karmaconfessions

Tag!!??

2008-09-29T21:25:00.000-07:00

Tag!

1. What is your occupation right now? BDM if that sounds intelligent
2. What color are your socks? Cream
3. What are you listening to right now? A Foolish Global Level Con Call
4. What was the last thing that you ate? Hmm..Apple, Toast n Jam..really happy that am having proper b'fast
5. Can you drive a stick shift? wz tht?
6. Last person you spoke to on the phone? Mom
7. Do you like the person who sent this to you? Yes and genuinely yes :)
8. How old are you today? 26..n yes..shud get married soon :)
9. What is your favorite sport to watch on TV? Duh..None ;)
10. What is your favorite drink? A good mousambi juice
11. Have you ever dyed your hair? Coloured..yes regularly cos of grey ones..Dyed..never
12. Favorite food? Italian :)
13. What is the last movie you watched? Welcome to Sajjanpur
14. Favorite day of the year? Diwali days..a feel good feeling throughout
15. How do you vent anger? Be Silent, analyze a lot as to whether I shud be really angry and then only take some action
16. What was your favorite toy as a child? Maybe my Bicycle if that counts
17. What is your favorite season? Winters anytime..i Hate monsoons the most
18. Cherries or Blueberries? What are blueberries anyway?
19. Do you want your friends to e-mail you back? As in?? If i mail them...?? Yes cos i also mail to select few
20. Who is the most likely to respond? I shud write Saumya but I know she wont ;-) I wud have written some names had I written the post in MBA days but now, NONE
21. Who is least likely to respond? All
22. Living arrangements? Good and better than previous ones :)
23. When was the last time you cried? Cried no but yeah got senti while leaving earlier place whr i stayed
24. What is on the floor of your closet? Shoes
25. Who is the friend you have had the longest that you are> sending to? ??? What?
26. What did you do last night? Watched a Circus called Bigg Boss
27. What are you most afraid of being lost? Loved ones
28. Plain, cheese, or spicy hamburgers? spicy
29. Favorite dog breed(s): i really cant stand any animal but yeah Labrador looks cool from a distance
30. Favorite day of the week? Friday
31. How many states have you lived in? 4: UP, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Haryana
32. Diamonds or pearls? lolll..thts the most girly question of the lots Saumya :)
33. What is your favorite flower? Another girly one..but greenery in general has a very soothing effect on me more than just flowers

It's Over!!! - Part 1

2007-10-18T23:31:00.000-07:00

She saw Him coming from a distance. "Is it Him?" She thought "Yaa..it is"
It was 1:30 am.
She was standing in the mid road.
He saw Her too, felt reluctant for a moment and then smiled
"How artificial!! Why are you here? Why can't you let bygones be bygones? Why can't we both move on?" She thought.
She smiled too, out of a compulsion it seemed.
She saw in His eyes the same desire, the same yearning for Her, the same "love" for a moment. The "love" soon transformed into "hatred" as was evident from His eyes.
"So wassup!!" He asked.
"Eh-huh!! Nothing much; Just waiting for him" She lowered Her eyes, blushed and felt stupid not being able to name "him".
He exchanged formal courtesies and drove on.
She saw His car moving away, thought for a second about all the beautiful moments They spent in that car, brushed aside the thought soon and spoke to no one in particular "Maybe it's the best for both of Us".

It's Over!!! - Part 2

2007-10-18T23:19:00.000-07:00

He came after attending a hectic meeting.
It was 1:30 am.
He saw Her standing in the mid road.
She saw Him too, she hesitated, cut Her lips with Her teeth and then gave a smile that glowed her face.
How beautiful was that face in the dim light of half-moon, He mused.
But today He found that divine face repulsive. How arificial, how fake was that beautiful face!!!
He also smiled knowing that "How artificiall!! How fake that smile!!" were echoing in Her heart too.
"So wassup!!" He asked to break the deafening silence.
"Eh-huh!! Nothing much; Just waiting for him" He could not miss her eyes lowering and a natural flush coming to her face on the mention of "him".
He smirked and thought, "Who am I fooling!! Its all over!!"
He exchanged formal courtesies and drove on....

Life Is Beautiful

2007-07-04T02:45:00.000-07:00

I look at U coming out of Honda City

A momentarily thought flashes (shamefully) that of self pity

I look at U, enjoying the Switzerland Beach-n-Beer noons

I curse "Filthy Bastards!! Born with Silver Spoons"

I look at U, entering the Taj, with the Lady in Red

I sigh every night, going all alone to my bed

Frustrated, anguished...I start looking the other way...

I look at U, shivering and covering yourself in the heavy rains

Your plight makes me forget my sufferings and pains

I look at U, counting your daily earnings with one hand

The same hand asks for pennies every morning at the Bus Stand

I look at U, getting beaten and caught

While stealing a bread packet from the nearby shop

I look at myself, look up to the blinding Sun and its rays

Smile, and think, "Strange are His ways!!"

PS:My 1st try at Poem ;-)) Veterans, pardon plz!!!

Advances of Technology!!!

2007-05-19T08:05:00.000-07:00

Before u yawn n remember some Ms Kajree :-P dont worry it has got nothin remotely to do wit her...

Yaa but to do with planes and mobiles...

I cannot recall when was the last time i saw my wrist watch to se the time...
I cannot recall last time i even thought of buying an alarm clock...
And i m talking about the cheapest mobile available..naah i m not into that fancy colorful types..for me a mobile is a mobile is an alarmclock is a watch..Thats all

Third time in my life i boarded a plane. Cautious because it was a no frills plane, suspicious because i dreaded the time it might take but i was pleasantky surprised to the extent that whatever free time i get, i prefer going through makemytrip. Irctc is antique for me now.
When Jain used to say to me that plane is a bigger radical invention than a mobile, I disagreed mainly because of its not-so-widespread reach. But after this trip, when I was frm rajma-chawal to smabhar-chawal in 2 hrs, I dont see any reason not to believe him.

But still...there are certain things technology cannot change.
The biggest example is newspaper. I HATE reading e-paper. It has to be in a hard copy format only.
Also when Kejriwal says he prefers a 30 hours train journey to a plane journey for the same price(believe me!!), I can relate to him.
I cannot think of a mobile as a camera and i m dying to buy a digital one (but then its again technology revisited)

In a nutshell, technology rocks, MOT doesnt ;-) (for those scratching their heads to find out the meaning of MOT, ask us the victims, the SOMiites)

Watching FRIENDS

2007-02-06T13:14:00.000-08:00

What have I been doing since the last 24 years???
There was a whole new territory named "FRIENDS" lying unexplored for me...
I am completely hooked to it, I can eat, sleep, drink FRIENDS...
But frankly, I used to view FRIENDS as frivolous as in I cant learn anything substantial from it...

The following episodes made me think otherwise:

1. Chandler has a huge huge crush on Joey's girlfriend and one day he "crosses the line" (just kisses her) and next time he is feeling so very guilty for his best buddy that he agrees to stay in a Box with a hole for 7 hours (weird!! but thats all FRIENDS is about)

2. Rachel and Ross just had a break up and there s snow falling outside with both of them looking so vulnerable... n there is a very potential guy wooing Rachel but she cant stop thinking about Ross and dumps that guy for Ross.

3. Phoebe agrees to be a surrogate mother to her brother's kid (Believe Me!!!)

I was completely in awe of FRIENDS anyways..but these incidents made me develop a respect for this serial....

Hats Off to FRIENDS!!!

Those Two Hands...

2007-01-04T12:18:00.000-08:00

A hectic local train journey from CST to Kanjurmarg!!
Jam packed train..no place to breathe..
Then i saw those two hands..
His hand, wearing a thick watch, touching Her hand, filled with yellow bangles...fingers entwined together...
His hand playing with Her hand..moving from Her fingers to Her arm..
Her hand hitting His hand in a way that is scolding yet inviting, angry yet enjoying..

And then came Kanjurmarg station and before getting down i managed to have a look at those madly-in-love couple..

The ordinary looking middle class couple appeared to me the Most Beautiful Couple on Earth at that time....

The MBA Saga so far....

2006-11-09T09:49:00.000-08:00

Hmmm.. its 4 months now since I joined SJMSOM. I had mixed feelings when I entered the premium institute..happy to think that yes!! Finally an MBA ll add feather to my not-so-filled cap ;-) sad…because..hmm can write a whole new blog as to why I was sad. But to cut the story short, I was sad because of the continuous statements that I heard from people who unanimously said that “beware!! It’s a cut throat world here. Be prepared for selfish people here who ll not let u know even what they are studying.” I had had some gems as my friends right from college days to even office days. How can I forget the lovely cake Mufeed etc brought as a farewell treat to me!!! And I was on the verge of crying!! Yuck, I have to get rid of this habit soon. ;-)

And after 4 months, has the perception changed ?!?! surely, it has. Both positive negative points discussed above have changed. MBA in truest sense is just a hype. You don’t emerge from the B School with anything extraordinary apart from a fat package from a decent firm. You are not different from the “general” crowd. Because even after 4 months, I don’t think I have learnt something extraordinary. And I am not complaining.

Now, for the negative points turning into positive. Firstly, it is NOT a cut throat competition. Professional, yes but then “professional” word has a positive touch to it unlike “cut throat”. There are people who still have not come out of free-back-riding type of attitude which does not work in an MBA college…may be in a graduation college but surely not here. Also, I have friends here who are close to me, well if not ultra close but still close. Even then I have one or two super close friends in front of whom I can put my heart out. So, I have friends who can match the standards set by Mufeed, Prince etc.

And studies ?!?!?!?! what a farce !!!! lol.. Also eagerly awaited are the birthdays when the whole SOM08 gathers and has a blast in the Night Canteen. Man, those 2 hours are so rejuvenating :-)

Also, I was shocked to hear myself so passionately speaking about my college in particular and MBA in general while wishing Tony happy bday. At the end of four months, I have not only become immune to projects/ deadlines/ quizzes/ exams but also surprisingly, I am enjoying myself and have developed feelings for my college and friends. The proof is when I was seeing Jain packing his stuff for Diwali and also when I was leaving. Gosh, how nostalgic I was…..

One very important change is I have stopped drinking. May be I am not earning anymore ;-) that’s the reason but I know the real reason. I am enjoying (be it summers party, avenues, freshers party) without booze. Haan, cigarette leaving is a difficult thing and I don’t see it happening in the near future also ;-) …

Finally, I had a chat with Saumya..glad to hear that she is also enjoying and hope that all who left the Stinking Place (lol) with me - Suhas, Barve, Deepak, Deven, Sid – all are having a blast…

Time Constraint!!!

2006-09-04T12:57:00.000-07:00

So much to write but so less time!!!

So much is happening on personal/professional front but so less time!!

So many people to analyze, so many movies to discuss, so many things to tell,so many new friends to talk about, so many old friends to think about but so less time!!

Watch out for this space,

I ll be back!!!!

Me Still The Same!!!

2006-08-12T14:34:00.000-07:00

How much an impact does an Ayn Rand novel has on me is unexplicable...
just saw Hazaaron Khwahishen Aisee..not to get into any review report of the movie..i would like to mention that Shiney Ahuja's character is Me...the first lines that he says "But KK was born with a silver spoon in the hand.." sums it all.. People said that my perspective (narrow as defined by Saumya Sujal and others) ll change once i enter B School.but till now nothing has happened..Money is still the Most Important Thing for me...yeah, the perspective has changed as in i no longer believe in an escapist route..actively participating in the activities..But again Money is still the bottomline.........

Wishes Unfulfilled!!!

2006-08-08T11:23:00.000-07:00

How i wish....i go back home and give a bear hug to mom...

how i wish....i go back home and play big B to rohit and bitto...

how i wish....i go on an all and all hardcore daaru party with my college mates...

how i wish...i discuss all office gals with john,mufeed,prince,vinay,tony....

how i wish...i bitch about everyone under the sun with Saumya...

how i wish...to spend everyday 1 hour in gym toning my body....

how i wish...i eat homemade dal tadka, rajma, paneer parathas...

how i wish...instead of avoiding rains, throw away the umbrella and get fully drenched...

but soon realization dawns on me in the shape of Financial Accounting, MoT,Statitics...SIGH!!!!!!!

SJMSOM or IITB, eh??

2006-07-29T09:02:00.000-07:00

deja vu....that was it...same kanjurmarg station(will i be ever able to go to library in thane again??)...same pizza hut(will me and john ever eat there again??)...same route of lnt bus(will on monday mornings, she ll feel a tinge of loneliness on not seeing me entering the bus??)...

finally after entering IITB, answering all my above queries in negation. cos its a long long drive (approx. 2 km!!- yeah! u heard me right!!) from main gate to my hostel.

Now, my hostel!!! nothing less than a hotel and i m NOT exaggerating..no one, i repeat, no one sleeps before 2 am here.. no matter how important class is there the following day.Food, eh!!?? well...hmm...ok...honestly breakfast and evening snacks are awesome..lunch..horrii...err...ok..n dinner also..lol...ok..but the best part...night canteen till 4 am where u can grab a mouth watering tomato masala uttapam..its th best uttapam i hav ever eaten at the most affordable price(yeah! not to forget we are not earning anymore..so money matters(as it always did...lol))!!

Well, the college is cool..with a 24 hour net connectivity..old habits die hard..lol..
the batch is good..

And now for the main part SJMSOM is just a small entity of IITB...there are so very many courses going on there that SJMSOM doesnt matter to anyone else except we the MBA students. M.tech, MBA, Ph.D.,BE,...phew..u name it, u have it!! The seniors are awesome..I am shocked to see their dedication in maintaining the brand name of SOM.

Another problem!!! Insomnia!!! no matter how tired, no sleep for 2 hours from the time of hitting the sac!!

Nakul and Sheetal.....

2006-06-14T23:26:00.000-07:00

“Ek Wills ka packet dena” and I hand him a 100 rupee note..
Mentally calculating ”100 minus 25..no its 27 since the budget…it comes to be” and I see 73 rupees looking straight at my face.
I look at the boy, he is probably 15-16 years old on the steps of adolescence with light facial hair and a pitch that’s transforming from girlish to manly..
What if he had all the facilities like a middle class person like me..Would he been topping his class or would he have fallen into wrong company and got addicted to cigarettes, drinks and who knows, even dope??

I took the packet and my change and return home, only my mind is too occupied now with all the thoughts…

Consider a scenario…day 20th november, the D day for all the CAT aspirants.
A guy , named say, Nakul leaves from Thane to his centre in Kandiwali via a local. His bag’s strap is torn so he hugs it tightly under one arm and with other, he holds the over crowded train’s rod. He is sweating profusely, wipes his forehead with his already not-so-clean shirt thus dirtying it more.

A girl, named say Sheetal, gets ready to leave for the Kandiwali centre again from Thane in a chauffer-driven AC car..only this time the chauffeur is replaced by her Daddy dearest..”Beta, its ur important day…I have taken a leave, I ll drive you to the centre”. Her mom says from behind “ I have packed some health drinks, butter toast and your favorite tandoori chicken pizza…you are not going to eat anything from outside”.

After changing his train from Dadar, Nakul enters another even more over crowded train which all of a sudden stops much before Andheri. “It happens!! And I have lots of time in hand..thank god, I left early!! The train will start within 2-3 minutes.” He assures himself thereby dirtying his shirt even more..But no, its 10 minutes now..the train seems to be stuck…Someone tells him there is some problem on Western line, it ll take time..Nakul panicks. He took exactly 100 rupees with him. 15+15 train fare and 70 if there is some “emergency”. But, this is an emergency!! And he knows that with 70 bucks he cannot do anything. Mobile phones, a common feature with even the paanwallas and rickshawwallas was a luxury for him. ATM card is something which rich people use when they dine in expensive places. He rushes out of the train that deceived him to find a local booth. Luckily, he found.. only to realize what is the use of calling his neighbourhood (who will eventually infom his family) at Thane..Then he makes a quick decision and calls his friend from Andheri to come as soon as possible.

And there, Sheetal instructs her Dad, “ Papa please, don’t turn on the music system.. I wanna take a short nap before reaching the centre so that I am all fresh when I face the paper.”

Nakul makes it to the centre at sharp 10, praying that the invigilator doesn’t play a spoilsport and create problems. Luckily, the invigilator doesn’t. He gets his CAT paper, for 2 minutes he cannot concentrate…what if, his Andheri friend would not have been at home at that time…What if, the invigilator had been strict…he muses. But then he realizes the importance of his time and starts solving paper. For Sheetal, it was an easy run. She reaches the venue 10 minutes before the scheduled time, settles down, sharpens her pencils, prays to God and starts solving the paper.

When the final results come, both Nakul and Sheetal have cracked CAT with a very high percentile, both get calls from all the IIMs and both are now eventually batchmates in IIMA….

Well, this was a very optimistic picture…or on second thoughts, was it???

Was I too prejudiced, too biased when I went to Pagalguy poll and despite seeing an option of “there should be reservations for economically backward people”, I voted for “there should be NO reservations”….

Was I all wrong in the first place???

She!!!!

2006-06-12T21:07:00.000-07:00

I had a very hectic day…I reach there late…to see her waiting….waiting for me…. Expecting an outburst, I prepare myself mentally for an explanation. About to utter some words, she puts her hands on my lips…”No need!” with a genuine softness in her voice. I look at her eyes, my heart melts and the whole day’s weariness disappears..

And then the unexpected happens..the whole surrounding freezes…everyone expect we two..i clasp her hands, look into her eyes, she blushes, then looks straight into my eyes and finds nothing but love in them…

And far away, in a boat that has frozen, “mere haath mein teraa haath ho…” from Fanaa plays….

When will it all be true???

Rang De Basanti????????

2006-06-01T02:55:00.000-07:00

Well, I am fed up of receiving Arjun Singh smses and forwards, not to forget the much hyped conversation of our honourable HRD minister with Karan Thapar.

But are we all missing out on something important? Is he really the villain as he is made out to be or is he just the scapegoat? Knowing Congress and its President (not to forget her umpteen “sacrifices” for the country), where, to use a hindi phrase, unkee marzee ke binaa ek patta bhi nahi hiltaa, is something possible single-handedly and that too when that hand is not of The Congress President?

A few facts first:

---- External Affairs Minister resigned(well, again, wrong word…thrown out…for not even for a moment it appeared as if he is ready to relinquish his post) after his name was splashed throughout the country( well!! Even world!!! How can we forget how desperate he became that he started criticizing Bush and others!!) and to think that it was not his name only but the whole Indian National Congress’ name and how smartly the whole Congress( and its President) distanced from him and the whole brunt was borne by him and he slides into depths of annonymity- a punishment for putting his foot in his mouth.

---- Amar Singh and the famous tape controversy..where Ambika Soni says a very out-of-the-context statement…”Forget all that!! But why is Amar Singh not calling Sonia Gandhi Soniajee…(sycophants!!!) and after some days we hear that she replaces Renuka Choudhary as the Tourism Minister.

---- Kapil Sibal, one of the very few politicians who had the guts to say that reservations are bad, is not heard anytime after that!!!

So, as is evident, not even for a moment one should assume that Arjun Singh is the only person responsible for all the chaos and confusion. For even in his much hyped interview, he has categorically stated that The PM and The Preaident are well informed..

That poses another important question. Who is our PM? Why cannot he be an economist (now after this quota controversy, even this term seems like a farce!!) and a suave politician at the same time? Why he has to clasp his hands in front of Priyanka Gandhi’s daughter in Rajiv Gandhi’s anniversary? (Did I again hear the word sycophant???) Why hasn’t he taken a “proper” stand in the Bihar-Buta Singh controversy…

Mind it, I am not against any political party, ….welll…umm….to rephrase it…I am not against any single political party…for what is BJP (with a person I still hold in high regard Atal Bihari Vajpayee) doing? Fighting over inconsequential Aamir Khan’s remarks and banning his movie in Gujarat when the whole country is burning!!!!! What is the so called “Opposition in the real word” Left doing..celebrating its Bengal and Kerala victory when the nation’s future is at stake??

Rang De Basanti way seems to be the most appropriate way…but the main question is Who all will you kill?? The HRD Minister, The Congress President, The PM, The Gujarat CM, The CPI Head…or all???

Daydreaming!!!!

2006-06-01T02:14:00.000-07:00

I still remember when the to-be seniors of SOM while giving a presentation informed us that Shyam Benegal came for a guest lecture to SOM…and then it starts again…daydreaming…my favorite pastime…

Shyam Benegal comes again to SOM now giving a lecture on management plus movies and we all are(well…uh…dunno abt others ..but surely I am) listening very intently. After the guest lecture, he turns around to leave. I quickly follow him, also conscious of the fact not to leave any strong impressions on my peers as to what I am about to do….and then when he is all alone, I blurt it out “ I want to do Summers with you!!!”

Behind my back, my fingers are doing the routine thing..criss-crossed fingers praying to God that he should agree…and then yes!!! He agrees. After assisting him, I also become familiar to RGV, SLB,KJ and other stalwarts. And my career begins there in Bollywood……..

The reverie is broken by the harsh realities life poses in front of me. But when I tell Saumya about this dream, she is supportive. But she warns that paisaa kam milegaa aise Summers mein…and I am like money is not an issue- a sentence which doesn’t sound convincing being uttered from my mouth and the expressions on Saumya and Sujal faces also confirm so…

But only if all this is true……..

Knock,Knock knocking on Heaven's Door!!!

2006-05-23T01:35:00.000-07:00

“Are you afraid of dying?”

It was 3 in the night…or morning!!!
Pune was the venue and the party was at a place called Vir da Dhaaba and the menu consisted of loads of booze…
Choubeyji drank like a sponge…absorbing each and every drop. I was fairly sober.Chaoubeyji was driving at 80-90 per hour. Tears coming out of my eyes.My hair was going haywire.
I was pleading “slow down, please dear.”
That’s when he asked the question mentioned in the first line.

“No”, I replied.
“No!”, he mocked “ then why are u asking me to slow down.”

“Because I am afraid of the repurcussions my death will have…what all will happen after my death, sends shivers through my spine…………………………”

At 17 years of age...

2006-05-11T00:09:00.000-07:00

What was I doing when I was 17 yrs old???? Hmm…fresh out of school…joined CMS( for those who dun know…CMS is where I did my 11th and 12th…and its name is in Guiness Book of Records)…and have taken science stream…why u ask…well..uh…I dunno..maybe I had very good grades so Science was logical field…not convincing..eh..well even I m not convinced…and there is She..not even wrote a bestselling book..but accused of Plagiarism…whose meaning I know now..at 23 yrs of age…and there is Shobhaa De…soft porn writer (read any of hers..Socialite Evenings, Starry Nights…)there is no plot …just a soft porn story with some characters woven around that shit…even her autobiography was more of a sneaky peek in the sexual life and vulnerable side of the celebrities…and she never had any fling!!! Any affair!!! Strange!! Its said that generally the first novel are a sort of an autobiography (dun believe me…read ayn rand,s first…or “Hers” also)…strange after 60 years in the fields bordering over fashion field, movie magazine, films and ads…she comes out unscathed…hats off!!! If that’s true but it’s a liitle difficult to believe.. and there is Shobhaa De commenting on “Her”…calling her a poor baby…saying..though indirectly..serves “Her” right…At 60 years of age, what are the literary awards she can boast of?? None…

And there are other Indian Authors..Khushwant Singh…at 90 plus…written an utter crap..”Company of Women”…telling throughout the novel (if u can call it so)…how many women the protaganist bedded…how all the women went berserk seeing his manhood…

And there is Arundhati Rao…whose “The God of Small Things” went out to win the Booker…plz if anyone understands that novel…explain it to me..why do the Indian authors have to be so vague…why cant thay be direct like ..say…John Grisham, Jeffrey Archer or even Ayn Rand..

And there is Salman Rushdie whose Satanic Verses was banned …though I enjoyed his Midnight’s Children a lot..but here again…y so vague????

And there is Vikram Seth..whose A Suitable Boy requires a lot of effort to even hold that book!!!(1348 pages!!!)..1348 pages of long brooding passages…1348 pages of boredom…

And then there is She, who accused (mind it ..it also requires intelligence)..who through bad publicity (bad publicity is the best publicity)…is nothing sort less than an iconic figure(though in a negative way..)…whose How Opal Mehta Got Life, Got Wild and Got Kissed..I am searching everywhere….and I believe many others are searching too…

Lets give the devil his(well..her) due..Way to go…atta girl!!!

My Best Buddy

2006-05-08T01:48:00.000-07:00

The title may be misleading and should read “My Best Buddies” but then again as an afterthought and thinking logically, at one time I had one best buddy only. Once when I am done with, then only the other one becomes my best buddy.

I can hear still mom shouting at me “you are useless and turning your sister into one too…bahar ghoomo jaake …social life kucch hai hee nahi tumhari” and I m like “ mom, plz for god sake dun bug me….i m enjoying wit my best buddy.”

My best buddy has taken me to courtrooms, taken me to primitive african jungles, introduced me to a girl working for a missionary (the last thing that wud interest her is money…believe me…I was also calling her a hypocrite when she said these words but her strong convincing points finally made me yield to her), made me investigate brutal murder mysteries, helped me screw some hollywood babes (aise hee thode naa main use best buddy kahtaa hoon). He has done a lot for me. When I was all alone with each of my friend busy in his or her life, he stood by me. He never let me down. Forget finding solace in his company, I ended up enjoying him thoroughly.

For us the humans, the most difficult is the parting shot. And if it’s a shot with your best buddy, then the empty buckets are bound to fill up with copious tears. A lump in the throat, nostalgia and what not. But then again, here also my best buddy is different. As soon as I am done with him , the other one is ready to become my best buddy.

If my best buddy is not taking proper care of mine (ohh yes, I love to be pampered by my best buddy), all hell breaks loose(only yesterday…..Danielle Steel….i ll never touch u again…u r shit).

With utmost honesty, Poirot has been my No. 1 buddy…I can wake up till 4 a.m. with him.But alas, he is running out of resources. Soon, he ll be an old story (unlike saumya, I don’t revisit my once best buddies). Then, I would have to find solace(sorry, again a wrong word…I enjoy..remember) in some one else’s company…..

In his Cabin.......

2006-05-02T21:36:00.001-07:00

Shrewd to the point of being sly, notorious to the point of being dirty and if he looks at you continuously for one minute…one could even wet his pants…but whatever,…. I admired(at least used to) him. For a guy who has risen from DET level and is now at a somewhat similar cadre to a passout from IIT, my boss is appreciable, to say the least.

But when I entered his cabin yesterday for his signatures which ll unblock my ID, I was, if not shocked, giddy after overhearing a conversation on the phone. For what I thought was that cabin meant for- high level technical discussions and cost handling techniques, turned out just the contrary. I overheard him speaking to….a customer??? …a senior person of L&T??…well I m not sure of that but this was all I heard “do dozen mangoes bhijwaa de kyaa aapke ghar pe? Mumbai mein mangoes aa gaye hain.Haan jee jaisaa aap kahein…aur ghar mein sab badhiya hai naa…theek hai jee. Mangoes mil jaayenge aapko.”

Maybe it was a very genuine discussion with …say…his in-laws but having closely known him for 10 months, I seriously doubt that.

At last, YUCK!!!

Darna Zaroori Hai and Airport

2006-05-01T23:37:00.000-07:00

For all those thinking what is the connection between an airport and the movie darna zaroori hai, 1stly this is not “an” airport…this is the novel “AIRPORT” by Arthur Hailey.

So it was a Sunday night when our dabba was cancelled( we seriously wait for such nights when she doesn’t give dabba cos that gives us a chance to spend a fortune (200 bucks only on eating!!) without us being notoriously callled as extravagent spoilt brats). For all those who think that 200 bucks n extravagance…I must b kidding…then ask my close friends wat does 200 bucks mean to me!!!

At 10.10 we ordered our pizzas and the last show of DZH was at 10.45 pm. Will we make it? Was a sheer test of my time management skills…and yes after a meal for two plus a medium pizza(hmm..my tongue is dripping..) we were done by 10.35 pm..n then finally at th nick of time, I reached DZH’s last show. For all those who havnt seen the movie yet and still are interested, I ll not reveal anything…but after the movie finished..john said “horrible!!! I ll give it –1 star” n I was like “no…it was worth 3 stars cos I think the story of bipasha basu had some class and the story directed by chekravarty(satya’s hero) was also watchable. Mallika sherawat was a pleasant change and was very decent, to say the least…amit jee was wasted n to think that of all the stories, ram gopal varma decided to directed this boring piece. Sunil shetty’s story cud have been dealt with more finesse. But my reason for giving it 3 stars is at least someone had the balls to make a different movie, not a run of the mill type of the movie.. agreed that moviemakers like homi, aparna sen do make different movies, what makes RGV to have an edge over these filmmakers are the box office collections. Frankly, I was surprised to see the multiplex jammed full on Sunday night. This is my first movie in mumbai where I have seen such a crowd..perhaps, I think that if this movie would have got a U certificate, it would have been a hit…at least, the kids would have been scared seeing this otherwise dull movie. I also wanted to see how is sajid khan as a director…well his story was agreed monotonous but the ending of the movie did manage to get an ovation from us the audience..so for him, in all and all his effort was not wasted.”

I compared this movie to Airport for my own reasons. At pizza hut, I decided that if I ll not make it to the movie, I have this novel to finish…I wanted to see what amongst the two turns out to be better..i had read “Wheels” by the same author and frankly due to all the technical stuff (an employee of Tata Motors would have enjoyed it more).. I didn’t find it very enjoyable..it was okay dokay..but this Airport had my interest right from the first page..and I had left the novel at a very interesting stage…a stowaway(for dumbasses a stowaway is a person who fools the airport people and manages to board a flight without any ticket….and I thought that its only possible on trains), a psycho bankrupt(who has a dynamite bomb in his attache case n he wants to get insurance of 300 million by bombing the flight), a pilot who has made a stewardess pregnant (how to convey that abortion is the best move for both of them without offending and hurting her sentiments)…and down on the airport, its chief head (whose marriage is at the brink of break-up ), an ex-chief(who helds himself responsible for a crash some years back and has not come out of his guilt yet). I was just praying when I left my very interesting novel in the midst of all these complexities that I hope it doesn’t turn out to be anti-climactic. And man, was it superb…the bankrupt psycho did manage to bomb the plane…for what follows next, read the novel. I bet u ll enjoy it….and now I m dying to read “HOTEL” again by arthur hailey.

One foot note…Arthur Hailey’s both novels have a striking familiarity in terms of wives of high-post executives finding solace in other men’s company since their husbands have work as their first wife…will it happen to me also?? No chance…I pray so…

Cats and Dogs

2006-04-28T01:40:00.000-07:00

It’s a story about cats and dogs…

There was this CAT and there was me like a dog chasing it for the last 2 years.

1st try managed to get some cool calls(with utmost modesty, getting calls is not at all difficult for me..as saumya says”100% conversion rate”)..but genuinely, not to my surprise, couldn’t convert even one.i say not to my surprise because at that time I had that feeling that for cracking GD/PI you either have to have excellent communication skills or you need to be a genuine leader having genuinely(meaning…not organizing events in college and crap like that) done something in your college life..both of which I didn’t possess. I tried, though, it was not as if I picked up my hands in the first go only, mugging up the capitals of states(yeah, at one stage I was that bad),CMs of various states.,reading (though, obviously not enjoying) newspapers and that big word, EDITORIALS…and at the end of the day, feeling quite learned to my pleasure..though I didn’t know why but I had that hunch that I ll not make it…

2nd try..again hundred percent conversion rate…but this time I had started my GD/PI preparations right from the word go..but this time it was different..there was saumya who was ready to discuss any social issues…I was pleased to tell her that I had the facts ready..but when I started discussing the topic with her,I knew I was lacking something…that something was perspective.my initial 2-3 discussions with her were quite a failure…with she saying that I get intimidated easily…that went into my head..n then after reading editorials from umpteen newspapers(yus!!believe me I used to read the editorials of at least 7-8 papers daily) I started mulling over wat I read…taking a neutral stand n discussing all the possible pro n cons of the topic…

And then the results started pouring..after IIFT n FMS debacle, I was very very afraid…what went wrong I couldn’t figure out. I felt strange. At one point, I felt like crying, at other point ,for no obvious reason, going n hitting my boss(seriously!!!not kidding)…then I thought, this was my most serious attempt..something will come..n it (or rather, they) came as NITIE n SJMSOM(IITD was just a backup plan).

When mufeed said after my result “how ll u work there, teri to yahaan kaam karne kee aadat hee chhot gayi hai”..i didn’t say anything but I wanted to yell”man,there were days when I havnt taken bath for 4 days in this humid climate of mumbai just to save time for my CAT studies, my social life was almost zero then, no movies, no hanging around, less(well..cant say no here) booze” ….
And today when my mom asks me everytime I call her up “beta job kyun quit kar rahe ho, MBA ke baad job lag jaaayegee naa”..i feel like hugging her.

ORKUT

2006-04-27T21:48:00.000-07:00

pre MBA results...the 1st site that i used to open was pagalguy...very informative...
post MBA results...the 1st site i open is orkut now....n whoever i sent an invitation to, no matter how reluctant,ended up enjoying orkut.

wats that which makes orkut so enjoyable apart from the obvious fact that nothing is hidden here...u can spy on anyone's orkut life????

i think in my case it is something called, if i can put it bluntly,individuality crisis....to know at what rate my scrap count is increasing,who alll have added me as their fans, i am popular amongst how many ppl,how much %trusty,cool n sexy i am, who all hav written testimonial for me without my saying so...

And thats wat happens in real life too....to overcome individuality crisis...we work hard in office....to get noticed, we excel in either studies or sports(depending on wat our strengths are)..and if at neither we are good, then we try to get noticed by organizing events, participating in extra curriculars, and if we are even bad in that field we try to be popular amongst our friends.....

THE ANNUAL C&A SALES MEET

2006-04-26T03:38:00.000-07:00

To go or not to go….that was the question….
The annual sales meet of L&T C&A …where I was superficiously invited by RLM(my boss)…
Explaining in each detail to sujal the complete address where the meeting was supposed to be n not even once looking to me…
Till morning I was in dilemma…even sujal was not able to tell me properly..sometimes saying come n sometimes don’t…
Then I thought I m going to do MBA n there will b harsher n tougher situations ready to slap me on my face…so I shall go..
And man was it bad….every moment I felt like puking on CRS n PRM(MSS was not present ..so luckily he was saved)
They were discussing things without even the slightest realization of my presence..thank god sujal was there…had at least some time pass moments with her…
N then trupti comes n asks “rachit..y r u here?” I replied(it seems..just to please her..because that was the answer she was expecting) “khaaana khaane”..n she giggled…I didn’t dislike her or anything at that moment…but I just felt …dunno how to put it…hurt.

I m not trying to create a sympathy wave here….i just raelized that day it is all your doing that slaps u back on your face…(had I been little alert…not saying workoholic…jus a little alert..cos all the so called workoholics in C&A also do the same thing here…it would have been an enjoyable day)
1 more year here in C&A.. I would have died.

FRIENDS

2006-04-26T00:13:00.000-07:00

my first blog for those who are of utmost importance for me...
family is by default...
apart from them
my friends...
uptill my 12th standard..i was that type of guy who had no interest in "making friends"...will go to school, come back, eat, sleep n study..the idea of night staying in some friend's place was horrifying for me..
i had my friends..but they were limited to hanging around the canteen only..

n then the 4 years that changed the whole perspective of my life..
i lived in the hostel slept-ate-laughes-fought with people who i have never earlier met in my life...n then these were the persons who became the inseparable part of me....

when saumya says she hates classifying friends...i dun agree with her..bcos i feel that wat u can share with ,say, mufeed(in my case) cannot be shared with utkarsh...though both of them are my good friends...u can talk about ur family problems, ur love lives without any pretence with only a certain group of people not with each n every one of those with whom u r hanging about...

n 2 weeks ago..when john n soni said they ll b soon leaving the room n i ll b all alone in the room...the idea was stinking ....to think that i ll b all alone evn for a few days...though john is a good friend n soni, not even that, yet the idea to separate from them after 10 months was not at all encouraging...