Wednesday, August 12, 2015
Anjali - An Interview With a 5 Year Old (The one that missed out)
It appears that one of the interviews I had done earlier with Anjali has somehow missed out in all the other stuff. I was looking at her blogs and was surprised to find that we have interviews when she was 4 years, 4 and a half and then we jumped to six and a half. The idea was to do one every six months right? What happened? I am sure I did not forget to interview her for a year and a half.
This is what happened.
I found an old notepad the other day with some scribblings on it. Anjali wanted it. I asked her to tear out the stuff with my scribblings and leave it on my desk. Guess what - it's this interview of a couple of years ago. It must be when she was about 5 - the books and television shows are an indication. (Five and a half - Chasme Baddor was released in April 2013 - makes her five and a half.) Save one six month gap, we seem to have it covered now.
Ok, here goes.
Q. How's life?
A. Good.
Q. What does good mean?
A. Nice. Like life.
Q. What do you like about life?
A. My parents, my brother, my relatives, friends, classmates, principal..
Q. What do you like doing?
A. Playing with my friends, jumping. Even if I get hurt I like playing. Dancing, painting...I like ballet dancing.
Q. What are the things you don't like?
A. Eating vegetables, getting scolded by Mamma, making Mansi upset, sometimes we make each other upset.
Q. What are the things you like to eat?
A. Ice cream, vanilla, cakes, strawberry, chocolates..
Q. What do you like to play with Mansi?
A. Treasure hunt, Ice water, Hide and seek, School school, Mummy Daddy, Bowling, Cricket, Soccer.
Q. What books do you like?
A. A mad, mad, mad, world, Blues Clues, Pepper, Panchatantra, Aesop's fables, Enid Blyton's books
Q. What cartoons do you like?
A. Ninja Hattori, Doaremon, I am telling the shows, not the characters I like okay? Chota Bheem, Chutki in Chota Bheem
Q. Movies?
A. Chashme Baddoor, Lion King, Stuart Little... I like that the most.
Q. Why?
A. Characters...I like them that's all.
Q. Do you like crying or laughing?
A. Laughing...because I am a laugher.
Q. What are the things you'd like to have?
A. Good pants because all my pants and jeans are getting holes, then...then...what else....I would like to have an alarm clock
Q. Why?
A. Because these days school starts early, so if I have an alarm clock I can get up early
Q. What do you like about school?
A. I like studying. Knowledge. Maths. Teachers, friends, classmates...like Mansi.
Q. Why do you like knowledge?
(She got agitated a bit at this stupid question.)
A. Because if there was no knowledge on earth I would not know anything. So I can grow, learn, talk, how to end sentences, what I don't know. I don't know somethings. I don't know science. I need to know science. I need knowledge to be a scientist, an architect...see you can't write books without knowledge. You can't do anything without knowledge. I love knowledge.
I decided to veer off this topic.
Q. What do you think of nanna?
A. He's so tall, he's like a giant. He always likes to write. he always makes me write in my new books, alway buys me whatever I want. Always he does the same thing, again and again, everyday he spills my medicines, everyday he keeps looking at the computer. I don't undertsand why he goes to the computer.
Q. What about mamma?
A. I dont have words. She's everything. She's a lion to me. Everyday she goes rushing around the home doing everything and...
Q. What do you think about yourself?
A. I like my body, my love, myself, my brains, my thoughts, my feelings and my toys and things...this is what I like about myself.
Q. Who else do you like?
A. Teachers, parents, God
Q. Who is God?
A. You don't know god?
Q. I never saw him.
A. You can't see him. You can feel him.
Q. Can you feel him?
A. I can feel him. He's inside my brain. I can feel.
Q. How does it feel?
A. First tell me who made me. God. Who gave my nose? Mansi. Heart. Parents. See everything god only. Who gave me water? See everything god can only do.
Q. God is good?
A. Yeah, yeah. Now you undertand why he is inside me. He came inside me just to help me.
Q. Will he be inside me?
A. Yes daddy. God is inside everybody. My favorite god is Ganesha.
Q. What is your favorite food?
A. Biryani, khichdi, lollipop, Dairy Milk chocolates, ice pops
Q. If you want to ask god for one thing what would you ask?
A. I'll ask god to help me in my studies, in my races, in my tough games. I used to ask god only for toys but now I ask only for courage.
Q. Why?
A. Only courage can help me in anything.
Q. How?
A. Courage is my partner. Whenever I have some difficulty only courage is my partner. Courage will help me in everything.
Q. Does anything scare you?
A. Chimu anna comes and shouts and scares me.
Q. What about money? What do you think about it?
A. Helps us live. If we did not have money we cannot eat. How can we buy in Ratnadeep (our super market)? We need lots of money.
Q. How can we get money?
A. If we work.
Q. What is the happiest thing you remember?
A. Mansi.
Q. Do you like interviews?
A. Yes, I like interviews.
Q. You want to add anything?
A. My favorite stories are 3 Billy Goats Gruff, Cinderella, Rapunzel,
Q. One more question. Who makes you laugh?
A. Choudary mam, Mythily atta, Ranjan mama, Mamma, Myself...sometimes I only makes jokes and laugh.
Thus ended this interview. I was impressed with her take on god, courage, knowledge etc. Always something new to learn when I do this interview. I am also so glad I did not lose these papers. Now to check the other notepads and books for some more stuff I might have written.
Thanks Anjali. Once again some illuminating perspectives my friend.
 |
| Cool huh. Though there's more black than grey. Courtesy - Sagar |
This is what happened.
I found an old notepad the other day with some scribblings on it. Anjali wanted it. I asked her to tear out the stuff with my scribblings and leave it on my desk. Guess what - it's this interview of a couple of years ago. It must be when she was about 5 - the books and television shows are an indication. (Five and a half - Chasme Baddor was released in April 2013 - makes her five and a half.) Save one six month gap, we seem to have it covered now.
Ok, here goes.
Q. How's life?
A. Good.
Q. What does good mean?
A. Nice. Like life.
Q. What do you like about life?
A. My parents, my brother, my relatives, friends, classmates, principal..
Q. What do you like doing?
A. Playing with my friends, jumping. Even if I get hurt I like playing. Dancing, painting...I like ballet dancing.
Q. What are the things you don't like?
A. Eating vegetables, getting scolded by Mamma, making Mansi upset, sometimes we make each other upset.
Q. What are the things you like to eat?
A. Ice cream, vanilla, cakes, strawberry, chocolates..
Q. What do you like to play with Mansi?
A. Treasure hunt, Ice water, Hide and seek, School school, Mummy Daddy, Bowling, Cricket, Soccer.
Q. What books do you like?
A. A mad, mad, mad, world, Blues Clues, Pepper, Panchatantra, Aesop's fables, Enid Blyton's books
Q. What cartoons do you like?
A. Ninja Hattori, Doaremon, I am telling the shows, not the characters I like okay? Chota Bheem, Chutki in Chota Bheem
Q. Movies?
A. Chashme Baddoor, Lion King, Stuart Little... I like that the most.
Q. Why?
A. Characters...I like them that's all.
Q. Do you like crying or laughing?
A. Laughing...because I am a laugher.
Q. What are the things you'd like to have?
A. Good pants because all my pants and jeans are getting holes, then...then...what else....I would like to have an alarm clock
Q. Why?
A. Because these days school starts early, so if I have an alarm clock I can get up early
Q. What do you like about school?
A. I like studying. Knowledge. Maths. Teachers, friends, classmates...like Mansi.
Q. Why do you like knowledge?
(She got agitated a bit at this stupid question.)
A. Because if there was no knowledge on earth I would not know anything. So I can grow, learn, talk, how to end sentences, what I don't know. I don't know somethings. I don't know science. I need to know science. I need knowledge to be a scientist, an architect...see you can't write books without knowledge. You can't do anything without knowledge. I love knowledge.
I decided to veer off this topic.
Q. What do you think of nanna?
A. He's so tall, he's like a giant. He always likes to write. he always makes me write in my new books, alway buys me whatever I want. Always he does the same thing, again and again, everyday he spills my medicines, everyday he keeps looking at the computer. I don't undertsand why he goes to the computer.
Q. What about mamma?
A. I dont have words. She's everything. She's a lion to me. Everyday she goes rushing around the home doing everything and...
Q. What do you think about yourself?
A. I like my body, my love, myself, my brains, my thoughts, my feelings and my toys and things...this is what I like about myself.
Q. Who else do you like?
A. Teachers, parents, God
Q. Who is God?
A. You don't know god?
Q. I never saw him.
A. You can't see him. You can feel him.
Q. Can you feel him?
A. I can feel him. He's inside my brain. I can feel.
Q. How does it feel?
A. First tell me who made me. God. Who gave my nose? Mansi. Heart. Parents. See everything god only. Who gave me water? See everything god can only do.
Q. God is good?
A. Yeah, yeah. Now you undertand why he is inside me. He came inside me just to help me.
Q. Will he be inside me?
A. Yes daddy. God is inside everybody. My favorite god is Ganesha.
Q. What is your favorite food?
A. Biryani, khichdi, lollipop, Dairy Milk chocolates, ice pops
Q. If you want to ask god for one thing what would you ask?
A. I'll ask god to help me in my studies, in my races, in my tough games. I used to ask god only for toys but now I ask only for courage.
Q. Why?
A. Only courage can help me in anything.
Q. How?
A. Courage is my partner. Whenever I have some difficulty only courage is my partner. Courage will help me in everything.
Q. Does anything scare you?
A. Chimu anna comes and shouts and scares me.
Q. What about money? What do you think about it?
A. Helps us live. If we did not have money we cannot eat. How can we buy in Ratnadeep (our super market)? We need lots of money.
Q. How can we get money?
A. If we work.
Q. What is the happiest thing you remember?
A. Mansi.
Q. Do you like interviews?
A. Yes, I like interviews.
Q. You want to add anything?
A. My favorite stories are 3 Billy Goats Gruff, Cinderella, Rapunzel,
Q. One more question. Who makes you laugh?
A. Choudary mam, Mythily atta, Ranjan mama, Mamma, Myself...sometimes I only makes jokes and laugh.
Thus ended this interview. I was impressed with her take on god, courage, knowledge etc. Always something new to learn when I do this interview. I am also so glad I did not lose these papers. Now to check the other notepads and books for some more stuff I might have written.
Thanks Anjali. Once again some illuminating perspectives my friend.
Article in The New Indian Express On December 26, 2010
The following article appeared in my Sunday column 'Un Intended' in the New Indian Express.
Harimohan Paruvu
I hate to say this. But all this fight corruption, save trees, save rocks campaigning is a big waste of time. It will never work with us. Not that we are lazy, stupid or corrupt; we are just culturally rebellious. We, as a nation, hate it when things are forced on us, as the British, our municipal authorities and the population control department found out in the past. When someone tries to force us to do something, we do the opposite. Now what that means is that unless we understand our psyche and adopt ‘opposite’ strategies, we are stuck with corruption, plastic etc forever.
In fact all those who have understood this ‘opposite psyche’ business have used it to their advantage and are now happy, successful and rich. The first ones to figure this psyche out were the politicians who always say something and do the opposite. Soon, corporate leaders figured it out. Then the land mafia, builders, fixers, government – they all figured it out. They say something and do something else. The only ones who haven’t figured it out is the general public which remains confused despite getting the opposite of what they have been promised all their lives. This could be because the public also opposes the manner in which it is supposed to behave when they get cheated, and are happy. Opposing even what they should oppose.
To understand this better, practice applying opposites to everything. For example, if a leader says he will die for the public, it means the opposite i.e. run for your lives. When some party says it respects women and culture, hide them safely faraway. When corporate houses talk of honesty, sell the shares instantly because there is a huge accounting fraud coming up. When governments promise action against erring officials, all complainants can apply for anticipatory bail, as the officials get promoted to more powerful posts. Get it. Apply the opposite.
Now, we can apply this same ‘opposite technology’ for our own benefit. If we don’t want corruption, then, make corruption compulsory. Our countrymen will instantly find ways to beat the system - and end up being scrupulously honest. Or, instead of fighting terrorism, promote terrorism. Budding terrorists delist when they see government directives telling them to terrorise compulsorily. I mean what good is terrorism if it is being promoted like tourism? Or what good is a scandal if it is mandatory requirement for public figures? How can anything compulsory and legal be opposed?
The issues die.
The issues die.
Similarly, we can get rid of the use of plastic, unsafe sex, queue jumping, spitting, scratching etc. For example, if we have a rule that directs the public to compulsorily spit ten times every five meters, the public will do the opposite. They will not even open their mouths for fear that they might spit accidentally. No more plastic, no more sex, no more nothing. The world gets what it wants (peace), the public gets what it wants (to oppose all rules) and the state gets what it wants (to harass the public) - it can even penalise the public for doing the right thing, which is legally the wrong thing. Everyone is happy.
The upside is that things get done easily. Corruption goes, plastic goes, scratching stops. The downside is that life gets boring. With nothing to oppose there will be no drama. All interesting media programs die, except DD which bores everyone to death. It will soon be more interesting to meet one’s family over dinner than watch prime time news. Unless, of course, we make talking to the family compulsory!
Tuesday, August 11, 2015
Chef - Movie Review
It makes you hungry.
Chef is the story of Carl, a middle aged restaurant chef caught between the desire to express himself as an artist and reigning his expression in to create the safe dishes that cater to public demand. His boss and owner of the restaurant wants him to stick to safe, commercial dishes, a route that is increasingly stifling the creatively unfulfilled chef - and probably causing personal problems too - he is estranged from his beautiful wife and has a strained relationship with his son .
A visit by a top food critic to the restaurant causes another stifling duel between owner and chef. The critic trashes the chef. The chef starts a twitter war with the critic and eventually loses his job in a low point in his life. How he finds his passion again serving Cuban sandwiches and yuca fries (and two other items) from a food truck as he, his friend and son drive across from Miami to Los Angeles via New Orleans is the rest of the story.
The critic comes back and bankrolls the chef in a new restaurant. Son and parents reunite. All is well. Why can't people make simple stories like that?
Cute. But all that food makes you hungry. I'd love to eat that Cuban sandwich soon.
Chef is the story of Carl, a middle aged restaurant chef caught between the desire to express himself as an artist and reigning his expression in to create the safe dishes that cater to public demand. His boss and owner of the restaurant wants him to stick to safe, commercial dishes, a route that is increasingly stifling the creatively unfulfilled chef - and probably causing personal problems too - he is estranged from his beautiful wife and has a strained relationship with his son .
A visit by a top food critic to the restaurant causes another stifling duel between owner and chef. The critic trashes the chef. The chef starts a twitter war with the critic and eventually loses his job in a low point in his life. How he finds his passion again serving Cuban sandwiches and yuca fries (and two other items) from a food truck as he, his friend and son drive across from Miami to Los Angeles via New Orleans is the rest of the story.
The critic comes back and bankrolls the chef in a new restaurant. Son and parents reunite. All is well. Why can't people make simple stories like that?
Cute. But all that food makes you hungry. I'd love to eat that Cuban sandwich soon.
Anjali - Let Them Do Their Job, You Do Yours
We were watching a couple of Bollywood stars dancing away as if they were possessed to the beat of a popular song. They swung, gyrated, thrust, shook, vibrated, contorted and did all sorts of high voltage actions in the process.
I looked at Anjali (an avid Bollywood dance-watcher who was watching without blinking an eye), and shook my head.
'Why are they dancing like mad people?' I asked.
She did not turn her head.
'Let them do their job,' she said. And then. 'You do your job.'
Actually I think its the only thing we need to do for better efficiency. Everyone do their job and shut up about what others are doing. Instead we all are too concerned about what others are doing.
Tis the secret to efficient team work. The young lass seems to have a hang of it. Good for her.
I looked at Anjali (an avid Bollywood dance-watcher who was watching without blinking an eye), and shook my head.
'Why are they dancing like mad people?' I asked.
She did not turn her head.
'Let them do their job,' she said. And then. 'You do your job.'
Actually I think its the only thing we need to do for better efficiency. Everyone do their job and shut up about what others are doing. Instead we all are too concerned about what others are doing.
Tis the secret to efficient team work. The young lass seems to have a hang of it. Good for her.
Nice Link - Interesting Pics
Some of India's powerful pics over the years.
http://www.scoopwhoop.com/inothernews/most-powerful-photos/
http://www.scoopwhoop.com/inothernews/most-powerful-photos/
Monday, August 10, 2015
A New Review for 50 Not Out - Life Positive
A review of '50 Not Out 'in Life Positive's August edition by T A Balasubramaniam.
I liked it immensely.
Read it here.
http://lifepositive.com/finecricketlifelessons/
Thanks Bala.
I liked it immensely.
Read it here.
http://lifepositive.com/finecricketlifelessons/
Thanks Bala.
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