and desolate as he walked back home. And as he did daily at this point of time, he called his best friend.

"Hi.. How was your day?" - her sweet voice brightened his mood. He opened up and told her about his day - the hectic meetings, the missed lunches and the cocktail party he chose to skip.

"You should have attended the party, you would have felt better," - she said with a hint of concern in her voice.

He gave a wry smile and replied back - "Yeah, but what would i do in a party without my girl".

A moment of silence followed. He kicked a few stones on the road and smiled at the friendly ice-cream vendor. Vivid images of him having icecream after dinner daily with his girl flashed across his mind.

"You still have not forgotten about it all" - her voice came through breaking his thoughts. He smiled wondering how she always managed to understand his thoughts.

"Will you help me get over this"

"Pukka"

"Promise ?"

"Promise. Now let us talk about something else. Did you watch the match yesterday? Ohh and did i tell you - this colleague of mine...." - she began chattering in real earnest.

"What would i do without you ? Thanks for always being with me" - his last words before he hung up as he reached home. He made a drink for himself and switched on the TV. He immersed himself in the problems of the world, forgetting his own problems..

She leaned out of the window after the call got over and glanced at the friendly ice cream vendor. A flood of memories came rushing to her - happy memories of ice creams after Dinner. Maybe she should not have said No - she wondered.

She leaned out of the window again - but the ice cream vendor had already left ...

Happy Birthday !!

2008-08-24T08:36:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to me ..
Happy Birthday to me ..
Haappy Birthday toooooo me ...

One more year gone.. I turn 26 today ? Can you believe it - 26 years old. Successfully crossed the mid life crisis point and am going full speed ahead into the marriage zone .. Looking back, last year was a great experience.. Lots of learning, lots of adapting, lots of new friends and memories.. As you grow old, you suddenly start appreciating small gestures, small moments of joy and start looking for meaning in almost every thing.. Probably one thing i learnt this year is to not restrict myself, be less practical and more open - Open to the joys of life, hope more, dream more and probably enjoy more !!

What is it Today?

2008-08-14T10:47:00.000-07:00

He looked at her disapprovingly. She sighed. "Not Again..", she thought.

"What is it Today? The hair looking bad, dress not matching, bad slippers, sleepy face.." - she questioned herself as she waited for the inevitable.

It had all started a couple of years ago in college. She was an unsuspecting innocent girl, while he was a mature world-wise guy (Uncle - she called him in jest). It started off like all stories. He took good care of her, waited on her, pampered her to no end till she said Yes.

"Is the journey more beautiful than the destination?", he questioned himself as he looked at her angrily.

She was so sweet and innocent in the beginning. Listened to all that he said (and understood the unsaid), doted on him, sweated anxiously whenever he was sick and was an ideal girl friend - till he asked her.

The cuckoo in the Clock chimed Nine times as the hour hand and minute hand formed a right angle. The clock looked down upon them mockingly. "Another night of useless arguments and quarreling is brewing, Hopefully they do stop before midnight.."

He was about to scream at her and she was mentally preparing a counter. Suddenly he noticed a single strand of her curly hair falling over her face. He looked carefully into her eyes. She noticed his look and gazed back. Their eyes met after a long time and he re-discovered the innocence which endeared her to him. She found that caring gaze in his eyes which she had fallen for. They locked hands and smiled lovingly a each other. Then he bent, brushed the curly hair aside and whispered softly in her ear "What is it today for Dinner?"

Think Big

2008-07-13T07:23:00.000-07:00

The Upper Berth Passenger observed -

It's been a long time since this blog saw any action .. Not that the train's running empty, just that the upper berth passenger is too lazy to lift his head up from routine mundane (both mean the same na ?) existence and blog .. Well here goes a small ramble ---

The Question of Growth vs Profitability - Well at the outset it seems obvious .. Higher growth implies higher profitability right ? Well not exactly - there's much more to it ..

Thinking Big - My prof made a good observation. He said - If u are selling a commodity product or entering any industry which is not really innovation based, then think big. And the only Indian company which thinks big is Reliance. A school of thought started by the venerable Dhirubhai and followed by his estranged sons - Mukesh and Anil.. What's stopping the other Indian firms from making bigger plans and investments ? Surely not the lack of capital !!

Well someday when (not if) i go out on my own, will surely keep these two things in my mind ..

Journey

2008-06-23T10:21:00.000-07:00

The Upper Berth Passenger mused -

The train looked unusually crowded. The reason (as i came to know later) was that summer vacations were about to end in Delhi and hence all the tiny (and not so tiny) tots were returning back after a (well spent ?) vacation in the South. Across me was a 30 something parent of two kids (a girl and a boy). There was an air of resignation about him as he amused his kids with stories, commanded his kids to behave well, made them eat properly, took them to the loo etc etc. Well where was the wife? For reasons known or unknown she was quiet, took long naps and allowed the hubby to take good care of the kids. A casual conversation with the man revealed that his employers sponsor an yearly vacation during which he brings the kids to his home town, owns an apartment in Delhi (and is burdened by the EMI's), was an voracious reader before marriage and is looking at good investment products to save money for the future of his children as well as his own. He also regaled me with tales about his love marriage, how he had spent 3 years running behind his wife and how well she takes care of the home. The couple doted over their kids (one of which was a brat) and hardly had any time to spend with each other.

Thus went the entire trip and when the train reached the station, the kids jumped out happily, the wife stepped out gingerly leaving the man to carry all the baggage and trudge behind wearily ....

The Upper Berth Passenger sighed deeply and started rethinking his priorities in life !!

Don't leave Kollywood !!

2008-06-15T11:21:00.000-07:00

Turn Back Asin !! It's not too late - You are the best we have !!!!

Image courtesy - www.tamilguardian.com

The Silent Warriors

2008-05-25T06:19:00.000-07:00

It was early evening - 4:00 PM to be precise. The bus wasn't really crowded - just a few unfortunate people were without seats while the rest were enjoying a good rest after a long hard day's work. Off particular interest to this story is a cute looking short girl wearing a red t shirt. She had just got in and after the usual haggling over change with the conductor, she took her place amongst the standing crowds. Well, what's so great about this you may ask? It was just that the red t shirt (probably her younger sister's or is it style?) was a bit too short. So as she stood and stretched her hands up to hold the railing, the men folk were suddenly awakened from their deep slumber. An unusual silence prevailed as most men gawked (discreetly off-course).

She was sitting behind and listening to Radio Mirchi. As a keen observer, she noticed the red t shirt, but sighed away. Suddenly on a hunch, she turned back to look at the menfolk and her suspicion got strengthened. She could count at least ten people starring. She took a deep breath, got up and asked the red t shirt to take her place. The RJ's voice blared in her ear. He was asking people to call in and mention their good deed for the day !!

***************

The dark skies showed no signs of relenting. It had been pouring for the last 3 hours and boy what a heavy downpour it was. He was standing outside his small modest house. He looked at the street and sighed. It hardly looked like a street - resembled more of a swimming pool. "And this is the same street where a few prominent businessmen and politicians live" - he mumbled to himself. The traffic jam had already began and cars were finding it difficult to negotiate the water logged road. He went inside and searched for a rod. Then venturing into the middle of the road, he slowly worked on the clogged storm drain. It was stubborn at first, but slowly yielded and the rain water began to drain. He walked back into his house and began drying himself. The car engines and other traffic began humming again.

***************

He looks like me !!

2008-05-17T12:24:00.000-07:00

"Will the white sweater look good or the black one ?"

"God, there are too many mosquitoes here "

" He might be hungry. It's 2 hours since he last ate"

She was full of concern. Her husband just smiled at her and the baby sleeping peacefully on his shoulder.

"I should get him some good toys to play with. He will soon get bored with all these toys" - she said.

"Maybe some video games or a computer when he gets a bit older" - he suggested.

"We should get him a cycle. We would also enroll him in a swimming class. How about tennis or cricket?", she wondered.

"Naah.. We must get him started on books early. We will start him off with Tinkle, Amar Chitra Katha and slowly pass on to him my entire collection.." - his eyes glittered when he looked at his book shelf.

"What about the diet? Strictly vegetarian or some eggs" - she asked.

"Hmm.. Let him start on rice and idlis. Hopefully he doesn't start eating chicken like me !!" - he chuckled.

"He has a faint resemblance to me. Look at his eyes .." - she pointed out.

"Naah. A stronger resemblance to me. The nose somehow reminds me of my family" - he retorted back.

The doorbell rang.

It was the matron from the orphanage. She had come to check whether the baby was happy in it's new found home...

Random Musings

2008-05-15T04:42:00.000-07:00

The Talkative Man mused -

After spending enough time outside shopping malls i am amazed at the variety of human expressions on show and the different types of people who u can find lounging around -

a) 'We-are-boyfriend-girlfriend ' category - guy tries hard to crack jokes, delibrately holds the girl's hand and tries hard not to look at the hot chicks around !!

b) 'Bored-Husband-Eager-Wife ' category - Wife prattles on excitedly often pointing and gesticulating, hubby comes up with a forced smile and wanders aimlessly wondering "if only ..."

c) 'Am-Jobless-please-dont-disturb' category - Sitting and staring aimlessly, casual glance at both the hot chicks and old couples and looking often at the watch (Litreally Killing time)

Well, there's a fourth category - but after all i cannot speak about myself :))

Which one are you ?

Back

2008-05-10T23:58:00.000-07:00

The Talkative Man sighed -

Been a long time since i blogged. Not due to the paucity of stories to write about - it's just one of those extended bouts of laziness. Do i write about the crazy times of my MBA course - projects, assignments, tests et all (or) my days spent at home in chennai doing nothing (or) my summer internship at Bangalore where i pitch life insurance as a career i.e. convince people to sell life insurance. There have been some interesting moments, meeting some great people, renewing some old acquaintances and strengthening some new ones !! Though i certainly missed my blog, my usual stories and reading my friends posts !! Hope that i can be more punctual, ramble more, muse more and hopefully not sigh much !!

Perception Survey Of Twenty20 Cricket

2008-02-01T11:19:00.000-08:00

Do you like Twenty20 Cricket ?

Do you think its the next BIG thing ?

Does ODI Cricket have no future ?

What makes the T20 Format tick ?

If you have all such questions in your mind and a couple of minutes time, you can participate in the Twenty20 perception Survey.

Just head over to this link

Participate and let your voice be heard !!

A Bachelor's Diary

2008-01-29T06:19:00.000-08:00

He got up and stretched. It was half past nine and the office was mostly empty. Work-Life balance- he mused and swiped out. The guard on duty gave him a blank uninterested look. 'Will this guy stay awake all night' - he wondered as he punched the lift buttons.

The security at the gate asked for his identification card. He gave him a 'But you know me for the past ten years now' look. 'Sorry sir, just a formality. The new boss instructed' - the security person's eyes seemed to say. That formality done with, he stepped out into the arms of the cool evening air.

It was a clear sky and the moon was in its full glory. 'Which one is better - the bright streaming sunlight or the pale subtle moonlight' - he questioned himself. 'Gee, that's a tough one' - he thought and kicked a stone on the road. 'Goalllllllllll' - he could hear the commentators scream when his favorite team lost the match last night. 'It's a match. One team has to win while the other has to lose. Don't feel upset' - he remembered his mom consoling him when he was a kid and his favorite team lost the game. 'Shucks, its three days since i called her' - he suddenly felt guilty and sad.

The long trek to home was largely uneventful. It was the usual routine. He stopped at the bar and purchased whisky. 'Two bottles today' - he told the shopkeeper. The guy's eyes questioned. 'Anything special Sir ??' He smiled as he paid the money. The next was the fast food joint. 'The usual Sir ?' - the waiter asked. He nodded and got the food neatly packed and resumed his journey back towards home.

He switched on the lights as soon as he opened the door. 'Let there be light..' -he waved as the tube lights flickered and lit up his living room. Then with a wave of the magic wand a.k.a. the remote, the TV began blaring. He settled on the couch, poured himself some whisky and began eating. When dinner was done, he settled comfortably and started drinking again. 'Whisky without cigarettes sucks' - he remembered telling her. 'But you promised..' - she had begun. 'Ok Ok. I won't smoke' - he told her. This was three years ago and he had kept his promise till then.

He switched on his laptop and was happy to see her email. She had sent the pictures of her first kid. It was a boy. There were other pictures of her smiling happily with her hubby. 'Looking forward to seeing your wife and kids' - she had written. He laughed loudly and stopped abruptly when his voice echoed in the empty house. He poured himself another drink and stared emptily at the football match. His favourite team was losing again and it was painful to see them miss chance after chance. 'Wish the damned referee blows the whistle soon' - he cursed as he finished off the whisky and went to sleep.

Lost !!!

2008-01-23T06:05:00.000-08:00

"..Goodbye and Good luck..." ended the message. He wondered for the hundredth time whether to reply, call back or delete the message. He was reminded of all the good times they had spent - the countless cigarettes they had shared, all the senseless stuff spoken when they drunk, the small things which he learned and the big secrets they shared. It had been a great friendship - one which transcended their age difference, diverse backgrounds and their varied interests. But call it the twist of fate or destiny, events occurred in such a way that he was left with no other alternative but to stop talking with him - disown him in political language.

Well i had no other choice - he rationalized. But it was never a whole hearted decision. Will things ever get back to normal ? - he wondered as he selected the delete message option.

The Talkative Man was terribly disturbed. He remembered his friend D and thought - This too shall pass by ......

Online and Offline

2008-01-10T11:52:00.000-08:00

While Google has almost become synonymous with search across the world, there are other search engines too which either cater to niche segments or some others which employ different approaches to search. One such is Antya which is a relative newcomer in the crowded Indian online space. Well what's new about this site you may ask ? They have this concept of returning brand logos along with search results - it stems from their vision of making brands and businesses discoverable to the end user. So the moment you hit their homepage, you can find a scroll of 'newly discovered websites'. Since this is a human-powered search engine, users can actually rate websites (or search results) and the algorithm would take this into account the next time it displays the results. There's this small check box called 'Antya View' next to the search button. This view returns only one result from a search (Antya -> what exists at the end). They also have a radical marketing strategy - a plan to educate small businesses to come online and even help them to build their websites.

That leads me to the Offline part. While we hear so much about how more people are getting online than ever before, is there really momentum on the ground ? For instance, last year was supposed to be the 'Year of the Broadband'. Was there an explosive growth in broadband connections for us to reach a critical mass of users ? Is the lack of compelling content the reason for slow internet growth or vice versa ? And how many of the over 10,000 startups launched last year are really making money? Is there really light at the end of the tunnel or are we just fooled by the light from our own shining torches ?

Random Musings !!

2007-12-29T22:03:00.000-08:00

The Talkative Man mused -

When a batsman is on 99, he looks to score a single more than a boundary or a sixer. He also looks back on his innings - how tough (or) easy the run scoring was and how to pace the innings in the future.. And as the Talkative man is on 99 posts, he looks to do the same thing.

Whenever i think of myself as a writer, the only image that comes to my mind is that of a guy painting buildings or houses rather than an artist working on a canvas. I am more of a guy who prefers to use broad strokes who seldom achieves finesse. That probably explains the lack of minute details and descriptions in my stories. That said, the talkative man is a very normal person - someone who sleeps in class, who turns back and looks again when he sees a hot chick, who enjoys a good drink and lives life without much of an ideology or a plan. I guess that is reflected in the stories. He is still confused whether he is an aethist or agnostic, socialist or capitalist and so on. And most of the posts this blog sees are basically him thinking out aloud.

Well by now you may wonder what's the point of this post? The main aim is to sneak in a couple of posts about myself so that the talkative man as a person doesn't get lost in the talkative man as a writer !! And lemme end this post with a question -

What is life ?

Is it a long train journey where passengers(friends) embark and disembark regularly ?

Is it a giant jigsaw puzzle where you keep finding pieces and spend all life fitting them in to discover the grand design ?

Is it a big dream where you wake up one fine morning and find out that everything is an illusion ?

P.S - The Talkative man jumps for joy as he completes a century. He acknowledges all the warm applause and kisses his laptop .. The celebrations over, he heads back and takes guard again !!!

There he goes again....

2007-12-23T22:59:00.000-08:00

K saw the green light and heard the station master's loud whistle. 'Off you go,' he thought as he punched the start button. And with a slight jerk the gleaming monster - the Chennai 6:30 Fast Local or Electric train as it was popularly known started. K was always fascinated by trains and the way the monsters could always proceed on its own exclusive track without having to mix it up the other slow moving traffic. In someways it was reflective of his own life - the way he could slice through obstacles and carve his own path.

**

It was yet another dreary morning for R. Things had been the same for the past two weeks. 'Clinical Depression' - the doctor had told him and prescribed him tablets for sleep. But R didn't take those sleep inducing tablets. He preferred to face his failure - "A man's failure imply judgment, not of circumstances, but of himself.", he said to himself. Well could today be the day when he could bring himself to do it? And if he had to do it, what was the best way?

**

As the stations breezed by, K started thinking of the last couple of weeks. His friends had always called him the 'professional manipulator' but even by his standards it was a tough job. The girl was too much in love and it took all his subtle mastery to wean her away. 'Well SRK does it regularly, whats wrong if i do it and i also liked the girl,'he reasoned to D. D retorted - 'But she was always committed to someone else and it was not fair on the other guy." Well,Life is a zero sum game - he thought as he sped ahead to the next station.

**

R had made up his mind. He had fought all life, but didn't have it in him to fight one more battle. He washed his face, locked the house, played with his pet for the last time and started walking towards the track. He knew that it would be painful, but well the pain wouldn't last too long he reasoned. 'Better luck next time' - he chuckled as he walked on the track.

**

The sun was out in its full glory and K had a great view of the track in front of him as he swung the monster on course. Suddenly he saw someone walking towards the train on the track. K was horrified at the thought of someone committing suicide, but he could do precious little to stop it. He honked twice, but it was more out of hope than anything else. As he closed on him, K closed his eyes, mumbled a silent prayer and it was over in a flash. As it was the protocol, K stopped at the next station and informed the station master. And with a slightly heavy heart, he moved on.

**

He switched his mobile on at noon as soon as the shift got over and found ten missed calls from her. He called her back, and she was in tears. When he asked her what happened, she slowly told him - 'R had committed suicide - on the tracks'. K was shocked, but quickly composed himself. 'Where' - he enquired. She told him the exact place. 'Ohh, i was on the opposite route today.. Did you go and see the body. Don't .. You wont be able to handle it.. I will come over to your place...'

R who was looking on from heaven chuckled - "There he goes again........"

The Wait ...

2007-12-12T07:22:00.001-08:00

14-May-2009

Met her for the first time today. S introduced me to her - nothing particularly good about her. Average looking, talkative, cheerful smile and ohh, an awful hairstyle. The conversation started with books and ended at spirituality. We had radically different views and it was good fun. Promised to meet again and left.

12-June-2009

Can't believe that it's just a month since i met her. Seems like we are friends forever. We eat all our meals together, attend mass together and spend the Sunday evenings at the beach. She likes pizza, hates shopping and drifts off into her own world when eating. Lets see where this goes.

24-Aug-2009

Almost three months since we met. Spend more time on gtalk with her every day than i work, share all the trivialities of life with her and look forward to meeting her everyday. Ohh and it was my birthday today. Turning 27 today. Feel much younger in her company though !!

28-Sep-2009

Nothing much has changed as such - the more i get to know her, the more i figure out that i don't know much about her. Spoke with D and K. D is happily married and having a good time (hopefully) with his wife. K doesn't want to marry at all. Took her to dinner and to meet them. They were pretty impressed with her and think she's the 'ideal' choice. I was like - 'What are you talking guys'

30-Oct-2009

Time goes on - celebrated diwali and her birthday. Got her a diamond pendant as birthday gift. Was tempted to get a ring and take it to her. But still have a few lingering doubts. There is no one else in her life for sure - but is it the right time ?

1-Jan-2010

Went to this massive new year bash with her. Had a nice candle light dinner. K knew that i would be with her for the new year and sms'ed "Happy new year. Carpe diem". I chuckled and deleted the message.

14-Feb-2010

Valentines day is here. Office was filled with balloons and other cupid-stuff. Was wondering whether today is the day. But somehow there's this 'inner voice' which keeps telling me that the time hasn't come yet. Replaced the Archies Valentine day card on the shelf and instead brought this cute teddy bear for her.

14-Feb-2010

Well couldn't sleep so thought will clarify something. You may think am the biggest fool around, but i still think the time has not come. What if she finds someone else or if i find someone else, what if my parents find a girl for me or her parents find a boy for her, what if there's a big earthquake tomorrow ...

As of now, i have made my decision. And i am going to wait .. Will wait till the whole universe conspires, the stars smile and the moon winks at us .. Will wait ....

Tagged

2007-12-01T05:36:00.000-08:00

Krupa has tagged me to come up with a middle name. It's a long time since i have written on a tag.. So lets see .. Well the rules are pretty complicated (!!) -

The rules of the tag are:
1. The rules must be mentioned in the beginning of the tag.
2. You must list one fact that is somehow relevant to your life for each letter of your middle name. If you don’t have a middle name, use the middle name you would have liked to have had.
3. At the end of your blog post, you need to choose one person for each letter of your middle name to tag. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

Interestingly i don't like to expand my initial - so it has always been Karthik M. And being in Hindi heartland, i often get quizzed over why i do so. Added to the fact that i pronounce 'M' with a slight y sound and since there are a couple of Karthik's in class, i have earned the nickname "Yumm". Ok leaving that aside let us think about a middle name... I always liked the way dutch use 'van' as a middle name - but it's too short for a middle name and Karthik van M sounds terrible. So lets carry on - i always had a fancy for Greek names. Phaedrus is an obvious favorite, but lets try something different. How about "Athos" - well it's another name for Zeus, the ruler of heavens.

Theme - well no particular theme ..

A - I am an Aethist, hate the month of April, have the essay Absurd Man as my desktop wallpaper, love Ayn Rand's books, never been to America, am a very dedicated son to Amma and Appa, like fighting with my Akka (sister) and hate the club Arsenal.

T - I am not a Tee-totaler, drink lots of Tea, have a Terrible memory , don't own any Teddy bears, don't copy or cheat in Tests, shed lots of Tears when i watch sentimental movies and love being on Time.

H - My roomie is called Hk (Karthik H), i love Howling in cinema halls and events, my grandfather has a Hearing problem (which i think maybe genetic), love reading History and watching the History channel and hate Himesh Reshammiya.

O - My life is a Open book, i love Open ended questions, love reading Osho a lot though think he simplifies stuff a lot and my favorite tamil swear word starts with O

S - I am a Sincere, Simple, Sentimental guy who used to fall Sick often when i was a child. One of my favourite movies is Swades but i hate Sharukh Khan. I like Socrates, Socialism, Soha Ali khan and the Sofa in my house !! And this is just a Snapshot of the things i like ...

I tag the Soliloquist, Musafir & Josef and i am sure they would do a better job than me !!

Whew !! That was tough ...

Where is the Moon ??

2007-11-24T10:16:00.000-08:00

"Beta, mommy has brought you dinner. Will you want to eat it here or shall we goto the terrace ?" - she started the daily dinner giving ritual.

And as the kid pointed to the terrace, they climbed up and sat comfortably on the terrace.

"Momma wheres the moon" ? - the kid looked inquiringly at her.

It was a cloudy night and there was no sight of the moon. "Damn.. Just when i needed it the most. Now how do i convince the little brat?" - she mumbled to herself. And as the kid ran away to explore the terrace, she was flooded with all the old memories. Her love story began in college. She could vividly remember the first time the moon made an entry in their lives.

"I am hungry. I need something to eat" - she shouted to him as they shuffled outside after classes. "What can i get for you ? Biscuit, Sandwich, Tea or do you want that " - he pointed to the moon. She smiled. "No i can seriously get it for you if you want it" - he was at his flirty best today. She shook her head. "No ?? Let it remain there then..".

"Beta, the food is getting cold" - she managed to catch hold of the kid and give him some mouthfuls. And as the kid wandered away again, her mind wandered to the day he proposed -

It was a full moon day and they both were sitting at the beach. It was a deserted private beach and away from the glare of city lights, the moon brilliantly gleamed on the sea waves. With the stars and moon watching from above, he whispered in her ear - "Will you marry me". There was only one possible answer.

"Momma what are they doing" - the kid pointed at the neighborhood ladies who were dressed up beautifully and standing at the terrace looking up. That was when she remembered today was 'Karwa Chauth'. Her mind went back to the events which unfolded two years ago.

"You are never on time, all you care about is your work. Why do you behave so indifferently to me ?" - she shouted at him. "Well the project is at a crucial stage and you know that. And you also know that i value my work above anything else... Now leave me alone" - he shouted back. She was on the verge of tears and asked him - "If your work was so important, then why did you marry me ?". "Ohh and if i knew that you would become such a pain, i would never have done the mistake. Now stop bugging and leave me alone" - he shouted and lit his cigarette. Things became worse from there. She discovered that they were becoming very distant from each other and he had also started seeing a colleague of his. He slowly spent more nights away from home. One thing led to another and soon ended up in separation.

"Momma, wheres the moon" - the kid started crying. "Beta, you are the moon in my life. And when you cry, momma cannot bear it. Now complete your dinner like a good boy.."

And as they finished his dinner and started leaving, she was tempted to stay back for a while to see if the moon would appear. But she knew that it was a futile wait. "He must have gifted it to someone else" - she chuckled and went away ....

Socialism and Crackers

2007-11-12T03:53:00.000-08:00

The Talkative Man said -

It was Diwali evening and he was relaxing on the balcony with his son. It was that time of the evening when everyone felt the urge to burst crackers and burst they did. It was a spectacular show of light and sound - rockets whoozing all around, multi colored firecrackers going off in sync in the sky, parachutes, dazzlers everything. It was a sea change compared to their usual diwali spent in a quiet metropolis down south - where the middle class mama's hardly brought anything fancy and therefore nothing of this sort ever sold in the shops. The son was very animated today, he was pointing the various dazzlers to his dad and babbling excitedly - "Now that must have cost him at least 1000 bucks, wonder where they get the money from.." and so on. The dad started thinking back about the diwali's gone by - how he would force his son to burst crackers and the son never really appeared interested. But today he seemed so excited and was enjoying every moment. He couldn't control himself and asked the son - "But you were never interested in crackers ?.." The son shot back - "Ohh, you never brought me such nice ones. Why did we never graduate beyond the usual flowerpots and 100 walas ?". The dad was about to start the usual lecture about middle class values, his own upbringing and their initial family struggles; but he stopped as he didn't want to spoil that moment. That was when the son remarked - "Ohh don't bother dad. Look at it this way - the role of the buyer is limited to only igniting the cracker. The moment the cracker is lit, everyone around can share the fun. This is unlike a rare sweet or tasty food where the buyer alone gets to enjoy it. Ohh, by the way - don't you think they should start imposing wealth tax in India again ? And i still think that people should pool in money together and burst fire crackers (community shows) in a ground. Much safer and no one gets a feeling of being left out. Or why don't they consider rationing fire crackers soviet era style - no one should be able to buy more than a certain limit ......."

The dad was speechless - he wished to counter but couldn't. 'This is how socialists are born' - he sighed to himself.

Capitalism and the ClassRoom

2007-10-30T10:56:00.001-07:00

There are three types of classes - a) no one understands anything
b) the faculty is good, some people understand but most don't
c) where everyone understands i.e. faculty gets down to the level of students

I was sitting in a type ( b) class today. The teacher was really competent and passionate about his subject - but the trouble was that i couldn't follow him. I looked around and saw lots of people having the same problem. But a few guys were on the same wavelength and were answering brilliantly. That was when this thought struck me -

Imagine the class to be a developing country (say India). The faculty plays the role of Government- there are a few governments who favor equitable growth, but most prefer to believe in the 'trickle down theory'. The latter was true in the class - the teacher preferred focusing on the ten odd people who understood and tried to make them good at the subject. These people can be compared to the upper class (Rich people who live in their own world of money, fame and more money and more fame). The rest 30 odd who patiently sat through the entire lecture with the fond hope that they would understand someday or the Government would devise something for them represent the middle class. The middle class pay their taxes on time, but it is them which the government conveniently ignores all the time. The remaining 20 odd who sleep peacefully in the last rows represent the deprived categories. The 'Shining India'. 'Emerging Middle Class', 'World's Richest Indian' all these things don't matter to them even a bit. They are content sleeping in class and wait for the break to quietly slip out.

Well the big question here is this - If you are the upper class (brilliant guy in class who understands everything) - Do you stop for a second and help out the middle class come to speed with you ? Or do you continue in your mad race to become richer (master everything) without caring a damn about those left behind ?

People or Process?

2007-10-19T11:31:00.000-07:00

As we were sipping cups of hot milk-less tea in our neighborhood dhaba, we were discussing about the upcoming placement committee elections in our college. Well to give a perspective, place-com is next to GOD in a B school; after all these are the guys who slog all year and manage the placement process. To cut a long story short, some people in our group felt that getting the right people was important while the other group wanted a formal structure in the place com ( with specific people to manage specific areas - say 3 for marketing, 3 for finance etc with a convener who does the co-ordinating). The marketing guys who have spent all their lives on the field stressed on the people aspect - they were skeptical about the concepts of processes, organized structures and accountability etc. They felt that at the end of the day it's the people who matter the most and wanted to find the right people and repose full faith on them. The software engineers who have been used to processes and hierarchy stressed on the importance of a proper model with specific people who are assigned tasks and are accountable for it. And our argument was simple - the probability of things going wrong in this model is less and people would feel much more comfortable when they know who to approach for what. And as it happens in any good dhaba discussion, the mosquitoes and the cold had the final word and drove us back inside campus !!

Looking back, one person remarked that if we have the right people dictatorship is the best form of government. Why go through all this charade of conducting proceedings, shouting each other down when at the end of the day a select few (in our country - one person) calls all the shots ?
Ohh and how do you find the right person? And how do you counter the idiom - "Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely" !!!

Random Musings !!

2007-10-05T12:03:00.000-07:00

He looked on from the top of the cliff. It was a desolate place at least 20 km away from any sign of civilization. He rummaged through his pockets and fished out his mobile. For once "Wherever you go, our network follows" didn't hold true. He sat on a boulder and looked down the valley. It was a beautiful mist filled morning and the sun was slowly trying to enter the scene. He fished out his cigarette packet and lit a cigarette. As he took the first deep puff, he started reflecting on his decision. 'Am i doing the right thing,' he wondered. He took a pebble and hurled it down - it hardly created a ripple as it plunged down the valley. The sun was playing hide and seek with the clouds and it reminded him of his battles with life. 'Sometimes you win, sometimes it wins - is there anything called a tie in this game,' he mused as he lit the next cigarette. He felt like God as the smoke went to his throat and slowly came out. 'Aghh, this is life' - he thought as he leaned on the rock and observed the birds chirping and flying out to earn their bread. He got the cue and started back down the cliff. 'Some other day probably,' - he chuckled to himself as he started a quick sprint down.

Untitled

2007-09-30T09:40:00.000-07:00

The talkative man said -

It was the first day of placements in Engineering college. He looked around and saw all his friends bright eyed, excited and a touch nervous too. He too was nervous and went through the process with lots of zeal, hope and anticipation. But alas, the result turned out to be negative !! Ohh and he didn't have much luck in the following days too.. After a string of failures, he at last had some success, but the pain remained forever. The story repeated itself over and over again - he would get through at every stage - but not before encountering some difficulty, obstacles or hindrances. And as he looked back on them (without any bias) he never felt bad at missing out on anything - after all most of the stuff which he missed weren't exactly optimal for him. But however much his mom tried to convince him, he never subscribed to - "Whatever happens happens for the good".

Now at the age of 50, when his son who was a B - school student called him up and sobbed because he had not been placed on Day zero, he kept quiet and did not say anything to make his son feel better. His wife who was listening to the conversation asked him - "Why don't you console him ?? Why don't you tell the poor boy that these things don't make a difference in the long run ? Why don't you tell him your own story and show him that even after failures you can make it to the top,". He chuckled at her and mused - "Little does she realize the true reason behind my success".

Hutch-Vodafone and the power of brands

2007-09-22T11:27:00.000-07:00

We learn about brands and their importance in marketing as part of our course. While there are many reasons for branding, some of the main are that they enable a company to build a strong relationship with their customers and provide them something of an identification - something to be believed in. The recent efforts by Vodafone to change the Hutch tag after the acquisition certainly is a fascinating case. Hutch which was one of India's most recognized brands has a new name now and the challenge is to communicate the name change to the masses - the dealers, retailers, customers everyone. And all of a sudden the Indian customer is introduced to Vodafone through banners, advertising campaigns (the Hutch dog enters a red house now !!) and strategic messages sent to Hutch customers.. Is it working ? What does the man on the street who is unaware of M&A, Arun Sarin, Essar or Hutchison think about all this ? I was sipping tea and discussing general stuff with a couple of friends in a chai shop (tea kadai ) today when my friend showed me the vodafone sms and we started speaking about the name change. That was when this middle aged guy dressed in a dhoti and reading a tamil newspaper( You can find such types all over Tamil Nadu - sipping tea, reading newspapers on the chai shop bench - tea kadai bench). This is the conversation which took place -

"Sir, has this company Vo-da-fone bought Hutch ?"

Me - "It actually happened two months ago. The integration is going on now.."

"Sir, Is this company a big company ?"

Me - "Yup - a big global company. It has operations in lots of countries..."

"Sir, does that mean call rates will decrease ?"

Me - "Well, i really don't know. I myself use a Hutch connection and am hoping that they at least don't increase the call rates".

It sure looks like a big task ahead of Vodafone - the Hutch brand name is deeply entrenched in the minds of the customer. It is analogous to changing the name of a 20 year old boy. Namesake anyone ?? Ohh, and my marketing professor is going to have a very good case to explain brand makeovers next year.

The War

2007-09-11T09:37:00.001-07:00

The Talkative Man said -

He was entering the battlefield after a long time..He looked around him and saw a motley bunch of people - some of them were old bored war veterans, a few were young warriors entering the field for the first time, there were some who were so experienced that they could fight without any weapons and there were some people who entered the battlefield with the same vigor which they showed when they were fresh .. He surveyed the situation and whispered to a colleague who seemed equally unexcited - "Are you sure that we have to do this ?". He got an indifferent shrug in response..

"Marketing Group I assemble in Room F-Two for GD" - bellowed the general. There was an air of anticipation as a few warriors chalked out last minute strategies, signed non-compete agreements and others psyched themselves up for the event. He tried to compose his thoughts and entered the room and took his assigned seat. It was a bad position to attack - the last but one in the left arm of a U shaped table. It could have been worse - he consoled himself and looked at the other people - the "strong" warrior who trusted his mouth more than his brains had the center seat. An young warrior waiting to make an impression got the other perfect position. "Are the stars conspiring against me today" - he thought as he waited for the topic.

The topic was announced - the battle lines were drawn and the bugle was sounded. Everyone jumped in to wage the first attack - he looked on as punches and counter punches were traded. He made half an attempt to put an initial point, but was soon outshouted off the field. He tried to time his re-entry and managed to get a point or two across - but his voice lacked conviction and he wondered why he was sounding so flat today. Finally after more slang matches, a few attempts of leadership by the strong warrior (match fixing ??) and after listening to a girl who kept speaking the same stuff again and again in a shrill pitched voice (wasn't she bored of being repetitive ??) the bugle sounded again putting an end to his discomfort. The warriors were politely thanked and ushered of the field.

He generally hated losing in life and used to be good in such slang matches and free for all situations. But somehow today, he was never up for the battle and wondered whether he would ever again come back to his old self. He headed back to the mess and started dinner. As he tucked into the food, he wondered why the mess jelabi seemed less sweeter than before !!

Untitled

2007-09-05T11:06:00.001-07:00

He was a happy-go-lucky type guy. He was intelligent but never bothered to prepare for exams and secure good grades. He slept in most classes, but was one of the sharpest students around when he was awake. He never really bothered much about anything in life and lived each day without any care in the world until ..

**

She was one of the most sincere girls in college. A born leader and topper, she topped her school, college and was voted the best employee in her company. She came to college with great expectations and was the most focussed person around - someone who rarely stepped out of her room until ...

***
..

He met her - the sweet girl with the kid-who-never-grew-up look on her face. His days were never the same again. He spent every waking hour with her, preparing for exams, working on assignments, updating resumes and everything. His room mates were amazed by the transformation. Sometimes he couldn't believe it himself - "I wish it's a dream which never goes away" - he thought to himself.

**

...

she met him. He was very silent and rarely spoke much or mixed with many people. No one could quite figure out how they become friends - but by a strange combination of planets, they became good friends. She began to see less of her room, her books (it was more of their books), spent less time preparing for the exams (and more time teaching him) and less time planning her career (and more time worrying about his). Her well wishers tried to advise her out of it, but she was never the type who listened to others. As of now, they seemed content in their own world, totally oblivious to others and the world around them.

***

The talkative man took one more puff from his cigarette. "Love does strange things to people" -he mused as he took the final puff and stubbed the cigarette. But the light refused to go out !!

Happy B'day !!

2007-08-23T10:55:00.000-07:00

Dated - 24 Aug 2007

Happy B'day to Me ...
Happy B'day to Me ...
Happy B'day to dear Myself ..
HAPpy B'day to Me !!!!

(Clap Clap).. (Whistle ..)

Period - A QUARTER of a century ago
Location - Isabella Hospital, Chennai
Time - 4:50 AM

Wow - i am 25 now. I feel older and much more mature !! Whilst the last three B'days were spent in offices, this time it would be celebrated in B school with a hectic (??) schedule of 3 lectures and a quiz on Marketing. Add the group project due on Monday, five more due by next weekend, the end terms fast approaching !! Still i am having fun - and the best part is that i chose it, so no complaints !!

What does the future hold for me ?? Well frankly i don't care - or at least have stopped caring. Lemme take things one at a time - and in any case as my favorite quote goes - "You cannot see beyond the tip of your nose" !! (Too much gas eh ??)

Anyways "happppppy Bday to meeee !!"

Related Post - Last Year's Bday

'Art Of War'

2007-08-16T12:52:00.000-07:00

"Thus we may know that there are five essentials for victory:
(1) He will win who knows when to fight and when not to fight.
(2) He will win who knows how to handle both superior and inferior forces.
(3) He will win whose army is animated by the same spirit throughout all its ranks.
(4) He will win who, prepared himself, waits to take the enemy unprepared.
(5) He will win who has military capacity and is not interfered with by the sovereign".

"Hence the saying: If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle."

- Sun Tzu (The Art Of War)

Source - http://classics.mit.edu/Tzu/artwar.html

The Transformation !!

2007-08-09T08:15:00.000-07:00

He cast a sleepy look at his watch - it was 2.30 in the afternoon. He mentally ran through a list of things to be completed by EOD(end of day) - there were two issues to be investigated, a release to be planned and some future enhancements to be discussed. "Nothing major, just routine work" - he shrugged and opened his browser, clicked on Favorites and started scanning his friend's blogs for any updates. The cell phone vibration announced the arrival of a message. It was from the bank informing him that his salary has been credited. He looked at the amount and thought - "Not bad, optimal work, optimum pay, plenty of time to pursue other interests. Life's Good" and went back to work.

He cast a sleepy look at his watch - it was 2.30 in the night. He went through his mental checklist - Accounts Assignment done, Principles of Management group presentation done, Marketing pre-class Reading pending, Stats Quiz Preparation pending, Psychology Assignment pending. "Aghh, How can i possibly finish everything, get some good sleep, attend six hours of class tomorrow and stay awake for the corporate interaction in the evening ?" - he shuddered as he thought of the day ahead and all the work that needed to be done. He rummaged through his desk and managed to locate a coffee token - "I used to get this for free a month ago" - he sighed and went out for a coffee. That's when he noticed a huge commotion in the next room and walked in to find a party happening at full swing. And by the time he could realize, it was 4.30 in the morning. "Time to sleep, everything else can be managed. After all i am going to be a manager in a couple of years" - he convinced himself and finally went to sleep !!

Life @ IIFT Delhi

2007-07-30T11:42:00.000-07:00

Well this is a post which is long due and i dedicate it to the occasion of having successfully (!!) completed a month at IIFT Delhi.

Well a bit of background about the institute - IIFT was established in 1963 by the GOI as an autonomous organization. It offers a two year MBA (International Business) program which is basically similar to other MBA colleges in the respect that we do specialize in finance, marketing, trade etc but different that all courses are taught with an international flavor. We have two campuses one at Delhi and the other at Calcutta - which is a new evolving campus. Life at IIFT is a whirl of activities, something keeps on happening here all the time. One moment you are a accounts class, the next interacting with corporate bigwigs as part of our symposiums and Corporate Relations Committee (CRC) programs and the next you are racking your brains at the middle of the night preparing for a marketing presentation. Add the club events, the games, the conclaves, parties and you get a full action packed schedule - where each moment is spent productively and remains etched in your mind.

A typical day in IIFT begins at 5.45 AM. You are typically awakened by either the alarm or your roomie/loomie and rush off groggily to the Yoga class. The yoga sessions are held during the first trimester and form a vital part of the holistic development experience. The regular classes begin by 9.00 and each class is of two hours duration each - and typically 3-4 classes are scheduled each day. So are we free at the end of the classes ? Wrong !! That's when the action really starts - in the night. The Assignments, Test preparations (continuous evaluation system - no study-for-final-exams-alone here), group projects (all subjects have group projects and you are a part of 5-6 groups playing a different role in each group), case study discussions, pre-class reading all take place. The club meetings typically take place over the weekends (they start by 10.00 PM and go on till midnight) and people generally participate in white paper competitions, inter b school competitions too. What about sleep ? Well, that's a precious commodity over here. And sleep is the last thing in any B-schooler's mind when there's so much exciting stuff happening. And for the record, i have slept an average of 3-4 hours each day during the past month. And strangely enough, people are more active in the night than at any other time of the day - that's what B-School does to you.

Well the road ahead promises to be even tougher - midterms, end terms, projects piling up, deadlines zooming by. But what the heck, i chose this life and am enjoying every moment of life over here !!! Go IIFT Go !!!

Some Questions

2007-07-26T20:40:00.000-07:00

1) It's the first week of your new job in your dream company and you find that your boss is a maniac who keeps finding fault with whatever you do. And your colleagues are selfish and self-centered and hardly make you comfortable. What would you do ??

2) You are the manager in this big firm in charge of a team of 20 people. You find that the performance level of one guy dropping off drastically. You question him about this and he says he has personal problems and is finding it difficult to concentrate on work. Now you have a moral dilemma - you are a person with a firm belief that personal and professional life are to be kept separate. Now do you give a emphatic hearing to this person and try to help him find a solution or simply tell him to "cut the crap" and "shape up or ship out" ??

P.S - I was reading an article written by Albert Camus and i found this real gem.

"A sub-clerk in the post office is the equal of a conqueror if consciousness is common to them. All experiences are indifferent in this regard. There are some that do either a service or a disservice to man. They do him a service if he is conscious. Otherwise, that has no importance: a man's failures imply judgment, not of circumstances, but of himself."

Quality ..

2007-07-19T08:15:00.000-07:00

I was reading "Zen and the art of Motorcycle Maintenance" - the only book which i have brought here for the umpteenth time. And i get dazzled by the words each time i read it - specially this portion :-

Quality is not a thing, its an event.

It is the event at which the subject becomes aware of the object.

And because without objects there can be no subject - because the objects create the subject's awareness of himself - Quality is the event at which awareness of both subjects and objects is made possible.

This means that quality is not the result of collision between subject and object. The very existence of subject and object is deduced from the Quality event. The quality event is the cause of subjects and objects which are then mistakenly presumed to be the cause of quality.

"The sun of quality does not revolve around the subjects and objects of existence. It does not just passively illuminate them. It is not subordinate to them in any way. It has created them. They are subordinate to it"

Whew !! That was awesome !!

Ohh and did i mention this - the following quote majestically sits in the center of the first page of my notebook.

"And what is good phaedrus,
And what is not -
Need we ask anyone to tell us these things ?"

Of missed classes and sleep

2007-07-14T02:13:00.000-07:00

Another week runs by and am now two weeks into my course. It ain't getting any better but we are hanging on. The classes are interesting (unlike those engineering days where i used to read three newspapers in class), the people are generally nice and good to me and there's something new happening all the time. For example - we had this discussion in our psychology class about suicide - Does a person give some indications before he decides to commit suicide or is it a spontaneous decision ?? The other topic was - Are married men more happy than bachelors ?? Switching topics - we have this yoga session in the mornings at 6.00 Am. Now around 6 people share two connected rooms (3 guys - roomies and the other three who share the loo are loomies). Today's yoga session had a record 60 absentees. It was the same story in all the rooms - people slept and believed that their roomies/loomies would wake them up. I vaguely remember switching off the alarm and sleeping only to wake up at 7.30. To ensure that this doesn't happen again, i have formulated a three alarm system at regular intervals starting from 5.45. Smart eh ??

P.S - It's a long time since i wrote a story now. Thinking of some ideas - expect a story soon !!

2007-07-09T06:16:00.000-07:00

I finally got my laptop configured, so you should be seeing a lot more of me hopefully. The second week schedule doesn't look too taxing either, so i guess it's time i started writing something good for the blog !!

Most of the people i have met so far are different in their own right - it reminds me of the saying that each has their own axe to grind. Different people enter the college with different dreams and motivations - some work hard towards their goals, some fall by the wayside while the rest wait for a powerful current which can "sweep" them towards the shore !! You can find anxious and perturbed freshers most of whom feel lost, the "seen-all-done-all" work ex people , "the all the world's a stage" performers and some happy travelers who are just keen to maximize their opportunity. Which category do i fall into it ? Well i really don't know !! Wish people get a "mirror on the wall" which reveals all about themselves !!

2007-07-04T05:50:00.000-07:00

After a hectic couple of days things are finally begining to fall in place. There are a couple of things which i notice -people who have never been in a hostel before (including me)are finding it extremely tough. And everyone here seems so eager to impress that the classes usually end up in a flurry of answers and doubts !!! Well - people will learn soon and as a proffessor remarked - "It's easy to give answers. Even the Panwala can speak about the economy of India" !! That's the one statement which i keep in mind before "answering". And the other thing between a UG and a PG course is that -people are much more serious and mature here. Most of them have an idea of what they want from life and are pretty much focussed about it. Remains to be seen whether everyone attains what they aspire or settle down with whatever they get !! (Aghh -am back to my old cynical self)

2007-07-02T13:27:00.000-07:00

The Talkative Man said -

As i end my first day in B-Skool i am left wondering about lots of stuff .. Is B-School nothing but a collection of Alpha-males (Is there a word for females too ??). Why is so much stuff packed/crammed within so short a time ?? And why do people sacrifice good jobs and suffer voluntarily ?? Ohh and if you dont already display "Alpha male" tendancies, rest assured that in two years, you are sure to change !!!!!

P.S - Nothing bonds like cigarette

P.P.S - Expect more short and sweet posts !! And for the umpteenth time today i am saying this - "I am BORED" !!!

Swipe Out !!

2007-06-16T11:10:00.000-07:00

He got up, stretched his body and looked around. It was a Friday evening - and the office was slowly emptying. A few people were staring intently at their monitors - Work, Orkut or a boring gal friend on Gtalk - he wondered. A group was returning from the evening trip to the pantry - two trips to the pantry a day, minimum two cups of coffee and 20 minutes of chatter - he mused. The cute North Indian gal two cubicles away was on the phone again - was it the other company guy with whom she was spotted yesterday (or) her regular Boyfriend who works in the sixth floor ??. The Manager was walking around saying Hello and Hi to everyone who bothered to look up - would she be as approachable after the appraisals are done - he thought as he mumbled a quick "hi" to her.

Things seldom change here - he noted as his mind went back to another Friday some 15 months ago. That was when he had joined this place - fresh from the other company where people valued visas more than work, where "achievement" was defined in terms of how soon you went 'onsite' and how long you stayed there !! Did he find things hugely different here ? Well, he had a great project, a lead who absolutely doted on him and a technical architect who gave him absolute freedom and for the first time in his career, he had felt useful. It's such a huge difference when you like what you are doing - he thought as he clicked the "turn off" button.

"All the Best", "Keep in Touch" - everyone said the same thing. But Office friendships are transient, he thought and imagined looking at small size pictures of the same people on his Orkut friends list in the future.He looked at his exit checklist one final time. Relieving letter - Check, exit interview - Check, farewell mails to teammates - Check. Everything seemed in place - but he still felt as though he was leaving behind something. "Maybe there are too many of them to carry" - he mused as he swiped out the final time.

The Lonely Star !!!

2007-06-10T11:05:00.000-07:00

The talkative man said -

It was one of those lazy Saturday evenings. G had sent a message informing him that the "gang" was going to stay in his house for the night and off course he was invited. He wondered whether to go or not - their last trip together was a mini-disaster and he had felt alien for the first time within the group. "You over-reacted last time" - accused G and K, who were his closest friends within the group. 'Well, I do have a tendency to over-react" - he sighed and decided to give it one more shot.

He was already having second thoughts about that decision as he sat on G's terrace and listened to the guys ramble on and on about topics that hardly interested him. They discussed for the umpteenth time whether the upcoming Superstar flick -'Sivaji' would do well in the box office - even the director or producer wouldn't have worried so much, he mused. The only thing they could discuss was movies and more movies and he hated the discussion and the uneasy silence which preceded each new topic of discussion. "Was it always like this ?" - he wondered as he tried to think back about the numerous moments which they had shared together over the past six years. As he lit his third cigarette of the night, he wondered whether he would have been better off at home reading a book or playing silly word games in Orkut with his new found "friends". That was when he noticed the clear moonless sky - it was a beautiful night and the stars were in full attendance. "Do you know the name of that single bright star ??" - he asked G pointing to a single bright star which was in the middle of a cluster of stars. G shook his head and asked him if he knew the name ? "No", he said and thought of mentioning how it looked so different and lonely in the midst of the other stars, but dumped that thought and tried to focus on the discussion which was now about those lovely college days and events ...

Now at the crack of dawn, when everyone around him were fast asleep, he couldn't help but think of that lonely star. "Can broken relationships be ever mended ?" , "Do friendships evolve and grow as people grow older ?" , "Why do people behave differently in a group compared to their normal one-to-one behavior ?" - all these questions haunted him. And as dawn approached, he wished that the lonely star could help answer these questions before it faded deep into oblivion..

Care for a Smoke ??

2007-05-31T11:14:00.000-07:00

He looked at the dossier carefully. It was a study conducted amongst hundreds of people in the age group 18-25 and the results painstakingly compiled in the form of case studies. He began leafing through it -

---
B started the habit at the age of 17 when he was in high school. He lived in one of the lower class working areas of Chennai and frequently came into contact with much older guys. It was one of these acquaintances who introduced him to it. He found the smoke nauseating the first time, but soon started getting the hang of it. Starting from high school, through the Engineering days and MBA times, the cigarette was his constant companion. Now a successful executive in a Telecom firm, he swears by the cigarette and insists that he would not swap it for anything in the world. Well - that was his exact words before he saw the medical report.
---
G's first tryst with the cigarette was during the final year of his Engineering. He was briefly in love with the magic stick before he quit it - because he could not do justice to the other love of his life - Basketball. Soon he joined a Software company and met this guy, who was a chain smoker and asked G to give him company for the smoke sessions. G was soon drawn into the habit again and the cigarette quickly became the first love - bumping out the basketball. Every new year passed with the same resolution taken and quickly broken. Well - this was the story until he went for the medical test.
---
S was a relative late starter. He was introduced to the cigarette only after he joined this Software Company. But he was determined to make up for lost time and quickly grew into the habit (or was it the other way around ??). His forays to the smoking zone increased so much that he almost became a permanent fixture there along with the trees and the ash tray !! "The Cigarette helps me make new friends", "It helps me calm down", "One for the weather" - these were some of his usual excuses. Well - he'd better have something good to convince himself once he sees the medical test results !!
---

The Doctor closed the dossier. All the stories had a similar ending - the familiar sickening one. "All roads lead to Rome" - he chuckled as he went for his usual cigarette break..

The Nurse looked at the dossier. She wondered whether they would file the Doctor's case under "D" or under his initials !!

P.S - May 31 is World No Tobacco Day. Snub the cigarette before it burns you !!

What's your name ??

2007-05-24T11:11:00.000-07:00

"What's your name" - snapped the immigration officer.

His mind went back to the very first time someone had asked him the same question in English. It was the first day of his new school in Chennai. Durai had studied up to Standard V in a small school in his village. His uncle had with great difficulty managed to get him admission in a famous convent in the city. The first day in any new school is usually filled with trepidation, more so if you are in a new city and surrounded by new class mates. That was the exact feeling which Durai had when he looked up at the teacher and said - "Pavadai Durai". There was a moment's silence before the entire class broke into loud laughter. The teacher immediately silenced the class but durai had already got the first taste of what he was about to face in the future.

"Pavadai Durai" - he said slowly looking around to see if anybody had noticed.
"Spell please" - the officer snapped back.
"P a v a d a i D u r a i " - he spelled slowly and looked around to make sure that no one noticed.

After school, Durai joined a prestigious engineering college. But things seldom got better on the name front, first it was the seniors who took fancy to his name - among other things he was told to write his name a thousand times and introduce himself to every girl in the senior batch. Some of the girls were kind to him and didn't laugh when he said his name, but there were many insensitive girls who burst out laughing as soon as he mentioned his name. Then his batch mates and friends shortened his name conveniently and called him "pavadai".** Durai felt sick but had no option, he was a very good student and there was too much at stake. He tried hard to concentrate on his studies.

"Purpose of visit ?" - the officer asked next looking at his passport.

Durai went back to his native place after the first semester. The ragging experience was behind him now, but his mind wasn't calm yet. He went to his mom and asked her - "Amma, who was the person who suggested my name ??". His mother was surprised by this question - she thought for a while and said - "I think it was your grandmother's choice. In any case, it's such a popular name in our village..". Durai smashed his grandmother's photo and went back to the city with a heavy heart.

Time flew by and durai was about to graduate from college. He had several options open before him now - a high paying job in a big MNC or a chance to study abroad. Durai chose the latter.

"Ok Sir, the formalities are done. Welcome to London" - the officer gave his customary fake smile.

Durai smiled back and picked up his suitcase. He stepped out of the airport and went into the city. He was now in safe territory in the midst of Ferdinand's, Brown's, Husain's and Blair's and in a city where Pavadai Durai was as alien as a Raj, Ravi or Rohit. He walked into his new life without any more fear of - "What's your name ??"

** Pavadai - is a Tamil word which denotes a Full length skirt. More information can be found here

The one thing which you wish you had not done...

2007-05-18T11:26:00.000-07:00

The talkative man said -

He got into the car and fastened the seat belt. It was going to be a long drive - but the weather was cheerful and the car was in good shape, "Won't be too tough" - he thought as he started the car. "Good Morning Chennai" - crackled the RJ's voice from the radio. "Today's Question - What is the one thing in your life, which you wish you had not done ??" Good Question - he thought. And as the car slid along the highway, his mind went back in search of all the mistakes he made and the one thing which he could rectify !!

His mind went back to his school days which were the most unforgettable days of his life. And immediately he was reminded of his school crush. She entered his life like a breath of fresh air. Chirpy, playful, confident - she seemed to be his prefect match. He was bowled over by her charm and confided to his 'friend' about his affection for her. Now this 'friend' himself was head over heels in love with her. And so at an opportune moment, the 'friend' betrayed him, effectively ending all his hopes of a relationship with the girl. The engine started giving some strange sounds now. He stopped by the side of the road and examined the car - things seemed to be normal. Suddenly he was reminded of the mechanic's advice - "Don't drive a new car too fast Sir" !!

Next he thought about those college years. The final year of the college was one of the most eventful years in his life - that was when he got a chance to work on a project with her. Their relationship blossomed slowly and he took a gamble and proposed to her. That was when she started crying - "I too love you a lot, but this marriage can never happen. We belong to different caste's and my father would never agree to it. You have a lot to achieve in life, please carry on without waiting for me". The engine started spluttering and coughing now. He swerved into the nearby petrol station just as the car was about to give up on him.

His mind wandered to the recent past. Theirs was a successful 'arranged' marriage - his wife was very affectionate and cared a lot for him. Off course they experienced the normal friction which all newly-weds go through, but she was very affectionate and he absolutely adored her - until this 'colleague' came along. They shared the same cubicle at work, went for lunch and coffee together. Soon the breaks became longer and longer and one day when he went to drop the 'colleague' he stayed with her for a little longer than usual. Now like all good wives she too kept tabs on her husband and when she came to know that the affair was really serious, she stormed out of the house. "That's it" - he thought to himself - the affair is the one thing which i wish could be undone. But it was too late - he didn't notice the lorry which was speeding down the wrong lane straight opposite to him !!

The Flowers and the "Sorry my dear wife" note were later found amidst the car's wreckage...

2007-05-16T10:41:00.000-07:00

The talkative man said -

She lived life on her own terms and was totally unpredictable. She had very few close friends and preferred the company of books to people. She had strong convictions and never really bothered about others views or opinions. And the few people who were close to her were totally awe-struck by the sheer force of her personality and seldom went against her opinion. There was a long list of guys who admired her - the sort of guys who prefer courting girls from a distance rarely mustering the courage to come closer, while the usual smarty guys avoided her because she was too radical and they preferred more docile flirtatious girls with whom they could feel comfortable. Thus she lived in her own world, a world where she was the only one who mattered and where none could push her from her pedestal - until she met him.

************
HE was the usual happy-go-lucky kind of guy. Brash, aggressive and cheerful were some words frequently associated with him. He swore by his friends and always consulted them in everything - from blog templates to career choices, but whether he always followed their advice was debatable. "My life is a open book" - he proclaimed proudly and trusted a lot of people and at times suffered because of this too. He never had any luck with girls - most of his relationships never worked out since he could not stand the "shopping-yakking-sentimental" type of girls. But that never deterred him from speaking to the next girl and starting the search again. Thus nothing really affected him for he laughed off all his troubles and never really cared about anything until he met her.

*************
They met each other through a common friend. Nothing much happened during the first meeting - he classified her as another one of these "assorted freaks" while she thought he was one more of these "nosy-idiots". But there was something which they saw in each other, which made them meet a second time. This time they started feeling comfortable with each other and had a beautiful conversation running. Further meetings strengthened the bond and for the first time the guy felt he had seen a girl of "his type" while the girl felt there was someone else who mattered apart from herself. The common friend who was observing this wondered whether the relationship would prosper (or) their differences would slowly start asserting themselves. As it turned out the latter proved correct - the guy could never resist making funny quips even in the middle of serious conversations while the girl frequently showed her indifference and contempt. The flicker of love was doused by the flames of carelessness and indifference and soon they weren't even on speaking terms !!

**************
They soon went back to their old lives - now the girl had a reason for her indifference and the guy had a reason for his carelessness and care-a-damn attitude. Mars and Venus were after all miles apart from each other !!

2007-05-08T02:01:00.000-07:00

The Talkative man asks -

What is common between

Women's Quota Bill
Bihar Fodder Scam
Tehelka Expose
Godhra Riots/Investigations
Foreign origin Issue
Nandigram
Gujarat Fake Encounters

Well if you are still clueless, i can help you further - these incidents cost us around Rs. 20,000 every minute. It's a never ending cycle - a cycle of disruptions, objections and stalling proceedings which earlier used to be an exception but is now the norm. And according to the "Citizens Report on Governance and Development - 2006"- while 5.28 per cent of the time was lost in pandemonium in the 11th Lok Sabha (1996-98), the figure increased to 10.66 per cent in the 12th Lok Sabha and more than doubled to 22.4 per cent during 1999-2004. Surely our forefathers did'nt envisage this when they introduced the Parliamentary system of democracy in India ?

2007-05-04T11:02:00.000-07:00

The talkative man said -

After three long years, the college gang decided to go on a fun trip. These three years had seen the noisy fun-loving guys turn into docile Software professionals. The group had also seen major re-alignments as a few friendships could not migrate the space and time barriers and some of the guys became total strangers to each other. But the friendships which survived had become stronger and more mature - something which was missing during those fun filled years when everything was acceptable. Ohh, and there were more re-alignments towards the end of the trip. Some friendships had been renewed, some grew stronger while the rest found out that it was time to move on !!

The group halted for tea and evening snacks and trouped into a small tea shack. All the available Ruffles Lays in the shop were purchased and the mad scramble to eat began. Although there was plenty for everyone, the guys found more joy in fighting with each other and converging on the same packet en mass. Kar managed to loose out in the scramble and looked longingly at his friends as they munched on happily. He immediately stretched his hand towards Kris - his closest friend in the group. But the guys started shouting at kris - "Remember, it's each man for himself. That's how we have been all these years - let him fight for the next packet". Kris shrugged his shoulders and looked away. Kar looked on longingly and waited for the next packet to be opened. There were some joke cracked which left everyone in splits. Suddenly kar found his hands full with Lays. Kris shrugged, smiled and looked away before anyone could notice. Their friendship had been renewed !!!

The group traveled in a tempo traveler - and the seating order was more or less fixed. Kar had a nice seat by the window while kris found himself in the back seat. They were traveling through a picturesque valley which was more beautiful due to the setting sun. Everyone was enjoying the drive when kris called from the back and asked Kar whether he would swap seats - as he could hardly see anything from the back. Kar immediately screamed "No way" and continued to enjoy the scenery. Then as an afterthought he called Kris again and asked him to take the window seat. Kris shrugged, smiled and they swapped seats. Their friendship had been renewed again !!

Random Musings ...

2007-04-25T10:37:00.000-07:00

The tussle between the Government and the courts over the OBC quota issue is getting 'interesting' by the day. It reminds me of two school kids arguing, with each one firmly entrenched in his opinion and not willing to listen/budge from their positions. The solution to this entire debate was summed up beautifully by President A.P.J when he said - "The solution is to increase the number of seats, so that everyone gets a chance to study". I was chatting with R about this issue and she remarked - "At the end of the day, they are not accountable to the people. The politicians have to fight elections and even the media have TRP ratings to worry about, but these people ??". Me thinks - Why can't they hold such high profile trails "in - camera", so that we get to see what the Government presents and why are they rapped time and again ?? How about bringing back 'juries' again in India ?? (In case, you aren't aware - juries were abolished in India in 1958). Ohh, and they have decided not to increase the number of seats if there's no reservation. Damn the "elitist" attitude.

Speaking of encounters with the law, there was this funny incident which happened last week. We were going out for a project party. My team lead jumped a red signal - well in fairness to him, two other vehicles did the same, it was a close call. The Traffic warden promptly turned up and seized the keys of my lead's bike and another offender's vehicle(That the third vehicle which was driven by a girl, escaped is a different story). He asked us to wait till the SI arrives. Now this other guy started pleading. He first told that the signal was green when he crossed. The warden was adamant - he told us that he wasn't blind. Now this guy promptly fished out a 50 Rs. note and tried to push it to the warden. What followed was a scene straight from the movies - the warden shot back - "Do you want a hundred rupee note ?? I am not here to accept bribes. The government pays me salary and i work for it. Stay with me here till 10'o clock in the night and see if i pull up any vehicle un-necessarily". I thought of accepting the challenge while my other project mates smirked - "This is what happens when you give just fifty". By now, the warden was in full flow. He turned towards the rest of us and started - "All i want is for you guys to listen. What are signals for if people don't respect them". Then with a magnificent gesture he gave back the keys he seized. The other driver mumbled a thanks which was greeted by - "Who wants your thanks. Learn to obey the traffic rules first". We hastened away before he began another soliloquy. We were left speechless after the incident. A rare example of someone who does his duty and does it with pride. Ohh - and my lead jumped two more signals the same night. And again, he wasn't the only one who did it !!!

Related Post - Reserved or UnReserved. And i wrote this around the same time last year - it has taken a year for things to come to a boil. Long live bureaucracy !!!

2007-04-19T11:24:00.000-07:00

Dear Blog,

It's a very special day tomorrow - your first birthday. And it seems like yesterday when i penned down my first post. I know you would want me to write more - but 62 posts in 365 days is not bad at all - almost a post every six days. A blog waiting for new posts always reminds me of an Auto driver waiting for a customer. He has to just hang in there and keep watching - he can't force anyone to travel in his auto. Ok ok - before you get angry, let's discuss more serious stuff.

Looking back, there are certain things which i could have done better. One - cut down on the crib posts. But what else could i have done when my mental state was bad - how long could i keep on tiring my friends?? The other thing i could done is write on more diverse topics. Currently my writings are more of musings, reflections and some stories(personal experiences ??). I could have written more about Football, Politics and maybe Technology. But my explanation would be - there are bigger and better blogs for all these. One of these days, you may get a sister/brother blog - a blog devoted exclusively to Sports, Business or Technology news presented from my perspective. And one more crib which you may have is that I never write about my job. Well - i don't know how to answer this. All i can tell you is that the life of an Indian Software Engineer isn't exactly "happening" enough to maintain a record.

And please don't ask me why more people haven't read you?? Sometimes i do feel jealous when i see blogs receiving 40-50 odd comments for each post. There maybe two reasons for such wild popularity - either the blog is extremely good (or) the blogger is well networked and is part of many blog-circles. Ohh and the third default reason is - the blogger is a good looking female. Generally the second reason holds true for most of the blogs. Now i can't explain the first or third reasons, the second .. Well, i do visit a lot of blogs. But somehow most of them never seem to excite me, but the few which i like - i frequent regularly. And what's the point of promoting a blog - if it's good enough people would read it. Besides i am sure you would prefer a dedicated group of people posting meaningful comments than a large group just commenting for the heck of it. In any case, as long as am happy, i am sure you wont mind, even if you aren't read by anyone.

And the future - well it's going to be more of the same. There are certain exciting things coming up - hope you can be a part of all the long journeys ahead and be the first choice companion who i can turn to in times of happiness and sorrow. Thanks for everything blog, you are the Best.

With Warm Regards,
The TALKATIVE MAN

2007-04-17T11:08:00.000-07:00

Do the bonds of friendship grow stronger as the years fly by ??

Is it possible for friendships to evolve at the same time when people evolve ??

As we grow older, do we get a tendency to cling to old friendships because it is too much of a trouble to search for new friends ??

Or is just that sometimes we are plain lucky to have good friends who stick to us - like meeting the right people at the right time ??

The following were the questions in my mind as one of the best weekends in recent memory drew to a close. It was a trip with some of my school buddies to a quaint little town (which didn't even have a wine shop) called Yelagiri. We had a great time as we re-lived lots of nice memories of the events which happened some 7-8 years ago but which are still afresh in our memories - all those silly little fights, the running behind the girls, the teachers who used to "harass" us (or was it the other way around ??), all those love stories which never progressed beyond our fertile imaginations, the fantasies, the jokes, the tears everything. Thanks for everything guys, you are the best !!!

The Destination

2007-04-10T11:08:00.000-07:00

The talkative man said -

Old age is definitely akin to a second childhood. There's something beatific about the toothless smile flashed by a child as well as your old grandfather. Both are difficult to manage and never listen to instructions - one due to ignorance and the other because it isn't going to make a difference. With such thoughts running at the back of my mind, i boarded the crowded bus which takes me to my grandfather's place. It was one of those hot Chennai summer days and the bus was packed to maximum capacity. I stood there cursing my luck, the Transport Corporation, failure of birth control drives etc when someone stepped on my foot, rudely interrupting my thoughts. I moved my feet away, but this time the guy almost fell over me. I was about to swear at him, when i noticed him carefully for the first time. He was wearing a stained white dhoti and a shirt which was more yellow than white. His hair was almost the color of his dhoti and he looked so weak that he could hardly stand steadily - let alone in a crowded bus. I slowly shifted my position and made sure that the old man could stand properly almost shielding him from the crowd. After a while there was a seat nearby which was about to be get vacant - i threw my bag on the vacant seat and elbowed off the two nearest competitors and asked the old man to sit. He flashed me a big toothless grin. I suddenly felt as though my destination had arrived.

2007-04-04T01:56:00.000-07:00

The Talkative Man said -

It was one of those delightful Tuesday evenings. After such a hot day, the evening with its pleasant breeze and a full moon was such a delight. I was traveling by the electric train and since i had nothing better to do, decided to observe my fellow passengers and found quite a few delightful characters. It's such a nice hobby - watching people(strangers) and trying to guess what they must be thinking and feeling at that moment. Here are some who particularly held my attention -

The young couple and the third guy - There was this gang of three - a gal and two guys with her. The gal was all excited and was leaning on the shoulder of one guy while the other guy looked on - with an expression which seemed bored, blank or wistful. The couple went on talking, occasionally asking the third guy something, to which he replied and turned back towards the door again. I kept guessing the possibilities - was this some triangular love story where the "stronger" man won (or) did this guy never express his feelings towards the gal (or) was the gal going to marry some other person and was just friends with them - closer to one and distant to the other ?? Well - the saying Two is company and three a crowd holds more than true !! I secretly wished that the third guy's station comes soon and he could be spared of the agony.

The carefree youngsters gang - Every train compartment has such a gang. The youngsters seemed to be in a ebullient mood,"Exams would have been over" - i guessed. They were having a game of "Antakshari" and sang only when the train was in motion - against the wind outside. They seemed to be such a close knit group - singing, laughing and calling each other names. Well, wont last long -I mused. Once they start working in some Software company, all these moments will be replaced by an occassional chat in gtalk - where the conversation would seldom proceed beyond 'How are you' and 'How's work going'. For now, they seemed so content that i secretly wished that the train should never stop.

The perpetually worried middle class Government Employees - Like the youngsters, these people are also hard to miss. They are conspicuous by their season ticket passes protruding from their shirt pockets and the way they hang around in groups and discuss everything from the share market to the vegetable market. Their life revolves around their children and they listen with rapt attention whenever someone speaks of how IT companies employ so many people (or) how Biotechnology is the next big thing. I secretly wished that their children aren't part of the group which is hanging precariously from the footboard of the train passing by.

Who says traveling alone is boring ??

6 weird things about me

2007-03-29T05:00:00.000-07:00

I found this in one of the (many) blogs i read frequently. Was kind of interesting, so decided to tag myself. Offcourse all the below stuff depends on how you define "weird".

1) I am generally a very polite person, but i can be very rude when people approach certain topics. For instance, i am tall and i dont have any problems with that. But whenever someone meets me for the first time, they make a remark or two about my height. I usually smile and let it pass by, but sometimes i do get pissed off. For instance there was this old man in the bus, who told me - "You are very tall, you must be finding it very tough". I retorted back sharply - "It's all in the mind, if you think something's tough, then it certainly is". Wish i could say such things to my dad's friends or relatives when they keep bugging me about my height.

2) I used to chat a lot on Yahoo Public Chat rooms. It was a habit for several years. I never quite understood what i gained from those conversations, but those were the days when Blogs, Wikis and YouTube were not yet around. My last chat friend was S, after which i quit chatting !!

3) I often say "Mood ille" or "I am not in the mood". This is more of a catch -all phrase which is used to avoid coffee, lunch, a smoke, an evening at the beach or even work. G and S keep laughing whenever i say this, but they dont realise that it's an easy way to avoid telling hundred's of other lies or excuses. My team mates at office always ask me -"Will you come for coffee or aren't you not in the mood for it ??" Smart guys !

4) I am workaholic and love working all the time. Strangely though i never work continuously, i read numerous blogs, football sites and chat a lot with g and k. It's just the sense of having some work pending that drives me and keeps me awake in office. After all, what's life without a challenge ?? (Not a Royal Challenge, no don't remind me !!!)

5) I often get bored and the depressive feeling can last anywhere from a couple of hours to a couple of days. I often look at my friends to help me get out of this depressive feeling. One of them D has probably heard so much of me ranting, that he's gone to the US and always claims to be busy. But these days, the recovery seems much more easier !!

6) I dont watch English Movies or listen to English Music. I still dont know how this came about, but it's just one of those things. My friends have tried hard to convince me, but i somehow have a clear aversion to English movies. The funny thing is that i can read any number of books, but cant sit through a English movie without falling asleep. It's the same with English songs - some of them do have good lyrics but somehow my mind refuses to listen to it !!

Anyone who wants to 'tag' along is always welcome !!!

Reason vs Emotion

2007-03-22T06:54:00.000-07:00

It's 50 years this month that Ayn Rand finished writing "Atlas Shrugged" - the book which we all love so much. Though i wont say that the book "changed" my life, i can definitely agree that it has had some influence on me - a profound one at that. When i look back at the objectivism and the entire principle of living by Reasoning alone, i often wonder what part Emotion plays in obscuring reasonable thinking.

Consider for example - Ram is very attached to his parents. He has a brother Shyam who's more of a wastrel and who keeps on demanding money from his parents and places them in all kinds of moral dilemmas. Now since this is India and the parents value both their sons equally, they give in to most of his tantrums and in most cases it's upto Ram to bail out his parents from such tough situations. Now Ram is a man who lives by reason and believes in the Ayn Rand policy of - "That a human being is an end in him- or herself, that each one of us has the right to exist for our own sake, neither sacrificing others to self nor self to others". So what can he do now - he tries subtly telling his parents not to give in to Shyam's tantrums, but they retort back saying that -"It's our life and we value both the children equally. If one child is bad, we cannot leave him". Since he is extremely attached to his parents, he cannot bear to see them suffer and ends up indirectly helping his brother Shyam for the sake of his parents happiness. What can Ram do in such a situation ?? Sometimes reasoning needs the people around you to also act reasonably. If they dont, do you kill your feelings - in this case, does Ram shut off all the sufferings of his parents from his mind and continue living - an emotionless cheerless man whose only motive in life is living by reason ??

Wish Ayn Rand had lived in India in a Hindu Joint family.

P.S - "The Atlas characters are exceptionally memorable. They are the unabashed "immovable movers" of the world who think of nothing but their own business and making money. "... I want to be prepared to claim the greatest virtue of them all – that I was a man who made money," says copper titan Francisco d'Anconia. But these men are regarded as ruthless, greedy, single-minded individualists. They are men (except for Dagny Taggart, who could be confused for a man) who always talk shop and give scant attention to their family. In fact, no children appear in Rand's magnum opus"
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0306/p09s01-coop.html?page=2

The Leadership Conundrum

2007-03-15T11:14:00.000-07:00

What does the term - "leadership" signify to you? Is it about taking care of the people under you or is it an exercise in Self Perpetuation ?? To help you come up with the answer, i will present a very common situation -

Assuming that your organization is going through a lean patch and the budgets are very limited, but you have a team of committed people - who have worked well and certainly deserve good rewards, what would you do? The top management tells you in no uncertain terms that the budget is limited but you know that the team deserves a much better deal - what can you do in such a situation? Fighting for more with the top management is a futile exercise - all it does is spoil your reputation. Convincing the employees is no easy joke either - its much easier to deal with the ones who come and openly fight it out but how do you deal with your star performers - people who do the work and expect you to take care of everything else ?? How do you face them, look into their eyes and tell them - this is the maximum i can give you!! The situation reaches the climax when the top management addresses your team and they start bombarding them with questions - whose side would you be on??

It's a tough act - balancing the aspirations of people who work under you with the highs and lows of the Organization. When everything is available in plenty - it's just a question of allocation, but when the "pipe" (lots of people say 'funnel' these days) starts becoming dry, thats when the real trouble starts !!! If such a situation is difficult to handle in a corporate scenario, wonder how our country's leaders would feel - Imagine managing the aspirations of over a Billion people !! Whether they succeed or not is another matter, hope they at least try to do a decent job !!

What's ur Calling

2007-03-07T21:51:00.000-08:00

As i am fast approaching yet another 'quarter' life crisis, i started thinking about this - What is my calling (or) even better how do i find it ?
I am often confronted by stuff like -
"What are your long term goals, career objectives and how will a course at XXXX help you"
"Where do you see yourself ten years down the line"
"Why are you not clear with what you want to do with your life"

Seriously wonder how people ask such questions. A couple of years ago, i tried to find out the answers to these questions and told D that i would complete it within a week !! Off course one week became two and two became three .. Though i could broadly identify a couple of things which may 'excite' me, i never figured out an actual plan with short term and long term objectives. When i was a kid, my dad kept on telling me to study well - his reasoning was that "We are middle class people and i don't have any business which you can inherit". So my first objective in life was money making. During my Engineering days, i was obsessed with entrepreneurship and kept on telling anyone and everyone who listened that i want to become an entrepreneur(I still have trouble spelling this word - damn). But i didn't have even an inkling to what sort of company i want to start or even which sector i would be interested in !!! Well during my first job, i suddenly became obsessed with Media and wanted to become a journo ..I even had an explanation for it - I was a compulsive "Hindu" reader and was a decent enough writer - besides journalism is supposed to be this 'sexy' field. Slowly that obsession too wore off and i went back to what i do regularly - prepare for Entrance exams !! Now that the exam is well and truly behind, i have started thinking again !! Did i find the answer - well i kind of figured out that it's better not to think !!

At this point i am tempted to quote D (Should write a post about him soon). This is what he wrote to me when we were discussing about this -
And karthik, If only we knew "What we want to achieve" in objective terms then life becomes too easy.Life can just be what i want to do at every moment, consciously taking the right moves, end of time we might reach what we should have or we might have missed it also. It doesnt matter as long as i have remained conscious and correct.

Sound advice eh ?? Well, have you found your calling ?? (Btw, do i hear my lead calling :D)

2007-02-28T10:42:00.000-08:00

My friendly neighborhood newspaper called 'T-Nagar Talk' ran a pre-budget column this weekend. It was titled - "One Nation, Two Worlds" and featured two letters written to the Finance Minister(fiction off course). One was from a Software Engineer called Shyam a.k.a Sam and the other from a village gal. Now you can guess what happens next - the IT dude is shown as a arrogant guy, who proudly boasts that he has switched two jobs the last year, has a flat and a car on mortgage and is beating the Economy by a comfortable margin. He then makes some outrageous demands including a tax break for holidays to the World cup etc. The village character goes on to complaining about the lack of credit etc and wanted the Government to concentrate on Agriculture etc etc. While i dont have any issues with the genuine demands of the village character, i dont approve at all of the way Software Engineers are portrayed by the media in general.The journalist inside me started fuming and i dashed off a reply to him, which he never bothered to reply back !! Since i don't have anything better to post today, i would leave you with the pleasure of reading it. And if my reply to him doesn't sound convincing enough, you know why right ??

*****************************************************
Shattering the Stereotypes

It's February – that time of the year when everyone from the ever vigilant tax men to the friendly neighborhood newspaper columnist decide to target the poor IT professional. He is held culpable for all the evils of Chennai - ranging from the Cinema theater fare hikes to the potato price hikes. Well it's time to separate fact from fiction and filter the good from the spam (in IT Speak).

Well, let us get the facts right first. Every job in the IT sector generates at least three ancillary jobs. And the jobs created are in diverse sectors - ranging from construction to catering and employ people of all skill levels. While everyone is interested in the "high" salary packages which the IT professionals enjoy, does anyone bother to publish the amount of revenue which the tax men gain from these people? And does anyone project all the hard work, all the sleepless nights and working Sundays which fetch us these salaries? Everyone is interested in knowing which theaters and discos these people frequent, does anyone document the social work which the IT professionals perform? All the IT biggies have their own Social service Initiative groups which work on a wide range of causes from education to empowerment. But alas, these things never make good news – the disco night-outs and early burn-outs do.

More than anything else, the IT sector has given hope – hope to the well educated jobless middle class people, hope to the budding entrepreneurs who for years where shackled by the oppressive rules and hope to the average Indian citizenry that meritocracy is still live and kicking. It has directed the attention of the world onto a country which was hitherto famous for it's flying sadhus and dirty slums. And why blame the IT professional for the traffic jams – ask those who build the roads and the spiraling property price hikes – ask those who lend money as though there's no tomorrow. And not every IT professional owns two houses, drives a Mercedes benz and parties every weekend in swanky bars. The majority still lives in rented accommodation, commute by buses and share-autos and prefer going to the beach and eating hot Bhajjis over partying in ECR. The average Indian IT professional still has his both his feet firmly anchored to the ground and is trying hard to fix the bugs – both in the software he writes and the society he lives in. And it's time that people start questioning the Stereotypes and leave the already harried Indian IT professional alone - please do not elevate us to a pedestal nor blame us for all the problems which India faces !!

Prince of War - Harry To Iraq ?

2007-02-19T22:05:00.000-08:00

Written by me for Desi Critics You can find this post here too.

Prince of War - Harry To Iraq ?

I was watching the regular CNN news bulletin when one particular news item grabbed my attention - "Prince Harry to serve in Iraq by this month end." The report explained that the twenty two year-old prince has trained to command eleven soldiers and four Scimitar tanks and would be deployed with his regiment near Basra. The public reaction to the news was pretty divided. Some felt that it was a magnificent gesture while the others dismissed it as a publicity stunt. The American news channel was worried about the wider ramifications - what if the Prince gets kidnapped and is used as a bargaining chip against the coalition forces? The defense experts voiced concern that the Prince's presence may attract terrorists and put his fellow soldiers at greater risk.

"The Prince goes to war," "Prince Harry conquers Iraq," "Harry Houdini does it for Britain" - the following headlines flashed into my mind. Images of princes on horseback fighting great wars and conquering nations filled my mind. But when I flipped channels and watched the now-regular car bombings in Iraq, all such images vanished and pictures of angry young men, poverty stricken children and grieving widows filled up the vacuum. But it's time we got real about this - this isn't the 14th century and Presidents aren't Alexanders or Napoleons. It is a totally unjust war, fought entirely for economic reasons and one which has destabilized the entire Middle Eastern region. While Prince Harry's eagerness to fight in Iraq is laudable, I would have appreciated him more had he joined the Anti-War coalition and fought a war against injustice and oppression instead of fighting for the oppressors and the illegal occupants!

Opportunity Knocks only once !!

2007-02-09T03:04:00.000-08:00

A cousin of mine is going to appear for his board exams. I was visiting his place when my aunt asked me to 'advice' him well, told me to stress that 'Opportunities' don't come very often and in this competitive world, you have to take every available chance. Though i know that this is not necessarily true(you do badly in xth - you have xii th - you do badly there - you have college - then job (or) higher education - next job (or) marriage --- the circle keeps on moving), i was silent.It reminded me of the way i tried to disprove this saying --

Not so long ago, i was working for this Big Indian S/W monolith. We had to catch these Office Buses and office began as early as 8.30 AM( The early morning rush in the rest-rooms told their own story - speaking of rest rooms, i still don't understand why a Toilet got such a fancy name .. A friend of mine "K" takes it quiet literally and often dozes over there :)) ). Well to beat this Office bus trap, i decided to travel by the city buses to office. Now all over the world public transport isn't the most punctual and our city is no exception to this. The Mornings were quite uneventful as i boarded buses at a terminus. But the evenings were the really memorable ones. Since most of my buddies preferred the Office bus, i often had to travel alone - and it was quite a long journey back home. And often it involved more than one bus too. That's when i came up with this game of "miss-the-bus". This is how it happened - to disprove the theory that opportunity knocks only once, i often missed buses just for the heck of it. Sometimes i sat at the bus stop and counted the buses which i missed, on other occasions i used to jostle with the crowd near the entrance and walked off when my chance to board came. It was a very interesting game and the best was on the day when i put in my papers - I got down in this quaint place in the middle of nowhere and sat in the stop for a full two hours.

Well what were the results of this game - you may ask. It was pretty mixed. The one thing that was clearly disproved was the fact that if you miss a chance, you will never again get one. This was totally untrue. Sometimes totally empty buses follow crowded buses and on other occasions, there are no buses for hours together. Sometimes a bus which you catch after so much effort with that coveted window seat breaks down, leaving you high and dry in the middle of nowhere. And on some occasions even in the most crowded of buses, you get a nice place to sit and sleep blissfully till the last stop comes. Is the whole thing Random (Probability - G would say) - again i am not sure .. I guess it depends on the way you choose to interpret it ..

So the next time you miss the bus, fear not .. For every bus you miss, you may get a better bus (or a Share Auto, a paid auto or even hitch a car ride for free !!)

Keyword Blues !!

2007-02-01T10:23:00.000-08:00

One of the features in Stat Counter which am addicted to is 'Recent Keyword Activity'. Well for the benefit of non-techies and(or) old world romantics - The Keyword Activity indicates all the Keywords(or Search terms) which have lead people to your blog !! Well these are some of the recent ones leading to my blog (And if the folks at Google are reading this - watch out guys !! You better improve your search mechanism or else :D :D)

FTV Chennai - What ?? I can understand someone searching for FTV - but FTV Chennai ?? Wow - I'd better tune my TV again !! But why did this lead to my blog ??

Keep Diary daily quit Alcohol - What ?? That too when am under heavy pressure at home coz my dad found all about my escapades to the Bar !!

Sania Mirza Dreamz - What the Heck ?? This blog is supposed to chronicle my dreamz - not Sania's dreams !! Btw, that sounds like the name of a B grade movie or a stupid amateur story !!

Aishwarya's mom dad pictures - ??? Why would someone want to search for Ash's mom and dad (of all people).. Wonder if it was the hubby-to-be family conducting some sort of online cleansing ritual !!

f t v aish model - Noooo !!! Not Again !!

diary of someone quitting alcohol - Who me ?? You must be Kidding !!

youtube boys - Is this the latest rock band online ?? Or is it something pervert ??

are sez's in India more or less - Good question !! Wish i can answer it in a word !! See - even my blog can attract some good queries !!

world conspires with you - With me ?? It's more of the world-conspiring-against me right now..

Hmm ... It's a weird world - the one we live in !! It certainly is ...

Is the Indian market ready for Tabloids??

2007-01-28T09:54:00.000-08:00

I have heard a lot about the Tabloids of UK (mostly bad stuff - I must confess), but have never really seen a tabloid. On the other day, I happened to have a look at the 'Sportstar' and was hooked to it immediately. The tabloid format seemed so natural and much more flowing than the small staid magazine that used to be the Sportstar. I am also a big fan of the Hindu's 'Magazine'(Sunday supplementary) and also enjoy reading the other Sunday specials ,which aren't newspapers in themselves, but more of commentaries about the news and the people making the news(pun intended). This set me thinking - why can't we start tabloids in India? Off course, I don’t advocate beginning the snoopy, voyeurish, at-your-face tabloid culture of UK, but something more of a subtle kind - with good coulmnists,some sports diaries and a couple of short stories thrown in.

"Well weekly magazines fill this niche" - you may say, but a tabloid is so different from a magazine.

"Is the market ready for it" - Hmm..Well it's the same market which digs 24/7 television and has spawned a new generation of people who are hungry for news and ready to consume all forms of current affairs stuff thrown at them.

"What is your target audience" - The educated upwardly mobile Indians in the age group of 21-45 would be my core audience, off course anyone else is always welcome to read - we are not in the business of soft porn, it's just that these age groups willingly spend money.

"Speaking of money, what would be the price" - Well that's a toughie. It's a well known fact that newspapers sell at the rate they do only because of the advertisers. And once you get in lots of advertisements, the entire fun of reading goes away. Imagine reading a gripping novel, you turn the page before the climax and suddenly find a stupid ad. It would be tough, but we would have to plan an optimal mix of advertisements and content. Ideally a price range of 6-8 bucks would be optimal!!

"What an awesome idea! When can we expect the first issue to hit the stands?" Well as soon as I find a benevolent sponsor who is willing to back me.

Do i hear someone asking for my contact details?? :D :D

The Chennai Book Fair

2007-01-20T09:40:00.000-08:00

Moi and G went to the 'Chennai Book Fair' today. Though i have been to several Chennai book fairs before, today was truly different. For starters - the venue has been changed. This one's much bigger and better ventilated than the old one. And more Tamil books have been included (MK 's Influence - says G, No Comments - this is not a political blog :D).. And we chose an odd time to avoid the crowd, but looks like everyone else had the same idea - the crowd just kept swelling in. And the best part was the food - it was more like a marriage. For 25 bucks, you get full meals served in traditional Tamil style (minus the 'appalam' (pappad) though :( ). And it was such fun eating at a quick pace - like if u take your eyes off the food, you would finish up out of sync with others and end up on a empty stomach !!

Such a big crowd at a book fair raised several questions.. Me and G were wondering whether Chennai has evolved into a literary hub or whether people think book fair is some sort of trade fair where they can spend a day with the family? Well i can always ask - How many people who goto a temple really believe in God ? Or even better - how many people who attend school or college can really claim to be educated - like you have finished an Engineering Course or an MBA course - can you really claim that you are an Engineer or a Manager ?? Guess everything is about perceptions - like they say - It's all in the mind !! Coming back to the book fair, this is what i thought - I was happy to see so many people in a Book Fair rather than at a beach or a bar !! Hopefully this new venue heralds the beginning of a new era in Chennai's reading culture and makes January synonymous with books - the same way as December is synonymous with Music !!

2007-01-12T03:19:00.000-08:00

I do quite a bit of Blog hopping (No that's not my work :D) and recently came across this new genre of blogs - Blogs being written by young mom's. These people mostly fall into the same profile - Young (Late 20's or early 30's), educated, working (or taking a break for motherhood) and mostly settled abroad. They typically write about their kids, their lovable antics and even post lots of pictures !!! It makes for an interesting read and is quite a departure from the old tradition where parents never dote on their kids in the open - 'kannu pattudum' (or) evil eyes may pry on the kids -well times are changing !! But will the kid think twice when he decides to walk out on his parents at some later stage ?? Hmm

Was doing some reading on SEZ's in India and it's shocking.. It looks like a real scandal in the offing. Look at the numbers involved - Currently there are only 22 functioning SEZ's, 237 formally approved(out of which only 50 have been notified) and some 250 pending with the State Governments..The funny thing is this - u need atleast 1000 hectares of Area to setup an SEZ. And they are exempt (well almost - if u ignore the point about the implementation by a 'Development Commissioner') from Labour and Environment laws and get a whole host of tax concessions to boot.. My point is this - if you want to 'industrialize' why not change the policy across the land (i.e. implement labour law changes, reduce taxation).. A special exemption should be given only if companies relocate to harsh terrains or rural areas .. What's the point of giving someone prime land near Mumbai or Delhi and tax concessions too ?? Why the hypocrisy ?? And i was thinking that the license -permit -approval regime was a thing of the past !!

Chelsea opposers rejoice !!! Looks like Mourinho is on his way out !! Hope someone kicks out Roman and his millions from Football too .. But wait, he has started a trend where everyone is selling out to foreigners - no point sending him out now .. Wonder when an Indian company (or) an Indian will acquire a Football Club ?? Hmm - If it's destined to be me, then i am sorry, it would take some more time !! :D :D

2007-01-08T09:54:00.000-08:00

Do people evolve with time or do they stay the same ??

Why do relationships whether they are decades old or days old suddenly appear no longer meaningful ??

Why do people say - 'You seem to have changed a lot' (or) 'You haven't even changed a bit since we last met' ??

Why do people sometimes fail to accept change as part of life and sometimes search for differences where there aren't any ??

All these remind me of High School Chemistry(Wasn't particularly good in that subject - any of my school mates would vouch for it).. Well there are bonds between atoms. And one way to break or join atoms is using Temperature (High or low - depends on what you want to do). In the same way, time is the factor which binds or breaks relationship's between human molecules. And i have seen more breaking than binding !!! Or is it just me ??

2006-12-30T11:03:00.000-08:00

I logged into orkut after a long time and was casually browsing through my friends list.. Everyone seems to have a different name and u can identify people only by the pics !! And i thought i was the only guy suffering from an identity crisis !!

Am reading the "Inheritance Of Loss".. Decent book .. But wonder how it got the booker prize ...Maybe someday i too would write something and get it published.. Well u never know - stranger things have happened !!

Some bizzare things are happening recently and i realised that "Truth is stranger than fiction" is not just another cliche !! Wonder how life has an uncanny ability of surprising you time and again !!

Well it's going to be the new year soon .. The first am going to celebrate with my blog .. Happy New Year folks !! Have a good one !!

YouTube gems !!

2006-12-28T01:39:00.001-08:00

Ok.. How many of you have read Osho, but never seen him ?? Well - here's a little gem which i got from YouTube.. Shows the "most original thinker of the 20th century" in a jovial mood..

Spoiler Warning -Does Osho remind you of a contemporary Guru or is it the other way around ?? Hmm .. As long as these guru's preach good things and dont get embroiled in scandals, who cares about similarities ??

Enjoi -

2006-12-21T02:49:00.000-08:00

I sent an e-mail to this friend of mine - G about the latest tech based entrepreneurial ventures in India (To be absolutely frank, none of them (the ones i saw) were either interesting or innovative). The following is the mail thread (italicised are G's words) -

all of em are j**k-a**... no novelty... they are the fodder for the "shake-up of web 2.0"

Correct !!! I thought s/w companies in India are risk averse, but even the so called tech -entrepreneurs ?? Too much da !!

i dunno... sometimes it gives me the feeling that this is much to do with our education system!!! all stereotypical... icon-based society... from politics, sports... everything is based on icons... where people dont strive to become them but idolize them!?!? u r an idol.. then there arent any questions asked!!! CHEAPSKATES!!!

to top it all...there is absolute lack of character in the society,,,

Hmm .. Couldn't agree more with u buddy .. Couldn't agree more !!

2006-12-18T21:43:00.000-08:00

Do u think your job involves a lot of stress ??

Do u think your company gives you very little time off ??

Do u think your superiors make you run around a lot ??

Well if you think i am going to speak on Work Life Balance or modern 'stress-busting' techniques, then am sorry .. This is a prelude to a dangerous problem which is currently taking monstrous proportions !! This article from the HINDU caught my attention today -

Another soldier posted with Rashtriya Rifles (RR), the specialist counter-insurgency force in Jammu and Kashmir, committed suicide in Doda district in the early hours of Monday, taking the number of distress deaths by armed forces personnel to 130 this year. Since 2002, about 400 soldiers have killed themselves, while about 100 died after being shot by their colleagues.

Look at the numbers - 130 this year alone .. And the reasons for the suicide are given as -

Officials maintain that most suicides occur after men return from leave of absence.

This is a sad situation. The people who guard our country deserve much better. When so much money is being spent for the 'modernisation' of the army, can't a fraction of the funds be allocated towards making the lives of soldiers better - maybe have counseling sessions etc .. Offcourse i dont know what the army is doing to tackle this situation, but still feel that something can be done. And the mainstream media is more inclined to chase stories of people snorting cocaine, high profile murder and kidnap cases while conveniently ignoring such burning(!!) issues - MIG aircraft deaths, farmer suicides , Army suicides, AIDS awareness etc.

So the next time you crib about your job, working conditions, insensitive superiors - remember the plight of a jawan standing at freezing temperatures with an empty stomach, holding on to dear life and the pride of the nation !!

2006-12-07T06:16:00.000-08:00

Dear Unknown Stranger,

When i went to sleep yesterday night, there was one particular event which kept coming back at me - the memory of me being so rude to you in the bus. Well, it was all a terrible mess and i owe full responsibilty .. Due to certain reasons, am upset for some time now and this was compunded by the bad day i had yesterday. It all began when i was hurriedly getting ready for office when someone kept on buzzing at the door. It wasn't the kind of door bell ringing u are used to - people generally ring the bell, wait for sometime and ring it again.. But this particular case - it was bang bang bang .. When i opened the door, i saw a Female (Ok Lady).. She began a typical pitch - "We are coming from ---- School".. I said "No Thank You" in a polite voice and proceeded to do the usual - bang the door at her face .. But I was shocked at her insolence when she said - "Why don't you listen to me fully ? I am a teacher !!".. I was like - "WTF ... Is this the way you intrude people's privacy??".. She mumbled something and i banged the door(not 'on the door' :D) extra hard and went ahead..

Then there was this stupid incident in office - a couple of my relatively good friends (Let's call them B and S) had planned a trip to a holy place .. Since i had nothing better to do during the weekend and wanted to visit the place, i told them i would accompany them .. That was when S sent this stupid SMS asking me if i was sure that i wanted to come and i shouldn't mock the rituals !! I was like - WTF ?? When did i ever mock at any ritual ?? B and S had the following explanation - since i was an aethist, they were scared that i would say or do something that would affect their 'state of mind'.. I got bugged and offered to back off .. But B and S felt bad and extended an olive branch !! And i had to accept it - grudgingly though !!!
Then by evening time certain events happened at home which left me less than satisfied !!

I was thinking about all these stupid things and standing in the bus near the entrance when you came and stood behind me .. U were singing some song - a famous tamil hit if i remember right .. I thought to myself - "Some people are happy, some sad !! That's life !!!".. Then with 5 more minutes for the stopping, u asked that stupid question which got me terribly angry - "Sir, are you planning to get down !!".. I guess there was less humour and more sarcasm in my voice when i replied back - "People get down only when the bus stops".. That snide remark bought a barrage of words from your side - some of which were like - "U look decent - why are you so rude !! People these days are so insensitive .. Blah Blah .. Everyone has to get down at some stop or the other .." That last remark made me even more bugged and made me retort - "So then why did you ask that question".. Thankfully the stop arrived but you were still smarting from it and went on shouting !! I left in a huff thankfully preventing any further problems !!

Now how do i convince you that - I am not such a bad person as you must be thinking .. I hold the lift door open when someone comes running, Say Sorry and Thank You regularly, treat elders with respect generally (have even given my seat to elderly people) and generally behave well but i do have my moods .. And there are certain places and certain people in front of whom i cannot lose my temper or snap at, but the rest - well i cannot give any guarantees !! So the next time you see someone snapping at you please avoid unnecessary talking back and lectures about the modern generation etc etc !! No one is born rude - but the circumstances and people around them make him/her sound rude .. And had you kept quiet after my first comment, i would have apologised myself !! Well i would also keep this in mind - the next time i feel bugged, irritated or pissed i'd better keep my mouth shut and make sure that other's aren't hurt because of my words !!

Peace be Upon the World !!

Which Side of the Fence are you on ??

2006-12-01T06:29:00.000-08:00

Category I

i) The 'Conductor' who gracefully waives away the 50p due to him from a tottering old man ..

ii)The 'Bank-Clerk' who gives away each MBA application with a smile and an All the Best !!

iii)The 'youngster' who helps an old man to cross the road inspite of getting late to the tuition..

iv)The 'bar-tender' (ok - waiter) who offers to get you an auto to reach home after one drink too many ..

v)The 'buddy' who comes to your house with an "eraser" as a gift the night before the exam (well it's another fact that i write the 'xam each year :D)

Category II

i) The 'driver' who stops the bus a mile from the stop seeing the crowd waiting around ...

ii) The 'grouch' who mans the phone at a major Management Institute who growls at you when you ask a doubt in the application form process ..

iii) The 'sister' who's so selfish that she wants all her jobs to be completed with scant regard for the happiness or sorrow of others !!

iv) The 'buddy' who calls you up constantly to brag about his "high" scores when he knows that you havent done the exam well and are down in the dumps !!

v) 'Life' which is always un-fair to you, never gives you the right breaks, makes you scrap and scowl for every little break and generally robs the joy of living !!

It's a tough life people !! And you gotta fight for every little inch .. And specially when things dont quite go your way, it makes it even more tough - something akin to starting the second half of a must win match with a goal down and a man dismissed -or- a test match second innings trailing by 400 runs with your main batsman out of form -or- a tie breaker in the third set after having lost the first two sets in a best-of-three tennis game !! Someone said "Life is all about roses and thorns" - but makes u wonder if there are more thorns than roses in life and even better whether it's indeed worth hunting through all the thorns for the rose !!

Hmm ..I am not supposed to ramble so much - maybe it's that time of the year when all your buddies get bored with your constant troubling, parents have too much trouble of their own and i turn to the one thing which never complains - my Bah-Log !!!

Where is the Romanticism in the Game ??

2006-11-22T03:09:00.000-08:00

Things change and they do they change rapidly.. But one of the recent changes which i dont really relish is the way the game of cricket has evolved.. Gone are the days when an 'away' tour used to mean so much to everyone concerned - the players, the media, the fans etc. India used to tour a South Africa or England once in 4-5 years and usually played 5 test matches with a couple of ODI's thrown in. The selection for the tour was a eagerly looked about thing where the media would have a field day with columns like -"India - Tiger at Home, Paper Tiger Abroad".. The technique of every 9,10 and Jack against the seaming ball would be analysed thread bare and finally the selectors would be panned as usual even before the tour starts. Once the tour begins, the away team takes a two week acclimatisation period, usually touring or playing games against President's XI, Police Commissioners XI etc .. This was the period where the media would publish columns like "South Africa Dairy" with some good pictures thrown in.. And when the real action began, India would usually get beaten black and blue, the batting crumbling against all and sundry and the columnists writing stuff like - "The demons were not in the pitch, but in the batsman's mind"..

Cut back to the "modern" game - Tours have generally 2-3 test matches, 5-7 ODI's and even a 20-20 match thrown in. Gone are the days when away tours used to mean so much, the champions trophy was barely over and the teams hopped onto the plane to South Africa. Gone are the days when teams used to play many practice games and used to give sound bytes like "The conditions are tough, we are still getting used to it".. These days almost everyone plays everyone else everywhere that there's no home or away anymore.. Players are expected to jump off the plane, play and fly back in time for the next ODI series - the way Kaka or Ronaldo fly to Brazil in midweek to play an international and return in time for the 'Super Sunday' fixture !! And with the exception of a few, most of the pitches world over are becoming batsman - friendly and it's not uncommon to see 380 runs scored everyday day after day !! Barring an occassional Ashes or Indo Pak series, Cricket doesn't generate any excitement anymore and people turn on their tv sets and watch matches the same way they watch a mega serial, a SRK movie or the news !! Everything's become so routine, so standard that people start yawning when a technically talented player grafts for runs and eulogise someone like Dhoni who plays senselessly ball after ball .. His strategy is simple - either way the life of a player in the team is short, why waste an opportunity !! So hit your way into the team, advertise everything from Tantex to Tata and finally wither away and look for a Bollywood movie or a cricket show !! It's a reflection of the times we live that the Indian team didn't have their suits ready for the away series (the picture taken where every player beams proudly in suits) and had to pose with Nike T shirts and Shorts !! No wonder that none of the newspapers neither carried the picture nor bothered to give much column space to Greg Chappell and his chumcha Rahul Dravid .. It's a reflection of the times we live that cricket has evolved from the days of Sir Don Bradman to Sanath jayasuriya to MS Dhoni to finally the most shining star - Mandira Bedi !!

Welcome to the 'modern' game !!!

News Blues !!

2006-11-17T07:42:00.000-08:00

As i sit to type this, i am watching tv channels make a living out of selling 'news' - news mostly of misery, gloom, who attacks whom, who has nuclear weapons and who launches rockets - Bah .. just makes me sick..It's more and more of the same - gone are the days when u used to watch news for only half hour everyday - now it's 24 hours of the same - if not more and more of bull shit thrown at u .. The other day BBC was covering elections at Nicugeria - yes, apparently it's a small state in Latin America which like many of it's neighbours has decided to go the communist way !! Leads me to ask the same question - weren't the same news stories happening in the 70's and 80's ?? Pray why the sudden attention to news channels ?? Maybe because in a globalised world, information is power and news sells !! Hmm ..

How many of you grew up in the late 90's watching good ol' DD1 and DD2. If u can remember there used to be a program called "Surabhi" at Sunday nights - hosted by Siddharth Kak and the 'cute' Renuka Shahane(pardon the spelling).. It was basically a news magazine sort of thing - where they asked a question at the end, and u had to reply using a postcard (good ol' 10 paise post card).. And it drew lakhs and lakhs of responses .. Contrast this to the modern generation "SMS" contests where u can vote on XXXX to basically do anything from saving a contestant from elimination to complaining about a loud neighbour next door.. And there's real moolah in these SMS'es.. I think it's around 3 bucks per message - and the channels and service providers are partners in crime !!! A friend of mine had his roomie participating in one of these make-it-big-overnight competitions(Singing i guess !! Bah .. wonder what happens to the winners after 3 months - Viva, Abhijeet Sawant, Kazi ?? remember these folks b4 ever taking part in
such a competition !!).. Now my buddy purchased a SIM Card with 3000 bucks talktime,downloaded a program which sends SMS automatically and voted his roomie to fame (I think the guy lost at the end - he hee .. Better friends for him i guess).. What's the point of it all ???

P.S --- He hee .. I am thinking of becoming a TV journo .. The news anchors these days are simply mindblowing - on par with Bollywood heroines !! Any media honchos reading ??

P.P.S -- Anyone watching BIg Boss on Sony TV ?? It's sick, it's bull shit - but what the heck .. It's interesting !!!Do read the original novel - 1984 by George Orwell !! I know he wud never have anticipated his book to spawn of such mindless B.S !! But that's life !!!

Is "IT' really HOT ??

2006-10-31T23:19:00.000-08:00

I recently read a series of posts across Blog-o-sphere glorifying IT companies and the work that happens here vis a vis other sectors ... That set me thinking .. Offcourse i cant write anything really offensive here, but just a few pointers - let's say snapshots of my mind and some of my favourite rants about the "industry" in which i work..

Hmm .. Where do i start ? Ok, this is how the word "career" is defined -

ca-reer
(noun)
a person's progress or general course of action through life or through a phase of life, as in some profession or undertaking

It's much more than the next onsite chance, or the next promotion or even better - the short hop to the company next door. It's something built step by step, brick by brick, with some goals in mind and a long term picture defined.. Too often i see people compromise on almost everything - technology, projects, roles to achieve what they "want" or what they perceive as a "want" ..Everywhere i hear the same argument - X Y Z has done this, gone here, got this role, so why can't i ?? They go and put across this same argument to their Manager and the poor chap often promises something which he/she can't deliver .. End Result - Disappointment, Bitterness and finally - a hop to the next company .. And will things be any better there - after the honeymoon ends, the whole process begins again ... Does this explain why the attrition rates are as high as they are ??

Wonder when people would stop this mad race - for money, position and start looking more at themselves rather than at the monitor in the next cubicle(quite litreally !!).. Offcourse i have to add that there are idealists left but the pity is that they are very few in number and a fast vanishing tribe !!

P.S - The Author isn't trying to hold a high moral ground .. It's just something he feels very deeply about .. And offcourse, any industry which is not strong fundamentally will surely run into trouble sooner than later - the good times never last forever .. Look at history for more examples ...

P.P.S - Hardly had i finished typing this, when i see a close buddy of mine glum faced about the lack of "onsite" chances and all his friends having gone ..... Hmmmmmm ...

Me in the news !!!!!!

2006-10-11T01:38:00.000-07:00

Untitled - Part I

2006-10-06T04:11:00.000-07:00

Ram looked into his watch hastily for the third time. "Why doesn't this damn bus ever turn up on time ?" - he mumbled under his breath. It had been a tough week and the effects were already showing. He was thinking about the high 'priority' issues in office, the oncoming MBA entrance exams, the new gal in the locality.. If ever someone measures the number of new thoughts per minute, he would top the list.. Lost in his thoughts, he stepped over someone's foot. Expecting a torrent of Tamil Bad Words, Ram apologised without even looking at the person's face. It was an old man - one of those breed who are always well groomed, speak English with pride and live off their pension's without sacrificing their pride. He had a smile on his face - a rarity among people waiting for a bus during the peak office hours.

"Software a Pa ?? (Do u work in Software)" - he gently began the conversation. Ram gave him a half baked smile. "My son too works in a software firm "- he began in a clear voice in heavily accented English. Ram smiled and without any real interest asked "Where Uncle ??".
"It's a company in Hyderabad called *******" - he said in a balenced voice. Ram's jaw dropped immediatly. It was one of the highest paying companies around. "Very Good company, Uncle. I work in ******" - he said. The conversation was interrupted as the bus finally arrived. Not too much crowd inside - Ram noted with relief. Makes the travel much more easier. Ram had the exact change in his hand and got the ticket and headed straight for the vacant seat and started searching for his mp3 player. That was when he noticed the old man standing passionately by his side. He felt embarrassed and immediately got up to offer his seat. The old man smiled and told him to sit - "Relax, my son .. You need the seat more than i do". The guy next to him sneered and stood up and gave his seat. The old man protested, but he convinced him that he's getting down in the next stop. Ram closed his player and was waiting for a lecture on modern youth and their habits..

Instead the old man began in a very kind tone - "Is your work very tight ??". Ram nodded and said - "All part of the game uncle !!". The old man sighed -"I know. My son says the same.". Without the distraction of the walkman or the newspaper, ram started thinking. He looked at the old man - he was impeccably groomed. Shirt neatly tucked in and his face was so bright and radiant. He then looked at himself - it was two months since he last had a haircut, 2 weeks since he thought of touching the blade for a shave and the dress - well the lesser said the better. It was around the 3rd time this week he was wearing the same shirt.. "Well who cares !!"- he shrugged. The old man gave him a all knowing smile .. "How old are you pa ?". - he asked. Ram said - "I turned 24 last month, uncle". "How much do you earn pa ?" Ram thought for a second, that was a personal question. Still he was sure that the old man had good intentions. SO he quoted his salary - a fancy number 5 digit number. The old man chuckled ..

(To be Continued)

What's going on ..

2006-10-03T06:48:00.000-07:00

Well, what's going on .. True to my name i am gonna Rant rant and rant for the next 10 minutes .. Well there's not much to cheer either in the job front or on the personal front .. Sometimes there are phases in life when things just go on .. No rhyme or reason .. Things just drag on and on !! Well sometimes u drive life and sometimes life drives u !!!

MK Gandhi celebrated his umpteenth b'day yest !! Dry day in all senses of the word !! The controversy over the Munnabhai movie allowed his grandson to make his customary tv appearance and extol gandhi's virtues.. It's not as though am against Gandhi as a person .. It's just that i hate anything which is hyped up(Sachin, Dhoni, SRK,Schumi,Arsenal etc etc).. Wonder someone tries to find the person behind the personna - i.e. the Aatma behind the Mahatma !! Well he's history (an 'apt' phrase if there was ever one !!)

What else is happening - work becomes more 'depressing', TV news anchors become cuter and cuter, more friends become ready to jump ship for abroad (rant) (rant) ..

BTw, my office litreary club has started a group blog . There are some good writers and hopefully some more wud join in .. Check it out !! Hmm, what else - my head was aching all thru the morning, now it's my stomach .. What next ?? (sighs)

Whatever !!!

2006-09-26T02:42:00.000-07:00

Two news articles which made me sit up and puke yesterday !!

AB Baby has been voted as the Sexiest Man in Asia by a magazine !!! He hee .. Wonder if they got the wrong A Bachchan !!

Venkatesh Prasad seems is going all out to secure the position of India's Bowling Coach. Yeah !! Rite .. As though Indian bowlers were playing well already !!! Ok .. before u start that old cliched argument of great players not being great coaches or whatever.. Plzz .. Not this guy !! A fast bowler whose stock delivery was a leg cutter !! Wow .. And think of it - Pathan, Zaheer and others are already bowling medium pace !! And if Venky becomes the bowling coach - aghhh !! Maybe he should open a spin academy and impart his wisdom of how to bowl "Leg cutters"..

Hmm .. In other pukes - Indian team lost again !! Wow .. Chappel shud be sacked !! ASAP !!! And Liver(f)ool has started playing better in the EPL .. And Dirk Kuyt has actually scored goals !!! Aghh ... Poor Crouchie !! He seems doomed !!

The Howling Dog and other Assorted Stories ...

2006-09-17T22:21:00.000-07:00

It's monday morning and lemme begin the week by doing something which i like most .. Hmm .. Did i tell u about the story of the howling dog ?? Here goes -

There's a Saibaba temple near my place .. It's one of those neat compact temples where people step in for a quick prayer away from the maddening crowds of the big temples("God" is always in demand !!).. Well this temple conducts an arthi every day before shutting down. They basically have a CD which sings a devotional song and people sing along(Not me, i just sit there for the 'ambience'). Well what's special about this - you may ask ?? This is where the story begins .. At a point of the bhajan the CD says - "Sairaj Maharaj ki Jai".. That's when a dog which stays near the temple starts howling .. Mind you, it's not a bark - it's a blood curling howl.. As though it's either in pain or seen something ghastly .. And mind u, it doesn't howl through out the Bhajan.. It howls only at this particular point and it starts before people say "Jaiii" ... And it does this daily (i.e. whenever there's a bhajan around).. There's a fast food nearby and people in there stare at this divine dog daily .. It has become something of a icon in these parts !! I am thinking about a "rational" explanation for this all week long .. S says that the sound of a particular frequency triggers a reaction in the dog's brain !! Hmm .. Maybe .. My mom says that it would have howled one day and someone would have given it prasad .. And then it continues it daily to eat food.. She says that the dog even does "namaskaram" inside the temple .. he hee ... My dad says even the dog believes in god and howls at that time .. It has better sense than you !! Hmm .. dad - the die hard theist !! Can you think of any rational explanation for this "phenomenon" ??

In other tales - i watched the movie Lage Raho MunnaBhai over the weekend .. I was left astounded .. This is such a classic movie .. Wonder who wrote the script !! To depict Gandhi in such a manner is awesome .. Btw, there was a loose end in the movie .. The portion where "Lucky" Singh calls a press conference and Gandhi ditches Munna Bhai .. I thought Gandhi would explain his action at the end .. But he didn't .. My buddy and aspiring director - K says that this scene explains that Gandhi was not really around as a ghost .. It explains that all Munnbhai had was a chemical change in his brain which made him see Gandhiji .. Hmm .. Watch the movie guys .. It's worth it's weight in gold ...

I also wanted to write about Liverpool and a superstar called "Dirk Kuyt" ... Well that's a post for another day !!!

Journey or Destination ??

2006-09-12T03:29:00.000-07:00

Imagine this .. You are studying in school .. U fail each year and sit in the same class.. But the catch is this - the number of students increase each year, the syllabus get's tougher each year and what's even worse - the teachers spring nasty surprises in each year's question paper !!! Plus your parents (in some cases - U) spend lots of money on coaching and simulated exams each year .. Most people who joined with you have graduated and what's worse - even your juniors have started graduating !! Yet you are in the same class with nothing but a profound hope that this year's gonna be your year.. You spend every(well almost every) waking hour chasing this dream knowing fully well that a single bad section can spoil an year's effort or a good 2.5 hours can make your life !!

What do you do in such circumstances ??

The 'Pepsi' Connection

2006-09-04T23:39:00.000-07:00

It was a lazy saturday afternoon and i was lazing away at home. My grandfather was regaling me with some tales of how the Britishers ruled India, how the previous owners used to run Hindu newspaper well ... Suddenly he asked me to open the paper and showed me the above image - i said Indra Nooyi.. He then said - she's our relative !! I was like - what the heck .. He told me Indra Nooyi is his brother's wife's sister's daughter !! That becomes a cousin to my mom i.e. Indra and my mom have the same uncle !! I asked him about the "nooyi" name - he said she married someone from Bangalore !! Hmm.. then he asked my mom if he remembers Indra .. My mom was like - yup i remember her well.. We spent lots of our holidays in their place !! Indra used to like my grandma's food !!! i was left speechless !!!

P.S - On a related note - did u people see the new Pepsi Ad on Tv .. The one where Rajiv Bakshi says Pepsi is safe !! This is something which i haven't been able to decide .. i.e. who's right and who's wrong !! I wonder of such a big MNC like pepsi won't have checks and processes to ensure quality !! At the same time what's the motivation of the Government Agency to come out which such a report !! But after hearing the news that Indra Nooyi is my relative, it's not tough to know whom i support now !! Wonder what others feel about this .......

The 'Retail' Rush !!

2006-08-28T01:28:00.000-07:00

You just cannot escape from it these days .. Whichever channel u watch, which ever magazine u read - they are all abuzz with the same stories - someone is going to invest big money in the retail sector !! It all started with Reliance .. Then the ambani brothers decided to split up (I still believe that Anil has got a raw deal - well that's a story for another day), Pantaloon suddenly woke up to the R threat and decided to invest big bucks .. Then the TATA's and BIRLA's jumped into the fray .. And finally Mittal decided to dial in as well ..Well somethings need to be sorted out here -

a) How many people have a good business model - Reliance seems to have a model in place(based on Walmart), Pantaloon has one (loosely modelled on Marks and Spencer and Tesco), but what about the others ??

b) Is there enough disposable cash to make all of them profitable ?? - i doubt it very much .. Reminds me of the 1990's when all the foreign companies rushed in to tap into the great Indian "Middle class", but what happened then ??

c) What about the global RETAIL chains ?? - This is what makes me really angry !! The defence given by some parties against FDI in retail was that small retailers need to be protected !! Now we know who really needs protection !! The day when business men stop hobnobbing with politicians, India would become a better place to live in !!!

When a new sector "emerges" why does every Tom, Dick and harry rush in ?? Same happened when Insurance was privatised .. Are all of them making money - Sorry - Are any of them making money ?? The one question i would like to ask Corporate India is - "Why this herd mentality ?? "All that's going to be achieved is - the commercial land prices will shoot up, executives salary will rise and poor share holders will loose money .. And finally they would sell out to a Walmart or Tesco !! Isn't there a better way to do business ??

P.S - The author is reminded of the genre of Bhagat Singh movies .. When around 5-6 of them released simultaneously .. End result -All of them were flops and a beautiful concept was in tatters !! Any similarities here ??

Happy B'day to Me ...

2006-08-23T22:58:00.000-07:00

Happy B'day to Me ...
Happy B'day to Me ...
Happy B'day to dear Myself ..
HAPpy B'day to Me !!!!

(Clap Clap).. (Whistle ..)

I turn 24 on the 24 th of August !! What does a B'day really signify ?? "Our birthdays are feathers in the broad wing of time" -Jean Paul Richter

One more year of survival over in Planet earth !! How will next year be ?? I am not wishing for anything as such - "Whatever happens happens for a Reason" .. It may be good or bad but it has a reason !! (I am sounding older already !!!)

Cheers,
Karthik

My Friends !!!

2006-08-21T01:18:00.000-07:00

A picture taken at the Farewell of our School Topper and unofficial gang leader Bharath(The guy at the centre - with the brightest face !!)... Can you spot a Classical Singer(Better than Hariharan - they say), a self proclaimed "C" programming God, a future Nobel Prize Winner, A Credit Card Collection Agent , An astrology freak and a guy who'se stomach is a bottomless Pit ??

And dont bother searching for me in the pic !! I look better on the other side of the Camera !!!

P.S - These are my oldest friends and each friendship is atleast 6-7 years old and some more than 15 years (That makes me sound old ..)

P.P.S - We will miss u - Bharath

A new Season, new hopes .....

2006-08-17T21:18:00.000-07:00

It's back baby - The Barclays English Premiership commences this Saturday .. After a hectic world cup, the players are fit and ready to compete in the worlds' most exciting football league !! The summer saw many high profile arrivals and a few departures too .. Chelski have splashed the cash (As usual !!) and brought in some real quality in the form of Sheva, Ballack, John Obi Mikel, Kalou and so on .. Liver(f)ool have increased their squad size to 31 with a lot of new players most notably Bellamy, Penant, Dirk Kuyt(medical happening now), Gonzalez and so on .... Even the Arse have bought some good players - Rosicky and so on .. Where does that leave my favourite team - Man Utd ?? Only one player in the form of Michael Carrick (who's been given Keano's number :( ), another midfielder probably (Senna or Hargreaves - the devil or the deep sea ??).. The rift between Ronaldo and Rooney appears still fresh, but what the heck, Rooney spends half the time in the stands due to this red card or the other !! They let go of the ever reliable ever dependable Ruud and have instead placed their faith or Mr.Glass - Louis Saha !! Wonder how long it would be before he breaks down, leaving Fergie to play only Rooney up front - a la England !! But maybe Scholes, Giggsy and Solksjaer have one last season left in them and we can challenge for third and fourth !!

My prediction for the Season - Chelsea or Liverpool to be the Champs
Arse-null and Man U would battle for third and fourth spots !!!

But I would be most happy if the Red Devils prove me wrong !! C'mon u Reds, C'mon u Reds !!

Why ??

2006-08-08T04:39:00.000-07:00

Why do people have to work for money ?? Can't we go back to the barter system as in the olden days. Well what would i do in that case - hmm .. That's something to think about !!!
Why should lakhs of people compete for a handful of seats ?? (Am specifically alluding to the IIM's and the IIT's) .. The only people who make money - the Coaching institutes and the universities (from application forms !!!) .. Why can't there be a better system ??
Why are all the 'good' looking gals committed ?? Hmm ... Reminds me of a quote often used by D - "Dei, if she's a good figure, she would be having boyfriends from 6th standard !! We should never bother about that !! " .. The last i heard about D was that he's after some married female !! Yuck !!!!
Why do IT companies give free coffee and tea !! According to a research conducted by the PSI(Pot Bellied Software Techies of India), free coffee is the main culprit behind the bulging waists !! Studies have shown that this is a main factor impacting hundreds of marriages !!! In what way ?? Hmm !!!!!!!
Why did u read all the stuff above patiently ?? Are u as bored with life as I am !!! Hmm ... Need Any suggestion/advice/remedies ?? :D :D .. I charge both in cash as well as in Kind (And guys that last portion wasn't for u !!!)

Rain .. Rain ..

2006-07-27T06:11:00.000-07:00

It's 6.30 in the evening and it's raining outside !! Quite heavily (err - by Chennai Standards).. Rain ... Hmm .. The very mention of the word brings some memories and vivid pictures !!

When u were young, rain meant a holiday .. Kids used to lookup into the sky in anticipation and hoped/wished and prayed that the rain gets heavier - so that little johny can play (Isn't that supposed to be the other way round ?? Never mind ....)
A flick called "Minnale" (Rehne hai Tere Dil Mein in Hindi) was made not so long ago .. The central theme was this - the hero sees a gal in the flash of lightning and his life changes .. He goes mad behind the gal and ultimately achieves her .. After watching the movie, all the aspiring romeos in town used to hang out near the bus stops and phone booths during the rain - sipping a Tea and smoking a Wills cigaratte ... The last i heard about them was in the statistics of eye hospitals !! Wait a minute - where were the gals .. The aspiring Reema Sen's (Diya Mirza if u are a northie) who kick their high heals out and start dancing once it rains ??? That's only in the movies dumbo - in real life they travel happily in AC cars ("lift") and rain dance only in disco's .. And to watch them u have to pay 1000 bucks as entry .. Wait - that's not all .. U need a partner too .. No stags allowed !! Err .. I prefer to watch the movies - Thank U !!
Where were u when it rained heavily in chennai last year ?? Well,listen to my tale of woe.. My mom and Dad were in coimbatore and i was staying alone in the house.. Now my employer decided to give the day off.. I was happy at first - but soon reality struck me !! There was no power and i couldn't even charge my cell (I lost three gal friends due to this!!) .. Then all the nearby hotels were flooded and i was down to Maggi !!! Maggi for breakfast, Maggi for lunch and Maggi for dinner !! Sounds yummy rite ?? At one stage i was peering outside for a relief helicopter to drop me food packets (Chicken Briyani with leg piece :D Veggie Helicopters please excuse) !!
Coming back to rain - there was a time when people used to welcome rain !! But not so these days .. After all the havoc caused by rains in Mumbai (B'lore and Chennai to a lesser extent), people dread rain these days !! Incidentally today's the first anniversary of Mumbai Floods .. Let us pause for a second to realise the impact a tragedy can cause on so many lives - all the near and dear ones !! Nature does so many beautiful things for people, but it too has a ugly face which it rears from time to time .. After all who's PERFECT ??

R..Random Musings !!

2006-07-21T08:11:00.000-07:00

I am back to what i do best - write randomly . So here goes ..

1) Why do people travelling in fancy cars shout from rooftops about the spirit of Mumbai ?? Tell them to travel by public transport and they would know what living in fear is like .. But credit to Mumbai for having bounced back yet again .. Salaam Mumbai !!!

2) Who were the real gainers from 9/11 ,11/7, 7/7, Pramod Mahajan's sad demise, Rahul's infamous 'snort' ... - Offcourse 24*7 news channels ... Who else ??

3) The Stock Market seems to be in "Deep Dive" mode yet again .. I enjoyed this quote - "Bulls will make Money, Bears will make money but PIGS will loose money !!"

Guess who is the pig here ??

4) Hmm .. How the hell does Sania Mirza rank 40 in the world ?? Last heard she won a singles tournament conducted by the YMCA Nandanam cheered on by some roadside romeos and hyped up by a partisan crowd of wannabe Sania's who blush each time the chair umpire says 15-love, 30 -love !! What the heck - does WTA still rank gals by their game alone ??

5) OverHeard at a roadside eatery -

"Machi, A new Matter movie starring Aishwarya Rai has been released in Tamil .. When shall we go ??"

"I saw the movie da .. Very few scenes .. It was apparently a dub from some other language .. The stupid posters fooled me !!"
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The movie they were reffering to is "Choker Bali" which has been dubbed into Tamil as Ulagah Azhagy Aishwarya (World Beauty Aishwarya). Stills of Aishwarya Rai's bare back were circulated as part of the publicity. Aghh .. People these days !!!

----Happy Weekend Folks. Hope to see you again if the GOI decides not to 'ban' me ---

Wedding Blues !!!

2006-07-12T05:13:00.000-07:00

My mom promised to find a tall gal for me to marry !! I asked her - how about this one ??

Tag bug !!!

2006-07-09T23:44:00.000-07:00

Hmm ....Badhri tagged me ... Normally i hate these tag games But today am really bugged .. So here goes ......

I am thinking about......

Why Zizou made that stupid head butt ..
What will happen to me next year !!!

I said...

I am not in the mood for it (My Fave Quote)

I want to...

(A very loooooong list .. )

Become an entrepreneur
Become a journalist
Write the editorial of HINDU some day
Stop all Farm Related Suicides
Marry a North Indian/Foreigner and teach her tamil.
Make the world a better place to live in ...

I hear ....

Someone cribbing about the quality of lunch served in office

I wonder...

Why can't we live in a different era(pre independence, communist Russia of 1920's, cold war period, naxalite period in Bengal)

I need...

A MBA degree, a job in Microsoft and a beautiful gal friend :D

I regret...

Not following my dreams more ...

I dance...

When i booze heavily (And believe me it's terrible)

I sing...

When i booze heavily and S sings .. (I join along .. making him sound even worse)

I cry...

A lot .. Remember 2-3 recent instances too .. And always with my head on mom's lap .. And i cry quite heavily too .... (snob)(sniff)(Blows the nose)

I am not always...

A chatterbox or deep thinker .. These are the two titles am often given ..

I make with my hands...

Nothing ... Love cooking though ... (Any gal reading ??)

I write...

Wud love to write more .. Become a journo someday !!! (Sighs !!)

I confuse...

Left and Right .. Push and Pull .. Lots of small things like that .... (Used to confuse between two twin(actually one pair of twins) in my school days .. That's a looong story though)

I know ...

To Change Topics, to make good conversations and make Friends !!!(Anyone Interested ??)

I am...

What I am !!!

And finally...

Life's strange folks .. Zidane had a chance at football immortality and he blew it in one stupid second .. So don't feel bad if you make mistakes .. Even the best are prone to errors !!!

I Tag : -

Rajesh (Long time since he's written ...)

And anyone who feels bored !!!

The Bikini Brief ...

2006-07-06T01:37:00.000-07:00

If you think that am gonna write about that story where i seduced a bikini clad female, then i am sorry !!! This is something which appeared on Television (Yes a MainStream News Channel, not the FTV types).. This newschannel goes by the name "Headlines Today" and they sure know how to make waves ... Well to cut a long story short, i came home early and was watching TV with my grandfather (who was enthralling me with stories like how he used to buy 75 kgs rice for 2 rs in 19XX). I was flipping thru channels when i saw a reporter standing by a pool side with a bikini clad model who was pouting stupidly !! My grandfather gave me one of those "looks" and i hastened to switch off the TV and went to my room. After some 2 hours (Around 10 in the nite), i was having my dinner. My mom was sitting with me and telling me some family tales. I once again flipped through channels and found the same stupid reporter with a sheepish grin and the "pouting" model. Before my mom could ask me anything, i switched channels and allowed her to watch Selvi(where Venu Aravindh was about to marry the 3rd time .. Some people ...).

It was 11.30 PM now. Everybody had gone to sleep(except me and the friendly street dogs) and i was waiting for the France -Portugal Match. Again i flipped through channels and this time i was fortunate to catch the whole program. It was titled - "The Bikini Brief". It began with a brief history of how the bikini evolved, the role of Bikini in Bollywood and Hollywood and finally a live demonstration. A model paraded around in various bikini's and the fashion designer explained the "intricate" aspects of the design. The designer pointed out various aspects of the bikini, explained the logic behind the cuts, complemented the model for her figure (the camera -man must have felt like winning a jackpot .. He started zooming at the slightest pretext..) - And before you start imagining, the fashion designer was a "She" ..

Do U know -
Aish Rai refused to wear a Bikini for Dhoom II
Preety Zinta refused to wear a Bikini in Salam Namaste
No mainstream heroine (except Mallika, Priyanka and Bipasha) is comfortable wearing a bikini.
Sharmila Tagore was the first to wear a bikini in the Indian Silver Screen.

There were many more such gems.. I feel enlightened.

P.S - The same channel ran a program on some survey of Sex Habits of people all around the world a couple of months ago. It was telecast in bulletins all evening and finally culminated in a hour long show at 11.30.

P.P.S - The Author is not a hypocrite by any stretch of anyone's imagination. What he doesn't approve of is mixing of different stuff. He has absolutely no problems if the same stuff is shown on FTV or any other "LifeStyle" channel. But why telecast it in a newschannel ?? Are the boundaries between news and entertainment getting blurred or isn't there any other news worth reporting ??

From Ashok Nagar to T Nagar

2006-06-28T01:50:00.000-07:00

It was 9.00 pm when i crossed the road. Another long day in office. The traffic seemed to be pretty smooth and organised today - perfect for a good walk. I love walking - i am no health freak, but it's kind of relaxing. After 12 hours spent on a comfy chair staring at a Monitor, i wasn't prepared to immediately subject myself to another 3 hours in front of another monitor - a bigger one. Besides that a long walk helps me gather my thoughts and think about my future - something which i never seem to do often enough .. Lost in such thoughts, i almost stepped over someone sleeping on the pavement. 'A peg too many' - i mused. My eyes immediately darted across to the crowd streaming in and out of a nearby shop. It was u'r friendly neighbourhood wineshop - a.k.a TASMAC. There seemed to be so many people inside. The bar 'Attached' too seemed to be full. "Do so many people have problems to be drowned over a peg ?? " - I asked myself ..

As i was crossing the wine shop, a middle aged guy stuttered out of the shop. The security guard helped him sit on his bike, started it for him and gave him a big salaam. This guy tipped him off with a 20 rs note. "Now i know why the Government has so many campaigns against drunken driving" - i thought and offered a silent prayer for the guy to reach home safely. My mobile interrupted my thoughts. It was my buddy S. "Karthi ...." - he began in a voice which can be described as half scream, half wail. "I am in the bar of XXXXX wines in T Nagar. Why don't u join me ??". Images of me boozing in that bar the last time and my promise to quit drinking flashed across in my mind. This particular bar had amazing ambience and it was a pleasure to drink there. I hurriedly thought of some excuses and managed to say "Not now da ..next time surely". He started chuckling. "Aww .. Dont tell me the same reason again. I know u would come for sure. I am waiting. Table no 1 - the one in front of the Large Screen.. 10 minutes.. be there !!". Now why does he have to tempt me ?? I smiled and disconnected the call. I wasn't falling for it - atleast not this time.

I continued my walk - determined to keep S and the alcohol out of mind. Various images flashed across in my mind. An image of some distant relative losing his job and his life due to alcohol abuse, the trashy films shown on Tv where the drunken husband beats up his wife, the high flying businessman who have Mini-Bars at their homes and cars .. Aghh .. Now my heart and mind were playing games with me .. "Just a couple of rounds.. You can even come back and have dinner at home.." - pleaded my heart. "No it would become a habit. Think of all your relatives and friends who expect so much out of you .. And what real problem do u have to goto the bottle ??" - countered my mind. "Why is that people who drink are shown to be love failure cases, sick pyschos ?? Why do you fall for the stereotypes ?? Can't someone just have alcohol even if he isn't happy, sad or depressed ??" - now the heart was trying to become rational. My mind drifted back to the first time my dad caught me after a booze. I had taken all precautions, but he found out. What ensued was a big lecture, with me even promising dad not to booze "often". How often is often ?? I chuckled at the rhyme it created as my feet went in the direction of T.Nagar. As i was crossing the subway where more people were sleeping in the middle of the road - definitely under alcohol, my mind gave a final warning - "Remember the words of K".Now K is this damn bugger who got me started on this habit. To make things worse - one day he told me - "Look at all the people who are asleep on the subway. If you dont control your addiction, you would end up here." My heart almost missed a beat when i tried imagining it. On that somber note, i opened the door of the bar. I had taken my decision fully aware of the consequences. I was no longer the college guy who used to salivate at the thought of a booze. I was well aware of my limits now and would be in control of any situation. "What the heck - don't think too much. Remember the bike Ad.. It's now or never. Have a good time, but remember to stay within the limits." - my heart had the last word.

P.S - The Author wishes to state that he doesn't espouse alcohol in any shape or form. After writing this, he has quit Alcohol (yet) again !!!

India - A welfare State ??

2006-06-19T21:49:00.000-07:00

A couple of news items recently caught my eye. Both interesting in their own ways .. Maybe the European influence is rubbing on us in more ways .. Or we have really become 'developed' enough to afford these ...

UnEmployment Allowance

Out to create a history of sorts by granting unemployment allowance to jobless graduates of the state, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister will hand over cheques worth Rs 57 crore to 57000 such youths in Lucknow.57,000 cheques of Rs 1000 each will be distributed among the youth at a function in Lucknow, Director, Information, Nitin Ramesh Gokan said on Friday. The state government has implemented the scheme from this fiscal to give Rs 500 per month to the unemployed graduates of the state and the cheques to be distributed on Saturday would carry the allowance for two months -- April and May, he said.

Unorganised Sector Workers' Bill

The latest draft of the Unorganised Sector Workers' Bill has proposed benefits such as health cover, sickness allowance, maternity benefit and life insurance cover, pension for all workers in the unorganised sector with a salary of less than Rs 6,500 per month. The Bill is intended to cover around 362 million workers in the informal sector, including small and marginal farmers, agricultural workers and domestic workers, and informal workers in the organised sector. It has proposed a National Minimum Social Security Scheme. Apart from other benefits, it provides for a provident fund (PF) cover with an assured return of 10 per cent for workers above poverty line. For below poverty line (BPL) workers, an old-age pension of Rs 200 per month has been suggested. According to the proposals, the large network of post offices would be utilised for making payments under the new Bill.

Am i fair in making the following analogy ?? The first item reminds me of the Free Colour Tv and Gas Stoves to all BPL(below the poverty line, not the TV) families while the latter reminds me of the 2 rs per kilo rice program implemented by the DMK Regime in TamilNadu ....

R.I.P

2006-06-12T23:20:00.000-07:00

A brief candle; both ends burning
An endless mile; a bus wheel turning
A friend to share the lonesome times
A handshake and a sip of wine
So say it loud and let it ring
We are all a part of everything
The future, present and the past
Fly on proud bird
You're free at last.
-Charlie Daniels

To my buddy - Shweta jha .. We met each other thru Infy Blogs. She's a great gal gifted with so much intelligence, wit and a great sense of humour !! Any conversation with her is always bound to bring a smile .. She was like a breath of fresh air - with absolutely no inhibitions !!! An avid quizzer, a keen blogger and a wonderful person. Shweta -I know you would be reading this somewhere in heaven and chuckling .. But if u believe in re-birth, let us meet the next time around and remain the same good buddies !!!!

Will miss u Dear Toothless Fairy - ScatterBrains - Shwetha

Signing off with a Heavy Heart,
Karthik

P.S - All ye guys and gals who are reading this, be careful the next time u goto a waterfall ... I dont want to lose any more friends .....