Sex: 1, City: 1, Two: 0

[The title of this post has been unabashedly picked up from Roger Ebert's tweet.]


One line review. Sex and the City 2 is about utter escapism. Read on if you still care to know more.


Seriously if there had to be a more preposterous show of glamour, fashion and mindlessness then it could not have been better than this. Oh wait! Did I just use the word 'better'? Ughhh..


The TV show was amazing. The girls and their characters were not mere caricatures but real beings. It was not the usual fluff and drama that one expects from chick-flick stuff. As in it had brains and was sensible. They ended it well when the last single girl on the planet called Manhattan gets hooked up. Now that was intelligent. 
Oh and it was an ode to NYC. And one of the most fabulous ones. It had a heart, one which would definitely connect with you.


But then they decided to show us extravagant chic weddings, PMS (pre marital syndrome) for men, some emotional drama and more girl bonding. So they made a movie out of the whole enterprise. Groan. The candid affair which the show had with its audiences got stretched a bit further. But at least it was an earnest attempt. One would not exactly cry with Carrie for Big's betrayal, but sit back and see all the bollywood style emotional atyaachaar. (And I seriously want to thank Bollywood for improving my tolerance levels when it comes to non sense).


But you know what happened next ? This time the girls (who are old women disguised in the most gaudy fashion ever) have some really REAL issues on hands and mind. So they thought they had a real storyline for another movie. Again wait, did I just use the word 'real' for the third time ?
Check this:
1. A 50 something woman undergoing Menopause
2. Being a full time mother of 2
3. Balance between work and home and did I say a draconian boss and right to be heard at work place
4. Wanting to lead a childless life/marriage, in a society where marriage binds you to a child's existence


But remember when in lala land, you just dress up in weirdest wardrobes and raise your cocktails to these issues and say cheers 'to women who manage all this without any help'. Set on a phony setting of these issues and women's liberation in the middle east, the movie tries to be intelligent, funny, sexy and stylish. It ends up getting on your nerves for being shallow, materialistic, whiny and horny (read Samantha Jones). SATC is known and adored for its wit and fun quotient. But the jokes here dont even make one laugh. Not even Samantha's wearing her sex drive on her sleeve ones.
I have had this issue with Hindi movies for a long time now, that the directors/script writers touch a really sensitive chord and then totally ignore it or make a standing joke out of it. Guess the bug is spreading. BIG DISAPPOINTMENT.


Now talking about the characters. Samantha Jones is the biggest letdown. This is the most outrageous character in the entire run of the show. They cross all the thin lines between cheap and sensible, vulgar and sexy and leave us to abhor this one, in the movie. (But I still admire Kim Catrall for being so open and outspoken about everything). Carrie's independence and indecisiveness gets converted to senseless rants and stupidity. Somehow the director spares Miranda and Charlotte. Oh wait, they do crib about having help and still not being able to be good mothers. Kudos to them!


I just have an earnest request for all the people involved in making this, please dont come up with a third movie. I adore the show and I can live with its re-runs. Please dont mutilate some really heartfelt characters which I have come to admire. 


And girls out there, watch the movie at your own risk. 


~nightflier


P.S. there are some better reviews which thrash the movie in a hilarious way. Do check them out, for these will certainly provide you with wicked laughs.
http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/burkas-and-birkins/Content?oid=4132715

Life in the slow zone

Most of you will agree that life as a student is slow except for those elevated periods of activity and exhaustion during exams and semester end. But on a routine basis if you follow a time table life is more or less the same. Having done that for almost 2 years I was REALLY looking forward to get my hands dirty in the real world and start working. It seems god or one of his subordinates with a mean sense of humour has different plans (cos I think I have a friendly relation with mr. god. I know he is reading this! coy smile). 


Anyhow that throws me in the slow zone (what I sometimes also call the unpredictable zone) once again! To tell the truth, I did get caught a bit off guard here. But after 4-5 days of lamenting and sob stories (to myself), I am back to being an optimist. Sigh..


I am planning to learn a few new programming languages/tools (Strictly for AwareNet purposes).
Also in the pipeline is a lot of reading. The pending reading list seems to grow by day and looms on me menacingly. In a wake up you lazy ass way.
The evening walks are an integral part of my day now. Planning to add badminton sessions. Any bakras in picture or vicinity ? Well, playing with imaginary friends doesn't quite look appropriate for my age now. 
And in the cooking section we have Mark uncle making a re-entry. Of course he will be on Minimalist and me in my kitchen.
On the gadget front if I can carry it off then try to download cool applications and games for my iTouch. Seriously it must be feeling ignored/rejected/sad with my meagre musical needs and limited use. But pretty soon I will be as cool as Tony Stark. Hope floats!


And not on the list is any TV related activity. Because I pulled up a crazy stunt of watching 5 seasons of Lost in 15 days (Each episode lasts for 42-45 minutes :-|) Now I have a pretty good gist of how its going to end. If you have heard of parallel universes and infinite dimensions you might know what I am talking about. And if you are somewhere between season 1 and 5 or don't watch it, then don't bother. This isnt even a spoiler. So I hope there are no chappals or chopsticks coming my way ? Phew!
Waise in my defence I thought any free time before starting work is like your last few days on earth before doomsday. Well watching 5 seasons of Lost will not be anyone's choice in such situation, but let's agree people are weird. Waise I am on episode 4 of season 6 now, if you were still thinking.
The effect of this incessant Lost bombardment has been tremendous on my nervous system. I have lost (the verb) appetite for tv. That also makes my stomach churn at the thought of movies. Now that's pretty bad for a fanatic. So I beg you to not suggest any more new tv series by amreekan versions of Ekta Kapoors. I also hope the damage does not last long.


So now coming to the point behind this non stop badbad, please suggest me good books on design of products, entrepreneurship and marketing. Not my cup-o-tea all this stuff. Par kya karein karna padta hai.
Also if any of you at any point of time has developed a facebook/mobile custom application, kindly let me know. 
And be a good girl/boy and help your technologically challenged (lazy more like) friend by suggesting nice iTouch/phone applications (needn't be useful). Also let me know what your plans for summer are, in case things get really slow, I might gatecrash (into ?) them.


Parting songs of the moment(s) : 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91QBcm07kXE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8me1GXijJA


(Go ahead my friend. Click them. Sometimes clicking unknown links can make all the difference :))


~nightflier

Gangaram

Been born and brought up in the same city (same neighbourhood more like) my childhood seems pretty uneventful to me. Leaving aside the minor skirmishes of sibling rivalry, my scrappiness in outdoor events and a few illness stricken periods, there were never major instances of the belonging crisis, short lived friendships, or for that matter moving or shifting. For the 2 or 3 times we moved, we just shifted by a block or two. Never ever had to leave the coziness of my sweet and charming west nagpur neighbourhood. Having stated that, Gangaram holds a very special place in my uneventful childhood.


For he was, my rikshawala for a span of 4 years. From 3rd standard to 6th. He was my first friend from the other side of the age line. And I think for that matter all of us, for whom he was a rikshawala. He did not have a very good looking rikshaw, but it was very well maintained and neat. He also had a secret hiding place beneath the rikshaw seat where he kept all the mechanical tools and we were forbidden to even lift the seat a bit without his permission. Those were his rules. He had a flaring temper, rude mannerisms, rash language but there was a mischievous charm about him. He would never talk rudely with our parents or us. But other rikshawalas and their pampered kids always used to be targets of his rustic sarcasm. He would always indulge in silly banter with us kids. Sometimes hiding away our bags or waterbottles if we showed him any attitude or were careless with his rikshaw!


He seemed (and still seems) pretty ageless (might have been in his 50s back then) to me as a kid. I would always ask mom dad how old he must be. Cos I always used to wonder how a single person can ride a rikshaw filled with 10 kids without any help ?? (I also used to wonder how many kids he might have, where he lived, what he ate, but strangely never bothered to ask :-|) Super duper herculean stuff! Literally! And on Saturdays he used to pull a rikshaw full of almost 15 kids (because kids from a stupid nearby school used to join us). And since we were used to the royal treatment and our coveted positions in the rikshaw, we made deals with Gangaram. On Saturdays he would let us sit on the balcony (terrace) seats called the TUP and in turn lessen the chaos and pain in his life :D For this dude had issues with our rivalry and fights for the throne. 


And then it reminds me of the infamous incident. On one such Saturday, there was something wrong with his rikshaw and we were given the responsibility of holding an iron spike and also not make any noise. No points for guessing we messed it up, one of us (we had turns to hold that thing) dropped the spike, it got stuck in the rikshaw wheels and all hell broke loose. Galti se! The next thing I remember is a very angry Gangaram shouting, us getting down with our stuff all teary and he helping us cross the road. He then instructed us to head home on our own and went back to his broken rikshaw. Thinking this is the last time we were seeing him, we waited for him to call back our names and say goodbye. Oh sweet innocence. Of course, he did not. 
To our surprise and shock, he was back the next morning (with a fit and fine rikshaw), politely listening to our parents lecture about being responsible. That incident was never mentioned by him or us. And guess we were back to being a team!


I still see him pulling the same rikshaw filled with boisterous kids. And he gives the typical mischievous grin and tells me how my bike wheels are rotating in the reverse direction. Well that's his trademark! 


I owe you one Gangaram for making my childhood so eventful! :)


~nightflier


P.S. Have they found a cure for incurable nostalgia ?

Being a student

Having been a student of a government institute, I quite know the woes of tackling the administration people there. Quite a lot of people will nod their head, when I tell similar stories of how they would make you wait for silly stuff like getting an examination form signed or submitted, or paying fees or for that matter enquiring about student issues. The 4 years of engineering taught me a great deal about the virtue called patience and the importance of the "smile". Because people in these departments just loved imposing their misguided sense of power on us students. And just smiling away on their mean deeds and not losing our patience meant a lot.


And when after almost 6 years of having learnt my way through such situations, where you keep on telling yourself that just get the work done without taking anything personally or losing your temper, I experienced a familiar situation today. And it just strengthens my observation that people everywhere are the same. Put them in a slightly superior position than yours and they will make sure that your life becomes miserable or at least make you feel less good about yourself.


And this is strictly my personal observation. I am not trying to put anyone in bad light. This kind of human behaviour amuses me and sometimes angers me too.


I am an F-1 student who has graduated and waiting for her EAD card to arrive to start working. And my start date is getting closer and I have not received anything from the USCIS. So quite naturally I was concerned and wanted to know more about what could be done from my end to expedite the process. So I went to meet the International Center advisor. The first thing she did was lecture me on how students should not wait for their offer letters to apply for an EAD card and you might be brilliant getting loads of offers from companies, but you should not wait (Come on, like all this stuff about my brilliancy was REALLY needed.). She has to tackle 1000s of cases like mine everyday and hence very patiently nodding my head and understanding her point of view, I agreed. But the next thing she said which totally made me lose it was 'so admit that this is your mistake'. Yes ladies and gentlemen, these are the exact words she used.
(In short you not getting your employment authorization is your mistake). Well I kind of knew that even before going to meet her. I was just hoping for getting some help. DUH!
First thing that popped in my head was 'Come on we are not here to discuss that!'. But I lost my temper after that and said, 'I agree my application got delayed. But what is done is done. We cannot keep on blaming each other for stuff that is already done. What I would like to know is what can be done from here on, so that your student doesn't remain jobless.' 


May be I might not get more co-operation from her end in the future. May be if I had accepted my mistake (so that she felt better) she would have called USCIS to expedite the process. or May be this is just her way of making students feel bad about themselves for having a job offer in hand. May be its not even worth all this time and energy (of writing the post). But I know it isn't about admitting my mistake or anything I said or wrote. Its about having to say NO to your student for any help. And since you cannot do that in a straightforward way you make them feel bad about themselves.


~nightflier

The Engineering Fight

Ladies and gentlemen,
Presenting to you the commencement anthem for us engineers :D


e to the x
dy dx
e to the x
dx
cosine
secant
tangent
sine
3.14159
i
PI
square root of 3
rockem
sockem
iit


We sang it at the end of our commencement ceremony!!!
Too much fun :)


~nightflier

Tales from skinnystan

What do you do when ...


1. You are graduating soon, and to blend with the culture need a nice, pretty outfit.
2. Every store you visit invariably seems to sell clothes only from size 2 and above.
3. Even the stores which are meant for people like you with weight issues, dont sell anything which suits your taste.
4. When you do find the 'one' you are looking for, is available in your size, but only in distant suburbia, whose names sound like quaint 18th century villages and where the buildings are 3 story high.
5. You decide to compromise and buy an expensive dress which does not fit you and get it altered.
6. Having spent almost a fortune on buying stuff which doesn't fit you, a thought crosses your mind, why all the fuss ? You might as well skip the function or wear something old and Indian.
7. Seeing your dilemma friends, family, random strangers (like the bus driver lady, the shop assistant) start giving you advice on how and what to eat.


It is then, frustrated by the injustice meted out to you for being skinny, that 


1. You decide to make cheese, milk, eggs, bananas, chocolates, french fries and the family, your best friends.
2. Even though its against your conviction, you decide to join gym and work out like crazy. After all you have heard stories of how sylvester stallone became john rambo.
3. You make a resolve to hog till it makes you FAT.


And it is then, that your eyes fall on a random dress in a corner deeply buried below other stuff. It isn't what you wanted but it fits you really well. You decide may be you can accessorize it a bit and it might be the one you wanted!
It is also at this moment that you have an epiphany which tells you, probably its time not to take things just stated above so seriously. Time to take deep breath and chill.


~nightflier ;)

Mother's recipe!

Oh no no, this isnt a cooking post.

My parents had promised me a graduation gift and I just received a box full of home-made goodies.

Chiwda, laadoo, badam burfi (yeah Mother specializes in it!), paapdi, and few chutneys :D

The greatest thing is, Aai made everything at home! (Well the usual sob stories of how I dont get to eat anything she cooks). I just put down the phone to tell her that I received everything in excellent condition and how it feels like स्वर्ग सुख when I put anything in my mouth! 

Mother's day has just gone by. And I don't really believe in all these (though I wish her by default), but today I feel awed. At her tenacity, the hard work she puts into everything so that her kids get the very best, her resilience, tolerance, patience (specially raising a brat like me!), her faith, her un-possessiveness, and not feeling the necessity to poke us at every turn of lives so that we grow up to be us and not someone else!

I think its absolutely great! And when I grow up I want to be like you Aai!

Love,

~nightflier :)

We never really seem satisfied with what we have. Howmuchever we struggle, fight, achieve things we want in life, there is always something! And we let that 'something' make us unhappy and sad.


It may be a job we don't have, or admission to that prestigious institution or the special someone we don't have to share our lives with.


On one side, the frustration of not finding a job or suitable work, is something which can be related with. But I really don't understand when people fret over things like how much their other friends are earning and that's why conclude that their own jobs suck. At least crib about not getting your desired flavour of ice cream. I will sympathize with you.
Really, as we grow up, it's always about something! Today it will be about the job I don't have, tomorrow it will be about the time we don't have because of the higher paying (very rarely higher responsibilities) job we got. Today it will be about finding love, tomorrow it will be about accepting that person for what/who he/she is. Why do we find change and acceptance so difficult to deal with ? 


And here I think the following holds true. As we grow up, our struggles become the most dire ones, the injustices doled out to us the most unfair and thus our tolerance levels dip down to zero.
In the quest to outshine everyone and sometimes ourselves, how about taking a deep breath to relax and wonder, how amazing life is. Because in the end, we all are doing the same permutations and combinations in random patterns!


~nightflier


P.S. I know there are no exceptions including myself!

Quotable quote!

“All that is gold does not glitter, 
not all those who wander are lost; 
the old that is strong does not wither, 
deep roots are not reached by the frost. 
From the ashes a fire shall be woken, 
a light from the shadows shall spring; 
renewed shall be blade that was broken, 
the crownless again shall be king." 


- Bilbo Baggins


P.S. I badly want to read LOTR!


~nightflier

Blast from the past

Whenever I am down in the dumps, I have this habit of remembering all these nice and sometimes queer things/incidents. As you might have deduced I suffer from incurable nostalgia. But these normally work as a good ego massage ;)

Few of the ones which resurface by default are

1. A senior from COEP. She has the most amazing 4 year old kid and through Orkut, FB I have been able to see her grow up, through these years. Now we are not exactly buddies, in terms of junior-senior relationship. But while wishing her on her birthday, I could not help but tell her how adorable her daughter was (I also told her that her daughter's smile makes my day. And I was not being obnoxious at all. You will have the same feeling when you see her snaps.) And after a few days I got a really cute reply from her, which said, 'I can just imagine the smile of your daughter (whenever she decides to come) to be just like yours!' 

How awfully nice of her :) It makes me feel good, now please don't ask why :P

2. A small little mail from my brother. In the 'siblings' perspective he has this strange calming quality quite contrary to my strong-headedness. In a mail I had blasted some hi-quality emotional stuff to him. In reply to that, he had said the most simple things in the most simple manner. (Personal stuff, so cannot reveal :P) But it gives me strength to see things in a clear/simple manner, whenever I am in a mess.

3. Mom's letters. Always very motivational and pure at heart :)

4. Aajoba's (Grandfather) letters. They are awfully cryptic and every reading makes me see things in a new light :D

5. A small short story written by Cervantes on Don Quixote. My aatya (Father's sister) had this amazing habit of gifting us books for our birthdays. And this book I am talking about had inspiring stories of great philosophers who were held captive or were prisoners during their lifetime. Though I cant re-write the exact story here, it speaks of the quests of Don Quixote. The story basically reflected Cervantes internal struggle. (Can go really deep but for the sake of sanity wont). I cannot thank my aatya enough for introducing me to this illusive character when I was 13!

6. A really cute poem that KT had given to me as a birthday present. It still remains my greatest and most treasured birthday gift ever!

7. Harry potter and the deathly hallows. Reading it makes me think. Always!

8. Cannot think of anything else. How I had wished while starting this post, that it will have 10 points. Alas!

~nightflier

Ramblings

1. The other day was talking to a friend and he started telling me how his mother gives my example as an ideal girl (in terms of independence) to his younger sister. Boy! If I was his sister I would have hated me. Seriously, when I was small and dad/mom used to tell me 'see him/her and see how independent/polite/nicely behaved/whatever they are!' I used to put those very people in my 'always-keep-safe-distance-with' list. It was an automated thing. With time I have managed to be in touch with most of them, but there are some who still secretly lie(or lay ?) there ;)


2. I refresh my facebook page almost every minute, to see how much people rock. And sometimes it does make me feel miserable, seeing how these people can put their entire daily life out there. I really admire these people. Is there any lower barrier for sucking ?


3. Have a new found love for walks. Started it after the DC trip (thanks to the amazing weather!). Fun walking as I call it, is therapeutic. Just my iPod, no running/walking shoes and taking random strolls at my will. This is the highest point of my otherwise boring routine life. And somehow the idea that I wont be here after 15 days, makes me sad :(
Anywho, better late than never. I hope to explore the Michigan lakeside more. And to anyone planning to visit the city, this place is a MUST visit! (only during May-August).


4. Have started watching LOST. To tell you the truth, I found it okay. I mean nothing great. Plus I think if you have watched a lot of tv then you get a hang of it all. Not that I am looking for something to think or ponder upon, but LOST doesnt exactly deserve the WOW ratings it gets! (totally my opinion)


5. And the desire or wish to go back to India is all the more strong now. I mean I should stop lying to myself or anyone, hence putting it here. I do have a job in hand, which looks promising for long term. But I am not happy. Not a bit. Now some friends/people will call me ungrateful or stupid (may be) but I seriously dont want to live here. So anyone who knows any openings in India, specially tech sector, please please please, let me know! (Especially in Mumbai or Pune :D) Thanks in advance!


~nightflier :)