700

BIG MAJOR RAMBLING RANT - BE FORE-WARNED

It's been a long journey now, the humble diary that held my jottings and scribblings found a voice through this blog. The blog has been responsible in many ways to give me solace, a place that has helped me find friends, some who have become such an integral part of my daily life that I don't know what will happen to me in their absence and continued support.

My short stories, my poems, my movie reviews, rants about the state of the government, cricket, jobs and salaries, friends and foes, back-stabbers and random kind strangers; this blog has been with me through all my personal highs and lows.

700 is a number - that my dear reader is the number of posts that have been published on this blog. If I were to integrate all my blogs that I have maintained all through these years those deleted those hidden and lost in the vast and complex world of cyber-space - the number would about 1500 posts.

I think I have reached a point - a point of no return - my insecurities, my fears, sins of the past are all coming back to haunt me. I am 31, perennially hunched, I can't run as fast as I used to; the champion kick-boxer's frame now looks like a disillusioned shadow of himself. My marriage has become a joke; relatives and so-called family well-wishers rub the fact with undying accuracy that I should have studied engineering, joined TCS or CTS, gone on-site and returned and married a sweet little Iyer girl after all the mandatory horoscope-matching!

I smile at their concern; knowing that none of them will ever dare to give me their daughter's hand!Old-age and ill-health of my mother - a problem that haunts me; even when at work; my mind is at home hoping that amma took her medication on time and is resting comfortably.

Everyday is a mad-rush to work; racing against time and the great system called Indian Railways ensures that every working day is ruined at the start by screwing up the train schedules. Somehow by God's grace I reach in the nick of time and life goes on!

There have been some postives as well; a house to call my own; an enviable collection of books and movies, a pet-dog of my own; who teaches me something new everyday; friends who I believe will help me in a crisis and the beautiful network of bloggers called The Chennai Bloggers Club.

There are so many different people here; each one has a special quality; have learnt so much from fellow bloggers; both young and old.Chennai Bloggers for Social Awareness and Action - seems to be a brilliant concept on paper - but things are not moving as envisaged! That does not deter me; I shall step in with renewed vigour and focus my energies on various wonderful projects that some friends have highlighted. Things will change for the better in good time :)

As every day brings a fresh set of challenges; I keep asking myself how can I make a difference to the world that I live in? can I make at least one random stranger happy today? I am not going to offer someone money; but can I buy someone a simple meal; help a blind man cross a road; or guide a foreign tourist through the maze of this city.

I have this desire to start afresh - a new perspective to LIFE - I do not want to be haunted or comforted by memories any more; I am not going to chase a dream that is never going to be real. I relax in the comfort that one can still live alone and be content.

I dreamt of an old man; who lay calm and quiet on an easy-chair; a couple of dogs lying at his feet.Suddenly there was the sound of a bell ringing and the old man rose gently and the two dogs followed suit following their master. The man walked slowly up to the door and asks 'yaar pa'. A familiar voice answers ' Naan dhan'- the door is opened and I see myself and then I realize that the old man was no one but an image of me in the future.

My dream broke the space-time continuum and I saw myself! Perhaps this is what life has in store for me.

Now after all this idle rambling; you might wonder has Mahesh finally broken his vow and if a couple of beers and a couple of generous shots of rum and vodka have gone in; or if Mahesh has smoked a joint? I assure you dear readers - "evalo dhan aasai patalum idhu yellam nadakadhu"!

I write this to let you know that this blog is shutting down!!!!!!!!!

I shall henceforth write and publish posts at http://teerthadanam.wordpress.com/

I know, I know, pudhu blogku ivalo build-upaa!

Vaazhkaiye oru vilambaram dhaney - some forgettable, some sweet and some special :)

Chennai Bloggers for Social Action

It was a fascinating Sunday evening when I had a long conversation with Shashi and Dr. Ganesh over cups of black coffee on how we could utilize the inherent strength of the team - Writing or actually Blogging to promote social causes and highlight issues both good and bad.

The conversation was enlightening in many aspects:

1 - Social Action need not always be for a negative issue; there are a number of good and positive things happening around us; we can highlight them as well.

2 - Social action has two primary and distinct aspects:
a - Online activity wherein we write about issues and promote them using social networking tools.
b - Off-line (or) ground-zero activity - the actual task of visiting orphanages, slums, old-age homes etc, and doing constructive work.

3 - We as a network of bloggers can do a lot; one post by our revered doctor on marital / domestic abuse has been making the air-waves online. Similarly if we plan and write on one topic every month; there will be a theme for every month. Just imagine the impact of 100 plus bloggers writing on a topic and publishing it simultaneously, say on a given day and then promoting the post through Twitter and Facebook. We are sure to draw attention for any noble cause or good positive trait of Chennai that we choose to champion / highlight.


Building the core team:
We are looking to build a core team of partners (the Starbuck philosophy where everyone is a Partner). The team will have to identify issues that need to be popularised and highlighted and moderate / review the posts submitted by bloggers from all over the country.

We are looking for volunteers who can offer their time, knowledge and expertise. Meetings will be held on a regular basis and if the core-team partners can attend the meets it would be great!

The Future:
We shall be starting the Chennai Bloggers for Social Action - CBSA as a group within the Chennai Bloggers Club and everyone is welcome to help us in our initiatives. The CBSA will be a part of the larger Indiblogger for Social Causes / Action network as well. Our work as part of CBSA will be highlighted and used to set up and start similar projects in other cities in India. So team we are part of a hugely challenging and interesting pilot-project for change!


The Competition:
To start on a positive note; we announce a blogging competition; the topic is - Magical Melodies of December in Chennai - As the topic suggests it is about the music-scene in Chennai during December when sabhas run to packed houses with concerts. Write about your experiences and explain why you feel the event is special to Chennai. Word-limit - 450 to 600 words.

There are three prizes:
First prize - A voucher for Rs 1000.
Two runner-ups - Vouchers for Rs 500 each.
Deadlines - Contest closes on January 1, 2013.

End your post with the tag-line - "This post is part of CBSA's 'Magical Melodies of December in Chennai' blogathon!'


The Beginning:
These are exciting times ahead for us; with a whole new world of possibilities and challenges; let us have the self-belief in ourselves that we as bloggers can truly contribute to making an instrumental difference in society.

I have been Tagged

Yipee :) I have been tagged by Karpagam, fondly known as Kappu. I met her first at the mid-year lunch meet organised by the Chennai Bloggers Club. Since then have spent many an hour reading her blog. Short stories, musings on life, reviews of books and movies, recipes - a truly entertaining blogger. Keep writing Karpagam!!!!

Your most beautiful post:
This is a tough one - I shall mention a short-story that is very close to my heart.
http://vincimax.blogspot.in/2012/04/meenu-kutty.html

Your most popular post:
http://vincimax.blogspot.in/2012/08/crunch-munch-lunch-with-lovely-bunch.html

Your most helpful post:
Perhaps every movie review that I have written which lets people decide if they want to spend money at the theatre :)

Your most controversial post:
Surprisingly nothing! I am the epitome of the 'Unknown Citizen.'

A post whose success surprised you:
http://vincimax.blogspot.in/2012/08/meri-teri-teri-meri-prem-kahani-hai.html


A post that didn't receive the attention it deserved:
A true writer does not expect that every piece that he / she writes will win accolades, one writes for the sake of writing! So I leave this question blank - as it is the Lord who decides what just desserts one will receive!

A post which you are most proud of:
Two posts again a short story and a poem:

http://vincimax.blogspot.in/2012/09/mission-melbourne-assignment-for-jackal.html

http://vincimax.blogspot.in/2012/05/if-onlyyou-would-say-yes.html


Now I tag the following bloggers:

Kavitha Karen Xavier Fernandez:
http://summer--breeze.blogspot.in/
An ex-colleague and friend who introduced me to the motley bunch of fun-loving bloggers that make up the Chennai Bloggers Club. Immensely talented singer, pastry chef, camera-buff and book-lover.

Dr. Ganesh Puttu:
http://audialtempartem.wordpress.com/
Living life king-size - extra large :) immensely witty and intelligent he is a doctor with degrees that run from A to Z and he writes short stories, is working on an e-novel, and is the humour-man of the group.

Gitanjali Naidu:
http://rhapsodic-xana.blogspot.in/
Landmark Quiz team-mate alongwith Dr. ganesh :) Immensely talented, fiercely independent, animal-lover, Blue Cross volunteer, trekker, the list goes on and on.
She blogs on her travel experiences and about life in general.

Sowmya Swaminathan:
http://myspace-ss.blogspot.in/
The kid of the CBC :) a student, Facebook addict and Harry Potter PhD holder :) she writes short stories, poems and her writings have been published in newspapers as well.

Murtaza Ali:
http://www.apotpourriofvestiges.com/
Self-confessed cineaste; his movie reviews can give established movie critics a run for their money. I am hoping I can collaborate with him and come up with a book / website on the Masters of Cinema.

Friends now you have been tagged; follow the format listed below to publish your tag-post!

Rules of the TAG
A) Write an introductory of the person who has tagged you! In this case me :)
B) Give us links of your

Your most beautiful post.
Your most popular post.
Your most helpful post.
Your most controversial post.
A post whose success surprised you.
A post that didn't receive the attention it deserved.
A post which you are most proud of.

C) You select five bloggers for passing on the tag and inform them about their being tagged.

Crunch, Munch, Lunch with a Lovely Bunch

So the big day was here - the day of the Mid-Year Blogger Meet. After so much planning by the organisers and so many questions, answers and counter questions, threats of only 15 seats available, etc., the day - Sunday, August 19 was here.

As I live in the 'back of beyond' - Tiruvallur 42 kilometres away from Chennai Central it was again a long train-ride. The days leading up to Sunday was suspenseful in a way - who all would be coming - Gitanjali, Dr. Ganesh, Susan, Sowmya, Bhushavalli, Chris Robin, Ashwini, these were the few bloggers with whom I interacted. Plus I would be meeting my former colleague Karen Xavier after a long time.

First I came to know that Karen had a family emergency and could not make it :( that was sad as was really keen to meet her. Then there was a long Q at Beach Station and I had to stand in silence staring at the back of a bald-headed Gujarati guy talking about dhanda kaharab hai on his mobile non-stop.

Got the ticket and boarded the MRTS train and revisited the Vivekananda College route; went into nostalgia as I looked at the beloved Beach - the renovated Chepauk stadium through the train-windows.

Life has changed or has it really? I am still single, still carry a back-pack with a water-bottle and a book to read and wear a cap and sun-glasses. Perhaps this is what LIFE has in store for me.

Got down at the Lighthouse station and walked to Al-Arab where my dear team-mate the good Dr. Ganesh was in deep conversation with a lovely lady (Sinduja) and a gent (Anand) who suspiciously looked like a Telugu movie-star.

Slowly other bloggers came -in Ashwini, Karpagam, Sandhya who had to be given directions to reach Al-Arab from Citi-Centre - practically bang opposite :)! A mild confusion about a young girl who was looking lost and we thought she was a blogger as well. Followed By Gitanjali, Kalyan the photographer and then finally Nirmal Anand who came in after the lunch started.

Food was decent but over-priced! Lunch dragged for about two hours and 15 minutes and then Karpagam and Gitanjali decided to go to their respective homes - at this juncture DRUPAL expert Jothivel Murthy came in and the rest of us proceeded to the beach.

There was an aha-galatta moment as Dr Ganesh changed from Clark Kent to Superman at the traffic signal and Sandhya had the shock of her life when she stared at our car from Anand's and the whole group cracked up at the traffic-signal with raucous laughter and the other bikers got scared :).

At the beach we sat in a huge circle and there was conversation about what we do what we blog and other random stuff and pulling of legs and healthy jibber-jabber.

Then the highlight of the evening Quizzing with the Dr on his love-stories with celebrities!

It was real fun! The Doctor was the real life and soul of the whole group providing us with entertainment both intentional and unintentional.

Sinduja left as she wanted to catch a movie - How was the movie? Review please!

As the sun-light dimmed and the evening set in we decided to call it a day and left with the hope of a bigger bash next time and having made new friends.

Let this beautiful little group grow, let there be no ego-clashes or tantrums or misunderstandings within this group. Let the Chennai Bloggers Club become something more than a bunch of motley friends - let there be concrete steps to do something for a social cause - it could be as simple as providing your old clothes to an old-age home, sponsoring a child's education, adopting a stray pup or kitten, planting a tree, etc..

With the seeds of the genesis of a collaborative project sown-in - I can foresee exciting times ahead!

The woods are lovely dark and deep, we as bloggers have many promises to keep :)


Keep blogging, keep smiling - God bless!

I want to Fly

Part of a fun-competition organised by the Chennai Bloggers Club about flying and the first flight! I chose to write a poem :)

As a child:

I would look up at the sky,
And smile in wonder,
At those magnificent machines,
That flew through the clouds,
With such power and grace!

It was a real joy,
To say 'tata'and wave my hands,
At the aeroplanes that flew,
Carrying unknown people,
To destinations that I might never visit.

As a teen:

Watching Top Gun and Broken Arrow!
There was a passion,
For flying machines and Aviator glasses.
A craze for posters and magnetic aeroplane stickers.

Now I am a man - or am I still a child :) -

It's all about revenues,
Value-distance and cost-per-clicks,
Tracking advertising revenue and monitoring clients.
Life goes on and I am still stuck
In a city that binds me!

The rare vacation that makes me travel!
Is still by Indian Railways!
Air-travel is still something of a dream!
Funny isn't it - in a world of low-cost airlines :)

If an air-trip materialises:

It should be to a city,
That I never visited before,
A trip without hassles,
Possibly on time departure and arrival :)
And perhaps someone interesting on the seat next to me :)

Life goes on....as this dream too remains unfulfilled like so many others!