Ask my parents, “what does somu criticise the most, day and night” – they would no doubt reply – “Bengal and Bangali”. The answer is certainly as true as my love for Kolkata.
Kolkata is not just a megacity, i view it as my friend, girlfriend, inspiration, mentor and almost-almighty. So i protect it the way i protect myself. So anything i feel is an imperfection, i would want to criticise and rectify it (sounds arrogant right ? well, c’mon its my blogspace, i can have this liberty).
So what happens when this kolkata-crazy guy lands far south in a place which comprises, approximately, 3 times the number of alphabets in kolkata ?
A hardcore Bengali in Malayalam-land railway station
Station looks clean, the people don’t look like they are abusing each other (if they are then i must confess they have the most pleasant disposition of venting their audible expletives and that Malayalam slangs sound better than Hindi and Bengali ones). Score +1. I walk out of the station – and for the first time in life i am not swarmed by auto-wallahs. Score +1. I walk out to the pre-paid auto booth. There’s a female policewoman monitoring every transaction and a few other policemen ensuring smooth public movement out of the booth. They all understand fluent English and even speak well. So, Score +1.
How different are Thiruvananthapuram roads from the ones in kolkata ?
Not much of a difference. Pot-holed roads aplenty. The auto ride turns out to be bumpier than I expected. Communists states always had the tendency following the footsteps of their fellow commie (is this a slang ?) states, and i don’t think its far when kerala adopts bengal’s petrol-to-lpg conversion policy for autos if the govt. really wants to mitigate pollution levels in the city. Thus, the journey from Thiruvananthapuram (i really like the full name) Central to our hotel turns out to be quite uncomfortable and irritating. Score -2.
Thiruvananthapuram food !!!!!
This was the most talked-about issue while i was preparing for my sojourn down-south. Bengalis always believe they cook better than anybody – but luckily, while I do hold Bengali food in high esteem i don’t believe Bengalis are the best cooks in the world simply because i have not even tasted 1% of the exhaustive list of food that the world has to offer. It takes some time to get used to the smell of coconut oil but in overall food is nice, though i feel there is lack of variety. Non Vegetarians will definitely love this place but Vegetarians would be disappointed. Coffee is fantastic and so are the fruit juices. Another drink that i love is the sharja. Its a thick liquid comprising milk, chocolate powder and banana. Dosa is okay but not as good as in Chennai. Same applies to sambhar as well. There’s a bhaaji made of coconut, banana and beans that i love as well. But the Kerala rice is very thick and Bengalis would definitely disapprove of it at the first go. Then again give it some time.
Since i am a “pure” non-vegetarian, Score +1.
The Malayalees and the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC)
In India it is a common belief that all south Indians are the same, and by South India, we generalise Chennai. So i came to Thiruvananthapuram expecting Tamil-like people who are not quite famous for their hospitality towards the rest of India. However, Kerala is different. Malayalees are extremely helpful. I travelled across Thiruvananthapuram city extensively and i never felt like a stranger. You do not need to memorize directions in advance as the people will happily help you with the same if you are lost. The only complain would centre around the malayalees’ inability to stay outdoors after about 9:30 pm. Transport system is superb, like in Bengal, and available almost 24x7. I travelled to various parts of Kerala (Varkala, Kovalam, Munnar, Alappuzha, Kollam, Kanyakumari – TN) and not for once did i hire a private vehicle. Travelling is really simple. Just shake off your slumber and lethargy, get out on the road, go to the nearest KSRTC bus stand or railway station and travel wherever you want. Bus conductors are extremely helpful though they always appear to be in haste.
Special Mention: Indian Coffee House - the place one has to fall back to whenever there is a food crisis !
Score +5.
Overall view of Thiruvananthapuram.
Great place to travel to. Great place to stay. Araku Valley in Vishakhapattnam had always been my favourite place (among the ones i have visited) in India, only until i visited God’s own country. I was extremely excited on the 17th of December 2009, because that was the day i was scheduled to return to Kolkata, but deep inside i was quite sad that i was leaving behind a place that, i felt, made me one of its own. So it is only fitting that i end this blog vowing to return to Kerala at the earliest opportunity i have !
Friday, December 18, 2009
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Where are you Christopher McCandless ?
This is Thiruvananthapuram, and i am here for my so-called “Induction Program” organised by a reputed company. Christopher McCandless was about my age when he decided against joining Law @ Harvard, only to lead the most glorious life, ever lived by an individual, in the jungles of Alaska. Neither do i have the guts to be a Christopher McCandless nor do i have such an elevated level of thinking.
So what is this “Induction Program” ? I would love to convince others that its a program, that apart from imparting technical knowledge, goes a long way in confusing an already-delusional class of fresh engineers and what’s more, you get paid for it ! Here we a study a programming language that i believe MIT developed only out of desperation not to keep their scholarly minds idle. Then we have something called grooming classes. Here they teach me how to speak in English. But imagine what happens when some asks you to pronounce “tortoise” as “tort-ese” and “poem” as “pawm”. Then the teaches says he has never heard anyone pronounce “envelope” as “onvelope”! English here has been reduced to what “sounds right” rather than what “is right”. What they don’t realise is that Indians today speak English better than anybody – Indians can adapt to several English accents in days, whereas we don’t really find Americans, Australians, latin Americans or the birtish as comfortable with so many different styles of English.
Let’s talk a bit about Professional Grooming. In short – this is where i learn how to FAKE! what matters most is the first impression. Here, let me bring in a guy named Swapnil Sonawane – this brilliant guy from nit-durgapur was unshaven and in faded tattered jeans when he cleared about 6 levels of programming and technical interview to emerge as the richest boy ever in the history of the college. So, just as the British do in temperatures of 15 – 25 degrees centigrade, i do the same in temperatures of 30 – 40 degrees centigrade, i.e choke myself in a neck tie!
I have sailed through really tough English examinations in icse, isc with 1 points, just like many of my friends, and have interacted with so many different kind of people – so i do believe i have the right to be an individual, not a programmed machine
Wish i could think the way Christopher McCandless did! He died a human being, we’ll die fakers! The biggest difference between him and us is the love for currency notes.
So what is this “Induction Program” ? I would love to convince others that its a program, that apart from imparting technical knowledge, goes a long way in confusing an already-delusional class of fresh engineers and what’s more, you get paid for it ! Here we a study a programming language that i believe MIT developed only out of desperation not to keep their scholarly minds idle. Then we have something called grooming classes. Here they teach me how to speak in English. But imagine what happens when some asks you to pronounce “tortoise” as “tort-ese” and “poem” as “pawm”. Then the teaches says he has never heard anyone pronounce “envelope” as “onvelope”! English here has been reduced to what “sounds right” rather than what “is right”. What they don’t realise is that Indians today speak English better than anybody – Indians can adapt to several English accents in days, whereas we don’t really find Americans, Australians, latin Americans or the birtish as comfortable with so many different styles of English.
Let’s talk a bit about Professional Grooming. In short – this is where i learn how to FAKE! what matters most is the first impression. Here, let me bring in a guy named Swapnil Sonawane – this brilliant guy from nit-durgapur was unshaven and in faded tattered jeans when he cleared about 6 levels of programming and technical interview to emerge as the richest boy ever in the history of the college. So, just as the British do in temperatures of 15 – 25 degrees centigrade, i do the same in temperatures of 30 – 40 degrees centigrade, i.e choke myself in a neck tie!
I have sailed through really tough English examinations in icse, isc with 1 points, just like many of my friends, and have interacted with so many different kind of people – so i do believe i have the right to be an individual, not a programmed machine
Wish i could think the way Christopher McCandless did! He died a human being, we’ll die fakers! The biggest difference between him and us is the love for currency notes.
Thiruvananthapuram – A Learning Experience
It was a moment of terrible shame and disappointment when I was laughed at by an international audience at the Computer Festival and Seminar in Lucknow. I, the flag bearer of my school team, had let the whole team down in the debate competition.
Truth is, throughout my schooldays, i had always wanted to be a good speaker – but all i met with were failures of varying magnitudes. Those failures did affect my confidence and i never tasted success as a speaker in school. Chances come far and few in a college and i failed to grab them as well.
But, one fine November morning i finally made a move towards my long-unfulfilled wish. I was asked to deliver a speech on “I, Me and Myself” in front of a more-than-half filled auditorium. The first few seconds as a i walked up the stage i was shivering like hell but as soon i as i faced the audience, i was overwhelmed with a sudden gust of confidence. I managed to draw a humorous reaction from the audience with the very first sentence that i delivered. What more could i have asked for. The remaining 3-4 minutes were pure fun. I included everything from a dead-drugged Shiva, Newton’s 1st law of motion, Sachin Tendulkar, Pete Sampras, Roger Federer to photography in my speech, that kept the audience active and responsive throughout. What was more surprising was the amount of humour that i injected into my speech as i had always believed that my friends view my as a serious person. Success is relative, nevertheless i felt i was successful and above all, i was satisfied !
Once a person tastes success, he can only learn from it and improve. The next oral communication class, i had to make another speech on a photograph. This time, i delivered a better speech in better body language and managed to elicit even more audience response, humour and appreciation. Today i am confident and i feel i can face a large audience comfortably. How ironic of me when i say i am at my best in Kolkata (please don’t call it “city of joy” – its an insult if you really know what it means and how the name originated), yet project my best hundreds of kms away in Thiruvananthapuram.
Yes, my friends, (especially the ones who know me since my schooldays) i am a bit less shy now !
Truth is, throughout my schooldays, i had always wanted to be a good speaker – but all i met with were failures of varying magnitudes. Those failures did affect my confidence and i never tasted success as a speaker in school. Chances come far and few in a college and i failed to grab them as well.
But, one fine November morning i finally made a move towards my long-unfulfilled wish. I was asked to deliver a speech on “I, Me and Myself” in front of a more-than-half filled auditorium. The first few seconds as a i walked up the stage i was shivering like hell but as soon i as i faced the audience, i was overwhelmed with a sudden gust of confidence. I managed to draw a humorous reaction from the audience with the very first sentence that i delivered. What more could i have asked for. The remaining 3-4 minutes were pure fun. I included everything from a dead-drugged Shiva, Newton’s 1st law of motion, Sachin Tendulkar, Pete Sampras, Roger Federer to photography in my speech, that kept the audience active and responsive throughout. What was more surprising was the amount of humour that i injected into my speech as i had always believed that my friends view my as a serious person. Success is relative, nevertheless i felt i was successful and above all, i was satisfied !
Once a person tastes success, he can only learn from it and improve. The next oral communication class, i had to make another speech on a photograph. This time, i delivered a better speech in better body language and managed to elicit even more audience response, humour and appreciation. Today i am confident and i feel i can face a large audience comfortably. How ironic of me when i say i am at my best in Kolkata (please don’t call it “city of joy” – its an insult if you really know what it means and how the name originated), yet project my best hundreds of kms away in Thiruvananthapuram.
Yes, my friends, (especially the ones who know me since my schooldays) i am a bit less shy now !
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Adidas (South City - Kolkata) got it wrong !
my association wid this brainchild of adolf and rudolf dassler dates back to the time when sachin tendulkar started endorsing the brand and i really love adidas products !
but what remains in the doubtful is whether adidas itself is concerned seriously enough about the indian market. i raise this question in reference to the blatantly erroneous projection of yelena isinbayeva as its brand ambassador in its South City-Kolkata Showroom, whereas the fact remains that isinbayeva, in february 2009, had signed a $7.5 million deal with the chinese sportswear retailer Li-Ning. while india truly is a cricket crazy nation with about 75% of its population ignorant of anything called a "pole vault", dat should not stand as an alibi for such a deliberate misrepresentation (after all its october now - almost 9 motnhs to the Li-Ning deal).
i am deeply attached to adidas so its quite obvious dat such a blunder is not to be appreciated. while the beautiful face of isinbayeva truly adds to the overall beauty of the showroom, i guess its time to move on especially when u hav someone like an anna ivanovic as 1 of your brand ambassadors !
but what remains in the doubtful is whether adidas itself is concerned seriously enough about the indian market. i raise this question in reference to the blatantly erroneous projection of yelena isinbayeva as its brand ambassador in its South City-Kolkata Showroom, whereas the fact remains that isinbayeva, in february 2009, had signed a $7.5 million deal with the chinese sportswear retailer Li-Ning. while india truly is a cricket crazy nation with about 75% of its population ignorant of anything called a "pole vault", dat should not stand as an alibi for such a deliberate misrepresentation (after all its october now - almost 9 motnhs to the Li-Ning deal).
i am deeply attached to adidas so its quite obvious dat such a blunder is not to be appreciated. while the beautiful face of isinbayeva truly adds to the overall beauty of the showroom, i guess its time to move on especially when u hav someone like an anna ivanovic as 1 of your brand ambassadors !
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
OMG.... i'm older than i was last year !
Gone r the days when i used to eagerly wait for people to show up with birthday gifts. Nowadays birthdays r more like – oh my god, i’m a year older ! Whether is better to be Benjamin Button or not can always b debated but nevertheless a special birthday is always desired. So wat was my birthday gifts(s) dis tym round ?
Quite unusual as they might sound, the gifts were really not commonplace yet extremely soothing.
Firstly, i’ve finally learned to swim. Yippiiiiii !!! Being an atheist and hence the fear of god not being there, the only thing that truly frightened the shit out of me was water. Well i’ve finally conquered that fear to some extent. Hugely catalysed by kanu, potol, tushar da and katu’s greater enthusiasm compared to mine, they have finally made me a swimmer.
Secondly, Sachin Tendulkar(“GOD”) makes me happy yet again - thanks to the lack of innovative cricketing shows on Neo Cricket that makes them to inevitably fall back on cricket highlights reliving a vestige India’s cricketing glory. The historic test match where India beat England chasing a total of 387 - who can forget dat match.
That glimpse of my “GOD” just prior to my birthday made dis day doubly special. Anyone who remembers the facial expression on a groundstaff’s wife after the match as
she shook hands with “GOD” would understand wat “GOD” embodies in india (well i would deliberately not want to say what it embodies only to give poor sceptics a room for their
crooked interpration :-P). It’s sometimes a pity that “GOD” is an Indian, a country
where some people find special bliss in implementing the famous words – “uneasy lies the head that wears the crown”. Neways, thanks Generator Observer Destroyer for my day more special.
Neways, birthday no longer brings out that juvenile enthusiasm in me. Take for example the event that now i’m listening to Linkin Park, a band that i don’t really like too much, just because i wanted to listen to something different. However it felt good blogging after so many days – no wonder i’m a bad blogger !
Quite unusual as they might sound, the gifts were really not commonplace yet extremely soothing.
Firstly, i’ve finally learned to swim. Yippiiiiii !!! Being an atheist and hence the fear of god not being there, the only thing that truly frightened the shit out of me was water. Well i’ve finally conquered that fear to some extent. Hugely catalysed by kanu, potol, tushar da and katu’s greater enthusiasm compared to mine, they have finally made me a swimmer.
Secondly, Sachin Tendulkar(“GOD”) makes me happy yet again - thanks to the lack of innovative cricketing shows on Neo Cricket that makes them to inevitably fall back on cricket highlights reliving a vestige India’s cricketing glory. The historic test match where India beat England chasing a total of 387 - who can forget dat match.
That glimpse of my “GOD” just prior to my birthday made dis day doubly special. Anyone who remembers the facial expression on a groundstaff’s wife after the match as
she shook hands with “GOD” would understand wat “GOD” embodies in india (well i would deliberately not want to say what it embodies only to give poor sceptics a room for their
crooked interpration :-P). It’s sometimes a pity that “GOD” is an Indian, a country
where some people find special bliss in implementing the famous words – “uneasy lies the head that wears the crown”. Neways, thanks Generator Observer Destroyer for my day more special.
Neways, birthday no longer brings out that juvenile enthusiasm in me. Take for example the event that now i’m listening to Linkin Park, a band that i don’t really like too much, just because i wanted to listen to something different. However it felt good blogging after so many days – no wonder i’m a bad blogger !
Monday, May 25, 2009
'Aila' ala re !!!
Ever since my childhood days i had been fascinated by stories of cyclone that my mother experienced when she used to live in Bangladesh in her childhood days. I always wanted to experience a cyclone myself... finally had my wish fulfilled rather harshly this afternoon.
Boy i have never seen anything like this ever in my life - one of the scariest experiences I’ve ever had. I woke up to find the gloomy sky and going by the wind speed in the morning i always could guess what was about to come by afternoon.
1040 hrs : mother leaves for her office. Father and aunt at elder sis’ place in Mumbai – so i’m home alone !!! I’m watching my favourite “South Park”.
1130 hrs : power cut ! wind speeds
about 70 – 90 kmh as forecast by the met department. I can almost feel the entire house quivering. A veteran of many severe kalbaishakhis, i had never heard such howling sound in a wind ever before. I’m just moving to and from room to room ensuring all windows and doors are sealed properly. Then it’s time to bring out my sweetheart – my DSC H50. Started clicking randomly determined to keep an indelible mark of my first cyclone experience.
1150 hrs : a glass from a window in between
the 1st and the 2nd floor has fallen off on the street and cracked – thankfully no
one is hurt (all over Kolkata are were several incidents of pedestrians falling victim to such cracking glass). I rush to the spot – wind and rain begin to gush through the opening. Time to undertake my 1st mission – plugging the opening. After about 20 minutes its mission accomplished. (In the meanwhile i continue clicking at random.)
1320 hrs : rainwater from the roof has seeped in from under door and the 2nd floor is partially flooded. Its time for mission # 2 – build a mechanism to prevent it from happening any further.
After about 25 minutes and at the expense of few pieces of cloth and two big rectangular blocks of spare marble it’s mission accomplished (this really made me feel so proud since i spend a normal day at home doing nothing but sitting with my computer all day long – getting up only to fulfil certain necessities :D). I have finally done some profitable work for my home (to mitigate the boredom created from the power situation ;))
1440 hrs : Lunch time ! still no sign of power restoration ! :’(
1500 hrs : it’s not raining any more but wind speed at about 90 – 100 kmh (informed by my father who’s tracking the cyclone situation from Mumbai through Bengali news channels). Let it be 90 or 100 – chhera gelo. I decide to quickly climb to the topmost point of the roof and take more pictures.
Believe me - nature has never looked so beautiful during a storm. I normally manage to get steady shots without placing the camera on ground – but today is different. The problem is that i cant keep it on ground either ‘coz it’s not staying still. :( Determined, I decide to take the steadiest shot i’ve ever taken and i succeed (hooray).
1600 hrs : i have nothing to do. I decide to take full advantage of vodafone’s free sms scheme – i start sms-ing my friends and they duly replied. This sms game continues till 1800 hrs.
Camera’s battery needs to be charged but there’s no electricity... so, photography is no longer an option against boredom.
2000 hrs : mother at home. Power is restored for 5 minutes only after which it’s back to darkness. :( Its dark outside and the howling of the wind, rustling of the leaves, audible treading of the shoes provide the perfect ambience for a classic horror flick. I’m loving it !
2130 hrs : power restored successfully. Now i can finally charge my laptop and get back on the internet.
Surely, i’ll never forget this day in a lifetime. I’ll always remember the sounds and images of ‘Aila’ that haunted me for almost 10 hrs.
Boy i have never seen anything like this ever in my life - one of the scariest experiences I’ve ever had. I woke up to find the gloomy sky and going by the wind speed in the morning i always could guess what was about to come by afternoon.
1040 hrs : mother leaves for her office. Father and aunt at elder sis’ place in Mumbai – so i’m home alone !!! I’m watching my favourite “South Park”.
1130 hrs : power cut ! wind speeds
about 70 – 90 kmh as forecast by the met department. I can almost feel the entire house quivering. A veteran of many severe kalbaishakhis, i had never heard such howling sound in a wind ever before. I’m just moving to and from room to room ensuring all windows and doors are sealed properly. Then it’s time to bring out my sweetheart – my DSC H50. Started clicking randomly determined to keep an indelible mark of my first cyclone experience.
1150 hrs : a glass from a window in between
the 1st and the 2nd floor has fallen off on the street and cracked – thankfully no
one is hurt (all over Kolkata are were several incidents of pedestrians falling victim to such cracking glass). I rush to the spot – wind and rain begin to gush through the opening. Time to undertake my 1st mission – plugging the opening. After about 20 minutes its mission accomplished. (In the meanwhile i continue clicking at random.)1320 hrs : rainwater from the roof has seeped in from under door and the 2nd floor is partially flooded. Its time for mission # 2 – build a mechanism to prevent it from happening any further.
After about 25 minutes and at the expense of few pieces of cloth and two big rectangular blocks of spare marble it’s mission accomplished (this really made me feel so proud since i spend a normal day at home doing nothing but sitting with my computer all day long – getting up only to fulfil certain necessities :D). I have finally done some profitable work for my home (to mitigate the boredom created from the power situation ;))
1440 hrs : Lunch time ! still no sign of power restoration ! :’(
1500 hrs : it’s not raining any more but wind speed at about 90 – 100 kmh (informed by my father who’s tracking the cyclone situation from Mumbai through Bengali news channels). Let it be 90 or 100 – chhera gelo. I decide to quickly climb to the topmost point of the roof and take more pictures.
Believe me - nature has never looked so beautiful during a storm. I normally manage to get steady shots without placing the camera on ground – but today is different. The problem is that i cant keep it on ground either ‘coz it’s not staying still. :( Determined, I decide to take the steadiest shot i’ve ever taken and i succeed (hooray). 1600 hrs : i have nothing to do. I decide to take full advantage of vodafone’s free sms scheme – i start sms-ing my friends and they duly replied. This sms game continues till 1800 hrs.
Camera’s battery needs to be charged but there’s no electricity... so, photography is no longer an option against boredom.
2000 hrs : mother at home. Power is restored for 5 minutes only after which it’s back to darkness. :( Its dark outside and the howling of the wind, rustling of the leaves, audible treading of the shoes provide the perfect ambience for a classic horror flick. I’m loving it !
2130 hrs : power restored successfully. Now i can finally charge my laptop and get back on the internet.
Surely, i’ll never forget this day in a lifetime. I’ll always remember the sounds and images of ‘Aila’ that haunted me for almost 10 hrs.
Asked to write an essay on courage a student at the Oxford University left 3 empty pages, winding up his efforts with a one liner, “this is courage!”.
In his book “Our Social World”, Don Forsyth describes – “an attitude is not a feeling, a cognition, or a form of behaviour; instead, attitudes combine all three components in an "integrated affect-cognition-behaviour system””.
Attitude is an explicit reflection of one’s personality. Attitude projects a person’s perspective on issues in a subtle way. As individuals we are bound by our personal goals. There are two approaches two start working on a goal – either review historical approaches and follow the treaded path or else work your way through the goal, projecting the individual : “you” rather than “they” !
A goal can be half-attained in the mind. It’s the fresh approach that matters because the world is yet to witness it. Attitude has a great advantage that it cannot be measured directly, so no one can dictate attitude. Attitude is nascent in every man. Gandhi had a whole new attitude of Non Violence, Mandela symbolises equality, Ali “floated like a butterfly and stung like bee”. Attitude can never fail, it can only be put to further scrutiny.
Attitude is not strictly “defiance”. Attitude is modified mental approach to a tested action. In a world where competition is cutthroat, there can be no better way of mental evaluation than getting a picture of the individual attitude. Attitude is the driving force behind change. Attitude is a window to the human intent.
Attitude can change anything !
- Somnath Sarkar
In his book “Our Social World”, Don Forsyth describes – “an attitude is not a feeling, a cognition, or a form of behaviour; instead, attitudes combine all three components in an "integrated affect-cognition-behaviour system””.
Attitude is an explicit reflection of one’s personality. Attitude projects a person’s perspective on issues in a subtle way. As individuals we are bound by our personal goals. There are two approaches two start working on a goal – either review historical approaches and follow the treaded path or else work your way through the goal, projecting the individual : “you” rather than “they” !
A goal can be half-attained in the mind. It’s the fresh approach that matters because the world is yet to witness it. Attitude has a great advantage that it cannot be measured directly, so no one can dictate attitude. Attitude is nascent in every man. Gandhi had a whole new attitude of Non Violence, Mandela symbolises equality, Ali “floated like a butterfly and stung like bee”. Attitude can never fail, it can only be put to further scrutiny.Attitude is not strictly “defiance”. Attitude is modified mental approach to a tested action. In a world where competition is cutthroat, there can be no better way of mental evaluation than getting a picture of the individual attitude. Attitude is the driving force behind change. Attitude is a window to the human intent.
Attitude can change anything !
- Somnath Sarkar
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