Reflections

Hi, I am Salim

2009-08-30T23:03:00.002+05:30

Suddenly a bus screeched past us.

Me: Driver seems to be in a hurry to go wish the wifey "Happy Valentine"

Rickwala: Yeah, nearing midnight aint it?

Me: Hmmm

Rickwala: So, you married?

Me: No man, I am merrily unmarried

Rickwala: Tell you what, when you get married, make it a love marriage. Nothing like marrying the one you love. I have been married 15 years and I have loved every minute of it.

Me: Hmmm

Rickwala: Know what, when I get home tonite, I will take a wonderful rose to my wife. Will go right now and get one for 5 bucks.

Me: Who sells roses for 5 bucks these days?

Rickwala: They do, to me. If you go there with a torn shirt and driving a rickshaw, I bet they will give you one for 5 bucks only.

Me: Hmmm (Cursing my damn luck for being educated, well dressed and having an IT job)

Rickwala: So, as I say, always marry the one you love. There is nothing like it in life. Trust me, you will live a very happy life.

Me: Hmmming

Rickwala: Here you are at your bus stand. Don't worry, buses for Gandhinagar start from here till 1 in the night. You will find one soon.

Me(Paying the money): Thanks, was nice talking to you Mr....

Rickwala: I am Salim and am happily married to a Miss Pandya.

Backdrop:

The incident happened in Ahmedabad, the place where the worst Godhra rioting happened. Gujarati Hindus do not look favourably at Hindu women marrying Muslim guys. The vice versa rarely happens and under both circumstances the couple are usually shunned by the people. There are reasons for and against the practice. But meeting a Muslim guy, happily married for 15 years to a Hindu woman, living in the Old City of Ahmedabad in Juhapura, which is where most extremists reside, where the residences are ghettoised into Hindu and Muslim quarters is a unique experience for someone like me who has been a keen observer of Hindu - Muslim relations in my country.

Chandrayaan - India's moon mission

2009-08-29T21:19:00.002+05:30

India's much famed moon mission - Chandrayaan 1 is finally said to have been over. I have been searching on the internet and trying to find some concrete benefits that we as a nation have gained from this moon mission.

I have seen comments and posts that mention some specific benefits:

1. The information of indigenous minerals present in the moon. Going forward one might go for colonization of moon to extract the minerals.
2. To stay in competition and respected as a nation which has made advancement in the field of science and technology.
3. Relationship between different countries improves through R&D exchange among different countries.
4. We will be able to understand the start of life through moon. It is believed that all the planets and their satellites (natural ones of course) are created at the same time.

5. Its the cheapest mission to the moon.

6. We might be able to help other countries launch their satellites and hence earn revenue.

There might be more, but this is the gist of most of it. Inspite of it being a grand success, the Apollo mission was also much maligned in the American media.

Why did the politicians agree to the Chandrayaan moon mission then? For the simple reason that it costs just 400 crores which is pocket change for our corrupt politicians. looking at the sum I believe even Laluji can send his buffaloes to the moon. He will of course, but only when it is sponsored by the government.

I am proud of the achievement of ISRO and our Indian scientists - after having graduted through a similar education system I can actually empathise much better with them. But, just as I do not believe that we need to spend such a huge part of our GDP for defence, I do not see the need for the moon mission too.

Chandrayaan - the moon mission is finally over though and so is the pocket change that we lost for conducting it. I liked a comment on one of the blogs though which said that we should not be very proud about sending the cheapest mission on the moon as it just emphasizes how badly paid our scientists are. Food for thought.

Adieu....

Singh is King

2009-05-16T16:07:00.003+05:30

So, the true Sardar is going to rule the country once again. We just hope that he is able to do so for the whole of the next five years. Given the sycophancy that exists in the Congress Party, it seems certain that sooner rather than later, Rahul Gandhi will be promoted to the Raj gaddi.

What sort of a democracy is this, where the default option is the winner, where DMK wins after it promises rice at 1 kg and free color TVs to all. Can we ever expect an Obama in India. I doubt it. Primarily because the Indian political system is a very closed circle. Being a part of this circle is tough and being able to make a difference after being a part of this circle is tougher.

The commentary on TV is saying that the people of India have voted for stability and that they are far more intelligent than what we presume. Its just another example of the intellectual paucity that we face as a nation. The gaurds of our culture, tradition and the so called mouthpiece of the nation - our media is going gung ho because what they wished to happen, did happen. I fail to understand how the Indian junta is responsible for this verdict and how they voted for "Stability".

Personally, I wished well for Gujarat and Modi's comprehensive victory has proved that nothing works as well as development does. All credit to the smart Gujjus who know where their money is. Moving a little further with that, it is really sad albiet a bit expected to see that MNS did have an impact on the votes in Maharashtra. With the kind of tactics that they have resorted to gain votes and attention, it would have had been nicer if the Maharashtrains would have thrown them out too.

Am in Gandhinagar these days and this time too, there have been a lot of changes in my city. It is surprising to note that every time I come here, I see a lot of new things happening and the proactive Gujarat government seems to be working really well nowadays. Mr. Modi rocks. And Gujarat seems like heaven compared to Mumbai and Pune now. Hope this continues.

India : A failed democracy

2009-04-11T09:30:00.002+05:30

The elections are here again and the same old tamasha is set to begin. But after looking at the US presidential race and watching the rise of Obama, there is that desire in our hearts, as Indians to see something like that happen in this country too.

Everywhere around is the cacophony of noises, urging us to go and vote. The youth must vote they say. Aamir Khan is going to come all the way from US to vote. He isn't the youth though. :-) In a democracy like ours, how effective do you think, our votes can be? How much impact will the young, educated and understanding youth's vote will have on who is going to win the election? The Sardar who let down all Sardars, or the one who likes to equate himself with India's Sardar, or the messiah of the poor, who it seems will reserve everything for the poor only, or the one who is himself paralysed but wants to work the whole country.

We know they are a bunch of fools, nay a bunch of conniving cheats, who let alone be the prime minister, aren't even worth letting inside our houses. Yet they exhort us to vote. For whom???
Why??? To aid and abet more terrorism in this country? To aid an abet more corruption, more politics, more reservations for the undeserving???

Please don't vote.

The truth is that we are a failed democracy, a country that has a democratic system that spurns meritocracy and exalts all kinds of reservations, a country with a system that will not ever let a true, honest, upright, willing, young man rule itself. We are a nation of the satan and he is the one who rules.

Don't vote for the satan.
Please don't vote.

The Stable Life Syndrome

2009-03-09T13:55:00.001+05:30

I just shifted to the PMI office of Satyam at Pune. The IT crowd in general is a very young crowd, with most of us under the age of 30, just passing out of college. But the demographics at PMI aka Manikchand Ikon building at Pune are a bit different. Just like STC - Hyderabad, a lot of the staff working here is settled in Pune. They have families and they bring tiffins from home to the office here. Coming to this office I have made a few observations. I have no idea of the veracity of my theories, but I can propound them nevertheless.

I believe that the average salary earning, 9 to 6 tiffin holding worker, be it from IT or from some other industry is one of the reasons behind inactive society that we see at large. The reason being that having a family implies added responsibility on an individual leaving him with that much lesser time to spare for the the society. His life and his world which is small in the first place becomes even smaller after having a family. Even more poignant is the fact that the higher the income in such families, the higher is the insulation from ground realities.

This is also true because an average middle class individual, post marriage, with a high salary tends to be in a comfort zone, such as never experienced before in life. A life which started as a struggle through school, scoring highly throughout college and finally landing a cushy job as the prize for all the hardwork. Such an individual is far more interested in enjoying the fruits of his labours rather than being proactive to the issues that face our country.

In the end, I will pin down the importance for a "Stable Life" as being one of the chief resons for the usual insensitivity that surrounds. This "Stable Life" does receive a rude shock when there are bombings in hotels that we visit and railway stations that we leave from. But it hardly matters to the same people if our soldiers are fighting for their lives in the cold in Kashmir, if the North East is plagued by Maoism or the naxals. One of the reasons that nations like the United States do get to elect someone like Obama as president is because of the proactivity of its citizens who believe and desire change - something that most "Stable Life" living Indian don't want.

How to rid of this? Encourage the young to marry old. The older they get married at, the more proactive they stay for the state - I believe. The more such proactive denizens, the better off we all are.

Please don't hesitate to post comments and tell me why this seems a hare brained scheme to you. :-)

Reality Sinks In

2009-02-25T17:37:00.002+05:30

The job is boring. The company is breaking. And the worries are mounting.

The first time I heard the news of Raju's confession, I was shocked and excited. I was happy that finally there is something that is happening in Satyam. No, that wasn't a wisecrack.

But now, the adrenaline has drained, the excitement has gone and reality is sinking in. Just as graduating from the best college in Gujarat puts you in a different league altogether, getting thrown out of Satyam also puts you in a completely different league. More so when you have spent the one year in Satyam on bench. Freelancing does provide the dough to last but it is not easy to freelance forever. Making plans of becoming an enterpreneur are easy, but finding a single project idea worth the money is tough.

It seems the tiger that Raju was riding is now slowly closing its jaws, inch by inch, over our necks. The economy is bad and is going to become worse. Our bosses have advised us to start looking for a new job.

There is despondancy creeping in for sure, but it is also with a lot of desperation. Options abound, but which oen to go for is still an issue. Lets pray for the best.

When Satyam Falls

2009-01-21T09:43:00.002+05:30

I live in an area called Aundh in Pune. The USP of the area is that it lies in the vicinity of Pune University and on the way to the Hinjewadi IT Park. Hinjewadi houses an IT park and a Biotech park and it is at a distance of 16 kms from Aundh. Nearly 1 lakh people work in office buildings of Infosys, Wipro, Cognizant, Tech Mahindra, Satyam, Barclays and other companies in the IT park.

I travel to my office by a 45 minutes bus ride. All through the ride on both sides of the road I see hoarding of Flats for Sales. There are hoardings marketing 3BHKD and also 3BHKDG (3 Bedroom Hall Kitchen, Dining and Garden) flats available with "ravishing amenities". The rate of infrastructure growth in Pune is amazing. The basic amenities unfortunately aren't keeping up as I believe that this Maharashtra government is just as good for nothing as others. The CYG - Commonwealth Youth Games did bring in some development, but it was too less, too late.

Getting back to the point, the exponential development that I have seen in Pune and the Pimpri area puts even Mumbai to shame. Pune is a beautiful city, with superb natural cover, great weekend getaways - for travel lovers like myself and a soothing climate all the year around. Most of these things didn't bring much development for all these years. What brought this spate of infrastructure investment was the blooming IT industry. In 10 years' time Aundh Gaon was replaced by Aundh Annexe. Young IT professionals with loads of money to spend caused the boom that broke college students from all over India couldn't.

Hyderabad, is a similar jewel of Southern India. Bangalore might have overtaken it in terms of investment because of its more pleasant climate, but Hyderabad also houses many multinational IT giants like Microsoft, Wipro, Infosys, Cognizant and Satyam. Satyam is definitely the jewel of Hyderabad.

I remember we used to get a 10% Satyam discount in a lot of stores in Hyderabad. The Satyam brand name was revered and for the local Hyderabadi it was a dream come true. A lot of it has changes in the past fortnight. But Hyderabad's dependence on Satyam hasn't. A huge number of people still depend on this company. The reason being, that the 500 crore salary that is paid each month, doesn't just fill the pockets of Satyamites and the companies like transport, housekeeping etc. that support us, but percolates down to all the maid servants and rickshaw drivers who charge exorbibant amount of money from Satyamites.

Saving Satyam is akin to saving a lot of Hyderabad. I love the city and I love my job too. Hope they both keep safe.

Contribute to the Save Satyamites Fund

2009-01-16T21:49:00.007+05:30

It has been a long time since I last blogged. With Satyam's impending doom, I have gotten into contingency planning mode. :-) I have been busy trying to learn how to earn money through blogging. I recently created a new blog at http://www.satyam-news.blogspot.com/ and I have been updating it quite regularly with news about Satyam. After setting up adsense etc. there I have realised that old blogs are best. I still get much more hits here as compared to there. I thought that the attractive URL might help. Apparently, it didn't. Though as an afterthought, I'd say "satyam-scam" would have helped.

Some tongue in cheek laughter notwithstanding, times are bad. More so for us Satyamites. So those of you who are eager and willing to contribute a few seconds of your time can contribute to the adsense ads hanging around the blog. (Directions - one on the left, one at the footer) For the more indulgent of my friends, please comment on my blog and I will give you my account number.

Please contribute generously to the Save Satyamites Fund.

Book Review - Many Lives, Many Masters

2008-12-13T09:04:00.003+05:30

Many Lives, Many Masters is the true story of a prominent psychiatrist, his young patient, and the past-life therapy that changed both their lives.

As a traditional psychotherapist, Dr. Brian Weiss, M.D., after graduating from Columbia University and Yale Medical School, spent years studying the human psychology, training himself to think like a scientist and a physician.He was a consertive physician who distrusted anything that could not be proved by scientific evidence. But when he met Catherine, a patient, who came to his office seeking help for her anxiety, panic attacks, and phobias, he was shaken to the core during the therapy sessions that followed. For the first time, he came face-to-face with the concept of reincarnation and rebirth.

After she sought his help, for 18 months, Dr. Weiss used conventional methods of treatment to help Catherine overcome her traumas. When nothing worked, he tried hypnosis, which, he explains, “is an excellent tool to help a patient remember long-forgotten incidents. There is nothing mysterious about it. It is just a state of focused concentration. Under the instruction of a trained hypnotist, the patient’s body relaxes, bringing out memories of long-forgotten traumas that were disrupting their lives.”

During the initial sessions, she regressed back to her early childhood and her mind brought out isolated, deeply-repressed memory fragments. She remembered the time she swallowed water and felt gagged when pushed from a diving board into a pool; also how her father molested her one night when she was three. But what came next, was something that surprised the doctor beyond his imaginations.In a series of hypnotic states, Catherine recalled “past life” memories that still caused her nightmares and attacks of anxiety. The doctor described how she vividly recalled the details of each of her 86 past lives – her name, her family, physical appearance, the landscape, and how she was killed by stabbing, by drowning, or illness. In each lifetime she is making progress in her understanding and at the end of each life she tries to fulfill the ultimate goal of learning from the life and becoming God Like through knowledge. The doctor also hears her remarkable revelations about his family and his dead son.

The Masters also spoke various things which are worth a read. Some excerpts:
1. “Our task is to learn, to become God-like through knowledge… By knowledge we approach God, and then we can rest. Then we come back to teach and help others.”

2. “We must share our knowledge with other people. We all have abilities far beyond what we use. …you should check your vices… if you do not, you carry them over with you to another life… when you decide you are strong enough to master the external problems, then you will no longer have them in your next life.”

3. “Everybody’s path is basically the same. We all must learn certain attitudes while we’re in physical state. …charity, hope, faith, love…we must all know these things and know them well.”

4. “Everything is energy… Humans can only see the outside, but you can go much deeper… To be in physical state is abnormal. When you are in spiritual state that is natural to you. When we are sent back, it’s like being sent back to something we do not know. In the spirit world you have to wait, and then you are renewed. It’s a dimension like the other dimensions…”

5. “The fear of death…that no amount of money or power can neutralize”…remains within us. “But if people knew that life is endless; so we never die; we were never really born, this fear would dissolve.” We have “lived countless times before and would live countless times again…and spirits are around us to help while in physical state and after death, in spiritual state.” We and our deceased loved ones would join these guardian angels.

6. “Everything comes when it must come. A life cannot be rushed… we must accept what comes to us at a given time… life is endless… we just pass through different phases. There is no end. Time is not as we see time, but rather in lessons that are learned.”And as finally Dr. Weiss says " I also feel responsible for my actions, the negative as well as lofty. I know there will be a price to pay. What goes around truly does come around." Surely this book is going to change many lives.

Read on....

Three mistakes of my life - Book Review

2008-12-12T09:42:00.005+05:30

Chetan Bhagat's books are like whey protein - easy to digest and high in entertaining nutrition.I read "Five Point Someone" as a friend recommended it to me, with strict instructions to complete it in five hours. This one is a similarly interesting five hour read. Re reads though are sufficient to qualify you as dumb or being on bench.

Having been a lifelong resident of Gujarat's apologetic substitute for a capital Gandhinagar, Ahmedabad was the place where I spent the best days of my youth. The earthquake, the subsequent riots, cricket-our national obsession, religion, undercurrents of Hindu nationalism politics are all mentioned with a red hot love story stuffed in and hence the book based in Amdavad's pols not only relates to our lives but also makes for an amazing masala movie type read. The author oscillates between class and crass, but the former does out do the latter eventually. The characters aren't as well formed as they were in the first novel. Also they are always shown munching on Khakhras, making it seem to be Amdavadis' favourite food and inadvertantly hurting the sentiments of the gastronomic pleasure obsessed Amdavad denizens. time and again Amdavad is spelled as Amdavab, making me wonder if i bought the original copy or a pirated one.

Spelling mistakes and khakhras apart the author has touched the core when he writes about the riots. As Ali's father, the zoology professor learnt from the chimps fighting for everything and eventually kissing to make up every time. " Life will have many setbacks. People close to you will hurt you. But you don't break it off. You dont hurt them more. You try to heal it." The message will do well not just for Amdavad, or five crore Gujaratis but for our country and the world.

It seems that Indian publishers have finally realised the importance of low prices to keep the book on top of the best sellers list and avoid piracy - probably after the innate businessman Kishore Biyani priced his book as low as 100 bucks and sold better than Harry Potter week after week. So for this book, the die hard Gujju's verdict is : For a cool 95 bucks, its a steal.

Transfer Vehicle in Pune RTO

2008-12-10T18:03:00.009+05:30

Am not much into informative blogging, but I had to write this one as I didn't want anyone else face all I did trying to transfer my vehicle to my name.

These transfer details given below are for used two wheelers when transferring the vehicle which is from the same RTO in which you reside and only for Maharashtra RTO. The documents that are required for the same are as given below:

1. Form 29 - 1 Copy

You can download the pdf version of the Form from http://www.rtopune.info/downloadrtoforms.htm

2. Form 30 - 2 Copies

You can download the pdf version of the Form from http://www.rtopune.info/downloadrtoforms.htm . The Pune RTO website is a gud one with nearly all the information. So if you need more hard facts you can refer it anytime too.

3. Chassis print of forms

The chassis number of your vehicles is the number that is printed on the left side of the vehicle below the steering. (ie. true for bikes atleast). You need to get a trace of this number on a paper using a pencil. Make three chassis traces and stick them to the three forms ie the two copies of Form 30 and one Form 29 that you got from the site of RTO Pune.

4. Valid Vehicle Insurance Papers photocopy

Check the dates. The insurance can be in the name of the previous owner. How to transfer it to your name - most insurance companies will get it done for around 50 bucks. Get it attested.

5. Valid PUC photocopy

Check the PUC dates. Get it attested. A valid PUC is important if you want to transfer vehicle to your name.

6. Address Proof

Electricity Bill, Ration Card, etc will do. If you live on rent, you will need the agreement signed on a 20 Rs Stamp paper with yours and the owners signatures.

7. Original Address Proof

A copy of your driving license will suffice. Get it attested.

8. Purchase Receipt

You can skip the copy of the purchase receipt if you want to. But if the owner has one get it photocopied too. And attest. :-)

9. 1 photograph + thumb impression with notary

I got my photograph on a Affidavit cum Indemnity certificate which I got typed by a local court clerk. I met a Captain Patil who sits in the opposite to Wadia College, Beside Manikchand Ikon building, Near D.P. Road, where there are some other notaries etc too, and got this whole thing typed.
Next wherever you have put in your signature, also put a thumb impression at all those places. And get the thumb impression attested by someone again.

10. After assembling all the documents get all the photocopies attested by a notary, a doctor or anyone you can find.

11. Finally, go and submit the form at Window 22. As far as I remember thats the one.

12. The form will be checked and they will let you know if anything is missing. Once this is done, they will send you to the clerk who handles the file for your series.

13. The series for a vehicle is decided by the alphabet preceding the number of your vehicle. For example if your vehicle number is MH-12 CM 9050, then CM is the series of your vehicle. Every clerk is assigned a fixed number of series.

14. That clerk will register your vehicle for that series and then call you a few days later.

15. Next, you have to go and pay the money for the smart card. Every smart card costs 350 bucks. (The transfer costs 30 and smart card 350. I wonder who is profiting - the RTO or the agency they have outsourced it to? Definitely, some babu would have made tons by awarding the smart card contract to his friend's son.)

16. The smart card will be ready the next time you go. It will be with the clerk who first took the transfer file from you. Carefully check the details on the smart card before you sign that you have received it. Later, you might not be able to change anything.

Finally you have your ownership. The staff at RTO Pune is civil and courteous. They are every bit helpful. Even some agents are ready to provide you all the information you need. The problem with doing the whole task by oneself is that you will have to visit the Pune RTO office a number of times. With the RTO Pune timings being from 10:30 to 6:30, it is always tough for working people like us to manage. This is when the agents can be slightly helpful. The ttal cost of the transfer though, will not increase 500 bucks. Even if you include all the commute from your place to RTO, it will be around 100 bucks more.

Going to an agent or doing it all by yourself is your choice. But do take care to prepare a complete, comprehensive file as I have shown above. If you do that, the rest will not take much time.

Feel free to contact me for any help.

We need more Sachins

2008-10-20T19:29:00.000+05:30

The little master scales another peak, adds another feather to his cap, another trophy in his shelf, another record to his name and the whole nation celebrates. When Sachin plays India celebrates. For all of us he isn't a Marathi or a Mumbaiya but the toast of the nation.

The little master has done what very few could in todays sectarian world. With his bat he has scaled the peaks of regionalism and transcended regional boundaries. Decades ago we had one Mahatma who wasn't a Gujarati, who wasn't a baniya but who was an Indian. So much so that he probably lost his life in trying to stay one.

We need more Sachins, more Gandhis and more celebrities that don't inspire regional fervour but national reverence. More so in these times of votebank based, divisive, dirty politics that is soiling the soul of our diverse nation. The MNS is not wrong in demanding Grade 4 jobs for locals. But it is grossly wrong in trying to gain votes by dividing the nation.

So lets have more Sachins, for cricket, for India.

Forward Fascination

2008-08-28T11:42:00.001+05:30

Its a love story born of boredom and desperation. Its a love story that helps spawn other love stories. I have been on the internet since nearly a decade now, but my dependence and love for forwards has never been stronger. Bench period has provided me with the time and patience for going through all the forwards. Some of the reasons I love forwards.
1. Excellent source of General Knowledge.
2. Best tool to make your presence felt. I've known people whom I miss when they don't send me forwards.
3. Helps remember all the Days-Fathers, Mothers, Brothers, Family,Earth, Sun, Moon, Ocean and Friendship days - though I suspect that the latter seems to be cropping up just about every month. And since its all on e-mail, I never forget sending cards for the same. :-)
4. Helps revise all the wonders of the world. The 7 ancient wonders, 7 modern wonders, 7 engineering wonders, 7 engineering blunders and a whole lot of lists of all wonders everywhere.
5. Helps keep us updated with the latest news.
6. Forwards help us move forward with all the beauties who probably wouldn't give you a second glance but would adore all your forwards.
7. And last but not the least. It helps me say - Am busy.

Train Travail 2

2008-08-28T11:40:00.000+05:30

Nose dripping and eyes watering, as I returned from Bangalore by train, I actually empathized with the BMC which I heard was again under fire for the inefficient drainage system. I secured an upper berth and got to my reading. I had barely turned a page and my ears usually inundated by alien sounds in this part of the country, heard some one speaking a familiar tongue and that perked my interest. They were Marwaris. Soon I got acquainted and exchanged the usual enquiries about each others' reason for the trip. They were forthcoming and interested in chit chat but since I was bogged down by my surging eyes and splurging nose, I was unusually reserved. I passed a sleepless night as the Maadu children engaged in a screaming competition and I seriously contemplated a childless future.
Soon it was time to leave as the familiar Hyderabad landscape passed by me. It was then that aunty asked me "Would You like to come to our place? Its nearby, you can have tea with us and then leave for your place." I muttered something about reaching office early in the morning and escaped. I have been travelling a lot since the last few years and such companionship now seems normal. But sometimes I wonder wether I, representing the typical new generation IT worker would go out of the way and invite a complete stranger for coffee?
This snobbery or better - the reluctance to acquaintance might be attributed to the polite society that we all are a part of, in which we usually keep to our non-interfering, non-meddling selves. I dunno the right from the wrong but I believe that most of my peers would agree to behaving the way I do.

2008-05-08T18:18:00.006+05:30

Sunrise at Vizag's R.K.Beach ...... Super start to super days ....
Best Beach in Vizag .... Rushi konda beach .... Serene and gorgeous...

View of Vizag from KailasGiri .....
On the way to picturesque Araku ....
Up to Araku ....
The katki Waterfalls....
The first sunset .... The sun was hidden behind the clouds so we watched the fishermen fish ....

Waiting for Vizag ... bored tired, hungry, shitty too ....
Gorgeous Godavari....
On the way to Vizag ..... NH-6
On the way to Vizag ..... NH-6

On the way to Vizag ..... NH-6

Vizag Visit 2

2008-05-08T18:16:00.000+05:30

It was unusual for me to be awake watching the sun rise. Being in the afternoon shift at STC had deprived me of this pleasure. I was in the seat next to the driver's and the rest of the gang had succumbed to the movie "Welcome" and gone to sleep. I was supposed to see to it that the driver doesn't get sleepy and my 'wows' as the sun rose, duly ensured that.
As the sun rose in the pink-violet sky, the barren fields, bordered by the tall standing coconut palms formed the landscape and the mist in the sky made it seem as if a cloud had descended on the earth or maybe .... we were in heaven. And it was a gorgeous sunrise, the first of few more to come. After a lot of chit chatter, fun, sleep and eventual boredom we reached Vizag through the eastern ghats at 4 p.m. First destination was Kailasgiri which had superb views of the city and a nice little ropeway. Snap snap there and we moved on to the beach. Watched the waves from a distance, inched closer. Hardeep was the first one to get his legs wet and soon all of us were trying to save our clothes from getting drenched and Avni from getting drowned. Half an hour of fun and then we trekked our way to the hotel, dirty drenched pants rolled up and shoes in our hands. An eventful dinner with the head waiter suffering the wrath of Naiya Maiya and we went off to sleep for the day.
Early the next day we watched another glorious sunrise from the beach, saw the fishermen get their catch from the ocean went snap snap and after getting some idlis packed left off for the splendid Araku valley - the queen of the Eastern Ghats. The two hour journey to Araku was via Borra Caves, which unfortunately were not accessible to us due to APTDC strike. Nevertheless we went over to Katki waterfalls with sixteen of us in and also above the roof of one jeep. The ones in the jeep indulged in punching the bums of those on top, perched above, hanging on for dear life, we enjoyed a splendid view of the valley amidst all the screaming and shouting and singing that sixteen wild souls could do. Once there we had a gala time bathing in the waterfalls with Moiz getting in his element showing off his 'tond' body. Hardeep learnt that not just driving, running on the hills is also quite a dangerous task. After the climb and back to the waterfalls we were famished and hungry for Araku. After having Biryani we moved to the Botanical Gardens there. Tried getting as many snaps as possible there with my tired camera and then we left for Vizag late in the night. After failing to find a restaurant good enough for our dainty dames we settled for good old idli dosas and the night with some other head waiter blessing our good sense.
Final Day with the snaps .... coming up next .....

Vizag Visit 1

2008-05-08T18:15:00.001+05:30

There were no lights anywhere. No electricity and hence no sounds. The only sounds were the sounds of the jungle around us. The trees on both sides of the winding road that went up and down the terrain looked eerily beautiful, silhoutted against the moonlight. The soft rains added to the calm serenity of the night. It was an enchanting evening.
The clog in the wheel though was the clutch kit. It was a two year old Eicher mini bus that we had hired and it had broken down 60 kms from the nearest town of Rajahmundry and the gorgeous Godavari. With Khammam, the next big town still 150 kms farther off in this naxal prone area, we didn't have much time to enjoy the enchanting evening. I and Moiz were drenched in the rain, looking for a mechanic, looking to hire a vehicle back to Hyderabad and back to our then beloved Monday morning.
Somehow we managed to flag a Luxury Bus on the highway and managed to get into the already full bus. The gals somehow managed in the available seats and we guys were left to experience the "Dil Chahta Hai" journey with nothing but a newspaper between our butts and the bus floor. Moiz, Chaitanya and Bhavik were sitting in the cleaner's seats behind the driver with Moiz trying to test the alertness of the driver by repeatedly falling over him. The driver too responded by averting a few close shaves. Dilip experienced the full wrath of Mahakali as he woke up to find a foot pressed upon his chest. After trying to learn Telugu, listening to Telugu music all night Naiya eventually understood "U r my chocolate". Dimple started with praying in our mini bus and ended up cursing all and sundry responsible for our fate. Sated she managed to catch a wink. Parita talked for some time and eventually succumbed to sleep.I being my excitable self wasnt able to sleep and hence occupied myself with trying to lull Madhav and the Moiz to some rest in my lap. Dipika probably spent the night dreaming horrid naxalite dreams because of the fright that Madhav had given her earlier in the evening. Kunal, in a vest, wrapped in a shawl to protect himself from the unusually cold morning looked very much the cute teddy. The mood was sombre, so much so, that even Shilvi was silent.
Eventually after one rather long pit stop we reached on the Hyderabad highway near Uppal cross roads from where we managed to get another dreaded mini bus back to Secundrabad station. Our Vizag adventure finally came to an end as bleary eyed, battered bodied we reached our homes that morning.
What we did in Vizag .... comin up ..........

Zooooo

2008-05-08T17:55:00.005+05:30

This weekend the Gujju Gang visited the "Zoo". Most of us hailing from Ahmedabad and roundabouts have a typical notion of a Zoo. The Kankaria Zoo in Ahmedabad being the benchmark. Hence a seriously depleted gang boarded the 7Z bus to the zoo from Paradise bus stand. A visit to the amazing Jawaharlal Nehru nature park - as i should rightly call it changed all that. A superbly well maintained zoo with beautiful animals and surrouds it was a photographs and I went berserk with my S3 IS as I clicked just about everything in sight. Gotta admit though that I did feel the need for a DSLR with its speed and efficiency as I missed out on a few beautiful shots because of the slow speed of my S3 IS. The white tiger was gorgeous and posing for us too, the colourful birds and the flowers in the Butterfly garden were very beautiful too. The boat ride in the masonry dam created at a cost of 1 Lakh rupees was bliss. We missed the train ride but snapped a lot of silhouttes in the train tunnel. The safari ride was where we came face to face with some healthy, well fed tigers who were so used to tourist vehicles that they scarcely gave us a second glance as we ogled them endlessly and by threatening to open the vehicle's door troubled a bunch of foreign tourists who were into the ride with us. All in all it was a hugely fulfilling day for Janit - the photographer, though Janit the lazybum suffered a lot as the zoo was huge.
Am itching to go there again with my cam in tow and click more pics. I was lucky to get the snap I have uploaded here as there was the sun coming on these two pretty birds from the skylight and it illuminated them and their perch. Time was a huge constraint though as inspite of all my efforts I barely managed to click a mere 150 snaps.
So for all you shutterbugs out there, the Jawaharlal Nehru Nature Park is a heaven in waiting.

To all Future Leaders

2008-02-14T10:47:00.004+05:30

Every time I manage a seat in the Satyam bus I heave a sigh of relief. Sometimes even the Mumbai trains seem simpler. Agreed the transportation is handled by an independent entity and the mismanagement is not our fault. But under the current circumstances two points warrant immediate attention.
1. Being the great leaders that we all are can't we just stand in a queue at the bus stand all by ourselves rather than behaving like the common junta ? Infact the common public in many cities is far more disciplined in this matter as compared to us at Satyam. In Mumbai I have invariably seen a queue being formed regardless of the number of people itching to get in.
2. Every state transport bus has reservation of seats for women. Why cant we have the same at Satyam. How can we bear to see our fellow female associates pushed around everytime they seek to get into a bus ? Eventually the poor women associates have to depend on a bhaiyya or a saiyya to help them out by reserving seats for them. And the rest just wait.
No matter how long we were formals and keep shaving off our beards, leave alone being leaders, we are far worser off than the man on the street if we don't behave with discretion.

Good Morning

2008-02-14T10:47:00.001+05:30

Salutations to the Father of the Nation.
I believe that you can't make a Mithunda fan love Kukunoor movies by showing him loads of Kukunoor ones. Its the character of a person, his upbringing, his persona that define the kind of taste he exhibits. This taste is reflected in most of the choices that we make as a person through our lives.
I saw a program to be telecast tonight on CNN IBN called as "Did Gandhiji's death go in vain?". Being an ardent blogger as well as someone who adores and admires the Mahatma such programs and the increasing debate with regards to the relevance of the Mahatma in recent times has compelled me to write this up.
Love and Truth. Are they relevant in today's times? When won't they be ? Infact they are more relevant than ever before. With a well educated, affluent and growing middle class this is just natural. The dilemma of the geat Indian middle class is that even though it itches to get to the upper echelons of society, it fails to do so and since going down isn't an option, it prides itself by scorning wealth and living by the values. Thats why I think that this middle class believes in and lives by the ideals of the Mahatma and a large and shrinking section of the society actually understands and loves what he stood for. And for those who don't I'll cite the Kukunoor example.

Mahatma

2008-02-14T10:46:00.001+05:30

Mumbai

2008-02-14T10:45:00.000+05:30

That day I again managed to breach the cordon and entered the Virar fast boarding it from Borivali. After a few hostile glances and some mumblings indicating - Better get into your own train, I settled into my customary position beside the train door.
After Andheri passed by, I heard him preaching. He was talking about the Lord Christ, referring to him as Yeshu, a term used by the lower class Christian community when speaking of Jesus. As soon as he started he was warned and asked to stop. He didn't pay much heed to this and continued nevertheless. Hearing the commotion I tried getting a look at his face but was unable to do so as the train was heavily overcrowded. Soon there were shouts which forced him to discontinue and confront the shouters. He tried placating them in the softest of tones as the rest of the travellers were hell bent on pushing him out of the train.
Travelling in a jam packed train where humans are worser off than cargo - that compartment is the roomiest one I have observed, commuter anger has been a cause of concern in Mumbai since a long time. And every "Train Travail" as I called it is a testimony as much to the grit and determination of the Mumbai junta as to the apathy of the different governments that ruled over it which has reduced our financial capital to this state.
Studying in a convent, Christmas was as much my festival as it was for my Christian friends. Yet over the years I had come to love the way it was celebrated in Mumbai. I still vividly remember the Vile Parle streets adorned with christmas trees and lots of stars of different shapes and sizes. The gaiety was somehow always missing in Gujarat. In my recent visits to Mumbai though this sentiment seems to be waning. And its just not me that thinks this way. A prominent actor isn't given a house as he is a Muslim, compulsory reservation of flats for Marathis in locales, separate societies, not just by Parsis, but the newly rich Jains and diamond merchant Patels.
I dont know wether its commuter anger or Shiv Sena rhetoric at play. When I work in an office in Hyderabad where my colleagues constitute virtually the whole of India, and who readily celebrate Uttarayan - eating the chikki, with us, all I ask is where is Mumbai heading ?

Hyderabad Blues

2008-02-14T10:44:00.000+05:30

After spending the last few years of my predominantly uneventful life, travelling in different cities, the "blues" article has become a regular feature of my blogs. Its nice to dissect and discern the different cities that I travel to and gain an insight into, not only the city but my perception of my surroundings there.
Six of us disembarked the Satyam train, alongwith a host of fellow Satyamites, all of us temporary migrants to the Telugu town of Hyderabad. Unsure of a halt by the train we had started hauling out our luggage on the platform long before it stopped. Consequently by the time all of us disembarked, our luggage adorned half the length of the Begumpet platform. And that was the beginning.
Its been exactly one month and eight days and two invaluable kilos of body mass in Hyderabad and each day has been a day of celebration. Celebrating our successes, our failures, celebrating the loss of a roof over our heads, celebrating the loss of a companion, celebrating our new homes and our new friends, celebrating a journey so topsy turvy that we smile through our tears.
Hyderabad is a city that owes a lot to its administrators and unlike Mumbai its for all the good that they have done for the city. A very well developed and even better maintained city with inhabitants who possess the laidback attitude of a small city and the cosmopolitan culture of a big one. This optimism also stems from the fact that my last sojourn was Mumbai during monsoon.
Summarising, I luv the place and the city and am looking forward to moving out of its hospitals which have become my favourite weekend hangouts to exploring it in its entirety.

Life is Beautiful

2008-02-14T10:41:00.000+05:30

If there is one thing that a pure born and bred Gujarati relishes more than his fafda, jalebis, undhiyu and reliance shares combined, its the festival of Uttarayan. And for all of us here in Hyderabad, saying that being away from our roots on this day was a traumatic experience is putting it mildly. As the reinvented saying goes "You can take a Gujarati out of Gujarat but not Gujarat out of a Gujarati".
So yesterday all of us from Gujarat got together and celebrated Uttarayan at a friend's place. After a lot of noise and very few kite flying experiences we settled down for lunch and some for a much sought after post lunch siesta. After that we visited snow world.
The city of Hyderabad is built around the magnificent Hussain Sagar lake. The very well developed and maintained lakeside attracts hordes of locals and tourists on most days and more so on holidays. Snow world is another tourist attraction akin to a huge refrigerator where sub zero degree temperatures are maintained alongside the production of loads of snow and games which add to the fun. And fun was what the thirty two of us had in loads. Hitting each other with ice balls, going down the slopes of and dancing in the ice to the tunes of Kajra re.
Reminiscing back home wid sore backs and behinds, we were tired but satiated. Life presently is beautiful. Loads of fun, friends and masti. Movies and out bounds and eating out every day. Life is picture perfect. Am looking forward to becoming fitter and travelling around Hyderabad and making new friends and doing more of reading, writing and photography. Am not a sceptic and yet have failed to unravel the order amidst this chaos. Am living life in the moment. And enjoying it. But the big picture irks me nonetheless. How long without a purpose, without a want, a burning desire for success? Or should it be how long till I change my parameters for success?

Let Go

2007-06-04T22:11:00.000+05:30

Let go, Let it flow,run, have fun;
Let go your heart
Let it fear the dark
Let it love the lark
Let it free.
Sate the satan of your soul
Feed the flames of your desires
Plunge down the precipice
Create a world of your own device
Forget the musts, indulge the wills;
Feel the rush of the wind
Feel the ground beneath your feet
Feel the Freedom to feel.

A life Devoid

2007-05-26T16:03:00.000+05:30

Gasping for breath,Looking for light
Enduring through a lost fight.

Living a life Devoid
Of Love of hate of passion, compassion
Bigger the heart, larger the void,
Harder life's lesson.

Rueing the loss of dreams
Of a life void of whims.
Falling down the abyss
Finding nothing to miss.

A life of empty laughs and stifled screams
Of lost chances and ruined dreams
Of broken hearts and missed chances
Of standing rooted as life dances.

Enchanted

2007-03-17T11:24:00.000+05:30

I have been a lifelong fan of Ayn Rand's and The Fountainhead has probably been the most influential book I have ever read. Maybe thats why or maybe because my dad's been building them all his life, I love buildings and before I discovered the fairer sex, a walk down the road was an exercise in structure watching.

Howard Roark might disapprove, but I have always loved historical buildings and the Fort Area of Mumbai and Shahibaug in Ahmedabad as well as the Pols - the narrow bylanes that used to form the dwellings of the bourgeoisie have enchanted me since childhood. Baroda being one of the princely states of the country has a rich architectural tradition and the whole city is dotted with huge palatial buildings built by the Gaekwads.

These days my expanding waistline has forced me to take morning walks in the famous Sayajibaug - aka Kamatibaug. A vast, sprawling plot of lush gardens, kamatibaug is adorned by a huge museum and art gallery right in the middle. The museum is housed in a beautiful Victorian style building with a facade that takes my breath away every morning. The Victorian building complete with arches, intricately carved skylights and window panes of varied hues, shapes and colours. And by god, it is huge, by any standards. Unfortunately visiting hours for the building are from 10:30 to 5:30 and so are my office hours. Hence I am waiting impatiently for the weekend when I can poke around the building at my leisure. But it sure has me bewitched.

BhagatSingh's Atheism

2007-03-10T17:58:00.000+05:30

The following are the excerpts of an excellent article about his atheism by Bhagatsinghji written during his last days. Message me if you want the full copy.

" 'Belief' softens the hardships, even can make them pleasant. In God man can find very strong consolation and support. Without Him, the man has to depend upon himself. To stand upon one's own legs amid storms and hurricanes is not a child's play. At such testing moments, vanity, if any, evaporates, and man cannot dare to defy the general beliefs, if he does, then we must conclude that he has got certain other strength than mere vanity. This is exactly the situation now. Judgment is already too well known. Within a week it is to be pronounced. What is the consolation with the exception of the idea that I am going to sacrifice my life for a cause ? A God-believing Hindu might be expecting to be reborn as a king, a Muslim or a Christian might dream of the luxuries to be- enjoyed in paradise and the reward he is to get for his sufferings and sacrifices. But what am I to expect? I know the moment the rope is fitted round my neck and rafters removed, from under my feet. That will be the final moment, that will be the last moment. I, or to be more precise, my soul, as interpreted in the metaphysical terminology, shall all be finished there. Nothing further. "

The final paragraphs of his writings again reiterate his belief that religion is nothing but a crutch.

"As regards the origin of God my own idea is that having realized the limitations of man, his weaknesses and shortcoming having been taken into consideration, God was brought into imaginary existence to encourage man to face boldly all the trying circumstances, to meet all dangers manfully and to check and restrain his outbursts in prosperity and affluence. God both with his private laws and parental generosity was imagined and painted in greater details. He was to serve as a deterrent factor when his fury and private laws were discussed so that man may not become a danger to society. He was to serve as a father, mother, sister and brother, friend and helpers when his parental qualifications were to be explained. So that when man be in great distress having been betrayed and deserted by all friends he may find consolation in the idea that an ever true friend was still there to help him, to support him and that He was almighty and could do anything. Really that was useful to the society in the primitive age.

The idea of God is helpful to man in distress.

Society has to fight out this belief as well as was fought the idol worship and the narrow conception of religion. Similarly, when man tries to stand on his own legs, and become a realist he shall have to throw the faith aside, and to face manfully all the distress, trouble, in which the circumstances may throw him. That is exactly my state of affairs. It is not my vanity, my friends. It is my mode of thinking that has made me an atheist. I don't know whether in my case belief in God and offering of daily prayers which I consider to be most selfish and degraded act on the part of man, whether these prayers can prove to be helpful or they shall make my case worse still. I have read of atheists facing all troubles quite boldly, so am I trying to stand like a man with an erect head to the last; even on the gallows."

Salutations to the great man.

Travel Travails

2007-03-07T13:50:00.000+05:30

A lifelong resident of Gandhinagar, the apologetic capital of Gujarat, my sojourns beyond my home city have been limited ensuring a life as yet innocent to the perils of the world. My project being in Baroda I commute every weekend to Gandhinagar which is at a three hours journey over the expressway.

My work in the company, apart from writing blogs, is largely dependent on a fast processor and loads of primary memory. My CPU used to leading a luxurious life of uploading blogs, watching movies and checking mails was thus put through a horrendous experience of working on SQL server and Visual studion 2005. The poor thing was in such bad shape that once and for all I decided to put it at rest and bought a new one. And so I had to bring it back all the way to Gandhinagar.

I decided to go by a state transport bus and nonchalantly placed my CPU cabinet in the space just behind the driver’s seat. Soon the driver got into the bus, looked at the passengers like a king addressing his court and then noticing the CPU as the only discrepancy in his glory he addressed the audience in coarse gujarati – Who brought this? No electronic items allowed aboard. Off my bus NOWW.
I learnt that there is an octroi applicable on all electronic goods in spite of a VAT that we pay. And the process for the same takes up so much time that you feel it would be simpler to buy another one. I wondered how they will charge octroi on a laptop or a cell phone and why should I pay for a piece of obsolete electronic junk half a decade old.
Anyways, 30 bucks later he drove on and my dear CPU acquired a place of honor behind his butt. I informed my fellow passengers how much I paid thus ensuring they wont be cheated if faced with a similar situation and cursing the roads and the shock absorbers of ST buses I slept all the way back home.

After a restful weekend Dad arranged for my conveyance back to Baroda. On the way back in a Govt. Of Gujarat vehicle, I bought no tickets, paid no toll tax on the expressway, and of course didn’t have to sneak any money under the table as my CPU was home delivered.

I thank god for letting me work in the IT field which offers the opportunity of a life free from such malpractices. Yet at times it seems that in our dear India clean living is a non option.

Have started a blog on rediffiland - www.janit.rediffiland.com . Its a better and a simplere name than this one. In fact if some one could co-author with me there or here it would be much more fun. Awaiting responses.

Gandhian Economics

2007-02-26T14:32:00.000+05:30

Gandhiji first promulgated his radical economic theory in the book “Hind Swaraj” written on his journey from England to South Africa. The book was a powerful disparagement of the Industrial Revolution and its ill effects - written after a first hand experience in the home of the Industrial Revolution. His views on economics and how they have fared over the years is what I have sought to understand here.

Gandhiji held that machinery displaced labour and hence concentrated wealth in the hands of the few. A view which met with dissent from even his most ardent admirers. His ideas though met with constant change over the years from the time when he first published “Hind Swaraj” in 1912.

Gandhiji advocated the Theory of Trusteeship which held the capitalists as trustees of wealth for the service of the society. Reliance in the mid-eighties and Infosys in contemporary times have amply demonstrated the true import of Gandhiji’s teachings.

Gandhiji also advocated the precept of limitation of wants and material comforts as a stint in Industrial Revolution ravaged London convinced Gandhiji of the futility of machine induced economic prosperity. He believed that creating money minting machines out of human beings doesn’t lead to prosperity and hence stressed on village economies which purportedly lead to a life of contentment. To put it succinctly, he considered prosperity to be as much spiritual as material and hence visualized the development of an economy that would lead to prosperity of the self as well as the soul.

Gandhiji believed that the key to the country’s progress lay in the strengthening of the decentralized, self sufficient village economies. Lending power at the micro level ensures decrease in large scale corruption, clipping the wings of politicians and bureaucrats. Also the formation of decentralized, self sufficient economies could ideally lead to a best of both worlds – by lending power to the people it creates a democracy and by preventing the “rich get richer, poor get poorer” cycle it ensures socialism.

Some of Gandhiji’s concepts have lost their relevance over time with globalization and the subsequent opening up of the Indian economy. Yet his clear foresight and idealist thinking have painted a utopian dream that refuses to sink into oblivion.

Talent Hub

2007-01-24T14:47:00.000+05:30

The last time I blogged, I promised myself that I’d blog everyday. Wasn’t able to keep up the promise since in these days of E - , it seems that our MCA department is facing severe toilet paper crunches, requiring us to send them reams and reams of project reports – project joining report, project information report, project activity report , project engagement report and what not. Cooking up these reports burdens my already overtaxed imagination leaving no time for blogs.
Some days back as a part of our training we went out on a tour. Our first destination was a primary school in Thamna where we greenhorns were instructed to conduct an inspection. Next we went to Changa Institute of Technology, another Technical Education Institute developed on the lines of good old Nirma University and located near the famed Vallabh Vidhyanagar township. The presence of such Institutes bolster the conviction that in our booming economy education is by large the second most profitable sector after religion. As employees of our company with an interest in developing a relationship with that institute for the success of our placement portal we made a few presentations to the faculties there. The audience was present as the attendance was taken. At the end of our charade one curious incident happened. It so happened that we asked the Professors to note down the internet address of our website and Lo !! Out came the books and it seemed that the dull and dreary audience came to life. ( Can’t blame the presentations for their plight as one of them was by yours truly.) They duly noted down the address which was much more simply memorized and returned back to their lifeless selves. Their behavior was testimony to the quality of our education staff. Since my school days I have classified a classroom as consisting of three primary categories of people - The front bench nerds, The last bench lukkhas and the Non-existent rest. The behavior of Changa professors somehow resembles that of the third category.
Finally after Changa we took off towards the most profitable of all enterprises. Dakor seemed so different to my vague memories of a school trip I had there years ago. Relieved of some more of my depleting finances I reached home late at night and capped off the eventful day with a dinner as Chauffeur in chief and some delicious Dairy Den softy.

Nostalgia

2007-01-12T17:49:00.000+05:30

Nostalgia - Feels like a hard hitting word.....so much at odds with the feelings that it tends to convey. Leaving my college and all my friends, the canteen, our block, every wall and every brick that partook our joys, our laughter, our shrieks of happiness tears at the strings of my heart.

I vividly remember sitting at my usual last bench in B-Audi on my first day in Nirma. Sitting with complete strangers who over the course of time became a part and parcel of my life. Friends and fellow mates who I came to love, trust and respect. And now the time has come to bid goodbye.

From a joyous past to the enticing morrow;
Caught in the midst, fraught with sorrow.

Through all of my ups and downs, whenever I have stepped onto the cement tarmac of Nirma University, whenever I read that plaque adorning the gate, whenever I looked at the steps leading to my beloved B-Block I had a zing in my step. More than anything, the pride of being a Nirmaan never failed to rouse my spirits. I have spent some of the most fulfilling days of my life and picked up some of the most loving friends in those hallowed halls of joy.

Traditionally incompetent at goodbyes, I hope I manage to break the precedent.

Baroda Blues

2007-01-11T12:24:00.000+05:30

After an indolent month in Gnagar I embarked on a frenzied tour of Ahmedabad's IT companies seeking a final semester project. Most of the times I managed to extract a smile from the beautiful secretary adorning our prospective offices alongwith a disappointed (hopefully) "sorry" from them. Of course captivated by the views on offer we weren't dissappointed easily and so we enthusiastically managed to knock many more doors till I had to leave for a last minute arranged New Year Bash with my childhood prank partners. After watching a bit too many drinking, puking bouts I returned home a newly converted beer fan only to find most of the company doors closed and so decided to take up the easiest offer at hand - the one at Libra Process Technology, Baroda.

I had Yudi's place to stay at here but i decided to shack up with my fellow homeless refugees at a one bathroom first floor room where i realised the true importance of the notion of self control. It take monumental degrees of self control for 5 people to accomodate in a room of 10 by 10 ft size and even more so to piss and shit serially. The best part though is to have someone screaming at the door as you shit at ease. Also working at a place where you are responsible for just about nothing and which levies zero expectations on you is ........ matter of factly nothing new for me. Also as I always say - Throw me into hell and I will tickle the asuras. No place is too bad for the big baddie.

Apart from the food and lodgings the company provides a net connection too and so now I can restart my regular blogs. Its good to write regularly as it helps me to arrange my thought processes better and once you find the rhythm its a lot more fun as it helps you concentrate like programming does. In short its addictive and its good for the heart - a rare combo.

Pit Stop

2006-10-08T22:33:00.000+05:30

It has been a hectic few months. Doing Innovision'06. Gymming. Playing football. Running off to college early morning, working, running, running on an empty stomach till I could no more fend off my hunger. Coming back home torn and tired. Only to find my sole solace - my computer down by the humid atmosphere. No internet time in college. And so no more blogging.
But these days of hectic schedules have all been worth it. I had the time of my life. Met so many people. Discovered a gregarious side to my persona. Wrote lots of official letters and speeches and all sorts of hypocritical shit that surrogated my blogging. Saw rather heard my wonderful writing torn to shreds by the oratory skills of my HOD. The icing on the cake though was to watch the wonderful inter-faculty cold wars amply helped by us students stoking the fire.
Happy days though seldom last long, and here I am after the completion of the Techfest - my assignments still incomplete , scrambling to find a proper definition for my three credit project with all the faculty members taunting " You must know how to manage". A week ago, working for the Techest, I was their manager in chief. Gawd there I go on again. I love to crib. Someday I will start a blogging website called cribber.com. Am sure its gonna be a hit-what with me acting as agony uncle for all my poor cribbing members.
Hoping that their agony uncle won't be central to their cribbing.

I Run

2006-08-16T16:12:00.000+05:30

Slipping on my running shoes, I run;
Through the place I learned to walk I run;
By the gates I learned to speak I run;
Past the place she held my hand, I run:
Torn and tattered, by the waning strength of my limbs, I run;
Zipping through the memory lanes, with zest I run;
Bruised and battered, by the will of my soul I run;
Knowing not - To or From, I run.

Gandhi To Mahatma

2006-07-17T17:34:00.000+05:30

The development of Gandhi from a well to do Gujarati Bania to one of the most influential personalities of the century is a story of the truimph of the will of man above all. His life was a process of continual self development. He was neither charismatic like Hitler nor did he possess the quick wit and dogged determination of Churchill. He lived a life which failed to prepare him for the challenges that he sought. He could've lived like the typical Bania - avoid confrontation
and attain the desired objective. Yet inspite of his background he didn't hesitate to protest against what he felt was injustice. His beliefs and his need to stand by them were so strong that he didn't mind confrontation from any and all quarters. This created Gandhi and by the strength of his beliefs to which he held on under all sorts of pressures he became the larger than life persona that we identify him with.

The Gandhi who engaged himself in dance classes in Britian was a changed man as a lawyer to a rich trader in South Africa. And even the last vestiges of his Anglicized persona were shed off when he adopted his loincloth garb in India. Slowly he metamorphed into the colossal persona of being Mahatma from Gandhi.

The process of introspecting and improving is usually a part and parcel of every human's life. Yet very few can leverage the true potential of this process and attain optimum results. The Mahatma succeeded because of his adherence to nothing but the absolute truth. No matter how much we introspect we do delude ourselves in looking back upon our actions favourably. Gandhiji had no qualms about accepting the facts as they were and he was a brave man to do that. That along with the sheer will required to bring about the necessary changes sometimes not only in his but also the life of all his near and dear ones was the second reason for him rising to those great heights.

A good deal of marketing, management , brand building etc also went into the creation of Mahatma. We will be discussing all that and more soon.

Hollow Victory

2006-07-06T22:31:00.000+05:30

The FIFA World Cup for me has turned out to be a forgettable affair. Am neither a football buff nor a major Premier League fan. But I have my favourites just like everyone else. And somehow all the teams I support tend to lose. So I get back to what I do best- Cribbing.

With India winning in the Caribbean and the wonderful FIFA World Cup going on along with Wimbledon, we are having an overdose of sport. Yet none of these much touted sporting spectacles had anything much to offer. Somehow they've turned out to be duds - atleast for me.

The Caribbean was finally conquered by the men in blue. The first victory was achieved way back in 1971 that marked the rise of India and one of India's premier batsman Sunil Gavaskar to the annals of greatness. The second has taken a long time coming and so must seem sweet to the Indian team. A depleted Indian team, (I cannot dream of an India without Sachin) faced a young, inexperienced, inconsistent West Indies team - A bare shadow of the former super power that it was, and achieved a facile victory. So the ensuing hype regarding the superb batting of Dravid or Kumble's wickets seems a bit ungainly. India won on a pitch which was a bowler's paradise. The batsmen might be heroes, but the bowlers are the ones who determine the result of a test match. And India just didn't have the firepower to take twenty wickets on a good wicket. Yet we won and convincingly too. What if the Indian team was playing on a flat wicket ? Can we bat fast, score 500, put pressure on the opposition, attack , attack and make them bat again ? Thats the Aussie way and the right one too. Talking about Aussies, doesnt it seem surprising that Greg saheb started as a coach with the World Cup in mind and our dismal performance in the one dayers in the West Indies has gone unnoticed. Like Ganguly's centuries against Zimbabwe and Kenya, the final result counts, the rest is forgotten. And yet the hollow victory rings truer and farther.

Amelie Mauresmo won the Wimbledon title. The Amazing Amazon won a match because she made less unforced errors as compared to Henin Hardenne. The Belgian was playing way below par and showed sparks of brilliance but failed to dazzle. In a match of unforced errors she was guilty of sharing the larger part of the pie. Two topseeds were fighting to let the other fail. And hence another hollow victory achieved.

The Portugal side won against England which missed two of its key players. Even after Rooney was sent off the Brits attacked and tormented the Portuguese to no end. The famed English midfield did do a good job only to be let down by the fumbling Crouch. Crouch - what a name for a man so tall. The lack of a good striker hurt the Brits sorely. And all because Christiano cheated. Watch this.

Kat le varna vaat lagegi

2006-06-24T09:24:00.000+05:30

Mumbai has added another feather to its cap. That of being the rudest city in the world. Come to think of it arent all of us Indians rude ? Infact whenever I visit Mumbai I marvel at the discipline of its residents who stand in proper queues for all the buses. Back here in Gandhinagar we need to shove and push so hard for that elusive window seat that even the Mumbai trains seem like a cakewalk.

I love to quote this anecdote when I talk of according respect. Once a blind sage was meditating in the forest. A horseman asked him the way, followed by another. Soon the king of the land had a similar question. To the surprise of the king he told him that his soldier and his headman were already on their way ahead. The king asked the sage how he identified their ranks correctly. The sage replied that the first horseman called me a "Bava", the second addressed me as a "Sadhu" and you said "Rishi Maharaj". So undoubtedly you are the Maharaja of the land. The respect one has for oneself is reflected in our actions to others. Also our station in society determines our communication to our peers.

In our country the individual and his ego acquire a place more important than anything in his life. This mentality also stems from the fact that people devoid of all material superiority tend to look for the the spiritual one. Hence the one upmanship. As another popular story goes - if u put a lot of Indian crabs in a cistern and leave the top open, not one will get out as they all will be busy pulling down the one at the top.

The genesis of the problem I believe lies in our hierarchical mindset. The hangover of our caste system has manifested itself in the creation of the classes. Indians love classes - the more the merrier. The seniors love ragging the juniors. The head peon loves giving a tongue lashing to the peon. And the supposed junior would take it all without protesting. Times are changing and India is sobering from a lot of hangovers recently. In a global village such impunities won't and shouldn't be tolerated for long and that I believe will help us metamorphise to possessing a sweeter tongue and a helping hand. Hope globalization brings in the required "Videshi Maal" that helps us sober faster.
RD Mumbai

BJP - Heading for Nowhere

2006-06-13T16:15:00.000+05:30

The BJP started out as a flagbearer for the Hindus. The party that had the Ram Mandir as its sole agenda succeeded in gaining ascendency by fuelling the emotions of Hindus and failed in securing any progress towards the resolution of the issue. They had in their folds another so called Hindutva party-the Shiv Sena which added a militant flavour to the concoction. Alongwith the Shiv Sena and several other self styled Hindu organisations like the Bajrang Dal and the VHP they partially succeeded in becoming the Hindu Taliban. Until of course they came to power. With numerous other secular allies in its folds which it dare not ruffle it wasn't able to fulfill its promise to the Hindus. The spectacular success and the ensuing debacle of the BJP in Gujarat after the riots and in India respectively, divided the party much more sharply in two lines. The hardliners and the moderators. So Dhobi ka Kutta na Ghar ka na Ghat ka. They lost the Hindu vote and they earned the Muslim wrath. The successes of the Vajpayee government in bringing the economy back on track after the dotcom bubble burst and the subsequent recession went unheard of in the din of its failure to contain the Modi government excesses. And after the debacle in the Loksabha elections they were completely outmanoeuvered by Sonia Gandhi and her fine politics.

Infact the current scenario positions Narendra Modi as the bridge between the hardliners - who love him as one of their own and the liberals - who commend his excellent work in Gujarat. Yet Modi is unacceptable to any ,nay - to all of the other coalition parties of the erstwhile NDA. A large part of their losses in the general elections can be attributed to the "Indian Hitler".

The basic problem that ails the BJP at the current period of time is the lack of a solid ideology. They have nothing to use as their poll plank and this makes them into a typical opposition party which opposes for the heck of it. Time and again it has been proved that a cause , a just and a supposedly higher cause motivates individuals to great heights. A cause is all that the BJP requires in this hour of darkness, a cause that will lead them to light and glory.

Aamir's Garibi

2006-06-07T22:21:00.000+05:30

In my field full of nincompoops I am considered an intellectual. I am loved and respected for my theatric talents. My word has a strong effect on the public psyche as acknowledged by the various companies who hanker after me for endorsing their products. I believe that free speech is my birthright and so I am entitled to speak anything that I wish to. The interpretation of my statements is left to the discretion of the listener. Under no circumstances am I supposed to be held responsible for my statements. They are just statements. If someone buys the products I endorse then its credit to me and my talents and on the other hand if my statements offend someone then I don't give a damn as I am entitled to "Freedom of Speech". It is my commendable bravery that helps me succeed in withstanding all the atrocities meted out against me by the unjust society and its rulers. It is my commendable bravery again that helps me fight all odds and speak all that comes to my mind - right, wrong, foolish, illogical. Hats off to me and my real life bravery.

He is so pathetic and we are even more so defending his excesses. Instead of urging him on we need to create more awareness in the society with regards to the Narmada issue so as to ensure that his statements don't spawn more ignorants like him. I under no circumstances subscribe to the view that the film should be banned but I would love to see to it that a person of Aamir's standing is made to realise his responsibilities as a celebrity.

Vacations Bore

2006-06-03T16:17:00.001+05:30

Haven't read a single book since my exams ended. Didn't have the time. I was so busy providing the unheeded and yet seemingly much needed "Moral Support" to all the candidates appearing for placements that I barely had the time to eat and drink. It was a hectic and yet not an entirely absorbing schedule. The sole beneficial outcome of the whole exercise was that I saw all of my friends getting placed in different companies of repute all around the country. The pitfalls of not 'reading' infact 'doing' enough are that you dry up while blogging and then you have to resort to writing trivia as I am doing right now.

Just joined a gymnasium and so I have been working out every morning since the last one week. In the beginning it was really painful but now that pain has given way to finely tuned muscles and slowly but steadily my body has been responding as it gets transformed into a well oiled machine walking, working and moving with that subtle prowess. Seemingly like a lion on its haunches.

I have also brought a collection of books from the college library to read as I intend to blog every single day of my vacation. Those are my grand plans for the vacation. Hope I do everything I intend to and more. I hate studies and yet I agree vacations bore.

Combat Worthiness nay Effectiveness

2006-05-29T21:46:00.000+05:30

Luv em Hate em but you just can't ignore em. Exams are an irrevoccable facet of our lives. Three years of toil expressed in three mere hours. No amount of reason can help me understand the futility of these much dreaded chores. I am itching to fight reservation, Arjun Singh and also ignorance ala Aamir. But what we really need to fight is this incessant stress on learning by rote, the toil, the hardwork and the perseverance required for a 3 hour performance.

I call it performance - its not a test or for that matter an exam. Its just what we all are slowly becoming adept at - Performance. Its an expression of your work and in that expression your work is measured. Your ranking, your standing amongst your peers is determined more often than not by some nincompoop who can never measure up to you, yet will definitely measure you.

There I go cribbing again. Just can't help it. So these are the loop holes and the onus lies on us as to how well we expose and utilize them. The most important part is fooling the nincompoop who is evaluating us and to that end we must keep some basic points with regards to answering the questions in mind. The cardinal principles of achieving pass class are enumerated below.

1. Never leave a stone unturned. This means that no matter how much you know attempt everything.

2. Test the junior supervisors The young breed of Greenhorn Nincompoops are wonderful to toy with. Guts and gumption combined with skill and common sense can do wonders for your answer sheet.

3. Desktop Publishing This has been my favourite tool to combat the menaces of the first bench. The point worth remembering here is to use a light pencil and to try and keep the scribble covered at all times during the exam hours.

4. Scribble Oh Yes. If you have a penchant for bad handwriting then you have a good chance to get through if you write the main points neatly and scribble the rest in your original handwriting.

5. Diagrams Sad but true. You must remember them. Or publish them on your desktop ofcourse. But its imperative for your healthy scores that this aspect of the three hour chore need not be ignored.

The list goes on. But these are the points that come to mind right now. Of course psyching ourselves for the exams is also important as is the runtime presence of mind. Never losing hope, even if you don't seem to remember the curriculum leave alone the contents, is important. Just interpreting all the questions by their names and elaborating on the same may be enough under most circumstances. Some other day will add some more.

Yeh Dil Maange More

2006-05-27T23:58:00.000+05:30

Unending assignments, sleepy lectures, long studious hours spent in the canteen sporting unshaven, unkempt mawali looks, frantic project hunts (taiyar maal), running from pillar to post for photocopied notes, bluffing confidently in the vivas, scribbling incessantly in the papers, praying for that dreaded 50 percent deadline, cursing our luck for having landed in this godforsaken place - and just about everything that I did in the past two years has finally borne fruit. Landed up a job with Satyam Computers.

Sometimes what we believe are momentous times, the turning points of our lives just don't turn out to be so and sometimes some things just creep in so softly and slowly that they become an integral part of our lives before we realise it. Landing a job, having a girlfriend, buying a new car - all these acquistions seem predetermined. Things that are bound to happen sooner or later. They do mark the beginning of a new way of life but fail to induce any significant changes in an individual. And on the other hand - falling in love, finding a new friend, discovering a new passion - as I did for blogging, all can bring about momentous changes in an individual's persona, his life and his character.

Acquistions - material or otherwise serve only to fuel our desires for more. The mere act of possession brings alongwith itself truckloads of pain and sometimes for the uninitiated, shorts bursts of joy mingled with longer ones of "Give me more" demands. Both such joys and sorrows are slow poisons that corrode an individual into either a false sense of security or one of pessimism.

True joys and sorrows never appear in bursts. A feeling of equanimity helps us sail through these mighty waves of joy and emerge from the depths of despondency. This tranquility is present in an individual battered by the sorrows of his life. A person who realises that joys and sorrows are like clouds passing us by on our journey of life. He realises that the only true joy a man finds is not in transcending the clouds but in going by our work on earth with due diligence. A life spent towards improving ourselves will bring in all the requisite acquisitions as its byproducts.

The essence of all this can be summarized in what Lord Krishna said in the Gita. " Karmanye adhikarastu Ma Faleshu Kadachit." which means to work without expecting the fruits of our labours.

2006-05-03T22:47:00.001+05:30

Reusability

I copy all my assignments. Sometimes when I am too bored of all that writing I get them photocopied. Sometimes I copy what my Prof. told (infact shouted at) me while I recursively give a proper dressing down to my juniors. Sometimes especially for the ladies I copy the hip swinging Abhishek and sometimes the gyrating Shahid Kapoor. ( I tried a lot but I have failed to copy Hrithik) Sometimes i also love humming the (strictly original) tunes of Anu Malik. Sometimes I also use the same code for all of my data input functions. But there of course they call it reusability. So whats wrong with copying a few paragraphs ? Why make such a hue and cry over a 19 year old kid in a tearing hurry on her road to fame indulging in a few short cuts ?

Even though every indolent bone of my body hates it, I admit - copying is a crime. But then isn't what the "Unforgettable Raj Kapoor" did - puttering around ala Charlie Chaplin called copying ? Or what Walt Disney did - creating the unforgettable Mickey Mouse. So how do we discern between inspiration and pliagarism ? For a 19 year old kid who has had a limited world view and multi million dollar expectations riding on her slender shoulders to seek inspiration from all and any of the sources at her disposable is not in the least bit surprising. The naunces of the problem though lie in our own understanding of pliagarism or more commonly blatant copying. We accept Anu Malik and the Americans love patenting Indian herbs. So why is Kaavya being made a scapegoat. Are the 'Martha' paragraphs central to her story ? The excerpts I have read suggest that they are barely on the fringes. Do they in any manner accentuate or affect the plot of the story ? I don't think that has been the case either.

To quite an extent you have to accept that she has been victimised. Her fame and the money that caused it have been her undoing. Of course you can't exempt her from the crime of pliagarism but the sort of trauma that she has been made to undergo, what with the constant media spotlight on her making her look like a petty thief. For godsakes she is just a kid man. And a naive one at that. Naive enough to believe that she could have gotten away with such blatant pliagarising. But then they don't teach that at Harvard. Coz that is a quintessential Indian quality. Like my peers reiterate :

"Copying is not a crime - Getting caught is."

( The author is vain to admit having a soft corner for the fairer sex- especially one with a pretty face and a ( rare ) sharp intellect.....so he wont apologise for this bout of verbal diarrhoeaa )

2006-05-03T22:47:00.000+05:30

Letting off Steam - For Fires

Just when it was all looking rosy, the demon of riots raised it ugly head once again. I fail to understand how the land of Mahatma harbours so many Nathurams. We Gujjus are businessmen, peace loving, non violent, profit oriented business men. Traditionally the Vohras have been the most peace loving of all the Muslim clans. Unlike the rest of their brethren they are also surprisingly well off - mebbe just for this reason. And mebbe their being well off irked the mindless mob into butchering the poor young man , a father to his children , a son , a husband , a brother and a pillar of the family - razed mercilessly to the ground - again.

Quoting from the Lord of the Rings - "What can man do against such mindless hate ?" But we aren't Orcs - are we ? We are all sane human beings who somehow see others as Orcs. It tears my soul to see such acts of inhuman stupidity. Stupidity as it doesn't yield anything at all, as there is nothing that warrants such acts. And if there are rewards attached then too there is no justification for such acts. Why go to such lengths for winning an election ? I know what you might think. I am naive,young, idealist and so eventually branded as foolish. This is the way of the world and it is not to change. But i am still young and so i will try and try to hope.

Again quoting Aragon from LOTR - " There is always hope".

2006-04-25T09:40:00.000+05:30

In a Crib I Crib

Cribbing is my birthright and i shall fight for it. It seems that no matter how happy the normal human being is he loves to crib. Cribbing really brings out the devil in us and it helps us relax too. Whenever i crib i love to describe in explicit detail to how i would mete out vengeance on to my current tormentor. Cribbing is just another facet of the quintessential human search for venting out frustrations. The question of "Why Me ? " is the basis to all cribbing. Also the opportunity to occupy the centrestage - be it as a victor or a victim is too good to pass.

Cribbing as an activity is relegated to the crib dwellers - its the domain of those blessed souls who have someone to listen to complains. So before i graduate from my dependent state i want to have my share of fun. So before i graduate from my dependent state i want to have my share of fun.

Its wonderful to sit in the canteen and mimic all our 'Nutty Professors', their own idiosyncrasies, their dialogues, to count the number of times one repeated 'My point is' in a lecture. Their limited vocabularies accentuated by their repetitive use of their favourite hotkeys - 'Ok', 'So', 'Alright','Fine' and some others are so tongue tied that their hands do most of the talking. Yet when they set us deadlines for doing all of that menial labour of copying the assignments time and again we love cursing them. Assignments for being absent and assignments for being late, assignments for indiscipline and also for using mobiles in class. Creating perfect donkeys out of us, we call our degree MCA-Masters of Copying Assignments.

The countdown begins today. 18 days to freedom. Albeit temporary. Our exams end on the 17th of the next month. Till then. Sayonara.

2006-04-22T20:41:00.000+05:30

Pyaare 'Mat Ro' han

I am no movie buff. I am much more into reading or sports rather than the idiot box and Bollywood bheja fries. Yet i have friends who love idling their brains and watching all the David Dhawan-Salman Khan specials. As if the brain's a gearbox ready to shift into neutral and watch the Nanga Pahalwaan dance like a deer. The last Bollywood flick I watched was Apaharan. Prakash Jha's hard hitting movie had everything - a gripping storyline, the subtle comic sense, an authentic depiction of Bihar, technical soundness, excellent acting from all the actors and that irrefutable question that is the hallmark of all good movies. Here i would admit that i am the serious type and I really don't love watching something like 'The life and times of a Bunch of Jokers'.

And so I was already prejudiced as i went in for "Pyaare Mohan". But exceeding all my expectations, it turned out to be a royal fiasco far worse than I ever imagined it to be. Watching it I wished I’d be blind or deaf, like the male leads, to be able to escape the torment. I just can't comprehend how anyone could agree to fund such pathetic film making, get the film insured and also find enough fools like myself to watch it. This was by far the most unimaginative film making i have witnessed in years. It’s a sad reflection on the tastes of a country like ours. I wonder how the actors agreed to such shoddy work themselves. We have a nascent audience, no doubt but the actors - they are well educated and seemingly possess excellent aesthetic sense (amply reflected in their love lives). It’s sad that they don't object to dishing out such unpalatable fare.

Yet that is what our country is about. Isn't it? Swashbuckling Dhoni and sedate Dravid, simple Manmohan and 'pseudo-sensitive' Sonia, crafty Rahman and crooning Reshammiya and lastly (this one's for one of the male leads) lovely Aishwarya and lanky Abhishek. A jumble of paradoxes, a concoction of ever increasing humanity that tends to oscillate between extremes.

2006-04-17T16:29:00.000+05:30

Nasamaj Bacho ka Andolan

What is she fighting for ? She started out fighting against Big Dams as an environmentalist. Then when the cause was all but lost she took up the cudgels against the improper rehabilitation of the tribal population. So whats the issue ? Big Dams or Rehabilitation ? Big Dams is a non starter. To talk about the rehabilitation issue I took the liberty of extracting some information from the internet that helps throw more light on the issue.

Operations Division of World Bank in April 1990 amply clarifies this - “A widespread myth is that the tribal people to be resettled from the submergence area are living in pristine forests in a traditional manner as hunter gatherers in harmony with the environment. It is within this tribal group that there appears to be the least opposition to the dam. Out of the already rehabilitated people of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, tribal population is 99.25%, 72.5% and 99% respectively . The greatest opposition is from the more wealthy non - tribal farmers from Nimad region of Madhya Pradesh who have been exploiting the tribals for many decades. So by opposing the Project, whose cause is being championed? Tribals …. or Non-tribals”. For more on that visit FAQ Section of Official Site of Sardar Sarovar Dam.

Secondly, NBA activities has caused tremendous delay and huge cost over-run in Rs 44,000 crore (number is quoted by NBA) Narmada project.

Thirdly, Lakhs of live herd died and more than one million people were forced to migrate (from saurashtra, Kutch and N. Gujarat) due to continuos famine and NBA induced delay. Thus NBA is partly responsible for this horrendous human tragedy.

Fourthly, NBA criticizes rehabilitation efforts but NBA it-self is the biggest stumbling block in rehabilitation efforts. Moreover, R&R of Sardar Sarovar is much better then all other R&R ever under-taken in india.

Also, for NBA movement it-self is the end goal. NBA slogans like “we will give and take lives” displays fanatic passion. At this stage they are waging a losing battle just as their slogans describe and they are more damaging to the nation than all the Naxalites and Ranvir Senas combined.

Bandhs , strikes etc. are negative tactics and in an growing country such as ours they are more of a hinderance than a channelizer that they are supposed to be. Young kids must be allowed to enjoy and live their lives not put under foolish philosophical constraints. In some ways this is what has been happening here too. Fast paced development comes with its own pitfalls. But we must learn to take them all in our stride and move on.

Lastly the desserts. I recieved a confirmation letter from jammag.com which means that now i can contribute to jammag as the official correspondent from Nirma University. Cool Na. Oh! How i would love doing all that Nirma Bashing.

2006-03-31T09:56:00.000+05:30

Tagore

The tame bird was in a cage, the free bird was in the forest,

They met when the time came, it was a decree of fate.

The free bird cries,'O my love, let us fly to the wood.'

The cage bird whispers, ' Come hither, let us both live in the cage.'

Says the free bird,'Among bars ,where is the room to spread one's wings?'

'Alas',cries the cage bird,'I should not know where to sit perched in the sky.'

Isn't this what we all desire in life ?

A place to sit in repose. A heart to live in.

We crave for that illusion of security. We crave to be in a position that helps us feel secure. The more ambitious ones try to do one better. Notwithstanding exceptions like the ambitious ones ,the conservative view is still the dominant driving force for the rest of humanity. All that we care to satiate is the need to feel secure. Since the stone ages that is what our quest has been. All our inventions are based on our needs. And in filling in one need after the other we have created a multitude of needs. An unbelieving atheist like me would also attribute the creation and also the continued veneration of the concept of GOD to this feeling of insecurity.

This is a translated version of what Gurudev wrote in Bengali. Yet his words stir the soul like none other. The first time i read them i was - Exalted. Thats the word. He isn't just sublime or beautiful, he is complex, concise and the way he relates to nature is unique. One common string that runs through all the great works of literature is that they somehow transport you into their own world and thereby make you feel special. When you grasp the meaning of these words then they enchant you. The trick lies though in maintaining the balance. It should not be so complex that its beyond anyone's understanding and at the same time it should make us exercise our grey cells so that we'd feel exalted after interpreting the author.

Thats what counts. Doesn't it ? Balancing. Somehow it seems that there are no absolutes in life. Life doesn't just have grey shades. Life is grey.

2006-03-22T10:32:00.000+05:30

NUTS Life

NUTS-Nirma University of Technology and Science. Thats the place where i come to write my blogs. In class i write the basic transcript on paper and later i would post it during my lab sessions. NUTS - thats what this place makes out of us all. Funny how we all conform to the system. It surprises me to no end as to how we would go to any length,bear any oppression meted out on us if forced to do so. Is this also a facet of group psychology? Doing all the donkey work just because you have to. No questions asked. No explanations sought. No satisfactory answers received. We are supposed to fill in the feedback forms regarding the performance of our tutors. If we dont do so in time then they fine us. The only objective of the whole exercise is to puff up the already over inflated egos of our tutors.

At this point of time it would help if i would elaborate on our education system at Nirma. We have a wonderful continous evaluation system similar to the one followed at the IIT's. If you have read 'Five Point Someone' then you can easily relate to it. The problem is that the system is implemented such that as of yet there are no five point someone's in our class. The nadir is a healthy 6 pointer. The University sees to it that the students are happy as all of those who pass do get high scores . And the satisfaction of the teachers is ensured by the pseudo feedback form system. Its compulsory to fill it up too.

The typical Indian mind is so steeped in tradition that it tends to respect anyone with any authority whatsoever. Even the support staff members treat the future engineers with disdain. Some of us might be bossing over teams of 300-400 others in the coming years. And yet no one would raise a voice of protest. Its the system and you do as it tells you to.

Just as the same well educated engineer won't mind littering the streets, won't mind a short cut in this Q-infested country, won't mind taking dowry on his marriage, won't mind bribing god with his prasad, won't mind the unbearable aesthetics of his office building, won't mind sending out another forward which blackmails us into sending 20 others, won't mind the Laloo Prasads sucking the life blood out of our country, won't mind the loss of his innocence, his individuality nor his integrity.

That is what college makes out of us.

2006-03-14T17:14:00.000+05:30

Exams

Whenever i look back at my past, my heart swells with pride. Its been since the last seventeen unending years (of the total twentythree of my existence) that unflinchingly i have braved the relentless torment meted out unto me by the only demon terrorising poor kids like myself - Exams.

Insecurity they say breeds faith. And so I'd reckon that the fear of examinations is all that keeps me from being an atheist. In the relentless pursuit of ever elusive success i have realised that "Train,bus,ladki aur exams - Ek jaati hai Doosri aati hai". Alas this realization is yet to dawn upon my ignorant peers. Like predators they stalk their elusive prey and like hunters the administration create pitfalls in their pursuit. The wholesale revamping of the system is long overdue. The system belies the general attitude of the teaching fraternity towards students which focuses more on fault finding rather than fact finding.

Hotmail founder Sabeer Bhatia has nicely talked about this in his interview.When he'd gone to Caltech, Bhatia recalls, he'd just submitted his paper after reading up the four books prescribed for that particular course in philosophy, and he got a "D," his first ever "D". Why, he asked, since he'd read all the books and dutifully cited them in abundance -- "that's the Indian way," he explains to me. I've read them, too, is what his Caltech professor told him, what have you done to add to that body of knowledge?That, Bhatia says, is the big difference between Indian and US education. Last but not the least he added - Just a few months of re-orientation and, his Indian developers are on a par with those in the US.

Though higher education in India has a long way to go the more pressing concern is to improve the primary education system in our country.One way to bring about wholesale changes in the system would be to create enhance the reputation of teaching as a job. This has been well adopted by Japan. The rest of the requisite changes will all come by themselves. It might just be the lynchpin required to bring about the much sought after revolution in education. Just as what happened in the IT industry when it got fancy in the late 90's, we can bring a change in the whole system if only we manage to make the job of a teacher glamorous. Tough job but considering that bribing a whole generation with dal - chawal was considered do-able this should be a veritable cake walk for the administration. All we need is enhanced pay packages and propaganda. The rest will follow all by itself.

Any criticism of the Indian education system will optimally require a hardcover book of 500 pages. So i would stop here and now. Anyways, I have a lot of assignments to copy today. So i would love to get this blog published right now and copy down the assignments during my lectures. Somehow, I feel that no matter what you do, some things dont change.

2006-02-25T12:44:00.000+05:30

M Lovin It

I live in a city called Ahmedabad located in Western India. A city on the threshold of becoming. Once acclaimed as the "Manchester of the East" it has long been credited with being on the edge of greatness. Like a beautiful woman with a bloated belly awaiting the arrival of its firstborn with due trepidation it has awaited its moment of glory since the past half a century.Like the woman the city is restricted in its movements and the enjoyments it has to offer to its denizens.As a result apart from watching films,indulging in gastronomical pleasures remain the chief mode of delight for us Amdavadis.

So thats what me and all of my lovely friends did this Valentine Day.After watching the Jim Carry starrer - Dick & Mane, we guys went to the McDonalds eatery alongside the highway .Leering at a hot chick and sneering at the wimp alongside her we indulged in our burger. A funny little burger which happens to be purely vegetarian.Up until then i'd always believed that burgers are two buns with some meat patty stashed in between. But what we had was pure vegetarian fare,the primary ingrediants of the McAloo Tikka Burger being potato & peas patty flavoured with spices , served between buns. The reason is that our region of the country has a large population of vegetarian people and so for the west zone and its rich vegetarian clientele Mcdonalds has prepared the special Vegetarian Burger - Tasting not too different from our roadside Rajasthani Dabeli.I fail to comprehend as to why in a nation full of individuals who pride themselves for their Indianness do we allow some famous foreign brand to cater Indian food with foreign names.And mind you,its not just national pride that i am talking about here. The issue i raise begs the question as to what McDonalds stand for ? Come to think of it its like Pepsi selling lemonade in Pepsi bottles in rural areas or KFC selling vegetarian food - just because it has a market for the stuff. What is the credibility of a global brand that sells its wares like a local vendor ? The accomodating integrity of this global brand is no news. Yet as intellectuals i believe we aren't allowed the liberty of doing our wish as we share the collective responsibility of doing what is right. Its a matter of doing what we believe in. Is it not imperative for every conscious citizen to throw rubbish into a dustbin or not to spit in the corners of a building? By the same ration i believe that as thinking citizens it is expected of us that we eat, drink ,wear and buy what we believe in as that defines us and our individuality. The expression of individuality is what helps define the art and culture of our times. The negation of such accomodating integrity is imperative to the creation of a nation whose citizens pride on being what they are. If we scorn politicians or the swamijis for double standards as they motor away in swanky cars aren't we too being just as indulgent in our practices?

I know i could go on and on and on. Though the primary reason for all this thought for food can be attributed to my lack of appetite after seeing that Langoor with Angoor. Life's injustices take a heavy toll on the idle brain.

Comments are welcome. Especially at this nascent stage.Janit.

2006-02-22T17:32:00.000+05:30

I would like to start my blogging on this new forum with a paean to someone i loved once. This marks the new beginnings of a new life but before i leave the one i once lived i'd like to offer a final tribute to the one who earned the right to my soul.

Child Woman

So mature,Yet so young,
So strong,Yet so vulnerable;

Unaffected by the savagery of life,
Dancing at the edge of precipice;

Scarred forever : Haunted by hate;
Unknown to hope, Forsaken to fate;

Child Woman - Mind in a jumble.
With unerring clarity she'd mumble;

Child - Fumigate . Do not Ruminate.
Woman - Dream your fate . Make love and hate.