The Furobiker

Patience pays off

2013-05-20T00:26:00.000+05:30

If you guys read my last blog (link), you would totally understand that the title of this post aptly summarizes this whole post in just three words!

It seems that the creators of the show - How I met your mother - are fans of this blog as well! :D As soon as I wrote a post on abandoning the series, these guys showed who the mother is !! Even if just for a few seconds!

Lets be fair to these guys - they didn't say she is The Mother, but they showed her carrying a yellow umbrella! If you have been following the show since long, you would know - The Yellow Umbrella is the sign!!

Though, for the first time in my life, I am happy about not Facebooking for a week! Some moron handling the social media account of HIMYM posted the pic on show's Facebook page much before non-US people could watch it! Close shave, I must say! I logged in few minutes after watching the episode to see the spoilers spread across my whole time line! Phew! :D

Although, weirdly enough, neither did these guys get any super-famous celebrity, nor did they choose anyone super-pretty! I was expecting either of the two post eight years of hype! By the way, if you follow it closely, this new chick oddly looks a mash between Robin and Lily! Coincidence? I think not!

Now just hope they don't show mother's side of the story in the next eight seasons! Fingers crossed! :D

Chalo fir, I am back to hibernation! :D

Patience

2013-05-05T11:07:00.001+05:30

Patience is a virtue they say, and I also agree with them - whosoever they are who are saying this utter nonsense! By the way, looking at my Facebook feed these days, it seems that Einstein and Mahatma Gandhi said all the quotable quotes that could have been said in whole of the human history!

Let's not digress!

If you ask me to name three most patient people in the world - sorry, I can only name one! I know the other two by face, but never really got to know their names! Yes! That first person is ME! The other two are in the picture below!

Yes, you guessed it right - these two are Ted Mosby's kids from the TV Series - How I Met Your Mother! If you haven't seen the series - don't bother! You better buy a puppy, raise him to be a full grown dog and then finally let him die - these two kids and their stupid dad Ted will still be sitting in the same place, telling the same old story in probably season 2,987 of HIMYM!

Spanning over eight years, I spent countless number of hours watching each episode released till date. For beginners, we are on Season 8 Episode 22 and yet, we have not found a single sign of the mother, being talked 'bout in the title!

I have seen the series go from Legen-wait for it- dary, Legendary to downright plain, and sometimes stupid! The episodes are becoming much predictable, and have started losing relevance to the story. And looking at their Facebook page, I can easily say that it seems they do not intend to introduce the mother, and probably end the story in the next few episodes as well.

You might ask - Why such a long rant?

Well, this is not exactly a rant. This is me, just taking back my words from every discussion, where I defended this series. This is me, apologizing to myself and to everyone - whom I called stupid - for not liking this series.

This is me, deleting all bookmarks relating to this series, and vowing to never ever watch this piece of junk ever again in my life!

What a load of crap this was. Anyways, it was good till it lasted. Hope, 2 million years from now our future generations do not find unsold DVDs of this stupid series even as fossils!

Book Review - Business Sutra: A Very Indian Approach to Management by Devdutt Pattanaik

2013-04-28T22:14:00.003+05:30

So, I may not be a high-fi management graduate from some elite b-school, but I do know a thing or two about management. After spending six yeas in the advisory industry, i am bound to know some stuff you see. Therefore, as soon as I saw the book up for grabs on blogadda (and that too for free!) I requested a review copy for the same! Needless to say, This review is a part of Book Review Programme at BlogAdda.com. Participate now to get free books!

On top of that, without even a hint of modesty, I want to shout on the top of my voice that I scored a 740 on G M A T this week! God knows what will it get me, but well, not too bad I would say!

Coming back to the book - Business Sutra: A Very Indian Approach to Management - the first thing that intrigued me was author's name. I had certainly read that somewhere before! Upon Googling, I re-discovered that he is the guy with the most unusual designation in the world! Chief Belief Officer at the Future Group! I am not sure what his job description looks like, but just searching Chief Belief Officer on google will make you reach this guy!

In his book, Devdutt mentions that beliefs are the root cause for human behavior, and behavior in turn drives day to day business! I guess that's the role of a belief officer - find the correlation between business success, employee behavior and beliefs! That my friends, is business sutra for you!

Devdutt, being well read about Indian mythology, uses a lot of mythological situations and examples in his book to depict situations in day-to-day running of the business. And, I must say - he connects them very well. This book brings about a very fresh and unique perspective, one which I haven't encountered in the past.

The best part about the book is the illustrations and the grey boxes. Specially illustrations, kept my interest alive throughout the long book and they appear on every other page. Also, at times, when the mythology angle to management becomes an overdose, it is easier to flip through the pages while glancing through the grey boxes. I must say, this book has got something for each type of reader! On top of that, author kept the language of the book simple and easier to follow.

Another interesting thing about this book is, you need not follow each and every chapter religiously. You can open up any section/sub-section or even a random page, and start reading - you are bound to find an interesting mythological insight in few minutes!

The book is relatively long and juicy and spans over 430 pages. It took me over a week to complete this one. Every once in a while, it is good to stop and ponder over the connection or the knowledge the author shared. I would love to pick this book up again couple of months later. I am very sure that there are some finer aspects and deeper meanings which will get discovered in further readings!

In short - loved the book! This one is for the keeps!

Free Download - One Year Lived - Adam Shepard

2013-04-19T09:04:00.000+05:30

Hey Guys,

So, other day I got an email from Adam Shepard from www.OneYearLived.com.

Those who don't know Adam - he is the author of Scratch Beginnings.Published couple of years ago, the book got featured in the New York Times, Christian Science Monitor, the New York Post, the Atlantic, on the Today Show, CNN, Fox News, NPR, 20/20, 147 radio programs, and blah, blah, blah. So, you get the drift.. he is a decently famous author.

This time, Adam has come out with a new book, known as One Year Lived. In this book, Adam has chronicled his life between late 2011 and late 2012. During this time, Adam visited seventeen countries on four continents and lived some amazing adventures. “It’s interesting to me,” he says, “that in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Europe, it’s normal for people to pack a bag, buy a plane ticket, and get ‘Out There.’ .

However, we live with this very stiff paradigm—graduate college, work, find a spouse, make babies, work some more, retire—which can be a great existence, but we leave little room to load up a backpack and dip into various cultures, to see places, to really develop our own identity.”

In short, this is the story of an year, when Adam really lived!

Now, the interesting part is - Adam has agreed to provide his new book free of cost to the readers of this beloved blog - The Furobiker. Yes! Free! Free! Free!!! (Though, if you are one of the rich ones, you can purchase the book for 15$ from Amazon - here is the link!)

I have started the book today itself, and hopefully will post the review soon!

So what are you guys waiting for! Download from the link below!

Though there is an interesting concept tested below - pay with a tweet. You get the book free by posting one tweet or one Facebook like! The download button will appear post that!

So much to write ...

2013-04-15T15:30:00.000+05:30

... yet no updates on the blog!!

Seriously, it seems that I have been stuck by a huge bout of writer's block this season.I have had many outstation trips, read several books, watched trillions of stupid movies and yet haven't mocked even a single thing in the past 3 months!

Oh dear God! Log sach hi kehte the, aadmi badal jaata hai ekdum shaadi ke baad! :D

Jokes apart, I honestly think I almost forgot that I had a blog since past few days. Neither did I read any blogs since March. Its just the new age mediums - Facebook and Twitter - that were providing me updates regarding 5,00,000 people who got married in the past 72 hours! And it seems all the children born in India in the past 20 days were to people in my friend's list only! Phew!

By the way, I am sure every single one of you must have heard or seen Apple's ad to dispose off your antique smart phone to get a minimum 7,000 discount on iPhone 4! How can you miss that! Apple made sure that you even see that ad while peeing on the wall of any shady theka in Gurgaon!

Ab sochne wali baat ye hai, ki hamare nukkad ki dukaan wale Recharge Bhayya bhi jab ek phone ke 250Rs se zada nahi denge, to Apple wale dhakkan to hain nahi ki usi phone ke 7,000Rs de rahe hain?? Its just that Apple doesn't want to use the word "Discount" for its elite iPhones, that's why its collecting junk in the name of exchange bonus!

I never liked Apple as a company, simply for the walled garden that they wanted people to play in! However, simple dislike has turned into deep rooted disgust with this recent ad campaign that Apple is running in Delhi. Selling off their 3 year old outdated iPhone after everyone has rejected it in US and Europe for a discount, and that too as if you guys are doing a favor to us - saalon, India ko kachre ka dibba samjha hai kya?

Anyways, coming back to normal life ki baaten - Facebook again changed its face! All the photos and videos seem bigger on my newsfeed now! And upar se kuch left right bhi ho gaya hai sab! Saala, jab tak kuch samajh aane lagta hai, Facebook wapis redesign ho jaata hai!

Anyways, this post is going in some random directions. Isse pehle ki aap sab confuse hoke apne baal noch lo, main chala sone! Hope to be regular on this blog from now on! :D [bade logo ne kaha hai - hope is a good thing, probably one of the best things :D ]

Accha, through some free tools availble on internet, I have made an android app for this blog - Please download it from the google play button below and enjoy! (and let me know if you find any bugs bunnies! :D ) Bhagwan aapka bhala kare!

Google Reader - RIP

2013-03-30T08:05:00.000+05:30

Google calls it spring cleaning, I call it bull-shit!

I still can not believe it, Google is sunsetting one of my favourite products - Google Reader! On any given day, top websites visited by any normal person are Gmail and Facebook (and Google.com as well, if you count home page views); however, the nerd in me spends a much larger chunk of my time on Google Reader every single day!

I used it to keep track of hundreds and hundreds of blogs - which I have been following for over 5 years, tech websites, newspapers, Google product blogs and what not! All gone, in a poof! Are you kidding me Google!

Seriously, tell me Google - Why should I spend time adding any data to any of your service, when one day you can simply shut it down, giving me 2 months to extract my personal data and move to another service! So many categorizations, starred posts, saved links - I guess I better start writing important stuff on my personal diary only! I have zero trust on your products now!

On top of that, Google Reader is also one of the top referrers to my personal blog - TheFurobiker.com! Which means, 90% of my total 5 readers will vanish the day Google Reader breathes its last!

Oh, and even before the pyre of Reader cooled down, Google launched another experimental product - Keep, which is nothing, but a copy of note keeping service - Evernote! Someone aptly mentioned on twitter - Never use a Google service, in which either Google is mining a ton of your data, or is bombarding you with gazillions of ads! Because they are gonna kill it sooner or later! You guys could have given us the option of paying for the service, if all your brilliant nerdy slaves were not able to fina a way to monetize the service!

Gone are the days of Don't be evil!

You are going to be the next Microsoft, Google! Mind my words!

Bhookh lagi hai khaana do!

2013-03-08T01:23:00.001+05:30

*cough cough*

This blog is gathering dust since long, looks like no one visits here anymore. Let me take a jhaadu and clean it up a bit. Oh, by the way, this is Mommy Furobiker typing out this blog. Mera naalayak munda is busy with his married life these days, to maine socha main hi update kar doon is blog ko!

Haan to as I was saying, this post is a part of Healthy & Tasty Recipe Contest with Fortune Rice Bran Health Oil & BlogAdda.com . Ab dekho bhai, baat poore dus hazaar ke prize ki hai, to part lena to banta hai na!

As the name says, the contest is about recepies, to how can I forget our khaandaani recepie book - Khanna Khazaana! Yeah you read it right, its khanna and not khaana, though they sound similar, and are very deeply integrated words! :D Trust me!!

So this recepie is called - as my gawaar son calls it - Mili Julli Sabziyaan or Assorted Vegetables!

Contrary to the popular belief among all the kids - NO! Mixed vegetables are not made by mixing left over vegetables of whole week! There is a real recepie for it! Don't trust me? Read on...

Recepie Name: Mili Julli Sabziyaan or Assorted Vegetables
Complexity: As low as it gets
Preperation Time: Less than one episode of Bade Acche Lagte Hain
Cooking Oil to be Used: Fortune Rice Bran Health Oil (contest sponsor hai bhayya!)

Now, before we start cooking, here is an appetizing pic of what's to come

So, here are the ingridients:

1. 100 grams Beans
2. 100 grams Carrots
3. 100 grams Frozen Peas
4. 2 Potatoes
5. 1 Small Cauliflower
6. 2 Small Onions (cut into Small pieces)
7. 2 Small Bell-Peppers
8. Salt to taste
9. Black Pepper to taste
10. 3 tbsp Cumin Seeds power
11. 3 tbsp Fortune Rice-bran health oil

On a side note, ever made a vegetable rangoli?

Methodology

1. Rinse vegetables and chop them into small pieces separately.

2. Fry chopped beans, cauliflower and potato in three table-spoon of Fortune Rice-bran health oil. Keep stirring on low flame for 5 minutes.

3. Add peas and carrots to the mixture and simmer for another 5 minutes.

4. Finally add onions and bell pepper and cook for 5 to 7 minutes until onions are soft.

5. Add roasted cumin power, salt and black pepper, place a lid and cook for 10-12 minutes.

6. Turn off heat and garnish with fresh coriander leaves and shredded cottage cheese.

7. Serve with hot delicious Paranthas, obviously!

End Result

Chalo then baccho! Be good!

Signing off,
Mommy-biker!

Let the treat follow & Let the words flow

2013-02-23T16:40:00.000+05:30

As you guys are aware, being a super awesome blogger, I am reviewing Tata Cars these days :D (link). Well not just cars, I am also reviewing restaurants, cafes et al as well! This time, I got a chance to review V Spot Cafe + Bar, Gurgaon as a part of Blogadda Product Reviews Program.

Although, Blogadda asked me to review it by 10th Feb, but due to my jam-packed schedule, I could only visit the cafe last week. I hope the blogadda guys don't mind that :P

So, Blogadda gave me the chance to review the place and gave me vouchers worth Rs 2000 to be used. However, the V Spot guys had some confusion among themselves, and allowed me to use only Rs1000 vouchers in one go! Sad start to the visit I must say! But let me be honest with the review, and I will try not to let this incident cloud my judgement on the cafe! :P

Anyway, the first thing that you'll notice about this place is its kick-ass decor. It starts from the stairs leading to the cafe with funky cartoons on the walls all along and continues all the way up and for better. Good concept I must say!

The USP about this place is their tongue-in-cheek humor Its everywhere from the guide to "whether you should dump my boyfriend" to "Should I hit on her" on the table mats; the funky napkins; one-liners as tickers above their large bar; smart-ass quotes on the cushions, everything! There was so much there that you are bound to miss out on a lot in just one visit.

The ambiance of that place is pretty decent, with large spacious hall indoors and a lavish arrangement outdoors on the terrace for large groups. The music was nice- peppy and fast- perfect for cafe. They also had games to keep you entertained like Xbox and foos-ball (yeah the same one as Joey and Chandler had in Friends!). I wonder how Chandler and Joey made foosball seem so easy! :P I struggled with it for half hour just to make a fool of myself! :P Also there was a video booth where you could get yourself recorded. Of course, I didn't try it! Kahi sala koi director mera video dekh ke mujhe movie me na le le :D

The menu didn't let us down either. It had few advises which "actually" helped for losing weight! See the picture below and decide how much these help you! It seems these were written by a khaata-peeta Punjabi. Eventually, we ordered some drinks and snacks. This place keeps you entertained, I must say!

The food was nice but the drinks were up to the mark. I had Dutch Truffle Cake Shake and Naughty Nutty- both of which were a delight. (Also put some more firangi khaane k saman ka naam here..Mujhe nhi yaad aur). One of the items from Today's special really made my day. It was La La Lasagna. Simply superb.

This is not lasagna stupid! Its pasta! I didn't take lasagna's picture! :P

Overall, its a good place to hang out with friends. Considering the ambience, the food, their lavish bar, and their hospitality, I would give them a 4.2 on 5 :D

PS: Review completed with creative inputs from the little sis, who blogs at Me Myself!

Tata Indica Vista D90 : Detailed Review

2013-02-15T11:48:00.000+05:30

I am sure you must have read my last post (in which I declared myself SRK of blogging world!) that I got a Tata Indica Vista D90 for 3 days to review! So, here we are with the detailed review! (previous post link) Blogadda Product Reviews Program

This is going to be a slightly longer than usual post, so this is the right time to get your tub full of popcorn and a large coke! And if anything is left after you are done reading? Please courier that to me - I am broke these days, and need something to eat! :(

Disclaimer: Still developing my SLR skills, so images taken from varied sources.

*** Review Begins ***

Overall, the new Vista D90 is a value for money car. From what I have heard, ex-showroom price (Delhi) is between 6 to 6.9 lakhs. I obviously got top-end model for review, so I am assuming it should be just shy of 7 lakhs (ex-showroom price).

Tata is maintaining the core Indica shape with this car as well, although fine-tuning it with every new upgrade! From the inside, Tata has worked a lot on this machine! The plastic quality is much better than what it used to be, and the fit and finish of the insides is better as well. Although, a lot more work is desired if you compare it with other cars in the market.

The Insides

This car is spacious! Period. I don't think I will be wrong by a mile if I say - this is one of the most spacious hatchbacks in the market! Though upon further inspection I realized that Tata has probably derived all this leg-space by reducing the size of the boot! Vista D90 sports an average 232 Liter boot.

Instrument panel is a refreshing change! After experimenting with a centrally located instrument panel, TATA has moved it back to the normal place - near the steering wheel! The central panel is now occupied with a system display. It shows time, instant mileage, trip mileage and distance-to-empty. Neat! Although unlike my Fluidic Verna, the toggle button between these displays is locted far from hand's reach. I could only tinker with the displays on red lights or when stuck in a jam!

Music System - The model I got had an integrated (TATA branded) touch-based music system. Took me five minutes to understand, post that it worked like a charm! Though there was a button for GPS navigation as well, but it was unresponsive. I guess either some maps need to be purchased or there was some other method to operate it :/ The display is very bright, and distracting at night. Although, Tata has built in a nice sleep feature that shuts off the screen 10 seconds post any activity!

ABC - Accelerator, brake and clutch are placed fairly, though a dead pedal is sorely missed! Also, if you are a big foot like me (shoe size 9), chances are that your left foot will repeatedly collide with steering rod while pressing clutch! And more so, when you are stuck in neck-to-neck traffic on Gurgaon toll!

Seating - The model I got had nicely fitted bucket seating. Comfortable and sturdy!

Air conditioning - The variant had automatic climate control which worked just fine. The AC seemed powerful, although in Mid February in Delhi, I actually can't comment on the AC quality! Though the plastic knobs definitely had a cheap feeling about them. Oh, and there is an Economy button as well, probably to save precious fuel after temperature is maintained. The AC doesn't show any noticeable drag on the power.

Under the hood

Vista D90's 1.3L quadrajet engine is the same one as used by Punto, Manza, Linea and couple of more cars! Although performance of all these cars is much varied due to their weight, built and ofcourse tuning boxes! D90 delivers 89BHP at 4,000 RPM and 200 NM of torque post 1750 RPM.

The car, in layman terms, has a nice pick-up. The power delivery is gradual across the RPM range. Although Turbo lag is still noticeable. This car uses a variable geometry turbo, which in layman terms means better power at lower rpm's as well. I personally found the best power delivery between 2,500 and 3,500 RPM. Post 3,500 RPM, there is only noise and not much power!

The gear ratios seemed normal, adjusted to in-city driving. Although I found the gearbox to be a bit notchy - even in a car that was just driven some 500 odd kms!

Even in jam packed Delhi to Gurgaon runs - during peak office hours - my D90 was able to deliver over 16.2 kmph mileage! Which is pretty good, trust me. I assume that on lonely highway drives, this machine will easily touch 20+kmph!

Ride quality - Ride quality is average. Though the car easily jumps over the regular potholes, but the suspension is a bit stiffer than I would have preferred. I am not sure why, but backseat riding seemed a bit more bumpy to me compared with driver's seat ride! Tata can definitely work on this area.

Handling - Average at best! Honestly, for the price you are paying, the handling is pretty average! The steering isn't much confidence inspiring, and I had to considerably slow down at curves, red lights etc to make a proper turn. Swift, in the same price range has much better handling.

The Outsides

The car looks sporty at first, and then you spot the Indica-esque features! Fitted with spoilers and alloys, the bright purple Vista D90 I got surely turned some heads at the Gurgaon Toll. The big headlamps, and bright fog lights surely adds to the muscular finish of the car.

Though the ORVMs are too small. I felt uncomfortable with their adjustments as well. Probably, Tata designed them keeping city riding in mind, but I desired atleast 1.5x larger ORVMs!

Tata has neatly kept Quadrajet, TATA and Variant Logos on the body. These logos too add to the sporty finish of the car. There is a body kit available as well, but in my humble opinion, you better skip it!

The Bottom Line

As one wise man once said - You don't choose a car, the car chooses you! :D

The Vista D90 is a good mix of sporty looks, powerful engine and spacious interiors. The engine is best suited for in-city driving and gives a nice combination of mileage and pick-up. Though the drive-ability and ride quality could have been better, but in case you are looking for a car for your daily ride to office - this is your car my friend! Download the official brochure from here (link)

Grow old with me! The best is yet to be ...

2013-02-14T09:56:00.000+05:30

Happy Valentines Day!

హ్యాపీ వాలెంటైన్ డే

How to become a professional photographer

2013-02-09T09:55:00.001+05:30

As you all must have noticed by now, the biggest spam on Facebook, after Farmville and related game stories is 'Photography Pages'! Every tom, dick, harry and add a lot of Indian names here - have created their own Photography Page, and are promoting it left, right and center on my Facebook timeline!

For those who are unaware of this practice, here is a short guide on how to become a famous photographer on Facebook! (and probably real life! LOL Joking!)

1) Buy a nice and expensive camera from Amazon, Flipkart or any other retailer, who will give you a huge discount and an EMI option! Because you cheapster, could never afford it in one go!

2) Click some really crappy pictures of your coffee mug or a candle or probably your own ugly face with a hanging double chin, while looking at yourself in bathroom mirror!

3) Use Instagram or any similar dumbed-down photo editor, and add "Black and White" or "Sepia" effect on your image!

4) Create a nice logo for yourself! (Yes, you will become an overnight brand after this exercise, probably!) Aah, who are you kidding, look for your initials on google images, edit that in MS Paint, and write below that logo - Ranjordass Chanchar Photography! Now stick this logo on every damn image you take! (We will be uploading these images on your Facebook page in a while!)

5) Now create a page on Facebook, with exact same name - Your full name + Photography - and upload a cover photo on it! The best cover photo is the one, where you are clicking yourself with your DSLR in bathroom mirror!

6) Almost done! Spam all your friends with invite to your God-damn page! Bring it up in every online and offline conversation, till people give up and like your God-awesome Photography page !!

7) Keep pasting your horrible pictures (with your brand logo) on that page, till the day you realize that you can never be a photographer!

8) Oh, and there is no need to kill yourself or your page, for that matter! Post self-realization phase, use that page to share 2001-02 era email forwards with your best friends who liked your page!

Oh, and since you have read this rant so far - Would you mind liking my Facebook page! :D. And dont forget to pass on this post to every aspiring photographer and loser who already has his Facebook photography page!

Next level of blogging

2013-02-07T22:22:00.000+05:30

Now, you must have read some movie reviews, book reviews and a lot more blah blah on this blog. Some was sponsored (I got free book/product for review) and some were out of appreciation (or disgust :P )

But then, last week I got an email. From Blogadda! And I jumped so hard that my head hit the roof! Thank God it is winter season, warna to by God, sir pankhe pe hi lag jaana tha! :D

So, the email said - being the awesomest blogger that I am, Blogadda and Tata Motors were sending a new Vista D90 for me to review! Wow! That's something, you must be thinking! Yes, you are right! Its actually a big thing! I got selected among a handful bloggers to test drive Vista D90, pre-launch, and that too for full three days!!

So this baby arrived yesterday night!

A brand new car, with tank full of diesel! What more do you want in life!!

So, I am off to test drive Vista D90. I just have 72 hours with this baby, and have full tank of diesel to me! :D

Keep looking at this space for more! BTW, I think its the right time you took my autograph! Baad me shayad mere pass itna vella time hi na ho! :D

Looking into the future

2013-02-02T11:58:00.000+05:30

Sometimes, you just know what is about to happen! I don't know about you guys, but I get this feeling - call it deja vu or anything - but few seconds before such thing is about to happen, my brain sends me a signal!

Same happened to me couple of days back. So, as usual, I was driving towards Mrs Furobiker's office, to pick her up in the evening. I take a slightly longer route in the evening, mostly because the usual routes are clogged at that time. There is one red light near IFFCO Chowk, Gurgaon, which remains relatively empty.

The signal was red, the countdown meter displayed 55 seconds - so, like a responsible citizen, as well as a poor salaried guy, I killed the ignition (to save fuel, of course) and started listening to music. There were just 2-3 cars in between me and the signal, and there was no car behind me.

Suddenly, my eyes drifted towards the inner rear view mirror of the car, and I could see a light waving! The waving light was approaching fast in my rear view mirror!

Countdown showed 42 seconds.

Suddenly, God knows from where, a very sure thought came in my mind - this bike is gonna hit my car! Although, there was no reason to believe so, as the road could accommodate 4 cars paralelly, and mine was the only car in that row!

Countdown showed 36 seconds.

By now, the bike became visible in my left rear view mirror as well. And what I was thinking as a youngster doing stunts / swerving on the road, clearly was a case of out of control bike hurling towards me, and other cars!

Countdown showed 30 seconds.

Micro-seconds of happiness, followed by bout of anger! Happiness because the bike managed to miss hitting my car from the rear end. Anger, because finally the driver lost complete control and hit the front rear view mirror of my car before going ahead and hitting a tempo from the back!

Countdown showed 27 seconds.

I got out of the car to catch the miscreant, thinking it was some teenager driving his dad's bike on main road. Turns out, they were three middle-aged drunk bastards. Completely inebriated! As, I was about to shout on these guys, the driver almost slipped and fell on the road, while the two guys sitting sitting pillion were trying to keep the bike straight!

Eventually, I realized, there is no point talking to three drunk Gujjars when they are not able to understand where they are, and if they are driving or sitting on their cots smoking hookah!

By this time, the light turned green - and as ever, impatient cubicle-workers from Gurgaon, heading back home towards Delhi started maddening honking for me to move my car. Just two more cars came behind my car, but the amount of honking they did in 5 seconds, equated noise levels emitted by a kilometer jam!

Delhi, specially the satellites around it - Noida and Gurgaon, have become pathetic places to live in. It may be due to locals or due to people coming to work here, but surely, the quality and security of life keeps plummeting to new lows in these places. I simply felt amazed at myself for not even feeling like shouting or speaking at those drunk bastard bikers - what's the point!

Anyway, coming back to the main topic of this blog - did you guys ever feel that something is about to happen, just a few moments before it actually happen? Or do I have some special powers! :D

Bookworm

2013-01-30T21:35:00.002+05:30

Yeah! That's what I like to call myself these days. Bhaisahab! I haven't read so many newspapers, magazines and books in a single month in a long time! I guess recession is back, if you know what I mean *wink wink*

So the latest one I am reading is RIP - by Mukul Deva. You know, sometimes you are reading a book or an article, and suddenly you are like - O teri! Le li isne to!! I had the exact same feeling within first 50 odd pages of this book!

Basically, RIP is an acronym for Resurgent Indian Patriots, which essentially is a group of ex-army guys going around killing corrupt politicians. I even wrote a knock knock joke while reading this book! :D Anyways, that was so horrible that I am too ashamed to even type it here :P

This book is based on the recent corruption related turmoil that happened in India. The problem is, the book went to press before the Delhi gang-rape incident, otherwise the author would have included that too! :D

The author has tried to use all aliases, while clearly telling you who he is talking about. Now you tell me, who is the activist spear-heading Lokpaal bill movement in Delhi? Hazare! But the author calls such a character Hazarika :D So difficult to guess, no? :D That's the lovely part about this book, wo hamare gaon me kehte hain na - Isne to sabki keh ke le li! :D

Not just the names, but the alleged scams, bureaucracy, locations.. everything rings a bell in your head, and your brain furiously starts processing through the news article that you might have read with a strikingly similar name in the past! ;)

Author has touched the right chord with the book, the need for a clean, honest political layer in India. That's basically the USP of the book. Other than that, there are many gripping parts in the book. The story is intertwined with finely detailed missions of the RIP team, along with the personal lives, and emotional turmoil faced by men in uniforms.

Among the recent fiction I have read, Mukul Deva's RIP definitely stands out. The story grips you till the last page. The author has written a crisp, clean story reflective of his Army background! Although, and it might again be because of his army background, the author was a little sloppy while describing love-shove portions in the story. I guess love, sex aur dhoka is Chetan Bhagat's forte ;)

Overall, for me, this was a good one time read.

Considering the current situation in this country, in terms of corruption, governance, security and what not, this book is sure to find thousands of readers among simmering youth of this country. Specially those, who think only radical measures can solve these issues.

I give the book a good 800/950 ! Pick your copy from Flipkart!

This review is a part of the biggest Book Reviews Program. for Indian Bloggers. Participate now to get free books!

Aiwai Bakar

2013-01-27T12:08:00.000+05:30

So I got up really early today, and have no idea what normal people do in their free time. To socha, chalo, blog pe hi kuch bakar karen! :D

First things first, I just switched on the TV and saw - India Vs England is happening in Dharamsala!

Dude, where did they get such a huge piece of flat land in Dharamsala? The last time I went there, Dharamsala was a small town situated on the side of the road leading to McLeodganj! And trust me, the road between Dharamsala and McLeodganj is so narrow, that you will shit in your pants if you try to find the road below your Volvo tyres on the way up!

Though, I remember somewhere around Dharamsala they have this smallish patch of flat land where they have set up their own Appu Ghar! Yes! As with all the kids, I have also been there to the Dharamsala Appu Ghar and enjoyed all the rides! :D

Apart from the normal bang-cars kind of rides, the one I distinctly remember was ropeway - over a valley! The rope-carriage was going ever so slow, and the wind was swinging the cart like a swing - Only God knows how I spent those 147 years (read seconds) on the ropeway! Phew! :D

Since we are talking about scary ropeways, how can I ever forget the one in Udaipur, taking you from the main lake towards Mansapurna Karni Mata Temple! That one ascends so rapidly, ek point pe to meri fat hi gai thi! :D But trust me, the view from the temple is simply awesome - specially at and after sunset! You can see whole Udaipur city from that point! Remember Rab ne Bana Di jodi, the scene where Suri ji in his modern role was going to propose Anushka, and they can see the whole city? Much better than that!

Oh, and I watched Race 2 yesterday! Two word review - Don't Watch! The movie is very predictable, specially since Race 1 created a high benchmark in terms of twists and turns! And what was Anil Kapoor trying to do in that movie. Cheap, semi-porn jokes cracked by Anil Kapoor and Amisha Patel were certainly avoidable!

By the way, I am just trying to remember, why did I get up so early? Definitely not to type some random bakar here I guess! :D

Oh, yaad aaya...

Life of Pi

2013-01-19T16:59:00.002+05:30

Never, ever in my life I thought that such a simple story can be presented in such beautiful manner on-screen. Life of Pi was special in more than one ways for me.

Firstly, it was the first movie, post-marriage, that I took Mrs Furobiker to - So it had to be exceptional, warna beta apni reputation ki to lag jati :P Pehli movie dikhai wo bhi kachra :D To safeguard myself, first of all, I filtered out all movies starring Shahrukh, Salman and Katrina for that matter. Well, first two in the list to remove all junk created in film industry and the last one purely because no girl likes Katrina, God knows why!

So what was left of the running movies for that week was Life of Pi.

It is the story of an Indian kid "Pi". Well, that was not his real name, but due to some shit name his parents kept, the guy started calling himself Pi, an abbreviation of his name. His original name was Piscine, a famous swimming pool in Paris. However, due to the similarity in pronunciation of Piscine and Pissing, he started calling himself Pi. :D

Pi's parents owned a zoo in India. But one day, pi's parents realized that to earn good money, you got to go to Videsh.

So this guy, Pi, was going to a foreign land on a ship with his family, and their whole zoo! And, as it happens with all the movies involving ships - there was a mishap! There was a huge sea storm, and by stroke of luck Pi was thrown in a life boat, with some animals while his whole family died in the shipwreck!

I can not to proper justice to the visual marvel that was presented to us in the next 40 or so minutes by writing about it on this blog! It was a visual treat, pure bliss to watch the journey of Pi and the animals in the small boat, till they reach a landmass at the end of the movie!

During the journey, they encounter some really beautiful and surprising elements of mother nature - thousands of flying fish, a sea full of glowing jellyfish, a carnivorous island and what not! And as most of the critics have stated, this movie was more of a food for thought than a visual treat. You could slowly see the Royal Bengal Tiger and Pi adjusting to each other during their long ordeal. The way animals stuck with Pi on the boat fight/adjust with each other, and eat each other if needed. It shows the how people react in life threatening situations. And how Pi helps the biggest threat to his life - the tiger - when its life was in danger!

But what happens in the end, one could never imagine! Pi gives a hint that this story might not be true at all. Maybe Pi replaced the normal humans with animals just to bring out the deeper meaning of situations and characters! Those three minutes just shake you out of the tumultuous journey of Pi involving computer imagery and emotional undertone, that kept you engrossed for the past two hours! You suddenly realize that you believe what the storyteller wants you to believe - maybe whole truth, maybe a bag full of euphemisms!

From what I have heard, the book "Life of Pi", on which the movie is based is even better. Also, the book does better justice to the second (rather original) story than the fantasized one.

I have ordered my copy from Flipkart. Lets see how the book fares.

But, after a long time, I give a movie five out of five stars! Kudos!

of dreams ... beyond dreams!

2013-01-11T20:41:00.001+05:30

In case you recognize what building is this, please raise your hand. Ok, please stop! I think you are looking stupid raising your hand in front of a computer screen. :D

For those who can't guess, this is the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi! and before you ask - no, this is not my college!

To explain the significance of this picture here today, lets go some 15 years in flashback. To the time when I couldn't even spell engineering, forget about dreaming of an IIT or something. I must have been in 9th or 10th at that time, well the story is so old, that I don't even remember the exact time frame now. Either that, or a man really grows old post marriage :D

Let's not digress or we will be sitting here whole night. Meri to aadat hi hai bakar karna :D

So, I didn't know at that point in time, what this weirdly angled building is, in the middle of a compound that looked no less than a jungle from outside! However, every time we (me and my family) passed by it, my mom used to point at it, and say - when you grow up, you will study in this college!

Every single time! And having so many relatives houses near this elusive college wasn't helping either!

Innocent me, thought at that point of time - Big deal! People study in some Delhi university, I will study in IIT University. Who cares! After all, all you need to know to be successful in college is play guitar and dance on the stage! :P

You see, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai had played a huge role in creating a dreamland kind of image for Indian colleges in my head !

Anyhow, with time, I stumbled on in my school life to reach class 11 and joined some IIT JEE entrance coaching along with school. Trust me, till that time, I didn't even know what IIT is. It took me close to two months to understand the gravity of the situation, and realize - Beta, ye kuch zada bada wala panga le lia! :D .. that may be I over promised myself and to my parents!

Two long years, with each day consisting of 14-15 hours of study passed somehow, and my worst nightmares came true. I got stuck in between! I didn't get enough marks to get into IIT Delhi, and I got just about enough to land a seat in Mechanical Engineering in IT BHU. (which forced me not to drop a year and join BHU, which in retrospect was one of the best thing that happened to me in my life :D )

People might covet that seat, but in my eyes, I had failed. I wasn't going to that elusive building, I didn't care more than that.

Long time passed in between. I finished college, joined job, switched jobs, even IT BHU eventually got converted to an IIT (finally!) but my eyes always looked longingly towards that weirdly shaped building every time I passed that road!

It was like the first love, which was not meant to be. Like Kajol says in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai - Mera pehla pyaar adhoora reh gaya auntyjee (I know she didn't say auntyjee, but I forgot what was the actual word at the end of this dialogue :P )

Fast forward to 2011. I had almost forgot about that angular building in south Delhi, when one fine day, my kiddo Sister announced that she wants to join IIT Delhi! For P H D !!! It all came back to me in a flash!

However, unlike me, she toiled hard, very hard for two years, to build knowledge base and reputation to land into that coveted IIT Delhi seat! And I am so happy to announce that she has finally got through it, after months and months filled with stress and anticipation. ... and with that I can breathe a huge sigh of relief.

Not that anyone ever said anything about it, but I always had a guilt feeling in my heart, that I could not fulfill my parent's dream of landing into IIT Delhi. I guess now they can proudly say - hamari bacchi IIT me padti hai! :D I guess that's the benefit of having two cool kids - even if one fails, the other steps in to make up for it!

Chalo, ab kuch zada ho gaya! :D

Oh, and kiddo sis - since, you are going to do your PhD in Environment studies, probably to save the planet? - here is a short best of luck message from my side :D :D

Mandatory post-marriage blog post

2013-01-07T23:45:00.000+05:30

Did I ever mention it to you guys - I am really scared of injections!

The problem with injections is not the pain - that is really nothing but a pinch, however, there is a bigger issue associated with it - waiting for the pinch! Right from the moment you reach doctor's shop (yes shop, not clinic - we will come back to it some other day). Yeah, so right from the moment you reach doctor's shop to the moment the nurse mercilessly inserts the needle in your butt - or if you are a grown up like me, your arm - all you have to do is wait!

The moment from the nurse asks you to roll up your sleeve, to the moment when she ties something on your arm to make your nerves come out, to cleaning your arm with spirit, to mercilessly tearing your skin to draw your blood - its nothing but a long wait! Those few seconds feel more than twenty pain and anticipation filled years!

And then when the needle hits you, you don't even realize what happened. More often than not, you are busy checking your Twitter feed reading what some tom, dick and harry ate for lunch!!

So you get the point, right? In case you got the point, I am sure you are a married folk, if not, then wait for the marriage!

Not that I have a frikking ounce of stage fright nor was I worried about wedding preparations but I was anxious as hell starting couple of weeks before marriage! At one point, I (and I am sure she) were of the mental state ki bas ek time machine hoti, so that we would have fast forwarded the time to reach Leonardo da Vinci airport - Fiumicino, Rome! :D

Bhaisahab, hindustaan me shaadi karna bhi ek bada babaal hai! Phew! :P

Anyhow, first week of December is blurred in my memory! There was so much happening around me - so many people, so many activities, so much colors and light, so much music - too much for my small brain to process and store in individual compartments! However, all I remember is it was fun while it lasted! Kids (li'l bros and siss) have so much energy, I tell you - I was really amazed by their potential to dance for hours and hours practicing Sexy Radha song at my place!

.. records indicate that I was a boring spectacle wearing nerd at their age :P

Do you ever think how boring will life be without any goof-ups? Actually, goof-ups were more like blunders :P What else would you say when all relatives and friends go out of home for some reason or the other, and we ALL get locked out! Yes, approximately 50-60 people were supposed to in my home one day prior to my engagement, and somehow everyone went out at the same time, while auto-locking the main door of the home!

Oh and how would you describe the situation where people remember to get dozens of liters of alcohol to the engagement venue but completely forget about the pooja ka samaan listed down by punditjee! :D Punjabis and their darubaazi! :D

By the way, these wedding photographers are so bloody irritating! More-so for the bride and groom! Saala, itna PDA (public display of affection) to pichle 6 saal me nhi kara, jitna is fotographer ne 2 ghante me karwa dia! :P

I actually spotted Mrs Furobiker clenching her fist, almost about to punch the photographer during Vidai time, when the video guy pushed me aside to get a 'single shot' of her crying ! Phew. Bach gaya saala!

Oh, and if any of you guys visit me personally, I would love to show you the videos of Pheras! Amazingly funny! My naughty cousins had created such a ruckus, and thanks to Hindi movies they had mugged up simple wedding mantras and were chanting in full volume along with our beloved pundit jee! :D

... and I am still searching for the person who gave them the idea of throwing flowers at the couple during phera time! Kids took it so personally, that I had five muscle injuries due to their forceful flower, bouquets and flowerpot blows on the bride and groom! :P

For those of you, who didn't see my online wedding invite, here is the link -- > Divyabhi.in

And here comes the new couple in town ...

Book Review - The Bankster - Ravi Subramanian

2012-12-18T21:44:00.001+05:30

The Bankster- sounds like a funny name when you read it for the first time. Bankster is a word invented by author Ravi Subramanian it seems. It is an amalgamation of two words - Banker and Gangster!

Ravi Subramanian, aptly also known as 'John Grisham of banking' keeps you interested in the story with his thorough knowledge of banking industry! When i read his name for the first time, I had a deja-vu feeling! Then it hit me, I read his previous book - If God was a banker! It was a really good book, I tell you. On further research I found out, that Bankster is not his second book, it is his fifth book!

The book tries to weave multiple sub-stories into a larger picture. However, in doing so, I guess the book got somewhat confusing at many places. It is either that, or I have gone dumb in the past couple of years! Phew!

The story spans across several continents starting with Angola, where illicit diamond exchange happens. It soon moves to Mumbai and then to Venice. Now Venice is the key word here, not because it is relevant to the story, but because I am sitting at Marco Polo Airport of Venice while writing this review! :D

On a serious note, I personally feel that every writer is inspired by intricate details of Bourne series. But there are very few, if not zilch, writers that can do justice with the balance between intricate details and irrelevant details. Now either Apple paid the author a huge amount to write a iPad user manual or the author himself is a huge Apple fan. How else would you explain the presence of such morose details about functioning of iPad in this book!

Other than that I think there are too many issues touched upon in the book - illicit diamond trade, banking industry issues, corruption, arms exchange and money laundering! I felt at some places I was craving for some more meat on some of these issues. But what is lost on the plot is covered by the nice Indianised lingo used by the author throughout the book (most of it atleast). This keeps the book peppy and interesting specially for the Indian audience.

The book ends in a very melodramatic note though. I was waiting for ACP pradyuman to burst out of one door and shout 'Daya darwaza tod do'! :D

Overall, this book is a mix of interesting and sloppy segments, but deserves one read atleast. I would give it 2.5 out of 5.5!

And since you asked, my Italy trip was awesome, more posts coming soon on the wedding and the honeymoon!

PS: This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program at BlogAdda.com . Participate now to get free books! Tata!!

Ten things to do before you get married

2012-11-27T11:58:00.000+05:30

As I type this post, the clock keeps ticking in the background, with every tick-tock snatching my bachelorhood away from me - one second at the time! :(

(PS: smashing your wrist watch does not stop the time. I just tried it :P . Though it breaks your watch into two zillion pieces for sure :P )

Countdown

In case you didn't know, Google is awesome! Though it is a little late for me to realize, but Google can find you amazing stuff, as and when you need it! If my name was All-Fried Nobel, I would give one of my prizes to the mom and dad of Google! (that is, if Google can find them) :D

So, about two hours ago, in desperation, I typed the words 10 things to do before you get married on Google. Now, Google being Google, took it all too literally and threw 200 million results in my face! Saala, engineers ke sath yahi dikkat hai. If this site was designed by some fashion designer, or for that matter a girl (no, no, I am not saying that all girls have an IQ equal to fashion designers! :D But yeah, if this Google thing was designed by someone with a heart, the result should have been only one line - Bhai, darr sabko lagta hai. Sabki phat-ti hai. But dar ke aage jeet hai :D aur daal roti bhi :D !

Anyway, a guy has got to do, what a guy has got to do! I started reading the results one-by-one! Though, I could not read all 200 million results (sorry guys!) but then I easily covered 50 pages and over 1000+ things to "do" before marriage!

Jaisa ki aap sab jaante hain, I am a really nice guy! So I wont let you read all shit-filled 1000 things to do before marriage. So, here I am, presenting before you 10 important things that I think you should do before marriage! Go through this list slowly. Digesting the gravity of each point, before you hop on the next one!

Ask yourself "WHY?" - Trust me, if you have endured and survived a torture known as punjabi wedding, you will surely understand the pain behind this question! And no, I am not referring to the trust issues you have with your partner. Those things are petty in front of the grand crazy fest we guys call wedding. On more than 10 occasions in the past one month, I have seriously thought "BC, isse accha to saala bhaag ke shaadi kar leta!". Never ever in my life I knew kitni mehnat ka kaam hai shaadi karna. Sigh! In case, you guys haven't broken the news to your parents - RUN !!!
Ensure that you are not already married - :D Do I need to explain this one! Go and see the movie - Life in a metro! Or better, look around in your workplaces! I think I should have kept this point on number 1, but what the hell, it is still in the checklist!
See her without make-up - Yup! You read it right! I have a friend, who seriously refuses to identify his wife when she is without make-up! I mean yeah, even we like to pretend that we don't know her when she is washed off, but come on, wo to uska pati hai yaar! :D
Cancel all your 'Sunny Leone' subscriptions - Or delete those "Ultra Important Office files" and "Windows important files" folders from your laptop! ;) errr... I am not very sure, but from what I have heard from some of my married friends (not all) that you do not need those files post marriage, and specially wives have this unnatural allergy with folders named "Virus - Dont Open" :D
Go skydiving - I have always wanted to go skydiving, but some or other shit crops up last minute and my plan gets cancelled! Once upon a time, I was all padded up inside a mini plane for the dive, but had to abort the jump due to bad weather. We (me and the trainer) had nothing better to do so we were just chatting up. Upon being asked about risks in skydiving he said "its not that this is a risk free sport and people don't die doing it, but the mortality rate is extremely low. But hey, do you know anyone who came out of a wedlock alive! :D
Buy two TVs - or ask your relatives to gift you one, in case you are running short on cash! :D *wink* As we all know, girls are crazy! And they like watching crazy English versions of our desi saas-bahu serials, instead of watching the original Hindi ones! Now tell me, who watches Desperate Housewives in place of Bade Acche Lagte Hain! Huh! :P That kid - Pihu - is so cute, no?
Keep a wacky haircut / beard - From what I have heard, girls on an average have an obsessive compulsive disorder regarding cleanliness! For the love of God, I could never understand, why does a 25 day beard looks bad to others, when the person wearing it (inspite of the itch) is totally comfortable with it! Phew! And who takes a bath everyday! If we shave and bath daily, then what are sundays for! :O
Buy a PS3 - Because you know, you will be all grown up and have responsibilities and blah blah in one week post marriage! In short, no one will allow you to buy a PS3 anymore, so buy it while you have control on your own credit card! :D And do remember to stock up 200 game CDs in your home! Hee hee! :D
Make a best friend - Yup! The one, who will cover your tracks, and say - Yeah bhabhee, too much work these days in office. You know, your pati was with me working whole night. Even I returned home at *whispers - abe saale kab gaya tha tu kal ghar* Yeah, 5 am in the morning! :D
Think again - OK! Jokes apart! This is your last chance! Believe that this blog post is a warning signal from God, forcing you to think again! Is this the person you will want to wake up next to for the rest of your life? Even when she looks like her mother? Her mother's mother? And if the answer is yes, the congratulations! Not to you idiot! To your to-be! You have passed the test, and she was successful in completely brainwashing you! :P Sigh!

I guess if you are fine on these ten things, you have a fairly good probability of enduring the wedlock for a minimum period of two years :D Warna to bhayya, aapki shaadi ka bhagwaan hi maalik hai! :D

Chalo, I am back to my countdown! 10 days and 19 hours remaining! Tick tock... Wish me luck!

Book Review : JFK by Jhangir Kerawala

2012-11-06T08:48:00.001+05:30

JFK … A dying man’s last word … A plea, an accusation or a clue? That’s what the police couldn’t figure out. What they did know was that they had serial murders in broad daylight, and just one suspect with little motive … Jatin F. Karunamoi, the dead man’s best friend. Jatin is no hero; he’s an unemployed 50-year-old, desperate to find a job. But his only hope for a life of dignity lies in him finding the real killer.

Book: JFK
Author: Jhangir Kerawala
Published by: Grey Oak Publisher
Year of publication: 2012
Click here to buy this book

The first thing you realize when you start reading this book - JFK does not translate to John F Kennedy! JFK refers to Jatin F. Karunamoi, the protagonist of the book! Leave about the story of the book, but I can't stop myself from thinking again and again - why did the author name his book JFK?

Trust me on this, as I have been using Google too long to realize - You will not get any page related to this book on first 10 pages of Google, if you just type in JFK. Update: Maybe not even on the next 20 pages, unless you write the words 'book review' or Jhangir Kerawala along with book title!

In this age, when parents name their kids after checking the availability of email addresses, domain names and twitter handles, this is a huge mistake, I tell you!

However, I will just repeat the typical closing sentence of every punjabi argument - Sannu Ki ! :P

OK! Coming back to the topic, if I want to review this book in two words, I will say - must read!

The book is written in a very simple language, and weaves in a lot of daily life incidents along with the central theme of the book. It is a murder mystery, where JFK (Karunamoi not Kennedy) - a close friend of the victim - plays the key role in the story. And mind you, he is no super hero (or Akshay kumar for that matter. Our hero can open his own pants, and that too in the privacy of his own room, unlike Akshay!)

Protagonist, JFK, is just another middle-class guy, with his fate one notch more fucked-up than the normal middle-class guys out there. JFK travels through a path full of illicit women, secret societies, blackmailing, criminals and what not to find the real murderer of his best friend!

The book is otherwise a nice read, however, it mentions that the murdered guy was a part of a Free mason society, and is one of the well respected Mason in their secret society! God knows why, but this word Mason reminds me of Dan Brown novels. And specially, when everything is so nicely fit in the suburbs of Kolkata, why include such an alien concept in the book?

I guess this only the author can explain. Will update you guys, once I get a reply from the author on the same :P

Chalo then, let us give the author - Jhangir Kerawala - a standing applause for his first book, JFK. I hope you give out even more fantabulous book in the next go! Click here to buy this book

Did you guys observe that the initials of the author are JK? Maybe he also has a middle name with F? OMG! Conspiracy theory! The author named the book on his own Class 8th nick-name - JFK!! :D Chalo anyway, I am off to work!

Cheers! Oh wait! I forgot to pimp Blogadda for the free book! Here it goes ...

This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program at BlogAdda.com . Participate now to get free books!

Kanjaken !

2012-10-22T23:16:00.000+05:30

Let me confess, I ate like a dog today! Mad dog! Actually, hungry mad dog! Phew! :D :D We will come back to this later...

In case you live under a rock, in the United States of West Indies, today was Ashtmi pooja, commonly referred to as Kanjaken! This day marks the end of Navratra fasts in some households, whereas in others the fasting will end tomorrow, on the day of Navmi! Yep, to me also it looks like a conspiracy from the forever-hungry group! Do din chole poori halwa! :D Aj chunnu ki mummy lunch me degi, kal munnu ki! :D

I posted this pic on Facebook today morning, and immediately it got a wave of comments and likes! I could so much connect with the comments out there! I too missed Kanjaks a lot, during my long stay in Romania. :( The pic is very nostalgic for everyone who has grown up watching this plate year after year!

Kanjak has been one of the fondest memories of my childhood! From as far as I can remember, two times a year, there is a week of no non-veg and onions less food, with my parents keeping fast. Then at the end of week, there is a small pooja in the morning and then we get a sumptuous meal of chole poori halwa! Heck, we even used to host poori eating competitions with my cousins at my place! As far as I can remember, highest record was of 15 pooris in one sitting! Phew! Yeah, we are kind of a food-o-holic family! :P

And you remember, the 5 Rupee coin that used to come along in the plate with poori chole! Being a forever-broke person, I really loved collecting that coin from my plate, and then borrow some from my sister's collection! Without telling her that I am borrowing, of course never to return in back! :D Kids, specially tiny girls, from my block even used to group together to go to everyone's house for Kanjak celebration! As per the statistics released by RBI, each kid earns their 2 month's pocket money on this day! Without paying any tax to the government, of course! :D :P

Till college, I used to keep all 8 days of fast in Navratras! And tab stamina itna tha, ki I used to drink just one glass of mixed fruit juice and 3-4 liters of water per day! For whole week! And then go on a mad binging spree, as soon as the fasts got over! Phew! By-God ki kassam, poore gaon me murge chup jate the ghar me us din! :D

Fast-forward 4 years, I started my first job. The story went downhill from there. From full week, I cut down my fasting days to just two. For the next five years, I just used to keep fast on last 2 navratras every time. :( Isse zyada himmat hi nahi hoti thi.

But then this year, suddenly mere bheje ka screw dheela ho gaya! :P I again decided to keep whole week fast! But then had to follow terms and conditions set up by mom! Punjabi moms, as you guys know, want their kids to eat 26 hours a day, 9 days a week! Bhai sahab, itna fried khana main ek saal me nahi khata, jitna meri mummy ne ek week me khila dia! :O

Being a number junkie, I tried estimating the calorie count of the food I ate during Navratra fasts! Surprise, Surprise! I was eating 3 times the calories during Fasting, compared with normal days! So much for so-called fasting! :(

Anyways, if you read the line on the top of this post, the fasts got over and let me confess, I ate like a dog today! Mad dog! Actually, hungry mad dog, inspite of binging on fast-approved fried-food for the whole week! Phew! :D :D

Seriously, these breads, biscuits, namkeens, KFC Buckets have something highly addictive in them! Never thought I would crave so much for them. :P Khair, back to normal life, though I am still waiting for the colleagues who celebrate navmi to get the chole, poori, halwa combo tomorrow! ;)

Aur sunao? Sab badhia?

That's how my brain works

2012-10-18T22:08:00.003+05:30

True Story!!!! Loved this image as soon as I saw it !

Cerebral Cacophony

2012-10-13T12:12:00.000+05:30

First things first - I don't have a freaking clue what "cerebral cacophony" means! These words are here just to mock people who derive their blog names from GRE vocabulary books. Seriously! :D

I was blog hopping today morning, when I noticed this blog title, and then had to be immidiately rushed to washroom to puke! :D Arre bhayya, pehle zindagi me tension kam hai kya, jo aise bhaari bharkam blog title rakhte ho! I don't know about you guys, but I just log in to my Google Reader, or blogger for that matter to read some funny posts, blow off some steam etc. If I had to read heavy shit, which doesn't make any sense whatsoever, I would read some consulting reports from the Big 4! Phew

On the risk of being called a hypocrite, I would like to utilize the title of this blog to describe the current state of my mind :D ! If translated to proper hindi, the title would roughly mean - Bhai sahab, ajkal dimaag ki maa behen ho gai hai! :P

Amid 15 hour working days, traffucked weekends in Chandani Chowks and Chawari Bazaars, phases of bad health and thousand other tensions in life, I feel like a zombie these days! Just mechanically going about my life, day-in and day-out, without even realizing where I am, what I am doing, and more specifically why I am doing!

I guess I desperately need a break! Sigh! Or else I am more than 100% sure I am heading towards a nervous wreck! Guess I will take-off to Goa or some other similar shitty place to binge on food and booze and sleep for a week!

Anyway, ye sab to laga rehta hai, how have you guys been? Of the 50-odd blogs I have in my Google Reader list, only a handful update regularly. Guess, all others have got busy with their lives and wives :D

Waise, looks like the world is really ending in 2012. Everyone I know is getting married before the curtains fall on 2012 !! Between 20th October and 11th December, 2012, nine of my friends and two of my cousins are getting married. Add one to that for me as well! That is like 12 people, who either graduated in 2007 or were born in 1986 are getting hitched in the same year! Phew!

So, this is the peer pressure everyone used to talk during board exams! :D :P

Shaadi se yaad aaya, I am looking to upgrade to SLR / DSLR from my point-and-shoot camera. In photography world, I am worse than a NooB! So any suggestions, inputs, information, recommendations will be helpful! Please drop in your suggestions in the comments section below or shoot an email to me!

Aur sab badhiya?

Blog Tagged !

2012-10-07T10:33:00.000+05:30

To start with the basics - what is a blog tag?

Well, remember those pesky emails and messages that arrive in your inbox and say - do this blah blah shit, or else marriage or something even more bad may happen to you! :D And then it also says, forward this to 10 really lucky people and make their life even more wonderful! Lucky people, seriously?

Well, blog tags are of the same clan, though the downside is not so bad if you dont do it. Just that the blogger who 'tagged' you will stop talking to you, visiting your blog, and a butterfly will probably die on Jupiter! Sigh! :D

A couple of months back, a fellow blogger tagged me on her blog, and then reminded me on facebook, and then threatened me on gtalk, and finally a death threat arrived by email! :O So here I am, obliging by the blog tag, and will probably pass this on to some of you! *evil grin*

Funny thing is the name of the tag - Liebster blog! Being from humble origins, and a college located in the middle of nowhere, I am not well versed with difficult GRE level words of English! So upon googling, I found out that it literally means Favorite. So Liebster Blog = Favorite blog! Honored, I must say ! :D

And now, I have to answer some 11 questions given to me by my tagger - Akanksha. ( I am skipping the 11 facts about myself part. Go read my blog archives, there are 11,000 facts hidden over there about me :D )

Q1) How and why was your blog born?
A1) Let me be really honest with you guys. The blog was started to impress chicks from all over the world, with my tongue-in-cheek humor, and my Shakespearean writing style. :D Those chicks who could not reach me directly, could connect with me through my blog. :P Alas, the plan fell flat on its face and the blog never took off. As per the current blog statistics, only 80 year old grannies from Alaska read this blog these days! :(

Though, on a serious note, Furobike was the name of my project in college, and I was really into some bike designing shit back then. So, I thought maybe I would make this blog a repository about my projects, and the interesting tid-bits I find on the net about mechanical engineering and design! (click here to read the full story)

Q2) Are you a mountain person or a beach person, and why?
A2) Why? Is it a crime to be both? huh! :O Well, I am a mountain person in summers, and a beach person in winters, or maybe it was the exact opposite! Seriously, I dont care. I am a corporate slave, stuck in the vicious cycle of toiling hard for 5 weekdays to earn money, and then crazy wedding shopping for 2 weekends, to blow up all the money. I haven't taken a holiday in about 10 years, and my life sucks! And I have never been to either a mountain or a beach.

Well, I guess the answer above is partially correct atleast :D

Q3) What is the one thing which you cant stand? Why?
A3) This is a really simple one! I hate buttering, and the people who do that. Buttering, as they say in hindi - makkhan maarna - is the biggest menace prevalent in our society. People do this in college to get 5 extra marks, do this in office to get 2% extra hike, do it in personal life - its everywhere! And why I dont like it? Because I feel such people have no self-respect and I hate such people. They should instead have be born as a cucumber in the home of Shelyn Chopra *wink* , or Aamir's pet dog in their next lives!

Once, I got very pissed about it and wrote a long post, in 2005 - Click here to read it

Q4) Money or power, if you could have only one
A4) Money! Before you ask any followup question to this - paisa deke to dekho, aadhi dunia nacha ke dikha sakta hu :D :D

Q5) What is your take on virtual friendships? Are they as real as real ones?
A5) Friendship is friendship. No matter what. Too much hulaboo over this question these days. Waise bhi, read my answer to Q2. I don't have much life, so I connect with my all friends over gtalk or whatsapp only! :P

Q6 In todays equal times, is it ok to ask a woman her age and a man her wage?
A6) And hereby I declare, this question was not written by anyone remotely punjabi. In our clan, whenever someone meets you, the first Q they ask is - Kitthe kamm karda paya hai hune? (Where are you working these days?) and the second Q - straightaway - is Kinna paisa dendi hai ee company tennu? (So how much does it pay?)

Same is the case with punjabi chicks. As soon as they stop wearing their elder brother's used clothes, people start asking them their age - Ohh 12 saal ki ho gai, chal 6 saal aur hain, fir to teri shaadi pakki! :D

Q7) If you would like to be a celebrity for one day, which one? Why?
A7) Isn't the answer obvious! Dr House!! And talking about why, click here to read my post on him.

Q9) Would you still be blogging five years from now?
A9) Yes, ofcourse! Where do you think I will go and crib about changing diapers and cleaning potties? :P

Q10) One annoying habit you have
A10) I love farting in lifts! ~~Specially~~ Only when there are more than two people. :D And the best part comes after that! I randomly select and start looking at one person disgustingly, and then prod others and point fingers towards that person while choking myself by pressing my nose! :D Hope no one who travels with me in the lifts read this blog, ever! :D

Q11) What brings you back to Akanksha's blog?
A11) Absolutely Nothing! :D I dont visit her blog at all! :D

LOL. I read all blogs in my Google reader, and never ever go to anyone's blog website! I am a high-tech guy, you see!

And with that, I announce the end of tag questions. Quite a long task, I must say. Phew! I totally deserve a raise for bearing with such a long tag (that I cut short myself! :D )

Now, the tag mandates that I need to pass this tag to some 10 more people. Sadly, I dont think anyone reads this blog anymore, so I can not pass this on. But, WTF! Whosoever comes to this blog and reads this horribly long tag, can you please take this up? (and let me know when you are done, it will be interesting to read your answers!

Adios!