Kaun Banega Crorepati

KBC, I guess was launched way back in 2000. It's been 11 years now and it's good to see a show that has been going for such a long time . Those who have been following it reminisce about old contestants. They still remember Harshwardhan Nawathe (first person to win 1 crore Rupees). They talk about the guy who had won Rs 50 lakh and came crashing down to Rs 3,20,000 because he attempted the Rs 1 crore question.

They go back in time when Amitabh Bachchan did his Vijay Dinanath Chauhan gig for Vinod Kambli and Sachin Tendulkar (yes!! I can't help but bring him back to this blog again and again :P ).

In between came Shahrukh Khan, who brought his charisma and style to the show. It was said that he won't be able to fill Amitabh Bachchan's shoes and would be soon written off. But he held his own. He was funny, spontaneous, witty and created his own fan following of the show. He got better when contestants tried to undermine him. I remember the episode in which the teacher who tried to insult him ended up making up a fool of herself. Too bad, he did not return as the host and instead did "Kya Aap Paanchvi Paas se Tez hai", a very crappy show indeed.

And I saw the show today after a long long time and disappointment would be a small word to describe my feelings. Amitabh Bachchan is as good as ever, and it's always a delight to listen Hindi in his deep baritone voice. But has he hired Bappi Lahiri as his fashion designer??? or probably his designer is inspired by Mithun Chakraborti and Govinda's movies of the '80s.

There's too much emotional drama that goes on the show. It looks more like the irritating Indian Idol minus the voting. Probably they will introduce that too...who knows?? Why the hell should I care if the person sitting on hot seat earns only Rs 115 per day, or that he lost his limbs in an accident, or that there is only Rs 100 in the savings account of the contestant. The number of questions have reduced, their quality deteriorated, and strange life lines have been introduced. Worse, they have introduced the fake laughter and applause from the audience. Similar to the kind that we used to have in crappy comedy shows of the yore. That was the last thing one could have done to the game show.

Today, Ranbeer Kapoor came on the show for the promotion of his movie and for some shitty charity campaign which basically aimed at endorsing Pepsi...PEPSI for Charity???? Sounds like an oxymoron or an irony...which ever way you want to look at it.The 45 second clock that keeps ticking has hardly succeeded in making the show exciting. And who designed the sets of the show???? I am losing respect for Siddhartha Basu with each passing episode.....

Watching TV, especially Indian entertainment channels like Sony, Zee etc. has become an ordeal now. Where are the great quiz shows like (BQC, India Child Genius, University Challenge etc.), programmes like Chitrahaar, a decent half an hour news bulletin like Aaj Tak (remember Surendra Pratap Singh...Ye thi khabrein aaj tak; Intezaar kijiye kal tak?????).Males comprises at least 50% of Indian population.Have these entertainment channels (Sony, Zee, Star Plus)stopped making shows for them???? I seriously hope that some day I'll enjoy watching a TV show with family. I look forward to that day...And my heart keeps on singing the song..

Aaj bhi hai baandhe ummeed ki dori...don't lose hope is the moral of the story... :)

Say 'Friend'....

and enter......

---From LOTR

Why do people in relationships think they are unique...more or less they face the same kind of problems...same issues regarding family/ religion/ ego/ past/ present/ future....only the names and contexts change... and yet they look at me with condescending eyes .....and that I won't understand since I have never been in one....

To me they all appear same...who more often than not, confuse affection /lust /infatuation /crush/ pleasure with love...and they talk big about it...had it not been the case, most of them would not have faced break ups...for if you are in love...do you ever "break up"?????

Game, Set and Match :)

So eventually, it has come to this....a close friend of mine is expected to get married sometime in February....can't spill the beans because I have been asked not to...but I can't help myself from writing this post....for I know the couple and feel extremely happy for them....

I still am not the marriage and commitment types...still very much happily single and no plans to change either, but to some extent I realize what a good partner means for people. Maybe, because in past few days I have seen people suffering because they are not able to be with their loved ones, for one reason or the other, some because of their family pressures, some because the other person does not feel the same and a few because of the ego hassles...

I wonder, sometimes, how great it must be to find someone with whom you can spend your life, with whom you can share a good talk, with whom you'd like to have your food, someone who would care for you and your feelings, someone who would stand by you....and very importantly, someone who would respect your family as well....can love be more than that??? I don't know what love is, but for me that suffices..

and thus I feel happy for my friend, who will be married to someone he loves...who fulfills the criteria mentioned above, and probably some more...

So dear friend, I know you will read this...and I pity the girl who fell for you...girls are dumb after all, this marriage reaffirms my beliefs :D ...don't let her go because you are the lucky one, and even though I haven't been in one, I have seen relationships fall because of stupid reasons... you are wise enough to know that :)

My best wishes for both of you :D

A different Independence day....

All my life, almost, I cribbed mostly about situations and conditions around, I was unhappy with my surroundings, with the opportunities, with my failures etc. etc....and when I look back, it was definitely not bad, in fact even good...one learns to appreciate one's life a lot when one realises what others haven't got...

We visited Rajkiya Bal Griha, an orphanage where mostly juvenile kids stay and it was a reality check, at least for me....we have lived in such comfort all our lives that we fail to appreciate our fortunes, the people around us...

It was raining cats and dogs on 15th August....and the situation was as bad inside the rooms at Rajkiya Bal Griha as outside...it was difficult to find a place where you could hide from dripping water from the roofs...the kids there sleep on wooden planks...most of them don't even know where they are from...many of them retarded mentally...with no one to accept them...wearing torn clothes...it was difficult not to get overwhelmed with emotions....

And they were happy...to see us...to find people who at least for one day in their lives cared for them...brought them good food, toys to play and most importantly time to spend...many of them cried when we were leaving.....

I wonder why we went there...probably most of us would forget the day...when we did some CSR...to put it in b-school terms...a CV point maybe..or a story to tell...but I hope that we will find some reason to reach out to them...not for just one day....

I don't pity them...honestly...because I found them with smiles on their faces, with a lot of enthusiasm....I rather pity myself and people like me around...who choose to forget them, and crib because their pay packages are only 15 lakhs per annum and not 20...who are not able to appreciate simple gifts in life...which are luxury to many...

It's important to be grateful...and love life...

Something worth Thinking About

Why I am an Atheist?

--By Bhagat Singh

Hoping and Waiting

India will play England today at Lord's in the 2000th Test Match. Some 4 years ago, when India toured England, India drew with England at Lord's in the first test match and went on the win the test series. Sachin Tendulkar, then 34, was just beginning to emerge from one of the worst patches that he had seen.

He got out cheaply in that test match. I remember saying to my friend, "He missed a century at the Mecca once again....and he won't get another chance since this is his last test match at Lord's...even Agarkar has one there".My friend, a little less enthusiastic about cricket asked me.."Why is this his last test match...he can obviously score a century later.." I chose not to answer the question....It would have been difficult to explain to him that Sachin was almost at the end of his career and probably touring England for the last time. And the next tour was in 2011. Now, here we are in 2011, at Lord's again, Sachin continues to play and defy the odds at the age of 38. I am hoping and eagerly waiting for the 100th century...and the occasion can only be second to scoring the 100th one at the World Cup finals...My fingers are crossed....