RANDOM JOTTINGS FROM THE TRIP
24 Feb 2011 Leave a Comment
Day 1 – Feb 9
It is 4:38 PM GMT – 10:08 PM IST. I am dreary eyed and sleepy. Of course cant expect much more after a cocktail of 10-hr sleepless flight, sleepless last night in India and the jetlag. I am trying to postpone the sleep time by 2 hrs at least, lest I not wake up in the middle of the night. London Heathrow welcomed me at 1300 hrs local time and I should say the airport (T5) did impress me. I mean, hopping on to a transit train to collect baggage after you have disembarked, in how many airports do you get to do that. The weather is not bad at all. 9 C they say it is, but then I hardly needed to step out into the air. The taxi ride to the hotel was fairly quick 15-20 mins. Funny – on the road a UK Royal mail red colored van I saw had so much grime on its back, that someone has marked “even my wife is not this dirty” on the dirt. Nice touch of humor. In India, I have only seen telephone numbers and arrow pierced hearts drawn on dirt. This was a good change. Got to report in office at 8.00 AM tomorrow. Signing off now!
Day 6 – Feb 14
Valentine’s Day! (not that it matters) I am sitting in RP, typing away, trying to drive my sleep away. I am feeling groggy, but cant stop admiring the view outside. It’s like a white sheet spread over the whole place. People have been telling me that this is the warmest day in the season 
well, cheers to that!
Day 14 – Feb 22
Almost in the last leg of the trip – waiting to board the flight to Bangalore at the London airport, after having just bought my last takeaways from the trip – chocolates! Lucky I remembered that I had to buy them.
So what can I say about the trip, wow!
Ok, so for the sake of anonymity, here’s how I am calling the significant people I met ->> J, M, V and fly, D-N, A, G, T, A-M, C
What I think of them:
- J is experienced and wise, unflustered and a potential candidate for mentor
- M has extremely good sense of humor
- V and fly — nothing new to add, chilled out inspite of the recent disruptions and commotions
- D-N are extremely caring and thoughtful, as always
- A is endearing, nice and pleasant personality
- G is gregarious and friendly, unlike what I expected (was expecting an older, more serious person)
- T is a nice mix of older and younger people, some people much older than I thought. But we spent a nice week, including a fun evening together
- A-M is a lovely couple, dont see them lose patience with children and they are so chilled out about them – something I should learn. Got wonderful home ideas too. Wonder how M functions like clockwork without any sign of slowing down or tiredness, though. No wonder mom is a big fan of hers. The importance A attaches to fitness ought to be seen to be believed
- C is a good person – genuine at heart and a good friend. Got to learn relentless pursuit of values from him. His friendship is worth retaining.
*—*
I am now about to board. As I wait for the gate to open and the boarding process to start, I look around at the other brown faces and cant help smiling to myself – finally, I am getting back into familiar territory.
What I will miss
- the beautiful UK greenery – the singsong British accent – the total “me” time I got at airports and hotel rooms – facetime I got with colleagues – (American) buildings scraping the sky – sheet of white anywhere I saw in the US – buildings, roadsides, trees
But here’s what I am looking forward to
- not having to study menus and dissect food, looking for traces of vegetarian options – not lugging 30 kgs of weight around – not having to spend a few seconds trying to calculate time in IST everytime I have to talk to people back home – not having to bother about braided hair, bindi on forehead and salwar kameezes – weather that renders unnecessary the eight layers of warm clothing to wear before stepping out – finally, the comforting warmth of family
Doesn’t ad up!
17 Jan 2011 Leave a Comment
in Advertising
Is it just me, or is Aamir Khan really not living up to his perfectionist image?
I am talking about the ads in which the star is making appearances nowadays. I think his looks, dialogue delivery and mannerisms are repetitive – the ads all have a “haven’t I seen this already” air about them – be it the watch ads or the mobile phone ads. Whatever happened to the good ol’ cola ad-types (can you forget the Hyderabadi, the sarkari babu, the phoren returned guy, bhabhi etc.) and the more recent Tata Sky with Gul Panang ad-type?
A new “me” discovered…
05 Jan 2011 Leave a Comment
in Life
… this New Year! I discovered a side of mine, that I did not know existed. Or maybe, one that I knew about, but which I had tried burying under layers of civility. Alas, the sad truth is that lousy fiend couldnt lay low anymore and came out in full glory today.
Let me explain (but not too much)
This morning, I was greeted by a piece of news that should have actually made me very happy. I should have been truly happy for the people to whom *it* happened. Yes, I was happy, but not entirely. The loathsome green monster called jealousy, reared its giant head, and guess what, I lost all sanity and cried… actually c.r.i.e.d… AND BITCHED AND RANTED AND VENTED! I mean, how low can one stoop? I did, to a good extent today.
Time is great healer, teacher and what not. I know I’ll get over it (there shouldn’t have been any need to “get over it” in the first place) and it wont matter anymore a few days later.
But what happened today showed me an ugly side of myself, one that I hoped did never exist! But it does, and I have to come to terms with it. Anyway, DH and Almightly remain the only witnesses to it and hope they forgive me! And hopefully, so will I!
Pics
30 Dec 2010 Leave a Comment
Signing off the year with some lovely pictures we shot last week. Bountiful nature, at its best…
Notice the bright, fresh rose sandwiched between the array of thorns and wilted petals. If this is not ray of hope, what is?
Plucked some fresh peppercorns dangling from trees all around. Pickled peppers make excellent accompaniment to curd rice
For some reason, this picture reminds me of the movie Kingkong (Peter Jackson's) & the jungles featured in it
The dripping wet flowers after a good spell of rain, beautiful!
Misty
Love the Brilliance of the Orange against the green backdrop
Why I dont like winters…
30 Dec 2010 Leave a Comment
in Life
I stumbled upon this blog post on why the author (well ok, blogger) likes winters. And it reminded me of my own allergy to the ‘cold’ season. Though of course, technically there is no such thing as winter, down south of Vindhyas (but then Bangalore, where I stay, is different). So why not, I thought, pen my reasons. Here they go.
- Time and again, winter conspires to aid breaking my resolution to wake up before 5.30 AM every morning. Unlike in summers, all I feel like doing is snuggling deeper under my blanket
- Not possible to walk around the house without your chappals or sweater on
- Can’t switch on the fan or open the windows without a blast of cold air blowing into your face… brrr…
- The sniffles and sneezes go up as the temperature moves downwards
- Night life (not that I have a great one) is crippled – any family outing is restricted to restaurant indoors, where the children can be safe and away from the chilliness
- Wardrobe dilemmas – just how many full sleeved dresses or sweaters can you stock up for those 4 months
I’ll stop here, though I am sure I can come up with more if I rack my brains (and that shouldn’t take long, as Hermoine points out to Ron in the final book) 
Happy New Year!
Friendly neighborhood…
07 Dec 2010 Leave a Comment
Yesterday, heard DD1 singing
“Voldemort, Voldemort, friendly neighborhood Voldemort…’
(the spiderman song)
Very amusing, it was. I am sure, had J.K. Rowling been around, she’d been flummoxed! Probably scratched her head and wondered when and how her glorious villian become so endearing
Book Review – The immortals of Meluha
02 Nov 2010 Leave a Comment
in Books
I heard of the book from my colleague, as the first in a trilogy on Lord Shiva. Even as I heard him describe the book as Shiva’s story completely re-written, I thought I was traipsing into a dangerous, even if, interesting territory. For its tough to cope for most of us, if long nurtured beliefs, especially religious one, are challenged and up turned suddenly one fine day.
My sense of alarm eventually proved unjustified. The author does not claim his book to be factual or a slice of actual Indian history. The events in the book merely form a ‘story’. I suppose that is why the book didn’t court controversy, especially with the touchy right wing that takes offence to anything even remotely ‘tainting our culture’.
And I will not reveal much of the story in this review. Suffice to say that it talks of Shiva, not as a divine being, but actually a human being, a tribal Tibetan leader who happens to get entangled in the lives and battles of the people of the Indus valley.
The thing that appeals to me most about the book is the idea itself. The concept of Shiva as a human and not anybody divine. This is a thought I share with the author. Rama, Krishna and company, to me, are not mere mythological characters, but very much flesh and blood people of yore who have been glorified as Gods. Yes, I suppose they deserve to be worshipped for their ideals and what they left behind for the people of this country, but that does not make them any less human. Like Jesus, in all probabilities, they lived and walked on this planet thousands of years ago, crossing over to Sri Lanka to vanquish an evil king or witnessing an epic battle in Kurukshtera, as the case may be.
So the author’s prowess and imagination is laudable. What brings Shiva to Meluha, as the book begins and the course of destiny that finally takes him to Ayodhya (yes, according to this book, Rama pre-dates Shiva) towards the end, form a very interesting plot. The characters of Shiva, Sati, Nandi, Daksha, Parvateshwar and all the other main players are etched out well. The story is also peppered with interesting episodes and references. Like the periodic appearances of the pandits to guide Shiva. Or the philosophy that laces the book throughout – if a leaf abosrbs all colors and reflects only green, is its color green or anything but green?
Another interesting aspect of the book is how the conflict between the Suryavanshis and Chandravanshis plays out. At one point, the Suryavanshi king even dispatches a letter to the Chandravanshi empire asking them to hand over the terrorits who attacked Mount Mandar – the proverbial final straw. And the reply they get is that there is no terrorist they are harboring and they themselves are victims of terror (sounds familiar? reminds you of any present day neighbors you know of?)
The author, Amish, is a first timer and belongs to the Chetan Bhagat/Sarita Mandanna school of writers, balancing a corporate day job with night time literary pursuits. And unfortunately, the amateurishness is amply evident in the writing. So what, according to me, could have been a literary masterpeice in the league of The Lord of the Rings, for the sheer strength of its imagination, is reduced to the level of a paperback fiction. Shiva mouthing dialogues like ‘I’ll teach the son of a bitch a lesson’ etc. does not help either.
But inspite of all its flaws, as the book ends with a promise of an action sequence to follow and a lot of unaswered questions, I can’t help but wait for the sequel.
WW’s verdict…
27 Oct 2010 Leave a Comment
in Cooking, Television
on Masterchef India is out!
Eeks… I didn’t like it! I dont even bother remembering the timings it is telecast in, and that shows what I think of it.
Ok, top three reasons why it sucks?
- The celebrity judges are ho hum
- The format – nothing captivating, yet.
- The filmy element – the “oohs and aahs” Akshay evokes and the Bollywoodish drama seem forced.
Guess after having seen Masterchef Aus, this one pales in comparison.
Enthiran Review
19 Oct 2010 Leave a Comment
in Movies
Inspite of not being a Rajnikanth fan, I had thoroughly enjoyed ‘Sivaji’ the big trio’s (Shankar-Rajni-Rahman) last outing. Despite its sheer ridiculousness, the movie was enjoyable, thanks largely to Rajnikanth. And anything following the massively successful Sivaji was bound to be bigger and better.
So when positive reviews began pouring in for “Enthiran/Robot” since Oct 1, I simply couldn’t wait. Inspite of steep ticket prices and the busy day that Saturday usually is, I managed to steal a few hours to catch the highly anticipated ‘Enthiran’.
Was it worth it? Well, perhaps not entirely, I should concede. The first half is definitely engrossing and worth your time. Contrary to most critique, the downslide starts when the “villians” start appearing and going on a rampage. Amateurish would be an understatement to describe the climax.
Since the story et al has been repeated ad nauseam, directly jumping to the pluses and minuses, as I saw them.
Positives:
+ the concept of a robot evolving and developing human emotions and its aftermath. Interestingly tackled.
+ Songs: Tunes are worth the CD price, the picturization excellent, and the locales are refreshingly new. Costumes too are good and Aishwarya is at her graceful best.
+ Attention to detail, especially in the first half. The way Dr. Vasi’s beard grows when he is engrossed in work or the human-like teeth the android has even when it does not have the Rajni exterior. Or making sure there is reason for Aishwarya’s appearances in fancy dresses and make up towards the end (Lifestyle shop gets robbed by robots!). No misses there.
The negatives
- The longdrawn climax sequence and its flaws. I had no clue as to what was happening – just how many Chitti clones were there, what was the point of all the shape formation etc. If it is known that the strength of a single robot is equal to a hundred humans, why isn’t there adequate planning to handle them than just spraying bullets randomly. And if the robot can scan and detect the blood group from a drop of blood in the distance, why does it take a while for chitti to track the lone human in their midst and finish him off.
- The “hero” Dr. Vasi, reduced to a “mere human” (remember, this is Rajni!) He ignores his girlfriend, mercilessly attacks another Rajni (albeit, a robot), panics at the sight of blood or any confrontation. Realism is alright, but in the process a demi-God is demystified. And to Rajni fans, that is blasphemous.
- Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. She has taken the “bimbette” role a few notches up. Over-the-top screeching and preening, standing all decked up and made up in the villian’s lair with a plastered smile when your boyfriend’s life is on the firing line – and more such things, probably a new high for even Indian heriones!
Summary: Probably it was the sky-high expectation that did it in, I felt let down this time.
