Chetan Bhagat - Boo(k)ed

To begin with, I mean no disrespect to anyone irrespective of what their opinion about the topic is. This post is only a mere attempt at humor, the lowest form of it. Sarcasm to be precise. The rest is only to forget.

It just happens that every time I hear people talking  about books and authors and how good or bad it is, I feel more than a little left out. Yes, I don't read much. Worse is the part that the ones I do read, write poetry and such. Which means that either they are not widely known and if they are, by some matter of luck (or bad luck), I shall be expected to "recite" some of their work because that is what we are supposed to do. Pretend.

Anyway, it just happens that in most of such discussions you would get to hear a few nice words for Chetan Bhagat. He is widely appreciated for the fact that he wrote a bestseller, which everyone thinks he or she could have written but then never wrote a page. The fact that a man who was no Byron or Tennyson and still got all the name he got, is a little tough to swallow. More so for the ones who read books from weird Russian authors all night and all day  for half their life. And why shouldn't they be pissed? They obviously know better about literature (By the way, I do not contend that), but then the spirits from some unknown world stopped them from writing anything. Sure they would be pissed. But then I wonder, why bash Chetan Bhagat? Is it not easier to just not buy the book and not care to read knowing that he uses more of hinglish than anything else? Obviously not. That would be the most dumb thing to do. Intelligent people would never do that. A mathematics student who knows calculus in and out (or even half of it) would sure take a 6th grade maths text book and talk of how needless all of it is. That is how Intelligent people roll. Perspective and personal opinions are so out of question that if you say you read Chetan Bhagat, that might as well be counted as nothing. Those books don't qualify as reading. (The fact that most of them literally read them shall remain just a useless fact )."Reading" as a verb shall  be used only the way the "Intelligent" people like it.


What is more annoying is that Chetam Bhagat seems to have an opinion about everything, including things which he has no idea about. You can see him almost everywhere commenting on everything. That sure is annoying. More so for those who read much more sophisticated stuff. The weird part is that everyone seems to have an opinion about how Chetan Bhagat and his opinion does not matter, and they don't fail commenting  on the same either. I am stranded as I fail to have an opinion on if Chetan Bhagats opinion matter or not.

So then, while you wasted two minutes reading this piece of garbage(that is the intelligent way of saying "crap"), the "Intelligent" species were busy praising some of CBs great literary work.


P.S - I have nothing against Russian authors or the ones who read a lot.


   

Stop Rape - An Oath to Change (For all Men)

What would stop this? Who can stop this? Would 600 patrol vans change anything? Would a few more changes in law change anything? I don't think so. I don't think it will change things for the victim. I don't think it will change things for any girl who is scared to move around even in a guys company.
Yes, what India wants is capital punishment for the rapist. What India wants is a thousand candles to melt down, protests across the country to show solidarity to the fallen victim. Roses and numerous petitions on facebook and all of it. Blood boiling, angry mob, raised voices and concern everywhere.
But is that it? A few hanged, a thousand candles burnt but still thousands of such free, looking for another victim and the media glare to fizz out ?
This blog post is no good either. But then this is not a post. This is an oath I take to change.
An oath I take as a man, as a son, as a brother, as a future husband, as a future father and as a human beign.

We have blamed everyone and everything but us. From dresses to marriageable age. From alcohol to chowmein ( Really? We don't even mind sounding ridiculous to save our ego) ? All this to hide the real culprits, MEN!
It is time to take all(not some) responsibility. It is time to be ashamed of ourselves.
It is upon men to change, and act like humans. We, the male population can save the women from the horrors of living under the fear for their lives. It is not about pity but about disgust and being ashamed. We should do this for our sisters, daughters, mothers, wives and friends and more than anyone else, for ourselves. To save our gender some respect which is lost in the inhuman acts of some brainless animals. And to tell you, this is not just about rape, which is the most extreme brutal form of assault. No! This is about everyday eve teasing, lewd remarks, girls being treated as objects of sex. It is about all those men who have sat around a shop with friends and stared at girls passing lewd remarks at them. It is about all those who think it is okay to touch and grope a girl and to be proud of it. It is for all of those men who take pride in talking of women as sex objects.
And it is about all those men who did not stop their friends, or classmates, or co passenger from doing any of what is mentioned above.It is about all those fathers who did not teach his son to respect the other sex.  All those men who have not voiced themselves against objectification of women.

What do you expect out of uneducated men to do when the educated ones don't let any opportunity to sexually harass(pass comments) a women pass? What do you expect a school guy to grow into who was praised by his friends to have groped a girl in school bus ? What do you expect a college student to grow into when the number of girls you bed is a matter of pride in a group ( Roadies auditions see quite a handful of such men)? They wouldn't grow up into a gentle man for all I know.

Stand up and object. Stand up and change. Things will change only if we will change.  Stop your friends, colleagues, classmates and anyone you know from treating girls as objects of sex. Stop them from eve teasing. Stop them from making you look like an animal. Stop them from making females in your family feel insecure. Stop them to save the word "men" before it is too late. Stop them before another such rapist is born out of them.

Take the oath! Be the change! From a three letter word of shame to a real MAN!

Blind and Deaf

The violet in the sky,
and the red in the grass.
Things that we don't see
and which really are.
The music in the dark woods,
and shrieks in a song.
Things that we don't hear
and which really are.
What we don't see
and what we don't hear,
things that mean a lot
and which really are.
We miss all of that,
but then they are.
The way we know all
is not the way it is.
For what we see and hear
is all but all.
A friend is not always a friend
a foe not always a foe.
You call them what you want
blind to the fact that,
the irony of life as it is,
the largest desert is actually called an Ocean.

Guns N' Roses - India tour (Bangalore, Mumbai, Gurgaon) - This month

Sweet Child O' mine!! GNR will be live in Bangalore, Mumbai and Gurgaon this month. A little late for November Rain, but then who minds as we go Knocking on the Heavens door with one of the greatest rock bands of present era! Yes, Slash is not anymore in the band but then GNR is GNR!
Mumbai gets lucky with this one as they get the Sunday slot while Bangalore gets Friday and Gurgaon gets Wednesday.
They will take the stage at 4 pm at all the three places which means many of the working fans might be taking a day off in Gurgaon and Bangalore.
Well then, Welcome to the Jungle!

Tickets are priced at : Silver Ticket - INR 1500, Gold Ticket - INR 3000, Platinum Ticket - INR 10000.
I am not sure of the availability as of today but you can sure check online or at the outlets.

The list of outlets for all the three cities can be found here . (Source : www.kyazoonga.com)

BENGALURU
Dec 7, 2012   (Friday)
Time: 16:00
Venue: Bhartiya City, Bengaluru

MUMBAI
Dec 9, 2012  (Sunday)
Time: 16:00
Venue: MMRDA Grounds, Mumbai.

GURGAON
Dec 12, 2012    (Wednesday)
Time: 16:00
Venue: Leisure Valley Grounds, Sector 29, Gurgaon

For more information and booking the tickets visit www.kyazoonga.com

Two to Tango Three to Jive - Play, Dinner and Me at Hyatt Regency, Pune

Another one of those Friday evenings that goes all well.  A play by Saurabh Shukla (of Satya fame), followed by a wonderful dinner at Hyatt Regency, Pune. That is just as much as you would ask for on a weekend.

 The venue was overflowing with people of all age groups a good half an hour before the play began , only to be treated with wine, snacks and  jazz music. I had to refrain myself from drinking, being the responsible citizen who does not drink and drive.  These are the times I hate having to drive!
Anyway, the play was brilliant although it did hit monotonous notes in between. It was about  Parminder Singh Sethi (Saurabh Shukla), a middle aged married man and how he tries to get along with three women at different times to spice up his mundane life. It showcased the emotions of an average married man who wants things to happen rather than just pass. His fears, his frustration, his feelings have been brought out in a very strong yet comic way.The play almost depicts an average man and how his desires change with time, and what he needs from the relationship with his wife.  Saurabh Shukla was brilliant on the stage with his precise comic timings that sent the audience on a laughing roll.

Nigaar Khan, Mona Wasu and Preiti Mamgain played the three women Parminder tries to get into an affair with. While at the end Parminder did not get into any relationship, he does realise that his wife is the best companion to have and that it is just time that they lack to spend together.

The confusion and innocence of Parminder Singh Sethi was both adorable and comic. The play got a terrific response from the audience as everyone stood up to applaud the performance.I however found the script a little less on something I could not figure out, as it never really got hold of me.

One treat was followed with another as we approached the dinner section. Oh, did you forget the dinner party I mentioned earlier?  From starters, to main course, to beverages, to desserts, the place was all crowded. Either the food was too good or people too hungry. I dont usually mind waiting and that is exactly what I did. The wait was all worth as the food was awesome. Dum biryani and pepper chicken were both too good for the taste buds. I did not get into the vegetarian section as I continue on my protein diet ;) .
Again I being the responsible citizen who does not drink and drive stayed away from where wine and more was being served. ( And for the second time, I hate driving! )

As was expected, the desserts section was full of variety. I always enjoy looking at them more than eating for good reasons. Although I did make an exception that day and had more than I could stack in my stomach!
And so we Jived!