Bangalore Live!!!

Good News! Great News!
A Project that my Company "The T-Pot Media" has been working on for a while now has finally seen the sunlight. Indias First Internet Television is here.

The aim is to create an online community which veiws, opines, gets excited, gets incited by the news capsules that we offer them. An interactive internet initiative to bring out local news in an international Level. My company is involved in the production and management of all the videos you see there. Entertainment and lifestyle Capsules.

Sify is the parterning Company, and is doing spends on parallel media soon. (Hoardings, Television, Radio, Print, Offline Event)
Bangalore is their first city and we're on a 3 month pilot phase. We're looking at replicating this to Bomabay, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkotta and Hyderabad.

Im totally excited because this is my first foray into Online jounalism!!!
The videos you see have been shot by a Guy Im terribly impressed with "Nimish Jain" and His friend Chetan. The NJ's (Net Jockeys) are all Freshers in the communication business and seem to be doing well!

To take a look at what im talkin about go to the Bangalore Live Website.
Click on to the "Bangalore Buzz" Tag and choose the video you want to see.
Tell me what you think. Do play devils Advocate. Tell me frankly what you think. Bouquets and Brickbats accepted!

And I'm looking for feedback. Feedback!!!

Of Marriages and Mehendi

The Last weeekend was truly a maddening one.

Two Very very close friends of mine were getting hitched. Yup Biting the dust.

Its the marriage season now apparently and 18th of February was apparently a very auspicious day.. "Shubh Muhurath" Like they say. So on that day .. ironically.. were two marriages.
Namita Got hitched to Dhiren.. A love cum Arranged Marriage.
Paridhi Got hooked to Vaibhav.. An arranged cum Love Marriage.

And since yours truly is not omnipresent he was chided by both "best friends" (namita and paridhi) for not attending their respective sangeets and shaadi's.

Since the entire weekend which was packed with sagai's mehendi's, sangeets, shaadi's and the receptions got me thinking on a lot of things.

Why do people actually get married??? Whats the true reason behind the institution of marriage??

According to a Survey, the top five reasons why people get married are:

• To signify a life-long commitment
• Security for children
• To make a public commitment
• For legal status or for financial security
• Because of religious beliefs

The same survey group said that the main reasons people do not get married are:

• Fear of divorce and what goes with it
• Avoidance of commitment
• Fear of making a mistake
• Bad previous experience
• Belief that a strong commitment does not need marriage
• Desire for a single lifestyle
• Belief that marriage will interfere with work and a career

I realised that people get married in the hope of improving their life. No one actually marries to sacrifice for the other person. People marry because somehow they believe it makes life better for themselves. Once you understand this basic rule, you can start to understand why a man wants to marry and why he doesn't.

I realised that we men only marry if we believe it will make our life better. We do not marry because we want to sacrifice our pleasures or give up our joys. A man who sees marriage as burdensome, hard, upsetting, or painful will avoid marrying.
Sometimes Marriage has has little to do with love. A person may love you, but avoid marrying you (or anybody else) if they somehow believe life with you will be difficult. Im guessing its the same for women. People in love will question this. But it remains true. NO matter how much a couple is in love, unless life with each other is easy, they wont move into the marriage zone. I know! Ask me! :)

For some men, single life just is better - and nothing will sway them. They may like women, but they don't need them. You can't change this type of man.
A man must feel he is 'getting' something by marrying - a feeling, a reward, a purpose, comfort, thrills, whatever. Of course there are exceptions to this rule. And ammu will vouch for that.. wont u Ammu?

Since we're on the topic, here's an advice to all the ladies out there. You have to learn how to push a man's pleasure buttons. If you can figure out what constitutes pleasure and meaning to him, then you can begin to understand why he would marry.

Is pleasure for him having a family? A beautiful wife other guys will envy? A helper and emotional support? A best friend for life? Would he love not having to worry about cooking and cleaning? Does he need help financially? Does he need a woman to baby him? Be his partner? Help him straighten himself out? Is he looking for a woman to have a blast with? Or a woman to take care of? Does he want a woman he has to work for and please?

Years ago, men often married for sex. It didn't come so easily, and this motivated them. The prospect of unlimited sex propelled many a man into marrying. Sex meant pleasure, which humans crave. Humans will put themselves in terrible - even dangerous - situations at the prospect of great pleasure. Today, men can have this without marrying. A woman must now understand the other reasons a man marries.

To conclude, I think before anyones gets hitched, they have to begin to think of what they need in a relationship.

If your a woman ask yourself - and what kind of a man has needs you are able and willing to fill. Ask yourself: Am I fun to be with? Am I difficult, critical, picky? Do I give my boyfriend pain or pleasure? How often do we fight? Do I pick on small transgressions? Am I always complaining, whining and wanting to discuss 'the relationship'? When is the last time we had a really fun time together? Do you easily snap at him - whether he deserves it or not?

And if your a man! - Well. Just makes sure you keep her happy, cuz only then will she keep you happy! :)

Both my friends have found men that they always wanted. One converted her childhood/college romance into a bond of love that will never fade, a bond called marriage. The other let her parents choose a boy for her, and fell in love in a couple of dates, and now shes So happily in love with him, and shows all the signs of sticking with him forever.

Im so happy for both of them. 4 more people in this world are Happily Married! :)

Heres a Photo of Paridhi, Vaibhav and Me!




And this here is a photo of Namita's Mehendi!



COngrats to both my friends.. Namita my best pal.. and Paridhi My pal who i know for the LOongest time! LOve u guys!
Congrats to their respective better halves too! :) Both of you are Lucky Men! :)

D-Day

I finally Did IT! I asked Ammu to Marry me. I asked the woman of my dreams to join me in the journey of life.

The thing that every man fears. The move that every man dreads. The scariest (read happiest)thing a man has to ever do. (Thank God) The D-Day happened in my life too.

The date was the 12th of February.
I took her for a nice romantic candle light dinner, Just the two of us.. pre valentines date kinda thing. Meanwhile home was being set up for the most amazing night of our lives. (So far at least)
I wanted everything to be perfect for her! :)

The deed was done in a house filled with candlelight, on a bed of flowers. We had our song (dilko) playing in the background as soon as she entered the house. The perfect Setting.
Kneeled on one knee, Wearing a Tuxedo, I opened a red velvet box, which had a diaomond ring in it.
Sigh! I had to make sure she couldnt say NO!

And she said Yes!

Will update everybody on what our families think soon, But its been 5 days and Im outta of post proposal shock, so I decided I would blog the happiest incident of my life!




Special Thanx to Bhushan for the event organisation, Sandy, Munish and Aditi for the execution, Jaiveet for the strength, Hisham for the support and Sumeet for the Advice. Love you guys.

And Ammu.. U make my world go around! COngratulations Sweetie :)

Dog (?) Tagged!

I have been tagged by Arun Katiyar.

The Rules of the game are:
1. The tagged victim has to come up with 8 different points of their perfect lover.
2. You need to mention the sex of the target.
3. Tag 8 victims to join this game and leave a comment on their comments saying they’ve been tagged.
4. If tagged the 2nd time, there’s no need to post again.


My Tag answers are a slightly different set of 8 points than you'll find in any other tag.

The irony (irony seems to be my main writing device) is that I have already found the perfect woman. People who know me from a long time will vouch that ive had a steady trial and error phase in my life.
But for the last 3 years its been more or less this same girl whos been defining perfection for me. Every person has a wishlist they'd like in their partner. My partner defines my wishlist. This girl has now grown to the perfect woman. The qualities I write below belong to Her.
(Note. The word Perfect to be read as "Fits into my bill")

The Perfect Woman is...

1. Someone who will Love me for who I am. In a world filled with facades and illusions, the only thing real seems to be her love. Someone Who will love me till the world comes to an end. Who will love me for all I can be. Who will love me so much that it sometimes hurts her. She is someone who is ready to fight for our love, with her parents, with society, with the world, with her life.

2. Someone who is really Girly! I like opening doors, hailing cabs and pulling out chairs. Some people pooh pooh me as old school, but in my books a man without chivalry is no man at all!
My perfect woman Cries during soppy scenes at the movies, wears gurly skirts and sways around in them knowing that im looking, laughs at the drop of a hat, flutters her eyelashes ever so cutely, wears gurly jewellery and things with lace, satin, ribbons on them.
She also cuddles up into my arms when shes tired and lets me hold her when shes scared. She lets me grab her when I get back from work and lets me lead when we're crossing the road.
She can open the doors of life herself, But she lets me!!

3. Someone who likes the good things in Life. Like strawberries and cream, Long walks on MG Boulevard, Early morning cold showers, Sunsets in Goa, Old reruns of "Friends" on Star World, Dining out, Candlelit meals, Long Drives, talking to random animals (cows,dogs, horses, donkeys, auto drivers) on the road, Bebinca, hanging out with friends, jhonsons baby oil, hot bhutta on a cold bangalore evening and Pillow Fights!

4. Someone who has similar tastes as Me. My Perfect lover loves going to the same Movies, read the same articles in the paper, like the same nightclubs, same restaurtants, same people, same colors, Same beaches, Same roads for long drives, same eccentricities and same cartoons! She floods me with surprises and we're always competing for the next surprise!
We think alike. We even say the same things out at the same time. *jinx* She even feels for the same things that I feel for. For the underprivelegdged .For the Poor, the Needy, the Jobless, the Hungry. Shes as patriotic as I am. No Less NO more. Shes As stubborn as I am. She's my mirror. An ethereal better looking reflection.

5. Someone who is a complete entertainer. My perfect woman is animated and a treat to watch. She is funny and can makes people laugh and smile wherever she goes. She can sing, She can dance, She can hop skip and jump up and down. She has to be able to drive away my blues and make me smile whenever she feels like. She has her own lingo and has make sure I speak it too. My perfect woman plays hide and seek, peekaboo, ,monopoly, rummy, bluff and poker. IM also gonna teach her blackjack soon!

6. Someone who is Extremely Wantable. I might seem a little shallow with this post, but what the hey.. whos reading anyways! My perfect woman IS Very attractive. Her attractiveness and charm goes more than her good looks. Her entire personality is magnetic. Shes a heart breaker. The amount of men in her office, and her ex office and her ex ex ex workplace who have the hots for her are numerous and the figures are stagerring. She finds me very attractive too, so I can stop worrying about my pakoda nose and tanned skin!

7. Someone who is Communicative. My Perfect woman is a person I can sit and talk with for hours. She enjoys talking to me and listening to me as much as I enjoy talking and listening to her. She listens to me rant patiently, she rants with me. Communication being the business im in, is very important to me, And she can talk on anything under the sun, from Camels to Scud missisles. Sometimes I think She's the Radio Jockey in the Relationship!

8. Someone who My friends and Parents Love. The person that she is, its no surprise. She's pleasant to talk to, nice at heart and shes a great cook. (her only competition being my MOM and now ME) She sleeps with a smile and wakes up looking into my eyes and smiling. My friends adore her and my parents want to write their will in her name.

Besides all the above there are a million more points I can jot down abotu her , but tag rules Demand only 8, so Ill Stop!

Ammu. I love you! Thanx for Inspiring my tag answers!

Mostly Everyone else i know online has already been tagged, I wonder who these guys are gonna tag. But its going to be fun to sit back and watch! :)

The people I have tagged are
1. Divya - For her ever comical approach to life .
2. Rajni - For her Wild Opinions and Baby -Time Bloopers.
3. Shuba - For her love for Nittu and Tom.
4. Ashwin - For his out of this world warped philosophy. (Congrats on "unowat" Buddy)
5. Bruce - For all the chords and the notes.
6. Stacey - For her creativity and magnificant shutter speeds.
7. Quills - For the NIke AD!!!
8. My friend from Portland - For his Word skills.

Happy tagging!!!

Dream Destination

now this is a sunset all of us wish we could catch. man! Contentment in Paradise.
A picture of the Sunset at the North Pole with the moon at its closest point!
Enjoy!

"Being Twenty-Something"

Its back to my desk in good old Ranka Plaza in Frazer town, Bangalore after a whirlwind of travel and work. Egypt, Cochin, Goa! Conferences, Conclaves, Dum Ass Mallu Drivers, Aapam and Airpots... its been one helluva fortnight. Phew!
Its that long since I blogged. My offline life seems to be taking over my online life. I still have to upload photographs, my travelogue, list of places to see.
Ive been tagged, need to tag another 8 people. Radio's blooming out, need to get a new demo done. And work is just making life chaotic, but frankly I wouldnt have it any other way.

Anyways, in between all this hungama I managed to see the movie Rang De Basanti - first day first show, (thanx to Ammu :-)). And some might not find this movie as inspirational as I did, but it did manage to get some part of me thinkin. The last time I had this effect through the film medium was with "Yuva", and before that through "Roja".

I realised IM 25, 5 Years ago I was only 20! I wanted to take over the world then. I wanted to be a Millionare by the time I was 25.
In 5 years ill be 30. will I be where i wanted to be 5 years ago, 5 years hence.
I decided to pen a few thought on the same. (Creative inspiration credit to unknown author from whom I borrowed some thoughts)


They call it the "Quarter-life Crisis."

It is when you stop going along with the crowd and start realizing that there are many things about yourself that you didn't know and may not like. You start feeling insecure and wonder where you will be in a year or two, but then get scared because you barely know where you are now. You start realizing that people are selfish and that, maybe, those friends that you thought you were so close to aren't exactly the greatest people you have ever met, and the people you have lost touch with are some of the most important ones. What you don't recognize is that they are realizing that
too, ! And that they aren't really cold, catty, mean or insincere, but that they are
as confused as you.

You look at your work... and feel happy that your doing what your want. You realise that lucky are the few who do what they like, the rest have to like what they do!
BUt you wonder how long you can do what you do, and What else can you do, Cuz you have to do something all your life. But then again.. do you really have to?

Your opinions have gotten stronger. You see what others are doing and find yourself judging more than usual because suddenly you realize that you have certain boundaries in your life and are constantly adding things to your list of what is acceptable and what isn't.

One minute, you are insecure and then the next, secure. You laugh and cry with the greatest force of your life. You feel alone and scared and confused. Suddenly, change is the enemy and you try and cling on to the past with dear life, but soon realize that the past is drifting further and further away, and there is nothing to
do but stay where you are or move forward. You get your heart broken and
wonder how someone you loved could do such damage to you.

Or maybe you love someone & that someone loves you too , but society and circumstances are hell bent on keeeping you apart. You decide to fight, you decide to set fire to the world. And you realise yout swimming upstrem. But your know deep inside you'll win the war, but you just can say how. Sometimes you cannot figure out why you are doing this because you know that you aren't a bad person.

Random hook ups start to look cheap. Getting wasted and acting like an idiot starts to look pathetic. Partying every night seems childish. You go through the same emotions and questions over and over, and talk with your friends about the same topics because you cannot seem to make a decision. You worry about loans, money, buying property, the future and making a life for yourself... and while winning the race would be great, right now you'd just like to be a contender!

What one may not realize is that everyone reading this relates to it. We are in our best of times and our worst of times, trying as hard as we can to figure this whole thing out.

If your just read this and are far away from your 30th birthday and your 20th birthday is long gone.. then.. Welcome to the 25th year of your life!!