10 Commandments for a PG

Hi,
Well, as someone who has been living as a PG (Paying Guest) for a better part of last 3 years, I daresay to be able to lay a claim about knowing what it takes to be a decent PG. Here are a few of my observations... Feel free to comment or contradict.

1. Thou shalt be a Paying guest.
   Money matters! And seriously… Pay the rent on time, no matter what.
2. Thou shalt be a paying Guest.
   No matter how amiable your hosts are... never forget that fact that you are still a guest. Avoid publicly passing judgmental comments about people around you or offering unsolicited views & opinions about events that you may witness in the house.
3. Thou shalt respect their privacy.
   It goes without saying that you shouldn't trespass on obviously off-limit premises... bedrooms, study-rooms, and kitchen (unless you are dining with them).
   Once in a while, go off for a weekend, and inform them in advance. They would really welcome this respite from you ;-)
4. Live up to the trust.
   Sometimes, your hosts would be away, leaving you in charge of the house. Avoid bringing over your buddies for overnight stay during your hosts absence. They are sure to find out from your neighbours.
5. … And expect the same in return!
   If your hosts trespass your privacy, do not hesitate to object, in a mild manner.
6. Be a good companion.
   The major driving force behind having someone as paying guest is financial gain, people also crave for something more. Try to be someone who is a pleasure to be around. If there are kids in the house, get them chocolates (…once in a while), if there are youngsters, discuss latest movies, matches (and career options) , discuss current affairs with landlord/land-lady, volunteer to get medications for the elderly (ensuring that they pay the bills!). If the family invites you out for a dinner/movie, accept graciously, and get something in the interval. If relatives of your host visit, and involve you in the talks, invite them to YOUR room and play host.
   In short, do not be a moron holed up in your room all the while.
7. … But be aware of emotional complications.
   Bear in mind that you would be staying with these people only for a while, so avoid getting emotionally involved with them... esp. if the family has someone your age and of opposite sex.
8. Use a minimum of shared resources.
   TV, Computer, Bike... try to minimise sharing any of these. If you cannot live without one, invest and get one for yourself.
9. Indulge in your vices out of your PG room.
   Smoking is bad. Smoking in your PG room is worse.
   Same applies to alcohol consumption, tobacco-chewing.... and any other vices you may have.
10. Leave your PG room better than it was
    When the day comes to bid adieu to your PG room, give a bit more than just the rent... an inexpensive wall-clock, a wall-piece... leave your memory behind.
    

An Open Letter to Forward-Enthusiasts

On February 3, 1976, a computer club newsletter published a letter sent by Bill Gates. Gates was furious that the programs written by him and Paul Allen were used by software enthusiasts for free. More details about this letter can be seen at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Letter_to_Hobbyists

Well, am no Gates. But am as passionate about my writing as he is about his software. I feel equally enraged when there are more than a few mails of mine being forwarded without any mention of their origin. So, based on that famous letter of Gates, here is my own letter to forward-enthusiasts.
------------------------------------

Dear Forwarder,
I do not know you, and wouldn't have bothered to bother you, if it weren't for an act of yours that has caused me a couple of sleepless nights.

You forward mails. No problem with that. Indeed, if it wasn't for your forwarded mails, most of us wouldn't have known so many wonderful things happening all around.
No sarcasm here.

The problem arises when you start forwarding mails as your own... Mails that someone else has taken efforts to think about and spent a few minutes of his/her life to write down.

When you are watching a movie, enjoying a night out with your friends, or simply sleeping, someone is at the computer, tirelessly giving finishing touches to a small write-up that they have been thinking whole day over. Thinking isn't easy. It wrecks the mind. Writing isn't easy. It takes time... time that could have possibly been spent in having a meal at leisure.

They mail to you. And what you do with it? You simply remove the author's name, and shoot it off to a hundred people.
I think that's cruel.

Every time you forward a mail without giving due credit to its author, you are denying someone of their right. You are creating one more reason for them to feel like never writing again. You deprive them of a few words of appreciation that may have gone their way.

I do not know what motivates you to do this. I do not want to know, either.
But I do hope you realize what you are doing.

So should you be forwarding chain mails? No.
But before you hit the send button, see that you have kept the author's name or e-mail ID. If you receive a forwarded mail, before forwarding it, keep the sender's mail ID. If you wish, feel free to make changes to your heart's content, but add a line towards the end (based on a mail by...). This not only gives credit to the author, but also makes him/her accountable for the same.

May be am expecting too much. But that's the least you can do.

-Gautam.

Peasant in a cyber-caffe

Hi,

It was a Sunday evening. I was in a cyber-caffe near my PG rooms, checking my mails, and reading posts on the various Yahoo groups that I am a member of.

Just then, a middle-aged person walked in. He was bald-headed, wearing khaadi clothes and a dhoti.. In short, not the kind of guy you usually find in a cyber-caffe.

The peasant guy walked straight to the caffe-owner. The owner nodded to him, and logged in to a G-Mail account. He read some mails from the inbox and conveyed those to the peasant guy, who listened attentively. This activity over, the peasant told the owner some matters, such as, the heat here has been unbearable, but we have had some showers during last few days; the mother is well, the sister is enjoying summer holidays, etc... which the cyber-caffe guy typed and sent off as an e-mail.

The peasant thanked the owner and left.

I was damn curious to know what was going on. Being somewhat friendly with the cyber-caffe owner, I asked him what it was all about.

It seems that the peasant person's son has got admission to IISc-Bangalore on basis of some scholarship. The family doesn't have a telephone, and with postal department striving hard to live up to its reputation of 'snail-mail', letters would have taken years to reach.

So the young boy came up with a bright idea: he created a G-Mail account in name of his father and provided the cyber-caffe owner with the ID and password. About once a month, the father comes to the caffe, the owner logs into the G-mail account and reads the mails sent by the son, translating them into Marathi, of course. Next, he types the matter as dictated by the father and sends the reply to son.

If you ask me, this must be the best application of IT in a country like India..

I do not know whom to applaud.. the son, for this fantastic scheme; or the father, for taking up this adventure at such an old age; or the cybe-caffe owner, who doesn't charge a penny for his services...

Norway Narrative...

I believe in destiny. How else would one explain the fact that one fine morning I found myself being transported from the scorching heat of Nagpur to chilly snows of Norway?

Infospectrum India Pvt Ltd gave me an opportunity to work for a month with Applied Radar Physics, as a technical writer. ARP is basically a group of scientists coming together to develop high-end radars. The company is located at Kjeller Teknologisk, near Oslo. The complex also houses a dozen other R & D organizations, specializing in a wide array of fields, right from biotech to nanotech… and then, there is a nuclear reactor as well!

Rather than writing about what food I ate ( which actually wasn’t much more than bread, butter & cheese) and the places I saw (to put it in brief, the entire Oslo), this article will focus on what I learnt as a person.

The most important thing I learnt was some good ethics. Mr. José Navarro had informed he would pick me up at my hotel at 9 am on first day. I was thinking, ‘he would probably be late by half an hour at least, after all he is the Managing Director!’. Imagine my surprise when, upon descending the stairs at 9 am, I found him waiting for me in the hotel lobby!

At work, I hardly found anyone moving about during work hours. In fact for first few days, I was the one who was most often seen moving in and out of the room for trips to coffee machine, etc. The others would rarely budge from their seats, except for work-related matters.

One thing I realized was the immense amount of work you can get done in a single day if you really focus hard and get cracking. I mean, it’s really, really amazing how much time and mental processing power we waste by just letting our minds wander during work.

Lunch time discussions were something I always looked forward too, for they were never about mundane matters. Everyone present (except me, perhaps...) being highly qualified, the talks were always informative and interesting. Mr. Navarro would say something like, “Yesterday on Discovery Channel they showed about radio-pulsars.” And then others would chip in with what they knew. Each one of them has traveled far and wide and it was a treat to hear their experiences. Being in such an elite company naturally widens your thinking horizons and you begin to read more, learn more, so that you aren’t left out!!

Another point I noted was minimal reporting procedures. If José had to tell something to any of his team-members, he would just walk in and say it. In fact most of the communication was verbal. Of course, important information was indeed passed through mails. Perhaps, ARP being a small group and everyone being senior person, verbal communication must have worked fine. But still, I do feel that sometimes we spend more time in writing mails than doing actual work.

Norwegians in general are very, very courteseous and well- mannered. They go to amazing extent to help others, even a stranger like me. And they smile a lot... it comes naturally to them. I would be walking on the streets and many passer-by’s would break into a smile, and say "Good Morning" or something. It really feels very nice. I tried this a few times after coming back to India, and was greeted with weird looks...

This visit has taught me a lot professionally and also made me a better individual. Living away from “your” people, you begin to appreciate even the simple pleasures like a chai or a warm sunshine early in morning.

For Norway visit photos, you are invited to browse through my photo album on Flickr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/gautamsoman

[Review] Dhoom -2

Hi,
Well, before you begin to read, a note. All opinions in this post are completely personal, and you are most welcome to disagree with them. In fact I would like to know why you think am wrong. So here we begin...

I watched Dhoom-2, and was positively bored with it. It doesn't matter that the film has received thunderous opening all over, and might even turn out to be one of the major hits of the year. In a country where a film like KANK becomes a hit, anything is possible.

Dhoom-2 is full of action, the adrenalin-pumping type. All characters are hyper-active. When they are not racing on bikes, scaling sky-scrappers or dangling from heights, they just aren't doing anything.

Songs are foot-thumping. "Crazy Kiya Re" has a catchy beat and the Dhoom Theme sounds racy.

Hrithik looks good, but then, when does he not? He has puts in an earnest performance, as usual. The problem is: how far can even he go when the character itself doesn't have much bandwidth?

Aishwarya sizzles in skimpy clothes, and also manages to do what she has avoided doing so far. Alas, the scene lacks the intensity that should have been associated with it.

It is clear that the director has first decided upon the action-sequences and then woven the story (or whatever there is of it) around those. For example: the scene where Hrithik asks Aishwarya to jump from a cliff if she really trusts him, etc etc. Needless to say, she jumps, (followed by him, of course), and then they are both dangling over a few thousand feet. Was there really any need for this?

Uday Chopra is excruciatingly irritating. Someone should tell him that it takes an Arshad Warsi to do the role of a "Circuit."
And pray tell me what was Bipasha Basu doing in this film? After a film like "Corporate," why does she need to do a role like this?

Abhishek Bachchan has put in a decent performance. There is a silent menace about him, and he is increasingly becoming effective with his eyes. Nevertheless, he doesn't get the sympathy of viewers.

Dialogue is like written in the Jurassic ages. The line "Do you trust me?" is repeated like 327 times, thus rendering it like worthless, and in fact a bit like funny, heh heh!

If you are really going to watch this movie (as I suspect you will), leave your thinking apparatus at home. It's not of much use while watching this one.
Too much style, too little substance.

My friends as well as my brother (he doesn't count among my friends, you see) seem to have thoroughly enjoyed the movie. Moreover, they also insist that Dhoom-2 is way better than Dhoom-1. I haven't watch Dhoom-1 yet, and now, there is just no question of watching it.

-G.

User-friendly Error Messages

Well, in order to make our application more user-friendly, we have implemented following error –messages:

When application starts:
"All the functionalities in this application are imaginary and bear no resemblance to those specified in the FDS. Run this application at your own risk. We are not liable for any mental, emotional, physical, financial, or spiritual injury caused by it. May God Bless You... Amen."

When user tries to edit an object created by another user:
"दुसरों के object को हाथ क्यों लगा रहा है बे?"

When user successfully completes some task:
"बधाई हो बधाई !! लगता है कि आप जितने बेवकूफ़ दिखते हो उतने हो नही..."

When user tries to delete a object:
"टपका डालू क्या साले को? एक बार अच्छी तरह सोच ले!"

Limited functionality:
"Dekh bhidu, jyaada time nahi tha isliye apun ne itnaaich implement kiya hai. Ab isse ki kaam chalaa lena, kya?"

Un-handled exception:
"आयला… घापा हो गया रे!!"

Application crash:
"Aapka aaplikesan bhasak gayela hai. Try one of the fallowing:
1.Restart applikesan

2. Restart machine, restart applikesan

3.Restart electric supply to your building, restart machine, restart applikesan.
Fir bhi nahi chal rahaa toh write a letter to us and send it through a pigeon."

If user tries to seek assistance by clicking on Help menu:
Online Help provides details in a very user-friendly way… For Ex:

"Kill the currently running thread by terminating its process in Processes tab of Windows Task Manager. Next, edit the InterfaceService.Config file and restart IS & SS services from Services under admin tools of Windows Control Panel."


When user closes Help:
"अब दोबारा मत पुछना !"

-G.

Walking down the road, I saw her...

I am walking down the road, hands in pockets, mind lost in thought.
And then, I see her.

She is sitting in the veranda of a tiny little bungalow… looking absent-mindedly at the traffic flowing by, lost in her own world, oblivious to my presence.

She is beautiful… most beautiful... I want to go near her… but dare not, lest she might go away...

So all I do is rest my chin on the compound wall and continue to stare at her…

It is the moment like this when I regret not having a camera-with-mobile (or mobile-with-camera, or whatever). If I had one now, I could have captured this beauty and then made my friends jealous. In fact, I would have got it framed and placed it on my bedside table.

With me inclined against the compound-wall of a roadside bungalow, the passer-bys are giving me strange looks … but who gives them a damn?… I am busy savouring one of beauties in the world…

Should I take her home? My brother would undoubtedly be in love with her; as much as I am now… even my father wouldn't mind her having in the house... but … I have no doubts my mother would kick her right out of the door… even the thought pains me…

Perhaps mindful of my stare, she turns her head in my direction… and I experience love at second sight… from such a distance , it is difficult to tell the shade of her eyes… is it blue, is it green? Or is it something in between? Whatever the shade it might be, it's just beautiful.

I keep staring at her, and she keeps staring at me. I smile. Even try to blow out a small whistle… no reaction on her part…

And then, a dog barks out somewhere in the vicinity.
And the cat, at which I have been staring for so long, bounds inside the house.

I cast a reproachful glance at the dog.
And then, hands in pocket, mind lost in thought, I resume walking.

-G.

Of Angelina-kaku & Brad-baapu….

The city of Pune is honoured to host a couple of universal fame, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, and their equally eminent kid, Shiloh Nouvel ( by the way, is it a boy's name or a girl's name?) However, some people have been objecting to the media coverage accorded to this couple. Being one of those close to Brangelina, it is my duty to allay some doubts.

Objection 1: Why so much hype about just some film-stars?
Answer: Doesn't our honourable PM get covered in US media? Our media is just trying to pay back. So what if our PMs get mentioned on third or fourth page; and our national dailies have been devoting headlines with photos to Brangelina. It's a minor point.


Objection 2: They have come for their own work. Why should we bother about them?
Answer: it's time to reveal a secret: The real mission of Brangelina in India is to eradicate poverty. Why else would they pay Rs 500/- for an auto-rickshaw ride that would have normally cost Rs 60/- ? They just wanted to give to away their hard –earned money to the needy. It's another thing that they have earned more publicity by giving 500/- to an auto driver than they would have got by giving 500/- to any ad agency.

Objection 3: Why so many reporters to cover them?
Answer: Isn't it great that at least 327 people have some part-time employment? On top of it, they have also been trained for free in adventurous activities, such as climbing walls, scaling roof-tops and running after auto-rickshaws trying to get a glimpse of this couple.

Last heard:
- Diapers used by baby Shiloh Nouvel ( some one please enlighten me about whether it is a boy's name or a girl's...) are going to be put on auction.
- The auto-rickshaw in which the trio took a ride will be placed in Raja Kelkar museum, under a special section called "Brangelina Chariot."

-G.

On Thought Management….

It was the time ...

when Williams Gates III, better known as Bill Gates, was just a kid. One day, his mother saw him brooding over something and asked him casually, “What are you doing, Bill?” The little Bill shot back, “I am thinking, Mom... Have you ever tried thinking?” Some may see arrogance in this reply, but I do feel that the boy had asked a valid question. Do we really ever think about the way we think?

A salaried person takes stock of his/her earnings and expenses by end of each month. He/she also sets up the budget for next month. A business-person keeps a daily account of sales achieved and targets for future.
Those more serious about their career and profession do the same with their time… they note down the hours worked on a project/task, and set aside time for entertainment, family and social matters.

All this is indeed very important and it certainly helps.

The point is:

Why not apply the same technique to our thoughts as well?

If we note down the issues we think of every day, the number turns out to be a huge one, but most of the topics are highly mundane. We literally waste the enormous power that we are endowed with.

First of all,

how much of our thinking is ‘actionable’ thinking? For example: we look at the photos of hunks like Hritik or Salman and think:” Wow, what a body…” But unless and until we convert such kind of though into an action-oriented thought like: “Hmm, I will join the gym from tomorrow”, it doesn’t help us at all.

Next point is...

“Looped Thinking”. I have been planning to do some saving for last six months. But whenever I begin to think of that topic, I go through same motions each time and end up at the same point. Thoughts should be like building-blocks. We should build upon our previous thoughts, rather than going through the same cycles, time & again.

How about...

treating our thoughts as tangible entities, just like money & time? Our attitude needs to be like: This week I will think of these matters and reach some conclusion, by week-end I will clear up these pending thoughts and not waste my time on them again, I will start thinking about these new ideas…..

Sure, this will not be easy at first.

We might feel like wandering off into our own free-wheeling ways. But as Buddha has said, “Our thoughts are our destiny.” A close look at most of the highly successful persons reveals that not only do they manage their time and money wisely; they pay an equal attention to their thought-processes as well.

Gautam's Instructions For Life...

Hi,
Well, After attaining the ripe old age of 25 years, I feel that the world must benefit from my sagely advice. Without a helping hand, there is a fear that the young generation may get lost in the dark by-lanes of this treachorous world.

Here come Gautam's Instructions For Life...

1. Never, ever give all your outdoor clothes for ironing all at once.
[Once I had to miss a movie since couldn't possibly go out in a banyan and half-pant.]

2. Before you enter a hotel, check whether your pocket contains a wallet.
If it does, check further if the wallet contains cash/ credit card. Better safe than sorry.

3. When a girl smiles and waves at you, before you wave back, turn around to check whether she isn't waving at someone approaching from behind you.
Follow same procedure even if the above-mentioned girl happens to be your own g/f.
Better safe than sorry.

4. Most people drive recklessly but think cautiously. Try doing the opposite.

5. While working in kitchen, remember that common salt is the most important ingredient of any dish. It is also the most commonly forgotten one.

6. If you get an urge to share your innermost secrets with someone, share them with your dog.
A cat will also do, except that it wont pay much attention to what you are saying.

7. Defrag your computer once in a while. Do the same with your brain.

8. Money matters.

9. Never say you are fond of kids, unless your dream job is that of a babysitter.

10. Tears cleanse the eye-glands. They work the same way on your soul.

Yours,
-G.

My Letter to Filmfare

Hi,
well, here is a copy of the mail I dashed off to Filmfare minutes ago. I dont mind whether they publish it or not, but felt that I had to vent off my anger. Would request you to do the same, if you feel equally strongly about it.
urs,
-G.
----------------------------------------------------------------

To:
The Editor,
Filmfare

Sir,
I am a regular reader of Filmfare since a decade. While going through the latest issue ( June 2006), I was shocked to find the obituary of Naushad Ali being wrapped up in just 2 pages. The piece written on him did little justice to this legendary composer.

Films come and go, film-stars rise and fall, it is the music which outlives all of them. Naushad-saab has mesmerized millions of Indians with his music in a career spanning six long decades. He deserves a much better tribute from Filmfare, which I perceive as a film-magazine for the classes, rather than the masses.
Better late than never... Could you please share with us whatever material you have on Naushad-saab? I would suggest something like vital stats about the films he composed for, what he had to say about the singers who sang for him and what they had to say about him, some intersting anecdotes about Naushad, the person... and above all, as many rare photographs you can find !!

...and If you can come up with a dedicated issue, I am sure it will turn out to be a collector's item.

With high hopes & regards,
-Gautam Soman,
Goa-India.

The Good Earth ? ... Or The Tyrant Nature ?

Hi,

In our culture, we treat Earth as mother goddess . Indeed all the forces of nature: the sun, the soil, the air, the water have been granted a divine status in almost all civilizations. They have been looked upon as benefactors , caring guardians.

There is a theory which even accords earth a life of its own. According to the Gaia hypothesis, earth itself is a living being, and all tectonic movements are its 'life-processes'.

This is one extreme.

On the other hand, there is a school of thought which posits that nature as such has never been kind towards human beings, or towards any living being, for that matter. We and other species have survived solely due to our tenacity and adaptive qualities.

If we stop all the works which 'disrupt the ecological balance' , will there be no more earthquakes & volcanoes, floods & draughts, tsunamis & hurricanes ? In fact some of the world's most devastating natural disasters have occurred in the era when the industrial pollution was in its infancy.

Yours,

- G.

"Word"-Power !!

Hi,
Well,
As a budding technical writer,
I have been paying some serious attention to various authoring tools which aid in writing. The first thing to focuss attention was obviously the software which we have all been using for atleast last decade.. MS-Word.

At the end of exploring it,
I have come out thoroughly impressed with this power-packed software... One can safely say that a normal user uses hardly 10% of its functions.. an expert may use 20 % and a real power user may claim a 30- or 40% proficiency in all its features.. not more than that !!
Almost everything you can think of using has been incorporated into the software... right from automated Table of Contents to automated Indexing...

I urge you that whenever you have free time, visit Help section of MS_Word and go thru its index Help Contents.. there's enough stuff there to keep you busy fror at least a month.

Apart from the joy of exploration and learning on your own, this exercise will practically help you in drafting more elegant writing material.

Actually,
I am thinking of sending off a appreciative mail to MS-Office team for the excellent job they have done.

Hail Microsoft !!

Yours,
-G.

The Argumentive Human

Hi,

"The Argumentive Indian" is a book written by Nobel-laureate Amartya Sen, which has topped the best-seller list for quite some time now. I haven't read it as yet; however the title itself was enough to set off a chain of thought.

Here am jotting down a few points as regards arguments & debates.

1. There are many issues on which our opinions are formed almost at a subconscious level, without ever thinking intentionally about it.

A good example in this case would be of Bajirao Peshwa, the second. General perception about him is that he was a useless ruler, spent most of his time in luxuries and was primarily responsible for the decline & fall of Maratha Empire.

Not being a historian, I do not know how much of this is true or false. The point here is not whether doosra Bajirao was a good ruler or not, but that a majority of people tend to blame him without having the vaguest idea why they are saying so.

2. As thinking animals, human beings are supposed to arrive at the conclusion after following a logical line of reasoning. However, many a times people first stake out one view-point or other and then seek only those arguments which would support their stand.

A good example in this case would be Narmada Bachao Andolan in particular or environmentalists in general. These people have already decided in their minds that modern technology is bad. So an open dialogue is impossible [in most cases]. It's just like gravitational lensing ... things look distorted when looked thru any kind of lens.

3. Some people have an incorrigible habit of going against conventional views. They get hailed as 'creative minority'. Nothing wrong with it, as long as it has some sound basis. But in most cases, people resort to it just to 'stand out from the rest of them.' Only because someone is saying something different from majority opinion doesn't mean he is right or what he is opting for is good, unless proved so. Till that is done, he ought to be treated only as being 'different'.

4. And then, there are people who just have to say something to everything that you say. Never mind that it may have nothing what-so-ever to do with the point under consideration; they just gotta have the last word in discussion.

For example, you say that " Chitale bakarwadi tastes really good." A representative of above-mentioned breed will say, "But Kaka Halwai shreekhand is even better." You may wonder how two dis-similar products can be compared... but that's beside the point. He has said something and that's all that matters. Another example .. You may say " Sachin Tendulkar is a great batsman." and the reply would be, "Don Bradman was even better."

Note that what they have said isn't essentially wrong, but they have side-tracked the original issue.

Yours,

-G.

Yaaahooo !!

Hi,

Nope .... this mail is not about Jerry Yang, the founder of Yahoo !

It is about Shammi Kapoor ... yeah, you got that right :-D

Shammi Kapoor songs have always been a delight to watch. In fact I suspect that producers brought out movies only to film Shammi Kapoor's hysterics and paid scant attention to story, script and other non-essential matters.[Of course, some of his films like "Teesri Manzil" are said to be among the very good ones.]

There is hardly any film of his whose songs are not popular even today. and if I may say so, Mohd Rafi's voice was a major factor which helped him in getting established in film industry.

Shammi Kapoor perhaps choreographed his own songs, and he danced with total abandon throwing caution to air. Indeed, it would be a crime to call his body-movements a 'dance'... but nevertheless public loved it and for good reason. He brought a youthful energy to the screen and liberated movies from the sighs and moans of Rajendra Kumar and Company.

Doordarshan had the good sense to air a special 2-hour program on ocassion of Shammi Kapoor's 60th birthday. We were having dinner then, and none of us budged from our place even to wash the hands, until the programme was over. It was a rare treat indeed !!

I have about 60 audios and a dozen videos of Shammi Kapoor songs, as of now. The idea is to create a DVD of all his songs ( all videos). Nothing would be more entertaining, ha ha !!Some of the best songs are those which have O P Nayyar/Shankar-Jaikishan at music and Rafi-Asha at the playback, with Shammi bouncing up n down on their tunes.

Yours,

-G.

Aamir & NBA

Hi,

Well, About a week ago, there was news that Bollywood actor Amir Khan has come out in support of Narmada Bachao Andolan. As someone who has always admired Amir's movies ( except some classics like "Mela"), I was most curious as to what made him take this stance.

Reading his interview, however, left me in a state of dismay.

Amir Khan said that his support was purely on basis of ''emotional bonding with those displaced by the project'', and he candidly admitted that he was ''not aware of technicalites involved in the issue''.

This wont do !

When celebreties like Amir Khan or for that matter Amitabh Bacchan, come out in support ( or in protest) of an issue, they have the power to influence the public opinion on that particular topic. As such they are expected to make their decisions based on logic & reasoning, rather than get swayed away by emotion.

In this regard, I would strongly recommend the following book, which provides a solid factual support as to why projects like Sardar Sarovar are highly essential.

Samagra Maate Narmade

-- Dr Dattaprasad Dabholkar

This book gives an exhaustive account of the 'struggle' for Narmada Bachao Andolan... the socio-political as well as historical and geological background, the cause and effect and how it was lead by Medha Patkar, Sundarlal Bahuguna and other social activists, including Arundhati Roy.

As mentioned in the book, Supreme Court of India, while rejecting the appeal of Narmada Bachao Samiti, remarked, "It was not a public interest litigation, but a publicity interest litigation."

One can't help but be dismayed by how a well-meant campaign has been lead astray by few people who are not ready to push up their ideological 'burkhaas' and look at the practical aspects without getting emotionally charged.

As a person I have much respect for the social activists mentioned here.. Medha-ji, Sundarlal-ji, also our own Anna Hazaare-ji. These people are gold in themselves... but when they allow willy politicians to make use of them... well, that's when things begin to go wrong.

This is NOT to say that I am insensitive to the plight of displaced people. I am also not saying that projects should be set up at the cost of lives and property of innocent people. Indeed they ought to get more than sufficient re-imbursement for their troubles... but when the activists say that NO TO BIG DAMS, NO TO ATOMIC POWER STATIONS,.... well, someone like me begins to have serious doubts.

A couple of decades ago, a huge hue n cry arose over Salaawli dam in my home-state, Goa. Activists were crying hoarse in the name of some ancient temples. But Govt of Goa remained firm, and the dam was built. Today it serves as the chief source of water to almost half the state... and am damn sure that people who protested against it then are enjoying the benefits now.

Rather than make an issue out of short-term problems, we need to look at long-term benefits.

Yours,

-G.

Memorization: Out of Fashion?

Hi,

Well, a couple of weeks ago, Rahul, Aparna & me had a free-wheeling talkathon. For some reason, the issue of memorization cropped up and Rahul remarked,

" Why is it essential to memorize?”

I wasn't surprised. My office-colleague Prasad had passed a similar comment earlier. He had quoted Albert Einstein as saying, "Why bother to remember facts which can be looked up in a reference book?"And I had shot back, “Percy, buddy... Einstein could say something like that because he was THE Einstein. What are mere mortals like you and me saving our precious memory for?? To store juicy gossip about film-stars and trivia about our sports-persons?"

I, for one, am all for memorization. It is a part of learning process and highly essential for better thinking and decision-making.

Rahul's contention was that most of our decisions are logic-based. True! But to arrive at a conclusion you have to make use of some information, which isn't possible unless you have a knowledge- base ready at hand... i.e. in your brain.

And reference-books may not be accessible every place, every time.

As a kid, I was made to recite tables from 1 to 30 every evening. I hated it then, but today they have indeed made life much simpler. If an answer to something like 19 x 7 is needed, while my colleagues scramble for their calculators or go Start->Programs->Accessories-> Calculator, I have already noted down 133 and moved on.

I am NOT saying that you must memorize each and every piece of information you may come across. But surely it's not too much to expect to learn by-heart a few basic things which you might need in your personal or professional life. A physicist would be expected to know values of fundamental constants, A chemist would be expected to know valencies of major elements.

To say that you can look up these things in a reference book means either you are highly prodigious or.... in most of the cases, plain lazy.

Also memorization is not hard work. If you love the subject, it's quite easy to recall what you have learnt.

A few days back, I had gone to one of our relative’s in Pune. As we sat there talking, the girl in the house was solving some integration problems and was stuck up on a particular derivative. Having learnt derivatives almost by rote in my HSSC, I couldn’t help pointing out the answer to her and was rewarded with an appreciative smile.

…. So you see, there are some un-expected benefits too!

Yours,

- G.

"Meri Aawaz Suno....."

27th December 2000.

It was a chilly night and I was huddled up with a book. Just then the phone rang."Quick! Switch on the TV! " said she, "Doordarshan channel."

Dumbfounded, I did as instructed.On TV, There was a bald man in a suit, standing before the mike and waiting for the narrator to finish.Thinking it to be some kind of joke, I was about to turn away, when the words came out ...

"Suhaani raat dhal chuki .... na jaane tum kab aaoge

Jahaan ki rut badal chuki... na jaane tum kab aaoge"
And I stood there, mesmerized.... listening to one song after the other.

The programme was a recording from the Doordarshan Archives... and the man whom I had just listened to was one of the legends in Hindi Film Music .... Mohammad Rafi.

Next day, I went to our local music shop and bought a couple of his audio-cassettes. After listening to them, I wanted to have more, so asked my friends to lend me what they had of him. Very soon, I was listening to him day-in and day-out.

The reason Rafi appeals to me is his awesome vocal range. He has sung some of the best songs in almost every genre of contemporary music. Be it :

• Qawwali ( Parda Hai Parda),
• Saddy ( Din Dhal Jaaye Haay),
• Playful ( Achcha Ji Mein Haari),
• Romantic ( Abhi Na Jaao Chhodkar),
• Ghazal ( Koi Sagar Dil Ko Behelata Nahi),
• Classical (Madhuban me Radhika Nache Re),
• Soulful ( Mann Re Tu Kaahe Na Dheer Dhare ),
• Devotional (Mann Tarpat Hari Darshan Ko Aaj),
• Patriotic ( Ab tumhare hawaale watan saathiyon),
• Mischevous ( Aaye Ga Aaye Aaye Ga Ye Kya Ho Gaya )...

..... You name it and you have it.
As my net-pal Varsha rightly says, devotional songs in Hindi films are often too melodramatic, but listen to the ones rendered by Rafi, and you can't help feeling drawn into it.
I am also quite fond of Kishore Kumar, Mukesh and other male singers. However IMHO, there are very few songs of these which Rafi couldn't have done an equal justice to ... but there is quite a huge number of songs of Rafi which no one other singer could have sung with such a panache.
Apart from being a music virtuoso, Rafi the person was also equally as good. He was humble, a tee-totaller, and deeply religious. There are n-number of anecdotes about how he helped upcoming music directors by singing for them almost for free.
Some people accuse him of over-exposure. To some extent I do agree that he could have done without some trashy songs. But there might have been some compulsions.
Today, I have a collection of about 500 of his songs. Indeed, there was a time when I thought I had heard him all .... but discovered very soon that my collection is a drop from an ocean.
It's futile to list top favourite songs since they keep on changing as per my mood and atmosphere, but there are a few which would make the list anytime...

1. Suhaani raat dhal chuki

2. Ek haseen shaam ko

3. Abhi na jaao chhodkar

4. Paaon chhu lene do

5. Aapke haseen rukh pe aaj naya noor hai

Mohd Rafi passed away five months before I was born. They say his funeral procession was the biggest one the city of Mumbai has ever witnessed. Though he may have ceased to exist in physical sense, his songs continue to accompany us in our moments of joy and sorrow, triumph & tragedy.

To quote lyrics of one of his own songs ....

" Tum muze yun bhula na paaoge

Jab kabhi bhi sunoge geet mere

Tum mere sung yunhi gun-gunaoge ''

Yours,

- G.

Welcome !

Hi,
Well, This is my first step into the Blogosphere.... Help me make it a giant stride.
Yours,
- Gautam.

Tryst with Dr R A Mashelkar

Well,
The first time I heard of Dr Raghunath Anant Mashelkar was when I was in XIth.
Ms Geeta Shastry, our professor who was the convener of science-forum, called me and two other boys and said, “You are to attend the session of Goa Science Congress to be held at Margao and prepare to report of it." We protested since it meant 'spoiling’ our entire Sunday and missing out on our weekly cricket match. "No way”, she said,''People like Dr Mashelkar, Dr Gowarikar and Dr Swaminathan would be coming, and you don’t get such chance often."
We made plans to attend the seminar for half an hour and then to skip out to Colva beach, barely 10 km away and have some fun. However, once into the seminar, we got so captivated that not only we sit till the end but also came back full of inspiration. That was the first time I saw Dr Mashelkar.

Over the years, I have followed his career closely and never missed an opportunity to listen to his speeches. They are full of optimism for our country, our people. And they are not empty bubbles, mind you. They are backed by his impeccable credentials. He speaks from the heart, with hard data strewn in between.
This man has come up literally from dust... Born on the 1st January 1943, in Marcel (Goa), he went barefoot till SSC, worried about Rs 20/- to pay exam dues, studied under street-lights...and yet excelled in education, ranking 11th in Merit list in HSSC. After completing one of the fastest Ph.D.’s in chemical engineering, he gave up a promising career in the UK to return to India at the behest of the then PM Indira Gandhi.

He joined the prestigious National Chemical Laboratory in Pune, subsequently becoming its Director. Currently, he is the Director-General of Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR), which runs about 40-odd laboratories of national significance and is one of the largest chain of public sector laboratories anywhere in the world.

Dr. Mashelkar has made outstanding original contributions to polymer engineering, notably in the modeling of polymerization reactors, diffusion in polymeric media, transport studies in swelling polymers as well as non-Newtonian flows. In particular, his engineering analysis of secondary flows and particle motion/deformation are considered both innovative and pragmatically important.
Dr. Mashelkar has been the recipient of many prestigious awards from the Government and corporate sectors from India and abroad as well. He is the 36th Indian scientist and 3rd Indian engineer to have been conferred the honour of Fellow of Royal Society (FRS).
In a moment of immature impulsiveness, I once to wrote to Dr Mashelkar, putting forward some of my ideas and suggestions. The moment I posted it, I was horrified and wanted to take it back.About a month later, I got a reply...a handwritten letter from Dr Mashelkar himself! He said he agreed with many of my views and had accepted some of the suggestions.It was a very handsome gesture on the part of a technocrat who must be very busy.
A few days ago, while searching on the internet for some info about Indian scientists, I came across the complete CV of Dr Mashelkar. It runs into about 40 pages…He has 235 research publications, 20 books and 30 patents to his credit ( as on 25-12-2005).
Reading the biodata of Dr Mashelkar makes one wonder how a single man could do so many things in one life time… and it inspires us to give our best.
Yours,
-Gautam.