Convocation Funda - I

The irony of the situation is that here I am, trying real hard to go to a place I’d rather not be reminded of.. Now, surprisingly, what should have been an easy decision has just not been that. In my right mind and not considering any other factor, which include the proud people who just want to see my convocation. Not exactly to feel proud and happy but for more of a reassurance that I actually am a BTech graduate as the mode in which I have spent four years of my education did not exactly symbolize a high probability to support it..It hasn’t been an easy decision. It has gone “definitely not” to maybe to “ALRIGHT” and then again to “What da heck for” and then back finally to my current status viz “Whatever”. Now let’s break it down as best as I can and am obliged to put it. So, what came first.. “Definitely not”... Well let’s not break that one down.. As that forms the foundation and the initial unchanged decision the actual facts are not absolutely necessary so let’s just keep it simple instead of going into too many unnecessarily confusing details.. So there I am totally not inspired by the opportunity of getting together at college for all those memories of “fun and frolic”.. And then when more information came pouring in, something hit me.. A sense of freedom? No, that hits me now and then anyway.. A hint of nostalgia..maybe a bit, a very small bit I guess.. But it was enough to take a crazy decision of going.. And you know how it is when ur mind changes and u spend 5400 for a ticket, it really is hard to change ur mind back. Coz now the body is run by the green and not the grey matter. And by green matter I am not talking about getting high.!!The green paper, dollar, dong; put it however you want to.. So there I am, a little down on cash and thought I might as well use it up since I already spent it. Now my sole reason for attending was to experience the amazing service a Kingfisher could offer me.. No, again I do not mean the same service that a Tiger or a Budweiser could offer me.. I mean the Kingfisher that gets you high..in the air, u know.. Wow! This is really getting confusing, even for me!! Ok anyway as I finally decide to go for the convocation, disaster strikes in the form of a remote and a lot of red tape. Deciding it was a stupid decision to change my mind in the first place, then again I turned to the services of Kingfisher to take me out..3 of them infact.. There’s the situation.. I can come but I can’t attend. So what am I coming for? I thought I was coming to attend.. Things started getting confusing. There, I shifted from “ALRIGHT!” to “Wat the heck for”. But Kingfisher service can do amazing things to you. Instantly I shifted on to “Whatever” mode.. And there I found myself next morning at Hyderabad airport all ready to go and typing the start of this blog. Well long story short for now: I went, I attended and I celebrated leaving the place. All’s well that ends well I guess.. Although sometimes things may not end well but all those are well too, I suppose..Anyway here I am, waiting at Cochin just happy to get back.. If time, joblessness and more different services by KF, Tiger and what not permits I’ll get back to this. Adios people.. :)

Welcome to Hyderabad - Part 1(Traffic)

Well its been 3 months in this city and I still haven’t blogged about it yet.. Now that’s no sign of a good blogger.. So just so that I show one sign of being a good blogger so I can be proud and pat myself on the back I thought I’ll get a few ideas across.. So to those who don’t know this is Hyderabad.. I don’t know what its called the land of..or else I would have named it Hyderabad , Land of “whatever its called”. Well, I got to admit one thing about this place. It’s not as bad as they say.. Actually overall its an absolutely great. Its fast, adventurous and filling. Yup.that around covers the points I would have put across. I have been on a lot of roads but this place is the best. If you think about it you’d realize that somewhere in the annuls of history this was the place where they tested out all traffic rules.. They just got a couple of vehicles together, made sure they were seated with all possible number of people, (starting from what is possible to what would never have been thought to be) and then just put them there on the roads to see what would happen. Few inferences they might have made were,

1. We need lanes. People going both ways can NOT drive on the same side of road and still remain happy drivers. Some people have to drive on the other side of the road. (No.this was not the reason they had to come up with the 377 too!!)



2. We need service centers. Although general rules in Hyderabad governs that every vehicle less than or equal to a Tata Indica will invariably have a dent in it, people are getting richer. So we need service centers for the high end cars.

3. Buses should be fitted with brakes which work even while enroute. – I got no explanations here.. Its just there. You either get off a bus fast or die trying.




4. Number of people in a three wheeler vehicle should be limited. – There’s one good thing about this place.. You get to hang around a lot.. I have been to a lot of places with my friends. But I get to hang out(..of an auto..) all the way enroute.

5. Auto stands – At some point of time in the “past history” of Hyderabad a Mr. Reddy decided one thing. “ I can’t stand it that autos come and stand where I stand. Those contraptions have to stand where autos stand”. And thus was created the concept of Auto stands.And to honour him there’s one in every household of Hyderabad.. I don’t mean the stands. Lets get one thing straight. You can’t blame the rickshaw drivers. They are just hoping to get a good paying ride. They just have to be ready all the time. It’s hard for them to differentiate between a guy hailing an auto rickshaw and a guy yawning. For them every guy on or off the road is a possible customer. Even if he’s just getting off another auto!People, give them credit for all the circus tricks they pull off with an over laden vehicle. Sheesh!!

Well I’m proud to be a part of a city which can boast of being the inspiration for many rules but there’s one single problem! Give us a break!! They forgot to get this place back into shape. Well the least they could have done in return was implementing a few of the rules, right here!! Even a beta model would have pepped things up a bit. Well be grateful all of you out there!!. We are risking a lot to make your roads safer in the future...Well you know what they say.. “if u can’t beat ‘em join ‘em”.. And I’m doing just that. More to come… As I said ..its fast, adventurous and filling.. I still have the last part to cover..later then…

HIYA

Its been long…Real long!!!
I really don’t see the point of writing anything if its just for me to read.. :P.. Anyway, right now I’ve been relocated to Hyderabad. I usually end up blogging if there’s something nagging on my mind or there’s some trivial stupidity I need to spread around. Well for now life is pretty easy. So no nagging nor any stupidity that’s trivial. But I hope to get back into this soon. Hyderabad is a real good place.You’d expect things about this place after seeing PG messes(in all sense of the word) in college. But its not even close to that. Its fast and easy to keep up with at the same time. So there’s nothing to complain there. Even the recent legislations don’t make much sense to me ,now that I’m far away from the “orientally” stereotyped Calicut. And ofcourse with the likes of Yadu and Rahul going back to where THEY came from, I guess Calicut can soon regain its place in history as it was rather than being the best place in Kerala on July 2nd.
So that’s that. For starters a few things I learnt or developed in Hyderabad :

- A philosopher is one who knows how to live a perfect life but never does.

- To be a consistent comedian you need to keep moving.

-Projector remotes are some of the most irritating things in the world and they haunt you wherever they go.

-Yadu’s latest quote would be “Better late than never. Areh Va!Delhi “6”. “

-Rahul : “A little too late , oh little ass! ”

Bye then.. Hope I get more time like this..

Now this post really comes under the title of “miscellaneous” coz its not about anything in particular but just a condensed version of lots of thoughts that strike me in different situations. Special note for this blog: I shall be trying to write the posts in a Situation – Thought combination,but excuse me if I don’t manage to come up with situations at times.. Also I might add more thoughts based on what turns up along the way and will be posted as they come, whenever they may be.

1. Now this is one situation at least most of my friends from Kerala would be able to relate with. It might not make much sense to anyone who hasn’t been on the hearing end of such a conversational oxymoron but I swear I am not making this up.

Situation: Teacher : “Ay..Why all this talking(noise)??Are you writing with your mouths??”

Shanker’s Thought : Come on!!!This makes no sense at all..If we were actually using our mouths to write I really doubt we’d be able to do any talking at all..The only reason we are able to talk is coz our mouth is free while we write with our hands!!!Sheesh…………

2. Ok…done with the really poor jokes…but I just had to put that one first coz I’ve been wondering about this for the last 8 years or so!!!!Onto a bit more serious thought. I got no practical situation to explain for this one. There are innumerable number of quotes on changes and discussions about how one is good ,the other is bad etc. etc…So here’s my thought on that..

Shanker’s Thought : Changes are neither good nor bad.It is how we adapt to them that gives them any quality.

3. Ah!This one’s got a bit more philosophical touch. I’m not explain any more..

Situation 1 : ABC : “ That guys amazing.He doesn’t care what people say about him”

Situation 2 : XYZ : “Its ok..He doesn’t care what others think about him”

Etc.etc…

Shanker’s Thought : Makes no sense at all!!!!…I cant believe there are nitwits in the world who actually say this kind of stuff. Every single person cares about what people say or think about them… Whether they react or not is completely different; but they CARE….So people of the world I implore you…..dont be so idiotic as to form an impression about ANYONE like that…..!!!!!

Mutant Sarees

I’m not exactly sure how many of my so called imaginary “readers”(yes I had to overdo and stress that point) would agree with me when I take up such a comparison.. but this is one matter of real concern which has been gnawing at me for a really long time… And I’m not using that term in the usual sense of just “making me think”.. It has really been gnawing and getting on my nerves…But luckily for now half my stuff are safe from these anomalies… As a matter of fact, more than just as an analogy sometimes I really wonder if it could be true.. But before I get into the matter a small intro into things… Mutants, as is known to all movie buffs(and I’m not talking about the real critics here…just people like me who enjoy an occasional blast and a fight.), have that innate tendency to multiply uncontrollably and pop up from the most unexpected places.. Now keeping this in mind I cant help but wonder if the sarees at my home are undergoing such a complex extra-terrestrial intrusion.. This situation can easily be proved y stating three simple facts…

1. Sarees are only bought and worn by my mother

2. Irrespective of location, time or occasion you open a shelf, you get a saree if and only if you’re a male.

3. My mother never finds a saree when it’s the location, time or occasion



That’s the situation…At times it seems as if all the “mutant sarees” follow a simple replication and replacement modus operandi and end up turning up in our drawers with no clue whatsoever as to where the shirts and pants disappeared. And when one is actually required (not by me) they’re just soooo elusive!!! Worst of all is the fact that they don’t JUST turn up…Nope!! They end up falling all over and around you when you least expect them. Well that’s the storyline at my home : “Attack of the Mutant Kancheepurams”*

* For the uninitiated “kancheepuram“ is a special class of high quality (the "expensively good" types) sarees..

Cute ads...

Lots of ideas brewing up...but meanwhile, here's a really amazing ad i liked...kudos to AIRTEL for putting it so beautifully...

"REALITY" Strikes!!!

The question is not about whether its all a fabricated show as many claim…..And considering the predictions and the result of the recently concluded “Star Singer” this may or may not be true…Oops…think I started this all wrong…After a lot of pondering on what to write about it struck me…its time I put forth my views on the melodramatic mega serials which are out in their new form – the so-called reality shows…As I said, its not abt whether we’re just getting ripped over here with regard to the competition…Lets leav that part for later…Lets take a run through history…It all began with “Sthree”, with its famous “Sthree oru janmam” (Woman one life) title song…And then it was followed by …..hmm….oh ya sthree again….If I remember right there were around three versions of “Sthree” and its variations…Well and good for the channel I guess coz it took up around 4 years to get those women issues cleared!!

I had the bad luck to see some episodes of these monotonously “varying” MEGA-serials in different channels…The modes of torture and intricate planning employed by the characters can be found only in 3 places as of my present count – Indian serials,World War 2 camps and the Al-Qaeda hideouts…So there they were, the women of the country ,stuck to the TV(called idiot box for a reason), watching as “real-life” characters - depicted as the next-door girl or guy - plot to poison their siblings,jump off cliffs and exchange babies!!!!Ofcourse, according to the producers and the advertisers these are everyday happenings in an Indian family’s life… Larger than life(Larger being an understatement) can be equivalent to real life only in the country of Rajnikanth and Mohanlal…..

P.S - I got nothing against those guys...its just co-incidence and the "hard to take in" action scenes which keep reminding me of Rajnikanth

Soon the writers started running out of evil plots and thus we come to the latest incarnation of mega-serials------the reality shows…….We’ve got dance,songs and wat not….It wouldn’t hav mattered and would hav been considered as an amazing talent hunt if it weren’t for the time and the melodrama it takes….Every household now has their own favorite singer,dancer,actor and I’m not talkin about the movies here…Its like an all new EPL – Entertainment Premier League….And when they ended 2007, I sighed with relief but now its bak…Longer and more dramatic the all new 2008 series!!!!!Half the people in the state know about “sangathi”,”plans” and nearly everyones a music critic now….Ofcourse its an entertainer..There are singers and songs(pathetic at time even to my amateur musical ears),dancers and dances(ditto) and over acting “actors”..There’s always a cute girl with a mic,atleast one really irritating judge and more who think they’re really funny..Best of all -we’ve got people crying and faintin on stage..The tension could give a guy heart attack!!What more could a viewer ask for…

Never knew television could be the medium to make half the population sadists…Entertainment at the sake of participant elimination and insulting is definitely fun…And to top it all they’ve got the really irritating and plagiarized background scores for highlighting the depression….Well hav a blast people…Looks like THIS is REALITY!!!!

Shanker

Hmmm....

Hey…long time no blogging…..well I guess after 3 years of engineerin and life as I live it u kind of get fed up of everything..hehe…really out of topics…startd off with movie criticism, then lyrics assessment and then etc. etc...but then realized didn’t have a mood for writin anything I guess….lol…will get bak to the page after cookin up something…
Adios…

CONCEPT of COLORs

K..To begin with…I’d like to claim THIS is an epiphany….Nice word..so I just had to do it….anyway back to the concept..I have to admit that this is not even 5% my thought….But I just liked it so much I had to blog it….Credit goes to Riju Mathew, a junior who surprised me(by just having any idea) with this idea…But all analogies n further ideas putforth are copyrighted by me..
The general idea runs that all the colors n visions in the world are just concepts….For each person what others sees is like their dream…You know he can see it but u just don’t know the exact image he has….Now take this….Consider I was born with a “defect” which makes me see all blue as white(we’ll just take those 2 for now)….So, since the day I started learning colors I’ve been forced to call white what we generally deem as white…For all you know I might be looking at blue(or what is generally deemed blue)….Now this might seem confusing takin an individual case….On a more general basis this condenses to sayin that no one sees the same color….i’ve been callin white what has been taught to me as being white and not because I SEE it so…hows that for a fun revelation??so whoever put names for colors had the privilege of naming what HE saw how he wanted and we just followed suite….so when someone showed me a block and said “this color is white”, it should have been just “This is white”…coz on the whole it seems like color is a very vague concept…but frankly I like the white n blue I see, so I’m happy with it I guess…

OUT OF IDEAS!!!

God!Blogging is tough,,,,I got 2 options..I could just go on about all the trips and fun we have or i could just think of something good to write and catch up with it which i prefer to do... But either way, the fact that in the past few weeks i might be the only one visting my blog is not much of an inspiration...lol...Anyhow just typin some stuff so that i dont lose touch..(in what i wonder!!!)...K anyway...Thanx for reading Shanker
Sd/- Shanker...