My travel (mis)adventure

The week before the last weekend was a very eventful one for me. I had gone to attend the graduation ceremony on 17th December of my younger brother at Bowling Green, Kentucky. It was a story of missed flights, heart stopping moments and finally a sense of relief.

As always when I booked my flight there was a prayer on my lips that I shouldn't repeat history which had a not so glorious past. Yeah, I have been consistently missing flights, trains and buses :)

So when I booked my flight through Expedia.com, I went for the cheapest deal. The result was a mixed bag. Expedia with its motto of mix-n-match gave me 3 tickets. Out of that 1 ticket belonged to a different airline. So the itinerary was San Fransisco (SFO) to Las Vegas (LAS) - United Airlines, LAS to Dallas Fortworth (DFW) - American Airlines and DFW to Nashville (BNA) - American Airlines.

My first leg of the trip was smooth. Arriving at Las Vegas, even though I was aware that there was only a 50 minute gap for my next flight the photographer in me took over. As a result I ended up wasting around 10 minutes. Now I had to take a tram to go to the next terminal. The tram took its own sweet time. On board the Tram, I was confused as to which terminal should I get down. Once I reached the terminal I rushed to the American Airlines counter only to be shocked to find that counter was deserted. When I inquired at the next counter they informed me that the airline staff had already left. It was 12:33 a.m and I guess I was late. The flight departure time was 12:50 a.m.

I rushed towards the gate where I had to go through the security screening but the TSA agent wouldn't let me in without the boarding pass. My heart sank and I was cursing myself. I was destined to spend the rest of my night at the airport. There was a feeling of Deja Vu. I remembered the last time I missed my morning flight at Heathrow airport and had to while away my time till evening.

It was a very tormenting experience. My main worry was I didn't want to miss my brother's graduation ceremony and if I couldn't make it, my efforts would have come to naught. I kept wandering here and there in the terminal. The only people I could find for company was the airport night duty staff and some other stranded passengers. That was the only comforting factor in a despondent night. This was my first trip to Las Vegas and sometimes I felt like exploring the night life of Vegas but then again I wasn't sure about my next flight and so didn't want to take any chances.

It was 4 a.m in the morning. As the counters opened, I rushed to the United Airlines counter, the lady asked me what was I doing for 50 minutes? She said she would charge me $150 extra and that too the ticket would be only upto Dallas. I listened to her patiently and then when she kept on insisting the "50 minutes" lecture, I told her plainly that it was my first time and 50 minutes isn't that much time. To top it all, I wasn't given all the boarding passes at the first pickup point i.e. SFO. It cost me dearly. I told the agent I am not interested.

My only hope was the American Airlines counter. I told the Customer Rep about my missed flight and without uttering a single world, he gave me 2 tickets. I was delighted that I didn't have to pay a single dime and thanked the Customer Rep for his gesture. The airline departed at 6 a.m and I reached Dallas at 10:40 a.m. I thought my troubles were over. Now lies the twist. I was put on standby for my next flight to Nashville as the flight was full. What I initially thought was a boarding pass was a priority authorization. Now I didn't know what it was but definitely it wasn't a boarding pass. As the boarding call came, and the last of the passengers got in. I could feel a sense of breathlessness and then the airline staff told me to board the airline. I was ecstatic about finally making it. I thanked them profusely.

When I finally reached Nashville there was a sense of relief. As I was heading towards the exit, I saw a photo session with the Santa. This seemed to me like a good omen after all I have been through. I got a photograph taken. As you can see the photograph tells the whole story of a bleary eyed traveler.

My brother picked me up from the airport and drove like a maniac as the ceremony was scheduled at 5:30 p.m. My heart was in my mouth and I wasn't sure whether I came for the graduation ceremony or will end up somewhere else :) Luckily all's well that ends well :) I attended my brother's graduation ceremony and thanked the almighty that I made it.

So what's the moral of the story? Firstly cheaper isn't necessarily always better. Second, plan your itinerary carefully and lastly don't goof around when you have less time to spare :)

(Image courtesy: http://www.creditcardchaser.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/airplane.jpg)

WikiLeaks

The HourGlass with a melting world has been the focus of various articles in the media especially the internet and print for the past few weeks. Wikileaks has become a sensation with its leak of US Diplomatic cables and Julian Assange its public face. There has also been fierce criticism that Wikileaks has endangered people and relations between US and its allies.

But for common people like me it offers a fascinating peek into what really goes behind the diplomatic niceties. Picture this...for instance there is a rash of news about how Pakistan is playing double game(s) with the US. As soon as questions are put across to the White house, it officially denies any differences and shows strong support for Pakistan as its ally. Now the diplomatic cables which if I do understand correctly are candid assessments sent by the US ambassadors posted in various capitals across the world tell altogether a different story.

So now we do know that behind all the photo-ops, smiles and handshakes there is the usual back biting and bit***** about various leaders, their governments, the bureaucracy etc. We all know about office politics where your boss has his/her favorites and then the co-workers some of whom derive a sadistic pleasure of bit*****/gossiping about their colleagues. Take the office context and blow it up on a bigger scale. There can be no shining example than the diplomatic cables.

Unfortunately the US which is supposed to be the land of the free and brave is doing everything possible to shut down Wikileaks and the US senators/representatives/top government officials want to hunt down Julian Assange. People have made nasty comments from execution to treason. In short Julian Assange has become The Enemy of the State. It's funny because when Google had a spat with the Chinese government over internet censorship, the top leadership of US from President Obama to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton rallied behind the internet behemoth and said that freedom of expression of speech must be protected. And now that the boot is on the other leg, they are singing a different tune. See the article in The Hindu (http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/editorial/article933915.ece)

This is not to suggest that what Wikileaks has done was morally right or wrong but yes it has opened a new chapter for greater transparency from an iron curtain called "the Government"

To cite an example, in Iraq two news Journalists from Reuters were killed along with other civilians by a US helicopter gunship. To persistent questions, the US was not sure about how the journalists or the civilians were killed. Reuters tried obtaining the video footage under the Freedom of Information act but its request was declined.

Wikileaks posted a footage of the video on 5th April 2010. To say that the video presented a disturbing picture is an understatement. The correct words would be chilling and horrifying. Some people are seen walking on the road along with the journalists. One of the journalists has a camera in hand.

The video shot from the army chopper clearly shows the people are unarmed. But what was shocking is the discussions the US army soldiers are having with their command center. They tell the command center that all the people on the street are armed and request permission to "engage the target" an euphemism for destroying the target. They relentlessly aim their guns and kill the people. A short while later a van stops by and people come out of the van to rescue an injured person. The helicopter gunship again requests permission to engage the target - the van. The ground forces converge and discover that there were two grievously wounded children in the van.

The US army soldiers in the helicopter gunship denied any knowledge about the children but a close scrutiny of the video grab clearly shows the children in the front passengers seat.(http://www.collateralmurder.com)

People would never have known the truth if not for WikiLeaks and the US Army Private Bradley Manning who now faces upto 52 years in prison (http://www.bradleymanning.org). The established media like print and television would have found it too hot to handle and washed its hands off. But the internet has emerged as a saviour for independent media. Back home in India, for example, take the Nira Radia tapes which was first available on the net. Even then almost all the major print and television networks(especially NDTV) blacklisted the news item. NDTV in this instance had a more compelling reason as one of their Senior news editors was involved. (http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?268214)

Wikileaks which has been suffering major cyber attacks and has been booted out of many servers may eventually go down but not before it spawns hundreds of such sites (which is already happening). There is a valuable lesson here. The government is bringing its might and marshalling its resources to censor the truth but the internet is a different animal. You shut down one site and there will be thousand(s) more. Remember the bitter rivalry between napster and the music industry and who had the last laugh :) The last site from which I had accessed wikileaks was (http://www.wikileaks.de).

I have always been curious to know about whether Aliens or UFOs did exist?. I am eagerly awaiting the Wikileaks next expose on UFOs. Governments officially have been denying it for years but we will hopefully know the truth shortly.

(Image courtesy: http://www.wikileaks.de)
(References: www.thehindu.com, www.collateralmurder.com)

Aung San Suu Kyi

She is someone I have admired since my school and college days. She is not a popular actress or a writer. She embodies the spirit of determination and patience that has come at a great cost. For a woman who has been confined to house arrest for most part of her life and finally walk free (though no one knows for how long) even a Nobel Peace Prize would sit lightly on her shoulders.

Aung San Suu Kyi, a frail and petite woman who lost her husband to cancer and didn't want to leave her country to see him because she feared that the military junta ruling the country would not allow her to return is someone who is a rarity these days. Her son's were denied visas to visit her and she hasn't seen them for 10 years. Not sure what the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) (official name for the Military Junta) had in mind but this time they did grant visa to her son.

For the past 15 of the 21 years she was confined to her dilapidated ancestral home with no access to internet or television. Her only companion was the radio and some magazines brought home by her lawyer. The mail she received was heavily censored. See article (http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/article882318.ece)

Lesser mortals would have gone completely mad. Now Myanmar or erstwhile Burma doesn't register in our consciousness either because we are caught up with all sorts of other news related to terrorism, economics, recession etc.. but it does exist and so is the repression which is real.

Aung San could have easily compromised with the ruling military in exchange for her freedom and sharing power just like Benazir Bhutto but she treaded a lonely path which was not so rosy. There was an interesting article about comparison between these two women in the newspaper The Hindu (http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/article886267.ece). Suu Ki could have chosen a comfortable lifestyle with her family in Britain but she chose to stay back.

That sometimes make me wonder where do people like Nelson Mandela or Aung San Suu Kyi draw their strength from. Is there a lesson in this for all of us?

Most of us are in the mad race in pursuit of money, career, fame and what not. We are all too preoccupied with mundane things of everyday life. We don't care about the nation as much as our selves.

Look at the current generation of politicians who want to make the most of it when they're in power. Their motto is "Self above nation"

Coming back to Aung San Suu Kyi, one never knows how long she is free but yes for the moment there is a glimmer of hope that one day people power will win in spite of all the hurdles. Someday I hope that and she and all the political prisoners who have been imprisoned by the military will realize the long cherished dream of freedom from tyranny and oppression.

(Image courtesy: http://www.theHindu.com)

As the opening credits roll, one person's name is displayed in bold letters "Superstar Rajni", the trademark of a Rajnikanth film. Tamil cinema has its share of great film personalities like MGR, Shivaji Ganesan, KamalHasan and Rajnikanth. But none has been able to deftly handle the generation gap as well as Rajnikanth.

The jokes on his movies are a legend. For the tech savvy, You will find them mostly circulating in e-mails. Billed as a mega movie with Indian Rupees 150 crore budget, Robot lives upto its hype.

What impressed me was the technology and the standards that had gone in the making of this movie. The point to remember is such a movie has come not from the mainstream bollywood cinema but the regional language Tamil movie industry. The concept of IT and an intelligent storyline has meant that thankfully this movie doesn't end up like any other special effects heavy movie but most importantly a movie with a soul.

Nobody will grudge Sun TV (producers of this movie) their millions however one shouldn't forget that all this wouldn't have been possible but for the single minded devotion of the Director Shankar who spared no expense in sourcing the best action, special effects, exotic locations and as mentioned above for scripting a movie with a sensible storyline. One look at the end credits of the movie gives an idea of what I am talking about.

Music by A R Rahman except for the title song Yentra and the chart topping Kilimanjaro is ok. When a man like Rajnikanth is around there is not much scope for the opposite gender. Aishwarya is the glamour quotient of the movie and also the love interest of the Robot gone rogue. Danny Denzongpa leaves his mark on the movie as Professor Bora who is envious of his protege Dr.Vaseegaran's success with Artificial Intelligence and sabotages his dream project.

This is not to say that the movie doesn't have flaws which infact it does. But in terms of technological sophistication and the sheer scale it more than matches Hollywood. In other words it has set the gold standard for the Indian movie industry by scoring some firsts in a lot of departments.

I do agree with Rajni's diehard fans that Rajni is the superstar atleast in this part of the world :)

(Image courtesy:http://www.endhiran.org)
(Image courtesy: http://excusemeworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/endhiran-robot.jpg)

The Commonwealth games (CWG) fiasco has left many people embarrassed and ruing the damage caused to the brand India.

Personally even I feel let down by the events back home but what has amused me is the raves and rants of these so called NRIs who can't but go on criticizing everything that India stands for...and there is no marks for guessing it's the negative attributes and bad press.

For these NRIs merrily ensconced in the creature comforts of the west, they remember India only when it generates bad news. They feel humiliated before their western counterparts and take out their umbrage by posting messages on Facebook, blogging etc.. As someone rightly said, tomorrow even if India were to be submerged they care a damn as long as they are safe in their adopted home.

There is no doubt that Commonwealth is a prestigious event but there are far more pressing issues which need urgent attention. The tax payer whose money has been utitilzed ( or misutilized :)) for this event would have been more than happy if the money was spent wisely.

Why can't these so called NRIs share or contribute their might towards a better India by raising issues such as farmers suicides, rising inflation, dismal infrastructure, inadequate housing etc.. Giving armchair advice is easy however one shouldn't forget that every Indian or for that matter any nationality when abroad is an ambassador for his/her country.

I personally know of one such NRI who was very eager to get rid of his Indian passport in favour of his adopted country. So what is his favorite pastime now? Posting status updates on facebook making fun of the CWG games and worse some of the jokes are poorly written and may very well qualify as PJs :)

Although it looks like CWG bashing in reality it's more of India bashing.

NRI's no longer stands for Non Resident Indians but as the joke goes around Not Required Indians and even I am one of them :)

(Image courtesy: http://buzzytimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/The-Commonwealth-Games-2010.png)

Dabangg - Salman rocks

He is pushing 45 but still doesn't seem like throwing in the towel. He is someone who makes the crowd go wild once he takes of his shirt and shows his chiseled body.
Born Abdul Rashid Salim Salman Khan and popularly known as Salman or Sallu he is one of the few actors apart from Aamir and Shahrukh who is still going strong.

Salman has been the enfant terrible of Indian cinema industry, having being embroiled in controversies like the black buck shooting/hit and run case or his affairs with his co-stars. None of this seemed to have made a dent on his fan base which has only grown.

If you are looking for something which is the in thing nowadays like Peepli Live or path breaking cinema you are better advised to stay away. But then if you are someone who wants to watch the kitschy old tale of sibling rivalry, a dishonest cop who has a softer side, a village belle to whom he loses his heart and then as usual the villain, Dabangg (fearless) gives you more bang for the buck or in indian lingo paisa vasool fare

Salman plays Chulbul Pandey aka Robinhood pandey a Police Inspector for the district of Laalgunj, Uttar Pradesh. Salman with a moustache is a rarity and he manages to pull it off. Chulbul doesn't get along with his step dad (Vinod Khanna) and his step brother Makki (Arbaaz Khan). The one person Chulbul is fond of and who dotes on him is his mom (Dimple Kapadia)

Chulbul is a corrupt cop who gets hold of the bad guys but stashes away their loot. He is generous to help someone out financially when they are in distress. Salman loses his heart to a village girl Rajo (Sonakshi Sinha in a debut role). So what's missing ...well you guessed it, the villain whose funnily named Cheddi Singh (Sonu Sood) :)

The movie is a no brainer with a predictable story line but there is a difference and that's Salman Khan. Salman towers like a colossus in the movie and you just can't have enough of him. It's Salman, Salman and more of Salman even in the presence of veteran character artistes like Vinod Khanna, Om Puri and Dimple Kapadia.

Action by S Vijayan is terrific, impressive music track scored by Sajid-Wajid and Lalit Pandit. My favorites are man bharwaan and Tere Mast mast do nain. Sonakshi Sinha as Rajo comes as a breath of fresh air. As one article rightly quotes, having seen nearly anorexic heroines (remember size zero) it's nice to some one who resembles the typical curvy Indian woman. Acting wise, Sonakshi is not a disappointment. In an typical Indian action movie where the actresses are just there for the glamour quotient even in her brief role, she does show some spunk. Of course being the daughter of yesteryear actor Shatrughan Sinha does help.

I was myself shocked to see Sonakshi who is a fashion designer transform into a gorgeous woman. 2 years back when I saw her on television she was more on the heavier side and voila look at her now.

Coming back to Salman, he does run into some serious competition here even in terms of physique. Yes its the villain played admirably by Sonu Sood. Sonu Sood is a talented actor who is also blessed with good looks but sad to see him play a villain again. Hope he doesn't start getting typecast. This movie also marks the directorial debut of Abhinav Kashyap, the brother of Anurag Kashyap who is into "the realistic" mode of cinema. Its interesting that Abhinav has chosen to direct a conventional bollywood movie.

In India or anywhere else you despise a corrupt cop but Chulbul Pandey is a different animal. You love him for what he is and yes as the title suggests he is truly Dabangg (fearless)

(Image courtesy: http://media.photobucket.com/image/dabangg )

Earthquake in New Zealand

It doesn't make much news in the front pages of the world's leading newspapers except for it's exotic greenery, laid back lifestyle and quality of life. When I was studying at a leading University in NZ I still vividly remember about one of my classroom sessions.

It was a paper on International Business. I am not sure how this thing came up but our faculty asked the classroom audience who would like to be the Prime Minister of New Zealand not even a single hand went up but then he again asked us who wants to be the President of the United States and a sea of hands went up. It seemed like a unanimous opinion.

Strange as it may seem, New Zealand suddenly found itself on the front page and that was for the wrong reasons. Don't get me wrong but this was due to an 7.2 earthquake which hit the south island. Christchurch bore the brunt of devastation and as I am writing this, there was a mild earthquake which struck places close to wellington.

If you look at the fault lines prevalent across countries/continents, New Zealand is right up there with so many severe fault lines and lots of volcanoes, thankfully many of which are dormant. California where I live and work has had it's share of earthquakes and the one I experienced last week was 3.1 on richter scale.

An earthquake on a scale of 7.0 and above is considered to be devastating but luckily except for a few injured people, no lives were lost. Now some experts have attributed this to the good building codes adapted by New Zealand around 10 years ago. If that's true, it's really a praise worthy effort and an investment which has really paid off.

There are lessons to be learnt here especially as the population in developing countries migrates increasingly towards Urban areas. In India where the major cities are experiencing population growth and high rise residential areas which are springing up everywhere this is one particular area of concern. The building codes are rarely followed or brazenly flouted. Now imagine, god forbid if something of this sort happens it will be a humanitarian disaster.

The Govt does realize something must be done and a government wing National Disaster Management Authority has released ads on television which instruct the citizens on how to deal with a earthquake but the effort still falls short. More needs to be done on the ground so that when the crunch comes loss of human lives and damage to property is minimized. In this instance at least one can derive the right lessons from NZ's experience.

(Image courtesy: http://www.tourism.org.nz/imgs/nz-map-regional.gif)

How often we wish that commuting through the daily traffic should be a pleasant and smooth ride and a shorter one too. I carpool with some of my office colleagues. When the traffic in the lanes is bumper to bumper or worse sometimes comes to a standstill we whiz through the traffic thanks to car pool.

Well think of it, it's a pretty cool initiative. Rules for Car Pool are that there should be minimum of 3 people. If someone flouts the rule there is a minimum of $271 fine. Rules are mostly followed b'coz there is always the fear of cops but yes there are crazy people.


I like the concept of Carpool as it helps save time, is easier on your pocket, it's not boring as you always have something to chat about and the most compelling reason, it's eco friendly. Just imagine, if four people are travelling in the same car you are saving the road space for 3 additional cars ( if each one drives his/her own car) ,cut down on fuel consumption and most important, pollution.

The concept of Car pool is even more important for a developing country like India, where more and more people are opting for personalized transport and the public transport is in a bad state. Just like in California, the Government of India/State should take the lead in popularizing the concept of car pool lanes. Of course, we have a space crunch but then we should start some where.

(Image courtesy: http://www.seaporttma.org/images/carpool3.jpg)

While most parts of the United States baked or wilted under the scorching sun, California enjoyed a cool summer.

Yesterday, however it was a different experience. Temperatures touched 111 fahrenheit which is roughly equivalent to 43 degrees celsius. It was bloody hot. People here are not used to such record temperatures. It also led to a situation in our office where the fire alarms got triggered due to the excess heat. The air-conditioning unit supply got cut off.

Every afternoon during lunch time I go for a walk. At my workplace, there is a sprawling campus and its nice to walk with the greenery around.

But yesterday, the merciless sun made me cut my walk short and I returned to the cool environs of my cubicle (that is what I thought) until I realized that the airconditioning was switched off. But the one remarkable thing I appreciated about the US was the response time.

As soon as the fire alarms got triggered, the fire engines were there in no time. It also made me wonder, if people in India care so much about how every life is precious things would be a lot better.

(Image source: http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.mssociety.ca/images/sun.gif)

At 63 years one is considered as a Senior Citizen but if you're a nation which has gained freedom 63 years ago you're still young. Today, i.e. August 15th is India's Independence Day and I extend my best wishes to Indians across the world.

Personally I am proud to be an Indian and if one believes in the Indian concept of reincarnation I would still prefer to be born as Indian. We are not only a nation with a rich past but one which has gained freedom against all odds and proven the doomsday pundits wrong. Yes a lot of people are still steeped in poverty and unable to afford at least 2 square meals a day and there is a still a lot of struggle ahead against corruption, scourge of terrorism, illiteracy, dismal infrastructure, water shortage being some of them but there is still hope. We are a vibrant growing economy with a young demographic profile and it will take time but we will surely get there.

(Image courtesy: http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://pictures.wayn.com/photos/018927108_689307531.jpg)

There has been these thoughts buzzing in my head but somehow I couldn't translate it into words. The most probable cause has been laziness. I keep thinking today I have to pen down my thoughts but have been unable to do so.

The good news however is that finally I did manage to break the jinx. The recent update from me is that I have purchased a car. My new car (technically its a used car, and I am its proud 2nd Owner) is a 1997 Nissan Altima. It's 13 years old but still thanks to its earlier owner, in pretty good shape. There were a few niggles like the radiator which I got fixed but overall the ride quality was smooth and for a tall person like me its very spacious. Lastly the clincher was the price.

Yipee...I finally passed my behind-the-wheel test. It's only a matter of time before I get my ID. Last time I had blogged about how Driving Sucks but now I have grown in confidence.

The Driving examiner was the same lady and I made no errors of judgement today. She signed off by saying "Have a nice day". After all the struggle, it now seems worth the effort :)

(Image courtesy: http://www.babble.com/CS/blogs/famecrawler/britneys_drivers_license.jpg)

Driving Sucks !!

Today was very tiring. I just can't wait to hop into the bed. Driving is something which requires good amount of skills and driving especially in the US if you're new to the country can give you goose bumps.

Take my example, as I am used to the Left hand driving in India it's very painful to adjust to right hand driving. I often end up going on the wrong side. Unlearning what you learnt is definitely not easy. Today I had my Behind-the-wheel driving test. But my real test already began when I took a rental car and drove all the way to work which was not without its twists and turns.

I missed an exit and even with GPS which is like your friendly navigator I struggled to find the route back leading to the interstate highway. I was so nervous that I parked myself at the Target shopping center and was trying to stay calm. My throat was parched, my heart racing as I buried my head deep in my hands and was trying to muster the courage to hit the road again. It was akin to Fight or Flight. I was getting impulsive and my first instinct was telling me to abandon the Car in the parking lot and take a BART train but then there was something within me (maybe my inner voice) which kept prodding me to not give up. This was my opportunity to set the demons at rest.

I heard my inner voice and finally did reach work. I survived the scare of a huge truck which was tailing my car and nerve wracking movements especially on the interstate highway. Though I flunked my driving test due to certain critical driving errors I can take heart from the fact that its not the end of the road and tomorrow is another day. I loved my driving examiner. Even though she failed me, she was kind enough to reschedule my appointment and point out my mistakes apart from extending my temporary license.

When I returned home and told my brother what happened he just couldn't stop laughing his heart out. I was obviously not very much happy about it :(

(Image courtesy: http://www.automopedia.org/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/driving29.jpg)

Ever since I have started work on my first assignment in US, I had my first long weekend after 4 months. It was Memorial Day today. An occasion which commemorates the members of the United States armed forces who were killed in war.

If you look at the US holiday calendar, there are only a set number of holidays and they are fewer in number. True to their reputation, American's work hard and party harder.

I watched the movie Prince of Persia - The Sands of Time this weekend. Long long ago before the white man colonized most of the continent there was a great kingdom called Persia which stretched from Mediterranean sea till the borders of India. You're transported to a different age and time when technology was non-existent.

Prince of Persia is based on a video game which has a similar namesake. Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arterton, Ben Kingsley, Alfred Molina and Steve Toussaint the movie spins its magic on the audience. You have the special effects however they don't overwhelm the story. Gemma Arterton as the Princess Tamina has a meaty role. Gemma's exotic charm, her oriental look combined with a mean streak makes her an effective counterfoil to Prince Dastan (Jake Gyllenhaal) who not surprisingly can't take his eyes of her and so can't we :) Ben Kingsley as Nizam (the king's brother) is a surprise package. I wonder why we don't see more of him.

(Image courtesy: http://cache.g4tv.com/ImageDb3/170124_S/Prince-Of-Persia-Movie.jpg)

This has been a month of tragic accidents and man-made calamities. From the Naxal attacks in Dantewada (twice now), massive oil spill near the gulf of mexico to the recent Air India plane crash in Mangalore there has been no let up of bad news.

The Dantewada attacks first on the Paramilitary forces and then the targeting of SPO's (Special Police Officers) atop a civilian bus by the naxals exposed the government's flawed strategy. From my childhood I had imagined Naxals to be an avatar of Robinhood fighting the injustice meted out by the state and the Zamindars. They used to confiscate the excess land and distribute it among the poor and the landless. Also the people especially the tribal population were made aware of their rights.

The recent attack where they targeted a civilian vehicle goes against the grain of naxalite movement. The State has to take a major part of the blame. It forces the people to vacate their lands for building industries, constructing dams, giving mining rights to private parties. Development is essential but at what cost? Resettlement of people, providing them adequate compensation is all mired in red tape. People are frustrated with the corruption and apathy of the bureaucrats right from the village level to the highest decision making body in the state.

Naxals get it wrong when they target schools, post offices, police stations, police, paramilitary forces, hospitals, roads, bridges etc and now even civilians. What do they gain by destroying infrastructure? Do they want to keep the people backward and illiterate instead of joining the national mainstream.

The State cannot keep pumping the forces without first trying to alleviate the sufferings and bringing development to the door step of the villagers. To quote Mahatma Gandhi "Real India lives in its villages" The major task before the State would be to eliminate or at least minimize corruption so that the people reap the benefits. When people realize that the state really cares about them they will be more than willing to lend a helping hand to fight the naxal violence. Use of force is required when the naxals resort to wanton destruction and mindless violence but bear in mind that you need to well equip the forces with arms, ammunition and human intelligence else they will be sitting ducks and there is no better example than Dantewada to prove it.

Accidents like the Gulf oil spill and the recent Air India plane crash in Mangalore fit the bill of man made disasters perfectly. The oil spill will destroy the gentle fabric of the coastline and the marine life, not to mention the birds and their nesting grounds. It may take years to recover or worse damaged beyond repair.
Mangalore is my hometown and I have travelled by air only on a couple of occasions. When I did travel, the view from the plane was scary. The runway which would jut out of the mountain would give me goose bumps. The "What If" factor starts circling my mind.

Air traffic is growing in India and airline operators with a view to cutting costs are becoming lax in ensuring safety requirements. The Government cannot escape the blame either. Without a proper infrastructure in place, it(Government) is constructing airports hastily without doing any feasibility/environmental impact and safety study. A combination of all these is a recipe for disaster waiting to happen.

First and foremost there must be an independent air safety board on the lines of United States NTSB(National Transportation Safety Board). Also the crew and the pilots need to be given adequate rest between their flight rosters. All these would definitely cost money but then dead people don't live to tell a tale.


(Image courtesy: http://www.mynews.in/News/dailyimage/news/naxals--big-1.jpg)
(Image courtesy: http://www.foxnews.com/slideshow/scitech/2010/04/28/oil-rig-explosion-seen-space/#slide=5)
(Image courtesy: http://buzzytimes.com/mangalore-plane-crash-latest-pictures-air-india-express-crash-mangalore-photos/)

Call it force of habit or just inadequate sleep, I can't help but grab some shut eye when I commute by train/car to work. Of course being a passenger has it's own perks. But this habit of mine has made me the butt of jokes. Whenever we board a train and grab a seat my colleague tells me "Goodnight Ashith". Its very embarrassing but still the lure of a nap is too hard to resist :)


I try every time to hit the sack early but somehow that's not happening. Blame it on my PC and the cellphone, the modern day conveniences which has hobbled up most of our daily lives. I am not overstressed and overworked as the cartoon here suggests but I need to instill discipline at least when it comes to sleep.

Side effects of inadequate sleep has been well researched. You know it when you feel drowsy and are unable to concentrate on work. On the other hand, after a good night's sleep when you wake up in the morning you feel fresh both in mind and body.

The good part is that I am working on my sleep and I hope things will begin to improve.

This weekend I watched Iron Man 2. I was eagerly awaiting the release of the sequel. The first installment of Iron Man was impressive and I was curious to know whether the sequel fares better or exceeds expectations. The problem with most of the sequels is that they have to be better than the original or at least as good as the first part. However with experience one can safely suggest that most of the movies falter under the burden of expectations.

The film opens with the scene where Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) confesses to being the IronMan. There have been a lot of superheroes based on the Marvel comic series however where Iron Man stands out is that the protagonist Tony Stark is shown as someone who is narcissist, isn't ashamed to flaunt his wealth, is pretty good at his job. The mini arc reactor which powers his suit and the toll it extracts on his body and his desire for pretty women are some of his weaknesses.

When there is an Iron Man how can there not be an opposing force which stands for something evil or destructive. The major weakness of the Iron Man(Part 1) was the villain Obadiah Stane. In the sequel, Ivan Vanko (Mickey Rourke) plays the role of disgruntled scientist and more than matches the might of Iron Man. Watch out for the whiplash scene where Ivan attacks Tony Stark on a race track. And there is the usual special effects. Scarlett Johansson, Samuel Jackson and Sam Rockwell are the new entrants. Pepper Potts played by Gywneth Paltrow is now elevated as the CEO of Stark Industries.

My verdict on this movie. It's a nice watch but it does lose some punch. Tony Stark once again is the soul of this movie. A major positive in this sequel is the space given to other characters. I missed Terence Howard who plays the character of Lt. Colonel James Rhodes in the first part. Don Cheadle as his replacement is okay but can't match the charm of Terence Howard. As of now, it's wait and watch for Iron Man 3 :)

(Image courtesy: http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/s/sleep.asp)
(Image courtesy: http://www.fandango.com/ironman2_119853/moviephotosstills/241643)

In India's chaotic democracy there are many politicians who amass huge wealth starting from a humble beginning. Power is intoxicating and when you still do shady deals you keep it discreet. People who get caught are either plain stupid or novices.

So enter Shashi Tharoor a greenhorn in politics. He had a very successful stint working in the UN for 3 decades and at the fag end of his career was unlucky when contesting for the post of UN Secretary General. He comes back to India, contests the Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha seat on a Congress ticket, wins the election and is nominated as the Minister of State for External Affairs. All this is very well known. Today when he submitted his resignation over the IPL scandal it was quite a painful end to a checkered career.

Personally to me, Shashi Tharoor was a very eloquent speaker and I had read quite a few of his articles. He did seem to know the pulse of the nation, connected to the youth with his tweets and was a popular rallying point for the media. No Indian politician (except a few like Rahul, Sachin Pilot) are known for their good looks. Shashi Tharoor in that aspect was a cut above the rest. Now when someone who just entered politics and gets to be a minister in his first outing that surely raises many eyebrows among the seasoned politicians. We Indians have this crab mentality and cannot digest the fact that someone is doing so well. The immediate instinct is to pull them down. Was Shashi Tharoor a victim of that?

There are Mayawatis and Amar Singhs and so many other corrupt politicians but they know how to play the game of power and money very well. Maybe Shashi can take a leaf out of their book. The country will surely miss his experience and its also a letdown for millions of his admirers. Public memory is short and who knows we might have him back at the helm in the not so distant future :)

Now coming back to my personal life, the week gone by especially the weekend was really exciting.
For the first time, I watched a soccer match and also played a game of tennis. Both were activities I wanted to do since a long time. Playing tennis was very exhausting which made me wonder how do the top tennis players manage? It definitely requires loads of stamina and physical endurance. I look forward to the next weekend with anticipation :)

(Image courtesy: http://specialnewsonline.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/shashi-tharoor1.jpg)

Most of us(Indians) love to watch movies. Be it Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada etc. We also speak the same language. The audience who are reading this article are computer literate, would have gone to a english medium school/college and if working would have chosen English as their medium of communication. Now its entirely a different situation altogether when hindi gets mixed with english making it hinglish and the same applies to other languages.

When I was in school, Hindi was one of my primary subjects. We had a ruled notebook where we would write down the hindi alphabets. Writing the "AA" or "EE" in Hindi was painful but good fun. Recently I was watching a movie, in that movie a person writes a letter in Hindi. For a moment, I felt like a kid at school who was going through the hindi lessons. My Hindi class was always fun and the credit goes to our teacher. All of us were afraid to sit on the front bench because the moment our hindi teacher would open her mouth spit would start flying like a missile and hit its target which in this case were us, the hapless students. Apart from that, she was a good hindi teacher.

So coming back to the point, I feel that we are losing touch with our languages. With all the emphasis being placed on English be it written or verbal, languages like hindi, even though widely spoken are losing their prominence. English is important to survive in today's cut throat competitive world but for the future generations languages like hindi, telugu etc might seem like a relic from the past. Even we though we speak the languages (with a smattering of English) we rarely write in our native language. Personally even though I can speak hindi, writing is a different genre altogether. I can't muster the courage to write a few lines. Each language has its own beauty and our native languages stand as a testimony to that. I wish there was some tool in this blog which would have allowed me to write a few words in Hindi :)

I am going to talk about another movie "Right Yaa Wrong". I watched it on DVD today. Honestly, I must admit I was impressed by the movie. It's a whodunit thriller. The audience knows the suspect but the manner in which the suspect builds up his defence is an interesting watch. The real hero of this movie is the Story/Script. We all are aware that the story/script is a casualty in many hindi movies (thankfully the trend seems to be changing). Right Yaa Wrong is one such movie which definitely proves us wrong :) Sunny Deol (a very restrained performance) as ACP Ajay who is confined to a wheel chair after injuring himself on duty, Irrfan Khan (excellent as usual) who is his colleague and best buddy, Isha Koppikar as the adulterous wife and Konkona Sen Sharma who plays the Devil's advocate play their parts well. Even the minor characters are taken care of to build a taut and gripping storyline. It also helps that the writer of this movie is also the director. This movie was never hyped during its release and may have been a box office turkey but personally I give it a thumbs up.
(Image courtesy: www.indif.com/.../hindi_Swar_chart.aspx)
(Image courtesy: www.chakpak.com/photo/right-ya-wrong/262702)

We all get caught up in the daily grind called Work and life becomes monotonous. So sometimes a good dose of humour is essential. What better way than April Fool's day.

I was very happy today. The reason being I managed to find atleast 6-7 scapegoats who took my bait and won the crown for April Fool's day. It was really cool. Genuinely Funny moments has become a rare commodity now-a-days but with this experiment of mine I am sure there is still hope :)

(Image courtesy: http://www.southcom.com.au/~seymour/aprilfool/jester.gif)

Health Care Legislation is finally a reality

United States President Barack Obama scored a major triumph when his health care reform legislation passed the Senate by a 219-212 vote. Congrats to Obama and those who helped him pass his signature legislation. After all the bad news on the economy front, I hope this will bring some cheer to the millions of uninsured Americans and mostly the Obama Administration.

"Life, Liberty and the pursuit of happiness" This sentence has been called "one of the best-known sentences in the English language" and "the most potent and consequential words in American history".

This sentence also forms the bedrock through which the constitution of the United States has been interpreted and lastly came to represent for many people a moral standard for which the United States should strive.
Now why am I saying all this. I watched the movie "Green Zone" today. The movie gives a deep insight as to what ails the decision making in the United States. What better example than the Iraq war fought by the Obama's predecessor the Bush administration. It raises some disturbing questions for which there are no easy answers.

So when George Bush by an executive order attacks Iraq looking for Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) and then pumps his fist in the air on board an USS navy ship uttering those famously infamous words "Mission Accomplished" What exactly did his mission accomplish?

In Green Zone, Matt Damon plays the role of the chief warrant officer (CWO) Roy Miller with the US Army who returns empty handed each time he raids the supposed WMD sites based on actionable intel that is given to him. Miller is flabbergasted as to how can the intelligence go wrong each time or there is something which more than meets the eye.

Even reputed newspapers like "The New York Times" have their credibility stained when their reporter just publishes the news articles about WMD without verifying the source just because it was handed to her by a senior US Administration official.

I haven't seen "Hurt Locker" however this movie really does make you think about the sequence of events that led to the Iraq war. Were the US public misled by their President that the United States was justified in attacking Iraq.

"Liberty" maybe one of the founding principles of the US constitution but what is the US really doing to promote it in other parts of the world.

It still remains cosy with military in Pakistan turning a blind eye in lieu for its co-operation in the so called War on Terror. Its pally with Saudi Arabia and China. One is a monarchy and the other is a communist country with a terrible human rights record. Not to forget about the junta in Myanmar which has been holding Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest for so many years.

I have been a fan of Matt Damon's Bourne series. This movie comes from the same Director Paul Greengrass. The storyline is credible, action scenes are taut, the witty dialogues and overall the message. My favorites:

Sergeant: "We are here to do our job, reasons don't matter".
Roy Miller's response: "It matters to me".

(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Declaration_of_Independence)
(Image courtesy: http://www.startribune.com/photos/?c=y&img=1greenzone0321.jpg)

When I woke up today morning the first thing I wanted to be sure was whether I had suffered another bug attack. Let me rewind. As I sleep on the floor with a blanket, I guess bug(s) would have crawled up and then bitten me on my forehead. That was the day before. Now fast forward to 17th morning which also happens to be my birthday and thankfully there was no bug attack. I was happy and thought that was my birthday gift :)

So I am a year older today. And as always its time to look back, pause for a moment and think about the distance I have covered since the time I was born till the present day. Distributing chocolates on the occasion of my birthday has always been a tradition for me right from my school. How can today be any different even though now I am dealing with grown-ups :) The birthday cake was a pleasant surprise for me @ work, thanks to my colleague and friend Prashanth.

At home my flatmates had another cake party for me. This whole thing makes me feel why should birthdays be celebrated only once in a year :( Anywayz I treated my flatmates to a dinner at a nearby restaurant. My diet went for a toss. There was a sad feeling when I was returning home that finally all good things must come to an end. Tomorrow it's back to work :(

Another weekend has gone by. If I were in India, I would have shopped for groceries or caught up with a latest movie with my family. Here in Concord, California, it's the same routine, except for a difference I am alone.

Sometimes the boredom gets to you. But I have some winged friends here. I am talking about the ducks which swim in the lake right opposite our apartment. In the stillness of night and at the crack of dawn I can hear the sounds of the ducks. It was a rare sight in the balcony yesterday, when I spotted two sparrows.

I was amazed because in my home town i.e. Hyderabad, sparrows are no longer seen. You miss them. I guess other cities such as Mumbai also have the same problem. This is due to the massive urbanization which has led to the extinction of many species apart from the greenery and sparrow was just but one casualty. (Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Sparrows-no-longer-chirp-in-city/articleshow/5720959.cms)

So looking at the Sparrows, I was happy that they are safer here at least for the time being.

(Image courtesy: http://buildyourownbirdhouseplans.com/images/2008HouseSparrow.jpg)

Bowing to popular opinion NASA had named one of the craters on moon after the Bollywood film actor Shahrukh Khan. This decision of NASA had me squirming. Now Shahrukh has legions of fans and I am definitely not one of them. However there are exceptions. His roles in "Swades", Chak De India" were some of them.

My Name is Khan (MNIK) is a movie which has hogged the headlines more than any other movie for the past few days mostly because of Shiv Sena's decision to boycott this movie in retaliation for Shahrukh Khan's recent comments in the media about Pakistan's players not being included in the Indian Premier League.

Today when one of my flatmate suggested that we go and watch MNIK even though I knew it was a movie which has as its main theme racial profiling a story on which recent movies like New York and Kurbaan was released, I thought it would be a good time pass.

MNIK was screening at Brendon theatre in our area i.e. Concord. MNIK turned out to be a surprise package. Leaving aside SRK's claims of being questioned by the Customs and Border Patrol officers(CBP) at an US airport, the movie comes across as something with substance. We would have seen umpteen Bollywood movies which have huge budgets, song and dance, big star cast and one missing link - a script. The protagonist in this movie is an individual Rizwan Khan who has Aspergers syndrome. The main symptom of which being severe trouble with social situations (Source: http://www.webmd.com/brain/autism/tc/aspergers-syndrome-symptoms).

Rizwan Khan wants to meet the president of the United States and tell him "My name is Rizwan Khan and I am not a terrorist"
From the start till the end, this simple statement forms a key linchpin for the entire movie. MINK has mostly serious situations but also some genuinely funny moments. Take for example a few scenes "Mandira (Kajol) is busy in the kitchen when Rizwan(SRK) walks upto her and says that he wants to have sex with her right now." It was direct but the way the whole scene was aesthetically done shows that Indian cinema has really come of age. We are no longer prudish about the S word and that's a good sign.

Another scene after post 9/11 when Kajol applies for a job and frankly tells the interviewer that her surname is Khan and she is married to a muslim. But I was moved by one particular scene involving Mandira (Kajol)'s son Sameer who gets into a fight at a soccer field in his school. Kajol is a natural on the camera and it doesn't seem that her long absence from the big screen has done any difference to her acting talent. She can give the present day actresses a run for their money :) SRK is good however he can't let go off his hamming in some scenes.

My main grouse with the movie is the second half which seems to get pretty heavy with the track involving African Americans. Why should the African Americans be shown mostly as poor? The movie clearly drags here. Overall the movie has been intelligently made and is straight from the heart. It ends with a simple message as Zarina Wahab (nice cameo) tells her son Rizwan that there are good people and there are also bad people.

MNIK has been shot across the United States but a substantial part of the movie has been shot in San Francisco city in California.
I was not expecting a location such as Bowling Green in Kentucky to show up on the screen as it doesn't seem to be a favorite location for film directors much less Bollywood. Its a small and very quiet city. I should know it as I lived there for more than a month. My brother Akki must be feeling proud that Bowling Green made it to the big screen :)

I really liked MNIK. You can watch it atleast once and if I were to rate MNIK, I would give it

(Image courtesy: http://www.mynameiskhan.org/film/mnik-posters/)

I am not a big fan of the Gandhi family but the news of Rahul Gandhi travelling by a local train in Mumbai impressed me. Now there are a few reasons for that. Firstly I have lived and worked in Mumbai for close to 2 years and personally even I found it challenging to travel by the local train. You need to be a brave heart to travel by a mumbai local. Thankfully for me I didn't have to commute using the train as my office was just 30 minutes drive from the residence.

Even if I did use the local train, it was only on weekends when the crowd was far less. Second, Rahul being a Z+ protectee to suddenly take a detour from the airport towards the Andheri station would have caught everyone by surprise. Now especially in India where politicans, bureaucrats etc love to flaunt their fleet of vehicles with red beacons even while thousands of motorists wait while the roads are cleared for them (VIPs) this comes as a breath of fresh air.

No wonder then that Rahul's co-passengers couldn't stop gushing :) In the process he also cocked a snook at the Shiv Sena which was protesting against his visit with black flags. Rahul's desire to connect with young India is a noble thought however what has surprised me is that how come he didn't mention the burning agenda which is on the mind of every common man that of price rise. Is it because the federal and state government are ruled by his own party...some food for thought this.

(Image courtesy: http://www.searchindia.com/search/mumbai-pictures/mumbai-train.html)

On this day last year, Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States. Obama swept to power on the promise of change. So the big question, has he delivered?

Well its a mixed bag. The economy was going through its worst phase when he inherited the mantle from George Bush. The Obama administration was quick to start work on a war footing to revive the economy. Apart from appointing top officials to oversee the stimulus program, other measures like bailouts to banks and financial institutions were implemented. The success of the program can be gauged by the fact that some of these institutions have not only turned profitable but also returned the bailout finds. However the economy still continued to sag except at the fag end of the year with some positive signs of revival which is still tentative. The good news is most of the businesses have stopped cutting down on employees.

But the main theme around which his campaign was built - uniform healthcare legislation which seemed to be just within reach after passing the senate hurdle now seems in danger. Amid declining approval ratings came a big shocker today. The Democrat party lost hold of a key senate seat in Massachusetts. It was a Democrat stronghold for the past 50 years. This is the third major defeat after the democrats already lost 2 senate seats this year. Healthcare reform is something which has deeply divided people. Suddenly President Barack Obama and the Democrats look vulnerable. These are early days as yet. Obama has still time on his side and if he wants to continue for a 2nd term, he needs to get his act fast.

The biggest shock for me was when Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Don't get me wrong but Obama has just started his term and has not accomplished anything major yet. Now this coming from people who didn't nominate Gandhi is a big let down and the credibility of the Nobel committee has been tarnished.

On the other hand I think Obama as someone who is a good orator, takes things in his stride. When people comment on his race he doesn't want to get into a debate and wants to move on. For the botched Christmas day bombing he was quick to admit his administration's mistakes (how many politicians in India really do it).

Finally Obama administration's quick relief and rescue efforts for the people in Haiti along with his appeal to the citizens to contribute for the earthquake relief to Haiti in the company of ex-presidents George Bush and Bill Clinton shows that he wants to present a united stand and didn't have any ego issues.

(Image courtesy: http://luv2hateu.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/who-is-barack-obama.jpg)

My first blog for 2010

I have just completed a month in the US. My first impressions of this country are varied. When people describe US as one of the biggest polluters I was just wondering what was the reason. Now I know. Most people here own large gas guzzling vehicles. Except for offices, universities etc most residential units are happy with incandescent bulbs. I was shocked to find in my bathroom 6 large incandescent bulbs on top of the mirror.

Other than that, groceries are pretty cheap. Here even 1 cent has a value. Contrast that in India where the old 5, 10, 20 and now even 25 paisa are not accepted even though they are legal tender. It has been snowing for the past few days. This was my first experience with snow and I enjoyed every moment of it.

The snow looks nice but it has its downside. Walking is risky as you tend to slip once the snow melts and driving on the road is even more riskier when the snow starts melting due to sunlight and then due to the sudden change in weather it again freezes this time partially giving a glass finish on the roads and making it slippery. That was one of the reasons that has led to a rash of road accidents with some proving to be fatal.