In search of myself...

The notice was put up a couple of days back and I could swear that there could not have been anybody who was not looking forward to the lecture by one of India's outstanding statesmen and former Chief Election Commissioner - Mr. T.N. Seshan. I rushed to the temple after cricket practice and sped on my ailing cycle back from the temple to the IC & SR building here at IIT Madras - a healthy two kilometres. People were entering the hall fast and it was overflowing in no time. There were more than twenty minutes to the start of the lecture and my crazy mind had started thinking of all kinds of bullshit. Thankfully, Mr. Seshan put an end to it by entering, punctual and gleeful as ever and very much unlike politicians - a magnanimous presence I felt! Students who had managed to squeeze in their butts into the meagre spaces available on the aisles between the rows of seats struggled to make way for the guest. The hall was filled to atleast thrice its capacity and the airconditioner wa...

An extract from http://ibnlive.com/news/rajini-joins-setu-debate-advises-mk-to-talk-it-out/50648-3.html Please go through the original article for more amusement. 'At the state government's film awards function, Lord Ram took center stage yet again. It all started when superstar Rajinikanth requested Chief Minister M Karunanidhi to solve the issue amicably, talking it out at a higher level.' But Karunanidhi's response was categorical. He said, "Rajinikanth has the luxury and opportunity to travel to the North more often than me. He even goes up to the Himalayas and meet the saints there. So next time you meet them please tell them that Karunanidhi may be an atheist but he doesn't hate Ram .” Karunanidhi quotes further - "We're not against Ram, we don't have anything personally against Ram, we don't hate Ram. Be it any avtaar whoever has done some good to the society, we only appreciate it. We wouldn't dump the project just because it has Ra...

Cricket nowadays, is played less by players and probably more by characters. One interesting character in the Indian team is Santhakumaran Sreesanth. His first name should translate to "peaceful boy" but he seems to be quite otherwise, for on the field, he does everything but fast bowling. Every bowler ideally has a run-up, delivery and follow-through. For Sreesanth, one could call it dance, delivery and blabber through. A commentator hyped him up, saying "there is killer instinct in this kid". Bullshit. Can't the commentator distinguish aggression and juvenile delinquency? All through the run up, I feel he thinks of phrases to be used against batsmen. Naturally, most of his deliveries are smashed around the park. His body is held on ground firmly by the weight of the charms that he sports around his neck. He probably would find it tough to clear the customs at airports. On the hottest of days, he wears about three layers of clothing, with a colorful wrist band ...

I really don’t know why I feel like writing this. But still, I write, as I would like to share the amusement… X, Y and Z contested for elections in a state way back in 2004. There was no clear majority and a coalition government was to be formed. Z called X to form the government, but X flatly refused, don’t know for what. Y ruled the centre at that time. The latter also had a clear majority in the same state but not an absolute majority, which is a prerequisite for a party in India to rule. So, X and Y entered into an agreement, the clauses of which allowed for a twenty month regime for each. X took it up first. The twenty months of power for X and waiting for Y have drawn to a close and it’s time to swap positions. Now, X wants to hold on and Y wants to displace the former, rightfully so. X is challenging Y to contest in a re-election as if it would fund the entire process. In the meanwhile, X has also made attempts to make alliances with Z, which now rules the centre and Z has given...

Being jobless and fighting ennui aren't new to me. On parallel lines, I was chatting with a good friend of mine at school, Dharini. This blog on some of my experiences in school was her idea and this is dedicated to her. She asked me to credit her for the idea in the blog and hopefully she can't sue me now. I am thinking hard to recollect one experience that would top the list of all the strange ones that I have had there.... Let me start with this... St.John's Senior Secondary School, Chennai was where I went. I owe a lot to it. In fact, everything to it. Alright... I am not getting sentimental. St. John's had this routine of conducting parent-teacher contact sessions (it still has) on the second saturday of every month. This was something I regarded as a desperate attempt by a school to screw a child's weekend. It wasn't the case with me as I was the most impudent, disobedient brat that parents would dread bringing up. Anyway, they have brought me up. Kudos! I...