Drawing a blank!!!

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I used to wonder how it feels when someone has been waiting for something since days, and desperately;

and does not get it….

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now I know……it feels nothing….The effect is too enormous to feel! Atleast not so soon!

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Drew a blank!

Law??

I read this piece from here, which was in turn published here. Loved it, hated it, both at the same time. Do go through…

The police carried out a raid and closed a factory. The children, who were working there, were all set free. Some said: “We are orphans. To eat we need a livelihood.” The reply was swift and crude: “It is against the law”.
“Then we will have to beg”, they said, “or else we will have no food.” “That, too, is against the law,” the policeman in charge said rudely.
“If we cannot work and cannot beg, then we will die from hunger,’’ replied the crying children. “That you can do,” was the answer. “There is nothing illegal in dying”.

Movie Review - Tashan!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!

Rating: HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAAHHA!!!!!!!

Watch the movie to understand why I am doubling and tripling up with laughter!
On a second thought, don’t! Your reactions might not be as friendly as mine!

A tribute to the most used product of the decade!!

Guys, wondering what that is?? Yes, it indeed is: Maggi Noodles!!!!!

 Surprised?? Well, enter s/w pros, staying away from home in rented apartments/PG accos. What comes into your mind first when you think of getting a quick bite??

Ofcourse, maggi noodles!!!

What do you think of cooking after a tiring day at office, and your return to home at 10 pm?

Ofcourse, maggi noodles!!!

And yeah, esp. for the guys, what is the cuisine you are best at preparing?

Ofcourse, it is maggi noodles!!!

Mannnn!! What would we do without maggi noodles!!!!

Losing my views………

Was reading Sudha Murty’s ‘Wise and Otherwise’ yesterday(yeah, ok…i know its complete review is long overdue….patience guys…..). In one of those stories, Ms. Murty asks her son what he thinks are the 3 most revolutionary things of the 20th century, and he gives a really beautiful answer…..

It was then when i realized, that I would have been left speechless if I were to be asked the same question. I tried to think hardddd, but couldn’t really frame a nice answer…. The same thing happened to me at the cycle rally (about which i wrote here), when I was asked to write a slogan on the banner….I scratched my head hard, but couldn’t come up with a real bright one, and had to make do with an average, so-so one. That used to not be the case with me some time back, when I had an opinion about most of the things under the sun! and a nice quip always ready  to present it in a good way, as well!  Godd…what’s happening to me!! <talking to myself> Come back…come back!!!1

In the world of melodies………..Part One

My favourite music, or my favourite songs cannot be encompassed in a single article/post….so thought of breaking them up into many. And since currently I need some inspiration desperately, lemme begin this chain by listing out my favourite inspiring songs! So here I go…..

1) Main Zindagi Ka Saath Nibhaata Chala Gaya…………..

Very soulful, meaningful and melodious!

 

Maein Zindagi Ka Saath Nibhata Chala Gaya
Har Fikar Ko Dhuen Mein Udata Chala Gaya

Barbadiyon Ka Shok Manana Fizul Tha
Barbadiyon Ka Jashan Manata Chala Gaya
Har Fikar Ko Dhuen Mein Uda?

Jo Mil Gaya Usi Ko Muqaddar Samajh Liya
Jo Kho Gaya Maein Usko Bhulata Chala Gaya
Har Fikar Ko Dhuen Mein Uda?

Gham Aur Khushi Mein Farq Na Mehsoos Ho Jahan
Maein Dil Ko Us Muqaam Pe Laata Chala Gaya
Har Fikar Ko Dhuen Mein Uda?
 

 

2) Kisi ki muskurahaton pe ho nisaar…………..

The essence of fine living, in the purest sense! and a very hummable tune!

(Kisiki muskuraahaton pe ho nisaar
Kisika dard mil sake to le udhaar
Kisike waaste ho tere dil mein pyaar
Jeena issi ka naam hai) -2(Maana apni jeb se fakeer hain
Phir bhi yaaron dil ke ham ameer hain) -2
Mitte jo pyaar ke liye woh zindagi
Jale bahaar ke liye woh zindagi
Kisi ko ho na ho hamein to aitbaar
Jeena issi kaa naam hai

(Rishta dil se dil ke aitbaar ka
Zinda hai hameen se naam pyaar ka) -2
Ke mar ke bhi kisi ko yaad aayenge
Kisi ke aansuon mein muskuraayenge
Kahega phool har kali se baar baar
Jeena issi kaa naam hai
Kisiki muskuraahaton pe ho nisaar..

 

 

 

3) Khulke muskurale tu……….

Find more about this on my already posted article.

http://amruta.wordpress.com/2007/07/06/lyrics-that-have-touched-my-heart/

 

4) Kholo Kholo Darwaze

this song from TZP has an amazing comboof lyrics beats and music…very good for lifting your spirits!

Kholo Kholo Darwaze Parde Karo Kinare Khuntey Se Bandhi Hai Hawa Mil Ke Chhudao Saare Aajao Patang Leke Apney Hi Rang Leke Aasmaan Ka Shamiyana Aaj Hamein Hai Sajana Kyun Is Kadar Hairaan Tu Mausam Ka Hai Mehmaan Tu O, Duniya Sajee Tere Liye Khud Ko Zara Pehchaan Tu Tu Dhoop Hain Jham Se Bikhar Tu Hai Nadee O Bekhabar Beh Chal Kahin Ud Chal Kahin Dil Khush Jahan Teri Toh Manzil Hai Wahin O, Kyun Is Kadar Hairaan Tu Mausam Ka Hai Mehmaan Tu Baasi Zindagi Udaasi Taazi Hasney Ko Raazi Garma Garma Saari Abhi Abhi Hai Utaari O, Zindagi To Hain Batasha Meethi Meethi Si Hai Aasha Chakh Le Rakh Le Hatheli Se Dhak Le Ise Tujh Mein Agar Pyaas Hai Baarish Ka Ghar Bhi Pass Hai O, Roke Tujhe Koi Kyon Bhala Sang Sang Tere Aakash Hai Tu Dhoop Hain Jham Se Bikhar Tu Hai Nadee O Bekhabar Beh Chal Kahin Ud Chal Kahin Dil Khush Jahan Teri Toh Manzil Hai Wahin Khul Gaya Aasmaan Ka Rasta Dekho Khul Gaya Mil Gaya Kho Gaya Tha Jo Sitara Mil Gaya, Mil Gaya O, Roshan Hui Saari Zameen Jagmag Hua Saara Jahaan Udne Ko Tu Azad Hai Bandhan Koi Abh Hai Kahan Tu Dhoop Hain Jham Se Bikhar Tu Hai Nadee O Bekhabar Beh Chal Kahin Ud Chal Kahin Dil Khush Jahan Teri Toh Manzil Hai Wahin O, Kyun Is Kadar Hairaan Tu Mausam Ka Hai Mehmaan Tu

 

 

5) Liye sapnein nigaahon me….

And ofcourse my favourite…..the song of eternal hope, aspiratons and inspirations!!

And ofcourse, my origginal idea , it can serve as an excellent title song for the movie version of Paulo Coelho’s best-seller “The Alchemist”, if at all it were to be made in Hindi! <pat my back pat my back!!>

 

Liye sapne nigahon me, chala hoon teri rahon me
Zindagi aa raha hoon main

 

Kayi yaadon ke chehre hain, kayi kisse purane hain,
Teri sau dastane hain, tere kitne fasane hain.
Magar ik wo kahani hai, jo ab mujhko sunani hai
Zindagi aa…..

Mere haathon ki garmi se, bigar jayengi zanjeerein,
Mere kadmon ki aahat se, badal jayengi taqdeerein,
Umeedon ke diye lekar, ye sab tere liye lekar
Zindagi ….

Kabhi tujhko gila mujhse, kabhi mujhko shikayat hai,
Magar phirbhi tujhe meri, mujhe teri zaroorat hai,
Main ye iqraar karta hoon, main tujhse pyar karta hoon,
Zindagi …..

 

The life of an IT pro!!!!

A recent observation made by me and a few others, underlined the fact that more than 50% of the applicants to an HR specialty B-School were IT pros…. Software??? HR??? What’s the connection man???

Just shows that we guys want to get out of our field, in any way we can!! lol!!!

U, ME AUR HUMari misdirected love story!!!

Whoever said that all other intense actors could direct a movie as well as Mr. Perfect Aamir Khan??

Whoever said that the power-packed performances of Kajol and Ajay Devgan could carry off a movie with a badly written script and pathetic dialogues??

And last but not the least, whoever said that if you give a movie a sweet ending, it makes the movie good???

Well, not good, but yes, a little more bearable! It even has a positive effect on the title song, which sounds hopelessly boring at its 1st occurence, but is much more bearable and soothing when it plays at the end!

Well, this story is about a whirlwind, at first shaking-stumbling and then steady romance between Ajay and Piya, who meet on cruise which changes their life forever! Through different phases of love, pursual and resistance, they finally get married! Then, the real love story begins…..

Piya is diagnosed of Alzheimer’s disease at a young age of 28, and while she is pregnant. The trials and tribulations begin, the dilemma about what’s more important, the wife or the child deepens; the obvious decision is taken of admitting Piya to an asylum……relationships sour, the tension gets to all, theories are metted; and finally true love triumphs and brings Piya back home!

And this whole story is told to us and Kajol, by an ageing Ajay Devgan, on a cruise, on their 25th wedding anniversary, where they are, to fulfill their wish which they made on their wedding day!

Touching, sweet, sensitive??

Naah, leaving aside the last sequence, the movie’s far from it. The only thing it can boast of is the acting of Kajol and hubby Ajay, and Kajol’s wardrobe(it’s smart, suave, amazzzing)!!

Rest of the things draw a blank. Vishal Bharadwaj disappoints you completely with his music score, the background score is literally frightening, with sudden jaaring music surfacing at many times; the dialogues are horribly repeatitive and unimaginative; the script is bad, the lyrics are below average, the supporting cast is ineffective(they have completely wasted the talents of Sachin Khedekar, Sumit Raghavan and Divya Datta; and the other 2 from Ajay’s gang of friends don’t deserve even a mention! No, actually Isha Sharvani does..Mr. Ghai….Could you plz tell us WHAT exactly you saw in her and gave her a break????? ).

The lead actors, but ofcourse, do a suppperb job, and Kajol, although not looking young at all; has looked gorgeous!!!

And ofcourse, the direction- I think Ajay Devgan needs to get a little more mature and then think whether he can direct a movie! Or may be he can go for Horror movies or thrillers; for romance is clearly missing from his supposedly romantic movie!! Except for the last sequence which is cho very chweet, but am sure we can’t endure the whole movie just for that!

Rating: Red going on to Yellow!

Cycling away, to health and wealth!! :-)

Last saturday, Krunal, Hemanth and the other enthusiastic and enterprising members of the Green Brigade of my office organized a cycling expedition from our Mangaldas office to TRDDC office at Hadapsar. The purpose was promoting cycling as a pollution-free and healthy way of commutation. And although I had been working till 2:30 pm the nite before, I was all set to go for it at 7 am!

Reached the Mangaldas office, searched for a cycle from among the ones that were manaed to be brought on rent by the Green Brigade, didn’t find any that were short enough, so drove Joseph away from his, and go onto the cycle!

Believe me, although I was mounting(Har Har Mahadev!!! lolzzz) a cycle after many many years(and that too a Gents’ one-see the pic below); it was as though I’d been doing it everyday…. kisine sahi kaha hai, “U can never forget how to walk, cycle and swim!”

Lo!! There we were, a group of young and old cyclists, peddling away on the roads of Pune, with Tipur doing the one-hand cycling act, and happily clicking pictures of the bandwagon!

We had been warned by all the other non-enthusiasts that cycling all the way to Hadapsar is not going to be easy, and that we’ll drain ourselves, but but but!! It was NOTHING of that sort!!! Cycling for 30-35 minutes to Hadapsar and back, with a short Nimbu-Paani break in between, and a sandwich for restoring our lost calories later; didn’t tire us….instead it lifted our stamina, and our spirits!

 

In fact, I even started thinking about dropping my idea of buying a bike, and switching over to a bicycle!! That’s sucess for the mission of the cycling expedition, rite?

Bamboozled!!!!!!

That’s describing in one word, me n my life over the past few weeks!

Wise and otherwise!

I just started reading the book ‘Wise and Otherwise’ by one of my favourite authors, Sudha Moorthy, and although I have just been able to feast on 3 of the stories, I have almost fallen in love with the book! Ms. Moorthy’s stories are always simply written and yet heart-wrenching; and this book adds further to her glory. Do catch a glimpse if u can; I’m sure you won’t feel like putting it down until you devour it fully!

P.S. I plan to finish reading it in a coupla days. Shall keep you updated about the rest of it.

Happy new year everyone!!!

Hi all,

Here’s wishing you a very happy new year!!! May all your dreams come true!!

Love,

Amruta

 

P.S.: Am slogging at office as I write this….isn’t it ironical??

Ten Thousand!!!! :-)

So finally, my blog has been able to register 10000 hits!! Whoa!!! Amn’t I glad!! It’s been quite some time since I started it, so this event is all the more special to me!

So this is a big ‘Thank You’ note as well to all my readers, and a promise to myself to write more substantial stuff now!

Thanks to you all, and best wishes to me! Bye for now!!

The world’s a small place!!

I had been to Denmark sometime back (I know, I know, a blog about that is long overdue….but alas!! Let’s take that up some other time and continue this story for the time being…), and bought a T-shirt for my father with Copenhagen and Denmark written on it, along with a cute print of a Danish riverside. He wore it, and went out to get a Pizza from Dominos. And lo!! He met a Danish tourist there, who exclaimed that he’s also from Denmark, and the two had a nice conversation there!!!

Oh my God!! The world’s such a small place!!!

Bollywood movie dialogues are getting crispier!!

That Bollywood movie dialogues are all about ‘inspired’ (read as copied) lines,is a popular notion amongst most of us, and not without a reason! There was a time, and a long one, wher bollywod dialogue never recovered from the shackles of typical romance and typical comedy and typical action and typical revenge dialogues!!

But no longer!! Of late, the dialogues in Bollywood movies are not inspired, nad sometimes even manage to be inspiring!! Hard-hitting, comic, true, satirical, all kinda genres of dialogue hav of late got a new polished look and feel!

Take for instance Aamir Khan’s explaination In ‘Taare Zameen Par’ about “Khayal rakhna kya hota hai”.  So subtle and yet on-the-mark! Or the one about Solomon islands…. really good!

Then, agreed that ‘Om Shanti Om’ is a pathetically over-the-top movie, and many of its lines are a bit too filmy for my tastes, but somehow, I am beginning to like the dialogue between SRK and Deepika, when he tells her that the whole world loves her, and she says that, “kabhi kabhi poori duniya ki chahat zaruri nahi hoti, pyaar kisi ek se mile to bhi kaafi hota hai!!” So true na!! But I guess, it’s safe in a way to be loved by all in general and not by some ONE person in particular. Atleast when the good times roll, we won’t be left with nothing…There still will be be someone who will love you after all!

 And ofcourse coming to comedy, the one wherein SRK says “Takliya” and himself exits!! Simply hilarious!!!

But yeah, in this category, Kareena’s lines in ’Jab We Met’ are the icing on the cake! Right from her “Bahot!! Main apni favorite hun!!” statement, to “Bhatinda chal, milwaati hun“; from the speech-like “Apni to vaat lagi hai, isse bura kuchh nahi ho sakta, ab sirf achha ho sakta hai aur hoga!!” to the self-realization-like “Agar meri life aisi hai, to mujhe pata hoga ki meri wajah se hai!”, the dialogues of this movie are entertaining, crisp, funny and yet loaded with meaning!

There are a lot more dialogues like that, but so much for now! Gosh!! After such a long break I’ve finally WRITTEN about something! Let me bask in that joy first! LOL!! More, soon!

Today’s random quote(but oh so effective!!)

Was browsing igoogle today, and noticed today’s Einstein Quote of the Day. It said,

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results!!

What a line!!! and so relevant for me today!!!

What is Success?

Another poem I came across and really liked!! Enjoy! 

 What is Success?

To laugh often and much;

To win the respect of intelligent people
and the affection of children;

To earn the appreciation of honest critics
and endure the betrayal of false friends;

To appreciate beauty;
To find the best in others;

To leave the world a bit better, whether by
a healthy child, a garden patch
or a redeemed social condition;

To know even one life has breathed
easier because you have lived;

This is to have succeeded.

 – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Valentine’s Day is cominggggg!!!!

Yeah, so it’s the 13th of February, just a day to go for the Valentine’s Day!!! “So why are you bothered??”, quips my colleague at office, “Aren’t you single, and happily so????”

Goddd!! colleagues at work!!!! relatives!! friends’ mummies!!!! It seems that the only job remaining on their ‘to-do’ lists is to find a suitable match for ‘ellligible’ young girls around! Ohh, but we are deflecting away from the topic!

Hmm, so I was talking about Valentine’s Day!! Loyal readers might remember that I have already written a post about Valentine’s day sometime before; but whereas that one addressed an issue about V-day/D-day conflict, this one is on a much lighter note… While we were chit-chatting at office, we just realized that this was the silver jubilee of the Valentine’s days in our lives!! (Hahaha!) So I thought why not, ek article, Vday ke naam!!

For starters, how many of you know how Valentine’s day originated? Not the specific details, but atleast an idea?

Valentine’s day celebrates the life of Saint Valentine who during some king’s rule(amnesia!!!!), inspite of the king’s orders that soldiers in army weren’t allowed to get married; guided them towards matrimonial harmony. Got beheaded as a result!<sigh!>

So Valentine’s day came into being, as a celebration, a commemoration, a remembrance, to the the right to love, and take love forward, into marital bliss!!(That’s sad to some, is it???LOL)

Anyways, yeah, so that’s it that there is to it! Or is it?

What is Valentine’s day to us today? A day to spell out your feelings for your loved ones, a day to take out time for your ’someone special’, a day to sit and discuss about how many shops the saffron brigade will destroy today? And ofcourse, the day for quintessential debate- are we aping the western culture?? !!&&##$$$

 Well, as I have previously said, it is just another occasion for me to celebrate LIFE!! We are so busy with our work otherwise, that we seldm get time to pamper ourselves… So do it on V day…what’s harm?? Me and my room mates surely did so last year.. Cooked an elaborate meal of Pizza and Custard, did up our house with flowers, and enjoyed!!!!

Now, there’s so much more that I can write about all this, but, why don’t you guys chip in this time? Lemme know what you feel about Valentine’s day, and also how you celebrate it in your own way.. And then, we can have a further discussion! What say people?

Movie review: Sunday

Occasion: Me n my friend roaming around, find nothing better to do!

Place: Inox, Pune

Time: 7:45 p.m

Price: 170 bucks

Movie: Sunday

Star Cast: Ajay Devgan, Ayesha Takia, Irrfan Khan, Arshad Warsee

Theme: A simple fun-loving girl goes to a pub one Saturday-night, someone mixes Rohypnol in her drink, the girl undergoes a series of (mis)adventures, and falls off to sleep, only to wake up on Monday!! How can a Sunday goes missing from your life? The girl has no idea!

Story: Ajay Devgan, ACP-cum-prospective bridegroom for Ayesha, takes it up on himself, to find the lost Sunday. Through lots of suspense and comedy, and with the help of Irfan and Arshad, does it!! And gets the gal, too!!

Performances: Ajay Devgan scores average to good, Ayesha Takia has looked very sweet, but Arshad and Irrfan take the trophy!

The technical side: Dialogues- crisp!!Music- average! Rest all- Not bad!!

 My prediction about your reaction: So, what’s so great???

My answer: Nothing!! The movie’s not a must-watch, but is fairly entertaining for sure!! You won’t repent for going ahead and watching it! Clean comedy- for a change!

My rating: Yellow- going- on to-green!

Moods!

Confused, Happy, Sad, Angry, Irritated, Anticipating, Waiting, Frustrated, Apprehensive, Curious, Excited, Fidgety, Agitated, Helpful, Helpless, Confident, Smiling, Crying, Laughing, Pleading, Badgering, Pestering, Consoling, Hopeful, Hopeless, Good, Bad, Deserted, Scared, Resigned!

The moods I have gone through, in the last 2-3 months!!!!! In no particular order. Oh what a time it was, is, and will be!!! <sigh!!>