A Southwest Rap! :-)

A Gulzar gem...

Started the day humming this song...

ಕೆರೆಮನೆ ಶಂಭು ಹೆಗಡೆ ನಿಧನ

ಯಕ್ಷಗಾನ ಕ್ಷೇತ್ರದ ಮಹಾನ್ ಕಲಾವಿದರಾಗಿದ್ದು, ಆ ಕಲೆಯ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಅವರ ಕುಣಿತದಷ್ಟೇ ಅದ್ಭುತವಾಗಿ ಮಾತನಾಡುತ್ತಾ, ಕಲೆಯನ್ನು ಜೀವಂತವಾಗಿ ಉಳಿಸಲು ಶ್ರಮಿಸುತ್ತಾ ಇಡೀ ಜೀವನವನ್ನು ಸವೆಸಿ, ಕಡೆಗೆ ಇವತ್ತು ಕುಣಿಯುತ್ತಲೇ ಕುಸಿದು ಹೊರಟುಹೋದರಂತೆ ಇಡಗುಂಜಿ ಮಹಾಗಣಪತಿ ಯಕ್ಷಗಾನ ಮಂಡಳಿಯ ಹಿರಿಯ ಚೇತನ ಶ್ರೀ ಕೆರೆಮನೆ ಶಂಭು ಹೆಗಡೆಯವರು. ಯಕ್ಷಗಾನದಂತಹ ಅದ್ಭುತ ಕಲೆಯ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಕಿಂಚಿತ್ತಾದರೂ ಆಸಕ್ತಿ ಇದ್ದು ಅದನ್ನು ಆಸ್ವಾದಿಸಿದವರಿಗೆ ಶಂಭು ಹೆಗಡೆಯುವರ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಆಗಲೀ, ’ಕೆರೆಮನೆ’ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಆಗಲೀ ಏನೂ ಹೇಳಬೇಕಿಲ್ಲ.

ಹಲವಾರು ವರ್ಷಗಳ ನಂತರ ಶಂಭು ಹೆಗಡೆಯವರ ಯಕ್ಷಗಾನವನ್ನು ತುಂಬಾ ಹತ್ತಿರದಿಂದ ನೋಡಿ ಹೃದಯ ತುಂಬಿಸಿಕೊಳ್ಳುವ ಅದೃಷ್ಟ ನನ್ನದಾಗಿದ್ದು ಅವರು ೨೦೦೬ ನವಂಬರ್‌ನಲ್ಲಿ ಶಿಕಾಗೋಗೆ ಬಂದಾಗ. ಅವರು ಆಡಿದ ’ಜರಾಸಂಧ ವಧೆ’ ಎಂದಿಗೂ ಮರೆಯಲಾಗದ ಅನುಭವವಾಗಿ, ಈಗ ಆ ಅನುಭವಕ್ಕೆ ಮತ್ತಷ್ಟು ವಿಶೇಷ ಸ್ಥಾನ ದೊರಕಿಹೋಗಿದೆ. ಇನ್ನೇನಿದ್ದರೂ ಅವರನ್ನು ಮನಸ್ಸಿನ ಅಥವಾ ದೂರದರ್ಶನದ ತೆರೆಯ ಮೇಲೆ ಮಾತ್ರ ನೋಡಲು ಸಾಧ್ಯ. ಹಾಗಾಗೇ, ಅವರ ಕುಣಿತದ ಸಂದರ್ಭದಲ್ಲಿ ನಾನು ತೆಗೆದ ಕೆಲವು ಚಿತ್ರಗಳು ನನ್ನ ತುಂಬಾ ನೆಚ್ಚಿನ ಚಿತ್ರಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಕೆಲವಾಗಿ ಉಳಿದುಬಿಡುತ್ತವೆ. ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಕೆಲವಿವೆ:

Serendipity in Cricketing Mathematics? :-)

Here is what India head coach Gary Kirsten had to say ahead of the 3rd ODI between India and Srilanka yesterday, according to Sriram Veera of CricInfo:

The momentum in the series is clearly with India, who own a 2-0 lead, and their coach Gary Kirsten reckoned that his team could win matches even by playing at "60% of our ability".

India eventually beat Srilanka comprehensively in the day-night match. And, as it turned out, Srilanka scored only 59.504% of India's total of 363. Interesting, eh? :-)

So, who is next on Barkha Dutt's Hit List?

Even though my 'direct' (insufferable) experience with Indian TV media in general and NDTV in particular is quite limited, I am not surprised that I have grown to love to hate Barkha Dutt of NDTV. She, in my opinion, represents the horrible state of 'news' media in India today. There was a time when I actually looked forward to watching NDTV -- when it was still new and was doing a pretty good job of covering general elections in India, something that had not been seen on Indian TV till then. I had grown to like it despite Prannoy Roy's obvious 'commie' links. Good work, done by whoever, should be applauded -- so I thought. Little did I know at that time that NDTV would reduce itself to the state it is in today -- and Barkha Dutt is, in my opinion, the face of that decline.

Anybody who saw her coverage of the Mumbai mayhem will either love her or hate her. If what she did during those terrible days wasn't enough, her (and NDTV's) flexing of muscles over a blog post that condemned her for the way she conducted herself as a journalist should make you either love her (really?) or hate her. :-)

I am not gonna write what exactly happened. Prem Panicker has done it very well and is worth reproducing it here via URL links:

First, read this post.

And then, this.

By the way, he does make a very good point. About the difference between opinion and fact. In today's online world where every other site is a personal blog, it is very important to keep this difference in mind when writing blog posts. A blog is not a personal diary -- what you write there can attract legal action even from the most unexpected quarters, as the Cheytanya Kunte-Barkha Dutt episode proves. So, writing responsibly is a wise idea.

Chicago

Brutal. -30 deg F. And it is only the first day of winter. Fun!

Some pictures from the drive along the Pacific Coast

Click here to view the album.

Is this the end of Dravid?

Sometimes it is just too painful to watch one of your favorite players look so shabby and out of place. Watching him play the last few Test matches, you get the feeling that Dravid is going through a mental trauma. What is sad about it though is that this trauma is self-inflicted. He is too fine a batsman and too determined a player to have such wretched patch for such a long time. His mind just isn't there. He is unable to accept the fact that a player of his caliber can fall to such depths. And it doesn't appear that he will be able able to pull himself out of this rut. He seems so aloof on the ground and doesn't appear to be getting any help from his teammates let alone his captain. I believe Dhoni has let him down in a big way and may even be waiting for Dravid to go out on his own. Sad.

After his second stint in the Chennai Test, I have no doubt that this will be Dravid's last Test series. I think he is going to retire at the end of the series. I would have loved to see him score a century or two before he departed, but I would rather not see so much pain on his face. So long, Dravid!

Guided Missile Control technology.... in chicken head :-)

The sky is no limit for craziness...

Dinner in the sky! The first thought that came to my mind when I saw the following picture was "what is wrong with these people!?!"



Oh, by the way, what if you need to pee when you are up there?! That was my second thought. :D

The India connection...

I normally don't write posts related to the business and technology I am professionally associated with in this blog. But, what I saw on the 2nd web site (the first was, of course, cricinfo.org, which I opened with trepidation and lots of prayers) I opened this morning as soon as I got up kind of amused me. The following screenshot is from IBM's home page.



:-)

Economy in the dumps!

I was reading an article by Sarita Rai on ZDNet, and the following segment caught my attention:

To survive the slowdown, outsourcing companies will have to learn to be thrifty. The successful ones have already been doing this. At Wipro, legend has it that chairman Azim Premji would ask that toilet paper be rationed, and insist employees switch off lights and air conditioners when leaving a room.

In fact, Premji, one of India's richest men by virtue of his share in Wipro, apparently practices frugality to the extent that he orders 'by-two' samosas in the office café.

Now, tell me something. How do you ration out toilet paper?! Every employee gets a daily/weekly quota of paper? Or, everybody is given a small roll for the entire week? What if that is not enough? I guess some smart folks will bring their own paper from home and keep it safe in their cubes for the rainy day! How awkward it should be to walk around with some paper in your hands or tucked somewhere! So, if you see somebody get up quietly and start walking down the hallway, you don't need to ask what is on his/her mind! What if, once you get there, you realize you needed to have brought more paper with you?

Nah! All that isn't gonna work. Why not install toilet paper dispensers in each stall? A couple of slots for credit/debit card and coins, and there you go! You don't need to carry anything. Better still, add a keypad to it on which you can punch in your employee code and you have a running account of paper used! End of the month, you have a new deduction on your paycheck!

Oh wait, this can start a whole new business of manufacturing "Toilet Paper Dispensers!" With a few trendy tag lines, it will catch on pretty fast! I already have some ready!


Swipe Before You Wipe!

Pay-per-wipe!

Pay As You Go!


Ok, that is enough. I have given you enough ideas. Now it is all yours!

Simple Truth. Beautiful Expression.

For a few days now, one of my most frequently used status messages on gtalk (when I am online, that is!) has been: "que sera, sera". It aptly conveyed my present state of mind. Or, so had I assumed. Till today. This morning, my dear friend from Bangalore innocently asked me if I was referring to the song from the Hindi movie Pukar. I didn't have a clue which song she was referring to. I was then given a YouTube link to the song from Pukar. And when I heard the song, I was horrified! No!! That song was not what I had on my mind! Absolutely not!

I then realized that what I had been offered was an opportunity to serve humanity by introducing this wonderful song by Doris Day to those who had never heard of her or the song. So here you go. Enjoy!

An unforgettable day to forget

I guess this day will never cease to come back. Year after year, it arrives and brings back horrific memories that can never fade away.

I can never forget watching the 2nd plane hit the World Trade Center LIVE while still trying to come to terms with the shock of hearing about the first plane. That morning, as I drove to work, totally oblivious of what was about to happen, I had chosen to listen to Mysoora Mallige instead of my usual NPR in the car. A minute or two before I parked, the first plane hit the towers. As I was entering the office, a couple of my friends met me at the door with horrified looks on their faces. They couldn't believe that I had a nice smile on my face (ignorance is bliss?). I was greeted with the stunning news. The three of us rushed to the conference room where the entire staff had gathered to watch TV. As we were all recovering from the shock, we saw the second plane hit the other tower in real time. It took us a few seconds to realize it was not a replay. We all froze.

And more news followed. We sunk deeper and deeper into mourning. Nobody knew what to do. We were just standing here and there, going back in and out of the conference room. Nobody spoke a word for a long time.

The days that followed were equally painful as more and more details, pictures and other stories arrived.

I also realized that a few people I had communicated with while on my previous project had perished in the attack. My previous client had an office in the World Trade Center.

Why did so many people have to die that way? It just doesn't make sense.

It hurts so much to remember 9/11. I want to forget it. Think that it never happened.

But I can't. I just can't.

Ganesha Outsourced!

Take a look at this beautiful Ganesha idol I bought at the Aurora temple a few weeks ago:



As I was admiring its beauty, I don't know why, but I happened to flip the idol to see the part of Ganesha that we should normally not want to see:



I was stunned to see something that I never thought I would be condemned to see someday.

Now tell me, are we Indians so incapable of producing Ganesha idols for the world market that we have to get them made in those child-labor shops in China? Are we so inefficient that we can't stay profitable in a business like this unless we use cheap labor outside the country? Are we so devoid of a sense of social responsibility that we choose to ignore an opportunity to give jobs to Indians in our pursuit of maximum profit?

A friendly argument followed with the store manager (a volunteer with no stake or decision-making power whatsoever in the store) who very zealously tried to explain to me that Indian businessmen just don't want to commit to the consistent quality and quantity the export orders demand. She was speaking from her experience in pharmaceutical sales in the US. She said it was almost impossible to do business with Indian suppliers.

Trying to make me feel better, she said: "Oh, by the way, these idols are actually made by businesses connected to ISKCON though they are made in China!" Sure, that really made me feel better!! ;)

I bought the idol anyway. And today is his day. Though made in China, this is how he eventually turned out:

Today's best and the worst

The best thing I heard today:
The nine-year old who walked alongside Yao Min, the Chinese Basketball player (and the Houston Rockets center), at the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony is a survivor of the terrible earthquake that devastated China's Sichuan province earlier this year. Twenty kids died in his class of thirty. He crawled out of the rubble and went back to rescue his classmates (he saved two of them). When asked why he did that, his answer was: "I am one of the class leaders. It is my responsibility!" He must have wondered why people were making it such a big deal! Simple mind. Great character.

The worst thing I saw today:
The Indian contingent walking in the opening ceremony. Did somebody explain to them the importance of the occasion and how to prepare for such an event!? We are told they didn't have time to get dressed! And some athletes were not allowed to take part in the event because the Indian officials didn't want them to be butchered the next day! Oh, give me a break!! They will get butchered anyway, put up a good show at least in the opening ceremony!!

When there is not much to say....

I guess I can resort to writing what I heard others say!

So here goes. The best quip I heard today. A few of us in the office were seriously discussing a new project, estimates, resources and an impossible deadline, and were wondering if there was any way we can at least come close to the desired deadline. When somebody wondered if adding more people could help, one of the not-so-amused managers quipped with a straight face: "A baby can't be delivered in a month by nine women."

adE bhAgyamu....

manasuna manasai
bratukuna bratukai
manasuna manasai
bratukuna bratukai
tODokarunDina adE bhAgyamu adE swargamu

aashalu theerani aavEshamulO
aashayaalalO aavEdanalO
cheekaTi moosina EkaantamulO
tODokarunDina adE bhAgyamu adE swargamu

ninnu ninnuga prEminchuTaku
nee kOsamE kanneeru ninchuTaku
ninnu ninnuga prEminchuTaku
nee kOsamE kanneeru ninchuTaku
nEnunnaanani ninDuga palikE
tODokarunDinna adE bhAgyamu adE swargamu

chelimiyE karuvai valapE arudai
chedarina hrudayamE shila ai pOga
nee vyatha telisi neeDaga nilichi
tODokarunDinna adE bhAgyamu adE swargamu

Whatever...

Hail the Rosenstrasse women!

A young princess is asked to choose the man she would like to marry. She chooses one only to be told on her return from forest that the man she has chosen to marry is destined to die in a year. But she marries him anyway. A year later, 'the day' arrives, and her husband is taken away by the just lord of death. But the young wife decides to take him on to save her husband. And she does so, using peaceful means. She confronts him with her knowledge, her logical reasoning and her dedication to her cause. And she wins her husband back.

Did it really happen? Very unlikely. But we do remember, read and tell this story countless times -- we have been doing so as long as we can remember. A story written thousands of years ago lives on. Savitri is our hero.

Take a Savitri and multiply her 6000 times. Put them all together in one city. Have the lord of death take away their men (1800 of them -- because not all these Savitris are married to those men; Some of them are just women relatives of the men) -- the men who are destined to die not because of what they did but because who they are. As the most unjust and cruel lord of death prepares to grant those men their death, the women folk take him on, using peaceful means. No arms. No violence. Not all 6000 at once. In ones and twos initially and numbers picking up slowly. By the end of the week, the lord of death relents. All 1800 men released.

Unbelievable? Most certainly. Unlikely? Very much so. Did it really happen? Yes, it did. In1943. In Berlin. Do we know or remember it? Obviously not.

As the Nazis prepared to round up the last of the Jews in Berlin (the Final Round up, during Fabrikaktion), they picked up 1800 Jewish men, most of them married to non-Jewish women, and prepared to transport them to concentration camps while telling the women that they were being taken to labor camps. As they were held temporarily in a building on Rosenstrasse, Berlin, prior to transportation, some women got wind of it. One by one, they showed up on Rosenstrasse. And a peaceful protest, to save their men, began. Women started streaming in everyday. By the end of the week, 6000 women had taken part in the protest. A totally unorganized, totally unarmed, totally peaceful protest. They took on the very brutal SS, no less! And they won their men back. No shoot-outs, no killing. All the 1800 men were released. 25 men who had already been sent to Auschwitz were also recalled and released. And most of them even survived the war.

This was one of the very few open and successful attempts at protesting the actions of the Third Reich.

Why am I writing this today? Because it was today, February 27th, back in 1943, that the Rosenstrasse protest began.

Not sure if Gandhiji ever heard of this incident, but he definitely would have smiled had he heard it.