Ganesh Visarjan 2012- I Hope Not The Last One :-)

698th BLOG POST -->>

Spectacular- Only Maharashtra's residents can experience this!!!

            The 10 Days of Ganesh Chaturthi ends. If for one thing I shall always appreciate Maharashtra in future, it would definitely be the passion they have for this festival. Everyone waits for August-September desperately. And by luck, for me, it comes too quick every year. I always feel that "arrey abhi abhi toh visarjan hua tha kuch hafte pehle, fir Ganesh Chaturthi kaise aa gaya" and then I have to go through a reality check and analyze the speed at which my brain works. From 2-3 weeks ago, Ganesha idols can be seen almost in every galli and nukkad of Maharashtra. If you are lucky, you can also find the artists making the idol. The day Ganapati idol's sthapna takes place, you will find almost everyone in new cloths roaming here and there. Everyone seems to be so excited for the next 10 days that you start thinking of taking a break for 2-3 days to enjoy almost all the pandals that you can. 

             We keep on hearing people cribbing about the noise pollution and other side effects that the festival brings with it. Even I had the same mentality till last year. But as it is said,"A Smoker can never leave smoking until he reads a quote himself". It happened the same way with me. On Twitter, my friend Rohit posted,

    "You see the loud music and traffic problems during Ganeshotsav, I see the lightings and decorations all around. All about perspective."

               This changed my thought related to the 10 days of Ganesha Chaturthi's celebration. This time the dhols, loudspeakers, music systems didn't irritate me. I enjoyed it. I gave the tweet a thought. There's a scene in the disaster movie starring Amitabh B and Salman K, God Tussi Great Ho where Salman Khan keeps on blaming the God(played by Amitabh B) about the wrongs and ill-doings that he does. Then Amitabh B tells him to be God for a limited period of time. Salman agrees. And then Amitabh B makes him hear all the noise that he has to hear almost every second that humans make on Earth. That kills Salman Khan's ears for the moment. So, if a God can suffer our incessant and irritating noise pollution every nanosecond, why can't we bear the noise that few devotees make for GOD for just 10 days in a year? We surely can. So this time I didn't get irritated by such acts of devotees. The only thing that irritated me was the choice of songs some pandals played. The item songs should be strictly prohibited to be played by Ganapati pandals. That is a total disrespect to the aura of the almighty. 

              Yesterday, all the devotees finally ended all the customs related to the festival and submerged the idol into water. With the hope that God will return back next year with same amount of blessings, all the devotees danced and made the God leave us happily to come after a year. Though even this part has a side-effects but let's not talk about it again. Let's only concentrate on good parts of the festival this year. It's already a judgmental year for us- 2012, you know. Hahaha! Let's make God as much happy as we can. Before dying :| May be he'll kill us in an epic way but give a residence in heaven, besides Amitabh Bachchan's and Sachin Tendulkar's udaan gruh. :-) Not much time, and we will experience another festival of 10 days- Navratri. :-) And with it, Bakri-Eid is also in countdown. Wow!!! 

     My respect to all who were engaged in Godly activities for last 10 days by leaving every other aspects of their life. God'll surely bless you. 

 Thanks. 

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU

Nick of Time by Komal Mehta!!!

697th BLOG POST -->>

            Reading Love Stories back to back can surely frustrate me to the zenith. But when the stories are from two different kind of writers, the reader within me gives the widest smile possible. I have just completed KOMAL MEHTA's "Nick of Time". The 240 pages book is published by one of the greatest publication- PENGUIN BOOKS. I haven't read much books by Penguin hence I was pretty excited to read this one. The book also has the tagline "Right One Wrong Time". Komal Mehta has always suffered from an overactive imagination and thinks she is good at making up stories. She has been working in the movie marketing field for the past 3 years and has worked for Reliance Big Entertainment and Havas Worldwide(EURO RSCG / MPG India) in the past. Currently she works with Pradeep Guha’s film marketing agency Culture Brandz in Mumbai. Nick of Time is her first novel. And let me tell you my personal view- She looks charming and beautiful. I have checked her image on the back cover almost at every turn of page. :-) My apology for this confession, Komal mam. But this is what your book is all about- Making confessions, right? :-) 

            NICK OF TIME is a story about three characters- Alehya, Vicky and Shagun. Alehya returns to Chandigarh after knowing about her childhood's best friend, Shagun's marriage. She is excited to meet the person with whom her friend is marrying. She is also excited to meet and have lots of conversation with her as it had been 7 years since they met last time. But when she comes to know it's Vicky who she is getting married to, she gets disappointed. She always hated the guy, right from her childhood. She always found him weird and irritating. And she discloses this to Shagun, she doesn't get surprised. She had already planned about making both of them accept each other as Friends. But.... 3 weeks to marriage and Alehya-Vicky spending all the time with each other on Shagun's insistence creates some magical transformation in the plot of the story. As the wedding draws near, the three grapple with issues of love, confusion and guilt to discover what their hearts truly desire. They have to make life-altering decisions in the NICK OF TIME! 

              Komal Mehta is surely a writer whom I would love to read in future too. She has magical writing skills. She makes you get into the journey of the story. For a moment, I myself started thinking as if the whole plot is being played with me and I got tensed at many places. :-) She has great sense of humour which keeps the interest in the book alive. Even when the book turns monotonous in between, her unique description of things made me read the part interestingly too. One writer whom I found similar to Komal Mehta is- Varsha Dixit in her debut novel-"Right Fit Wrong Shoe". Though that book didn't satisfy me much, this has surely entertained me throughout. 

             The initial pages when Alehya and Vicky doesn't pacify with each other gives a curiosity to know what happened further in the story. Because synopsis of the book makes it clear that both of them falls for each other later. And when the whole series of the awaited moments begin, the book goes to a very different level. It takes you to a totally different world of love-getting-over-all-the-fears-and-confusions. It becomes entertaining to read about the marriage preparation of Vicky-Shagun at one end while the development of romance between Vicky-Alehya at another end. The love scenarios that authoress has inserted in the book are original. I have always believed that reading too many similar stories isn't an irritation if all of them are being treated in different ways. And I am quite blithe to say that Komal Mehta has given a totally new face to the story that is so common in our Bollywood movies and TV serials. She has treated it in her own way that makes you excited to turn the pages. 

            The dilemma that each character gets into the book after the conversation of Alekhya and Shagun with mehendi in their hands is the real moment when I fell in love with the book. Every thing that is written after that scene touched my heart directly. It says so much about the different traits of human beings. It makes hard for us to characterize any of the three characters as wrong, traitor or exploited. Every one of them seems to be right according to the scenario that took place with their life. But still knowing the fact that one of them will have to sacrifice gives goosebumps to you almost at every thought of them that is mentioned in the pre-climax and climax pages. The book tells about how one hears to his/her heart and goes in whatever direction life then takes to. How one confesses what one has gone through and brings a transformation towards happiness in life. How one does not get selfish even when one knows that he'll have to sacrifice for a friend or a love-partner. There are many such elements that I noticed while reading the book, but I won't talk of all otherwise you'll lose all the excitement of picking up the book from the bookstore near you. :-)

           Coming to the drawbacks, first I would like to criticize the COVER PAGE of the book with all my heart. It is seriously very dull. Even the face of the girls doesn't match with the description of Alehya and Shagun in the book. The cover page's design is so yellowish that you might consider the book as a decade old. I am disappointed. I hope with next print, the cover page is changed to something bright and lovely. Then, as Chandigarh is mentioned so many times by the authoress while describing the plot of the story in synopsis and sneak peeks, she should have mentioned some places from Chandigarh in the book. The city doesn't get the treatment in the story that it gets in synopsis. And as the book is about marriage, many traditions should have been mentioned in an exciting manner but authoress has again ignored doing any of this. Else, every thing related to the story is COOL. I would rate the book 3.75/5. I recommend it to all who are wanting to read a different tale of love, confusion and destiny. GO FOR IT.

  Thanks.

   ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU

Journey of Two Hearts! by Anuj Tiwari!!!

696th BLOG POST -->>

           It's a sad fact that every reader's favorite publication- SRISHTI isn't doing well these days. The number of claims against it has kept readers little away from it. The biggest drawback has been the editing of the books. No reader wants to read a book that is full of mistakes and grammatical errors. Initially, people ignored some of the mistakes but recently everyone observed the amount of mistakes a book from Srishti Publication contains. It is again a shocking element that no book of Srishti has got the tag of BESTSELLER since a year. Again, distribution was a concern. Recently I have seen Srishti books in Crossword and Landmark stores that means this drawback has been rectified. I hope the Publication house recuperates soon. I didn't ignore the latest release by Srishti- Anuj Tiwari's "Journey of Two Hearts! -will be cherished forever". Anuj Tiwari is a debutante residing in Mumbai and working in one of the leading IT companies. One of the most grounded author in the contemporary period. 

             Journey of Two Hearts is about the protagonist- Anuj who gets into friendship with a girl- Pakhi through a scenario that his friend created. He kept talking for months through mobile conversations without meeting her. Finally, they decide to meet. The meeting turns out to be more romantic than they expected. It took time for Anuj to build the relation of Friendship into love. But once when he does, he finds bliss in the odyssey of this beautiful relationship. Being away from Pakhi for most of the times, his love for her kept growing up every minute. But some misunderstanding bought some cracks in their beautiful saga of love. Did Anuj win her or let his love go? To get the answer to this- go get the book. :-)

             Anuj Tiwari started scripting his love story right from the first day when he came in contact with his girlfriend. Later, when a tragedy took place with him, his parents asked him to at least try for getting the book published as he has already written it. He gave a thought and the JOURNEY OF TWO HEARTS! released on 5th September, 2012. As this was written as a personal story never to be shared with anyone except the author's muse, I did find some flaws in the narration. There are many sentences which Anuj Tiwari has written in a very shortcut form. He should have avoided that. But the different fonts, cases and sizes that he has used for bringing special effects in the book is commendable. Writer has kept the chapters short which can help you read this book in breaks. It's a short love story without any unwanted details. 

            The first chapter of the book is interesting. The initial conversations between both the protagonist is also something that makes you excited to know about the future of the story. The way they get into the relationship of love is also a beautiful part. The intimate and love-making scenes are described beautifully. As the story is true, author has been successful in bringing up emotions through his writing. The pre-climax is better than the climax. After reading the pre-climax, I was expecting climax to be some kind of an epic but author failed to impress me there. But I can easily claim that the pre-climax is the best part of the book. As the story is true, author has not created any kind of too fictional elements. Hence, you might remember Ravinder Singh's I too had a love story and Sudeep Nagarkar's Few Things Left Unsaid while reading the book.

           The major drawback of the book is the same that many authors from Srishti shares- Author hasn't given any special characterization to other characters of the book. Parents are just special appearances while they should have been a major part of the story. Even the third character- Arpan should have been drafted properly. Author keeps on talking only about the protagonists throughout which turns out to be boring sometimes. While I would say that the poems in the book were inserted at the right moments. As the first attempt, I would rate this book somewhere in between 2.75 and 3. It is specially for the first time readers, Indian romance writers' fans and the people belonging between the age group of 17 to 23. 

  Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU

G.O.O.G.L.E. Tujhse Mohabbat Ho Gayi Allah Maaf Kare :-)

695th BLOG POST -->>

             Google completes 14th Birthday. I could have avoided talking about it but I won't. You may ask that why don't I talk about anniversaries of every websites and why only about Google every year. It plays a big part in my life. And I would say everyone's life. We just can't imagine the use of 40,000 worth- laptops and computers without the access of Google on it. GMAIL was the first website that I used when I learnt how to type a website's name in the address bar. I made my first email ID in GMAIL and I'm still using it. That's the craziness of First love. Many of you would have tighten your grip to blow my face remembering the betrayals that your first love gifted you. But Google has never betrayed me. :-) Just imagine life without G-emails, Youtube, Picasa, Google Earth, Google Map, Google Reader, Google Documents, Google Images etc. It would not take more than 2 seconds for us to call our providers and ask them to take their connection away. I mentioned 2 seconds because one second might go in thinking about Facebook and Wikipedia that has nothing to do with Google. We might keep the connection alive for these two sites. Haha!! 

             Google is so selfless. We press the number of keywords at any point of time, it replies back with not a monosyllable, bi-syllable but with number of links, videos, pages etc. And it prioritizes them in such accordance that the first five links itself serves the purpose for which we woke up Google at 3 AM. Then, every time we are unsure about our Internet connection or its speed, we press the name- Google.com in the address bar to see if its working or not. Because if Google does not respond, no other site will respond to the speed at which we want to surf them. This is the respect that Google has earned in the last many years. :-) We remember it before anything. The record says that just for a month, Wikipedia became the most surfed site in the world while Google has been the only winner since last 5 years. 

            Today, Facebook and Twitter are our heartthrobs. But it's no forgotten fact that the first Social Networking Site that got famous in India was ORKUT. The site that we still don't want to abuse because it gave us the days when we really enjoyed living our virtual life. The fun in creating communities and inviting friends, posting scraps, sending/accepting testimonials etc is unbeatable and insurmountable. If today, someone would ask you for the best browser, you will answer without even making your ears do the work of sending the data to your brain for the processing of memory and then the respective output through mouth, and will answer "Google Chrome". Almost everything that we do on Internet is possible in its bestial way because of involvement of Google. When Yahoo Messenger and Rediff Bol were a pain in ass, Google Talk gave us a 1 MB set up file to install within seconds and start talking with our love ones unlike the former two. 

             My Blog has many readers. It would not have been possible without the help that Google has selflessly provided. Whenever someone searches for anything that has been talked by me on my Blog, Google recommends my link on the first page itself. This has made many Internet users to come at my blog space, read what they wanted to, then see the right column, browse the topics and read others that attracted them and finally become a follower. This is how thousands have reached to my blog space without me promoting it. How can I be not a slave and free promoter of Google? :-) Even this Blog gets a published status because its a Google product. I have always preferred using the Google Brand before any other except Google Plus. :-) Larry Page and Sergey Brin, thanks for being geniuses and inventing something that is so amicable and close to our lives. GOOGLE!!! A Very Happy 14th birthday. 

  Thanks.

  ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU this is the only way how I can pay my tribute to GOOGLE :-)

Mera Rang De Basanti Chola... SHAHEED BHAGAT SINGH!!!

694th BLOG POST -->>

            Shaheed Bhagat Singh!!! A name that still gives goosebumps to the patriotic Indians. The way he fought for us was incredibly inspiring and provoking. It's not a small act to motivate the youths of the same age to die for the nation. But Bhagat Singh had a very different ideology for dragging India towards freedom. He just wanted to throw Britishers away from our Mother land as soon as possible. Initially he loved the way how Gandhi approached towards working against slavery and domination. But later on, when he saw that Non-violence isn't the way how the Britishers would leave the land, he isolated himself from the Non-cooperation movement. He formed his own youth party. And through it, he convinced many young boys to participate in the Freedom struggle. He even gave his life for it. But never complained. His parents were themselves involved in the freedom struggle. Hence, patriotism flew in his blood. He wanted to bring nation to a respective position where it will have its own Republic party. He gave a vision. And at the age when we today are busy surfing Facebook and laughing on some Trolled pictures. Shame on us!!! In our era, A 70+ old man keeps Anshan where none of us go to participate. While Bhagat Singh being a young boy like us left all the fun and fascinations of life for our country. And he is an example even today. 

           Views of Bhagat Singh was totally different from his predecessors. He was portrayed as terrorist by the British but he still being critical of individual terrorism, called for mass mobilization. He gave a very new vision to the revolutionary movement of the Indians. The two views where he totally differed from his predecessors was- He agreed to the logic of atheism and publicly claimed it. Second, he gave a thought and vision to the life of India and Indians post-independence. He gave everyone an idea about what would India do once the freedom is attained. And such qualities of Bhagat Singh made him the only alternative and substitution to Mahatma Gandhi and Indian National Congress, then.

             When Jallianwallah Bagh massacre took place, Bhagat Singh was just 12 years old. He went to the sight and collected soil from the spot just on the second day of the incident. It strengthen his resolution of fighting back the Britishers and giving India the most wanted Freedom. To avoid marriage, Bhagat Singh even ran from his home. He wanted to give all his time to freedom struggle of the country. But later returned home on hearing about his grandmother's illness. I would like to paste some paragraphs that I have in my personal folder regarding the final struggle of Bhagat Singh:

 "In February 1928, a committee from England, called Simon Commission visited India. The purpose of its visit was to decide how much freedom and responsibility could be given to the people of India. But there was no Indian on the committee. This angered Indians and they decided to boycott Simon Commission. While protesting against Simon Commission in Lahore, Lala Lajpat Rai was brutally Lathicharged and later on succumbed to injuries. Bhagat Singh was determined to avenge Lajpat Rai's death by shooting the British official responsible for the killing, Deputy Inspector General Scott. He shot down Assistant Superintendent Saunders instead, mistaking him for Scott. Bhagat Singh had to flee from Lahore to escape death punishment.

Instead of finding the root cause of discontent of Indians, the British government took to more repressive measures. Under the Defense of India Act, it gave more power to the police to arrest persons to stop processions with suspicious movements and actions. The Act brought in the Central Legislative Assembly was defeated by one vote. Even then it was to be passed in the form of an ordinance in the "interest of the public." Bhagat Singh who was in hiding all this while, volunteered to throw a bomb in the Central Legislative Assembly where the meeting to pass the ordinance was being held. It was a carefully laid out plot, not to cause death or injury but to draw the attention of the government, that the modes of its suppression could no more be tolerated. It was decided that Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt would court arrest after throwing the bomb.

On April 8, 1929 Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt threw bombs in the Central Assembly Hall while the Assembly was in session. The bombs did not hurt anyone. After throwing the bombs, Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt, deliberately courted arrest by refusing to run away from the scene. During his trial, Bhagat Singh refused to employ any defence counsel. In jail, he went on hunger strike to protest the inhuman treatment of fellow-political prisoners by jail authorities. On October 7, 1930 Bhagat Singh, Sukh Dev and Raj Guru were awarded death sentence by a special tribunal. Despite great popular pressure and numerous appeals by political leaders of India, Bhagat Singh and his associates were hanged in the early hours of March 23, 1931."

             It's good that we haven't forgotten our hero. We remember him on his birth  and death anniversary every year. That is the least that we can do for what he has done for us. Actually, according to him all of us should play our part for country but we are Legendary Losers. Bhagat Singhs are born once in million years. A SALUTE TO HIM!!! Jai Hind!!!

  Thanks.

   ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU

A FUCKing Friendship and YOU!!!

693rd BLOG POST -->>

             Every time I talk something that's too hard to digest, people send lots of questions to me after I get the work published. Today, once again I have a Curtain Raiser to the relationship that we, the youth boast of as much as we can-"FRIENDSHIP". Whether someone really has a friend or not, but he/she will always be available to paste numerous Quotes on Friendship on their Social network profiles. Ask me, I get irritated with these Friendship quotes, boasts, over-hype etc. Why does one need to talk on this Relationship if you are so sure about your friends? Why do you need to tag them in some pictures and let them realize that you are a Friend? If not that, at least to make him consider you in his/her friend list. Last time, when I wrote a blog post- Dost Toh Aate Jaate Rehte Hain, people found it indigestible initially but I got many views after the 2nd read by them. All said that somewhere I am true. For career, for personal progress, for selfishness, one has to leave a friend or the whole friend circle and move to the city/country where one gets life mooted to the next level of greatness. 

              Today, I want to ask- Who the real friend is? And how much duration does it take for a person to achieve tag of being our friend? I have also written in my blog post about how duration has nothing to do with the quality of Friendship. You can be better friend with a 3 months old person than a childhood companion. Undoubtedly! Today my point is, a person who always call you for chit-chatting, always dial your number, always wants you to be with him in any celebration should be categorized as a FRIEND? Or is it necessary to call him a FRIEND? In front of him, fine. But in his absence? I don't think that the person is really a FRIEND. According to me, if a person has contributed in your progress, establishment and motivation, the person happens to be your Certified Friend. Yes, I will give the certificate, don't worry. :-) 

               There's a difference. Suppose I have two classmates- F(Fuck) and Y(You). F never goes to the town's best Bhel-puri's corner without you. He says that it gives him pleasure to have the eatables only when you sit besides him and hear all the emotional crap that he needs to share with you. He finds you the most deserving person with whom he can share all that his heart has. He loves talking to you for umpteenth number of hours every day. Secondly, Y is that person who does not like spending time with you. What he believes in is totally different from F's concept. He will never call you. He will never share a single secret with you. He will even not hang-out with you. But whenever you'll make a call, or even if he comes to know that you need a help which can be solved by him, he helps you by putting all his efforts. Not because he considers you as a friend but because he is capable of helping anyone with that problem. He is such a person that he'll keep on helping you every time you'll fall into the pit of troubles but still, he will avoid calling you in his birthday party. Analyze the situation and answer yourself, if from the two, you'll have to name just one person as your friend, who will you chose? I assure that after 5-10 minutes of deep thinking, you'll chose Y(You) and not F(Fuck). 

             The reason behind it is simple. At last, somewhere on the core, or in conscious mind or in sub-conscious or in the crust of it, you remain concerned about your LIFE. Everyone wants to achieve everything without any hurdle. No one loves to get a subject drop in any semester, a jobless situation, a failed marriage, spoiled children or any loophole in life. And the person who helps you in pushing away from any of these hurdles to which you were very prone, captures the most respectable part of your heart. And thus in the above example, Y kept on doing it. While if you'll consider F's role in your life, he is just using you. He is using you for his benefit. Because he has no one else who can hear to his life's shit, and because he can't stay quiet, he needs someone to vomit everything out. He got you and thus he keeps on hanging out with you, spending money on you, eating bhel-puri only with you etc. He just can't afford to lose that one person who is ready to eat his shit on daily basis. But, as your concern is your life, you'll find later that he has wasted so many hours from your regimens which could have been utilized in the development. If you'll ask him for some serious help, he'll say it very sweetly,"Yaar tu jaanta hai meri kuch aukaat hai nahi is field mein karne ki". He is true. He seriously can't help you out. But he could have said,"I'll try. I'll talk to a friend". 

             So, now it's upon you to think- to waste time with those friends who need you for their entertainment, their time pass, their leisure, their selfishness or with that person who needs nothing from you, his only concern is that anybody around him does not fail or remain behind of others. He do not want to waste his life with you but he would sell his kidney and liver to eliminate the pain of your life. But still he won't spend a single second with you by talking about his hearty elements. He will make it sure that whenever he'll meet you, he'll ask you about how are you doing. If you'll retaliate with some doubts, he'll clear it and get engaged in progressing his life. Believe me- this boy deserves to be your friend. He needs to be called a FRIEND. Those friends who remember you for hang-outs and hearing their speech right from heart are just because they need someone around them. Y may not call you on your birth days but he will make it sure that every birth day of your's go smilingly while the F(Fuck) will make it sure that he gets a treat from you, in return he gives an expensive gift to you just for ensuring that you remain with him for a year more. :-)

            Think- A Formal Friend- YOU is the best. And don't give a FUCK about others!!! Bwahahaha!!!

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU

Karl, aaj aur kal by Cyrus Broacha!!!

692nd BLOG POST -->>

             If you remember, I reviewed Cyrus Broacha's The Average Indian Male few weeks ago. I was so excited about reading this guy's books that I ordered both of them together. And after reading the first one, I was too disappointed. That made me read some other novels before jumping on the second one by him. And finally I have completed his 2nd novel- a Fiction funny story- "Karl, aaj aur kal" published by Random House publication. The book hasn't done even mediocre business in the market. And why would it do? Who wants to read a fiction story by a man like Cyrus Broacha. A non-fiction humour-full book is expected and can be read. But a fiction by him seems to be the biggest mistake of Random House Publication. Though the book is not that boring too. But it is not even interesting. Some parts of the book, or I must say 40% of the book did make me laugh out loud. The imaginations that Cyrus has scripted in this book is seriously funny. Not everyone can think the way he did while writing this kind of a story. But as the humour part keeps on continuing in the same temperament throughout the book, it turns out to be monotonous after a while. I had the same complaint from Cyrus with his first non-fiction too. 

              Initially, the book has some very difficult English. It is hard to understand some of the sentences. Later, he has used many words that goes above head. It is not possible to open dictionary for each word while reading a 230 page fiction. It would be better to pick a true literature-oriented writer if that's the purpose of reading a book- LEARNING NEW WORDS. But that is just for creating an impression initially. Later, Cyrus hasn't used any such words that can make you feel terrible about having the book in your hand. I can say it with all the audacity that it would be no surprise to me if some of you may say after this review that we were unable to complete it. Yes, the book frustrates. Though the story keeps on traveling among different environments but still the interest keeps on declining with each page. And I would also blame Random House for that. Who publishes a book in such a traditional manner? It's just that the words are printed on a paper without any design, watermark or anything of that sort. It's printing, font and everything is such that you might feel after a while that you are reading about the History of India or Russian Revolution. At least, for such genres, a publication should prefer fonts like Comic Sans etc that can generate interest. 

              I would say- SKIP THE BOOK. I would rate it just 2.5. Some of you may ask why even 2.5- for the only reason that 40% of the book did make me laugh out loud. YES!!!

Synopsis:

‘God once told me life is absurd. How else can two boys land up in America and not find any girls?’ Karl and Kunal are just two ordinary Mumbai boys who like ordinary things: bunking class, films, food and pornography. Intent on attaining stardom they fly off to the legendary Lee Strasburg Acting Studio to sharpen their craft in acting and in chasing girls. They fail on both counts but come back with a jackpot: their maiden movie role. In Bollywood, they meet Yusuf Khan, who at forty-six is still the undisputed king of college romance. Being losers doesn’t get in their way and soon the trio become a hit team, churning out blockbuster after blockbuster. Before they know it, Karl and Kunal get their own spot boys, the defining moment in every Bollywood actor’s life, feature in an TV commercial with Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi, and are even invited to meet Bill Clinton on his visit to India. But all this is not enough for Karl, who knows that it’s really politics which is the ultimate destination for all ‘great’ actors. As Pajama Party’s nominee from south Mumbai, Karl makes his debut as a politician. Will he hit the boxoffice again? A novel about celebrities, Bollywood and politics, Karl, aaj aur kal is a hilarious novel from India’s best known funny man.

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU

One Day, Even I'll have a DAUGHTER!!!

691st BLOG POST -->>

            Everyone of us often consider BOY as our first child. Whenever we have a casual talk with anyone, the words that we utter is,"If I'll have a boy, I'll ask him to do this and this". Why don't we consider a GIRL as our first child? Actually for the same reason that we have ourselves created. We have overburdened birth of a girl with too many responsibilities that we ourselves start running away from it. When a parent gets a Boy as their first child, they go for the second one. If that happens to be a girl, they turn content with the fact that their family is a Happy Family with a boy and a girl. In other case, when the first child turns out to be a girl, parents definitely go for the second child. If that happens to be the boy, parents start giving him so much consideration that the girl starts feeling left out or ignored after getting into teenage or maturing up. But if the second child again turns out to be the girl, parents are open for the next attempt too. And they keep on attempting until and unless they don't get a healthy, fair and beautiful boy child. But after 3-4 attempts, when today's extremely so-called modern parents still get an unwanted girl child, they don't fall into any emotion and sentiment in throwing that innocent child in a dustbin, lake or into the river. This is the punishment of being a Daughter.

             Being 22 years and 11 months old, I see myself as a Father after 10 years from now. It might happen earlier but I don't think that I am going to be as stable as one should be to nourish a fashionable wife and kharchiley bachchey(sounds so much as Naadan parindey. Ok Sorry). Imagining myself as a father, I always want a girl child. And there's certain reasons for the khwahish. I have been the most notorious child among my childhood friends. Then I have been the most ridiculous child in my junior college. Then, I have been the Over-the-top mischievous boy during my 3 years of Graduation. And today, comparing to my current situation in Post-Graduation, I can find myself the biggest loser for the next 3 years to come (Yes, I am depressed these days). So, being acquainted with almost all the bad adjectives a boy can, I don't have much dilchaspie in having a boy child. Yet, I am open to the option if Sai Baba offers me a Boy totally opposite to me. :-) At least having honorable adjectives before his introduction unlike me. :p Having a girl child would be interesting. I imagine a beautiful, cute, lovely daughter with extremely attractive features sitting in my lap and asking me several unbeaten questions having no answers. Yet, I being a father, not wanting to disappoint her, reply with senseless self-made answers. And it would be more fun if she would catch me while giving nonsense replies. Wow!!!

             And as a wonderful myth says, A girl is always close to her father. Now even this has a reason. A mother knows all the mischief that a girl does in her young age hence she is always a complain box for them. This is the same reason why I said that I would prefer a girl over boy. I just can't see my son fooling me by locking the room and masturbating; and after my knock, opening the door and clarifying,"I was changing my shorts" Fucker!!! :-) Hence, a boy is always supported by mother as she does not know about their kaminapan. And for the very same reasons, a girl is always allowed for everything by father as he is unaware of the boundaries that a girl can break. I know the shameful activities that some of my female friends go through by fooling their parents but still, with my daughter, I would be liberal to some extent. But after that, I shall have to be a sort of Hitler to her. But I'll make it sure that once she'll fall into her dreams, I would enter her room and caress her. Because that is so obvious that I won't touch a bit of slumber by giving any amount of pain to my sweet daughter who'll always remain a little kid throughout for me. I'll be as much stringent as I would want to be with her, but if my wife will go over the top, I'll ask her to visit her maika for an year or two. Haha. Or if her reasons of shouting at my bitiya would be valid, I'll ask her to be little soft in front of me at least. :-) I'll always chose my little kid before wife. Yes!!! :-) Every father would. 

            Being a Daughter of a middle-class parents is always difficult and challenging. They poke every time they find her texting more than usual, surfing internet till late nights, taking more time while bathing, coming home after sun set, wearing exposing dresses etc. Even I would be little strict over these things but I'll always give her the amount of liberty that will allow her to experience everything once. Definitely not twice. :-) I also imagine my daughter reading my blog about girls and scolding me for making some wrong assumptions. :-) It would be wonderful to see her judging my work and guiding me on how to proceed ahead with it. The most embarrassing moment will be when she'll pick up my academic performances and utter,"Dad, you were such a big loser?" It will again be embarrassing to answer her question about how many girlfriends I had in life. Because children after 20 years from now won't hesitate in asking this quite personal question. I would run away from the situation by replying that your mother was the only fool I got even if it would be an arranged marriage. Huh!!!

            I am waiting for the day when I'll actually turn into a content father of a girl child who'll have all the good features of me and my upcoming(bwahaha) wife. :-) That day I'll be able to write this post in more effective and emotional manner. But currently just by imagining my daughter being beautiful and charming is a bizarre heavenly dream in itself. 

           A Very HAPPY DAUGHTER's DAY to all the lovely Daughters of this world who have never made their parents ashamed of them. Remember, for a while your mother can adjust with the sins that you commit but your father's life falls apart when they see you doing such activities that shrinks their broad chest and hangs their head in shame. 

 Thanks.

  ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU 

How About A Sin Tonight? by Novoneel Chakraborty!!!

690th BLOG POST -->>

           After knowing the negative reviews of the recently released- HEROINE, I made it evident to myself that I'm not going for it. But as I was excited for the movie before its release, I had an urge of experiencing something similar. Undoubtedly, I picked up a book from my shelf- "How About A Sin Tonight?" by one of the favorites- NOVONEEL CHAKRABORTY. The book is based on the people related to the world of glamour, television, advertisements and Bollywood. This is the third book of the author after his first two released by Srishti Publication- A Thing Beyond Forever and That Kiss in the Rain. But as most of the Bestselling authors of Srishti, even Novoneel moved to Random House Publication for his 3rd novel. And as expected, the hoopla created around this book was enough to give a boost to the sales. I haven't heard of it getting vindicated into Bestselling List yet but I am sure that it's getting into it very soon. 

           The synopsis of the book is perfectly written, hence pasting as it is: "In the biggest casting coup of the Hindi film industry, five top stars are signed up for a new movie: Shahraan—a living legend still lamenting the loss of his first love; Reva and Neev—newcomers allied in a common journey; Nishani—the celebrity kid who must avenge her father’s untimely death; and Kaash—the actor harbouring a secret love from his past. As their intimately intertwined personal stories take centre stage, the industry’s underbelly is left exposed for all to see. By the time the curtain draws to a close, the gossip-hungry media has enough fodder on its plate to last a lifetime.

            Novoneel Chakraborty, bestselling author of A Thing beyond Forever and That Kiss in the Rain, unveils the grime behind the glitz, the insecurities and compromises, in a world where aspirants come prepared to strike a Faustian bargain. A beguiling tale of love, ambition, jealousy, and betrayal, How About a Sin Tonight? will leave you asking for more."

             I have both the recent books of Novoneel at my home but I never picked them up because of lack of time. But after reading the third by him, I am excited about the first two which are everyone's favorite. The kind of narration that Novoneel has used in the book right from the first sentence till the last, keeps you excited. I just kept on reading, reading and reading. Even when the story went slow paced at times, the narration and the sentences formation kept me intrigued into it. And thus I want to read more from the author. So the first two books, you are coming out from the shelf very soon. :-)

             The book is spread around many characters- each with different shade and background. Because author has mentioned every actor's source before coming into the field, it makes you feel that you are watching the life story of each one of them right from their birth. The way every character's struggle has been shown for entering into the field that gives fame within few hours is perfectly described. Little research of the author can be easily seen because these are the details which aren't common but still an existence in this industry. The initial pages of the book are the most beautiful part of it- The moments of pure love between Shahraan and Mehfil. I just wanted to read it till the 283rd-last page of the book but unfortunately it ended quite earlier for other stories to come and play their parts. But fortunately, the way in which author has fast forwarded decades while narrating the story shows the unique plethora of writing skills that he possesses. 

              Actually, I haven't noted the beautiful moments while reading the book because the whole book is written in a single flow with many messages being delivered in between. Some words in italic does touch our heart while some not in italic also leave the same kind of an expression on us. But the letter that Mehfil writes for Shahraan is something that made me cry, literally. Then, Shahraan's journey towards being the best actor of the Bollywood is something that fascinated me. Every time the female characters had to compromise with their bodies being placed in front of the producers/directors/powerful people of the industry, I got goosebumps imagining the situations that these girls have to go through to achieve their dream/ambition. The pre-climax scene where a male and female character gets into a physical fight is another goosebumps-giving-scene. The another best part of the narration is the scene describing love-making and sexual moments. :-) The biggest boring part of the book were the unlimited letters by Kaash is the second half. The second half of the book does bring some extremely good parts of the book but it is too stretched. The book could have easily kept shorter by 50 pages. I rate the story and narration- 3.5 but to the many philosophical messages that author gives while narrating, I give .25 more. So finally- 3.75/5. 

  Thanks.

   ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU

Curfewed Night by Basharat Peer!!!

689th BLOG POST -->>

Book:

Book: Curfewed Night

Author: Basharat Peer

ISBN: 8184000901

ISBN-13: 9788184000900, 978-8184000900

Binding: Paperback

Publishing Date: 2009

Publisher: Random House India

Number of Pages: 256

Language: English

Author:

Basharat Peer was born in Kashmir in 1977. He studied political science at Aligarh Muslim University and journalism at Columbia University. He has worked as a reporter at Rediff and Tehelka and has written for various publications including the Guardian, Financial Times, New Statesman and Foreign Affairs, where he was assistant editor. He is currently based in New York.

Synopsis:

Basharat Peer was a teenager when the separatist movement exploded in Kashmir in 1989. Over the following years countless young men, seduced by the romance of the militant, fuelled by feelings of injustice, crossed over the Line of Control to train in Pakistani army camps. Peer was sent off to boarding school in Aligarh to keep out of trouble. He finished college and became a journalist in Delhi. But Kashmir—angrier, more violent, more hopeless—was never far away.

In 2003, the young journalist left his job and returned to his homeland to search out the stories and the people which had haunted him. In Curfewed Night he draws a harrowing portrait of Kashmir and its people. Here are stories of a young man’s initiation into a Pakistani training camp; a mother who watches her son forced to hold an exploding bomb; a poet who finds religion when his entire family is killed. Of politicians living in refurbished torture chambers and former militants dreaming of discotheques; of idyllic villages rigged with landmines, temples which have become army bunkers, and ancient sufi shrines decapitated in bomb blasts. And here is finally the old story of the return home—and the discovery that there may not be any redemption in it.

Lyrical, spare, gutwrenching and intimate, Curfewed Night is a stunning book and an unforgettable portrait of Kashmir in war.

Review:

             Basharat Peer has attempted a topic that needs an attention of all the Indians who aren't living in Jammu and Kashmir. The situations there are always talked of. But not many of us know how Kashmir itself is. What actually goes in there. We haveread about it through newspapers but reading about it in 230+ pages is an experience that'll take away all the smile from your face. A story that's provoking, hurtful, shocking, outrageous, sad etc. I need not say much about how effective the book is as it's already a Winner of the Vodafone Crossword Non-Fiction category. More over this, the great Khushwant Singh says it's beautifully written, brutally honest and deeply hurtful. 

           Yes, the incidents that are being mentioned in the book does gives you goosebumps. As I have also faced some similar situation, I related to the emotions of the author who has jotted down his whole life, almost. The sudden deaths of people around you for the only reason that they wanted to stand with their innocent views rages you. Then, the militants and soldiers killing people randomly for their own benefits is something that should not be taken lightly. The book got published in 2008. But reading it now, after reading many articles related to Kashmir's current situation, I can say that Basharat Peer's Curfewed Night will always remain to be truthful for the situation of Kashmir at any point of time. He tells initially how Kashmiris aren't involved much in politics. Then he tells how they get involved into the things that could have been avoided. Then he tells how young boys got into wars. How they wanted to pick up the gun and shower bullets into everyone whom they felt were the enemies. And then, he tells about his own journey in Delhi where he researched about the people from Kashmir and other related stories. The first half gives many new elements. Later the book becomes monotonous. The second half seems to be too much stretched. But the second part itself gives many secret out. The book ends on a good note. It's definitely one-time read. A non-fiction can't be written with more innocence and honesty. 

  Thanks.

   ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU

Such is Life, Dearies!!! YOU ARE BEST!!!

688th BLOG POST -->>

            A struggling phase is either our current status in life or it's something that's coming soon. No life is perfect without having some or the other obstacle that you need to fight against. And until and unless you don't have something to fight against, you yourself ask,"What is my life all about?" And then, there are many among us who know what their life is all about but still we keep on walking on a totally different path. In a fear of colliding with many competitors who are far better than self. It is no big deal or surprising confession that in any field we are in, we always have 9,99,99,999 people better than us. But does that guarantee our failure? Or does that guarantee that everyone above us will get justice for whatever they are capable of? Just as we think that we don't have the right recognition that we deserve, everyone better than us also has the same trauma. But you'll have to moderate your dilemma and decide specifically about your struggle. A struggle that you yourself will chose for bringing your life to a status where you can undoubtedly claim about the amount of happiness you are empowering in yourself. 

             It has been such a marvelous example for all of us when we see the era of every Superstar that arose and declined periodically. When Rajesh Khanna was controlling the roots of the Bollywood cinema, no one ever thought that a side actor with long height and no charming face would become the next. The main reason of the declination of Rajesh Khanna. A man who showed the world that one does not become Superstar by just being a great actor but also by being a great human being- Amitabh Bachchan. And he held another record that was quite parallel to what Rajesh Khanna held. RK had 15 consecutive hits within 4 years of his era. While Amitabh Bachchan gave at least a hit every year from 1972 to 1990- for 18 years without fail. And these are those 18 years when media boycotted any kind of news related to him. But, even he had to leave the position in 1990s when Shah Rukh Khan entered and showed the power of acting one can possess while being romantic on the big screen. People never imagined anyone replacing him. He is still not replaced wholly but Hrithik Roshan has already bought himself to a place where he is being named the next superstar after these 3 legends. Such is life, dearies(as HT also says) :-)

            Let's go to Cricket- the another biggest field that is being talked in our emotional country. When Sunil Gavaskar held the crown of everyone's favorite cricketer, no one ever imagined that a Cricketer would take birth who'll break his records. And not only his, but of every cricketer's in the world. Sachin Tendulkar came in late 1980s. In the first half of 1990 itself, he was declared as a gem of Cricket who had lots of potential in himself. By 2000, he became the GOD of the game. He was behind no one. Everyone started praying him for his excellence. By 2010, everyone started believing that the end of Sachin Tendulkar will bring halt to the whatever success our Indian cricket team has at the International level. The emotional Indian within everyone started dreaming about his son- Arjun playing in the same style as of father's and breaking all the records that GOD created. But not even 2 years since then, currently, all of us are asking Sachin Tendulkar to retire- directly or indirectly. Because Virat Kohli has shown us that there's someone who can be more consistent than the Master Blaster too. And people have stopped talking about Arjun Tendulkar. Everyone is content with Kohli today. He has become the new heartbeat. Till the time he is on the crease, Indians watch the match in hope that we shall win. Once he is declared OUT, half of us switch off our TVs. Exactly what we did when Sachin played in the same way. Such is Life, Dearies- Part 2!!! :-)

              Let's come to the 3rd field- Literature. Though you won't find many readers in India in comparison to the movie and Cricket lovers but yet, after the two fields, the third field that has got the most accomplishment is the world of books. I won't go much in History as already people are less aware of the GREATS in this field. I'll start from the modern times instead. In 2004, when Chetan Bhagat came up with Five Point Someone, people believed that a Writer has emerged who knows every nerve of youths. The book turned out to be the most sold out book in the Indian market. Chetan Bhagat became the star. The 3 books by the writer released after the success of the first and all the three got into the Bestseller as soon as they released. Every writer in the contemporary times got irritated with him. Everyone complained that Chetan's book had no research and only crap. But after his first book got adapted into the biggest Bollywood Blockbuster- 3 Idiots, everyone got assured that there's no stoppage to Chetan Bhagat. But, Amish Tripathi's first two parts of his The Shiva Trilogy got landed up in Bestseller at No.1 and No.2 spots in 2010 and 2011 respectively. Everyone got surprised that there can be a new name at No.1 except Chetan Bhagat's. Not just 2 years that Amish Tripathi's books went on making him earn Crores, we have a new one- Ashwin Sanghi who has acquired the first spot with his latest book, directly- above Amish Tripathi and Chetan Bhagat. Such is Life, Dearies- Part 3!!! :-)

            So, through these examples we get to see that not even Rajesh Khanna, Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Sachin Tendulkar, Chetan Bhagat retained their No.1 Spot and there's always a chance that a new dedicated performer can out-beat any of the living legends- or even dead. And here, I have talked only about the fields that are visible to all of us so that there can be a commonness in the example that can be understood by everyone of us. Otherwise, why can't one over-perform his/her sub-ordinate in the organization? When these legends can be beaten up within the years when they created the records, why can't these people of our field be beaten who are not even legend. Legends? Huh! Not even close to the term "celebrity". But, the only promise that we'll have to give ourselves is- Consistency in working hard. And seriously, nothing would stop us from feeling big about ourselves. These days I feel very small about myself when I see my performances in academics because this is not what I wanted. And such dull performances are the results of under-estimating myself. And I have just thought that why should I? From today itself, I have promised of bringing the confidence back. And to sit for studying as soon as possible. Jab jaago tab savera. It might be possible that I would start studying by mid-October after researching more on myself and above given examples. Hahaha. But- whenever it would be, it will make me feel proud of myself that I did try to excel in my field- in my own ways. Let's see. Hence, my request to all to remember the above given examples and get the secret of success clear that we can overcome the BEST PERSON in the FIELD. Yes!!!

  Thanks. 

  ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU

THE KRISHNA KEY by ASHWIN SANGHI!!!

687th BLOG POST -->>

             Finally, I am back after the most wonderful adventure I had of my life. The only adventure that I have done while sitting within the four walls of my bedroom. Nothing can be more better than watching a good movie that takes you in its own world and reading a novel that takes you again in its own respective world in the time span of few hours. Yesterday, I went for BARFI! a movie that took me to the era of 1970s. And since yesterday, I am reading this book which I have finished just now that took me to the events that happened 5000 years ago. Currently, I feel as if I am the most content person in the world having two great experiences in two consecutive days. Ok, let's break the code- I am done reading 464-paged novel- THE KRISHNA KEY by the author Ashwin Sanghi. Author got his first book- Rozabal Line self-published. His second book- Chanakya's Chant emerged out to be the surprising bestseller of the time. And his third book- THE KRISHNA KEY released just a fortnight ago and it landed up in Bestseller's List at No. 1 in its first week itself. Mark my words, this book is going to be in the Bestsellers for at least a year. 

Synopsis:

"Five thousand years ago, there came to earth a magical being called Krishna, who brought about innumerable miracles for the good of mankind. Humanity despaired of its fate if the Blue God were to die but was reassured that he would return in a fresh avatar when needed in the eventual Dark Age—the Kaliyug. 

In modern times, a poor little rich boy grows up believing that he is that final avatar. 

Only, he is a serial killer.

In this heart-stopping tale, the arrival of a murderer who executes his gruesome and brilliantly thought-out schemes in the name of God is the first clue to a sinister conspiracy to expose an ancient secret—Krishna’s priceless legacy to mankind.

Historian Ravi Mohan Saini must breathlessly dash from the submerged remains of Dwarka and the mysterious lingam of Somnath to the icy heights of Mount Kailash, in a quest to discover the cryptic location of Krishna’s most prized possession. From the sand-washed ruins of Kalibangan to a Vrindavan temple destroyed by Aurangzeb, Saini must also delve into antiquity to prevent a gross miscarriage of justice. Ashwin Sanghi brings you yet another exhaustively researched whopper of a plot, while providing an incredible alternative interpretation of the Vedic Age that will be relished by conspiracy buffs and thriller-addicts alike."

               Ashwin Sanghi has been read for the first time by me. Before this I went to take his Chanakya's Chant and by mistakenly bought Corporate Chanakya. :-) But after reading this one, I am surprised, amused and amazed to see the amount of research that he has gone through before working on a book that has such amount of information, knowledge, content, matter etc related to the history of India, other countries, religions, epics etc. The narration is the best part of the book. This is the first time that I have seen an Indian author writing a 400+ pages book and managing to make it a DEFINITE PAGE TURNER. :-) After crossing 300th page, I got irritated with my speed of reading. I wanted to reach climax as soon as possible but I had to travel more 160 pages. And seriously, every page asked me to devote all my time to it. It is not a book that you would love to read quickly just to finish it. But you would want to keep reading it till a Reader within you is alive. And a True Reader even dies reading. :-) 

              Initially, the book is hard to understand. But after some 50-70 odd pages, you get into the year's best thriller's feel. :-) The way Lord Krishna is being talked initially develops a lot of interest in you. Even you want to know whether he exist-ed or it's just a myth. Throughout, every statement that is made regarding the invention that India has done is proven with all the logic and justification. And this is the high points of the book. Every page is specifically written to share some deep knowledge that most of us do not have. Every time a God is being talked, author has taken care of sentiments. But sometimes, he has crossed all the limits to prove that its India which is origin of almost all the useful inventions. At times, when other religions are mentioned of being derived from Hinduism, it makes you feel threatened because it clearly states that someone would create controversies using those parts of the book. How other foreign languages are derived from Sanskrit is a pride moment. How inventions of 0 and other trigonometric and mathematical equation has been done by Indians is another wonderful thing to know. Importance of the numbers 9, 3, 5, 108, 18 etc develops curiosity because we always take every number as just numbers. The way Hinduism's OM and Islam's 786 are related to each other makes you go crazy about the OMG FACTS. 

               The Taj Mahal part in the last few pages is the best read. And the way climax is handled brings a wide, broad smile on your face. And you ask yourself,"Will the author write the sequel to this one?" even when the book ends successfully with the last sentence. I have just mentioned few WOW moments of the book. There are many thrilling, surprising and threatening moments. I would say- GO FOR IT. It's just for Rs. 250. On Online portals, you'll get it for just 150-170. PLEASE, read this. You won't find any other book as entertaining as this in next few days. Now, I would be reading Chanakya's Chant very soon. Ashwin Sanghi, all the respect goes to you.
This review is a part of the http://blog.blogadda.com/2011/05/04/indian-bloggers-book-reviews" target="_blank">Book Reviews Program

at  http://www.blogadda.com">BlogAdda.com.

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU