DOR - A Must See Movie

I have been hibernating for quite some time now. No particular reason for it though. Couldn't think of anything to write about. When I saw DOR today, I just wanted to write about it. It is my favorite Nagesh Kuknoor movie till date; it is a step ahead of "Iqbal". Ayesha Takia (Meera) and Shreyas Talpade (Behroopiya) are as if made for their respective roles and Nagesh's direction is a feather in the cap. Ayesha looks great sans make-up. Gul Panag (Zeenat) suits her character. I will not reveal the story as I feel that this is a "must watch" movie.

All in all it is a movie with a different concept, a movie that makes you not want to close your eyes even for a minute, a movie that teaches you something, a realistic movie and as I had read somewhere "a movie that begins at the beginning" and "ends where it should".

My take on Orkut

Last year summer, I didn't even know there existed a site named www.orkut.com. But after I got an invitation to join this site from my cousin, it was like finding a whole new world. And in this span of just over a year, I have met a lot of my schoolmates and classmates. Thanks to Orkut I have been able to renew some friendships which I had thought would be lost forever. Some time back there were articles in newspapers and on websites that there was a virus on orkut. But what was not mentioned, was that, there were chances of a virus entering your system if you clicked on some external link which was malicious. Just as everything else, Orkut too has its pros and cons. With the help of Orkut, I was able to get in touch with a few lost friendships & acquaintances. I met some people through Orkut who fell into neither category; whom I had never met. We have got to know each other a bit better. You have many communities where you can meet schoolmates, you can share your thoughts and you can have discussions. As good as this sounds, you should also take care of some things when accessing Orkut. Don't disclose any personal information in the scraps (which any member can read), take care while posting photos and don't get too used to it. The only thing that I would like to say is that if you take proper precautions in using Orkut, its a great site to be in touch with friends.

First Trip to USA (Part II)

The flight took off at 3:00 am and I was happy as I was finally on my way to US. The flight landed at Frankfurt and as soon as I entered the airport, I could feel the cold. It was too windy and chilly. I had 4 hours to spend at Frankfurt airport before my flight to Washington DC. It was wonderful; a totally different experience. I never realized how time passed and it was time for my flight. I boarded the flight to Washington and slept throughout the flight, as there was nothing else to do. When we approached Washington, the pilot made an announcement and I awoke, freshened up and got ready to set foot in US. We landed at Washington at 3:30 pm on 31st. My flight from Washington to Scranton, Pennsylvania was at 5:00 pm from G concourse. I went through the immigration and customs and reached the G concourse at 5:00 pm sharp. I saw the gates being closed in front of me. I ran to the gate but missed my flight by mere 5 minutes. At that point of time I was so angry and upset that I couldn’t think of anything. Quite a few Indian fellow passengers of mine were facing the same situation. But none of them even thought of co-operating with each other to have the problem resolved. They behaved indifferently and I was even angrier. I took quarters (25 cent coins) from a coffee shop and called Pravin to inform him that I had missed my flight. As there was no other flight for Scranton the same day, he asked me to fly to Allentown instead (which is around 1 hr drive from Scranton). I went to the customer service desk and awaited my turn. When it was my turn, I told the lady behind the desk that I had missed my flight due to a long line at the immigrations counter and after checking with her senior, she gave me a ticket to Allentown. By this time it was 7:00 pm and my flight to Allentown was at 9:00 pm. The weather was bad and many flights were getting cancelled. I was afraid that mine would too ‘coz it was getting delayed every ½ an hour. Every time the flight got cancelled, I called up Pravin to inform him about it. Then I ran out of quarters and was nearly on the verge of crying. But an African-American helped me by giving me some quarters to call Pravin. It was 11:30 and there was still no sign of my flight taking off. I had thought that now I would have to spend my night there at the airport itself. There were a few people around me who were also waiting for the flight to take off. We started talking and it was comforting having someone around (even if they were strangers). There was a guy who was also waiting for the same flight as I was and he said that in case the flight got cancelled, he would be hailing a cab to go to Allentown. At that point I said to him that if the flight got cancelled, I would ride along with. I was a bit scared as I did not know this guy but at the same time I wanted to get out of the airport and reach Allentown / Scranton. Finally at 12:15 I heard the announcement for boarding the plane as our flight was going to take off. I called Pravin and told him that I am finally leaving Washington and would meet him at Allentown airport. Our flight took off at 12:30 and I reached Allentown between 1:00 and 1:15 am. When we landed and I entered the airport, I was relieved. In all this confusion, I had forgotten that my luggage had already gone to Scranton. So I would have to wait for another day to get my luggage. And then I saw Pravin. At that point I felt that I had never been happier in my life. We reached home at 2:30 am. Then we called our parents to inform them that I had reached safely. They were worried as I was supposed to reach Scranton at 6:00 pm on 31st Dec instead of which I reached there at 2:30 am 1st Jan. But inspite of all this, I was happy as I had reached my dream country. And now its more than one and half year after which I am sharing this experience with you all. Hope that no one ever faces anything like this.

First Trip to USA (Part I)

I have been dreaming of coming to US (like many of us) since I was a child. As I started my job when I was in college, I didn’t want to pursue higher studies and so didn’t come to US. Then got married and was happily living in Pune with my husband. When my husband joined Patni, my hopes of getting a chance of coming to US were elated. And as expected he got a chance to come to US on H1 within 6 months of joining. He came to US in Nov. 2004 and I was to follow in a month’s time or so depending on my visa approval. I was to visit the Patni office in Chinchwad for collecting some documents required for my visa interview. The first time I went there, it was for my visa briefing. When I went there, I was told that the concerned person was on leave. I was angry 'coz I had to take a leave from my office to go there all the way from Kothrud. The second time I went there, I was briefed on the visa interview process. The documents were not ready and so I was asked to go again for collecting the documents. So here I was the third time again in Patni to collect the documents. And after I reached Patni I was told that the documents have not yet arrived. Patni people were testing my patience. And there I was again, a fourth time, to collect the documents required for my visa interview. I got lucky the fourth time and was given all the necessary documents. I got the appointment for my visa interview in Dec 2004. I got my visa without any problems and was excited of coming to US.

As I was traveling on H4, Patni was supposed to book the tickets for me. Pravin (my hubby) was in Scranton, Pennsylvania and Patni booked my ticket for 31st Dec 04 for Scranton. My ticket was for Scranton alright but not the one in Pennsylvania. It was for Scranton in Rhode Island. I was shocked when I came to know this. How could the people of Patni commit such a mistake? This was happening not even a week before I was supposed to fly. Then Pravin contacted Patni people from US and told them about the mix-up and asked them to change my ticket. By the time they had sorted this out and booked a ticket for me, it was 28th Dec 04. I called Patni people to check when I could collect the ticket. I was told that I should call them on 29th and then go to their office. When I called up on 29th morning, I was told that they would be receiving the ticket from the agent that evening. So I was supposed to collect the ticket on 30th morning. Can you believe it? I had to leave Pune at 4:00 pm on 30th and there was still the last minute packing to be done. So I called Patni people and asked them if it was possible to get an e-ticket (I had thought they would suggest this to me) and they gave me a favorable reply. So I finally got my e-ticket via email on 29th evening. To add to this, there was some problem with the electricity and I could not print my e-ticket on 29th. Ashish (my best friend) printed the e-ticket and delivered it to my place.

I left Pune along with my parents, my in-laws and Ashish at around 4:00-4:30 pm on 30th for Mumbai. We reached Mumbai somewhere between 9:30 and 10:00 pm. My flight was at 2:50 am 31st from Mumbai to Frankfurt. So as per the rules I was supposed to check-in 3 hours prior to the departure time. We reached the airport and I took my boarding pass. Then met my parents, in-laws and uncle and aunts who had come to see me off. I could see tears in their eyes. Oh how much I wished I could stand there with them just a little longer. But I knew that the more time I waited there, the harder it would be for all to say good-bye. So I took my elder’s blessings and walked towards the immigration check. Once I had checked in, all there was to do was wait for the announcement of boarding the flight. As I was traveling alone, it was quite boring to spend almost 2:30 hours there just sitting. But as there was no other alternative, I started reading the book that I was carrying with me. Then once I heard my flight number being called, I walked to the security checkpoint. After the security check, I waited for the flight departure. In the meanwhile, I called up my parents to let them know that I had just come out from the security check and was waiting to board the plane.

Birthday Wish for a 1 year old

A single candle on the cake celebrates,
The joy of your first birthday.
As we sing to wish you,
We remember last year this time.
You came into this world,
With the most beautiful smile.
With every year that comes,
The candles will increase.
And so will love and blessings,
That everyone has to give.


This is the poem I wrote for a friend's son's first birthday.

Bomb Blasts in Mumbai

The blasts in Mumbai last week left everyone wondering why people do such horrendous things. It was a sad plight to watch the images on TV or the net. I was sick to my stomach looking at the blood stained clothes and injured faces of the innocents victims of the blasts. It was a reminder of the blasts that took place in Mumbai in 1993. I know some of my relatives and friends who were lucky to have escaped death just by a few minutes or seconds then n this time. The first reaction knowing that your friends, relatives and acquaintances are alright is a sigh of relief; but at the same time you feel sorry for those who lost lives for no fault of theirs.

How can people endanger so many lives when they have no right to do so? Why do people take such drastic steps? What makes them forget humanity? Afterall they too are related to someone. How would their parents feel if they were the victims? Don't they have any concern at all for other people?

Last week after the blasts, many others like me (who stay out of India), were trying to get in touch with our near and dear ones via phone / email. Phone being the easiest and fastest means to communicate, I tried calling Mumbai but to no avail. The lines were jammed and I could not contact anyone out there. Most of my friends and relatives too couldn't. I heard somewhere that the the telephone lines had been temporarily cut off for fear of spreading rumours about the death toll. If this is true, I wonder if they realise what they are doing. No one can contact their relatives and friends to check on them and neither can they call us. In such a situation, all we can do is pray for their well-being and wait for someone to contact us.

But it was so good to see the spirit of Mumbai, the unity of the "Mumbaikars". Even during the floods last year (on 26th July 2005 to be precise) we saw all the people of Mumbai helping each other in any way possible. Last week, when I switched on Zee TV after reading about the blasts on the internet, they were showing the images of the victims. There were many people who were helping others inspite of being hurt themselves. Yesterday Mumbai paid a tribute to those killed in the blasts by observing a two minute silence. The traffic took a halt, people stopped walking, planes did not take off or land for those two minutes. Hats off to the people of Mumbai! Proud to be a Mumbaikar and proud to be an Indian.

My first blog ever : Friendship n Friends

Do we really understand the meaning of friendship? Do we know whom we consider our friends are in fact our friends or mere acquaintances? How do you define friendship? Well for me, friendship means being there for your friend, having someone to share all your happiness and sorrows with. A "true friend", as we generally say, is someone whom you can count on no matter what, someone who is with you in ups n downs in your life, someone whom you can speak out your mind to without having the doubt of what he / she will think about you. There's no room for jealousy, hatred, spite in friendship. Only love, care, trust, faith helps nurture a friendship and helps it to grow.

I sure am lucky to have friends who have been there for me whenever I needed them. They were there to share my happy times n sad, to advise me, to listen to my heart n mind without having to say a word. This blog is for them; to tell them how much they mean to me and how important it is for me to have them as my friends. To the best friends one can have. Miss you guys a lot. Love you'll. Hope to meet you soon.