And the camera flashed...

I dunno what makes me write on this today. It happens to me quite often. Some faint symbols bring back old thoughts, thoughts about events which might not even bother anyone. But somehow, small incident just sticks to my mind and i keep thinking it over and over again.

Today as my dad drove through the busy streets of Manama, I heard the siren of an ambulance just behind our car. And that itself was enough to remind me of an incident i heard a long time back which had stolen my thoughts for quite a while.

Here, goes the incident as told by my friend about her father...

Like any other person, driving a car, he was held up by the traffic signal. The siren of an ambulance buzzing right behind his car. Being left with no other choice, he crossed the fatal yellow line to give way to the ambulance. And the camera flashed...
He didnt realise what happened until he was fined BD50 (INR 6,000)

Why???
The radar had caught his number plate for breaking rules. For crossing when the traffic signal was red.
And when it was his turn to explain the situation which led him to act like that, nobody listened. No proof. Therefore pointless.

This incident might seem too small, too insignificant but still somehow it provoked me to think.
How discouraging!
How unfair!
How ridiculous!
How hopeless!

Yes, hopeless... isnt it. When will technology learn to understand the cause and the effect? But again... should we blame technology for this? It had dutifully done what it was programmed to do. Then was it his fault to give way to a dying patient? No way. My conscience refuses. Then why such an immoral, unfair judgement for a genuine noble act is all I ask...

I havent found an answer still. Wrote this in search of an answer.

Beautiful mind

Why politics???

"Benazir Bhutto assassinated", my mom read out from the laptop. Stunned, i shut The Kite Runner. My dad immediately switched on the news channel to know the details. For a moment, my mind drifted to an episode of The Rendezvous by Simi Grewal. I used to love watching it with my mom years back. Benazir Bhutto was the guest in that particular episode. I still remember the way she related her father's execution... And today, her death was carved along the very same lines. Interestingly, The Indian Express calls her The daughter of destiny.

I asked my dad, why did she ever get into politics? Didnt she see her own father get killed? She was Harvard educated, she could have definitely chosen a better life for herself. It was then my dad told, how many people could become leaders today? How many people took the responsibility to bring about a positive change by overlooking the risk factor? Very few take the challenge. And very few are rewarded.

And those words left me pondering.

Flashback # 2

I guess its time to wield my pen to pen again... its been quite some time since i've posted anything. And i surely cant do myself justice if i dont record the memories of last sem which was the most significant sem so far, before the memories start fading...

Last sem started off with enough bossing around over my roomies for the very unforgivable fact that they being my roomies forgot to wish me on my b'day. A crime never to be forgotten or forgiven i enjoyed exemptions from making coffee or maggie or doing the dishes or even cleaning the room :p

Well, my new class, 2nd yr, eee, room no-3 in the CLC. First day i was awed to see the number... a class of 74!!! But thankfully due to Horizons, i came to know my class very well. I never realised my class had soooo much talent. And finally, in the midst of untimely practical exams and many other untimely events, my very dear class came out glorious in mano and grabbed the second overall position!!! How, dont ask... none of us expected... but there was "talent"!!! Im sorry if this is putting you off to sleep or if you think im boasting too much... but where else can i boast other than my very own blog!!!

Then came Festember, our cultural fest and along with it came Pirate Radio... True was the tagline of Festember- An epitome of joy, a swirl of creativity... swept us off our feet... hogging away to glory at dominoes, sipping cool blue to our heart's content, running around attending events and sitting all exhausted in the cad cam lab writing endless reports, taking pictures of the arts exhibition, attending workshops with friends, or even dancing to the tunes of O humdum suniyore with KK singing live on stage!!! Wowww those were the days... and before i could relish them with all my heart, they were over. Sigh!!!

The seoson of giving treats and getting treats never closes (thankfully) may it be in the dhaba outside the college gate or in meridian or even the very newly opened mc lawrance. And in the midst of everything, exams just come and go like an eternal reality. But thanks to the "Who cares???" attitude developed in college which helps one see through all these difficult times and never complain.

And there were those small instances which fail to grab our attention but somehow affects us... those long walks with friends, sharing the most insignificant detail with roommates and then making a big deal out of it, our mess boycotts, getting scolded my profs in labs, attending classes when all my friends were busy snoring in the hostle and poor me!!! I came a week late to college and thus my bunkscore counter started from 3 in each subject :( :(

I guess this has been my most unorganised post, but how can i help when all memories come rushing at the same time :)

signing off
Beautiful Mind

Sigh!!!

Scene: 3rd day of Festember, at the PR desk

I was sitting at the pr desk, doing my usual slot. A big pile of Pirate Radio , issue 3, was lying neatly folded on the table. I was kind of disappointed seeing the huge pile lying there...

Meanwhile, a middle aged gentleman comes towards the stall asking me for all 3 PR issues... I was kinda surprised, someone actually showing interest in what we wrote and that too asking for not just one issue but all 3, that was a WOOWWW!!!! I cheerfully handed him the day 3 issue and told him we that we didn't have the day 1 and 2 issues at the moment. He looked a bit dejected and walked away.

I looked around a bit. Finally, I saw a few day 2 issues lying on a chair at some corner. I promptly picked up one and ran out, my eyes searching for the gentleman. Thankfully, i spotted him near a stall, went upto him and handed him saying, "Sorry sir, i couldn't get day 1's issue but here we have day 2." He smiled back, took it happily, and said, "Actually, im an alumni. I just wanted to keep them all with me." I just stood there. I didnt know what to say... I could clearly see in his eyes how much he wanted them and valued them. I quitely went back to the stall, lost in deep thought... how much we tried publicizing what we wrote, running behind people asking them to read when they were least bothered, leaving piles of issues outside the art exhibition, with the faint hope that someone or the other would pick it up and to the extent that i made sure everyone at the pr stall had a copy of PR... and there someone comes and asks me out of his interest and i failed to help!!!

I sat down at my place, my eyes discerning him...how well he blended with the rhapsodic crowd, though he didnt look even remotely close to the age group of the crowd!!! And why shouldn't he, isnt the spirit the same...!!!

Beautiful Mind

"To send scrap to all your friends at once CLICK HERE"

Does this text look familiar to you???
Just open your orkut accounts for a moment, and check your scrapbook...atleast one of the ten scraps displayed will have the deadly blue bar saying, "To send scrap to all your friends at once CLICK HERE"

Im not a regular visitor of orkut. Only during holidays when i have nothing better to do... i resort to the pleasures of orkut. And these days, i dont know dating back to precisely when, these "deadly" blue bar messages seemed to have picked up amazing popularity. Not talking about my scrap book alone, I can't stand the sight of those, thus i keep deleting every such scrap... but even in others scrapbook, they are full of those.

Agreed, few are forwards, which can be still pardoned but scraps like-
XYZ: hi
"To send scrap to all your friends at once CLICK HERE"

or even worse... I couldn't believe there were those hopeless souls existing who sent scraps like-
ABC: happy birthday
"To send scrap to all your friends at once CLICK HERE"
Can you comprehend the heights of lunacy involved in such an act!!!

And now the latest buzz... you might be well aware of the "Diana, director of orkut..." message. Well im not commenting on those... its hopeless!!!

Imagine, just with the push of a button, you send a "hi" message to your entire friendlist... however huge it is. There might be one or two of those characters in your friends list whom you dont really know but simply added cause he or she is a friend of your friend's friend. And when the person receieves the scrap, he/ she will be actually wondering who the hell is this person???
Im writing on this today cause such a thing has actually happened with me and it is really very annoying!!!

But isnt it saving time??? Sending a "hi" message to all 250 of your contacts with just a click... is a pleasure that only modern technology can bestow on us. But by succumbing to the thriving technology... we are losing out on friends, feelings, in short life.

Lets keep technology at its place...
Let technology strive and lets help technology strive...
But lets not give up ourselves completely to it...
lets not trade on conscience!!!

PS: hope i didnt make it sound err so over serious :)

Is This Topic Crisis???

Im pretty jobless today... you may go further reading but do it at your own risk :p

OMG!!! Its been six whole days since i've come home after an eventful, roller coaster like semester where i hardly remember giving myself a moment's time to sit back and ponder over what i was actually upto and now before my gray cells could process, im already sitting at home, fiddling with my computer and listening to my evergreen Bryan Adam's songs.

And now i cannot pardon myself for not posting atleast one article in all these days that i am at home. Specially, when i've cribbed how many times i really dont remember, in the entire semester, as to not have the time to post a proper article in my blog. And now when i have all the time to kill, I hardly seem to remember my blog. GODDD!!!! im feeling badd already, hence this post. Believe me, today i have absolutely nothing in my mind to write on... just want to be happy seeing an article posted on my blog :D

Believe me!!! just before starting to write this post, i have stared blankly at the screen to think of some little something that i could pen on... but no my mind seems to refuse to cooperate. Anyway, i can't go on feeling bad right, and now that the harsh truth of me suffering from topic crisis is already known to you... i shall prevent all attempts to mask my pathetic state right now!!!

But dearest reader please dont get mad at me for wasting your time, i shall definitely make up for this one by coming up with something a hell lot better next time...

Till then adios...
Beautiful Mind

PS: Im sorry, this post was a desperate attempt to post something... so pls forgive and forget :)

LOSING MY FESTIGINITY

(This article is taken from "The Pirate Radio" , the college newsletter for Festember. It talks about Festember, our cultural festival.
Due to reasons enough, this article is my favourite one though humbly speaking i contributed only the last 5 lines to it)

I wake up. I brush. I eat. I sleep. Then i go home during Festember. I was just some arbit frustoo who went to Bamboos once a month and had five square parathas and a PBM. But everything changed this time. The darn train reservation wasn't confirment and i was stuck here, just me and the other frustoos without rail reservations. Ofcourse, we found a better way to describe our position. We thought we're really smarter ones since staying here was rebelling against the fickle minded flock that flew north every winter, autmn rather. So we called ourselves the pirates. We went to Chatram to get eye patches but they'd run out of them, so we grew our hair long enough to cover our eyes. We rented an air conditioned old vessel where we took an oath of secrecy through the ip messenger and called ourselves the Writers Circle/ Media Team. And so I lost my Festiginity.

So here it was, Festember '07. Now you'd imagine what mood has been associated with that statement. Do i sound excited? Or nonchalant? Well i haven't the faintest idea, partly because i read last year's newsletter brought out by the WC. That's what this society (read: evil brotherhood) does to you, it takes all the fun out of life. Reading artciles like wake me after Festember ends' don't exactly gear you up for the Fest you're supposed to remember. Frankly speaking, this Festember wasn't very different from the image portrayed by those who had the courage to brave it to the last time around. Definitely, a few events like Power Cut and ChoreoNite were worth watching, but a large portion of the crowd was rather interested in the food stalls. So was I. When i was not devouring the pizzas, i was locked up in Cad lad preparing reports and articles for pirate radio.

I gained a lot, mind you. Three days of fun, frolic, festivity and Iced Eskimos. And it was fulfilling. Am i getting obsessed with the F? But in its varied meanings and diverse views, the F met the K, not one mind you, but two. And that really enthralled the enraptured audience. Yup, the memories of Festember will remain ingrained in my mind forever, or atleast as long as the flavors of the Triple Bar Sundae and the Cool Blue of CCD do. As i look back down the road of drifting memories, conflicting emotions and suppressed nausea, the vivid images of my screaming, red and grey coloured hair, my white painted face, the voices of the radio- jockey- from -Bangaluru- who- assures- that- radio- is no- match- for- TV (which ofcourse is no match to print), the magic of the creative fire lit by the arts exhibition, the lits events which got our rusting grey cells working, our never- quenching thirst for more and more of DT numbers, stays on. Phew! And thus i move on experiencing over and over again the epitome of joy, entwined in a swirl of creativity... and waiting for the next fest to arrive...


By- The Triumphant Perv with an Ulti Khopdi who has a Beautiful Mind that spurts Lava.

"Pirate Radio" editors :)

SOMEWHERE IN NIT TRICHY...

10:10 am… Seems like a moment students wait for to get out of the sleep inducing classes and run to either Bru or Snacky and grab a cup of coffee to revive themselves after the long monotonous never ending lectures. Meanwhile, the attendance at Bru or Snacky is something any prof would be more than glad to find in his own class but unfortunately it is a hypothetical situation.

Talking of “hypothetical situations” in class, is it one where a sir actually won’t induce you to sleep or you actually understand everything he tries to teach without even suffering from OHT (Over Head Transmission) for once or is it when the sir cancels the class and is generous enough to give full attendance???

Imagine if they served good coffee, pastries, gulab jamuns in the mess. Then what would happen to the swarming crowd in Bru or Snacky or even canteen? But as long as it is NITT, such a thing would never happen, because then how will the college do justice to Buhari, Classic foods??? Tactfully the mess food should be dreadfully bad or else no sales in snacky or canteen might lead to their disheartening close down.

My very mind wished to wander more, when suddenly a nudge from my friend brought me back to reality. Timely enough, I heard sir say in his same monotonous voice, “Roll no 39”. Promptly enough did I reply, “yes sir” as a sincere student and smiled at myself, only if he knew the world I was touring…

Beautiful Mind

WALK TWO MOONS

“Don’t judge a person until you have walked two moons in his moccasins.”

In the moccasins of “The clock Tower”

Tick tick tick, I go day and night, ticking away in my own rhythm, right there, up so high on the tower. Aahhh!!! there’s something really grand about my position, a large number of people actually spraining their necks to look up to me isn’t a small deal.

Seasons come, seasons go, through the rains and summer I stand there, erect at my position, generously showing time to anyone and everyone. There are times I particularly remember when time seems to fly, (I’m not joking, I’m well aware of the system running within me).

Festember- a celebration of moods, an epitome of colours is one of those times when I too sneak in the opportunity to have a bit of thrill and excitement in my otherwise so monotonous life. Festember brings with itself a tide of enthusiasm, new faces and a fresh touch of sparkle to the campus. And somewhere in the midst of the joie de vivre of the students, I too find my own happiness- proudly showing time to new faces, seeing people loitering around all confused in the campus, love birds making their most in the food stalls, the barn indefatigably hosting events endlessly from dawn to dusk, the general “NITT” bovines finding their way through the herd of people walking around...

And there I stand up so high, silently discerning the whole spirit of Festember, trying to walk two moons in every student’s moccasins when my eyes catch hold of this very new face sketching an overview of the campus where I inevitably occupy the most esteemed position. That alone makes my day!!!

A Flashback

A whole semester in college seemed to pass away in a wink... Can't imagine will be in second year next time i return to college. Time seems to be racing, and to keep up with it, we all seem to be racing against time!!!

Second semester in college was pretty eventful, filled with activities... never seemed to find time for studies until the week before exams. Many would raise a brow reading this statement knowing what big a nerd i am, but lemme be truthful, i hardly found time to study or to spend time in the library reading books.

Right from Jan, it started, one after the other, club activities, Pragyan, Nitfest, Section dhamaka... went on and on covering a span of 4 months. With each new "occasion", may it be Pragyan or Nitfest, would come a tide of excitement. It was fun to see seniors busy at work, students loitering around all confused in the campus, love birds whiling away time in the food stalls, and we first years making the most out of it. No classes, unlimited sleep, hanging out in the stalls in "jeans"... well jeans had to be in quotes since then it was a very big deal being in jeans... don't forget we were STILL under ragging and anything like jeans and top were simply unimaginable. One thing i got to agree, guest lectures were truly amazing covering a wide diversity of topics ranging from nanotechnology to Indian economics. I had my best time attending the lectures...:)

Then finally our good old seniors realised its time to free the first years from ragging (here lemme mention, this realisation came after eight months of college... but im thankful to god, ATLEAST they realised). All that ragging consisted was usual chaat sessions and doing seniors work. Here i ought to mention, i had a terrible time writing seniors records and assignments cause my handwriting GENUINELY sucks and my great seniors thought that i was acting a bit too smart by not writing their records properly. But they still don't know that i spent more time writing their record than i spend for mine just to make it look OKAY OKAY and unfortunately they were never happy. God!!!! now when i think of it, their threatening remarks once actually made me cry. Now i realise how dumb i was to cry on such matters like ragging and that too SENIORS... Back to the point, we went for our freshy cum farewell to Yercaud, a small hill station on Kerala -Tamil Nadu border... It was nice... something cooler than trichy is anyday welcome!!! But the best part was we got to know our seniors really well which we wouldn't have otherwise. Maybe now i realise how important they are...

God!!! Not even a week in home and all these college memories are already overflowing... maybe i should stop cause i don't wish to start missing college right from the day i arrive at home...

(original post May, 2007)

I miss the "..." :(

"...", a three dot follow up, after almost every sentence had been such a part and parcel of whatever i write. It comes so spontaneously, so without thinking... see again i end up putting the three dots. It seems like a silence which can speak. A silence which speaks whats already in the writer's mind and the reader just knows it.

Recently in college, a senior who's really good at writing was reading one of my write-ups, overfilled with dots, as if most of it was was on the reader to comprehend. This great senior did a kind job of telling me that the three dot follow up isn't a good writing practice. Well, since then i've been trying my best not to use the dots but they seem to come up so often, so spontaneously, so reluctant to leave me... Each time after wriitng when i discover that again unknowingly i had filled it with dots, i would trail back, trying hard to replace every dot with a coma or a full stop or anything but whatever maybe the dots seem to look so perfect in its place, so unreplaceable! I have tried to do the same with this entry too but couldn't resist using it in two places. :(

I donno what made me write on this today...
again i use but console myself, "Its unreplacable" :p

Original Post: May, 2007

Phase 2: Life at NITT

Leaving behind those school days…
Those days…

Carelessly spent with friends,
Sincerely studying like a perfect bookworm,
Always ready with a dozen of doubts to ask teacher,
Parents always there through every problem, every decision.

Now stepping into the college days…
These days…

First class happened to be math…a complete OHT
OHT: Over Head Transmission
An experience never experienced before,
And then accumulated some guts to stop sir outside class and ask doubts,
A perfect flop cause he wasn’t ready to come down to my level,
And I was too adamant to go up to his level,
Only solution: no more asking doubts to professors.

Took time to actually realize…
This is not school anymore,
Where we’ll have teachers ever ready to explain until the concept is completely drilled,
And that professors will never come down to our level,
Somehow we have to make the effort to reach their level,
No more of the “spoon-feeding business” of school works here,
Slogging out through “self studies” is the only funda that works in college.

College friends…
A topic by itself…
Someone had told me: college friends you will remember forever,
Don’t know how far it is true...
Have to pass out college first to judge the consistency of the statement.
Takes some effort initially to strike a cord with roommates…
But if everyone gets roommates like mine, then life becomes simpler.
Today nothing can we do without each other: The Trio
Even while entering the icy, a place strictly forbidden to first years,
We have to be together, our policy: Do masti together and get screwed together.
And ya there are friends you just happen to meet “by chance”
And will remember all your life.

Ohh Ragging…
How could I forget that
Even after finishing one semester in college,
Cant really decide whether we were ever ragged or “chaated” according to nitt dictionary,
For the first time happy to be a girl: no scores…
But ya seniors work is not to be spared
And their usual chaat sessions,
Used to get me thinking how jobless one should be to chaat ME:
ME… the most boring person in NITT.
Hats off to the seniors who actually have eyes
To spot you entering the icy, juicy or snacky
When you are 200% sure that not a soul will catch you entering.
But ya they are our great seniors
And we have to life with them for 3 years until we become seniors
But somehow… though seniors screw us for the most “arbit” reasons
They do help us in someway, somehow that I am yet to figure out.

Mess Food…
My apparent favourite cuisine
A perfect good bye to the yummy home made food
And a warm embrace to the mess food cooked my our great akkas,
Variety is what we get over here…
That will actually make one learn the entire menu list from Monday through Sunday,
Cause it never changes…
Science says “Every phenomenon is dynamic”
But anyone who has been to our mess,
Will me forced to modify the statement to “Mess menu is static.”

This is a just a glimpse of college life
As seen by me…
In just the first semester
Another 4 years to live in this place
“Home away from home”
Well is it really a home???
Is a question I always ask myself
And I think I found the answer in these holidays
Cause I already started missing college life terribly!!!!!