Many faces of Shandy Brown.

It has been a crazy crazy week. Well, I have been out drinking most of the days this week. The beer is starting to show.

No no, it’s not that I have suddenly become an alcoholic and I am also not going through a depression.

Shandy (the name is Shandy Brown), is down for an India ‘dharshan’. And he arrived 2 weeks early before his vacation so as to get “used to” India. And I (and Vishnu and Ritvik) have decided to show him all around Bangalore watering holes. Ritvik even got SB to drive (yes, drive) an auto.

[Shandy, is my counterpart from the US office. We had exchanged lot of mails in the past, but it is great to have him here. Funny chap!]

Oh oh.. Almost forgot. Must visit:

The Many faces of Shandy Brown

Cool eh?

* Satya was down in Bangalore last week. Amongst all the catching up he mentioned why India is impervious to something like sub-prime. So, for anyone who is going to buy-sell real estate, around 40% of transactions in India happen with the aid of black money (to avoid tax). In simplified terms since the actual value is never bloated enough on paper (as part of it is in black money), so there is no abnormal hike in prices and hence the perception of insulation against the market forces. Interesting nay? Well you can always extend the black money story to India’s GDP: India’s actual GDP will much more than what is stated if we were to somehow account for all the black money in the system.

Are you listening MR FM?

(Most) Wanted!

I love Angelina Jolie (So does more than half* of the world’s population; * - yes she has some female fans as well).

Well, like an Angelina fan I watched Wanted.

I do not know what to say. Action Fantasy. Action Pornography.

High Octane “over the top” Car moves.Flying Assasins.Bending Bullets.Inter-Continental Ballistic Snipers.

This movie has it ALL. And I can’t describe it.

For all those who make fun of / like Rajni movies, this is the movie they have been waiting for. This is going to make a (dis)believer out of you. I think Newton is turning in his grave right now.

Teaser:



Spoiler

Must watch: Angelina’s last scene

P.S: no no, It was not good, but you must watch at least once. Lighten up, please do not watch for the story, acting, OST or anything else. Just tune off. This is sexy A(ngelina, errr scratch that)ction!

KA-05 DL:12440/87

It was a morning like all others. I was running late for work. So I walked briskly down the street from where my house. It is a small street. There is a Shiva temple at one end of it, surrounded by a small marketplace, which is continuously teeming with people getting along with their day.

I needed to find an Auto rickshaw (and autowallah) ready to take me on as a fare. I have to say, I am building some serious reputation with these guys. They know I take a ride to the same place every day. They also know that I am quite a stickler for these guys overcharging me. Yet, everyday they try to rip me off. Rigged meters. One and half fare. Change problems. It would be fair to say my love-hate relationship with them goes a little way back. Love you ask? Well, I need them to get around.

“Boss, JP Nagar?”
“No Boss”

He (autowallah) is a regular, he will not accept me as a fare.

Unfazed (like I am usually), I move on. I see one more auto standing.

“JP Nagar, 4 th Phase?”

Slight nod of the head.

I get in, and slip the new HBR issue out of my backpack.

[Since the traffic moves so slow in Bangalore, I have decided to make use of the gift of the time, everyday]

I have barely read few lines,

“I don’t normally take in North Indians for a fare. They are quite miserly and fight a lot”

1. The above sentence is a verbatim quote.
2. Consequentially, you can see it was spoken in English.
3. I was just accused of being a miserly North Indian (Woody Allen Jew jokes anyone?)

Well, apparently I was taken in because I was recognized from an earlier trip, 9 months ago! (Memory on steroids?)

The driver was a MR. Ranganath (as per the DL information)

What followed was a most interesting conversation. I was surprised primarily by his fluent English. And then by his awareness of things around him. Sample this:

“Kumaraswamy is a farmer, at least SM Krishna, is an Oxford graduate, India needs educated representatives for the democracy to fulfill its purpose”

[At this point I kept the HBR back in the bag]

“Bangalore has almost 30 lakh vehicles, Delhi has 50. But Bangalore will implode.”
“Why are Indian politicos creating communal rifts?”

He also offered me insight into how auto meters are rigged.

[Did you know: you can make the meter go fast, just by using a smaller tire (~smaller circumference), or by deflating it a bit (reducing air pressure)]

Imagine my surprise when he told me that he has a son working in IBM as a Software engineer, his wife works in a bank, and he himself used to work in ITIL ltd. He took VRS (Voluntary Retirement Scheme)

We talked some-more, and soon it was time for me to go.
“50.00”

His meter was absolutely correct!

As I handed him the money, he asked me which “company I work for and if my job was at stake due to currently prevailing economic turmoil”.

[punch me in the face someone]

I walked up to my office. Happy. Amused.
It was a morning like all others. And yet it was not.

I don't do this very often but...

.... There I was lying next to her, I think we were watching memoirs of a geisha. I had already watched the movie, but lying next to her was temptation too great to ignore. Cuddling up with her before sleeping in the night is the most ‘satisfying’ part of the day. As the movie, rolled past on the screen, I kept sneaking glances at her. I find her the most endearing when intrigued by something. And there she was watching the movie, maintaining total silence almost as if a spell had been cast on her gregarious, chatty normal self. The laptop resolution was bright enough to light up her face. I kept stealing glances. She has the most expressive, animated face I have ever seen.

“She is so beautiful!”

My drifting thoughts were reined in an instant. It took me a couple of seconds to realize that the movie had been paused, and if the above statement was an exclamation or a question hanging in mid air, waiting on my response.

“ Yes she is”

Yes she is beautiful. She is intelligent. She cares. She loves me. I love her. And that is the best feeling in the world. She is family. She is my best friend. Waking up next to her is the only way to wake up. It makes me want to take care of her forever, and I will, forever.

I kissed her shoulder, the movie had resumed.….

Que Sarah, Sarah ?

Well a certain someone is not going to be happy with this post. :) But let me assure you, I am not out to mock anyone! This just happens to be funny.

Sarah Palin - Greatest hits





Hoax Call with Sarkozy...





* I don’t have any leanings for the US presidential elections, but if you were to put a gun to my head, then I guess Obama pips out McCain. : )

Biased Indian State

E: This is a biased state sheltering terrorists. Look what they are doing to churches in Mangalore.
B: You can’t equate terrorism to this.
E: And why not?
I sat (not so quietly) as the argument got heated up and touched several new fronts, digressed and finally died down over a sumptuous brunch.
* B and E are dating. And yes you guessed it, B is a ‘Hindu’ and E is a…. well yes, ‘Christian’.
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B: Man, that guy looks like a T******** (on seeing a man driving a car wearing a Arab Keffiyah head gear)
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A: Why is this happening? I am scared for my family. This is so unfair to the rest of us.
(He is a dear ‘Muslim’ friend of mine for the last 8 years, He called in, disturbed, after he read somewhere in Yahoo forums where someone wrote, if the terror strikes go on, “Godhra to hona hi hain”)
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It’s a topic very close to my heart. And something I feel strongly about at several levels. We live in an increasingly fragmented society. The bias towards certain people/sections of the society is almost inherent and subconscious. As you stand judging people according to the facial hair growth and skull caps, it will almost take you by surprise. Why should you judge?
Today, the Indian state is a mere shadow of its former secular self. I always used to think that India had done a remarkable job surviving given its inherent diversity and the problems that come up with it. This belief was based on the fact that India is surrounded with nation sates which are on the verge of imploding because of civil unrest (Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Maynamar, Bangladesh etc.). This thought also had its roots in the fact that while certain subsections of the Indian society might be prejudiced, Indian Netaji(s) were at large was secular due to fear of being labeled communal by the extremely large cross section of society. In this age of vote bank politics, you can’t afford to lose votes. Sadly that argument has turned on its head, and communal politics is bringing in more voters than ever before. Today our society is a more fragmented and fractured than ever before.
Why? Recently publicly available facts show that the police are extremely quick on identifying “masterminds” and suspects they just happen to ‘encounter’. Attacks on the Christian Churches are extremely shameful, and what makes it worse is there is no public apology from the State or any convincing action taken to stem these shameful acts. It all is fairly reminiscent of the state sponsored carnage in Godhra. Although, the Nanavati Commission, gave a clean chit to Mr. Modi, the entire episode reeks of state sponsored communal riots.
Am I being cynical? No. The State has displayed its bias time and again by letting Bajrang Dal run amok with its moral police agenda. This right wing outfit is an offshoot of RSS, and believes that our State is soft and reluctant to come down hard on “terrorists” and “anti-national” elements.

Swapan Dasgupta, a journalist and BJP ideologue,

Rioters cannot be equated to terrorists ….. The Indian State is not a neutral state and has multiple levels of biases; it is also not an efficient state and a source of harassment for all its citizens, regardless of caste and creed.

Huh? Really? Are we extremely myopic in our view of Bajrang Dal activities? I don’t remember much media coverage on a certain blast in Kanpur, in which 2 Bajrang Dal sevaks blew themselves up while making grenades? Or a certain terrorist network of Hindu extremists in Maharashtra planning to target mosques while pretending to be Muslims?
Media is definitely responsible and has been callous in its portrayal of the story thus far. There is extremely unbalanced coverage. And that is why an increasingly large section of the society feels alienated and views state as biased. Media should play a leading role to bring politicians who harbor outfits like Bajrang Dal / SIMI to book. Also people in power who disseminate information based on their personal prejudices should instantly be asked to step down.
Do not get me wrong. I am not supporting anyone here. While I am equally against all terrorist strikes in which innocent civilians suffer. But this post is not about that. I am increasingly disturbed by the perception which calls for all terrorists being labeled as Muslims. All Muslims are not terrorists. A terrorist has NO religious leaning. It’s more of an extremist outlook which is not perpetuated by any religion. And that is why, I will not shy away of equating Bajrang Dal as a terrorist outfit. Yes, planting bombs does not probably measure up to riots is what you will say. India has suffered long and hard at the hands of these outfits and their guerrilla tactics. But what we certainly do not need is communal unrest within the country. If left unchecked we could seriously implode under the weight of our religious biases. Regardless of how things play out (fingers crossed), India’s secular credentials have definitely taken a serious hit!

P.S : A special thanks to Madame Pixiedust, for the numerous enlightening discussions on the subject matter. They definitely helped. : )

Love hurts??

Came across this, what say you? :)

Bang Bang Bangalore and some randomness!

It’s been a tiring week. My flat mate is headed to London, courtesy his company for a long duration! We are all happy, wait! That means we have to do the whole house hunting bit all over again! And we did some house hunting.

• Bangalore property rates are completely insulated from subprime crises which is affecting everything world over! Or so it seems with the astronomical amounts some of these guys are quoting.

• You are better off being a vegetarian, cause that increases your chances by 25%

• Being a “hindu” (yes you read that right), adds up for another 5%.

I woke up this Saturday to find some Kannada movie being shot on the roof of my house (not kidding!) Apparently, the producer is childhood chum of my landlord! Let me know if you guys want premiere tickets!

I could not catch the Dramanon play this week (Yeah, work again..!), but I have been hearing good things. And it was yet another whirlwind, humbling week at the stock markets! So for all those who burnt their fingers, hold on for a bit. And for those who think that it’s the right time to enter, do not bottom fish (yet)! If you are a seasoned guy in it for long-term, go for sound fundamentals and business value proposition!


* Yes, by now you must have noticed a new layout. Do not ask! Let me know what you think though(Does it load up right, readable??). I would like to work on the fonts and the Background colors..! Hmm… gah ! I try hard to bring simplicity to my life, but it deserts me! :(

** Update 1: This layout may not work in all display resolutions, Working on a fix. :)

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