Yesterday its coming, Saar !!

I picked up a pack of Dharwar pedas today morning at the Nandini outlet.

As I was paying , I asked the attendant – “ aaj ka stock hai ?? ‘

And he beamed at me and replied – 2 Jan ! yesterday its coming, Saar !!

 

Krish..

…. and the Gillette wins again !!

Five weeks of luxuriant growth..

With daily care and two professional  trims ..

We were set for a permanent association.

One fateful evening ..

Three pretty ladies ..

Advise me ..

And right from their hearts ..

And the inevitable happened ..

The Gillette won again !!

Krish..

I can water my money plants – spill free !!

Four weeks of stay at home can be quite challenging!  And especially when you have never  been  used to it .

I have been out of home and on the tours for most parts of  my life .  At age 16  I  went out to college and got into a hostel in a remote campus in Rajasthan  ( BITS, Pilani ) .   After 7 years, I  went straight for a job that made me tour all around India 3-4 times a month.  And it has been the same ever since then  for the past 40 years !

The last 5  years have been even more hectic with alternate weeks to Delhi and sometime even more frequently.

So when I took a  4 week vacation and decided to ‘stay put’ at home all throughout, it was a real challenge – to say the least.

You see,  me and my wife are not accustomed to seeing each other for such long periods of time .   And relationships can get strained and  pretty tense most times .

It appears that when I am away, our home  is peaceful, well organized and beautifully maintained . The sofa set covers remain neat and wrinklefree. The beds are well smoothened throughout the day and the pillows are straightened and  properly placed. The kitchen is clean with absolutely zero traces of cookie crumbs, juice stains, food wrappers,  tea & milk spills . And apparently the kitchen sink is clean and dry most parts of the day instead it being piled with  used plates, mugs and sticky spoons !!

Appears that when I am  travelling, the newspaper is always correctly folded , with all the supplementary sections properly tucked within the main paper and neatly stacked up on the right hand side of the book case.  And  all books & the dictionary are in the proper place with the sliding glass doors properly closed.

And it can go on …  the lights in all the  rooms are switched off , the fan is not running, the curtains & windows are closed except between 7.30 AM to 12 noon, the TV main switch is off and the two remotes are placed on top of the VCR under the TV. The shoe closet is always closed,  All soxes inside the closet or in  the washing machine & definitely NOT  on top of the PC monitor !   The bathroom is always dry, the faucet never dripping, exhaust fan off and NO brown foot prints on the tiled floor !!

You want to hear more ??  the cell phone charger  always in the left draw, the scissors and glue stick and scotch tape and rubber bands and tie wires all well tucked away into the lower draw of our mirrored closet !  The wife could not locate the scissors today morning and to top  it all she had to discover the leaking fevicol  tube  on my side to the bed partially hidden under the pillow.  So we had a minor volcanic eruption to start  off our day !!

How can one be so perfect,  I wonder ??  How can anyone always remember to properly close the book  wirh a book mark and walk all the way across the room and slide it  on the shelf  before  turning off the side lamp for a mid afternoon snooze ??? 

But now,  I have learnt quite a bit. After returning from my morning walk, I always take off my shoes before entering the main hall, dust it first  and then stack it  into the shoe cupboard, peel off my sox and dump it straight into the washing machine, carefully wind up the earphone cord on  my iPod and push it inside the pouch and finally into the draw. I also upturn my jacket and track pants and hang it outside to air !!

And I can decipher all the 4 keys that it takes to lock/unlock our main door and the gate !  I can carefully water all the 3 money plants in our house without flooding our book shelf, our centre table and our vintage granddaddy gramophone !!

But what I have  never been  able to resist is my frequent inspection of our fridge .  While there is really nothing much nowadays , I am a chronic optimist .   There is always some hope that our neighbors have shared  a small cup of  sheera  ( a traditional sweet offering in any Pooja )  or an experimental gulab-jamun coming from my mom-in-law from the next block !  and I have been lucky quite a few times ! and make do with carrots , cucumbers  and sawdust flavored crackers most other times.

And next week I come back to office !!  and even better , I go on a trip to Delhi !!

Yippeee !!!

Krish..

Adaab – Good Morning !!

Once again  !

Walking along  the same route today morning ..

This time a tired looking man ( probably exhausted from an overnight bus journey ) ..

With a red checkered blanket and a heavy staff ..

We met up a couple of meters away from the bus stand

And we exchanged a simple adab gesture !!

And it made my day !!

HOW THE SALAAM (GREETING) BEGAN.

Narrated by Abu Hurairah : The Prophet said, "Allâh created Adam in His Image, sixty cubits

(about 30 meters) in height.

When He created him, He said (to him), 'Go and

greet that group of angels sitting there, and listen what they will say in

reply to you, for that will be your greeting and the greeting of your

offspring.'

Adam (went and) said, 'As-Salaamu 'Alaykum (peace be upon

you).'

They replied, 'As-Salaamu 'Alaykum wa Rahmatullah (Peace and Allâh's

Mercy be on you).'

Krish..

Salam Aleikum !!

Ours is a very conservative middle class South Indian family . And all men have been clean shaven – since generations ..  Probably ever since our early ancestors managed to chop off their beard with a well sharpened  stone axe !

So, moustache, beard, french beard and even  side-burns have been a taboo !

I am the only non conformist and demonstrated my lack of respect for such tradition right since a couple of strands started appearing on my chin…

A sad looking goatee in my teens, a healthier mustache in college and a smart  beard during my post grad days .

However after joining a serious job and then a marriage later on, all of this disappeared .  A moustache though remained for a long time and at times it was luxuriant enough to challenge Graham Gooch, OBE ( the famous English cricketer  ! )

And I tried many times to regrow... over the past many years...  but never could succeed. Too much family pressure and job related challenges guaranteed infant mortality to all my initiatives . Each time my beard growth strategy survived between  15 days to a  max of 45 days before it got guillotined by the Gillette !!

Until  now !!

It has been a 3 week vacation for me and I am sporting a healthy ‘salt-pepper’ beard .

Having been thru all the usual banters , sarcastic comments, warnings, threats and curious looks from neighbors, I can now call myself a survivor !  Many even  thought that I was recovering from some  serious illness and  offered sympathetic nods as I passed them .

Today was ‘payback‘ day !!

During my morning walk, I took one of the routes that pass by a busy bus stand. As I approached a group of early morning travelers I noticed a distinguished looking  old man in spotless white Kurta, a white flowing beard and wearing an embroidered taqiyah ( muslim cap ) .  And  as I got nearer, our eyes met and he instantly pronounced “Salam Aleikum”.

Pleasantly surprised, I returned back the greetings and added ‘ aapka safr acha guzare’ .

I could not have received a better endorsement for my new looks ..

And my beard is here to stay !!

Krish..

Beeyoootiful Weather ! We Have ??

Some more Haikus ...

Have you shrunk your car ??

What to do ?  A4  to Polo …

Really low on Vitamin-M !!

.

Beeyoootiful Weather ! We Have ??

In Bangalore, as I step out for a  chilly refrigerated May morning walk ..

No Way !!  Dilli San !!!

 

Krish..

Whites to War-Paints !!

Indian cricket has come a long way …

From Oval to IPL.

It has changed, transformed, morphed, mutated and trans-mutated !

And Indians have been the key driver for this change.

The CPU :  The leisurely 5-day unlimited over cricket engine has been upgraded to a Multicore. Multi Teraflops, super clocked CPU creating a hi-perfomance real mean machine !!

The Program :  A five day indecisive ordeal has been transformed to a 4 hour Jamboree which guarantees a definite winner, each time  every time  !!

The Display :  Monochrome dull whites to a dazzling riot of hi intensity splash of colors  from a 256 bit palette !!  Check out the wigs and the warpaints ??

The Diversity : Male dominated stern faces audience to exciting ( and excited ) fairer sex…

Co-eds in hot pants and cool shades…

Enthusiastic home makers hosting IPL home parties…

Aunties & Grandmoms fighting for the prime sofa seat in front of the living room TVs…

And of course,  adding color & spice are the specially imported cheer leaders from far away countries !!!

The Optics :  From just two pairs of tired squinting eyes ( of the wicket umpire & the leg umpire )  to a battery of hi-res cameras capturing every movement in the field in real time 3-D !!

The Verdict :  An unimpressive raised single forefinger to multi dimensional  action replays on giant screens building up the anxiety & heartbeats of the 50,000 odd spectators and the billion TV enthusiasts all across the world with  a dramatic announcement of the verdict !! – and sometimes followed by  a hi-intensity Bhangra dance or a sad faced duck waddling across the screen !!

And that’s Indian Cricket in suuumary !!

And I wonder..

If a small bunch of Indian cricket enthusiasts can create such a massive revolution in this game ...

All of us (  the  1 Billion plus youngsters and adults )  have the potential to change the world ??

So here is my call to all you folks ..

Go !  Find the Source Code !!

And we will change this World !!!

Krish..

Who is afraid of Sharon Paul ??

A little nonsense, now & then,

Is relished by the best of men ( & women ) !!

.

So here we go …..

.

Joining us for lunch ??

No Sir, I will take later…

Each time ! Every time !!

.

So, how is the Car ??

Oh Pleeease …

Not Again !!

.

Who is afraid of Sharon Paul ?

Including me …

Everybody !!

.

Can you spot him ??

After a distinct off-beat bass..

Yes !  Top row,  5^th from right !!

 .

Krish..

Sir, It was an accident ! I fell off my Scooty !!

What happened ? How did that happen ?

I asked nodding at the crepe-bandaged right hand and wrist .

I was at the pre-boarding counter today for my flight to Delhi.

And the smart bright red uniformed young girl was checking us in.- a bit clumsily as she was managing the barcode reader and the keyboard with a partially effective right hand .

She looked up;  her face lit up;  a beaming smile and white pearly teeth dazzled through her painted lips .

Sir, It was an accident !  I fell off my Scooty !!  It was an accident Sir !!

Well, Watch out & take care !!

Thank You Sir !!

And I was off through the glass door.

And as I negotiated my way to my seat I wondered – recollecting the smiling face and the excited tone in her voice - how come a nasty accident like that can become such a joyful and a proud moment ??

Krish..

Life - A Perspective !!

Observation:-

Moon   = Sun after an intensive Botox procedure !
Sun      = Moon after a dozen jabs of steroids !!
.
Gyan :-

Treat life like an old hag .....
And that is exactly what you will land up with !
Always bitching and complaining !!
.
Treat her as your new flame .....
And experience your love & happiness bloom at each moment !
And you will walk lighter and bouncy on earth !!
.
Krish..

A matter of perception !!

Jyoce joined us 8 months back . In our marketing group .

A strong willed, headstrong & no nonsense girl..   And very quickly she established herself as someone who can get the work done – come what may !   And she was not afraid of drawing on the power of authority from me .

Yes!   She build up a tough image for herself and could throw her weight around !    And I guess she enjoys it too !!

And we have a very seasoned old time veteran business manager in our office as well .

And he runs a tight ship !    A straight talking, tough speaking aggressive manager who is well respected by all and equally feared by many.   A review session call from him could make many a braveheart shudder !

Yes!   With 21 years of service under his belt, and an abundant & unchallenged knowledge of every aspect of our business, Narang was a force to be reckoned with .   And preferably at a   safe distance to be maintained too !!

Last week, preparations for the country review were in full swing .   Jyoce along with the marketing & product  managers were called in by Narang for the brainstorm and planning session . And as usual,  people were on the edge .

At lunch , while every one gathered around the table I noticed Jyoce’s absence and enquired .

‘ Still with Narang !’   the reply sounded quite ominous  raising  many anxious looks !

Looking up, I asked ‘ You left her all alone with Narang in 6D ? “

Some silence .

And then the cocky young rookie from B-school pipped in ..

“ Oh Gawd !!  So Narang is left all alone with Joyce !!??? “

And a hearty laughter thereafter retriggered  our appetite !!

 

Krish..

32 Years @ the Crease ! And stayin’ alive !!

Next week on 18 March, I complete 15 years in HP . And this is my second stint .

And the stats add up like this ..

32 years on the field and still batting

2  Brands – HP & Silicon Graphics

4 Bosses

28 years association with HP so far …

I  probably  must be one of the very old timers left in HP India .

The only other 2 ancients that I am aware of are R P Mendiratta and B K Chattopadhyay – both at HP GGN office !!

And on 18 March we also bid fond farewell to our boss Ravi Aggarwal – who retires after a mammoth and record 22 years as country head for various HP businesses in India !!

And today I participated in a recording for his farewell Video !!

What make me stick on for so long ?

Well – that’s a long story ..

Some other time ??

Krish..

My son wants to do CA, Sir !!

A Conversation in Hindi – transcribed in English .

I settled down in the front seat, fastened my seat belt and observed the Swift cab driver .   After some time …

What is your name ?

Ramkrishn sir.

Nice name !  (  Ramkrishn is a combination of Sri Ramchandra and Sri Krishna , two of the most popular Hindu deities in India )

Thank you sir.

We drove for some time while the ladies in the back seat kept chatting away ..

So where have you come from ?

UP sir – Banda

Banda ??

Small village behind Jhansi sir .

More silence as he expertly negotiated some  heavy & unruly  traffic near a signal .

And why did you come to Delhi ?

After a subdued, soft laugh ..  sir, everyone comes to Delhi .

Oh ?

Better living & good children education ..

So, how many kids do you have ?

2 sir. Elder boy in 12^th std and a girl.

Wow ! You do not look that old Ramkrishn !

Thank you sir. A soft laugh once more …

In villages we get married much earlier sir.

True ! In  my assessment Ramkrishn would not be a day older than 35 years – and already has a son 18 years old .  So he must have married at 16 ? and his wife much younger ??

Not surprising at all !  Pregnant girls @ 13-14 ; young mothers @ 14-15 and a second kid at 16 years are not uncommon sight in Indian villages !!

Ban on child marriages ??   Still a long long  way to go !!

And we continue ..

12^th std  ??   very crucial !   So what does want to become – engineer or doctor ??

No sir – my son wants to do CA .( a  very uncommon career aspiration for a young boy ! )

That’s great , Ramkrishn !!

And your daughter – encourage her to study more than your son , OK ??

Yes sir .

And  soon after,  I get off from the cab …

Drive safe and slow Ramkrishn !

And the ladies in the back seat pause their chatting …

Bye !  Bye !!  Bye !!!

Have a safe trip back !

Sure,  OK ,  Good Night !!

Krish..

Great Expressions !!!

I have a great fascination of fancy expressions !

Sometimes just a few words or a short phrase can convey a ton of information/insight that probably  even a page full of script cannot deliver !!

Here are three such examples I gathered last week..

First :  M Karunanidhi describing  Sonia Gandhi in one of his speeches .

Sonia is a   “ Thyaga Tiru-villakku “  meaning  she is   “ a sacred lamp of  selflessness “ !!

A beautiful expression !  (  though Sonia did not quite demonstrate that  when she refused to attend her only nephew  Varun’s wedding last week .. )

Second : Dean Jones summed up Kevin O Brien’s world cup record for fastest century and his match winning knock that ensured Ireland’s win over England .

He said in his classic Australian dreawl - "  Kevin woill never have to pay for his droinks in Ioreland for the rest of his loife  " !!

That’s a great tribute !! 

And both the Ozzies and irish share their love for their drinks – the Oz beer and the Irish ale/scotch !!

And they also share a very healthy hatred for the English as well – both ON and OFF the cricket pitch !!

Third :  Here is how one reviewer of the new ipad2 finally concluded …..

“ No pixie dust !  No unicorn horns either  !!  “

does   not have anything  magical about it !!!..

And in our local lingo – we would say “ No WOW factor !! “

Krish..

Crossing the road - Indian Style !!

I went for my morning walk . From my new guest house .Situated on a small road, half way in between a 2Km stretch of the 8 lane golf course road in Gurgaon – DLF Phase-1.

After my usual long walk I turned around  the signal @ one end of the main road and decided to take the return path on the opposite side .

Within a few minutes I realized my mistake .

This road has a generous median separating the 4 lanes of traffic  each way .And there are big bushes  and  street light poles and a thick wire mesh protection on both sides ! Making it impossible for anyone to jump across .

That meant I had to do an extra one Km up and cross the road, then  walk back to my guest house lane !

However I thought – this cannot be possible in India – a 2 Km stretch of un-breached fencing !!  I am sure there would be several enterprising fellow country men before me who would have faced a similar situation of crossing this road anywhere in between the 2 Km stretch !  Surely someone would have cut a small hole in the fences somewhere in between so that one can crawl through / or cut a small section so that we can squeeze thru to the other side !!!

And with this renewed hope I marched briskly closely inspecting the median fence .

And, very predictably , as I neared half way , there was a small cut in the fence – bang opposite my lane !!

And I happily dodged a passing vehicle , squeezed thru the opening and trotted up to the other side .

Very happy indeed !  I gained a few extra minutes of the morning !

And not so happy too – I lost the opportunity of losing some extra calories in the process !!

Krish..

CRM @ Maple Leaf !!

Maple Leaf Guest House, Gurgaon has been my second home for the past 4 years . I experience a fantastic CRM each time I come here – the primary reason why I continue to stay here in spite of the many better and more attractive and comfortable options .

The Maple leaf guest house owner is probably unaware of the relationship his employees have built up over time ( with me and many others ) which is the prime reason why many like me continue to patronize this place . He himself has never spoken to me except an occasional greetings and may not even recollect where I work . To him running this guest house properly would mean high occupancy rate, on-time billings and collections and keeping expenses under control !!
So when gradually his older employees started leaving and the new ones could not continue the culture , the CRM broke down ! The owner will be clueless now to understand what went wrong and why he will start losing longtime guests like me .

Sunday late evening arrival ..
Good evening, Sir, Ghar mein sab theek hain ??
Yes , Thank you Kewal & how are you ?
My strolley bag and notebook back pack get quickly whisked away even before I finish signing the Hertz trip completion form .
Good evening Sir, Please sign here ..
All other fields in the guest register are already pre-entered !
HP Sir ka samaan sab rakh do !
My walking shoes , slippers and toiletries articles ( which I leave behind here ) are sent to my room immediately along with an extra pillow, iron box, bottle of mineral water and remote for TV and AC .
Thank You Manjeet ,
Sir , aaj karela mangwa rakha hai, aur rajmaa bhi .
Half-half kar doon ?
And that decides my dinner as well .

Manjeet and Hem manage the front desk, reception, telephone switch board, billing. They also double up as IT wireless lan specialist. electrician, TV and backup generator technicians .
Kewal, Suman and Hari are responsible for everything else except cooking . Room service, House keeping, Bell desk, Porter, Wake up alarm, paper delivery and shoe shine.
Vijay cleans the floor, waters the plants and does odd jobs
Rajinder and Ram take care of logistics, airport pick up and drop service and city guide as well .

5.45 AM - hot team in a flask with sugar free

box
6.10

AM – TOI + ET delivery
8.15AM – Breakfast - non oil, non spicy bland food .
Occasionally - Aaj bhaturey bhej doon ? less oil mein ho jayega !
8.45 AM – office drop in the car – low A/C, low blower, No FM or CD , no cell phone talk and moderate speed !

And in the evening when I return ..
Aaj ka din kaisa tha Sir ??
And sometime we would talk about my daughter, son, Ram’s fourth Daughter, Manjeet’s wife’s exam preparation, their families in Nepal & Bihar or Kewal’s new & fancy Samsung cell phone .
And end up with something similar to
Fresh paalak laya hoon , aur bhindi bhi … to close dinner again .

Over the last year , slowly attrition took its toll , here too
Hari was the first to go – went to Malaysia
Rajinder had a fight with the owner and left in a huff suddenly
Manjeet switched to a different guest house a couple of blocks away
Kewal boarded a flight to Dubai last month .
Did not see Suman and Ram went off to Bihar to see his new born daughter .

The new staff refused to understand me ..
Aaj khaney mein kya hai, Pankaj ?
Saab, room mein menu card hai, aap choose kar lijeye !!
Vijay , recently promoted to room service does his best to make up , but it does not work .

Last trip , a 3 day stay & everything went awry !!
The CRM had broken down completely and there was no customer service either . It was not a difficult decision to make . Even the belated Diwali traditional dry fruit gift pack, sent thru Vijay could not change my mind !

Sad ! four years of great relationship .
Eroded by 3 days of insensitive treatment .
And I switch to a new guest house !!

Krish..

Prized Possessions ! Pricesless Memories !! @ Rs 4 – Rs 4000 per Kilo !!!

Saath kilo now so pachees ! And he beamed a smile at me !!
WOW !! I exclaimed .
Theen Kilo saath sow paanch ! He rang out once more !
And I was really impressed !!
Hearing Hindi in a small shop in Mylapore, Chennai was the last I expected !!
Thin & short , dark & wiry, white dazzling pearly teeth, bright shining eyes – man ( ? ). youth ( ??) or boy ( ???) of indeterminate age, he  clearly enjoyed his job !!

Here I was, in a narrow dingy shop filled all over with old piling Junk – old vessels , old used pressure cookers, pots , pans, brass plates and a lot of shiny stainless steel vessels hanging from the roof as well.
Not a logical place where one would find happiness , cheer and enthusiasm .
But Kumar defied logic !!
He was a shop assistant at the Indra Vessels Mart, which was squeezed between two equally depressing dingy shops in one of the small crowded by-lanes of Mylapore , Chennai .

I was there to dispose off our huge family collection of old vessels – huge heavy copper, bronze and brass vessels, massive woks, enormous pots, pans, plates, pitchers etc, etc – many belonging to my grand mom and her mom as well. Most of these would have been offered as a part of their dowry package and proudly displayed ( in new & polished & shining condition, of course ) along with other silver & gold ornaments and silk sarees in the display room ( seer room ) which is a traditional part of every south India marriage ritual .
Now they were no use , no relevance and their grand value reduced to just Rs180/kilo for bronze, Rs 200/kg for brass & Rs 220/ kg for copper !!
Sad , 3 generations of prized possession getting sold at scrap value !!

I feel sad and helpless ….
Wish I was rich enough to open up my own family museum . I could have filled up many rooms ….
One room for our silver – plates, jugs, cups, lamps, pooja vessels etc, etc.
2-3 rooms for brass , bronze , copper utensils

1 room with rack and racks of books – 2 sets of original Britannica encyclopedia , leather bound Oxford and Chambers dictionaries , 4 hard bound Atlases , 3 huge Globes with heavy cast iron bases – and these would not even have half the countries that we have today , Shakespeare collection, Milton, Homer’s Illyad and other classics , Tamil literature, religious treatise , books and translations of Vedas, dozen versions of Ramayana & Mahabharata .. ......
I wonder how much of these can now be accessed thru my 8 inch netbook + Google and how much will be lost for ever !!

At least one room for the 70 odd large , old dilapated photoframes – giant frames of gods, goddesses, framed posters of elephants, tigers, reproductions of Ravi Verma paintings, some European pictures ( a couple of leonardo da vinci nudes too !! ), Gandhi, Nehru, Aurobindo, lithos of great grandfathers, family photos in sepia, and a huge steel trunk full of photographs …..

One more room for ‘ life style products ‘ - old gramophone – big stand alone / medium and small table top models – all with shining brass snaking out waveguide cones, hundreds of music records ( 78 rpm) grandfather’s wicker easy chair, pine wood study table, grandfather clocks, cuckoo clocks, walking sticks, walnut chest of draws and so on ......

Another room for traditional toys – Golu Bommais ( toys displayed during the traditional Golu festival during the dussehra times ), Marapachhi and Chennapatna wooden sculpted toys, imported porcelain Burmese toys, European porcelain, a couple of Chinese vases as well .

And …
Sir, your money sir !!
I was jolted back into reality . This trip yielded me 8000 bucks !!
7 days , innumerous calls to all relatives encouraging them to take away all they wanted , multiple trips to libraries, junk marts , and finally a call to Udavamkarangal – the NGO that takes house hold goods and uses them to maintain their charity and old age homes .

Mom had died 2 years back ..
And Dad slowly switched off from reality, and his Alzheimer’s was catching up on him as well .
It was impossible to remotely maintain our house .
Four generations of family heirloom
Sold for a song – sad song !!

Chhai Piyo , Saar !!
Kumar bounced back in front of me .
With a steaming glass and a beaming smile !!

Krish..

Shake ! Shake !! Sugar Free !!!

I have been on Sugar Free tablets for more than 20 years ..
Not because I am figure conscious , but I am diabetic !

And I would have bought more that 150 boxes and shaken out many thousands of SF
pellets over this period !
And , shaking out the small white pellets – that's interesting & challenging !!

My usual practice is to hold the small plastic box upside down, vigorously shake it up and down, or sideways and any which way until a small white pellet appears on my other hand .
This exercise could go on up to more than a few seconds before the tablet reluctantly comes out – and sometimes a barrage of 5 of them roll out dodging my hand & scattering all over  the kitchen floor !!

Never did I ever wonder or imagined whether there could be an easier & saner process of shaking out a single pellet predictably each time ..
Until I watched the Sugar Free Advert on the TV yesterday ... when a fair and dainty hand gently taps our a single pellet from a semi-slanted container into a hot steaming mug .

And immediately I went into the kitchen and tried out this process ..
And it worked !!
And since then – 6 mugs of tea / coffee - and it worked each time !!

EUREKA !!!
.
Krish..
.

What Rajni..kanth ! Nobody Can !!

People have gone berserk ccreating Rajni jokes  .

Here is my take on The Rajni reality

The Rajni Rules :- Take…  them …  seriously !   I Say !!!

·                     You shall not host nor rehost substandard reality shows and semi rigged live TV contests !

·                     You shall not endorse unknown massage oil and hair oil brands !!

·                     You shall not grow ‘ six packs ‘ overnight  and flaunt them on cinema screen !!

·                     You shall always & seriously respect the sensibility of the  2 independent worlds of cinema and real life :  You can follow my own example –

o       On the silver cinema screen I will be  the biggest  super duper dashing star .

o       And in real life I will be the graciously matured 60 year old nicely  balding father in law !!  And I am very  proud  of it , I say !!!

·                     You can speak your mind thru your own self at the appropriate time & only if & when required . SO you shall NOT deploy outsourced bank of ghost bloggers to comment on everything and make lofty attempts to change  world opinions !!

And as I say ..   More rules may be made …

                         But none shall be broken – mind it !!

Krish..

Any Takers for Tinglish ??

Some of you would have heard of Singlish ( Singaporean English – What , La ?? ) .

And we are all proud of our own home grown Hinglish .

However,  I have not seen much mentioned  about Tamil English ( Tinglish ?? )

.

Tamilian English is Quaint !

It’s a unique style ( more than vocabulary ) spoken & punctuated by the typical South-Indian Tamil accent . ( Yevverry  one in my family is vorking for  either Yintell and Voracull . I say !! )

And it is  wonderful to hear it come out so effortlessly from young primary school kids especially .

.

Last year when I was visiting Chennai , I overheard this 5 year old girl in a dual pig tails  narrating a story to her 4 friends . 

And she started off …Yinn the forest ( Kaatril ) one ( oru ) Lionn ( Singam ) will be  ( irrukkum ) . A Hindi equivalent will be similar ( Jangal mein ek Sher tha ) . This literal translation caught my fancy and ever since  “ In the forest one lion will be “  has become my favourite phrase  .

And each time I hear  tamil kids  speak  English  , I can also clearly hear the English compilers in their heads translating , in real time  , clear tamil thoughts into exact spoken English !!

And its always amusing ..

And have you read Anurag Mathur’s – The Inscrutable Americans  ?? if not,  check it out !!

And I just finished 2 States by Chetan Bhagat – good read too !!!

Krish..