Life at CMU – June 1 to 21

Time is just flying.. its been almost 45 days since I landed in Pittsburgh..

Last Sunday Me and Viki started out on a temple visit that never happened..determined not to keep wandering about this time as we had the India-England match around noon time. we drew the map as per the instructions on the net and started out at 8 30.. but alas, this time too we wandered around for almost 2 hours, asking the wrong people for the right directions.. and as luck would have it, the shortest route was blocked for some construction activities.

We took a route along the Northern Pyke road and according to the map we had to turn a left at spproximately .4 miles. We walked on and on along the steep slope. The lane wore a deserted look, with the sides adorned by thick bushes on one side and country houses along the other side. We thought we had almost reached .4 miles and we were contemplating which left to take, as there were 2 or 3 branches almost adjacent to each other. I wandered along the mat of grass towards one of them and lo! just then a ferocious german shepperd leapt from the gates and came charging towards us. I leapt above the thick bushes towards the highway where as Viki gave up and was just waiting for the eventuality to unfold A tall fair handsome sports freak who ate vegetarian food all his life and another tall smart guitarist would not have been such a bad meal for the german shepperd. I frantically jumped straight into the highway , and as luck would have it, no vehicles passed by just then.. else minnale style la map poturka vendiyadhu dhaan..

But the dog seemed to be a well trained watch dog. As soon as it neared the highway, it stopped ; so perhaps it had been instructed just to keep the tresspassers away from the property it was guarding..

We walked along for some more time but were clueless about the route as the canopy of trees and thick bushes made it even harder. Of course, we were wondering how much more canine friends would enable us make up for the loss of a morning jog along the way , we decided to get back and make a proper trip the next time instead. Perhaps, Lord Venky just did not want us at his shrine that day !

It was really sad to see India lose the way it did , but things happen in sport. I desperately wanted Windies to win the trophy but it was pretty nice to see Pakistan lift the cup, especially after what they are going through right now. A rational view would make you agree with me that the Pakistani cricketers are being unfairly sidelined for pretty much no fault of theirs eg: the IPL fiasco in which the Pakistanis were barred from participating even though it was held in S.A and not in India ; the dumb explanation given by Lalit Modi was that they were not in the original squads selected on March 1 when the Pak govt. denied clearance for them to visit India! In that case Mr Modi, the govt. also refused security clearance for the tournament in India, did you listen to the government then ? This victory would perhaps open the doors for a more secure career for them.

Last Wednesday, I was woken up from my evening nap by some hard hitting hail stones that were splattering on my window panes. It hardly rained for some 1 hour and there was chaos n flood alerts every where. Some classes too were suspended the next day ! Back home , we played cricket even during cyclones Even during those trying times when we experienced heavy floods, we went about with life as if nothing happened. India rocks guys , so think twice before making statements praising the glory of other adopted countries

I have developed this new found passion and addiction for squash, thanks to lack of Cricket here. The game is so addictive and I am just loving it, flexing my muscles and showing off my reflexes on the court. I also got a calling card that charges just around 90 paise per minute for a call to India ! Makes it a lot easier to call up the near and dear ones these days..

I tried cooking Brinjal and it came out pretty well ( Viki will stand testimony). So I am managing with cooking pretty ok.. but it can never get up to what my mom and sister prepare back home.. I am heavily missing their food

So I have started cooking, managing provision bills and other expenses, and in short running the house..Mom, are you listening ? I am ready for the next few things in life

The coming week looks to be very crucial and momentous as I have my mid term results and hopefully a few other good things coming up as well

Life at CMU : May 14 to May 31

It has been about three weeks since I have landed in Pittsburgh and the experience has been wonderful so far.
On Thursday 14th we had our first day at CMU. It felt so momentous to be a part of such a prestigious institution The moments were captured splendidly by our cameraman.

The next day we had our international orientation and the organizers did an amazing job to keep us engaged. But the electives were proving to be a headache as we could not get our preferred choices , thanks to a crappy schedule and dumb registration process. So what can be done best when in trouble ? Yes seek the blessings of almighty.. so our plan for the weekend was a visit to the much talked about Pittsburgh Sri Venkateswara Temple.

We decided to take a bus to SVN and The Lord had decided before hand that we had to go through trials n tribunals to get his darshan. The day started on a wrong foot with us waiting on the opposite end of the bus stop and watching a bus pass by right on the opposite direction. The frequency was limited as it was a weekend , so we had to wait for quite some time for the next bus. We got down after a half hour bus drive and we made the cardinal mistake of not taking a local map along. So a word of caution to all those people who would be travelling soon to USA. Always have with you a local map, gps device or anything that could aid you in directions.. It is better to learn from mistakes, especially from others’ mistakes

After endless searches, innumerable enquires and about 1 and 1/2 hours walk, we saa a board reading “SVN Temple ” 3 miles away The Lord decided enough was enough and a kind hearted woman offered us a lift on her car upto the temple. We had a satisfying darshan of the lord. The prasadam given inside the presiding deity’s shrine was almonds and resins. The place was swarming with Tamils and Andhra natives. We decided to check the famous prasadam counter there and ate sumptously some tamarind and sambhar rice ( For each food packet, we had to donate 2 dollars to the temple ).It started raining by the time we were preparing to leave and again a kind hearted Telugu couple offered us a lift till the bus stop. In general, the Indians here are very helpful in nature ( they do understand the financial and logistical perils of graduate students ). The Lord never fails those who have faith in him and by the beginning of the following week, most of us got the electives we desired

The days kept passing within a wink and the people here are fitness freaks. You can find most teen girls jogging vigorously trying to stay fit. They are good at it, but still lack the natural grace that Indian girls have One complaint though, is that girls smoke a lot here and either the cigarettes are too tobacco strong, or they are devoid of filters cos the smoke gives quite a strong odour; it is dangerous for them as well as the passive smokers around them.

The next big occasion was my dear friend Vignesh’s birthday ! We had deviced a secret plan to surprise him on the evening of his birthday, so even my morning greetings to him that day were underplayed. He had a class from 5 30 to 8 30 and I was done with my classes by five in the evening. So me n Bhadri rushed out to Trader Joe’s to grab a 3 pound Ice cream cake for the occasion. It was drizzling all along but who would mind it when one of your best friends’ birthday celebrations were shortly due ?

Most of our batchmates including our “seniors” Nitin and Priya ( err.. “senior” sounds strange because though they are 2009 grads of CMU, they were our class mates in U.G ) had arrived in time. My other room mate Dhawan was bringing Viki along and when he arrived at the house to see all our friends waiting to celebrate his birthday, his emotions kept varying between joy and disbelief ! It is for moments like these that we live our life

The celebrations continued till almost midnight and the fun continued with Viki throwing in a surprise lunch for the entire MS IT/MSE batch in CMU !

Saturday was another important day in my life. I was leading an assorted CMU team against Linbrook Cricket Club ! My comebacks and tryst with cricket continue in Pittsburgh as well. We won the match comfortably against our opponents and it was a pleasure to lead such a diverse group. Most of them spoke Hindi, so my medium of communication was english and to my surprise, I found that I could comprehend whatever they wanted to put accross to me and could make out some “sledging” terms from the opponents as well ! So watch out.. I am fast improving The occasion was more important. The proceed from the ticket sales for the match ,along with the auction that followed the game would be used to sponsor needy children through CRY-INDIA, and my day as captain of the team was made truly memorable when I received a mail from the organizers saying the match helped them collect a good sum for sponsorship through CRY(approx 1700$). The money would be transferred soon to India , and it feels great to contribute in whatever small manner we could to a child from my motherland, though a great distance separates her from me these days. Now to all those critics of cricket ; will you still say cricket is a waste of time ?

Journey to the USA

With a heavy heart, leaving warm dreams behind in my chase for newer dreams, I left my motherland at midnight on May 9 th.

I checked in at the airport and I was supposed to take the flight to Doha ( Qatar Airways) at 4:45 A.M.
Since I was travelling by flight for the first time I was curious about all the follow up and precedent activities that come along with the journey.Suprema who came along with us was our travel guide as she had been to the U.S before

The flight did not have much of leg space and I was hoping atleast the Air Hostesses would not be covered from head to toe in a purdah ( I had paid 33000 Rs ). I went in to take my seat and the interiors of the flight did not seem much better than a K.P.N deluxe service. The take off part was fun though, when you can feel the softness of your interior stomach muscles, reminding you of the roller coaster rides in our theme parks.

It was almost a 3 1/2 hour flight to Doha and the air hostess served some good breakfast consisting of pongal,vada,sambar, bread, bun, and tea. Then we were forced to watch the movie “Aegan” as it was the only option available. I could not stand it for more than half an hour and thought would just close my eyes instead trying to catch up with some sleep( Nayan was looking good as usual in the movie ).I peeped out to catch a bird’s eye view of Doha. It was a fascinating mix: on one side there were silky beaches and on the other side, sand structures stretching a mile. It was almost landing time and as we were coming down in altitude my ears started aching terribly. Luckily it did not last long and we reached Doha at around 6 30 a.m local time, with the sun beating down our backs.

The Doha airport is pretty huge and we found a cosy place to sit peacefully. A few good looking school girls who were heading for some event and two foreigners who got into an altercation provided some good entertainment. The Airport has wi-fi facilities and it was good to chat with dear ones back home.It was local time 8 30 and just then we realised that we had a flight to catch up at 9: 20 !

The security checks this time were elaborate and nerve wrecking. You have to unpack, remove your laptop and send it through a scanner, then your cabin baggage, then your wallet, kercheif, neckpouch, belt, shoes, almost everything and send it through another scanner again.Even a guy who wants to blow the airport would be exhausted and just give up.In typical “namma ooru style”, we boarded the flight at 9:15

This time the flight to Washington had individual entertainment packages attached to the front seats to make lives better, but I made a first grab for the ear plugs this time !But again there was no leg space and that meant not much of sleep in this journey as well.( A strong “no-no” for all those wanting to travel by Qatar economy class ). I started out by listening to MJ’s album “Thriller”. The airlines authorities decided that they were gonna stop us being pampered by their middle aged air hostesses who showed some “motherly” love. They decided to make matters worse and send their stewards instead ! There was this guy who was dressed up neat, looked tall and well built and yet, when he took orders, you could not find a voice more feminine and sweet ! I had a good welcome drink: apple juice without ice. It was so delicious.

The fisrt movie I watched was Kuselan. Somehow it was not as bad as it was when I watched its first show in theatre. The climax was awesome and Super Star was amazing. The emotional portrayal and his tearful speech on friends left a lump and I was feeling down thinking of all those friends I was going to miss from
then on.I decided to watch the Hindi version too :”Billu Barber” to see the differences and Shah Rukh was pathetic. He just did not stand a chance in comparision to our Rajni in the climax. The movie was worse than Kuselan and lacked any emotion. They spoilt the essence of the story in the name of underplay.

It was almost lunch time and the veg. meal was pathetic. Somehow the steward decided salmon was veg.( perhaps it grew up eating moss and lichen which in turn must have eaten veg). He also had the brains and b*lls to tell us that ” if you are pure veg, then you might not like it !” and got a piece of my mind back in return. I managed with some paneer and jeera rice which would not have satified the appetite of a 2 year old kid.

The next movie was Dhaam Dhoom followed by Nancy Drew: The curious case of some (.. I forgot the rest of the title ;D ) .Both were good. I watched a bit of the movies “The Wrestler” and “Slum Dog Millionaire”. Dinner was once again pathetic. I asked for some vegetarian sandwhich and somehow all the vegetables resembled tomatoes in it ( just being pathetically sarcastic, for Qatar, veg meant tomatoes and it was a tomato sandwhich).At around 4 : 20 local time, we set foot in Washington and headed straight for the emigration and customs formalities.

I would briefly touch upon them for the benefit of people who are gonna head to the States in the near future.Once you land in Washington ( or New York) make a headstart to the emigration line in order to save some time. Keep your passport, I 20 ( if you are travelling by F1 ) , and your boarding passes always with you in your handbag or a neck pouch.( This is right from your journey in Chennai, at all stop overs you need the passport and your boarding passes at your arm’s length).You would also need to fill your I-94 and Customs Declaration forms which they would distribute in the flights,approximately one hour before your scheduled landing.The first step is the longest one: They check for all these above mentioned artifacts and ask you a few basic questions.Some of the questions to me where “What is the purpose of your visit ?” “What program are you gonna take ? ” “Is this the first time to states ?” “Are you travelling alone ? ” “Have you brought any food items ? ” ( I have been told by Mom since childhood never to lie and so I promptly said ” Pickles : the preservative stuff but you might as well say “no” and avoid further questions ). The officer then makes a signature on the i-94, staples it to your passport, and makes a stamp on the i 20 as well( or your travel document, in case you are not travelling on F1).The next step is the collection of your baggage. The third and final step is customs checking where they collect your forms and pick up people for random baggage checking. This hardly happens and we all came out quickly but if you look like a lost hare among a fox mob, they might just probe you; so the best thing would be to walk past them briskly with a relaxed smile.

I was looking forward to meeting Suprema’s friends from college who said they will try making it to Washington( it goes without saying that they wer girls ) , and eating some good Indian food,but she spoilt the fun by asking them to stay at their places as it might get too late for our flight to Pittsburgh

We had a meal at Subway where I spent my first few dollars ( of course with a heavy heart, once you start the conversion to rupee). I had a veg. pizza at Subway for 4.19$

We boarded the flight to Pittsburgh at around 9 50 P.M local time. It was a short 50 minute flight and as my lucky stars would have it ; a decent looking babe,must be around 23- 25 came and sat right next to me ! Ilayaraja RR, warming up and all were short lived becouse soon her boy friend walked in and occupied a seat near to us She was busy with a novel, the boy friend was eating as if he was gonna fast for the next one week and I decided it was best to sleep

We were received at the airport by my room mate who had already reached a few days in advance and I reached my temporary housing at around 12 midnight.

America, lets see what you have got for us !

Happy Women’s Day !

Blessed indeed I am to have been nurtured by two adorable woman all through my life – My Mom and Sister

I can’t thank God enough for making me spend almost 20 odd years observing these people, their emotions, their guts, their mood swings and their struggles throughout their life. It has made me look at all other woman that I have met since then with respect rather than contempt. This could have easily happened had I not had the opportunity to grow along with a sister especially. A guys alone environment makes you fall prey to all the other dismissive and totally wrong cliches about women that exist.

I did not realise how much I loved my sister until the evening of her marriage. The very thought that my favourite punching bag, my chocolate stealer, sworn enemy in “capture the remote” fights, the butt of my jokes at home was packing her bags to leave us all behind and begin a fresh episode in her life left a lump in my throat. I sobbed like a kid that day , leaning on the pillars of the “chathram” as I wished her good luck and waved back as the van in which she was seated faded gradually out of my sight. I am not a very emotional person when it comes to moist eye matters.. so I cant remember when I wept before that and I dont care if I ever wept after that !

Right in front of my very own eyes, I have seen her transform from a despicable devil who refused to share chocolates, respect my time, not let me listen to “Cibaca Geethmala” by stuffing almost the entire radio into her ears alone, into a selfless angel who sacrificed her time,sleep and hunger once she attainted motherhood.. I know how it feels to bang the head on a lampost during a blindfolded cycle race and stay blacked out for a few hours, or see some of your skin on knees and arms ripped off thanks to a dive on the cricket field, and I also know what it feels like to have a 5 1/4 ounce cricket ball crash right between the ones that God has already given you below your tummy and now,having watched from close quarters, I also know to appreciate the fact that it is not even 0.00000001 % of what a women experiences in labour pain and the days after delivery.. Salute you all brave women

Mom, where do I start if I have to talk about you ? I cant thank you enough, I cant love you enough and I cant repay you enough.. what do I talk about ? The fact that you told the doctor “do not bother whatever happens to me, hand over this kid safely to his Dad who is on a pilgrimage to Sabarimala ” when, I complicated matters due to lack of patience and eagerness to step into the world prematurely in 8 1/2 months itself how do I repay you for those moments when you taught me to carefully place my arms to cover my head that would not settle down properly for atleast 8 months , in case I had a fall, and adorned the entire flooring with beds so that I would not be deprived of the opportunity to play despite that temporary handicap, or those dark days when illness had chances of turning critical and you spent almost 2 months in hospital with me, keeping awake to let me sleep..

How do I thank you enough for having me taught how to win, how to accept defeats, for having disciplined me into avoiding “non good” habits, and most importantly how to respect other women.. forget it words are not enough..even the Gods cant lend their scripts to sing your glory..

I always thought when people say, my kid at home is a brat who does super natural stunts, and has great fun and frolic all time, they obviously were referring to boys. Everything changed once Paddu ( my niece) stepped into this world on September 15, 2004. She is a far more terrifying brat who can match guys word for word, stare for stare, stunt for stunt and perhaps out-do them too ! And the very fact that she is being guided by a woman who was nurtured by my mother promises her a very rosy future ( Sorry Athimber, this is a Women’s day special ). She is perhaps the only girl who trades kisses with me

Apart from them, great friends who happened to by girls, both during my school and college times have also played a great role in shaping my attitude towards the fairer sex. I cant name each and every one of you, for your own privacy sake, but all those of you who are close to me would know who all I am remembering and wishing, at this moment

Not for a moment am I indicating I am an “enternal non male chauvanist” , in fact I beleive that it is practically impossible to be an eternal non male chauvanist throughout your life and I guess it is the order of nature that men and women fight over it ( Sorry I am not good at biology, people who know my artistic skills will know why I opted for Computer Science in X1 standard, so I will stop at this point, and yeah, not that I was too good in Comp. Sci either ; just that I was left with very few choices ), but if you grow up in the company of real good women, the animal of “male chauvanism” within you will defenitely be tempered.

We may have fought against you, teased you, taunted you with our victories but we need you forever: you have made us laugh, smile within ourselves, shake our heads in anguish, feel good ;great; romantic; depressed; ecstatic :do bear with us the world will be incomplete without you

I will just quote some of my favourite lines from a few songs that remain very close to my heart ( I think some are Vaali’s lines, and the rest, I am not sure)

” Vinnai Padaithan, Mannai Padaithan
Kaatrum Mazhaiyum Oliyum Padaithan
Boomi Ku Adhanal Nimmadhi Illai, Saami thavithan
THAAYAI PADAITHAN “

” Sorgam Edharku, En Ponnulagam Pennuruvil Pakkam Irukku, Kannae Vaa “

” Vinnavarkum Mannavarkum
Vilai Attra Selvam Penn “

To My Mom, Sis, Darling Paddu and all those lovable women who have made a difference to my life, my heartiest thanks and wishes -HAPPY WOMEN’S DAY

The “Raja” named “Rahman”

February 23.. the nation woke up, prayed, perspired,chewed nails( and some fingers),anticipated,waited and froze when A.R.Rahman won the Oscars ! The first Indian to win two in a row, the first Southie, the first Tamilian and on a personally satisfying note the first PSBBian

It would have been too easy to get carried away and fake your identity, but being the humble man Rahman is, he remembered it all.. the Sherwani, his love for mother and most importantly his mother tongue-TAMIL ( All the Saviours of Tamil who wear Western Suits for gatherings and send your kith and kin to English convents, please spare the corporation wells, they can not take you all at a time )

Amidst all this, perhaps the only aspect that pained me was the way a few fans of Ilayaraja received this news and their sequence of reactions right from the build up to the Golden Globe. It is a blessing that India has been fortunate to enjoy the best works of possibly two of the greatest musicians that ever walked on earth, yet it is a pretty shameful that some amongst us do not have the stomach to digest the success of both the musicians equally.

I am a great fan of both ARR and Raja, and both in their own ways have achieved astronomical fame. Ilayaraja revamped film music with his impeccable orchestration,mind blowing BGM and melifluous folk tunes. Rahman revolutionised it by teaching India what “sound” meant to music.While Ilayaraja stayed within South Indian horizons, ARR’s unbridled talent enabled him venture into Hindustani,Arabic,Sufi,Irish folk,Jazz,Rap,Hollywood,Sky,Moon,Stars and above !

Sad that we , in India, always have this mindset of choosing one over the other. North vs South,Tamil vs English,Hindi vs Tamil,Rajni vs Kamal,MGR vs Shivaji,Sachin vs Saurav, IPL vs ICL.. if only we realised that everything could co exist !

I did not know how to end this one, so to wind up on a pleasant note, I will try listing my favourite numbers composed by both these geniuses.

Ilayaraja

10. Enakku Piditha Paadal (Julie Ganapathy)
9. Amma Yendrazhaikadha (Mannan)
8. Then Paandi Cheemayile (Nayagan)
7. Enna Sattham Indha Naeram (Punnagai Mannan)
6. Kodai Kaala Kaatrey (Panneer Pushpangal)
5. Ninnukori (Agni Nakshathram)
4. Sundari Kannal Oru Seidhi (Thalapathi)
3. Ilaya Nila (Payanangal Mudivadhillai)
2. Aagaya Vennilave (Arangetra Velai)
1. Mandram Vandha Thendralukku (Mouna Ragam)

Rahman

10. Thazhuvudhu Nazhuvudhu (Ah Aah-Anbey Aaruyirae)
9. Sahana Saaral (Sivaji)
8. Vennilave Vennilave (Minsara Kanavu)
7. Thenmaerku Paruvakaatru (Karuthamma)
6. Pudhu Vellai Mazhai (Roja)
5. Narumugaye (Iruvar)
4. Theekuruviyai (Kangalal Kaidhu Sei)
3. Thirupachi Aruval (Taj Mahal)
2. Chandhralekha (Thiruda Thiruda)
1. Minnale Nee Vandhadhenadi (May Madham)

Now, what is your favourite ?

P.S ( My original list for Ilayaraja songs had the number “Oru Kadhal Devadhai”.. One of my friends Aravindan rightly pointed out that the credits for the song belong to Shankar Ganesh )

Plethora of Emotions

Arjun applied his breaks just in time to pause for the signal.. the traffic was heavy as people were being help up to clear the road for a safe passage for the minsiter’s convoy.

He was staring without an aim and reflecting on his thoughts..his emotions were getting the better of him and his mind was clouded and disturbed..

He was feeling pretty low and sorry for himself, perhaps the worst state one could ever wish to be..

He had let ANGER get the better of him, picking up fights with his friends for no apparent reason,his DEFEATist attitude was making him feel bad with every FAILURE,he wished certain things would go his way: with a mixture of EXPECTATION and HOPE and when reality had something else in store, he was cursing himself in self EMBARASSMENT.

His own INDECISIVENESS and that of people around him was adding to his frustration and he was lamenting the fact that not enough SUCCESS came along despite him pitching in the best of efforts and the grief and PAIN of disappointment and unfulfilled EXPECTATIONS were haunting him.Harsh realities in schooling days had taught him that REVENGE eats up half your time and peace of mind, and it takes strength of mind to abstain oneself from seeking it, and the best way to avoid JEALOUSY was to celebrate others’ success. The traffic was starting to clear and the road ahead seemed clearer now, and Arjun was moving forward through the army of vehicles..

Just then, Arjun’s ears began revebrating with the dreaded hissing sound..yes it was a flat tyre..Luckily, the garage was nearby and Arjun asked the mechanic to hand over the car at his home when it was ready, and he proceeded to have a walk towards his home which was a couple of kilometers away.

An old woman was waiting patiently for her turn to cross the road, and inconsiderate people seemed to be unmindful, hardly caring to stop, yet there was not even a hint of ANGER due to frustration in her visage. She waited patiently, knowing her turn would come.Arjun clasped her wrinkled hands firmly and helped her cross the street.

As he walked on, he saw a few kids playing a game of marbles. A kid narrowly missed his shot, and the winning group traded high fives and the losers sulked for a moment. Almost immediately, “one more time” said the losing group captain.. ” get ready for the next win” said the victorious captain to his team. Arjun watched with keen interest as to how the losing kids quickly shrugged off their DEFEAT, and how the winning team wanted more SUCCESS.This time around, the other team won and soon the kids were holding their hands together, gazing at the huge billboards in awe, with no trace of PAIN,REVENGE or JEALOUSY.

A herd of goats were scampering accross, almost reaching the other side only to come all the way back on hearing a loud horn..so much for INDECISIVENESS and yet Arjun could spot them realligning themselves, sticking to their original plans ,determined to give it a try all over again.

Arjun was just a couple of cross streets away from his home and
on one side of the road, a lame beggar was sitting besides a magnificient paiting of Lord Hanuman. Arjun stopped, admiring the beautiful piece of art, and the beggar looked up at Arjun with HOPE. Arjun thrust a ten rupee note into the beggar’s hand. “Thank You, Sir this is a bonus as I usually expect just a well done or a one rupee coin from people for all this”. So much so for EXPECTATIONS for efforts !

As he moved ahead, Arjun observed a middle aged man squatted under the street lights. Arjun walked up towards him, partially wondering how one could take up such a job. “I can guess what you are thinking Sir, I can tell you I dont see any EMBARASSMENT in doing this: I need to feed my wife and kids and I prefer stooping down and polishing shoes for a living rather than standing upright and stabbing others behind their back for instant success! ”

Arjun was speechless ” Polish ?” the man asked cheekily. Arjun was retiring to his home for the night and obviously he did not need one but still, he decided to have his shoes gleamed up and handed out a two rupee coin. ” And now tell your wife that though you bent down to polish my shoes, you recevied your pay with your head held high !” said Arjun with a wink.

Arjun was coming out of his cocoon,thanks to a flat tyre, and the realities of the outer world made him realise that everyone else was having their own set of emotions to keep them occupied as well.

Back at home, Arjun unbuttoned his Orange shirt and let it hang neatly.After some minutes, he was all by himself in his room, lights switched off, the moonlight finding its way, tricking through the curtains, blissfully illuminating the room. The Moon is a magical mix of charm, mystery and romance Arjun looked up at the fast revolutions of the ceiling fan, going back to those glorious days as a kid..

Arjun longed for those days when ..

1.INDECISIVENESS meant being unable to choose between a packet of Uncle Chips and Cadbury’s Crackle
2.JEALOUSY was when you looked with hate at the big ice cream cone on your sister’s hands when you were struggling with a sore throat
3. ADAMANCE meant refusing to let “Paatimma” watch Mahabharatham when the timings clashed with India’s cricket matches
4. REVENGE was all about letting the air out of the cycle wheels of your friend who won the race to touch the school gates first
5. PAIN was something that you experienced when the family doctor drove his sterilized syringe right through your bum
6. EMBARASSMENT made you blush when the girl next to you pointed out that you had failed to pull up your zip after attending nature’s call
7. APOLOGY was never at premium especially when the Social Science teacher expected one and the clang of bells meant the next hour was the P.T period
8.DESIRE meant longing for a gulp of “Goldspot” after having spent the entire day playing under arm cricket in the blazing sun
9. DEFEAT and FAILURE meant a lost opportunity to be the first person to wish the prettiest girl in class on her birthday
10. ANGER made you fume when Mom refused to let you indulge yourself in the rain but vanished as soon as she opened the window to let you admire the rainbow
11. EXPECTATION and IMPATIENCE meant glancing at the intercom longingly, waiting to utter the chants “hari ohm shanno …”- the evening prayer so that you could crash straight into mom’s arms for a tight hug after having won a prize at school
12 HOPE meant you would still keepy praying for an Indian win, even after the fall of Sachin’s wicket
13 COURAGE meant the guts to walk upto your neighbour and ask if you could retrieve the ball,after having just smashed his window with a swashbucking hit
14 And most importantly, SUCCESS meant both “NOTHING and EVERYTHING” and CELEBRATIONS NEVER NEEDED A REASON

Arjun was reflecting on all that had happened, the lessons he had learnt on the streets that day. He was tossing and rolling over from one side to another,unable to sleep.He was just hoping for better days ahead and realised that no one else but Arjun himself had to take the initiative if he wanted his state of affairs to improve. Slowly, the effect of the moonlight softened, upto a point of non botheration ,Arjun stopped sensing the comfort of the breeze and he could not hear the sounds made by the rotations of the fan blade against the wind anymore…

And in case you thought Arjun had breathed his last, courtesy a massive cardiac arrest…

Arjun was in his own dreamy world by that time, a world where the Aishwarya Rais and Nayantharas were waiting to welcome him with open arms

Life is too short to be spent worrying. Live for the moment

The “Endhiran Experience – Part 2..

Today we went to the auditorium early at around 8 30 A.M and we were all hoping for a few surprises and guess what.. we saw Superstar in his scientist avatar today !

In he walked,brisk and trim, a cheerful smile and his trade mark “vanakkam” to all of us, with his hands held well above his head.He is sporting a french beard for the scientist role and the wig is similar to his “padikadhavan”, “maaveran” days..He was in a white designer shirt and black trousers today. He was concentration personified, with a stern look and his left hand placed firmly on a nearby ladder for support, he was browsing through his dialogue papers intently.

We were then asked to wait outside as they were about to shoot some confidential stuff but from the scenes that we witnessed since yesterday and the overall theme that was evident, this is gonna be one cracker of a movie,definitely the first of its kind in Tamil cinema

We waited patiently for about 3 hours and it was fun watching the activities of all other junior artists.. most of them were North Indians and a few were foreigners, who were happy to lie down on the lawns, with the sun beating down on their backs..A few junior artists were selected for the main shot and a couple were cribbing about the length of their costumes ( they seemed pretty lengthy though for today’s standards )

After lunch, we entered the auditorium again and as we entered, we saw with open mouth and wide eyes, the Miss World Aishwarya Rai. The entire audience was stunned. Beauty at its best, and with drop dead gorgeous looks, she is definitely the most beautiful spectacle that I have ever witnessed so far. She was wearing a black top with short sleeves, that complemented her glowing skin, and a black skirt.

The director called for a break and so we rushed out to be near Ash’s car for a closer look.We waited gazing at her caravan..the door slowly opened ,a hand, visible till the forearm emerged , pushing out the caravan door, and the frame was frozen for five seconds, for all of us to gape open mouthed again..out she emerged, and now we were five feet from her ! For the next few seconds,none of us blinked,the hormones were working overtime
Light as a breeze, she got into her car, that guy Abhishek Bachan, is damn lucky , she is a “Creator’s Masterpiece”..

By the way, one more interesting news is that Danny Denzongpa( remember the DD teleserial Ajnabee/Anniyan ? ) is one of the premier villains in the movie.

Endhiran “The Robot” – A Childhood Dream Comes True !

There is a wise old saying “Do not ever get desperate, if something is destined to happen, it will happen”.. how true these words are..!

January 10th 2009, the D-Day where my childhood dream of seeing the Superstar LIVE on location was realized was one such day where destiny proved its superiority

The day could not have begun on a more worse note.. I was at home, waiting impatiently for the afternoon as I was asked to receive a top CMU dignitary from the airport and drop him at the college guest house and lo! all my friends were messaging from the college that Superstar had arrived and was in his Caravan!

I cursed my fate and luck for deserting me at this inappropriate time.. I went in time to receive the dignitary but my mind and heart lay elsewhere..

We reached my college guest house at 4.00 P.M and me and my friend decided to just have a glance into the auditorium and to our surprise , nobody stopped us from going inside!

Inside the auditorium, I got a comfortable seat and could spot director Shankar busy giving instructions to his crew..camera man Rathnavelu was listening intently.. and as I gave a casual glance towards the right of the auditorium, a face looked familiar, I turned around only to feel a hammer like bolt striking me hard to glance carefully and.. there he was! the one and only Super Star Rajnikanth ! I froze !

I was shocked, shell shocked, my heart was pumping faster, I was shivering with excitement, my eyesight deserted at the instant and blurred out intermittently, I was rubbing it hard in disbelief and there he was sitting with ultimate grace,.. cool and composed as ever..

I became crazy and lost my mental balance ( if it ever existed )..I was mesaging all my friends in an inebriated exalted state, like a child receiving his favourite toffee, a guy giving his first kiss to his love and above all, a drunkard who had just emptied his favourite bottle of drink..! I must confess to all my friends that those messages were definitely not texted by me in my proper senses.. My apologies to all those whom I drove crazy with those messages.. after all, what are friends for

The director was asking Superstar to get ready.. there he was looking sauve,chick,smart, handsome,manly, dashing,STYLISH.. curse the Oxford, it does not have enough adjectives

He looked stern at the camera, A violet colored shirt, a black tie and matching trousers, a black blazer and his trade mark coolers, wig that resembled his “Thillu Mullu” days, clean shaven, he oozed grace and charisma..

I heard him utter his dialogues even, but I am an ardent fan of Shankar and my respect towards his hardwork and creativity prevents me from describing the scene and dialogues here in public..

Once his scenes were finished, he retired to his caravan, and I left the auditorium in awe. We met Santhanam and Karunas outside the auditorium and Santhanam was his usual self, making witty remarks laced with humour.On enthusuastic fan repeated the dialogues uttered by Karunas in Polladhavan ” Boy touching girl hand, Harry Potter also same problem,5 th chapter 7 th page”, just that he picked the wrong person and told these to Santhanam instead He gave a typical reply ” Sir, adhu en problem illa Karunas problem”

Another Santhanam gem was ..
An enthusiastic female fan : “Cha Aishwarya Rai kooda dhaan photo eduthukka mudiyala,vaanga di atleast Santhanam koodayavadhu photo eduthuppom”
Santhanam : ” idha solra Aishwarya Rai yaaru ? ”

I left the place, still unable to come to terms with what destiny had in store for me for the day..A child hood dream was realised

Operation “Recognition”

Jeev swerved just in time to see a bullet whiz past his face and shatter the glass painting on the wall.His heart was now thumping heavily.His guts eluded him just for a second but he regained composure quickly enough to move to the corner of the room.His ears were reverbrating with the shrill gun shots that were sending hollowing vibrations through his chest.He turned around to make sure the occupants of the room where the public were taking refuge were safe.He was a commando in the operation to flush out terrorists who had stormed into the hotel that was the pride of the people.

He saw a kid clinging on to his mother,hiding his face in her bosom.He could not help thinking of his mother at this juncture.She had pleaded with him,begging and warning him alternatively against joining the army.She had already lost her husband in a war and wanted her son to land up in a secure government job.He was the sole breadwinner now for his mother and his two kid sisters.He knew she must be now pressing the old radio deep into her ears,( for they could not afford a television)listening pensively to the updates regarding the gravity of the situation.

He moved as swift as a swan, as silent as a cat, down the steps leading to the floor beneath.He pressed down his boots firmly to the ground, the right foot twisted acutely at thirty degrees,and starting retaliating, focussing on the directions from which the gun shots could be heard.The firing was getting intense now.After sometime,Jeev heard a grunt.Perhaps, he had his man with a shot,but the terrorists would not cave in easily.Jeev could now spot a man scamper across in the other direction,but by the time Jeev fired,the man had sped away across the ceddar to the lower floors.As he was tracing his steps backward, he bumped on his colleague and they were now pretty much sure that they had captured this floor.

Leaving the other commando to guard the wing,Jeev moved to the lower sections,where his other warriors were holding forte.As he marched downwards, his father’s last moments flashed accross his mind.He was a brave man,to whom serving the country as an army man was more a matter of pride than means of earning a livelyhood. He was a sepoy and the doting father fed Jeev on tales of bravery.Jeev’s Dad was his ultimate hero.He was fatally injured during one of the combing operations across the border.He lay helpless during his last days at the army hospital,with his wife by his side, Jeev, a mere teenager then and the two toddlers looking quizzically at all the bandages wrapped across their Dad’s body.

“Jeev,five steps to your right, and then start firing again,guard room “Pleasant” were all the inmates have been lodged.Good luck.Jai Hind”, the words of a fellow commando interrupted his thoughts.Jeev quickly moved into his position, and started engaging the terrorists.The battle continued longer this time.Jeev was physically worn out and could hardly restrain himself from swooning.”Jeev, step aside, we will take care, you come back after a short while, you have fought brave and hard enough”.Jeev stepped into the room where the inmates had gathered.Their faces were frozen with fear.Just then, a kid offered water in his sipper to Jeev.”Have uncle”, he said with his outstretched arms.Jeev managed a smile.

He rested with his back to the wall,sipping water and recollecting those last few days with his Dad.”Jeev, why don’t you join the army,along the lines of your Dad?” asked Balram uncle who was Dad’s best buddy in the regiment.His Mom gave a glum look and said ” No ji, I would not let that happen.Look at his Dad,he spent his entire life fighting for the country,yet what do we get in return ? Does the grocer push off the bills when I say that my husband serves the nation and unfortunately I have barely enough to meet other expenses this month ? I don’t want to risk the life and future of my son and my family again one more time.” Jeev gathered his voice and said ” I would realise whatever Dad dreamt of achieving”.His Dad’s eyes gleamed with hope for one last time that day.

But nowadays,Jeev was feeling the pinch.Even in the army camps,Jeev was fed up of watching all the channels dish out one program after the other on celebrity movie stars, millionaire sports persons and corrupt politicians.”Do you know that Miss Pretty Junta loves toast for breakfast ?” Jeev’s men had gone for days without food as sometimes the stock could not be brought in time to the hilly regions were they were posted.”Do you know that Mr.Saw Rook Corn has run out of space to park his new Mercedes ?” The troops guarding the border had to traverse miles of difficult terrain on foot,yet no one was bothered about it.”Hair Bhojan’s ankle sprain leaves Indian team in trouble”. Little did people know that the very day, ten jawans died thwarting infiltration.Had they not laid their lives down,entire India would have been in trouble.

But the incident that pained Jeev most was the summoning up of an actor to hoist the flag for the Independence Day celebrations at the Corporation School in his native village. Jeev was fast rising in the ranks ,and his mom was the wife of a brave sepoy who had laid his life down for the country,yet both were not even invited personally for the function.This lack of recognition even in his own neighbourhood pained him a great deal.”For whom are we fighting ? Why do we go through such ardous hours of battle? What next after this Operation ? Who would take care of my family in case of a mishap?” were a few questions running through his mind.Just then, he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder.It was a fellow fighter.”Jeev, the combat is heating up and we need you now for the battle”.He was quickly up on his feet.

Jeev was right outside the room now.He was fighting like how the son of a valliant warrior should.The stars on his majestic shoulders shone even brighter now.His arm was aching,his feet had grown numb,his fingers were sore ,but he just would not give up.It was a tense battle that went on for hours.The brave men fought on,without a break.All the other floors had been conquered and finally, Jeev and his comrades had succeeded in their liberation attempts.Jeev kissed in delight the “rudraksh” that his mom had put around his neck.

Jeev stepped out of the battle place to the outside world after nearly two days, the frustration due to lack of recognition still burning inside him.Just then, a young girl child reached out with a white rose in her hand.”Well done ,Uncle” she said.Jeev accepted it to thunderous applause.A few youngsters airlifted him on their shoulders.Jeev looked around and was pleasantly surprised to see his fellow comrades subjected to similar treatment.He was brought back to ground after great celebrations.Young women came up to him with autograph books,requesting him to sign and take photos.An old granny,gently walked up to Jeev and wiped the drops of sweat and blood dripping from his face with the “pallu” end of her cotton saree.Jeev could feel those wrinkles on her palm as she gently patted his cheek.Jeev’s eyes were moist with tears.Finally, the warriors were beginning to get the adulation that had eluded them for so long.

Jeev struggled past the crowd ,only to be interrupted by a milieu of cameramen and enthusuastic reporters.Flashlights were focussed on the heroes who had won the nation’s hearts.Jeev and his men blushed at their first tryst with the cameras.”Sir,…..” Jeev was being bombarded with questions and congratulatory messages,but he moved through the crowd towards a middle aged man, wearing khadi,sporting dark square framed glasses, waiting patiently in the hot sun,wiping the sweat on his brow with a handkerchief, holding the mike with the words “ALL INDIA RADIO” etched on it.Jeev gently went up to him,lowered his visage to be in the mike’s vicinity and with teary eyes and choking voice, mumbled ” Maa, I know you will be listening to this.I hope I have lived my Dad’s dream and done you proud.Jai Hind”

(The entire nation has woken up.When will you politicians wake up from your slumber and grant the brave armymen their rightful pension dues ? When you grant full privileges and protection to the ministers, even years after their tenure at office,why can’t you do the same to recognise the sacrifice of armymen who stay awake to guard us when we sleep?Are not gun totting men, who keep vigil at your Italian power maker’s door step entitled to have a bowl of rice to feed their family?
Written in support of the army men’s rightful protest towards the failure of this government to listen to their plea for a pension review.
Jai Hind).

Seasons of Change:Kaalangal Maralam-2

Arjun woke up early the next day..He was pretty nervous about going to his new workplace..After hastily gulping down a few idlys ,he rushed to his bus stop to cling on to a bus that would take him to Pillar.Luckily, he got another Share Auto as soon as he reached Pillar.There he was , crouching uncomfortably,sandwiched between fellow office goers, hoping that the ordeal would end soon.As he neared the Industrial Estate in Guindy, he glanced at his watch in despair.The connecting shuttle would start from the back streets of the railway station in another five minutes.

The stretch leading to the subway was mushrooming with people.Guys in their teens arranged themselves in a linear formation,squatting on top of the parapet walls, giving a running commentary on girls passing by.Unmindful people were glancing impatiently towards the road,waiting for their buses.The cobbler was busy showing off his dexterity and expertise at mending shoes.Arjun inched past them all into the dingy subway.

Arjun was galloping down the steps, two at a time.The hawkers were right on his face this time, trying to sell stickers,fruits, kerchiefs, pirated CD,s etc. He edged them out, finally emerging out of the subway, only to run into another bustling crowd near the lead up to the staircase at the railway station.After hustling past the train commuters, and the poor beggars who had made the staircase their own home, he was just in time to spot the shuttle gearing up to leave.

He jutted out his ID card, and the half convinced driver reluctantly let him in.Alas, when he got in,there was no empty seat available, and he was pretty uncomfortable at the sight of 15 other colleagues curiously staring at the new entrant.He smiled at a few, and gave empty glares at the others.His eyes were moving all the time, to see if he could spot at least one familiar face.As he did this, he spotted some one glancing out of the window from the corner of his eye.He fixed his glances on her now. She turned her sights, only to see him looking at her intently.Both of them exchanged sheepish smiles before the driver asked Arjun to come and sit near him as there was some space available.Grudgingly, he moved to the front.

He did not have much work till afternoon on the first day as his Team Lead was held up in a meeting in another location and would be back only by the afternoon.He was sitting in the conference room, only to be curiously surveyed by fellow colleagues in a manner similar to how a predator sizes up its prey.He pulled out his GRE book to start his preparations.By the afternoon, word of mouth passed on that his Lead had been on the look out for him.He had not met her before, and he hopped from one cabin to another, asking for directions to her place.While doing this, Arjun was mentally charting out the sort of person whom he was expecting to meet.Perhaps a middle aged woman, spectacled, disinterested in a conversation and more bothered about extracting work,stern and intimidating.But when he met his Lead, he was taken aback…

She was a sprightly person in her mid twenties.At first glance, Arjun got the impression that she would be full of life and encouraging.This comforted him a lot.She then took him to a conference room to brief him about the project.After all the formal talks, she asked him about his background.When Arjun mentioned that he was a pucca “Chennai vaasi”, she was slightly surprised as she had thought that he was a North Indian.When Arjun swore that he knew “local Tamil” and gave out the name of his college, a thousand watt smile enveloped her visage..” hey you are my junior, I too am from the same college”.Both the alumni were basking in joy that they had found a colleague from the same college !

Arjun got to know that since the project was in its inception phase, only his lead, himself and another colleague would initially be a part of the team.He could not meet the other mate as he was on leave.He got into the shuttle in the evening, but to his disappointment , the girl with whom he exchanged glances in the morning was nowhere to be found.

A week had passed , and Arjun was doing a pretty decent job of juggling between his work and his GRE preparations.His Lead turned out to be very patient and supportive.He could not have asked for a better colleague at the beginning of his career.One day, he was held up due to work and missed his regular shuttle.After bidding good bye to his Lead who was hurrying home in her car to get back to her Husband and their kid who was waiting for her,he packed his bags to leave for the weekend. Weary eyed, he reached the Velachery bus stop at around nine in the night.As he kept looking around, he found the “Shuttle” girl (with whom he had exchanged glances a week back) some distance from him,waiting for her bus.She was standing right beneath the huge lights that illuminate the place.Sporting a yellow shirt and black formal pants, two big round dangling ear rings that matched her attire , penciled eyebrows and sultry eyes, a cute pony tail that kept jumping up and down whilst she was talking on her mobile nodding aggressively,neatly trimmed nails polished in red,a silver bracelet to adorn her slender wrist,she was quite a sight that day !

Arjun still did not know her name,and so the next morning, he arrived early and took a seat in the back rows of the shuttle, hoping that she would take the same shuttle that day and join him.But as luck would have it, the others arrived, and started filling up the seats one by one.At last, she arrived,but ended up occupying a seat far from Arjun. Arjun would not give up easily that day, and was determined to know her name at least. He quickly thought of a plan B. He observed that she was fourth from the person who started filling up the trip sheet and when he could lay his hands on them,he started looking for the fourth entry in that sheet, gave a chuckle to himself,when he found the name “KALPANA”..