Obituary

A few months ago on a sunny afternoon I was asked to say what my epitaph would read. At that point of time I remember saying - "Here lies a lfe long fan of Windows which was finally responsible for his death!" I meant that for fun then ... Some were more serious - some were more witty. But I never gave much thought to that question then.

This year my eyes went moist for a third time with the death of my beloved senior Sugunakar Reddy fondly known as 'Suggu'. He was one of those cheerful, loved-by-all types. His smile was infectious. It was one of those faces at MSIT that always had a broad smile on it - A rarity indeed! Last july we were at the campus recruitment test for Sierra Atlantic together. We were among the 8 selected for the final round. He made it - I didnt. He joined the company in February this year. He completed his degree, landed up in a job on campus itself , everything was in place. Life is sometimes very unexpected. It is at such junctures that we come to know first hand about the uncertainity called life. Suggu passed away today after succumbing to injuries he sustained in a road accident a couple of weeks ago ... According to what I heard He paid the price for negligent driving on part of a drunken auto driver. His mistake seems to be standing on a side walk. He kept fighting for a fortnight before finally embarking on the journey to the world above. No father should have the misfortune of lighting the funeral pyre of his son. I fear this situation more than I fear death itself - Just to comprehend the grief of my parents in such a situation alone gives me creeps and perhaps my soul would be trapped for ever between this world and the nether ... My heartfelt condolences to the family of dear Suggu ... May his soul rest in peace ...

Random thoughts ...

I have started boxing and Iam training like hell! Followed by a light warm up, Iam doing 20-25 pushups on my knuckles daily ... and then punching the bag for about 15 miutes and by the time the 30 minute routine is complete ... my knuckles end up swollen, bruised and painful ... As though I had jsut punched on a wall of concrete ... I never knew sand could be so powerful - I always thought boxing was easy (Having grown up on Rocky where it seems all too easy and 'Eye of the tiger' keeps playing in the background) - Never knew starting was so hard ...

Ambani feud resolved ... So - whats the big deal? I dont own own any shares in Reliance :) After all those guys were just fighting for their rights like any other jont family in India who would like to part ways after the Patriarch's death ... Give them a break!

Batman Begin's ... All the reviews point to a single thing - The movie is cold. A disappontment to Batman fan's like me! With enough star power in the movie to burn Hollywood - The director seems to have churned up a boxoffice dud!

Didn't get tickets for "Aparichithudu" (Anniyan in Tamil) at Prasad's - Imagine ... When the multiplex was opened people were complaining about the outrageous ticket costs - It seems
people don't care any more! - Very bad ... :(

You would be surprised if you know what I read in the morning edition of Sunday Times - according to the 1955 Prevention of Food Adulteration Act 1 kilo of wheat or rice permittedly contain 5 pieces of rat shit ... Imagine the audacity of framing such a law? So we are all eating 'atta' mixed with rat-turds thanks to this idiotic law that aids adulteration instead of preventing it ...

I have seen "Star Wars Episode 3- the Revenge of the Sith" which is a fitting finale to the 6 part series ... I liked the concept of the story and it all ended happily with every one ending up with what they wanted - Dath Vader assumes command of the Galactic Empire's army ... Senator Palpatine turns evil and becomes the emperor ... Obi Wan Kenubi adopts Luke Skywalker and Leia becomes 'Princess' Leia - This is the first time I noticed the oddness and novelty about the dialogs of Yoda who breaks a sentence into two halves and speaks the later half first ... To a great saga, a fitting finale it was! - just like Yoda would say!

Had a long chat on the yahoo msgr with a close friend of mine - today morning ...

From tomorrow morning I would be assuming the duties of the project leader for our current project. Oh God ... That we are just implementing only 20-30% of what we have promised to the customer is weighing heavily on my mind.

I am watching the movie - The American Psycho - I don't know why the movie is critically acclaimed - story wise it one of the most meaningless movie I have ever seen in recent times ... The protagonist is rich, handsome and finally bored to the point that he kills people - for no apparent reason ... I can't beleive they chose this guy (Christian Bale) to get into the shoes of people like Micheal Keaton, Val Kilmer and George Clooney to play Batman!

Boxing my way to fitness

"If someone wants a total body work out I would advise them to take up boxing. It exercises every muscle in the body."- Hollywood Superstar Will Smith on the Oprah Winfrey show after finishing shooting for his 'Ali'

I went shopping for a boxing kit on the evening of June 9th, along with a friend (A practising Dentist who was once a body-builder). I got a best-buy deal and it was late in the night that I finally returned home - Mission Accomplished! I still need to fill the bag and start practicing ...
Friends started questioning me as to why this sudden turn of events - Where I was giving more importance to physical fitness ... Correct! I was attaching more importance to staying fit ... Why? Till date after I left high school, I was never into any of the games and sports - They weren't for me ... A few months ago - I had a revelation - In a few months time this course is going to end and then I will join a job in a few more months ... 2-3 years down the line I would get married - 2-3 years after that - I would have kids - Then life falls into the trap of uneventfulness ... So I should enjoy this time like there is no tomorrow!

Friends were asking me If I was preparing for some sports meet or If I was going to bash someone up ... Frankly I don't care - I am staying fit for my own cause - Taking up boxing was my childhood dream (Since I saw "Rocky IV" when I was in class 2). I dont care about anyone else. Now after 1 whole week I finally sweated it out to fill it out with sand, buy the chains and hooks to hang it to the ceiling and install the bag in my room. I can't think of anything else right now apart from punching the bag after a round of aerobics first thing tomorrow morning! Oh - Iam so excited!!!

D

"Comapny tho 'C' se shuru hotha hain naa - Tho phir 'D' kyun? ... Mumbai mein sab ko pathaa hain ki mouth kabhi Dakshin se hi nahee aathi ... Yeh baath is aasmaan mein ud ne vaali panchiyon ko bhi pathaa hain ... Lekin unhe bhi nahi pathaa ki Mumbai mein zameen ke neeche bhi ek asmaan hain ..."

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So starts the new product from the factory - 'D'.

D for Deshu ... A police trainee who rises through the ranks of Mumbai underworld - Chooses to side with the Mafia after being caught in the vicous battle between the Mumbai Crime Branch and the Underworld.

A slick fast paced thriller where the importance is given to the shot-taking & screenplay rather than the script. The cast has all the usual RGV 'Underworld' baddies ... The surprise package of the movie is Randeep Hooda who essays the title role! If Ajay Devgan was cool as the Don in Company, Randeep Hooda is cooler. His calm attitude and a face sans expression makes him a treat to watch! The back ground music takes over most of the conversations ... Its like the director does not allow us to hear nothing more than we are intended to hear! Lots of bullets ... Loads of bodies ... Its all blood but not gore! You see all the shades of real life characters unfolding on the screen - Daawood Ibrahim, Chotta Raajan, Chotta Shakeel and my favorite from the movie - "Monica Bedi" (Abu Salem's love interest) - The Monica Bedi character is named as "Bhakti Bhatnagar" :) - The character's make-up (especially the hair style and the contact lenses) bears a very close resemblance to Monica Bedi!

It has been a very long time since I watched a movie that gave the worth of what I spent ... D certainly gave it all back - I went to bed with the satisfaction of watching a great movie.