EARLY DIWALI CELEBRATIONS...
Refer to this old post of mine... http://nikhilraikar.blogspot.com/2007/06/power-of-indian-diaspora-couple-of.html
I moved to Cary in March 2007 and soon got a taste of the large number of Indians in this area... Gradually, we got to know a few of them and became good friends... Soon, we realized that this place is virtually a mini-India... There are so many Indians here that all the festivals are celebrated and each one in a grand manner... Ganpati, Navratri, Dussera, Pongal -- all of them are celebrated with equal pomp and festivity... On Independence Day, there was a grand parade for more than 2 miles and then flag hoisting ceremony followed by many cultural programmes and great food...
There are atleast 3 temples that I know of, all in the vicinity of a mile... Atleast 10-15 Indian grocery stores and 10-15 Indian restaurants which serve any cuisine from India... Chats, Biryanis, Dosas, Punjabi, Indo-Chinese, Fish, even Desi Pizza and Gobi Manchurian -- anything that u want is served...
So, now you will ask whats so special abt this -- probably this may be happening in NJ, CA or any other US state... well, here is the biggest one of em all... the killer...
There is a flip side to this abundance of Indian diaspora... With so many ppl from each state / language, there are more than enough numbers to establish their own associations... There is a Greater Carolina Kerala Association, North Carolina Bengali Association, RTP Maharashtra Mandal, Tamil Cultural Association of NC, Triangle Kannada Association, Triangle Orissa Association, Telugu Association of Triangle Area and umpteen other organizations who do not choose to reveal their state / linguistic affiliations... There are no Indians any more -- its all regional and lingustic groups...
On 13th October 2007, the town of Cary celebrated Cary Diwali Festival... Its an annual event and usually is celebrated some time before the actual Diwali festival... The organizers invite entries from locals who are interested in performing cultural group activities... The condition is that the groups should be atleast 10 members or more... They received a whopping 150 odd entries for their auditions... After 2 days of auditions, they short listed 50 odd teams for the actual day...
On the day of the event, the festivities began at 10 am and went until 9 pm... Performances varied from Garba to Bhangra, Kathak to Tabla, Koli dance to a hip-hop performance and Patriotic medley and a dance on Rajnikanth's song from Sivaji movie... There was even a dance performed by an all-american girl team (they performed on a hindi song from movie Khakee) and everyone said that they were the best group of dance on the day... After these dances were done, Band of Boys were there to sing and dance for the next 2 hours... All this ended with one of the best fireworks I have ever seen... One heck of a day it was...
But, the best part of this whole day is what follows --
My wife was a part of the performing team who performed on a medley of patriotic songs... their dance ended with a formation of the Indian flag -- There were more than 12000 ppl present for the show and they all gave a standing ovation at the end of their performance... For once, there were no Bengalis or Punjabis or Tamilians or Mallus or South Indians or North Indians, it was just an army of Indians saluting their national flag...
Here's a link to their performance...
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8538430597301042046&hl=en
This moment was the best moment of the day for me... I wont forget it ever in my life... For me, Diwali was celebrated one month earlier... This was the best Diwali of my life...
ONCE IN A LIFETIME!!!
Here's one more in the list of millions of blogs written to laud the Indian victory in the 20-20 World Cup...
I had already taken a week's vacation and was itching to get back to work on Monday when I got to know that India and Pakistan have made it to the finals of this tournament... Taking a note of my track record (most of the cricket matches, I watch, end up with India losing), I decided to sacrifice and not see the match...
Then I read this blog and I changed my mind... To quote a small part of the blog --
"So, Tomorrow is a game which comes once in a life span, India Vs Pakistan in a World Cup Final, Never happened yet. May not happen again in our life span. India Vs Pakistan in any Finals is a crucial game, Last time it happened, it was 22 years back in Australia when Ravi Shashtri got his AUDI. One in a 20 year life span, If you are not watching this game because of your parents, think twice, next time you get this opporunity, they might not be alive. If you are not watching this game because of your kids, think twice, after 20 years, they must have left you for some reason. If you are not watching this game for Vitamin M, think twice, money is not the everything (ofcourse, there is Mastercard :) )"
I worked from home and saw the game... It was one of those games which are very rare off late... Every over, every delivery was thrilling... Until the last ball was bowled, no one was sure about who will win...
Eventually, India held their nerve and won the cup (and not to mention, earned enough money for their next generation to live lavishly)... I couldnt stop smiling for hours together... Cricket Club members met at Hooters to celebrate this victory... Overall, much more than worth it...
Hope that India excels like this in every sport... Amen !!!
Here's one more in the list of millions of blogs written to laud the Indian victory in the 20-20 World Cup...
I had already taken a week's vacation and was itching to get back to work on Monday when I got to know that India and Pakistan have made it to the finals of this tournament... Taking a note of my track record (most of the cricket matches, I watch, end up with India losing), I decided to sacrifice and not see the match...
Then I read this blog and I changed my mind... To quote a small part of the blog --
"So, Tomorrow is a game which comes once in a life span, India Vs Pakistan in a World Cup Final, Never happened yet. May not happen again in our life span. India Vs Pakistan in any Finals is a crucial game, Last time it happened, it was 22 years back in Australia when Ravi Shashtri got his AUDI. One in a 20 year life span, If you are not watching this game because of your parents, think twice, next time you get this opporunity, they might not be alive. If you are not watching this game because of your kids, think twice, after 20 years, they must have left you for some reason. If you are not watching this game for Vitamin M, think twice, money is not the everything (ofcourse, there is Mastercard :) )"
I worked from home and saw the game... It was one of those games which are very rare off late... Every over, every delivery was thrilling... Until the last ball was bowled, no one was sure about who will win...
Eventually, India held their nerve and won the cup (and not to mention, earned enough money for their next generation to live lavishly)... I couldnt stop smiling for hours together... Cricket Club members met at Hooters to celebrate this victory... Overall, much more than worth it...
Hope that India excels like this in every sport... Amen !!!
UTTERLY BUTTERLY DELICIOUS... AMUL!!!
How many of you remember the amazing ads on the back on Amul butter packets?
I remember buying only 100 gm packets of Amul instead of 500 gm ones so that every week, a new packet comes home and I do not miss even 1 ad... We friends used to discuss these ads after our day's play and used to appreciate how funny those ads were... We were too young to understand the social relevance of those ads, but still it helped us see the lighter side of some serious issues present in our day-to-day lives...
Amongst all these ads, one thing which was common was the Amul baby... Something similar to RK Laxman's common man in the "You said it!!!" series in TOI, this cute chubby Amul baby was omnipresent in every ad... Here is the story behind the central character in this series...
http://www.amul.com/story.html
And for all those fans of the funny Amul ads, here is a repository of all the hit ads published since 1976 (yes!!! thats right... 1976 onwards)... Enjoy these ads and relieve those days when the picture on the packet was more important than the contents!!!
http://www.amul.com/hits.html
Then hum the sweet tune of
Utterly Butterly Delicious... AMUL !!!
How many of you remember the amazing ads on the back on Amul butter packets?
I remember buying only 100 gm packets of Amul instead of 500 gm ones so that every week, a new packet comes home and I do not miss even 1 ad... We friends used to discuss these ads after our day's play and used to appreciate how funny those ads were... We were too young to understand the social relevance of those ads, but still it helped us see the lighter side of some serious issues present in our day-to-day lives...
Amongst all these ads, one thing which was common was the Amul baby... Something similar to RK Laxman's common man in the "You said it!!!" series in TOI, this cute chubby Amul baby was omnipresent in every ad... Here is the story behind the central character in this series...
http://www.amul.com/story.html
And for all those fans of the funny Amul ads, here is a repository of all the hit ads published since 1976 (yes!!! thats right... 1976 onwards)... Enjoy these ads and relieve those days when the picture on the packet was more important than the contents!!!
http://www.amul.com/hits.html
Then hum the sweet tune of
Utterly Butterly Delicious... AMUL !!!
HIDDEN DARK SECRET behind ICL's Success or BCCI's failure
This may not be the only reason behind the spawning of this parallel league... There may be many more... Also, I dont think that ICL is like the messiah of cricket... they too are doing this to grab a share of this huge chunk of moolah... Wait for one season and then see what they will do to these cricketers...
In the meanwhile, here are 3 articles abt the same thing... read them in the order mentioned here...
1 - Selectors declare the India A team which will be playing the South Africa A team...
http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/ci/content/story/308840.html?CMP=OTC-RSS
2 - Prem Panicker, a well known sports writer, writes an article on the team selected and the comments from readers abt the same...
http://www.prempanicker.com/index.php?/site/comments/india_a_team_for_the_visiting_sa_a_team/
3 - One of the readers posts a link to the politics going on in Hyderabad cricket...
http://www.sportsnob.net/2007/08/17/icl-and-the-quota-system/
No wonder ICL has 44 players on their roster...
This may not be the only reason behind the spawning of this parallel league... There may be many more... Also, I dont think that ICL is like the messiah of cricket... they too are doing this to grab a share of this huge chunk of moolah... Wait for one season and then see what they will do to these cricketers...
In the meanwhile, here are 3 articles abt the same thing... read them in the order mentioned here...
1 - Selectors declare the India A team which will be playing the South Africa A team...
http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/ci/content/story/308840.html?CMP=OTC-RSS
2 - Prem Panicker, a well known sports writer, writes an article on the team selected and the comments from readers abt the same...
http://www.prempanicker.com/index.php?/site/comments/india_a_team_for_the_visiting_sa_a_team/
3 - One of the readers posts a link to the politics going on in Hyderabad cricket...
http://www.sportsnob.net/2007/08/17/icl-and-the-quota-system/
No wonder ICL has 44 players on their roster...
THE CURTAINS FALL!!!
The cricket season continued... I could not play last couple of games due to "family reasons" and our team won 1 game and lost another and made it to the playoffs comfortably... now it was time to show consistency, coz 1 loss and we were out for the season...
We stood 13th amongst 30 teams in the region... Last year we were 5th amongst 30 teams and hence, this year's performance was really not up to the mark set in the last year... and due to the low rank, we had to play a team in Columbia, SC... this place was abt 250 miles away from our place and we started at 5.30 am on Sunday morning...
We were totally exhausted by the time we reached the ground... We atleast hoped that we win the toss and bat first so that we cud recover from the stress... looks like their captain found it out and immediately decided to bat first after winning the toss...
to make matters worse, the ground where we set up our camp was abound with red ants... none of us could sit even for a moment... no shade and no seat... our team was dead tired even before we took the field...
Their openers gave a good enough start and they were 72/0 after 10 overs... we pulled it back in the next 10 and they were 124/4 after 20... but then their captain and 2 others pulled (read "violently snatched") the initiative back and they were 240/6 after 33... we quickly grabbed the remaining 4 wickets, but it was too late to gain the upper hand...
so faced with our biggest target of the season, we got off to a decent start -- 52/0 of 10 overs... but then they brought out a new bowler who used to bowl 2 wides + 1 no ball after every legitimate delivery... this loooong over got them 2 wickets... then 2 of our most reliable batsmen got out to unfortunate shots and its was all looking down the barrell...
everyone got frustrated with the imminent defeat and threw their bats at everything... at the end, we got all out for 174 with 8 overs remaining... thats when we realized that if we had stayed on the wicket, runs would have come and we would have survived to fight yet another day...
one good aspect of the whole game was that we never lost our temper at the umpire or the other team or at each other... the team really showed gentlemanly conduct, something which we are proud of in retrospect...
but alas!!! too late for that... the winning team said that they were just plain lucky to go through... the umpire summed it up nicely -- they won the game but u guys won the respect...
we stopped on our way for a tradition "pizza"... everyone was feeling bad abt the way the season ended and it was very evident when the seniormost guy said "Today, no one will talk abt cricket..." as soon as we entered the Pizza place...
after the pizza, we started for the long journey home with a heavy heart and a heavier tummy... we spoke abt anything and everything (other than cricket ofcourse) on the way back...
until the next season kicks off, we will try to keep ourselves fit with some petty cricket every weekend... but the curtains on the main event are down (atleast for us)...
Well played team!!! Always proud to be a part of the club!!!
The cricket season continued... I could not play last couple of games due to "family reasons" and our team won 1 game and lost another and made it to the playoffs comfortably... now it was time to show consistency, coz 1 loss and we were out for the season...
We stood 13th amongst 30 teams in the region... Last year we were 5th amongst 30 teams and hence, this year's performance was really not up to the mark set in the last year... and due to the low rank, we had to play a team in Columbia, SC... this place was abt 250 miles away from our place and we started at 5.30 am on Sunday morning...
We were totally exhausted by the time we reached the ground... We atleast hoped that we win the toss and bat first so that we cud recover from the stress... looks like their captain found it out and immediately decided to bat first after winning the toss...
to make matters worse, the ground where we set up our camp was abound with red ants... none of us could sit even for a moment... no shade and no seat... our team was dead tired even before we took the field...
Their openers gave a good enough start and they were 72/0 after 10 overs... we pulled it back in the next 10 and they were 124/4 after 20... but then their captain and 2 others pulled (read "violently snatched") the initiative back and they were 240/6 after 33... we quickly grabbed the remaining 4 wickets, but it was too late to gain the upper hand...
so faced with our biggest target of the season, we got off to a decent start -- 52/0 of 10 overs... but then they brought out a new bowler who used to bowl 2 wides + 1 no ball after every legitimate delivery... this loooong over got them 2 wickets... then 2 of our most reliable batsmen got out to unfortunate shots and its was all looking down the barrell...
everyone got frustrated with the imminent defeat and threw their bats at everything... at the end, we got all out for 174 with 8 overs remaining... thats when we realized that if we had stayed on the wicket, runs would have come and we would have survived to fight yet another day...
one good aspect of the whole game was that we never lost our temper at the umpire or the other team or at each other... the team really showed gentlemanly conduct, something which we are proud of in retrospect...
but alas!!! too late for that... the winning team said that they were just plain lucky to go through... the umpire summed it up nicely -- they won the game but u guys won the respect...
we stopped on our way for a tradition "pizza"... everyone was feeling bad abt the way the season ended and it was very evident when the seniormost guy said "Today, no one will talk abt cricket..." as soon as we entered the Pizza place...
after the pizza, we started for the long journey home with a heavy heart and a heavier tummy... we spoke abt anything and everything (other than cricket ofcourse) on the way back...
until the next season kicks off, we will try to keep ourselves fit with some petty cricket every weekend... but the curtains on the main event are down (atleast for us)...
Well played team!!! Always proud to be a part of the club!!!
CHAK DE INDIA!!!
Saw this movie on 15th August... To tell you honestly, I never anticipated that this movie would be so good... blame it on my bias against SRK... but this one really broke the myth...
This is one of the few SRK movies that i liked, the others being (DDLJ and Swades)... Every player in the team is good in her own way... From the egoistic Bindiya Naik and Preeti Sabharwal to the bubbly Komal Chautala and the spirited Vidya Sharma, all of them perfectly fit into the team jigsaw... the climax, however predictably obvious, was interesting...
Felt good to see the Indian team win (albeit fictitiously) and more due to the fact that this is one of the few patriotic films where there is no Pakistan bashing... someone pls tell the filmmakers that Indians are not patriotic only against Pakistan... Indians are against Pakistan because they are patriotic...
One of the few flicks (if i may call this one so) where you feel good about spending more than a couple of hours in the theater... Could agree more with the title of the movie -- CHAK DE INDIA!!!
Saw this movie on 15th August... To tell you honestly, I never anticipated that this movie would be so good... blame it on my bias against SRK... but this one really broke the myth...
This is one of the few SRK movies that i liked, the others being (DDLJ and Swades)... Every player in the team is good in her own way... From the egoistic Bindiya Naik and Preeti Sabharwal to the bubbly Komal Chautala and the spirited Vidya Sharma, all of them perfectly fit into the team jigsaw... the climax, however predictably obvious, was interesting...
Felt good to see the Indian team win (albeit fictitiously) and more due to the fact that this is one of the few patriotic films where there is no Pakistan bashing... someone pls tell the filmmakers that Indians are not patriotic only against Pakistan... Indians are against Pakistan because they are patriotic...
One of the few flicks (if i may call this one so) where you feel good about spending more than a couple of hours in the theater... Could agree more with the title of the movie -- CHAK DE INDIA!!!
OLD IS GOOD!!!
Was seeing one of my favorite movies "Chhoti Si Baat" a few days earlier... There are more than one reasons why this movie is one of my favorites... Firstly, this was the first movie which my parents saw together... Sweet story... Nice acting by Amol Palekar, Vidya Sinha, Ashok Kumar and Asrani... Melodious songs...
But this blog is not about the movie... This movie is about one thing which i noticed in this movie... Some supporting characters were glued to the radio listening to the live cricket commentary... they were continuously hooked to the small machine as if nothing else mattered... It left me wondering for a moment, before I concentrated back on the movie... But those thoughts came back to me today again...
My old cricket club's website mentioned that live commentary for the cricket match between England and India at Lord's is available now on BBC website... I had not heard any live commentary for years now... But I had a few minutes off during lunch and thought of giving it a shot...
I grabbed a headset and started listening to the live commentary on the website... What followed in the next 10-15 minutes was simply mesmerizing...
Gavaskar and Christopher Martins-Jenkins were on the microphone... Ganguly and Jaffer were on the crease (alas!!! sachin was back in the tent sipping tea) and Panesar and Ryan Sidebottom were bowling...
Whenever I closed my eyes and concentrated on the words flowing in the broadcast -- I could really visualize the possible plays at Lord's... Sentences like ---
"Glorious Silken Front Foot Drive from Ganguly"...
"Long shadows from the gallery now cast on the green lawn of Lord's"...
"Sun coming brightly on the ground now"...
"Elegant Back Foot Stroke from Jaffer"...
"Nice smooth action from Sidebottom"...
"Game is nicely poised at the moment"...
"Pitched on middle and leg, straightened a bit and beats Jaffer's stoic defence"...
"Jaffer arches his back and lets the cherry pass and stands tall again"...
"ooh!!! that's the perfume ball again"...
"Cracking shot that one!!! The willow gets even with the cherry"...
Sentences like these bring back the old romance of Test Cricket... It enhances one's imagination and visualization skills and sends one back to the era when cricket was more of a game than a media commodity...
I really enjoyed those 10 minutes and felt pretty fresh... and then the messenger window popped up... it said "Hey... could u look into test case #10 quickly... its kind of urgent"...
I was back to my bread and butter work, with a sweet after taste of the cherry and willow... You guys should try it too...
Was seeing one of my favorite movies "Chhoti Si Baat" a few days earlier... There are more than one reasons why this movie is one of my favorites... Firstly, this was the first movie which my parents saw together... Sweet story... Nice acting by Amol Palekar, Vidya Sinha, Ashok Kumar and Asrani... Melodious songs...
But this blog is not about the movie... This movie is about one thing which i noticed in this movie... Some supporting characters were glued to the radio listening to the live cricket commentary... they were continuously hooked to the small machine as if nothing else mattered... It left me wondering for a moment, before I concentrated back on the movie... But those thoughts came back to me today again...
My old cricket club's website mentioned that live commentary for the cricket match between England and India at Lord's is available now on BBC website... I had not heard any live commentary for years now... But I had a few minutes off during lunch and thought of giving it a shot...
I grabbed a headset and started listening to the live commentary on the website... What followed in the next 10-15 minutes was simply mesmerizing...
Gavaskar and Christopher Martins-Jenkins were on the microphone... Ganguly and Jaffer were on the crease (alas!!! sachin was back in the tent sipping tea) and Panesar and Ryan Sidebottom were bowling...
Whenever I closed my eyes and concentrated on the words flowing in the broadcast -- I could really visualize the possible plays at Lord's... Sentences like ---
"Glorious Silken Front Foot Drive from Ganguly"...
"Long shadows from the gallery now cast on the green lawn of Lord's"...
"Sun coming brightly on the ground now"...
"Elegant Back Foot Stroke from Jaffer"...
"Nice smooth action from Sidebottom"...
"Game is nicely poised at the moment"...
"Pitched on middle and leg, straightened a bit and beats Jaffer's stoic defence"...
"Jaffer arches his back and lets the cherry pass and stands tall again"...
"ooh!!! that's the perfume ball again"...
"Cracking shot that one!!! The willow gets even with the cherry"...
Sentences like these bring back the old romance of Test Cricket... It enhances one's imagination and visualization skills and sends one back to the era when cricket was more of a game than a media commodity...
I really enjoyed those 10 minutes and felt pretty fresh... and then the messenger window popped up... it said "Hey... could u look into test case #10 quickly... its kind of urgent"...
I was back to my bread and butter work, with a sweet after taste of the cherry and willow... You guys should try it too...
AND AGAIN !!!
The cricket season continues...
On 07/01 -- we were playing against another local team... this team too shares our home ground and is doing pretty good this year... they are in the top 10 teams in the region this year... Again, one of their players had played earlier for us and we knew each other's game pretty well... It was just a matter of playing well on the day...
Well!!! it was a similar situation a few days earlier and we did play very well that day... but this day, we let the game slip... we had them in a precarious position after a good bowling start... then, fatigue took over and we just let them take over things...
While batting, the target was not impossible but we didnt show enough character to make the "not-so-impossible" possible... I feel bad abt it... Just one fella stood there to fight it out... I admire him for the character he showed out there... its not easy...
So, again -- we were at the crossroads... whether to perform or perish... whether to be proud of our game or to be ashamed of the performance on that day... whether to qualify for the playoffs or whether to wait for the next yr...
Luckily, we took the correct turn... Last saturday, we were playing against another team which was performing pretty decently this season... I decided to opt out at the last moment due to some reason... it did'nt go well with the skippy and he made sure to give me an earful...
The team drove more than 100 miles and reached the venue to find a beautiful scenic ground waiting for them... it was one of the best grounds in the area...
we won the toss and elected to bat... openers gave a decent start... one of our players who has been on the wrong side of lady luck this yr had his share of luck today... they dropped 3-4 catches and he went on to make 94 and got out in the last over... other supported him very well... we hit 102 in the last 10 overs... and made our highest score of the season...
they started well chasing but eventually, good fielding, good catching and accurate bowling... and the wheels came off... they tried a couple of comebacks, but eventually, we held our fort and we won comfortably by 63 runs...
good times are back... we have 3 more games in the league phase and we are pretty certain to make it to the playoffs... that said, we have to win atleast 2 of the last 3 games to make it to the playoffs comfortably... if we lose 2 of the 3, then we may be in a difficult position and run rates (etc) may come into play...
next game is on 28th of this month and its against (yes!!!) another local team... we do share some bitter bits of history with this team and its more of pride than points which are at stake here...
Readers, wish us luck!!!
The cricket season continues...
On 07/01 -- we were playing against another local team... this team too shares our home ground and is doing pretty good this year... they are in the top 10 teams in the region this year... Again, one of their players had played earlier for us and we knew each other's game pretty well... It was just a matter of playing well on the day...
Well!!! it was a similar situation a few days earlier and we did play very well that day... but this day, we let the game slip... we had them in a precarious position after a good bowling start... then, fatigue took over and we just let them take over things...
While batting, the target was not impossible but we didnt show enough character to make the "not-so-impossible" possible... I feel bad abt it... Just one fella stood there to fight it out... I admire him for the character he showed out there... its not easy...
So, again -- we were at the crossroads... whether to perform or perish... whether to be proud of our game or to be ashamed of the performance on that day... whether to qualify for the playoffs or whether to wait for the next yr...
Luckily, we took the correct turn... Last saturday, we were playing against another team which was performing pretty decently this season... I decided to opt out at the last moment due to some reason... it did'nt go well with the skippy and he made sure to give me an earful...
The team drove more than 100 miles and reached the venue to find a beautiful scenic ground waiting for them... it was one of the best grounds in the area...
we won the toss and elected to bat... openers gave a decent start... one of our players who has been on the wrong side of lady luck this yr had his share of luck today... they dropped 3-4 catches and he went on to make 94 and got out in the last over... other supported him very well... we hit 102 in the last 10 overs... and made our highest score of the season...
they started well chasing but eventually, good fielding, good catching and accurate bowling... and the wheels came off... they tried a couple of comebacks, but eventually, we held our fort and we won comfortably by 63 runs...
good times are back... we have 3 more games in the league phase and we are pretty certain to make it to the playoffs... that said, we have to win atleast 2 of the last 3 games to make it to the playoffs comfortably... if we lose 2 of the 3, then we may be in a difficult position and run rates (etc) may come into play...
next game is on 28th of this month and its against (yes!!!) another local team... we do share some bitter bits of history with this team and its more of pride than points which are at stake here...
Readers, wish us luck!!!
THE NEXT PRESIDENT...
Nowadays election and selection, both are pretty controversial... Every cricket playing nation is displaying its own gimmicks in selection of their coach... So, the politicians are playing ball and doing their own bit to make a mess of the Presidential Election...
As an average Indian, I feel very bad when I see someone of the stature of Pres. Kalam being insulted by petty politicians just for their selfish vested interests... the funny part is, the post of the President is supposedly apolitical… it does not really have any active powers and his role comes into play only when the powerful politicians are helpless in terms of numbers…
Here are some of the comic reasons given by some political parties for not supporting Mr. Kalam's candidacy…
1 - He is not a politician… He is a scientist -- so what? Atleast he has done India proud in more than one way… There are no scams, scandals and criminal cases against his name...
2 - He has had 1 term and no one shud have more than 1 terms… Where were these so-called Communists when Jyoti Basu was ruling over West Bengal for more than 25 years… Where were these Congressmen when Nehru and Indira Gandhi became prime-ministers for more than 10 years? What abt the Karunanidhis and Jayalalithas, who never keep on sitting on the Chief Minister's chair forever?
3 - And the funniest reason of all -- He shud respect the Constitution… Ha!!! Respect? How shud he respect? By indulging in scams and scandals? Or by initiating sectarian violence?
I felt good that Mr. Kalam decided to pull out this shambolic farce… Atleast he maintained his dignity… Most of the polls and opinion surveys have declared Mr. Kalam as a runaway winner… He has clocked atleast 80% votes in most of the polls…
There was a chat on rediff some days back in which a communist leader (Neelotpal Basu) was answering questions posed by the general public… this was one of the most brutal chats I have ever seen… the questions and the accusations made by everyone on the Left Front parties were a clear indication of Dr. Kalam's popularity and the sheer disgust for the Communist parties in the minds of the common citizen…
Another thing which really hurts is, the alternatives to Dr. Kalam are not even comparable to him… They are in the race simply because they are ready to be puppets in the hands of the string holders of Delhi… these ppl have got nominations because their politicial career is finished and they are here in the race because of gender or caste or religion or regionalistic views…
Today, most of the post holders, be it a Prime Minister or a Chief Minister or a President or a Governer, even a Mayor for that matter, are chosen because of caste, religion, language, race or gender and not because of qualification(s)… even sports teams are selected based on regional quota instead of performance…
I just dread the time when kids will ask their parents why were they not born in the reserved category or in a particular region or with a particular mother-tongue instead of being born intelligent and healthy…
Amen!!!
Nowadays election and selection, both are pretty controversial... Every cricket playing nation is displaying its own gimmicks in selection of their coach... So, the politicians are playing ball and doing their own bit to make a mess of the Presidential Election...
As an average Indian, I feel very bad when I see someone of the stature of Pres. Kalam being insulted by petty politicians just for their selfish vested interests... the funny part is, the post of the President is supposedly apolitical… it does not really have any active powers and his role comes into play only when the powerful politicians are helpless in terms of numbers…
Here are some of the comic reasons given by some political parties for not supporting Mr. Kalam's candidacy…
1 - He is not a politician… He is a scientist -- so what? Atleast he has done India proud in more than one way… There are no scams, scandals and criminal cases against his name...
2 - He has had 1 term and no one shud have more than 1 terms… Where were these so-called Communists when Jyoti Basu was ruling over West Bengal for more than 25 years… Where were these Congressmen when Nehru and Indira Gandhi became prime-ministers for more than 10 years? What abt the Karunanidhis and Jayalalithas, who never keep on sitting on the Chief Minister's chair forever?
3 - And the funniest reason of all -- He shud respect the Constitution… Ha!!! Respect? How shud he respect? By indulging in scams and scandals? Or by initiating sectarian violence?
I felt good that Mr. Kalam decided to pull out this shambolic farce… Atleast he maintained his dignity… Most of the polls and opinion surveys have declared Mr. Kalam as a runaway winner… He has clocked atleast 80% votes in most of the polls…
There was a chat on rediff some days back in which a communist leader (Neelotpal Basu) was answering questions posed by the general public… this was one of the most brutal chats I have ever seen… the questions and the accusations made by everyone on the Left Front parties were a clear indication of Dr. Kalam's popularity and the sheer disgust for the Communist parties in the minds of the common citizen…
Another thing which really hurts is, the alternatives to Dr. Kalam are not even comparable to him… They are in the race simply because they are ready to be puppets in the hands of the string holders of Delhi… these ppl have got nominations because their politicial career is finished and they are here in the race because of gender or caste or religion or regionalistic views…
Today, most of the post holders, be it a Prime Minister or a Chief Minister or a President or a Governer, even a Mayor for that matter, are chosen because of caste, religion, language, race or gender and not because of qualification(s)… even sports teams are selected based on regional quota instead of performance…
I just dread the time when kids will ask their parents why were they not born in the reserved category or in a particular region or with a particular mother-tongue instead of being born intelligent and healthy…
Amen!!!
ONE YEAR SINCE !!!
Today, it will be one year since that horrific day... May the souls of the unfortunate ones, who passed away that day, rest in peace... May God give their surviving families lot of strength to go through this ordeal... May the injured recover soon and get on with their lives...
Amen!!!
Today, it will be one year since that horrific day... May the souls of the unfortunate ones, who passed away that day, rest in peace... May God give their surviving families lot of strength to go through this ordeal... May the injured recover soon and get on with their lives...
Amen!!!
SOME GOOD NEWS AND SOME MORE !!!
Yippie !!! Finally the splint on the finger is gone... the broken bone has aligned itself back in its designated position... and i no longer need to to worry abt it when i play again...
After the big victory last month, we had 2 victories this month... so, now we are on a winning streak of 3 matches... and if one washed out match is considered, then we are unbeaten for 4 matches now... And we have also won all our road games this season... feels good to be on the roll...
The first match this month was against a local team... this team is one of the 6 teams who share the home ground... this team had won 5 games in a row this season... some of its players used to play for our team some time back... So, basically, every player knows every other player's game... as the cliche goes in international cricket -- its just a matter of who plays well on the day... and boy, did we play well?
Skippy lost the toss and had to bowl first... got to a great start and at one point of time, the batting team was 73/9... then they had a small partnership for the last wicket... they were allout for 95... This is the first time when we got any team all out for a sub-100 score while bowling first...
Second half was marvellous... first 2 deliveries of our batting -- both the openers were dropped on the first delivery they faced... we made them pay for it... we scored 101/1 in 7.4 overs... yes, we thrashed them out of the game...
Next game was in Richmond... so, we had to leave at 7 am to reach Richmond in time... we batted first... our best batsman got out for a duck in the first over... the other opener busted his knee a few days back, but played this match and made 43... others chipped in with 10s and 20s... at one point of time, we were in a spot of bother at 130 odd for 6 down... but one guy held it all together and made 56 not out... we reached 206 for 8 in the stipulated 35 overs... decent and defendable score...
When we bowled, we really didnt get the start which we get usually... i was marauded in my 2nd over but came back to get their best batsman out... at one point of time, they were cruising on to win... but we kept our cool... our spinners really choked them with some excellent bowling... they shared 7 wickets amongst themselves, the skipper grabbing a 5-fer... they lost their last 6 wickets in 7 overs... it was a great performance, especially, the way we kept our cool when they were going good...
So, eventually, a full day well spent at Richmond... had'nt eaten even one morsel in the whole day till the match was over and was surviving only on gatorade... came home and gobbled another pizza...
In the meanwhile, I have volunteered to be the webmaster for the club's website... Its something creative and i am enjoying doing it... Pls visit it and let me know ur feedback and suggestions to make it better...
http://www.durhamcricketclub.net
Have another game this weekend, with another local team... will keep all of u posted...
Yippie !!! Finally the splint on the finger is gone... the broken bone has aligned itself back in its designated position... and i no longer need to to worry abt it when i play again...
After the big victory last month, we had 2 victories this month... so, now we are on a winning streak of 3 matches... and if one washed out match is considered, then we are unbeaten for 4 matches now... And we have also won all our road games this season... feels good to be on the roll...
The first match this month was against a local team... this team is one of the 6 teams who share the home ground... this team had won 5 games in a row this season... some of its players used to play for our team some time back... So, basically, every player knows every other player's game... as the cliche goes in international cricket -- its just a matter of who plays well on the day... and boy, did we play well?
Skippy lost the toss and had to bowl first... got to a great start and at one point of time, the batting team was 73/9... then they had a small partnership for the last wicket... they were allout for 95... This is the first time when we got any team all out for a sub-100 score while bowling first...
Second half was marvellous... first 2 deliveries of our batting -- both the openers were dropped on the first delivery they faced... we made them pay for it... we scored 101/1 in 7.4 overs... yes, we thrashed them out of the game...
Next game was in Richmond... so, we had to leave at 7 am to reach Richmond in time... we batted first... our best batsman got out for a duck in the first over... the other opener busted his knee a few days back, but played this match and made 43... others chipped in with 10s and 20s... at one point of time, we were in a spot of bother at 130 odd for 6 down... but one guy held it all together and made 56 not out... we reached 206 for 8 in the stipulated 35 overs... decent and defendable score...
When we bowled, we really didnt get the start which we get usually... i was marauded in my 2nd over but came back to get their best batsman out... at one point of time, they were cruising on to win... but we kept our cool... our spinners really choked them with some excellent bowling... they shared 7 wickets amongst themselves, the skipper grabbing a 5-fer... they lost their last 6 wickets in 7 overs... it was a great performance, especially, the way we kept our cool when they were going good...
So, eventually, a full day well spent at Richmond... had'nt eaten even one morsel in the whole day till the match was over and was surviving only on gatorade... came home and gobbled another pizza...
In the meanwhile, I have volunteered to be the webmaster for the club's website... Its something creative and i am enjoying doing it... Pls visit it and let me know ur feedback and suggestions to make it better...
http://www.durhamcricketclub.net
Have another game this weekend, with another local team... will keep all of u posted...
HAVING A BAD 2007 !!!
How has the year of 2007 been for you so far?
Well, it has not been good for Preity Zinta... and she mentions the reasons, to Karan Johar in his talk show... Apparently, 2007 has been a bad year for her because --
How has the year of 2007 been for you so far?
Well, it has not been good for Preity Zinta... and she mentions the reasons, to Karan Johar in his talk show... Apparently, 2007 has been a bad year for her because --
- her 2 films have flopped,
- her dog died and
- she was stung by a bee...
Life is bad isnt it? Just dont know what more to add here!!!
THE COLOR OF MONEY !!!
Here's my 2 pennies worth about the latest Indian coach fiasco... Umpteen blogs and articles have been written to crucify the BCCI for the whole incident... Me too jumping on the bandwagon...
The real reason behind this whole issue is as fishy as Bob Woolmer's death... No one knows whether Graham Ford declined the offer because less pay was offered or because he was pissed off with the behavior of the Board or whether he was just try to get a better bargain from Kent... The fact is that he has gone scot-free and BCCI has fallen flat on its face...
But, as the cliché goes, every cloud has a silver lining... I see something good in this whole drama... For once, its good to see someone think rationally and not just go weak in the knees seeing the greens of money... For once, its good to see that even today there are people who think that its better to do a small job with a small pay properly instead of a big job with a huge pay in a messy way... Feels good when someone shows the money-blinded BCCI honchos that money is not everything...
Hope they understand that the fans don't want to see 100 ODIs every year from Timbaktoo to Honolulu... Hope they understand that there will come a time when out of sheer disgust of excess, the fans will stop watching cricket... Hope they accept the reality which is staring them right at their face...
Only if the Pawars and the Modis and the Bindras were listening…
Here's my 2 pennies worth about the latest Indian coach fiasco... Umpteen blogs and articles have been written to crucify the BCCI for the whole incident... Me too jumping on the bandwagon...
The real reason behind this whole issue is as fishy as Bob Woolmer's death... No one knows whether Graham Ford declined the offer because less pay was offered or because he was pissed off with the behavior of the Board or whether he was just try to get a better bargain from Kent... The fact is that he has gone scot-free and BCCI has fallen flat on its face...
But, as the cliché goes, every cloud has a silver lining... I see something good in this whole drama... For once, its good to see someone think rationally and not just go weak in the knees seeing the greens of money... For once, its good to see that even today there are people who think that its better to do a small job with a small pay properly instead of a big job with a huge pay in a messy way... Feels good when someone shows the money-blinded BCCI honchos that money is not everything...
Hope they understand that the fans don't want to see 100 ODIs every year from Timbaktoo to Honolulu... Hope they understand that there will come a time when out of sheer disgust of excess, the fans will stop watching cricket... Hope they accept the reality which is staring them right at their face...
Only if the Pawars and the Modis and the Bindras were listening…
FEELS GOOD TO BE A KID AGAIN
A few days ago, I was chatting with my colleagues over coffee and somehow the discussion drifted towards our age (literally)... Both my colleagues were surprised to learn that I am just 27... Last month, my cricket club team members gave it a shot to calculate the average age of the team and they too were surprised to hear that I was 27... They were also happy that I brought the average age down by a few notches as our team can really qualify to be a Daddy team... (sometimes we also joke that our team's real name is Daddy Cricket Club and not Durham Cricket Club)... This is not the first time that I have seen jaws hang after I mention my age... Even my wife says that I am a 27 yr old who behaves like a 35 yr old...
Well, something happened recently that I can hold as an exhibit against all these dropping jaws (and no, not against my wife... I need a house to stay... I agree with her that I am 35) in the court of Age proving my youth...
As I mentioned in one of my previous blogs (THAT WINNING FEELING), I broke my finger during THAT match... I visited the doctor and he found out that I broke the ring finger on my left hand... He asked me to wear a splint for 6 weeks so that the bones align themselves back into position... He also asked me to come back in 3 weeks for a checkup to monitor the progress in the finger...
The first 3 weeks passed by quickly and before the visit to the doc, I really could not feel any pain or discomfort in the finger and I was hoping that he would allow me to get rid of the splint and that I can get back to my cricket...
But then, when I visited the doc, he just asked me how the finger felt... I replied in the affirmative... he didn't even bother to have a look and just said -- as I quote him -- "Nikhil, even though u feel good, we will keep the splint on your finger for 3 more weeks... bones don't heal so fast in your age... 3 weeks were enough only if u are 10 yr old... u are 27 (yes, with a jaw-dropping WHAT???) and bones don't heal very fast at this age... "
I felt like hitting him (with the non-broken hand of course)... not coz he said I was old... I don't care abt it... but coz he passed the judgment without even peeking at the finger... And I voiced my displeasure... he was stubborn but probably he felt that he was not doing the right thing... And asked me to get an x-ray of the finger with a caveat that this is just to make me feel good...
The x-ray justified my confidence... the bone was right there in place, sitting like a king back in its throne... then he said these words -- as I quote him again -- This is one of the most amazing recoveries I have seen in my entire medical career... your bone has healed like it was never broken... boy, aren't u a ten yr old from inside? U r a kid...
From that time, I am smiling... At least someone is calling me a 10 yr old... Someone agrees that I am a kid... Dropping jaws, its good to laugh at yourself...
And wifey, the doctor is wrong... I agree with you that I am 35... please open the door when I come home today evening...
A few days ago, I was chatting with my colleagues over coffee and somehow the discussion drifted towards our age (literally)... Both my colleagues were surprised to learn that I am just 27... Last month, my cricket club team members gave it a shot to calculate the average age of the team and they too were surprised to hear that I was 27... They were also happy that I brought the average age down by a few notches as our team can really qualify to be a Daddy team... (sometimes we also joke that our team's real name is Daddy Cricket Club and not Durham Cricket Club)... This is not the first time that I have seen jaws hang after I mention my age... Even my wife says that I am a 27 yr old who behaves like a 35 yr old...
Well, something happened recently that I can hold as an exhibit against all these dropping jaws (and no, not against my wife... I need a house to stay... I agree with her that I am 35) in the court of Age proving my youth...
As I mentioned in one of my previous blogs (THAT WINNING FEELING), I broke my finger during THAT match... I visited the doctor and he found out that I broke the ring finger on my left hand... He asked me to wear a splint for 6 weeks so that the bones align themselves back into position... He also asked me to come back in 3 weeks for a checkup to monitor the progress in the finger...
The first 3 weeks passed by quickly and before the visit to the doc, I really could not feel any pain or discomfort in the finger and I was hoping that he would allow me to get rid of the splint and that I can get back to my cricket...
But then, when I visited the doc, he just asked me how the finger felt... I replied in the affirmative... he didn't even bother to have a look and just said -- as I quote him -- "Nikhil, even though u feel good, we will keep the splint on your finger for 3 more weeks... bones don't heal so fast in your age... 3 weeks were enough only if u are 10 yr old... u are 27 (yes, with a jaw-dropping WHAT???) and bones don't heal very fast at this age... "
I felt like hitting him (with the non-broken hand of course)... not coz he said I was old... I don't care abt it... but coz he passed the judgment without even peeking at the finger... And I voiced my displeasure... he was stubborn but probably he felt that he was not doing the right thing... And asked me to get an x-ray of the finger with a caveat that this is just to make me feel good...
The x-ray justified my confidence... the bone was right there in place, sitting like a king back in its throne... then he said these words -- as I quote him again -- This is one of the most amazing recoveries I have seen in my entire medical career... your bone has healed like it was never broken... boy, aren't u a ten yr old from inside? U r a kid...
From that time, I am smiling... At least someone is calling me a 10 yr old... Someone agrees that I am a kid... Dropping jaws, its good to laugh at yourself...
And wifey, the doctor is wrong... I agree with you that I am 35... please open the door when I come home today evening...
THANDA THANDA COOL COOL...
Yesterday, I had a oil massage using a scented oil, which I have been using for some years now... Its red and scented due to various herbal extracts present in the oil... On using this oil for a hair massage, it smells very nice (i love the smell and my wifey hates it) and gives a cool sensation to the scalp... Its very relaxing to just sit out in the open air after having this massage, with the cool breeze making the scalp feel even cooler... Some of u might have heard about the oil as "Thanda Thanda cool cool" oil...
Well, the intention of this blog is not to advertise or to create a brand awareness for this oil... The reason for this is, for some time now, that immense sense of relaxation and satisfaction has been missing from that massage... I was trying to analyze it and thats when I realized whats missing !!!
In Bangalore, after every haircut, I used to ask the barber to give a massage with this oil... He used to drench my hair with that oil and then use a machine which had lots of vibrating springs to give a massage... This machine used to give an awesome massage and make one totally unwind for those 5-10 minutes... The walk back home from the salon would be the best... Walking next to a cricket ground, where the wannabe Tendulkars and Irfan Pathans used to showcase their talents, the cool breeze made one forget all the worries and tensions... I really used to feel "Thanda Thanda Cool Cool"...
But then, is this what makes the massage very satisfying... NO... It was something else... The 10 Re tip to the barber used to bring a smile on his face... this smile used to make the massage most satisfying... The broad smile with which he would welcome you on your next visit... The anticipation of that 10 Re tip brought an extra vigor to his nimble fingers and the massage used to be all the more pleasant...
Now there is no "real" smile on the face of my barber even though I hand a 2$ tip every time... Its just a courteous profession plastic smile... there is no walk back home, coz i have to drive, with being careful of not ruining the seat... There is no oil massage, instead you can get a hairgel to make sure that ur hair is set properly... The hot dry temperature doesnt allow me to sit in the patio...
I no longer feel "Thanda Thanda Cool Cool"...
Yesterday, I had a oil massage using a scented oil, which I have been using for some years now... Its red and scented due to various herbal extracts present in the oil... On using this oil for a hair massage, it smells very nice (i love the smell and my wifey hates it) and gives a cool sensation to the scalp... Its very relaxing to just sit out in the open air after having this massage, with the cool breeze making the scalp feel even cooler... Some of u might have heard about the oil as "Thanda Thanda cool cool" oil...
Well, the intention of this blog is not to advertise or to create a brand awareness for this oil... The reason for this is, for some time now, that immense sense of relaxation and satisfaction has been missing from that massage... I was trying to analyze it and thats when I realized whats missing !!!
In Bangalore, after every haircut, I used to ask the barber to give a massage with this oil... He used to drench my hair with that oil and then use a machine which had lots of vibrating springs to give a massage... This machine used to give an awesome massage and make one totally unwind for those 5-10 minutes... The walk back home from the salon would be the best... Walking next to a cricket ground, where the wannabe Tendulkars and Irfan Pathans used to showcase their talents, the cool breeze made one forget all the worries and tensions... I really used to feel "Thanda Thanda Cool Cool"...
But then, is this what makes the massage very satisfying... NO... It was something else... The 10 Re tip to the barber used to bring a smile on his face... this smile used to make the massage most satisfying... The broad smile with which he would welcome you on your next visit... The anticipation of that 10 Re tip brought an extra vigor to his nimble fingers and the massage used to be all the more pleasant...
Now there is no "real" smile on the face of my barber even though I hand a 2$ tip every time... Its just a courteous profession plastic smile... there is no walk back home, coz i have to drive, with being careful of not ruining the seat... There is no oil massage, instead you can get a hairgel to make sure that ur hair is set properly... The hot dry temperature doesnt allow me to sit in the patio...
I no longer feel "Thanda Thanda Cool Cool"...
THE POWER OF INDIAN DIASPORA
A couple of months ago, I moved (yes... again !!!)... this time to North Carolina... Whenever I told about my move to this place, the standard reaction was... "Again???" to "Why?" to "Oh!!! North Carolina? Its a beautiful place !!!" to "Tired of snow? Moving South?"... But every reaction invariably used to end with "There are many Indians in that area..."
So, as a Least Common Factor (arithmetic anyone?) of all the reactions, I was looking forward to the Indian community in Cary... First few days, I really did not see so many Indians to shock me... But, then this happened...
I was searching on the net if any nearby theaters show Indian Movies... Usually, if there is any sizeable Indian population, then some theater giants occasionally show some (read Big Banner) Indian movies... Places like NJ have more than one such theatres... But then, these movies don't have intervals... Sometimes it can be a pain in some loooooong movies... Also, there is nothing Indian to eat in these theaters.. Not a very pleasant experience if u don't like popcorn and pretzels and candy...
But, this theater in Cary shows at least 3 Indian movies at the same time... And it does not show only Big Banner movies... It shows almost all the Indian movies which are released in the US... This gave me a pleasant shock... I mean, the sheer number of Indians in the area has forced a theater company to alter its policy to this extent... Its heartening to see this... But then when we went to the movie theater, it was really shocking... This is really a "INDIAN" movie theater... There is a 10 minute interval where one can get free refills (yes... FREE...) of popcorn and soda... We get samosas, Indian tea, Indian coffee and (hold ur breath...) Kurkure... yes, the same Indian Kurkure on the menu... totally Indianized theater...
Well, if this is not enough... this theater has a website where you can even suggest the Regional movies you want to see... if there are sufficient requests, then the theater shows regional movies too... Currently, it is showing a 3-4 Telugu movies, 1-2 Tamil movies, a Jewish Festival etc...
This same theater is showing all the World Cup matches on the big screen... the World Cup for just for 25$... I am sure there wont be even 1 theater in India which will be showing the entire World Cup... There are instances where Indian matches and Semifinals and Finals are shown in theaters... But the entire World Cup? No way...
This was shocking... I mean, do we Indians really have the power to Indianize an entity to this extent? There are a few other instances of such population power exhibited by Indians....
1 - Most of the Cricket World Cup packages over the internet have "India-Only" packages where the subscriber can see India's matches... for relatively lesser cost compared to the entire package...
2 - My cricket team once played in a tournament in Boston... there were a whopping 72 7-a-side teams in that tournament... Can u believe... 72 Indian teams in a local cricket tournament in the US... wow!!!
3 - The temple in Boston gets legal permission from the police to light fire-crackers for Diwali... I am sure that there are many other temples which will be getting such permissions... As far as I know, the only day when one can light firecrackers in US is the 4th of July... Can the Indians have so much population power to make a country change its laws?
4 - There are so many Motels in the US which are owned by people with surname of Patel that the Motels are now called as Potels... same abt Gas stations and Subways and Dunkin Donuts outlets...
5 - Indian curry is apparently so famous in UK that it features regularly on the dinner menu official functions of the Queen...
6 - A Tours and Travel Giant organizes "Indianized" tours where all the tourists are Indian and the breakfasts and lunches and dinners are Indian cuisines... You get Idlis and Dosas and Indian Sandwiches for breakfast... You get bhel-puri and pani-puri for evening snacks... You can get Pav Bhaji and CHole-puri for dinners...
7 - There are umpteen Indian eating places near Niagara falls... You can eat any and every Indian food you can think of there... I have been there twice and believe me, it is as good as any Indian outlet in Bangalore and Bombay...
If this is what one generation of Indian expats can do, imagine what we can do with 100 billion people at our disposal... Only IF it is harnessed to its full potential... the Big IF...
Makes me smile and then I await the day when I can go to the South Beach in Miami and have chats and pani-puri and ice-golas and pav-bhaji and chana-chor on stalls lined next to the beach...
Or, have Wada Pavs and Tea and Coffee shops in the Rest Areas and Service Areas of I-95 when I drive from Boston to Philly... Its possible guys, just needs one visionary to realize the dream...
A couple of months ago, I moved (yes... again !!!)... this time to North Carolina... Whenever I told about my move to this place, the standard reaction was... "Again???" to "Why?" to "Oh!!! North Carolina? Its a beautiful place !!!" to "Tired of snow? Moving South?"... But every reaction invariably used to end with "There are many Indians in that area..."
So, as a Least Common Factor (arithmetic anyone?) of all the reactions, I was looking forward to the Indian community in Cary... First few days, I really did not see so many Indians to shock me... But, then this happened...
I was searching on the net if any nearby theaters show Indian Movies... Usually, if there is any sizeable Indian population, then some theater giants occasionally show some (read Big Banner) Indian movies... Places like NJ have more than one such theatres... But then, these movies don't have intervals... Sometimes it can be a pain in some loooooong movies... Also, there is nothing Indian to eat in these theaters.. Not a very pleasant experience if u don't like popcorn and pretzels and candy...
But, this theater in Cary shows at least 3 Indian movies at the same time... And it does not show only Big Banner movies... It shows almost all the Indian movies which are released in the US... This gave me a pleasant shock... I mean, the sheer number of Indians in the area has forced a theater company to alter its policy to this extent... Its heartening to see this... But then when we went to the movie theater, it was really shocking... This is really a "INDIAN" movie theater... There is a 10 minute interval where one can get free refills (yes... FREE...) of popcorn and soda... We get samosas, Indian tea, Indian coffee and (hold ur breath...) Kurkure... yes, the same Indian Kurkure on the menu... totally Indianized theater...
Well, if this is not enough... this theater has a website where you can even suggest the Regional movies you want to see... if there are sufficient requests, then the theater shows regional movies too... Currently, it is showing a 3-4 Telugu movies, 1-2 Tamil movies, a Jewish Festival etc...
This same theater is showing all the World Cup matches on the big screen... the World Cup for just for 25$... I am sure there wont be even 1 theater in India which will be showing the entire World Cup... There are instances where Indian matches and Semifinals and Finals are shown in theaters... But the entire World Cup? No way...
This was shocking... I mean, do we Indians really have the power to Indianize an entity to this extent? There are a few other instances of such population power exhibited by Indians....
1 - Most of the Cricket World Cup packages over the internet have "India-Only" packages where the subscriber can see India's matches... for relatively lesser cost compared to the entire package...
2 - My cricket team once played in a tournament in Boston... there were a whopping 72 7-a-side teams in that tournament... Can u believe... 72 Indian teams in a local cricket tournament in the US... wow!!!
3 - The temple in Boston gets legal permission from the police to light fire-crackers for Diwali... I am sure that there are many other temples which will be getting such permissions... As far as I know, the only day when one can light firecrackers in US is the 4th of July... Can the Indians have so much population power to make a country change its laws?
4 - There are so many Motels in the US which are owned by people with surname of Patel that the Motels are now called as Potels... same abt Gas stations and Subways and Dunkin Donuts outlets...
5 - Indian curry is apparently so famous in UK that it features regularly on the dinner menu official functions of the Queen...
6 - A Tours and Travel Giant organizes "Indianized" tours where all the tourists are Indian and the breakfasts and lunches and dinners are Indian cuisines... You get Idlis and Dosas and Indian Sandwiches for breakfast... You get bhel-puri and pani-puri for evening snacks... You can get Pav Bhaji and CHole-puri for dinners...
7 - There are umpteen Indian eating places near Niagara falls... You can eat any and every Indian food you can think of there... I have been there twice and believe me, it is as good as any Indian outlet in Bangalore and Bombay...
If this is what one generation of Indian expats can do, imagine what we can do with 100 billion people at our disposal... Only IF it is harnessed to its full potential... the Big IF...
Makes me smile and then I await the day when I can go to the South Beach in Miami and have chats and pani-puri and ice-golas and pav-bhaji and chana-chor on stalls lined next to the beach...
Or, have Wada Pavs and Tea and Coffee shops in the Rest Areas and Service Areas of I-95 when I drive from Boston to Philly... Its possible guys, just needs one visionary to realize the dream...
THAT WINNING FEELING !!!
Date -- 05/13/2007
Place -- Hobson, NC
Venue -- Hobson Cricket Ground.
Something really special happened this day... After my move to NC, i joined a Cricket club called Durham Cricket Club near my new place... Its a good team and it feels nice to be a part of one... Good positive vibe in the team... No attitude on the field and nice camaraderie off the field...
They had an absolute humdinger of a season last year... This season though, we started on a wrong foot... we lost our first match to a very good team and after setting the parity even in the next match, we again slipped due to overconfidence... this places us in a very precarious position where we have to win almost every match to make it to the playoffs...
The first step in this direction would be the most difficult... our next match was against 3 time championship winners HPCC (High Point cricket Club)... Yes, they are the best team in the 4 states of NC, SC, VA and GA... They have an absolutely unbeatable team... they have been undefeated at home for 3 seasons... So, our first step was to defeat the 3-yr regional champions at their home ground... To make matters worse, a couple of our players decided to celebrate mother's day instead of playing the game and one fella couldnt make it due to a medical emergency...
So, with this intention in mind, we arrived at Hobson Cricket ground very early... The intensity was very obvious... by the time our van reached the ground, rest of the team was already pounding the training nets... At the same time, no one from their team could be seen… Only their captain was on the field, setting up the logistics... Clear sign of over confidence… Not that we mind it… its good to be an underdog once in a while...
Our skipper won the toss and we decided to take a positive approach to the game by batting first... Desperate times, desperate measures... Hence new openers... they did their job... gave us the first century opening stand... quick wickets followed... but still, we had 20-25 runs per partnership... we couldn't give that final blast, but still, one of the openers stayed till the end and made a century... we crossed that elusive 200 run mark... first half well done...
Second half was executed with equal clinical efficiency... no catches dropped... good fielding... and hitting the blows when it mattered the most... with every falling wicket, our chins were up and chests were puffed and heads were high but our feet stayed on the ground... We did the right things at the right time... Eventually, David slaughtered Goliath... we won by 50 odd runs...
I was not a part of team when they won their first match and hence, this was my first win with this team... The experience was simply awesome... just to go to the other team's tent at the end of the match and be able to look directly into their eyes and give them a CONSOLATION "Well Played" is a feeling everyone should experience at least once in their life...
I broke my finger during the 2nd innings early on, but still stayed on the field until the end... feel good abt it... that's my only contribution in the victory...
Last year, I won just one League game and one Friendly game with my club... I was on the receiving end more often than not... Only the haunting memories of losing from winning positions remain with me...
But this time, it feels really good... the broken finger doesn't ache that much... the fact that i will be out for 6 weeks doesn't really pain that much... the feeling is good...
After the game, we went to celebrate the victory with a Pizza... Believe me friends, Jalapeno pizza never tasted sweeter!!!
Date -- 05/13/2007
Place -- Hobson, NC
Venue -- Hobson Cricket Ground.
Something really special happened this day... After my move to NC, i joined a Cricket club called Durham Cricket Club near my new place... Its a good team and it feels nice to be a part of one... Good positive vibe in the team... No attitude on the field and nice camaraderie off the field...
They had an absolute humdinger of a season last year... This season though, we started on a wrong foot... we lost our first match to a very good team and after setting the parity even in the next match, we again slipped due to overconfidence... this places us in a very precarious position where we have to win almost every match to make it to the playoffs...
The first step in this direction would be the most difficult... our next match was against 3 time championship winners HPCC (High Point cricket Club)... Yes, they are the best team in the 4 states of NC, SC, VA and GA... They have an absolutely unbeatable team... they have been undefeated at home for 3 seasons... So, our first step was to defeat the 3-yr regional champions at their home ground... To make matters worse, a couple of our players decided to celebrate mother's day instead of playing the game and one fella couldnt make it due to a medical emergency...
So, with this intention in mind, we arrived at Hobson Cricket ground very early... The intensity was very obvious... by the time our van reached the ground, rest of the team was already pounding the training nets... At the same time, no one from their team could be seen… Only their captain was on the field, setting up the logistics... Clear sign of over confidence… Not that we mind it… its good to be an underdog once in a while...
Our skipper won the toss and we decided to take a positive approach to the game by batting first... Desperate times, desperate measures... Hence new openers... they did their job... gave us the first century opening stand... quick wickets followed... but still, we had 20-25 runs per partnership... we couldn't give that final blast, but still, one of the openers stayed till the end and made a century... we crossed that elusive 200 run mark... first half well done...
Second half was executed with equal clinical efficiency... no catches dropped... good fielding... and hitting the blows when it mattered the most... with every falling wicket, our chins were up and chests were puffed and heads were high but our feet stayed on the ground... We did the right things at the right time... Eventually, David slaughtered Goliath... we won by 50 odd runs...
I was not a part of team when they won their first match and hence, this was my first win with this team... The experience was simply awesome... just to go to the other team's tent at the end of the match and be able to look directly into their eyes and give them a CONSOLATION "Well Played" is a feeling everyone should experience at least once in their life...
I broke my finger during the 2nd innings early on, but still stayed on the field until the end... feel good abt it... that's my only contribution in the victory...
Last year, I won just one League game and one Friendly game with my club... I was on the receiving end more often than not... Only the haunting memories of losing from winning positions remain with me...
But this time, it feels really good... the broken finger doesn't ache that much... the fact that i will be out for 6 weeks doesn't really pain that much... the feeling is good...
After the game, we went to celebrate the victory with a Pizza... Believe me friends, Jalapeno pizza never tasted sweeter!!!
MUNICH AND GANDHIJI
Off late, my wife and I have become movie addicts... Blame it on the (late) winter or anything else, but off late we have been seeing a lot (by our standards) of movies... We just wait for a new Hindi movie to be released in the nearby (which is 30 miles away) theater... We wait for a new set of Hindi movies to be opened ON-DEMAND... Not to mention the innumerable movies rented from the local grocery shops... And we do see other movies too... We have been clearing the backlog of English movies too... And did I mention that we have a good collection of Marathi and Kannada movies at our place and when we are bored by Hindi and English movies, we also venture into "mother-tongue" movies...
And in this penchant of seeing movies, we saw MUNICH... I wanted to see it from a long time... It was indeed a very nice movie...
But, this blog is not abt our new movie addiction or nor abt Steven Spielberg's "historical fiction", though, MUNICH provides the trigger to this blog, the thoughts were lingering in my mind for some time now...
Eric Bana says in Munich -- we follow violence in search of peace knowing that every bullet fired in this quest is taking us away from the destination... How true... Today Israel and Palestine are fighting each other (and have been doing since decades) to have a country of their own, a HOME, where they can stay in PEACE... I dont know who is right here and who is wrong... but as the saying goes "In a war, no one is right... only 1 is left"...
Look at so many other countries and regions... Afghanistan... Iraq... Nepal... Numerous African countries... Chechnya... so many such countries... And not to forget, India and Pakistan are doing the same in Kashmir... Some (or most) countries have lost generations to these wars and there seems to be no end to it...
So, what am I trying to tell here...
Today, India (atleast a greater part of it) is a peaceful country... Today, when I open the newspaper, I get to see the figures of growth in GDP and not the growth in casualties in the war... Today, when I call my parents back home, we discuss about growth and prosperity and not about destruction and death...
When Indian parliament was attacked in 2001, India and Pakistan were almost at the verge of war... Tactical diplomacy (and lot of other things) averted a war but the general public sentiment was inclined to "teach-em-a-lesson"... And Yes, I was one of them... Late Pramod Mahajan was addressing a press conference at that time and he was asked this Q... "India was better placed to attack, why didnt we do it?" His reply changed my perception immediately... He said -- During peace, a adult son lits the pyre of a old father... During war, an old father lits the pyre of young son or a kid boy lits the pyre of a young father... How many of u in this room would want your fathers or kid sons to lit your pyres?...
That sentence said it all... During many discussions after that incidents, i used to be against any military or armed aggression between India and Pakistan... Almost every time, I was on the receiving end of the flak... And to "practice what I preach", I too practiced non-violence (verbal) during those discussions... And even today, I am firm on my stance...
No, here I am not saying that we should not defend ourselves... According to me, the saying, offense is the best form of defense, doesnt apply to foreign relations... No, not at the cost of a generation...
How many of us want to call up home everyday just to make sure that our parents are alive? How many of us want to login to a website to check the names of the friends and relatives who have died in attacks in the last week or month or year... How many of us want our kids to play with guns and bombs instead of computers and bats? How many of us want our generation to ride Tanks instead of Marutis and Mercedes?
Today, I am grateful to Gandhiji that he preached non-violence... I even shudder to see India be something similar to Iraq and Afghanistan... By this, no way do I disregard BhagatSingh and Chandrashekhar Azad or Netaji Bose... What they did is equally important... But, by preaching non-violence, Gandhiji did a favor which only the people suffering in the countries mentioned above can appreciate...
And, then I pause and I bow to the man on this day when he was killed... 30th January...
And as Gandhiji says in the movie Lage Raho Munnabhai -- though I was killed -- no one has erected any statue of the assasin... No holiday has been declared for the assasin... No currency note carried the photo of the assasin... This shows who the clear winner is...
Please see this ad and feel how powerful it is... No wonder this ad emerged the best at one of the advertising awards function...
http://www.epica-awards.org/assets/epica/2004/winners/film/flv/11071.htm#
Off late, my wife and I have become movie addicts... Blame it on the (late) winter or anything else, but off late we have been seeing a lot (by our standards) of movies... We just wait for a new Hindi movie to be released in the nearby (which is 30 miles away) theater... We wait for a new set of Hindi movies to be opened ON-DEMAND... Not to mention the innumerable movies rented from the local grocery shops... And we do see other movies too... We have been clearing the backlog of English movies too... And did I mention that we have a good collection of Marathi and Kannada movies at our place and when we are bored by Hindi and English movies, we also venture into "mother-tongue" movies...
And in this penchant of seeing movies, we saw MUNICH... I wanted to see it from a long time... It was indeed a very nice movie...
But, this blog is not abt our new movie addiction or nor abt Steven Spielberg's "historical fiction", though, MUNICH provides the trigger to this blog, the thoughts were lingering in my mind for some time now...
Eric Bana says in Munich -- we follow violence in search of peace knowing that every bullet fired in this quest is taking us away from the destination... How true... Today Israel and Palestine are fighting each other (and have been doing since decades) to have a country of their own, a HOME, where they can stay in PEACE... I dont know who is right here and who is wrong... but as the saying goes "In a war, no one is right... only 1 is left"...
Look at so many other countries and regions... Afghanistan... Iraq... Nepal... Numerous African countries... Chechnya... so many such countries... And not to forget, India and Pakistan are doing the same in Kashmir... Some (or most) countries have lost generations to these wars and there seems to be no end to it...
So, what am I trying to tell here...
Today, India (atleast a greater part of it) is a peaceful country... Today, when I open the newspaper, I get to see the figures of growth in GDP and not the growth in casualties in the war... Today, when I call my parents back home, we discuss about growth and prosperity and not about destruction and death...
When Indian parliament was attacked in 2001, India and Pakistan were almost at the verge of war... Tactical diplomacy (and lot of other things) averted a war but the general public sentiment was inclined to "teach-em-a-lesson"... And Yes, I was one of them... Late Pramod Mahajan was addressing a press conference at that time and he was asked this Q... "India was better placed to attack, why didnt we do it?" His reply changed my perception immediately... He said -- During peace, a adult son lits the pyre of a old father... During war, an old father lits the pyre of young son or a kid boy lits the pyre of a young father... How many of u in this room would want your fathers or kid sons to lit your pyres?...
That sentence said it all... During many discussions after that incidents, i used to be against any military or armed aggression between India and Pakistan... Almost every time, I was on the receiving end of the flak... And to "practice what I preach", I too practiced non-violence (verbal) during those discussions... And even today, I am firm on my stance...
No, here I am not saying that we should not defend ourselves... According to me, the saying, offense is the best form of defense, doesnt apply to foreign relations... No, not at the cost of a generation...
How many of us want to call up home everyday just to make sure that our parents are alive? How many of us want to login to a website to check the names of the friends and relatives who have died in attacks in the last week or month or year... How many of us want our kids to play with guns and bombs instead of computers and bats? How many of us want our generation to ride Tanks instead of Marutis and Mercedes?
Today, I am grateful to Gandhiji that he preached non-violence... I even shudder to see India be something similar to Iraq and Afghanistan... By this, no way do I disregard BhagatSingh and Chandrashekhar Azad or Netaji Bose... What they did is equally important... But, by preaching non-violence, Gandhiji did a favor which only the people suffering in the countries mentioned above can appreciate...
And, then I pause and I bow to the man on this day when he was killed... 30th January...
And as Gandhiji says in the movie Lage Raho Munnabhai -- though I was killed -- no one has erected any statue of the assasin... No holiday has been declared for the assasin... No currency note carried the photo of the assasin... This shows who the clear winner is...
Please see this ad and feel how powerful it is... No wonder this ad emerged the best at one of the advertising awards function...
http://www.epica-awards.org/assets/epica/2004/winners/film/flv/11071.htm#
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