Happy Independence Day

“Long years ago we made a tryst with destiny, and now the time comes when we shall redeem our pledge, not wholly or in full measure, but very substantially. At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom.” Ok. Stop. Now.

This is not your typical Independence Day article about India Shining and how it’s become the IT hub, and the entire world is coming to India and all that jazz. No. It’s not. If you want any of that, my blog is not the place to be. You can leave right now. Go! Go read some very pro-Government newspaper which talks about India. So yeah, Go!

If you are reading this, then I am assuming that you came here to read a 20 almost 21 year old’s view of India. As someone who grew up in the Globalization, Privatization and Liberalization era, I can safely say I have seen India change, and my, what a change it was. But, is it what we really need?

I am sure you remember my earlier post about Prof.Smith saying India’s a country of contrasts. After 21 years of living here, I can say its true. It’s been 64 years from the day of the above mentioned great speech, and even now when I order food from DMD, or go to eat in Cool Palace it’s a little boy, I am sure who is very much under the age of 14 comes to deliver food or serve me food. Irony, ain’t it? Considering that I live in a Law School “A premier educational Institution”.

When my car stops at a Traffic signal there’s little boy painted silver like a Gandhi Statue comes begging. Yes, dressed like that same Father of Our Nation, who went around fasting so that the British give us Freedom. Irony, again.

What exactly does the phrase ‘developing nation’, mean? How long has India been developing? What is developing? Is having maids to clean your house and paying them a pittance development? Is abusing your driver development? I dunno.

Child Marriage was abolished before independence, but a recent article I read in the National Geographic tells me the story of a little girl who was married off in Rajasthan. Yep, in Osiyan town, two hours from where I live, two hours from the Premier Educational Institute which is training lawyers to be the protectors of Human Rights!

My college like other institutions of its ilk had a little ceremony to commemorate the occasion today, what are the three top reasons for people attending the function:

1.      

My Friends singing.

2.       I ll get free food.

3.  I might win Best Dressed.

Yep. True Story. I am not saying that there weren’t people who actually went out of patriotic feeling, but this was the general observation.

64 years on, buildings have become taller, the rich have become richer, politicians have become more corrupt, the poor have become poorer, there’s McDonalds and KFC now to prove that we are becoming like the West, obesity is on the rise, reading and writing are almost on the verge of being things from the past, we have phones to call our friends in New York/Sydney/London, but we don’t have the time to talk to our own neighbors, we are consuming more alcohol, so I guess we are ‘developing’. I hate to say it still, this is soo ironic. I am not too sure that this is the India that Nehru imagined when he was making the above speech.

India man, its not full of contrasts, as much as it is full of ironic semblances of its glorious past.

I wrote about what I see through my 21 year old eye. Not the truth, just what I feel.

Happy Independence Day.

Die Pigeon, DIE!

Sometime a ago I had written a post about lizards being the most annoying pests in NLU, well, I was wrong. Until then I did not have the chance to come across, or rather be affected by the presence of another pest in the campus, well I realised I had met my nemesis here, no it was not moots, not public speaking, not drafting memos, but Pigeons! Yes, those disgusting, ugly looking two legged birds with red legs and red eyes, who the hell has red eyes, anyway?

I have heard of a boy who actually bought an air gun to try and shoot the pigeons away! And my ever shining beacon of hope, who actively encourages me in my every pursuit (does not!) , told me that the pigeons have a tendency to find a way through the mesh, and end up dying in the balcony! Yes, trust him to talk like that, and I did not pay much heed to that warning, when I should have.

The pigeons took a while to figure out the existence of my hostel. By the time they did that, I had to be one of the unlucky ones who did not have the presence of mind to get a mesh put in the balcony, and as a result spent an entire semester with a pigeon colony in my balcony. At any given time there were atleast seven to eight pigeons perched on my balcony grill, every single day. I gave my VI semester finals listening to pigeons cooing, and watching this big fat monster incubating mom pigeon sitting on my cooler, which I could not switch on courtesy the Pigeon Colony.

There were times when I used to feel that the mom pigeon was watching me with angry eyes, when I was loitering about my room instead of studying! True Story! They are everywhere in the corridors, in the bathrooms, sometimes according to a few girls, staring creepily at them. Ew. They reproduce at an unbelievable rate, and there are eggs every few days in every other balcony!

And so, the minute I got back to Jodhpur this semester, I called a carpenter and got a mesh put in my balcony. All seemed fine for the first few days, and despite several heroic attempts no pigeon was able to get into my balcony. Fort Knoxx was secured, or so I thought. One morning I woke to hear wings flapping in my balcony, I looked in only to see a Pigeon flying around in my Balcony! Fort Knoxx breached! I ran to SN Halls at 6 am to find a bhaiyya, who valiantly went in and threw the pigeon out, and sadly he did not put the mesh properly in place!

I did not notice that, a few more days later, paid dearly for it ( literally!). I was returning from class oneday to see a flock of pigeons in my BALCONY! Yes! There were 4 pigeons in my balcony, or so I thought! I met Vinnie on the way who offered to go into my blacony and try to shoo the pigeons away! Well she came up and went in bravely to my balcony and whoosh! six pigeons flew up! and Vinnie ran out!

I panicked, and called SN halls to send a bhaiyya, and Vinnie and I waited half and hour for the "Pigeon Warrior" to turn up and save KungFu in my balcony. So after an hour and a half of trauma, my balcony was safe! And I called up the Carpenter and yelled my lungs out at him, and paid another one to finally put the mesh in place and fasten it in place. And so now, my balcony is safe. Atleast for the time being.

I believe in Music

It's a sunny day in Jodhpur, and I have just returned from class, and switched on my laptop, and decided to listen to some music. I opened Media player and Last Kiss by Pearljam started playing and it made me realise what a great thing music is. Music is something that has always been a big part of my life, whether its my love for singing or having a minor musical celebrity at home, or my wonderful and very radical Carnatic Music teach who encouraged us to listen to and appreciate the beauty in all kinds of music.

As I finish writing the above paragraph, my Media player who seems to always be insync with my head, starts playing a beautiful renderation of 'Seethapathe' by 'Nookala'. Khamas is a wonderful ragam and has a soothing effect. Nookala's amazing exploration of the ragam in the alapana has never failed to enthral me and he is one person who I know I respect. You can almost hear him becoming one with the music that he is producing. Maybe that was what they call divinity.  

I know my share of musicians, and the ones who I respect the most are the ones who have the ability and the passion to create music of their own. I have seen Ammamma going into those phases where she's making music, it's a beautiful thing to watch her sit with her  regal Bobbili Veena and spend hours composing new songs, and I felt honoured to perform her songs in my recent concerts. She is one of the few composers of the present day who makes secular music, yes very rare in Carnatic. I only hope that one day I'll be even half as good.

And then the player switches to Colorblind by Darius, which is one of my favorite songs. I think the song has a great lyrical value, and the music is really good. Yes, thats one debate I have with my teacher always, who feels that lyrics are not as important to a song as the music itself. I have always and will always disagree ( maybe that's the writer in me acting up) I think both the lyrics and the music are equally important. Whats the point of having miraculous music if the lyrics don't manage to convey the message.But that's what I think.

I think music is, apart from food, the way into a persons heart. Music touches you where words cannot possibly go. It made me a lot of friends, I love all the times I spend singing with my friends, Karaoke or otherwise :). 

Po achieved inner peace with Kung Fu. I think I know how I'll achieve mine. I think it's the feeling you get when after practising a song for hours, that one time you sing it, after singing it a million times, that you know its perfect. You know that one time, you have that song in your heart, and you and that song have become one. I think that moment ( which is hard to come by for me) is when you are at peace with yourself. 

Music has helped me deal with some of the most troublesome times in my life, I dunno what I would have done otherwise. I think my feeling about music can be summed up into these following few lines which are a part of the 'theme' of 30 Seconds to Mars:

                        

                        Some People believe in god

                        I believe in Music

                        Some people pray

                        I turn up the radio!

And my media player appropriately starts to play Sultans of Swing, one of my dads favorite songs :) Yes, I miss him.

Peace.

The truth about being Gay

Jobless is what jobless do. In my supremely jobless stint in Delhi, I met an equally jobless co-intern who watches dramas and soap operas and also listens to pop music from the far east. Thanks to that very nice person, I started watching a Taiwanese Serial and a Japanese series. But no, that is not what this post is about. This post about about how two girls when left to talk on Gtalk can come up with amazing and often mind boggling ideas.


Today is my last day in Delhi, and I was online talking to Aditi and also watching a Japanese Serial. We were randomly talking about how sucky our lives are at the moment, and I was dreaming about the moment my grandparents are due to arrive in Delhi tomorrow morning, and how my life will significantly improve one they are here. Well anyway in the middle of all this, in the serial, there is a guy sitting in a plush chair,wearing a silk Robe, and there are four people tending to his four limbs giving him a Mani-Pede (for those who don't know its Manicure and a Pedicure). OMG!


I quickly convey this to Aditi, along with this I also tell her my other conclusion (which shall not be written here), and there's a little talk about the serial and the guys in it. Then Aditi comes up with an amazing query. 


How is it that Gay men are supposed to be feminine well lesbians are not supposed to be, well, manly?


Come to think of it, maybe the media is to blame for it, like it is to be blamed for the rest of the stereotyping, you generally know a gay man when you see one. Whether it's Cam and Mitch in Modern Family or that adorable Lloyd from Entourage, they are all well, girly. I am not saying there are no exceptions like that football player in 90210 who Ted falls for, or for that matter even Teddy. But then when you see a serial like the L-Word you don't actually see those woman and say, oh they are lesbians! nope!!


So what is my point?


Well my point is that even a gay guy looks for the same characteristics in his partner, that a straight man would look for in a woman. Think about it, all the effort and money spent on expensive suits and colourful and bright clothes. While the converse is hardly true for lesbians. Most lesbians dress and talk like straight women.The thing is girls are able to retain their girlyness even wen they are into other girls but men have to inherently assume the characteristics of the opposiite sex even to attract their own sex that means, well sadly, ALL MEN ARE INHERENTLY STRAIGHT!


So that means when Gays or even straight men fall for a person it's generally a person with female characteristics! But when a straight woman likes a guy she likes him for his inherent masculineness, but when a lesbian woman likes a woman she likes her 'cause of her feminineness. Well, that makes all women essentially Bisexual. 


So next time you see a Gay person, think, is he really gay?


P.S. Thanks Aditi for a jobless morning.


DISCLAIMER : THIS POST WAS NOT MEANT TO HURT THE FEELINGS OF ANY LGBT PERSON AND THE AUTHOR DEEPLY RESPECTS YOUR CHOICE, AND DOES NOT MEAN TO OFFEND YOU IN ANYWAY. 

M.E.T.R.O

Sometimes in life there comes a time when you feel that you've had enough, well you've had enough of being you, being the same old boring self with the same old everyday problems and the same old highs and the same old lows. Maybe Delhi was feeling this mid-life crisis a few years ago, and few public minded old people must have thought, "Well, what does our dear old Dilli need?". And BAM! that was the birth and the beginning of the Delhi Metro. After a few years it was up and running and run how it does!

You walk into those nice and clean Metro Stations and you see the airport tight security, and for a first timer like me, two years ago, it was all very impressive. Two years into the future I am finally in Delhi to do my internship and well using the metro became an almost everyday thing. Thanks to Bharat I even have a swanky blue metro card! 

In a Metro you see all kinds of people, especially in the ladies coach. There's the Blackberry\I-phone girl next to the doors, a foreigner dressed in a smart kurta and jeans, the giggly college girls in the corner, a few lebanese ( or any european) tourists with backpacks and ofcourse a few old ladies and there's always that one pregnant lady with a kid (cliched, but true). Metro is definitely the most convenient form of transport within Delhi. My trip from Moolchand to Tee Hazari was the life changing one, yup, the change in the locales kinda hit me pretty strong.

So next time you are in a Metro think of it like this, yes its a blessing, but also maybe its a signal to you to think about your life, and where you are headed, maybe you'll also be surprised at the changes you bring unto yourself.

P.S. - I hope someone in Hyderabad reads this. (There's no harm in hoping.)

Dumplings from heaven!

Yes it's been long, but what to do, first there was my pre-exam and exam time policy of not blogging (except in exceptional circumstances) and then the post-exam laziness happened, we anyway I am back to nagging everyone I know ( and those unfortunate souls who stumble upon this piece of internet).

So what's been up?


Well, for starters I am in Delhi. Yes, the land of Momos. Yup, the first thing I noticed about this place is the number of momo-wallahs at the end of every corner. Momo, what used to be pretty exquisite in Hyderabad is available on every roadside in Delhi. and I simply love it!

As two very momo learned friends of mine say it's the sauce that makes the momo. And after experimenting with a few momo shops I must agree, it IS the sauce that makes the momo. I mean I have not found one person who does not like to eat  momos. It's not like back home where you have to shell out a fortune for momos in those exclusively Chinese (and mostly high end places) here you get about 10 momos for 30 bucks! OMG!! and still its the sauce man, its the sauce.

I'd like you all to meet a friend with whom I bonded with over momos and hiphop music and got me hooked onto Korean pop music (2NE1 and Taeyang! <3 ) and Japanese serials, say hello to Rigzen Yangdol (very cool)  from NALSAR (not very cool, from what she tells me!) my fellow co intern (sufferer). She says the key to a good momo is the bottom of the momo coming off, and something else to do with fat. She also clearly and nicely explained how momos are preferred in Ladakh ( that's where she's from). I am eagerly waiting to try the pork momos, but as I am stuck with a bunch of vegetarians, well I guess that could prove to be a bit difficult, but let's hope for the best. I'll even adjust with Mutton (please oh please!).

Aditi says one of the best momos are in Dilli Haat, I plan to check that out sometime, and yes, also come back from there with a little change to my hair which will remind me of something similar I had a long time ago. Aditi suggests Momos and fruit beer and Rigzen agrees, whole heartedly. But these days whenever I feel momo hungry (yes that's a special type of hunger), I walk upto the momo man at the end of our street, the one who Geetay says looks Japanese, and buy a whole plate of nice chicken momos and hog!

So until next time, I'll eat momos, you do whatever you want. Toodles!!

May angels lead you in

There are some people you meet in life, who you know you have to respect. Chitchat was one of those special people. "Such a cute old man!" I remember thinking when he walked into class a little over a year ago, much the same way he did for next two semesters he taught us. I remember telling dad, after one of his first classes that he reminds me of that wise old turtle,Oogway in KungFu Panda.

Whether it was the warmth in his voice when he taught us, or the free attendance, or simply the sight of him walking around the Campus, it always managed to bring a smile to most student's faces! He was soo worried when he used to see the attendance register, and say "Uff!", in a way only he could. To him I was the 'Hyderabadi', who used to sleep in class 'cause of all the rice I had, Saumya and Aditi were girls from Lucknow, Sukku ( who was arguably one of his favorite students) had very 'neat handwriting' (a moot point when it comes to most people in class) and the best, Thara was an exchange student sent by the Mizoram Government.

One thing that always struck me about that man is his genuine happiness, he was one of the most happiest people I have ever met. I know I'll miss seeing him walk around in College, I know I'll miss him asking me how I'am doing, and yeah, I ll also miss running into him at Reliance Fresh.

Here's to the man he was, the teacher he was, here's simply to our dear old Chitchat! Yes Sir, we will miss you! As Animesh said he is going to a happier place.

What's on Your Mind? by Anonymous

I woke up in the morning to find a mysterious looking email in my inbox. I open it carefully fearing it might be a virus, the address from which it was sent looked well shady. However there was a sweet message saying nice things about me and request to post the attached entry on my blog! Well, that melted my heart, and I decided to read it, and it was pretty entertaining and funny, that was something I'd wanted to write about from quite sometime, so I decided what the hell!

Hence, here goes nothing

A simple and seemingly innocent question. Four words. I mean what’s the big deal right?

Maybe there is, and maybe there is not. There is absolutely no reason why you should concur with me. I have come to terms with the fact that there are no absolute truths.  There’s no reason why anyone’s opinion should be subservient to another’s. Chuck, I am digressing, and that’s not the point I intend to assert in any case. 

That’s not what’s on my mind.

For me, it wasn’t kind of a big deal. Until 15 minutes back. Boom! An idea popped in my head, and consumed me so much so, that I had to write it down. Ha ha, I know what you are thinking. I am not stoned, nor sloshed. It’s such a simple thought, yet all-encompassing and consuming.

Why should I share what’s on my mind? Why should anyone? It’s kinda difficult for me to catch up with my own thoughts, and before I lose track: when I talk about what’s on your mind, I mean all these status messages on these whack a doodle do social networking sites, gtalk and the kind. (If you still don’t get what I am talking about, this is the place where you are supposed to stop reading and go back to whatever you were doing)Simple forwarded, ccped , funny messages are fine, what I am talking about here is the not so eloquent, not so artistic, not so complex, ordinary everyday thoughts, your thoughts. This is not to say that those of you who are gifted and can express yourself are not included. I am also not talking about bloggers and the like or people who have a point to make, freedom of speech and expression and thought and stuff...nay Sir/Ma’am I am myself a big proponent and supporter of this essential right, so don’t think too unkindly of me... simple ordinary folks is what I am talking about here.

Anonymity is definitely not the reason. In fact, unless you have your privacy settings and stuff sorted out right, you are sharing your thoughts with the whole wide world. (I am saying this from my very limited technical knowledge.) The whole world. All it takes is the right keywords, a simple google search, and there you are, wide open to the whole wide world. Voila! You just shouted out loud at a party exactly what you were thinking about, only a very very big party. Well maybe the analogy isn’t right, but you get the picture. The BIG picture. Well why not go out and tell it to real people. People around you. People you can talk to.

Sure, you could say that I can write whatever bulls**t I feel like. But hey, comeon, unless you are trying to throw the FBI/CIA and the like off your tracks by posting random blabber, you do end up mostly posting what’s exactly on your mind. And if it actually is false (in which case you need to get some serious s**t sorted out), why even bother with the whole charade?

So my point is this: Why would anyone in their right minds shout out loud to the world his/her thoughts? Why would anyone want to bare their soul, their mind? Aren’t our thoughts supposed to be our most private confines of our existence? To be shared with only a select handful, unless you are running for public office, or have to spread some major propaganda or the like.

Does it make anyone feel better, that somehow you have become part of a large virtual conglomeration, like a Sunday mass, where you can talk with the person standing next to you, and so can he/she, but there are absolutely no strings attached? Does it make you feel any better that people will like your thoughts, comment on it? Does it then give you a sense of gloating pride in acceptance from names whose faces you haven’t even seen in a while, and maybe even strangers? Does it give you a sense of comfort in the self pity that you are glorifying or is it the other reactions you seek to incite in other mortals, which make you feel like you just bedazzled everyone at Broadway with your excellent performance?

What is your addiction?

I am quite the sinner myself, for I have shared my mind quite frequently, as am I doing now. I wanted to put this point across, so here it is, my thoughts, my mind laid down on the platter for your appraisal. Yet as a token of atonement, I am hiding behind the garb of anonymity here...nah, am just screwing with your head. I am doing it for the heck of it. However, I am still confused. Confused as to why would anyone share as to what’s on their mind?

Maybe its how humans are supposed to be, all along. We might have come a long way from living in tribes to 

nuclear families, to live ins, but deep down a part of us refuses to change. Deep down, we still need to remind ourselves that we are a part of something larger than the 2-3 people we share a roof with. Technology has only made it easier, merely provided a platform. Deep down we still feel the need to be bonded, the need to feel needed.

Dear Anonymous,

Thank you. A big fan already! 

Sincerely,

Sneha

R-OH (We all know what it is!)

Well, it's just over half past 12 and I just can't seem to get myself to do anything! So well , I finally put that Copyright symbol on my blog, and yeah so it's finally properly protected!!

Law School life is tough! Well admit it or not, R-OH (well more popularly known as alcohol) may not magically make it easy, but it well you know, helps you through it. Study hard  five days a week, and use the rare free weekend to well 'bust' your stress.

What is the first thing you do when you plan a party, well after deciding who to invite and whom to ignore, yes ladies and gents, you decide the booze! Whisky, Rum, Vodka, and others..Hours are spent deciding on the quantity, the brands, and most importantly the costs (well not in all cases though).

 Alcohol adds life to most parties. It makes making friends easier. As I was telling my friend the other day, "A few pints down, everyone becomes your friend". A very important tenet of alcoholics which well gets proven time and again. All those who disagree, you can put your hand up, and just let it be there! I don't really care.

Knowing about alcohol improves your geography and pronunciation, well how in the world would you have learnt how to pronounce Gorbatchow? or the right way to say Absolut?  My point exactly!

Alcohol I think is the A that comes after the three Cs that unite India. Well here's an example.
A dear friend of mine wanted to drink oneday, and she took her friends along and went to the shop only to realise that it was a dry day! They got into an auto and well, the more adventurous asked the auto driver if he knew any dealer, well the auto driver promptly agreed to take them to one, and yeah took them around till they found one. On the way they also got to hear gems like "I used to work in Goa, and the whole of Goa knew me" I heavily suspect that he was under the influence of some spirits too!!
Yes.True Story.

Here's to the Highs and the Hangovers and to the man who, apart from being my booze mentor, is also an amazing father (Happy Birthday, again!)!  Happy Drinking!!

The "Bhai" Phenomena

The world of NLU never fails to amaze me. The people, the places, our mysterious ways and life in general. Funny and weird things are part of our daily life. One of these which has recently caught my eye is the 'bhai' phenomena.Nope, we don't have a pan chewing, black kurta pyjama wearing and black sunglass wearing mafia in NLU. I am talking about the free and unfettered usage of the word, well you know it, 'bhai'.

Here's an example. One day three people were walking back from classes on the long winding road that runs through NLU. One of them is a lanky Ghazibadi Boy, a Hyderabadi Girl and a Mizo boy.They seem to be in the middle of a discussion which seems to quite engaging, and suddenly the girl exclaims, 'Bhai! what is he saying?". Well if you think it's a very North Indian phrase, well, Surprise Surprise!!

Yep, the girl who spent her entire life in Hyderabad in a very South Indian household, and who until she joined NLU was Hindi illiterate (well look forward to a very entertaining post on the North Indianization of Sneha G Sindhu) has just used the very popular NLU word.

The word 'bhai' is generally the shortened form of 'Bhaiyya' which means brother. However in NLU it is used to persuade, as form of exclamation, to express joy or anger, and sometimes used 'just for the sake of it' It is often used as a very desi substitute for 'dude'.

A bunch of girls sitting in Cool Palace also often punctuate their conversation about Gucci shoes and Fendi bags with a well placed Bhai! Well they also refer to eachother as bhai. Yeah, I have a very close friend of mine who keeps saying 'bhai' all the time!

When I went home this winter I was talking to my very Hyderabadi cousin, and my grandmom was nearby. And so I said, "Bhai, what nonsense blah blah blah...."

My grandmom froze! She could not believe her ears! She promptly walked upto me and said "Sena don't speak like an auto driver!"

 Sadly it's true......in Hyderabad its mostly the auto drivers who use bhai. So if you ask to go to Badi Chowdi, expect to hear a "Bhai, mai to nai jaathu....vahanpe is time pe bahut traffic hai!"

After that I spent a precious half an hour explaining to my gran that its weird and unladylike thing in Jodhpur! Yes, she did say that oneday I'll end up speaking like a truck driver!!

Hence in NLU if you are a Delhite, or a Punjabi, someone from Chennai, or from the Northeast you will end up picking up the 'bhai' culture in your 5 years of stay here.

To finish off, as Saumi and I always say

"We are the Bhai, we are the bhai!"

P.S. thanks Lohitash for the idea!!

What all do WE care about?

 This morning I was tweeting very harmlessly (except for the Death threat I sent to the Pro-Telangana person), and my page kept getting updates about one Rebecca Black from the Harry Potter page on twitter, yeah and so, what is the first TWEET I see?





"I'll say it again. I don't hate Rebecca Black and I don't want her dead. Why would I? Yes she sings like a dying Hippogriff but really, now."


Since I am generally I step or two behind most tweeps I know, I type Rebecca Black in the little blue search box in Twitter (Oh! how I love twitter) and lo and behold! I see a million other tweets echoing the same emotion! Well after reading about 10 to 20 tweets I found out the follwing:


1.She is an 8th grader.


2.American ( what else? can she be? ). From California (again?)


3.She can sing say some.


4.She thinks she can sing say some more.


5.There are some who say she can't.


6. She released a song on YOUTUBE (yes yes like that lil blond guy we all know)


7.She called the song FRIDAY.


8.Also she wants to record a single with her 'idol' yes yes none other than Pretty Boy Biebs! ( I can't believe I just said that! )


9. The song is about how a teenager cannot decided whether to sit on the front seat or the back seat of a car. Wow! So cool na? I 'll also write a song about how I cannot decide what to eat? Paneer Makhani or Kadai Paneer! 


10. She is apparently out trended the Japanese Earthquake over the weekend!


The last point actually got me thinking! Wow do more people really care about a teenage girl blaring than about lives lost and property destroyed in Japan? That got me thinking What do we really care about?


On an average day in the world these days there's a political coup, or the aftermath, there's a natural disaster of some magnitude, there's a financial breakthrough, and oh there's also a sporting event and yeah like last week a 'Teenage Sensation" on the internet!  


I decided to poke around a bit and I found out that Rebecca did out trend the earthquake,Gaddafi, the Cricket WC and other more important things. Another shocker this happened not only on Google Trends but also on Twitter, Facebook and other social networks! Really? did the earthquake become boring now, in a little over a week? Are our attention spans that short, and are we that shallow? 


This is just another example of the myriad of things that we willfully choose to ignore in our busy lives! Tho kya? Japan mein earthquake tha, log mare the, India mein bhi tha tsunami, earthquake? I'd rather spend hours reading about this new chick who has biebered her way into my weekend! Let me laugh at her, let me call her the "BLACK PLAGUE", or the latest, let me make a parody out of her song! Yes, I am not lying there was a parody already on YOUTUBE!


Do TV channels and internet sites really dictate what we care about and what we don't? Do we really need them to decide for us what and when to like a thing? They tell us what to like, what to buy, what story is hot, they decided when a story loses importance, they tell us what is the new story! Maybe it is right, maybe its better that way, 'cause if you let everyone decide what they want to care about, yes, we will get more people fulfilling their 'teenage dream's! and that my friends will not be pretty! 


So then that got me thinking what is the one thing near home that I have actually cared about? What? Oh yea! I absolutely hate the fact that my city, my beloved Hyderabad is being destroyed! For what? So that a man's thirst for political power can be quenched? the statues destroyed may not be as famous as the Buddha statues, but to me, they symbolise a childhood spent running around in the green grass around them, of many Sunday evening spent near "Pedda Laala"! It was just sad to see hundreds of people walking on Tankbund, all this for what? For NOTHING! I wish they'd just leave my city alone! Yes, I care about it! 


Maybe Rebecca will record a new single with her idol (good for her!), I would love to record a single with Avril! It's ok if the Earthquake takes second place in google trends as long as efforts are being made to help the sufferers. All that really does not matter as long as people care about all that that has to be cared about! Peace.

A general update on how things are!

Yes. Yes. It's summer here, well almost. Yes, yes it's that time of the year when there's dust, and sand everywhere and you risk getting stuck in the midst of a sandstorm every time you walk back from the library to the Hostel. And yes, I am over reacting!

Firstly here's a big hug to Tangypoison, as it got an awesome review the other day, or was it a compliment? Well remember folks, a few months ago I wrote about Shivam the Rooftop Restaurant, yeah as my really nice floor mate tells me that the owner of that place claimed to know me as I had written that post and he claimed several NLU people had come there after reading it on my blog! Well good good if he thinks his business has risen thanks to my blog, yeah next time I go, I ll introduce myself (Yes, anything in the hope of free food!).

Secondly here's a new embarrassment in the author's life, earlier today while taking attendance in class, JPKJ looks at me and says:

"Are you able to follow in class? Do you understand? How much did you get in the last test?"

Ugh! Never in my 20 years of living did anyone ever say that! Oh by the way I managed a decent 15 out of 20 in that miserable test of his! I ll show him in the next test, yes I will!! Yes, I only ‘look’ confused, sleepy and dumb in class!

 I have noticed a recent spurt in the number of status messages aiming to give a message to other people, yes, I am not denying that they were always there, but all I am saying is that there has been a sudden increase in their number! Well imagine this, you log into your g talk hoping to play catch up with your friends, and you end up seeing status messages like those, and yes, you will feel scared! You'd think twice before pinging them!

Think about it, would you rather ping a person whose status says "Fairy Tales and Chocolate Cookies" or "is trying to go back to where it all began"? This is no offence to anyone, and both the above stated status  messages were your truly's at different points of her life! I am not saying putting statuses's like that is wrong or against the world order or messages like that will ring in the apocalypse or anything, all I am saying is, that well, they tend to scare people who really love you, and care about you. 

You have the freedom to put any status message you want, as long as it does not offend anyone, or ward off any random chat seekers like me! I would still reiterate my point that I really don't mind reading all those messages, you may have written them in absolute fury, but they actually seem quite funny to the people who read them. In-fact the status messages that I write when I am superbly pissed with something\someone make good jokes when I am simply being me.

 I believe it's the growing heat that is messing up people's heads, and making them HOT! Which in turn is manifesting itself in the form of those scary and dangerous status messages!!

On other news Sheelaism is growing, and growing pretty well,I  must say to the utter dismay of the hangover man. Who, by the way, claims I have misquoted him, and I duly apologize. We have named our new Microwave Sheela, and he has taken to calling us blasphemers, yes, I know one day he will wake up to the truth that is Sheela.

So until next time, it's TOODLES!!

SHEELAISM by SAINT BUSHY HAIR!

For most people who know her she is a kind looking ( yes, notice the word LOOKING) girl with a psychedelic choice in phone covers, but for others like me, who know her a little more than most people, she’s a little off the road normally taken. Well, on a cloudy day, after her TOPA moot she decided to embrace ‘Sheelaism”, and become SAINT Bushy Hair. For all the losers who do not know what SHEELA is, it is SHEELA from SHEELA KI JAWANI, from the very sasta movie Tees Maar Khan, but all this is not what this post is about!

This post is devoted entirely to the philosophy that is Sheela. As Bushy says, it is more than a song, Sheela Ki Jawani has a deeper meaning. It is a Bhajan, yes, people she even sings like a bhajan, so, if you catch her singing it, don’t be surprised.

Bushy says, there is Sheela in everybody, yes, that is why the lyrics, WHAT’s MY NAME? WHAT’s MY NAME? and you must find and embrace the Sheela in you. The song is the ultimate expression of feminism. And there is no specific dress code for the religion, or cult (whatever you choose to call it) yes, ladies and gentlemen, this interpretation flows directly from the line “I am too sexy for you” that translates to “I am whatever I am and I have self-respect for myself, and I don’t need you to tell me what I am and what I am not.”

When you are actually writing about a belief, it’s always prudent to give the two sides of the coin. Here’s a warm welcome to our other expert in this matter, “Hangover Man”, he simply disagrees with Bushy. He says, while sitting on the breakfast table, the song is an expression of Carnal Desire. Well, this made a bystander (bysitter?) quip, “Goddess of Carnal Desire”? Well, think about it folks!!

Yes, listen to this song again, find the inner meaning in it. Respect the belief, respect the Sheela in you, and most importantly, RESPECT YOURSELF!! So now its time for me to go wake up Saint Bushy Hair from her sleep so she can indulge in her evening rites. SHEELA!