Bus journeys!

Intercity Bus journeys can evoke quite a myriad of reactions from many. From squeals of joy (Mostly from 10 year old’s or 25 year olds who still think they are 10 year old’s) to sighs at the thought of spending innumerable hours in more or less the same position. Ever since I relocated to Chennai, I’ve made numerous bus trips (thanks to the fact that train tickets get reserved almost 3 months in advance) and unfortunately these trips have not always been in the most comfortable fashion possible thanks to several factors which include a lazy travel agent, a lazy me and really busy peak seasons. 

During yet another journey where I had to overcome the odds in reaching my destination of Coimbatore I pondered over the various trips I had made with the numerous little obstacles and small yet humorous incidents. Here is a short recap.

Sometime in February: I left the part of getting train tickets to one fellow who claimed to have an excellent travel agent who would get us the tickets that we wanted through tatkal. Yes one fellow called Vivek Santhosh. :P I’m typing this in earnest belief that he never bother’s to read my blog. :D. Anyway, we left it to his superhero travel agent who somehow could not make of his superhuman resources and instead got us bus tickets. I was cool with that, except that I didn’t know that it was for a godforsaken Kerala owned and maintained travels. Something named after the almighty. The journey was spent figuring out the office of the above travels and then waiting endlessly till 11pm for a 10.30 bus and finally being led on a trek into the wilderness (read unpaved bus parking) and voila, a non air conditioned mallu bus. Wonder how I knew it was a mallu bus? The number plate of course. Plus the incessant smell of coconut oil that tortured us throughout the journey. Add to that, a really horny couple seated in front of us making out throughout the night and you can guess how the rest of the journey turned out to be. Did I mention the journey took 12 hours? Yes add that too. One unforgettable trip.

Sometime in March: Another time I was transported by an ever enthusiastic Formula one drop out who most probably gave up the high octane life for the thrills that Diesel and Indian highways only can offer. He of course dutifully parked the bus into a water tanker hardly within 30 minutes of departure thus brining my journey to a premature end. After a 45 minute argument, settlements, threats and an alternate bus, we set off again to complete the journey in record time. 7 hours for a normally 9 hour journey. Seriously, why is Karun Chandok in F1?

Sometime 2 days ago: I leave from home to Ashok pillar. Yes this part is about getting to koyambedu itself. :D At Ashok pillar I see a traffic jam stretching endlessly on (Oh yeah Beijing, a 100 miles? We’ll beat you soon at that game too! :P) I look around for a bus and I see a Volvo in the distance. I thank my stars and run for it only to stop 10 feet away from it. The bus was like a human sandwich. Well salted btw. There was no way even the doors could open! Hence I head on further to find another Volvo similarly packed. Now I start to curse my stars and just walk along. I find another 2 Volvos and regular buses as well, all packed to the brim. So in short I continued my US Marines physical aptitude test and walked 2 kilometers, found an empty share auto which subsequently got filled up completely such that I was immobilized for the rest of the journey. To end it all, I had another 1 kilometer walk through concrete terrain followed by rugged jungle paths. Oh yes I live in the heart of civilization!

Naan Mahaan Alla

Naan mahan alla, is an attempt to make a movie that stands out differently from the rest, but I think that aim may not have been achieved all that well. The serious tone of the storyline is hardly revealed until the interval except for glimpses of it here and there from the opening sequence. I’m guessing the director tried to go for a compromise between family entertainment and a thriller, but like I said it may not have perfectly reached the target. Yet, I think this film might be the best compromise, thus emphasizing the fact that the two genres can never really go hand in hand.

Karthi reprises the role of a happy go lucky youngster with no airs about himself. All is hunky dory and he even meets a girl and falls in love with her successfully. At this moment, Please take a few seconds off as I reminisce on the beauty of the pretty lady in question. :D Kajal Agarwal. Pretty as ever :D.  Of course the course of events in the first half are quite like any other romance film with the usual elements of fun and frolic among friends and family. The first half of the film will have you in smiles and occasionally laughing at the medium humour being dished out which makes it a thoroughly enjoyable family experience.  Of course this is interspersed with scenes of a bunch of criminals indulging in unlawful activities and though there is no direct cross of path, we see a shade of the hero’s character when he reacts to the scenes by the road side.

The second half is completely faced paced and has sufficient suspense. Of course you know the end, the good guy wins and bad ones meet epic fail :P. The suspense is all about how it exactly happens, and that way this movie ends on a slightly interesting note. The shade of grey we see in Karthi at the end I guess sums up the title. The fun elements are completely missing in the second half with the friends and Kajal and pretty much all the family having no role to play. As you dissect the movie, one tends to feel that the first half and second half have absolutely no co-relation to each other, but somehow the director makes them stick. That vouches for good screenplay I guess. Overall; a movie definitely worth watching once. Btw, I like the way the grey characters are portrayed specially towards the climax without overtly making the hero seem like a superhero. Tata to the “transformer electrocuting, dead-sea killing, destroying a car with the flick of finger” antics of our yesteryear heroes. Tamil cinema is coming of age. I can see the signs.

mon ami dans les crimes de joie

My friend in crimes of glee,

Today is the day of great change in the life of thee,

Atlast you have been set free,

From the clutches of the evil me. :P

Mon amie dans les crimes de joie,

After 8 long years and fifty three thousand km of spree,

It is time to bid good bye to thee.

Until another time, another life we shall see,

Stay safe and enjoy the tarmac in spirits free .

In memory of my Beloved 2003 Geny Grey Metallic Honda Dio. Circa 2003 - 2010. She'z not dead by the way. I've just sold her for a Unicorn. :D

Kites or rather the lack of it.

There is only one reason a guy would or should consider watching the movie kites for. That reason is: Barbara Mori. If you are a girl, the only reason you would want to watch the movie is: Umm, err, I have nothing here actually. Lets face it, you can't really consider Hrithik as THE REASON. Period.


But then if you weigh the reasons that you shouldn't watch the movie for against those that you should for, Rest assured the scale tilts so fast that the "for" reasons will shoot out of it.

Next, if you are in Bangalore, you most probably will spend at the minimum, Rs200 for watching this movie, like I did at Innovative Multiplex. Yes Bangaloreans', that's where I went. Smirk all you want. Donating that Rs200 to a homeless fellow is an option that I urge you to consider immediately.

Having cleared all that, lets get to the movie. It's a combination of several movies. It starts off with a scene inspired from Bourne Identity. The it goes on to steal scenes from a million other Hollywood movies, all put together in a thankfully, 2 hour package. Hrithik is a dancer teacher in Vegas who spends all his money at his full time job as a player in the casino. He makes the money with a part time job as a dance teacher and occasionally marrying immigrants to help them gain a Green Card. And to prove the point that he is a dance teacher, he does a lot of dancing. Which kind of got boring to us audience. So as he goes along, one of his students tell him she loves him, to which he duly rejects. Shortly thereafter he finds out that she is the daughter of a casino owner. So he goes back to befriending her and somehow, somewhere in between, he starts going out with her. Then, he meets her brother and his fiance. Of course I forgot to mention, he meets that fiance ahead while diving. Yeah, sorta like seeing the beautiful mermaid in the sea. Only thing is this mermaid wears a Bikini, has feet and speaks only Spanish.

Anyway, he takes her out and the "bro" finds out and slaps her. Our charming Hrithik rises to the situation and whips out a gun at him and tries to save her. after a few shuffles, Hrithik and his mermaid hit the road in his Bentley continental GTC which coincidentally was given to him by his future father in law as a welcoming gift to the family. The rest of the story revolves round their run down south into Mexico and the close encounters they have with the cops and the "Bro". Lots of flames, accidents and flying cars ensue. In fact that was the only part of the movie where I didn't exactly feel sleepy. Ultimately Hrithik gets injured and is duly deposited into a carriage carrying hay by the Spanish "mermaid" while she makes a run for it. But unfortunately for her, the "bro" and his pack of USA Goondas are hot on her heels in their FBI spec black SUV's while she trundles along in a 1960's pick up. They chase her until she reaches a cliff where she sees no choice but to type out a good bye SMS to Hrithik and then drive off the cliff into the Sea. When Hrithik hears of this, he kills them villians all and in the process is shot by Kangana Ranaut(Did I mention she plays the role of the "sister of the villain", who obviously got dumped for the mermaid). Yet he survives that gun shot and manages to find his way to that very cliff at which he jumps into the water. And Kaka Kaka ishtyle(A tamil flick; for the dumbfounded) he sees her image in the water as he loses his life. End of story. Now tell me is that even worth the effort of reading. In fact I now wonder if it was worth the effort of typing out! :O

P.S. The above is not an exact rendition of the story, but explains the basic premise. IF you wish to hear an exact story I suggest you kill yourself at the theatre, I mean go watch the movie at the theatre.

Oh yes, apparently Rakesh Roshan intends to release the film in English. God save the Americans.

Badmaa$h Company

IF you walk into the theatre thinking "Ocean's 11/12/13", you'll walk out disappointed. Walk in expecting a Bollywood style fun con movie, and you'll get all your money's worth.

The USP of this film is quite simple. A cool and charming Shahid Kapoor. a Hot Anushka Sharma. I repeat, Hot Anushka Sharma and for those who didn't get it right the first two times, a HOT Anushka Sharma. Damn I can't get over the cute female. :P Ah yes, back to USP's of potatomash company. I mean badmaa$h Company; A good ensemble cast, reasonable storyline which is quite predictable yet thankfully does not make you feel like an idiot for shelling out Rs.120(Plus Rs10 convenience fee), nice comedy, slick scenes through most of the movie and decent acting too.

Starting off in the 1990's in India, the movie tells us the story of how 3 guys fresh out of college end up into the con business as they see it to be the quick route to success. Of course this is portrayed by way of the condition of the household of the middle class Karan Kapoor(Shahid) whose family struggles when his father falls sick and his mother has to pawn of her jewellery to tend to her ailing husband.(Doesn't all this sound a little too familiar? Hmm, am pretty sure i've seen it in some 1980's Rajinikanth movie. I wonder...)

Of course this being the 1990's our educated protagonist does not tend to the evil ways of the villainous smuggler or pick pocket. Instead he makes a smart move with a bright idea. Ropes in his two good friends and his girlfriend as well. All goes well for this quartet as they play around the rules having fun, making us laugh and making money in India and later on in the US.
Ok I shouldn't be divulging too much of the story beyond this. I believe this is quite a sufficient peek into the film. From here, it takes many twists and turns, with lots of Bollywood melodrama (It can't be too far behind can it? :P) mixed inside to break apart the gang. The movie then on is about how luck changes and how one overcomes it(As usual over the period of a song :P) and the gang gets together for one final goodwill job and all is hunky dory at this bollywood family. Like I said, it's not as slick as the Hollywood films that I so wanted to compare it to, but it has its own ground to stand on. Definitely worth a watch, for all the fun and entertainment it can offer over a span of 2.5 hours.

One more thing, Why is it that, all the tickets to this movie are sold out at Satyam and at PVR, but half the theatre is empty at INOX? Leaves me stumped....

Green Zone

Imagine the following scenario:You are at the theatre as the movie progresses and you munch on pop corn while watching it when suddenly the whole theatre becomes silent and you realise that your pop corn munching noise is quite audible? Well I had it recently and wow I must say, it is quite loud. The above has nothing to do with the movie so i'll get on with that. :D

Green zone is this war based movie where Matt Damon plays a Chief warrant officer in search of the famed "WMD's" :P in various intelligence specified locations around Baghdad. Of course nothing turns up at every site that his seniors claim is "Good to go". The movie talks about how certain senior people fabricated evidence of WMD and got the USA to wage war on Iraq. I wonder which part of "No WMD" that the US officials didn't understand, but then, when good ol' Georgie has decided he wants to make Baghdad the trial scene for EA Games Command and conquer, Any information that claims other wise isn't going to stop him I guess.

Anyway, the movie proceeds as Chief Miller(Matt Damon) pursues general Al-Rawi who is the key to this whole episode. As the movie progresses, we see internal conflicts between the Army and CIA, torn Iraqi nationals and basically you get the picture right? The movie ends with the General being killed, and Chief miller writing a report that details everything that he knows and puts it out to the press. In a few words, a nice movie that gives a sad picture which unfortunately is reality. Definitely a must watch!

Can animals be gay?

I know this sounds crazy and stupid, but guess what? I read about this in IHT and it was an article about a biologist and her findings! I mean, seriously, gay animals? Gay people itself a concept that is still hard to digest for many and now you are saying your pet dog could be gay?? :O

Read the article here.

It may sound crazy and wierd, because they refer to the birds as homosexuals and there was one part where the scientist claims to have seen a pair of female birds involved in a threesome! :O . Food for thought :P Interestingly the article notes that scientists have been noticing this behaviour for long but have usually attributed it to some reason or the other. Maybe they were worried about being ridiculed and now that gay people are allowed, gay animals is something they can claim is legal too!

Read the article if your really bored, it can make for a crazy read! :D

Losing my virginity!

No speculation people. :P This is a opinion post about Richard Branson's autobiography. That's all. And also to mark my return to blogging after a 3 month hiatus I guess. :D

Now about the book, Its quite commercial, inspiring and makes one wonder. The book tells a lot about the problems faced by him through his life and how such a huge conglomerate was built. But it is said in such an easy manner that it makes one feel he got it quite easy! It's an interesting read, specially if you are an aspiring entrepreneur. Some of the events that happened and the way he has penned it is quite humorous and nice. It's actually been sometime since i read this one and have kinda forgotten about the contents, but hey, then whats the point of you reading it then. I tell you its a good book so go read it! :P

Doomsday clock advances!

CHICAGO/CHENNAI. The Bulletin of Atomic scientists today released a press statement, announcing that the doomsday clock has been shifted to 30 seconds to midnight. This announcement, today has sent shock waves throughout the world as the clock reached the closest time to midnight since its inception in 1953, which according to the board means catastrophic destruction on earth which can include complete annihilation of the human species. The clock though initially created just to represent the threat of global nuclear war, now signifies any change in climate or activities that may threaten or create harm to humans.

The press release also stated that the reason for this sudden decision to advance the clock by 4.5 minutes to 30 seconds, from its current position of 5 minutes was due to recent activities in the Southern part of India, namely the state of Tamil Nadu. The recent spate of movie releases by a certain south Indian actor by the name of Joseph Vijay has been deemed by the bulletin to be "hazardous and of harm to anyone who watches the movie", unnamed sources said. The bulletin also warned that one more movie from the said person could raise tensions across the world with many governments already involved in a covert operation to protect their citizens from watching the movie. Our Intel revealed that these operations include discreet activities such as booking all tickets at every show, making theatres apparate thus leaving citizens lost and even paying Vijay to perform in advertisements, supporting the Chennai SuperKings at every practise session, changing room team meet and providing a dance intro to MS Dhoni at every batting session. The International Monetary Fund is in the process of allocating a global budget for this purpose. Sources from within the Indian government have been quoted as saying that the Indian parliament is not amused by this man's antics and is contemplating on a ban if he attempts another movie despite all the precautions. The utilisation of the controversial POTA act is also being mulled, though political observers feel that the government might be better off by just putting in place a 50km radius ban on him and any video or still camera.

Unsuspecting fans who fervently awaited his new release "vettaikaran" which was screened at theatres on Dec 18th, exited the theatres in tears as they mulled on the sanity of their once beloved star. " He is just getting worse by the day! He jumped onto the roofs of trains in previous films and now he dares break pillars with his bare hands! Does he think he is the Captain or what??", wailed a film buff as she left the theatre, completely distraught at the insult to her superstar, "The Captain", Vijayakanth. Film critics consider this day a sad day in Indian Cinema if not as worse as previous attempts by him. Noted film Director James Cameroon though was heard to have commented that Joseph Vijay might have been a cheaper alternative to all the expensive computer graphic imagery that he spent on in his film "Avatar" which simultaneously released worldwide. When contacted for further comments, government officials had only this to say, "All we can do is wait and see, He has not performed any illegal activity as such and hence no legal action will be taken at this point. With the recent spate of such films not only from Kollywood, but the rest of India too, the judiciary is mulling introducing new laws that may make bad film making an illegal activity. At that point, society shall no longer be at his mercy, He shall be at ours." They said, with an evil glint in their eyes.

Random ramblings of the week

Ok, its been a reeeeeeaaaaaaly long time since I blogged and wanted to put in something so as to give life to it. :D Interesting events have been happening off late in the news. people fast in Andhra and our benevolent govt decides they deserve a new state. What is with that? Can I fast and insist that I have the democratic republic of Ramnagar for myself to rule?? While I'm at it I would like to anneexe some coastal regions of Goa and Kerala as well. Wait why annexe just parts of it. Coimbatore, Ooty, Cochin, Goa. It all belongs to me. I also want Tirupur. Where would we be without some form of international trade? I could barter with Obama. Give us cheap oil that you stole from the Iraqis and Cheap electronics at Amazon.com and newegg.com prices if you want cheap Gap T-shirts that you can sell to the consumer at ten times the price. :P :D I shall create a "democratic" country ruled by me :P and, umm, and all right, I haven't got a plan in place, but tell me, does TRS either? I doubt it? All he wants is a state that he thinks he can claim and with Hyderabad as its capital. Some how everyone thinks its going to be the doom of Hyderabad and not the rise of Telengana. Andhra will be fine. It has Vizag, Vijayawada, Tirupathi(Richest god in the world) to itself, and of course the Reddy bothers and their vast mines, So Andhra will do fine and rise back. But Telengana? we'll have to wait and see. here are some interesting facebook status messages I picked out over the week, all related to the Telengana issue:

- I'm going on a hunger fast demanding the partitioning of my choco chip cookie. - Courtesy Nikila, I personally liked this one. Infact I wanted to post a reply stating that I was going to go on a hunger fast demanding the partitioning of her choco chip cookie and insist that the half that had the choco chips in it belonged to me :P, but I never got round to posting my demands....

- People in India fast and they get a new state... EE grads in USC fast and don't sleep and all they get is bad grades. - Courtesy my overworked USC grad student Srinath :D

I have an unrelated word of warning to the Indian government: Please don't ferry any VIP's in Indian Air Force Vehicles. They are sitting targets for Snipers! If you are wondering why, look at this link:

http://www.loupiote.com/photos/3740818562.shtml

Why do you have to paint a car blue, and then draw a nice bulls eye on it? The vehicle I saw on the roads here had bigger bull's eyes that then one in the image! I know its based on the Indian flag, but still, what were they thinking?? Alright, we know unrelenting terrorists are going to come up and blow stuff up anyway, but why make it easy for them? They jolly well better take the effort to aim and fire!

The South Indian Road Trip Project. - An update!

5 days in all. Actually 4.5 days. Covered, 1073km. Coimbatore - Ooty - Mysore - Bangalore - Coimbatore. Me the driver and few other co-passengers. Learnt quite a few things.

1. My car is actually very good! Not once did I face a single minor problem!

2. The road from Ooty to Gudalur is a great piece of driving stretch. Not the flat out kind, but the well laid mountain road kind.

3. The road from the Karnataka Border to Mysore is crap. Its even quite bewildering because it has several speed bumps continuously. there were 7 at one stretch which had the Fiat Linea in front of us prancing like a wild horse!

4. The 4 lane highway from Mysore to Bangalore is great. Ignoring the speed bumps in the first 10-20km stretch. Its got several Cafe Coffee Day's, a Barista and even a 24x7 Mcdonalds! :D Makes for a great weekend driving trip!

5. Bangalore is truly becoming an international city. the infrastructural development that has happened and is happening is amazing. The roads leading to the airport are well paved and well light at night. No Autorickshaws! :D (rubbing hands in gleee) or motorcycle traffic. Hence all traffic is doing 60kmph plus. Thus giving faint reminders of driving to the airport in Singapore. Reach the airport and you see an amazing glass facade, Metallic Green Renault Logans as taxis or Big red Volvos as city shuttles. Sexy man! is all I can think!

6. The drive back to Coimbatore from Bangalore was even more fun! 300km of nearly arrow straight or nice curved, 4 lane highways! Kept an avg speed of 100kph! Infact they seem to be testing out interactive, real time digital displays over the highways as well! I've seen those being used to give traffic updates to drivers abroad! It will be amazing if such a system became active here too! Currently they just display warning messages about how you should drive safely! :P

I took 6 hours to reach Coimbatore from bangalore, inspite of the fast highway. Reason behind this being, getting out of Bangalore took me quite some time and the last 60 kilometres before you reach the 6 lane road at Nilambur near Coimbatore is still a 2 lane road. I guess the Bangalore traffic issue might be solved with the current flyovers under construction, but I don't see any respite from the 2 lane highway because there doesnt seem to be any construction activity happening as yet! TN govt! please, construct the road soon! :(

Walking in the rain

10 P.M.- Friday - N.H. 47

A lone light shone in the distance. As Raghu walked on in the light drizzle, the distant light grew in intensity. It was an open shop; a rarity at this time on this stretch of road. Raghu consciously avoided the light, staying in the shadows on the other side of the tarmac and carried on forward.

5 A.M. - Saturday - J.A Terminus

He entered the bus terminus as discreetly as possible, attracting minimal attention to himself. The strict fitness regime and endurance training had clearly proven useful in the 40 mile walk. He boarded the bus and seated himself in the corner at the end. It had always been his preferred seat on his regular commute and today was no different. The bus started filling in with harried farmers, workers, travellers and the like. The diesel rattled to live accompanied by the shrill whistle of the conductor. As the bus trundled off, Raghu handed out a crisp Twenty Rupee note towards the conductor. The conductor looked up quizically. "Munnar". 5 hours of twisty mountain roads had begun.

10 A.M. - Munnar

An incessant drizzle characterised the welcome drill of Munnar as Raghu alighted. He walked out of the Terminus into the mist. Around the corner stood her Scirocco - GA 04 S 6577. An Unmistakable fiery red. Raghu hopped into the passenger seat and locked the door. "So much for subtlety". "We do what we can", She said, looking at him and smiling. She pressed the ignition and pulled out of the parking lot. Silence was exchanged for sometime, as she drove on and Raghu stared into the mist which enveloped all, around them. It had been quite a month.


To be Continued....

***************************************************************
Had I ever gotten anywhere near writing, this would most probably have been my entry to the Bloggerati competition, but as you can see, it's no where near that. Just a teaser of sorts, hardly covers 3 paragraphs. Hopefully I'll have it ready soon...
Let me know if it by any chance sounds like an enticing teaser or a collection of random words.. :P

2 Sambars found dead!

Coimbatore: Two sambars were found dead in a restaurant kitchen near sapadupuram yesterday. The Assistant Inspector of food, health and safety said that the department had been informed that the body of a sambar was lying in the kitchen. However when kitchen officials went to investigate they found 2 sambars dead. One was male and the other female, both aged between 3 days to 4 days old. Investigations are going on with the help of a culinary chef.

From our special corespondent:

An unnamed source within the FHS department has been quoted as saying that an arrest has been made in connection with the deaths. The Suspect is a male Rasam, stale and around 5 days old. A few more arrests may be made in the next few days with the list of probables including the who's-who's of the culinary industry. A FHS source has said the list includes names such as Vatha Kulambu and Kootu Poryal. Other unnamed sources state that a special meals family feud and the recently exposed, highly publicised love affair triangle may have something to do with the deaths. Investigations are still going on, till expiry.

The wet ride!

I insist on using the above title even at the risk of it sounding like the perfect title for a porn flick! :P The monsoon has arrived and finally the nation is relieved as the skies shed tears all day long. The monsoon is a great time to be driving, but as I realised today, not a great time to be riding, especially when you don’t have a spare change of clothes. All it took was 15 minutes of a mild downpour for me to collect approximately 3-4 litres of water samples and a few hundred grams of mineral samples. My collection medium was, obviously my clothes! Of course the quantity collected increased due to the valour I showed in braving the rain and forging forward. At the end of a 2 hour battle where I covered a distance of 45km(usually done in 45 min) I stopped at a restaurant to order something to defrost myself. I sounded vaguely like this: One Shezzzizwann chickcken noodles and boozzt..(Background score of self drilling teeth). The waiter strangely stared at me. Obviously they didn’t get many backpack touting, windbreaker wearing, strange noise emitting bikers who clearly looked out of place in a “Benz” hotel!(Local Dhaba owners sure show great resourcefulness in naming their shops!) Anyways after a few frantic antics the order got through and I made my way to defrosting back to human temperature. This was one of those days when food felt like a gift from god himself!

Anyways I reached my destination after having refreshed and recharged myself and quickly opened my bag, to find to my dismay that the water had seeped in thus dampening my spare clothes as well. Looks like it’s a cold night ahead in a town where the Airtel network refuses to pick up EDGE and hence I type this on a GPRS connection. Download rates according to Mr. Netwarrior(Airtel’s Internet Force commander I suppose – Online crimefighter who duels everyday against unseen enemy forces such as spam, viruses and George W Bush) are a mind blowing 0.5kbps/s as of now! (Typed at 11.25P.M. , July 2^nd 2009. Will get uploaded, when my server deems is an auspicious time.)

Thinking about it, there won’t be anything exciting about a monsoon bike ride if there was no rain to drench a person to the core such that his soul would pop our shivering and ask for a hot cuppa! So, take out those wheels and hit the road. Give yourself amazing therapy sessions in mud, minerals, water, CO and NOx!

Long time coming!

It has been quite a long time and I have been wanting to make a post for ages. I helped myself to a whole bunch of books when I was in Chennai and here is a review on one book that I bought there!

The White tiger!

It was a booker prize winner. I think you can compare it to the movie Slum Dog millionaire in the sense, that there wasn't exactly anything fascinating about it, but it was a decent entertainer and it somehow caught the imagination of the jury and won a prize. This book is a good read no doubt, but it's not a work of literary art or anything. It is a tale of rags to riches. It shows the differences in lifestyle between the rich and the poor, what people do to get where they want, and talks a lot about how India actually is a land of opportunity for those willing to bend and play by the unofficial rules that exist in the Indian system. The Narrator Balram is a pretty interesting character and quite easily defines the average lower strata Indian. Infact In my recent trip to Chennai, I remembered seeing the dozens of call taxis zoom along OMR to reach the numerous offices late at night and my thoughts came to The White Tiger. The changes that have happened in India over the past few years due to IT have been tremendous, and I realised the effect only this time.

The White Tiger in short, is a bundle of truth packed in commercial packaging to make for a very interesting book. A worthwhile single read for sure!

The Elections!

I know, I know, everyone is talking about it! Well i ain't gonna bore you talking politics as well, but here is an interesting tidbit. Apparently there were a few local body elections held recently in some places in India and hence this time, voters will not get their index finger inked. Instead its the middle finger! :D Yep, everyone now gets an opportunity to show the finger at their politicians without being man handled for public indecency! What a brilliant idea Election Commission! Why didn't you folks think of this before???

This actually came out as a news article in the times of India a week ago. link here.

But what interested me the most was, a picture in The Hindu today.
















Yep, the first family of Bollywood showing the finger!

Now I can't wait for the pictures of the rest of the politicians! :D

Thanks to a tag.

Right I've been tagged. By one Aparajita. And I'm supposed to talk about myself. Time for self appraisal or more humble statements I wonder....

Ok lets hit the dirt straight.

1. I live on a few things. That includes, Music, Movies, TV shows. Love technology and cars. I have a dream garage of a dozen cars. Man I gotta get rich fast.

2. When there is a power disruption, I thrive on the more old fashioned habit of reading. I love books and love buying them. Sadly my buying power is still somewhat limited and hence my collection mostly includes a lot of duplicated versions.

3. Will kill for food. Good food. Will love the provider dearly. Will kill the creator of Onions though!

4. I currently, am a so called businessman, running my own content development team. Cut the corporate jargon and it means, I write stuff for the internet for a living. Any writers interested?? part timers wanted. Immediate openings!

5. I am a greenie in many ways and will try to recycle anything and everything. Yet I will drive my Dio like a maniac ignorant of mileage. Hypocrite? I am balanced! :P

6. I personally think am a very good driver, but make a really bad backseat passenger! I follow all road rules to the T. Seriously. Everything. Except the speed limit! :P

7. I will one day tour the world, just to take pictures! Saving up for that compact pro.

8. Stubborn. An Ass quite often. Crankily sensitive at certain times. Will ignore the world even if it was disintegrating during such periods.

9. Louves the rain. And sun. And moon. wind. and dark clouds.

10. Crows are fatally attracted to me. Guess maybe they think am not so full of shit yet or something and make generous donations on me and my vehicles. Will purchase an air rifle to wage war on them one day...

11. Will learn to shoot. Did a few times on my uncle's air rifle and loved it! maybe go on a GTA style rampage....

12. Started blogging out of an interest to be heard. Now lame reasons have added up which include earning Adsense money (55USD in 2 years, HEll yeah am rich) and the possibility of finding a significant other online! Ladies, tell me, does my blog in any way seem like a possible turn on?? :O

13. Have an inhibition to calculus. Especially Mathematics 3. M3 was truly more like MI3!

14. Academically weakened over time. Now struggles to add 1+2. Ahh Education. Over college rather. an 86% 12std mark became a 6.89/10 GPA in college! Ahh the inversion!

15. Thinks he knows everything. Maybe I do. maybe I don't. Try figuring it out.

Reading it again, now, I really don't know what I've typed and why I've typed it, but then hey its done and so it shall remain. Now I shall tag, Pranesh, Rya, Abishanth, Asha, Archie!

New International sport!

The International Olympic Committee today announced the inclusion of a new sport in world sporting meets. The Sport know as "Shothrap" is an all new game that has been inspired from daily occurance in real life(Especially off late). There exists no exclusive governing body for the sport and hence the IOC has decided to take upon itself the task of governing all rules and regulations of the sport. The brief description given by them about the sport is as follows.

Shothrap is an athletic event on the lines of javelin throws and shot puts. It draws its inspiration from the basic human nature and instict to wield unique objects and propel them at a rapid pace. This sport shall test the athlete's ability to aim and throw with speed and accuracy at any given target. Parameters on which the performance of the athlete will be gauged include, speed taken for the given projectile to cover the prefixed distance and the accuracy with which the projectile hits the target. The Shothraper (object flinger that is) will have to exhibit inhuman strength and aim in being able to fling an irregular object to succeed. Initially, the given target will be a fixed object of some sort. But as the event gains pace, The Committe plans to bring the game back to its roots by using real people as targets, and shoes as projectiles. These targets will also be athletic participants in the event and will be tested on several parameters. These parameters deal with one's mental prowess and include being able to withstand repeated shoe attacks, identifying the type of shoe, size, colour, brand, stitch, height of heel while the object is being flung at them etc. And keeping in line with the strictest traditions of the game, the shothrapee(that is person at whom projectile is being flung at) will be politicians only. This will enhance international affairs as it will bring world leaders into direct active events which will test their mental strength and resolve while bringing them together to interact on a more casual and competitive platform instead of whiling away their time at their regular summits in air-conditioned rooms where they sit, eat and chat. Yes shothrap is basically an abbreviation of SHOe THRow At Politician.


Found this in the Hindu today morning. My inspiration for the above. I had thought of the very same lines a few days back....

Nanobyte!

At last the people's car is here! and keeping in trend with the high tech society of India, Its called the Nano!

revealed to the world last year, initial reactions have varied from cute to interesting to modern. It does look exactly like how most predictions of future city cars looked like. Compact, spacious, cheap, efficient and decent looking all in one package. Lots of critics have been pessimistic about the quality of the vehicle, from safety, to comfort. But first impressions have clearly proved the pessimism to be just that. Pessimism. Clearly being launched at a 1-lakh price tag means certain draw backs will exist. Ratan Tata has mentioned that several times. But the game winner here is that, the drawbacks are in places where you will least identify it. the layman's requirements have been met successfully and that is where the success of the product lies.

The vehicle is not available for a test drive. Most motoring hacks have been given test vehicles but not the general public. This is due to the high levels of interest generated. Infact I dropped by at the local TAFE showroom where I know the salesperson well cos I bought a car frm them sometime back. There was a lot of fanfare with Aqua playing in the background and fancy strobe lights around the car. there was a huge crown mulling that I could not even see the car frm the road. It looked more like a party was underway! there was a security guard vehemently protecting the car from the crowd. No one was allowed near it. I was pretty amused by this sight and mentioned it to the sales guy.

Me: I don't recall this much protection for the Linea(a 7-9 lakh car!) when it was launched
SG: Yes sir, we didn't have this many people walking into the showroom then! In fact We've never had this much crowd at our showroom till date!
Me: But why so much security?
SG: Well Lotsa people keep coming in to look at the car and we've had some people keep opening and closing the doors and they broke the door on the safari! had we left the Nano unprotected we would have just the frame remaining!
Me: Right.

Anyways back to the car. it's impressive, hugely spacious and should I mention this; One car mag says it's easier to get in and out of the Nano than an S-classe! it's got the right features necessary and fits the right pockets. A first car for many families and a 2nd city only car for bigger families. In fact I hear many variants are in the pipeline including a 650cc diesel, and hybrid or pure electric car based on the Indica EV that was jointly developed in Norway. yes there exists an Indica and Indica Vista which run about 200km on a full charge purely on batteries. slated for production in Norway and for sale in Europe. It is expected to come to india sometime in the future. This technology may filter down into the Nano as well and then will make for a very good enviro friendly city car. it surely will be much better than the current Reva.

The launch of the Nano has made quite a stir on the international stage as well that, quite a lot of motoring hacks from abroad have dropped down to try it out too.

Autocar UK editor-in-chief Steve Cropley had this to say:
This is a car neither the Germans not the American could have built. They'd have lost sight of the cost and marketing objectives. The Japanese could get closer, but they've already had a shot and the resulting car costs twice as much.

Seriously, a tribute to Indian engineering Genius I have to say!
View the video reviews here.




View more videos on the Nano here.
You can book your Nano from April 9th till the 25th. But before that you have to buy an application that costs Rs300. I hear that nearly 500,000 applications are expected to be sold! That itself will cover quite some costs for Tata! Tata has stuck to its promise of a 1 lakh price for the base version which will total on around 1.2Lakhs for the on-road price.

On a lighter note, BBC Topgear say they've found the inspiration behind the design of the Nano. look below for that!








Quite inspiring don't you think! :D

My love!

In my search for never ending entertainment on the net, I chanced upon a website that said that it would generate a love poem for me, if I just filled in a few questions. In the hope and belief that Maybe this might be the key to finding my true love :P I attempted it. Apparently I made some mistakes with filling up the form, because my poem, has turned out to be, umm...... quite unique..., to put it mildly. :D

have a look!

My Love

Your skin glows like the jackfruit, blossoms sexy as the sunflower in the purest hope of spring.
My heart follows your electric guitar voice and leaps like a baboon at the whisper of your name.
The evening floats in on a great crow wing.
I am comforted by your speedo that I carry into the twilight of printerbeams and hold next to my middle finger.
I am filled with hope that I may dry your tears of vodka.
As my nose falls from my brief, it reminds me of your cat.
In the quiet, I listen for the last roar of the day.
My heated belly leaps to my bikini. I wait in the moonlight for your secret rat so that we may glitter as one, belly to belly, in search of the magnificient orange and mystical speaker of love.

Try it out yourself HERE , hopefully with better results!