The "Music" played

The “Music” Played

It has been a week since the “Music” graced us lucky 70-80,000 people. 84 Kilometers from the Genius’s and my home town Madras, a place called seekithu kuppam(Slum) 60 Kilometers from Pondicherry a land occupied by Marg properties, about 5000 cars and 10-12000 bikes parked.

Choc-o-Block full, ECR was jam packed, absolute chaos, the lights were bright and I could see them about a kilometer away from the actual place. I started at 4:50 PM from Madras and reached the place at 7:40 PM in the evening. Though I hit 120 consistently we managed to reach after 2:30 hours of traffic filled travel.

Then at 7:30 Pm 10 minutes before I reached the show had begun. I vividly remember at the flip side of the donor pass were few protocols which were supposed to be adhered to but then......

1. The entry will be prohibited after 6:30PM i.e. 30 minutes past the show time

(The show started at 7:30 PM only).

2. Only one person will be allowed for valid donor pass holder

(No one even bothered to check if we had valid ones)

3. Plastic bottles and drinks bought outside will be strictly prohibited.

(People had their dinner right there)

4. Still Cameras and video cameras are not allowed.

(Every second person had a either still camera or handy cam)

5. Mobile phones should be switched off immediately after the show begins

6. (No one even cared to do that, people shot through mobile cameras)

Now, to the main show after couple of ear drum rupturing numbers at around 7:40 PM the music emerged atop a crane dressed in a Jeans and Black Tee, then chaos a musical at that. I have never ever seen such a Himalayan audience and such a show in my 31 years of existence.

The grandeur of show was seen to be believed, it is just out of the world experience a journey in to the unknown but everything known. To support the maestro there were very famous personalities like Sivamani, Hariharan, Chitra,Sadhna Sargam and many.

During the show the dancers were just making their presence felt and not at any moment did they relent, they were full of beans and the show was even more Rahmanesque. The Maestro slipped in to one of his product a new song from the film Blue, “Fiqrana”. I had a hunch that he likes this song particularly in this album, then the other singers kept every one entertained.

Along the course came perhaps the song of 2008, came out this singer and the audience did not quite know whom he was, poor man that he is, he is the voice of “Jashn-e-Bahar” Javed Ali just mesmerised with this song. Then came Dil se from the master himself, it was like going to heaven and coming back such was the intensity that a melodious song like that evoked a rapturous applause.

A minute and couple of sighs from the audience the “Train” left the station and slowly built its velocity to peak to a point where about 10,000 people sang and danced. The train was driven by the master’s sister A.R.Rehana and Mohammad Aslam. So much so people who know no word in Hindi started singing “Chaiyyan chaiyyan”. Such is the power of “music”, the “Train” came to a screaming stop, and then “Taxi” picked up from where the “Train” Let off. The “Taxi” driven by BlaaZe and Vivienne. There was madness in the audience as people of all age started grooving.

Then a break for 15 Minutes to hand over the formalities and then started the journey again this time to the Dhol beats of “Azeem-O Shaan” and “Veerapandi kottayile” and “Rukumani” sung by the maestro himself, to boot to the songs the LED display behind the showman was just mind blowing.

After this there was chill in the air and silence in the audience, then the stage got lit up in green, the maestro had a cap and a harmonium to his aid, then he slipped into a sufi song “Khwaja mere” and then followed “Arziyaan” from Delhi-6 I for a minute forgot that I was Sathyanarayanan and that I was Rahim Khan, such was the mesmerising voice. After that Hariharan and Chitra sung their chart toppers with Chitra’s “Kannalane” evoked more applause for the maestro’s part than the actual song.

Neeti Mohan increased the temperature of the evening by crooning and belly dancing for “Maaya Maaya”. After enthralling the audience for more than 4 hours the Musical genius slipped in to perhaps the most sung by song of the evening in "Musthafa" the audience just swayed and sung as if they were charmed by the snake charmer. Then the re mixed Humma from the maestro and BlaaZe just took the night away. To end the show the academy award winning “Jai Ho” and the universe winning “Vande mataram” evoked emotional scenes.

The icing on the cake was the fire crackers after the show which kept the audience un moved; it was a night of musical nirvana for me and the other 70000 odd Rahmaniacs.

Bomb(ed)ay

Mumbai,Bangalore,Ahmedabad,Delhi,Jaipur these are just another names of the city for many people but for us Indians these are the places where thousands lost their lives to the atrocity of terrorism.

26th November 2008 will not be forgotten as the day has been inscribed in blood as a black day.
the terrorism does exist all over the world and it is just that our India has been at the receiving end for eternity.

Few things that makes my blood boil and i want to vent my anger here, i guess you will all agree with me.
1.Every terror attack is carried out meticulously here and we have never been able to intercept any of them, even if we did we say it post the attack.
Question: Is our defence the weakest link in the chain?

2.Americanising everything to the extent this attack is called 26/11 along the lines of 9/11,
Question:why?don't we have work other than just stylising the gory attacks?

3.The martyrs of this attack are from different regions of the country,like Sandeep Unikrishnan from south,Gajendar Singh from North,Hemant Karkare from west.If the country were to go by what the senseless,useless,non patriotic creature like Raj Thackeray said then the death count would have been in thusands and not in hundreds.
Question: Should people who support regionalising be arrested?

4.Shivraj Patil made to resign, Vilas rao deshmukh being asked to resign....
Can't these politicians take the wrath of the people on their chin and take on the terror and put an end to it and then resign. No they will not ,they will just walk away.
Note: Vilas rao deshmukh took Ritesh Deshmukh(Son and actor) and director Ram gopal Verma to see the carnage at the Taj hotels. I am just speechless. I mean this is the chief minister of the terror ravaged state for god sakes just fire him from the post and donate him to the terrorists.

The politicians attaching their party logo on the banners of the homage meant for the brave men who fought and lost their lives, this is the height of shame i guess.

The youth of this country should put their hands up and say we will take this country forward.I know one swallow doesn't make a summer , if handful of young people from each colony step out then we have the young and educated politicians on our hand.But this will remain a dream and never a reality.

"Nisha" is naughty

It has been a very long hibernation for me from te blogging lane and I suddenly come out of my hibernation and publish this on a day when Mumbai (Bombay) is under siege and Cyclone Nisha has wreaked havoc in Madras and Tamilnadu in general. On a day when stepping out was as difficult as dancing on a soaped floor i managed to do a survey and whipped my camera out and took few shots of the carnage. The pictures are just the tip of the iceberg,these are shot in my area Nanganallur(Madras) you can imagine the damage in other low lying areas.

Coach’s Role

Inconsequential of any walk of life there has to be someone behind to direct traffic, be it in the normal 9 to 5 job or school or sports. Umm Sports and my god are we entering in to an ocean.

Let’s just dwell on cricket for a while because that is where the epicenter for the disaster lies. Ever since we were shown the door from the world cup Gre(at)g Chappell has been shown the chappal, not the one to believe in the myths but this particular one about “Great cricketers Don’t make a great coach” does make you want to believe, if we go by the history Kapil Dev, Javed Miandad, Don Bradman, Gordon Greenidge ,Vivian Richards and so on so forth. But what really is a coach’s role in this whole drama?

They are meant to be sort of one who will nod along for the good decisions or are they the kingmaker? It is not as if the ordinary cricketers who have turned coaches have had it as Peaches and cream, they have had their fair share of their brickbats as well.
A coach can utmost corrects the bad technique of a player; he just can’t go out and correct himself.
The Greatest storyteller in Cricket Ian Chappell incidentally happens to be the much-maligned Greg’s elder brother is not a great advocate for coaches in any sport. He’s right to a certain extent. Just to highlight his point the greatest cricketer to walk this planet Sir Garfield Sobers never had a coach accompanying him or his team but he still managed to score close to 9000 test runs and 234 wickets and around 100 catches. This is unparalleled in Cricket. Our very own Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar never had coaches till about their sunset of their careers still they performed the way they did.
I am not saying coaches should not exist at all but my point is it will fetch you the profits that you expect in an individual sport rather than a team sport.

The Supposedly very great coach of all time Late Bob Woolmer made a name for himself when he was associated with the South African team and absolutely wretched time when he was wit the Pakistan Team till his death recently. Does that mean that Bob Woolmer had forgotten his coaching skills no it is plain and simple, in a team sport an individual is as good as his team, Classic cases being Brian Lara and Sachin Tendulkar performing in a losing course umpteen times.
So I guess coaches are like teachers where in they have to intervene and correct the bugs that creep in to an individual’s game. John Buchanan was not a great cricketer himself but still he made a name for himself since he was with the Ruthless and Invincible Aussies.The Aussies adapt a completely different policy as far as their sports are concerned, for instance they brought in an American Pitcher to help their Cricketers in throwing the ball from the deep flat and at lightning pace. You know that’s innovation we can also try something like this in the off-season, we can hire a football Goal keeper to enhance our Diving skills, things like these will be of great help rather than to have an Ex Sports person wearing the team’s jersey and just play with laptop just to prove to the world that the coach is Techno Savvy as well.

There has to be a way out.

Down Memory Lane

Very Recently along with the Bunch of Forwarded mails, I got this most beautiful piece of mail that I have ever received and I thought I’ll share with you all.
Believe me every person would have come across the below mentioned experience and let me be a small tool in rewinding your memories.

Program Days Gone by

Main

Gone are the days

When the school reopened in June,
And we settled in our new desks and benches.
When we queued up in book depot and got our new books and notes.

When we wanted two Sundays and no Mondays, yet
Managed to line up daily for the morning prayers.
We learnt writing with slates and pencils, and
Progressed To fountain pens and ball pens and
Then
Micro tips.

We began drawing with crayons and evolved
to Colour pencils and finally sketch pens.

We started calculating first with tables and then with
Clarke's tables and advanced to calculators and
computers.

When we chased one another in the corridors in
Intervals, and returned to the classrooms
Drenched in sweat.

When we had lunch in classrooms, corridors,
Playgrounds,under the trees and even in cycle shed.
When all the colors in the
World, Decorated the campus on the Second Saturdays.

When a single P.T. period in the week's Time Table,
Was awaited more eagerly than the monsoons.

When cricket was played with writing pads as bats,
And Neckties and socks rolled into balls.

When few played
"kabadi" and "Kho-Kho" in scorching sun,
While others simply played
"book cricket" in the
Confines of classroom.
Of fights but no conspiracies,
Of Competitions but seldom jealousy.

When we used to
Watch Live Cricket telecast, In the opposite house in Intervals and
Lunch breaks.

When few rushed at 3:45 to
"Conquer" window seats in our School bus.
While few others had "Big Fun", "peppermint", "kulfi",
" milk ice !" and "sharbat !" at 4o Clock.

Gone are the days Of Sports Day,
and the annual School Day ,
And the one-month long preparations for them.

Gone are the days Of the stressful
Quarterly, Half Yearly and Annual Exams,
And the most enjoyed
holidays after them.

Of tenth and twelfth standards, when
We spent almost the whole year writing revision tests.

We learnt,
We enjoyed, we played, we won, and we lost,
We laughed, we cried, we
Fought, we thought.
With so much fun in them, so many friends,
So much experience , all this and more.

Gone are the days when we used to talk for hours with our friends.
Now we don't have time to say a
HI.

Gone are the days when we played games on the road.
Now we code on the road with laptop.

Gone are the days when we saw stars shining at night.
Now we see stars when our code doesn't
Work.

Gone are the days when we sat to chat with friends on
grounds.
Now we chat in chat rooms.....

Gone are the days where we
studied just to pass.
Now we study to save our job

Gone are the
days where we had no money in our pockets and fun filled
on our hearts

Now we have the ATM as well as the credit card but with an empty
heart.

Gone are the days where we shouted on the road.
Now we don’t shout even at home
Gone are the days where we got lectures from all.

Now we give lectures to all... like the one I'm doing
now....
Gone are the days
But not the memories, which will
be lingering in our hearts for ever and ever and
Ever and ever and Ever .....

NO MATTER HOW BUSY YOU ARE ,
DONT FORGET TO
LIVE THE LIFE THAT STILL
EXISTS.

End.

Kathipara - Delayed Boon

Well the Madras Roads are being reeeeeeeeeelaid for about a year now ever since the 2005 rains attacked us the Water starving Madrasis. Although it was good in quenching the Thirst of crores it did wreak havoc in terms of the roads.

Guindy the Hub of the inner city and the Outer limit has seen traffic in the last 3 years that is absolutely unprecedented. Now that the place is Metamorphosising in to I.T hub the place is even more suffocating. The traffic there is like that of a RAP artist, neither confusing nor understanding.

Thankfully the Indian Government has decided to lay a "Grade Separator" (man that was tough) to ease the bottleneck. The Bridge is like state of the art engineering and if it does come at the scheduled date, boy wouldn't all Madrasis be thanking the Ministry.

What do you say?

Here's just a Painter's version of the "Grade Separator”.
Iam just waiting to burn those dividers.
Vrooooooomm Vrooooooomm.

Fate - Not so Kind

March 26th,1:30 Pm,Sunday nice lunch,T.V programs On,Nice chat,Phone cries conversation then i cry,For the rest of my life this call will remain and haunt,for the news that came was not so kind.

One Picture does Speak for thousand words: but I cannot..........

Tathuvams of 2006

Just came Across these Thatuvams,read it and if you can add to it well you know what to do.Let's try and generate as many number of Thathuvams as Possible.

1.Nee evalo periya padipalliya irundhalum exam hall la poi padikka
mudiyadhu.
2·School testla bit adikkalaam,College testla bit
adikkalaam,anaa Blood testla bit adikka mudiyaadhu.
3·Enna Than Naai Nanri Ullatha Than Irunthalum Athala
"THANK YOU" Solla Mudiayathu! Idhuthan Valkai
4·Aayiram than irundhalum aayirathi onnu than perusu.
5·Yennathan Ahimsavathiya irundhalum Chappathiya suttu than sappida
mudiyum
6·Ni enna than Veerana Irundhalum, Kulir adicha thirumba adikka
mudiyathu.
7·kasu irundha call taxi! kasu illaina kall than taxi!
8·kovil maniya namma adicha saththam varum,aana kovil mani
nammala adicha raththam than varum
9·Pallu valina palla pudungalam aana kan nu valina kanna pudunga mudiyuma
10·Idly Podiya Thottu Idly Saapidalaam Aana Mooku Podiya Thottu
Mooka Saapid Mudiyathu
11·Nee Evalodhaan padichu certificate vaanginaalum,
Un death certificate unnala vaanga mudiyaathu.
12·Nee Airtel vachirundhaalum Aircel vanchirundhaalum
Thummum podu Hutch nnu thaan satham varum
13·Engineering Collegela padichu Engineer aagalaam
Presidency collegela padichu president aaga mudiyumaa?
14·If you drink ethanol you will dance
If you drink methanol others will dance for u.
15·Bus Stop la irunthu Bus varum aana Full Stop la iurunthu Full varuma?
16·Meluga vachchu melugu vathi seyyalam,aana kosuva
vachi kosu vathiseyya mudiyathu.
17·Mechanical engineer mechanic aagalam aana software engineer
software aaga mudiyadhu.

Deepavali Dreams

For starters am a little sad that Diwali AKA Deepavali for South Indians came and went so fast. Just the name of the Festival triggers an Adrenaline rush. Everything associated with the festival is colourful. The Crackers, the Sweets, the new clothes, the gifts, the temples, the beaming grin on every single face of the passer by as if he has scored a Hundred in the world cup final.

Hands down Deepavali is the best festival of all the Indian festivals. The excitement it gives before the actual day is just unbelievable I am pretty sure everyone would have felt it at some point of the season.

The festival season used to be the most eagerly awaited one during my earlier years. Deepavali coincided exactly with the Monsoon season of Madras, which means the start of the “Top Spinners” i.e. “Bambaram” in Tamil – oh what a rush? The evenings then invariably will revolve around the clothes we want to buy (which will never happen is an another issue). My neighbours will come up with the clichéd choice of a set of shirt and a half pant. My choice would be flashy red pant and a shirt of the same colour and of course the red boots to go with it ala, Kamalhaasan
Of the 80’s which eventually will turn in to regular half pant and a Tee in regular sane colours minus my boots of my Mother’s choice (Thank god), and we used to have a real competition as to who buys more crackers and as usual I’ll lose the race but I did win the race for the day’s first cracker burster if I can call it that way. At 4am in the morning it would be pitch dark and still I was the one to set the 1st firecracker.

My shopping always happened at the crowded T.Nagar with family and my mother used to choose for us. That was about 15 years back I miss it completely these days. The traditional “Nalangu”and the chewing of “vetthala”(Betel leaf) and the Oil bath and the firecrackers almost all day long and the exchange of sweets and paying respects to the elders were the important ones in the agenda. These days even the children are not interested in firecrackers instead they prefer to watch the oft repeated star Interviews on T.V.

Where are those days? At 27 crackers still excite me but it’s very different with the children of these days. Come out and enjoy the occasion. The only complaint about Deepavali for me is that the festival is not longer than it is now. But then that is tradition is it not?

Oh what a Rush!!!!

The X Files – The truth is out there

Neither Fox Mulder nor Dana Scully could dig the truth out. Hidden for almost 10 years in about the depth of beyond infifnity. Let’s excavate everything well almost everything.

File 1: They did it!! Or we did it!
----------------------------------------
Now to lay the facts down it was orchestrated by “MP1” and “MP2” tagged along and as “SP1” I was just a puppet and the strings were very much with “MP1”and he was controlling me. “MP2’s” home was the stage and his telephone was the prop, “MP2” generously permitted for this drama to be staged. As usual “SO” was doing his bit with his trademark smile on his face, although it looked more like the evil smile.

This was all the fuel that was needed to light the fire for all the “Artists”, boy did they light a fire? It was as exciting as the match between India/Pakistan although I was frightened to my very soul, then I did have fun in doing that. I know that it’s a cheap shot but still I took it.

1995
------
Starry Evening/night and “MP2”shot almost all of the back of a certain ----------. So we can pretty much say that we witnessed the “back” of --------. Why? Why? ----- “MP2”’s Titanic Crush on her. (Now she’s married too) wow! What a coincidence the same day “SP1” A.KA me was trying hard to impress ---------. My Machismo knew no bounds then. To fan the fire came the decision to name “MP2”as the male model of the Evening. Man o Man what a big mistake?

MP2 what do you think about that decision?

Now “MP1”,”SO”,”SP2” had a Himalayan Crush on Ms.G.G.L.Priya and they were trying hard to draw her attention, which went in vain I guess. Too many boils did spoil the cook that day.
“SP2” had too many balls in the air I guess just could not balance them, his crush and his love on the same stage and at the same time (Sweatssssssss).

File 3:Filmi Fever
----------------------
Whenever someone has a crush on someone it is bound to get equated with the popular film of that time. BOY----The hero and GIRL--- The Heroine. In this case DILWALE DULHANIYA LE JAYENGE was my dream film and HO GAYA HAI was my National anthem(To Icy Switzerland and back with background music ringing).

What a crap? I can’t believe I did that.

File 4: Teacher’s day
----------------------------
1995 September 5th, As Super Seniors we were given permission to be as teachers for our juniors to mark the teacher’s day. But me the eternal opportunist took that chance and made hay while the sun shone for about 2 hours or so.

Yeikes, come to think of it now, what a dumb A#@ was I?

The X files will continue!