Can't fall asleep

Its 3:41 AM as I start writing this post and it is no time to stay awake. Especially if you are sitting in front of the computer at home, alone. The fact of the matter is that i am ill and i have been sleeping all day. I can't sleep any more, i am sick of it.

So what does one do late in the night when he can't fall asleep, i saw a movie it was good waste of my time, that was fun. Then i was looking for stuff on EBAY, things i am not going to buy and i cannot afford any time soon.

Then i thought of what i want to do with my life. I spent 10 whole minutes to this.

Then i wanted to find out what Denzel Washington's age was, so i went to Wikipedia and then i stumbled upon the movie Glory then to the Civil War and then to Apartheid and then to...well you get the picture....i spent over an hour on Wikipedia and now i have forgotten what Denzel Washington's age is.

Having worked up my appetite i spent the next 15 minutes searching for a fix in the kitchen, i found curds. Thats what i ate...curds....definitely not worth the 15 minute search.

Having made my way back to my seat i decided that i would do something more productive, i chose to bug people on Facebook. Going through their pictures and activities...commenting on them, some encouraging, some discouraging, some stupid and some plain wrong.

Stumbled upon an old crushe's photo album, recieved guilty pleasure in the voyeuristic activity, then was utterly remorseful.

Decided to write this blog....before that i switched on ADSENSE on my blog. Guess i am going to make a steady income from here on end....SHUT UP its possible.

Now i am out of things to write...no intelligent thought....no revelation...no sad epiphany...no angry emotion or opinion....just a silence....a silence.

I think i will go off to sleep now....BAH

Requisition for a Partner

Working in the media fraternity makes you more sensitive to all kinds of media, at the same time making it tasteless and merely a tool in your tool box. Over a period of time you lose the taste for news, shows, articles or any other vehicle of communication. Now i merely scan the paper without a hint of emotion, i don't look at a piece with interest, i am bothered about who wrote it, what page it appears on and who might have manipulated the journalist to do the article. Do not get me wrong, this has an advantage, you can get through about 5 - 6 papers in about 20 minutes this way. But on a casual Sunday such as this one i ease through the paper, this is when i realize that i have to make an effort to enjoy the paper. Absorb the goodness, this is more than a small challenge as i have little regard for the editorial knowing what i know.

But today i spent about an hour with the Times of India this morning. I was reading the matrimonial section, i wasn't browsing, i was literally reading every single one of the ads. This is a veritable market for brides and grooms. The sheer desperation of some of the ads were not sad not surprising though. On the other hand there were some surprisingly young people looking for partners in the classifieds. It got me thinking on what goes on in the mind of the souls who at the loss of all hope take the decision to tell the world that they are single and looking.

This is certainly quite the scary thought, that one of these days i will have my own ad in that paper. No i think i will use a marriage website.....

The Three Idiots

With over six months of publicity, gossip, word of mouth, twitter updates, scandals, facebook applications, college debates and disappearing acts later finally Three Idiots released in theaters on the 25th of December 2009. Obviously, the first thought that comes to mind is, will the movie be up to snuff with the expectations it has created? Will i be happy with the comedy or is it going to be the few lines shown in the premiere? Is the movie going to be a typical Hindi film or something more?

If i may?,i would like to stick my neck out and say that the movie was good. In that it satisfied my senses for the three hours that i was in the theater. As my friend put it, there was never a moment that our attention veered away from the screen. We never felt disconnected from the plot, never uninterested.

The direction was beautiful, it was as if some brilliant student from college wanted to try something new and had brought in that fresh outlook. Also it was like a college graduate, as there was hardly an extra scene, the songs also told a tale and meant something.

Cinematography, rarely do you see movies paying so much attention to detail. The lighting, the angles and the backdrop shots were great. I especially like the Pandong Lake scene, the tourism department could do with using shots like that and getting people to go to Ladakh. I am going in 2010.

The acting in the movie was very free flowing, it didn't seem like there were any plastics in any of the scenes which is very refreshing. Boman Irani seemed a little repetitive with the whole Dr. Asthana acting in the movie but he kicked ass as an emotional dad. Kareena, Madhavan, Sharmaan were good in their supporting roles. Personally loved that Madhavan was the narrator.

Aamir Khan - Genius

The real hero in this movie is the well thought out plot and dialogue. The plot is going somewhere, has a direction and up to the last 20 minutes you do not really know where that is. Highlighting the current education system was worthwhile. Unfortunately the last 20 were a lot like a typical Hindi film, which is not always such a bad thing.

All said and done, is this movie going to be viewed and appreciated by future generations? I hope so

Wrath

Oh! the fools, oh such mortal men,
reduced to silly putty, all of a sudden when?
vexed with thoughts of attract women,
fall into traps laid carefully by wiser men

The state of affairs is very sad,
scouring this desert for company is driving them mad,
masculine men, turned into boyish lads,
with the promise of a fair maidens hand

The evil beings are taking advantage,
gullible people are caught in a rampage,
of incessant mailers and friend requests,
while stupidity takes over and reason ends

This is a symptom of a larger disease,
when we give them the world, if they would just say please,
the aching of our hearts are misunderstood,
we would lash out and hurt, if we nearly could

These cowards know not, what their transgressions do,
their machinations and wicked plans one day they will rue,
I believe for all that's done, God will make ammends,
Light of the world, my true partner one day He will send


PS - Attached below is the e - mail that sparked this poem off

Dear Chennakeshav,

How are you? i hope you are fine, my name is emily,i believe we can be friends! it's always difficult for me to start an acquaintance with new friends, especially in such am unusual way. But any way, i am full of enthusiasm,
i love your profile, I am browsing today in this sites i saw your mail and your writeup,about how you pour your herat in your writeups touches me, i started having some feeling in me which i have never experience in my life before, i decided to write you,this is email ID...emilyqueen22@yahoo.com..l will also like to know you the more,and l want you to send an email to my email address so l can give you my picture for you to know whom i am when you reply me on my email ok.I believe we can move from here! I am waiting for your reply,
yours miss Emily,
best regards.

Maria...oh Maria

The very mention of this fantastic song makes me think of all the hot Latin American women in the world, and all the Catholic women in India. The Mocha skin, the curves, the sultry look in their eyes.

The women who is a fantastic lady in social company, and a wild whore in bed.

She loves to get down to her passion and is not at all ashamed to let every one know about it.

Magnifico!

Babe Overlord

For me this is the epitome of the'player's song. Sure for a lot of people any Hip - Hop song is all about sexual innuendo and hot women dancing and posing, but MVP and Rock Your Body was one of those corner stone songs which comes to mind before any of the other songs.

There are so many honey's in this video, you have to watch it at least 50 times to appreciate each and everyone of these women. And if you pay attention each and every one of them is hot. Great Casting - Five Stars

The girl who sings, that is the Hottest swimsuit i have seen till date. The girls look really seductive and nice.

Did i mention that the song on its own also is really good....ahh well that can escape the attention.

Where would i be?

Where would i be without the sweet melodies and rhymes?,
that took me through the joys and tough times,
most of all through monotony, when i had nothing to do

What would i rush to? for inspiration,
for reason and meaning in this bleeding confusion,
How else would i have kept real and sane?
Become at one with the world, forgotten my name

Would i have drifted the way i do into the ocean of sound?
without the harmony to go around

Love, peace and joy to all!

Habits

Something about me. I work at a Public Relations consultancy firm, and as any consultancy firm goes it is very noisy. Everybody is talking, pitching uhm..strategizing, gossiping and even faffing. The product of this is a steady and consistent cacophony. At first anyone would think that working in a place like this would be absolutely impossible. And yet, the noise becomes such a part of your life that when you can start hearing yourself think, it gets kinda eerie.

I have been sitting in office since 8:15 AM this morning and trying to get some work done. Normally the mob gets in by about 9:30 - 9:45 AM.

Here it is 10:00 AM and it is eerily silent......its weirding me out.

And to think that we are always searching for some peace and quiet, really????

Brown man caught in the woods

THIS JUST IN

A brown man - 6 feet something in height, athletic build and lovely smile, has been just caught cheating on his wife with another woman.

*I don't care what does it matter another brown man cheated on his wife

MORE INFORMATION ON THE STORY WE ARE FOLLOWING

Reports are just coming in that the unfaithful brown man is Tiger Woods. Yes Tiger Woods the professional golfer has been caught cheating on his wife.

*Oh, its Tiger Woods, i have to watch this now, i have to know every detail about this case. After all, this is not just another brown man, this is THE BROWN MAN

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The media coverage that an unfaithful husband is getting is voyeuristic and shameful. Tiger had a domestic quarrel, this is a personal matter. Tiger is a private citizen, so is Linda neither are answerable to the public at large. Yet, Tiger was forced to comment on his personal life, give a statement which of course sparked off other problems for the poor man.

I do not care who Tiger Woods fucked, let alone the fact that he fucked five different women over the course of the last 8 years. Good for him, in fact for the person he is, i am surprised that he has not fucked 500 women. This is a moot point, Tiger is his own man, a 34 year old who can handle his personal life.

Bottom line - Tiger is a fantastic athlete (YES TIGER MAKES GOLF SEEM ATHLETIC) and he has done much for the sport. Personal 'transgressions' are no concern of ours and out of respect for the player we should stay away.

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Men Cheat? HAWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!

Are you serious? You are telling me that a red blooded male, looks at other women in a lustful manner eventhough he is in a loving and committed relationship? NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[NEWSFLASH] - MEN CHEAT

It is a natural order of things. Men have been put on this earth to do one thing and one thing only - Procreate, Sexual Congress, Ball, Boink, Bone, Lay, Mount, Hump FUCK. That is because any animal's job is to multiply in number.

This as i put it is the Natural order of things - but so is squatting on the ground, wearing animal hide and using stones to scribble on the wall (Wait we do those things). Since we have absorbed the other forms of civilized behaviour i guess being faithful cannot be an exception. But here is the thing, men will still cheat.

So, sure punish the guy for going outside for some pie, but do consider the fact that you haven't worn your oven mits in a while.

Roulette

Some songs just hit you in the face and they make you love them, something fierce, something aggressive. Then there are some songs, like this one, that just moves around you in circles, hypnotizing you, grabbing hold of your senses and seducing you into a deep and passionate embrace.

Rihanna has done it again with Russian Roulette, all i want to do now is roll the barrel and pull the trigger!

Peace

Jennifer Lopez - Waiting For Tonight

The year was 2000 - we were but kids of 13 - 14 - just hit puberty and looking for the perfect woman- that is when we were gifted with Jennifer Lopez on our MTV Screens.

Waiting for tonight is the signature tune of that tune, every new year party had this song playing and we were thinking of JLO through the party - she is was more than the it girl - she was the fabulous woman that we all wanted.

Incidentally this is one of my very first favourite english numbers - at this point in time i still had not heard of - Iron Maiden - Pink Floyd - Miles Davis - Beethoven

This was the ultimate sound for all of us MAN.....

{I wrote this with goose flesh)

Love Don't Cost a Thing

I was an ardent Jennifer Lopez, i just loved all her music, al the videos, i loved her!

There was very little i had to do then but watch music videos on Television.

There is something about this song that takes me back years and years.

Sure a lot of it is to do with the fact taht i had just hit puberty then,.

I am getting the same joy i used to get back then - isnt that strange?

Then i realize that this video has been viewed nearly 13 million times - that just shows that i am not alone in this....out of this world man!

Jennifer Lopez ROCKS! - or at least used to over 10 years ago :)

Relief

This is dedicated to you Dear Theorist

Your words and work has revived the life,

In my belief of creativity, the rightful strife

The words are flowing as if on cue,

In some cases more beautiful than an ocean view

In sooth i say, your work i admire
Evidence will prove that i am not a liar.

So do put your pondering down as notes,
Eagerly awaiting your next post

Thousand Little Sparks

Music reverberating through each and every nook and cranny of the club. The sweet perfume in the air, of perspiring bodies mixed with the aroma of the spirits. The sea of people were dancing rhythmically, pulsating bodies moved like a being on the dance floor. With an atmosphere of pure abandon this enclosure was alive with a spirit of its own. The beat had taken over everything, nobody seemed to have an independent thought or emotion. Amidst the cacophony and self induced delirium, the cult was intoxicated on an assortment of alcohol and drugs.

I walk over to the watering hole, look at the druid, patiently filling prescription for the fixes he was disbursing to a public in frenzy. Gesture for a whiskey on the rocks with a bit of water, and sip down the glass of beer slowly and purposely.

I had wanted to come over here, why? What was it that had compelled me to come to this confounded box? The dancing.....yes i had come over to dance! I wanted to let the soul free of all decisions...mix with the body of creatures on the dance floor and be absorbed in the chaos.

With marked steps i walk into the wave, that ever changing, ever masking blob that was the dance floor. And i started the ritual, the movements, the hands ....slowly the feet...then the hips took a life of their own, they took charge, and i was along for the ride.

The sweet noise , the thumping was racing my own ticker, and was matching speed. And i looked up high into the air, i couldn't see anything, there was nothing to be seen or heard. I had only the thumping, and the ticker to feel alive. I moved out of my body and looked at myself moving in the wave, in that madness. A thousand blinding lights whizzed past me like a million fireflies in conjunction.

Then beauty, the discovery of a diamond in the coal mines, or of a pearl in an oyster cannot be more breathtaking. She was right there, at one with the music, her soul was resting in the lap of conciousness and her body was working as if on voodoo magic. The eyes were open, but mind was closed, the body was active but strangely at rest. Delicious beads of sweat were collecting on her brow, giving a glow to her already angelic face. She was a part of the wave, and yet stood out.

I made my way through the mass, to the angel, i had but one wish left, to reach her level of consciousness and live a moment with her. Her fragrance enveloped me, and i felt paralyzed, i was all but useless to the world. There was no blood left in my hands and feet, all rushing back to the brain, to tell it to stop and die as it had reached heaven.

The music was faster now, and the beat was overpowering, the body yielded and the world went blank again. The moments were passing by as ig in slow motion, as her hair flew close to mine, i wanted to get my face in the way to touch her smell, feel her soul. Her eyes were closed, she was not open to this plane, she was on another. I pushed myself to get there....

Her eyes met mine, yet she was not looking at me, she was not here, she is calling to me. The smile on her face suggested that she was safe, she was out there. She grabbed my hands and i felt a connection, i stopped everything. My mind was away....and all i felt was the air around me.

The song reached a crescendo, the feet began to quiver, i opened my eyes and there was nobody around. She stood alone in front of me, every pore of her being was screaming of love. The passion was infectious, the mind let go and the body went into overdrive. The grinding pulsating movement made all the joy in the world seem finite and temporary.

I was in the air, hovering in a kind of supernatural peace. The elation of the heart and soul defied reasoning. The cosmic connection had been breached. She was my portal to the universe - the reason for my being. She embraced me, her hair touched the back of my neck, short bursts of electricity passed through my body. They went down my neck down to the small of my back. The fragrance was commanding, i moved powerlessly yet felt like the strongest of men.

She turned around to rest her back to my chest, and continued to move with the tempo, matching the beat at every turn. I was sure that she could feel the vibration of my heart over the thumping of the bass speakers. A heart which had never experienced such ecstasy, wanted rest and yet wanted to go on.

The tempo slowed down, the song came to an end. The heart regained composure, brain decided to take charge. The air was cleared and order is restored. Vision returned slowly, only to see the withdrawing silhouette of her body out of the blob.

Welcome to Owl City

We as social animals have over the course of our existence on this planet picked up on something that other species have not - that is music. The harmony and the beauty in sound. From the ritual thumping of the feet as we were dancing around the fire back in the days of yore, to the thumping of the bass speakers in the club as we dance around the shiny crystal ball in the clubs today. It has all been about music, it occupies a sacred spot in all our lives.

Then as we grow older and bifurcate as cultures, and ideologies, social class distinctions we sort of decide to choose the kind of music we listen to. Oh...i listen to Indian Classical, no no i am a hip - hop fan.....don't talk to me about anything other than Rock and Roll - i don't know any other music other than HOUSE or POP.

All of this mayhem, preferences, choices and clans....we forget that what we as humans love is rhythm.....tempo.....harmony. A piece of music which gells is so well together...there is nothing else that matters beyond that.....really.

Welcome to Owl City - this is Adam Young...a jobless guy who decided to make music using his synthesiser and some friends to give a back up. He is not a distinguished singer, nor is he a brilliant composer of words and music....he just knows Harmony. The music flows as one piece...and washes over you like a beautiful wave hitting the rocks and you know the rock is just loving it.

True to form, we in India are not going to be introduced to Owl City soon, this is because we are too busy listening to what we have been listening to so far...so it is the job of the few of us who have heard Owl City to propagate the music.

I got my friend to listen to the music, and he excitedly said that this is beautiful but also ventured to ask me how i came about to listen to this 'type' of music....i answered truthfully....as long as it sounds good - i will listen to it.

Please check out Owl City - Ocean Eyes - go to Youtube and start watching the videos...seriously...you will do yourself a huge favour....open your mind to new harmony!

The Sage

With saffron covered mantle he,
Lay quietly at the platform shade,

No word of any destination be,
But he seemed free of any cage

With little care of the world around,
Bewilderment in his eyes,

Sea of money, goods and worriness abound,
Of cruelty to fellow man, a universe despised

Train came screeching in, the cretins boarded on,
His mind was visibily shaken, they had found their true song

ABUSE

Most songs are about love or despair, it's like thats the only time we care,
to put a rhyme and meter together, to make the pain last forever

Stop the charade i say, we have lost the righteous way, when creativity was abound, not a conceited bone to be picked

Let us put our gift to use, and let the journey begin anew

Work in Progress

I like walking in old town, i also like to call South Mumbai old town, i am quite creative in a zany Oscar Wilde sort of way. As i was saying, i love to walk in old town, aimlessly stroll through the streets and by lanes, look up at old buildings, reminisce about college as i pass the familiar haunts. But the most casual of past - times is the spotting of the jack ass.

Now don't be alarmed, i am not into beastiality, i don't get off on Donkey's, matter of fact it raises the question, why aren't there any jack asses in old town? Sorry i went off topic again, old town is perhaps the place where you can get almost anything, from the best sugarcane juice to the transvestite right next to it. That copy of 'Catcher in the Rye' that you have been looking for right next to January 98 issue of Penthouse. I can keep naming examples but i was explaining Jack asses.

You see a Jack ass is what in old parlance would be called a 'specimen' a 'one piece' . And old town always has a new one to offer. This particular day was a lazy saturday afternoon about three weeks ago. I was walking in Fort in the general direction of Fountain.....and i see him. How did i know it was him? well he was wearing a well cut grey suit, smart white shirt, brown classic shoes and a hair cut worth at least a grand of good money, oh and a a blue tie with a vanilla ice cream cone on it. I had to halt here, i mean i just had to, the tie was like a signal for me, i knew that this was my man. He might as well have been wearing a sign saying "Come to see the Jack ass". So i hovered in the general area, because with Jackasses the wait is never too long (that works both as a relative reference, and a real one)

Sure enough his buddy, similarly attired, walks up to him and hands him a Samosa Pav. The buddy is smart enough to caution our man saying "Dude, watch out for the chutney, it could spill". Waves of anticipation were crashing inside me, at this point i was just waiting for the inevitable. The lovely green and red chutney would now ruin this Dude's nice shirt and lovely tie. He took his first bite, with an air of confidence and vigour...and....

"Chenna"

I was stunned, my name being called out in that familiar manner had given me a jolt. I was ridden with guilt and remorse - a reflex action. I turned around half curious and half afraid, what was i afraid of? Retribution of course....i told you, old reflex.

Expecting to see an old matron, or a professor, i was surprised by a five foot something form of petite gorgeousness. The lovely face, the silky hair and eyes that could start a war, or a street fight at the very least.

"Fuck!", said the 'Dude' in the background, my thoughts exactly. His in anger and dismay mine of affirmation and amazement.

"Well, say something"; sparkling, shiny filmy teeth

"....hello" ; i do not know this girl from Adam

"You don't remember me?"; went the harmonious sound

Now this couldn't be true, either i had never met her, or i had somehow forgotten this siren's name. Of course, my first impulse is to lie, lying is second nature, no actually its just nature.

"Of course i do! How are you doing? What are you doing here? How is life these days? Met anyone back from the day?"

Classic techniques of buying time, stall, ask questions, get clues, keep away from obvious references and just dig in deep. It's like 21 questions, pnly here you can be really embarrassed.

"Oh, i am just shopping for some old books ya. But it is so nice to see you, i mean it has been soooooo long."

Tricky, we have to kinda guess from the degree of the word 'long', just when we would have last met. Here i guessed maybe Junior college, but this evidence was still preliminary. Keep stalling.

"Yahhhhhh"; matching the degree, "It has been damn long ya. When was the last time we met anyway?" ; yes it is a bit obvious but it works, trust me it works

"Last day of school i think. No no, it was the day we came to get our mark sheets."

BOOM - School, ya she looked like i knew her from school, we had very few hot chicks in school, she has to be one of maybe 5 women.

"Oh yes, correct, damn man that is a long time, over eight years now. You haven't changed a bit from those days though."

"Errr... ya, i guess so, neither have you, that is good, otherwise we would have walked right past each other."

Not true, i would have oggled this lass to the point of social and moral acceptance.

"How are Renuka, Chhaya and Mayuri? Are you in touch with them?"

These are three of the five, i remember them, so this one had to be their friend. I don't remember the other two.

"I don't know, i haven't seen them since the last day of school either. I moved to Bangalore soon after."

This is a sad fact, when people move, they tend to discard old relationships. Even strong bonds with brothers have known to sever due to geographical distances, this was but a few skanks hanging out bitching about each other.

"Hmmm, when did you come back from Bangalore?"

"Last year, i have been busy since, got a job working at a financial consultancy."

Booom Shakalaka.....those girls were hot, but i don't remember them being smart. I am in the wilderness again, i can't put a finger on who this chick is.

"I am working at a PR consultancy."

You got to match them toe to toe bro!

This conversation was underway in the middle of the road, and since i wasn't really getting anywhere close to her name and still surviving, i decided to push things a notch higher.

"Let's grab coffee, catch up, what say?"

"Oh, no i am with somebody right now, but we can catch up tomorrow or something. Give me your number."

'With' somebody, ok i had to understand if she was WITH somebody or with somebody.

I gave her my number and asked her to give me a missed call.

"So how do you spell your name?" i asked, this is an old school move - old from when mobiles were invented about 15 years ago.

"M - E - E - N - A - L"

I felt like a proper asshole, i had no Meenal saved in my memory banks. I was appalled that i had no recollection of beautiful Meenal, yet she knew me quite well.

"So where is this guy, you are with", hoping to God she would correct me

"He is back there looking at some books."

Age old tradition of comparing yourself to the competition. Smart, good looking, picked up the Great Gatsby, so intelligent. Ok, he wins.

"Him huh? What is his name?"

She looks over to 'him' and calls out - "Aniruddh"

"Meet Chenna, my school friend, remember i used to told you about this guy who used to help me out with literature and call me Minny"

MINNY! The short, pig tail wearing, pimple faced, brat with the bad attitude. The girl who used to think that the falling cards at the end of Solitaire was cool. The girl who had worn a Salwar to prom night. MINNY - who i did help in literature because i was a self righteous pompous asshole and love to teach literature. This....this angel used to be Minny- the dunky girl who was good at Math and hated holidays.

"Hi Chenna, i am Aniruddh"

I was still in a daze, i could not believe that this was Minny. Sure, the oiled pigtails had made the hair strong. The braces had made the teeth fantastic. The one - brow had become two and made her eyes pop out. The Math had given her a successful career.

"You know, i had the biggest crush on Chenna that time, oh my God! But i don't think he was interested in girls at the time. Right Chenna? You were in love with Shakespeare then correct?", she laughed, i don't see the humour, maybe you do.

There is this silly liitle feeling you get, when something as awful as this happens, bile starts pouring into your stomach and you want to gag. I could be with this Goddess, if i had just stuck with her back then. Ignored her bitchiness, her looks and her temperament. Just given her a chance!

"Chenna, i got to run, call me tomorrow, we shall go out"; said the maiden

"Bye dude, nice meeting you", the competition

Words were formed in my head, but never made it out. I saw them walking away, hand in hand and in love .

I stood there for a while, shell shocked and unhappy.

Then i went home, i had seen the Jackass for the day.

Hope

One day i shall see her beautiful eyes,

her gorgeous face in a happy surprise,

The lovely tress and pretty smile,

will leave me dumb and stunned for a while

Her wandering gaze will find me staring,

it won't be annoying, she would think it is daring,

A nod of her head will gesture me hither,

inviting me for a word or two with her

I would walk over, in a stately stride,

stomach in chest out, full of pride,

Her body language, couldn't be easier

she wants me right there, intimate and near

First few thoughts have sealed the deal,

we have set a date tomorrow for a lovely meal,

bidding her adieu i would thank the stars,

maiden from Venus, an oaf from Mars

Such lovely dreams and wishes i possess,

i long for the loving warm caress,

My thought sets me reeling, wanting to elope,

Reality is daunting, but my heart's filled with hope

Preview to the Golden Years

Diwali is a wonderful season, it is festival time and everyone is pulling the stops to be happy, merry and gay. Walls are painted, homes are redecorated, new products are bought, old stuff is thrashed. Families get together and celebrate with good cheer and reaffirm a connection that will only be livend up next year. Most importantly there is food, because as Indians we have definitely one thing in common, and i mean all 1.42 billion of us is the joy of food.

Diwali being the premium celebration the food made available to us is not only scrumptious and unbelievable, it is also available in plenty. Oh, and as if you did not have enough food at home, there are friends and neighbours that will come by and drop off some for you. Then you go to work and you will find some more delectable goodies.

As grown ups you have to keep a close eye on your intake of food in this season. I mean, the sheer volume just clouds your judgement, and you tend to make insane dietary choices. Most of us can get away with eating like this, kids because of their strong metabolism don't even notice it. Most adults, those who have retained this metabolism from their childhood, also have no problem with this. It is poor folk like me that have to bear the brunt of the consequences.

Ok i have to say this, i am going to turn twenty three on October 26th (no, that is not a subtle reminder for you folks), i am still quite young, or so it would seem correct. Don't get me wrong, i am still quite physically fit, and i can push my body to extreme situations and it can still take it, but lately i have to be extra careful of what i am eating.

I go to a restaurant, i order the food, the least fried, least fatty and the ones with the best nutrition to calories ratio. Do you know what just went out of the equation - taste! For the first time in over two decades, i don't mind what my food tastes like as long as it is healthy. All of this and i am still not 23 years old.

My dad, started watching his food intake at the age of 40 - till then he just ate whatever he got his hands on. So what makes me so different from my Dad. By the way, my Dad also exploited his system like i did, but he did it for longer. My Dad has diabetes, high blood pressure, a family history of piles and weighs 140 kg. Not what you would call a healthy specimen - well the gentleman still has pristine digestive system.

This is alarming - i mean i am actually losing my sleep over it, truth be told i am losing sleep 'cause i am gassy and i can't sleep, so quite literally losing sleep over it. I have to see what is wrong - why is it that i have the digestive system of a 40 year old man.

There is an all time favourite reason - CK you don't chew your food properly. I have made a sincere effort to chew my food rigorously - for fear of losing sleep and ruining my mornings.

CK- you eat junk - I stopped eating junk about 8 months ago. I carry lunch from home and i eat sparingly outside.

CK - you need to stop drinking - i havent had a decent drinking session in over 3 months. It hasn't helped.

CK - you have taxed your system way too much, give your body some time to rest. I had jaundice recently - and i have been given it enough rest - ever since.

Here is the scary part folks - i knew this day would come, sure, a body gets old, the organs start to deteriorate and you will ultimately lose its peak performance. But i am FREAKING 23 - so the question that comes to mind is, what happens when i hit 40? Followed by the next question - Will i hit 40?

Questions that are currently left unanswered - an enigma that has to be solved, but right now the question is a step forward. I would like to get it answered to spread it as a cautionary tail to stop young people from throwing away their lives like i did.

I have to mention though, i had fun. We ate what we wanted to, when we wanted to, if we wanted to. Drink the dirtiest water, eat still worse food - white meat, red meat, strange meat - assortment of cheeses, wine, beer, whisky, rum - all kinds and all qualities. But should the party end here?

We shall wait and see....at least i know what a 40 year old goes through....and boy is it tough!

Five stages of FAT

Here today i can clearly say,

without much reserve or dismay,

let the cows moo and the horses neigh,

the rat will scurry as he runs from the cat,

and oh yes!,i am fat.

There was a time though, not long ago,

when i would shout out loud and crow,

nay! i would say, "i am but big boned,

all muscle, that's me! , not a shred of fat's been stored"

How you ask did i make it from there to here,?

that's the purpose of this poem my dear,

For just like death, you need to come to term,

with stages many, it takes to learn,

Five there are, all in a nice mince,

Denial

Anger

Bargaining

Depression

and

Acceptance

Denial's the first one, we all are aware,

we can't see why people have to stand and stare,

"It's just my belly! i will have you know!,

So what if it is in a pin code of its own"

For the life of us we can't surmise,

why stores don't have clothes in our size,?

In trains there are, a sea of dirty faces,

as if to say "Your getting up, will clear at least three spaces"

Oh! then comes Anger red and hot!

"What did get me, to this spot?"

Mom's food coupled with street fare,

the root cause of all our despair

We scold ourselves day and night,

not even in our sleep do we have respite,

Things must change, this will not do,

i will drop this burger & ask for soup.

This follows exercise and calorie burning,

bringing us straight up to bargaining,

then the mind starts playing tricks,

throw in a doting mother into the mix

"You look good son , you've lost some weight?"

On goes the Dal Fry on my plate.

People in office are also to blame,

they see some change and tell you the same,

So off goes the diet, and you take a break,

why not indulge ?, have a slice of cake

A week of this, goes by in a daze,

you happily set yourself on the scales,

the blinders are off, you see a vision,

then comes on, a deep depression

"Why bother you ask?", i am going to be fat,

life is unfair, cruel, and all that,

Sit around your house, with a straw in a coke,

you gain some more, diet's up in smoke

Days of sleep walking and wide awake nights,

something inside you switches on the lights,

Being fat is ain't all that bad,

your healthy, and good times you have had,

People like you, for you are a gem of a person,

they will love you, in any sort of version,

That is my tale, told in a Zap,

the beautiful, Five stages of Fat

-

Chennakeshav Shenoy

Life is quite simple

Life isn't as complicated as we make it to be,

There be words, that which make it beautiful and compelling,

Magic in their punctuations, and in the spelling,

Letting go of control seems to be the key.

Ever see a man down on his luck crying out to you,

"Wish i would have played my cards right, surer and bolder,

then i wouldn't have to sit here on the street, with the days growing colder,"?

'Tis funny how people want to live their life anew.

This gift is not for sycophancy or introspections best,

You only mock it, while trying to give it meaning,

There is nothing more to it, than living it big.

If there is anything this seems to be the test,

Which one of us has plenty of intentions never weaning,

Have as much of fun as he can have before the great dig.

Chennakeshav Shenoy

For the uninitiated this is a Petrarchian sonnet - not your usual, run of the mill poem. Tell me what you think, dying to know.

In a sticky conundrum

Long long time ago, a fable was related to me. An old aunt was explaining why a man should never waste his time with a woman his own age.

"Arre the ideologies don't match, the states of mind are different. It takes a man a while to get his bearings right, but a woman is always 5 years ahead. So to be happy, a man should always find a woman who is younger than him. This is the truth Chennakeshav, live by it"

I honestly didn't buy this logic, particularly because i was 17 when i was given this secret and the women would be 12 years old - Gross - right.

I went about my life, hitting on girls my age, and older in some cases. Struck out for the next five years, each an every time. Guess what i found out in that time, most of those girls were either already hitched, or in the process of being hitched to a guy senior to them by at least 4 - 5 years.

So after five years, now i am actually in the situation to hit on these women and not be called a pervert right?

WRONG - I still think this is not the way to go about it. I mean these girls are five whole years younger than me right? They are young man, kids really.... So if i hit on them i will feel like a big pervert. Society probably does not shun it, but i would like to stay away from this.

Then again, thats what everybody is doing, so whether i like it or not - this probably is the way it goes. This is my sticky conundrum......

Oh, to be truly honest with you, i think that i am scared of hitting on these women, lest i strike out again....to kids.....what a blow to an already battered self esteem.

You know what i am saying.

Rules of Engagement

As social beings, humans have become accustomed to controlled environments, civilized behavior, order and balance - anything beyond the realm of the regular, is absurd and well unnatural. At first, the comfort of knowing how one's day will go is quite welcome. But i believe as people we have taken this sketch pen and gone into territories that should have been left well alone.

The reference here is to such books as - "Learn to love", "Get the love of your life", "Love for Beginners". There is an entire sub culture of authors and groups that are dedicated to giving you the 'dope' on getting into the relationship of your dreams. To make matters worse, there is popular beliefs, fueled by Movies and Television, a whole industry that is pushing people to believe that holding your gaze a certain way, or befriending her best friend will get you your girl.

Any scientific rule or law is prefixed by a disclaimer - "Under ideal conditions" or "All other coditions remaining constant". The application does not hold true if a variable is introduced. When you think about it, with regard to love, every element is a variable, nothing is constant and there are way too many influencing factors.

So why do we buy into these fantasies, that if we follow a given set of rules we should get our love. Its back to the original thought, we(people, human beings, morons) cannot surmise a world without control. A world that doesn't run on rules, least of all ours.

I say enough of this crap, these rules of engagement be,

open your eyes and truth shall set you free,

the treasure you seek has no bloody map,

just fall with abandon in to the god forsaken gap

Patience...dear friend....patience

Just missed it.......

Awww......you just missed it man.

These words set off a really queasy gutteral feeling within me, i can feel the acidic taste of bile in my throat and all i want to do is sit down till the moment passes. "If only you were here a moment earlier!"

IF ONLY

The words keeping hitting me like a Spitfire machine gun on a metal fuselage of a Messerschmidt.....ICH WERDE DOWN...................AUF WIEDERSEHEN

This is an all too familiar feeling for me, its been there forever, i find the perfect gal and i go up to her and sum up all the courage in the world to ask her if she would like to go out and grab a drink. BOOOOOOM - she is already with someone else, or she is thinking about someone else...or the best.....SHE IS WAITING FOR SOMEONE ELSE......

This someone else is always around the corner, one step ahead of me, just taking all my girls away. NO FAIR GOD!!!!!

One of these days i am going to meet this SOMEONE....bash his fucking head in......but i am going to JUST MISS HIM aren't i?????????

FUCKING INSANE

Catholic Fever

Ever since i saw a movie called Baton Baton Mein (Loosely translated In a matter of words) , i had one fixation in my head - the fascination for Catholic women. In the movie Amol Palekar tries to woo Tina Munim, a young Catholic girl from Khar.

Since then i came to be attracted to catholic women like a moth to a burning naked flame. And thus began my affliction to a phenomenon i came to know as - Catholic Fever . This is not a physiological condition, well for the most part, it is a state of mind.

What is interesting to me is why i came to be afflicted with the condition. Sure the movie is an obvious answer, but it is much more than that. Its the Catholic attitude, its the what men? what you saying? balls to you ! confidence that they carry around.

It is the carefree attitude towards everything fun in life, its the want to experience new things at the cost of sanity and social decrees. Its the food, its the smell of sorpotel and calamari on Sundays, its the beer in the fridge and whiskey on rocks....its all of it and more man.

Wait a minute, this says nothing about the women you say? Of course not, the women are more or less the same, but then its about the lifestyle, its about the way of life. Its actually my way into her family life than her, she is of course a bonus, but i think i like the family more.

I would like the brother who knows somebody, who knows somebody that plays with the famous Bandra band. Or its the father who just loves to talk about Grateful Dead and the Allman Brothers band or the good old days in the 70s . Or its the mother who just loves to make you happy and content with the delicious food. The invitation to the Christmas Dance, and all the other wedding dances.

So i guess for me its not just the women, they are more or less the same anyway, its what you get along with them, that should be a concern.

I am still wishing for my Catholic Fever to subside, or at least come to fruition. Either way....i am fucked right now!

The Seeker

I've looked under chairs
I've looked under tables
I've tried to find the key
To fifty million fables

They call me The Seeker
I've been searching low and high
I won't get to get what I'm after
Till the day I die

-------The Who

Many years ago, i was introduced to the concept of true love, eternal happiness and of course world peace. Novelty concepts, which really do not have basis in the real world, but the sheer magnificence of these concepts have made me a seeker.

Eternal happiness & World Peace always seemed a bit stretched to me, but true love was quite realistic. All you had to do was fall in love, isn't it interesting how the phrase has been termed, falling in love. It is almost an accident, it happens, out of the clear blue sky. There is no pattern, no essence behind what just happened, it just happened.

Fairly simple no? Quite possible, you just have to go about your daily life and you will FALL in love.

WRONG

After 23 years of living, and over a decade of believing this load of tripe i have come to the conclusion that there is no falling in love, you have to free fall in to the stuff. And just like any other professional free fall, you can't not do your research, find the spot, go the right height and take a dive. You don't want yourself splattered all over the footpath do you? DO YOU?

Now i am a seeker man, i am looking for the good stuff, i am out there scowering the streets, the high and low corners of my beloved city. Then i go on to cyberspace, countless hours of searching, looking and just basically doing the prep work.

This place (the world) is about people who go out there and get what they want. Well i want that, the eternal love, the soulmate, mon cherie - i am going for it man.

The search has been on for the last 23 years, and guess i will still go on until....well i find it right.

I told Mr. Reaper only one thing, don't you get in my way old man, i will be right with you....i just have to find this thing...have to get to it

I won't get to get what I'm after
Till the day I die

We shall see about that.....won't we REAPY

Movies - Love - and me

DISCLAIMER - Friends, well wishers, viral visitors - this is not your everyday, thought provoking piece of literature on the world wide web. These are the renderings of the soul, not to be confused as a light read. Here it goes....

The guy looks at the girl, their bright eyes meet each other and they are locked in a passionate kiss which seems to last for an eternity. As a kid i would shy away from the screen and look away, as i was taught instinctively that this was an act of lewdness. Blame it on the middle class, quasi - conservative upbringing, but we were nice kids then. Later on when we were taught that the stork is a big freaking lie, we learnt that this is only natural. I got hooked on it, the imaginitive perfection of it all, mesmerized by the beauty, locked onto the Movie magic. People want to believe in fairy tales, well i want to believe in Cinema.

Confused? I want to believe that Cinema is a true portrayal of life, that Cinema only captures life as a record of what happens in the real world. Sure, the stories maybe fictional but they are true accounts of someone elses life. I am still convinced about this.....and i still want me some of that.

Romance is all that i dreamed of, falling hopelessly in love with a beautiful maiden who would reciprocate my adoration. The cutie from school, pretty college girl, the stunning colleague. The first look, the meeting of the eyes across the room, the cosmic connection felt only by the two souls. The first conversation that lasts for an eternity and yet is not long enough. Time stands still when she smiles, and the heart can keep up with a drummer from a speed metal band.

School ended, college whizzed by me and then came work, i still haven't found what i was looking for. Oh sure i complained that i couldn't find my kind of girl, that is not a very compelling argument, not anymore anyway. Celluloid dreams shattered...i had to think about my life...where was i going

You see i had by now put a lot of currency into the whole, love, romance, relationship, marriage deal. Now the core value that i based my life around was basically torn down. I am a religious bigot with the fundamentals of my religion proved wrong. Its as if they proved that Jesus Christ did not exist, and the Kaba was....well you get the picture.

So what exactly happened? Why did i lose the hope? Why did i let go of everything?

It just turned out like any other religion, you believe and you keep your faith, and nothing happens. You keep waiting for that one day when everything will be tossed and you will be there...just you your partner....and the world.And nothing happens.....

Sure this is pure frustration, but i want to share it with whoever will want to take a listen. You start doubting yourself, and this is the point when you have clearly run out of excuses, the ego has been shattered and the veil of denial has been taken down.

List of excuses always thrown out there :

1. There aren't enough women to try and work something out you know

This is clearly a dead duck now, i am surrounded by women, good looking women at that, and they have their friends, and their friends. There is no dearth of women, not anymore anyway.

2. Awww... i just haven't found the girl for me

This is bullshit and you know it better than anyone else, out of the myriad women you get in touch with, its a statistically impossibility to not having bumped into someone you truly like. And its happened to me 3 times so far....so that one is out too

3. The girls are still too young man....they need to like me for me

This is so much bullshit, i do not know where to begin on this one. Some of us, mostly me, was waiting for the women to come around, believe that they have had enough of playing around with the boys and start hanging out with the men. The more silent, intelligent, serious types.

Women do not care about any of that - there are enough women dating both kinds.

4. The.....

Okay i have run out of fucking excuses, and i have to face the facts don't i ?

I just don't have the Mojo man, it breaks my heart to say it, it truly makes me feel like one of those people, who i did not want to end up like. But i did.... no Mojo man....no panache, no personality to carry it all of.

Think about it, i have basically invested my whole life into this thing of ours. And now i dont even have the requisite equipment. Its a shame is what it is.

But then like a smooth fountain of cold sweet water comes Hope...hope that none of this will matter.

PLOT - Cks life

Ck the loser who could never actually get a girl, finds his perfection, the one the only - Ms. EXACTLY WHAT I WANTED. She sees through the no mojo, no game no nothing and sees the heart full of goodness and just gives in. And after a brief fight with her boyfriend, or some action sequence like that he gains her respect and admiration.

They walk away into the sunset holding hands.

SHUT UP! It could happen

The smell oh the smell

Aren't pigeons we?

The state of the city scares me a bit, I am a bit worried, how fragile we have become that the scare of an invisible and quite non – existent monster can drive us out of our wits. I had decided that I would not validate this fear by writing about it on a public forum, or speak about it otherwise. The sheer ignorance of my brethren has made me very afraid.

It is a norm that people as a group are always foolish, but I thought that we as a people were different. All right, I have to admit, I was hoping that we were a cut apart, guess we are not. What will become of us when we are faced with a devastating blow? What will we do then? Throw ourselves of buildings, give our children poison?

Have we desensitized ourselves from the real tragedies and calamities that when something such as the Swine Flu surfaces, we scramble for cover. Leptospirosis, Dengue, Malaria take the lives of hundreds each year. It is offered a two – column story on the third page. Yet open gutters and utter disregard for hygiene and cleanliness are rampant. Deaths caused due to these diseases in Mumbai are staggering, ask anybody these figures and we would not know them.

Mumbai is not strong, it is not resilient, it is plain stupid and scared shitless.

We have neither the capacity to withstand a real attack, or any general threat….we are just pigeons looking for a warm place to nest and the next attractive mate. Anytime there is a perceived threat we flutter off. Another similarity to pigeons is the short memory, we do not remember the various bombings that happened over the last two years, we do not have a clue where they happened, nobody even cares about the lives lost just this November. The Mumbaikar is losing his sheen, he is becoming a callous runt of a person, devoid of humanity and feeling.

“A city full of people, not a soul around”

Yet there is hope; we wouldn’t be humans without it now right? There are a few even to this day, who keep their heads held high, use rationale and reason to live, don’t bow down to statistics and big typefaces. Live each day as any other, die a little each day to the machine that is the city. But you can be sure that you will see the resilience in their uncovered faces. For if the city can’t kill them, swine flu will not.

South Indian Eating Food

Music by Norah Jones

My dad was a big Connie Francis fan, and he loved more women singers than male. I mention this particularly because i think i have inherited this trait from him. My guess is that the trait is more direct inheritance in the form of Connie Francis, Dolly Parton and Joni Mitchel tapes, than anything genetic.

Norah Jones can really move me.

I don't want to say much more, because anything i say will merely pale in comparison to the genius and wonder that is her music.

When she splashed across the music channels some 6 years ago, i thought she was angelic. Now she has certainly proved that she can romance a crowd with her sultry tones.

Am proud of a few musicians, i am proud of Norah Jones because she makes up a few of our generations musicians.

Peace returns to the house!

I am not a fan of the Congress Party! Aah....that feels better...that off my chest. There is a very vile, ugly feeling for that party, but i am going to try and be objective here. What does it mean now that the Congress is the single largest party in the parliament. 

One word...the most important one at this point in time - Stability. Now that we have the leaders the powers to be ...back into the house...peace shall prevail. 

Now let us look at the possible alternatives... - Behenji! I am enjoying the one tight sleep that she has got post the verdict. Wow, she wanted to be the Prime Minister of this country...well if 20 seats can make somebody a Prime Minister...then there is something terribly wrong with our system. That of course has not happened - lets look at another dude who wanted to be the Supremo - Pawarsaheb, ego on this man, he could have played it cool, he could have had his jive post the results, now i doubt if he can even command a simple position in the cabinet. He has 9 seats....hahahahahahahah.....9 seats. Really??? that commands what???? Nitish Kumar - i am going to withhold any judgement about the man from Bihar...that is because, in Indian politics anything can happen. 

Lalkrishna Advani - The Octaganerian, he is a leader, my leader, he can lead me any day...but he cannot lead this country. This is what we knew right from the start, there was nobody from BJP who could be an alternative. Quite frankly BJP has to build its case, they have to make an attempt to win over the hearts and minds of the people. Well, thats for 2014. Bottomline, BJP wasn't the one to go with this year. [the candidate i voted for lost, but i still think my vote counted]

Today, we have one party, an intelligent party albeit a scourge that is at the helm of affairs. Why not i say? a known bastard is better than a sneaky one. I am going to be allowed to study English...that is quite important. I hear Montek is going to take over the Finance Ministry, that is a happy thought. 

Last word - Rahul Gandhi - Prince of India, i wish him the best of luck, there are a lot of expectations from him. If he lives up to 20% of what he claims he will do....i would be quite pleased. 

Our civilization is stepping into a new phase, one where political squabbles and useless issues do not have any place. Incumbency is not a rule, its just a factor, elections are won purely on merit (LOL) and Stability is key. 

Democracy rules.....you have been given the chance to continue Congress...do not under any circumstances FUCK IT UP!!!!

PEACE!

Who'll Stop the Rain

Long as i remember....the song is as simple as it can get while treating one of the most complex topics - the system. I retreat again to this song in times of FLU. Do we really believe this shit about the SWINE Flu - come on man, tell me you have more brains, more grey matter than to believe in this hogwash. 

The swine flu outbreak was in March 2009 - but then it took an ugly turn a couple of days ago and now thats all we hear and see. To be precise it was the 27th of April 2009 - Monday http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/27/world/27flu.html?scp=19&sq=&st=nyt . Guess what it was a pandemic in the article on the 27th of April while we didnt know what it was about 3 days ago. No news no nothing....suddenly its in our faces...bright red and infectious......

Don't you guys see that there is a cover up in progress - lets take a look at the news that was going on before this - 

1. Storm of Violence in Iraq Strains Its Security Forces - http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/25/world/middleeast/25iraq.html?scp=31&sq=&st=nyt

2. U.S. Questions Pakistan’s Will to Stop Taliban -

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/24/world/asia/24pstan.html?scp=39&sq=&st=nyt

3. U.S. Stymied as Guns Flow to Mexican Cartels

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/15/us/15guns.html?_r=1&scp=89&sq=&st=nyt

These key news articles are now buried under heaps of bullshit on the SWINE Flu. I feel it is quite hilarious given the fact that there was another bit of news which has been abandoned as well - http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/20/health/policy/20food.html?scp=62&sq=&st=nyt

Lets face it, the swine flu is a diversion, used by the powers to be to scare us into believing that something porcine this way comes to devour our lives - huhuhuhahahahahahaha.

SWINE FLU is not a real thing, people are dying in Mexico City - i dont see any real evidence of this, the mexican officials are declaring people dying of similar symptoms as of dying with Swine flu. Lets take this objectively - the symptoms of Swine Flu is the same as Flu - you know that which happens to everybody.

So somebody gets the flu in Switzerland(Yes the flu has now spread to Helvetic borders) and the lazy doctor wants to be famous says - SWINE FLU - of course - yus - look at him - high fever - shivering it has to be Swine flu. 

Now Switzerland on high - alert . WHAT THE FUCK ??????????

Thankfully in India we have to contend with the general elections and hence we are still not interested so much about this Flu. I was standing in the voting que today a family in front of me were discussing 'some flu' that has been going around - i chuckled to myself....greatful.

Clouds of mystery pourin confusion on the ground. Good men through the ages, tryin to find the sun; And I wonder, still I wonder, who'll stop the rain.

Universal Adult Franchise

Everybody is putting in their two pence in the wishing well, dropping honest word about the general elections, i simply will not be left out. This is the time for us to sit back and collect our thoughts, we are going to be the part of a democratic process. Government of the people, for the people by the people. Very powerful statement that. 

Most educated people choose to ensure that they do not vote. It is a time honoured cliche to say - What difference man?! I say fuck the difference, every vote counts! Just as i utter those words i feel embarassed, this is because my statement is as much a cliche itself. 

So i say i don't care if it makes a difference or not, whether my vote counts in the 'democratic process' , it is my fair share. I am entitled to my vote. Whenever i think of the vote i think of it as a gift, given to me (to us) by our elders, our forefathers. The people who stood up and asked for democracy, nay who fought for it. Not voting is like spitting on their efforts, their fight, their valour - they bled for this most basic right - Right to Universal Adult Franchise.

Come 30th April 2009 - i ask every Mumbaikar to cast his/her vote. Be proud of our democracy, which was fought with sheer sweat and guts. Signify their blood spilt on our streets as a blot on your finger - GO OUT AND TAKE WHAT'S YOURS - THE VOTE