Wi Fi'ed

Last evening, I went to my alma mater PEC which has seen unprecedented changes since my graduation. The whole college has got wiFi connectivity now. So you just go, open your laptop and start googling and orkutting and downloading songs or movies or software. As my cousin(who belongs to the present generation of pecobians) sat downloading 1 thing after other, I couldn’t help getting amazed at how far pecobians have come. In the lunch break during winters, you can see people sitting on the grass, in the sun with their cool lappies with DAP (Download Accelerator) working overtime. Hostellers have made separate rooms dedicated to online gaming. In the canteen, movies are floating in the air from 1 table to the other. Guys are just ‘pinging’ their friends in the class to ‘maaro’ their proxy. What a cool, hi-tech life – for all us pass outs to be envy!!!
Our time was different, you see. In the winters, under the sun, we just sat on the scooters in the parking, or on the grass in big groups, chatting and chatting and chatting. Add to it the occasional bursts of boisterous laughs. I struggle to remember what was there about which we could sit and talk whole day.
There was no dedicated room for gaming in the hostels but yes cricket and football used to be carried out in full enthu in the grounds just outside the hostel.
In the canteen, live music used to float around with a cool guy in the center with a guitar entertaining everybody, from KK’s yaaron to Nirvana’s Dive. Or else, drawing sheets were made (those are ideally meant to be made in drawing halls with drafter, scale etc.. but .. well.. ideally) which quite often ended up having oils marks of samosas or red marks of the sauce!
And proxies.. ahh! the proxies. Well ‘generally’, it was not needed to inform friends that they had to maaro proxy. They knew that if some one has not come and the proxy is possible then it has to be done (Sometimes at the expense of one’s own attendance)
Can’t resist to tell an incident when Singal sitting on my left said “Yes sir” and “Present Sir” in 3 different voices to consecutive roll numbers before me. I was laughing so hard that I missed mine!! But what the hell.. have we ever cared??
So, I don’t really envy the generation of today. Need I???

vo Raat..

From the archives
here comes one of my creations..

Vo 6 kitabein aur unhe pakde vo narm hath
Vo chehre par pyara sa bholapan aur saadgi uske saath
Vo jhuki jhuki palkeinLe gayi mera dil halke halke
Badlon ne bhi Dekhi hamari pehli mulakat
Aur baras kar bhigo di vo Raaat

Phir badi hamari mulakatein
Bhole nahi bhoolti vo meethhi batein
Kiya usse ek din apne pyar ka izehar
Aur kiye jeene marne ke vaade hazaar
Badlon ne bhi Suni hamari pyar bhari baat
Aur baras kar bhigo di vo Raaat

Phir vo din bhi aaya
Jab juda hua mujhse mera saya
Itna hi tha saath hamara
Bichda humse pyar hamara
Badlon ne bol di toote dil ki baat
Aur baras kar bhigo di vo Raat

Of Gifting Tag Heuer and Gurgaon

Since yesterday, large amount of air time and blog space must have been used to focus on the Kaun Banega Crorepati – SRK. From the rumors of a tiff between SRK and Big B, to analyzing how well the king has filled into Shehnshah’s shoes – there have been innumerable discussions. I saw it only for some time yesterday. Then it became a bit boring for me. SRK, I thought was falling prey to the overacting which incidentally has made him famous in films. May be it was a first day jitters for him too. He was trying to create humor, which sometimes was not there.
Today, I again watched the show and felt much better. But the incident which left me dumbfounded was when SRK gifted off his Tag Heuer 2000 Aquagraph watch worth Rs 1 lakh 28 Thousand to a contestant.
I just can’t resist comparing the two giants of film industry in the TV show. I guess had KBC been launched with Amitabh for the third time too, it would have been a disaster. Shahrukh has certainly brought in a difference with him. Giving massages to the contestants, warm hugs all around, decent sense of humor and most of all his knowledge regarding the accent and basic languages of so many different parts of the country is amazing. Yes, you can say that this is what he is being paid crores and crores of rupees but no matter how rich you are, it takes guts to gift your 1 lakh watch just like that. This spontaneity was absent during the Amitabh era – who was much more conservative – a fatherly figure quite opposite to the young exuberance of Shahrukh.
One thing – seeing the show, you are guaranteed to increase your knowledge. Not in the world I could have imagined that Gurgaon is Guru ka Gaon. I always thought the first half of the name came from Gurh (jaggery). But my brain databases were updated yesterday when I came to know that the city(or village in earlier times) was gifted by Yudhishtra to Dronacahrya as a Guru Dakshina.

Signatures..

As I digged into the archives to find an old mail, I came across a variety of signatures which I have used in my mails. Stark contrasts mark the signatures 2 years ago and now... A small collection of them with commentary by the Signature itself..


Big.. Bold.. Colourful.. Confident.. Excited….. yes I have finally stepped in the big bad world.. I am not afraid of anything as I proudly ignore the impossibilities…



Some months into the job.. lots of work has sobered me up… so a little less loud.. less bold… and did you notice – that extension number has gone.. I hate any one calling when I am working (specially the PL calling with more work).. The email has come up – just mail me.. I will check it(or ignore it) when I get time… but still the impossibilities are out!!!



The Fonts are to a bare minimum now….Though I want people to know more about me.. but it shouldn’t be much evident…. But my thoughts are clearly on display – in the conspicuous Red… Thankyou’s and regard’s are out.. I don’t give a damn about it.



I have stopped thinking… so the thoughts go out…There is no excitement and color in life… I am dull and boring… just carrying on with my routine life…. A tinge of blue here and there says you are still living…




Finally… why the address.. is anyone going to post you love letters.???
Why the company name and IBU name… everyone inside the company knows where you work.. and the ones outside won’t understand what PLES, PLM means anyway!!
I have matured enough… The regards are back… and only necessary info is provided..



Just had a look at what I was 2 years ago… Aawww… How stupid I looked….
I wonder how I will look some years from now.. hope I don’t grow old… but guess I change with the changing life of the user…

Frozen...

Some years ago, one December night, I had gone to attend a marriage. It was very cold. The next day, it came in newspapers that the temperature the previous night had fallen to a new low for Chandigarh - 1 degree Celsius. Last night also a similar feeling was there. 5 layers of good protective clothing couldn’t stop the shivering. It was extraordinarily cold. It was proved this morning. The temperature had fallen to a new low – where it had not gone for the past 33 years – ZERO degree Celsius. Many of my friends, in US may argue that the temperatures there fall well below zero. But here, unlike US, there are no central heating systems installed in every car and every house, to make you comfortable where ever you are. You need to have quilt, add another one on top, then snug under it and just hope that time freezes there and then like everything else around.
It is fruitless to even wait for the morning sun to come up and heat things a bit. As I am writing these words, the sun is shining full and bright. But it still feels cold to sit in the open. I am sitting inside the greenhouse heated car and the thought of even rolling down the windows is chilling. And strange are the ways of nature - around 4 - 5 months from now, the same green house warmth of the car will be burning you down and you will be sitting in 80% less clothing and contemplating whether the air conditioner’s temperature need to be lowered further.
As of now, it is time to enjoy a lazy Sunday afternoon and doze off in the warmth of ‘naturally’ heated car.

The Year Gone by

The practice of capturing all special moments is in practice for long....
But now with mobile cameras and 'aam pappad' sized digi cams, we are capable of clicking any time anywhere..
so instead of capturing special moments,here I am trying to make captured moments special..
There had to be a blog on new year...and as I was picass'ing thru all the last year photos, I realized I had at least one photograph for every month.. hence the idea of this blog...

January:
A 50 hour journey in the terrifying cold of January in a sleeper class – I am a brave person.
A One Day trip to Shimla with Rompy.




February:
Early morning Gym Sessions and in between, cricket sessions.




March:
HOLI Hai!!!! A fun filled, enjoyable, long and at the end of the day a tiring Holi celebrations




April:
Guitar Josh – joined Guitar classes for a month, learnt some basics. Here part display of guitar talent and part display of dolle sholle..




May:
Guitar fever down. Squash fever up… A very exhausting but excellent game…the Dumb Bells at Gym were replaced by the squash racquets…and the results were excellent.



June:
Home Coming. Transferred back to Chandigarh. Back to jogging amid the beautiful surroundings of lake. The evenings are always amazing here.



July:
To Hyderabad, officially this time and for 15 – 20 days rather than the 2 day trip which I made in June from Mysore.




August:
Shifted to new Infy Building in Chandigarh. The sporadic monsoon rains were more frequent now – spreading greenery all around



September:
A trip to the ancestral village. Got to drive on NH1 towards Amritsar – India has really excelled in making good highways. Eye pleasing views at the village.



October:
Holiday month. Dusshera, Diwali. Coming together of friends, party. Trip to Kasauli. Mini World Cup comes to Chandigarh. Saw the likes of Brett Lee and McGrath in action for the first time.




November:
Part of Rural Reach Program in creating awareness about computers in village schools.




December:
New laptop arrives.
A New Year Dawns in Shimla. Here lying besides the warmth of a fireplace at Vishesh's home

The Traffic Jam

A Vibrant Sun Set at Shimla

It was a trip to Shimla after nearly an year. And for the first time in car – not driven by a driver. 2 days of 2006 and half a day of 2007 passed like a breeze – a rather cold breeze, I should say, considering the freezing temperatures there. On the return journey yesterday, I took turn behind the wheels. But we caught the peak traffic time when we reached Parwanoo. Kilometers long vehicle queues – frequently brightening red lights in front, bright yellow colors, angrily looking at you from the rear view mirror – tempers rising somewhere, horns blowing elsewhere and people breaking queues to form more parallel queues.
I have been stuck in traffic jams a couple of times – but that was always within city – where you could always take a detour, if possible or the car was the one which you have been driving for years, hence like one of your body part. But this time, the body part was a bit alien - I had never driven a santro before, and I had never driven a car on a hilly terrain before. So it was a bit hesitant me behind the wheels. A car in front made a brave move. There was no on coming traffic. He broke the 2 lined vehicle queue and went ahead to form one of his own – with zero space if something wanted to come from the opposite side. Then another went behind him. The temptation was hard to resist. So our car also made a dash for it. What happened next was what had to happen. A truck was majestically making its way from the opposite side. The 2 leaders in front of us were listening to the abuses of the truck driver. The next step was to try and reverse. But one glance back and it was almost a simultaneous “aaah..” from everyone in the car., followed by “lo ji.. phasss gaye”. The line behind us was endless. Then started the process of merging the extra line back into the mainstream. Some ego clashes, horn blowing, arms waving and forcefully cutting into other cars later, we merged, moving, at one point, only millimeters away from the stranded oncoming truck. The painful process of moving at speed of inches/minute continued for eternity after that. There were a few opportunities to repeat the foray we had undertaken earlier but only one or two were taken – playing it safe the other times. The normal few minutes journey from parwanoo to kalka took years. And everyone wondered how much time it would have taken had we not attempted the first venture.
As we steered clear of the jam after kalka, we saw a truck coming from opposite side bang into a car moving in the same direction. In a matter of seconds, another mini jam had been formed behind the two. How much more complicated things became as a result of that – we will, fortunately, never know.