I have always considered me as a widely read person until I found out this!
Since Feb 2006, the year I quit a BPO and start hunting for some more meaningful job, I started keeping a note of books I read. I call this as power pages as information is powerful. This includes various interesting phrases from various books I read.



So according to this record, I read 26 books in the last three years, till Feb 2009 and that means
On an average 8.6 books per year
In a month 0.71 book, not even a book!!!
Now this figure is appalling. I am sure there are more books published in a day
One of my New Year resolutions is to read more books this year, so let me go and continue reading

Life in an Advertising agency, part-1
They say Advertising is the only industry where one can have fun with pants on. Now the level of fun depends on the client handled. In spite of deadlines and client screaming, ad agencies can be fun place. What started as a de-brief session ended up like a collage of caricature featuring the entire members of the agency (thanks to economic recession, not many left in the agency). Everybody (including me) contributed. The topics varied from one’s obsession towards earrings of unimaginable shapes, scale and sizes, recent honeymoon trip made by a member, about low waist jean one wears, one person’s highly imaginative story of a snake that can swallow a donkey (he still believes and often tries to convince others that there is a snake like that). Now activities like these makes an ad agency a place where one can have real fun (yeah, pants are still on).

A day in country's one of oldest prison!!

Its a thrilling experience to visit a prison (without committing any crime I mean), that too if the Prison is some 170 years old!!!It started as a transit camp for prisoners being taken to other major prisons, especially the Cellular Jail in Andaman and Nicobar. Closed in 2007, Govt is going to demolish this prison and now its open to public.

Approach road to the prison, feel is like a tourist place with lots of people of all age groups, vendors



The Gallows, last hanging happened in 1975





Entrance,Central Prison, Madras, 1837




Place where movies were shown


Valuable belongings of inmates were kept here




A cell where most notorious criminals used to stay!






Inside the cell


Another section of cells




cell



Prison complex is more than 14 acres!




Dormitories






Behind the bars!!!!











Place to learn












Meditation centre













Imposing wall























Prison art!

A different love story, again!!!

Marketing a film is no joke, when crores are at stake. Recent news of various marketing tactics used by Gajjini made much news. The promotion of a film starts right from the poster designing. The news is about Gautham menon’s latest ‘silambarasan’ starrer movie “Vinnai Thaandi Varuvaayaa”, a different love story, again.


Now what’s really different about this movie is its poster. If you closely look at the posters, you will be reminded of various super hit films of yester years, all love stories! Look and feel, fonts used are very similar to the original movies.

The shots used are from

Geethanjali



Dil se (Uyire)


Minsarakanavu


Alaipayuthey


Kakka kakka





The posters really connect to the tagline “a different love story, again” as the films featured were all super hit ‘love story’ films. It’s a unique strategy to promote the film for sure. We need to wait and watch to know how different is this film from others but the posters are really refreshing. Kudos to Gautham Menon and crew.

Chachu's Bike



For the past three days there is a slight change in my routine. I need to drop my brother's son, samyu in school. Now this duty is for just three days but its worth putting down the events.



Day 1



Samyu was ready by the time I reached his home. He informed that Papa has gone to office. Probably he was reasserting me why I was there and what I was supposed to do.

He found my Bike comfortable right from the beginning but worse was yet to come.



Samyu's road map to School is almost fixed and I made the utmost sin of deviating that route. He was quick to react and said Chachu (That's what he calls me) was completely wrong. I somehow managed the show by telling him that this route was far better, I doubt that was a convincing answer. On the way he told me where his mother used to have Pizza. Throughout the journey he was talking and I was nodding. First day duty was over. Later he complained to his mother that Chachu is not listening to him!



Day 2



Exactly when we reached the same signal where I had took a turn the other day; Samyu protested, this time more furiously than last time. I had to lie to him that I don't know the route and some how convinced him. Probably he was so sure of my ignorance



Day 3



Last day of my special duty. Samyu told me that his Papa is coming in the afternoon to pick him from school , again a reminder that my duty was over. Now the conversation was on throughout the trip. Before reaching the school samyu certified that my bike was good (after much public outcry I had give my vehicle for servicing) but am sure unlike his papa, who is a mechanical engineer, he don't know anything about bikes.



Anyway those three days were fun. Sometimes its good to disturb your routine

Change is good!!!

Taxis in London are a treat to watch!

One more new year round the corner and its celebration time. In my office we were asked to make our own masks and come. Now see some of them. What makes this celebration unique is all this is happening amidst uncertainty about job and business. More than half of people got fired. Still everybody is optimistic (not of getting fired) about future. Our office is ready to welcome 2009!



He tried Kathakali for sure!


That's one Tribal chief's mask!


Romeo or Remo?


Glad to see atleast one Gladiator


That's beauty queen (with mask)

The Great Indian Spelling Bee!
Saw this board opposite to Ascendas IT Park. The headline says ‘Indian Soups’ but if you see the lady, you will hardly believe that. Probably they want to say Indian soups served by a Chinese or Japanese? Now have a look at the spelling of various soups; be careful, you might lose your appetite!

How IT works

Nov30, Sunday night my wife, who is working in an IT company gets a message that the office will remain closed in the coming days. Thanks to Cyclone Nisha ( I am wondering on what basis they name these cyclones). The servers are not working, A/C also out of action. Normally when i am informed like this, I am thrilled but she is tensed. Monday, Dec 1 is the deadline for deliverables. Suddenly the atmosphere changed. She frantically started sending mails to the client, talking them over phone. This continues for a couple of hours.

Dec 1

Afternoon: she decides to go to Office and get the work in a pendrive so that if the client ask her to send the details, she can send
Eve: By now she is restless, making calls to Mumbai, London and some local calls (am seriously worried about our telephone bills) now I am also restless

7:30 p.m: She finds out that she can work from home on the remote desktop of Mumbai office
8:00 p.m she sets up the connection and ask two of her teammates to come home and work
8:25 p.m Two people arrive and start working. I am reminded of my BPO night shift days
9:00p.m Call from Mumbai, 4-5 people should fly to Mumbai and work from there for atleast 2-3 days
She starts calling her teammates, finds it difficult to convince them to fly to Mumbai (Quite understandable after terrorist attack). After much effort 3 brave hearts are ready. I am clueless!
9:50 p.m E- tickets mailed, two guys are working in full swing.

Dec 2
6:00 a.m: They are still working. I am headed to my office to take printouts of e-tickets. Never in my life I was so early to my office
9:30 a.m I drop her at Airport!
So I tell her next time if some one ask you where u working, tell them I work in Ascendas IT park..errrrr...Home....errrr ....Mumbai Office... just tell 'I am working'

I have seen water tanks in different sizes and shapes. But one in a Lotus shape is truely unique. This water tank is at Jagannath temple (like one in Puri) in Chennai.

News in the daily caught my attention, correspondence course on Gandhi! I decided to give it a try. It is always good to be a student of something. So I called up the Gandhi study centre, the organisation conducting the course and got the details. The course is for three months, course fee is Rs 150. Now the highlight, you will get the question paper at home and can answer sitting at home. There will be one full day contact class.




Name of the course is “Let us know Gandhi” a must need for this age.
Course material contains three books.








Exam is on Jan. It’s student days ahead, also an opportunity to know more about a great soul.

Imagine this; you go for shopping in Chennai's top most Alayam of Saris. You select saris and come to billing counter; you pay the bill and get the saris, now the surprising part. You get something free with Sari, can you guess what? I bet you can't
A Tulsi plant free for purchasing Saris (I am not sure about other dress materials). This is what exactly happened to my wife and we have our first indoor plant,a Tulsi plant!

It’s good to hear live Carnatic music nah? So even if you can't make it to Narada Gana sabha or Music Academy

Go to Sri Krishna sweets in Adyar

Every day evening you can hear live music here. It’s very interesting to see them discussing about various styles, ragas and all. So it’s double sweet at Sri Krishna

Office Records

This is not Guinness Book of records, not even Ripley's believe it or not series. These are office records (if you find a more sensible name, pls go ahead)

Marker Tower. 3 markers and a Glass!



Now 3 markers, a mobile and a Glass!Record holder Deva along with the record



Anybody there to beat this?

I never dreamt of a career in modeling but being in an advertising agency, I had lots of opportunities where I modeled as reference. These ads were also started like that. So even though it’s highly unlikely to recognise me, I agreed for the shoot. Never in my wildest dreams I (and nobody in the agency) thought that client will approve the concept and models. Believe me friends, the person who is seated in these ads is me. The ladies are my colleagues. This is not a dream debut I know but the feeling is great.






These ads were published in Kumudham,a Tamil weekly.