Road Trip

It's rather unusual for me to have post on blog for consecutive days :) but, here I am after yesterday's wonderful trip.

After submitting thesis and having done some of the formality stuff, I was thinking of starting making presentation, but just then these guys came up with proposal of going to canal. Ah!! my long chersihed dream. Since last year or so, I had thought that I would go to this canal nearby, but plan never materialised, but when they asked me, I didn't hesitate for a second and that was just the beginning of a beautiful road trip.

We (me, Sheetesh, Rawat, Ritesh) chose the road behind the Hall-7. Oh yaa, forgot to mention we were on our bicycles, well and biking in that terrain was no less adventurous then tour de france. up-and-downs, right-and-left and not to mention all of them just kachcha roads. That turned out to be the best start of the trip. Going through such a rough patch, was kind of biking I was doing after a long time. Makes you feel like no you still have that dare spirit inside, you are not rotten after sitting in airconditioned office and keep looking at stupid computer screen all the time. :)

Soon, we reached the canal and a tree fallen on the road, automatically decided our returning point, as it was already getting darker and it would be difficult we don't return from there itself, but it was the best place we could have stopped at. The trunk of the fallen tree was extending to canal itself, so added a bit fun to stay over there and doing all the childish masti. Sitting on trunk thinking we have done such a dare act, wetting legs in the flowing water, splashing water over one another. and yes not to forget, our photo-session all along the trip. When Sheetesh is with you, don't need to worry about documenting your trip. We clicked some nice photographs over there. These photographs in blog are clickable.

On the return trip, we decided to choose another route, which will be touching GT Road and eventually to IITK. And all along the road, it was like a typical village, such as in a Yash Chopra movie ;). Lush green fields on both the sides all-along till your eyes can see. Yesterday nature too was in aesthetic mood and we got to see some beautiful colors in the sky and yet again, we didn't miss to click it. Took so many photographs there too. Unfortunately, Sheetesh missed to recharge his camera and we soon ran out of battery, so our photography session had to end there itself, but the fun didn't end there. Road trip continued and after long paddling got to see the road again. and this time it was Lance Armstrong act for us. On the highways, we enjoyed some fast biking. It was also dinner time and we decided to stop on dhaba on the way. Bijji da dhaba is what it was called. Well particularly not dhaba but modernized dhaba. We were suspicious about the kind of food, we'd get. But somehow this tour was meant to be great and the dinner to didn't disappoint us and food was much better than what we get in CR (our Campus Restaurant). well, it was a treat from my side owing to my thesis submission :D. On the way back, when we thought we were not far, it took us really long to reach back to IITK, but in the end all of it was worth it. We did atleast 15 km of bicycling yesterday!! and my long cherished dream was a reality thanks to these guys.

Thesis submitted \:D/

Whew...!!! long awaited moment finally came. I submitted my thesis today and will be defending on July 23, 2005, Saturday. :D

Feels like a relief. Although I am yet to make presentation and prepare for defence etc, but certainly it's a welcome change. Well, today I thought of something while I was all day busy for finalizing the thesis after changes, getting it printed, getting it photocopied, submitting to DOAA, then giving copies to my guide and the examiners. When I went to DOAA office for submitting my contingency form, the guy over there said, "aap computer waale kitne bhi software bana len, abhi bhi paper work to hai hi... aur aage 10 saalon tak rahega." He made me thinking while I was going here and there to get my work done. He was very right. In the age of computers and automation, atleast as far as India is concerned, it takes lots of paper work. e.g. we get to do NO-DUES in order to obtain provisional degree certificate and would you believe it takes 18 signatures from all the places over IITK and that includes NCC, Central workshop, Glass blowing factory, Students' Gymkhana cultural office, the places where I've not been a single time in my stay of two years, and still need to get NO-DUES done from there. As sepultura says "Paper work... bloody paper work!!" and ironically all-of-these, all of the efforts of two years for a single paper, albeit laminated :), the degree certificate. Anyways, on the positive side, automation scenario is changing fast at IITK. Registeration and related stuff in every semester has been automated since quite a long time and I heard that this tiring no-dues procedure is also under automation. Well, hope it hits the road soon and next year people won't have to roam around whole IITK in order to get it done!!

Diverged to somewhere else from where I started..:P. Anyways, we had real cool trip today, when we (me, Sheetesh, Rawat and Ritesh) went to a canal nearby. Story will soon be blogged with photographs :) , but right now get to go to sleep and start making slides from tomm. Adieu.

DUS : Funniest thriller of the year...

Well, these days movies seems to rule my blog, but watched many movies in last some days. And this unexhaustive list contains some very good movies like Raincoat, Sarkar, Hitchcock's Notorious, Guns off Navarone, Al Pacino's Scent of a woman, but here I am going to talk about something for people like me who think that standard of bollywood movies is improving and someday we'll be at par with hollywood.

... few Priyadarshan movies are yet to be released in this year, but I bet you won't find any of them funnier than this creation of Anubhav Sinha. We were laughing like anything when we came out of hall after watching "Thriller" DUS.

so here is a plot. wait a minute... was there anything like plot? probably there was. Few brave men from ATC(Anti Terrorist Cell, cool isn't it?)decide to save a big jeopardy which they even don't know about except that it was going to happen on 10th May, but these are brave soldiers. Now IMDb tells me that Naa Tum Jaano Naa Hum and Ab Ke Baras were released on 10th May, but probably more dangerous disaster exist in world, so they are searching for it. After some furious action and some "relay bombing" (as Suniel Shetty can't directly throw grenade, he would pass on that to Zayed and eventually Zayed on flying bike would throw that into car and before grenade could explode lo! Zayed is standing beside Jr. AB and Shetty inorder to give that high-profile action movie look). Well they have found some clues and caught a man who helps them in searching the villian Jamaal or Jambal or Jamval or something like that... and when finally so called Jamaal is killed Sanjay Dutt tells them that man who pointed them to Jamaal he himself was Jamaal. Shut up you all morons if you said that this is copied from 'Usual Suspects'. Our intelligent ATC chief Dutt Jr. finds out that disaster is going to happen at stadium. Now at the climax, they found out where bomb is and AB Jr. is on plane with disastrous C-4. Only way he could save Canada is that he jumps along with plane and his love Esha Deol, wait but somebody said she was traitor, but she has to die anyway. and then starts eternal dilemma. Whether Abhishek should die and save people or He should leave Canada to God. Everbody forces him to leave the plane, but he is "true soldier" and saves Canada. May his soul rest in peace.

I strongly recommend that everyone should see last 15 minutes of this movie (if you manage to survive till that point). No matter what will happen to that bomb, but Zayed tries to convince Abhishek that not only himself but both should take care of Dia Mirza. Sanjay Dutt is into tears and doesn't care to stop Jamaal who is not running away, but waiting for elevator to come. Sunil Shetty is shouting.. "fenk do bam, mar jaane do logon ko.. kud jaao Shashank..." Director will teach you geography which you've never learnt. He'll enlighten you that AIIMS flyover is situated near some sea or something. I bet you didn't know that.

Well, there are few saving graces for movie. 'Dus Bahane' and 'Deedar de' are treat to hear. Pankaj Kapoor proves that he is definitely one of the frontline actors and AB Jr. proves himself again after Sarkar. and yes, how can I forget Shilpa Shetty and her stunts (a la Trinity) and one must not forget the guy, whosoever it is,who made the trailer(download) and posters (see the one in my blog, doesn't make you believe that this one is definitely going to be different) and made people believe that this is movie worth watching, so go and watch in theatres. arre bhaiyo, suno, agar movie dekho to upper/stall mein dekhana aur mazaa aayega...

Raincoat

And the monsoon continues. Last weekend I decided to give a shot to this movie. Rather it was raining outside and I couldn't resist myself for seeing this movie *again*.

Yes, I had seen this movie way back in December when Punet was on his trip to India. That was bizzarre. In the theatre, we did everything but watch the movie. I found it too slow and boring. Then after sometime I came across O Henry's Gift of the Magi, from which this movie was inspired. And I realised that Raincoat had something which I missed and since then I had decided to give it one more watch. With the help of a guy, I managed to download DVDRip of the movie from net. and finally rainy season did it and I watched the movie again. and here is my word : AWESOME!!! I was completely into the movie this time. It took me by real surprise that how could I have ignored such a wonderful movie and that too in theatre. I regret that probably I spoiled mood for Shalin, who probably liked the movie at that time.

Manoj/Manu(Ajay Devgan) is in Calcutta, looking for some money from friends so that he can start his business and decides to meet his childhood love Neerja/Neeru(Aishwarya Rai), who is happily married to some rich guy in Calcutta. Movie is about just one afternoon they share with each other and pretend to be happy in their respective lives. Movie is quite subtle. All-of-us... All-of-us wear a raincoat all the time to hide ourselves from one thing or the other. We are afraid, we are concious and as Rituparno Ghosh puts it, we are PLAYERS. Protagonists Ajay Devgan and Aishwarya Rai are credited as Players in the title. If you really are into the movie it makes you ponder. It was more of emotional affair for me than philosophical one.

Movie excels in every department. Direction, Cinematography, Acting. Aishwarya Rai proved that she can do much better than just glamorous roles. Ajay Devgan has now definitely established as a versatile actor and this movie just strengthens his stand. Annu Kapoor and Mauli Ganguly excel in their cameo. Director is succesful in keeping the environment dark and gloomy as was needed. full marks to Rituparno Ghosh and all I can say is I am more than happy to see this movie again. Puneet, are you listening? :-)

PS:- For Gujarati readers, Jay Vasavada(Gujarat Samachar) had written a beautiful article for movie Raincoat in his weekly column Spectrometer. Worth reading. you can access it from here.

PPS:- Crossposted at InFiCa, where I am.. ahem.. critic now.

Sisterhood of travelling pants...

Yesterday after getting bored doing coding. I, finally decided to see this movie.

Somehow I had this feeling that it won't disappoint me and it didn't. The movie is about 4 girls Lena, Tibby, Carmen, Bridget, who haven't left each other since they were born. They're best friends, but one summer they had to seperate, so they decide to rotate among themselves a pair of jeans which magically fits them all. Then starts the summer. Each of them goes in different directions with different goals, with different emotions and share all these with one another.

Let me tell you, this is not just another teen movie. I mean, it's more subtle than any teen movie I've seen. Although people say the movie is much different from Ann Brasher's book, from which movie is made, but who cares as long as it's enjoyable. This one depicts emotions properly in emotional way rather than sentimental. The Narrator, Carmen, in the end says "It would be easy to say that pants changed everything this summer, but looking back now, I feel that our lives changed because they had to. and real magic of pants was in bearing witness to all of these and somehow holding us together, when it felt like nothing would be the same again."

Yaa, at some points it's like a typical hindi movie thing, but worth giving a try. Do give it a shot in your free time.

Rain, Rain, Come Again...

Last week has been fabulous at Kanpur, as far as weather is concerned. After burning heat of 47C, the arrival of monsoon has brought great relief to all of us over here.

It was almost midnight when first heavy rain came. It was pitch black sky and sky started being thunderous and as expected it started raining!!! First sight was really something. First rain brought air of relief, literally. I and Maddi decided to jump in. alas! it didn't last long, rather we decided too late. Rain stopped. :-( Next day scene was really cool. All trees and plants had become lush green after getting washed in the rain. Temperature had come down to around 35C and whole environment became ``user-friendly'' so to say :-)

We didn't have to wait long for next rain. My dear bro was here and we were enjoying the time and rain started again. We made no mistake this time, me and maddi set out on wandering on our bikes. I don't remember having enjoyed this much in monsoon in my last two years' stay at IITK. Just imagine, how great Aloo Paratha would taste after this when you rush to mess and you're all wet. I still feel it in my mouth.

Next time, it was even bigger. Accompanied by wind, this time Indra Dev had decided to go full-fledge. It was more than half-an-hour that me, Niral and Maddi kept dancing, singing, going crazy... This time it was Maggi that accompanied us in this pleasure. Only a man without heart can deny that this wasn't scene to cherish!!! This was best monsoon I had at IITK.

Reports are coming in that many parts of Gujarat are in flood, especially Vadodara. Divya Bhaskar says 95% of city is affected by flood. Hopefully, rain will slow down in coming days and Gujarat will return to its normal state again. That's all we can pray.. Amen!