Alvida

And the time has finally arrived to say bye bye to Mumbai.....This was my second innings and was much shorter than the earlier one...I knew it would happen some day..but never thought I would get out so early..nevertheless this one was definitely more eventful owing to all the twists and turns in my life..

I said in my last post that ..I am looking for a change..now I am changing my place...my job(not a farmer job though...)
and there's one more thing I will have to change...which I realized just this evening...

This evening as usual I walked into this Amul store for buying curd.. there was a kid having ice-cream.. I was standing next to the kid waiting for my turn... After sometime of wait..I felt this kid was staring at me..so I looked at him..he was staring at me, mouth agape..I was surprised and looked into his eyes straight..and that's it...he started crying loudly.."mummy"... now I was scared of getting beaten by his parents...

I quickly moved away from that place..grabbed my curd and vanished...this reminds me of a scene which happened a few years back...where a kid jumped on to me...calling me "daddy!"(read this post "Beware of Kids" posted by me)... this incident was total opposite to that one.

..readers please dont think that...I try to be a prick towards kids.. am generally sweet towards them...this one got scared looking at my avatar..

and so comes the early realization that I need to look civilized...else I will be disowned by my loved ones also...


There's one thing I will definitely miss in Mumbai.. that is this pigeon which lives in my balcony..you can see the pigeon at the top corner of the shutter in the balcony... that's its sleeping spot..every night it settles exactly at that point..sleeps silently...even when I take a walk..or talk on phone in the balcony..it just stays still..
I'll really miss this flatmate..

With loads of memories..some haunting ones..some pleasant ones..I depart
Thats all for now guys...finally..
Bye to all Mumbaikers..will see you someday..

Alvida..
Yours truly,
unknown aka anjaana

Looking for a change

I want to become a farmer, No! Am not joking nor I am out of my senses. I've had this thought for quite a long time. I want to take a break and go to some village and work on fields, at least for a short period like an internship. I want to sweat out and earn for living.
Am really sick of these brick and mortar jobs of meetings, conferences, emails, presentations which seems all artificial and lifeless.

By being a farmer....
You can experience and feel the nature to the closest....
... breathe the fresh air..
.. stay fit..
...interact with the nature and feel that you are also a part of the ecology

Pictural Atyachaar

Gluttony

I love her in this

This is my favorite song, and I find Bhumika 'unassumably cute' in this one. I like the simple dresses she wears all through out..

404

Bollywood's copying me :O...check my blog address...


Yes..! a new flick by title '404' gonna hit silver screen soon...
I hope they haven't flicked the content from this blog :P..
I've seen the trailer of the movie and am pretty sure that it would bomb at boxoffice..

weekend movies

Shor in the city : Rating (3/5)

for a change Tushar kapoor is watchable in this one..the editing of the movie was really good...the story starts with unrelated characters and finally culminates by connecting each of them with a common link..it's a time pass movie..The character 'mandook' is a highlight in this movie..it was played by Pitobash Tripathi- the one in pink shirt in the above pic


 Fast five (fast & furious 5) : Rating (2/5)

full masala.....in terms of story it's no different to any bollywood movie..I didn't like it much.. there was lil comedy.. the car chases werent that interesting...I liked the first car chase in the movie.. where the car dives into a river..breathtaking it was..
but otherwise ..overall the movie was so-so..not worth watching it in a multiplex..

Obituary - 2 heros

self-proclaimed god...
Sathyanarayana Raju alias Sathya Sai Baba

self-proclaimed mastermind behind 9/11
Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden












A great loss to mankind!

Disclaimer: No offense meant to anyone. I personally believe that both of them have mastered in their individual's professions amassing a huge fan following in their fields.

I discovered that this post was not published and was still in my drafts.
I drafted it on 05/03/2011 12:25pm

Life in parts

 0 - 10 years
-------------------------------------------------------------------
innocence, silly mischief followed by beatings, primary school, school uniform, assembly prayer, homework, exams, holidays, train travel, visit to native place, head tonsure at tirupati, new textbooks, cartoon labels, school friends, carefree life, never worried about tomorrow

11 - 20 years
-------------------------------------------------------------------
competition, hostel life, exams, college, college friends, crushes, inter-hostel sports, happy-go-lucky-life, train trips with friends


21 - till now
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Campus placements, job interviews, fear of future, rat race, office, office friends, career planning, parents pushing you to get married, financial planning, savings for future

life seems to get boring as it crosses each decade..

Photo - blog post

Location : Hyderabad
Date : April 24, 2011
IIM Calcutta get together :)

'Me sporting a mustache...unlike any of my past pics :P'

                     



                           Location : R-City mall, Mumbai
                           Date : Feb, 2011

'Some people dont change, this was in a changing room'... The same shirt as the above pic...

Location : Villagio mall, Doha, Qatar
Date : August, 2010


' I know am blocking the beautiful scenery behind'

Location : IIM Calcutta
Date: December 2009


The trio..

Location : Brugges, Belgium
Date : October, 2009


'One of my favorite pics during my Euro trip'

look back

it's just the state of mind that's different...

Succumbed to emotional blackmail

(Top L -> R: lintels podi*, peanuts podi, urad dal podi
Bottom L->R: curry leaf podi, garlic pickle, corainder leaf pickle, tomato pickle)
*podi - powder in telugu

pic taken using my iphone 3GS

Thought for the day

“Luck is what you have left over after you give 100 percent. All of us have bad luck and good luck. The man who persists through the bad luck -- who keeps right on going -- is the man who is there when the good luck comes -- and is ready to receive it.” - some unknown

so much meaning

Eduta Neeve Edalona Neeve
Eduta Neeve Edalona Neeve
Etu Choosthe Atu Neeve Marugaina Kaave

Eduta Neeve Edalona Neeve
Eduta Neeve Edalona Neeve

Marupe Theliyani Naa Hrudayam
Thelisee Valachuta Tholi Neram
Anduke Ee Gaayam
Marupe Theliyani Naa Hrudayam
Thelisee Valachuta Tholi Neram
Anduke Ee Gaayam
Gayannaina Maananeevu
Hrudayannaina Veedipovu
Kaalam Naaku Sayam Raadu
Maranam Nannu Cheraneedu
Pichivadni Kaneedu Hahaha..Ohoho..Hmhmmhmm.

Eduta Neeve Edalona Neeve
Etu Choosthe Atu Neeve Marugaina Kaave
Eduta Neeve Edalona Neeve

Kalalaku Bhayapadi Poyaanu
Niduraku Dooram Ayyaanu
Vedana Paddaanu

Kalalaku Bhayapadi Poyaanu
Niduraku Dooram Ayyaanu

Vedana Paddaanu
Swapnalaithe Kshanikalega
Sathyalanni Narakaalega

Swapnam Sathyamaithe Vintha
Sathyam Swapnamayyedunda

Prema Kintha Balamunda Hahaha..Ohoho..Hmhmmhmm.

Eduta Neeve Edalona Neeve
Etu Choosthe Atu Neeve Marugaina Kaave

--
Song from the movie 'Abhinandana' - no wonder it was a national awardee

Corruption

It's one thing everyone voices against... be it school kids, adults, even the road side beggar and the most corrupt politicians everyone unanimously speak against it..
I was very surprised when Karnataka CM Mr. B.S Yeduruyuppa, who was in news for all wrong reasons, extended his full support to Anna Hazare.. Even Mr.Y.S. Jagan extended his full support to Anna Hazare... proving the fact that politicians have no conscience at all..

if we try to understand who all are the perpetrators of this so far socially accepted crime ...its not just the high profile politicians... or the policy making bureaucrats... or the law enforcing police...it includes even we all general public..
we have so many corrupt people around... even I am one of them..
traffic police, customs officers, municipality people, brokers at various govt offices..are the ones i bribed so far..I know this is not something to boast about..but these are the few common ones which most of us encounter in our daily lives...who try to take advantage of the inefficiencies, loopholes and asymmetries in the existing system..the delays and opacity in the process are two very common causes for such inefficiencies.....and to override that many of us resort to bribes..

The jan lokpal bill is a good initiative but it's still is a reactive mechanism.. along with that government should analyse the current system...and proactively plug all gaps, inefficiencies so that the scope for being corrupt is minimized..i know it's easy said than done...it took so many decades for the current bill to see some daylight.. if a proactive mechanism has to come in place it would easily take a quarter century or more...



so people before extending your support to the anti-corruption movement...first convince your conscience that you would never involve in any corrupt activities at least in future..

Dream - a cure

The last few days my mind has been totally enclosed...it so felt like I have forgotten everything in my life..I had just memories of the last 3 months and literally couldnt remember what happened before that....whatever I think of..whatever I dreamt of..it was constrained to all that I had gone through the last 3 months..

Amidst this internal chaos...I had met with a road accident a 2 weeks back..in an absent minded state was driving my bike..could have been fatal.. but GOD has been kind to me..I've managed with few bruises n blood clots,dint bother me much..somehow the mental pain has takenover the physical pain...

Last night I had a dream in which I was in my 12th class..it really helped me refresh my memories..the grind I went through preparing for IIT...the tension..the passion..the strength..the kick in life..the zeal to prove my myself...at that tender age I used to feel that I was born to prove something..do big things..
Really wondering how weaker I've ecome now...not anymore... should thank my sub-conscious mind to have stored those memories and brought back exactly the moment when I really needed it...

Now I say... even this day has to go..

The other me

It's not easy handling a dhoti..

and if it is a silk one then u better forget it..

was a Sisyphean task for me to hold it up and walk...

I am sick :(

Crawling in my skin
These wounds, they will not heal
Fear is how I fall
Confusing what is real

There's something inside me that pulls beneath the surface
Consuming, confusing
This lack of self control I fear is never ending
Controlling

I can't seem
To find myself again
My walls are closing in
(Without a sense of confidence I’m convinced that there’s just too much pressure to take)
I've felt this way before
So insecure

Discomfort, endlessly has pulled itself upon me
Distracting, reacting
Against my will I stand beside my own reflection
It's haunting how I can't seem...

Sound check!

While I was listening to this song of Pakistan People's Party(PPP), it reminded me of an Annamacharya keerthana...
I somehow feel that the tune of the song is a copy of the keerthana...Wonder if am the only one who thinks like that ...
Readers pls check both the songs and tell me if you also think the same...

Surprisecube...surprise assured!

Surprisecube http://surprisecube.com/ an online gifting website..be prepared for loads of suprises...

I had placed an order for a magic mug,well..it was definitely a surprise rather shock  to me when I saw what I got...to top it all..I was the one, who was blamed for that.. Yes it was my mistake I should have chosen someone else..

At that point of time when I placed the order I was not sure on what to write or what picture to put...now if I were to do business I would have suggested some ideas to my customers..or shown some typical messages/templates etc.. which didn't happen.. later i did some googling and mailed them the pic and quote which i wanted...to which after my continuous followups i was confirmed about the order..

what does someone expect from a customer?
The person should have ideally asked me..the position,color combination,font type and font size..none did that.. I sent a second mail to them suggesting them the font i wanted..which was on the same day..

now how can someone expect a customer to think everything the machine needs as an input..when you are operating you should ask the customer the various specifications needed and be as detailed enough so that you don't miss out anything..or keep the customer next to you so that he gets what he wants

just before I was about to collect..I called up and wanted to confirm if the font change happened.. to which the person was not sure about..and when i further questioned..he says.. he can show me the mail print as proof that he has sent it to the technical team..now what kind of professionalism is this?.. you are working in a team..you are not sure about your internal communication..and who are you trying to blame by showing the printout?..It really gave a very bad impression about the team to me.. hehe this attitude is not healthy for any business...

When I went to check the mug in person..I told the person also.that.I want to check if it's same as what I expected.. the person smartly came down to the station itself..and handed over the mug.. Actually I wanted to check how it works..which they have very smartly averted..
when I saw the mug..I was shocked..I said the font color is not same as the mug..to which I got multiple explanations..he says..no it is always like that..it cant be same color..and another explanation being..you should have told the color before....
as a matter of fact ..I've bought a magic mug previously from some other vendor who gave me wide varieties of choices..and also helped me in selecting quotes..and actually showed me while printing also..so that I get what I exactly wanted..here these people say they don't let anyone to their labs...

now you are taking an order online..
neither you are showing a sample of what you are going to deliver...
nor you are competent enough to ask appropriate questions to your customers...
nor you are ready to correct your mistake..but very competent in blaming everyone else in the world..

Now the worst thing anyone would want to listen is..to be blamed back for whatever happened...
I couldnt feel in them, even an iota of passion to deliver value to customers..I am sure they would have been very happy to have made their money...

I bought this mug for 550/- and the previous mug I bought from another vendor I got it for 350/- I was ready to pay 200 more intentionally cos it was in a short notice...but now I will never make this mistake again..


People who are in the similar lines of business should learn one thing.. your core competency should be your customer service.. because that itself will have something unique of what you are..rest all are easily imitable..a 100% strike rate in good word of mouth is what you should be aiming at...

The mug I got, I have chosen not to gift it also..I am using it to keep my tooth brush and toilet stuff
God bless surprisecube
good luck!

I love this one

This puppy is so cute..the drooping head...rested ears... tiny feet...the innocence in the eyes......
It clearly has done some mischief...
amazing it is..so felt like sharing..

 Source
I always wanted to have a pet, but my parents never let me keep one..
When I was in school I used to pet the street dogs..My dad used to shoo away them...when they used to run towards me waging their tail in a play mood...

Dhobighat - my take

"whats so mumbai about it..it could have been any other place in India"
That's my first expression..after the movie ended......
"why is it called dhobighat?" ...except to one of the main actors being a dhobi..doesnt really talk about lives of dhobis..somehow for me the title doesnt seem to be an apt one..



Coming to the characters...

Painter:- Played by Aamir Khan..should really apreciate one fact that being a mega star he took a modest share of the limelight...and acted just like anyother supporting actor..unlike many other stars of his level you see..no comments on his acting..he is the best in whatever he does..

Photographer:- ..wondering what an "investment banking" "consultant"..daughter of filthy realtor is upto.. she says she is on a sabbatical..and got some research grant..studying on south east economies..it was not clear on why she was so interested on the painter and the dhobi..or may be i missed something..her role was not at all a convincing one for me..the most confused role..

Dhobi:- this dhobi's role could have been anything else also..a rickshaw puller or a chai wala..I dont  think the 'dhobi' part has done enough justice to the title of the movie...Apart from that the guy acted well.

Woman on video:- This woman's story seemed to be one complete and convincing one for me..I think she acted well..for whatever little her portion was..

Its a different movie...a 90min movie..without any dance/song nor interval..
It ended in a typical hollywood style..abruptly:)...but anyways we've had enough of happy-ever-after kind of movies..so this is a welcome change..I would rate it 2.99 on 5..

Am busy...

That's my work place..never did so much of paper work in my life..so you people realise what's keeping me 'busy' these days..

Coming to the word 'busy'..I am so scared of this word that I refrain to ask if anyone is busy.. specially if the other person is a female...
to which there is a small incident..this happened sometime in 2004..the time when orkut was new to me..and I was not so tech savvy.. I was posting some questions related to GMAT to people who cleared it...and so asked a few questions to a girl, who didnt care to reply...so I sent a message to her asking if she was busy.. but instead i wrote ..'busty'..[you see t and y are strategically placed on keyboard]..I discovered that only when I realized that she blocked me....
that's why I rarely ask if someone is busty..err busy..

Cheating...!

Publicly you get 'dhoka' here..

Pic taken using my iPhone3Gs

Recos

I believe everyone should be wondering how jobless could someone be to copy paste the linkedin recos here ..well readers ..it is to give myself lil morale boost..:) ..This post will go into my about me page..

“I had the privilege of working with this genius for more than 2 years.


He is one of his kind and having him onboard brings a big positive difference to the team. He has the ability to make the most complicated things look simple and make the work place more lively with his sense of humour.
He was always the most sought after when it came to discussions which requires diversified thinking and real clean stable solutions for the most complicated design issues. He is a real expert in giving the simplest solution to a problem that anyone could anticipate.
I would say that the quality of work he delivers is truly exceptional and is unmatched! Once he sets off on a task, he ensures that it is completed with finesse.
He lives upto the name of the premier institutes he has passed out from. I feel very proud for having such a person in my professional network.”
- Sridhar Talatam, Tata Consultancy Services Ltd,
December 11, 2010

“He is very detailed oriented and commited. He has excellent Analytical skill,. His good analytical and listenining skills differentiate him from others and makes him good problem solver.”

- Prakash Savla, Sr Consultant, TCS

December 7, 2010

“He is quick-wiited person with remarkable acumen in analysing requirements ....... Very very fast whether in terms of Coding or Analysis not to mention here in humor too .......... always enjoyed working with him..... will honestly recommend him as a Analyst as collegue and as Manager.”

- KUSUM JOSHI, Software Developer, TCS

February 5, 2009

“He is a person who strives hard for his goal and who never gives up until his goals are fulfilled.He is very well talented and extremely hard working individual who is good team player and very good at motivating individuals.He will be a valuable asset for any organziation or team and wish him all the very best. Todos los mejores !!!!!”

- Sreekanth Nair, Oracle Bi Consultant, Tata Consultancy Services

August 22, 2008

“He is very intelligent, hardworking and determined. He is simply an awesome chap.”

- Vinod Kodarapu, Student, Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta,

November 22, 2010

“I have studied with him during our MBA at IIM Calcutta. We were wing mates for an year and did backpacked through the Europe for 3 months as well. So, I can say that I know him fairly well to recommend him. He is very intelligent, motivated, logical in his thoughts, clear in his communication. He is a good team player as well as team leader and a dynamic one in both the roles he play depending on the situation. I can relate to him a lot when it comes to problem solving and financial discussions because we both think analytically and try to approach logical solution. Apart from the skills, he maintains good relations with the people he meet and continues those relations long way, which is a big plus for his career and the company that hires him. I can go on about him, but I guess this small snapshot is good enough to cover his abilities and skill sets.”

- Sai Venkatesh Mandava, Student, Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta,

November 12, 2010

“A very smart, motivated student at Skema Business School, one of the most helpful friends I know, a very adventurous traveler...is what I have learned from him during our months of studying together. I wholeheartedly recommend him and wish him the very best in all future endeavors.”

- Nhung Dinh, Student, CERAM Sophia Antipolis,

November 12, 2010

“He sets high standards for himself and I’ve never seen him compromise on that aspect. A true champion in all aspects of life - be it sports, studies, work - he has always exceeded expectations. A great friend and a guide, I’ll always cherish my friendship with him. I enthusiastically recommend him and wish him all the very best for his for his future endeavours.”

- dinesh (divesh) adnani, Faculty, TIME,

September 9, 2008

“He is a hardworking and intelligent person. He manages his time very well. He sets high standards for his performance and consistently meets them. He is always quick to understand his responsibility and very enthusiastically contributes to the group he is working with. I am sure he will be an asset for the organization he works for in the future.”

- vaibhav pandey, Student, Delhi College of Engineering,

August 30, 2008

 

I've had my share of brickbats too...