Missing person notice

soakin it up, originally uploaded by toothlesswonder.

The wind is whistling in my ear, and playing with my hair.
And I'm soakin it all up at the beach.

I'm on a week-long vacation. :)

A curious case of reversed polarities

A curious case of reversed polarities, originally uploaded by toothlesswonder.

It looks the flu’s got me.
And I’ve had too much cough syrup and I feel funny.
Do you think that is why this picture looks funny to me?

[In the picture: Mannequins bare it all at the Levi’s store warehouse]

One way, and we mean it!

One way, and we mean it!, originally uploaded by toothlesswonder.

We are a land of contradictions, of contrast, and changing hues – a land that has come a long way in it’s newest rebirth, and yet in so many ways not moved an inch from where it started.

A people’s nation – the people being its biggest liability, and its greatest strength as well.
And it’s greatest weakness? A defiant people. We work around rules, and we push our way through.

Doesn’t independence from an external force mean dependence on oneself? Doesn’t it mean accountability?
It’s time we made that choice:
The choice that you make to sit on a reclining chair 30 years from now, and tell your grand-child about that zero that India gave the world centuries ago - Or to tell him about what YOU gave India, what you gave the world.

It is fairly simple – you only have to be good in what you do. And make the rather tough choice in doing what you love to do. We are a country with immense potential. Even if we were only mediocre intellectually (which I don’t believe is the case) , we balance it in numbers.

The need of the hour, if you ask me are:

1. A strong police force – Perhaps not in numbers, but definitely in values – better equipped, and better paid. Let us face it – we are used to being an unruly lot. We could use some discipline. If what it takes are tickets, so be it.
2. A responsible electorate that realizes the gravity of the power of vote.
3. A merit oriented structure in the bureaucratic system – right from the base.
4. Planned growth – even if it means slowing down.
5. taxation at the source is not the best policy any more. Instead, tax the sales, and cash in on the volumes. We have the numbers – we could bring down prices without compromising quality – it’s a small world out there and India could make a global shopping hub
6. Gather public good-will to make sense with Kashmir – to take bold decisions. We have shed too much blood in vain.
7. Far sighted infrastructure projects to the North-East.
8. Most of all, the nation to realize the need to look ahead, as opposed to looking behind, as we are given to do, as we have been taught to do - Look ahead, and teach our children to look ahead.

We have made mistakes, we have innovated, we have excelled, we have fought, we have got back together – time and again. We will continue to make mistakes, and we will continue to learn, and I will continue to be proud - and watch this country with respect, and affection.
Happy Independence day, folks!

Well ShahRukh, You have my thumbs-up now!

thumbs-up, originally uploaded by toothlesswonder.

I just got out of watching Chak de India, and I liked it. Brilliantly shot, brilliantly edited, and the songs have purpose.
I liked it because:
1. It did not look like Ta-ra-rum-pum. This one is a REAL sports movie.
2. I love cricket-bashers.
3. Less glamour, more substance – and the girls looked like they played hockey for real.
4. No cheesy romance, or diversions from the central plot.
5. It made gully hockey look cool. (I’ve never seen street hockey for real so far)
6. I watched it on the first day, and it wasn’t a waste of money.

My rating: You go watch it too.

Give him a white elephant or two.

Give him a white elephant or two., originally uploaded by toothlesswonder.

Now let me tell you a little secret of mine: I love elephants.
It is possible that this has a lot to do with me being Malayalee, because back home, an elephant is not just some big animal, it is a way of life.
The Anakkaran (elephant handler) was someone every kid looked up to in awe and admiration. And I’ve grown up with that reverence.
A mahout sleeping underneath a huge elephant to me is a relationship rooted in trust. I’ve heard of mahouts being killed in fits of fury by the elephant, but a sleeping mahout being stamped on, I have never.

Every time I have touched the coarse hairy trunk of the huge animal - awful, powerful, monstrous, dreadful, mighty, and intelligent - I have known what the great Alexander could have been up against at a dramatic battle, with as inconceivable an end.

It is a first time for me every time.

I have wondered more than once, how then was it that the phrase “White elephant” came into being. An albino (hence white) elephant is supposed to be in most of south east Asia, sacred, and a sign of prosperity. For the same reason, there were laws protecting them from labor. So if you received a gift of a white elephant from a King, it would be a blessing and a curse - A valuable possession whose upkeep exceeded it’s usefulness. The buses of the state owned KSRTC in God’s own country are locally called elephants. No prizes then for guessing the color.

Sleep on it!

Sleep on it!, originally uploaded by toothlesswonder.

Children playing, brown women laughing and water gushing down the rocks.
The world moved on as he inhaled the thin spray of water during his mid-noon siesta.

He liked to sleep, you could tell. He liked to sleep, and he was wrathful at men, and their world.

He was free – unlike them - to do as he liked.

Sunday ballyhoo 2

Here’s another couple of pictures from last Sunday, which seemingly has got me a mile long queue of pretty ladies waiting for their pictures to be clicked.


This shoot was fun, we had quite an audience gathered behind me watching the show, and some even asked me what magazine I was shooting for . [I wanted to tell her it was called “Little hotties”, but I bit my tongue, and told her the truth. ].


















The folks at the coffee shop though wouldn’t ask questions, and treated us like VIPs. Nice. :)
I think I should be doing this more often!

TP shaves her head, and ace photographer goes all Clicky, Clicky.

BENGALURU, IN – T Pem, suddenly n the news for her shaven head and colorful bandanas was spotted being shot on Sunday by an unidentified photographer in various basements of Bangalore buildings.

Reeling from countless pictures and making weird faces, TP received help on the sets in the form of tart-tounged but greatly perceptive friend RS.

Though neither has openly acknowledged it, TP and RS are widely believed to be secretly considering each other as a side kick. "Me and RS, we're like Wonder woman and wonder girl" said said TP, but later admitted that she just made up the wonder girl part. “It’s so unfair that I cant think of any woman superhero with a sidekick!”





Though people generally enjoy having a sidekick, both of them acknowledged that it has it’s own down sides too."TP's a great girl and all, but sometimes it's tough to make my moves when she's always hanging on my sleeve," RS said. "Like, last weekend, we were at this party, and I was trying to chat up this cute guy who looked kinda stoned, and she wouldn't leave my side for a second."

TP and RS concede that the affection is mutual, though not equal.

The 8 tag, finally!

S R I R A M, originally uploaded by toothlesswonder.

Arrears are fun things.. Like the Saturday laundry..

Ok, maybe they’re not, but you don’t really have a choice with either of them
A long time ago, Prickster had tagged me to write eight random things about myself. And not so long ago, flyaway mind also tagged me to write eight weird things about myself. Being the lazy bum that I am, I never even wrote one.
The weight of having failed such true blogger friends has been making me lose a lot of sleep, appetite, and not to mention a lot of Reynolds pens from the office stationary shop.

So here goes eight random weird things about myself:

1. You see a weirdo guy wearing an oversized helmet riding a motorbike and doing a dance somewhere on airport road, roll down your window, and say hi.. It’ll probably be me. Very often I get into these mood swings of the happy kind, and then I break into a dance. Yes, I sometimes sing too..

2. I am extremely accident prone. In my toddler years, I am told I used to walk on my toes (much like Fred Flintstone, who I discovered quite late in my childhood) and trip and fall, and get up, only to trip again, and fall again. I used to be called unniyappam (which is a malayalee snack – something like a muffin, only harder, sweeter, and rounder.) for the way my head would be swollen from all the falls every evening. The legacy continues even today.. I’ve locked myself out of the car in an ice storm just outside my house, wearing only a tiny pair of shorts; tore my pants doing some tango at an office party, and I spill hot coffee on myself quite regularly.

3. I’ve never been hopelessly in love, nor tearlessly in pain. I am devoid of extreme emotion. Till date, I’ve not had a fight with anyone that has lasted more than a day, and there is no person that I hate. I’ve never been in love either.

4. I adore snakes, and know more than quite a bit about them. As a matter of fact, I think they’re the most graceful creatures on the planet.

5. I go to boring office meetings just for the pizza. The funny thing is – I don’t particularly like pizza, and I am quite a busy person, but however hard I try, I somehow cannot let the Pizza meeting go by.

6. People tell me I’m a good cook, and that I make the best Sambar in New Hampshire, But here’s my little secret: With the exception of the Sambar, I’ve never been able to cook the same dish twice, and there has never been a cookbook which has worked for me.

7. I love everything about the rain. The sound, the smell, the color and the water. I don’t like the feel of wet cloth though, and so it becomes a major mental conflict every time it starts raining.

8. I am very lazy. Why’s that weird, you might ask.

But figure this: I’ve slept numerous exams off, and to carry my marks cards from college, you’ll probably need a truck, cause there is virtually one for each subject. I’m so used to taking the exams the next time. But I’ve had quite a good career.

Weird!

The photo: This is my first real attempt at doing child portraits, and i'm pretty happy about this one here. Sriram is a friends' kid, and proved to be a great model.

On the podcast: Guess what I found today - AVIAL!

Also, this is the beta version of my new podcasting stream. I'm looking for you guys to test that one, and tell me if it works. I've phased out Odeo for now. [For those of you who do not know, it's on the side bar. you just have to click the play button - after finding it, that is. :) ]

Tired and happy

powered by ODEO

“Then there fell a rain of fire, and all that existed burned..”

rain of fire, originally uploaded by toothlesswonder.

It has been a hectic week, and a very fast-paced one. One place to the other, and one thing led to another.
This was shot from over a flyover, and what you see is the passing traffic, and the street lights below.
My muse seems to have totally given up on me, or maybe I’m not trying.
So I’m posting a double entry this week.

Featured photo

featured photo, originally uploaded by toothlesswonder.

This was the featured photo of the day for 4th of July on webshots.
http://travel.webshots.com
:)

The turbulance under

the boat-starter, originally uploaded by toothlesswonder.

It was yet another day at work, and he liked to work alone. Below him, the sea was calm, with only a ripple over it’s surface.
The calm intimidated him - It always had something to say.
When he was younger, the sea used to turn funny colors and sober down and then there would be days of plenty.
But now it seemed as if ocean had way too many stories to tell. The last time it was still like this, in minutes monster waves came out of nowhere and took homes and lives and children. And then it was quiet once again – as if nothing had happened.
“What have they done to the world..” He shrugged, and started his tiny boat - It was time to go home.

The street seller

I'm the street seller.

I live on the road, and the road is my home.
How sad it is to live, How sad it is to dream...

But that was a long time ago. Bangalore’s streets have turned out to be a huge marketplace with virtually no overheads.
A majority of the population here is a floating lot, and a prosperous floating lot at that.
If I had the money to spare, I’d definitely invest it here on the streets.

Update: Check out my radio station on the side bar. (I'm the RJ there *wink wink*)

Blur intended

A self portrait with half a mind to show it will look something like that.
I’m too busy to write anything, and the picture that I see is as hazy as the one I’m in.

Half of you already know me anyway, so to hell with anonymity.

Have a great week ahead guys.
Party on. Ding dong. :)

Infinity - Of time, and faith.

Reason and faith do not go together.
Just look at the sunset at the end of the road to infinity -
I could spend my life chasing the real, and call life unreal and temporary. And that is what most religions ask me to presume true.

There is the eternal lamp that lights the higher path, they say - walk the path, do not look to your sides, indulgence is a carnal sin.

The sun among the evening clouds at the end of the road is real; But so is the road, and so is infinity.
I seek gratification, and I like to look around - I believe in the drive more than the destination.

I believe in now.
Believer? Atheist?
How about indifferent?

The river between

The river had been flowing undecided for a few months now. The sun was exceptionally hard this year, and the stray patches of land in it’s center this time were larger and more in number than in the past so many years.
The kid liked the river in the boat. He had once seen a boat with so much water in it that it became only an outline on the river’s surface.
But there were his friends on the other side, walking up the path that followed the river’s turns to the next village.
It was summer, there was no school, and he wished the boat would go faster.

Running the wrong way

Now, getting back to where we left off:
It was Seven in the morning, but it was long since the day started in the forest. By the reason of its quietness, the walk seemed longer than it naturally should have. And perhaps adding to it was the disappointment from the lack of any real sightings in the morning.
We had woken before first light, and even as we walked through the slush of the previous night’s rains, the pale light was only setting in, giving the dry river bed a shade of solemn grey.
We had hoped to walk into the elephant herd – which we had a chance encounter with, in the dark of the past night, and I was ready – unlike then - with the right lenses, the camera on, and ready to go.
It was dismal crusade – even the persistent elephant scent this morning was a lot lighter, compared to the sharp musky odor that hung heavy in the air the previous night.
The leeches were feasting on my leg, and many were trying to suck the juice out of my shoes as well. There we were – at the riverbed - risking snake bite and impending rain.

The walk would have been a disappointment, had we not spotted this guy high up in the foliage.

[In the pic: A Malabar Grey Hornbill]

Some damp melodrama

In the evening, it began to rain.

From the other side of the window came the sound of drops on dry stubble, and muted light of a melancholy blue. The noise elaborated silence, as I watched a stray drop roll down the glass.

It was the kind of rain that would have been as good to go out to, as it would have been to come in from.
Yet I chose to stay thus in my lone rocking chair, with the cup of tea still steaming.
It was getting dark.


[That was the mood of the picture, but it is doctored – Clicked on a hot summer afternoon for a friend who needed it. It took me a mirror, a mug of water, some house plants, and a toothbrush.]

Hop. Skip. Jump and SPLASH!

There’s absolutely nothing that can beat a bath in a river on a hot and humid summer day.
Run , tear your cloths off, woooooosh and SPLASH!
Whatta whatta fun! :)

These kids were spotted at the river, and this one appeared to be demonstrating his bowling skills as the other two watch closely.