Bangalore has been the city of gardens for a long time now…..to prove this we have signboards around the city (specially at the borders) – that call out to you “Welcome to Garden City”…”Keep the garden city clean”….A few days back, while I was driving past one of these, a thought came to my mind – ‘Do we have any committee which will re-review the “garden city” status..probably we might then find out..it’s the ‘city of smoke’ or the ‘city with the least amount of space between two vehicles on roads’ or the ‘city with the maximum number of “dug out” roads’…there are so many titles it can proudly take!
Talking about roads and traffic…I’m really fond of driving even if it is through a swarm of vehicles in all shapes and sizes and moving in all directions…I never get bogged down by traffic (unless it is jammed!)…as long as my car keeps rolling I'll be humming along with the songs on the numerous FM stations the city boasts of.
To add to the flavor of driving, we have many interesting happenings on the road each day here – and without any guilt I can say I too contribute to the chaos sometimes just by habit or just because that has become a norm having lived in Bangalore for years- for instance sometimes you don’t like an SUV overtaking you because it had the power to – what with my zip-drive and highly maneuverable compact car – it can reach the destination before the giant space-hogging SUV. I just then start behaving like a biker and criss-cross through the traffic – later congratulating myself on my achievements.
One day I was simply mesmerized by the way a BMTC bus could create a total traffic jam on the four-laned road – just because it wanted to take a U-turn. Kudos to the courage of the BMTC driver and the patience of the many vehicles on both the sides waiting for the junction to clear off. By the time, the bus took the U successfully, the signal again turned red and the beggars were back into action. We have a special rule here- buses have to be on the leftmost lane to take the rightmost U-turn – quite poetic indeed…
With the burgeoning IT and BPO offices(I would also like to take the easy path of blaming them!!), the number of cab drivers have multiplied like the Indian population, you cant be disciplined on the roads even if you want to…the incessant honking….we can see some F-1 aspirant taxi drivers. I really pity the Merc or other imported brand owners wishing they would have left their expensive modes of transport in their garages…
Finally its not so intimidating to drive in this city, you just have to learn a few tactics (with all the disclaimers!) –
• Stay as close to the bumper of the vehicle ahead you (please tailgate!) ,
• Never follow a lane- the sooner you master the art of zig-zagging the faster you reach your destination (add “God” also to the list of your destinations!),
• Never drive behind a bus - lest you want to note all the “no-bus stop” zones in Bangalore
• If you have a two-wheeler, don’t hesitate to jump on the footpath – you just need land to drive need not the road!
• Honk at every auto – they take the most un-thought-of turns!
• Special privilege to the two-wheeler driver, don’t waste time in giving indicators, just a nod of your head on the right or left is enough- let the driver following you keep guessing your motives!
• Save time by talking on mobiles while driving – also gives a breather to the traffic behind you, they are forced to slow down!
Last but not the least…wear a seat belt/helmet..you don’t want to get caught by the traffic police after all!!
Happy cruising on Bangalore roads!!!
Monday, June 16, 2008
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
The IPL Bonanza
It’s the 2nd of June – a Monday – I wake up in the morning and everything looks blue…I try to diagnose the cause like an able doctor and yes it's “Monday blues” – though the symptoms are far more stronger this time - I ponder hard and go through the activities planned for today and realize that something is surely missing in my life today – “I don’t have the cricket mania hitting my idiot box this evening”…Its all over now!!! The great 'Indian Primetime Love' has come to an end after an intoxicating 44 days of cricket.
I think it all started when Lalit Modi’s business mind decided to hit the jackpot by bringing the Indian religion to the household..where all would watch irrespective of the religion they belonged to..everybody cashed on - from movie stars to Big-wigs of the industrial sector. The common Indian man (and few uncommon Indian women) succumbed to the pressure of enjoying non-stop game watching – what started as a skepticism soon became a fever…Everyday, I would look forward to going home and switching on the TV set – weekends had a bonanza of back to back matches and I was no longer scared of Mondays…
The official-coffee gossip echoed enthusiastic voices – even though namma Bangalore started at the bottom…no longer did we have coffee breaks to ward off the ever gripping sleep after lunch hours…we had an agenda to discuss now…
I have never followed much of cricket (except bits and pieces here and there) but my disinterested mind was not ready for the attack of cricket in this fast paced, nerve-gripping form…and I totally surrendered to the adrenaline rush. It was a test of reflexes and how one can perform under pressure of time and limited resources (overs, batsmen and bowlers).., quite common in our daily work routine of IT life. Of course strategy was still important, but it was proven that human mind cannot always strategize well under too much stress – the courageous hearts emerged as winners. Then again, it was not just cricket, the youngsters could now see their 70 mm hero-heroines cheering for their team....not to forget the official “firangi” cheerleaders! So the fringe benefits were enough to pull in those who were not motivated by their love of the game.
The effect has been slow but strong..I remember that after a couple of games it was written off by most as just another bunch of matches with not the same fervor as an an India-Aus or India-Pak series could generate and sustain. But they had all forgotten: it was business plus cricket plus entertainment - everything being offered in the right amounts at the right time – the critics eventually gave up and the game took over. Since then, for Indian cricket addicts, it has been served like several ecstatic shots of their favorite dope with each ‘dum’ being more intoxicating than the last one…Now, even though the last high has been savored, but the taste lingers on – for all – the viewers, the cricketers and the IPL owners. Cheers to IPL for giving new life to cricket and to the Indian television at prime time!!
I think it all started when Lalit Modi’s business mind decided to hit the jackpot by bringing the Indian religion to the household..where all would watch irrespective of the religion they belonged to..everybody cashed on - from movie stars to Big-wigs of the industrial sector. The common Indian man (and few uncommon Indian women) succumbed to the pressure of enjoying non-stop game watching – what started as a skepticism soon became a fever…Everyday, I would look forward to going home and switching on the TV set – weekends had a bonanza of back to back matches and I was no longer scared of Mondays…
The official-coffee gossip echoed enthusiastic voices – even though namma Bangalore started at the bottom…no longer did we have coffee breaks to ward off the ever gripping sleep after lunch hours…we had an agenda to discuss now…
I have never followed much of cricket (except bits and pieces here and there) but my disinterested mind was not ready for the attack of cricket in this fast paced, nerve-gripping form…and I totally surrendered to the adrenaline rush. It was a test of reflexes and how one can perform under pressure of time and limited resources (overs, batsmen and bowlers).., quite common in our daily work routine of IT life. Of course strategy was still important, but it was proven that human mind cannot always strategize well under too much stress – the courageous hearts emerged as winners. Then again, it was not just cricket, the youngsters could now see their 70 mm hero-heroines cheering for their team....not to forget the official “firangi” cheerleaders! So the fringe benefits were enough to pull in those who were not motivated by their love of the game.
The effect has been slow but strong..I remember that after a couple of games it was written off by most as just another bunch of matches with not the same fervor as an an India-Aus or India-Pak series could generate and sustain. But they had all forgotten: it was business plus cricket plus entertainment - everything being offered in the right amounts at the right time – the critics eventually gave up and the game took over. Since then, for Indian cricket addicts, it has been served like several ecstatic shots of their favorite dope with each ‘dum’ being more intoxicating than the last one…Now, even though the last high has been savored, but the taste lingers on – for all – the viewers, the cricketers and the IPL owners. Cheers to IPL for giving new life to cricket and to the Indian television at prime time!!
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