By Request - Part I

My previous post was posted on the 5^th of July ...being the honest person that I am [: P]...I’ll tell you how I used to check if kissine bhoole bhatke iss nacheez ke blog par comment likha ho..well..that check was on an average..umm…once everyday [: P]...One fine day (as it always is)...I saw Mr. / Ms. Anonymous leave me one...

old movies, new movies, reviews etc...

Well for one...I am not quite pro about writing such stuff. Of course I have my reasons but then I guess you’d already have read so many already..i guess I’d just end up sounding irritating...for one, it’s difficult for me to like a movie and not criticize...quite difficult...and then I’ve also not watched quite a few “must-watch” movies...

But when I asked for topics, Mr. / Ms. Anonymous was the one jisne meri thodi laaj rakhee..so this one’s for you..

The past few weeks I watched three movies...out of which “Partner” outdid itself...to displease and disgust me (but of course)..Phew...It sucked...BIGTIME! If anyone was to ask me...this would be one of the last movies I’d recommend. Thankfully I watched it in a local theatre...so it didn’t pinch all that much...it’s plain crass...and for people who’ve seen “Hitch”...stay away twice as more...you’d just feel sorry. But then, there was this one gentleman sitting behind us who just couldn’t stop rolling with laughter...so I guess it’s all up to one’s...ahem...(I guess I should try be polite now)...tastes;-)...but I do like the songs...very danceableJ..I guess I don’t quite need to take up the acting abilities or the lack of it:-P of the lead actors...

Then there was “Naqaab” which I really, really wanted to watch...what with the title of “The most shocking thriller of the year” title and all...but what of it?...I was filled with sheer disappointment…The new girl Urvashi’s not bad...Akshaye and Bobby as usual...but I was definitely expecting something a 108 times better in terms of story (that kind that would jolt me...well, the title kept running across my mind you see)...I waited ki ab kuch hoga, ab kuch hoga...but alas...moreover the movie’s predictable eventually..so, so much for that... I remember “Shabd” was another movie that thoroughly disappointed me...

Then there was “Diehard 4” which surprise, surprise...I DIDN’T want to watch (well am sure the person who asked me for reviews must be cursing his/her bad judgment)...I even offered my ticket to a friend who wanted to watch it badly...but then he politely refused and I saw my first diehard movie (OMG, OMG..am I a kalanak on planet Earth?)...and boy was it fun?! Have always loved Bruce Willis...what an attitude!...now I’m all eager to watch the previous parts...all the sequences gave rise to this recurrent thought of mine...”When do we make such movies?”...anyways, this was definitely paisa vasool stuff...must watch!

I am going to stop with this much now as I’m a lil scared that I sounded boring...just let me know ok? So until next time...ta ta..

People..

After yet another long, long sabbatical..I’m baak! If only I had some amount of patience, I would have loved to write regularly..even if you like it or not:P..

People (not many, mind it) have asked me why I haven’t posted in quite sometime. My lame answer (which is actually not quite so lame) is that I don’t have no good topics. Suggestions would be welcomed with *%*&#@..can’t quite get the right words you see..it’s a dangerous world out there:P..alright,alright, I'm stopping right now.. Eagerly waiting for atleast a few of you to come back to me with any possible topics..Lets’ see if I’m gutsy or colorful enough to take a stand on em and write..

Hoping not to disappoint..I’ll be waiting..

PS: I know there’d be people who’d say my life @ CUSAT..well, all I can say is..All in good time folks!

Deepu..

I don’t quite remember when I first saw him. When I joined my company, Infor, I met a bunch of these guys from MEC, a neighboring college. These guys had joined the same time as I had.
11.00 am is a sacred time for us here. Spells out “Coffee” for us you see. It was one of these breaks that I remember talking to him. We exchanged our numbers that day and I remember storing it as Deepak E. Prakash..Phew! Don’t exactly know when that changed to Deepu for me…From stories I heard from Makku and Kartik, this guy was “supposed” to be a woman-charmer. As I once asked him, how come it never worked on me? He replied within the same instant..he had never tried:-P

Anyways, this idiot of a guy (whose passions in life are “photography, photography and photography (put Java somewhere too)”) is moving to Bangalore. And from the time I heard of it, I guess I unconsciously “tried not to think about it”(my favorite line back in college..Manu, yaad hai na?). But now it’s too close..his going away..And I guess one just can’t avoid the fact that he won’t be around very soon. I must confess that I have had the best times of my life here in Hyderabad with these people. And he’s so going to be missed.

The first person here who took me around on his blue Pulsar..the time we both went and discovered the “tawa murgh” in Angeethi..the TV stand you lifted till our house..the way I like my Sub..the dupatta shopping in Ameerpet..talking about ahem stuff..the day you lost your bike keys..the list will never end..am not trying to sound grateful or anything..it’s just that these were all special times for me..very, very special..and I’m so going to miss you Deepu..Love you loads..umma:-)

I believe..

I believe in the goodness of mankind,
I believe in the ecstasy after "the find"

I believe in "happily ever after",
I believe in the joyful sound of laughter

I believe in sunshine after the rain,
I believe in "no pain,no gain"

I believe in miracles by the hands of the Lord,
I believe in harmony and accord

I believe in the truth in her eyes,
I believe in his empty, white lies

I believe in beauty that lies beneath,
I believe sorrow exists underneath

I believe in life after death,
I believe in "to forgive and to forget"

I believe in the potent power of love,
I believe it comes from God above

I believe in gentle touch and caress,
I believe life moves on, no matter how much stress

I believe in the wheel of life,
I believe there is reason behind pain and strife

I believe we are meant to be,
I believe.. in you and me:)!

This would have been my first post..

I write this as I actually have nothing better to do.For that matter, I started blogging because I had nothing better to do. Honestly speaking, I never really cared much for blogging.(Must have first come across the term "blogging" in some article in 'India Today' a few years ago..).I generally didn't find it "interesting" enough to go through what goes on people's lives on a day-to-day basis, but then there are a few absolutely awesome blogs which actually talk about stuff that makes you think, that makes you smile, and want to read more:)..

My roomie in my "good-old" engg. days used to blog(still does; checkout:http://dgrailspeaks.blogspot.com) .Didn't really fancy the idea of coming up with one myself,reasons being : I'm too lazy(so you can imagine how jobless I would be now..) and also the fact that I'd be constantly judging myself. But then the few times the idea did race across my mind, I had thought of what my first blog would be about(now that's not quite possible due to being over excited after writing the first one, I just had to post it asap..).

So here goes "My first post",as it would have been(with a few modifications,but of course):

I'd never want my readers to:

1) Get bored while reading any of my posts.
2) Find the articles repetitive.
3) Lacking in content(though this one surely does).

I'd want my readers to:

1) Give me an honest feedback
2) Grow in abundance;)

What I would say to expect from my (sometimes mindless) blog would be honesty. I believe in straight from the heart and I would say the whole purpose of writing would be defeated if I am not honest about what I'm going to write. So I hope to meet a few, if not many in this journey of the writer in me..do encourage!

Being a "Fraud Mallu"

Note : I hope none of this hurts anyone, and am proud to be a mallu billi:)

My father moved to Delhi in 1972 (he got a job in the Central Goverment there; I guess he didn't follow the very mallu tradition of going to the Gulf and am pretty happy about that). My parents got married in 1981 and after that my amma too moved to saddi dilli.Before that my dad used to stay with (surprise surprise) other Malayalees.(I find Mallus and Punjabis similar to crocodiles : they tend to be very "regionalistic". Whenever they meet another of their kind (read Malayalee/Punjabi), there is this instant bonding that takes place..its something so inevitable..followed by the other inevitables,for example THE question "naad evide?"(where's your place)...Anyways, this obviously meant that my sister and I were brought up (not born) in Delhi itself.[ Place of Birth : Bekal, Hosdurg ]

We used to get a summer break of about one and a half months (which increased to two later once mercury started rising year after year) and we would go to Keralam then. We didn't spend the entire duration there because of two reasons : parents don't have summer breaks and the fact that we used to get a mountain load of "holiday homework". Now that, used to be some task. We (as in didi and me) would try finish off as much as possible before leaving but most definitely, the night before school re-opened used to some fun!

Our most (and only) used mode of transport was the Indian Railways, so that equated to two and a half days of travelling:).

Mangla Express in the months of May and June (towards Kerala) = 108 crores of Mallus travelling with their *2 kids + loads of delhi roadside maal (on demand or as gifts;) ) + kaaapiiiii...

Mangla Express in the months of June and July (towards H.Nizamuddin) = 108 crores of Mallus travelling with their *2 kids + chaaks/cartons bursting with thengas,chakkas,banana chips,par-boiled rice,..... + kaaapiiiii..

These journeys used to be pretty fun (except for the heat part) because we'd meet other kids and angane jolly adichita we'd not know the time go by...but that would be max for a day(kids tend to be a restless lot)..because after that is when the kid starts the chant : "Papa,kab pahunchenge?"..It used to be much worse for us as Kasargode used to be the second last stop then..(As Murphy had it, Cochin became the last one once I went to CUSAT:):)..kismet mein likha hai,ab kya kar sakte hain..).

Finally after the two and a half days of sitting in the chukk-chukk vandi..we make it to our birthplace..(Actually when we get up on the third day, it's pretty awesome cos Kerala has started then and it's so,so green and pretty outside..)..In the station, we'd have my Ammamma, Achamma , "Mooch waale*" uncle, and mama(depending on whichever one is town then)..and it used to feel so good.

We'd always go to my Achamma's house first(thank God for that as it's close to the station) and rush to take a bath(trains can make you put on weight - one to two kilos of dirt i.e...yuck!)..after that, begins the fun..

attack no. 1 : reshu(my sister) ethra melanjnu..(yes my dears, believe it or faint..my sister's skinnier than yours truly)...chota ethra karathu...blah blah..blah blah..

attack no. 2 : a mountain of boiled rice(which you better finish) and food cooked in coconut oil(boy-oh-boy..that was ultra disastrous..but as they say,what goes around,comes around..well,it did! 4 years in CUSAT and living next to chetta who used to prepare his oh-so sumptuous delicacies(read meals with fish fry cooked ONLY in coconut oil)..the very smell would make us nauseous and its still true for my sister who shrieks loud enough to break any glass even if she gets a whiff of it.

attack no. 3 : say parram(banana)..(i say)param...parrrram..rra..rraa..(i say)param...fine,say palla(tooth)..(i say)pella....[background score : peals of laughter]

Hmm, I won't say I've improved much after that but I think parram is now quite manageable:). Another thing that they'd do is make me talk:)..and obviously, ALL of it had to be in mal. Come to think of it, I feel like a specimen cos they'd make me stand in the centre and make me talk(the "make " part's not all that difficult). That's when my Achamma would turn chinki..(thanks to laughing too hard). Of course I used to get new pet names each time I'd visit. The two best ones would be : "thota vaadi"(touch-me-not) and "jagajilli"..(my sister was "vadivellu" and "nongal"(a variety of fish which has only bones);))..

In my ammamma's house..it used to be a different story altogether..there my sister and I just could not keep our feet on the floor because of the poyia..so we'd walk with clawed feet and that was another "hahaha" topic there(it still is)..but it used to be loads of fun there as it's a joint family and have loads of cousins there..we'd all sleep together, go play in the beach and also get up with pain(=lice) which would be so,so difficult to get rid of....

Also,a visit to Kerala would mean a visit to the local doctor there cos (God only knows why), the bludy mosquitoes had some weird kind of affinity towards my sister and me and we'd get these bites which would end up turning into mini balloons..so odomos was a good friend to carry those days..thankfully their louve seems to have died now..

When I got admission in CUSAT, I really don't remember being very apprehensive (but then I rarely am)..but that meant leaving familiy, friends and Delhi. Also, it meant going to where I came from (literally). It is but obvious that when you have been in the same place for all your life, you get used to everything like it is there. I'd be lying if I said that I absolutely had no problems in adjusting in Kerala. Different people, different thinking..( I'll be writing about this for sure,so will leave it at that)..

But then honestly speaking, I did not turn any bit more Malayaleer in those 4 years(my Baby Elamma though begs to differ on that count). My roomies were all fraud mallus too(birds of the same feathers,flock together..very true), so speaking in Mal was almost never..So whenever I used to go to Kasargode per Sem,i used to hear about "naal kollam ayitta ippallum malayalam padchitila(4 years and you've still not learnt to speak malayalam)..hmm...

One of the best times are when people,assuming that you are a northie,say something about you in Mal.It has happened in my first year Engg.,Maths class when my Sir was royally bitching about North Indians and how they don't value their parents money, don't have no manners etc. etc. and it was only in his last class that he found out that we{Dhiv(ya)-ex roomie and I) were mallus:)..Boy,you should have seen the look on dear Anoclit Sir's face..he was so shocked.Then they were times when we needed to go to the SOE office and we'll be speaking in Mal but then why,why would anyone "listen" to the words..it's funny how people actually HEAR what they want to..and so all replies directed at us would be in Hindi:)..

But honestly speaking, what I enjoy the most is the look on people's faces when I tell them I'm from Kerala..it's too good..First I make them guess, and the most common ones would be UP, Punjab(Kashmiri once..OMG!)..and when I let the cat out of the bag(sorry about using this, but couldn't help it..sheepish grin:))..they are like..WHAT?! I don't know what they expect a Mallu to look like..Anyways, this is usually followed by the "Are both your parents Malayalees(and I think of both my paavam parents faces..)"..and i'm like what the ...ya..ahuh!

Coming to something that irritates me to the core..the unconscious manner in which an "H" is added to all names in the South in almost all places possible..I think I must have tried till my 3rd Sem to correct my teachers etc. that I was Deepti and NOT Deept(h)i..but the why,why would anyone ever listen to that..After that I simply gave up..(Btw,I still face the "H" problem:P)..

But then "fraud" or not..I love being this mix..You get the best of both worlds you see;)(not necessarily at all times..but chalta hai boss)..Call it a hybrid breed or whatever, its fun:)!

Before I end this, I would want to add this for Bones sake : "Shundari,shundari onnu orangi vaa..."(People,you should hear me sing this;))...