A Tribute to Contemporary Greats

Be not afraid of greatness: some are born great, some achieve greatness,and some have greatness thrust upon them. William Shakespeare Follwing is the list of illustrious awardees of the PadmaVibhushan. 1. R.K Laxman 2. Karan Singh 3. R K Narayanan 4. lata Mangeshkar As ubiquituous as the will of man to get up and make aliving each and every day of his life is present, so is the sight ofmillions of youngsters, with a badge around their necks, helmet in theirhands and hope in their eyes present, called as the 'species' of softwareengineers. But amongst the millions that go out there and try to make aliving , few rise and stand up to be counted. There are few who go beyondthe usual stereotype of choosing what to do as their profession and committo their duties through the best they can. And it is my humble pleasure, asan observer, to present before you, in my very limited capabilites as afan of such great beings, the creme of the software crop from our batch whohave risen like a phoenix and showed the true levels of excellence. Wipro, a company headed by Azim Premji, has chosen the true visionand foresight in selecting the right resources for doing their job and Ipresent before you, in equal command with the dignitaries in the listpresented above, the esteemed few before whom we must bow down. 1. J 'Quarter' Balajee 2. Vinoth Ranganathan 3. Jyoti Shankar 4. Last , but not the least, is the figure of a man in a black Tantra Tshirt with an existentialist quote and a stubble storming through the doorsof the Wipro Office in Pune, only to be stopped by the swoon of milliongirls in his ODC. The figure of 'Bhai'enters the office dressed, only inblack, as a thumb rule, with his 'tough guy' image, and sits in front ofhis workstation only after wills navy cut has been graced by his presence.When not coding vigorously and applyin his razor sharp mind to functionalSAP applications, 'Bhai' relaxes by flirting with his colleague who sitswith him and taking leisurely strolls on the Wipro gardens, where the lady,charmed by Bhai's rough guy image, gives in to his machismo and succumbs tohis fairy tales of life. But far from the magnitude of his greatness in romanticphilandery, is this man's greatness in SAP. Day after DAy, the client sitsstunned by the quality of the deliverables and can only execute a sigh ,comparable to the long sighs on seeing a sculpture of Michaelangelo.Client appreciation letters sit in droves on 'bhai's' cubicle and he giftsthem to the sweeper everyday as a token of gratitude. When done for theday, Bhai, switches off his monitor in a moment of complete disregard forthe system, which he shakes away by his near perfect and exquisite skill. What is a testament to all the qualities above, is the awardwhich I am mentioning, called as the Wipro Quarterly Award for Excellence.All these illustrious and highly regarded men, which I have just mentioned,have been concipients of this award,and, just yesterday, 'Bhai' has beenconferred this honour too. It was reported that the Delivery Head in Punedirectly got a reprimand from Premji himself that talent was recognized solate. It is not common for misguided and aimless youths like us, whosit at the ground and wait for some sign of hope to take them away fromtheir exasperation. It is just then that God gifts a guiding star in thesky whom we follow blindly in our paths of life. I , now have the honour,privilege and utmost respect to reveal 'Bhai' as none other than our ownArun Iyer, who has transformed and given a new name to 'excellence' and'attitude'. Please join me in conveying heartiest congratulations to all the four and continuing to serve as a role model for all of us. -As Explained by a Junkie

Shani's Joint - Complete Write Up

M.G Avenue Durgapur isn't exac tly Sunset Boulevard. On first glance, the road does not emit any charm for the beholder. You look for the commercial bustlings, and the droning buzz of a crowd, and it's not there. What it is though, is a seemingly endless stretch of a road , promising to give glimpses of eternity. On this road, lies a small bamboo thatched hut, situated ina 2X4 space; 'Jhoops' to the unfamiliar. Opposite it, lies a humungous (by meagre standards) sprawling educational campus, called as NIT Durgapur. Holding out to over a span of 180 acres, this institution proclaims to live on the motto 'Satyamev Jayate' upholding and supposedly deemed to instill values of love, truth, dignity and sacrifice. Ironically though, it is the small bamboo hut that acts as the mythical Gurukul and teaches a group of 400 confused, purposeless and carefree souls a thing or two about the biggest game they are yet to play called Life. Run by a small, dimunitive mustachioed guy for whom our bucket of affectionate names range from 'Sani' to 'Malik'. (Heck, God comes a close second to this guy) Jhoops was the Shangri La from the tales of epic folklore, a holiday for the soul, that every man aspires to go for one day. John Lennon once said "Life is what happens to you when you are busy making other plans, in its esence that was what it was. Jhoops was a collection of some lessons learnt in life, the right way. Whether it is the sublime joy that one realised on being a 'spectator' in the truest sense of the word, watching the slow traffic and streams of people moving on, endlessly sipping cups of 'chai' in between.There was also the joy learnt of bonding, one that talked about a child like baneter, a communion oblivious to the ghastly prejudices that kill an innocence in the man. But the most lesson that one learnt there was liberation. There are very few things in life that can show you the fabled stairway to heaven here on earth itself. Making love to a maiden in the wilderness is a good first. But lying on an elevated cement platform, facing the open skies and longing for every moment of that enlightened bliss to last forever, comes a very close second. - As Explained by a junkie

Winter Day Blues

chilly morning...winter is about to set in and i cannot help but think about the bad winters we had in durgapur... its probably 8 am...time to get up...else i shall be late to office...but the extra 15 mins of sleep is too satisfying..so i just dig my self deeper into the cave between the bed and my blanket. Background thoughts include mild pondering about getting late to office and my boss telling me,"you are late?"...or maybe he will just observe and save the complain for tomorrow...15 mins it is... when you have to go to office, mornings can feel so meaningless... at the same time, i am feeling the block in my nose...some difficulty in breathing..the strange taste the forms between the tongue and the roof of my mouth...signs that i wont be able to sleep longer...the bad taste, the fear of a sneeze...it takes so little to get me worried. i turn to my watch for solace...its just been 4 out of the 15 min extra time.... sinusitis has been so common to humans, these days it is considered normal. i need some more healthy sleep. last nite was heavy...saw a movie...Matrubhoomi... i had the opportunity to see it the day before....but like everyone of my age....i have priorities...given a TV and a DVD player and a plethora of movies....i would move to the movies only after the channels that tirelessly trasmit wide bandwidths of sleaze at late nights recieve my due respects....after all...cable TV has worked wonders in changing lives....uniformly..for both men and women...and i cannot help but think...what an invention..!! coming back to the movie...sensitive social issues always find it very easy to trouble me...caste system, plight of women, female infanticide...etc... i do know of some women who are also affected deeply by not so very sensitive issues like chivalry, kindness towards people's pets, feeling of oneness with a particular breed of animals(viz. cats and dogs)...and suddenly it occurs to me...there is absolutely no connection....no common thread ever to cross-over from their side to mine...in short...i should not try to hit on them...it just wont work..!! .......the movie is set in rural india, a land of villages, where the farthest any man has ever gone is the nearest city and farthest they can think of going is probably the edge of the world...very similar to the Dr.Ambedkar era in our history books, the village in focus has zamindars or some families belonging to a particular caste...and a fairly larger population of families belonging to something known as lower castes...the oppressed......the issues in question are female infanticide...dowry....and greed.as usual...the rashness of an average north indian helps in making the audience very disturbed and sympathetic...there is a lot of scope throughout the movie for the director to paint the celluloid with gory and violent scenes...but for good reasons..he doesnt....and hence it is somewhat comfortable to watch......it is a must watch.now why do i tell u all this... anna - it is very important for the system that people are aware of such movies. spread the awareness in a very able way. besides, as PAANCH is being released on the 29th dec.....u need newer things to be depressed about....good acting,direction,script,story etc.... haria - it is very important for me that u see this movie and we take the cats and dogs issue to a newer level. besides...movies form a great percentage of our thought fodder too.. jitu - just makes good reading. tu light le raha hai...fine. these are but very few reasons to tell about the movie....there is more....more to the factual side...and to the humor side...i read today in the newspapers that Anaida...that awesome petite arabic siren,,,is back with a new album....she says...she has been touring arnd the world for the past 4 yrs and made 40 song recordings....cut it down to 14 and the album is called NAYAA....she also adds that - this album is no shortcut....now scantily dressed women in the background....good music only...to which i have to reply... madam, ur pursuits to make money are nobler than mine and that should be satisfactory for ur soul...the 4 yrs since u have been gone have not affected me in any way...but yes i did enjoy seeing you on TV...plz pay attention to wat i say....i donot care about ur shortcuts or hardwork...and i donot give a shit about which country u choose to record ur songs...all i care about the scantily dressed women in ur videos...and especially u dressed scantili-est (if that is a word) of all in ur own videos...i donot care about how many radiostations play ur song...bcos they cant show me the video at the same time... i care about how many close up shots of ur body are available on the internet....if i have to listen to music...i have better choices to exercise...among few whom we could listen to together, feel happy and not understand a word or...not understand a word and feel happy...is a man from the hills. i am worried about how many sheikhs and oil barons enjoyed ur company during ur absence from the media.Period. winter day blues.

Subah Ho Gayi Mamu..

morning....8.30 am...monday... or is it a sunday...i hope it is... yesterday was a sunday...cos the day before too was a holiday....that makes it a saturday... a little nap won't matter...its 9.10 am....and it is definitely a monday... to office......bikes, cars, volvo buses, more bikes...some chick ona scooty..hmm...another bike.......office...breakfast...email...timesheet...hi....bye...good morning...how was ur weekend.??...wats new?....didnt see u for a while....oh...the training in bombay...hmm..how did it go...??...@#$@#%#>..more gibberish...!!!!! i can see that my no work has been delegated to me for the day....i have time to pass....7 hours more..try harder...and smooth it shall go.......a motive....spice in life....!!!!!!!!. ......a search...women.....cell fone...sms....and wallah!!!!!!! hey princess....how r u? hows college treating u?how was ur mock cat? hi...y do u call me princess..? college is fine... 225 questions this time in mock. did u write it??yes i did. i call u so cos u r a princess...hehe!!.. hows work?fine. did u go to the inxs gig? no..didnt get passes...did u go? Nope. so...wat else??? have a nice day!!! same to u!!! .................................................and thus my day is lightened by the mild entry of few sentences from a college going hot bangalore chick...and i begin to think....am i happy or am i happy...?? i donot care for all the shitty conversation that i just had....they donot change anything... there is a procedure in UNIX...the command BEGIN...resets all the environmental variables...now i know that the term ENVIRONMENTAL VARIABLES are a tough set to comprehend..but a little attentionto the efficiency of the word BEGIN in such a system can be very rewarding... it is only after i type BEGIN...that i can actually start working on a particular UNIX session.,..bringing the same analogy to our system...a resetting of environmental variables can help... diversions like the conversation - so beautifully illustrated particularly for ur understanding and my liking -given above....are sometimes....u might say...necessary to get ur mind off things....off things that bother u on a monday morning....if such an act actually works....in our hindu ideology...we call such an act -- a good omen.....now if you all believe in what i say....reply back...and even if u dont......just reply back....amen!

Bad Day Blues..

hello....i m back....not with a lot of energy..but a tired self.... which i m about to impose upon you..we have seen mondays which we could not wait for...and mondays which we could never stop waiting...but some how the space time continuum fails to appease our wishes....and the mondays do come...and so do the mondays after that... apart from the fact that many among us are troubled with trivial questions like whether we are cat people or dog people....some of us have even borrowed sorrow/sadness from other people's failures. But each monday is a defining moment of setting up a pattern...a template that i tend to follow for the remaining week...which is why it is very important for me to have a happy monday..but my mondays cannot be happy unless i sleep well on sunday night...which again depends on whether i have something bright to wake up to the next morning...and also...on whether i slept on the sunday afternoon...which brings me to a more important thing...it is a rainy afternoon and the only thing thats on my mind is sleep...

Dil Harey Blues..

morning....8.30 am... occasional footsteps from the bathroom to some room on some side of my room... i think its 8.15 pm...reason to believe since people in my wing r still struggling to get to the first class....the Electrical dept... i wake up any way... a look outside the window....hall 5 -- compu wing...1 st floor....calm doors... signs that the whole wing has been abandoned...the last of the mammoth sleeps comfortably...he's confident that the ice age aint coming today....jitu.... my bottle of water.....it needs a refill...look around my room...last nite was just like the night before.. which was very similar to the one before that...only...if i try hard...i can distinctly differentiateon the basis of the no. of packets of 20/- or 25/- that came in... walk out my door....sleepy...tired... too much tar in my lungs to carry....but too less to get me sick... deserted wing...not a soul.....i feel great... in front of me....a room that has its windows always open...the fan always running..which in turnhas been competing with the mr.tubelight who has been bright since his first spark.. yes it belongs to harish mohan...i can visualise him....lying inside there...the bed always on teh ground... no quilt required...no pillow....the door is ajar....wallet lying beside the toothpaste...the toothpaste which has been used by all the reddys in the gulti family....a soap....just one..for all practical purposes...i change my direction.. down....below...outside the boundary wall of hall 5....babloo walks to the mess....we exchange greetings... around the same time...anna rises from his slumber...so does manas...and jitu... probably jitu didnt sleep... somewhere in hall 4...another mishtiwala is getting worried cos he sees shatru coming..pandemonium attack... time -- 9 am.. ppl banging on haria's door....only possibility...roshan...wants to go to class with haria... at first...harish is not enthusiastic...later...agrees..... i have my quickie with the last nite's remains in a newspaper...if i search harder...might even find remains of the night before...or even a month before.... neway...i m happy.. ghosh da is here.. anmol has risen.. sweets and mutton shingara for all..my heaviest meal of the day is done.. one book, one pen, room keys, cell phone...off to class.. eyes wide open as an owl...body as tired as Gandav's horse stoned on pot for 6 months...stare at the board...in class..and then at a girl's back...justice needs to be done..to everything..she's pretty... neway...10.15....next class...need of attendance in question..which depends on the urgency of getting to jhups..and..the no. of class attended previously..which always is low... 10.15 or 11.15..all the same....12.15 is different.. any way...swing to 11.15....happy...the day is over...lotsa things to look out for now.. at first...canteen....i can see the regular public out there....rathi sitting on one bench alone..soni and ashish meandering here and tehre....still sweating out last nites Rum... jyoti and his sidekicks...alongwith arjun and his sidekicks.....2 groups...one mission.....Students' union....amazing thought..arun singh walks in with a muse....mostly vinay singh...cracks some fart....lots of laughs... around this time...my limited words with rathi are exchanged......my time at canteen is done.. bhau, robin, sashi, satna, khan....all gearing up to move to jhups...saxena is already sitting there..tiwari, pandey, chandra..,marching too.. manas,shonkho and haria were just here....as usual haria has to go to the bank...some fuckin token no.... always the same shit.. manas swears at him...shonkho laughs ...they walk away....... enter....jhups... ppl walking out of the college gate...ppl staring at those walking out...from each of the jhups.. this piece of shit...prashantda...the first jhups...stares like a hungry fox... waiting for some1 new tojoin his jhups... we walk on....narru da.... walk on..shani....ppl great shani --aur malik kya haal hai?? aur shani..kya chal raha hai?? ....all the same questions...all answers are same...yet sound unique.. shatru has been sitting there for the past 2 hrs....catching hold of everybody by the neck.. finally...his prime muse arrives from the bank....he jumps with joy....half way outside the jhups...with his plate of chix in hand....carefully...always in the shadow... few of us have had anything since morning....few have had the luxuries of sweets and singaras... all are equally hungry...shani gives all.... cigerettes being lit by the second....FC,SC...etc.etc...burning ones being thrown around...shani's brother- Jeet - running around getting packs of goldflake and navy cut from here and there.. some gestures here and there....we move out...jitu's room.... haria walks on towards gandhi more...alongwith shatru...little does he know that he wont comeback before 5 beers at pathik...next day...again wait for his token..manas, jitu and me....happy....last nites remains shall last until dusk...more people join...celebration....!!

It just got better..

It’s a Tuesday and my week has started…came back yesterday from Redang, Malaysia. Total hrs travelled: 10 + 10 -- to n fro The place is just awesome….simply awesome.. Goa comes a close second…ya seriously. It is beyond the regular expectations of an island….white sand…corals…fishes…snorkeling….decent food for most of the time.. And lots of alcohol… .. . Met a Swedish guy while drinking….which goes along with the perennial destiny thing that co-exists…we never meet women at such occasions..and even if there is one…we don’t move…so drop it.. Now Fredrick…the Swedish guy…was a Dylan Fan….and we spoke about His Holiness…divine supremacy over all mortals etc…. And Fredrick took out his cell-fone and started playing his favorite collection of Dylan songs -- starting with …and I remembered of one such night… When I was fairly high…among the best company ever…and there was Matt……a balding 35ish American who believed in the Bard…and we sang infinite songs that night….yes infinite…until the bitch arrived with two dumb Gujjus and spoilt our moment…brought us back to our desperate muff-seeking reality…and nothing could change it… … Coming back to Frederick and my night of drinking….well we got pretty drunk….we spoke about the boss and we shared a common view about the futility of religion…we spoke a lot of crap.. We were pretty drunk…the bartender….oh…I have to tell you about the bartender.. The Bartender -- Basu -- was half Bangladeshi - half Nepali… Basu was the best bartender ever…just like in the movies…he comes over and talks to you when your mind is at that weakest moment of self-indulgence…and Basu comes over and asks casual question about home and heart…and he tells you about his life… Now Basu is the sweetest Nepali I have ever met…he is comprehensible because of his Bangladeshi roots…but he says he more Nepali cos that’s where he spent most of his life before becoming a Bartender.. Basu is happy to meet someone who speaks Bengali but quickly adds that he doesn’t know it very well…cos he spent his infant years there..and his nepali is better..we choose English. He has been to India…worked in Goa for 3 years…worked in smaller pubs and discs….worked in a 5 star too…and he sweetly pushes in the fact that he is an international Bartender's License holder…used to know around 150 different cocktails (mock tails included)..and now 3 yrs in the island has led to his memory loss…and can recall around 80. Among the various concerns that Basu has, one of them is that the decreasing count of his cocktail memory is due to the unavailability of variety of liquor in the Muslim Country of Malaysia…Also the chances of him going to Jail if the Police find him serving to a Muslim crowd….which as I gathered is an offence…and so after each drink that he poured…he meticulously placed the bottle back inside the numerous unmarked cupboards.. Basu is a man of the hills and 3 years on an island….that too on a beach front (the rest of the island is thick un-inhabited forest) has taken its toll and he has see boredom first hand…which simply tells him to move on to someplace else. He works 2 shifts…one as a bartender in the late evenings…and after that as a guard for the night and it is occasionally that he has the luxury of a conversation with a customer. Sometimes there are busy nights….other times..no lone drinkers. Basu is a man of dreams and ambitions too….he tells me that when he is done with the island..he will move to Melbourne, Australia sometime early next year… Why Australia I ask? He gives a smile and tells me his story. It was a time when Basu was working in a bar opposite to the Australian Embassy in Kathmandu…one of the girls working in there used to frequent this pub. Basu used to walk her home everyday and they fell in love. He plans to settle down with his woman. In my conversation with Fredrick regarding arranged marriages in India…Basu was quick to add that he is a Hindu and will marry the girl of his choice…and that too of foreign origins…Basu will be remembered every time I ask for another drink. So coming back to Fredrick again….the bar closes at 12.30 am…and Basu was kind enough to let us be there till 2 am…and poured us as much as we wished for…I was running on cocktails that night…something like screwdrivers…and Fredrick was on Heineken…the goddamn viking had downed 12 cans of beer. I offered to buy Basu a drink….he refused…he was a teetotaller. We finally called it a night at around 3 am….at which point walking straight was a problem…for some reason Fredrick just went ahead and jumped into the swimming pool..i followed suit…I wondered if there was anybody who would object…but the man in the shadows was Basu….as the night guard now…and he didn’t mind. Next day morning was supposed to be another snorkeling trip..and I didn’t want to miss that…we called it a day. Snorkeling was amazing…I managed to a decently sized shark….it reminded me of Sir Steve Irwin….given a chance…the shark would have had his worst encounter with humans if he was around… Lots of corals…sun..sand…stars…fairly fine no. of good women in bikinis…beach volleyball…mp3 player…and a lot of soul. Oh…and there a couple of other Nepali;s I met working on the island…how they got there is another interesting story….and they were bored with the sea… There was this place on the island where you could see blue glowing sand in the dark…it glowed…you could touch it and pick it up….but the glow would last for a few seconds….simply amazing. …..

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