June 27, 2005

Screw you guys, I'm going home!!

A long wait (of 11 months, to be precise) is over. Been waiting for this moment with bated breath. Manipur can't be boring this time around as it was last year :) . Engagements, i might say. Anyways, it should be fun to meet up with everyone again (and someone for the first time, ahem!!). Man, this should be a trying 3 days ahead of me until i reach home. On a hindsight, i did enjoy my stay here in pune. Not a bad place to stay. Wonder how long the memories of the place will linger on. Who cares anyway, im going home!!

Misadventure at 3600 feet(contd.)

"Aaram se", Jat tells me.
Not a place for aaram, what with one leg on a root dangling from a tree, another leg on a protruding stone covered with mud, one hand on a rock and another hanging on to some grass, and a torch in my mouth! And as I looked down, I saw LED in his banyan with a wet bed-sheet wrapped around him. Not a pretty sight, I say.

June 25, 2005

Misadventure at 3600 feet

3600 feet. Dead night. Incessant rains and gales. A fort with a 2000 year old history. A perfect setting for a nice round of trekking. And so the four of us- me, LED, Jat and Manish (from IIT Mumbai) set out for trekking at the Lohagad Fort.
We reached Malavali station around 8 30 at night. It had started raining by then. The rain seeped through the leaks in the roof of the station making us all wet. I started dreading the cold. Man, we had to bear it for the rest of the night.
We met a lone villager to whom we enquired of the directions and some place where we could stuff ourselves and buy a torch. He said we could trek alright but did not sound very enthusiastic to get involved in the ordeal when we asked him to accompany us. Rather, he found it amusing that we had to do it at this hour.
We equipped ourselves with two torches and backup batteries at a nearby shop. Some bread, cakes with jam and butter along with some water to last us the journey. And a pack of cigarettes to keep us warm. We didn't lose much time and set out for the trekking.
A half an hour of walking took us to Bhaje village which was the last stopover before the climb. We each had a cup of hot "cha" and continued.
There was no source of light now, except for the torches that we had and the fireflies! They made a pretty sight, especially at a bush where a million of them had gathered to form a sky on earth, blinking and shining in the dark. We could see the silhouette of a waterfall in the backdrop, but we had to be content in admiring the sounds rather than the sight of it. Beautiful. Only if we knew what was in store for us later in the day. Night, rather.
The climb started getting steeper and soon, LED was out of breath. We stopped for a moment to finish our natural commitments. LED decided to do away with his Tees and was in his banyan now. I decided to fend myself from the rain and cold with Jat's windcheater. We continued.
The road had become terribly muddy by now. Our shoes weighed a ton as the mud got stuck in the soles. We slipped but dragged on. Meanwhile, the rain became heavier and the gales got wilder. An intimidating silhouette of the fort atop the hill loomed large now. At the back of my mind, I was thinking of a battle - a battle between humans and nature and I was sure of winning.
We were tantalizingly near the peak but a way to the top still eluded us. The roads became almost parallel to the ground now. We decided to circle the peak and find out a way to the top.
We would break into a song once in a while as we plodded across the puddles and sometimes ankle-deep mud. Speaking of which, there are two types of singers who amuse me. One, those with mesmerizing voice and talent. And two, those who make me laugh. Jat belonged to the latter and he indeed proved pretty amusing, especially when he broke into "woh lamhe".
We had circled the fort by 180 degrees and still unable to find a route/ passage to the top. The road had stopped climbing and we had started searching for alternate, hidden routes.
Then we saw the pathway of a dried stream. We reverse engineered and concluded that it should lead us to the top of the hill. We followed the path with a new zeal and fervor. We climbed on, almost oblivious of cacti and branches that blocked our way. Then, a clearing. There must be another path where the stream continues. And we found one. We climbed on. Another clearing. Tsskk tskkk. We are not so lucky this time. We decided to have our grub there.
We had some bread and cakes and rested for some 15 minutes. It was 11 by now. And the moon shone on us. What a lovely sight it was - the moon amidst the dark clouds. But it was not to last long and we decided it was time to walk on.
We had circled the fort by a full 360 degrees by now. We stopped on the way for a couple of times searching for a passage to the top, but failed. Then, jat spotted a way.
Before we realized what was happening, he had made a vertical climb of a few meters and was asking us to follow him. I decided to follow him. I took the torch in my mouth and started climbing.
"aaram se", jat tells me.
Not a place for aaram, what with one leg on a hanging root of a tree, another leg on a protruding stone covered with mud, one hand on a rock and another hanging on to some grass, and a torch in my mouth! As I looked down, I saw LED in his banyan with a wet bed-sheet wrapped around him. Not a pretty sight, I say

June 23, 2005

Where is Manipur??

"Aap kaun se gaon se aaye ho?"
"Manipur se." An answer which i thought was the most suitable.
"Woh toh Nepal mein hai na?"
"Nahi, Assam ke bagal mein"
"Achha." As if the thing it finally clicked in his head.

I had this conversation with Yogesh, a mechanic (wont reveal where). I have had similar conversations before. Seems like a lot of people are at a loss as far as the north eastern states are concerned. Ive noticed that my friends are either ignorant in geography or plainly indifferent. Have read twice in e-pao about this sometime back.

Maybe it is the way the states are placed. It's indeed difficult for an outsider to distinguish between the people from here, just like the way it is for us to distinguish among mayangs. I don't see anything bad or derogatory in these queries about my "native place", though it may get irritating at times, specially when someone gets persistent and continues asking questions.

One more thing, i have noticed many of the NE people getting offended when called chinkies, slant-eyed and the like. I see no reason to get offended here. It's something to laugh off, rather than go to lengths complaining about racism. As long as u maintain your personal stature and dignity, there's nothing to get offended about. Rather, by getting offended, you are showing a vulnerability. Dont let others cash on your "chinks in the armour".

Male girls

Metrosexuals are passe, mirls are in." ( Mirls = male girls, for the uninitiated).
"According to The Herald Sun, the "hermaphrodudes" as they are called, are not afraid to carry a manbag, wear feminine jewellery, spend a fortune on fashion or work in traditionally female jobs. They also wear pink scarfs and work in women's fashion and lingerie shops. But when it comes to romance they remain committed to pursuing the opposite sex.


Now, if this not the height i dont know what is! These fashion chains have to resort to such gimmicks as they have run out of ideas and try to establish a new range of products. They will be launching jewellery, shirts etc to meet the demands of this new select group of clients. Of course, they have to cater to the needs of every client. Good for them, they need to live. But as far as i am concerned, mirls= chhakkas, no second thoughts about it.

June 22, 2005

To Mumbai and back!!

Made a trip to Mumbai with LED and Jat. Had some really nice time. Stayed over at Srinath's place. Visited all the usual places- Chowpatty, Bandra, Marine Drive etc etc. But the trip burnt a big hole in my pocket. Have to spend sensibly now. Now tht its not sure if we are getting our stipend or not.
Anyways, the highlight should be the go-karting. The four of us took 6 laps at this go karting place near the airport. Did have an exciting time. I should be able to do better the next time around. Was too cautious!!
Then the hookah that we had! It was refreshing in the beginning but made me dizzy later on. One and a half hours is too long man!! But it was good with a cool ambience and all(not to mention the babes!).
Good trip overall, with all the last minute plans, rides in the trains, autos, taxis and buses.

June 12, 2005

About Pune

The first things u register about this place. Im listing them as and when i remember them. From weird to the mundane, they are all here!!

-The language. It's a mixture of hindi, marathi and english giving a new lingua franca understandable, but nonetheless, weird.
-Six seaters. These are the mode of transport, now that the transport board is going through troubled waters. Wherever u want to go, u have to know which 6 seater u have to take, along with the places where they are available. They are reliable in most places, but u have to know the routes well.
-Names.Names of both people and places sound strange and may cause a laugh or two. Names mostly end in le or re,e.g. Karle, Kale, Tikone, etc. Names of places are no better. Bhosri sounded pretty funny when i first heard it(still sounds funny!).

June 11, 2005

Parineeta

Whew!! Some 5 movies in the past 2 weeks and im still rolling on!
Today was Parineeta, which i saw amidst mpwer-cuts, rain and heat. This adaptation of a Saratchandra Chattopadhay novel by Pradeep Sarkar is certainly worth watching.
The movie builds up tautly with scores of emotions and songs. It could have done with one or two lesser songs though. However, the climax spoilt the entire build-up, which made everyone crib at the end of it. It could really ( and literally) have been a different story had the ending been done in a more subtle way.
One bright thing about the movie is the protagonist, Lolita, played convincingly by newcomer, Vidya Balan. She shows now sign of being a newcomer, though she has countless ads and music videos under her belt. She acts out all the emotions required of her with conviction and puts life into her character.
Sanjay Dutt and Saif impress with their parts. Raima also impresses in her small role . Diya Mirza proves once and for all that she cant act for nuts

June 08, 2005

Dan Brown

Just read Angels and Demons. His take on history and secret societies is intriguing, to say the least. Would love to learn more about The Illuminati, Bernini, Masonry and the lot.
However, the book seems to be full of inaccurate facts in spite of his claim that everything is factual in his book. He claims in his webpage
If you read the "FACT" page, you will see it clearly states that the documents, rituals, organization, artwork, and architecture in the novel all exist. The "FACT" page makes no statement whatsoever about any of the ancient theories discussed by fictional characters.
So, it is definitely left to the reader whether to take the "facts" with a pinch of salt or not.
In spite of this i cant help seeking attention to the inumerable mistakes he has made which can be misleading to the readers. Check out this sitewikipedia and this blog

June 04, 2005

D

Saw the much awaited ram gopal verma movie. It was decent fair, but fell shortof expectations. There was too uch of company in it. Fell like i saw one quarter of company after watching the entire movie. Randeep Hooda impressed as Deshu. But doubtful if he is here to stay, maybe ram gopal verma thinks differently. Chunkey Pandey surprised me with his act. He did seem very fresh. Rukshar feel short of expectations. She did seem very beautiful in some parts, but her acting prowesss left a lot to be desired.

Im losing weight

I weigh 60.5 kgs(tht machine at the railway station). That's 2 kgs less than my usual weight. Have to regain it when i reach home. Seems a bit impossible until then.

To Lonavla and back!!

A trip to the famed Lonavla was just what i needed after a week of hectic activity. And it came comfortably under 200 bucks. What a bargain!! There were 13 of us, the 3 of us and 8 IIT Roorkee guys. Took a local train to the place and then hired a Qualis and an Indica over there. Rs 1200 which turned out to 100 for each guy! Pretty decent , i wud say.
We hit some 6 points, as they were called. The air force point and the wdhwa dam were notable..The rest were so-so. One guy at Tigere hill in Khandala showed us Shah rukh khan's and Dhirubhai ambani's bungalows, the places where jungle and taal were shot..all in 5 minutes! He charged Rs.5 for his fair which was done convenieantly through his binocular.
The hills reminded e of home, and i did feel a bit home-sick. I hope that auto driv er didn't take it too seriously when i told him to take me to Manipur!!