Uncle! Can you buy me a cake?

“Uncle! Can you buy me a cake?”

Deepti and I were in Amma’s Pastries, 18th Cross, Malleshwaram to get birth day cake for Alok. The question was shot at me by a boy, aged 12-13, in half pants and shirt, barefoot and clutching some books in his hands.

I couldn’t believe my ears for few seconds. Firstly, I was addressed as “Uncle”. And second, a young kid was demanding/begging inside a cake shop. I enquired where did he live, where were his chappaIs and didn’t he have money for the cake. He smartly answered that he lived in some part of Bangalore, he had lost his chappals somewhere, etc. Then I asked him what did he want and he pointed towards a Chocolate Cheese cake. I didn’t know what to do? Not because the cake was worth ` 18/- but this was the second time I was about to be cheated by a smart kid (I will write about the first time some other day). To tell you the truth I didn’t want to buy that cake for him coz I don’t encourage begging. But there I found myself opening my wallet, paying money to the cashier and handing over the cake to the boy. The boy said “Thank you Uncle”. By this time I found Deepti asking and scolding me that what the hell was I doing.

Many thoughts had come across my mind by this time. I had realized that I was cheated again by another smart kid. So I wanted to talk to the boy and tell him that it wasn’t right to ask people in shops /restaurants for cake or something. I wanted to tell him that what he was doing was equivalent to begging. I wanted to ask him that how would his parents feel when they come to know about it.

So I turned around to have a little “moral chat” with the boy but he was not to be found anywhere.

NerdTests.com Fun Tests - Loser Quiz

NerdTests.com Fun Tests - Loser Quiz

Summer is knocking

Summer is knocking, I don't want to let it in... I guess thats what this monkey is thinking! :)

ConFusion

You know what happened when I tried studying CONvection & difFUSION for Transport Processes exam... I found my self in CON-FUSION. :)

Diwali- ones again away from home

Ones again I couldn't be at home for Diwali, 7th time in past 9 years.
But this Diwali was not that bad. We three (Alok, Deepti & me) had great time.
Diwali celebrations this year included lightening candles and deepaks in our rooms, having sweets and a grand dinner at Mint Masala and taking lot of pics. Here are some of them showing the celebrations.

Technology came to rescue when I didn't have a proper poster/idol to perform pooja.



Diwali - A festival of lights


Just lights!!! Thats not enough! How can you call it a festival without sweets?



People who made it great.



Finally at dinner in Mint MAsala - Delicious food, efficient service, lovely ambience. Unfortunately nothing visible in this pic :)



I had a great time this Diwali! Can't wait to celebrate it next year. :)

"2 States: The story of my marriage" by Chetan Bhagat

Chetan Bhagat is back with one more masala & drama filled novel.
Krish, a panjabi, IITD student meets Ananya, Tamil Brahmin, Economics topper, while standing at IIMA. Both of them soon become friends. Friendship turns into love when they spend a lot of time studying together in dorms. Both get their dream jobs and want to get married, but now the problems start.
The great difference in the families of these two, their opposition of duo's marriage and efforts taken by both of them to get the consent of each family are dramatically narrated in rest of the book.
Flow while reading is disturbed when the narrator changes from Krish to the third person. I found it discontinuous. Annanya's intervention in Krish's cousin's marriage & Krish's family's consequent liking for Ananya; Krish's bitter father suddenly getting filled with great love for his son and removing the obstacles in the duo's marriage seems stolen from typical Bollywood movies.
All in all Chetan has nothing new to offer to readers than telling the same old, repeatedly told stories. But book will be instant hit and best seller as its a story told by IITD/IIMA graduate.

Recommended reading:

1. What is living and what is dead in Indian philosophy? by Debiprasad Chattopadhyay