Be it mirchi or murg, a pakora is a pakora !!

No one says " Rain Rain Go Away" when the first monsoon showers arrive. Not only is the parched earth rejuvenated, but there is the unmistakable and delicious smell of mouth-watering pakoras being fried. Recently, even before the sky darkened, a friend treated us to Japanese tempura. These are fritters that come draped in delicate, translucent attire with not a speck of spice as adornment, thereby letting you savour the original taste of the ingredients.

To keep the rice flour batter exceptionally crisp, ice-cold water is used. There are other foreign fritters no less tempting such as green spinach leaf which refuses to wilt despite deep-frying. But, why travel abroad to relish such fritters when one can taste bliss right here in India in a pakora made with screaming scarlet rhododendron blossoms, kamal kakari or pumpkin flowers?

Pakora is masculine and pakori (used commonly in UP and Bihar) is feminine. There is also the plebian bread pakora, a lifesaver for countless Indians who must grab a filling bite while on the run. Here, a sandwich packed with a spicy potato filling is dunked into a batter of thick gram flour before being deep-fried. The more pretentious version may include a few tidbits of paneer.

Then there is the mirchi bada (chilly pakora) of Jodhpur, which is as much a part of city lore as breeches, jackets and the majestic Mehrangarh fort. Bengal boasts of a great variety of bhaja, which is deep-fried. Some, like beguni, are indistinguishable from brinjal pakora elsewhere. Arum leaves, filled with urad dal paste, yield patode in Banaras, which treats it like a side dish rather than a snack. All along the west coast and southern India, bhajjis and bhajia prepared with onions, potatoes and brinjals are relished. In Tamil Nadu, raw banana fritters are preferred. But as the poet said, what is in a name? A pakora is a pakora, is a pakora.

One can also savour anda (boiled egg) pakora near liquor shops. In winter, murg and fish pakoras give tough competition to tikkas and tandoori fare. Mixed pakora platters are one of the most popular accompaniments of tea in the roadside dhaba. Potatoes, cauliflower, onion and green chillies contribute the bulk; a few batons of cottage cheese add a touch of opulence. In season, one can also seek delight in a green (spinach) pakora — a small flat emerald-hued offering.

Dhabas have long been associated with special pakoras. Garam Pani, en route to Almora, made its reputation from tiny alu-pyaaz-mirchi pakori served with a pungent mustard-laced raita that could put any wasabi to shame. The trick is to refry the fare for extra crispness. Some vendors take great pride in their trade secret and scorn to use a readymade chaat masala. Tucked away between Regal Cinema and Allahabad Bank in Delhi is Malik's, which for generations has been synonymous with mouth-watering pakora, especially gobi and paneer.

But perhaps all that was before transfats struck terror in our weak hearts?

Read more: Be it mirchi or murg, a pakora is a pakora - Special Report - Sunday TOI - Home - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/sunday-toi/special-report/Be-it-mirchi-or-murg-a-pakora-is-a-pakora/articleshow/6152974.cms#ixzz0yBhxWzGp

Lazizaan, the delight of Akbar's palace

Raja Birbal, the legendary wit with rapier sharp repartee, one of Akbar's priceless nine gems, is also known as the 'father' of extremely slow cooking khichadi. He may have had his reasons for adopting weird culinary means to communicate with his sovereign but the fact of the matter is that in the Mughal period, khichadi was considered a delicacy and vied with pulav and biryani.

Akbar had it served to Prince Salim when he returned victorious from a campaign in Gujarat. Of course, in the Imperial dastarkhwan, it was given a name to match the occasion: lazizaan (the delicious). It became Jehangir's favourite. Many Mughal miniatures depict cooks at work in the royal kitchens and it is reasonable to assume that one of the pots is dedicated to laziza.

How the mighty khichadi has fallen. Once meriting mention in court chronicles of Al-Baruni and Abul Fazal, it is now synonymous with an insipid gruel, to be prescribed for an upset stomach. Don't despair, there is much more to the khichadi than the runny rice-husked moong daal mixture.

Makar Sankranti in the Ganga-Jamuna delta is ritually celebrated with maash (un-husked whole urad lentils) ki khichadi. Arhar ki khichadi is enjoyed all the year round, at times with haldi gosht in thin gravy.

In Hyderabad, khichadi paired with keema is a popular traditional breakfast and in Bengal, it is a spicy delight during Kali Puja. In Rajathan and Gujarat, khichadi prepared with bajra (millets) is considered a delicacy. And, what is pongal in Tamil Nadu if not a flavourful version of kshirika mentioned in ancient ayurvedic texts?

Long, long ago when Hinglish hadn't yet vanquished the Rashtrabhasha, one frequently heard the rhymed wisdom, 'Khichadi ke chaar yaar – dahi, papad, ghee, achaar.' (Khichadi has four bum-chums – yoghurt, papad, ghee and pickles). Sometimes, papad was replaced with muli (horse radish). Those of us who don't belong to the post-globalization generation still pine for a well-made khichadi when served a pretentious but indifferently made biryani and pulav.

The Hobson-Jobson dictionary documents Kedgree, a pish-pash of left-overs served for breakfast. In Hindi, a motley crowd is bemel khichadi, hence a coalition government is called khichadi sarkar!

Read more: Lazizaan, the delight of Akbar's palace - Special Report - Sunday TOI - Home - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/sunday-toi/special-report/Lazizaan-the-delight-of-Akbars-palace/articleshow/5493738.cms#ixzz0yBetHrxa

A snack fit for Akbar..

Some say that the samosa came to India from Persia.Indeed,we have it on the authority of Abul Fazal,scholarstatesman extraordinaire and one of the legendary nine gems of Akbars court,that the samosa was a dish relished by the grand Mughal even though its Persian connection is disputed.As a matter of fact,earlier evidence leaves no doubt that the savoury pastry occupied an important place in any imperial spread during the Sultanate.Ibn Batuta,the Moroccan traveller who visited India in the 14th century,has chronicled the glittering banquets at the court of Muhammad bin Tughlaq.A dish called sambushak triangular pastry packed with mince,peas and other tasty fillings was placed on the guests plates right after Bismillah was pronounced and the sherbet had been sipped.Other courses followed.The dainty luqmi in Hyderabad valiantly tries to preserve this noble lineage.
The samosa has long ceased to be a dainty dish fit to be put before the king,but it is arguably the most popular,plebian snack available,at least in northern India.From college canteens to railway platforms and yes,airport lounges to food courts the samosa is omnipresent.Each city has a halwai shop that claims to serve the tastiest samosa in town.Some streetcorners and crossroads have become f a m o u s merely because a samosa sellers kiosk is located there.
One encounters the samosa in many different avatars from humongous fill your belly with just one to the miniscule cocktail variety.The filling usually is boiled and spicy mashed potato (in West Bengal,where it is called shinghada,the potatoes are cut fine and not boiled but cooked),at times mixed with peas,shreds of paneer,the occasional raisin or the odd cashew nut.Fresh coriander and green chillies with diced ginger and pomegranate seeds pep it up.Other popular fillings include mincemeat or green peas on their own.You can grab a samosa on the run or enjoy it in leisurely manner paired with spicy chole,dahi and green chutney or sweet-and-sour sonth.
The joy of eating a samosa comes from the crispy-crunch of the casing and the contrasting texture and taste of the filling.Like a great dimsum,the pastry shouldnt be thick but very thin and the frying has to be just right light golden with maybe a few specks of brown.Some like the exterior to be laced with ajwain (caraway seeds).
Hari Namkeen Bhandar in Allahabads Lokenath has an enviable,well-deserved reputation for tiny samosas filled with piquant lentil paste.These are prepared in desi ghee and have a shelf life of many weeks.Interestingly,the much-praised Japani samosa in Chandni Chowk is no more than a disappointing patty.
Then there are those who like their samosas sweet.Labonglatika (a Bengali sweet) is a mawa-packed samosa.
But the samosa,too,has had to keep up with the times and now,there is the baked variety for the health-conscious and those watching their weight.

This article is penned down by Mr. Pushpesh Pant on 29th August issue of Culinary Culture in the TOI.

NB: The purpose of giving too many images of the samosa was to fill my stomach as i was trying to relish the taste of the samosa just by seeing and downloading the images.Any competitors, eh????

Right and Wrong

Why praise jugaad? It's bleeding us

Even the most passionate upholders of 'national pride' don't deny that the arrangements for October's Commonwealth Games are in a mess. Some feel that the chaos will persist till the closing ceremony and puncture India's pretensions of being perceived as a rising power. The optimists have a different take. Yes, they agree, the authorities entrusted with the responsibility of showcasing India have underperformed. But there is a nagging faith that at the end of the day, Indian jugaad will salvage national honour. Using the imagery of sports minister M S Gill, they pray that this "Punjabi wedding" will also have a celebratory ending.

Gill may well be right. Delhi is witnessing a last-minute Botox treatment to conceal all its ugly creases. Mountains of debris are being relocated to places foreigners don't venture; makeshift drains are being bored into newly built roads and flyovers; and traffic planning now includes the suggestion that car owners should consider a fortnight's leave from the capital.

If Swaminathan Aiyar's gushing praise of jugaad on this page is to be believed, it is this ingenuity that marks India out from monochromatic civilizations. It is an attribute that saw Indians through the bad old days of socialist austerity and mismanagement. From the humble housewife who recycled the metal foil on milk bottles for scrubbing utensils to the businessman who applied creative accountancy to skirt punitive taxation, the mind space of India was hogged by jugaad.  Where the creativity of developed countries was spent on improving the system, Indian energy was expended on trying to beat a cruel and uncaring world. That is what jugaad was all about — attempts to reinvent the wheel without the help of carpentry tools and, in some cases, either metal or wood. It was all about being compelled to study from 'guide books' and 'notes' because more worthwhile study material wasn't available in the bookshops and libraries.

That India came out of the nightmare of socialism with body and soul broadly intact and hungry for new opportunities had a lot to do with jugaad.  As with Robinson Crusoe, jugaad helped us tide over the bad times.  

Unfortunately, there was a flip side to our ability to inveigle our way through adversity. Jugaad has also scarred India. It has prompted a celebration of expediency, shortcuts and shoddiness. It has created a penchant for taking a winding course where a straight road should suffice. Once the escape route from hell, jugaad has now become an obstacle to India realizing its true potential.

Take an everyday example. Go to a shop looking for a piece of equipment or a spare. The shopkeeper invariably asks: "Company made or local?" Ideally we should opt for the sturdy and the enduring but if the purchase is left to a contractor, he will buy the 'local' (which could well be 'Made in China') and charge for the 'company made'. It's a patchwork solution and leads to the long-term problem of inefficiency, not to mention opportunity costs.

This is precisely what has happened to many CWG projects. A road is upgraded only for the authorities to discover that there is no provision for drainage pipes or underground cables. It is then re-dug, the missing features installed and a new, makeshift road built that will endure till the last plane load of visitors to the games leaves Delhi. This is what jugaad has come to mean in today's cash-rich India: a patchwork arrangement for the very short-term, a grey market of deceit. It is no longer frugal technology at work; the shoddiness is akin to what the inimitable Duke of Edinburgh once decried as "installed by an Indian electrician". The handiwork of jugaad is both mocking and bleeding India.

We can no longer afford to be beguiled merely by the cute and the exotic: the washing machine being used as milk churner and the old tyres that end up as shoe soles. Jugaad has come to symbolize not merely improvisation but the irregular and the slapdash. The proverbial 'chalta hai' attitude is dangerously close to becoming the national philosophy. Merely laughing it off because "we are like this only" won't help India's quest to be taken seriously.

 

This is an article written by Mr. Swapan Dasgupta on 29th August, 2010 in the TOI. 

The saying goes"To err is human but to repent divine". Now, it is apparent that we have erred seriously as a nation & it does not matter who did it. What could easily happen that some human life may be lost in this utter mess. Even it is a single one, it would be one too many and avoidable and country's P.M. as Head would be responsible. It would be much better to call it a day and appologise to the world. We have allowed corruption all round over too long a period AND we will have to pay a price for it. It is humiliating but honest and better than any alternative. We must remember that we can buy anything in the world with money except TIME. The fact is there is NO time left for remedial work.
Ofcourse having faced this failure, we must sit down with honest intention of analysing the project since inception and learn proper lesson out of this tragedy so that it NEVER happens to us.If we can do that we will ensure truly great future for us.
After all Failures are the PILLARS of success.

Out of Turn

Crown Prince Rahul cannily turns Left

Has Rahul Gandhi launched a campaign against Congress? More precisely, has the heir presumptive, affectionately dubbed a modern Lord Krishna by his more fervent fans, begun to undermine the Congress establishment, at the pinnacle of which sits Manmohan Singh and his home minister P Chidambaram?

This makes some political sense. Having milked the right-of-centre to the point of exhaustion, the Rahul Congress is steering towards left-of-centre. Meanings, of course, have changed. As the centre has shifted in the last two decades, 'right' and 'left' have moved along with it. 'Left' now represents populism, rather than ideology. Marx died in the 1990s and even his ghost cannot escape from the effective burial given by comrades Mikhail Gorbachev and Deng Xiaoping.

The sabotage of big-ticket investment in order to fence the tribal vote in Orissa is only part of the developing story. The official catechism describes Naxalites as the biggest threat to India. If Chidambaram had his way, the air force would be bombing them. He must be a bit deflated at the sight of Lado Sikoka, a Naxal, preceding Rahul Gandhi at an Orissa public meeting around the same time that Manmohan Singh was urging, from a dais in Delhi, police chiefs to fight the good fight against Maoists. Sikoka had been arrested by this police on August 9 and beaten up, before being released so that he could welcome Rahul Gandhi with a garland at Niyamgiri.

It has always been clear to Delhi insiders that Digvijay Singh opened a front against Chidambaram with Rahul Gandhi's permission. Outsiders now have confirmation. Since politics has very marginal room for sentiment, Chidambaram could become the first casualty in a Rahul Gandhi cabinet. It would be a sad end to a fizzing career were Chidambaram to end up as governor of Chhattisgarh, the better to counsel his supporters in the BJP on how to tackle Naxalites without help from the air force. Indeed, it cannot have been very helpful to our ambitious home minister that the most laudatory references now come from BJP leaders. Perhaps he raised the issue of "saffron terror" to pick up some long overdue brownie points from his own side.

No prizes for guessing who would become home minister in a Rahul Gandhi government.

The ultimate success for a ruling party is that delicious bipolar ability to occupy both government and opposition space. The British in India perfected the art of functioning through a loyal opposition. The Muslim League was so loyal that not a single League leader went to jail during the three decades of our independence movement. The Congress tended to be less loyal, but always recognized limits, until Mahatma Gandhi liberated the Congress and enough Indians from either fear or temptation. One cannot think of a Congress leader who did not go to jail.

Democracy, but naturally, induced a variant. Jawaharlal Nehru ignored the feeble right and absorbed the non-communist left into the Congress in periodic stages. His own leftist credentials were impeccable, which helped.

Indira Gandhi artfully split the left and right, until the Emergency united the rest against Congress. Their common antipathy lasted, more or less, until the NDA gave Congress and the left common cause. The new element is the sudden implosion of the Left in Bengal, which threatens to convert vacant space into a vacuum. Even as Congress and Mamata Banerjee seek to destroy the CPM, they know the value of Marxist sentiment in the country's polity.

It is axiomatic that a largely impoverished nation needs a political party that the poor can identify with. The Congress has set out to be the party of the poor in daytime, and of the rich at night. Its sunlight politics will fetch votes, its twilight policies will enable it to govern. This is an extremely clever act whose opening scenes are being played out for a new generation that is vague about Indira Gandhi and amnesiac about Nehru. The hero of this drama must have the charisma to dazzle the poor and the flexibility to keep the rich onside. That is the challenge before Rahul Gandhi. His avowed role is to be the guardian of the poor in Delhi, which means that the poor need protection from Delhi. He is at home with the elite in the evening and is now making the effort to capture the sunshine hours.

However, regional parties have been there, done that. They continue to do so. Naveen Patnaik understands the trap of governance. He has been forced to take a position on one side or the other of the day-night constituencies; and he does not have a Manmohan Singh to play the foil. Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee could not manage this contradiction, but others have learnt. Patnaik, Nitish Kumar, Mayawati or Chandrababu Naidu will not be pushovers.

Paradox and problem intersect in any country; India's size and potential make the challenge more complex. We will see whether Congress has the agility to use power to transfer power to yet another generation.


This is an article written down by Mr. M.J.Akbar on 29th August, 2010 in the page All That Matters - TOI.


Is Rahul planning to leave his bastion and slip over to the Left as he sees a new light in the Leftist policies and heading the way the Leftists are. Will it be the spill-over of the dynasty leaving behind him the disaster of a political legion. Is it the siege within ? 

All that matters

Please don't cheer the 2010 loot fest !!

I am not going to harp on about how messed up the Commonwealth Games are. Enough has been written. The CWG 2010 is, by far, the biggest and most blatant, exercise in corruption in independent India's history. Not only have they stolen public money, they've made a mess of the job at hand. Delhi is dug up and the official anthem (and ringtone) of the Games should be the never-ending sound of drilling. If you worry about whether or not the work will finish on time, imagine the plight of Delhi's residents after the Games. The dug-up roads will never be repaired; the potholes will remain as souvenirs, symbolic of the great daylight robbery of 2010.


Posturing, something this government has a PhD in, is in full progress. Enquiry reports, vague statements, tossing responsibility from one person to the other will continue, until the Games are over. After that, fingers crossed, people will forget. Bollywood stars will do the closing ceremony and the entertainment provided will somewhat compensate for the loot-fest.


In the middle of all this, there will be propaganda campaigns to 'save India's image' and get the Games done somehow. People will be expected to support the event - after all, the pride of India is at stake. The great Indian youth will be called upon to fill stadiums and add energy to the event.


However, if we, the Indian people, support these Games, it will be a big mistake. This is a golden chance for citizens to put this corrupt and insensitive government to shame. Usually corruption issues are local in nature and they never really get the national traction or resonance that these Games have offered.


The CWG is an amazing opportunity because all Indians have been robbed at the same time. Add to that the fact that the government is desperate to save face. Now is when we can get them. And the way to do it is simply what the father of our nation pioneered in his time — non-cooperation. Yes, and i've deliberated long before saying this — do not watch these Games. Do not go to the venues. Do not watch them on TV. You cannot become a cheerleader to an exercise in cheating. The Indian people have been exploited enough, but to expect us to smile through it is a bit much. If they can walk out of Parliament, we can walk out of stadiums.


Some might say, shouldn't we support the Games on account of our country's pride? The word 'pride' reminds me of a little story. When i was a child, our neighbours were a violent man and his battered wife. The woman would cover her bruise marks with make-up, suffering silently. Whenever we visited them, the couple presented the perfect picture of a happy couple. She even praised her husband. I asked my mother why the woman behaved in that way and didn't expose her husband to show him in his true colours. My mother told me it doesn't look nice to portray an unhappy home. She has to save the family pride. Over time, the bruises turned to fractures, and the fractures became near-fatal injuries. Until one day, police cars and ambulances came in and took both husband and wife away respectively.


Yes, such is Indian culture. We are ready to cover up injustice on account of a fake sense of honour that needs to show everything is in order. In the case of the CWG, the organizers are the oppressive husband, the Indian people the battered wife. But modern Indian wives do not stay silent and suffering anymore.


College unions, schools and individuals should take a stand and make clear — we do not support these Games. Just as Gandhiji figured, the oppressor can oppress us; it cannot make us cooperate. Brand ambassadors lending their names to these Games should think twice before lending their image to cover up corruption. The foreign media could present the full picture, namely that it is not the Indian people's fault, it is a bunch of losers who didn't think twice before looting the coffers of a poor country. The foreign media could use the situation to explain why India doesn't win Olympic medals — not because we don't have the talent but because people who run sports would rather stuff their pockets with stolen gold than help their country win a gold medal.


This government came to power just a little more than a year ago. They had a clear majority and enjoyed stability. They could have, if they wanted, shown exemplary governance for the next five years. Instead, they've given the Indian people nothing but extreme inflation and extreme corruption. Way to go, leaders. You guys are really great role models for our youth.


The opposition parties have a big chance to capitalize on all this. But first they need to get along, not mix religion with politics and get aspirational leaders who are clean and work hard. They would be back before you know it.


And if the ruling party wants to get out of this mess, there is only one way. No, it isn't to execute the Games well — nobody cares about the silly Commonwealth club anyway. The only way to get out of this is to punish the people who did it, irrespective of their stature, and punish them hard. Use this as an opportunity to kill corruption, not to put on a grand, fake show. Otherwise, those holes you are digging in Delhi will be nothing but your political graves. People in India tolerate a lot, but when they get upset, they cause upset. Fix the mess, or the Indian people will soon be telling you — game over. 

The above article is an excerpt from the column All That Matters penned by Chetan Bhagat dated 29th August, 2010.

It really is meaningful and thought provoking.The author has rightly termed it as a daylight robbery.I was always of the opinion that organizing such type of huge sports event in India is a big mistake and is gross misuse of our meagre resources which can be used for more constructive works for a larger intrest.But a section of people who are in power in Delhi have their vested interest in such events.Such people feigned patriotism and in the name of national pride they exploit our emotions and serve their evil interest.Greed for more money is their canon and they strictly adhere to it.Infact they have nothing to do with national pride and use it as a weapon to counter the allegations and save their face.Such people only take care of their loathesome interests at the expense of the national interest and its people.Every time there is a fraud or scam,we do not see any punishment.So as a result faith and fear has disappeared.They are not scared of the law and it is impunity and brazenness that worries the commom man.Thanks chetan for lending an expression to how exactly i feel about the pending cwg.The amount of money being spent on this extravaganza could have been utilized in a zillion more fruitful ways in a country like ours.I fail to understand why our priorities are so grossly out of place.The decision makers of our country never fail to disappoint us.Firstly,the decision to hold the cwg in india was a mistake and then the mockery of funds and then the covering up of failures.Didn't we know that failing to meet the deadline was inevitable considering the insatiable appetite of the people handling it.So much could have been done with so much to make our india a better place....I as a true indian completely boycott the upcoming cwg.

Beauty of Fall

This is the beauty of Fall. Shot at Auroville (Pondy) in the autumn of 2010.

Life is good

Seen at one of the internet cafe's in Rue Montoserior (Pondy).

I got a free air ticket......

We were sitting at the Chennai airport waiting for our flight back home in the January of 2010... our flight was delayed for a couple of hours because of rough weather... and then this butterfly comes from nowhere, lands on the glass window in front of us and reminded me that it had a free air ticket! I would have loved to "picassa" it, but wanted to post it just like how it came out from my point.

Camouflage

Do you see a crocodile in the photo?... Well, neither do I... perfect camouflage :)...

Jokes aside, I liked the way the log blended in the sand... Shot at the banks of the Ousteri lake (Pondy) in the autumn of 2010.

Big B mania

Whoops !! This iz awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwsommmmmmmmmmmmmmm . The official page of Mr. Amitabh Bachchan's blog - bigb.bigadda.com.
A tremendous & huge collection of Mr. Bachchan's images and a read through. His day-to-day experiences of work (on-work and off-work) and home. All members of his family have their own contribution to the blog. Inspiring and at times touching. Right from his start till date. All penned down by Mr. Bachchan himself. Really awe filled and soothing. A must read for all who are into blogging.
 Read one blog daily and it touches you.Was kinda fan of his earlier but now am following him and his blogs.
Keep up the good work, Mr. Bachchan.

Take off into sunset

Here is one more sunset shot. I sharpened the image in picasa. Again shot at Ousteri lake (Pondy) in the winter of 2009.

Lonely Barn

I took this shot on the way to one of our Vailankanni visits in the summer of 2010. I have been through this road many times, because this one is seen all the time i go there. This barn is I guess, kind of abondoned. Hope you like it. I added very little 'fill light' with Picasa.

Green reflections

This was shot inside one of the backwaters on Cuddalore Road (TN). This was absolutely serene. The water was still and the reflection was just perfect.

Big feet

Cozy winter wear.. It is really colorful (comfortable too). This picture doesn't do much justice to how it really looks. Its the best I could do. Shot at one of the French boutiques Kalki in main town Pondy..

Fruits

I took this at a local fruit shop. Flash from the showlight inside the shop gives these fruits a distinct glow.. Finally the customers are glowed by the price

Wet leaf

I took this outside my house just after it rained..I love it..

Inside Hyatt

The Hyatt, Madras - lobby ceiling.

Small blooms

Sidekick stuff.

Green !!

A refreshing pic taken at one of the resorts at the entrance to Mahabalipuram in the summer of 2010.

Bloom

Awesome bloom..

Giant Christmas Tree

These photos were taken with my sidekick at a local mall during the 2009 christmas season...

Day moon

Great day

... as seen through my SideKick...

I am fuming !!

Peeled potato, fuming hot! Taken at CK's Foodstaurant (Pondy).

Keep moving.. I'll take your place....

...it seemed like the street lights were saying just that to the sun.. I love the colors in this one.. Btw, this is coming straight. No editing done..

Melting Sky

I will not say much on this one.. picture is worth thousand words, isn't it?

Take the tube to...

This old tube was just lying there.. just could not let go of the chance to take this shot! The remains of early morning fog around the trees was just gorgeous. Shot in the monsoons of 2010.

God's painting

Shot at the Pondy beach on one fine evening. This picture is coming straight from the camera. No editing done..

Fire in the Fountain

This is one of the images of the proposed meditation centres to come up in the heart of Auroville (Pondy) French architects working on this project. See how the outcome will be.

Stop and See..

I shot this picture during one of my road trips to Auroville (Pondy). This house cum cafe is located in the intersection of two roads outside the Auroville & the ECR Road. Built with the purpose of luring the French tourists who like the country-side looks. Liked the effect that sunlight was creating on this red structure. I did do a little crop and "I am feeling lucky" in Picasa. I kept the pedestrian crossing light in the frame because that is what gives it a "stop and see" effect.

Giant in me - 2

Yet another macro. I posted a different angle below (for perspective). I love this one better because of the color. Also, this angle makes it look huge. If you like this one you will like "Giant in me" too.

Take off into Sunset..

Here is one more sunset shot. I sharpened the image in picasa. Is there anything else I could have done, with picasa, that would have made this image look better? Shot at Ousteri Lake (Pondy) in the winter of 2009.

Flower Power

Here is a closeup shot of a mix of  flowers at a flower show. I did some sharpening and added saturation to this.

Pick me, Pick me ...

One more macro shot! I applied very little soft focus to make the flower stand out!

Did the Sky fall down???

As you can see, this is the reflection of an evening sky in a small puddle on the road. Color of the cloud was due to sunset. I purposely captured a little bit of asphalt to give it a perspective.

Just took a shower

One more macro shot. I just love this. I always wanted to capture early morning dew drops on a flower. This was a perfect opportunity.Shot just after the rains.

Turbulence ahead

As you can see, this was shot from an airplane during one of our visits to the North. I like this shot because, you can see a little bit of land and some clouds as well. I shot this just before we entered a thick patch of clouds. Note the reflection in the wing. It faded as we entered into the clouds. Shot in the noon during our visit in the autumn of 2010.

Big Red Dot

This is again one of my favorite sunset shots. This one is shot at one of the backwaters on way to my wife's office. If I have to equate a feeling with this shot, it would be "peaceful"!. I just love the way it came out. Hope you will like it as much as I do.

Fired up !!

Sunset view on one of the buildings at Madras by the Marina. Looks like it is on fire..

Giant in me

This is one of my favorite macro shots! Actual size of this flower(I don't know its name) is about an inch. This shot makes it look huge. Since I absolutely loved the way it came out, I did not do any post processing.
You will love it too when you see it in its original size. For some reason, blogger reduces the size of the image when you upload.

Marina Beach - one facet of Madras

I'm still in awe of the Marina Beach in Madras and i dearly hold it close to my heart. Even though, i have various memories associated with the city, the strongest and the fondest memory i have is of myself sitting at the Marina. I remember visiting the beach on each of my visits to Madras. I won't miss a chance going to the Marina any time i'm in Madras. I love sitting there, taking in the ambience,being completely mesmerised by the vastness of the sea. There is something quite magnificent about the size of the Marina that i don't think can be put into words. Even though i have visited various beaches, i find that no other beach has come close to creating an emotional connection with me as much as the Marina has done What i heard was that during the early 70's and the 80's, the beach was not very clean. However, today, it makes for quite a breathtaking sight, as there are no more plastic covers lying around. And of course, who can forget the heritage buildings that stand in all their glory by Kamarajar Salai, as if gazing at the beach in awe? Whenever i travel by the beach, a palpable sense of nostalgia grips me, and probably always will.

Beetle Mania !

It was the year 1934 when Adolf Hitler announced that a car shouldn't just be a privilege of the wealthy. That's when he summoned a young Austro-Hungarian engineer by name of Ferdinand Porsche to talk about his plans for a car. Hitler specified the car should be small, durable and air cooled. Hitler christened it Volkswagen which meant the people's car. And that's exactly when the Beetle came into existence. Since then the little VW became the first car in Europe to pass the million production mark in 1955. It also pretty soon adorned a cult status making it one of the most popular vehicles around.Over the years, the Beetle's design has kept evolving, but it wasn't until 1998 that the little car received a total makeover. Based on the Golf Mk4 platform, the new 'Bug' was an all new car although it borrowed heavily from its predecessor in terms of styling. There have been no major changes on the design front since. But that's because it did not need any. The original VW Beetle was one of the most recognizable cars on the road and the modern day equivalent is a well-executed contemporary take on a classic which, ten years after its introduction, still looks fresh and eye-catching. Like the re-invented Mini and the Fiat 500, the VW Beetle is a stylish piece of retro-design which although harking back to its original form exudes a modern feel to it. The rainbow silhouette, the bulging fenders with the round headlights, in fact everything about the car emanates a charm like none other. When you stop in a parking lot, onlookers will swarm around, peek in the windows and bombard you with questions. If you love being the center of attention, Volkswagen's New Beetle is the car for you.

History of the Beetle

The history of the Beetle really goes back to pre 2nd world war Germany when Ferdinand Porsche had a vision of a mass produced vehicle that was affordable to the average German, an idea that was shared with the young Adolf Hitler who himself could not drive, but was a car fanatic. In 1934 he stated that his government would support the development of a 'people's car'. Impressed by Porsche's design capabilities, Hitler delivered him the design brief of a car that could carry two adults and three children at a speed of 100km/h with at least 15 kmpl and cost almost as much as a motorcycle. In 1937, the coachbuilders Reutter, based in Stuttgart, were asked to make 30 vehicles which would eventually be shipped to various festivals and fairs to entice the German public to buy. There were Saloons, sunroofs and convertible models. Hitler also introduced a savings scheme where the public could collect stamps that would eventually pay for the car. On the 17th February, 1972, the Beetle finally overtook Fords model 'T' as the most popular car ever made, later disputed by Ford who found new production figures, the Beetle went on to make sure there was absolutely no doubt. The last Beetle to be made in Germany left the production line in January 1978, bringing the end of an era. This was not the end of the Beetle though, production continued in Puebla, Mexico and the 20,000,000th Beetle rolled off the Mexican production line in May 1981.

Although, the Beetle has been an icon, but still there are reservations to this beauty. Its micro in size but macro while looking at the pocket size. The specs are good but the spending might not be that better. Try it.