The Other Taj - a tribute

I would stop at the glassed enclosure on the wall that contained some of the rarest most beautiful photographs of the Taj's famous guests. Queen Elizabeth and Jackie O , Maharani Gayatri Devi and a breathtakingly , lovely , young Shobha De and so many others...More...

Leadership crunch

Several bigwigs had their bytes prominently relayed by starved reporters. A few channels left their ad space and time intact - the viewer is a consumer after all!
Media gave themselves a free hand, and have assumed that they are beyond regulation...More...

Coping with crisis

Those agitating to keep non-Maharashtrians out of Mumbai would be doing a great service if they instead focus their energy to sanitize the city from terrorists. Those who are so bravely fighting the invaders include many non-Maharashtrians.They come from several parts of the country and belong to different castes and communities...More...

There they go again, ...

In other news, this jerk, a film maker named Rahul Dholakia is angry because when he drives from Lokhandwala to film city, he can't see a single armed policeman. Heard that, guys? Out of the Taj, please. Man the road to Film city. Rahul is VERY upset. . .More...

Laptop is old hat

Laptop is old hat. Keith Bradsher of the New York Times sent updates on the terror strike in Mumbai from his Blackberry. The newspaper correspondent had parked himself on a rooftop close to Nariman House...More...

Mumbai Terrorist Attacks

The whole day has been so depressing, numbers are rattled out as if a mere numbering exercise. When will the political parties stop fighting among themselves and take things seriously?...More...

Media spoiling the surprise ?

Sometimes I feel, the media sensationalism, is probably detrimental to the critical operations. An example is the splashing news on NDTV right now, telling everyone in the world, that 100 commandoes are being air-dropped onto the Nariman House for the final push of the operation...More...

Mumbai

I try to keep away from current affairs on my blog, simply because, there is so much media coverage that you feel who cares about what is written here. But then, I also realize, that this statement holds good for other posts as well...More

Black Day

How many more black days do we have to see before we see an end? Or is this only the beginning?
Where are our leaders? What other issues are occupying their times?
It is time you stepped down from your seats since you have all failed....More

This country needs change

As act after act of terror strikes our country, it certainly feels that we are not safe anymore. Glorification of the acts by the media aggrevates the feeling. One cannot fail to notice the lapse in intelligence gathering. Misplaced priorities of the politicians makes the situation worse than it is already. ..More

Dear Mumbai Police and NSG

I have been watching a program on the Times Now channel where four people - Alyque Padamsee, Farooq Sheikh, Shefali Shah and one guy named Sohail I think - were discussing the situation with the anchor....These people are ANGRY. Not with the terrorists, who they feel are only misguided souls doing what they've been told, and doing it rather well, thank you very much, but with YOU...More..

Somali pirates and our Navy

Many years ago, the architect of India naval strategy, eminent historian and reluctant diplomat KM Panikkar said: "A navy is not meant for the defense of the coast. The coast has to be defended from the land....More.

Deepa: I've no backbone

There I was, watching the History Channel, when they suddenly sprang a programme on the history of Chocolate. Fifteen minutes into the show, my backbone gave way, and I raided the fridge, desperate for anything, just anything chocolatey. . .More

Ouch!

Life without computer

Was quite upset about this. Felt that the doctors were making unnecessary fuss. But they had a point. At the age of 75 one has to be careful about such things. . .More

Sweet Thoughts

We asked these two gentlemen who run the place what the sweet is called. It doesn't have any name, apparently. It is a sort of cham-cham, that's very spongy and sugary...More

Slumdog Millionaire...

It so happens to me that, many books in my personal collection and those that I have read have plots that form the storyline of a major blockbuster later. Be it Jhumpa Lahiri's 'Namesake' or Mariane Pearl's 'A Mighty Heart' or Dan Brown's 'Da Vinci Code' and many more. . . More

Teamwork

In spite of labels stuck upside down, pages stuck together, all my careful classification of books, the room becoming a terrific mess and total exhaustion, I went to bed rather pleased. Because they did read the books inbetween and asked questions ( is this a volcano) and that is the ultimate aim. . .More. . .

Heritage Trees: Five, and counting

There are scores of other trees awaiting heritage cerification. Wouldn't it be nice if Prof. Ramalingam and others in the committee share their thoughts on the criteria for identifying a heritage tree?...More

Calcuta Again

This beautiful, ethereal edifice and its surrounding gardens is just a brisk twenty minute walk away from the Club and it is very difficult to resist the temptation to rush off there for a morning walk.......

Stop the bail-out - Let them wake up!

The ‘American Dream’ so far as the automobile went was an imposed nightmare. In Detroit itself, you can see the skeletons of a once alive transport system. All across the country, for decades from the 1920s, they bought up public transport systems and shut them down......

Photos: From the Local Florist

In the Nursery

like visiting the Paul Nursery in Mal Bazaar to pick up seedlings and seeds. It’s a favourite haunt with most tea garden people.......

Where was I?

O, when America was voting I was in San Francisco. Taking time off from the conference, I went to see people lining up to cast the historic vote. When McCain made the concession speech I was at a dinner, but we were all looking at the TV, and there was only one subject of discussion.....

Off With the Old

Or so I thought . . . . When suddenly two days ago I found that I could not connect to the net. I called their Call Centre. The line was busy for very long, and I could not get through at once. But once I did, the person there, without being obsequious, very clearly told me (without any ornamental flourish - no ‘have a great day’, no ‘thanks for calling us’)that my problem would be addressed as soon as possible........

The front page

Some newspapers would do anything to attract attention - even publish a blank page. Provocation for this Bangalore Mirror front page was, presumably, to advertise the Indian Cricket League series starting in Bangalore on Sunday night.....

Gadsisar Lake, Jaisalmer

Gadsisar lake of Jaisalmer is an artificial water tank, built by Maharawal Garsi Singh in 1367 A.D. It was the sole source of drinking water till as recently as 1965.....

Duck For Cover

A woman carrying a duck arrived to see the Vet.
She was crying very salty tears for Cuddles was her pet.
'Doctor! Doctor!' she wept and wailed ' Tell me it's not true!
Tell me that Cuddles isn't dead! I don't know what to do!'

A Walk through the Woods

I took in grateful lungfuls of air, enjoying the smell of Californian redwoods, and the rejuvenating freshness of the air. There was a surreal perfectness to these woods, and they were exactly the way I had pictured them be.......

Arrest of Two Catholic Priests and a Nun for Murder

Since then, several CBI teams have investigated the Abhaya case. The two priests now arrested were subjected to modern tests like narco-analysis earlier. Nothing conclusive emerged from that. A few times the CBI approached the Kerala High Court for permission to close the case stating that the evidence was insufficient to proceed against the suspects......