Lets go fishing

After living in Chennai city for 7 long years, its only now that I realized one of tthe culinary joys of living on the coast!

Freshly fried fish!! the kind thats sold on the beach from makeshift shops.

The oil used to fry the fish is questionable. you dont know when the fish last saw the sea. you dont know how well (if actually) they cleaned the fish... there are a dozen other reasons why it is risky to try eating it, which is why i had never tried it till now.

Weeks ago when Shonali Muthalaly of the hindu metroplus came out with an article of how the reporters tried the fish from these shops and lived to write about it, I figured, i have lived in this city this long, I might as well take advantage of it. and given my craziness for fish it wasnt a very difficult decision

Now, to gather the task force, I wasnt planning to go eat there all by myself. So I started hunting for 'the right person(s)'. Need not be tall, dark, handsome, but should be brave, adventurous, daring, any gender! The reactions that I got from prospects (my friends)

What the!?

Nahiiiiii.....

crazy??

but anyway...like all things that end well, my search was fruitful. I did find one soul who was willing to try it out! Thank you thank you dear Rosh..sniff.. (happy tears)
this post is dedicated to you! :P

On the appointed D day, we surveyed the whole stretch of shops which were roughly 2 dozen in number before finally settling on the multi-coloured plastic stools and chairs for that ideal fried fish reverie. They displayed masala covered fishes of different castes and creeds. We had chosen a shop that kept their wares covered in transparent plastic sheets. We were asked to choose the fish we wanted. once chosen, it was taken out and slipped into the oil kadai, then served hot with chopped onions and a lemon quarter.

First try: half a tiny fish :)
The next day, I smsed to see if my friend is also ok.

Second try: three pieces of fish. and we agreed it was yummy!

Will I try it again: You bet!

Calvin

Perfection

SCENE 1

A client reviews a newly designed poster, made by the designer according to the client's instructions.

Client: Its not quite what it should be.. I feel.. no, I am almost sure there is something missing
Designer: I will try adding better pictures, ones with more colours
Client: Hmm
.
.
Client: Um hm, We are getting there, but not there yet. (After a long contemplating pause) Come on Reg, give me your all. We need the perfectly designed poster. Tell me, what are you going to do about this?
Designer: The tagline? I will work on that
Client: Yes, that too..but we need more. It needs to pack more punch. You know what I mean?
Designer: (nods)
.
.
Client: There is only one thing I can tell you Reg. Its not perfect yet. I need perfection. got that?
Designer: hm (uncertainly) which part of the poster you want changed?
Client: Am I to tell you that? Is that not your work? Give me the result, dont ask me for details. Why else am I paying you?
.
.
Client: This is your best? I cant believe this.. After four weeks of work, this is what I get??
No No! this cant go on.
----------------------- END OF SCENE 1 ----------------------
SCENE 2

He had been searching for a simple pair of jeans. You might think it is easy to get, but no, he just could not find the right one. He tried at all the major stores in the city. The one that came closest to his liking was a Levi's pair, but that still needed alterations which the store offered to do, but he refused. He just did not see any sense in paying Rs.3000 for a pair of jeans that needed alterations! An altered one is never the original one.

After months of searching, he chances upon one hanging in a dingy shop in spencers plaza. He tries it on, and in that instance, he knew, he just knew that it is perfect. He finds it hard to believe that he had to look for months, MONTHS, to find this!

He is furious! He demands an explanation! Why the hell doesnt the other stores just stock up the perfect jeans??

Why you ask? Well, let me explain. He knows, very well that it was THE perfect jeans. So, it should be available everywhere. He doesnt understand why these other stores keep all those other ill fitting jeans. Its quite simple, no rocket science. all they need to do is get rid of all the other stock and keep on the shelves only the prefect jeans! Now isnt that only logical?

------------- END OF SCENE 2. CURTAINS DOWN--------------

The most over rated entity in all walks of life and work. "Perfection"

My salute to all professionals whose work is based on other people's definition of perfection. Rarely will there be a perfect unison of the expected deliverable and the actual output.

Is it really necessary that I agree with you on the exact definition of perfection? You have your own definition, I respect that, but I have mine. and if that fits with yours perfectly, there is a good chance that you are looking back at me from a mirror.

12 angry men

How much can you enjoy a black and white movie of 1.5 hours when all you see in it is the inside of a dingy room, and the faces of 12, not very attractive men taking turns talking, and only talking? My answer is - enormously, if the movie is '12 Angry men'

A classic like no other, the movie surprises you into total attention as it starts narrating the story. It can be viewed as a movie with a social message or one that analyses human behavior, whichever way it is looked at, you would be convinced that it is a masterpiece.

It starts in a courtroom where the judge, bored after hearing a long trial, sends the 12 jurors to a closed room to make their final votes and decide whether to send the 18 year old accused to the electric chair on the charge that he killed his father. There is only one condition, the vote has to unanimous. 'Guilty' or 'Not guilty', all the jurors have to take the same stand.

At the preliminary vote, all but one man is sure of the guilt of the young boy. One against eleven, this man is also not sure that the boy is innocent, but only that his conscience does not allow him to send a fellow to death without first talking about it and feeling sure of the guilt. So eleven jurors, set about convincing the only guy who does not agree with them so that they can all go home soon.

The central character (the one who does not say 'guilty' yet), an architect, a man of no imposing personality, but mild and even slightly shy in his body language, almost uncertainly runs a campaign just to reach the right decision. As the movie moves from scene to scene, the viewer gets a good look at the various kinds of men and their way of thinking. Every single one of them remind you of one or other person you have met, worked with, been associated with in some or the other way. A facts guy - give him the facts and he is by you. A thinker - hurts his head thinking and digging so that he does the right thing. An indifferent guy - whatever happens in the world, he stays unaffected to the last. A few more such as a self observed guy, a guy with prejudices against sections of people, another who is never assertive even when provoked etc

Closed in a room with facts, prejudices, indifferences, genuine concerns and other emotions, the same men who strongly believed at the start of the movie that the accused was indeed guilty, laboriously reach the final verdict of 'not guilty'. The how is the essence of the movie.

If I say more about it (havent I already?), I would be ruining the fun of watching the movie for you. do grab a DVD and watch it. Its a very old movie, you may find it difficult to get in the store, but try your best. Its worth every minute of its running time.

People make such masterpieces once in a while, and thats why we watch cinemas

Kerala - Green excess

Glimpses of the village that I was lucky enough to 'come from'. All school vacations were spent here with the grandparents. Click on the image to see a larger view.


Bridges, the main way of transport to neighbour's houses:

There are multiple islands as seen below in the 2 photos, in the middle of paddy fields. These islands usually house a single hut and numerous coconut trees. Seen here is our neighbour's property. un occupied for nearly a decade. Now you know why the place is still pristine. Its void of people - the chief pollutants.

Another neighbour dries the firewood that got wet due to the morning showers

Spend a week here and the memories of colours other than green will fade away from your brain! whats seen below is the view from the front yard of the house

Seen below is the beloved backyard where we spent whole vacations hanging on trees and scouring up earthworms and other similarly highly intellectual activities.

The memory collector

And one more year passed. And one more day passed.

Did anything special happen today?

Not really.. but thats okay. Every single passing moment need not be special. As long as I get special moments now and then, I will survive. But I do need the special moments and some special days and I do want to put them all locked and cherished in my memory. Because, thats what I live for. Those memories, they are my life.

I AM.... THE MEMORY COLLECTOR. well... one of them

Heres to a happy new year and an amazing one at that.

Give me one good reason why anybody should read The God Of Small Things

On a reckless evening when I could have just about done the craziest thing, I went to a library and got myself a membership. The regular vanilla that some people think I am (not without reasons), this was the most reckless thing-to-do that I could think of.

As a result, I treated myself to this new rush and made a list of books that I would like to read before I die. Since there is no possibility of attaching an exact date to that event, I started thinking - technically speaking it could be anytime now. I started with 'The God of small things' by Arundhati Roy.

I knew roughly the outline of the story and the cause that the book stands for. Ten years ago, when I read a passage of the book and wondered what it meant, I had the good sense to put it away. I had however put it down in my mind's 'read when you are older' list of books. Not because I would not understand the story, but because I could not enjoy the prose. A book, in my mind, is a piece of dark chocolate, one with 72% cocoa..something that has to be relished.

As I said, a social cause is weaved into the story - untouchability. As I tested waters with the first pages, I enjoyed the rich prose and the layered style of writing, the setting is in Kerala, there is liberal usage of malayam words and phrases. As I kept reading, I realised that it is a very dark tale indeed. It is the story of twins Rahel and Esthappen, their misfortunate life and the misfortunate lives of others in their family. all of their lives are muddled in despair and darkness. It is very disturbing to read and having to know the characters.

I have not completed the book, but it has left me with only sad and depressing images..A lecherous police officer who taps on a woman's breast with his stick as her two children watch, a spinster aunt who had never had anything in life to cheer for and thus enjoys others' miseries, husbands who beat their wives, for the kick of it, another who does not hesitate to push his wife into prostitution, children taught by their mother never to trust or love anyone easily, the low caste man who gets killed for the sole reason that he loved a woman from the upper caste, and the ultimate act of incest where the twins end up having sex with each other at the age of 31, having met after a long gap

I understand that the issue of untouchability had been addressed and probably the author was against untouchability and perhaps thats why she weaved such a disturbing tale around it. Now, why should we tell such dark and complicated tales to address our issues?? So that people read it and the awareness is spread that untouchability is indeed bad?? The book's prose is so intricate and complex that the people who appreciate it already have a very clear idea that untouchability is bad.. Even if they didnt know about it, there is really no need to tell them dark and shady stories to explain to them how bad untouchability actually is. Arundhati Roy, respecting their intelligence, could have just painted a bright banner that said 'Untouchability is a sin, It affects lives' and leave it at that.

All people who ever lived on the face of the earth have gone through their share of disturbing incidents in their lives. What is the necessity of reaffirming their back-of-the-mind belief that life is a bitch?? Yes, the writing is excellent, maybe we can call it art. But why does art has to be profanity? So glaring and so disturbing?

As I turned page after depressing page of the book, I kept looking at the face of the author that was printed at the back cover. How disturbed and distraughted should one be to express such depressing filth in a story? What ghosts have haunted this pretty lady that she wants other people to experience it as well?? Because she can really make us experience her book, such is her writing. plush and intricate. I found just one reason to read the book, but that does not necessarily mean that I will finish reading it. This is going to be the second book in my life that I never wanted to finish. And believe me, I have read my share of absolute trash, but have always completed reading them, for reasons I do not know..

Ok, call me shallow, call me a blockhead, call me boring, downright normal, someone who does not appreciate the complexities. But what the heck! why should I appreciate it if its complex?? Agreed, I appreciate Chetan Bhagat, but that does not go to say I do not appreciate Ayn Rand or Abdul Kalam's books. We live in a world that is stranger than fiction, it is dark, it is complex, it is disgusting, but why should we document and celebrate pain and muck? Isn't it best not prosed, taught and handed over for generations to come?

Sneha