He's here!

April 2, 2009. 8.20 am. When the moment came, it was surreal; it was like a scene out of a movie. It was a feeling, an experience like none before; I could barely believe it was happening to me.

She held him
For the very first time,
His head in her arms
His palms locked into fists,
"What do I do now
With a thing so precious?"

Then, as if by instinct
She lifted him to her lips,
And a kiss
So soft but deep in touch,
Magically replaced that cord
Severed only a while ago.

"In the Womb"

Our wonderful friends D&A gifted this DVD to us & insisted that it was a "must-watch". I loved it. National Geographic tells the story of a foetus - from conception to birth - through 3D imagery. It's actually like getting a peek inside the womb & looking at an unborn baby. Not all parts are "cute"; some make your jaw drop in awe; some make you go "yikes!"; some make you smile. Much like the experience of pregnancy itself :)

Six-Word Memoirs

Another one of those Facebook exercises - - There's this book "Not Quite What I Was Planning"; its a compilation of memoirs written by people; each one lasts only 6 words. I haven't read the book yet; but a friend on Facebook prompted me to try writing my own 6-word-autobiography.

Ordinarily, I never have a problem being concise; but describing my whole life in 6 words took a lot of attempts (besides, am I not way too young to be writing an autobiography?)
"An epic drama. Tears & laughter."
"Turned 30. Don't feel it yet."
"My optimism made me like this."
"Wish I could sing or paint."
"Been in love. Been loved. Yippie!"
I finally settled for this:
"Ordinary things happened between extra-ordinary moments."

I know its pretty lame (too generalised?); but somehow it was the only 6-worded sentence that could sum up my life so far. Give it a shot; not as easy as it looks! :)

Colourful Singapore

I've blogged before about my fascination with colourful Singaporean buildings -- the vibrant Clarke Quay and the charming wooden window panes of the Old Hill Police Station. I like such structures because they seem to bring some shred of exuberance to the otherwise clinical look of this city (Not that these colours are all spontaneity, but they are cheerful).

Continuing on the same theme, I also find the "Red Dot" building here, well, very red. And very striking. Reminds me of an over-sized English telephone booth. In a quaint way.

Also like this graffiti-styled exterior of the Performing Arts Center. What do you think of it?

Being 8 months pregnant

The best thing about the 8th month of pregnancy:
The ultra-sound scan.
By this month, our baby weighs a whole 2 kgs! We look nostalgically at the scans from the first few months when he looked nothing more than a speck of grey on a black back-ground; and can't help going, "aww, our little boy is all grown up!". (I even catch myself thinking sometimes that "he's going to get married & have his own kids soon!") Yes, I do realise that he's not even born yet.

The worst thing about the 8th month of pregnancy:
Time crawls.
The feeling that the countdown has begun, but its not moving as fast in reality as it is in my mind.

Slumdog Millionaire

I quite liked the movie.

- I thought the two young kids who played Jamal & Salim, are awesome actors; mature beyond their age, and with beautiful sparkling eyes. The "Jamal-meets-Amitabh" moment is for me one of the most memorable cinema moments of all time... :)

- Liked the whole concept of bollywood-isation of the movie; love triumphs over all & ends with a mass dance-do. Cute :)

- I was born & raised in Bombay; I've seen what a slum looks like - from the outside & from the inside; and like most people from the city have acquired the ability to stay unmoved when I come across slum-life, poverty, or child beggars. But inspite of that, some of the scenes from this movie did move me.

- Liked the little twist of irony in the end...the one piece of "knowledge" that Jamal had the opportunity to pick up from a book (The Three Musketeers); was the one piece he didn't know.

25 Things About Me

A facebook tag from my friend Aquin; so here are 25 things about me:

1) I was born in Mumbai & it still is my favourite city. Growing up, I never realised that it was such a difficult place to live in for people who aren't born there. I see that now, but love the city anyway.

2) I love Bollywood. Not because I don't see its absurdity; but I love it inspite of the absurdity. Maybe even for it. After all, this is a world where Rakhee can be confident that her dead sons will return to kill Durjan Singh; and then they do return; without seeming even remotely far-fetched.

3) I enjoy reading. My favourite classical authors are probably Tagore & Tolstoy. While in Dubai, I found myself reading a lot of Arab authors & really enjoyed most of them. It changed my perceptions about Arab literature. These days, I'm digging some good Chinese authors.

4) I have a long wish-list of art I would love to own. But its always the expensive one's that I like (and therefore can't buy). I aspire to have a MF Hussain in my home someday.

5) The current #1 on my list of must-visit travel destinations is China & Japan. China, because I want to see Beijing; I've heard so much about it! And Japan because I want to eat Jap food. And also because I wonder if Tokyo is anything like what they show in the movies.

6) I believe in God; but I'm not God-fearing. I don't believe in rituals; I find that they lose meaning over a generation or two. I do believe in prayers though. I go to temples or churches occassionally (very rarely actually); but I prefer connecting with God in the solitude of my own home.

7) I love my work. There's nothing else that I would rather do professionally. But that doesn't mean I don't find my weekends awfully short.

8) I find 25 is an incredibly large number; I don't have that much to talk about myself!

9) I try to eat healthy; but rarely succeed.

10) My cooking skills have improved since I moved to Singapore. But H is still the better cook among the both of us.

11) My earliest childhood memories involve me fighting with my brother. He was bigger & stronger than me; but I had a shorter temper. So I inevitably picked up fights that I had no chance of winning.

12) I was a nerd in school. I used to wear big plastic glasses & had braces on my teeth. I was quite like Ugly Betty. Except I never got a job in a fashion magazine. And never had a cute boss.

13) Everyone who knows H & I as a couple, acknowledge that we're poles apart. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing. But its been 9 years and we're still going strong; so I guess we work.

14) I have a habit of asking hypothetical questions to H to gauge his love for me. Like, "will you re-marry if I die?" or "if you knew the world was coming to an end in the next 2 minutes, what would you do?". He never gives me the answers that I expect (i.e. "of course not; I'll never get over you" and "I will hold your face one last time"). His answers are always unromantic (i.e. "I'll die before you do because women have better life expectancy" or "If the world is coming to an end anyway, I will smoke as many cigerettes as I can without worrying about its health effects"). Inspite of those answers, I feel compelled to ask him more questions.

15) The pregnancy has changed me a great deal. Its one of the rare occassions when I find myself thinking more about another person, rather than myself. Before this, I was pretty much self-absorbed.

16) My dad has been my hero for the longest time. Until he got older & I realised there was a negative side to being a stubborn over-achiever. I still do consider him the most intelligent man I've come across. Sadly, that part of the gene pool went to my brother rather than me. I only got his looks, which lets be honest, aren't very impressive. I would've rather inherited my mother's looks.

17) I find its never a good idea to ask, "so what's new?" when I run out of conversation. In my experience, 99% of the time, the other person will respond with "nothing".

18) I like to dunk biscuits in my tea or coffee.

19) I love my nephew. Cuddling him (whenever he allows me to do that) is the most satisfying thing ever. The fact that he hates it does not bother me.

20) I hate awkward conversations. I can never tell someone, "I think your fly is open"; I would rather pretend I didn't notice.

21) I love the British accent.

22) I can't believe I've said 21 things about myself already!

23) I hate smoking ever since I lost my grand-dad to cancer. Yet, I'm married to a smoker :(

24) I like the idea of spending old age in a small cottage in the mountains surrounded by green valleys & blue brooks. Maybe Nainital. But I know I'll never get there. I'm too used to city comforts.

25) I'm the worst driver I know.

The World This Week

There's a whole lot of events that happened in this past week, that I want to blog about; but didn't get around to it; hence this bhel-puri of a blogpost:

* I wept when I watched Roger Federer weep in the Australian Open. I can't imagine the anguish of being the second-best in the world (at anything) and not being able to be the best. That too after a fight that long & emotionally tiring. Having seen the top before must make it even harder.

* A lot of debates happened this week (mainly in the banking circles), when Obama announced a limit on executive pay on Wall Street & most people cheered it. I don't feel bad for the execs; but I do feel the announcement was very un-American; kind of a u-turn on the American dream.

* My waist measures 42 inches now! How huge is that! People say nice things to me (like "wow, you're glowing") to make me feel better.

* I wonder who finances the Hindu-radicals in India? And how do they recruit their goondas? When did so many of them crop up? That too in places like Mangalore?

* The Freakonomics blog had a "Bernie Madoff Limerick Contest"; it was quite fun to read some of the entries; like this one:

We once believed in a man named Madoff,
who big wigs loved so much as to payoff,
but a Ponzi he ran,
30 years ’twas a scam,
and now I’ll blame him for my lay off :)

* My dad turned 65 this week. The thought of him being that old depresses me.

Gong Xi Fa Cai !

The Chinese New Year weekend just got over. This was our first CNY in Singapore (last year we had gone to Vietnam during the holiday); and I quite enjoyed being in Singapore this year. Our families were visiting, so we went to Chinatown on the second day on the new year & it was like Christmas -- all the lights, the festivties, the dances, the lanterns; the yellow flowers & the orange trees with red hangbao envelopes -- it was quite spectacular. A lot of the places were closed (even the Carrefours & 7-11s were shut during the holidays; when we unfortunately ran out of milk for our morning tea).
The new year, by the way, is the Year of the Ox. Babies born in this year are supposed to have the qualities of "tireless hard work & patience". I'm quite relieved I won't have a lazy son, but an ox doesn't sound as exciting or great as a lion or a dragon. But then again, I take consolation from the fact that at least he won't be a rat or a pig.

I met Kapil Dev today!!

I would usually be excited to meet any cricket celebrity, but I was especially excited today because this was the first time I actually had a long conversation with one of them. And that too with the legendary Kapil Dev...! :)

Kapil was in here doing a roadshow for ICL, thats how he landed up in our office today. Honestly, I wasn't such a big fan of his until now. But he's just such a terrific guy; unassuming, no hang-ups; and such a chatterbox! We spoke about his first appearance on television --for the Palmolive ad; and about his old pals Ravi & Sunny; about Sachin; about the future of one-day cricket; about cricket leagues; and of course, he spoke about Mandira Bedi (because he was talking to me, a woman, and thought that I would have an opinion on women commentators & their sari fashions).

Mementos from the meeting: an autographed mini-bat & a cricket ball bowled by Kapil himself! I'm so pleased :)

Preparing, waiting

We've picked up quite a few things to go in the baby's room. Inspite of warnings from the families (that it would be bad luck to buy too many things before the baby actually arrives), we've done a fair bit of shopping in the spirit of "being prepared"; most of it will get delivered closer to the due date. We'll probably leave decorating the nursery for the last month. Doesn't mean I haven't started planning though.

Colourful musings; soft tender tones;
Some blue, some green, some red,
There is the pram; there'll be the baby's bed,
There we sit as we watch him play;
We could change this, get that new,
Trying our best to keep,
A promise of love; that we've made to you :)

PS: I do realise that my blog posts have been getting overly maternal these days :)

"Waiting" by Ha Jin

I read a good book after a very long time. This is a story set in mainland China during Mao's Cultural Revolution; about a sincere, studious doctor, who is trapped in a loveless marriage & waits for 18 long years for his divorce to be granted, so that he could finally be with the woman he loves. It sounds like a simple plot, but is quite nicely written; sort of a political parellel to the entire generation of Chinese youth of the time who were raised to be too patient to speak up for what was right; too rules-bound to know how to live without them; too passive to create change for themselves; while an opportunistic few prospered at their expense.

A friend of mine (she was my Mandarin tutor actually, but since I've discontinued my lessons she's just a friend now); lived in Beijing through the Cultural Revolution in the 70s; & told me a lot of stories & personal accounts from those times. At the time, I thought it incredible; I still do; the stories of how all religious buildings were destroyed, how capitalist books were confiscated, how school children grew up parroting Mao's poetry & writings, how ancient Chinese festivals & customs & knowledge were lost forever in mainland China after they were banned during the Cultural Revolution. That was my first introduction to the bizzare events that happened in China.

Then I came across this book, which makes a beautifully told argument for individualism (as against the collective society) layered beneath a painful love story. And how it takes a certain kind of people to make a society, like the communist China in the 60s & 70s, work.

Recession

We kept reading about it in the newspapers; but it didn't strike as a reality until it happened to people around us-- people we know by name, by their faces, by their families -- people who lost their careers overnight. It was depressing to begin with, even scary; then somewhat relieving ("Thank God, we still have our jobs"), a matter of fact ("These are tough times after all, aren't they?"); and in the end it has turned into anxiety & stress ("What would I do if that happened to me?").

I feel gloomy at the ruthlessness of businessdom; and the trying times that lie ahead for many of these families; but I hope & pray & wish everyone a better, more stable & certainly a more cheerful 2009!

Mumbai Terror Attacks - few weeks later

I am a big fan of Arundhati Roy; although I don't quite agree with all her views (her anti-globalisation stance, for example). But I thought this article by her on the Mumbai terror attacks hit very close to home & was very thought provoking. I agree with the essence of what she observes, that India is completely in denial that the problem could be within (irrespective of whether or not the ISI was involved).

PS: I don't agree though that the Taj is an icon of the inequalities & injustice in India. I think its an icon of the 'good life'; the opportunities & dreams that make Mumbai the city it is.

Being 6 months pregnant

The best thing about the 6th month of pregnancy:
The kicking :)
To feel the little person inside me; alive & kicking (quite literally); with feet & fists that are incredibly strong for his size*; this first connection between me & my baby is quite a special feeling.

The worst thing about the 6th month of pregnancy:
The appetite.
I've been nicknamed "Porky the Pig". I have an appetite these days for everything edible. Any time of the day. Any number of times.

* The doctor says he weighs around 500 grams right now. Isn't that adorable? :)

End of a great holiday

We had a super holiday in Dubai. My 30th birthday & the surprise baby shower our friends threw for us (uff, that last sentence makes me feel so old!) made the visit more special.

Dubai is somewhat different from what it was 2 years ago (loved the very europe-like JBR walk, especially at this time of the year; hated the new spider-web of flyovers...very confusing); but the things I liked about the city are still the same; and that's what made the holiday great.

Mumbai Terror Attacks

I couldn't believe that it was happening; that it was real. In my country, in my city, on the same street where I used to work not so long ago, in the terrace restaurant I loved, on the railway platform I've waited at, in front of the cinema halls I've eaten popcorn at. It could've been me; I'm glad it wasn't me; but I'm sad & pained that it had to be some 155 (or more) others; probably just like me.

But sad as I was for the death of inocents, the thought that has bothered me the most is that these terrorists were 17 to 20 year olds.

When I was 20, I had dreams, I had little or no worries, I had a full life to look forward to. There was just so much living yet to come, early 20s is the time to hope & dream. And yet, here are 20-year olds who have so much misguided, misdirected anger within them that they believe in a cause which assures their death; which involves opening fire indiscriminately on men, women & children they don't know; which involves attacking sick people in a hospital; and actually believing that it is all for the greater good of their people & feeling no remorse for it.

No amount of brain-washing in a terrorist camp should be able to convince a 20-year old that this is worthwhile; that this is justified; and that there should be no remorse in killing. And yet, there are these 15 young kids who were convinced. And plenty more of them where they came from. Why? How? These weren't stupid young men; they were smart; they were determined, they were focussed.

I don't know why & how they were convinced, but they were. Figuring out the whys & hows probably is the solution to terrorism. I hope India doesn't launch the American brand of "war on terror"; it may be useful in appeasing the immediate anger in the public & keeping the Narendra Modi's of the world silent for a while; but I don't think killing terrorists will kill terrorism; there would in the end always be more terrorists born than killed. The problems are much, much deeper than that.

PS: I feel so grateful to the NSG commandos & all the other men & women in uniform who fought in the city these past 3 days!

Holiday in December!

We're going to Dubai in December & I'm super super excited about it! How I've missed Dubai this past year & more!

We're looking forward to meeting all the friends we left behind in Dubai; it's going to be great catching up with them all. Like it usually happens with friends who've been away for a while; a lot of things have changed for most of them since we left Dubai, and yet very few things have changed between us.

Also, its going to be like an "end of an era" trip. Dubai was the city where H & I started out as a young care-free couple & now we're on our way to parenthood going back to the same place. Yeah well, maybe I'm getting too dramatic! :) But can I at least call it a 'mini-era'?

Another big item on the agenda is food! Between H & I, we've already planned every single meal we're going to have in Dubai. Including breakfast :)

And finally, there's some baby-related shopping & some partying on the to-do list...although I hear 360 degrees is no more :(

Its a boy!

The doctor told us yesterday that our little baby is a boy! :)

Quantum of Solace

Watched "Quantum of Solace" this week. I have to say, getting into the movie, Bond was my least favourite secret service agent. Jason Bourne is hot; Ethan Hunt is passble; but James Bond, absolutely puts me off. Firstly, there's something very unattractive about a man with vanity. I also imagine Bond would be really fussy & irritating to be with (will have martini only shaken not stirred; won't stay in a budget hotel) -- snobbish & high-maintainence. And then there's that smug confidence of getting women into bed, which is so very unattractive in men.

But having said that, I find Daniel Craig the most likeable Bond so far. Probably because he was the first to fall in love. And also because he wears jeans to work sometimes (as against the previous Bonds who have always been in expensive well-tailored suits that eventually get soiled by blood & dirt).

About the movie -- well, it's a Bond movie -- there are good action scenes, exotic locales & pretty girls.

Weekend in Macau

I had a stressful last week at work thanks to all the market turmoil & was looking forward to a totally stress-free weekend. So H planned a weekend getaway for us in Macau. It was an impulsive holiday -- we literally booked our flights on Friday & were off on Saturday morning.

Macau is all about casinos. And casinos. And then there are casinos. A world so far removed from all the recessionary fears we hear about everywhere these days. The casinos were crowded, money was being bet in millions, & towards late evening it seemed like the whole of China was in Macau (we were probably the only two brown-skinned people there). Yes, we did gamble, but I won't get into the painful details of how we quadrupled our money on day 1 & then watched it all evaporate on day 2 into the hands of a sympathetic but lousy dealer. Then I vowed to settle the score with him & lost some more. If only we had some more time there....!

"The Venetian" was surreal. Really. Re-creating Venice on a Chinese-Portugese island can be neither easy nor inexpensive. It reminded me of the movie "The Truman Show". It was amusing how our gondola-driver (who insisted on singing an Italian love song for us on the canal); looked Asian but spoke with an Italian accent; and told us made-up folk-lore about how true lovers always kiss under the 'bridge of reality'. It was romantic, but in a really really cheesy kind of way! :)

Trip to Bangkok - Part II

While in Bangkok, we watched a Khon show (the traditional Thai classical performing art). The dance form is typically based on stories from the Ramayana (called Ramaniket in Thai). The play we saw was titled "Hanuman" so the story was familiar & we weren't too bothered by the fact that the "narrators" were singing in Thai. I loved the costumes & the masks & the jewellery. The dance in itself was quite difficult to interpret, I thought; with some characters in masks & the others with mask-like faces...a lot of the emoting is done through hand gestures & movements.

Trip to Bangkok

We wanted to spend this Diwali with family so we visited my cousin in Bangkok over the long weekend. Bangkok reminded me of Bombay a lot; its chaotic but lively and fun. Some of the things we did:

- Loved the Chatuchak weekend market & the Suan-Lim Night Bazaar. Shopping in Thai flea markets is so easy on the pockets!

- I was curious to see "Patpong", the infamous red light area, so we went there one evening. It wasn't as shockingly sleazy as I expected it to be. We went into one of the sex shows where the girls were meant to be doing some tricks with ping-pong balls in their private parts; but the bar was too smokey & H decided I shouldn't make the baby breathe all that smoke, so we exited before the show started. Well, maybe some other time. Or maybe not!

- We ate the yummiest food while in Bangkok. Thai food has been my favourite for a long time, but even the Indian food in Bangkok is delicious!

- We saved the last day in Bangkok for some sight-seeing. "The Grand Palace" was magnificent (in a very over-the-top sort of way). The "Temple of the Emerald Buddha" had some of the most beautiful Asian paintings I've ever seen. The "Reclining Buddha" was umm, well, massive!

Halloween Sushi

Sushi inspired by Edward Munch's "Scream"! I think it's hilarious! :))

Being 3 months pregnant

The worst thing about the 3rd month of pregnancy:
My stomach is big enough to make me look noticeably fat; but not large enough for people to realise I'm pregnant. I feel like one of those big-bellied Disney characters.

The best thing about the 3rd month of pregnancy:
There's *hope* that the nausea, fatigue, dizziness shall pass soon! Also, with all the reading of pregnancy books, I discovered that there' s this whole alternate world of baby-related words that I knew nothing of until now. (Ask a non-pregnant person to construct a lucid sentence using words like 'progestron' or 'gestational age'; he/she would be stumped.)

I saw my angel

The moment I saw you,
I knew life had changed forever
You moved right in, swiftly
to the center of my heart.
From here on, love
would mean your happiness.
From here on, peace
would mean knowing you're well.
From here on, bliss
would mean watching you be.
A part of me, yet
an angel from another world.
I want to protect you, always
you're precious, invaluable.
I love loving you,
my miracle, you fill me with awe.

PS: We're having a baby!! And these were our thoughts after our first scan! :)

Try not to judge me...

I've never blogged about my sub-conscious before; but last night I had the most ridiculous dream ever. It was so monumentally over-the-top, I had to post it. So here's how it goes:

The dream started off somewhere in the near future when the banking industry had collapsed & there were only about 100 jobs left in the industry globally. Everyone else was fired. So we moved back to India, rented a small place in Dharavi(!!) & lived through some very difficult times.

Then, one day, a head hunter called: "There's an opening. Mithun is making a movie & wants to cast a new actress opposite him. You had mentioned in your resume that you would do any kind of work except act in a Mithun movie. But these are desperate times. What do you say?" I weighed my options. We hadn't eaten in days & I thought that H deserved a better life. It was a difficult decision, but I said yes.

On my first day of shooting, I met Mithun. He looked at me for a few seconds & said, "You do know that I sleep with all the actresses I work with?". What the --??? Did he just come on to me? I was shaking with rage: "How dare you, Mithun-da? Have you noticed how old you are? What do you take me for? I need the money; but I need my dignity more!". I tore the cheque to pieces & stormed out of the studio.

Now, there was another man on the sets watching this whole scene. It was Sanjay Leela Bhansali (I'm not making this up!!!) And he was thinking to himself, "Thats the kind of woman I want to make my next movie about". So SLB walked up to me and offered me 50 million to make a movie based on my life. I was over-the-moon elated. He wanted to cast Ash to play my character, but I told him about how she had ruined all his previous movies for me & that I would prefer Sushmita Sen to play my character. He saw my point :)

With our 50 million, H & I started a small micro-finance company in Mumbai to help the rural poor. It was a satisfying life.

No, its not over yet....Finally, Barrack Obhama in the presidential debate, cited me as an example of exemplary resilience needed in these tough economic times!!!

How bankers get paid

Watched this on BBC - HSBC Chairman Stephen Green talking on how bankers' compensation structure is one of the reasons of the recent meltdown & something that needs to change: "I think it is important and will become much more the focus of attention to ensure that remuneration schemes operate in a way that is lined up with the long term interests of the owners of the business. There has been far too much focus on payments that are very short term focused, people who pick up the tab for short term profits, without having to bear the costs of long term impairments."

While I agree whole heartedly with Green -- (in all banks, performance-bonuses are based on how much revenue you generate in the previous year/ quarter/ month) -- I also realise that this "reform" is attractive only in theory. For the simple reason that banking, like any other business, is a matter of demand & supply. When the going is good, the shareholders & owners of the business want to see quick growth; they don't want to see their money sit idle in a risk-averse but slow-growing bank; they want to see quarter-over-quarter returns. And there will be demand for professionals who can deliver exactly that.

Flight attendants

I've heard so many Air India travellers complain about how the flight attendants in Air India are not young enough, or pretty enough, or slim enough. I wonder how this expectation came about that flight attendants are required to be young & pretty. I've rarely known of anyone who would judge the quality of a restaurant, for example, by how pretty the waitress is. Why then are airlines judged by the beauty of their air crew?

PS: The service quality in Air India is another topic all together; completely unrelated to the physical appeal of its air hostesses.

India Shining -Gandhi and the Laptop

I saw this sculpture made by a Kolkata artist named Debanjan Roy; I found it amusing (not sure if that was the intended effect the artist meant to have). I don't know why Gandhiji is all red-- (thats more of Chairman Mao's colour, yes?); but the laptop that's replaced the charkha & the title "India Shining" makes the piece very tongue-in-cheek.

ERP Woes in Singapore

A friend sent this YouTube video to me the other day; a parady on the recently-hiked ERP (Electronic Road Pricing) in Singapore. This video is likely to be funny only if you know how Singaporeans who drive to work everyday plan their travel schedules for the WHOLE day around when & where the peak-hour surcharges & congested-roads surcharges could hit them...it's almost a national obsession :))

I've been MIA!!!

The past month has been a roller-coaster ride (which thankfully ended on a high); so I've logged into my blog after really long today & realised I need to start blogging again; it's my daily dose of therapy which I've been missing lately :)

I used the time to do other constructive things though -- watched a lot of the Beijing Olympics; learnt how to make delicious biryani; did some quiet reading on weekends (H has been travelling a lot); sorted out some nagging loose ends at work.

Missed out on two weddings though which I would've loved to attend -- one in France, the other in Delhi; and skipped almost all my mandarin lessons last month; haven't watched a new movie in ages; haven't had a minute of exercise for as long as I can remember.

It's time to get back on the schedule now... :)

When everything changes

Just when you think that everything has fallen into a routine of unvarying regularity, life goes whack again. I'm not complaining though; stability is quite over-rated.

"The Myth of the Rational Voter" by Bryan Caplan

This is a book written by an economist who argues that democracy = bad economic policies.

I guess it confirms what we all knew all along: democracies elect their respresentatives irrationally. Voters most often (and inspite of having adequate information to make a rational choice), make choices emotionally rather than rationally. Especially when it comes to economic policies we tend to choose policies that are not in our best interests. The author cites many examples like say the voters' bias for employment as against productivity.

It struck me that India probably has more examples to prove this hypothesis than any other democracy in the world; even with an economist as the prime minister. Loan waivers for farmers, oil subsidies, inflation, the whole "Maharashtra for Maharashtrians" debate, nuclear energy deal -- all issues that the voters saw emotionally, rather than rationally.

An interesting read. A short article by the author here.

The Dark Knight

First, let me say, this is a GREAT movie. Everybody I know has already said this, but I'm going to say it again: Heath Ledger is absolutely brilliant!

But I did feel a bit upset at the director. It was almost as if Christopher Nolan was so taken in by Heath Ledger's Joker, that he gave the entire center-stage to him; Batman looked like an after-thought. This is a comic-book story about good against evil; but there was very little room for Batman to emerge as a hero. Joker came across as a bigger icon of evil than Batman did as an icon of good. That made me feel a bit cheated.

But what did work for me, was that for a comic-book story, "The Dark Knight" is an incredible 'thinking' movie. Spidey made a miserable effort in his last movie to do a thinking movie & failed. This movie, on the other hand, explores the whole 'US war on terror' situation -- the hero who must fight dirty; a villain who's psyche you can never hope to understand; the conviction that things will get darker until dawn breaks again; the 'social experiment' I thought mirrored the US dilemna on nuclear capaibilities in the Middle East. Very nicely done.

Finally, Heath Ledger. There's a close-up shot of his face in the interrogation room (his make-up is running & he has a creepy scarred smile)-- absolutely gave me the shivers!

Most Disappointing Sequels

I made a list of "Most Disappointing Sequels of Recent Times". (Well, mostly because I had nothing better to do, but also because bad sequels really do disappoint me!). Here's my list anyway:
# 5) Indiana Jones - Crystal Skull
# 4) Sarkar Raj & Dhoom 2 (it's a tie)
# 3) Shrek III
# 2) "Lost" Season 2 & 3
# 1) Matrix Reloaded & Revolutions

PS: If I were to make a list of the most disappointing remakes, Umrao Jaan, RGV's Sholay, and Devdas would be my top 3.

Memory

Memory is a deceiving thing;
But hard to dismiss.
Moments we ought to forget;
Persist & subsist.
Moments we ought to cherish;
Disappear & desist.
Imagine a different world;
Where memory doesn't betray like this;
A world with memories only of bliss.

Did you know...

...that breathing air in Mumbai is equivalent to smoking 20 cigarettes a day?

I'm not shocked with this piece of statistics; I did breathe that almost-air for 20 odd years; but when put like that, it makes me worry a great deal for the health of my family back home. Especially my little nephew who would've smoked over hundred-thousand cigarettes before he actually starts smoking!

A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers

I liked this book.

It started off as a stereotypical story -- Chinese girl arrives in London & feels disoriented in the west. The narrative style I thought was cliched-- broken English; spoken like a Chinese. And the naivity of the girl was over-done; she came across as a moron.

But somewhere around pg # 100, the English got better, the writing was more heartfelt; her wistfulness more acute. I felt for Z & her claustrophobia in London; I was tickled by the "lost in translation" moments; I was touched by the love story of the two diametrically opposite lead characters; and the small everyday observations about the contrasts in the Chinese & Western cultures made it an interesting read.

Pink, plastic, "Hello Kitty"

Is it a massive over-generalisation to say that South-East Asians love all that is "Hello Kitty" much more than any other group of human population ever loved any single brand?

21

When we watched the movie a couple of weeks back, I was the only one who came out of the movie still wondering about the game show problem that Kevin Spacey asks in the MIT classroom in the movie (Yes, I did feel stupid being the only one who didn't get it).

Suppose you're on a game show, and you're given the choice of three doors: Behind one door is a car; behind the others, goats. You pick a door, say No. 1, and the host, who knows what's behind the doors, opens another door, say No. 3, which has a goat. He then says to you, "Do you want to pick door No. 2?" Is it to your advantage to switch your choice?

I thought that the answer in the movie ("yes") was counter-intuitive & it kept bothering me for days (I do get obsessive about the silliest of things sometimes) so I wiki-ed it up. For all those movie-watchers like me who're mathematically-challenged, please look here. Wikipedia has explained it quite well...besides, I thought the pictures of goats & cars were cute (its bizzare that the car is smaller than the goats) :)

Cameron Highlands, Malaysia

So we visited this quaint & charming hill station in Malaysia & it was a lovely & memorable holiday.

We stayed at a Tudor-styled cottage-hotel called "The Old Smokehouse" and it was a slice out of colonial English holiday-life. Cuppa tea in the garden, wine by the fire-place in the evenings, even our breakfast was served in courses! :)

The landscape of Cameron Highlands is BEAUTIFUL. The tea-plantations cover a lot of land and there are points in the hill roads where you can only view acres & acres of tea plantations in any direction you see, as far away as you see. It's like a massive green carpet in the distance & a lovely never-ending garden up close.

And the weather was perfect. It was nippy, but not oppressively cold. In the mornings, the mist would sneek through the doors & windows until everything became bleary, romantic & bollywood-film-like (If I resisted the temptation to dance around trees or roll down the hill slopes, it was only because H is too shy to do such things).
Sigh. Back in Singapore now...it's hot, humid & I see Monday-morning zombies as far as I can see.

Happy Anniversary :)

We glanced back from our speed boat,
At the track of ripples we left in the river;
Followed by the dew drops on leaves adrift-
like tiny gems on water; floating together;
And between the ripples & the gems;
A bleary reflection of two happy faces--
Both of us & this sojourn in paradise.

Tranquillity

I think "tranquillity" is such a beautiful word -- it's got this soothing, whispering sound to it -- the word itself makes you want to believe that such a thing as 'tranquillity' actually exists.

We were in Pune last week & while gazing at this countryside-in-monsoon view from atop a hill, I realised what a beautiful word 'tranquillity' is!

A year in La-La-Land

It's going to be a year in Singapore this July; and although we still feel like new-comers, it is home now. Sure, we still miss Dubai; but we've stopped comparing the two cities. Its like comparing ice-cream & Brad Pitt -- both are great, but in different ways.

My favourite things Singaporean?
1. The very cool people we met & friends we made in Singapore
2. The greenary & natural (??) beauty of the island
3. The quality & variety of Asian food
4. The fact that there are four national languages & a melange of inter-race customs, cuisines & festivals.
5. The quirky taxi-drivers (It takes time, but you do eventually find them entertaining & amusing!)

Life Ahead

Years of half angst, half eagerness;
Anticipating my life ahead;
And now here I am, approaching the destination called "Life Ahead";
Wondering if this is where I dreamt of being then?

Singapore Flyer

We did some "touristy" things in Singapore when my folks were here; one of them was going aboard the Flyer (the Singaporean equivalent of the "London Eye"). Well, the Singaporean skyline is not half as magnificient as the London one; but the view wasn't bad either.

On one side was the busy bustling city & then on the other side was the peaceful sea & golf course. Quite a contrast, eh?

Charlie Wilson's War

Watched Charlie Wilson's War last week... what can I say, I'm watching a lot of movies these days :)... Its an enjoyable political satire (funny, witty).

The movie makes a case (a bit simplistically) that the US action of arming the Mujahideens in the 80s may have been well-intentioned. But it also seems to suggest that because they meant well, they were right in doing them or that they were necessary (Wilson even refers to them as the "glorious" days that ended the cold war). Thats where it didn't convince me.

What I did agree with though, was the political reality of how it all ended -- the Congress was generous in doling out money for arming the anti-soviet --it made them look heroic & patriotic-- but didn't want to spend anything on re-habilitation of this war-zone once the Soviets were defeated --there was no political advantage in that.

PS: Philip-Seymour Hoffman is fantastic in the movie as an out-spoken CIA agent.

Indy & the insipid crystal skull story

I used to love the Indiana Jones series back in my school days (that era when VCRs were used & we used to rent cassettes of Hollywood movies on family-weekends), & I associated the movies with good old adventure-hero machoism, bit of comedy or romance, and an implausible but entertaining plot.

Which is why I was so disappointed that Speilberg decided to make the new Indiana Jones movie all about special effects (did he conceptualise the movie in front of the computer?).

It did make me wonder though -- was the movie poorly made; or is it just me getting older? I'm renting "Raiders of the Lost Ark" this weekend & watching it again just to be sure.

Chinese Buddhist Art

Saw this huge painting on the tiled front wall of a Chinese monastery here & it caught my attention.

I don't know much about Buddhist philosophy, but this painting seems to depict some sort of a struggle for survival -- with the monks helping from one side; and demons attacking from the other; while men & women struggle in a sea-storm (of life, perhaps?)

Would love to know more about it --maybe it's a scene from an ancient mythological story; or from the religious texts, perhaps?

Click on image to enlarge

Consumer Psych

Have you noticed how television commercials always use a male voice-over? There's always a man's voice asking us to go buy a brand of detergent or cooking oil (although they're products more likely to be used by women).

It seems consumers (including women) associate a male voice more strongly with reliability & knowledge, rather than a woman's voice -- so says some consumer research.

I find it completely bizzare though...none of the men I know would be able to make a knowledgeable recommendation on a brand of detergent. They would rather check with their wives or moms on what to buy.

Home

My folks are visiting me this week & its a big occassion. They dont travel much because of dad's health; so its rare for them to visit me. Next week is going to have some quality home-cooked food, healthy dose of nostalgia, lots of hugging & long jogs down memory-lanes :)

I left home one day,
Meaning to go away.
A long distance later
I realised I’d never really been away.

Tagore

I had seen these words engraved on one of the walking trails in the MacRitchie Nature Reserve. Thought they were beautiful.

Whats happening in my life lately...

I have less than a year before I turn 30; and to tell you the truth, the thought is quite unnerving. So I decided to make a list of things to do before 30. I don't want to do any of those dare-devil things like bungee-jump or sky-dive (that sort of adrenalin rush is quite over-rated, I think). Neither have I ever wanted to kiss a French guy or get married to a stranger in Vegas (I'm simply not that spontaneous a person). Does anyone have any suggestions?

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The other day someone at work said to me "I am flying to Mumbai next week. Do you know how far it is from Bombay?". haha!

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I watched a show on "The History Channel" the other day which spoke about Nostardamus' prediction that the world will come to an end in 2012. If it is true, doesn't that change everything? All that we work for or worry about -- health, savings, career, kids, global warming, market crashes, oil prices-- they wouldn't matter anymore. Maybe I won't need to clean my desk after all.

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Have you tried salted popcorn & ice-cream as a combo? It's quite a good dessert!

Tagged

Got tagged by J...

Last movie you saw in a theater - Michael Clayton

What book are you reading - "A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers"

Favorite board game -Scrabble

Favorite smells - Herbal Essence hair products

Favorite sound - My nephew's babbling

Worst feeling in the world - Hatred

What is the first thing you think of when you wake up - Check my blackberry (I'm pathetic, I know)

Favorite fast food place - A dimsum place near work (yes, that counts as fast food in this part of the world). "Subway" is also a favourite.

Future child's name - Need to discuss with H first!

Finish this statement. "If I had a lot of money, i'd...." -Make a movie with Johnny Depp. And buy a holiday home in the Alps.

Do you drive fast - Not really. I'm a bad driver.

Do you sleep with a stuffed animal - No. Although H does have a tendency of stuffing himself (especially when he gets Indian food)

Storms- Cool or scary -Scary.

What was your first car - Ford Ikon.

Favorite drink - Coconut water.

Finish this statement. "If I had the time, I would..." - Travel around the world. Write my autobiography.

Do you eat the stems on broccoli? -Yes

If you could dye your hair any color, what would be your choice? - brown streaks.

Name all the different cities/towns you have lived in - Mumbai, Pune, Dubai, Singapore

Favorite sports to watch - Cricket, Tennis.

One nice thing about the person who sent this to you -His music

What's under your bed? - The floor.

Would you like to be born as yourself again? - Absolutely. Wouldn't mind being born as the Sultan of Brunei though.

Morning person or night owl - Morning person.

Over easy or sunny side up -Sunny side up.

Favorite place to relax -By the ocean.

Favorite pie - Apple pie

Favorite icecream flavor -Cookies & cream.

Of all the people you tagged this to, who is most likely to respond first? - ??? They're all pretty lazy :)

Who gets tagged next - Lalunadiosa, Jas, 666