TRAINS, TIME DELAYS AND THE PLATFORMS OF JHANSI

In hindsight, this tour can be categorized as ‘WORST’ in more ways than one, be it the train timings that left us on the platforms of Jhansi or the pathetic organization of events at IIT Kanpur or the 70 different species of bugs and insects that kept running/crawling/flying over us in the store rooms where we were put up. So, plainly speaking, this tour had more negatives to it than you can ever imagine.

It has become a practice now for me to blog about a tour I’ve been part of. So when I sat down today to type out my blog post, one thing was clear- considering what all transpired during the tour, there was no dearth of ideas. But all cannot be put down. So I decided to take out 3 main things from the tour that kept coming back to haunt us- TRAINS, TIME DELAYS and THE PLATFORMS OF JHANSI.

TRAINS:

The Chennai-kanpur part of the journey was difficult we thought, considering we had to get down at Jhansi at 1 am and switch trains in a couple of hours in order to get to Kanpur. Agreed, that was the first time I had to wait on a railway platform so early in the morning but considering we had company and the local attention seeker who kept us entertained( in this case, the early morning alcoholic who sat down for a sip in the middle of the platform), time just happened to fly.

The iit bus picked us up from the station at the correct time and if memory serves me right, that was probably the only time during the entire trip that they didn’t screw up. Why I say this is because on reaching the campus, we were asked to immediately report at the ground for our first match, the reason? The team that was scheduled to play that game hadn’t arrived yet! Never before have we gone to the ground with our luggage and oh ya, half the team didn’t brush before the game! No breakfast was provided and the water that was left for us was also below par. The only good thing that happened the whole day was our relatively easy win over our opponents. The next day was an off! Talk about lame scheduling! :/

Next came the stay. 30 of us put up in a small 2 room flat with ONE toilet and ONE bathroom. After 1 full day of fighting and complaining with the organizers, the cricket team(14 of us) got moved to a new room which was no better. But atleast the toilets were good so we shifted. Not that we had a choice really.

TIME DELAYS:

Once again, the organization of events was so poor, the semi finals that were supposed to begin by 8 eventually began by 10. Stupid rules were proposed. Again we had to fight with the umpires and the organizers. Eventually, we lost.

The time delay came back to haunt us. Our bus from iit to the station was scheduled to arrive at 7. I asked them to make it 8 pm considering our train wasn’t until 9.45. They refused and said they had strict rules to follow and that we had to report at the gates by 6.45 and not a minute later. Strict rules they said. When the bus eventually arrived, it was 7.55 and jam-packed. We decided to let it pass but not before letting the organizers know how badly organized the tour was. They didn’t quite understand the sarcasm in my statement! Iit Kanpur! The future engineers of the country I thought!

The train from Kanpur to Jhansi was again hell. Only 6 of the 11 tickets were confirmed, we ended up sleeping in abnormal positions and after 3 hours of that, we landed in Jhansi.

THE PLATFORMS OF JHANSI

The fother muckers in Andhra who call themselves the TELANGANA decided to hold up trains as a show of protest. Our train that was scheduled to leave from Jhansi at 7 am eventually left at 2 pm, the 11 of us having spent a total of 14 hours sleeping/lying down/charging our mobiles/fighting for breathing space with creepy looking insects on the platform outside the waiting room of JHANSI station.

14 hours is a long time and we did happen to come across a lot of interesting characters, Be it the ‘swarna akka’ who kept demanding money every time we stepped into the bathroom area for something as simple as a face wash or the ‘wannabe hero’ I ended up chatting to who’s sole aim was to become a kollywood hero. Some more loose talk later I found out that he had an engineering degree in electronics and instrumentation and was currently on his way to attend his SUB-INSPECTOR interview! :D

The NEW DELHI-PONDICHERRY EXPRESS eventually arrived a few mins past 2. 1 hour into the journey, we realized why that was one of the worst maintained trains in the Indian railways. majority of the toilets didn’t have pipe lines and the few that did didn’t have locks on the doors! The train didn’t have a pantry car and because it was running late, it decided to reduce the halting time at stations. Since we were travelling in a group, we were able to manage with the limited food and water supplies because we were able to split the tasks of buying food and water at the stations. ;) as for the others on the train, god knows how they managed the 28 hours journey! :S

At half past 6, the train reached egmore. We said our good byes and went our separate ways. Within an hour of reaching home sweet home, this blog post happened. Truth be told, whatever I’ve said here wouldn’t quite do justice to the hell like treatment we faced through this entire trip.

If you are wondering as to why this blog post even showed up, I want people out there to know that just because we sportspeople study here on a scholarship doesn’t mean we get everything put out to us on a platter. We do go through things you cant even imagine. And ya we do live on to tell the tale.

SPORTS QUOTA STUDENT AND PROUD OF IT! :D

Oh ya, my laptop arrived home a couple of mins before our train chugged into Chennai. But unfortunately, it was of a different colour than what I had ordered. So it has been returned. The next post would hopefully be from my new lap.

Until next time,

Keep smiling,

Adios!

WHY FALLING SICK IS BETTER THAN FALLING IN LOVE

Medication does strange things to you. Whether it is because of the light headedness that follows after taking a pill or because of the fact that there is ample time for you to reflect on things (which is otherwise impossible considering we are all part of the rat race), one would never really know. But the point is, when we fall sick, take drugs(recommended by your doctor/pharmacist and not weed mind you :P) and go into this light headed trance, we come up with strange questions and theories.

“WHY FALLING SICK IS BETTER THAN FALLING IN LOVE.” this particular one arose when I went down with fever a couple of days back. I haven’t fully recovered yet but I’ve just mustered up enough energy to blog about it.

Read on.

One thing I’ve always been amazed at is the influence movies have on people. So much so that now it has almost become a fashion statement to say that you are in a relationship. Agreed, I’ve met a few really sincere, ‘young but mature’ couples and I am happy for them but then, like I said, it is just a FEW. The rest, well grow up guys. Its not just about the branded clothes, the rs 6 lakhs car, the iMac or your perfect 10 gpa, it is about how you’ve managed to strike a balance between listening to your brain and following your heart. Because once you’ve done that, you wouldn’t confuse infatuation with love, get into a relationship, roam around for 6 months and then break up and start afresh with a new person.

As for me, because I happen to have an amazing spiritual guru/personal psychiatrist, I’ve learnt to do just that. Yes, I do like(love would be a better word B) :D) getting into conversations with girls because there is always something uniquely scintillating about them but then, I always make it a point to never cross the line. Not that I don’t believe in love an al but too me, on a personal view front, now is not the right time. And oh ya, in case you wondered, the spiritual guru/personal psychiatrist I was talking about, she biologically happens to be my mom. :)

One more thing I realized during this period of illness was how much love my parents have for me (of course, being an only child does have its benefits ;D :P). but on a serious note, they were fantastic. It was then that I realized how selfish I have been. Towards dad in particular. Dad is a banker. A really good one at that(when someone gets a good name in gossip, he must be GOOD). But the downside is, he sucks at technology. Computers mainly. So he keeps asking questions, which by today’s standards is elementary. And it irks me because right then I would have been doing something important. Well not exactly but if chatting with someone on fb counts as being important, then ya, I was doing something important. :D so like the self centred, spoilt brat that I sometimes am, I tend to part-answer the questions or at times ignore them. It hurts now because now I realize how selfish I have been. Had a friend of mine in college asked the same doubt, I would have taken time out to explain it to them but my own father asks and I don’t! the modern, self centred youth!

And in case you happen to follow me on twitter(@kihtrak112), you would have noted that I tend to retweet a lot of inspirational stuff. Off late I’ve started posting them on fb too because love it or hate it, fb is too BIG to ignore. The reason? Well, an overdose of medication can lead to an overdose of positivity. ;) on a slightly more serious note, I’ve learned to take things in my stride. I will keep hitting the gym, I will keep sweating under the sun but I will not fret when I fail. Because i've learnt now that Success, like love will happen only when one is not too desperate for it. :)

So friends, think before you act. As for the few who aren’t already into a relationship, don’t be too desperate. Love is beautiful. But it is meant to and WILL happen naturally. Until then, keep loving your parents.

And always remember, money can buy you the best of clothes. But true beauty comes out only when you wear a smile on your face.

So keep smiling,

Until next time

Adios!

THAT FOUR LETTER WORD!

I have always believed that the fairer sex has had it easy. Take even the parliament for example; you have a petition going on for a 33% reservation for women. The Indian society doesn’t really require a girl go to a job and run a family. Am not saying that they don’t, but if it is done, it is seen as an achievement. But the same case for an average Indian male is considered run of the mill. BIASED! BIASED I TELL YOU!

The best example in the current age are social networking sites. This is probably gender discrimination at its worst! Check out this pic for example.

So naturally, when a boy tries to hit on a girl, it isn’t easy. The problem is,

Nice girls are not good looking.

Good looking girls are not nice.

Good looking and nice girls are not single.

Good looking, nice and single girls have strong brothers.

Good looking, nice and single girls who don’t have strong brothers have heavy competition. ;)

And if by any chance, you happen to brave past the competition and do all you can to get to the top of the line, those ‘good looking, nice and single girls who don’t have strong brothers’ come up to you and say “hi ANNA, nice shirt!”

Anna?!?!??!? :S alrite, GAME OVER! :@ ;D

A word of advice to all my testosterone charged mates, if ever you happen to notice a cute girl walking by, always remember , its always better

to “SAY NO TO ANNA!” ;D

Keep smiling,

Until next time,

Adios!

FALLS, STRIKES AND BUTTER CHICKEN.

People living in and around purasaiwalkam, Chennai must be familiar with MOTCHAM THEATRE. A theatre that you would wanna go to if you’d like to see Jackie chan, will smith and Angelina jolie among others conversing on screen in tamil. In simpler words, they play tamil dubbed versions of the latest Hollywood movies. How do I know you ask? Well I’ve been to one of them. No no don’t look at me like that, I had no idea before going in that it was a dubbed version! :D so ya, this place has been around for quite a while now. And you would most definitely not associate it with a group of smartly dressed kids in branded clothes and funky sneakers.

So naturally, when the 15 of us assembled there at MOTCHAM at 7.30 that morning, the passers by were in for a shock. But don’t worry, we weren’t actually gonna go in. What we had planned for was MANKATHA in ESCAPE CINEMAS at 8.15. Getting there was easy. The difficult part was actually watching the movie. With a crowd that seemed reluctant to shout/hoot/whistle or atleast clap with us, it was no fun really. The movie was probably the only sore point of the day.

Second stop: FUN CITY. True to its name, this place was fun. Apart from the trouble we had in finding the girls who seemed to have disappeared halfway through the movie( me and Deepak even considered searching the showrooms to check if you people had slipped out to shop :P), there was not much delay. The hammer strike was fun but the best was the MINI TAGADA. It was funny while the first batch was at it but when the girls went in it went from funny to over the top hilarious. Smriti flew. Monali flew. As for radhika, even her slipper flew! ;D btw, nipun jain, you were one lucky ass! B) ;D

Photos were clicked, games were played without swiping the card, the girls danced on a machine(I put this up specifically because I want the guys to realize that u danced on a frigging machine and not at the restaurant when we asked you to! :O :D) and eventually, after we had managed to build ourselves quite a fan following there, we left.

Next stop was DOWN UNDER. Govind and his group played like pros. Umar top scored in our group. Smriti kept knocking down all pins but one. Me, mohan and naren turned photographers, Deepak broke a plate posing for a pic and radhika had her balls kicked. As to how that is even remotely possible, you’ll have to ask her. B) :D

A pretty long photo session followed and because I was sharp enough to notice the ‘hold them by the hair and pull out their heads’ look on the managers face, we managed to leave before he decided to kick us out. :D

Final stop: FAAZ RESTO LOUNGE. Umar and abu’s new restaurant. I had already been to this place once during the construction phase and to see it completed now was most heartening. The salt and pepper boxes looked cute, the fish tank was grand, the sofas were comfy and the food was yumm! As for the KD IYER in our group, his/her’s(anonymity maintained to save the person’s ass :D) only concern was that there wasn’t enough chicken in her briyani. But if you’d ask me and Deepak who were sitting with that person, we would say that they managed to clean up half of the chicken served that day. B) :P

Another round of photos followed. By the time we left, one thing was for sure. The 9/11 might have been famous till then but to this group of 23, 10/11 is what would stay on. ;)

Love you all!

Keep smiling,

And until next time,

Adios!

CAMPUS DIARIES: SASTRA UNIVERSITY valam, thanjavur.

There’s a certain charm to college cricket tours. Whether it’s the competitive spirit going around or the chance to rub shoulders(not literally though B) :P) with pretty girls from other colleges, there is something definitely special about these tours.

This particular post is about my recent tour to SASTRA UNIVERSITY, tanjore. The COLOSSEUM which is their sports fest has always happened to be lucky for me as far as cricket goes. But this post is not gonna be about cricket. It is gonna be about all other things other than it.

The COLOSSEUM has ALSO been a very memorable sports fest. The first year I went, I remember sitting under the makeshift tents in the cricket ground and chatting with a couple of friends well past midnight. Never, I repeat never before had I done something like that. The last year was also unique. The whole team had left to chennai after winning with only me and my friend staying back to collect the trophy. As fate would have it, a murder had occurred that very day and by the time we left the campus, the campus that had been quiet until then was suddenly a bee hive of activity. truly, that was one incident that I will find hard to forget.

Well this year was much much more. A new friend, new places to eat and new memories to cherish. As always, the matches were a breeze. It was the things we did after these games that is worth putting down here. :D

DAY 1

After the first game, me and a few of my friends set off along the highway for dinner @ APPU MESS. A small little eatery but something that had mightily impressed my friends. The walk along the dark highway with nothing but the stars for company was something I had never experienced before. It was scary, dangerous and enthralling at the same time. Scary because there were speeding cars racing towards and past you , dangerous because of the potholes along the sides of the road( the big ones could leave you fighting for life and the small ones would leave you with a sprained ankle if you ever happened to step into them) and enthralling because the night sky was such a beautiful sight that particular evening. After a total of 15 halfboils(take my word, they were the best I’ve tasted in the country) between the 5 of us, we set off back to our rooms.

DAY 2

After the semifinals, me, senti and SRK[ Shiva Rama Krishnan to be more accurate :P B)] set out to tanjore city. FOR LUNCH! :D after a round of the best limited non veg meals I’ve had in this part of tamilnadu, we set out to shop for SRK’s big interview. The dresses were brought but the trousers had to be altered. The shopkeeper gave us directions to a reid&taylor’s showroom somewhere near the bus stand. As to how the reid&taylor showroom would agree to alter a vanhuesen pant, we never knew. But since there was no other option, we set out. Only to realize that it was not reid&taylor but this place!

Talk about innovative marketing!

Dinner was again, great! But as much as one loves food, when it isn’t light on your stomach, it can have nasty consequences. Like a growling stomach and lack of sleep. But then, when u’ve got a friend you can text and still be confident of getting a reply well past midnight, it really helps. Oh I almost forgot, amidst all this, I also happened to go searching for the switch that could turn off the corridor light that happened to be flashing straight at our particular room, going all the way till the end of the corridor only to realize that the switch had in fact been right outside our room! and ya, did I tell you that our room was actually a classroom(the desks had been moved aside and blankets had been put up in their place. Of course, NO pillows! B) :/) and where 15 of us were put up? One of those few unique things about college sports fests. :D

DAY 3

The finals were done with. After winning the game hands down, we got lost in our discussion. A discussion that had been carried over from the previous day. Something that included a wide array of topics. A few as complicated as life. And girls. I mean, we can atleast understand the concept of life. But girls, nope too difficult! B) the details I wouldn’t wanna divulge here but it was most illuminating!

We happened to stay a night more than the other teams because our train wasn’t scheduled to leave until the next day. But then classes were supposed to begin the morrow so we were shifted that night into one of the hostels. Since the hostels were also full, what we got was a long oddly shaped room that could have been best used as a store room. We later came to know that the people accused of the murder the previous year had been temporarily locked up in that very room. Oh ya, WE SLEPT WELL THAT DAY. B) ;D

DAY 4

I am normally a very early riser. But that day, I decided to give myself a break considering our train wasn’t until 2 pm. After a leisurely breakfast we got back to our rooms only to find it locked. We were supposed to leave by 11 and the guys who actually had the keys didn’t arrive until 10.30. but then, being guys, all we needed was 45 mins to pack and get ready.

A small fight later as to who was to carry the trophy and a few tender coconuts and a bus ride later, we were on our train(a train that was unnaturally slow!) from trichy, heading back to home sweet home.

Like I said, the COLOSSEUM was truly special. :)

And ya, we also happened to successfully break the trophy while getting back to Chennai! B) when we went to meet the DIRECTOR, SRM UNIVERSITY a couple of days after reaching college, the trophy had one out of three stars missing. Well, they’ve promised to repair it by the time we meet the VICE CHANCELLOR. But that is another story. :D

Until next time,

ADIOS!

10 DAY YOU CHALLENGE #10- ONE FAVOURITE PIC OF YOURSELF

Ha, its finally over!
the 10 DAY YOU challenge was great to begin with but as the days went by, it got increasingly boring to write. TRUE STORY.
anyways, here's one pic, a very recent one at that, that i've really admired. it was taken just a couple of days back at a family function. the reason? it was the first time i was wearing a veshti. :D


But ya, this being MY BLOG, i went ahead and added one more pic. so enjoy. :D



until next time,

keep smiling,

adios!