अर्ज किया है......
मौतभी आयी तो इस नाझके साथ
मुझपे एहसान किया हो जैसे
(Forwarded)
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Good Show Netherlands!
My heart bled for the Netherlands team after they lost to England. Those guys really gave the Brits the run for their money. As you must have guessed by now, I am not particularly fond of the British team (except when they are playing the Aussies). What is funny though is that the reason for that has got nothing to do with their team's cricketing skills and everything to do with the British Raj.
I know, I know, it is silly to keep a grudge after 60+ years. And it's not as if I remember the partition or Jalianwala Baugh every time I see Kevin Peterson or Paul Collingwood. It's just that somewhere there is still an association that this is the country that divided my country in two and sowed the seeds of the Indo-Pakistan conflict. :-(
I know, I know, it is silly to keep a grudge after 60+ years. And it's not as if I remember the partition or Jalianwala Baugh every time I see Kevin Peterson or Paul Collingwood. It's just that somewhere there is still an association that this is the country that divided my country in two and sowed the seeds of the Indo-Pakistan conflict. :-(
Sometimes the readers' comments on the TOI website are far more interesting compared to the original news item. Sample this one - Angry Vijay walks off as fans go beserk (Ignore the spelling mistake in the last word for now!). Ignore the news itself and check out the first comment at the end - "Whoz Vijay ???" it says. The writer has given his location as Kolkata so it figures why he is blissfully unaware of this southern movie-star.
Mind you, I don't know what this Vijay looks like either. But that comment brought back days from my B-School when one of my quadmates, who was very fond of Telugu films, used to watch innumerable movies. Sometimes I would be around making tea or doing assignments and she would tell me the names of the leading pair, the names of their spouses or latest girlfriend-boyfriends and general gossip. One day, another quadmate, who was a Bengali from Kolkata (yes, it was a mini-India there!) was with me as I sat flipping through the channels. We landed on some Telugu channel and I promptly told her the names of the leading pair. The look on her face was priceless! :-)
Mind you, I don't know what this Vijay looks like either. But that comment brought back days from my B-School when one of my quadmates, who was very fond of Telugu films, used to watch innumerable movies. Sometimes I would be around making tea or doing assignments and she would tell me the names of the leading pair, the names of their spouses or latest girlfriend-boyfriends and general gossip. One day, another quadmate, who was a Bengali from Kolkata (yes, it was a mini-India there!) was with me as I sat flipping through the channels. We landed on some Telugu channel and I promptly told her the names of the leading pair. The look on her face was priceless! :-)
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
रिकी पोंटिंगको गुस्सा क्यों आता है?
What's with the Aussies and the household appliances? At first it were the Aussie Athletes who went on a rampage in the CWG village and threw the washing machine down from the balcony. Now it is the Aussie captain Ricky Ponting who has reported smashed the LCD TV in his room just because the idiot box was replaying footage showing him being run out in the match against Zimbabwe.
I wonder who is the bigger idiot - the Idiot Box or Ponting. Any guesses? :-)
I wonder who is the bigger idiot - the Idiot Box or Ponting. Any guesses? :-)
Happy Birthday Gauri!
Last year I almost bit off one of my best friend's head because she forgot my birthday. "How can you forget?" I half-yelled, half-wailed when the unfortunate soul happened to call me a few days after my birthday. I also pride myself on remembering all my friends' birthdays. Yet, today I forgot to wish another of my best friends. Poor gal SMSed me from abroad to politely inquire if I hadn't forgotten something today. One glance at the table calendar and I knew I have committed the unpardonable sin :-(
So here's to you Gauri - Wish You A Very Very Happy Birthday :-)
P.S. I have set a reminder for your birthday for every year, indefinitely, on my cell phone. So as long as I live, I won't forget again (unless I lose my phone!) , I promise! (Background music ' ये दोस्ती हम नहीं छोड़ेंगे") :-)
So here's to you Gauri - Wish You A Very Very Happy Birthday :-)
P.S. I have set a reminder for your birthday for every year, indefinitely, on my cell phone. So as long as I live, I won't forget again (unless I lose my phone!) , I promise! (Background music ' ये दोस्ती हम नहीं छोड़ेंगे") :-)
Monday, February 21, 2011
Borders gone?
"Oh no, not Borders" was my reaction when I read about the bankruptcy of the bookstore chain. I am a certified bookworm and during my stay in the US, I had grown fond of the Border stores. It's a sad day indeed! :-(
Thankfully, the bookstore business in India is alive and kicking but doomsday predictions are already being made. Everyone is saying that the moment the eReader market picks up, it will be curtains for the bookstores in India as well. I hope and pray that it never happens - ever.
I am one of those who feel that it is a sin to replace the crispness of paper pages and the fragrance of a new book by something which runs on a battery and is guaranteed to strain your eyes no matter what the buzzwords in the advertisements say. I don't think that curling up with an eReader will be the same as curling up with your favorite book on a rainy afternoon. These readers will never be able to replicate the warm comforting feeling of your old often-read book.
And they will never ever have any place to keep the bright petals or tiny green leaves that you can so confidently entrust to the pages of a paper book, will they? :-)
Thankfully, the bookstore business in India is alive and kicking but doomsday predictions are already being made. Everyone is saying that the moment the eReader market picks up, it will be curtains for the bookstores in India as well. I hope and pray that it never happens - ever.
I am one of those who feel that it is a sin to replace the crispness of paper pages and the fragrance of a new book by something which runs on a battery and is guaranteed to strain your eyes no matter what the buzzwords in the advertisements say. I don't think that curling up with an eReader will be the same as curling up with your favorite book on a rainy afternoon. These readers will never be able to replicate the warm comforting feeling of your old often-read book.
And they will never ever have any place to keep the bright petals or tiny green leaves that you can so confidently entrust to the pages of a paper book, will they? :-)
Awa Maru - Titanic of Japan
I might have read about this ship in one of my history lessons or not. I cannot be sure as the name sounds vaguely familiar. But I didn't remember anything else about her as I picked up this book by Rei Kimura. It's a slim volume and tells the sad story of the ship in simple yet effective words.
The Awa Maru was a hospital ship that sailed for Japan from Singapore in the last days of the WW2 - under a guarantee of protection from the US. Yet, it was torpedoed on 1st April, 1945 by an American submarine. Most of the 2007 passengers on board perished. :-(
It's a moving tale and one that underscores the fact that in any war, the people that suffer the worst are, more often than not, the most innocent.
The Awa Maru was a hospital ship that sailed for Japan from Singapore in the last days of the WW2 - under a guarantee of protection from the US. Yet, it was torpedoed on 1st April, 1945 by an American submarine. Most of the 2007 passengers on board perished. :-(
It's a moving tale and one that underscores the fact that in any war, the people that suffer the worst are, more often than not, the most innocent.
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