kulir kaatru alaiyaada!

When you are working hard on a project, trying to get all the disparate pieces together, there comes a moment when your mind gets out of the project and something else comes up, mostly totally irrelevant but enchanting and with deep meaning nonetheless.
I'm trying to write meaningful code in the order of atleast fifty lines every day. Writing code is easy, writing meaningful code is harder. My journey from a good to a better programmer continues....
Sitting before my project and typing C# code, a pure tamil poem(should I or shouldn't I classify it as a poem? Readers, you tell me!) struck my mind. Its been a REALLY long time since I wrote tamil poems, the habit being lost in transition from school to college. Do take a look at it and tell me your comments.

kulir kaatru alaiyaada,
nitham kaathu thani nirka,
idam paarthu ivaiyaaga,
kshanam serndhu nadaiyaaga


[Sorry, I just can't seem to translate this with the meaning intact. If anyone who knows tamil wants to go ahead with the translation with the meaning captured, please do it in the comments section]
And oh! Happy Deepavali! Have a safe and fun diwali!
Luv,
Alpine

Block-o-block!

Too many things to share,
Too many ideas to discuss,
Too many posts waiting to be penned, but
Too less passion to do so.

A bad case of writer's block
A bad case of reader's block
A bad case of motivator's block
So, gone with the wind for now...
But I'd be back, for sure!

Keep safe and sound,
keep going around,
keep doing things,
Meet you all later!

Life's lessons!

Ok! this is going to be another forward sent to me by a friend. This was one of more interesting speeaches I heard. Not only that, I've seen people who come into a situation with lot of spark and then let their spark die and become listless and dull. Recently I saw a school friend of mine, thousands of miles away from where we both went to school. She was one of the bubbliest people I knew in school. Now, into a job that she aspired for and with a family behind her, she should have been jumping with joy. Instead I saw a person who is pushing her everyday life as if it was a punishment and not a joy to live(which it rightly should be). Now what went wrong? I know this question cannot be answered by anyone(maybe her) but I do know that it is sad that she is not having a good time. And, I also know that it is harder still to rekindle that spark once you let it die. Most of my friends ask me why I become excited even for the simplest of things as there is so much to do in life and that simple things don't matter. Well, pal, that is because I'm not sure if I'd be around for the big things to happen and even if I am, I'm only increasing the net joy I have in life by getting excited for the simpler things as well. I'm sure that if I get a new job, a new house, a new car, etc I'd be excited. But that doesn't stop me from getting excited and happy when I get a new book of my favorite author, when I meet a friend unexpectedly, when I play with my friend's son, when I win a pool game, etc. Since this forward related a lot to some of the discussions I've been having with my friends, I thought it would be appropriate to put it on my blog and discuss it with my readers as well. Let me know what you think about it all. I know, some of you have asked, "when is your next post going to be?". I'm caught up in work now and am sure I'd get a handle on it soon. Till then, take care and enjoy this:

Inaugural Speech for the new batch at the Symbiosis BBA program, Pune - 23rd June, 2008
- By Chetan Bhagat

Good Morning everyone and thank you for giving me this chance to speak to you. This day is about you. You, who have come to this college, leaving the comfort of your homes (or in some cases discomfort), to become something in your life. I am sure you are excited. There are few days in human life when one is truly elated. The first day in college is one of them. When you were getting ready today, you felt a tingling in your stomach. What would the auditorium be like, what would the teachers be like, who are my new classmates - there is so much to be curious about. I call this excitement, the spark within you that makes you feel truly alive today. Today I am going to talk about keeping the spark shining. Or to put it another way, how to be happy most, if not all the time.

Where do these sparks start? I think we are born with them. My 3-year old twin boys have a million sparks. A little Spiderman toy can make them jump on the bed. They get thrills from creaky swings in the park. A story from daddy gets them excited. They do a daily countdown for birthday party – several months in advance – just for the day they will cut their own birthday cake.

I see students like you, and I still see some sparks. But when I see older people, the spark is difficult to find. That means as we age, the spark fades. People whose spark has faded too much are dull, dejected, aimless and bitter. Remember Kareena in the first half of Jab We Met vs the second half? That is what happens when the spark is lost. So how to save the spark?

Imagine the spark to be a lamp's flame. The first aspect is nurturing - to give your spark the fuel, continuously. The second is to guard against storms.

To nurture, always have goals. It is human nature to strive, improve and achieve full potential. In fact, that is success. It is what is possible for you. It isn't any external measure - a certain cost to company pay package, a particular car or house.

Most of us are from middle class families. To us, having material landmarks is success and rightly so. When you have grown up where money constraints force everyday choices, financial freedom is a big achievement. But it isn't the purpose of life. If that was the case, Mr. Ambani would not show up for work. Shah Rukh Khan would stay at home and not dance anymore. Steve Jobs won't be working hard to make a better iPhone, as he sold Pixar for billions of dollars already. Why do they do it? What makes them come to work everyday? They do it because it makes them happy. They do it because it makes them feel alive. Just getting better from current levels feels good. If you study hard, you can improve your rank. If you make an effort to interact with people, you will do better in interviews. If you practice, your cricket will get better. You may also know that you cannot become Tendulkar, yet. But you can get to the next level. Striving for that next level is important.

Nature designed with a random set of genes and circumstances in which we were born. To be happy, we have to accept it and make the most of nature's design. Are you? Goals will help you do that. I must add, don't just have career or academic goals. Set goals to give you a balanced, successful life. I use the word balanced before successful. Balanced means ensuring your health, relationships, mental peace are all in good order.

There is no point of getting a promotion on the day of your breakup. There is no fun in driving a car if your back hurts. Shopping is not enjoyable if your mind is full of tensions.

You must have read some quotes - Life is a tough race, it is a marathon or whatever. No, from what I have seen so far, life is one of those races in nursery school, where you have to run with a marble in a spoon kept in your mouth. If the marble falls, there is no point coming first. Same with life, where health and relationships are the marble. Your striving is only worth it if there is harmony in your life. Else, you may achieve the success, but this spark, this feeling of being excited and alive, will start to die.

One last thing about nurturing the spark - don't take life seriously. One of my yoga teachers used to make students laugh during classes. One student asked him if these jokes would take away something from the yoga practice. The teacher said - don't be serious, be sincere. This quote has defined my work ever since. Whether its my writing, my job, my relationships or any of my goals. I get thousands of opinions on my writing everyday. There is heaps of praise, there is intense criticism. If I take it all seriously, how will I write? Or rather, how will I live? Life is not to be taken seriously, as we are really temporary here. We are like a pre-paid card with limited validity. If we are lucky, we may last another 50 years. And 50 years is just 2,500 weekends. Do we really need to get so worked up? It's ok, bunk a few classes, goof up a few interviews, fall in love. We are people, not programmed devices.

I've told you three things - reasonable goals, balance and not taking it too seriously that will nurture the spark. However, there are four storms in life that will threaten to completely put out the flame. These must be guarded against. These are disappointment, frustration, unfairness and loneliness of purpose.

Disappointment will come when your effort does not give you the expected return. If things don't go as planned or if you face failure. Failure is extremely difficult to handle, but those that do come out stronger. What did this failure teach me? is the question you will need to ask. You will feel miserable. You will want to quit, like I wanted to when nine publishers rejected my first book. Some IITians kill themselves over low grades – how silly is that? But that is how much failure can hurt you. But it's life. If challenges could always be overcome, they would cease to be a challenge. And remember - if you are failing at something, that means you are at your limit or potential. And that's where you want to be.

Disappointment's cousin is frustration, the second storm. Have you ever been frustrated? It happens when things are stuck. This is especially relevant in India. From traffic jams to getting that job you deserve, sometimes things take so long that you don't know if you chose the right goal. After books, I set the goal of writing for Bollywood, as I thought they needed writers. I am called extremely lucky, but it took me five years to get close to a release. Frustration saps excitement, and turns your initial energy into something negative, making you a bitter person. How did I deal with it? A realistic assessment of the time involved – movies take a long time to make even though they are watched quickly, seeking a certain enjoyment in the process rather than the end result – at least I was learning how to write scripts, having a side plan – I had my third book to write and even something as simple as pleasurable distractions in your life - friends, food, travel can help you overcome it. Remember, nothing is to be taken seriously. Frustration is a sign somewhere, you took it too seriously.

Unfairness - this is hardest to deal with, but unfortunately that is how our country works. People with connections, rich dads, beautiful faces, pedigree find it easier to make it – not just in Bollywood, but everywhere. And sometimes it is just plain luck. There are so few opportunities in India, so many stars need to be aligned for you to make it happen. Merit and hard work is not always linked to achievement in the short term, but the long term correlation is high, and ultimately things do work out. But realize, there will be some people luckier than you. In fact, to have an opportunity to go to college and understand this speech in English means you are pretty damm lucky by Indian standards. Let's be grateful for what we have and get the strength to accept what we don't. I have so much love from my readers that other writers cannot even imagine it. However, I don't get literary praise. It's ok. I don't look like Aishwarya Rai, but I have two boys who I think are more beautiful than her. It's ok. Don't let unfairness kill your spark.

Finally, the last point that can kill your spark is isolation. As you grow older you will realize you are unique. When you are little, all kids want Ice cream and Spiderman. As you grow older to college, you still are a lot like your friends. But ten years later and you realize you are unique. What you want, what you believe in, what makes you feel, may be different from even the people closest to you. This can create conflict as your goals may not match with others. . And you may drop some of them. Basketball captains in college invariably stop playing basketball by the time they have their second child. They give up something that meant so much to them. They do it for their family. But in doing that, the spark dies. Never, ever make that compromise. Love yourself first, and then others.

There you go. I've told you the four thunderstorms - disappointment, frustration, unfairness and isolation. You cannot avoid them, as like the monsoon they will come into your life at regular intervals. You just need to keep the raincoat handy to not let the spark die.

I welcome you again to the most wonderful years of your life. If someone gave me the choice to go back in time, I will surely choose college. But I also hope that ten years later as well, your eyes will shine the same way as they do today. That you will Keep the Spark alive, not only through college, but through the next 2,500 weekends. And I hope not just you, but my whole country will keep that spark alive, as we really need it now more than any moment in history. And there is something cool about saying - I come from the land of a billion sparks.

Thank You.

Golf course dinner!

What lesson can be learned in a golf course over a seven course dinner? Loads actually. Today was a very interesting evening where I got to do loads of firsts like go to a golf course, have a seven course dinner and a wonderful conversation(I always thought formal dinners were more a formality than a place to actually do something), meet some really awe inspiring people, get a view of three downtowns at the same time, etc. Let me not go into the details, but three of the most important lessons I learned were:
1) Don't fight all the battles because at the end of the day, not all of them matter.
2) Learn to know the goal and keep that in mind. Don't let the egos come into the picture.
3) Have fun, be passionate and know yourself.
I know this is not new advice, but the way it was said made all the difference, especially the last one. Thanks for all those who made this dinner possible. I HAD FUN!

Happy or Guilty or both??

Have you ever felt happy and guilty at the same time? Well, I had such a singular experience last weekend and I'm penning(rather typing) it down before it wears off.

Last weekend, the company that I was interning with hosted an intern event. The event itself was cool with only us in a large and scenic park and two bands playing for us. But the coolest things were just before and after the event. We were asked to take the bus from the company to the park and there were loud grumbles from the interns(around 1000 of us, some even flown from different parts of the country) as it was a Friday evening. If you had lived anywhere in the US, especially in any of the major cities, then you would have a really good idea as to how clogged the roads become on a Friday evening when the entire college crowd tries to hit the downtown and the hot spots. It was no wonder that we complained as well. But our complaints were to no avail. So, all of us got into some 20 or so buses and we were on road after ten minutes.

That was when I felt that something was different! We were on highways and freeways and there were no cars on our side of the lane. That was freaking unnatural, simply because cars are the most common mode of transport in US. Then we saw cops before and after our bus. Finally, realization dawned on me that we had police escorts and that they had stopped the traffic on the freeways and highway. I saw long lines of cars waiting at the intersection allowing us to pass and that was a unique experience. I have NEVER seen such a thing happen, especially in US. In India, I have waited a couple of times for certain VIPS(read, CM or Governor or XYZ) to cross and have always been furious as to how much time is wasted because of it. But for it to happen in US? I haven't even heard one so far. So, the entire incident was freaking and I couldn't stop feeling happy that I was also a VIP(albeit for a day) and got the same welcome as a Governor would. It was so ingrained in me that only VVIPs get such a treatment and the fact that Microsoft did exactly that sent a message that we were VIPs for them. But when I heard on the radio that the traffic on I-5(the highway on which we went) was gridlocked, I couldn't help feeling guilty at having wasted the time of thousands of others who were waiting for us to pass on a friday evening. Hence, the story of feeling happy and guilty at the same time.

Though I wouldn't want it to happen because it was a waste of money and effort and others' time, it left a part of me feeling different. Imagine thousands of people waiting for you. A friend of mine put it succinctly, "I have never felt so important in my life before". This statement from a person who has finished in the top five in India, went to one of the top three universities(in US) for college and is working at Microsoft for X years gave the incident a different view. Though money and education are important, everyone craves for some recognition and larger the mass recognizing/respecting you, the better you feel. So, Microsoft DOES pamper its interns. For more info, check this link.

About the coolest thing after the event, I got an amazing gift from my company. It was all the more sweet because I truly needed it and it came at the right time :) And the entire show was supposed to be a replacement for another big event(yes, you guessed it right, Bill's Grill party), a returning intern said that it was better than the Bill's Grill. The fact that I was among the first batch of interns to have received this attention(escorts and all) makes me feel all the more special. So, if you want to intern somewhere really cool and really awesome, do check out Microsoft. Because, they DO pamper their interns. :)

Where the hell is Matt?

Found this on one of my net ramblings:

Just one word: Sweet!!

Heights of geekiness!!

Sent by a friend of mine. As always, kudos to the original author and the geek in him/her:

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary
Over many a long and boring tome of programming lore
While I coded, tab aligning, suddenly there came a whining
As of the compiler pining, pining at my display’s floor,
‘Tis not possible’, I muttered, pinin, nearly a roar,
‘For my code is so hardcore.'

Chocolates are better than kissing!

I read this interesting article about chocolates being better than kissing. Any comments?
Btw, Happy Chocolate day to all the chocolate lovers out there! Remember me and have a big piece of the most tasty(I know all chocolate is tasty) icecream. My personal favorites are Godiva chocolates :) Let me know your favorite chocolatey secrets too ;)

Top ten reasons why America is the best country in the world!!

Now that we have the Fourth of July upon us, there have been loads of forwards floating about the best and worst of America. Though America has its bad points(like every other country in the world), I respect it for its people's hardwork, individualism, open mind(some call it crazy mind!!), diversity, etc. Here is a forward from two of my American friends. They said that they had the comments written up when they were bored at work.

Disclaimer: None of the opinions given here are mine and I don't endorse any. So, please don't flame me. I post it here because I see a sense of wry humor in this forward. If you don't, well and good, just lite it.

Top ten reasons why America is the best country in the world

1. Only in America......can a pizza get to your house faster than an ambulance.
I’m not sure that this is actually accurate. That is, has someone actually put together a graph with the locations of every hospital, fire department, etc., and analyzed this with traffic patterns? Somehow this seems fishy.

2. Only in America.....are there handicapped parking places in front of a skating rink.
There are legitimate reasons for there to be handicapped places in front of a skating rink. Say we have a handicapped parent. Should we really make it extra hard for him because his able-bodied children are able to use the skating rink. (You can make arguments just about anywhere for things like this; hence why ADA requires them)

3. Only in America......do drugstores make the sick walk all the way to the back of the store to get their prescriptions while healthy people can buy cigarettes at the front.
Perhaps because cigarettes are an impulse buy that you remember when you leave the store and prescriptions are not? OTC drugs are also a high-value item for shoplifters. Putting them in the back allows for more reaction time. Cigarettes are behind the counter and more difficult to shoplift.

4. Only in America......do people order double cheese burgers, large fries and a diet coke.
Interestingly enough, the caloric content of a soda is non-negligible. For example, a large coke at Taco Bell has 350 calories. A McDonald’s Double cheeseburger has 440 calories, and a large fries at McDonald’s has 570 calories. The soda has 80% of the calories of a double cheeseburger and 61% of the calories of a large fries. Assuming that you’re eating three meals of this a day, such a diet would have 3000 calories daily. Not healthy, but much better than 25% more calories.

5. Only in America......do banks leave both doors open and then chain the pens to the counters.
What bank doesn’t have its doors unlocked during business hours? Pens are chained to the counter to keep you from inadvertently walking off with them. If you assume that you have a thousand customers in a bank a day, 10% take a pen, and pens cost ten cents each, then you’re costing roughly $10 a day in pens. Unless you’re trying to advertise, you probably don’t want to spend something like $200/mo in pens.

6. Only in America......do we leave cars worth thousands of dollars in the driveway and put our useless junk in the garage.
If you have a lot of useless junk, you can’t very well put it out in your yard. Cars can be locked, and even if it’s not great for the paint job, you don’t have much of another option if you want to create the illusion of cleanliness in the home. I don’t think that this is unique to the US either.

7. Only in America......do we use answering machines to screen calls and then have call waiting so we won't miss a call from someone we didn't want to talk to in the first place.
Although we end up taking messages from people we didn’t want to talk to, answering machines are primarily so that we don’t miss calls at all. What’s wrong with managing information?

8. Only in America......do we buy hot dogs in packages of ten and buns in packages of eight.
This has to deal with bakers tending to do things in multiples of three and four, not some wide conspiracy. You’ll find that they do this in Europe as well. Hot dog manufacturers use a more natural multiple of 10, as do many other items.

9. Only in America......do we use the word 'politics' to describe the process so well:'Poli' in Latin meaning 'many' and 'tics' meaning 'bloodsucking creatures '
This is a false etymology. The derivation is from “politicus” or “citizens of the state”.

10. Only in America......do they have drive-up ATM machines with Braille lettering.
ATM machines are made mass-manufactured, and we still have ADA in our pocket. It’s also possible for a blind person to walk up to an ATM machine.

Privacy online??

Here is an article I came across about Viacom and Google and Youtube and our privacy. More on this topic this weekend. Succinctly, life with internet has less freedom and more intrusions than life without internet. Share your thoughts!

Sondha Mannil.... (In the native land!)

I received this poem through a friend of mine. I usually read the poems and either store them in my mailbox(if they are really good) or trash them(if else). But this one struck a chord somewhere and so reached my blog. Here, it is:


I tried translating it to english for my nonTamil readers, but the beauty just gets lost. Kudos to the original author whoever they are. It just portrayed what every person who knows what a happy and carefree childhood is and who is now into the grips of technology(in this grip willingly, so can't complain much! But the heart yearns for those simpler days!) feels at heart. Its worse when you are away from your family because the pangs are harder and take more time and effort to be quelled. Do you guys feel the same way too?

Vegan or Not?

Do we have a choice to decide our food habits fifty years down the lane? Or, more importantly, would our children have the same food choices as we have right now? I remember my parents talking about Raagi and Kambu and Cholam(varieties of corn) being more popular when they were kids and rice and wheat being less popular. But now, these grains have become almost non-existent(the last time I ate Raagi dosai(a speciality from Raagi) was about seven years ago). So, do we get to make a choice as to what we eat or would all of us be forcibly changed to being vegans(not even vegetarian or eggetarian is possible according to this article)? If so, what is the point in having the luxuries of life when you don't have the freedom to choose what you want to eat and how? Are we moving towards a truly free world? or is the world getting into more and more mess that we can't come out of? Well, time will tell! But it might be too late by then. Shoot your thoughts!

Canada Day!

This verse was sent by a friend of mine. I don't know from where he got it. So, the appreciation goes to the original author, wherever he/she is. Happy Canada day to all Canadians throughout the world. Canada is a proud country and I admire your resilience.
In honour of Canada's 141st Anniversary:

Hey, I'm not a lumberjack, or a fur trader....
I don't live in an igloo or eat blubber, or own a dogsled....
and I don't know Jimmy, Sally or Suzy from Canada,
although I'm certain they're really really nice.

I have a Prime Minister, not a president.
I speak English and French, not American.
And I pronounce it 'about', not 'a boot'.

I can proudly sew my country's flag on my backpack.
I believe in peace keeping, not policing,
diversity, not assimilation,
and that the beaver is a truly proud and noble animal.
A toque is a hat, a chesterfield is a couch,
and it is pronounced 'zed' not 'zee', 'zed' !!!!

Canada is the second largest landmass!
The first nation of hockey!
and the best part of North America

My name is ......!!
And I am Canadian!!!

PS: Thankyou Madhan, for pointing out the source :) Here is the link.

Believe it or Not!!

This post has nothing to do with Ripley's Believe it or Not! chain of places(actually, IMHO(ok, that's a computer person's version of saying In My Humble Opinion... I've started loving abbreviations for some reason. But I make some of my friends go mad! Ah! This too shall pass!(Ithuvum Kadandhu pogum!)So, my dear friends, hang in there!),that's a good place to go to, especially if you are in New York. They've got an awesome collection there. Even my parents(who have traveled to lots of places) were wowed by the collection. And that's something to say!) but more to do with the last post I wrote about Dasavatharam, Kamal's latest movie. Loads of my friends discussed about it with me and some even said that I hadn't taken the time to analyze the movie better. But even after a full two weeks of analysis and discussion, I still stand by what I expressed in the post. If that movie couldn't wow me in the first place, it just doesn't have that wow factor even if I read a lot about it, watch it again scores of times, talk/discuss more about it. Telling me that the movie grows on me is just not my cup of tea. Come on! I have loads more interesting things to do than spend 6 hours for a movie to make an impression on me. I have better things to do than to re-watch the movie.

All said and done, there were an unprecedented number of forwards about this movie and its interpretations. Kamal should be appreciated for that fact. He has given such a film that everyone has his/her own interpretation of it and each of it seems right. A true test of a person's rationale. Though I got interesting forwards, there was one which stood out amongst them. I was LOLing(again, laughing out loud for those who didn't get it) after reading it(thanks S, for sending it my way! I know you ROTFLed after reading this one!). I'll let you decide if you have to give work to your rationale or not after reading this one. Here goes:

1) In 1978, Kamal's Tamil movie "Sivappu Rojakal" got released. He played the role of a Psychopath killer . One year later, a guy called Psycho Raman was caught for brutally murdering people

2) In 1988, Kamal played the role of a unemployed youth in the movie "Sathya". In 89-90's our country faced lot of problems due to unemployment.

3) In 1992, his blockbuster movie "Devar Magan" got released. Its a village based subject. There will be some scenes portraying communal clashes. Exactly a year later in 1993, there were many communal clashes in southern districts.

4) We all know in 1996 many people in our country was cheated by finance companies. Our Kamal Hasan has clearly depicted this in his movie "mahanadhi" which got released in 1994 itself.

5) In "heyram"(2000), there are some scenes relating to Hindu Muslim clashes . We all know 2 years later, godhra(Gujarat riots) incident happened.

6) He used a word called 'tsunami' in his movie "Anbesivam"(2003).The word 'tsunami' was not known to many people before. In 2004, 'tsunami' stuck the east coast of our country and many people lost their lives.

7) In his latest movie "Vettaiyadu Vilayadu "(2006) there are two characters called ila&amudhan who played the roles of psychopath killers. After 3 months of release of the movie, the noida serial killing came to light (moninder/sathish)


And to add another point to the seven below
8 )He shows the outbreak of a biological weapon(virus/vial) in Tamil nadu --Dasavatharam(2008)

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My view: Does it mean now Kamal will become Kamalanandha and start dancing with women (ok! In a swamiyar garb) and bringing out Lingams and Vibuthis and predict the future of politics, cinema and India?
Your Views: On the comment section, please!

Be there!

She moved in this world
A world of new beginnings
A world of new thoughts
A world of new starts

She met people
People from different walks of life
People from different countries
People from different parts of life

She felt unfettered
From the people
From the world
From life

She was scared
Scared of the new freedom
Scared of the new actions
Scared of the new life

The Voice understood
Understood her concerns
Understood her worries
Understood her unanswered questions

The Voice reflected
How to explain
How to simplify
How to break it in

The Voice said
"Tis yours to enjoy,
Tis yours to work on,
Tis yours to live!"

The Voice showed
Showed the uses of freedom
Showed the beauty of action
Showed the meaning of life

The Voice warned
Of the ever present slip
Of the ever present danger
Of the ever present oblivion

She vowed to remember
Remember this freedom
Remember these actions
Remember this life
For,
it is the milk of the universe
the honey that sweetens life
the elixir that man is after

She vowed to work hard,
Hard to keep this freedom
Hard to repeat these actions
Hard to live this life
For,
Hard work prevents slips
Hard work protects from danger
Hard work obliterates the oblivion

The Voice was glad
Glad that she understood
Glad that she related to it
Glad that she knew
For,
Knowledge brings maturity
Knowledge brings care
Knowledge brings wisdom

The Voice supported her
In preventing the slips
In protecting from danger
In obliterating the oblivion
For,
The Voice is there to nourish
The Voice is there to elevate
The Voice is there to "be there"

Dasavatharam - Review

I usually don't write a review of a movie. Three simple reasons: 1) The movie is not so impressive or I have nothing new to add to what has been said already 2) I don't watch movies often(yup! I'm NOT a movie fan. If I watch five movies in a theatre in a year, my family and friends would be so surprised because I just don't watch them in theatres!) 3) I usually thrash out a movie with friends or family after watching it(usually, my sister ends up being the scapegoat where she would patiently listen to me analyzing each scene and each angle of the story. Sometimes its good(like in Gajini), sometimes its bad(like in Om Shanti Om) but all the time,its interesting!) But now that I'm stuck in S____ and the first condition got satisfied, here goes the review of Dasavatharam.

Basically, its a good movie but turns bad and then worse as more and more masala is added to it. Kamal is a versatile actor, there is no doubt in it. But he has tried to do too much in the movie. He has discussed everything from politics to religion to science to what not!!!??? Even in each of these categories, he has taken pains to cover each part(or atleast a sliver of each part). For example, in politics, he has used Bush(yup! the very same American president), Dr.ManMohan Singh(yeah, our Indian prime minister), both our CMs(now and then). I fully expected him to bring in or atleast talk about all the problems of the world(like sand burglary). Thankfully he stopped with this array. In religion, he made sure he covered the Saivites, the Vaishnavites(two major sects of Hinduism), Christianity and finally Islam. In science, he went all the way from Biology to Chemistry. And he added the Japanese guy for .........? For what? To create a fan club for him in Japan(just because Rajini has one)?

I like each of the characters that Kamal portrays(I bow for his excellence in acting, but that's about it. I know I might draw flak from Kamal fans but this is my opinion and this is a free world! So, no comments on this statement please!) but my favorite character is Mr.Balram. He is so natural and the character fits Kamal like a glove. The ones with Bush, the old lady(who incidentally likes rose milk and reminded me of the glorious days of summer break where I did nothing but drink rose milk, play in the hot sun, eat icecream and finish a story book a day! Sigh! Now, I just can't imagine a summer like that any more in my life!), Kallif Ulla, Fletcher(Man! Terminator in tamil ;)) were kind of artificial and showed too well that it was pure makeup. It reminded me of someone wearing a mask and acting. Guess the field of makeup hasn't grown to such a level as to what Kamal expects. But its a good effort! And the Vincent character is good as well but it could have been given more screen space. About the first Ramanuja Daasan, his acting was good if a bit too theatrical.

About the story, there was nothing much in it, right from the beginning. It reminded me of some novel where every character hurries every minute only to leave the reader wondering why all this hurry. Similarly, here, the reason to hurry was not captured and delivered properly to the viewer (unlike Kaaka Kaaka or Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu where the viewer can understand the urgency within a scene!) Here, everyone seems to rush all the time but there is no deep meaning for it all. A short version of the story is that Kamal discovers a virus that can kill everyone in minutes and leave the Earth barren and his boss decides to sell it to terrorists. After a melee(I'll tell you, it was neither hilarious nor gripping! It was similar to Race, the movie where it was confusions galore), Kamal reaches Chidambaram followed by Fletcher(another Kamal, the villain) followed by Balram (another Kamal, the ubiquitous law man) followed by a Japanese(God knows why this guy is there in the movie because all he does is to come on in in the end and fight Fletcher, which Kamal himself could have done(given that loads of tamil heroes manage to do it with ease) Or maybe he was aiming to keep the movie natural? Only Kamal should tell) where he meets Asin(who, by the way, is portrayed as a staunch Vaishnavite and says "Perumaalae!"(Lord's name) every minute. But this turns irritating after some time.) and her granny(another Kamal). Now a chase begins where everyone chases in the above given order and finally Tsunami comes to finish up the unfinished business of the humans.

Now on to why I think the movie can't go into must watch list. Simply put, the movie doesn't give time to the viewer to actually get into the story. It starts in US, then chases begin, then moves to India, then chases go on, then climax. What IS happening? A lady before me in the theatre actually asked her husband this question! LOL!

Secondly, each character has been etched too hurriedly and everyone jostles for screen space with the result that no one gets enough to do justice to their roles and finally confuse everyone(now what was the Muslim family doing in the movie? Too many extra characters like that! It reminds me of "I want a share in the apple pie" story and finally everyone gets a crumb and no one is satisfied!). Even Asin seems to have been added to each scene rather than being part of the story flow. Atleast there should have been some good scenes between Kamal and Asin. It finally looked like they kept running all the time and he fights to save her and everyone thinks they go together and she falls in love even though his principles about God are the exact opposite to what she believes. I can take some amount of comedy, but this is atrocious!! Also, talking about life and love in a superficial manner when tsunami has struck is all the more comical!! Maybe that is why they didn't have a separate comedy track in the movie? Its so cruel to use Mallika Sherawat as done in the movie and kill her even before she tries to act(now you can't blame her for poor acting if her character gets killed after a song and a few other shots, can you?)

Third, some of the characters are so out-of-storyish that I just feel that they have been added to the story just to add another character to Kamal's doable characters list(like Avtaar Singh, Fulla, etc). Fourth, there are loads of double entendres in the movie and its kind of difficult to explain kids as to why the audience laugh for a particular sentence when they don't find anything odd or funny in it. I know that it is expected in a Kamal movie (in any movie nowadays, for that matter) but this one had loads(or is my movie watching skills so low that I don't know the present count/trend? If so, I feel sad for the present teens and pre-teens. They have work cut out for them in keeping their innocence and enjoying childhood and adolescence as much as they can)

Finally, I feel as if they've assumed that every person who watches this movie doesn't have basic sense and would accept everything that is dished out as a movie(just because we pay $20 doesn't mean we have to accept all the crap that is given right? Or is it that we are expected to keep our common sense at home when we go to watch movies? This, especially, disappoints me in this movie! I expected better from Kamal Haasan's movie). Example: the bullet from Fletcher's gun hits the cancerous growth in Avtaar Singh's throat and cures him of cancer without need for surgery while miraculously saving his voice and keeping everything else intact. Nalla kaathula poo sutharaangayaa!!

All said and done, this movie is watchable once but not more than once unless you are a film student and want to know how to act even with a makeup mask on you. This is a simple case of "Too many cooks spoiled the broth". Too many things said in three short hours made sure nothing reached the audience, or at best a garbled message reaches them. Want to know how to etch each character and still do something like acting 10 roles in one movie? Watch Navarathri by Sivaji Ganesan. Now, that is a movie! The lead actress(Savithri (thanks for pointing the error, G!)) leaves home on day one of Navrathri and meets eight different Sivajis and returns home on the tenth day to marry the ninth one. Every character adds some meaning to the movie and there is a good flow in the storyline. And each character, ranging from the inspector to the doctor to the skit maker to the terminal patient, has been done so perfectly and is so amazing. We just can't say that one character has been given more attention than the other or has been protrayed better than the rest. Everything was so good and it was all done with lesser makeup! I guess that is why Sivaji is still considered to be among the best of the best when it comes to acting and Kamal is still trying to reach there!

Absolute freedom - Just 9 minutes!!

Musings tagged me. It is about the things that come to your mind within 9 minutes. I'm not exactly sure as to what absolute freedom means here... so let me take a guess, its the time when nothing matters in the world. You are free from all inhibitions and expectations of the world. Ok! Here goes my list!
1) I would invent a plane that would travel from India to US in half an hour's time(max). That way, I can stay in India and study/work in US. And, I would be living in the skies! What else does a person want?
2) I would relive every moment of my time with my grandmom.
3) I would make Vairamuthu write a song especially for me, get Rahman to compose it and ______ to sing it! (well that is a blank now! Will think of it after these 9 minutes)
4) I would try out the cauliflower chicken dosa that is available in select places in Karaikudi and Chennai.
5) I would go to all the planets and be back in a day.
6) I would have a body that knows no physical abuse (right now, my body lacks sleep( because of exams and submission deadlines), been subjected to jetlag(due to time differences), been hurt(due to the various injuries in games), been pumped with toxins(courtesy: all the fertilizers, pesticides we use for our vegetables),etc.)
7) I would have a tap of milk and honey in every home and every country. That way, our world would be a land of milk and honey.
8) With a wave of a wand, India would become sparkling clean and new(as clean as the leaves get after a good rain).
9) With another wave of a wand, all countries would be free of corruption, drugs and sexual abuse.(I know this is really too much to ask for, but hey! I have 9 minutes of absolute freedom... so, let me atleast think of it and enjoy it!)
10) I will know the thinking of man and the society.
11) I will make life easier for the common man by showing ways of enriching his life.
12) I would ask God what he thought when he created this planet of teeming life.
13) I would find out if ghosts and draculas and vampires truly exist (you can add manthreegam to that list! Black magic, voodoo dolls, african spirits - all are in too)
14) I would keep life simple and happy for the rest of my life

Guess my time is up. But it was an interesting exercise. In the first two minutes all I could think of was how I was going to finish up the pending work for the week. After that, I started with the list and didn't even realize I was over the allowed time by a few minutes. So, here goes my tag: Superficial gibbering prater, Arun, Dream Chaser, Priya and KK.

Email Addicts

I know I'm going to draw lot of flak for this topic. But, hey, its the truth. The frequency with which we check mails HAS increased over the years. I agree, I do hear voices that say that it is because of change in career (we have moved from being school kids to college students to professionals), way we communicate (there were days when my grandmom used to wait for a letter from her daughter in Delhi for days, now all my mom need to do is to log on to her mail id to check for her daughter's mails), way we plan things out (how many times parties and events and trips have been decided between friends through email? I still remember a bday party where there were 54 mails within an hour :D) and the way we live. I'm all for these changes as they help a person a lot in communication (if not for my bank emails and credit card emails, I would totally forget the finance stuff and would have to run to the bank every time I want to do some transaction!! Life is infinitely simpler now!) but I've also seen people who check mails every five minutes! Mind you, its not as if they are expecting some important mail... its more out of habit. And in this country and age, where wireless devices are becoming more the norm rather than an addition, I find people checking mails in malls, theatres, parks, beaches (for heavens sake! They come to the beach to get away from it all and they check their mails there!!! One of my friends' husband is a compulsive email addict. The first thing he asked in the Florida beach resort where they stayed was how good the internet connection would be on the beach. Apparently he is not the only one who has asked this question. The resort employees told him about the facilities they had and his joy knew no bounds. Though he had fun with his wife and friends, my friend always says that she does not get her husband for herself for a full day. He is always connected and always checking mails and replying to them. She has learned to live with it but its sad that it has to be like this)!!

Also, people have a number of accounts. Yours truly, herself has four accounts, one for work, one for personal stuff, one for groups and one for junk(I still have no idea as to when I started this one or why I maintain this one... but its better to get all the junk in one of them. I can just log in one day and clean it all up rather than having the junk mail mess up my work or personal one. This id is given when I'm testing a site and I want some service but don't really want them or their partners to mail me). My roommate is tired of logging on to a number of her accounts and just redirects it all to one id and uses one email client. Another of my friends does it too. But, for people like her, the problem in closing down unwanted accounts is that they don't know to whom they've given which id. What if the id they close is given to someone important by chance? (A, I know you face this problem!).

It's good that Google or Windows Live or Yahoo doesn't let you open two accounts in the same Firefox browser (I've stopped using IE long back! So, not sure how it is in IE's tabs). Otherwise, people would open two accounts at the same time and use them simultaneously. Though it doesn't stop the problem, it atleast reduces it a lot. Ok, getting back to the topic, what is it that makes people check for mail every few minutes? If you are a hot shot executive or team leader or editor or anyone on earth who gets mail every few minutes, it makes sense to keep checking. But, strangely, it is these people who check their mails at set times of the day and don't give in to compulsive mail checking. They rather check their mails once, work on them and try to finish them off as soon as possible. One of the executives whom I've worked with in the past says that it channelizes his time and energy and lets him concentrate on his work thereby increasing his efficiency (ok! I might have a 'paper' effect in this post (aka) writing a sentence of ten words in twenty words so that the high brow conferences and professors accept it. I've been writing papers (sadly all for my courses) all through the week and here I am, with traces of that effect still in me). I've felt it too.... the days (or rather, hours) when I'm not on gtalk (I love Google for this idea... introducing gtalk within gmail. Its awesome for a person like me. I can do both at the same time... and it was a savior when we were in college and all the chat applications were blocked. But the lab admins could do nothing about gtalk and we had a whale of a time! But, adhu oru kanaakaalam!), I work more and I'm more efficient... but with gmail or gtalk on, I tend to check mail as soon as I see Gmail - Inbox(1) on the title bar. One of my friends is even worser. He keeps doing his work and keeps checking every five minutes for mail. So, we all do know that efficiency suffers big time with this email addiction. Then what is it that still makes people do it and worse yet, make it a habit?

I can guess only two reasons. First, people want to connect with others all the time. Even if they say that they are introverts and don't connect easily, man is a social animal (did I learn this in fourth standard? Good job, Alpine! You still remember fourth standard lessons ;)) and email doesn't require you to actually talk to a person real time on the face(though IMs also help in this regard, nothing is more convenient than email where you can think for hours to give back a reply which when said to in public, you won't have enough time to do so... even IMs require that you reply within seconds or minutes). It's the need to connect that drives people to do crazy things, even checking email on the beach!

Second reason is a bit wacky (based on how you take it). People want to share their time with more people. They feel that they share the same time(say an hour) with more people(friends, coworkers, spouse, etc) when they check mail along with something else that they are doing (otherwise, why would a guy want to check mails while he is having TV time with his family? He gets to spend time with his kids, share a joke with his wife and also check up with his coworker! Disclaimer: though I've used male gender here, both genders are becoming equally bad at this as the age group reduces. God save our kids!! When our generation women become mothers, we would be singing lullaby in one hand and checking mails in the other! LOL!!).

Finally(this is not a reason but still a tentative thought), people want to know more all the time in everything. That is why you watch a movie or do some work and still keep checking mails on the side so that you just CANNOT stop hearing the office gossip or the friends' gang gossip that comes in through email. I can come up with a bunch of more reasons ranging from getting a mail inflates your ego because someone thinks you are important enough to send a mail (nammalayum mathichu oruthan mail anuppi irukaanyaa!! (read in Solomon Paapaiyaa's style :D)) to you being plain bored and are either tired of networking sites/games or don't know about them. But, readers, what is your opinion about it? Also do share your experiences about it (I'm sure the tech people would have loads to tell about it). And, any ways you've seen/heard/done to break this addiction!!

Serial Syndrome

What is it with Indian serials? Whenever I see an Indian serial, I've always thought that there was something weird. But now, after seeing American and British serials(I even watched a French serial once), the differences are mind blowing. These are some of the differences I found(Readers! You are welcome to add to the list. :)):
1) Why is it that the characters in each serial are fully made up even when its night and all they do in the scene is to retire in the night?
2) Why is the humor so crass or worse still they do abject twisting of lines to get some "so called" humor? (couldn't stop comparing with SouthPark which made up a humor genre of its own)
3) Why is there a main protagonist and all the problems, ever made in the world, affect her/him? (Here, the directors are very feminist. All the protagonists are women. Eg: Abhi from Kolangal, the K serials, etc. Or do they send out a message that women always land in soup however good they are? Or is it done for a higher TRP rating? If so, aren't people interested when a man suffers? What sort of a message are we sending to the future generation?)
4) Why is it that there is always one unnecessary twist at the end of every episode? (Eg. A person gets down from the auto, walks to the gate(mind you, all this is shown in slow motion so as to kill the last five minutes of that episode), opens the gate and knocks on the door. Then, surprise of surprise, he has a surprised look on his face(As if he expected a human being to open the door and an alien did, or worse, the opposite.) and the episode ends. Couldn't stop commenting: Edhukku ivangalukku ivlo scene?)
5) Why is it that all the serials follow the same storyline? (if the protagonist in one serial goes to jail, the protagonist in another serial HAS to go to jail too... even if the storyline doesn't warrant it... Is this called springing surprises on the viewers? I would call it just plain confusing. My maid put it succinctly. She could no longer make much difference between the two serials. Eg: Abhirami from Anandham and Abhi from Kolangal went to jail in less than a week's time. Lol!)
6) Why is it that even in abject poverty(according to the storyline), the characters come dressed in the latest of fashions? (the one thankful grace was Metti Oli, where I could finally saw some characters dressed in the manner of normal people).
7) Why is it that when you think that a serial is different and interesting, it goes back to the normal formulae? (Eg. Kadhalikka Neramillai. I thought that serial was different and was interested to know how it went. But now, its so crap that sometimes I seriously wonder if it is being directed by the same person.)
8) Why is it that I can stop watching a serial for a year and watch it again only to pick up the story in a matter of minutes? Has the story not moved at all in that year?
9) Why is it that even "thriller" serials have black magic(there is no dearth of them in India) of some form? Can't the directors give something that thrills by the story and not by Mantras and Tantras?
10) Why is it that illegal issues are shown as commonplace on serials? (Eg. it is illegal to have two wives by the Indian law. But every serial has a character who has two wives and it is taken for granted. Also, come the scenes where people drink and drive, where hitting women is commonplace(there is a law that whenever a person is hit in a public place, anyone can give a complaint, more severe is the punishment if it is a woman being hit), where lewd comments and double entendre dialogues are rampant when even talking risque in public places can land you in trouble, etc.)
11) Why is it that women are shown to be either too patient or too sassy? In real life, none of the women are like that. (Eg. In MettiOli, there is one character who puts up with all the crap(mind you, its the worst crap possible) just so that her dad would be pleased(Lady, if you suffer, your dad would still be hurt. Its better to not suffer so much and make your dad feel sad than suffering for his sake. Would any dad want that?). Then when her dad dies, she walks away from it all. Does it mean she was waiting for her dad to die so that she can escape from the tortuous prison? Come on!!) Too much exaggeration seems to have become the norm nowadays. And that is not good, considering how far reaching the effects of TV are.
12) Why is it that violence of ridiculous levels be shown on TV? Why is it that scenes like murder, rape, etc are shown in graphic detail? And mothers happily let kids watch them. What sort of life is it coming to? I fondly remember the K.Balachandar serials like "adutha veetu jannal", "Premi", "Kadhal Pagadai", etc that were kid-safe(meaning, my parents can let us watch it without their supervision). Where did such serials go? There were also others like "Ragasiyathukul Ragasiyam", "Marma Desam", etc. when my mom was always nearby keeping an eye on what we saw. When we were kids, we had to get up and walk to our rooms(my mother would find 'instant' errands for us to do) when overage stuff was shown on TV. Now, we protect our parents like that :D We watch something first(movies, especially), then deem it parent-safe or not and then let our parents watch it. Else, they'll watch it and crib about it for days as to how the society has turned out. My parents are happy with this arrangement and my sister and I get to watch latest stuff too. A win-win situation :)

Nowadays, lots of Indian families say that they spend time with their kids in front of the television, their definition of "family time" or "quality time with kids". Accepted, we can't dictate as to how every parent should spend time with their kids. But what is disheartening is that kids get exposed to the adult world too fast, too soon. They lose their innocence and ask over-age questions. It might sound funny at that time, but its not so. Is robbing kids of their innocence our goal? Let the kids grow over time. The home is supposed to be the safest haven in the world. And, if the TV serials can intrude that haven and cause havoc watched by helpless parents, it becomes an issue of concern. I'm only reminded of a tamil proverb "Pinjilae pazhuthathu rusikaathu" (that which ripens when too young, will not be tasty). This applies not only to fruits and vegetables but also to people. The beauty of growing up is in knowing things at the right time, not in knowing things before hand. The kids have work cut out for them, in protecting their innocence from the attacks of the big, bad, mean world. Or as my roommate says, "there is no innocence in the world, only ignorance". If you take that approach, sure, let your kids know all that is there to know. But make sure the information comes from authentic sources and not cheap books, movies, etc. And certainly not TV serials.

A black day

There are some things that are experienced by you and some that you have no relation to. And then there are some things where you feel the pain even when you have not been directly affected. One of them is the memorial service in my university held today where 32 innocent people paid with their lives for one person's foolishness and mental illness.

The university, faculty and students, the alumni and the families, all of us are mourning deeply for this act. No need to know the victims in person, it is enough that the lives were sacrificed when there was no need. There was so much passion, so much love, so much enthusiasm associated with each of the persons that you can feel it permeating through to you. The Norris Hall would forever be haunted and they would be forever remembered by one and all here. All of us have emerged, stronger and more ready to face the realities of life and to appreciate life and all its varied flavors better.

Though I was not at this campus when this sad incident happened, I can very easily relate to it as I see dear friends, faculty, lab mates, classmates and sundry who were here on that fateful day and could very well have been one of the victims. It sends a shudder through me when I think of it and what could have happened. How lives could have got changed in a moment's notice. This goes on to show how little time we all have(does anyone know when exactly they will die?) and how much time out of it we spend bickering and quarreling over silly issues. I'm sure all the loved ones of the victims would gladly give anything to be with them one more time, feel their arms around them one more time, feel those lips say their names one more time, have the opportunity to say how much they love them and how much they mean to them, have the opportunity to say how their lives brightened because of them, how many dreams each of the victims were a part of and how much more life can be.

I stay in a different place from my family and now I make it a point to talk to my parents and sister and family everyday. I especially take every possible opportunity to tell my mom how much I love her. For all that is possible, who knows if I would ever get a chance to tell her that again? I certainly don't want to leave this world with the regret that I haven't told her how special she is in my life. It doesn't reduce the potency of those words how many ever times you say it. In the Indian society, somehow, expressing one's feelings for another even if they were close relatives or friends, is considered a taboo or at the least an awkward thing. I, for one, would have told my parents that I loved them a dozen times in all my years of existence in India. Even though they know it and I know that they know it, we never said it out. But after coming here and knowing how life could change forever, I feel there is no time like the present to let your loved ones know how special they are in your life.

Even with friends, its better to tell things before you wait forever for the right moment. One of my friends is a friend of one of the victims. He is laden with grief and is guilty that he never told his friend how much love was there, untold, between them. Well, that has made me call long distance to a few of my close friends and speak to them about this and that for hours. Mind you, had I been in India and not had such an experience, I would've limited it to the times when both of us are free and when I see them online and calling them on special occasions. But now, I've called them time and again, sometimes even when they were sleeping at 2 am(R, I know I disturbed your sweet dreams with Ty that night... But I simply had to call!) And I've made some impromptu calls to my friends here. Just to tell them that I appreciate them being in my life and that I'm concerned for them. I used to be a person who was very controlled about her emotions and let it out only when she felt it was appropriate. Even now, I still have shades of that but I have realized that sometimes life is too short and its the present moment that matters the most. So if you get a call from me 'just like that', accept that it is my way of appreciating your presence in my life and be happy for the beautiful friendship that we share.

I heard one of my friends(a mom of two Hokies and a Hokie herself) say her experiences during that fateful day. She was at office and suddenly her son called saying that he was in lockdown and didn't know what was happening in the campus. She immediately saw the news and called him back to stay where he was. Her other son was also locked down in the dorm. She was thanking God that day because her son was supposed to be in the Norris Hall one hour later for one of his classes and had, on a whim, gone to the library to pick up a book and was locked down. She shudders to think of what otherwise could've happened. That is like making a trip to the gates of hell and back and then having heaven restored to you. And the saddest of it all was that when the paramedics were taking the victims out of the Hall, their cellphones were ringing and each of them had "Mom" or "Dad" on it calling to confirm they were safe. Some parents broke down saying that they had plans of coming for the graduation ceremony to see their daughter or son "walk the walk" and instead made the trip to get their lifeless bodies. It was a revelation and shows how much we all take for granted some of the things in our lives. Lets make sure that we spend more time with our loved ones, tell them how much we love them, hug them once more, hear them say our names once more, do everything with them once more. For time spent like this is never a waste and you will not regret it for lifetimes to come!