Well today happened to be the D- day for elections for which preparation have been going on long since , but how well .. no clues and answer ….
My family and I today witnessed the lack of proper system implementation today .
When we shifted to noida the first thing we did was give an application to renew our voter ids and that to twice, this happened in the year 2008 November.
This year again when the procedure began , again we resubmitted the documents, but still failed to get the voter ids.
Anyways we were still determined to cast the vote and after having read in the newspaper that even though we have photo id proofs we can go to the respective constituency with the head of the family show the proof and cast the vote.
So we all geared up to cast the vote we picked up our old voter ids , the photo id proofs and the receipt of the form that we have resubmitted the application for ids.
Deep down we knew that its will be going through a tiring procedure to explain and get the things done but never what actually we witnessed .
As the Indian government system is know to pass on the job from one to another , the same happened with us , we were not allowed to cast our vote just on the ground our name is not on the list ………..this is the case when we want to vote and cant vote because of management system is not well upto the requisite procedural requirement. A long discussions followed and the reply was that the few person sitting there to guide us were not even to going to vote because of the same problem.
We were about to return defeated when another case caught our sight, an elderly couple with there voter ids waiting for there turn were indescribably refused their right because their name was not on the list.
Why the system functions like this??? why is there always a cribbing question that people do not go to vote ?? is this how the system functions , there are plenty who want to vote , but due to lack of proper management system many are deprived from their right .
How can we exercise our right .. how much patience do we have to display ?? the question lie unanswered .
Its very strange how the idea of voting is perceived , the common notion being “ sab party waale apna vote khud hi dalwa lenge , hum jakar bhi kya kar lenge “ but is this the right approach ??? even the maid of our house turned a blind eye to the election procedure because she said “ jisse vote chahiye who apne aap le jaate hain , ghoonghat mein se kisse pata chalega kaun vote kark aaya “
the functioning government has to be made aware of all the happenings , they cannot just turn a blind eye to this ,as a responsible citizen we can do all what is required from us , but that will be successful only when we get the response.
“talli ek haath se nahin bajati”
We know what a power of vote can do , we want to cast the vote , but are meekly turned away ……….what should be done , ……………just this for the time being wait for another round of elections when again we have to get our voter ids and till that time …….many questions will be left unanswered ………………..
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Sunday, April 12, 2009
NANOMANIA
The wonder car NANO : what came in ratan tata’s mind to develop this car?? A big question who’s answer created a tremendous buzz in the whole world.
Nano has finally arrived and its mania has definitely gripped all…….(.I am one of them )well the excitement took its toll leading to long discussions, finding out every possible information about it on net , in newspaper , taking opinions from every source possible .
The best was the answer why do u want to invest in an autorickshaw ??? I was bewildered. ..Why?? Well the answer was u get a autorikshaw for 80k so there is big rush of autowallah to buy this 1 lakh car J ok…..it has engine under its seat and sound like an auto ………..the list of criticism went on
Anyways the excitement was much to reside so I dragged my mom along with me to Westside to just have a look at it to get a first hand experience ………….there were plenty like me ,and so much was the ado that it appeared to be more like a car showroom than an apparel showroom , with snapshots being taken, everyone around was trying on the chance to get the feel of car interiors, discussions happening , and the most impressive was the Chinese and Japanese tourist flocking with there digicams to click the nano from each and every possible angle .
Finally I got my turn to check this wonder car ,well as the saying goes first impression is the most lasting impression (not the last as I would like to phrase ) and in this case it was impressive and the first look under spot lights was of a good looking car.
It seemed that for 1.75 lakh it’s a good car although the height was too tall for a small car , only a 6 footer can look beyond its roof , ok so far so good .
But when it comes to interior spaces , it was a disappointment, there is leg space but the same leg space one gets in a DTC bus yup thatz true the seats are nowhere cushiony as everyone of has experienced in a car . The front seats are placed on two rod pipes so there is the leg space and as for the one who are sitting in the back well then one will be sitting on the engine J
It can be stated that to achieve a car for the given price they had to compromise on something and in this case interior accessories have faced the axe .
And for those who must be wondering where have they arranged the provision for car jack and spare tyre …eureka its in front under the supposed boot . It hardly leaves any space for further luggage.
And all those who think it’s a noiseless affair from those who have done the test drive they say it makes noise like an auto on starting and throughout the journey .
Overall in my opinion it’s not a family car but not a bad indulgence if one is looking for a short distance commuting, daily up and downs (at least it will be cheaper on the long run if I am not spending on autos ;).
It is O.K to tag it as a cute small MY CAR.
So who all the takers for it only time will tell. But it will surely cramp the traffic a bit more
Nano has finally arrived and its mania has definitely gripped all…….(.I am one of them )well the excitement took its toll leading to long discussions, finding out every possible information about it on net , in newspaper , taking opinions from every source possible .
The best was the answer why do u want to invest in an autorickshaw ??? I was bewildered. ..Why?? Well the answer was u get a autorikshaw for 80k so there is big rush of autowallah to buy this 1 lakh car J ok…..it has engine under its seat and sound like an auto ………..the list of criticism went on
Anyways the excitement was much to reside so I dragged my mom along with me to Westside to just have a look at it to get a first hand experience ………….there were plenty like me ,and so much was the ado that it appeared to be more like a car showroom than an apparel showroom , with snapshots being taken, everyone around was trying on the chance to get the feel of car interiors, discussions happening , and the most impressive was the Chinese and Japanese tourist flocking with there digicams to click the nano from each and every possible angle .
Finally I got my turn to check this wonder car ,well as the saying goes first impression is the most lasting impression (not the last as I would like to phrase ) and in this case it was impressive and the first look under spot lights was of a good looking car.
It seemed that for 1.75 lakh it’s a good car although the height was too tall for a small car , only a 6 footer can look beyond its roof , ok so far so good .
But when it comes to interior spaces , it was a disappointment, there is leg space but the same leg space one gets in a DTC bus yup thatz true the seats are nowhere cushiony as everyone of has experienced in a car . The front seats are placed on two rod pipes so there is the leg space and as for the one who are sitting in the back well then one will be sitting on the engine J
It can be stated that to achieve a car for the given price they had to compromise on something and in this case interior accessories have faced the axe .
And for those who must be wondering where have they arranged the provision for car jack and spare tyre …eureka its in front under the supposed boot . It hardly leaves any space for further luggage.
And all those who think it’s a noiseless affair from those who have done the test drive they say it makes noise like an auto on starting and throughout the journey .
Overall in my opinion it’s not a family car but not a bad indulgence if one is looking for a short distance commuting, daily up and downs (at least it will be cheaper on the long run if I am not spending on autos ;).
It is O.K to tag it as a cute small MY CAR.
So who all the takers for it only time will tell. But it will surely cramp the traffic a bit more
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Yeh Delhi hai meri jaan
True to its stature Delhi is truly the capital of India, u’ll see everyone from everywhere, u’ll get pretty much everything from anywhere, food of every variety typical blended in Indian flavor (let me mention the all time favorite indianised chowmein and the most specific north indian version of dosa), rags to riches, a true attitude of things will be done and a the all time jovial happy go lucky attitude.
Its just like a person, there are too many a good things to mention but there are bad phases also, who’s physical appearance changes with the growing trend but the soul remains the same, it has a pure heart but sometimes gets influenced, still it has that stature to blend its neighbors in its flavor (gurgaon , noida, Ghaziabad , faridabad …..) with open arms for everyone .
Why am I being so nostalgic??
Having shifted the base to noida from the past couple of years I am not that much far to not being able to go to delhi, its just a ½ hr drive then why feel so awed whenever I land in the capital city . …hmmmm
The feeling is indivertible, I cannot help it.
The funny part is even today when one has to go for shopping there is no other place like delhi .
it's good that ithas certain defined place for each and every, day to day and other specific items.
Some of the most important places of the delhi for specific items namely being :
- bhagirath place: one the cheap yet all variety of electronic fittings, u name it they have it there .
- sadar bazaar , chandni chowk , bada mandi , nayi sadak , Kharo bowli : all these places are the ultimate hub for any item one can think of . the specialities being the groceries at kahro bowliand papers of each variety fron chawri bazaar
I sweared by nayi sadak for the 5 years of architecture from a mere rotoring pen to the catridge sheets , for everything there used to be a a yearly visit to that place and that trip did not used to be complete without the kulfi faluda and cholle bhature .
The belt starting from jama masjid even boasts of being the only specialist in the bird’s treatment - Nehru place : the ultimate hub for electronics and computer freaks , original to pirated , street smart to posh showrooms everywhere , unimaginative , printing plotting .. the endless list goes on and on ….
- For book freaks ……..how many of us have tried the daryaganj Sunday bazaar when there is complete rush of second hand as well as new books and magazine on sale along the pathways . one can actually find the old editions of any magazine in those heaps if u have the patience and plenty of time .:)
- I cannot think of any other place apart from panchkuyiaan , kirti nagar and tilak nagar – jail road for buying the furniture .
- Karol bagh , ajmal khan road , ghaffar market : specializes in smuggled electronics. The area between Gurudwara Road and Ajmal Khan Road, at the Pusa Road end, specialises in car accessories, and the main central market is a hub for jewellery and apparels. Even today I jump on a oppurtunity to buy clothes from there and no other place to buy crockery. and during the visit to karol bagh it is a must to have ice cream of anjalika(cakes are awesome)
Sarojini nagar and lajpat nagar being the alter sisters of karol bagh . - And for food – there is hardly any place where one can not get enough to gorge upon from the yummy kathi rolls of nizam in C.P., to the sweets of Bengal sweets, a array of restaurants in the outer circle of C.P to the street food . the list is endless
These are few to mention the list is not complete .the city is growing within and spreading with the cities urbanscape and skyline is marked with awesome structures ,historical monuments. It stands true to the saying that “delhi mein job hi ata hai yahin ka hokar rah jata hai "
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
How ignorant are we towards our environment
Our environment is depleting, we all realize but how can we protect it? its a big q
uestions
The main wake up call was the world wide depletion, degradation of the natural existing resources and environment, and indulgence of human activities to exploit the natural resources to their utmost.
We all have read about global warming during our school days, depletion of ozone layer , degradation of environmental conditions and what not … but never gave it a second thought.
It was a common view on developing sites to see uprooted trees .we never bothered to see our river turn into drains, when did smog took over fog we don’t know, but somewhere in our mind all of us knew the reasons and causes.
All of the above effects could have been avoided if each one of us thought it as moral responsibility to think about the little steps that could have been taken as small as not throwing paper or any litter on road.
Anyways its never too late to start afresh and Sustainability and its transformation of design, development, and planning of the built environment has reached a "tip most point," as being reflected in the nation wide adoption of green / sustainable guidelines for development predominantly based on the U.S (LEEDS to be more precise)
There is an insurgence to adopt this criterion in the whole world.
uestionsThe main wake up call was the world wide depletion, degradation of the natural existing resources and environment, and indulgence of human activities to exploit the natural resources to their utmost.
We all have read about global warming during our school days, depletion of ozone layer , degradation of environmental conditions and what not … but never gave it a second thought.
It was a common view on developing sites to see uprooted trees .we never bothered to see our river turn into drains, when did smog took over fog we don’t know, but somewhere in our mind all of us knew the reasons and causes.
All of the above effects could have been avoided if each one of us thought it as moral responsibility to think about the little steps that could have been taken as small as not throwing paper or any litter on road.
Anyways its never too late to start afresh and Sustainability and its transformation of design, development, and planning of the built environment has reached a "tip most point," as being reflected in the nation wide adoption of green / sustainable guidelines for development predominantly based on the U.S (LEEDS to be more precise)
There is an insurgence to adopt this criterion in the whole world.
but how effectively has been adopted ??? the progeress is slow but surely for a betterment .
its a common thought that Deteriorating environment is often linked with increasing economic activity, requiring deforestation, energy consumption etc. “Development” being usually held responsible for environmental damage, while environmentalists are accused of being “anti-development”. but is it so ??
its a common thought that Deteriorating environment is often linked with increasing economic activity, requiring deforestation, energy consumption etc. “Development” being usually held responsible for environmental damage, while environmentalists are accused of being “anti-development”. but is it so ??
what can be done ?? what should we do ?? are there any measures?? surely .. one being sustainable development .
Sustainability was a topic of ignorance till we had abundant of these resources, but bad now if we don’t give a consideration to there depletion or what may lead to their depletion.
We all talk about development, upliftment of the area but that does not mean discrete development from the environment, they can surely go hand in hand, then why not to adopt it ?? why is it that a simple googling of sustainability assessment and architecture give a zero result
Sustainable development should not be an oxymoron but a reality which can be implemented by simple steps of consideration towards development in form of structures which should lead to development of the surrounding environment ..
Sustainability was a topic of ignorance till we had abundant of these resources, but bad now if we don’t give a consideration to there depletion or what may lead to their depletion.
We all talk about development, upliftment of the area but that does not mean discrete development from the environment, they can surely go hand in hand, then why not to adopt it ?? why is it that a simple googling of sustainability assessment and architecture give a zero result
Sustainable development should not be an oxymoron but a reality which can be implemented by simple steps of consideration towards development in form of structures which should lead to development of the surrounding environment ..
And I think our approach should be as suggested by some learned
Think globally - act locally. Look around - find others that are doing something you resonate with - join them.
Monday, March 2, 2009
A good movie for a change... naahhh
I was a bit wary to write this blog out of only excuse to being called a film critic, out of hesitation to offend some who may have liked the movie, but I could not resist to share, to put down my feelings after a spat of watching three movies in three weeks.
Having office near shopping malls and multiplexes has its own share of advantages and disadvantages and in my case the biggest disadvantage is that I have created a fetish to watch most of the movies in their first week, the lame excuse being what else is there for entertainment in noida apart from these malls, and movies (ok somewhere deep down I know that I am developing a bad indulgence ;)
From January to February last week I saw three movies, each one driven by family and friends raving reviews.
The first one in the list: luck by chance :I jumped on the chance to see this movie because I did not go to see rock on , so lets go and see this movie , it turned out to be ok , nothing great , nothing bad , for the first time I did not like hrithik roshan and above all the bit confusing was what was isha sherwani trying to portray , is she that much dumb or what . For me it was not the best of the performances by konkana, she has portrayed far more superior characters (she was too good in mr and mrs iyer ) , and above all the most cutest couple award should go to rishi kapoor and juhi chawla they still have the charm of bol radha bol .
Anyways it was a ok time pass, maybe likeable for some like my sister and a easy avoidable movie on theatres for me
The next week released billu (…..barber ) I had lot of expectations in terms of comedy and simple yet touching portrayals by its director priyadarshan, but once again things don’t always turn out as we try to presume them
There were only two instance consistent in the whole movie the cheesy dialogues by irfan khan (our very own billu) and the omittance of barber in the songs or wherever it finds the mention (the title song was awesome those who must have listened must be knowing about mention of word barber, but when this was being played in the cinema it goes like this .. apna billu ……………………. Apna biluuu ………….) one uncle sitting next to me seemed to be confused and very innocently asked his wife picture kat kat k kyun dikha rahe hain ..
Anyways the picture seems to be some sort of answer of sharukh to aamir that he is the ultimate king khan and how much he is idolized.
and please someone tell lara dutta that she does not look like a gaon ki gori with highlighted hair and a accented hindi dialogue delivery
In the end I felt it like a halka fulka time pass, a good performance by irfan khan , out and out its his movie .
The most disappointing of the lot was delhi -6. I was determined to not to go to see this movie unless and until I have confirmed about its reviews and how worth it is to spend on.
After hearing about the reviews from my office colleague I thought to go for it, how bad it could be it has a good star cast, raving songs and a director whose debutant was awesome
Finally I make it on a weekday to spice world to find out only 25 people in the hall.
The movie starts of with the kala Bandar and ends with it, I was utterly confused why was it named delhi -6 when the most apt title should have been kala Bandar.
The most important question: where is delhi in the movie on Delhi leave apart chandni chowk .
In the name of delhi we see glimpses of metro, a jhalak of India gate and tit bit glimpses of some of the places of Delhi in the Delhi hai mere yaar song.
Apart from that a zilch of Delhi, it could have been easily named kala Bandar and the way abhishek is shown jumping the roof tops , made me wonder why was he made to jump like a monkey from one roof to another.
The only good thing about the movie is the support cast (this does not include cyrus sahukar , why was he there in the movie and someone please explain me in the same night few hrs before he had plans to run away with sonam kapoor and after that he runs away with lala ji wife ??? why ) , and the end roit situation.
Overall my cousins reaction provides a jist to the whole movie “ ye kala bandar ki story thi, isse achha national geographic dekh lete... J”(it is a movie on black monkey , it would have been good to see the national geographic )
Having office near shopping malls and multiplexes has its own share of advantages and disadvantages and in my case the biggest disadvantage is that I have created a fetish to watch most of the movies in their first week, the lame excuse being what else is there for entertainment in noida apart from these malls, and movies (ok somewhere deep down I know that I am developing a bad indulgence ;)
From January to February last week I saw three movies, each one driven by family and friends raving reviews.
The first one in the list: luck by chance :I jumped on the chance to see this movie because I did not go to see rock on , so lets go and see this movie , it turned out to be ok , nothing great , nothing bad , for the first time I did not like hrithik roshan and above all the bit confusing was what was isha sherwani trying to portray , is she that much dumb or what . For me it was not the best of the performances by konkana, she has portrayed far more superior characters (she was too good in mr and mrs iyer ) , and above all the most cutest couple award should go to rishi kapoor and juhi chawla they still have the charm of bol radha bol .
Anyways it was a ok time pass, maybe likeable for some like my sister and a easy avoidable movie on theatres for me
The next week released billu (…..barber ) I had lot of expectations in terms of comedy and simple yet touching portrayals by its director priyadarshan, but once again things don’t always turn out as we try to presume them
There were only two instance consistent in the whole movie the cheesy dialogues by irfan khan (our very own billu) and the omittance of barber in the songs or wherever it finds the mention (the title song was awesome those who must have listened must be knowing about mention of word barber, but when this was being played in the cinema it goes like this .. apna billu ……………………. Apna biluuu ………….) one uncle sitting next to me seemed to be confused and very innocently asked his wife picture kat kat k kyun dikha rahe hain ..
Anyways the picture seems to be some sort of answer of sharukh to aamir that he is the ultimate king khan and how much he is idolized.
and please someone tell lara dutta that she does not look like a gaon ki gori with highlighted hair and a accented hindi dialogue delivery
In the end I felt it like a halka fulka time pass, a good performance by irfan khan , out and out its his movie .
The most disappointing of the lot was delhi -6. I was determined to not to go to see this movie unless and until I have confirmed about its reviews and how worth it is to spend on.
After hearing about the reviews from my office colleague I thought to go for it, how bad it could be it has a good star cast, raving songs and a director whose debutant was awesome
Finally I make it on a weekday to spice world to find out only 25 people in the hall.
The movie starts of with the kala Bandar and ends with it, I was utterly confused why was it named delhi -6 when the most apt title should have been kala Bandar.
The most important question: where is delhi in the movie on Delhi leave apart chandni chowk .
In the name of delhi we see glimpses of metro, a jhalak of India gate and tit bit glimpses of some of the places of Delhi in the Delhi hai mere yaar song.
Apart from that a zilch of Delhi, it could have been easily named kala Bandar and the way abhishek is shown jumping the roof tops , made me wonder why was he made to jump like a monkey from one roof to another.
The only good thing about the movie is the support cast (this does not include cyrus sahukar , why was he there in the movie and someone please explain me in the same night few hrs before he had plans to run away with sonam kapoor and after that he runs away with lala ji wife ??? why ) , and the end roit situation.
Overall my cousins reaction provides a jist to the whole movie “ ye kala bandar ki story thi, isse achha national geographic dekh lete... J”(it is a movie on black monkey , it would have been good to see the national geographic )
Thursday, February 5, 2009
A TRIP TO REMEMBER
I have never gone to any adventure trip until we decided to go on one to the jim Corbett park Before leaving for Jim Corbett National Park I was quite skeptical of wild life. An area which I had never explored previously in my life.
Hmmmm………..A fine trip to jim Corbett……………have heard a lot …. Very excited………amused, over excited ……. Wondering... how will it be, what will we see, oh god I will really see wild animal , must be like they showed in kaal movie (so many questions..phewww)
Anyways everything was chalked out presumably on schedule, that, by far we should reach in 8 hrs for a Six hour journey from the capital of the country at max, but I should realize things generally do not turn out as we all presume them to be and in this case we took a shocking 12 hrs to reach our destination.
Anyways it does happen but in the end we did reach, got unpacked and slept early to get up early next morning at the crack of the dawn.
So at 5:30 in the morning we leave for jim Corbett from ramnagar through roads meandering through the forest .
the journey through the dark lanes made me more excited for the supposedly unforgettable tour,
and so we reach our presumed entry ………………..but no ……..how could it be and in this case we have reached to the place 20 kms ahead of where we were supposed to enter ,
ok ok .. we did not know , we are new to the place . excuses crops up and we rush back asking everyone coming in our way whether we are going in the right direction now, finally making it to the main entry of BIJRANI one of the nine entrances to this vast more than 85 km spread jim Corbett park .
after getting the clearances, and the guide we begin our journey through the meandering pathways and the bending curves of the forest and flowing perennial river , over the boulders into the forest along the wild vegetation , not knowing what we will see, but the glimmering sunlight falling on the misty forest ensures that we will see something beautiful , unknown , a term “natural beauty” in its full bloom .
the journey begins with the volley of questions to our guide …………………………
bhaiya , what is there in jim Corbett that makes it special ,
bhaiya , what are our chances to see the tigers,
bhaiyaa, bhaiya , bhaiya ….. the question keep cropping up and our respective bhaiya jee is smart enough to give great bouncers one after other , beta ji .. tourist ask us what are the stories of jim Corbett and I say sabjee…. U are going to experience a journey, and u never know when u return maybe u will have ur own story to tell………..wow
all along the guide is showing us, telling us to look this way and the other (pheww so much to catch up ) the pugmarks of tiger , elephant , look there are the footprints of the tiger he walked here last evening , do click .
asking us question there is a log and if an elephant come what will u do , get scared no no no need becoz they are intelligent to divert there direction on seeing a log . ok sir point taken ,,,, but guide ji its been 1 hour into the forest and we have not seen a single bird leave alone a animal ,
“are they scared of the cars”.
Guide: “no madam they are more accustomed to vehicles than the local villagers residing on the periphery of the forest , have patience , we will get to know if there are sightings”“
Patience , patience ……………..wading of with each passing moment
Over the whole journey the most exciting thing we were able to experience were the journey atop the watch tower (a rather shaky one )
The monkey skull placed atop a stone especially by our esteemed guide and fortunately a get together of Indian langur and the spotted deer family .
It so happened that whenever we reached a place where there were several other jeeps , we would come to know : “ are re u folks are late we just spotted a tigress with her two cubs”oh no we missed them and our guide would say its ok we shall see it be PATIENT .
Ok patience .. a hard test of patience,
the meandering bends are now just another road , our driver jokes “it seems to be a boulder forest than a wildlife reserve”
nearly 3.5 hrs into the forest and I have just seen deers and lagur and that too I can count them on my fingers nothing more.and our guide replies in a very humble manner madam yahan to hiran bhi tiger ko dekhe bina jeewan nikal dete hain aap to sirf 4 ghante k liye aaye hain , or bhalu to yahan 4 saalon se nahin dikha .
Elephant at least a wild tusker and his hoard any where , please at least that much , and eureka we do see a elephant but sadly a tamed one used by some of the visitors to experience the journey through the sanctuary
Thatz it there is nothing else to see and our time limit is over, why is that, oh god.
my dad is so frustrated that he decide to go to delhi zoo on his way to work on Monday , but I calm myself down by clicking at the painted picture of tiger and elephant on one of the walls of the rest house , plus bringing back mementos from the gift shopfor the colleagues as a sole proof of I have visited the JIM CORBETT PARK
On the way back to delhi next day I happened to see camels, wild macaque, elephant, some farm animals, walking on the roads , in the farms , tamed, making me think that man has intervened so much into the natural existence of animals that there natural existence seems to be devoid of them .
Will I go back there again .. and the answer is yes , I hope to see them next time the only key is to keep the PATIENCE .
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