The Proposal

Jeez no! Not that proposal. I'm referring to the Sandra Bullock-starrer movie that I happened to see. I do not watch a lot of English movies. Reason being I do not seem to get the accent most times. Well yeah, that's true! Might go into Ripley's Believe It Or Not yet that is how it is :D

For a change, I understood this movie (if there was anything to be understood that is)! An achievement in itself. The movie is pretty okay kinds. Nothing really to write . There are a couple of very very hilarious moments though. The laugh at those moments makes up for pretty much everything or the lack of it.

Somehow, I suffer from a mental hallucination that English movies must not be as 'simple' and 'irrelevant' as most Bollywood ones. I expect all of them to have some message to give out. I know, it is a stupid thought. That's why I said it is just a mind thingie.

Nevertheless, after a long gap I caught up on a Hollywood release for a change. And that too before seeing New York! Whoa, what am I upto!!

Sach ka Saamna

I had commented on a show called 'The moment of truth' and had wondered whether there would be a remake of the show in India. Well, yes. I see now that a show called 'Sach ka Saamna' is going to be aired starting tomorrow in Star Plus!

Well, looking forward to it. Must be interesting to see whether the questions are as potential relationship breakers as in its US counter-part.

Brilliant print advertisements

Received this as a forward.. set of some very effective print advertisements

The headline is a beautiful play of words - Save Trees. Trees save. And the visual impact is quite stunning.

This is a very catchy ad for a karate school. Looks like they have a very practical approach to learning it!

The ad says: 'Harry's bread. Nice and Soft.' Indeed.

This is a print ad taken out by Rodasol insect killer in the Obituary section of a newspaper. Death to the Bugs!!

Says it all.

A very interesting print ad by Frizz skin salon. Catchy.

Thank God the zoom was invented!

Here is one of the best anti-smoking ad, released by Cancer Patients Aid Association.

A very simple but hard-hitting advertisement by the Mumbai Traffic Police on the importance of wearing helmet.

Drunk drivers get preference over others in prime parking spots. Surprised? Here's how!

One of the best, by Seagram, that asks drivers to choose carefully between two things!

IWC, the famous Swiss watch makers, used these stickers on the holds in airport buses to catch the attention of travelling pilots and other passengers for their new 'Big Pilot's Watch'.

A 'Don't Drink and Drive' campaign by Vasir breweries on their beer bottle caps. Upon opening the bottle, the car printed on the cap appears bent, and on reverse we get the simple slogan.

Where has it disappeared?

I met one of my students in the train the other day. He was reading The white tiger. It is a rare sight these days to see someone as young as him (probably in his late teens) reading a book, leave aside reading something like the one he was. Reading, as important as it is, is increasingly becoming a rare habit that the younger lot is relishing. With television, games and internet to lure them, a relatively boring activity like reading is getting ignored. Yet, it is supremely important, perhaps more than anything else. A person who enjoys reading can spend an entire life-time doing just that and still adding value to herself as each day she goes through the pages of any good book. The school surely has a lot to do when it comes to inculcating reading as a habit. So does the parents and mentors of the child. Somewhere, the rat race for marks and grades is killing this beautiful aspect of child development. What is left are those rare ones who develop this habit somehow and sticks to it.

I love suggesting reading to anyone who appreciates suggestions! Be it my studens or friends. For, it is needed. In a typical batch where I teach, the response to my question about how many of them actively read books beyond their academic syllabi is not very encouraging. I am talking of an above average batch of students pursuing Chartered Accountancy. Sure, there are few who are avid readers. Yet there are many who are not. And the difference shows up sooner or later. Be it in the number of mistakes they make while they converse in English, be it the language they produce in their writings or even in the basic confidence level they exhibit while communicating. For all this to be good, grip over language and its usage is necessary. And I do not know of any better way of developing these skills than by reading a lot.

Reading gives you perspective. It makes you think about aspects you would not have thought of otherwise. It takes you to a world you would not have traveled otherwise. Books, by reading them, have the power to change you for the better. In thoughts and actions likewise.

I'm glad I love to read. I could survive happily by doing only that. One of the dream lives for me is having enough money to buy any book I wish to and spend all the time I have reading. Whatever grasp I have over language and writing is all due to the reading I could manage over the years. It defines a large part of what I am today.

Please do whatever you can to make a child take into reading. You never know how it transforms the child into an excellent human being and a person to look upto. It is probably the best gift we could give to a child and the generation that follows us.

Some day hopefully...

... I'll do these things :)

1. Write a book that goes on to become a best-seller.

2. Start a full-fledged NGO primarily (but not restricted to) working for under-privileged children.

3. Give a live performance by playing Tabla, preferably supporting a vocal artist [within that, preferably a Ghazal singer (within that, preferably Jagjit Singh or Hariharan!)] I am yet to learn how to handle Tabla though.

4. Give a talk to a gathering of thousands and thousands of people on love!

5. Be a RJ and host a show on radio.

6. Be a pre-paid cab driver, say for Meru, Easy Cabs..etc, for at least a day! Bizarre but true :)

No one to blame but me

These days, my google talk status message reads: With each day passing, I'm screwing up the opportunity to make a difference.

This has been the case for months now. I am sitting on a pile of deliverables, both personal and otherwise. Each day I think today's when I will clear them. Umpteen days have evaporated like that. I have become a lazy, procrastinating pig. Hate it.

There is so much to do beyond my scope of activities to make a difference. There are NGOs waiting for resources and hands to help them. I know them. Yet I am not doing anything. Each day there are moments or people that kick me saying you ought to do those things soon. Yet I am not doing anything. Of course, I blog and preach and blabber and talk. Armchair renaissance.

It is as if there are two mes! One who sleeps and one who thinks. Need a third one who acts. How? I wonder. Till the time I realize how, I'll keep screwing up the opportunities and time.

I truly, really, deeply need a stroke of inspiration. And soon, lest I become a desperate loser :)

Sort of come-back?

I have been missing from this world for a while now. Long enough for people to ask whether I have stopped blogging. Long enough for people to wait for my next post. I must say I'm flattered when someone asks me when is my next post coming. While I write to please myself, added adulations from the readers are always welcome. This post is really about nothing. Just to break the jinx of not writing for a while. Also, wanted something for the month :)

A thought has been lingering in my mind. Thought will put it up here. Can a blog really influence minds? Let me be more specific. Does my blog influence minds? I believe to think it does not. Yet there is this eery feeling I get sometimes that it does. Because if it does, the next thought is do I need to be careful about what I write? If yes, will it not kill the essence of this being a personal space?

Apart from these stupid thoughts, nothing else is cooking up in mind. I cannot seem to think through my work. As if I have lost that skill that existed some time. An over-dose of lectures are killing a part of me too. Hoping that this post actually breaks the jinx and starts the flow again.

The moment captured

Love it :-)

Deccan has charged.. over to India now

After a disappointing campaign last year, Deccan Chargers have rightly demonstrated that their league standing of number 8 last year was an abberation rather than a reflection of the team's potential. This time, Adam 'Gilly' Gilchrist has led a good team to a good victory. All credit to Bangalore Challengers for making the final a great event. In retrospect, losing the toss and being put into bat was first was a blessing in disguise. The pressure while chasing even a par score could lead to choking, as did occur. The Chargers had already messed up a couple of chases during the league stages. It was a great game of cricket and at the end of the day, the game surely won. The only thing I regret is the verbal assault that Symonds was resorting to on the opponents, especially the young Manish Pandey. It was unwanted and I am not very sure whether Gilly would be happy of his team mate for that. Cricket must be played with a strong mind and not a sharp tongue. I have always disliked many Australian cricketers for sledging and Symmo surely is one of them.

Overall, happy that the team won. In a way, I am glad Gilly did not contribute with the bat last night. It required the combined efforts of Gibbs, Symonds, Rohit Sharma, R P Singh, Ojha and Harmeet Singh to win the match for the team. It leaves the critics without a point to attack that it was Gilly winning the series and not the Chargers. As a closing note, it was evident that the calmer heads on the field won the game. A look at RP Singh and Harmeet Singh carrying on with their overs with smiles and a sense of calm was re-assuring, for they are the future of Indian cricket.

Now, the focus must shift to the T20 world cup. A different series, surely more challenging and important. Over to MSD to try and repeat the performance of the last edition. After all, we are the defending world champions! The expectations are higher and so is the belief on the team for their potential to defend the world cup. India is going with a highly talented/able team. The probable playing XI might look like this:

1. Sehwag
2. Gambhir
3. Rohit Sharma (Raina as an option)
4. Yuvraj Singh (again, Raina as an option)
5. MS Dhoni
6. Yusuf Pathan (could sit out if Raina, Rohit and Yuvraj plays)
7. Irfan Pathan (could justify a place over Praveen Kumar for his batting prowess)
8. Harbhajan Singh (left-arm Ojha in the bench could be a good motivation for the offie)
9. Zaheer Khan
10. RP Singh
11. Ishant Sharma

There are a lot of options with both ball and bat for MSD. The team surely has it in them to go all the way. I guess the roadblock for the talented players could be themselves. The forms of Sehwag, Gambhir, Yuvraj, MSD and Yusuf Pathan looks uneven. At least three of them should hit their purple patch to get the job done. Also, by having 4 bowlers only in the team, MSD could go with 7 batsmen since Sehwag, Raina, Yuvraj, Rohit Sharma and Yusuf can all bowl.

With 12 teams in the tournament divided into 4 groups for the first phase of the tournament starting on June 5 in England, India is placed in Group A with Bangladesh and Ireland. This is the easiest group India could have wished for. Other groups are: B - England, Pakistan & Holland; C - Australia, Sri Lanka & West Indies (the toughest draw); D - South Africa, New Zealand & Scotland.

So now, awaiting the next euphoria sarting next month. Let the play begin!

Mesmerizing

I have been to Taj only once. That was last year with Romi and Lux. Despite hearing a lot about the monument and having built up expectations when we were going to Agra, the first sight of Taj still left me awe-struck. It was simply beautiful, the moment. It is an extremely fabulous monument and it is humbling to realize that it has mesmerized the world for ages now. I received this snap from a friend today and somehow this picture made me feel the same way I felt when I was looking up to this piece of beauty a year back.