Is it really Dirty ????

The Dirty picture fails to deliver beyond what the title promises i.e. A Dirty picture. The posters and everything is in Tamil but you may hardly find anything indigenous other than “Nakku Mukka” track which is a symbolic of the 80’s era.
The journey begins on a good note with the early life of Silk where she runs from her traditional home to avoid being married. Silk lands in the male dominated hypocrite society of Chennai where everybody wants to have it but nobody wants to discuss it. Even in Cinemas, male heroes chose meaty roles and scripts revolved around them. There was hardly anything worthwhile for the actresses.
Silk had a bohemian lifestyle; she was neither an optimist, nor a pessimist. In fact she was an opportunist. She stubbornly refused to abide by the existing rules and carved a niche for herself. She gave some real sensuous scenes and there were times when males thronged cinema halls just to have a glimpse of her so called Dirty songs. Such was the enigma of Silk that she could spoil the party of the biggest film critic as well. Director fails to describe or explain the debacle of Silk from one of the top notch item number hottie to an actress without any work. In a sudden scene, Silk fails to deliver a scene and gets into a verbal spat with the Director of the movie. This incident marks the end of her glorious career. How ridiculous!!!!!!
She decides to produce her own film when eternal lover boy of Hindi cinema Emraan Hashmi (Ibrahim in movie) directs a better movie and wins the race. God knows how but he falls in love with Silk and there is a love song even when Silk is in great distress and her house is on the verge of being sold. Our Directors will not show anything depressing in movies because of the age old belief that depressing movies don’t do well with audiences in our nation. Except for the dark circles around Silk’s eyes nothing showed her spiraling downfall and the bad time she was going through. Her unceremonious death was also shown in the wrong light because when I read facts from WIKI it was mentioned that she hanged herself whereas in movie facts were distorted. The movie comes hard on the hypocrite, male dominated South Indian society where actors still rule the roost and there are hardly any worthwhile female centric roles. People love to watch voyeuristic cinema and songs but can’t accept female centric films.
Come on directors; if you really want to depict the sensuality and real life of Silk have guts to show the reality in every scene rather than her cleavage. I would like to appreciate Rajat Arora, dialogue writer of the movie for his impeccable dialogues. Good performances by Naseerudin Shah and Vidya Balan actually gave some life to this otherwise boring movie. Go and watch it if you want to witness a strong performance by Vidya Balan and some earth shaking dialogues by all the characters.

THE KITE RUNNER

The Kite Runner is one of the most gripping books I have read. The story is so gripping that one is bound to complete it in a single go. The tale begins in the beautiful capital town of Kabul, a city once known for its panoramic views and aesthetic beauty. A city marked by beautiful architectural monuments, green fruit orchards and an amazing intellectual capital.
To begin with, it tells the tale of two Afghan boys who are best friends inspite of stark differences in their social status in the Afghan society. The protagonist of the novel ‘Amir’ is the son of a rich businessman. His father owns a palatial mansion and a flourishing business in Kabul. He is also a philanthropist who regularly takes part in the acts of altruism such as building an orphanage in the city etc. Amir’s father is a modern man who doesn’t believes in radical views held by many of the clerics and society members. Hasan is the son of the loyal Hajara servant who works in Amir’s household. He is a friend-cum-brother to Amir. They played with each other during the day. Amir would often read out the stories of ‘Shahnama’ to him which both the boys adored very much. They gallivanted frequently in the streets of Kabul and participated enthusiastically in many Kite flying competitions. The first few chapters are a symbolic of true friendship and camaraderie.
Aseef is a notorious sociopath who constantly abuses Hassan and sexually assaulted him on one of the occasions. Amir witnessed this but could not muster courage to report this incident. He starts living with a pang of guilt and shame and decides to get rid of Hassan. He falsely accused him of stealing; Hassan confessed when confronted by Amir’s father and left the house.
In the second part of the story, beautiful town of Kabul is invaded by Soviet Union. Amir and his father had to leave their home and flee the country they once called their motherland. They reach America via Peshawar and somehow start rebuilding their scattered lives. Amir’s father starts working in a gas station and Amir completes his education and is keen to become a writer. Amir falls in love with Soraya Taheri. She is the daughter of General Taheri, another refugee from Afghanistan who knew Amir’s father really well. They get married and settle down in a happy marriage. Meanwhile, Baba passed away after a critical illness. Amir and his wife were also sad because of the fact that Soraya cannot conceive. This very fact haunted them for 15 long years.
One fine day, Amir got a call from Rahim Khan who was Amir’s father confidante while they were in Afghanistan. He invited Amir to Peshawar to visit him for the last time. Rahim Khan reveals the greatest secret to Amir that Hassan was actually his illegal half brother. He told Amir how Hassan moved to Hajarazaat after being forced to move out of Amir’s house. He had a wife named Farzana and a son called Sohrab. Finally, Khan tells Amir that the true reason he called Amir to Pakistan was to rescue Sohrab from an orphanage in Kabul. Amir’s world was devastated and he decided to go to Kabul, he starts his arduous journey with Farid, an Afghan driver and a war veteran.
To his amazement Amir discovered that Afghanistan was very different from what it was when he left Afghanistan as a child with his father. The entire valley was in shambles. There was a scene of death and destruction all around. He was perturbed due to all this. To enter Taliban territory, clean shaven Amir wears a fake beard and moustache. Taliban had imposed most harsh laws and legislations in this beautiful hill country. Women were not allowed to move out of their houses without wearing hijabs. Music, games and other such means of entertainment were banned as Taliban believed that such things are sinful and blasphemous under Islam. They had interpreted Islam in a very controversial manner.
He found out the orphanage where Sohrab used to stay in Kabul. The caretaker of the orphanage told him that a Taliban leader who often visited the orphanage and took away young girls and boys, he apprised him that the same leader had also taken away Hassan few days back. Farid arranged a meeting between Amir and the Talib leader, the Talib leader actually turned out to be Aseef. Sohrab was dressed in women’s clothes and was made to dance and entertain like eunuchs. Amir was moved after watching all this. A fight broke out between Amir and Aseef and Amir was badly injured. However, Amir is saved when Sohrab uses his slingshot to shoot out Assef's left eye, fulfilling Hassan's threat made many years before. After all, history repeats itself. They escape from the clutches of sinister Aseef and Amir takes Sohrab to US with him. Sohrab refuses to talk to Soraya and stays in a cocoon which he had created for himself. It has been truly said that “Time heals all wounds”. Sohrab starts playing with Amir and Soraya and gets friendly with them with time.
The story is very strong with complex characters expressing a plentitude of emotions. The characters deal with emotions such as love, betrayal, friendship and redemption. A controversial book which has been vociferously opposed by members of Taliban and staunch Muslim clerics. The book will give you an insight into the history of Taliban before and after the Taliban invasion. Don’t deprive yourself of this visual treat; go grab your copy today.

Satire of Love

The other day one of my colleagues was bragging about his superb IT career, best appraisals and a penchant for the other sex, I was all ears to him. I have always dreamt of such a perfect lifestyle but could never manage to do so. He started narrating how he accosted someone from some other organization for a dinner and then a hair raising disco night. And rest is just history for him. He is eyeing another such rendezvous this weekend.

I acquiesced but later gave it a serious thought where was our society heading to????
And friends I am still thinking. People tend to enter into relationships even without giving a second thought. There are girls who cannot think beyond MAKE-UP, BREAK UP AND PATCH UP. Pyaar ka Punchnaama was a movie which actually glorified the modern scenario. It is a story about three innocent guys who were happy and content with their lives until they fell in love. One of the guys(Rajat aka Rajjo) enters into a live in relationship, the second one(Liquid ) eyes a girl who is already in a relationship and the third guy(Vikrant) who is a real Casanova likes a girl who is in a ON-OFF relationship with her old boyfriend. These girls actually make life difficult for our men. “A happy woman is a myth” is perhaps the strongest tagline which conveys the message of this film. One liners and humorous anecdotes throughout the film make it cogent for the audience.

Rajat’s bursting soliloquy on why women are the way they are and can never be understood is very humorous. The movie has nothing provocative except a few humorous quotes here and there. The movie has a charm of its own and if you have ever been into a relationship, you will be able to relate yourself to one of these myriad characters for sure.
Surely a one time watch, it’s a satire of love and relationships. Go for it !!!!!!!!

DORK by Sidin Vadukut

Sidin Vadukut is a very familiar name for me since I am a regular reader of online newspaper ‘Mint’. I was quite excited when I heard that he had launched his first book of his much anticipated ’Dork’ trilogy. The book titled ‘Dork, The Incredible Adventures of Robert Einstein Varghese’ priced at Rs.199/- was a safe bet as well. Skimming through the pages of the book, I found the narrative simple yet striking.

The story begins from the hallowed portals of one of the most prestigious B schools in the nation, IIMA (WIMWI). Robert is an academically gifted young man. The story of the book is a collection of personal diary entries of Robert. ‘Dorm’ names are very common at IIMA. Robert’s classmates nicknamed him as Einstein. Robert always dreamt of a prestigious consultancy job in MNC’s like McKinsey Corp, JP Morgan Chase, and Deloitte etc. But, unfortunately none of these companies considered our poor old soul ‘Robert’ for their Management Trainee positions. Finally, Robert lands up with ‘Dufrense Partners’, a mediocre, mid-market management consultancy firm largely run by complete morons.

The story continues at a swift pace and Robert moves to Mumbai to join Dufrense partners. Soon, he finds himself completely out of the place in the firm, Robert was stunned to find how Dufrense cheated its clients by providing them information available easily (sources such as Google, Wikipedia etc). His dreams were completely shattered and he despised his seniors at ‘Dufrense’. Moreover, Robert also has a short term goal of being promoted to Associate in under an year and beat the record set by someone from ‘Dufrense’ Vietnam office.

Robert is also concerned about his one sided affair with his gorgeous classmate ‘Gauri’. He adores Gauri but couldn’t express his love for her. Robert has a serious problem when it comes to women. He eyes every woman with lustful eyes and dubious intentions whenever and wherever he encounters them at different phases of life.

Robert gets utterly frustrated and gets drunk in one of the so called business meetings. In a drunken state, he blabbers the truth about Dufrense and its policies. The audio clip was aired on CNBC TV and he became an overnight celebrity in the field of management consultancy. The CEO of ‘Dufrense’ realizes his mistakes and promotes Robert ahead of others. Finally, a television interview of Robert regarding the future of management consultancy will force you to laugh out loud.

The humour is of a different kind and sarcasm is superb. ‘Dork’ is a hilarious story of Robert Einstein Varghese, a super dork (American slang for fool) and an unlikely corporate hero. He is an inspiration for all of us who ever sat depressed in our cubicles and thought of our jobs as monotonous and routine. ‘Dork’ is like a whiff of fresh air. Read the book and have your fair share of fun!!!!!

"Go Kiss The World "

On my last visit to Crossword in Pune, I was quite apprehensive regarding buying a book on Management lessons. Most of the Management books I have come across so far have either been full of boring theories or clichéd ideas. Maneuvering through the piles of books, I finally picked up “Go kiss the World” by Subroto Bagchi. The cover was impressive. But, remember the golden rule “Never judge a book by its cover”.

I skimmed through the first few pages for a while. The book was more of a professional biography of Subroto Bagchi, one of the founders of MindTree Consulting. I was actually captivated by the narrative of how Mr.Bagchi climbed the ladder of success and co founded MindTree in spite of being born and brought up in one of the remotest districts and towns of Orissa. The childhood account of Mr.Bagchi is worth reading.Mr.Bagchi’s father was a Govt Servant and his job was gallivanting from one district to another for the sake of his job. Hats off to the values and ideals he had inculcated in all his children right from the childhood. Subroto’s mother was a brave lady who meticulously built hearth for the family wherever they went and took good care of her children even during such odd situations.

Subroto describes how minor lessons of modesty, humility and honesty he learnt during his unprivileged childhood helped him throughout his life. From his childhood, he takes us to his first recognized job as a Management Trainee at DCM. I just couldn’t believe that a person who started his career with a garment unit could establish a company like MindTree. His story is one of sheer handwork, integrity and commitment to his work.
He unravels the lessons he had learnt at various places from DCM to his sales job at HCL and finally his stint at Wipro.

Subroto utilizes and spends resources and wealth in most frugal manner as possible. He shows us the way business should be done and redefines Business Ethics in a completely different perspective. He talks about being honest and developing networks which helped him a lot when he finally decided to start his own business after quitting his job from WIPRO. Finally, he takes us on a ride of his entrepreneurial ambitions where he co founded a company based on values of integrity, honesty and scruples. He gives us an ideal example of how someone from a very modest background and humble beginning could also rise up to become an entrepreneur in our modern India which has clearly marched ahead of major Western countries in terms of the rate of growth and development.

MindTree Consulting is a product of IT Revolution which started in our country in late 90’s and has helped us to surge ahead with an annual turnover of around 60 billion$.
Go, kiss the World is a must read for Business Managers, Young Professionals, aspiring entrepreneurs and students aiming high in their lives. So, what are you waiting for?
Go, grab your copy now and kiss the world without thinking anything else!!!!!!

Mandir+Masjid

Ayodhya verdict was on the cards. It was a moment of anticipation for everyone around as people were expecting a clear verdict after nearly 60 years of struggle. It was a dream come true moment for us i.e. IT professionals. We were asked to leave early in the wake of verdict as if the riots break out, they will attack the premises of these great companies where people are already dead in their hearts. Anyways, a break from the routine work is always welcome.

I started early with one of my colleagues. The buses were brimming with crowd from all corners of the city. We reached a spot from where we could auto rickshaws for our respective locations. I sat in the rickshaw after a while of haggling. To my surprise, my autowallah was a follower of a different faith. He was a follower of Ram’s spiritual brother, Muhammad. I started a conversation with him. I enquired about the roads of the city which were wearing a deserted look that day. He said “Arre sahaab Ye sab Mandir masjid ka khela hai ”.

I asked him that who should be held responsible for the whole fiasco. He promptly replied politicians. He said “ Arre sahaab hum mehnat ki roti khaane waale log,kahan in cheezon k baare mein sochenge”. I pondered over this for a while. I came back to my senses and asked him to drive a little faster. He nodded in agreement.

I was enjoying the cool October breeze of Pune city when suddenly noise levels soared high. I could hear slogans in the vicinity. The autowallah informed me that the area we were crossing through was dominated by followers of a different faith. The mob had turned unruly and they were attacking whatever came in their way. I was petrified. But my autowallah reassured me “ Sahaab ek baar agar sawaari hamari gaadi mein baith gayi to manzil tak pahunchana hamari zimmedari hai”. I was growing a bit skeptical about this fellow, but I had no option left with me other than trusting him. I put my trust in him and asked him to take through narrow by lanes. He adopted a shorter path and I reached my home in about half an hour. I thanked him for his noble gesture and cursed myself for my skepticism about him.

I switched on my TV. The same tamasha, hype and hoopla were aired on the screens throughout the country. Faith has percolated deep inside our lives, but its importance comes only after we satisfy our bare minimum necessities i.e. ‘Roti, kapda aur makaan ’.
Both the faith inspired by Ram and that inspired by the Prophet are universal in their common injunction of tolerance and compassion. So let’s take a pledge to live in peace and harmony.

Confessions of an IT Professional !!!

It’s been a while since I last posted something. My friends must have considered me reclusive.The other day I was really pondering over purpose of my life. After I completed my Engineering, things seemed to fell in place, but things have come back to square one. I joined one of the leading IT companies in the world (still confused about the parameter !!) . I was so excited about the nature of work with Projects from Fortune 500 clients pouring in. But,reality was a bit different .Let me take you to a journey called IT………..

Oops !!! Abbreviations are the most exciting part of Software professional’s life. The moment you enter into an organization, you are an AS(S)ET, Few days down the line ,you will be an AS(S)E. The organization has made it clear that there is absolutely no place for diligence here. All you need is assiduity. Well, we had training sessions too which help us to achieve core competency (bloody management jargon) in respective domains. I am still trying to recollect the domain I was trained in. Most of my training sessions were well spent in texting (SMS) messages to some long lost friends of mine. Anyways, after a mind boggling difficult test (pun intended) , I was ready for the acid test i.e. Projects. I was labelled as a ‘RESOURCE’ (never expected a better tag for myself). After a tortuous romance with a bunch of management wizards, I was mapped to some Project. The client is a Fortune 500 organization. So, I cannot even brag of my associations with the Project. It’s a complete hush hush affair.
Few technical questions and I was blank. Oops !!! the texting did the harm….

Hey hey, wait!!! Another important jargon is KT . A MENTOR is being assigned for freshers like me to ensure our smooth transition into Projects. But , he himself is in a dilapidated state and accuses organization of robbing away his health and precious years of his life. Anyways, BCG is another important criterion to be fulfilled before you get right to enter respectfully anywhere in office. Still thinking what BCG stands for. Don’t worry friends it’s not the Tuberculosis vaccine (Bacillus Calmette Guerin ), instead it stands for Background Check. What if you are a data terrorist and one fine day you abscond with the superfluous data. The client will sue your organization of irreparable loss and harm. Anyways ,I went through it also. I received phone calls from unknown numbers asking about positive and negative qualities of my colleagues for whom I became a reference. Ooh,,what if I tell somebody to be a confidante of Osama , will they fire him ??(stupid formalities).

HSB,ABFC,RC………..Don’t worry friends. These are not the names from a Computer Scientist’s vocab instead these are the names of a few eateries where I undergo gastronomical blunders on a daily basis. Can’t expand the abbreviation as it would harm the enviable reputation of these giants in the world. BTW, never saw or heard any of these names in North India ever. Nevertheless, organisation gave me ample opportunities to improve my backhand in Table Tennis and to tickle my mind in a game of chess. How could I miss the database we had built of the members of fairer sex with utmost patience and perseverance. I would like to express my deepest gratitude to all my friends who helped me to go through the whole agonising process. I am indebted to you my dear friends.

First few months of my professional life have made it clear that may be I am not ready for this. But, let’s hope that there will be something for me to do tomorrow. Till then , Nothingness is creeping inside me……………………………………………..