Quo Vadis?

By now many of us may be numbed by the amount of scams that vie with each other in the quantum and scale. We have come to accept that loot is a part of life and sometimes we are also part of the loot. It is so foolish to blame the ills of the land on the corrupt politicians when we have let it happen. When we fake rent receipts, hide other income(s), collect subsidies even when ineligible, even watch pirated DVDs some where down the line we step over the thin line between right and wrong, the line between what is fair and unfair. In the end it all comes down to money. If time is money, then many folks on the road are building their bank balances by putting their lives at risk, jumping lanes, driving on the wrong side to save maybe some fuel or time and hence money. My sincere wish is that they may live long with the money thus saved. Every scam or con artist and thief would have probably started small, with a small scam or stealing a few rupees and over the years deve...

- do people create Gods, make houses for them, charge tickets to see the Gods and make the Gods a spectacle for those who can afford it - do people never get satisfied with what they have and always look for something more because it always never enough - do people play with their lives and those of others on the road just to reach their destination a few minutes earlier when it would have been easier and less stressful to start early - do people always take the shortcut even though the benefit may not always be there - do people proclaim equality and go around with their caste as their surnames - do people strive to move ahead by simply pushing down all those around them - do people make heaps of money by crooked means when they cannot use much of it and will stash it away benefiting none - do people waste their lives for a better future when the present is just slipping by - do people think they can always outsmart the world and get away with it too -...

Ok. The headline may say it all, when I got the tickets for the movie from my brother he said "this is a Jason Bourne movie made by Vikraman of Pudhu Vasantham fame". As I left the theatre I realized he was on target. There may be enough reviews going around on the movie so I will stick to a few observations: The positives: - An interesting plot that had promise (not worked out the inspirations as yet) - An actor who tries to do the best in every role he gets, and who had enough experience playing a blind man -London makes the movie rise above the ordinary - A host of talented performers on the pay, in no particular order Nasser, Anushka, Saranya, Santhanam, Shayaji Shinde, Thambi Ramaiah, MS Bhaskar and I still may have missed a few - The negatives: - A plot with promise but holes like a sieve, there were too many inconsistencies and too many predictable scenes that the thrill of a spy movie was lost - Silly writing and lines like the he...

I have been asked this question several times and my answer often leaves the questioner disappointed. They cannot understand that there is a third option to this question and it is very much possible. My marriage was a love marriage, an arranged marriage and maybe both. It started out when our respective parents embarked on their duties to find the perfect match for their wards. Since we do not have much say during the initial searches both of us stayed out of it. And then a mutual friend suggested "hey why don’t you guys look at each other?" Some bells must have rung or a light shone somewhere but suddenly after an Eureka moment both of us realized that the person whom we knew for a decade or so was an eligible life partner. And every time I reach this point, the listener interjects “Ah! It was a love marriage”, but it was not, at least not back then. At that time it was just a very good option to give our parents and then all hell broke loose. On very flimsy grou...

It’s about that time when such long queues can be spotted outside schools. Parents go the extra mile to get a seat in the best school for their kids; the extra mile includes paying the extra large fee or donations and recommendation letters from the ever obliging VIPs. In a year I expect to join this group and while I wait with a lot of trepidation I have prepared myself for another task that is ahead, the task of getting the home school ready for my daughter. Home school, is where children learn the most and sadly I see that folks around me are oblivious to this. What is home school? It is that schooling which my daughter picks up by observing every word and deed that my wife and I say or do and promptly begins to imitate. Every child looks up, observes, imitates and follows his / her parents thereby bestowing a major responsibility on the parents.  It takes a lot of self restraint to ensure that my daughter does not pick up a wrong word or gesture. Watch the video ...

Now that the IPL trophy has moved to Kolkota and last heard is in the hands of Didi, I thought I might skip this post, however considering the antics that followed the win I must write about the final. Actually CSK has done itself and the rest of us fans and non fans alike a great dis-service by losing the final. I thought only Navjot Sidhu and maybe Danny Morrison are permitted tomfoolery in the vicinity of a cricket match but now we have SRK. So captivated by the match was SRK that he forgot to dye his stubble and he forgot that there is some decorum expected of him each time. Makes you wonder why folks go and see his movies after this. And now maybe Didi will paint Kolkota purple to celebrate this momentous event. Damn you CSK.Why did you not do the little things right that could have left us savouring an expected win and celebrating it well just the usual way? Let me see a few things could have changed the match:   Over no. 20 of the CSK innings was a major anticlimax...

Watch the clip and pay attention to the part about the policemen being the friend and hold it there... I was shocked to see my car missing today evening after office and it looked like a clear case of a tow away. I had never fallen foul of the traffic police earlier but nevertheless asked the traffic cop nearby if he could help. Maybe he was tired or maybe he was bugged with the unruly traffic on Cenotaph Road he grudgingly suggested a number to be called. I was not prepared for the courteous and police response by a lady on the other end who patiently enquired and informed me that due to the visit of the CM today morning it was possible that my car was towed away. She gave me another number where the courtesies continued, the policeman politely enquired and then asked me to wait while he cross checked with the local police stations and informed me that my car was in Mambalam police station. He also informed the station of my arrival. I thanked the unknown policeman and went to t...