America: Guns and Losses

In the babble, on the very first day, I heard an opinion that if only more professors, more students had guns for self-defence, the lone deranged gunman Seung-Hui Cho would have been shot earlier, that lives would have been spared. At first I did not believe that I could be hearing this. But over the next weeks, I heard this argument being made time and again, by pundits of a particular ilk. . . More. . .

Life on Mysore Infy campus

After the inital hiccups, time at Mysore flew by like anything and before we knew it, it was time to leave! I still miss the place, and everything associated with it! First salary, the optimum utilisation of the facilities at the employee care centre, the walks and cycle rides around the campus, the new friends made there . . .More. . .

The magic of rain

It's ok if the adults don't understand me. I know, I had done justice to myself, because when it rains, I am a kid again, I feel I a new side of me emerging…and when it rains, I tend to forget manners. That’s the magic of the rainy season!. . . More. . .

Singapore snapshot - 2

I saw people flying radio controlled Airplanes in the field area. That got me up in a heart beat and I ventured out to see what was going on. As the morning matured, more people came in with their Airplanes to fly them. Visiting each Airplane and talking to the owners of these models, I realized that Singapore has a vibrant aero model flying scene. . .More

Remembering Chittaranjan

Mr Chittaranjan was a rare newspaper editor who didn’t own a vehicle, and used to travel by bus. This was in the 80s, when travelling in a Delhi Transport Corporation bus was no Sunday picnic. He remained a man with a common touch, though he rose to senior editorial positions in Hindustan Times and Patriot, and to be editor of National Herald. . .More. . .

B2B: Down and out in Paris

We were finally in France on the home run to Paris. We discovered why not a single French driver would stop for us and give us a lift. The French car insurance prohibited the driver of a French car from giving strangers a lift and in the event of a claim for injury, would refuse to pay. . . More. . .

Singapore snapshot - 1

SInglish (Singaporean English) is a language that they speak and first timers find it very tough to get what they are saying to you or among themselves. . . . And what’s this flipping word ‘Lah’ they use at the end of every sentence?” Sometimes the sentence ends with ‘Leh’ and ‘Lor’ as well. Just a matter of knowing your P’s and Q’s in Singlish. . .More. . .

Bangalore Amar Tinkle Club

“ Look, all the adults in the world are stupid,” I said, “ You know that!”. For once, we all agreed on the same point. “Uh-huh,”“ They are so dumb that they cut trees and stuff, and some people, like the ‘bad tree woman’ make a mess of the world. So, we should show them that kids have got tough stuff too, and we can be responsible. We are surely more brilliant in such matters than adults will ever be!”“Yeah!”. . .More. . .

When my deo spray posed a threat to America

They were after my shaving kit this time as well; at the security check-point in Seoul (during transit) the man picked out my deo-spray and said, “No, not allowed”, before tossing it into a thoughtfully placed trash-bin. Toiletries so collected at airport check-points can keep the shelves always filled at Chennai’s Burma Bazaar. . . More. . .

Exclusive interview with Vijay Mallya

Shenoy N : Do you get tired of the ceaseless globe-trotting and partying ?
Mallya V : This is a trick question, right ?
. . .More. . .

Tale of Sarathbabu

In my case, I would not have demanded reservation. I accepted it because the society felt I belonged to the deprived class and needed a helping hand. Today, the opportunities are grabbed by a few. They should be ashamed of their ability if they avail reservation even after becoming an IAS officer or something like that. They are putting a burden on the society and denying a chance to the really needy. . .More. . .

Community journalism

That is why we plan to conduct a few community journalism camps on Sunday evenings . . . .we will share basic skills and tips with the interested. . . Help them write sharp press releases, motivate them to tip us to breaking news, encourage them shoot clear pictures and e-mail us crisp and info-rich copy on local events. . .More . . .

Global warming

When I become 30 years old people will be pointing at photographs of Rhinos and saying “Gee, it seems such a species of animals existed once”. By 2060, A whopping BILLION people will be forced to migrate from Asian and other poor countries because of horrible climatic conditions in Asia. . .More. . .

B2B with Kini: Doing Venice on empty pocket

We must have waited sitting on our suitcases on the speeding edge of the motorway outside Turin for several hours into the night before a young Italian in a two door sports car who wanted to relieve himself spotted us and pulled up. He was going across only as far as Grenoble and we were welcome to share his car. . .More. . .

Making of a HAM

One of my classmates, KH Manjunath (he used to reside in VV Puram) came home with the news that there was a notice put up in Yuvaraja’s College that a training class was being conducted at SJCE as part of the Mysore University Amateur Radio Club for those interested in Amateur Radio. . .More. . .

SOFTEN: Infosys staffers' initiative

Not all poor people need be needy for the kind of clothes Mr Manjunath and friends wish to distribute – old jeans, branded shirts, skirt and tops, and salwaar-kameez. Handing them out at random to alms-seekers in front of temples may not be a good idea. . .More . . .

My uncle who loved comics

I guess he left too soon. He loved life too much, . . . I will relish the moments I spent with this wonderful man. And just like he advised me, I will learn to like all books equally, and when I grow up, I want to become a person just like him—the Happy-go-lucky girl who never forgets the value of life, the enjoyment that is to be derived from a simple living, and to celebrate everything that life will ever offer me . . .More. . .

Life without cell phone

Its a good feeling. Try keeping your mobile for a couple of weeks in your cupboard and walk free without anybody to trace you!. . .More. . .

Karnataka ban on lotteries

A state, however small, that has to rely on lottery trade to run its affairs can hardly be considered a viable administrative unit. . . More. . .

Felicitations to my online friend

Such is the marvel of the Net. The technology that brings together people spread across the geographical divide can also obviate the need for even neighbors to meet, face-to-face, to be able to stay in touch. Who needs to meet when e-mail, v-mail and Skype could speak. And my friendship with Mr Krishna Vattam is strengthened with every e-mail we exchange, with every chat on the old–fashioned telephone. . .More. . .

Shed a tear for these VIPs

Which network follows their travails through the day with ‘Breaking News’? How many assemble studio guests to discuss their plight, their problems, their working and living (and indeed dying) conditions? How many ‘experts’ from civil engineering departments, concerned government departments, discuss the ‘Big Question’? When will their lot improve?. . .More. . .

A glimpse of Frankfurt

Heidi was one cartoon I fell in love with. Oh, it was not one of those ‘stupid’ and ‘senseless’ children’s cartoons with dancing donkeys and talking birds, . . . I remember in one episode in which Heidi is dragged away from her Grandpa to the city of Frankfurt. I associated that with me being dragged back to Bangalore after spending my summer with my Grandparents. . .More. . .

The way we are

A legal team representing, two Karnataka ministers, appearing before the Lokayukta said the ministers could not file the details (regarding assets for 2004-05) in time because of the fault of their personal staff. . . More. . .

Developing an IT city

Will you move to Hubli? or Madurai? or even Mysore?Will you set up a branch of your company in any of these cities above? Companies are setting up offices in many of these cities today, but find the going tough. Unlike an Infosys which is really using its base in Mysore as a self sufficient campus - a siginficant number of employees live within- it is not easy to go to a place where there are no (or less) people. . .More. . .

Has our media gone celebrity-berserk ?

The Bachhans, however, had us all believe that they kept out the media because they wanted the wedding to be a private affair. But then was Amitabh so naïve as not to know that media perceives news as anything that someone wants to suppress? . . .More. . .