The IITians complement

Five point someone by Chetan Bhagat is the exact complement of The IITians. It touches upon the lives of three friends, Hari Kumar, Alok Gupta and Ryan Oberoi. All three are, as Sandipan Deb has described in his book, marginals; miscreants in the eyes of the professors, loafters in the eyes of Hari's girlfriend, and fivepointers, who without any hint about their future, try to find solace in grass and vodka.

Hari, Alok and Ryan enter IIT Delhi, seeking to graduate as Mechanical Engineers, and find themselves in trouble from day one. The ragging episode bonds them, and from then on they are almost inseparable. The book describes their pursuits in IIT from getting low grades, to inventing C2D, or Co-operate to Dominate, to wooing the HOD's daughter, and to trying to steal question papers from the prof's ofice.

The book is also about IIT life - about making friends you cherish for your life, about bonding with hostelmates, about academic pressures, about daaru and grass and C2D, which is quite common in most IITs.

The book is highly entertaining, almost on the lines of The Inscrutable Americans. In fact, Anurag Mathur has been an inspiration of sorts to Bhagat. He has tried to follow a similar way of writing, replete with witty anagrams, although not as entertaining and as memorable as Mathur; the IIT lingua is not used to very good effect, and the fact remains that IITians hardly ever talk in English in their halls. Also at times, the book becomes almost unreal, and shows incidents, which, I, as an IITian, can vouch can never be true. For instance, no body goes paper-hunting into a prof's office. And if you study even 1.5 hrs a day regularly, you are sure to get a nine-point, unlike the trio who manage a 5 point after 3 hrs a day. I do not agree with Bhagat's image of ninepointers. We have loads of them, and they are very friendly, and I have never seen anyone look down upon others with lower grades. Venkat may be an exception; he is certainly not a rule.

However, the book still is great; worth a read. And at 95 bucks highly affordable.

You can find more about the book at FivePointSomeone
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"I have a dream" --- only when i'm sleepin'

Lakshya for the Aimless

Saw Lakshya. Farhan Akhtar has aged as a director. This movie is no longer a peppy youth centric one with no message. The metamorphosis of the laid back, lakshyaless, happy-go-lucky youngster into a focussed army captain has been shown in an interesting and appealing manner unlike most Bollywood movies.

The best part is that the film, like most other patriotic ones, is not didactic, nor is it filled by the deolish paki-bashing. The film is as much about finding yourself as it is about Kargil and Laddakh. And this is what really separates this film from the others in the genre.

The songs are good, esp. Main aisa kyun hoon, where Hrithik has danced really well. Another good thing is that the songs are there only where required, and they seem a part of the script.

However, at times, the films editing hasn't been so crisp. Farhan, it seems, gets so lost in the war sequences that they tend to become repetitive. The scissor could have been used more often. Also, in the first half, instead of showing Hrithik as an aimless person, the director has shown him more as a mentally retarded child, and Hrithik seems to be carrying on from Koi Mil Gaya.

Nevertheless, the film is highly entertaining, after all Preity Zinta is there.

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"I have a dream" --- only when i'm sleepin'

It's the time to Gee

Well, well I have my own Gmail account... thanks to blogger.... it is kkmehra AT gmail DOT com....

And Gmail rocks.... i haven't tried out all of it... but, first impressions and GMAIL ROCKS!!!... its feature of replying on the same screen is funduuu

Thanks folks, at Blogger, who gave me the invite....

Move over E-mail, Gmail is here

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"I have a dream" --- only when i'm sleepin'

The Day After Tomorrow

Imagine getting caught in the eye of the storm. But this storm is no ordinary storm. It's a icy hurricane where the temperature drops at the rate of 50 degrees per second. It is a storm which can turn everything it encounters in its way into ice and snow. It is a storm which can even solidify even your breadth, and you are dead before you know it. It is a storm where choppers crash because their fuel solidified in a matter of milliseconds.

The thought itself is enough to turn my guts into water. But now imagine seeing it on screen. It is gonna be one harrowing experience.

The Day After Tomorrow is the one movie I am talking about. It teaches us humility by showing how powerful Nature can be. It falls in the same genre as Twister, in fact betters it by a long way. The funda goes like this:

Global warming is gradually pushing the world into an abyss where the end of the tunnel is the new Ice Age. This is predicted by a new model by a scientist, the protagonist professor Jack [surname is Holt or something... I did not get it] in an environmental conference in New Delhi [Yes ! They showed India... they even show a sikh cabbie in the US]. However, he believes that the climatic shift can take place over a few hundred years, and we need to start working on it. The US Vice President however, feels that the economy is far more important and that we cannot waste time on such trivialities.

However, at the same time, a huge mass of ice, almost the size of say Greenland breaks of in the Arctic. And that starts a chain of events which would change the fact of civilization. The ocean currents start show inexplicable behaviour, and tornados rip apart Los Angeles.

Jack's son Sam, in the meantime, gets caught in NY, and the ICE whirlwind makes it way towards it. What follows simply churns your stomach out. Jack's journey to NY in the epicentre of the devastation to save his son is a remarkable feat.

I won't write any more coz it will tell you too much.

However, what is worth pondering is the way the movie predicts how we can not always tame Nature. Since centuries, man has tried that and has been successful to a great degree. We have been cutting trees, ploughing back land and harming the ecological balance, not just on soil but also in the atmosphere. Nature has a life of its own and we should not take its quiescence to be a symbol of weakness. Nature is slow and gradual, but when it unleashes its full fury upon us, we will be mere puppets, capable of only enduring and praying. Man cannot keep on challenging Nature, Nature maintains a balance, whereby it offsets each physical process by another. It is a very delicate and optimised cycle. And by disrupting it, we are only wishing poor fate upon ourselves.



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"I have a dream" --- only when i'm sleepin'

Calcutta Ahoy

Heading back to home really makes me "feel good"... hope to continue blogging while at home

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"I have a dream" --- only when i'm sleepin'

Branding India

I read this book The IITians, by Sandipan Deb, who is currently the managing editor of Outlook , and [my chest swells at this] an alumnus of my institute, my hall RK Hall.

The book is a tribute to the greatest post-Independance brand India has ever produced: IIT. A lot of alumni come together to discuss how the IITs have made them what they are [and they are real achievers]. Sandipan has toured the whole world meeting IITians, and finding how IIT has changed them, made them successful, and spawned new friendships [and in some cases relationships] that will last a lifetime. Almost all are unanimous that they entered IITs as boys, and graduated as men.

Besides, most alumni are not confident about how much they learned in academics. However, what they learned outside the class, slogging it out in the gymkhana, conquering the sports complexes, revelling in the auditoriums, winning and losing the elections, zealously suppohas left more of an indelible mark on their personality and character. These extra-curriculars were the mainstream for many successful IITians, and studies took a backseat in the intense competition and inter-hall rivalries. Even people like Nandan Nilekani confess that they learnt all they know about management while organizing Mood Indigo, the cultural festival at IIT B.

Most IITians can identify with the innumerable memorable events described in the book, from Inter-IIT Sports meets to the Inter-Hall Social and Cultural events like dramatics and literary events. In fact, there is a chapter RK Ka Tempo, which will make any IITian nostalgic. It speaks about the intense inter-hall rivalries, the victory processions, the sleepless nights spent preparing for the events, and even using unscrupulous ways of making your hall win.

In fact, most IITians believe that IIT did not just provide them a sound grounding in physical concepts and technological primers but gave them a well-rounded education. The most important thing IIT gave them, feel most alumni, is the confidence, the street-smartness, and the practical problem solving skills. Add to that the tough living conditions, and you had a person who could not just stay anywhere in the world but ace any competition there, if he so wanted.

Sandipan has also tried to profile some IITians who stand out in their fields. Prof. Ashok Jhunjhunwala at IIT Madras, who is striving to revolutionize rural telecommunication in the country, Aravind Gupta, who is trying to change the way children are taught science by making it experiment based, Dunu Roy, the political environmentalist, who was involved in the Shahdol experiment, Susan Chacko, a female IITian [what's that ???] besides the more famous and known names in Indian and International Business.

However, I do feel, the book remains a tad biased about the ones who have made big in business and are frequently showcased in the media like Arjun Malhotra, Rono Dutta, Victor Menezes, Nandan Nilekani, Vinod Gupta and many others. However, I feel it was really silent about many other successful IITians who are hitting the roof in Universities in India and abroad, and doing some wonderful and path-breaking research work. These section of IITians have been left in the lurch by Sandipan and I feel he should have done some more research on them. Even Sandipan's list of successful IITians shows hardly any scientists or professors, and believe me they flock there in large numbers. Just have a look at the faculty page of any top American university, Harvard, Stanford, MIT: and you will notice that the biggest ethnic minority is Indians.

All in all, the book was an awesome read, and the first thing that comes to my mind after having read the book is pride.

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"I have a dream" --- only when i'm sleepin'

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar a commie ????

An article appeared in Hindustan Times Editorial by Pandit Sri Sri Ravi Shankar where he labels Lord Krishna as the oldest communist known to man. Read the article here.

He says that Lords Krishna always fought oppression citing incidents like the lifting of the Govardhan mountain, and urging Arjun to fight his family etc. I am also copying the entire article for those of u too lazy to click the link.

Anyway, this brings us to the very pertinent question. Should religious or spiritual figures proclaim their support for any political ideology? The point is that we could have another religious leader who could quote a completely different set of incidents from Lord Krishna's life to claim that he was a right-winger.

Besides, such open support comes at a vital time --- when the Communists are joining the government, and can give a very wring impression about the spiritual leader.

Please leave ur comments



Lord Krishna, the father of communism
GUEST COLUMN | Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
June 13

Long before Marx, Lenin and Mao, a historical figure in India fought against oppression, championed the cause of the poor, denounced religious dogma and empty ritualism, and sought to inspire a righteous and selfless attitude in society.

The basic tenets of communism say that all are equal, and exploiters and oppressors should be severely punished. The goal is to create a society free from selfishness, autocracy, aristocracy and oppression of people of any sort. The life and message of Krishna reveals that he imbibed, taught and fought for these principles 5,230 years ago. In fact, an objective analysis of the Bhagvad Gita too would reveal that Krishna was a better communist than Karl Marx. One could go so far as to describe him as the real founder of communism!

Krishna rebelled against dogmatic religious practices of those days. Even today it is well known that the entire society stopped the sacrificial puja they were doing to Indra, shifting over, on Krishna’s advice, to caring for cows (Govardhan Pooja) and honouring the knowledge of the self. He also promoted Annakoot, where there is food for everybody.

Krishna rebels against the people who are always arguing in the name of the Vedas.

Krishna has said that people who are driven by little desires, who are propitiating this deity or that, caught up in small rituals and greed, are fools (moodha).

He also says, “Those who worship many devas and perform many rituals are of lesser intelligence.”

Finally, after a detailed exposition of all aspects of life, knowledge and duty, he says, “Drop all the dharma and take refuge in me”, i.e. in the higher self. This is really a revolutionary thing. Karl Marx said: “Religion is the opium of the masses.”

But beyond religion is the quest for truth. Where does a man go further? There Krishna leads Arjuna, leads the people into that spiritual realm of experience, which is seriously lacking in communism today. The confidence that builds up in a person who knows the depth and the secrets of creation is something amazing, so beautiful — without which life is dry. So make the transition from religion to spirituality. It is what was missing in Karl Marx’s principle and which Krishna has very clearly demonstrated and given to the world in the form of Gita.

Communism cannot reject Krishna at any cost because he stands for all its principles in a much more meaningful manner. If we don’t see the reality, the truth, with an open mind, then we have merely replaced an old religion with a new religion called communism. So we have to be aware and wake up to adapt to changing times.

I wonder why the communists have not yet owned Krishna. Many times in the Gita, Krishna says, “One who sees me in everybody, one who sees oneself in everybody, is the one who sees the truth”. This is the basic principle of communism — See everyone as yourself.

He says the banana peel has a meaning as long as there is a banana inside. But when you eat the banana, then the peel has no value. Similarly religion can’t take people to the final truth, final goal — it can only go that far. But it is the spirit of self-enquiry, the scientific temper in a person, that takes one deeper. Religion stays behind and one moves into a realm of pure humanism or pure divinity — this is the hallmark of Krishna’s teaching.

Unlike the West, where scientists were tortured and questioning of the religious scriptures was prohibited, India has always encouraged questioning and contemplation. In fact, most of the scriptures in India are in the format of questions and answers. After putting forth his opinion, Krishna tells Arjuna to independently think and question, and tells him that he has the freedom to accept or reject his opinion. He never imposes his idea. Though communism advocates rational thinking, we hear many communists do not give the freedom to people to express a different ideology.

At the same time, Krishna also inspired Arjuna to fight and not accept oppression, which again is what communists say. He advises Arjuna to fight not with anger or hatred, but with intelligence, with equanimity, with wisdom.

Another principle of communism is sharing. As a small child, Krishna would share the butter with all the boys, all the youngsters. Later he shared wealth. A salient feature of communism is work for the community and it comes down strongly on consumerism or greed.

Krishna goes on to say that one who is really wise regards all men as equal, and does not discriminate between a brahmin and an untouchable, or a learned one and someone who is not so learned.

Communists often object to the caste system, but whether you like it or not, this system has been in practice all over the world, in the form of professional clubs which exist even today.

There are ample examples of people born in one caste, but belonging to another caste by virtue of their profession. For instance, Veda Vyasa, himself born to a fisherwoman, was considered the authority on Vedas. The most astonishing fact is that among a thousand rishis, only a handful were born in the so-called upper caste.

Many people talk about communism but they lead a capitalistic life. However Krishna never did that. He never became a king, though he is called Dwarkadheesh. He remained a servant of Dwarka, of the king of Dwarka. He was an uncrowned king. He stood for the cause of the poor. He saw that oneness in everybody and so he was remembered for centuries. But nowadays it is suddenly fashionable to regard even the Ramayana and Mahabharata as epics and not as something that really happened. This is ridiculous, because just a legend cannot have such an impact over the whole continent, and even beyond. The Ramayana and Mahabharata have made such an impact on civilisation without any modern technology or modes of communication. The Sanskrit word itihasa means — “it happened like that/ it happened thus.”

To see everyone as equal is a matter of the heart, and the heart can be made to blossom only through spirituality. It is not just an intellectual concept that leads to action. It is an emotion which propels us towards action and emotion is the very nature of our spirit. So you cannot be a true communist if you don’t have that spark of love and compassion in your heart.

Modern communism negates religion but leaves you in a vacuum. Devoid of spirituality, frustration overtakes life, leading one to violence and aggression or depression and suicidal tendencies.

You cannot serve someone if you don’t see them as yourself or part of yourself. Only spirituality can bring authenticity to caring and sharing, and that is communism. What was missing in communism is the very soul, that is spirituality, of which Krishna is an expert teacher.

Now communists in Kerala needn’t feel guilty going to Guruvayoor and those in Bengal can openly celebrate Durga Pooja!

(The writer is a spiritual teacher.)

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"I have a dream" --- only when i'm sleepin'

So much for Indo-American Relations

Read this book The Inscrutable Americans by Anurag Mathur. The book has been topping bestseller lists for well over two decades, and has really struck a chord with the readers with its comical and witty depiction of the life of a conservative Indian in the "promised" land.

The story revolves around Gopal who has gone to study Chemical Engineering, in order to boost his hair-oil making business. Along the way, Gopal transforms from a religious, spiritual person to a yankee, who just loves beer and girls. However, his pursuit of girls is in vain for the entire year, since despite his yearning, he is unable to get laid down by any of them. Initially he was hesitant to sleep with anybody in spite of several schemes by his friend Randy [whose name to intrigued him], but later the very diffidence seems to get back to haunt him since he is unable to get the "pleasure". Finally, his thirst is satisfied 30,000 feet above land, in a memorable way.

Anurag Mathur is truly a class raconteur. Apart from the slapstick humour, he also makes subtle comparisons between India and America. The persistence of his grandmother for eating food cooked only by brahmins, and the careless sexuality of American women is truly contrasting. The style is also new, making fun of Indian English and American one alike, and dotted with memorable epigrams. For instance, Gopal asks his friend Randy if red-heads are red all over, and during Christmas, while trying to copy a commercial, on picking up the phone, compulsively chortles, "Herb's Abortion Parlou: You are raping them and we are scraping them"; only to find that it was his Dean on the other side.

The book sure has joined my list of favourites.

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"I have a dream" --- only when i'm sleepin'

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Just came back from another hurricane tour of Kolkata. I went there yesterday [Saturday] afternoon with my friend Niket. And soon after reaching home, freshened up and went off to watch is wonderful movie: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

The first thing that strikes me about the movie and the Harry Potter books in general is the immense imaginative power of the author JK Rowling. She has created a whole new mesmerizing world made up of Wizards, Muggles, Hogwarts Brooms, Quidditch, and much more. Every detail has been presented immaculately, every scene visualized comprehensively. Another thing I like about the books is that every small detail, however miniscule it may seem in the beginning, finds it use in the plot later in the book. Whether it is Ron's pet mouse Scabbers, or the boggart turning into a full moon to scare Lupin [who is actually a werewolf]. When you actually finish the book, you begin to realize how these small things actually give away things to come later in the movie. Whatever will come to play an important role later, from the Hippogriff to Animagi are introduced by Joanne Rowling earlier in the book, mostly in the lessons, in a very small but significant way.

And of course, kudos to the director Alfonso Cuaron [his name resembles a species of mangoes i happen to love], for a very faithful depiction of the book. The very very special effects are backed by some very good acting especially by the young actors Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Gring (Harry, Hermione and Ron) and also David Thewlis(Lupin). Gary Oldman(Sirius Black) had a relatively small role. Michael Gambon as the new Dumbledore with his beard fastened by a rubber band, is pretty good [Richard Harris sadly died]. And I am waiting for Emma to grow up :D

So much for the movie. I have to rush now to the lab and do some work :((

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"I have a dream" --- only when i'm sleepin'

Coke vs Pepsi

An interesting piece of statistic about Coke and Pepsi. Pepsi earned $3.6b on revenues of $27b as against Coke which earned $4.3b on revenues of $21b. However, the market capitalization of Pepsi is $92.1b against Coke's $126.1b.

And we thought Coke was many times the size of PepsiCo. In fact, as we can see, Pepsi has larger operations than Coke although Coke is more efficient. However, when we look at the Market-Cap, we see the difference in the brand values of Coke and Pepsi. Earlier America was known for only 2 things, and they were Coke and McDonald's.

Another interesting observation: According to Al Ries and Jack Trout in their book 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing, there is a ladder in the customer's mind, with only 3 rungs, the No 1, the Alternative, and the Laggard. Coke is the No. 1. Pepsi is the Alternative. Have you heard of RC Cola???

By the way, even Reliance beats Coke in terms of revenues. It earned $2.6b on revenues of $22.6b in the year ended March 2004. How many of us would be aware of that???

[The figures quoted have been taken from New York Times. For instance, Coke figures are given here. In case you have doubts about their authenticity, check NYT]
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"I have a dream" --- only when i'm sleepin'

Space-Ship-One

Paul Allen along with a little funding from Microsoft Corp., is developing a private space flight company and the first flight is scheduled in a few days, June 21 to be exact. See the link: here

The privately developed rocket plane is set to be released from its companion craft, known as White Knight, and then climb to 50,000 feet over the Mojave Desert before it fires its rocket motor for about 80 seconds. SpaceShipOne will reach Mach 3 speed in its vertical climb to the goal height of 62 miles (100 km).

Guess, this seems to be a harbinger of things to come, space tourism, space biz, entertainment, and star trek seems to be a greater possiblity now. The advantage of private companies entering the space domain is that costs will go down considerably, making it more viable, and also helping the government prune costs in the process.

Let's hope for the best !

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"I have a dream" --- only when i'm sleepin'

Reserved !!!

Heard that Ram Vilas Paswan has declared that he is all for reservation even in the private companies. Very very convinient. And what will they do when the private industry starts shifting abroad due to the imposed lack of white and blue collar workers due to the sick reservations plagueing India. The fact is that in most cases, only financially well off people are able to utilize the reservations. And that includes bureaucrat's children, who make the most of it. It is time India went away from caste based politics to income based reservations.

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"I have a dream" --- only when i'm sleepin'

When old men kill themselves, the cities are dying

Just read a book 'The Matlock Paper' By Robert Ludlum. It speaks of a narcotics pasha, who controls most colleges in the Ivy League in Northern United States. And an English professor, James Matlock, who has a very troubled youth, and described by the Justice Department as 'flawed but mobile', and selected by it to infiltrate the network of the said pasha 'Nimrod', and expose him. It has a Slovak proverb which I kinda found interesting: "When old men kill themselves, the cities are dying"

Interesting huh!!!

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"I have a dream" --- only when i'm sleepin'

The Month of BIG Surprises

Yes, I am talking about the mysterious May. The month proved to be quite unpredictable for most people, especially political analysts. The rout of the BJP and the unanticipated resurgence of the Congress was the talk of the town. Most commentators have declared the results as a anti-reforms mandate, anti-Vajpayee vote, anti-Modi election, and many other incomprehensible terms. However, I believe the results are nothing but a reflection of very good coalition politics by the Congress. They had formidable alliances. And more often than not they played the populist card to best results. The anti-incumbency against the Vajpayee government due to their neglection of the poorest poor also did them in.

But I do feel reforms did not have much to do with the results. Most people in the country and on the voter lists hardly understand what reforms are and how it affects them. Most of all, they are completely ignorant about what gain or harm it can do to them. So, saying that it was an anti-reforms vote would be most prejudiced.

The fact remains that reforms are a must if the government wants to harness the interest among the international community India has generated during the past few years and make India a formidable force in international finance and economics. This is imperative if India has to become a major political force as well, as economic domination is the best form of control, as history has proved time and again.

We can only hope that the new government will pursue policies targeted at reforms and greater investments with the same vigour as the NDA, and P Chidambaram will once again present a dream budged which can help realize APJ Abdul Kalam's Vision 2020.

And last but not the least, we do hope that the government will last the full term. And that the election allainces do not prove mere dalliances.

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"I have a dream" --- only when i'm sleepin'

Back to Where I Belong

i'm back in kharagpur... doing a course on VLSI Design... For starters, VLSI is very large scale integration... and is the term used to describe design techniques where over a million transistors [electronic devices] are fit into probably a cm by a cm wafer of silicon... it's a field which is coming up thick and fast because as computers and other electronic devices achieve higher and still higher complexities, there are a good number of design issues and trade-offs involved... in essence, its a very highly specialized field where no dilettante could make a fortune... u require a minute understanding of logic design, and a meticulous testing and verification process wears most people out...

an example of how costly it can prove to be for organizations... you might have heard about the notorious pentium bug... It was a result of a small approximation by Intel engineers, whereby a small error kept cropping up during float point operations [operations on fractional numbers]... what most people did not realize that it did not affect most people at all... may be caused one in a million operations... only scientists and engineers and financial analysts who required high precision operations needed to be worried... but the frenzy soon caught on... and most people where wary of their computers giving all sorts of wierdo results... ultimately, intel had to take back all those processors, and replace them by good ones... it all cost intel well over half a billion dollars!!! read more about it here and here

So, you can guess how important and difficult a task it is... and i find myself at sea in this vast ocean... with no hint where the next landmass is :((

neways, so much for vlsi.. u must be bored by now... [even i am :D]

chalo will write more later...

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"I have a dream" --- only when i'm sleepin'