Now, if only they operated these buses on the regular routes......Sigh!!!!
Sunday, April 30, 2006
Random musings from a holiday
Was absent from Bombay for a whole week. Had managed to wrestle a whole week's leave from my PL. My holiday destination?? Good ol' Pune and Mahabaleshwar. The icing?? T'was gonna be a driving holiday!!
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Do top up ur brake oil before leaving on a long distance drive. A sinking brake pedal and a hysterical Mom, both on the expressway, have taught me that!!!
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The Pune - Mahabaleshwar road is damn good. Had visited it during Sem VII, when it was under construction. Damn good job!!! T'was a breeze driving on it. (Pic on top)
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NEVER go for your honeymoon to Mahabaleshwar. The locals seem to leer at the newlyweds. And the damn place is too FULL of them!!!!
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Do try driving on the Pasarni Ghat from Wai to Panchgani. Lovely smooth road, lots of twists and turns. Nice workout for your cornering abilities. I could only max around 90 clicks in a M800.
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Avoid visiting Pune in summer!!!
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If you do visit Pune, remember to go to George's restaurant, on East Street in the Cantonment Area, and have the Chicken Rotisserie there. Its heavenly!!!
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I LOVE strawberries!!! Wimbledon, take a backseat!!!!
Sunday, April 09, 2006
Progress or regress???
Read recently in the papers that more quotas may be introduced in the IITs and IIMs soon. The man behind all this? The great (HA!!) Arjun Singh!!! The excuse being provided is that it is a constitutional provision which is being followed. The point of this exercise? The "progress" of the "backward" castes in society at large.
56 years ago, when the constitution was created, the makers had put in a clause for introducing a reservation for the "backward" castes. This was because they were, indeed, oppressed by the "upper" castes. They had to do many menial jobs simply because they were refused the opportunity to progress. The constitutional reservations gave them the much needed chance to prove themselves at every level. It made them believe in themselves that they were also capable of doing all those things which had, hitherto, been the bastion of the privileged classes. This had been exactly what the makers of the constitution had in mind. But, a clause was also put in that the reservations could be repealed after 50 years. However, in 2000, our elected representatives chose to extend these reservations by another 10 years!!
But, hasn't the scenario changed now?? Don't we see more equality in society, at least in terms of caste?? Today, to be very frank with you, I wouldn't be aware of what the word "Dalit" meant if it were not for these reservations. Its high time the people who sit in Parliament sit up and take notice that these reservations have long outlived their intended use. Today, they are more of an excuse for the students belonging to these "backward" classes to relax and dawdle on their efforts to get into prestigious institutions like the IITs and IIMs. And even assuming that the situation is grim for them in the rural areas, these reservations should certainly not be offered to them above the 10+2 level. For, it is these students, who will have secured admissions via the myriad concessions offered to them at the schooling level. This means that they have been given ample opportunity to overcome the social difficulties that they may have faced. And they still want reservations at the Undergraduate and Post-graduate level?? This is ridiculous!!! The people who sincerely believe that this is necessary should try and understand that this will seriously undermine the students' ability to perform at their optimum level in the international field. For, today, when India is on the verge of emerging as a major power, the same yardstick will be applied for judging all of us, backward class or not!!! In the face of such a scenario, we must concentrate on making the members of the "backward" classes consciously lose the impression that they belong to an underprivileged community. We are all Indians and let us remain so!!!
And as for the reservations, let us get rid of them once and for all, at least from the undergraduate level onwards. Instead, keep some seats for the economically backward students. And as regards the lack of opportunities excuse put forth in defence of these reservations, I feel that the people who are truly talented do not need such headline-grabbing gestures to succeed. A close friend I know is a living example of what I just said!!! CB, take a bow!!!
56 years ago, when the constitution was created, the makers had put in a clause for introducing a reservation for the "backward" castes. This was because they were, indeed, oppressed by the "upper" castes. They had to do many menial jobs simply because they were refused the opportunity to progress. The constitutional reservations gave them the much needed chance to prove themselves at every level. It made them believe in themselves that they were also capable of doing all those things which had, hitherto, been the bastion of the privileged classes. This had been exactly what the makers of the constitution had in mind. But, a clause was also put in that the reservations could be repealed after 50 years. However, in 2000, our elected representatives chose to extend these reservations by another 10 years!!
But, hasn't the scenario changed now?? Don't we see more equality in society, at least in terms of caste?? Today, to be very frank with you, I wouldn't be aware of what the word "Dalit" meant if it were not for these reservations. Its high time the people who sit in Parliament sit up and take notice that these reservations have long outlived their intended use. Today, they are more of an excuse for the students belonging to these "backward" classes to relax and dawdle on their efforts to get into prestigious institutions like the IITs and IIMs. And even assuming that the situation is grim for them in the rural areas, these reservations should certainly not be offered to them above the 10+2 level. For, it is these students, who will have secured admissions via the myriad concessions offered to them at the schooling level. This means that they have been given ample opportunity to overcome the social difficulties that they may have faced. And they still want reservations at the Undergraduate and Post-graduate level?? This is ridiculous!!! The people who sincerely believe that this is necessary should try and understand that this will seriously undermine the students' ability to perform at their optimum level in the international field. For, today, when India is on the verge of emerging as a major power, the same yardstick will be applied for judging all of us, backward class or not!!! In the face of such a scenario, we must concentrate on making the members of the "backward" classes consciously lose the impression that they belong to an underprivileged community. We are all Indians and let us remain so!!!
And as for the reservations, let us get rid of them once and for all, at least from the undergraduate level onwards. Instead, keep some seats for the economically backward students. And as regards the lack of opportunities excuse put forth in defence of these reservations, I feel that the people who are truly talented do not need such headline-grabbing gestures to succeed. A close friend I know is a living example of what I just said!!! CB, take a bow!!!
The Long Arm of the Law!!!
I had taken this pic around a month ago when I had waited outside Mac (VT). It seems the policeman had stopped this cabbie, when he suddenly decided to make a run for it, little realising that the smart "Mama" was holding his license. Here we see the cabbie torn between the option of running away or facing the irate cop. Nevertheless to say, he backed up and meekly faced impending doom!!!(Apologies are due for the pic quality.....t'was taken from my car which was parked quite a distance away)
Sunday, April 02, 2006
Being Cyrus - A Review
Saif Ali Khan in an English movie?? I had heard of Naseeruddin Shah, Dimple Kapadia et al doing the odd English film, but Saif?? Now this was new. This curiosity took me to Sterling to watch Being Cyrus. What did I think? Read on.
Right from the beginning, it strikes you that this film is different from the rest of the pack. There is no grand entry of the hero, hardly any background score and no flashy credits. In fact, the credits are almost "Hollywoodesque" in nature. So, you now sit down to watch the movie, a packet of the famed caramel popcorn in hand.
We are slowly introduced to the Sethna family, spread out over Bombay and Panchgani. Slowly, we come to grips with the eccentricity of each member of the family - the dreamy elder son, his frustrated wife, the dominant younger son, his beautiful and, sadly, bullied wife, and the patriarch who is now forced to live the life of a recluse by his younger son. Adajania draws you in further and further into the plot while, at moments, giving us glimpses into Cyrus' troubled past. The story is well told through the eyes of Cyrus, who, helpfully, adds his own take on the various members of the Sethna family. The ending of the movie is also well-constructed with the suspense being maintained right till the very end. The narrative does tend to get disjointed at times, but it only adds to the suspense.
Performance-wise, everyone in the movie is good. Naseeruddin Shah, as the dreamy Parsi simpleton does a very good job. But then, we have now come to expect that from him, haven't we? Dimple Kapadia as the mentally and sexually frustrated wife, again turns in a brilliant performance. Boman Irani is the perfect cranky Bawa, one you may expect to find anywhere in Bombay. His performance is so eerily convincing that you just HATE him. Simone Singh, as his meek and demure wife who likes to secretly enjoy in her husband's absence is also the right choice for the role. But, the movie belongs to Saif. Everything he does is simply perfect. Just the right glint of menace for a fleeting moment before he is all charm again. He just seems to be unable to do anything wrong at the moment. I hope he continues in this vein for a long time to come. For, in him, we have one of India's finest actors, one who can show that you needn't be a hunk of beef to make a point. Saif, take a bow!!!
Urban India has grown up. No longer are the people content to just sit back and watch a certain actor (Cough!!! Cough!!!) wear loud clothes and amuse (sic!!!!) them with his antics. They want the real stuff. And they want it dished out to them as it is. No garnishing, no embellishments.
Director Homi Adajania doesn't disappoint in this respect. The fare that he doles out here is pretty grim. But, the moot point is that he manages to make an impact. And that, friends, should be enough for us to sit up and take him seriously as a filmmaker and not just another also ran!!!
Right from the beginning, it strikes you that this film is different from the rest of the pack. There is no grand entry of the hero, hardly any background score and no flashy credits. In fact, the credits are almost "Hollywoodesque" in nature. So, you now sit down to watch the movie, a packet of the famed caramel popcorn in hand.
We are slowly introduced to the Sethna family, spread out over Bombay and Panchgani. Slowly, we come to grips with the eccentricity of each member of the family - the dreamy elder son, his frustrated wife, the dominant younger son, his beautiful and, sadly, bullied wife, and the patriarch who is now forced to live the life of a recluse by his younger son. Adajania draws you in further and further into the plot while, at moments, giving us glimpses into Cyrus' troubled past. The story is well told through the eyes of Cyrus, who, helpfully, adds his own take on the various members of the Sethna family. The ending of the movie is also well-constructed with the suspense being maintained right till the very end. The narrative does tend to get disjointed at times, but it only adds to the suspense.
Performance-wise, everyone in the movie is good. Naseeruddin Shah, as the dreamy Parsi simpleton does a very good job. But then, we have now come to expect that from him, haven't we? Dimple Kapadia as the mentally and sexually frustrated wife, again turns in a brilliant performance. Boman Irani is the perfect cranky Bawa, one you may expect to find anywhere in Bombay. His performance is so eerily convincing that you just HATE him. Simone Singh, as his meek and demure wife who likes to secretly enjoy in her husband's absence is also the right choice for the role. But, the movie belongs to Saif. Everything he does is simply perfect. Just the right glint of menace for a fleeting moment before he is all charm again. He just seems to be unable to do anything wrong at the moment. I hope he continues in this vein for a long time to come. For, in him, we have one of India's finest actors, one who can show that you needn't be a hunk of beef to make a point. Saif, take a bow!!!
Urban India has grown up. No longer are the people content to just sit back and watch a certain actor (Cough!!! Cough!!!) wear loud clothes and amuse (sic!!!!) them with his antics. They want the real stuff. And they want it dished out to them as it is. No garnishing, no embellishments.
Director Homi Adajania doesn't disappoint in this respect. The fare that he doles out here is pretty grim. But, the moot point is that he manages to make an impact. And that, friends, should be enough for us to sit up and take him seriously as a filmmaker and not just another also ran!!!
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