Life is a Boon

Western formals - my foot!

2010-04-22T07:31:00.000-07:00

Somehow I can never come to terms in equating the western formals as being the formal dress worldover! Blame it on imperialism or our general affinity to anything western, the western formals also caught up thus! I feel like a total clown with the blazers, tie et al. I never understand the purpose behind wearing a tie - I mean, what purpose does it serve? Its insane having a piece of cloth dangling around your neck for no reason and the pains one has to undergo to get the perfect "samosa" knot! And for the kind of tropical weather most of our Indian states experience, it makes us all the more foolish to adhere to such a dress code in the name of formality! I think its more important to be dressed nealty and dressed for the occasion. Also its vital one is able to appreciate and accept one's own region's dressing and that of others too which is also reflection of a culture and heritage the dress may hold! Any takers?

O"Mega"!

2008-12-22T10:44:00.000-08:00

I don't remember when the "mega serial" or the nedunthodar buzz word caught up but it sure has caused havoc - hasn't it? Maybe it was during the DD days of Ramayana and Mahabharatha, which were considered India's first soaps - oh no - wait a minute! I think we had Hum Log and Buniyaadh much before that - didn't we?. Sadly, the soap operas have set a bad trend. I was (again) reminiscing those good old DD days when a serial had to strictly stick to a 13-week schedule. Though some had their own histronics and depicting scenes with no, they were still much much better than the mega serials of today. I could even probably watch a re-run of those serials with pleasure. Infact, Sun TV, during its heydays, when its telecast time was between 6.30 and 9.30 pm did just that - re-telecast old DD serials and that did help increase their viewership. (ofcourse other reason being it was the first alternative to DD). Back then, unlike soaps, the 13-week serials were relayed on a particular day of the week. So one had to wait, rather impatiently, for one whole week and there were no silly "re-cap" bits. And interestingly no ad breaks. All ads were shown *before* the start of the serial.

The first Tamil serial I remember was that of S.Ve.Shekhar's - Vanna Kolangal. Wow! I would love to watch it again and again. The husband duo of Kutty Padmini and S.Ve.Shekhar was an instant hit. A similar venture of S.Ve.Shekhar came up later called Thevai oru maapillai with Arundhathi as his pair. Infact the title song had the same tune as Vanna Kolangal. This was aired, I think, in the 8.30 to 9 am slot or 9 am to 8.30 am slot.

The first major serial to draw attention was Idhu oru manithanin kadhai mainly for two reasons; first, it was based on writer Sivasankari's novel and two, it had popular cine actor - Raghuvaran donning the protagonist's role. Raghuvaran gained immensely out of the serial, many pitied him while some related to the story. It was about a man addicted to alcohol and kicking his habit through a rehab, getting re-addicted and finally doing away with alcohol again forever.

Another big hit serial was the one which had Sharath Babu and Y.G.Mahendran in the star cast named Doctor Narendhiranin Vinodha vazhakku (remember this anyone?). Sharath is a medical practioner accused of murdering his patients and Y.G.Mahendran plays his defense lawyer. The story is also based on a novel by Sujatha with interesting and gripping twists.

A funny serial to come up later was "Dinesh-Ganesh" starring Delhi Ganesh and Kathaadi Ramamurthy. Sulakshana plays Delhi Ganesh's wife. Though the serial takes off as a hilarious one, later, probably to match a movie, the serial had few thriller elements too. A movie on similar lines was produced with Sivakumar, Cho, Jeevitha in the lead (don't remember the movie name though).

Though I hardly remember anything of Solladi Sivasakthi which was telecast every Thursday, one thing which is still vivid is the title song rendered by none other than Chithra!

One serial had so much speculation even before it was named or anything about its cast, story-line was known. But people were looking forward to it so much. Even as school kids, the talk of this 'to-be' serial was doing the rounds, the only reason being its director. For a while then, speculation was abuzz that K.Balachander would direct a T.V. serial and since DD was the only medium for serials, there was no second guesses as to where the serial would feature (unlike today!). The serial was Rayil Sneham. This serial was like a rennaissance for DD serials. It had extensive outdoor shoots capturing the beauty of Pollachi in a very picturesque location and it almost brought the 'flow' of a movie into a serial. Importantly, it had wonderful music by L.Narasimhan and also songs sung by leading playback singers Yesudas and Chithra. The title song was by KJY and a beautiful number (still popular on Youtube) - Indha veenaikku theriyaadhu, a soulful melody was rendered by Chithra and another version by KJY. The story would seem to be in bit and pieces and the suspense element was maintained till the very end. Its almost like connecting jigsaw puzzles - wonderfully taken. I think KB paved way for other successful directors/actors to venture into television. This featured every Thursday (or was it Wednesday?) between 7.30 and 8 pm. After about many years of watching this on TV, I picked up a video cassette (yes, a cassette) from a Video cassettes rental shop to watch it again mainly for the Indha veenaikku theriyaadhu song!

Another big serial which took everyone by storm was Penn. The colourful star cast was one of its top factors for success. The serial had Revathy, Shobana, Bhanu Priya, Radhika, Geetha, Amala, Suhasini - all lined up for one story per episode. Suhasini donned the director's cap (probably for the first time). She later said in an interview that Vasanth was to direct all episodes with Suhasini playing the main role in each episode (it was one story every week). But later due to marriage and pregnancy, she said the plans changed. Infact the last episode had Suhasini herself in the lead with Parthiban playing her husband. The story-line, acting, star cast was so crisp and fresh.

En Iniya Endhira was another serial which went on to become very popular. The main star value here was the fact that the serial was based on Sujatha's novel with the same name. It takes us to a future world dominated by machines (I am now curious to know what is the year which Sujatha mentions in that novel! Its probably one of the years now!!).

There was another Sunday 8.30 am serial Neela Mala which had ThalaiVaasal Vijay and a little Neena playing one of the two lead child characters (the other character is also a well known person today I think - was it Swarnamalya?). Vaazhvin Vaasal, a very novel serial with rational thoughts on widow re-marriage had Srividhya playing a lead role with Poovilangu Mohan, Kuyili, Gautham (Major Sundarrajan's son) playing supporting yet well-etched roles.

Another serial making a big impact amongst the viewers was Ivalaa en manaivi on Wednesdays (or Thursdays?). I felt the serial was bit of a drab - with not much of a crispy flow. The serial had Idhayam Nallennai Chithra, Sharat Babu and Nizhalgal Ravi. The ending, however, was quite interesting but tested my patience!

Then there was this serial with Revathy in it, who acted as a blind girl. It was a thriller. A famous character name in the serial which I still remember was "Mr.D'souza" (don't know why I still remember this name!).

Cho had his series on Sundays - the best being Saraswathi Sabatham, a scathing mockery of movies depicting larger than life heroes. And also there was a series depicting Panchathanthra tales or something similar of 5 stupid students of a gurukulam. One episode which I vividly remember was how the 5 of them would carry a needle pierced on a log (supposed to be "sharing the work"!). Each episode seemed so insane.

A few serials came up in the 10-10.30 pm slot on DD-2 (often called "second channel" but available only in Chennai and its suburbs). Of them one was a comedy serial by S.Ve.Shekhar. I think, as far as my memory goes, this was the first time Madan Bob was introduced on TV as an actor. Brinda Das (the vamp on Aanandham) played S.Ve.Shekhar better-half! Another one was a serial with Kaveri (or popularly known as Mrs.Dhanam Bose for the Metti Oli fans).

A very interesting programme called Kaalathai Vendravargal featured in this slot. A celebrity of the past adorned each episode. Speaking of this reminds me of another music related programme on MSV every Tuesday at 7 pm (rather 7.05 pm just after Seithi surukkam) on DD-1. An interesting anatomy related programme was Ucchi mudhal paadham varai. Another series was based on wild life. I was in 7th standard then. Our Biology teacher made us watch the show and would ask us questions based on the show the following day.

DD-2 had many interesting English or German serials like the Didi's comedy show, The Invisible man and one more, a German detective serial - Derrick.

Then there was Adada Manohar and another one with Y.G.Mahendran and Ramya Krishnan (its called Thirumathy or something...). The serial supposedly had an interesting ending with the viewers left to their own imaginations on the finale.

Writing about these serials reminds me of a comment I read in Aval Vikatan site. A reader had mentioned "Today, we are so restless that we can't stand a single ad and switch channels right away but we are the same people who patiently waited for the only Oliyum Oliyum programme for a week!". How true!!

Trrrrring... Trrrring...

2008-05-22T07:56:00.000-07:00

The penetration of mobiles into the nook and corner of the country amazes me no doubt. People get jittery, anxious, restless if they leave their mobile phones behind. Today, as I was reading this post, being the usual self I am, went into a nostalgic walk yet again down memory lane to recaptulate about the black, heavy telephone.

A pista green phone was the cynosure of our visitors' eyes back in mid 80s. We had got it from our abroad return. Back then, it was looked upon as a very 'advanced' phone - the only reasons being that it was a coloured one and had a key pad instead of the circular dial. Discussions would crop up as to how having such a phone would invite levying of an extra fee from the Telephones Department and so we had it covered with a cloth most of the time (how silly!).

Ofcourse the regular phone was the heavy black phone with a jarring trrrring trrrring ringing sound (ringing 'tone' would not apply or was not in vogue then). [Digression: During one of the "Pattimandrams" chaired by Dindigul I.Leoni many years back, he took a dig at the song "Telephone mani pol siripaL ivaLaa" (from the movie 'Indian') leaving it to the imagination of the audience as it how it would sound if a girl were to laugh which sounds like trrrrringggg trrrringgg. Obviously, what Vairamuthu would've had in mind then while penning the lyrics, was the sound of the new phones which somewhat relates to loud giggling]

A person had to be extra careful not drop the receiver onto his/her foot lest it should break - the foot I mean! And there was no tone dialing (or speed dialing). Each swirl of a number had a taka-taka-tak... echoing effect and no... there was no 'redial' option either on such dials. One just had to meticously keep rotating the dial, thereby testing not just the patience but the strength of the index finger as well!

Once, when I visited relatives in Cuddalore, I was amazed to see that the phones there did not even have the dial. Becoming desperately curious, I wanted to know how it worked. Well, simple... you just had to pick up the phone, a person on the other end would ask for a number and you would be connected! But again, no guarantee that the person-on-the-other-end would answer you right away. I seldom felt comfortable talking through such connections as I felt, without an iota of doubt, that my conversation was being tapped. Cuddalore had just 3 digit phone numbers in that 'era'.

An upheal task was to book a trunk call and you would have to thank God if you were lucky enough to have your call placed within a few hours. The process started with calling the trunk booking number, mentioning the place and the phone number, then the person gives you a tracking number. Then you wait, wait, wait! Lets say you book a trunk request at 9 pm, you might get a call by 11 pm - pretty impressive huh? And you thought the other person was talking from a well? No! its a trunk call remember? No wonder the oldies bellow with all their energies when it comes to talking over a phone. Once you are done with the call, you get another call 'confirming' that the call is indeed over. And you probably thought you just spoke for a minute and you get a whooping 80 Rs. entry in the following month's telephone bill! I think there were different classes as well - ordinary and urgent. Urgent was 3 times the cost of ordinary.

There was a day when we had booked a trunk request and since the message was already conveyed, we did not want a huge trunk call bill, so had the receiver put away to avoid getting the trunk call request through!

But the biggest advantage was there was no pulse metering - atleast for local calls. So a minute or an hour of talking all costed the same. Imagine when once owing to my absence from school, I had my friend dictate History notes over phone.

So people who still think India hasn't made great strides in anything.... THINK AGAIN!

'Showy' Schools

2007-10-10T22:18:00.000-07:00

There are loads of writeups already floating around about the huge short-comings of educational institutions especially with respect to schools. I have also made a post touching upon teachers' attitude in handling students here. Though capitation fee may be on top of the misfortunes, what I would like to highlight upon here is the filtering of students based on their learning prowess.

Schools, as far as I know, are institutions to impart knowledge and discipline. Period! But the situation today shatters the very basic morale of running a school. Capitation fee, in a way, maybe justified quoting reason that a school needs money to run. Thats fine if the school is able to balance students who can afford to pay capitation fees and students who cannot. But what is worse is - in a pursuit to keep up its name and fame - most schools resort to handpicking the so called 'bright' students and mercilessly rejecting or dropping out those who do not fall into their desired category.

The ads race which follow soon after the 10th/12th public exam results are also means to attract the new batch of students. "100% pass results" was the norm initially, now adding to these phrases are more glamourous captions like "100% pass for 10 successive years", "100% pass with all first class", "100% with all distinction".

Its a common theory that people's IQ levels are not the same. Infact some grasp things much faster than others. But given the right guidance even the not-so-quick graspers can catch up with the rest - ofcourse with some extra time and effort. Infact, in order not to discourage the so called not-so-quick-learners, the phrase "dull students" has been replaced with "slow learners".
The amount of discouragement such students are subject to is a known story but how worse can it get when that happens in a school! - the very institution where s/he can hope to see some light.

Students who have been associated with a school right from Kinder Garten are dropped post 10th standard or 9th standard owing to their poor performance or just because the school authorities feel they might not fit into their "desired category" and their continuance could jeopardise their so called "remarkable" results.

So what if a school does not achieve 100% results? So what if a school has more slow learners? Wouldn't the worthiness of a school be evident when they are able to pull through such students? Imagine the mental turmoil of the parents who can't even imagine getting admission for the wards just because schools shy away from such students just to safeguard their pride.
Even worse is interviewing a probable L.K.G candidate? How funnier can it get?

A few years back, I remember an interview on TV with the principal of a leading State Board school in Chennai when the school bagged quite a few top ranks in the state. She said "Right from the beginning of 11th standard, we identify the bright students and give them special coaching". I was taken aback. Shouldn't this be done more importantly for the slow learners? Or perhaps were all the so called slow learners dropped post 10th exams?

No point in blaming the schools entirely. What is that the parents look for? If the schools are able to achieve results at any cost - even if it means pressurising their own wards - its fine. What we look for is only the end result!

Time and again, people have been voicing concerns over the educational system especially its grading methodology which negatively segregates students. I am sure there is a way out. Lets hope it happens soon.

Home is where the heart is!

2007-09-20T12:38:00.000-07:00

Hurray!!! After being away from India for a little over a year on a work assignment, I am returning back to India next weekend. This has been my longest stint away from home ever since we came back for good from a foreign country about 24 years ago!!

The feeling is obviously BLISS but ofcourse the added frills would be drawing comparisons between the facilities here and the lack of them in India. But hey what the heck? there are many many things that India offers which you cant find them anywhere else!!

East or West, atleast to me - India is the Best!!

It's an ad ad world!

2007-08-10T09:18:00.000-07:00

I remember when my friend who was pursuing his MBA talked about advertising. He gave an intersting point about the ads which seem quite lousy. His theory, or probably the general advertising theory was that, for ads to click they have to be extremely impressive or extremely lousy. As I was thinking about this yesterday, I traversed back in time to the days of black and white ads. Advertisements ever remain a child's first favourite on TV. And most of the old day ads, by today's standards, would have been dissmissed as being too lousy but still they did strike a chord with the viewers/listeners.

One of the early ads making a good reach to the viewers was the old Horlicks ad. It was a bit long but a very normal one and that too in B&W with different people in all age groups, from all walks of life, talking a line about Horlicks. There was a sports person, a person dressed as Ravana, a granny saying "Enga ammavum adhe koduppa" and the last line where a kid with a spoon in hand remarks "Kudikka vendam, appadiye saapiduven". This punch line, even to this day, remains a widely remembered ad line. I think much later came the Ujaala ad. There were even jokes and "just a minute" series with the Ujaala slogan : "Neeyum Ujaalavukku maaritiyaa?".

The Nirma song was like the ads' anthem. Everyone could sing it and everyone had their own parodies - one of the most popular one being "Washing Powder Nirma, Adupula vegudhu kurma!". Needless to say that even then there were countless rumours about the ad models then - though they did not get much attention at the models of today. It is often said that the girl in a frock swirling to the tune of the Nirma ad song was actually the daughter of the person who owned Nirma and that it was in her name that he started the company and that she died soon after she featured in the ad. The same is attributed to "Liril" soap ad models. The ad, inspite of its popularity, was supposedly a jinx for the models. Whoever would figure on it would since be deceased. Well it was obviously untrue!

Of the local ads, Idhayam nallennai's gained much popularity because of its ad line "Idhellam pombalainga samachaaram, poi idhayam nallenai vaangittu vaanga-na vaangittu vaangalen" and it also helped actress Chithra (often dubbed as "Nallennai" Chithra) gain some level of prominence. "Excuse me, neenga endha college?"... "College-a? naan-a?" as the model finishes this line, a kid comes running towards her shouting "Mummy....". This ad (was it Santoor or Rexona?) was also a fodder for many many parodies and "Excuse me, neenga endha college" almost became an expression for people looking younger beyond their age!!

One of my favourites then was the "Gold Spot" ad, more so because Gold Spot was my only choice for cool drink during those days. For a while Gold Spot also had Archie Comic characters behind the bottle crowns. The ad song went something like this "She is crazy about hitting an ace as crazy as he is about........... as crazy as crazy as we are about Gold Spot, the Zing thing, Gold Spot". And then Rasna! All the little girls who featured in the ads were so cute (infact one of them was the heroine opposite Prashanth in the Tamil movie 'London'). Though Rasna had just Orange flavour initially, it introduced "Mango Ripe" and the new ad became my instant favourite ("Endha samayam endha naalum Rasna Mango Ripe naaley").

The "Sunrise" coffee ad with its elegant signature tune and the cute picturisation with Suchitra Krishnamurthy in it was an instant hit. I think the soft music and a simple video did the trick. The Amrutanjan ad's slogan which goes like "Gaayab, hoy to, Poye poche, poyindhe, Chalegoche, It's gone... menmaiyaana suhamaana vegamaana nivarani, Amrutanjan Pain Balm meedum thandhidumae... ungalin punnagaiyai!" is something people recon with even today. The AVT premium Tea with its "Kaeteengala, kaeteengala..." had the interesting "Aaapapapapapa..." from Gautami (rather the voice that dubbed for her). We as kids then tried imitating that "aaapapappapa..." but with little success. None realised the male model in Leo Coffee would go on to become a popular hero - Arvind Swamy! Infact another ad of his - no, not the Cinthol ad - in which he goes to buy a Solidaire TV along with his on-screen wife Geetha. That was also a short and nice one. Speaking of Solidaire TV, I remember the old ad where a baby cries on watching a lion growling on TV, then the channel switches to cartoon and the baby is in all smiles. Finally the song end with a dance troupe dancing to the song "We want, we want true colours, we want we want clear sound, we know what we want, we want Solidaire... SO LI DA IRE...". Dynanora was another TV which also got lost down the line. Arun icecream also improved immensely on its video ads. They had a series of clippings showcasing all their flavours with the background song "I can see you... Arun icecream, I think I will lose my self-control... you make me lose, lose my self-control". It ends with a kid holding an ice candy stick and shivering with smiles - really cute!! In terms of visuals, "Regaul sottu neelam" made a similar mark; "Sottu neelam thoi, Regaul sottu neelam thoi... enna venmaiyo... aahaaa enna venmaiyo...". I think the ad received more popularity ever since it came to be known that the video was shot by ace cameraman P.C.Sreeram. This was followed later by another similar ad featuring Kushboo, who runs with a torch in hand and with the song "Endrum maara venmai idhu, Regaul venmai maaraadhu...".

"Thalai vali? jaladosham? mukkadaippu? aama pa aama..." was another famous ad line. Infact during late 80's there was a group which released a cassette called "Sirippo sirippu" where they mocked almost everything which was popular then - DD, popular ads, Kripanandha Variyar, Senthil-Goundamani-Janakaraj combo and this ad also had featured in that.

I used to love the voices behind the radio ads, Radio being "Chennai Vaanoli Nilayam - Vividh Bharathiyin Varthaga Oliparappu"! and had wildly imagined how the faces behind the voices would be. In all these years I could come across only one such person and that too on the Tuesday 7.30 pm DD drama. When he spoke his dialogue it immediately struck me that he was the voice behind the many ads on radio but no, it did not match the face which I had imagined ;-) I used to wonder then and even now if the time for ads overly surpassed the time alloted for songs on AIR! and I used to love the signature bell sound (ting tong) preceeding each ad. The typical radio ads with the bell sound would also remind me of my daily hussle-bussle mornings when I start to school. The "All India Radio" was always the morning background score at home - day after day! And who can forget the evergreen "Gopal palpodi"? ("Vennira parkalukku Gopal palpodi, thaechu paarunga Gopal palpodi, kaettu vaangunga Go paal pal podi!!") Surprisingly they did not change the song even when it was shown on TV for a short while (ofcourse, I dont see it anymore on TV these days). Then came the Archana Sweets ad "Inime late-a vandha Archana Sweets oda dhaan varanum". That ad line was later changed when Archana opened a couple of branches in Madras. And another good old ad was the "Roja paakku" ad. I could just go on and on, then ofcourse the "stores" ads like Saravana Stores, "Rathna Stores, Siva Complex, Pondy Bazaar", Vasanth and Co., Maniyammaal Texties, Sharada Stores (ending with "Chennai-2, Trichy-2"). The other typical radio ads being "Zandu Balm, Zandu Balm valigalai neekum balm...", Kalyanai covering, Nizam pakku.

In between, there also used to relay audio trailers for movies. Infact during nights, about one hour was allotted for such ads (under "Vilambaradharar vazhangum nigazchi"). That was a time when we could listen to new songs or atleast get a sample of it only thru' such forums. Doordarshan would not screen new songs. And we would eagerly have our ears glued to get jig-saw bits of the story, dialogues and songs. It would be interesting the way the "build-up" is generated in the ads with echoing effects, glaring sounds et al. And if one would stay awake (which generally doesnt happen because of restrictions at home owing to school the next day) so late to know about a film, it would his turn to brag about it the next day in the classroom.

I know many ads then did not have a catchy ad line, nor famous models or actors featuring in them, nor trendy sets or graphics but still they made an impact - for whatever reasons - and they still remain fresh - possibly because they did not have all those features which ads of today have and just humming old tunes of the ads or reciting ad lines would unfurl loads of memories - wouldn't they?

Wonder why?

2007-06-18T14:23:00.000-07:00

Recently I chanced upon one of the "Coffee with Anu" series on Youtube and one of the guests on the show was Prakash Raj. In many forums he has expressed how his mother braved against many tribulations in life when his father had abandoned them. He said one of his biggest motivational figures was his mother. And in this programme he said something like: "I like her (mother) a lot, I admire all her qualities - her strength, her courage, her loving nature. Maybe in my next birth, I would like to have her as my wife".

I can sense that many of you who saw that or read the statement above would've gasped in shock but I was in complete awe of his statement. Infact it goes on to show how - when we talk of certain relationships - we often lose focus of all the goodness which the relationship holds and dwell on aspects which would possibly cause a frown.

Its considered healthy to compares one's relation with another in the likes of a brother, sister, mother, father, uncle, aunt or a friend. Imagine this : "He is like my father figure", "She is another mom to me", "I don't have a sister, but I found a sister in you". But there is only one relationship we can't attribute it to someone else - spouse. Why? Its only because when someone says that someone else is like his wife or her husband, the first thing that comes to everyone's mind is... obvious, you know where I am getting at!

Is it that we push all the real, worthy attributes of a spouse to the rear and just focus on that one aspect when someone mentions as her/his spouse?

We all talk about beauty being just skin deep, the physical attraction not mattering at all, that the love between a couple trascends all wordly things and a husband-wife relationship is steafast and life long and yet... if someone were to equate a true, loving, caring relationship to a spouse, we just cannot think it to be "pure". Why?

A spouse is an amalgamation of all relationships one can think of - a dad/mom, a bro/sis, a lover, a friend and yet its always inappropriate to draw comparison to this relationship if he/she is not one. Maybe we *are* hypocrites, its not the love, care, understanding, counting on each other, sacrificing for each other, sharing - not just happiness but troubles as well, the little fights, the little frowns, the many tears that come to the fore front as we talk about husband and wife but only the physical bonding which strikes an instant chord?

My Favourite Fountain Pen

2007-06-11T09:56:00.000-07:00

Hmmm... the title sounds like one of those essay writing exercise topics in school isn't it - in the lines of "My pet", "My Self"? Well probably the post is too like one of them ;-)

From time I can remember, I have always fancied stationery items and pens top the list! Even today, more than the trendy ball point pen, I adore the ever elegant fountain pen - more commonly called 'ink pen' during school days.

The first time we ever had to write using pens in school was in the fourth standard and we were strictly forbidden to use ball point or micro tip pens. I think Pilot was the only or rather the most famous micro tip pen then.

And being the first exposure to ink and ink pens, there was always the usual "supplements" attached - staining a white shirt, ink on white walls, ink on the floor, ink on desks and leaking pens blotting the school bags, notebooks, pencilboxes. Almost every pencil box had a chalk piece or a blotting paper or a peice of cloth to counter a leaky pen. Ofcourse many relied on their hair too - which I totally despised. Most pens would have teeth marks around the nib area. A few extreme cases had even a bit of blue stain on their teeth.

The classy Hero pen was ever a luxury. I remember the few different models - one with round smooth ends, the other with a metal ring and the other just plain flat ends. There were just three distinct colours - black, green and maroon. Buying a Hero pen would cost a fortune. My first Hero pen was priced at Rs.25! Though I loved the Hero pen, my only fear was going dry on ink during exams. I always felt the inner rubber sac in the Hero pen could not hold enough ink for an exam though time and again I was proved wrong. No matter how much ever I was convinced by my friends and parents, I would never take a Hero pen to an exam. But the best feature of Hero pen - apart from its elegance and flawless nib - is the ease of refilling and the no-mess mechanism. Besides, it was a matter of pride to have a Hero pen showcased in the pencilbox.

My long time patronage was for Camlin. I liked the model which had a little transparent space in the body to see how much ink was left out. And they were not that leaky as well. And I always knew they could literally fill a truck load of ink! Later, during my 10th, I liked this special suction model of Camlin where the tail end of the pen had to be unscrewed to release the ink and screwed again - with the nib dipped in ink - to refill.

There were hundred other local brands - very fancy and cheap but the biggest risk of buying them was the leaking factor. So I always relied on Camlin or Hero.

And when it came to feeding the pen - my choice was obviously Bril ink. There was another brand in use called Chelpark, a bit expensive than Bril; but I always felt Chelpark never had the right viscosity as Bril. Chelpark ink was generally too watery and too light. There was also the Camlin brand ink but still Bril stood a class apart or atleast I felt so! But one advantage of the Camil ink bottles was that they came in plastic containers with a squeeze cap. So it was rather easy filling a non-suction pen. But we had ink fillers and re-used syringes which came in handy for the Brill-like open bottles. And almost each household had this one big bottle of ink to refill the small bottle from time to time.

I don't know why but more than the colours which I was supposed to use, which were blue and black, I've always had a liking for the other exotic colours - red, pink, green and later turquoise blue! I would get them - nevertheless - just out of interest and have separate fountain pens filled with red, pink or green ink and use them for 'other' purposes like scribbling, writing letters or signing greeting cards and ofcourse putting tick marks on old notebooks (as mentioned in this post);-)

I still relish the habit of writing with an ink pen and I still do buy ink pens. I know fountain pens are hardly in use these days other than in schools. But even there, the students prefer other pens while writing board exams. But as the tradition goes - its good to start with an ink pen, which definitely gives a better handwriting than the ball point pen. Long Live the fountain pen!

Summer Special

2007-05-29T13:52:00.000-07:00

I am ever a foodie as a previous post of mine would suggest and summer is one of my most favourite seasons as this post would prove. With summer already here, what is it that is running on my mind? Wish if I could gobble these now!!

Thanni saadham : Rice cooked the previous day, soaked in water, curd, salt, shallots, curry leaves and finely sliced maavadu. The best combo for this would be... NOTHING. The thanni saadham itself is a delicacy and the magic it creates on your body especially during summer is
amazing.

Vanilla milkshake : A thick, cold, frothy, vanilla milkshake in a tall glass and slurping it till the last drop is total bliss.

Icecream : I am 'all ready' for an icream - anytime, anyday!! And no discrimination here on the flavours - I just love 'em all! I love it best when the whole package is a jugalbandhi of different flavours, nuts, jellies and sauces!

Nongu :Is it called palm fruit in English? I love it when chucks of Nongu are immersed in sweetened milk, flavoured with cardamom and chilled.

Elaneer :Tender coconut wins hands down when it comes to thirst quenchers and I love the taste of water when the coconut is in its vazhukkai stage.

Mangoes :Mango might not be a good choice in summer because of the heat it generates but who cares? I could have mangoes all day long - with breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks!! And mango with a dollop of fresh cream or vanilla icecream is.... need I say more?

Jackfruit : Another speciality during summer. I love the extreme ripe ones especially their aroma. But I would love to have the luxury of someone separating the palacholais from the whole fruit. More than cutting, I dread the feeling of the fruit sap sticking onto my hands and deciding not to leave for a while. By the way, I read recently that the origin for the word Jackfruit is from the Portugese word "Jakka" which inturn is from the Malayalam word "Chakka" for Jackfruit.

Water Melon : There was a juice parlour in Bangalore where we used to frequent and there, when ordered for water melon juice, we would get a glass filled with water melon juice, along with a long stainless steel spoon and small chunks of water melon and a dash of chat masala. And when you take the first gulp of the juice and nibble the water melon chunks on a hot summer day, you would literally see heaven!!

Lemon/Lime Juice : Whatever said and done, the simple lemon juice never loses its charm not just for the taste but for the affordability as well. Many a time I used to opt for lemon juice so that I could gulp down a few glasses of the juice for the same money I end up spending for a 'higher-end' juice.

Water : Coming to the basics, eveything boils down to the tasteless, flavourless, plain "Adam's ale". And just like anything else in this world, its value is seldom known unless we are deprieved of it. So in summer time, drink lots of water and also make sure you don't waste it!

Have a hot, happy Summer!!

Mythical Cynicism

2007-05-15T03:39:00.000-07:00

I have great respect for our mythological works. More than being stories, they impart valuable insight into theories of life, how to be and how not to be. But I am quite cynical about certain aspects in the mythological works. Ofcourse, please view them as my take on stories only, not as my take on God or any exihibition of atheism. I am very much a theist ;-)

Rama's treatment of Sita :
Rama is always potrayed as an "eka pathini virathan". But I still cannot relate to the ending chapters of Ramayanam where he abandons his wife on hearing a washerman's rant against his wife. So how does Rama deserve the reverence when after having fought a war, after taking the hard way in the forests and having putting so many other people to hardships/sacrifices, got carried away by a single statement? So is it that he had the poison tree sowed already and the statment of the washerman was like the 'last straw'? How does it matter if he was an "eka pathini virathan" when he had subject his wife to the biggest toture - of doubting her celibacy?

Slaying of Vaali :
The reason, as quoted by Rama, for slaying Vaali is that he (Vaali) had wished for another man's wife, which is immoral. But... Vali and Sugriva are not human beings but Vaanar kings. Animals do not have such rules. It is survival of the fittest. Infact in most animal races, the males fight it over for the female.

Draupadi :
Instead of taking her wrath on her husbands who pledged her during the dice game, she takes a vow against the Kauravas. There is an interesting anecdote in the movie "Bharathi". When Bharathiyar is a kid, he watches a streetplay of "Paanchaali Sabadham" (he later went on to create a work on the same title). In the play when Draupadi vows to take revenge against the Kauravas, the little boy Bharathi interrupts and says "Why do you get angry over Kauravas when its your husbands who pledged you. Women should also pledge their husbands. If all women were to pledge their husbands in a game, will one husband be spared?" and the whole audience bursts into laughter applauds his rational thoughts.

Karna :
My most favourite character in Mahabaratha is Karna. But more than anyone else in the epic, it is Karna who was subject to atmost discrimination - right from the time when he was rejected by Dronacharya (owing to his caste), the curse by Parasuram, the way he was (tried to) deceived by Indra in taking his kavasa-kundalam, the promise taken by Kunti asking him to spare Arjuna, his charioteer abandoning him in the last minute owing to his caste, till the end when Krishna takes all his good deeds (punyam) so he could die. Though he was wary of Duryodhana's acts, he stood by him only as a token of gratitude. And Karna ever remains an epitome for friendship, gratitude and generosity.

Ekalavya :
Though he was turned down by Dronacharya because he belonged to a tribal clan, Ekalavya still considered Dronacharya as his guru, made a statue of him and practised before it every day. And he proved to be better than Arjuna. Since Dronacharya had promised Arjuna that Arjuna would be the best archer ever, shamelessly, he asked for Ekalavya's thumb as gurudakshinai so that he would never be able to use the bow and arrow in his life and Ekalavya complies without hesitation.

The Kauravas' wrongful act is well known but Krishna/Pandavas were not far behind. Krishna's advise to Duryodhana to cover his private parts when seeking Gandhari's blessings (which would give him immsense power), weakening of Dronacharya's morale by falsely declaring his sons Ashwathama's death (by blowing victory trumpets when Yudhishtra says "Ashwathama, the elephant, is dead") are all not honest acts, which were done aimed at getting victory at any cause.

Maybe there is a reason for everything. Though Krishna played a very cunning role in Mahabharata to ensure Pandavas' triumph, when being questioned by Arjuna about their act, he says "Everyone's fate is based on karma and destiny". And his words proved true in his case too as a dejected Gandhari seeing all her sons dead and the kingdom devastated curses Krishna that he would never have a heir and Krishna gracefully accepts it.

I am sure I might have missed a point somewhere and that's for you, my blogger friends, to fill up in the comments section :) Thanks!

Summer vacations

2007-04-24T02:28:00.000-07:00

Sree, had some time back posted about summer vacations and asked me to do so too. And being the kind of prompt blogger I am, its taken not so much a while to post this ;) [Well, seriously, the blogspot site was acting up and so it delayed my posting further though I had the draft ready]. Now here's my post :

The very thought of no school, no studies, brings an unsaid joy onto any kid's mind and in my school days I was no different. The last day of final exams was like the ultimate D-day. The first thing I remember doing was to get back home and put tick marks with a red pen on all my notebooks with "Good", "Neat", "V.Good" remarks.

During my primary schooling, I was out of India along with my parents and during then, we had 3 long months of summer vacation and this time was when we made our annual trips to India and these trips meant fun, fun and only fun. We would be pampered to the core. And going back we had the loads of goodies to take.During one such trip, we made a big tour of Tamilnadu. It was more like a truck van with the tarpolein cover. My uncle made seats at the back and other than that, it was mostly mats and beds. We went till Kanyakumari starting from Madras and covering a whole lot of places inbetween.

Another place which we used to often take retreat was Chidambaram. I know summer in Chidambaram is not a good idea but the load of fun that was in store did not deter us even a bit. The excitement started the moment you got down at the kanji thotti bus stop. What else? A horse cart ride!

The house we headed to was the the ever charming - tiled roof (oattu veedu) type with a centre courtyard. Cooking was done by sitting on the floor. The toilets were outside the house. You had to draw water from well, no pumps or taps (again, an indication how exercise inter-twines with daily chores in villages). But the best of all was the huge swing in the neighbour's house and we were a big cousins' lot and the neighbours were kind enough to let us in all the time. This was the typical traditional oonjal with a wide and long teak plank hung with metal chains. We would look foward to touch the ceiling everytime and few years down the line, we realised there was another version which is the kappal raatinam. In this the chain are criss-crossed and the oonjal swings sideways as against the normal front and back motion. This was just too thrilling and ultimate. The plank would literally touch the ceiling with a jerk leading to shreiks and screams.

Another best thing here was the kuchchi icecream. The little ice factory was not far off from the house and fresh ice was made at around 3 pm and so we would all gather at 3 and our aunt would lead us all with a big ever-silver bowl. Grape ice, orange ice, semiya ice, rose milk ice, paal ice... yummy. The rose milk flavour sticks came in trainglular shapes, the orange ones the normal shape. I liked the kuchi paal ice the best, which came in a thin cylindrical shape. All the big ones used to be wrapped in short butter papers. Probably the manufucturing methodology was hygienic, thats why we had no problem even after eating them day after day. Costing just about 25 or 50 p, each would grab atleast 2 and slurping, licking all the way back home :)

Is a trip to Chidambaram complete without visiting the Natarajar temple? We would head to the temple just an running errands especially during night times. We felt the temple was our second home and not to miss the puliyodharai and sakkarai pongal served hot on lotus leaves at the Lakshmi sannidhi. The sound of the huge bells during the kala poojais cause goose pimples and transforms you to another divine eternal world.

The best of all during summer vacations would be the regular days at Madras. Being in Besant Nagar, it meant a daily evening trip to the Elliot's beach and getting drenched and coming back with loads of sands in pockets. And in the day time, all the indoor games would come out - trade, monopoly, scrabble, carrom and cards. Almost the whole street would ensemble in our house. We had to use 3 card packs to play Rummy.

I could just go on and on with summer vacation but I have listed just the instant few which flashed right away on reading Sree's posts. Thanks Sree for helping me take a ride down memory lane (yet again!).

Thinking of all those now, I can only envy the school kids. I wish if offices also follow suit and declare a month long, okay-let me not be too greedy, maybe atleast a week!

Beginning of the end

2007-04-03T05:46:00.000-07:00

Inspite of climax being an important aspect of any movie, many movies have failed miserably on the climax part. And the oft heard comments from people walking out of movie halls would be "The last 30 mins was pathetic, the director did not know how to end the movie". Generally climaxes which have deviated from the norm impresses the audience but that again only if its impressive. Many directors, with an eye of ending their movies differently, have only invited criticism from audience. So I thought I would dedicate a post on climaxes which impressed me. Ofcourse the opinions could be very subjective. They just reflect my taste. [In the interest of fellow bloggers, I've tried my best not to quote the actual climax in most cases so that it does not turn out to be a spoiler in case you have not watched any of the movies before]

Kaadhalukku Mariyadhai :
A very novel theme where lovers part ways for the sake of parents (did any movie prior to this have a similar theme?). I especially love the scene when Srividhya watches Shalini and breaks down in the end. Its amazing how Srividhya's eyes literally "speak" in those scenes. I saw the original Malayalam version climax as well (Aniyathipraavu) and its equally good.

Love Today :
The story would not have made a mark had Vijay accepted Suvalakshmi's love. A fitting end indeed.

KB's movies :
Almost all of KB's movies have interesting climaxes including Sindhu Bhairavi, Iru Kodugal, Avargal, Kalyana Agadhigal. K.Balachander is a director who's movies were mostly ahead of his time. People often ridiculed the logic in Aboorva Ragangal about father in love with daughter and son in love with mom. But again, the end was amicable and there is even a dialogue by Sundarajan who advises against such "rational" actions.

Vaaname Ellai :
For all those dejected souls, Mr.Ramakrishnan comes as a tonic. Infact the scene in which he gets off his car and the reaction on the faces of the actors - I literally get goose pimples every time I watch it.

Bharathi Kannamma / Porkaalam :
Cheran's first movie definitely made a mark. A very decent movie and this is one of the best movies of Meena (who is mostly projected only as a wax doll - another movie which harnessed her acting skills is Rhythm). And also the climax in Porkaalam is worth mentioning and especially the dialogue of Vadivelu when he makes a poser to Murali as to why he did not think about him (Vadivelu) as his sister's groom.

Kaadhal :
When I knew this was a true story, the "effect" was multi-fold. I was curious to know the actual person who narrated the story to the director. What a character he should have been!! Hats off to him.

Kolangal :
Its not the climax exactly but I like the scene when Jayaram tenders apology to the media. The dialogues are very sharp and fitting.

Kai Kodutha Deivam :
Clearly, Savithiri takes the cake here. A slight over acting would have made Savithiri seem like an eccentric.

Ei Nee Romba Azhaga Irukka :
"How can you hate somebody whom you loved so dearly?" is the theme. Definitely a good advice to people who have gone thru' love breaks and rejections and turn hostile towards their ex-lovers. It was a very nice movie but I guess the title played spoil sport ;-)

Five Star :
I always used to feel Prasanna was a highly talent actor but did not get his dues. And this movie was one of those nice movies which did not fare well in theatres. Again, a movie with a nice ending.

Mugavari :
The movie was kind of okay but the end was definitely not on expected lines. Sacrificing ambitions for family was another novel theme and quite touching too.

Karpoora Mullai :
Fazil is one of my favourite directors but sadly many of his initial movies did not become hits and this movie is one such movie and tremendous acting by Amala and Srividhya. This climax is one the most straight forward and "un-cinematic" endings I have ever seen. Among Fazil's movies Bommukutti Ammavukku also had a very different ending.

Thulli Thirindha kaalam :
An off-beat movie - which maybe many would've not even heard of. The advice bit of Kushboo in the end to the youngsters is very apt.

Mahaanadi :
The climax was kind of in expected lines but what was soul stirring in the movie was the one in which Kamal sees his daughter in a brothel and when he hears his daughter talk in her sleep. Infact this movie earned the highest score till date in Ananda Vikatan's film review (I think it was 70%). The movie lingered on to my mind for a week - the scene of Kamal seeing his daughter in the brothel kept flashing repeatedly in my mind as if it had happened to me.

Azhagi :
More than being a love story, I felt this movie reflected about life. Nandita Das, who was from a well to do family ends up spending her life on the road whereas its the other way round for Parthiban and yet life has to go on and both of them take it in their strides. Nandita Das's acting was just mind blowing in this movie.

Kannathil Muthamittal :
The one which I would call "The scene" is in which Keerthana stops with her list of pre-written questions when she hears from Nandita that she (Nandita) had not lifted her in her arms even once. The reaction of Keerthana was enough to make her win the best child actor National award that year. And needless to say about Nandita Das - when she hugs Keertana finally (after Simran's insistence) and how the sky opens up. Simran too had a very different role and did full justice to it.

Thulaa Bhaaram :
I would never want to watch this movie again for the kind of emotions it generates. I read that the movie "Pasi" also has a similar ending. Very very moving.

Sirai Chaalai (Kaala paani) :
Many Indian freedom struggle movies have fascinated me like Kappal ottiya Thamizhan, Veera Pandiya Kattabomman. In Sirai chaalai, the ending makes your heart go out for Tabu and Mohanlal. For Mohanlal because he is executed during the tail end of his term in jail and Tabu because she keeps hoping that her husband would return one day.

Mudhalvan :
Shankar movies' screenplays are very narrative and the flow is pretty interesting. In this movie, when everyone would expect Arjun to shoot Raghuvaran, the story takes a different twist - totally unexpected but interesting.

Gokulathil Seethai :
I was amazed by the way Karthik handled his role (or maybe even director Agathiyan deserves credit here). His role was literally a walk on the edge of a knife. The role could have made him a total negative character had it not been potrayed the way it was done.

Dil To Pagal Hai :
Movie wise, I would not regard this as a very logical or very impressive movie but somehow the movie created a good feeling when watching. I like Akshay Kumar's signalling and the dialogue of Madhuri in the end.

The Associate :
I don't know if this movie was even a hit but I thoroughly enjoyed the movie and more so because Whoopie Goldberg is one of my favourite Hollywood actresses. The ending dialogue is a fitting reply to a casteist and male dominant society.

Cast Away :
To know what perseverance, will power, grit, determination is, one has to see this movie. The climax is heart rendering in that the reason for Tom Hanks' motivation to endure his life on the lonely island gets defeated when he gets to know that his lover has since married and has a little daughter. The scene when Helen Hunt comes running in the rain hugging Tom Hanks and the dialogue of Tom Hanks after that to his friend is something which would defintely make your eyes moist.

So what are your favourite climaxes? Would love to read your list too. So do post them in the comments section or in your blog and post the link here ;) I am sure there are many more which I probably missed and maybe you have them in you 'list'.

Fashion, accessories, beauty parlours et al

2007-03-23T10:28:00.000-07:00

I recently read a comment in Aval Vikatan from a student of NIFT, Chennai. She said that "Fashion is wearing what suits you best". How true! I have always been quite simple at dressing (ahem.. ahem...) - never the fashion freak - but also made sure I did not wear something which I felt I would not look good in. Somehow I hate the boot cut jeans. I tend to choose almost anything in black. I prefer T-shirts without collars to the ones with collars. I detest all garish colours (we used to call this "Govinda" colours) like red, mittai pink, orange and for the complexion that I have, these colours would only make me look very "fair". I don't use coolers or powder for face. No perfumes. No hair gels.

Nevertheless, I had always envied the choice which women get to wear - both in terms of colours, designs and types. We men are left with just pant, shirt and at the most - veshti, kurta-pyjamas. And adding to the huge list of garment types for women, are the accessories - right from the "pottu", ear rings, rings, necklaces to the many many fancy things which keep cropping up in T.Nagar every other day.

At times when men fancy such accessories, they are often ridiculed as being effeminate :( But I guess going by the current trend, the men folk are also catching up with the women.

I was surprised when I read in "The Week" a few years ago that men also resort to eyebrow threading, waxing and stuff. To me that just seemed "yuck". As I expressed my astoundment to my friends, it looked like I was the only one who was part of the "ignorant lot". I even had a classmate (guy) who would go for hair straightening once a while. And friends who often do bleaching and facials.

I am really apprehensive of trying anything un-natural. I am okay with home made treatments which do not cause harm and also produce good results though not instantly but to all those chemical applications - its a strict "NO NO". [As it is, I have a very "attractive" face, won't it be sensible if I don't make it worse lest make it better??!!]

Once, when I was in my regular salon, my inquisitiveness made me ask the barber about face bleaching techniques. Thinking I would be his prospective customer, he explained at length the process and even asked to book a time! but ofcourse, I had no such intentions. That day, jokingly, I told this to my friends and said I would probably try it over the weekend and the comment which my friend gave as a reaction discouraged me for such things for life!! He said or rather sang : "தங்கம் வச்சு தேச்சா கூட எருமை நிறம் வெளுக்காது" (in the "தில்லிக்கு ராஜானாலும்..." tune).
[Bad translation : "Even if you were to scrub a buffalo with gold, its colour wouldnt change"]

தில்லு முல்லு

2007-03-04T02:36:00.000-08:00

வெகு நாட்கலாக தமிழில் பதிவு போட வேண்டும் என்று ஆசை. ஆனால் எப்படி என்று தெரியவில்லை. திரு சியாம் அவர்களின் ஒரு பதிவால் அது நிறைவேரியது. நன்றி சியாம்.

அப்போ அப்போ சில பட காட்சிகள் நினைவுக்கு வரும். அப்படி தான் இந்த பட்த்தின் நினைவும் வந்தது. எனக்கு மிகவும் பிடித்த நகைசுவை படங்கலில் "தில்லு முல்லு"வும் ஒன்று. அதில் வரும் ஒரு காட்சி.

ரஜினி (சந்திரனாக) தேங்காய் ஸ்ரீநிவாசன் (தே.ஸ்ரீ) வீடிற்க்கு செல்வார். [தே.ஸ்ரீ ஒரு நிறுவனத்தின் Managing Director]. அப்பொழுது தே.ஸ்ரீ வேட்டி, பனியன் அணிந்தபடி தோட்டத்தில் செடிகளுக்கு நீர் ஊற்றி கொண்டிருப்பார்.

அவரை ரஜினி பார்த்து :
"ஏய் தோட்டகாரா...", என்று கூப்பிடுவார்.

தே.ஸ்ரீ அக்கம் பக்கம் பார்த்து திரும்ப ரஜினியை பார்ப்பார்.
ரஜினி திரும்பவும் : "உன்னைதாய்யா தொட்டகாரா... உன் முதலாளி இருகாரா?"

தே.ஸ்ரீ : "செடிக்கு தண்ணி ஊத்திரவன் எல்லாம் தோட்டகாரனா? ஒரு நிமிஷம் இரு.."
என்று சொல்லி விட்டு உள்ளே சென்று டிப்-டாப்பாக dress செய்து கொண்டு வருவார்.

ரஜினி முகத்தில் ஆச்சரியம். தே.ஸ்ரீ-னை சுற்றி வந்து அவரையே உற்று மேலும் கீழும் பார்பார்.

தே.ஸ்ரீ : "என்ன? ஆச்சரியமா இருக்கு இல்ல?"

ரஜினி : "ரொம்ப ஆச்சரியமா இருக்கு சார், நீங்களும் அந்த தோட்டகாரனும் ஒரே மாதிரி இருக்கீங்களே..."

தே.ஸ்ரீ : !!!!

இந்த comedy/படம் எவ்வளவு முறை பார்த்தாலும் சிரிப்பு மூட்டும்.

DD News then

2007-02-19T02:51:00.000-08:00

Remember the old days when Doordarshan News was the only TV news available?No breaking news flashes, no news tickers, no "paraparappu" seidhi, no over made up news readers. But thinking back about them now, the news then, with much less antics and hype, was lot better than what we see on hundreds of channels today.

In the local channel, that is DD-1 then, we had the "Seidhi Surukkam" (news in brief) at 7 and then the detail news at 8.40. Infact the first versions had this typical blarring music and a hand written, no-graphics note (at home, we used to envy the lovely caligraphy and wondered who was the man behind it). Then the graphics version underwent lots of changes before finally settling on the current one (quite impressive at that).

The first time when DD-1 became colour, it was the Seidhi surukkam which got the honours. H.Ramakrishnan (who also featured in "Vaanamae Ellai" and later became News correspondent in DD) was in all smiles when he was shown in colour.

Among the news readers, Shobana Ravi was the darling of the viewers. Those days, the talk doing the rounds was that she never featured in the same saree more than once on TV. And ofcourse, our women folk wondered the number of sarees she would have amassed (a worthy doubt indeed!!). Then came Fathima (I used to read her name as "Ahh.. Fathima" - the way its written in Tamil starting with the Ayudha ezhuthu "Ahh"). She became an instant hit with her diction, style and that soft smile while reading. She was even considered a rival to Shobana Ravi. Infact she was one of the first Muslim readers (women from Muslim community still hadn't ventured so publicly). I used to feel, a pottu was all that was missing on her cheerful face and used to place a sticker pottu on the TV to see how Fathima looked with the pottu.

Sandhya Rajagopal, Koperundhevi and a few others who also donned the show. The now popular Nirmala Periyasamy (her characterisitc "Vanakkkkkam" was not known then) was a TV announcer in DD then.

Among the men it was Arasu, Tamilzhanban (more known for his pencil meesai (he also used to figure in pattimandrams, also read recently that hewas a Sahita Academy award winner) and a few others. One thing common amongst all of them was their flawless diction.

The ones at the National level (English news) were popular at "All-India" level. My personal favourite was the soft spoken Nithi Ravindran who had this stylish grey hair and simple dressing. Among the men it was Tejeshwar Singh who had this deep manly voice. I also liked Rini Khanna, Sukanya Balakrishnan, Mini, Sunit Tandon (the frail looking bearded guy), Bhaskar Bhattacharji (with his thick brush musch and military haircut), Sangita (who was one of the youngest then and very cute looking) and the manly Shivendra Kundra. The names of Geetanjali Ayyar and Sukanya Balakrishnan suggested that they were from the south but the way they pronounced the names of places in Tamilnadu... urrgh... definitely puts a Tamilian to shame. We used to wonder, initially how to pronounce the last name of Usha Albuquerque. Komal G B singh, another famous reader, who always read with a smile, went on to become an official announcer in government functions like the National Awards.

Even in those days (late 80s), the readers were paid about Rs.2500 per sitting, which even today, is quite impressive.

Without much media attention in those days, its amazing to note the kind of adolation and fans the news readers gained in those days.

Birthday bashes in hostel

2007-02-10T07:21:00.000-08:00

I always felt that atleast one year, everyone in his/her college days should be away from home - preferably in a hostel.

Being in a hostel makes you learn so many things. The foremost thing is to be indepent and next is you learn being accomodative. You might have room mates who have dress sense, hygiene level, etiquettes exactly in contrast to yours. There might be people who would use your combs, your shirts, your bathroom slippers - but the real challenge is to live cordially with them all.

I had great time when I spent 3 years in hostel during my post graduation days. We definitely had lows too but they were all part of hostel life. The worst ordeal, according to me, was when we run out of water in the toilets. Not taking bath is no big deal, but imagine not having water to... (hope you get the picture?).

The most exciting times were the birthday bashes. Actually we had improvised on the strategy each time. The speciality was the "solution". We used to make this solution with... hold your breath - ink, shoe polish, blue, soap, shaving creams, perfume, powdered incense sticks (this is to counter the awful odour), shampoo and any other harmless elements which is available. We even once used cowdung powder (which is readily available in stores there).

We would separate the solutions into three. First stage is dragging out the birthday boy and smashing with eggs. This, at times, is very painful especially when the egg hits with full force on your bare skin. And then we would cover our hands with plastic covers and smear the "solution". Then drag him to the bathroom and lift him aloft and drop him into the water tank (which is in every bathroom and is know for its "cleanliness").

Then we allow him to take bath and as he walks back on the corridor to the room, the second round awaits him. And then the third...

The first time we tried this "strategy" on our friend, his face and whole body was covered with bluish black stains (because of the solution). The next day he had to face our class girls to get their wishes and so it was important (to him ofcourse, why would we bother!) that he looked good and so as he was busy scrubbing his face (he thought he could cover his body with clothes anyway and so was just concerned about his face). He even had to use a scrubber to get the stains off. After rigorous scrubbing, he opened the bathroom door and showed me his face "Has it gone Ravi?". Before I could even reply, I burst laughing because inspite of all his efforts, I could only see his white teeth when he peeked out!

And all this would be followed with inquiries from our warden the next day for all the mess created in the corridor. The eggs give a very awful stench. Though we haven't tried this, we were told (by the other "experts" that eggs buried in sand for a day, turns rotten and would give a even worse smell which is supposed to stick on to the birthday boy for days!!!

Of the Karupayees and Muniyandis

2007-01-12T07:01:00.000-08:00

Parents these days are very choosy about their kids' names. Nothing wrong there. But most feel the old names are not "fashionable" or they rather feel would impact the child's psyche when they grow up. What? I agree, to some extent that some names these days, do make an impression, like say "Karupayee" or "Muniyandi". Maybe on the first day roll call in college, all eyes would start looking for owner of the name, and also produce naughtly smiles but eventually Karupayee or Muniyandi could turn out to be a very lovable person.

So aren't people, seeding wrong prejudices, dislikes onto their kids' minds? What is in a name? Its just because people have started giving importance to trivial things, that we are losing out some good names. I am sure Krishnamurthys, Ramasamys are on the decline.
But its good to see that some people still choose very native and traditional names. But again, this constitutes a very low number.

I dont say its wrong to choose very trendy names (which again is very subjective) but if we don't show advocacy to our lineage, who else will?

And if one thinks trendy names are in and old names are out, I can only retaliate with this : "A Rose by any other name will smell as sweet... ".

The other draping styles

2006-10-18T03:05:00.000-07:00

Of the many "many-ies" in India, saree tying is one of them. I know of quite a few in other states like the "Coorgi" style in Karnataka, the Bengali style, the Gujarati style, the Andhra style, the Marathi style, the Orissa style, the Kerala style and the normal style. But in Tamilnadu alone we have the madisaar (Iyer and Iyengar kattu), Kandaagi and the normal one (and a few more like the thodas and other regions).

With the situation today that wearing a saree itself has become a rarity, I wonder what would happen to the other styles. Is it not sad that a whole tradition in saree wearing is slowly fading away?

I have known a couple of maamis in my own street who used to wear the madisaar as a daily norm, whereas the rest confine themselves to madisaar only during sumangali poojais, weddings and such other rituals. In a way I am happy that the tradition is still being carried forward atleast on such occasions.

Women of today lament about not being comfortable in a saree and what if they have to do their regular household tasks in a saree? But imagine a woman in madisaar, who drapes a 9 yard saree (as against a 7 yard normal saree) and do all the household work in it. I bet it would be considered as an almost impossible feat by today's women.

And then the kandaangi selai. I esp like the lovely kosuvam (pleat) which is tucked behind. It gives a nice fancy look - something like a peacock's tuft on its head or a little pony tail. If you notice, both the kandaagi and the madisaar styles have the saree tied a few inches above the feet - which is rather understandable, else it would be tough to manage the saree with a floor kissing length and that too for the kind of work the womenhood are indulged in.

I know it might appear strange for a guy to write about sarees but remember a saree is one of the true reflections of our culture and these styles are specific to our own region. For me, saree means elegance, dignity, richness in simplicity. Ofcourse, more importantly, the dignity lies in the way it is draped as well. Sadly, maybe due to convenience, wearing saree is on the decline these days - even among the rural youth folk. For more on a saree's pride, listen to the Chingunchaan song from the Tamil movie Porkaalam.

I still pass a second look seeing a maami in madisaar or an aachi in kandaangi. Hey, don't get me wrong, its because I wonder if I would be able to see women in such styles again in the future. [For some pictures of differet saree styles in India, click here]

Saare jahaan se achchaa...

2006-09-20T03:24:00.000-07:00

Being away from my place makes me terribly home sick.And when its a different country all together, things are even worse. Though I do enjoy the new culture, people, cleanliness, good manners, I terribly miss our own "Indian-ness" which makes our India so very special. Even the so called negativeness seems so positive now. And going thru' the posts of fellow bloggers who are based in India, I can't avoid saying to myself "How lucky they are to be in their home country!".And no, this is not my first trip outside India and therefore the "first time travel abroad"syndrome does not count here ;-)

Whatever said and done its always "Sorgamae endraalum....". Initially I used to laugh at the lyrics of this song and the backdrop of this song is Singapore - one of the cleanest cities. One ofthe lines goes as "Vethalaiya madichu, maaman adhai kadichu thuppa oru vazhi illaiye" (Rough translation :There is no way you can chew betel and spit it on the roads). Hats off to Gangai Amaran / Ilayaraja for penning the song - it has almost become a trademark song for all foreign travellers.

That's the truth - so what if the city is clean? so what if the traffic is amazing? so what if the transport is fantastic? so what if people mind their own business? More importantly a city should have LIFE and I can see such "live" cities only in India! If you don't get what I mean, visualise a Ranganathan street, area surrounding Mylapore temple and compare it with a place abroad - maybe US or UK or Singapore. See the difference?

Maybe this is what many say as the "essence" of India!! JAI HIND!

26-Sep-06, As I was reading "The Hindu" online yesterday, I was surprised to see an article on similar lines. Crazy Sir, I fully agree with you. You can read the article here.

Where have they gone?

2006-08-22T00:56:00.000-07:00

My current place of residence has been my home for many many years and looking back, there is a radical change in the neighbourhood. The most obvious one is socialising with fellow neighbours which has been on a drastic decline (sadly!) and other is the absence of many many street vendors. In due course, we even don't seem to notice their absence. Here are some of the 'once-familiar' tones which is on the decline or completely absent these days.

Ammi polayalayo (or whatever that is!) : The lady with a hammer and chisel. The eye-catching attire is when she bundles the hammer and chisel onto her head and carries her baby in her saree. She is the one who chisels the often used ammi and kozhavi (mortar/pestel). When the mortar-pestel are used often, the rough surface becomes smooth, thereby taking more time for the ingredients to get ground. More and more people turning towards mixies and motor grinders, seemed to have had a big effect on these poor people.

Krishnaaaaa...aayil : This was how the kerosene vendor went about marketing his 'krishna oil'. I wonder if the blue tint given to kerosene (to prevent illegal trading) gave this common name. The vendor used to pull a bright yellow coloured cylindrical steel tin mounted on two tyres.

Uppu thatha : The frail thatha with a contrasting white moush and hair was a friend of the kids. The only dress we saw him in was a cotton cloth wrapped around his waist. He used to tirelessly go about selling his uppu (salt) from street to street. I hardly see him these days.

Saana(m) pidikaradhe... : The man carrying a cycle wheel structure attached to a wooden structure with a pedal and a sharpening stone used for sharpening blunt knives, aruvaals and importantly arugamanais. I am sure the whole 'machine' was his own design and self-made. Sad that many of our conventional inventions have either gone unnoticed or unappreciated.

Jodrippair : Maybe it was 'Jot repair'. I know people refer to shoes as jot (as in 'jottala adippen'), but don't know if its the same. I used to go ga-ga over the cobbler's tool bag. Almost all of his tools are made from a used product. The needle would be nicely packed in a rubber stamp handle, the scrapper would be a shoe polish tin lid and the way he makes the stitches - wow! For me, its a treat to watch anyday!

Kulfikaaran : Though I do see them in the beach, their daily rounds in the streets seem to have reduced a lot. The bell was the kulfikaaran's trademark sound with a petro-max light hanging on his tri-cycle. In our street, our family was probably the only one buying kulfi from him but nevertheless he was popular in many areas. What is reminiscent of the kulfikaaran is his sweat clad face seeming very ghost-like when seen above his petro-max light. I used to watch in awe the way he takes out the kulfi from the metal/plastic-rimmed containers with a knife and slice it up. He would place it on a dry leaf (forgot the name of that leaf). The taste used to be awesome though I used to get odd tastes in between. Some of my friends have warned that the water/way of making might not be very hygenic but the kulfis haven't troubled me so far!

Soan papadi wala : Just like the kulfikaaran, the soan papadi wala is confined to the beaches these days. When I think about the son papadi boy, I am amazed when I realise that I have not spoken a word with him nor have I heard his voice. His arrival was signalled by his bell and the huge bell jar would be tied firmly with a rope to the wheeled cart.

Kadalai vandi : Very similar traits as the soan papadi boy. His trademark sound was the roasting sound of sand and groundnuts on an iron wok with an iron spatula. He would bang the spatula on the wok to announce his prescence. I still remember the words 'MINIMAM 25 paisa' written in a very bad handwriting and bad spelling in front of his cart. It was 10p earlier, then it became 25, later 50 and now I think its 1 Re minimam, sorry minimum! Whenever I got groundnuts from him, my eyes would fall upon the books which he probably got from the old paper mart for selling his groundbuts. Most often, there used to be some kind of text books like Chemistry, Maths and I used to wonder then "aah! what is this guy doing? This guy doesn't know its worth"

Kaikari paatti : Though the tri-cycle cart vendors still visit our streets, the paattis (grandmother) carrying the vegetable basket are not to be seen these days. One should see how the different varities of vegies are neatly arranged in that one round basket. A cloth bundled as a bun on her head would act as a support for the basket and she would sit in the verandah for hours chatting with the ladies of the house. I remember helping the paatti lift the basket and place it on her head when she is about to leave and boy! that is some weight! Imagine having to carry such weight in the scorching sun across many streets. Hmm... what grit!

Paal cover, buddi, papaaar : The old newspaper man is still prominent but the number of them has drastically reduced. In those days, scent bottles, plastics were his best buys and so was iron. During our childhood days, we always used to mimic his tone and the nice paperkaaran used to smile back - not minding our childish mocks. One of the paperkaarans of our street who has been around for a long time has his son studying in one of the good schools in our locality. Isn't that great news?

One thing which is common among these people is their sincerity to earn money instead of resorting to cheap tactics like begging, stealing and other means. I can't imagine myself in their shoes. I can afford to be lazy on a day and forgo going to work but to them each day counts. Its not a question of wanting to become rich but to ensure their family gets their next course meal. My salutations to their grit, determination, hard work and endurance. They do teach us some lesson - don't they?

Shun the idiot box, well wait a minute...

2006-08-03T01:50:00.000-07:00

The television today, seems to have engulfed - almost - all other activities. Lots have been said how TV has literally spoilt social life, book reading habit, playing outdoor games, visualizing capabilities, made us couch potatoes, given early age eye defects, awful thoughts - what not! And not to forget the oft cursed serials (or the soap operas). Though I find almost everyone swinging brickbats on them, the viewership has not diminished a bit. If you are a regular "serial-watcher" and you missing a day watching it, you would still get the story, miss a week - no worries, skip a few months - you would still be able to decipher the plot! The soap directors think the audience are dunces and we, very earnestly, prove them right - don't we?

Okay, enough of the brickbats - whatever said and done, the TV seems to be a very good companion - at times, the ONLY companion. I have had a stint with this kind of experience during my days away from home. Though I had my roomies, having had to work on shifts, loneliness was inevitable at times and loneliness to me - more than causing boredom and frustration - is haunting! And it was during these times that my friendly companion came to my rescue - who else? my little 14" Videocon TV. Believe it or not, I would just switch on the TV, tune into some song channel or to some insane soap and leave it as is and carry on with my brushing, attending nature's call, cooking, dressing, cleaning and so on - having just a faint idea as to what's going on the TV.

And when I was even farther away from home, getting very little chance to rub shoulders with my native tongue or culture, TV again was my solace. Of course, there were other arenas too - like friends, internet, gazing around, roaming the city, getting to know the other culture, but still, during my times of solitude, I could rely on TV! Even the most irritable song, a disgusting actor, a lousy heroine all seem to have descended from heaven then. I am sure many folks who are staying/have stayed alone (especially the ones living abroad) would be able to relate to this state of mind.

Agreed TV has taken many a quality time but to me, many a time, it has helped me maintain my mental quality :-)

Rasam for the soul

2006-07-07T19:05:00.000-07:00

"Chicken soup for the soul" is one of my favourite series - though most stories relate to the culture in America. I had also read a couple of blogs on the net which goes like "Vegetarian chicken soup for the soul" or something similar to that. Yes, rasam seems to be our very own chicken soup. I got a real feel of this wonder medicine last week. Having got drenced in the drizzle one evening, the next day seemed very sick - my body was aching and I felt heavy on the head (no, please don't mistake it for 'head weight'). I generally prefer not to take allopathic medicines and therefore shun any tablets for headache, cold which give instant relief - instead I leave the cold/headache to settle by itself or take home made remedies. That day, being at office, I did not have access to the home made kashaayams. But for lunch, my mom had packed rasam saadham (rice with rasam) and after I had it, by evening things became normal. Wow! I was truly amazed. No wonder, conventional remedy during fever/cold recommends a diet with rasam and it does the trick too! Maybe the cumin, mustard, pepper, chillies in the rasam do the trick.

Rasam is one of the seemingly simple recipes but it definitely requires some kind of kai manam to induce that real taste and flavour in it; and to add to it are the vast number of the variations... I had always envied the paruppu rasam of my mom's. The aroma would fill the whole house. How much ever I tried, I could never get that taste when I made it myself. There is also this sharp distinction between rasam made at a vegetarian home and a non-vegetarian home. I love both though! Rasam with paruppu usili is my favorite combo and so are rasam-potato fry and rasam-potato chips.

Hail rasam!!

The other side...

2006-06-05T21:28:00.000-07:00

Almost all Indian bloggers have touched upon the reservation topic! So would I be far behind? ;-) As far as I know, I have always opposed reservation (hold on - this is NO anti-reservation post again) because I always felt the person with a better score is being deprieved of a chance over a person who has got a lesser score. But, can the score be the only criterion to entry? Okay, let me give a background story to substantiate this :

Sarasu, the lady doing our household chores has 3 daughters. She is a single parent as her husband, who was a bit mentally challenged, left them one day. Not that his presence helped things any better but it seemed they had no 'male support' (as the neighbourhood would put it). She took great pains to marry off her first daughter. The dowry thing was not much of a problem as Sarasu got her daughter married to Sarasu's own brother. The second daughter did her schooling (in a corporation school ofcourse) till 9th and then joined a fancy store as a sales girl and would also do house hold chores in the evenings. She also managed to go for typing classes in her spare time.

The third daughter - Ambika, was also quite inclined to studies. She too was in the same corporation school as her sister. She also worked in the houses in the day and evening times. Many considerate landladies did their little best to help the girl - like buying notebooks (books and school fees were waived off - being a Corpn. school). Seeing a little girl in her early teens, rush to school after the household chores in the day and then seen in the evenings sweeping the front yard in her green school uniform was definitely a heart-kindling sight. How many of us are really lucky and blessed - we never realise until we see people like Ambika.

With the meagre money that the whole family manages to earn, the girl could not think of any other luxuries like a study table, guides or even tuitions. So she would approach me or my mom for any doubts in Maths and English. Inspite of all this, she managed to score close to 70% in her 12th standard board exams this year!

Now would this 70% be comparable to 80% which I would score given the fact that I have access to all the luxuries that I can afford which the girl cannot. Above all there lies the simple fact that I can choose to just study study study whereas Ambika would first think of ensuring that her family gets atleast 2 meals a day and then comes studies, degree and whatever!

Okay - but should I be deprieved of a seat inspite of getting 80% and Ambika be given the seat inspite of getting just 70%. That definitely seems unfair but what is the repurcussion of me not getting the seat and Ambika getting it? A degree, a job, a better salary would do great wonders for Ambika - probably change their whole lifestyle whereas me not getting a seat is kind of okay, I can manage to get into a private college or a payment seat or worst case try for an improvement and get into the same college next year.

But one thing which I fail to agree is caste cannot be an assessment factor here because though many downtrodden families have made advancements, there are many many really worthy candidates who are left out. I remember, during my PG days, a candidate who got about 5000 Rs. as SC/ST scholarship, would be seen on a shopping spree every Sunday - so now you know how the scholarship money is spent? At the same time I have also known a boy belonging to SC/ST category not knowing about scholarship but still has a dream to study and also another who made good use of the scholarship and got a plump job and thereby uplifted his family to a better level. There is also the son of a poor temple priest I know who was left behind - just because he belonged to the forward community. He had to settle for something other than his desired course because he missed the bus by a narrow edge!

The main drawback in our country is that the government has failed miserably on the primary and secondary education front. A student studying in a corporation school is absolutely no match for a student in a private school that too with the same sylabi. Instead, the government is all bent to give reservation at top level education, which is definitely not a welcome decision. The credibility of instituitions and the candidates would go for a toss if merit is comprised at *that* level. Instead primary and secondary level education should be upgraded and improved to higher standards - at par with good private institutions. Reservations could be given to children of hapless families - their fees waived off, all amenities provided and enough encouragement given upto say school and under-grad level but beyond that it seems meaningless.

So my take? Reservation is definitely necessary but where, for whom, till when is something to be debated upon!

Urbanisation

2006-05-23T00:13:00.000-07:00

Does Urbanisation really help? And what is urbanisation? More often people (including myself) seem to attribute urbanisation with "modernisation". A city is deemed fit to be called developed if it has posh hotels, all steel and concrete buildings - preferrably high-rise ones, glitzy malls, lot of English speaking around, less of saress and chudis and more of jeans, t-shirts and skirts, san the flowers, bindis and bangles, more of coffees rather than kaapis... but is this development?

Okay, let me think... urbanisation or development would probably mean better roads, better transport, better access to heathcare, better sanitation and better availability of basic goods and services. But why is that such urbanisation always comes with a tinge (maybe a little more than a tinge) of moderness? I don't say being modern is wrong but our perception of moderness seems to dwell in the west. Anything western is modern! For heaven's sake NO! Eventually we tend to lose out on our very own, special, unique traditions and practices which even the westerners awe and at times emulate.

Yesterday, as I was returning home, I passed by a quiet alley with lots of trees, vast open lands. I saw people in most houses place a cot in the open area adjacent to their houses, with the FM radio mellowing some songs and the members lazily lying on the cots gazing the sky with little chit-chats. With the IT revolution catching up in the area, wonder if the trees, vast land and probably even the house would cease to exist!

I don't know if my thoughts have become like an old timer but I strongly feel we are losing out on something BIG in the name of urbanisation (read IT revolution!). Is there a way out?

Drawing the line...

2006-05-09T04:30:00.000-07:00

I loved honey dripping talk, I say 'loved' because I don't fancy such talk anymore, ofcourse unless it is really authentic. Over the years I have realised that its okay to be arrogant - at times, rude - occasionally, speak out your mind - often, but have always shunned hypocrisy. When a person is being rude and outspoken, you generally know what is to be expected out of him/her but never with that soft sweet words you hear often from most people.

But at times when I take pride for being outspoken and point-blank, I wonder if it has really hurt someone bad. May be it did! So where do I draw the line between being outspoken and hurting somebody? Or is it that people have gotten used to so much of flattery and praises that they just can't seem to digest criticism or straight-from-the-heart talks?!

In my case, as far as I can remember, though the appreciations have made me happy, given my 'moments to cherish', what had made me really grow and mature are the constructive criticisms (I learnt to make them constructive even if they weren't meant to be). Importantly, over a period of time, I got to realise that criticisms and timely outbursts are not necessarily reflections of any feelings of hatred but only momentary or contextual reactions; and have strongly inferred that if one is able to get this realisation, relationships would hardly turn sour.

Today, when I have developed the guts to speak from my heart, I know that my intention is not to hurt the person but an attempt to be honest, to be true to the relationship I hold with that person!

Life with a rewind button - not a bad idea eh?!

2006-04-07T03:55:00.000-07:00

I have generally heard people advise others to put one's past behind his/her back. However, I feel one should never forget his/her past for both good and the bad reasons. The good ones probably make the person traverse with ease during tough times and the bad ones help to know and appreciate oneself for having been steadfast and seeing thru' those bad times. I am a person who loves to dream - not just about the future but also mostly of the past - the good old days and I have often carved for a rewind button in life.

The fun filled, systematic school days or the more carefree and less-restricted college days and those many little little, probably trivial incidents, thinking of which produces a smile and lightens up your face - I am sure everyone has a bit of these.

It happens often when we share past memoirs with our college/school/other friends yahoogroups and the oft repeated Mudhalvan dialogue keeps cropping up "If only life had a rewind button"!

But practically speaking, would life be all that interesting if life really had that rewind button? Mmm... I doubt! For, life is to be lived for every moment. Every moment is special, and if you had an option of re-living it again, over and over again, we might probably miss out on the fun and sentiment attached to it. "Wanna have that fun again? no probs - just press the Rewind button" - doesn't seem all that exciting huh? even though it does! (am I sounding like an oxymoron here?)

Its like watching a suspense filled movie or a catchy song or a colourful song sequence. Watching it over and over again might give you the kick but never will it be same as watching it the first time!

Yes I would love to re-live the moments when we had birthday bashes at hostel, throwing eggs on the birthday boy, when we made fun in the classrooms - pulling the 'pairs' of the class, long walks on the beach, winning a prize at school, the fun-filled outing, the great time at a cousin's marriage, eleventh hour preps and I do re-live these and many more - in my thoughts. Maybe the interest to re-live the past would tend to cease had life had a rewind button but till I do have that option, I'll rely on the rewind button in my mind!

Casteism - what does it offer?

2006-03-20T22:02:00.000-08:00

No, I am not starting with another post opposing casteism or questioning the need for it. On the contrary, I am supporting it! To give a background, castes were formed based on professions - the potter, the cobbler, the undertaker, the scavenger, the priest, the farmer - all were segregated based on their professions. So, how did this help? Today, we talk about a merged society, anybody can take up any profession which suits him/her. What about in the past when the society was small, cohesive and a closed one - say a small village or taluk which was probably ruled by a chieftain? The community then had to ensure that it was self-sustained in all respects. Even the so-called low profile jobs were important - there had to be somebody to do them. So a barber's son had to be a barber to ensure that there was a barber in their community. The same holds good for a priest, potter, artisans and the likes. What did they get in return? The chieftain ensured that their needs were taken care - they were given houses, their kin's marriage taken care and any needs would be addressed by the community. But the side kicks were that some communities were kept off from the rest because of their work - which probably was deemed as dirty work then - say like that of a scavenger, a cobbler or barber. But never (I presume) were they left uncared for or made to feel unimportant. Infact one particular person who is incharge of regulating the water flow from canals to the fields who is from a lower caste is considered important and he has the final say. Even the chieftain looks upon him for inputs and details!

So what does caste has to offer? I see a rich tradition and a whole plethora of different lifestyles associated with the different castes and there is nothing better or worse here - each is unique and special in its own way. Even in the customs and traditions, I do not see exhibition of any hatred or ill-feelings towards other people or castes.

Why are we targetting castes when caste is not that bad at all? What is bad and which needs to be condemned is the hatred and apartheid arising out of casteism and not casteism itself. What we have today even otherwise is segregation based on education, social status, money - how are these better than casteism? If not caste, humans would have come up with something else to differentiate and show superiority over other.

When I visit the agraharam like setup in Mylapore or Srirangam, I wish they continue to uphold their authencity inspite of modernisation. I wish the theru koothus, thiruvizhas, the peasant livelihood, the potters - all continue to exist irrespective of the radical changes in the world. I admire the skills of the sculptor, cobbler, barber - all alike. I get inspired by the little saving techniques of the down trodden and equally get amazed by the architectural beauty of the Chettinadu houses. So which caste is bad? which caste promotes hatred? or apartheid? none! Its us who cultivate these.

Maybe we should start appreciating casteism - not for the differences - but for the rich culture and heritage it holds and instead shun the hatred and differences arising out of it!

Summm...er

2006-02-23T19:19:00.000-08:00

People call me strange but I would still like to stick on to my preference - I love hot climate! It may appear strange but I seem to have got the fascination for this climate for all the good reasons!

From time I can remember, summer meant long vacation and those planned trips where we try to revive the 'lost links' between long forgotten relatives, friends and places. A typical summer vacation, even otherwise without the trips was 'Sleeeeeep-eat-play-eat-play-play-eat-play-sleep'. The indoor games would resurface after its hiberation (owing to exams) - Trade, Monopoly, scrabble, cards, carrom. And ofcourse the routine 'never-miss' evening visits to the beach! En-route home, we would visit the library and try to grab the Archies, Tinkles, Tintins and Asterixs before someone would.

Other pictures which flash to my mind about summer :
The mushrooming thanneer pandals (water sheds?) where enthusiastic party men prove their might and even distribute butter milk and rasna at times! and then those many many hand-carts and heaps you see all the way on the roads with water melons, cucumbers, musk melons and my ever favourite mangoes and maavadu! Nature's bounty is best seen during summer. Then comes my another favourite - icecream! Though I have no distinction between icecreams, I have a special liking for the kuchi icecreams - tangy orange, semiya, paal ice but I had to give up on those owing to the unhygienic water/methodology adopted these days.

Inspite of people lamenting over the heat, humidity, sweat and the likes, I find they are at their active-best during summer. Every one is busy doing something or the other. You would hardly see anyone laid back. People are either travelling, shopping and our folks at home are busy making either vathals, karuvadams, maavadu, pickles or squashes, jams and the likes and the kiddies keeping up with summer camps, tennis or swimming . In short, there is some kind of 'festive mood' in the air during summer.

One notable sight (which is sadly on the decline these days due to apartment culture) is people placing water pots outside their homes. This is for the thirsty traveller! Hmm... what a noble gesture!!

Another important event generally making its appearance during summer is the election! Somehow I feel that during this time, everything else goes un-noticed. So even if you were to commit a petty offence, it seems to be absolutely fine ;-)

The evenings are fun too. Long chats on the beach sands, which obviously gets continued at homes with lots of star gazing and then the group dinner with cousins (generally kai urundai).

The best reason I would attribute to summer is the flexibility of going out unlike the rainy and cold seasons (well not applicable for Madras though).

Traditionalists say that the winter's exodus starts soon after Mahasivarathiri and now that Mahasivarathiri was celebrated last Sunday, summer is not far behind (I am reminded of Shelly's lines : If winter comes, can spring be far behind?). Did I hear a sigh? Well don't worry. With the right clothing, right food, lots of water, summer is definitely an enjoyable season. So let's welcome summer with arms wide open and a 'warm' hug! :-)

Love deprieved...

2006-01-24T03:18:00.000-08:00

Foreword : Apologies if this post turns you off. If you feel you would like to keep your good mood intact, then I would sincerely advise you to forgo this post. Thanks in advance!

I was very disturbed by this video, the link for which I got thru' e-mail today. It shows the video recording of a house maid ill-treating a little boy of the house in the absence of his parents. The camera was secretly fitted in the drawing hall. Being in the state I am, I thought the best way I could alleviate my grief would be to share my feeling with my fellow bloggers.

For the rest of the day, my thoughts were revolving around the little boy. Being subject to such toture at a little age, what impact would it have on his psyche? The agony when he sees his parents leave and the unsaid joy when he sees them back and the turmoil in between. Still worse, the child would not be able to express this agony! As a little solace, I read in the comments section that the mother quit her job and is taking care of her child now though the maid gave the slip. But how long would it take before the child recovers from the mental perturbation? I just hope he does soon.

This brings yet again to the topic on plight of a child with both parents working. There might be reasons aplenty but in the end, all that matters is not the luxury/comfort which parents provide but the love and care which they are able to shower upon their kids and the kids acknowledging this love in return.

Parents would obviously want their kids to have the best but its also necessary that the child understands hardships and also realises the trouble which parents undergo and know that everything doesn't come served on a silver plate. If luxury would be the yardstick to measure a kid's lifestyle, then would it imply that all less-affordable parents do not do justice to their kids?

In my case, I wasn't the 'born-with-a-silver-spoon' kind but my parents definitely showed us what troubles are, what joys are, that happiness is a state of mind, to be content, to share what you have, to give the best inorder to get the best, to see those less-previleged and feel how blessed we are and finally these virtues are what have stood steadfast in the long run - not materialistic pleasures, which we also did enjoy wherever we could afford them.

I know parents, both of them working, still doing justice to their kids and also mothers, inspite of being at home, not giving the required attention. But in cases like these (both parents working for better quality of life), what luxury/comfort would it matter to that little one when it is being deprieved of what it needs most - love, care, a soothing touch, a lullaby, a cuddle...?

You may be deprieved of a house, food, luxuries but to be deprieved of love is something I cannot imagine or rather wouldn't want to imagine. You get love - you feel the whole world is with you but you get no love, no matter even if you buy the world, you are lifeless!

Some are lucky to have good mothers, grand parents, aunts and even loving care takers but for many most part of their day seems to pass in that wait... the wait while looking at the gate in creche, waiting for the door bell to ring, waiting for the sound of that pick-up van, dad's bike, the clock stricking 6! And when they seem to get what they were yearning for all those years, its all too late for now they've become stone-hearted having got used to all those vain waits!

For all those parents and parents-to-be, please... please.... don't get carried away by that comfort/luxury tag. I am sure you can provide much much more than those materialistic comforts by being what you are, by your presence, by your love. You lose your job, you lose your high-profile job - its just another employee gone for the company but remember your kid has only one mom!

What's in a mousch?

2006-01-05T19:11:00.000-08:00

The moustache, atleast in South India, has been the epitome of bravery, courage, heroism and more importantly masculanity. Though it may sound silly, I somehow fancy this attribution. Why? because I like moustache too but no, I don't sport one. The maintenance tasks involved dithered me from the idea of keeping one and hats off too all those bethren who do sport a mousch, I know what it takes to keep one!

People have been very innovative in moustaches too : from the handlebar, pencil drawn, Hitler types to the very trendy goatee.

But sadly in the recent era, moustache is losing its prominence. Not sporting a mousch seems to be more fancier than having one. Infact I hardly remember any 'uncle' from my previous generation who did not have a mousch. Well, the situation was different with the generation one step up from my uncles (the grandfathers era that is) - hardly anyone sported a mousch then.

In those days, one obvious criterion which distinguished a North Indian and a South Indian hero was the moustache - the heroes of the North almost never had one while is south, they were never devoid of one. But now looks like the South heroes have taken a clue from their northern counterparts - almost all heroes these days have shunned their mousches!

Another familiar trend is seen amongst people going abroad. Most foreign 'returnees' have their moustaches removed (if they had one earlier!) for reasons best known to them. Even stauch 'upholders' of moustaches give up their precious asset.

Some feel a clean shaven face gives a young look but I beg to differ. Kamalhassan (one of my favorite stars) looks more younger with a mousch than without one.

And another question doing the rounds often is : do women fancy men who don a mousch over men who don't? Hmm... opinions apart, there's definitely 'something' in a mousch huh?

Life as an equation?

2005-12-26T08:00:00.000-08:00

I only laugh at those numerous "character tests" found generously scattered everywhere - in books, magazines, internet. And with time, the popularity of such tests only seem to be on a rise. Ofcourse, with no disregard to others' feelings, I would only want to wonder why is that people seem thrilled when such tests 'claim' to reveal what they are - infact people would know better about themselves - won't they? and therefore, do they need a test for that?

What I deem to be funny is the way things are interpreted.
You like to go by the sea for holiday? then you are a sober and dull person.
You like to go to the hills? you are full of energy and enthusiasm.
And some poor little souls, would even find all ways, totally disjoint from their taste and mood, to alter their likes and dislikes just to fit into that 'seemingly perfect category'.

As I keep saying, life is such a wonderful thing and I just can't accept it as an equation. If x=y, then z=?. Mathematics and Science, according to me, will just not work on life's boundless horizon.

I like black and like black because I like black not because I am boring or dull or negative.

Isn't it high time to stop analysing people by such tests based on their likes and dislikes? And if you notice the analysis generally has two shades - a positive one and a negative one and generally the positive one carries the person off his feet and then the negative one brings him back making him remark "yeah! how true....".

And there are many such illogical attributions :
black for negativism, white for purity or goodness, height for success, depth for down fall...
Well, its okay as far as you attribute goodness to something but why attribute negativism?

Me? Beautiful? Ofcourse...

2005-12-06T01:48:00.000-08:00

Who ever said beauty is only skin deep or looks don't matter? These statements, I would say, are heights of hypocrisy. Though I can understand the rationale behind such statements, I really wonder if people can be judgemental without going by looks (ofcourse, unless they are visually challenged)!

I've always felt the person with attractive looks has an edge over a person with not-so-attractive looks - be it an interview, a VJ hunt or even match finding to flimsy ones like who a VIP would probably shake hands with in a crowd, randomly choosing a person from the audience or next to whom a fellow passenger might take his/her seat!

All of us are entitled to form our opinions of people - not after years of being with them but by the first impression(s) which gushes into our minds by that very first glance. For some reason, some faces kindle a liking within us while some cultivate incomprehensible dislike just for no fault of theirs.

I am no better. But as I think now, looking back, almost all of the close relationships I made, relationships which I cherish are with people whom I might not rate as being very attractive by looks.

There have been times, long time back, when I used feel low for being dark and not being as good looking as I would want myself to be. And times when people have given me thumbs down, during various - but probably trivial - occasions because (I presume) of my looks. But fortunately, I have matured with time. I have realised that its not those momentary judgements which matter most but the long lasting impression which you make on others is what goes the long way.

I can't make myself adorable by my looks but definitely I can by what I am or by what I can be.
As I type this, I am reminded of this line from Padayappa :
"Mugathai therndhedukkum, nirathai therndhedukkum urimai unnidathil illai,
un vaazhkkai mattum undhan kayyil undu, adhai vendru edu"
(You don't have the choice to choose your face or your colour but your life is in your hands - win it!).

For all those people out there who have or had feeling as I did, remember that you are beautiful by heart, even if not, you can make it beautiful and this beauty is eternal.

My! My!! (Part-2)

2005-11-14T06:30:00.000-08:00

(continued from Part-1)

Is virginity the only factor to approve of a woman's quality? What about the quality of mind, heart and soul? What about those women who cause family feuds, the mother-in-law who torments her daughter-in-law, the wife who nags her husband to put his parents in an old age home, the mistress who subjects her little maid to all physical abuse, the women folk who gossip about the lady in the neighbourhood, the selfish woman who would not want to part anything of her with anyone - how better are such women than a woman who has lost her virginity before marriage?

And what about those numerous rape victims and women subject to sexual abuse due to various circumstances? Don't they have a right to live? a hope to have a happy married life? Why should they be shunned of marriage just because they have lost their virginity and that too due to no fault of theirs.

And what about those 'loose' girls who gave in to their desires? Can't they turn a new leaf? or wouldn't they make loving wives? A mistake once done can't be regretted for? and amended?

I really pity women in this aspect. It can never be ascertained on similar lines (on virginity) in case of men and they are not questioned either; but with women, their whole life seems to centre around it. Is this fair?

I respect culture, tradition and strongly value ethics too. But given a detour from the normal route, should it turn out to be the end of the road? I know it would definitely take time for us to accept such rational concepts but with time, thought and love, am sure it is possible - ofcourse for the better. Even people adverse to my views, hope you give it a thought before making your comment.

Following all this drama, Suhasini in some function voiced her support for Kushboo and said "Thamizhagalarukku mattum komba molachirukku?". For this, the Nadigar Sangam seemed to have woken up from their slumber and asked Suhasini for an explanation. Why the heck should she offer an explanation? The comment was not intended against all Tamils but only in response to those agitators who claimed that Kushboo's remarks were against people of Tamilnadu. Periyar during pre-independence remarked that Tamil is a kaattumiraandi (barbaric) language and encouraged people to learn English which, he felt, would make them 'universal'. Even few years back Karunanidhi said that the Tamils in Malaysia have better patriotism for their language that the Tamils in Tamilnadu. Sarath Kumar, who seemed so agitated in front of the media against Suhasini, doesn't seem to mind the other remarks from his own party and that too targetted against the whole Tamil lot.

And those numerous stupid people staging agigations? Don't they have better work to do? Better problems to address? Are they the sole representatives of the people of Tamilnadu? Who gave them the right to talk on behalf of us? Where do they go when they hear : about those gruesome rape stories? about those numerous concubines which a famous (notorious?) man may possess? about the politician with many wives? about the agonizing tale of a man sexually abusing a one-year old? Such ghastly incidents and even worse tend to happen, not elsewhere, but in our very own Tamilnadu.

'Morality' is very subjective and capping oneself on moral limits should be exercised by oneself and cannot be imposed upon. Its rests upon individuals to assess what is moral or immoral by listening to their conscience.

My! My!! (Part-1)

2005-11-14T05:30:00.000-08:00

Seeing the recent fuss being made over Kushboo's remarks to a magazine, I cannot consider these agitations as anything more than cheap publicity. I didn't know, initially, if it would make sense to write a post on this but now with Suhasini being dragged into it and the Nadigar Sangam asking for an explanation from her, I deemed it appropriate to post about it now. Anyways, sex is not a taboo anymore. Ofcourse, these opinions are my own and I am entitled to them and you, in your own right can object to them! [Also, apologies, if my post seems outright crude and point blank - couldn't help it!]

The Background : India Today had conducted a survey and found that certain percentage of teenage girls have had pre-marital sex. When asked for Kushboo's comments on this, she said that its only advisable that girls have safe sex and that educated men should not expect their future wives to be virgins anymore. To this, a section of the public objected strongly (probably instigated by some political parties) saying that Kushboo's remarks were against Tamilnadu's culture and that she should apologise or be banished from Tamilnadu.

My view to this :
First, aren't people entitled to their opinions and views, well, atleast when the opinions are generic and not specifically intended towards any particular person or group. In that case, Kushboo's remarks are certainly general and not intended for any specific person or group.

Is pre-marital sex new to our culture? There have been many works in Tamil where eroticism has been depicted with subtle details between lovers - obviously between lovers who weren't married. What about the story of Kunthi who bore Karna? Ofcourse, people would only want to circumvent pre-marital sex considering the negative consequences it would create but given the situation we have today, the next best thing you can advise people who give in to the 'temptation' is to be safe. Isn't this (unprotected sex) the reason why we see so many babies being abandoned in dustbins, numerous cases of teenage pregnancy and still worse girls/women ending their lives?

Coming to the second point about men not to expect their wives-to-be to be virgins (2 many 'to-be's huh??), I think it would be apt to debate on 'virginity'. I read somewhere that Periyar once said that women should throw off their karpu. He went on to add that "Its only because of this that men domineer you. Throw it off and there will be nothing to thrust their control upon you women folk". People hailed Periyar then as a champion of women. His words definitely made sense - but the same people who worship him for being a rationalist, cannot seem to accept a similar view from Kushboo.

(To be continued...)

Water Water everywhere!

2005-10-27T08:28:00.000-07:00

Unprecedented rainfall in South India! Flooded rivers, watery roads, slushy houses. Looks like the constrast which life offers is best personified now. Until recently, Tamilnadu was reeling in drought and water scarcity was the order of the day! And today huge (that's huge with a capital 'H') quantity of water is going waste into the sea. Again, how long would this water sustain us from yet another dry period? All this put together makes me wonder if even the drought situation and floods is man-made? Inadequate water management - or probably scant regard to a precious commodity!

Considering Madras alone, the two main water resources - Adyar and Cooum rivers - have become drainage flows. Infact many people would even chuckle if I were to refer Cooum as a river. Once upon a time - certainly until the mid of last century - there was a boat house on banks of Adyar river and the Buckingham canal was used for navigation.

How many of you know that there was a huge lake in the area now compassing Kodambakkam, T.Nagar, West Mambalam, K.K.Nagar? It was called the Long Tank and later as Mylapur Tank (not to be confused with the artificial temple tank beside Kapleeswarar temple). No wonder these areas get inundated during rains today - now you know why!

So all the major water resources are either polluted, encroached upon or ignored. So recharging ground water has come down drastically whereas ground water withdrawal has increased manifold. Rain water harvesting was an expedient scheme. But again how many of us really understood its significance and implemented it in full earnest?

Imagine a clear Adyar or Cooum river with neat parks by the sides, boat clubs, fishing spots, a steamer passing by to ferry passengers in the likes of Kerala! The alternate mode of transport would not only be cheap but eco-friendly too (considering the motor-less boats), apart from the bliss of travelling in a boat! More importantly, two sources of water are intact ensuring water supply for major part of the year!

People never seem to value the importance of water. You are likely to find a fully turned tap open to wash vessels when just half of that 'turning' would have sufficed. Drinking water is used where recycled or probably unpotable water is all that was required like when washing cars, floors, watering plants, shaving/brushing with the tap turned on, showering in full flow for long time, using buckets and buckets of water for washing clothes... the list goes on and on.

Instead of lamenting at the government always, we could do our little best to counter the water scarcity - use buckets/mugs instead of running water thru' hoses, showers, use alternate water (recycled, hard or dirty water) wherever possible, implement rain water harvesting, reduce water wastage.

I have an idea for the government too! The government can probably introduce another water line in houses/industries and other establishments. The pipeline would be in a different colour to differentiate from the regular drinking water line. This line can supply treated (or recycled) sewage water. Ofcourse, it could be made potable too but alteast the public can use this water for 'other' purposes - wash clothes, utensils, floors, cars or water plants. Major beneficiaries would be industrial plants and hotels were large quantities of water is consumed. But will this work?

I read some nice posts on similar lines here and here.

Holiday? Say that again!

2005-10-18T04:45:00.000-07:00

Had a tiring week at work?
Not to worry, the weekend is not far away.

Want to catch up some sleep?
There's the weekend again!

Bored of everything.? Just want to relax and do nothing?
There's the weekend for that too.

Weekend seems to be the perfect excuse to do nothing. Probably that helps in a way too - to rejuvate one's energy, morale and spirits! But what about those 'mothers' who have no weekends, no holidays and who's only motive seems to be in the interest of others' well being?

Imagine a tiring trip back home. You would only wish if your place of retreat would come to you than having to walk till there! THUD! and you snuggle into your bed taking the previlege of not having to worry about any consequences. But even then, the 'mother', inspite of the fatigue, is all sleeves up in the kitchen just to feed the hungry stomachs.

Then there are the festive seasons. In today's era, the whole family is glued to their televisions or out with friends, except one soul - again the 'mother'! There is breakfast time, tea time, then lunch, evening snack time, dinner and apart from that the special occasions, guest visits, special luncheons, dinners... whew!

How often have we taken this role of a 'mother' for granted? Have we acknowledged the role in gratitude? or even given a thankful thought?

At times I wonder if even falling sick is a blessing in diguise for such 'moms' - a temporary rest to their legs which are in constant motion, a momentary stop to their toiling hands and probably a holiday forced upon them by God but definitely not for their minds. The mind is still pondering - what happens to the home without me? did he have his breakfast? did she have her clothes ironed? was there anything at all to eat in the house?

Yes, that is the 'mother' for you. Probably every one of us have such 'mothers' in our homes but maybe in different forms - a dad, a granny, an aunt, a warden, a care-taker or maybe even a house maid. The world may have changed with mind boggling technological advancements but a holiday for a 'mother'? Not yet - probably would never be! Let's give a thought as to what best we can do to give her, from time to time, a holiday which she truly, worthily deserves!

Q?

2005-10-12T00:20:00.000-07:00

My anger knows no bounds when a person barges to into a queue for no big reason. Given any situation, a normal Indian would only want to get to the front at the cost of others. There is no distinction here - you could expect this kind of insane behaviour from any person - well off/poor, educated/illiterate, man/woman - there is no bias here.

In India, for the kind of population we have, things would only be better if people were more disciplined. By discipline I mean exhibiting the same while waiting in a traffic signal, waiting to get a ticket, waiting to get into/out of a cinema hall, waiting to pay a bill, waiting for your turn in a hotel, waiting to get into a crowded bus, waiting to get darshan in a temple and waiting to get a freebie somewhere. Why can't people just stick to a queue when things are no better when you try to go out of turn!

Next time you see a person cutting a queue - stop him/her! Its only because of our apathy, such lot take the situation for granted.

Planetary motion

2005-09-25T19:30:00.000-07:00

Astrology... an interesting topic - especially when it comes to debating whether astrological predictions are to be believed or not to be believed. Before I go on to say if I believe in astrology on not, let me give a note on how I got interested in astrology. There have been instances where predictions of astrologers, whom I know personally, came true. And there was this famous astrologer - Lion Parthasarathy, who's lecture I had a chance of attending to when he was the chief guest for one of our school functions. Later another programme of his featured on TV for which Radhika was the host. He says that astrology is a science - not something related to intuition. Further, if a horoscope is correct and if the person analyzing it has got good knowledge about it, then its just like reading what is in the horoscope and nothing based on intuition. He added that in the past horoscopes were used to predict a person's health conditions and therefore the royal doctors (vaidhiyars) were also astrologers. Mr.Parthasarathy, as he himself quoted, was a English lecturer in Presidency college and then took interest in astrology, studied about it (I think he even did a doctorate thesis on the same) and became a full fluedged astrologer.

The Naadi josiyam is another sect of astrology which interests me. Its astounding to learn how few sages in the past had written predictions for almost every human in this world - or more to say for those who are 'destined' to see their Naadi josiyam predictions. The serial Chidambara Ragasiyam on Sun TV every Wednesday at 8.30 pm provides some interesting insights into the various aspects of Naadi josiyam.

What I argue with most people on astrology is that - I do not contemplate on whether astrology is true or false. Infact I have known many cases where the predictions have come true and I have read and heared that there is no 'predicting' but only reading thru' one's horoscope. There have also been miscalculations by astrologers - I guess more to do with the astrologer's shortcomings than astrology's.

I can favour astrology if its going to give a positive ray of hope to someone who has been draped in misery. If his stars say he is going to have a bright future and if this is going to make him live in hope, then good for him. But mostly I have seen people restricting themselves from taking a step in a new venture owing to unfavourable predictions. Well, if man could control his destiny, wouldn't life be all the more easier for all of us?

Life definitely gives us shocks and surprises and I feel its these that make a person more stronger and give him the energy to face the turbulences. Ofcourse, many remain steadfast and see themselves out while few do not. In such situations, when relying on astrology, we either tend to dwell on the future and restrict ourselves or worry about the future and spoil our present. As I've quoted in my blog subject, the real greatness in life lies in 'living' it with both the pluses and minuses added with momentary surprises too. Knowing what the future holds for you is like knowing the end of a mystery movie before hand. Ofcourse the choice is yours, but as most people would agree, the excitement and thrill is in watching the movie without knowing the story or its end - isnt it?!!

Made up!

2005-09-19T23:54:00.000-07:00

I find it very funny when people wear make up. Ofcourse its one's very own prerogative to do so but I can't understand why, when the beholder can very well make out that the face is 'made up', take all pains to make it look more artificial?

Dark or fair, smooth or wrinkled, clear face or pimpled, I like faces as they are. I mean, it makes the person look all the more natural and pleasing. You know that when a person wears make up, the seemingly impressive face is not original and what's the point in showing up a false image? I can understand people using cosmetics for health reasons like maybe oil, sun screens, moisturisers and the likes but those garish coloured lipsticks with a one-inch thick pancake, added with thick eye liners, mascara, bleached hair, waxed face, threaded eyebrows - hmmm.. at times these people are no different than mannequins. And can't understand why that more than men, women are obsessed with cosmetics.

Looks like marriage is the occasion of a lifetime for a girl - the time when she could literally try out all beautifying(?) techniques with a whooping bill! I remember how my cousin had cashed out about 5000 Rs. for her wedding make up! And since the wedding took place in a small town, she also arranged for the beautician to come down from Madras - so boarding, lodging, travel costs exta. All this just makes me wonder - is this fuss worth it at all? And in all the snaps, you only see the bride as a pale while ghost - too much painting to make her appear as her original self! Do these girls realise that their close ones love them not more or less for the extra powder dabbed onto their skins?

Considering the thriving businesses of foreign cosmetic industries here, its sad to note that all the traditional, home-made beautifying techniques are being shunned. The traditional ones are not only good but do not have side effects either. The effects of oil, shiyakkai, turmeric (anti-fungant, natural bleach, hair remover, what not!), kadalai maavu and the likes can be replaced in lieu of the artifical, highly chemical-based modern cosmetics. I think its more 'hep' and fashionable to say that "I use XYZ shampoo" rather than the more safer and effective shiyakkaai.

I continue keeping my hopes alive for people to realize and appreciate our own native treasures rather than filling the foreigners' coffers and that too at our own cost?

Priorities displaced

2005-09-19T19:17:00.000-07:00

During college days, we had a "gang" and it seemed then that we would be inseparable. 'Inseparable' - in literal sense, which is to talk to each other everyday, meet atleast once in two days, get together in Adyar Bakery's Shakes & Creams - as usual - for the birthdays. And we always pooh-poohed when people said that practically, things wouldn't be the same in the future. "Just wait and see - we would prove we are different" - would be our retaliation. But whatever said and done, things *did* change. Now its only contacts thru' e-mails and meeting once in a year itself seems a distant reality.

I was fortunate to have a bigger gang during my post-graduation days when I moved to a different city! During first year, we used to long for the weekends but things changed upside down during second and third years where we used to hate the weekends since that meant 2 days without classes and all the fun associated with them. Again post-college, people got used with their routine and days together of not catching up with their once-upon-a-time "thick" brethern seemed absolutely fine. How many plans we devised then that we would decide upon a day every year and no matter where people are and how busy people are, we shall all re-unite. All those plans, sentimental talk seemed to have gone down the drain. A mail to the yahoogroup once in a blue moon brings so much happiness and considered a rarity!

Friends have got good jobs, handsome pays, some got married, children but yet when people talk about college life, a sense of nostalgia sinks in and everyone is so elated to talk about it, reminiscence those 'good old days' and long to get back there! Would I want to go back to those college days - having the same kind of fun with friends? ofcourse I would! So what is stopping me from doing it? Though everyone whom I speak to, longs for the same, no one wants to literally do it.

No love is lost amongst friends even today. Friendship is still at its best but the companionship...? the time spared for friends...? Even a trivial occasion during college days would've brought all of us together. Infact we just needed some silly reason to congregate. But now it seems tough to make it to even big occasions like marriages. Reason aplenty - tight deadlines, can't take off, have a kid at home - and maybe valid too and it also makes you relate more to the fact that "Change is the law of life"!

Snail Mail

2005-09-08T02:04:00.000-07:00

Many times I can't stop myself from wondering if the attribute 'Snail' for the conventional mail is fair enough. But when comparing the regular mail with the electronic-mail, the former does seem to traverse in a snail's pace. But inspite of the time it takes, with a possibility of the letter getting damaged or not reaching the intended recepient at all or getting delayed due to strikes or rains, I still love the snail-mail mode the best!!

A handwritten note from a friend, relative, loved one is a treasure worth to be preserved. The very sight of the handwriting makes the writer's face pop up in front of your eyes (just like those movie scenes when the actor/actress' face shows up on the letter).

I still have a huge collection of letters from my friends, parents (when I was in hostel), relatives and even teachers. Each letter definitely seems to me like a priceless antique which I would not want to part with for anything in this world.

During my 'infant' stages of letter writing, I used to be pretty concerned about not to make any grammatical mistakes when writing in English and consciously tried to induce novel words to display my vocabulary skills :-) and with age letters were meant to be more "hep" and "youthful" with lots of jargons, smileys, hanging sentences, more colloquial and wrong spellings.

I used to like it best when I get letters in covers - esp the 1Re stamped ones in bright yellow colour. When receiving one, I felt the person had lots to say. The old inland letters which used to be sealed only on 2 sides added to our challenges. As adolescent kids, we never missed a chance to read those letters (ofcourse meant for others) without opening them.

The postcards were for the not-so-secretive matters. How I remember the origin of "if you do not send this to 15 people within 10 days..." in postcards then and it seems to continue till date thru' e-mails. My dad would showcase his skills on a card by squeezing as much contents as possible on that little space (ofcourse my friends in hostel then would translate that as stinginess). The postcard was and is the cheapest mode of letter even today. By just spending 10 or 15 paise then, you could send a postcard from Kanyakumari till Kashmir.

'Air-mail' letters were of different kind. The neat letter pad sheets - often in striking yellow or sparkling white colours - were trademarks of the 'phoren' letters. The foreign letter was also a stamp-collector's delight. I remember doing this then - carefully tearing off the envelope part which had the stamps, soaking them in water for the stamps to detach themselves from the cover and placing them between book pages to dry.

Grandmothers' letters were another lot. The words were hard to decipher in that they had no comas, punctuations and the spaces between letters and words would be the same. I remember going to the aid of my neighbour paatti for whom I was the draftsman! It used to be a typical stenographer act - fun-filled and feeling the joy of how well your reading/writing knowledge can be put to use. Ofcourse, I would have to re-phrase her words to be more "letter-compatible".

I wonder if in today's era of e-mails, the letter-writing exercise (in English subject) would ever make sense to the students. The neat drawing of an envelope with a little box at the top right corner for a stamp, instructions flowing down mentally : 'From' address on the top right corner for personal letters and left corner for business letters, 'sub:' is a must for official letters, No apostrophe in "yours", the date should figure on the top right corner, no coma or colon after "To" - the letter writing section carrying 10 marks was like a cake-walk.

Just like those numerous little joys which the future generation sadly miss out - should I say because of techological advancement? - the "Snail mail" is another one in that list.

Foo....d

2005-09-06T23:08:00.000-07:00

Whatever you earn is all for your stomach (ellaam indha arai chaan vaithukku dhaan). I do not know about other countries, but in India, especially the south, food holds an important part of any occasion. In India, serving food is held high as a ritual. Ofcourse, this is beyond any religion or creed. And I really enjoy in awe to see this kind of significance being attributed to food - especially the old traditional way which specifies norms on how food is to be served.

Since my knowledge is wider with respect to the food culture in Tamilnadu, I'll dwell more on that. I have experienced myself when I go to a normal household where when a person enters the house, s/he is offered water and requesting the guest to have food is considered a "dont-miss" formality. Well, formality or not, I feel many households ask that in full earnest.

A typical Tamilnadu meal (be it from any region) is complete, well-balanced and heart-filling. I cannot but wonder how our ancestors were so knowledged (like many other things) about the balancing act in food. And adding to it is serving the food on a banana leaf - our very own native disposable, non-stick plate! Usage of banana leaves makes you assert that our fore-fathers were very hygiene conscious. Won't you agree with me when I say that eating food on a banana leaf enhances the taste of the food itself? I am sure you would.

There's also a procedure as to what is to be served where and when on a banana leaf. I initially thought this procedure was for some superstitious reason but later realised it was for a practical purpose. Like, the broader side of a leaf is to be placed on the right since most of us use our right hands to eat and it would be easy to have the wider part for eating. Salt, pickle, fruit, paruppu (dal/lentils) all have their own places reserved on the banana leaf. I read some interesting stuff here about the banana leaf.

A traditional meal starts off by serving water, sweet, salt, vegetables, appalam other crispies like vadai and finally rice (to be served only after the guest takes his/her seat). Salt is served as an add-on incase any dish lacks salt (don't ask me what if its the other way round). First would be paruppu (dhaal/lentils) and nei (ghee/clarified butter). This is a source of protein and fat. Sambhar, again a source of protein and vegetable, follows. Sambhar is substituted or partnered with similar items like mor kuzhambu, puli/vatral kuzhambu and the likes. Too much protein is too heavy on the stomach. So for digestion, you have rasam made from tamarind extract and tomatoes (occasionally with garlic and lemon juice too) - all these ingredients help in digestion and to "disperse" the gas formed by the lentils. Again, tamarind extract is acidic in nature. So to cool the effect of this, you end your meal with curds. Just before curds you have payasam (calcium from milk added with raisins and cashews). Your skills on eating from a banana leaf are best known while having rasam saadham and payasam (The rasam or payasam should not drain down your leaf). But inspite of the intricacy of this ordeal, the taste of payasam on a banana leaf just after rasam is just awesome. You should experience it in order to enjoy it.

And to add to these, you have the vegetables for vitamins, nutrients and fibre (roughage) content, crispies for 'accomplice' , the seasonings - mustard seeds and curry leaves (source of iron too) and banana for digestion and the final betel leaves with betel nuts and lime (chunnambu) to give you that extra punch ;-) (not sure about betel nuts but betel leaves are definitely good for health - esp throat).

I can rest assure that of all the places in India (or probably the world), its only in Tamilnadu that you would find an eating place (good or not) in almost every corner and also catering to the hungry mouths almost round the clock (more so in places around Madurai).

I feel the "allergic" or "dosen't suit my health" factor is purely psycological. Given the number of people who cannot afford even one course meal a day, I would only request people not to be too choosy about food and be thankful for whatever we get. If being choosy over food is bad, wasting food is worse. I am sure each one of us can do our little best to avoid wasting food. Like it is said "Take all you like and eat all you take". Some thoughts...

Pack leaftovers from the hotel and give them to the deprieved lot on your way back home or use them for your next meal.
Serve leftovers at home to people in need, if not, atleast to dogs, cows, cats or birds.
During big functions like marriages, intimate orphanages or old age homes who would be ready to take un-served, leftover food. (Ofcourse, make sure to intimate them well in advance). The food left over on plates can be given to animal shelters for serving animals (I have heard that some establishments dry the leftover food in sun and use them as plant manure).

"Every grain has the eater's name written on it" so says Kabir in his doha. So be thankful to God for all the grains that have your own name on them and make sure you consume them in the best possible way i.e., by sharing!

Madras...

2005-08-23T20:02:00.000-07:00

Madras is celebrating its "Madras week" and its so nice to showcase the reminiscence of this old city. Its amazing to learn that its close to 400 years since this city was 'incepted'. I somehow prefer the old name - Madras. Can't seem to come to terms with the reasons for changing this name to "Chennai". There is nothing 'foreign' about the name 'Madras'. As far as my knowledge goes, heard that the actual city of Madras was constituted from two villages (or towns) namely Madrasapatnam and Chennapatnam. There is a reference in today's Hindu about the origin of the city's name :

"There is some confusion about who named the city Madras but
in a map of south India dated 1596 and sketched by the Portuguese,
there is no mention of Madras though Miliapur existed. The Naiks, who
sold the land to British, wanted the city named after their father,
Chennappanaikan."

There may be many things which I detest about Madras but to me Madras would remain one my most loved cities ever! On the personal front, I was born here and spent major part of my life here and even now my 'base' continues to be Madras - its my 'home'. These apart I like Madras for its liveliness, briskness and simplicity! The city is up and active from the wee hours of the day till about close to midnight! The best part of Madras is that it has equal mix of tradition and westernization! I have often heard people comment about Chennai's conservative nature but I guess that is what makes Chennai "special". And as its usual self, Chennai is the "non-bragging" kind - never boasts about itself!

The December kutcheries, Adi maasam temple celebrations (sparing the cone speakers!!), shopping in Mambalam (who can miss the ever buzzing Ranganathan street), road side tea stalls, the 'euphoria' during any festive season, the Pallavan buses, Margazhi bajanais, Madisars, the Malls, theme parks, multiplex theatres, night clubs, pubs, wide range of eateries, beach - see... you have them all!

You needn't be an extravagant spender to enjoy life in Madras and that is its strength - giving its best to all kinds of people.

I just hope Madras remains the same - not too crowded, not too westernized, not too many self-centered people, not too costly but yet improving on these lines :

Cleanliness
Less processions/ bandhs
Less posters
Less multi storeyed apartments
More Trees/parks/playgrounds
Clean rivers - Adyar, Cooum and Buckingham canal
Still better transport
More Rains
Better water conservation/management
Law enforcement
More humane

Happy Birthday again Madras!!

(Read some nice stuff from fellow bloggers' blogs. You can find them here and here.)

Schools can be fun if only...

2005-08-18T10:55:00.000-07:00

How often have we seen children imitate their teachers? Such is the fascination kids have for their teachers. But why when there is a holiday at sight, children's joys know no bounds? And why are daily trips to school such a painful ordeal for children? Education - considered to be the backbone of an individual - doesn't seem to go well with kids? Doesn't it seem like an irony - childrendreading something which is supposedly so important in their lives?

I have personally seen this trend among many kids - they exhibit such briskness and grasping power in their infanthood but seem so drained and dull during school days. I am sure many of you would have seen this amongst children within your own circles. I am not sure if I should blame the education system but I definitely think teachers play a big role.

How often teachers rebuke students based on their physical appearance. "You look as big as my uncle but cannot do this simple sum". Such remarks create a deep impact in the minds of little kids and though some come over it in due course, for many, unfortunately, the wound tends to stick on and they never overcome it.

Corporal punishment is another case. Good that now people are slowly realising the ill effects of corporal punishment and many schools have advised teachers to refrain from punishing the child physically. I still have the images of such brutal punishment in my mind - beating with scale on knuckles, kneeling down for hours, smashing the hand on the edge of desk, caning, slaps, pinching by the ear - oof.. if reading this might make you sick, imagine the plight ofstudents.

Segregation of dull/bright students is another common feature in schools. Though the attitude seems to be genuine, the methodology is definitely bound to create mental agony. Infact many schools these day use the term "slow learners" in place of "dull students".

There are again teachers, whom the students look upon for advice, inspiration, as a role model, idol. Infact if one was asked to name 10 of their inspirational personalities in life, a teacher would definitely be one among them.

So it is a no 'name-sake' statement when people say that teachers shape an individual's character. A teacher can be a student's best friend or worst enemy.

This is a humble request to all teachers - do not think your job as menial. The pay may be but definitely not your job. Remember - all that it takes to mould those little ones is your love and care!

Why blame it on rice?

2005-08-15T03:36:00.000-07:00

I could never understand the fuss being made over rice in favour of wheat by those diet conscious people. How often I have come across these statements - "I have stopped taking rice completely", "Consuming rice makes you put on weight", "The carb content in rice accumulates as fat". I have only one statement to make on these comments - WHAT CRAP!

Being a rice lover I am (a typical south-Indian huh?), I am never able to accept these baseless facts. I can never imagine a day without a rice meal (ooof, thank God!!) - I even wouldn't mind having rice for breakfast, rice for lunch and rice for dinner. I feel rice is one the simplest foods (you don't have to have exemplary culinary skills to make a bowl of rice) and yet very wholesome. Rice goes well with almost anything from a rich curry to simple curds or ghee! Would I give up on rice? N E V E R...!!

Now coming to the facts... Fat content wise, rice has zero percent of fat and even in carbohydrate content, wheat and rice weigh the same. So I can't help wondering where did this favouritsm for wheat arise from?

If you notice, those hard-toiling labourers in the south consume rice for all courses and for the kind of sternous work they do - their consumption is also huge but you would'nt find an extra inch of flab on them! Most South Indians have rice atleast for two course meals a day and not all of them are fat and not all wheat-consuming people are 'normal' either.

I strongly believe its necessary for people to exercise for any quantity of intake. It becomes all the more necessary when you have a sedentery lifestyle and/or your choice of food have high fat content. I have seen this on myself - I've never restricted anything but made it point to exercise - *at any cost* and you need to believe that I am able to stay fit without having to tie my tongue!! Ofcourse the amount of exercise would depend on the type of your intake! So next time you think about calling it quits for rice, think again - instead enjoy good, healthy food and exercise!

English - setting standards?

2005-08-09T06:45:00.000-07:00

English seems to be the "international" language no doubt - thanks to British imperialism and their love for their language. But surprisingly English is not the widely spoken language in the world inspite of it being the language that is widely "used". Though I love the language and appreciate the role that it plays, I can't stop wondering why - especially in India - English is often used as a yardstick to measure one's intelligence and standard!

This scene might be familiar to many - You step into a posch, hep-looking store in Madras - (okay so you want some examples? Say, a Pizza hut, Subway, Landmark, MusicWorld, LifeStyle and the likes...) and if you were to query an attender, you tend to start off in English or more than you do, the attender starts off in English. I am not able to find a reason for this 'strange' behaviour of us (unless we always speak in English)?

Is it that we see ourselves in a higher pedestal when speaking in English?
or is it that we feel low in speaking in our native languages?
or we feel its only appropriate that we speak in English at such places?

I generally make it a point to start my conversation in Tamil to the attenders unless he does not understand the language - especially in such 'hep' places.

The point I am trying to make here is - I am not the one to raise placards against English. Infact good knowledge of English might take you places but at the same time why should I feel low of my native tongue? I am not very sure about other states, but I find the magnitude of this feeling to be quite high in Tamilnadu where people feel low to talk in Tamil. They would even go at length to show their prowess in other languages but not in Tamil. Why? Can't seem find an answer yet...

Yet another...

2005-08-09T03:32:00.000-07:00

... Blog! What else? First, thanks to all those bloggers in the cyber space for making this happen. I was thrilled to find the blog world with a whole lot of interesting, amusing, thought-provoking, touching, informative stuff. Its more pleasing to see people bundled with enormous talent - apart from their usual academics. It has also opened to me a door leading to a new world of friends - people whom I haven't met but yet felt so close, people with whom I could share anything without a fear, to express my 'crap', what not! Hope I can find a small place amongst all you bloggers. When am I getting my 'Welcome party'?