A Vodka Martini.Very Dry . Shaken not stirred - The Vodka Saga

"A Vodka Martini . Very Dry . Shaken not stirred ."James Bond in Dr.No probably turned more people into Vodkatini (Vodka Martini)than all the bartenders in the world over.

Raw Materials with neutral spirits + filtered water + charcoal = the clean pure taste of Smirnoff Vodka.Nothing better than a good Smirnoff at night with "cashew" juice or with sugar or sweetener and rocks.

Drinking alchochol is considered to be very bad in India .People wriggle their noses and frown with their eyebrows when I say I love drinking Smirnoff (or for that matter kallu) and give me the looks that is usually reserved for serial killers in North India and TV Serial Villains in Kerala. No point in blaming them since most people drink just to get drunk and in fact abuse the drinks that they take. If drinks could efface all worries and troubles then it would have been the manna that world is looking for . How ironic?


Drinking is like any other activity if you enjoy the drinks , i e if you are able to differentiate between a shaken martini and a stirred martini and like wise . It wont change soon because unlike west most of the Indian society is still governed by the perception of any drinker being masculine and many people consider that getting more drunk in fact is a proof of being more masculine.If you don't think so then let us meet over a Vodkatini and let us discuss Smirnoff Saga.May be drink companies in India should start a campaign to drink responsibly .

Smirnoff is the number one premium Vodka in the world and the Orkut Smirnoff community has 342,175 members with most discussions being held in Portuguese showing the world wide fan following of Smirnoff.Being a {recently} certified Smirnoff Taste maker who can make few cocktails , it is never boring to experiment with different variants and flavors :) of Smirnoff with availability being the only constraint.

Any Cocktail is about the taste and lighter the spirit better the cocktail.Here are some do's and dont's of Smirnoff.Courtesy (Tulleho.com)

Geography and Brand Names: To prove a lack of bias: some of the best vodkas around are non-Russian, and some of the worst were distilled in Russia. Rule of thumb: the farther north you go, the higher the quality (this rule does not apply in a lot of instances- e.g.- India's political class).

Purity and Mixing: Rule of Thumb (for all booze): You don't waste superior stuff in mixed drinks. Quality leads to purity.

Glasses: While there are no specific prohibitions against drinking vodka out of soup bowls or espresso cups, certain rules of decor apply. The keyword, once again, is purity: a thick glass, hand-washed (no scented dish liquid, please).

Ambiance: After a few rounds you won't really care. But in general, the more intimate, the better. Unlike champagne, vodka requires no Thespian abilities. What it does require is a toast and a clinking of glasses. Make sure that all the accouterments -- beer, food, TV remotes, encyclopedias, prophylactics (you never know) and, sports reference books (you will be arguing important issues) -- are close at hand. You don't want to have to hunt for these after a few rounds. While decorum is important, decor is not. Vodka drinkers are the world's least spoiled lot.

Temperature: The colder, the better. While vodka on the rocks is a sin against nature, warm vodka is a reminder that all is not well with the world.


Toasts: Anything mildly abusive should do.

Accompanying Elements: (a.k.a. "chasers") This is different from mixers. Strict division of tastes. A chaser, be it liquid (beer) or solid (artichoke hearts) is essentially an escort.

Drinking The table is set. Click glasses with as many guests as you can without spilling. Bend the elbow.

Lastly
1.Inhale deeply and hold in your breath.
2.Throw back your head and throw in the fluid.
3.Happily munch the snacks

Pour for the next round when all drinkig mates are done.


Have you ever wondered why Mr:Bond always wants "A Vodka Martini.Very Dry . Shaken not stirred " . A shaken martini has a pleasant taste than a stirred martini and will be colder than a stirred martini since the ice has circulated a little more in the drink and a colder drink is considered to be better.

P S: Attending a Smirnoff Tastemaker session is not a bad idea , if you want to enjoy making martinis and know more about Smirnoff Saga.

OR

If you are still of the opinion that drinking is very bad and all the vodka drinkers (including James Bond) are slightly better than Serial Killers in North India and TV Serial Villains in Kerala you can go and voice your opinion here.

VS {Comrade} Achu- # 3 best CM in India

One of my favorite memories in the last vacation in Kerala was about the metamorphosis of VS {Comrade} Achu from being the "outcast" in the Communist party to the "CM" in the last Kerala elections. I was never bored about discussing how he managed to change his image from being an old world communist ideologist to someone who is being crucified for no sin of his own after giving 110% of his life to the party .I discussed this endlessly over pegs of smirnoff/toddy with fish curry and tapioca to anyone who cared to listen till everybody around me got bored. It somehow was ironic since as a capitalist Keralite with a communist heart usually I put the blame for Kerala’s lack of job opportunities , aloofness from the IT boom and industrial marginalization even in the India Shining Boom squarely on the militant trade union communism which comrade Achu always seemed to represent and champion.


However it doesn't come as a surprise to see VS {Comrade} Achu being ranked as the third best CM in India in a CNN - IBN Hindustan Times Poll.See the list below.




In a balance sheet the development index of Kerala under CM Achu is almost nil.

Smart City is still Smart City on paper because Achu wants more stake for government

It is Bye Bye time to Vizhinjam Port.
Highcourt Order and a criticism for LDF Govt on the new education law.
This is in addition to so many things like asking Microsoft to logout of Kerala state and banning "Imperialistic Western" Colas with in the state (which was also later revoked by the court)

However VS has evoked a tinge of empathy and sympathy because of the troubles that he was facing from the rival factions with in the comunist party in the state even among hard core anti communists propelled by the umpteen comedy and mimics shows whihc always portrayed VS as a victim of so many transactions and bad people.This seems to have been carried over in this survey to rank the best Chief Ministers in India.What a pity that some one like "Smiling Budda" was shunted down due to the Singur Controversy while "Comrade Achu" is climbed up ?

Films, songs, business schools , sexy people, beautiful cell phones , terrible songs , worst movies; top 10 lists exists these days for everything and anything. There are news channels and websites that provide top ten news of the day, magazines like Forbes and Newspapers like ET publish a 50 Most Powerful list. The craze with lists goes on and on and getting into any nice sounding list is a parameter of social and professional success for many people .

Now if we see the list above, Chief Ministers who have implemented populist measures are ranked highest and instead of the development factor the human face projected in media seemed to have scored highest in the rating.The idea behind any list is benchmarking the success there by helping us to choose in the middle of so many options. In doing so, the absolute status and power of a Chief Minister and whatever he has done gets converted into one tickmark in a sample survey; dependent on its survival in the sample memory on his likes and dislikes. The parameter of success is forgotten in the hullabullo that follows the euphoria created from the rank in Top 10.In a ranking of Top 10 list of Chief Ministers in a country like India if VS is ranked as the #3 best Chief Minister , the only response from anyone who has watched him for the last six months is same as expressed by A K Antony below.



P S: Forget Antony ,Take a deep breath you communist Comrade , Comrade Achu is a very nice Communist Comrade in the Kerala Context and a very nice human being , who needs all the sympathies for all his crusades within and outside the party.

Mundu Allowance

I always had an opinion that Mundu is a nice dress which every Keralite should be proud of . Similar things include The first communist government , the most adamant Chief Minister in India , Spicy Fish Curry , The only State Police Force to play decent football and win two federation cups etc..

Keralites outside Kerala and Generally other non Keralites view Mundu as country , boorish and uncivilised .When you travel through the length , breadth and width of Kerala you can see the ubiquitious nature of Mundu and understand how it was / is and will be an integral part of Kerala culture as long as all the Keralites remain in Kerala and keep wearning their Mundu . Samples below.


From an Old Prem Nazir Movie


From an Ayurvedic Massage centre


From a Boat Race



From a Tea Stall in the Morning




Nariyal Chutney was very happy when Kerala Government came with this scheme of Mundu on Saturdays . Not Because they came with the innovative Scheme to save the Khadi Industry but because VS & team asked the male government employees to wear Mundu on Saturdays. This is a nice thing which is certianly better than asking Microsoft to log out of Kerala and Cola Companies to flee from the state.

The scheme was launched one week back handed over the first Mundu along with other hand loom clothes to Anju Bobby George .We can't blame Anju , as all nice Kearlites will do she would have happily obliged to a request from state government .Nariyal Chutney can't wait to see Anju running through tracks for long jump wearing a Mundu . This is what we call world wide branding and surely this should be the idea of some wily old foxy mind in the LDF government with white beard.Imagine the world wide Publicity that Mundu will be getting when Anju is running through the Long Jump track wearing a Mundu in the next Olympics or with in India when she uses it for next national games. Hmmmm...

Whoever thought about World wide branding for Mundu has certianly forgotten about the branding inside the Kerala State. It is really bad that Keralites are responding to this initiative in the Kerala way . DNA reports from Mumbai that government employees are demanding a Mundu Allowance to wear Mundu on Saturdays. Who else will demand an allowance for wearing the traditional dress ?What bothers Nariyal Chutney now is that even the people who were wearing Mundu earlier may stop wearing Mundu and may demand Mundu allowance ?.This is a Bery Bery Bery Bery BAD situation that arises when people become concious about their rights.

Good LDF is ruling Kerala these days . If UDF was ruling and had come with a directive like this , Nariyal Chutney is sure that communists would have organised an All Kerala Bandh and Hartal demanding a Mundu allowance.

Finally , I think this lady (Some People in Go Fug Yourself Blog call her Parminder Nagra) looks gorgeous in what seems like a British version of Lungi (It is a cousin of Mundu).

It would have been nice is the communist with the white beard had used this lady as the brand ambassador.International - It is the Way to Go Mundu and Kerala! .

Nariyal Chutney - I , Me Myself tag

It has been a long time since I cribbed about me :P and some mails in my mailbox claim that they know me before I was born.Saw this tag and picked it up then and there.

Here is Nariyal Chutney Unplugged - I , Me , Myself

1.Yourself: It comes in two parts 1- Happily Single, Extremely straight, Syrian Roman Catholic , Cancerian and a Keralite 25 year old. This part was sponsered by Jeevansathi.com and Shaadi.com . 2- Totally Screwed up {Fraud} Mallu , Duffer , Living Disaster,Lazy Ass ,Pseudo intellectually disabled Specimen.This part was sponsered by Nariyal Chutney


2. Your girlfriend/spouse: Nopz ; I am Happily Single .

3. Your hair: Short , Wavy , Black.

4. Your mother: Mom,Sweety. She calls me up or I call her up every night.My father and me are more worried about Airtel making more money at the expense of our family!!

5. Your father: The only guy in this world who knows and remembers the names of all girls I had a crush on and the total budget .Each time he remarks that I have made him land in a hot soup pan and aesthetic standards in our family are decreasing with each generation.

6. Your favorite item: My Nokia N Series Phone!! . This part was sponsered by a Nokia N 71.

7. Your dream last night: of a Majestic Elephant bathing in Kerala and me walking through a paddy field to watch it.


This snap is from Flickr Best of 2006 collection


8. Your favorite drink: Smirnoff (Shaken but not stirred). This part was sponsered by James Bond.

9. Your dream car: My First Car bought with our money.

10. The room you are in: A second floor flat in a North Indian town with TV in full volume .

11. Your ex: No Comments. I believe in the quote of Lord Alfred Tennyson that It is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved someone at all.There is always a scope for improvement when you know how precious getting or giving true love is. Herman Hesse once said If I know what love is, it is because of you. Herman Hesse seems to be more intelligent than me since he realised this before me.(This was sponsered by www.dontbreakup.com)


12. Your fear: Nothing . I am a confident young guy who likes doing whatever which can make my heart beat faster and blood hotter.

13. What do you want to be in 10 years? Younger.

14. Who you hung out with last night(Saturday) ? No Comments. But I was not with a girl.

15. What you're not?.Typical Mallu Guy.

16. Muffins: The Best Thing that you get from bakeries in Mussorie.Never miss a chnace to eat muffins or for that matter any item from Mussoorie bakeries.

17. One of your wish list items: Meeting with the CEO of a well known company who want me to join his firm as early as possible after two VPs who interviewed me gave good report . ( About a duffer like me ...Arrrghh).This is according to the HR lady and a consultant who had been after my life for last three months.

18. Time: Sleeping is a waste of time.

19. The last thing you did: Wished one of my umpteen friends who is getting married this weekend a very blissful and contended married life after his treat. God save the girl :). In this whole marriage process that is happening left , right and centre Airtel seems to be the biggest loser. They Should concentrate on keeping people away from each other.

20. What are you wearing? Denim Jeans and Black T Shirt

21. Your favorite weather: Winter in Summer and Summer in Winter

22. Your favorite book: Anything that is fit to read . I am a voracious reader , you will come across quotations once in a while in all my posts.

23. The last thing you ate: Idli and Nariyal Chutney.

24. Your life: I always wish it was non linear like the books of Gabriel Garcia Marques and movies like Babel with old age coming first and childhood last or there was a technology that would make you stand at three four places at the same time { For instance , in my case in Kerala and North India}

25. Your mood: Relieved because somebody whom I hurt has forgiven me and she just underlined my assumption that I have a tendency to screw up things.

26. Your best friend: SJ & JJ in Bangalore , SM in Mumbai ,RV in Delhi , DRR in Kolkata , SAR in Thiruvanthapuram(This is a long list, that I really care about). It is a pan Indian network which contact me once in a week and contributes more money to Airtel. (God made relatives;
Thank God we can choose our friends.)

27. What are you thinking about right now? How I am missing the mosquitoes in Kochi at night.

28. Your car: I am happy with my KL - 7 bike but also love the KL -7 car in Kochi owned by my father.

29. What are you doing at the moment? :Answering this question.

30. Your summer: Something that makes me yearn for Winter if it is weather and what gave me a Pre Placement Offer when I was in B School.

31. Your relationship status: Happily Single

32. What is on your TV? CNN IBN discussing why Omkara would have been a better choice in Oscars than Rang De Basanti.(Duffers they are discussing this after RDB has been chucked out of Oscar race wish they had discussed this instead)

33. What is the weather like? Cold and foggy outside but hot under my blanket.

34. When is the last time you laughed? Today when I just met this guy , Philips Joseph who is working in Videocon who told me about this incident.


Customer:My TV is not working
My Friend: Hi , This is Philips from Videocon. I will help you
Customer:I have called Philips or Videocon , Sorry. Cut
If you are from Videocon , Please chuck out all Philips in your roll for lousy customer service , else ask them to change the name :). Change the name Philips Joseph to Plippy Joseph :)


35. When is the last time you shouted at somebody? I can't quarrel or shout with anyone . Just hate doing it . I have my own sweet ways of cooling anyone who comes with a quarrel / Shout needed in fluorescent written all over the face :)


Tag!!! Any one who wants to crib / yearn about themselves.ATB :)

Loving(?) Son

Just a personal note here but I couldn't resist. Happy Birthday Mom & Dad . Wish I could be with you when you receive the flowers that has been send through Phoolwala .Thanks You for the two lasting bequests you gave both of us - roots and the wings.



Actually I feel it is pretty nice that they were born in the same month ten days apart not because I could send them one nice bunch of flowers , but since they retired together on the same day giving each other company.



P S: A part of this post is inspired by five ice creams bought by my father and mother at various points of life when I wanted to marry five girls whom I met at various points of life even before I completed one dozen years in this big bad earth.

MBA -Max Shady Arbit Fundaes

Went to judge this B School competition in a leading B school and had a chance to see presentations by teams from Indian Institute of Managements and other B Schools.It was a business Plan competition and the fellow judges were the Global Delivery Heads of two prominent Indian IT Companies and a greying Professor .I was slightly self conscious since I was the only "bacha" in the judging panel.When I used to take part in these competitions some time back,it was always a pleasure to kick the butt of other B Schools but was equally painful to get the kick back when we lost to others. Judging seemed to be an easier activity than participating and may be organisers could have improved the articulation of presentations by giving the judging critera to participants in the initial stage itself.It was surprising that all the judges arrived at a consenus in results . Some teams had real good presentations with insights on the implementation part as well.Most of them were arguing that "The fluttering of the wings of the butterlies caused enough wind to cause a rainfall" making me wonder how MBA's are able to pluck gas from thin air to fill the vaccum and this Advertisement from fedex tells me that so many people think so.

The corporate or rather MBA way of speaking is characterized by a faux-sophistication that makes the speaker feel powerful and dynamic when he actually has no influence on anything consequential. Sometimes I feel that somebody should do a study on the cultural implications of MBA jargon -- a combination of vapid slogans (e.g., "value creation" , "Opportunity Leverage","CCDV (Creating Communicating & Delivering Value) " and insidious euphemisms like " strategy " , "solutions" , "downsizing" , "right sizing " , "leveraging" ) that appears so prominently in PowerPoint presentations and conference calls happening in corporate offices everywhere.

Some of the things that were used after my MBA and the results were .

1.Telling my eX that Dating is test marketing and marriage is an acquisition. (She broke up and went for a sane guy)

2.Made some Suggestions to my sweet mother about the structural inefficiencies in the processes in Kitchen Set Up (She complained to my father that I am not makng any sense to her after my MBA and made me drink Ladies Finger Soup to make her son sane. Arrrrrgh...)

3.Told my Manager that there are no problems in work , just issues and improvement opportunities. (He asked me to do a six sigma implementation )


4.Explained to my Parents the benefits of leveraging with friends as opposed to renting the apartment, which is a sunk cost anyway (and father gave me that funny look ; which said that You were all right son two years back? )

5.Urged my darling Grand Mother to choose her favorite Pickle Brand as a rational choice rather than emotional choice (She stopped being a darling for sometime by saying her favorite Achar is not good for the health of young people)

6.Remarked to my brother that my favorite posters are those stock market charts in Wall Street Journal and Financial Times. (He claimed ownership for the Sexy poster of Priyanka Chopra , which was adorning my bedroom)

7.Lastly, when I explained to the local Kirana store Value Creator about 4P's, She muttered "Paavam , Nalla Payyanayirunnu , Enthu Patti Aavo" (The Young Boy was good , What happened in last two years?) to my aunt.

If you didn't make sense of half the things in ( I call it 7 Lessons of Max Shady Arbit Fundaes from an MBA ( Hail Covey) )Italics said out here , you have guessed it right . From being a MUMPS ( Mallu Under Management Process ) I have graduated to a seasoned MBA who can now claim core competency in judging B School competitions as well .

Status of Dogs - Bush’ to guard ‘Saddam’ and ‘Gaddafi’ in Kerala

This is a special appeal from my dog Kaiser to all the dog owners . Dogs , I feel are very good animals (Just like we say ,a very good human being) . At least my dog Kaiser is a very faithful and obedient dog except when he express his affection by putting his paw marks all over my white dress when I go home.

Save Kerala is a nice blog where people generally discuss about so many things related to Kerala. The Caption Dog's Own Country howver seemed derogatory and I knew at least one person who supported the blog but loved dogs. So I mailed the author and here goes the conversation thread .

Hi Mind Curry,
I like the cause and the things that are being discussed out there in your blog . But Why have you kept the name of the Blog as Dog's Own Country . Isn't it derogatory?
Best Regards
~NC~

Hi Nariyal,

I dont think its derogatory. People generally have the misconception that I am calling the Keralites dogs. Thats not the case. Its just that some of the things that happen in our state, and some of the mentality that prevails in our state is pathetic. This blog is to fight against those things ..the same things that block development and progress of both our state and its people.

I hope you are more convinced now.

Regards,
MC

MC,
"Its just that some of the things that happen in our state, and some of the mentality that prevails in our state is pathetic." . Totally Agree , but what does Dogs have to do with this ? Arent you under the assumption that Dogs are good for nothing :( , If you say the quoted statement about Kerala nad call the state Dog's Own Country .
Regards
NC

NC,
i didnt quite understand your statement. anyway, i really find some of the behavior of our mallu brethren very pathetic and purely disgusting. yeah in some ways its shameful for this behavior to be compared to dogs, coz i really love dogs - if thats what you also meant :)

mc

MC,
Yaar Mind Curry . There is an irony here . If you love Dogs but find our Mallu Bretheren very pathetic and purely disgusting , then why you call them something you love :P . Anyway Dogs are not so substandard so as to be compared with our Mallu Bretheren.

nc

NC,
anyway the dogs in DOC is more indicative than literal..its just to bring out the disgust at some of our acts and behavior..and its not that i am comparing mallus to dogs..or the other way.

:)

cheers,
mc

Now , as a blogger mindcurry has a bloggie right to express and write whatever he wants.

I was in Mumbai yesterday and according to this article in DNA titled "'Bush’ to guard ‘Saddam’ and ‘Gaddafi’ in Kerala a 43-year-old fisherman has named his sons after the historical figures and has the name ready for the pet dog he plans to buy as Bush.

Kaiser seems to have a problem is using dogs as a benchmark for humans . Kaiser has approached this in Kerala way and has formed an All Kerala Dog Association . The question that he asked me over the woofs and barks over phone is for instance why can't humans be compared to say a hippopotamus or crocodile or say an anaconda . It is with in his animal right to demand all this :) . Is Maneka Gandhi lisetning ? . Does Animals come under the purview of RTI ?.

If you are a dog owner , you can discuss this with your dog and let me know your opinion and your dog's opinion.

To Kerala with Love - A Fraud Mallu

I was talking to one of my North Indian friends about Mallu land. So many people assume things that I discuss are of low standards by any benchmarks . Since none of you havent met me and possibly wont meet me you can consider I have a decent intellectual ability and exhibit all the required common sense traits. Kerala or rather Keral for him stands for Ayurveda and Backwaters though he doesnt know what a backwater is .After a discussion like this , When you are far away from a place where you have lived for last twenty years , memories come back to haunt you - Of what you did , what you had experienced , some memories really enjoyable , some memories really nostalgic but slightly painful .These are the reminiscences of a Mallu on a cold chilly Delhi night about some sweet memories in Kerala.This is not about Kathakali or Kalatippayattu but somethings every Mallu may love to experience if they have ever experienced it while in Malluland.


Thattukada

Thattukadas in Vyttila , Edappally , Palarivattom (Rappais Fast Food & Chicken Dosa) and MLA hostel near Thiruvananthapuram.There is something strongly Malayalish about this sight of tea being poured from one glass which is held high above the other glass. I just love this and whenever i am in any Thattukada watches and just admire the adroitness of the guy who is doing this . So when I was naming the blog , nothing came into the mind other than this Malluness in Thattukada . Tired of explaining to people what Thattukada is , I hope they will understand from now on.



Appam

Hot Appams served after the Sunday masses by Amma with Chicken Curry straight from that black 'Chatti' that have been serving my family for last twenty five years (since I can remember).


Houseboat

Boathouses that were proliferating in Alleppy on my last holiday over there.Couldnt get into any of these then . After retirement buying a boathouse and taking a nap staring into the full moon listening to the wavy music of the backwaters seems to be a distant but possible dream now.


Boatraces

Boatraces that I used to watch once in a while .Once I remember a guy before me being pushed to water while watching a grand boat race organised to welcome Prime Minister in Ernakulam Marine drive.



Fishermen going to Sea

Fishermen in Calicut , Vizhinjam and Fort Kochi. Somehow I have been to all these places due to the 'transferical' nature of my parents job.It reminds me of the family outings that we used to have in weekends to beaches.


Karimeen

Tasty Karimeen Roast that I have eaten from umpteen hotels.Nothing Beats it . Especially if it comes after being cooked by mom in home.


Walking in Paddy Fields

Walking in the paddy fields behind my Dads house in Vaikom.It is just amazing , you know miles and miles of green grass and you feel like as if you are being absorbed into the green surroundings.


Onasadhya

Onasadhya , served in leaf and eaten with my family .The sight of the leaf filled with avial in one side and pazham in the other side is something every year me eagerly wait for . After all it comes only once in a year.



Kallushappu

But above all , the thing shown above ( thatsy it is a large snap ). The tasty dishes in Chalechira , Neriamangalam and Cherppungal Kallushapps. Please note here that I have note written about the drink and the shap owner in Chalechira is a Communist . Did you se the CITU poster in the above pic ? .But the fish fry there is pretty good :).

I think ,it is time to go back and savour some of these. There is this problem with all the people who want to go back to Kerala including me . The only other solution is starting your own company in coimbatore or Tirupur since UDF and LDF takes pride in not permitting to start any company in Kerala .

Whatever , when you realise that you are far away from all those memories and it may not be possible to go back where you enjoyed staying the most it becomes slightly unenjoyable after writing this . Lucky are though who are savoring all these in Kerala.

Added later
+++++++++++
Found lot of people searching for Kerala and Tourism lands on this page . Read this , if you are planning to visit Kerala . My two paisa for increaing the revenue of Kerala Tourism

Pathrosum , Mohanlalum , Oru New Yearum Pinne Njanum

Pathrosinte Mone ! New Year started with Mohanlal roaring at me from a T V Screen when I switched on the TV after my early morning jog . I watched this movie for five minutes in Surya T V and decided that it is a timewaste . They saw a tiger roaring when ever Mohanlal walked , danced and smashed villians.Somehow using Tiger as a metaphor for Mohanlal who was smashing six foot villians left , right and centre on the television screen on a New Year's day did not appeal to me.

I peeked into the mobile phone screen and there were 27 messages from kin , kith and long lost friends in addition to the 32 messages that I had replied to before midnight.It is nice to know that people remember you on occassions like New Year , Christmas etc especially your ex gal friends :)(Some people who are reading this blog may argue that I have a long list of ex , ex and ex .Let me assure you that my ex relationships were as long and wide enough to be written on the back of a postage stamp } . Coming back to greetings,I always used to wonder why people send greetings to each other on any occassion and somehow some stingy Mallus always believed that it was a waste of money.The only Logical explanation that I have ever come across is that when you are making a greeting you are making a deposit in the "Emotional Bank Account" {Hail Covey}. I feel like I am in a place now where I can start making deposits into the accounts of my friends and family. It's been a long year of regeneration, and in some places, I have withdrawn far too much from those I love. Time to pay back.Brr , I start sending messages vigorously to all people in my address book.I get two calls after three minutes .

Caller:NC , Can you please stop this ?
Me:Stop What?
Caller:Wishing People in New Year.
Me: What is wrong with a New Year Wish?. According to Covey....
Caller: You have wished me five times in last three days , till 2012
Me: Oopz Soory , Happy New Year
Caller:If you ever tell me happy new year Again in my life , I am going to Kill you

I realise that there is an immediate threat to life on the first day of New Year , So I cut the phone.

I stopped making any more deposits in emotional bank account and curse Covey.

Wondering whether I will get a new idea about the company I always wanted to start , I start reading the book "High Performance Entrepreneur" by Subroto Bagchi . I realise that difficult though setting up a business is, becoming a high-performance entrepreneur is harder still. And yet of the many thousands who try, there are those who go on to become successful, some even graduate to setting up companies that hold their own against the toughest competition, becoming icons of achievement like Subroto Bagchi , Ashok Soota and other Mindtree founders .What is remarkable is that this book is about so many non TATA non Birla types like you and me who were not born with a Silver Spoon in mouth and were successful in life. This book is seriously good and I decide that next time when I am bored with my job I will start my own company or will apply to Mind Tree .

Then I switch on the TV again and I see some Mallu Channels showing protests against Saddam Hussein's execution in various parts of Kerala. This is what I call " A Wonderful Nonsense". Mallus strike for each and every macro and micro issues . I decide that I wont be starting my company inspired from the high performance entrepreneur in Kerala of all the places even if I want to start it in Antartica.

I became tired of the anti Bush Rhetoric soon and decide that it is time to make new year Resolutions.

My first new year resolution is that I will make a New Year Resolution!

My second new year resolution is that I wont forget my New Year Resolutions.

My third new year resolution is that I wont get obsessed with or die for my New Year Resolution.

Then I again make my favorite new year resolution of the back packing trip in Europe. I have been making this resolution since I saw Dilwalwe Dulhaniya Le Jayengein 1994 and this is my succesful twelfth repeatition of making this new year resolution .

I again make my second new year resolution that I will work hard with an urge to excel to increase my salary . Since my salary has been already increased with a Bang , I consider this new year resolution as already been achieved.

I decide that it is time to drink a coffee in the foggy Delhi weather .

I stare at the foggy Delhi skies wondering how many people would have missed New Year Celebrations , Flights and Trains because of fog.

There is nothing like sipping a hot South Indian filter coffee in a cold North Indian winter and musing about Life.

Life is like having a cup of tea.
You sit by the side of the window, lift the cup and take a careless sip,
Only to realize, somebody forgot to put the sugar.
Too lazy to go for it you somehow struggle through the sugarless cup.
Until you discover un-dissolved sugar crystal sitting at the bottom.

---That's Life---