Already?

A certain somewhere did I see or I was asked to write- my batch year in SCMS(UG). And it was 2007-2010.
In the next few hours I opened the papers to see new year party advertisements in 5 star hotels -"Seduction 2010", "Bollywood Mischief" and "The Experience".And then I thought, "Why can't they ever have decent names?!".
Finally,it struck me.
January 2010
February 2010
March 2010
Last 3 months of college life.
And then, its over. I will be a graduate. End of grad school.
I have not yet come to terms with it. It will take time to sink in. Maybe sometime when I am writing my last set of exams, will it hit me. I hope not though.

Comebacks

There is something about them. The attached glory that they bring. It stays more inside of you than outside. But it stays with you forever and for every minute that you are alive. It stays with you because you know that you were great in delivering to the situation, which was a do or die, completely and perfectly. Because you didn't let yourself die. Because you created something for yourself which will inspire you for your entire lifetime.

We all have made come backs. Some aggressive, some restrained and some well planned. And we know how difficult it is. Imagine, how a comeback for a company will be!
Human resource integration to the maximum and leadership personified. This is what really pulls me towards such cases.

With the cadbury disaster of germs infestation in 2004, the then marketing manager played a superstroke by having none other than Mr. Amitabh Bacchhan endorse the brand and support it on national television by taking a tour of the factory. Cadbury sales were back to normal within a year.

General Motors India marketing and after sales head Mr. Ankush Arora and his team launched a new Chevrolet model just a week after GM filed for bankruptcy in the United States in 2007. This left the media, the public and the competitors shell shocked. It gave the consumers the feeling that Chevrolet, contrary to popular misconception, is going to be around.

McDonalds. What more is to say? In a country where deceitfully being fed beef causes rage, humiliation and sometimes a mutiny, McDonalds pulled off the same sales figures within a 6 month period after being accused of using beef in cooking oil. Cheers to Ronald McDonald.

Some people might think that all this is, is making mistakes and then fooling people. Well , I would say that this is growth. We all goof up. But the player who wins, is the one who can reconcile, reintegrate and reconnect the fastest.

Inconsistency

January 2
February 2
March 9
April 3
May 0
June 2
July 1
August 1
September 1
October 2
November 1
December 1

These are the number of posts I have put up on my blog this year(including this one). And it sums up to be 25. Which makes it around 2 posts a month which is fairly decent. But for those of you who know me, I bet you are already laughing. 9 in March, but 0 in May! Well what can i say? 36% of my blog was written in the month of March. (Financial Year end adjustments?) Ha!

Well and now that I have realised that the average is coming to 2 posts per month, I am slowly wanting to turn that figure to 3. (Calendar Year end adjustments).

So a desperate attempt this December would be to try to at least close in to the 3 figure mark with good, valid, reasonable posts. (Basically no bullshiting).
So the challenge stands. Eleven more posts in eight days. And all of them should make perfect sense.Hmm.

Well this whole excercise really stands for how I do most things in my life. Not very consistent.

Anyway, I have to say, that writing in this part of the year is exciting and easy too. It's Santa time. And yea of course, new year resolutions, parties, calendars(and i am NOT talking about the swimsuit ones) and lots more. So keep reading my blog. A lot is in store this winter. I hope to monetize it some day. (Sindhi blood.Ha!)

PS: A new year resolution found. It's called "Being consistent in 2010".

I don't want

So life goes ahead,
But I dont know what i want,
Sure I dont want,
I know what I want not!

I might as well be blank,
Rather than have tension so,
Rather than have turbulence so,
I might as well be crazy.

Crazy is always good,
Because if there's something,
Which is outside the wood,
Don't want to venture concrete complication.

Simple is good,love is,
Not that I don't have time,
Not that I don't have courage,
But it's just that I know what I want not.

I don't know what's happening,
I don't know why it is so,
I don't want to see reason,
So heal me time,heal me.

Possible Impossible

A Strange Fever

It is strange. A strange madness. Something which I have never experienced before. It is not music. Because music is everyday, ordinary and regular. It is a sick shiver of the brain. It is a fit that I get when I am brushing my teeth, walking to college, having dinner with company or even talking to somebody.

It is an explosion of sound in my being which is unavoidable. Makes me helpless, doesnt let me concentrate. And there have been quite a few of the "songs" which you might know that were involved in this experience. It becomes hard to explain what they were, so hence I shall mention these sounds as songs.(Because just like music, songs are also regular, ordinary and everyday)

The experience is an experience for a reason. For any writing cannot describe it as well. Which is why they form a different league of my favourites. I'd like to call them the "Sick League". Not because they are sick. But because they make me so. Sick with desperation so that they shall soon fall upon my ears. It is a persistent craving. Changing in form though.

A month back it was this song called "Comfortably Numb" by Pink Floyd. Well sounds/music/songs become more hard to get rid of if appropriate research is done about why these songs were written and what the concept behind the song was when it was performed/written first.

The latest viruses which have caught on to me are "Bohemian Rhapsody", "Riders on the Storm","People are Strange", "Kashmir" and many others. It's a long list. Will be posting the entire list soon. Till then, I am happy with these viruses. I like their monopoly. And I hope they maintain it because there is a dangerous undesirable one on the loose.

Till then,

A musically swayed man.

PS: Shashvat, I really wish there was a time machine. I would do anything to go back to the classic rock times.

Energy explosion

Sometimes there is nothing to say. So, sometimes, we could hear pictures speak? Try listening.

Going Solo-The tip of Mumbai

Twists of My Perception

In my white sea,
There is a place to be,
An island dense and clouded.
My beauty ofcourse, is dumbfounded.

Beneath me lie the greatest depths,
The biggest truths and lies,
I talk a lot,loud or soft
Only an eager listener listens oft.

On my coast, there is a lot to boast,
Vegetation of different criteria,
Uniform they look, all of them most,
Sometimes, speak love or shout hysteria.

The waves of my sea,
Upset or glee,
Are my main functionaries,
So my master rejoices or worries.

To him I belong, his name is Jake,
Good care does he take of me,
Thank God, me, he doesn't plasticize,
Appears no glass to me, to criticize.

And for him I feel bad,
Guilty that my functionaries create,
What he calls happy or sad,
'Cause the rays through my waves always permeate.

The waves of my 'see',
Make Jake, what is he,
That is my only contention,
He's only the "twists of my perception".

Contribute to your life

One thing we forget to do on a daily basis is to contribute to our very own lives. Yes, we have a profession or a business. We all are busy working everyday. But do we make time for ourselves to do one thing which will make us grow as a person? Please note-growth of knowledge, money and fame is not counted.

I am inspired by Homi Adajania(Director of Being Cyrus). He is a writer, director and a SCUBA DIVER! He has his SCUBA DIVING training camps at Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Well, that calls on for variety and a very interesting life! He is coming up with his second film called Thugi, which is Saif Ali Khan's home production. Well, also have a look at this poem called Sunscreen, now a famous song by Baz Luhrmann, written by Mary Schmich.

Sunscreen.

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be IT.

The long term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience.

I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Never mind. You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they have faded. But trust me, in 20 years you'll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked.

You are NOT as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future; or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubblegum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind; the kind that blindside you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing every day that scares you.

Sing.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts, don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss.

Don't waste your time on jealousy; sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind. The race is long, and in the end, it's only with yourself.

Remember compliments you receive, forget the insults; if you succeed in doing this, tell me how.

Keep your old love letters, throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives, some of the most interesting 40 year olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of calcium.

Be kind to your knees, you'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't, maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't, maybe you'll divorce at 40, maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary. Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself, either. Your choices are half chance, so are everybody else's. Enjoy your body, use it every way you can. Don't be afraid of it, or what other people think of it, it's the greatest instrument you'll ever own.

Dance. Even if you have nowhere to do it but in your own living room.

Read the directions, even if you don't follow them.

Do NOT read beauty magazines, they will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents, you never know when they'll be gone for good.

Be nice to your siblings; they are your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but for the precious few you should hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography in lifestyle because the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard; live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.

Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths, prices will rise, politicians will philander, you too will get old, and when you do you'll fantasize that when you were young prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund, maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse; but you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair, or by the time you're 40, it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it's worth.

But trust me on the sunscreen.

And there are just somethings...

And I am back!
It was a long long summer break. Really wanting the monsoons to set in quick. Though, Pune has way better weather than Mumbai.
It is a Happy birthday to my best friend today.May God bless him!

In this while, when I absented myself from the blogarena ,there were some things which become more than what they were meant to be.

1)Movie:Vanilla Sky

What a movie!!


2)Song:Arziyan(Delhi 6)
What a song. Got tears to my eyes.

3)Hobby:Dance

My new heaven!

4)Organization Systems:Sanjay Singhania


5)Song of the season


6)Ad of the season


7)A song which reminds me of an awesome friend


All set for the first day of my last year in graduation college. Lets see where this year of academia takes all of us!! All the best to all! Will bump into you in one of the corridors definitely!

Nocturnal Turmoil

I don't get sleep. I'm tired, mentally and physically. I've had a full meal, Chicken Tikka Biryani! I feel heavy, my eyes are close to shutting off, but they don't. Not because they don't want to. I'm too tired to think. It's 5 am already. I get hold of my keys and my wallet and walk down. Two dogs come to sniff me as I get out of the gate. I had no memory of stealing anything. They prove my memory strong as they walk away and laze on their concrete beds. I walk towards the 'chai' tapri and get myself a biscuit packet. It was hunger.

I very quickly ate all the biscuits. It was glucose. My favourite. Then i ask the guy for tea and go and sit on the chair. Everyone around me is smoking. Couldn't take it early in the morning. After walking a little away, I enjoy the garam masala chai. I go to the chai wala and pay him. I look at the biscuit packet and ask for one more pack of glucose biscuit. I realise that I'm not hungry, yet I want the packet. It dawns in the dawn, its not hunger.

I apologize to the chai wala and return to him the biscuit pack. I start walking towards home. I look up at the sky and see how it is changing colours from a deep blue to hues of purplish red.

As I enter my gate with my head hanging down, frustrated for not know the cause of my behaviour, I realise I'm looking for something.It's a game. A game that I've not yet played.

LOU!!!

Okay, this is going to be crazy! As filmy, mushy, cheesy as possible!!! Expect the unexpected guys!

Romance is in the air for me, with romance itself. With the mush in the music and the intensity of love with tears in my eyes. With the "hero" and the "heroine"(lol) going beserk over grasslands and Udit Narayan, Kumar Sanu in the male playback...Not to forget Lataji and Shreya for the ladies.

These are a few of my all time favourite song videos-as mushy and romantic as it can get. I know just a week down the line, I will laugh at this post. The moody person that I am, I get jhatkas of everything! But this time romance has just taken over! :D

This one can make me cry


Filmy date!
Teri meri pyar

The irrationality of infatuation!


Cloud 9, Smiling for nothing et al


Love is...

Feeling hot hot hot!

It's so hot that I could melt

It's so hot that the liquor stores are soon gonna go out of business.

It' so hot that my hair would decide to shed empathizing with my skin.

It's so hot that my exam notes are gonna crumple with heat(Bingo!)

It's so hot that I won't need the boiler in the bathroom.

It's so hot that iced tea and cold coffee is gonna sell a few hundred rupees higher soon.

It's so hot that water is gonna cost and not follow the paradox of value anymore.

It's so hot that my towel dries in a ridiculous 17 mins after using it for bath.

It's so hot that I think of giving Whirlpool an order to make a "Quick chill" bed for me which doesn't need electricity(thanks to the power cuts in Pune..Garmi ka magic chalega ka magic chalega kya?)

It's so hot that I dread of the condition next month.

It's so hot that I can expect thunderstorms and floods in monsoon for which I could recommend the Government of India to declare an off, at least on the west coast for a minimum period of one month at the option of the employee from the 15th of June to the 15th of August.

It's so hot that with the touch of my hand, my ice cream melts.

It's so hot that my fridge gave up.

It's so hot that I've packed black clothes and kept them in my store room.

It's so hot that I sweat at least a litre in a 37% humidity weather.

It's so hot that the zenith has been preponed to 9am.

It's so hot that a provision for excess zenith has been created at 12pm.

It's so hot that the weather forgets when the zenith is over and even at 3 pm retains heat accordingly.

It's so hot that I wouldn't wish that my girlfriend would be so if the weather sang ,'Don't you wish your girlfriend was hot like me!"

It's so hot that I randomly keep fainting here and there for a few seconds and get up on my own only to realise questions directed towards me of the kind,'What happened?' and I say,'Nothing man heat stroke but im used to it'

It's so hot that More has increased sale of cold juices and drinks by a staggering 72% this summer.

It's so hot that AC seems to be the best scientific invention.

It's so hot that I remembered a PJ!

It's so hot that I have to tell you!

If it's so hot, what is its opposite?

The person who comments with the answer first will get himself/ herself a very hot prize!

Operation failed
Crew injured
Over and out.

Examination Insanity

Are you listening to me?
Yes I'm talking to you
Yes you
Will you please give me a launch?
You are the only person I can depend on
Yes, the only person
Because I trust you
Now give me the launch
Make it a total thrust of 75 kgs,
With a burn time of 11.5 hrs
And a launch reach of indefinite altitude.

And yes, make it happen NOW!
The next update will be taken in the next 6 hours.
Over and out.

A good life, a good wife

You have tunes of your own,
Which without consultation you play,
The impacts of your beats loans
Me a burden and I have nothing to say.

And then I wear those shoes,
Those magical shoes and I know to dance,
I'm not running, its just a cruise,
But I have speed, and winning becomes a chance.

The tunes which silenced me
Now I enjoy,I can see without eyes,
The finishing line is where I'll be free,
Enslaved I am to you,you bloody tune.

Tunes are to which now I addict,
Wanting to live more everyday,
A romantic turning into a benedict,
Victory is a good wife, and its all a play!

See you soon

Was thinking a lot about you, so thought I'd write something.See you soon.

I've been missing you so much,
But it's only a matter of time,
Exam time is here and things are such,
That but for the books, all is crime.

But I will come to you soon,
Lie down on your soft bed,
And look at your lovely face shine.
I hope these exams soon shed.

And then there will be liberty
Freedom, joy and pleasure,
Brotherhood, love and harmony,
A state of ecstasy beyond measure.

Goaing (coco)nuts about you just at your thought!

Love
Avi.

High

Sometimes, it feels so good,
Wonder if I really should,
Just hold you, make you the one,
Tell everybody under the sun

That when I met you,
For the first time,
I so knew it in my mind

(Guitar solo)

And now that we know
What makes us both cry,
And how I can blossom
The curve on your beautiful face

You are the one,
You are my soul,
The one with whom
I’d love to grow old.

So take my hand and
Follow me into the
Depths of our lives
As they unfold to us
And make us swing gently
With laughter and joy
I swear on the Lord, baby,
You get me so high
So high high high….
High.. high …high….

Away From You

A blurry life
A run to the green
Watching the sun
Go down so clean

Everytime I remember you (1)
It always feels theres something new,

Crazy are the nights,
Crazy are the lights,

Crazy are the nights,
Crazy are the lights

That keep me away from you...

A blurry life
A run to the green
Watching the sun
Go down so clean

The darkness makes me cry so dry, (2)
And I always wanna see the sun to be so high

Crazy are the nights,
Crazy are the lights,

Crazy are the nights,
Crazy are the lights

That keep me away from you...

November Rain

Axl Rose, the lead singer of Guns N Roses, worked on this one for 19 years. 19 years to bring out a 9 odd minute number. The music video of this song created an equal amount of buzz as the song itself . It is till date the 13th most expensive video. The song was conceptualized on a short story by Del James called "Without You" which is about a top rockstar reminiscing his times with his girl, which ended with the girl killing herself with a gunshot. The video of this song has amazing cinematography and the bride who dies, the protagonist's fiancee, wears a bridal gown which had then cost the band a staggering $8000. The video cost them a $1.5 million. So much hype. So much drama, about the drama. But in the end, all worth it! Enjoy!

Sometimes I wonder....

Sometime I wonder why I feel like writing only at nights. Does my right brain not work during the day, or does the left have too much of "financial" load?

Sometime I wonder why I keep forgetting my bag here and there

Sometime I wonder why I took finance

Sometime I wonder why I get high on water

Sometime I wonder why I am growing my hair

Sometime I wonder why I don't shave regularly

Sometime I wonder why I listen to music a lot lesser than I should

Sometime I wonder why I left my guitar at home

Sometime I wonder why I talk to a friend on the phone about monkeys and bananas and connect them with simplicity of life at 3 am

Sometime I wonder why I sit on my college staircase right below the board which reads "Do not sit on staircase"

Sometime I wonder why I never wrote in school

Sometime I wonder why I don't read enough

Sometime I wonder why I don't ever cry publicly

Sometime I wonder why I was born

Sometime I wonder why I never liked cheeseballs in school and my friends loved it

Sometime I wonder why I would get a headache when I used to eat cheeseballs

Sometime I wonder why I don't sleep early

Sometime I wonder why I love theatre so much

Sometime I wonder why I hate a particular profesor as such

Sometime I wonder why I don't get a lot of comments on by blog anymore

Sometime I wonder why I love my laptop so much

Sometime I wonder why I stopped dedicating entries on my blog to people

Sometime I wonder why I don't iron my clothes well

Sometime I wonder why I am so philosophical

Sometime I wonder when I am going to write my next poem

Sometimes I wonder why I crack so many lame jokes

Sometimes I wonder why I'm such a foodie

Sometimes I wonder if my name would be Alice, I could make up a nice title for this post

And sometimes I do wonder how you guys are doing out there.....

So a "wonder"ful cheers!

Dear Friend,

I'm in my room now. The fan is on. The light is off. The breeze created by the fan hits my face and my arms. And the light of my laptop is slightly straining my eye. The dog just howled. I am feeling pressure. Pressure which is turning me into a zombie.
Stuff is happening around me. A lot of stuff. Random and specific.
I just saw some redness reflecting on my window pane. I got scared thinking that it might be a fire. I hurried to the window and looked out to see that there was actually a huge fire on the road, at the corner. I looked harder, someone had burnt a tyre. I wonder why someone would burn a tyre. There was a man walking around the fire. He came from behind the fire, with his back facing me, blew his nose facing the fire and shook his hand vigorously so as to get rid of the snort and projected it into the fire. I was just amazed. I came back and sat on my bed.
Now. There is a vaccuum. I feel the pressure again. There is nothing happening in the room. Nothing. But I still feel the pressure. My eyes are burning. My stomach is growling for something. Though, I am very full in my stomach with tasty Veg. Biryani that I had for dinner.
Anyway, it is late and I think I should catch up on some sleep. Thanks. For listening to randomness. See you soon yaar.

Love,
Avinash.

The Distance

It's a beautiful sunday morning. And something is missing. A part of me is missing. I am here, on my bed, writing this out, while experiencing a hunger which cannot be satisfied. The hunger of a homely breakfast on my dining table with my family.

Fresh Idlis , Sambhar , Coconut chatni or be it the traditionally sindhi cokie with dahi, anything would do. I have to make do with Maggi here. And yeah, the maggi that mom makes, tastes totally different!! Never valued home more. I can just remember a saying which is put up on my Nani's bedroom wall-"A house is built of bricks but a home is built of hearts"

It is the distance, that makes us value. For years, I took everything for granted. But that is really the rule of life.There is a difference between knowing the value of things and realizing their value. The realizing part is what is important, be it anything.

अंजान दलदल

एक अंजान सी घबराहट,
बेकारण, बेहिसाब
जब मैं न समझूं,
छोट्टी से छोट्टी बातें ।

क्यों रुका हूँ मैं,
क्यों नही चल रहा,
न मैं जानूं यह,
क्यों थमा हूँ मैं यहाँ.

पेट में अजीब सी गुड गुड
न पास है घर,
रास्ता भी चौडा,
और दूर है मंजिल.

रात है बड़ी घनी,
सूरज उभरेगा जल्द ही,
इन चन् पलों का गुज़रना,
ही तोह लगे जैसे एक सदी.

Lady of the moment: Zoya Akhtar

Applause. Debutante director Zoya Akhtar does magic."Luck By Chance", I would say, is a wonderful work of film making because of many reasons-

1)Great direction, fantastic screenplay and editing. Added the winning angles to Farhan's performance.

2)Farhan somehow just can't stop the whole undying connection that he has established with the audience. He carries of the script in his unique and typical 'andaaz' and connects to his viewers very well.

3)Koko! Love her.

4)The sattire in the movie was brilliant. There were so many times that the audience was mum and behaved like zombies. Trust me, i was rolling.

5)Hrithik came in time and again. It was as if he was 'glittering' the screen.


6)Shah Rukh Khan exuded power in his performance(Sorry to break this to you but just had to mention this. After seeing the movie, you will know what I am talking about)!

7)It was great to see Rishi Kapoor acting very well to fit into his role perfectly.

8)Dimple Kapadia stole the show with her 'adaayien' once again. But a crucial 2 minutes got a lot of reality of the film industry and gave solid depth to her character.

9)The hidden paradox in the movie, which makes up its theme, is depicted in a very subtle way.(Do not want to disclose the hidden paradox. Let it be hidden)

10) The music is fitting and not unnecessarily glorious as in many bollywood flicks.

11) It is an intelligent movie.

12)It leaves you thinking.

Worth a watch. Spent Rs 140 on it, plus the popcorn. Surprisingly, did not come out regretting that I could have watched it on my laptop.

Hope to see more of such movies. Expectations are rising. Bollywood is improving.
Cheers.

Lines on which I flipped !!

Below are some quotes which I found thought provoking. Read on.

On Emotions
One mad magenta moment and I have paid for it all my life-Alan Bennett

On Fashion
I like to dress egos. If you haven't got an ego today, forget it-Gianni Versace.


On Love
To be wise, and love, exceeds man's might-William Shakespeare in Troilus and Cressida.

On Marriage
To keep your marriage brimming
With love in the loving cup
Whenever you're wrong admit it
Whenever you're right shut up.

Odgen Nash in 'A Word to Husbands'

On Men and Women
I think men talk to women so that they can sleep with them and women sleep with men so that they can talk to them- Jay McInerney in 'Brightness Falls'



On Conscience
Thus conscience makes cowards of us all- William Shakespeare in Hamlet

On Food
Kissing don't last: cookery do! -George Meredit.