Diwali..

It was Diwali last week - even though it was my first away one from home it was a rather happy week with some great moments :)

And top of that list was the wonderful Diwali celebrations we had at our home - 2148 Oak Street - as for the first time ever I was part of a Diwali Aarti; and what more, youtube was our lead pandit :D

Bhai Log - at 2148 Oak Street :)

A lot of effort went into the party - the house was cleaned, food stuffs were bought and some amazing Indian food was dished out in our very own kitchen.. The party ran till 3am as we were totally overcome by the Diwali spirit.. 

And later in the week got better, I got to see my niece :D :D My bhabhi came to LA with her PhD advisor for a week-long seminar. It was great to see her and my niece - completed the family feeling on Diwali.

My niece strikes a pose :)

She's enjoying the company of Uncle J, even as Marilyn Monroe looks on :)

She was staying at a hotel in Hollywood, whose walls adorned a lot of movie-related photographs. One of Marilyn Monroe can be seen above.. Bhabhi's parents had accompanied her to LA and her brother and his wife joined us during the night. They also have a daughter. Fair to say that my niece and my Bhabhi's niece, with a combined age of less than 3 years cooked quite a storm during the night :D
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Interestingly, my Bhabhi's brother is a PhD, his wife is a Physician and of course my bhabhi and cousin are both PhD students. So I was in very august company for a few hours. Hoping to draw some inspiration there :D

And also I won myself the offer of a trip to Hawaii form my Bhabhi - condition being I must wind a life partner to go on that trip with :P I guess I should use this offer as a bargaining tool to win over potential suitors :D

And after I came back, there was the tailgating at the USC v Stanford NCAA football game at the LA Coliseum. What amazing atmosphere - people here really do well at setting up an atmosphere.

Balloons in USC colors..

Last time I had seen a game but not been to tailgate, this time I did the opposite. It was the wrong game to miss though - USC took Stanford, unbeaten this year, to 3 over times before tiring out. Hopefully next time I will watch the game and tailgate as well..

Happy Birthday sis :)

Happy Birthday Sis :)

Love you :)

Gameday, B'day and The Rainy Day

To say that I have much to write and too little time would be an understatement. So here's a post that should have been here 3 weeks ago :P

I went to see a (American) Football match at USC's stadium - the aptly titled LA Coliseum.. I had gotten a free ticket to the USC v Arizona Univ game from where I work part-time and went for the experience - and what an experience... To say that Americans know how to enjoy a sport would be putting it all too mildly...

To begin with, they didnt seem too interested at getting into the stadium even, simply taking in the atmosphere from outside. But slowly and steadily they began to take seats.. To be honest, I had a horrible time in first half - had no idea about the game and was sitting too far up in the stands (as my complimentary tickets allowed :P) But by the second half I was just a row from the action as I was allowed to make my way down to the student section..

And what atmosphere, or rather Maa-haaul as my roomies would have called it :D. .. Nearly all spectators were in cardinal and/or gold - USC's colors and cheered on by the cheerleaders in front of us were kicking up quite a storm - home support like it should be!!

Something really interesting about the stadium seemed to be a sun deck behind one of the touch down places - the place had been allocated to the USC band, and big-spending ticket holders :P.. The band was in fine form throughout... And so were the cheerleaders and the mascat - the horse Traveller.. Traveller ran around the stadium every time USC did something special..

But the best part was -- coming on TV, TWICE!!! and oh yeah, I was also showed on the GIANT SCREEN  at the stadium when that happened,\... The next week, a couple of people from my part-time job even recognized as the guy on the giant screen - as Furobiker would say, main to star ho gaya :D :D

I thoroughly enjoyed myself, literally dancing in the aisles :D

And a little after that was THE Birthday.. of a close friend my roommates, in a house we frequent even otherwise.. What a party did we have!! Details? Some things are best left unsaid :P

And later that week was my first experience of a rainy day here at USC.. What sublime sublime weather!! The drizzle felt great - everything looked oh so awesome in green... Nothing beats rain as the perfect weather but LA just doesnt get enough of it - As our Prof said that day, "we just had all of LA's monsoon" :P :P
But it was a special rain though.. Towards the evening, news came that Steve Jobs had expired.. It had rained  right across California that day; but hasn't since... Guess the heavens were crying - made for an outstanding weather though..

And sadly, Steve Jobs wasnt the only great guy to die this week. Dennis Ritchie, Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi and Jagjit Singh have all left for heavenly abode this month.. May their souls rest in peace..

PS> #nowPlaying Hothon se choo lo tum by Jagjit Singh...

Smile nahi toh Smiley sahi :D

I have been in LA for about 2 months now. Fair to say, homesickness has well and truly arrived :P So while I speak with my parents every other day, and try to see them on Skype (whenever their internet/mic/speakers are working :P) there are whole lot of wonderful people who  I no longer get to see with any sort of regularity. Having spent the best part of last 2yrs in their company, sharing their joys and sorrows, capturing them on camera, laughing with them and indulging in some of the most amazing bakar I could come up with -well, I really miss 'em.

And so here goes a big thank you to dear Internet for keeping them around :D Unki smiles nahi toh Smileys hi sahi :D

Thankfully my life has some real smiles as well and is not stuck on smileys... Everyday here brings something different to smile about - Today being Friday, the greeting (from some complete strangers) of "Happy Friday, Have a Great Weekend.." definitely gave me something to smile about :) But the absolutely hilarious moment was when I was filling up a form to get myself photo ID, which required a guardian's signature for ID for a sub-18 yr old's driving license - "In case they have joint custody, both signs are required" :D  Oh America, poor you :P

On a slightly different note, my encounters with USC continue to be awesome  - In the week week gone by I saw first hand Videshi movie making (albeit those of cinema students here and not a Hollywood blockbuster :P ) and gyrated ridiculously :P, after what felt like an awfully long time, to Bollywood music at an Indian students association party (not the most happening party though).. And that wasnt all - I discussed linguistics, American journalism, (haywire) immigration laws and the world's view of USA with a fellow student worker, who is studying journalism.

First to the movie making: The idea was to shoot a restaurant scene where a police brings a handcuffed con-man and asks him to share some details. They probably took just 10mins of footage in 4 hrs of trying :P - Setting up lights, fixing camera positions - the scene was shot twice with 2 different angle, across and behind, and I am guessing it will be used one after the other. Interestingly, a third artist was used when shooting from behind one of the people to make it show that there were people in restaurant.


The most interesting thing in the last two weeks was undoubtedly the conversation with the journalism student - her knowledge of the world was excellent - she knew Latin and had even had a go at Hindi as part of her Linguistics class (which sounded like a key application of CFG form compilers). Being an undergrad student here in USC sure opens up people's minds :D

There was also the small matter of a really deep fear coming into fruition, one so deep I couldn't even have imagined it happening, thankfully no harm done :P

"No Complaints"...

The Monday gone by was the Labor Day here in the US. That meant that it was a long 3-day weekend. One of my room-mates' sister was here for the same. And on Sunday night, we all went out to Santa Monica to have ice-cream at a very famous place. There was a huge line - ten times the length of the shop - outside the place :D But the ice-cream was totally worth the wait :) Thereafter, we drove up to within a mile of the Hollywood Sign, at about midnight.. The iconic letters looked beautiful in the night light..

On my first shift at my part-time job thereafter, my co-worker asked what I did at the weekend and I told him  After that I asked him how he spent the weekend - and he said he worked on two of the three days. But he finished it by saying that he had "No complaints".. The reply certainly set me thinking.. I had been told a couple of days ago that I manage to find depressing stuff in all things. But, I am very adept at making myself feel happy whenever I can.. I can control my mind.. Yet, and I guess that's the big point, never have I ever said "No complaints"..  Two simple words with very deep connotations..

A couple of other interesting things have also happened over the last couple of weeks..  I found someone rather similar to Aamir Khan's Rancho in 3 Idiots :P .... There is this Chinese girl who lives near my house, so we run into each other in the university bus a fair bit.. Now, what she does is that she comes to attend the class on Operating Systems - she isnt registered for it but just likes the subject so is there without fail.. Apart from that, she told me, she has also attended a class on Screenplay in the Cinematic School!! She said she liked that class too but it was too long - 4 hrs - due to an included movie screening.. (Me thinks it would be a fun class :) )

And I guess one last thing I should note is the "Please and Thank You " culture, here in LA, or at least in USC. Everyone is really polite and helpful here, and almost seem sorry if you are made to wait before your work is done. That is really good to see..

PS> I also had an Amreeki Paratha with choori and kaanta, or Pancake with a fork and knife : D Its good but not even a patch on our dear desi home-cooked Parantha :D 

Der Lagi Lekin.. #ZNMD

It has been a long time since my last post - the hectic start to life as a grad student is to blame for that. I finally watched Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara after landing in LA and totally loved.

More than anything else, it is the song "Der Lagi Lekin.." that I cant get out of my head. It would be truly awesome I could feel the peace of mind that is displayed by Hrithik's and Farhan's character by speaking to Katrina and Deepti Naval, respectively.

The lyrics of the song are so beautiful that they give me the goosebumps every time I hear the song. My favorite lines from the song are:
"Koi sunaye joh, Hasti muskarati kahani
Kehta hai dil, Main bhi sunu...

Aanson ke moti ho, Jo kisi ke nishani
Kehta hai dil, Main bhi chunu..."

It really would be wonderful to find magic in someone's story and see pearls in someone's tears. Whenever I listen to this song I think how wonderful would be the day if I could say "Maine ab hai jeena seekh lia.."

PS> I found the movie so wonderful that I even wrote a piece for the university's newspaper's, Daily Trojan, Movies blog imploring American students to see this amazing Hindi movie. Sadly my editor felt the movie is too old to be covered - Koi nahi I can post it here :D

Here it is:

Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, loosely translated as We Only Live Once, is a Hindi movie, which has done remarkably well even in the US. Directed by Zoya Akhtar, the movie released last month and received an impressive global response. The movie’s storyline, based on the theme of male bonding, transcends language barriers. The movie’s strong IMDB rating of 8.2 – one of the highest for a non-English movie – is a fair indicator of its popularity.

The movie is the story of three friends – Arjun (played by Hrithik Roshan), Imran (Farhan Akhtar) and Kabir (Abhay Deol). After Kabir is engaged to Natasha (Kalki Koechlin), the three of them decide to honor their pact of a going on a three week long bachelor trip to Spain. Each of the three is allowed to use one adventure sport, which the other two must also undertake to strengthen the bond of their friendship.

In Spain, the trio meet Laila (played by Katrina Kaif), who is their deep-sea diving instructor and who strongly believes in enjoying life to its fullest. Laila’s happy-go-lucky nature is in stark contrast to those of the main protagonists – each of whom is grappling with inner demons. Over the course of their Bachelor trip they slip deep into the sea, dive from the sky and go bullfighting; and eventually overcome their deepest fears.

An idea about the movie’s ability to overcome language barriers can be gauged from a delightful scene in the movie, where Imran is cuddling up to his Spanish lover Nuria, played by Spanish actress Ariadna Cabrol. The two lovers do not understand each other’s languages – she only speaks Spanish, while he only understands Hindi and English. Yet, when he pours his heart out, in Hindi, she understands how tense he is and consoles her, in Spanish. And he is touched by it and is thankful to her.

The most praised aspect of the movie has been the soulful Urdu poetry of Imran’s character, penned by his real-life father Javed Akhtar. The poetry has been played as a part of background score and adds infinitely to the movie’s appeal.

Another much loved aspect of the movie has been the cinematography covering Spain as a delightful tourist destination. The wonderful streets, the deep sea and the skydiving sequence have all been delightfully covered as the leading trio go around the country.  

With its beautiful locales, strong characterization and soulful background score - the Indian movie is definitely one that should be seen by all cinema lovers, irrespective of whether they know Hindi or not.

Here’s a little sample of some of the most fascinating poetry from the movie:
Jab jab dard ka baadal chaya

Jab ghum ka saya lehraya

Jab aansoo palkon tak aya

Jab yeh tanha dil ghabraya

Humne dil ko yeh samjhaya

Dil aakhir tu kyun rota hai…

Duniya mein yunhi hota hai

Yeh jo gehre sannate hain

Waqt ne sabko hi baante hain

Thoda ghum hai sabka qissa

Thodi dhoop hai sabka hissa

Aankh teri bekaar hi nam hai

Har pal ek naya mausam hai

Kyun tu aise pal khota hai

Dil aakhir tu kyun rota hai …

Living in LA between an ocean and a desert, with hills for company :)

So I am here at Los Angeles. It was a long journey, with three well distributed flights - 5.40hr from Delhi to Singapore, 7.40hr from Singapore to Tokyo and 9hr40 from Tokyo to LA :P

Me @USC :)

To say that USC is an international university would be an understatement - it takes in more foreign students every year than any other university in the US. And my first few days here have been nothing if not full of international exposure :p. My first visit to the university campus laid down the marker to be honest. While looking for a photocopying machine I ran into a couple of Frenchmen who were also looking for the same. They are here on a semester-long exchange program from their French B-School. The first thing I was asked after I told them I was from India was if I played field hockey. Woah, I thought, Europeans talking about hockey!! Even we dont do that much back home in India, unless we are playing Pakistan :D Apparently T really enjoyed playing hockey and had seen some big stars play in the European league. And the surprise didnt end there -  he had even played cricket!! When I finally asked him if he had played football (or, soccer as its called here) he told me he didnt like it much because it is a very rough game. It was quite interesting to speak with a French guy who would rather play hockey and cricket than football!! A slight shame was that he was unaware of Major Dhyan Chand's iconic statue in Austria. He was also surprised to know that Delhi's hockey stadium, named after the great man, has a capacity of 25000 ppl - about 30 times that of the stadium in his city :p

The next day I ran into a drunken immigrant who seemed to think I owned the shop next to the bus stop :p Wonder what gave him the idea? :p The same day I received a Namaste from a local bus driver - he was very helpful too and guided me to the nearest eatery, something that my grumbling stomach badly wanted :p
Earlier that day, me and my roommate had helped a Vietnamese student open her bank account. Suffice to say the international nature of the university pretty much hit me in the face straight up :P And then, something something else hot me - the jetlag and the gigantic 1230hr time difference from Delhi. I would sit somewhere and couldnt keep my eyes open.

That weekend I went to the Gurdwara here- the langar was awesome :D. I also went to the Griffith Observatory thereafter and bought a ticket for the space presentation there but pretty much slept right through it :p Only remember the last part - the orator said, "We are all made from star dust. So when we travel to the space in our space trips, with our telescopes and in our minds, we are going home." (Note to self - Visit the Nehru Planetarium next time I am home in Delhi :D )

The view from Griffith Observatory - with downtown LA in background

And the other side offered a good view of the world famous Hollywood Sign!!

Hollywood Sign!!

The next week the experiences continued - this time at the International Student Orientation at the university. And that brings us to the title of this post. By a stroke a chance, I seated myself on the same table for lunch as the guest speaker for the orientation herself. She was one of the Board Members of the Alumni Association and enlightened us with some interesting facts about the city of Angels during lunch. She said that LA witnesses weather unlike any other city because it has the Pacific and sea-breeze on one side and the Nevada desert and its hot winds and the other. So it is bright and sunny here and there is hardly any rainfall. And to top it all off, the Big Bear mountain in the vicinity offers snow-capped peaks near Christmas time even as Malibu Beach enjoys a warm sunshine - All in the same city :O

Beach, Ocean, Hills and Skyscrapers: LA has it all :)
(Taken at Santa Monica Beach)

 She also said that public transit here is awful - made me feel happy that the Metro back home in Delhi ensures Delhites can never complain about public transit being poor :)

What was also interesting during the orientation was that all the students working with the orientation team were undergrads, and seemed to be lively personalities and studied subjects such as East Asian Culture, Theatre and Cinema.  The self-confidence that those guys portrayed left me wondering if any undergrad, or grad student for that matter, in India could be so self-assured. And to think that I am a good three years elder to them, with an year-and-a-half industry experience, but nowhere as self-confident as them.
The orientation day also saw me meet more foreign students - including a Chinese student who, although was not good with English, was here to study Music. Wow, I thought!! A piano player coming across the world to study music - just incredible.

Also, met a Mexican student and discussed food - she really liked Indian food with all its likeness to Mexican food in terms to spices (something I was able to observe that first-hand when I ate at a a Mexican place the next day :) ). She also said LA is like half-Mexican and half-everyone-else - and in my little experience here so far, hard to disagree with that :D

The next day, as the Orientation continued, I met a Dutch grad student here to major in Communications. She used to work at the Amsterdam Arena back home in the Netherlands and it was great to discuss football with her :) Though I have to say she didnt really want to talk about her team's defeat in the WC final :P But she quite liked it when I told her how I had lost a bet, and made of several friends lose it too :p, when the Dutch beat Brazil at the QF stage :p :D (Didnt discuss the FB backlash though :p)

A big difference in LA from Delhi is of course the traffic system. Pedestrians have the right of way here (a HUGE change from Delhi :p ) but they can be fined as high as $200 if found to be abusing this right by jaywalking!! And of course, US follows a left-hand drive system. So to take a left you basically have to wait in the middle of the road for the traffic going straight to slow down and give you space to move. I have absolutely no doubt that such a system cant work in an overpopulated India, where everyone is in a hurry - all the time :P

This post is already very long but my experiences arent done yet :p - I have also enjoyed the company of some amazing fellow Indians as well. The bakar at my resistance has been amazing - covering topics ass diverse as US and Indian education systems, the economic recession here, and Anna Hazare and corruption in the country - there have been some heated discussions I must say :p A weird thing here though has been the gutbaazi - Chinese students stick with other Chinese students, Koreans with other Koreans and Indians with other Indians - with other people from their own regions.

My classes will start next week so I will probably not get time to write again - agle 2-3 baar ki kasar nikal di issi post mein :P

PS> A big discussion is on again here :P

Transiting from T(SC) to U(SC), and taking three months for it..

T and U are adjacent letters in the English alphabet, however, my job at TSC and my current status as a graduate student at USC are as different environments as possible. The change in a single letter took me a huge three months to complete. But as I flew from Delhi to LA, I couldnt help but look back at the days at my first job.

My year-and-a-half-and-a-week-and-a-half at TSC had been a most memorable experience where I have learnt so much more than I could ever imagine and made such wonderful friends that even my co-travelers on the flight to LA reminded me of them :P The three months have been an interesting time; at times I have felt like I am still an employee at TSC, albeit one without work - and without pay, obviously :p - simply because I have been in such close contact with my friends there that I have felt their presence all around me. Sometimes it has scared me because I wonder if it is unhealthy for me, an opinion that several of friends seemed to have as well, simply because that part of my life has now ended and a new has begun. And yet, I have never been able to do it. In mid-June, I closed my office bank account as a step towards closure - not very successful in attaining closure though. But now that I am here in LA it will finally begin to happen.

But that is no way to say that I want to let go of my friends. They are well and truly all over my thoughts. The memories of my time at office are amazing to say the least. I tried to get them all these presents with me as well but only a few could make it with me across the Pacific (due to airline baggage policy :p)

Some great memories from office

Girl Next Door is one of my favorite movies and I love the part where towards the end when Emile Hirsh's character recounts the three things from high school that "I will always remember...".  For me, TSC was no less than a school - the one that taught me an insane amount about myself. And as I will leave it behind to start a new life, I will be remembering more than just 3 things :P

I'll always remember...

• AK's smiles
• GO's thoughts
• Ze Gang!!

                  The "idhar aa" to AS; and standing at my desk and observing the office 
                  Tech gupshup with RN
                  Talking to PS

• Wittiness of Furobiker
• The amazing memorabilia I collected at my office desk
• Bakar and Calivin and Hobbes with AM
• NB and SG, and clicking pics of RB :p
• Discussing movies with SR
• Working with the MD
• My baymates - RM and AMa; the emptiness of the bay and later PS
• 240 
• Cabbies - esp. RR 
• Lancedowne and the office parties

And of course, I will remember the fun I could have on weekends - life as an MS student might not give me time for that :p

And other than all this I will remember pretty much everything, on and off :p

Signing Off,
An ex-TSCite and a brand new Trojan :)

Fun with a Schoolmate, College Mates and in the Air :)

I went on a trip to Bangalore and Goa to meet an old school friend and slightly newer college friends - my last outing outside of Delhi before I fly to LA to commence my MS.. And it was every bit as memorable as I had hoped with even the flights to Bangalore and back to Delhi being wonderful as well :)

It didnt start too well - my flight to Banagalore was delayed by 90 mins and then by another 40 mins as I was on my way there in the metro. The second delay turned out to a blessing in disguise as I needed those 40 mins to get to the airport on time because I had no idea that I would need to take a shuttle from metro station to my airport terminal :p And not just that, the delay allowed me the company of a complete stranger whom I later found was supposed to fly at a flight 2 hrs later than mine. Agar woh flight delay nahi hoti toh itni amazing conversation miss ho jati meri :)

The stranger was a Sardarni about my age and as I found out - extremely aggressive and feisty even more so than my former cab-mate (never thought I could ever say that :p).. We started talking after she saw my book (Agatha Christie's Unfinished Portrait) and asked if I had another. I gave her that one only as I was getting bored anyway :p In less than 5 mins she was also bored and we started talking :p She told of her life experiences - which have been plentiful despite her being an year younger to me..

One incident she told that kind of seemed typical of her was when she, and a friend following her lead, slapped the driver a van full of ruffians at a red light in Delhi. She said that everyone weighted as the light turned green and then red again even as she kept letting it rip, verbally this time :p, at the people in the van. And no one blew their horn - which is amazing for Delhi..

She was going to Bangalore to visit her boyfriend, no no, fiancé as she corrected herself :p - who, I was surprised to learn was eight years elder to her. And this wasn´t the only difference in them - their paring seemed to personify opposites attract - her being brash and him being sedate..

I guess the thing I liked best is when she said she always thought it would be great when she would walk next-to-next with a Turban-clad Sikh - Gave me hope :D Though I think I should take it with a pinch of salt as the boy she is marrying, although a Sikh, is not Turban- clad - Hopes belied :P

After a lot more chatter,  she even guided me to the bus shuttle service, once we landed at Begaluru, that I needed to take to reach my friend - Hoping we meet again on another flight :) The airport reminded me of the one in Chennai..

And that friend is the next fun part of the trip - my schoolmate Sanjay whom I was meeting after 5 years.. Had a great time with him - he had a nice place with a wonderful terrace full of plants and greenery.. I also came to know that Bengaluru had such great weather because of its altitude - all the roads were inclined as well. The traffic was pretty bad though - as bad as rush hour traffic in Delhi :p and that too on a Saturday morning :p Amongst the things I liked abt Begaluru was the wonderful, and much cheaper, non-vegetarian food.. Food really was awesome :D

We ended the day with an hour long gupshup at a park - watching kids enjoy their swings.. In the meantime he got a call from his gf and when he told her that he was sitting in the park with a Jaspreet - I needed to make myself heard and let her know that I was a guy :D

In the night, I bid him goodbye and boarded the bus to Goa - I was joined on the bus by college mate Karan and we had a great time chatting up in the bus before we slept - had a real heart-to-heart over topics not to be discussed in a public domain :p

Green Goa :)

It was a long time before we reached Goa and even longer before we reached our other college friends at the Viva Baga in North Goa.. I had been to Goa last year in the same season as part of office trip so at every step there was a comparison to that :p

Last time the ride across Goa to go to a tourist destination had been enjoying the company of amazing people, whom I am still great friends with despite having left office. This time it was about enjoying the place - which was frankly beautiful with all the monsoon-induced greenery :)

We went to Colva Beach near Madgaon and stopped at several places in between to enjoy the scenery.. The Beach was beautiful - with wonderful white sand and some great shells as well - some of which made their to our hotel room through a couple of my friends´ shorts :P

On the way back we missed a cut and decided to take a ferry and then ride across Old Goa with no street lights to get back to the hotel - that was fun :) Later that night me and two others hit the Baga Beach at 130 in the night - The sound of the waves was just wonderful :)

Next day we went to a really old Church - beautiful place :) And then it rained - powerfully, beautifully and spread greenery all around :)

A Delightful Sight En-route to Aguada

 It made the drive to Aguada Fort simply superb - once we got there we had to get the camera out even though it was raining cats and dogs :P

Aguada Fort

The flight back was equally enjoyable - saw Zabaan Sambhal Ke on in-flight entertainment and captured the sunset on camera from above the clouds :) I had been disappointed to miss out on the sunset at the beach due to clouds but no such problems when you are miles above the earth and can see above the clouds :)

Up in the air

It was a great trip - a kind of farewell India tour that I will remember for a long time.. Just 5 days are left before I fly away to LA but somehow I am feeling like a tourist - maybe that´s because I want to come back in December - and I will :) AM a little scared about my ability to cope after 2 years away from studies and more importantly from my field.. The magnitude of MS hasnt sunk in yet. But till then I will feel happy about the fun I had in Goa and Bengaluru.. and while I was in the air :)

Of Going Away and Memorable Clicks :)

It has been a very hectic last 10 days or so and the coming 10 days are unlikely to be any different.. The reason? It has finally hit me that I am going to LA for an MS in Computer Science, and it has felt weird :/ Right from picking up my visa-stamped passport on July 7 I have been in a mad rush to get things done.. I have also blown a lot of money to buy stuff -- clothes, books, specs and stationary - MS is already a costly affair and it hasn't even started :p

More than all this, however, it was during my farewell trip to Ludhiana to meet my Naani that it really sunk in that I was going to go away now.. My Naani lives with my Maasi and at their place also saw my other two maasis for possibly the last time in a long time.. The late night gupshup was enlivened with old black and white photographs that were passed around.. It really is amazing that in these days of DSLRs and Digicams those 2x2 prints from film rolls of now dead cameras produced photos far more wonderful than I can describe.. There was a photo of my dad which was sent to mom´s family to arrange the marriage :p; there were photographs from my maasi´s wedding; and there were pics of my mom, my maasis and their cousins in various stages of childhood.. It was one such picture that really caught my eye - my maasi and my mom dancing and singing on stage in their pre-teen years (I am hoping to get hands on that gem pretty soon :) )...

Another thing that caught my eye was the wedding card of my maasi - it said clearly - "Outstation guests are requested to bring their beddings" :D I was told all marriages of that time had such a message as ppl typically stayed for a week atleast to be a part of a family wedding and they were too many to manage by the hosts alone :p

In the past week I also clicked a couple of photos that a few years down the line would bring a smile to my face or those of my descendants :D - there is one of my cousin´s daughter - Jia (christened chawani by her daadi despite being born in US :p) (who was born in March)..

Jia

and there was my photo with kids of my distant cousins (mere mausa jee ke bade bhai ke ladke :p) ..

Uncle J is quite popular with the kids :p

 The little girl in the pic here, Harsha, maybe only 4 years old but the run through she gave of her Mom's touchscreen phone would put big salespersons to shame :p ..

I think kids are the most wonderful subjects for a photographer - their being in a photo makes it amazing :) While we are talking about kids lets not forget my niece who was born in February last year - Surilli - I came to know that she can now speak (sadly haven't heard her myself yet :( ) - I have taken more solo pics of her alone than all my  friends combined from my erstwhile office (and that is saying something :p) ... As the first kid of a close relation of my generation she will be always be extra special...

Surili

Coming back to the feeling of going away - I guess I have too much preparatory work to do to have the time to be dreading the going away.. It would be fair to say, though, that I am looking forward to the new beginning in my life and am really excited about it .. And oh yeah, I also made a foray into the kitchen on Sunday and cooked up an awesome Chicken dish with gravy (to be honest I was only assisting my mother :p) .. It was a confidence booster and I hope to do well in the kitchen in the near and the not-so-near future :)

Main bhi cook :D

Of Bhailog :)

First of all, Happy Birthday Anoop Bhai :) This blog came up after something you said to me a little over an year ago - As I look back at the wonderful times we've all had at your place and look forward to being your roommate in a month's time - I thought I'll take this opportunity to finally write the blogpost that's been a draft for,well, nearly an year...

This is about that first game of football the four of us (Jeb, Lamba,Anoop and me) played together outside of school - at Anoop's place. It was the Christmas Carnival at school and we're in 11th or 12thstandard and bored too hell having been to so many carnivals before that :p So we left early and started a game of football at the cemented parking area inside Railways' society near school where Anoop lived. One guy kept goal, one delivered the cross and the two in the middle sometimes collaborated to score and sometimes fought against each other for the ball. There was this house right next to the goal marked wall - the owner was away but there was a servant there...countless times the ball went it - sometimes the servant retrieved it and sometimes we jumped fence :p

That little game was the start of truckload of more such days - we graduated to playing in the Railways Eco Park nearby and retrieving balls from the railway track way below :p - We played multiplayer FIFA and ek doosre ki behisaab khili udai :p (Trashtalk Rules :D) Still remember how we used to look for occasions when all 4 of us would be in same city :)

Anoop moved from Railways colony to Safdarjung to Gurgaon (still remember walking under Metro track for half an hour trying to find your home and describing my location through a pillar number :p ) and we continue to meet :) And now he is in LA and for the first time in 2 years all four of us will be in the same country together - It is fair to say ke Anoop has the been nothing short of a glue finding us four together over all these years (more than half a dozen since we left school) - Here's hoping for more of the same :)

Happy Birthday Anoop Bhai - cant wait to be your roomie :)

Of Rains and Feeling Sad :(

Fair to say this post left me feeling, well, a little low to say the least :( Looking back at that day I read this post, I'd been enjoying the early monsoon rains from my balcony and quite frankly, loving it :)
After I read this post I started feeling sad and the same rain now came to symbolize the heavens crying with me :( Isnt it weird that the same rain which can offer the most enjoyable expression

can also symbolise the crying in someone's memory who isn't around you anymore.

Its a dichotomy of irony I guess - the rather apt title of my friend's blog to which this post is a reaction.. I would say even Bollywood movies have brought this out - there are countless songs exhibiting a plethora of ideas associated with water and rains - from the overjoyed (Paani re paani tera rang kaisa..) to the sad (Lagi aaj saawan ki phir wo jhadi hai..) to the soulful (Paani paani re..) I guess its our characteristic as humans we feel how we want feel - the external environment can rarely change our innermost emotions - they just blend in and add to the joys or sorrows of our being..

PS> This post is undoubtedly incomplete without this song:

Cars 2 - Simply Brilliant!

I saw Cars 2 today and must say I was highly impressed  by the animated 3D action flick from Pixar. The attention to detail was simply unbelievable from the makers.

The movie had everything - Beautifully-directed chase sequences that would not look out of place in a James Bond movie, the lovable - if slightly dumb - friend getting to be the hero, sensational technology usage combined with some witty references to real and Pixar animated worlds..

One of my favorite was the reference to Gusteau´s (Ratatouille) as Gastow´s - a 5-star restaurant but with lights off.. Then there was the hairpin turn to describe the Imola racing track for Italy.. And there was Sumo wrestling done by cars wearing Mawashis..- While these are only 1 second long images - they showcase the brilliance of the movie.. And not too forget the wonderful portrayals of the Car-like British queen, her grandson saying ¨let´s go Grandma¨ and the knighthood ceremony.. And that of the Pope..

The movie is technically as good as it can be - Highlighted by the wonderful 3D portrayal of the TV coverage of a Grand Prix - the channel logo on top layer, the track behind it and the region´s natural beauty further behind a layer... Maybe it has a little to do with it being helmed by an Indian as the Technical Director - Apurva Shah :)
Needless to say, the movie is a must watch for all animation aficionados and for all those who want to see a great movie :) 
 

Of An Old Man at the Metro Station

I had a lot of fun yesterday - meeting some of my favorite ex-colleagues and visiting Ugrasen Ki Baoli and Jantar Mantar with them :) But this post is not about that.. After I bid goodbye to my office friends I was supposed to meet some of the people who are heading to USC with me. The CCD at the Rajiv Chowk Metro Station was our point of gathering, while I standing there with a couple of more ppl, waiting for the rest, ek uncleji - jhhola latkaye hue, wahaan aaye... He asked ¨Beta, Ramlila Grounds ke liye kahaan se jaana hoga?¨ ... The guy standing next to me answered his question and uncle ji moved on...

Now, he seemed about 75, with a jhola dangling from his right shoulder and he seemed to limping rather than walking as he moved away..  He was probably headed to Baba Ramdev´s fast at Ramlila Grounds... That was at about 6pm.. I came home late and was really tired to see the news - so one of the first things I did when I woke up was reach for the newspaper.. What I read was a bit of a surprise to say the least :p Apparently, Baba Ramdev had given an undertaking to the govt that the latter had accepted most of his demands and would take concrete steps to bring back black money to India. However, Baba hadn´t made this public and went ahead with his fast. Fair to say govt didnt like it :p

Let me clarify something at this stage, I have always felt that this fasting business to force into existence the Lokpal Bill is off the mark simply because it ain't democratic.. There is no man/woman of good enough integrity to write/implement a law like the Lokpal Bill, which would be above our constitution...

Back to the old man and the news - This was a man who could barely walk and was making his way to support the Baba, but the Baba was busy getting involved in a war of words with Hon´ble Union Minister Mr. Sibal for going back on his word, and letter...

I guess this is what we have come to in our beloved India - a lot of people have their hearts in the right place but our supposed 'guiding lights' have lost their fuses and just wont help us progress...

Of Staying in Touch and Wishing for the Right Things

My last post was the day after I resigned, a little over two months ago. A lot has happened since then.When I left my job the general emotion was that of happyness of looking forward to a new adventure with little sadness in leaving behind some amazing people - because I always knew they were important enough to me to stay in touch with them even after I leave my company.


I have been an unemployed youth for a month now and it has not quite been like how I thought it would be. For the first two weeks, I suffered from withdrawal symptoms - missing my everyday jibber-jabber was a little too much I guess :p I made a truck load effort to speak with the ex-colleagues I really cared about - calling them myself, sometime being disappointed with unanswered and unreturned calls - Not very pleasant :p

The prime idea behind the efforts was the knowledge that I would hibernate first thing I leave these ppl.. Fair to say, I didnt let that happen :p .. In the month gone by I have typed and received more emails and FB messages on a daily basis then I would get even at work :p (Some from ppl I didnt interact with much before I left or they did :p) My phone bill for the last month is the highest in an year :p But I am right there for everyone I care about :) Mission Accomplished :p :D

In other news, I got through to Univ of Southern Calif, LA in the US - an admit that I positively craved.. And what followed the admit was the coming true of the old saying - Be careful for what you wish for :p An admit to USC meant that I had to make a decision - cheaper Canada's serene study environment @ Mcgill or the bright lights of LA with a fight of a Master's course @ USC.. Needless to say, my poor decision-making history - as Chandler once said - scared the bajesus out of me - what if I chose the wrong place, what if the other is where I shd go? But this time I took the decision from the heart - c'mon I wasnt going to pass the opportunity to go Hollywood, even if it is for a MS program :p :D Georgia Tech are yet to reply though and I would probably go there if I get through - not wishing too hard for that though - itna lalach accha nahi :D

Amreeka, please grant me a visa on time :p :D

PS> Got a reject from Georgia Tech :p

Of Resigning

The last two days have been particularly emotional - they have contained both unparalleled elation and a weird sad feeling as well. I received my first admit on Tuesday night, it was from McGill University, Canada. How did it feel? Suffice to say I simply to leapt from my chair on reading the email :D :D It took me two minutes to figure out where my chappal had fallen :P

The admit was particularly sweet as it had come on a day that epitomised the bad parts of my office life - lack of job satisfaction and my anger at some people. The day had made me contemplate resigning and the admit seemed to be sign from God that This is it. So, despite parental advise to the contrary I went ahead and resigned yesterday - suiting up for the process :)

My admit and consequential resignation made it quite a joyful day in the morning - I received bear hugs (PS, RN, AM & HS), delighted side-hugs (AK & GO), the broadest smiles ever (AK & PS), the happy grins (GO, NB & SR) and a pair of thumping High Tens (NB) :D (Missed AS though, who was on leave :( ) But what gave it a weird feeling was the tears my exit brought to SG. It felt great that I had touched someone´s life so deeply that they were sad to see me go but I was really sad that she was crying :(

The weird feeling was accentuated in the afternoon when NB came to talk after she had received her last date. She seemed to be overcome by the emotion of leaving and gazed longingly at the office. It set me thinking too and made me realise what I would be missing in a little while. It made me do something I have wanted to do for seemingly ages - I hope it happens. AM saw the sadness mid-day and wondered what was wrong. I couldnt tell him. I have been waiting for an admit and my resignation for nearly 8 months and now it was here and I was struggling to be happy. By the end of the day, the happiness was still not back and the weirdness had set in.

I was speaking to DJ in the cab and the discussion steered towards superpowers at her attempts to blow up the traffic in front of us with her non-existent laser eyesight :P I said I would like the superpower to be happy all the time - that was only the second time I gave a thoughtful  answer to any such thing - something is seriously wrong with me :P (My two answers have been inspired by AK & GO)

As I write this it is early morning on Thursday, beginning of four days off from work, the weirdness is still there and it is expected to give way to sadness in the coming days and anxiety thereafter... Let´s see how it goes :) 

Of an eventful weekend

The weekend gone by proved to be one of surprises - some good and some really sad. The earthquake and the resulting tsunami in Japan were undoubtedly the sad ones. But there was some good news as well. I became an uncle for only the second time as NP became a proud Papa of a lovely little girl :D

Surili - 8 days after she was born

Iva - 8  hours after she was born

While Surili was born on 16 hours into second Saturday of February 2010, 'Iva' (or Chawani as her Grandma calls her :)) was born 11 hours into the second Saturday of March 2011 ,i.e., almost exactly 1 year and 1 month later. But the two were born in Gurgaon and Utah, respectively, so one of them will not have Saturday as day of birth :-P

Other than that it was a pretty sad weekend. I also read that Radhika Tanwar was shot dead near Satya Niketan overbridge. It was a kind of scary as I have been at that exact place almost countless times :(

The sad weekend continued into Monday where a terrible interview has me tethering on the brink of a reject from Oxford :( I am praying for a miracle now as that's the only thing that will get me an admit there :(

Japan continues to simmer though and I really hope that they come out of it alive and kicking. #PrayForJapan

PS> It was a reject :(

Shell-shocked by the Japanese Earthquake :(

Really sad to see the images of the devastation caused by the earthquake. It is at times like these that being a human being seems all too small :(

Japan is one of the places I want to visit at least once, just to see first hand how such a small nation could do things 15 years before anyone else did, despite being devastated by atomic bombs. Here's hoping they whip up some more more of that spirit and come out of it even stronger.

Football in the February Rain

On Feb 20, Dilli witnessed torrential rainfall for about 3 hours on Sunday evening, and I spent the whole of it playing football, around water puddles :D . I wouldnt say it was the greatest game ever played, but it sure was a lot of fun. Nimble footed star players falling for no apparent reason, other than the water on the ground :D. No old aunties/uncles to stop us from playing in the park. People falling when about to shoot. And not a single person getting out of the game without falling at least once. Suffice to say, it was a magnificent game of football :)

And how can I forget, the goal scoring celebrations. The slide-on-the-water was obviously the common way of expressing joy but the most amazing celebration was the ¨Dhobi Ghat¨, wherein the goalscorer would take off his training vest and put it in the water puddle and pretend to wash it like a Dhobi :). And oh yes, nichod it afterwards to complete the ablution :D

It was a memorable game of football and one that I am unlikely to forget in a hurry. Truly wonderful.

L'illusionniste - An animation like no other

Just finished watching L'illusioniste (or The Illusionist). It is a pre-dominantly silent animated feature. And the best part is the complete different set of animation style. This Oscar-nominated French production with hardly any similarities to "How to Train Your Dragon" and "Toy Story 3", the other two nominations for this year's Oscar for best animated feature. I have seen the other two as well but this one is incomparable.

The big difference is the animation style, which is more classic as the snap from the movie shows here. It reminded me of the animations Cartoon Network threw up some 10 years ago. This French production reminded me of Tin Tin's animated adventures. 

The most beautiful sight from the movie

As for the movie itself, it is a very slow but a truly beautiful movie about an Illusionist in the 1950s going from Paris to London to Scotland in search of audiences, which have seemingly been taken over by Music stars. He meets a young fan along the way who is mesmerized by his magic.

Its easy to see the movie's Oscar nomination - A classic animation style, a storyline capturing a different era with great ease and  a hauntingly beautiful melancholic ending. One thing though, even at a runtime of 75 minutes the movie seemed slow at times. But stick with it and its bound to be beautiful. 

Yeh Saali Zindagi - What A Movie!!

Went to see Yeh Saali Zindagi yesterday.. what a cracking movie!!! They dont make stuff like that no more! The dialogues were spot on and seemed to coming out straight form the heart at all times. I particularly liked how Irrfan's character (Arun) took jibes at Chitrangada's (Priti) for him helping her and still she sticking to Shyam.

Some of my favourite lines:

Arun (remembering Priti after being kicked) - Na woh muskarati aur na yeh sab hota

Arun (after Priti calls him asking for 15 crores) - Main apne baap ki kasam kha ke kehta hoon kii main nahi jaana chahta tha but gaadi apne aap ghum gai and mere haath khud hi steering wheel pe chal pade

Priti (when meeting Arun at Gangsters' hideout) - Paise kahaan hain?
Arun: Nahi hain
Priti: Kya??
Arun: Tumne fone par kahaan - Daddy, I am in trouble. I need money. I need 15 crores. Maine kahaan, main aa raha hoon maine ye thode hi kahaan ki main paise le kar aata hoon :p

Arun (to Priti, who was tending to him after realizing he had taken a bullet) - Tu yahaan kyun khadi hain, apne Shyam ke paas ja (what a jibe :D)

But the line that totally takes the cake - Arun (realizing his being shot) - Agar main mar jaata toh log kya kehte - Ashiqui mein maara gaya aur laundiya bhi nahin mili :D

And a dialogue that deserves special mention simply because every one at the audi laughed at it -
Head of Kidnappers' gang (Arunuday Sngh's character) to Priti when she asks him to let go Arun and not Shyam - Tu sagi kiski hain :D -- this is probably the most genuine dialogue I have ever heard in a Hindi movie

I guess what I really liked was the fact Arun survived and got his laundiya, and the fact that Shyam got a bullet to his butt :D

The movie is beautifully done and totally captivating.. A real edge of the seat thriller.

Of RM's engagement and working with the MD

RM got engaged last Friday (1st week of Feb). She was a yr senior to me in college, in my branch too. But that's not how we knew each other. She's the daughter of one my Mom's closest friends. To say I had been looking forward to her engagement would be an understatement. She had personally called me up two weeks prior and asked me to come and its not even as if we interact a lot. It felt great to be invited :)

I had been scared if I would be able to go as I had been assigned a project where the MD would be reviewing the final work. It scared me because the last time that happened I had to work 40 hours out of 60 from Sunday to Tuesday :(. No such problems this time though and the MD seemed happy enough with my work. I think I am enjoying working with MD. Its a great learning experience to be in a meeting with him and pick his brains. And what makes it easier is that I am not expected to know things :) So, no pressure, only learning :D

Going back to the party, it was a full on Punjabi bash with a DJ blaring and Chicken, Mutton and Fish dishes serving :D Unfortunately, all the people of my age at the party were engineers, especially the girls :p . So, all I wanted to do was meet the lovely bride-to-be, who, as is the custom at Indian engagements, showed up 3 hrs after the official time :p The poor groom seemed all too overawed by the proceedings, while RM was totally at ease and enjoying the limelight. I hope RM and her hubby-to-be have a great life ahead :D

An interesting thing at the party was the joke that I was next :) RM is only two years elder to me, precisely to the week too, but I am pretty much a kid to her. So it felt weird to be told by her Mom that a search for a girl for me is already ongoing  :)

Of the weekend when I was a kid again

I took the Friday off as I wanted to visit my Maasi and Naani in Meerut and boy was it the best leave I have ever taken!! The day started delightfully as I had SG's company on my bus ride to Meerut and it only got better from then. After a hearty lunch, which was specially prepared for me :) by my Maasi, it was time to relax. A mind-numbingly peaceful half an hour in the sunfed lawn at my Maasi's place felt so great that it brought a tear of joy to my bored-with-the-sight-of-computer-eyes. Pure ecstasy. Not to mention seeing my Naani after nearly 2 yrs was worth the visit alone.

Saturday was equally awesome as me Maasi and cousin went to see Yamla Pagla Deewana (hilarious!!). Guess Sunny Deol can even beat Rajnikanth when it comes to unreal action sequences!!

I was the youngest kid in Meerut, which made me feel wonderful. Guess that is why people need time off from work. To relax and come back happier.

As I got back home on Sunday, something even better was waiting, a game of FOOTBALL!! My first foray onto an actual pitch in nearly 7 months resulted in 3 assists and 4 goals!!

All in all it was a weekend like no other as I felt like a child again. The child who used to love going to Meerut and who used to play everyday during his vacations.

Felt wonderful. Felt delighted. Felt being a kid again. And simply loved it :D

Priceless is too small a word

There are good office days, there are bad office days and then there are days when it just doesn’t matter anymore. But there are also days where a few great moments blind everything out else in life, office or not. Just had those few great moments of my office life today. 

Sometimes you need to work overtime at office due to too much work. Ironically, that's when it hits me that that there's more to office than work. The people around me are simply awesome and it because of them that I can pull it off. Friday the 14th was a day that had everything - am email asking me to work on the weekend (and the cribbing that followed :p), an office lunch, some lovely ppl  walking up to my seat to chat :), and an email from my manager letting me know of a (female) neighbor :D coming to sit next to me next week.

But it all just fades in comparison to an impromptou photo session that captured my best time of the day - the post-lunch gupshup :) I know all too well that I will be working on the weekend. But I know what will get me through it.

So here's a big hug going out to the Ze Gang!!!

I wanna shriek

Something happened last week that reminded me of Kay Kay Menonś loud shriek in Gulaal. He uses it to clear his system. I want to do that too. So here goes nothing:

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA