How to show affection ?

I was in Tirupathi, long back and the following is a real incident.

I stood outside the premises after 7 long hours of wait , 3 seconds darshan and 2 small Laddus. We had gone through the ASRTC, and hence were waiting for the rest of the gang. From the place i was standing, i could see a wide angle. From that end of the Padma Klam to this end, where the Sudharshana entrance is. Lots of Mottais. And Occasionally, TTD workers carrying large plates of Laddus. The smell of Pure ghee in the air will take you to heavens. Only God can create a smell like that. Not Humans.

Thats when a small disturbance was under creation. A couple, who have just had a mottai, were standing a few meteres away from me. They were beginning to search. Search what ? Probably their Kid... thats what it should logically be. "Ballu".. the man shouted, looking here and there. His eyes were browsing through the ground. Should be a kid. The Lady knelt down and looked across hundreds of pairs of legs.

I showed that to my dad, who was already seeing them. We both looked at the surrounding to see if theres a kid who is alone and crying.. The search became vigorous. A few more people who heard the shouting "BALLU" from the man, cared and stopped.. and began looking. I shouted too... "Ballu...". The Man looked at me, I smiled.. Damn. I shouldnt have done that. The search continued. I swear, a place like that is not somewhere you want to loose and find something. Though the crowd was normal, it seemed to me, as if it was growing, with the vigour of search increasing.

By now, atleast 20 people were searching. The lady was in tears. Was saynig a few telugu words.. should be Telugu version of Oppari. The man's voice was close to crying. My heart felt bad, everytime i heard him shout. The sound was coated with desparate hope.

Then I saw a kid at some corner, close to a shop selling pictures of Perumal. I wasnt the only one.. I found another person walking towards him. he knelt down at the kid. He should be asking his name... he then turned back, dragging the kid towards the man.

This lightened the situation. or, thats what i thought.

The man, saw the other kid first and thought of running towards... but then saw that one of the searchers were bringing the kid to him... '"Balluuuu" he shouted... The lady shivered and looked at the same direction. The kid was also crying, i didnt realize from when.

The mom (i guess) took the kid in her arms and kissed it. The man came closer and

"PALLAAAAR !" - A thunder slap went it to the little kids face. The Kid shouted at the pitch of his voice and broke into tears... Kadhari Kadhari, vicki vicki azhudhadhu !!

I didnt expect this. Most of us didnt. But thought it was normal for Indian emotions. And we all dispersed in our directions.

To me, I have carried this scene, which is approximately 3 years older, till now. What do you think about the reaction ?

Comin Soon !

Avyukta Awards !

BEST SINGER 2005 - SP Balasubramainam (For Thazhuvudhu Nazhuvudhu....)

Thanks to Rahman for not making Udit Narayanan sing "taluvudu naluvudu"....

BEST MINISTER 2005 - Dayanidhimaran (For Dataone and upcoming All India Local)

Ignore the political back up... Not a single person can Come from Zero to this point, where this man has reached. I wish, he takes some other ministry soon. He can do better anywhere.

MOST POWERFULMAN 2005 - Shri. Gagan Deep Singh Bedi, IAS(For Administration)

The use of power is known when you use it. This Cuddlore Collector will never be forgotten. He is a good man.
(Know your collectors here)

BEST ENTERTAINER 2005 - Yuvan Shankar Raja (For Surplus Music)

Forget opportunities. YSR Proved good in a lots of movies. Varied Styles... kalakkittaaruppa !

BEST APPLICATION 2005 - Google Talk (For Simplicity and Stuffs)

Text Chat and that Blue emoticons.. wow ! And talk about the voice calls. wow wow !

BEST EVENT 2005 - Bihar Elections (For Sabha Vimochanam)

Bihar is atlast away from the Clutches of Shri Laloo Prasad Yadhav

New Wallpaper on Photoshop Blog

A New Year Prayer

Powered by Castpost

Resolutions for 2006

res·o·lu·tion - A course of action determined or decided on

Few of many people have this habit of setting Resolutions for the upcoming year. Stop. Read definition of resolution again. They grow funny in a conversation, and even funnier in a group conversation.

It is good to have a resolution for the year. Whether or not you follow it, you can escape from silly questions like "Whats your resolution of the year ?"..... I've asked this many times, when a conversation is about to end.. makes it interesting. Pathetic part is the silly answer I get.

My friend said, that he would Quit smoking in 2005. And you know what would have happened. It is better not to have such resolutions. Im not saying we should not have a habitual-nature-changing resolutions.. but its better not to have a close-to-impossible targets. Have a sensible one. Like ?

I will learn Photoshop/Flash this year, and make my blog or Site look better.
I will pause 3 seconds before i respond
I should respond all emails promptly. Never miss anything. (This is mine for 2006. Does it look like a non-sense ? It means a lot, guys).
I should make people smile at whatever chances i may get. Make conversations lighter.
I should be bold to deny to people.

You could as well take resolution like "Project:Anti-Dandruff", and try and remove the dandruff from your hair (if any. Dont tell me you dont have that problem.. )

Please dont take resolutions like "I will try to be a nice Human Being"..thats too much of an ask out of yourself. Or that will be a little artificial, to yourself.

Alright , after choosing a sensible Resolution... define your efforts. Please dont plan for it. Just keep in mind the resolution always. You will definitely do it.

Just let me know your resolutions....

New Year Greeting on Photoshop Blog !!

Have a happy new year, folks !

Whats 2005 for me?

2005 was not as good as 2004. Read This... My 2004 Accomplishments.

This year began with recovery and has ended up with some good spirit - to me.

It didnt change my Job... (though it should have... remember the decision ?)... It didnt change my EMIs :) But It changed my mornings. Though I started my blog last year, 2005 was effectively when I did some sensible work (nenappu dhaan..).

It changed my mornings, because 2 AM to 8 AM broadband is free. Lots of downloads that keep my rest of the day happy.

2005 gave me very importantly, Good Friends.

Adengappa Prabhu, Srivatsan Murali, Prabu Karthik, Narayanan Venkittu, Sri. Narayanan, Iyengarkatz, Lazy, Chakra and Mukundan (and him mom and dad too). Without blogging, I wouldnt have got them...

I particularly enjoy conversations with Prabu Karthik and Mukundan. Yesterday, me and PK caught hold of each others shirt, and rolling over and fighting . It was a arguement/discussion /research on relationsips. It is serious pleasure to talk with PK. Very sensible :) .. Mukundan, gives an entirely new perspective, when I tell him that. You need to be blessed to be in this company. I enjoy it.

Work was pleasure in 2005. I learnt Assembler, and started working on it. Wow ! Its a real thrill to work on development projects in Assembler. Last few weeks of December was more than Hectic and fun. I was doing something like "Celebrate Work" (its the Tagline of CTS).

All the more, in every aspect.. 2005 was a no-problem, trouble free, painless, limited pleasured, Very Normal year, for me.

Cant let it happen in 2006.

Coming Up !! Top Ten 2005 (Idhu onnu dhaan koraichal).

Squidoo !

Squidoo is a very bad name to a very good service. :) Thanks to Mukund for referring.

This is one place , where you can make/post articles (Modules as they say) on topics that you are an Expert on. I wanted to post on Mainframes, but I wasnt that good to be an expert. So, droppped it off. Then I realized I wasnt an expert at anything. Damn.

I hate anything that exposes me to myself, in a otherwise way !

But yet i wanted to write something on the Squidoo, and came up with this Topic

"Ishta Mithra Bandhukkal". Meaning Desired Friends and Relatives.

Here's what I wrote there.

Of all the things that define a man, His relationships with fellow humans is what would attribute him the most. It is by all means, delicate to hold a relationship in equilibrium, and more than 90% of the people have their destiny afftected because of this.

The Title of this Lens - Ishta Mithra Bandhukkal is a common word you can find in any Tamil wedding invitation. "Ishta" - Desire. "Mithra" - Friend. "Bandhukkal" - Blood Relatives. So, it means Desired Friends and Blood relatives.

This lens considers the Friendship as a Relationship (I have seen people differentiate them). However they are a little different in the way they work.

Let us discuss and try and explore the possibility of having a relationship, with Quality.

Indian Relationships

That is all i know about, heh !

India, as I understand is viewed as an Icon for holding rich culture and heritage. Besides that, it is also popular for having Complex relationships, weaved into the skin and blood of every Indian. Complex because of Magnitude. Let us for time being, remove the Friendship from Relationship. Talk of Relatives and Blood relatives. Religion plays a major part in Relationships.

Blood relatives are those to whom we are related to, by birth. But Intimate relatives, are people who are lost a few decades ago. Or atleast thats what we think !

Will write more there. :) I want it made like a research ! Research of Relationships.

Our Boss is Younger than we thought

Rajini and Vivek...Who looks younger ? Thalai kalakkaraarppa !!

Shankarna summava ! Sivaji is rocking even before the start.

Mouna Anjali

Tsunami visited us last year, and took with it a lot of lives on its way back.

Last December 26th I was in Bed with a broken leg. Me and my mom were discussing how to evacuate, just in case if the water raced to Villiwakkam. I couldn't walk at that time(get out of the bed even), so I should be staring out of my window and accept the waters, and further.

This year, i was watching through a similar window, but in the Office. There's a Hyundai Service center next to my office. It seems to be a very huge office with more than hundreds of workers. 10 O Clock, they made an announcement. My friend listened to it and said that they are to perform a Silent Mourning for 15 minutes. And the entire workshop was silent for 15 minutes. They all mourned.

I came back from the window, and I looked at my office. Everyone busy with their own work. I thought I should take some initiative to make people do a similar Mouna Anjali for the Tsunami Victims. Then a question dawned upon me. Whats the whole use of Mourning in silence ? All of us geting up and being silent, looking laterally, when it will get over...

Is that simply an act to make us feel good ?

2006 Starts Next Week. Get ready !

How about Calendars for 2006 ? Yeah ! They have started flowing out.

Bad News. Diwali, Pongal, Vinayak Chathurthi and Ayudha Pooja all fall on weekends.
Here's something you can use. Microsoft Office's Calendar Templates for 2006

Landscape, Portrait and Landscape with space for Notes.

Getting ready for 2006 ? Your time starts next week. Good Luck !

New Photo on Photoshop Blog.

I adapted a new theme to the Blog, picking Minima White.

Happy Holidays !

All were in the room. Very Noisy. Few of them were discussing the answers for the Section A. Section A was very tough today. The entire school sounded too much. The neighbors knew why. The school will be empty for the next few days, and they may not like it. Just like people who live close to the railway lines, cannot sleep without the train sound.

Deepak was all happy, like all his friends were. Exam days are cool. no normal bags and Lunch carriers. Just a Pad and a Geometry Box. Todays Question paper carried high importance, as the empty portion will be used for noting down the Assignment for the holidays.

Class teacher came in.. Nobody stood up to wish.. they were all busy talking to friends. Few were still regretting for choosing wrong options in Section A. Linda Miss was able to accept the behaviour. She was also a little happy about the holidays. Only a small bunch of Kids answer sheets. Piece of cake, to correct them.

Deepaks mind was thinking much like others.

"No more 6 O Clock wake up alarms. No more studies. Lotsa TV. Lotsa games. Lotsa fun... Yay ! I will be a free bird.. am gonna enjoy these days.. " ... Few guys had planned the assignement at the end of the Holidays, a few guys wanted to end them tonight and take the rest of the days into their hands. Their minds showed the calender, and these Holiday days were painted Gold. The Contiguous days were like a dream gift.

Linda Miss surprisingly did not give huge assignements. It was very light. There was still time for the bell. So, Linda Miss was asking every student the plan for their vacation. As the general protocol, they all said the reply the first student.. "Nothing.. simply at home.. TV"... few geeks said "Iam going to read books". There was a rich guy, who was going to Srilanka to visit his uncle. That raised the eyebrows of a few middleclass students.

Bell.

Yaaaaaaahhheeyy !! Vuttaachu Leeeeavu !!

They had the excitement in mind. But they did not run. They walked out, and cycled further out.

Deepak woke up by 6 O Clock the next day. The day looked just normal.

Aththaribachchaa !

Google Zeitgest India for september is out , and I find this as top of te chart. The term - SureRoute

Looks like a software for deciding the path.. not my area. But why so many people searched for it, remains a Question. That too this one is topping Sania Mirza. Now you know how many people searched for SureRoute.

Hey, Got a look into this site, and their Cartoon pages are really good and clean. Check it out. The picture on the left is my personal fave. This came out when Amitabh fell sick :)

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The Aththaribachcha Story !! (Thanks to Aparna's Comment)

If you had not heard this story, when you were a kid.. you missed something. Atleast tell this to your kid. Our version of Bed-time stories.

There was this guy, who was really empowered with short-term memory loss (!). Once he visited his Sister's house. And his Sister was very happy to host him. She made him a lots of sweets and dishes. One such thing was Kozhukkattai. :)

Boy, he was delighted to eat it.. and he wanted more. Finally after a full-kattu, he asked his Sister the name of the item that he just had slaughtered. Sister said the magical name "Kozhukattai". Whaw ! He wanted to explain that to her wife and make her do it at home. But he had this memory problem, you know ! But there was no Polaroid Camera at those times to photograph it..(duh !) So, he thought he would recite the name all the way back to his home, and the first thing he would do, when he reaches home is shout "Kozhukkattai" to his wife, and make her do it.

So, our Gajini was on his way back home, after a very happy return from his Sister's. He was chanting "Kozhukattai.. Kozhukattai.. Kozhukattai.. Kozhukattai.." while he was walking. It looked like it would work this way. Then came a huge pit on the road, with dirt water. He had to jump over it to carry on with his journey. He took a step back... and ran forward and made a jump (Shankar would show this on a 360 degree camera with slow motion).... while jumping he yelled "ATHTHARIBACHCHA!!!" (An exclamatory word. Somebody add this on Wiki :)

Gone ! Now Kozhukattai was out of his memory and only Aththaribachcha remained. So, on his further walk, he was chanting "Aththaribachcha.. Aththaribachcha..Aththaribachcha..".

He then reached home and as expected, the first thing he told his wife was "Aththaribachcha..". his wife gave him a pale gaze, and asked him what he meant by that. He said that his sister had made him Aththaribachcha, and it was so very sweet and delicious. The wife got puzzled... she had never heard a dish like that, before. So, she grew wild on repeated hearing of Aththaribachcha. She said that she never knew how to do it, and would not make it.

Our guy got crazy, and with anger ignited - he started hitting the wife for not complying a husbands request. After some time the neighbour pops in, and is surprised to see swellings in the face of the wife.

"Ennadi Kannam ellam kozhukkattaiyaattam veengi irukku !!!".... On hearing this sentence, a 1000-watt bulb glows on the Husband's face. In Guna - Kamal style, he says "Adhaaan ! Adheeeedhan... Kozhukkattai.. Kozhukattai...". (read as "Abiraaami .. Abiraaami !!") He then explains his wife, that Kozhukattai was the dish that her sister had made, and that was what he was trying to explain her......

By the time, my Patti had ended this story, I would be sleeping.

[ps - we never know who invented this story, but it has come across ages, and spread by word of mouth.. amazgin aint it ?]

Life of Choices and Compromises

I was home alone a few days back, and had to find my food outside. I went to Palimar Restaurant, which I have been told was very popular for good food, when my Dad was a bachelor. I always hate eating alone. But when Im alone I have always wanted to try different food varieties. So, I was exploring the Menu Card wildly for a different item, and there were many.

But here is where my weakness overtook me. When Im given a lot of choices in Hotels, I simply go for a Dosai. And if I wanted to order differently I make a Masala Dosai. Thats it.

Break;

In my childhood days, I visit the Video Cassette rental with a lot of movies in mind. But when I get the Catalogue in hand, you should see me struggling. Then I come out with either a Lousy Pic or some other movie, I have already seen.

Choices are definitely tough to Handle (or should i say delicate).

Ironically, i feel, we make compromises when we have a lot of choices.

My friend is buying a Car. His dream car is Maruthi Swift. (Only very few people like it. Im one of them). Thats costing 4.7 L. But all he can afford is a Hyndai Santro which comes with all Accessories for 4.05L. It is wise to have Santro, but then compromising on a dream.

It is acceptable to compromise something for Rs. 65,000. But spending 4.05 and compromising on .65 ?

When it comes to the moment of truth, like the bearer asking you the Order, the Video Cassette guy asking you the movie name or deciding what car to buy, some of us act differently than what we have thought. Am still trying to figure out he name for this feeling.

Having something in mind, but ordering/deciding an entirely different thing. Though we can afford something thats in our mind, though it is perfectly ok to buy what is in our mind.. we take an alternative route. Thats sometimes because we want to play safe. This means we arent ready to take risks.

Im not talking about taking risk in the normal sense. Im talking about picking the choice of our desire, when multiple options are Exhibited in front of you. Do you go by your desire ? or you order Masala Dosai, like me ?

Color Color What Color Do you Choose

I Love Black. And you know its quite obvious from the template of this site. Even my PC-Avyukta is Black.







Red (3807) 15%
Green (3013) 12%
Gold (1212) 5%
Turquoise (Blue-Green) (1425) 5%
Blue (3849) 16%
Purple(or Lavender) (2809) 11%
Pink (2478) 10%
Black (1913) 7%
Orange (2156) 8%
Yellow (1383) 5%

Total Votes: 24045

The above is the survey on About.com about people liking colors. Im one of the 7% who voted. Blue is the most liked color. There are people who judge others by just the color they like (What do you think about me - I like black the most ??)





Black is a very mystic color. It suits any picture on its front. It would add beauty to the picture. So would plain white.. but Black is best.. eh ! But philosophically, only white defines Black best. Like the picture above.

So, whats your favourite color and Why ? If you like Black, then have a hug from me :)

My friend Manu never wears a shirt that doesnt have Blue in it. He has so many shades of Blue plain shirts. We all convinced him to buy a Green shirt.. but he got one Blue with Green striped shirt. Sila pera maathave mudiyadhu.

Here is a site that has just RED all over, but still be pleasing. Here.

BTW, did you look at the flash on the top :) I made it using SwishMax. Its a child's play there. But I couldnnt make it appear on IE (though it appeared on Firefox). Thanks to PK for resolving the issue. Tell me hhow it looks :)

Pudupettai - Music

I heard Pudhupettai with a lot of expectations. Yeah ! Yeah ! You know how these kind of sentences end. Obviously in disappointment.

What was the expectation ? "pudhupettai" is a movie about the Local guys behaving as if they are Dadas. Director Selvaraghavan has already said that the movie is atomic explanation to the purity in these guys (?). He has said about the movie in Aandnda Vikatan. I wasnt able to digest his points.

It may not look exactly like this. But it sounded to me like "He wouldnt care to Kill a person. But he wouldnt dare to lie. He s a honest man, and in their gang, Nambikkai Drogam / Betrayal is the highest crime."

Yuk !! Killing a man has been taken this simple.. ?
Whatever.... coming back to music.

With that kind of local story, why is a huge orchestra playing western Classical themes.... ???
I was hearing and thinking "What the heck...?" All songs (except two) are unconventional. And not worth listening again. (or may be, its early to say that).

Kamalhaasan has sung a song. "Neruppu Vaayinil Oramai Eriyum". His voice is mighty-flexible. And thats my pick of the album. Lyrics are note-worthy.

Idhu Azhiththal Velai !
Indha Ulagin Thevai !!
Adhai Naangal Seithaaal
Oor dhaan Vanagnumaa ?

Kaatril Kanigal Vizhugindra varaikkum
Kaathirukkadhe !! Kalladi kidaikkum !

I said note-worthy !! Not *good*.

There's another song - "Oru Naalil" - It has two versions. Both are *not* sung well. Music is good. Guys, stop thinking a casual voice can make good music. Is that Dhanush singing that song.. not sure !!

There is a song called "Selling Dope !". For that we have a Beautiful Orchestra playing some Mozart like number.. the music may be good.. im not good at judging these kind of music.. But for the theme mentioned, the music is ABATHTHATHIN UCHCHAM. But probably if Selvaraghavan had fused it with the movie well, it will be appreciated well.

"Padichcha Naye Kitte varadhey !!" - i dont know how this song is there fixed in the movie. But sounds awkward.

Few more Theme songs in the album... simply leave me uninterested.

"Over Scene Udambukku aagadhu !"


[BTW - Some other movie called Agaram has also released its audio. YSR there too. Not good either]

2 Blogs 2 good

Click the picture for a Bigger version. Trust me, you need to see this.

What a brilliant creation ?? How many hours it would have taken ?? Thanks to CreativeCriminal for posting it. His site is one thing i would frequent every week, and there will definitely be some print ad that fascinates my mind. Now Arvind has started posting video's too. Check them Out.

Also check this Maharajah !! He's got a few health tips, and they rock. Thankss to our Adengappa for the intro.

The Last Split Second

The Bullet was fired. He felt the pain all over the body. Should have been the lower stomach. He roared in some languageless word.

He was loosing his consiousness. He cannot react. He can see his blood showering his body. He has lived in blood all these years, but not seen his own.

Though he wasnt hit on the head, there was terrible pain in the back neck. He couldnt give anymore concentration to standing. He fell down, without logic, improperly. Slowly he began to feel more pain on the left lower part of the stomach. He could feel two bullets. The other bullet was fired, before the story began.

His mouth was wide open, but he couldnt shout. A clumsy yelling without the effort of the vocal cord. He was breathing with his mouth. Pain was increasing. Still and more. He pushed his hands in the stomach and massaged them, pressed the stomach so hard. He then rolled his body, pressing the stomach downwards. Pain.

He felt cold. His body was chilling. He was loosing it.. From down on the ground he could see only legs. A lot of them. Only those two legs got his eyes fixed. Those were his son's. Little legs with "Kee kee" shoes. The legs started walking only months before.

What will happen to him ? What will these guys do to him.. ? ouch. ! aaaarggh.. The bullets were killing him.. He should have tried to yell his son's name.. but he still couldnt speak a word.. he still was yelling mute.

The pain gained strength, and his body gave a shiver. I couldnt understand how he felt just at this point. Then his shiver ended.

His eyes still fixed on the "Kee kee" shoes. Its eyes still fixed on the "Kee kee" shoes.

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prabhuslt: and whats tat kee kee abt ?
Keerthivasan: nothing... justa story of a Cop or Rogue getting dead, his last split second.
who cannot speak 1 Muzham dialogues in their last breath
who cant say "Hey Ram" after being shot
prabhuslt: didnt get u yet ??

The Boss is Born - In style

I think Rajinikanth should be equally appreciated for Make up, as much as Kamalhaasan is. The Charisma that was felt yesterday with just three pictures of Sivaji, Wow !!

It might be easy to put a wig and dye the moush.... but then, the real youth in the eyes and the face... look at the Sivaji pic.. Rajini looks just like a 30+. Good make up - well done.

Aaj Tak - Clumsy Act

Tehelka's tape was appreciated because it was first of its Kind, in India. That was amusing, and gave away to an uprise. Mr. Lakshman was done for his lifetime. This should have trigerred a lot of Sting operations from then on.(Read this about Ethical Aspects of Tehelka)

And today we have Aaj Tak. Its sting operation has captured MPs getting bribes for raising Questions in the House of People - Lok Sabha. And that for Rs. 10,000. Trust me.. people are able to believe that the MPs got bribes. But they couldnt believe that they went down for just Rs. 10,000.

Every Single Indian knows that their MP is getting bribes. Every. Single. Indian. knows.

Why would Aaj Tak do it for then ? The Media is making stories, rather than collecting stories. It might look like the media is Stripping out the clumsy-acts of the society. But I think the Media is becoming "the Clumsy".

They feel the dire need of being in survival, and so they have to make some kinda conspiracy work for them and make the news and Hit the "Here-you-go.. Now Im hot-selling" bell.

I posted this on my blog before someone called a "Visitor" came over. Read it.

With media making the news, it could turn the society in its favour. Someday Aaj Tak or some news media will bribe some MP or MLA to Kill a Chief Minister and shoot that on video Tape.. and also cover the murder on video tape, and show it to the Public. "Chief Minister Murder : Only on our television" (Watch it live ?)

If i had some more money, I would sue the TV Media for first hand bribing the MPs. "Oh ! They did it just for fun ?? BULLSHIT".

Click for a bigger version. Tell me how you like it.. Picture taken from Here ( blog.franto.com a very impressive site) . Text added on Photoshop.



A Thing of Beauty is Joy forever. A thing of joy is beatiful for ever. (??? ada che.. oru korvayaa varamaatengudhu... do you get a better caption for this picture.. let me know).

December 12 - Unforgettable day

Yet another Monday morning. Its raining outside. Its dark and Freezing cold. Will you feel like going to office ?

Yesterday, my mom won a First Prize in an Elocution competition, that was conducted by a local association. She had gone to Help the hosts. But she got involved, and joined the competition and eventually won a prize. She came home with pride all over her face, for participating in a competition after so many many years, and more of it - Winning it at First place.

She had spoke about "Women Liberalization". She is a practical woman, so she spoke both for and against points. And quite easily we had a discussion at home, for nearly an hour about the topic. This is one evergreen topic you can keep debating about.

I ended the conversation like this. "The rules and constraints that surround you are not your barriers always. They are your protection too."

Even I didnt realize this till then... hmmp. Think about it. I felt like a philosopher for a moment. (DHODA !!).
To me it looks like "Udhyogam Sthree Lakshanam"... and soon more "House Husbands" will be produced. But there will be a small difference. The House Husbands will not retaliate..and bounce back about their rights. They will enjoy that position, which most of the House Wifes have failed enjoying.

Forget it. Today is Thalaivar's Birthday. Next door kid - Darshan's 2nd birthday. And my accident anniverseray. I can only say life has been kind to me so far.

You've got Yahoo New !

Yahoo ! threw a sweet surprise today morning. It asked me if Iam willing to use Beta !! (I guess most of you were asked already). Why on earth would i click on "No. Thanks !" ? So, I got the new Yahoo ! Beta. This is super cool feature packed , clean designed, Tabbed (!) and most of all MS-Outlook like eMail application/web page.

Click the picture for a bigger one, and come back here.

Did you see everything ? Well, you sure missed the "All RSS Feeds" Link. Check it again.. Yeah. thats right. Super feature.

Did you see the Tabs on the Top ? This is even cool. Im sure Outlook will incorporate a lot from Yahoo !, from now.

The Flash advertisement that was a complete irritation for long onYahoo mail. Now thats given a separate frame, and remains Quiet. It wont disturb you anymore.

This wont however replace my GMail Interest. But always remember, even in my earlier post , This is the Quote we are enjoying. "Uuru Rendu Patta Koothadikku Kondattam.. Koothadinga rendu patta Uurukku kondaattam."

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UPDATE ::

Here's a way you can save your favourite posts. On the new Yahoo ! Mail Beta, you can actually drag and drop your posts, which you have added through RSS Feeds (Which ,Kiruba says ,has been added on Google, but doesnt appear on mine.. May be they still havent given all the users that).

And I love the GUI, which gets added beauty, when you drag and drop.

I felt myself strange, when I unsubscribed to all the useless subscriptions filling my mail-box ever since using Yahoo ! Mail Beta from morning.

Am I switching to Yahoo ! Mail ?? Google, please do something fast. :)

JAI ANJANEYA

I had been to my cousin's Grahapravesm in Nanganallur today morning. And needless to say, I visited my all-time favourite Anjaneyar Temple. And what a Darshan I had !!! Wow.

They opened the doors after 45 mins of waiting (they were doing the Alangarams)and the Lift was slowly going up, showing the diety slowly. "Pradyaksham".. if you know that word.. i felt it today. Anjaneyar Pradyakshamai munnadi irundhaar.

When you worship God, it is always a better practice to spread your arms up in the air, and make a Kummbidu. Thats heavenly. Paripoorana Saranagatham !!!

Thanks to my Uncle who got me into this habit of "Saturday Anjaneyar".

JAI ANJANEYA

There is one email going around with all "Pudhiya Thathuvams"
Here's the best.

Bus poita bus stand angayae thaan irukum
aana cycle poita cycle stand koodavae poogum.

Tell me If you did not get any of them. I can email you. ::)

Dinamalar ePaper

No matter what. We have news everywhere on Sify and Rediff. Aana Dinamalarla paarkara maadhiri varuma ? Here's Dinamalar offering ePaper. It is classic and free. So grab it now. News, in the way it is on paper (including advertisements). Now this is interesting.


Here's another link - Check this song. MS Viswanathan and SPB. I've never heard this song before. Thanks to Narayanan for introducing me this song.

Chennai is now expecting a heavy rain. Atleast the meteorological department guesses it. See to yourself how it looks like now.

God save this world

Of Emotional Movies

Junior Vikatan says : "Every Successfulday of Thavamai Thavam Irundhu will close down an Orphanage".

The movie seems to be too good. And people are emotionally aroused. Srivatsan had seen the movie and has a review on it. I spoke to him about it. And he said that Nuclear families are criticized (or) spoken about.

I have developed an aversion towards Cheran, simply because of his movie "Autograph". It wasnt that Great a movie. It wasnt worth so much of praise. But Cheran acknowledged the praises and made it looks like a High Quality movie. Sorry ! It isnt. Please dont talk of "Being realistic alone" in movies, make a Quality movie.

I will watch Thavamai Thavamirundhu, this weekend. And if he had spoke "City life is bad. Village life is good".. "Nuclear family is bad. Joint family is good.. What life are you guys having in nuclear families ??".... if thats all there, im spending all my money to meet Mr. Cheran and have a talk.

POST NO. 400

You would have got lots of eMails about Chennai becoming the most wanted IT Hub. Quite a lot of companies are starting their operations here. Am not sure about the truth, but the recent mail says that the way Chennai handled (?) the recent rains makes the companies think about Chennai.

Forget the IT Operations... The way Chennai handled rain was ,indeed , impressive. I have seen water stagnations after 5 days of rain, few years back. But this rain missed it, even the next day.

After the rain, last month, the Electricity board guys cut down all the trees hovering over the Electric lines. Thats a safety measure. And it worked out. A short power outage during the next rain. Looked to me, as if I lived in a responsive society. The situation was not so, even few months back.

So, my friends say, these measures are taken only considering the TN Elections in mind. Hmm.

Whatever said and done. The Electricians and Metro Water guys who worked days and nights, and worked on poring rains, Thanks for making our days better.

I've called the EB and Water board and said that. You can do it too, if you feel so. Or do you think, they were just doing their Duty ?

Few Hindus ; Few Muslims ; and a lot of Humanity died, this day.
It seemed to me as if the Blogger was down to mourn the December 6th day.

KNM - Here's to people who love realistic movies

Kanda Naal Mudhal has not put me down. It stands to my expectations. And those all who bet against me, "Pay me back" :)

It was a pleasure watching every inch of this movie. I was coming back home with a surprise, that I could watch a movie without heroic punch dialogues and fights. And everyone on theatres walked out, without a bad-comment. I would definitely want everyone to watchi this film. Its a good entertainer. It doesnt leave you a message. It is like something that comes and soothes you and then vanishes in the air, leaving a sweet smell all around you.

First things first. Appreciations to the Producer. Prakash Raj has been consistantly giving movies like this.. Soft. "Azhagiya theeye" was not a big hit, but got him a good name among "Thiruttu VCD" Viewers. This time Prakash Raj has emplyed a very good crew. And the crew has took a movie to a height that Me and Srivatsan were struggling to get the tickets to this movie for the past fwe days. Housefull ma !

Story of Kanda Naal Mudhal is so very big, and cannot be give on a Jist, which will do no justice to the story. It is a huge story, entangled in the bush of emotions. A lot of emotional changes to both Hero and Heroine, in the course of the movie.. and surprisingly, the director makes it edible. Prasanna and Laila are the major players and Prasanna quickly steals the show. He is a bundle of talents. He should make an award out of this movie, for sure. Laila - we've seen her frown and fight and shout in a lot of movies... yet, she has done a good job.. and has taken care in acting.

PC Sriram was a little disappointing for me. The useless picturisations of songs are added irritations with dark lightings. You might appreciate it separately, as a photo shoot. But with the movie, it just doesnt fit. A very ordinary effect.

YSR - The KING. He rules he movie with good Background score. I've already began a hunt for KNM's BGMs. The music keeps the mood of the scene intact, and it is very essential for a emotional movie like this. I wish YSR continues this way.

Priya - the director, has given us a promising movie. Worth watching many times. Worth watching with family.

This is what you can do when you have a good story line - make a good movie out of it. You cannot make a good movie from a single line story like "Vijay is a mechanic. He fights society".

New Picture on Photoshop Blog

Before the power cuts-off again...

Have to figure out what to do on "Ada Raama" days.

Ada Raama days are those days, when it rains like it will never stop. No power. No Access to any news media. nothing.. Chennai is now getting a lot of these days. But this day, I've felt something really obvious.

Aananda Vikatan Sucks. These guys have to change a few things seriously and bring it back on hold to the classic audits of the earlier Editor. Its almost a movie scrap book. Useless - petty - sill - sick jokes. And all jokes have a lady with a low hip saree.. Awkward.. Why claim it as a family magazine.

Few articles are good. Yet, if they tend to follow this trend...we are to loose another quality media source.

யாமறிந்த மொழிகளிலே !!

I've posted this before. But I've got emails from many people and yesterday, Mr. Partha Krish had left a comment on my blog about using Tamil on his computer. I would go to his home and install the following for him, for I've already missed an opportunity of meeting him on the Chennai Blogger's meet. It is a pleasure making a conversation with such a personality. Thanks to Mukundan, for inviting home.

For others, here's some information.

There are many Tamil Applications that talk of simplicity, starting from Murasu. But off-late, I've been using an application, that really makes sense.

And it is called KURAL, and its Word Processing Software - Kavithai Seyali ( i like the name) !

Of Course, Kural, is yet another Transliteration enabled software, where you need no Knowledge of Tamil Typing. Big Advantage - it allows you to save the document in a RTF format, so that you could do more on Word. Actually, Kavithai Seyali incorporates most many of the features of Word.

Installation is simple, and using it would be a piece of cake. I would easily reccommend this software, eyes shut.

You could Download the software here.

Good thing is that they have also mentioned the Installation instructions on the same page. If you have a good Broadband connection, you could better download the Professional Edition.

Let me know.

PS: For those who want to add Tamil to their Blogs, you can easily do it on the fly using this. Just Type, Copy and Paste.

Tamil was only difficult in the Classrooms. :)

GTalk Me

Looks Jazzzzy !Doesnt it...

Thanks to Google Blog, to have placed URLs of Unofficial Google Sites that do developments that please the Google Users, as much as Google does.

Here's to Customize your GoogleTalk.

You have plenty of links for you, if you love that Text Smileys. If you are a ardent core programmer, you will find links to make your RPC Calls from Google Talk.. (!). Boy, that one was too very much.

Here's the best part.... Online IM Radio - MERCORA

This is an IM Based Radio, yet to test this feature with a GTalk IM Friend. But this lets me Webcast my own music, and also listen to other music, with Crystal Clear Sound Clarity.

If you happen to Download this one (download available here) try searching for as many Tamil as possible. I instantly hit upon Mazhai audio.

I tried (in vain) searching "Eno Kangal Un Mugame Ketkiradhe".... the instant Hit from "Kalvanin Kaadhali".... YSR is Still Banging on... Listen to it, and you will know.




Its already December !!

Narayanan - you and me

Home - Narayanan - morning - boring - pooja - coffee - Saddam hussain - saurav/greg - 3 new messages - oh !shit ! - 2 minute bath - quick bites - unironed van huesen - idiots at home - kick start - kick - kick - kick -- damn. hectic traffic - dirty sun - sultry - sick bike - all f****** up.

"good morning sir.. " - "good morning Mr. Narayanan, today you have...." - "sir, yesterdays..." - "Narayain... can you come to my room." "yes sir"

12 emails - 20 minutes - 5 response emails - coffee - coffee sucks - meeting in 2 minutes - print out fired - paper jammed - shucks.

hot meeting - embarrasing questions - "that guy is talking too much, as if" - end of meeting - more responsibilities - 30 mins past lunch time - skipped lunch.

more emails to send - more documents to prepare - life is boring - monotonous, dont you think.

4 continuous hours of "stare on your monitor" - stayed long enough - time to go home - kick start - kick - kick - kick -- damn. sick bike.

home - pooja - complaints - power cut - getting late for "art of living " - pooja wont come - irritated - hungry - unironed khaadi jippa - idiots at home

kick start - kick - kick - kick -- damn - the bike wont start - "sukumar.. im not coming today.."

hit the bed early - sleepless eyes - hungry stomach - restless mind - Narayanan - just another IT guy.

1 Message Received

Yesterday I got an SMS from my friend.

It read,

Andangakka Kondakkaari.. Send this Mantra to 10 people and you will get "Masala Vada from a Andangakka". Please dont neglect.

One more..

Thanjaavooru Mannu eduthu, Thamirabarani thanniya vittu
Serthu Serthu Senjadhu Unga Cellu...
Adhu cellu illa cellu illa, Sengallu !

Hmm... Thank God SMS was a free service.. There are hell lot of fwd:SMS that keep coming around..

One such thing is

Ganguly: En paer Saurav, muzhu paer Saurav Ganguly.

Saurav's Doctor: Ivarala 15 nimisathaku maela entha pitchlayum batting panna mudiyathu.
Yarro ivar thalaila vegama ball pottu thakiyirukaanga; ivar oru SHORT TERM BATTING LOSS patient.

Addadddaaddaaaa..... thaaanga mudilayappa...

How would you feel, after reading anyone of the above, when you are sitting inside a meeting room ? I felt funny, and tried all possible facial expressions to control my laughter.

ஜாதிகள் இன்னும் இருக்குதடி பாப்பா !

Stop. Think.

Are you one of the guys who would struggle to abolish the Caste System ? Read on.
Realize a few more Castes we have created.

"இந்த Cycle காரணுங்களே இப்டித்தான்"

"வெறும் Call Centre உத்யோகம் பார்க்கராரா ? "

"AUTO காரன் எல்லாம் கொள்ளைக்கார பசங்க !"

There are a lot more. LOT MORE. We are humans. I know a many of us want to abolish all the categoizations and evolve under a single Roof ! But trust me, we always tend to categorize. We always want to split. I see people praised and critisized based on their jobs. That is how the Caste system started.. And we are "Murpokku vaadhigal" and we still do it.

The Way i see it, the "Murpokkuvaadhigal" have only developed a few more castes instead of abolishing.

"The Villiwakkam Auto Stand Union" will become a "Jaathi Sangam". "The Ayanavaaram Mudi Thiruththuvor Sangam" will be one too.. "Chennai Kaigari Vyaabarigal" will become a Vote Bank.

Guys, there are more castes than you thought there was !! What can you do ??

Anbe Venkataachalam !!

Anbarasu : "look, i dont understand your jokes man !!!"

Nallasivam : "Becasue, its not a joke.... முன்ன பின்ன தெரியாத ஒரு பையனுக்காக கண்ணீர் விடர மனசு இருக்கே, என்னப் பொருத்த வரைக்கும் அதுதான் கடவுள்"

Anbarasu : "huh !! heh .... thank you... என்ன திடீர்னு இந்த பணிவு ??"

Nallasivam : "ஏன்னா நானும் கடவுள் !! "

Anbarasu : "haaah !! நினைச்சேன் !! ஏதாவது hook இருக்கனுமே ......"

................

Nallasivam : "A. ARS....... You are a good man."

Anbarasu : "...hmmm :) so, are you.."

Nallasivam : "I know ......" :)

Successful 50th time. Watched my alltime fave "Anbe Sivam" yet again.
Neeyum Naanum Sivamaaampa !!

Avyukta Chips

Just apply Two Filters on Photoshop CS2 and you will get this effect.
But when I showed my mom, she said "Ennada.. Kannellam asingamaa.."

____________________________

Today, at work, we are compensating for the day that was declared a Holiday due to Rains. Looks like today will again be a holiday, because of the rain. Ha ha he haae heeeeh haaa ..yahooo !

____________________________

If you hadnt heard "Pibare Raamarasam" from Morning Raaga, I recommend you listen to it very soon. Early morning. Rain outside. Cold Inside. A little noisy Silence.A Shrill voice. Heavens. You need to hear it.

____________________________

Dont blame it on the Politicians. I saw people who own 2 FLoor buildings, rushing to get the relief measures. They are rich guys, yet run to get the relief, despite the fact that they did not suffer.

On a different Tone, Adengappa Prabhu said people where rushing into CompUSA like hell to get the best deals on the Black Friday sale.

People are People everywhere.

Ketta Naal Mudhal

Kanda Naal Mudhal

What kind of movie is this ?? Looks to me as if 3 people ditching each other. The Movie hasnt overdone the hype. So, it is as silent as it can be before the release. Wish it makes noise after release.

Priya - who's been with Maniratnam directs this movie. Prakashraj is the producer (I really appreciate him for his experiments).

PC Sriram has our eyes. Yuvan Shankar Raja has our Ears. (He already has mine..)

Talk of songs in the movie. Boy, it was released looong back. Seems to be some problems releasing the movie (like Thavamai Thavam Irundhu..)..

6 Songs. Cant expect all of them to be good. No Music Listener will expect all the songs in a movie to be good. Do you know why ? Anyways, 3 songs are just too good in the movie. YSR Rocks.

Kanda Naal Mudhal, is sung by Subhiksha and Pooja. Its a carnatic based song. I wouldnt say it is a perfect one. But i keep hearing this repeatedly. "Ennamo Pannudhu !!" on hearing this song. The way the song starts might irritate a few people. Carnatic music lovers will hate for a simple reason that every Music director adds a fast beat to a carnatic song, and calles it a Novel song.. but the Raagam of the song is thrilling, and got high peaks.. Dont try to sing it in front of people. They might think you are hitting your last breath. Must Hear.

Merke Merke, is a sure hit. Already all the ears in my office have surrendered to this song.Shankar Mahadevan and Sadhana Sargam would have enjoyed singing this plain and simple rythm. This song wins for simplicity. Cool song.. Lyrics are worth a listen.. You are sure to humm the humm (this one features the trailer, i believe).

Panithuli Panithuli, (why do songs always start like this.. "rukumani rukumani","humma humma","oorvasi oorvasi", "oruvan oruvan","ey.. shabba ey.. shabba"... and the list is endless... why o why ?) is a beautiful song, and that I realized very late. KayKay, Shreya Ghoshal and Thanvi have voiced this song. YSR shows his intelligence in music (Thiramaiya kaamichuttar) through this song. In a song, if the instruments support the voices, instead of being independant and showing off, the song is already a good one. This is such a song, with underplayed instruments. "Pesumbodhe Pesumbothe Mounamaanom" appdinnu Uchchasthayiyil paadum bodhu, we melt.

Erimalai Naane, Shankar Mahadevan and Vasundhara Das. This is yet another song, that will remind you of some song or the other. It is in the hands of time, that this song will become a hit. Otherwise, it is just an effortless song..

Other 2 songs, Koo Koovena and Pushing it are just another songs in their genre. Pushing it is YSR's Englipees paattu where he sings in unknown english lines... im getting to hate this kind. Thevai illaye Mr. YSR.

On the whole 3.5/6 have passed. So, this is set with good music. If the movie is getting in the right time, and has a promising story... Prakashraj will win in his efforts. Im placing my bets on this movie. You ?

Anju vechcha Paththu.. Paththu vechcha Irubadhu... vaa naina vaa.

To Notepad Fans

I've seen most of the software developers use Notepad as their slaves. Yet, most of their activities revolve around it. Development in a wider sense means COPY-PASTE. So, Clipboard means a lot to software developers, and Notepad is their Multi-tier Clipboard.

If you fall under that category, or if you use Notepad extensively... here's makig your life simpler.

Welcome to KeyNote.



You press Esc, and the application will minimize to your system tray (not even Start Bar)
And the beauty is, you dont have to save.. It auto saves.

Also, you can store your contents like a Parent Child/ Sibling format..
This is what it looks like.

It is more like an Organized Scrap Book.
Give it a try, when you find time.

The Application Setup is available here.

Rain and Shine all the Way

Yesterday was good.

I started the Honda Avyukta (!) 8.30 Am. Cool Breeze.

Kilpauk Water tank road - Getting Dark.

Kellys - Drizzling... I get down, wear my rain gear.. (just a cap..)

Damaaaal - Something fell from above.. Rain it was.. it wasnt separated drops of rain.. it was like a huge mass of water pouring.. whoopa ! Semma mazhai.. for 10 minutes.. I stood under a tree with all the other fellow Bikers. (This is funny. Standing under a tree, when its raining doesnt keep you out of rain.. It still rains. You can only prevent yourself from those powerful, sharp edged rain drops that pierce your face, when you are trying to pace up.)

After 10 minutes - rain stopped. All the refugees started their bikes and fled, with a few "no. i wont start" bikes staying back below the tree.

Pantheon road - It is shining bright like April. As if nothing has happened.

Hmm.. Chennai Is gone Crazy.. Too very Crazy.

###############################################

Here's another Castpost. An Audio file from Anthimantharai.

I keep getting this music, but am Not sure if this is the same Bharathiraja - AR Rahman movie that won an award even before release.. (and hence didnt run at all). But all the music collection for this movie so far has been excellent. Listen to this one.

I've heard that Naveen is the person who plays Flute for ARRahman. If someone could give me his address, I will go meet him and fall on his feet.. for his Bombay Theme and many many other excellent Music on Rahman's songs and backgrounds.

Even in the Anthimantharai song posted above, the flute rules.

"Thulai Sellum Kaatru Mellisayaadhal Adhisayam"

Cast A Post

Guys, check this out.

You will certainly love it, if you dont want a paid AudioBlog.

Here's my AudioBlog.

Apart from holding a separate blog, you could also post on your Existing Blog, like this.



Castpost

The War of Game Shows

Looks like Sun TV is jumping back to game. Ramya Krishnan features in Sun TVs new game show "Thanga Vettai" (Gold Hunt).

Sun TV already sucked at replicating "Kaun Banega Crorepati". Sarathkumar's flop show "Koteeswaran" did not reach people as expected. But Jaya TV's "Jackpot" is rocking sundays, nowadays.

Vijay TV's "Vasool Rani" is what seems to have triggered up the fire. A very different show with reasonably good questions (some were difficult even) has fastly crawled in to the TV Menu of the audience. The anchor of the show is Balaji (who seems to be a popular Radio Jockey). This guy takes the show with cool pace, and i think he is fairly a good reason for the hit of the show.

Jaya TV has now got Meena to play "Houseful" game. This is a SMS driven game show, where anyone from their living rooms can participate.. This game is what is called "Tambola".. something we used to play in office, occasionally.

Now Sun TV cant be numb, watching all the games (or Game SHows) going around them. So here they are with 200 Gms of GOLD (i guess so, im not sure about the number). Ramya Krishnan will give 200 Gms of GOLD to the Winner of "Thanga Vettai".

Adhayum dhaan paarpome !

Hmm. Get reminded of Playwin's Slogan.
"Khelo India, Khelo !"

Detour - The Cool Hunter

This is some site I've been long waiting for... Wierd and "What the Heck" Gadgets all featured on this site.

The First Image is a Roll out WALL. You just take it with you (easily foldable) and you can make a wall around you, just about anywhere. :)

The second one is a Cable/Wire Winder You can wind up the loosely hanging wires around these creature toys..

The third one is a Cable Identifier.. You can wind up cables with this, and write over it to identify the cable's purpose.


There are much much more on the website.. different gadgets and products that are just not-ordinary.

Visit the website, here. The Cool Hunter.

PS -

• Whats with this ? Im getting more forwards on Krishnamurthi (seems to be a philosopher)..
• I've added back the Google Adsesnse, with just Images banners ads. Looks good... (you know what to do)

Of Slow Songs

One thing that Struck me when I watched "Sollitharavaa" in "Majaa". Immediate thought.

"Suttum Vizhi Sudare" should have been choreographed and cinematographed like this.

It simply didnt require Surya dancing to the beats, and it was close to comedy the way he was dancing. It was a good song spoiled.

Usually, the Oliyum Oliyum days, I used to wait and watch the songs on TV than just listening to it. Because the video part was pulling the audience.. "Uyire Uyire" from Bombay had no dance/special effects/not even foreign location. Yet made me watch it everytime, its on TV.

Its only after watching the movie on theatre, Im repeatedly listening to "Sollitharavaa.. Sollitharavaaaa" from Maja. Its got a Vintage effect. You can easily put MGR and KR. Vijaya in it... resembles a very old song. Still the melody wins beyond replication. Give it a listen.

This song is sung by Madhu Balakrishnan and Sadhana Sargam. Perfect corellation between the voices.

There's another Madhu Balakrishnan song playing on Avyukta. "Kanden Kanden" from Madurey. Its another impressive song, with good editing... Freeze frame worked out well with the Slow song too.. waw !

Many directors struggle to make a Slow song. A very few succeed. Remember K. Balachander showed two people conversing over the phone for 5 minutes.. and made it a Hit song and its always interesting to watch the song. (Sangeetha Swarangal from Azhagan)...

PS - Why does Vikram apply "Kan Mai" to his eyes in that song... looks odd. Probably to make Asin look even more beeetiful.

Meet the Chennai Bloggers

I'm planning to attend it. If you are in Chennai on the mentioned date and time.. Ill be glad to meet you.

Visit www.Kiruba.com for more details on the Chennai Blogger Meet.

New photo on Photoshop blog.

Payanigalin Kanivaana Gavanathirku !

Thanks to GowriShankar for showing the Showcases of IRFCA .

Do you recognize this picture ? It is the Legendary MG Train from Beach to Tambaram.

The picture was taken when the Train headed off to the Shed, after its Last Ever journey on the Beach - Tambaram line. Picture Credits - Jason Antony (Webmaster of IRFCA).

I remember a lot of Ardent Fans (Adharsha in Tamil) of the MG Train were on the last journey. Train to those people was a part of their life. Actually a very important part of their life.

The IRFCA Showcase features a lot of photographs, thats not just picturing the Train as such, but with Tons of beauty added to trains.

Look at this picture. It says the theme.

The train is heading to Heavens. It wont run anymore. With the Inner Lights off and just the Headlights on, the photographer has lied on his back, and taken the Photo.

You might want to take a look at the Photo Gallery of IRFCA.

Off Beat : Thanks to Chakra's email.. He sent me a few Sivaji's Punch Dialogues.. Here's my Favourite.
Singathe konja mudiyathu...Sivajiya minja mudiyathu..

Yesterdays Dilbert Rocks

Click picture for a bigger one. It simply rocks.

SATYA - THE OTHER SIDE OF TRUTH

(Thanks to PK for lending me the CD)

Boy, this is a wonderful movie. Makes us think there is a Manirathnam in Mumbai too. Ram Gopal Varma has directed the movie in Style. It will not be a too exciting movie for Tamil audience, as they have sen more blood and violence. Still, the portrays of life of two guys, Satya and Bikku who become friends, is something that will rest in minds for a long time (if you watched the movie).

Satya, (JD Chakravarthy - last seen on Kannathil Muththamittal) comes to Mumbai looking for a living. Circumstances make him join hands with the Underground Mobs, where he becomes a Pal to Bikku another Dada. Then there is Vidya (Urmila Madonkar) for Satya to get in love with. After that the movie runs till Bikku and Satya Die.

To me, after seeing movies of all Tamil heroes as Dadas, this movie is no good. Yet, there is something every director can learn from this movie. Screenplay.

You would expect a action movie like this to be very fast. Amazingly, this movie is paced at a steady speed. No hick-ups. Hindhi guys always tolerate this 3 hour movies. The Director takes his own time, (and our time too) to slowly recite the story with a lots of reality.

For instance, The commissioner who is pesturing the underworld walk out of his room. Then we hear a low-thud. People walk out and see their Commisioner is dead. No Music. No camera effects. Nothing. Your blood will run cold. The movie is got brilliance everywhere.

Specially the Music and Background Music. Sandeep Chowta and Vishal Bharadwaj are the music guys, and they have done a contemporary work. Infact i wanted to write this post for just mentioning the music.

Some unconventional music in this movie. The Background music is the power of the movie. Badhaloon Se is a song that break the convention and melt on ears. Im repeatedly hearing this. Im struggling to find out the voice behind it.

With Ram Gopal Varma, it looks to me from here as if, there is a lot of room (and money) for experimentation. As Lazygeek mentioned earlier on his post, we certainly need Ram Gopal Varma in Tamil, for these kind of experimentations.

I think we have enough directors. We only need producers.

Quick Trivia : Theres a report on Google Analytics, and its called "Visitor Loyalty".

Kumaramangala Birla

• Kumaramangalam wins Ernst & Young entrepreneur of the year award
• Kumaramangalam Birla eighth youngest billionaire

This is Kumaramangalam Birla, Son of Aditya Birla and Chairman of Aditya Birla Group.

He is in newspapers and webpages for the past few days for those achievements mentioned on the top. I tried replacing Kumaramangalam with Keerthivasan. Looked Good.. :)

Thats right. Anybody would want to be in the limelight this person is currently in. And he seem to deserve this because he brought back Aditya Birla group back to business, when the group was Warned of falling apart. From then on, Kumaramangalam, who took over from his father has taken the Group in the path of growth and prosperity.

Asia Times has an article about him. (and many other sites are featuring him).

At a young age, the boy billionaire has hit upon a winning formula: he lets the achievements of his companies, and not his immense wealth, do the talking for him.

Read this article. To me, it was a difference than reading the same old Wipro and Infosys story.

Quick question for you.. how do you pronounce "Entrepreneur".. few of my CA friends pronounced it in a way that sounds like "On-thra-pruno(r)"... Once i start pronouncing it properly, i will try and become one.. :)

The Essence of Friendship

The following is not a real life Incident. IT IS A STORY (ATTEMPT). It is a story of Ego and Friendship..


9 beep
8 beep
8 beep
4 beep
4 beep
1 beep
5 beep
6 beep
5 beep
3 beep

"the hutch number you have called is busy. Please try again later.."

9 beep
8 beep
8 beep
4 beep
4 beep
1 beep
5 beep
6 beep
5 beep
3 beep

"the hutch number you have called is bu" beep.

"pch,.. saniyan saniyan.."

9 beep
8 beep beep beep beep

"ayyo kadavule..."

keeps staring at the display..

SMS should be a good option. when typing...

"Shrikanth Calling...".... tring tring

"dei shrikanth.. arivu kettavane. enga da irukke.."

" tro dla ir en.. e na vish "

"hello !! hello! !"

running out.

"call ended.." beep.

9 beep
8 beep
8 beep
4 beep
4 beep
1 beep
5 beep
6 beep
5 beep
3 beep

"hello.. cholluda keerthi."

"enge da irukke"

"Mountroadla irukken.. enna vishayam.."

"ramoda appa..."

"kojam kaththi pae dhile vizhale"

turning impatiently.. was already outside

"hello ! hello.. ippo kekkaradhaa ?"

"mm.. chollu.. "

"raamoda appa udambu sari illayaam.. SMF la ICUla admit "

"ayyayyo.. endha hospital.. ennacchu ?"

"SMFla ICUla irukkaar.."

"adaaada... n poi paarthiyaa ?"

"..........."

"keerthi.. hello.. !!"

"mm .. sollu.. nee udane kilambi vaa.. ille .. illanna onnu pannu.. nee nera hospital poyidu"

"neeyum vandhudu.. raghuvaiyum azhaichindu vaa.. "

"raghuva poga sollitten. .avan anga dhaan irukkan.. guruvum poyindirukkan. nee seekiram poyidu"

"nee varalaya..?"

"....enna poriyaa ?"

"innum sandai theeralaya ungalukkulle.. ?"

"adha paththi yellam appuram paesalaam.. mudhalla aagavendiya kaariyaththa gavani.."

"podang.. neeyum... seri machchan .. naan ange pona udane phone pannaren..:"

"m,mm"

Beep.

Tring tring... "Raghu calling...."

"sollu raghu.. enna aachchu ?"

"ennada pannre phonai vachu kittu .. engagedaa irukku ?"

"shriya kooptu varacholli irukken.. vandhunde irukkaaaan.. ange enna aachu??"

"sari illada.. critical.. pch.. appava paarthu azhudhunde irukkaan.. enakku enna panradhunnu theriyala.. "

"..........."

"seri.. kelu 3 units A1+ venum.."

"ok da.. udane arrange pannaren.."

"seri vechudu.. naan thirumbi pannren.. guru vandhuttaan.,"

"ok.,. blood arrange pannittu koopidaren.."

"sari vechudaren.."

"iru iru.. "

"enna"

"avana azha vendaamnu sollu..... thairiyama irukka sollu"

"neeye paesen.."

"vendam.." beep.

Google Analytics - Start Tracking

Kallaas !! Heres a new Hit Counter with a lots of reports and views. This time it is from the God. Google Analytics (surprisingly not on Beta) looks promising with cool views and reports. I havent had much traffic in this minute, where i signed up and took a report instantly. Let me see that, at End of day.

But there is a problem. Google restricts it to users who have lesser than 5 million pageviews a month. Now thats bad for bloggers like you and me (Duh !! how many zeroes will a million have ?)

Go ahead subscribe for it, and install it on your page. Be careful on install. You dont put this on your side-bar. You need to add it before the < / head> tag. This is because the script acts integrated with Ad-sense/Ad-words. Those are not of much interest to me. Im simply satisfied with the statistic.

The Q is Dead and Karuthu is born.

Two sites caught my attention today morning. One is www.Karuthu.com

Launched by Writer Sujatha, this site is owned by Kanimozhi Karunanidhi (thats what I read in the news). This site is no better than a forum, where people are free to opine their thoughts. Well, it would have been a better Idea to have started a Blog. Nyways, Congratulations on the launch, and Good Luck on the forum. Let us see how far it can make an impact. (If someone from there is reading this, a suggestion to you. The Site throws many uncaught errors.. please handle them).

The Other Site. www.theCinema.in

Many of you would be already into this. But for those who arent yet aware of this service, this is the Sathyam Theatre way of telling "The Q is Dead". Similar to the "old and beautiful" ClickTickets.com, this site shows the show timings and availablilty of "Elite"(?), "Premium" and "Economy" classes. You could book upto 10 tickets. You can also see the seat numbers. You will need a Credit Card to purchase. But there is no Delivery funda. You need to go to Sathyam and collect it, but you can do that at any time of the day. But i think this is a good service. (Rs. 5 Service charge per ticket). Its worth if you like movies and hate Queues.

Vintage Torrents

My BSNL Broadband is free from 2 AM to 8 AM. So, when there are nothing else to dowload, I plug-in the SHAREAZA and start downloading a few older movies.

Bhama Vijayam and Server Sundaram is now on the Download.

More than anyone, i like the movie for BALAIYA. There is a time when every Kid hates Black and White movies. My childhood days where slaughtered by DD. I hated the announcer who will name some very old and boring MGR movie for the Next sunday, in "Munnottam". I have seen Balayya then, as a Villain. "Pssss... Nialakala Gandam" he would say in some MGR movie. I liked the style, and asked my dad about him. That was like pulling a trigger. My dad, a great fan of Balayya, started poring out the pleasure of watching him act. I didnt understand that, that time.

Now, as I grow up, I have some kind of affection towards the Vintage movies. And especially wonder that an Actor like Balayya existed in our industry. There is on Muthuraman movie (i dont remember the title) where Balaiya and a few others are threatened by some anon, that they were going to be killed. Balaiyya's fear is a high comedy and something I enjoy watching everytime. Very sad that the search for Balayya in Google returns useless results. Someone can put up something on him.

Nowadays, if there is some B/W movie on Sun TV... Im putting Avyukta on Stand-by. No doubt, "Thalayil Greedam vechcha Padam" is sure to be watched anytime. Apart from that, the Nakesh movies like "Neer Kumizhi", "Edhir Neechchal", "Server Sundaram", "Bhama Vijayam", "Kadhalikka Naeramillai" are my all time favourites. (Yaaravadhu Disc vechurundha Sollungalen !) I have watched Raja Raja Chozhan, umpty number of times, and Yet 'am not bored of it. Tension free, you know. I wont watch Thillana Mohanaambal like that. Just watch the funny scenes.. especially the Balaiya ones (the train sequence still runs on my eyes). Nunippul Meydhal.

I think Delhi Ganesh is a similar Character Artist who excels like that. Dont you think ?

Kushbu - under arrest

5.30 AM news says Kushbu will be arrested any moment now. (probably arrested, when you are reading this)

She has been issued a non-bailable warrant.

Now dont agitate for this. Understand Kushbu's current arrest warrant is for "Not appearing in the court" and not for whatever she spoke.

Would Kushbu have, when at the top of her career, imagined that something or any thing of this flavour could ever happen in her life.

She couldnt have even guessed this, when she spoke to the media about the "pre-marital sex".

She would not be treated like a normal criminal. She would easily come out in bail, after the non-bail period is over.

YET, something tells me all that whats happening to Kushbu is cheap stunts. There is empty arguements about her talk. People talk just for the sake of opposing her, or to create a scene.

Makes me think, in Shobha Warrior style, Please apply for US Visa if you want to talk freely. India is closed for any opinions.

Shri KR Narayanan [1920 - 2005]

Amid chanting of prayers of all religions and a 21-gun salute, the mortal remains of Narayanan were consigned to flames before a host of dignitaries. Narayanan died here on Wednesday at the age of 85 after a brief spell of illness. The last rites were performed by Dr S Ramachandran, his nephew, at a spot between 'Shanti Van', the memorial of Jawaharlal Nehru, and 'Vijay Ghat', that of Lal Bahadur Shastri. Prior to the rituals, representatives of all religions offered prayers for the peace of the departed soul.

- Times of India

The Innocent smile. Dachu caught on mobile camera. My friend KB at the background. Me and Dachu's dad are hardcore Kamal fans. But this kid is always stuck up with "Devda ! Deehda" (Devuda in Chandramukhi).

You should be blessed to be in the presence of an Active kid.

The Hangman - Not a Game this time.

Do not read this if you are very kind-hearted and flimsy to emotions.

Well, Ive warned you enough. Go further at your own risk. I am going to Cut and paste an article that I read on a web-site that spoiled my day. It gave me the effect of watching a Virumandi Movie.

The News is this. An Australian Guy has been given death sentence in Singapore. Singapore will not give exceptions just because of Australia. So, the Australian Magazine has come out with the interview of the Executioner who will Execute the Australian.

In a very bizzare interview, Darshan Singh the Singaporean Executioner says that he charges $400 for each kill. To him its a plain and simple Profession(!).

He has retired from his Job. Yet he is called by the Singaporean Govt. to execute people. His career Chart shows 850 people executed by him.

To mark his 500th hanging four years ago, four of his former colleagues turned up at his home to celebrate the event with a couple of bottles of Chivas Regal.

He Says "Death has always come instantaneously and painlessly. In that split second, at precisely 6am, it's all over."

When his colleague asked him why he had stayed so long in such a gruesome job, he replied: "It's all I know. It has become my bread and butter."

The last lines he says to the convict, before pulling the lever is
""I am going to send you to a better place than this. God bless you."

Think about this guys. I reminded of Virumandi here. The movie opens up with the lines
"Death Penalty is a form of Judicially Sanctioned Murder"

It has been on high debates. A hot issue, no matter who takes it. Killing life of a murderer is not yet justified. I remember watching Live on BBC, a convict executed by Lethal Injection (few years before). Cruel.

Here's a excerpt from this Link.

Under Indian law, the death penalty can be imposed for murder, gang robbery with murder, abetting the suicide of a child or insane person, waging war against the state, abetting mutiny by a member of the armed forces.

In recent years, special courts have also extended the penalty to cases of terrorism under anti-terror legislation. And some people are pushing for it to be used against rapists.There are currently 1,700 people on death row, according to a study by People's Union for Democratic Rights.The Union Home Ministry has no official figures for the number of executions in post-independent India. But estimates put the figure at over 1,500.

Punishment by death is never a solution to a crime. Practically guys, the Idea is to bring fear on minds. But no one's scared. Why then should Capital Punishment be retained ?

What is Your Voice On it ?

PS - Read the Full Articles here and Here. Please Do read. News Through BoingBoing

What ? But I warned you already !!

Sounding too much

Many people who saw Avyukta, liked it. (Avyukta - My Home PC). It was each for different reason.

The Black Look..
The most - Comfortable custom-made table...
The Keyboard (TVS Gold - Black)..

and most of all the Sound of Avyukta.

I've installed a Creative Sound Blaster Live! sound card on. It is powered with Creative 5.1 Surround Speakers. Now, thats a decent configuration to expect quality music from my PC.

Its not "too-much of sound". Its just quality sound. No "Iraichals"..
It enables you to hear the guy in the corner of the Music Troop using Cymbals. It brings out the PAN effect (left separate.. right separate.. rear separate) that coms along the music. On board sound cards have minimum capability, and the Speakers with it are just speaking instruments. No intelligence there. But a 5.1 Woofer will separate the digital tracks and split the output to different speakers depending on the music.

Here's me suggesting you a "worthy-spend". Creative Sound Blaster Live! (Adhavida bettera Audigy irukku.. but this will suffice) and Creative 5.1 Surround Speakers will together cost you appx Rs. 6500+.

WARNING: If you are in Chennai, there are a lot of Duplicate Creative products. Beware.

If you think, the ordinary Tape-recorder or Music System will be enough,...well, that will be good too. But I like it better on the computer.