Notebook
A pair of sandal’s worth!
I am grinded. I am molded. I enter those damned machines, I would have never entered if I had it my way. I get thrown away, I get picked up and then I get stuffed in. Ah, how would you realize the suffocation I feel…
I wake up only to find myself being stared at by several pairs of eyes, ah, I don’t quite like the attention I am getting. As if that’s not enough, I am required to be tested, only to be rejected. What’s more, I am rejected only to be replaced by my water allergic counterpart. I can’t help thinking you are nuts. You people thing too high of yourself to reject us. No wonder you don’t feel the least bit of remorse doing so. Yet, I forgive you. It’s not entirely your fault. When you are given so many choices, its quite obvious for you to reject. As a matter of fact, I didn’t like you either.
I go back to lay on the selves, on display for God knows how long, waiting for my turn to be picked, waiting to care for a pair of lovely feet. Sometimes the air conditioning gets on my nerves. Summers can be a bliss, but for the power saving movement that catches the trend, they are real testing times, those. Not to mention the adverse chills during the rains, when I can’t help wondering where the power saving movement hides itself.
A blue moon later, some kind person falls in love with me, and proposes to live with me…. Err.. Proposes I be with him.. I accept it. *blushes* (Coming to think of it, I feel I was wrong when I thought the person fell in love with me. Very.)
I am very tired after the day’s journey and I lay down to sleep, only to be woken up for a fashion show. I get angry and I recent to biting whatever I can lay my teeth on. Really, its so much fun. Pity, it didn’t last long, as my once sharp teeth are now grinded down. Having no other choice, I try getting along and find its fun as well. I get adjusted to my new life. Everything goes on well until I get kidnapped.
One moment, I was lying quietly waiting, the next I find somebody coming, picks on me and walks away. I scream, Help! Help! But my owner is nowhere to be seen. You disrespectful idiot. If only you had watched upon me, like my owner used to, this would never had happened. Never!
A glance is all I get, even when I am moments away from adoring your beautiful err.. not always so beautiful legs, protecting them from the beautiful earth, and not so beautiful earthly matters. I am a slave at your pair of legs, another disrespected creature. Having me on, you feel pretty comfortable to go to any place, yeah; any, with a stress on the last part! I am the footwear. Yeah, the. Nothing less than the.
I am already missing my owner…. Now with an ‘ex’ to it.
Bday bash..
@nits4ever post ceremony!
Its ok, we will agree he is sober. Don’t go by his face. P.S: I am not sure what @mukeshkini is indicating!
The day that was, 14-Apr-2011.
A human friend of mine, nithesh a.k.a @nits4ever, happened to become a 20 year old antique, an occasion that calls for some celebration and as a friend I couldn’t just resist visiting the relic, for one.
A weekday meant @mukeshkini out on work and as it so happened even @akshy8 was into busy times as well. Matter of fact-ly, I am no free wanderer either, hell! yeah! I was busy with something as well. So the celebration was called for on the auspicious or not auspicious time at 10 that night. Off we went, a cake in the hand and some slyness under our sleeves. We reach his place only to find the bday boy out babysitting 😉 err.. whatever! he came back a while later set the stage for the desert chopping all single handedly, the job including an erroneous task of getting a plastic stool and a little knife. The cake was snapped at, so that we could remember what originally lay on that little piece of silver covered cardboard. Everybody was filled due the celeb being a post lunch session and hence there was no urgency whatsoever in cutting the cake. To add to it, there was a little antics show by the local top cat who had laid his/her, god knows which’s eyes on the cake and was ready to go to any extent to get it. We witnessed a little circus show and as in the circus the animal was given a tidbit for its performance. Anyway, it was cut, a little piece offered to each one of us, a little light chit chat and it was time to head back. Well of course there was the little package of birthday bumps he was offered, which was immensely enjoyed by everybody but himself, not that he was meant to enjoy anyways. It was only after returning that I came to know that the number of bday bumps had to be corresponding to the age attained. A pity, he got a away by a very big margin, quantitatively alteast.
Right. We didn’t put on those conical hats, nor did we blow any balloons, nor burst them. There wasn’t any of those shiny little stuff falling from the sky, nor anything else that usually exists. There wasn’t any music or dance to follow, nor any games. A dinner was probably on cards, but since we already were done with ours at home, we had nothing to do but come back. 😀
Yeah, that story ended. You can leave as well. Ciao.
The roller-coaster ride
Travel and work, two idiots I happened to befriend of late, never seem to leave me alone these days. They are such good friends, that I cant help spending time with them. No matter what situation I am in, they are always there for me. I am lousy, they are there. I am hungry, they are there. I am tired, they are there. I am sleepy, they are there. I am…. they are still there. I must confess I am very lucky to find such loyal friends and am very thankful to them for having happened to meet me. Otherwise God knows how wonderful a part of life I was going to be missing. Ok, that little piece you just happened to read is what I am giving as an excuse for the near disappearance from the word of blogging.
Getting back, the little subject here in consideration is a ride back home. So for those of you who are bored or already feeling the need to show me a beautiful wide angle shot of your mouth or already fallen off asleep, the whole drama here is boarding a bus, and on reaching the destination, getting down. Yeah, you were right. Your wide angle display is justified. I have this liking for writing and well, you are witnessing the result.
Range: 350-650/head.
Duration: 3-5hrs.
Purpose: To scare the daylights out of you. (erm its always a night ride so there is no daylight anyways!)
Procedure: To provide a seat in the upper berth and let things work its way.
Disclaimer: The farther at the end of the bus your seat lies, the more fun you derive!
An overnight journey aboard a bus, the best way to travel would probably be on a sleeper coach. Atleast I am one of those who prefers sleeper coaches to those sitting ones. Nothing but sleeper works for me. Not even those near sleepers with a prefix semi going ahead of them. Such a relaxed way to reach your destination and what’s more you could even get down to work in the morning.
No! Not if you take an upper berth and as a bonus, you being in the last seat. Hell! No! The drivers on the Bangalore-Udupi/Manipal/Kundapur bus, err. any of them for that matter, they are all the same; they have this strange disease where in they seem to forget the being of a 3/4th bus behind them and whats more find it to be a nascar and really take it for a ride! An urgent requirement of arrival back home coupled with a busy season, and your love for sleeper, ends you up with a lovely nest perched right at the back, where if you are kind enough to stretch a little you could be hugging the back of the bus.
You board the bus, settle down. You are still in Bangalore, everything feels good. You feel the driving is good, making a note to yourself to tell others about this particular one, how it is different form others and hey, I wonder why people run away from last seats. Its really not all that bad. The journey slowly begins, as your thoughts drift by and you are soon asleep. Bang! From blacks to blues, the next thing you know you are on a roller coaster ride, an expensive one in that. Did you just say the driver is good? Screw you! You were wrong. The ride continues with no interval. And you desperately needed one. You estimate the time of stoppage. Another bang! ‘Watch out dude!’, you shout, knowing fully well that for one thing, you wont be audible and secondly, he is on his way to finish line and nothing can stop him in his endeavor! You are tired, and every now and then you cant help falling asleep, only to be pulled out in catching yourself from falling down situation. You begin to wish there were safety belts so that you could atleast not worry about falling. Whats more your bag is have a ball of time and if you don’t bother to curtail its freedom, it will have no hesitation whatsoever in bungee jumping. Only catch being that the bungee jump is one way. Your precious laptop is in its care and it doesn’t in the least seem to have a concern about it. So you, being the more responsible of the two, takes the responsibility of taking care of the bag in addition to taking care of yourself. Every now and then it tries to take a sneak peak of what lies in the world beneath and your job is to curtail its movement. Your hands ache from clinging on, your legs ache from controlling yourself and your bag, you are jittery from lack of sleep and to add to it, being awake has made you hungry too. You try sitting so that you can find something from your bag, and no sooner you do it, you feel yourself spinning. You resist the need to eat. You resist the need to sleep. You resist the need for stillness. You resist the need for peace. You wait patiently, and yeah, as the saying goes it indeed pays off. You finally reach your destination and you are free to get down.
Conclusion: The roller-coaster ride is successfully completed.*
Remarks: You are now ready to take another ride.
*In our appreciation and as a bonus for taking part, you get a free subject to write an article upon!
Life…(iv)
Life… is like a cup of coffee that’s too black, which means its too strong. What do you do? You integrate it with cream, rather you make it weak. But if you pour too much cream in it, you won’t even know you ever had coffee. It used to be hot, it becomes cool. It used to be strong, it becomes weak. It used to wake you up, now it puts you to sleep.
Life…(iii)
Life… is like a ride on a misty morning, which is cool, quite fun at the first thought. But in spite of being in broad daylight, the visibility is next to nil. A ride, little too fast, aligns itself in the line of risk, while a little slow, in the line of missed opportunities. Stopping, completely out of question. Its all about being on the right path, speed, taking in the immediate vicinity, always bearing in mind, the uncertainty ahead; the only way one can get through it into clear bright times ahead.
Life…(ii)
Life… is like a box of chocolates – a cheap, thoughtless, perfunctory gift that no one ever asks fro, non returnable because all you get back is another box of chocolates. So you’re stuck with mostly undefinable whipped mint crap, mindlessly wolfed down when there’s nothing else to eat while you’re watching the TV. Sure, once in a while you get a peanut butter cup or an English toffee but it’s gone too fast and the taste is gliding away. In the end, you are left with nothing but broken bits filled with hardened jelly and teeth-shattering nuts, which if you are desperate enough to eat, leaves nothing but an empty box of useless brown paper.
life…(i)
Life…is like spent inside as enclosed space when its raining outside. So you’re struck with nothing else but yourself, cozily wrapped around by a blanket. Sure, for a few moments you enjoy the mixture of warmth and chill, but its soon gone and you wish to be out of laziness again, craving for the summer, to spend time out in the hot sun, tanning yourself, digging your teeth into fast-melting ice-creams. Back to reality, you want to get out, but the rain hinders your desires. Sure you can go about your way and while returning, happy that it ain’t raining, but there is the sense that something is out of the way, and you realize its your umbrella. It was raining and you couldn’t go without one, but it soon stopped and you forgot to get it back.
Dhobi Ghat, a view
I have been wanting to do this little thing for quite a while now, and I guess I have a beautiful opportunity to do it with the movie, Dhobi Ghat. I wouldn’t call it a critic in the least, its nothing more than an opinion, better put, my take on the movie. I don’t believe in the star stuff, so there ain’t going to be any stars, just plain bland text to bore those who are free enough to read further. So here goes…
I landed up for the movie on the last day of its running, the thursday for a morning show, which meant I gave up some of my precious sleep for the sake of it. Not that I was disliking it or something, I did want to watch the movie anyhow, but you know, just for the sayings sake. Ok, whatever, the theatre was more than almost empty, but for we few people and that said something. I took a seat and as if on cue, the movie began.
Its a movie involving three characters, well no, there is another in fact, uh, as an after thought everybody is a character in it! Well, whatever. It begins with an art exhibition where one of the character Arun (Aamir khan), a heavy smoker, an artist, who happens to be a silent sort of person, prefers to stay away from his own exhibition crowd ( err.. why would you want to exhibit, if you didn’t want to interact? Ah, money.. but you could get it by selling without an exhibition too, no? whatever) and as a result happens to meet the other character Shai (Monica Dogra), an investment banker type who comes down to India to pursue her interests in photography, and things happen over night, and morning sees her being dumbed already (it wasn’t all that literal as the way it sounds, well the jist was that) She then finds a dhobi, the third character, Munna (Prateik Babbar), who literally turns out to be her guide. He happens to nurse a dream of becoming an actor and hence asks her to shoot a portfolio of his. While she goes on about shooting mumbai, this artist fellow happens to shift his house into a new area and finds some tapes, featuring a depressing story filmed by Yasmin (Kriti Malhotra) narrating her life story and the place, mumbai. That’s about the ingredient part. For the salad, all you need to do is toss it up, well and good. Enzoi 😛
I don’t think I made much sense there, but well, the movie was only that much and some little make-up, if you know what I mean. For the first half an hour or so, I didn’t know what to expect of the movie and was deciding on my options, sleep or walk out! The music that inspired Arun to paint somehow seemed very disturbing to me, probably because I was already confused and it only added to it. I decided against both options and I chose well. I liked how the video had a sort of retro feel and the wonderful rural Mumbai showcased made it the buck’s worth. The black and white stills showcased included some marvellous shots and as a person interested in photography, it was a point of light to me.
Apart from that, the story actually doesn’t lead anywhere, if that’s what you were looking for. Its only of those unconventional movies where you have a story despite not having one. Its about those people whom you meet accidentally, spend some time along with, and move on. Those little, unconventional moments is what makes the movie stand out for me. To each his opinion, I would probably expect a mumbai-kar to feel he has wasted his bucks and the more precious time. Even the non-mumbaikars might feel so, for there isn’t the conventional ending that you have in other movies. But for those others like me, you will like it!
Everything apart, Prateik does well in his role as a dhobi, rat-killer and guide. Aamir as ever gets on with his role like being his very self. Monica did her job well, except for the part of dubbing her dialogues. Her first time you see, so a little lag, well.. happens. Kriti does her job well enough for a person shooting mumbai for the first time 😉
The movie itself ran only for 95 mins, so you can’t expect me to go on and on..
Let me know what you thought of it, if you dared to watch it in the first place, of course!
Opportunity knocks…
As the days went by, life went on, one fine day,
an opportunity happened to knock my door,
asking me if, welcome it, I was willing to
to reject it, a fool I wasn’t , my arms spread,
welcoming the opportunity, wide in embrace.
Thoughts of success, spread fast and furious,
happiness blooming in thoughts, themselves;
willing, I was to work for it, take it what may,
shed my sweat, toiling for it.
Time went by, as things began to turn,
for the good or bad, I could only wait,
to know, as the story found a twist,
putting my patience and cool on test.
Impediments cropped up as the once set things
seemed to tumble, the base quiet shaky, cracking
open to the world. Determined to hold on, very,
I was, my months of work in line of fire, that was;
still quiet, patient, waiting, vigilant and watching.
The opportunity share decrease, a result that sighted,
a deep loss it would be, continuing on the path further,
a try to clear up, smoothen things, was all I could do,
yet, it was certain, it wouldnt work, a namesake, it was,
work that required, not presistant experimentation.
Already set up, to both aspects I was, making them
perfectly feasible, a decision which saw me out of it,
with no sense of regret, only happy and cheerful.
Another door shalt open, the belief, an opportunity,
welcome, meant solely for me, the time shalt come.
– De Nocturnal Poet
Photography – Camera modes
Cameras are wonderful objects with a all the assortment of wonderful features. In order to get the best from your camera it becomes important that you know what your camera features. Every time I discovered the usage of some new feature on my camera and told my mother about it, she used to say, ‘That’s why i always tell read the manual first’. So here is a sort of basic manual about the different kinds of shooting options available in almost all the digital cameras.
Broadly classifying, there are two categories into which the camera modes can be put under. Automatic and manual. As the words go, those modes that come under the automatic mode are preset to perform certain functions and you will have nothing to do with the controls whereas those modes that come under the manual include some or almost all controls requiring adjustment by you.
Automatic Modes:
Automatic Mode
I suspect no one will need any introduction to this mode (as it seems everybody use this to the maximum extent). Auto mode tells your camera to use it’s best judgement to select shutter speed, aperture, ISO, white balance, focus and flash to take the best shot that it can. With some cameras auto mode lets you override flash or change it to red eye reduction. This mode will give you nice results in many shooting conditions, however you need to keep in mind that you’re not telling your camera any extra information about the type of shot you’re taking so it will be ‘guessing’ as to what you want. As a result there might chances when you wanted to focus on one thing but the camera had a mind of its own, where you wanted twilight, the camera thought ambient light better and so on.. Having said that, you would only be a fool to not use it at all, for in times of urgency, you wouldn’t have time for all the settings and by the time you are done, the shot is gone.
Portrait Mode
What the portrait mode does is, it sets a large aperture(small number, in case you find the terms confusing) which will help to keep your background out of focus, thus giving attention to your subject. This mode works best when you’re photographing a single subject so get in close enough to your subject so that your photographing the head and shoulders of them. Also if you’re shooting into the sun you might want to trigger your flash to add a little light onto their face.
Macro Mode
How many times have you tried to shoot a heavy close up shot and found that the focus wasn’t as you wished it to be. Macro mode lets you move your closer into your subject to take a close up picture. It’s great for shooting flowers, insects or other small objects. When you use macro mode you’ll notice that focusing is more difficult as at short distances the depth of field is very narrow (just millimeters at times). Keep your camera and the object you’re photographing parallel if possible or you’ll find a lot of it will be out of focus. You’ll probably also find that you won’t want to use your camera’s built in flash when photographing close up objects or they’ll be burnt out.
Landscape Mode
This mode is almost the exact opposite of portrait mode in that it sets the camera up with a small aperture (large number) to make sure as much of the scene you’re photographing will be in focus as much as possible. It’s therefore ideal for capturing shots of wide scenes, particularly those with points of interest at different distances from the camera. As it uses a small aperture, you might also want to use this feature to shoot images in which you want the whole of picture in sharp focus.
Sports Mode
Photographing moving objects is what sports mode is designed for. It is ideal for photographing any moving objects including people playing sports, pets, cars, wildlife etc. Sports mode attempts to freeze the action by increasing the shutter speed. When photographing fast moving subjects you can also increase your chances of capturing them with panning of your camera along with the subject and/or by attempting to pre focus your camera on a spot where the subject will be when you want to photograph it. In other words, you can use this mode for all purposes which need a fast shutter speed.
Night Mode
Probably the most innovative of the automatic modes, this is a really fun mode to play around with and can create some wonderfully colorful and interesting shots. Night mode (a technique also called ’slow shutter sync’) is for shooting in low light situations and sets your camera to use a longer shutter speed to help capture details of the background but it also fires off a flash to illuminate the foreground (and subject). If you use this mode for a ’serious’ or well balanced shot you should use a tripod or your background will be blurred – however it’s also fun to take shots with this handheld to purposely blur your backgrounds – especially when there is a situation with lights behind your subject as it can give a fun and experimental look.
Movie Mode
This mode extends your digital camera from just capturing still images to capturing moving ones. Most new digital cameras these days come with a movie mode that records both video but also sound. The quality is generally not up to video camera standards but it’s a handy mode to have when you come across that perfect subject that just can’t be captured with a still image. Keep in mind that moving images take up significantly more space on your memory storage than still images.
There might be those other modes too, such as sunrise mode, sunset mode, fireworks mode, snow mode, food mode etc. etc.
Semi-automatic Modes: What they basically do is, give you control on a certain feature and adjust the other features accordingly. Semi-automatic coz, in spite of having some control, you still don’t actually control the exposure.
Aperture Priority Mode
This mode is really a semi-automatic mode where you choose the aperture and your camera chooses the other settings (shutter speed, white balance, ISO etc) so as to ensure you have a well balanced exposure. Aperture priority mode is useful when you’re looking to control the depth of field in a shot (usually a stationary object where you don’t need to control shutter speed). Choosing a larger number aperture means the aperture (or the opening in your camera when shooting) is smaller and lets less light in. This means you’ll have a larger depth of field (more of the scene will be in focus) but that your camera will choose a slower shutter speed. Small numbers means the opposite (ie your aperture is large, depth of field will be small and your camera will probably choose a faster shutter speed).
Shutter Priority Mode
Shutter priority is very similar to aperture priority mode but is the mode where you select a shutter speed and the camera then chooses all of the other settings. You would use this mode where you want to control over shutter speed (obviously). For example when photographing moving subjects (like sports) you might want to choose a fast shutter speed to freeze the motion. On the flip-side of this you might want to capture the movement as a blur of a subject like a waterfall and choose a slow shutter speed. You might also choose a slow shutter speed in lower light situations.
Program Mode
Some digital cameras have this priority mode in addition to auto mode (in a few cameras Program mode IS full Auto mode… confusing isn’t it!). In those cameras that have both, Program mode is similar to Auto but gives you a little more control over some other features including flash, white balance, ISO etc. What it basically has is some pre-determined exposure programs. A certain aperture value with a certain shutter speed. There are different combinations available for choice of your liking.
Manual Mode:
Manual Mode
As the name goes, in this mode you have full control over your camera and need to think about all settings including shutter speed, aperture, ISO, white balance, flash etc. It gives you the flexibility to set your shots up as you wish. Of course you also need to have some idea of what you’re doing in manual mode so most digital camera owners that I have anything to do with tend to stick to one of the priority modes.
This is in brief what the camera mode does. Even though your camera does not feature manual control, you could use the automatic modes to your advantage. For example where you need shallow depth of field, you could use the portrait mode, while a wide depth of field would mean landscape mode. If you wish for fast shutter speeds, you could go for sports mode, while for slower ones you could go with the night mode. Thus its about using the control to your advantage that matters in the end. You could even get wacky and try different moods for different other purposes and see the effect they bear on your final image.
Hope the next time you are out shooting, you will find these modes more flexible to use and end up giving you better shots. Until next time, enzoi shooting.
Photography – Choice of camera
What does one require to be a photographer? A camera, an eye and a finger.
Its as simple as that. All you need to create photographs is a camera. With the advent of competition, there are various companies in the market which produce digital cameras with various controls functions and all the stuff. So for a person who wishes to take up photography the first problem comes in the form of the choice of camera model. To make it easy, here are a few notes to consider:
– Budget: Its a key and plays a major role in the choice of model. In other words it helps cut down the choices to a minimum. So if my budget were to be rs.10,000 I would not be required to look at cameras costing above it. Hence the first step in deciding on a camera is to fix your budget.
– Requirements: Once the budget is set, decide on what you require. In today’s competitive market, the cameras are filled with so many options, most of which you may not need or never use. So deciding on your requirement becomes quite important.
1) Control: The amount of control that you wish to have helps cut down your choices by more than half. If you wish to take up fine art photography, then you will require manual controls such as aperture priority, shutter priority and full manual mode in your camera. Most of today’s point and shoots dont offer manual control so you might need to search for the one that does.
2) Genre: You would probably not know what interests you right now, but know it could help in the choice of your camera.
3) Usage: Today most of the camera come with Li-ion batteries which have longer life as compared to the AA where in you will be required to have back-up. So if you intend to shoot for longer period choose the ones that use li-ion battery. Having said that AA is nowhere a don’t pick choice. One of my favourite point and shoots canon Sx120IS uses AA and the back-up is pretty good.
4)Brand: Strictly speaking its not an option, but liking towards certain brands can definitely have a say on your choice of model. Say, you need manual control, the nikon coolpix doesn’t have any model which offers it, so you will be required to look out for canon or fuji or some other brands which do.
The best camera: How many times have you felt that moment when you thought, I wish I had my camera right now. There isn’t a single day when I don’t feel it (Don’t judge me by that statement. We will deal with it some other day). Its of no use if you have the best in the field when you hardly take it out. The best one is the one which suits your style and more importantly the one which you bother to take along with you almost everywhere. There is no reason the tiny camera in your cell phone could not be the best one for you. As the famous saying goes, It ain’t the camera, but the man behind it that matters. (women folk, no offence, you are included in it. *wink*)
Here are a few cameras reviewed as best in their range by the team of BETTER PHOTOGRAPHY.
– Below Rs.20,000
1) Fujifilm FinePix AV100 – Rs.4,499 (12.2MP)
Who: Casual users and families who want to shoot a lot of video too.
2)Canon PowerShot A495 – Rs.4,995 (10MP)
Who: For hobbyist and families who are tight on budget.
3) Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H55 – Rs.14,990 (12.1MP)
Who: Point and shoot users who do not need manual control, but want a fast AF system and great image quality.
4) Fujifilm FinePix JZ300 – Rs.9,999 (14MP)
Who: Serious hobbyists who want an all-in-one budget camera.
5) Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD – Rs.14,999 (12.2MP)
Who: Those who want extra zoom but do not mind carrying some extra weight.
6) Samsung WB650 – Rs.17,990 (12MP)
Who: Travel enthusiasts and wanderers.
7) Sony Cyber-shot DSC-TX7 – Rs.17,990 (10.2MP)
Who: Fashion-conscious youngsters who love to shoot video and panoramas.
8) Fujifilm FinePix F80EXR – Rs.17,999 (12MP)
Who: Hobbyists who want the advantages of a compact body, but need better results in contrasty light.
9) Olympus STYLUS TOUGH-8010 – Rs.18,995 (14MP)
Who: Adventure enthusiasts who indulge in a lot of trekking, mountaineering, rafting or swimming.
– Rs.20,000 – Rs.50,000
1) Fujifilm FinePix F300EXR – Rs.20,999 (12MP)
Who: Enthusiasts who want the flexibilty of zoom with the advantages of the EXR sensor.
2) Canon EOS 1000D (Kit) – Rs.25,295 (14.2MP)
Who: Advanced amateurs who on a tight budget.
3) Canon PowerShot S95 – Rs.26,995 (10MP)
Who: Pros who want a pocket-able camera that produces high-quality images.
4) Nikon D3100 – Rs.27,250 (14.2MP)
Who: Anyone who needs a fantastic entry-level DSLR for shooting stills and video.
5) Canon PowerShot SX30IS – Rs.28,995 (14.2MP)
Who: Wildlife lovers who do not mind compromising on quality for additional zoom.
6) Olympus PEN E-PL1 (Kit) – Rs.29,995 (12.3MP)
Who: Those who need superb, high-quality photos but do not like the bulk of a DSLR.
7) Panasonic LUMIX DMC-FZ100 – Rs.34,990 (14.1MP)
Who: Those who want a super zoom camera with every possible still and video frame.
8) Sony Alpha NEX-5 (Kit) – Rs.34,999 (14.2MP)
Who: For those who want an efficient still-video DSLR in a small size.
9) Fuji Real 3D W3 – Rs.39,000 (10MP)
Who: Those who are willing to pay a premium to use 3D technology.
10) Nikon D90 – Rs.43,450 (12.3MP)
Who: Serious hobbyists who lay equal emphasis on both handling and performance.
11) Canon EOS 550D – Rs.45,295 (18MP)
Who: Pros who need a light backup body and film-makers.
12) Sony Alpha 55 (Kit) – Rs.49,990 (16.2MP)
Who: Anyone who wants to shoot high-quality action photography on a budget.
– Rs.50,000 – Rs.1,50,000
1) Canon EOS 60D – Rs.65,295 (18MP)
Who: Film-makers who want tilt-and swivel LCD for shooting videos.
2) Nikon D7000 – Rs.74,450 (16.2MP)
Who: Hobbyists who want tons of still and video features, or pros who want an excellent backup body.
3) Canon EOS 7D – Rs.87,995 (18MP)
Who: Sports and wildlife photographers.
4) Nikon D700 – Rs.1,39,950 (12.1MP)
Who: Pro shooters who want outstanding quality in low light.
5) Canon EOS 5D Mark II – Rs.1,41,995 (21.1MP)
Who: Landscape photographers and videographers.
– Above Rs.1,50,000
1) Canon EOS 1D Mark IV – Rs.2,59,995 (16.1MP)
Who: Sports and action shooters who want the extended reach of a 1.3x sensor.
2) Nikon D3S – Rs.2,89,950 (12.1MP)
Who: Sports photographers, photojournalists and wildlife photographers.
3) Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III – Rs.4,12,995 (21.1MP)
Who: Those who wish to use canon glass to make wall-sized prints, but also need pro-level autofocus and built.
4) Nikon D3X – Rs.5,24,950 (24.5MP)
Who: Professionals who need to make giant-sized prints with incredible detail.
Having said that, there are other great models out there which you might need to look out before you make your choice.
I hope it helps you choose better. In case you have any queries kindly contact me so that I can be of some help.
Get that camera ready so that we can get down to some shooting stuff soon.
New tidings…
The last I was down here, was to pen about some journey onto somewhere and the fact is that its been like some ages since that!
I am all rusty and completely out of writings way these days. The last I wrote on paper happened to be an exam paper! For the reason behind this absence, I blame TWITTER! Yeah, the very same one, probably through which you found out about this post and are reading it now, the devil which has confined my thoughts to 140 characters. My review on a read book, 140 characters. My thoughts on something, 140 characters. My experience on an outing, 140 characters. 140 characters, 140 characters, 140 characters. 140 characters was every where. Short and sweet seemed to become a etched in motto. Coming to think of it, I more often than not think it usually went to become short and complex.
Ok. Now that I am done with the blaming part, lets get down to what I came down for, which is nothing. I am only weaving words to form sentences and sentences to form paragraphs and paragraphs to form a write-up. So pardon those cut off topics, lousy start ups and whatever else. I am only scraping off the rust and painting the whole surface. You are but on looker who is very keen on witnessing the rejuvenating process. Well, if you are, so be it. Only don’t blame me later on, you have been warned well in advance.
I guess you would still remember that last day of the old year. You were probably participating in the count down at some party or standing besides some vehicle along with a bunch of others, with loud music playing or rather sleeping tightly(which actually looks a better option now) waiting for the clock to tick, twelve while I was down town looking at people dance, no I couldn’t call it that actually, well, whatever, and the next I realize there was fireworks coz it was already past twelve. shey! no countdowns, no loud cheers, no nothings. Bare beginnings. What happened to be a full solid plan in some-body’s words, which I went through, happened to be reach and return, only that. I will break even with that fella someday, so you don’t have to worry about it. The new year is already a few weeks, but since I didn’t announce it (140 characters isn’t enough announcement, I need a blogged one), I now formally announce the arrival of the new year and wish you all, well whoever is still reading, which you obviously are, a happy new year. You might have wished me personally, @replied, called waiting all the while while the damned networks were busy scrambling, or rather spent a precious rupee and sent a message which reached only the next day, but all that doesn’t count. Oh yeah, even if you sent a message with the advance wish so that you could keep up with the wished whilst remaining in your free message quota, that doesn’t hold. And since I wished you now, you are to reciprocate by commenting to this post. I believe you have some courtesy, no? We will soon see.
Team India did well to begin the year with a victory in the t20 match against SA, or was it in the last year? I keep forgetting the dates. well, never mind, years later who will be bothered about it anyway, 1st of jan or 31st of dec, both will be included in the same year. They also lost an ODI, then miraculously won one, probably coz everybody had long slept expecting a well deserved loss. I was pleasantly surprised to hear the victory, first thing in the morning. Speaking of surprises I was very much surprised to hear Sania won a set against Henin! The moment I saw her clad in white and green, I knew she wasn’t going to win it. She changed to blue, but it was already too late! nevertheless for a person who fears clearing the nets, she played fairly well, with some wonderful flukes and a heavy dose of felix felicis (liquid luck according to the fictional harry potter). Of course she probably didn’t take the correct dose for she would have otherwise won it, no?
The squad for the world cup is announced and we have some ups and downs in it. The selection committee always feels its got the best. Its the other side that we need to see. Joginder Sharma feels his omission from the team is a shocker! After what he did at the t20 WC some years back, yeah that was some years back and he still seems to be in the hangover. Shreeshanth thinks he didn’t fully believe in himself, he forgot his belief didn’t matter as long as the selection committee didn’t have faith in him! Yet, he was in good form and should have probably been picked, so that, if nothing else, we could at least use his antics to our benefit. As an afterthought we have antics veteran bhajji, so sree can as well be forgotten for now. We have some excellent horse power in the team, but pity the horse is very prone to injuries. Yuvraj believes he is in the team because of his six sixes in the t20 WC and that his experience could be of crucial usage in times of need. I must say, Mr. Yuvraj, its not a nursery rhyme that you repeat whenever you want to. By the way why is everybody still in the t20 WC? We are speaking about its longer version. Any ways, Piyush is now the times most influential person of the month! That was expected, wasn’t it?
You ride a bike? You probably do. The next time you think about going out biking, think about that stiffness of yours. If you are that blogger like me who hasn’t blogged for ages, it means you also don’t have all the exercise you need and your body is quite stiff. So think twice. I don’t mean to stop you, in fact if you are around here somewhere lil up and down of Manipal I would suggest you too to visit kudloooo (the oos for the hangover effect, not that if works of course). Around 60kms from Manipal, its a wonderful place for a stretch workshop. The climbing and descending would be enough to give you some effect of the stretch workshop. In case you feel good, which on the day you will(For the workshop announces its results only a day later. Strict rules followed compulsorily), there are a lot of mountain collapses where you can try your climbing skills. For those photographers out there, pack your heaviest of lenses, also don’t forget your tripod, for that will do you much good. See that your companions are lazy enough so that they don’t offer to carry your weight for you, else the workshop wont have the desired effect you see! I almost forgot, the main attraction of the place is a falls, so while you are there enjoy a relaxed swim or a soothing massage from the falls himself.
Ok. My exercise is done. Thank you for your patience. Will let you know if I need this session sometime again. Ciao.
Ah, wait. I titled the post new tidings, so let me pen down something for it. Lets hope the new year, which has already begun and probably already decided what it has got in store, which again probably by now is already covered with a sheet of dust, given the ultimate care we give, bring new tidings for us full of richness and harmony, happiness and joy, love and peace. Let the rotten past be dumped into the nearest municipality bin, let the wonderful today be enjoyed to its fullest and let the unknown tomorrow be full of surprises. Amen! Err.. I myself didn’t fully comprehend what those tidings were all about, so don’t bother too much about it and since you have already wasted a lot of time reading this junk, waste no more, leave!
Its a psychological disorder in the human being that as long as the end of the window isn’t in sight the reader keeps reading. I ended twice and still you haven’t called it quits. You are still following the words which means you, like me are beginning to enjoy this whole thing that doesn’t makes much sense. We must probably meet for a coffee or something so that we bore ourselves a little more and yeah, that would give me another reason to begin with this whole procedure all over again. That’s it. This is the end of the window. Over. Nothing more. Done. Close and get back to your work.
It’s my life…
Travelling on de journey through life,
a thought on every step, shedding light,
on de various aspects of life, teaching me,
de technique to survive. I am learning…
I learn when de self is satisfied,
others needs, hardly a few care for.
There can be no reason for fights,
enmity, a prejudice, sometimes is.
Priorities set themselves, people
become, so friends for de calling,
things seem good, falls never betrayed,
that truth, realization was soon to bring.
Every step was a new world,
a few stepped along with me,
a few more joined in, few left,
I learnt I always walked alone.
Experience, situations taught me,
de hard way as it happens to be,
you hardly got a refill for a pen,
use and throw, they usually were.
This little world, a mirror, it is,
only yourself, every person reflects,
What they are, you realize,
but its too late to apologise.
Where a new world begins, a new hope takes birth.
A few more masked people entering your world,
to unearthing identities, when it goes back again.
What is right, de world never looks at,
their way, when done, things are right.
Where work fails to seek recognition,
confrontation showing what you already knew.
Out of nowhere, like a ray of hope,
a faint light in de distance, you were.
Walking towards thee, making sacrifices,
never bearing witness; a result of darkness.
When de distance finally looked covered,
de guarding light proved to be blazing fire,
de distance too near, de heat inescapable,
bearings insufferable, a victim, I could only be.
Weariness of de journey was taking it toll,
realization of being alone made it only worse,
born in de process, as a result; de writer,
seeking enlightenment, a path with no spare time.
Every step was a new world,
a few stepped along with me,
a few more joined in, few left,
I learnt I always walked alone.
Every step, a story in my life,
how far you understand, in your ability,
it lies, another step otherwise which,
is only fair, thy name, to be reserved in.
– Nocturnal poet
Cannons of Taxation
Tax, a mere three letter word is capable and does bring about tension on faces of people. We come across quite a lot of people who prefer not to understand the term for the simple point that it is complicated. So it is necessary that we know what tax is, before getting into other things.
In simple words or to say in a lay man’s language, tax is nothing but the payment made by a person (individual, firm, company, trust, etc.) to a regulatory authority, i.e. the government. It could be either the central government or the state government. Tax is divided into two types – direct tax and indirect tax.
Direct tax is the tax which is paid directly to the government.
e.g. Municipal tax, Income tax, etc.
Indirect tax is also tax paid, not directly, but indirectly.
e.g. Suppose a person purchases a pen worth five rupees, a small amount of it, say twenty paisa would constitute indirect tax which he pays along with the price of the pen. Now the retailer pays a part to the wholesaler, who in turn pays it to the manufacturer who in turn pays it to the government. The point here is that the tax is paid. But unlike direct tax, it is paid indirectly.
The Income Tax Act is not just framed to squeeze out money from people, which is unfortunately the common notion among many people, even today. It is formulated on certain principles based on which tax is levied. These principles are known as Cannons of Taxation.
The Cannons of Taxation was first introduced by Adam Smith in the 18TH century in his famous work, Wealth of Nations. According to him, there are four cannons viz. equality, certainty, convenience and economy. But with the passage of time, the cannons increased which now includes elasticity, flexibility, simplicity and diversity.
CANNON OF EQUALITY
The cannon of Equality is based on the principle that all subjects are equal in the state. Hence it is necessary that all subjects support the government in their endeavours equitably. Equality means equity i.e. the proportion of their ability to pay as also income they earn. So it goes without saying that higher the income would attract more tax and also higher income would be taxed at a progressive rate. In simple words, equal people should be treated equally and unequal people, unequally.
e.g. For the Assessment Year 2010-2011, rates of Income Tax taxable on Taxable Income is as follows
Income below 1.6 lac – NIL
Income between 1.6 lac to 3 lac – 10%
Income between 3 lac to 5 lac – 20%
Income above 5 lac – 30%
Now a question may arise as to whether the slab rates mentioned above forms equality? Yes, they certainly do. It certainly is an obligation on the part of the rich to pay for the welfare of the other sections too. So the basis of taxation is to share, and share equitably.
Even in case of a woman assessee and a senior citizen, the concept of equit comes into play. The basic exemption limit for woman assessee is 1.9 lac and a senior citizen, 2.4 lac.
CANNON OF CERTAINTY
This cannon talks about tax being certain and not arbitrary. The time, quantum and manner of payment should be clear and certain. Smith: “The tax which each individual is bound to pay ought to be certain, and not arbitrary. The time of the payment, the manner of payment, the quantity to be paid ought all to be clear and plain to the contributor and to every other person. Where it is otherwise, every person subject to tax is put more or less, in the power of tax-gatherer, who can either aggravate the tax upon any obnoxious contributor, or extort, by terror of each aggravation, some present or perquisite himself.” Certainty is needed not only from the point of view of the tax payer but also from that of state.
Income tax amendments are proposed on the budget day (28th Feb) so that when the Previous Year as per the I.T. Act begins, there is clarity and certainty in the minds of the people as to the I.T. propositions applicable for the P.Y.
CANNON OF CONVENIENCE
The Cannon of Convenience is based on the principle of being readily and easily assessed, collected and administered.
Assessment includes computation of tax and submission of Returns to the Regulatory Authorities. Income Tax is computed on Taxable Income earned in the Previous Year and is paid in the Assessment Year. In cases where the tax liability is greater than Rs.5,000 it is payable in three instalments i.e. on or before 15th September, 15th December and 15th March in the Previous Year. The administration is through the Income Tax Department which also looks after the process of assessment. If due to any reasons out of the assessee’s control, if he is unable to pay tax or does not pay tax, an interest/penalty will be payable.
CANNON O ECONOMY
This cannon means that the tax ought to be contrived as to take from the people as little as possible and bring most of it to the treasury for the purpose for which it is meant. It is in some one or the other ways that taxes are frequently so much more burdensome to the people than they are beneficial to the sovereign. IT is in some one or other of these four different ways that taxes are frequently so much more burdensome to the people than they are beneficial to the sovereign.
e.g. A popular opinion is that, though the state collects a significant amount from the vehicle owners as road tax, the purpose does not seem to be met as the roads don’t seem to get any better.
We now see a few cannons which have come of late based on passage.
CANNON OF ELASTICITY
This in simple means the tax system should be elastic and flexible and not rigid. Same amount of tax irrespective of income is a rigid tax which would bot be favoured by the people. The rates of tax which can be increased or decreased through the union finance budget every year is an example of elasticity.
CANNON OF FLEXIBILTY
The cannon of flexibility is built from the point of view of the government. The flexibility is in a manner that rates, rules etc. can be changed every year through the finance budget. The tax is collected on the requirement of the government. It may increase for a few assessees and not for all.
CANNON OF SIMPLICITY
This cannon talks of tax being simple. The famous KIS model, meaning keep it simple. There should be a mix of both direct and indirect tax.
e.g. The rates of income tax payable by a corporate assessee is 30% on taxable income plus surcharge plus educational cess @3% on the sum. In simple words it is very simple!
The moment the tax system gets complicated the door of corruption and tax evasion tends to open.
CANNON OF DIVERSITY
The taxation system should be well diversified to include both direct and indirect taxes. They should be approached in a variety of ways. At the same time it should include a large number of taxes which are economical. It should be seen that the people who can afford to pay should be made to do so as it is for a cause.
e.g. A cess on purchase of petrol for the cause of tsunami.
To conclude it is always seen and felt that the people at large dislike the very fact of being taxed through tax. Under such a circumstance an indirect tax is very much suitable as people feel the pinch very less. But then, indirect taxes, many a times may not serve a few cannons. A direct tax then is disliked by many though it serves many a cannons of taxation. A blend of both – direct and indirect taxes in such a way that the tax payer pays it happily and the state deploys it to the best advantage.
This happened to be the matter for my first ever seminar, all thanks to Mr. Sridhar Kamath for the wonderful opportunity.
Why can clearing CA exams be difficult??
“Days back, the memories freshly watered,
a thirst to convey, deep hunger to vent out,
the break, as if cool breeze blowing around,
taking along with, the experienced words;
now, weaved, stale though seemingly fresh.”
You have about two months after PUC before the exam to prepare. As you glance by the syllabus you feel most of it is dealt in PU, so its hardly a big deal. Moreover its a multiple choice questions! Just need 100 out of 200! The probability seems quite near to 1!
Why then, do you end up flunking?
– MCQ yaar!:
Multiple choice questions aren’t as easy as they seem. You might feel; answer toh wahi pe hoga, bahut aasaan he! But once you see the options, everything seems correct unless you are absolutely sure. Further, every option would be related to the question, so an oversight might as well make you mark the wrong answer, and you thought you had got it right!
– Writing off a subject:
Its a common practice for you to write off a subject as ‘chalega’. You ask a non-maths student how is he finding maths, his reply would be I am not reading maths, just about 25 marks, so wont be a problem. He fails to conceive the fact that he isn’t a master in the other subjects (accounts, law, economics and stat)
– Negative marking:
I have answered 160 questions. I will surely pass. WRONG! You tend to over see the fact that there is a negative marking for every question you have bluffed! You lose a mark for every four wrong answers, which could as well be the reason for you ending up below 100, where you could have actually passed!
A few things to be noted so that, these can be avoided!
– Don’t underestimate MCQ’s. Get your basics strong, for that is what you will be tested on. Before you look at the options, think about the answer. Once you are sure about the answer, look for it in the options. If its present, done. If not, you know you are wrong.
– Never write off any subjects as irrelevant. Study as much as possible. You might be a non-maths student, or non-economics student. That’s not an excuse to write it off. Its any day better to get something by studying, instead of getting nothing, by not studying.
– Avoid as much bluffing as possible. You might feel chal yaar mila to ek mark milega, ek do galat hua toh kya farq padta he! Don’t be in such a state of mind. Failing costs you six months! Bluffing could as well be the reason for above 100 to fall below 100. Bluffing to a certain limit is allowed. Only to a certain limit.
– Tuition/coaching is not actually necessary, but that totally depends on the person in concern. Don’t go by others words. If you feel you cant understand studying by yourself, then you need coaching. Also by going for coaching you can be sure of completing the portion. How useful it is depends on how well you comprehend.
– Pile of reference books, notes, etc isn’t necessary. Follow a single book. Reading too much will only confuse you. Say, two books contradict each other, which do you believe?
– A few months of “dedicated” study is enough to get you through CPT.
CPT toh aasani se clear kiya par ye IPCC!!
– Preparation v/s non-preparation:
What generally happens is that when a student clears CPT, he will be high on spirits, decides to write both groups. But then, the nine months spell works its magic on him, making him decide on one group, and in the end his preparation would be at such level of readiness that he ends up writing the exam for the sake of writing it. There are also those others, who write to see what they are up against. They fail to realize that every experiment of theirs would cost them six months. Being prepared and feeling tensed on seeing the paper is one thing, being unprepared and feeling tensed on seeing the paper is a whole different thing all together. For one thing they are unprepared. In addition to that the paper comes with expertise to make even the well prepared, sweat. When the actual exam comes, they would be facing double pressure, one, as a result of their previous experience, the second being, its no longer a practice paper! Hence its important that you decide well in advance how you will be going about with the study and stuff. Its always advisable to clear in the first attempt. In CA, failing is not at all an issue coz its very common, but failing can prove costly, if it adds to your fear of clearing.
– Pre-conceived notions:
A student’s usual adaptation is that questions usually appear the way they usually did, a pre-conceived notion based on the previous questions that this would be what I am up against. WRONG! CA exams are an exception to it. Never expect a question to be simple. Never expect a question to be like you have learnt it. Never expect a question to be like it appeared before. In fact never expect a question. Never expect a particular patter. Never expect anything…
– Theoretical approach:
The other thing that usually students are used to is theoretical approach. Of course, that’s what happens else where but for CA exams! They are an exception to everything. It will be the most practical paper you can ever think of. Even a theory subject will seem practical after facing a CA exam. If you are still in the world of question and answers, then stop dreaming. Wake up! “The question paper setter’s thinking begins where yours stops.”
– Time & efficiency:
The questions set would usually would be such that an average student would be able to complete answering the paper within the allotted time. Doesn’t work so with CA exams. The paper is usually set at such pace that even if you know everything you wont be able to solve them. The paper doesn’t provide for time to think. No time to understand the problem. You are expected to know everything. 100% efficiency would be insufficient to finish the paper. You can expect your fate. You challenge the paper, you will always end up losing. It wise to be smart in answering the paper.
– History v/s relevance:
Its usual practice of students to write the whole story where the climax is asked. What is expected is, to-the-point answers. You write history, you only end up wasting time that you don’t have. The other dis advantage of writing lengthy answers is that in the process, you tend to miss out what is actually required to be mentioned. History doesn’t mean anything to the evaluator. He knows better than you. If he doesn’t find what he seeks, you don’t get what you want.
A few DO’s/DON’Ts:
– Its a professional exam:
As soon as you have decided to write IPCC, make it clear to yourself that this ain’t your semester paper, where you wake up on the day before your exam, and still come out with a distinction. Plan your course well ahead, keep enough space for uncertainties. You never know when something might crop up. As far as possible, try to avoid writing for the sake of it.
– The paper will never fail to surprise you:
Again as said this ain’t your semester paper wherein you could as well have become the paper setter, for, you already know what you are up against. No matter what anybody says, never assume anything if its going to make things seem easy! Yeah, coz that’s never gonna happen.
– Practical approach:
Right from the beginning take a practical approach, theory subject is no exception! It will help to a very great extent.
– You are half dead before the exams begins:
Each day seems like ages, you wait for the exam to approach, nah! not so soon.. the anxiety and wait will half kill you. (Course, the exam does the rest of the job ;)) Get over it.
– Avoid discussing topics with people knowing more than you:
Discussing with others is not at all bad, no doubt, but not on the day of exam. What generally happens is, you go to somebody with a doubt, he, already knowing it, says its quite simple, its like this, this, this.. What then happens is he raises a question over and above your doubt. Lo! your went with one doubt, you return with two! You are already carrying enough burden, you don’t want more! Also its important to remember not to discuss about a paper after its done. “What’s done can’t be changed, but what’s to come can be done better.”
– Have your own way of dealing with things:
Just because somebody is doing something some way, it doesn’t mean you need to go the same way. Going the same way isn’t a problem. The problem is that it might as well not work for you! You have nobody else to blame but yourself.
– Pressure:
One thing that a CA student knows properly inside out is, what is pressure. Learn to handle pressure. The more cool you remain, the better for you. Seeing the paper you feel you know nothing, or maybe you just have 30mins to go and you have completed only two/three questions.. many such situations might arise, where in if you can’t keep your cool, you end up making a mess of everything. Not just that, it has an adverse effect on your confidence! The sooner you realize that the first paper is just the beginning, the better. For one paper, you cant afford to screw other papers. It will be very costly. More than time loss, what matters more is the confidence loss! ” What is past is lost, you can’t bring it back. What you can only do is let it haunt you.”
– One or two good reference material will suffice:
The more books you refer the more chances of messing up yourself. Its important to bear in mind that solving more numeric problems correctly will not necessarily mean superior conceptual knowledge. Its important that you concentrate on conceptual study. Problems are nothing more than applications. If you are not sure of what is what, you will never be able to solve problems. Its advisable to dig deep, rather than digging wide.
– Nine months of time is sufficient to study enough, to clear the papers easily, provided the study is done in accordance with the requirements.
Started with the thought of covering IPCC, but then thought inclusion of CPT too might be helpful.. anyway in the end its an opinion and doesn’t necessarily require your agreement. Hope it is of some help to those other aspirant CA students like me.
An extract from Sridhar Kamath’s comment mentioning some valid points that I missed out! (Mr. Kamath is a practising CA.)
-Time management: I’m one of those who wrote the old-fashioned CA Foundation paper. Have always thought the MCQ version is better than the traditional four-exams-over-four-days deadly combo(20% pass-out then v. 34% now says it all!). I think students seldom strategise. Writing model exams and effectively planning your time during the exam plays a key role. I know of students who started by attempting 50 Qs in the first 1.5 hrs only to end up marking 50 Qs in the last half-hour. You don’t plan your time well, you are bound to panic and get unnecessary negatives.
-Baggage: Another psychological point which you might have missed is baggage. Your reputation in the class-room, among your relatives, you sitting up to late nights and impressing your neighbours, your baggage of bagging 1st rank in the local BCom exams, always standing first in the class since you were in nursery –> all this goes to the trash-can in CA Exams.
What matters in the end is how good your basics are and how confident you are on exam days, both points you’ve beautifully brought out in your blog. Well written.
The suspect
A young boy, mostly in his teens, clad in a blue polo t-shirt and dark gray trousers, had a plastic bag in one hand, a book within it, purchased hardly a few moments ago, his hand kerchief and the key of his prized pulsar, along with it. The other hand was fumbling in search of the token which was required to get his bag back. A wallet in one pocket, cell in the other, but the token seemed to be missing. Where could it go… About thirty minutes ago he had entered the shop, and like in all shops he was required to keep all his possessions outside with the guard before going in, for which he was given a token and while leaving on producing it, he would get back his possession.
The guard, hardly a few meters away, held a constant vigil on him. There was not much of a crowd in the shop, so not many eyes were on him. Not had many noticed the thirty long minutes he had spent at the shop. Nor none bothered to know what he did all the while. A cell in his hand, going through the range of books available for selection, he took his time to select the book he wanted to buy. He narrowed it down to a single book, ‘The hungry tide’ by Amitav Ghosh. After a while of thinking on whether or not to buy the book, he finally picked it, went to the billing counter, got it billed and was about to leave when he felt he had misplaced his token. He recalled no such incidence of placing the token somewhere, or any such thing, yet he couldn’t find it now..
Looking just once more, he finally found it, gave it to the guard, got back his bag, put his stuff within it, and hung it over his back. It was another favorite possession of his, his adventure worx bag. Just as he was about to leave a thought occurred to him, something seemed to have caught his eye. He immediately turned, gave the bag back to the guard, excusing himself for the moment, before the guard could question him, went in for a few moments and returned back. From there he took his own sweet time roaming around the mall, noticing every small detail that was required to him, observing every person crossing him. Not one bothered to notice him roaming around aimlessly in the mall, a lone stranger minding his own business, after all it was usual in malls, so this was no exception.
It was long after the setting of the sun that he finally showed signs of having to leave. It was quite dark, although the insides of the mall were fully illuminated. As for the outsides, there was a busy street out there, going in its own pace, brightly illuminated by the street lights, head lights and taillights, of the various vehicles going by. He stopped by a cane juice centre, had a cold cane juice and though it wasn’t entirely anything compared to the one he had a few months ago, it was filling and that was what he wanted it to be. As he was finishing his drink, he saw a group of four pass by, and one of them seemed to be very familiar to him, why, it was certainly a person he knew. He was sure it, also the who, but couldn’t place the reason for that person’s being there. He made a mental note to enquire about it later and got back to his drink.
It was high time he started back, for there were more things to be done.. He walked back to the bus stop, which was hardly a little away from the mall, waited for a while, skipped the first bus, and when he saw the bus he wanted, got on to it. He found it a bit disappointing to know that it was almost filled up, but thankfully there was a seat for him, which he occupied, settling himself for what was to come ahead.
The first half of the journey went uneventful, of course with the rush that there was it was quite obvious. At one particular stop, the person next to him got down, and so did the three behind him. Immediately he shifted and took the seat behind to the one that he had formerly occupied.
A man sitting across his seat, was deep in slumber, one leg upon the other, and as he was just looking by, his eyes suddenly caught sight of something!! Was it what he really thought it to be? He wondered.. On inspecting it more properly, he was sure it was what he took it to be in his first glance! A five hundred rupee bundle half out of his pocket. He thought about it further. It was certainly a five hundred rupee note that he had seen, for the color was unmistakably right and he couldn’t be wrong, no way. There was a rubber band on it, which meant there was more than one. Now if it was just ten or twenty it would have been folded, but it wasn’t. Also the rubber band was quite straight which meant there was easily a minimum of a thirty to forty thousand in there. He was quite sure of it, very much certain of the facts he arrived upon.
He looked across, the fellow still seemed to be in deep slumber, quite unknown of the fact that his possession was noticed, calculated out, and in moments planned out too. There were not many people in the seats behind him which meant that the chances of anybody noticing, was next to nil, unless something very stupid was done. There was a strong breeze coming through the window, and as he let it hit his face, he thought of the plan he could put into action. It was pretty simple and straight forward, there was no doubt in it. Perfectly clean, hardly any risk but for the timing, which would be the key for the entire plan. All he had to do was get up from his seat, flick the bundle and pocket it. All done with moments to the stop already decided upon, and once he got down, there would be no trail. It would be quite late before it would be known, and he would taken the next bus back. Very simple, indeed it was!!
He kept his gaze steady on his prize, but soon enough the person seemed to wake up at a slight disturbance in the road, when he chanced to glance towards the person looking at him, but before he could actually do anything, he was back asleep. Moments later he looked back again, as the person signaled to his pocket, but funnily he didn’t seem to notice at all!
With all thoughts clear in mind, his actions decided, he calmly walked up towards the person, gave an acknowledging pat on his shoulder saying, “Be careful to conceal your money the next time, when you tend to sleep” and before he could say or do anything, walked away.
Standing by the foot board, he noticed the man, realizing what had happened, turned around, and smiled as I got down from the bus, giving just another few moments to notice him smile again…
Nocturnal work…
The ideas coming out from the dark,
those forming as a result of darkness,
shalt be of sheer brilliance, thinking,
works of persistence, will to conquer.
No wonder I am nocturnal…
What difference marks the light in the day
and the darkness of night, but the absence
of strength to resist, a will to conquer upon,
bring back deserved light, the true glory.
My mind finds solace, thinking in the dark,
the middle of those darkest nights shalt
such ideas be conceived, shed light upon.
The thoughts that pave way for brightness,
as the night passes on to the phase of dawn,
the beginning of the day, bright times ahead.
-Nocturnal poet
Pained transition…
Witness, a peaceful night played, uncontrolledness,
what seemed perfectly weaved moments, matted,
shred into pieces, were all of a sudden, bonded ties,
such power that spared none, shattered, torn apart.
Happenings I knew not, what were, incidental,
a mind of its own, seemed to, those things have,
self defined, a clear pace, going on its own way,
already decided upon, a result, seemingly towards.
Quite unacceptable, the resulting revelation seemed
external world fading slowly, the base losing ground.
Faced with impossibility, digesting facts seemed to be,
The question, why it did happen, still killing within…
Passing times, silently settling in, the new situation,
into strong urge, a quiet conversion of pain, processed.
To quit the past, corroding present, something be done,
In turn the future depleted, a risk, which otherwise be.
Untold skills, the urge brought out, light shed,
upon hidden talents, forms of words, pain took,
compositions formed, a result, repeated strikes,
seemed to bring out the questions deep within.
Unanswered, unexplained, the situation, still remains,
person, it ought to have, those works never did reach.
A direct approach, the consequence it threatens to pose,
unthinkable, prohibits, love, that still burns deep within.
The message be conveyed, the faith still within, someday,
righteously found, a solution to those questions, care seen.
An inspiration to others, it shall be, until such times, solace,
for others, those like me, still in hope, someday, it shall work.
-Nocturnal poet
Persistent resistance…
If given a chance to do
I would choose to run far,
far away from this world,
world of ignorance, hatred.
What bliss amidst souls, taut,
rid of feelings, expression find
no meaning, understanding,
far from the line of sight.
If given a chance to do
I would like a glance back
few moments that changed,
changing the entire course.
What gain in dreaming of the past,
things finished, feelings drowned by.
Nothing but heavy emotional drain,
with searing pain of burning memories.
Fortunate or unfortunate, I am in a fix
Running away, I find is an impossibility,
nor can I change those things of the past,
those crucial moments, pained memories.
I have learnt a lot to understand,
the only feasible solution is to face it.
Running away shall serve no purpose
for I chose it, acting upon it by my will.
I shall persist, clinging on
best of times I shall have
I shall finally sort it all out
a solution to everything I shall.
-Nocturnal poet
Lost battle…
Amidst friends, while in a happy, joyous mood,
I am but still lost in thy thoughts, my thoughts
shifting between the two worlds, a few moments
in the jolly present, a few in the lost past..
Oye! Whats up with you? One of my friends asked,
having finally seemed to notice my state of mind.
Nothing, I said. How could I possibly explain, while
there was still a war raging in my mind, result less.
I wonder if he even believed me but,
I had more pressing thoughts to ponder,
that, the worrying about others opinion
hardly seemed to matter any more..
I tried to pull in my mind back to the present,
but that wasn’t happening, as my thoughts
seemed to persist in thee, and those times
when we were together, lost into eternity..
Would it be fair enough to let them know,
or would it be unfair in not telling them?
I just couldn’t make up my mind, which
was still in pursuit of the greater good..
No matter what I think about,
thou shalt always be a part of it.
I find it hard to think of something,
where thou shalt cease to exist.
I knew I had to give up on it, coz I would
never succeed in putting thee off my mind.
No matter what thou shalt think, I say,
Please forgive me, I can’t stop loving you..
– Nocturnal poet
Instinct theology…
Of darkness, a witness thy life shalt be, such times,
unknown, the next step; uncertain, if there be one.
Into arms of dishonor, a wrong decision shalt lead,
desire to live foregone, more pleasing death shalt be.
Panic stricken moments to act on instincts; theory,
the thought of which would horrifying in itself be.
Applicable shalt it be when, use it, thou art able to,
leave added pages of theory, shalt its practicability.
How well thou persevere, shalt those moments decide,
thy faith in thine work, shed light, a opening shalt wait,
for in such moments of loneliness shalt none assist thee,
apart from thyself, thy belief in the grace of thine God..
Finally shalt light fall, an end to the dark times marked,
never to be erased, those memories though, rock stead,
lesson virtuous, taught, for, the being, no matter where,
inspiration as guiding light serves, those times shalt be.
-Nocturnal poet