Below are the most recent 25 friends' journal entries.

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Wednesday, August 20th, 2008
harithekid	7:05p	Schadenfraude towards Rule-Breakers While it is ingrained within our moral fibre to play the role of the good samaritan in case one notices people in distress, especially when they have been part of a grevious accident and require emergency medical treatment, I am facing a serious moral dilemma with regard to how one should approach the situation when rule-breakers are subject to such mishaps. Let me illustrate this with a particular example that I was witness to the other day. This took place on a weekday morning at a busy traffic intersection on the ring road in Bangalore, when some buffoon chose to use his helmet to protect his left elbow instead of protecting his head. Combined with the almost-reverential protection given to his elbow was the fact that he didn't know enough math to discern that he was speeding at a place where he should've ideally breaked and waited for the red light to turn green. Hence our man, let's call him Raju, was guilty of two offences - jumping a red light and protecting his left elbow instead of his head with a helmet. What happened when he chose to move instead of wait is something that was predictable. He rammed into someone who was travelling in the purpendicular direction and hurt his hand, because the helmet got in the way. I saw the whole thing happen, and I couldn't help but grin at the fact that Raju was being a dumbass who deserved what he got. I don't think it is bad Karma to laugh at someone who is being an idiot and breaking the rules. I'd consider it to be priceless entertainment instead and I must say that I look forward to many such instances in the future. The same applies for all the morons who travel the wrong way in a one way to save a few paise, instead of going further ahead along the road and taking a U-turn to get to their destination. Skimpy and I once had a discussion and he pointed out the following logic to me, which I wish was something that people could come up with intuitively instead of putting themselves through such peril. Assume that you save 10 paise petrol while going the wrong way, and that you face a 1% risk of injuring yourself. Consequently, the value of your life is INR 10. If these people have such a small value for their life, should those that don't break the rules bother much about them? The traffic rule breakers in Bangalore should have their own section in the Darwin Awards, so that they can go ahead, and literally knock themselves out. For good. Current Mood: blank Current Music: Sabbath Bloody Sabbath - Black Sabbath (1 Comment |Comment on this)
harithekid	6:55p	Dirty Linen Washing With reference to the below post on Independence Rock, which is seeing its 23rd year is something else that has had people watch with mouths agape. Things like these usually happen only on reality TV shows, with an element of stage-managing, but in this case people are washing their dirty linen in public and making a big deal about it, while the rest of the world watches in glee not so much at the fact that its two heavy-weights that are slugging it out in a verbal battle, but more so because it provides a temporary distraction from the things that otherwise occupy top priority in mind. While I don't want to name names, I have no qualms in providing link to aforesaid verbal battle. Needless to say, it is between one of the most recognized Indian bands south of the Vindhyas, having had the distinction of opening for Megadeth and Machine Head this year and the founding father of the annual Independence Rock festival. Of course, this 'fight' has taken place across various social networking platforms, but no place like the RSJ forums to put it all together. For further drama, click here. Current Mood: contemplative Current Music: I'm Yours - Jason Mraz (Comment on this)
kamathnithin	10:33a	Saw a friend of mine displaying college serial no. as gtalk status message sometime end of monday, by tuesday saw that a whole bunch of them were doin it, none of them knew the reason why...well as they say, if u cant beat 'em join 'em...have done it too...have asked some others too to do it...dunno the reason y...talk abt starting a revolution :) (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, August 19th, 2008
bianconeri	11:06p	Someone in Google is an Ayn Rand fan Taggart Transcontinental New York, NY Dec 1955 - Present Vice President, Operations "John Galt" Line Founded the "John Galt" railroad line. First to market in thriving new industrial market. Earned $15MM in revenue, profitable within 3 months. Founder's Award: Outstanding Initiative and Innovation "She went above and beyond the call of duty. Ms. Taggart's project came at a critical time for the company and was an unbelievably successful win for us in the industrial community and in the press." — James Taggart, President, Taggart Transcontiental Rearden Metal Partnership During a critical materials shortage, created a strategic $100MM partnership with Rearden Metals founder, Hank Rearden. Leveraged this partnership to pilot new Rearden Metal technology while reducing Taggart's deployment costs, allowing Taggart Transcontinental to retain competitive advantage. Someone in the Google Docs team is a big Ayn Rand fan, more specifically a fan of her classic book: Atlas Shrugged. Here's the proof. Browse through the resume templates in Google Docs. Navigate to the Project Based Resume template and look at the second project listed over there. The names, characters, everything including the dates is a straight rip off from the classic book, Atlas Shrugged. This means that this is the resume of Dagny Taggart because the title is Vice President of Operations at Taggart Transcontinental. What's more, James Taggart, the owner of Taggart Transcontinental gives a pat on the back as well. Yeah, I'm sure, Dagny would have loved that :) Heh! Current Mood: sleepy (Comment on this)
beatzo	8:39p	I am just done with the first draft of this gigantic article on electronic music, and I had this burning desire to listen to the Boom Boom Satellites loud. Really really loud. Instead, I stumbled across this singer/songwriter called Pop Levi who sounds like he's going to be on my playlist for the next few days. Delicious, unapologetic pop music! There's a new bookshop in town called Books and Beyond. Apparently a part of Spencers' Retail, it's opened at Ashoka Metropolitan Mall in Banjara Hills, the same place that has the Apple Store. I met a friend on Saturday who raved about the stunning collection they have, and how he picked up the complete Basilisk volumes from the graphic novel section there. Intrigued, I made my way there Sunday evening. No manga volumes to be found, but I did pick up the latest Artemis Fowl ( AF and the Time Paradox, and it's the pressure of writing the huge-ass article that has prevented me from doing a marathon read-session. That shall be remedied today). AND, I found this little hardcover edition of Lyra's Oxford by Philip Pullman, the companion book to the His Dark Materials trilogy. It was pointed out to me, just as I picked it up, that the book had a "Signed by the author" sticker attached to it, and yes indeed, when I opened it up, it was autographed. Phew! Made my week. Buoyed with optimism, I proceeded to spend the next hour looking for more books tagged with the same "signed by" label, found a generic young adult book or two that I wasn't really interested in, so just bought the two. But Books and Beyond has a pretty cool selection. Other than the mandatory shelf-warmers, there was a complete set of the Flashman novels, a couple of books from the Dresden series by Jim Butcher, and Koushun Takami's Battle Royale as well, though incorrectly filed under "classics". I look forward to see whether they maintain the catalogue, or if it goes the Crossword way and degenerates into greeting-card world. Current Music: Pop Levi - Dita Dimone (2 Comments |Comment on this)
esope	6:45p	Dilemmas of Development Dilemmas of Development Originally uploaded by N-O-M-A-D. Our monsoons are erratic, we need water for irrigation and for our thirsty cities. We need electricity for power starving villages and growing cities. Elsewhere a dam has been built with claims of '5th tallest dam on earth' . It has submerged the town of Tehri adding the prefix 'Old' to it. At Deoprayag a graffiti says that Dam means the destruction of the hills. Another graffiti near the Ganga temple @ sangam says its the death of Ganga. The Mahseer, which has migrated along the Ganges for thousands of years, can no longer take its programmed route. It’s an endangered species. Mr Sunderlal Bahuguna, the Gandhian activist who agitated all his life against the dam is a disillusioned man today. There is a threat of earthquake looming strongly. Experts say that development percolates, but when .... Power and water to Delhi or Displacement of people in Tehri? I guess, there is no clear demarcation of what is right and what is wrong? It’s a very thin, blurred line which keeps shifting with time. (Comment on this)
esope	12:56p	Water: The Drop of Life Water: The Drop of Life Originally uploaded by N-O-M-A-D. Water, like religion and ideology, has the power to move millions of people. Since the very birth of human civilization, people have moved to settle close to it. People move when there is too little of it. People move when there is too much of it. People journey down it. People write, sing and dance about it. People fight over it. And all people, everywhere and every day, need it. Mikhail Gorbachev (Comment on this)
esope	12:37p	Very precious, dont let em go Very precious, dont let em go Originally uploaded by N-O-M-A-D. Catch every drop Only 2.5% of the world's water is not salty, and two-thirds of that is trapped in the icecaps and glaciers. Of what is left, about 20% is in remote areas and most of the rest comes at the wrong time and in the wrong place, as with monsoons and floods. The amount of fresh water available for human use is less than 0.08% of all the water on the planet. About 70% of the fresh water is already used for agriculture, and a report says the demands of industry and energy will grow rapidly. The World Water Council report estimates that in the next two decades the use of water by humans will increase by about 40%, and that 17% more water than is available will be needed to grow the world's food......... Rainwater harvesting in urban areas can have manifold reasons. To provide supplemental water for the city's requirement,it increase soil moisture levels for urban greenery, to increase the ground water table through artificial recharge, to mitigate urban flooding and to improve the quality of groundwater. (Comment on this)
Monday, August 18th, 2008
purely_narcotic	10:45p	Surreptitious Love Surreptitious Love Originally uploaded by purely-narcotic "Let us walk in the white snow In a soundless space; With footsteps quiet and slow, At a tranquil pace, Under veils of white lace." * Would that be love or lust? (19 Comments |Comment on this)
beast_666	8:15p	This one time.. at robotics camp.. One week of the Robotics camp for HFA and AS kids completed.. Fantastic experience, dealing with these kids,really.. Lovely kids, requiring a bit of patient handling, these youngins sure make that extra effort worth your while! Most kids are total sweethearts, helpful and nice, with a coupla troublesome ones. We only had one kid expelled form camp due to constant bad behavior, and all the staff, and the other kids heaved sighs of relief when he left.. Robotics, math puzzles, origami, swimming, canoeing, kayaking and motorboat rides.. Activities of the day.. Now.. what's there not to enjoy? ;) Guess the little pleasures in being here are from the little cute moments.. When the little ones gang up on ya and pin you down in the lake while swimming.. or when a kid comes up to you and gives you a hug out of the blue, or when a little angelic-looking imp of a sweetheart kid comes up to ya and says "You're funny.. I like you.. I want you to come to my house and be my new brother when my older brother moves out".. LOL  I'm lovin' it!! Current Mood: cheerful (2 Comments |Comment on this)
harithekid	4:08p	Avial at Independence Rock Avial is a band whose music I have recently fallen in love with, despite not understanding their lyrics. I wish I knew enough Malayalam to comprehend what Anand Raj Benjamin Paul is singing, but regretfully, I have to be content with listening to his amazing voice belt out songs such as 'Nada Nada', 'Karakura' and 'Njaan Aara' (which I know means 'Who Am I' and is probably a song about existential dilemmas, but sounds cooler because its in a different language). I am currently listening to 'Ettam Pattu' which has a distinctive RHCP-ish feel to it, but then gets transformed into something else altogether as the song progresses. I heard from my friend Prasad just a while ago that Anand Raj is not in the country, and hence their DJ / turntable Tony John will be at the helm of the vocals instead. Their myspace page also doesn't mention Anand in it. Funny. Edit: Turns out, Benjamin has left the band. So much for being up to date on the music scene. I think I should retire. Well, nevertheless, Avial will be performing live at the Palace Grounds in Bangalore on 24th August 2008 as part of the Independence Rock's Bangalore finale. I hope to be there, time and circumstances permitting. If you think they're your cup of tea (stew, rather), check them out. For more information, visit - http://www.independencerock.in PS - Yours truly is in the process of writing a review for Avial's music on Gigpad. Links will be provided, watch this space. Current Mood: mellow Current Music: Njaan Aara - Avial (Comment on this)
harithekid	12:32p	Work Life Balance Whoever invented the term work-life balance sure spared no expense in trying to highlight how the two are different. While it has been something I've heard off and on during four years of work (yes, its been that long, although - you can take harithekid out of college, but you can't take the college out of harithekid unless you want to perform some surgery and dig into the contents of his stomach), it really hasn't been one of my favourite expressions. Its true that being in the IT industry for so long ensures that one embraces jargon or learns to abhor it from the very core of her / his existence, and falling in the latter category, I am no exception either. This subject is definitely material for another post, in due time. Nevertheless, work-life balance is something some of my BSchool buddies have also used in order to convey the balance between academics and extra curricular activities. Now, the very essence of the term and its subsequent usage denotes that it is an oxymoron, which thus implies that work and life are two different mutually exclusive entities. Hence, applying the regular tenets of logic would lead one to conclude that if you have a life, you can't work and vice versa, which is why both of them need to be balanced out. The implications are that work is not a part of your life, and this in turn makes even those who are 'meh' about their work to end up despising it merely because they now see it as something necessary but invasive. I think the Indian IT industry is seeing a trend where the new poster boys are those that are able to juggle multiple things aside from work in their daily lives. It is a far cry from the times of old when the guy who'd spend ages in front of his comp working away was considered as a model employee. Personally, I think the entire hoopla around the said term is stupid. If you can't make time for something, it isn't important enough. Current Mood: dorky Current Music: A Day in the Life - The Beatles (Comment on this)
harithekid	9:04a	Chase Away the Travel Blues Until recently, short travel (a distance which would at most be equal to the approximate diameter of Bangalore city), if done on a continuous basis was quite a pain, especially due to traffic as well as due to the fact that if the same route was travelled upon repeatedly, there was no novelty associated with that particular route. This was particularly more so on the office bus commute, where one is unable to read books or newspapers because trying to do so will definitely damage one's eyesight (since the jerky movements on the bus would require the eyes to continuously keep changing focus), and listening to music is the only option given the fact that the outside 'scenery' is something that one has been privy to ad nauseum. However, I have recently come up with a new way of kicking commute's butt and this method has two possible outcomes, both of which are win-win, should you choose to take it up. Of course, this method assumes that you are not the one in the driver's seat, in which case, such a move is ill-advised. On the bus, close your eyes and visualise the entire route as you keep travelling along it and get acquainted with the noises, the wait times at traffic signals as well as the bumps and miscellaneous intentional and unintentional speed breakers so that when you do end up opening your eyes and finding yourself at a place that you'd expected, you will laud yourself at having been able to discern correctly your location based on movement rather than on sight. The other thing that might happen to you is that you end up falling asleep in the process, which is also not such a bad thing. The important thing is to keep your eyes closed, in order for this to take effect. Sure, your prediction skills don't really amount to much on a city bus where the bus conductor keeps shouting out the name of the next stop that the bus is approaching, but in the circumstances that you would manage to make it work, it is a really super way of killing time. Current Mood: bored (4 Comments |Comment on this)
Sunday, August 17th, 2008
purely_narcotic	4:16p	In my secret life* this is my Sunday morn offering After a night spent sipping Jagger bombs,the morning after was spent sitting by the window lost in a world that was inhabited only by another, Leonard Cohen. The Canadian old man is all I needed to set the beat racing and with his raspy vocals and the accompanying strains of the synthesizer makes listening to Cohen a charm. Always tainted with themes that are meant to shock the world into reality; Cohen is vitriolic, insensitive, crude and sexy all at the same time. The first time I heard Cohen was when I managed to catch a few wisps of 'Suzanne' floating out of thin air from the earphones of another early morning jogger on a cold freezing morning in Dubai. The grey-haired old man smiled at me sweetly when I asked him what he was listening to. 'Cohen. Leonard Cohen, you know?' he muttered and continued jogging. Ever since I have been faithful-to the point of being devoted-to Leonard Cohen's pleas and shots at conventional yet uncommon wisdom. I'm convinced that Leonard Cohen's music was tailor-made to suit the rollercoaster rides my mind indulges in. Sometimes, basic simple elementary emotions...happiness, sadness, anger, disgust. Yet, sometimes alluding to the seemingly simple yet complex coloured multihued fists of melancholy and sadism; guilt and romance; happenstances and moments of serendipity. When Kylie strains and hauntingly talks about 'where the wild roses grow' I think of the lonely woman in a graveyard, dressed in grey, bending down to see the tombstone that the blowing wind uncovers from underneath the blanket of snow. I see bleeding red roses, edelweiss white snow, grey clouds of doubt and fear all mangled into a surrealistic painting slowly dripping away. And I kissed her goodbye, said, "All beauty must die" And lent down and planted a rose between her teeth Passion filled nights spent sipping whiskey sour, bemoaning the traffic fading into streaks of light, glass windows, concrete structures coming to life.The menacing tentacles of a urban jungle can only get so real. Yes, so real. Joe Cocker and Leonard Cohen lead me to believe tears are stinging pieces of glasses with 'First we take Manhattan' I'd Really Like To Live Beside You Baby I Love Your Body And Your Spirit And Your Clothes 'Closing Time' and sometimes, I can feel hope breathing its last breath. Almost like a loud sigh before it is choked to death. Forgiveness becomes an alien concept; pain a companion. I loved you when our love was blessed I love you now there's nothing left 'Anthem' is sometimes just a political plea. Sometimes, an ode to the political chaos. Sometimes, a cry. Sometimes, a sliver of happiness.(The deep baritone of Cohen's voice and the minimalistic use of instruments-signature Cohen is Anthem.) Ring the bells that still can ring Forget your perfect offering There is a crack in everything That's how the light gets in. There is always a streak of anger and disbelief that runs through Cohen's words. Political chaos, an uncertain future, the darkness of the times, the inadequacy of an unforgiving religion and an unveiled wanting for explicit sexuality runs through all of his work. I imagine licks of fire dancing like dervish in Cohen's eyes every time he whispers. The upheaval and the anger jump out and shake me when 'The Future' plays. Only I feel numb and don't see the long hands of relevance reaching out and in an evil contradiction, calling for help. When they said REPENT REPENT! I wonder what they meant. 'Woke up this morning' is what I want to play in the background when I'm bleary eyed, sleep deprived and stoned into forgetfulness; when I want to sip on red wine and yet jump around with vengeful energy. Last night you were flying but today you’re so low - ain’t it times like these that make you wonder if you’ll ever know the meaning of things as they appear to Leonard Cohen's version of 'The road to hell' is what I hear reverberating in my head when I'm standing in the shower, when there is a cold drizzle hitting me and stinging me into wakefulness. It reminds me of icicles sharpening themselves, water freezing over and the world just clamming up into itself and leaving me shivering-alone, helpless. Scared beyond belief way down in the shadows And the perverted fear of violence Chokes the smile on every face Cohen is dark, angry, can be depressing and yet, mentally simulating. In spite of all that darkness that surrounds him, I find him endearing...and inviting. And because he is a man who has lived the circle of life, the love for Love is not entirely eliminated. When Joe Cocker repeats 'You're so beautiful' I believe those fairytale endings of 'happily forever after' are real, everyday occurrences and sum up my life. If only for a moment. Can't you see You're Everything I hoped for Everything I need 'I'm your Man' takes my breath away. Period. Words elude me. If you want a lover I'll do anything you ask me to And if you want another kind of love I'll wear a mask for you Redemption for an aching lover would only be found in 'Ain't no cure for love.' Purity, Sincerity and that inability to see romance in a situation, yet that inane desire to create romance out of nothingness seeps through and through. Soaking and leaving one with a puddle of memories at the feet. I know this love is real It don't matter how it all went wrong That don't change the way I feel To heighten my beautiful rhapsody of overwhelming pleasure and guilt,I'd choose the Tori Amos' version of 'Famous Blue raincoat.' Haunting, eerie, staccatos of the piano pricking into the wispy voice, Tori Amos' brings the Leonard Cohen trip of self-indulgent, self-destructive pleasure to a crescendo and in an almost anti-climactic ending, blows it all away. and what can I tell you my brother, my killer what can I possibly say I guess that I miss you, I guess I forgive you I'm glad you stood in my way. Because a man deserves an altar to call home, because there is a single word to exalt and glorify. Alleluia. Hallelujah! There was a time you let me know What's real and going on below But now you never show it to me, do you? And remember when I moved in you The holy dove was moving too And every breath we drew was Hallelujah I can almost hear the wind whooshing away with secrets untold yet revealed. * Pico Iyer(who has also written the liner-notes for several Leonard Cohen albums) chose Cohen's 'If it be your will' for a (stirring) non-denominational funeral, or, to play at a service where you don’t know who’s coming. Says he about his choice, 'and anyone who tells you that songwriters shouldn’t be candidates for the Pulitzer, the Prix Goncourt and even the Nobel can take down some Leonard Cohen from the shelf and see what happens when the leading young poet in Canada — winner of his country’s equivalent to the Pulitzer (the Governor-General’s Award)[1] 40 years ago — decides to give his words extra weight and reach by singing them to the sound of a droning backbeat.' [1] Cohen who was thirty-four at the time refused the Governor-General's award for poetry.   Pico Iyer also has a dripping with reverence essay on Cohen in 'Sun after Dark' aptly titled 'A Gathering around a Perplexity.'(Thank you psasidhar  for the road signs!) *I saw you this morning. You were moving so fast. Cant seem to loosen my grip On the past. And I miss you so much. Theres no one in sight. And we're still making love In my secret life.                                                       ~Cohen's 'In my secret life' (2 Comments |Comment on this)
colono	2:03p	Engaging India - a review Given the joblessness, I have right now, wrote yet another review of a book I'd recently finished. Read on for the review of Engaging India: Diplomacy, Democracy, and the Bomb by Strobe Talbott. (Comment on this)
colono	4:07a	Shravanam Gynanam Sadhanam My mom blogs! Check it out. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Saturday, August 16th, 2008
slightlyfleury	3:29p	and another thing how many times will i forget and then remember and then forget to remember that I fucking hate peaches (2 Comments |Comment on this)
manubhardwaj	5:49p	Uploaded - Aug 16, 2008 (Comment on this)
bianconeri	9:01p	Wow!! Bindra, Bolt and Phelps - Take a bow! Phelps' race in the morning was not only stunning, but also controversial. From where did he get that extra burst of speed to touch that board before that other Serb dude, I'll never know. Now Bolt. I mean, what a race! I've never seen anything like this before. Its the Olympics finals, the most glamorous event of the whole games and you burst out of the lane, the whole world's watching and you literally jog the last 15 odd meters, celebrating your victory already and also claiming a world record in the process. Simply stunning. Bindra, who'd never shot a 10.8 in the final rounds, just gets it right when he needs it the most. Sports has a tendency to bring out the best in people at the right times. All these three instances just about proves the same thing. If you get the chance to watch videos of these people in action, don't miss it. You watch sports for moments like these: moments of shock, ecstasy and amazement. PS: Federer won the gold in the tennis doubles. Yay! :) Current Mood: silly (2 Comments |Comment on this)
purely_narcotic	6:00a	Ignorance killed the Cat. Curiosity was framed. Almost thirteen years ago, I had watched this documentary that was aired on television (It was BBC, I think)[1] about a Sadhu who belonged to the cannibalistic sect of Sadhus 'Aghori Babas' on the banks of the River Ganga.  At the time, he claimed to be only one of ten Sadhus still beating the path to moksha and trying to keep the physical signs of aging at bay by practising Cannibalism. He had definitely not seen his reflection in the waters and Deepak Chopra's 'Ageless Body, Timeless Mind' was probably unheard of. Anyway there were two things that I have always associated with the documentary and for reasons unknown, I never bothered to look it up as I always do . There was a mention about how the 'sweetest' flesh (If you have always associated sweet flesh with crab meat, Sorry I just killed it for you) he had had was that of a young eighteen year old girl's and then there was some vague connection that I had drawn with cannibals who eat human brains being inflicted by the 'laughing sickness'. The way I saw it 'Consumption of the human brain in particular(possibly 'only' too) led to the laughing sickness' (and there were times when I even thought it was one of those urban legends) until today when I finally got around to looking it up, reading and hopefully laying to rest one of those questions that has plagued me for years. To quote from Jared Diamond's Guns, Germs and Steel: The virus causing laughing sickness (kuru) in the New Guinea highlands used to pass to a person from another person who was eaten. It was transmitted by cannibalism, when highland babies made the fatal mistake of licking their fingers after playing with raw brains that their mothers had just cut out of dead kuru victims awaiting cooking. Phew! What a relief to finally watch the pieces falling into place and know that I wasn't way off the mark. * There is the weird, the absurd and the strange. William Dalrymple in The White Mughals talks of the practice of making the male children suck the nipples of their infant sisters that was supposedly prevalent among the Mughals; so that brothers and sisters would forever love each other. Apparently Akbar made his son, Jehangir, do this and it is supposed to have continued sometime into the 19th century. [2] Anybody knows the whys and origins of the practice? Aside: A reviewer thought Dalrymple was just being 'self indulgent' by mentioning the practice and going into explicit detail about it. Far from it, I thought. I couldn't locate any other mention of the practice and though it may not necessarily have a larger, life-changing impact...it's a fascinating bit of information, yes? * Olivia Judson nailed it this time. She may be talking about Evolution but it could just be about that insatiable desire/hunger to know. About  evolution, about anything else, about everything else. If you belong to the Curious and Curious-er, always had a jarful of why's handy and are/were much derided for thinking out aloud 'but...why?', I know you'll be grinning away at this: The most important thing about studying evolution is something less tangible. It’s that the endeavor contains a profound optimism. It means that when we encounter something in nature that is complicated or mysterious, such as the flagellum of a bacteria or the light made by a firefly, we don’t have to shrug our shoulders in bewilderment. Instead, we can ask how it got to be that way. And if at first it seems so complicated that the evolutionary steps are hard to work out, we have an invitation to imagine, to play, to experiment and explore. To my mind, this only enhances the wonder. [1] If you're interested in a dramatized doused in horror version of the story you could always look up The Zee Horror Show directed by the Ramsay Brothers. There should also be an India Today article from the early 90's which will probably have more fiction than fact but something is better than nothing, yes? [2] Dalrymple even mentions some Nawab( or perhaps it was some Nobleman) who thought the practice led to the development of a mother-son like bond between the brothers and sisters. I'll have to dig it out and will update when I find it.   (Comment on this)
colono	2:49a	Wake up call I'd mentioned about the Socialism in China and the mixed type mode in India in the previous post and most of the people seemed to concur with me that mixed type governance and administration is good for India. However, as I was watching Olympics live, thoughts veered around the wonders that an authoritarian socialist sports system has done to China. I was putting funda to my mom, on how the Chinese manage to suppress, grind their people under an authoritarian sports system to win the max number of medals. I stressed on the fact that most of these people almost could have sacrificed their youth life in search of that precious piece of medal hanging around their necks as they smile either warm hearted manner or in a cold way for the photographers clicking randomly in front of the podiums. Whether they like it or not there is not my concern. My mom slickly remarked, ninna taraa lazy hudugaru iDre namma desha uddara agalla (if our country has lazy boys like you, it wont develop). Though, I don't intend to convert my blog into a sadistic and polemic comparison of India and China, it must be noted that China is better than India in certain economic development factors, and still it faces problems of staggering magnitude as profound as India itself. Add to that the Chinese have been accused of having imperialistic concoctions as well as human right abuses. The tenet that both India and China are the leaders and proponents for Asia for sometime now, being critical players in the region along with Russia and Japan cannot be certainly ignored. However, despite the heroics of Abhinav Bindra, India's inability to produce more than a medal or two compared to dozens of medals their north neighbor pulls off every passing day might be discerning to most of the patriotic ilk. Though used to win laudable amount of medals in the Asian games and the other varieties like world championships, the Indian athletes falter when it comes to Olympics, though there were many creditable performances other than Bindra, to name a few - Saina Nehwal's spirited badminton play and the pugilists fine display so far. The Monika devi fiasco not withstanding and the faux-pas of sports minister M S Gill, who goes to places like Wimbledon, Euro and even the Olympics and self congratulates himself for Bindra's gold, and the ever increasing number of officials than athletes at the games are some of few examples of certain glaring loopholes in country's sports management. The vibrant private industry and the advertising moolah has been focused on Cricket instead of other sports. Amir Khan has also rightly lamented on the state of our national game Hockey. Duke researchers Anirudh Krishna and Eric Haglund's nice paper delves on what is wrong in the certain sports systems and can be said to be most pertinent w.r.t India's case drawing some examples from the states of Karnataka and Rajasthan. In contrast to rapid ascension of China on the global world map, it is indeed time for retrospection and sooner the better, we get into act of strengthening India (not in sports right now and directly) and end up not wasting 61 years of independence so far. Finally, I coerce upon each one of you to read this awesome, cynical but still valid stupendous piece of post by my friend SathThale as well as that of another blogger-writer-par extra-ordinaire Amit Varma. (4 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, August 14th, 2008
phoe6	11:25p	Quote of the day "I got 80 text messages today. One of my friends said to me, 'Dude, how many times a day do I have to see your ugly face?' - Micheal Phelps (on winning his 10th and 11th gold medal in the Olympics) (Comment on this)
beatzo	7:14p	One of the good things about having a Music World right next door to my office is that after a particularly satisfying lunch, I can enter the store and browse through cheesy new DVD releases while the album du jour plays in the background. Most of the time, there's nothing too imaginative playing - the most popular tracks from the latest Hindi/Telugu album releases, but it does me good to hear a track here and there that I wouldn't have come across normally. I heard Pokiri's 'Dola Dola' the first time this way, and recently, the 'Lambi Judai' song from Jannat. Today was a pleasant surprise, because the minute I laid foot inside, a female chorus singing "Joy on sunshine, Joy on blue skies" started on the speakers. It's been ages since I heard Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and AR Rahman's 'Gurus of Peace', and I am almost embarassed to say I got goosepimples when the alaap began. AR Rahman's Vande Mataram was released on August 15 1997, on India's fiftieth year of independence. The promos that ran through July and August on Doordarshan tantalized mercilessly - they mostly consisted of famous Indian personalities ( I remember MS Subbalakshmi and Pandit Jasraj being two of them) talking about freedom and what it means to them with a distinctive drum-beat in the background, and then the drum would get louder while the tricolour would unfurl slowly across the screen. The spots used to run in the middle of the Hindi Samachar, if I remember correctly, and whenever I heard the drum-beat, I would run to the TV room, dropping whatever it is I was doing at the moment. The only authentic bit of pre-release news about the album was based on short snippets in some other programme ( was The World This Week still running at that time? Or was it Vinod Dua's show that followed it?). It was supposed to have a Rahman/Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan duet, with the former having travelled to Pakistan to record with the maestro, who was ill at the time. Sting was supposed to guest-star, nevermind I did not really know then who Sting was. Sivamani had great things to say about it. Hype, in those innocent, pre-internet days The night of August 14th, I was praying fervently to all the gods I knew - please don't let there be a powercut! AR Rahman was going to perform a live show ( this was obviously before all the World Tours began) at India Gate! Vande Mataram was finally out! The Man came onstage in blue jeans and a white shirt, and Sivamani, along with a HUGE contingnent of drummers went into an introductory performance that slowly led into THAT beat, the one we had been hearing on the promos. I had this small tape recorder positioned near the TV speaker, of course. (and the dang thing recorded it all pretty well, let me tell you.) Then Rahman sang The Song. And it was good. Then he sang a song that began "Aye Mere Vatan Ke Log", that I did not like too much. The later part of it is a little hazy in my mind, I don't remember what else he sang that night. August 15th came and went. The ULFA had declared Independence Day as an Assam bandh - they still do, by the way, with most people staying at home that day and the state on high alert the week leading to it - and there was no chance a music shop would be open. I must have heard that tinny recording god-knows how many times. I remember playing it over the phone to friends who did not watch the programme on TV. The day could not go slower! The next day in college, I played the recording before class ( yes, I was an obsessed little bastard even then) and then moment second period was over, I ran to Bharali Brothers nearby, a place I normally loathed because the old man behind the counter treated us students badly, and enquired if the album was in. It was. Sixty rupees was pushing my pocket money for the month, but I paid up. I bunked the rest of the classes and headed home. In the bus, took my own sweet time to read the liner notes. Ok, so Dominic Miller was the guitarist who had played with Sting, and was playing on the album. The liner pictures were superb, the painting on the cover was by Thotha Tharrani, a name I remembered as the person who had designed the sets for Mani Ratnam films like Bombay. "Aye Mere Vatan Ke Log" wasn't even there on the album. Eight years later, I found out that the song was "Masoom" and it was released on the US version of the album, with another song called "Musafir", which was a reworked version of 'Ottagatha Kathikko', one of Rahman's earlier songs from the film Gentleman. (Yes, I have the US version of the album too). I got home and switched on the music deck ( after remembering to clean the tape-head, hoo ah!), and put it on, feeling slightly light-headed. What The Frag?? 'Maa Tujhe Salaam' did not begin with the drum-beat. Well, whatever. 'Vande Mataram', the actual Bankim Chandra song played next. Blissful beginning, and a kick-ass guitar riff, though I did get a little cheesed off at the saxophone solo at the end. And then it started - 'Gurus of Peace'. Angelic female voices. A chorus in English! Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. And AR Rahman singing along. If on earth there was a time of bliss, it was this etc. August 16th, 1997 was a truly memorable day for me. And that night, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan died. In retrospect, perhaps I enjoyed the album, especially 'Gurus of Peace' a lot because I hadn't still heard a song called 'Poralae', from a 1994 Tamil movie Karuthamma, music by AR Rahman, from which the composer had liberally reused the melody for his duet with Nusrat. Karuthamma being one of those rare Tamil albums that did not make it to music stores in Assam. When I bought the Karuthamma album (Mount Road, Chennai, January 2003) and heard it that night in an IIT hostel room while swatting mosquitoes away, it took Herculean resolve to not jump up and run screaming down the corridor (out of...I dunno...excitement? Familiarity? Surprise?) on hearing a familiar tune was coated with a different aural layer. Later, much later, in 2001 to be precise, I am on an auto from Hanamkonda to my college in Kazipet. My friend, recently relocated to Hyderabad and visiting Warangal to pick up some certificates, and I are talking music. He asks me, "Which Rahman album is your favourite?". It takes me about thirty seconds to say "Vande Mataram". And of course, on my next birthday, I get a CD of the same album from him, as a gift. This was the time when CD prices had not normalized yet, and it made me feel really giddy, owning my first Rahman CD. Current Mood: happy Current Music: Go ahead, take a guess. (4 Comments |Comment on this)
harithekid	5:15p	Why Spoons? I have recently switched over to eating idly and vada with hands instead of with a spoon. This has been done for some general cheap thrills, until and unless there are extreme case scenarios where I am unable to wash my hands, which case spoon usage is the only way out. But whenever I see people eat idli-vada, I notice that they always use spoons without exception, and in most cases it is two spoons, in a manner similar to how people use forks and knives to eat food in the west. I am sure that idly and vada dishes have existed since a long time, which means that it is a recent change that has prompted people to use spoons to cut, dip and eat the idlis and the vadas in the slightly clumsy manner in which they do. Dosas, which are also staple fare, despite also being served with sambhar and chutney are not eaten using spoons. Its probably because its not convenient for them to be consumed that way, although I have seen peculiar characters who do manage to use knives and forks to eat dosas. As a teenager, I used to eat with a spoon all the time, and I guess my sister picked up from me as well. I did manage to get myself ridiculed for this habit of mine, but I managed to up the ante thereafter when I mastered the fine art of eating with chopsticks. I'd start eating lunch with chopsticks and since lunch consisted mainly of rice and some sambhar or dal to go along with it, and some curry, by the time I finished eating my lunch, dinner would be served. Despite eating all that I could, my weight still remains what it was when I was 4 years of age. My width has decreased to give way to an increase in height. Evolution has resulted in me coming back to square one and eating with my hands again. Somehow, I guess, instinctive behaviour is always the right one. Also, next time you are at a darshini, do pay attention to the way people eat with two spoons. Just makes you feel more superior when you gorge on food with your hands. Current Mood: awake Current Music: Anuva's Sky - BlackStratBlues (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, August 13th, 2008
esope	7:34p	(Comment on this)

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