Digitally Exploring the world

Photojournalist James Nachtwey speaking at the TED convention. TED Link here

Watched another great documentary today about a war photographer James Nachtwey , what drives him to these dangerous zones risking his life.

a must watch ..

One of my favourite Travis song... I want to see what people saw I want to feel like I felt before I want to see the kingdom come I want to feel forever young I want to sing To sing my song I want to live in a world where I belong I want to live I will survive And I believe that it won't be very long If we turn, turn, turn, turn, turn Then we might learn So where's the stars? Up in the sky And what's the moon? A big balloon We'll never know unless we grow There's so much world outside the door I want to sing To sing my song I want to live in a world where I'll be strong I want to live I will survive And I believe that it won't be very long If we turn, turn, turn, turn, turn And if we turn, turn, turn, turn Then we might learn Turn, turn, turn, turn Turn, turn, turn And if we turn, turn, turn, turn Then we might learn Learn to turn

a story of so many children living across the cities in India..

Finished reading this memoir by the same name that mum left back on her last visit and watched the film made on it .. and it took me back to the past and lot of old memories.. The last time I saw my father was more than a decade back when he was brought wrapped in the Indian tricolour to the cremation grounds and had the end he would probably have wanted himself, with the 21 gun salutes and all the honour.. The movie is well directed and has jim broadbent and colin firth do a fabulous job . The memoir talks about Morrison, the author trying to understand his father and their relationship and that takes me back to my relationship with my dad whom I never understood. While growing up as a kid , he was away most of the time at the toughest of postings except for 2 family postings he had. I always found him geared towards his soldiers and regiment more than us and was willing to die for them. He never spoke about himself or his childhood but all I learnt was from my mum and his brother...

Here's a wonderful little video and real story about Christian and his friends, sent to me by another good friend . Some of us might be lucky enough to have found such friends as we tread the uncharted path called life !

For the likes of us for whom childhood meant playing with friends , reading books, listening to music on vinyl records and later cassettes or an odd movie at club once a month , seems so far fetched for today's generation . The other day my mum was speaking to my 4.5yrs niece Anya, and was talking about all our fun times while me and my sister were growing up and the only word she had to describe our times was there was 'NOTHING!' :) .. Yes, in today's 24hrs connected world and instant gratification our golden days seems unimaginable

When the child was a child It walked with its arms swinging, wanted the brook to be a river, the river to be a torrent, and this puddle to be the sea. When the child was a child, it didn’t know that it was a child, everything was soulful, and all souls were one. When the child was a child, it had no opinion about anything, had no habits, it often sat cross-legged, took off running, had a cowlick in its hair, and made no faces when photographed. When the child was a child, It was the time for these questions: Why am I me, and why not you? Why am I here, and why not there? When did time begin, and where does space end? Is life under the sun not just a dream? Is what I see and hear and smell not just an illusion of a world before the world? Given the facts of evil and people. does evil really exist? ...

I hadn't heard much about the young Spaniard or followed his progress till this week when he beat the inform Murray . I packed up from work early on Friday to catch the Semi-Final Clash between Nadal and Verdasco and boy I was in for one of the best matches I have ever watched. They battled it out for 5hr 14 mins and ran like a mad hatter for every point and not an inch of court was left untouched. I am a big Nadal fan but for this match I was surely supporting the underdog Verdasco. He matched Nadal ball for ball and for every angled shot he had another better one but then I am not sure I will call it lack of experience or some supreme intervention when Verdasco double faulted at match point !! I don't remember watching any tennis match that was played for 5+ hours with the kind of precision, power and touch . No player faltered, no player had a bad patch even the epic Wimbledon Finals between Federer and Nadal last year seemed so far apart. Nadal just won the game by winn...

A video on Somdev , too early to say how his career spans out but he looks like a good find for India.

I just got back having spent an extended weekend with my niece Anya. It's always fun to be around a child , with their numerous questions and sometimes great insights into simple things. Time seems to just fly away doing all the fun things from solving puzzles, to painting, watching animated films and introducing her to my favorite films , singing the same old songs we would sing as kids and also teaching her a bit of tennis (my favorite game) since I got her a kids racquet. Now I am back to being a grownup :(

I finally watched the Chennai open in its 14th edition last week and thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere. These matches took me back to my teenage years spent in Calcutta learning to play the game and participating in tournaments and also watching good Davis Cup ties with Ramesh Krishnan, Leander Paes etc.. Growing up watching junior world champion Leander play was wonderful and it was like a dream even for a late beginner like me to play in the same tournaments in the girls category. (Pics from the semis) This time around there was a new Indian tennis star Somdev, who seemed like a panther on the prowl just like Leander, chasing every possible ball around the court. The crowd was also very supportive and it felt good to cheer for an Indian tennis star after such a long time. I hope his good form continues for a long time to come. A good beginning for Indian tennis this year.

The first Monday of the new year, I started a long and beautiful drive to River Tern Lodge with mum and good music for company as dawn broke over. The entire route is quite scenic and as one speeds on the highway even the bumpy ride with the roads in bad state after the monsoon doesn't seem to bother one. We could have stopped at Belur and Halebid that's about 50kms detour but decided to speed away to the Jungle Lodge. River Tern Lodge is situated on a hillock tucked away and each of the cottages and log huts have a view of the Bhadra River. As you enter the cottage , you have an awesome view of the blue river and the hills far away from the balcony or as you laze around in bed. River Tern Lodge, is a place run by Jungle Lodges and just like their other places , its run efficiently with friendly staff and proves a govt run organization can be world class . One loses oneself in the serene and green surroundings and the water all around. One can just read a book or bask in t...

"We all live with the objective of being happy; our lives are all different and yet the same." -Anne Frank

Questions that remain unanswered ... Recently my 4 year old niece Anya lost her paternal grandmother who lived in the same house. Ever since the loss she has been asking questions that still remain a mystery to even all of human kind.. Questions like why do humans sleep (eyes closed) when they die ? What is Heaven? What happens to a person when they go to heaven ? Who looks after them there ? Will they come back to the world again (Reincarnation) ? I am amazed that even a 4year old has the same questions that human beings have been struggling to find answers to for centuries..

It's one of the those times of the year when I miss being home.. I remember some of my most memorable X'MAS spent at Jamalpur and Calcutta while growing up. We would eagerly practice for the annual school concert where me and my sister sang for the School Choir and then wait for the month long winter break after that.. Winter vacation meant basking in the sun, reading books, fooling around and visits to friends and families and all the plum cakes and wine. Jamalpur, a small quaint little railway settlement created by British had a good bit of Anglo Indian population and so did Calcutta. I still remember the trips to the beautifully decorated New Market in Calcutta and to the bakeries- M.X D'gama and Nahoums and also the wait for the night drive to St Paul's Cathedral for the midnight mass in Calcutta or the celebration at Aunty Robert's house at Jamalpur. Years have flown by but the memories still linger ( wonder why as my previous post says !!) .. I baked myse...

Time passes , There is no way We can hold it back __ Why,then, do thoughts linger on , Long after everything else is gone ... -Ryokan in Dew Drops on a lotus leaf

I bumped into these old videos (thanks to youtube) of Cliff Richard singing in one of the rain breaks at Wimbledon in 1996 ..One of my fav. singer's and the game i so much enjoy playing.. Took me back to my early days when these LPs would be played at home again and again and could possibly count amongst the first couple of english songs I must have heard and has remained ... I can still hum most of these songs unlike the newer ones that one can't seem to remember .... Those were the days where one waited months to get a new LP .. and later when the TV came waited eagerly for DD to show live Wimbledon coverage without any glitches at the crucial points.. Enjoy!! Part 2:

Getting old I believe but nevertheless :) These ads were used as part of our discussion on branding and marketing in class yesterday... Enjoy!!