Ecstacy and Irony of the World I Breathe!

Reading Revolution

2010-01-05T22:56:00.000-08:00

Wish you all a very happy new year.

There is no 2009 anymore. But as the year 2010 emerges from the ashes of 2009 lets hope to have fun and frolic all around us and pray God to keep economic stability steady and safe and most importantly keep our eyes open for any injustice and unfairness being inflicted upon the society around us and voice against it through our blogs.

As for 31st night...I've had one hell of a night with so much of masti that I'm gonna cherish it all for the rest of my life. We arranged a bonfire party and danced till late in the night. And as for new year resolution...I've none. I don't need an occasion like new year's eve to resolve to do something that would bring about a remarkable change to my life. If there's any such need, I would do it irrespective of what day or occasion it is.

It was another day while I was whiling away my time surfing Net in order to find something interesting that I chanced upon a site called "The Reader Organisation". After I explored it for next 20-30 minutes I was overwhelmed by feelings of respect for the work the organisation carries out and its contribution to the world of Books.

The Reader Organisation is a charity dedicated to bringing about a Reading Revolution - this means great books reaching everybody - it's their mission to engage people of all ages and backgrounds in sharing a wealth of literature. According to them Reading is a force for social good that can build community and enhance lives.
The Reader Organisation runs various hugely inspiring outreach literacy program such as Get Into Reading, Liverpool Reads and Community Shakespeare to bring about “a reading revolution”.

Get Into Reading is the brainchild of Jane Davis, founder and director of the Reader Organisation. She believes “books can save lives” — believes it so passionately she has, in less than ten years, created an extraordinary movement, with 150 groups now meeting weekly in hospitals, prisons, refugee centres, children’s homes, libraries, YMCAs, day centres and homes for older people.

These are not “book groups”, where people come together to discuss a book they have read; they are reading groups, led by trained Get Into Reading project workers, who read the texts aloud, with group members joining in as much or as little as they wish. Interruptions are encouraged and often lead to spontaneous sharing of life experience. Texts include novels, short stories, poems, plays and works of non-fiction. I wish we could do the same here in India as well.

What most of the people feel that great Literature by Shakespeare, Tolstoy, Charles Dickens belong to academics in English Departments and as a result draw themselves to fictional work by other writers. But this organisation emphasizes a lot on literature to make people savour the works those of Shakespeare and Tolstoy and hence eliminate the beliefs that their work belongs only to academics. My Mom, when young, had read almost all of Shakespeare's work and still longs to read them. Love you Mom..!!

As a child..I was never into classics by Shakespeare or Dickens but more into Comics By Archie, Books by R.L.Stine, Nancy Drew Series, Hardy Boys Books and lots more. I remember I used to read a lot of them by R.L.Stine Fear Street Series and hide them under my pillow given to their glossy covers featuring some gorgeous looking Girls in their Shorts(Guess, this could be a marketing strategy back then...) when someone was around and read later into the Nights after everyone was asleep. Hee Hee..:)

But now I read more of Indian Authors as I feel, I can somehow understand the emotions they put in their work and feel an inexplicable attachment to their books.
But now I'll try my best to lay my hands on some literature as well.

Last word should go to Writer and Poet Blake Morrison who commented 'In the presence of books, it's as if a hand has reached out and taken our own. That's the hand The Reader Organisation is trying to extend'.
I wish we could have the same here in every city and village in India and contribute our best and maximum to Book World.
This is what Reading Revolution is all about and there is nothing to stop people reading great books, at least not me.

How to Pick a Good Book

2009-12-24T04:54:00.000-08:00

"How to pick a Good Book and not feel let down?"
"I want to read something good...tell me one."
"Yaar recommend me some book...!!"

These are just some of the questions that many of my friends and colleague who are not much into books, ask me and I, in response, help them recommending books from current bestsellers list or the ones I found interesting and good enough to go through and be a part of my shelf.

It's only when I found one and only one of my blogger friend Smita enlightening people with Mantra's to Read more and more on her blog, I decide to enlighten people on how to pick a good book and not feel unhappy or disappointed.

Here I go...

How to Pick a Good Book..

1. Feel the Need

Don't read just because you have to. Read because you want to. In my case I read to survive. One should feel the need, the desire, the hunger to lay your hands on something as beautiful as a book and once you find something that appeals to you or interest you...Read to bask in its Beauty.

2. Go to a good and well known Bookstore nearby your place.

When you want to dine out or eat out what do you do? Well, you go to tastiest restaurants (considering you have the money), one which is classy and modern and specializes in both traditional and contemporary cuisines, where menu and chef's cooking displays and services are sure to get the taste buds interested.

Same goes for shopping(well..most of the time) and Books as well.

A bookstore offers a collection of fictions, novels,classic, books on interior decoration, cookery books, books on religion and various other subjects. You can also find current bestsellers, page turners and so forth.

Here are the names of some of the good Bookstores followed by their Address in Noida and Delhi which can really help you pick your choice.

1. Oxford Book Store : It's the best and feels like heaven. A must visit for every Bookworm.

148, New Statesman House, Barakhamba Road, Connaught Place, New Delhi, Delhi 110001

011 23766083?

2.Om Book Shop

Ground Floor, Great India Place

Sector 38-A, Noida, Noida, Uttar Pradesh 201301

3. Galgotia book Shop

G - 64 Sector 18, Noida

Near MC Donald's

4. Teksons Bookshop

G-24, Sector-18, Noida, 201301

0120 2511363

You can also do some online shopping where you get discounts on no. of Books and great offers.

Some of them are as follows:

1.Flipkart

2.Rediff Books

3.Indiatimes

4.Indiaplaza

5.FriendsofBooks

3. Search for online book reviews and join some "social cataloging" website such as Goodreads and Shelfari.

These social network for readers have more than millions of members who have added thousands of books to their shelves. This is a place for casual readers and bona-fide bookworms alike, Goodreads members or Shelfari members recommend books, compare what they are reading, keep track of what they've read and would like to read, form book clubs and much more.

4. Decide what you want to read and pick books which interest you.

Books and Women are the only two things that come in wide variety ( No Offense here....I respect nothing as much as every Women in the world..) with a difference that it's lot easier to handle books as compared to women.

Read only what you want to at the moment. Well, you should be sensible enough to know what you want.

5. Find out about the Best of the Authors and their work and most importantly their style of writing.

There are books which might have a good and interesting plot but then not much to understand. (Faking it by Amrita Choudhary is one such book..) and then there are books which may not have a gripping plot but feel like heaven while going through it.

All of Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni's books fall in this category though some of them actually have a gripping plot. She's one Author who creates a magical world by her writing and words. She's my most favorite of all. So before zeroing in on something find out about the Author and if possible try to read first 5-6 pages of a book. If found interesting and readable...Buy.

6. Last but never the least...Go through Book Blogs.

The world is full of Book Lovers who express their love through Blogs where you can find Book Reviews, Books to pick from Bestsellers List,what are they reading, what is next on their mind and lots more.

One such Blog which is a favorite of mine is by Smita and also features in the Best Indian Blog.

Here's a link: Books, Life-n-More

To make it easier for you here are some of the books that you can pick and would never regret having done so.

1. Twilight Saga - All four Books by Stephenie Meyer

2. Palace of Illusion by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

3. The lost Flamingoes of Bombay by Siddharth Dhanvant Shanghvi

4. The White Tiger by Arvind Adiga

5. Zero Percentile by Neeraj Chhibba

6. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

7. Ford County by John Grisham

8. The Zoya Factor by Anuja Chauhan

9.Paths of Glory by Jeffery Archer

10. The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown

In the end ...Remember what you like may not go well with other's likings and that shouldn't matter much. I like myself but hardly liked by anyone else. So it's up to you to decide what you want to read and what not and pick only what you want and leave unwanted. That's an art as well. The sooner you acquire and understand, the better for you.

Enjoy Reading..!!

After a 20-day Hiatus

2009-12-08T20:58:00.000-08:00

Last 20 days have been the busiest days of my life so far. I feel like as if I've been thrashed on the flogging stones, then tossed into huge vats of boiling starch and hung out to dry. And then neatly ironed and put back to my usual self.

Well, that's precisely what my life has been for last 20 days and one of the many reasons to "not-to-blog".

I was looking for something motivating to get back to blogging but I didn't get. I never get. And now I've decided to switch back to what I love doing most and would blog only about it unless I find anything as interesting as reading books.

But before I bore you with the books I read and their reviews here's a glimpse inside my life in last 20 days and insanities embedded therein.

List of events in chronological order:

1. My Birthday

2. My cousin's Marriage

3. Meeting a lost friend after a long time of 10-12 years

4. A Night-Out with friends for a friend's B'Day

1. My Birthday

Well, It was the worst ever....I literally got muffed-up. Don't even wanna think about it forget blog in detail. I would rather not say much.

2. My Cousin's Marriage

I decided to attend her wedding a day prior to its schedule and tried to book my tickets but unsurprisingly didn't get it. So had to travel in non-AC class for 12 hours with my parents in AC class.

I tried to pass hours reading but could not as people around asked to switch off the lights and I did reluctantly.

I was battered and tattered by the time I reached my destination. Later that day I attended my sister's wedding, was thankfully awake throughout the whole ceremony for the very first time and nearly avoided a tiff with the Groom in our very first conversation. I won't have spared him if it wasn't his own wedding. Though I almost lost my temper on some of the Girls from Groom's side but my mom rescued them seeing the warning in my eyes.

Sis, I didn't like your "madrasi" looking husband and any of his family member for their weird, arrogant and exaggerated self-opinion and importance. They are nothing but a bunch of boneheaded, brainless, crazy fools.

All the best Sis..!!

3. Meeting a lost friend after a long time of 10-12 years

Met a friend of mine after a long time. I would have not recognized her ever if she wouldn't have told her name. Both of us were really more shocked than surprised to see each other.

She was all howling, shouting to see me( I doubt...)...well, I didn't notice this unless my friends told me this. She complimented or insulted me saying I was more "handsome"( I've never been one...) then back in school than I'm now and I realized She was more blind then than she is now.

We took each other's no. and promised to catch up soon.

4. A Night-Out with friends for a friend's B'Day

"I fell asleep and don't even remember if the cake was cut or not."

Conclusion: I'm the weirdest person with even more weird luck to act as magnet for troubles. I should be forbidden to set foot on anything auspicious.

Now the Books...

Here are the books and their ratings that I read in last 2-3 weeks and will post their reviews soon.

1. To kill a Mockingbird by Harper lee

My Rating : 4/5

2. Ladies Coupé -by Anita Nair

My Rating: 3/5

3. The Fixer by Bernard Malamud
My Rating: 2.5/5

4. The Conch Bearer by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
My Rating: 3.5/5

The Secret : The Sacred & Not So Sacred

2009-11-10T05:06:00.000-08:00

The Secret By Rhonda Byrne

Price: Rs 251/-

Of all the words that exist I believe the word "Secret" is most "beckoning". The moment one sees it somewhere or hears it...he/she is instantly pulled into it. It's human to have an unrestrained desire to know information that have been kept hidden. Every living or non-living soul in the world has some or the other secret and each of them feels an abstruse desire to know other's secret without revealing their own.

But then there are some greatest of them ....well..that's what they seem to profess ...who are way too brave, bold and daring that they go onto reveal their secrets( I wonder if they truly mean when they call it Secret...) not only to just few closed ones but to the whole world. And the best way to do so is through the medium of entertainment....such as Film, TV show, Newspaper....and of course Books.

Last month...I picked Rhonda Byrne's The Secret given to my so called human desire to know all secrets in the world. One night I even dreamed myself as the President of United States and hence in the power to know every Secret in the world...courtesy Hollywood's National Treasure : Book of Secrets.

Now the Book....
Some Good Points....

1. The hardcover looks great
2. Pages are all glossy and feel aberrant in my hands
3. Every chapter starts with a picture of an Alpenliebe candy
4. And the teaser given at the back...Huh..!!
5. And talks mostly and only about "Law of Attraction"

One and the only Bad Point:
It's bore to the core.

If I say I hated it...would be too much but then I can't help say that It's boring.
The book is heavily focused on wealth and creating abundance through law of attraction. "The Secret" is a self-help book which tries to convince the reader to be happy now, and to think happy thoughts all the time in order to attain any goal in life. I agree with positive thinking but not to the extend that this book explained its magic and power.

It is really only the power of positive thinking, which, I agree is very influential in our lives. This book is a bunch of quotes from "experts" of this theory. Some of it are good, helpful or insightful, but when Rhonda Byrne says that she learned everything that there is to know about quantum physics because she just felt like learning about it and believed that she could learn it, and how she doesn't exercise or eat healthy but still weighs 110 pounds simply by thinking herself thin, I want to vomit. I couldn't take it.

Needless to say that there are people who have loved and praised it but then they seriously need some help..not the self-help ones.
I'll ask you not to buy the book as its pdf is easily available.

My Ratings : * *

It also said that if one thinks too much about something...he/she would positively have it through Law of Attraction.
Next instant...
I think...I'll meet Katrina Kaif and she'll fall in love with me and eventually marry me. I kept on thinking it throughout the day...but ...what...?
Like you don't know...huh..!!

The Sacred Secret by Ravi Kapur
Price: Rs 250/-

About this Book:
This book tells about the seven wonders of the world and the spiritual secrets behind them.
Someone dies...leaves a letter behind asking his descendants to go look for seven wonders of the world and seven most influential personalities in the history and find about their secrets and power.
This is a well told story and interesting too for its different plot. Though at times you feel you should just leave it aside and get on with something more interesting but, mind you, it takes its pace gradually.
I liked it but not much given to few boring chapters and hence would give it not more than three stars.
My Ratings: * * *

Some more Books and their Reviews

2009-11-04T22:37:00.000-08:00

Here's a quick glance over a list of some of the books that I've finished reading and a short review for all those who might be interested.

1. Six Suspects by Vikas Swarup

It's Vikas's second book after Q & A. Like you all know that "slumdog millionaire" is an adaptation of the novel Q & A by Indian author and diplomat Vikas Swarup and won many oscars for reasons unknown to me.

But I'm sure Six Suspects wouldn't get anywhere near to it. But if well made by a Bollywood director except for Ram Gopal Verma...it is sure to win, at the very least, some zee cine award...or something like that.

Now as for the plot...the book tells us a story about Vicky Rai, the corrupt son of a corrupt politician, who kills a young woman in a fit of rage. Despite the presence of several witnesses during the murder, Vicky is acquitted by the Indian judicial system which is not a rarity in our country. When Vicky is shot dead at a party (now that is extremely rare for it to happen here in our country) celebrating the verdict, six suspects emerge: a Bollywood actress, a tribal, a petty thief, an American visitor, a bureaucrat and a politician. Each has a motive, each has a gun, and each one's life is filled with coincidence.

Vikas Swarup is good but not at his very best...that's how I felt. Though..the book is readable and sometimes doesn't fail to amuse you but what struck me hard is the way Vikas Swarup smartly and brilliantly encompasses modern India's many issues in four hundred seventy pages. Terrorism, poverty, unemployment, illiteracy, and endemic institutional corruption and lots more. Well...that's obvious as it comes from the position he holds for Indian Govt.

If you want to have a good time pass....and wanna watch an indian bollywood movie through a book...then this a book for you.

My Ratings are : * * * and half

2. Afterwards by Jaishree Misra

Jaishree Misra is one of my favorite author for the way she weaves complex emotions into the plot of her books with an ease that they straight away seep through your heart.

Well this book tells us a story, set in the backdrop of Kerala and London, of a failed marriage....love of a man for another man's wife....their burgeoning relationship followed by, in the end, loss of lives and the flood of excruciating emotions that one goes through "Afterwards".

My Ratings are : * * *

Book Review: Twilight Series

2009-11-04T00:28:00.000-08:00

Twilight Series

Author: Stephenie Meyer

Price: Rs 1400

Connaught place isn't far from my place in NOIDA. It's about 30-45 mins distant. So once in a week one can easily spot me strolling down its wide yet crowded pathways with some or the other friends of mine. So, like so many times, One day I went out again with a close friend of mine who happens to be an avid reader but not as serious as me.

We were simply taking a walk down the pathways in a brightly lit CP taking in its exquisite and unparalleled beauty when all of a sudden it dawned upon me that my dear friend wasn't walking beside me anymore. I looked around and found her nowhere in the crowd.

It's only then you realize power of your mind when thousands of sick thoughts cross through it in a fraction of seconds. It was only a moment before I could feel my muscles go stiff with fear and anxiety that I happen to look down and there I found her, to my relief, bend on her knees looking down over a set of books available for sale by the roadside stall. Well, these roadside book stalls are quite a common thing to spot around CP and mind you they offer original as well as the pirated copy at reasonable prices.

Once I found her with anxiety throbbing through my veins, I realized she's as much a serious reader as I am and seeing the same level of love toward books as I have in my heart,my tension,anger and fear...all subsided.

I walked up and knelt down just beside her. To my surprise, I found her eyes wide with a look of horror into them....I wondered and looked in the direction of her gaze and found a set of four books in her hand. Only then did I realize it's not horror rather boundless love for a things called "Books" and found myself a lot more behind her in terms reading and love for books.

Having seen me kneeling beside her, she passes the books in my hand and goes on to explain me in detail about the book ,which was then followed by hundreds of "wow!" and some strange sounds with her eyes glinting sharp over the books in my hand.

It was then she introduced me to Stephenie Meyer and her four books with three of her books sequel to one another in sequence.

Her first book : "Twilight" which was soon followed by a sequel "New Moon"...which led to another sequel "Eclipse" to be followed by the last book in series "Breaking Dawn". That was more than enough to convince me of writer's immense talent and power of imagination.

I wondered at the calibre and ability of writer to write 4 books one after the other..bound around the same story and all of them being the bestseller. Well that's quite obvious for she wouldn't have come up with the next book had her previous book been a disaster. I didn't buy the book then as I was short of money then and had already bought books for the week.

After that It started to feel quite usual to go through same experience everytime I went out with a female friend and finally after having seen so much of drama and madness, I eventually buy the whole set.

I start with the first book and finish it in just 3 days....

I start with the second book and finish it in 3 days...and now I'm reading the third one...it's incredibly great so far.

Let me give you a glimpse of its storyline first....

The whole series is a love story with loads of twists and turns.

Twilight is told by 17-year-old Bella Swan who is character so accurate and well described that you'll find yourself falling in love with her as you turn page after page.

And it's not just Bella...there are other characters which, I bet, would steal your heart away with their beautiful and apt description.

It's a story about Bella swan who happens to fall in love with Edward Cullen who possess an other-worldly and irresistible beauty and grace to which Bella is drawn.

Twilight is the tale of Bella and Edward's burgeoning relationship, brimming with standard teenage drama alongside the unexpected, because, after all, Edward and his family are vampires. These immortal friends have chosen to deny their urge to drink human blood, instead slaking their thirst with the blood of animals. Bella soon finds out, however, that not all vampires in her life are constrained by such scruples.

Mind you its a triangular love story which you'll find only when you come to second book.

Twilight is an easy and enjoyable read. When reading Twilight one really connects with the characters and their emotions, regardless how much of a macho man you claim to be. Its first-person viewpoint keeps the the pages turning. This isn't a masterpiece of literary achievement, however. You have to take it for what it is –- a unique and entertaining, if not flawlessly written, story.

Twilight will almost certainly appeal to teenage girls and many women of all ages, but probably not to the majority of males not at the very least by same level.

In a nutshell....It's a book for everyone and must for every girl. Its romantic theme, gripping plot with simple writing style would make you fall in love with it and keep you hooked for very long.

Though I'm still reading the third in series but I don't doubt giving it all 5 out of 5.

A perfect book for every reader...!!

In the end there's something else I wanna tell you all.....

I have a friend who I keep telling to read books and even gave her few but she never read them. She never took any interest in reading. It was one day after I finished Twilight that I asked her again to read ...if not the whole book but at the very least 2-3 chapters of it.

After loads of prodding...she, eventually, gave in and started with the book...

And this is what she texted me after a week.....

"I'm sorry Raj...I know..I'm bugging you a lot with this twilight thing but I can't help. Twilight is making me completely mad....I even saw the movie after I read the book...wow..!!

I'm not able to think beyond it....i'll soon be buying the whole lot very soon...all four.

Thank you so much for giving me this. I'm not able to concentrate on anything...All I think of Edward and Bella...sometimes...I re-read it and it's not only me who's smitten....there are a whole lot of them back in college who are as mad as i am.

I know...M sounding all weird but then that's how it is..:)"

I smile in response...!!!

Books and Life

2009-11-03T01:08:00.000-08:00

I know it's been really long since i have come up with any post of late...but now things wouldn't be the same anymore. I'm back to my world with loads of things up on mind and will soon be putting them up on this part of cosmos too. Until now..I was too occupied with more important things in my life...things that had to be done before I could start with less important things but now when I'm over with those...I'm all set to entertain and amuse you all with my posts.

While I was busy doing my daily chores there was one thing that never left my side...not even for a second. It's the only thing I need to survive alone apart from basic necessities of life.

They were none other than my "books". In the last few days I got to read some amazing books...some bestsellers..some classics...some "chicklits" too and I'm still on my way to read even more.

I'll be putting detailed reviews of them all on my blog very soon but for now i'll just let you know the books that you can buy and enjoy and the ones you should stay away from.

I'll be putting Book Reviews including their details and everything....Bestseller list for the month....Books you must read and have and books that you should avoid.

Anyway...These are some of the books that I've been reading in last few months and here's a quick view of their details and ratings in case you're in too much of hurry to buy and can't wait to have their complete and honest review by me.

1. Twilight Series

Author: Stephenie Meyer

a)Twilight

Rating : *****

Price: Rs 280

Paperback: 464 pages

Subjects: fantasy, love, teens & young adult

ISBN: 9781904233657

Publisher: Little Brown

Published: February 2007

b)New Moon

Rating: *****

Price: Rs 260

Paperback: 608 pages
Subjects: fiction, horror, love, paranormal, romance
ISBN: 9781904233886
Publisher: Little Brown
Published: September 2007

c) Eclipse
Rating: *****
Price: Rs 300

Paperback: 558 pages
Subjects: fiction, love, romance, science fiction, vampires
ISBN: 9781904233916
Publisher: Atom Books
Published: 2008

d) Breaking Dawn
Rating: *****
Price: Rs 450

Paperback: 640 pages
Subjects: fantasy, fiction, love, romance, vampires
ISBN: 1905654291
Publisher: Hachette
Published: August 2008

2. Faking It
Author: Amrita Chowdhury
Rating: ***
Price: Rs 225
Paperback: 225 pages
ISBN: 8190617321
Publisher: Hachette
Published: June 2009

3. Sister of My Heart
Author: Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

Rating : ****

Price: Rs 310

4. The Secret - Hardcover
by Rhonda Byrne

Rating: ***
Price: Rs 533
Hardcover: 198 pages
Subjects: non-fiction, psychology, self help
ISBN: 9781847370297
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Published: November 2006

5. Keep Off The Grass By Karan Bajaj

Rating: * * *

6. Kite Runner By Khaled Hosseini

Rating : * * *

7. Lashkar by Mukul Deva

Rating: * *

These are just some of the books and there are many more. I'll soon be putting up their reviews too.
Have fun..!!

Guest Blogger Special - Dream Merchant

2009-09-19T09:45:00.000-07:00

This is a beautiful composition so I thought I would share it. I fell in love with it when I read it. I am not sure of the author to acknowledge, yet kudos to him as he laces words beautifully to create a fairytale.

*******************

She dreams of her knight and longs for companionship. As her thought shapes into an expression, the words sway like this..

“In this world full of hurt and pain,
I need someone who would help me through the rain.
To comfort me when Im sad,
Doing everything just to make me glad.

In this world I need a Brave Knight,
Who would never give up any fight.
A knight who would dry away my tears,
Telling me to overcome my fears.

A knight who loves me for who I am inside,
With him there’s nothing more I need to hide.
A person who will still be standing strong,
Even though everything has gone wrong.

I need someone who is willing to give me more,
Someone I can call my Knight In Shining Armor”

And the Knight muses on and fills all his love to pen his promises which flow this way..

“Love is a many splendored thing, they say,
And I believed it when you looked my way,
Out of the blue, things seemed to happen
By chance or destiny, is the question.

Living my life so long, without knowing your existence,
Then came a day we felt each others presence,
Guess what’s meant to be will always find a way,
Love creeps into hearts and decides to stay.

A love so exquisite, yet so intricate,
In a world of only “you and I”
A love we can’t even demonstrate,
A secret we have to keep for life.

I love you, honey, and it’s from the bottom of my heart,
I would wait for the day when you say “I Love you” back,
You make me fly without wings,
You make my heart wants to sing.

Every moment I spent with you,
Is every one of my dreams coming true,
More than words, I want to show you how I feel,
Someday, some place, sometime, I will.

Love is a journey for two,
Step by step, me and you,
The future we can’t see,
Let love lead the way for you and me.”

Their dreams connected and as the fate choose to unite them under the blessings of heaven. And then they lived happily ever after...

**********************************************

There are times when life plays the dream merchant. There is a thin line between truth and fantasy. How much ever we wish we want our wildest dream to be true, life will have different plans.. The best way to brave it is to greet the situation with a big smile and savor moment by moment with no expectations..

Love Story..!!

2009-08-29T21:33:00.000-07:00

I came across this beautiful, short and sad love story and thought would share with you all. I was deeply touched by it and hope the same for you too.
Enjoy..!!
10th grade

As I sat there in English class, I stared at the girl next to me. She was my so called "best friend". I stared at her long, silky hair, and wished she was mine. But she didn't notice me like that, and I knew it. After class, she walked up to me and asked me for the notes she had missed the day before and handed them to her. She said "thanks" and gave me a kiss on the cheek. I wanted to tell her, I want her to know that I don't want to be just friends, I love her but I'm just too shy, and I don't know why.

11th grade
The phone rang. On the other end, it was her. She was in tears, mumbling on and on about how her love had broke her heart. She asked me to come over because she didn't want to be alone, so I did. As I sat next to her on the sofa, I stared at her soft eyes, wishing she was mine. After 2 hours, one Drew Barrymore movie, and three bags of chips, she decided to go to sleep. She looked at me, said "thanks" and gave me a kiss on the cheek. I want to tell her, I want her to know that I don't want to be just friends, I love her but I'm just too shy, and I don't know why.

Senior year
The day before prom she walked to my locker. My date is sick" she said; he's not going to go well, I didn't have a date, and in 7th grade, we made a promise that if neither of us had dates, we would go together just as "best friends". So we did. Prom night, after everything was over, I was standing at her front door step. I stared at her as she smiled at me and stared at me with her crystal eyes. I want her to be mine, but she isn't think of me like that, and I know it. Then she said "I had the best time, thanks!" and gave me a kiss on the cheek. I want to tell her, I want her to know that I don't want to be just friends, I love her but I'm just too shy, and I don't know why.

Graduation Day
A day passed, then a week, then a month. Before I could blink, it was graduation day. I watched as her perfect body floated like an angel up on stage to get her diploma. I wanted her to be mine, but she didn't notice me like that, and I knew it. Before everyone went home, she came to me in her smock and hat, and cried as I hugged her. Then she lifted her head from my shoulder and said, "you're my best friend, thanks" and gave me a kiss on the cheek. I want to tell her, I want her to know that I don't want to be just friends, I love her but I'm just too shy, and I don't know why.

A Few Years Later
Now I sit in the pews of the church. That girl is getting married now. I watched her say "I do" and drive off to her new life, married to another man. I wanted her to be mine, but she didn't see me like that, and I knew it. But before she drove away, she came to me and said "you came!". She said "thanks" and kissed me on the cheek. I want to tell her, I want her to know that I don't want to be just friends, I love her but I'm just too shy, and I don't know why.

Funeral
Years passed, I looked down at the coffin of a girl who used to be my "best friend". At the service, they read a diary entry she had wrote in her high school years. This is what it read: I stare at him wishing he was mine, but he doesn't notice me like that, and I know it. I want to tell him, I want him to know that I don't want to be just friends, I love him but I'm just too shy, and I don't know why. I wish he would tell me he loved me! `I wish I did too...` I thought to my self, and I cried.

My Fav Pic(k)

2009-08-06T01:32:00.001-07:00

Ever wondered what's an idle life? For me here it is. I wish I could too sit, as shown in pic above,beneath a tree as green and dense as that,holding a book in my hand,sitting by a beautiful calm lake surrounded by beautiful,grand and breathtaking view all around me,far away from hustle-bustle of big cities. All I wish is this and nothing else in life.
May my wish be granted my lord..!!

Cheers.!!!

2009-07-30T21:34:00.000-07:00

It was one day while I was whiling away my precious time going through Khaled Hosseini’s most popular book “The kite runner” when I happened to come across a part in the book where main protagonist contemplates his life and its iniquities and asks himself “If there is anyway he can turn everything bad he did into good?” It sounded very familiar and then I reflected on that Isn’t this I’ve asked many times to myself as well?

At that very moment an uncommon thought struck my mind if is it really possible or can be made possible that there exists a thing which could cure every problem, right every wrong and render every bad into good. And to my utmost surprise I did find the answer. The only word that rang bells of my mind and struck it real hard was the word
“Alcohol”
But then another thought struck my mind: Not everybody in the world is alcoholic or boozer and hence the word “Alcohol” does not apply universally.

So how should one who abstains from such stuffs should be alleviated of his/her pain?
And only then I decided that I should provide people with real benefits of Alcohol and provide them an insight into how better can they lead their lives without any further complications or trouble once they realize its true potential and worthy cause of its existence. This very post of mine is just to provide them with the difference between “Drinking and Drunkenness”.

Let me make it very clear that it’s alright to be a drinker. According to me Alcohol is one and the only thing that breaks the ice, encourages bonding and no one is any worse for having a swig of the good stuff. Here’s how:
One way to ensure a book becomes a best-seller is to have the Govt ban it,or spread rumours that it is about to do so. That is very common here in India and has happened several times. The one way to ensure higher sales of items that many people indulge in is to ban them. The case of prohibition of alcoholic drinks is as old as history; the case of ban on smoking is recent. Both have proved to be flops wherever they have been tried. America went through many years of prohibition before it discovered it did not work. India tried it in fits and starts in different states and gave up after realising that however stringent the laws, people addicted to drink got it, if not legally, then some spurious substitute which took their lives. Gujarat is the one state which has refused to learn lessons. It was not surprising thus that last month over 150 people died after drinking some poisonous brew.

Drinking is not a vice, drunkenness is. All over the world adults are allowed to drink when and what they like. It is only when they get drunk and misbehave that they are arrested. Drink like a gentleman or a lady; it is a civilized thing to do. It breaks the ice and encourages bonding. If England had no pubs, life in the country would become drab. All over Europe the making of wine has become a fine art. People have wine-cellars in their homes; Europeans have their favourite wine with both meals. No one is any the worse for doing so.

Indians have been drinking since pre-Vedic times. They were mostly home-made stuff or a cottage industry: arrak, mahua, tharra, feni, etc. With the advent of the Europeans, it was enlarged to an industry and we began to brew our own beers, distill whiskey, gin and rum. In recent years, we also started making wines. Vineyards came up in Maharashtra and Karnataka. So we have our own red, white and rose wines as well as Champagne. Many of them are as good as any imported wine, and are good enough to find markets in old wine-producing countries and earn us foreign exchange. Our aim should be to produce good quality beverages with low alcoholic content like lager, cider and wines rather than spirits like whiskey, gin, rum or feni. And at low prices which the poor can afford to buy. But will our stupid politicians ever learn any lessons? The answer is one big “No”. They won’t as they have never been but we can surely change our perspective on how we look at Alcohol and its consumption. Remember excess of anything is bad and it’s not only applicable to alcohol but everything that exists around you.

Alcohol can also help one restore peace all around the world as once you consume it ,irrespective of who you do it with, eventually you end up saying to every fella “ You are my best friend and the only well wisher" and this helps you to get over with animosity toward somebody or something and hence encourages bonding and mutual admiration.

P.S: Let me clear this that I’m a complete teetotaler myself far cry from a dipsomniac but then sometimes I don’t mind having “Do boond zindagi ke” or a lil swig by myself. It’s not that I wanna have it…no…it’s ‘coz I believe in restoration of peace throughout the world and doing that is just a small step toward it ;)

Cheers..!!!

The Notebook

2009-07-28T03:26:00.000-07:00

This has got to be the best Romance I've seen in a long time. This is about Hollywood Flick directed by Nick Cassavetes,starring Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams in a lead pair.Though it came really late to me...as it released in the year 2004..but better late than never. I've always loved romance ...be it in "reel" life or in "real" life...this is one field where I feel invincible. To me,if m ever asked(hopefully I'm asked) about the secret of real success..the word..the only word that rings bells of mind has to be the word "Romance". If you do anything...anything in the world with romance...it is sure to meet its desired destination and success. Be it your relationship with your love or with a friend..or your life..your job..your surroundings...when done with romance,is sure to end with immortal love. Anyway lets not get in there and digress...as this very post is about my take on the movie "The Notebook".
As for the storyline there's nothing extraordinary or exceptional about it. It has the story which anyone must have heard or seen somewhere. Just look at what it’s about – a young lovestruck couple in the 1940s (Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams), their disapproving parents, the predictable enforced separation, the forlorn attempts at happiness with others, and of course the end where the movie ends(noway...m going to reveal the end..watch yourself). But what's remarkable is how it's been told through a movie...how beautifully it's been directed.There are moments so scenic and beautiful that they might jus make your heart skip few beats...like the ones shown in in the year 1940.You may or may not find this as good as i did ,esp those who cringe at the mention of word romance and scoff at it to project their macho or masculine image which to their dismay is not how it is but deep down they are always looking for one short stint with it. But those of you who love romance and are in love would simply love this movie. I highly recommend seeing this film because it has everything that is needed for a truly great love story.
Those of you who wish to watch can have it from me.

Women Power

2009-07-10T22:44:00.000-07:00

“God made man stronger but not necessarily more intelligent. He gave women intuition and femininity. And, used properly, that combination easily jumbles the brain of any man I've ever met.”
- Farrah Fawcett

Why a good job is hard to find

2009-07-09T04:40:00.000-07:00

There are people who are placed in some reputed companies ...and are still waiting for their joining...there are those who are working and are not satisfied with the kind of work they have been assigned with and then there are those who are still struggling to see that very light of their career to led them through the pavement of their life's success. I wonder about this whole scenario currently existing in this troubled times of recession and contemplated a question : Why a good job is hard to find?
I recently came across a column in a newspaper where it says that there is good and bad news for those looking for work in these troubled times. On the positive side, there are at last “native jobs for native workers” as migrant labour heads home. The bad news? The vacancies include meat packing, sorting potatoes, grating carrots, cleaning, and – the least bad options – working as a retail assistant or in a fast-food restaurant. In Spain, strawberries are being harvested by Spaniards for the first time in years. “Picking strawberries is the last resort, but it’s all there is,” said Jose Maria Gomez, a 29-year-old former construction worker, in The New York Times last month.
As one employment agency manager told recently, a new type of job-seeker has emerged. “It’s what I’d call older, middle-aged people who have been in work for 10, 15, 20 years in one place,” she explained, “and now with the climate as it is, they are made redundant and are willing to take on anything. It is heartbreaking.” It is sad seeing highly skilled people being forced to take on semi or unskilled jobs. But while such work may be back-breaking, is it really “heartbreaking” as well?
Having a good job – that is, interesting work in civilised conditions – is clearly preferable to having a bad one. But better a miserable job than no job at all. So with unemployment rising just about everywhere, it might seem an odd time to start a debate on “good work”: what it is and to how create more of it.

But there are some who say that we should be thinking harder about good work cause economic recovery will come, and business needs to be ready for it. But then I believe that It would be difficult to imagine that employees will be attracted to work for a company that has acquired a bad reputation during the recession. Since 1992 the skills levels of employees has risen – indeed, sometimes to higher levels than those required by some employers. But at the same time employees’ freedom to take decisions and organise their work – “employee discretion”, in the jargon – has fallen. In Europe, Scandinavian countries and the Netherlands seem to have achieved both higher skills levels in the workforce but with greater employee discretion as well.

Managers are under pressure. They have too much to do, too little time to do it in, in a market that is unforgiving. They may understand perfectly well the enlightened argument for a less coercive and more accommodating management style. But then the next crisis emerges, the next deadline looms, and you see a reversion to what some people call the JFDI school of management. (The J, D and I stand for Just Do It.) But JFDI management achieves diminishing returns.

There is plenty of demand for good work right now. Worker unrest is rising around the world, with some employees staging sit-ins to try to protect their terms and conditions, while others – of course – have seized managers and held them hostage in recent weeks.
So, which is more important: work, or good work? The protesting workers are so desperate to keep their jobs that they will do almost anything to hold on to them. Their desperation stems in part from the realisation that any job they move on to is likely to be inferior, with lower pay and less job satisfaction.
Jobs are good, but good jobs are better. Managers should be trying to provide the latter. I am with the American psychologist Frederick Herzberg on this one. “If you want people to do a good job, give them a good job to do,” he said. How’s that for a mission statement to lead us out of recession?

But remember not everyone will share the same definition of what a good job is.
“Good work is in the eye of the job holder."

PC in TV

2009-07-06T10:11:00.000-07:00

Just got to know about this wonderful example of some more new technological evolution...so thought of sharing with you all on this very part of cosmos.
A Bristol company is putting a netbook computer inside a Freeview TV set to create a screen-saving TV/PC combination for the UK market. There's nothing new about adding a TV tuner to a PC, but adding a full PC to a TV set is a bit more unusual. That's what Bristol-based Bristol Interactive is doing, with its as-yet-unnamed 22-inch and 32-inch TVs. The 22-inch model shown above is a standard Freeview TV set. Click the remote, however, and you've got what amounts to a built-in Atom-powered netbook showing Windows XP on the TV screen. The PC part also includes a gigabyte of memory, 160GB hard drive, four USB ports, an RJ45 Ethernet port, a circular "air mouse" and a wireless keyboard. (The one in my photo looks like a Hillcrest Loop Pointer.) The screen resolution is 1680 x 1050 pixels, which is far more than you get on a netbook.
Bristol Interactive's chief executive officer Paul Fellows says: "This is a full digital television set: a Freeview chassis for the UK market. The red button works, and the TV is completely independent of the PC functions. You don't have to be in Windows to watch TV."

One thing that's missing is Wi-Fi, because of the reliability issues and the potential for support costs. An Ethernet cable works better if you want video, and Fellows expects this will be a main function: buyers will be using the BBC iPlayer, and watching YouTube and similar videos. Internet radio is another attraction.

You can, of course, run standard Windows software. However, the problem is that users typically sit much closer to a PC screen than they do to a TV set. On-screen text is small enough that you wouldn't want to read it from a TV-watching position.

Fellows thinks the 22-inch model will find a home in bedrooms and kitchens, where its versatility will be attractive, as will the lack of unsightly wiring. (You can use a couple of HomePlug devices to make the Internet connection -- or, if you insist, a USB Wi-Fi plug-in.) The 32-inch model might find a home in living rooms.

Bristol hopes to launch the system in October, with 22-inch models being sold through supermarkets for less than £500.

There's clearly a market for this sort of thing. How often it stretches to £500 is another matter.

At the moment, my standard suggestion for this sort of use is to get an Asus Eee Box, which you can attach to the back of an LCD TV set. But at £300-ish plus the cost of the TV set, that's not really a cheaper option.

Karnal

2009-07-06T07:17:00.000-07:00

It was one day when I found myself gasping for breath ...wait don't get me wrong here...i'm not asthmatic..it happened as an outcome of sitting idle at my place for very long and as a result of prolonged boredom. I tried real hard to keep myself busy with books but then you hardly get unputdownable stuff from a library like British Council and as a result had to manage with books by Manju kapur and likes which I found very effective to test one's true ability to endure crap and deal with boredom but you can't keep up a fight of this sort for long...you are sure to succumb against such rare talents and their books. At last I was left with zilch.
But then thought of my friends...thought that they are the ones who can help me escape from such long boredom but then to my bad luck they were all busy considering there are only few..thanks to my misanthropic attitude.But I somehow communicated my feelings to them.

Like they say...a friend in need is a friend indeed..these friends did come to my rescue. We all planned a short jaunt to Karnal in Haryana and hence headed in the direction of it on this sunday. I thought this would definitely bring some relief but never thought ..not even for a second that I shall be soon embarking upon one of the most beautiful jaunt of my life. We left early in the morning at 6:30 in two cars from Delhi to karnal. We've had fun of our life on our way to karnal. We kicked off with a breakfast in a dhaba called Punjabi Tadka which thankfully served us edible Paranthe with white butter and mineral water.Once we reached karnal ...it felt unbeleivingly good to see such beautiful surrounding all around us. We went boating for half an hour in karnal lake..which I thought was the fastest way to have six pack abs. We rode happily in scorching heat with my friend's faces gone red and mine black but it was worth of all the hardships we've had to go through. Clicked as many photographs in whatever possible poses and locations s.a facing "tittu teastall" and no. of crazy of them and finally came back by 7:00 in the evening. But It felt amazingly awesome to have such a wonderful jaunt with all my friends by my side.This day would indelibly remain in my heart forever.
Thanks each one of you who despite of their own problems did so much for me. You guys are my true friends.M missing you all :(
Hope we'll have one more very soon ..!!
Thanks..!!

Very True..!!

2009-07-03T06:37:00.000-07:00

“ If people were as captivated by public affairs as they are by erotic ones, the economy would be very strong.”

Incredible INDIA

2009-06-08T07:46:00.000-07:00

click on picture to get an enlarged view.

It just feels way too good to see my India and only country as one of the topics discussed at HARVARD BUSINESS PUBLISHING.
Here's the link: http://blogs.harvardbusiness.org/

IPL is All Bakwaas..!!

2009-06-02T08:01:00.000-07:00

I do not know if I'm the first or just one of those few people who criticize so called latest Indian version of cricket but I ,in all sense,hate this very concept of cricket. I've always felt that any match ..be it Cricket or Football..each team has to have that killer instinct,unshakable determination not to lay down arms and should feel that fire to destroy and slaughter the other team. Every single player must know of their responsibility to perform not just for themselves but for the country they represent. Only when you feel fire to kick your opponent's ass then it turns out to be an interesting Game. But with IPL ,it's all about crap.

I'm not against the format..20-20 does make the Game interesting and I simply love 20-20 game but what I do not understand is how two people who played against each other at some point of time and felt the need to kick each other's arse... can now come together to represent the same team and still feel the geniality.
Can you imagine Symonds and Bhajji representing the same team(I know they do not..but imagine),Bhajji bowls someone out and Symonds hugging him? No!!..A big No is what gets out of everyone but then IPL can make your weirdest dreams come true. I wonder what if IPL had been introduced say some ten yrs ago..we would have seen Venkatesh Prasad and Aamir Sohail playing together for the same team...simply incredible.

As far as my opinion is concerned IPL to me is all bakwaas. It's more of a game of money rather representing true meaning of sports and sportmanship.I know many of you would try to confute my point of view by stating that IPL has managed to involve the media and the masses, it is much bigger than a sport here. IPL has done this ...is doing this and would do this,that and God only knows what. But to me it just does not signify true sport.

A team which is representing some big billionaire rather than a country or a state, a team where players play together just because they have been bought by one common man,a team where players play just for the sake of money,a team which is named Kolkata Knight Riders and has just one Mr. Ganguly is just beyond my ability to understand the meaning or importance of true sports.

In a nutshell...IPL seems all bakwaas to me despite of its rising popularity,success stories and huge amount of money involved.
I'm simply averse to IPL and its underlying concept.

These pictures have more to say about IPL than me.

A Brush with History

2009-05-31T01:56:00.000-07:00

I'm one of those many guys who have never been able to score more than 70 in history. It's not as if I dislike or hate History ...It's just that I've never ever found it interesting enough to read. I still remember the days when we used to visit Humayun's tomb,Red Fort and Qutub Minar as part of our school picnics and while exploring such places I've always longed to know the well hidden secrets and wisdoms lying inside under those white graves. I've always found it interesting and fascinating enough to know of the lifestyles,cultures and traditions of different regions,music, dance, painting, sculptures, art and architecture and lots more.But then despite of such yearning and craving I could never get them straight. History has always baffled me.

But this monday...while I was searching through various books at British Council..I happened to come across two books based on history ...there was one named "The Miniaturist" by Kunal Basu and the other "Rani" by Jiashree Misra. I got tremendously inspired once I went through their teaser one by one and thought "Let me create a History by reading Histories". It was something I never dreamed doing forget even thinking or wanting to do it 'coz I always felt that "History and Me" can never go together. But then I borrowed these two books and finally thought of doing impossible and then I start off with the one by kunal basu.

Before I let you know what It felt like reading first few pages of it ..Let me give you an insight of its storyline.
The Miniaturist By Kunal Basu:

Bihzad is the most gifted and the most wayward member in the royal workshop, the son of the chief artist at the court of Akbar, the Great Mughal. When the emperor decides to move the court from Agra to his new capital at Fatehpur Sikri, he takes the brilliant young man with him. Everyone expects that he will one day inherit his father’s position.
But Bihzad’s glittering career is brought to an abrupt end by an unpardonable crime born of unrequited love. Banished from Hindustan, he will return years later, penniless and blind, to paint his last picture: a portrait of the dying emperor, Akbar, who had cast him out of his empire and his heart.

wow!!! This is what got out of me once I went through it and thought would be hell of a fun to go through it. I got all set ready to start with it and then read the first page,second and then read till 11 pages of it. And page no. 11 was the last i could stand. I just couldn't go beyond it. Despite of several attempts to go beyond 11th page I found myself drowsing over it. I thought I would better give it to someone who might tell me the whole story orally rather me going through it word by word. Not surprisingly I failed at history again.

And then again I rise from ashes and think to deal with History and my long term phobia with History. Then I thought I would start off with the book by Jaishree Misra considering that the last book I read from her called "Afterwards" was way too good and hoped that this would be good too even though it was based on history.

Rani by Jaishree Misra has undoubtedly an interesting teaser to urge you to go through it and that is exactly what it did to me as well. "Rani" is a historical novel based on the life of Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi and was published in December 2007 and banned soon after by the Uttar Pradesh state government in India.
Its story : once upon a time, a daughter was born to a nobleman. She grew up and married a king. And they lived happily ever after.

Nah, that’s so boring. The Rani of Jhansi’s story began when she wed the ailing — and much older — king of the small Maratha kingdom. Through personal trials and those of the princely state was honed a character so fine that it lives on long after the queen died fighting British imperialists on the battlefield.
Beginning with her girlhood in the house of the deposed Peshwa, it follows her through her grand wedding (three pages devoted to the bride’s toilette!), her ascent to de facto power and, ultimately, her decision to rebel against the British during the mutiny of 1857.

Facts are the base of the story. Misra adds fiction in the form of the Rani’s romance with the British agent in charge of Jhansi, Robert Ellis. Horseback courtship leads to together-nights at the library and a supremely touching scene in the garden.

I, to my disbelief,managed to read through all of its pages and and found it languid, visual and richly textured, Rani is indeed the book to curl up with on a lazy afternoon. Doze off, dream a little.

And for the very first time...I managed to overpower my so called phobia with History.

Conclusion: There is nothing wrong with reading about History or reading historical books. History can be fascinating and interesting depending on how is it communicated. A big thank goes to Jaishree Misra for her wonderful,brilliant and unrivaled mastery of story telling. Kudos to you..Ma'am!!

One Night @ Project

2009-04-22T06:49:00.000-07:00

Pls refer to my older post "Last Minute" before you start off with this.

Task: Final year Major Project for B.Tech Computer Science/I.T

Date Of Announcement: some date in January

Group Formation: By the end of February( Though half of the students were through with their projects by then.)It has three of us.

Total no. of Presentation: 4 (once in every month) and demonstration of certain modules in a project.

Presentation 1: Given by Rahul considering I was bedridden...!!

Presentation 2: Given by Rahul again...me still recuperating..!! Couldn't show even the design of any module.

Presentation 3: Bunked...had nothing to present and demonstrate.

Project status by now : Nothing...!! Now started fighting over the topic of project to be given.

My status: Have added some extra kilos to my weight and at the receiving end of constant admonition from my Group members. Ashwina being a girl member was a tad more maddened than Rahul.

Project status after few days: Nothing....decided to take help of a raging bull of a teacher..sala insane,a complete maniac, a paranoiac ...brainsick arsehole..!!

15 days of tuition and a day before final presentation this Brainsick Professor rose his hands up..shirked his responsibilities and backed out. I wish I would have shoved all his CDs ,books and processor up right in his arse. Guess...How he would have been referred as afterwards: "Professor Processor".

Now a day before final presentation...I started off...decided the name of project and started working on it. Not to mention...Ashwina did a great job at handling many things in just one day and gave it all she could. A day and night of hard work and it all culminated with a ready project of ours by tomorrow morning..!!

Prepared the presentation in the morning itself and later that day...successfully demonstrated the complete working of our project.
It actually got done in last few minutes...and somewhere I was reminded by Ashwina of my innate talent of getting things done by last minutes.

I named my Project F.B.I Information and Crime Reporting system. Now I can take a sigh of relief ...AAh..!!

conclusion: whatever I do is done inadvertently and those of you who know me...have to trust me as whatever or however it is ...It would be done before it meets its doom.
You got to trust me..!!

Kindly ignore the pics of wanted people..!!

Value Money..!!

2009-04-20T05:28:00.000-07:00

This post comes after I came across a sad incident this morning that made me to think and rethink of the ways we "youth" go on to spend our money so extravagantly and lavishly just for the sake of fun,amusement and entertainment and do not bother to reckon what "useful" and how "meaningful" could those wad of cash have been, had we put them for a better purpose.
I know this post of mine would raise many eyebrows and certain arguments from certain people claiming that "It's their money...They've earned....They'll spend it the way they like and no doubt need no advice on how to put them to better use."
Guys here's what I witnessed today:
It was half past 11 o'clock in the morning when I was busy taking my brunch sitting on my dinning table in an AC room and thoroughly relishing on the food served by my mom when I heard someone saying something over my gate and went out to confront him. As i stepped out I saw a lil girl not more than 4 yrs old,barefooted,poorly dressed in a distorted pink frock with few coins in her hand winking at me due to oppressive heat outside and asking me to pay her few bucks. I couldn't take my eyes off this lil gal who at this age ,at this time of the day should be at some school but was begging me for money in such an oppressive heat and that too barefooted. I opened my gate and called her in and checked if she's got anyone else along with her. At fist she was hesitant to come in but got in after she saw my mom standing behind me. I thought Do I really look like a devil? Anyway jokes apart...As we sat with this gal ...my kind hearted mom asked why is she begging? What is she doing here all alone(even though mom said she was begging..but mums are like that)..and I waited for her to reply.
This is what she said and the way she said:
Meri maa ko bukhar aya hai...to aaj mere ko bhej diya pse lane k liye.
mere baap mr gya (when we questioned her about her father)
meri behan hai..wo dusre jagah mangri hai.
mjhe pse dedo.
Tears welled up in my eyes as i saw this lil gal with five 1 Rupee coin in her lil hand ,moving around places in scorching heat barefooted for her mom.
We gave her the food..which she refused at first but later had it,enough money for her not to beg for month, 4 tablets of paracetamol,a bottle of water and nothing for her foot as we had nothing of her size. She left unsmiling....without thanking us for neighbour's gate. While she left...she left us with a deep sense of sadness about poor people and poverty that prevails in our society still in larger quantity. I came back to food..which had gone from brunch to lunch by then and looked at myself and then the room and every comfort it had. I thought of the ways I spend my money ....on useless shopping,food,movies n all and went onto think what those amount could have meant for this lil gal and her family. I know many of you try to confute me and talk about luck,destiny,your money n loads of stuff. But don't you think you should do something for these genuinely poor kids when you've been bestowed with such gifts of life. Buy yourself one shirt less...do not eat out as frequently as we do...watch three movies a month than four and see what you save and then spend it on someone who really need those amount to have one day's meal.
I do not know if you'll follow what I say but I will for sure.
But guys....pls value money. Please.
Lets change ourselves to change the world that surrounds us.

New Name

2009-03-28T22:01:00.000-07:00

Finally I got a new name for my blog. I wanted to change it long back but couldn't quite come up with something new and interesting. Let me tell you it's one hell of a job to find a new name for yourself on this part of cosmos as every word you think of has already been registered by some or the other user(even your own name). There is one tough competition out there. Having lost all his hope to find a new login name ...one of my friend finally came up with a user name that in itself shows the hardship he might have had to go to eventually decide on something like this: willievergetaloginname@gmail.com.
Every time I came up with some name for my blog and thought would work ...it was already used by someone else. I have always tried to do things differently and stand out from rest of the crowd and this is what prompted me to look for a new name. I don't like to share anything which is mine with anybody except for those who I like and that's when I decided to look for a new name for my blog. The name I've zeroed on is quite synonymous with my own personality.There may be many anecdotist but I'm in a league of my own. I may not be best but I know I'm better to be best. Hope you'll all like this name and would continue to help in my endeavour to be best.
Thanks..!!

Far From Reality

2009-03-09T22:08:00.000-07:00

Though there are numerous things that I simply can't stand but I hate nothing more than to have found myself amid people who talk incessantly about some subjects they are least aware of and believe they are the only right ones in the world and one lil attempt to correct them can really prove fatal in the sense either they end up crying or leave you ending up in wrathful state. Though I usually avoid coming face to face with such people as this seems impossible to lead them to right path but sometimes you can't help esp when you are confronted by one of your friends.

It happened while me along with some of my friends had got together two days back to celebrate my so called and till date recovery when one of my friend( name withheld...and not a "friend" anymore)accompanied by his girlfriend pointed to me saying that he's not had any graduation so far and having worked for three consecutive years(started from call center) has enough of experience and is contemplating to get one fake graduate degree from some University(obviously fake) and once he's obtained it..it would stand him equivalent to those who drag their arse for three or four years in some fucking college in some fucking University(I took notice of two Fs ) and still end up jobless. According to him and his girlfriend they are far more better with experience and knowledge than those who simply waste their time graduating from some college and end up jobless.

Having heard this,I was boiling over inside me with anger and despite of the fact I consider it senseless to answer to such loathsome bunch of buggers I couldn't help myself responding to him and finally took him head on. I on behalf of all those who work so hard for three or four consecutive years to get through a degree, had to make him realize their worth and realization of his senseless ,abominable and disgusting dreamy world of his own.

I told him of people who are there in IITs and NITs and other engineering colleges or in some university are not brainless to have devoted no. of years to their graduation. It's not about just those years and getting a degree...It's about the hard work and routine task that we are made to go through each and every day. As far as graduation is concerned a graduate qualification is extremely important in professional fields such as engineering.
If you study the personnel profile of any large engineering or consulting firm, you will find that almost all those who head departments or who hold key senior management positions have master's degrees, apart from a few who have proven their worth through long years of service(still they are graduate). Do not underestimate the value of a master's degree or any in any discipline; the fact that many people take time off from their careers to catch up with higher education.......so it's a fact that post graduation or graduation is very beneficial for building up ones career in any stream. And If you think one fake degree can really work for you...Go ahead...we'll see you in jail rather in some firm. Get as many degrees as you can but no matter how hard you try your arse you can't even stand equal to those who get their degree with stars on their marksheet forget those with honors.
If you fail to do so shove all of those degrees up to your arse.
I feel pity for you and your girlfriend who was too like you. Get out of your world as soon as you can before it's too late.

This very friend of mine even went on to add that he's been offered some job by Google and has refused to go considering it too low for his profile.
Here's my answer to that:
Fuck Off..!!

HOLY BLACK

2009-03-09T06:29:00.000-07:00

It was me with my Dad on one occasion when we went to receive few friends who had never been to India until recently at the airport and soon after they arrived they were met with the beauty of Delhi and its surroundings. But it was while they were plying on magnificent DND flyover when I was left speechless when one of them asked: Isn't this that "holy" river Yamuna...oh! This has gone so "black". Isn't Delhi Govt. doing anything about it?
I couldn't say much but I found myself pondering over his two words : Holy and Black.
I noticed that Yamuna River has been reduced to a dirty and polluted canal thanks to the tonnes of sewage that makes its way to what has become an apology for a river. DESPITE DOZENS of flyovers, towering buildings, huge multiplexes, fun parks, metro and much more, India’s capital New Delhi is not at par with other major cities of the world. A number of reasons are behind Delhi’s ailing position and pollution of river Yamuna is one of them.From big industries and factories to people living in big colonies, slums and rural areas, all pollute the river with impunity because of untreated water. Increasing pollution of the Yamuna has now become an international issue and a cause of concern for environmentalists.A number of projects were launched by the government to clean the Yamuna, but till date nothing has happened. Not only the government, but also several NGOs are working to clean the Yamuna. Yet the situation is worsening by the day. You can’t stand for even a few minutes on the Yamuna’s bank at some places due to the foul smell of the stagnant water.Recently, Delhi chief minister Sheila Dixit claimed that Yamuna would be cleaner up to 70 per cent before the Commonwealth Games in 2010. Ironically, the Delhi government itself submitted an affidavit before the Supreme Court stating that the Yamuna clean drive would not be complete before 2012. In its affidavit, Delhi Jal Board (DJB) said that the river remained a ‘sewage canal’ due to the 143 unauthorised colonies, 1,080 slums and villages that present a problem in collection of sewage water that flows into the Yamuna untreated.
I wonder If this goes to continue with the same pace we are not too far from our own devastation or extirpation. I don't know If I can do much about it but I would want all those of you who go through my blog ...please save water,save environment,plant as many trees as you can ,keep your surroundings clean..and help me in my endeavor to get this message across as many people as you can.
One small step by all of us can save the world. Let us all promise to make it a better world.
Last but not the least, London’s Thames River was as polluted as Yamuna in the 1960s, but the excellent clean up model was successful in cleaning up the river. We can expect the same from the DJB’s new project and hopefully we will see a clean Yamuna by 2012 but let's just not depend completely on DJB...Nothing can be done unless or until we acknowledge the problem and lend a helping hand to it.

Diving into Words..!!

2009-02-23T07:43:00.000-08:00

This means truly falling in love with the books.Regardless of where you are,how you are and what you are..once you are in love with books this seems completely sane and credible enough.

Shocked...!!

2009-01-27T22:26:00.000-08:00

I'm falling short of words to express my disgust at what happened on female revellers at a Mangalore Pub. It's a shame on all of us who claim to be a part of Modern India though we are really not as we claim to be. This is outrageous in a democratic country like us where we talk of fundamental rights and still leave no chance to put shame over it. This is truly atrocious and those who claim to protect the cultures and traditions of India are actually monsters and menace to the society. It's because of these people Indians have always been into bad books of foreigners and this is why we are always looked down upon with so much of contempt and hatred. The thing that I find most infuriating is How could you even think of slapping and molesting women? Are they not as good as we are? Are they not part of this country?
Don't they deserve as much freedom as we men do? And even if It's about culture crap why don't these bastards go after those men who imbibe alcohol,rape women,molest them,beat them,harass them and much more. Disgusting..!! Though this is just a blog and I don't know if I can make myself heard using this platform but I want all those of you who go through my blog esp women...refuse to tolerate such drivel,refuse to tolerate any such insult. In the name of our religions and our culture these "impotents" are breeding hooliganism. Let us all show these eunuchs that we stand equal and we won't stand such act of cruelty and disgust.
Anger is boiling over inside me and I wish to come across such hooligans so that I could make them learn what It takes to be real man.
I hope our deaf Govt takes proper and adequate actions against such immoral people and put them behind the bars for more than 10 years of their lives and eventually hang them up to death.
Respect Girls.....Respect Women.
Remember...Women are the real architects of society and they would always be.

Mastercard moment - 1

2009-01-27T22:21:00.000-08:00

Following is a conversation with one of my friends. One of the “fast girls” I came across and hence took the liberty to...

X: so tell me, how do you rate girls?

Me: huh?

X: how do you know when they are 7 or 8 out of 10?

My mind - "Let's have some fun, shall we?"

Me: okay got it. If you can wear short skirts, a fairly-enough-revealing top and then turn me on, you are 7!

X: Then I am definitely not 7!

Me: Wait! If you can sport Victoria Secret and walk with wings on ramp, you are 8!

X: :O
go on go on!

Me: If you are Jessica Alba or Keeley hazell, you are 9!

X: :D

Me: And 10 is reserved for Greek goddesses with the power to exaggerate carnal pleasures. yeah that is it!

X: blink blink!

MasterWork-1

2009-01-24T21:37:00.000-08:00

Though I've always come crystal clear of the things that I love and those I can't stand but there is one thing that I've always kept underground(which is going to be uncovered here), something that I love doing most and have got an amazing collection of it. "Photography" has been my passion and love for many years and I've always shown an intense desire to capture beautiful moments of one's life and wonders all around the world. Though I still lack the proper equipments and technical knowledge of master photography but I plan to acquire it all once I start earning. But I've made sure that by the time I start with my own collection ,I'll get as many masterpiece as I can and try to gain an insight into this outstanding and ingenious work. At present I've say around more than 10000 pictures of almost all types and now I am going to put some of them up on my blog so as to enable you all enjoy the amazing moments captured. These are some of them from my most cherished possession:

These are the first in the series of masterwork and I'll keep putting more up on my blog as per your request.

Incredible Jumeirah

2009-01-24T20:51:00.000-08:00

There are no limits to human imagination and when these imaginations start to take definite and real shape then comes a real revolution marking a change in history of things developed so far by human beings. Palm Jumeirah in Dubai is a perfect example of architecture at its best and shows there is nothing that can ever put a stop to creativity and ingenuity in the world. I was speechless,astounded and stunned to see beauty and creativity at its ever best.
The thought of an artificial island in itself is out of this world but when this "out of this world thought" goes to be real then you are taken aback by power of human mind and its incredible creativity.
The Palm Jumeirah is an artificial island created using land reclamation by Nakheel, a company owned by the Dubai government. It is one of three islands called The Palm Islands which extend into the Persian Gulf, increasing Dubai’s shoreline by a total of 520 km. The Palm Jumeirah is the smallest and the original of three Palm Islands (Palm Jumeirah, Palm Jebel Ali and Palm Deira) under development by Nakheel. It is located on the Jumeirah coastal area of the emirate of Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The Jumeirah Palm island is primarily a retreat and residential area for living, relaxation, and leisure. It will contain themed boutique hotels, three types of villas (Signature Villas, Garden Homes, and Canal Cove Town Homes), shoreline apartment buildings, beaches, marinas, restaurants, cafes and a variety of retail outlets.The Jumeirah Palm island is primarily a retreat and residential area for living, relaxation, and leisure. It will contain themed boutique hotels, three types of villas (Signature Villas, Garden Homes, and Canal Cove Town Homes), shoreline apartment buildings, beaches, marinas, restaurants, cafes and a variety of retail outlets. The Palm Jumeirah will contain over 25 of the top international hotel brands including Movenpick Resort Oceana Palm Jumeirah, Moevenpick Resort & Spa Palm Jumeirah, Antara, Fairmont Palm Residence, Radisson SAS, Hilton, Metropolitan, Shangri La, One and Only Royal Mirage, Starwood, Marriott, Oberoi, Kempinski, Chedi, Taj Exotica Resort and Spa, Anantara Resort, and Dusit. Other developments will include Al Basri Building, Al Habool Building, Al Anbara Building, Emerald Palace, Oceana, and the Trump Plaza and Marina Residences. Construction began on the Palm Jumeirah island in June 2001.
This is more or less like a dream come true for every individual who wishes to spend his/her life peacefully across the sea shore of one of world's richest city.
I wish i could own one of those magnificent,outstanding,marvelous and stunning bungalows and spend a life full of romance and love with the one I love.

Golden...words.

2008-12-24T23:55:00.000-08:00

It hardly matters when you start...All that matters is when you end.

By: Me of course..!!

Last-minute

2008-12-24T23:29:00.000-08:00

Many of my friends and relatives have condemned me of my attitude for being excessively inconsiderate towards my work(which I obviously do not like) and leaving it to be done in last few minutes. Be it my exams or anything important...I've sort of developed it as habit of doing things in last few days or minutes but It's done before it meets its doom.
Here's an answer to you all which I got to know through a book: People like me(though there are hardly any....) who do wake up late to their work but still do it completely till it's all over ,have an unrivaled mastery of managing their time. None can manage things as impeccably as we do in those last few minutes. This is an indication of the fact that people who have the inherent talent of managing their time are best suited for management and It is they who have the power to make it big 'coz None understands the importance of those last few minutes as we do.
So It hardly matters when you start...all that matters is when you end.

Change is All we need..!!

2008-12-24T22:36:00.000-08:00

I don't have much to say on this as there has been lot said and done. November 2008..Attack on Mumbai...has shaken me and the whole world. I PAY MY KIND TRIBUTE & HOMAGE TO ALL CIVILIANS, POLICE, ATF & NSG HEROS WHO SACRIFICED THEIR LIVES DURING TERRORIST ATTACK ON HOTEL TAJ, OBEROI TRIDENT & NARIMAN HOUSE IN MUMBAI.
I can't say much on how we are gonna fight it off or put an end to all this...but yes..This is the time we need "Change". We need to change the whole political scenario currently existing in our country,we need to change the mindset of today's youth who do not see much future prospects in politics and urge them to step in. We need to change the whole working system that rule over us. We have been constantly changing ourselves and would continue to do so forever but now we need to change everything that is all around us and most importantly that affects us.
Change is the only way we can put an end to all such things.
Change yourself to a better you and change the system around you to a better world.

Conversation...with a "maniac"

2008-10-22T06:48:00.000-07:00

It's late at night...1 o'clock or thereabouts. I was all engrossed watching "saw" on my PC and my friend who is a complete maniac and a severe pain in arse was wandering around me looking all grave and solemn. I just couldn't take much of his fretting,logged off my PC and thought of going for a conversation with this complete madman.
Here's a glimpse of the things we discussed....

me: What happened what are you so worried bout dude..!!
him: beep beep beep....nothing.

I wondered.. If there is zilch why the fuck didn't he let me get on with my movie?? why the fuck did he have to just hang around me giving me this "I wanna talk bout something" look.

me: as you wish dude..!!
him: no..I really have something to talk bout. I have few things on my mind that I wanted to discuss with someone.I hope you would be a bit considerate,listen to me...and not give me that derisive look of yours. And for god's sake no use of sarcasm.

Quite a good fielding indeed..!!

me: okay..buddy go ahead...!!
him: know what...I have sort of a crush on a gal.(And then comes a pause of a lifetime...)
me: Blimey...what on earth is wrong with you..it shows you are all normal.
him: No..nothin is all normal. It's about the gal I came across yesterday in college.
me: so...what's wrong with her?
him:No...there is nothing wrong with her...It's rather with me. I sort of like her but have not been able to work up enough courage to reveal it to her. Tell me how should I do it? You have been quite an expert at such stuffs.
me:Expert?? anyway..!!
Come on..!! Be a man ..!!
him: Why??
me: uff...I mean it's simple...go and propose her. If it's a yes...good for you..and if no...good for the gal. Anyhow...It would be good either for you or for her.
him: beep beep beep...Don't you say that. I guess you are right ..I would all do it tomorrow.
God knows what got into him ,he sort of got all excited and got to his bed and I wonder if I had really done something magical or what or my words were so efficacious that they acted the moment they were out.
Anyway...I switched back to my movie and said nothing much as per the conditions laid down in the beginning and thought what a prat he is..!!
Next day ,late in the night..this very friend of mine was all sort of smiling,grinning...and was busy with his cellphone...and It didn't take me much to fathom out...he's off again.
God save the gal.

Google chrome

2008-09-24T22:40:00.000-07:00

It has always been rhapsodic whenever Google has made a scientific and industrial progress in the field of technology. Everything that they do is not only par excellence or peerless, it's just way beyond words.
So far we have been using Internet Explorer,Mozilla's Firefox,Apple's webkit and Netscape navigator as browser but finally the Google has stepped in with a new browser of its own and has again added to ongoing fight between Microsoft, Apple etc.
Yeah..!! An Internet Browser from Google : "Google Chrome".
Google chrome is an internet browser which has been developed by Google itself and can be downloaded free of cost. For how much the web has evolved,browser as a platform haven't evolved that much. This is an attempt to evolve browser in order to provide next level for the development of web. Google has always been unique in its various products and this time too they have come up with a complete new browser to provide a whole new experience of internet browsing and developing or using application therein.

Google chrome is simple,streamlined and a whole lot of fun to use. With new features,interesting look and amazing speed this is indeed going to a big one. Trust me..It's more than fun or browsing using Google chrome as you come across a whole new invention and experience.
To download it..Kindly follow the link:
http://http://tools.google.com/chrome/intl/en-US/features.html#
or click on the title of the post.
The web gets better with more options and innovation. Google Chrome is another innovation.
Download and Experience "Excellence"

Q & A by Vikas Swarup

2008-09-10T22:19:00.000-07:00

Speechless,spellbound and totally entranced...is what you experience once you cross your path with an impeccable debut of that of an author like Vikas Swarup for his classic work "Question and Answer". Yeah..! I m in all praise for Vikas's book "Q And A".
It was indeed a pleasure to go through this very exciting, page-turning romp which will oblige you to think and question ... and a book which is already being filmed.

First let me discuss the plot. An ill-educated, 18 year old orphan, working as a waiter in Jimmy's Bar in Mumbai, appears on the latest show in town called W3B - "Who Will Win A Billion" and correctly answers all 12 questions to win the jackpot of one billion rupees. The unscrupulous producers of the show are stunned. How can an illierate waiter, who has never been to a school or has never read a newspaper in his life,answer all these tough questions. So they promptly bribe the police and ask them to frame Ram Mohammad Thomas for cheating. A young lawyer called Smita Shah suddenly appears in the police station where Thomas is being tortured, reads out the law to the Inspector and takes him away to her house. Then, over the course of that night - the longest night of Thomas's life - she gets him to recount the story of his life and how it enabled him to answer the 12 questions on the quiz show, question by question. So, as can guess, the novel has exactly 12 chapters. Every single course of the Ram's life leaves an indelible mark onto your mind and you finally end up in all applause for the author.

Vikas Swarup writes a well-paced novel. Although the action moves back and forth through our anti-hero's young life, the pace of the novel is such that the various strands remain imprinted on your mind. Indeed, the author twists and manipulates your reading, holding back little surprises for you.

This is an exceptional read. It's, and I do not exxagerate, one of the finest debut novels I have ever read. It is the finest novel from an Indian Author I have ever read, because it doesn't pretend to be anything, it doesn't try to be poetic, or flowery. I usually prefer a book by an Indian author to be able to relate my self with the plot.
I finished the book, and aside from an appreciative content smile on my face, only one thing came to mind, "Damn, I wish I could meet in person with this guy". The ending has the kind of twist you expect at the end of a great story and I couldn't help but appreciate the thought and sentiment that goes into coming up with something like that.
What is it?
Read it and find out.
Oh, I'll leave you with the last line though.
"Because luck comes from within."

Work smart and hard

2008-08-07T01:39:00.000-07:00

"We need to work smart, not hard." I'm sure you've heard that expression or a variation of it, and perhaps you use it yourself.

It's one of those expressions that's rooted in truth, and it can come in handy. But be careful how you use it.

Obviously, working smart makes good sense. Our efforts should go toward high-priority tasks, the tasks that contribute to important goals. Successful people have learned how to manage their efforts. They work hard to complete the important tasks and they ignore the petty stuff that clamors for attention but leads nowhere.

Figuring out how to work smart is one of life's most worthwhile achievements. If you feel that you're spinning your wheels, as though you have to run a marathon to get from first to second base, there might be a smarter way. Take a step back and think about changing your approach. Use your head, analyze and get creative with your solutions. Incidentally, it's a lifelong process, there's no "one size fits all" solution to working smart.

The problem with the expression "work smart, not hard" is that people who use it seem to be implying that there is a back door to success. Once the secret key to the door leading to the hidden stairway is found, it will no longer be necessary to work hard. Just open the door, climb the stairway, and - voila - no more hard work.

That simply is not true. The hidden stairway leads nowhere.

Working smart is required. Trying to "work smart, not hard" is extremely dangerous. Change the "not" to "and," and you have a priceless gem of truth. Work smart AND hard. Now that's powerful. That will take you as far as you want to go. "Smart and hard" is the key to building businesses, industries, empires and your successful career.

Career Goals

2008-08-07T01:22:00.000-07:00

Plan and Execute Your Career in a Proactive Manner
It is not enough to work, or to decide that you want a career. Set your career goals and determine the steps you should take to realize your goals. Don’t approach your career in an unplanned manner, by simply hoping for the best. Ask yourself these questions:
Where are you?
What are your goals?
How are you progressing?
and how do you want to progress?
Take an honest look at your situation and take control. Review trends in the industry and your needs. The plan should be based on information gathered from credible sources. Be realistic by setting attainable (reasonable) goals. And make sure you execute the plan.
If you follow these basic steps with full dedication,nothing in the world can stop you from attaining your goals.

TCS+ONGC

2008-08-06T22:45:00.000-07:00

TCS : Tata Consultancy Services Limited (TCS) is an Indian software services and consulting company. It is one of the world's largest providers of information technology and business process outsourcing services. As of 2008, it is Asia's largest information technology firm and has the largest number of employees among Indian IT companies.

ONGC: Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited . It is a Fortune Global 500 company ranked 335th, and contributes 77% of India's crude oil production and 81% of India's natural gas production. It is the highest profit making corporation in India.

Do not be mistaken by the title of the post. There is no collaboration going on between these two giants , they still work independently but there is definitely something that has brought these two to share a common platform . It is a project of ONGC being handled by none other than TCS itself.(I ll get into the details later.)

I feel extremely proud of the fact that I got an opportunity to showcase my talent and inherent capabilities while working through my summer internship with TCS and ONGC. Since the very beginning of this year,life has been really rocking and quite fruitful for me. This very year has been impossibly brilliant till now(touch wood..!!!).
After I got into TCS,I decided to do my summer internship with the same and luckily got myself approved by the TCS to carry out my training.
The very first day I was asked to report at TCS office in CP,Delhi. Afterwards, I was asked to report at ONGC office,Scope Minar in Laxmi Nagar. I could not believe my luck when I came to know that I have been given a lifetime opportunity to work on a live project of ONGC viz Corporate Intranet being handled by TCS. I was to work as an employee of TCS for ONGC.

Honestly speaking these two months have been the best learning experience so far in my life. My words can not contain the essence of my feelings for the experience that I ve had during my summer internship. Though I have had my own ups and downs (My Attitude was again my worst enemy there but I seriously learnt from the mistakes that I made.) but overall this whole jaunt turned out be quite fruitful for me.
The training proided me to have an insight into the corporate world, the way they work,the infrastructure they follow,the rules and regulations one goes through,the overall management and workflow process,the professionalism being followed yet enjoying every moment of work. The training enhanced my technical skills ,provided me a clear and deep understanding of complex situation in technical fields and taught me various technological and non-technological stuffs as well.
But this could have not been possible,had it not been the people who helped me through my internship.
I,sincerely,express my thanks to member of TCS as follows:

Mrs. Harpreet Kaur Sawhney : My Project Leader: A thorough Professional yet Funloving.

Mr. Sachin Bhatia : TCS Employee: A man of inordinate Technical skills

Mr. Mallikaarjuna : TCS Emplyoee: A man with the kindest of heart of all of them,a great help and always there when needed.

Though My Attitude kinda turned out to be a tad annoying to first two but I got along well with the third one( Both of us were from NOIDA itself).

But the person who I end up idolising the most was the Head of Corporate Communication of ONGC : Mr. M.S.Tonk : A man of intelligence,power and had the aura of that of an undisputed HEAD of a group of persons.
I succeeded in giving one good impression of me or of my eccentricities to him and I believe that this is goiing to be indelibly stamped onto his memory as well.

Last but not the least, I thank my friends who were also a trainee like me and they were the ones who put up with me the most , tolerated my incessant thoughts and nonsense,were always a great help and fun to be with.
1. Garima Tewani (never wore a sherwani): The most serious,industrious and dedicated one...a diligent student and a staunch friend.
2. Bhoomika Prabhakar(nowhere related to Manoj Prabhakar): The most frivolous next to me but being a girl was a tad more sincere than me.
3. Hardika Bhasin(never committed a sin): A teacher and a friend to me. Hardworking,sincere and always bustling with energy.
4. Vidhi Vig (never wore a wig): Next Harpreet Sawhney in the making but with a change that She was good to me.

Thank you all for always there for me. It was indeed the best days spent with you all. I am gonna cherish every bit of moment spent with you all for the rest of my life.
Kisi intelligent bande ne kaha : Life is indeed colorful, has various shapes,sizes and colors to it.
I guess I m the one.
:)

Attitude..!!

2008-08-05T00:46:00.000-07:00

Attitude !...Attitude !...Attitude...!
The word echoes in my mind for more than hundred times in a day. This particular auditory effect is either produced by me or by those who happen to cross paths with me. I have been confronting the word since the days when I was just a mere kid in my school. It seems as if I lost something called "Attitude" and rest of the world has taken it as their sole responsibility to remind me of it. But what baffles me is the way the word is said over million times.
There are people who throw the word over me with an inch of smile on their face or there are those who ,I guess,donot find a better way to abuse me than just say the word.
Now the time has come when I need to sit down and figure out what does the word actually mean from their point of view and from my point of view as well.

If I get into the literal meaning as laid down in Oxford Dictionary
" Attitude" means "a complex mental state involving beliefs and feelings and values and dispositions to act in certain ways".
But how does one decide whether your Attitude is your best friend or your worst enemy.

Attitude is the one factor that is universally acknowledged to be capable of overcoming every possible disadvantage.

Attitude is also the one factor the can destroy the benefits of every possible advantage.

But, why is that?

What I found is that there are two kinds of people..one who survive tragedies and serious accidents of all kinds and there are those who do not. But where do I fit??
What I found is that regardless of schooling, net worth, role in society, or any other demographic feature, those who survive have access to particular states of mind even under the most trying of circumstances.
It is their approach to the world or their way of thinking about the world or the ways that they manage their thoughts and feelings when the world presents them with unexpected situations, that distinguished survivors from those who died under similar circumstances. No one can ever take away from anyone else the ability to choose their state of mind in the face of any circumstance that befalls them.
In other words, no one can take away your ability to choose your attitude.

Of course, there are a variety of dispositional factors (genetic and otherwise) that influence your ability to control your attitude and there are also a variety of social factors that influence the opportunities to develop the skills for conscious control of your own attitude, but there is nothing in either the realms within you or the realms outside of you that can ever make your choice of attitude totally predictable.

In short, what distinguishes those who handle crisis well is what we call, in common everyday parlance, their attitude.

As far as my case is concerned I believe that like everyone I have my own approach to the world or my way of thinking about the world or the ways that I manage my thoughts and feelings when the world presents me with unexpected situations.In short No one can ever take away from me the ability to choose my state of mind in the face of any circumstance that befalls me.
In other words, no one can take away my ability to choose my attitude. Now that in itself is an "Attitude".

But the most important aspect of the overall thing is that one should always be careful enough to carry out one's own behaviour or attitude esp in corporate world as that determines your career and level to which you can survive. The best way is to make yourself acclimatize to the situation and finally emerge out as winner.
A congenial disposition results in one congenial atmosphere and that marks the beginning of right Attitude to make further changes as per your requirement.
Now that too in itself is an attitude..!!

Best B'day Bash...!!!

2008-04-09T08:53:00.000-07:00

.

Sameer(in red),Saurabh(one with the bottle) and Rahul and
tat is sam busy as always..!!!
Check out the expression on Sam's face.
Before gathering booze
and afterwards

This is all real and involves no work of fiction. All characters are real and still alive and doing well in their respective fields.
Neway here I start with.....
It was 18th of september 2005, B'day of most sophisticated yet crazy and a dipsomaniac.. high on life, the person I m talkin bout is my best buddy Sameer Dev( I call him SAM).
Sam...though parties everyday and even if he doesn't ,makes sure people around him do that though reluctantly. This day was not like another day 'coz this day it is only he who pays for everything :). Like every b'day ,this day too was planned in its own way. I joined Sam early in the morning at his place to party with a common friend. Everything went mellifluously and then came the arrival of another carouser Archit Sharma , always there for his friends but only when the "bottle" is included.
Neverthless , we bid bye to our common friend and it was 4o'clock in the evening when all three of us got together with other bunch of morons to party late till night. I ll like to name all of us...Sameer,Raj,Saurabh,Archit,Ankit manchanda and Rahul(these are the imp characters ).We missed teji bachhann(teja).
Now, Sam tells his parents that all of us gonna ve dinner and wud be goin for a movie to gurgaon..I guess at DT cinemas.(That was all true till we moved out of sam's place. It took a different turn altogethr that very day..wud cum to it...wait.!!!)
we ve had our dinner at ganga shopping complex here in noida , sec 29 by 10 in the night and that was the place where Sam in his most persuasive nature convinced me to stay all night out with them , and I in my most unyielding nature complied.
Then we headed toward sec 18 and now I disclose the real plan..No gurgaon..nothing like movie...that night gurgaon shifted its base to a house jus next to sam's place on the ground floor and it was dere where the whole movie was shot that day.
yeah...u read that right. We can go to any limit to celebrate despite of d fact that once we are caught we ll be runnin for our lives.
Neway all of us got into house..soundlessly and closed the door. Now They..(I abstain from such stuffs..though I don't mind a rich wine or champagne) took the bottles out of the bag and the party began.
Archit goes high the moment he sees a bottle of vodka and high on booze..was leaving no chance left to appease his "biwi" who was going through a verbal scuffle with him.
Sam got busy serving everyone esp me 'coz it was first time for me..so he was being scrupulous but not with me... wth d bottle.Everyone except me gatherd booze and got high(bittu in his own way...)and then by and by everyone started with their part of story and other were deeply grossed into it though reluctanly. Archit is still busy with his biwi.
keep reading......there is more to it :)
by 2 in the night we were unaware of everythin goin around us but one thing tat i still remember is that Archit was still busy falling out with his "biwi".
At 5 in the morning, I got up and saw archit busy again but sam was lying on the floor and was completely unconscious. We made him stand and he fell to the ground. I left the place at 6 in the morning and while goin back to my place ,saw my dad jogging in the park. I got off the rickshaw and started jogging behind him on our way to my place. Soundlessly i made my way to my room and took a shower for an about one n half hour.
later tat evening called up Sam on his no. and got to kno by Sam's mom tat they wer all caught by Sam's parents after i left. The landlord of the house informed Sam's parents.
Now you can guess...what must ve happend.
No no no ....we are all alive and doin well .
But that day is indelibly stamped onto our memory...it was all so mch of fun that despite of the fact that we were caught , we still cherish the day.
thanks Sam...you made it happen like you always do.
Archit patched up things later with his"biwi" and they are happy together.
All I wanna say in the end is tat "Go ahead and live your life without bothering of the outcome. You learn from your mistakes but the days spent with your friends wud always be alive fresh in you heart".
thank you for goin through this.

moments..forever.

2008-04-09T04:32:00.000-07:00

Comparison of the brain and a computer

2008-04-09T03:08:00.000-07:00

I found this topic available over the internet and found it worth posting even if I was not the original source. Hope you find it worth reading..!!
Much interest has been focused on comparing the brain with computer. A variety of obvious analogies exist: for example, individual neurons can be compared with a microchip, and the specialized parts of the brain can be compared with graphics cards and other system components. However, such comparisons are fraught with difficulties. Perhaps the most fundamental difference between brains and computers is that today's computers operate by performing often sequential instructions from an input program, while no clear analogy of a program appears in human brains. The closest equivalent would be the idea of a logical process, but the nature and existence of such entities are subjects of philosophical debate. Given Turing's model of computation, the Turing machine, this may be a functional, not fundamental, distinction. However, Maass and Markram have recently argued that "in contrast to Turing machines, generic computations by neural circuits are not digital, and are not carried out on static inputs, but rather on functions of time" (the Turing machine computes computable functions). Ultimately, computers were not designed to be models of the brain, though constructs like neural networks attempt to abstract the behavior of the brain in a way that can be simulated computationally.
In addition to the technical differences, other key differences exist. The brain is massively parallel and interwoven, whereas programming of this kind is extremely difficult for computer software writers (most parallel systems run semi-independently, for example each working on a small separate 'chunk' of a problem). The human brain is also mediated by chemicals and analog processes, many of which are only understood at a basic level and others of which may not yet have been discovered, so that a full description is not yet available in science. Finally, and perhaps most significantly, the human brain appears hard-wired with certain abilities, such as the ability to learn language (cf. Broca's area), to interact with experience and unchosen emotions, and usually develops within a culture. This is different from a computer in that a computer needs software to perform many of its functions beyond its basic computational capabilities.
Human beings are capable of not only giving non-random answers to questions such as, "What color is November?", but also of providing reasons in support of their answer. Human beings can also make "intuitive" sense of statements such as, "If I were you, I would hate myself", which computers cannot do without specific programming instruction.
There have been numerous attempts to quantify differences in capability between the human brain and computers. According to Hans Moravec, by extrapolating from known capabilities of the retina to process image inputs, a brain has a processing capacity of 100 trillion instructions per second (100 million MIPS). In comparison, the fastest supercomputer in the world, the IBM Blue Gene/l at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, is capable of handling 478.2 trillion instructions per second, and an average 4-function calculator is capable of handling 10 instructions per second. It is possible the brain may be surpassed by normal personal computers (in terms of Instructions Per Second, at least) by 2030.
The computational power of the human brain is difficult to ascertain, as the human brain is not easily paralleled to the binary number processing of today's computers. For instance, multiplying two large numbers can be accomplished in a fraction of a second with a typical calculator or desktop computer, while the average human may require a pen-and-paper approach to keep track of each stage of the calculation over a period of five or more seconds. Yet, while the human brain is calculating a math problem in an attentive state, it is subconsciously processing data from millions of nerve cells that handle the visual input of the paper and surrounding area, the aural input from both ears, and the sensory input of millions of cells throughout the body. The brain is regulating the heartbeat, monitoring oxygen levels, hunger and thirst requirements, breathing patterns and hundreds of other essential factors throughout the body. It is simultaneously comparing data from the eyes and the sensory cells in the arms and hands to keep track of the position of the pen and paper as the calculation is being performed. It quickly traverses a vast, interconnected network of cells for relevant information on how to solve the problem it is presented, what symbols to write and what their functions are, as it graphs their shape and communicates to the hand how to make accurate and controlled strokes to draw recognizable shapes and numbers onto a page.

I never thought if I wud also "experience certainity"

2008-04-09T02:50:00.001-07:00

All of us elated.....at nothing..!!! This pic was clicked when we were called by JIMS in rohini,delhi for recruitment in persisitent systems.
This pic was taken soon after all of us got placed in TCS .
down from left: shweta garg,hardika bhasin,richa dubey,me..ashutosh(green shirt),shashank and nikhil(we call him daddu..)

Answer this..!!!

2008-04-09T02:43:00.000-07:00

If you try to fail, and succeed,which ve you done?

Experiencing Certainity at TCS

2008-04-09T01:23:00.000-07:00

Life has been really exciting for the past few days. Since the very beginning of this year,life has been rocking and quite fruitful for me. This very year has been impossibly brilliant till now(touch wood..!!!).
Finally , god bestowed success at my disposal but as they say that "Victory belongs to the most persevering" so even I had to go through various ups and downs before experiencing the success. After having experienced failures at every step , I got to taste success err better if I say "experience certainity". Now , since I ve been emphasizing a lot on the term "experience certainity"..so let me disclose this..one experiences certainity at TCS..viz TATA CONSULTANCY SERVICES. Yes you guessed it right I am placed in Asia's largest and world's 12th(soon to be 10th) largest information technology firm.
But the very reason to post this blog here is to motivate those who still ve to make it big in life.
To make our way, we must have firm resolve, persistence, tenacity. We must gear ourselves to work hard all the way. We can never let up. This is what propels one to live life to the hilt.
So all you guys don't lose your confidence ,have faith in yourself and work hard with full sincerity.."coz if you do this,nothing can ever stop you to go high on the pinnacle of your carrer.
Remember there are no failures only mistakes and once you start to learn from your mistakes ,you would never have to confront failure ever in you life.
Good luck!!

2008-04-09T01:21:00.000-07:00