Sandy@24

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Intercity

I've never travelled so much by train in my whole life as I did in past six months at IITB. Most of it toggling between Mumbai and Pune on weekends. I was introduced to Intercity by a friend passing out, as the fastest carrier between the two cities...no wonder I fell for her immediately...then the affair continued for months...and still going on steadily ;) To the extend that once I went to and fro in a single day!
Some things become so much a part of our life that you can't see beyond them. On odd occasions when I fail to get a reservation, I go standing but take another train...every minute of the 2:15 hrs journey from Pune to Mumbai is a treat in all respects. Well not all....hmm...so here ends the good part of the story.
I have a few complaints....it's so hard get a reservation for this queen of deccan...gives a lot of hard time...to my bro :P...and why on earth some of the most repellent human beings are sent into my compartment!...the bus experience has been pleasing in that respect...anyway as the best things in life are desired by everyone...so is case with this poor speedo...with hoards of people on board, the general bogies offer the most disgusting scenes on the surface of mother earth...it would be easier get a seat in the parliament than in Intercity general dabba...well...seasoned commuters like me are trained for that with some dhakka-bukki techniques...but otherwise its no less than a miracle if you end up getting one....but if you do, then nothing like it! You have 2 hrs full of entertainment....the unending quarrels of the fellow passengers standing in the passage, in doors, and in every possible cubic centimeter...the pheriwallas take immense pleasure in making rounds of the whole train for innumerable times....by now I know most of them by face...and some by name! chikki at Lonavla and vada-paav at Karjat allows a few more of these train-crawlers to get in. Last one, Intercity runs 15 mins slower than usual these days...not cool :(
Well, having shown the good and bad side of it, I just wish for a few more sisters of this Super Express....heard this somewhere....'The Burning Train'?...remember the multi-starrer....Dharmendra, Jeetendra, Danny....anyway, they could be named Intracity, Velocity, Univer-city....ok...I know....I stop right here.

Rang De Basanti

This is my first post since I joined IIT. I would be lying if I blame it on the workload, but somehow it just didn't happen. Blogging was also on my 'New Year's Resolutions' list, but that too couldn't generate enough thrust. I'm not among those bloggers who don't even need a topic! I blog in a rather conservative manner, which I know is not what blogging all about, but still. Anyways, here I am, back in business.

I have been increasingly frustrated with the kind of Hindi movies being produced these days. To add to it, I find a sizable population which claims that these are indeed good films. Well, may be I'm on the wrong foot, but I hated Bluffmaster, Apaharan was ok, and Kalyug surprisingly turned out to be the best among the lot. Still, I was counting heavily on Rang De Basanti and gladly it was worth every penny...a must watch for every Indian or any youth in a state of confusion over his role in life.

The story of Bhagat Singh has been told enough number times by the Hindi cinema. So, my reaction to scene 1 was, 'ohh...not again!'. But I was wrong. Never before was such a fitting analogy made betweeen the past and the present. Though it plays with the same old toys of corruption, politics, religion there is an element of novelty and urgency in this flick. A slap to the 'Chalta hai' attitude commonly observed everywhere in India. Also, an eyeopener for the crowd who firmly believes that 'Is desh ka kuchh nahi ho sakta', by adding to it, 'until you do something!'. To sum up, the message was loud and clear, 'Be A Rebel'.

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Five Point Someone

I bump into the right books at right time! Just when I finished reading 'Angels and Demons', the Pope died! Not that I am pleased with it, but still the timing was perfect...I'm a bad man! Anyway, now just when I'm on the verge of entering the II of T, I got this book 'Five Point Someone'. A book by an IITian, about the IIT (actually about what not to do at IIT!), but definitely not for IITians only...I bet anyone who has been to school/college/or the great IIT itself, will not put this book down without finishing it! Well the plot is not totally out of the world, in fact at times it feels like a typical teenagers-type hindi movie...but just the tag "IIT" makes it that special and of course the simple but superb story telling technique by the author blows you away!
IIT has always been a black box for those who haven't been lucky(?) enough to be a part of this "system"....the only thing that the world knows is, it produces the finest of talent in India...but after reading this book you get to know the "how" part of it!
Looking forward to "Five Point Someone", the film. I wish I could play Hari! Are they still casting for the film? Kidding, of course! Let the actor in me rest in peace for the good of society....I think I should stop right now before I give some more crap. Let me finish by giving no less than nine point something to the book!

Justine time!

She's back! and just-in-time...with the French Open just two weeks away this German Open title is just the right platform for Justine Henin-Hardenne to claim the grandslam...and she's already the favorite...repeat of the memorable 2003 performance would be a treat to watch...although injuries are still a concern for her...hope she overcomes them....way to go Justine!

Time to re"tire" Bridgestone?

This has been discussed a lot in the past, in the F1 community....why Ferrari (and Jordan...if anyone cares!) stick to the Bridgestone rubber when all other teams race with Michelin? The reason to raise this issue now is the double tragedy Schumi had to face in yesterday's Spanish GP...he was going great guns until then...strongly holding on the hard-earned second position...when one of those rear tires was damaged...he had to force his car into the pits to get it replaced...as if this wasn't enough, in the next lap the front tire deflated putting an early full stop on his race and on Ferrari's only hope, with barrichello struggling to get back into form...this is not the first time this has happened..tires have always been a problem area for ferrari, for many seasons...but the heroics of the ferrari crew have overshadowed the influences...but this season being not so good for ferrari, every little thing counts...and after this race, tires will be the front runners!