Un-scheduled update

Books :

The Sea , John Banville.. picked bcos of booker .. and since its a small book..yet abandoned midway...just didnt get it...will pick it later..or not..

Mistress , Anita nair.. despite not-so-good reviews..I liked it..maybe because its set in Kerala..with which I have a special connection .. :-)

American Pastoral , Philip Roth... great book..Im slowly understanding what the phenomenon called Philip Roth is..though did not complete it...as my very picky-abt-books-wont-read-unless-very-interesting husband took it along ..

That Long Silence .. a typical Shashi Deshpande ..which Im liking a lot these days..

Brides kimono , Sujata Massey - disappointing after her earlier books that Ive read..or maybe Ive moved on ?

Currently savouring Arthur and George .. its a book :D

Movies :

Garam Masala - mindless timepass...good for some time..but irritating by the time it ends...

Mei , Meri patni aur Woh - good one time watch


Thats it ! Outta here !

The Joys of Diwali that was...

Its here !!

the smell...
the feeling in air...
the longing for
..freshly sprinkled grounds...
..the chilly pure mornings...
..freshly scrubbed houses...
..freshly painted houses...
..delicacies..
..savories..
..diyas..
..rangolis..
..sparkles...
..happiness..

joy..oh joy...the smell...the ..oh so sweet ..
so haunting smell of D i w a l i is here !

Queen of Dreams...

Picked up Chitra Divakaruni's latest..'Queen of dreams'...and surprisingly Im liking it...I say surprisingly because I had a feeling I wont like it...When I started with her books, I liked her work...somewhere down the line maybe it became repititive
..maybe the way it happened with Danielle Steele..

During my college days , I started reading DS.. in my hometown there are no english novels to be found...except for the library ...and that was too insufficient for my voracious reading appetite...every bombay/pune trip I used to visit the churchgate book sellers/book lane..and get all books possible withing my spending budget...

neways....so somewhere along that time I grew out of DS...moved on...
but...Divakaruni still can capture my attention.. Im really savouring this one..

One more reason of my apprehensions might be the fact that , when I heard of Aishwarya rai being casted as the main character , I was very disappointed...How could Divakaruni let this happen...Dimple...or Dipti naval would have been perfect for such a role, I think !

How one thought twines in another...casts a shadow...clouds judgements...

Book update

This month I read 2 books I really liked :

>> The binding Vine , by Shashi Deshpande
Its a very simple and small book... which starts from the middle and ends in the same way..there is no start..no end.. to all that is narrated...simply put..its beutiful..
and
>> The kite runner , by Khaled Hosseini
I can just imagine this one being made into a great character movie... it would be a very poignant one...I wish for it to be made !

Also..I watched a very good movie
>>Iqbal
Such a great story..such superb acting...I have increased faith in Nagesh Kukoonoor...and I hope Iqbal..and his sister keep on getting such good exposure..

These are the books..movies...that linger on in your mind...which make it difficult to read/watch another...lest the sweet aftertaste is lost..

Situations...

How do we decide how we should react to situations...
Im very transperant that way...My face..my voice tells it all...is it honest...or rude ..I cant decide..
I know its tough...to mask your thoughts...opinions...though Im sure wiser..what is the point expressing negativity when there is nothing you can do about it...
I need to learn..

Long overdue Goa pic

and somehow apt for the oncoming Onam too ...

PuneMonsoon

Despite the horrible roads...drudging traffic...not being able to wear my new trousers cos they are light coloured and the mud will puddle it..this is what makes monsoon worth in and around Pune...

Mangal mangal..

Mangal mangal...mangal mangal ho......


The movie started at 1145 pm instead of 1045 pm.. long past my deep-into-dreams time... the endless reruns of Lagaan and Swades songs..the unruly crowd which I feared wouldnt let me enjoy the movie..the long waitttttt.......
It was worth it !



Rather Aamir is worth it.. his entry scene...where he walks towards the gallows and his face is panned in the noose...thats awesome ! Never before have Aamir's eyes been so powerful.. so spell-binding..
and I loved that singing group on the beautifully decorated elephant...
Amisha , Rani, Kiron Kher, Toby Stephens are good too..
the 1857 era imagery is quite endearing and realistic..


Inspite of all this the movie isnt so great...somehow its not so gripping..or maybe there is not much story to tell.. a coherent thread is lacking..
And Rahmans music is alright...didnt seem to fit the period ..except for 'Mangal mangal' ..which kept on humming in my head when I went to bed at 3 am finally...


But Aamir is great ! and thats all that matters !


and...lo and behold..tis my last day in my workplace .. and I have a weeks break before I join at the intended place...and in which Im going home...my parents place...and fully intend on gorging myself on all delicious home cooked food and lazing away to glory !


Halla bol !!!

Attention Pune-ites

There is a book in wild..in Pune..
For more details check out http://www.bookcrossing.com/home ..
Im so excited to see where it goes.. !



p.s : I got a cutie-cute dress for my niece today..hope it fits her .. did I say its super cute ...it is !

Weekend in a glance

>> Boo(k)ty list

• Jonathan Strange & Mr Norell
• Kite Runner
• Morality for Beautiful girls
• Historian

(There is no other way to define happiness !)

>> Movie watch - Sehar - Nice !

>> Some formal attire shopping in anticipation of the new job !

>> Coming Friday tickets for 'The Rising' ..

When will you stop asking questions...

I dont like to lie.. or hedge around...or give vague answers ..
Why do people persist in asking questions after questions..
Answering 1 or 2 questions isnt enough ???


How do I deflect..
>> 'No more questions please'
>> 'I think thats all that I can discuss'
>> 'Why do you ask' (the classic one, but not one of my favourites..since I know no one will reply saying 'bcos I am curious George(aka nosy) ! ' )
>> 'Stop It!'


None of the above satisfies me... I want one look of mine to stop them from asking any more questions...politely .

Look at this

Isnt it a dream library.... I will build such a library for myself ...some day..
And..yes..this is a real one.. courtesy http://papernapkin.typepad.com/photos/mom_and_dads/index.html .. Thanks Sheryl for letting me share it..

Phoniest being I've seen..

the shark creature in Jaws 2...

If only ..

it would have ended better...'If only' would have turned out to be an ok movie..


In first half of the movie..Jennifer Love Hewitt looks kinda exotic.. Paul Nichols has affected the Brit accent quite well.. the characterisation is also good enough..but..it turns into a totally cliche-ridden-hum-drum affair after the life-altering-deja-vu-esque experience that Paul has..


Why does he dies in the end ? instead of her.. I cant believe its because he loves her..why should being in love make him an easy target for death ? why is her life more important than his ? and she never even knows about it ...


He told me 'I taught him the meaning of love' .. (puke)repeat(puke).. and then died..wah wah wah
and then she cheapens it all by singing about it and smiling stupidly at the end... !! Yuck !

BookCrossing - the ideal way

bookcrossing
n. the practice of leaving a book in a public place to be
picked up and read by others, who then do likewise.

(added to the
Concise Oxford English Dictionary in August 2004)

All details at http://www.bookcrossing.com/home .. sounds fun... !
Off to hunting in Pune...

Mma...Rra..

I want to visit Botswana..
courtesy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_McCall_Smith
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Botswana

A Pity-Ful experience

Today morning , I went to the Provident Fund office in Pune. This is a long pending issue - when my husband moved from Mumbai to Pune , 2 years back , he (or rather the firm) had submitted a request to transfer his PF account from Mumbai to Pune . As of now we have had no intimation as to the status of this.
Visit to any government office requires a mental preparation, building of fortitude, the right mindframe of doggedness, perseverance .. I dont know how much I was prepared for it , but 'its just an enquiry...I just need to check the status ..after all its 2 years..Im sure its done already'...I thought.


The auto-wallah , on specifying the area , immediately asked if I was going to IBM , and I smiled.. it always strikes me as how these people need to ..and keep themselves updated about latest going ons.. and how he pinned me right for being a s/w professional..am I stamped or what.
Neways, once I told that no...I would be going to the PF office .. he un-hesitatingly asked me if I 'knew' someone in there..and as I replied in negative again..he recounted his story of PF woes.. wherein his PF of 22 years work with Philips is still pending. He said that those people directly ask for 10% of the payable .. and they are un-willing to even tell him the total amount he can expect. Since he used to be paid on daily wages system, he doesnt have a record of what sum it might be..
We both berated the system..and said..yeah..Surely everything is computerised and automated now , and they would have all the information at their fingertips, its just that they do not want to tell it.. etc ..etc..
But the talk had certainly damepened my spirits..
I started feeling like the grey sky outside..


I went in.. it was 1045 am ..people were still drifting in.. chatting lazily.. no sense of urgency here...I went to the enquiry section, where a person took down the PF account number I gave, wrote it on a form and re-directed me to the 3rd floor.. 13th group.. I climbed up...someone pointed me to the right section...which comprises of shelves and shelves of dusty old files..4 females sitting idly, their tables empty and clean..work completed ? or not even started ?? and...no computer in sight ! I could not believe it..though my pragmatic self mumbled that maybe I was expecting too much..and ofcourse when they say 'India Shining' they dont even know what it means ..
So here I am ..among a group of ladies...ordering for kaande-poha and chai...gossiping about yesterdays rains..and whose house was filled up...and how heart wrenching it was to hear about all this...
I intruded with my pithy little request...trying to gauge the most active and authorative among the group...who could help me.. she reluctantly rose from her place...checked a few files and said that there is no such entry... so...what does it means ? that the entry is missing..or the transfer never took place...the matter is discussed and I am informed to leave the acct number and that inquiry will be done.. 'we will need to check other records' .. how long will it take ? can I call at some number ? when can I expect an answer...no one meets my eyes...suddenly all talks go through me.. not sure..some number and name..no idea..need to check..blah blah..boom...I disappear.. Im not there anymore..in the eyes of those ladies..
and they resume their work-day .


And I indulged in some retail-therapy to forget the depressing experience...

Golden words ...

Due to the flood situation in Pune and adjoining areas it has been decided that
the offices will shut down at 2PM this afternoon. It is strongly recommended
that all associates leave for their residences immediately.

GOOD BOOKS/GOOD CAUSE BLOG-A-THON

Check the idea out at http://contemporarylit.about.com/b/a/186033.htm
Check out the video link http://www.vidlit.com/mj/
Im not sure about my support for the book type..but its definitely ON for the G o o d C a u s e Folks !