Just as we start...

It has been a well planned and thought after trip. You should be well aware of it as I have posted several posts on the build up to the holy amarnathji yatra. Today is the day we have been planning for since the last few weeks. Everything seems to be in place, we are all ready and packed to go. The excitement has made me start my day early and I wish that the trip goes well. We will miss Ritesh who could not join us due to some family issues so finally we are 9 people who are going the distance.

We have been in touch with people who are well aware of the yatra and we have taken advice from all of them, compiled them and then finalized upon a plan. We have planned to start the journey from Baltal and end it at the Pahalgam. Generally people do it from Pahalgam, but that total distance from Pahalgam to the Holy Cave is approx 40 kms and that from Baltal to the Holy Cave is approx 14 kms. So we have decided to take the shorter root to reach the Holy Cave and then we will take the long distance to be back. The Pahalgam route is more picturesque and beautiful in terms of the scenic beauty. The total trekking is approx 55 kms which we have to cover in 3 days so understandably it is going to be a very tiring and strenuous trip but nevertheless we are prepared for it and we believe that when God has opened all the gates for us to reach that place, he will also guide us through.


JAI BHOLE NATH !!!

Finally we win a Final: Asia Cup

Finally India won a tournament final, it was not expected as they were totally outclassed by Sri Lanka in the league match which was basically a dress rehearsal of the final. But to every body's surprise India played great cricket to beat Sri Lanka. In fact the win was important because the bowlers won it for India and there are not many occasions in the Indian cricketting history when the bowlers have won a match for the country. I was amazed to see the likes of Zaheer and Ashish being almost unplayable. It was a satisfying victory to say the least. India won the Asia cup after 6 long years so it was a victory that was awaited for long now.

Even though India won the match comprehensively but there are a few things that we need to work on if we want to do well in the upcoming world cup. We still need our batsmen to carry on after they get starts, getting out after scoring 30-40 will not help the team at all. Also we seriously need to look at our bowling attack specially the fast bowling. We need more consistency from our bowlers and need them to perform better during the powerplays. One more thing that baffles me is the inclusion of Ravindra Jadeja in the team. Why the hell is he there in the team. Please if someone can justify please let me know.

I am also worried about the form of Yuvraj Singh and the fitness of Sehwag. I would love to be in a situation where I have a hard time picking my final 15 and this can be done only if all the players are fit and in form. I would like to see Yusuf Pathan performing more consistently as he can be very handy when chasing big totals. Hope things shape up well and we have a full star studded in form players before the World Cup.

Good Bye Rohit Madhok

In a major change in FirstRain engineering team, the evergreen and ever ready Rohit bid adieu and moved to the Royal Bank of Scotland. His move has left us all in awe and we cannot believe that Rohit would not be working with us any more. I have been working closely with Rohit for the last year or so and I owe him a lot. He has taught me how to handle complex problems related to Databases. Query writing, optimizations and even designing better modules. He always kept pushing me and I some times even got frustrated but still I learnt a lot from him. The amount of knowledge and experience that he had, he would be hard to replace. When I was questioned by our VP Technology about my reactions on Rohit's departure, I just said that you can replace the talent but you cannot replace the experience. But we all are very happy for Rohit and we honor his decision and wish him continued success.

He was the one who was always ready for party and used to party hard. He was our party planner and he had so many restaurants menu card in his memory. His favourite cuisine was Chinese and he remembered all the dishes that were served by Golden Dragon, Bercos and Yo China and also knew the prices for most of them. He had this special talent where he just had to be told how many people are vegetarian and how many are Non vegetarian and he would order food for all. He was really fast and mostly he ordered brilliant food. He deserved a good Farewell party so we decided to take him to a disco and treat him to some really good food. We wanted to treat him with Chinese but then we could get a combination of Chinese and Disc together so we decided to go for disc and compromise on Chinese and go for Mughlai.

We booked the Last Chance in Sahara Mall Gurgaon and we had a great party. We drank, danced and drank again. It was a Monday night but we enjoyed ourselves like hell. It was so satisfying when Rohit labelled that party as one of the best official parties he has been to. That statement made our day and we were satisfied that the treat we gave Rohit has been effective and he has enjoyed it. It was a great time and we will cherish the memories for long. We are still to believe that Rohit is not there working with us and we miss him. He has been a great leader and definitely a great Engineer. He has debugging skills second to none and we will sure miss his services. We also gave him a small gift as our token of love and admiration that we had for him. Having said so much it is still hard to imagine that Rohit has moved on. He would have been my last guess if I were to guess the name of the person who will leave FR. But I guess this is life which is always full of surprises and keeps you on your feet always.

Build up to Holy Amarnath Yatra Phase 5

We are into the last few days before we start our Holy Yatra. Everything has been planned. We have submitted our forms and got them stamped from the Jammu and Kashmir Bank. To our surprise the stamp has used URDU as a language. We have our list of items ready, we are going to do the shopping for common things this weekend. We have also talked and booked a Tata Winger to take us to Baltal from Srinagar and also bring us back. We have also talked to several hotels in Srinagar and we will be finalizing one of them. So everything is ready and we all are set to go to this pious and adventurous trip to the holy Amarnathji.

It is going to be a great trip and I can already feel my feet paining for walking long distances, my body shivering with cold. I could imagine myself in a tent on top of a hill with temperature touching almost Zero degree. It is going to be a great trip especially with 10 people we are sure to have a good time. I can also feel more connected to the Yatra and I have been reading over Google and other sites regarding what to do and what not to during the course of Yatra. I hope to see the Holy Shiv Ling soon and also take blessings of the almighty and satisfy myself.

We have been planning to go to Amarnath since last year but things did not shape us properly for us and now when we are all set for the holy Yatra I just pray and wish that we accomplish what we have wished for and have a great time. May God bless us all and be with us always.

JAI BHOLE NATH!!!

Build up to Holy Amarnath Yatra Phase 4

Finally there is good news we have got the Yatra passes for the 1st of July and now our plan to travel is confirmed and we are almost sure that we will indeed be visiting the holy cave and we will be blessed by the darshan of the eternal Amarnath ji. There were lots of if and buts but now things are resolved and we are all set to go. For this we must thank Ajay and his brother-in-law who has arranged the passes for us.

This was not expected but it happened. It is a result of the trust we had in the almighty and his wishes. We wish that as he has helped us climb the first rock, he continues to guide us through the trip and ever after. May God shower his blessings on us always.

So the final plan is we will leave Delhi around 13:30 on Wednesday 30th June and proceed to Srinagar. From there we will reach Baltal and start our Yatra early on the 1st of July. We plan to be back latest by 3rd afternoon so we will have half of 3rd and half of 4th if we want to go around in Srinagar somewhere. We have our return flight somewhere around 16:00 hrs on the 4th July.

JAI BHOLE NATH !!!

Asia Cup : India beat Pakistan

India, Pakistan cricket matches are always very intensive and today's match was no different. It was a thrilling encounter and finally India emerged victorious. The match was keenly contested and went down to the wire before it was decided. The match swung both sides before Harbhajan shot India to a victory. Pakistan won a very good toss and decided to bat, they scored a good decent total of 267 which meant India would need to bat really well to chase down the total which by God they did and did that in style.

The match was nicely poised with both teams having equal opportunities. It was a thriller and the last over was a sort of repeat of history of what Javed Miadad did when he hit the last ball for six and won the game for Pakistan. Similarly Harbhajan Singh hit a six of the penultimate delivery and took India to victory. I am really impressed by the way the team performed. The most important thing was beating Pakistan which is always a special thing to do.

I have not watched any match of this Asia cup, the cup has been eclipsed by the FIFA World Cup but still I decided to watch the India Pakistan encounter and I must say that it was worth the time I invested and I was satisfied with the result. But keeping in mind the future of Indian cricket I am not sure why does Ravindra Jadeja play in the Indian team. Dhoni in the post match presentation said that he bowled well, if we are playing him as a bowler then I am sorry we have better bowlers and if we are playing him as a batsman then also I am sorry because we have better option than him. It is really hard to understand what role and responsibility Jadeja has in the team. With very little time left before the world cup we should find a balanced team else this will hurt us badly in the World Cup. The team selection confuses me like hell.

My Top 5 contestants of Indian Idol 5

Indian Idol 5 has already matured and reached a level where almost every contestant is equally good and it is a tough job to choose from the top 9 that are there at this moment. I would certainly not like to be in a position where I have to choose the top 5 as I would really have nothing against the contestants that I do not choose. But still on my personal selection criteria and what I have made after watching so many episodes my top 5 will have Rakesh Maini, Naushad Ali, Shashi Suman, Sreeram Chandra and Shivam Pathak in random order. I actually tried to order them but failed I have lots of confusion. I also like Bhumi Trivedi specially the 'rap' but I guess she will not be in my top 5.

If things have to shape up as I am expecting them to, then here are my eliminations for the next few weeks. This is just my guess and I am sorry if you people think otherwise. So for me the next candidate to be eliminated should be Arpita Khan followed by Tia, Swaroop Khan and Bhumi. But looking at the past results that the people give I am sure that this is not going to happen. Having taken the names of these 4 contestant I do not mean to say that they are bad it is just that the other 5 are stronger contestants than these.

I truly believe that Rakesh is the best singer from the 9 remaining today and he is my choice for the Indian Idol 5. The way he has improved and the stunning back to back performances that he has been giving is really appreciable and he deserves to win. Let us hope that the best singer wins. I would also request the people who are voting to vote sensibly I was really shocked to see Shashi standing in the danger zone yesterday. I mean, come on, how can a person of the caliber of Shashi be there when visibly he is better than atleast 3 contestants if not more. Let us wait and watch how things unfold and who is crowned the Indian Idol.

Indian Idol 5

I have been following Indian Idol 5 from the very first day and I must say that I have really loved the show. I am really impressed by the singing of the contestants and I thoroughly enjoy each and every moment of the show. I actually wait for Monday and specially Tuesday to watch this beautiful program. This post was long due but somehow I could not compile enough facts and situations to write here. I personally am a great fan of songs and good singers although I do not enough knowledge of music but can make out music from noise. So finally I have decided to summarize my experience with the Indian Idol so far.

I am a great fan of Sunidhi Chauhan, I really like the coolness of Salim and seriously hate Annu Malik. So now you see the combination of judges itself is a good combination for me to enjoy. I also appreciate the concept of bringing music legends to the show, the likes of Preetam and the great Pyarelal ji. I was filled with Awe when Mr. Pyarelal ji ran his band of musicians, I really felt that was the best episode of Indian Idol till date. I also have my personal favourites from amongst the contestants and have secretly voted for 2 of them. This is the first time ever that I have voted for any such show.

I really liked the way the show treated Meghna(who was partially blind) and it made me feel proud. The variety of singer that the show has also speaks volume about the talents. Also the fact that there are contestants from small cities like Lakhimpur emphasises that the talent hunts are no more limited to the main cities and the metros, it has now taken almost all of the country into contention. I really appreciate the show. I would also like to congratulate Hussain for being a superb host I really admire the way he presents the show. The cool atmosphere that the show creates is simply admirable. I really love this show. Thanks Sony for providing us with such a lovely show.

Build up to the Holy Amarnath Yatra - Phase 3

Finally we have some good news. We have got Yatra passes for 3rd July for 5 people. This may not be enough but atleast this comes a spark and it shows that God is with us. It has also given our confidence a boost and we have again started believing that we will go the distance. We are still hoping to get the passes for the 1st or 2nd of July and we may actually get it in couple of days. I must say that Ajay deserves a big pat on the back for arranging the Yatra passes through his contacts and family members.

Today we have atleast something in our hand and I guess this is a signal by the almighty to us that he is with us and is helping us along. It would be great if we can actually get passes for the first two days for the Yatra. Rest is upon God and we firmly believe that he will help us as he has been doing upto now. My mother said that these things come to you naturally and they all need to be stamped by the almighty and without his wishes and blessing nothing happens. So looking forward for the Yatra with folded hands.


JAI BHOLE NATH !!!

35 Priceless Minutes

I was in my office just back from lunch when my cell phone buzzed and I saw a unknown number calling. I am sick and tired of these people calling me from banks, funds and other things that I have no interest in. I thought it would be one of those calls so I thought not to pick it up at all. My cell sang the Summer of 69 which I have as ring tone and then went quite but within a matter of seconds it started again, this time I picked it up and took it close to my ears. Even before I could say hello, I heard a voice so familiar and so pleasant that I trembled. Within a split second I ran down my entire life to match this beautiful voice with the person and finally I did. I said hello with my eyes almost filled with tears and a sweet little smile on face.

I couldn't feel anything around me, I left my seat and walked into a meeting room, closed the door and made myself comfortable on the chair. I could almost feel that the chair has engulfed me and I am on its lap. I talked for about 35 mins and then I had to cut the line as I had a meeting scheduled at 14:30 pm. But those 35 odd minutes made yesterday a very memorable day for me. That call came as a surprise to me and I heard that voice after a period of at least 9 - 10 months.

It was wonderful feeling but now it is over and life is back to normal, I spent the rest of the day pondering over the call but now I do not even know if yesterday was the last time I heard that voice or will there be any other day when I will get a call that will shake me and make me feel like GOD. It was a very pleasant surprise and I thank GOD from the bottom of my heart for this wonderful moment. I will preserve and cherish it for a very very long time.

Build up to the Holy Amarnath Yatra - Phase 2

We got ourselves registered for the Amarnath Yatra on the day the registrations began. But we have been faced with a problem, we have got the Yatra date as the 11th of July as opposed to the 1st or 2nd July which we wanted. This has shaken us a bit. It also made us think that we might not be able to go ahead with the plan of the Yatra. We are dejected. This has actually spoiled the enthusiasm that we had.

We called up a few people who have been to Amarnath lately and they opined that the date should not be a problem, it is there just to control excessive amount of devotees. The government officials give dates in order to distribute the crowd of devotees but they do not stop any person who has a registration and reaches before the given date. The same words were voiced by a couple of other people who are either directly or indirectly associated with the Holy Yatra. This gave us a big relief and we all welcomed it.

But still we are not very sure that we would be able to visit the holy cave of Amarnath. We are waiting with fingers crossed and I guess this will be our situation till the time we actually reach Srinagar as till then we can only speculate things but cannot conclude. We have a meeting planned to discuss the next steps on Monday morning. Let us pray and hope that we can go ahead with our program and visit the holy Amarnath. Let Bhole Baba decide our fate.

JAI BHOLE NATH !!!

Raajneeti : Review

The movie is a compilation of brilliant individual performances with Manoj Bajpai standing out. Nana Patekar has the best role in the movie and he portrayed it with grace. His brilliance once again gave the moving a new dimension. Manoj Bajpai once again proves his worth with a stunning performance. He is one character that would move out with you from the movie. Ajay Devgan is good as always and deserves a mention whenever we talk about this movie. Katrina and Sarah complete the icing on the cake. Overall a good film. Having said so I would like to point out that Ranbeer is the lead actor in the movie but his role and his acting is overshadowed by some brilliant performances around him.

The movie does not have a very clear message that it wants to convey. It keeps the audience swinging between the different possible motives for creating the movie. One remarkable thing about the movie is that it keeps you glued to it with some complicated though interesting story. I enjoyed the movie though the general opinion was against me. I had walked into this movie having heard really bad reviews so I was not expecting anything from the movie but the movie did not dissappoint me a bit.

The movie is very intense and takes a bit of concentration to throughly enjoy the movie. It is not a light hearted movie that you can watch you tickle your funny bone. Prakash Jha very cleverly introduces action, sex and drama just to provide that masala touch to the movie which at times looked unnecassary and uncalled for. But overall it is a good movie if you take my personal call. I really enjoyed the role of Nana Patekar and really appreciated the role of Manoj Bajpai. I would say you should watch this movie and you may like it.

Criticism ...

...is the easiest thing to do in this world today. It does not require you be a genius to criticise anybody after all it is just a statement that you need to make. It is very easy to criticise a person for the steps that he has taken to come out of a difficult situation or maybe handle a difficult situation but when you are actually faced with the same situation that you realise how difficult it is to manage things at that point of time.

Let me tell you a little story that my Grand Father used to tell me when I was dejected or displeased by some criticism that was targeted at me. The story is about a painter. There was this person who was a very good painter and wanted to improve his painting and drawing skills. He also wanted people to point out his mistakes in order to learn more. After he completed any painting he used to put it up on display and ask people for their comments. When he used to return to his painting he would find thousands of comments on his paintings and the flaws that people noticed in it. He used to correct his mistakes as much as possible and then again put the painting on display only to come back and see several more comments on it. This thing went on for over a week and that literally disheartened the painter and he thought that painting was not his cup of tea. With these thoughts in mind he went to his master and told him his story and his master gave him some tips. He followed what the master had said and again put his painting on display. That day when he came back he was shocked to see no comments were made on his painting. He thought that people may have not seen the painting or may be there was some sort of holiday so he decided to let the painting be there as is for another day. Eventually after a week or so he could still not see any comments on his paintings. He went to his master and thanked him.

Wondering what the master told his student. The master asked the painter to put up his painting and ask people for their comments. He also asked the painter to put a plain paper alongside the painting and ask the commenter to rectify the mistake in the painting on the paper attached along side. Moral of the story is it is easy to criticise the act of a person but if you are faced with the same situation you may behave even badly. So next time before you criticise a person look at yourself first.