Gadget and the modern world …..

    These days Gadgets have become part and parcel of life. Modern gadgets have been the order of the day. Almost every single human being possesses at least one of modern gadgets. Gifting gadgets has also become popular, thanks to the urban culture. If one has a flip flop phone we tend to think the person is quite outdated though that may not be true. Gadgets are lustrous with some alluring features written all over it and it is quite natural for people in this era to fall for it.

    I am just speculating what is the driving factor out of these two? Do we buy gadgets since there is a need or since there is a need we buy a gadget? On both the occasions there is a ‘need’ which brought Gadgets into the modern world. I was wondering what might those ‘needs’ be ….it may be something like glancing emails when you are mobile, accessing internet within your hands, reading books from your electronic media while you travel, accessing maps for navigation, playing games from your backseat while you are driving long distance, taking photos/videos from your smart phone rather than relying on your bulky cameras, making notes in your phone, setting up calendar in your phone, listening to songs from your phone and being mobile etc., the list goes on and on.

     Didn’t we have all these needs before these fancy gadgets came into place? We still had needs but was consummated without these gadgets. It might not have been so efficient but it was so much safer – not accessing/texting phone while you drive; lot more stress free – no need to stress yourself by reading or accessing devices in those small gadgets; much more quality family time – no need to play games and sit before the device 24/7; being outdoor versus being stuck indoor with those devices in your hands.

    So now I am wondering those who do not use modern day gadgets may look or sound outdated but in fact they are playing it safe and being much more stress free; Circumstances make us to sign up for these gadgets since if our employer would like to sponsor the phone bill who will reject the offer. But still I believe we got to come out of these modern day gadgets.

Some amount of respect ……

      The recent debate of when Sachin should retire is making headlines in almost all media and it’s a field day for people to draw viewership. A person who has dedicated 23+ years of his life for nation is now facing criticism from every nook and corner. I feel so sorry for this humble human being. I remember even after his father’s last respects he joined the team to play in the world cup tournament. I can just envisage the emotional battle he should be running over his mind since it is very intricate not to get sidetracked during these tough times. This man holds that many records that one can write a book just based on his records alone.

   

     Now let us rewind a bit ..look at the past ..I remember times when I used to switch off the television the moment he gets out. He carried the team in his shoulders many times since Indian cricket always relied heavily on him. He did not become one many army but he was made as one due to the whole system how selection works. In a nation where cricket is literally worshipped you need to be immensely talented to play for two decades. Remember Indian board always looks for moolah and the itineraries are always cramped. Players got to adjust the jet lags, food and climate since they travel all round the globe. On top of the International calendar, they need to play tour games and the much hyped IPL. Body takes a toll out of these travel and for you to perform at your best needs lot of resilience and determination with this long career.

   

    Sachin is matured enough to call it a day and we just got to give him that personal space. Youngsters get benefitted due to his presence in dressing room. I am sure this is what will happen …he will start to score runs and make some big scores ..once that happens he may announce his retirement and that will be a one of the most illustrious career in the history of the game. The entire cricket fraternity will stand up and salute this gentleman. Roads will be announced under his name, stamps will be released and all possible awards may fill his wardrobe.

   

   One thing which I personally learnt from Sachin is whoever you are ..whatever you accomplished in your career …you will struggle and face criticism in some way or other ….so just got to be mentally strong and work harder ….Thank you Sachin for the wonderful service to Nation …I wish your son wears the Indian jersey soon …..

A fantasy ride ….

Fantasy is allowed in celluloid  ...why not is real life? I love sujatha’s dialogue in Mudhalvan “Valkailayum rewind button erunta evlo nalla erukum” ….this is so very true and something which everyone may wish come true. As we step into each year and grow older some memories seems to be etched in our memories and stay for ever …..I am wondering why don’t I live through fantasy for a while …..

1980’s ….

Tightly stitched shorts above knee level …riding BSA SLR cycle …..Friday ‘Oliyum oliyum’ …..Doordashan cinema once a week on Sunday evening ……Natraj geometry box ……four line all lesson notebook ….VCR and casette....Iyer kadai bhajji near Tepakulam …..Maris 70mm theatre …..Michael’s 1.5 rupees vanilla ice cream …..Madurai exhibition in last week of May and round 5 rupees appalam with chilly powder and many many more …..

1990’s…..

Wednesday school assembly …..Saturday color dress….waiting for last day of exam to splash ink on others, Bajaj chetak scooter, Burma paai, cheepu cheedai from appatha, fight for remote control, gully cricket, Visu’s arattai arangam followed by chicken liver soup around 11am on Sunday, Floppy disk, dry hibiscus flower in middle of the book, Pazhamuthir cholai sathukudi juice, Book cricket, Monopoly, Hotmail and USA.NET email address, Bangalore Iyengar bakery  puffs,  steam bath, adiresam, Thirattu paal, Nongu vandi, thanni pandal manga oorgaai, Poo thattu, Reynolds pen and many many more …..

By recollecting some of the above things was like riding through a fantasy for 15-20 minutes….amazing ride ….

P-R-I-V-A-C-Y

    I happen to read Amitabh bachan’s 70^th birthday celebrations in Internet. Celebrities are made as stars and they always seem to be an amusement to Public. To some extent celebrities do enjoy this status though some prefer to play a low profile in Public events. I thought the way media chased to get a glimpse of aishwarya’s new born daughter was bit childish…Why in the world would they do that when they have so much to cover?

    For media any news on a celebrity (gossip / silly incident like a stomach upset in a shoot / incident on their personal life) will be on the headlines with font size 48 and style as ‘Times new roman’. This will increase the circulation of the copies and hence spawn more revenue for that particular media. Entertainment in this modern era is necessary and film stars endow with ample entertainment through their movies. People read weekly magazines for time pass and even have that as one of their hobbies which is completely fine, but the very same medium should not divert the minds of the people by having something non factual just for the sake of publicity. It will bring down the credibility of the author and the respective magazine.

    After marrying a doctor I came to know that it is a common trend for ladies to add weight once they have delivered a baby. Aishwarya rai was no exception and after all she was a human being and has to undergo laws of nature. She was plump and the way media went overboard with her physique made people like me feel sorry for the actress. Why would the world worry about her physique? Does she not know to take care of herself …I saw the actress making maximum effort to hide her baby from the shutterbugs. It clearly shows she is not willing to divulge the photograph of her baby to public yet. I am also wondering how Mr.Rajinikanth managed not to reveal photographs of his daughters till they reached a point where they had to come to Public stage. But anyway Privacy got to be given its due respect and media has to understand. 

Man proposes God disposes …..

    Today September 28^th 2012 is my appa’s 59^th birthday celebration in Thirukadaiyur. I never expected I will be writing a blog sitting here in USA on this day. That is the uncertainty we had to deal in the modern era. I feel so perturbed which I cannot even articulate in words. Writing is something which mitigates my pain so I wanted to pen my thoughts.

    One had to pay the price of being in a foreign land many times. It so happened that I got to change jobs exactly at the wrong time. Because I am in the process of transitioning my visa to a new employer I had to stay in the country. I felt so bad when I realized I will be missing the function. I wanted to cry but somehow age stopped me doing so. I had to live on reality getting to know every minute details about the function over the phone.  I am the sort of person who enjoys even a cup of tea standing in the balcony and silently expressing my thanks to almighty..Basically I enjoy every small slice of life.

   One question which I keep asking myself time and again is “What am I doing in this country?” this question is basically going over the loop and am still trying to come up with an answer. Well basically commitment has been made from personal perspective. We have invested time, money and energy over education according to the US system and suddenly to come out of it would sound selfish from my side.

  When lot of thoughts have been running over my mind in the last few days I also happen to listen to some of the cases my wife is seeing on every day to day basis in her Intern. Single parent, sexual misuse, diseases to tender kids, torment at an early stage etc., when I listen to all of these I have no other option other than to show gratitude to almighty and request to bless the whole world.

  All I can say is ..I love you amma and appa. I feel bad not coming to the function but it is mere circumstances I couldn’t make it. I am sure everything happens for a reason. I always believe in Karma and am sure my good deeds will earn me a good place. 

More Automation ….less Human intervention ….

      Recently I was inside my car on a traffic light gazing at the construction work going on outside…I don’t think I can precisely put it in words of what I witnessed but all I can say is a heavy construction piece worth few thousand pounds was lifted just like that my a machine …worker was inculcating on the exact location the piece has to be moved so the guy who controls the machine just got to adjusts the controls as per the instructions. I am sure abundance of time will be saved and more importantly safety of the workers is the primary motive in employing machines.

      Look at software Industry ….one of the key metrics in most of the software projects is to automate the process by that way there is less human intervention. The sponsor of the IT projects will definitely underscore reduction in time by so much percentage in the power point slides.

    Look at the postal services …machine scans the address and if the label is not properly aligned (From and To addresses) there is a good chance the parcel may return back to the sender since the system thought that is where the parcel is supposed to go. GPS example can be funny …the final destination might be just on your left hand side but since ‘U-turn’ is not allowed at that Traffic light GPS may direct you to take ‘n’ number of steps before arriving at the same place you came a while back.

   I always marvel how does the software work during competitive exams? They have several algorithms in which the system picks up a question based on how the previous question was answered. I am very curious to know the logic behind how system picks the next question and how the system evaluates the score.

    One thing for sure …as we march into the coming years we are going to see more and more automation in our day to day life. Automation is good but one should not forget whether it’s a machine or a system or anything for that matter which automates is invented by Human beings. Human brain is much more powerful and capable and should be given due respect.

Professions with a difference

Well every profession is divine and it earns our living through which we do everything. But some professions are bit service oriented which in turn gives back to society right away. Let me open with three such Professions .... 

Teaching community: According to me this profession is one of the most service oriented one. A teacher teaches a kid who may finally end up in a very reputable position; teachers always feel so happy to see their kids shine in future. They take a lot of pride into it when a kid turns up in future to thank him/her. Teachers/professors also help in research and development which in turns becomes a big commercial viability for money makers but the thought and idea always come from the lab, classroom kind of atmosphere. Teachers play a big role in shaping up the next generation as their see the talent in the first place and groom before it becomes a hot property in future.

Priest: How many of us actually know personal life of temple priests; They bless us time and again every single calendar day (not business day). Whether its thanksgiving, Christmas, diwali or long weekend it is always same for them. They lead a humble life and get lots of happiness to serve god and temple. With cost of living shooting high up in the sky it is quite obvious some misuse but most people are true. When we visit India our appathas/ayyas used to inform the temple priest well in advance to come and open the temple for us to worship. So just think about temple priest for a while and their noble gestures.

Doctors: Though this one is in similar lines with the first two unfortunately due to the money factor this one is overlooked many times. It is an open secret doctors earn lot of money but everything comes with a price. Very few realize what goes into the making with this profession and irrespective of the country (USA/UK/Australia/India) the going is always tough but a very satisfying career for the soul. On one side we have R&D coming up with new inventions and on other side look at the number of fast food chains …It is always doing to be a tricky balance between career and family life for people belonging to this profession. 

Just my personal observations with these professions ....

Film Promotion .....

These days film Promotions are a bit too much. Its kind of redundant stuff with everyone saying the word "different" in many different forms ...Sentences are very cliche and as a audience it is kind of a boring feel to watch people say too many good things about a movie ....
Recently I watched a movie which was promoted very well ....The trailers and teasers were so pleasing that it tempts you to go to theatre only to disappoint  you a whole lot ....many film makers believe promotion alone will help them to recoup their investment ....They seem not to understand the simple fact  content along with good promotion will fetch them good name and money ....

Empty vessels make more noise: How true is this sentence .....Look at people like Mani ratnam, Director Shankar, ARR, Ilayaraja ...they never talk and have  their work talk ...don't we enjoy the work of these people ....they are so media shy and always give little bytes to media .....they just want audience to  make the final call and concentrate on their work ....

Media is driven by cinema industry ..the moment they sign a one hour programme they start getting crores of money from sponsorships..so thay can't resist  having too many  filmi fundas and cine promotions ....these days no matter which actor I get tired of people talking about their own movies ...

Recently I watched Vis Anand winning world championship ...I was simply amazed seeing his composure and maturity ..absolutely no showoff ....why can't  people follow his footsteps? It earns respect and immediately we get connected to the person without realizing the fact we are doing so.

Disturbing ....

    I watched one of the episodes on Internet after much was talked about the show...This was regarding Doctors …..Well these days media does anything to garner TRP ratings. The show was going okay until this episode happened...Now it’s talk of the nation. I had so much of respect of the actor who conducted but now I am losing my respect ….well in this modern era nothing can be perfect. If someone wants to be a perfectionist then he will be considered a person who cannot adjust with people. I do agree to some extent what was mentioned in the show may be true …but the overall plot defamed this wonderful profession.

    Every profession is divine..There is a proverb which says “Whatever Job you do that is considered to be God” …according to me these three professions stand apart for so many reasons. They are 1) Teacher 2) Priest 3) Doctor. Often the third one is overlooked because of the money factor. It is true Doctors earn money but how many apprehend what goes into the making and also the day to day stress this profession got to deal. It is the attitude which makes me so frustrated. If a poor person needs medical help then that is explicable …but multi millionaires talking about the consultation charges is definitely not tolerable.

    In India the advantage of celebrities is that they can talk and write anything which can be exposed to public and have a bad influence in the society. There is no such strict law which would punish a person if at all they happen to defame a profession. Celebrities have to be extra careful in what they talk to public. Their star charisma can drive some of the illiterates to blindly follow their on screen demi-god.

   Is Cinema industry very clean? Are politicians not corrupt? Are IT folks always speak truth in their resume? Does lawyer always say truth? I am not here to say Doctors can collect more money? But the amount of Time, money and energy a doctor spends is known only to their spouses.

   After watching the program I was a bit disturbed. It not only broadcasted something non- factual but also has a bad influence which can prevent next generation to get into Medicine field. I was always asked to be quiet and not talk about these. Everyone has some ‘Self-esteem’ and its natural to voice your opinion. I heard the actor gets three crores for an episode and if this is true he should be ashamed on himself. For people who romance a glam doll every six months may definitely not understand the true value of this profession. Most bad thing is he refusing to apologize the doctor community which is so arrogant.

   I got lot of advice from friends asking to be cool .....everyone was saying one thing for sure "You do your job and things will follow automatically".

Rules ...that's what they say .....

I would like to share one of the incidents that I experienced recently which took me by surprise. It is startling how rules/policies are followed according to the Company’s policy. By having a process in place we are safeguarding the integrity within the system and that is something we should appreciate.

One fine day on a weekend I took my Photo frame to one of the leading Camera shops in the nation. I asked them to develop a print. The person who was assisting me asked me “Where was this photograph taken?” I said it was taken back in my home country in a studio. That’s it …the word ‘Studio’ ringed alarm bells for him and he said he is not supposed to work on the photograph unless he gets a written permission from the official photographer who took the photo. I was taken by surprise and was trying to help him understand that the photographer back in India is too small to own a studio kind of stuff so it is not possible to get hold of him. He was very clear that without the written permission he will not work on the photograph as that is against their corporate policy.

Now this is frustrating as well as amazing. It is frustrating just because we are not used to this sort of experience but it is truly amazing to see how one’s work is truly recognized and because we have a process in place one can feel secured that their creative work will be protected. This is the same case with paintings, writings, scripts, films and any other form of Art. A creative person needs to feel secured and trust the system so that he/she can encroach in their respective field. Though I came out frustrated I still felt soothing in one way or the other.