The Pause !

Cycle Ride to Singhgad !

2012-01-09T15:30:00.002+05:30

After lot of discussions and planning, finally one fine day we 20 people decided to head for bicycle riding to infamous Singhgad fort. All of us did not had cycles of their own, but still enthusiasm made them arrange the bikes by hooks & crooks way! On the final day, only 7 of 20 actually made it. I joined my friend Yogesh (who came through long way from Balewadi) at Chandani Chowk.
It was 5:30am in the morning, still dark and calm night. Chilling wind was hitting my hands & face to make me go back and sleep in my heavy blanket. But nothing worked ! I paddled my feet on the cycle and headed for the Mumbai-Pune highway. Fast truck going by side were shaking us with our cycles. In between stopping cars used to fear both of us thinking they gonna loot us now :P I was paddling faster than Yogesh but still it was make me tired.
Then suddenly I realized my rare wheel had just little air pressure remaining. I tried to look around, walked with cycle some miles but at such a dawn no cycle shop was opened. Expecting that was also foolish. But still Yogesh kept me boosting - "just some more miles and we will find a shop". At last we reached at Singhgad flyover and 3 more joined us. We had some tea break at that spot and headed back towards our destination. Thankfully, I found a cycle shop on the way as it was 7am in the morning, the shops started opening. Hush, now my cycle was running like hell :)
The morning dew and inspiring sunrise made us strong enough to strike out all the obstacles in our way. While crossing the way at Khadakwasala dam aside, we experienced the nature at its best. Green farms, blue lake, orange sunshine rays and white cranes were adding colors to joy of cycling. Those were the moments when we realized life is just about living these moments which make you feel alive. Life is all about adding such things to your timeline. We laughed, we shared our life, we ate together, we made new friends. And that's all I earned in my cycling tour to Singhgad !

Winning on air Radio One 94.3 !

2011-12-19T11:34:00.001+05:30

Yeah! Today being one of the lucky one on Radio One 94.3 just thought can share this one with all of my reader :) Just out of curiosity, I thought to reply on a contest being held on RadioOne. This is one good thing I like about the FM channels these days. They really make people happy by giving them freebies. I know only those who have won on the air can really feel that happiness :) Being 2nd time winner on air, I can tell its worth giving a shot to these contests once. Who knows someday might be lucky for you too !

But this time all credit goes to my wife. She told me the answer to the question :) I being a underdog in Bollywood knowledge. So I will obviously share this one with her! For all those interested peps here is the audio clip I could record on my car radio. Thanks to RadioOne they aired my part after 10-15 mins it was recorded :)

If you get "Your browser does not support the audio element." please click on the link Audio Clip to listen.

Install Google Currents outside US !!

2011-12-14T19:02:00.000+05:30

Google Currents is a brand new way to get the Latest news and buzz around the web. It was rumored to be a Flipboard killer, and sure looks like a good one. The Google Currents supports more than 150 publishing partners to offer full-length articles from more than 180 editions including CNET, AllThingsD, Forbes, Saveur, PBS, Huffington Post, Fast Company and more. Content is optimized for smartphones and tablets, allowing you to intuitively navigate between words, pictures and video on large and small screens alike, even if you’re offline.
Google Currents fetches content from top blogs around the world and displays them intuitively. By default, Google doesn’t allow Google Current app to be downloaded outside US, but the hack is simple, download the apk attached and you are all set to go.

APK Download - http://goo.gl/pQuEG

30 most satisfying pleasures life has to offer !

2011-12-09T16:12:00.001+05:30

Found an old forward about this. While reading, I just realized why don't we try to see these pleasures at least once ! Its such a lovely life and has so many things to offer... after all our mind happiness only matters. They say the best things in life are free. Beyond a shadow of a doubt, the list below proves that statement to be true. Life is filled with simple pleasures, the little satisfying effects you never really anticipate, but always take great pleasure in. They are the gifts of life that we each subconsciously celebrate in our own unique way.

Here are 30 of the most satisfying simple pleasure life has to offer:

Sleeping In on a Rainy Day – As the rain beats lightly against the window, you nestle your head deeper into your pillow. The sound is soothing and your bed feels like a sanctuary. There is no place you would rather be.
Finding Money You Didn’t Know You Had – You reach into your pocket and find a Rs. 20 bill from the last time you wore these jeans. You aren’t rich, but you are richer than you were a second earlier.
Making Brief Eye Contact with Someone of the Opposite Sex – You pass her on the street or in the subway. She glances up at you momentarily, making direct eye contact in a way that seems to communicate a subtle curiosity. For a split second it makes you think… and then it’s gone.
Skinny Dipping – There is something mysteriously liberating about being naked in a body of water. You are naked, but it feels natural, a sense of unrefined freedom.
Receiving a Real Letter or Package via Snail Mail – E-mail has become the primary source of written communication. Most snail mail these days is junk mail. When you check the mail and find a real letter or package from someone you know, excitement overtakes you as you tear into this rare gift.
Making the Yellow Light - It’s one of the most common simple pleasures, the act of beating the pack. As you blaze through the yellow light you glance in your rearview to see all the cars behind you stopping at the red light. Yes! You made it!
Telling a Funny or Interesting, True Story - One of the most enticing roles you lead in life is that of the storyteller. You love to share stories, especially those that will captivate your audience with deep curiosity and humor. There are few things more satisfying than telling a true story that others enjoy listening to.
Seeing a Friend Stumble Over Himself – As you walk across the street with your friend, he fails to accurately address the curb on the other side. He trips and stumbles around momentarily before regaining his footing, then swiftly attempts to play it off like nothing happened. This can be a hilarious sight if the moment is right.
Hearing the Right Song at the Right Moment - It doesn’t matter what the setting is, hearing the right song for that moment is one of those simple pleasures in life that instantly lifts your spirits. You could be driving home from work, hanging out at a bar with friends, or jogging. When the right song rattles your ear drums the entire meaning of life seems crystal clear.
The First Sip of a Beverage When You’re Thirsty – You just finished mowing the lawn or taking a long jog. The only thing on your mind is an ice-cold glass of water. When you are really, really thirsty, that first sip of any liquid beverage is sheer bliss.
Catching a Glimpse of Bare Skin on the Opposite Sex – For guys, it’s when the waitress bends over a little too far. For girls it’s seeing that buff guy in a Speedo. Either way, when you see a bit more skin than you were expecting on the opposite sex, you can’t help but to smirk on the inside.
Saying the Same Thing Simultaneously – There is a moment of silence. Then all of the sudden you and your friend blurt out the same exact set of words simultaneously. This rare occurrence is something to smile about.
The Pull-Through Parking Spot – You pull into a parking spot and are delighted to see the availability of the parking spot immediately in front of you. You pull through to the spot in front so that when you return to the car you can drive forward out of the parking spot. Why? Because driving backwards is a pain in the butt.
Realizing You Have More Time to Sleep – Something abruptly awakens you and you think it’s time to get up. Then you squint over at your alarm clock and realize you still have 2 more hours to sleep. A warm euphoric feeling shoots though your body as you glide gracefully back to your dreams.
People Watching – Sitting there on your bench you can see people in every direction. Tall people, small people, thin and plump. Blond, brunette, and redhead alike. Each of them has a different stride and a unique expression. As you drift from body to body you are mesmerized by what you see.
Putting On Clothes Straight from the Dryer – As soon as the dryer buzzes, you pull out your clothes and put them on. They feel soothingly warm on your skin and emit a fresh-scented aroma into the air. A sentiment of ease comes over you as you head out to conquer the day.
A Familiar Smell – You just pulled into your parent’s driveway and opened the car door. You haven’t been home in a long while. You smell familiarity in the air, the scent of a large pine tree in the neighbor’s yard. As you head through the front door, more familiar smells consume your senses. Gosh, it feels good to be home…
The Feeling You Get When Your Idea Works – You have been struggling to resolve a complex problem all day and you just can’t seem to get it right. Filled with frustration, you decide to exercise one last idea before calling it a night. You’ve had many ideas before that failed miserably… but this time it works.
Fresh, Clean Bed Sheets – You yank at the corner of the bedspread to create just enough space to slide your body under the freshly cleaned sheets. The sheets feel cool to the touch. Everything seems so clean, like nobody has ever slept in this bed before.
A Beautiful View – As the car veers around the side of the mountain you gaze out the passenger window. It’s a clear, sunny day and you can see the entire valley below filled with wild flowers and bright green vegetation. The scenery reminds you of something you once saw in National Geographic. But here it is live, right before your eyes.
Reminiscing About Old Times with Your Closest Friends – Pink Floyd once said “the memories of a man in his old age are the deeds of a man in his prime”. There is no simple pleasure more satisfying than recounting the greatest moments of your life with your closest friends who lived these moments alongside you.
Receiving an Unexpected Compliment – It’s been an average day. Nothing really great has happened, but nothing terrible occurred either. This monotonous day has put you in a dreary mood. Unexpectedly, an older, attractive lady taps you on the shoulder, calls you “handsome” and says she loves your shirt. The day just got a whole lot better.
Having a Good Laugh – Laughter is the greatest cure of all. Life is extraordinary in the moments when you are laughing so hard you can barely breathe. These moments of deep laughter are divine in the sense that they cleanse your mood and set your mind on a positive track.
The Feeling After a Healthy Workout - It’s a giddy feeling of self accomplishment; the one true activity that actually makes you feel better and look better simultaneously. When you walk out the front door of the gym you are on top of the world.
The Celebration in the Instant Something Makes Sense – Even now that it has explained to you for the third time, you just don’t understand how it works. Everyone else seems to understand but you. Then out of the blue the dots connect in your mind. You finally get it, and it feels great!
Relaxing Outdoors on a Sunny Day – As you relax sprawled out in a lawn chair, the sun warms your skin and a light breeze keeps the temperature comfortable. Birds are chirping merrily in the trees behind you. You are at complete peace with the environment.
Holding Hands with Someone You Love – Every time she grabs your hand you are overcome with an awareness of how much she means to you. Holding hands is sensual and physically intimate, yet subtle. There are few people you allow to hold your hand, so when it happens you can be sure that the moment is special.
Playing in the Water – Water marvels people of all ages. From jumping in puddles as a child, to doing cannon balls in the pool as an adolescent, to enjoying a cocktail in the Jacuzzi as an adult… water is enjoyable.
Making Someone Smile – You notice that your colleague has been under a great deal of stress with meeting a deadline, so you take it upon yourself to complete one of her indirect responsibilities for her. As soon as she realizes what you did, she comes into your office with a big smile on her face. “Thank you”, she says. You just hit two birds with one stone, because making her smile just made your day.
Finishing What You Started – You just finished up a big project you’ve been working on for the last few months, or maybe you just finished your first marathon… Either way, you finalized what you set out to accomplish. The feeling of self accomplishment you get when you finish what you started is by far one of the most rewarding simple pleasures life has to offer.

Upgrading to Nikon D7000

2011-11-22T16:21:00.001+05:30

After a long await I finally decided to take a big step in switching from my entry level Canon DSLR (Rebel XS) to Mid-Pro level New Nikon D7000. Decision was quiet tough to chose between Canon & Nikon but finally snapsort.com helped me to change over my mind.

The new Nikon D7000 is filled with lots of new features like full time video autofocus, dual card storage (interesting) and 39 focus points which I really liked the most. Having much more dynamic range (13.9 EV) and great color depth (23.5bits) the Nikon D7000 gives you one of the best image quality in its range of DSLRs. The D7000's Live View is certainly quite functional as a basic means of framing for stills and video shooting, as long as you understand its limitations. Giving a "true" HD (1920x1080p @ 24fps) video on a new 16.2MP CMOS sensor with full-time AF and more customization options, some of which are inherited from Nikon's professional DSLRs. Arguably the best high ISO performance of any current APS-C DSLR"
Although ergonomically, the D7000 is a very close match for the D90, its overall 'feel' is considerably more serious, thanks to a magnesium alloy body shell and slightly thicker rubber coating on the hand grip and rear of the camera.

Bottom line: the D7000 is an excellent consumer camera. Nikon has upped the ante with the D7000 and produced a real winner. It's very hard not to like the camera. I hope I could too get some nice shots with my new DSLR.
"The Nikon D7000 is an excellent enthusiast's DSLR... Ultimately, the D7000's specification is hard to argue with." - dpreview.com | talking about the camera's overall-performance

Dandeli - A Place to Rejuvenate !

2011-10-20T16:12:00.000+05:30

After lot of discussions and online research over places to visit, we finally agreed on the place called Dandeli - A place far from city life, crowded traffic, pollution. It resided in the heart of the nature. Its exactly what we all wanted. This was a family trip and we all wanted to have something that will keep us together all the time.

Dandeli is a place in Karnataka, in Western Ghats near Goa. Being extreme north end of Karnataka, it is just on the border of Maharashtra. I booked train tickets from Pune to Londa (nearby Railway station). The train journey was over night and before we knew the station arrived next morning. The resort had already sent a big Sumo kind of car for us. It was pleasant morning, with some fog and clean weather. Unlike Pune railway station, the station at Londa was really clean and tidy in-spite of being very rural. Being very small village, the road were not that good but it was fun riding on the muddy roads with full speed :)

Traveling through beautiful wooded trails and appreciating the rich diversity of plant and animal life as the colors, scents and textures of this extraordinary landscape was getting unfold before us. On our way, we happened to see many different kinds of birds and one of them was huge Great Pied Hornbill. Our resort is also named Hornbill River Resort :) The resort is located in the serenelush greenery of the unexplored jungles of Dandeli. The River Kali flowing beside is one of the real beauty. We were allocated 3 nice tents almost on the bank of river. We wanted to stay in exotic Tree houses but sadly due to heavy rains they were under construction.

One can really feel the difference when you are woken up with the sweet rhymes of the birds singing and the fresh cool air which gets into your lungs for a pleasant day ahead. A fresh morning where the dew on the grass kiss your feet for a shower making you feel more exotic.The serene beauty of the jungles invite you to explore and embrace the freshness which tempts you for more.

We visited Syntheri Rocks which fell like a microscopic single celled organism in the presence of the 300 foot tall monolith of granite. Kali back water was also a very nice place to visit. We did lot of water activities there including Natural Jacuzzi in rapids, Kayaking, Rafting and swimming. It was all fun to be at one place. We also happened to see different creatures like Green Snake, Leeches, different kind of spiders, and crabs also. We saw few Malabar Giant Squirrel as well.

The forest here is awash with color, a mix of deciduous and evergreen trees including bamboo and teak plantations. The many fruit bearing trees provide food for the almost hundreds of species of birds in the area, and many of the plants are revered for their healing and medicinal properties as well.

Some of the other birds which inhabit the area are the Blue-Throated Barbet, Peregrine falcon and the curious-looking Malabar Pied Hornbill. This bird is quite large and has a yellow beak with a hard, helmet-like bump on top, called a ‘casque’. There were lots of Bald Eagles and I could catch them somehow in my cam :)

Three days were not that enough for all of us. But at last it has to end. Camp fires, nature walks, night trekking, bird watching and with lots of other small activities we were ready to leave the place full of memories. It not only gave us rejuvenating experience but also made us little closer to nature.

A few more clicks from my cam -

Resume Blogging

2011-10-19T15:32:00.000+05:30

After so much wait, I am finally resuming my blogging again. Lots of things happened since my last blog post and yes lots of things did changed too. I had a wonderful trip to USA for almost 3 months from mid Jan till mid April. My company is again on the verge to change (Yes i mean getting acquired again) and this time its Google !! I know its really a game changing for all of us but still nothing confirmed. Just keep waiting & watching what happens next.
I was quiet busy in other things as well and now when the time seems paused again, I thought to start sharing my thoughts with all of my readers as my blog title says :)

Have a Happy Reading !!

Ek "Guzaarish" !! - not to watch it

2010-12-03T12:28:00.001+05:30

Last night was one of the most depressing night for me ! And yes, it was because I saw the most depressing movie of the year - the "Guzaarish".

Ironically this wonderful work of art and acting from Hritik & Ash, magical in its portrayal of an unstoppable spirit’s quest to juice life to its fullest, is about dying. "Guzaarish" is painful, sadistic, un-digestible way of story telling about how one can try to die to stop his pains. If you are fascinated with magic, a great love story, something extra ordinary scenes thinking all this will be there in the movie... then this is not the one. This movie is not strictly for you :)

To start criticizing the movie..oohh no I m not against the movie, I am just against the story in the movie. First of all too hard to digest and secondly too slow for our patience. Movie start with the scene in which paralyzed Ethan (Hritik) wakes up (actually just opens his eyes) and Sofia (Ash) does his nursing all the way starting from brushing his teeth till bathing him and feeding him soup and you won't believe the story ends with the same thing ! The movie is all about how Ethan wants to die being tired of his pains and helpless paralyzed life, how he became paralyzed, how he fought with the Indian Law to let him die legally. Hmm.. quiet depressing haan? But this is not enough, if you are emotionally weak almost 50% of movie time you will have your eyes full of tears looking at the scenes like when Ethan's mom cries out to Judge about how much in pain Ethan is in, when Sofia tells about how much she want Ethan to live, when Ethan's mom dies and he sings a song (English??) and when Ethan first time gets out of his house after 14 years (isn't that too long?) for his own Euthanasia case in court.

When I entered the theater I had lots of expectations from the movie to get to see some great magics, some great love story but I was very much disappointed. All the movie same story keeps on repeating. And even Ethan fails in everything except to get his love Sofia at the end of the movie. He neither lives, nor does he wins his "euthanasia" case in the court. But but but.. I am totally impressed with the work these both great actors put in their role to make it real true. Amazing acting by Hritik (Ethan) about his paralysis. No moment you will ever feel he is faking it. His dance performance in one of the magic trick is also mind blowing. I also liked the role Ash played as Sofia. Very genuine, very intense feelings and completely true to the role. If you just want to see Hritik and Ash acting this is the movie you should watch. Other actors like Aditya Roy, Monikangana Dutta, Suhel Seth also did justice to their roles. But at last you need some entertainment from the movie which you might not get.

Soafter reading all this I just have one "Guzaarish" !! to all of you... not to watch it.

Inception...

2010-07-24T02:10:00.025+05:30

PS: This is not the story of movie. So don't worry those who have not seen the movie can still read it and watch the movie with all excitement :) Please read every single line carefully and concentrate whatever you are reading. Thank you for your patience !

I never dreamt of anything like this before. But somehow my sub consious mind is forcing me to make an idea out of my Inception... The Inception done by the 2 hours of mind blowing drama. You feel like being in the imaginary world. And yes, those two hours are in reality, but the extraction of all those can take may be 10 hours or may be a day or even a week... When you start thinking over what you see, your mind never stop. It starts its journey arbitarily and you can never find out from where you actually landed in thinking about it. Sometimes in sleep or even sometimes while awake, every man sees a dream. I bet you must be thinking of something right now. And then you can't get out of it unless you actully wants to. But the force of sub-concious mind sometimes bind your concious mind to forecfully think about what he wants. Your dream can be real or it may not be. But that is decided by you only being in the reality and not in the imaginary world.

Your every single moment spent becomes a memory for you. And sometimes this memory doesn't leave you even while you are dreaming something which is not real. You can run away from dreams but you can't run away from reality. Your rememberance writes down every detail of your memory onto sub-conscious mind. And when you dream, your sub-concious mind is awake. And thats where your memory stands

in-front of you. You can find out even the minute things about it that your conscious mind can not. One strange thing I noticed about our dreams is, we never die in our dreams. Yes, we can see ourself dieing sometimes, we can see something scary, we see people around us dieing but not ourself. This is where your dream might just got a little bigger. If you die in your own dream, it takes you to a infinite journey of another world, from where coming back is just another nightmare. Unless somebody else wakes you from your dream. Many people have ability to see a dream from a dream. But thats only possible when you are in a deep sleep and your mind is in the most stable condition. You can build your own world in here as this is a dream of your own dream.

Our dream are so powerful that it can even change the way we think, our perception, the way people are to us. Its our own mind who can control our own life. An idea striked to you or an Inception given to you can create your dream. Just like this one. The one which you are reading. Its not something real. Its just a though came to my mind, a dream..on which i m performing an Inception on you ! And just like every other dream, this has an end...

Wrote at 12:30 midnight...In my dream... !

Random Thoughts Abt Photography !

2010-07-20T00:05:00.002+05:30

I never thought I would be writing such kind of things in my life. But they always say, you always get some qualities from your parent, may be today or later, but yes you do. I just want to share some of random thoughts about my hobby - "Photography". Very first thing that I would like to share with you, as you might guess, I am not a professional photographer, not even an inch closer to them. I just like photography. But my father is a very great photographer I will say. Since my childhood, I always seen him with camera most of the time. He never missed a day to make me smile and catch it in his camera. In those 1980's decade also he got himself a full frame Vivitar SLR camera specially ordered from Mumbai. I still have it in my cupboard. Its like one of the most precious things for me. Whenever I see it, I remember my dad talking to me - "Kaustubh, look at me..don't wink your eyes so much..Yes, right..yes.." and then click.

He is not much into photography now days but he wanted me to take it forward. Looking at him, I always used to wonder how the hell this thing (camera) works and then he used to give me his beloved SLR into my hands without a doubt. Used to teach me each and every single thing he knew about it.. Aperture, ISO, Focus, Shutter Time and so on. The list was never ending. His knowledge was much enough to make me take more interest. He always stood behind me to help. I remember when I got my own first camera, Canon DSLR, he was the most happiest person :) I could see a glimpse of satisfaction in his eyes to see his son taking a step in his shoes. Today each time whenever I take a breath before snapping, my dad comes in my mind to back me take a better snap. Today, photography is not just my free time hobby, but it is somewhat more to me...

My Flickr Album

I luv HATE Stories !!

2010-07-10T12:35:00.000+05:30

After a long gap due to marriage and all, finally I went to watch my first after marriage movie :)
You must have got the name of the movie as expected. Not going to criticize about it as I liked the movie so far. So just trying to get out some flaws I find about the movie at the start only. The only thing that i hated is the less expressiveness from both the actors. They just were good at their best !! :) (I hope you got the double meaning)

The movie story line was a bit hatake! (Aaah ! actually not) Though being the similar love story, it started with not being the one. The comedy and humor was up to the mark to make it more chill move rather than boring one. As the title says all, Imran and Sonam initially been only friends and tries to stay away from all this love and all..But before the interval only, Sonam falls in love with him.. Hush! Hope it would have been little later than this. Now you will say, boss this is the same love stories being carried over the years. Yes! this is no different.

To say about the music, hmm.. i find it bit interesting. Vishal & Shekhar have tried to give their 50-50 for the movie. I liked "Bin tere.." and "Jab mila tu..". Very nicely composed. But other two songs are not even upto the mark. Imran CANNOT dance. Yes, he can't. His dance in title song "I hate luv stories!" is really awful.

Aah... I love the ending part. The climax is as usual both gets together. But what happens to Sonam's fiancée?? He gets magically disappeared. Mmmm.. in overall i really really disliked the movie. Sorry for the starting of my blog. Just wanted to keep you reading wondering how come he liked the movie :) Not much about the movie to write anymore.

Anyway... My next movie is going to be "Hapus" Lets c how it turns out to be !

New Avatar !

2010-06-28T15:19:00.000+05:30

Yesterday, I went on a long drive with my wife (yes I got married :D) and my parents on Mulashi (Pune) side. Superb weather and awesome road drive took me into a trance for some time. Made me to think over where I m standing now after 3 months of long gap in my paused state.

Exactly 3 months back, I wrote my last post about my paused state. I was kind of jobless that time. My x-company went through a serious down turn and got shutdown. Gladly it wasn't that bad when we heard that another mobile giant company is going to take over us and buy all our employees. The sigh! of relief just was enough to take me out of the coma as I was going to get married in just few days. Our new company started in the Q4 of march and soon after it took long time actually to get all of us into sync with the company. And yes that gave me lot of time to prepare for me long awaited wedding.

In a month, my wedding events started. And before i could realize what event is happening how its happening, all the ceremony got over just in a go. And I found myself married :) My father had told me the exact same thing in a very nice ironic way. He said, marriage ceremonies are just like travelling in a mumbai local train. You have to enter in a rush (everything happens in rush), taking care of all your belongings (family and friends). Soon after you will find yourself in your destination (married). You wont even notice what all stations (events) passed by. You can't even see the outside scenery and all (can't enjoy your own events). And yes exactly same thing happened with me.

Just after marriage me and my dear wife had gone to Malaysia and Indonesia. There I really had nice vacation time. No mobile, no internet, no computer. I was just resting in a peace for 10 days. But after I came back it was again a little rushy life to setup my new rented flat, meet the relatives, switch back to office duties etc. All this took a month though it seems a small list. Now I am married, new family, new job, new home, new responsibilities ... its just all new Avatar i can say !!

And now I m here again on my favorite thing, to blog about my paused life which is resumed again .. :)

The Pause...

2010-03-18T15:29:00.002+05:30

The time seems to be stopped... Everything around me is looks like hibernated... Today the day in my life came where everything really seems like "The Pause"...

28th June 2006, the day when I started my life with the un-stopped career. Lots of ups & downs, filled with all excitement, new ventures, new horizons every year..New friends, new colleagues. I even got my first chance to find a new world here.. Even there were times when I was afraid to lose when there was lot of down turns going on..

But today.. its just a Pause...For the first time in my life I m feeling like Paused...Making a tag of What I played till now.. And I dont know what I will be playing here after this..

Ajay Atul Live In Concert 2010

2010-01-10T12:07:00.004+05:30

After a long await, I finally got chance to see the most exciting live in concert of the year.. The "अजय-अतुल Live In Concert 2010" ! This might be my first ever live concert I have seen in Pune. Had lot of hopes from this show and I think they have kept it just above the mark :)

I booked online tickets a day before the show with my fiancee & to-be family. As per the description it was mentioned to get the passes at the actual venue only. We left at 4:30pm only from the home, knowing that the seats need to be occupied on first come first server basis. The show was going to start at 6:30pm. Facing the tremendous crowd, trying to find the place for parking, finally got the seats which gave us quiet nice view of the stage. We were just about 100 feet away from the stage :)

The show started at 6:45. Quiet in time :) The host entry was bit depressing thought. अमृता खानविलकर with her too much bubbly voice & over excited performance seemed too fake acting. But to balance her here came the super performer, awesome comedy actor मकरंद अनासपुरे. With his jokes he just made the depressed audience calm and laugh again. Concert started with Lord's prayer and "मल्हार वारी.." one of the most famous songs by अजय-अतुल. After that there was a nice performance by योगिता गोडबोले, the upcoming singer with her प्रभात गीत. Then the concert came in full swing. कुणाल गांजावाला came with his best marathi song - "वाऱ्या वरती घंद पसरला.." followed by वैशाली सावंत's "छम छम करता.." and then bollywood's top singer शंकर महादेवन's sanskrit song "एकदन्ताय वक्रतुंडाय..". स्वप्निल बांदोडकर also came with his dashing entry. He sang "गालावर खळी.." with lovely stage projection of roses. In between songs there was a quiet amazing performances from the movie "नटरंग" - The famous lavani "आता वाजले कि बारा.." and "अप्सरा..". The dance performances were mind blowing especially between the song "आयला, तिच्या मायला.." by Kunal Ganjavala.
शंकर महादेवन also made his impact in marathi cinema industry with his touching song "मायेच्या हळव्या स्पर्शाने खुलते..". Some of the songs like "आईचा घो.." and "ये ग ये.. ये मैना.." made people lift up their feet above the ground.

Though अमृता खानविलकर was quiet boring and was using lot of English words during her hosting which was making audience little angry, मकरंद was handling the other half quiet smoothly wish his School Mental jokes with अतुल. The presence of Honorable राज ठाकरे was only inspiring the viewers with proud Marathi Mayboli songs. The show followed by few more songs like "उधे ग आंबे उधे..", "कोंबडी पळाली..", "मराठी गौरव..". The show was sponsored by Paranjpe & Eifeel Builders. There was a noble cause behind the show to make a huge donation to an orphan school. Few more singers like Zee Marathi Sa Re Ga Ma famous अमृता नातू & आनंत शिंदे made their valuable inputs to make the show a grand success. Finally the end came..and none other than everyone's guessing the ending song was Lord Ganesha's aarati "मोरया मोरया ..". With lord's Ganesha's divine presence in every heart of the audience from the start of the concert till end, the show made a deep impact on every मराठी माणूस came there.

How to install Youtube videos without Any addons

2009-12-30T11:25:00.001+05:30

One of my colleague @Hirshikeshm told me how to save youtube video on Linux without any addon. I tried it at home and hollaa ! It works :) Thanks to him. Just sharing the steps with all of you.

1. Go to the YouTube page of the video you want to download in Firefox
2. Let it load completely (be sure to select HQ/HD if you want best quality)
3. Do NOT close the browser OR the page
4. Open Nautilus and navigate to /tmp
5. Drag the file named "Flash" (followed by letters and numbers) to your desktop and rename it.
6. That's it!!

If you use Google Chrome you will find the .flv's inside your ~./cache/google-chrome/Media Cache folder.
You can play .flv's in VLC or you can now convert the file to a different format using your preferred method.

How to fix the Ubuntu GPG Error

2009-11-24T16:52:00.002+05:30

Since few days I was getting the following error while updating my Karmic (Ubuntu 9.10) -

"W: GPG error: http://archive.canonical.com jaunty Release: The following signatures couldn't be verified because
the public key is not available: NO_PUBKEY 40976EAF437D05B5"

After lot of efforts found following two working ways to fix this issue.
Type this command into the terminal

$ sudo apt-key adv --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com --recv-keys

And then add the hexadecimal numbers to the command (again, these are my keys from my error. Make sure to use your own):

$ sudo apt-key adv --keyserver keyserver.ubuntu.com --recv-keys 40976EAF437D05B5

But again I ran into another problem in Ubuntu where I run apt-get update and receive the following error:

"W: GPG error: http://archive.canonical.com intrepid Release: The following signatures were invalid: BADSIG 40976EAF437D05B5 Ubuntu Archive Automatic Signing Key"

This can be corrected by the following commands:

$ sudo -i
$ apt-get clean
$ cd /var/lib/apt
$ mv lists lists.old
$ mkdir -p lists/partial
$ apt-get clean
$ apt-get update

This fixes any GPG Keys related issues for debian systems. Hope this helps :)

Google Wave first Impression !

2009-10-16T11:05:00.002+05:30

Finally after long time the most awaited google wave invite hit my inbox. Thanks to Salil. During its early stages I had lot of looks at the google wave (i will call it as GWave from now) videos & some previews too. When I had my first look at the real GWave I was like wow.. Now this is called actual web ! Its stand line actually stand to its meaning - real-time communication and collaboration. A truly brand new era of communication !

Having seen the lengthy demonstration, I had to agree with its every new feature to be completely real. GWave offers a very sleek and user friendly way to navigate and also to participate in various communication channels. Then may it be a email, a chat, a mailing list or even a twitter posts. The GWave just makes its as easy as it can be. It makes both email & instant messaging looks very tightly coupled.

My Favorite Features:

The GWave has its own new design consisting of a navigation bar at the left most part of the window, a list of waves in the middle part and the rightmost part for the actual wave. At first it looked like a GMail Inbox except for the faces of friends who are involved in the wave (kewl things to see !) Initially I got very few list of contact in my list. I realized its the list of my google contacts which are already on GWave. The waves shown in the list had an indicator to show how much sub-wave you have visited. Clicking on a wave opens the it in the right most pane showing threaded view of all the sub-waves. Now here if you need to reply, you don't need to hit any new button, open in new tab or something. Just start typing at the end of the message. If your wave sync is enabled the message is straight away visible to the sender (another nice feature) But sometimes it might happen that you are writing something from your mind and soon after you realized "Oopps!" I am not suppose to say that ! :) So, its better to keep wave sync off.

This is just about a simple wave. But the GWave supports far more than that. It supports lot of plugins in the form of apps. Like twitter, Wikipedia, polling, photo sharing, Games, Maps. And whats more, it supports the waving of all these application in a single thread. When i added new twitter application (my first app on GWave), it was never better experience to tweet. Sharing photos and commenting on them right below, playing games simultaneously chatting and discussing the strategies couldn't be better !

When google came in full motion we added a new word in our dictionary - Googling :) After few years a new word came in - Tweeting ! I will say wait for another year you will hear Waving ;)

Few Useful Links -

Of course the GWave itself !

11 Wave Tools You May Not Know Exist (source - Abhijeet)

Google Wave A complete Guide (Too Good Guide !)

e-Waste !!

2009-10-08T14:46:00.004+05:30

Just few days back, I happened to reach Nokia Service Center for repairing my broken E51 :( There I saw a dumping box for your old non-working handset. The box was named with "e-Waste". For a moment I thought ..mmm.. ya ok. But after coming back home, I could not stop thinking about why would some one collect the old handsets (even if we know they are really of no use for new upcoming technology based smart phones). Then I realized the basic aim of this effort is to actually spread awareness among the users regarding the recycling of e-waste.

Environmentalists say the amount of electronic waste has been increasing substantially and currently constitute 50% of all municipal waste as users turn to newer electronic goods. Our leader, socialist are targeting on different pollutions like air, water, noise. But we had never a thought regarding how harmful our electronic devices could be to all of these. The e-waste is bound to skyrocket without anyone's awareness over the years as the lifespan of mobile phones and computers continue to reduce because of the constant need to upgrade.

The used handsets contain many valuable materials which can be recovered and reused in manufacturing new products, everything can be recovered from the old mobile phones and nothing goes to useless. Nokia is making an effort to recycle e-waste to ensure a safe end treatment of used devices as well as make the society grow even greener by planting trees. There are many different activities are going on to save the earth from getting polluted and keep it as much green as possible. Why not we should also join ? I understand that its not easy for all of us to participate in all such activities but at least we can keep ourself from polluting the environment.

Finally, I went back to the Nokia service center again.. Stood in front of the e-waste box holding my broken E51..sadly it was non-repairable :( and with a big sigh i just dropped it in to the box.. !!

Some More Links on E-waste:
रोग चालेल पण औषध नको

Universal Laws !!

2009-09-30T15:47:00.002+05:30

Law of Mechanical Repair: After your hands become coated with grease, your nose will begin to itch or you'll have to pee.

Law of the Workshop: Any tool, when dropped, will roll to the least accessible corner.

Law of Probability: The probability of being watched is directly proportional to the stupidity of your act.

Law of the Telephone: If you dial a wrong number, you never get a busy signal.

Law of the Alibi: If you tell the boss you were late for work because you had a flat tire, the very next morning you will have a flat tire.

Variation Law: If you change lines (or traffic lanes), the one you were in will start to move faster than the one you are in now.

Law of the Bath: When the body is fully immersed in water, the telephone rings.

Law of Close Encounters: The probability of meeting someone you know increases when you are with someone you don't want to be seen with.

Law of the Result: When you try to prove to someone that a machine won't work, it will.

Law of Biomechanics: The severity of the itch is inversely proportional to the reach.

Law of the Theatre: At any event, the people whose seats are furthest from the aisle arrive last.

Law of Coffee: As soon as you sit down to a cup of hot coffee, you boss will ask you to do something which will last until the coffee is cold.

Murphy's Law of Lockers: If there are only two people in a locker room, they will have adjacent lockers.

Law of Rugs and Carpets: The chances of an open-faced jelly sandwich landing face down on a floor covering are directly correlated to the newness and cost of the carpeting.

Law of Location: No matter where you go, there you are.

Law of Logical Argument: Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about.

Brown's Law: If the shoe fits, it's ugly.

Oliver's Law: A closed mouth gathers no feet.

Wilson's Law: As soon as you find a product that you really like, they will stop making it.

Scenic Waterfall At Mulashi

2009-09-14T18:08:00.002+05:30

Scenic Waterfall At Mulashi, originally uploaded by silverroots.

This wonderful place lies in the western part of the Western Ghats mountain ridge. Mula river crosses this region from west to east. It starts from an artificial lake at Mulshi Dam and then leaves the taluka for other parts of Pune. Mulshi is surrounded by Maval Taluka in the north, Velhe in the south, Haveli in the east and Raigarh district in the west.

Mulshi Dam is the major producer of hydroelectricity in Pune. Water from the dam is used to irrigate paddies across the reign. Parts of Taluka Mulshi, especially around the dam, are covered with forest and home to diverse wildlife, including leopards.

One of the my favorite shots I captured during my hiking at Mulashi ..

What A View !!

2009-07-16T17:43:00.002+05:30

A Detroit apartment dweller looks on as a show going F18—first flown 30 years ago — buzzes his front porch. Zoom lens eye trickery makes the plane look closer than it is, but it's incredible nonetheless. I don't know what that person on the balcony is thinking. And no, it's not a photoshop, it's a real, untouched photo by Steve Perez for the Associated Press. The photo was taken at a demonstration flight by the U.S. Navy during the 2009 Chrysler Jeep Superstores APBA Detroit Gold Cup.

Modern Dating !!

2009-07-07T14:33:00.004+05:30

Seoul Mein Hera Pheri... (Part -2)

2009-04-15T20:54:00.001+05:30

First of all thanks a lot to all of you for making "Seoul mein Hera Pheri..." a big success:) Those overwhelmed responses were really awesome. Once again a big thanks to all of you. Continuing to our journey, we happened to get into second scene of the movie. Just try to imagine each dialog live. You will enjoy this one too ;)

Scene 2:

Prologue: Its almost 10pm at night. Baburao, Raju & Shaym in kitchen. Everyone wants other one to make tea. But there was no milk. So one has to go downstairs and get the milk from apartment store.
Baburao: Aaaaee raju jara mast naha dokhe niche jaane ka...aur doodh leke aane ka..
Raju: Meeeein nahi kidhar ja raha abhi.. Aap har baat muzehi kyon bolte ho.. Ye shyam baitha hai na khali..usko bolo na tum..
Baburao: Aaaee Shyam chal tu jara jaldi se ja..aur doodh leke aaj ja..chal nikal jaldi..
Shyam: Babu bhaiyya aap Raju ki har baat sunte ho..Aur har baat mein muze kaam karvate ho..Mein nahi ja raha.. Ye Raju bahot kamina hai..

Raju: sale Shyam.. tuze jaan nahi to maat ja na..muze kyon bich mein ghasit raha hai.. Teri to..

And they both starts fighting. Just in a moment Babu bhaiyya try to come in between.

Baburao: Aee chup salo.. Tum log kabhi sudhoroge nahi. Ruko mein hi jake leke aata hun..

Baburao goes downstairs without Key (which is required for the entrance of Apartment store & also for coming back in the stairs lobby. But its not required till u reach the apartment store ie. only for in-coming it requires a key)
Baburao apni style mein nikal pade. Store ka darwaje tak pohochane ke baad, he realised he dont have key. He returns back. But till the time, the lobby door gets closed. He gets stuck in between two doors.
Baburao: (Loudly from the lobby) Aeee raju... Aeee shyam koi hai.. Aree meri chavi rah gai re... Aeee Shamuuu....Koi to darawja khol dooo...

No one around, no one can hear him. And he keeps on wondering how to get into the lobby for almost half an hour. Luckily, another guest from different flat comes there after some time and opens the lobby door. When he came back to apartment, and told what happened, Raju & Shaym just couldn't stop rolling on floor with laughter.

Seoul Mein Hera Pheri...

2009-04-13T20:32:00.032+05:30

This started with some of the incidences that happened in our life during our stay in Seoul, South Korea. We 3 (Me, Sanny & Manish) came here for our official work. After some days, we found ourselves getting into similar situation of Hera Pheri. Infact our characters also matched with the casts in the movie. Manish as Baburao Apte.. (the best matching), Sanny as Shyam, and me as Raju :) Then we started calling each other with those names only. And also started relating some tragic, some funny, some serious incidences with Hera Pheri scene also. Going to start a series of scenes & story telling blogs of those. Hope you guys will enjoy it ;)

Movie Title: Seoul mein Hera Pheri...
Directory: Kaustubh
Producer: Shyam
Dialogs: Manish

Castings: Manish (Baburao), Sanny (Ghanshyam), Kaustubh (Raju)
Storyline: This is the story of 3 different kind of people coming together for each of their work in Seoul, South Korea. They stay together in a rented apartment. Eating, working, cleaning home, going to work, in everything they are together. The movie is all about their funny & unforgettable moments of their life.
Please click the above image to see neatly

Scene 1:

Prologue: Shaym, Baburao & Raju traveling in a bus. The driver doesn't understand English & all of 3 don't understand Korean. Shyam forgets his T-money card and do not have change 1000wons either.
Shyam: (10000won ki note driver ko dikhate hue) Mein is dabbe mein (Money box for ticket charges which is locked) dal du?
Driver: (Doesn't pay attention to shyam & just nods to whatever Shyam is saying..
Shaym: Drops the 10000won note in drop box thinking driver will give him back 9000won. But driver didn't saw how many he put in the drop box.
Shyam keeps waiting till last stop comes in between asking driver to give him back his money..
Shyam: (at last stop) Give me my money back.. I put 10000won.. U give me 9000won back.
Driver: (Just noods his head in negative reply again)
Shyam: How will I get my money back??? Raju bata ne iss yede ko mere paise wapas kare..
Raju: (Laughs) ha ha ha.. Abe tere paise to gaye.. Kisne kaha tha dalno ko 10000..
Shyam: Babu bhaiyya dheko na..Ye driver mere paise wapas nahi kar raha hai..Aur Raju ko abhi majak such raha hai..
Baburao Driver Se: De de re baba..Iske paise leke tereko kay ko paap lena hai apne sar pe..Chal wapis kar de re baba..
Driver Again nodds his head saying box is locked he cannot do anything...
Shyam: (almost going to cry) Babu bhaiyaa..mein ab kya karu.. :( Yaha koi to hoga jo ise bataye mere paise wapas karne ko..
At last driver gives him a note with his telephone number written and asks him to give a call tomorrow. Shyam returns back with a hope of getting his money back..

Keep checking for scene 2 ;)

Online from South Korea - 2 (Coex Mall)

2009-04-01T13:21:00.001+05:30

After a week of settling at my workplace, I finally got my first weekend to explore the Seoul.. :) We all went to Coex Mall where our first attraction was the biggest aquarium in Korea. Yes, some of us were kind of bored there, but I really enjoyed those amazing creatures.

The long underground tunnel, man made jungle in between, different types of small aquarium which you can just imagine and thousand of aqua species.. There have made aquariums in a fridge, microwave, washing machine, bed, wall ceiling, glasses, musical instruments and many more. Also there is a big auditorium kind of hall where you can just seat and keep watching the giant sharks, dolphins, tortoise all of them moving around you. There are escalators also which allows you to just stand and it travel through the tunnel. In between the different zones they used to have small seating, cold drink machine, and some other fun stuff like water wheels, traditional Korean house architecture, etc. In overall it took almost 2 hrs for us to exit from that bigggg aquarium. Might take more as we were covering up in a bit hurry :) Will not say a must see for everyone but yes if you are animal freak or nature lover its a must see. After the aquarium we had burger at MacDonlad in the Coex Mall itself. And one of us (guess who?) happened to eat a Ham burger in the name of cheese burger =)). He really couldn't control to drink a full can of Coke in a go when he came to know about that.. :P
Anyway will be cutting short my blog to end up here but you can check out the above links for some more detailed info. Keep reading for my next article on Seoul Tower .. ;)