Of ol' frenz & cricket

It's Saiko's birthday today & the two of us got chatting yesterday. It was the first time we were interacting one on one after about 8-9 years (apart from Orkut scraps & SMSs, that is). Much water has flown under the bridge since then. Talked about guys like Amir & Bakshi .... turns out I'm not the only one who's had a hard time in the years after school. Saiko himself lost his dad during that time. But as he said, "It's all over now, you gotta look ahead". Felt good chatting with an old friend after a long time. Dude is going steady with a Bong girl & they plan to get married soon. All the best, buddy.

What was surprising to hear was that he'd almost given up on Indian cricket. Bongs are really passionate about the sport & Saiko was no exception. But the recent spate of poor performances seems to have made him permanently disillusioned with the team. How things change!

Talking of things changing, Saurav Ganguly seems to be all set for a comeback into the team for the Tests against SA. The man who was blamed for all of Indian cricket's ills yesterday is now being looked upon as the saviour! The ODI series is a lost cause now with the Africaners winning 3 matches on the trot. Sachin as usual was upto no good yesterday, getting out for 1. The rest of the guys did no better.

Also chatted with Abhishek. He's in Canada working on a UN funded Genome Mapping project! Seems he'll be back in JSR in December. His sis got married & will soon go off to California, while Abhijeet is working in some software co in Pune. The childhood gang is all settled now!

On the music front, I seem to have caught the Kabhi Haan Kabhi Na bug from Sittu. Have been listening to the film's songs for 2 days now. Jatin-Lalit's tunes still sound so fresh.

There was a fire in Tower 16 today. Nothing serious though.

The fire engine was duly summoned. But the damn thing turned out to be near empty! A tanker full of water was then brought in & it's water pumped into the fire engine's tank, which in turn was pumped out of the pipes onto the blaze! I swear, what crazy ass fire fighting!

Zen Estilo

OK, so ToI has come out with a pic of what could be the new Zen. To be called the Zen Estilo (Estilo means Style in Spanish apparently), it actually is the 2001 Suzuki MR-Wagon that was sold till last year in Japan. Maruti's managed to get the whole assembly line pretty cheap & will now be dumping this 5 year old design here as an all new model!

As for the looks, well .... I can't find any 'Estilo' in the design. In fact, the looks are total crap.

What the .... ?

Bajaj has just finished the revamped P-150 & P-180 rollouts (to a huge response from the market), & just when everyone was settling in for the P-220 DTS-Fi release, out come pictures of this stunner ....

It's a 200 cc oil cooled version of the Pulsar. Notable differences include the radiator, fat can, 'canards' on the tank, split seats & the split grab rails. I also like the blue color on this one.

What else can one say but, .... way to go Bajaj!

Pathetic is the word

In a match & on a pitch where ....

Justin Kemp (5th down) scores 100 off 89
Andrew Hall scores (7th down & a bowler) 56 off 47

Rahul Dravid (1st down) manages 63 off 103
Dhoni (4th down) fights his way to 55 off 48

Sachin Tendulkar ("the greatest batsman today/ever";"India's best batsman"; "World record holder for the largest no of centuries"; "World record holder for the most ODI appearances" & opener in yesterday's ODI alongside Virender "overrated" Sehwag) scores 2 off 9.

Do any of this guy's fans & the Indian selectors blinded in his adulation need any more proof that this guy can never rise to the occassion?.... that he's playing more on past reputation than on form? .... that he has not had the same yardstick that was applied on Ganguly, applied on him? .... that he's the most suitable candidate for what, in Hindi, is called "Dharti ka bojh"?

On top of all this .... he has the nerve to say, "I don't compromise" when asked the reason why Airtel had dropped him from his position as it's brand ambassador. By the way, that's Sachin-speak for "they weren't paying me the mind boggling-ly audacious sum of money I asked them for, since they were one of the few who had realised that I'm simply not worth being persisted with". Just how money-minded this guy is could be guaged long back when he had grovelled in front of the tax officials not to charge him for his Ferrari.

Yeah right, "I don't compromise" is what it is .... this tax evader won't compromise on anything else other than his contribution to team India's performance on the field.

P.S. - I have nothing personal against Sachin. It's just the fact that his being on the team inspite of his indifferent approach riles me no end.

At the moment ....

Am feeling bored on a Sunday evening

The future's looking really hazy

Indian cricket's putting on another pathetic attempt at a run chase

I'd love to shout down a Sachin Tendulkar fan

Arni's practising on his guitar

I can't wait to be home for Christmas

I seem to have developed an addiction for chocolate chip cookies

Am wondering if David Icke & his theories are for real

"Ability and character will be tested" - Rahul Dravid before the SA tour started.

India in South Africa ODI Series - 2nd ODI (1st ODI was abandoned)

SA - 248 for 8
India - 91 all out (after being 62 for 2 at one stage)

Result - South Africa won by 157 runs

Need I say more?

Going, going ....

After Stacy ....

... & Trish ....

.... it's now Lita's ....
.... turn to announce her exit from the WWE.

Vince, do something!

1 day 3 OSTs

Banjar raeth hai
Zameen banjar hai

Banjar aasmaan
Ye ghar banjar hai

Banjar dil
Ye nain banjar

Banjar nain ke
Aansoo banjar hain

Iss banjar shehar
Ke dil mein dhoondoon
Main geeli mitti ka manzar

Lyrics from 'Banjar' - Kabul Express OST

Came across the OSTs of Bhagam Bhag, Guru & Kabul Express up for grabs on Sunday & have been listening to them ever since.

Bhagam Bhag is standard Pritam fare .... racy, hummable & catchy.

Guru's music sounds confused & hurriedly put together.

But Kabul Express stands out. Newcomer Raghav Sachar produces more better sounding stuff than not. One song, Banjar, has three renditions .... by Shobha Mudgal, KK & Sunidhi Chauhan .... & all three absolutely rock!

We gon' party like it's yo birthday

It was my turn to throw the b'day treat & the guys opted for this pub on Church Street called The New Night Watchman. A nicely crowded place with a suitably 'pubby' feel, albeit with fewer females than I would've liked. Anyway, who cares for females when you got your best buddies with ya?

Drinks were ordered & the Bacardis / Smirnoffs / Screwdrivers / Kingfishers were soon showing their effects. The DJ was playing the standard Bollywood remix stuff with the beat pumped up a notch or two . It added nicely to the ambience though.

The food was kinda okay .... you anyway don't care much about the food once you're sozzled. Each one had his turn at dancing to the rhythms (the place was sorely missing a dance floor) with Arni doing the videography. It was too much for his N72 though since there was little that could be recorded due to the prevailing semi-darkness inside the place.

Returned home around 12 following an auto ride during which the auto driver must've heard some of the choicest nonsense of his career. So that, in short, was the b'day treat.

Awake at last

It seems Yamaha India is finally waking up to market realities. About 3 years after Bajaj made alloys standard on the Pulsars, Yam has launched it's 1st bike with alloy wheels as standard. The new Gladiator does look striking, but I think the alloys could have been more aggressive looking to add to the blacked out engine & silencer.


Anyway, it's a welcome change. With the new Hero Honda Glamor also coming in with black alloys (couldn't get a picture of that one), it seems the 125 cc segment is now witnessing alloy-isation. About time it did.

It's only Suzuki & Honda now with a total non-alloy clad model line up. Strange, considering how advanced the Japs are in this field. But then, the Japenese have always been known to be conservative. It took ages for Maruti to provide alloys even as options on it's cars.

Update: Got the new Glam's picture.

Happy B'days

It was Pritish's on October 30th, Soumya's last Thursday on the 9th & mine yesterday. Is it a coincidence that all 3 of us studied in the same nursery school, same school till the 12th & are now working in the same city & staying in the same locality & that all 3 of us are Scorpios? That's far too many coincidences!

Nayak babu's b'day fell on Thursday, but that didn't matter in the least for him since he had called up all & sundry for the party at his place. Prav, Sid, Arni & me hitched a ride with Pritish to where the party (read drinks) was on in full swing. Arni & me downed 2 pegs of Old Monk (do NOT try it if you haven't yet), while Sid & Prav settled for Kingfishers. Pritish had bought a damn good Chocolate Mousse cake from Sweet Chariot, but regrettably, a lot of it was wasted in a minor food fight. Stuffed ourselves with chicken & rotis & managed to get home by 12:30 (God bless that cab driver who agreed to make the drop for 20 bucks only).

Sunday saw Sid, Prav & me head out to National Market looking for some cheap deals on sneakers. The damned place was flooded with fakes. Sid bought a pair of Nikes & Prav got himself a Rocky DVD (Parts 1 thru 3), while I got a POTC Dead Man's Chest DVD for Sittu. Not satisfied with this bit of retail therapy, we were off to Marathahalli in the evening with Anupam & Jolly bhaiya (who are in the midst of a major shopping spree, what with Jolly bhaiya's wedding coming up in 2 weeks). Brand Factory was impressive with 5 floors stuffed with all kinds of clothes & shoes. Ended up buying a pair of Nikes (from K's). My debit card is beginning to work up again.

Sunday midnight saw the guys bring out a Black Forest especially for yours truly & the cake was cut amidst much bonhomie. Jolly was the 1st to call up, even before I'd cut the cake.

Took the day off on Monday. The whole day & evening was spent in fielding Happy B'day calls from friends & relatives. Thanx a ton for your good wishes everyone!

In other news, Sweta is coming back to India after 4 months in the UK. She must've landed in Bangalore by now. Harsh has booked himself a new Pulsar 150 DTSi (in black). The Pulsar 150 upgrade (with the LED backlights & digital speedo) just came out & the dude has managed to get his hands on it .... that's what I call timing.

Oldies revisited

Each Time You Break My Heart - Nick Kamen (1986)
Rock Me Amadeus - Falco (1986)
True Blue - Madonna (1986)
The Road To Hell - Chris Rea (1989)
El Arbi - Khaled (1992)

Got hold of these oldies that I'd been searching for since a long time. They were all the rage at different stages of my childhood/adolescence. Bring back a lot of memories when I listen to them now. Thanks to LimeWire.

The 2 Finnish bands have been dominating my playlist of late.

Aussiez

The final of the ICC Champions Trophy & the inevitable happened .... no, not the rain interruption .... the Aussies won, that's what.

The Windies started off really well ratcheting up 80 odd before the 10th over. But what followed was the infamous West Indian collapse & the team folded for ~140.

The Aussies chased a revised target of 116 (owing to the rains) quite coolly. These guys are looking seriously good for another World Cup victory.

Happy b'day Arni

Arni celebrated his b'day on the 4th & we were given the mandatory treat at Aaranya's. It's been raining pretty hard since the last week or so & I've caught a nasty cold & therefore 2 stiff brandies were ordered for yours truly. Must say it worked.

It seems a lot of people are being bought to justice these days (see previous posts). The latest is Saddam Hussein. He's got the death sentence for some mass murders he perpetrated in the 80s.

Banned! part 2

It's now Darrell Hair's turn to face the axe. The ICC's decided to ban him from officiating in international matches.

I don't think anybody from the subcontinent's gonna miss him.

Banned!

Not unexpectedly, Shoaib Akhtar gets a 2 year ban (& Asif, 1 year) by the PCB for using Nandrolone. I think we'll never see Shoaib wearing the Paki colors again. Sad!


"Icarus flew too close to the sun but he had nothing on Shoaib Akhtar. The Rawalpindi Express, the world's fastest bowler, the world's flashiest cricketer. The man who flew too close to the sun too often has finally set fire to his wings and will fly no more. The sight of Shoaib spreading his wings in celebration of a kill will become the stuff of legend, a DVD classic, a spook story that mothers will tell their would-be superstar children: "Lose touch with your humility, your senses, and your mortality, and you will end up like him, the man from Rawalpindi, whose pride knew no bounds and whose stupidity knew no limits."" - Kamran Abbasi on cricinfopakistan.

ICC Champions Trophy update

The 2nd semi final of the Champions Trophy just got over. It's gonna be the Windies facing off against the Aussies for the title.

Here's my 2 cents about the performances of the various teams ....

Most improved team - West Indies
Dunno where we're headed - Pakistan
Underdogs supreme - New Zealand
Highest paid losers - India
I wanna go home - England
Watch this space - South Africa
Huh, what happened? - Sri Lanka
and, of course ....
The champs - Australia

Personally, I think I'm coming down with a cold .... damn!

Saw it .... not bad.

But Farhan Akhtar, work on something original next time. No more remakes .... please.