Of some random thoughts and the 3-iron

My old Maths teacher used to say that the worst thing in life is the regret of something not done when you knew how to do it. Like finding out after the exam that you have left a question whose answer you knew pretty well. Like finding out that your deeds have not been what your heart says.

Btw, I have been watching some strange movies lately. One of them is the Korean movie :3-iron directed by Kim Ki duk. It revolves around a guy who breaks into empty houses whose owners have gone for vacation. He would stay in the house for few days. At the same time he would repay the cost of his stay by washing clothes , mending electronic gadgets, watering the garden etc.The movie does not have many dialogues but just gestures.You will find yourself asking a lot of questions - and realised that the director has succeded in portraying what he wanted without actually making a fuss!!

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Of fishes in the troubled waters - Manipur

Manipur is the troubled waters in which fishes die in large numbers. Every now and then, conflicts and tension eats the very core of every socio-economic aspects. Until now, it was the valley (the plain areas including Imphal) where most of the burnings had happened. This time, the fire has spread in the hills too. Whatever the reason be, its the people who are suffering. The ongoing economic blockade of NH-39 - the lifeline of Manipur, has led to the shortage of essential commodities in the state leading to hiked in their prices. Petrol is being sold at Rs 150/litre in black market. Hospitals and medical services have also been hit due unavailability of drugs and oxygen.
The whole point is that its the people who are suffering. Its a fact that the centre has not being giving enough attention to the North-Eastern states that they deserved. So, its not surprising when someone like Mr Chidambaram sitting in New Delhi makes statements and decisions which led to unnecessary tensions in these regions. The truth is that the centre lacks the knowledge on the sensitivity and the ground realities on the issues that they are addressing. One such example is the recent massacre of 76 CRPF jawans in Dantewada. How can the incidents of 18 th June, 2001 can be forgotten when thousands of protesters up rise against the "GOI - NSCN(IM) " cease fire extension to Manipur. Mistakes cannot be made again and again at the costs of human lives.
North-Eastern states are already behind in the race with the rest of the country. We cannot afford to spend our energy and time in fighting among ourselves. When we are outside our states , we are being recognised as one. Nobody bothers to ask you if you are from Manipur or Nagaland or Arunachal. We are being seen as one - the North-East.

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Cocooned

'COMFORT' zones can be dangerous. The very thought of moving out of it can make you crippled.They say you don't have to do different things but do differently. But then again, the greatest deeds are done when explored.Life becomes exciting when the wind blows from the opposite end. Otherwise, you are cocooned.

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How to train your Dragon

The title of the movie might be boring but I bet you will love it. "Avatar" raised the standard of 3D movies manifold, but this movie belongs to a category of its own. Wonderful storyline nicely paced sequences make the movie truly refreshing. Although, the target audiences are the children but the adults won't mind watching it. I won't reveal the plot here. And if you are looking for a break from your tiring routine, this is it. Enjoy the ride.
Btw, the movie ends with these lines -

"This is Berk. It snows nine months out of the year, and hails the other three. What little food grows here is tough and tasteless. The people that grow here, even more so. The only upsides are the pets. While other places have ponies, or parrots... we have dragons. "

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Of Roald Dahl and the short stories

I had this wrong notion that Roald Dahl wrote only for the children until I picked " The Collected Short stories" from the Landmark few weeks ago. He is too good to be predictable. Thats the pecularity of his stories. Moreover, the stories are based on simple themes and human facets. Each story is written with finnesse that makes the reader think hours after reading it. Pinch of dark humour with the sharp endings makes Roald Dahl's stories addictive.

PS:-
I was wondering what made Shashi Tharoor to poke his nose in theIPL mud. A person with his qualifications and caliber could have proved much worthy if he would have concentrated on many issues that the nation is facing rather than supporting for an IPL team for Kerela. Anyway, I believe its a lesson for all the politicians to make their priorities right.

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Your ego hurts when a tender looking damsel with a non-gear bike whizzes past your 5 geared 180 CC beast. And it further adds fire that it happened on the road that you have been riding for the past three and a half years. Changed to the top gear so that he could give that killer smile when he would pass her.It all ended with a fine of Rs 100 for speeding and jumping the traffic signal!

For all those who love the Indian Ocean. Here is their Radio Channel[link].

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Of an IPL evening

Nearly 40,000 people gathered for the 3rd IPL edition league match between the CSK (Chennai Super Kings) and the Mumbai Indians that happened last Tuesday in Chennai . On that account, I took a break from the office for the evening and went straight to the stadium. It was a typical Chennai evening - hot and humid, but there was no lack of enthusiasm in the crowd.
Although CSK won the match comprehensively, there were few things that I noticed.

1) Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has a huge fan following all over the country. Every time he was in the act, the crowd goes wild. Its truly unbelievable how this man carried the expectation of millions for more than 2 decades. Though majority of the crowd was supporting the home team, but in their hearts of heart, they were cheering this man. It was the hot weather and not the opponent that got him out. And there was this guy who had painted his body with the India flag and with the name of his idol. People say he use to go to every match that Tendulkar plays. Luckily, I manage to click this one. I have heard of mad fans. I have seen one.

2. " Bollinger Bollinger?" - the crowd cheering for an Australian bowler. Truly, he is Chennai's adopted son. Hayden and Hussey too had their share of cheers.

3. The Cheerleaders dancing on some Tamil numbers throughout the match. Poor girls. Many a times they wondered what the song was all about. In the end they had stopped caring if their movements were in sync with the music.

4. And I was cheering for the CSK religiously. I have embraced this place. Haven't I ?


PS:-
Its time the media especially the news channels needs to prioritised things. This whole Shoaib-Ayesha-Sania crap have been utilising most of the bandwidth. I sometimes wonder how they can keep telecasting about the menu of the wedding, what Sania would wear on her wedding and all other craps amidst the unfortunate Maoist massacre incident. And even watching an IPL match on Set Max is a pain. Its like watching little cricket in between the advertisements.

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