The most motivational video ever !!

I am just a paper away from completing my engineering final exams, and during this troubled times of the year, I always surf the internet for some cool stuff to get my mind off the boring world of metals and materials (just a personal opinion, no offense meant to great researchers in the field). And on youtube, keying the words "motivational" (since thats the prime important thing, which people like me, who begin to study at the eleventh hour need :-) ), I found this video which has really inspired me... like anything... Seems like everyone must watch it at least once. What are you waiting for? Click the "play" button now !!

Its about What a man can do and and there is nothing called impossible in this world... Truly awesome stuff... Though the video seems to be an Indianised version of the original, it has many global facets as well. Enjoy watching the video !!



The song is "Ameno" by Era Group. And don't bother to look for translation. The song is just a collection of myriad sounds from a modified Latin format. Hope you liked it. Somehow one gets a feeling its been funded by Apple, but what the heck, its good anyway. Please do comment, which was "the" moment that touched your heart most in the video !! (for me, it was Gandhiji lifting the pinch of salt... quite a revolutionary moment which laid the foundations of not obeying the Imperial Rule).

Click here to post your views and comments. And don't quit because you think something is impossible !!

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Restriction of number of foreign players in IPL teams...

Yesterday, me and a friend of mine has a long and idealistic discussion about whether the restriction of the no of foreign players (currently 4) in the IPL (Indian Premier League) teams is justified or not.

While he was of the view that it gives a wider scope for Indian youngsters to play alongside other talented players from around the globe, I am of the opinion that since IPL is more about the global format of Cricket and not just a launch pad for selection of Indian national team and development of youth as it is perceived. Hence, I feel that the best possible playing 11 should be played, which is more healthy for the game and it will lead to an even more improvement in the skill level of the Indian players, since then, they will have to actually fight for their place in the team which will ultimately lead to an ever increasing talent pool... (and avoid the stagnancy created by the fact that an average player takes his position in the team for granted)

In fact, when it comes to national matches, such a player will be in a better position to compete against the foreigners, since he has actually proved his mettle against the same player in IPL and was not in the playing 11 because of some restriction...

Compare IPL with EPL (yes, soccer...) and you will know that EPL, despite being the largest contributing factor for the development of English soccer, has teams like Arsenal which, at one time played 11 French guys...

This system of restriction of foreign players to 4 simply beats me, since it doesn't let the best 11 on field and thus leads to wastage of talent literally warming the bench... For ex: Scott Styris, Hershelle Gibbs have to sit out from Deccan Chargers game, while they lose against other teams!!

On the other hand, the counter argument is that if there is no such restriction, an IPL team will play only the foreign players (if it has 11), and it wont lead to any scope for Indian youth to show their talent, but at least that will provide an opportunity for development of Indian Cricket at grass root level...

Calling all cricket aficionados to please post your comments, views and issues on this burning topic by clicking HERE.

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IPL and Engineering Exams... HELP me !!

Tomorrow (24th April, 2008) is my first paper of Financial Engineering (End Semester), and I'm watching a cracker of a match between Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians while shuffling through zerox pages of some numericals book related to the elective subject mentioned above...

Please do vote in this poll and make the world a better place to live... hehe...

Please refer your friends, relatives and unknown personalities that you encounter and redirect them to this page to save me from this confusion...
and by the way this poll closes on 1st May, 2008, So HURRY !!

P.S.: Please click here if you can't see the poll. Thanks.

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Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish

I hope that along with changing the look of my blog (the theme remains the same - "stretch" - so as to accommodate maximum text in a line - so as to decrease the vertical height of the posts), there must be something special for this post. Hence, I would like to share with you a really special speech, which might be the first one I have heard without yawning and with rapt attention. Because it came from the legendary Steve Jobs, who has been the brains behind the likes of Apple and Pixar, which have pioneered innovative brilliance beyond all boundaries.

Just do yourselves and your life a favour by listening to the whole speech carefully, since such words of wisdom are rare to find. The ultimate message is delivered in the end, but for grabbing the essence of the whole talk, its imperative you listen the whole thing. Watch it and have the time of your life...

By the way, this was delivered at the Commencement of the 2005 academic session at Stanford University by Steve Jobs and is today regarded as one of the best speeches in the world. Just 3 simple stories... what a way to deliver a great punch !!

Some of the key highlights, which will make a big deal of difference in your life (I'm positive !!)

----> You can't connect the dots of your life looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots (events) will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach will never let you down, and it will make all the difference in your life.

----> Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don't lose faith. I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You've got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle.

---->No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

----> Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.

Simply awesome, what do you have to say? Click here to share your views.

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A little Math never hurt anyone...

Hello everyone, I am just on the verge of finishing my engineering degree, but before that I'm really being wrecked by my final year project, but more on that later. In order to do some stress relieving, my favorite time pass has always been reading jokes. I feel things which tickle your funny bone really get you going for the next big task of the day. Now since I am not quite getting the time to blog about anything, I felt a compulsive and obsessive urge to share this great one with you. Official Disclaimer : You need to have a certain degree of mathematical sense of humour to understand the moral of humility behind the following story... hehe... Read on.

The cocky exponential function e^x is strolling along the road insulting the functions he sees walking by. He scoffs at a wandering polynomial for the shortness of its Taylor series. He snickers at a passing smooth function of compact support and its glaring lack of a convergent power series about many of its points. He positively laughs as he passes |x| for being non differentiable at the origin. He smiles, thinking to himself, "Damn, it's great to be e^x. I'm real analytic everywhere. I'm my own derivative. I blow up faster than anybody and shrink faster too. All the other functions suck."

Lost in his own egomania, he collides with the constant function 3, who is running in terror in the opposite direction.

"What's wrong with you? Why don't you look where you're going?" demands e^x. He then sees the fear in 3's eyes and says "You look terrified!"

"I am!" says the panicky 3. "There's a differential operator just around the corner. If he differentiates me, I'll be reduced to nothing! I've got to get away!" With that, 3 continues to dash off.

"Stupid constant," thinks e^x. "I've got nothing to fear from a differential operator. He can keep differentiating me as long as he wants, and I'll still be there."

So he scouts off to find the operator and gloat in his smooth glory. He rounds the corner and defiantly introduces himself to the operator. "Hi. I'm e^x."

"Hi. I'm d/dy."

If you are not rolling on floor with laughter, never mind, as the title says, a little math never hurt anyone. But even if you are a yet-to-pass-10th-class person stumbling up here, you can ask for explanation by writing a comment here. Just kidding. Have fun.

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Social Networking : Who's better than the rest?

After a long hiatus in my stint as a blogger, I am glad to announce that I'm BACK !! (well, not in the true sense though), since this is yet another edition of guest blogging. I'm privileged here to announce that my friend and fellow blogger, Ameya Khandekar, who is a great visionary and a GRE topper and always busy in thinking about whacky ideas, helped my blog to get rid of its hibernation by following up something that I was thinking upon a long time back. You will read that later. But, first of all, let me clarify that the views expressed below belong to the guest blogger and bear no resemblance to what I think or feel about the topic. Hence, if any of the mega corporates who feel annoyed by this post you can sue him directly. Or better still, you can visit his blog, but, after reading this article. Read on to get to know more about SNwS or Social Networking webSites.

-Suyash Joshi

Ameya Khandekar writes,

I and Suyash began blogging at around the same time,but it is indisputable as to, whose blog is popular. This blog has become so professional, that guest blogging is being introduced here. I feel privileged to be amongst the first ones to "guest-blog" here. Is the owner of the blog trying to pull a local Microsoft, by getting involved in such pseudo - acquisitions ??? Only time will tell.

Anyways, Suyash asked me to draw comparisons on Orkut and Facebook. He has the impression that I am well equipped to do so, since I while away my time on such social networking sites more than others. But let me make it very clear at the beginning, that I am able to comment on this subject because my visionary insight allows me to make astute observations in less time. So, my account follows :-

I didn't make much use of the internet before 2004 owing to slow speeds. I began using it in 2004 which, interestingly, is also the year of the launch of GMail, Orkut, Facebook etc. But these things were yet to become "hip" in India. I remember how one's mailbox would be full of "forwarded" emails most of them harboring photoshop edited images which are supposed to make you laugh. Those were also the days of IMs which were a pleasant change over stupid chat rooms (strangers with faked up ids).

The internet before 2004 wasn't tapped of it's abilities fully. They say Orkut and Facebook are part of WEB 2.0 - a technology for which the infrastructure was already there, but which was used only recently(i.e 2004). Orkut and Facebook are innovative cause these sites allow changes to be made by users which are visible to a large section of the members (blogging is also similar).
When it comes to popularity, Orkut was the undisputed winner in India (at least till mid-2007). Orkut employed Google's ethic of keeping things simple and fast to load. Facebook was hardly used by people I know, at that time. But, it is said that globally, Facebook comes on second spot after My-space (can't comment on My-space, never used it) with Orkut at third.

Facebook has gained popularity recently because of their decision to introduce a global platform (FBML-facebook markup language) on which users can develop their own applications. This had added more interactivity to the site. One can compare movie tastes with friends , play games , and do other stuff, all under one roof (rather one domain). Facebook has had tie-ups with many smaller sites to develop some of the most popular applications. Some of the notable ones being :- flixster(movies), chess.com(though I would recommend the original site rather than the app here), scrabulous(one can play scrabble here, but this one is in the news for the wrong reasons). There is an app for everything on Facebook. So much have these applications changed the meaning of internet that Orkut is also introducing similar applications on a platform called open-social. Here is testimony from the horse's mouth (Orkut blog):- the official announcement and an example of things to come.

Facebook has a big disadvantage of having a very cluttered page-layout, also application invites are the new spam these days. Let us see how Orkut implements these applications. At the same time, Orkut should fix some security issues(I have seen a Facebook app which allows one to access Orkut from Facebook!!!). Also scripts which allow scrap forwarding to multiple users has added yet another dimension to spamming. Orkut should take care, that they don't lose a user (urs truly) because of this unchecked spamming.

It would be interesting to see who wins this social networking battle which is similar to the cola wars and the MS-Google war. Watch our for the Orkut apps. I read that some users have already got access to those. Are you one of them ???

Post Script : (by the owner of the blog) According to me, it seems that the war of the social networking sites extends well beyond earning revenues for their parent companies and expands to ulterior (?) motives like being established as a super marketing platform, where an advertiser can exactly know more about his target audience, be it their likings, location etc. Orkut, which is soon going to go the Facebook way, might lose the simplicity that it was famous for. Ultimately, I feel that a good social networking site is one which allows you to Connect with friends and family using scraps and instant messaging, Discover new people through friends of friends and communities, Share your videos, pictures, and passions all in one place AND NOTHING ELSE ! The fact that this comes from Orkut's homepage should send a clear signal to the upcoming SNS's...

In case you too want to have your say, you can post your scraps on my blog wall by clicking here.

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My new year resolutions

When the clock strikes twelve on December 31st, people all over the world cheer and wish each other a very Happy New Year. For some, this event is no more than a change of a calendar. For others, the New Year symbolizes the beginning of a better tomorrow. So, if you look forward to a good year ahead, spread happiness with these wonderful New Year wishes.

But one thing that I find really amusing is the concept of new year resolutions !! Some say they are sweet, some they are meant to be broken... But this year, in 2008, I have decided to follow a very unusual list of resolutions. Yes, its not about getting thin or about being a better person and neither about scoring better in exams nor about indulging less in the time pass activities. Since this year will mark the end of my engineering education (?) where most of the time I have spent in gaming, this was the best that suited for me... Here you go !!

* My gaming resolutions *

1) I will not start playing games on the "easiest" difficulty level...

Yeah... when I finally get "Call of Duty 4" I wont be playing it on "greenhorn" level. Sometimes the temptation to select the easiest difficulty setting (prior to even experiencing how hard the game actually is) is just too overwhelming. This is especially true when you start to doubt your gaming skills and worry about the possibility of getting stuck indefinitely at some later point in the game. We've all been there, but we all also know the consequences of automatically picking the least difficult game setting: the game becomes too easy. You begin letting enemies wail on you because the damage you take is so infinitesimal, you stop caring about preserving ammunition/items, and you ultimately don't have as much fun because you're not faced with any real challenge.

2) I wont start a new game unless I complete the one I am playing currently...

For most gamers, it's unrealistic to think that we'll be able to complete 110% of every game we own, but if we put too many games on the backburner it's easy to completely lose interest in putting forth a decent effort to play through them. Just because Need for Speed - ProStreet was released doesn't mean we have to give up on the game(s) we're playing and run to the store, right? Complete the Need for Speed - Most Wanted's "Challenges" first, I can assure you, they will give you a run for your money !!

3) I wont rely on a single source before rating a game...

Be it GameSpot, IGN, or AmputeeGaming, we all have a favorite gaming pub, and sometimes we give too much credit to the reviewer's take on a specific game. Obviously, when GameSpot gives a game a "6.0," the game is more than likely a turd. But when a game that you're excited for receives a less than perfect score, do the right thing and check other media outlets and/or ask your friends. One of the best examples that I can quote here is "Marvel : ultimate alliance" suggested by a friend of mine and its a cool game though most of the gaming sites have rated it on the lower side. As SRK says, "Listen to your heart !!" or whatever...

4) I will limit the number of hours that I put in gaming so that I can get more out of the outdoor life...

The next GTA (yeah, GTA-4 is coming !!) is released and the only time you have to lay your hands over the game is after work. By the time you manage to slip out of the office/college, get your a** to downloading / buying it and you're minutes away from passing out from exhaustion. Before you know it, you're asleep with the controller in your hand and you're barely past the title screen. As a result, you call into work sick, skip college, cancel plans for the following day. Even we've done it at times, but this year we're going to try to keep the number of instances we devote to an entire day of gaming to a minimum. Though I don't fall short in terms of the fun that I have with friends and relatives, from this year I intend to explore even more !!

5) I will force myself to play different genres of game that I was hitherto not so interested in...

Who hasn't said one or more of the following?

"I don't have the patience to sit through the endless lines of dialogue to play RPGs." "First-person shooters make me nauseous, so I don't bother with them."
"Sports games are simply too much boring, same stuff infinite times"
"Racing games require skill, who wants to be a pro??"

And so on and so forth. We all have our favorite genre, but why limit your gaming experience simply because you're too stubborn to try something different? Hate RPGs? Try Mass Effect. Don't care for the mindless shooting of FPS games? Give BioShock a whirl. (though you will require a monster of a system to play them !!)

That's all on the gaming front for this year. Happy gaming to you too. Click here to post your comments.

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The CAT is out of the bag !

First of all Hearty Congratulations to those who cracked it and hard luck to those who got cracked by it... Its none other than the The Common Admission Test (CAT) which is an all-India test conducted by the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) as an entrance test for the management programmes of its six business schools and is considered (it really is...) the toughest exam to crack through after the prestigious IIT-JEE exam for engineering entrance to the Indian Institutes of Technology. Somehow the common words (II) in both of these have always struck a mesmerizing academic challenge to students in India with respect to their graduation and post graduation.

More than 200,000 (230,000 in the year 2007) students compete for about 1500 seats in the IIMs. This makes the IIMs even more selective than all the Ivy League Universities. Even with a top 1% score, a candidate must also cross the equally stringent hurdles of a group discussion and an individual interview. Hence, graduates all over the country always die to cross that 99 %tile hurdle so that one day they can earn hefty pay scales as investment banker and what not.

The CAT is one of the world's most demanding entrance examinations for any graduate institute. The test taker is expected to excel in arithmetical problem solving, geometry, statistics, data interpretation, logical reasoning in solving complex puzzles, and English Language skills. The test is held on the third Sunday of November for a duration of two and a half hours and everyone gets ready for the final take with his pencils, eraser and sharp mind on this day to bell the CAT.

It is neither expected, nor possible, that all the questions be answered, so the CAT also tests the candidates' ability to prioritise under pressure: a quality necessary in the competitive environment of IIMs' courses. And I experienced the trauma that is CAT, on 18th November last year. Why am I blogging about this stuff? Because the results are out. And I flunked... big time... But no worries. They allow you to give it more than once, and if you work somewhere in between, its said that its even better. So even those who flunked it are optimistic of a better future, thus making true of the words from Geeta, "Jo hota hai acche ke liye hi hota hai" (Whatever happens, happens for good).

Sometimes, I wonder how the trend of the Y-generation has shifted to management education, without actually realizing the importance of the same, irrespective of the judgement whether they actually have the orientation to excel in this chosen field, since the diversity in the aptitude of different people is very well known. Its the latest "rat-race" in education sector, which is being exploited by the ever rising coaching institutes which promise you a birth in IIMs with its last year's record and impeccable faculty stats etc. Its always better for a person to first plan his career in a systematic way and then try to achieve his post graduation in the desired field.

Basically, being an engineer, our lot is divided into five types :

a) the techno geeks : These opt for GATE and GRE to pursue M.Tech and M.S. respectively, and are the true technologists, who find the love in the discipline that they "engineered" themselves in. Honestly speaking, after 4 years of drudgery, these students must get a bravery award just for "carrying on" !!

b) the management kids : They are kids because I think its really silly to get into a "B-School" just after completing your graduation and without any exposure to absolutely any kind of business environment, wherein you can interact with the system and apply your know-how accordingly. Of course, the only force of attraction these days towards MBA as a fresher is the amount of green bucks that you earn and it would be dishonest of me to say that I would turn one down if I had got a call from a super B-School.

c) Job Crackers : These are usually toppers who dominate the placement scene from the word go and might figure in the earlier two categories too. Some of the exceptions, might sneak through the tight filter, but then its all about presenting (correctly) what you know and hiding (efficiently) what you don't. So I have always felt that peaking in this category isn't really a smart indicator of your brilliance, talent or the amount of grey matter in your cranium.

d) The Win-all league : No Comments on this category because I am ideologically against the existence of such people. But this being my blog, I must at least give the reason for my fury against these "envy-of-all" candidates : you just can't have it all, spare some for others too !!

e) The alternatives : Somehow these are the real champs of life. Some of them open up their own business venture. Some of them might end up earning money for doing what they like to do the most. Some of them go on to a really bizarre career like adventure tourism or music development etc but at least they do what they like. Indeed, you get one shot and you gotta hit it spot on.

To end this crap on a rather lighter note, let me show you how education might ruin the simplicity of human life. Consider this sample (which is fictitious of course and copied from orkut :-)), GRE and CAT aspirants tune up their verbal skills that ultimately its useless for the common soul.

NORMAL PERSON : People who live in glass houses should not throw stones.
GRE scholar : Individuals who make their abodes in vitreous edifices would be advised to refrain from catapulting perilous projectiles.

NORMAL PERSON : Twinkle, twinkle, little star
GRE scholar : Scintillate, scintillate, asteroid minim.

NORMAL PERSON : All that glitters is not gold.
GRE scholar : All articles that coruscate with resplendence are not truly auriferous.

NORMAL PERSON : Beggars are not choosers.
GRE scholar : Sorting on the part of mendicants must be interdicted.

NORMAL PERSON : Dead men tell no tales.
GRE scholar : Male cadavers are incapable of rendering any testimony.

Hope you had a good laugh with your dictionary reading this awesome stuff. Click here to post your comments and views on entrance exams like CAT and JEE. Many love them and many sulk about them. What about you ??
P.S.: Please pardon me if the article went off the track in between, but I don't know what exactly I was writing on... hehe...

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Its a "Gentlemen's" game... NOT !

Incredible stuff was witnessed in Sydney in the beginning of new year 2008, where India lost out to a 13 man (?) Aussie team. Why 13? Read on...

Blunder # 1

Aussie skipper Ricky Ponting (hereby referred to as Punter, from the next time) nicked a Saurav Ganguly (Dada) delivery going down the leg side to the wicket keeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Punter, who was at 17, did not walk as umpire Benson turned down the Indian appeal. The skipper went on to score 55. The Indian team fought hard... reduced the Aussies to 134/6. But...

Blunder # 2
This one changed the course of the match. All rounder Andrew Symonds edged Ishant Sharma to Dhoni but to the horror of the fielding side, umpire Bucknor remained unmoved.

Blunder # 3
Symonds was given another reprieve when the third umpire "shockingly" erred in giving him out o a stumping appeal. The right hander went on to score an unbeaten 162 to take Australia to a massive score.

Blunder # 4
Another escape for Andrew Symonds as Bucknor turns down a close stumping appeal without even consulting the third umpire.

Blunder # 5
The only one which went India's way... Sachin Tendulkar survived a close leg before shout when on 38 before ironically going on to score his 38th century. The Indian team fought hard... and scored a mammoth 500+ total. But...

Blunder # 6
Benson turns down an Anil Kumble appeal for a leg before appeal against Michael Hussey despite the ball hit the batsman's pad plumb in front. Hussey who was on 22, went on to score a match turning century.

Blunder # 7
Benson at it again, Hussey edged one from RP Singh to Dhoni but both the batsman and the umpire were unmoved. Hussey was on 45 then, scored a 100 more later...

Blunder # 8
Having taken Hussey and Clarke in consecutive balls, Kumble seemed to have gotten his hattrick after having Symonds trapped LBW but Bucknor says, "No". Symonds scored a quickfire 61.

Blunder # 9
Probably the most horrifying one for the Indian team, Bucknor gives Rahul Dravid caught behind of Symonds despite the ball missing the bat by miles, yeah... miles !! At lease consult the third umpire if you are unsure, dude...

Blunder # 10
Saurav Ganguly is caught at slips by Michael Clarke but the catch appears to be have been "lifted" off the ground. However, instead of referring to third umpire, Benson checks with Ponting, who quite expectedly calls it clean. Ganguly stays ground. Ponting blurts out, "I'm saying you are out..." Ganguly then showed the finger by the men in white.

The second test match in the currently ongoing India-Australia test series has been a landmark one, which literally challenges the very basics of the game of the Cricket. Whether its the age old tradition of manual umpiring or the spirit of integrity and honesty that characterized this supposedly Gentlemen's game, one thing is for sure, the cradle of sportsmanship has definitely been rocked far and wide. It was Australia's 16th consecutive win, but now I'm beginning to doubt the manner in which they won the last 15. Gavaskar has always been against the "do-anything-to-win-spirit" of the Aussies and I agree with him today, wholeheartedly... Ponting had once critised Nikhil Chopra some 4 years back when he stood ground after the umpire didnt gave him out and he scripted out a brilliant win for India. But I say, why doesnt he practise what he preaches?? Wasn't it he only, who stood ground, and asked for a replay when he was unsure of his dismissal, and that too after the umpire had lifted the finger. Ditto Clarke. And ironically, it was these two honest players that were consulted when Ganguly's doubtful catch was in question. Credibility, where are thou???

Umpiring blunders have always been there, but if they occur against one side only, then something is surely rotten. And if this happens against the same side repeatedly, something is rotten and fishy as well. Umpiring, is a tough job, with super reflexes requiring you to check for a no-ball and you dont get even a second to decide a tough decision like LBW. Couple this with additional norms and one will agree, 61 years is simply not an age to perform this tedious task.

By the way, Harbhajan has been handed a 3 match ban for "allegedly" calling Symonds a "big-monkey". Well, definitely you can't clap with one hand. I wonder how come Symonds was let off the hook. Surely he wasnt just spectating at that time. And of course, the match referee Mike Proctor thought it was cool when Brad Hogg called someone B*****d in the Indian team. Mark this, this is no racism, the aussie way...

Current Scenario : Aussies lead the series 2-0. Anil Kumble, without being on the offensive, very well said, "It was there for all to see". Boy... He has made us all proud. The Indian team didn't lose, at least for me. To hell with the 16th consecutive win. The tour is suspended right now, because ICC and the match referee has hit us where it hits the most. Cricket. One billion people love the sport. Aussies, do remember what happened last time you challenged a spin king from Sri Lanka. You were torn apart. And then they were only 20 Lacs. You might be the champs, but just one request, play the game like the champs do. Period.

If you want to comment on how India was done in by the dreaded finger, please click here. And yeah, the man of the match is Steve Bucknor without doubt...

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Rajnikant : There is nothing he can't do !!

Hello world, Its a new year - 2008, hope you all have a blast and be prosperous and happy and all other good things. Phew... now that, that is done with, I will like the readers of this blog to be humbled and brought down to earth (literally) by some of the slightly (?) exaggerated facets of, none other than, Rajnikant !! yeah... He is literally a demi god for South Indian movie fans and no less than an icon for others. I was inspired to do this bit for this man after I saw his latest multi million dollar flick, "Sivaji". This is a piece contributed by a friend of mine, Saurabh, to show the world that there simply is, no equal, to the legend called Rajnikant... hold your breath, here it comes -->

1) Outer space exists because it's afraid to be on the same planet with Rajnikant (some science, huh !!)

2) Rajnikant has counted to infinity - twice. (of course, he went on the negative side too...)

3) (Now this one is my favorite...) When Rajnikant does a pushup, he isn't lifting himself up, he's pushing earth down.

4) Rajnikant is so fast, he can run around the world and punch himself in the back of the head. (and Einstein though nothing runs faster than light...)

5) Rajnikant doesn't wear a watch, HE decides what time it is. (and then there was Rajni !!)

6) Rajnikant can slam a revolving door.

7) Rajnikant gave Mona Lisa that smile. (alas !! the code is solved...)

8) Rajnikant's house has no doors, only walls that he walks through. (birla cement filed a lawsuit on him once, they say...)

9) Rajnikant grinds his coffee with his teeth and boils the water with his own rage. (thats why his movies seem to be having such a pot boiler of an end, huh??)

10) If you Google Search 'Rajnikant getting kicked', you will generate zero results. It just doesn't happen. (No comments)

11) It takes Rajnikant 20 minutes to watch 60 Minutes. (Space time continuum is a joke for this dude, must say...)

12) The Bermuda Triangle used to be the Bermuda Square, until Rajnikant kicked one of the corners off.

13) There are no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq; Rajnikant lives in Chennai. (There you go Mr. Bush, Saddam was innocent, after all !!)

14) Rajnikant once ate an entire bottle of sleeping pills. They made him blink. (No wonder !)

15) The only things that run faster and longer than Rajnikant are his films.

16) Rajnikant's every step creates a mini whirlwind. Hurricane Katrina was the result of a morning jog. (oh Katrina...)

17) (quite proverbial, this one) Where there is a will, there is a way. Where there is Rajnikant, there is no other way.

Hope all of you enjoyed all these accurate facts and they brought a smile to your faces...
Do keep reading this space for more. To add, edit, correct any of the above or to just wish me a new year, click here...
till then Adios !!

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