India Empowered.....Young@60

I have seen it all.I've seen the struggle of great leaders for freeing slave-India.I've seen the good times,tough ones and come through it.As today many celebrate and recollect my tryst with destiny 60 years ago,i get nostalgic for the moments i lived by.I am India.

At the midnight stroke of 14th August two countries were born with one promising more than the other.Pakistan showed a lot more promise of a stable government citing common religion of people and none gave a chance to the other new child.Surprising for many that pakistan failed to live upto the hype of perfect governing body,other child survived craziest moments of war,natural disasters and internal conflicts.W Churchill reportedly laughed at the idea of destiny's child being democratic and wonder what he has to say now at my 60th birthday!!

If 1950s was remembered for the initial hiccups i went through,60s was a tough time to live by considering the wars engaged.A real test to destiny's child was the period of 'emergency' in second half of 70's.Rightly said that moments of glory don't come easily,one has to experience the pain.During 1980-90, i experienced a dramatic turn-around.Take the case of an ruling prime minister being murdered and a thunderous majority for a tyro in Indian politics(read Rajiv Gandhi) or the pokhran nuclear test or cricket team winning the world cup or the telecom outburst by Sam Pitroda. 90's stand out for the liberalization process started in 1991-92 leading to FDI's and the economic boom.Also 90's stand out for the contribution made by hindi cinema attributing to the success of our movies in foreign land(NRI audience). The new millennium brought in newer ideas and technology savvy government.This millennium is will always be special to me considering our performance in various fields.BJP led coalition govt marked an new era of coalition governments which is to remain here for some time to come.

Pakistan, a nation of 160 million, is embroiled in a violent struggle between moderates and Islamic extremists. At stake is the identity of the world’s second most populous Muslim state.At the other hand,i'm poised to become the economic powerhouse.With future looking bright for my children it is time to concentrate for eradication of poverty,illiteracy paving way for me being a superpower.

The soliloquy of my country

The soliloquy of my country

Why am I depressed??

Why do I feel so lonely?

Y am I always left secluded?

When I am supposed to have so many around me ?

My one billion children

Bloom from my bosom

As lovely little flowers

On my garden, which now belongs to them

I feel happy,

to see them grow

Into a group of young fighters

To see them achieve what they want to.

I receive immense satisfaction

When these young lads succeed

In their enterprises.

And suddenly my bosom is destroyed

‘coz my family wants to run away from me

Doesn’t want to enjoy what I give them

Thrives to reach different corners of the world..

Leaving me deserted for ever n ever.

My little kids worked so hard

To reach to a high position in this society

N now, they go n serve another mother

To gain only riches?

Don’t they remember the beautiful greenery?

They have seen on my land?

Don’t they remember the beauty of sunrise here?

Don’t they remember the sacred rivers that flow with purity n serenity?

Why am I so unlucky?

That my children have forgotten what would happen

If they left me?

Who would develop me?

Who would make me the best in the world?

I don’t feel bad when the world points at me

Saying I am weak or incapable

I weep when My children help

My opponent to become strong and the best

On the world stage.

I just wonder!

If my citizens would be with me

It will take no time for me to become

The Number One

But unfortunately,

I don’t deserve such a great name

May be!

The most terrible thing is that

My children don’t want to come back to me

Don’t want to follow all that I taught them

My culture, my tradition, my language, my literature!!!

They feel insulted to teach their off springs ‘bout me..

This gives me a PANG in my heart, I cry.

But, nevertheless I still have some lovely sons

Who, I think care about me

They work for me

They live with me

They develop me

They love me.

And I love them too.

I have not forgotten those who have left me

Nor am I angry with them

Nor I mind if they have forgotten me

But I want to inform them

That it won’t take much time for me to become the best

My enthusiastic nation’s ready to fight n take up challenges

N make me the finest.

Oh young minds!! Be ready to demonstrate your gallant show

To prove whatever I told just now.

Your mind at work and your hands in action

Will make us reach the TOP tomorrow.

ps: this poem s been written by my lil sister..

gone r the days....

gone r the days
when a boy spends sm time with parents at home....as he is bsy knowing 'outer world'
surfing internet
gone r the days
when people take time 2 eat hot stuff roadside in rainy season as they r bsy 'westernising'
their food culture in Mc'donalds
gone r the days
when a boy took time to stare at open sky,counting the starss......as he is bsy with his 'work'
gone r the days
when people njoyed buying simple things(eg:tv).....they r not satisfied with
luxuries these days
gone r the days when people helped 4 others' existence.....as they r
fighiting their own survival
gone...gone....gone.

Some memories are best forgotten.....

Every once in a while, there comes a movie that leaves an indelible impression on our mind. You are left staring at the screen, not only because you are awe-struck, but also coz u donot want the movie to end. Memento, directed by the well acclaimed director Christopher Nolan(Batman Begins - 2005), is one such a movie and much more. The many possibilities that this movie projects, would leave people guessing for years together, and still they would never reach a consensus. This movie stars Guy Pearce(The Count of Monte Cristo-2002) in the lead.

The movie is based on a short story by Jonathan Nolan, who happens to be Christopher's brother. Interestingly though, the movie is considered to be having an original screenplay and not an adapted screenplay, as "Memento Mori" was not published when the movie was released. With a budget of not more than 5 million, this low budget movie opened to a paltry 250 hundred thousand in the opening weekend, but grossed a total of 25millions in the US alone.

The movie starts with a murder -- a revenge killing, in fact. But was the right person killed? Leonard Shelby is a man with no short-term memory. He hasn't been able to form new memories since the night his wife was murdered. Now he's on a hunt to find the murderer but with no way of remembering names, dates, places, facts and faces. Instead he tattoos himself with mementos of his search. When someone knows his name, he checks Polaroid photographs to see if he knows them. Does he like this person? Does he trust this person? Is this the killer? He doesn't know unless he's scribbled a note at the back of the polaroid.

Don't worry about trying to empathize with Leonard, because Writer/Director Christopher Nolan puts you right in Leonard's shoes. You live the story in reverse order so that you never know more than Leonard does. In one scene you see Leonard getting information from a person who knows him -- maybe a good person, maybe bad. In the next scene you see a previous meeting between the two, which sheds more light on their relationship. Later still you see how they met. But is that all of the story? You've yet to find out... and you won't know everything until the last scene. By living it backwards, you, like Leonard, have no knowledge of what came before. As the movie keeps going backwards and traces Lenny's journey, the plot unfolds new shades of the characters, which makes the movie more intriguing, dark and intense. And when the end arrives, itll hit you in the face with such distinction that you would be carrying that look on your face for quite some time. Once you finish this movie, you would want to discuss it with each and everyone who has watched the movie. Be it in the grocery store or in class(as i might be doing).

The movie poses questions of magnanimous scope...like for example.. In the words of Lenny "I know what that's going to sound like when I knock on it. I know that's what going to feel like when I pick it up. See? Certainties. It's the kind of memory that you take for granted. Memory can change the shape of a room; it can change the color of a car. And memories can be distorted. They're just an interpretation, they're not a record, and they're irrelevant if you have the facts." but how far is all this true. what happens to guilt if you cannot remember what you did? How can we learn from our experiences if we cannot remember them. What is the purpose of revenge if someone cannot recollect it?

You just cant help but sympathise with Lenny when he says"When I looked into his eyes I thought I saw recognition. Now I know. You fake it. If you think you're supposed to recognize somebody, you just pretend. You bluff it to get a pat on the head from the doctors. You bluff it to seem less like a freak."

"Memento" is still a unique mystery thriller. It is an out of the world experience which we do not often come across at the movies. For audiences who like to sit back and relax, this film is a waste of time. It requires us to follow along, participate and fit puzzle pieces together. "Memento" doesn't provide any easy or obvious answers. All but the most intelligent and thoughtful kids will not be able to follow this film. It is intended for adult audiences. "Memento" is one of the most challenging movies, and is not to be missed if you are looking for something clever and original.

tale of two widows

This article refers to my view on 2 widows one in DOR n the other one in WATER. These two movies state the way in which widows are treated in our ‘cultured’ country.
Each widow has a story to narrate.

In WATER it was the story of the little girl which made our jaws drop at the centuries-old culture of India and terrible way a child is married to a older man, disallowing her to live thru her childhood and go through what is rather a horrible experience. The character of chuyia (girl) is still relevant in modern India considering the number of child marriages made every year. We can only empathize with chuyia for having tonsured her head, performing fasts and hope no other girl goes through the life chuyia is destined to. The manner in which the girl questions “kab tak vidhva rehna padega?” might have made some people ponder over widow system in what is rather an ancient India. However one cannot rule out the same state in these times.

The way widow ashram is run in the picture helps us find why there were national-wide political protests by a so-called ‘secular’ party all over the country. Young widows are made to visit the courts of rich people for the reason of obvious and the rich fund these ashrams. Nobody can question the way these ashrams run as refered by the ashram-head who uses the power of head-woman for brokerage with an eunuch. Head-woman flouts the rules to her own comfort. Deepa Mehta wonderfully directed the movie, however could not find a way to picturize in India were she was targeted by a ‘secular’ party protesting against her stand on issue of widows down here.

DOR is a tale of a woman(zeenat) who begins her journey against all odds to save her husband arrested who accidentally kills a man. The movie is relevant in a way that the woman meets the wife(meera) of the man killed. The rest of the story is how two women meet and help each other.

Here too director elegantly pictures the grief of a widow, meera lives in a society where a widow is allowed only to mourn the death of her husband and nothing else. She finds a friend in zeenat and discovers her real self. She relives her past riding camels, eating road-side food, watching a movie. Any widow in her village is not allowed to such things as it is considered unholy and evil. This movie is all about finding our real self and living life to our interest.

These two movies highlight the fact that a woman is made to accept the dogmatic approach to life. The efforts of yesteryear leaders to narrow the gap in the society could take many more years to shape into reality. Woman till date, is considered an object by lewd men and is exploited in the name of religion and caste.

“JO HOTA HAI …ACHCHE KE LIYE HI HOTA HAI “

LAREE CHOOTI from the movie EK CHAALIS KI LAST LOCAL

I have literally fallen in love with this song ever since I heard it …. n believe me this song has literally given a new meaning to my life…. I owe a lot to “ laree chooti”. Let me be really frank !!From the past few days I ve been really upset…. I was in a really bad state where I dint know wat to do …. Certain things … incidents in my life made me feel miserable…I dint know how to face it … I cudnt believe tat my life cud be sooo horrible!!! Even today morning I was damn upset… to come out of all this I just came online …n was surfing the net… my sister suddenly came into my room n asked me to watch this particular video…. As usual I was in no mood to watch the video …suddenly these lines from the song caught my attention. It has sooo much depth in it!!! The lyrics r perfectly awesum…

Karlo jo bhi karna hai
hota hai jo hona hai
Guzra do pal yeh phir na aayega
Kya bura hai kya bhala hai
Waqt hi shayad khuda hai
Ho jaane do phir
Dekha jaayega

Man!!!! The lyrics r perfect as I said…sooo touchy…. It just tells u the hard core truth of life!!! Nuthin is in our hands…its all in the hands of GOD…. He has already decided everything fr us!!! We r just the puppets in his hand!!! Life is UNPREDICTABLE. We hav to face it asn how it comes… the whole package ..no discounts … come wat may … one shud hav the rite attitude towards life !!! Face it boldly!!!

Well enuff of all this ….. I know every1 will realize it atleast after listening to this song. It just pumps me up wid loads of positive energy!!!

Well…This song “ laree chooti “ is from the movie “Ek Chaalis Ki last Local”. This song stars Abhay Deol and Neha Dhupia. This song just summarizes the whole story …how the life of the protagonist changed in just few hours. The choreography is awesum…. The steps r soo soft n I dunno wat to say…u better watch it!!! Hey “ laree “ in urdu means a “BUS” …kya hua jo laree chooti…kya hua jo sahara choota….

Kudos to the Pakistani band CALL. This song has been composed and written by Xulfi. He is also the lead guitarist. This song is perfect blend of the guitar and the violin. I don’t know y …but I always get attracted to Pakistani/sufi music…songs by Atif….Jal!!!

I just gotto know tat this song was actually dedicated to the Pakistan Cricket Team … the captain Inzamam after his retirement n the sad demise of the coach Bob Woolmer….hmm….tats wat life is!!! Ups n downs… evry1 has to face his share of joys n sorrows.

The lyrics of LAREE CHOOTI

Dialogue:

Woh kehte hai na jo hota hai
acchey ke liye hota hai…

Galat kehte hai

Lyrics:
Kismat ka khel hai saara
Phirta tha main awaara
Yeh kya se kya hogaya
Chaar din ki zindagaani
har pal ek nayi kahaani
Kya tha main kya bangayaa

Kya huwa jo laree chooti
Jeevan ki gaadi luuti
Khwab hai to mujhko na jaga
Zindagi ek pal mein saali
Yun palat gayi hamaari
Jhuth hai to mujhko na bata

Dialogue:
Mumbai sunaa tha yahan aadmi puuri zindagi apni kismet
slow track se fast track lane mein nikaal deta hai
par dhai ghante mein yeh kisko pata tha
aise slow track se fast track par aa jayegi yeh maine kabhi socha nahin tha
Sazaa majaa ban jayegi yeh bhi kabhi socha nahin tha
Last local kya chuuti saala kismet patri par aa gayi

Lyrics:
Karlo jo bhi karna hai
hota hai jo hona hai
Guzra do pal yeh phir na aayega
Kya bura hai kya bhala hai
Waqt hi shayad khuda hai
Ho jaane do phir
Dekha jaayega

Kya huwa jo laree chooti
Jeevan ki gaadi luuti
Khwab hai to mujhko na jagaa
Zindagi ek pal mein saali
Yun palat gayi hamaari
Jhuth hai to mujhko na bataa - 2

Dialogue:
Woh kehte hai na jo hota hai
acchey ke liye hota hai…

Sahi kehte hai

My first Post!!

This was supposed to be posted a week back…but…. Whatever… better late than never is my policy!!!

“ DON KA INTEZAAR TOH GYAARAH MULKON KI POLICE KAR RAHI HAI LEKIN EK BAAT SAMAJH LO ….DON KO PAKADNA MUSHKIL NAHIN …NAMUMKIN HAI …” .

Well this is the famous dialogue of King Khan …SRK..from his famous movie DON …well ppl can be really crazy about movies like these ..… they can go to the extent of aping these superstars to the core…it can go right from mannerisms..to style of dressing…..wat not!!!!

Ppl these days prefer a brand …. Just bcoz their superstar endorses it!!! Uff!!!

Lemme share this funny lil experience of mine wid u ppl… I had recently been to one the coffee shops in the city. There I found a guy n a gal constantly fighting wid each other fr almost the most silliest things on earth…n no doubt all the other frends were having fun… as usual at the end ..it was the guy who was trying to manaofy this cute looking gal… he said “ Ladai jhagda chodo….hmm…mujhse dosti karoge ??? “ …a dhamakedaar dialogue…I was wondering wat the gal wud say …n jhat came the reply ….” Yeh sab hone ke baad ..sochna padega …” wohooo!!! Man !! I was taken aback …I was wondering how these kids cud be soo spontaneous…and soon realized …it wasn’t their sponteinity ..but zabardast filmy dialogues… A Hritik fan and an Aishwarya fan!!!

Well this is not the end…I find ppl wearing this weird shirt …wat they flaunt royally… U wont believe ..but it was the so called “ Mahesh Babu ..Pokiri Shirt “…phew!!!

Nowadays one can find ppl saying “ Nenu entha vedhava no ..naake telidu…” and “ Nenu okka saree commit aithe ..naa maata nene vinanu…” esp while flirting wid their femle friends… if u guys still dint get it ..these r the famous dialogues from pokiri ..a Mahesh babu starrer…uff!!!

Well these are just one of the few incidents which struck me now…but I am sure all of us hav definitely come across such homo sapiens ;)

I am sure many of us have friends who must hav behaved like the SUPERSTARS sumtime or the other…don’t temme u dint find a “ha ha HASINI “ in ur colleges the very next day Bommarillu was released…

Do we need to get soo inspired by all such stupid ..illogical ..funny…idiotic....things ..ape characters which don’t exist…which hav been created by the filmmakers?? Are we sooo gullible??? Cant we be rational and practical?? Why cant we get influenced by movies like YUVA where the youth takes the responsibility of their country..all we remember is the disco song FANAA…

Wen I saw the muvi…I really wanted to do sumthing fr my country…my motherland immediately….. but within a few days …all I remembered was handsome siddharth in the song fanaa… n ofcouse Surya!!..just fr his style!!!

Ppl shud realize tat life is not like wat they show in movies…. There are many ups and downs..wat we need to face…one cant be Hrithik in Dhoom ..or Abhishek…..neither can they be Ash ..or Hasini ..oops Genelia…

Movies are only n only for entertainment…the AUDIENCE doesn’t want to see the reality …or the hard core truths being projected…all they want is two and a half hours of fultoo entertainment…sumthin different from their actual lives…sumthing fictitious!!! I hope I am understood… lol… ;) can we plzz hav a peace of mind ( pun intended on peace wid piece !!! lol )

Just enjoy movies… wid a glass of cold drink n a bucket of popcorn… tats it…forget it there n then!!!! Lemme be frank n tell u … if only reality were to be projected…even I wud hav never watched it….!!! Be ur ownself..nthen u r the real hero..the superstar!!!! Sorry rockstar!!!! :D

Ps: I hope all the dialogues written are correct ..atleast upto a certain extent…for further queries on filmy dialogues..contact my lil sis ;) who inspired me to write all this !!!! n even the movie jaaneman!!!

डोर...A thread that ties two hearts

"यह होंसला...कैसे झुके....यह आरजू...कैसे रुके..
मंजील मुश्किल थो क्या...धुन्दला साहील थो क्या...तनहा यह दील थो क्या....हो...."

Dor, the movie takes you through a whirlwind of emotions, making you smile at the innocence of life and also scorn at the conservatism that still prevails within the rural hearts of this so called "super power of the future". It narrates the story of Zeenat, an independent woman who has struggled on every step in her life, but maintains all bonds of relationships to the best possible by her. The other woman who takes stronghold in this tale is that of Meera, a girl brought up by all the strict values and traditions that a Rajput woman is to be upholding. Both of them were living a dream until one day, the dreams are shattered when Meera's husband dies in Dubai who is supposedly murdered by Zeenat's husband. Zeenat's husband can be spared the "last mile" if a letter signed by the room-mate's wife, stating that she forgives the act committed by him, is handed over to the officials of Dubai, where he was working as a truck-driver before being sentenced to death. Now the responsibility of saving her love from the clutches of death forms the main part of the story. In any other bollywood movie, you would expect the usual melodrama of everyone crying and then the other woman, unable to bear the brunt of the first, ends up signing the letter and actually gets to be happy about it. what else do u expect to see in a bollywood movie?

Agreed that most this happens in DOR too, but without all the melodrama and the endless torrents that flow through the eyes of the leading ladies. it is just the sheer brilliance and the way the movie progresses that at no point of time you feel that you are disconnected from it. From the initial scenes of tender bonding between the two women and their respective spouses, to the indelible sisterhood between the two women that forms the end-notes of this surreal dream, the director's tale of this wistful journey is as fragile as it's powerful. this is evident in the sequence where the woman is transformed to a widow from a bright bride in days and opens her dead husband's suitcase is remarkable and leaves behind a distorted sense of disharmony. There are moments of unbearable distress in the film. the female bonding scenes between Ayesha Takia and her dead husband's grandmother are conveyed with a refreshing genuineness. the movie brings out sublime situations that belong only to a world that the director has created out of the finest threads of humanity and empathy.

But it's the sisterhood that is shared between Takia & Panag which sustains the narrative. Both the actresses have given outstanding performances, with Ayesha raking in more sympathy votes for the sheer poignancy of her character's position. Scenes such as the one where she falls unconscious when she hears the news of her husband's death over the only cell phone in the village, or the one where she innocently dances to "You're my sonia" playing on the radio, stay etched in our minds even after the film.

Conclusion: Nagesh Kukunoor comes up with an amazing world-class movie in Dor, which is very beautiful and uplifting. It is the kind of film that caters to the multiplex and the international audiences. I'm really grateful to the filmmakers for bringing the real women of India so up close and personal with us and making the people realise that the woman whose face is covered by a dupatta has a personality, a fire and love within her, which is often suppressed by the society. Nagesh Kukunoor’s Dor proudly represents our country in the circuit of world cinema.

Orkutaaya Namaha!

Boy is ORKUT on a roll or what! Looks like everyone who made it might as well take steroids to get rid of the high!! And why not, every one in India is just glued onto it...right from all the children in their high school to all the dudes(read duds) and women(read wuss') who think that they are as young as their sons or daughters in college! Jokes apart, this kind of obsession, that is makin these people addicted to the so called "social community", is turning people into maniacs who would not think twice before scamperin up a tree, only to gain acceptance in the so called virtual world created by some person who is on the lookout for his long-lost love. I mean..come on people, if u really wanna talk to some friends...why not hang out at a coffee place or go to the movies! and puhleezzz, dont give me the cliched phrase that -"we dont have the time", coz if u really didnt have the time...u wdnt be wastin it online...

I dont understand why people fail to realize that such a social community actually causes more harm than good. I believe that people should once in a while stop and ponder about why they are living such a precarious life and how they can improve it, rather than just gettin a homepage which is full of half-cooked lies and actually be proud about it. One question to all such people would be as to "why has this sudden need to put yourself into this virtual world full of pea-brained perverts who would jerk off the minute they saw a picture of a girl, make its way into your mind and how can you actually be smug about it?"...i just hate to ponder over that!!

By this time half of you are already grossed out by the graphic descriptions given so far and are on the verge of throwin up. I agree, and so is the shit in which all of us have suddenly been thrust into by these hyped up "communities". Some may add that "usually this is the influence of the western culture"...also sayin that if things like this existed, people would opt for these things. then id wanna ask them, if u didnt opt for somethin like this in the first place, then why would somethin like this exist in the first place and even if it did, it would have to be shut down, wouldnt it?? Also, ask any guy whether he had gone through a girl's profile he didnt know, for all the obvious reasons...and wat answer do you get??BINGO..!

And now comin to some of the tricks of the trade ---- u know javascript??cool, then you can increase your fan count by how-much ever you want!! Scrapbook low on scraps??? javascript would help u there too!! want a funky profile??? let someone else design wat u can call ur "virtual self"...disgusting!! I say out with all the nonsense. If you are really that much into marketing yourself, y not go and look for a career in it rather than wastin your whole life tryin to be someones "fan"...and not to forget the comparisions between people about how many scraps have they had and how much their fan count is and so on....

The point here is simple...i am not advocating the removal of all the online communities...they can serve better purposes...but the point here as usual is...how much are we good enuf to actually make use of the technology that is given to us...or better yet...mould it around us rather than we dying to scrape and stick around it...Always remember, once this glass door that holds the so called virtual world breaks, not only do u take the plunge, but the glass pieces will not make it easy. So my advice to all yer fellas out there is to stop clingin on to these sites...mind u..i am not askin u to ditch them completely, just try to refrain from further addiction and you will realise the brighter side of life!!

PEACE!

Note : my first two sentences in this blog start off in a very positive way which doesnt withstand in the entirety of the blog, my sarcasm knows no bounds ;)

Industrial Tour

The 6th of January 2007 to the 13th of January 2007 are forever etched in my memory as the most happiest moments of my life, till now that is!! The only nice thing that OU has done, is include an Industrial Tour into our curriculum, which provides a bit of a break from the regular college life and gives us a chance to do something productive[ahem].At first it took a lot of work into organizing the Industrial Tour and I had a lot of doubts that it would be successful. But the grit of Shaan pays off and we finally get an approval from the principal with a lot of help from the HOD. Everyone decide to meet up at the Nampally Station, where there is nothing but confusion. Neha comes to give a send-off along with Archana but then she just gets lost in all the excitement and chaos that follows once all the formalities start commencing. In the middle of all these formalities everyone is introducing the others around which also adds to all the confusion. Finally the list is completed and is handed over to Neha. Everyone board the train and the whistle kick-starts the Industrial tour. Everyone is excited and it shows on their face. Immediately we get to work, that is, getting all the people together by adjusting the seats of fellow passengers. Finally everyone settle down and are ready to have some serious fun. A group of guys and girls embark on a game that is touted to be the best game playable by a big group. The game is called Mafia. Everyone has a lot of fun playing it coz u get to shout, fight and even take out your grudge on someone here! Everyone feels hungry and start having their dinner and then the gals go to sleep. We guys stay awake till we reach Pune at 2 in the morning!

PUNE:

Ah! The first destination PUNE! Expectations are high and everyone is on the look-out for Yogi who was supposed to be our guide for the whole Pune-Mumbai trip. Upon calling him, we realize that he is going to be a couple of minutes late and we all squat around in the station. Finally he arrives and splits the group into two. A group of guys headed to one hotel and the remaining guys and gals headed in another direction to Travel International. This was a temporary arrangement as midnight check-ins are quite rare. Everyone slept and woke up the next day, quite tired looking. My immediate work was to look for a nice eating place to have our breakfast. After a good morning walk in the city of Pune, I and Shaan stumble upon this South-Indian tiffins joint and are quite rejoiced. Everyone finish their breakfast here and go to board the sleeper coach we were provided to roam Pune with. We then land at Hotel Swagat that turns out to be our accommodation in Pune. Then we set out for some Snake Park which turns out to be a great disaster. By this time everyone is quite hungry so we stop at a way-side dhaba which turns out to be a Bigg Rod for all of us. Everyone walks out half eaten and a bit starving. The next stop was Agha Khan Palace where Gandhi was supposed to have stayed. I am not that great a believer in Gandhi, so was a bit bored, but then no one can stop us from having fun, can they?. So we set out looking to make fun inside and around the palace! a couple of photos afterwards we end up going towards M.G.Road which is a great place for all shoppers as it is full of shops right from the best brands to the most cheap ones. You name it, they have it! Some shopping and two footballs later, we leave the Street and head towards MagnaMall that is just a few steps away. Everyone has their dinner in the form of McDonalds / Yo! China and some even sneak out for some Thali. Finally at around 10 everyone are out of the mall and are planning to have a great night time by going around exploring the night life at a nearby disco/pub/lounge. the discussion goes on until 1130 in the night, by that time everyone realizes we need to rest and then we all head for the hotel. Back at the hotel, no one is in a mood to sleep.so everyone starts plying Mafia and the game goes on until 3AM.then some people decide they need some sleep and leave. A small group stays back to have a round of Teen Patte. Everyone goes to sleep at 430. I am woken up abruptly at 7AM as we gotta leave for the Lord Balaji temple. Everyone has a great time going to the temple and spend some quiet time exploring their soul. But all that exercise had made everyone hungry and they realised that they had not had their breakfast, and now everyone is worried about only one thing, EATING. And to make matters worse a cop catches the cars in which we are traveling and says that we are not supposed to be traveling in that road with a transport vehicle. A couple of autos later we are at the hotel and then leave for a late late breakfast or should I say LUNCH. As this is done, everyone gets into the bus that takes us to Mumbai via Lonavala. Everyone gets some rest and respite from the constant yamming of some people. Finally in the late afternoon we reach Lonavala where everyone buys the famous Chikki from the locals. Then we head down to a nice look-out point on the top of a hill. A couple of photos afterwards we head for the Bushy Dam which is a great place to have some peace of mind, by looking at the serene water flowing. But then no one in the group has the same ideas as me and they start jumping in the water and keep on shouting. Two incidents happen at bushy dam, out of which one is fictitious(used to make fun of ppl) and the other one is not for mention here. Finally after Shaan recovers(one event), everyone head towards the bus and then leave for Mumbai. Playing antakshari, in no time we were in Mumbai.

MUMBAI:

Arriving in Mumbai, we head to a mall which is supposed to be one of the biggest malls there. Everyone had their own fun roaming around and poking fun at each other. A small group of us headed into Sachin's, a coffee shop owned by Sachin, where we ordered Hot Chocolate and to our disappointment it was Complan(YUCK!).After a RODD at Sachin's we move out to go to the place where we were to spend the night. This place had two bungalows and a big lawn, right in the middle of Sanjay Gandhi National Park, which is a miraculously preserved natural oasis in the heart of an urban sprawl, not to mention the panthers and snakes that roam around in those areas!. Everyone sit down to have dinner at 11PM which eventually starts at 1230AM, and after that everyone heads out to sleep. Although a few get into the mood to go swing a leg at a self organized disco. After sometime everyone was quite tired and decide to go to sleep. Waking up early in the morning, we knew we had a long day ahead of us. Shaan started his Neeru-Meeru program and during the course of the events, the second Bushy Dam incident was created which gave us a much needed comic relief. Finally everyone gets ready and we all leave for VT to shop at Fashion Street. We have our lunch at some wayside places and then realise it is getting too late to go to the industry. Me, Bhanu and Sanket branch off in search of a cyber cafe to get a print-out of the confirmation email during which we miss the ride to the Gateway of India. Then, we three meet up with Shaan and Yogi at VT and the five of us travel to Navi Mumbai, via a local train. The others are to arrive at the industry by bus. We five, reached the industry and talked to the HR about how we got delayed. Finally, everyone arrive and the presentation is completed quickly to everyones relief. Everyone leaves on a happy note consuming tea and biscuits provided by the company- SYSTIME. Now everyone is excited coz we are ready to go to GOA!! We leave for old Mumbai to get to our sleeper coach that was to take us to Goa. Here we meet All-Rounder(don’t know his name, that’s what we called him!) who was supposed to take us sightseeing in Goa. Everyone gets in and we leave. We stop at a wayside dhaba(way better than the last one) and have a decent meal. Then we played Teen Patte for some time and then went to sleep. Waking up, the next morning, we find ourselves surrounded by vast open fields and palm trees everywhere...which greeted us saying...WELCOME TO GOA!!!

GOA:

Getting down in Goa, everyone shift into the new bus that is provided for us and head to a resort called MELA ROSA, a small distance away. Entering the resort, the first thing that caught our eye was the swimming pool. In a matter of minutes, everyone was ready to jump into the pool. Some of the guys were not allowed as we didn’t have the proper swimming costumes and so were the girls. But then, I convinced the guy there to let me in and eventually, I had a lot of fun. Finally coming out of the pool, everyone decides that we need to go to the beach right away and so we embark on the journey to the CALANGUTE BEACH. We guys hit the beach right away and have loads of fun. Some went around having their breakfast. On the beach, we had time until 430 as we had to go to a nearby palace. But all the girls were busy shopping until 430 that they forgot they had come there to see the beach. So the program of the palace was scrapped and the time at the beach was extended. Here everyone had great fun jumping around in the water. Here I have to tell that just feeling the soft cool touch of the tides on my feet was so fulfilling that the only thing that I wanted to do was walk around the beach looking at the sun setting. But not so soon!! I see another thing that I want to do, PARA-SAILING!!! After having a once in a lifetime experience of Para-sailing, we trudge back to the bus to the relief of all the others. From here all of us head to catch a local sight-seeing cruise. On the cruise, we were treated(??) to some dances of the locals. Then we were invited to dance on the stage too and by the time we finished, we were so exhausted that we were about to doze-off in the chairs that were provided for us. Actually there was no sight-seeing on the cruise per se, but it was great fun. And coming to think of it, the people there have a great strategy of entertaining the audience by inviting volunteers. They do not spend a lot on performers, and the audience also get their moneys worth! Finally we get off the cruise and head for our resort. There everyone decided that they did not have much time at the beach, so all of us head down to the CALANGUTE beach, but with a difference! The guys take bikes that are placed for rent while the girls take a car. We have our dinner at a restaurant kind of thing and then leave for the beach. A traffic cop and a fine of Rs.1000 later, we reach the CALANGUTE BEACH, where we realize that the car in which the girls were traveling has stopped and wouldn’t start. So everyone just keeps loitering around until I get an idea to empty our 3lts of spare petrol into the car, which gets it running again. Having solved the problem, all of us head to the beach where we have a hell of a time playing all sorts of games that we used to play as children. Here I have to mention the amount of torment that was targeted at Topper, and some others. Shaan then once again went off in one of his irrelevant tangents and started behaving oddly, and started to build a small tunnel out of sand. After everyone was tired to their bones, we decide its time to get moving and at around 430 we leave for our resort. After sleeping for like half-an-hour, we wake up again to get ready to visit NIO. Upon reaching there, we were welcomed by someone who asked us to wait in a waiting room which had a lot of educational charts[blechh!] and stuff in it. Here is where we found our proverbial "HORSE-SHOE-CRAB". Finally we are sent to the computer center of the place, where we know some technical information about the network system of NIO. Trust me no one understood a thing. Finally we get out of NIO and head towards Dona Paula beach(I think). After spotting a couple of crabs in the water and some photos later, we leave the place and head for the Basilica of Bom Jesus in Goa. We spend some time there and then head for the Mangeshi temple during which Ashu falls sick. after the temple visit, everyone head towards our resort as we all feel hungry, and have our lunch at around 5PM. We reach our resort and then make a plan for the rest of the evening. Here we decide we gotta go to a disco. So we plan to go to TITO'S. After arguing with the bike and car rental guys, we take a Scorpio and leave for Tito's. After arriving at Tito's, everyone has a blast and in the middle of it all, Ashu and I, sneak out to get a Red-Bull and meet up with All-Rounder, who takes us both to another disco, called the MAMBO. After having some fun there, we meet up with the group and all of us walk to the Bhaga Beach. There we sit on the benches and have some friendly banter. Some of the people start to doze off in their places, so we decide we have had enough of the beach and head for the resort. After catching-up with some sleep, everyone is ready at 530AM to head for VASCO-DA-GAMA train station to catch the train to Hyderabad. On the train some sleep and some discuss telugu movies. I go to sleep after sometime and wake up in the late afternoon. After having some more fun teasing some people, we get a message that results are out(sob!). Everyone knew their result, some were disappointed and some were rejoicing. Teasing some people and consoling others was our thing this time around. Dinner was organized by Topper's dad and we had some nice food on the way back. We were happy to have some Andhra food after a long time. Finally everyone decides to go to sleep, but before we do, all of us have a laugh by making fun of each other and then, rest for the night. Waking up at 5, we are pleased to know that we are in Hyderabad and are getting down at Kacheguda train station. That signified the end of a wonderful tour.

Taking some photographs there, all of us headed in their own directions towards home...AH...HOME SWEET HOME...I just couldn’t wait to reach home and eat the ghar ka khana...boy was I starved!!

PEACE

Deadly Viruses!!

The other day i was reading a novel called "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston...and discovered an awful lot about viruses and how they work...its just amazing that viruses, which are made up of one strand of RNA are capable of bringing down beings that are unimaginably huge than the parasite itself!!

The classification of viruses is done on the basis of the danger that they present to the hosts(usually experimental animals)...the most deadly being the Bio-Safety Level four viruses...also called as HOT viruses...any fluid or material that contains these viruses is termed a LEVEL FOUR HOT AGENT...the greatest threat that was posed to mankind was from Ebola, which threatened to wipe out primates(inc. humans) from the face of this planet!!The symptoms start showing up very soon after contracting the virus...and i dont want to evn speak about how the virus devours its victims...suffice to say that it makes each and every organ in the human body into liquid gooey stuff...i think u get the picture,..They say "The scariest thing about Ebola virus is not what it has done but what it might do".

(i) Lets start with Marburg...it is one of the viruses belonging to the family of Ebola viruses and appears to have been the mildest form of the Ebola family of viruses...this virus kills every 2 people in 10 who are affected by it...

(ii)Next up is Ebola Sudan...it is a deadly level four hot virus and is believed to having killed every 5 people out of 10 that have come into contact with it...

(iii)And last but not the least...there is Ebola Zaire...the most deadly form of the Ebola viruses..it kills almost 9 in 10 people that come into contact with it...

All these viruses have been found in the jungles of Africa and are presently not posing a very great threat to the race of humans...there is also another form of virus called the Ebola Reston which affects only monkeys...so not much of a problem there...

Its not actually these details that i was interested in rather than what all this fuss is all about...what can somethin as small as one strand of RNA do to the world??if we actually think about it...this small strand of RNA has all the information for the virus to bleed humans to death from each and every hole in the human body!!...let me tell you this...consider a viruulent being in ur cell...which replicates itself so fast that the cells of your body start rupturin within days from contracting it..scary right??

so here i take my leave hopin i didnt cross anyones threshold and didnt hurt anyone with all these details...i kno you could have looked all this up in the Inet...but then...watevr!!!

PEACE

Back to College

Well..Well...

Looks like college has started once again...and after like giving us a 10 day vacation...i mean...that just doesn't count as a vacation...actually it doesn't count as anything at all...!!anyways i must tell that i have been going to college everyday but not attending classes...this semester by far is the worst in terms of attendance...not even 10 classes in 10 days...lets just say that i might get attendance for these days and leave it there...

Everything in coll seems the same though...the same canteen...the same boring things again and again...GOD HELP US!!but one thing sure has changed...I'm visiting the dept. more frequently and most of the people now have a good impression on me...so at least something is working out for me!the work these days is getting too much btw...all the things that i am involved in suddenly in the third year is taking its toll...be it CSI, Alumni, Industrial tour, project, or deviprasad!! and supposedly i am the vice secretary of CSI this year(lolz)..but i wonder how it is gonna be wen all the seniors are gone and wen i get to handle all these events of CSI(thinking about it makes me tired)..Ive been making a good lot of friends these days and some enemies too...but i think i don't mid as long as they don't get in my way...

The classes are worse too..not a subject seems appealing and not a lecturer worth listening...but then i am just trying to trudge on...finish the last stages of my third year and then have some relief once i enter into the fourth year...(which seems highly unlikely)...and looking at it...i think i have no other option but to sit through the excruciating classes and hence I've decided not to think a lot about these things and enjoy life as it comes...

PEACE