Process and the problems... Take Home #375

Not having a process is not the problem. Having no interest in setting up one certainly is. On the contrary, having one is alright. But taking no interest in looking at it to correct the pitfalls is again as equally problematic as not having the process at all. 

Value such people... Take Home #374

People who know you for your success might or might not be there for you when you lose. However, the interesting truth of life is that there are certain people who are at all the times there with you and for you. Cherish and value them more than anyone. 

The pleasingly surprising winning streak of Team India!

I never thought I will write about one of the most surprising yet very pleasing winning streak of Team India in the world cup 2015 down under. Even when they won the world cup in 2011 on home soil, they still lost matches. However, this time round, they made sure being their best. World cup down under is special as far as the sub-continental players are concerned. Its not just about cricket strategies against opponent players, its also about reading the pitch, getting adjusted to the conditions, preparing oneself to face the pace. Its a great challenge for the captains and coaches especially, to make sure their players are up to the mark in terms of their psychological preparation. I'm truly happy that Team India could win all six league matches in a row. They are through to the quarter finals and are up against another team from the sub-continent, Bangladesh, who as well performed unexpectedly very well. 

If Pakistan can make it today against Ireland, then all four teams from the sub-continent will  be in the last eight. That's a great achievement for all the players from the Indian subcontinent. Best wishes to Pakistani team for whom the win against Ireland is a serious due to Bob Wolmer, their former coach. 

Along with it being six on six for India, its sixty on sixty for the bowling department, which is unbelievable still. But these guys, as a team, have proven that anything is possible provided you have the conviction and discipline. Whomsoever they had been up against, they were disciplined enough to support executing the team strategies. No star players are around but they have proven that they are not required always. Batting department is as always one of the India's strongest points. From the top to the middle order, everyone have done tremendously well so far.  I think that's a good confidence gain before the knockouts. If at all there is any disappointment, that's surely Ravindra Jadeja's performance. Its true that he has not yet delivered his best, I just hope he comes to the form too, which is the state of mind as per Dhoni and is indeed required before the face-offs.   

I wish Team India all the best to perform to their best capabilities. Defending the title is the aim which has been done so profoundly by them so far. It will be interesting to watch if India will be the same against the opponents in the knock-outs. Join me in wishing them all the possible strength. 

Losing the game in mind is the worst thing to be experienced by any player!

Losing the battle in mind is the worst thing to be experienced by a player or a team on field. This is what I've just witnessed Saina Nehwal suffering from in her All England Badminton Super Series finals playing against the Spaniard Carolina Marin. On the other hand, Marin  found the inspiration from within on the account of couple of points she won in row towards the closure of the first game of the match. Although she lost the first game, the way she fought back to gain thirteen championship points had been amazing. In that winning stint of her, more role was, I belief, of Saina rather than of Marin alone. It was Saina who lost the battle in her mind towards the middle of the decider game and eventually went on to lose the match and the championship. 

The body language of Saina Nehwal during the match while she was trailing Marin was evident enough that the psychological preparation she had undergone was just not sufficient. More than  the technique and physique, its the psychological aspects  that play considerably major role in the crucial matches, especially in the finals rounds of any major tournament. of course the former duo matter but not to an extent that the win is so big as that of Marin's today. The huge difference in the points in the final set was surprising and I strongly believe that it was Saina who was succumbed to her own nervousness. 

The zeal to fight is neither an over night's exercise nor an year's practice. Its the attitude basically, which must be built into a player's thought process during the early years of practice. If only the technical aspects are observed and the psychological aspects are overlooked, its never easy to overcome the high pressure games although the opponent is equally talented. This is my observation not just from badminton but from every sport I watch. There is a huge set back what especially I have seen the Indian players suffer from and that's the lacking of metal toughness as an individual and as a team. Coaches shall come up with the methodologies. I'm not proficient enough to  suggest, obviously. However, I believe that there is a way out! 

There are players who have proved that mental toughness and strong mindedness are possible and that's very much human. They are those who play as if they have no nerves, as if they cannot be defeated, as if they can win the matches from no where and they did that on many occasions. They are to some extent, gifted players but to a greater extent, their upbringing, the experiences in early years, and the coaching standards must have had their longing impact. They mostly appear fearless! 

Let's take a case. Out of all the renowned cricketers we have in our country, Dhoni is said to be the only one with such a calmness and mental toughness. From all those crores of Indians, and among all those hundreds of cricketers this country has produced, Dhoni is only the one who said to be the cool-captain! Its not just said, its always seen too. Not every captain can come up the order in the world cup final on home soil and play a winning knock under huge pressure! It's Dhoni's style! Yes it is. That's his attitude and that would not have come with training but must have been because of the way his brought up had been. For him, as I understand it, sport is not about winning and losing. Its just about playing. Its just about going into the middle and giving the best possible. For him, Captaincy is not about the high pressure responsibility, but its just about any other responsibility in life, may be like a son's. Being responsible is important, weather its as India's captain or as a son or friend, you have to be responsible. All these must be equal with may be a slight differentiation. Talking as a winning captain and as a losing captain means just a talk and not the result. Life is ahead, in life everything is possible, every defeat and win are possible. This is one! It might be that way, as I understand it. Or may be he feels the pressure too, but the way he portrays himself, none of us would believe even if he himself says that he feels tensed, he feels pressurized. Of course, he is a human being and he has every emotion too. Its just that way he looks at life and builds the attitude that decides his gesture and perspectives. 

This must be possible for every person provided the necessary care is taken and the necessary circumstances come in everyone's way. Definitely, circumstances cannot be created the same way in everyone's life, however, few methods could be followed which I believe are available in the kitty of psychiatrists. This is like a thesis which must be thoroughly understood and implemented with utmost discipline. Coaches are primarily the ones who can do all this to any player especially at his early ages. Parents have to play a bigger role too in shaping up their kids' attitude. Everyone around must put enough thoughts and efforts. This all looks ideal. In some cases all this may just happen like that. But that's not out of consciousness. Just imagine, if this can be worked out in a strategic way that making a player who is psychologically incredible, it will be yet another achievement of mankind. It is possible and I do believe so.  

Btw, Congratulations Carolina Marin for that wonderful display of courage, deceptiveness and a great zeal. 

Women and the work life balance- Its not easy; however, its important!

To all the ladies out there, I wish a very happy women's day! Being a woman is itself a celebration. This is the day to celebrate the celebration. 

The more you be a woman,

The more you realize the importance.

The more you realize,

The more you love being a woman.

Having been a woman myself and having been observed many a women daily, the above lines are out of my own experience. The more you be a woman, the more you love being a woman! 

I was never a feminist. Of course, I'm not either. I strongly believe that being human and believing in humanism is more important than believing in any other 'ism'! In my experience, I'm a woman and I do what according to me that I should do. I also do certain things which need to be done by a woman as per the cultural rules of the nation I've been born and brought up in, that's India. I'm enough thoughtful to understand the biological truths about being a woman and I'm not worried at all about them.  I be the woman I'm supposed to be. And I'm happy about it, ecstatic too at most of the times. 

The very basic fact that what I can do cannot be done by a man makes me energetic and ruthless in going for it. Be it the personal life or professional life, its the similar way I see things. If you can do something, you better do it. And if only you can do something, you must do it. You must celebrate doing that too. Gone are the days when women stayed at home looking after the household work only. I've full respect for all those who did that. In the culture and the times there lived, they did a fantastic job. However, I'm not sure how much percentage of them would have been conscious about and enjoyed what they had to do. 

The current times have altogether got different challenges for women. Its no more just a home-sitting. Its beyond that. In some cases, its  beyond what their husbands do. Its the woman's choice that makes then what they are and what they do. The moment they choose something, that means that are understandably conscious about what they are doing. The moment the choice turns out into reality, that's an enjoyment. This might or might not be true in all cases, however, considering the present times, this is it. Along with being a woman, its also about her work life. 

The work lives are prevailing so much to an extent that the personal life comes to a halt for the second half of the working week. And the weekend remains to be the only time to spend with family, to spend on herself, to spend for the major household works. May be that's a little too much to be left out for the weekend, which sometimes also gets occupied by work she gets home. Doing the above said jobs on the weekend makes the time run faster than may be Usain Bolt! Going into bed on the Sunday night with a fearful fact coming to the mind that the next day is actually a 'Monday' makes the sleep disturbing too at times. All in all, weekend ends on a moody note although it begins with all excitement. All this happens not because of the virtue of the work-life, but because of the lack of work-life balance. 

What we do on a weekend in half-an-hours time can also be done on a weekday in the same amount of time, if we look at it without any reservations. But just that the time on the weekday is not utilized properly, and also that it is so strongly put into many of ours minds that 'this task is for weekend', we mostly end up waiting for the weekend to do it. If we stick to basics and think about it, the same task can be done on a weekday too, provided it does not have a dependency on nature, like the requirement of sun-light etc. What usually stops us from doing certain tasks, in my observation and experience, is firstly the very conclusion that 'this task is for weekend' and the next is allowing our minds to think about work although we are at home, in the kitchen. 

There are of course some exceptions, like watching a serial! No other thought comes to mind while doing that, not even a phone call from boss can make it! Although we are fully aware that we can catch and watch the serial online later on, we do not just get away with it. It must be watched at its scheduled time and everything else is next except kids, may be! I've still not experienced this hence no idea, but I believe kids, especially when they are in their early ages, manage to win the race with a TV serial. 

Not keeping too many things pending for the weekend is a skill we all shall develop. Clearing as many tasks as possible on a weekday allows the time on weekend for us to spend the time with family and friends. 

Spending some time on ourselves is equally important for any woman to be refreshing and hence confident from within. We must love ourselves before expecting anyone else to love us. And for that, spending time for our interests is a key thing. 

Put off the conclusion 'this task is for weekend' and do not let the work pile up. Complete the household tasks as much as possible on everyday and that makes the weekend a special day and also gives you a chance to make it special for your family. 

Sunday need not be waited for to go for grocery shopping. Friday evening is also a great choice but for that again, we must not pile up tasks for the last moments of the week at office. We must be as regular as possible in everything that we do so that we be regularly tension free. That's just perfect to plan anything on a weekend, majorly because we are away from office work. 

Work-life balance is not easy. However, its important in all respects that we should do our best to achieve it in all smiles and effortlessly. 

Once again, a very happy women's day all ladies. Enjoy your day!

Be Intentional... Take Home #373

Try to be as much intentional as possible while you do anything about something. Be equally intentional when you decide not to do anything about something. Intentions make it easy to stick to our decisions and at the same time they, to a greater extent, avoid tension. 

Think enough to be sure of your intentions. This is very important. 

Woman, thoughts and emotions - That's a winning combination!

Woman,

Is a beautiful bundle,

Of thoughts and emotions.

Beauty is more a synonym for a woman. Beauty is of course about the appearance literally, however, here beauty meant more for the habitual carrying of herself in everything she does. Be it the personal responsibilities or professional, what makes a woman respectful and standout is majorly the contentedness she naturally possesses by nature towards the work she does, things she manages, and the people she handles. It is this very natural affair of a woman that makes her a bit more attractive and hence approachable in many a matters, especially when it comes to work. 

Emotions, unfortunately, are attributed to a negative notion these days. Whereas in reality, emotions are the precious gems every person inherently has. Emotions of women are of course not easily understood every time, but they are the backbone of their success in the field they are in. Their emotional quotient at many a times wins the games for them. It makes them more understanding and understandable , if not always. Thoughts are not to get lost. Definitely not. They are as well the strong assets of every person. And for a woman, thoughts are the pillars of her empire. The richer the thoughts of a woman are is the richness she actually enjoys and shares with everyone around. 

Without emotions and thoughts, work life is not what it is supposed to be. As a woman, I strongly suggest every fellow woman not to get worried when someone tags her that she is emotional. Just remember that the power of emotions is not properly understood by many a men yet. So, do not lose confidence or do not tend to be someone else when at times you need to face comments about your emotions. Well, knowing how to be so is as important as being emotional. Women are criticized for not being able to manage the way they show their emotions rather than for being emotional. Who under sun does not have emotions, by the way? Women must work a lot upon their thoughts and emotions to be an acceptable being around. 

The combination of women, emotions and thoughts is undoubtedly a winning one. Believe in yourself, learn to use your emotions and be rich in your thoughts. The win is never too far. 

Coming up: Women and the work life - Its not easy, however, its important!

Life is precious... Take Home #372

Life is precious than any beliefs and perceptions we may have. Be open, even though  blindly, just be open for a second thought especially when it is about relationships you treasure the most. Doing which might convince you at some point of time to put your best and hence to get back the things to normalcy. 

Life is precious and its always important to live it enough along with our loved ones. 

Movie: BABY - A very typical one on Anti-Terrorist Forces!

A lot movies have been already made on the anti-terrorist forces that work day in and day out in India against the terrorist attacks. BABY as well is such a movie that's inspired from the public servants who put their everything including their lives into their jobs. Knowing the fact that anything going wrong can allow the Indian Government to wash out their hands from what has happened, the employees who do this job must be the soldiers with a deep will and wish to do the jobs that they do. I salute all those people because of whom we all live our so called normal lives. We get to hear about terrorism when these people fail. Every other incident that has been successfully defended by these forces is hardly identified and hailed by us.

Akshay Kumar has done a good job. The best part of the movie is that he did not have to laugh much! Any that's why the movie turned out to be a good one eventually, at least according to me. Anupam Kher's role was funny as well as touchy. Rana Daggubati played his character surprisingly well. Music was not so impressive, however, it was not dumb too! Script was thoughtful. This movie is a one time watch all in all and a good watch too. 

We talk a lot about terrorism when a terrorist attack happens. And then there comes usually another news that covers up the news related to the attack and diverts the concentration and attention of everyone. Well, its not the other news that actually stops us from thinking about the terrorism and its incredible growth during the last two decades. Its actually the way we are and the way we conveniently ignore certain incidents which might have deeply hurt many a people out there. We all simply move on! But that's when the job of the anti-terrorist squad starts. They must be as wide spread as that of the terrorist forces. They must be as investigative as that of the terrorists who build their network across the oceans with utmost ease! The brains needs to be on high note all the time and so as the bodies. Its definitely not easy. To play the roles of such sincere officers, one must be equally sincere with their roles. Otherwise, the audience can easily get disconnected with the plot. Askhay Kumar and his co-stars have done a sincere job in that way. 

Few of the last scenes of the movie in the airport and flight made me recollect the Hollywood movie, Argo. Whereas the plots of these two movies are entirely different, it seems the climax has been picturized with an inspiration from the said Hollywood movie! I might be wrong in my guess too! Well, whatever, the work of the cast and crew of this movie is appreciable. Watch it if you are a great fan of action thrillers. You will appreciate your choice. 

Making a difference... Take Home #371

More than winning, what satisfies is making a difference and hence leaving an impression. 

Meaningful thoughts... Take Home #370

Rather than looking into the literal meaning of everything, its better to spend our time and energy on some meaningful thoughts. Everything is not important; its important to notice this fact. 

The times of need... Take Home #369

Appreciated are those who are problem identifiers and problem solvers. The best products come out when the problem identifiers and solvers are willing to play the roles of each other and together during the times of need. 

The Edge... Take Home #368

The whole of your experience can prove wrong when you do not try to understand and hence adapt  the contemporary ways of looking at a particular person or problem. Keep updating yourself often. Keep having the edge. 

Wrong decision... Take Home #367

When you think that a certain decision taken by someone is wrong, it just means that both of you have different ways of looking at the same situation. Most of the times, if not always, it does not mean that the decision maker is wrong and you are right. 

Third person... Take Home #366

When a third person speaks between two people, to coordinate our whatever, there is always a possibility that the two people get a third perspective into it which can be right or wrong. Hence there is always a possibility of longer negotiations and some times misconceptions. When two people know that there is a third person between them, better they have a final word before taking any decision. Doesn't matter how much confident they are about the third person, as most of the perceptions are right when seen in unison. 

New year and a resolution!

Wish you all a cheerful, healthy and fantastic year ahead. 

#Drizzling Morning

The day has begun with drizzling a little as if the new year has already brought some pleasantness to environment and also to mind. Below is the view in panoramic view (Courtesy - clicked by me with my Moto G). As expected, the day has gone busy with sending wishes and responding to the new year messages from friends and well wishers. 

#New year resolution

It's been quite eventful at work today. I was searching for some long lost papers and thought I should clean the paper files that I'd piled up over all these years, mostly in the earlier four years of my career. I started tearing the extra papers and I never expected when I started the task that I might fill up two dustbins! It was embarrassing while I was doing that but that inherently and eventually made me helpless to make a new year resolution finally, doing which I've not been so used to!  

I've decided that I will not use printer/xerox unless otherwise pretty much required, henceforth. It's not that I used it just like that, of course I did on some occasions, in the earlier days at work I did not have a laptop and hence I had to rely a lot on hard copies while attending meetings etc. Also, being freshly out of college, writing and print outs give a special and unanswerable joy. Hence I used to write a lot and take a lot of print outs! But now, I'm matured enough to understand what's right and what's not required to be done, just for joy. Probably, that no  more gives me joy now! Hence I've promised to myself that I will not print/xerox unless otherwise very much required. I will try my best to live up to this. 

Once again, wish you all a very happy new year!

3 Most Awesome Incidents @2014

Now coming to the awesome experiences pertaining to the incidents of 2014, according to me, there is a competition. But below three are the best chosen. 

#1 - Modi as the PM of India and CBN as the CM of AP

I'd not been a big follower of Indian Politics although Politics interest me. But surprising to me even, I followed the news on the Indian General Election 2014 day in and day out. To add to my interest, the Assembly polls of Andhra Pradesh were conducted along with the General Election. That made the occasion more than deserving to follow. Especially after all the protests and issue with the state division, this election became particularly important for both the states, AP and Telangana. A record polling of around 80 % was observed and all it hoped was for good. Curtailing down all the misconceptions, and proving the exit polls right, the BJP almost clean swiped at the central with record majorities at some constituencies. At state, Chandrababu Naidu (CBN) and his party (TDP) rocked the results. After a long gap of ten years, they have come out as a wining side. All that CBN did for Hyderabad and the IT sector did not go in vain. Another capital city can only be built by CBS was the major driving factor. And of course the unforgivable corruption scandles (alleged) of the opposition party added the extra votes required for a clear majority. After a long day of watching TV, I was in all freshness and positive energy at the end of the day, I still remember. It was one of the awesome feelings. Hope to see both these leaders live up to their promises in the coming year. 

#2 - Mars Orbiter Mission

The MoM's successful launch in the last year itself was one of the highlights that I chose to write about at the end of the year 2013. Now, this calender year has yet again seen an awesome and exciting moments later to the successful reach of the MoM into the Orbit of Mars. The scientists of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) have been hailed across the globe for the successful attempt they made. They truly deserved the applause not just for the efforts but also for the design accuracy that they could achieve which played major role in letting the MoM enter the targeted orbit. Prime Minster statement after the success of MoM, "MoM never disappoints", will be remembered long. Hope to see some of the key members of the project get bestowed with the high civilian honors of India. It's just a beginning. A lot more is yet to be delivered by them in 2015 and in the later years too. A lot more is definitely getting expected from the team ISRO in the upcoming years. They must hire, they must encourage the young India and cash in the enthusiasm. I wish them all the best for all the attempts they make. Space is the only place about which no significant wars have been envisaged. I just hope the peace about the space will continue to prolong. 

#3 - Interstellar, a technical marvel

'Interstellar' is the only film that I watched twice in theaters in this decade. Too good it was for me and it interested me more than ever. The scenes just lingered all around me in my thoughts after I watched the movie. Even after a week or so, I could feel the same awe as that of what I had on the day I watched the movie. I did a lot of reading from internet, probably the highest ever after watching a movie, that I prepared myself very thoroughly, I guess, for watching it again. And the next time, I did not miss out on concentrating on the subtitles. I was very much impressed with the taking, the script, the background score and the technological explanation. For a director or a story/script writer to think that way it was thought for this movie, it was a great risk taken I believe. It could have gone wrong too but the technical adviser did his best in conceptualizing the balckhole, wormhole etc. I was stunned to watch such a marvel. You need imagination, you need dedication, you need brains, you need interest, you need risk-taking and you need all these together to make such movies, that's what I feel. This movie has its own dark sides or say unanswered questions but it was never either said that this movie was going to be exceptional. No movie can be exceptional. After all, it's a movie and entertainment is the main aim. According to me, this movie is yet another Oscar-block buster. I just hope the Academy awards in 2015 will bring smiles on the faces of the case and crew of 'Interstellar'. 

Hope to write even longer post next year end on the topic of awesome experiences! That's all for this year 2014. 

3 Most Awful Incidents @2014

Another year passed. We are in the final hours of 2014, the year that has left a mix of awful and awesome experiences. In this post, I wish to write down about the awful experiences I've had with the things happened around the world. Although I was not personally involved in any of those, they pinched me a lot and will keep doing so every time I recollect them. They are purely my choice. I'm not downgrading anything else that's not mentioned here. Here I go.

#1 - Flight MH370 disappearance

The major question that comes to my mind, every time I think about the disappearance of the Malaysian Airlines' flight MH370, is how come a flight gets disappeared in the ongoing times of the much advanced technology! Human  made machines have landed on moon, have orbited a comet and have set the course to orbit Mars. Yet, a Boeing flight gets disappeared with 239 on board and after almost ten months, we are clueless about its whereabouts. Better to forget for now what would have happened in the cockpit. It might need a lot more time than we all can anticipate to unravel the unfortunate moments happened on that plane's last flight. At least some information, a clue, a sign of its presence on earth could have ended 2014 on much lighter note than now.

With absolutely no information about the plane after it went missing from the radar screens ten months back, it's difficult to believe that we are all aging in the times of the advanced technology! We are not. We are not yet there still. If the disappearance was unscripted, this is the most unfortunate flight accident so far. If, by any chance, the disappearance was scripted by someone, this will remain as the most mysterious man-made flight mishandle so far in the history of aviation. Hope 2015 brings in some news, a positive one being the whereabouts of the wreckage, about this mystery. 

#2 - Death of Philip Hughes

How much a cricket buff I used to be is known to many of my friends. I always enjoyed watching cricket, following the news about cricketers since early age. Cricket always made me happy, despite of few tears here and there. In the wildest of the wild dreams also I never thought something sad about cricket except in the one that I had the night before the death of Philip Hughes. This is for the first time i'm talking about it. It was a day before the night that Hughes was struck with bouncer, in a dream, I read a statement from Google News page saying "Doctors confirm the death of Philip Hughes". The experience in the dream itself was awful. When I woke up the next morning and especially when I heard the news about his death, my feelings turned uncontrollably awful. 

Extremely unfortunate incident it was. It appears even more unfortunate, as it has happened to an young yet talented cricketer. I watched the live telecast of his funeral in all tears. The messages read by his family and friends was the most touching part of it. His smile and the news about his death, both could not be taken away from my mind for longer time. I finally did a post on Facebook with a hope that I will be free from those thoughts and that worked luckily. Philip Hughes will be remembered always for his play and for his untimely death. 

#3 - Peshawar school massacre

16th December has not been good since last two years. Two devastating acts by humans make me think what for the technology advancement to be made when people can turn such cruel at times and in moments they can destroy the fellow people. The Delhi Gang Rape happened on December 16th of 2012 still cannot be forgotten. Another December 16th has seen the Taliban attack on the military school in Peshawar killing 145 people and injuring at least 130 people. School children were the victims of the cruel minds  and their bullets. Unimaginable stint was that, but few people made us realize that it was very much possible! Whether that could have been avoided or not, I'm not sure. But henceforth such incidents shall be avoided under any circumstances. 

The Government of Pakistan has definitely shown some progress in the form of reciprocation. But how efficient all that has been will be understood in the coming year. Hope it gets proved as very efficient. All country meets and hence an united stand is required in handling the cases such as terrorism. It;s not the problem of any single country. It's a common problem. An united voice and acts can only lead all of us towards solutions and not country-ego! Hope to see some strategical and constructive approach towards tackling this matter in the coming year. 

So, that's all for this year. And that's more. Sincerely hoping for a smaller post at the end of 2015. May this year bring on new challenges and that they be handled in a better way. 

Choose battles... Take Home #365

Among the whole lot of battles that we face every day, worthy are only few. Choose them thoughtfully and carefully. Be strategical in getting ready to face them and then go for them in full spirits. Battling is nothing wrong, especially there where you must battle. 

A foggy morning to end 2014!

The below shown picture is evident enough that fog has surrounded all this place in Pune. A day just before the calender turns to 2015, it's the first foggy morning that's probably saying goodbye to the running year. Apart from the fog that's captured in the shot, the location shown has many a memories of mine attached to it. This is the view from the top floor of our office where we usually stand in the early morning sun after breakfast. I've been standing that way since many years now. Many a partners have changed but the freshness that comes to my mind every morning has remained the same, fortunately. 

I miss too many of my friends almost every morning when I stand there. The moments spent with them, the words shared, the gossips lingered, the smiles, the laughs, the debates, are all stored in my memory preciously. Every time I stand here and look at the building captured in the click, I remember all those good moments spent and cherished. 

Meeting and missing

Is what life is all about! 

Memories remain intact. 

So as the moments lived. 

Dhoni retires from test cricket; surprising and unimpressive!

MS Dhoni, famously known as 'Captain Cool', 'MSD' and 'Dhanadhan Dhoni', has retired from the test cricket. He will continue to play the one day cricket and T20s. He was the captain of Indian cricket team this morning and now a former Indian test player and captain of course. How quickly times moves! How surprisingly people decide and declare! All in all, I'm not much impressed with this decision of MSD. I've not been a person who is a fan of his expressions or statements. However, I've always followed the news about him. Being the captain of the Indian cricket team, he has of course driven the team to victories in many tests. He is, as per the stats, the best winning captain so far. But I've my own doubts if he is the best person to captain the Indian side ever. 

In his tenure, he got some players in their best of the forms. Form is a state of mind as Dhoni rightly quoted few days back. Viru, Yuvi, Sachin, Raina and Kohli have been the pillars in many of the famous test victories of Team India. I do not deny the fact that Dhoni has always been a qualitative finisher, probably the best! But in the position that he bats for India, he could not have done more in terms of runs. The attitude of his batting is evident enough almost always to finish on winning note. However, there were number of occasions when he failed to bat along with the tail-end players. There were number of occasions he failed to prove himself as a strong middle order batsmen. Well, not in all matches a player can play well. But looking at the number of matches he has played, and the way he used to drag the innings until the very end of the overs, although he is famous for hitting the sixes including the winning six in the world cup final on the home soil, he could have done much better considering the chances he got to prove as a batsmen. 

As a captain, yes, he has proven himself. Although it was because of the great play of some of his teammates in his tenure, driving the young team to victory in his first T20 world cup and driving the team to many victories at home and hence to the top spot in the test rankings are some of the contributions he has made. Many young players have been lucky enough to get the Indian cap. Equally, many quality players had to leave the team and are still away from the team! Sehwag and Gambhir have been great openers and cannot be seen now at all in any of the tours. Agree or not, there was a cold-war kind sensed among these players and their captain. Eventually or incidentally, Viru and Gambhir were thrown out! Of course they lost their form. But if form is just a state of mind, as Mr Ex- Test Captain quotes, Sehwag and Gambhir should have been given the chance too! A debate on this might never end. So I choose to cut this short. 

Retirement is a player's personal decision. I agree and fully respect Dhoni's views on it. But the timing is appearing to be not correct and hence his decision is unimpressive, to me. He could have waited for some more time! At least until the world cup is played! Anyway there are  no tests planned before world cup, as much as I'm aware of it, except the remaining Sydney test.   This decision could be a savior from much of the criticism for the series defeat down under. But I'm sure he is stronger enough to handle it and he always did. Well, I just hope the decision was taken in as genuine interest of the team as it is appearing to be. Kohli is the next option that BCCI have. But Kohli lags a lot in terms of emotional quotient which is one of the stronger points of MSD. Kohli must adapt his former captain's good sense of humor with media by not being straight forward as he is now. Its a good opportunity for Kohli at this age. He needs to prove himself, now. Because of IPL, Indian team now has many players with captaincy experience including Rohit Sharma. Kohli could as well bag some. I just hope the age group that Kohli belong to does not lead to any 'Gang War' in the team! 

Best wishes to Kohli and co. I think we will get to hear Dhoni's decision about retiring from all forms of cricket from the Down Under, probably after the world cup! It will not surprise me even if he announces his retirement before the world cup. Be ready Kohli! 

Movie: UGLY - Nothing else could have been a better choice for the title!

Movie making is almost like launching a fight against perceptional views of wide number of audience. What you like might not be liked by me. What you think about a particular scene or story line might not be thought in the similar way by me. What you want to watch might or might not be there in the plot. What you expect based on either the director's or hero's last stint might not be fulfilled by his latest pie. No questions asked about the expectations or wishes of the audience. Everyone who watches the movie has the very deserving right to be hopeful of an entertaining or thoughtful one coming their way. This is the very reason why movie making is nothing less than launching the fight as mentioned earlier. Director might be very much clear about the plot and script. But if he forgets the fact that the success of his attempt largely depends upon how the audience will receive it, he will not be able to maintain his self-confidence for a longer time. If success and failure impact him, they do obviously, and if he cannot accept certain facts then he will not be able to be consistent in presenting his thoughts and ideas. Anurag Kashyap might have had his good and bad times with his presentation skills. 'Black Friday' bagged all the best possible ratings. 'Gangs of Wasseypur' was an award winning series, but that did not reach the class audience. And now, Anurag Kashyap is back with his next film 'UGLY'. 

'Ugly' is yet another movie based on true incidents. Living up to its name, the movie depicted the ugly side of the misconceptions and misunderstandings that exists among people even though they are bonded in as stronger relationship as wife and husband or they are two good friends who share almost everything in their daily lives. Heights of police interrogation and investigation is excellently shown in this movie. What happens when a responsible police office himself drives the case in a different direction instead of going for the facts, only based on his experiences with someone whom he eventually accuse, is narrated in a good way. The script and narration should have been more entertaining rather than giving an ugly feeling. How much better it could have been, I cannot comment as I have no idea of what could have been went through by the director and his team. 

There isn't much to say about this movie, frankly. Cast selection did not surprise me, it did not need much better actors and all of the actors have almost justified their selection. Only the narration is the draw back in making this movie reaching the masses. One really needs to be thoughtful enough, and that too after the movie ends, to get the feel of what 'UGLY' really meant! I strongly feel that a voice over could have done well rather than leaving it out to the audience to think over. Conveying the message is important, but I think conveying it in a reachable manner is further important as after making such a full length movie and you leave it on to the audience and you sit back believing that they will get what you wanted them to understand, is according to me not a good ending scripted for such a tiresome effort put in while making the movie. Well, I could understand the message what the director wanted to communicate or I only suppose I understood as I could not be entirely right. Anyway, it was a boring watch on a long weekend, realistic and thoughtful movie to summarize! 

Love at first sight!

I was watching a Telugu movie named "Toli Prema", translates to 'First Love", a couple of days back and once again wondered  about the concept of love at first sight. I've always been a person who has not fully succeeded in understanding the emotions surrounding the 'Love at first sight' frames shown in many a movies in India. Although I do not understand it yet, I do not turn down the truth and the lovely emotions the 'love at first sight' concept might have with it. I will keep thinking of it and hopefully one day I might understand the strength it causes and the motivation it injects into someone who falls for it. Leaving that there, I'd like to share an experience I had yesterday in a shopping mall, which is not much difference from that of what I used to have almost every time I had shopped. But then, only yesterday I realized something. The thought that I had about the 'love at first sight' might have been the reason. 

From the experience that I've from all the years of shopping, I know that if I like something on my first look at it, there have been very few occasions when I do not purchase it. Even yesterday, I went to the shopping mall with as usual aspiration for some good stuff to buy. A hand bag was what I basically wanted to buy. I entered the shop and quickly turned around to the corner where the hand bags were kept. A medium sized bag in purple colour appeared just in front of me. After a few seconds I grabbed it with my hand to see the inner portion of it. But something from within encouraged me to look at the inner space with a wish to become the owner of that bag. Obviously, I liked the inner separations. I then of course turned again towards the bag racks and tried to manage my body language as if I wanted something more. I knew in my deep senses that I had already got what I wanted. It seemed to me as if the sales boy had handled many women earlier and understood my amature emotions that I was only trying to portray in front of him. Then I told myself, "let's go", as I did not want to further enlarge the experience of that sales person with women shoppers. I paid and stepped out of the shop.

The actual subject of this post 'love at first sight' means about the love between people and not with things. But to some extent I strongly believe that be it people or things, the concept of liking someone at the first sight remains the same. The mind knows that it can get further better stuff than what we have just seen, but the heart or whatever, it does not allow us to look for something more. This is probably the only place where we humans do get satisfied with what we have got, for that moment and for a few more moments. This is also probably the only thing that we heart fully own up all ourselves. Amazing all this is by looking at it. Surprising yet lovable to its core. I will keep thinking about the 'love at first sight' to understand it better and better going forward. 

Movie: PK - A theatrical question bank with all logics!

Director: Rajkumar Hirani

Strange enough to me, I entered into the theater without much expectations on "PK". Although there had been many posts from friends on Facebook claiming that Aamir Khan did a fantastic job, I could somehow manage to keep myself away from all sort of expectations on this Aamir Khan's latest Christmas release. Once the movie started and until it ended I did not have time to think about anything else, including the next scene of the movie. The script was so entertaining and equally thought provoking that I barely had time to think about the upcoming scenes! 

'Bhojpuri' troubled me a little, by leaving me understanding the meaning of a few dialogues after few seconds of completion. However, the expressions of Aamir and Anushkha enabled me to follow the flow. Anushkha Sharma's hairdo didn't impress me to be honest. It indeed was successful in justifying the nature of the character she portrayed. Boman Irani did not have much scope though. But the hit combination of '3 idiots' has once again proved a lot rhythmic together.  

The spaceship in the first scene of the movie seriously surprised me. I only hoped for the best, to be very frank. It reminded me of a comment a friend made on his Facebook timeline, that PK had reminded him of "Koi Mil Gaya". I did not pay much attention to that particular comment as I was damn sure that Aamir Khan would never ever touch a script which was kind of a copy of another film of his contemporaries. But the spaceship surprised me for a second. Once Aamir Khan came out of it in normal human form and of course with abnormal human expressions in his eyes, I was a bit relaxed thinking the scene might be a dream of Aamir himself or another character of the movie. But proving me wrong, the film had certainly taken the movie making to its new heights. A sci-fic thought combined with the emotional moments and logical thinking power of a human are the basic pillars of this movie. 

Shushant Singh Rajput's smile did express the love that he had for 'Jaggu' character. Its a guest role but he definitely did what he had to do on the screen. Sanjay Dutt character's length could have been a little more. But that's understandable. Sanjay Dutt is one of the finest actors of the Bollywood. He definitely has maintained his consistency and charisma throughout the length of his role. The director's selection of the artists as the parents of Anushkha Sharma was not impressive. That could have been done better or may be that's negligible before the thoughtful movie that Hirani has once again proudly presented! 

One cannot confront the questions, that have been asked by the Alien character of the movie, in logical terms unless by taking the aid from the 'blind beliefs caused by the so called diverse culture of India'. In all possible terms, the director is correct in claiming all that he has claimed. The 'wrong number' stint was the best idea of its kind that had kept the audience in its grip starting to the end. Particularly, one of the last dialogues of the film still makes me laugh at myself. 'I love chicken', 'I love fish' does not mean that these human actually love chicken and fish, but that they actually like the curry of chicken and fish. This was not an easy dialogue to write. I started heavily laughing in the theater after the first few words of this dialogue by Aamir Khan. I could not control it even after I stepped out of the theater! 

Very well, "PK" is the latest and probably the last super duper hit of 2014. December has once again proved to be great for Aamir Khan and his director friend. Raju Hirani has delivered one of the finest comedies with logical questioning for this year and so far. Well done to the entire cast and crew of "PK". Be ready to attend the award functions and grab a few yourselves!

PS: Awaiting the sequel with Aamir Khan and Ranbir Kapoor!!!

The toughest problem... Take Home #364

The toughest the problem that we handle is the deep and long-term the learning is going to be. Be in full spirits and put forward your best feet. Nevermind the toughness of the problem or the roughness of the road. Strive to resolve the matters. That's the best way!