Taggy Tags

This tag came from Bangalore via Delhi and Holland . I went into a procastination mode as soon as I saw the blogger who tagged me. I dont mind taking up tags as long as I can get ample supply of nariyalchutney . Previous tags are here , here and here .Since I am getting very few tags these days I assume that these young generation of bloggers think that I am too old to do a tag .

1. LAST MOVIE YOU SAW IN A THEATER: Last movie in a theater was "Khuda Ke Liye". This is the first Pakistani movie to be released in India in last 40 years and traces the life of two Pakistani brothers who have been caught up in a war between fundamentalists and liberal Muslims after 9/11. A good offbeat movie , more enjoyable since it is a different voice coming from Pakistan.

PS: My Friend who was with me didn't like the movie :P and caused enough misery by almost blackmailing me to watch Tashan. May be Jiby may enjoy it :D

2. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING: I am finding the Books in modern Indian fiction in Chetan Bhagat Mould very interesting and don't give much 'bhav' to the normal lot of writers. Just completed reading Tuhin A Sinha's book That thing Called Love set in the backdrop of Mumbai. A nice plot which tries to sketch out relationships in the lives of various characters suing Mumbai and rainy season as a backdrop.

3. FAVORITE BOARD GAME: I like Snake and Ladder and Chinese Puzzle - the game in which you create various shapes from seven pieces of various shapes.

4. FAVORITE MAGAZINE: Readers Digest.

5. FAVORITE SMELLS: I like smells of all things that reminds me of Malluland and Watercolours by God.



6. FAVORITE SOUND: Rain drops on a tiled roof

7. WORST FEELING IN THE WORLD: Why to think about it?.

8. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU THINK OF WHEN YOU WAKE:I am too lazy to Brush.

9. FAVORITE FAST FOOD PLACE. Haldirams

10. FUTURE CHILD'S NAME . No comments ,Since it will be a joint decision

11. FINISH THIS STATEMENT. "IF I HAD A LOT OF MONEY I’D...? Just Travel around The World to spend the money

12. DO YOU DRIVE FAST? Yupz , Real fast. St:Antony and some other saints have garnered a lot of candles when my mother sits with me in the car

13. DO YOU SLEEP WITH A STUFFED ANIMAL?: It depends on what stuffed animal wants to sleep with me.

14. STORMS-COOL OR SCARY?:Cool when I am watching it and may be scary if I am in the middle and is not a Storm in the teacup.

15. WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST CAR?: I am a bike guy . Cars are too inconvenient to manage in Mumbai and other Indian cities.

16. FAVORITE DRINK :Smirnoff

17. FINISH THIS STATEMENT, "IF I HAD THE TIME I WOULD..." : always find more Time

18. DO YOU EAT THE STEMS ON BROCCOLI?: Ha ha . Yupz , Anything edible in this world is Ok for me :) including roosters.

19. IF YOU COULD DYE YOUR HAIR ANY COLOR, WHAT WOULD BE YOUR CHOICE? :Blue

20. NAME ALL THE DIFFERENT CITIES/TOWNS YOU HAVE LIVED IN. Kochi , Thrissur , Kozhikode , Chennai , Delhi , Indore ,Calcutta, Nainital, Bangalore , Dhanbad,Ahmedabad , Mumbai ... I could go on and on and on and miss so many of these cities.

21. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH. Tennis and Football

22. ONE NICE THING ABOUT THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU. He seems to be a better procrastinator than me :).

23. WHAT'S UNDER YOUR BED. I dont know if you know please tell :).

24. WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE BORN AS YOURSELF AGAIN. Yupz 200%

25. MORNING PERSON, OR NIGHT OWL?. Night Owl . I don't sleep much though.

26. OVER EASY, OR SUNNY SIDE UP? : Who cares:)?

27. FAVORITE PLACE TO RELAX? : Anything related to History . History is a mute witness that testifies with time like those majestic forts in Rajastan. Beaches are also Ok .

28. FAVORITE PIE? : Only Idli and nariyalchutney . No Pies

29. FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR? :Tender Coconut

30. OF ALL THE PEOPLE YOU TAGGED THIS TO, WHO'S MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND FIRST? .

Ok, Any of the following can take the credit.

Angel Doc , Mathew , Ajit , Attributions , Jo , Shikha and Nikhil

Gulgappi Tales

Gulgappi is a close friend.I was all in awe of Gulgappis profile when I heard about him for the first time.He had topped most exams that he had written in his life and is a gold medalist from a reputed institution .As soon as Gulgappi opened his mouth all my awe evaporated into thin air due to some super secret reasons.

Gulgappi who was a simpleton changed soon and became a street smart kaneeme .Once we went to meet a North Indian Professor and as soon as Professor opened his door Gulgappi bend down and touched his feet . I don't know how Gulgappi suddenly became aware of a custom which symbolized respect for elders. Whatever! Gulgappi scored A+ in the paper of that professor and since I didn't touch the feet I could get only an A-.There are many Gulgappi tales like this in B School.

Gulgappi got placed in a prestigious Management Consulting firm and then we lost touch.One day I met Gulgappi accidentally at Hyderabad and Gulgappi invited me for his marriage .He showed me the photo of a good looking girl .Gulgappi got a very good deal for his high flying consulting job and few academic gold medals and the B School gossip was that dowry was in eight digits which was usually followed by a debate on whether dowry is an archaic custom. Most people who engage in such kind of debates like Gulgappi agree unanimously that dowry is a bad practice but forgets what they said few months before their marriage.


But Gulgappi screwed up big time.

Gulgappi was from a middle class family and like all middle class families had been taught to live with dignity amidst all financial and other constraints . His wife was from a rich and affluent family and like all affluent families searched for prestige in whatever they did . For them Gulgappi's profile , MBA degree and gold medals were more valuable than Gulgappi as a person. If you see matrimonial ads in Times of India in Delhi then Big Fat Mallu wedding is nothing .


Gulgappi is from a North Indian town and had not seen his mother questioning his father in his life .Gulgappi's s wife was of a totally different mould and offered her suggestions to Gulgappi and had her own opinions.She is also from a top institution and wanted to pursue her own career .Quite Understandable , she would have struggled equally hard like Gulgappi to get good qualifications. There was no problem for Gulgappi before marriage and he wanted his wife to be exactly like that - independent , modern etc. But now he thinks this is affecting his family life as differences are surfacing.To make it short their wavelengths as well as frequencies did not match.


Gulgappi and his wife were hi-flying consultants and usually traveled abroad as a part of their work. Gulgappi works in Singapore and his wife works in Dubai. Both of them fly to India in weekends that too when they were not busy with work and met for some time. From outside everything looked fine but the friend circle was abuzz with lot of gossips including some very inquisitive queries on when they had " seks " ?.

Poor Gulgu! Last time I met him he was really depressed . He didn't know where he went wrong . He had struggled hard all his life , went to top institutions , has a beautiful wife , has loads of money. All are the social parameters of successful life. Gulgappi wants his wife to quit job or get a transfer to Singapore . His wife does not want it as this project will give a huge boost to her career and the project will go on for at least two years. Gulgu doesn't want to shift either because he is doing so well in Singapore. Gulgu is actually a nice chap and not a proper kaneeme his wife also seems to be a nice gal with common sense.


There are some MBA Case studies where everything seems Ok with an organization but you can see some odd symptoms of failure here and there . These symptoms slowly grows to big problems and finally things go haywire.

Can someone help Gulgu?