Random Ramblings

My new blog

2006-09-16T00:21:00.000-06:00

So, I've been kind of away, but not from blogging really. I've started off a new blog, All Things Kamal. Check it out, especially if you're a Kamal fan like me. The idea is to get all things about Kamal Haasan in one place, starting with latest news and photos.

I'm hoping that it would grow to be a group-blogging site. If you're interested, drop in a line to the e-mail address on the left pane.

I've moved to WordPress mainly for the lack of categories. Yeah, I can see that Blogger is bringing it up in their new Beta; but I've heard of the problems too. I miss the JavaScript certainly, especially for AdSense. Who knows, I might bring that site to Blogger in the future!

Yeah, Blogger was cool for a beginner. I learnt the ropes here and I figured that people are going to read a blog for the content. I didn't want to write really personal stuff nor am I a gifted writer who can hold the audience spell-bound. So, the best thing was to identify a niche and blog on it. That's what I did. I enjoy keeping track of Kamal and hence hope that it will keep the blog going.

Save the Internet from evil corporations!

2006-06-22T06:41:00.000-06:00

Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the Web, is a new and infrequent blogger. Not surprisingly, he writes when he's really serious. So, I had to pay attention when he talked about Net Neutrality twice. I 'Googled' from there and found out what the fuss was about.

SaveTheInternet.com puts it across in a simple way:

Congress is pushing a law that would abandon the Internet's First Amendment -- a principle called Network Neutrality that prevents companies like AT&T, Verizon and Comcast from deciding which Web sites work best for you -- based on what site pays them the most.

Did I hear "Horrendous!"? If you want to understand fully how this affects users of the Net, see these examples.

There needs to be some discipline and ethics in social or business interactions, even on the Net. But business simply should not dictate law.

Handling Islamic terrorism

2006-05-31T15:51:00.000-06:00

Apologies to anyone who has been wondering whether this blog has gone defunct. For anyone who doesn't care, skip to the next para and onto the actual post. The reason for inactivity is simple. I have moved from one place to another and it has taken a while to settle down. Nevertheless, this post has been long coming and it finally has.

"Islamic terrorism" is a buzzword around the world currently. Beyond the buzz, it is a worry for the future. To handle it, I felt we should first understand it rather than tackle it emotionally.

As I mentioned earlier, a prophet seeks to solve some problems and preaches what he thinks people should do. Sujai has a simplistic explanation, though I don't agree 100% with his assessment of Muhammad. But basically, Muhammad's task was to unite a set of war-mongering tribes and he did what he thought was necessary. He operated in the world he knew. Neither did USA exist nor was the world so small at that time.

Further, just as in Christianity or any other religion, the folks who take over after the prophet fight among each other, claiming their version is the correct one. This fighting continues over centuries and the original teachings get distorted. Tribal warfare was common in those parts of the world in the time of Muhammad and that was necessary for survival. If he asked people to fight, it was because that's what they thought was the best way out. Today, we are apparently more civilised and have other better ways of sorting out problems.

It's not as if only recently non-Muslims discovered that there are problems with the way Islam was being practised. Sufism is the example I know of. It was a kind of silent revolution and Sufi saints had to remain hiding fearing Islamic fundamentalists. A good sample of their thoughts is available through a recent pop hit by Rabbi. As I understand, God himself sings:

Nor am I the believer in mosque
Nor am I in the idol-worship
Nor am I in the pure or the impure...

Nor am I in the Vedas
Nor am I in intoxicants...

Nor am I Arabic nor from Lahore
Nor am I the Indian city of Nagaur
Nor a Hindu or a Peshawri Turk

Nor did I create the difference of faith
Nor did I create Adam-Eve
Nor did I name myself...

[Complete lyrics and translation]

Essentially, I see today's Islamic terrorism as based on natural behaviour of that region and as an extension of distorted teachings. Those who quote the Quran, swear by Allah and claim to be part of a jihad are just using their religion as a convenient tool to further their interests. Among the rest of the Muslims, possibly, there are many who understand what's going on and most who are ignorant or don't care.

Read more about:

I don't have a silver bullet of a solution. I don't have an easy way out. Gandhi's ahimsa comes to my mind. Again I have to only repeat. Whether it is the terrorists or ordinary Muslims, all of them have to be embraced as fellow humans. We need to have a conversation of words, not a trading of bullets and missiles.

There is no painless way to peace. But let us not engage in war and destroy any chance of an everlasting solution.

IT companies weren't targetted in Bangalore riots?

2006-04-18T14:47:00.000-06:00

'Annavru' (respected elder brother) Dr. Rajkumar, the Kannada movie superstar, passed away on April 12 in Bangalore. The city is known worldwide more as India's IT capital. You might expect an entire state (Karnataka, of which Bangalore is the capital) to mourn, but not exactly what you see in the pictures here. Riots sparked 0ff and went on until the next day.

Rajkumar was seen as a Kannadiga icon. A Rediff.com article descibes how he grew beyond movies, someone with whom the rioters possibly identified with:

Just who are all these young men? They are mostly young fellows who are members of his fan clubs, that have fanned out all over the State.

Interestingly, most of them were probably still children when his last couple of movies were released. So it is really Rajkumar, the icon of Kannada pride, that they revere, not Rajkumar the movie star. The fan clubs grew, long ago, from being typical film fan clubs to an obsessive, cult movement.

There were many arguments that there was no anger vented on IT companies, which have attracted people from all over the country and made Bangalore cosmopolitan. The photographs here (obtained thro' e-mail forwarding) show what happened to one such company, Talisma. This office also happens to be in the same locality as Rajkumar's house.

The pictures speak for themselves and leave my words redundant.

Firefox video promotion

2006-04-12T16:55:00.000-06:00

Firefox has been trying various methods of promotion. The latest is a video contest. The contest is not yet over, but some of the entries are already out.

Check them out on the official site or watch a quick digest on CNet (starting with an ad). One set of submissions has become so popular that it has a site, funnyfox.org to itself.

I found some on YouTube too. Those are possibly other entries. View one of them right here...

PS: The Firefox button is featured on this blog for free; it doesn't generate any money.

Matrubhoomi: a movie that ought to be made and watched

2006-04-11T16:35:00.000-06:00

Let's cut to the bottom-line straight. I don't agree with people who say that Matrubhoomi portrays extremes to garner attention and shows India in a bad light. The writer is entitled to his imagination and in this case, he has visualised a future where there is a dearth of women. Similarly, in this Internet age, we don't need movies to know the good or bad of a country. Rather, as Indians, I feel we take comfort in covering up our misdeeds.

The movie runs for about 90 minutes and is hardly boring. With the focus staying on the search for a bride and the dramatic results of success, it touches upon other aspects too. If anyone of us sits and thinks what would happen if female infanticide drove our society to a state where women become rare, we might possibly come up with most of the situations seen in the movie. Nevertheless, there are surprises -- actually more of shocks. Some scenes are certainly crude. Needless to say, this movie is a 'no-no' for children.

The title (meaning 'motherland') itself is a good piece of paradox to start with. There are quite a few metaphors, but certain (brief) digressions don't make sense. The camera is used intelligently, minimising the use of dialogues and scenes. I am not sure if the end had any significance.

The actors have done well. Sushant Singh, Piyush Jha and Sudhir Pandey stand out. Tulip Joshi impresses in her debut. She portrays the helpless small-town girl very well. Aditya Shrivastava is good, but seems a bit wasted. The background score by Salim-Sulaiman (who made a mark with Bhoot) is superb.

As a creative medium, movies shine best when such powerful message-oriented ones are made. Unfortunately, despite good backing and a widespread multi-lingual release, I wonder whether this movie reached those people who ought to be watching it.

Check out some thoughts of the maker, Manish Jha. If you don't want to know the entire story, skip the synopsis (marked in bold).

Picture courtesy: VeryCD.com

What should Kamal do?

2006-04-06T12:51:00.000-06:00

Kamal is Kamal Haasan, sometimes wrongly spelt as 'Kamal Hassan'. For those of you who don't know, he is a highly rated actor from India. Besides producing, writing and directing many movies, he also dabbles in singing, choreography and lyrics among other things. For more details, check out details on Wikipedia and IMDb.

I'm an ardent fan and have been following him for the most part of my life. This article might reflect that bias, but also attempts to provide some genuine suggestions to a beloved star. The only additional qualification I have is that I'm a movie-buff, but surely not a bigger one than Kamal himself.

For the past few years, frankly, Kamal has been struggling. Towards the end of the previous millenium, he launched his dream project, Marudhanayagam with much fanfare. After canning thirty minutes of the final product, he was stuck for finances and the movie was shelved. After years of proxy direction, he finally came out with Hey Ram. Save for a bit of indulgence, it was a perfect movie with a superb message. Alas, it went above the heads of most and flopped miserably. Faced with heavy financial losses, it was time to go back to the world of commercial movies. He has had moderate success from then on, except for the debacle of Aalavandhaan / Abhay.

But "running around trees" even at the age of 51 is both funny and sad. He seems to be in a constant state of 'Catch-22' between the movies he wants to make and the movies he's having to be in.

In my opinion, Kamal's days as a leading man are pretty much over. As merciless as Indian movies might be towards old actors, it is time to break the shackles once more and act only in roles that suit his age. Kamal has a recent example in Amitaabh Bachchan, the biggest star of them all, who learnt it the hard way. Supporting roles aren't bad at all, if they're going to stay in public memory forever.

Acting was, after all, something he got into by accident, as he himself has said many times. He can remain with his first love of making movies till the end of his life. His ever-increasing knowledge of movies is matched by very few and that's something that can be put to use always. Yes, if you want to make movies your own way, you need to produce it too most of the time and that requires loads of money. The "Amitaabh way" might be more than enough though. Also, movies with relatively low budget (few crores of rupees) aren't a bad option, maybe once in a while.

Kamal tasted success as a child star, struggled as a teenager doing choreography, got picked up by Balachander and rose to superstar status, moved onto meaningful movies starting with Nayagan and then hit the not-so-good times starting with Marudhanayagam. To use cricket terminology, it's time for Kamal to begin his sixth innings. (Or is it the seventh or the eighth?)

Picture courtesy: The Telegraph

Making sense of economy

2006-04-04T14:23:00.000-06:00

Nimesh Kampani -- I've never heard of the name before. When I saw the title on Rediff.com proclaiming "India doesn't need FDI", I was interested. As I read along and checked out an old cover story on him, I understood what the man was all about.

His answers in the 3-part interview are simple and make sense even to a person like me who's scared of financial terms. In addition to his thoughts on the Indian economy, a few of his observations / ideas were interesting:

...Japan has saved money for years. Investors there get zero or negligible interest. At some places, bank charges them for keeping deposits. In our banks, on the contrary, we get four per cent, at least. The Japanese are tired of dead investment. So they are looking out.

A friend of mine was in China recently. He was travelling along a road lined with houses on both sides. After 15 days, when he returned along the same road, he saw those homes had disappeared and a bigger road was being built. That is China. There the government can evacuate you in no time.

...investment is like a chappati on a gas stove. If you don't keep moving, it will get burnt.

I believe a situation will be created when an Asian currency on the lines of euro will be created which in turn will strengthen Asian economies.

Check out the three parts:

PS: For once, I didn't mind Rediff.com's sensational headlines...

California trip diary: Day 5

2006-04-03T15:35:00.000-06:00

Hollywood -- a town that is known more figuratively than in reality. The biggest movie-making machine of the world operates in and around here. We reached around the middle of the day and couldn't take a package tour. Ultimately that was a good thing though.

The world-renowned sign resides on a small hill. Though we didn't get to see it from close quarters, we caught it from a bridge in the Hollywood & Highland Center, on a gloomy day. [Just a couple of days ago, we watched the sign being smashed by a tornado in The Day After Tomorrow!]

Now, if "Hollywood & Highland Center" doesn't ring a bell, does "Kodak Theatre"? The venue of the Oscars ceremony is part of this complex.

As we enter, there are pillars featuring Best Picture winners (with room for future expansion, of course). You get a feel of the place -- how the stars descend every year and how grand it would be at the time of the Academy Awards. Unfortunately, we didn't get to go inside the theatre as we were late.

Just outside is Hollywood Boulevard, which boasts of almost all things Hollywood. I guess the 'street' (as compared to regular roads in the US) started buzzing with activity about a century ago.

Along one side is the Walk of Fame side-walk / foot-path. In addition to movies, it also honours music and TV personalities.

The Chinese Theater, also in the same complex as the Kodak Theatre, boasts of hand and foot prints of stars in its front. I clicked a some of my favourites.

The setting inside the theatre goes with the name. I was just wondering how interesting it would be to watch movies in such theatres in Hollywood itself.

We walked along and hit the Hollywood Entertainment Museum. Though it wasn't as exciting as I had imagined, the place had a few interesting items.

There was a Star Trek room featuring props from the original and the new shows. It was cool to sit in one of the seats which once had Captain James Kirk on it!

As we were waiting for the tour inside to begin, we came across some cut-outs -- check out Hitchcok and Spielberg above on the right side -- and old movie cameras, among other things.

Whew, that was a quick tour of Hollywood! We drove through Beverly Hills. Though we couldn't see much, as it was becoming dark, we noticed the huge houses buried in gardens.

Finally, we reached Rodeo Drive -- where Hollywood stars shop. A calm and cosy place to live and a glittering place to shop -- wow!

We walked almost the entire stretch and were amazed by the stuff sold there. The illuminated palm trees and the classy lights painted a pretty picture.

What a starry day!

Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 & 4 | Day 5 [To be continued]

Apple & Macintosh

2006-04-01T09:34:00.000-07:00

Apple is one of the companies I've long admired, though I've never really used their products. While in school / college, I've heard stories about how Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak started the company, how a trip to Xerox PARC set the stage for the first commercial GUI-based computer, how Apple competed with IBM, how Bill Gates sat with a Macintosh and copied feature by feature into Windows and so on. Some may be false; but those are the kind of legends surrounding the company.

I don't really care about the iPod, though I feel tempted to go for it once in a while. I was enamoured more by the Macintosh. I've just tried it a couple of times and loved it.

Here's an interesting series of photographs which trace its evolution, if you don't mind a little geekiness.

Maybe, some day, I'll have a Mac as my home computer. Till then...happy birthday, Apple!

Picture courtesy: http://www.avalanchejournal.com

Baaton Baaton Mein: nostalgic romcom

2006-03-30T01:08:00.000-07:00

Amidst all the new releases and missed old ones in Hollywood and Bollywood, I chanced upon this old gem. I prefer to call it a 'gem' even though it may not be a masterpiece in the world of movies. It's a good old romantic comedy with no real masala to spoil the taste.

The story and screenplay are simple. The lack of embellishments make the movie more realistic. Having Christian characters introduces credibility and also gives an interesting peek into their culture. The scenes involving parents and other relatives are quite funny. Some songs are more famous than the movie itself -- "Na bole tum..." and "Uthe sabke kadam...".

There are a few minor problems though. The budget constraints become obvious in some places. You can observe people wearing the same combination of clothes in multiple scenes in the same location, making it clear that those were all shot together. Atleast one song is not plugged in very well. Basu Chatterjee's direction, if better, could have lifted the movie a couple of notches upwards.

Amol Palekar could be called the superstar of small movies of those times. He shows off his lighter side here. He seems a bit old for this role though. Tina (Munim, now Ambani) is good eye-candy, in more ways than one. At times, she struggles to act; but in the context of the whole movie, it doesn't matter really. Pearl Padamsee is delightful. Ranjit Chowdhry, recently seen in Western movies like Bollywood / Hollywood and Last Holiday, plays a small comic role here. More nostalgia: Mazhar Khan, better known as Zeenat Aman's husband, has a small part too.

On a lazy weekend, if you just want to have a good two hours, without having to subject yourself to the latest masala misery, go for Baaton Baaton Mein.

While (re)searching on the Net, I chanced upon a "gorilla lamenting" about the same movie. A different outlook -- you might enjoy it.

Picture courtesy: http://www.webmallindia.com

California trip diary: Day 3 & 4

2006-03-29T13:36:00.000-07:00

Day Three was spent in Sea World while Day Four was for chilling out without really going to any special place.

Sea World is an aquatic zoo combined with an amusement park. The Shamu show is the highlight of this place. Before we get onto that, I thought I'd show you this cute picture of a little girl we saw there, with her face painted (as a cat or is that a something else?).

Shamu is a whale! It's trained to perform stunts like dolphins. Actually, the show features Shamu and a few other of his mates. The show is fantastic, complete with the whales jumping out of the water and also splashing water on the audience.

We also saw white wales. They weren't upto any of the above antics and were swimming peacefully in a simulated environment.

The most-loved dolphins were there, of course. Some were in a pool where you could interact closely with them. The one below seems to be lovingly asking for food.

Of course, there was a show featuring dolphins, similar to the one with Shamu and company. There was some drama here, with a woman set up to fall into the water as part of the proceedings.

Another spectacular portion of Sea World was the penguin section. About 300 small penguins were kept in artificially created Polar settings, with one side open to public viewing through glass. The penguins and ice were a bit dirty.

In one of the aquariums, I saw some embryos. Though the photo is not of great quality, you can still see organisms forming inside.

One unique animal we saw was the manatee, an endangered mammal rescued by Sea World. They were funny in their movement and excessive consumption of lettuce.

The food at Sea World was quite bad for our taste. While coming out of the eatery, we were amused to see beef being cooked in the open.

As a whole, Sea World is a really enjoyable place to visit, if you don't mind shelling out quite a few bucks.

During our San Diego leg of our trip, we actually stayed in Carlsbad, an affluent suburb. The roads were practically empty and the superb houses made a pretty sight.

We went to a couple of beaches nearby. There too, we used the Pacific Coast Highway.
Next stop: Los Angeles / Hollywood!

Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 & 4 | Day 5 [Updated: 3 April 2006]

California trip diary: Day 2

2006-03-26T11:37:00.000-07:00

For Day Two, we decided to drive along Highway 1 and experience the famed California coast-line. I remembered seeing it in movies like Basic Instinct and Pacific Heights and was excited to really be there.

The highway is mostly narrow and not always along the coast. Sometimes, you can't see the water, as resorts and restaurants spring up and block your view. It was thrilling to be riding along the world's largest ocean that stretches from the Americas to Australia and Asia.

Where there is something that humans would love, commercialisation can't be far behind. This coast / highway is lined with numerous houses at several places. Though it's a pretty sight in some ways, you don't feel happy when you imagine how the place would be without them. Another aspect that irritated me was that some portions of the beaches were private and completely out of bounds for everyone else except the owners. Hollywood stars and billionaires would flaunt residences in these towns, I guess.

There was some decent sun during the San Diego leg of this trip. People were out, surfing in the water or shooting hoops or even playing beach volleyball.

I got adventurous during the end of this drive and we drove upto Long Beach. That's near Los Angeles, the next stop of our trip. Misty conditions made the drive unpleasant and we also got lost there briefly.

As we drove back, we stopped at South Coast Plaza in Orange County. The mall was decked up for Christmas and was buzzing with activity. We were tired and in no real mood to look around. Still, we crossed the 'bridge' and dined at Bangkok Four.

Overall, we got a better taste of the San Diego area and California as compared to Day One.

Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 & 4 | Day 5 [Updated: 3 April 2006]

'Brokeback'

2006-03-25T13:43:00.000-07:00

Picture courtesy: http://www.moviewallpaper.net

Possibly the most talked about Hollywood movie of last year, the story is certainly path-breaking. The actors, the writers and the director have put in their best to let the common audience relate to homosexuality.

The movie is a bit arty, but not so much as to put you to sleep or make you crave for it to get over. Slightly longer than the average Hollywood movie, sustaining interest is an achievement. More than the story, the emotions involved create a beautiful experience. The scenic locale lets you open your mind and be in touch with nature.

The only real complaint I have with the movie is the constant accented mumbling of Heath Ledger. That made it very difficult to catch dialogues, just being able to roughly follow the happenings. That didn't matter ultimately; but still I yearn to get hold of the DVD to watch with subtitles.

Ledger, Gyllenhaal and Williams were all good. I've watched only Ledger before and I can say that he did deserve the Oscar nomination. Being an Australian, he has had to put that extra bit in to play an all-out American cowboy, with feminity too.

The other person from a foreign country, Ang Lee, was even more impressive. He won the award rightfully. Take that with a pinch of salt now -- I've watched only two of the five nominated movies. I hate Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon still; but Lee made me love him this time around.

Yet another foreigner, Gustavo Santaolalla pitched in with some Oscar-winning background score. I didn't pay so much attention to it though.

Yes, I'd say Crash was a better movie overall. So what? This movie made a difference in some other way. It even topped the list of Hollywood words of 2005.

Chill out by watching one of the many spoofs floating around on the Net.....

Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi

2006-03-13T16:17:00.000-07:00

One of my many thousand desires was to catch Hazaaron Kwaishein Aisi; I accomplished it recently. Though it wasn't a big hit even in the multiplexes, this movie was talked about, especially for the performances of its lead actors.

Kay Kay is fairly established, seen in other movies like Sarkar, Mein Meri Patni Aur Woh and Black Friday. Industry folks raved about Chitrangada Singh, while she went out of bounds. Shiny (Roshan?) Ahuja is more known for his appearance in Sins.

Firstly, don't get misled by the poster above. As is the norm, it's just meant to look cool. The story is about three people over many years -- no-cliche triangular love with the backdrop of Emergency. The protagonists also represent three different outlooks of people at that time. The support characters complete the other kinds of people in that environment. All characters are perfectly grey.

The story is solid and original. Never mind the disclaimer that it isn't based on real people and events; we know what it really means. The screenplay isn't bad too. But I felt there was a compromise on the editing table to cut down the length of the movie. Scenes rush past quickly before you can absorb them fully.

Songs are mostly used in the background and complement the narration well. The limit of the budget is evident in the technical aspects of the movie; but that creates no problems. The English used in the movie seems a lot out of place in many instances.

Shiny Ahuja walks away with top acting honours, almost at the end. Chitrangada makes an impressive debut.

Sudhir Mishra didn't create much impact with Chameli, which I guess was burdened with Kareena's non-commercial attempt. Here, he makes you take notice of him quite well.

Overall, this is one of the Indian movies that is worth watching in the past few years.

Check out the movie's Web-site while it lasts.

Boiling Iran

2006-03-11T07:18:00.000-07:00

US tension with Iran is only increasing day by day. US has stepped up the rhetoric, making it clear that they are looking beyond the nuclear programme issue. Iran's involvement in the Mohammad cartoon controversy made that obvious already. Read about the strategy of the United States to understand what's going on underneath the surface.

Russia and China are still hoping to defuse the tension. Of course, it's not all well-intentioned. Check out the Chinese reasoning. This article even talks about Sino-US confrontation in Middle East -- reminds me of the Cold War! As if we didn't have enough trouble in the world already, we have one more irritant in the form of North Korea.

Vaettaiyadu Vilaiyaadu troubles still not over

2006-03-09T13:11:00.000-07:00

Kamal Haasan's next movie is complete and ready for release on April 14, Tamil New Year's Day. Oops, not yet! Here comes a stay based on complaint from a financier...

Check out the history of troubles, if you care. Hope Vaettiyaadu Vilaiyaadu releases soon, if not on the set date, and not rot away...

Post-Oscar musings

2006-03-07T07:02:00.000-07:00

Oscar night is long over and I'm late to blog about it. Sorry, I've been busy.

The show was lacklustre, I felt. I'm thrilled to see small movies sweep the Oscars, but you need stars and blockbusters to work the magic. Unfortunately, that's what TV audience have come to expect of award shows.
In the past, when I didn't have the opportunity to watch the show live fully, I used to keep re-loading the Oscar.com page as if I'm watching cricket over the Web.
George Clooney won something! Also, I liked his acceptance speech, though it wasn't fully extempore. Pleased that it was for a movie that I had watched and loved. He had 'deglamourised' himself for the role and also suffered back injury. Regarding other contenders for this award, I don't think Dillon was as good while Hurt was a joke in my opinion; I didn't watch the other two movies.
Crash, having demonstrated the power of story-telling, won the right awards.
I watched Walk The Line just before the Oscars and I thought Joaquin Phoenix was terrific. It was definitely a performance of a life-time. Maybe, Hoffman too came up with his in the same year unfortunately.
I was impressed by none of the "original songs" that were performed. None had the impact of say "My heart will go on" of Titanic. Anyway, I have watched only one of those movies and I can't judge the impact of those songs in their movies.

PS: If you come across a post on a fellow blogger's site with the same title, please be informed that neither of us copied it from the other. It was truly pure coincidence.

The Ganguly soap-opera

2006-03-03T17:01:00.000-07:00

Just when we thought that the Ganguly saga is going to end with a whimper, it refuses to die.

Meanwhile, I was impressed by this recent article that appeared after he was dropped from the Test team yet again. It is written by a journalist who is also a fan of Ganguly. It has little bias and also gives a peek into the man's mind.

I'm no fan of Ganguly. But I do believe that the treatment meted out to him is unfair, considering his achievements especially as a captain and in one-dayers. Like the proverb goes, "he who lives by politics shall die by politics".

Abortion brouhaha

2006-02-28T16:10:00.000-07:00

For an outsider like me, a debate in US about abortion itself was quite suprising. So, last week's passage of a bill in South Dakota was only shocking. This is seen as a step towards banning abortion throughout the country!

Read more about how things went in South Dakota. Even female legislators are divided. There is quite a bit of noise from the "pro-life" group too. Also, as usual, politics gets involved.

I don't want to argue whether IVF embryos are living things or if God creates humans. I would say that atleast the mother of the child needs to have the choice.

Is population explosion a problem we are willing to live with? Do mothers / couples have to suffer due to unplanned / unwanted pregnancies?

The South Dakota bill goes to the extent of disallowing even victims of rape or incest from aborting the foetuses! Do they want to protect one 'life' at the cost of torturing another?

I have no more words.....

6 months after Katrina: on the spot

2006-02-24T20:01:00.000-07:00

As the virtual hurricane (named 'Tammy') of the past few days dies down, it's time to move on.

It's around six months now since The Hurricane of 2005 struck. New Orleans was the worst affected. What better place to go and see how things are now? Last weekend, I was there.

The city is slowly recovering from the mighty blow of Nature. In several places, you can still see rubble and other effects of Katrina.

Seemingly unaffected houses, like the one below, are everywhere. But if you look closely, you'll see two things. The first one is the horizontal brownish mark left by the stagnated water. The other one is gruesome: a mark left by the authorities that denotes that this house has been checked for dead bodies.

All these houses stand lifeless, with a whole lot of rubbish in front of them. The roads look deserted except for a few passing cars.

The Lakeshore Drive was a beautiful place; but we saw hardly anyone there. You know why it's unattractive presently when you see fallen buildings.

Another battered building was possibly a buzzing crab shack before disaster occurred.

It's not just the small places. You can see loss of business even in malls. Look closely in the below picture for the removed letters of the name of a big store that's no longer there.

Numerous abandoned cars can be seen under overpasses everywhere. I guess most of them are in unusable condition. But are some just unclaimed?

If you thought all is lost, you are underestimating the resilience of New Orleans folks. They turn sorrow into fun and even business -- on the (in)famous Bourbon Street especially.

You can see "hurricane" drinks and loads of crazy T-shirts!

Meanwhile, the Red Cross is possibly still at work, apparent from the notices for volunteers still up in the airport. Not all hospitals are open yet.

Reconstruction is underway at many places, starting with roads. Construction means more workers needed and in this case, a lot of "Mexicans" have come in. There are complaints that some of them are even making the city unsafe for women.

Also, it is believed that the traffic has increased in the past few months. That's because more people now live in Baton Rouge (capital of Louisiana state) and commute to New Orleans. Some of those who are in New Orleans have no homes and have to make do with trailers and even boats (meant for cruises)!

Businesses are re-opening and they are in dire need for people. One of the restaurants we visited was operating on a reduced menu.

Below set of pictures shows various McDonalds joints. One of them is closed while another one cries out loud for recruitment. They go to the extent of displaying a list of employee benefits!

While basic necessities are up and running or are being done, can fun and sport be far behind? Strip clubs were said to be the businesses to re-open first! Now, the Superdome is being repaired. [See picture in Wikipedia for damaged state.] It bears an announcement of the re-opening date.

Casinos are opening back too. Harrah's hoardings combine hope and festivity.

When I say 'festivity', I mean Mardi Gras, of course. The annual carnival was announced to be held for only the last week of February this year, but it has started already.

With tragedy being part of their lives for a while now, people of New Orleans need to chill out a bit for sure.

The "Tammy Nyp" phenomenon

2006-02-23T15:44:00.000-07:00

If you haven't heard about "Tammy Nyp" till now, you really aren't into blogs. This "sex scandal" has been triggered by a raw MMS clip that emerged. It features a girl supposedly named Tammy, studying in Nanyang Polytechnic ('Nyp') of Singapore and a guy. Here's what I've observed on the Blogosphere:

All kinds of stories are doing the rounds, including the identity of the guy and that this video is a preview meant to generate hype for a soon-to-be-available 90-minute porn movie.
Bloggers are using the opportunity to get hits, as this story has dominated Technorati Top 10 for two days or more now. There are folks putting up fake downloads just to get their blogs viewed! There is also debate going on the right and wrong.
Till a day or so, there was no sign of it on Google or the news. Now, we can see a whole lot. The first one (Tammy Nyp domain name!) itself gives you an indication of the kind of craze spreading.

Things are so overboard that nothing can really be believed. Guess we'll have to wait for the dust to settle down to dig up the truth.....

Coming up tomorrow... reporting on the effects of a real storm...6 months after Katrina: on the spot

Pakistan, Bush & Derek O'Brien

2006-02-22T15:41:00.000-07:00

No, that title has no real meaning other than referring to this post that is going to talk about them disconnectedly. Surely, we'd want to see O' Brien on the quiz stage rather than in the midst of some high-level politics!

The rise of China and India is inevitably leading to changes in the political landscape. Though Pakistan and China have been long-time allies because of you-know-which-country, things are moving up several notches. Get oil from Middle East, offload it at Pakistani port and transport to China over land -- "trade-energy corridor", anyone?
Bush's visit to India is generating a lot of news. One side story talks about the level of security arrangements that are having the Indian folks spell-bound!
Finally, to poor Derek. Many of us might know that he has a company of his own. But you would be surprised to see its size and how they are expanding.

Break the law, be happy

2006-02-19T09:47:00.000-07:00

So what if Salman Khan has been convicted and sentenced to imprisonment? His buddy, Sanjay Dutt spent time in jail under TADA after being linked to the Bombay blasts. But he came out on bail, gave big hits and now has a decent career. Though neither really made it to the very top, did it really matter?

Are politicians, movie stars and celebrities ever really punished?

California trip diary: Day 1

2006-02-16T15:57:00.000-07:00

Finally after almost two months, I manage to start this series. Unlike the Australia trip, I'm going to try to write more and put less pictures. Hope you'll like it.

I had been waiting to visit the land of Hollywood and Silicon Valley, and it finally happened towards the end of last year. One of the first things I remember about California is the economic strength. Quoting from Wikipedia:

If California were an independent nation, it would have the sixth largest economy in the world...after the rest of the U.S., Japan, Germany, Britain and China

In this trip, I started off at San Diego. This buzzing city is located quite close to the border with Mexico.

Day One was Balboa Park and San Diego Zoo.

Now, I'm no big animal-lover. I rarely halt at Animal Planet or Discovery channel while channel-surfing. But somehow, I like zoos. No evil pleasure in seeing animals caged here! The San Diego Zoo however was a cut above. Like most places in US, there was opportunity for people to do it in their own pace and also to get a quick tour if they wanted. We visited a few spots by the shuttle and walked to some.

Almost at the entrance, you are welcomed by magnificient flamingoes. I guess this is the first time I'm seeing them other than on TV or photos. What can you say -- a picture is worth a thousand words!

We also got to see some more unique animals. That itself was worth the price of the (expensive) ticket actually. The Panda below was trying to sleep on the tree branch and was falling off. Her brother was loitering nearby while the mother was resting inside, away from spectators. These kids are locally-bred ones, with help from the Chinese government.

Same family, different location -- cousins, shall we say? Unfortunately, when we visited the Polar bears, they were enjoying their siesta. Despite their much bigger size, they had rocks here and hence didn't have any problem of balancing while sleeping!

In addition to animals that we had heard of, we also got introduced to some new ones. Check out the Malaysian tapir. It is kind of like a pig in black-and-white!

Sure, we also got to see some more common animals. The giraffe was impressive. There was a whole family out there and they seemed to be relaxing...

We also saw some animals in unfamiliar circumstances. Here's a swimming hippo! It seemed quite docile, enjoying the dip in the water -- lapping its small legs cutely. But it came out of another end and opened its mouth wide for eager people to click away!

We had a good time in the zoo, though it was quite tiring to walk around. More of California will follow.....

Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 & 4 | Day 5 [Updated: 3 April 2006]

"Oscar directors" meet...

2006-02-15T15:29:00.000-07:00

In the film festival circuit, movies are always credited to directors. A movie is viewed as a creation of the director. Even though that's not always true in the commercial world, directors still occupy a prime position. Those nominated for Oscars (setting aside the debate about the worth of the awards) definitely have some calibre.

Chancing across a meeting of the five of this year was great -- wonderful camaraderie, sprinkled with pieces of interesting info. Spielberg is my all-time favourite and I've been impressed by Clooney of late. I've watched only Crash till now and am eager to lap up the rest. Thanks to Nav who suggested this article and Newsweek.

Politicking everywhere

2006-02-14T16:37:00.000-07:00

Chris Smith is a politican trying to do something about China's controls on Internet. If you leave aside the debate on whether China is right or wrong, we can see that Google / Yahoo / Microsoft are just doing business.

Capitalism is what enabled US companies to spread their wings across the world. Is this bill trying to clip them?

China has been given MFN status by US. Does that have no relation to these developments?

Do politicians even care about ironies?

V-Day

2006-02-14T16:04:00.000-07:00

Valentine's Day is a day to celebrate one's love for his / her partner -- girlfriend, lover or spouse, whatever it may be. That's the way I see it. Don't you like to feel special on your birthday? Don't you like to party on New Year's Eve, though nothing really changes the next day? Similarly, can't we have such a day for a couple? Is there any harm in having yet another day to celebrate and have fun?

Yes, it may be yet another part of the "Western influence" on the world. So what? To me, personally, culture is what you choose to adopt, not necessarily something that is static. All cultures have grown with various influences and there is nothing bad or unusual about it. As an individual, I would like to pick and choose what I think is good or right and do that. That will form my culture.

"Moral police" continue to make a fuss. It has even grown to the extent of an annual event. Vigorous marketing is possibly what brought Valentine's Day into other cultures -- so what? I say you do what you want -- even if you think you don't care about the noise either way.

Thus spake 'Endulkar'

2006-02-13T15:17:00.000-07:00

Just a couple of weeks ago, 'Endulkar' was the buzzword. It screamed as a headline in a leading Indian newspaper and was eagerly lapped up by others. The man himself maintained a dignified silence, as usual. Soon, after, he spoke on the field though:

100 off 113 balls
42 off 43 balls
95 off 104 balls (with a bonus 1 for 52 off 10 overs with the ball)

Yes, he may still be required to respond in Tests and to Shoaib Akhtar; but he has ensured some silence from his detractors. Has "poor Tendulkar" become 'Portendulkar' now?

Wacky movie news: Kamal Haasan, Paris Hilton together?

2006-02-12T09:40:00.000-07:00

The Indian movie world can sometimes generate truly incredible news. Here's the latest one: Kamal Haasan, Mohanlal and Paris Hilton in the same movie?

Some thoughts:

Kamal and Mohanlal in the same movie itself is amazing. Now, where did Paris Hilton come from?
Paris Hilton as Mother Teresa -- the peak of cruel humour! Some wonderful quotes on her suitability:

The director said he was impressed when he read a report sometime ago in which the hotel heiress said she had refused to pose nude in Playboy magazine and decided then to shortlist her.

"Although there are several actresses willing to play the role of Mother Teresa, the most widely respected and loved person, the history of the actress who is finally chosen for the role would have to be analysed thoroughly before she is chosen," said Rajeevnath.

Just have a look at the people getting associated with the movie -- your head would simply spin! Even if the movie is going to be on an universally celebrated person, it just sounds unbelievable.
The budget is going to be 50-60 crores ($11-13m)! I am reminded of Marudhanayagam now.

The Google ad I got at the bottom of the Web page read "lower your blood pressure".....

Oracle: the acquisition behemoth

2006-02-10T13:53:00.000-07:00

After gobbling up $18b worth of companies last year, ranging from Innobase to Siebel, Oracle is still hungry for more. The latest potential targets are big names in the open source world: JBoss, Zend and Sleepycat. JBoss is the open source leader in J2EE-based application servers while Zend is the force behind PHP. Sleepycat deals with Berkeley database.

I don't yet see a method in Larry's madness. Do you?

Hollywood Masala - II

2006-02-09T13:16:00.000-07:00

After quite a long time, I continue on Hollywood Masala.....

When a woman is in distress, there may not be anyone who understands her or is willing to help her. Even if there is someone, still she'll fight it out all alone and get out of her problematic situation.
A detective / secret agent will flirt and sleep with the girl on the bad side. The same could be used even with the genders interchanged.
If the actor playing the hero is around 50 years old and if his pair is just a few years younger, she will be a hottie.

I think I need to give examples of movies along with instances of masala items. Later...

Part I | Part II [To be continued]

The politics of hatred

2006-02-08T16:49:00.000-07:00

"Mohammed cartoons" is the latest big controversy in the world. If you read the vandalised and now protected Wikipedia page, you'll be amazed at how this started. Today, we saw a fresh salvo: the announcement of a Holocaust cartoon contest from Iran. The Iran angle makes it all the more dangerous. The "contest of contests" continues with a SEO contest from Israel.

Depicting Mohammed may not be new, but portraying him in the form of the image you have of Muslims / Islamic terrorists cannot be justified.

Freedom of speech may be treasured in the West. Then why complain about a rival cartoon contest? If something can be dear to your heart, can't it be something else for the other person?

Whichever way it is argued, there is no solution till you treat the other person as a fellow human and talk to him / her with compassion. Freedom of speech is fine, but does that mean you can abuse anyone? If you really care, get friendly with the other person and then give suggestions on what you think (s)he should do.

Politicians will be politicians. But I agree with Clinton on the portion that anti-Semitism seems to be taken over by anti-Islamism of late.

The Blogosphere has been buzzing -- Technorati clocks upto 5 posts per hour and 100+ per day, now topping the search terms. Sample a fellow Blogger page for what people post, comment and debate. There are some who are posting just to get attention. Nevertheless, you can get a peek into the Western and Muslim minds [see Syriana post] through these. Of course, (blogging-related) SEO too has been drawn into the muddle now.

The Netflix effect

2006-02-07T16:50:00.000-07:00

For those of you who came in late, let me tell you what Netflix is; others skip to third para.

Netflix is an Internet-based video rental service that has revolutionised the industry. Much like online shopping, you select movies / DVDs and place it in a personal queue. Movies are delivered in the order you have specified (by normal mail) and you post it back when you're done watching. As a member, you need to pay a monthly fee and there are various plans which let you keep upto 3 DVDs at a time.

I'm wondering how Netflix makes money:

Assume I take the basic plan where I pay $9.99 per month.
It takes 2-3 days for a DVD to reach me. Say I keep it for a day and return it (by mail). It will take another 2-3 days for it to reach Netflix and the same amount of time again for another DVD to arrive. That way, I guess I can watch about one movie per week. [That's good enough for me, considering my "certified movie-maniac" status and my available time.] If I try a little hard, I think I can do 6 movies per month, maybe.
Netflix spends 37 cents one way for mailing the DVD; the total is 74 cents.
For 6 movies, Netflix makes $1.67 per movie. Since they spend $0.74, the effective income is 93 cents. If I watch only 4 movies per month, that figure will be $1.76 -- that's a significant difference, almost double! If I watch even lesser movies or keep one DVD to myself ("no late fees"), they make even more money!
From my end, I spend $1.67 to $2.50 per movie, which isn't too bad.

Yes, I do get the convenience of ordering from home, but I lose the ability to pick a movie of my choice almost as soon as I want it. Also, I have to pay the monthly fee even if I don't want to watch any movies. I doubt if I'd be that way, but sometimes you just get too busy. Though Blockbuster and the like may not give me a better deal, I could do well with a cheap local rental store. That's all the more true for people who don't watch movies so regularly.

I absolutely love the queue feature of Netflix!

Other posts of interest...

My first Super Bowl

2006-02-05T20:19:00.000-07:00

Pittsburgh Steelers beat Seattle Seahawks -- that's about the only thing I can really say I understood about the game. Okay, maybe a little more:

You get a lot of points if you run to the end of the opponents' side and "touch down" the ground
The opponents can stop you by any means, except possibly hitting you on purpose

My first Super Bowl experience wasn't much about the sport of American football though. This media event, one of the most-watched TV programmes of the year, was known as Super Bowl XL -- as in 40 in Roman numerals and nothing to do with the size of the players or the event itself.

I've heard of it, but I didn't actually know what exactly it was. But the buzz started quite a few weeks ago, with advertisements coaxing customers to buy HDTVs to watch The Big Game. Only today morning did I find out at what time it was and which channel it was on.

The "pre-game" programme began about 3 hours before the actual start! I was just amazed when I thought of similar ones of half or one hour duration before cricket matches (that lasted 7-8 hours). Another comparison that came up was the kind of media pressure on the players.

There was some song and dance before the game, featuring many artists, of which I know only Stevie Wonder. The only thing I had heard earlier about the half-time programme was the infamous "wardrobe malfunction" starring Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake. This time around, it was just a mini-concert of Rolling Stones -- don't know enough about that too to write anything much.

There were some special ads ("reports citing a record $2.5 million for a 30 second spot") too -- one set from Pepsi and another from Pizza Hut that I can remember. There were also trailers of big movies, mostly releasing far ahead in May, including MI-3.

Now back to the sport. One analyst showed excitement to the extent that viewers might believe that he was doing commentary and not giving an opinion! Some parts of the ceremony reminded one of Olympics! Finally, the chairman of the club and the coach lifted the cup instead of the players.....

Political blogging

2006-02-03T15:37:00.000-07:00

Blogging is catching on everywhere and can politicians be far behind? Sample John Kerry. I wonder how politicians will manage to wriggle out of statements they made earlier, this way. Will they just edit or delete their old posts?

When I think of India, thought he isn't a politician really, I would imagine the President being the first one to jump onto the bandwagon! That might be interesting to read though.

Have you heard of Experts Exchange?

2006-02-03T14:46:00.000-07:00

Yes, Experts Exchange is yet another 'dotcom'. But it is one of the sensible ones around and of course, it has survived. You can ask questions on a whole gamut of computer-related topics (mostly) and get the answers from other members. When you become a member, you get some points. You give away points for satisfactory answers and get points for answering questions. The more involved you are day-to-day, the more benefit you get. Though I haven't got satisfactory answers every single time I asked, it's still good enough for use.

Of course, I was active for a short while and now, I'm just a rare visitor. I still visit because I see value.

A (hopefully) funny digression: When you put the letters in the name a bit differently, it could read "expert sex change"...;-).

Check it out, folks!

Kamal moving beyond the next

2006-02-02T11:13:00.000-07:00

Vaettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu is due in April and Kamal is already moving onto the film that follows it: Dasavatharam. We already heard that he will play ten roles in the movie and hence the name. The hype has begun and the latest unconfirmed report is that he plays a middle-aged woman for most of the movie (no idea how different it will be from Avvai Shanmughi / Chachi 420)!

I have been wanting (as usual) to post on what I think Kamal should do from now on. One of my thoughts was for him to only play roles suited to his age. But in this movie, if that is going to be a woman, I don't have a problem...:-).

Down but not out

2006-01-30T13:16:00.000-07:00

What do you do when you're pushed to a corner, have a gun put on your head and are forced to come out of your comfortable present path?

You could scream.
You can recede into silence and think of a way out.
You could blame everyone in the world for your situation.
You could take the support of loved ones and friends, and come up with a solution.
You could wait and watch.
You could succumb to the villain and hope for sweet revenge at a later point of time.

You could do one of these or a combination and hope that things will become better soon.

However, the side-effect might be that you may not have enough time for your blog...;-).

Sundance shorts online!

2006-01-26T13:02:00.000-07:00

Firstly, sorry to continue the overdose of movies. Either the season seems to be such or I'm inspired to write only about movies presently.

Sundance is on. The Web-site has quite a lot of information and this time around, I discovered a gem! Many, if not all, short movies are available for online viewing. I believe that this will give a good taste of the festival even if we don't get to watch any of the movies that will be screened. While providing movie-buffs with an opportunity to watch some movies, this effort also gives more exposure to these small movie-makers.

I just couldn't contain my excitement when I found this; so, I have posted this after watching just one of the movies from the page. My apology in the first para withstanding, expect further rambling after I watch more of them.

A Half Man by Firas Momani (just 5 minutes long!) is a curious offering. Shot in the old "stop motion" style using dolls / puppets, it was interesting, though I didn't get the possible philosophical meaning.

Google Video

2006-01-22T10:18:00.000-07:00

Thanks to info from LazyGeek again, I decided to explore Google Video Beta(!).

Though it can be considered competition to Apple's iTunes, Google puts to use its search dominance. The scale of operation and openness has already led to illegal uploads -- but is there a way out?

The idea of hosting videos on a public site will appeal to people, just as they are able to upload their photos. Someone can post a video of his new-born baby and show it to his folks across the world. Someone with a penchant for movie-making can make a 'short' and let viewers worldwide judge it; maybe, he'll get an interested producer that way! In fact, film-makers have already started experimenting.

Google, as usual, will keep the site in Beta till they're fully done.

I wanted to feature a couple of interesting videos that I came across.

Though not completely legal, atleast this is a harmless mash-up -- making fun of 50 Cent and Rajnikanth in the same parody!

The other one is a rap-type of song in the form of a music video. It's original, despite the theme being similar to Apache Indian's Arranged Marriage. The girl's moves are cool!

Enjoy and experience the power of Google Video!

Crashing in...

2006-01-22T08:10:00.000-07:00

As much as I'd like to avoid continuing the domination of this blog by movies lately, I have to talk about one of the most powerful movies I've watched. I caught hold of Crash after a friend recommended it to me. I was sure it would be special because he had asked me to watch it.

Picture courtesy: http://www.crashfilm.com

More than the movie-making technique, it's the impact of the story (though there are multiple) that hits you. Some of the scenes in this movie are among the most potent I've ever watched.

Los Angeles, I guess is a good setting. So many 'crashes' in a single movie may seem contrived, but that's only a metaphor.

The acting is very good. You can see the characters beyond most stars. As for the others, their memorable characters will stay in your mind.

This is also the first DVD movie I watched with commentary. Though I expected more, it was interesting to know the effort that went in. Even an established set of people have had to struggle so much to get their movie out. The cost of the movie was a mere 7.5 million dollars, much less than what Sandra Bullock gets paid usually!

Any time when I think about racism, especially in the US context, I will remember this movie for sure. It might even serve as a reference point.

Kamal Haasan's next...

2006-01-17T14:14:00.000-07:00

Picture courtesy: IndiaGlitz

Being an ardent Kamal Haasan fan, it is surprising to myself that this is going to be my first post on him. There were two passing mentions though. Today, after seeing LazyGeek's post, I just couldn't resist writing.

Firstly, I like the title: Vaettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu (hunt, play). Yet again borrowing from old movies (remember Apoorva Sagodharargal, Sathi Leelaavathy?), this time it is from a famous song. When you just read the title instead of singing it, it sounds modern.

Just as we learnt that it is a cop movie partially set in US and will be directed by Gautam, controversy erupted. The original producer Kaja Mohideen attempted suicide and finally, things moved on.

Now, I read that the movie is being wrapped up. When is it getting released though -- April 14?

The first trailer is unimpressive to me. Hope the movie turns out good.

Bubbling movie revolution

2006-01-12T15:41:00.000-07:00

Steven Soderbergh's Bubble will break new ground tonight, with simultaneous releases in theatres, TV and DVD. The stranglehold of studios over Hollywood movies has been a big issue for long and here's yet another effort to break that. Morgan Freeman featured in yet another effort recently. Quite some time ago, there was news of a tie-up between Kamal Haasan and Intel, though we don't know what happened of it.

Soderbergh speaks about his venture and more in this interview. It's strange to see technology go so much hand in hand with movies. He speaks about 'mash-up', which to me seems like open source.

Australia picture story - IV

2006-01-11T14:53:00.000-07:00

Yeah, I'm in a hurry to complete this series to move onto other things. Still, my Hollywood Masala series is crying for attention. For now, I continue with Brisbane and in general, Australia.

My wife thought that I had missed putting the picture of a Koala in a series about Australia! It was just coming...

Koalas are possibly the cutest set of animals I've ever seen. They sleep upto 18-20 hours a day, basically because they can stay awake only that much due to the low energy they gather from the food they eat. We were lucky to catch most koalas awake. But the sleeping ones were cuter though.

Actually, I think that the kangaroos are better known than koalas. Both, of course, are associated with Australia. We got to 'mingle' with these 'jumpers' in an open area and I felt they were like dogs.

Another unique animal from this part of the world is the emu, seen above.

There were also some very colourful parrots.

The above one is just a replica of a dinosaur skeleton, not a real animal!

Australian cities are so well-maintained that animals can even move around in between people. Seeing birds in a busy downtown area like this isn't uncommon.

Parks are a good form of recreation, atleast in Brisbane. The South Bank Parklands has this fantastic, award-winning bougainvilla-based design.

Roma Parklands was one up, with a wide variety of flowers and plants. What you see above is kind of the centre-piece!

Just as in many big cities, Brisbane too has a "China town". We went to this area to get some relief with Chinese and even Indian food!

On one of the walks, I noticed this old car resting in front of a house.

Though I didn't see a lot of people speeding in bikes across the town, it was interesting to see a whole lot of them parked on the foot-path.

I'm not sure if I blogged all that I wanted to say, but I hope this series gave a fair idea of what Australia is.

Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV

Syriana...: follow-up

2006-01-10T15:59:00.000-07:00

I just couldn't resist continuing a little more on my longest post (in terms of words):

The entire screenplay (script) is available for download. Yoohoo! Are the days of hunting for sites which feature scripts of movies gone? Now, I may be tempted to post yet again on Syriana after reading the screenplay and possibly watching the movie once again...;-).
Forgot to mention that Clooney is close to Matt Damon and Steven Soderbergh -- simple reason for their repeated association in movies.

The age of Indian multi-nationals

2006-01-10T14:24:00.000-07:00

TCS is entering its 34th country! Though I have been a TCS-basher all along, based on the way things go on inside the company, it is indeed proud to see an Indian company spread its wings so wide. It is not common knowledge that TCS pioneered the IT industry in India, way back in 1968. Can you even believe that IT industry is so old in the first place? The man who built TCS, FC Kohli is rightly known as the "Father of the Indian IT Industry".

Hopefully, Indian companies would also raise their level of quality and work to an extent where they can rightfully rub shoulders with the giants of the world.

Australia picture story - III

2006-01-09T00:01:00.000-07:00

After Sydney, it's time to move onto Brisbane, an old painting of which is shown below. Some pictures featured here are not really specific to Brisbane, but offer a peek into generic Australia.

There are quite a few things that are unique about Australia and we identify those things with the country. One of them is the boomerang. You can find them as souvenirs everywhere, but below is an arrangement in a museum.

The boomerang is an invention of the Aborigines, the original inhabitants of Australia. Here's one of them with a unique instrument.

There are other Australians too on the street, entertaining people and hoping to make some money.

Australia is characterised by a long-standing friendship with the USA. Below is something to honour that.

Check out a portion of the Brisbane skyline, as some people are happy to come out in the sun and take a cruise on the Brisbane river.

School children, in uniforms, wait for their buses below.

In a public place like a park, there are various forms of entertainment. Here's a traditional one...

How about sexy salsa on a Friday evening?

Australia, like US, has a short history and cares to preserve its heritage.

Above is a railway station and below are a traditional house and the naval office.

With an interesting past, Australia looks ahead too. Here's a futuristic car designed by the University of Queensland.

I regret not being able to make it to the Gabba stadium (which one can enter only during games). Next time around, maybe...

Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV (Updated: 11 Jan 2006)

Romcoms with a twist

2006-01-08T09:41:00.000-07:00

Happened to watch a couple of Nora Ephron movies recently: the classic When Harry Met Sally and the famous Sleepless in Seattle. My earlier exposure to her was the widely known You've Got Mail. Though all of them are basically romantic comedies, they have an interesting twist -- falling in love after knowing each other for a very long time, long-distance love and e-mail love. [I was a bit surprised to find out that she's in her 60s!]

All three movies featured Meg Ryan as heroine. She's cute definitely, but I felt she was not really the best suited for all of them. Her character seemed almost the same in both 'Sally' and 'Mail'.

In addition to pairing with Tom Hanks, You've Got Mail did have some sequences similar to 'Seattle'. Same writer, same actors (now bigger stars), same premise of communicating without seeing each other -- I guess Ephron couldn't resist it.

WHMS is, of course, a movie that comes along only once in a while. In addition to brilliant writing, Billy Crystal was a big reason for the success of the movie.

While watching 'Seattle', I was reminded of another movie that I caught recently: Serendipity. The plot was interesting, but now it seems like many sequences have been lifted straight out of Sleepless in Seattle. I was already not so impressed by the movie, which was dampened by what I thought was bad choice of lead actors.

Syriana and beyond

2006-01-06T15:57:00.000-07:00

This movie has excited me ever since I heard about it and I managed to watch it just a few days ago. Let's start with the bottom-line. Yes, it's serious, but less boring than Traffic (same writer, Stephen Gaghan and directed by Steven Soderbergh, who has produced this one along with George Clooney) -- is that because the problem is more grave? There are many interconnected stories again. Even if you don't fully understand all the links, you would be drowned in the seriousness of the situation. It is a story that had to be brought to light and kudos to all involved!

If the fact that USA's interest in Middle East is centered on oil has to be made any clearer, we probably need a movie with the US President as a principal character! Here, there is no hero and there is no villain; all characters are perfectly gray.

The pace of narration is consistent, though it may not be to the liking of most of the regular movie audience. The various pieces of the jigsaw puzzle also make you realise how people are involved without knowing what else is happening in the "oil world". I didn't really see the movie as a thriller, even though almost every scene gave mild shocks, served out slowly. One of the interesting stories is the terrorism connection, expected, but still told refreshingly. It actually features Urdu dialogues (though accentuated at times) that most Indians can understand! In fact, a large part of the movie has non-English dialogues with subtitles; I felt that added to the effectiveness.

All actors have done a wonderful job. Clooney shows the way with his extra pounds, partially shaven hair, unshaven face and absolute lack of charisma. Maybe, he was partially helped by lack of dialogues too. Matt Damon is good, but possibly a bit too cute for the role. But he probably has the best dialogues of the movie. Sample two (thanks to IMDb):

It's running out, and 90% of what's left, is in the Middle East. This is a fight to the death.
You want to know what the business world thinks of you? We think a hundred years ago you were living out here in tents in the desert chopping each others' heads off, and that's exactly where you're gonna be in another hundred. So yes, on behalf of my firm, I accept your money.

Mazhar Munir, as the Pakistani lad, had a memorable part. I didn't understand why William Hurt was featured in yet another brief role.

Instead of a still or poster, for a change, I'm featuring the above image-link for a noble cause, that I identify with. Seeing other movies on that site, I have a feeling that either Clooney is involved in this too or the person behind it is a fan.

Meanwhile, I'm fast becoming a Clooney fan. I'm still waiting to watch his Good Night, and Good Luck. More than his stylish personality, I'm impressed by his noble ideas. More rambling later. After all, he deserves a separate post!

Till now, I've been wondering why the movie is called what it is. Got the answer off Google:

For those wondering what the word Syriana means, G & M explains that Syriana takes its title from a term used by certain Washington think-tanks to describe a hypothetical Middle East reshaped by their ideas of democracy.

Hear it from the horse's mouth, provided by (what else but) NPR. The movie is based on a book, See No Evil by Robert Baer. He is a former CIA agent on whom Clooney's character (named Bob!) is based on.

Okay, enough of me talking. Now, it's upto you to go and watch Syriana!

Year in photos?

2006-01-06T11:40:00.000-07:00

While going thro' LazyGeek's year-end blog item, came across photos from Time and Reuters. Neither of them were fully satisfying, but the Time one was quite disappointing. Firstly, it seemed that Time painted a very bleak picture of the world, though there were indeed a lot of horrible things that happened in 2005. I could even ignore the focus on USA. In contrast, Reuters was more global and had a few pictures of hope rightly. Some of Time's photos were brilliant though, more than Reuters.

Of course, there were others like Rediff.com who came up with a downright silly attempt. But in the end, I did feel that Reuters could be topped.

Which Linux distribution is for you?

2006-01-05T17:45:00.000-07:00

With Linux making a big splash in recent times, I came across this quiz, which recommends a distribution at the end of a short series of questions. When I tried it out, it was Fedora for me. Three other distributions ended as runner-up, citing minor drawbacks. Not quite what I like, but still I thought the quiz worked well. Try it out if you have even the faintest interest in Linux.....

[Unrelated crib: The 'Tux' image on the right wouldn't be displayed properly in PNG format!]

Picture courtesy: Redactie @ STG

News on two hot trends

2006-01-04T16:36:00.000-07:00

Came across two pieces of news today, each one of them on a hot trend, although completely different.

Flash drives have become hot over the past two years or so. Now, they are ready to challenge the hard drives. Looks like a cool idea to me, when everyone seems to appreciate the portable hard drive!
Immigration to developed countries is a phenomenon we keep hearing about so much these days. We know it can get sleazy, but what was reported in UK was way too much!

Bluffmaster!

2006-01-03T15:02:00.000-07:00

Picture courtesy: http://www.bluffmasterthefilm.com

Bluffmaster! may seem similar to Bunty Aur Babli in many ways:

Story revolving around not-really-dangerous 'conpersons'
Abhishek Bachchan in the lead role
Father tributes
Rap song as part of the end credits
Title starting with 'B'

Despite all these, believe me, Bluffmaster! is quite different. Firstly, there is hardly any usual song sequence. The songs themselves have been done by various groups / musicians as in Hollywood. The hero and heroine don't run around trees. The similarity that actually struck me was the avoidance of the traditional Bollywood format. Bunty tried that a bit, while here, it is completely done away with.

The problem was that the story seemed to move in many directions in the first half atleast and that would have made audience restless. A tight screenplay would have taken the movie to the next level. In any case, this is a good outing for Rohan Sippy after the debacle debut of Kuch Naa Kaho.

The end may be slightly incredible, but I felt that was okay. Atleast, some things fell into place -- we understand why Nana's character says "achhi line hai" ("that was a good line").

All actors did their parts well. It was good to see Nana not going overboard. Boman Irani seemed kind of wasted. Songs were okay -- a few would possibly get onto our minds slowly. Usage of sync sound was effective. The dialogues are really the highlight of the movie -- really worked upon, again much like Hollywood.

Good entertainment overall, while also experimenting with the format.

Bangalore terrorism

2006-01-01T09:00:00.000-07:00

Bangalore moved into the New Year in less than desirable circumstances. Though details are slowly emerging, it is not really a clear picture.

As usual, we will have new security measures introduced -- precautions after disease struck. Also, they will be slowly withdrawn when things cool down. The prime example is the airport.

The world is in a mess. We can't really try to protect portions from further scum and imagine that ultimately we will have cleanliness everywhere.

PS: Check out this quick analysis of the violent act on Rediff.com. It may not be fully correct, as another piece on the same site points out.

PS-2: What everyone feared has come true now. (Updated: 3 Jan 2005)

Travel-blogging

2005-12-28T06:46:00.000-07:00

No, I haven't disappeared mysteriously! I am just on a vacation to California, seeing new places and meeting old friends.

When I started out, I thought it would be cool to blog daily, with pictures if possible, about this trip itself. Even my title was ready: California Trip Diary -- Day 1, Day 2 and so on. Unfortunately, there are several hurdles to overcome if you want to blog while travelling:

Lack of time. Each day, you plan out some schedule, go and see some place or meet someone. Many times, there are delays and invariably you are tired, waiting to crash. Even if you manage to wake up early next day, you may still not have a peaceful period of half hour or so to write an item like this.
Computer conspiracies. Internet, that too broadband, is easily accessible in US nowadays; so, we can't blame that. But your laptop or any other computer that you may use could still create problems. For example, I just couldn't get my laptop to connect to the Internet at my friend's place -- it refused to get necessary network information. My friend had a cool Vaio, with a low disk space problem on C drive though. He didn't have FireFox, but only Netscape and IE. Either both of them were ancient or the low disk space was creating problems -- I just couldn't create a blog item! Either the editing interface itself was only partially available or it didn't work.

After going through all of the above, I have managed to post this, around the middle of my trip. One idea was to post something and another was to generally vent out frustration. That's all for now.....

A worthwhile way to end the year

2005-12-21T10:21:00.000-07:00

While reminiscing what transpired in yet another year, take a minute to check out this thought-provoking video. More info available on the main page. Though most of the focus is on Africa, we know there are other such places where we can help more directly. Go ahead and start the New Year on a generous note...

Tsunami's good effect!

2005-12-20T16:24:00.000-07:00

After hearing several horror stories and recovery problems of the Tsunami, here's a different one. Tribals in Andaman & Nicobar are discovering new things to eat, enjoying it and are also making more money! At the end of the year, when we are going to be exposed to unpleasant Tsunami stories over and over again, this is certainly a cheerful change.....

New York again!

2005-12-20T09:27:00.000-07:00

The transit strike in New York has deprived 7 million people of transportation. The estimated loss per day is a staggering 400 million! People are walking to work! Check out what's going on and the background.

In a city where such things have a crippling effect, there was also the black-out in 2003. People realised and enjoyed so many things without power and I'm sure they will this time around too. Technology and science have made us take so many things for granted.

Kong cools down?

2005-12-19T10:35:00.000-07:00

Writing reviews is a tricky balancing act. While the readers need to be told what to look for in the movie and whether it is worth watching, it is easy for the writer to cross the boundary and make predictions. The Rediff.com review of King Kong started off with "Whoa" -- okay. But I was taken aback by the next sentence which began with "Move over Steven Spielberg"; I thought that was stretching it a bit too far.

The news first trickled in from Australia (upto 18 hours ahead of US). Later, we heard it in US itself. Bottom-line: King Kong hasn't done as well as expected.

The primary reason cited is the length. Whatever the reason, this result is slightly different from the usual patterns of hyped-up movies. Sometimes, such movies run as expected and many times, they flop miserably. Anyway, let's see how Kong ends up.

Dodgeball and the Ben Stiller brand

2005-12-17T09:11:00.000-07:00

Picture courtesy: Twentieth Century Fox

Caught Dodgeball on HBO last night and had a ball of a time. If you know the Ben Stiller brand of comedy, you know what you're going to get here.

There was very little of the 'yuck' stuff though. The story was, of course, quite predictable -- but who cares? Though this can be dismissed as yet another "Frat Pack" movie, one can notice the various layers the movie works at. Satire about various things like TV and sports is provided without much ado. If you care only about the comedy, that's fine too. The folks make fun of anything under the sun, including the last bit where a bloated Stiller is cynical about Hollywood formula. The movie was definitely better than Zoolander.

I was doubtful whether such a game actually exists and went and checked it out on the Web! The movie also has some special appearances including Chuck Norris and Lance Armstrong, though they weren't used well. But overall, the people involved knew what they were doing and there were no pretensions to be some kind of movie.

Stiller plays the villain's part (White Goodman) for a change, with a new appearance too. Vince Vaughn is the hero (Peter La Fleur). Of course, both heroism and villainy are quite diluted. Christine Taylor (Stiller's real-life beau) is the girl, but with a twist at the end. The supporting cast is filled with a lot of crazy-looking folks.

Ben Stiller has been fascinating me for long, though he hit big time only with There's Something About Mary. Not many know that he has directed many movies including the very off-beat Reality Bites, which seems very uncharacteristic now. His biography reveals his multi-faceted career a lot more.

PS:
Check out the movie's Web-site -- quite a few interesting things out there including 'White-isms'.

Yahoo! Mail Beta

2005-12-16T18:36:00.000-07:00

Yahoo! Mail threw up a new interface for me today as a Beta. I like it okay, since it is very similar to the Netscape Mail / Thunderbird interface that I've been used to for about 8 years.

'Bulk' is now the more common 'Spam'. You also have RSS stuff. I also noticed the informal messages, that are similar to Google, and a snazzy Flash-based tutorial along the way.

This revamp effort has actually started quite some time ago.

What is interesting to me is the new Web-based e-mail war that GMail triggered off. Another spark is the credence to the theory that the Web-based desktop is the future, again fuelled by the rise of Google. Also, it seems like many pre-2K visions seem to be returning on the rebound.

What's the third biggie upto, then?

Simple is beautiful...: an epilogue

2005-12-16T10:35:00.000-07:00

I've been itching to write this piece for around 36 hours or so. This is a follow-up to my earlier post on the need for simplicity in technology.

I have to continue on my cell-phone too actually -- a Motorola V551. In the past few months of having it, my wife has screamed at me a couple of days for not picking up her calls. Actually, I never heard them! I was wondering if it was some problem with the service or with the instrument. Finally, 2 days ago, I nailed the culprit(s)!

On most days, I keep the phone in the trouser-pocket, along with keys. The keys have been banging on the phone now and then, and even have caused quite a few scratches. But I didn't know that the keys were also conspiring with the two buttons to create a stir in my marital life! When the first button is pressed, it displays the 'style' of the ring; if you press the second button after that, it allows you to change the style. On repeatedly pressing the second button, you might land up in the 'silent' mode. So, that's what had happened randomly.

Technology can be evil -- I vouch for it!

Kongama*

2005-12-15T16:39:00.000-07:00

King Kong is here and the excitement is building. With positive reviews all round, I'm hoping to catch it this weekend itself.

Meanwhile, Peter Jackson, the director, is having his share of the limelight. Even though I actually came to know the name only after LOTR, I have been crazily delighted by his earlier B-grade ventures, Bad Taste and Braindead. [If you haven't seen the former, check it out for exactly what that title indicates and Jackson in a principal role!]

I'm also yearning to watch his madness of film-making. This review of his atypical making-of-the-movie movie is good. But there is one point I'd like to add. I love Jackson for providing what any movie buff would love to watch. For all others, I'd say they stay clear of this and be happy with the magic of movies.

PS:
Kongama = (King) Kong + (hung)ama**
[** Hindi word meaning celebration or entertainment]

Teflon controversy

2005-12-15T13:09:00.000-07:00

Today, we learnt that DuPont has agreed to settle for a fine instead of getting into litigation over the Teflon / C-8 controversy. The issue is that this chemical, also known as PFOA, remains in the body and causes cancer (slowly?), if not in humans, atleast in animals. The verdict related to humans is still not out. But this is scary stuff really! Can we use our non-stick cookware henceforth, without worrying? The business impact is analysed here, if you care.

Golden Globe thoughts

2005-12-14T16:45:00.000-07:00

[Image courtesy: http://www.hfpa.org]

A few thoughts as I glanced through the Golden Globe nominations that were announced yesterday:

A Best Picture (Drama) nomination for A History of Violence definitely surprised me; but then, maybe that's the best they've got this year. Similarly, the Best Actress nomination for Maria Bello, for the same film, too zapped me.
Sarah Jessica Parker (of Sex and the City fame) got a nomination so soon after getting out of TV? Similarly, ex-Bond Pierce Brosnan too notches one up.
What does one say about the inimitable Johnny Depp in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory?
I'll be rooting for George Clooney in all categories that he has been nominated!
Interesting to note a musical score by a South American (native in a way) for a cowboy movie -- Gustavo Santaolalla for Brokeback Mountain.
Also noticed a nomination for Cynthia Nixon (again, of Sex and the City fame) -- as Mrs. Roosevelt in Warm Springs (TV movie).
Movies on my "must-watch" list: Brokeback Mountain, The Constant Gardener, Good Night, and Good Luck., Transamerica, Cinderella Man, Walk The Line, Syriana, Crash, King Kong, Munich (this is long enough to keep me busy for months!)
Movies that aroused my interest: Match Point (atleast for Scarlett Johansson), The Producers

Simple is beautiful, even in technology

2005-12-14T15:32:00.000-07:00

When my company gave me a cell-phone (a device that I appreciate, but am not enthusisatic about) recently, I didn't even bother to look at all the features. I just made sure I knew how to do the things I would normally need to. When I read this fantastic article on the importance of simplicity in technology, I realised why I did that. All the time, we accumulate new devices at home, we download and install cool-looking software and we become members of many snazzy Web-sites. How many do we really get hooked onto ultimately?

The article also provides a peek into what's up with the flavour of the season: the Google vs Microsoft war.

Epilogue (Updated: 16 Dec 2005)

Simmering Iran

2005-12-14T11:54:00.000-07:00

After Afghanistan and Iraq, we all know that US is focussing on Iran. If it was WMDs in Iraq, here the issue is the nuclear programme.

India has defied US for long on this, refusing to sign the NPT; finally US was forced to accept India as a "nuclear power". The difference in Iran's case is that it has signed the NPT and yet they are making noises about their nuclear ambitions. Another thorny issue is the co-operation between India and Iran, on the oil pipeline deal.

The US obsession with Middle East, Islamic countries and oil is under threat if Iran rebels. US already has the neighbours on both sides, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan and Pakistan, under their control in some way.

While EU is trying to avoid a clash, Iran's new president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad seems to be in no mood to calm down. He is considered to be an Islamic revolutionary with alleged involvement in the 1979 Iran hostage crisis. The latest outburst from him is the denial of Holocaust.

While it is unfair on the part of US to arm-twist other countries on nuclear programmes while it continues with its own, Iran's rebellious attitude doesn't bode well for the world.

Australia picture story - II

2005-12-13T17:01:00.000-07:00

While this is not really a good time to recollect my Sydney trip, I can't help the itch...

Sydney is said to be the "New York of Australia". I don't know if that's true as I haven't seen New York. But it was definitely a buzzing city like Bombay... oops...Mumbai.

CeBIT was going on at Sydney during the time I was there; so, we saw several parts of the town painted red.

It's common in Australia to see such street shows. Folks display their talent and audience give some money in the end if they like. I can relate to such things in India too, which have now almost disappeared, atleast in cities. The above one was near the Sydney Tower.

This is one of the breathtaking views from the Sydney Tower. The Harbour Bridge stands out amidst all the sky-scrapers. It is one of the most visible landmarks of Sydney. A better picture lies below.

When the sun comes out, even a wee bit, Australians run to the sea with their yachts...

Check out the Sydney Tower as part of the sky-line...

Have you seen a double-decker train before?

The Telstra Stadium in the (2000) Olympics park was scintillating! Even a panoramic photograph doesn't seem to do justice...

In the Olympic park were these modern pillars (?), with names of all participating sportsmen. Didn't have the energy or time to look for any known names...

And you thought I missed the Opera House, that is famous for its structure even if one may not know its name? Above, it shines like a jewel, at dusk.

You can't really have enough of the Opera House. So, here's a closer, wider view. Able to figure out where Kamal and Manisha danced?

Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV (Updated: 11 Jan 2006)

Where is the world going?

2005-12-12T20:03:00.000-07:00

After France, now it's the turn of Australia. See this evolving Wikipedia page (similar to the one for the French happenings) for more details.

Not so long ago, I read someone predicting that the world will be largely cosmopolitan in a few decades from now. There are very good signs of it already. I am an optimist largely and I choose to hope that these developments are just the growing pains the world is facing and nothing more than that.

My feelings are so confused and un-explainable. Folks, we all have to share this world and live together! It's high time that we realise that all differences that matter are just man-made.

What's in a name?

2005-12-12T16:56:00.000-07:00

Sorry, Mr. Shakespeare, we're Indian! We like to change names of our cities, not necessarily to deny our colonial past, but atleast to score points in the political arena. The latest in the list is 'Bengaluru' -- I'd let you figure out what's the name you might actually know. If you give up, you can read the related news and also the history of the name here. We don't care if it is going to cost a lot of effort and money; we have to do what we have to do. I think this started in Kerala, but how does it matter now? Let people analyse however they want, but this is how we will continue.....

Tech-bits

2005-12-12T16:06:00.000-07:00

Over the years, we have seen hardware prices drop dramatically. Today, we hardly think before buying any basic hardware that we need. Software seems expensive today. That being the situation, here's someone who predicts that the problematic component for the future is going to be power! Considering his credentials, we can't really dismiss his thoughts...
While it is perfectly reasonable to discuss the impact of Wikipedia, CNET seems to be attacking it. After discussing about the legal position of Wikipedia, a new item compares it to open source software and calls it "free for all". Or am I just biased?

A History of Violence: why was it so slow?

2005-12-11T16:56:00.000-07:00

After being numbed by Serenity, I was hoping for a better outing at the least. A History of Violence was, definitely, but I wasn't too impressed overall.

Firstly, it was excruciatingly slow, for no particular reason that I could see. Even 96 minutes seemed long in the end. Another minor issue I had was whether so many sex / nude scenes were really necessary. Otherwise, the movie was realistic mostly and brought out problems of the situation well. The violence was okay for me, considering the plot.

Viggo Mortenson (Lord of the Rings series / A Perfect Murder) got one of his rare protagonist roles. He was good, but clearly lacked the charisma.

Ed Harris rarely misses the chance to steal the show. Yet again, in a small role, he left a lasting impression as the menacing villain.

Do you also notice the facial similarity between Harris and Mortenson? From that angle, I felt that it might have been better for them to play brothers in this movie. Instead, William Hurt (The Accidental Tourist / The Village) took that part and instilled his usual dullness into a character which might have turned out better.

Pictures courtesy: http://www.historyofviolence.com / New Line Cinema

Demystifying religion

2005-12-08T13:27:00.000-07:00

The first definition I ever heard of religion was "a way of life". After so many years of rationalising aspects of it, discussing with others and also practising a bit, I believe that this definition is perfect. It is not "a way to reach God"; I see God and religion as two separate things which have got undistinguishably intertwined.

The trigger for this post was an interview I heard on NPR (thanks, LazyGeek) today. Bart Ehrman talked about his book Misquoting Jesus, which details how the Bible is not the spoken word of God and how it has been evolved by humans over the centuries. Though the fact isn't shocking to me, I was impressed by the proof laid out. Listen to the recording of the interview off the Web.

Shaking the beliefs of Christians makes a big splash all over the world, just like Dan Brown did with The Da Vinci Code. Another book that I'm reminded of is Chariots of the Gods, which has been an influence for me.

When a religion involves a prophet, which is mostly the case, I believe that the person just preached what he believed in. This is not to say that the preachings are not worth following. I just mean that I don't think God was involved. It's the same story, whether it's Jesus or Mohammed or Buddha. Hinduism, which doesn't have a founder really, reinforces my belief about religion. Many saints and prophets have appeared over the ages; but whatever be the variations, the common strain is the way people live.

[I see more posts on religion in the future. One on Islamic terrorism has been brewing in my mind almost since the day I started blogging.]

Secrets of success in open source

2005-12-07T12:09:00.000-07:00

This is the most technical post till date that I'm writing. For non-technical readers, I'd say that they still do skim through this quickly as some principles are quite generic.

I finally managed to read The Cathedral and The Bazaar, which is widely recognised as a must-read paper for open source aficionados. I thought it would be good for myself to make a list of the secrets / rules that Eric S Raymond lists through his paper. Then, I thought it would be good to make it on this blog for others' benefit too. [I guess the Open Publication License, version 2.0 that he uses allows me to proceed.] So, here goes the list of 19.....

Every good work of software starts by scratching a developer's personal itch.
Good programmers know what to write. Great ones know what to rewrite (and reuse).
Plan to throw one away; you will, anyhow.
If you have the right attitude, interesting problems will find you.
When you lose interest in a program, your last duty to it is to hand it off to a competent successor.
Treating your users as co-developers is your least-hassle route to rapid code improvement and effective debugging.
Release early. Release often. And listen to your customers.
Given a large enough beta-tester and co-developer base, almost every problem will be characterized quickly and the fix obvious to someone.
Smart data structures and dumb code works a lot better than the other way around.
If you treat your beta-testers as if they're your most valuable resource, they will respond by becoming your most valuable resource.
The next best thing to having good ideas is recognizing good ideas from your users. Sometimes the latter is better.
Often, the most striking and innovative solutions come from realizing that your concept of the problem was wrong.
Perfection (in design) is achieved not when there is nothing more to add, but rather when there is nothing more to take away.
Any tool should be useful in the expected way, but a truly great tool lends itself to uses you never expected.
When writing gateway software of any kind, take pains to disturb the data stream as little as possible—and never throw away information unless the recipient forces you to!
When your language is nowhere near Turing-complete, syntactic sugar can be your friend.
A security system is only as secure as its secret. Beware of pseudo-secrets.
To solve an interesting problem, start by finding a problem that is interesting to you.
Provided the development coordinator has a communications medium at least as good as the Internet, and knows how to lead without coercion, many heads are inevitably better than one.

Ayodhya!

2005-12-06T11:53:00.000-07:00

On this fateful day, 13 years ago, a mosque was brought down in Ayodhya and it changed the Hindu-Muslim equation forever. We have had severe ramifications far and wide -- Mumbai, Bangladesh, Pakistan, UK and where not.

I remember, as a teenager, seeing stickers proclaiming "Let's build Ram temple at Ayodhya" and people collecting donations, without realising what was happening. It is amazing to see how the dispute has gone unresolved over centuries.

Politicians are either interested in fanning the flames further or disinterested in arriving at a solution, deriving mileage out of it irrespective of their stance. (When you think about it, no matter what the issue is -- Cauvery, Kashmir, etc., politicians are going to get us nowhere.) No one wants to bite the bullet! But the ones who are aggravating the situation need to be showered with bullets!

Hindus are characterised by their tolerance and acceptance; it's good to stay that way. No matter what the true history is, possibly the best thing to do would be to build a combined temple-mosque. That would satisfy both communities - I am not referring to the so-called representatives, just the people. Also, that would be a symbolic settlement of peace in a place which has become the flash-point of religious conflict.

Australia picture story - I

2005-12-05T17:00:00.000-07:00

I thought of writing a short travelogue of Australia including some photographs. But when I collected the ones I wanted to use, they were one too many to be accommodated in a single post. So, I'll just start off with the amusing ones.....

We all know that Aussies are big sport-lovers, but this old lady was really too much!

Shane Warne featured in advertising of some brand of clothes...

Motor-bikes are common in Australia, but this rickshaw-like one zapped us...

Some history of Indian workers brought centuries ago into the Australian sub-continent...

And we thought defacing of public signs happened only in India!

Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV (Updated: 11 Jan 2006)

Inducing serenity

2005-12-05T11:56:00.000-07:00

Watched Serenity last evening, after seeing the overall rating on IMDb and reading one of the reviews. It was ultimately proved yet again how such ratings can be skewed on IMDb. For example, if you go and check a Harry Potter movie in its first week, you're pretty much going to get an overall rating of 8 or 9, because the folks who watched and reviewed it would be Potter-maniacs.

Anyway, getting back to the real topic of this post, I had no clue what the point of the movie was. I'd be thankful if anyone can explain. I waited and waited to see if something interesting was going to happen, in vain.

The story seems to have derived inspiration from The Matrix and Erin Brockovich among others, along with a psychic character and also some 'satirical' references to current anti-US sentiments. Does your head spin in the mix? Mine didn't really, as I was numbed by the lack of substance. There were about 4-5 short humourous moments and a couple of hot babes, who weren't really used.

Writer-director Joss Whedon was mentioned a lot both in the publicity material and the reviews. If you have no clue about him, like me, I warn you not to venture anywhere near this movie.

Movies and India-selling

2005-12-03T08:11:00.000-07:00

The International Film Festival of India (IFFI 2005) is underway. The usual hiccups are all there, but movie-buffs have a gala time nevertheless. For a sample of what's wrong with IFFI in general, check out their Web-site.

Press coverage is usual. For a change, you can read something informal at this blog. Though it's good to see media folks lapping up the new phenomenon, the lay-out of this blog is frustrating.

While government machinery and many other folks are running the show at IFFI, in a way trying to sell India, yet another Indian is doing it in his own style. Getting Hollywood movies to be shot in India -- howzzat? He has had some success till now and we should be hearing more of him in the future.

While on movies, I have to succumb to this digression. I hate using the word 'film'. It sounds like the celluloid material that has been traditionally used to shoot photos or movies. 'Movie', though considered slang, seems like a better (and easier than "motion picture") word to me. If you search Wikipedia for 'movie', you are re-directed to 'film' -- oh, what a let-down!

Continuing on Tendulkar...

2005-12-02T14:10:00.000-07:00

As a follow-up to the earlier post on Tendulkar, here's a Cricinfo article that uses statistics to analyse his recent performances while chasing a total. The conclusion is that though Tendulkar hasn't performed as well as while batting first, he hasn't been as bad as it has been made out to be. The article also includes an interesting digression praising Inzamam-ul-Haq.

More cricket, more 'tamasha'

2005-11-30T17:06:00.000-07:00

Finally, the Dalmiya era has ended(?). Check out this fairly neutral analysis of Dalmiya. We fans don't have high hopes though.

Also, the "inside story" of Ganguly's selection to the Test team came out. Connecting both the stories in a way, the selection committee has been overhauled too.

The first Test against Srilanka is about to start. On or off the field, Indian cricket is never devoid of tamasha (comedy)...

"Re-make fever" spreads...

2005-11-29T16:06:00.000-07:00

Re-makes have been doing the rounds in Hollywood for quite some time. Recent famous ones include Ocean's Eleven and King Kong. Don't know what the success percentage has been, but atleast it obviates the job of coming up with a new plot.

As we know, the 'fever' has now spread to India, with atleast a couple of high-profile announcements: Ram Gopal Varma's Sholay and Farhan Akhtar's Don. When the fever has crossed half the world, how long would it take to spread from North to South? Another biggie this time: Maro Charitra (which was earlier re-made in Hindi as Ek Duuje Ke Liye). See this and this.

While such re-makes can be considered blasphemous, I just wish that the new ones don't spoil the essence of the originals!

PS: Now, I realise that Kannada industry has been re-making in this way for quite some time now -- a recent example is Swathi Muthu (from Swathi Muthyam / Sippikkul Muthu).

Image courtesy: TeluguDVDs.com

The future of Tendulkar

2005-11-28T16:12:00.000-07:00

In today's one-day match against South Africa, the last in the series of five (with one washed out), India won comfortably though not convincingly. Sachin Tendulkar, the topic of this post, contributed a decent 30 runs. Though I didn't actually watch the match, I assume the start was blazing, he slowed down after Sehwag's dismissal and got out after being frustrated by the Proteas for a few overs.

For a few years now, Tendulkar has slowed down with the progress of age and wear-and-tear possibly. That has generated a long-standing debate in the cricket-religious nation. Is it time for Sachin to hang his gloves? Should he play only one form of the game hereafter? So on and so forth.

In both forms of the game, his averages have suffered in the past few years. Statistics don't lie even though they may not always give the whole picture. In one-dayers, he hardly has anything more to achive (highest number of runs, highest number of centuries and even highest number of matches now). The team is no longer dependent largely on him and also, his entertaining knocks have become rare. In Tests too, that is true to some extent, but he does have feats to accomplish there.

He is still too good a player to be dropped. Such greats need to be treated with dignity. But the onus is on Tendulkar to think about the situation and make a decision, even if that is to continue playing as is. Cricket fans all around the world definitely would not want to see a star wane away.

Indian population growth!

2005-11-28T13:10:00.000-07:00

Just today, heard again that India is poised to beat China in terms of population by 2050 (1.6 vs 1.4 billion)! The current population is unofficially clocked here. Some interesting facts are available on this Web-page (which I'm scared of reproducing here due to copyright considerations, sorry).

The average children per woman is more than 2! With a low death rate, there doesn't seem to be any easy way to control population. We can already see exploding cities becoming 'unliveable'. On a chat with a friend, he predicts that people are going to be fighting for land and water in the future!

Hollywood Masala - I

2005-11-26T07:53:00.000-07:00

Most movie buffs know that masala is not unique to Bollywood. The idea for an article on the masala elements in Hollywood has been in my mind for a few years now. Since, I've been lazy to rack my brains and come up with a full-length piece, I thought I could use this blog to write chunks, collect feedback and finally come out with the article. So, here goes...

Hollywood is said to be "vertically integrated", which means that people who make the movies (studios, producers, etc.) are fully tied up to the level of people who show the movies (distributors, cinema hall owners, etc.). I guess this kind of integration helps them to better understand what clicks and what doesn't. When you know that, you know how to spice up your movie and provide what the viewer wants to see. Of course, that doesn't mean that the formula is fool-proof though. Let's look at some common elements which pop up in ever so many movies churned out from Hollywood.

French (lip-to-lip) kiss between hero and heroine is a great way to end the movie. Modern variations include crane-shot with camera zooming out to the top and soft focus, allowing privacy to our dear couple.
In a love story (and nowadays romantic comedy), when everything is going well, suddenly, a rift occurs between the couple due to some misunderstanding. The last half an hour or less of the movie will focus on how the couple spend that time in sadness, effectively portrayed when combined with a 4-minute song played in the background, and finally, as if by magic, everything ending well.

Part I | Part II (Updated: 9 Feb 2006)

Holiday season...

2005-11-24T19:37:00.000-07:00

...is here in US!

Nevertheless, my boring blog could do with some visuals.....

Jokerless game?

2005-11-22T15:03:00.000-07:00

The news is out that Laloo (Lalu?) Yadav is comprehensively defeated in the Bihar elections. Hope we don't have any more tantrums from the man Indians loved and enjoyed to hate and that Bihar's future is brighter. Check out these analyses: an in-depth one focussed on the fundamentals, looking ahead to a better Bihar and one which talks only about this election.

Dubai strategy

2005-11-21T14:18:00.000-07:00

With everyone wanting a piece of the outsourcing pie, Dubai provides an interesting twist. Now, I realise how they used a similar strategy to get ICC (International Cricket Council) to relocate their HQ from London! This is a good example of the Tamil colloquial term "sandhula sindhu paadaradhu" ("make hay with others' grass while the sun shines"?). What next -- any ideas?

Roaming in Rediff.com

2005-11-18T15:58:00.000-07:00

Interesting impression of Brunei: Hindu influences in a country which was till now known mostly for its Sultan!
The politics of Bangalore, if you're interested...
More politics, this time over oil, and involving India and China for a change...
Rediff.com has of late become notorious for sensational titles. Sample a few: "Is Salman getting married?", "Cellphone can warn of earthquake" (earlier blog item) and "Impressions: Of Shah Rukh and Sania in Brunei" (the first one in the list above). Even if the article is good, does it need a 'sleazy' title to attract readership?

The 40 Year-Old Virgin: Not quite there...

2005-11-18T15:10:00.000-07:00

Courtesy: Universal Studios

I caught The 40 Year-Old Virgin last night. Firstly, it tops my list of "raw movies". Though I'm OK with that kind, this one tried to settle for a romantic comedy formula towards the end and fizzled out. They did try to revive the comedy as an 'epilogue' though. It ended up being not as memorable as There's Something About Mary.

Carrell is fresh talent -- he has also written and produced the movie. As many have shown before, "you are your best help" to stardom.

I was trying to recollect where I had earlier seen the most handsome of his buddies. I later found out that it was Paul Rudd, who starred in the sweet drama, The Object of My Affection. Far cry!

Web Server survey

2005-11-18T14:12:00.000-07:00

After quite a while, when I checked out SecuritySpace's monthly research reports, there were some interesting statistics as usual.

The most striking one was that in the domain-based list, the second most hosted domain name was not 'net' and not 'org', but 'de' (Germany, with 8%). News to me, atleast! (The topper is 'com' with nearly 46%, silly!)

Other than that, of course, Apache is still the top Web server with about 72% share. All others (including runner-up Microsoft IIS with around 22%) seem to have flattened out over time.

Sideways...

2005-11-17T16:31:00.000-07:00

Courtesy: AllMoviePhoto.com / Fox Searchlight Pictures

Firstly, I can't believe that this blog had to wait for 10 posts to get the first one on movies from a "certified movie maniac"!

Sideways is a brilliant movie that I caught on cable recently. I heard of it only at the Oscars and didn't really have an idea of it. The screenplay was fantastic, including the aspect that I love to see -- no commercial intrusions. The acting was brilliant and in the end, I wondered why Paul Giamatti (familiar face seen in small parts in many famous movies) didn't even get an Oscar nomination. With respect to the story, I enjoyed the strong friendship and the mature romance. There are a few explicit scenes, but pray don't watch the movie just for that!

Photo transformation

2005-11-16T15:56:00.000-07:00

I have not been playing much with photo editing of late. Recently, when I came across some brilliant snow in gloomy weather, the scene seemed almost devoid of colour. That made me want to click a snap and transform it to black-and-white. The result seems like hardly anything changed from the original photo!

Over to Wiki...

2005-11-16T14:38:00.000-07:00

After blah-blahing about Blog for a while, it's the turn of Wiki now. This post was triggered by another CNET piece that I came across. Read it for the basics of Wiki to the proliferation and impact.

Wikipedia is almost becoming like Google for me these days. I'm aware of the possible inaccuracies though. But it was interesting to scan through info on the Paris riots and notice portions marked as 'disputed'. Who wants to buy the multi-volumed Encyclopaedia Brittanica and build a nice-looking cup-board around it and dust both of them periodically! Also, Wikipedia is available in numerous languages. [I'd love, but am bewildered by the size of the effort, to contribute to it!]

Another form of exposure for me is the usage within a company. It helps in sharing ideas and establishing a common source of info, in an age where the organization has no wired boundaries.

Happy Wiki-ing!

Free Windows (supported by ads) -- howzzat!

2005-11-16T13:01:00.000-07:00

Check out this CNET article. Microsoft being swayed by happenings around the software world -- whoa! So, equations are changing...

Rabbi (nothing Jewish here)

2005-11-15T16:57:00.000-07:00

I discovered Rabbi recently like most others. The "Bulla ki..." video attracted me instantly while "Jugni" increased my urge to get my hands on the CD. After a few months of dilly-dallying, I bought it and I was thrilled to not only to see lyrics but also rough English translation of all 9 songs!

The music and lyrics are heart-felt stuff, with no tinge of commercialism. That's why I guess he had to struggle for 4 years or more to get the album out.

I've just started soaking in Rabbi and I'm sure it's going to take quite some time to really understand the first album. Nevertheless, I'm waiting for the next one already...

Also, I got a brief introduction to Sufism not so long ago and that too increased my interest.

PS: Just discovered a blog dedicated to him...'Rabbism'!

Evolution of blogging, as I see it...

2005-11-14T21:34:00.000-07:00

Now, when I think about it, I feel Sujatha (see Wikipedia entry that doesn't do justice to him) was a pioneer in this too. His Katradhum Petradhum now seems like a weekly compilation of his blog entries. I haven't really read his Kadaisippakkam -- how does that figure? Man, anyway, that guy is too much! [Heard of his Web-site coming up in January...] Did any other writer (in the Western world or otherwise) do anything like this?

I maintained a diary for several years. But that was just a few sentences scribbled. I don't intend to put my diary online through this blog though. In fact, when I first heard of (We)blogs, I really thought it was about writing an online diary and I thought it was a crazy idea!

When the Net revolution happened, I was among the millions who setup a home-page. I used to have a section called 'Latest' where I'd write a few lines (with some photo) about something that influenced me during that period. Now, when I think about it, that was also like blogging...

One of my friends turned blog-crazy about a couple of years ago and he continues to yap about it even now. As I mentioned earlier, I've never really been much of a blog reader myself. But I too just felt like yapping, I guess...:-)

Earthquake symptoms: useful article

2005-11-11T16:17:00.000-07:00

This (again from rediff.com) is an useful article about symptoms of a forthcoming earthquake. The short-term precursors seem to be realistic to observe with a keen set of senses.

Deccan Odyssey!

2005-11-11T14:39:00.000-07:00

I was excited to learn about "Deccan Odyssey" (à la "Palace on Wheels"). But surprisingly, it doesn't venture into important areas of the Deccan Plateau, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Guess the state-level co-operation isn't all that good. Another question is, of course, the viability of a venture that expects customers to foot such a bill...

Tall tower craze!

2005-11-11T11:39:00.000-07:00

Seen above are the Space Needle (in Seattle), Sydney Tower and the tower in Stratosphere hotel / casino (in Las Vegas). It was quite amusing to see similar towers in 3 different places! Wonder if there any more like these -- I'm not counting ones like Petronas though...