The Deep Cut

There is a 28-year old orangutan at the Allen Forest Zoo in Kanpur. He was a friend.. When we used to live there, Kanpur was a lesser polluted city perhaps. And the part of town we used to stay in, was a niche in its own.. The area in our backyard was a sprawling forest covering a significant area, and deep within it was a meandering canal named Thandi pulia.. Thandi, for the place was at least 5 degrees cooler than the city itself! And beyond it, on the other end of the woods, were ruins of a hospital for the lepers. I have never been there, but I have heard about it from my mom.. The forest was a measure of quarantine in earlier times of the hospital. Now it stands desolate.. For reasons such as proximity, I was made familiar with considerably-wild animals (if not tigers!) from a very young age.. I would have almost learnt the timely calls of peacocks and other birds and what they meant had I lived there any longer; I was however, familiar with the timely visits made by...

(Contains Spoilers!) Saw the movie KAHAANI, and fell in love with my home, Kolkata all over again.. The thought that Vellore always tends to disappoint us, is perhaps a bygone trend now in my pre-final year.. for now I can safely say that we've got used to it! But it still manages to amaze us at times.. At times such as last Saturday. The first 3 websites that turn up in Google upon typing 'KAHAANI VELLORE SHOW TIMINGS' show 2 theaters in Vellore, that are also part of the BIG CINEMAS chain, exhibiting the movie KAHAANI.. So as per the almost-an-established-rule-of-thumb, we start by the last minute and end up half hour late to this theater halfway across to the other end of the town.. only to see a Tamil 3D Horror movie being put up! 'Hindi cinema illa, only Tamil cinema..' declared the goon-ishly looking Humpty-Dumpty in front of the ticket counter. Probably a black-ticket dealer? Though I can't imagine why anyone would come to see this movie ...

I was never really interested in poetry.. But sometimes, when I stumble upon it, I think it surely conveys more than prose. More than a movie. More than the drama. Few lines, packed with a few words, all in disguise! All trying to say something away from their literal meanings. Individual meanings for different individuals.. A taste of everyone in the small concavity placed near their hearts, their niche. Yesterday I came across such a poem, 'Remains of the Past' by Javed Akhtar from his collection named Tarqash (meaning 'Quiver') that inspired me to make a decisive call. I don't know whether I could put up the entire poem here, but let me quote the first paragraph from it.. 'A half-preserved stone statue, A few old copper coins, Mysterious jewels of blackened silver, Some broken plates of brass Were found in a desert Under the ground...' Is this what they call nostalgia? For after reading this poem, I stared at the wall and all m...

The second day of my college fest, RIVIERA 2012, has thus gone by.. and it was actually a day full of surprises! But before that, I'll share with you, my trusted readers, wonderful new things that have been happening in my life, lately.. My girlfriend (surprise surprise!) upon much insistence from peers and evil friends, decided to go modelling for Style Check, the official fashion show of our college! A self-certified nerd, it was quite an adventure for her.. Class topper, psychotic and crazy happy-go-lucky, emotional reader and what now, UNDERDOG DIVA ? And she's definitely enjoying the sudden oomph about her - the stilettos, the 'pump' (yeah - the new jargon too - been using these a LOT, off late!), the extra-hours after hostel in-time.. then there are the 'moments!' when she'll call and seek confidence, 'Parbo toh?' Could I actually do it..? ... Oh now, did you think that's the new happening in MY life? The chauvinistic pig that ...

To err is human, but to badly err, is but being a kid! The following incident dates back to the time when I was a lively little kid, full of life and with proper sets of teeth. That was long before growing up sucked the life out of me! This was the time when interviews meant telling your name, talk about your hobbies and maybe tell your parent's name, a couple of 'answer-in-yes-or-no' questions and the rest were to be handled by mum and dad. Back in the year 1996, I was changing my school from a preparatory school to one primary school. And all I had to do was show my face, blabber a bit and pass the interview. 'Don't do anything stupid and you'll pass easy..' consoled my dad before the interview. I had no idea what stupid thing I could do, but I guess wetting the pants could have been an option to ponder upon in that young age, but NOT ME! I was the superman in such trivial occasions. Interview? HA! Piece of cake.. The school in Allahabad, w...

Disappointed! After it took us to the heights of anticipation, the highly celebrated (and for truly apt reasons!)  BBC tele-series SHERLOCK comes with it's second season, while making us wait for almost two years!  Probably the longest wait anyone had to wait to see their favorite fictional character return.. Now I  am a huge fan of the whoddunit, the criminal minds, the thrill and showdowns. And Sherlock Holmes is  one legacy I happily cling on to.. The first episode in the second season of the tele-series, A Scandal In Belgravia, was the best beginning one could've hoped for.. The movie SHERLOCK HOLMES, part 1, was also a near-perfect beginning to the SH franchise. It was an accomplished ressurection of the hero, and even though a bit of rework had been done over his character, it was a welcome change as the larger-than-life persona and his brilliance was mostly retained.. But what disappointed me was everything that followed.. I'm guessing it'll ...

Sorry guys, I know its been a while since I wrote anything here. I'm back from my trip to Goa, back to college and its already hectic, crazily! After about 4 semesters of consecutive classes in the evening, I have classes that start from 8am this semester, everyday.. However, more of that and I'll choke on my own words.. So how was Goa? THE BEST TRIP I EVER HAD! And why is that? Because I had the best company there, my best friends and amazing jovial people, who'd just leave their worries aside and sing and dance at one go! Absolutely uninhibited.. I tried that, and I loved it all! Shedding the inhibition, celebrating the mischief and getting over fears is among the things I'll always remember.. We stayed at Margao, with the Antaos, my friend Noelle's place.. a welcome stay, with the most amazing food, with a li'l too much variety each day! We had all kinds of fish - Kingfish, Mackarel, Pomfret, Shark, Calamari (which is a squid or baby octopus..),...