almost me

Sid.

2011-12-17T20:46:00.000+05:30

Next time I come back from Mumbai, it will be bit difficult for me to accept this flat as 'house'! No, not because you will not be there, but there will not be any stuff lying around on sofa, bed, chairs, no fan running at full speed, no shoes scattered everywhere on floor. And surprisingly, somehow, to me, it will look like no one stays here! Without the dry daaru bottles and drying utensils, the kitchen too will look empty. I will not have to remember to close the gas knob before I go to sleep, neither will I have to think whether to keep the outer metal door open so that you can come in anytime at late night (rather morning). It will be like, I will have nothing to do in this place still called house! (oops little too senti!)

It's not that I have never stayed alone in this house before, but then I always knew that you will be back sometime, may be we will even see and talk to each other once in 3-4 days at least. Even when you had gone for your long jaundice holiday, I still didn't feel like I feel today (not for you, for myself). Sadly, I also feel that it's not because you are leaving, but because I will be alone, that I am sad. But I guess that's the case with everyone in this selfish world.

When we were classmates in NID, I never imagined I will spend so much time with you after NID! At the end of these 4 years (f...o....u...r.... years!) of sharing a house (and few other things, like your laptop charger and my laptop), I still find it surprising that we actually did! And if someone asks me what made you two stay together for this long, I have no answer! I wonder how come we even never had any fight or argument!
As if this feeling was not surprising enough, as I am writing, I receive an SMS from a very distant friend,"Some reasons definitely make relationships strong, but the fact is, only strong relations will remain forever without any reason!"
aamen
take care
bhavin

Epilogue: This reminds me that I will have to buy a new laptop charger now! :( This post would have been a much better read, had someone paid me to write it. I might have even taken little effort to find and photoshop a good picture of yours then, and name this post as 'an open letter to my house-mate' etc. Jokes apart, there were so many things coming to my mind as I thought of writing this Sid, but somehow its not possible and even required. To some extent this whole blog itself is somehow related to all the time we spent together, all the things we did, from chatting on our own blog comments, to bike rides, photography, to window shopping, movies (and writing the reviews on blog!)..... I have to stop writing now as the dictionary meaning of epilogue uses the word 'short' write-up. I also have to spend some time talking to my next room-mate, a much better one! ;)

रेस

2011-09-25T16:07:00.000+05:30

कुछ देर तमाशा देख लेना तूम भी

जिंदगी तुम और करोगे भी क्या मेरा?

लम्बी रेस का घोडा हूँ,

कुछ देर साथ चल लेना तुम भी!

. -भावीन

(woww... after rejecting so many filmy hindi poems, finally i post my first hindi lines in blog! :) )

प्रेम म्हणजे तू

2011-09-21T19:44:00.000+05:30

(click to enlarge)

My first DUCATI

2011-07-25T17:53:00.000+05:30

OK, it's just a pair of shoes,but it's DUCATI! :) And I am happy for finally having bought them! I have been thinking of buying something nice from Puma Ducati series but was always confused if I should really do that for different reasons. Sometimes I found them in green or blue which is certainly not Ducati colour, the red ones were so red that i didn't know when will I use them, sometimes the ones I found in Ahmedabad stores were so 'too much' that I just wanted to take that Ducati logo off from them, and almost all the time the price was beyond my budget! Ohh and once I decided no to buy them ever, after I watched the movie 'Children of Heaven'! hahaha...

Anyway, so yesterday When I actualy wanted (almost = needed) to buy a pair of shoes and didnt like anything other than the 2 Puma Ducati ones, the only option was to buy one of them! Sid acted like catalyst (even offering to contribute as my b'day gift! :), and I ended up buying these! Thank you Sid!

The funny thing about these DUCATI shoes is, the instruction inside says,'Not recommended for riding!' hahaha....

I think I can't write any more meaningless and purposeless....

So thats it, and now I have something in July 2011 archive of my blog too! hooshhhhhhh...

ohh and before I conclude here is the newest and best from the Puma DUCATI series, which I would still love to buy (or rather be gifted) if it becomes available in India, The 'DUCATI Testastretta II' riding shoes. Dont miss the aluminum sole rim below heel and below puma cat in front! coollll, isnt it? :)

You are beautiful!

2011-06-02T23:58:00.002+05:30

One day your eyelashes will turn white, one day your lips will be covered with wrinkles and so will be your palm. And I will still say, "you are beautiful!" For, the love in your eyes will still be the same, the smile on your lips will still brighten my day and the warmth of the touch of your palm in my hand will still give me all the strength to overcome the challenges in life. And whenever I will tell you that you are beautiful, I will mean it, irrespective of how you look then, for the real beauty never ages, it only becomes richer and richer with time.
It takes time, not to look beautiful, but to 'be' beautiful, to be perceived beautiful, for you to understand yourselves that you are beautiful. 'Cause the real beauty is something to be experienced and not just seen!
I always wondered what is that makes you look so beautiful, all the time! I knew it is something beyond your beautiful tender skin, your silky hair and your deep black eyes. And then one day I saw you with that baby oil bottle in your hand! Eureka! No, it's not your skin as tender as a baby's, neither your eyes as expressive as a baby's. It's your heart! You have a pure heart, as pure as that of a baby. A heart that brings such a beautiful smile on your lips, the heart that says it all through eyes, without any hesitance, without any hidden intentions. It's this ability of yours to have maintained the purity of heart, which makes you beautiful. It's this lovely spotless heart which makes you happy and smiling about all those tiniest of the things, from a mere thought of having an icecream to making new plans of travelling to places. A happy person always looks beautiful. I can now see all those small things you do and you have to make yourself happy. 'Cause to be happy you need to love yourself, appreciate yourself and be confident about what you are. I wonder if this is what you think about when you sit in front of the mirror, with all those colourful tiny bottles and brushes? Trying to do things to make yourself happy and not exactly beautiful? Or actually giving that beautiful expression of your pure heart, a finishing touch? Yes you are beautiful, and now I know your real beauty is in the happiness you have and the happiness you spread, and that this way you will be beautiful forever!

image from Juliettesunshine.wordpress.com

To indulge in more discussions about realy beauty, visit Yahoo! Real Beauty

बड़ा आदमी

2011-04-29T19:03:00.000+05:30

मै: भैया यहाँ रूम बुकिंग का कौन देखता है?
चौकीदार: मै ही देखता हूँ, क्या हुआ?

मै: तो मै एक घंटे से आपको ढूंढ रहा हूँ,यहाँ कोई नहीं था

चौकीदार: कहाँ से आये हो?
मै: अहमदाबाद
चौकीदार: मै घूमने के लिए गया था
मै: रात में ४ बजे?
चौकीदार: हाँ, आप एक घंटे से यहाँ इंतज़ार कर रहे हो?
मै: हाँ
चौकीदार: आपने किसीको नींद से जगाया तो नहीं यहाँ?
मै: हाँ, वो जो पहली रूम में अंकल है उनको पूछा, लेकिन उनको कुछ पता नहीं
चौकीदार: उनको पूछा? उनको कुछ नहीं पूछने का
मै: क्यूँ? (typical me!)
चौकीदार: वो बहूत बड़ा आदमी है! जज साब है!

will miss you!

2011-04-23T22:39:00.001+05:30

The window....

the view......

the moon......

the river.... the bridge...

all this as seen from my bedroom, I will miss. Strange enough, we are shifting to a new house which is just next door, same floor, same building.... and still I will miss all this..... Truth, they say, is stranger than imagination! I hope the change will prove to be nice in some other way, unknown yet!

(more about the bridge here.)

Strange whispers

2011-03-29T12:31:00.000+05:30

(only audio and lyrics)

from movie 'Hazaron Khwahishein Aisi'
Strange Whispers

Sun in the earth..
Sunflower..
Bird in the air..
Rain..
Eye within eye..
Daybreak..

Baavra Mann..
Dekhne Chala..
Ek Sapna..

Streets we have never walked on..
Windows we have never opened..
Hands we have never held..
Dreams we shall never..
Never see again..

Baavra Mann Dekhne Chala..
Ek Sapna..
Baavrese Mann Ki Dekho..
Baavri Hain Baatein..
Baavrisi Dhadkane Hain..
Baavri Hain Saanse..

Sun in the earth..
Sunflower..
Bird in the air..
Rain..
Eye within eye..
Daybreak..

Lives we have never lived..
Hopes we have never realized..
Fires we have never lit..
Loves we shall never..
Never make again..

Baavra Mann..
Dekhne Chala..
Ek Sapna..

Sun in the earth..
Sunflower..
Bird in the air..
Rain..
Eye within eye..
Daybreak..

I hear..
Those strange whispers
again........

Sunset

2011-03-21T23:51:00.001+05:30

With hands in my pocket, I am walking towards the setting sun. Its just the sand and the wind whispering around me, even the waves have calmed down after a tiresome day of struggle. The sun is just above its shivering reflection on waves. I subconsciously stand still somewhere, gazing at the sun. At one point of time, the sun gently touches water. I somehow feel the memory of that touch deep within myself.

I stretch my right hand towards yours. I don't feel the touch, instead i keep staring at it... on the reflection of sun.The sun keeps melting in its reflection... slowly... "I want to tell you something", I say while looking at the sun. Coming in front of me, you start melting in my arms. I am still looking at that drowning sun. just few moments... under the golden sky... my eyes now keep wandering on the reflection. Reserving some light for itself, the sun has almost vanished. And so is vanishing, the feeling of your touch in my arms. I am trying to keep track of that disappearing reflection... unsuccessfully.

For a long time now, I am waiting for you, with both my hands still in pockets. The little golden orange light, left by the sun, makes the pain of your absence a lot more severe. The crazy wind keeps searching for you around my still body. It doesn't even need any sunlight now... just like me....

(I a just trying to come back to blogging with this attempted translation of my very old marathi writeup! :) )

Once upon a time in TIME.

2011-02-18T23:43:00.005+05:30

Once upon a time, there was a second hand, running inside a wall clock. Always fresh and energetic, he kept running, faster than the minute hand and much faster than the slow lazy hour hand. He was very proud of himself, his speed, his precision, his energy, his successful life! Meeting the 12 numbers every minute, he felt he was popular too! Untill one day, he decided to think about his successful life, or rather the life.

He couldnt afford to stop and think, actually the first thing he realised was that stopping was not in his hands, neither was running! disturbed and disappointed he kept running, round and round and round, reaching nowhere.

He wanted to ask those 12 numbers and the other two hands, what all this meant? And he realised, while trying to keep up with the time, he could never spend enough time with any of them! He realised, he had no control over his speed, motion, perfection, his successful life! He was bound to the pivot. The pivot which gave him the drive to keep running, all his life, in the same manner, in the same boundaries of the wall clock, round and round and round. He really wanted to see what was there, beyond the boundaries of clock, if not time. He wanted to know how it feels to once stop and think, he wanted to know how it is to be not bound to something.

Once upon a time, there was a second hand inside a wall clock, who decided to stop running for life, round and round and round.

Anushree

2011-02-18T12:48:00.004+05:30

"Two types of people get sound sleep. The first who just don't dream, second whose dreams have come true! Few others like me, get up half way through their dreams, with anger in their half open eyes, and memories of their dreams haunting the day!
I feel, dreams have their own life, or is it that the life itself is a dream? You wake up and it's gone!"
(an attempted translation of Anushree's blog intro in marathi, all credits to her!)

Valentino's Day :)

2011-02-14T17:10:00.003+05:30

Now this will sound like a bad joke to most of my readers but I hope there are atleast 2-3 diehard Valentino Rossi fans who will read and like this!
So If there can be a day to be celebrated as 'Valentino's day'... yes to show your love, respect or whatever for this legend, which day will it be?
the 46th day of every year?
that is 15th of Feb!
:)

(for those innocent hearts whom I have still not educated about Rossi, 46 etc, please click the tags/labels below.)

जीव गुंतला असा...

2011-02-11T23:15:00.005+05:30

जीव गुंतला असा
की शब्द तुझेच ऐकले,
गाणे दाटले गळ्यात
पाणी डोळ्यांत थांबले

नको नवे बंध म्हणता
पाश गुंफत राहिले
रात्र सरली बेधुंदिची
स्वप्न रंगत राहिले

जीव गुंतला असा
की मागे काही ना राहिले,
मन मारी भराऱ्या पिंजऱ्यात
पंख बंदच राहिले
- भावीन

welcome!

2011-01-20T16:39:00.004+05:30

hii dearos,
hope it was not much effort to reach here (again)!
And I am really curious to know who has reached when!
so do drop a comment!
:)
except for the web url, nothing has really changed! so just change the address you have,
from
http://www.besigns.blogspot.com/
to
http://www.bhavinmali.blogspot.com/

and enjoy...
;)
bhavin

The Italian Dream

2011-01-19T15:55:00.004+05:30

Finally!.....
Valentino Rossi + Ducati

Rossi, now in RED!

bhavin mali is now AVAILABLE!

2011-01-15T16:31:00.006+05:30

hahahaha...
I mean for freelance.
And I have put that 'besigns' term I coined many years ago, to some better work finally!

www.besigns.in

The name that I used for my portfolio for NID interview loooks like this now with the new punchline. The oldest one was 'Exploring Truth, Beyond Imagination' :)

Past was good, lets hope future is better! :)

2011

2010-12-31T20:24:00.002+05:30

Dear God, grant us...

the Serenity to accept things we cannot change,

Courage to change the things we can, and

the Wisdom to know the difference.

Patience for the things that take time

Appreciation for all that we have, and

Tolerance for those with different struggles

Freedom to live beyond the limitations of our past ways,

Ability to feel your love for us and our love for each other, and the

Strength to get up and try again even when we feel it is hopeless.

The Last Sunday.

2010-12-19T11:31:00.005+05:30

1 route
2 Bikes
3 winters
33 months
825 happy mornings
33,000 km
3,21,750 distinct jerks to spinal cord.
Restart.

Few dreams
some wishes
many people
some friends
few relations
lot of exposure
some lessons
few realisations.
Refresh.

Thought of You

2010-12-10T21:54:00.003+05:30

Came across this exceptionally beautiful animation of the song "World Spins Madly On".
Loved the simplistic intricacies of the animation by Ryan Woodward.
Enjoy the animation here.
Check website of Ryan Woodward also for more details.

And here is the lyrics of The weepies song.

"World Spins Madly On"

Woke up and wished that I was dead
With an aching in my head
I lay motionless in bed
I thought of you and where you'd gone
and let the world spin madly on

Everything that I said I'd do
Like make the world brand new
And take the time for you
I just got lost and slept right through the dawn
And the world spins madly on

I let the day go by
I always say goodbye
I watch the stars from my window sill
The whole world is moving and I'm standing still

Woke up and wished that I was dead
With an aching in my head
I lay motionless in bed
The night is here and the day is gone
And the world spins madly on

I thought of you and where you'd gone
And the world spins madly on.

Make new Mistakes (epilogue)

2010-12-08T18:59:00.008+05:30

I had talked about this here before.

It took a long time, exactly one year! But I did it.... finally.

It's quite strange and weird when you have to choose from one of the two closely linked things.
Time. Money
Thrill. Fear.
Dreams. Reality.
Self. Family.
Now. Later.
Theoritically the choices seem to be easy. Practically?
:)

कातरवेळी

2010-11-11T22:31:00.007+05:30

(हो, पहिल्या दोन ओळी सांज गारवा मधून! )

The Unreachable

2010-11-06T23:10:00.005+05:30

"You should go for things closer to you than the unreachable ones!"
-By Anonymous
I wish I could agree!

9 months

2010-09-23T22:39:00.006+05:30

This post (questionnaire) is dedicated to (aimed at) my expecting friends, wives of my colleagues and some relatives etc. Somehow there are many of them this time! (recession?) ;) Enlighten me.

How does it feel, to know that something is growing fast inside your body? Something that you WANT to grow, something that is completely dependent on you, your life, you breathing, your eating. Something that is as good as your own body part, something that will give you a new identity!
How does it feel, to know that when it is fully developed and ready to see the light, it will be the most painful time in your life! And you still want it to grow, the piece of your flesh, which is being nourished on 'your' food, blood, thoughts! How does it feel to wait for that day? The day when you will get the pain, life and identity!
How does it feel to know this, so much in advance? Something that is even slowing down the time, feeling each minute, kicking inside you slowly! Something that demands and gets all your attention, all the time!
How does it feel to know, this is the closest you can ever hold a life to yourself, your own life! Perhaps something much more precious than your own life, because you know, you had never touched your own belly with so much care and love before this! And you know how exactly it feels to exist and move around in an almost different body for few months!
What is that feeling, that you exerience till that day of 'light', amongst all those uncertainties and huge expectations? How does it feel to simultaneously know and not know something? How does it feel to know that only half the human beings can experience this? that is if you didn't consider a farmer's experience and situation worth comparing. The farmer who buries all his earnings in the soil and expects some life to emerge from there! The life that will probably save his life and few more!
How does it feel to end something good, expecting something better will start? And to be mentally ready, rather willing for it, 9 months in advance!

(update: Aakanksha gave me this link to a supposedly amazing video named 'in the womb'. Will watch it soon!)

Stories and Trees

2010-09-16T11:53:00.014+05:30

This was a long due post and now I don't even remember how I thought about the link between type of stories and type of trees. I still haven't thought about this in depth though. With my limited reading statistics, I can provide only 1 or 2 examples of each type! :)

Palm Stories: These are generally plain looking and not so interesting stories at first look. The story teller takes enough time to build the base for the story. It requires you to go on reading till you reach the top point (high-point as it is called), to really enjoy and understand the story. Examples can be some good humour stories (jokes?) or even some travelogues etc.

e.g. Jonathan Livingston Seagull

Bush Stories:

The story teller is an ordinary person and so is the topic of his story. The story can be woven around any routine experience or common personalities existing around. Whether the story is interesting or not depends hugely upon the creativity of story teller. There is not much firm basework and main attraction is the surface ornamentation of story (or bush!). Many blog posts fall in this category.

e.g. this post. and this too

Creeper Stories: There exists a huge variety in this little complicated and equally interesting category of stories. They can range from real life experiences to fantacy stories and love stories to murder mysteries. The interesting part is, the branches or supporting parts are almost as strong (or weak) and as important as the main stem. So even if it looks like there is not strong enough base for the story, the strength lies in the complex network of all the characters and their own lives! There are lot many twists and turns and many 'high-points' worth enjoying throughout the length and width of the story, just like flower creepers. You can actually enjoy any part of the story and will be pulled in to trace the start and end, eventually realising its the journey that is more enjoyable than the end points.

e.g. the recent good example is this story by Janaki (part 1 to 10).

Pine Stories: The composition, form, structure, details.... this is what makes these stories worth reading. They are very predictable, like love stories, but the way they are told/narrated, in a very soft romantic poem like manner, makes them enjoyable.

e.g. 2 states by Chetan Bhagat, 50 first dates , bollywood movies like DDLJ etc

Mango Stories: Biographies or even some novels based on real life. A very strong base, strong enough branches,very closely linked to each other and to the environment, very much like mango tree! The concept is very deep rooted and demands your proper involvement and interest in it. This is not just for enjoying the story, it will stay with you for a long time even changing the way you think sometimes. Very inspirational!

e.g. Closest from what I have read till now is Totto Chan, better example can be stories of raja Harishchandra.

Banyan Stories: Epics! I do not have enough words and wisdom to write about them 'in short'! Unlike mango stories, they go beyond the individual reader, to inspire, affect and nurture the whole societies, cultures. They can be interpreted at various levels of literature as well as social evolution. And they are still not boring but very beautiful examples of art!

e.g. Ramayana, Mahabharata, Odyssey etc.

Bonsai Stories:

I would really not like to call them stories! They look like they were made as per marketing demand and requirements. They have everything, but still lack something very important like the scale, gravity, rendering them more of decorative item on the shelf in living room. They simply don't feel original. It's like Bhavin writing his interpretation of Ramayana/King Lear on his blog in one post! Show off!

Ok What is This?

frustration sketches

2010-09-15T16:26:00.006+05:30

This is an old concept we had in first few days of NID. I don't remember who named it so, but when we used to get frustrated while trying something worth showing someone, we used to do thes frustration sketches. The idea was to take your frustration out on paper, sketch (if you could call it that) with all the possible negative energy (!) and thinking of pencil as sword most of the time! The joy of showing the outcome (or merely of having finished the pencil or torn the paper etc) could help to get over the frustration! At least it was supposed to work like this :)Talked about this to poorva yesterday and today I felt I needed to do that for myself. The quality of these sketches is not so much enjoyable, may be because of 'not enough level of frustration' or may be because they look unnecessarily clean because of the 'hardware' (wacom tablet) used! :)nice exercise though! :)

क्षण एक थांबण्याचा.....

2010-08-29T00:36:00.010+05:30

त्या एका क्षणाला,
वारा वाहायचा थांबतो,
पानांची सळसळ थांबते,
झाडाखाली उतरलेला कावळा
कावरा बावरा होउन बघत राहतो.
उगीच दोन तीन काळे ढग
आकाशात रेंगाळत राहतात.
पाउस नाही पडत,
पण थोडं शहारून येतं.
मन उभ्या उभ्या हरवतं,
भूत - वर्तमानाचा गुंता होतो,
न सोडवावासा वाटणारा.
काही कळेनासं, काही कळू नए असं वाटतं.
मन आणि शरीर, दोघेही स्तब्ध होतात,
सगळ कसं शांत होतं, थांबतं.

ह्या सगळ्यांपासून अनभिज्ञ
डोळ्यांतलं पाणी तेवढं वाहत राहतं!

त्या एका क्षणाला.........

- भावीन

Rs. 9/min

2010-08-27T12:34:00.002+05:30

Call 55365,
Udaas ho? Akele ho?
Muzase karo baat, din ho ya raat!
Main banungi apki dost, kar rahi hoon aapke phone ka intazaar.

Apki dost,
Rs. 9/min

(courtesy: one of the numerous vodafone messages)
Do girls also get the same message?

Parting lines (updated)

2010-08-16T12:16:00.007+05:30

1. What (and why) boys think about their bikes is as unexplainable and complicated as girls!
Bigger or smaller, boys will be boys!

2. It's official!
Valentino Rossi will be riding for DUCATI corse faqctory racing MotoGP team from 2011.
This also means that this is his last year with his favourite Yamaha YZR M1, the bike he developed over last 7 years, and brought victories for the Yamaha team. The greenish yellow 46 on blue Yamaha will now be seen on red Ducati.

3. This is what the 9 time world champion Valentino Rossi said yesterday in a press release on his parting from Yamaha,
"Now the moment has come to look for new challenges; my work here at Yamaha is finished. Unfortunately even the most beautiful love stories finish, but they leave a lot of wonderful memories, like when my M1 and I kissed for the first time on the grass at Welkom, when she looked straight in my eyes and told me ‘I love you!"
:)

Read the full press release here.
UPDATE: Reading between the lines of Valentino , what makes him much more than the best rider ever... what is more important than winning, to him?

TOUCH sensitive

2010-08-11T11:42:00.016+05:30

when was the last time?

you dipped your fingers in a bottle of paint,

and left an almost alive trail on the white paper,

slowly feeling the dryness of paper

or may be of your finger!!

when was the last time?

you felt like biting into the chocolate-soft brick of clay you just made.

or almost licked the remains on your fingers!

and kept re-touching that still-wet vase infinitely,
just because you liked that touch so much!

when was the last time?

you tried cleaning that old antique brass bowl

with some dry coarse powder,

till it turned into a glossy yellow surface!

and smelled fascinating new!

when was the last time?

you made a bunglow of brand new playing cards,

with utmost careful breathing and your gentle hands,

or tried picking up the the glass jar broken into pieces

and learnt what 'careful' actually means!

when was the last time?

your touch gave some life to the material,

and brought a smile on your face,

and realised that sensitivity of your touch,

can do much more than the rectangle on your laptop!

Both images from 'Preschool Crafts' website

Smart Efforts

2010-07-30T13:58:00.001+05:30

It takes a lot of efforts to fool yourself.
But then, the trick is, to keep telling yourself, "you were a fool!, weren't you?"

Inception

2010-07-28T11:25:00.003+05:30

Cobb: Dreams feel real while we're in them. It's only when we wake up that we realize something was actually strange.

Mal: I'll tell you a riddle. You're waiting for a train, a train that will take you far away. You know where you hope this train will take you, but you don't know for sure. But it doesn't matter. How can it not matter to you where the train will take you?

Cobb: Because you'll be together.

Mal: You keep telling yourself what you know. But what do you believe? What do you feel?

Mal: Do you know what it is to be a lover? Half of a whole?

Cobb: Look at you. You're just a shade, a shade of my real wife. How could I capture all your beauty, your complexity, your perfection, your imperfection, in a dream? Yes, you're the best that I can do. But, I'm sorry, you're just not good enough.

Ariadne: Why is it so important to dream?

Cobb: Because, in my dreams we are together.

एक होती प्रजा

2010-07-27T15:51:00.007+05:30

आटपाट नगर होतं
नगराचा एक राजा होता
राजाला तीन राण्या
तिघिना एक एक राजपुत्र
राजा नपुंसक होता
बाकि सगळं व्यवस्थीत चालल होतं

राजवाडयामागे खोल विहीर होती
बारा महीने भरलेली असायची
सर्वात मोठ्या राणीने तिच्यात
जीव दिला होता असं म्हणायचे
नगरातल्या शेतकरयाशी तिचे
संबंध होते असही म्हणायचे
पण आता असं कुणी म्हणत नाही
दर अमावशेला सगळी प्रजा
एक एक हंडा पाणी विहिरीत ओतते
जुनी गोष्ट आहे इतकच म्हणतात
बाकि सगळं व्यवस्थीत चाललय

दरबारात एक प्रधान होता
राजवाड्याशी त्याचे घरचे संबंध
दरबारात तो फारसा नसायचा
पण राजवाड्यातल कमी जास्त
सगळ तोच बघायचा
प्रधानाची बायको हुशार
प्रधानाचा संसार राजेशाही ठेवायची
तीन वेळा का होइना
पण प्रधान राजा बनला होता ना!
प्रधानाचा संसार ही व्यवस्थित चालला होता

दरबारात एक सेनापतिही होते
राजाची कुणाशी दुश्मनीच नव्हती
राज्यातला सगळा कर
सेनापति गोळा करायचे
राज्यातली सारी न्याय-व्यवस्था
सेनापतीच बघायचे
न्याय-व्यवस्था न माननारी लोकं
सेनेत भरती व्हायची
बाकि सगळं व्यवस्थीत चालल होतं

आणि उरले राज-ज्योतिषी
त्यांच्या परवानगी शिवाय तर
नगराच पानही नाही हलायच!
प्रजेच उज्जवल भविष्य
तेच तर ठरवायचे!
नवीन रस्ते, नवीन राजवाडा
कधी कुठे बांधायचे, हे
सेनापती त्यानाच 'विचारायचे'
त्यांच्या आशीर्वादानेच तर
नगराची भरभराट होत होती

ते आटपाट नगर होत
नगराचा एक राजा होता
'राजा नपुंसक होता
हे फ़क्त राजालाच माहिती होतं'
असंच सगळे म्हणायचे!
-भावीन

नको

2010-07-26T14:06:00.001+05:30

(click to enlarge)

mad mad rossi!

2010-07-17T10:29:00.005+05:30

I have no words!

It's just 6 weeks after his crash, and he managed to get permission from MotoGP Chief Medical Officer to race in tomorrow's German MotoGP at Sachsenring!

“Immediately after the crash the doctors said it could be five months before I was fit to return; maybe five months to play football, but I just need to ride the bike,” said Rossi during a press conference on Thursday 15th July.
Rossi has missed four races over the course of his injury and currently sits seventh in the championship standings.

If you have been following my post on this for last 6 weeks, you will know what it means to have Rossi back on the MotoGP track within 6 weeks!

To read the original article, click here.

To view his crash on Youtube, click here.

I wish him the best luck for everything and wish the MotoGP will get its real meaning again from tomorrow.

Bridge, The time

2010-07-16T16:46:00.016+05:30

How many times have you woken up in the morning, sat on the edge of bed facing window, and kept looking at the golden reflections in the river? How many times have you returned home in the evening, looked out from the window and searched for your camera to capture all the heavenly shades of light in sky and the dancing reflections in the river? I have experienced that for almost an year till date!
Even after spending 2 years in this apartment on the bank of Sabarmati River, I still find it so amazing to look at the bridge from window or balcony... almost every day! The bridge, I feel, is something which has it's own character, feelings, moods and I like to relate to that at different times. The bridge has taken me on many thought journeys, some stretching to hours! The bridge is really capable of taking me to the other side of time.
Following are some of the pictures I took over a period of more than a year, in different seasons, or time of day. There were many more moments worth sharing, but they are captured only in my mind, completely unexplainable in words!

On a rare rainy night in Ahmedabad.

The undisturbed patch of water below the bridge.

On a cool morning in July 2009.

A warm winter evening.

A sunny evening in this monsoon.

10 minutes ago!

That's the spirit!

2010-07-12T13:57:00.003+05:30

Rossi is back on motorcycle!
:)
This is with reference to the brutal crash he had on 5th June. Withing 5 weeks of his open fracture accident, he is back on bike! He tested on a Yamaha YZF R1. Thats the spirit!
:)

The Metropolitan

2010-07-09T10:30:00.013+05:30

This is first time I am writing about a scooter! I loved this! The Honda Metropolitan, also known as Honda Jazz in Canada. The Vespa inspired, cool, simple, chic and with Honda realiability! I doubt it is an Italian design though. But thats what (apart from price) makes it even better than Vespa, Italian design and Japanese technology! At 49cc it's more like a fashion accessory than a scooter. This is a good example of how you sell an underpowered scooter. Don't just sell it as a scooter. Apart from communicating that its a simple, easy casual commuter, it also gives you a chance to make a statement and to have fun! The simplicity of form makes it easy for a large audience to connect to it at some or the other point of time, in some or the other colour. This is a good example of how something can be elegant as well as fun! A very nice play of form, proportions and colours.

Here it is, the only scooter I loved! Because when I say 'scooter', this is exactly what I imagine. For anything else, better go for a bike! ;)

I am not sure about the front though! A normal head mounted headlight would have been better I guess. It also reminds me of our popular Activa. Ohh, and Honda Activa did something similar to Bajaj here in India. When it was launched, critics said, "Honda has made a better Bajaj!"

These are few pics depicting Vespa way of making a fashion statement.

Superman in I Hate Luv Stories

2010-07-06T14:50:00.004+05:30

I had some minimal expectations from this movie called 'I hate Luv Stories'. Even they were not fulfilled by movie (and even Sonam Kapoor). The peppy title track! Mannnn they had to keep shaking the camera so much because none of the 'actors' could move considerably beyond their normal erect posture, even to this energetic dance number!
Anyways, so I think I should talk about some better thing in the movie. And that is the 'Forget Superman Try Me' tee shirt designed by our own Neil Dantas. :) I liked many of the tee shirts Imran modelled for (Ok he acted also), and it was nice to notice this particular one. It will be better if you spent more time visiting his own website here, instead of reading this post! His work is simple and different. I like it. He deserves some publicity. Enjoy.

P.S. the movie is not so bad, some say. Sonam Kapoor may keep you watching (movie) for most of the time!
;)

The Portfolio

2010-07-02T14:18:00.007+05:30

It was my turn next.

I went in and wished Him good morning. Yes, I wished God good morning.

After the initial identification crosschecking, He thought for a while, and sitting in a relaxed posture, asked me the question,

"so, tell me something about yourself."

"I am your creation only! You are supposed to know everything about me, aren't you?"

"Yes, I know. But I want to know what 'you' think you have done in your life on earth."

" You know, I was very good in academics, I also worked for some good companies as an engineer in first years of my career. Then I managed teams of professional people and guided them to achieve organizathional goals. I was a good son, a good husband and..."

"Ok wait. Let me clear my question to you. Do you know why are you here?"

"Yes, to be interviewed for entry to the Heaven."

"Right! And I want to know, from you, why do you think you are the right candidate? I am interested more in the 'relevant experience'. What have you done for my other creations on the Earth? How many of those starving poor people got food from you? Did you save any life? Did you ever bring smile to the children who live in the slums near your skyscraper? How many trees did you save? How many animals? How many tears?How many people you think, have thanked you from the bottom of their heart so far? And why? How many smiles have you earned? How many people can come to me and tell they love you? To be precise in my question, how do you think you can help us perform better, achieve our goals here in the Heaven. How can you be a good addition to the God's team? Tell me"

Pure Italian

2010-07-02T12:06:00.005+05:30

If you are from the world where JLo stands for Jorge Lorenzo, this is a big news for you!

Valentino Rossi shifting to Ducati from the next MotoGP season!

The news that every Italian was waiting for, for many years! It seems finally their dream is coming true. Finally.... Italian flag and the Italian rider on the Italian bike.

Finally.... no confusion being Ducati fan and being Rossi fan.

Ducati Desmosedici and Valentino Rossi... what a combination!

Finally, it will be Red + Yellow... ( do I mean orange? ;) )

I am waiting for official news and next season!

(somehow I still continue to like yamaha also... at least untill I afford a Ducati)

Love RED Hate RED

2010-06-23T10:55:00.013+05:30

Somehow my clothes (especially white) have a special affinity for red stains, though not the type seen above, but from the ones they are soaked with for washing. It's been happening for years! Whenever I feel I have successfully understood the science of staining, I am taught a new lesson! And the tuition fees are quite high sometimes, considering the 'value' of those clothes. The worst thing is, these laundry accidents happen only after I have worn them for some time and received some compliments! Till that time both the stainer and stainee choose to stay away from each other. And then one fine morning, a new discovery is made. Somehow in every such accident there is only one stainer (mostly red) and only one stainee (mostly white!). All the other not-so-important clothes in the bucket just remain spectators, happily swimming and (secretely) leaving their dirt in the brutal red liquid at the crime scene (bucket). And there I sit, heavy-hearted, segregating the criminal, victim and the spectators in the bathroom, thinking again, someone has shown their real colour today!
:(
Ok, can someone tell me why only a particular fabric gets stained and not every fabric? Also as I have observed, stain is received only from the direct contact with stainer (छूने से फैलती है types) and not from the coloured water in bucket. Why so?
And to all my friends in Apparel, textile and fashion industry, isn't it possible to provide a piece of same fabric with every garment you buy, for stain testing at home?
Found this interesting site/blog in this reference. It has some nice pictures too!

Raavan

2010-06-19T10:13:00.005+05:30

Looks like it's the last fight in a typical bollywood movie. As usual both hero and villain have decided to throw away all their weapons and ready to fight in a more macho 'nihshastra' way! I am still trying to figure out who is hero and who is villain! Raavan should be villain as per Ramayana, but seeta was never attracted towards Raavana in the original story! Anyways, the fight sequence on the hanging bridge is shot really well, but no one dies!
:(
I don't know why I wrote about the last (not really) sequence in the beginning, but thats how the first half of movie makes you feel! But if you have paid enough money, you should rather enjoy the very aesthetically shot scenes, locations and music etc instead of trying to understand the story. And why do you need to understand the Ramayana story again? You know it already, don't you?
FOR: brilliant locations, good cinematography, music, colour palette, some stunts
AGAINST: character building, story in first half, predictability in second half

Should be watched only in movie hall!
As reviews said, even I found second half better than first, but that was more because it finally stopped raining in the movie!

What's in your blood?

2010-06-18T09:20:00.008+05:30

कबुतराला गरुडाचे पंख लावता येतील.....

पण गगनभरारीचं वेड रक्तातच असावं लागतं...

कारण आकाशाची ओढ दत्तक घेता येत नाही॥!!!

This can be crudely (and not literally) translated as;

'A pigeon can be given wings of an eagle,

but the craving for flight has to be in blood....

'cause the longing for skies cannot be borrowed!'

(author unknown to me)

Danny MacAskill

2010-06-13T15:57:00.004+05:30

No, this is not photoshop! If some of you have already watched Julien Dupont videos on youtube as I recomended in my Chris Pfeiffer post, there is next level to the art of riding 2 wheels. Julien Dupont is the pioneer in urban freestyle stunt riding in motorcycles category. Danny MacAskill, is Scottish street trials pro rider for Inspired Bicycles Ltd. Do watch his really really amazing video on youtube here. I never thought it was ever possibe to ride a bicycle like this before!
Enjoy!
(p.s. Thank you Shalini for sharing this video on orkut)

get well zooommmmm

2010-06-11T10:05:00.005+05:30

A really really bad news for all MotoGP fans and Rossi fans. Wish to see him on the two wheels soon, though everybody knows how serious the injury is and it may cost him future! But there are millions of well-wishers and his own will power to support him. Yamaha kept his crashed bike displayed outside their garage symbolizing his comeback soon.
Aamen.

The Doctor's first ever major crash......

update on 7th June

update on 8th June

Wish Valentino Rossi a speedy recovery on facebook here.

:(

Races will continue and any of Lorenzo, Pedrosa, Stoner can win the championship... but what will it mean to them... the victory without competing with Rossi?

And yes.... do check his cutely updated official website here! That's the spirit!

Belated Happy B'day

2010-06-07T15:38:00.006+05:30

For last 4 years or more, except Kiran, most of my beloved ones are trying their best to shift my b'day to 6th or 7th June. This year it was Shweta who woke me up at 12 am to be first to wish me happy b'day.... on 6th June! Last year or may be last to last year it was Divya who called to wish me belated happy b'day on my b'day itself! And an year or so before that, mosh (b) started wishing me from 2nd June everyday, so as not to not miss my actual b'day! My mom receives more calls from my friends to enquire about my actual b'day, than I receive for wishes!
Yes there are few more people like mosh (g) and pratima who play it safe and send the gifts also well in advance.... and it works! ;)
I was unaware of all the discussions going on in background, untill once some unexpected and relatively 'not so friends' people also wished me on wrong day because they had heard 'the discussions'!
There may be different reasons for forgetting my b'day for everyone and I don't know the exact reason, but today I take this opportunity to declare my b'day to be on 8th June. Wishes on any other days will also be appreciated and acknowledged if accompanied by some interesting and useful gifts! No, I don't expect everyone to stop trying to shift the date to some other earlier one... because it's fun!
But the reason is, I want this controversy to be recorded somewhere, so that when I become a great famous (and rich!) designer in future, there will be atleast one story to be talked about me, like all the great people!
;)

Jagannath Textile Company Ltd.

2010-06-02T12:39:00.009+05:30

Based in Coimbatore and known as Asia's biggest open-end spinning unit, the company churns out 120 tonnes of yarn everyday. Without resorting to retrenchment during lean periods, they gave their employees long holidays. But during the period, the R&D staff worked hard to come up with new business ventures, which included Crusoe and JTC brands.
This is the approach they worked on, while designing the Crusoe brand of innerwear for men.
Made for men who are either living their adventure or who pine for adventure in their living, Who deep down want to dive deep down into the blue ocean or from the blue sky, Who dream of skimming the barrel wave on a surfboard or skiing ahead of an avalanche, Who want to feel the adrenalin rushing through their veins. The range of Premium Innerwear that's specially designed keeping one thing in mind - Innerself.
I found the whole approach very interesting, especially for a B2B company entering the B2C business (retail). I mean isn't it very much required to do something really different (if not appropriate/right) when you are entering an already established market as a newcomer? With Crusoe, JTC seems to be very focused and yet open for criticism, considering existing Indian market and people connecting to adventure sports here.
And why am I writing about all this here?
While going through the Overdrive magazine (June 2010) I found the following print ad and wondered why it was in an automobile magazine? And a close look at the product made it clear.
(click to enlarge if required)

Here is their website.

(all the information from their website)

'On Any Sunday'

2010-05-15T23:51:00.007+05:30

Title: On Any Sunday
Year: 1971
Genre: Documentary feature
Duration: 96 minutes
Direction: Bruce Brown

The movie opens with shots of people riding their two wheelers, people of various age, sex, professions and attitudes and then shows a group of children riding their bicycles on a dirt track imitating motorcycles. The spirit seen in this opening scene is maintained or rather raised as the timeline progresses.
'On Any Sunday', the 1971 movie is credited as the best and most important motorcycle documentary ever made till date. And what makes it so special is not the motorcycle, but people who enjoy riding them! And thats why the movie is for everybody to enjoy and get injected with a lot of positive energy. It reveals the secret behind being successful in a very effective and unique manner in various scenes. What it takes to win is not the strength in your arms and legs, but the strength in your heart, the trust your beloved ones show in you, and the passion to do what you want to do. This is best shown in the Jim Rice brutal crash sequence. Coincidentally I remember to have experienced the similar spirit of living in another movie 'The world's fastest Indian' which is also about a real life motorcycle racer!
The movie is full of some really entertaining (read: funny) sequences and very aptly manages to 'not impart unnecessary technical knowledge' about motorcycles. This film is also a very good example of beautiful cinematography, shooting the very difficult subject like high speed racing and motorsports in a very beautiful manner.
In the end are seen the three friends and the best riders in their own categories, Steve McQueen, Malcolm Smith and Mert Lawwill doing what they enjoy the most.... riding their bikes on a sunday!
A uniquely inspiring and entertaining movie for everybody to watch.
Thanks Kiran for downloading this movie for me! :)

P.S. Do check the links scattered in this post.
P.S.2 Valentino Rossi was born in 1979, so not seen in this movie! :(

Walk @ Rs.10/day minimum

2010-05-14T15:26:00.008+05:30

Cost of using shoes = Rs. 4/day

based on two years life (of shoes).

And this is only for the office shoes, 6 days a week!

Excluding socks, polish etc

So approx total cost of all the footwear = Rs. 10/day

This involves only one basic pair of each basic type of footwear (for men!)

What does this mean?

I spend Rs.10 everyday for.... WALKING? on my own feet!

(P.S. Women spend much more considering no. of pairs they own, not that they walk more!)

(P.S.2 If you could calculate how many Km you walk everyday, you will know walking is so expensive!)

200

2010-05-12T08:55:00.004+05:30

Strange, but it's true! That after 1st and 100th post, 200 feels like just any other number, almost as meaningless as this post itself! Somehow it fails to convey anything that has happened on this blog or in the blogger's life! It just doesn't say whether it' good to be touching 200 with some copy pasted, irrelevant (to readers) posts and only a few original ones which can use the tag 'Bhavin'?
But why am I thinking about it? 200 is just some number!
:)

I have learned...

2010-05-10T10:42:00.004+05:30

The author is still unknown to me! I read this many years ago, but only now I can claim to understand the points mentioned!
(reading tip: the lesser time u spend in deciding whether to read it or not, the sooner you will finish reading it!)
So here it goes...

I've learned that you cannot make someone love you. All you can do is be someone who can be loved. The rest is up to them.
I've learned that no matter how much I care, some people just don't care back.
I've learned that it takes years to build up trust, and only seconds to destroy it.
I've learned that it's not what you have in your life but who you have in your life that counts.
I've learned that you can get by on charm for about fifteen minutes. After that, you'd better know something.
I've learned that you shouldn't compare yourself to the best others can do but to the best you can do.
I've learned that it's not what happens to people that's important. It's what they do about it.
I've learned that you can do something in an instant that will give you heartache for life.
I've learned that no matter how thin you slice it, there are always two sides.
I've learned that it's taking me a long time to become the person I want to be.
I've learned that it's a lot easier to react than it is to think.
I've learned that you should always leave loved ones with loving words. It may be the last time you see them.
I've learned that you can keep going long after you think you can't.
I've learned that we are responsible for what we do, no matter how we feel.
I've learned that either you control your attitude or it controls you.
I've learned that regardless of how hot and steamy a relationship is at first, the passion fades and there had better be something else to take its place.
I've learned that heroes are the people who do what has to be done when it needs to be done, regardless of the consequences.
I've learned that learning to forgive takes practice.
I've learned that there are people who love you dearly, but just don't know how to show it.
I've learned that money is a lousy way of keeping score.
I've learned that my best friend and I can do anything or nothing and have the best time.
I've learned that sometimes the people you expect to kick you when you're down will be the ones to help you get back up.
I've learned that sometimes when I'm angry I have the right to be angry, but that doesn't give me the right to be cruel.
I've learned that true friendship continues to grow, even over the longest distance. Same goes for true love.
I've learned that just because someone doesn't love you the way you want them to doesn't mean they don't love you with all they have.
I've learned that maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you've had and what you've learned from them and less to do with how many birthdays you've celebrated.
I've learned that you should never tell a child their dreams are unlikely or outlandish. Few things are more humiliating, and what a tragedy it would be if they believed it.
I've learned that your family won't always be there for you. It may seem funny, but people you aren't related to can take care of you and love you and teach you to trust people again. Families aren't biological.
I've learned that no matter how good a friend is, they're going to hurt you every once in a while and you must forgive them for that.
I've learned that it isn't always enough to be forgiven by others. Sometimes you have to learn to forgive yourself.
I've learned that no matter how bad your heart is broken the world doesn't stop for your grief.
I've learned that our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are, but we are responsible for who we become.
I've learned that sometimes when my friends fight, I'm forced to choose sides even when I don't want to.
I've learned that just because two people argue, it doesn't mean they don't love each other. And just because they don't argue, it doesn't mean they do.
I've learned that sometimes you have to put the individual ahead of their actions.
I've learned that we don't have to change friends if we understand that friends change.
I've learned that you shouldn't be so eager to find out a secret. It could change your life forever.
I've learned that two people can look at the exact same thing and see something totally different.
I've learned that no matter how you try to protect your children, they will eventually get hurt and you will hurt in the process.
I've learned that there are many ways of falling and staying in love.
I've learned that no matter the consequences, those who are honest with themselves get farther in life.
I've learned that no matter how many friends you have, if you are their pillar you will feel lonely and lost at the times you need them most.
I've learned that your life can be changed in a matter of hours by people who don't even know you.
I've learned that even when you think you have no more to give, when a friend cries out to you, you will find the strength to help.
I've learned that writing, as well as talking, can ease emotional pains.
I've learned that the paradigm we live in is not all that is offered to us.
I've learned that credentials on the wall do not make you a decent human being.
I've learned that the people you care most about in life are taken from you too soon.
I've learned that although the word "love" can have many different meaning, it loses value when overly used.
I've learned that it's hard to determine where to draw the line between being nice and not hurting people's feelings and standing up for what you believe.

If I were..

2010-05-08T14:27:00.008+05:30

My reply to JSincro

If I were a Month, I would be November ;
If I were a Day, I would be Sunday;
If I were a time of the day, I would be Dawn ;
If I were a Direction, I would be North ;
If I were an Element, I would be Oxygen;
If I were a Liquid, I would be Water ;
If I were a gemstone, I would be a 'GEM' hahahaha;
If I were a Tree, I would be a Banyan Tree ;
If I were a Bird, I would be 'Jonathan Livingston Seagull';
If I were a tool, I would be a Spanner;
If I were a pair of shoes, I would be a pair of Skating Shoes ;
If I were a color, I would be Orange ;
If I were an emotion, I would be Love;
If I were a Fruit, I would be Banana;
If I were a Sound, I would be Laughter ;
If I were a car, I would be Lamborghini;
If I were a Food, I would be 'Pineapple Sandwich';
If I were a Taste, I would be Tangy;
If I were a place, I would be Lakeside;
If I were a Material, I would be Wood;
If I were a Body Part, I would be the Eyes;
If I were Music, I would be Instrumental (Indian Fusion) ;
If I were a Dance, I would be Tap Dance;
If I were an Animal, I would be an Elephant;
If I were a gift , I would be Flowers;
If I were an Element Of Earth, I would be the Air ;
If I were a Historical Figure, I would be Einstein;
If I were A Famous Actor, I would be 'Bhavin Mali' hahaha ;
If I were a Book, I would be (ummm... good question!);
If I were a Poem, I would be 'The man who thinks he can' by Walter D. Wintle;

And If I were a bike, I would be 'MV Agusta Brutale' :)

But to be honest, I am quite happy being myself!

:)

2010-05-07T09:20:00.003+05:30

Shadow

2010-05-05T16:40:00.004+05:30

Aren't you my shadow? I can't really hold you, neither I can run away from you! All that I can do is, walk into the sun or dip myself in the dark, fooling myself that I have overcome... after every sunset! Only to find you hovering around me every morning I wake up! Struggling to find new ways to fool myself... Sometimes to feel, 'I am the shadow'...Can't do more than existing.... Are you doing the same?

Two Steps Behind

-Def Leppard

Walk away if you want to

It's okay if you need to

You can run but you can never hide

From the shadow that's creeping up beside you

There's a magic running through your soul

But you can't have it all

Whatever you do

I'll be two steps behind you

Where ever you go

And I'll be ther to remind you

That it only takes a minute of your precious time

To turn around

I'll be two steps behind

Take the time to think about it

Just walk the line you know you just can't fight it

Take a look around you'll know what you can't find

Like the fire that's burning up inside me
Now there's a magic running through your soul

But you can't have it all

Whatever you do

I'll be two steps behind you

Where ever you go

And I'll be there to remind you

That it only takes a minute of your precious time

To turn around

I'll be two steps behind

There's a magic running through your soul

But you, you can't have it all
Whatever you do

I'll be two steps behind you

Where ever you go

And I'll be there to remind you

That it only takes a minute of your precious time

To turn around

I'll be two steps behind

(Youtube link here)

Chris Pfeiffer

2010-05-04T21:57:00.004+05:30

I remember to have promised neeru that I will also post about the other two bugs (other than rossi I mean) who have bitten me, viz. the 4 time world champ freestyle stunt rider Chris Pfeiffer and the urban trials rider Julien dupont. But what I didn't imagine was, one day I will be posting chris's video shot by myself! But it happened, He is on his Redbull India tour and performed in Mumbai on 1st May 2010. I managed to reach there from Ahmedabad and became a part of this almost once in a lifetime experience! With me were my poor victims Pratima and Teamea, but I am sure they enjoyed it too. After all it's my duty to educate as many people as possible about the joy side of biking! ;)
Videos do not do any justice to the experience, but still I managed to shoot a part of his performance and compiled the video seen below. Apart from his BMW F800R, he also performed on a trials bike (seen in the very first part of video).

He performed in hyderabad today and will be performing in Bangalore and chennai and the schedule is:

Bengalooru: May 06 - Kanteerava Stadium 5 PM.
Chennai: May 07 - Besant Nabar Beach 5.30 PM.

And yes, no tickets!

For those not so lucky, you can find his plenty of videos on youtube. You can also search Julien Dupont videos on youtube too! They are amazing, beyond imagination.... Probably my next post will be my favorite video of Julien Dupont.

Enjoy!

apple i-Think

2010-04-26T14:11:00.011+05:30

"Dear apple, you had the power to do something really good for the generations to come, but this is what you have done so far, probably in an irreversible manner"

'Good is not good enough when the best is expected', I had read somewhere sometime ago. And in context of this article, this does not refer to the apple products, but what they could/should have done with the way they design them!
I always liked the way apple designed their desktop computers (i-mac) and laptops, for their simple, clean, neat and 'different' design. Visually this translated into compositions of nice rounded rectangles mostly! This smart design sense certainly helped them earn a clearly distinguishing identity for the apple branded products as well as its consumer group. To some extent, this design language can be spotted in many other products of various brands, making apple the trendsetter in today's consumer electronics design.
This is certainly good for apple, but lets have a look at a little bigger picture. Look closely at the tiny icons seen on the big screen of i-phone.

Even if you couldn't read most of them, you still can figure out what they stand for. Great, isn't it? But Give it a thought. Why could you understand them? Why do you think the green icon in bottom is for 'PHONE' ? Why the second icon means 'MAIL' or 'messages'? Why does the youtube icon or the CLOCK icon looks 'normal' or familiar to you and me? Because we have associated these different shapes/visual identities to some specific objects for a lot of part of our life so far. Look at the 3 pictures below viz. TV, wall clock and telephone. Quite familiar right?

At some point of time in past, we have used or at least seen these vicually clearly different objects and we already know what they used to do for us. And that is why we can recognise the icons on i-phone's screen!

Now have a look at the following few pictures.

Yes, these are images of some phones, digital camera, waching machine and TV. These products (i am tempted to call them blobjects) exist in the same era as that of apple i-phone. But can you imagine apple or anyone else using these 'forms' to make icons for the products we discussed at the start of this article? Do you think our next generation kids born in this world full of soft-touch rectangular objects will have some distinct visual identities associated to them (and their icons)? The worst part is, Aplle won't be able to use even the icons discussed in the beginning which we could very easily identify. These kids wouldn't have seen the products which made these icons! All they will get to see is a nice rounded rectangle!

It's time we pause for a while, think about what we, as designers are doing, for the world yet to come, to think if form is still following function? or just the technology born yesterday? or just some other form?

I fear, one day we will all have some rectangular screens looking just the same and we will wait till the device starts and shows its 'visual interface' to know what that product does... or even worse, we will have to download 'apps' to actually be doing something with that nice rounded rectangle!

The girl who will never get the chance

2010-04-19T23:02:00.016+05:30

I looked at the tree where I had asked my brother to wait for me, but he wasn't there. I knew it actually. I have been doing that every morning since it happened. Then I looked at the tall and seemingly new building, again as usual. Every morning I wake up to find myself sitting on this rock in front of this building which housed my family once, I think so!

*

Ours was a small and normal upper middle class family, mom, dad, my little brother and myself. We had recently shifted in our new flat somewhere in this huge building. Every morning all of us used to leave home together, mom and dad for their offices and brother and I for our school. As an elder sister I was not only protective and possessive about my brother, but also used to bully him quite often, hurting him little too much sometimes, like I did that day. I don't know if it was because I was too protective about him or for some other reason, but I was quite harsh with him and was quite clear about what he can do and what he must not. But I really cared for him.

On that afternoon, when we both came home from school, I felt he was quite happy for something. May be he had learnt some new trick in school today. He entered the kitchen with his dirty uniform and shoes on, and obviously I didn't like it. In absence of mom and dad, I was the self proclaimed incharge of the house and my little brother. I shouted at him and asked him to change and go to bathroom first. But he was not in the mood or may be, now I feel, he was too hungry to do all that. So before he touched anything there, I held his hand and dragged him to the bathroom and pushed him inside. As usual he didn't react and I went to the kitchen to see what mom had cooked for lunch. We ate without talking much and after making sure he was only watching TV peacefully, I went to the study room and opened my school bag to plan my homework.

After some time, just to check whether he fell asleep while watching TV, I went to the living room to find he wasn't there. Surprised I went to the kitchen. There he was, with an empty ball pen refill in his mouth, bent on the gas burner trying to blow a balloon from that melting refill! Shouting as loud as I could, I pulled him down from kitchen platform and gave a tight slap. I put the burner off, snatched the refill form his hand and threw it on floor. While doing that, I accidentally ended up throwing some molten plastic on his arm too! I quickly removed that hot plastic from his skin and took him to wash-basin to pour some water on his arm. By now both of us had tears in our eyes, for different reasons. I thought he must be hating his sister, without knowing how much she cares for him.

I kept staring at the burn mark on his arm while he was sleeping, thinking why do I always end up hurting him, while trying to protect him. I didn't know what was right and what was wrong. Suddenly I felt the bed shaking vigorously. Realising it was an earthquake, I woke him up and pulled him to the door, rushed to the staircase and then to ground floor. Everyone was running and trying to reach the playground in front of our building. Both of us were very frightened and he hugged me tight with fear, completely unaware of what was happening. All of us were looking at our tall building and we saw it happening slowly. With lot of cracks running all over the walls, we saw it leaning slowly to one side. It didn't fell though. It was too hot outside and we weren't wearing any footware. My little brother was still in shock and was unable to stand on that hot playground soil. I looked at the burn mark on his arm and decided something. I asked him to stand under that tree till I came back and ran to our building. I heard someone shouting at me asking me not to go there, but I wanted to get him some water to drink and his chappals, I badly wanted to do something for him, something which didn't hurt him and showed him I really care for him. I had no fear then, till I saw our old neighbour granny sitting on the staircase shouting for help. May be she was alone at home and couldn't make it to the groundfloor with her paining knees. I told her I will be back in a second and will take her out of building. As I climbed one more floor, the building started shivering again, this time even more vigorously. I kept running to reach to our flat, with plaster and bricks falling everywhere. I kept climbing steps.

*

I was standing in the door which opened to the terrace, and I realised somehow I couldn't find my house till I reached terrace! How is it possible? Even if we had shifted to this new house only a month ago, I cannot fail to locate my own house in the building! I started running down to search for my house, and felt these are not the same steps I used to climb up. I reached ground floor, ran to the tree across the road where my little bro was waiting for me. But he wasn't there. I was very tired and frightened, I badly wanted to find him before my parents returned, and tell him that I loved him. But he was not there. After gathering some breath I ran to the bulding again. I couldn't understand what was happening. I climbed all the floors and reached the terrace again without finding my home! No, its impossible, I must find my house. I kept running from one door to the other, on every floor in that seemingly new building. Everytime I felt 'this must be my house', I found strangers living there or huge padlocks on the door. But I could not find my house. I sat on the steps, tired, on the verge of crying. I realised I even didn't see our old granny while I was climbing up and down all the steps. The next moment I felt she was standing behind me. I looked at her and started crying. She pulled me in her arms. I asked her why am I not able to find my house, my brother and if she can call my parents from their office. She kept patting my forehead and I don't remember exactly but I fell asleep on the steps soon, while I was telling her how I ended up hurting my brother today with the molten refill.

*

I woke up in the morning to find myself sitting on this rock in front of the seemingly new building which once housed my family..... I looked at the tree where I had asked my brother to wait for me. He wasn't there and I knew it actually! I have been searching for my house in that building for so many days. The building which is surprisingly looking new if not the same!
I have asked every single person in this building, about my house, my brother, my parents, but no one paid any attention to me, except for the granny who sometimes sits beside me on the staircase. I have been doing this for I don't know how many days, but I cannot leave this place, this building, this tree. My brother might have gone to drink some water, he will be back anytime and I will tell him how much I love him. But I still don't know how it is possible that I can't identify my own house and why people don't even look at me when I call them! They ignore me as if I don't exist! as if......I don't exist....

"END"
(for those innocent mortals who didn't get it, this is (again an imaginary) story of a little girl (rather her ghost), who died in an earthquake while trying to fetch water for her brother, the brother whom she cared for but could never share a kind word with. She died before she could tell him how much she loved him. Lucky you, now that you are reading this, don't you think you still have a chance?)
(ohh and by the way, her ghost couldn't find her house because the building was completely destroyed in earthquake, and a new building was constructed there later!)

love you rossi

2010-04-15T16:51:00.004+05:30

Today Aakanksha asked me why my gtalk status is '46'? I asked her to type 46 in google and see. ;)
First result is 'Valentino Rossi' and second is 'the number between 45 and 47'!!!

'What if I had never tried it' is his autobiography. Got to read few pages on Amazon. Quite interesting, or may be I was just overwhelmed by the fact that I was reading something written by Rossi!, the person whose mere name turns my hands into fists with a sudden need to grab the handlebars of my bike and tear the road with eqaully brutal sound. OK, most of my readers won't be able to relate to this, so i won't stretch the topic more.
Read some reviews and found that its not a 'great' book 'as a book', but the fact that its about 'the god on two wheels' needs no reviews by us mortals. For me, the review by wife of some lucky husband felt more justified/appropriate/convincing or whatever.
So the point is, if someone is looking for a gift for me, its on Amazon! :)

Ohh and by the way, very interesting information as good as his autobiography is available on his official website here. Check that for his childhood stories with his father and some rare pics.
And the book is here.
:)
Its 5:30pm... I can happily grab the bars now... ;)
YO rossiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii....

फिर नहीं याद

2010-04-12T14:07:00.009+05:30

जो भी दुःख याद ना था याद आया,
आज ना जानिये क्या याद आया

याद आया था बिछड़ना तेरा
फिर नहीं याद के क्या याद आया

हाथ उठाये थे के दिल बैठ गया
जाने क्या वख्त-ए- दुवा याद आया

जिस तरह धुंदमें लिपटे हुए फूल
इक इक नक्ष तेरा याद आया

ये मोहब्बत भी है क्या रोग 'फ़राज़'
जिस को भूले वो सदा याद आया

lyrics: Ahmed Faraz
Singer: Ghulam Ali
Album: (unknown)

(there is also another version of this ghazal sung by Hariharan in his album Hazir)

GURUs

2010-04-04T14:24:00.004+05:30

came across a nice (sounding) TV ad after a long time, or may be its the beautiful jingle that I liked!
This is one of the ads for Samsung Guru mobile and its made by all the gurus indeed!
read this jingle:

उनके आंसू उबल पड़े,
जाते जाते देखा है,
दस नम्बर दस उंगलियाँ है,
बाकी हाथ की रेखा है।
फांसले है भी और नहीं भी,
दिल तो जेबमें रख्खा है।

Ok, this is written by none other than Gulzar, directed by Anurag Kashyap, shot on Amir Khan, music by Amit Trivedi (DevD, Aamir etc fame) and sung by Mohan (I don't know :( )
I feel nice that they made a simple and touching (to target audience atleast) ad for a phone also simple and without any 'touching' features!
I liked the locations and colour palette used for the ad too! Watch this beautifully shot ad on youtube here.
(p.s. they have edited the secondlast line in jingle to reduce the duration I guess!)

I have seen it all

2010-04-01T15:47:00.003+05:30

"I've Seen It All"
. -by Bjork

I've seen it all, I have seen the trees,
I've seen the willow leaves dancing in the breeze
I've seen a man killed by his best friend,
And lives that were over before they were spent.
I've seen what I was - I know what I'll be
I've seen it all - there is no more to see!

You haven't seen elephants, kings or Peru!
I'm happy to say I had better to do
What about China? Have you seen the Great Wall?
All walls are great, if the roof doesn't fall!

And the man you will marry?
The home you will share?
To be honest, I really don't care...

You've never been to Niagara Falls?
I have seen water, its water, that's all...
The Eiffel Tower, the Empire State?
My pulse was as high on my very first date!
Your grandson's hand as he plays with your hair?
To be honest, I really don't care...

I've seen it all, I've seen the dark
I've seen the brightness in one little spark.
I've seen what I chose and I've seen what I need,
And that is enough, to want more would be greed.
I've seen what I was and I know what I'll be
I've seen it all - there is no more to see!

You've seen it all and all you have seen
You can always review on your own little screen
The light and the dark, the big and the small
Just keep in mind - you need no more at all
You've seen what you were and know what you'll be
You've seen it all - there is no more to see!

(P.S. I remember Akash Gaur introduced me to this song and Bjork long long time ago. Here is the youtube link for this song,)

मोगरा

2010-03-29T10:07:00.001+05:30

She

2010-03-24T15:03:00.008+05:30

In spite of her unnecessarily serious face sometimes, she had really pleasant smile. Her eyes looked confident and captivating at the same time. I really had no idea, what kind of a person hid behind this beautiful wheatish face. Yes I had already started finding her beautiful! She had little curly dark hair left open and the way they moved with the wind on the terrace was almost hypnotising.
"So what do you enjoy the most?", she asked. May be she noticed I was too busy observing the beauty around me, and just to bring me back to the conversation, asked me this question.
Her parents had arranged for this privacy on the terrace so that we could talk to each other comfortably. Privacy on the terrace! Smart!
Though I had instructed myself not to start the never ending topic about my bike obsession, I somehow ended up saying,"Bikes! I love the experience of floating one feet above the ground and moving anywhere at will!" I ended my line with a smile, and why not? I had managed to finish this topic in one sentence!
"Do you like bikes?", ohh GOD, I should have asked 'What do you like?' instead!
"Yes, we used to go for road trips sometimes... in college days.", she said.
"hmmm...", I was searching for some other topic, which she did and asked,"Where do you plan to settle?"

I was under this foolish impression that boys ask questions and girls answer, in such 'arranged marriage' meets! But this girl seemed to have done her homework well. She didn't give me enough time to think what to ask and went on asking the 'most important questions'.
Now I really don't believe so much in this concept of settling somewhere, but for the 'most important questions' you have to give 'most expected answers'!
So I said,"There is enough scope for our profession in pune and mumbai. And I will be closer to my parents also then." My parents will be so happy for this answer! Somehow even she looked happy. Truth does not possess this quality of making someone happy. Pune is good place for bikers though! But I avoided this topic successfully again.

"You don't like wearing saree?", my first self initiated question! Though it sounded little useless to me also.
"I do, but I thought it will be better to meet you the way usually I am."
Hmmm... this girl was something and her next question just confirmed it.
She asked, "Do you know cooking?"
This was supposed to be my question traditionally! "ummmm.... not really. I mean I can manage to make something edible with eggs & I make good tea, but nothing much beyond that. You also don't cook?" The last question came very naturally and from the bottom of my heart or may be stomach.
She said, "I do, almost everything, but don't get time to cook everyday. You know this work-till-late-culture in offices na? So mom cooks most of the time."
I don't know if I was supposed to suggest any solution, but I said,"hmm I know. Thats why most of the working couples end up employing cook. It's quite convenient."
"Ya but I don't find that idea so interesting. I mean you still have to depend on some third person and their time na? Do you like non-veg? I am vegetarian."
She was really good at asking questions, or atleast making simple questions tricky. I had to think a bit to formulate my answer. " ummm.. I like non-veg, but it's not something I can't live without." 'Like bikes' I wanted to say.

Like an experienced recruiting officer, she went on asking 'the most important questions' and after a while it didn't really matter who asked the question! Behind this straight forward sharp-shooter, I could see a very honest, true-to-herself girl with an urge to plan for nice simple clutter-free life. She was not so much interested in knowing which car I would prefer buying and when, whether an apartment on 10th floor or 15th, whether my dream of owning a design business is little risky or not. May be because this just needs money which even she had her own! What she was more concerned about was, making it clear the way she was and will be, that she takes her work as seriously as I do, that she thinks things like cooking are equal responsibility of both the partners, that she has her own choices no matter how small or big. And most important, that she conveys this clearly to me! Simple!

END.
I had started writing this IMAGINARY story some time back, and what made me finish it today was the new fountain pen Pogo gifted me and this very nice article on 'neeru's corner. Must read for all the boys or rather eligible bachelors.

Filmy, very filmy!

2010-03-22T13:26:00.010+05:30

one liners from bollywood movies.

The classic and common ones (open source)

Kya? Tumne muze MAA kaha?

Hamare khandan ki ijjat ka sawal hai!

Mai kisi ko mooh dikhane ke layak nahi rahi!

Kya kami hai muzmein?

Mai tumhare bachche ki maa banane wali hoon!

Maine tumhare liye gaajar ka halwa banaya hai! :)

Kanoon ke haath lambe hote hai!

Bhagwaan ke liye muze chhod do.

Maa ka doodh piya hai to saamne aa ja.

Ab sirf duwayen hi use bachaa sakti hai!

Mere sapno ka rajkumar.

Aap bade wo ho!

Bhagwaan, Maine tumse aaj tak kuch nahin maanga.

Mai kahan hoon?

The classic ones but 'patented'

Kutte, mai tumhara khoon pee jaaunga.

Tumhare paas kya hai?

Kuchh kuchh hota hai rahul, tum nahi samjhoge!

Jinke apne ghar shishe ke hote hai....

Ek chutki sindoor ki keemat...

Yenna Raskalaa..

Jaaniiiiiiiii....

Tussi jaa rahe ho?

Kitane aadmi the?

Foozul ki baat to mai karti nahi (basanti)

Tumhara naam kya hai basanti?

Mai to kehta hoon aap to purush hi nahi ho! Mahapurush ho mahapurush!

Akeli ladki khuli hui tijori ki tarh hoti hai!

kkkkk... kirran.

From TV commercials ( I am not updated though!)

Maa, mai first aaya!

Mera number kab aayega?

Bhala uski saree mere saree se safed kaise?

Daag achchhe hote hai.

Assam ke bagaano se chuni!

Aayiye, apne sapno ka ghar banayiye.

Wahh ramesh babu! Badhiya hai!

Meri twachaa se meri umra ka pata hi nahi chalta.

Visa power, Go get it.

kee karaa papa, petrol khatam hi nahi honda (sardarji bachcha for maruti)

Jalebiiii????

Buland bharat ki buland tasbir...

my favourite is 'Ting Ting Tiding!' (Britannia) :)

I know there are numerous in the second category, but I like the common ones in first category. And also the TV ad category

Anybody remembers more?

nothing much?

2010-03-19T10:03:00.009+05:30

blank paper
blank face
empty mind
nothing much.

old questions
no answers
haunting puzzles
nothing much.

inspiration
exhaustion
frustration
nothing much.

something old
something lost
something new
nothing much.

one life
one death
one body
nothing much.

old memories
moist eyes
numb heart
nothing much.

same morning
same people
same smile
nothing much?
:)

-bhavin

8:02am - 8:37am

2010-03-17T08:44:00.007+05:30

March 17, 2010 8:02am
1. Picked up the helmet, searched for the lock as usual and opend the door to leave for office.
2. Door, which opens inside, had a polythene milk fountain hanging from the door handle and a dog, that was drinking milk till now looked disturbed.
3. I realised, someone had kept the ground-floor staircase door open as usual today also, the dog happily came to fourth floor and tore the fresh milk polybags hanging from door handle. Rest of the action was natural.
4. With helmet in one hand and the lock in other, I quickly removed the milk bags from door handle and ran to the kitchen sink.
5. It didn't take more than few microseconds for me to calculate how much late I will be for office.
6. But it was wrong.
7. While all this was happening, somehow lot of milk had accumulated in my helmet and I HATED it!
8. I tried calling sid to inform him not to use the milk, but he didn't pick the phone as usual (I mean as usual in such situations).
9. With a handkerchief lining for the helmet, I left on my bike.
10. I liked the way my bike sounded today, or may be I was actually revving too much and going little too fast.
11. The road looked like it was holiday for everyone and I was the only one getting late for office as usual!
12. Even after lot of honking one activa uncle only adjusted his mirrors, looked at me in the mirror and refused to let me overtake as usual.
13. But he didn't know the dog-milk-helmet story, I managed to overtake through just-enough space leaving him blowing his horn for I don't know what.
14. Near my favourite shivranjani right turn, one homely and 'prosperous' office-goer balck-and-white holiday mood uncle standing in the middle of the raod felt my body language on the turn was too aggresive and I was going to kill him! Though there was more than lot of distance between us, may be 'the loud sound + bike lean angle' scared him and I felt really bad for him. I said 'sorry and forgive me god' inside my milk bathed helmet.
15. I was not late for office. :)
16. The interesting girl looked interesting as usual and the nicely dressed girl was nicely dressed as usual.
17. Wished 'good morning' to our 65 year young bengali colleague and he told some memory from his old time in old bombay as usual.
18. Didn't even realise then that he said 'Bombay'!
19. As I was entering studio, Mr. HS wished me 'good morning' with a face that successfully communicated "You better deliver that nonsense today".
20. Received some sweet mail from a sweet friend. :)
March 17, 2010 8:37am
Life is interesting, as usual!

माँ का आशीर्वाद

2010-03-16T15:29:00.005+05:30

"break the rules

forgive quickly

believe deeply

love truly

laugh uncontrollably

and never let go your smile.

shubh gudi padwa and happy new year.

warm regards,

mom and dad"

I remember she used to say something like "आयुष्यमान भव, यशस्वी भव" etc etc earlier. And today even her aashirwaad has become so SMSised!

I liked 'break the rules' part of it! YO mom...

Dove

2010-03-15T18:05:00.007+05:30

Thanks for chocolates Divya. :)

I wanna fly high with u baby

2010-03-14T15:24:00.007+05:30

Quite a boring sunday, though I spent a lot of time washing, polishing my bike thoroughly. Also opend and assembled as many parts of it as possible.

The tiny ceiling fan in my bedroom has stopped working. So I have managed to occupy some space on the sofa in living room. Just booted my laptop and found this old video, so watched it. From this place I can actually see three movies simultaneously as Kiran and Sid are also watching something on their respective laptops. I guess Kiran is watching something really hilarious, as we are regularly distracted by his laughter-quakes. There is nothing much interesting to share on the blog, but I have really nothing to do now! Kiran offered me few movies, but his descriptions didn't encourage me to watch them. e.g. He said, "bhavin, watch this movie 'my sassy girl'. its really good yarrrrr... u will cry at the end!"

Anyway, enjoy this video. Nothing so great, but it has bikes, babes and beaches. :)

UPDATE: After around 30 minutes (as per sid it was an hour) of my voluntary efforts to try to 'keep reading signs of my (shakira's) body', I have also found that the movie running on Sid's laptop is..... 'My sassy girl'!!! Congrats Kiran. Here is link to sid's blog about the movie, though he has said hardly anything about the movie actually!

(censored)

2010-03-12T10:33:00.005+05:30

With reference to this article in TOI.
Sena attacks BNHS (Bombay Natural History Society) for Bombay in its name.
I don't express using bad words. I do not have any other words to express my feelings.
But I have few questions.

After all the vandalizing of a heritage institution, some Mr. Sakpal says, 'they should respect local sentiments.' What do you know about the word 'respect'?

If all this is done for 'Marathi' or 'Marathi manoos', why does it make me angry instead of happy? I am marathi, aren't I? Why am I disturbed?

Do I need to get my degree certificate changed if it has 'University of Bombay' in it? Or will they tear it off?

Marathi is very rich in literature. How many of non-marathis know about it? How many marathis know about it? Who is taking care of this issue?

One of my friends used to accuse me of talking to a marathi friend in marathi in her presence, even if she were not part of the topic. She insisted we talk in hindi. I used to tell her you can also talk to your friends in language of your choice when I am not part of the discussion. But she knew only hindi! Our debate never reached anywhere. WHY?

There are many more questions. And we can find some 'useful' and 'constructive' solutions only if we accept we don't know them!

निमित्त

2010-03-06T22:34:00.004+05:30

(click to enlarge if required)

Windows IR

2010-02-28T23:04:00.003+05:30

When will Indian Railways have windows which will actually close and remain closed for the intended period, mostly during night when its cold outside and you don't want to keep smelling all the villages, towns, cities churning out some or the other chemicals?
And the ones which will not keep falling when you want them open?
According to this webpage, there's no privacy in sleeper class, and it's noisy, crowded and dirty. But trust me, you get an option (or rather variety) of listening to families discussing personal matter for all compartment to listen, or adult friends who keep you guessing if they are fighting or joking, or the loud mothers of innocent (and loud) kids playing.... throughout the night.

P.S. I hope, that (wherever possible) round bank employee was actually interested in listening to my late night interactive lecture about 'what Industrial Design is and how design makes 'THE DIFFERENCE' in human life etc etc etc.' Anyway we designers have to spread design awareness among common people, good for designers atleast!

I thought I saw you...

2010-02-26T16:04:00.002+05:30

(picture source here)

death of a dream

2010-02-25T12:18:00.006+05:30

Some dreams cannot be replaced or forgotten or re-newed. Hummer was one such big dream, almost as big as hummer itself! I don't remember when I first saw it, must be long long ago, sometime back in my childhood, when I knew about very few automobiles. Like many childlike auto-enthusiasts I had been collecting its pics in the form of notebook covers to posters to desktop wallpapers, like true dreams this one has chased me till now. Probably because this is the only four wheeler I felt connected to, in any of its various forms!

I remember to have talked about hummers with many of my friends. Mosh had promised me that she will gift me Hummer (real one) on my 40th or 50th birthday. Both of us knew we may not afford it even then, but dream is a dream.

Today I read GM is shutting down Hummer production. I know they will still exist, but.... I still felt my almost impossible dream came to an unexpected end.

sad but true.

फालतुगीरी

2010-02-23T22:43:00.004+05:30

(click to enlarge)
(I am sure there are numerous grammatical mistakes, but I don't remember all that now! :( sad but true)

नितळ (Nital)

2010-02-18T09:25:00.008+05:30

Directors' Note: 'Nital means transparent.....Crystal clear....
Nital, which literally means transparent, so clear…that one can see the base. It is a portrait of inner beauty, the inner self, which is hidden beneath the obviously visible outer coat-skin.
It touches the crux of the issue of self image and acceptance, thus the need to redefine our arena of ‘vision’, where different senses of body emboss different perceptions of beauty.
The story reflects undercurrents of contradictions and confusions of so called sophisticated, civilised and elite people, who are directed by social stereotypes, while those who are closer to nature have much more acceptance for people as ‘humans’.'
This is story of Dr. Neeraja, a young and intelligent opthalmologist, who has vitiligo (white patches on her skin, face especially). Though medically vitiligo is just the lack of a skin pigment, it affects the entire identity of a person. The story unwinds itself, portraying societal insensitivity and cowardice. On the other hand, it illustrates rationality emerging in younger generation about vitiligo.
An interesting thing about this movie is that, there are lot many characters as joint family members coming from diverse professional, social, 'cultural' backgrounds and age. Inspite of this everyone of them has very clear, precise and appropriate thought process which is put together very well in movie. Most of the actors are from theatre, so acting is obviously very good. Music is also very good. Actually simplicity is the base of this movie, it can be seen in music, production design, cinematography, dialogues, costumes and still everything looks so apt and beautiful!
I feel the time I spent watching this movie and compiling this review is quite worth! :)
Most of the information and pictures here are from the official website of Nital, and the movie is also available with subtitles.
Movie: Nital (नितळ) (marathi movie)
Genre: Social
Release Year: 2007
Director: Sumitra Bhave, Suneel Sukathankar
Lyrics: Suneel Sukathankar
Music: Shreerang Umarani
Singers: Amruta Subhash, Dr. Shekhar Kulkarni, Parth Umarani, Dr. Supriya Gadekar, Sujeet Soman, Jyoti Subhash
Cast: Devika Daftaradar, Dr.Shekhar Kulkarni, Vijay Tendulkar, Deepa Shreeram, Uttara Bavkar, Vikram Gokhale, Jyoti Subhash, Reema, Neena Kulkarni, Ravindra Mankani, Kishor Kadam, Amruta Subhash, Aabha Oati, Sarang Sathye, Sujeet Soman

young India, the spilt water

2010-02-15T09:59:00.005+05:30

For those who didn't visit Maithili's blog, this is a very nicely articulated post.
The letter to Uddhav Thackeray from Rajdeep Sardesai.
I have been thinking about writing on an aspect for a long time, which he has covered very well in the last paragraph.

the good mornings!

2010-02-15T08:38:00.006+05:30

ego,
loneliness,
superiority complex,
inferiority complex,
headache,
heartache,
memories,
hatred,
love.

Riding heals.... almost everything!

aman ki asha

2010-01-26T00:00:00.004+05:30

(clic to enlarge, preferably in new window)
I have always liked campaigns by Times of India, and this one seems to be the most interesting and biggest of them all. I liked the idea on the very first day of its release (or launch). I, or actually, most of us have always appreciated and enjoyed pakistani music and singers. So why not do it in a more open and positive way? Isn't it great to accept and acknowledge what is undoubtedly good about someone, be it a country mostly looked upon as an enemy? Art follows no rules, it knows no limits, it reaches hearts and hearts know no LOCs. The way these intangible aspects are put on paper by TOI, is just amazing and convincing, from the very first print saying 'LOVE PAKISTAN'.
And this matrimonial ad above, just made me appreciate the efforts and detailing gone into executing this campaign. I am not aware about Lead India outcome but Teach India campaign has very clearly positive responses and outcomes. 'aman ki asha' also shows a similar promise. And like some projects/ campaigns, the cause and execution is so nice that you are actuclly not bothered so much about the outcome! Good going TOI. Though I missed one performance in Ahmedabad, I would make sure I don't miss any such rare opportunity in future, rather I hope such opportunities will not be 'rare' anymore!
:)

Natarang

2010-01-22T16:52:00.004+05:30

'NATARANG'
based on marathi novel 'Natarang' by Dr. Anand Yadav
Produced by Zee Taklkies
Director: Ravi jadhav
Music: Ajay-Atul
Singer: Bela Shende
Actors: Atul Kulkarni, Sonali Kulkarni

'Guna' a farmer cum wrestler from a village near Kolhapur in maharashtra, has a dream, to play role of king in traditional marathi theatre 'Tamasha'. After loosing their jobs in farms, his friends decide to form a tamasha group to keep earning money to support their families. But Guna has a much bigger dream than just earning money. He is an artist! After they have arranged almost everything including a dancer girl, they realise thay don't have someone to play role of 'Nachya' a typical feminine comedian character played by male actor in tamasha. This turns the whole story and Guna's future also!
Atul Kulkarni has taken immence efforts to play role of macho farmer in pre-interval part and the typical feminine 'Nachya' in the second half. The efforts aren't just restricted to gaining and losing 16kg in a time of 40-50 days, but also a great level of observation and acting, especially for the role of Nachya. (video link at the end)
On the music front, Ajay Atul and Bela Shende have done a very good job. All the songs are great. Sonali Kulkarni (no, not the Dil Chahta Hai wali) has used all the opportunity to showcase her dancing and acting skills to the fullest. The opening dance by Amruta Khanvilkar (a Zee music anchor) is also amazing. I will actually like to watch this movie again in movie hall for this song and dance experience! Excellent.
The movie keeps viewers stuck to their seats till the last line of end credits! The instrumental played for end credits has some magical effects!
An excellent Marathi movie after a long time.

A version with English subtitles will be released on 22nd Jan. Worth watching in movie hall. Till then you can enjoy these youtube links.
To watch efforts taken by Atul Kulkarni click here.
Amruta Khanvilkar lavani dance here.
Sonali Kulkarni performing on the amazing music here.

The inner voice

2010-01-05T22:42:00.006+05:30

The inner voice is always right, at least when it says,
1. boiling milk has already found its way to kitchen sink from the gas stove, run!
2. Now stop reading that news paper and switch off the heating coil, water has become too hot to bathe.
3. finish your bath and look at mobile, you are already late for office.
4. now that you are leaving office on time, you will meet your boss before you reach the gate. (inner voice continues saying something which you don't want to hear! You are anyway going to experience it!)
5. Now that you have decided to call home after dinner, mom will call you within 5 seconds and you will as usual say ' I was about to call you mom!!'
6. Today was probably the last day to pay your vodafone bill. (the voice says this precisely after 6pm if you don't pay online).
7. (after your 500+ km journey has started, it says) may be you have forgotten something important, check your underwears.... in the bag you stupid! Ok forget it, no use now.
8. The last concept, which you made just to increase number of concepts, will be selected!
9. May be the water bottle in your bag is leaking.
10. keep your finger on 'snooze alarm' button, it will start shouting in a second! ok good morning! May be you have kept the phone on table not bed tonight! :)

सकाळ

2010-01-03T17:34:00.005+05:30

Click to enlarge and read.

make NEW mistakes

2009-12-31T12:40:00.007+05:30

I am sure I have made many many mistakes, but these are the ones I remember clearly because they have changed me as a person.

1994, 8th standard, the oldest (so called) mistake I remember. We shifted to Kalyan, and my new school headmaster offered me entry to scholar's division, so that I could opt for Sanskrit increasing my chances to be in merit list!! But I had to mug up a lot... nooo wayyy. I went for C division, Hindi and the headmaster thought I am making a mistake. But I made some nice friends who made me realise there is much more to school than studying!!! That's the place where I started enjoying, understanding sketching and drawing ... :)

1997, 11th std. almost similar situation again, another so called mistake!

1999, This time my parents said I am making a mistake, I left my MBBS admission and went for mechanical engineering! But I enjoyed. :)

2003, finished B.E., One more mistake and decided to take a break at the very beginning of my career! I had to do something more to be part of research and development. Came to know about Product design, NID, IDC. Wanted to go to IISc. Failed, did quality control for 1 year at Godrej. Ohh! and I also tried being salesman in a Maruti Suzuki showroom for some time. Left it telling myself I will come back as a designer. But that was the last time I felt so!!! :)

2005, Got admission to IISc, almost free! Mr. krishnan tried his best to convince me not to go for NID, but I went!!! To some extent he was right, I spent more time studying, still not finished with loan.... but I enjoyed, learnt a lot about relationships, life, people and design too!

2007, Went to Reva for a project and realised that I love 2 wheels not 4!, Mosh (B) almost torn me apart for not attending any automobile (or otherwise) company interview in campus, but I wanted to go for electric 2 wheelers! What to do?

2008, Finally I got it, but some experienced people there still told me I made a mistake! I decided to make it a good mistake... to some extent I did! Learnt a lot about many new things, though not all the expected ones! Came to know so much about myself!!! Somehow I am actually happy for that mistake now!

2008, Ohh I made one more mistake... still suffering, still happy! :)

2010, Long time... so much has accumulated... time to make a new mistake! May be the biggest so far, may be not!
:)

Yamaha FZ16 for Rs. 100 only

2009-12-17T16:52:00.003+05:30

Today I baught a Yamaha FZ 16 bike for Rs. 100 only.

Impossible? No, its quite possible here in Ahmedabad.

How I did it? here is the sequence:

1. Parked my bike (1 year old yamaha FZ 16) outside SBI bank alongwith few others already there.

2. went in and dropped the check in drop box, got a statement of account.

3. Came out with my helmet in hand and no bike out there!

4. The GUARD asked me to wait on the opposite side of road where the towing vehicle will come again.

5. I searched for the vehicle along that road.

6. Spotted it with my bike hanging for life on the edge.

7. Stopped those boys and told them that orange Yamaha is mine.

8. that was enough of a proof.

9. I paid Rs. 100 and they DROPPED the bike in middle of road and went (without giving any receipt or waiting to see if it was actually my bike!).

10. Luckily that was actually my bike and I had the key so I could easily ride it away.

11. This way anyone can buy any bike for Rs. 100 from these towing vehicle contract operators.

I am planning to buy a Yamaha R15 now. Some dents on body or silencer may just increase the cost to few more hundreds. Still so cheap!

beautiFiction

2009-12-13T19:08:00.006+05:30

It's quite difficult to formulate some conclusion and understanding of this film, almost as difficult as the understanding of 'beauty' itself. It's a very well made and different film which keeps you indulged in its own flow. Even after already having a basic idea of the story, I felt it is much more than a story or even direction or cinematography or many other things, which makes it worth experiencing. May be it's the essence (perfume!) of the story, the urge to understand fundamentals of the concept called 'beauty'. We all have our own individual but basically similar ways of perceiving and reacting to beauty, very naturally. And this is where the movie tries to imply the more acceptable and human way of acknowledging beauty, by revolving around a character having almost supernatural powers, that of perceiving beauty (or lack of it) in the form (?) of smell. Yes true, that smell is part of beauty, but what if for someone beauty is only good smell? And in case of Jean Baptiste Grenouille, it seems quite possible, because he himself doesn't have any smell of his own. In the world of smells he just doesn't exist! His way of perceiving and reacting to beauty is only limited to smell! He is a person who cannot love someone or be loved... may be because he doesn't understand beauty in a natural way, like everyone else around him.
And then there are common people around him, who may not be able to analyse and formulate the essence of beauty in some tangible way, but they sure know how to acknowledge it in a more comprehensible manner. To some extent they can even identify and acknowledge it in the form of the magical perfume developed by Grenouille, the one he made using skin of beautiful women! In the scene of his day of execution he magically and literally rules the crowd using his magical perfume, but himself remains uaffected by its divine power. For you need to have some wholistic understanding of love, beauty to experience it. The word 'beautification' has some meaning only for those who have and understand beauty in its little more generic form. For other it's more of beautiFiction! So what happens when Grenouille almost empties his magical perfume bottle on himself is not very much a mystery. The perfume and the perfumer remain merely the transporters of beauty and love, and being a transporter of something implies there is a lack of that 'something' in the transporter.
I am sure all this sounds very complex and confusing, but if you think, thats how it is.... like the concept of beauty.

Survival

2009-12-09T19:49:00.002+05:30

Irrespective of how much you earn, you are always worried about survival!

convo(cation) ka kurta

2009-12-07T15:43:00.004+05:30

It's actually a book, or a diary not written,
NO... may be it's an old train ticket.
or is it just a moment in past?
or may be a list of 'to do's I made last year,
some ticked, some crossed and some looking like don'ts now.
Anyway, I have already given it for dry-cleaning.
May be that will change the way it looks in future.

Indian 'स्त्री'

2009-11-27T09:20:00.005+05:30

Sharing something which made me feel good today morning while reading Times of India.
Read it here.
Loved the last line... smart!

one from UMRAO JAAN

2009-11-26T14:46:00.002+05:30

Singer: Talat Aziz
zindagi jab bhi teri bazm mein laati hai hamen
ye zamin chand se behatar nazar aati hai hamen

surkh phulon se mahak uthati hain dil ki rahen
din dhale yun teri aawaz bulaati hai hamen

yaad teri kabhi dastak kabhi saragoshi se
raat ke pichhale prahar roz jagaati hai hamen

har mulaqat ka anjaam judai kyun hai
ab to har vaqt yahi baat satati hai hamen

26/11: what it really means

2009-11-26T09:28:00.005+05:30

One year after the attack, Times of India asks us a question 'what it really means?' and gives the answer by putting this under 'entertainment' section!
But I guess that is right, as I find there is also a link to movie review of Kurbaan, another terror story with love in it!(from Times of India website, 26/11/2009)

hope

2009-11-24T09:42:00.001+05:30

Don't have hope... it ends up wasting a lot of time in life.... do something else.

निर्वात

2009-11-20T11:50:00.003+05:30

so, what else?

2009-11-19T14:30:00.003+05:30

I know how this question sounds (literally)!, and I cannot imagine it in any other voice. I know how this question looks like. I wish I could answer this question forever, but I know thats the end (of conversation).

Absolut Mind

2009-11-18T11:01:00.002+05:30

(based on Absolut vodka ad campaign)

Cigarette smoking is injurious to health

2009-11-15T19:34:00.002+05:30

and so is walking on the parapet of my 7 storey building terrace,
or riding my bike standing on the seat,
or watching sun set, sitting on the edge of cliff,
or catching a running train,
or crossing the road in front of a speeding car,
and many other 'challenging' things we young ones do!
Yes, I am young, I am cool, I love thrills!
So what do you expect when you tell me,
"Cigarette smoking is injurious to health"?
(inspired by the 'truth' campaign run by arnold Worldwide of Boston and Crispin Porter &Bogusky of Miami against tobacco)

To fly or not to fly?

2009-11-08T14:30:00.001+05:30

This is a part of conversation with my friend Sagar. Please comment with your opinions on this topic.

sagar: i was looking at some jet pack videos, as in a device which one carries on the back and you can fly with it. what do you think wil be the next thing in transporation
me: next as in?
sagar: it will be a matter of a little more time that we will start seeing people flying
me: hmmm, but as a designer i don't find that so real. think bout it and by real i dnt mean technlogy... i mean real people
sagar: ummm why not?
me: it takes a lot of courage, skill and mental acceptance for most of the common people to ride even bikes at speed of 60kmph with both wheels on ground!.... some prefer public transport... some who afford... go for personal cars... so flying... is much challenging for common people
sagar: hmm,thats true
me: what is required and will be preferable is public transport
sagar: its a personal choice..but it still exists
me: i agree, i wil certainly go for flying jet pack, but wrt to personal mobility, there are people who commute because they want to ride and then there are people who ride just because they need to commute.
I commute because I want to ride!
sagar: hmm interersting,but dont you feel after surface and water air could be next medium?
me: it already is
sagar: no for example travelling from my home to a nearby cinema
me: yes.. but I remember when we were doing systems project, we thought best thing is to avoid human transportation for as many tasks as possible..
but yes.. still air could be most preferred medium for some group of people, including me :)
what do u think?
sagar: hmm, yes.. as in its overcoming one of human limitations
why do u think nobody has tried to commercialise the jetpack?
its such an old invention!
me: may be not enough MARKET!!!!!
thats the reason so many vehicle concets go in R&D scrap!!!!
even the normal vehicles I mean.
sagar: why wouldnt anyone want something faster than a bike and somehting which doesnt need roads?
me: faster than bike? which bike? You know 100cc is the largest selling category in two wheelers! I mean people dont want faster bikes too! a large group of people!
so for mass commercialisation... jet pack may not be right thing...
for a small goup of people it may be... those who have enough money and also want to fly.. on their own..how many are they?
sagar: i think its same as the situation when the automobiles were first commercialised.
with more and more of automobiles on roads they felt the need to have signals and there were tarffic jams and we still are fighting with jams
bike is a better vehicle because it doesnt occupy unnecessary space on road anywhere... so if we say we eliminate 4 wheelers and have public tarnsport and bikes it may be good
me: do u know in most countries bike is proved to be the most dangerous mode of transport and they are planning to restrict use of them?
sagar: yes true, so we need an option which is for one person and occupies small space, need not be bike, sometihng which is stable
me: and SAFE
sagar: hmm, flying vehicle is dangerous than a bike
sagar: this is one way of looking at it,
public tarnsport and compact and safe personal vehicles is i think a fair option.. given the man needs to travel and explore .
now if this scenario comes into reality some time.. the next fair and logical extension would safe compact personal flying vehicle, because space on groud is limited
me: see you can sell anything!!!! u just need the right context :)
for commercialisation... u either need to fix a target group ( the profitable one) and design or make something for them.... or if you want to make something...then u see whom you can sell it to.... right?
sagar: hmm right
me: there are people who have designed and made bikes which they sell for more than a crore!!!! but one has just to be clear to himself if he wants to help people do something or to commercialise and sell something!!!
sagar: but we r not trying to sell something unnecessary.. its to satisfy the human spirit of exploration and learning and facilitate his movement because he cant run faster than his physical abilities
me: "its to satisfy the human spirit of exploration and learning "
very true and appropriate.

one more...

2009-11-07T10:51:00.007+05:30

Loved this song... and it was quite a surprise in this movie... very well shot.. must watch (preferably in the movie)

Movie: Ajab Prem ki Ghazab kahani
Song: tu jaane na
Music Director: Pritam Chakraborty
Singer: Atif Aslam
Lyrics: Irshad Kamil

Kaise Batayein, Kyu Tujh ko Chahe, Yaara bata na Paaye
Baatein dilo ki, Dekho Jo Baaki, Aankhein tujhe Samjhaye
Tu Jaane Na, Tu Jaane Na, Tu Jaane Na, Tu Jaane Na

mil ke bhi, Hum na Mile, tumse na jaane Kyu,
Milo ke hai Fansle.Tumse Na jaane kyu
Anjaane Hai SilSile, Tum Se Na Jaane Kyu,
Sapno hai Palko Tale, Tum Se Na Jaane Kyu,

Kaise Batayein, Kyu Tujh ko Chahe, Yaara bata na Paaye
Baatein dilo ki, Dekho Jo Baaki, Aankhein tujhe Samjhaye
Tu Jaane Na, Tu Jaane Na, Tu Jaane Na, Tu Jaane Na

Nigahon mein dekho, meri jo hai bas gaya, woh hai milta tumse, hu ba hu..
Jaane teri Aankhein thi, ya baatein thi, Wajah..
hue tum jo, dil ki aarzoo
tum pass ho ke bhi, tum aas ho ke bhi, ehsaas ho ke bhi…
apne nahi.. aise hai hum ko gileh.. tumse najaane kyu..
meelo ke hai fansle, tum se na jaane kyu..
tu jaane na..tu jaane na..tu jaane na..
ohh jaane na. jaane na, jaane natu jaane na..

Khayalon mein laakohn baatein, yu toh keh gaya,
bola kuch na tere sahmney..
hue na begaane bhi tum hoke, aur dekho tum mere hi na bane..
afsos hota hai, dil bhi yeh rota hai
Sapne sanjota hoa.. pagla hua, soche yeh..
hum the mile tume se na jaane kyu,
meelo ke hai fansle tum se na jaane kyu..

Kaise Batayein, Kyu Tujh ko Chahe, Yaara bata na Paaye
Baatein dilo ki, Dekho Jo Baaki, Aankhein tujhe Samjhaye
Tu Jaane Na,Tu Jaane Na.

Human, really?

2009-10-30T10:08:00.007+05:30

'IIM-A grad launches subzi mandi on laptop. Your daily aloo, baigan and bhindi will soon be just a click away. No more finding your way through the filth at your neighbourhood subzi bazaar and haggling for prices with rude vegetable vendors. The website will create an online mandi where one can “see” the fresh vegetables, check prices and place orders. Apart from purchasing daily vegetables, one can "gift" fruits using the web service.' from Times Of India, 30 Oct 2009.
wowwww... so nice no???? we will be able to SEE vegetables on screen!!! even if thats means we won't be able to touch, smell, choose the best ones, bargain (verbally) with the (real) subzi wala bhaiya, accidentally meet our acquaintances in the (real) subzi mandi, may be subsequently fall in love with one of them, know that there is 50% sale in the silk emporium near the subzi mandi, get reminded that your distant relatives daughter is getting married next month, know that the (so called rude) old apple (fruit) wala at the entry of subzi mandi baught a Tata nano and so many other things which make and keep you social and/or human (if not tech savvy)... BUT you will be able to place orders looking at the pictures on your laptop screen!!! So great!!!....
The best thing is you can even GIFT fruits to your beloved ones using the web service! So what if you haven't even touched them with your hands? The receiver will be more interested in fruits and nutritions they will give... not in the feeling of receiving them from you... So nice!!! Yesterday someone bought me a handcrafted fabric elephant, and while giving she mentioned that she chose this particular because the mirrorwork, and overall pattern is placed more appropriately on it! This is what matters... right? that the one who is giving actually took time and care to see that you get the best possible! Whether it is an elephant or a cow comes second for me and probably for anybody.
The 'subzi-mandi on laptop' news today just triggered the thoughts and served as an example, but the basic issue can be seen in many such 'human (?) advances'. Good (read: effective) marketing can sell anything you have as the 'best new thing/way'... but is that what we have been educated for?
4-5 years down the line, kids will surf internet to learn that 'touch' means 'way of operating mobile and computing devices'. You can try searching 'touch' on google images even now.
Are we really working for the betterment of HUMANS?

It's in your hands!

2009-10-29T09:13:00.003+05:30

Came across this nice logo of Fortis healthcare group of hospitals (or healthcare consultants) in India. A very simple but brilliant treatment of negative space to convey the right meaning to the viewer. For those who have not figured it out yet, the logo in the left with a red dot above, has the space between tow hands in the shape of a human (and the red dot is head)! I really liked the way it conveys the right message in such a simple form. Just one shape element with straight lines, one circle, two colours and so much meaning! I think if you want, you can really make things simple!
The 3 letters r, t and i in the logotype connected to each other seem to be saying something, which I didn't get.. but still look interesting, may be like some other script or symbol. If anybody knows please comment.

I never knew I like orange!

2009-10-27T23:00:00.006+05:30

The list of my orange things,
1. my Yamaha :)
2. a wall in our house in kalyan
3. two bedsheets ( the jaipuri cotton one is missing :( )
4. towel (yes!)
5. racing stripes (hahaha) on my blue bathroom slippers (!!!)
6. two KTM stickers I put on my helmet
7. my deo
8. I found my pendrive also glows orange!
9. cuff -collar etc of the grey jacket I baught today (please don't imagine)
10. earpiece of my headphones
11. clothes hangers
12. one khadi shirt (more yellow than orange though)
13. desktop wallpapers on both my laptop and office comp these days!

And I used to think my favourite colour is blue!