cheer leaders In IPL

For the first time in India, in a game cheer leaders have been brought from abroad.Good that we are progressing , getting forward, but that doesnt mean we should forget our culture and follow everything blindly.In a country where bar girls were banned, though it made life very difficult for those girls, as they dont have any other way of earning their livelihood and looking after their family, where people are forbidden to celebrate valentine,albeit only at few places,where skin show is still considered vulgar,its ironic that money mania is driving people to this extent that they are ready to forget their traditions and everything.Now where is the moral police who is always harassing innocent youngsters most of the time.And here even the question of people's liking or not liking also doesnt arise, its like smoking or prostitution, both are not good things, but still some like them, do it, but they can not be supported. Because some newspapers are taking opinion polls and all that. I just hope that better sense prevails, as it is IPL is more of an entertainment tamasha than the game of Cricket

In woman"s era-august I-2006

Amazing is the only word to describe June II issue. Stories are as good as articles and recipes are even better. The great Indian Family is the most articulate,well researched article, i have recently come across. My heartfelt thanks to the writer.
It mad every pleasant and informative reading,plus a new understanding and desire to have a family like those of Padma, Anubha etc.
But i fully believe and agree with Jyoti, i myself at 50, with both the children married and settled, would like to live in some senior citizen home, somewhere with like minded people, surrounded by nature and provided with medical,entertainment and other housekeeping facilities, free of the stress of maintaining a house and relationships.
If there is any energy left, better put it to the use of society. Identity Crisis- I could full identify with the protagonist, having done the same, which most of the women do to keep peace in the family

Amitabh bacchan

In Deccan chronicle-3June 2007
This is with reference to the the report" bachchan is not a farmer ;UP court" ( June-2) it is sad to read about a person of Amitabh Bacchan's stature giving a false declaration of being a farmer to get land, that to land which was meant for the poor,landless farmers of UP and Pune. People should be given iconic status only when they prove themselves to be good human beings.Mr. bacchan may be a stalwart in the film industry but where money matters are concerned, he has no principles. A probe is required in this land scam and all those guily should be punished without any bias.

published in cine blitz-may 07-got a prize

CB is the only magazine with substance. I just love the fearless style of writing and Felini,Hurricane Hansa's pet friend. It reminds me of my old favourite journalists like Devyaani chaubal. Earlier i adored Amitabh bacchan,but no more. Their whole family seems to be so calculating and artificial. Instead give me any time our new KBC host Shahrukh ! he comes across as a very caring, affectionate,humble and endearing person.Amitabh has lost all his credibility by endorsing whatever comes his way, including Mulayam singh. i request you to give us more articles about old stars also like Amol palekar, Girish karnad, Om puri and some new ones like Nandita das and Atul Kulkarni etc.

restaurants in chennai---dhaba express

I had heard so much about Dhaba express that this is a good restaurant for vegetarians and then my son also used to praise it to skies, so curiosity got the better of me and I thought of trying it once, the first time we went there it was in the afternoon around 3.30, so they said that they closed in the afternoon from 3- 6 pm. Next time we went at 6pm, they said that they opened at 6.30, again bad luck, we were quite irritated, but this time we were hell bent upon trying it so we just loitered around for half an hour and came back. So far so good. There he asked us we would like to sit in AC or outside,since we had come here to have a dhaba experience ,we opted to sit outside.Personally i am not much for dhabas, for me they are good only if you are on the way, but for dine out experience i prefer something better.We ordered corn methi malai and matar paneer for two of us with kulchas and mango panna to drink. The waiter comes after 10 minutes to tell us that they dont have corn and methi, so can we please order something else. We said fine, we will then prefer stuffed kulchas and add curd. Can you imagin what he says--no sir, your plain kulchas are already prepared,vegetable is not there and they have prepared rotis first:(, but still we agreed. Then the fellow comes after 5 minutes-sir, we dont have peas, can you order something else, now that was sufficient for my husband to explode, and that he did, and for once I dont blame him.and we came back without food.
One thing puzzles me a lot that why many restaurants close in the afternoon or serve the dishes with specific timings, one goes to the restaurant for different reasons, sometimes to taste something we cant or dont prepare at home and sometimes one is outside for some purpose and needs something to eat, and both these requirements are not fulfilled.

trip to madurai kodai, rameshwaram and kanyakumari

earlier when we were in Hyderabad we planned a trip to all these places all together.we went in August but it was very hot in Kanyakumari and Rameshwaram, I think its better to go in winter like from nov. to february.we took Charminar express from Hyderabad to Chennai and reached Chennai in the morning. There we had to wait at the plateform as our next train vagai express was at noon. From vagai express we went to Madurai, this is quite good train with chair car facility. we reached Madurai around 8pm, took a hotel, had a bath and came out for dinner and for booking of our onward trips Food and lodging both is good and plenty and reasonable in Madurai. To our surprise many people were speaking Hindi and sometimes they told us themselves that they know hindi we can converse in hindi:)
next day we went to meenakshi temple in the morning ourselves as were staying very near to the temple.This is a huge temple with some unique staues, many type of poojas were going on, we took a guide and just for Rs.50/ he helped us a lot, apprised us all the details and the stories connected to the temple and how ll the poojas should be done.We did all that and felt very happy.
I had thought long time back that I will go to Meenakshi temple some time, this time god made it possible for us.Then there are some shops outside, Madurai is famous for its madurai silk and cotton. I bought a few sarees and then had lunch.
After lunch we took a conducted tour of Madurai, good for getting a feel of the city. I am a lover of historic places and very much interested in other cultures and everything about them.so good for me, nothing special about it.
around 9.30 we took out conducted tour for Rameshwaram,sat in the bus around 1.30 we reached there, since we had demanded delux lodgings, he gave us a non ac room,not very good, the only redeeming point about it was that from the window we could see the see, fishing boats and all.Otherwise in these tours hotels provided were not upto the mark.In the morning at 5 a guide came for us, he took us to take a dip in the sea at the time of sunrise and then we went to to 22 kund(wells) one by one where he would take out 2 buckets of water and pour over us.It was a magic moment for us,I could not believe that I am in Rameshwaram.This temple is very huge with 1000 pillars, and many shivlings there.There is a story about it, when lord Rama was preparing to cross the sea, he asked Hanuman to bring a shivling. When hanumanji was delayed Lord prepared a shivling then and there himself and started worshipping, and then Hanumaanji came. So bhagwan asked him to move the shivling he has made and at its place put the one he had brought. But Hanumaan ji could not move it.It was a defining moment for him. He understood the bhagwan had done all this to tell him his place as he was getting proud.
after the bath there we id pooja and abhishekam and then came to the hotel for breakfast and lunch. I felt so bad that the place with so much religious importance is full of poverty and misery.I had the lunch of Daal baati choorma , took a stroll and then sat in the bus around 1.30 for the return journey. While returning we saw the temple where the two stone chosen by Neel in ramayana are still floating in a water.
reached around 5.30-6pm at madurai, took a hotel for freshening up and then again took the bus at 9.30 to kanyakumaari., reached there at2.30 or 3, slept a little and around 5.30 we went to see the sunrise.Its an amazing experience. In the morning everything there looks so beautiful, but our tour operatoe bungled everything, initially he said he will show us sunrise and then leave us at hotel to get ready and after that we will for sight seeing.But instead he didnt leave us at the hotel, so we did the sightseeing without freshening up, couldnt enjoy to the fullest.Took a ferry to see vivekanand rock and foot prints of parvati and then went to see the famous temple.In kanya kumaari there is so much to see that I realised we should have stayed there for one more day.any way there is always a next time.Again we came back to hotel and then after bath went to see the market and Chamunda temple. Kanyakumari is a beautiful place worth staying there, with many hotels in and around the sea.I didnt know that there is a train from madurai to kanyakumari, because train is always better than the bus.After the lunch we took back the bus for madurai, reached madurai around 7.30 or 8 and stayed at a hotel for a night.

M.F. Hussain

Society---august 07
Thanks for giving us an interview with Mr. Ashok pandit.I have always been a big fan of his serials and always wanted to know about him.I fully agree with him on the issue of painting nudes of our goddesses.It pained me a lot to see thecelebrities and few magazines supporting Mr. hussain in the name of freedom of artistic expression.But how anyone could be great if he doesnt respect others feelings.and if its a poetic licence,then why doesnt he take the same liberty with his prophet.Just like, people are condemning Mr. Modi left and right,completely forgetting and sidelining the innocent people burnt alive in the train, nobody goes into the reason that why the riots happened in the first place. Here I am not condoning riot or Mr. Modi, but trying to make people see the reason. Rioters had some reason even if itwas misguided one, but what reason the people who burnt the bogey had?Its a sad state of secularism in our country that majority is being sidelined and anti hindu sentiments are considered secular.

deccan chronicle-got a prize also-july 07

Kserials have completely lost their credibility and entertainment value, being just repititive."VIRUDHA" a serial on sony is far better in its storyline presentation and aesthetic value.It has a very different story line augmented by strong actors playing different roles.Characters are well defined and true to people in life, made of flesh and blood. It has all the emotions without being melodramatic.
I like Durgesh Nandini also.Its protagonist durgesh and Lukshya have a very fresh look about them, very endearing couple.Durgesh is shown to be an intelligent girl who cant be taken for granted by anybody, she has immense presence of mind and common sense,so uncommon in todays serials.besides she behaves in a very normal way not taking cudgels on each and everybody's behalf, the way all other heroines like Prerna,Saloni all seem to be doing.Its funny and pathetic both to see prerna, Tulsi, parwati , all doing everything in the family inspite of having a big pariwar, then why have a pariwar?And always they seem to worry about others families and in the bargain destroying their marriages, what sort of signal they want to give? If they cant manage their own husbands and children, how can they look after the whole pariwar, its a puzzle to me.

woman's era -jan 08

In NovII issue, one reader wrote about NRI children visit ,in the same context one more issue is cropping up very frequently is how the old generation should live, because most of them are just existing, not living.Since many of the young professionals arestationed abroad,may be for few years, but for parents its a difficult situation. Either they dont want to live in other countries due to various reasons and problems as the case ay be like;frequent medical requirements,unknown environment,sometimes not being physically strong to shoulder the responsibility of the house which anyway their children expects them to do) or they cant because of the visa problems.Here in Hyderabad I have met many parentsliving alone feeling melencholy and cheated at the autumn of their lives. As when they most need the care and emotional support of their children, they are left alone to fend for themselves.But this also I know that solution doesnt lie in living with children only as sometimes living together brings with itself a host of other problems. It would be better if we remove the stigma attached to old age homes and bring up some senior citizen localities with less frill, more utility oriented and customised services. For this governmant and NGOS may join hands and pool in their resources to bring dignity and happiness to the life of seniors at a reasonable cost.Ideally a senior citizen needs to live in a place close to nature, but with all the assistance in medical,housekeeping and entertaining needs.

woman's era-march II

In your Jan II issue, " A Sweet Atumn " by K. Rangachari was very heart warming. The way elder daughter comes around and the though process of younger one is very touching.In every issue woman's era comes up with atleast one story about how to be a success in a relationhip and gives insight to hitherto unknown depths of emotion and understanding.I would request you to keep us giving us stories about the importance of relationships and how they can be better maintained.All relationships in life-like-husband wife,mother daughter,daughter-in-law versus inlaws,siblings, friends are very important,Today it has become a fashion to give importance to only those whom you need at that particular time of your life, but then need based relationships are not true.One has to learn to be true and right in all the spheres of life and everything becomes easy. This is what gandhiji taught us so many years ago, but we are still struggling with that.

Decaan-april 08-vent your anger

It is very disconcerting to see everyday the same pamphlets and again and again, it is a sheer wastage of such an important commodity like paper and very much against environment conservation, besides it doesnt even help the people who are advertising. I think there should be some regulation about it, like they can be inserted in sunday paper only or something like they should be on recycled paper only. I get many fliers everyday and I just put them in trash feeling sad.
renurastogi

signs should be in marathi

This is such a typical political response. Politicians never think of solving any problem they only aggravate it.Its good that local language and culture should be encouraged but making it mandatory is preposterous.Wake up man! This is out country and all states are indian ,then why this discrimination. It doesnt augur well neither for maharshtra nor for the country.Locals may be given preference while recruiting, but and but only when either they are better or equal to other candidates not otherwise.Why are we going backward now? Instead of widening our horizons and making world our dream place we are making boundaries inside our own country.

Strangers

This is about two couples; KK and sonali and Jimmy shergil and nandana sen.Both are unhappy in their marriage. Jimmy is an unsuccessful writer and he destroys his marriage due to his insecurity while KK 's son dies in an accident and since then his wife has become a psycho, who refuses to accept that her son is dead and still behaves as if he is alive and does all routine jobs for him. KK and nandana meet in a bar and a relationship starts and then nanadana wants to give it a name and then the real twist starts, how they plan everything and how everything backfires and why?
Its interesting in parts, but the end is quite vaguely shown, and sometimes viewer is left to wonder whats happening.Story idea is good but the direction and treatment is what makes it quite below average.

hyderabad airport

In Hyderabad, new airport is functional now. It can be compared to any other international airport in its ambience, comfort and facilities. But now it has become quite far from Hitech city.Though they have started airconditioned bus service but it doesnt cover the hitech city, While I think the maximum volume of passengers must be from this place only.So it will be very convenient if they think of starting this service to may be Shilparamam, as that may become the centre point catering to all sides. And one thing is very much required and that is making the auto people charge according to the meter. Neither in Hyderabad nor in Chennai,none of them use the meters and there is nobody to see that they comply with the rules

chennai news paper

From my childhood I was very fond of reading, at that time instead of news paper i was more interested in magazines and later on novels.But after growing up newspaper became a must to see with the morning cuppa for me and sometimes I feel surprised how my loyalties have changed regarding the paper.In the early 80s in Calcutta Telegraph was a rage and MJ AKbar, its editor became my favourite journalist.From a very upright and popular journalist, how and when he went into oblivion, never knew. Then in Delhi of course Hindustan times it is.Without reading it I felt if something missing and when in Indore I longed for it, but they have their own favourites like Free press and all. Slowly we got used to it. and then onward Hindustan times was lost for ever, as every place has its own tabloid like Dainik jagran in kanpur,and then we caught on with TOI, though still I prefer its Delhi version instead of Mumbai.But after settling in Hyderabad I started liking Deccan Chronicle, its very big plus point was that besides giving national news, it completely covers the city in all respects and one is all the time aware of what is happening where and that is very much required for people like me who wanted to know the city.It always listed all the important events with the addresses, and all other things like variety in restaurants, shops, travel needs and TV , almost everything. I liked it so much that when I came to Chennai, I wanted this only. But sadly its chennai version is not the same.Even the sankranti festival celebrated in Mylapore, such an important event and I dint know,nor that food festival, that of roadside stalls of authentic tamil cuisine.And I think its important for all the people writing about any place to include the address or atleast location of the place, bacause all the people going thru it may not be so well versed with the city to know just by name.Even otherwise when you are telling about something,your aim is to familiarise it with people, so what is the point in being vague about the address, I feel all the listings should be with ph no. and address all the time

Life in a metro and Just married

recently I saw these two movies I wanted to see for a long time, Life in a metro was quite appreciated by everybody so I was quite curious to see, but I was dissappointed. It starts very slowly, and after a period that that rain is quite irritating. Moreover this style of introducing characters one by one is getting quite stale and slow process.The treatment is quite cliche and so is the end. Only part i liked was with Sharman and Irfan and Konkona

In Just married the basic story is good that there may be some awkwardness in an arranged marriage but the treatment and inacting of the lead couple both make the movie quite insipid.Isha has acted in such a way, as if she has been married against her will to a horrible man, This is not the way brides react in an arranged marriage and Fardeen as usual is hamming.And the idea of showing happy marriage thru a couple married for 40 yrs is completely bizarre, as they are shown cribbing all the time

inspiration

Motivation is what gets you started. habit is what keeps you going.--by Jim Ryun

Problems can either make you or break you.
The hammer that can break glass can shape steel.
Its upto you to be a glass or a steel.
Have the will power of steel and vision of glass

Murugan Idli shop-chennai

Just the other day we went to see the beach in beasant nagar, I like that area very much, as it has a very old and good temple-Ashtlakshmi temple and a very good neat and clean beach, with many eating outlets, plus it has all type of shops, and on the roadside very good cotton material for salwar kameej is availabe and yes all types of pearls and trinkets in a reasonable price.So we went to this Murugan Idli shop, this is a good outlet, neat and clean, air conditioned ( a must in Chennai weather). Here they serve the food on Babana leaf and there is no bowl or spoons, (they supply spoons on demand) but the preparations are yummy,cuisine is south indian, mainly dosas,idli, uttapam and all that.We ordered Idli vada and dosa and loved every bit of it.I would recommend it to everybody, and i forgot to tell that prices are also very reasonable

raj thackerey

MNS has opened pandora box by taking the issue of maharashtrian and non maharashtrian. Its only due to the politics of votes that this issue is even being discussed, otherwise making prohibited boundaries in a coutry in itself be considered a crime but for the last 60 yrs our politician have followed the british policy of divide and rule.In today's times when boundaries are vanishing in the world over, here we are talking about north indian,south indian.Its so ridiculous that on one side we are asking US to open us,give us more H1 visas and all and closing our borders for our own brethren,what for; for power and self interest. Country may go to the dos,who cares.If Raj thackerey is so much against north indians, then why target only Amitabh bacchan, ask all actors,industrialists and artists who were not born in Maharashtra to leave it and then see what is left, and personally he shouldnt watch Hindi movies, shudnt employ bihari workers(which he did recently) and should never try to step out of maharashtra.Mumbai is what it is today because of its multigrain personality,take it out and it will be a dead city in notime. Our politicians are all out to destroy whatever we have, none tries to construct anything, without realising that it takes years to build something whether its a city country or relationship and can be broken in a moment.