Once upon a time..

We lived in a rented house, built on a 30 X 40 plot, in one of the many small lanes of Subramanyanagar. It was a nondescript two bedroom house in which seven elders and three naughty children led a contented life. There was a small garden in the front that housed a parijatha tree, rose, kendasampige and a few other flowering shrubs and of course a tulsi plant.

Just yesterday, we took this lane, as there was a traffic jam on the main road. I was going in this lane in a car after a period of 20 odd years and the infrastructure is still the same. The quality of the road not changed; footpaths never existed and never will. What had changed were the houses.

Bangalore's real estate boom has made every inch of space very dear. So each owner has extended the house to the last inch available. The economy boom has helped each one of them acquire a car or a two-wheeler, which is parked on the street. What is gone is the lung space, the garden that beckoned so many immigrants to the city.

Some say that this is a common complaint by different generations that 'it was better in their times'. Some others argue that gardens and lung space will not help in the economy of the city. Yet some more are emphatic in declaring that Bangalore needs a decent 'skyline'. Agreed. But does that mean we have to become a Tokyo or Mumbai?

Atleast Mumbai has the ocean next door. I'm not even talking about traffic congestion, pollution, waste disposal or any other topics that become an issue in this rapid urbanization of cities.

I speak at an individual level. Sure, you live in a rented house, but can you not maintain a few plants? Have you ever poured water, to the tree the government had planted in front of your house, which gives some shade to your car in the summer? Can you not use cement and brick instead of glass? We both know that glass reflects more heat to the place and you'll end up either buying an AC car or put an AC in your house - so in reality there's no money saved.

Think about it. And while you are thinking, here's an old article that provides statistics to my argument. For those who prefer pictures to numbers, flip through Paul Fernandes' illustrations - ' The Morphing of Bangalore' in Aditi's book - Multiple City.

Jai Ho for the Slumdog

(Image courtesy: wikipedia)

Slumdog Millionaire has won several awards at the Oscars. Eight to be precise, which includes, Best Music, Best Director and Best Film. I can understand the Best Music award for Jai Ho is yet another gem from Rahman (the music for Roja still lingers in my mind). But Best film?
If you see the films it had competed with
Milk - which sends out a strong message from the gay community,
The curious case of Benjamin Button - a story of an old man growing younger physically but wiser with age
Frost/Nixon - a window to American politics and the Nixon era and
Reader - a movie which won the Best Actress award for Kate Winslet

every one of them has a powerful taut story. What does Slumdog have? The same 'rags to riches' story where the hero walks away with the heroine into the sunset. The actors have done a great job, but is the movie as powerful as its competition? While some say its good timing, to portray a movie that shows optimism and hope in times of recession, there are others who say its mediocre.

Whatever is the opinion, one thing is true. The movie, a simple love story, in an Indian setting, made by an Englishman, nominated for the Best Movie in an American film chamber, has won the award. Truly, cinema can't get more global than this.

p.s - While everyone's besotted with Slumdog, my heart cringed at the story of Pinki, which incidentally won the oscar for the documentary feature. Reminds me of another bizarre physical deformity story which got corrected through surgery.

Koffee with Karan

No, I'm not yet famous and certainly do not have a filmy background to be a guest on this show. Lame joke aside, I happened to see a rerun of an old show with Richard Gere today; someone whom I admire, not for his talents but his Buddhist beliefs. While for most of time, the Hollywood star was a tad too careful, he really opened up on things that were close to his heart - his social work and his Tibetan culture.

One thing that struck a chord was this summarization he made about his beliefs. "No matter who we are or where we live, we all have these vices - anger, jealousy, greed. Whether one is rich and famous or poor, all of us have them and it is these enemies that we have to fight against." - Not exactly those words, but something close to it.

Strong Koffee. Bitter yet true.

Captured moments from Aero Show 2009

Some frozen moments from the Aero Event

Aero Show - the war is over

Its over. The much hyped Aero India 2009. The war between F-16s, Eurofighters, Sukhois, our own HAL produced aircrafts, which showed its might and power in the hazy Bangalore skies, completed their show yesterday.
I went to the show on saturday. I might have missed the high flying Abhinav Bindra and Rakesh Sharma or failed to spot Ratan Tata, but came out dazed by the modern defence aircrafts. The F-16 and Eurofighter 'Typhoon' took my breath away. Though the bigger aircrafts are equally important, 'twas the LCAs that the public loved. The acrobatics of the LCAs was quite like watching a video game. That brought home a sobering thought. The devastations of a video game can also occur in real life - with such modern planes and neo-technology weapons. I certainly hope it does not occur in our lifetime.

While the show was spectacular, the organisers, CII, did not do a good job. I have listed some glaring facts which I hope they read & correct for the next show.

1. Seating - It was pathetic. Many people were sitting on the carpeted ground or out in the sun. Hundreds thronged the runway and as a result the people behind them could not see the landing or take off. It would have been simple if there were adequate chairs and seating area barricaded so that everyone, seated at a safe distance, could have watched the entire show.

2. Public address systems (TV Screens, Speakers) - Again, very Inadequate. There were 2 giant screens which incessantly displayed the inflight meals in Boeing and Kingfisher, while the show was ongoing. Speakers were few and many American announcements could hardly be heard. If you are sitting in the Sun, forget hearing anything.

3. Tickets - I was told at Cafe Coffee day on Devanahalli Road that tickets were available at Gate 1. What I wasn't told was that it was also available at the parking areas too. This resulted in us buying the ticket at Gate 1 and walk down a distance of 3 kilometres in hot sun to reach the place where we found to our dismay that there are no seats to sit. A simple statement that 'Tickets available at each Parking' on the many signboards on the Airport Road would have saved the trek, especially for the elders in the group.

4. Food counters, Toilets - Very insufficient. CII, please do your math and arrange accordingly next time.

5. A handy guide, which explains the day's flights and timings, for the visitors would have helped. Especially since eighty percent of the crowd could not hear anything from the only two speakers that decorated the seating arena.

Cribs aside, the air acrobatics was superb and I enjoyed every moment of it. I'll upload some photos of the show in the next post.

5 Beginner's Links on SEO and Social Media

I spent the whole of yesterday surfing internet job sites for some writing/blogging jobs. Of the job descriptions I liked, many asked the candidate to have 'knowledge of SEO' or suggest 'social media friendly' topics. Now I'm not the professional online writer who keeps up with technologies of the world of social media. I dont use 'twitter' yet and use Facebook only occasionally. But I write and maintain a few blogs and would like some freelance jobs.
So for all those like me, beginners in the world of SEO and Social Media, here are 5 good links to start with.

1. Wikipedia - Just what is SEO and Social Media? The Wikis are generally a great place to learn from scratch. Here are the links to -

SEO
Social Media

2. SEOmoz.org - This is a great place to learn about the world of SEO. However its Jane Copland's article that introduced me social bookmarking sites and the tactics they use to provide relevant topics to their user driven communities.

3. 7 traits of a Social Media friendly website - Self explanatory and very useful.

4. SEOmoz.org - Another article from this website that explains how a Good Title can make or break your submission. I came to this article from a link on the previous one.

5. Lastly, how SEO and Social Media are inter-related. Makes sense. Blogs and Online communities have the content SEO's search in.

Disclaimer: Like I said before, I'm a beginner and this is just my opinion. I'm sure there are many other sites with pretty good basic information on these topics.

Pink chaddis and pub going 'loose' women

Here's an ingenius and satirical reply to Sri Ram Sene's moral policing. Started on the Facebook by Nisha Susan of Bangalore, the response has been so immense all across the country that its become the media's latest news. You can join the group even if you are a male and have no pink chaddis in your wardrobe. Buy some as large as the Sene's political policies and drop it at the collection centres by Feb 11th (Delhi & Mumbai) and 12th(Bangalore).

Judging by the response, if Sri Ram Sene's political aspirations fail, then can always open a lingerie store - thanks to 'pub going loose' women with a sense of humour.