Back in college i was crazy about Abhishek Bachchan.. somewhere around the time Dhoom, Dus, Zameen, B&B and a few others released. I never missed his movies, sat in the front row, (yeah, girls in Pune do that) and god knows how many movies my roomies and Anant have suffered even though they hated him ...just for me. Infact, Ant and Aparna went around the theatres, telling the managers that their six year old niece loved AB Baby and it was her b'day and thats how i got four Junior AB huge posters in ma hostel room.
So...hope that gives you an idea about how much i liked him. And if still not sure about how crazy my family can get regarding the Stars, read this- my mom and her sisters went on a fast when Big B was critically injured during Coolie.
So..... I am a journalist now..... A SENIOR BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT. i now get kicked about meeting Kishore Biyani, Kumaramangalam, Yash Birla, Anand Mahindra and the likes.... Have also come across the whoz who of Bollywood. And today.... i saw him. My heartthrob of college days (which aint so long ago). Heart skipped a beat... but thats it. I went about doing my thing, asking my questions to the Company people (He was there as the brand ambassador), acting all serious and responsible... yet noticing his mannerisms.. his smile.. the naughty expressions...
But still... am a little sad. I should have been the old me... who would have got excited at all of this... done something wild and stupid...n thn told the whole damn family about my adventure.... And made 'the day i met abhishek bachchan' a memorable day. i aint 'starry eyed' anymore but i wish... i wish i was..... coz its nice to be a child sometimes.... and be lost in that world of innocence. Wat say?
Monday, June 30, 2008
Delitalia- From an Ignorant's point of view
Backgrounder: I live with four frenz. The fifth one is in Delhi, d only one away. She visits The Family whenever finances.. and bosses allow. This time before she landed in Mumbai, she already knew where we would go lunching (yes, madam actually believed we would let her leave for Pune after spending half a day with us!! Audacious!!)
'Delitalia!' she announced. And we wondered how she knew about the latest new place in which forever seemed to be booked.
"Research" she told the ignorant lot. So thats how we landed at thenewly renovated previously called '11Echoes' bang opposite Juhu Beach... now known as Delitalia. Classy(and glassy, which is good cause you get to enjoy the road and the beach view).. a little too Sophisticated... u'll always find few known, if i may say Page 3, faces around... also get to hear Opera Music (atleast thats what it sounds like) . Not really place for three loud 'excited about life' journalists and a 'where am i stuck' engineer. Yet we managed.
We struggled with the pronunciations... and (ehem.... prices), we finally ordered a nice appetiser and a round of Sangrias and Martinis. Yummmm
The pizza is aviodable. The Pastas average. But yeah, the ambience and the drinks sure work their charm. Plus, company always matters.
So if you have lots of money to burn and want to go to a nice peaceful place... if you have a taste for classical western music.. and don't know your Italian food too well.... You might as well book a table there tonight!
Else, join us at Firangi Paani.......
'Delitalia!' she announced. And we wondered how she knew about the latest new place in which forever seemed to be booked.
"Research" she told the ignorant lot. So thats how we landed at thenewly renovated previously called '11Echoes' bang opposite Juhu Beach... now known as Delitalia. Classy(and glassy, which is good cause you get to enjoy the road and the beach view).. a little too Sophisticated... u'll always find few known, if i may say Page 3, faces around... also get to hear Opera Music (atleast thats what it sounds like) . Not really place for three loud 'excited about life' journalists and a 'where am i stuck' engineer. Yet we managed.
We struggled with the pronunciations... and (ehem.... prices), we finally ordered a nice appetiser and a round of Sangrias and Martinis. Yummmm
The pizza is aviodable. The Pastas average. But yeah, the ambience and the drinks sure work their charm. Plus, company always matters.
So if you have lots of money to burn and want to go to a nice peaceful place... if you have a taste for classical western music.. and don't know your Italian food too well.... You might as well book a table there tonight!
Else, join us at Firangi Paani.......
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
losing the human touch?
When i got out of my home today.. i was super late. Overslept.. cursed the alarm..got ready in a rush. was still munching on the last bits of my breakfast wen i reached downstairs.. only to find no ricks around. well, cudnt get more late... so started walking... no ricks on the road either.... not even on S V ROAD!! no traffic jams at all.... didnt have to jump left right to save myself from autorickshaws speeding in from random directions....didnt have to run a few steps.. stop all of a sudden... wriggle between two ricks.. damn!! dats was a boring walk to Andheri Stn!! Was still sweating.. skin felt burnt...n already worrying about how will i reach hyatt for my meeting in the eve.
but wait a min... dat wasnt the point to this blog.....
sorry for deviating..... i do talk too much
the ricks are on a three day strike to rebel against electronic meters being made compulsory. why? i dont know. seems like govt decided without asking them. logic says also coz they are difficult to maintain. dont think they cant be tampered with thoug. whatever be the case... a three day long strike.. some 14lakh three wheelers off the road... for just this one thing? paise ka chakkar babu bhaiya...
interesting to see such sentiments of revolting.. making their voice heard didnt come along a couple of months bck when their cabbie buddies were being beaten up... when their cabs were damaged and windshields broken. No emotions came about then to stand up, talk and go on a strike. so wat if the guy next to me is injured.... and his cab not in a state to run anymore. i need to earn my daily bread, right?? ofcourse.... i've issues with an electronic meter which is yet to prove how harmful it can be to my life.
materialistic world. emotions buried under heaps of money concrete. 20 years we waste in studyin to get a job... 40 years we shall work day n night.. always aiming for another appraisal, a better job offer... more savings for that home, that car.....
thats life. that how i shall live it. happily. successfully. but once in a while... i shall let the human in me get a say.. wat about you?
but wait a min... dat wasnt the point to this blog.....
sorry for deviating..... i do talk too much
the ricks are on a three day strike to rebel against electronic meters being made compulsory. why? i dont know. seems like govt decided without asking them. logic says also coz they are difficult to maintain. dont think they cant be tampered with thoug. whatever be the case... a three day long strike.. some 14lakh three wheelers off the road... for just this one thing? paise ka chakkar babu bhaiya...
interesting to see such sentiments of revolting.. making their voice heard didnt come along a couple of months bck when their cabbie buddies were being beaten up... when their cabs were damaged and windshields broken. No emotions came about then to stand up, talk and go on a strike. so wat if the guy next to me is injured.... and his cab not in a state to run anymore. i need to earn my daily bread, right?? ofcourse.... i've issues with an electronic meter which is yet to prove how harmful it can be to my life.
materialistic world. emotions buried under heaps of money concrete. 20 years we waste in studyin to get a job... 40 years we shall work day n night.. always aiming for another appraisal, a better job offer... more savings for that home, that car.....
thats life. that how i shall live it. happily. successfully. but once in a while... i shall let the human in me get a say.. wat about you?
Friday, April 18, 2008
We Were Had!!
people say that am not passionate about many things inlife. True. It is difficult to stir up emotions, passion... the fire within me for things......... but the whole world also knows that journalism, activism, social responsibility (without having to scream rights for women) does something to me. Anything related to the fourth estate does effect me.. even more so now when i am finally a part of it. As a person, i find it difficult not to defend my loved ones, my frens, my job and so on. even if wrong, i can't take other people saying that. funny. stupid. me.
Today i break this trend. i am here to abuse my own media world. The industry which gives me zest to live on... work harder... and job satisfaction has got me frustrated for a change. n mind u, its something that has just begun to happen ever so often.
we all know about celebrities' and socialites' hunger for limelight. their publicity stunts are famous world over. what i never really thot about is why would media fall for these stunts and makes these fictious stuff sound like earth shattering news.
A reputed journo decides to take rumours of a couple splitting up on front page.
A multinational giant, which has more than 30% market share in any category that it is present in, resorts to a cheap publicity stunt. Why?
A happily married couple leads people into believing that they were heading for a divorce when they were secretly plannig of renewing their vows. Why?
I cannot imagine feeling more led down.. agitated.. vulnerable to tricks of MNCs and Celebrities as i did last week. I am not even a part of the entertainment media. was not even aware of how the news created a buzz thru out the day in the media. but i did catch on faster than entertainment journos (here is wen i feel like degrading them by saying PAGE 3 REPORTERS) that it was all a lie.. that the story was planted... that two people along with one of the biggest creative agencies in the country had fooled the media ... that they were laughing abt it... smirks all around ... gloated egos enjoying the success of their event and plot....
and media... ah! my beloved 'trash' community people were still climbing over each other, fighting, shoving and nudging to get bytes from those who had just fooled them.
True, the reporter nailed the husband n wife the next day in his story. but was dat anough. was there really any damage done? except that event got the desired publicity. stupid. stupid. stupid. and then the readers are told YOU WERE HAD! like, really? Readers don't freaking care!! they dont care if saif n kareena appeared tog again.. what they did inside the make-up van... if sanju n manyata are legally married or not... if ash is missing her father-in-law while she is overseas celebrating her anniv...like one of the recent columns in ma paper said... all this is supposed to be the side dish... not the main course!!!
Today i break this trend. i am here to abuse my own media world. The industry which gives me zest to live on... work harder... and job satisfaction has got me frustrated for a change. n mind u, its something that has just begun to happen ever so often.
we all know about celebrities' and socialites' hunger for limelight. their publicity stunts are famous world over. what i never really thot about is why would media fall for these stunts and makes these fictious stuff sound like earth shattering news.
A reputed journo decides to take rumours of a couple splitting up on front page.
A multinational giant, which has more than 30% market share in any category that it is present in, resorts to a cheap publicity stunt. Why?
A happily married couple leads people into believing that they were heading for a divorce when they were secretly plannig of renewing their vows. Why?
I cannot imagine feeling more led down.. agitated.. vulnerable to tricks of MNCs and Celebrities as i did last week. I am not even a part of the entertainment media. was not even aware of how the news created a buzz thru out the day in the media. but i did catch on faster than entertainment journos (here is wen i feel like degrading them by saying PAGE 3 REPORTERS) that it was all a lie.. that the story was planted... that two people along with one of the biggest creative agencies in the country had fooled the media ... that they were laughing abt it... smirks all around ... gloated egos enjoying the success of their event and plot....
and media... ah! my beloved 'trash' community people were still climbing over each other, fighting, shoving and nudging to get bytes from those who had just fooled them.
True, the reporter nailed the husband n wife the next day in his story. but was dat anough. was there really any damage done? except that event got the desired publicity. stupid. stupid. stupid. and then the readers are told YOU WERE HAD! like, really? Readers don't freaking care!! they dont care if saif n kareena appeared tog again.. what they did inside the make-up van... if sanju n manyata are legally married or not... if ash is missing her father-in-law while she is overseas celebrating her anniv...like one of the recent columns in ma paper said... all this is supposed to be the side dish... not the main course!!!
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Thank You Linkin Park
There's something inside me that pulls beneath the surface
Consuming…confusing
This lack of self-control I fear is never ending...Controlling…
Discomfort, endlessly has pulled itself upon me...Distracting…reacting
Against my will I stand beside my own reflection
It's haunting how I can't seem... to find myself again
My walls are closing in
What do I do to ignore them behind me?
Do I follow my instincts blindly?
Do I hide my pride from these bad dreams?And give in to sad thoughts that are maddening?
Do I sit here and try to stand it?Or do I try to catch them red-handed?
Do I trust some and get fooled by phoniness,
Or do I trust nobody and live in loneliness?
Because I can't hold on when I'm stretched so thin
I make the right moves but I'm lost within
I put on my daily facade but thenI just end up getting hurt again
By myself
I wanna heal... I wanna feel..
what I thought was never real
I wanna let go of the pain I’ve held so long
Erase all the pain till it’s goneI wanna heal,
And I’ve got nothing to sayI can’t believe I didn’t fall right down on my face
I was confused... Looking everywhere only to find
That it’s not the way I had imagined it all in my mind
So what am I
What do I have but negativity ’Cause I can’t justify the way, everyone is looking at me
Nothing to loseNothing to gain... hollow and alone
And the fault is my own, and the fault is my own
I will never know myself until I do this on my own
And I will never feel anything else, until my wounds are healed
I will never be anything till I break away from me
I will break away, I'll find myself today
Consuming…confusing
This lack of self-control I fear is never ending...Controlling…
Discomfort, endlessly has pulled itself upon me...Distracting…reacting
Against my will I stand beside my own reflection
It's haunting how I can't seem... to find myself again
My walls are closing in
What do I do to ignore them behind me?
Do I follow my instincts blindly?
Do I hide my pride from these bad dreams?And give in to sad thoughts that are maddening?
Do I sit here and try to stand it?Or do I try to catch them red-handed?
Do I trust some and get fooled by phoniness,
Or do I trust nobody and live in loneliness?
Because I can't hold on when I'm stretched so thin
I make the right moves but I'm lost within
I put on my daily facade but thenI just end up getting hurt again
By myself
I wanna heal... I wanna feel..
what I thought was never real
I wanna let go of the pain I’ve held so long
Erase all the pain till it’s goneI wanna heal,
And I’ve got nothing to sayI can’t believe I didn’t fall right down on my face
I was confused... Looking everywhere only to find
That it’s not the way I had imagined it all in my mind
So what am I
What do I have but negativity ’Cause I can’t justify the way, everyone is looking at me
Nothing to loseNothing to gain... hollow and alone
And the fault is my own, and the fault is my own
I will never know myself until I do this on my own
And I will never feel anything else, until my wounds are healed
I will never be anything till I break away from me
I will break away, I'll find myself today
Saturday, January 5, 2008
Whats your New Year Resolution??
2008 is here people!! For me it means a new beginning. It’s a nice time to let bygones be bygones and cherish the coming times with the intention of making more beautiful memories… blah blla bla! Oh n yes, making new year resolutions- making a resolution and then trying to beat your previous records of how long the resolution lasts. A day, 2 days, a week or more? How many resolutions have you achieved in totality? Me haven’t even bothered to….but its just fun to come up with one.
While New Year celebrations began as back as 4000 BC, for a long time, NY celebs were in spring time…. For obvious reasons. Most of our religions still follow that. It is said that 1st Jan doesn’t really have any astronomical or agricultural significance. (Google Rocks!!) For some people NY signifies Christ's Circumcision! (and that’s what we celebrate??) I didn’t have too much time or patience to research on this and beside whateva be the case …. Religious or not, scientific or not, for all of us today, its just an excuse to celebrate life and make a new beginning.
Uff! How I deviate…. Back to NY resolutions… lose weight, quit smoking/drinking, bond with family, (in one case I heard this lady say her resolution was to not to fight so much with her mom-in-law… needless to say the decision didn’t last long!)…, eating healthy, earn some X amount of money n so on. Apparently, in the times of Babylon, (do u feel like singing d Boney M song now? I do) the most popular resolution was to return borrowed farm equipment!
But its crazy, the kind of enthu this tradition generates. There are thousand of sites online, giving you NY resolution tips and even how to sustain your pledges (this is where I got bored of using the word ‘Resolution’ n so used the thesaurus in MS Word. Some journo I am!!). One such page says- 1. Make it specific. 2. Don’t Over reach. 3. Plan Ahead. 4. Make it official. Well, who the hell doesn’t know that???
Another example is my office HR team who sent out a mail saying-
“I will do the treadmill half an hour every morning, cant believe how much I have piled on this New Year’s Eve!!!”
“I will smoke only 2 cigarettes in a day, but I must say, I have contributed to the tobacco industry unconditionally over the past years”
Been there, Done that???
Are you one of those, who enthusiastically make a new year’s resolution on the 1st of Jan every year, and conveniently slips under the cover, when it’s actually time to implement it???
Fret Not!!! Help’s on its way!!!
We, at Human Resources Junction, have created a pit stop, for all you enthusiastic resolution makers. Just make one new year resolution, which could be anything that you wish to achieve in the near future. Post that resolution to us. If your resolution falls in our bucket of effort, we will fill it to the brim.
There will be a review period of 3 months for any change initiated through the resolution drive. The review period shall end on 1st April 2008
I like the spirit….
Anyways, let me know what your resolutions are people…. Or if you have any interesting stories from previous years about the same. Hope to make this one interactive!
Lemme start- Live Life! And say F#*K Ya to whoever comes in the way of my Happiness! (too general but at least am not over reaching and I am making it official right here.) N if you have any suggestions for me.. well… Keep them to yourselves. Bah Hambug!!
While New Year celebrations began as back as 4000 BC, for a long time, NY celebs were in spring time…. For obvious reasons. Most of our religions still follow that. It is said that 1st Jan doesn’t really have any astronomical or agricultural significance. (Google Rocks!!) For some people NY signifies Christ's Circumcision! (and that’s what we celebrate??) I didn’t have too much time or patience to research on this and beside whateva be the case …. Religious or not, scientific or not, for all of us today, its just an excuse to celebrate life and make a new beginning.
Uff! How I deviate…. Back to NY resolutions… lose weight, quit smoking/drinking, bond with family, (in one case I heard this lady say her resolution was to not to fight so much with her mom-in-law… needless to say the decision didn’t last long!)…, eating healthy, earn some X amount of money n so on. Apparently, in the times of Babylon, (do u feel like singing d Boney M song now? I do) the most popular resolution was to return borrowed farm equipment!
But its crazy, the kind of enthu this tradition generates. There are thousand of sites online, giving you NY resolution tips and even how to sustain your pledges (this is where I got bored of using the word ‘Resolution’ n so used the thesaurus in MS Word. Some journo I am!!). One such page says- 1. Make it specific. 2. Don’t Over reach. 3. Plan Ahead. 4. Make it official. Well, who the hell doesn’t know that???
Another example is my office HR team who sent out a mail saying-
“I will do the treadmill half an hour every morning, cant believe how much I have piled on this New Year’s Eve!!!”
“I will smoke only 2 cigarettes in a day, but I must say, I have contributed to the tobacco industry unconditionally over the past years”
Been there, Done that???
Are you one of those, who enthusiastically make a new year’s resolution on the 1st of Jan every year, and conveniently slips under the cover, when it’s actually time to implement it???
Fret Not!!! Help’s on its way!!!
We, at Human Resources Junction, have created a pit stop, for all you enthusiastic resolution makers. Just make one new year resolution, which could be anything that you wish to achieve in the near future. Post that resolution to us. If your resolution falls in our bucket of effort, we will fill it to the brim.
There will be a review period of 3 months for any change initiated through the resolution drive. The review period shall end on 1st April 2008
I like the spirit….
Anyways, let me know what your resolutions are people…. Or if you have any interesting stories from previous years about the same. Hope to make this one interactive!
Lemme start- Live Life! And say F#*K Ya to whoever comes in the way of my Happiness! (too general but at least am not over reaching and I am making it official right here.) N if you have any suggestions for me.. well… Keep them to yourselves. Bah Hambug!!
Monday, December 31, 2007
A Beautiful End or Start?
Couldnt have asked for a more wonderful end to 2007... and looking 8hrs ahead, i feel the start of 2008 is going to be even more beautiful. Am already on such a sweet high.. 2008 sure feels like good news for me.. my life.. my frens... love (eh! really??) ... my crazy swingy super practical yet stupidly (ok... dat aint a word) emotional heart.
While 2007 began with a mini bang in Goa.. Thanks to COEP gang for making it special. Honestly guys, cant go there again without you... too many special memories...
Thn, everything soon got overshadowed by the placements that started in college. This was it! all that i had fought for... broken away from the chains of engineering to become a journalist, lost my frens and my love in a bid to make something out of my life.. this was it! I had to get through some place... actually at that pt it was only CNBC on ma mind. Crazy,huh...
Well.. Cnbc didnt happen.. not for me at least.. Neither did TOI or IBN. Three torturous months until DNA happened. Life is settled... or so i would like to believe.
Then began the setting up of a home and a family.... yes, i can write an entire library of books on my room-mates and my adventures or rather mis-adventures. Maybe someday i shall. Fingers Cross rocks ppl! *n no, dats not wht we call our house... yet).
The year seems to have zipped by.... a year later i've met all the gang again and it feels good to be back amongst one's people. The coffee sessions @10 outside Sahil's hostel, the movies @30bucks in Vijay and Alka, heavy lunch @25 at Chaitanya, long bike rides @other's cost , trips to Veer Da Dhaba and Bashos @who remembers after all the alcohol..... it all came rushing back to last weekend. Funny though.... have been to Pune several times in the last year and half... but never felt such a strong nostalgia. Happens to you??
The coffee mug that broke (P.S- scroll down a lle to read that story)... was replaced by a bigger one by a special fren. And then the original mug gifter came riding along with some books (literally.... even wrote the note inside while he was on the bike) as another gift. Well, thankfully books don't break.. they do tear so am thinking, i shall get them bound and the pages laminated or something. Or just ensure that there aint a shredder or Tania Sohal around.
A million broken pieces cannot be stuck together again… but one can certainly try to mend the precious piece with some new pieces added wherever something is missing… and the new ones make a fit…. Along with some of the original to keep the base same (ok… now this sounds like some recipe or craft workshop instructions…. Understand the depth people even though the writer barely ever has any deep thots) ….. a new start can happen or maybe its just the time to sweep away the million pieces and stop drinking coffee!!!
While 2007 began with a mini bang in Goa.. Thanks to COEP gang for making it special. Honestly guys, cant go there again without you... too many special memories...
Thn, everything soon got overshadowed by the placements that started in college. This was it! all that i had fought for... broken away from the chains of engineering to become a journalist, lost my frens and my love in a bid to make something out of my life.. this was it! I had to get through some place... actually at that pt it was only CNBC on ma mind. Crazy,huh...
Well.. Cnbc didnt happen.. not for me at least.. Neither did TOI or IBN. Three torturous months until DNA happened. Life is settled... or so i would like to believe.
Then began the setting up of a home and a family.... yes, i can write an entire library of books on my room-mates and my adventures or rather mis-adventures. Maybe someday i shall. Fingers Cross rocks ppl! *n no, dats not wht we call our house... yet).
The year seems to have zipped by.... a year later i've met all the gang again and it feels good to be back amongst one's people. The coffee sessions @10 outside Sahil's hostel, the movies @30bucks in Vijay and Alka, heavy lunch @25 at Chaitanya, long bike rides @other's cost , trips to Veer Da Dhaba and Bashos @who remembers after all the alcohol..... it all came rushing back to last weekend. Funny though.... have been to Pune several times in the last year and half... but never felt such a strong nostalgia. Happens to you??
The coffee mug that broke (P.S- scroll down a lle to read that story)... was replaced by a bigger one by a special fren. And then the original mug gifter came riding along with some books (literally.... even wrote the note inside while he was on the bike) as another gift. Well, thankfully books don't break.. they do tear so am thinking, i shall get them bound and the pages laminated or something. Or just ensure that there aint a shredder or Tania Sohal around.
A million broken pieces cannot be stuck together again… but one can certainly try to mend the precious piece with some new pieces added wherever something is missing… and the new ones make a fit…. Along with some of the original to keep the base same (ok… now this sounds like some recipe or craft workshop instructions…. Understand the depth people even though the writer barely ever has any deep thots) ….. a new start can happen or maybe its just the time to sweep away the million pieces and stop drinking coffee!!!
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