Kartik and his wonderful world

Midnight Hot

2010-01-16T17:20:00.001+05:30

Woke up at 3 in the morning with this in my head... so I'm posting it, so what if it's incomplete.Where once did clash and horses crashAnd tempered steel did meet In their heads, a cerebral dreadWould echo a resounding roar.Now there, do roam these metal dronesTilling the soil in their wake,And under does thunder,The earth torn asunder, beneath a metal tread.The sky burns white,This war-torn

Alone in the dusk and the damp and the cold

2009-11-08T00:44:00.003+05:30

Can you feel your heart sink, feel it drop below your stomach and out your ass? Thumping violently behind your ribs, trying to break out of it's cage. It feels like a ton of tough sinewy muscle, that pounds at your chest, your lungs compress for lack of space, your breath shortens, your arms tremble and fingers have a life of their own, hitting every key on the keyboard except the one you were

False Colours

2009-03-29T19:30:00.000+05:30

And it switches from a brow tinted, sepia filtered photograph to a multi-hued 3-D hologram, but only if you think happy thoughts and stare at it for half an hour, unless you do that, it's pretty much a frickin' photgraph. It's a still and lifeless reproduction of a living breathing, moving, wanking, horny, wishing-it-was paid just a little more chameleon.You walk into a joint, there's little

Just Because It So

2009-03-09T23:11:00.004+05:30

Kartik will be out office starting on 10/3/09 till 12/3/09, I will respond to your E-mails when I return. Somebody please remind me to put up my out-of-office tomorrow and send out that Dear So-and-so, to that special someone.I'm stressed beyond belief, I could probably do with a bad case of worms now, anything for an excuse to get out of office for a day.I hate getting the feeling that I'm in

On How To Make Three Weeks Seem Oh So Long

2009-03-01T12:10:00.006+05:30

It's been a while since I posted last and in between, I've shuttled between projects, molecules and everything in between. The only typing I've been doing is on office chat and my code editor, and a few e-mails here and there. On all three, it's easy to get something down, you generally have and agenda and try to get your point across in the least amount of words possible. Here, faced with this

The Time When My Nose Flowed and I Didn’t Care

2009-02-13T22:32:00.002+05:30

Oh it flowed copious amounts of I-don’t-know-what, it started suddenly and I didn’t care, I spewed great big globules of blood and snot on everyone around me but I didn’t care and neither did they. My neck hurt but I went on, I just had to, I had to break through the barrier, the pain would go, the hormones would kick in sooner or later and it would be worth it.Ten minutes later, a body comes

By Somewhat Popular Demand

2009-02-06T18:59:00.004+05:30

Well two people is popular demand enough for me even if as we say in the North "voh meri gaand leh rahen the" or to put it more politely and in English, "they were having a laugh at my expense". So, well for those who didn't believe me, here's the pierced lip. Whaddya wanna see next, the tattooed shin (I'm such a bloody show off!)

Dazed and Confused

2009-01-26T01:44:00.004+05:30

(yes the title's stolen from Led Zeppelin)I’m a creature of habit. One little change in my surroundings is enough to ruin my day. So today, the left rear-view mirror of my bike snapped (a parking accident (yes there is such a thing)), it’s the less used one but nonetheless essential. I can’t ride with a single mirror as it throws off the visual balance of my bike. Today’s a Sunday and tomorrow,

Breakfast at Tiffany’s

2009-01-08T23:38:00.002+05:30

Tucked away between two IT parks and surrounded by massive boulders, in a recess, just off a newly constructed road, there are four rickety wooden tables. Behind one stand a short, dark, thick lipped lady and her tall, lean husband. On their table, there are half full cigarette packets, loose cigarettes, shiny, colourful packets of chewing tobacco and two thermos flasks full of hot insipid tea.

Top Ten Lists

2008-12-30T22:32:00.001+05:30

A quick list of my top tens, not in any particular order, just my ten favourites for this year, they are not necessarily things that happened this year. This list is based on how I felt about them this year. Songs1. Death of Love (Cradle of Filth – Godspeed on the Devils Thunder)2. Asator (Amon Amarth – With Oden on our Side)3. Machtkampf (Arch enemy – Doomsday Machine)4. Set it Off (

The Dancer and Creation

2008-12-25T12:26:00.002+05:30

In the beginning there was sky, no clouds, no wind, no stars and no planets, just an endless stretch of the great blue beyond. Then appeared the dancer, from where, no one knows for sure, maybe she came from the halls of the immortals that lay to the east or maybe she came from the plains of the undead to the west of the sky, no one knows for sure but the important thing is that she appeared.

I'm Drunk

2008-12-19T20:07:00.002+05:30

I'm drunk, no, I'm smashed, I don't know why I'm typing this into my browser, but I want to post,I have a crazy need to post. I'm hitting keys but not necessarily the ones I want to hit.I'm depressed so I'm listening to Gwen Stefani but I'm thinking to myself this is all crap. I'm going to switch to the Beatles now. For someone I love McCartney, anything he's sung, anything he's credited with. My

The Fish

2008-12-16T21:46:00.002+05:30

Once, in a land far, far away, in a time aeons ago (give or take a few centuries), there was a fish, in a lake. Content, swimming along the bed, around the stones and flora that flourished in the waters that played host to him and others of his phylum and class, he whiled away his time. The one day, a flash from the heavens struck him and spirited his body away, leaving not a trace. That is the

Just Because It had to be Said

2008-12-14T21:20:00.003+05:30

Just a random collection of questions that have been haunting me for quite some time, stuff I had to say, just I couldn't, not to anyone I know, so I put it up on the net (!), anywho, no poetry will result from all of this.For Zee: It all remains as it always was, it’s just the conditions you laid down are too difficult for me to handle, I’ve tried, honestly I have but it just eats me up

Rant

2008-11-25T21:45:00.003+05:30

Aaaargh... I am so beyond pissed at the moment. I've come back from a long day at work, a long, long tiring day. Then as I'm riding back home with veggies for dinner, hanging in a plastic bag off my wrist, it hits me that the worst is yet to come. It hits me, yes at a 120 freaking decibels, louder than The Who, louder than anything you would want to imagine. It's Shaadi(wedding) season here and

Oh Come On

2008-11-16T11:15:00.003+05:30

So I step out of the office for a quick smoke, I'm tired, I've been working like a dog, no wait hold on, this bugger's lolling around in the grass on his back. Work evidently is something dogs don't particularly care for. Where did the phrase come from anyway?

Quick Update

2008-10-29T21:32:00.005+05:30

Yes this looks different, mainly because I've scrapped the old template that I'd lovingly coded more than two years ago. This blog's going in for a major overhaul, inspired by Terra who's totally sexified her blog. I'm leaving it as a standard template, for now, but come Saturday I'll try do a little more to make it 'my space' again.I had to make the upgrade, my old template prevented me from

The story

2008-10-28T01:15:00.002+05:30

For Zee.There are two sides to every story, there’s mine and then there’s reality, there are three sides to every coin, two you know of and a third that never did exist, there are four corners on a triangle the three that you see and one just around the bend.I live in a world of fantasy, where it’s all love and hate, fast cars and machine guns, where the sun sets on scenic beaches and I fight

The Peacock

2008-10-19T22:39:00.000+05:30

He struts through the room, a spring in his walk, he owns the room oh he does, he’s got the brightest most magnificent plumage. Rivals slink into corners, hoping he won’t notice them, but he won’t he’ll just strut on, unconcerned, unperturbed and unmolested.He’s not got much in particular to do, he just paces the room, up and down, up and down. Not falling flat on his feet, weight thrown slightly

Instant Coffee

2008-10-18T19:23:00.001+05:30

He was, after all and instant kind of guy. Not that you would ever be tempted to hold that against him. It was always now or never, here there or everywhere. Sit him down and he’d fidget, start by wriggling a toe, the toe would then set the foot into motion, which, in turn brought the leg too life. And there he’d be, a lanky leg swinging from a lanky body. The movement would then cascade in a

Four Stages of Love, Lust, Longing and Loss

2008-10-10T23:30:00.002+05:30

Love“Look at me…”“Look at me…”“Oh fer fucks sake why won’t you look at me?”Furious he gives her back her the white cane, turns away, just in time to miss a solitary tear run down from her eye.LustLike a dog marking its territory, canines bared and an evil glint in her eye, she sinks her teeth into his shoulder, bites in deep, a spurt of blood, a warm ruby, flood in her mouth. She leans back to

Here’s To The Future

2008-10-09T12:40:00.001+05:30

Chose life, chose a job, chose a career, chose a family, chose a fucking big televisionChose washing machines, cars, compact disc players and electrical tin openers…Chose your future, chose life,But why would I want to do a thing like that?I chose not to choose… Renton- TrainspottingIt’s been a long uneventful two hour flight from Hyderabad to Delhi but all of that seems set to change, we’ve been

Midnight Reveries

2008-09-14T12:16:00.003+05:30

She walks into the room, dressed in pants and what at a glance seems to be a jacket. Both are the same colour, grey or maybe off-white, I don’t particularly remember. Both are the same colour, not as in similar, they are identical, she probably bought them as a set. I don’t remember the last time I saw someone dresses like that, oh yeah, maybe it’s a uniform or something, that would be a good

Chronicles of a Monsoon BIker

2008-08-20T19:49:00.001+05:30

WARNING: Post peppered with profanity. Clutch, flick, release and twist, the newest dance on the block, clutch, brake, tread and release, it’s the craze baby. Faster, clutch, flick, release, twist, release and brake, can you keep up? Hold on now it gets complicated, clutch, flick, release, twist, swerve, brake, release, twist, swerve and twist some more. See now you’re getting the rhythm, now

Not Just A Scent

2008-08-16T21:23:00.001+05:30

The smell stays in your nostrils for days after, you think you smell it on your body, on your fingers, on your arms, on your chest and you can taste it on the back of your teeth.It’s not just one smell, it’s a mixture of perfume, of sweat and of love. A heady mixture that has the power to carry you back in time to places you were, back to the things you said and what you did.One whiff brings

Pulling A Disappearing Act

2008-05-10T18:29:00.002+05:30

Hello stranger, welcome to the blog, c’mon in, the waters real nice. There was a strange being that inhabited these shores once, gather round children and I’ll tell you a tale of an obsessive compulsive. Are you nice and comfy? See, I told you the waters nice, yes, that is a turd floating by, ok so I may have lied a bit.This is not a grand reopening post, I cannot guarantee that there will be

Real Life Simpsons Intro... Awesome!

2007-05-25T16:08:00.001+05:30

The Beautiful People Part 4

2007-04-17T17:52:00.001+05:30

Continuing my crusade against the beautiful people...enjoy.

The Jewel Song

2007-04-16T18:00:00.000+05:30

(No, I'm not high, skip to the end if for a full explanation)Delmar Rangel can't to followeth Jewel escort on,The colatitude excrescent always do replete Jewel.Always commercial they breakpoint stringent judiciary today squibb.Today, I mignon disjunct own this judiciaryJewel do offend of formatted forsythe caviness love squibb.Exploit Jewel,I captor timeQatar regular hermitian thought

I'd LIke to Thank

2007-04-02T19:17:00.000+05:30

...My parents, the academy and my legions of fans without whom, none of this would have ever been possible. Of course I'd like to thank god, my great seaven headed, fish scaled, cloven hooved god who has always attempted to sabotage my every endevour. Oh yes, I'd like to thank Aunty, the ever Helpful Dictator for actually tagging me with the "Thinking Blogger Award".The award has a few simple

The Beautiful People (Third Installment)

2007-03-30T20:02:00.000+05:30

For everyone who has just stumbled across my blog, this is the third installment of the Beautiful people series. In the previous installment, I had crusaded against the villians at Lux, manufacturers of the 'Collagen Soap'. Now, more than four months after I took up arms against the corporate machine, I am finally in a position to see just how much truth there is to their claims. We were

Man On The Edge

2007-03-19T18:35:00.001+05:30

You stand on a small bit of dry dusty earth, the only patch allowed to you. Thirty thousand pairs of feet stand like you on their allotted areas. A shove, displaces you from your territory, you in turn crash into one of your numerous neighbors and invade their area. This domino effect creates a minor ripple diffuses slowly through the throng, till it dies down. You crane your neck high, your

Viral Memetic

2007-03-12T21:06:00.000+05:30

In 1876, a young girl named Jenn was walking down a river, an insane man killed her by stabbing her in the back, raping her, and then hanging her in his closet. While he hanged her he said Bukakke Bukkake.Now that you have read this message, she will find you and her dead body will haunt your house for 5 years. Every night you go to sleep she will appear in your closet, hanging their with her

Crash!

2007-02-23T21:09:00.000+05:30

It's time to crashLosin' my mind, losin' my mind, losin' my mindYeah it's time to crashAerosmith Warily, I press the button, CRASH! Visions of destruction, a train jums the tracks at Whitefield station, it plows into the dirt, nine hundred thousand tonnes of steel pound into the fragile ground. As

I Return With a Meme

2007-02-11T14:44:00.000+05:30

Look Confusion I'm back!Here are the rules:1. Grab the nearest book. (Don't you dare dig for that "cool" or "intellectual" book in your closet! I know you were thinking about it! Just pick up whatever is closest.)2. Open the book to page 123.3. Find the fifth sentence.4. Post the text of the next 3 sentences on your blog along with these instructions.5. Tag 5 people.Hmm.. this one's not going to

It's a Dogs Life

2006-12-22T13:26:00.000+05:30

Another long hiatus from blogging and I return apologetic as ever, both for not updating my own blog and for not taking the time out to read any other blogs. What's a guy to do, there's much work and little time to do it. The other day I had to leave the institute early just so I could get home early and clean up my room and wash some clothes.But that's not what this post's about. Confusion had

Decay

2006-12-10T16:09:00.000+05:30

The Discoverer building of the International Tech Park; this photo has been taken from the smokers 'lounge' , pretty close to where my institute is. Today is a Sunday, today, the normally busy tech park closes down. As the offices take a day off, most of the restaurants in the food court take a day off, the

Across The Railway Lines

2006-12-08T17:54:00.000+05:30

- @page { size: 8.5in 11in; margin: 0.79in } P { margin-bottom: 0.08in } --> Another long leave of absence from my blogging obligations and while the blogospher breathed a huge sigh of relief, my blog has been clamoring for attention that I just don't have time to give it. The whole week has been crammed with tests and assignments and then some more tests. I got some respite today after

Alien(n)ation

2006-11-28T17:49:00.000+05:30

Hmm... i see we meet again... by the looks of things, it seems this blog is going to die a slow painful death, i cant find the time to blog, yet I keep pestering myself to update. So with nothing new to talk about, let me describe where i am and what i'm doing. Im doing a one year diploma in bioinformatics in an institute in the international tech park, bangalore (ITPB). The tech park is one of

A Short (boring) Update

2006-11-21T17:52:00.001+05:30

Man it feels like an eternity since I last posted to my blog and although the fact weighs down on me all the time, for some reason I can find very little motivation to actually come online and type out a post. I think mainly this is because there's so much going on here that I find myself compelled to live my life rather than talk about it as I usually do.I know I said I'd blog once I'd settled

I Be Bangalored

2006-11-13T17:58:00.000+05:30

Hello all from the garden city, I'm sorry if this post is wholly incoherent but i am stuck in a hot cybercafe with a 100 degree fever, so i think i should be allowed that much!Aah, there's so much to write out, but first things first.I made the journey this time by train, partly because the amount of baggage i was going to carry and partly because it was so much cheaper. Even before i got on the

Horsing Around

2006-11-10T22:37:00.000+05:30

So I’m waiting at a red light, on my way home from the bank when something nudges my helmet from the back. I turn around to find I am staring a horse in the face, something wasn’t really expecting, even on a Delhi road. It was one of those white mares used at weddings. Now it’s not everyday that I come in such intimate contact with a horse so she looked petty huge especially when she drew up to

Bhasad

2006-11-08T19:45:00.000+05:30

Another classy new word I have learnt, bhasad translates roughly to ‘fuck up’ but I’m not too sure about the exact meaning, a friend of mine who works with Microsoft in technical support taught it to me. The reason I mention where he works is just to illustrate in what situation it would be used. Everyone who has ever use windows, has at one time or the other come across a situation which could

In Pursuit of Justice?

2006-11-05T23:49:00.000+05:30

I have been neglecting my blog for quite some time now, I haven’t posted on any of the beautiful things that are going on in this beautiful world of ours so to clear the backlog, here’s a brief summary of everything that has been bothering me. Priydarshini Mattoo, Jessica Lall and Nitish Kataria, three high profile cases that have featured prominently on our newspaper front pages for a long

Light a Damn Candle

2006-11-03T23:10:00.000+05:30

"...An Interpol database contains more than 10,000 images of child victims, but less than 350 of them have been found, the report warned...""...Most child pornography is exchanged for free online, but it has also generated an underground business worth billions of dollars that circulates millions of images of child abuse, the report said..."(Source: DNA India, Technology outpaces law to stop

Memetic Wierdry

2006-10-31T10:44:00.000+05:30

Tagged by Aunty, am required to list 9 things about me that are weird, now, though I’m dysfunctional enough to finish this one easily, the problem is that, I don’t really consider myself weird. Anyway, I’ll still try this one out, though I’m not responsible for what I list here.1. I am obsessed with organisation, I have to arrange everything I own. Everything has to be just right, my bookshelf,

Scientific Mythology

2006-10-30T15:11:00.000+05:30

In a previous post, I had considered the scientific validity of Nivea’s claims that their DNAge product(s) can help prevent UV induced damage to DNA. While I think that their claims are technically valid, I came across another interesting view the other day, Rick points out that Nivea are exploiting the hype surrounding genetics to sell their product to a public that does not completely

Random Ramblings

2006-10-28T21:44:00.000+05:30

I finally got this post up. I was at it for an hour last night and blogger refused to publish the damn thingI haven’t posted for a long time, mainly because I’ve been running around getting ready for the big move to Bangalore. There’s so much to be done, so much to take care of, most importantly there was the question of sending the money for the course. Naturally the more important something is

The Celebrity Within

2006-10-24T19:30:00.000+05:30

Found This extremely cool little thingy on Confusion's blog, haha I'm Marlon Brando and Gabrielle Union's love child, not bad.

A Glimpse of Truth in a Mad World

2006-10-24T15:41:00.000+05:30

Aunty Helpful Dictator, scourge of the senile; left me this link on my previous post and urged me to use my limited scientific knowledge to expose Nivea’s lying ways. Unfortunately it seems that there may be a hint of a scientific basis to their claims regarding their DNAge products.They claim:” 80% of skin ageing is a result of external influences, e.g. exposure to sunlight, which lead to damage

Diwali!

2006-10-21T22:00:00.000+05:30

Aah happy diwali, it's a beautiful diwali this year, there's a chill in the air, every one looks happy and I'm a miserable little fuck.Sulk sulk.Happy Diwali everyone

The Beautiful People Part Deux / Advertisements Gone Wild / It’s All Lies Folks

2006-10-19T21:06:00.000+05:30

For more scary ass pics, visit celebs without makeup, thanks for ruining the illusion guysI got a gret link from Confusion on a previous post, check it out.This is the second instalment of my post, ‘The Beautiful People’, I know it’s been a long time since I posted that one but I have a few more things to say now.What provoked this post was an ad for a major bathing soap, manufactured by a brand

The Magical Mystery Movie Tour

2006-10-18T20:29:00.000+05:30

The mystery behind the movie that I referred to in a previous post has been really irritating me and I finally got down to looking it up with my trusty search engine Google. Following up on a clue that Anamika had so kindly provided, I first searched for ‘SaiKumar’, no nothing here, I found a huge list of movies he’s acted in but none fit the bill. I was getting tired and frustrated so in a fit

And The Trip to Bangalore Was a Success!

2006-10-17T19:06:00.000+05:30

Dear KARTIK RAJAN (Appl. No.:XXXX), I am pleased to inform you that you have been selected for the Postgraduate Diploma in Bioinformatics. The offer is subject to your meeting all the admission requirements. Ah aha haha! I though I'd fucked up my interview but apparently I had not. Aah this means another year and a half away from my beloved Delhi. Who fucking cares, I'm going to Bangalore!

A Multi-Cultural Land Called India

2006-10-16T02:17:00.000+05:30

Though technically I’m a South Indian, I have lived in the North too long for me to be accepted as a fully fledged south Indian, it’s a bit funny because in the North, people are happy to categorise me as being a South Indian despite the fact that they (South Indians) will have nothing to do with me. That’s mainly because I don’t speak any of the major South Indian languages so when in the South,

Leave of absence

2006-10-13T21:31:00.000+05:30

Sorry for he long time since I last posted but I was away, I'd gone to the great garden city - Bangalore. Will write something of it tomorrow!Much love to everyone!

When Memes Attack

2006-10-08T22:23:00.000+05:30

Once again Terra out of the goodness of her soul has tagged me, this is a more sinister meme though, on working and on death, seemingly unrelated topics? I think not.A word of clarification, since I do not have any real workplace at the moment, I’ll consider my college lab as a workplace. I’ve already taken on the ATC lab so this time it’ll have to be the Recombinant DNA lab.What is the best

Chapter -41, Where A Conversation Compels Kartik to Reflect

2006-10-08T01:32:00.000+05:30

It all started slightly over three years ago when ‘M’ moved into the hostel, into my room. We were possibly the worst matched roommates in Boys Hostel D and our relationship developed as such. For the first few months that we knew each other, we hated each other’s guts. While in the hostel we were seldom in the room together, and at college we mostly kept out of each other’s way. Then a few

...And The Results Are In

2006-10-05T20:23:00.000+05:30

Ok fine now it gets fun for me, this is the part i love the most where i tell everyone that no-one got all ten right. Hah!Before I reveal the correct answers. Anamika, no you dont get extra points for being cheeky. Confusion and Aunty (espescially Aunty) I didn't make up anything. Here's what a bitter gourd looks like;You aren't missing anything great though because it tastes awful. Ok now before

Fruit and vegetable game

2006-10-04T21:35:00.001+05:30

Ok here's a silly game i invented at college. The reason behind inventing the game was to convice my parents that I was actually studying at college, so everytime I came home I'd bug them just to remind them I was actually doing something useful there.This is how it goes. Below is a list of fruit and vegetables. All you have to do is point out which one's a fruit and which one a vegetable, easy

Gandugiri!

2006-10-02T23:56:00.000+05:30

I know that this is the second time I'm picking out Sanjay Dutt for ridicule, it's not that i don't like tha guy, frankly i don't really have an opinion about him either way.Sanjay Dutt, released his newest movie Lage Raho Munnabhai recently. The movie has recieved a lot of praise for its attempts at promoting Gandhism ie. nonviolence. Dutt as being hailed as the the new messiah of Gandhism, few

Mechanical Misadventures

2006-09-29T23:17:00.000+05:30

Well, I had it coming; I was going to have to get my bike serviced. I’ve been driving it around in Delhi for the last three or four months ever since I moved back to Delhi from Pune. After a particularly hard day of driving a few days ago, my bike pretty much gave in and it was all I could do to coax it back home without breaking down. Today being the only free day I have in my schedule for this

College Days

2006-09-27T00:05:00.000+05:30

As always, when I am half drunk, I began to reminisce, today’s topic of reminiscence is college. The only thing I can remember right now of college is my final Animal Tissue Culture practical exam partly because it was almost the last thing I did in college and partly because during the exam I came ever so close to disaster. ATC for the uninitiated basically involves growing cells from animal (we

Going to the Movies

2006-09-25T21:54:00.000+05:30

Och! I be tagged by Terra Shield.1. The last movie you saw in a theater, and current-release movie you still want to see.That would be Pirates of the Caribbean 2. Yes. It was a long time ago but watching movies in theaters is not really my favourite way to pass time.2. The last movie you rented/purchased for home viewing.Omkara, an Indian adaptation of Othello by Vishal Bharadwaj, despite all the

Till Death

2006-09-23T22:04:00.000+05:30

The death penalty has been outlawed in most of the world today, however we persist with it here in India, as punishment for the rarest of rare crimes or something like that. Whatever it is, it is a punishment given to those few who have been judged to commit crimes so great, our judiciary feels that this is the only suitable punishment.The last convict to receive die at the hangmen’s noose (that’

Apology

2006-09-21T11:35:00.000+05:30

My last post basically contained the dumb, judgmental, hateful and over-generalised point of view that I spend a lot of time criticizing. I let my personal frustration and anger get the better of me and made a dumb comment on an issue that should have been treated in a more delicate manner. I did realise it at the time, but in retrospect, i should never have put up that last post.So to all who

The Pope Takes on Islam (an Illustrated Story)

2006-09-20T00:22:00.000+05:30

*deleted*

In Pursuit of the Almighty ‘ism’

2006-09-18T22:16:00.000+05:30

Everybody likes a good ‘ism’, don’t they? That’s why we have so many of them; Objectivism, Sophism, Hinduism, Atheism, even Christianity and Islam could be technically categorised as Christianism and Muslimism. All of these are schools of thought, belief and ways of life so what do I mean when I call them ‘isms’? The fact is that for most of us now, they imply groups rather than philosophies. I

Institutional Myopia

2006-09-17T19:55:00.000+05:30

Maybe two months ago, some top Indian scientist went public, claiming science was being neglected in India. He asserted that fewer Indian students were opting for science courses in school and college, preferring to stick to the now more lucrative commerce/ MBA path. In the Indian school system, once a student finishes 10th grade, he/she has to chose a particular stream for his/her last two years

Illustrated Reminiscence

2006-09-14T22:05:00.000+05:30

Here’s a pictorial run-through of some mildly significant events of this week. FC Barcelona broke their tradition of sponsor-less jerseys when they revealed their new Unicef ‘sponsored’ jersey. However unlike other clubs that get paid for carrying their sponsors’ name (upto 22 million dollars I believe), Barcelona will pay Unicef 2-million for carrying their name.Good on you Barca!This is the

100% Pure Self Indulgence

2006-09-12T21:05:00.000+05:30

Expecting something serious or socially relevant or just plain boring? Check back tomorrow then, for now this is all I'm going to post. I'm so fucking happy, I just got the following Email today. 12 September 2006Dear CandidateThe results of the entrance examination to IBAB courses have been declared. We are happy to inform that you have been short-listed for the final selection interview. Your

India, The Demise of a Dream

2006-09-10T16:57:00.000+05:30

“We the people of India, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a sovereign, socialist, secular Democratic Republic and to secure to all its citizens: Justice, social, economic and political; Liberty of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship; Equality of status and opportunity; and to promote among them fraternity assuring the dignity of the individual and unity and integrity

On Original Duplicates

2006-09-08T22:05:00.000+05:30

Jill of Honduras in her post, mentions some of the fake fashion labels found in Honduras, such as Tommi and Abrecromby. In India, the counterfeiting industry is an immense and highly complex one, something that a single comment to a post would never do justice to. Thus, for anyone who ever wondered how to shop on the subcontinent, here’s a primer.Before I begin, it might prove worthwhile to

When Mr. Nose Met Mr. Truck

2006-09-07T22:27:00.000+05:30

Gurgaon is Delhi’s swankiest new suburb. As Delhi has expanded, a lot of its populace and businesses have moved there. Despite the increasing burden of traffic on the roads connecting the two, there has been little in way of improving the connecting links. One of the two roads connecting Delhi and Gurgaon is MG road, a narrow potholed nightmare. Regardless of the state of the road, motorists love

Rock star? I Think Not

2006-09-06T12:40:00.000+05:30

Tyler and PerryAxl RoseSanjay Dutt (?)A couple of days ago, the newspaper I read, in the gossip pages, described Sanjay Dutt as the only true rock star left in the Indian film industry, I almost fainted from the shock. Sure the word ‘rock’ and all its derivatives are commonly misused today, but surely this was taking it a bit too far. Everyone at some time or the other has misused the word as in;

The Beautiful People

2006-09-05T15:06:00.000+05:30

Beauty itself doth of itself persuadeThe eyes of men without an oratorShakespeare – The Rape of LucreceThe beautiful people,The beautiful people,It’s all anatomic as the size of your steeple.Marilyn Manson – The Beautiful PeopleOh my beauty past compare,These jewels bright I wear.Bianca Castiafore – The Tintin Series by HergéVery few things today can survive commercialisation and once

Atheism

2006-09-01T22:56:00.000+05:30

When I was in my mid teens, I devoted much energy to promoting the cause of atheism, I was young, enthusiastic and wanted to convert everyone. Then one day, I read the blog of a former atheist, one of her chief complaints was that she felt other atheists tended to be whiney and overly argumentative, trying to pick fights with theists wherever they could. No way, she was wrong, she couldn’t be

The Genetics of Caste

2006-08-31T00:05:00.000+05:30

(This is not a casteist rant, though the first few paragraphs may sound like it is, the fact is that it isn’t.)It’s kind of obvious isn’t it, there is a discernable difference between people of different castes. You wouldn’t expect an upper caste individual to look like someone born into a lower caste family would you. It is a simple observation, whether you wish to acknowledge it or not.

No Sex Please, We’re Indian

2006-08-27T21:48:00.000+05:30

This is an extension of a previous entry, Entertaining Morality, at the time I hadn’t take the CBFC’s threat to ban ‘A’ rated movies on TV seriously, now unfortunately, it seems I underestimated their resolve. Over the last few days after the police began shutting down cable TV operators, TV channels have responded by slashing movies and Indianising their content, in short; toeing the CBFC’s line

Six Million Jews? Who Cares.

2006-08-24T22:43:00.000+05:30

‘Hitler’s Cross’, is one of the newest eating joints in Mumbai and for obvious reasons has raised its’ fair share of controversy. Hitler, considered one of the biggest villains of history by most of the western world actually has quite a fan following in India. Travel by train through our country and you will find copies of Mein Kampf in platform booksellers at most major stations. The reason is

Brown is the New Black

2006-08-24T12:18:00.000+05:30

A long time ago, a good friend of mine told me that orange was the new pink. I didn’t really understand what he meant, till a few days ago when the meaning of what he said dawned on me. At the same time I also realised that brown is the new black.For millennia, white and black have been pitted in a death struggle, the struggle of good against evil with each colour playing its defined role. Today

No Pepsi Please, We Prefer Raw Sewage

2006-08-20T20:29:00.000+05:30

Mumbaiites have thronged in the thousands to Mahim Beach since Friday night after it was reported that the seawater had miraculously turned sweet. They came, they saw and they drank the seawater, many even filled the water up into bottles and took it home. The alleged miracle was attributed to the Durgah of Makdoom Shah on the beach. The miracle water supposedly cures any ailments from headaches

On living in a Political Wilderness

2006-08-16T02:36:00.000+05:30

Politics has been around in India for a long time but for me, my earliest recollections of anything even vaguely political was singing “galli-galli mein shor hai, VP singh chor hai” when I was in school, some friend of mine must have taught me because I had no clue who VP Singh was at the time. Then, fast forward a few years I remember the fall of the Deva Gowda government, and the IK Gujral

Pride, Terror and a Machine Gun

2006-08-14T13:42:00.000+05:30

Tomorrow is the 15th of August, our independence day. For the average Delhiite, it’s not our independence that we remember on this day but the threat of terror. That is the legacy of 50 years of living under the cloud of terror, you know it’s an important day in India when hordes of heavily armed policeman descend on to the streets of Delhi. For me it’s the police are more unnerving than the

Political art

2006-08-12T23:25:00.000+05:30

The various student political parties in JNU campaign by posting these massive posters all over campus. Most jut bear simple slogans, however there are the more artistic ones, done in a style that is possibly unique to the campus. Here are some that went up on the School of Language Studies building during admission time this year.

The Mother and the Motherland

2006-08-12T16:41:00.000+05:30

Apart for other things, one of the first points noticed about Indian men is our excessive usage of profanity, profanity that often employs references to women. Women see this as being indicative of our opinion as to their social standing. Think about it, the logic seems pretty sound, women are though of as being so lowly that most commonly used profanity centres around women.Quite some time ago,

A Tit, a Clit and an Elephant Dick Do Not Necessarily Equal Wholesome Family Fun

2006-08-10T14:49:00.000+05:30

Apparently though that is what one Pushpa Vitula had assumed when she attended a now infamous exhibit.The moral police ensured that an art exhibition, explicitly titled ‘Tits, Clits n Elephant Dicks’, did not go on uninterrupted in Mumbai on Saturday.Following an obscenity complaint by a woman named Pushpa Vitula at the Colaba police station, 12 policemen stormed the exhibition showcasing the

For The Conscientious Watch-dog

2006-08-07T23:11:00.000+05:30

Every society has them, they are the unavoidable consequence of living in a group, they take unto themselves all the ills of society and protect us form ourselves. The watchdogs, from the sleaze on our streets to the corrupting influence of media, they vociferously oppose everything. In a democratic society, I suppose they are necessary, especially in India, where someone has to keep an eye on

The Various Guises of Musical Snobbery

2006-08-05T01:13:00.000+05:30

It was amazing, after two years in a new school, meeting my old friends freaked me out. People who’d been teeny-bopping to Britney, BSB et al. were now sophisticated–hippies.Yes sophisticated-hippies, there is such a thing, here’s how you make one; throw a few CDs of Jeffersen Airplane, The Doors, Janis Joplin, CCR, Led Zep and Hendrix together, throw on a Khadi-Kurta, a pair of strategically

The Indian Male

2006-07-30T02:19:00.000+05:30

These three words describe more than half a billion people, yet today they have a decidedly negative connotation, possibly because they have on innumerable occasions been used by various people to describe what is wrong with our country. Most of what you would read on the issue would be by women authors, obviously so. Accordingly we are depicted as dominating, wife-beating, self-worshipping,

Flowers On Concrete

2006-07-24T23:07:00.000+05:30

The Games People Play or, The Benefits of Driving Your Bike into A Wall

2006-07-24T14:18:00.000+05:30

A five year old fell into a well a few days ago, he was dug up after 40 hours of being trapped 60 feet under the ground. While he waited (surprisingly) calmly to be rescued, above the ground the normal predictable scene played itself out. Huge crowds of people gathered and the media circus descended on ground zero. ‘Protectors of Indian democracy’ and all round odd-jobs-men, the Indian army

Entertaining Morality or, I’m Gonna get me a Moraldectomy

2006-07-24T12:12:00.000+05:30

I’m not talking about amusing virtues, in my opinion, morality and entertainment are mutually exclusive. This is true particularly in the case of Indian morals, which vehemently oppose anything that can be vaguely entertaining. Our self appointed moral police have crusaded against everything, miniskirts, porn magazines and PDAs (public displays of affection) are all in short supply as a

Zen and the art of ruining a perfectly good motorcycle

2006-07-24T01:25:00.000+05:30

No, I do not intend to write about any mystical eastern philosophy, reasons for which you may understand later, if I find the time to explain them. Neither does this in any way concern motorcycle maintenance (or the lack thereof).My chosen title is a tribute to a book I read a long time ago, considering the fact that I am still not old enough to be called old may explain to you why I didn’t

Fundamentalism and Intolerance in India

2006-07-24T01:15:00.000+05:30

Faith steals shadowy Behind vistas in the mind,Curt, invisible reminderOf values left behind.Mankind makes its ascent,Seeking new Faith to find.This year has been a particularly fruitful one from the point of view of religious fundies. From an atheists perspective it has been quite funny watching people of different faiths bouncing around with religious zeal hoarsely decrying whatever it is that

Love Faith and Mood Swings (Not necessarily in that order)

2006-07-24T01:11:00.000+05:30

I sulk, I storm, I rage,I weep, I snivel,But they stand quietly by my ravaged body.They truly epitomise true friendship.Or are just really daftAah! Love the tender emotion that holds together so many millions. You were brought up surrounded by love grew up and sought love in your own age group. Once you find it engulfs you in a web of soft silken emotion. The pain of separation, the passion of

2006-06-05T19:35:00.001+05:30

Perched high on the tree of enlightenment, growing on the back of our lady of faith. The streams of dharma flow from her sacred orifice into to sea from whence they came. A third world underprivileged soul laps at the effluence hoping for a renewal of fate.Our karma (the force of utter bullshit that encompasses our sorry existence) will continue to urge us forward to greater depths, providing we

2006-06-05T19:30:00.000+05:30

As the planets revolve in their lonely orbits,We contemplate our fate in a legion of starsGaze at the void of an empty mind, reflecting the viewers sullen touch.The touch sparks off silent debate within a host of cobwebbed attics,Safety at the cost of another life.Bring down heavenly wrath for I have plotted against the neighbourhood thugWithin flows molten sperm, fertilizing fields ready to