Few days in Ahmedabad

First Visit to Ahmedabad

In April, I was residing in Ahmedabad inside IIM A campus for a couple of days. Wonder why!! Trying my luck to get an admission in IIM? Yes and No, yes for applying in one of its program and no for not being serious about it. Nevertheless, I managed to get a leisure trip in and around Ahmedabad. One additional and crucial advantage was the stay in the hostel of IIM A and experience of the life@IIM A for a brief period.

First day, I landed in Ahmedabad and went to have a heritage walk around the city. I started with Sidi Saiyeed ki Jali which is a very famous mosque in Ahmedabad. I stayed there for a while and tried to appreciate the equisite carvings in the net.  Then proceeded towards Swaminarayan temple. The temple is built by the Swaminarayan sect. It attracts large number of devotees from Gujarat. The ostentatious design of walls and gates gives this temple a very affluent look. Also, there is huge ornamentation of figures of deities especially Swaminarayan Bhagvan. Swaminarayan Bhagvan used to stay at this location. From there, I moved to Jama Masjid, Ahmedabad which is less than a km away from the main food square of Ahmedabad, Manek Chowk. Jama Masjid has a huge complex and a large sitting area outside the dome. One can sit inside the dome to meditate and feel the spiritual atmosphere. Next, I visited Kankaria lake in the evening. There is a toy train ride on offer around the lake. This lake is a famous hangout spot for the locals and also a must site for the tourist coming from outside. Although I must confess, living nearby marine drive for almost a year, one does become less excited about lakes and the beautification around. Though I enjoyed the toy train ride and the loud Bollywood music of 80's which was being played nearby by an old uncle's gang.


Second day, I straight away reached Sabarmati ashram. The ashram was the abode of Gandhiji after his return from South Africa. He built  the ashram on the bank of Sabarmati river. The ashram complex has the huts of Vinoba Bhave, Meeraben and Gandhiji and Kasturba. There is a museum and  a book library inside the complex. The museum chronicles the life of this great person from his journey as a child to his becoming a Mahatma. There are many pictures and letters on display along with numerous quotes by Gandhiji or on Gandhiji said by famous personalities around the globe. Replica of the famous charkha made famous by Gandhiji was on sale in the memorabilia section inside the museum. Around 7-8 km away from the ashram is the museum of another great Gujarati, freedom fighter and India's first home minister, Sardar Patel. Sardar Patel museum had numerous sections from his eventful life e.g. Borsad struggle, Bardoli Satyagraha, Ahmadabad Municipality stint as an administrator, India's first home minister and the role in unification of India by merging 542 princely states. Apart from that, museum hosts a 3-D section and film auditorium to showcase the life of Sardar Patel. Next stop after museum was Adalaj ki Vav: a beautiful stepwell which is 5 stories in depth. All and all, the whole day flew so quickly because of the various sight seeing options. By 5 o' clock I reached back in IIM A campus and afterwards most of the time was spent reading in the library.

Third day, I started early in the morning at around 9 o'clock, did breakfast in the campus and headed towards Gujarat science city. GSC opens at 10:30 and I reached half an hour early. I started from Hall of science. Different models were put there to showcase various scientific phenomenon e.g. Light, Sound, Motion, Energy, Space, etc. to visitors. I particularly enjoyed their space section where they provided a motion simulator ride christened as Mission to mars which landed the observers in to one of the gallery where information about planet Mars was in abundance. Second stop I made was in Imax theater where the Hubble documentary was shown. The Imax screen and the documentary on its own became the most mesmerizing experience in the GSC for me. Thoroughly satisfied and drained out after the movie , I went next to Planet earth section. Planet earth module hosts a number of sections from Agriculture to Energy to Biology to Geography to what not. It took me 2-3 hours to cover all the sections; some covering in full details and I must say some in bit haste without covering fully.

In conclusion, after 3 days of sight seeing I am impressed by Ahmedabad, its rich cultural heritage, modern institutes and public sights. It is a must visit in the itinerary of every travel enthusiast.

PS: I was not selected in the program for which I applied. (Not news though..!!)

Juggernaut: Indian General Election Part III

I have briefly discussed about both Congress and BJP in previous posts. Today my focus is on a relative new comer in Indian politics i.e. AAP. AAP is an offshoot of the popular movement against corruption in the leadership of Anaa Hazare. AAP is led by Arvind Kejriwal who was the main negotiator of Anna Hazare camp during India Against Corruption movement. When the movement fizzled out by the apathy of UPA Govt, Arvind Kejriwal started a political outfit to fight the battle against corruption.

AAP was launched in Nov 2012 and their first battle was the assembly election of Delhi in Dec 2013. AAP was launched as a political alternative against mainstream parties like Congress and BJP. They employed some remarkable methods to fight the elections whether it is selecting the upright candidates, funding of elections, campaigning by utilising non profit volunteers. AAP was talking about people's revolution against the unimaginative and corrupt political class of India. It was the manifestation of anger among the people for loss of economic opportunity because of the financial meltdown across all over the world including India.

AAP's idea, about Swaraj, corruption free country and empowerment of people so that minimum government would be required, struck a cord in Delhi. AAP formed the Govt. in Delhi taking issue based outside support from Congress. But soon it became clearer that there are many areas on which AAP has to evolve to become a larger political party. Anti-corruption and decentralization can not be the only two planks on which AAP can contribute. In its haste to go for an all out change, AAP has made major mistakes by resigning from Delhi and then subsequently contesting national elections at a pan India level. There are micro level changes which are introduced by the entry of AAP style politics but one has to bear in mind that for overhauling of any institution we need systemic changes which comes incrementally keeping in mind the adaptability of general pubic to appreciate it fully. Sadly, AAP will have to learn this the hard way.

Juggernaut: Indian General Election Part II

Picking from where I left yesterday, today I am going to put my analysis on the prospective BJP Govt and its PM nominee Narendra Modi.

First we need to see the state of BJP before the announcement of Narendra Modi as PM. In my view, BJP failed miserably as an opposition in the 15th Lok Sabha. It could not question Govt on issues like corruption, price rise and women safety. In fact Congress was even successful to lay the blame of non functioning of parliament on BJP. For general voters, BJP was loosing the ground (at least in urban space) as an alternative of Congress to IAC and later to AAP till few months back. But things started turning around with the nomination of Modi as Prime ministerial candidate of BJP. Modi's energetic campaigning has made BJP as the clear frontrunner to make the next Govt along with its coalition partners unless something dramatic is happening which is missed by all the pollsters. In India, Modi is one of the most talked about politician of this era. Nothing is moderate when it comes to Modi. He commands blind adulation from his supporters or intense contempt from his adversaries. There are reasons for both. In his reign, independent India witnessed its worst communal riot where more than thousand people lost their life. Modi never took moral responsibility for the abject failure of state administration during the riots nor did he apologize on behalf of his Govt. Modi looked visibly uneasy over the demand of apology from sections of media aftermath the riots and evaded the question related to communal violence completely on number of occasions. On the other hand, after the riots Modi has put his focus on development of Gujarat. He has provided relatively clean governance in Gujarat by adopting technology and removing red tape. Infrastructure has got a big boost under his watch. He initiated a no of programs to improve the opportunities in agriculture, medium and small scale industries, solar energy, social programs e.g. JyotiGram Yojana, high enrolment of girl child in primary schools etc. In addition to that Modi has mastered the art of marketing Gujarat story across all of India. One thing is clear that both the supporters and detractors of Modi have indulged into passionate arguments with each other without conceding the inherent dichotomy in Modi's personality which is decisive as well as divisive. In election campaigning so far Modi is staying away from hard-line approach and focusing on development and governance but it will be interesting to watch whether he is genuinely having a change of heart or being a shrewd politician. 

Juggernaut: Indian General Election Part I

We all have been surrounded by the din and clamour of Indian general election for quite some time now. Amid all the noise, allegations and counter allegations it is a colossal task to have a sane and unbiased view regarding merits and demerits of political options contesting this time. Here is my small contribution to accentuate the confusion :)

PART I

Gandhis and INC : We are witnessing the lowest approval rating of Congress and Rahul Gandhi in this election. Multiple scams (2G, CWG, Coalgate, Adarsh) have tarnished the reputation of the incumbent dispensation in public eyes. In addition to that, Congress brass clinching to Rahul Gandhi for providing leadership despite evidence of his lack of ability is conspicuous to the middle class voters. Young and aspirational voters loathe dynastic succession of leadership in Congress which according to them is an anachronism in today's time of merit. But I want to discuss few more causes responsible for the bad prospects of Congress in this election apart from these two widely held popular views.

In my view, Congress suffered mostly for the lack of connect and communication with the public. They could not outline the vision of their policies like FSA, UIDAI, DTB etc to the public at large. Secondly, because of the gaping loopholes in the implementation of the policies e.g. MNREGA, distribution of natural resources ex: coal, spectrum, natural gas, huge wealth was amassed by the rogue politicians and businessmen. Thirdly, indictment by institutional bodies like CAG and Supreme court for lack of transparency and accountability resulted in the active scrutiny by media and SC and ultimately led to policy paralysis. Fourth, large public demonstrations in the form of IAC and the poor handling of the situation by Congress which made the public disenchanted with the Govt. Fifth, lack of co-ordination in various areas for example among PMO and ministries resulting in the delay of huge infrastructure projects, among centre and states which stalled passage of crucial bills like GST and DTC, between Govt. and opposition in the parliament which adversely impacted legislative performance. Sixth, negative global economic condition compounded economic problems domestically for the Congress. Seventh, high Inflation increased the price of daily use items substantially and resentment against government intensified in the common public.

Beyond doubt, Congress is fighting its most difficult election and given their campaigning so far it is uninspiring to say the least. My fear is that the mandate for Congress might be so low that they even might end up being second fiddle in the opposition's role. This is almost predictable for lot of us so tomorrow I am going to discuss the prospect of BJP led NDA and their chances of forming a majority Govt. 

Jaisalmer Travelogue

I have been itching to share my journey to Jaisalmer which I could not do during the travelling. Jaisalmer is one of the many beautiful cities in the culturally rich land of Rajasthan. Like other great cities in Rajasthan, Jaisalmer is magnificently known for its forts, Havelis, lakes, stones and last but not the least desert. So here is my itinerary in this beautiful city:

Day 1 : Sand dunes

I started my journey towards Jaisalmer on Thursday 09/01/2014 at 17:30 from Delhi on Delhi-Jaisalmer Express with friends. I enjoy travelling in indian railways despite not having the best of the amenities for you meet new people, play games and enjoy your sojourn in the commotion amongst passengers. We reached Jaisalmer at around 11:30 on Friday and thanks to the sagacity of my friend who contacted one of his acquaintance in Indian forest department, we got forest guest house to stay and a car to pick us from station. Guest house was 10-12 km away from railway station. After having our lunch in the guest house, we drove for desert safari which was pre-arranged by the forest department person. Desert Safari is one of the main attractions for the tourists visiting Jaisalmer. One has to start for the safari at most by 16:00 from the city so that he can reach in the dunes which is 50 km away from the city before the sunset. We reached in the dunes at around 17:15 before making a stop at the Jain temple in the city. Do not confuse this with the Jain temple within the main fort. Having reached in the dunes, we rode on our camels to move deeper in the desert. Cold breeze touching our face, sun rays penetrating the sand covered domes, crest of sands and infinite gaze - it was pure joy to say the least. We rode on the back of the camel for a good 45 mins before getting down and settling for sunset and some cool pics. We spent an hour or so enjoying the panorama then rode back to reach our camp for the cultural program and overnight stay. While riding back, our guide engaged us in camel race which was adventurous though it put a toll on the lower side of our body. Having reached at the camp side, we were served tea and poha while the cultural event was about to start. There was open air theatre where bone fire was lighted and singers were sitting over an elevated platform while the guests were sitting on the mats and cushions on the ground. The event was kick started by singing Rajasthani folk song by local singers. then one after another local folk songs were sung while female artists displayed traditional dance and skills e.g. balancing multiple mud pots over their head or picking a ring from their eyebrow etc.
Then guests were invited to have dance around the bone fire. Dinner was served immediately afterwards and then we proceeded towards our tent to rest ending an eventful day in the hope of an even better day to come.

Tip: Camel guides ask for extra money to extend camel ride. In my view, do not get lured by their offer because most of the spots in the desert which they sell as unique are no different from what you have in your camp package.



Day 2: City, Border and Tanot temple

Next day. we got up early to visit the dunes in sunrise. Red sun rays filled the desert and changed the colour and texture of the scene. We spent an hour in the dunes and returned back to the camp. After the breakfast, we checked out from the camp and decided to visit India-Pakistan border and the famous Tanot devi temple. On our way, we stopped at Kuldhara village which is considered to be haunted by the curse of villagers residing in it at 18th century. The village was completely deserted and abandoned for more than 200 years. Dilapidated houses were giving it a very mysterious and ghostly look. After an hour, we resumed our drive towards main city from where we had planned to move towards border which is 150 km away from city. As soon as we reached the city, we covered one more tourist spot - Gadisar lake. In Gadisar lake, People can do boating and enjoy the scenery and calmness of the scene. The fare was modest and we did boat for half an hour to be at peace: listening the sound of birds and splash of water. Before leaving city for the border, we had traditional Rajasthani food in our lunch esp. Bajre ki roti and jaggery. We started for border at 14:30 and reached Tanot village at 17:00 which was 120 km away from city. For border visit, tourists have to take permission from BSF and they allow permission till 16:00. We were disappointed to have missed the deadline. Arti in Tanot temple starts at 18:00 so we had full one hour to waste. We met one BSF soldier in nearby canteen and conversed with him about the border and the daily routine of BSF soldiers. He told us that Tanot temple is managed by the BSF. In the 1971 war when Pakistani shell and bombs were fired towards the temple, it escaped miraculously and since then BSF soldiers had great respect for Tanot Devi. We observed the arti inside the temple which was attended by a large cohort of soldiers. Inside the temple compound, shells and mortars fired by the enemy were displayed for the visitors. After attending 1 hour arti we drove back to the city to our guest house. The day did not go as planned but we had great time on the road while driving. Next day was reserved for the locations within the city.


Day 3: Forts, Havelis and fossil museum


After having good sleep, we enjoyed the morning in the forest guest house which was located 10 kms away from the city. There was lot of open space and greenery in it. Local labour was hired in it for horticultural work. After having breakfast, we moved to the city in car. Our first stopover was Jaisalmer fort. It was splendid as we entered in it from the main gate. It has its own stories but two stories which made me interesting in it was: It is the only fort in India where people live inside and it is called Sonar kella from the movie of the same name from the genius Satyajit Ray which brought international fame to it. Inside the fort the main attraction was King's Palace, Queen Palace, big cannon mounted at the highest point from where one can see the entire city and the most beautiful of them all: Jain Temple. There was museum inside the King's palace. There were different Rajasthani stones, predominantly yellow stone, which were used in its making. Fossil stone was also widespread inside Jain temple. The palace is built using interlocking of stone without cement or any other adhesive. Jain temple inside the fort is one of the key shrine for Jain community. It was built by the rich merchants from the community in 15th century. Stone work on the walls and roof of the temple is one of the highlights. One can find the stone image of all the 24 hermits of Jains in this temple. Inside the fort, one can also find local artisan shops where camel leather footwear and other local designs can be bought. After shopping from the fort, we went to visit Mandir palace. From mandir palace we went to visit Akal wood fossil park. In this park, fossilized woods were put under conservation which were millions of years old. From the park, we drove to railway station to catch our train.

Overall it was very enjoyable trip and we all had great time exploring this great city. 2-3 days is sufficient to enjoy the locations but our planning was bit faulty that is why we had to rush in the end. We could not cover Havelis for lack of available time hence there will be another trip to cover Jaisalmer along with Jodhpur... :)

I am sharing few pics for reference
Jaisalmer trip pics

Travel history : Lahaul-Spitti Valley

The month of June was full of unsettled desires but I am glad to fulfill at least one of them i.e. travelling to the remote areas of country's beautiful locations and talk to the locals there. So I journeyed to Himachal Pradesh with a friend of mine on 21st of June from Delhi in the afternoon. The heat was at its peak at day time. We only got slight reprieve in the evening. First, we reached at Chandigarh at night. There we settled to fill our empty stomach before moving forward. After much wandering, we founded the Dhabha. We replenished our stocks to our satisfaction and headed to Kullu in the night itself. So far so good. We reached Kullu in the morning and straightaway advanced futher to Keylong in Lahaul Valley. Keylong was 175 km away from Kullu. The route was Kullu->Manali->Rohtang Pass->Keylong. To tell you the truth I am not the sort of person to plan everything beforehand hence I had to rely largely on my friend's iPad and lonely planet guides. Our Idea was to take a stopover in keylong to move to UdaiPur for Triloknath Temple Visit. The bus journey took 7-8 hours. In the meantime my friend took as many snaps as he could and frankly speaking the view was so refreshing that one could not resist the temptation to capture every bit of imagery of that place. We reached Keylong at night on 22nd of June. After spending the night in a warm nice room, we got up in the morning to start our sight seeing. We visited local market in keylong. We went to the Keylong's Museum but that was closed due to bi-election. Meanwhile we were enjoying the climate, the scenery and the our conversations with local people. What I experienced at that place was stillness of nature: calm and serene atmosphere. I was occupied with idle thoughts, enjoying the whole set up and marveling at the beauty of mother earth.

We returned at the Keylong bus stand and revisited our plan there. We decided to move towards Gonda->Sissu->Gramphoo route. Our ideas was to move to Spiti valley from Gramphoo. So we took a stopover in Gonda village. In Gonda village, the attraction was the eight story building which was 600 years old. It was made from wood and stone by the then local king. The building is handed over to ASI for restoration and preservation by the king's descendants. There we met a villager who described to us villagers, their life, impact of climate on their life etc. We were pleasantly surprised to know that the whole route from Manali to Keylong is open only for 4-5 months in summers. After that inhabitants face severe winter when roads are closed and they are completely cut-off from the city. Snow is about 10-12 feet high so they have to clear it to move inside the village or to go to nearby villages. From Gonda village, We climbed back for 1.5 km to catch the main road. One more thing which I forgot to mention is the public transport. See in these parts, roads were cut from mountains so these are one way roads which generally allow only one vehicle to pass at a time. The buses are rare and once the roads are cleared during summers then only bus service is resumed that too once in a day. As we were dependent on the buses, it was imperative for us to plan our fixture with in the constraint of this simple fact. To go from Gonda to Sissu, we missed our bus and we had 2 options either to wait for the next bus or to travel for 15km by foot. Luckily to our rescue, there were 3 Buddhist monks who were going to Manali in Tata sumo. We requested them and got the lift till Sissu. Once we reached Sissu, we had lunch at the only hotel located there. In Sissu, the spot to visit was the hanging waterfall along side make shift camps. We reached in a primary school and the view from there caught our attention. We snapped pictures and soaked in the beauty of that place and decided to move further to our next destination. Fortunately, we were told the futility of our resolve as there was no place to stay in Gramphoo and we decided to stay in Sissu for the night. Now as we had 4-5 hours left in the day, we decided to go to that spot again but this time closer to the camps. I am glad that we did that. Let me tell you why: Brief description of the place and that moment - time was 6 P.M. one has to descend from the main road to reach the camps. At the camp side, there was a lake. The place was surrounded by two mountain ranges: upper Himalayan(Snow clad) and Middle Himalayan(Greener mountains). Near the camp to the east, the mighty Chandra river was flowing. Once we settled beside the chandra river on a rock. The view was exhilarating. There was the sound of wind, sound of river water splashing at the shores, magnificent view of hanging waterfall, scenery of the hills and mountains and to top it all the beautiful sunset between the mountains. We sat there for one and half hour soaking all we could. There was silence, nature and its myriad hues and colors. The whole experience was divine. After this sublime moment, we returned to our hotel, had dinner and slept to catch the early morning bus for Spiti valley.


Next day, we got up on time but still managed to miss the bus. Luckily, We got the shared cab to Gramphoo. At Gramphoo, there is a single Dhabha and an intersection route of two valleys- Lahaul and Spiti. We called up a person from Manali and booked 2 seats in a cab going to Spiti valley last night. So we had to wait around 3 hrs for the cab to arrive. Then we left for Kaza, the main town of Spiti valley. We started around 11 A.M. and reached Kaza at 5 P.M. with the 140km distance covered during this time. In the route, there were two important halts- Batal and Kunzum Pass. From Batal, the track to Chandrataal lake is planned which comes highly in the itinerary of travel enthusiasts. Second stop, Kunzum pass is at 4500m height and there is a temple which is considered pristine and divine by the locals. The view from Kunzum pass is another reason to stop there. Kaza was relatively better populated. Mid-way Kaza, batteries of our mobiles, camera and iPad were drained completely. There was no electricity in Kaza from past few days so we had to rush to the internet cafe where generator was available to power up our devices. I sat on a system to browse and check my email. As I opened my mail, there was one email from IIM Lucknow for admission confirmation in PGP-ABM program. I was shocked to know that to accept the offer I had to reach at the campus after 2 days otherwise my offer will be cancelled. Before that, I had left MDI PGPM after much contemplation but still the attraction of IIM Lucknow's brand was pulling me to consider doing MBA again. My friend, who was on this trip with me, had completed his MBA from IIM Calcutta. So I deliberated with him for an hour or so and decided to let go this offer. Finally, putting all the turbulence aside from my mind, I slept to start the next day with new excitement.

Next morning, we planned to visit the Keeh Gompa(Buddhist Monastery) but to our disadvantage there was no bus from Kaza to Keeh. We set out to reach for Keeh on foot rather than wasting 1000 Rs on cab. The distance to Gompa was 15km. I asked for lift from a car driver from petrol pump. He dropped us near bridge as he was going towards Rangreek then we took the lift from JCB to Keeh village. From Keeh we got the lift further for 3 km towards Gompa. Finally walking for a km or so, we reached at the Keeh Gompa. The Gompa was at an altitude of 4250m. We went to the tea room where we were comforted with herbal tea by the in charge of the Gompa. As we were sipping our tea, four college girls from England entered and sat. We all finished our tea and wrote good things in the visitors book. Then incharge took us over to the various halls and explained the history and culture behind each thing present in the Gompa. He was more than kind to let us ask as many questions from him. Near the Gompa, there was a hotel cum restaurant where we had veg manchurian and thupka. We then were planning to move to Kibber village. The hotel attendant suggested us to take a different route than we had thought earlier as the former one was shorter. We followed the road suggested to us and to our dismay we had to follow the footsteps on the mountain and reach at the top of it and then went downhill to reach Kibber. When we started, we were not aware that we would be climbing till the top. Gradually, we started to feel the altitude. The climb was steep and dangerous to the least. We made 15-20 stops to climb to the top. But once we reached at the top, we screamed our lungs out for that feeling was priceless. It was eureka moment for us literally. But our adventure did not end there for there was more in store for us. We stopped at the top for a brief moment and advanced further to reach earliest to Kibber. But as we were progressing, suddenly clouds started gathering, chilly winds were blowing and rain started. We had to take refuge in the nearby small temple, which was in the form of mud hut and completely deserted. As we were stranded there for 2-3 hours, we were making all sort of assumptions eg. what if we had to stay there till morning then how can we lit fire and sleep there or whether we should move to nearby village and ask for their assistance...
Finally, clouds moved further and we witnessed a rainbow. At 4500m altitude we were told that weather changes are sudden. We were feeling cold and hurried towards Kibber. We reached at Kibber in night at around 8 P.M. With some aggressive bargaining, we managed to get a nice room and stayed there till morning. We ordered veg soups at night to ameliorate our dwindling health condition due to exertion and cold. In the morning, we visited a temple in Kibber where all the Lamas (Buddhist monks) had arrived for four days prayer and procession. From there, we boarded a bus to Kaza but halfway through I realized that my ring was left at the hotel. I reached at Kaza and hired a cab for return trip from Kibber at 700/- Rs. Next day I left for Manali to end this memorable journey.

What to do if one plans to visit high altitude places -

1. Keep a BSNL SIM along with you because at such remote locations you will only find state run operator towers.
2. Keep Sun Cream with you for at high altitude, you will get sun burns easily.
3. Keep goggles to protect your eyes.
4. Keep warm clothes to avoid cold esp. at nights.
5. Plan your schedule according to the bus facilities or bring your own vehicle.
6. Keep medicine for AMS for it takes time to acclimatize in high altitudes.

Yeh Jawani hai Deewani

"You can not have everything in life so savor what you have right now." This line sums up the whole premise of YJHD for me. It is a movie that is predictable, confusing at times and does not give everything that you desire from a refreshing romantic take given the premise propagated by the makers. But surely you can enjoy the formula put forth by Yash Raj camp and established by the Karan Johar productions.

The plot is quite familiar. Group of friends go for adventure. A young girl joins them. She meets the charming boy. The boy is cool, confident and fun. The girl is simple, studious and boring. She gets the best time of her life, fall in love with the boy. He goes after his dreams.  They reunite at the friend's wedding and eventually fall in love. To give Ayan the credit, there are many subplots that delve deeper in to the friendship, father-son relationship and happiness in life.  

Despite its predictability YJHD is an enjoyable movie and believe me I have tried to not like this formulaic offering but once you are sitting inside the movie hall you somehow connect to the whole premise. Be it the acting or the dialogues. The strongest point in YJHD's favor is its cast. They all slips into this world so effortlessly that one starts believing into the fantasy. Ranbir Kapoor is gradually strengthening his position into the industry. He is a natural and spontaneous actor. But what truly remarkable is the act put forth by Deepika Padukone. She has startled me completely. Kalki, Aditya and Farookh sheikh brings the best out of characters. 

Sense of emptiness!!

First day out of job...well technically not the first day but the first day to have this realization that I have 24 hours a day all by myself. Scary experience for someone like me who constantly yearns for one thing or another. Seriously guys, Life has taken an unexpected turn in the past month. The decisions that I had to take  made me go all mad in the past month. Now an arduous journey awaits me and I am hoping that the sooner I put rest to my wandering mind and concentrate on the task at hand the better it will be for me. Reality is hard and often undesirable. I am more or less detached from many things but the memories and nostalgia of the life that I have left behind has not sunk in yet. From this point onward I have to change everything about my routine, lifestyle etc. May be things have not started yet but to sit idle and contemplate is not good for my health. You see, I am a day dreamer and I use to imagine weirdest things possible that can happen with me and the more I get lost in my imaginary world more difficult it becomes for me to face reality. Sometimes I wonder that what I truly want from life and I go on and on in my mind to do this and that but always fall short  in the end to sustain this dreamy bubble of mine. 

Child within us

Most of the time, among my friends, I behave like a child, careless, free, uninhibited and most importantly unapologetic. Sensible ones think that there is something wrong with me, try to dissuade me from being a child like or sometimes employ cuss words to display their frustration clad affection but frankly speaking, for me, being a child in the company of friends and people I care about is to unload all the heaviness of day to day life and be free, fun, curious and stubborn about trivial matters.

I believe that each one of us can keep alive the child within us. I like the adage-"Life is too short to be taken seriously."  Life is full of surprises and when things go out of control, it forces people to have a serious demeanour around everybody, try to create an impression of their being strong and serious. I feel it should be the other way around. Happiness and living in the moment have a unique impact on our way of thinking and what better way than to celebrate life like a child- pure and innocent, without any baggage of the past, always ready to try one more time despite falling again and again, never complaining always enjoying the process rather than the final result.

It is alright to be foolish and stupid for a while without thinking of what people around you will say. Try it once for your own sake...

Kingdom of dreams

Friends!! there are some days which brings greater excitement and joy to you. I had one of these days when I entered the packed auditorium in KOD for watching JHUMROO- a musical comedy and tribute to the legend we know as Mr. Kishore Kumar. Believe me it is one of the most exhilarating experience of play watching. I had been to a lot of plays before but none was as visually gratifying as this one. Every conceivable technology and VFX was used on stage whether it was the spirit of Kishore Kumar, projectors to show multiple view, lighting, rich colours etc. It was a full blown 150 min movie, the only difference was that it was happening on stage!!!

Stage management was such that the same space had been transformed into living room, cafeteria, office meeting room, market, bridge, singing competition studio, bus stand and everything. With the help of technology, audience were enthralled by one after another glittering visuals like the scene where main lead were driving in the car on the roads of Mumbai. In that scene background images were changed rapidly and the car on stage was turned on a moving podium to create the desired effect. Numerous such effects and imagery were employed and also there were sliders on the roof of the auditorium through which dancers and cameo characters were used in the mid-air with the chord attached to them. Dance and music were integral to the play so lot of aerobics, mid-air jumps and singing was shown and the most exciting part was the music. No doubt as I said, it was a tribute to Kishore Kumar, there was bound to be songs sang by him and such amazing effect it had on the whole proceedings that one will definitely re-visit the songs even after the KOD excursion.

Cultural gully was another beautifully designed feature in KOD. You have multiple state level junction in that with artificial roof of blue sky above it. All and all it was an wholesome experience. Really enjoyed my time there in KOD and also planning to go again but this time for another production named ZANGOORA.

Vicky Donor

Have any of you watched Vicky Donor yet? If not then I will recommend that do watch it. I will tell you why!

Having watched countless slapstick comedies, this one, despite dealing with a quirky subject, managed to get its humour right. Apart from that, well defined characters, supremely funny dialogues and an interesting premise make Vicky Donor worth the money. Each and every character has something unique to offer- be it Ashima(Vicky's love interest), Biji (Vicky's modern grandma), his mother Dolly, Dr. Chaddha, Chaman (Dr. Chaddha's assistant) or even Vicky's next door neighbour.The dialogues spoken by each character bring authenticity to the backdrop and situation of the movie. There are many scenes in the movie which bring laugh out loud moments e.g.  when Dr. Chaddha, the fertility doctor, chases Vicky at his home to donate his sperm, Vicky said to him,"Yaar aap bahut hi LAHSUN type ke aadmi ho!!!" or the scene where Vicky gifts his grandma a 16 GB IPhone, she said,"Mainnu to latest 32 GB wala chahiya tha". Also the romantic angle between Vicky and Ashima is fresh and enjoyable and their marriage scene, mixture of Punjabi and Bengali wedding, produces enough funny moments without being stereotypical.

STORY:
The story is about a guy, Vicky Arora, from Lajpat Nagar who lives with his mother Dolly and grandma Biji. Vicky is a typical Punju (Punjabi) who plays cricket, loves shopping and most importantly unemployed. On the other hand, Dr. Chaddha runs a fertility clinic and is in search of a fertile sperm donor. He coincidently found Vicky in his neighbourhood and from there on he chases Vicky to be the sperm donor for his clinic. After much nay say, finally Vicky agreed to donate his sperm which brings to him the money and comfort. At the same time he met the banker Ashima, a Bengali and a divorcee,  and gradually wins her over by his over the top punjabi acts. They both get married and things get settled for some time till Ashima finds out that Vicky is a sperm donor. She gets offended by his lie and leaves Vicky. In the end he gets Ashima back with the help of Dr. Chaddha.

ACTING:
All the actors have played their part with ease and have looked natural and effortless. Ayushman, the Roadies fame VJ, got the perfect debut and he cashed it brilliantly. Yami Gautam is beautiful and quite natural in acting. Annu Kapoor is a delight to watch in this movie as Dr. Chaddha. Dolly Ahluwalia and Kamlesh Gill both had some amazing scenes and dialogues and they both did full justice to them.

MUSIC:
Overall music is good. Out of all the songs, two tracks are worth mentioning, One is Paani da Rang...and the other one is Marjaiyaan.

Band Baaja Baraat

Hello folks, almost a month long gap this time. The truth is I did not find anything interesting to write or you might say that things were boring and nothing was exciting me...
But the just concluded weekend has prompted me again to write something. On the last Friday I boarded my first ever flight from Delhi to Chennai. I was very excited before the flight for the simple reason that it was my first ever air journey and above all, I was going for my first southern state trip. Occasion was the marriage of one of the most genuine person I know, Mr. Sankalp Chabra. His marriage in itself was no routine affair as it was not the typical arrange marriage stuff that we are so used to. His story is more like the Chetan Bhagat novel "Two states" where a Punjabi boy fall for the Madrasi girl and things become complicated because of the cross cultural divide and family differences. In spite of all the odds these two managed to be together and eventually convinced their respective families to give them their blessings.

My two days stay in Chennai was pretty eventful as marriage functions were going on in full swing and in between me, Chirag and Rungta managed to spare time for some sight seeing. First we reached Chennai museum on the Saturday morning. All sort of historical artifacts were there, from 1000B.C. to contemporary period, like stone statues, Bronze statues, philately(the study of stamps), numismatics (study of coins) etc. After that we went to Marina beach, which by the way is the second longest beach in the world. Me and Chirag went inside the water while Rungta stayed out. After that, a series of events caused much annoyance for us, foremost the climate which was way too humid and communication was a big problem there for a lot of people were simply unable to comprehend Hindi or even English.

Marriage functions were all on time not like our north Indian ways where everything gets delayed. We all danced euphorically with all the weird and funny moves on display at the Baraat ceremony. Feast was served on banana leaf with the sumptuous south Indian cuisine at their particular positions. In the end it was altogether new experience for me- the traditional way of south indian marriage, their customs, language and cuisine. Here are some pics for you guys :

Bride and Groom

BreakFast

Natraj pose of Lord Shiva in the Chennai Meuseum

Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar

 A lot has been said, a lot is being said and a lot will be said. But for the moment let us pause and savor the occasion. It is never about the century of centuries that counts but the passion behind it that drives this man from the past 22 years and still counting. The toughest job in the world is to bear the expectations of billion plus people, to make their dream come true, to give them hope and this is exactly what this man has been doing.

I started watching cricket around 1996 world cup like all young Indians born in late 80's. In Meerut, i used to slip to nearby electronics shop at my place to watch each and every match that India played and get more and more hooked by it. Most vividly, i remember the innings played by young Tendulkar which used to bring the whole city to the standstill. Whether it was Sharjah in 1998 where he battered the mighty Australia in back to back innings and won the cup for India or the Chennai test match in 1999 against Pakistan where in the 4th innings India needed 236 runs and despite his scoring 117 runs out of it, team lost. I grew up with his journey and like all journeys there was joy, jubilation, disappointments and wanting. He has had brilliant times as well as rough patches but gradually the admirer in me got skeptical about his ability to win matches for India. I had long arguments with more enthusiastic friends of mine and some shared it while some vehemently opposed it. But one fact remain constant that more than number of times this man quietly and elegantly did his job without ever reacting to the criticism that came along his way. Perhaps what we forgot in our over enthusiasm is that cricket is a team play and demanding the best each and every time only from one player is too greedy of us. We should relish what Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has achieved not for him but for the entire nation and leave the matter of his retirement to the man himself.

The whole gymming thing...

Now it is a difficult one for me to write because those who know me and have seen me in my physically best will vouch for the misplacement of this post. But still i will take the courage to elucidate it for you...
Gym keeda has been there for quite some time now. To be precise it is almost 3 years since i first started (starting of the gym) going to gym inconsistently though. It first began, as a result of not so generous comments passed on me by some of those around me, to prove a point but gradually i started liking it. From that point onwards i employed all sort of diet plans(doodh-kela, boiled eggs, non-veg and hell knows what!!!) and exercise techniques which can bring normalcy in the gross inadequacy of  my height to weight ratio. Despite this the success eluded me and there is no visible improvement in my diminutive frame whatsoever. Yet every time i keep going back to gym i feel a sense of liberation. I keep checking my muscles which grows by a measure of nanometer and i feel euphoric!!!
Every time i toil hard on the machines or start lifting heavy weights(btw heavy here lies in subjective domain), a sense of satisfaction empowers me. I guess it is a kind of meditating technique for me which is working mentally not bodily and i like it that way.

Tribute to Rahul Dravid

For the long time i have been thinking of the unthinkable, two greats of our era would  put down their gloves and pass on their baton to the younger generation of cricketers. Suddenly my premonition has come alive when the script was written on "the Wall". Well how do i begin to pour out my feeling for cricket and especially for this man. He is deservedly the most prolific and accomplished cricketer that has ever embraced the game of cricket yet strikingly under rated in the shadow of another great Sachin Tendulkar.
What i like about  Dravid is his steadfast resolve and concentration that had come handy on more than number of occasions for the Indian team especially in overseas. Visibly composed and calm, he built his innings like a watchmaker's precision. Every innings of his symbolizes the near impossible concentration and hard work. In every field, some are supremely gifted like Tendulkar and some achieve greatness by the sheer dedication and fortitude. For me Dravid represents the latter category of individuals.

Sunday adventure...!!!

Passing Sunday was a bit hectic for even me considering my daily activeness and to and fro motion. I got up at around 5 A.M. to head towards Rohini, Delhi from Gurgaon with meenu aka Manish. We reached there at 8:45 and had our tea before the Mica exam which started at 9:30. Nothing much to say about the exam except that we both were laughing out loud like maniacs after coming out from the hall. There was a story section where we had been given six snaps and we had to make a story from that. Meenu and I both started to give our versions which soon resulted into hysterical laughs because of the stupidity of our stories.

Fortunately, our alma meter, DCE, was in Rohini and we decided to cash this opportunity by revisiting some of our outside college hang out places. First, we went to G3S movie theater,our most frequented destination in college which used to cause a big hole on our pocket money, to watch PST. Movie was awesome and like Paan Singh our appetite for food shoot northwards after that hence we paced to Sec-11 Punjabi dhaba, our Friday-night-sumptuous-meal destination in college. There we consumed as much food as we could at such an economical rate in comparison to astronomical bill we usually pay in Gurgaon for such a meal. Fully satisfied and pleased, we went back to nearest metro station to return for Gurgaon.


I reached in Gurgaon at 5:30 and had a 1 hour sleep. Fully refreshed and charged up, I completed my review of PST. I had a plan to meet few of my college friends, one of whom had come back from Bangalore for few days. So we all went to galleria market at Escape Terrace Bar,drank few pints of Tuborg, had bakchodi about happenings with each of us after college....warming up ourselves.  From there, we went to a dhaba...then on bike, we started towards 24 hrs open McDonald in Manesar. Around 2 A.M. I reached at my flat and immediately went to bed completely exhausted at the same time satisfied with the proceedings of the day.

Paan Singh Tomar Movie Review

Paan Singh Tomar stirs you at the core. It is gripping, engrossing and sublime at times. Director Tigmanshu Dhulia has put the world of obscure national athlete then turned notorious dacoit into the celluloid with aplomb and finesse.
PST is the story of Paan singh, a subedar in indian army, who got into steeplechase, an atletic sport, due to his massive apatite for food. He stunned the nation by his record breaking and represent India in Tokyo in steeplechase. Family dispute over land from his cousins forced him to take a premature leave from army and look after his land and family which resulted in his disappointment with the system and the kind of reception that nation gives to her athletes. He turned dacoit to avenge the wrong done to him by his nasty cousins and soon transformed his gang into the most dreaded of chambal valley.
Irrfan khan is the soul of PST. He has delivered such a remarkable performance that you absorb his pain through his eyes. Two scenes stand worth mentioning: First, when an army officer questions him regarding his shooting and takes him to the his superior. That scene becomes alive due to the intelligent writing but above all his natural ability to say dialogues in the manner that penetrates right into you. Other one is when his superior officer on his retirement presents him Ice Cream which had a symbolic meaning of the beginning of his sport career. He just takes that scene to another level by his emotional display.

In the end, it would be fare to say that PST is a homage to all the forgotten sport heroes who had brought recognition and honor to the nation but got betrayed in the end by the cruel negligent system. As one dialogue puts it better: "Only you and me know what sport means to us, these foolish people can not appreciate it."

Book Review: The Great India Novel

Celebrated author, speaker and parliamentarian, Shashi Tharoor, is known for his wit and articulation. His latest offering, The Great India Novel, is a fictional political satire which characterizes the pre-independence leaders in Mahabharata theme. Reading this novel was a delight because it traverse from independence struggle to emergency era and in this process takes the reader to various epoch making incidents in the history of India. The theme and incidents were carefully chosen by the author and prose flows in continuity while keeping the reader in good humor throughout the book. Although, sometimes author seems to be too easy on some of the leaders like Indra Gandhi and Nehru. Nevertheless, it is a good read for people who wants to understand the role of Indian leaders in shaping the course of this great nation.

Trial By Media is justified. Give points pro, against and as an editor of a leading newspaper form an opinion which supports it or against it but not both.

Pro: Media is called the fourth estate in a democracy because it is the most effective tool not only to bring accountability and transparency in the system but also to educate and guide citizens of the nation. It is media which has stirred public conscience by revealing the gross inadequacies of our judicial system in cases like Jessica lal, Priyadarshani Muttoo etc. We can not deny the constructive role of media in exposing 2G scam, Devas scam and countless such ignominious acts of corruption to the public. Unearthing of illegal practices or shady conduct of our lawmakers by the media has prompted civil society activist to demand fair and transparent conduct from the executives hence strengthening our democracy further.

Against: "Media should be unbiased and objective in its reporting.", said by the chairman of Press Council of India Shri Makrandey katju. Media facilitates awareness. Sometimes media try to put opinions about things, which is under trial or in process of state inquiry, tilting and distorting the public opinion towards not so true observations. One example of such phenomenon is 2G scam trial where even before the conclusion of trial, media started forming opinions about the complicity of certain individuals without even verifying  facts which exerted an unprecedented amount of pressure on the judiciary resulted in not granting bail to such individuals. It is the responsibility of media to look for facts and information that empowers citizens and strengthen our democracy while at the same time showing restrain over sensitive issues which can prejudice the nation before placing proper facts.

There is no right way of doing a wrong thing.

Lot of time people justify violent act or behavior by attaching a back story to it. For example, Naxalite movement in India. Human right people clamor of state wrong doing and justify in some way the violent means employed by Naxalites to fight for their right. Like Mahatma Gandhi said, "An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind." A wrong done to somebody does not justify the violence and hooliganism of the victim. Another example would be - A guy, who has molested a girl, reasons for his act that the girl by her revealing clothes and promiscuous expressions were leading him on to do exactly like what he did but it will not justify his own weakness in character and moral degradation. This reason stated by the guy can never be the plausible explanation of his act.