Friday 30 October 2009

Mysore



Theres something about this city which makes you fall in love with it..May be its simplicity or its regal heritage or just its smalltown-ness...Mysore and its surrounding are hot shot weekend spots for Bangaloreans..For those who travel from far can easily spend a week here..

Towards North is the Srirangapatna town which houses of Dariya Daulat, Jumma masjid, Ranganathaswamy temple and moving ahead you find Nimishambha temple and Ranganthittu bird sanctuary..

Towards South is Bandipur wildlife sanctuary..Best time to visit is Sept-Dec..Another 3 hrs drive from here takes us to Wayanad in Kerala..

Go east and you will reach the Somanathapura temple and Talkad which has around 30 temples submerged in sand...Its amazing how Talkad is like a desert area amidst Cauvery river..It dates back to another story about the the old lady's curse to the Mysore Maharajas and hence the latter going childless even today!

Go west and you will find the land of Coffee and spices, Madkeri aka Coorg..Dubare, Nisargadhama, Nagarhole National Park are all in and around this place..Tibetian Monastry in Bylakuppe is not to be missed..

Brand Mysore lends its name to some of the most famous items the state is proud of..like the
  • Mysore silk fabric
  • Mysore sandal exquistie range of sandalwood products
  • Mysore Mallige, a type of fragrant flower and last but not the least
  • Mysore Paak, the very delicious sweet


  • I have done an extensive homework on this and trying to convice myself that a year long stay in Mysore's much hyped Infosys Campus is not going to be that bad..A two and a half hour drive in volvo will bring me back to my home on weekends..

    Wednesday 7 October 2009

    Get ready..

    Alright Rakhi ka swayamvar is over and she found a silly NRI and the two are part of another reality show which is like extension of their personal life..yes, taking care of the baby..I pity those babies who are crying eternally in the show..I dread to be such a baby...Brilliant are those parents who have left their wards in the hands of these mentally ill people..

    As if the first season was not enough nightmare, NDTV Imagine has roped another con head for the next season...Guess who?!? Rahul Mahajan...I know!! Last season we saw men drooling over rakhi..though a horrible choice, I can understand it..But Mahajan?!?! but I m curious to see inane girls who will fancy coming to this show and fighting for Rahul and trying to woo this bonehead..Now I m all really looking forward to this..

    Wednesday 16 September 2009

    Filmi Chakkar

    I dont know how I missed writing about it..My endeavour certainly deserves a blogpost..This was about 6months back when I was in final semester and was in a catch 22 situation wheather I ve to go ahead with work as per my degree or make a drastic change like in my career and learn from the likes of stalwarts who did the same n succeeded..I still dont know the answer but I'm glad I tried..

    Starting with the divine google search about my eternal fascination for filmmaking with all enthu I listed the things to do..One, bought books on movie making aspects and started reading it..And attained some profound knowledge and decided to go ahead with my frictionless plan with full swing..Two, applied in an Ivy league University with a LOR from an alumnus..Three, enrolled in a local filmmaking workshop to know the subtlety and intricacis of movie making techniques before plunging into the whopping global arena..Also did an impressive 3 minute film which I m posting for those mere mortals who are famished from seeing my highly acclaimed and appreciated, almost award winning movie..Four, met a few people from the industry (sandalwood to be precise) and decided after taking all things into consideration that this-is-not-my-cup-of-tea right now..May be in future..No one can deter me from being the next Oscar award winner..Muaahaha..Watch out!!

    PS : Sorry you have to wait to see my movie..uploading is taking more time than expected...may be sometime soon..

    Monday 31 August 2009

    Random thoughts

    I saw Raaj-The Showman a week back..First a quick review- extremely overhyped terrible movie...Nisha Kothari badly needs a portion from some yogic guru which can make her do something like acting..Power star Puneets close ups are shocking as usual..May be Prem deleted the scene during editing which said Puneet was a superhero..gets boring in between due to excessive fights..But I was having a laugh riot throughout the movie and I dint even walk out of the movie..More because I spent just 20Rs for the movie..Now if you are thinking where on earth will I pay this much for a movie..Let me tell you there still is a place on this planet..Its called "Sri Talkies"...Not in Bangalore but..Its in a town called Sagara..

    The theatre has special facilities for women like direct entry to ticket counter without standing in queue probably due to the overwhelming response by women folk..No seat numbers..Rule is to hop on the seat top..Viewers can enjoy the fan which is in almost working condition..Unbroken chairs..Rats and mouses playing hide and seek in the huge unlit playground...My cousin and I were the lucky ones who not just watched the movie but also got out of the theatre uninjured successfully..All the fun and adventure for just Rs20 :)

    Sagara is a small town about 380kms from Bangalore which happens to be my native..I have spent my entire vacations here right from my childhood..Its like my second home..A lot of places to see nearby, very famous being Jog falls..Sigandur, Honnemaradu, Holebagilu, Ikkeri, Keladi,varadalli are few others..It falls in the Western Ghats in Malnad region which is more known for the heavy rainfall..Though rainy season is the best time to visit Jog Falls, its tough to navigate places in this season..The roads get clogged due to rains and the rains here never stop..It sometimes rains for 3-4 days continuously nonstop..But thats the beauty here..Family bonding is at its peak here..I have had some of the fondest memories here :D

    Sunday 16 August 2009

    Kaminey


    This is a tough film- tough to see, tough to comprehend, tough to judge...In between lot of confusion arises may be due to dialogue delivery which goes over the head...Also we have to keep track of many characters..
    The story is nothing unusal- 2 brothers, 1 good and 1 bad..loved each other in childhood..then hated each other..good one has a girl..they resolve the differences..bad one turns good..and movie ends...What to look out for is the same story told in a totally different style..
    Camerawork is stunning, music is exceptional especially Dan-da-naa..Shahid is outstanding though I dint get many of his sentences..He looked great throughout the movie..Priyanka tries something new as usual and is a treat..
    Also due to the swine flu epidemic we wore surgical mask to the movie hall..It was extremely funny trying to squeeze in pop corn into the mouth..
    MY RATING: ***(a 1 time see)

    Friday 14 August 2009

    Watch dog urf security guard

    When people in my entire locality sleep, I Sheela Jayaprakash pledge to stay awake all night and guard my house and its vicinity to the best of my ability..I would like to thank the people who devised these 5 games (in top down order of my priority) and helped me to successfully implement my self imposed task..

    • Spider solitaire 4 suit
      Yes its very tough to win but the joy when all cards stack up the pile at the end is a bliss..worth all the restart-game button pressed...

    • Crayon physics
      Objects drawn in a crayon gets life, animates and follows principles of Physics.. Dont worry about the complicated laws of Newton or Einstein..just bascic rules..

    • Icy Tower
      Totally aimless...I m quite sure no one can finsh..Uses just left, right and space keys..yet so engrossing and fun to play..

    • Minesweeper
      This always topped the list until I found word racer..something so unique that very few people actually know to play this..similar to loop-the-loop in TOI..Vista doesnt give top scorer name and I m highly upset..

    • Word racer
      Yes this online game by Yahoo tops the list..Its similar to Boggle fun in reality..Making words from a web based alphabets is best for those who love to play with letters..One advice is to never ever play online with those in lounge because you are destined to lose..Also it follows a dictionary from other planet,Jupiter I guess, since it definitely has more words than any other dictionary on planet Earth..so try making crap words in case you fall short of it..

    Wednesday 22 July 2009

    Delhi Chennai Trip

     

    Ten days of sheer fun and bonding..From shopping in Sarojini, Lajpat and tachy chandni chowk at 41 degress to relaxing beachside with novel in hand at Taj Fishermen's Cove..Late night gossip with movie, exotic places, out of the world food, excessive shopping..The difference after arrival is an extra kilos only in me and extra baggage fare..
    Posted by Picasa

    Saturday 18 July 2009

    Cheers!!



    A brand new Honda CR-V....Rs 22,92,000

    A family trip abroad.....Rs 8,40,000

    A diamond ring that you craved.....Rs 4,60,000

    The joy of learning algorithms, formulae, programs, circuits, dancing to the tunes of our HOD and finally being graded Engineer is........"PRICELESS"

    There are some things money cant buy..

    For everything else theres Daddy..

    PS:- For all those who celebrated this joy..Cheers..

    Friday 17 July 2009

    Harry Potter and Half Blood Prince


    The book was amazing..Its one of my favourites..The movie is disappointing..Expectation from David Yates was high especially after Order of Phoenix which was a boring book turned to an exciting movie..The keenness and fervour dies down when nothing happens in the first half of the movie and the characters are still trying to figure out what has to be done..The actual story of half blood prince is missing and some questions unanswered..But I must say the cinematography was spectacular just the way I imagined..But do read the book before going to movie otherwise you are clueless in the entire movie..

    MY RATING: *** (watch it if you dont want to break your record of watching all HP movies)

    Monday 4 May 2009

    Sweet Surprise!!












    This landed in my house day before night....

    I dont know who, how, when, why.....

    He s in my house portico and i m loving it....

    Named him Cookie...

    Hope you will stay here forever but thats not going to happen...and i also hope you are happy wherever you are...

    Love you :D




    Wednesday 15 April 2009

    My Great Indian Tele saga

    My bonding with TV dates back from when i was 8..Call it the influence of my mom and sister..Then it was just DD...Waking up at 9 on Sundays to see Mahabharath and Chandrakantha, mystery unveiled in Tehekikath and Byomkesh Bakshi, waiting for chitrahaar to catch a glimpse of upcoming movie is all long forgotten..

    Then came cable TV which revolutionised my life...There was a time when i religiously followed each and every saga on TV..Lest get to maths, 3hrs a day 4times a week for 6years is 3*4*52*6=3744hrs!! Now Ekta you owe me that..They made it easier for people who dint watch their soaps on a regular basis by having a common factor for all types of characters.. Be it Tulsi, Parvathi, Komolika or Ramola...Lets say a you see a women and the same instant you get it its a vamp or heroine..how? vamp will always be in a gaudy outfit generally flashy loud sari with weird style bindis and not to forget the shrewd music which always accompanies her..heroine is also colourful and bright but soft spoken and most important is the music which follows her..calm and soothing..all young bad people are in western wear..and the good ones in salwar...

    As if watching these shows were not enough, i even had after discussions with some like-me friends in school..like “how can Mihir die?” “Pratham is so cute” “Prerna married Bajaj?!” etc etc...Also we realised the utility of landline...

    I don’t know if everyone stopped seeing saas bahu serials or is it that i finally realised..I think the former because i still know people who see them...But you have to accept the interest stimulated by it on people especially the retired and 60+ people..They are more involved in others lives than theirs and its a safe way to kill time..

    Tuesday 17 March 2009

    i need to write something...

    • The new "men in (dark) blue" outfit sucks...It is the Sri Lankan team outfit copy..
    • I can now confidently say that i know "jab we met" dialogues line by line..The other movies which i know the script byheart are Kuch kuch hota hai, DDLJ and Kaho na pyar hai (I know!@!@!)
    • What on earth is Abhijith Sawant doing in a movie?? If Miss India is the platform to get into Bollywood for women, singing seems to be for men..sonu to himesh to abhijith..
    • I m not reviewing 13B..because i have not seen any fully scarry horror movie..so i cant rate it..all i can say is its not a horror movie but there are bhooths in it..the bhooths are all harmless and hence not scarry..
    • Our project is on a roll of continuous rejection by our HOD for over a month now...i m not too proud about it but i hope it will take off asap...

    Sunday 1 March 2009

    25 about me!!

    1. I have a 10Rs note in my wallet which i never take out..According to me, as long as its there, my wallet wont be lost..
    2. I was state roller skates champion in school..its was one of the best competition ever because i was the only competitor..i skated the race alone and won gold :)
    3. I have always wanted to do different things in life, something which hasnever been done before and something out of the box..i m still in the process of figuring it out..
    4. Since class 4, i have fancied getting specs..All my friends and cousins have it and i dont..I think its cool and makes me look smart and intelligent..I regularly test my vision still hoping to get..
    5. I never litter the place around me..be it in my house or any public place..I think throwing chocolate wrappers and chips cover should be made illegal..
    6. I m a total bollywood buff..I have amazing memory when it comes to movies..
    7. Mumbai is my dream city..i just love every part of that city..i ve decided i will spend some part of my life there..
    8. I have a collection of feathers and stickers which i have been collecting from class 2..
    9. I once climbed a tree and dint know how to get down..then i got down using a ladder..
    10. I once went to mythological serial shooting called 'Kadambari' in hindi..I was one of the sakhi's of rajkumari..i dint deliver a single dialogue properly..I ran away from there the next day without telling my dance teacher..
    11. I m scared to be a pillion rider..
    12. I was fined on the day i received my DL for jumping signal..
    13. I always wanted to be musically inclined..i have gone to classes for many years both vocal and instrument but i think i m as bad as day1..
    14. I have loads of dresses in my wardrobe into which i dont fit..but still i have kept it safely thinking i will fit in it one day..
    15. I m scared to stay alone at home..
    16. I m totally un-mis-dis photogenic...i look terrible in photos...
    17. I will do a world tour before i die..
    18. I m a minesweeper champion..
    19. I have 6 more to go..
    20. I have always shared my room with my sister..but now i m all by myself ..i miss fighting to turn off the lights..i miss waking her up just because i got up..i miss her scream at me when i use her stuff..but since we dont stay under same roof, i dont fight with her when she s home....
    21. I m on an eternal quest to attain a seemingly moderate level of thinness which i dont think will happen in my lifetime..
    22. I love travelling...
    23. I have never written anything so long about myself specially in which everthing line starts with "I"..Also never thought about myself so much..I took 3days to write this post..
    24. I dont take more than 10min to get ready be it any occasion..
    25. I have no clue why i blog as anonymous..theres nothing that i want to hide..my family has given me a nice name but they forgot to add initials or surname to it..(Its sheela by the way..)

    Friday 20 February 2009

    Delhi 6


    Rakesh tries to do a different task like everytime but this time its not so convincing..With Delhi and 'kala bhandar' or 'monkey man' as backdrop, he tries to tell a story about hindu muslim,casteism,bribery and how a human fails to identify the god within him and dismisses the fakir who shows mirror to see the ram or allah within us..But the story takes too long to come to the actual plot..Several stories run parallelly and we forget the main plot of the movie and the message he wants to convey is unclear.

    Abhishek is adorable..The climax was total bizzare though..Only because he dint want to have a sad ending like his previous..I also thought the neighbourhood bhai-bhai rishta exists only in Indian cinema and nowhere else..The music works wonders for the movie which is nicely woven and never feel out of place though theres a dozen..Overall the movie doesnt leave a lasting impression like the 'rang de effect'..

    MY RATING: ***

    Thursday 12 February 2009

    Tagged!


    i cant believe the 6th picture on 6th folder is really this one..i definetely thought it would be one with someones face but it isnt..(i dont get an oppurtunity to lie..not even in my blog)..thanks perplexed for tagging me :) i got something to write about..

    THE DESCRIPTION: This picture was taken on 17th october 2008 in halebidu which happened to be the first day of our so called 'industrial trip' which was total fun..we dint visit any industry in our trip..we visited a whooping 14 amazing places in just 4days..from beaches to falls to temples to hills to trek..we had it all..and have memories we will treasure forever..

    Halebidu has finely carved scrulptures of gods and goddesses and dipictions from hindu mythology..it is now being proposed for UNESCO world heritage center..hence there is large scale security..we cannot sit on any animal statues..a guard chases us with a stick..yes we were chased..i was surprised by the lack of good hotels and toilets there..considering the hot shot tourist spot it is..we headed to belur from here..and ended day1 in shringere..

    Monday 9 February 2009

    buzz..

    personality development programs are a total waste..yes i realised after attending as many as a fool would take to understand something as complicated as freaky trignometry(i loved it though)..i did 108 suryanamaskaras on the D-day..and was on cloud 9 then..but i m back now..i have not decided what i ll be doing after graduation(which is very close)..i would have definitely thought of civil service had it not been for reservations..you law makers are depriving the bright ones who end up joining the private sector and hence you have the not so great people writing the public sector exams..i dont know when the rule will be made fair..reservations for those who are really in need of it and purely based on economic status and not caste and creed..i m tagged by perplexed..and thats going to be next post :)

    Saturday 31 January 2009

    Luck by chance





    it has a good storyline but script could be revised and made much better..the story picks up only after interval...no character is likeable because no one is 'nice ideal types'..it shows that everyone has a selfish dark side to themself..i think the moral of the movie was "if acting is your dream then be ready to act in a theatre or serial or small budget movies..but if being superstar is your dream then luck is necessary,be a little wicked,dont value relationships and just move on"

    farhan's characterisation is a little disappointing..he looks confused ..neither is he is working towards being a actor (and waiting for luck) nor is he sure who he is in love with..suddenly realises his mistakes when srk says a few lines..konkana is her usual stereotypical role..isha sharvani is not supposed to act according to the script and hence has done a brilliant job in her barbie like awtaar..hrithik what are you doing here? do more movies..we ll definitely come to watch you as a 'hero'or even 'superhero'... rishi kapoor is hilarious and dimple is good as well..zoya you need a crash course from your bro..

    MY RATING: ***(watch at your own risk)

    Saturday 24 January 2009

    Welcome!!


    This welcome is a little late to my new fishes which are a week old..actually i had plans to get a pug or something more adorable than fish..but i have no say at home regarding pets..fishes are by far most easily maintainable,economical species which can be dimly classified as pets..the downside is that i cant pamper them,cuddle them or even recognise them for that matter..4 of them are so similar that they are beyond my recognitiion..

    i felt hopeless when my cousin said they have a memory of about 5-15 secs..i was so happy thinking my fishes can probably recognise me now..they cant be like 'dora' or 'sanjay singhania' to have short term memory loss..they have to be like 'nemo'..

    i tried to take nice pictures but since they are constantly moving this is all i could take..long live my fishes :) and all fishes on earth :)

    PS: turn sasyahaari to all non vegges..

    Tuesday 13 January 2009

    Wayanad






    Its a perfect weekend getaway from bangalore..just 250kms away...can drive well within 6hrs..wayanad is a district in northern kerala..all the sight seeing places are around 30kms from the city..there are around 6-7 tourist spots..but we could cover just 5..

    The bus arrived 1hr late due to the diesel strike and we finally left bangalore at 9pm in a so called 'executive rajahamsa' bus which took its own time, stopped anywhere and everywhere..and we 4 girsls couldnt ask for better seats than the last row for our so called 1day old planned trip...At 3am we reached our resort and surprisingly it was great...We took a short nap and started our day tour..Our first destination was Kuruwa island,a wonderful place where we spent a good 4hour trek..we had an extremely annoying and funny 'honeymoon couple' accompanying us...had yummy pucca malayali lunch and went to Banasura dam where we took a motor boat ride and captured great pictures..came back tired,sat by the poolside,played some silly games and soon fell asleep...

    Got ready early morning, hogged on free buffet breakfast and left to Suchipara waterfalls...may be not the season and the falls looked like a culmination of water falling from 5-6 taps..but we enjoyed the journey to falls via harrison tea estate..Next was Edkkal caves which has rocks and some inscriptions on some rocks..a bit of trek to be done to reach there..since there was no guide anywhere,we had to assume our own history of the carvings..Then had a decent meal and left to huge 700sq ft Muthanga wildlife sanctury...it was a great dissappoint considering the amount we paid for the jeep ride inside...we couldnt see a single animal apart from a few deers...But you cant expect wild animals to come out and say hi to us in their natural habitat...then back to our rooms and packed our bags...The trip came to an end so soon...We did miss 2 more tourist destinations a lake and another falls..Nevermind..My dad always says that if you dont leave some places you will never have interest to visit the same place again...

    Thursday 8 January 2009

    haage summane VS slumdog millionaire

    yeah 2 movies back to back...


    1. Haage Summane-unfortunately eshwari(tops the list for 'break me and make me a multiplex')...but i m glad i went there and spent just 50bucks....the 2 faces are just poster faces...basically story is like a combo of mungaru male and galipata and so are the locations and songs...hopelessly boring and quite a torture...so had to ask the pop corn guy the climax and walk out of the theatre just after interval haage summane..thinking i can make a much better one...
    MY RATING: **(being ex-ex-extremely generous..dont know why!)



    2. Slumdog Millionaire-yeah managed to see it even before its release..thanks to piracy here...its the story about a boy grown up in Dharvi,Mumbai who ends up in the hot seat of the famous 'who wants to be a millionaire' show..it talks about love,relationship,hard reality..each chapter in his life reveals the answer to each question posed...highly commendable performance by all characters...
    MY RATING: ****(its different!)

    Tuesday 6 January 2009

    Ghajini

    i know its too late..but still i ll voice my opinion..this review in based on the fact that i havent seen it any other languages..

    its basically an old style movie revenge for his gal's death(otherwise maa or baap's) but real worth to see aamir khan..his much hyped 8packs..any channel shows steps he followed to get his body..some natural forces defying stunts by aamir..the movie thrives in a place which lacks judiciary of any form..the entire movie has just 1 cop..asin is fresh with chirpy and vivacious character..wont get bored anytime in 3hrs..gripping..and make sure you take a set of tissue if you are a shed tears kinda person..
    rare movie where the title is after the villian..
    music is just good..not rahman's best for sure..

    MY RATING : **** (go for it)

    Top 10 career dreams of my life:

    1. Teacher(a)-from what i can recollect,my first dream..and probably most of ours..

    2. Miss World/Universe(d)-cant believe i used to say this!! sadly i did..

    3. Actress(a)-i dont know if 2 and 3 are same or different..but considering the fact that when i nourished this dream i regarded the two as different i ll number accordingly..but seriously asking who doesnt want fame,money,popularity and adulation?

    4. Police(d)-i think highly inspired by kannada movies i wanted to be the one in khakhi..

    5. Astraunaut(h)-wanted to be one even when i dint know to spell it..fantasised flying in air like a super heroine,visiting moon for vacations,..

    6. Doctor(d)-white robes,stethescopes,saving lives seemed like a cake walk then..but soon realised its intricacies,dedication required,size of the books and gave up..

    7. Director(a)-i can definitely make much better movies than most of the overhyped excess budget movies releasing..its almost same as 2 but bonus would be i need not be pretty and in toned shape..Also age is not a criteria..which means i still have a lot of scope..

    8. Jounalist(a)-travel show hosting,1 on 1 interviews with celebs,food cannoisseur..i m ready to settle even cookery show..

    9. Fashion Designer(h)-i love creative work though i not very good at it..

    10.Lawyer(a)-very much in awe of dad..not just because its a family profession but also because of its power,belief in the system and future prospects of being a politician...can demark this from the rest because there was an effort put to become one...

    d-dead dream
    a-still alive dream
    h-half dead half alive

    Needless to say, very unfortunate i have still not landed up in any of the careers of my choice..but as you can see the a's there are still many openings...

    Saturday 3 January 2009

    2008 recap

    The year had to start and end with exams like past 3years..but i kinda like exams..it teaches a lot of skills..last minute preparations,time management tactics and unusual satisfaction aft doing exam well..a quick recap to my 2008 after exams..kanyakumari trip in hols..just a week aft college started,sagara trip..a few days of college and the class trip to madkeri..working for semi hit college fest..bunking classes and literally roaming for sponsorship..then my bday in between..not so great but never mind..amazing mumbai trip..summer funk..dancing to the tunes of 'feedaback feedback' by bhavesh..also juggling CAT classes on weekends..ciao to sis..miss you loads!(never said that but i love ur hostel) then sem exams..the placements!..writing tests,giving interviews,aft interview dicussions was all fun part of it..frequent visits to mysore...then entered final year..south west karnataka class trip..horrible CAT performance..will definitely work and do better next time..goa trip(i ve been travellin so much!)still dint miss to catch up with good movies,treats,weddings,shopping et al..

    best buy of the year was definitely my laptop..and blanket comes a close second..sad part was my dipping scores..promised to do well this year..A great year filled with joy,boredom,excitement,dreams,hopes,tears(ingredients for a masala movie?)Hope this yr is as rocking or even more as 08..thanks to all special people in my life..

    Thursday 1 January 2009

    my second

    I m back to my blog after exactly 494 days..i created this space the day i saw someones extremely colourful blog and decided i ll write regularly as well..that zeal and crave died the next day itself and i forgot i even had one..

    there are reasons for not blogging:

    1.i thought blogging is for those frustrated souls who disguise themselves to be happy but are actually bored to death in their lives..
    2.i had no time the entire year..(refer to my next post)
    3.i have no creativity to glorify an event and write pages about it..

    my new year resolution:

    1.if not a post, i ll visit my blog once in a while..

    hope my second stinct at blogging lasts for sometime atleast..