Bollywood: A Regressive World which seldom offers us Pure Cinema Delight

Bollywood is a world by itself which operates on the basis that it celebrates Cinema and provides a platform for the artists.
Reality is that its nothing more than a money minting business being operated by the same bunch of people offering us cheap quality entertainment and copied(inspired) bits and pieces from different sources.
We have a culture of Stars here and not artists. These stars who earn big bucks and loyalty from their fans think of themselves as Gods. They decide who should be part of the industry and who shouldn't get a chance to prove their worth.
Story line in a movie is the least pondered upon and the star case the most sought item.
If you want to be selected for an Engineering service, you should be an engineering graduate and if u want to be part of something big then should be the best with all the skill sets.
Guess, what's needed to make it big in Bollywood?
Degree from a Film school ?....Naah
Theater workshop experience? ...Naah
You need connections :)
Stars in their personal interviews would talk about all big things...such as women empowerment. So, you would think they would promote the same in their reel life....Naah!
Women are still objectified. You would find every other movie where the whole objective of the leading lady in the movie to be dancing to poorly choreographed songs ( they should lodge FIR for being groped actually) or being the emotional support providing marital bliss to their partners.
Bollywood and their regional partners are one of the leading cause of women being targeted and approached in a manner which is so unjust and undermining.
We use words like Hero and Actor for leading men in a film which ridicules the whole meaning of these words.
Its a big scam which runs legally in our country and no-one seems to care. The actor, producers, distributors and cinema halls have made sure that irrespective of story, cast and any artistic value for the movie created; the movie would be promoted, screened and made successful.
God save us! The real one :)

A positive change I see is the coming of age of Internet media where you get to see so many creative, uncensored and un-regulated offerings. Justifying the real meaning of Art and Creativity.

The Social Network

The Social Network took the whole world by storm..especially the Youth and the Gen- next. The best way to stay updated, connected and yes to find old friends and make plenty new ones. These sites had a lot of appeal ..we could see each other pics, birth day details and what not. The addiction was damn high from posting scraps on Orkut to each other even when you are sitting next to each other to updating statuses on FB. Indian Companies soon got to know that this addiction was some where eating up resource's time and productivity so they blocked the sites. But when there's will there are way too many ways; help came in as mirror sites some proxy sites.       
I too was on Orkut and later on migrated to FaceBook. After an year of use, I found that it's monotonous..every one sharing, liking and updating the same thing. These apps are even on Mobile to make sure you stay connected everywhere. But sometime back I was stuck by the moment so much that I introspected. Today we hang out with a bunch of good old friends at some place...almost everyone posts the update on FB..few take it even further by posting pics of the current place we are hanging out and tags everyone of us. We all laugh and check the likes, comments and share of the FB pics and status we updated. Now do we realize that we bunch of friends are together in front of each other meeting after a long time should have chatted, laughed and had a good time talking to each other that checking the FB every other minute and talking about it?
I think this what the term addiction means and what Drugs do to mortals like us. Is the Social Network which is about connecting to each other is actually letting us connect for real? I believe the social network or the virtual network has made us more lonely that ever. We keep on checking the News Feed so that we can like something. Instead of going out on the streets and meeting someone we like or comment on our computer screen..hmm I think that's being connected.
The Social animal seems to turn to Virtual "Avataar" because of the Social Network.
Anyways it's just a thought..I'll go for a stroll outside and connect to Nature for a while..and yes I am carrying the mobile with me so that I get my constant notifications :)

Now I know why people write Diary

I watched so many movies, shows and plays revolving around memoirs from Diary but I never used to understand why people write them. The mere thought of the task which involves sitting on a chair and put the activities/experiences in black and white instilled a repulsion from diary writing.
But now I know why people do it...Almost everyday in life, we are looking for answers to the many questions life asks us. Most of the times our friends and family are right by our side to solve the riddle. But over the years, I found that it's not the answers which made me feel good but it's the feeling which I received from sharing the questions.
Now when I look around me, scroll through my phone contacts and I find no one...Diary seems to be the kindest friend I have. Ready to listen whatever I share. Diary knows that the questions I am throwing at it doesn't need to be answered and meekly acknowledges the fact and remains Silent.

Y do Friends get Married ?

No no ..its not the pain of letting go a Friend to a full commitment mode but the pain of attending one :)

In span of 4 months , 2 of my very close friends got married...that's of course a very good news but thats not what provoked me to write all this...I attended both the marriages at different geographical locations and in different seasons.Deepak Sareen, My Infy batchmate, room mate and a very close friend got married in Feb. Weather in Bangalore was pleasant and I had no idea that Delhi must be chilling....I reached there with one sleeveless sweater and was pretty sure that even that was unnecessary. Punjabi shaadi starts somewhere in the evening at around 7-8 pm, I was waiting with the other baaratis for the Groom to arrive. IST justifies itself when mentioned as Indian Stretchable Time...the Groom arrived in a car and was helped by relatives to get to the Mare(Ghodi). The moment band waalas see the Groom on the Mare , they start playing all the songs with all the instruments possible. The baraatis including me start dancing to these tunes...after sometime even when we want to stop ...it seems we are forced to continue dancing till will reach the Bride's place. After some rituals from Bride's side at the entrance we all are allowed inside. Now the moment we(baraatis) are in the marriage lawn it doesn't matter to us what happens to Bride and Groom. You'll find everyone at chaat and drinks stalls. Aunties in their dazzlings sarees try every item on the stalls and start comparing it to some other party they attended. Uncles don't complain they all seem satisfied with the drinks, soda and cola. I had chaats and followed everyone to the dinner stalls. Everyone finished their dinner and started leaving...I patiently waited for the marriage to start. The mercury started dipping and I started having coffee every 1 minutes. Finally the marriage started and it was gr8 experience watching a Bengali Gal (Anu) wedding apna Punjabi Munda..There were 2 pandits from both side to make sure things are being followed their way :) The negotiations between both families about the ritual were going on and the marriage proceeded. I was shivering there in cold and If I could have I would have quickly pronounced them Husband and Wife to end my trauma. The marriage ended at 3-4 am in the morning. I thought I would catch cold or fever and people at office would have no doubt that I am not keeping well. I was on a sick leave for 2 days to attend marriage and god had its way to justify things :)

I shifted to Pune to join Amdocs and meanwhile heard the news that Yogesh, my collegemate and my very close friend was getting married in May. This time of the year Mercury is soaring high, it makes sure that the mortals are confined to their homes. Marriage venue was a viallage close to Nashik and 250 kms from Pune. I took the volvo in the afternoon to Nashik. The AC didn't help much but I was breathing at least. I reached Nashik at 9:30 pm after 7 hours of bus journey. Got to know that the place is still 45 kms far and I had to take a share Omni for that. 11 people in an Omni Van in such a weather is a punishment. There was a family whose children were sitting partially on my lap...India mein hume bada adjust karte hai :) After sweating all the way I reached the village. At 11:30 I reached the marriage hall starving only to know that the food is finished and the nearby shops are closed. Even after that we were made to dance in front of Bride's house....the scene was too good there...chairs were properly arranged outside her home and all the elders sat there and were waiting for the dance to begin. Embarrassment at its peak but nobody knew me there so no problem ...I danced with others. Next day at 11:30 am we had the marriage....I mean why ppl choose such a time...Hot summer day and 12:00 am ..what a combination...Even here we had the Bandwaalas and they started playing the songs...this time the guy was singing also :) I believe the occasion doesn't matter to these bands as in both the marriages they played patriotic and festivals songs :). Yogi planted himself on the Mare and we started dancing again..this time under hot sun ...sometimes "Friendship" takes a toll on u. Anyways the marriage was quickly over in 1 1/2 hr and everyone was leaving. I had the volvo reservation in the night but all my friends wanted to escape earlier. I had to change my plan and in that heat, we took a normal bus for Pune. Oh godd! it was like travelling in a oven ...to top it up with whipped cream there was jam in the Ghat region and the bus got stuck for 2 additional hours. I reached Pune at 11:30 pm ...and yes I was glad to reach back.

All this pain for Marriage...I tell you Marriage is such an event which affects a lot of ppl in different ways. Anyways ..I wish both my friends a happy life ahead....meanwhile I know what to do...:) stay away from it for the Greater Good :)

Had a Taste of Pune's Night Life

Friday in Office seems hard to pass by specially after 5 days in Office but this day was meant to be different or I should say... Special. At 8:00 pm in the Newton room (The CLARO Team's Den) , the 4 of us decided to hit the pub and continue on our plan to get High.

Vivek babu asked me to ride his Hunk and I cheerfully agreed...nothing like hitting the road on Friday evening :) . Rahul and Nitin followed us and we were on our way to F C Road. Vivek came up with a technological breakthrough and handed over his Navigator phone to Nitin and asked him to follow the instructions. Now we sped off towards our destination with Vivek being my navigator...roads started to get complicated. We traveled around 15-17 kms and took several wrong turns and traffic lights before we reached the "Apache Pub" (I didn't mind riding the bike though). There are 2 Apache pubs on F C Road but Vivek asked us to land up in the 2nd one coz of only couple entry in the 1st one. The moment we parked our bikes there we had our eyes lit up :)

Apache pub is not that spacious but cozy enough to be with friends. Inside the pub the crowd was decent enough...grp of gals...couples and of course majority ...ppl like us...lukhe.:). The crowd out there seemed to be regular members of Apache as they were expecting every song being played and they did sing along aloud :). As per Vivek's request we ordered "Go To Hell" pitcher with snacks. At first we thought we are drinking "Roohafaza" bcoz of the taste and color but later realized its far better than that. The content of the drink are Gin, Vodka, Whisky, Rum, Beer, Fanta, Cola and Sprite. After having the first pitcher we thought to throw in some light on CRM so I called up Nandan. Nandan quickly agreed and sped to the pub within 20 mins. We guys started the 2nd round and by that time even we were up to the pitch of English music bands ...most of the numbers being of Linkin Park...no1 band in places like these... however Nitin wanted to hear some bollywood numbers like Kajare but to our disappointment it was not to be. Anyways we head banged and ordered 3 more pitchers. The clock stroke 12:30 am and we were presented the bill.

We got out of the pub and cool breeze welcomed us all. We all were drunk so no question of who can be a trusted rider...I took the chance and as usual loved riding bike after getting alocholuted :) .We hit the road and suddenly decided to have coffee somewhere. CCD was the first choice of all but we couldn't find any near by. After wandering 2-3 kms for coffee shop, we decided to hit the Pune station....CumSome the Pune station cafeteria remains open 24 X 7. We all reached there and of course there was college crowd get together ...sipping coffee having cakes and taking snaps...we had cold coffee topped with those gals around :) After sipping the not so cold Cold coffee we left the place.. Thanks to railways Mamta and Laalu...or whomsoever we got our coffee..

Nandan took his way back and rest of us sped off towards Magarpatta...at 1:30 am in Iris magarpatta... in the lawns...we laid down and started chit chat...Life is made of moments like these and sure my Pune Chapter begins on this Note ...

signing off..cheers

Paying Road tax in Pune

Writing this blog just to help out others who want to pay the 2 wheeler road tax in Pune. I didn't vouch for any agent so had tough time today at the RTO (Near Sangam bridge) ...the main RTO in Pune. My vehicle, Pulsar 150 cc, is Karnataka registered and I wanted to pay only the Road tax i.e my vehicle number will still be Karnataka's.

Now to start with the documents required:

1) RC Book

2) Driving License

3) Active vehicle insurance

4) Original invoice...this is used to compute the Road tax amount

5) PUC slip

6) 1 plain paper

7) Local proof...not compulsory

In case of "change of registration" u need to have NOC of vehicle previous registration. It takes some days before u r handed over the new number.

Procedure:

Get the xerox copy of all the above mentioned documents (if u haven't, there's a xerox shop in the RTO compound) and collect a FT document from a store(its free of cost) just outside the main RTO building. There will dozens of agents asking u to fill the form on ur behalf...just ignore them..the form is very simple to fill...just copy the details from ur RC book.(The form is in English).

After u have copied the details on the FT form from ur RC book, just write an application on the plain paper to the Regional officer RTO (Mr. Nikam) asking him to approve ur case to file road tax. Take the completed FT form and application to Mr. Nikam's office (enter RTO main building and take the 1st right...u'll see his office and name). He will sign on the form saying "Accept Tax". After this is done rush to the lady at the extreme corner on left..this lady will look at the invoice and compute the road tax amount on the FT form. Next, rush to another lady, Mrs Korse, this lady will have a short look at the form and just sign it and will ask u to join the queue to pay the road tax (The amount will be the one computed by the lady earlier). This is the place I got messed up big time...got in the wrong queue...the one mentioned by the Mrs Korse was wrong...I wasted around 2 hrs in the wrong line.Lines are not that big but you have agents in the line with 1o cases at a time...and some back door entries...but can't help but wait :(

Get into the line for window 23...this is the one accepting road tax for outside vehicles. After some wait and patience u'll finally get ur receipt indicating that ur vehicle has paid the Maharashtra road tax :)

The help window won't be of much help so please don't waste much time there. If you face any troublesome issue at the Office ...Mr. Nikam is the best person to contact..he sure helps :)

All the best and after this task is completed ...rip away ur bike in Pune's streets.

Subbu saar's love :)

Some people do create impressions and make them stay forever!

Villain he calls himself,

Yes, he is the villain, who stole many a girls heart,

And made all our girls never look at us even once,

Yes, he is the villain, who danced for just a song,

But made all our hours of dances seemed like nothing..

‘Not Gay’ he calls himself,

Yes, he is not, but he is one biggest admirers of,

Avinash, Anna and Praveen, but not Sumayya Chandu or Paloma :D

Yes, he is not, but he chose to ignore the super gorgeous Simran,

And chose to say, “hamaare profession mein, yeh sab common hai”

He says, he can’t dance,

Yes, he can’t dance, but he learns Aman’s choreo

Which makes even sumi and Chandu shudder, just in a matter of half a day!

Yes, he can’t dance, and of course he cant dance,

Did you see how “bad” he danced for Ek Pal Ka Jeena?

Dude!! You are one super talented, energetic, and down to earth, and what not a guy! You are quickly becoming a fabulous dancer!!!

To tell you insider secrets, even last year, you had so much of points in auditions…. Just as we said, about your dance it was the only thing, which we were having doubts on… J but now, I must say, we wouldn’t even think twice!! We were kinda feeling, we don’t have roles this year to justify your abilities… and then we had to settle by making you the official villain!!!

Then we were thinking, the next year, may be we could do justice to you!!! But alas! Good things don’t stay for ever they say!! Knowing you for the past couple of years, I hadn’t had an iota of idea that you would turn up like a goat in a huge bear’s clothing!! You rock dude!

Wish you a great time ahead! For sure, the Infy, Parichay and of course, we - your friends will miss you really!! Come back soon, we got to do many shows together!! Bangalore for sure, needs you !

Lotsa love,

Subbs J