Nothing Else Matters

Whenever I listen to this song, strange memories pop up from nowhere. Memories that are as fresh as yesterday. Still they date back to almost a year back. "Please don't listen to such songs." said one of them. I distinctly remember that day, when I was told so by someone very close to my heart. I asked "why?" But never really got the answer.
Anyways. I kept listening to it and it somehow figures in all my playlists.

So close, no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
and nothing else matters

Never opened myself this way
Life is ours, we live it our way
All these words I don't just say
and nothing else matters

Trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us something new
Open mind for a different view
and nothing else matters

never cared for what they do
never cared for what they know
but I know

So close, no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
and nothing else matters

never cared for what they do
never cared for what they know
but I know

Never opened myself this way
Life is ours, we live it our way
All these words I don't just say

Trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us, something new
Open mind for a different view
and nothing else matters

never cared for what they say
never cared for games they play
never cared for what they do
never cared for what they know
and I know

So close, no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
No, nothing else matters

a bittersweet symphony

'Cause it's a bittersweet symphony this life...
Trying to make ends meet, you're a slave to the money then you die
I'll take you down the only road I've ever been down
You know the one that takes you to the places where all the veins meet, yeah
No change, I can't change, I can't change, I can't change,
but I'm here in my mold , I am here in my mold
But I'm a million different people from one day to the next
I can't change my mold, no, no, no, no, no

Well, I've never prayed,
But tonight I'm on my knees, yeah
I need to hear some sounds that recognize the pain in me, yeah
I let the melody shine, let it cleanse my mind , I feel free now
But the airwaves are clean and there's nobody singing to me now

No change, I can't change, I can't change, I can't change,
but I'm here in my mold , I am here with my mold
And I'm a million different people from one day to the next
I can't change my mold, no, no, no, no, no

(Well have you ever been down?)
(I can't change, I can't change...)
(Ooooohhhhh...)

'Cause it's a bittersweet symphony this life
Trying to make ends meet, trying to find some money then you die
I'll take you down the only road I've ever been down
You know the one that takes you to the places where all the veins meet, yeah
You know I can't change, I can't change, I can't change,
but I'm here in my mold, I am here in my mold
And I'm a million different people from one day to the next
I can't change my mold, no,no,no,no,no
I can't change my mold, no,no,no,no,no
I can't change my mold, no,no,no,no,no

(It justs sex and violence melody and silence)
(It justs sex and violence melody and silence)
(I'll take you down the only road I've ever been down)
(It justs sex and violence melody and silence)
(I'll take you down the only road I've ever been down)
(Been down)
(Ever been down)
(Ever been down)(Lalalalalalaaaaaaaa...)
(Ever been down)
(Ever been down)
(Have you ever been down?)
(Have you ever been down?)
(Have you ever been down?)

- The Verve

dhichkiyan....

Who is the most efficient and honest policewala in India right now?
No no, its not Kiran Bedi.
Oh no, not Mr. shoot-100-but-count-only-10 Daya Nayak too.
Of course no ACP Rathod also after he became a terrorist in Fanaa.

It has to be ACP Praduman.
Yes, vahi purane CID officer ACP Praduman.

Now that I have made this judgement, I need to prove my stance too. So let us have a look at his history and present.

• He is with CID bureau for over 5 years now.
• His ability to solve the most challenging case in just above 40 minutes (that is two episodes of CID, minus the ad break time) can make even Scotland Yard ask for water.
• His resume boasts of cases of varied types, ranging from a child kidnapping case in Mumbai to troubles by ghosts.
• He does not hold any formal degree in Forensic science but is undoubtedly the most learned master of this art.
• He can smell criminals. His eyebrows raise automatically at the sight of a criminal.
• His efficiency to solve mystery cases is such that sometimes you are compelled to think that he must have got the case leaked (like the way we see in University exams) and then prepared well for them.
• He is indispensable member of CID team and actually is the lone loyal there. Everyone else has done something wrong or other in past, but this imandaar poolis afsar has ekdum bedaag vardi. Vardi se yaad aaya, he has a very good collection of suits and coats. And that all the girls in his team are allowed to wear (or rather no wear) whatever they want.

Only negative in his resume is the high attrition rate in his team. He is the lone worrier for CID for last 5 years. Dusre aate hain aur phir bina bataye chale jaate hain. Par hamara ye sherjurm ka mukabla karta rahta hai.

Hai koi mai ka laal jo is sher ko challange kar sake?

Stranger in the mirror

They say living on my own has brought about one change in me. I have grown up. Everyone does, it's no black magic. Suposadly I am more mature now.

But somehow I cann't feel proud of it today. The process of growing up also resulted in a tremendous loss for me. I lost my innocence. I have lost myself. No longer can I claim to be the same person I was some years ago. I lost the simplicity and purity.

Sometime when I stand in front of mirror, I see a stranger's face. It just pops up from within and mocks at me. This innocent face reminds me of the person I was at one point of my time.

Changes are inevitable and this is just part of life, I guess.

sanjaya joke...

Breaking news: Sanjaya Malakar is out of American Idol. Now when he can not become even an American idol, how could he possible dream of being my idol.
Thanks to his hairdos I am saved from having a loser idol.

Joke of the day:
A news clip from TOI dated 20-04-2007
Paula Abdul’s diva trip on air
Paula Abdul, the American Idol judge, did a diva act on a recent flight when she demanded special treatment. An eyewitness on the flight said: “She pulled a major diva trip. The other passengers were not amused.” Newsweek.com reports that Abdul was on a packed flight from San Jose to Burbank, California, and she demanded special treatment even though there is no first-class section on the airline. She asked to be let on the plane and seated first. When she was told that young children, people with disabilities and elderly woman were allowed to board early she supposedly cried, “But I’m famous! I need to go on first!” A few fellow passengers shouted, “You’re no Sanjaya! You have to board like everyone else.” Once on board, she pushed her way to the front to get on first and tried to keep the seat next to her empty telling passengers it was already taken.

No Poster Boys

BBMP unable to give Bangalore a facelift

Some time last year, the Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BMP) did a good job of upgrading the footpath along both sides of the Airport Road in Bangalore. It also built concrete-block tree guards around all the trees along the footpath and painted them in smart yellow and green colours. Within days, somebody stuck a poster on many of those guards announcing the availability of a certain paying guest accommodation. Soon, many more followed suit. Off and on, the BBMP would get somebody to scrape off the posters. Today, the lovely yellow and green colours have almost disappeared, and what you have are messy, ugly posters and leaflets announcing either ‘Accommodation Available’ or ‘Jobs Available’. Such vandalism can be seen along most major thoroughfares. Not just on tree guards, but also on trees, walls and telephone/electricity distribution boxes. All the posters have telephone numbers on them. Which, most would think, would make it a simple matter for the BBMP to catch the culprits and hand out exemplary punishment to put an end to such vandalism. Instead, what you have is a peculiar situation where the BBMP spends taxpayers’ money to wipe off old posters. Only for new ones to be put in their place.

Such brazen disregard for authority can be seen on other fronts too. Buildings come up with clear violations of setback rules and Floor Area Ratio norms. Builders use adjacent public roads to stock building material. When city authorities can’t stop abuses of the law where the identities of the violators are obvious, it’s surely too much to expect them to tackle problems where it is not obvious — such as dumping of garbage on roads and debris in lakes, as in Peenya’s Nelagadaranahalli Lake, under the cover of darkness. Bangalore can never hope to call itself an international city so long as the BBMP remains so ineffective. If the corporation’s problem is of inadequate personnel to monitor violations, it must employ more people and prepare Bangaloreans to bear that extra burden. If the problem is of its staff’s inefficiency, it must deal with it severely. In areas like maintenance of roads and lakes, private parties have shown their willingness to take this responsibility in return for signage rights. But little effort has been made so far to tap this potential. However, it’s not enough for us as citizens of this city to point a finger at the corporation. It is incumbent on us as individuals and as collectives — such as resident welfare associations — to not just address issues within the compounds of our houses and apartment complexes, but also to conduct public campaigns outside. And try to deal with them, without necessarily involving the corporation.

ps: Article taken verbatim from TOI Bangalore dated 20th April, 2007

Survivor Episode 273

In a recent visit to coffeeshop (in short, date) my girlfriend asked me who my idol is?

"Out Of Syllabus" - first thought in my mind. But then you can say this in a written exam, in viva-voce you better not dare to say so.

I don't know if she really meant to ask this questions. It happens most of the times while sitting with your bf/gf in a nice coffee shop. You really fall short of topics to talk about. You could have finished discussing (if you are the bf, then listening) all the topics under the sun (oh yea even the scorching sun might have found some mention in those talks). But coffee hai ki khatam hone ka naam hi nahi leti. I am sure the CCDs and Barista add some kind of rubber in their brews.

So now I was faced with this life and death situation.
Why life and death?
Arre!! meri boyfriend-iyet was on stake. How can I be a good bf if I cant even have an idol. Now who that idol is a whateverish (does not matter) thing.

So at first I thought I would answer saying "oh my idol, it has to be Sanjaya Malakar." A smug smile popped on my face. I knew she would not dare to ask me who the hell he is. Nobody likes to be known for ignorance in GK, you know. So the question of my idol would have died in minutes.

But then I was faced with another super duper doubt.
What if she knew him?
Worse she was a fan of him?
Worst if she liked his long shabby hairstyle and wanted me to do the same?

Naa baba naa... I don't want to have a 1kg hairy jungle stuffed in my helmet.

All the smug feelings vanished as fast as they came.
So who next?

Mean time, she saw this cute girl (ok, I didn't call that girl cute there, again no-life and death situation) and her nice dress. She wanted to have something like that for a long time. And now started a story of how she travelled through all the alleys of Commercial Street to find something similar but never found.

Oh God.. that 'cute girl' was a saviour.

Aur kuch baatein hui (actually suni, I was just listening as usual) and then it was time for 'bye bye', 'miss you', 'call me' talks.
And finally we vacated those nice seats of coffee shop. They had almost became 'hot seat'.

Aaj ka din to survive kar gaya, but will I be able next time?
So better prepare for the answer to this question before next time.
These were the only thoughts in my mind while riding back home. I hope she has forgotten this idol wala questions.

ps: All the characters and incidents mentioned in this post are work of fiction. Any resemblance with any dead or alive person is just a coincidence.

fussssss

[Time: 1:03 pm]

PJ: DP, can we talk for some time.

DP: Oh yea sure, chalo. We go to this conference room.

[Both enter the conference room, arrange two chairs facing each other and sit.]

PJ: [hesitation apparent in his words] I want to put in my papers here.

DP: [thinks for about two seconds] Hmmm... Oh ok…
So where are you … oh I should not even be asking that…oh yea...

PJ: No DP, I shall tell you that. I am going to xxx. Right now that’s the best offer I have in my hand…. And if you don’t mind I would like to give your name as reference.

DP: Oh that… you can do that…no problems…
When do you want to leave?

PJ: As soon as possible. It’s up to you to decide.

DP: Oh yea. Ok let me talk to top brass and arrange for backup…

[Both silent for some time]

DP: I just want to ask why you want to join that company. As far as I know they are not doing well.

PJ: I don’t know if its doing that bad. Only thing that I can tell you right now is that they are giving me the best offer right now. Here there is absolutely no work. So it was getting really frustrating. There they are offering me an xxx position there. It’s a small team with good work in hand. And of course they are paying me good.

DP: hmmm… theek hai… let me talk to the top brass here and I shall let you know the releasing date. But I must say, this is a shock to us. We don’t want to lose people like you.

PJ: I know DP, even for me it’s a tough decision. But sometimes we have to take such decisions. I think this the best thing for my career right now and I am sure you would agree to that.

DP: Hamm… theek hai… chalo then… let me talk…

PJ: ok… thanks a lot. I shall inform them about it.

[Both stand up and leave the room.]

[Time: 1:07 pm]

PJ is a free soul now.

ps: Taken out from the collection of drafts.

Flash News

Mr. Mansukhlal Shah started making scooters in India at a time when our market was flooded with foreign products. The Shah family are Jains who believe in the principle of Ahimsa Parmodharm. They don't even burn crackers during Diwali celebrations because smoke kills many small insects. When they don't even kill a small living being, how can they work with some antisocial elements and work against fellow human beings.
The media persons looked but satisfied with the explanation Mr Shah's daughter-in-law gave them.
In another revelation, Kanta Ben gave some clue about whereabouts of Mansukhlal Shah to the family. She had spotted him in Sammed Shikharjee.

Was it really him or some side actor?
What will the media publish in tomorrow's news?
Whats happening in Shah family?

If these questions did not pop up in your mind, you better get them popped up by force. Coz you are going to see some more news from Thodi Khush Thodi Gham at this blog.

ps: Papa Mamma are in town. :)

beyond the horizon

I watched three plays last week.
- Exit the King
- The Island
- The Hare and the Tortoise

To tell you the truth, I could not make sense in any of them. Why?

- Hare and Tortoise did not run just a race there. They solved some maths problems also.
- The king was not a king actually but he was a don.
- The island had a play within play.

Everything beyond the usual comprehension.

It's so amazing to know that a simple story can have so many different interpretation. Our knowledge is limited to the most obvious rather most famous understanding of it. So when we hear "hare and tortoise", our imagination just reach to the extent of race between a hare and tortoise.

In last post I said I like darkness coz shadows can not fool me by any influence. The darkness gives me my freedom to explore the situation. It gives me the sense of challenge to think beyond what is so obvious.

Yesterday after the play I heard someone saying "thinking out of the box". True to a certain extent. But you can not go on doing it infinitely. Sometimes you need to move in to a bigger box or have to enlarge it.

Rout puts it as, You never know if you are in an altogether box. When they teach you to think out of the box, they never tell one important thing that out of a box there r other boxes. And by just thinking out of one, you run the risk of putting yourself in another.

I like watching some plays. They hurt my ego by telling me that I still cant see beyond the horizon. There is so much to learn and I can not afford to slow down on this journey of knowledge.

Having said that, I still recommend these plays to everyone. They have the best art and direction I have ever seen in a play. Amazing light and sound. Especially the last one is brilliant in its use of medium. A highly energetic actor lot will make your visit memorable. Dont miss them.

Shadows in the dark

I like darkness. The shadows do not influence my perception by past or present experience. I can be myself and expect every shadow to be their true self too.

Enthusiasm

A child's enthusiasm makes him the fastest learner in the world.
Photo taken at Zpoint. Sunset time.

अब हिंदी में...

हिंदी हमारी मात्रभाषा है। और मैं गूगल का आभारी हूँ कि आज उसके कारण मैं हिंदी में ब्लोग लिखने में सक्षम हूँ ।
जय हो गूगल भैया की।

To Whomsoever It May Concern

"I will take bricks and write on that to show how much I miss you. And I will break it on your head to show how much it pains when I miss you."

- a sms I recently got. I am hoping it is just a forward. :)

And here is an interesting news -

New Delhi: Saddled with the mounting burden of providing dole to keep the cost of kitchen fuels low, the Planning Commission would like the government to stop supplying cheap cooking gas cylinders to households paying income-tax.
The panel’s suggestion comes in response to the oil ministry’s wish to carry on with the system of providing money in the budget to cover oil firms’ losses from selling kitchen fuels at artificially low price set by the government. It is, however, unlikely to be considered by the oil ministry.

I firmly believe now that very soon there will be a law in this land that says if you are honestly paying your income tax, you are no less than a criminal.

For theatre lovers in Bangalore, TFA is presenting some really good plays in Rangashankara. Nice story lines backed up with power packed performances. I whole heartedly recommend them. I watched two plays in last two days and plan to go today also. Anyone interested, buzz me.

And to close it on happier notes, here is the news.
It rained here in Bangalore last night. Bangalore rocks sometimes. It does. Even after 11pm time limits. Evening showers that filled the atmosphere with pleasant smell. Hoping for more of it.

Joy of Life

Karunesh is king of good times.
Listen to any of his song, it brings that refreshing air with it.
Time and again, flute proves itself to be source of eternal peace. Beauty of this instrument lies in the simplicity. Same goes with Sarod or Sarangi. They are so close to soul. They touch our heart.

Karunesh's song are as enchanting as a magicians trick. A karmyogi on his quest for Nirvana. Zen influence in New Age music has done no less than what discovery of wheel did to industrial revolution. Buddhist chants are so pure and natural. I always wonder how it would feel to visit a monastery and listen to their tunes live and unplugged.

Someday I will surely do that.

Somehow, every time I listen to Karunesh, it reminds me of those Tibetan markets in Goa. They all played such brilliant music. May be next time, I would spend some more time there.

For now, I am pretty much indulged in listening to Karunesh. Try his album Joy of Life. Its brilliant.