Sunday 29 November 2009

Fall 2009

Fall 2009 - Bracknell and Slough.






Couple of interesting info from Wiki, when i was looking for something related to Autumn/Fall

Since 1997, Autumn has been one of the top 100 names for girls in the United States.

(If twins, then they will name them as Autumn and Fall i guess)

In Indian mythology, autumn is considered to be the preferred season for the goddess of learning Saraswati, who is also known by the name of "goddess of autumn" (Sharada).

(Wonder why they preferred this season as goddess of learning, its so tough to be active only during this part of the year, dunno how some one will study)


Sunday 22 November 2009

The Unsung Singer

The unsung singer, whose voice, which is often mistaken as the voice of one of the greatest legends of the South Indian Film Industry.

The latter being SPB, the former is Mano.

Like a lot, i was thinking of Mano as yet another singer in the industry. Its only in the recent times I realized that many of my favourite numbers were in fact sung by Mano and like many, i have been assuming it as SPB.

Mano's hit numbers are from late 80's when he sang one of the greatest hits of all time for Ilayaraja in "Enga Ooru Paattukaaran" for the song Shenbagame Shenbagame.From there, Mano has rendered his voice for quite a good number.

Some of my favourites from Mano, of which i thought many of them were sung by SPB

Anthiyile Vaanam
Malaikovil Vaasalil
Vaa Vaa Kanna Vaa
Vaanil Kaayuthey
Kudagu Malai
Manyie Mani Kuile
Yaarum Vilayaadum
Anbe nee enna
Potri Paadadi
Mukkaala Mukkaabula

And here is the one which i was thinking all these days as sung by Kamalhassan
Nee Oru

I believe there are quite a good number of songs that can be added to the above list.

As many say, Mano's voice is very identical to SPB.The more i hear his songs, the more am able to identify his voice distinctively.
It always surprises me, when i discover that one of my old favourites was sung by Mano.

Sunday 15 November 2009

Idli Factory


The outlet in the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad serves different varieties of Idlis like Mini Podi Idli, Kanchivaram Idli, Sambar Idli, Rava, Vegetable and couple of more varieties . Idlies are served with a combination of Sambar and chutney (Coconut,tomato and two other chutneys which am not sure of the ingredients :) )

 A plate of 3 idlis is priced at Rs 75, an average price for the food outlets within the Hyderabad Airport premises. Assorted plates are also served with a combination of above idli varieties.In addition to the Idlis they do serve a decent taste alike of South Indian filter coffee.

A plate of assorted Idlis and a cup of Filter Coffee makes a decent South Indian break fast for the commuters from Hyderabad Airport.

The Idli Factory is located opposite to the Gate 22/23 in the Departure Area, inside the Airport.

Wednesday 11 November 2009

Train to Pakistan

"The fact is, both sides killed. Both shot and stabbed and speared and clubbed. Both tortured. Both raped. By the summer of 1947 ... ten million people - Muslims and Hindus and Sikhs - were in flight. Almost a million of them were dead"
- Khushwant Singh


Khushwant Singh's Train to Pakistan is a fictious story based on the events during the India-Pakistan Partition. The story is set in the backdrop of a serene village Mano Majra which turns into a restless chaotic border village as a result of the new geographical separation.

The book gives you a feel of what the partition has done to a village like Mano Majra, where Sikhs and Muslims live together like a family. The slowly changing mindsets of the Sikhs and Muslims, tells us how cruel the partition has been to these innocent villagers, for whom Independence is just a shift of slavery from the British Government to the Indians or Pakistani Government and partitioning the country is nothing more than splitting their own family.

The author gives different perspectives on the incidents happening through the eyes of Juggat Singh, Hukkum Chand,Iqbal, Meet Singh, Imam Baksh and the other villagers. As a common man we could easily put ourselves in any of these characters.

Punjab Riots
Victims of the riots in Delhi being removed from the streets. Fighting broke out over Partition. (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images) Content © 2009 Getty Images All rights reserved.

The photographs of the carnage taken by Margaret Bourke -White gives more life to this fiction. These photographs doesn't give a feel that our independence is something to feel proud about. Its shame on us if we still boast that our indepedence was through ahimsa and without blood shed. If someone should take responsibility for all these murders and lootings, then the onus is on the the Babus, Jinnahs and the Gandhis.

The narration of the incidents without taking sides of the Sikhs or the Muslims, makes Train to Pakistan a worthy read.


Related links :

Monday 9 November 2009

Second Innings





Starting my Second Innings after a long break, probably the longest break since my first post.

Hoping to continue this innings with a better writing and less hiatus. Lets see what time has to say.

Sunday 25 January 2009

Interpretation of Vows or Pledges

"A few observations about the interpretation of vows or pledges may not be out of place here. Interpretation of pledges has been a fruitful source of strife all the world over. No matter how explicit the pledge, people will turn and twist the text to suit their own purposes. They are to be met with among all classes of society, from the rich down to the poor, from the prince down to the peasant. Selfishness turns them blind, and by a use of the ambiguous middle they deceive themselves and seek to deceive the world and God. One golden rule is to accept the interpretation honestly put on the pledge by the party administering it. Another is to accept the interpretation of the weaker party, where there are two interpretations possible. Rejection of these two rules gives rise to strife and iniquity which are, rooted in untruthfulness. He who seeks truth alone easily follows the golden rule. He need not seek learned advice for interpretation. My mother's interpretation of meat was, according to the golden rule, the only true one for me, and not the one my wider experience or my pride of better knowledge might have taught me..."

-Excerpt from My Experiments with the truth

Gandhi had pledged his mother not to consume meat under any circumstances. Inspite of that, during his stay in England, he managed to bend the pledge by consuming eggs and fish (justifying with some theories that they are not considered as meat). Later he realized the true meaning of the pledge he made and how vows or pledges can be bent to our desire . 


Friday 16 January 2009

Humility...




"When you look at what has to be done and what can be done, and then what you do, it looks so small. That keeps me going like an engine."

-Rahman after winning the Golden Globe

Sunday 11 January 2009

On his Shyness

"I must say that, beyond occasionally exposing me to laughter, my constitutional shyness has been no disadvantage whatever. In fact I can see that, on the contrary, it has been all to my advantage. My hesitancy in speech, which was once an annoyance, is now a pleasure. Its greatest benefit has been that it has taught me the economy of words. I have naturally formed the habit of restraining my thoughts. And I can now give myself the certificate that the thoughtless word hardly ever escapes my tounge or pen. I do not recollect ever having had to regret anything in my speech or writing. I have thus been spared many a mishap and waste of time. Experience has taught me that silence is part of the spiritual discipline of a votary of truth. Proneness to exaggerate, to suppress or modify the truth, wittingly or unwittingly, is a natural weakness of man, and silence is necessary in order to surmount it. A man of few words will rarely be thoughtless in his speech; he will measure every word. We find so many impatient to talk. There is no chairman of a meeting who is not pestered with notes for permission to speak and whenever the permission is given, the speaker generally exits the time limit, asks for more time, and keeps on talking without permission. All this talking can hardly be, set to be of any benefit to the world. It is so much waste of time. My shyness has been in reality my sheet and buckler. It has allowed me to grow. It has helped me in my discernment of truth. ..."

Excerpt from My Experiments with Truth