Reel...

That was exactly what Bangalore did in reaction to the death of Dr Rajkumar... no, correction,that was what it was made to do... in a city where less than 50% of the population is not native of the state, it is difficult to imagine that the death actually made the entire city mourn... rather, it was fear that made the city come to a halt...a halt which almost got the bachelor population go hungry for a day, which forced all forms of entertainment to be out of access - that included all the shops, malls, theatres and the staple cable TV!!...

and which all but killed the long anticipated weekend.. although most parts of the city was peaceful there was an 'anything could happen' air about, which hampered the regular functioning of the city.. and after the scenes aired on the news channels (which weremercifully spared from the entertainment ban), not many people would have wanted to open their shops for the few people who might actually dare to venture out...

two millenia after Jesus died, when his followers make up the largest religion in the world,i wonder what would happen if the same logic were to be adopted by his followers every Good Friday.. Perhaps its because of the knowledge that He would be back on a later day, and that,i guess, is the difference between a god and a demigod.
until next time, end of reel

(yup, delayed by almost a fortnight, but am almost settled, so from now i should be on normal mode)

OK Dada Bye bye

and that was a stupendous performance against england and pakistan.. and the politics of the BCCI notwithstanding, it could very well be the end of one Saurav Ganguly.. for perhaps only the second time in his life, Ganguly is now the underdog, and the favourite to seal the matter is none other than the chap from down under, whose candidacy (ironically) Ganguly himself had vociferously supported ...it has been a see-saw battle, which started even under Ganguly's reign... Ganguly's tirade against Chappell, the leaked e-mail and Chappell's stoic silence..

Unfortunately Ganguly spoke when his bat should have done the talking, and perhaps Chappell was indeed betting on that not happening.. and while everything else worked for Ganguly - selectors, crowds, commentators, one thing was conspicuous by its absence - the batting form that had made him the captain of India... and its persisting absence then made everything else stop working, and Ganguly was out... Chappell gave in to pressure and brought him back into the team... and still betted on his batting not working.. he was right again...

who knows what might have happened if dravid had not shielded Ganguly in pakistan and opened the batting.. because all said and done, ganguly possesses one other thing than his batting skill, that might have saved the day for him - a champion's heart.. he might have ducked the bouncers, fished outside the off stump, given a fewchances, displayed a technique with a million flaws, and at the end of it all made a century...thats exactly what sachin had done to his critics, slapped them in the face with a century...

I am by no means a Ganguly fan, but the bottom line was that he had transformed Indian cricket,made India win matches, supported a young bunch of talent and in the process, made himself a persona which aspiring youngsters could look up to..he showed what India was capable of.. maybe for selfish reasons, maybe not... It is ironical, that just when it was time for Boycott's (and Kolkata's) prince to become king, he was dethroned..

until next time, up against a wall

Go Ah!!!

Yup, thats exactly what you do when you are in Goa... after 4 long years, i finally made the trip.. to the place where i spent the 2 best years of my life... and i can safely say, discovered severals facets of myself... and so it was a trip i was looking forward to... not just for the sun and the sand and the way of life, but also a trip to my alma mater...... and discovered that things had changed, in Goa as well as at the insti.. the people, mercifully hadnt changed, still lazy as can humanly be, oh i love them for it... :).

i saw an excellent campaign by a liquor brand -Arlem, i think the name was, which hit the nail on thehead. it said 'Its Goa...chilled' but some of the places had changed... Panjim, for example, had 2 Coffee Day outlets and an Inox... the time i left Goa, a Barista had opened in Panjim, but there is no trace of it now...

and there had been 2 theatres in Panjim which were reasonable, Samrat & Ashok, i bet they must be having a tough time now...

the 'kingfisher' neon that was a landmark is now joined by Airtel and RIM... there is a bridge to Arambol instead of the ferry, so yeah, things have indeed changed...

All the students at the insti now have laptops and cellphones.. in the three batches that i have seen there (1 senior, ours and 1 junior) only one person had a laptop and a mobile phone (the first in our senior batch and the second in our batch).. so the students dont speak much to the faculty, they call them or mail them... and there are no messages on paper, they have (i guess)e-chits...the beaches are there, so are the firangs, and the view from Chapora, and Titos, and the Mandovi still flows silently..but like everything else everywhere, the winds of change keep blowing...and like all the other pieces in my memory, the one about Goa is also frozen at the time i loved it best..

until next time, keep the change...

Hot and Happening

A hiatus for a week.. from most of everything familiar and routine.. work, bangalore, blog, mobile and so on.. and while the first three happened by design, the last one was (i guess) His version of 'Take 3 get one free'.. while i was crossing a little ford on palolem beach, i happened to forget that my mobile was in my pocket and that it was allergic to sea water..:) and thats how i got a hiatus from ringtones and messages...

The 'Hot' comes from the fact that Goa was really hot... and the 'Happening' from life per se..a really happening week, the first two days were part of the first proper vacation i have taken in 3 years (no, going home is not exactly vacation), i took up a job offer in the middle of the week (again after 3 years) and shifted house (no surprises, again after 3 years) :) And that, i guess, is why 'The Byrds' have sung

For everything turn turn turn

There is a season turn turn turn

until next time, wonder whats around the next turn....