tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-91016969726141599492023-11-16T03:47:43.580-08:00Dk's PassionsDKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.comBlogger53125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-15735571552706284472014-12-28T09:35:00.005-08:002014-12-28T10:08:51.511-08:00Corruption<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I have always thought about writing a blog on corruption. At least, in our country's context, for people who believe in nationalism rather than saying how and where I was born decides my association to a country is a bogus concept, just because you want to overcome your guilt of staying away, again in our country's context, I feel is the most important problem we face at the hierarchical problem tree we have. A lot of you will agree with me, but what shatters me is the hesitation of the majority to actually acknowledge it when few events occur in real life. I used have these conversations(I have stopped a lot now due to a lukewarm response and that answers my delay in writing this) with people I know and I respect, when we hear about an accident due to wrong side driving or child in bore well or bus in railway track. I used to argue this is all due to corruption and nothing else, because every other problem, say administration or mis governance or lack of facilities in my opinion will be a child of corruption in the tree I was talking about.<br />
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Many of them acknowledge this when it comes to direct government facing services like passport, RTO, ration etc, because the cause and effect is very direct. If I say that corruption is the reason for two small daughters of a construction working staying at the parking of a newly opened huge supermarket not having basic facilities of a toilet or clothes or some toys, will you agree with me? I hope a lot them do, because I believe in it very strongly and the thought that economic disparity has increased exponentially beyond repair due to corruption alone is deeply rooted in my heart. A lot of people talk about growth and relate it to GDP, and increase in overall quality of life in humans. Our model is too top down and as we move down, we get peanuts. Though everyone is growing, the rate of growth is inversely proportional to your depth in the tree.<br />
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India is a huge country when it comes to population and classes of people(I hate to use this word, but it is important in this context). The ones we(as in my friends, social space and acquaintances) interact with, I feel, are in some sense, more of beneficiaries of corruption than detriments of it. We all hate it in the broader sense, but are happy for it to exist in pockets wherever convenient. Some elementary examples are trying to save tax, buying things without receipts, donations for kinder garden admissions, recommendation of any sort from getting a parking space to buying a land. I have seen people look at me with the stare that says "this guy is completely lost" or "is he nuts?" or "he is too idealistic". Balance is the word used by many, they say, "corruption is done by the big shots, we are just trying to balance it and save our money being wasted." There exists a no rule based convenience as a by product of corruption which the majority love and depend on, hence it is very difficult to plant this thought into their heart.<br />
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I am big fan of Indian government and they way our constitution is written. Sixty plus years down the line, and we are still very stable in governance, robust in policies. Alarmingly, we are ridiculously lacking in execution. How is that possible? As you expect, my answer is corruption. I sincerely feel that in trying to make the one nation theory of India a reality, we had to make too many compromises in every part of british India to convince every inch of the diversity that their ideology and interests will remain. And one of the compromises was to ignore the rising corruption in the system from the root of its inception because we had lot of growth potential in numbers and like I tried to elaborate, there were beneficiaries. I strongly feel, corruption has gone up after we opened up to the world in the early 90's because we had huge potential for both growth and corruption already in place and hence it was foolish to think only growth will increase and corruption won't.<br />
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There is no magic wand with anyone. With rising population and its dreams, it may sound possible to make the majority acknowledge the deepness of this problem, but almost impossible to make them understand that they too have to drastically change and it will take time to solve this problem. At grassroots, if we can try to create a system where politics is independent of administration, and even a small magnitude of corruption is socially looked down upon, and more importantly, a very responsible media, then we may be getting there. I may sound like "Anniyan Ambi", but I am glad I sound like him. We are culturally too tolerant, like the "Adjust madi" advertisement symbolises, like our women for generations due to whom alone we are the leaders today in setting an example of family bonding and values across the world, and more sadly, like the gigantic tolerance and indirect support to corruption in our everyday life. If tolerance on corruption is our weakness, then our callousness is the biggest betrayal to this country of ours. I am a programmer. Every problem I face has a solution that needs either an ideal approach or a practical approach. If I take the practical routes making compromises because it makes my life easy for that day, I fail miserably as a programmer and every programmer knows that. Doesn't it sound exactly similar when we replace problem with corruption and programmers with citizens of our country? </div>
DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-32726998292175646162014-09-17T11:09:00.001-07:002014-09-17T11:09:21.416-07:00Why my grandfather was a great man!!!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I think frequently about my mindset relating to purchasing properties. I never wilfully wanted to or will ever want to own plots or houses when I have to shell the money to purchase them. If you are asking me, "who else will?", I am just taking the rare possibility of acquiring a legacy out of this discussion. The fact is I own a flat right now but I would rather spend that money on a holiday, enjoy, and not regret. I felt this behavioural aspect of me is slightly uncommon, but was stunned to hear from a very genuine source that a recent survey has proved I am part of the majority. It was difficult to believe because most folks I meet everyday invest in properties having at least a scattered vision on its returns and strongly feel it is necessary to protect their future. <br />
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This made me analyse deeper into "why I have this mindset in the first place?". My only reasoning is family. My grandfather never owned a square foot of land. My father owns a house now, but he built it with more anxiety than happiness, which meant it was never his aspiration to build a house. And he told me he had sleepless nights thinking about his loans and that took away some happiness he had before. Eventually, he got used to the emi's, figured out it is manageable, and got his peace of mind back. That sounds reasonable because when he applied for a bank loan he was already 47. That thought process eventually got into my head. What astonished me even more is how my grandfather had managed to skip it.<br />
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He never owned a square foot of land in his whole life. He lived one of the most complete and happy lives, no big regrets as far as I know. He had two sons, my father being the younger one. What were his achievements in life? He brought up his two sons and knew they would coexist in harmony with him and his wife. Till he passed away, my father and him never shared salary/pension details. He and my grandmother could decide(still my grandmother can) where they wanted to stay at their will, and more importantly, could take care of themselves financially. After retirement, he took my grandmother to bank every time he went, to keep her abreast on every financial detail of them. When he passed away in 2003, my grandmother was not left to suffer alone with too many unknowns and mysteries and uncertainties. She had been well informed of all channels of his, which could make her as independent as she was when he was there. Now, was there a need for her to be independent? actually not, because she had very less or no problems or issues with her sons or daughter in laws. But, the question is, does being independent made her strong and wilful to lead the rest of the life without him, definitely YES. He lived a happy and complete life and planned things for his wife after his death so perfectly and knew his sons would take care of themselves. He never owned a square foot of land in his whole life.<br />
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Now, why did he not own any land is a different question. May be he was not financially liable to own one during his earning days, or he did not want to own one. But, for me, the reason is immaterial. We hear, see, like a lot of motivational examples around the world, get inspired by them and try to get influenced by it and motivate us towards our goal. Why do we do this? mostly, because we need them to break the barrier of mindsets our previous generations have created on us, we thrive to be more open to the idea of chasing our dreams. All that is great and positive. But, personally for me, at least in the subject of owning properties, all I can think of is the example of how my grandfather lived his life and how that simplicity is very aptly supporting my mindset which I am very happy about. I may change the trend, (I already slightly have by applying for a home loan at 26, but one house is nothing for this generation), by investing more in the future for obvious reasons or good influence, but I am absolutely sure I will be more anxious than happy with that decision.<br />
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Some things inside you are like that because of some solid reasons and I absolutely enjoy trying to analyse them and arrive at a self satisfying conclusion. </div>
DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-60480429645577523642014-03-24T05:49:00.001-07:002014-03-24T05:49:50.941-07:00Agnostic<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I was searching for a word to describe my orientation towards God, religion, and my opinion towards the depth it has created in our grassroots, not just in India but across the world. I am usually not very convinced about the mythology, its ideals, and its projections in society. Most times, I feel I argue well with people having the opposite opinion, which makes me believe more that the direction of my thought process is right. And then somebody coined this word to me in the context of God. "Do you know who is called an 'Agnostic'?", he asked. "Someone who never says outside that God doesn't exist and he/she doesn't believe in God, but in their inside they feel it very strongly.", he said. That is when I started wondering if "Agnostic" is the right word to describe me in this context. I still am.<br />
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The word is bidirectional. I can use it conveniently on both an atheist and theist contextually. So, what do I, as a human being think about existence, God, and religion. I strongly believe the reason for our existence is either an accident or a well planned event to prove reproductive capabilities, therein proliferating the happiness of the souls who proved it. Happiness getting multiplied is a byproduct here, because if it was not, we would have had far less orphanages, reproduction enhancing drugs, and surgeries in that field. I usually try to compare religion with the Indian government post independence era. There is no doubt in my mind(given I know the word now), that I am agnostic about existence of both. But a simple similarity between them is that all religions have sound fundamentals and the problem with them are the preachers and implementations if I can call them so, and Indian Government has impeccable fundamentals in terms of policies, but the problem is in the execution. This comparison was extremely important for me understand the effects on misuse in the case of religion because we as citizens, know and see the misuse in the case of our government.<br />
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When my daughter was 6 months old, she fell off from her bed. Her head hit the floor, she started bleeding from the nose and it was 2 AM. We rushed her to a pediatrician and he assured there was nothing to worry. We came back home at around 2:30 AM. All my opinion on these subjects went for a toss and I was praying that she should be fine. I came back to normal the next morning when she woke up and smiled at me. A day after that, I thought about the reason I prayed. It was no rocket science. Sometimes when the events around you look like they are not under your control <u>and</u> there is no one around to share and create the positivism around, you create something that is synonymous to God. I have underlined 'and' in my previous sentence because, if there was someone for me to talk to, I would have shown signs of positiveness. Because, everyone around me was more worried than me, I could not expect it from them. This incident made me realize why religion and God are so deeply rooted in our society and consequently, how the preachers take advantage of this emotional spread.<br />
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Most often, ideologically speaking, the conflicting point is between "I" and "WE". And these two dimensions may not have any intersection between the other dimensions of religion and no-religion. To put it simply, all religions fundamentally preach "WE", they never want you consider "I" ahead of "WE", even communism, the sworn enemy of religion preaches that. But what is the point of propitiating God, but acting completely against his/her principle in life. And when I see so many examples in people, I bend myself more being agnostic because the world, however modern or old school it is, doesn't care a damn about ideals but likes to exploit it to become long term beneficiaries.<br />
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The purpose of life is nothing. All we should do is try to make it better for future proofs of your "reproduction capabilities" or accidents. If this thought process is clear, then there is no need for multiple mediums as it is a fact that all mediums ask you to the follow the same path during different time intervals with few intersections. I still do not know if I am agnostic or not, but I am very sure about the simple fact that if you believe is karma, no matter whom you preach or don't preach, you are doing justice and you should be proud of it.<br />
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DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-27068035832654174972012-05-25T01:57:00.001-07:002012-05-27T23:19:06.717-07:00Nero's Guests<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Very recently, I saw this documentary named "Nero's Guests" based on P Sainath's(Rural Affairs Editor of The Hindu) journalism. I did not understand the title given my illiteracy in Roman history. Sainath himself explains what it is. Nero was a ruler of Rome from AD 54 to 68. Quoted by a great historian of that time, Tacitus, during his regime, "The Great Fire of Rome" erupted and lasted for 10 days. From history, it is not sure whether he was responsible for fire or not. But one of the worst things that happened during his rule was when Nero held the greatest party even seen in the ancient world to distract the cause of the fire accident. The emperor offered his gardens for the spectacle. Everybody who was anybody in Rome was there for this party. They had a problem, the problem of how to provide lighting to this huge garden when day light was not enough to illuminate the party. Nero had a solution. He brought prisoners to provide light for the party. They were doomed to the flames, thereby to provide the nightly illumination.<br />
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Nero was ruthless, insane and completely inhuman, but what were his guests? They were were people who knew something very bad was happening in front of them. They knew it was completely atrocious. But no one raised their arm, no one questioned such a deed. What kind of mindset you would have to drop a piece of grape in your mouth when another person is getting crucified in front of you? They just kept quiet and enjoyed the party. Sainath says,"For me the issue was never Nero. The issue was Neros' guests. Who are Nero's guests? After covering five and half years of farmer suicides, I think I have my answer. I think you have the answer, who Nero's guests were". The sheer comparison of the cruel historical event to the current reality of state of farmers in our country was so breathtakingly true that I started thinking about the mindset of Nero's guests.<br />
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But before that, let me try to put forward the facts stated by Saianth to justify the comparison. Fact 1, In India, 60% of the people are still dependent on agriculture. Fact 2, 836 million Indians live on less than INR 25 per day. Fact 3 nearly 200,000 farmers have committed suicide since 1997, driven by debt and distress. Fact 4, Yet, the mainstream media hardly reflects this reality. Sainath says, " Let me simplify. what is this agrarian crisis? Five words. The Drive Towards Corporate Farming. How is this agrarian crisis operationalized? Five words. Predatory Commercialization Of The Countryside.What does it achieve? Five words. The Biggest Displacement in Indian History".<br />
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1990's was the first time in Indian history when the rate of growth of employment in government sector went below the rate of growth of population. Millions of villagers have left their villages due to this consequence to towns in search of jobs that are not there. Thousands of families have broken up. The per capita availability of food grains actually felt to a drastic extent during the reforms years. Yet, we export food grains, when supreme court accounted six states for hunger deaths for the first time after Bengal famine in 1940's. Who consumes the food grains we export? The cattle in Europe, when our own people are dying of hunger. Sainath quotes a noted reformist,"If you ask a farmer in Vidarbha what would he want to become in next life, he should probably say a cattle in Europe". Thousands of farmers commit suicides because they are not able to get INR 8000 as loan with decent interest rates. But the upper middle class/rich are called up by banks for loans at 6% interest without any collateral for purchasing a Mercedes Benz. What kind of social justice is that? What has grown in the era of reforms, not the IT sector, not the markets, it is the inequality that has grown out of proportion.<br />
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The government is functioning for the corporate, subsiding everything for them. It is shame to call it a subsidy, we should call it incentive. Subsidies are for poor, not for billionaires. When BSE crashed once in the last few years, the finance minster of this country took a private jet to reach Mumbai in 2 hours to console billionaires, but it took 10 years for the Prime minister of this country to visit crisis affected agricultural villages to console farmers and their families.<br />
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I would like every one of us to watch the documentary. Whatever is mentioned above is not my opinion, though I favor every point. These are excerpts from the documentary. My question to folks who are reading this is, I know I am one of Nero's guests(a citizen) and I am dead against what Nero(government and corporate) is doing. What do I do? Do I protest? Will I protest? Will I survive if I protest? Wouldn't Nero burn me along with the prisoners if I speak against him? So then, should we replace Nero? But how to replace him when I know his replacement is no different from him. The documentary point out very frankly, who Nero's guests are. But what can Neros' guests do or should have done has to be up for discussion. All we can do is get out of Nero's party and don't be his guest. Sainath says," We can differ on how to solve this problem, we can differ on how we do the analysis of the problem but we can take one starting point by agreeing that we are not Nero's guests".<br />
Thoughts please?<br />
<br /></div>DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-24771530794641187742011-07-21T21:56:00.000-07:002011-07-21T23:38:08.488-07:00Fate - As we call itA routine set of events happening in my life have raised a lot <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">of</span> questions inside me and most times I myself try to give a justified answer to it. I succeed few times, but fail most of the times. You wake up every morning, drive to office and on the way in a busy signal see people asking for money. You ignore them 97 out of 100 times assuming they are not genuine, as in are victims of a trafficking mafia or the fact that they <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">shouldn't</span> be begging given their physique. You reach office, give you car keys to the guy who does the valet <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">parking</span>, which you know for sure is one of the most difficult jobs given the space and the number of cars. You see a lot other employees not treating him with the respect he deserves. You think about it for a few moments and then you are off to your workplace.<br /><br />You take a tea break, and when you are having tea outside your office premises, you see a family of four with two children asking for money, or at least some food for the kids to eat. You think of helping them, but most often than not you do not help. It pricks your heart for few seconds. But then you are off with your work. If it is a lucky day, you leave office early. You reach home, sit in the balcony and have a cup of tea. You watch children in your apartment play. You see two groups of children playing. One group, belonging to the children of the flat owners and tenants and the other group, consisting of the children of the domestic helps. And when one of the latter tries to communicate with one of the former, a housewife from the second floor balcony shouts asking the former to keep away from the latter. You want to throw the tea along with the cup directly on the face of the lady who is shouting. Instead you watch, just watch like a dumb man who can not speak even if he wants to.<br /><br />I can keep adding events after events happening in front of us everyday. But what is the point?<br />The point is, what right do I have to earn more than what my father is earning in my first job just after college? A boy born on the same date as mine but to a father who is a lorry driver would be lifting bricks in a construction site now. Money speaks more than words, I agree. But what is more important than money is the mutual respect between human beings irrespective of money. It is very easy to call the situation of the boy I mentioned above is due to fate. But is it really fate or is it known as fate but in truth is human intolerance to responding to other humans needs as they would respond to their family's needs?<br /><br />Respect comes with money and if you are the money provider, you never need to respect anyone. A very simple example is how we treat our domestic helps. For a fact, we know, our day will halt if they are not IN on that day. They are so essential to us, they drive the whole day for us by completing all "maintenance and ops" allowing us to <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">concentrate</span> only on "development". But what is our <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_4" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">mentality</span> towards them? We bargain with them even for <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_5" class="blsp-spelling-error">INR</span> 50, but we would not mind paying the same amount as convenience charge for booking 3 tickets on <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_6" class="blsp-spelling-error">bookmyshow</span>. Why? Because <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_7" class="blsp-spelling-error">bookmyshow</span> is not dependent on you, but the helper is. The most important factor that we forget is <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_8" class="blsp-spelling-error">INR</span> 50 is something huge for the helper and it is not something huge for you. The downsides are of their erratic behaviour, using foul language, not doing work properly and stealing/theft etc. If we, in a so called civilized society, have no sense of mutual respect and dignity towards a fellow human being, how can we expect a poor helper to be civilized?<br /><br />We read articles and watch news about atrocities in villages being <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_9" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">committed</span> against human kind. We feel bad about it, we crib them, we call them uncivilized. Do we think for a moment whether we are civilized? Civilization is directly <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_10" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">proportional</span> to the amount of respect and <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_11" class="blsp-spelling-error">proudness</span> one is able to feel and is made felt by others on whatever work someone does. If someone is collecting garbage from your house, he is helping you clean your house. He deserves respect for that, we can not treat him like garbage. Another instance that comes to my mind is when I was driving my car and there was a road crossing. I slowly stopped the vehicle. And a small girl crossed the road whose mother was on the other side and a domestic help, a small girl in her teens, was along with the young girl. There was zero chances of any accident. The domestic help saw the <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_12" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">vehicle</span> stop and then let the small girl cross the road. Soon after this happened, the mother slapped the domestic help in public <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_13" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">scolding</span> her for not taking care of the girl while she was crossing the road. I agree she is concerned, but would she slap if the girl was her husbands sister or her sister or her sisters friend? This is what I can fearlessly call modern slavery. What right does someone have to beat up a young girl in public when she should have actually made her go to school?<br /><br />I frankly do not have much idea about what I am exactly trying to project and I don't have a theory and I don't think I am talking wholly about communism as communism is huge and to understand what it is you have to be well read about it. The word sends fear across the cash rich middle and rich classes and I can openly admit I too do not want to get deeper into the word as I fear I may end up hurting my close loved ones. I wanted to express what I felt very vaguely and I would not mind if this post is never read. All it will do is motivate me to be respectful with fellow human beings of this world irrespective of anything else <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_15" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">other</span> than the fact that they are no different from me. The current generation of people who are in mid 20's and early 30's are more inclined to this and hence the change is pretty evident. <br />I myself, am a selfish human being who can just write some crap and actually can not do much to influence others. I am not helpless, I am just selfish to put it plainly.<br />Bare minimum, if not with adults, I would dream to see a day when all children in a gated community happily play <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_16" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">together</span> irrespective of who their parents are.DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-25939550567690745692011-07-17T21:36:00.000-07:002011-07-17T22:02:54.425-07:00Deiva Thirumagal ReviewThis is one of the best movies I have ever watched till date. I have this feeling of greatness when I walk out of a theatre from an emotional movie without shedding tears. I have cried lastly after watching <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">Nayagan</span> when I was 51/2 years old in DD in <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error">Pune</span>. I have not cried after that in a theatre. I even escaped crying for 'Tare <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-error">Zameen</span> Par' as it was controllable for me. But <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-error">Deiva</span> <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_4" class="blsp-spelling-error">Thirumagal</span> was too emotional and I felt audience would not do justice if they do not shed <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_5" class="blsp-spelling-error">atleast</span> a tear drop watching this movie.<br /><br /><br />The heart of the movie is in a village called <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_6" class="blsp-spelling-error">Avalanche</span> near <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_7" class="blsp-spelling-error">Ooty</span>. Art direction and cinematography make it look like a village in Switzerland, hats off for that. And how much ever I talk about <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_8" class="blsp-spelling-error">Vikram</span>, it would not be enough. Krishna, the character played by him is so <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_9" class="blsp-spelling-error">likeable</span> that you just go nuts <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_10" class="blsp-spelling-error">watching</span> him on screen. <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_11" class="blsp-spelling-error">Nila</span>, played by Sara, is cute, beautiful and so admirable. I was thinking of <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_12" class="blsp-spelling-error">Vishal</span> bagging an award for <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_13" class="blsp-spelling-error">Avan</span> Ivan for his performance, but truly what <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_14" class="blsp-spelling-error">Vikaram</span> has done here will put a huge question mark on whether the former would be possible. Even <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_15" class="blsp-spelling-error">Vishal</span> would agree to that.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMJS7vhjMIhTmagvP6jpxKlQ_zVJybINJczMaFAF6zPbU1U8Ri47DgTcLQX42vZQDo3_TQvMqE5jNt8yzD12m67euCtv3iqhOmBMm82dQDNR6K_80FLdZq0UJLJPKukDYuBdrE5xNBZis/s1600/vikram-deiva-thirumagal-movie-latest-still.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 316px; FLOAT: right; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5630552296496091314" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMJS7vhjMIhTmagvP6jpxKlQ_zVJybINJczMaFAF6zPbU1U8Ri47DgTcLQX42vZQDo3_TQvMqE5jNt8yzD12m67euCtv3iqhOmBMm82dQDNR6K_80FLdZq0UJLJPKukDYuBdrE5xNBZis/s400/vikram-deiva-thirumagal-movie-latest-still.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />The other characters who hold the script together have been penned down so well that you don't feel <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_16" class="blsp-spelling-error">irritated</span> even with a single one of them. <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_17" class="blsp-spelling-error">Anushka</span>, <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_18" class="blsp-spelling-error">Amala</span> Paul, <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_19" class="blsp-spelling-error">Bhaskar</span>, his wife, <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_20" class="blsp-spelling-error">Vikrams</span> friends have all done an extra ordinary job. <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_21" class="blsp-spelling-error">Santhanam</span>, is his usual and fits in so well to make us laugh. The tea-coffee scene and the hotel room door knocking scene are worth mentioning. <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_22" class="blsp-spelling-error">GV</span> <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_23" class="blsp-spelling-error">Parakash</span> <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_24" class="blsp-spelling-error">Kumar</span> started to haunt me slowly and after the final court scene, moments before the father and daughter hug, a small bit <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_25" class="blsp-spelling-error">of</span> the <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_26" class="blsp-spelling-error">BGM</span> just sweeps you away. The innocence in "<span id="SPELLING_ERROR_27" class="blsp-spelling-error">Kadha</span> <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_28" class="blsp-spelling-error">solla</span> <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_29" class="blsp-spelling-error">poren</span>" song is so realistic that you never want that song to end.<br /><br /><br />Excluding the climax, the other scenes that just blew me away were the scene where V<span id="SPELLING_ERROR_30" class="blsp-spelling-error">ikram</span> and his friends buy shoes for Sara, the scene when the boy kisses <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_31" class="blsp-spelling-error">Vikram</span> after the poetry competition and the scene where Sara for the first time says <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_32" class="blsp-spelling-error">Appa</span>.<br /><br /><br />Director <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_33" class="blsp-spelling-error">Vijay</span> has given his best work till date. Adaptation from 'I am Sam' does not make me write this script off. Population of TN is around 10 <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_34" class="blsp-spelling-error">crore</span> and not everyone would love to watch 'I am Sam'. What <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_35" class="blsp-spelling-error">Vijay</span> has done is made everyone go back and call up their relatives and ask them to watch this movie. We, in the theatre gave him a standing ovation, I am sure everyone would have clapped after the movie.<br /><br /><br /><span id="SPELLING_ERROR_36" class="blsp-spelling-error">Deiva</span> <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_37" class="blsp-spelling-error">Thirumagal</span> is a feel good, emotional entertainer that would sweep you away and if you had forced someone to come with you to the theatre, I can definitely bet that someone would have thanked you for doing so.DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-47404313095971719942011-03-01T04:14:00.000-08:002011-03-01T05:13:08.509-08:00Engaged!!!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB_m_RyIKF7_XkSSdXVeKBRGwbpJWz2Tqt1Vl6xDl6g3q77LwIreFNZJ4JcH9Lr7tuNUW2Bs6izcoyO2R8f_BRxsobXr8IaH6TJOYICS4LoxBXeHALiY8ec9xflyuCt2OiRFiStuA-FFE/s1600/engmnt.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 193px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB_m_RyIKF7_XkSSdXVeKBRGwbpJWz2Tqt1Vl6xDl6g3q77LwIreFNZJ4JcH9Lr7tuNUW2Bs6izcoyO2R8f_BRxsobXr8IaH6TJOYICS4LoxBXeHALiY8ec9xflyuCt2OiRFiStuA-FFE/s200/engmnt.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5579098695452246498" border="0" /></a>Srihari alias "Vadai" alias "Mr Responsible Number 1" alias "One of my close friends" got engaged on 27th Feb 2011 to Janani Ramakrishnan (we will add aliases for her once we start knowing her) in Coimbatore. The couple, food, mandapam and our short stay in Coimbatore was awesome, one because obviously, there was a function and two because we got to eat in some of our favorite restaurants and thattu kadais in the city.<br /><br /><br />Congrats to the couple.DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-65894588436653703792011-02-23T21:46:00.000-08:002011-02-23T23:23:56.311-08:00Nadunisi Naigal - Movie ReviewFirst of all, Gowtham Menon has to be appreciated for taking a new effort of movie making without BGM and just sound effetcs. How? By reading about the movie, its storyline, camera work etc, but never by watching it. After a very long time (I think in 2002 while watching Kadhalil Azhivadihllai), I felt that a one hour forty minute movie looked like a three hour movie.<br />I recomend everybody to not even thinking of watching this movie, not because it is boring but because it is irritating. The Apt title would have been "Verupethum Naigal" (Irrirating Dogs), that was what everyone associated on and off screen were doing. And because none of you are planning to watch the movie, I would give a small jist of the story line.<br /><br />Samar is an eight year old kid whose mother is dead and whose father abuses him sexually. Their neighbour Meenakshi saves the kid and adopts him becoming his gaurdian. She names him Veera. He starts falling in love with her and one day his old memories gets back to him and he rapes her. She gets dejected and decides to marry an old friend of hers though forgiving Veera. After the marriage, Veera kills her husband and in that chaos, fire breaks out severely injuring Meenakshi, who is saved. Meenakshi is in hospital for eight months, gets discharged, gives a statement that her husband was the reason for all this, transfers all her wealth to Veera and they move to Chennai. Veera keeps killing women, Meenakshi insists him to do so and they collect their hair. Finally, it is reveiled that Meenakshi is actually dead and Veera becomes Samar sometimes and thinks Meenakshi is alive. He is sent to a hospital for treatment. Sameera is one of the girls in the whole story.<br /><br />Negatives are very bad screenply, very painful story and to the core irritating sound. Even if a real life Veera watches this movie, he will get irritated. Positives are above average acting by everyone and camera work. Please do not watch this movie, wait for a week and it will be out of theatres. My irritation reached the limits when Menon tried to convery a message in the end.<br />Can this be comparable to the classic "Sivappu Rojakkal"? Never ever.<br /><br />Verdict: "Meenakshi ammaa. Dhaivu seidhu theatre lendhu velila poidunga ammaa".DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-45380025568810565252011-02-20T22:47:00.000-08:002011-02-20T23:25:28.080-08:00The nightThe night was getting darker, just a gleam of light produced by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indium_tin_oxide">ITO</a>. Tempers were raising up and lowering down. One body, one heart, one sound and one silence. This wasn't a dream, am I sure?, but was it reality? I was not sure either. "What was my dinner last night?", I thought. A multi grain bread with <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" class="blsp-spelling-error">paneer</span> stuffing in Subway. But why was I eating in Subway in the first place. That is because I was in a mall. What mall? Why in a mall? "I am wasting time thinking of crap", I thought.<br /><br />Why is it dark still? Is the night <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" class="blsp-spelling-error">longer</span> than 12 hours? Am I in Norway experiencing the polar night? I was not able to handle any more unanswerable questions. WAKE UP!!! I shouted to myself. This has to be a dream. Why should this be a dream? <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" class="blsp-spelling-error">Aaargh</span>, another question. I can not tolerate this anymore. Wait a second, Am I breathing?<br /><br />I have to find the answer to this question. Yes I am breathing. Phew, what a <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">relief</span>. But, why am I breathing with my mouth and not nose? Please, this is torture, please never ever ask any more questions that have no answers. Think, think hard, real hard. This is the last question you may have to answer. Am I in water using oxygen cylinder and hence <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_4" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">breathing</span> through mouth. No. It is dark and me being inside water is irrelevant.<br /><br />Let me go back to the mall. It seems to have some relevance. Before dinner, I am at <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_5" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">Cream Stone</span>, eating a 140 buck "Death By Chocolate" all by myself. Would any fool eat this all by himself? Why not? <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_6" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">Ahchoo</span>!!! The sneeze made me come back to my senses. It is 3 PM in the evening of a Monday. My laptop is nearby, <span id="SPELLING_ERROR_7" class="blsp-spelling-corrected">screen saver</span> running. My head is heavy, and I was relieved to realize this was all just the after effects of "<span id="SPELLING_ERROR_8" class="blsp-spelling-error">Benadryl</span>" and 2 dose of "Cold Acts". Would I ever catch up some sleep anymore today? I was again not sure. Your conscience is crazy, it creates magic. But how much of the magic someone can actually remember? Can you answer this?DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-90523856249479791752011-02-04T23:59:00.000-08:002011-02-05T20:20:28.935-08:00Get together in "The Andamans" - Volume 3<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7VYTDqCCP9xUkWvUSSBvEg0qFjZ9XSRVo_i905KXSKG-86hCPKH0ijlg2vjSUqookSLI4sx6fLwVGIQNEsOGxlhV5-RzASk4FelwWp_Eipnw-aW-bgKeNnzPcGlmvt1tJLJwPPkoAsTE/s1600/DSC_1383.JPG"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7VYTDqCCP9xUkWvUSSBvEg0qFjZ9XSRVo_i905KXSKG-86hCPKH0ijlg2vjSUqookSLI4sx6fLwVGIQNEsOGxlhV5-RzASk4FelwWp_Eipnw-aW-bgKeNnzPcGlmvt1tJLJwPPkoAsTE/s320/DSC_1383.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570425243174439506" border="0" /></a>Chapter 9 : "Adieu Havelock" and Sun Sea<br />Date : 28th Jan 2011<br />Day : 4<br />Sunrise is not a big friend of Radha Nagar beach as it is located in the west side of Havelock and the Sun has to come out of the woods containing very tall trees. So, we decided to give it a miss. Breakfast menu, that too complimentary one, all over Havelock is quite similar, but Barefoot's was definitely tastier. We took a set of group pics near the beach jumping in air and rest was taken care by Vijesh and Arun Raag. We checked out of the hotel at around 11 AM and booked a cab back to Havelock jetty. The return journey to Port Blair was quite boring and everybody slept. Arun Raag and Srihari were the only ones to check out the deck and the news was the sea was very rough and thus contributed to a lot of folks puking that day. For the record, none of us did.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjThcuBmwCTEcq1Mm9HkPborx_OtyLHc4bPa65uP98XBOSBjNkiyI3O9M5nlFM7ZlJNG7Q8jR3ndsoIJpeAEtCzStPlaprvgVMmMRYt7kJ70b82ZZRXqCnwcrGJB2Fz_Wt96uzsIdTXsiI/s1600/DSC_0217.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjThcuBmwCTEcq1Mm9HkPborx_OtyLHc4bPa65uP98XBOSBjNkiyI3O9M5nlFM7ZlJNG7Q8jR3ndsoIJpeAEtCzStPlaprvgVMmMRYt7kJ70b82ZZRXqCnwcrGJB2Fz_Wt96uzsIdTXsiI/s320/DSC_0217.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570274285560259906" border="0" /></a><br />We reached Port Blair at 4:30 PM and checked in Sun Sea Resort. I don't know why they gave this name as it was not a resort and the word "Sun Sea" had no relevance to the ambiance or location. But the hotel was in the heart of the city and very easily accessible. We decided to catch up the sound and light show in the cellular jail which was at 6:30 PM and luckily on just Fridays, the 6:30 PM show was in English to help everyone understand the show. The jail was around 3/4th of a km from the hotel and we took auto's to reach the place. Sound and light show was good, not excellent. Arun Raag was the highlight when he kept looking at me on the rig<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0nOm7Qyl0zo5njUr03iA9GLKD1Q2CXbKnDJrUWAyAraUPei2Ab7neyQfT6TyL0rTYqYsVsFkHsG8uZSV1EJIeX6c0YwxiUy6HamI5cpWdCP6P38IaZrYXzG9rKrYBneLcl8n3ldexm7U/s1600/IMG_2096.JPG"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0nOm7Qyl0zo5njUr03iA9GLKD1Q2CXbKnDJrUWAyAraUPei2Ab7neyQfT6TyL0rTYqYsVsFkHsG8uZSV1EJIeX6c0YwxiUy6HamI5cpWdCP6P38IaZrYXzG9rKrYBneLcl8n3ldexm7U/s320/IMG_2096.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570274387607163666" border="0" /></a>ht and Santy on the left, every time they played a Hindi patriotic song. After 2-3 songs, he started guessing the timing of the song and said, "Paatu poda poraanga da, ayyo." Overall, I would say, the show was not bad. We walked back to the hotel room and had dinner on the way in a Pure Veg restaurant called Annapurna. Dosa's, Poori's and different varieties of idlis were served. Highlight was tomato soup, which tasted like 'sweet puliyankottai'(tamarind seed) and lemon fried idli which was supposed to be shared by two, but they advertised enormously to get rid of it by calling it tasty and asking others to taste.<br /><br />Chapter 10 : Jolly Bouy and Kaalapaani<br /><br />While having dinner, we had a voting session on which place to visit on the next day, Baratang or Jolly Buoy island. Baratang was around 135kms drive and required us to wake up by 4AM. Initial votes were very less for Baratang and then, after some convincing and under the table dealings, we had majority. Santy and Abi were very clear on their stance and they voted for Jolly Buoy. Luckily for them, Baratang tickets were sold out and we had to go to Jolly Bouy.<br /><br />Day : 5<br />Date : 29th Jan 2010<br />We got ready by 7:30 and had buffet breakfast in Sun Sea; dosa, vada and toast. It was quite filling. Chinnaya, our cab driver was on time. He promised us that if we were back from Jolly Bouy boat before 3PM, he would drop us in Cellular Jail on time as the entry was restricted after 4PM. Jolly Bouy is around 30 kms from Port Blair and is a plastic free zone. We required permits and no one was allowed to stay back. We bought some bread and snacks for lunch since no food would be available there. We reached the entry point at 9AM and out boat started at 9:30AM. On the way, we played a very good game, which I would name as, "Kannu Adi Kandu Pudi", suggested by the Vijesh Abi couple. Again for rules, contact me offline. The game was hilarious and when we were done, we reached Jolly Buoy.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPR3CKYSOImBjPq1lUktff1pEkNTC0pYinHZP3U_NCmid7wEzoJdOvlYM3VK9m2vIZ6iF5LB7VBqApakU3tVxmLn7jz3o5UgSCpOwcZG_JunHGmW5usZQjDD4zOTRyfCQBF7emoTHkrfE/s1600/DSC_1794.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPR3CKYSOImBjPq1lUktff1pEkNTC0pYinHZP3U_NCmid7wEzoJdOvlYM3VK9m2vIZ6iF5LB7VBqApakU3tVxmLn7jz3o5UgSCpOwcZG_JunHGmW5usZQjDD4zOTRyfCQBF7emoTHkrfE/s320/DSC_1794.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570273601825564722" border="0" /></a><br />Jolly Buoy is famous for Snorkeling and corals. It is a INR 500 package that includes one snorkeling and one glass boat ride. The water was so clear that when a glass is the base for a boat, from the top we could see the sea life. Most of us went for snorkeling. The scuba certificate holder in Vijesh and Shruthi cautiously avoided it after trying out once or twice. I would rate the snorkeling experience from the perspective of how much marine life I saw as slightly better the the scuba one though the island is the one that makes the difference. We paid INR 200 extra for more snorkeling and me and Santy went twice for the paid one. When I returned, I heard a new tourist attraction had come up suddenly in the last 2 hours in Jolly Bouy. I came running to see what it was and what I saw there was that a Tamil guy was discussing the architecture of the castle built by our girls. It was good work by Shruthi and Aparna and while we were leaving back in the boat, we could see everyone taking snaps of it(no, not mana brandi, its true).<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9NTcuJsVTxu0zJHfinC61rBsIGeN885VYGP_pnWK1n437RMuUg4jbP-RmVIGMxCfPiCQgABHKZHFOKPYdTV0en-WqVFPjtFuJQo7sRvu43AVSRyqk8xNSlSMsRmvk9saAcjmA5WlO_9c/s1600/DSC_1822.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9NTcuJsVTxu0zJHfinC61rBsIGeN885VYGP_pnWK1n437RMuUg4jbP-RmVIGMxCfPiCQgABHKZHFOKPYdTV0en-WqVFPjtFuJQo7sRvu43AVSRyqk8xNSlSMsRmvk9saAcjmA5WlO_9c/s320/DSC_1822.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570273773759814610" border="0" /></a><br />We were on time for the jail entry. The jail, called as kaala paani, was historic and the events were painful. A must see place, if you are in Port Blair. We hired two guides, one who speaks Hindi and the other, named Arun DK, who would translate the Hindi into Tamil. The guide morally cheated me by not giving any commission, but was forgiven. And for this act, the banyan tree saluted me. Why not, it has smelt the aroma of forgiveness for the first time in history inside the jail premises. I humbly bowed. We left the jail and split ourselves while walking back to the hotel.<br /><br />After reaching the hotel, we decided to shop in a nearby gift store. Srihari, who was blossoming with the butterfly effect, desperately wanted to do shopping, not for him of course, and Abi and Shruthi helped him out. They spent around an hour in the shop without knowing the shopkeeper was a high BP patient. Srihari, with his bargaining skills made him reach the threshold and he started scolding everybody around. Me, Santy, Arun Raag and Gopal has gone to another shop and 3 of us got a tshirt which was very useful the next day photo shoot. When we came back, we watched the drama in the shop. It was very hilarious from a distance. Once the shop keeper cooled down and said one item cost INR 370, Srihari again asked, "350?". The shopkeeper lost his control again and when Vijesh asked if some item was unbreakable, he started throwing it away proving that it was indeed unbreakable. Somehow, they managed to pay the bill and come out of the shop. Dinner was good in Sun sea and we guys(only guys) spent some together after dinner.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV5LV5LiwX1F4ZgUgh0M-USzTyR4mBNEFawxCloVcVAcoSQMZCy463qkQo4_MchaC3ZrDZUzRDo6h2uwWW-BJhuLIe4VIWVnV6e28BhBmdmh1zNE4E3NfYy-SKIj9vZq8-gLwZkQWhDZg/s1600/IMG_2190.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV5LV5LiwX1F4ZgUgh0M-USzTyR4mBNEFawxCloVcVAcoSQMZCy463qkQo4_MchaC3ZrDZUzRDo6h2uwWW-BJhuLIe4VIWVnV6e28BhBmdmh1zNE4E3NfYy-SKIj9vZq8-gLwZkQWhDZg/s320/IMG_2190.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570272955399708706" border="0" /></a><br />Chapter 11 : A photo shoot called Ross<br />Day : 6<br />Date : 30th Jan 2011<br /><br />We had our flight scheduled at 12:45 PM so all we could afford to do was start early and visit Ross island, the British headquarters in the Andamans. We finished breakfast, checked out from the rooms, kept the luggage in the reception and were off to Ross, just a km from the hotel in auto. After reaching there and purchasing the tickets, me and Shruthi had to go back to the hotel so see if, "where Shruthi thought her camera was" and "where it was truly" matched or not. God is great, it matched, and God is double great, the camera was not there in the store where we shopped yesterday. Ross island is a beautiful place, with ruins of the British colony. Ideal place for photo shoot and would we miss it. We took around 400 pictures if I am not wron<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh03JL8cgFfYJU-1AND5JnJxpS7SzpMGlObGcVf07S4lRoiu5nHVxBNR0pKur44tOc7SJEIHyskcYmcHXddC8SQjxTa1rdImPKxngkw-ByTqMf5xjnSCq4rQsZcQiUlaMp_SrQPczSxj8Q/s1600/IMG_2223.JPG"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh03JL8cgFfYJU-1AND5JnJxpS7SzpMGlObGcVf07S4lRoiu5nHVxBNR0pKur44tOc7SJEIHyskcYmcHXddC8SQjxTa1rdImPKxngkw-ByTqMf5xjnSCq4rQsZcQiUlaMp_SrQPczSxj8Q/s320/IMG_2223.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570272549410327330" border="0" /></a>g and every picture in that place has come up great. The place is famous for film shooting and the picture on the right side is the ruined church where "Kaaka Kaaka" movies "Uyirin Uyire" song was shot. Unfortunately we could not spend much time there and came back to catch the return ferry where Chinnaiya was waiting for us in a cab. We did not waste time, took the luggage and were off to airport.<br /><br />Flight was on time. And we were exactly on time. On our return journey, we again had some very ok tasting dish(name was not worth remembering) in the flight. We were in Chennai at 2:45, collected the baggage at 3 and paid adieu to each other at 3:15. The trip is over; phew, what a trip, more than the place, the togetherness was what made it so special. Ran away fast, but not very fast too. Perfect number of days for a perfect holiday, one or two more would have been good too but not a second less.<br /><br />I was sitting in the flight back to Hyderabad and remembered Srihari's email. As I said earlier, the email was worth millions, but the trip was priceless...<br /><br />While I am penning down the last words of this post, I am watching a song from the movie "Samurai" in Sun Music, the movie for which we went together for the first time in July 2002. The journey has continued till now and I strongly hope it does continue forever.DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-87515021703465885512011-02-01T22:27:00.000-08:002011-02-02T20:52:24.990-08:00Get together in "The Andamans" - Volume 2<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZWG3ItzWlQg91T13XdtI2oVJO1ooE8ALAy5NBNcRcWVPqCb5seq3HbAE7nw4zQ3smfpr1u1qDWL7tkeNsn3TX7zLXYLGU_ZePTBHmJddFrHCQAphJfiPjjp5U_73IxmdyfHn62xjelbw/s1600/DSC_1427.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZWG3ItzWlQg91T13XdtI2oVJO1ooE8ALAy5NBNcRcWVPqCb5seq3HbAE7nw4zQ3smfpr1u1qDWL7tkeNsn3TX7zLXYLGU_ZePTBHmJddFrHCQAphJfiPjjp5U_73IxmdyfHn62xjelbw/s320/DSC_1427.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569294420909747426" border="0" /></a>PS: This is lengthy as I want this to remain as something we could recollect when read after a while.<br /><br />Chapter 6 : The Arrival<br />Day : 1<br />Date : 25<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">th</span> Jan 2011<br />It was around 10:45 AM and we were in mid air, most of us cursing Mr, sorry Dr <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Mallya</span> for looting Rs 200 for a worth for nothing breakfast which we assumed initially was for free. I would like to let people who are reading know that my travelogue would always have huge contributions towards the stuff we ate, so please forgive me for the same. 3-4 cola bottle cap sized <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">idli's</span> soaked in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">sambar</span>, 1/6<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">th</span> of a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">masala</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">dosa</span> and some fruits for just <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">INR</span> 200. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Gopal's</span> concern that we would always require snacks to eat during the trip was rightly experienced as we opened one pack of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">manoharam</span> (<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">muruku</span> soaked in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">jaggery</span> and rolled like <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">laddus</span>) and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">thatai</span> in the flight which we purchased from Grand Sweets, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Adyar</span>.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhatxd3axcTgzCwOfsq142s7rokx68BXXuB_byHlte_UReXUInkwJiYo70vmeoD2b26vGXwGDJP20MhZ0x1IyFOIScUYCu1PNmXx8mYDpWIvemFJ5GKHPMUL2GrbDIKW1SPT3X9TXZ1Rbk/s1600/IMG_1940.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhatxd3axcTgzCwOfsq142s7rokx68BXXuB_byHlte_UReXUInkwJiYo70vmeoD2b26vGXwGDJP20MhZ0x1IyFOIScUYCu1PNmXx8mYDpWIvemFJ5GKHPMUL2GrbDIKW1SPT3X9TXZ1Rbk/s320/IMG_1940.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569291203766901858" border="0" /></a><br />Flight landed on time, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Arun</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">Raag</span> asked a wonderful question, "Ask in which belt the baggage's would arrive?". In an Airport that had around 6 flights operating per day, having an automated belt itself was a luxury. Our agent <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">Ashraf</span> had informed someone would be waiting for us with a hoarding. Yes, there was someone and the hoarding read "Welcome Mr <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">NK</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">Arun</span>". He was revolutionary, providing a guy his wife's initials after marriage, the first person to do it in the history of mankind transforming <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">Arun</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">DK</span> with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">NK</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">Shruthi's</span> initials. His name was Anil and he seemed quite friendly. He was a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">mallu</span> and when I wanted to intervene and showcase my expertise in Malayalam, he revealed he spoke good Tamil. I was shattered.<br /><br />We purchased some bananas, boarded the ferry to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_25">Havelock</span> Islands which was scheduled at 2PM. Ferry journey was quite boring except for the bananas and snacks and the fact that we had "Ace" photographers in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_26">Vijesh</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_27">Ar</span><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_27">un</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_28">Raag</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_29">Srihari</span>(to encourage him) and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_30">Shruthi</span>(so that I don't face any consequences).<br />We enjoyed the photography sessions and then killed time playing <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_31">UNO</span> in the deck. It was 4:30 PM and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_32">Hevelock</span> Islands welcomed us. Our pickup was ready in place by the Wild Orchid resort where we planned to stay located at beach no 5. We had some issues regarding rooms as the allocation was split into 2 rooms each at a distance of around 50 meters. Sun sets in the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_33">Andamans</span> at 5:30, so we knew all we could do would be do have food and sleep.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxQG8kpnN7UeOz7lYvNUJuc69vUuGgFNMNPKBkyMiC5mMnrQXVXvUy12AmDJ0YZaLW7bg4qAcTH6KoF4WFfVLmdQIqWcmPb5IeDS6jJyzry06RHMAfVIXQsuGKX1EzfbMHhLF3m7-r0zo/s1600/DSC_0890.JPG"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxQG8kpnN7UeOz7lYvNUJuc69vUuGgFNMNPKBkyMiC5mMnrQXVXvUy12AmDJ0YZaLW7bg4qAcTH6KoF4WFfVLmdQIqWcmPb5IeDS6jJyzry06RHMAfVIXQsuGKX1EzfbMHhLF3m7-r0zo/s320/DSC_0890.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569291670911113922" border="0" /></a><br />Food was good. I saw a lobster dish for the first time after watching it in Mr Beans holiday ordered by the non veggies. We had <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_34">Roti's</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_35">Briyani's</span>, Rice, Dal and the special item of the day, roasted <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_36">papad</span>. During dinner we decided we would check out Scuba diving and inquire about the same. Day one was coming to an end.<br /><br /><br /><br />Chapter 7 : Bikes and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_37">Vijaynagar</span><br />Day : 2<br />Date : 26<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_38">th</span> Jan 2011<br />I woke up at 6, got ready at around 6:45 and started calling the other folks. Me, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_39">Shruthi</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_40">Gopal</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_41">Aparna</span> had tea in the neighboring restaurant. Always remember, in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_42">Havelock</span>, just tea means green tea, not the milk tea. And if the tea is flavoured with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_43">tulasi</span>, ginger or honey, it is definitely green tea. We inquired about scuba diving near the restaurant in an institute called Andaman Bubbles. Everyone else joined for the complimentary breakfast in Wild Orchid. Breakfast was good. Toasts, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_44">parathas</span> and the highlight was banana pan cakes. Please never ever order pan <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_45">cackes</span> for breakfast in Wild Orchid resort, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_46">Havelock</span>. Any guesses on who would have ordered it and who eventually liked it and finished it? <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_47">Gopal and his wife respectively</span> of course.<br /><br />After breakfast we planned to check out two things. One was regarding Scuba diving in an institute called Barefoot scuba located at beach no 3 and two was to rent bikes. Me, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_48">Santy</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_49">Arun</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_50">Raag</span> took right from the resort towards Barefoot Scuba. It was supposed to be a 5 minute walk. Please note, never ever ask this question, "How much time will it take to reach that place?". <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6z32FzNcCcZc-PxWML2pfJ2qqxhzKtmeeFKIHcJBv4-IQpJN9o2wmoauO87Hc9-4ipcuny60ry0qZjqecdJWbce6XaxXyMlUUOsLMkUwM19EFm0jkn2dt7n4AFMHzOd52j_7x4FTHbYI/s1600/DSC_1094.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6z32FzNcCcZc-PxWML2pfJ2qqxhzKtmeeFKIHcJBv4-IQpJN9o2wmoauO87Hc9-4ipcuny60ry0qZjqecdJWbce6XaxXyMlUUOsLMkUwM19EFm0jkn2dt7n4AFMHzOd52j_7x4FTHbYI/s320/DSC_1094.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569292150623955346" border="0" /></a>Always ask, "how many kilometers that place is located from here?". We kept walking and walking and walking and after 10 minutes asked another shopkeeper who said, "5 minutes". And as we were leaving, I think he got some sense of telepathy from our pissed off faces that he called us back and said, "3 minutes, not 5". We reached Barefoot Scuba in next 10 minutes, inquired rates and were back in auto. Meanwhile, two other things happened. One, as I already mentioned, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_51">Srihari</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_52">Gopal</span> took left from the resort to check out bike rentals. We rented 4 bikes, 2 <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_53">Activa's</span> and 2 geared bikes. We planned to rent another bike somewhere else as this shop had only 4 bikes available and we were 9 folks. Two, as we requested we were all shifted to the same block and we were no more having the 50 meter gap we had yesterday. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_54">Arun</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_55">Raag</span> said he would not join us in the bike ride and would spend time in the beach. When everyone were getting ready, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_56">Santy</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_57">Srihari</span> collected cash and headed towards Barefoot Scuba to book scuba diving on the next day.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihanYMKwWeUUbvRJKhOaE3L3pgIuEYfktRIaSX9tacpwwUepDQysa7wAJf8hYkegDNqxoMYQtXYDtSjNvto10Cz37MO5JDq7H0UuGE1TpharCwZmwcmpWKBF9Ma-sTyW8WaJOVp_aLY-s/s1600/DSC_0972.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihanYMKwWeUUbvRJKhOaE3L3pgIuEYfktRIaSX9tacpwwUepDQysa7wAJf8hYkegDNqxoMYQtXYDtSjNvto10Cz37MO5JDq7H0UuGE1TpharCwZmwcmpWKBF9Ma-sTyW8WaJOVp_aLY-s/s320/DSC_0972.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569292580941987554" border="0" /></a><br /><br />We started from Wild Orchid at around 12:15PM in our bikes to beach no 7 which was located at around 15 kilo meters. The journey was enjoyable and before that we also checked the counter to booked return ferry tickets. It was lunch break in the counter and we were getting hungry. Even the bikes sounded hungry when we reached beach no 7 in next half hour. We were not sure of making it back with just one liter of petrol we had filled in each bike; we had earlier neglected <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_60">Gopal's</span> warning that the quantity would not suffice. We had lunch in a small mess. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_61">INR</span> 50 for a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_62">thali</span> which served rice, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_63">dhal</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_64">soya</span> curry, potato fry and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_65">appalam</span>. Charges for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_66">Roti</span> was extra and we had them too. I should say, for the money we paid, the food was excellent.<br />The afternoon and evening were spent in beach no 7 and 5 respectively. We somehow reached with the same amount of petrol. Beach no 5 was called the Vijayanagar beach and our resort was located there. We took some amazing snaps in the beach, thanks to the photographers again. We played the double passing ball game here. For rules, please contact me offline.<br /><br />The moment we saw roasted <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_67">papad</span> in today's special menu, we decided we should be eating outside given that we still had the bikes. For future travelers, bike rental is <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_68">INR</span> 250 for 24 hours with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_69">INR</span> 1000 as deposit. We had dinner in a restaurant of Symphony Palms resort located at beach no 3. This time I will skip the list of items we ate as it was more or less the same. During dinner we played a game that has to be the part of every trip, Dumb C. Highlight was "Letters from <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_70">Iwo</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_71">Jima</span>" which was written in text and given for enacting by <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_72">Abi</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_73">no one</span> knew <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_74">until</span> she revealed <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_75">Iwo</span> is pronounced as "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_76">Aiyyo</span>". We went to bed early that day after returning the bikes as we planned to catch up the sun rise and get ready mentally for scuba diving.<br /><br />Chapter 8 : <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_77">PADI</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_78">Radhanag</span><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_78">ar</span><br />Day : 3<br />Date : 27<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_79">th</span> Jan 2011<br />Sunrise at Vijayanagar beach was fascinating. The moment it looked like it would disappoint, a reddish ball of beauty kept rising and we were overjoyed. Again, great pics. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_80">Vijesh</span> got himself a Polish friend; <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_81">Abi</span>, be careful. For breakfast everyone had toast, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_82">Gopal</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_83">Shruthi</span> wanted corn flakes eventually eaten by <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_84">Aparna</span>. Yes, both of theirs, after they complained lack of taste and had the anger of getting served with cold milk. We left the luggage in Wild Orchid reception before breakfast. We reached Barefoot Scuba, like <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_85">Vadivelu</span> says, "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_86">Ellaru</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_87">kannuleyum</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_88">kalavaram</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_89">therinjudhu</span>", as scuba diving was no child's play. We signed documents, where I read almost in 10 places the word "death", somehow took courage and managed to sign.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT_BPEs6N79Kv8SdCFEtSfEoNygk3Qe0yHyXK8zNKM7TjE_pKlKCt_BxcZHGlpd3njPx1UiHFHKw92gQJgH9yjg0jyDk0EeCVV-2QHLj3uM8dJY-KWxRLEVlWFHWgz0qLE82iG0qUkXo4/s1600/IMG_1864.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT_BPEs6N79Kv8SdCFEtSfEoNygk3Qe0yHyXK8zNKM7TjE_pKlKCt_BxcZHGlpd3njPx1UiHFHKw92gQJgH9yjg0jyDk0EeCVV-2QHLj3uM8dJY-KWxRLEVlWFHWgz0qLE82iG0qUkXo4/s320/IMG_1864.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569293519566772754" border="0" /></a><br />Scuba diving is an interesting and fascinating learning experience. Please do not miss this even though it costs you <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_90">INR</span> 3000-4000. And to sustain the suspense and thrill, I would not elaborate at all on the experience of a lifetime I had. I finished my session and was out of water to see a guy, a friend of mine, wearing a yellow <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_91">tshirt</span>, sitting as if somebody has offered him a banana leaf south Indian meals. His name is <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_92">Gopal</span> and he was enjoying the beauty of the island and the calmness of the sea. Of course, like everyone else, he got the certificate from <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_93">PADI</span>(Professional Association of Diving Instructors). To be fair, he did what he required to do to get a certificate. We were served pasta in the boat and we headed back to check-in Barefoot at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_94">Havelock</span> resort.<br /><br />Beach No 7 is called the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_95">Radha</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_96">Nagar</span> beach and the only private resort available is Barefoot. Awesome place, location and mesmerizing beauty. We reached the resort at around 2:30 PM. We came back for lunch and snacks. Food was awesome, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_97">Avarakai</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_98">poriyal</span> was the highlight. Evening was spent in the beach. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_99">Radha</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_100">nagar</span> is the most exotic beach I have ever visited till date. My fingers are paining while I mention this again, but the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_101">photographers</span> did not feel any pain in their fingers. Snaps were super good. After the beach session, we had an amazing and hilarious time during dinner and then we were off to bed. Oh, I forgot, we had another time pass friend, his name is "Talking Tom", he just used to repeat whatever we said. Thanks to Arun Raag and his phone.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA8Ivmgp0bGiOb-39fa16n4NabwqwuDVbNq7LAJd4MnJxLnVDHgFAw707OdRSqaN381hRul3wXV9yUZV_dZipCMvUH09mq9EhyphenhyphenE0mE4cfFZDy0wUrX9QsMA3p4LOeZ-mPAO4A7oBlGBx8/s1600/DSC_1529.JPG"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 322px; height: 207px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA8Ivmgp0bGiOb-39fa16n4NabwqwuDVbNq7LAJd4MnJxLnVDHgFAw707OdRSqaN381hRul3wXV9yUZV_dZipCMvUH09mq9EhyphenhyphenE0mE4cfFZDy0wUrX9QsMA3p4LOeZ-mPAO4A7oBlGBx8/s320/DSC_1529.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569294423259812514" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I was sitting in my rooms veranda before dinner with my wife thinking of the fact that we would be checking out tomorrow and would be leaving this beautiful island. But somehow, the amount of fun and happiness I was carrying in my heart didn't make me feel bad, it rather just made me look great. After completing college four years ago, after some of us got married, and after settling down in different cities, we still managed to do this. No words. Get ready Cellular Jail, I will meet you by dusk tomorrow and you will really feel like you got an old prisoner back and almost goodbye <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_102">Havelock</span>.DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-77526893735014322492011-01-31T23:34:00.000-08:002014-01-20T22:02:47.284-08:00Get together in "The Andamans" - Volume 1<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I wanted to do some research with my English before writing this one but could not hold the excitement and hence writing it sooner than I intended to write.<br />
<br />
Chapter 1 : The initiator<br />
Date : 21st September 2010<br />
I was overjoyed to receive an email from Srihari at 7:24 AM. It made me very happy to even think of the fact that we would get a chance to spend time together.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-style: italic;">Guys,</span><br />
<span style="font-style: italic;">When was the last time where ALL of us shared funny incidents of college that tickled our bones??? I can't remember anything very recent. It's time to bring back the the moments and joy to be fresh in our memories, so lets plan for a something Grand... </span><br />
<span style="font-style: italic;">This will be NOT be the routine get-together, Will NOT be the regular meet, but we are going to make it big and special.</span><br />
<span style="font-style: italic;">To the plan a Grand get-together, you guys should be send me your available dates.</span><br />
<span style="font-style: italic;">My suggestion is last week of December, either the weekend ending Christmas or the New Year. I know there are married, going to get married, out here. So we will need to plan that will be convenient for all of us to spent some valuable time together.</span><br />
<span style="font-style: italic;">We need suggestions on the place and I will take responsibility of planing the get-together. </span><br />
<span style="font-style: italic;">The get-together will only become GRAND if there is maximum participation</span><br />
<span style="font-style: italic;">-Srihari</span><br />
<br />
Subsequent threads followed up and we narrowed down on the place, Andaman and the date, 26th Jan weekend. We knew we would miss the company of Dams, Sethu who opted out and Karthik who was in UK. Truly, the content and timing of the email was worth millions.<br />
<br />
Chapter 2: Didn't your mother tell you - PLANNING<br />
Date : 30th October 2010<br />
We had too many discussions on the flight we should be catching and finally on this date Gopal booked the flight tickets, came up to around 95k for 9 folks.<br />
Date : 26th October 2010<br />
Meanwhile, Santy took the lead on checking out the places we should visit. He did a huge amount of research with the list of hotels and locations and shared the same. He sent his proposals with the complete itinerary. It was very helpful in planning. Hotel bookings were done well in ADVANCE, which proved to be highly useful as we ended up having a no tension holiday.<br />
<br />
Chapter 3 : The Folks<br />
Me, Shruthi, Srihari, Gopal, Aparna, Santhosh were all in in the first call. Arun Raag had to attend his mothers retirement function in Ooty the very next week but he was in. And our Suryavamsam Sarath Kumar had to wait on the confirmation dates of Devayani's exams. Somehow, even with these three slightly doubtful, they readily nodded in for booking of the tickets and hotels, which made it very easy for folks who were making the bookings.<br />
Date: 11 Nov 2010<br />
Vijesh and Abirami confirm their presence in the trip. Her exam dates did not conflict and to add to it, it ends just the week before the trip eventually giving her the required break.<br />
So we were all set, close group of classmates with their family done with all the preparations for a trip to the Andaman Islands.<br />
<br />
Chapter 4 : Shopping<br />
Place : Hyderabad<br />
Date : 25th October 2010 - 24th Jan 2011<br />
I am not aware of shopping plans for other guys/girls, but trust me if I have to detail just the Hyderabad girls share in it, it would be lengthier than a Chetan Bagats book. They kept shopping and shopping and shopping. I stopped counting the number of footwear my wife was buying as it was difficult to remember the count. They would take us out saying they would buy something for us and all we learned to buy was patience. To be fair to them, we purchased one or max two items, in the span of 3 months. We landed in Chennai with our bags packed and assuming all shopping was done, but the Besant Nagar shopping ghost haunted us this time, the reason however was to get us beach shirts and of course, you would have guessed we did not get one.<br />
<br />
Chapter 5 : Get Ready Folks<br />
Date : 18 Jan 2011<br />
Vijesh initiated the mail "A week to go". Objective was to plan, confirm, carry and not to forget.<br />
We crossed checked and confirmed flights, hotels, ferry and prepared a list of stuff to bring, though not rigorously, but it helped. Gopals idea to bring a lot of munchies turned out to be quite useful.<br />
Date : 25 Jan 2011<br />
Time: 7:50 AM<br />
Gopal and Aparna arrive at Chennai airport. I get a call. I call Santy and Arun Raag. Everyone is on the way.<br />
Time : 8 AM<br />
Me and Shruthi arrive. Gopal and me go the departure section, check the timings and grab some coffee.<br />
Time : 8:20 AM<br />
Everybody is in. Greetings are done. Some of us are meeting Abirami for the first time after their marriage and are yet to mingle with her.<br />
Time : 9:15 AM<br />
Flight is on schedule. We are on the bus to the flight. I am thinking of the next five great days we are going to spend together. I definitely knew on that day it would be great, but was hoping it would be, whats the word, Legendary.</div>
DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-64608491103620513312010-12-31T04:44:00.000-08:002011-01-02T20:28:42.310-08:00Whats is in my mind on the last day of this decade.Life is a game, very typically, a game where you neither have a save option nor have more than one life(lives in a life). And memories are the only things that we like to cherish, can't reach there, but still heart rate increases, goosebumps spike up everytime you remember the best periods of your life.<br /><br />And like everyone(high school to college to work to marriage) , the last decade has been the most eventful with respect to how much I can remember, how much I have learnt, how much good I have done and how much bad I have done. When I am alone, I sometimes try to sit back and think of the all these events, how childish I was on Dec 31st 2000, where I did not even want to think of all these. Time runs faster with age but your memories pause at so many places. In some places, you get happy and excited, in some places you heart becomes heavy and you want to press the undo button and redo it the better way so that your heart gets excited again.<br /><br />Specific events I would always try to remember from this decade would include my DAV school life where I was transforming from a kid to something more than that, my rather phenomenal college life which comprises of the way I got in to the college, the fact that the first person I met and spoke to when I went for my college interview is my wife now, the relationships I share now with the close group of my college friends, the hostel life and many other numerous leaves I could pluck from my college life tree. I wil also remember the days I happyly spent with my cousin and Chennai friends. Life in a corporate needs no huge mentions, its been 4 years, its good, monotonous, cash ful and slightly independent. I would obviously remember this decade for my marriage which is one of the greatest things that has happened in my life.<br /><br />Some incidents, people are never out of memories. The worst thing that happened to me this decade was the passing away of my two grandfathers. Its eventual to everyone, but when someone so dear to you is no more with you, it hurts a lot. I dream about them even today and I immediately wake up and then am never able to sleep for the night. It feels bitter to even think of the fact that the list will be additive, but do we have a choice?<br /><br />Happy New Year 2011. Thank you 2000-2010 for giving me so much in life. You will always be remembered by me, always.DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-77522927952605419142010-12-30T21:55:00.000-08:002010-12-31T02:12:29.809-08:00Who thinks he should be dropped?I am highly irritated with some of the comments in cricinfo asking Rahul Dravid to step down or asking team management to drop him after the second test in Durban. And from the comments, I can definitely say the people who commented do not enjoy or appreciate test cricket. I agree he is not in his best form, and has been short of runs in the last 4 innings. But, he has looked solid throughout. Except for the second innings dismissal where he got out playing a bad shot, he perished to gems of deliveries by Steyn and Morkel, something that we could definitely call the balls of the match. Even on the seaming and very quick track on the first day of the first test, he was the one who looked solid and was able to stay there without fear whereas the other batsmen like Gambhir and even Laxman were all over the place.<br /><br />And not to forget, his match winnin<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvNqvNgjepzHJQDXwusYEaMdzrLHeknA0bj8q2PmiJaBtk8SfjhYf0kugmL2xVMt9-98Rl-54DtF6FYoeq5aBCaAvXCTvHG0o68cLbLanp2WHSS7m1XWrKsaS7sTb3CdMorrOxl3iN0aI/s1600/dravid_catch640x357281210.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 223px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvNqvNgjepzHJQDXwusYEaMdzrLHeknA0bj8q2PmiJaBtk8SfjhYf0kugmL2xVMt9-98Rl-54DtF6FYoeq5aBCaAvXCTvHG0o68cLbLanp2WHSS7m1XWrKsaS7sTb3CdMorrOxl3iN0aI/s400/dravid_catch640x357281210.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556730405128889922" border="0" /></a>g innings of 190+ against Kiwis just weeks before. Some could argue that they were not such a great team, but to be fair to them, they being ranked number 8 in the world drew twice against the number one team. And as a bowling unit, they were very good. Rahul Dravid played an innings of patience and with the great performance of our bowlers, we clinched the series.<br /><br />In the third test, I hope he shuts the vocal chords and pen swords of ridiculous people who are suggesting him to be dropped and Laxman to move to number 3. I am rather amused with their lack of knowledge that they are talking about the best number 3 test batsman in the world along with Ponting. He may have been patchy from 2007 but he is not yet done. Most importantly, he is fitter than Raina, Gambhir or even Unadhkat for that matter and there could be no arguments with respect to this even for non supporters of him.<br /><br />And yes, a huge congratulations to Rahul Dravid for reaching 12000 runs in test cricket and reaching it faster than Sachin and Ponting. And of course, congrats again for becoming the first man in history to take 200 catches in test cricket. And for the record, if some of you think he has reached this because he used to do wicket keeping, you are wrong again. He has taken all his catches as a non wicket keeper. Click <a href="http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/player/28114.html?class=1;template=results;type=fielding">here </a>to check for yourselves.<br /><br />The Wall has a point to prove in the third test and I hope he makes people realize again that Technique is Gold and Patience is King.DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-67620926148647352782010-11-10T21:15:00.000-08:002010-11-11T00:35:53.251-08:00Va Quarter Cutting ReviewDirectors: Pushkar and Gayathri<br />Cast: Shiva, SPB Charan, Lekha, John David<br /><br />First of all, Va is no where close to the duo's Oram Po . Oram Po was a masterpiece. Va is just another movie.<br /><br />The movie revolves around a simple concept. A guy who is going to board a flight to Saudi is informed by the agent that he would not be able to consume alcohol in Saudi. He has just one night left in Chennai before which he wants to fulfill his wish of drinking alcohol. His would-be brother-in-law helps him achieve his goal. When we movie starts we have a number of incidents taking place simultaneously and the creativity of the directors is tested in how they relate the characters involved in the incident by the end of the movie.<br /><br />Positives:<br />1) Shivas one liners. They are very efficient and add a lot of value to the overall effort in making the audience sit in their seats. Otherwise the movie would have been very boring.<br />Some examples:<br />a) Commenting on Prince: "Ivaruku odambu edha seri illaya".<br />b) Commenting on Saro's mother: "Kozhuppa pathi ivanga pesaraanga".<br />c) Taking oath to vote for the politician: "Madha Pitha Guru Deyvam %$%$^$%^^^Devi Paradise!!! Kandippa vote ungaluku than".<br />2) Characterization of Charan, Prince, Saidapet SI and the "Suyetchei" politician.<br />3) BGM to some extent.<br />4) Lekha had nothing to do as Saro, but was cute. Not bad.<br /><br />Negatives:<br />1) Songs choreography was pathetic. Very badly done.<br />2) Screenplay : With absolutely no story at all, the screenplay had to be very good, which was not the case. If Shiva was not there, people may have walked out during interval.<br />3) Climax: I thought the climax should have been even more twisted. It was ridiculous to see them boarding the lorry, which everyone would have anyways expected, and drink from there.<br />After seeing the directors creativity in Oram Po climax, I was expecting something like this:<br />Sura is not successful is fulfilling is goal for the night, says goodbye to Marthandam and Saro, boards the flight very unhappy only to learn that he is served alcohol in the flight itself. Such a climax would have been too good and would have added a lot of value to the movie.<br />Pushkar and Gayathri, please contact me for ideas in your next movie :-)<br /><br />Overall, Va is average but definitely below expectations as the directors have set a benchmark in Oram Po and did not meet the same. But, definitely, good time pass movie which can be watched once.<br />Good luck to you guys for your next movie. We expect more from this pair of directors who have a completely different genre in mind.DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-49287071698318827272010-09-06T04:23:00.000-07:002010-09-06T05:04:35.003-07:00VA Quarter CuttingThey are one of the my favourite <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Tamizh</span> directors and their first movie is in my all time top 10 list. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Pushkar</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Gayathri</span> are coming up with a super movie called VA <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">quarter</span> cutting. The trailer is awesome, very differently made and the music too is very good. Every song in it has a intro song for 15 seconds.<br />Okay, now the point of writing this here to understand what VA means in the movies name.<br />I got this link from one of my fiends : <a href="http://tamilelibrary.org/teli/numeral.html">http://tamilelibrary.org/teli/numeral.html</a><br />In <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">thooya</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Tamizh</span>, fractions are represented using alphabets and the alphabet வ(VA) represents 1/4, that is, quarter. I was impressed after hearing this. One of my favourite directors coming up with such a creative name. I am not very sure if that is the actual reason behind the name but I assume so.<br />Nevertheless, the moving will be officially named VA with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">quarter</span> cutting as the caption and this would ensure tax <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">exemption</span> as the movie name is in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Tamizh</span>.<br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Tamizh</span> cinema is reaching new heights from the past decade with very creative, native and <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">technically</span> sound directors coming up and in the same gang, we have a pair who concentrate on local Madras culture. KUDOS to them and I hope the movie crosses expectations.DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-23303877175823502772010-06-23T02:15:00.000-07:002010-06-23T04:49:53.108-07:00Raavanan Movie ReviewTo start with, I am a big Mani <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ratnam</span> fan. Expectations on this movie were sky high. It is not correct to call this movie disappointing, though I was disappointed to be honest.<br /><br />Everyone knows the story, so I am not even going to talk about it. From a review point of view, I would like to list down the positives and negatives of the movie. Usually in a Mani movie, you have to search for negatives. Unfortunately, here they are right in front.<br /><br />Positives:<br /><ol><li><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Vikram</span> : If he was not playing this role, forget about watching this movie. No wonder he has 2 national awards. Everything he does is good. Even the ' <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">dum</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">dum</span> tap tap' whatever he says every now and then is brilliantly done. He is with no doubts the best in Tamizh cinema currently.<br /></li><li>Cinematography : Best till date in a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Tamizh</span> movie. Mind blowing.<br /></li><li><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">BGM</span> : Many were saying it is not that great. But I loved it. Only one place where I did not like it is when a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">"kezhavi"</span> sings <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Kattu</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Siriki</span> during the fight between <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Veerayya</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Raagini</span>. I closed my ears.<br /></li><li><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Karthiks</span>(<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Hanuman</span>) role: This seemed very annoying for many, but I liked it very much. His characterization is amazing even with the monkey antics. He did a great job, that too in the scene when he meets <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Veerayya</span>.</li><li>Some very specific scenes like <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Veerayyas</span> proposal kind of scene to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Raagini</span> and the scene where <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">Sarkarai</span> and Dev meet and "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">usure</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">pogudhey</span>".<br /></li></ol>Negatives:<br /><ol><li>The biggest drawback in the movie and the biggest strength in all Mani movies till date are the dialogues. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">Sujatha</span> being missed very badly here. Even one dialogue is not <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">upto</span> Mani's standard and hence does not stay in you mind and heart.</li><li>Dev's characterization: Mani has tried to project <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">Veerayya</span> as a guy who does not have just a bad side. In the process of doing that, Dev's character has been thrashed and instead of feeling bad for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">Veerayya</span> in the climax, I felt irritated with the way it ended. When <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">Vibeeshan</span>(<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">Sarkarai</span>) could be killed by Dev which is a big twist, then why not a different ending. Of course, the counter argument would be the stupid media and other Hindu organizations who are wanting to get famous opposing this. But end of the movie, the feeling is not pity but irritation. This never happened in a Mani movie to me before.</li><li>Lack of bonding between relationships: Again very unlike Mani. First and foremost, between <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_25">Veerayya</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_26">Ragini</span>. Secondly between <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_27">Veeraya</span> and his brother <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_28">Kumbakarnan</span>. Thirdly between Dev and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_29">Hanuman</span> and last but not least, between Dev and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_30">Raagini</span>. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_31">Lack</span> of simple and powerful dialogues contributed to this as well.<br /></li><li><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_32">Priyamanis</span> Flashback: Expect for the scene where Kumbakarnan carries a goat in his shoulders and jumps for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_34">ARRs</span> tunes where I actually got goosebumps, the flashback does not stay in your heart. Ranjitha steals most of the flashback by appearing just below 15 seconds due to her "Nithya Leelaigal".<br /></li><li>The worst scene for me in the movie was when Dev holds the cut off shoulders of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_35">Priyamani's</span> husband and asks for Veerayya. It may have some significance, I am not sure, but it irritated me too much.<br /></li></ol>Overall, if you forget this is a Mani <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_36">Ratnam</span> movie and watch it, you would actually say its decent for the effort put in physically, visually and in the script. But for Mani <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_37">Ratnam's</span> standard, this movie will not be listed in his all time top 10. No way.DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-50433807512827728082010-05-06T05:36:00.000-07:002010-05-06T05:39:39.261-07:00Kodu Potta - RaavananRaavanan songs are out and my pic is Kodu Potta, especially for the lyrics.<br />This movie definitely does not seem to be a romantic flick based on Ramayana. There is sure shot some social elements like Naxalism in it and to cover it up, the genuis has come up with a Rama Ravana abstraction.<br /><br />Kodu Potta Konnu Podu Lyrics . Thanks to Santy for this.<br /><br />Kodu Poata.. Konnu Podu..Vaeli Poata.. Hey Vetti Podu..Nethuvaraikum Unga Sattam Innaikirunthu Enga SattamKodu Poata.. Konnu Podu..Vaeli Poata.. Hey Vetti Podu..Villa Pola Valanja KootamVaela Potta Nimirnthu Vittoam<br />Soathula Pangu Kaeta Aada Ellayapodu EllayaSoththula Pangu Kaeta, Aavan Thalaya Podu ThalayaOoraan Veetu Sattathukku Ooru Naadu MasiyathuMaegam Vanthu Saththam Potta Aagayamdaen KaekathuPaatan Bootan Boomiya Yaarum Patta Poda Koodathu<br />Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey<br />Pamba Kooda Pazhagi Pasum Paala Oothum SaathiThappu Thanda Sencha, Aada Appa Theriyum SaethiKalli Kaatu Pullathaachi Kallapetha VeeranadaJalli Kaatu Madu Kizhicha Sariyum Kudalae MaalaiyadaSetha Kezhavan Ezhuthivecha Ootha Sothu Veeramada<br />Kodu Poata.. Konnu Podu..Vaeli Poata.. Hey Vetti Podu..<br />Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey<br />Enga Kaathu Meensutta Vaasam AadikumEnga Thanni Eri Saarayam Poal OraikumVathi Pona Oosuroada Vaazhvaanae SamsariOru Sappathi Kalli Vaazha Vaenamae MummariEttukaani Pona Aada Evanum Ezha IllaMaanam Mattum Pona Nee Maika Naalae EzhaManaivi Maatha Mattum Illa Mannum Kooda MaanamthaanChiyaan Kaatta Thoandi PaathaSemman Oothu Rathamthaan<br />Ko Ko Ko Kodu Poata.. Konnu Podu..Vaeli Poata.. Hey Vetti Podu..Nethuvaraikum Unga Sattam Innaikirunthu Enga Sattam<br />Hey Hey Hey Hey..<br />Kodu Poata.. Hey Hey Hey.. Konnu Podu.. Hey Hey Hey..Vaeli Poata.. Hey Vetti Podu..<br />Nethuvaraikum Unga SattamNethuvaraikum Unga SattamNethuvaraikum Unga SattamInnaikirunthu Enga SattamDKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-81581305037593086312010-02-22T03:41:00.000-08:002010-02-22T03:57:14.555-08:00LE-GE-AN-DARYThis is the perfect word to hope and desire for an event of celebration that is going to commence.<br />And I was so proud of Mr X until 05/02/2010, whom I thought had coined this word. My respect grew for this guy after he coined it. It made absolute sense to coin this word for a party, dinner, sporting event, or for that matter even sleep. And it also drew me to a conclusion that reading new words and developing your vocabulary actually increases your command over a language by allowing you describe something with a word of such a simple stature :"LEGENDARY".<br /><br />And on the above mentioned date, I realized a bigger fact. Watching a movie or a series in English is what is a more factual reason of great terms getting coined rather than improving vocab by learning new words.<br /><br />A quote from HIMYM :<br /><dl><dd><b>Barney</b>: <i>[at a party]</i> Do you ever go behind the rope and touch it?</dd><dd><b>Employee at Liberty Bell Site</b>: Only all the time.</dd><dd><b>Barney</b>: Do you ever like, stick your head inside it?</dd><dd><b>Employee</b>: Yeah.</dd><dd><b>Barney</b>: Have you ever licked it?</dd><dd><b>Employee</b>: Nope...I have never licked it.</dd><dd><b>Barney</b>: I bet nobody in history has ever licked the Liberty Bell. If someone were to pull that off, I daresay it would be - what's the word? LEGENDARY.</dd></dl><br />PS: Guys who do not understand this post, please wait for the comment from Mr X.DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-73522150706118844872010-02-08T21:08:00.000-08:002010-02-08T23:37:40.726-08:00A short holiday to God's own country<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-HCW6719L0MhJt6-ZDVoppFAVmpSa3Q0M45EQmLN8rqMYpZQii9FyU_IdqeKD16OTZfNjVaRPEQCSEjwdDr0WB5dtvvuASfUo3cGaH1cdM-b9nmyk037zewRNsKzz-TeYqPR2OXyg6r4/s1600-h/feb8_220.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-HCW6719L0MhJt6-ZDVoppFAVmpSa3Q0M45EQmLN8rqMYpZQii9FyU_IdqeKD16OTZfNjVaRPEQCSEjwdDr0WB5dtvvuASfUo3cGaH1cdM-b9nmyk037zewRNsKzz-TeYqPR2OXyg6r4/s200/feb8_220.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436140074128188370" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">4/2/10</span><br /><br />After attending my friends wedding in Thanjavur about which I have <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmUSk16CrJK_gkBOkgu5tj5pcONwlNvIk9e_08aKdZ89Zi-n8SzhUDk8TDyP4niEquCPOBE53TTxkVwL9rz_Bi679I3ZidWCmEv8cuVGBF9jwZbSgyKigAieKb3FA4Fc-b2FMzCfSm1hc/s1600-h/feb8_231.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmUSk16CrJK_gkBOkgu5tj5pcONwlNvIk9e_08aKdZ89Zi-n8SzhUDk8TDyP4niEquCPOBE53TTxkVwL9rz_Bi679I3ZidWCmEv8cuVGBF9jwZbSgyKigAieKb3FA4Fc-b2FMzCfSm1hc/s200/feb8_231.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436140168982794914" border="0" /></a>described <a href="http://dkarun.blogspot.com/2010/02/happy-married-life-vijesh-and-abi.html">here</a>, me and my wife were all set for the Kerala trip we had planned by catching Ernakulam Express from Trichy.<br /><br />5/2/10<br /><br />We reached Cochin at 6:15 AM and our driver Saneesh was waiting for us as we zoomed to Kumarakom, a village near Kottayam around 70 kms from Cochin. We <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiELFc0j2aNbMOUNJh050nXFELeIT_-11dT_NxQv9zOFFw5CBPccrvdwo0nhSyma-5brCqzGa64QZzLiyxWjjy2oPMosjtneq1E600QojcDyGrMj38ORBCqFB4tCDl_m3tIJoIrb-I58M/s1600-h/feb8_289.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiELFc0j2aNbMOUNJh050nXFELeIT_-11dT_NxQv9zOFFw5CBPccrvdwo0nhSyma-5brCqzGa64QZzLiyxWjjy2oPMosjtneq1E600QojcDyGrMj38ORBCqFB4tCDl_m3tIJoIrb-I58M/s200/feb8_289.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436140266554514434" border="0" /></a>were to check in into a house boat of <a href="http://www.paradisein.com/">Paradise Resorts</a> in Kumarakom. The resort folks were kind enough to give us a room for freshening up as the check-in time was 12 PM, thanks to our travel agent <a href="http://www.evergreenhuts.com/">Evergreen Huts</a>.<br /><br />I always tell my friends I do not want to go for a trip but a holiday, and this was the time for the realization of the difference between the two. Perfect holiday for two days.<br /><br />The houseboat was luxurious with a big deck consisting of 4 sofa chairs, cushions sit out areas around the border, tea table, dining table and a Samsung LCD TV. It had a very good bedroom with attached bath and a common wash area. We of course had a kitchen and refrigerator. Our cook in the houseboat was Smidheesh and our driver was Mr. Baby. Both were very friendly and courteous.<br /><br />We started to c<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpn1MU4VsPYX8U_eazyEX_u4G8f9YQ2p3hWtMNE2T4YFI5FC70_Z7fqAeFvCK3QkkkuPopKW5mUr2SlKHl9V7FLjoazkJOH6fj5A0hfQVycQ1lqbDcLMfjIdDzhGQWHKu_ZN6eLoPsDVY/s1600-h/feb8_282.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpn1MU4VsPYX8U_eazyEX_u4G8f9YQ2p3hWtMNE2T4YFI5FC70_Z7fqAeFvCK3QkkkuPopKW5mUr2SlKHl9V7FLjoazkJOH6fj5A0hfQVycQ1lqbDcLMfjIdDzhGQWHKu_ZN6eLoPsDVY/s200/feb8_282.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436140575814884530" border="0" /></a>ruise to Azhapuzha which was 20 kms from Kumarakom at around 12:30 PM in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vembanad_Lake" title="Vembanad Lake">Vembanad Lake</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vembanad_Lake">.</a> The view, the breeze and feeling of blending with nature could not be described while we were traveling in the boat. We were served Elaneer plucked in front of us from a coconut tree. We stopped for lunch at around 2. Typical Kerala lunch consisting of Kerala rice, pulishery, muttai-gose poriyal, Sambar, pappadam, curd and fruit salad. The cruise continued and we reached Azhapuzha at around 5. My wife wanted to eat Pazhampori(Banana(Nendhra Pazham) sweet bajji) and Smidheesh purchased the fruit from a boat side shop. Just while crossing Azhapuzha, we had tea, french fries and Pazhampori.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNGcy-hFIa4QKYyrY3dL9xDSEhGlgiFN5yLP_vFiYSFua4wf5hAK5IlPdHlJ_L27ZRdncmefJnr3s76nglNssd7WEFDxfToTr5Hm0ocDx5J60_Hj8NDRCL1dALU51Y7gCfCs1ShyphenhyphenKthjU/s1600-h/feb8_299.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNGcy-hFIa4QKYyrY3dL9xDSEhGlgiFN5yLP_vFiYSFua4wf5hAK5IlPdHlJ_L27ZRdncmefJnr3s76nglNssd7WEFDxfToTr5Hm0ocDx5J60_Hj8NDRCL1dALU51Y7gCfCs1ShyphenhyphenKthjU/s200/feb8_299.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436140455345492642" border="0" /></a><br />We reached a village called Kalignagiri around 4 kms from Azhapuzha on the way to Kollam and we halted there. Mr Jayakumar, JK as we called him was a villager of Kalignagiri who offered us a ride in a small boat around the village canals. We rowed along with him to view the streets(canals) and it felt like we are in a place like Venice but with everything around so natural.<br />Reports from Jk suggested there were around 2 lakh people in and around the village and their main occupation was selling fishes and prawns. The place Kalignagiri became so close to my heart that I still miss the place. We came back to the houseboat at 7PM. Dinner consisted of Chapathi, paneer, vendakka fry, paruppu fry and rice. We saw two episodes of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_I_Met_Your_Mother">HIMYM </a>and here is where I saw the "Legendary" episode about which I am planning to write in my next posts.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsZW8gBpqwM5JN2U_eBHUWWKn2YhONyAYFCL6KWnh2RTnfsLmF-bqWsizt7vWU44mWFDflWEAEvc0glIFrUZo8VlNBhKSziskvThHAlm2EleULn9ZLUCHemUnhyphenhyphenH3kCqBOsnERm3kKvU8/s1600-h/feb8_398.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsZW8gBpqwM5JN2U_eBHUWWKn2YhONyAYFCL6KWnh2RTnfsLmF-bqWsizt7vWU44mWFDflWEAEvc0glIFrUZo8VlNBhKSziskvThHAlm2EleULn9ZLUCHemUnhyphenhyphenH3kCqBOsnERm3kKvU8/s200/feb8_398.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436141184790427954" border="0" /></a><br />6/2/10<br /><br />Sunrise was beautiful. We started our cruise back to Kum<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg46DAjOeLIVUuSVhjf_1pCZFdqNQUC-dUjCcicT8AuTQjGOKB7dnrzb25W26Y59azPg_Qjtm-hmNMHNLX-cefm1tcqAlp42njK1v9gAlv1PY_cMHzInSr5nTlBdb53cgrXT1r82JjhBY/s1600-h/feb8_324.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg46DAjOeLIVUuSVhjf_1pCZFdqNQUC-dUjCcicT8AuTQjGOKB7dnrzb25W26Y59azPg_Qjtm-hmNMHNLX-cefm1tcqAlp42njK1v9gAlv1PY_cMHzInSr5nTlBdb53cgrXT1r82JjhBY/s200/feb8_324.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436140817517704674" border="0" /></a>arakom at 8. On the way, we had our breakfast consisting of Aapam, stew, bread toast and tea. The return drive was a shortcut and we checked out at <a href="http://www.abadhotels.com/lakeresort/index.html?src=af">Abad Whispering Palms</a>, the resort where we had planned to stay for this day at around 9:45 AM. We had a warm send off from Baby and Smidheesh.<br /><br />Whispering Palms is one of the many resorts in Kumarakom where the notion is to just sit by the lake and relax. We had booked a lake view room and the view from our sit out area was too good. Every 2 minutes we saw some boat pass by, birds hunting for fishes; great relaxation. The resort had a infinity swimming pool giving the feeling that it is joining with the lake. I swam for around 30 minutes and we were off for the Ayurveda massage at 11 AM. Massage and the steam bath after that m<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge6_roMiqfHGqXlQwmJN11PPOMLasNicq-YHQgiwolA8_nsgeSypv_slZftSsyAs_ziGI7V-Bi0IQ7CkU4l_V_4RfMmZr-PzNphbJ9wPO2PMweRdNKBcAsfXaysdKjCGD0OHRn7SGrIzQ/s1600-h/feb8_411.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge6_roMiqfHGqXlQwmJN11PPOMLasNicq-YHQgiwolA8_nsgeSypv_slZftSsyAs_ziGI7V-Bi0IQ7CkU4l_V_4RfMmZr-PzNphbJ9wPO2PMweRdNKBcAsfXaysdKjCGD0OHRn7SGrIzQ/s200/feb8_411.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436141521282076226" border="0" /></a>ade sure we were very hungry. Lunch was good, though very little for vegetarians. We could not control sleep, I think was the massage effect and the next thing I remember is it was 5:45 PM.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2abo9Wqx4UxLpB7uZNeIbfsevXF4F0yZN8PyXD3zK5zaaqgMXrokQJErGaqymp33_s43z2cbg8lJxVrK3zWChCUT8XdB9YwTHmRRxej6id8mfweToXznj1sT47sSaf2AYuw_LEZZY74M/s1600-h/feb8_474.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2abo9Wqx4UxLpB7uZNeIbfsevXF4F0yZN8PyXD3zK5zaaqgMXrokQJErGaqymp33_s43z2cbg8lJxVrK3zWChCUT8XdB9YwTHmRRxej6id8mfweToXznj1sT47sSaf2AYuw_LEZZY74M/s200/feb8_474.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436142470031391410" border="0" /></a><br />We had Kalari demonstration at 7:30 PM. It was mind blowing. I remembered Dams, my friend who is going to this class in Bangalore when I saw the performances. After the event, we roamed around the resort taking pics and then was dinner time. And then what, another 3 episodes of HIMYM.<br /><br />07/02/10<br />Nothing much to speak about on this day. Felt very bad I was going to leave this place. Especially was missing Kalignagiri very badly.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOzGn0XT7QkuWx4eLpTiiDWg07LAdkFqW31sJdhJGB1i1PpEA3OS8tGBtRzHrh1ftr-m3qRD1a4JiAvedNrDUSN8WfAJMLsQwDUAigTJBM5WAIOwW6NtVZVX99WFO99IpYDRsarP8LJTw/s1600-h/feb8_438.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOzGn0XT7QkuWx4eLpTiiDWg07LAdkFqW31sJdhJGB1i1PpEA3OS8tGBtRzHrh1ftr-m3qRD1a4JiAvedNrDUSN8WfAJMLsQwDUAigTJBM5WAIOwW6NtVZVX99WFO99IpYDRsarP8LJTw/s200/feb8_438.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436141524145437890" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgospBOL_jRW2evbgotoyY1PCqhbM5mL6QqmQDuEbbCLTFj2RjiozIv4mF78q1dYloIRL56IzmUaM2_f0ApAWUlfM8wfTpN3OKXXZ-_V7EmHJlF59Px0sSeoYuZt9vMWYejBfHF1ONDlvY/s1600-h/feb8_515.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgospBOL_jRW2evbgotoyY1PCqhbM5mL6QqmQDuEbbCLTFj2RjiozIv4mF78q1dYloIRL56IzmUaM2_f0ApAWUlfM8wfTpN3OKXXZ-_V7EmHJlF59Px0sSeoYuZt9vMWYejBfHF1ONDlvY/s200/feb8_515.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436142476881424194" border="0" /></a><br />One thing to note was there is absolutely nothing go about and see here except for a bird sanctuary. You see so many birds in front of you and hence the need to go there does not run into your mind. I highly recommend this place for a 2-3 day holiday. Not for bachelors though, this is ideal for couples or families.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgTS19kMA3VYLlNrTq6xjdu3SbU_AIoDsoNkpAWVZA18GKvvcFyxDitHo1acWXibrtMTnrGFG7_kNrxkRNYmHhSDd9CLB7wb1FRutNwc7DXqdw72s-e-LsX5XiOwz6VDZBSdmzBPlMUjg/s1600-h/feb8_517.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgTS19kMA3VYLlNrTq6xjdu3SbU_AIoDsoNkpAWVZA18GKvvcFyxDitHo1acWXibrtMTnrGFG7_kNrxkRNYmHhSDd9CLB7wb1FRutNwc7DXqdw72s-e-LsX5XiOwz6VDZBSdmzBPlMUjg/s200/feb8_517.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436143049426386322" border="0" /></a><br />Finally, I realized why Kerala is called God's own country now and I repent the fact that I missed to see such a wonderful place which is so near to Chennai for so long.DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-20767964801486652142010-02-07T21:05:00.001-08:002010-02-07T21:22:47.648-08:00Happy Married Life Vijesh and AbiThis is in due return of respect to the guy who always made sure he posted his friend's marriage pics and description on his blog.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJQ2LAjW6BgQRO1-C9k2AB6EatF0fdNv30C-ACyDrc2x19utf9A9JLyg3dIXruNPBbqkV5WpECbnQ6V4UkdUOwH3PJzBDxX0YwgxquSBPHnwJPE3WZv6U9ZJLSBI06qfNUUWJZeVZZr6A/s1600-h/vijesh.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJQ2LAjW6BgQRO1-C9k2AB6EatF0fdNv30C-ACyDrc2x19utf9A9JLyg3dIXruNPBbqkV5WpECbnQ6V4UkdUOwH3PJzBDxX0YwgxquSBPHnwJPE3WZv6U9ZJLSBI06qfNUUWJZeVZZr6A/s400/vijesh.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5435737613134570034" border="0" /></a><br />First of all, a very good location to have a wedding. Thanjavur was fabulous, enjoyed the stay and sight seeing there. Second of all, the location of the hotel room; it was bang opposite to the mandapam making it very easy for the ladies in pattu podavai to reach the mandapam. Third and most important of all, the food; both breakfast and lunch were delicious and filling. We actually, went past the mandapam to see if they are serving evening tiffin :) .<br /><br />We booked a taxi to go to Trichy where we had a train to catch. Wonderful under construction roads made sure we ate station parcel food for dinner by dropping us just minutes before departure.<br /><br />Happy Married Life to Vijesh and Abi. Will meet you guys sometime in Chennai.DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-4544726465142889772009-11-30T08:06:00.000-08:002009-11-30T08:24:35.537-08:00Poomalai Vaangi Vanthar<span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">I was watching </span></span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0" >Airtel</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;"> Super Singer Junior in </span></span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1" >Vijay</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;"> TV when I heard a small boy sing this song. I could not resist myself to hit </span></span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2" >youtube</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;"> and listen to the original. Songs like these would stay alive for centuries. I have </span></span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3" >listened</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;"> to the song before, but somehow loving it very much now. Hats off to </span></span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4" >Ilayaraja</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;"> and </span></span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5" >Yesudas</span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">.</span><br /><br /></span><p style=";font-family:arial;font-size:8pt;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><b>Movie Name</b>: Sindhu Bhairavi (1985)<br /><b>Singer</b>: Yesudas KJ<br /><b>Music Director</b>: Ilayaraja<br /><b>Director</b>: Balachander K<br /></span></p><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:10;" > <p>poo maalai vaangi vandhaar pookkalillaiyae<br />seviyillai innoru isaiyedharku vizhiyillai innoru villakkedharku<br />naalum naalum aval ninaivil ivan azhaghup</p> <p>kaiyil kinnam pidiththuvittaan inikkinra vishaththukkul irangivittaan<br />raagam thaalam marandhuvittaan rasiganin kadidhaththaik kizhiththuvittaan<br />isaikkoru kuyilenru paereduththaan irumalaiththaaninru surampidiththaan<br />manidhargal iruppadhai marandhuvittaan maanaththin maanaththai vaangivittaan<br />boadhaiyin paadhaiyil poaginraan thanmughamae thaan marandhaan<br />soodavum thoalillai aalillai ivan azhaghup</p> <p>naetru sabadhangal eduththuvittan kudikkinra koappaiyai udaiththuvittan<br />meendum aval mugham ninaiththuvittan sabadhaththai avan ingu udaiththuvittan<br />kadarkaraiyengum manalvelliyil kaadhali kaaladi thaedinaar<br />mohanam paadum vaelaiyilum sindhuvil raagam paadinaar<br />vidhiyenum oonjalil aadinaar ????<br /></p></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Here is the link : <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZZ6cfm0AS0&feature=fvw">poomaalai</a></span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Meltdown to the tune.</span></span>DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-82072837496216282882009-11-29T20:46:00.000-08:002009-11-29T20:54:17.765-08:00Congrats Nikolay Davydenko<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQVaaRUxgXEPaGoRTd6PKWSeu0Dcks6LA6bXsLmJ3T_e6sOUr5ehuaW7k5gjfWobXJksZ30dLcVvED-n5ghFuDZWlBdABtpqlkyG3699LQlfE8TEcfoAWU3wEdnNMyH5-BQe3BvrQh29E/s1600/dav.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5409755017821272642" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 180px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 250px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQVaaRUxgXEPaGoRTd6PKWSeu0Dcks6LA6bXsLmJ3T_e6sOUr5ehuaW7k5gjfWobXJksZ30dLcVvED-n5ghFuDZWlBdABtpqlkyG3699LQlfE8TEcfoAWU3wEdnNMyH5-BQe3BvrQh29E/s400/dav.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Finally we have the winner of the prestigious world tour finals in London. And for <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">every ones</span> surprise, it is <a href="http://www.barclaysatpworldtourfinals.com/Tennis/Players/D402.aspx"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Nikolay</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Davydenko</span></a>.<br /></div><div>I have <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">always</span> seen him as a sore fighter who gives up if he loses a set. He has reached semis and finals of some grand slams and world tour finals, but he seemed to have missed the "something" factor. On his way to triumph, he defeated the 2009 <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Australian</span> Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open Champions in a single week. Another player whose name is worth mentioning is Robin <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Soderling</span>, who made his finals debut due to the injury caused to Andy <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Roddick</span>, but he proved to the world that he very much deserved a place in the top 8. Definitely, another <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">surprise</span> package of the tournament.</div>DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-8855367170282786472009-11-26T04:56:00.000-08:002009-11-26T05:02:24.151-08:00Rahul Dravid"The man who has till date made sure he gives enough confidence to his partner at the strikers end to go for his natural game feeling the optimism that even if things don't go well with him, there is a guy standing right opposite to him with a willow at a distance of 22 yards who would most often than not save the days game of cricket with sheer class."<br /><br />- Arun DK.DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9101696972614159949.post-11269762764313533622009-11-03T22:45:00.000-08:002009-11-03T22:54:35.585-08:00Copy to clipboard from GmailI have observed a strange(may be not strange) thing when copying HTML content from <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">gmail</span>.<br />It does not <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">immediately</span> copy, but seems to be stuck for around 3-7 seconds after which your copy is successful. Try copying something from <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">gmail</span>(any HTML) and <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">immediately</span> paste it to a notepad, it would not paste anything or would paste what was previously available in the clipboard. In the meantime, the browser is <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">nonfunctional</span>.DKhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16379383101803773197noreply@blogger.com1