football fever

football fever
Originally uploaded by Archana's.

Football world cup + summer heat + England + Manchester triangle + crazy fans + white and red + beer + cigarettes + cops on horses

what you're seeing is absolutely nothing! Unfortunately my camera's battery dried out right after this picture...before the event started... have i seen these many people? this crazy?? with so many beer bottles? not even when India plays Pakistan are we like this!! This is one football crazy nation where football comes way before life and its stars are Gods reincarnated! To us, Manchester happened entirely due to different reasons...it cud as well be our last time together.... we didnt know England was playing Paraguay today until the last but one station. The train station remained abnormally uncalm and the triangle, insanely chaotic under the scorching sun. People from all corners of mid-England started pouring in as time moved closer to the event...its even better with a pint of beer i tell you! By the time we step out of selfridges after buying Gucci sunglasses, its worse!! Guys [well girls included] are clotheless! Its like being in an exhibition at Palace grounds, the crowd moving around, no air to breathe, just cigarettes and if when we looked up, we could see heads of tall guys if not their naked shoulders...jammed!! we're nothing but happy....its new.... something that doesnt happen everyday :P! we find a place....just so that we can watch half the screen. they start singing vindaloo and we follow humming the lyrics on the screen... guys behind us are chanting "Kick the fuckin losers out ta daa da daa da" we hear, sniggering. they boo paraguay, we stay good.... they boo the tree thats restricting views "pull the fuckin tree down ta daa da daa da", we're good really good! they shout when the team arrives, we do tooo... at the start of the match, to every corner my vision can reach i see white and red and faces over that.... looks like the entire arena is painted red and blue! England score the first goal, we're still there, dumbed by the noise. We've had our share, we cant take it anymore, not this madness, not the hunger.....we take off to a Spanish tapas restaurant and luckily England won 1-0, so we didnt miss much!!

so you like me?

so you like me?
Originally uploaded by Archana's.

Took a couple of pictures of these kids when I was in Bangalore... Though I did enjoy taking pictures of them, I dont see myself taking such pictures again..
Some of them do look good, and into it went a little bit of cropping...

DSCN3568
Originally uploaded by Archana's.

DSCN3552
Originally uploaded by Archana's.

DSCN3540
Originally uploaded by Archana's.

DSCN3554
Originally uploaded by Archana's.

intensifying samaachaarrr

Junior doctors at the Victoria government Hospital and seven others go on a strike after harrassed by a patients husband. It was a news channel that reported the news first and well, thats how i got to know and this is how it was broadcasted 'Govt doctors in Bangalore go on a strike' and I'm thinking what the hell??!! I wont go into the details why I think so, but I think for any doctor to go on any kind of strike, no matter what, is absurd!! think its irresponsibility...?

kalyani

kalyani 2
Originally uploaded by Archana's.

Alrighty....This is a Kalyani [a holy waterpool] in Nandi. Most of you would know Nandi as the nearest hill station/ tourist spot to Bangalore. But the name 'Nandi' comes from the village-town that is at the bottom of the hill. This temple/monument is the oldest of its kind you can find in and around Bangalore. The architectural style includes that of the Cholas, Kadambas and Hoysalas. Click on the picture for more pictures
Its special to me cos my parents were married here, I was born close by and well...its home..

for all the 'religionlessness' and 'no belief in god' thingy, i was a bali ki bakri :D!! someone wanted me to post this particular on the blog.... :) taken during our house warming ceremony/ grihapravesham  

Update :Two more die totalling 3 in all... Several more including security personnel and police men are injured at the funeral site...

ಬಾನಿಗೊನ್ದು ಎಲ್ಲೆ ಎಲ್ಲಿದೆ?
ನಿನ್ನಾಸೆಗೆಲ್ಲಿ ಕೊನೆಯಿದೆ?
ಏಕೆ ಕನಸು ಕಾಣುವೆ?
ನಿಧಾನಿಸು ನಿಧಾನಿಸು...

An icon, perhaps the biggest ever of the state dies and this is what it means...
Funeral today with State respect and honour for the actor at Kanteerava studios, a memorial to be built
His eyes donated as per his wish to Narayana Netralaya
Ofcourse, schools/govt offices and organisations remain shut yesterday and today
Advani's Bharath suraksha yatra called off in Karnataka
Any form of entertainment to remain shut today....cinemas/ TV channels etc etc
Mass hysteria throng the streets, gloomy weather over the state, life comes to a total standstill.
Tears grip the faces of the millions of fans/fellow movie stars descending to see the man one last time
State in flames..Mob turns violent, more than a hundred vehicles burnt in the city
Numerous lathi charge, tear gas attacks....several injured in stampedes and other violence....
A man is reported to have died after being shot by the police near Siddalingiah circle, a hotel is set on fire..
A film stars death, whose many movies out of the 200+ people have watched growing up, a screen idol who gave a new dimension to the 'Gokak Chaluvali' exactly 25 years ago, who was honoured with Padmabhushan, Dadasaheb Phalke, Karnataka Ratna, all this with him belonging to a Schedule Cast, truly does deserve the tears with which he is sent away....perhaps not the violence?

okay....my camera has not yet been repaired ...unfortunately, the sea water infection continues to worry me at right times.. as you can see the picture is a ramanavami effect..this one a particular fav cos of two expressions..  

far too long..

ok, ok, i owe an apology...i've not visited blogs recently and i've not updated mine too. and that is cos i've been busy[finally!]....no, not with the university but back at home in Bangalore. yes, Bangalore! its been almost 10 days that i've been here and not a day have i stayed at home let alone check my mails and update the blog...so i guess this is called "busy" ?
I kind of felt wierd when i landed down, maybe it was a splitting headache, but i was shocked...one question ringing in my mind 'bangalore?' maybe i was away for a lil too long or maybe i needed some sleep....or whatever it was, its gone and i'm back to be being Archan/Achchu/Archu. And life just keeps getting better and better...
- with every face...around people who love me and whom i love, whether being pampered or even having a pillow battle for that matter.
- with every question...one thing most asked, 'why on earth have you lost weight?'. normally i donot care abt it, but i admit, it kind of gets me feeling good nowadays ;D
- with every song...well actually its paathshaala from rdb. Some Rang de Basanti influenced crazy friends forced me to race with them! in true rdb style...me n my car and them on their bikes....so if you see somebody racing along the road amidst heavy traffic you can be sure its us..
- with every mile...i've been driving nonstop for hours together and people with me are only happy to take a break from the traffic chaos....the no of vehicles are mad, me madder with my usuals like "oye!! yaako road nim taatanda?" [thats something like "oye...the road belong to your grandfather huh?"] its maddest to be following any rules in India...so break it all!
- with every movie... ha!!! i watched V for Vendetta again! kill me if you want to but i was at pvr cinemas today with my bro to watch 'crash' but its an 'A' certificated movie, not for below 18 year olds! so we changed it to V for Vendetta on Gold Class!! paid Rs.500 per ticket and as their logo goes, we were treated like stars! but if you ignore the crap, you can watch 10 movies at the same theatre instead of 1 for the same price. anyways, it still was the best luxury money can afford at any cinema in blore..
- with anything new...my new phone is an absolute hit than my 30GB ipod [which is obv better in terms] and i always knew it would be! Its a nokia 7280...I'm satisfied with the features and the main reason i chose it, it looks special! its not common, its unique and it makes you want to stop, turn back and take a look at it! absolutely! its a hit with my dad too though he's got a better one and finally, he's getting to know why i like stuff like these... :D
- with rajini/bhajini/ghajini.....its a tamil movie. I heard it as rajini, xxx thought it was bhajini and it was actually ghajini..Asin and Surya?! entertainment of the week....the movie was crap but we loved every bit of it, just like anniyan or chandramukhi [which btw, will be released in german and turkish lang] Apologies to all the Asin fans but I didnot quite see her as someone special...
- with every late hour of the nite...maybe darna mana hai at 2 in the nite or some insane people singing along with usher for yeah/ kanye west's gold digger [which btw is my mum's fav song at the moment :P] or fighting with them to see who's stronger..
to put an end to this post...with every step...that i took on commercial street today, the dust and the smoke, has infected my throat
so i say goodbye for now. I'm tired and i need some sleep..

V in Vain

It is our friendly neighbourhood masked superhero who sports black skintight clothes and pretty hair…. but that’s not our tacky story is it? The villain is the evil communist govt in a former USA world running the UK. Our dear V is the guy who survives the tortures and our heroine is the doll faced civilian falling in love with this masked guy who rescues her from a couple of govt-rowdies, delivers a few wacky lines, saves her from her dreadful past [he , also wants to save the country, in case you didn’t guess]..…An utter mediocre story, ‘watch-able’ actions and stunts [by matrix people] make it a V for vendetta…and of course, the destruction of big bens!
The TV’s say it’s a hit…. the crowd at the cinema enjoyed the movie which leaves an ‘I’ in introspection. Off late I have had success in becoming a critic! Maybe the movie is bad or a tiny little miniscule possibility is that maybe I was not in a mood…but oh! the movie is not all that good!

And Sonia Gandhi…
She’s smart… whether or not she was honest is another issue. Holding an office of profit? the bjp must be so brainless to not to have a strategy! What they did is detrimental to their own party…. making them infamous among the commoners.

sexy...

update : talking of music, pay attention on this!! The raghudixit project! Listen to his vocals, his voice will stir your soul....listen to his music, it doesnt leave your heart untouched.....listen to the lyrics, your mind will lead on... Not many people can create a successfully appealing blend of folk, carnatic and rock....it is impossible to classify the kind of music this man hums.....what i can classify it as is something different, something original, something beautiful, something rocking! Raghu is the talent, and his music a passion.....donot leave without listening to his music and that is an.....!

getting a few days off from school implies sticking to the television and books...i like watching nevvs...and ibn does it good! when a programme was on a repeat, i skip to B4U music..India top ten. I've not been following Indian movies or music much so better late! rakhi sawant is with her remix of 'budda mil gaya'.....i almost throw up my brunch! now for all of you who donot know, rakhi is India's Jordan with as little clothes on her body as possible...if you donot know jordan, please do some google image search on her. I feel sick, I go back to read something abt India and wonder where Indian music is heading to.....its either 'I'm no more an Indian' punjabi's screwing the bulbs and tapping their feet to punjabi rap/hip hop or these dumb remix stuff filled with 'look at me you idiot, i'm hot!!' girls at night clubs....
Incidentally, a friend here asked me 'are girls in India like that?!'
why doesnt the censor board make a classification of whats porn and whats not?

edited.. 

edited.. 

edited, edited, original....first snow 

but then it feels like christmas!

the heaviest snow fall i've seen to date....finally it pays off after almost 4 months of below freezing point and the other days, just under a 5... 

xxx philosophy

' A man enquires 'is she drunk?'
she sits up and slaps the man...'I am not drunk, I'm Indian!!' 'drinking rots the mind, the body and the soul and stops one from accessing the inner truth. Hindus want that truth, we will not drink!' '
[exaggerated at times but truly hilarious....sarah macdonald's Indian adventure called 'holy cow']
I've not understood why even the word 'drinking' attracts 'i'm offended' glares among us Indians....what could be so bad?! for women though, its more like a crime....no good homely girls from good households drink. If you do, you're too bold, upfront and spoilt...and thts the gen. perception. well, it is not good or healthy [normally, disregarding the warmthness wine gives to the uterus], but its not bad too. considerations are not for health here....its just a social stigma which brings a bad name to the family and to the girl....

icecream brings me a cold!!
this is more scandalous than expected....
>morality...how can a person who drinks be less moral? this reason sounds the silliest...so counting it out..
>westernised?? people who drink are westernised...we've all got that element in us. its just branding it westernism or not...so this is ruled out too..
>socialising...who drinks to socialise??? people normally drink with people or without people to get on a high or maybe just cos they 'WANT TO' drink....nobody drinks because its 'needed' to drink while getting to know other people....not that i advocate it..
>health concerns...reality matters..you are not prone to suffering from serious liver disorders or pancreatitis if you drink once or twice in a month.....believe me and believe WHO, you'll get nowhere near to it! For the fact, some amount of alcohol is said to prevent heart disease and strokes to an extent. So, I guess the health factor is out too....
women's rights....i've never believed in fighting for womens rights. why fight for something thats yours? when its about doing something thats right or wrong....i donot think that drinking is wrong. its as normal as eating an icecream once in a while...and if its wrong/bad for some, i donot understand why....

affinity...

UPDATE : for comments you can use the one at the end of the post....by 'rate your music' :D

comments...i'll try to fix it up this weekend...
Jai raventhorne....one extraordinary character thats beyond compare!
rebecca ryman, the author of olivia and jai, is actually fictious....this is all i could find out abt her! anyways, i picked up this huge novel, the biggest one i've read.....and it surprised me that i finished it in two days time!
an amazing love story set in british calcutta...an affinity between a half blood bastard and an english 'mem'....good read but i say, was too interested..
and whats the thing abt da vinci code....it did go on sooo wonderfully well but end tak nahin gaya..