tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-287750982024-03-19T09:50:18.309+05:30Venu's WorldMy life and the world according to me..you might find the views biased sometimes..but then I've never said I'm impartial.വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.comBlogger85125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-3092249333310100352017-05-07T23:39:00.000+05:302017-05-10T16:12:18.173+05:30Abode of the Clouds: Day 2: 3600 Stairs & the Living root bridges of Meghalaya<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Day 0: <span style="background: #eeeecc; color: #223344; font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif; font-size: 9.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://findvenu.blogspot.in/2017/04/abode-of-clouds-day-0-background.html">http://findvenu.blogspot.in/2017/04/abode-of-clouds-day-0-background.html</a></span>
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Day 1: <a href="http://findvenu.blogspot.in/2017/04/abode-of-clouds-day-1-kfc-dumb-charades.html">http://findvenu.blogspot.in/2017/04/abode-of-clouds-day-1-kfc-dumb-charades.html</a>
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I was woken up by my Phone’s
alarm at around 5:30 AM and it took me a couple of seconds to gather my
whereabouts. Rarely do I wake up that early and this of course was a rare occasion.
The chill in the morning air drove away the cobwebs of my sleep quickly and I
got ready to head out on the Day 2 of our Meghalaya Trip. The plan was to hit
the seven sisters falls first and then the Arwah caves before returning to the
resort for breakfast. Gurjyot and Nikhil, 2 of my cottage mates opted to sleep
in while the third one, Prathamesh joined me in heading out. Although the
scheduled departure time was 6 AM, the resort grounds had a deserted look till
around 6:30-6:45 when people started trickling in towards the bus. Once the bus
was almost full, we started off and I breathed a sigh of relief – too soon. We
had to stop again mid-way as two “Late Lateef”s decided to join us at the last
minute. This unexpected break gave me a chance to click some macros while we
waited. The latecomers were welcomed into the bus with a round of slow claps and
the journey finally began in earnest. <o:p></o:p></div>
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First Stop – The Seven sisters
falls. These are a group of seven streams of water falling off a cliff face
into the valley. We had a great view of them from a nearby resort grounds.
However, on that particular day, the sisters were feeling a bit shy and chose
to hide themselves partially behind a veil of haze. Me and my ND filter felt
let down and had to content with a few clicks of scenes around the resort
grounds. The puzzling part is that, even with nothing much to see, it was a
hell of a task to get people to board back into the bus to proceed to Arwah
caves. Finally after much pleading and threatening, the group was back in the
bus and we started moving again. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Arwah caves is a cave system
featuring multiple tunnels, many passage ways and prehistoric fossils. One
interesting feature about the way to Arwah caves was a choice – Relaxing walk
vs Rigorous walk. As Robert Frost once put it,<o:p></o:p></div>
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“Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,<o:p></o:p></div>
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And sorry I could not travel both<o:p></o:p></div>
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And be one traveler, long I stood<o:p></o:p></div>
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And looked down one as far as I could” <o:p></o:p></div>
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My choice here was not difficult
though – I had in my mind a much rigorous walk which I would need to take later
in the afternoon. So for now, I chose the relaxing walk. In the Arwah cave
system, there is a stream of water flowing through it and the sound of the
flowing water along with the acoustics of the cave adds up to an awesome
experience. There were multiple passageways to be explored- most of them ending
up as dead ends or no entry boards. Still, exploring them was fun and before we
knew, it was time to head back. <o:p></o:p></div>
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On reaching back to the resort,
the main activity was to streamline the luggages for the downhill trek. All
unwanted weight had to be shed as 3600 stairs would make you pay for each gram
of weight you decided to take along. My experience with the Chennai Trekking
Club had helped me plan ahead and travel as light as I possibly could. There was
nothing I could leave back so I just took the time to sit and enjoy the
scenery. Once everyone was satisfied that they had gotten to their lightest
backpacks, we set off. Destination – Tyrna village, the base point for the
downhill trek. On reaching there, the group of 52 were split into 4 groups of
13 each with a guide assigned to each group to take us down. With a mixed
feeling of excitement and horror in my heart and a silent prayer on my lips, I
began the descent.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The steps that took us downhill
were built as a part of the MNREGA scheme. Solid concrete steps, sometimes a
bit narrow but still a solid foothold. Sometimes they looked a bit steep and
people among us who had a fear of heights faced a bit of difficulty negotiating
them. After a few hundred steps, the muscles in my legs started complaining.
After a few hundred more, they started cursing me. Periodic sips of orange
flavoured glucose – a throwback to the good old CTC trek days kept me going
till our first real halt – The Long root bridge, the longest living root bridge
in existence. <o:p></o:p></div>
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The first thing that strikes you
when you see a living root bridge is how harmonious it is with nature. You
cannot make out where the tree ends and the bridge begins. For those who are
not aware of this wondrous creation, let me brief you. These bridges are made
from the living roots of rubber trees. When the roots are still pliable, they
are guided across a river/crevice using steel cables or betel tree trunks. When
these roots strengthen and stabilize, it forms a bridge across the expanse. This
process takes about 15-20 years before the bridge is usable. Once the bridge is
operational, it will in principle, last for many hundred years as long as the
trees they are made from remain healthy. No one actually knows when this practice
began. The earliest known mention about a root bridge was in 1844. <o:p></o:p></div>
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We rested our sore legs for a few
minutes at the long root bridge. But the sun was about to set and for safety
purpose, we needed to reach out campsite before dark. We had to stoke the dying
embers of our stamina and resume the trek again to the sleepy village of
Nongriat – The home of the double decker root bridges. About an hour later,
sweat dripping from each and every pore, able to count the muscles in my leg
just by the way how they were paining, I heard the victorious whoops of people
who had already reached their destination. Few moments later, it came into view
– The Double Decker bridges. There are a few moments in life where words fail
you and you just stare wide eyed and gape jawed at the awesomeness in front of
you. This was one of them. Two living root bridges and a mini waterfall in the
stream leading to them. To borrow the words of a fellow traveler- Nijaguna, “What
a time to be alive...”.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I didn’t waste any time before
taking a dip in the cool waters of the stream. You could literally feel all the
pain and tiredness being washed away along with the sweat and grime accumulated
on your body during the trek. For that moment, everything was at peace. Once
the darkness started creeping in, we left the falls behind and made our way to
the campsite. A mini village made of tents and a welcome sign that I will
always remember “ <a href="http://www.chalohoppo.com/?utm_source=wordpress&utm_medium=blog&utm_campaign=Pr_articles">ChaloHoppo</a> village welcomes you”. Tents were assigned
quickly. My tent mate was a fellow Malayali – Abhishek. </div>
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Once the bags were
deposited in the tent, we made our way towards the Bonfire which was being
setup at one end of our camping site. The sky was clear and the stars were
starting to make an appearance. This felt like the perfect night for some star
trail photography. Let me get into my briefing mode again. Star Trail
photography involves tracing the movement of the stars across the sky due to
the rotation of the earth. Although we had tree cover on all our sides, above
the tree cover, the sky was clear and the stars were in full attendance. Out came
the tripod and my trusty Nikon. The arrangements were made, some of the other
photographically inclined travelers joined me and soon we had a mini forest of
tripods with cameras on them all pointing towards the stars. I had to content
with taking 12 shots with 5 min shutter speed each as these long exposure shots
suck the lifeblood of your camera battery like a thirsty vampire. </div>
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While we
photographers were tracing star movements and identifying constellations,
another group went to war around the camp fire. A dance war between 2 kingdoms –
Maurya and Shaurya. I don’t have much details about it because by the time I
made my way to the campfire, one of kingdoms seem to have forfeited the gory
battle pursuing the dinner bell and the others were in discussion about how to
get their hands on the promised spoils of war. My stomach led me to the dinner
table and once the call of hunger was sated, we were back around the campfire.
Soon the rigors of the day came home to roost and it was time to call it a
night. I slept as soon as my head hit the pillow – My first night in a tent –
beneath the stars. Another trek awaited us on the next day – Towards the
Rainbow falls and its unearthly beauty. <o:p></o:p></div>
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വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-4422855917745910612017-04-30T19:21:00.000+05:302017-05-02T17:51:06.252+05:30Abode of the Clouds: Day 1 – KFC, Dumb charades and Sa-I-Mika<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Day 0: <a href="http://findvenu.blogspot.in/2017/04/abode-of-clouds-day-0-background.html">http://findvenu.blogspot.in/2017/04/abode-of-clouds-day-0-background.html</a><o:p></o:p><br />
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For pics: follow me on instagram: @nimishaardham or check out my facebook page.<br />
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Let’s fast forward a bit. Woke up at 4 AM,
Freshened up, checked in, caught the flight, slept for a bit again, watched few
episodes of Bleach, landed in Guwahati…Phew. Guwahati, the gateway to the North
East has a small yet crowded airport where photography is a strict no-no. I was
waiting to get my luggage when someone called me from behind. They were my
fellow travelers from Bangalore. First round of introductions done, luggage
collected and out we headed into the great state of Assam. Known for its tea
and silk, our first stop was meeting point oft mentioned in the Backpackers
Meghalaya whatsapp group – Anand Tiffins. It looked like the only place where
we could grab a bit near the airport and they made sure we paid a pretty buck
to take that bite. Looked like a tea stall, priced like a star hotel, we had to
content ourselves with a coffee from there as there was hardly any place to
sit.<o:p></o:p></div>
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We spent some time thinking about
what to do next, as our bus was to arrive at 10 and the last person was
expected to land at 12 noon, it left us around 3 hours to kill. Finally the
general consensus was to start walking from the airport and see where it takes
us. It took us around 200 m from the airport to a mini food court which loudly
called out to us - “Vaango!” Vaango was a vegetarian South Indian restaurant
and had a quintessentially American Non vegetarian restaurant to accompany it –
Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC). When we entered the food court, we saw a pile of
bags in one corner and a group of people sitting with bored faces. That clearly
gave them away as being our fellow travelers. Another round of introductions
went through and from whatever we got to hear, we were stuck in KFC for a
pretty long haul. New faces kept joining us and we kept getting better
acquainted. The group assembled in KFC was a pretty varied mix. Rather than the
often seen, bored out of their skin IT guys going to North east to cool their
heads, we had people from all walks of the life – Advocates, Architects,
Doctors, Stylists, Technical Writers, Photography students, Chartered
accountants and of course, IT professionals. Around 10:30 Am, we got to know
that the girl who was supposed to land at 12 had missed her flight. This got a mixed reception. We were sad for
her but also relieved that we would finally get to see more of the North east
apart from the Airport and the KFC joint. Then came the kick in the nuts –
Couple more people were expected and they would land only at 12:30. This left
us almost another 3 hours to negotiate. By the time the much expected flight
nearly landed, people were sharing Instagram handles and making new BFFs. As
someone in the group put it about the late comers, “The last time someone would
have waited this anxiously for them might have been at the time of their
birth”.<o:p></o:p></div>
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But, every wait has its end and
the final couple finally made their way out of the airport and into the bus –
and we were off. Out of the airport, into the warm, humid Guwahati. Soon we
left Assam behind and made our way into the cooler greener state of Meghalaya. Along
the way, I got to know how out of touch I was with today’s music scene.
Everyone would be singing along to the song playing and I wouldn’t even have a
clue as to whether the singer was male or female. After a quick stop for lunch,
our first real halt was at the Umiam Lake. We were a bit late so we had to
content ourselves with a long distance view of the lake. Once we left Umiam
Lake, we had on the bus with us, Nishanth, one of the co-founders of <a href="http://www.chalohoppo.com/?utm_source=wordpress&utm_medium=blog&utm_campaign=Pr_articles">ChaloHoppo</a>
– the co-organizers of this trip. He was a veritable treasure trove of snippets
about the North East. His tales about the Headhunting tribes of Nagaland had me
putting a visit to Nagaland in my bucket list. Soon a small group started
playing 20 questions – with 20 being negotiable. This “20 questions” then
turned into “ Heads Up” and then finally to good old Dumb charades. This had
the whole bus joining in with the left side of the bus pitted against the right
side in a battle for charades supremacy. The hardest part was getting people to
count the words in a movie name correctly. Even though our team was lagging
behind at one point, we came back and took a hard fought victory right as we
entered into the Sai Mika resort.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Now, picture this. A sprawling
compound dotted by cottages. A brisk chill in the air. A near full moon bathing
the whole compound in milky light and sounds of guitars being played welcoming
us to the Sa-I-Mika resort. Couldn’t have asked for a better welcome into
Cherrapunjee. While we were waiting for the rooms to be assigned, we sat and
listened to the local band playing – although I couldn’t recognize most of the
songs, the passion with which they played and the ambience of the whole place
made it a really memorable experience. After some confusion regarding the room
allocation, which was quickly sorted out, we retired to our rooms to freshen up
and get ready for dinner. My roommates were Nikhil – A fellow IT Guy from IBM,
Gurjyot – Current E&Y, Ex-Nivea and still very brand loyal and Prathamesh –
An Enginering student pursuing a diploma in Photography in parallel. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Dinner was served in the main
hall and as earlier, the local band’s music accompanied it. Even though most of
us were tired, no one wanted to go back to our rooms. The chill in the air, the
bonfire and the music made for a heady combination and most of us sat around
the fire, singing along till after midnight. Finally it was time to call it a
night and the number in all our minds as we went to sleep was 3600 – the number
of steps that we would need to climb down the next day.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-60875729968474264932017-04-30T19:17:00.000+05:302017-04-30T19:17:05.565+05:30Abode of the Clouds Day 0: Background<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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It all started when my oldest friend got a DSLR. Discussing
photography with him and giving him tips on how to shoot got me thinking about
my own dormant DSLR. It has been quite some time since it had gotten a good
work out. It was time to start clicking again. With this in mind, I searched
for active photowalk groups in Bangalore. I was already part of Bangalore
Photowalk but it hadn’t been pretty active in the near past. My search made me
come across another group Photowalk Bangalore and without hesitation; I joined
their whatsapp group using the invite link. The group had pretty strict
guidelines regarding what could be posted there. I was content with being a
passive participant for now. Then one day, a group member posted about a 4 day
trip to Meghalaya organized by Photographers of India. Poor guy got blasted by
the group admin for posting links to events outside the photowalk Bangalore
group. But that message sparked something in me. Meghalaya – The abode of the clouds, the only
thing I knew about that state is that it has the record for the highest
rainfall ever recorded (courtesy: Standard VIII Geography text book). But
somehow the name itself brought to mind a cool green paradise. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Next step was getting the necessary home office approvals.
Getting the leaves would be comparatively easy but I felt that getting my
better half to allow me a 5 day break from father and husband duties would take
some doing. That wasn’t the case to be.
One evening, during some idle chit chat, I mentioned to her about this trip.
The response was “You go ahead, if you want to go”. Although I couldn’t believe
my ears at first, I took that was the green light and set about planning the
logistics. The flights to and from Guwahati were the first on the list. Then
the necessary formalities to be completed as instructed by the trip organizers,
finally came the requisite shopping to be done for the essentials. It was time
to dust off my trusty pair of Merrel shoes and get my photographers vest
cleaned up. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Meanwhile Photographers of India (Instagram:
@photographers.of.india) kept me updated via mails and the whatsapp group on
what to expect from the trip. The description of the trip sent across excited
me and at the same time scared my shoes off – Climb down 3600 steps? Really?
Somehow I pushed it to the back of my mind and just focused on getting myself
to Guwahati. This would be my first solo trip since my two week North Indian
sojourn before my marriage. <o:p></o:p></div>
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My flight from Bangalore was at 5:55 AM on 13<sup>th</sup>
April. There came the first choice to be made. What time should I get to the
airport? Should I stay at home, get up at 2:00 AM, get ready and proceed to the
airport by 3:00 AM? Would I be able to get cabs at that time in the night?
Would I get enough sleep? Would I wake up on time? Another option was to leave
home by 10:30, Reach the airport by around midnight, catch around 4 hours of
sleep there, wake up, get freshened up and proceed with the boarding
formalities. The more I thought about it, more sense the latter option made to
me. I didn’t want to think too much so finally decided to go with Option 2. 13<sup>th</sup>
night came; I was all packed and prepped up, saying my good byes. An Ola cab
was waiting to take me to the airport. Being night time, it hardly took me 45
min to reach the sprawling Kempegowda International Airport, Bangalore. All
that was left was to find a comfortable place to park myself and shut my eyes
for a few hours before I could awake into the first day of a much awaited
journey.<o:p></o:p></div>
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വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-79693519820227891082016-04-16T23:46:00.000+05:302016-04-16T23:46:05.403+05:30Does God Play Dice?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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I am not an Atheist. Maybe an
Agnostic but definitely not an Atheist. Now, before you jump down my throat,
accusing me of spouting jargon right from the get go, let me explain what these
terms mean. An Atheist is someone who denies the existence of God. An Agnostic
is someone who believes it impossible to know anything about God or about the
creation of the universe and refrains from commitment to any religious doctrine.
Something that has been troubling me amongst the religious beliefs is the
professed existence of an omnipotent, omnipresent deity. That raises a lot of
questions. If the deity is indeed omnipresent and omnipotent, why are all the
bad things happening in the world? This simple question is answered via a
myriad of justifications all to prove how the deity is infallible and can do no
wrong. But what this basically boils down to is that the victims deserved their
fate. This is often buddied up with an explanation of how Karma works. He/she
must have done something in their lives to deserve what they got.
Unsurprisingly, these are the kind of people who on reading news of a rape
often holds the victim responsible for their fate. Moreover when they cannot
find enough bad Karma to justify the fate of the victim, the search for past
sins transcends to the past lives too. A 2 year old baby gets raped and somehow
the justification that comes up is that maybe the sins of the past life are
being balanced out – because the deity they pray to can do no wrong. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Recently Kerala witnessed one of
the largest tragedies it has ever seen – the fireworks mishap at the Puttingal
temple in Kollam District. Number of lost lives were 115 at the last count. This
fireworks display was conducted against the explicit orders from the district
collector. Now, in the days following the tragedy, while the whole state is
still trying to wrap their heads around the magnitude of what happened, social
media is getting inundated with various kinds of messages<o:p></o:p></div>
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<li><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Even
after 115 people died and structural damage occurred to buildings within 1.5 km
of the blast site, the temple itself was unharmed. Behold the power of the deity:
Really? If you were to argue about the structural design of the temple and the
architectural genius which enabled it to withstand the explosion of such a
magnitude, that would hold more water. But when you argue that a deity which
could not prevent the massive loss of life that happened right within the
temple grounds was successful at self-preservation, are you arguing for or
against the so called supreme power? If self-preservation is what the so called
divine power values more than the lives of the people who come to pray, is it
the right power to pray to? Referring back to what I wrote earlier,
explanations will come up as to how each and every one of the 115 lost souls
deserved what they got and the deity was absolutely right to let the tragedy
happen.</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">.</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Video
has come out of how the “Thidambu” – the ceremonial symbol of the deity itself
fell to the ground when it was being hoisted on top of an elephant. The theory
that goes along is that this was a bad omen sent by god and since people ignored
this, they were clearing the path for the tragedy that was about to happen.
Hence my original question – Does god play dice? Imagine a scene on a pantheon
far above the mortal plane where gods have gathered and are putting wagers on
whether or not the mere mortals will understand that the Thidambu falling down
means a bloodbath is coming if you don’t act fast. The mortals didn’t – and the
bloodbath followed. The gods who bet against the mortals seem to have made a
literal killing. So when there are a 1001 ways how god could have intervened to
stop this disaster from happening, what god chooses to do is to give mortals a
hint and sit back and watch the plot unfold – Sorry. I don’t believe in such
gods.</span></li>
</ol>
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Now, don’t get an impression that
I don’t believe in gods at all. I do. I don’t believe in gods who live in
temples and showers blessings based on how much you spend at the temples. I don’t
believe in gods who being supposedly all powerful, prefers to sit back and
watch babies getting raped and innocent people blown to smithereens due to the
negligence of a few. I don’t believe there is someone up in the sky watching us
all taking stock of whether we pray.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
To quote Einstein, “I believe in
Spinoza's God, who reveals himself in the harmony of all that exists, not in a
God who concerns himself with the fate and the doings of mankind”. God is
unexplainable. We see god in the inexplicableness of the world around us. Also,
I believe in “Thathwamasi” – meaning “That is you”. God exists within each one
of us. Like Santiago in the novel “The Alchemist”, who travelled the world to
realize that the treasure he was searching for was always present right where
he slept, we go searching for god in temples and churches but seldom look
inside ourselves. When you are in touch with the essence of god that is within
each of us, god exists in your actions. A friend of mine once gave an auto
driver Rs. 5000 blindly believing his story of his wife being admitted in a
hospital and him being short of money. At that instant, the auto driver may
have seen god in my friend. It is that god who exists within all of us and
urges us to be more than ourselves that I believe in. To see that god, one
needs to open their eyes. For people who pretend to be blind by closing their
eyes, the divine glow that comes from within, maybe lost forever. <o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-24390453035375299362015-11-02T15:42:00.000+05:302015-11-02T15:42:23.097+05:30Excuse Me... I need to vent..<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal">
Disclaimer – The following is an attempt to vent out all my
frustrations that have been built up due to the recent events in the country. It
might not make complete sense and it sure as hell is not going to be pretty.
Anyone with fragile sensitivities please stop reading here. Primal scream is a
sort of psychotherapy and I am attempting a written version of the same. Here
it goes..<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
</div>
<ol style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Beef (be it cow, bull or buffalo): Hindus who
eat beef – Good for you. Hindus who do not eat beef – Good for you too. I for
one love my beef fry and before someone points it out, let me say, I also love
my bacon cheeseburger. I do not support conducting beef festivals to
specifically provoke the non- beef eaters. But I sure as hell will not
entertain someone trying to impose their sensitivities on to my lunch plate.
Wherever consumption of beef is banned by law, being an Indian, I will adhere
to what the law of the land says. But where no ban exists, don’t you even dare
come prodding into what I am eating in my own house or an establishment which
offers me the choice of that delicacy. I will not look at your religion or the
colour of your party flag before I kick you out. If your religious beliefs get
hurt by me eating beef at my house – tough shit bro, learn to live with it. </span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Arvind Kejriwal – Talk about disillusionment.
When the Aam Aadmi Party was in its inception stage, I loved what they stood
for. I sincerely hoped that they would bring about a much needed change in the
Indian political arena. When they came to power in Delhi with an overwhelming
majority, I hoped that this was the sign of things to come and now we would see
the power of a common man. Then they went about proving to one and all that even
they are after all, just another f***ing corrupt political party. Turns out
even being the CM, Mr. Kejriwal is still in the opposition. When he was not the
CM, he blamed the then-Delhi CM for the rapes happening in Delhi. Now that he
is the CM, he blames the PM for it. Really? I remember reading one of his
campaign promises about a commando squad in Delhi with sole directive of
ensuring protection for women. Any clue where I can find them? </span></li>
<li style="text-indent: -24px;"> <span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Media – There used to be a time when news
channels actually telecast news. Now we are in the days of tabloid
journalism. Biased, sensationalist and loud, we get opinions instead of news.
In a mad scramble to break each news first, the TV channels are on the verge of
another “Dewey defeats Trueman” fiasco. The quick fix recipe for sensationalist
crap of the day seems to be – Take any issue, put a communal twist to it, bring
in a panel of so called experts with their own biases, put an anchor who can
cut sentences before they are completed and can shout louder than all these
experts and let the show begin. When disasters and tragedies gets turned into
hashtags, tears ought to be shed for the death of journalism. </span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Intolerance – A barber beaten up because he cut
hair on Tuesdays, A man lynched on the suspicion of him eating beef, a 4 year
old girl beaten to death because she forgot to cover her head while eating and
so many more such instances cropping up each day. Really? What’s happening to
people? Why does one feel the need to become violent in the name of their
beliefs? Which god gives them the right to shed another man’s blood or extinguish
another human life? If your beliefs and my beliefs don’t match, and I am strong
enough to beat you up, does that make me right? The rising intolerance is like
a ticking time bomb. You never know what will set it off. But when it does, we
will no longer be able to use the word “secular” while describing our country. </span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Politics – The only job where you do not require
any educational qualifications or even the basic civil qualifications. If all
candidates with criminal cases against them are barred from politics, we would
be left with an empty parliament. Bunch of corrupt greedy bastards sucking the
marrow out of the country’s bones. When you can make a scam out of even the
coffins for dead soldiers, there is no level that you will not stoop to. An
honest politician is an oxymoron. I see no hope in the near future of any sort
of improvement in the country’s political scenario. I really wish India had
some sort of “separation between church and state” thing in place so that 2
biggest poisons known to men – Religion and Politics would not intermingle to
create an even more deadly one. But if wishes were horses, beggars would fly.
So all I can do is vent it out here.</span></li>
</ol>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p> </o:p>Aaaaaarrghhhh…. I’m done. For now.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-24317838734486982022014-06-11T15:43:00.002+05:302015-08-27T14:33:20.738+05:30Adventures in Parenting - Chapter 3: Of the Mother and her Moods..<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
This post is intended for male
readers only. Female readers, feel free to stop reading here.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
So boys, consider this a heads up
for the time when your better half is expecting. Pregnancy is a minefield. All
the hormones flooding her body turns your wife into an emotional wreck and her
moods swing more times than a pendulum in a grandfather clock. <o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
You would think that everything
is going fine and then one innocuous comment and BOOM.. everything blows up in
your face. Like I said, a minefield. But each husband has to navigate the
minefield on his own. The positions and triggers of the mines might vary from
wife to wife. What I am jotting down here are just templates based on which you
may try to develop your navigation strategy.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->1.<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><!--[endif]-->Cravings:
This is an inseparable part of pregnancy. You can never predict what she would
crave and at what time. Old Malayalam movies have led us to believe that a
pregnant woman would crave raw mangoes or tamarind. Let me tell you at least in
my case, that is basically bollocks. So don’t go stocking up on raw mangoes
once you get a positive pregnancy test. You are more likely to be hit with a
“Ben & Jerry’s Rocky Road Ice cream” craving at 12 in the night like Preity
Zinta has in “Salaam Namaste”. There are basically 3 ways to deal with such
demands.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->a.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->The Absentee Husband: Make it clear from the get
go that she need not expect anything from you. Basically as if you were not
there at all. I would not recommend this option at all as this would lead to
escalation of emotional states which you want to avoid during the pregnancy. If
you are opting for the absentee husband route, make sure you are actually an
absentee husband, like if you are geographically separated during the duration
of the pregnancy. Otherwise, try this at your own risk<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->b.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->The Tautologist: In logic, tautology is a
formula which is true in every possible interpretation. This approach would
involve saying “Yes” to all her demands, however outlandish or inconvenient
they may be. This will keep you in the good books of your wife and prevent any
emotional outbursts (atleast on this count). But the risk in running this approach
is the ever escalating expectation threshold. With each outlandish demand you
meet, chances are that the next one is even more outlandish. So be aware and
know what is set to come your way when you want to be the Tautologist.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->c.<span style="font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->The Middle Pather: This is an approach that
requires a certain finesse. Your married life prior to the pregnancy should
serve as your guide while walking the middle path. In this approach, you
basically say yes to her cravings as long as they are doable without much
inconvenience. This way, you stock some ammunition for the time when an
inconvenient demand comes through. For e.g, you might just be thinking of
putting your feet up and relaxing for a bit after a hectic day and a heavy
dinner when she might suddenly want to have some ghee laddoos. That’s when you
tell her no and to the inevitable complaint that you never meet her demands,
you list down all the times you have said yes. Handled correctly, it will keep
emotions from acting out and you would have expertly diffused a dangerous
landmine.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->2.<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><!--[endif]-->Temper
Tantrums: With the hormone world cup going on in her body, she is bound to lose
her temper at times. What you need to do is to ride it out without you losing
your own. I admit I have been unsuccessful at it during the initial stages but
after a couple of shout-a-thons, I learned how to control myself. The key is
not not to lose your temper but not to lose it in front of her. Two lost
tempers would resonate like sound waves and produce a whole that is more than sum
of its parts. Listen to her with a smile on your face, offer some words of
consolation, go to the other room, punch a hole in the wall and return to her
with the same smile on your face. Your fists might hurt but believe me, that is
a far better option than engaging in a shouting match. You not only aggravate
the mother but it also affects the child in the womb.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->3.<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><!--[endif]-->Sting
in the tail: Finally the baby arrives and you breathe a sigh of relief. But
beware of the nasty sting in the tail called antenatal depression. With the
baby out of her body and the hormones still going hammer and tongs, some bouts
of depression are bound to happen. Whether it be regarding her self-image,
ability to take care of the baby or just control of day to day happenings,
anything might throw her off. Your role to play at that time is of a
cheerleader, agony aunt and a best friend. Reassure her that there is nothing
wrong with her and the changes happening in her body are just temporary. Reiterate
that nothing that is happening will ever change the way you feel towards her.
Support her at times when she feels helpless and cheer her up when she is at
the verge of tears. <o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
The pregnancy is a roller coaster
ride for the woman involved. Some part of the unpredictability, anxiety and
frustration gets passed on to the husband too. How smooth the 9 months or so
are depends on how you are equipped to handle the unexpected. With the above
mentioned tips, I hope you are better off than starting from scratch. Whichever
way you handle it, just make sure to be there for your better half come what
may, because what you see in front of you is just the start of a journey that
will change your life forever.<o:p></o:p><br />
<br /></div>
</div>
വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-71505133238081984232014-05-02T13:35:00.002+05:302014-05-02T13:35:47.510+05:30Adventures in Parenting - Chapter 2: Google-itis<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Since Larry Page and Sergey Brin
rolled out Google in 1998, the unknowns in the world have shrunk drastically.
“Google”, which started as a noun has since then been promoted to a verb and
the whole host of techies have taken to the verb in a way that a baby duck
takes to swimming.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Google has become the omnipotent
– provider of all. Whether it is pirated mp3s of the latest Bollywood flick,
DVDrip of the latest Hollywood blockbuster or definitions of complex medical
terms like bilateral renal pelvic displacia, google knows just where to find
them.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
What this has accomplished is
that everyone with an access to an internet connection and working knowledge of
any browser has turned into a self-taught doctor. Rather than what the actual
doctor says, people have now started believing the links that Google dishes
out. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
The one ritual after we got each
of the scan report was to come home and religiously google each of the terms in
the report. Who cares that the Doctor told everything was normal? We wanted to
have Google’s opinion of the same. First couple of times, this exercise went
off without any red flags getting raised. Then came the anomaly scan report.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
In the anomaly scan report; there
was a mention of mild bilateral renal pelvic displacia. During the scan, the
Doc performing the scan had certified that everything looks good and there are
no issues. But later, while taking a second opinion from Dr.Google, we found
that the meaning of mild bilateral renal pelvic displacia is that the baby’s
kidneys are larger than they should be. Cue Panic. On further consultation with
other webpages referred to by Dr.Google, we came to know that the kidneys
should be only around 4.5 mm while in our case it was 4.7 mm. one fifth of a
millimeter was proving to be the cause of concern. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
There comes another question. Who
decides what is normal? In an age where we didn’t have machines which could
measure a yet to be born baby’s kidney up to one tenth of a millimeter, didn’t
people have babies? What if the baby has larger than average kidneys? The term
average itself denotes that there has to be values more than the said number.
Otherwise, this wouldn’t be the average. So who says a 4.7 mm kidney is
abnormal while a 4.5 mm one is not? It seems to be with more knowledge man
gains, instead of getting more answers; he is faced with more questions. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Anyways, this mild state of panic
continued till the next scan, where it was certified that the kidneys are now
of regulation length and are well within the “normal” range.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Fast forward 3-4 months. My wife spent
her maternity leave at home, in Kerala, waiting for the young one to arrive. In
Kerala, we had opted to consult Dr. Prameela Philip at Poyanil Hospital,
Kozhencherry. During the first scan conducted there, my wife, with all the
knowledge gained from Google, asked the doctor about the amniotic fluid level.
With what could have been an amused smile, the doctor replied “ Aavashyathinu
undu” meaning there is enough. The succinctly worded message within her
response that I could decipher was, “Leave the medical worries to us doctors.
You just do what we tell you to do”. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
In the world where all kinds of
information are available at a mere touch of your finger, if only that were
possible.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-53061423280376311522014-04-18T11:30:00.004+05:302014-04-18T11:30:53.681+05:30Adventures in Parenting - Chapter 1: 2 Little lines.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
2 Little lines. A “C” under one
and a “T” under the other. That’s how it began. Initial jubilation turned into
hesitation. What if it was a false positive? Another couple of rounds of “pee
on the stick” put that doubt to rest. Yep. Definitely pregnant. First major
decision. Which doctor do we consult? Most of the well-known gynecs in
Bangalore have waiting times stretching above 2 hrs. And that is when you
already have a confirmed appointment. Good luck trying to get through via a
walk-in. Better bring your lunch with you. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
One argument was that if
everything went normal, we do not need an expert Gynecologist to see it
through. My policy was, as the saying goes, “Better to have and want not rather
than want and have not”. Thus we decided to go with the best in the business, Dr.
Praveena Shenoi at Cloud 9, Old Airport Road. After a couple of walk in
wait-a-thons, with my wife constantly reminding me that if we had gone with
some other doctor, we could have reached back home by then, we succeeded in
getting a confirmed appointment for the third visit. The trick was to book the
next appointment as soon as you came out of your current consultation. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
An array of tests and an
ultra-sound scan later - nothing to report, which is actually good news when it
comes to pregnancy. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
Still, for the first 3 months,
each bump in the road, each pothole that the car ran into, was a source of a
minor heart attack. Every twinge of pain in the stomach/abdomen area raised the
heartbeats. It is said that around 85% of miscarriages happen within the first
trimester. And when you have already had one, the worry gets multiplied
manifold the second time. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
It doesn’t mean that once you
cross three months, all worries are lifted and everything is hunky-dory. The
cycle I found during this time is, Tension before the scan<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">à</span> No issues in the scan
report <span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">à</span>
Jubilation and relief<span style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">à</span>
Tension before the next scan.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
So basically, you are worried
about a scan basically all the time, and you have an array of scans to go
through too, Ultra Sound, NT, Anomaly, Interval Growth and so on. All you can
do is keep calm and cross all your fingers and toes that nothing abnormal comes
up in the scan reports. But even with all that, the worrying becomes an
integral part of your wait for the baby. Or maybe life is just preparing you
for the lifetime of worrying that lies ahead.<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-9870498016492315882014-04-13T21:53:00.001+05:302014-04-13T21:53:34.718+05:30Adventures in Parenting - Chapter 0: Prelude<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
What does it mean to be a parent?
How does it feel to have the responsibility of shaping a human life and by
extension a part of society thrust upon someone’s shoulders? How many times
should I think before I take a decision that concerns my child? All are questions
that will need answers very soon. While
embarking on this exciting journey of parenthood, I plan to leave behind a
journal cataloguing my adventures or misadventures in parenting. This will be a father’s perspective into the exciting,
scary new world that he steps into with the conception of his child. You might
find these entries a bit male centric because that is the viewpoint from which
the story is told. Stay tuned for the first entry in the next few days...<o:p></o:p></div>
</div>
വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-33659413296979310212014-04-06T20:59:00.002+05:302014-04-06T21:00:41.988+05:30Back to Life..<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: justify;">
3 Years.. It's been three long years since I have written something in this blog. The reasons for this extended period of absence were multiple - Lack of time, other commitments, writer's block.. let's not get into all that.</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Since I have left this part of the blogosphere, world has changed quite a bit and so has my life. When the last entry was made, I was still working in Chennai, still an HCLite. Since then, I have relocated to the Garden City of Bangalore and after a short stint with the "High Performance. Delivered" guys, I am currently "Applying Thought". </div>
</div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
From being a newly married guy when the last entry was made, I am now post the 3rd marriage anniversary getting know the ups and downs of married life.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This is my first blog entry in the world where Sachin Tendulkar no longer plays cricket.<br />
<br />
My world is set to change further. That particular change provides me fodder for a series of blog entries that I would be making in the coming days. Hopefully, I would be able to find some time to keep this going. With that optimistic thought, let me sign off for now.. But watch this space.. Lots more to come here.</div>
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വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-40227172672098484892011-02-18T10:31:00.001+05:302011-02-18T10:33:39.428+05:30There will never be another tonight..<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhki3OV4ZM-FsddBEkqK63Xs9_qDuL6M-3wYzjJTDd3p-UmcWOsvG0yf_7R7DKLBmD8HdL6Q4xMQma4kle6lV9hzfs8DJE8L9fQrOW-qB9kc0aPlkyd9Xq_h7kQ8bDcn7N_t0Gc8w/s1600/BRYAN_ADAMS_478174e.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 264px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5574890638179432306" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhki3OV4ZM-FsddBEkqK63Xs9_qDuL6M-3wYzjJTDd3p-UmcWOsvG0yf_7R7DKLBmD8HdL6Q4xMQma4kle6lV9hzfs8DJE8L9fQrOW-qB9kc0aPlkyd9Xq_h7kQ8bDcn7N_t0Gc8w/s400/BRYAN_ADAMS_478174e.jpg" /></a><br /><div align="justify"><em>"Wave your little wand, weave a little spell<br />Make some magic, Raise some Hell"</em><br /><br />That is exactly what Bryan Adams did one day before Valentines at Bengaluru. With the crowd begging for more, he belted out one amazing song after another and by the time the show came to a close, we were begging for more. That is the magic of a live concert.<br /><br />The first time I attended a live concert, I was a student of MBA Batch of 2006 in IIT Kanpur. The Band was Indian Ocean. Had never heard about them but evidently, they were quite popular among the IITK Junta. The true magic of a live performance lies in 2 factors. First, how the performer handles the crowd and second, how much passionate the crowd is. Some might argue that both are related. That is, the passion of the crowd depends on the performer’s handling of them.<br /><br />Among the Indian Bands that I have seen Palash Sen and his Euphoria are the masters at crowd handling. Within the first few songs, they usually have the crowd eating out of their hands. My first exposure to Euphoria was during Manfest 2004 at IIM Lucknow. They played for around 3 hours nonstop. The crowd was going bonkers with each song. It was clear that all of them knew all the songs by heart. Being one among hundreds of voices singing along with the band is a really euphoric experience. Another thing that I feel is unique to Euphoria is that they are not fussy about what they sing. They perform their own compositions, old rock classics and even some hindi film numbers. Most of the well recognized bands stick to their own compositions during live shows.<br /><br />On the other extreme of the crowd handling capability, I would place Atif Aslam. I love most of his songs. But he is so much better when he is singing out of my ipod rather than singing in front of me. His improvisations and crowd handling leave a lot to be desired. While we are on the topic of improvisations during a live performance, 2 guys who deserve a mention but not really for good reasons – Hariharan and Sukhwinder singh. Both awesome singers with lots of chartbusters to their names. But some of their improvisations during liver performances leave even the accompanying orchestra in the lurch. That feeling is best described as “Kabab mein Haddi”.<br /><br />Coming to the non asian performers. I have had the opportunity to listen to only 2 of them. One I had never heard about and the other was Bryan Adams. The band in the former case was “Poets of the Fall”. They are a finnish band and had performed at IITK as part of the cultural fest, Antaragni. I had attended the concert to get a feel of what a Rock Concert feels like. I wouldn’t be exaggerating if I say they just blew my mind. I have been a POTF fan ever since. The performance, guitar and drum solos, crowd interaction – just awesome. So it was with high expectations that I went to Bengaluru for the Bryan Adams concert. About a month before the concert, when I didn’t even know Bryan Adams was coming to Bengaluru, I had gone on another live concert – that of Yuvan Shankar Raja. It was just a disappointment. The reasons are several – Dead crowd, zero crowd interaction by the performers and most of the songs performed were unheard ones. I remarked to a friend of mine who had accompanied me that the magic of live concert really comes out in Rock concerts. He replied that if Bryan Adams comes to India, we must really take the chance to attend it. Lo and behold, a month later, both of us were at Palace Grounds Bangalore waiting for Bryan to take the stage. Dressed in a Black shirt and Blue jeans, the Canadian star kicked off the night with “There will never be another tonight”. We could just stand and marvel at the silken voice even at the age of 51. Chartbusters flowed one after another. “Here I am”, “Please forgive me”, “18 till I die”, “Everything I do” and if palace grounds were an indoor stadium the roof would have been blown off when the oh so familiar guitar chords struck announcing the arrival of “The Summer of 69”. All in all, Bryan really made it “A Night to Remember”. The secret of an impactful live concert is to stop when the Audience asks “Why” rather than “Why not?” Bryan could have gone on for the whole night without the audience even thinking of dispersing. Such was the Charisma of the man and the power of his music. I for one am now a self confessed addict to live concerts. On this count I am really happy that I am moving from Chennai to Bangalore where the concert scene is much more active. Let’s hope there will be more such one night love affairs with rocking music and mind blowing performances.</div>വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-2641166236625507222010-08-03T20:34:00.000+05:302010-08-03T20:37:46.806+05:30Two week Vagabond: Leg 1: Chennai-Delhi-JodhpurWell friends, I had promised you all the story of my trip to North India. I know it was promised a couple of months back. But better late than never. So here goes.<br />I had planned a 2 week adventure of travelling alone through North India. Covering the deserts of Rajasthan to the snow capped peaks of Kashmir. But as it almost always happens to me, the adventure began a day early.<br /><br /><strong>Friday, March 26th 2010 Morning:</strong><br />I had packed my bag with the stuff I needed to take on the trip. All the packing was done and I just wanted to check how the weight of the bag would feel like on my back. I raised the bag on to my back and I heard something snap. Lack of physical pain told me that it wasn’t my spine. The shift of the whole weight to my left shoulder in the next instant explained the situation further. The right strap of my backpack had chosen the perfect time to bid goodbye to the buckle that was holding it steady. It was already 10:00 AM and I didn’t have time to take the bag out for repair. I was left with 2 choices; either travel through North India on one strap or go out and get a new bag. Since the weight of the bag was not inconsiderable, I decided on the latter. So around 10:30 in the morning, I found myself near Anna Nagar Round Thana, searching for a suitable backpack. It was almost 11 by the time I reached back home with the new backpack. I had to go through the whole process of unpacking what I had already packed and the re-packing what I had just unpacked. I reached office around 12:00 Noon.<br /><br /><strong>Friday, March 26th 2010 Evening:</strong><br />I reached the airport by 4:30 PM. So I wouldn’t really want to comment on why I actually went to office that day. I was travelling on Kingfisher airlines and that is always easy on the eye, if you know what I mean. Landing in Delhi around 7:30 PM, I had to face the weirdest pre paid taxi system that I have ever come across. While taking the receipt for the payment at the counter, the guy in the counter wrote a number on the back of the receipt. On enquiry he told me that it was the spot number from where I would get the taxi. On getting out of the airport, there were different parking spots with serial numbers. Mine was number 12. I reached number 12 and found the spot vacant. There were empty taxies sitting idle in many other numbers but they wouldn’t budge their car to number 12 where a passenger was waiting. I had to wait a good 7-10 minutes before a driver lazily drove into the number 12 parking spot. As I had a good 3 hours to go before I caught my train, I wasn’t really bothered.<br />There was about a 2.5 hrs wait before the train came. The right time of arrival at Jodhpur was 9 AM. After months of planning and charting out, finally there I was, putting the plans into action.<br /><br /><strong>Next: Two week Vagabond: Leg 2: Jodhpur - Jaisalmer</strong>വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-85278984735180139562010-04-12T17:42:00.002+05:302010-04-12T17:48:36.958+05:30Back into the rut.Hello my good friends. After 2 weeks of incessant roaming around, I am back into the daily rut. From the sand dunes of Jaisalmer to the snow covered peaks of Gulmarg, the last 2 weeks took me across a variety of places and met a variety of people. My main aim while leaving on this trip was to take as many photos as I can of all the wonderful places before me. Well that has been fulfilled. I am left with over 1000 Raw exposures to post process. Dozens of Panoramas to stitch, hundreds of exposures to be corrected and lots of shots to be fine tuned. Post processing can be a real b***h. You will have to wait a few more days before the photos start appearing on my Orkut/Blog pages. I will tell you all about my journey and the related stories right here. So watch this space.വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-33620571523706452842010-03-08T17:25:00.002+05:302010-03-08T18:36:49.840+05:30Of God Men and their ilk..<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Disclaimer: This write up is not intended to hurt anyone's religious sentiments. This is just me venting on these so called God Men.</span> <span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">If anyone finds this offensive, they have every right to navigate away from this page coz I ain't gonna change my stance.</span><br /><br /><br />The so called godman Swami Nityananda Paramahamsa becomes the latest in the line of exposed Godmen. For those who have been living in a hole for the past 2-3 weeks, the news update is that Swami Nityananda was caught on video with a Tamil Actress,in a compromising situation. Agreed what someone does in the privacy of their bedroom shouldn't be anyone's business but their own. But for someone who preaches to anyone who cares to listen that he is a practicing Brahmachari, to be caught in such a situation is no less than suicide.<br /><br />For the less knowledgable, the meaning of Brahmachari is as below:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">"A </span><i style="font-style: italic;">Brahmachari</i><span style="font-style: italic;"> therefore is a male (and </span><i style="font-style: italic;">brahmacharini</i><span style="font-style: italic;"> a female) who observes sexual abstinence unless intentionally procreating.</span>"<br /><br /><br />The first time I heard the usage of the word "Godman" was in reference to Chandraswami. You might remember him as the "Spiritual Advisor" of the then PM, Narasimha Rao. In 1996, he was arrested on charges of swindling. He is still facing trial in 9 Foreign Exchange Regulation Act violation cases. So much for being a man of God.<br /><br />From the time I started to form my own opinions about the world around me, I have had a revulsion for these men/women who gets worshipped as god. May it be Satya Saibaba, Harsha Mata or Mata Amritanandamayi. Hinduism as it is takes pride in having the maximum number of gods as compared to any other religion. According to the Puranas, there are 33 Crore gods. And as if they are still not enough, people create gods out of men/women and start worshiping them. I have no problems with the so called messengers of gods. Take for instance Kabir, Surdas, Tulasidas or even Mirabai. All of them supposedly have had experiences where God interacted with them or they have gained enlightenment. It is when the messengers start posing as the real thing that I have to disagree with them. As it is said,<br /><br />"Believe Me....Not in Me....The Messenger is seldom worth it".<br /><br />Religion, as they say, is the opiate of masses. Any small time crook, two bit hustler who can do a couple of conjuring tricks can put on a saffron robe and be Sri Sri Sri Swami Blah Blah Blah. With a majority of the population looking for short cut to salvation, within no time you would have your own following. Take for instance Sree Santhosh Madhava Vidyadhiraja Parama Bhattaraka Swamikal. This slimy son of a bitch got sentenced 16 years of Jail in May 20,2009 and can you guess what was his crime? Molesting 2 underage girls and making videos of the same. So forgive me if I don't trust these god men as far as I can throw them.<br /><br />People like Satya Saibaba are said to perform Miracles in front of huge crowds. Creating ornaments, food etc from nothingness. Turning water into another drink and Gasoline (source:wikipedia). He performs all these in front of thousands but has not agreed even once to do it in a controlled environment. If he is indeed the real thing, what's he afraid of? Hey here's an idea....Make him the Petroleum Minister of India. Water is something we have no shortage of and once he turns enough water into Gasoline, no more dependency on these pesky OPEC countries for Oil. And if he can conjure up enough food to feed the hungry/starved population in India, then I'll call him God. Till then he is just another 2 bit parlour trick magician.<br /><br />I sincerely don't understand the logic behind people worshiping these so called human gods. Is it because they have lost trust in the real thing? Do they think God will hear their prayers before others if they have some Swami So and So's recommendation? What does it say about the faith of the general public who would sooner trust any 2 bit crook wearing saffron robes than trust their own faith in god? One another thing you would notice about all this God people is that none of them lives a life of Sanyasa.<br /><br />Sanyasa is a phase of life where the person attains <span style="font-style: italic;">"Vairagya"</span> i.e.a state of dispassion and detachment from material life and spends the rest of his life in spiritual contemplation. But with all the plush Ashramas and A/C cars, don't you see a conflict?<br /><br />These are people who make religion a business. They peddle faith to the common public for whom it is just another way of getting high. They are actually no different from the drug peddlers who are taken to task for selling charas/ganja/heroine to junkies looking for a temporary high. But you can't be caught for dealing in faith. That is what makes this field so attractive. Starting from the road side astrologers waiting to predict your future, who invariably needs an extra dakshina to tell you the solution to some impending problem to the Tantriks performing yagnas/havans for showering you with good luck to the Godmen and Godwomen of our country, all of them are making money dealing in matters of faith.<br /><br />So what does it tell about your faith when you stop trusting your connection to god and start paying someone to intermediate?<br /></div>വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-55126670808676061432010-02-24T18:02:00.002+05:302010-02-25T13:56:23.093+05:30The Record is where it belongs...<div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify">Finally...all is right with the world..Sachin Tendulkar, the best batsman in the world now holds the record for the highest individual score in an ODI and becomes the first batsman in the world to score a double hundred in an ODI.This was something he threatened to do in the Innings of 186 n.o. and 163 against New Zealand and 175 against Australia. Fate conspired in different ways to keep him from reaching the milestone. If the first time, he ran out of overs, second time he was hampered by injury and was unlucky to receive an awkward bounce during his knock of 175. But against South Africa at Gwalior nothing could stop him. From the first ball he faced, it was as if he was playing in a different zone altogether. This was a day that destiny had chosen to put the rightful heir on the throne. Right from the time he started playing, there was a belief in the people who watched him that if someone were to score 200 in an ODI ever, that would be Sachin Tendulkar. But as the wheel of time rolled by, that belief slowly started to die in many hearts. They thought at almost 37 years old, it was beyond him now. </div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify"> </div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify">Personally, I wanted Sachin to get a 100 yesterday and I am not ashamed to say that I didn't care if India won or lost as long as that happened. The way he started and got to the half century in a flash, I started getting a bit nervous. In my mind were many of his innings in 2008-09 where he fell in the nineties. There was no way to watch the match as I was in office. Cricinfo and AIR commentary on my iPod was the only avenue to keep abreast of the happenings. When he reached his century I started breathing easier. I was expecting him to cut loose after that and lose his wicket in the bid to accelerate the scoring. But as the scores started climbing, I was slowly realising that we were witnessing something special. Next milestone, 150 runs, came and went. With that he became the batsman with maximum 150+ scores. With each ball I feared the worst. A mis hit to long on, cramps, a run out while trying to pinch a double. Then exactly that happened. While going for a double, the stumps were broken and the decision was referred to the third umpire. I could not see the replays first hand and had to wait about a minute to know the verdict from the commentators on all India Radio. Might have been the longest one minute of my life. My palms were all sweaty and I didnt have enough nails to chew on. But even before the commentators confirmed it, the roar I heard in the background from the stadium told me it was not out. Then the belief set in...this was going to be Sachin's day. On this day in 1988 he entered the record books for the first time along with Vinod Kambli for the partnership of 664. After 22 years, he was meant to make history all over again. He crossed his personal best and entered the 190s. A small matter of the highest individual score was passed on the way but sights were set on the big one. Then something happened. Dhoni came in and started hogging the strike. Even though he was murdering the bowling and scoring heavily, never have I wished more that he mishit one and keep a boundary to a single. There were 2 overs left and Sachin was on 199. 49th over from Dale Steyn was played out by Dhoni and more irritatingly, he took a single off the last ball. I would have cursed him out loud if it were'nt for the fact that I was in the Office. I couldnt imagine Sachin being left stranded on 199 n.o. But then finally Dhoni took a single and Sachin wasted no time sealing the deal. First double hundred in an ODI by a batsman. Okay....not really a first double hundred in an ODI. Belinda Clark from Australia scored 229 against Denmark. But who cares about Women's Cricket? </div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify"> </div><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify">Batting through 50 overs in the swealtering heat and then taking the field in the first ball of the South African Innings, add that full length dive in the first ODI to save a boundary and thus save the game, Sachin Tendulkar is single handedly proving that age is just a number. There might have been comparisons earlier...with Lara, Ponting, Richards, Bradman. All that stops now. Being Sachin Tendulkar means the following</div><ol><li><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify">Lose the chance to live a normal life</div></li><li><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify">Bear the expectations of 1 Billion people every time you walk out to bat and they expect nothing less than a century from you....every time</div></li><li><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify">Singlehandedly reclaim people's faith in the game after its darkest hour of match fixing. (The bookies would accept bets on Indian matches only after Sachin got out)</div></li><li><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify">Put a smile on the face of the nation after the grievious terrorist attack in Mumabi (by leading the run chase with a century in the 4th innings against England.)</div></li><li><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify">Remain untouched by any scandal whatsoever to such an extent that he was compared to Mahatma Gandhi.</div></li><li><div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify">Maintain the boyish enthusiasm and the love for the game after all these years (Even Lara took a break from Cricket to re focus)</div></li></ol><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify">When someone does all these for a span of 20 years and performs as Sachin has done, Then and Then only will one be eligible to be compared to Sachin Tendulkar. Throughout the time Sachin has played cricket, he has been the embodiment of what Aamir Khan preaches in his movie 3 Idiots. </p><p style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify">"Success ke peeche mat bhaago...Excellence ke peeche bhaago, Success chak maarke tumhaare peeche aayegi"</p>വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-16557727196767424832010-02-12T12:15:00.002+05:302010-02-24T14:31:57.392+05:30The Joy of Travelling<div align="justify">There are two kinds of people in this world. One who like to grow roots and stay put in one place. They are happy with where they are and they like the comfort of familiarity. In free time they would rather enjoy some quiet time at home rather than venture out. The second kind are the ones bitten by Wanderlust. Their aim in life is to see everything. Given a couple of free days, they would pack their bags and head to explore the world. I have been finding out more and more each day that I belong to the second category. </div><br /><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify">The joy of travelling is a heady one. Earlier, during my student life, travel was kind of a necessary evil. I would have avoided it if I could but sadly I couldn't. I have had some horror stories of travel from those days. Once during my engineering days, I had to travel a 6 hour journey home literally standing on one leg, as I didnt have enough room to put my other leg down and I was getting poked in the back by a huge carton all the time. I didnt have enough space to move to a more comfortable position. Think a can of sardines and you will have a rough idea of what it was like. Another time, I travelled from Kanpur to Delhi sitting on the train doorway and one fine gentleman kept spitting his pan out of the window. No amount of reasoning could get him to stop doing that. While these experiences were tough to swallow at the time of happening, later I realised that whatever happens on a journey, they nevertheless make excellent stories. Like someone has said, "Adventure is discomfort recollected in comfort". </div><br /><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify">The first major travel I undertook voluntarily was after my summer internships during my MBA life. I had around a week left before the next semester was due to begin and I decided to spend that travelling. The sole purpose of this travel was to meet my geographically spread friends. First from Cochin to Chennai. Land in Chennai early morning, start from Chennai late night. From Chennai to Bangalore. Couple of days in Bangalore catching up with old friends. From Bangalore to Pune. Spending some time with my brother at AFMC. Then from Pune to Mumbai and Mumbai to Kanpur.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">Once I got employed and became able to bear the cost of my own travels, I have taken all the opportunities that came my way to see the world. I have a group of friends equally bitten with the wanderlust. We plan and conduct tours at regular intervals. St.Mary's Island Mangalore, Bekal Fort, Tada Falls, Pulicat Lake, Nelliyampathy, Ottapalam, Wayanad, the list goes on. When I cannot find any company and I have some spare time, I travel alone. I once travelled 19 hours (up and down) to spend about 5 hours at a village that used to be a Dutch Outpost called Tharangambadi. Check out the archives of this blog for details on that trip. I also joined Chennai Trekking Club to avail of opportunities to explore the world around me. With CTC, I have been to Nagala, Talakona, Yelagiri, Kalrayan Hills and most recently Ooty.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">Till now my travels have been limited to 2-3 days at a maximum. Now I am planning to take it to the next level. I am all set for a 2 week trip of Rajasthan and Jammu & Kashmir. If everything goes right, I will be flying out of Chennai on March 26th and will be back on April 12th. In this time I would be covering Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Jaipur, Amritsar, Jammu, Srinagar and Delhi. Tickets are booked, Accomodation arranged and leaves have been approved. Another month to go before I set off on this trip. The current plan is to make a travelogue out of this trip. If my laziness does not hold me back from writing it down, you can bet you will read all about it right here. So till then I leave you with the famous lines from Robert Frost</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">"And Miles to before I sleep, and Miles to before I sleep"</div>വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-42354944339441092582010-02-11T12:10:00.002+05:302010-02-11T17:10:03.875+05:30So I love Comics. What's so bad?<div align="justify">I am an ardent fan of comics. This includes titles from DC and Marvel Comics. Superman, Batman, Flash, Green Lantern, Captain America, Hulk, X-Men and so on. I have a huge collection of the soft copies (at last count I had around 140GB worth of it) of these comics. The problem is that whenever I tell someone that I like such type of comics and start talking about my collection, they look at me as if a third eye just opened up on my forehead. And then comes the oh-he's-still-just-a-kid smile. Really,what's so bad about liking comics?</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">Most people think that these are meant for kids. I respectfully disagree. Actually with some of the storylines in these days' comics, you would want to keep them out of children's hands. For e.g, In Identity Crisis, Dr.Light rapes Sue Dibny when she finds her along on the Justice League Sattelite. Comics are meant for children? Yeah..Right.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">My attraction towards comics has different dimensions. Firstly, it is about what the character portrays. Superman is not just faster than a speeding bullet and more powerful than a locomotive. Superman is a character with such depth that we seldom think that much. I'll give you a taste. Those who read comics or atleast know about Superheroes know that all the Superheroes have a secret identity. Batman is actually Bruce Wayne, Spiderman is actually Peter Parker and so forth. They put on their costumes to become the superhero. In the case of Superman, he came to earth from a doomed planet Krypton. Earth's yellow sun gave him superpowers. He is actually Superman. He puts on a costume to become is alter ego Clark Kent. Clark is a mild mannered reporter. So, Clark Kent is how Superman sees the human race. Clutsy, Stumbling and a bit dumb. That's just one part. There is much more to the Superman mythos if you think about it.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">Similarily Batman- the only superhero with no super powers, Spiderman - With great power comes great responsibility, Green Lantern - The power of emotions - Will, Hope, Fear, Love, Rage, Avarice and Compassion, X-Men : Another take on Racism. All these characters have such depth that you cannot help marvel at the brains that thought them up.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">Secondly, Comics to me is an escape from the daily dreary routine life. For a few minutes I get transported to a world where arch rivals Hal Jordan and Sinestro are teaming up to fight Nekron who is bringing the dead back to life as his slaves. For those few minutes, I forget all my worries and fly with them. This serves as a stress buster for me. A safety valve for all the pent up tension of the day.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">Thirdly, I admit, it fills the child in me with wide eyed wonder. The wander lust in me is sated to some extent by seeing new worlds ,albeit fictional and in a digital media and leaves me in awe of the great comic writers like Grant Morisson and Alan Moore. They created worlds out of nothing. The sheer creativity and attention to detail boggles the mind. </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">So I like Comics. Before you criticise, try it out yourself. I have some great graphic novels in mind for you. If you ever want to know about the magic of a great comic, you know where to find me.</div><div align="justify"> </div>വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-23634050014775331352009-11-17T17:07:00.000+05:302009-11-17T17:09:00.689+05:30Photography and Me<div align="justify">It's been about 2 years since I have taken up Photography as a serious hobby. Unlike most of my hobbies, where after some time I lose interest and move on to something else, Photography has kept me engrossed in it. Maybe it's because there is so much to learn in this field. Every day you come across some new technique or a different perspective of an oft seen subject. The wonders of photography never ceases to amaze. I still remember the first camera I held. It was a Konica. My mother was the one who first instructed me on how to take a photo. It went something like "Look into this hole. You will see 2 square brackets. That should be in the centre of the photo and then click this button". I just loved the noises the camera produced. First the click of the shutter, then the motor whirring to turn the film to the next unexposed frame. As we were kids, me and my brother were not usually allowed to take pictures using this camera. It was a real treat when on a trip my parents would give me the camera and say "Take a picture.". Before I grew up enough to handle this camera, it stopped working. If I remember right, it had some problem with the shutter. Noone at our home cared about Photography enough to go through the pains of getting this repaired.<br /><br />My second camera came as a gift to me from a family friend. I was asked what I wanted when I passed my 10th with Distinction. I don't know what prompted me, but I told him I wanted a camera. He gifted me with a Fuji compact. Unlike the more expensive Konica, this was almost fully manual. One had to load the film manually( meaning hook the end of the film to the chamber and rotate it till the first frame was loaded. After each shot, the frames had to be moved manually. But still, I didn't mind. The only thing that stopped me from going around and taking pics was the prohibitive cost of developing the film and taking prints. Developing and printing a full roll cost around Rs.300. So this camera came out only on special occassions like School Excursions or camps. Once I had gone on a camp conducted by Rotary Club Alwaye. As usual, I carried my camera along with me and took around 35 pics (1 roll of film). Then it happened that one the way back, my camera fell down and the back flap opened. The film got exposed to sunlight and all the pics were lost. There was nothing I could do. The camera itself didn't suffer any damage. This camera lasted till my engineering days. But as time went by, it was relegated to one corner of the cupboard as Rs.300 for an engineering student was not a small amount.<br /><br />My third camera, which was my first Digital Camera was also a Fuji. Fuji Finepix a 210 if my memory serves me right. I had written CAT and was in the process of attending the interviews. I had to travel all over India for these interviews and I convinced my dad to buy me a digital camera. Digital Cameras were just coming into the market at that time. It was a 2 Megapixels, 3X Optical zoom camera. This served me well throughout my MBA. Photos that appeared in the IITK MBA placement CD and IITK MBA placement brochure of 2006 were captured using my camera. Till then, photography to me was more of documentation than an art. I'll tell you the difference. Suppose you go to see a waterfall. You and your friends pose in front of the waterfall and get a pic clicked. This proves that you were there at the waterfall. This is a piece of documentation. These are the kind of photos that you usually see in Newspapers. Suppose you take few pics of the same waterfall. Noone is posing in front of the waterfall. You increase the shutter speed of your camera to give a smooth effect to the flowing water. This is photography as an art. I was under the impression that photography as an art is the domain of experienced photographers only. The ones with big cameras, long lenses and an external flash. As I have written before, this was around the time I came across a photoblog maintained by one of my friends. On enquiring with her, I came to know that her camera was just another point and shoot. This brought about a paradigm shift in my view on photography. That was when I decided to try my hand at taking some pics. But I needed a better camera.<br /><br />My fourth camera, which is my current camera is an Olympus SP 501 UZ. 7.1 Megapixels, 10X Optical zoom. This is the first camera that I have bought using my own hard earned money. Buying this camera was the beginning of my current phase of being a Photography enthusiast. After I bought this camera, I started reading up on photography, starting right from the basics. What is aperture, what is shutter speed, what is depth of field in a picture, so on and so forth. The more I read, the more I saw, the more enthralled I got. I have been working with this camera for the past 2 years. Now I have started getting a feeling that the limiting factor in my pursuit of excellence in the field of photography is my camera. I believe it's time to change this and step into the field where big boys play by buying a DSLR.<br /><br />One major change that pursuing photography brings in you is that you start to notice the beauty in the smallest of things. Where earlier you never gave a thought to the waterdroplets on your window pane, now you start to think whether it would make a good subject for a Macro Photograph. Where earlier, you didn't even notice when a butterfly fluttered past you, now you observe what species it is and whether it would sit still enough to take a picture. That is the beauty of being a photographer.<br /><br /><br /></div>വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-19765189185696822422009-11-09T17:18:00.006+05:302009-11-09T20:18:25.640+05:30Moral Policing<div align="justify"><em>"God created man in his own image. In God's image he created him; male and female he created them."</em> <em>Genesis verse 26</em><br /></div><div align="justify"><em>"God blessed them. God said to them, "Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth." Genesis verse 27</em></div><div align="justify"><em></div></em><div align="justify"><br />This is how Bible says god made man. At the beginning god didn't put forth much laws of do and don't. Then came the Ten commandments. Ten "Thy Shall nots" which man was supposed to live by. Then once the civilization set in, more laws came. The gray areas were fast being separated into black or white. In the modern society, there is a system of laws in the country which needs to be followed by the citizens. How applicable those laws are and to whom is an entirely different discussion which I do not wish to delve into at this time. </div><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify">So In India, we have a set of written laws and we have a police department who sees to it that the laws are enforced and any breaking of the laws are appropriately handled. Till then it was alright. In these recent times, there has been a peculiar kind of homo sapiens who deem themselves the protectors of moral laws. They are self appointed and they work on an unwritten code which basically says anything they don't like is immoral. It can be the violence against people celebrating Valentine's Day or the attack against girls in a pub or in the most recent event, slapping an MLA who was taking his oath in Hindi. </div><br /><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify">These are a set of people who are hell bent on telling us how to live our lives. For them celebrating Valentines Day is westernization. Wearing western clothes is against Indian culture. What Indian Culture are we talking about here? India is the land of Kamasutra and Khajuraho. In the land which taught the world secrets of sex, talking openly about sex is against its culture. While it's ok to depict various sex positions in a temple, an actress wearing a short skirt is against the moral code. Do you see a disconnect here? </div><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify">From the moral to the regional. The self appointed defender of Marathi Rights Mr.Raj Thackerey and his company of goons who calls themselves the MNS stopped a politician from taking his oath in Hindi in the Maharasthra assembly. Who the politician was and what his background is is not relevant to the discussion here. The constitution clearly states that any politician may take his oath in Hindi, English or the regional language. Last time I checked, Maharashtra was still a part of India and Indian constitution still applies there. Then what law gives these goons the power to stop a constitutional act? The latest news is that 4 MLAs who manhandled the said politician have been suspended for 4 years from the assembly. While I appreciate the quick action taken, the question remains as to how could you let such an incident take place in a meeting of so called "representatives of the public". Whether criminal charges would be filed against them and if any action would be taken on that front remains to be seen.</div><div align="justify"></div><p>So look how we have progressed. In the garden of Eden, there was just one rule. Don't eat the forbidden fruit. Now we have laws spanning every human activity. Over that we have people telling us how to live our lives. We have the Moral police, Fashion Police and Censor Police over and above our regular police. If we don't nip this in the bud, it won't be long before we wouldn't have a choice but to live our lives as others dictate it.<br /></p><div align="justify"></div>വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-42012879128990680522009-11-09T11:48:00.004+05:302009-11-09T15:03:53.961+05:30Chennai in the rains<div align="justify">When I came to Chennai around three and a half years back, I was not very fond of this place. The weather was too hot to handle, the autodrivers were daylight robbers and the roads were almost always congested. But over the time, I have made peace with most of the irritating aspects of Chennai. I came to understand that life in Chennai makes you appreciate the little things about life outside Chennai that you used to take for granted. Like the weather in Kerala or the disciplined auto drivers in Bangalore.</div><div align="justify"><br /></div><div align="justify">One thing though that I cannot come to terms with is Chennai during the rains. I am a big admirer of rains. During monsoons when I used to be in Kerala, I would sit in the verandah just watching it rain. The pitter patter of the raindrops was music to my ears and the cold rainy breeze would freshen me up from the inside out. Then I came to Chennai and encountered the Chennai rains. This city has a very low water threshold. All it takes is a brief drizzle and the roadsides are already flooded. If that drizzle turns into a downpour, rest assured that you will have to wade through knee deep water. Knowing the condition of the city's drains, and wading through the knee deep water is a self inflicted torture that you cannot do without. </div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify">I have a friend who loves rain but hates walking in the rain. The main reason for that is the feeling of mud beneath her feet in her footwear. I can definitely understand what she feels. For me it is the feeling of the squishy shoes that I hate. In that context, I love my new Merrel shoes. I got this for trekking purposes. It is made up of webbed material. The water drains right out once you are out of the puddle. No more squishy shoes.</div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify"></div><p align="justify">Last year, Chennai witnessed one of the heaviest monsoons for quite some time. This was the same time when terrorists hit Mumbai. If man made terror was flooding Mumbai, Natural terror was flooding Chennai. It had been raining for 4 days non stop and I had decided to work from home as you had to either know swimming or own a boat to reach office. And I had neither. On the 5th evening of this non stop downpour, I was watching a movie with my feet propped up on the table when my phone rang. It was the next door neighbour. He asked me where I was. When I told him I was at home itself, he asked me how come I didn't know that water had entered my house. I stood up in shock to see my house flooded with ankle deep water. In the next 15 min, I stowed off my bedding and important documents out of reach of the water and I put my PC's CPU on top of my couch. I packed some essential items and left the flooded house to seek abode at a friend's house.</p><p align="justify">The next day I came back to check out the situation at my house. I was dumbstruck to see that the water in my sitting room was up to my knees and the CPU which I had put on my couch was waterlogged. There was nothing much I could do so I just locked up and left.<br /></p><p align="justify">It took another 3 days before the situation returned to near normalcy. So now each time it rains more heavily than usual, I start preparing for the worst and keep watching my door sil to see if water has started flowing in.</p><p align="justify">Tail Piece: A week after this disaster, a team of sales folks from HCL landed in Chennai as part of a training program. One of their requests was that they wanted to go to the beach to see the Sea. I had to bite my tongue real hard to keep myself from replying "The Sea had come to meet you. You are about a week late"</p>വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-71613257390154217772009-11-06T12:20:00.005+05:302009-11-06T12:46:45.557+05:30Belief<div align="justify">For those who are not aware, there is an ODI series going on between Australia and India. Yesterday they played the 5th match in a series of 7. Australia went ahead to score 350 runs in the allotted 50 overs. I was with a friend before the Indian chase began and I was going on about how if we got a good start, this total could be chased. His reply to me was " <em>You are talking like a typical Indian Cricket Fan. You should know a lost cause when you see one. We have already lost this match</em>". </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify">I can tell you upfront. I am not a big optimist. But I have written earlier about supporting the underdogs. In this case, India was firmly the underdog. But more than that I believed in one man. I believed in Sachin. He has this habit of seeing victory when others see only defeat. In 1998 during the Coca Cola cup in Sharjah, when India was faced with a target of 285 and needed around 254 to qualify, most of the country would have believed that we wouldn't win the match but atleast we can qualify. But one man believed that the match could be won and his now famous "Desert Storm" knock of 143 almost did the job. Yesterday when everyone else seemed overawed by the size of the target, one man went about doing what he does best....hitting a cricket ball hard. </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify">When Sachin bats like he did yesterday, he makes believers out of us. As a famous banner read "Do all your crimes when Sachin is batting. Coz even the god would be busy watching him". As long as he was at the crease, no target seemed too big and it seemed the first double century in ODIs seemed near. But he fell at 175 needing 19 more to win. The others were good enough only to make 15 out of it. But I can vouch that noone who saw Sachin bat yesterday would have said that we were going to lose the match. The kind of surety in his strokeplay, the sheer domination of the bowling...who the hell said Sachin needs to retire? </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify">Yesterday when Sachin was on the verge of 17000 runs, Sunil Gavaskar made a comment. He said that the crowd is celebrating his 17000 so hard because seeing them makes them feel that each of his runs are theirs. Thats what sets this man apart. You want to end all the communal issues in India in one stroke? Declare cricket as a relegion. Nothing...i repeat Nothing unites India like cricket and nothing personifies cricket better than Sachin. </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify"></div><div align="justify">As the saying goes, "If Cricket is a relegion, then Sachin is God".</div>വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-90341106723617310422009-11-06T11:56:00.002+05:302009-11-06T12:07:23.781+05:30Back on Popular demand...<div align="justify">It's been 6 months since I have ventured into this part of the blogosphere. I started a malayalam photoblog in the meantime. If you understand Malayalam or just want to check out how good I am with a camera in my hands, visit <a href="http://www.nimishaardham.blogspot.com/">www.nimishaardham.blogspot.com</a>. "Nimishaardham" in malayalam means splitsecond. </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">So I was focusing on this blog and this combined with the fact that I was going through a bit of a writer's block resulted in this blog being dormant.</div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">However, I am now back (don't know how long it's gonna last..but still). This is due to 2 reasons.</div><div align="justify">Firstly, one of my regular readers asked me yesterday why I don't write anymore. Secondly I got a topic on which to write a post. </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">So friends, romans and countrymen, I am back. Let's see how long this stint lasts.</div>വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-30149308696724970752009-04-15T15:05:00.002+05:302009-04-30T14:22:28.626+05:30The art of writing Assignments - Part 2<div align="justify">MBA course work is all about groups and relative grading...You prosper or perish in groups. This group work opens people to a whole new world of free riding. "Free Riding" being an abstract concept is executed by different people in different ways. Before I get into that, let me tell you what is meant by Free Riding. Free Riders are those people who would tag along for the ride but would hardly move a finger to do anything. But as the group is graded as a whole, they get the same grades.</div><br /><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify">Now let's see the different approaches to Free Riding. </div><br /><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify">First there is the "I am not a Free Rider" approach.</div><br /><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify">These sort of people work very hard to look as if they are working. They will run around...shuffle papers...talk about timelines and appear worried. But they hardly do any work. They are really offended if someone hints about free riding. </div><br /><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify">Second category is the "I don't give a damn about grades" free rider.</div><br /><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify">These guys make their intent clear at the beginning of the assignment. Their usual statement goes something like this. "Dude....I don't care about grades.....I am not going to do a single thing on this assignment....if you guys are worried about grades, you go ahead and do the work". Their honesty is hard to deal with. As you are stuck with them in the group, all you can do is do the assignment and watch as they get whatever grades they get for free.</div><br /><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify">The first category of free riders are very deceptive. To an unattentive eye, it seems as if they are doing the whole assignment by themselves. It has often happened that 4 free riders of the first sort formed a group. Each one was left thinking that others are working hard and finally the assignment never got done. So it is in their advantage to seek out tried and tested Non-Free riders and form a group with them. </div><br /><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify">The second category is a necessary evil. They are often tolerated because they are good friends and atleast they were honest (brutally so..) about their free riding.</div><br /><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify">Although from individual work, the focus shifts to group work, the basic premises of assignment writing does not change. Here also there are Do-Gooders (DG), Do-No-Harmers (DNH) and We Don't Cares(WDC). The second category of Free riders come under the WDC category. </div><br /><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify">As MBA is a higher degree than B.Tech, the execution of assignments become even more last minute. Night outs become the norm and discussions are often called to start the midnight before the submission day. If it wasn't for the DGs in every group, the assignments would have never been submitted on time. I have had experiences where there were three of us in a group. All three were DNHs and we rarely submitted an assignment on time. </div><div align="justify"> </div><div align="justify">Whether it be B.Tech or MBA, if it is group work, the DGs are the driving force behind the group. They are the ones who crack the whip and sets the ball rolling. DNHs pull their own weight and go along with the flow without hindering it. The WDCs are the ones who act as the deadweight which arrests the group's momentum. If it was not for their contribution (or the lack of it..), assignments would have been submitted days before the deadline. (Oh the sheer horror....I can't even think of it..). Working in groups prepare you for the proffessional world...or so they claim...and it is the healthy mix of DGs, DNHs and WDCs in a class that makes working in groups worth it. You get to make deals, negotiate and sometimes even threaten people...what better to prepare you for the cutthroat corporate world? </div>വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-16972045175738148492009-04-09T15:44:00.002+05:302009-04-09T15:46:20.808+05:30The Art of Writing Assignments- Part 1<div align="justify">Assignment- The Merriam Webster dictionary defines it as "<em>a specified task or amount of work </em><a class="formulaic" href="http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/assigned"><em>assigned</em></a><em> or undertaken as if </em><a class="formulaic" href="http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/assigned"><em>assigned</em></a><em> by authority</em>".<br /></div><div align="justify">In school days, we used to call it homework...take down a few problems dictated by the teacher with a cute "H.W" written on the corner of that page...These were meant to be completed during that day's study time...and it was almost always diligently done so.<br /></div><div align="justify">Then we grew up..we went to college and we needed a new name for homework, as calling it by its old name made it look childish...thus we entered the era of "Assignments".<br /></div><div align="justify">Anyone who has an Engineering degree knows how these assignments are tackled during the course of the semester.(Warning: The views below are written solely from the viewpoint of a boy and might not be always applicable to girls).<br /></div><div align="justify">Before I get into the theory of tackling assignments, let me tell you about the demographics of any Engineering class..<br /></div><div align="justify">Firstly, there is one category of people whom I'd like to call the Do-Gooders (DG)...these are the students who almost always take up the first two rows of the class (though there are exceptions....I'll come to that later). Their note taking capability is beyond belief....Even the forced jokes that the lecturers make to wake up the rest of the class, might find its way to their notebooks. They often get ridiculed for this fact, but all that is till the exam time draws near...once the exams are at your doorstep, these Do-Gooders obtain the status of the Hollywood superstars....Their notes which were ridiculed before are so much in demand that the photo copies of the photo copies of the notes are being photo copied.....Even during all this demand, these DGs never try to get even for the ridicule....they selflessly offer the notes and never do they utter a word to the tune of "You should have thought this before...."<br /></div><div align="justify">98% of the Do-Gooders are Girls.<br /></div><div align="justify">Next category is what I'd like to call Do-No-Harmers (DNH)...these are the people who populate the middle to back rows of the class and they are not as meticulous in taking notes as the DGs. DNHs take notes of the points that they feel are important and can be often found sleeping in classes which bore them to the hilt...When the exam time comes, they are most of the times happy with their own notes and do not bother others.<br /></div><div align="justify">DNH population is often split 80-20 with 80% being boys...<br /></div><div align="justify">The last category is called We-don't-cares(WDC). This category is almost always completely made up of boys and these guys rarely populate the class (coz they prefer populating the canteen or the juice shop instead). These are the guys who create the huge demand for the DG's notes.<br /></div><div align="justify">So now, let's see how the assignment is tackled by various groups..<br /></div><div align="justify">DGs find it difficult to sleep unless they complete the assignment on the day it has been given. Even if there is a week before the submission date, DGs would like to finish it off as soon as possible.</div><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify">DNHs find it really difficult even to think about the assignments before the due date. Then on the day before the due date, they borrow a few DG's assignments and engage in honing their CP (copy-paste)skills....The CP technology is perfected by the DNHs to such an extent that no proffessor ever accused a DNH of copying an assignment....the original matter of a DNH's assignment would be spread across maybe half a dozen DG assignments....<br /></div><div align="justify">WDCs rarely submit an assignment on time....if they do, rest assured that it was written for them by a DG friend....(Some DGs are always in a crusade to convert WDCs to DNHs....I've seen them succeed and I've seen them fail.....Oh the good old times)...</div><div align="justify"></div><br /><div align="justify">Let's move on....from the individual submissions in Engineering college to the group work in MBA...</div>വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28775098.post-73532320025001263112009-01-30T19:30:00.008+05:302009-04-08T15:15:09.424+05:30The shore of Singing Waves....[This Blog was in Deep Freeze for quite some time: This trip was undertaken on 25th of Jan. ]<br /><br /><div align="justify">It was a long weekend....the originally planned Wagamon trip didn't seem to materialize...I had to do something to prevent the weekend going to an utter waste. Then out comes Ergo (a newspaper(?) supplied for free at major companies) with a list of little known places for a weekend getaway near Chennai...One of the places which caught my eye was Tranquebar...a Danish outpost in the 1700s....which the article said was on the way to Chidambaram....the only place to stay was the Bungalow on the Beach whose standard room rate was 3500 + 12.5% tax. The cheaper hotel Tamil Nadu was booked fully till Feb 28th. Since I didnt want to wait till then and I couldnt even think of paying almost 4000 bucks (If I had that much to spend, I'd have put in 1500 more and bought the complete calvin and hobbes collection...)for a night's stay...I decided to make it a one day trip. The plan was as follows</div><br />Sunday the 25th of January, 2008<br /><br />0000 hrs: Reach Koyambedu Bus Stand<br />0005 hrs: Get on a bus to Chidambaram<br />0600 hrs: Reach Tharangambadi and catch the sunrise on the lovely shore<br />1000 hrs: Enter the Fort Dansborg museum and roam around<br />1300 hrs: Get out of the musesum, proceed with photography<br />1700 hrs: Think about returning and try to get a bus to Chennai<br />2300 hrs: Reach Chennai...reminisce about what a fantastic trip it was...<br /><br />Now let's get to what really happened...<br /><br />I reached Koyambedu Bus Stand on time...I went to the platform reserved for Buses plying to Chidambaram and I find it empty....I enquire about the next bus to Chidambaram to a shopkeeper and he replies that it would be here in 30 min. Although initially miffed, I overcame it...plugged my ears with the ipod headphones and lost myself in the world of Kishore Kumar...30 minutes turned into 90 minutes when finally a bus with the Chidambaram board came (It's not as if I could read it....my understanding Tamil script is like pattern matching....so I should say a bus with a board that looked like it said Chidambaram came). It had hardly stopped and it already had people hanging off the windows and footboards. That finally did it for my patience. Out came my Nokia E71 with Google Maps...I navigated my way to my destination and to my utter horror, I found that it was not anywhere near the way to chidambaram...it was on the way to Karaikal from Chidambaram. After showering some choiciest of abuses on the "informative" Ergo, I got on the next bus to Pondycherry. As my good friend Ashok had done his Engg. from Karaikal, I had a vague idea as to how to get there. I got on the bus and slept off...or tried to sleep with my butt killing me because of the quality of the bus seat.<br /><br /><div align="justify">I reached Pondycherry at around 6.15. The next Karaikal Bus was not much behind. I got on the bus at around 6.30. The bus might have had a problem in the transmission or the bus driver wanted the passengers to reeeally enjoy the journey.....the bus never went above the second gear speed....I was half the through the second intolerable Sathyaraj starrer shown in the bus before I reached Tharangambadi...or Tranquebar...and the time was 10:30....I was running around 4 hours later than planned....</div><br />The first recognizable sight that I saw in Tranquebar was the King's Gate. It was built in 1792 and it stands at the beginning of the King's Street which takes you to the beach..<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322217930723678306" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOGJrwpthrbW3ODtfEX-RqANWAXxGqit3OO1oigSjlu-cx2r2p71_uQIqLgd4qNm4-m8Yiut528eReeeVX5RxpxSvxs-BShvGr6vCMAgCP18lTGa_EPwB4l7q10Q5nnDNkhyphenhyphenJ-bA/s320/P1250103.JPG" /><br /><br /><p></p><p>Once you enter through this gate, it's like you have stepped into a time capsule. The churches and buildings on both sides of the road are straight out of sepia tinted photographs. A straight walk on that road would take you to the Tharangambadi beach. On the left side of the beach there is a temple. It's dome was knocked down by the Tsunami that hit the west coast but now the repairs are done and it is a riveting sight. The temple has sea on 2 of its sides.<img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322219171985154466" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbI5I7km4DBduGQcwdkg-Fha8SRureNlBm6CkzvFDxyGI6L-irxKUl3-cFZ5uh7Wd407UNNS-6hMoEkDYSQBTpV7gq2cp7eXxdCWfmlVBQZjqEPdK-tKRisxnE2a0kznSjQmPZbw/s320/P1250002.JPG" /></p><p>Another landmark in front of the beach is the Fort Dansborg. It is a Danish Fort and the architecture is very different from the Indian Forts. If you are familiar with Age of Empires 2, you might find this fort similar to the castles of Teutons.<br /></p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5322247840161217138" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA_V9Jj5Zzajj0S-mqIqxeIEwrI6NTVf2XEqoD_aZChrURQLI5o90DYKrt15BYqwODct1VFXncxhT_EnM9ZXRV3GmYGWiRYDDKVTOkJa8rfsfYqqps0OMfI9bJr19yx9ZtY8AXFQ/s320/P1250088.JPG" /><br /><br /><p></p>This majestic sight alone was enough to make my trip worth it...I spent quite some time walking around the fort grounds and exploring the museum in the first floor.<br /><br />I was really tired by then...I had a quick lunch of chocolates and Kurkure sitting in the shade of the temple...and dozed of there itself for sometimes. The sound of the singing waves lulled me to sleep. Once the fierce noon sun had subsided, I took a walk along the beach....This was one of those beaches where someone who collects shells would go crazy....there were new kind of shells at each step....I collected some that caught my fancy...Before thinking about going back, I had to visit the churches in the neighbourhood. There are two...and behind those churches are some graves from the time Danes ruled here.....One of the graves was of a 3 month old baby boy.<br /><br />After a brief tour of the churches, it was time for me to think about my return journey. From Tharangambadi to Karaikal...karaikal to Pondycherry..Pondy to Chennai....I reached back by around 1:30 at night....I had spent 19 hours travelling to spend about 6 hours in the shore of singing waves....But I know one thing...If I had to go through it all over again, I wouldn't hesitate for a second....വേണുhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03252208530732665842noreply@blogger.com0