Been Awhile

My brother tied the knot with Mukta in a ceremony that juxtaposed tambhi tradition with just a dash of Oriya flavor. The marriage of cultures proved to be surprisingly entertaining – more so when the vadiyar (Pandit for the unthambis) got his dhoti in a twist at the constant conch blowing. And even more so, when the conch blower, embarrassed by all the attention, developed cold feet and began sounding like a certain snotty nosed uncle paarping into a handloom hanky. I preferred the elephant.

The journey from Vizag to Hyderabd to Mumbai had its moments –
Hyderabad-Mumbai (Kingfisher)
Costing the same as Jet, Kingfisher was pretty cool– right from the attendant hovering solicitously by my elbow at the check-in to the natty tellys on every seat. So what if they only replayed Star, Zoom and Mallaya’s face? By the time I realized those radio channels do not really work, we landed. Honestly do those headphones work? Hmm..

Mumbai-Hyderabad (Deccan)
Except for the fact that some genius had left half a roll of crumbled bread carefully wrapped up in a newspaper on my seat pocket for me to scatter on my lap I had little reason to complain. One air-hostess actually cracked a smiled. A real smile! Her make-up flaked.

Other Assorted Highlights
Oldies Still Goldies: Watched TCM the three nights I was in Hyderabad. Cornball comedies and sappy b/w still appeal to me. Maybe I going soft in the head.

Acres Club, Chembur: The whole of Dharavi could be housed here and you would have room to spare. I was dead impressed, I don’t think I have seen so much of open space all together at one place in Mumbai. Ever.

Junkt: The jazz band we heard at Kala Godha (Mumbai) – maybe I should google em out, and follow their career. Then again maybe not.

Laxmi Woolen Mills Compound (Lower Parel): My office (Hungama) scraped the bottom of the barrel with this new place. It is humungous but after Raguvanshi and the proximity to the malls, this area sucks. Add to that the Hungama drop-off with sexist tendencies –only the women get dropped to Mahalaxmi station, the guys walk. Heh

Black Friday on V-Day with Amma: The movie is stunning..it really is. As for the OST, I have had it for two years now but you have got to hear Indian Ocean live. What is the real truth anyway?
"History isn't what happened. History is just what historians tell us. One good story leads to another."
- A History of the World in 10½ Chapters

Books I have been reading and re-reading
Like Water for Chocolate: If you like Allende and Marquez you will like this. Read it for the fourth time. It is positively scrumptious. Btw the movie which I saw post reading the book the first time round is also worth a watch.

The History of the World in 101/2 Chapters: Hilarious and thought-provoking – from Admiral Moses with his flotilla of sorry animals to the stowaway woodworms that give us the lowdown on the deluge, the book only deteriorates only towards the end when Julian Barnes goes on and ON about love. Anyhow an entertaining animal case, his take on the truth behind Gericault's splendid ‘Scene of a Shipwreck’, a ship full of Jews, a strange hostage system that parallels the Ark animals’ fate all make up for it….the book is a smashing read. Thanks a tonne Vivek!