Trip to Suryalanka Beach Resort

If you are at Hyderabad and looking for a weekend getaway, you don't have much options. There is a dearth of tourist places around Hyderabad unless you are the religious kind and temple towns are okay with you. I have been staying in Hyderabad since last 7 years and I have already been to most places in and around Hyderabad that are worth a visit. Then I heard about this place called "Suryalanka".

Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation has been aggressively promoting this place. Last December, we thought we will give it a shot. Suryalanka is a beach village (cant be called a town by any stretch of imagination). There is a government resort right on the beach so one thing it can definitely boast of is a good view. The beach is pretty clean as it is far from any big town. One can enjoy a morning walk with a lovely view and a peaceful environment. The sunset is great as well.

Having said all that, let me admit that Suryalanka gave us more negatives than positives(we will come to that)....yet it was a welcome change from a boring and pretty routine weekend at Hyderabad. All we wanted was to forget about the tensions of everyday life, sit on the beach on a lazy evening and have chilly chicken with beer/soft drinks. We got that.

I have already explained the positives (change, good view etc). Let me explain the negatives a little so that you do not kill me if you do make a trip. First and foremost, it is a government resort so service is ..... sub-standard. No two ways about it. The resort has several cottages which are "cheap" (normally I use the term, "inexpensive" but cheap describes it better as the tariff is low and so is the quality). The restaurant is pretty bad as well and they reluctantly serve the food in the cottages. Moreover, one cannot order a sizzler or a lasagne over there. They have fixed menu (little choice) for each day...depending upon the supplies. Ya, you can ask for any special dish. They do try to accomodate your wishes. The restaurant at the resort is the only option that one has. They take ages in bringing food so order around 2 hours in advance. There is not much to do at Suryalanka so DONT plan for more than a weekend. Ya, I am pretty much done with the negatives.

Food takes time to arrive but the taste is not too bad. Do try the chilly chicken, which needless to say, best goes with chilled beer. There are some shops (dont expect a Foodworld or WalMart) right outside the resort. They stock snacks and beer. Beer is available in every shop so thats a major positive.

Suryalanka is best for people from Hyderabad.....as they do not have much options. It is certainly not a great holiday destination but is a pretty okay option if you are looking for a change. The trip wont cost much as well. Okay, let me put it this way....if you are at hyderabad and have run out of options, you badly need a change, you like travelling and are a little adventurous, do not have more time than a weekend and you are not looking for a 5-star comfort....you can try Suryalanka.

(The nearest railhead is "Bapatla", which is around one hour away from Vijaywada. By road, it is around 7-8 hours drive from Hyderabad but thats not really advisable. Go over there in summers if you are looking for ways to commit suicide. Even december was hot. Carry your own snacks. An electric kettle with few cup noodles will be great. There is an Indian Air Force station nearby so one can leverage those connections and stay in their guest house. But in that casem you will miss out on the best part....the view.)

Dental Trauma

I go for a dental check-up every six months as I can bear all kinds of physical pain but not the one that comes between me and good food!!! You go to the dentist to avoid any pain but the check-up can also be pretty painful. Let me share one very painful incident that took place during my last visit to the dentist. It did not cause any major physical pain but it was psychologically painful. It was traumatic. Here is what happened.

I went to the Smiline Dental Clinic in Srinagar Colony, Hyderabad. That is my regular dental clinic and I know the doctor pretty well. I was offered another dentist since my regular doctor was busy with another patient. However, I insisted on meeting my regular dentist, Dr. Sunitha (wish I had accepted the offer). After waiting for a few minutes, I was asked to go to Dr. Sunitha's room. I went there, we said hello to each other and then she started the examination.

After a brief examination, she told me that I have a cavity. No, no...thats not the painful part!!! With the amount of time I spend on brushing my teeth, that was pretty much expected. She told me that she can quickly do a filling. She offered to fill some 'substance' that will match the color of my teeth (remember this part). I thought that is a brilliant idea as no one will ever know about the cavity and the filling. I agreed.

She asked her assistant to bring the substance that matches the color of my teeth. The assistant went away and was back in a minute with a tray. I dont know what was the color of the substance did she bring but the doctor had one look at the tray and shouted....."not this one, bring the YELLOW one!!!!". Ouch!!!

Now I take good care of my teeth.

Postman Postman...Sir Aapki Chitthi Aayi Hai!!!

(Pondicherry, Oct 2008)

Allahabad Trip: Picture taken at Sangam

Spooky

Indian Defense Sector: 10,000 feet view

India recently successfully test fired the BrahMos cruise missile. This is a great step forward and such news does help in creating a sense of pride as well as security. But, in terms of modernization of our arms and ammunitions, where do we stand vis-a-vis the other superpowers of the world? I am no defense analyst and I have never researched upon the defense sector in India. However, having been brought-up in army cantonments, I have seen the scenario closely. Moreover, I have got opportunities to talk to the people who are directly associated and so "I think" I know a little.

I am not worried about the men in uniform. Though it is fact that the enthusiasm towards serving the Indian Army, Navy or Air Force is decreasing (and it is indeed a matter of concern), I am sure that what we have is among the best in the world. What I am more concerned about is the state of affairs when it comes to arms and ammunitions. We do develop guns, missiles etc but the frequency of new product development is very low compared to most other countries. I do not think that our INSAS and SLR rifles stand anywhere when compared to the weapons used by the soldiers of US, Russia, China etc. There is a particular program on Discovery Channel that shows "Future Weapons". Compared to those weapons, the weapons used by Indian Army are like "bows and arrows". So, where does the problem lie? Are we so backward in terms of technology that we cannot produce those weapons? I dont think so. The problem, like all problems in India, lies in the system.

Ordnance Factories in India: Pain Points

I cannot comment on all the ordnance factories in India but I have seen two of them pretty closely. The first one is the Ordnance Factory Medak. This factory makes armoured vehicles. The amount of land that this particular factory covers is enormous. I was told that two factories were supposed to come up on the alloted land however, only one came up in the end. This factory is HUGE in terms of the total area. Another interesting piece of information that I got regarding the factory is that Indian Army is the sole client of the factory and the army is hardly ordering for such vehicles. So that means the factory is not solving any purpose at all. To justify its existence to some extent, the factory works on converting ordinary vehicles to bullet-proof VIP vehicles!!!! I must say, brilliant use of the tax payers money.

The other ordnance factory that I have seen pretty closely is the Rifle Factory, Ishapore (West Bengal). The factory is the largest, if not the only, supplier of rifles to the Indian Army and other defense entities. Now, this factory does produce good rifles but what about the cost? I was told that the factory is majorly overstaffed. To add to the problems, the target given to each employee can be achieved in couple of hours. So the workers come in the morning, finish the work in a couple of hours and then discuss politics, football, mamta banerjee, bipasha basu, ravindra sangeet etc. They work the normal hours and later do overtime as well!!! There was this particular gentleman who could barely walk properly due to his old age and he had problems with his vision as well. Yet, he used to come every morning, sit under a tree and leave late in the evening. This was is daily routine. This guy used to take the normal wages as well as the overtime pay!!! And guess who pays for all this fun Me and you. So, whats the solution of all this?

Possible Solution

I was told that each rifle that is produced in Rifle Factory, Ishapore can be produced in at least one-third the cost by a private player. Privatizing the ordnance sector is a possible solution, if not the best solution. Several global defense contractors like Lockheed Martin, Raytheon etc (Time to show off my research on the US Aerospace and Defense sector) would love to pounce on the opportunities in this market. Even if we do not want to attract foreign hands, I am sure companies like Tata, Mahindra and Mahindra etc will be interested. We do not know who all will be interested as have never opened that window and looked outside (my guess is Mr. Mallya will be more than interested) but thats not the point. The point is that people will surely be interested to set up manufacturing plants in India and to serve the demands. But we must look at the pros and cons of privatizing the ordnance sector.

Privatization: Issues and Limitations

1. First and the foremost, what will happen to the thousand of workers that are presently working in the ordnance factories across India? But that can be solved. I am sure, a private player can compensate the workers much better than the Indian government presently does. Private players can associate incentives with efficiency. At least the younger workers will be (should be) interested in joining the private players. I do agree that several workers will not like this idea and would not like to work for a private player. Afterall its in us to resist any kind of change. Now, even if those workers or all the workers are asked to stay at home and are paid their salaries till the end of their working career, I think the equation will still work out to be profitable.
2. The other problem could be with the "change management". I am sure there will be several strikes as well as riots, especially when a few ordnance factories are in West Bengal. But that problem will have to be and can be dealt with strongly and strictly.
3. The existing policies and regulations will have to tweaked and going by the past track record, this can take a zillion years

Privatization: Positives (Top of the Mind)

1. Cost will be reduced and hence the defense budget will go down. The savings can be utilized in other sectors or can be used to purchase arms from other countries or can be invested in research and development
2. There will be a better management of resources (especially land)
3. The private players, with their financial might, can invest heavily in research and development. They will ensure results. This can help us in creating better weapons in India itself.
4. If the government permits, the new and better weapons, tools, equipments, vehicles can be sold outside India. These products will be cheaper as India is a low cost manufacturing location and hence will easily find market across the world (depending upon the policies of the countries)
5. Indian defense entities as well as the economy will get stronger.
6. It will give a strong message that "chalta hai" attitude is no longer acceptable

Definitely worth a try, isnt it?

Tata Indicom: Dead Horse

I recently purchased a Tata Indicom "Plug 2 Surf" USB modem. I already have a broadband connection at home but I needed a USB modem since I had some travel plans and wanted to stay connected. High hopes!!!

15 Minute Customer Delight

I called up Tata Indicom customer care to enquire about the offers and plans. I was told about a great offer and was told that an executive can deliver the modem at my door step. I was pretty happy with such service. Didnt know that it was just a bait!!!

The Actual Customer Service Starts

Villain#1 (Sales Executive): The same day, a sales executive came to my place and asked me to fill a form. I did that. Then he took the money and got up to leave!!! I asked him for the USB modem. He told me that someone else will come to verify the address and that guy will give the USB modem. Later, the customer care executive called and asked whether I have received the modem or not!!! When told about what happened, she almost scolded me for not taking the modem from the sales executive. But madam, how am I supposed to know that your executives can be cheats??? I tried calling the sales executive but he did not pick up. This happened for the most part of next day as well. Then I received a call from the customer care. I was told that I will get the modem in half an hour. After waiting for an hour and half, I called up the sales executive and he said that he will be at my place in 15 minutes. After several more calls and a couple of hours, he sent a boy with the modem. The boy knew nothing about the device, laptops, installation process etc. He just told me that he cant help much and my connection will be activated by the end of day.

Late in the night, I tried connecting the modem. Nothing happened. Then, I figured out that there is an installation CD that has been provided. For some reason, this was kept a secret!!! May be they thought that CD has documents related to national security or probably the design details of Tata Nano!!! Anyways, after installing the CD, the modem started to work....at least the signal strenth related numbers suggested that. But there was a "small" problem.....none of the sites were opening. Probably, the Tata Indicom folks thought that I have taken the connection just to check out the signal strength!!!!

I tried calling the customer care(technical)!!!! I was asked for a 10 digit number!!!! More mysteries!!!! I was never provided with a 10 digit number. I went through the manual and realised that the number is actually a phone number. Luckily I have a CDMA phone. I plugged the sim card in my phone and checked the phone number. Later, I was told by the customer care that a technician will come to my place in 12 hours. He almost admitted that someone should have communicated the phone number to me.

Villain # 2 (Technician): The technician came to my place and within 5 minutes decided that I need to format my laptop!!!! Threw some technical jargons to suggest that the problem is with my laptop. How convenient!!! I suggested him that he should try connecting the modem to his laptop. Surprise Surprise!!!! It did not work!!! Then he tried connecting his own modem to his laptop....that didnt work either. Then came the best solution. It cant work at my place so I should go outside my home to use the connection. I visualized myself sitting under a tree outside my home and checking my mails. I almost smiled. I asked him to get out. How rude of me!!!

Villain # 3 (Technical Support Call Center): I called up the technical support and asked them what shall I do now. They told me that the connection may not work at my place. In that case, I can ask for a full refund. But for that, a technician will have to report that the connection wont work at my place. I told them that a technician has already visited and he has told me that the connection wont work in my house. But the customer care exec told me that the technician has reported back that the customer is using his personal modem and there is a problem with the modem!!!! WOW!!! I told the buggers that I have purchased the modem from Tata Indicom only. Then I was told that I can go to the nearest outlet, fill a form and ask for a refund. Finally!!!

I did just that. I went to a nearby outlet but.........I was told that they cannot help me. I called up the customer care and they told me that only the executive that delivered the modem can help me with the refund!!!! And we curse the government for bureaucracy!!!!

I tried calling the executive. For the first 10 thousand times he did not pick up. Then I sent a message to him that I am going to lodge a police complaint against him. In 2 minutes he called up and told me that he was in a meeting. Not even Ratan Tata would be so busy with meetings!!! He came up with another brilliant solution. He told me that it seems that I have not installed the CD properly so he will send someone to install it!!! I told him that it says connected but none of the sites are opening. He told me that in that case, it is a problem with signal and contact technical support. He also told me that in no case will I get a refund. I called technical support and talked to them in the most colorful language that I have ever used. How rude of me!!!

Villain # 4 (Billing Team): In the evening, someone called up from the billing team and said that he can close the connection if I want. I asked that I will be more than happy but what about the refund? He told me that there wont be any refund made. And he told me that I should try taking the modem with me on the trip and it will surely work.

I did that. But, as expected, the modem/connection did not work!!!

I have thrown the modem!!!!

Lessons Learnt:

1. Never use a Tata product as the product and the customer service sucks

2. I was planning to get a Tata Sky connection but now, thats out of question

3. I should try "anulom vilom" and "pranayam". I am a BP patient and I can easily have a heart attack while dealing with customer care executives. I was on the verge of heart attacks several times during this whole process.

4. Tata Indicom has launched a new product. In its promos it shows that race horses to suggest the speed. I beg to differ. I think Tata Indicom is in the business of selling "dead horses"

4. I know solved the mystery regarding vampires and draculas. I know where are all of them now. All of them are working as customer care executives. I think the biggest eligibility criteria for becoming a customer care executive is that you must know how to suck the blood of the customers!!!!

Japanese Brain Damage Trick

Dear Agony Aunt,

Thats the new addiction in my life. I was never into puzzles. But my parents got me hooked!!! I used to feel sorry for "Sudoku addicts" but now, I am one of them. Now, I solve puzzles in my dreams!!! Is there a rehab center that I can contact?

Thanks and Regards,

Distressed Sudoku Solver

Am back after along time. Around 7 months!!! Was not going through the best of times. In fact, the past 3 months have been the worst of my life. And since what happened was not totally unexpected, the period before that wasnt particularly rosy either. It was a horrible time for me and my family. During this while, I wanted to write and share several things. However, I prefered sharing them with myself. But now, when I have managed to scrape through the troubled times, I am back to blogging.

I want to thank first the almighty who has been really generous. I have had several bad phases in my life. Everyone goes through them. But the almighty has always made my life better after every fall. I hope this continues. And I hope I deserve it.

Then I want to thank some people who are more close to me than others. My parents, my wife Roshni, my sister Anumeha, my best friend and my brother Amit Upadhyay. These people have been my pillars of strength.....not only in the past three months but always!!! I am lucky to have them in my life.

There are several other friends, who helped me a lot. All my close friends are part of my morning prayers and I pray for the best for all my close friends. But I have special prayers for all of them now. And, I will be honest and admit that the list has become bigger now. There are several who were not really close to me earlier but they went out of their way to help me out. The least I can do to thank them is to pray for them. And I do feel ashamed that these people were not part of my prayers earlier.

Thank you everyone. Coz of you I managed to get past this ordeal.

Saaqi ne phir se mera jaam bhar diya!!!

A Wednesday on a Saturday Night

Yesterday, I watched the movie, "A Wednesday". It is a classic case of movie reviews going horribly wong.

I had huge expectations from the movie. Afterall it has some great actors (Naseeruddin Shah and Anupam Kher). The movie got great ratings from almost all movie critics. 4 stars out of 5!!! That's uncommon!!! Not many movies get such ratings. Not that I go by the ratings and reviews but they do play some role in decision making.

On Saturday, we planned to watch back-to-back movies. "Membai Meri Jaan" at 8 PM and then "A Wednesday" at 10:45 PM. When "A Wednesday" started, my expectations suddenly took a hit. Not that I was getting bored or anything. It was just that I had watched a very realistic movie in the previous show and a fictional movie on a similar theme would have been....well....unrealistic. I was thinking that the hangover of "Mumbai Meri Jaan" and my tall expectations from "A Wednesday" will kill my experience.

I was wrong. The movie was simply awesome. A great theme and superb performances. It was a thriller and had a great message. Anupam Kher has given a splendid performance but.....(I am just stating the obvious).....Naseeruddin Shah is brilliant. 

It is a must watch movie. And ya, if this movie gets "four stars " then "five stars" rating is fictional. The movie deserves nothing less than five stars and that is why the present ratings and reviews, though close, are horribly wrong.

I am glad that I watched the two movies back to back. Everything was perfect. The movies as well as the sequence. "Mumbai Meri Jaan" reflects "what it is".........and "A Wednesday" shows "What it should be". Go watch it.

I missed writing during and about Olympics. It is not an event which I follow keenly but I do keep an eye on the news channels......in hope. One reason for my low interest in this high profile event is our track record. We send a baraat in Olympics, most athletes perform terribly and then we also create a few controversies!!! I agree that the last three outings had been good (by our standards). Leander Paes, Karnam Malleswari and Lt. Col. Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore made us proud in the last three olympics. But given the population of our country as well as the size of our Olympic contingent, only one medal in each of the last three Olympics was a poor performance. Once a member of the Nigerian team (if I am not mistaken) had commented that "India takes the olympic motto (Winning is not everything, participation matters) very seriously". Shameful but true. We watch the Olympics in hope that we will get to hear the national anthem but we get to hear such comments. This is the reason behind my low interest. But this Olympic was different........

Lets first start with the negative points;

• Padam Shri Sania Mirza. I can not understand why the babe gets so much attention. Afterall, what is her claim to fame. She has won only one WTA event and that too an event in Hyderabad!!! Agreed that she is the only woman tennis player from India who broke into the top 30 ranking. But honestly, WTA tour's impression in my mind took a major hit because of Sania's rise. Entire India follows her matches but most news headlines read "Sania crashes out in the first round". I do not know how she ever made it to the top 30. Hard to believe that there are several more incompetent (read: worse) players on the WTA circuit. Anyways, coming back to the topic, Padam Shri Mirza left her first round match midway, citing an injury. She was posing for photographs on the day before (source: newspapers) and was ready to play the doubles match the next day!!!! Injury? Bullshit!!! She is just an incompetent player who does not want to get exposed. A loss in sports is okay. It should not be taken too seriously. Even Bradman used to get out on zero. What should not be tolerated is wrong attitude. Sania does not look serious. She did not even dress appropriately for the opening ceremony. Such players should get a kick on their rear side and should not be allowed to represent the country. In any case, there is no point sending women tennis players to Olympics. It is a huge wastage of resources.......and prayers.
• Lt. Col Rathore. I do not have any problems with his performance. Any sportsperson can have an off day. No issues over there. But the conduct was inappropriate. Lt. Col Rathore was sporting a beard in the tournament. Agreed, it was not an army event. Yet, he is an army officer and should have behaved like one. I was hugely disappointed by his conduct especially when I am reading the biography of Field Marshall Sam Manekshaw.
• Did not have much hopes from others, however I must say the performances of Gagan Narang and Manavjit Sandhu were disappointing. There were huge expectations from Lee-Hesh but that was just our typical optimism, especially when the guys are not gelling together. And, why do we even send Anjali Bhagwat???
• Support staff. Sania Mirza's mother travelled to Beijing as the manager of the women's team!!! There was a huge uproar. An official of the Indian Tennis Federation explained on national television that he has personally seen Mirza senior taking good care of the team and she is a great manager. Is there anyone who is stupid enough to buy that? I would like to see Mirza senior as a manager of the team when Sania is not playing. I do not think that is gonna happen....ever. Moving on, many other players of the Indian contingent could not take their coaches to the Olympics. Instead, officials were sent!!!! Absurd and Shameful!!!

Ok, enough of negative points. Lets talk about the positives now. There are five main positives. Abhinav Bindra, Vijender Kumar, Sushil Kumar, Akhil Kumar and Jitender Kumar. The first three have medals to show, however one must appreciate the great performance of Akhil and Vijender. The story of most of these men is inspiring. Apart from Bindra, all of these men come from a humble background. One can only imagine how difficult it would have been for these men to chase their dreams. Nothing to take away from Bindra as well. The guy has all the resources, thanks to a super-rich dad. Yet, it takes hard work and dedication to achieve what he achieved. Other good performances included the shuttlers, Saina Nehwal and Anup Sridhar and the archers.

Overall, we came up with a great performance in this Olympics. We exceeded our expectations. There were several players in the contingent who won the medal and several others who came close. Fair enough. And, this Olympics was special as we got to hear our national anthem. We owe it to you Abhinav!!!

Good Morning Guys. I am back to blogging after a long break. It is not that I did not have anything to express or write about. And I was certainly not too busy to blog. But, for some reason, things never fell into place. I did not want to write just for the heck of it.

But ya, I did miss blogging...especially when there were so many topics. I hope to be regular....till the next hibernation.

RAAAAAAAAFA..................RAFA

Ladies and Gentlemen, Rafael Nadal is the new Wimbledon Champion!!!! He won the championship two minutes back!!!!

Nokia 5610: Just Like Marriage

Marriage

Nokia 5610 is my first, relatively costly mobile set. I am pretty bad with technology and I do not care if my phone has a camera or not (as I carry a camera everywhere) and so I have always used the basic models. But this beauty really appealed me. Though it was much costlier than the other sets that I have used till now, I really did not mind as it seemed worth the investment. I brought it home.

Honeymoon

Initial days were great. Everyone was "wowed". Looks were great. Sound clarity was good. I was really happy and satisfied.....infact "orgasmic"!!!!

Trouble in Paradise

Initial problems started when one fine day, the phone suddenly went dead. My efforts to restart it went in vain. Only after I took the battery off and tried restarting it, my phone came out of the coma. But this became a regular feature. Many of you would think that I have loaded the cell with all kind of junk (pictures, softwares, music) but thats not true.

Recently the slider key on the phone (the one that is used to directly go to the music player and radio) came off. To my horror, I came to know that the part is not covered under warranty. Moreover, it can not be replaced anytime soon since the replacement parts are yet to arrive in the market!!! Going by the other reviews, I understand that this is not a one-off phenomenon and several users are facing the same problem. I have reached out Nokia folks (in-laws) but there is no response yet.

Heading towards Divorce

The USP of this phone is the look. If the part can not be replaced/repaired, I would prefer dumping this one and bringing another one. (But ya, thats is something I wont do in marriage). I wont recommend the phone to anyone.

Who is the boss (on clay)?

Yesterday, Rafael Nadal won the French Open for the fourth consecutive time!!! This is what I had been praying for. Final against Federer, arguably the best ever tennis player, and Rafa's victory. It was a pretty one-sided affair with Rafa dominating all through. Federer did come up with a good fight in the second set (some of the shots were truly amazing) but Rafa was too good. Federer was forced to play an unnatural game but he was not upto the mark. In the end, I was feeling sorry for Federer. No, I am not saying that to glorify my favorite's achievement. Its just that you dont like to see a champion without an answer. Federer is not my favorite tennis player but I still want him to win more grandslams than anyone else. He deserves that as he is the best. But for some reason, I do not want Federer to win the French.....ever. There are several reasons for that. Firstly, I do not want anyone, whose game is not best suited for clay, to win my favorite sports championship. Federer is proving to be a good clay court player (3 French Open finals cannot be a fluke), yet Rafa is way ahead of him on clay. If you find this reason silly, the second one is sillier. If Federer wins everything, it will get really boring. Moreover, there wont be anything for the other guys. So I do not want him to win the French....I wish him all the best for the Wimbledon. He will surely win. For now......cheers Rafa!!! Keep it coming!!!!

Rafa & Roger: The Rivalry

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal will meet in a Grand Slam final for the fifth time in Sunday's Roland Garros title match.

Nadal has emerged victorious in the past two years in the Roland Garros final, but during the same period Federer has taken the honors over Nadal in consecutive Wimbledon finals.

Federer and Nadal have played a total of 16 times, with Nadal leading the series 10-6. The Spaniard has won eight of their nine meetings on clay, including both showdowns during this year's clay court swing in the finals of ATP Masters Series events in Hamburg and Monte Carlo.

Here is a history of the duo’s 16 career meetings, beginning with their first match at Miami in March 2004.

2008 Masters Series Hamburg Final: Nadal def. Federer 7-5 6-7(3) 6-3 (Clay)

Rafael Nadal had a score to settle against Roger Federer, who snapped his Open Era record 81-match winning streak on clay in the 2007 final. Nadal was looking to become only the third player since 1990 to win the three ATP Masters Series titles on clay – Monte Carlo, Rome and Hamburg in his career. The only players to accomplish the feat were former World No. 1s Gustavo Kuerten and Marcelo Rios.
Federer started the match strongly with breaks of serve in the second and sixth games for a 5-1 lead, but Nadal clawed his way back by winning six successive games to clinch the opening set 7-5 in 61 minutes. The pair exchanged breaks of serve early in the second set, but it was Federer who moved into a 5-2 lead before Nadal broke back in the ninth game. The writing appeared on the wall for Federer, but the Swiss regained his composure and calmly sealed the tie-break to take the pair’s 16th career meeting to a deciding set.

Nadal secured the crucial break in the fourth game of the third set and failed to convert two further opportunities for a 5-1 lead. Federer kept battling but Nadal was not to be denied as he fought off one break point in the seventh game to record a 7-5, 6-7(3), 6-3 win in two hours and 53 minutes.

2008 Masters Series Monte-Carlo Final: Nadal def. Federer 7-5 7-5 (Clay)

As always seems the case, the stakes were high when Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer met in the 2008 Masters Series Monte-Carlo final. Nadal was looking to become the first player in the Open Era - and the first in almost 100 years - to win four consecutive titles in Monaco. Coming off his seventh career clay title one week earlier in Estoril, Federer was desperate not to fall to Nadal for a third consecutive year in the Monte-Carlo final.

The ATP World No. 1 broke Nadal in the first games of the first and second sets, even racing to a 4-0 lead in the second when Nadal eked out just five points during that stretch. But Federer's inability to hold serve - he was broken six times and saved just one of seven break points - was his undoing, as Nadal embarked on a five-game winning streak of his own before closing out the match 7-5, 7-5.

Since winning his first Monte-Carlo title in 2005, Nadal had won 98 of 99 clay-court matches through his title title run in Monaco in 2008. The victory marked the 21-year-old's 10th ATP Masters Series title and his 24th title overall. Nadal also snapped a nine-month title drought dating back to Stuttgart in 2007.

2007 Tennis Masters Cup Semi-Final: Federer def. Nadal 6-4 6-1 (Hard)
Federer claimed the most lopsided win in his storied rivalry with Nadal to race into the Tennis Masters Cup final in Shanghai. After holding his nerve in a tense first set, Federer blew open the match by winning 13 consecutive points at the start of the second set before closing out a 6-4, 6-1 victory.

Federer produced one of the best serving performances of his career, putting 81 percent of first serves into play and, in the first set, firing four consecutive aces to get out of a 0-30 hole.

The ATP World No. 1 hit with conviction the topspin backhand that has so often let him down against Nadal. He was confident on return, opting for a more aggressive topspin backhand rather than his slice. And he found the time he needed to dance around his backhand and unleash the full force of his mighty forehand.

After his early challenge, Nadal fell well short of his best form. His groundstrokes lacked their normal penetration and he made a number of unforced errors.

Yet Nadal did have a number of chances on the Federer serve in the first set and only gave up his first break chances when he dropped serve to lose the irst set 6-4. Federer then embarked on his 13-point sweep at the beginning of the second set to take a 3-0 lead. During that run he made seven of eight first serves and broke Nadal to love.

2007 Wimbledon, Final: Federer def. Nadal 7-6(7) 4-6 7-6(3) 2-6 6-2 (Grass)
After a draining run to the Wimbledon final for the second consecutive year, Rafael Nadal's mental and physical toughness was on show as he produced the best grass court performance of his career against four-time defending champion Federer. Playing for the seventh consecutive day after rain wreaked havoc with the tournament, Nadal pushed the mighty Federer to five sets for the first time in his 34-match winning streak at the All England Club.

Federer, who had never lost a match at Wimbledon after winning the first set, claimed the crucial first set tie-break despite Nadal's gallant effort to save three consecutive set points at 3/6 in the 'breaker.

An attacking Federer made many forays to the net but Nadal had his blistering passes dialed in, protected his serve and volleyed with confidence. The Spaniard saved a break point in the first game of the third set and then didn't face another break point until Federer claimed the decisive break in the sixth game of the fifth set.

Having seen Nadal save 16 of 17 break points against him to win Roland Garros, ederer twice rallied from 15/40 in the fifth set to avoid going down an early break.

Federer, who clubbed 65 winners - including 24 aces and many cross court backhand winners - equaled Bjorn Borg's record of five consecutive Wimbledon titles. Nadal was attempting to become the first player since Borg in 1980 to win Roland Garros and Wimbledon in the same year.

2007 Roland Garros, Final: Nadal def. Federer 6-3 4-6 6-3 6-4 (Clay)
The stakes were higher than ever when Federer and Nadal clashed in the 2007 Roland Garros final. For the second consecutive year Federer was attempting to become just the sixth man in history to win all four Grand Slam titles and to be just the third man to hold all four majors at the same time. Nadal was looking to join Bjorn Borg as the only player to win three consecutive Roland Garros crowns.

Earlier in the clay swing Nadal had beaten Federer in the Masters Series Monte-Carlo final but Federer avenged that defeat with his first clay court victory over Nadal in the Masters Series Hamburg final.
Federer took the fight to Nadal early, earning 10 break point chances over three consecutive Nadal service games in the first set. But the tough Spaniard refused to buckle and scrapped to win the first set. Although Federer rebounded to win the second set, Nadal's ability to fight off 16 of 17 break point opportunities in the match as the telling factor.

Federer returned more aggressively - particularly on the backhand - to try to stop Nadal from controlling points, but, as in past meetings, the Spaniard's high kicking left-handed forehands into his backhand were too much for Federer to handle.

2007 Masters Series Hamburg, Final: Federer def. Nadal 2-6 6-2 6-0 (Clay)
Federer had gone four tournaments without lifting the trophy - the longest title drought of his 172-week reign as ATP World No. 1 - but capped off his week by avenging two years of clay-court torment at the hands of Nadal. He snapped the Spaniard’s 81-match clay winning streak and 16-0 record in clay-court finals, denying Nadal a historic sweep of the clay ATP Masters Series titles as he hoisted the Hamburg trophy for the fourth time.

After a lackluster first set in which he faced break points in his first three services games and lost five consecutive games, Federer changed course and took the attack to his arch rival. He conceded just six points on serve in the second set and seven points on serve in the third set as he hit peak form in his last appearance before Roland Garros.

2007 Masters Series Monte-Carlo, Final. Nadal def. Federer 6-4 6-4 (Clay)
Federer entered Monte-Carlo on the heels of two surprisingly early exits, seeing his career-high 41-match winning streak come to an end with an opening round loss to Guillermo Canas in Indian Wells and losing to the Argentine again in the fourth round at Miami. He regrouped at the year's first clay court ATP Masters Series event to set up a final rematch with two-time defending champion Nadal. But Nadal, who dropped serve just three times in his five matches, proved too much for the top seed in their first meeting of the 2007 season. He broke Federer's serve once in each set and saved all three break points he faced to capture his eighth career ATP Masters Series shield and extend his Open Era record-winning streak on clay to 67 matches.

2006 Tennis Masters Cup Shanghai, Semi-Final. Federer def. Nadal 6-4 7-5 (Hard)

Federer notched his second straight victory over Nadal, ending with a vicious cross-court winner to become the first player to reach four consecutive finals at a circuit-ending championship since Ivan Lendl. He broke Nadal early in the opening set and clinched it with a second break of the Spaniard after 49 minutes. Nadal got out of jail twice on match points in the tenth game from Federer errors, but could not hold off the World No. 1 as Federer wrapped up the win two games later. The Swiss went on to capture his career-best 12th title by defeating James Blake in the final and finished the season with a 92-5 record.

2006 Wimbledon, Final: Federer def. Nadal 6-0 7-6(5) 6-7(2) 6-3 I (Grass)
The pressure was on Federer, as the top seed and three-time defending champion was playing in his favorite surface, riding a 47-match grass court winning streak and facing Nadal in a surface that the Spaniard had not managed to produce good results prior to this year's Wimbledon.

Federer started the match in hot form, breaking Nadal in the second, fourth and sixth games to take the set 6-0. The Spaniard would break Federer in the first game of the second set and serve at 5-4 but fail to close it out. Federer won the second set in a tie-break 7-5 but ended up losing the third set also in a tie-break (7-2). In the fourth set Federer took early control, breaking Nadal at 2-1 and 4-1 and eventually winning the Championships when serving at 5-3.

Federer, who captured his 39th career title and eighth Grand Slam crown, became the sixth man to secure four straight Wimbledon titles.

2006 Roland Garros, Final: Nadal def. Federer 1-6 6-1 6-4 7-6(4) (Clay)

The stakes had never been higher in a Federer-Nadal showdown than when the top two players in the INDESIT ATP Rankings went head-to-head in the Roland Garros final. Playing in his first Roland Garros title match, Federer was attempting to become the first player since Rod Laver in 1969 to win four straight Grand Slam events, and just the third player in history to achieve the feat. Nadal was looking to become the youngest player to defend the Roland Garros title since Bjorn Borg in 1974-75. The Spaniard also was trying to improve his perfect record at Roland Garros to 14-0, his clay court winning streak to 60 matches and to notch his 100th career clay court win.

Federer broke Nadal twice in the first set to race to a 5-0 lead. But then Nadal began to dominate the match with his crushing forehand and Federer struggled with many unforced backhand errors. Nadal did not drop serve again until he tried to close out the match at 5-4 in the fourth set. But he clinched the match soon after in the tie-break. Nadal won his 14th consecutive final (second only in the Open Era to Federer's mark of 24 straight finals won).

2006 Masters Series Rome, Final: Nadal def. Federer 6-7(0) 7-6(5) 6-4 2-6 7-6(5) (Clay)
In May, only three weeks after their Monte-Carlo match, Federer and Nadal were at it again. Federer rested in the time in between the two tournaments, while Nadal went to Barcelona and won the title (d. Robredo). This match was the best between the two warriors yet, lasting five hours and five minutes. Federer forced the action, successfully approaching the net again and again. The Swiss tennis genius won more points than Nadal, just like in Dubai, 179 to 174. But once more Nadal won the big points. Federer had two match points with Nadal serving at 5-6, 15-40 in the final set. But he missed forehands on both opportunities. With the victory, Nadal tied Guillermo Vilas’ Open Era record of 53 straight match wins on clay. He also lifted his career record in finals to 16-2, the best winning percentage in Open Era history. Even after the defeat, Federer had an incredible 2006 record of 39-3, with all three losses at the hands of Nadal.

2006 Masters Series Monte-Carlo, Final: Nadal def. Federer 6-2 6-7(2) 6-3 7-6(5) (Clay)
Between the Dubai match and this one in April, Federer went undefeated, winning Masters Series events for the third year in a row at Indian Wells (d. Blake) and the second year in a row at Miami (d. Ljubicic). Nadal, meanwhile, reached the semifinals of Indian Wells (l. to Blake) and fell in the second round at Miami (to Moya). But Nadal regained his footing at Monte-Carlo. He took the exciting match in 3 hours and 49 minutes and overcome a 0-3 deficit in the final tie-break.

2006 Dubai Tennis Championships, Dubai, Final: Nadal def. Federer 2-6 6-4 6-4 (Hard)
Federer came into the pair’s first encounter of the 2006 season undefeated, having won the title at Doha (d. Monfils) and the Australian Open (d. Baghdatis). Nadal was just getting his groove back after suffering an ankle injury at the Madrid Masters Series event in October. Dubai was only Nadal’s second tournament since suffering the injury. He opened the year with a semifinal showing at Marseille in February (l. to Clement). This was the first match between Federer and Nadal with the Spanish superstar holding the INDESIT ATP Ranking of No. 2. Nadal won the encounter despite winning less points: 71 to 78. They each broke serve three times, but Nadal won the points that mattered. The win represented his 10th straight victory in finals. Nadal’s victory also broke Federer’s Open Era record of 56 straight match wins on hard courts.

2005 Roland Garros, Paris, Semi-Final: Nadal def. Federer 6-3 4-6 6-4 6-3 (Clay)
Theirs was the most eagerly awaited match of the tournament. Federer was already No. 1 in the world and fast-rising Nadal was at No. 5. Nadal came to Roland Garros on the heels of clay-court titles at the ATP Masters Series events at Monte-Carlo in April (d. Coria) and at Rome in May (d. Coria again). Federer, meanwhile, was fresh off of his second straight clay-court crown at Masters Series Hamburg in May (d. Gasquet). Federer evened the score by winning the second set, but after that his form fell, while Nadal kept the pressure on, ousting Federer in four sets on the way to winning the Roland Garros title on debut.

2005 NASDAQ-1OO Open, Miami, Final: Federer def. Nadal 2-6 6-7(4) 7-6(5) 6-3 6-1 (Hard)
Federer was primed for revenge. Again he came into the Miami event with only one loss for the year (to Safin in the semifinals of the Australian Open) and fresh off a title in Indian Wells (d. Hewitt). Nadal was a year older and wiser, already having won three ATP titles. The balls were flying at Federer from Nadal’s exploding topspin groundstrokes, and the Spaniard was running down every ball in sight. Before he knew it, Federer was down 5-3 in the third set tie-break, two points from defeat. But he rallied back, and leveled the head-to-head series at 1-1

2004 NASDAQ-100 Open, Miami, 3rd RD. Nadal def. Federer 6-3 6-3 (Hard)
Federer came into the ATP Masters Series event on a roll, having won the Australian Open final over Marat Safin in February and the Pacific Life Open (also a Masters Series event) in Indian Wells over Tim Henman just before coming to Miami. He had lost only once in 2004 prior to this match (in the quarterfinals of Rotterdam to Henman). Nadal, the youngest man in the tournament at 17, was just starting to emerge as a force on the ATP circuit and hadn’t yet won a title. He breezed by Federer in only 69 minutes for the best win of his career at that point. The Spaniard said after the match that it was probably the best he had ever served.

Source: ATP (June 6, 2008);

Link: http://www.atptennis.com/1/en/2008news/federer_nadal.asp

Go Rafa Go

What to do?

IPL is over and there is nothing to do in the evenings!!! I know quite a lot of people who are in a similar state of confusion. It was great fun but now it is over, much to the relief of my wife. She likes cricket but she had an overdose. We almost bought another TV so that we satisfy our separate TV viewing needs!!! I heard someone talking about two IPL seasons in a year. C’mon, I want to hear more!!!

Stand Corrected

I was too quick to judge “One Night @ the Call Center”. I was finding the first half comparatively boring but the second half is interesting and to a great extent…..filmy. But overall it is an intelligent book. Anyone reading the book will be able to identify with one character or another. Everyone has had a boss like Bakshi at some stage in life. So the story appeals to most. Interesting read.

Two Point Someone

If you have read Chetan Bhagat's "Five Point Someone" and also know about my academic feats, you might be tempted to think that I am talking about my CGPA from MBA. It was close but it was not that low. But ya, it is related to Chetan Bhagat and his writing. I am not an avid reader. I hardly pick up books as I am a slow reader and do not have the patience. If I am interested in a story, I want to know "what happened next" as soon as possible. But it takes ages as I read slowly, visualize things, read a paragraph again and again....and in the end I get frustrated and lose interest. I know that’s weird but that’s me.

Once someone had asked me how much time will I take to finish the book "The Sixth Commandment" (I do not know why I was reading that crap just like you are wondering why you are reading this crap). I had replied, after a long pause for calculation, "two months"!!! Everyone was surprised/shocked as they were wondering how can someone take so long to finish a book and that too a mystery. I have not told anyone but honestly, I was thinking that probably people are shocked as I have underestimated the time!!! My father and sister still laugh at that incident. I am that bad at reading.

Recently someone suggested "The 3 mistakes of my life" by Chetan Bhagat. I had heard a lot about Chetan Bhagat's style of writing from several bookworms (including my wife) and some others who purchase books regularly (but hardly read them) to impress themselves (like my friend Vikas Khaitan). I had also watched a play based on Chetan's (hunh, “Chetan's”!!!! as if he is my “chaddi-buddy” (langotiya yaar)) book, "Five Point Someone". It was organized by a group called Evam in association with Madras Theatre Group. The play was brilliant, simply brilliant. That had got me interested. So, to cut the "already very long story" short, I decided to read Chetan's (there I go again) latest book "The 3 mistakes of my life".

I finished the book in a day and half!!! Then I picked up "Five Point Someone" and finished it under two days. And now I am reading "One Night @ the Call Center". I am half way through (I must say, it is not as interesting as the other two). Two and a half books in less than a week and that is why the title, 2 point someone. I am finding Chetan Bhagat's style of writing pretty interesting and I am developing an interest in reading. That should mean more than a Booker for Chetan (“Chetan”!!! That’s a hattrick!!! For me as well as him).

Até a vista Guga

If you are wondering, the title of this blog means "Good Bye Guga". Guga is how Gustavo Kuerten is popularly known as. I live in a cricket crazy nation and cricket is my favorite sport, however French Open is my favorite sports tournament. French Open is different. It shows the "class" of a tennis player. Other surfaces are all about boom-boom tennis but one cannot win the Roland Garros with just a bazooka serve (of course, Roger Federer is an artist on any surface). One has to "serve and rally" and really fight for each point on the clay. Over the years, most of my favorite tennis players have been good clay court players.....Carlos Moya, Marcelo Rios, Thomas Muster, Sergi Bruguera, Guga and now Rafa.

In 1997, an unknown player from Brazil (at least I was seeing him for the first time though it was his second appearance in the French Open) came to Roland Garros. He was different....he had curly hair, a thin frame, was dressed in yellow and blue (Brazilian football team uniform).... honestly he looked more like a drug addict than a tennis player. But he could play. He had killer ground strokes. He used to go for every ball even if it looked impossible to reach and surprisingly he used to reach them!!!

Armed with an infectious smile, it was very difficult to dislike Guga. I started liking him and wanted him to win. Guga did not let me down and he won the French Open!!! If I am not mistaken then he was ranked 66th in the world at that moment!!! After winning the grand slam, Guga came to the stage and shyly said, "Now the toughest part.....talk..."

Guga won two more French Open titles in 2000 and 2001. He spent 43 weeks at the top of the ATP rankings. His game was suited for the clay courts and he hardly won anything on other surfaces, except a couple of tournaments here and there on hard court. His career was plagued with injuries and his career virtually ended after the right hip injury and subsequent surgery in 2002. (Ya, he did beat Roger Federer to reach the quarterfinals in 2004). This year, he came back for his farewell tour....a farewell that he deserved. He might have lost in straight sets in the first round but this loss ended in a standing ovation. A tribute to a champion player and a great personality. We will all miss you Guga.

Who let the dogs out?

Seems India has recently developed three hobbies; IPL, watching the news of Khali (pardon me, I mean "The Great Khali") and bashing one Mr. Amitabh Bachchan. Around 50% Indians are interested in Khali, around 70% are watching IPL (or the cheerleaders) but whats astonishing is that all the "extra-successful" Indians (the achievers) are bashing Mr. Bachchan. Take, for example, the Golden Globe winning director, Anurag Basu. The director recently criticized Amitabh Bachchan for the kind of roles he is doing. Basu believes that the whole magic of Mr. Bachchan has gone now and he should gracefully retire!!! Coming from such an acclaimed director, the opinion should be taken seriously.

Then there is Khalid Mahmud, reknowned film critic and award winning director (his extraordinary collection of work includes Oscar winning movies, Silsilay and Tehzeeb, which are considered the benchmarks for direction). Khalid recently wrote an open letter to Mr. Bachchan suggesting that Mr. Bachchan should go back to the film institute for a refresher course!!!! Another achiever talking against Mr. Bachchan!!! Thats strike two!!!

There are several other prominent and legendary personalities who have come forward to bulldoze Mr. Bachchan but no one is as important as the man who transformed Mumbai into Shanghai....the man who solved Mumbai's poverty, pollution, population, drainage etc problems. It is one and only.....Raj Thackeray. This leader of masses has one and only one agenda and that is to remove the biggest problem that an average Mumbaikar is facing today.....Amitabh Bachchan. He does not care about other issues as they are not "hot" enough. I am not updated....by any chance, are the elections round the corner?

The fact is that pointing finger at Mr. Bachchan is a ticket to instant fame. Mr. Bachchan is a global personality. If he sneezes, it will be a news.....if he laughs, it will be a news.....if he is bitten by a blood-sucking mosquito, it will again be a news and the mosquito will be discussed by a billion Indians across the globe. The blood-sucking mosquitos discussed above know this "marketing" strategy and are playing their cards well. But it is good to know that Mr. Bachchan is not keeping quiet and is replying through his blog. Mr. Bachchan, I may not matter, but I am with you. Kitne baazu kitne sar ginle dushman dhyaan se......haarega woh har baazi jo khele hum ji jaan se!!!

Most em"bare"ssing moment of my life

Let me share with my trillions of readers (scotch has gone to my head) the most embarrassing moment of my life. Or should I say the most em"bare"ssing moment of my life.

It was 2006. I was staying on the outskirts of Hyderabad (a lot of my friends will find this an understatement). It was a Saturday morning. A friend, who had stayed at my place in the night (stop your imagination), was about to leave. I asked him if he could drop me to my office as I wanted to spend some time in the gym (my marriage was a few months away and I was trying to shed those extra kilos (read quintals)). The plan was that I would spend some time in the gym, take a shower over there and then directly go to a mall where the same friend would meet me for lunch. I got ready and we started on my friend's bike. Now lets discuss some facts;

1. The bike was a Hero Honda CBZ (nothing important over there)
2. The bike was low on fuel (important information)
3. The helmet was hanging behind the bike in such a manner that if anyone had to sit behind the rider, he had to lift his legs really really high to clear the helmet (keep that in mind; extremely crucial to the story)
4. I was not wearing the gym cloths and they were in the bag, along with a towel and a bottle of water (keep that in mind)
5. I was wearing a black trouser (not important, however now I wish I were wearing a "lungi")
6. The trouser was slightly tight (keep that in mind)
7. My house was on the outskirts (Thank God!!!)

Midway in our journey, the bike ran out of fuel. We were in the middle of nowhere and the nearest petrol pump was 6-8 kms away. We started pushing the bike. We must have pushed it for half a km when my friend suggested that we try tilting the bike, shaking it and starting it. Sometimes it works...for a short while. But that is better than pushing the bike. He tried that and bingo!!! It started!!! I jumped on the back seat and we started again, hoping to make it to the petrol pump. Just when we hit a comparatively busier road, the bike stopped again. We had covered only about a quarter of a km. It was a hopeless situation and we decided that one of us will take an autorickshaw, get petrol in a bottle and come back. We did do that but later (Why God???!!!!Why!!!!).

As I was about to leave to get an autorickshaw, my friend tried to kick start the bike again. And the damn thing started!!!! I got really excited and lifted my leg (really high, remember fact 3) to get on the bike. Just then there was a roaring sound (Charrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrraaaaaaaaaaaakkkk) that was followed by a real nice, breezy feeling on my legs....thighs and above!!!! I wondered what caused that sound and then I looked down on my trousers. It seemed as if a nuclear device was tested on my trouser, it had exploded.......believe you me, I am not at all exaggerating it. Why would I exaggerate anything like this. The only piece that was holding my trouser to my body was the strip around the waste where one puts the belt. Below that strip, the trouser was "hanging" in four different parts, not attached to one another.

There I was, standing on the roadside with four pieces of cloth hanging to my belt!!!! No wonder I was feeling brrrrrreeeeezy!!!! I went numb and was about to faint. Just then I remembered the gym bag on my shoulder. I immediately took out the towel, covered myself and put on the trek pants......all that on the roadside, much to the amusement of the passers-by. And how can I forget....during my ordeal, my so-called good friend was busy recording all this on his mobile camera (thankfully he lost the video)!!!!

Till now, whenever I think about that incident, it gives me goose flesh. What if I was not going to the gym, what if it had happened on a busy street......I would have probably killed myself afterwards.

Based on a true story

Flashback # 1: The year is 1995. I am in class 10th....standing in front of a heavily built teacher....looking at my not-so-clean shoes....and....listening to some heavy-duty "gyan". Some of my friends are standing behind a pillar and are giggling. The teacher is telling me that one day I will regret everything. She is predicting that most of the people I hang out with will end up being "no one" but they wont regret it as nobody has any expectations from them anyways....however, if I fail, I will regret it, and so will everyone who knows me...as I have the potential......blah blah blah followed by some more blah blah blah.

I am thinking that it is just some crappy useless advise which teachers....and parents....are supposed to give!!!! Otherwise they will not be called good teachers or good parents. But ya, I agree with her on the "I have the potential" part. Remaining part of that gyan is absolutely boring bullshit.

Flashback #2: The year is 1999. I am in second year college. I have met a classmate from class 10th. He is working with a courier company as a delivery boy!!! He is telling me about the others from the gang. I come to know that one guy is running a small time grocery shop in the outskirts of Ranchi, another one is simply doing nothing (ya, he is doing drugs but for discussion sake, let us not count that!!!), one guy is a member of an extortion gang and to top it all....one guy is in jail for attempted murder!!!! I get a shock and I am thinking that now it is high time that I get my act straight or else I will join this elite list. I resolve to get serious about my life.

Scene 3: It is April 10, 2008. (Oh c'mon!!!! don't think that I became really really serious after the incident in "Flashback # 2", became immensely successful and made tonnes of money!!!! This is not a script of a bollywood potboiler in which a zero turns into a hero. But ya, I did recover well enough to rejoin the race).

Coming back to the scene.....I am sitting in a movie hall.....watching an emotional scene about an old and helpless father and a son who does not care. I am realising that I am not doing enough for my parents. I want to do so much for them but I am not doing anything. After that I become very very emotional.

Cut to the present moment. Here I am, writing my feelings....hoping that no one reads them....yet for some strange reason, am writing on a "free-for-all-to-read" kind of space.

I have seen so many people who have all the resources but they do not do anything for their parents. And then there are people (read losers) like me who want to do so much for their parents but are not able to do much. Not that parents expect anything materialistic from their children...at least not mine. All they look for is love and affection. I do try my best to make my parents feel loved but I want to do so much more. I want to give my parents all the happiness. I want to give them the life they could have led if they did not have the constraints....and much more. Thats the destination, the ultimate milestone. But right now I do not have the fuel that will take me there....in fact, I am not even close!!!! I am trying my best and will do all that I can. But sometimes, like today, I go back to "Flashback # 1" and regret everything.

Thanks Orkut!!!

Unlike several people I know, I am not really crazy about Orkut. I do not use it for "making" new friends, however I find it pretty useful for locating old friends. I have located several friends from my school days. Today, I had another hit as I managed to locate my best pal from class 5th!!! It has been around 18 years since we last met and I had never imagined that I will ever be able to find him. I am really happy today.

For heaven's sake someone stop the "unstoppables" from losing

I am back to writing about cricket. With IPL going on, no one can escape the excitement and above all .....the discussions and analysis. Unlike most people, I do not have a favorite team in IPL. All the Indian cricket stars whom I like are scattered in different teams. I want Sachin to do well but have no attachment with the Mumbai team. I want Viru to do well but do not care about the Delhi team. But there is one team.....with whom I am bound to be a little attached. And that team is Hyderabad, aka Deccan Chargers!!!

When this team was picked, everyone (including yours truly) was of the opinion that it is one of the strongest teams. It has some great strokemakers, essential for the 20-20 format of the game. Deccan Chronicle spent crores for creating the team and a quick glance upon the squad suggested that we have a winner!!! And then the tournament started. Deccan Chargers have played three games till now and......hayeeelaaaa.....they have lost all three!!!!

The owners of the team probably did not realise that there is a cap on the number of foreign players playing in a game. There cannot be more than 4 foreign players in the playing eleven. That makes it very crucial that the remaining 7 Indian players are pretty good or atleast...up to the mark. That is where the Deccan Chargers are struggling. They have big names like Andrew Symonds, Adam Gilchrist, Shahid Afridi, Herschelle Gibbs, Chaminda Vaas, Scott Styris, Nowan Zoysa and Chamara Silva but they can play only four of them. Apart from these big guns, Chargers have players like Venugopal Rao, VVS Laxman....and some legendary unknown fellas!!! I like Laxman's batting but in test matches. He should not even step on a cricket ground in colored uniform. 20-20 is a game about power-hitting, slogging, keeping the momentum going.....there is no place for "class". I could not even believe my eyes when in the first encounter Venugopal Rao opened with Gilchrist and then Laxman came on number 3!!!! The game was lost there itself!!!! The strategy was wrong and thankfully they tweaked it in the third game by dropping Rao. But it was not sufficient as Laxman promoted himself to the opening slot. Chargers will do their campaign a world of good by promoting Shahid Afridi to the opening slot. Look at the Delhi team. In the two matches that they have played so far, the number four batsman has not batted. In a 20-20 game, you have got to start with your best players and there should not be a need for your number 5 or 6 batsman to come to the crease.

Apart from making errors in the selection of the playing eleven, Laxman has also been far from impressive as a captain. In the first game against Kolkata, Laxman did not try to stop the singles. In a low scoring match, Laxman should have attacked the opposition. In the end, Kolkata trotted home quite easily. Then in the third match against Jaipur, Laxman made a blunder by giving the last over to Symonds. The opposition requires 19 runs off the last over and you hand over the ball to a bowler who had been taken for 28 runs off 2 overs. Moreover, Symonds's bowling had contributed to it's loss against Kolkata and he gave 30 runs in an over (Viru Zindabad) against Delhi!!!! Such historical events will make anyone apprehensive but not Laxman. Laxman was riding on complacency and that gave the Chargers the third loss in a row.

There is still a lot of cricket to be played in the tournament but if the Chargers have to do something worthwhile, they will have to sort out several things. Hopefully, they will be able to turn things around in time.

Night stay at Rangamati

Last week I visited my friend Ajit's village (Rangamati, Jharkhand). I was very excited about the trip as this was going to be my first visit to a village. The village is around 55 kms from Ranchi. The road to the village is mostly good. It was a nice ride to the village.

Everything about the place is so fresh. Fresh air, fresh water, fresh vegetable, fresh milk....everything. Moreover, the life is so simple (at least it appears that way). I had a great time over there and I didn't want to come back from the place at all.

Sarhul Festival at Ranchi

My trip to Ranchi coincided with the festival, Sarhul. It is a tribal festival in which tribals worship the Sal tree to seek the blessings of their spirits. The festival is marked by extensive dance and music programs. In Ranchi, groups from all parts of the city assemble at the Main Road area and from there the procession starts.

I was there and my friend suggested that we should take pictures of the procession. Now, I am always game for taking pictures but this time around I was a little apprehensive. I had heard several stories of people getting drunk and creating nuisance. During the festival, drinking heavy duty "haria", which is a local brew made of rice, is a common custom. I wanted to avoid any damage to myself and above all my camera. We decided to give the procession a miss. Just when we were about to leave, we saw the procession approaching. I got really excited and starting clicking. I was changing places to get good shots. Soon I realized that I was right in the middle of the procession and was drawing a lot of attention. There was this heavily drunk group which was staring at me and my camera. I started looking for a way to get out of trouble. Just then, one of them shouted "press wallah hai!!!" (He is from press!!!). Afterwards, the group posed for pictures and even made room for me to get into desired places to take shots. Having a big camera has its positives.

One interesting fact is that during the festival, women wear male cloths and gears and hunt for animals. The hunting process continues for entire day and they can kill any animal....wild or pet!!!

Finally....the numbers matched!!!

If you have ever bought a lottery ticket then you know the anxious moments one goes through while checking the winning number against the number on his/her lottery ticket. I have gone through such anxious moments quite a few times as my grandma used to buy lottery tickets for us. Needless to say that I never won as in that case, right now I would have been sitting on the Miami beach…watching babes get tanned. I would not have been here writing this stupid blog.

Hmmmph….anyways…the point is that the number on my ticket never matched with the winning number!!! I used to pray for the number to match but my prayers always went unheard….all that changed last Saturday!!!

I was anxiously looking above at the large digital board when it flashed the message. There was the number. I looked down at my ticket….and….it…MATCHED!!!

The ticket in my hand was my train reservation ticket and the message on the large display board said that my train had been postponed from 10:20 pm to 2:15 am!!!! I reconfirmed and the train numbers did match. Mr. God…I meant the lottery number and not just any number!!! But ya, that was a good one that you played on me. No hard feelings.