An update after a loooooooooong time. Reasons for delay -"Busy with work" (Never), "Half-hearted attempts" (Occasionally), "Lack of ideas" (could be), "Procrastination" (bingo!). But all's well that end's well. Some interesting things have happened in my life (at last). So let me begin this update with a bang!.
They say misfortune never comes alone. But seems fortune too follows the similar path.
1.Finally I got a gal. The engagement happened with much fanfare at a small but
cosy Mandapam on Nov 11,2007. The marriage has been scheduled on Jan 27,2008 at
Trichy. Invitation shall reach your homes, inbox etc by Dec end. Thus ends the
illustrious tenure of India's most eligible bachelor of the 21st century
(seri,seri, please stop the applause. Let me continue). Pics uploaded to my orkut
profile. BTW her name is Shreevidhya.
Its always a pleasure seeing relatives, friends and well-wishers take part in an important event in your life and wish you the very best. I was touched and humbled by the response. Moments like these make life meaningful. The function shall remain etched in my memory forever!
2. Also found a new employer. Joined Data Patterns, a defence and aerospace
electonics player based in Chennai as Senior Research Analyst (boy doesn't that
sound pompous). A highly respected albeit little known company, whose name will
spread to every corner of the globe because of a new acquisition they made
recently ( hi hi, you know what). Left Fenner after four and half years of
service bidding farewell to an organisation which gave me so much. (About that in
my next blog update)
3. Started doing certain things after a long time. Practicing mridangam, refreshing
!!) my woefully inadequate electronics knowledge, kids in the new company are
too good. Kinda catching up.
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Sunday, July 22, 2007
CINEMA PAITHIAM-TAMILS ,MOVIES AND POLITICS
Tamils, I believe are genetically susceptible to movies. Be it deifying cinema heroes, putting them in a stratosphere (pedestal sounds too ordinary), trusting them with governing a state just because they solved long-standing problems with a magic wand in movies, Tamils are incomparable. A generally sober and conservative race inexplicably becomes hyper just on the mention of their favourite movie star(s)’ name.I do not think anywhere else in the world you would have
a. Walls covered with movie posters instead of paint
b. Film star cut-outs dowsed with milk, honey, ghee, panchamirtham etc
c. Vijaya T.Rajendar dancing (breaking set floors) and Dhanush fighting
(breaking..er..forget it)
d. Rajini looking fairer than Princess Diana
e. Sarees, churdidhars, dishes named after actresses (My personal favourite – Kushboo Idli, Manthra Poori !!)
And Last but not the Least
f. GAPTAIN VIJAYKANTH’S breathtaking contributions to the world of stunt
choreography –A bulletproof vest reinforced with Pithalai Thambalam that
can reflect bullets back to the villain, a patented kick, a twirl of the
moustache that can send bad guys flying (On viewing, I guess Bruce Lee
would have said “Enna kodumai sir ithu” in Chinese)
But, let me confess upfront that I am an avid movie buff and am a real sucker for world cinema. I vividly remember my childhood movie experiences when we lived in an industrial township. A nicely planned layout with sectors of garden encircled houses, tree-lined lanes, a nice club and a wonderful open-air theater. It was a perfect place for childhood and movies. I could smell a movie playing in a theater, VCR, 16mm screen, even DD (!!) from a mile like an ant sneaking on anything sweet. It was a fascinating world to me: dashing heroes, funny cartoon characters, Coca Cola & Fanta - things that were uncommon in India in the 1980s (a relative fooled me saying you only got them and not water in US taps), mythological fables and so on. It was a magic key to my imagination-CLICK and I was no more a puny 6 year old but a superman, CLICK I was in a American suburban home with Tom and Jerry, CLICK and I was in Mt.Kailash enjoying heavenly bliss helped with generous servings of dry ice induced smoke. It was a perfect escape- the dreary barrenness of school to the sunny warmth of a movie screen.
“Jungle Book” (1968 version) started my life-long love for animated movies, “Thiruvilayadal” gave me a peek into Mt.Kailash and mythology, “Kappalottiya Tamilan”and “Gandhi” made a 4th generation Indian realize the sacrifice made by our ancestors, “Schindler’s List” made me, an Indian and a Hindu shed tears for 6 million Jews murdered 50 years ago, “City lights” showed me the power of silence, “Nayagan “disturbed when I was 8 and still does.
Still movies, essentially seen in several parts of the world as a media or an entertainment option has somehow grabbed a rarified space in the Tamil minds. Having seen 3 chief ministers in the past 40 years and one in the making (Yes, that Gaptain!!) have a filmi background one cannot be faulted for saying that in Tamilnadu top movie stars are default candidates for politics. After Kamaraj,the last non-filmi chief minister,TN has seen 4 chief ministers (Kindly discount O.Pannerselvam, bless his soul!!) all linked to the Tamil tinsel world. According to pundits there has seen a progressive decline in the quality and ethics of public administration post-Kamaraj. Whether it is due to the gradual decline in the national scene (Indira Gandhi era and after), changing demography, charisma overshadowing ability or general decline in public morality is open to debate. But as on date, Tamil Nadu is still swayed by the charismatic and illusory world of cinema. With Amma reduced to blaming her partymen, Thata spending 90% of his time brokering peace between his sons, one Superstar still playing mangatha, one Supremestar jumping back and forth between Amma and Thata and the middle class staying away from politics (it’s dirtly, you know) the field is now open for the one and only GAPTAIN!!
Tailpiece:
Watch the wonderful scene from the movie “KADHAL” (2004) in which a ‘great looking’ guy meets quack Asst.Director for a chance to become a hero.
a. Walls covered with movie posters instead of paint
b. Film star cut-outs dowsed with milk, honey, ghee, panchamirtham etc
c. Vijaya T.Rajendar dancing (breaking set floors) and Dhanush fighting
(breaking..er..forget it)
d. Rajini looking fairer than Princess Diana
e. Sarees, churdidhars, dishes named after actresses (My personal favourite – Kushboo Idli, Manthra Poori !!)
And Last but not the Least
f. GAPTAIN VIJAYKANTH’S breathtaking contributions to the world of stunt
choreography –A bulletproof vest reinforced with Pithalai Thambalam that
can reflect bullets back to the villain, a patented kick, a twirl of the
moustache that can send bad guys flying (On viewing, I guess Bruce Lee
would have said “Enna kodumai sir ithu” in Chinese)
But, let me confess upfront that I am an avid movie buff and am a real sucker for world cinema. I vividly remember my childhood movie experiences when we lived in an industrial township. A nicely planned layout with sectors of garden encircled houses, tree-lined lanes, a nice club and a wonderful open-air theater. It was a perfect place for childhood and movies. I could smell a movie playing in a theater, VCR, 16mm screen, even DD (!!) from a mile like an ant sneaking on anything sweet. It was a fascinating world to me: dashing heroes, funny cartoon characters, Coca Cola & Fanta - things that were uncommon in India in the 1980s (a relative fooled me saying you only got them and not water in US taps), mythological fables and so on. It was a magic key to my imagination-CLICK and I was no more a puny 6 year old but a superman, CLICK I was in a American suburban home with Tom and Jerry, CLICK and I was in Mt.Kailash enjoying heavenly bliss helped with generous servings of dry ice induced smoke. It was a perfect escape- the dreary barrenness of school to the sunny warmth of a movie screen.
“Jungle Book” (1968 version) started my life-long love for animated movies, “Thiruvilayadal” gave me a peek into Mt.Kailash and mythology, “Kappalottiya Tamilan”and “Gandhi” made a 4th generation Indian realize the sacrifice made by our ancestors, “Schindler’s List” made me, an Indian and a Hindu shed tears for 6 million Jews murdered 50 years ago, “City lights” showed me the power of silence, “Nayagan “disturbed when I was 8 and still does.
Still movies, essentially seen in several parts of the world as a media or an entertainment option has somehow grabbed a rarified space in the Tamil minds. Having seen 3 chief ministers in the past 40 years and one in the making (Yes, that Gaptain!!) have a filmi background one cannot be faulted for saying that in Tamilnadu top movie stars are default candidates for politics. After Kamaraj,the last non-filmi chief minister,TN has seen 4 chief ministers (Kindly discount O.Pannerselvam, bless his soul!!) all linked to the Tamil tinsel world. According to pundits there has seen a progressive decline in the quality and ethics of public administration post-Kamaraj. Whether it is due to the gradual decline in the national scene (Indira Gandhi era and after), changing demography, charisma overshadowing ability or general decline in public morality is open to debate. But as on date, Tamil Nadu is still swayed by the charismatic and illusory world of cinema. With Amma reduced to blaming her partymen, Thata spending 90% of his time brokering peace between his sons, one Superstar still playing mangatha, one Supremestar jumping back and forth between Amma and Thata and the middle class staying away from politics (it’s dirtly, you know) the field is now open for the one and only GAPTAIN!!
Tailpiece:
Watch the wonderful scene from the movie “KADHAL” (2004) in which a ‘great looking’ guy meets quack Asst.Director for a chance to become a hero.
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
The Marriage blues
The minute I stepped into my 26th birthday on another fateful Oct 11th,my mom dropped a bombshell. She had shortlisted a wonderful girl from countless horoscopes (in her own words, but I bet my Pulsar for the real figure ie. 2). Without warning perfect strangers would turn up either in my office or hometown (whenever I happen to visit Madurai) on the pretext of meeting my parents but through the corner of their eyes would measure every inch of my frail frame. Seemingly harmless mamis would start enquiring about my health, wealth, job, house, hair, future plans (my dad never worried that much) and finally bless me (!!) with a nice "nalla ponna seekrame amayattum" tagline. I started dreading every greying mama or mami to an extent that I stopped one man from entering my house and he turned out to be my house owner !!.
Then on a sweltering May day (pun unintended) I met a girl sorrounded by my parents and her's in the crumbling Woodlands outdoors. Thoroughly embarrassed, outwitted and indecisive (as ever) I had to tell my parents not to go ahead. It was one situation I had always wanted to avoid and exactly ended doing it (shades of Mr.Gittes,Chinatown) -hurting women's sentiments.
That lead to a new strategy. I had spent a lifetime trying to teach my father to send an e-mail. Suddenly he morphed to Bill Gates and started ripping matrimonial sites apart. Mornings saw my mail boxes full with prospects and rest of the day was spent browsing or deleting them. Much to his chagrin girls at least 3 years younger to me were making mega bucks (they are generally smarter and blessed with thoughtful male HR professionals .grrrr. ). They either remained silent to the queries or nicely said f*** off.
That lead to a two new assignments
1. Looking for a new job.(er.. sorry,nothing new, just back to square one)
2. Self-help aka the see-date-move around-propose route.
I am a guy who gives credit where it is due. My parents have been broad-minded enough to ask me if I had any girl in mind, caste/religion/ethnicity no bar. But as usual I goofed by giving the following list
1. Meera Jasmin
2. Shreya
3. Trisha
4. Padmapriya etc
So here I am, back to job hunting, girl hunting, head hunting. From cave age to computer age man has had all but one job -hunting. So, to all Mapillai benchers Happy hunting!
Then on a sweltering May day (pun unintended) I met a girl sorrounded by my parents and her's in the crumbling Woodlands outdoors. Thoroughly embarrassed, outwitted and indecisive (as ever) I had to tell my parents not to go ahead. It was one situation I had always wanted to avoid and exactly ended doing it (shades of Mr.Gittes,Chinatown) -hurting women's sentiments.
That lead to a new strategy. I had spent a lifetime trying to teach my father to send an e-mail. Suddenly he morphed to Bill Gates and started ripping matrimonial sites apart. Mornings saw my mail boxes full with prospects and rest of the day was spent browsing or deleting them. Much to his chagrin girls at least 3 years younger to me were making mega bucks (they are generally smarter and blessed with thoughtful male HR professionals .grrrr. ). They either remained silent to the queries or nicely said f*** off.
That lead to a two new assignments
1. Looking for a new job.(er.. sorry,nothing new, just back to square one)
2. Self-help aka the see-date-move around-propose route.
I am a guy who gives credit where it is due. My parents have been broad-minded enough to ask me if I had any girl in mind, caste/religion/ethnicity no bar. But as usual I goofed by giving the following list
1. Meera Jasmin
2. Shreya
3. Trisha
4. Padmapriya etc
So here I am, back to job hunting, girl hunting, head hunting. From cave age to computer age man has had all but one job -hunting. So, to all Mapillai benchers Happy hunting!
Tuesday, March 6, 2007
Pillayar suzhi
Hi
This is the first time ever I am trying a blog of my own. Will start posting my so called thoughts on any subject under the sun. Feedback and thougths from any soul in this beautiful,fragile planet invited.
Regards
tcv
This is the first time ever I am trying a blog of my own. Will start posting my so called thoughts on any subject under the sun. Feedback and thougths from any soul in this beautiful,fragile planet invited.
Regards
tcv
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