Here comes 2012!

Posted by Soumya Mukherjee at 1:57 PM

Now why on earth would I start writing a post on 2012? Simple. It popped in my mind that while the world will be busy celebrating the New Year's eve, I could easily scribble and ramble some of my random thoughts related to the approaching doomsday year.

What good would 2012 do to me ? What do I expect ?

Individually, I would be in my final year and will be moving around the campus grounds, wearing black and white formals, hoping for corporate and tech giants to take me in. I would finally be able to post those fancy status messages I have seen my seniors post on Facebook, right from the beginning of the my college life- "Got selected in__!" "Yes, ___ it is!" and the likewise, with getting over a 100 likes for my new-found success or call it, new-found journey to struggle for survival. Anyways, there is still a semester to go before I start planning all this so, I won't crib much right now.

I would also get to celebrate my leap year birthday while being in the college. Yes  I am a leap year boy and this will be my 5th leap year birthday. A prodigy am I not?!

I will also get a rare opportunity to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of my college. I mean, this is something one really looks forward to. The college authorities are promising a year-long celebration and I would very much like to be a part of each event.

As an Indian, I might finally see many promising development like a strong Lokpal Bill(won't go to the debate as I am always an optimist and know that we will soon get what we stood for). Maybe I get a glimpse of Jaipur Metro before I graduate.I had many other points in my mind while i started to write this but as you can see above, I was so lost in bragging my prospects as an individual that I forgot most of the points.

As a movie fanatic, I will be treated with a  pile of big releases this year-better than last year. From the legacy of the Lord of The Rings to the End of the Legend of the Nolanian version of Batman; from a remake of a cult BigB classic  to a reboot of the classic Spiderman series, I just hope I don't spoil my studies as a final year student.

And as I discuss the points of hope, joy, and expectations I have from the new year, let me also discuss the big epic internet as well as real world question which will surely see huge speculations and media channels like News-Channel-That-Is-Shittier-Than-The Best Performance-You-Flushed-Down-The-toilet (read India TV) make a fortune, that is- 'Will The World End?' Even I don't have an answer to this, but seeing the revolutions in various parts of the world and people like Osama and Gaddafi going down, and people paving a way to a brighter and better future, I think we are doing just fine and hence, nature will not be that rude to just go and end the story!

One thing I know is: If! Yes, if this happens, and the date gets confirmed, I will try my best to do everything in my life that I was looking forward to doing, in my next 10 years. I would try to be with my relatives and people close to me, and I will definitely do all those things I had been planning to do to teach my college admin a lesson since the first year of my college(I am serious). I know all these things will make me live the ME GUSTA  moments!

In conclusion, whether the world ends or not, whether you fail to live up to your own expectations or not, always ensure you live life to the fullest and make every moment worthwhile.

 And yes, no new year resolutions please. 2011 made me realise why not to make a new year resolution(I resolved to maintain a diary that eventually lasted 34 days) and 2012 is THE year of the millennium so, party hard, stay in control, try everything, relish and of course, sleep well(I guess if you made it till this part of the blog, you feel sleepy already. Yeah well,no need to thank me).


Happy New Year!

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Christmas Special: That Chips-Seller of Sealdah Local

Posted by Soumya Mukherjee at 7:00 AM

A Christmas Special post, where  I am presenting a story inspired from a real-life incident. 
Hope you enjoy reading this. Merry Christmas!

We all know we are very busy with our lives. So busy that many a times, we fail to notice the small instances of happiness, joy, creativity and positivity around us. But sometimes, some of these instances catch our eyes and we end up being more than contented to have experienced that instance. It stays in our mind forever, and becomes more than just a good story.I am sharing a similar story today.

It was 9 o' clock in the night. I was in the Sealdah station, waiting for a Sealdah local train.Madhyamgram, where my family stayed, would generally take 20-30 minutes on train. I don't stay in Kolkata but come to visit the city for a few days during my college vacations, so I don't take a vehicle of my own.It was a busy day, with people coming from far and wide via express trains and reaching West Bengal, and daily-passengers waiting on the platform,to get back home from work.

Sealdah is a busy station, and also, seen as an opportunity by people from rural areas to come and sell petty goods, food items, and earn a living. Generally, you would see a frown on these sellers' faces, clearly showing their displeasure on the job. Some of them would even pick up a fight repeatedly, and if you are not alert enough, you might end up being ridiculed by a bunch of vendors in front of the whole busy crowd.

 I was aware of these things and so,I decided to get to a local train as soon as possible, reach home, have a satisfying dinner made by my mother and, after indulging in the world of social-networking for an hour or so, retire for the night.

15 minutes later, a Sealdah Local arrived. Like a swarm of bees, people started getting into the train.Quarrels followed. Angst, frustration of the day got poured over each others faces, as people almost fought their way to find some space in the train.Fortunately, I found myself a seat.

As the train started moving, and while the rest of the people got involved in improving the country through verbal debates and 'oh-so-philosophical' arguments, I plugged in my earphones and gave myself to the warm serenity of music by Poets Of The Fall.

                                                                ☼        ☼        ☼

10 minutes later, I noticed  everyone stopped their regular routine of conversations and were looking at one particular direction. Needless to say, the train had passed two stations and vendors started getting in the train, selling junk snacks, and cheap daily items.Trifles, they say, are the most valuable source of income to the poor, as useless as they are, to the rich. So I went back to listening music.

But a few moments later, I looked up. 'Dawn' was playing in my music player.There was a commotion in the compartment adjacent to mine. I saw a chips-seller coming through. And to my amazement, I observed that almost everyone was buying from him. Curious, I removed my earphones to see what was so special that made those misers and babus of my city to cough up cash this easily, in order to buy junk food, meant to be eaten primarily by children.

In a few moments, his appearance got clearer. I could see him carrying a huge sack, full of cheap rice-chips. He seemed like a man in his 50s. Short, wrinkled, with combed-white hair and visibly under-privileged, the hardship he faced in his life, was clearly visible.

But he had this innocent smile on his face, and as he came closer, I could hear him yelling, "Motch! motch! korey khaaben! Du-taka! du-taka! Motch! Motch! korey khaaben!"
  (Here, 'motch! motch!' is referred to the crunchy sound one would generally make while eating chips, and the rest of the phrase meant, "2 rupees! 2 rupees! Eat while making moch! moch! sound!") 

I chuckled a bit. Actually, I was not the only one. The regular passengers seemed to be used to seeing this vendor, and I could see a hint of amusement on their faces.

He was selling rice-chips, for two rupees a packet. Everyone, especially the kids, seemed to enjoy his very presence. When some would teasingly complain that the previous night, the chips were not crunchy and were crushed, he would start reciting a story, in the form of a poem, to justify why his chips cannot be like crushed and unpleasant, and if they were, how apologetic he was.
                     
For the first time in my life, I saw a vendor who was enjoying his work. He knew how to please people. There was no sign of irritation in his words. And to top it all, he was providing honest entertainment to everyone.
                                                              ☼        ☼        ☼

"My kids ask me-I have 4 kids-'Dad, why do you go out to sell chips every night?' to which I would reply,'if I don't go, then you know what will happen? Many men will return home and yell at their wives and children. But if I gave them this magic chips, all of their anger will vanish, and they will return home, happily, and will hug their children and wives, the way I do when I return.' "

I was astounded on seeing that he how he had figured out the problems of people's lives, in such a simple way. I don't know whether his chips were magical or not, but I found each of his words, surprisingly comforting.

He came to me, and I also asked for two packets. "Bhai, you are new in Kolkata, aren't you?" he said. "Yes. How did you know?" I asked, surprised."Arrey Bhai,I remember the faces of each and every single commuter of this train. Here,  have one packet free with the two." he replied, cheerfully, like a friend.I could not refuse.

I was stunned to see how he was connecting with everyone. He played a few turns with the card players in the train, he danced and sang with the kids, he joked with the women and he tried teaching the toddlers how to spell 'chips'.All this happened in a mere 10 minutes of duration.I lost track of time.

I looked out, and realised my destination is only two stations away. I started getting up, when I saw the chips-seller approaching the gate. He took a glance towards me. I smiled, and he smiled back. He got off in the next station, and, as I waited for my destination to arrive and tried to cherish what I saw in the last few minutes, I saw a 4-yr. old sitting on her mother's lap, munching the chips, and uttering the phrase loud,in her childish tone: "Motch! Motch! korey khaaben! Motch! Motch!"


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On Spammy Videos,Cancer Awareness and the New Facebook / Twitter

Posted by Soumya Mukherjee at 3:08 PM

 So, the talk of the V-town is majorly comprising of the changes the two social-networking giants saw, in the past two weeks. Facebook updated to its timeline profile for all its users while Twitter went for a total changeover in terms of its interface and appearance. User friendly? That is for the users to decide but we all know, cribbers and supporters will always be there, to fight.

We have a fair share of people complaining about the changes. To some extent, it might sound legit as some of them are complaining that in this fast-paced world, they really don't have time to try out and understand what changed in their social-sphere. Some even complained that by the time they will get to know about it completely, new changes will occur.

Some people are very happy with the changes. In Facebook, they are saying their old posts are visible to them in a better way. The cover photo is giving a whole new dimension to the profile appearance.  In Twitter, the concept of @Connect and the idea that the web interface is letting people know whether a user follows them or not, is good. Also, you can embed tweets now, to your own web-site. It is not surprising when some people are saying that they see a revolution.But only time will tell how successful this change is, for Facebook and Twitter both.

Meanwhile, post the Kolaveri fever, we saw some more  attempts of videos doing rounds: Chikni Chameli by Katrina Kaif, Various versions of the Kolaveri video, Flash Mobs in Chennai, Delhi etc. and likewise(I might even be missing out some). I won't discuss on these much, apart from the fact that, the lesser popularity of these videos as compared to Kolaveri only proves that there is a limit to everything-even viral videos.

The past two weeks also saw some other new things in the social-sphere: a spam promising to be an obscene video of a wardrobe malfunction taking rounds in the profiles, where when you click the 'play' button, the thumbnail gets posted through your profile, on each of your friends' wall. I wonder if Anna camp ever thought of spreading their message in a similar way.

And while the guys were busy clicking the play button which was closest to the 'other' button in the spammy video, girls were busy spreading Breast Cancer Awareness. Observe, the focus is on that same pair!

But instead of spreading cancer awareness, the girls ended up going places outside the country, and although they had planned to confuse the guys with their statuses like: I am going to France for 13 months, I am going to Austria for 7 months etc.,  they ended up confusing girls more. The girls would comment on the statuses like "Why?" "What's going on?" while the guys laughed at them all the while.
This reminded me of that "Jack Daniels-Chivas Regal" scam guys had last year. Even that failed like this.

So I hope this blog post acts as an awareness and alerts people not spam, confuse, and of course, make things viral than they deserve to be.
But I know, this won't 'change' you, even a wee bit, would it?!


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The poetry...in my name

Posted by Soumya Mukherjee at 1:29 AM

Poetry, they say, makes your emotions come out and take shape...
To me, this is more than that. I enjoy writing poems, trying to make rhyme scheme(as if it were some sort of logical problem!) and reading them, on completion.

The certainty and the feeling of completeness is what poetry is all about. A song. A prose. A bad attempt. A legendary one. But never a grift. And for this reason, people should practice poetry...


Survive!
The days of sorrow.
The wrath of haters.
As there will be another tomorrow.
Maybe some apologetic letters?


Obliterate.
All those hatred, you are holding back.
All the memories of unhappiness.
Sensibility is what the unwise lack.
Then why make your life a mess?

Understand.
Your life is yours to live.
No one can take the joy  away.
Well wishers are rare, others, unwilling to give.
Hence, don't throw it in utter disarray.

Measure.
The quality in yourself.
It is good when you know your limitations.
Cherish what you earned, maybe take a page from the book in the memory-shelf?
You will find, for every problem you faced, you had the best possible solutions!

Yield.
Something impossible.
You should surprise people.
In a better way, make your work lovable.
No takers you will find for a  trifle.

Appreciate.
You get limited opportunities for that.
Doesn't matter how less successful you are.
Because only on your shoulders, that bird of aspirations sat,
 You taught her to fly,and look how she flew so far....!

The poetry in my name, an attempt, to try out something new and different, using the known rules of poetry. Do let me know your thoughts on this. Thanks for reading.

Movie Review: The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn

Posted by Soumya Mukherjee at 12:18 AM

 Rating: ♦♦♦♦/5

The power of animation meets the art of story-telling to create  magic on-screen, known as: "The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn".

"How's your thirst for an adventure, Captain?" "Unquenchable, Tintin!"...with a perfect dialogue to end a near-perfect feature-length animation movie, this one tops as a complete package for the fans and followers of the popular comic franchise. Tintin just got bigger and better!

Pacy, with perfect detailing, this movie never derails from the plot, whilst maintaining continuity in such a way that, even a novice movie-goer realizes the back-end effort that was put in order to achieve something spectacular.
In recent times, this particular category of animation was actually not received well by the audience,(Monster House, to name) , but  Steven Spielberg knew what he was doing and what was to be done to start a new franchise, particularly when a big one, had come to an end after ruling hearts, for over a decade.

Every character was well crafted but I felt it was Snowy who ultimately comes out as the star performer in the movie-with funny scenes, he is rightfully shown as the smartest dog, with tactics which were amazing and equally digestible. Tintin was fine, and Haddock sprinkled humor with command-as if, the movie never rested on a single character's shoulders!

I would give anything to watch this Tintin and the vulture-chase sequence, n no. of times!

Plot-wise: basically two stories-Red Rackham's Treasure and The Secret Of The Unicorn were merged in this movie, with the first half covering almost all the scenes from "The Secret Of..".There is the pick-pocket, the escape-sequences, Snowy,Thompson and Thompson of course. Second half was actually faster and had more in terms of action and story, with some unforgettable sequences.

3D-could have been better, but I understand that viewers would be more engrossed in the movie than just the effects-hence, the makers  are forgiven for this.

The score: I felt this is the only low-point of the movie-unlike other Spielberg movies, the background score was not majestic at all, rather at times, it was felt that the music toned down the excitement of the scenes.

Finally, the direction: Just one word- Spielberg.

Also, I would list a few memorable sequences from the movie:
1. Snowy tailing Tintin's kidnappers  ,
2. The flight scene(Haddock burrps! hilarious!!!) ,
3. Tintin chasing the vulture sequence-oh how well was that one made!,
4. Flashback scene.

There is a promise of a sequel(who wouldn't want that!) as well.

In short, this is a movie worth your money and expectations. Made more for the fans and followers than the rest.
If Kung Fu Panda 2 will be remembered for the innovation its animation possessed, then this movie  will be known forever for the detailing and convincing capabilities in its animation,and also, for the way, a long running franchise(I expect, to say the least!), should start.

Movie Review: The H.A.R.T. breaker(Ra.One)

Posted by Soumya Mukherjee at 7:41 PM

Rating: ♦♦/5


What word defines a movie, with, despite having numerous good opportunities, brings out, the maximum number of "Alas!" and "Seriously?!!" from the viewer? If there is none, then I would say that we propose "Ra.One" to be a collective noun for such movies.

They had money, they had appreciable CGI expertise, they had a few of the top-billed actors of the industry, and of course, they had King Khan....then what did not work out for the movie? The answer, perhaps, lies in the 'H.A.R.T.' of everyone who has watched the movie- the unnecessary masala, which always constitutes an SRK movie-but sadly, all those comic sequences, and all that masala, did not work, for Ra.One-not to mention the countless lift-up from movies like Iron Man, The Warrior Way, The Last Airbender  etc.

Being the self-tagged , most expensive Indian movie ever made, I think, I was, initially, getting into the groove of the movie, but thanks to some(actually many) sequences of the movie, everything was just, spoiled, for e.g., how can you expect the viewers to believe that a 12 yr. old, can work like a pro engineer, to revive a Hertz Advanced  ResonanceTransmitter(H.A.R.T.), which was almost reduced to ashes, in the previous sequence? And there are many such scenes which actually kill the even bleak mood that might be building up in course of watching the movie.I think I won't do injustice, if I compare this movie with Robot...because, the not only the CGI but the storyline of Robot was far better and the scenes were far too convincing than Ra.One.

It is just sad that a fine actor like Arjun Rampal was simply wasted, in the movie, by giving a screen presence of what,  20 mins?He makes an entry so late,and yet he delivers such panache with his role that if only he were given some more screen-presence, then maybe, he would have become the best super-villain, among the ones the Indian Film Industry has produced so far. Pointless.


 And oh-oh one more thing: Vishal-Shekhar's background score.....seriously guys, if you are daring enough to insert the cult "Eeeeedaaaaa-Eeeedaaa" scream by Pancham Da, in the serious and seemingly appreciable fight and chase sequences, then I would say just one thing: SRK, you did a grave, grave mistake by overlooking the work by your composer-duo, because, those scenes were , again, KILLED , thanks to the background score!

Okay I discussed the bad points of the movie, but let me highlight the good points too....don't worry it won't take long because there were only few good ones.
-Chhammak-chhallo and Criminal- dance numbers were a treat to watch.
-The amazing fight and chase sequences-only if you subtract the horrible background score.
-Arjun Rampal as Ra.One.

But I think that, if you hype a movie to this extent, then only 3 good points are not enough, especially when there are so many low-points the movie has to 'offer'.
In short, choose any movie which is a good comedy, even brainless comedy will do....to spend your Diwali week....but alas! this is not Diwali 2010, when we had Golmaal-3 to suffice our appetite for a good time.

Sunil and his fetish for frame-less!

Posted by Soumya Mukherjee at 12:06 PM

We all are great...the world we live in is great...the people around us are great..the friends which enrich our social circle, are great...and perkiness, well, that's everywhere!

I narrowed down to 'friend circle', because that has everything to do with today's post.

Well, we all have friends, of all kinds...we have weirdos, we have showmen, we have hipsters, we have emo, we have the impulsive(wait, impulsive n emo, come under same category right?), we have the romantic, we have the talented, we have the chatterbox, we have the friend-who-is-always-seemingly-on-weed, and of course, we have, geeks, and lastly, we have friends who are a combination of all the aforementioned traits.

So I have this friend of mine, who is as geeky as me, but why I am focusing on him is because, there is something about him, which I want to share, in my creative way(I am not bragging, you will know how boring it is when you finish reading the post), with all my readers. No, I won't discuss love-stories, and I won't discuss other cliché stuffs. I am here, today, to chronicle his fetish, for, a very specific item-and that is, his frame-less-spectacles.

Now you will think, "Well this is what writing has come down to? Bloggers are blogging anything, as in, ANYTHING!!" but I assure you, I will try my best to make the read as entertaining as possible...and I know after finishing and publishing this article, my friend will be the first on whose wall I will share the link(now don't run away if you came here only because of me spamming your wall), so, a direct message to him, "Most of the following stuffs will be original, while some would to be fictional. So please don't sue me if you find something offensive or unpalatable."
So here it is, the story:


"6th! 6th one gone this year!" Sunil entered  the class, declaring as if something really important has abandoned  his life. Although we, his 'loyal' friends, knew already, what the matter was, but still, sometimes, one must listen to what the person has to say, else, confusions might arise.


"Yes so? What happened? Lost a pen or something?" I asked him. "No man, Nilesh broke my specs yesterday night!! That was the 6th frame-less specs I purchased this year" he said. "But you got it just a month back if I am not wrong? I mean, how could I possibly forget?" I said, and other people of the group joined in.

You see, the discussion was boring, but with your Prof. not coming to class, you will actually want to do anything that is less boring than just sitting idle.

"Ya man, how could you forget? Because YOU were the one who broke that 5th one!!" Sunil gave an expression that was neither accusing(he cannot, because all those 6 specs were broken mostly by us, in some way or other!) nor natural. "And also, the one before that!" I giggled. "Ya you should be fortunate that I settled for a burger and an ice-tea at McD." he said. "Saste mein saltaa diya"I wondered. And that too, thanks to some coupons I got from a website. Hostel life you see.


"By the way, how did Nilesh break it?" we all inquired. Nilesh was laughing all this while."Stop laughing! Your stint just cost me 450 bucks!" . "Okay-okay man, tell them what really happened!"Nilesh was still finding it hard to control his laughter.

"Well you see, we were hungry, and it was Maggi-time, so I asked Nilesh n Sudhir if they had some spare Maggi packets..." Ah! College life and the hardship of an engineer. Udhaari ki zindagi!
I wondered.

"...so we all managed to get 3 packs of Maggi, and started cooking..." "Abe rasoiye, we don't want to hear your cooking, and then your smooching, and then your love-making, and then your..." shouted someone untraceable, in the group, although we were pretty sure it was the slapstick Pankaj who, naturally, to save himself, would say, "Abe kisne bola be?!! Kaun hai, saamne aa!!".

"Yaar you people always keep digressing from the central topic to all your bullshit!"Sunil was getting restless.
"Okay-okay everyone, please pay attention to what he says...Bichaare ka Dil, I mean, chashmaa toota hai" Vinay, the class-neta announced as if this was another important announcement similar to staging a hunger-strike-support march for Anna Hazare.

"Haan toh Maggi banaate-banaate suddenly I remembered, that I don't have clean plates and spoons. Toh I told Nilesh to clean the utensils up, as it was his turn." Sunil was going on, less as a roommate, and more as a mommy-figure.

We were already exchanging glances,and seeing this, Sunil skipped the "cleaning" part and continued,"...and then, a quarrel followed. Nilesh said he did not agree to this, while Sudhir supported me that it was really Nilesh's turn."Sunil continued.

"And so, a fight started, and then Nilesh punched you in your face, and your chashmaa broke, right?"Ashish always reminds me of those advertisements by a famous biscuit-brand(20-20). "Yeah but that would have been natural be! There is a reason why I am laughing!" Nilesh was in splits.

"Shut up you a**!"Sunil continued. "Ya you guessed it right, it was getting to a fight, so I told Nilesh to wait, let me keep my specs aside, otherwise tu aise haath chala dega ke it might break.." he said.

"And then, masti-masti mein we started fighting, and..and...fight khatm bhi ho gayi.." he stopped.

"Then?" I asked, already yawning. "Then what, whilst talking to me, he was fondling the table on which he kept his specs, and a slight nudge, and his specs fell down on the ground, and it broke!" Nilesh wrapped it up, still laughing.

A brief pause.

"Achchha khatm ho gaya kya?" Pankaj broke the silence.

"You %$^&*%^%$#!!!! Subah-subah dimaag kharaab kar diya!!! Yeh koi story hai?!!" the whole group started shouting.

"Then why the hell do you always get a frame-less? I remember, I just tried slapping you on the cheek, and the slap landed on your specs instead, and there it was, your 5th one, in three pieces" I said. "Nahi yaar, I like frame-less"Sunil stated.

"But if you cannot maintain it then what is the point of buying frame-less? Get a half-framed like me?" I said. "I don't know man...Okay." Sunil said.

And as our classes continued, and we got busy in our regular nonchalant actions, I wondered, why is it that he always buys the same frame-less even if he keeps breaking it? Some sentiment attached? Or he just loves the design..

...Well, we will never really know the real reason behind this, but in the evening, Sunil was back-with the same, frame-less pair of spectacles, and as we all started betting money on how soon it would break, I wondered,oh madness! that surrounds an engineer-to-be, in his 4-yr. long college life!!!

Remembering Steve Jobs..

Posted by Soumya Mukherjee at 11:13 AM

I did not have much of a knowledge as to who Steve Jobs was, until two years back,when I started my college, and got a new laptop.
I started watching movies, like never before. I got assorted recommendations, huge lists, mostly from my seniors, and that's when I actually got the recommendation to watch a movie, titled: Pirates Of The Silicon Valley.

The title seemed interesting, and when I asked what is the fuss is all about, they replied, "You know it is the true story of how Microsoft and Apple came into existence. The stories of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs". I wondered, Bill Gates, who doesn't know him? But Steve Jobs, who is he?

And even today when I think of that moment, I laugh so hard! " Steve Jobs, who is he?" as if he was just another famous personality! But, going back to the day when I watched Pirates Of The Silicon Valley...I watched the movie, and understood many things about the work-policies of Apple and Microsoft in their initial days, which makes them what they are today. This only resulted in me taking deep interest on Steve Jobs, and I started scrambling whatever I could read from the net in a short span...from sites like Mashable, TechCrunch to famous blogs, I got to know quite a many things about Steve.

A pioneer of innovations, he always stressed on the creative edge that is, the quality of design of the products of Apple, the sharp, robust architecture-nothing could be compromised. There were times when Apple went downhill, and once again it was Steve who revived the stature of the company. Thrown out once, owing to his arrogance, he was to be brought back, more mature this time, scaling new heights.

I saw his famous Stanford Speech once-a truly inspirational piece. Amazing orator as he was, his instances, showcasing incidents from his own life, and what he learnt from them-were something which made me understand, how to introspect. 

I am not going to discuss the details of his advent, and his success story, his life with Apple-I believe anyone can look them up on the net anytime. All I did here was to express my thoughts as an engineer-to-be, on Steve Jobs, and  celebrate the life of a great persona, as a small thread, from my memory!

I am yet to own an Apple product, but I am sure that if people around the world gasp, scream and spend sleepless nights outside iStores every time a new Apple product is launched, then there has to be something special, really special about Apple, which upholds the vision of a great icon, who dreamed big, achieved big, but died too soon.....
...that bitten apple has lost his embalmer, but the tale lives forever...
RIP Steve Jobs (1955-2011) 

Ah! That heavenly bite!

Posted by Soumya Mukherjee at 10:15 AM

 
Chocolate-a word that is enough to make your taste-buds ask for it. As we celebrate everyday this amazing creation by mankind, I have taken and elaborated three scenes here which show how magical sometimes it feels, to find a bite of chocolate, the right place,the right time!







Scene 1: Hunger at workplace
You are busy at work. Your  boss wants to set an example of his work-ethic by giving you pressure that you won't even wish to give to your worst enemy. Conclusion? You miss your lunch,maybe your dinner too.

Suddenly you notice a shiny-wrapper peeking out of your laptop bag. As if God was there for your rescue, you find that it is a chocolate bar! "Screw work, screw the boss!" you declare, and open the wrapper so restlessly that your peers-at-work might as well become compelled to make a video clip out of you!

Soon enough, you see a brown-colored mold-and the glitter in your eyes at that moment is priceless...the scene becomes melodramatic, as tears start surfacing your eyes and you take a big bite on that innocent piece of chocolate. Ah! that heavenly bite! You relish each and every single ingredient, you savor the creamy filling, you enjoy the seduction of the smell. And before you know it, your day was made.





Scene 2: Boy in class

You are sitting in the front row of the class.Your teacher is so boring that you suddenly start wondering why was the color of the blackboard black?!

Now sitting at the first bench has its own low-points: You cannot yawn, you cannot wink at the girls, you cannot pass comments for the teacher, and the worst of all-you cannot do anything about your hunger.

And as if your sensory organs are determined to trouble you, your stomach gives away continuous growls to let you know it is hungry! And you do realize you have a bar of chocolate in your pocket.What do you do?

You ask your friends for assistance, with the simple promise of a share. Your friends oblige, they give you cover, you sneak to the back-row of the class, your friends join you, and then, three steps: open, momentary glance, and...HUGE BITE! Ah! that heavenly bite! And as your buddies are  busy fighting for the rest of the chocolate, you find yourself drifting away-to that utopian land of  happiness!



Scene 3: The penniless boy with his date

You are sitting on a bench in the park, your date by your side. You are broke and you are shy enough to ask for a treat.

But she seems less interested in seeing your state as she is busy,very busy, blabbering about almost anything that this universe has ever possessed. Its not like you don't like her, but a hungry stomach plays weird tricks on your mind, and you suddenly feel that urge of giving your date a "neck-rub" with some twisting and turnings!

But you are shy, you are a fool- and this combination of traits combined with the hunger makes you blurt out a big fat BURRRPP!

Embarrassed, your palms do the job of covering your mouth, while you decide to take a furtive glance at your date. She is flabbergasted!

But then, miracle happens. She takes out a bar of chocolate from her bag, and suddenly, you are in love-not with her-but with that choco-bar.And the shameless you makes you stick your tongue out like a puppy, and you find your date is laughing, uncontrollably!

She opens the wrapper carefully, and you get so ecstatic that you almost give her a big smooch, but she offers you the bar instead. "Go ahead!" she chirps. And without thinking, you take a huge bite! Ah! that heavenly bite! And  soon you find yourself landing an innocent kiss on her cheek. Eek?!!

No! She smiles and takes a small bite too, and as you thank this flavor which was making you swing  with happiness, you realize-the cupid has struck!!!

                                                    
                                                      #I know you are hungry now!!! :P

Movie-Review: Not a Love Story

Posted by Soumya Mukherjee at 9:09 PM

Rating:♦♦/5

               RGV improves somewhat- but fails in the greater perspective

It took 20-something cameras, and 20-something 'high' camera-men(maybe interns under RGV) to make this movie. Yes, the camera-positions are so weird, that it makes the viewer dizzy. And I do not understand, why is the theme always the same-frightening, thrilling-for every scene? Whether it is a romantic sequence, or the serious murder one?

Plot-wise: Unwise plot. Nothing much to predict, except that the ending was bizarre as it was way too digressed.

Performance-wise: Mahi Gill scores, and the best performer was the inspector- liked his expressions, and the mole was apt!
 

Bottom-line: do you need any? A one-time watch movie, that too if you want to see excessive frame-dancing.
 

Seriously RGV, you are trying too hard. Miss those Sarkar ,Company and Satya days...

Book Review: Ouch! That 'Hearts'..by Harsh Snehanshu

Posted by Soumya Mukherjee at 11:07 AM

RATING: ♦♦♦♦/5

Humorous, sarcastic-marvel,pacy, builds up the expectations and lives to the hype-A perfect way to spend the weekend.

When I started reading "Oops!.." I had this slight feeling that this might as well turn out to be another college love story, following the cliché and everything required to make up a spicy plot. Midway the first chapter, I was mistaken. The reason being: the writer's ability to demolish every prejudice associated to a love story by a reader. The humor was slapstick and amusing, the emotions well spun, the plot was kept as tight as possible, and to top all, it was refreshing! Yes it had its reasons to be a best-seller. And thus,it  promised another series of restlessness before the sequel(s) came out.(I am not stressing the 's' following the sequel!)

And it came out good, real good!

Its very uncommon of me to buy the first edition of a novel(I would generally obtain the 'leaked' pdf version), but considering that I was following the story,( and the author as well!), I knew I had to order the book as soon as possible and scroll through till I reach the end, or as I shall quote: "A story shall never end, it should always begin"

So it was another joyride, fun-filled, and as I said already, real pacy. The highpoint of the novel is that it creates a humor out of those "Hey-this-has-happened-to-me-too" situations,yet it manages to make you giggle foolishly, or sometimes, laughing uncontrollably!

The humor quotient of the franchise has definitely gone up, and it was not at all exaggerated! Full marks to the author! The way he presented us the humor will actually inspire amateurs to write and of course-be sarcastic!

Which brings me to the next highpoint of the book: yes the presentation. You never feel like going back one sentence or a paragraph to get what is being currently said-it goes down quite easily. The author has taken great measures to ensure that whenever there is a possibility that the reader might start getting bored,he smartly twisted and redesigned the scene. This is actually very rare quality to possess when it comes to new authors(the ones I have read till date). Also the fact that the supporting characters were given proper space, although I felt that they were left out, many a times, unlike the first book where each of the characters had interesting incidents to share. But then again, this is Kanav-Tanya's love story right? So it had to be that way.

Plot-wise, I felt that a little less was there this time, rather than the first book which had many things happening in the life of our protagonist and the ones surrounding him. But I felt at many points that this was important considering that the author did not want to drift away much, but to focus primarily on the love story.So in a way, he had his thoughts more organized this time, and this is what I believe many readers would agree with.Also, I felt Ruchi could do with a little more presence than given(I really appreciate Harsh to frame such an interesting,cheerful character).

On an ending note, I state that I do not wish to give away much,but I would like to highlight a few instances: 1. Guide to Galaxy Aphrodisia(Sarcasm-guru),2. The Muffin Joke(Enjoyed it),3. Tanya-Kanav's chat sessions(impeccable timing!),4.The Last Chapter(Emotionally got connected to it).

So now, for those who did not read it yet, I gave them 4 more reasons to go buy it! And Harsh Snehanshu, frankly speaking,I  don't know about others, but you surely are an inspiration to me when it comes to writing, and believe me, now, I dream that I too would write a book or two someday....

"The next one, the next time."

Beyond Tricolour-Pic-Sharing and Deshbhakti-Song-Playing

Posted by Soumya Mukherjee at 12:32 PM

I sometimes ask myself: What is the true meaning of a celebration? Is it just for the sake of remembrance, not to forget the significant event, or just to celebrate to have a good time with your friends and family, accompanied with the act of getting soaked in the spirit of the event?

64 years ago, our country attained freedom,from the grasp of centuries-old British Rule. Now as far as my history-knowledge goes, there had been an attempt done to attain freedom almost a century before 1947 too...but with all the rebellion and determination-the then leaders of the movement(Mangal Pandey, Rani  Lakshmibai, and many other valiant leaders) perhaps lacked one thing-what to do after the attainment of freedom? How to make our country move forward as a free nation-perhaps a little more had to be done on that aspect. 

Then came 1947-determination, confidence were mixed with tremendous amount of anticipation-our leaders this time knew what exactly were needed to be done-and thus they succeeded in attaining something that was very  impossible at that time , and which we presently enjoy for no price. Of course the people of India had to face difficult situations that time-partition,riots etc., and they really did not get to celebrate the new India, but they knew one thing:the generations to come will have a sound sleep and observe this day as a day of great significance, a day devoted to  patriotism, and a day of planning and organizing thoughts to make our motherland proud and prosperous-the Golden Sparrow Model.

But after 64 years, I ask myself and all Indians reading this: How do you think has our country progressed? We progressed very well, but at what cost? Why did those unnecessary evils tag along? How to prepare ourselves to make our country free of these evils?

For the past few years, Independence Day follows a great routine:

Waking up, wishing friends and family 'A Happy Independence Day', then perhaps going to the nearby society ground to observe flag-hoisting, or attending a similar patriotic event in an even bigger gathering,after that listening to patriotic songs all day long, updating statuses and profile pic on Facebook, DD-1 darshan, and as the night follows, maybe some avid discussion on what is wrong with our society and system, with seldom discussing over how to improve them, and then, slumber, a deep, satisfied one.

I woke up late today, missed the flag-hoisting for the first time in my life, but somehow I found my thoughts have become clearer on some issues, the biggest one revolving is Anna Hazare's initiative against corruption and the whole country in support of it. Discussion followed this time also, but with people who are really concerned about the scenario-to uproot the evil known as corruption. All will observe that nobody dares to speak up that he/she has also been a part of corruption-not as a sufferer but as a participant!Jokes apart, its fine as long as you are clean enough to take up the initiative. 

Also, I missed to take bath today-and since there is no water in the hostel-tanks, I really missed it for the day. 

But suddenly, it started raining, and we all hostel-mates went out to have our fair share of rain, and suddenly it crossed my mind-isn't this the true meaning of freedom? Tasting the sweet water-droplets, getting drenched in the rain completely, hurling mud and dirt to each other whilst slipping once or twice and grinning foolishly, freedom never tasted better..

After decades, we are finally having some good reasons to rejoice our freedom. Anna Hazare has showed us the way. It is not really necessary that we too go on an indefinite fast or do something similar, but ask yourself once-what can I do , sitting in my room , or lazing around? Yes we all must ask ourselves the same question-because questioning yourself sometimes brings the best answer possible. We all are mature enough to be aware of what is going on around us, mature enough to share videos and posts to showcase the evils of our society, mature enough to complain and curse our system all the time-so why don't we all try-just a small bit of  contribution-to ensure our nation is freed once again? That our people are liberated of the shackles of these evils? That the generations to come will get another big reason to celebrate the Independence Day and remember forever what their forefathers did?

This Independence Day, let us all take a pledge-no more of unnecessary complaining-its a FREE country, and so, no one can stop us from taking the cleaning mop in our hands. Let us instill a determination that this evil will be eradicated by us only, because we don't run away from our houses permanently, if there is a pest-attack.Let us vow that no matter how busy we become, how bad and dividing the upcoming events be, we will stand together-unified, determined, for another glory-for our motherland-the Golden Sparrow Model.

What Rakshabandhan Means To An Only Child

Posted by Soumya Mukherjee at 9:12 AM

Today is Rakshabandhan, one of the famous festivals of India. Every year, 2 days before, people would buy gifts  for their siblings- sisters getting Rakhis for their brothers, and brothers busy buying gifts for sisters.

The shopkeepers start preparations weeks before the day comes. An array of items could be seen everywhere-rakhis, gifts, cards(generally for those whose their siblings live far away from them ). And who can forget the inevitable ingredient of any celebration?

 Food! Kheer,Rabdi,Laddoo,Pakore-Different region has its own special dish for this occasion, each of them being equally delectable.

So all in all, these help the day turn out to be a memorable one for brothers and sisters-a day to outpour emotions(filmy at times!), a day for reconciliation. 

But somehow, I have always failed to sense that affection.

Because I am the only child to my parents.

Now, you would say,"So what? You will surely be having cousins?"to which my reply would be that because of my father's job and my education, I would be away from my hometown almost the whole of the year. Hence, I would miss the company of my cousin-sisters, not only on this day but also every major festival of my colorful country.

So the child inside me have always missed the company of an elder sister. Someone who would always listen to what I felt, who would hide my things and when I would cry, return them back with a small but priceless surprise(maybe a toffee!).

Someone who would always save me from my parents' thrashing if I did anything wrong, who would also, blame me for her mistakes and then when I came to her with a 'swollen' face, would mock me and poke my cheeks.

Someone who would try hard to look down on me, so that I would only excel, and then, she would hug me tight, and would tell her friends, "My bro he is!".

And also, someone who would be there to tie a rakhi around my wrist.

Now I have seen many of my friends complain about their sisters, many of them do it to excessively!

Most of them would tell me,"You must be very lucky dude!"

I know you too might be thinking the same right now, but trust me, I know how much I missed the company of a sibling while growing up. Maybe I got everything to myself, but I know I missed the joy of reluctant sharing! And the small packets of fun involved whenever that sharing would start a fight!

Life was always a beautiful concept to me, and my parents always made sure that it stayed that way, but I know that it would have been tad simpler, exciting, and adventurous if I had a sister around, all the time!

Therefore, as I pass by the beautifully decorated rakhi-shops, I wish all my friends , my well-wishers and everyone I know, a Happy Rakshabandhan, as I sign-off with the following verse:

To me you are a leg-puller,joking about anything I would do!

To me you are a big-time liar,hiding my stuffs, so no one knew!

You always saved me from thrashing, every time I screwed,

My elder sister is my best buddy, this world had to bestow!

Rainy Days

Posted by Soumya Mukherjee at 3:37 AM

An example of a great day is when it is raining mildly, but it IS raining!

And when after having a day with an angry sun overhead, when it rains, its like a dream come true for everyone who had no other option but to feel the heat, and henceforth, taking a PDB(Publicly-Displayed-Bath) from a bottle of water and sucking ice-candies which would put vampires to shame(not Edward Cullen of course, he, well, sucks the best-at everything!).

Thus, when it rained, it was really a moment to rejoice. Its such a beautiful sight to look around-kids with paper-boats, people coming out of the shades to enjoy the joy of getting drenched, buses splashing water on you , making you totally wet and yet you give a geeky grin....
Yes , it is a beautiful sight.
Because rain clears our vision(literally and metaphorically).
And rain results in unification.

Rainfall is a phenomenon which has always been a subject of positive discussion-you wont find much of a depressing article on rain--perhaps the ability it possesses to wash away our depressive thoughts. The subject matter of songs, movies, stories--fiction-segment has rain as an inevitable aspect.
So, as I get back to my room, drenched completely in the rain(with that geeky smile), a small piece comes up in my mind:

Far and wide as I see, 

The rustling of leaves, the blowing of wind-

cold wind, as it kisses my face,

Plays with my hair, yes-

Rain is soon to arrive!

Ah! A moment to dance, a moment to get soaked,
 in happiness!

To let go of all the worldly-bother, to just break-free!

A cup of tea, with some snacks, friends all around you,

Playing scrabble,dumb-charade,hangman!

As the rumbling of soft-thunder plays on,

I look outside my window, and I can see,

that the world has suddenly become such a beautiful place

to live!

Oh how I wish, this stayed, this absolute calmness and serenity...

Be Poetic Sometimes! It Helps!

Posted by Soumya Mukherjee at 2:42 AM

                     When the fall led to a greater rise...

"Its over...no more to seek",
the thought that came , when the news-fateful reached.
"What's the point now?" is what crossed my mind,
the agglomerate of ambitions and aspirations , now to be left behind...

Aimless, I roamed, worst than an arrow in darkness,
where would I end down, under complete starkness...

And that 's when it struck:
what if, I gave a new facet, to my trials?
what if I , perhaps improvised?
I got nothing to give away , if not the gloom abrogating.

My eyes gleamed , with definite optimism,
my head cleared, I found a reason to persevere,
to perspire for...

Maybe a second chance was what I sought,
for this was absolving me of the desolation...
That yes! this is the element, the road
to my success, evangelist myself...!

Thus followed efforts , never seen before,
because of the things , I knew now:
I knew how it feels ,to fall,
I knew what it takes , to rise again!

Then, isn't this my achievement, the grandest?
isn't this, what people call, true rise, the greatest?

Thus I start my personal blog!

Posted by Soumya Mukherjee at 12:53 AM

With all the impatience I had in me whenever I read a nicely-written blog, here I am finally with a blog which will include my works-sometimes, a take on a burning issue, sometimes, some review, or maybe another time, just a random topic! But I will try my best to keep my posts as entertaining as possible.

Thanks for reading. Do suggest improvements!