Girl ( F - 23. I had already checked the reservation chart) - Totally tensed, in full chaos. "Excuse me, does this train go to Sec'bad ? I am travelling for the first time in this train and don't really know !
Me- "No, it does not. Kacheguda is the last stop."
(OMG W WAR 3 has started level reaction) Oh shit ! But I was told every train goes and told my parents to wait at Sec'bad.
Hmm. You can catch a local train from Kacheguda.
Yeah that's there but we stay at Sec'bad.
Anyways you can always call them and tell them to come to Kacheguda.
Yes , I will do that now.
(Break for one hour)
*****************
I would have traveled atleast 15 times along the Chennai -Hyd route over the last 4 years and never had a Jab We Metish, DDLJish or Before Sunriseish conversation. This was the perfect chance. Seat no 36 - F 23, upto Hyd; Me M-23 Seat 38 ;Seat 39 - F 23, Hyd. Neither great looking , but still great stuff.
*****************
Girl - Hmm so where are you working ?
I gave a similar WW-3 has started reaction. I am a student.
(Girl as shocked as Prabhu in C'mukhi when he discovers that Jyo is going to kill him.) Student aa ?
Hmm don't I look like one ?
No way. With your french beard and all you look like a 25 yr old corporate executive.
Hehe ok I am in final year, engineering at Chennai.
Hmm. Meeku telugu vaccha ( Do you know Telugu)
Yes.
Oh ok. Native Hyd or Chennai ?
Born, schooling Hyd. Engg Chennai.
Oh. Why not at Hyd ? Didn't get a good rank in CET or gen you wanted to study here ?
Hmm I got in IIT.
IIT aaa. You never told.
Hmm you didn't ask.
Aha. I thought you guys flaunt that tag liberally.
Yes. If you haven't noticed, I am wearing an IIT T-shirt.
Hehe ok. Btw, I am so sorry I haven't introed myself. I am (beep- censored) , stretches out her hand
Oh pleased to meet you. I am Rajeev.
****************
I am sure I had a kick-ass start. I had to have a six-pack middle now. The initial brownie points had been scored and enthu sustained. Obviously some pesky creatures have to intercept and poke their nose. Lets call them Pongal la Milagu (PLM) as Kabab mein haddi is passe. Milagu is the extremely despicable black balls in the delicious Pongal which gen aa people discard, but it's a huge pain. I think the analogy suits well. PLM-1 then majorly started paining me about tips for IIT as his kiddo was in 9th.
PLM-1 (to kid) : This uncle is doing IIT. Talk to him
Kiddo, with friends : Uncle, uncle blah blah
In my mind , as pained as SRK and John Ab in the new pepsi uncle ad- Enna rascala. Mind it. Use your Saravana Bhavan chutney sized brain . I am a student. No uncle business
It went on for a few minutes.
***************
She - Hehe see everyone thinks the same.
Me - Hmm blame the beard.
Hehe.
Ok forget it, so what do you do ?
Engg at beep college Hyd, passed out last year, employed with beep firm , posting in Chennai at beep
Oh actually even I belong to 2003 engg , I am doing Dual Degree. I get Btech and Mtech, hence 1 year extra.
Hmm. Good. You save 1 year.
Hmm yeah its good.
***************
PLM-1 ( I didnt know he was eavesdropping) Final year aa.Got placed aa ?
Yes. With SCB
Why bank blah blah
What package ?
Now this was getting uncomfy. I didnt want to reveal, kinda dicey situation. I thought ok ditch I wont even see him ever again and told him a reduced arbit amount.
***************
She - With a :O expression. Hey thats awesome.Congrats
Me - Thanks :)
She -Hmm, so have you read 5 point someone ?
Yes. Its good fun. But exaggerated.
I thought as much. Stealing question papers and most stuff seemed too much.
Yeah. But life is more or less like that. We do major time pass.
Ah !Please don't bluff. I am sure you spend hours daily digging your nose into books.
No. Free net in room plus single room. I am online 20*7 ( No net from 1am-5am :P) . LAN is there. Orkut,gtalk,movies,sitcoms this is what we do.
Oh thats cool. You said gtalk.
Yes. Majorly
That means you have a gf. Why else will you chat so much ?
Hmm. I am jobless. I have many friends. Chatting need not mean gf.
Bluffing. I am sure you have a girl.
I think, therefore I am single.
Aha interesting !
Me, or the quote ?
The quote . Nice one.
Hmm so I am not ?
Hehe now please dont do nitpicking.
Ok, I am single.
Hmm, it beats me how you guys are left !
No answer. Smile. Blush.
Ok. Do I remind you of Jab We Met .
As in , you look like Kareena ?
Hey no ! Do I talk like her ? Ekkuva sollukodutunnana ?
Hmm so far you have been tolerable
What do you mean !
Whatever I just said.
Ah, you are free to resume reading .
I will, if I find this boring. ( Bring on my super smile)
Kinda laughs. Ok you can go then.
Hmm so you find me boring ?
Hehe ob I didnt mean that !
Ok. So do I have the liberty to read at my will or need your consent ?
Hey I am very sorry. You can do whatever whenever you like !
Hmm. What if I really pick up the book now ( Smile again)
Oh god! Can we please digress.
Hehe ok so how many months in Chennai ?
Oh 2 full months.
Liked it ?
Majorly cribs. This that etc
***************
It was around 10 now. I had finished my dinner . I had the upper berth, she had the side lower. Now PLM-1 enters, says he wants to put up the middle berth for his kid and he wants to sleep. I now had no place to sit. The best strategy at this moment was to buy time, so that she herself calls me over to her place. Take out cell (zero signal) . Act as if some message. Go drink water and come back to original place and look helpless. She HAD to offer a seat now beside her.
***************
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
AUSTRALIA DOWN-UNDER
Finally after a long and tiresome tour , infested with plenty of on and off field incidents, we have triumphed over the Aussies. The papers and cricinfo will give you plenty of reviews , I would like to point out my personal favorites and power plays , in no particular order though. It will obviously have an overdose of Sachinism, but I shall try to be fair and unbiased
1) Sachin's counter attack 60 odd at MCG, 1st test and Dada's fluent 40 in both the innings.
2) A very very special 109 in the 2nd test at SCG by Laxman - What an innings ! Silken drives, wristy flicks everything had a touch of class. Sachin broke the jinx of hundreds thanks to his patiently grafted 154* rallying around with the tail enders, though the 90s were in ODIs and he had a couple of snail slow centuries in tests against Bang in June 2007 though. Obviously it was reported that he played for averages, but then he had clearly mentioned that the field was spread for him. Again solid half centuries by Dada. He never looked so comfortable and at ease. In fact even his defence had the touch of authority and confidence.
3) The hour that shook Ponting ! A sensational spell by Ishant at Perth and the pacers setting up a historic and famous test victory at WACA. As Sunny said, a 19 year old rookie made Ponting perform Kathakali. What a sight ! Sandeep mentions the 2nd innings by Laxman also deserves and rightly so I acknowledge that. Just forgot to add it
4) Sachin's 153 and Viru's 151 in the Adelaide test , both at pretty good strike rates.
5) Gambhir cementing his place in the team with very good innings at No 3. The centuries against SL and against Aus while chasing 313 were awesome. He is very good while facing spinners and as mentioned by him started playing in the cover region also , which earlier used to go square as he tended to open the face of the bat. I guess Dravid can retire from ODIs now. His return is almost ruled out, which is actually a very unceremonious exit for The Wall. Actually I would prefer his return. No one can pull off a victory like he does while chasing when the chips are down.
6) Ishant again ! Totally bamboozling Ponting and Symonds repeatedly in the ODIs. Actually when Aussies toured India for the ODIs , Symonds made a whole lot of a difference with his 70s and 80s . We got the top order quickly but this guy( no, not guy. use f***er, b*****d anything you like) was the thorn in the flesh . Ishant sorted him out and we were able to restrict Aus in most of the matches. Ponting's comment - I am happy that Ishant is playing in the same team in IPL :P
7) Praveen Kumar's crucial spells in the 2nd finals and in the ODI where he bagged MoM.
8) The icing on the cake !Finals. Chasing. Huge pressure. 80 odd for 3. Top class fielding. A sell out crowd under lights at the majestic SCG. And an unbeaten, chanceless, no slog , superbly crafted match winning century by my hero. I couldn't ask for more . This should rank right beside his best efforts like Sharjah, 98 against Pak etc. One innings which I rate very high, which unfortunately is not remembered by many is the 90 odd scored against England last Aug-Sept. Uttapa's 50 helped India clinch a cracker of a match, but Sachin's blitzkrieg had laid the foundation for that. Full marks to Rohit Sharma for his great knock and 100 plus partnership with Sachin. This guy is very calm, composed , has a great technique and can hit the big shots. His 50 against SA in the T20 WC was a class innings. He can try recreating a Dravid for India in the near future.
9) Bhajji snapping up the right handed obnoxious fat ass twice in the finals and the left handed obnoxious fat pig once. Happy that his run out was also in Bhajji's over.
10) Obviously the 2nd finals and the winning moment.
What a feel ! I want to meet the Indian team and shake hands with each and every bloke who was instrumental in this victory . The MCG 1st test aside, I think we matched the Aussie side on almost all occasions and on many days on top of them. Full marks to Dhoni/Kumble and co. Chak De! India :)
1) Sachin's counter attack 60 odd at MCG, 1st test and Dada's fluent 40 in both the innings.
2) A very very special 109 in the 2nd test at SCG by Laxman - What an innings ! Silken drives, wristy flicks everything had a touch of class. Sachin broke the jinx of hundreds thanks to his patiently grafted 154* rallying around with the tail enders, though the 90s were in ODIs and he had a couple of snail slow centuries in tests against Bang in June 2007 though. Obviously it was reported that he played for averages, but then he had clearly mentioned that the field was spread for him. Again solid half centuries by Dada. He never looked so comfortable and at ease. In fact even his defence had the touch of authority and confidence.
3) The hour that shook Ponting ! A sensational spell by Ishant at Perth and the pacers setting up a historic and famous test victory at WACA. As Sunny said, a 19 year old rookie made Ponting perform Kathakali. What a sight ! Sandeep mentions the 2nd innings by Laxman also deserves and rightly so I acknowledge that. Just forgot to add it
4) Sachin's 153 and Viru's 151 in the Adelaide test , both at pretty good strike rates.
5) Gambhir cementing his place in the team with very good innings at No 3. The centuries against SL and against Aus while chasing 313 were awesome. He is very good while facing spinners and as mentioned by him started playing in the cover region also , which earlier used to go square as he tended to open the face of the bat. I guess Dravid can retire from ODIs now. His return is almost ruled out, which is actually a very unceremonious exit for The Wall. Actually I would prefer his return. No one can pull off a victory like he does while chasing when the chips are down.
6) Ishant again ! Totally bamboozling Ponting and Symonds repeatedly in the ODIs. Actually when Aussies toured India for the ODIs , Symonds made a whole lot of a difference with his 70s and 80s . We got the top order quickly but this guy( no, not guy. use f***er, b*****d anything you like) was the thorn in the flesh . Ishant sorted him out and we were able to restrict Aus in most of the matches. Ponting's comment - I am happy that Ishant is playing in the same team in IPL :P
7) Praveen Kumar's crucial spells in the 2nd finals and in the ODI where he bagged MoM.
8) The icing on the cake !Finals. Chasing. Huge pressure. 80 odd for 3. Top class fielding. A sell out crowd under lights at the majestic SCG. And an unbeaten, chanceless, no slog , superbly crafted match winning century by my hero. I couldn't ask for more . This should rank right beside his best efforts like Sharjah, 98 against Pak etc. One innings which I rate very high, which unfortunately is not remembered by many is the 90 odd scored against England last Aug-Sept. Uttapa's 50 helped India clinch a cracker of a match, but Sachin's blitzkrieg had laid the foundation for that. Full marks to Rohit Sharma for his great knock and 100 plus partnership with Sachin. This guy is very calm, composed , has a great technique and can hit the big shots. His 50 against SA in the T20 WC was a class innings. He can try recreating a Dravid for India in the near future.
9) Bhajji snapping up the right handed obnoxious fat ass twice in the finals and the left handed obnoxious fat pig once. Happy that his run out was also in Bhajji's over.
10) Obviously the 2nd finals and the winning moment.
What a feel ! I want to meet the Indian team and shake hands with each and every bloke who was instrumental in this victory . The MCG 1st test aside, I think we matched the Aussie side on almost all occasions and on many days on top of them. Full marks to Dhoni/Kumble and co. Chak De! India :)
Sunday, February 24, 2008
RESTAURANT REVIEW ( WEEK UPDATE )
The week was good - covered 4 restaurants, 3 being first visit and one a revision. The weekend was particularly good.
Vrindavan, Woodlands , R k Salai , Mylapore - This one is a pure veg multi cuisine restaurant with a very good ambience. The place has many beautiful paintings of Krishna and the different aspects of his life , thus justifying the name. The soup and starters were good. I assume roti/naan cannot be murdered by any one but the side dishes can surely be and that is what happened. We ordered kadai paneer , and thanks to the overdose of capsicum it was almost kadai capsicum. Thankfully the finale was good - veg pulao and raita both were good. I have read / heard that the desserts are also good there, but couldn't check it out. Overall a nice place. A 3-course meal for two should cost around 500.
Breakfast buffet, Savera, Just beside the above hotel - This is a 4 star hotel . The dinner buffet was a total disaster, especially because of the high cost (Close to 400 per head) , had very few items, not so great taste and limited desserts. I am actually kind of saturated with these grand buffets. There is absolutely no enthu at all. However, the breakfast buffet turned out to be really good, the high cost notwithstanding (200 per head) . I suppose the extra psychological satisfaction was due to the absence of any burden on my wallet . Idli, Vada,Pongal,Masala and Plain Dosa, Paratha-pickle-raita, fruit juices, toast, coffee and a plethora of non veg dishes. I did full justice. Ideally go on a weekend around 9-30 am thulp for about 45 min, go home and and crash. You can peacefully skip lunch. It was better than the breakfast buffet at GRT , which I think was the last wing treat last year just before our Kerala trip.
Mathsya , Near Hindi Prachar Sabha, T Nagar - Another good restaurant with a buffet option. We had a lunch buffet , it was not the grand GRT level but a thoroughly satisfying one . The items were limited, tasty and not very costly. ( 150 per head). Strongly recommended. It gets pretty crowded by 1-30 on weekends, so better to go early. I went there on my friend C2's 200 cc red beast - Bajaj Avenger. It scorched the roads on a scorching afternoon. It surely was a head turner, but then I was strongly dissuaded from owning one. Looks like Pulsar it is by July-August.
Cream Center, Near Park Sheraton, R A Puram - A 10 min walk from Park Sheraton , situated amidst greenery, this one was the icing on the cake. One of the best places in Chennai, and of course that comes with a price. It is damn expensive. Continuing the legacy of wing treats (a gang of 8-10 for some job treat), this time I went with the dear old Alak hostel wing guys. We caught the 5C and reached there @ 3 bucks per head. Totally wonderful I say. I get a great sense of accomplishment when I do not use these lousy autos. In fact I am trying my best to avoid it as much as possible. The restaurant is in a house, much like the Mocha joints. The menu was damn impressive - it literally covers all genres, albeit with limited items. It is very similar to New Yorker in my soon to be area Nungambakkam opp Hotel Park, but notches higher. This surely will have a few revisions soon. Very strongly recommended. The only warning-A proper meal for 2 will cost a cool 700 !
Btw, I just realised all the above were treats. Wow ! That aside, I am totally in love with the Alwarpet-R A Puram-Mylapore and surrounding areas. R A Puram has a thick green cover and I would love to take a furnished 2 BHK apartment there. That will cost just about 25-30k per month. A 100% hike in my salary might allow me that, till then let me keep dreaming :)
Vrindavan, Woodlands , R k Salai , Mylapore - This one is a pure veg multi cuisine restaurant with a very good ambience. The place has many beautiful paintings of Krishna and the different aspects of his life , thus justifying the name. The soup and starters were good. I assume roti/naan cannot be murdered by any one but the side dishes can surely be and that is what happened. We ordered kadai paneer , and thanks to the overdose of capsicum it was almost kadai capsicum. Thankfully the finale was good - veg pulao and raita both were good. I have read / heard that the desserts are also good there, but couldn't check it out. Overall a nice place. A 3-course meal for two should cost around 500.
Breakfast buffet, Savera, Just beside the above hotel - This is a 4 star hotel . The dinner buffet was a total disaster, especially because of the high cost (Close to 400 per head) , had very few items, not so great taste and limited desserts. I am actually kind of saturated with these grand buffets. There is absolutely no enthu at all. However, the breakfast buffet turned out to be really good, the high cost notwithstanding (200 per head) . I suppose the extra psychological satisfaction was due to the absence of any burden on my wallet . Idli, Vada,Pongal,Masala and Plain Dosa, Paratha-pickle-raita, fruit juices, toast, coffee and a plethora of non veg dishes. I did full justice. Ideally go on a weekend around 9-30 am thulp for about 45 min, go home and and crash. You can peacefully skip lunch. It was better than the breakfast buffet at GRT , which I think was the last wing treat last year just before our Kerala trip.
Mathsya , Near Hindi Prachar Sabha, T Nagar - Another good restaurant with a buffet option. We had a lunch buffet , it was not the grand GRT level but a thoroughly satisfying one . The items were limited, tasty and not very costly. ( 150 per head). Strongly recommended. It gets pretty crowded by 1-30 on weekends, so better to go early. I went there on my friend C2's 200 cc red beast - Bajaj Avenger. It scorched the roads on a scorching afternoon. It surely was a head turner, but then I was strongly dissuaded from owning one. Looks like Pulsar it is by July-August.
Cream Center, Near Park Sheraton, R A Puram - A 10 min walk from Park Sheraton , situated amidst greenery, this one was the icing on the cake. One of the best places in Chennai, and of course that comes with a price. It is damn expensive. Continuing the legacy of wing treats (a gang of 8-10 for some job treat), this time I went with the dear old Alak hostel wing guys. We caught the 5C and reached there @ 3 bucks per head. Totally wonderful I say. I get a great sense of accomplishment when I do not use these lousy autos. In fact I am trying my best to avoid it as much as possible. The restaurant is in a house, much like the Mocha joints. The menu was damn impressive - it literally covers all genres, albeit with limited items. It is very similar to New Yorker in my soon to be area Nungambakkam opp Hotel Park, but notches higher. This surely will have a few revisions soon. Very strongly recommended. The only warning-A proper meal for 2 will cost a cool 700 !
Btw, I just realised all the above were treats. Wow ! That aside, I am totally in love with the Alwarpet-R A Puram-Mylapore and surrounding areas. R A Puram has a thick green cover and I would love to take a furnished 2 BHK apartment there. That will cost just about 25-30k per month. A 100% hike in my salary might allow me that, till then let me keep dreaming :)
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
SING LIKE NO ONE IS HEARING
I will try a Mani Ratnam type post. So, lights off, minimal dialogues, (x,y,z,t) etc. Unfortunately no first night description (It is seen in almost every movie of his)
1996 , Hyderabad - I was inducted into Carnatic music classes . This was despite my infinite resistance and refusal. I couldn't even bunk because the teacher was just a few metres away and had to go with my sister. I totally despised it. Also, since it was in the evenings 5-7 types I had to miss my daily gully cricket session. It was a total torture. And the teacher's constant praises about my ability to sing high pitched tones , esp to my grandpa made matters worse. I certainly contest those praises and I strongly feel she had ulterior motives - retention strategies. So I had no reason whatsoever to avoid the classes . In hindsight I think I did a decent job, surely not the way she used the retention- strategies-accolades , but fair enough. It went on for a full year. An epic struggle bordering on the lines of 1857-1947 level freedom fight occurred at home and my August 15th was sometime in the beginning of 7th grade in July ,1997.
1996 , 31st Dec - I think Sandeep and I won/ were runners up in some Antakshari competition conducted in the colony.
1999 , Hyderabad- Some arbit singing stuff in classroom where every student had to sing. I think I sang "Woh Pehli baar" from some Dino Morea / Rinkie Khanna campus movie. Praise from teacher again, as usual that was surely because those were the days when we were the oiled hair- notes writing-shiny teeth-goodie goodie children.
2003,Alak hostel,IITM - There was this pain max lit sec who used to sing at the drop of a hat at every hostel function. Function is an overstatement,he used to croon at any place which had more than 5 guys assembled. He had organised Antakshari in the hostel and I teamed up with 2 northie guys. I think we qualified for the inter hostel finals but some senior funda thing and we were not able to participate in the finals.
2008, Pongal, Hyderabad - I met the aforesaid paatu teacher after eons. The usual oh-my-god-so thin-so dark level reaction aside , she asked me if I had any enthu in music. She lamented about how she lost a super student with great voice , grasping blah blah. In reality the grief was out of the 100 per month *12 rupees she lost since 97 , consider inflation and make it 250*12 in 2006 , assuming I would have continued for 10 years like my sis. One other reason why I presumed she showered encomiums then was that she found a potential son-in-law in me. I have to admit though that her daughter is a perfect Tam beauty. Tall, fair, very beautiful, sings well, studies well etc. Ok, tall is not a desired credential in my case and I had to strike off a potential candidate from my list when she came home recently as I found her a full 1 inch taller. Really sad ! Anyways as an elderly advice she told me to restart singing, which for a change I feel was genuine and devoid of monetary undercurrents as she knew there was no way I could go to her. Atleast try singing filmi stuff , she said. Yeah, as if A R Rahman is waiting for me.
2008 , Saarang ,LM pro show, IITM - I totally fell in love with Karthik , the voice behind "Girlfriend"in Boys, "Oru Malai" in Ghajini, "Unnale unnale" and many hit numbers in Run,New (nani in telugu) etc. I rushed to my room, checked Wiki and downloaded almost all of his songs.
So this is the background. My mom and sis are huge music rasikas. Inadvertently I have some knowledge of carnatic music, singers, marriage songs etc. Advertently have always had a huge passion for desi filmi music though it was never apparent. I am a total devotee of A R rahman (a) , huge huge fan of Harris Jeyaraj (b) , Karthik, Sonu Nigam, Unnikrishnan, SPB, Hariharan (c) Harini,Shreya Goshal, Aruna sairam (d) and any song involving a-c-d or b-c-d combo. Tam-Gult-Hindi music blares 24*7 from my system , though these days it is strictly Tamil. I actually,really think I am a good bathroom singer and repenting now for having fought for my August 15th then ( and of course missing ogling at the then shorter than me beauty) . Music is a great hobby and de-stresser and singing some Rahman song at some public place with >=50 members now figures in my things-to-do-before-i-die.
I now seriously want to learn music and sing, but strictly no Carnatic stuff. I have infinite free time now. Any suggestions ? For starters, I am practicing Unnale Unnale with lyrics and might soon inflict torture on you guys by posting it here :)
1996 , Hyderabad - I was inducted into Carnatic music classes . This was despite my infinite resistance and refusal. I couldn't even bunk because the teacher was just a few metres away and had to go with my sister. I totally despised it. Also, since it was in the evenings 5-7 types I had to miss my daily gully cricket session. It was a total torture. And the teacher's constant praises about my ability to sing high pitched tones , esp to my grandpa made matters worse. I certainly contest those praises and I strongly feel she had ulterior motives - retention strategies. So I had no reason whatsoever to avoid the classes . In hindsight I think I did a decent job, surely not the way she used the retention- strategies-accolades , but fair enough. It went on for a full year. An epic struggle bordering on the lines of 1857-1947 level freedom fight occurred at home and my August 15th was sometime in the beginning of 7th grade in July ,1997.
1996 , 31st Dec - I think Sandeep and I won/ were runners up in some Antakshari competition conducted in the colony.
1999 , Hyderabad- Some arbit singing stuff in classroom where every student had to sing. I think I sang "Woh Pehli baar" from some Dino Morea / Rinkie Khanna campus movie. Praise from teacher again, as usual that was surely because those were the days when we were the oiled hair- notes writing-shiny teeth-goodie goodie children.
2003,Alak hostel,IITM - There was this pain max lit sec who used to sing at the drop of a hat at every hostel function. Function is an overstatement,he used to croon at any place which had more than 5 guys assembled. He had organised Antakshari in the hostel and I teamed up with 2 northie guys. I think we qualified for the inter hostel finals but some senior funda thing and we were not able to participate in the finals.
2008, Pongal, Hyderabad - I met the aforesaid paatu teacher after eons. The usual oh-my-god-so thin-so dark level reaction aside , she asked me if I had any enthu in music. She lamented about how she lost a super student with great voice , grasping blah blah. In reality the grief was out of the 100 per month *12 rupees she lost since 97 , consider inflation and make it 250*12 in 2006 , assuming I would have continued for 10 years like my sis. One other reason why I presumed she showered encomiums then was that she found a potential son-in-law in me. I have to admit though that her daughter is a perfect Tam beauty. Tall, fair, very beautiful, sings well, studies well etc. Ok, tall is not a desired credential in my case and I had to strike off a potential candidate from my list when she came home recently as I found her a full 1 inch taller. Really sad ! Anyways as an elderly advice she told me to restart singing, which for a change I feel was genuine and devoid of monetary undercurrents as she knew there was no way I could go to her. Atleast try singing filmi stuff , she said. Yeah, as if A R Rahman is waiting for me.
2008 , Saarang ,LM pro show, IITM - I totally fell in love with Karthik , the voice behind "Girlfriend"in Boys, "Oru Malai" in Ghajini, "Unnale unnale" and many hit numbers in Run,New (nani in telugu) etc. I rushed to my room, checked Wiki and downloaded almost all of his songs.
So this is the background. My mom and sis are huge music rasikas. Inadvertently I have some knowledge of carnatic music, singers, marriage songs etc. Advertently have always had a huge passion for desi filmi music though it was never apparent. I am a total devotee of A R rahman (a) , huge huge fan of Harris Jeyaraj (b) , Karthik, Sonu Nigam, Unnikrishnan, SPB, Hariharan (c) Harini,Shreya Goshal, Aruna sairam (d) and any song involving a-c-d or b-c-d combo. Tam-Gult-Hindi music blares 24*7 from my system , though these days it is strictly Tamil. I actually,really think I am a good bathroom singer and repenting now for having fought for my August 15th then ( and of course missing ogling at the then shorter than me beauty) . Music is a great hobby and de-stresser and singing some Rahman song at some public place with >=50 members now figures in my things-to-do-before-i-die.
I now seriously want to learn music and sing, but strictly no Carnatic stuff. I have infinite free time now. Any suggestions ? For starters, I am practicing Unnale Unnale with lyrics and might soon inflict torture on you guys by posting it here :)
Thursday, January 31, 2008
SPELLINGS
This dates back to my 1st year. A Hyd friend of mine , a very keen observer, asked me about the so called strange spellings in Chennai. That guy's only exposure had been the central-iitm route and it was just the 1st week here. He asked me why "h" is always missing in the spellings here. As in, he said from what he knew and saw, it is Bhaskar, not Baskar. It is Paav-Bhaaji and not paav-baaji. Abhirami and not Abirami. I can come up with many more. I tried explaining that they are directly translating from the Tam script which does not have the ta, tha, ba, bha, type like in Telugu or Hindi . It is just a "pa" for pa,ba and bha. Similarly "ta" for ta, tha, dha etc. He then went on to ask why it is like that and wont we get confused while reading it . Almost every regional language has the bha,tha,dha type in script but not Tamil.
In the same week, a northie friend cribbed that Southies always use an extra "h". He saw this after seeing the hostels named Sarawathi, Sharavathi and girls being spelled Anitha , Kavitha whatever. His contention was that it is Anita,Sarawwati,Kavita as that is how it is written in Hindi. A recent one being Ram Setu and not Ram Sethu.
Another crib of his was that Southies pronounce h as "heych" while it should be "etch".
Any explanations ?
In the same week, a northie friend cribbed that Southies always use an extra "h". He saw this after seeing the hostels named Sarawathi, Sharavathi and girls being spelled Anitha , Kavitha whatever. His contention was that it is Anita,Sarawwati,Kavita as that is how it is written in Hindi. A recent one being Ram Setu and not Ram Sethu.
Another crib of his was that Southies pronounce h as "heych" while it should be "etch".
Any explanations ?
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
COVER DRIVE :(
I just don't get it . I have been playing quality cricket with the leather ball since 2003 (post JEE) and have not mastered it, err even got it right once. I am able to score in the V like a Shoaib Malik consistently but never in the covers. Like the Hyderabadis love affair with flick, I think I can flick/leg glance pretty peacefully though I miss out many on-drives by trying to flick every ball even marginally on the leg and getting hit on pads. This again is because I dont bend and find flick easier than bending, moving my feet and scoring. Is my inability to bend a manufacturing defect? :(
If it is between cover and point I generally tend to hit it in the air and have gotten out to a catch in point or cover point twice . I just cant get the ball to go along the ground in this region. I am able to score between cover and mid off though. Even if the ball is pitched short I try a back foot drive through covers instead of waiting for it and cutting it. One reason pointed out was that I dont wait for the ball , hence missing out on juicy cut shots which are very fruitful. Another strongest reason was that I do not bend at all and have very minimal footwork.
A suggested remedy by a stud max batsman from my team (Karthik Naib)was to do this.Take a leg stick guard, as soon as the ball is about to be delivered concentrate on the bowlers hand, move your back foot to a small extent towards the off stump, and take a back lift simultaneously. This will get your feet moving and give you some extra time to play the ball. After that focus only on the ball and watch it till it leaves your bat. I dont watch the ball till the last moment though. As in, when you are hitting the ball you should see the ball where as I see where I intend to place the ball thereby not bending my head. I started watching our batsman. Laxman, Dravid and Ganguly take a small step back with a back lift as mentioned by Naib whereas surprisingly Sachin hardly moves his back foot, and on the contrary sometimes pulls off his front foot also and on many occasions moves from leg to off in the same line but not back. Anyway, I cant replicate him, but would like to ask you guys the funda for a proper full blooded cover drive with a Yuvi level thud sound which should unnerve the bowler. I have a match this Saturday, and my last tryst with cricket surely in the near future. I would like to end it on a high note . Fundaes , please !
Btw check out cricket on wiki.
Friday, January 04, 2008
GEN
Gen want to post something. I do not have any specific topic in mind though. I guess some random updates will do for now.
Taare Zameen Par totally rocks .It is a bit slow, but I felt it was necessary to effectively drive home the child's psyche. A sure tear - jerker movie, and that makes it the second privileged movie for which my eyes became moist after Black. Aamir are gawd only - he was successful in making my eyes moist ! Another decent movie was Scorcese's Good Fellas , a totally gangster movie with taut story and screenplay, though I would certainly contest its position in the top 20.
Dec 31st 2007 was one of the quietest New Years Eve I have had in recent times. Last year was maajar fun in ECR. Out of that gumbal of 10 odd only 2 are left in Chennai , thanks to whom I am pulling on here and without whom it would have been miserable .Only one guy (PK ) was with me on 31st and it was kinda nostalgic when we relived those moments - a planned surprise treat extraction at an expensive resort , crashing on Bessie Beach and footer at 3 am. Also , on the same day I got the 7th sem results and my highest GPA in my stay at IITM helping increase my overall CGPA significantly ( which later proved to be amazingly fruitful as Scope International had a 7.5 CGPA cut-off, but not explicitly mentioned). Though it was not much of an achievement given the extremely small number of students, it was a very satisfactory accomplishment from a personal perspective . I just had a late dinner with PK and a couple of other guys and was having my usual midnight coffee . I received one sms at 12 and one call while the other guys seemed very busy with their cell phone keypads , the sound of which makes my mom call it paen sudukardhu (knocking the lice) . They seemed to be answering calls and replying non stop while I was just watching them. This prompted a wise crack - People like us much more than you, hence the messages . They were made to eat their words the next day. My calls number and duration peacefully outnumbered theirs. Continuing my trend of a temple visit on Jan 1st , I visited the Kesava Perumal Koil in Mylapore .
I have almost become a social recluse now.Wing fart sessions are totally defunct . And my project is still amorphous. This is really dangerous with mid-term review on 11th. I hope my good relations with my Prof will save me from an extension , because if I were to be in the panel I would have given an extension to the student with this low progress . Anyway, lets see what happens. The time-tested method of meeting the prof daily wil surely be followed now. I have exactly one course this semester. HS dept has introduced a new course Carnatic Music with a prof from Madras University. Totally strong. I guess it will be purely theoretical as practicals do not seem practical. My mom will be totally ecstatic if I enroll for that course, but since when have we been such obedient children. I will decide after a good look at the courses across all the departments as this is a free elective.
I am putting a Hyd-Tirupati trip on 12th followed by my cousin's engagement on 20th. Totally looking forward to 12th. For now, saving extension is the only thing in my mind.
Taare Zameen Par totally rocks .It is a bit slow, but I felt it was necessary to effectively drive home the child's psyche. A sure tear - jerker movie, and that makes it the second privileged movie for which my eyes became moist after Black. Aamir are gawd only - he was successful in making my eyes moist ! Another decent movie was Scorcese's Good Fellas , a totally gangster movie with taut story and screenplay, though I would certainly contest its position in the top 20.
Dec 31st 2007 was one of the quietest New Years Eve I have had in recent times. Last year was maajar fun in ECR. Out of that gumbal of 10 odd only 2 are left in Chennai , thanks to whom I am pulling on here and without whom it would have been miserable .Only one guy (PK ) was with me on 31st and it was kinda nostalgic when we relived those moments - a planned surprise treat extraction at an expensive resort , crashing on Bessie Beach and footer at 3 am. Also , on the same day I got the 7th sem results and my highest GPA in my stay at IITM helping increase my overall CGPA significantly ( which later proved to be amazingly fruitful as Scope International had a 7.5 CGPA cut-off, but not explicitly mentioned). Though it was not much of an achievement given the extremely small number of students, it was a very satisfactory accomplishment from a personal perspective . I just had a late dinner with PK and a couple of other guys and was having my usual midnight coffee . I received one sms at 12 and one call while the other guys seemed very busy with their cell phone keypads , the sound of which makes my mom call it paen sudukardhu (knocking the lice) . They seemed to be answering calls and replying non stop while I was just watching them. This prompted a wise crack - People like us much more than you, hence the messages . They were made to eat their words the next day. My calls number and duration peacefully outnumbered theirs. Continuing my trend of a temple visit on Jan 1st , I visited the Kesava Perumal Koil in Mylapore .
I have almost become a social recluse now.Wing fart sessions are totally defunct . And my project is still amorphous. This is really dangerous with mid-term review on 11th. I hope my good relations with my Prof will save me from an extension , because if I were to be in the panel I would have given an extension to the student with this low progress . Anyway, lets see what happens. The time-tested method of meeting the prof daily wil surely be followed now. I have exactly one course this semester. HS dept has introduced a new course Carnatic Music with a prof from Madras University. Totally strong. I guess it will be purely theoretical as practicals do not seem practical. My mom will be totally ecstatic if I enroll for that course, but since when have we been such obedient children. I will decide after a good look at the courses across all the departments as this is a free elective.
I am putting a Hyd-Tirupati trip on 12th followed by my cousin's engagement on 20th. Totally looking forward to 12th. For now, saving extension is the only thing in my mind.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)