Paper Stuff

I've been playing around with waste paper and glue and lot in the past year.. So much that I shared what I did with Pecha Kucha Night organizers and they actually asked me to present!

So here's a link of some of the products I've made.. Mostly for gifts to friends :)

https://www.facebook.com/pages/BeeTee/197779693586404?sk=photos

Happy Week ahead!

It's been a year

It's been a year... A year since Dhoni hit that magnificent six above the bowler's head to take India to the spot of - WORLD CHAMPIONS. For the one game that Indians follow so passionately, We definitely deserved this feeling.

We still remember what We were doing that night, where We saw the game, who were with us, what We did etc. A few serious ones can recall the special moments of the game.

The Toss and the 'Re-toss' (Crowd had been too loud, at the re-toss Sanga won and elected to bat)

The first 3 overs of Zak maidens (The leading wicket-taker of the tournament was at his best)

Absolute madness in the final overs of Zak (Wait, what happened to Zak?!)

Mahela's ton - (This was a heart breaker. Stats said that no team with a centurion had lost in a WC final. But as eternal optimists, We believed We were still going to win)

275 to win (The last few overs had been super expensive)

Viru's wicket on the 2nd ball of the Indian innings (India were 0/1, not the start we anticipated)

Gambhir's glorious strokes (beauty)

Sachin's wicket. India 31/2 - (He wasn't going to make the scene romantic and steal the thunder by scoring his 100th 100 in the World Cup Final on his home ground).

MSD promotes himself in the batting order (Raising a zillion questions and doubts)

Gauti out at 97 (The leading run-scorer for India in the Final game)

MSD and Yuvi increase the tempo (MSD makes his first 50 of the tournament, and goes on to make a match-winning 91* with brilliant shots)

MSD's final six and the twirl of the bat and the gaze that followed the trail of the ball (to be YouTubed and talked about for years)

Yuvi on his knees in tears, Dhoni's hug to Sachin, Kirsten's euphoric hand gesture after the win, Sachin's parade around Wankhede, the Cup in Dhoni and then Sachin's hands - It was all Special and still is. 

We frantic fans were blogging, reading, interviewing, partying and basically just celebrating the Win! We still remember the win, and won't forget it for a while. Even though We always believed We could achieve it, We said the win was 'unbelievable'. 

The year that followed hasn't been the best on field.  But our expectations had risen so high, that it was always going to be difficult. We were no.1 in Tests and no.2 in ODI's and had just won the World Cup. Like Dileep Premachandran wrote a few days after the win "How do you top a World Cup win?" http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/510391.html. But even the forgettable England and Australian tours had shining moments of Dravid's persistence and Kohli's stability. Even in the darkest times We've looked at the brighter side. This faith was given justice on the night of 02.04.2011 when our biggest dream was brought to reality by the Men in Blue. 

We will continue to support and believe. Last year, same time We were hyper emotional, super ecstatic and euphoric. A year later, We have calmed down, but the feeling is still the same. 

I was, am and shall always remain a part of "We"

Sketch Tributes

Slow Dance

 

This was the first time I had ever seen a Jelly Fish. And it was a fascinating experience. 

It was almost like watching a slow dance in water, just that I couldn't hear the music.

Trivia(l) Conversation

Who was India’s first ODI captain?

Who is the only player to have won 4 consecutive Man of the Match awards?

Who were the 3 Ws of West Indies?

Which player has scored a century and taken 6 wickets in one match?

Before Sachin overtook, who had the record for the highest centuries in ODI's n how much? (it looked unbeatable at one stage)

Who has taken the highest number of wickets in a single test match and how many?

India’s first overseas Test win was against whom and the team was led by whom?

Who said “whoever gets to 300 test wickets will b a very tired man?"

Which batsman faced the first delivery in ODI cricket? (His was also the first wicket to fall in ODI cricket)

Ok, so I barely got 25% of the above questions right. But what is important is that, now I do know the answers, and have gained lot more.

It all started off as our daily cricket conversation, and like every time it only added to my knowledge of the game. “I have followed cricket before Sachin overtook him (Desmond Haynes)”, said Huzi. And that had me up and listening. We were talking about who had the record for the highest number of centuries in ODI’s before Sachin overtook. I was barely recalling when I actually started following cricket closely, when Bish adds, “I know this since childhood”. So, what was I really doing when these guys were watching the game?! And, that only triggered me more to be a part of this conversation. I was learning, not only about the game, but also about my friends and myself. That’s why I feel, it’s important to be around people who share the same interests and passions as you.

“Who was the 1^st ODI captain of India?” shoots Huzi. Ok, I know this one, I thought to myself. I had this advantage of growing up with my grandfather, who in my knowledge knows more about history than any other soul I know. And by History, I mean history of everything – World Wars, Indian Independence, Cricket, World Politics and even Bollywood! I remember him saying that CK Nayudu (who is also the first Indian cricketer to be honored with the Padma Bhushan) was India’s first captain. But, I forgot how important details are. Grandpa had probably also mentioned ‘in Tests’, which I had conveniently forgotten through the years. So very confidently, I say “CK Nayudu” only to realize, Huzi had asked for ODI. Read the question twice before answering, is something teachers told us before our board exams. Will remember that next time. “Ajit Wadekar” says Bish, which is the right answer.

Answers to some were really basic, but when you have people who are eager to share their knowledge, you know of things like – Sourav Ganguly is the only player to have won 4 consecutive Man of the Match awards in ODI. Extra bit of info from Bish – “In Toronto, against Pakistan. We won that series 4-1.. We were leading 4-0 and made a good score in the 5^th ODI but someone from Pak hit a century. The series was in 1990’s.. 96 or 97 if I’m not wrong”. Obviously, I can find this information online, but to learn this from communication is more impactful. 

You could well be a big cricket fan and drown yourself in history books of the game, read new articles, scan all stats and watch every ball of a 5-day Test… But there is something else that you gain from having a conversation with like-minded people. Communication is important, whatever be the medium. It leads to exchange of information, excitement, passion and goes on to make long-lasting bonds…

Too much..

Too many thing happening together

It's time to simply, filter and chop to basics

Asymmetry

 

Everything in life doesn't have to be so organized.. This bridge was built in perfect symmetry, my Composition doesn't 'have' to be that way..

Last night in the hostel

 25-05-'07

I was all by myself. Roomie had already packed and left a month earlier. Wasn’t so sure how to ‘celebrate’ the end of 5 years living here. 

I thought I’d just click a photo or 2 of where I’d stayed to keep as memory...

Looking at this photo today, I'm looking at all the minutest details.

Bed with blue striped sheet – I loved having a bed by the window.

The cupboard on the left – was mostly used to keep body sprays, perfume, accessories etc. (heavily decorated with colored paper, coz I thought the cream and brown was too dull )

Plug point above the cupboard – the reason for many short-circuits across the corridor. Plugging in an iron would trip the circuit. After a few warnings, was mostly used for cell phone charging

Knotted curtains on the windows – Fancy curtains from Fab India (once upon a time deep red in color). I liked the rain coming through the window like a slight spray with the breeze, hence the tied up curtains

Blue stool – an important member of all my rooms through all years...famous for its multi-purpose use. Was quite famous, and I'm pretty sure a few of my friends had been thinking of kidnapping it.

The red big bag on the bottom left – too fancy to be carried out in Mumbai, especially useless because it had no zipper. I used it mostly to keep my extra files in the room

White cover on the red bag – an envelope from the photo-printer. I clicked and printed a lot.

The cot on the right – looked really barren once my roomie packed and left, so I put one of my extra sheets on it.

Laptop on the cot – My very first one (Dell), used and abused but something I relied on for everything – College work, office work, keeping in touch, watching movies, playing music. I think there is a Yahoo Messenger window running while this photo is taken.

The grey wire that runs from the top left of the window to the laptop – the internet ‘provider’. At 450rs/month, I would say it was a pretty good deal for unlimited uploads and downloads.

Table on the right – I just realized, everything in my room in blue! This was again an important piece of furniture in the room. However, I wish it was slightly less bulky. Was too big for our tiny room. Held my table clock, lens/glasses, tiny mandir, mementos from home, pen holders, magazines etc

Threptin tin on cot – to munch when hunger hit in the middle of the night.

Other mess on the cot – I can hardly recognize any of the stuff and I assume that was the pile to throw away. I even see a floppy disk there!

Black blob on the bed – my Moshi.. I’m not sure whether it had a name. but it’s like a really soft pillow, with a filling of tiny thermocol balls. Again, a favorite amongst visitors...

Transparent plastic folder on the left – used it a lot during college. Paper files during monsoon were of little use.

Bright orange lights seen from the window – probably from the Charni road station. The only year I had a ‘back-side’ room. But there was an advantage to that too…loved the sound of trains zooming by at late night and early mornings. Also, the sun woke me up, in case I had missed the alarm.

...But this is only what is seen in this frame 

The mess is because I was packing :)

Water : Ghala Village

"It fed the farms, washed the dead, cleansed the devotees, filled the silence and moistened the dusty air. The water was doing more for the village than anyone else.

I had been walking backwards all along. And it didn't feel that way till the end had arrived. And the end was actually the beginning..."

Home away from home

How can you not miss a view like that?

Something I wrote in 2008:

Its been a year....seems like a lifetime... seems historical.... since my last day in the hostel.... the place where I spent almost 5 years of my life... I really miss it!

The paani paani chai,
The powdery coffee,
The Coffee Energy,
The hardly working TV.....

The late night gossips,
The early morning shower lines,
The 'anytime' Maggie,
The 'no-reason' parties.....

The millions of cats,
The walls that had cracks,
The funny deadlines,
The warnings millions of times...

The friendships,
The bonding,
The groups,

The learning....
 

I miss being a part of it,

I cherish the memories bit by bit...

I wish I cud roll back time,

And relive each moment, each line...
 

Can I just go back one time?

I promise I won’t take long....

Blue stool

This might seem like just another photo.. but let me explain what it really shows

 

This photo was taken on the night of my roomie, Priti’s birthday (March ’07) in room number – 526 (I think) in SPMC (Savitri Phule Mahila Chhatralaya!!) at Marine Drive, Mumbai.

Back to the photo...

·         The bag of ‘Gaylord’ had the leftovers from the chocolate cake I got for Priti. (Ignore the name but this was our favorite place to get cakes from).

·         Blue stool and white marks? The cake HAD to be protected from ants. Hence the layering of other bags below and placement on stool in the middle of the room. The white marks are ant-repellent chalk marks :)

This photo brings back many memories. And of course, I have so many other pictures of all the fun we (Priti, Plo and me) had that night, but this one really has the essence of celebrating birthdays in hostel.

…and yes, the cake made it to the next morning without an ant-attack !

Photo-Paint

This photo is special for more reasons than one.

This was probably my last oil on canvas painting.

 I wish I had written the year in which I had painted this, along with my name. A rough guess would be late 90s or early 2000s. 

The lady, who used to teach me oil on canvas, just had her first solo exhibition in Oman. And I felt guilty of not keeping in touch, when she took the pains to find my address and send me an invite to the inauguration. She had an enormous display of 90 gorgeous paintings (out of a personal collection of 300). I really wish I would take some time off from everything, take some inspiration from her, and paint.

In all honesty, I don't think I can paint like that again.. but I should try.

Oh, and also this was the first photo I clicked from my Canon 400D :)

Caught

The IPL ends... And even though I am an avid cricket fan, I think I’m a bit relieved that it did come to an end. It was a strange month for some of us cricket lovers. Like a test of our love for the game. 

First week of April, I was still jumping around and telling everyone – “We Won, We Won!”. And I wanted to do so for at least a month. Also, I wasn’t done reading about all the million analysis that proved why India were worthy champions. I wanted more...more photos, more videos, more blogs, and more columns which glorified a historical event which we had just witnessed. I had not seen enough of Dhoni’s last six or Gambhir’s brilliant knock. I wanted to be drenched in Indian victory. So much that I would know everything that happened on every ball in the Final and remembered every player’s score in every match of the tournament.

And suddenly the “De Ghumake” track was replaced by the IPL siren. It all stopped abruptly. 

We were forced to stop the celebrations to give way for more cricket. Of course as cricket-lovers we should allow that happily, right? It was a test of commitment to those who refused to embrace this form of cricket and continued to dream about the Indian win, and then move on to the ongoing WI-Pak and SL-Eng tour. But then, everything was connected to the IPL. How far could you go without reading reports about Gayle being ‘dropped’ at home and ‘picked’ in IPL or Malinga being ‘injured’ enough to not play Tests for SL, but be there for Mumbai Indians? Of course IPL had all our attention. 

The first 2 weeks was a mess for the viewers who were trying really hard to keep track of which player was playing for which team. Some continued their support for the home-team, while others shifted loyalties to where their favorite players went. I did both. Wanted MI to win, coz I’m from Mumbai, and also supported CSK, because I hugely respect the cricket Dhoni and Raina play. Through the weeks, we also got a chance to watch some young players shine (which as viewers we would not know of otherwise). Amongst all, Rahul Sharma impressed me the most. His attitude matched his bowling, to make a difference. He will go a long way, unless he gets over-shadowed by more fancy players like Paul Valthaty and Saurabh Tiwary.

But it was still too much. Yes, I loved the way MI played against KKR, but was I excited about seeing the man who scored the highest runs in the World Cup final for India, lose? No way... It had barely been a month since Gambhir scored that magnificent 97 on 2^nd April. Yes, we love Dhoni for lifting a cup yet again, but not with someone like Virat Kohli being in the losing end. It was all too soon for viewers to divide their loyalties. 

All said and done, should we be complaining? IPL was put in front of us like a perfect Lunch Thali. I was prepared for the meal, but was I really hungry?

Cricket fever

So here it is.. I cannot NOT write about what just happened yesterday…No way, I've been an ecstatic kid since the past 19 hours and 37 minutes. And I know I’m not alone…

So much has been written and is being written right now about Saturday night and that makes it more electrifying. Cricket is probably the only passion that we all have in common as a country. I do not want to begin about where we could go as a nation if we developed more such common passions.

Anyways, like many Indian cricket fans, I am no different. I have followed this team very closely ever since I could sing the Indian National Anthem.  As one of the optimist fans, I hated all the criticism about cricket being a silly sport, Tendulkar being over-rated(!!), lack of good all-rounders, the collapse once Sachin departs etc. I failed to understand the critics. Why would one watch a game so closely only to find faults in it? I shut my ears to everything negative that was being printed and said; especially the news channels and print media, which took every opportunity to show the team in bad light. Patience is the key to success, and what better example than looking at Sachin’s career as a sportsman.

I, like most of my friends never knew what it was to win the World Cup. We had only heard from our parents and grandparents about the 1983 World Cup. They spoke about how India played the entire tournament, where they saw the finals, how they celebrated et al. The only thing that perhaps came close to that feeling was the win at finals at the T20 Championship against Pakistan. Cannot forget Misbah’s shot straight to Sreesanth’s hands. Then again, every win against Pakistan in the World Cup was special. But all this hype was just a consolation to the bigger cup that we failed to get. The loss at Eden Gardens in 1996 against Sri Lanka pinched me really hard too. I was in middle school then, but still remember that one Indian who was left on the pitch to shed tears, and that Sachin Tendulkar had to take rounds of the stadium to tell the crowd to calm down. He was my hero right then. He was probably consoling us then, by saying – “I am not leaving this game till I hold that cup in my hands for all of you”. Yes Sachin, most of us had heard that and we continued to shower our undying love and support for the game. We were not giving up, not even after the numerous match-fixing scams.

By 2007, I was already in my 20s. Was ready to watch the great trio – Sachin, Saurav and Dravid take us all the way through the tournament. Little did I know that it was going to be India’s biggest let down performance? I was shattered. I didn’t want to watch the remaining of the World Cup and for heaven’s sake not the cup going to Ricky Ponting. Was it the worst Indian team ever? I didn’t think so…but something was wrong, terribly wrong.  

And then there was a change in the overall game itself. T20 had been introduced for the impatient generation. It was a lot of fun though. And the change in the Indian team? Our coach from the World Cup had gone; the trio had decided NOT to play the T20 World Cup and I wasn’t sure about a team which didn’t have Saurav as captain and Sachin-Dravid as team members. But one thing remained the same. The Indian jersey. My take on the newly appointed wicket-keeper turned captain- Hair is too long, plays risky shots, and has no experience as a leader. But this gentleman – Mr. MS Dhoni proved me and many others wrong in just a span of a month. Yuvi hit 6 6s, India beat Pakistan twice, Joginder Sharma bowled the last over and India had WON the T20 world cup – without a coach and the trio. Watching it at a small hotel in Srirampur in India made it a feeling to remember for a lifetime. Yes, Indians can be Champions, and I was witness to it. It wasn’t the real cup…but to hell, it was a World Championship!

2007 till date, the only time I was really saddened was when Saurav Ganguly announced his retirement. Apart from that, Dhoni and company had only impressed. We had now become the top team in Test cricket and 2^nd best in ODIs, Sachin had made 200* (and reached a million other milestones) and India had entered the 2011 World Cup as one of the favorites. Bring it ON! 

From a college-goer to an office-goer, life had changed for me since the last time India played a World Cup. This time expectations were higher, excitement higher…we were playing in the sub-continent! Through the easy Bangladesh, easier Netherland, fierce England, shaky Ireland, firm South Africa and nervous West-Indies, we were placed, rather destined to play Australia in the Quarterfinals at Motera. Aussies had just lost to Pakistan, and we too played our best to show the former World Champions how it is done. Yes, we had just shown the exit door to Ricky Ponting! No more yellow ruling the World Cup. In fact I will support any team that defeats Ricky Ponting. Watching this win at Uptown with a bunch of friends only added to the excitement of watching that Ponting face.

Bring on the Pakis, our favorite team to play against at the World Cup. In that one week I can only remember being super nervous. 30^th March was taking forever to come. Meanwhile Afridi’s remarks on Sachin weren’t that comforting. But I knew India was going to win… we all knew it. India was not going to lose to Pakistan, not at the semi-finals in Mohali. This time at Nirvana, we jumped and cheered and screamed at every Pakistani wicket that fell. We were overjoyed, and this time I didn’t want to miss out the winning moment. I have it saved as a video to be played multiple times. It was a moment to cherish – India had beaten Pakistan by 29 runs to reach the Finals of the World Cup.

I am not running out of words here. I have so much to say.

India vz Sri Lanka in the Finals – 2^nd April, 2011 on a Saturday at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai. The buildup was nerve wrecking. But India was going to win for SURE. There was no doubt in my mind about that. May be coz I wasn’t even thinking of Sri Lanka. I was just waiting to see that cup in Dhoni and Sachin’s hands. 31/2 when I reached Nirvana, wasn’t really the start I expected for a chase to 274. Sachin wasn’t going to make his 100^th 100 here as well. But India winning was far more important than anything else. From rocking back and forth, rubbing my nails, sweating and every other act of nervousness…it was really getting to me. Being in a swarm of jittery Indians was probably a bit comforting though.

And then the moment came. MS Dhoni hit a 6 above the bowler’s head. Just stood there waiting, looking at the ball go into the stands followed by a swirl of the bat. He stood there watching how he had perfectly aimed at winning the world cup, how every decision of his had proved to be the best and he was just being responsible for an entire nation going mad. Not just the nation, but every Indian cricket fan across the world. From watching on projector screens on terraces, at home with family, in a bar with friends, or on the TV in an electronic shop…this shot was for all of us! Dhoni had played the innings of a match winner, Yuvi the innings of a series winner and Sachin – the hero was paraded on the shoulders of his team mates. The cup was OURS ..And we finally saw Sachin hold it too. Team India, you have shown our generation what it feels like to be the World Champions. 

Virat Kohli summed up the feelings of every Indian very well – “He has carried the burden of the country on his shoulders for 21 years, it was time we carried him on ours”. Well said fella, we will remember you for this for a long time.