San Francisco

My dev manager says that I have visited more places in the US in 2 years time than he has in 11 years. Saving Orlando and Alaska I have been to most other tourist destinations in the US. But the place that has interested me most is the oldest city of the western US coastline, the place known as the Silicon valley. I have been to this city many times and I get a feeling similar to that of home here. Pity that MS doesn't have a development center here. Most of the cities in the west like LA, LV and Portland are newer cities that have been rebuilt more recently. It shows in the buildings in these cities that most of them have been planned and built in such a way that none of them have any history.

Other cities like NY and NJ have a lot of business centric life styles. One cannot find an old structure still maintained beautifully in these cities. But the city of SFO is a nice mixture of both early US styles and a modern outlook. It is one of the oldest cities of US but still happens to be one of the costliest places though it is not a business hub. I have been here so many times that I know what jokes the guides say to the tourists at Mystery Spot and at what time of the tour :) :) but I still would happily take up a job here any day.

The other thing that strikes me about this city, and makes me long to be a part of it, is the weather. Such weather would let me ride my motor bike all throughout the year as against being able to ride only for 3 months in Seattle. A place where I don't have to look up the weather everyday morn before starting the day is always better than walking around in drizzling conditions all year long. Most of the software giants like Google, Apple, Cisco, HP, Oracle, Yahoo to name of few are headquartered here.

Not that other cities are not good but I would kill to work out of this city and enjoy what it has to offer now that Senthil would also move out there eventually. Lets see what fate has in store for me :) :).

Marriage - Of course the Argument continues :) :)

When is it that one becomes ready for marriage ?? It is probably a million dollar question but I can't help wondering. I was and still am a guy who always used to ridicule marriage. I never ever got to understand the idea of taking two perfectly happy individuals and binding them forcefully with marriage and definitely changing their lives altogether. Agreed that the change may be for the better but I still cannot brush the changes that marriage brings in a person's life under the carpet. And before you start screaming "Bloody chauvinist" I am talking about both the gal and the guy involved. In fact the life of a gal changes too very much compared to that of a man after marriage. New people, new surroundings, new way of life.......

I could in fact accept marriage too but I still cannot understand the concept of getting married with time. Marriage has become like, you go to school when you are 3, you go to college when you are 17, you go to work when you are 21 and you get married when you are....... ????? What kind of a time table is this ? Not to mention all the peer pressure arising from the marriages of all other cousins and friends. Is this why and when someone gets married. Sariyana himse......

The moment one asks these questions he/she is branded as "You are not married, you won't understand". DUUUHHHH.........!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was looking through the slam book of one of my friends from her 10th standard and I couldn't help laughing out loud at the kind of expectations that kids have about marriage when in school. There was an item called "Most Memorable Moment" and someone had written "First night......". Worst part is that the same slam book gets handed over to the class teacher also to write down her contacts and everything. Don't know if she saw these petthals...... Dhanu says he even remembers his teacher asking in the whole class....."What do you guys know about First night that you have put it down as your most memorable moment....." Maaaan what a laugh she must have had........

City Life - The buzz that I long for...... at onsite

Having spent about 24 of my 29 years at the heart of Chennai I can safely say that I am a thorough city bred. I have done most of my schooling, college and my first few years at work at Chennai and I have always argued with my dad that settling down somewhere in the city outskirts is not the life that I can even think of. I somehow cannot have enough of the city buzz though I do hate traffic jams, the pollution and the water shortage ordeals the city is faced with.

When I landed at onsite everything was new to me and so I settled for a more known group of ppl whom I could talk to in case I needed anything. Arul mailed me saying the doors of their house is always open for me :) :). It was so strategically placed in Redmond that I didn't need a car to get to office. All the indian stores, restaurants and eatouts were very much in the vicinity and hence I didn't bother. It then kind of got me into a zone of comfort that I could not get out of at all. I kept telling Ullas (and he used to unfailingly remind me that no one is stopping me from moving to downtown) that I hate the calm and quiet of Redmond and so need the buzz of city life to keep me from getting depressed.

In my most recent project I met with a person who happened to be from a place that had a more faster lifestyle than chennai. Being from Mumbai he shared the same thoughts about city life. He travels almost EVERYDAY to downtown Seattle and keeps himself occupied.

The environment in which you reside during your college time, I feel, makes a lot impression on you. I know every small good eat out, every chat stall, every small mall, all different beaches in Chennai and it never bored me to go to the same places time and again. I was also fortunate to have most of my school buddies from the same area as mine and we are in constant touch till date that life has always been HAPPENING. Some activity is required in my day-to-day life to keep me occupied and to keep me interested. Not that my current life is not happening enough but the same routine of cooking, gyming, seeing movies and then going off to bed has kind of had it's effect on me that I am in dire need of some thing more than these routines. Though one would basically end up doing the same stuff everyday even if one were to stay and work in downtown it would be with a flavour of city life, with some amusement, with a lot of crowd and other aspects of city life to keep them interested.

Seriously thinking of moving to downtown at least for a few months if not more when the count becomes 2.

Yamaha - The machine drives me crazy................

I am not stunt man with my RX-135 but I am so attached to it that I affectionately call it my Mayilvahanam. I am not attached to anything as much as this. I fondly recollect how I used to ask for rides in my childhood from ppl who owned bikes. The machines fascinated me mainly because of the speed and the adrenalin that their operation used to pump into my blood. In college everyone had their own cool factor, like cell phones and desktops and organizers but I had only gadget in mind that was the coolest. A two stroke fast bike was my dream all through college and it turned into a reality after my first year at Infosys. I cherished and relished every ride I ever had on this machine until three years later when I had to travel to onsite.

At onsite it was about cars, everyone had a craze for the four wheel machines and thanks to the weather at my place, no one even thinks about motorbikes. They are not safe, they are not handy for travel, they are costly, they are useless. Man, even I bought these stupid arguments and bought a car which is, to this day, my most regrettable decision. Coincidentally, even at onsite, I ended up with an R6 from the same manufacturer with a 650CC and 108 hp and things were just bliss after that. I did 100 mph on a scenic driveway and that was my happiest day at onsite till date. But still my 135 stays my fav. It listens to whatever I say. It obeys me and NEVER fails me. It's operation has got into my subconscious self. I don't have to be extra careful with it. With my R6, I have to pay attention to it. I have to be weary and diligent. Takes part of the fun out of riding.

Somebody asked me why I like my 135 even after my R6 if it was only speed that interested me. I just said 135 is the wife, R6 is just an affair to remember.

Life is not fair

So many debates, so many philosophies, so many beliefs..... Most of them preaching a lot of stuff in their own flavours. And all of them have a lot of believers. I have always believed strongly in the fact that "As long as you don't spoil anyone else's life or wreck anyone else's family or make sure that no one is hurt by your actions, your life will still be good and everything good or bad happens for a reason." I have always felt that it is for one's own satisfaction and happiness that one does good deeds like charity, social service and other philanthropic stuff. I never seriously had any logic to believe that these good deeds will give us a good life or will make our next life better though I somehow accepted without reasoning that the moment you make another person's life miserable it will definitely come back to you. At least that is how I judge, decide and gauge what is right and what is not.

The last few conversations that I had with her were about me being a guy in the head, she said that things always have to make sense to me for me to accept them. This makes it all the more difficult for me to accept that she is not with us anymore. Why create a life, give it all the goodness of a great family, good friends, nice culture etc ? Why make her so sweet that she touched so many lives? Why make her a believer and get her to good deeds like spread the word of GOD and then take back her life in a cruel unjustifiable manner when she is barely 30? Why give her so much suffering and make all her near and dear ones suffer by looking at her misery when she won't even knowingly hurt a fly? Is it because of the bad deeds that everyone else around her committed ? Is it a punishment to all others around her to miss her so dearly? If that is it what did the new life created by her commit already even before coming out of the incubator to be deprived of it's mother's love and care?

I do not know what to tell her mother, father, husband and sister. I have no words of consolation cause there is nothing in here that they can be consoled with. This is not just some unfortunate fate, this is total injustice. If only she had to go why make her suffer in her last few days on earth? Images of her right after the first few days of radiation therapy will keep haunting me all though this life. I have only one thing to tell her countless other friends and relatives who did not get to meet her in last few days, be happy that all your memories about her are always those of her being happy.

This is not going to turn me into a non-believer. But it will definitely get me thinking again if it really makes sense to believe that your life will be good if you don't hurt others and everything does happen for a reason. Cause seeing a lot of sinners around us being happy is still no reason for us to loose hope but when one good person faces a fate that he/she should not have faced it shakes the very beliefs that your faiths are built on..................

Cannot convince myself that you are gone Arthi..... :( :(

Sorgame endralum..... adhu nammoora pola varuma..........

In my 5+ years of work I have run out of the desire to work many a time. If sometimes the work didn't seem interesting, sometimes it was just plain laziness. On one occasion I even refused to work when there was enough work to keep me occupied for days together cause I was pissed off that I didn't want to be in S/W. One of those "self-introspection :P ;)" days I guess that everyone goes through after long boring "Select * from " or "Public static void main[]" sessions.

But Sept - Oct 09 was none of this and I couldn't get myself to even focus a little on the work at hand in office. Not to mention that I am known as one person in all my groups who gets ppl to move their asses around on holidays and weekends, who plans activities and makes ppl feel worthwhile at the end of the day though they start off cursing me for dragging them out of their comfort zones at home. But everyone was asking me during this time, what was I doing, what was I planning, which tourist place would I be found on those weekends and I depressingly used to say "nah, i am gng to be home".

I was so surprised that I couldn't think of ANYTHING else than my Jet Airways flight on Oct 27th morn. I had booked my tickets starting Sept and I couldn't wait to get back home. I was gng to MEET Chinni, eats mom's food, pull dad's leg, drive around my Yamaha. I felt as homesick as I had not felt in all this time at onsite. When I landed at Kamaraj international Airport nothing else mattered, I was HOME. I walked out sweating in my North Face jacket to find Guna waiting with outstretched hands to welcome me. I wanted to apologise to him as soon as I met him but somehow couldn't. Man he looked great, he was expecting his first child and it showed in his face.

As one frnd from my college put it I was a "trouble creator" for everyone. I lived up to my name, I called up chinni from Guna's mobile at 1.20 AM and asked her to come down and open the flat gate in 20 mins. It knocked the wind out of dad and got me a nice scolding as soon as reached home. For the first time in life, even dad's scolding felt so gud, I had missed it in the past 18 months. Chinni hugged me and went round and round. Man, was I happy to see her. Mom sleepily welcomed me and asked me if I had dinner and if I would like to have coffee at 2 AM in the morn. Periya atthai was consoling appa that I am a prankster and that he should expect suprises like this from me. I was so happy that she was there at home and I got to meet her.

I didn't sleep that morning, I started as early as 7 AM to nanganallur to
1) To meet the idiot that I seriously missed in the past few months at onsite.
2) To pick up my mayilvahanam(yamaha) so that I could feel freedom again.

My vacation was only for two weeks and it was so jam packed that I could hardly convince myself that it was over. I loved the fast Adrenaline pumping yamaha rides, the various annoying traffic diversions in Chennai, the newly built Hyd airport, the two marriages of my school frnds that I attended. I was so happy cause they turned out to be really satisfying photographically :). My other frnds made fun out of me that I added to the confusion on stage with my cam where there were already so many, making life difficult for the groom and the bride. Dogs, ennoda "out of focus" photos mattum nalla ukkandhu paathanunga......

Many things were different. Ppl stopped to make way for ambulances, the OMR was one of the best roads and was in the class of the Mumbai-Goa highway, there were more malls, podi dosai at brilliants stall tasted every bit as it did before, sri krishna collections was more freaking costly than what it was before I had left :) :). I got to watch sachin's century at sachin ka dhaba while having chilli gobi with a beautiful girl beside me (though I am not sure how much she enjoyed that :) ). Man I miss all this here.

Now when I think about all this sitting in seattle, it most certainly feels like "Screw this job, Let me catch the next flight and go back home". But reality is reality and I have to work to get myself some bucks so that these things feel as wonderful as they seem to be. So here I am rotting in seattle again back to "Select * from.......". Chinni did not cry the first time I left for onsite, probably it didn't hit her that hard then, but this time around she had tears in her eyes when she bid me farewell at the airport. Maaannnn...... I want to go back home.

I cannot write about everything that I felt and did in 10 days at home, Blogger.com would run out of storage space (as if this is already not long enuf). But it is indeed puzzling and infuriating to know that "all some ppl can think of (and these ppl have a flair and liking for writing) to write after coming back to india after two years" is about some movie that reminds them of their exploits on the LAS Vegas Strip. GRRRRRRR.................................

Having finished shopping at an Indian grocery store I was just having a look at what DVD I could rent. Denesh and Anita picked up a film 'Mumbai Meri Jaan' with the cover bearing a resemblance to the countless movies that have been made on various bomb blasts in Mumbai and said that it was a nice movie made on the chain of train blasts that happened in 2006. I expected another movie with scenes full of communal-forces-bashing, police being ridiculed, visuals of terrorists and explosives and a corrupt police chase. But after seeing A Wednesday I was not sure if I could brush it aside as another one of those. So I decided to watch it.

The movie started off with introducing 5 or 6 people in various economic classes in Mumbai, from various walks of life, going on with their daily chores. The bomb blasts are shown in graphics and stills, to avoid the audience from receiving too much of a brace, in the first 5-8 mins of the movie followed by a couple of more minutes. After this the focus completely shifts from the blast sites and moves on to show how this affects the daily life of all these 5-6 people. It shows how they realize that what they had been doing is not good for the society and how it affects it as a whole. This was totally unexpected from the viewers and it stuck a really nice chord. I call this a really feel good movie as against the karan johar flicks.

Personally I condemn emotional journalism and this aspect of the profit-centric-manipulative-media of our country has been criticized in a way that would definitely not upset or stir up an uproar but would at least make people in that profession sit up and think about it a little. Media is a great force in a democracy which helps make the common man’s opinion. Hence it should operate responsibly and report only the news, rather than loose all its purpose in an effort to make it sensational. The journalist learns it the hard way in the movie.

A talented but angry youth realizes that all Muslims are not terrorists and that they are affected as badly as everyone else in terrorist attacks. It dawns on him that an-eye-for-an-eye attitude would lead us to only piles of dead bodies. A not-well-to-do chai wala is furious with the way the affluent flaunt their money with total disregard and little respect for the people from the lower economic class of the society. Seeing these people panic gives him a kick but then he realizes that such acts of selfishness only make law enforcement more difficult for the police and also that such acts could turn out to be fatal in the end for common man.

A budding police officer is not happy with the slack in law enforcement in the society on the part of the police force. He is guided by a more senior officer about to retire who suddenly starts to doubt if his life was worth anything at all looking at his enthusiastic subordinate who wants to contribute to the society. In the end he passes on his wisdom to the junior officer that everything cannot change overnight and also that there are better ways of handling such situations. A well-to-do man with a white collar job narrowly escapes the blast and wonders if it worth it to stick to the country and in Mumbai or if he should also settle down for greener pastures in the US. He understands, in the end, that these are part of every big city in the world on this day and that it sure is not the end of the world.

All these characters have been played by really talented actors such as Soha Ali Khan, Madhavan, KK Menon, Irfan Khan and Paresh Rawal. Each one of them has tried to surpass the other and in the end have made it a real feel good movie. The director has more than succeeded in saying what he wanted to convey in a way that it lingers on but still does not hit the viewers with so much force that it derails them and makes them wonder as to where the world is headed to. One would really feel happy in the mind on viewing such movies amidst others, which either show scantily clad women or the ills and problems of the society to make a mark at the box office. A good movie for everyone.

Three good movies in 2008 year…….
The year started off with everyone warily going to the halls only after the New Year celebrations of 2008 to see Ram Shankar Nikumbh train a dyslexic kid to overcome his limitations. This movie tried to say something new to parents who are insanely in love with their children that they don’t realize that they live their children’s lives.

Though it had its own share of emotional crap, one could accept it from the perspective of a kid who is not able to voice his problem. It was a very good insight into how parents unknowingly shove their children into the competitive world drowning the inherent qualities and untapped talents. It also gives an idea to the viewer as to how a child needs to be with his/her parents especially in the case of such biological disorders. Aamir khan turned a good director and was successful in driving home the point that he intended with not much emotional crying scenes and drama. However matured one may be they still feel happy to see the kid in the movie go from being an underperformer to a stage where he handles his life better.

The second great movie of the year was called ‘A Wednesday’. With uncountable number of movies about bomb blasts and terrorism having hit the markets the viewer, at first, goes “Ohh…. Come on… Not another one of those special effects movies with cops talking in front of projectors and running around with sniffer dogs”. But the only thing that keeps the viewer keep on watching it is the fast-paced, no-nonsense screenplay which grips the viewer all thru the 120 odd minutes. It too, comes with a message, that with judicial systems where enquiry committees come up with the verdict of an investigation at a time when the next generation of the victimized are the current residents of the country, it is the common man who has to become more aware of all the dangers lurking at every corner in his day to day life. As we get into our comfort zones we tend to forget the wounds caused by these barbarians under the pretext of whatever they operate and normal life goes on until another one of those horrifying things happen. The best parts of the movie were its nice foolproof storyline and a great screenplay with the unexpected climax topping it all. Thank god no one talked the director into playing duets and songs in the middle to spice up the masala in the fast paced thriller.


My pick of the year is the ultimate story telling effort seen in a long-long time…. ‘Slumdog Millionaire’. Full credit to the very concept of the movie, Vikas Swarup , the guy behind the story line but HATS OFF to the director who made sure that a movie made from the perspective of Indian Cinema still appealed to the audiences across the world. This is what different out of the box thinking results in. The wealthy part of Bombay was not touched upon at all in the movie. Only the lower class and the evils of the society that plague them have been brought out. It is probably the best and realistic portrayal of the poor man’s Mumbai that people have got to see on the big screen. The movie moves in a fast pace with none of the flashbacks in the movie giving the user a drag. The best part of the movie is the BGM at its best. The parts of the movie that are supposed to be gripping are rendered with the desired effect with the help of the BGM. ARR has not been honoured with the golden globe award for any ordinary score. I firmly believe that the BGM score in a movie is best composed when it makes the viewer feel the pulse of the movie all through the length of the movie and keeps the viewer engrossed in the plot and happenings but still doesn’t get the attention to itself. When I first saw the movie I was awestruck by the screenplay and the way various events had been picturized that I simply did not acknowledge the music. I watched the movie again and consciously looked out for the BGM in various places and realized that the movie has taken refuge in its BGM in many places to sustain the viewers interest and it came as no surprise me that he was Chosen for the award.

ORU Navigatorin kumural.........

Road ellam ennamo nalla thaan irukku….. Ana namma ooru maadiri “annan tea kadaila” ninnu oru route kekka miyudha, oru theru(“Exit” in US terms) vittuta aduttha oorukku thaan poganum. Ore roadku rendu moonu Name irukku, idha paakama vitta navigatora nongu edukkaraanunga……

Navigator: Navigator padhavi na enna nu theriyuma ya unakku
Yenni kavadhu Navigator seatla ukkandurukkiya ya,
Ukkandhu paaru, Oru Nalaiku ettana highway paakanum nu,
Evvalavu Sharp right, Evvalvu Slight Right, Evvalavu boulevard, Evvalavu avenue,
Evvalvu Street, Evvalvu Place, Etthana Fork, Etthana Lane
Ettana Sikkal, Ettana Tension nu Ukkandhurukkaravanukku thaan ya theriyum
Summa Yengayum Ninaichama Thirumbunama mudivedukka mudiyathu,
Oru turn miss pannina adha thola nokkoda yaarum ooru suttama poi serra maadiri thaan mudivedukka mudiyum, adha thaan naanum senjen……
Passenger: Sulabama edukka vendiya turna thoongikitte vittuputu ippo sappa kattu katreengale……
Navigator : Navigator Seatla ukkandha thookam varumnu soldren…….Unakku purila, Nee Ukkandhu paar….. Appo Theriyum….. Oru Naal….. Oru Naal…..Nee navigatora irundhu paar, Appo puriyum
Driver: Idhu seriyana badhil illiye, Naan eppadinga unga seatla ukkara mudiyum, apparam naan eppo thaan thoongarthu……..Idhu vadhathukku venumna nalla irukkalam, ana nadakkara kaariyama….
Navigator: Nadakkum, Driving sattathula adhukku edam irukku, Chinnadha oru map printout edukkalam, oru naal irundhu paaru ya…..
Passenger: Illa, Neenga joke panreenga
Navigator: Naan serious thaan soldren, Oru naan ennoda naarkali la ukkandhu paaru, Yen naarkali oru mul padukkai, Yen thalaila irukkarthu oru mul creedam nu unakku puriyum, adhulla enga sign boarda paakka mudiyum, enga muzhicchurukka mudiyathu nu unakku palicchunu puriyum. Adhukku apparam NAVIGATOR velai evvalo kashtamanadhunu neeye passenger makkalukku edutthu chollu.
Passenger: Illenga, adhu yen velai illeenga……
Navigator: Sonna udane jaga vaangara paathiya….. Adhan, Oru vandiyoda navigator kitta vilayada koodathungarthu…… Unna maadiri oru aal kitte neradiya oru velaiya kuduttha pinnalaye ukkandu thoongara paathiya…….

So Navigator wins....... Yaarum Navigatora korai solladheenga pa..........

Aus…….World Champions in cricket…….

The above phrase has been reduced to an oxymoron after the Boxing Day test at Sydney. The great Aussies, known for their aggression, for their spirit of the game, their uncompromising commitment were reduced to a shit load of opportunists. This Australian team is perhaps the one that will tarnish the image of the great Australian sporting attitude, the one which it boasts of, where a player was booed by the crowd headed by an elderly gentleman for spoiling the spirit of the game of cricket as he was just playing out of the world cricket and the opponent county cricket team was not able to get him out even after one whole day. Word goes that the player was Ricky Ponting at 16 playing for Tasmania and the elderly gentleman who headed the crowd asking him to be stopped from playing further was his father.

Cricket has its most fanatic fans and followers, who can even die for the game, in two parts of the world, in the Indian subcontinent and in the island continent. The charges of match fixing scandals apart the game is bigger than anyone in these parts of the world. Such a fanatic cricket loving nation had to feel ashamed of its own so called powerful world champion cricket team after five days of what the Australian team even dared to call as Cricket. The India Skipper, the workhorse, has always been known as one player with possibly the best of attitudes in the cricketing fraternity, was forced to say to the press “Only one team was playing in the real spirit of the game”. I think that is enough evidence for any follower of cricket as to what level of integrity was displayed by the mighty Aussies.

I may be and am a fanatic of Indian Cricket but that apart my love for the game is none any less. I would like to see a better display of talent be it any cricket match. Being that kind of a connoisseur of the game I have always felt that the Aussies have been a formidable team who have broken all records and proved time and again that they are the best team in the world. Given that, I really don’t understand why they needed to resort to such cheap ways as to appeal for grounded catches and stand for umpires’ signals for nicks to first slip. If you cannot win without such tactics you ought not to be called world champions and you don’t deserve to equal the longest-chain-of-test-victories record set by the once great Aussie team led by one of the best skippers of all times in the history of the game, Steve Waugh.

Bad umpiring and wrong decisions have always been and are an integral part of any sport and I don’t blame the umpires for genuine mistakes. After all they are also human and agreed that To Err is Human. But having officiated in more than 25 -30 test matches if you go ahead and ask a vociferously appealing fielder as to whether he took the catch cleanly I guess you ought to learn common sense and get back to learning basics. Probably I can officiate in any match in Benson’s place cause though I may not be accurate I can save being so foolish and thoughtless. The million dollar question here is that how is that out of 10 wrong decisions in a test match the ratio has turned out to be 2:8 in favour of the home team. Such decadent appeals, obvious nicks and such poor decisions all point to a different ugly dimension as to whether the Aussie team had done more than just play cricket to just equal the longest-chain-of-test-victories record desperately.

Though I had never liked them as an Indian I had always been an admirer of the uncompromising attitude and unquenchable thirst for victory displayed by the Aussies in world cricket. But this Australian team has lost my respect, and of those millions worldwide, not to mention such crazy fanatics of the game in its own homeland. Punter has always been portrayed with a bad guy image and to point a finger at an Indian reporter in a press conference and to talk about his integrity after appealing for 3 grounded catches and obvious not out decisions, not to mention staying on at the crease even after being out two times, was just reiterating his unwarranted audacity and the fact that he just wanted to win by hook or crook. Dubious appeals have been upheld in the past and players have gone to apologise or publicly accept such behaviour. To still maintain that he took the catch cleanly after giant screen replays, talks volumes of his so called self claimed INTEGRITY.

This is the striking difference between the once unbeatable-unconquerable WIndies team which went on rampage in the 60s-70s and early 80s. They were true sportsmen and undoubtedly the best champions ever in the true sense of the words. They never even used to appeal for even half certain scenarios but still managed to win the game and the hearts of cricket fans worldwide. They were audacious and arrogant too but they were not cheap. Now that is what I call champion attitude and arrogance and one can always enjoy that arrogance.

This Australian team has disgraced itself and its own glory taking down along with it, the respect of its own country men. When the India Skipper said "You nick one to keeper and stand, that's understandable. but when you nick one to first slip and stand for the upmire's decision then it says it all." I felt "if this guy is going to lead the Aus team in future then GOD help Cricket and Autralia".

A mark of a true Genius – One of the most innovative and captivating compositions ever……….

I listen to songs daily but no other movie has made me think over it so much as to make me write about it.

I was not able to figure out how but still I had not listened to the songs from Lagaan on my Ipod in about a whole year since I bought this gadget. In the past week I somehow noticed it and started listening to them on Monday, I have been listening to them ever since ;)). Such is the technical finesse of each of the compositions that I am still left wondering as to how the whole musical concept of each of the songs would have been conceived.

AR sure has a flat voice with which he cannot play around with a lot of bandwidth, the most important strength of this man is that he knows this and the genius in him selects absolutely only those songs which if rendered by him will be so apt. One among such immaculate selections is Chale Chalo. This song, sung by the great man himself, is a great mix of percussions that flawlessly compliment his flat voice in the same bandwidth. When he goes, Dharthi hila denge……………….. I am short of words……..

My chitaapa was briefly in the US for about 3 yrs and he came back and said even his English friends listened to one hindi song in their cars time and again even though they have no idea what it meant. The song was “Mitwa”. I had read articles and heard news reviews before I heard this song that AR does not think twice before approaching any one with a new instrument if he felt that it produces lovely music, be it even a beggar just rattling about something for his daily bread and butter. But I got to believe it on listening to this master piece. It starts off with a string instrument that’s used in bhajans (I don’t even know what it is actually called, somebody please enlighten me….) and Sukhwinder Singh starts off “Har santh kahe…….”. Its got one of the most inspiring lyrics and AR has paced the song ultimately with one instrument joining at one time in the rhythm, the first time when Udit goes “Katinayee se takra jaa thu……” the drum beats start joining the rest of the instruments and to hear it in Sathyam was just bliss what with someone beating the Dhol from the back of your head.

What better example of love can there be in this world than the one between Radha and Krishna. Ashutosh Gowarikar knew it so clearly that it reflected so sweetly in Raadha Kaise Na Jale….In fact die hard music followers feel this is the best song of the film what with a lot of swaras mixed in appropriately. Namakku enga atthana gyanam…. The point where I feel this song scores over others in the movie is that it has been rendered by veterans Udit Narayan and Asha Bhonsle. The bhojpuri accent was just another day at home for Udit and Asha is a winner in versatility on any given day. Prem ki apni alag boli alag bhaasa hai, baat nainon se ho kanha ki yahi aasa hai….. and comes the reply “Kanha ki yeh jo naaaiiinnnaa hai, jinme gopiyon ke chaaaiiiinaaa hai…..” Wow………… The swaras at the end of the song along with the flute ending with a passionate helpless feel in the voice rendered by Asha (the feel of yekkam…….) Radha kaise na jaale… Raaadha kaiiise na jale…. Radha kaise na jaaale………………….


If Ashaji is around busy can Lataji be far behind. If Asha Bhonsle is the mark of versatility then Lata Mangeshkar is a standard by herself. If its melody then it has to be Lata. When everyone is down and out watching the film she makes everyone literally pray, even though we know it is just a movie, by pouring out loads of devotion in O Paalanhaare….The whole feel of the situation was also depicted ultimately by the team as well, with the visuals showing a big crowd seated in the whole open ground at night ruing the current mess of the cricket team. Dukhi jan ko dheeraj do…..Tumre bin humra kounu nahin……….


If the number of individual singers in a song were taken for a statistics then Ghanan Ghanan would probably top the list. AR disproved the proverb “Too many cooks spoil the broth” by his sheer command over these immensely talented people by his skills and merged all their voices aptly. Some claim that the success of this song needs to be attributed only to his excellent team of sound engineers, I can only ask them one thing. If the sound engineers are the one who have created magic with their skills without much involvement of AR, why are they not as big as the man himself or why are they still sticking to him? I am not trying the take away the credit from them for the exquisite work they have done but the contribution of AR cannot be belittled here.
Two parts of the same line are sung by two different artists whose skill lie in totally different bandwidths but are rendered in the same pitch, with the same feel of listening to the full line from a single person. Sukhwinder goes “Bijuri ki talwar nahin..” and finishes Shankar mahadevan… “Boondon ke baan chalaoooo….”
Tipu says “Ras agar barsega, kaun phir tarsega” and completes shankar mahadevan “koyali adayegi baiti munderon par…..”
The whole song is accompanied with an unfailing rhythm that gives the necessary tempo to it……


My best pick of the album is arguably one of the most romantic songs of all times……
O Re chori……The lyrics of this song are just amazing, not that the others are not, but still their contribution to the mesmerism of this song is more here what with the whole song being a little slow. Vasundara das is definitely one the best singers in the country when it comes to western and she is just unbeatable when she goes “My heart, it speaks a thousand words……..” the lyrics again here could not have been better. And it is AR all the way to have fused this western piece with the rhythmic hindi song in the background.
Tere bin mein jiya tho kya jiya…….Tune thama aaj yeh aanchal hai man mein ek halchal hai…… Sun sun re sajan rahe janam janam hum prem nagar ke wasi…… More ang ang mein hai sugandh jo tune hai chu liya……… Than mehka mehka rang dehka dehka mujhe tu gulab si laage……. Chance illa……….. The sweet voice of Alka Yagnik is full of feel in this song and coupled with Udit’s ever green voice of that of a small lad…… This is definitely the best pick of the lot for me………..

If any of u guys manage to read this fully then u must be wondering what this guy is upto writing a music review of a six year old film…… I too don’t know but couldn’t contain myself…. Was so happy after hearing this in the precision of an ipod…….MUDIYALA..........

A Soaking Wet Darshan

The place which boasts of the highest number of visitors in the world, with the administration trust there being the one to record the second highest figure in the whole year in terms of religious contributions, is definitely one of the places in the world that defies any logic that man can fathom. Yes, Tirupati is indeed a very simple example of the fact that there are things in this world that man cannot just reason with.

For people who are familiar with this place it wont come as a surprise that one has to wait for 7-8 hours on a slightly crowded day to get the darshan of Lord Balaji. HE is supposed to be the most non-violent god in Indian mythology. People from various parts of the country come on a pilgrimage in regular intervals without fail to get HIS darshan and provide their religious contributions to HIM.

Regulars from outside Andhra make it a point to visit the place once in every 3 or 6 months whereas people who are more nearer to HIS abode visit Tirumala even weekly. When me and chinni went there about a week back we reached tirupati at about 2.30 AM. We were planning to get the tickets and climb u to tirumala to be in time for the darshan. The irony of the ticket issue was that the 50 rupees spl darshan which was supposed to be less crowded than the free darshan was issuing tickets for darshan at 9pm where as the free darshan, which was supposed to be crowded was issuing tickets with the darshan time as 12 noon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Nobody even stopped to look at the free darshan counter’s timings, they were just following the person in front.

Tamizhla sollanumna aattu mandhai……

We got our tickets for 2pm and we had ample time at hand to climb up the way to tirumala and take a room, get ourselves refreshed and visit Papanaasam, Akasha Ganga and another smaller Vishnu temple in the meantime. We went in at about 1.30pm and reached the queue near the temple’s entrance only to be greeted with a chill breeze followed by a steadily increasing drizzle. By the time we were inside the temple it was pouring down heavily and we got drenched even before we entered the final praharam. Inside the praharam we had to run through ankle deep water to reach the final garbha graham and I have never in 25 years ever crossed the queue inside the temple praharam in such a flash as we did that day.

To make it a perfect finish when we were coming around the golden gopuram in pradhakshinam the clouds on one side of the sky gave way to the sun god and he shone ever brightly on the golden gopuram. It was a great sight because the gopuram had been just washed off by the rain and the wet surface gave us a glistening look which otherwise would not be possible during any other normal day. We had no doubts whatsoever that we would surely have the lord’s blessings as all these were enough indications. A fairly quick darshan (we were out of the temple in 2.5 hrs total), a dash through the praharam, which is otherwise an ordeal what with the pushing and shoving of devotees with the never stopping cries of jarugandi, the sight of the glistening wet golden gopuram and finally the rain relenting to just a steady drizzle right at the time when we came out of the temple, was enough activity in one single trip to Tirumala.

Somehow these things, even though natural, make you associate them with the lord’s darshan when they happen on a pilgrimage trip. And why not, if it is not the lord who controls the nature then who else….. ????

It was a proper fulfilling darshan for me and more special one for chinni as it was her first time by foot from Tirupati to Tirumala.

The numbers……………

I came to my bus stop today fully dressed up in Monday dress code. I was a lil earlier than usual, there was a kid standing next to me waiting for his school bus. Honestly I could not find but a few differences between him and me. He was wearing his school tie and I was wearing mine, he was in his uniform, I was wearing something pertaining to our dress code, he was carrying his lunch and books bag, I was carrying mine, he was waiting for his bus early in the morning and so was I.

The only notable difference was that he was happy to go to school, he was enjoying his wait for his school bus with his dad whereas ……………………………..

A few meters this side and few meters that side two more such groups similar to mine were also eyeing the small kid with a lot of envy…...After all India has more than one software biggie….

If one can step out of the circle and start looking at the whole process of the s/w industry then it baffles one and all. The growth of the industry has been so alarming that one shudders to think on what would be the result if some thing like the US economic slump of 2001 repeats itself what with the US economy on a steady decline. The four biggies of the Indian market between themselves employ more than about 3 lakh personnel all aspiring to make it big, all aspiring to fly to onsite one day, get a full cycle of SDLC experience, come back to offshore to settle down with a flat inside the city and a lead position in the company.

Only thing is that all of us, me inclusive, think about it only in one perspective. Thinking about it from another angle, for every employee that the biggies had in 2001 there are more than 5 employees now. If 1000 people went onsite every year in 2001 is it possible to sustain the same growth and send 5000 people onsite every year now? If 1000 people were promoted per cycle in a business unit in 2001 is it possible to promote 5000 people now in 2007 for every cycle. And what would the people who are already at onsite do if one has to keep sending more and more, what would the current people as leads do if more and more people become leads just by the virtue of experience and there are no projects to work on? No wonder the US consulate received twice as many Visa applications as is the maximum cap set by the US govt.

And all this when the industry is in its fantastic best, what if the industry faces a slump? Companies were not able to manage the lesser number of people that they employed in 2001 and had to take refuge in layoffs, terminations etc. How can one expect these to manage 5 times the same number now? What are we staring at then? Mass terminations? One gets diplomatic answers in town hall meetings and NDTV profit interviews that “We don’t want to be left answerable to about 1 lakh families, so we know what we are doing”. At least I cant think of similar paying circumstances if market focus shifts to elsewhere.

I was standing at the Guindy bus stop waiting for my bus with a few others of my company when a big family with two moms dragging their kids getting lil help from their hubbies came along and asked us “Is this the MTC bus stand? Do Madipakkam busses stop here?” This may sound hilarious but there is more to it than just the lighter side.

If any of the new aspirants read this then "Set ur expectations accordingly guys, U don’t wanna end up depressed later, do ya ?"

God’s Own Country………………….


The smallest of the southern states of the Indian peninsula has been aptly named God’s own country for more reasons than just a few. The splendour that this place presents in every way makes one go “No wonder GOD lived here….”

I have been traveling to this wonderful place as frequently in the past couple of years that my dad suspects if I have a girlfriend there and I make excuses to travel to this place. When one travels to this place (the entry is mostly near selam or coimbatore) the difference is very very evident. The train or the bus passes only thru country side on both borders but suddenly one finds all surroundings splashed with so much greenery and vegetation and very very very less polluted environment. One would suddenly go “Ohh boy wait a minute where is this place that we are passing through now……” and then realize “Ohh Ok we have entered Kerala…..”

The whole state of Kerala predominantly has only two geographical classifications, mountains 90% and beaches 10%. That I would say is the mark of a perfect tourist destination. There are no many industries but for a few like the ship building industry in Cochin. One would get a feel that the population there is totally oblivious of the outside world surrounding them, if one goes by their lazy mannerisms, but it is the only state in India that boats of 100% literacy. These people are well informed of the country’s politics and the US election mandate better than most people in the country.

Looking at their lifestyles and their living surroundings one wonders when the civic facilities would reach the levels found in other states. Probably one would get a feeling that they are about a decade backward but on close analysis we would realize that they are actually a decade ahead of us. Their way of life consists of coconut trees, boat rides, small houses with thatched roofs in big compounds, cattle in the house and a nair chaya shop in possibly every street corner and they definitely are an example for most of us who in search of greener pastures and more riches leave out on blissfully enjoying what nature has to offer to us.

Alleppey, one can easily say, is the Venice of India. One of the main modes of transport inside the mainland is water and the city has a canal flowing though it which is used for commuting purposes. The Kerala tourism board has created a garden like environment on the banks of this canal all though the town such that tourists can spend time apart from the boat houses. The main attraction of this place is the boathouse. They are definitely a bit costlier but again are worth the ride. The boathouses contain all required amenities and are a complete source of relaxation for anyone who wants to just laze around doing just about nothing.

This place actually consists of a mainland and a lot of small islands sprayed nearby. These islands are inhabited and all supplies including basic necessities like groceries and LPG commutes through water. The whole set up is like a maze of streets, only that the streets here are streams of water. It is nature at her unpolluted best that you just hope for the boat ride to never end. One passes through a lot of people in those islands going about their daily chores during that boat ride and one can only envy them. Groups of kids somersaulting into the water from bridges and banks, the elder sons of each family fishing for the day’s menu, women folk washing clothes in the house’s backyard, children going to a school which will be submerged should there be a big downpour later in the day, salesmen and delivery men carrying on with their business like at most 10 LPG cylinders in one boat, groceries in the next shuttle, man life is just a completely different dimension, a different approach at an unimaginable pace out there.

The sunny day gives way to a cool afternoon as clouds start hovering over the horizon blocking the sun and cool breeze starts blowing from the Arabian sea. A slight drizzle to complete the perfect relaxing schedule for the day what with nice melodies resounding from the music system in the house boat and you just completely forget this dreadful world with busy schedules to keep, deadlines to meet and responsibilities to fulfill. A nice still camera with a nice zoom is perhaps the only thing you would want in your hands to go on clicking endlessly at long rows of ducks swimming in a perfect straight line, cute colourful birds that we people have probably even never come across in NGC or in any environmental magazine, swans and storks blissfully searching for their food in their eco habitat with no one to disturb them……..

One is forced to wonder “If this is life and if this is the way to live it then what is it that we are doing everyday………??????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”


We actually went to attend the wedding of a friend who had met the girl on a trip to Tirupati when he walked the steps from Tirupathi to Tirumala. Now howz that a location and a start for a love story……..

So shortly am going to Tirupathi too……. :))

Kodai mazhai……

It is really a wonderful feeling, more so for ppl living in Chennai, when it even drizzles in Chennai during peak summer. Rains are so unheard of in this part of the country during the hotter part of the year that even a small cloud covering brings out expectations(in Chennai’s context the hotter part lasts for 8 months in an year) . Last Saturday (Apr 14 2007) was one such day. It also turned out to be the Tamil New Year day, the beginning of a new year with a pleasant drizzle, a nice feel good feeling to start a new year in such a pleasurable environment.

Kaushik sent out a mail a few days back proposing a photo shoot at koyambedu market on the early morning of Apr 14. But he had called up on Friday evening to cancel the same as he would not be able to make it. I was not very disappointed until the next day morn when I woke up to the most enjoyable smell of wet earth breezing through the windows (saniyan, “manvaasanai” ku englishla word kedaikala, enna englisho ennamo po…). It was not any torrential downpour but just a little heavy drizzle though it gave us the happiness all the same.

Dad wanted to go out that day early morning to meet someone and asked me to drive him to Purasawalkam in my mayilvahanam. Not until that moment did I regret not having a photo shoot that morning. When I stepped out the setting was perfect for just about anything - jogging, walking, chatting and most of all… photography. Such beautiful and enchanting mornings with Venkatesa Suprabhatam resounding from Murugashramam was just enough that anyone could ask for.

Lots of mamas and mamis with their children, mostly in new colourful attire, all freshened up for special archanais at Satya Narayana Perumal koil were the inhabitants of Srinivasa Pillai Street, West Mambalam at that time. Sricharanams and Viboodhi pattais were in abundance all around us and added to the auspicous feel that is normally tagged with such festivities. Madisars and panchakachams formed the dress code of the day and believe me these are just uncomparable to any outfit that modern society or fashion can ever think of. One gets the feel of one's own culture in more than one way on seeing ppl clad in these attires and makes the heart swell in pride.

The road wore a look as though it had just been washed away of all dirt. The whole road was fully wet, the yellow flower tree had shed all its flowers in the morning that formed a kind of carpet adjacent to the compound walls to which these trees belonged. The contrasting yellow colour of the flowers against the dark, black background of the road was just perfect with the harsh white light from the sun being shielded by the clouds. Autumn had just passed and all the trees and plants had newly sprouted warm green leaves (tamizhla sollanumna thulutthundu irundhudhu… don’t know how better I can frame it in English) which provided the much needed tinge of nature to the whole scenery.

Moreover in arguably the most posh area of Chennai(Purasawalkam and chetpet) the whole place looked like some foreign location out of some bollywood starrer and was all the more captivating what with all the streets housing only picturesque bungalows, clean roads, fresh pollution free air etc.

This was more special as it happened between probably the two hottest days of the summer until then(Sunday was just as hot as Friday…!!!!!) and also because it was a nice way start to a new year. Pity that I had to take dad out and couldn’t get even one shot cause by the time I was back things were back to normal in Chennai - sunny, dry, sultry…

Shakthi foundation Part - II

The Turn Of The Ustad........ Unka Tho Sach Mein Jawaab Nahin


Every artist, in any form of art, is special in his/her own field and none can be compared to any other. The magic that each one produces with their skill is just unimaginable until one experiences that. Given a set of such breathtaking performances trying to rate them would be futile and senseless effort. But given a chance to choose the performance that left one most dumbfounded, most of the audience in that hall would have chosen THE USTAD for the day. He came in last after all the other three people had showcased their talents and produced MAGIC out of the two tabalas and his two bare hands that the hall resonated with just two sounds, one from his tabla that only he could produce and the other from the audience which was in raptures in response to his electrifying perfromance. At some point of time his fingers were moving so fast that they were barely visible. He produced all the sounds one could hear from similar instruments like the Mridangam etc in his inimitable style. Even the audience, who had started clapping in between the performances, unable to hold their ecstasy had turned totally numb on listening to the awesome magic woven by the Ustad. One could not even accept it as something that was possible by mortals and left us completely “BREATHLESS”. For a change it was someone else other than Shankar Mahadevan who had left us in that state.

Srinivas suddenly picked up a note when the ustad was just on the verge of finishing his performance and effortlessly slid into the flow of the beats contributing with his instrument and together, hoping to catch Shankar Mahadevan off guard, they stopped at a particular spot when the singer was not at the peak of his concentration. They were able to delay him only by a split second and he along with Sivamani slid back into the jugalbandhi even more smoothly. Beleive me it was just bliss.

They signed off in style after a few rounds of jugalbandhi and I was left with only one comment to Sowmya “Please shove me off some tlal building, I don’t want to continue to just exist”, to which I got the reply “I feel so small. Cha, Jumping down from the first floor one cannot even die (we were seated in the first floor of the hall).”

We couldn’t count reasons that evening to thank Shakthi Foundation. First for conducting such a wonderful event and next for the social cause they are fighting for. The performances were followed by presentation of mementos to the musicians by John Mclaughlin (the commander in Chief when it comes to guitar I was told) who had performed the year before with these musicians for Shakthi Foundation. He then went on to explain to the audience the motto behind the organization to help the physically challenged people of the society who are not exactly as fortunate as many others. They presented some prizes to some handicapped children. The first was a blind girl posing for photos of herself with the musicians, photos which she herself is not privileged to see, followed by a kid with his right hand missing. It was so encouraging to see such an organization which has dedicated and devoted itself to the cause of such people. The next one was the most moving incident. The next child was one with both his arms missing, he could even receive his certificate only by clutching it beneath his neck.

It gives a wonderful feeling even to know and see such incidents where human race tried to help itself. We returned home a happy lot that though we had not actively participated in any of the organizations activities we were at least able to contribute something to a good cause though the way of our tickets.

It baffles me as to how people who kill others for various reasons such as money, power, so called ideology etc miss this wonderful feeling of helping others, though that’s a totally different discussion altogether.

A Million Thanks To Shakthi Foundation.....


Senthil, even though he is MY friend somehow ends up with some good stuff, thanks to his contacts across the software industry. One such incident was the music show being conducted by Shakthi Foundation to raise funds for their organization. Software with all its banes, curses, medical problems etc does have some advantages though. The internet or the web architecture has nowadays become a kind of media of broadcasting things which may be of use to others.

One such mail contained information about the Music show being held at Music Academy where three musicians with THE command in their specializations were going to perform for a good cause. Having seen a video of such a programme earlier we found no better reason to say no to it and and to end up spending the time as one of our typical Saturday evenings.

We reached the place (it was the first time for me and Senthil to set foot into music academy hall, it had been nothing more than a landmark for us until that evening) in time and settled down in our seats just as the compere had started his welcome speech. The “Landmark” turned out to be a well made acoustic architecture from inside. The performers for the day were Shankar “The Breathless” Mahadevan, Mandolin “Maestro” Srinivas, “Ustad” Zakhir Hussain and “Ace Percussionist” L.Sivamani. None of us, useless non entities (Tamizhla sonna, Bhoomi Ki Bharam), had absolutely any idea of what we were going to witness.

These were, simply put, the best in their businesses and they started off with a song on Vinayagar. Then it was the turn of Srinivas to enthrall the audience with his strings. He just kept producing such vibrations from the steel wires in his instrument that kept the whole audience in pin drop silence due to rapt attention. Any bloke who had never had the slightest idea of what music is all about would have been dumb struck by the stuff that was rendered. A couple of days after the show I learnt more about this maestro from my cousin that he has customized and perfected the instrument so as to make it suitable for Karnatic music by introducing new strings in the conventional model.

Somehow I was not surprised or awed on hearing all this after hearing him play it in the function.

Then started the man who once made music out of a biriyani kadai. L.Sivamani started off with so many instruments around him (around 45-50) and started what he does best, produce Music out of those in certain combinations which were otherwise unfathomable to us. He used the conch, the bells, a few electric drums etc to produce all kinds of sounds one would even imagine out of any kind of drums. He went on to his trademark style of rotating the sticks while playing on the drums and ended with the “Kutthu” beat leaving all of us SPEECHLESS.


The software professional turned musician then stepped onto the stage along with the Ustad. He was described as Oracle’s Loss and Music’s gain. He came onto the stage and started off with his swaras and voice modulations with such music notes which only the ustad and the maestro could deal with. He varied his voice modulations with such ease and at one point even the maestro could produce his note only by taking refuge in the screws of his instrument to produce the same. All this while the ustad was just supporting Shankar Mahadevan keeping up the tempo of the performance and did not showcase any of his prowesses. But everyone was so engrossed in the mixture of swaras given by the singer. These three people went onto to a jugalbandhi with each bettering the other in their own style. Every time we heard any piece from any of these artists we were short of words to praise them, but the relish was just short lived because we could not just ignore the next legend in line.

The breathless man, along with his counterparts had rendered the audience literally “CLUELESS” as to what had hit them without even their knowledge.


To Be Continued..........

“Dakshina Chitra – What is that?

Some music store or some Rajasthani crafts showroom?” was what I wondered when Kaushik mentioned the place in Beasant Nagar beach.

Kaushik was suggesting a place for a photo shoot out. I joined them at Dakshina Chitra itself on the next Saturday morning at about 10 AM, just next to MGM theme park. When I went in I was not sure of what kind of place it was. There was an entry fee of Rs.50 (very cheap considering the other entertainment ventures of current day Chennai city). I paid it and went in to find a lot of boards pointing in all directions leading me to market places in Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra and Tamil Nadu. I was confused to find all these at a place which Kaushik had said was very ideal to learn about lighting and exposure.

I called him up and joined him in the Karnataka section in recreation of a weaver’s house. That was when I understood what this place had in store for us. It primarily consists of recreation of old house structures of ancient India’s common man of the four southern states. No palaces, no gardens, no exotic looking replicas of historically valued monuments. This place gives an idea to the present day man on the pattern of everyday life of a common citizen like the Weavers of Karnataka, The Artisans of Andhra, The Brahmins and the agriculturists of Tamil Nadu and fisher folk and tourism service providers (didn’t know what else to call them, like the auyurvedic massage centers etc) of Kerala.

First of all many of us don’t even know (at least I didn’t) of the existence of such a place. It’s a no smoking zone maintained nice and clean by the people there. There is an orientation program that is held as soon as you enter to give you an idea of what that place is all about. You are then allowed to go around and explore yourself without any one there disturbing your bliss. Artisans like the glass blower (makes models out of glass tubes), the potter, the weaver, the soap and stone carvers, the painter, the fortune teller, woman who do mehndi work on your palms etc, sit there and wait for you to get interested in their creations and skills.

The moment you sit down with any one of them they explain the whole process unlike just finishing off their stuff and asking you for money. The very atmosphere is very friendly and enjoyable that you lose track of time. Moreover it is a photographer’s delight. Kaushik told me that he learns something new every time he comes to Dakhshina Chitra. We learnt a lot about exposure, metering, using bounce flash etc.

We then went on to the last kerala house where there was an attic which was fully pitch dark but for some light streaks filtering in from between the roof plates. The house had a triangle shaped top and it was supported using some wooden blocks. This had to be reached from the ground floor through an opening in the middle of the attic through a ladder. This reminded me of the wooden house that one got to see in the film “Roja” where the hero is held hostage. It was an exact structure similar to that.

I wanted to somehow capture it as it is shown in the film and squeezed myself to an awkward position near the mouth of the entrance to the attic. As it was dark nothing much was immediately visible for anyone who came up the ladder as the eye pupils had to adjust to the darkness. One set of gals came up the ladder when I was preparing for the shot and they had not seen me come up ahead of them. When the first girl came up she found me there with my camera so near to her face near the entrance to the attic that she let out a loud scream as she did not expect anyone there obviously.

That was really hilarious and was the topic of discussion for the rest of the trip that day. Kaushik even teased me saying that Dakshina Chtira had transformed me into a terrorist.

This place is a nice outing destination if your interests lie in line with these. Don’t look any further while thinking of destinations for one day trips with your friends. And if you happen to be an amateur photographer then this place is something you just cannot afford to miss.

Definitely better than a stereo type day at mayajaal or spencers.

Some photos that I took....

http://in.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/shyamguna2k/album?.dir=/b631scd&.src=ph&.tok=phYJHSGB8_mpb5RJ

Memorable moments in chepauk.........................

“Hindu Paathiya ? Least in tckt denomination is 400 for squatting” I exclaimed to Senthil in the 9:30 bus.
“Enna matchuka, adhukulla pottutaana ? Dei enna da solder, adukku vera ponum da” said Senthil as he made his statement in his trademark scene podara style.
Naan thittinen “Pesikiite irundha tckt ellam vittu podium, edavadhu pannu, yen ippadi irukke.”

Came Velachery it was the turn of one more of the cricket crazy fans, my cousin, to get into the bus and get excited to the level approving the idea immediately. He then called up another of his friend and promptly persuaded him too to join with us even after mentioning it to him that we were going for Rs.1000 tickets.

I didn’t know if it was my statement or if Senthil had become more responsible suddenly but he somehow made some arrangements for the tickets. Only later did I realize that it was the biggest unifying force in our country which binds one billion people together under one roof, the inexplicable madness for the game of cricket that had made him appear responsible suddenly.

The day before the match I was just devising indigenous ways to smuggle in the camera to the ground given my new found madness towards photography. Last time around I was stopped from taking in pencil batteries. Next day due to some confusion (first time I was thanking a gal for creating the confusion) some tickets exchanged hands and we were unexpectedly rewarded with seats in Royal Sundaram Stand right behind the sight screen. That was the best view of the ground by all standards and thanks to my prayers, cameras were allowed without any checking at all. But then we smuggled in extra batteries with the help of Ravi’s inhaler (Ravi told the security that it was the inhaler in his pocket and for the first time his wheezing also proved useful ;-) ).

We were seated away from Senthil and the other folks who had turned up for the match. We kept on clicking endlessly during the nets before the match and when the captains walked in for the toss the atmosphere was electrifying. Amidst all the posters, advertisement banners and others the ground by itself provided all the colors in the RGB palette across the most lively stands in the ground as against the most boring stands (near the pavilion).

Utthappa, sachin and dravid played some scintillating shots and it was so good to watch these shot executions in person rather than from a television feed which we all misinterpret to be a live feed from the ground. Many people argue that nothing much is visible from that distance in the cricket ground from the stands. What can I say to these people, they just got to grow up and learn more about the game. Too bad DADA and Dhoni were rested for that game. One rare occurrence of the match was that Sachin’s wicket was, for the first time in the history of the game, greeted with some applause, The local guy Dinesh Karthik was due next.

As is the middle name of our team “inconsistency” the Indians unfailingly wasted a nice start and were bundled out for 260+. Then came in the West Indians to bat and Agarkar plucked the first wicket off the first ball of the innings. A few more wickets and we were expecting an early finish when Samuels came back to form. Maybe a census would give us more encouraging facts about the not-so-great players to have become sensational match winners by either discovering the real talent in them or else coming back to form with a bang after a prolonged slump, just after one tour to India.

The money spent on the match was worth every penny of it to have seen both the greats of this generation play in the same match against each other and both performing so well. The shots looked more elegant in person than on TV. The lethal pace and swing of the ball were really breathtaking and was totally an out of the world experience to know what serious international cricket is all about.

Then walked in the other GOD of the game, undoubtedly the most stylish player of all times, the only other run machine or mortal who could ever be talked about in the same ranks of the little master. BRIAN CHARLES LARA must have felt he was playing in Trinidad (his home ground) given the loud cheers that he received.

The group of guys behind us kept nagging my cousin to go out to the snack stall cause every time coincidentally during the second innings wickets fell when he went out. Little did they know that such stupid superstitions were only for lesser mortals like us and that these were beyond the cricketing great who was at the crease. Ravi even tried it once only to understand the truth in the previous line even better.

Lara massacred the Indian bowling line up ruthlessly with his array of shots flowing from his willow. He showed why he was also a master of the game and still remained simply unstoppable on his day. He went on to elegantly win the match with such nonchalance and disrespect for the Indian bowlers that even the Indian crowd forgot all about the dismal performance of the home team and started cheering the West Indian Legend.

Once the match was over we took some snaps of the whole empty ground, picturing the devastation after the storm had calmed down. Broken chairs, half burnt posters, torn banners and scattered piece of the wood was the picture that the ground presented.

It would have been perfect had the Indian team won the match but then we would not have got to watch the Little Caribbean Master in action. All of us went home happy people, even though internally the dejection was there that India had lost a match,
Lara’s Knock was enough consolation for every true fan of the game of cricket.


Some photos that i took......

http://in.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/shyamguna2k/album?.dir=/33cfscd&.src=ph&.tok=phDZbSGBqTz90lOc

PURE MAGIC…………………………………..

I was coming back from the ATM in building one when I saw a face that warranted a second look (decently put) go in the opposite direction through the other door. I cranked my neck to give it what I thought it deserved (a second look) when my eyes caught another poster “SPB concert on Oct 30”. I first thought that it must be some concert somewhere in the city whose collections were to be donated to some charity organization and that it was just advertisement being put up here.

Then I realized that it was talking about A LIVE SPB CONCERT at Infosys Sholinganallur. My joy knew no bounds as I planned my work for that day even about a week back, thanks to the predictable part of our project work. I carefully followed all the mails from HR regarding this happening before shift deleting them as is the usual process for all HR mails. I was a little disappointed that it was being shifted to indoors because of rain but then I said what the heck man its not going to be one bit less interesting.

We went out to punnu for lunch on the day of the concert and my cousin asked everyone if they would be staying. One said no and I almost blurted out “Are u nuts ??”. She is one girl who keeps quoting someone as “thank god, the world is not filled with sane people, otherwise we will miss all the fun”. I wanted to tell her that but just held myself back, because for me, missing SPB live is perhaps the most insane thing that one could ever do.

We got to a nice place in the front row seats and were waiting with bated breath for the great man to appear and when he came on to the stage it was just another level of happiness or bliss. The whole of the audience came on its feet and gave him a standing ovation even as he entered and to get to see him a few meters away in flesh and blood was just unbelievable. I had to pinch myself to assure that this was happening.

Any talented person (in any walk of life) whom I have come across has an air of authority and carries an aura of pride along with him in his behaviour. As for this great man there was no question of his talent but if there was any authority that one could see in him it was his authority over music. The first thing that he said as he came on stage was “This is not live recording and so I apologize for the mistakes that may be committed and I request all of you to bear with us and encourage us even if there are any so that they will be less in number in the next song.” This coming from a man of his stature is just what simplicity is all about.

There is simply no one in the world who can match his talent in music and he could have easily answered anyone who dare find any flaw in the concert. I just could not keep it to myself and I kept msging all this to two other SPB maniacs that I knew though I got replies only from one of them. He started off with ‘Attindom” from Chandramukhi and went on to Ilaya Nila. Senthil nearby me said “Who better to listen to this song from than the great man himself.”

After every song he picked up one person from the troupe who played one notable instrument and introduced them to the crowd. There was no need for him to do that but he did it time and again with all respect, another gesture that made me awe at this person’s mental stability. Success had not gone even one bit to his head. He went on to sing “Malayoram veesum katru”, “Valayosai”. He sang “pottu veccha malliga mottu” and even requested the troupe to play the music once again as he was very much impressed with the notes and he repeated it again.

“Which is your most favourite song of SPB” is perhaps the most sense less question one can ever put to a SPB fan cause no one can “not like” any of his songs. But if there is one song that I would want to listen live from the man himself then it is “Shankara” from Sankarabaranam. I just told Senthil that requesting that song would not be a great idea cause here was a big crowd which obviously did not like much of karnatic kind of music. I just sighed in despair and turned to the stage to listen to the next masterpiece when the voice reverberated across the hall “SHANKARA………………………MANASA VEERA PARA”. I fought back the tears which forcefully came out but managed to somehow hold them back.

He went on to sing “Anthi Mazhai”, “Sangeetha jaathi mullai”, “Sippi irukkuthu”, “Malare Mounama”, “Manguyile poonguyile…”, “Tere mere beech mein” and others. When went “Anjaliiiiiiiiiiiiiiii……….. Anjaliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii……………En uyir kaadali” the crowd just went berserk. He signed off with “Devuda Devuda…”.

There was just no difference between listening to him sing live and listening to his voice in a proper processed audio file recorded at the studio. Such is the sweetness and mesmerism in his voice that it is no wonder that becomes filled with magnetism. I think no artificial improvement to his voice would even be attempted by music directors at the studios when they do all the mixing with all the current day gizmos because perfection cannot and need not be improved.

I felt like “Softwarum venam oru mannangattiyum venaam, ivaroda pattellam pottu kettundu irundhale podhum da vazkaila”. Wish that could be possible………..