Jithu-lekha :P

Swagat - THE Event !

To define Swagat , to add an adjective to it or to convey the joy and wonder it brought with it seems like a tough thing to do..But I will still try and make an attempt!

You could call it..’An event that enthralled Trinfoscions’..’Awed the audience’..’Thrilled the participants’..’Delighted the organizers,’..’Surprised many a lot’ and so on . But in short..Swagat glued the audience to their seats and burst up a never-before-seen event @TrivandrumDC !

What started as a humble mail to a few concerned folks, with an idea to conduct an event which would knit Dance, Drama, Music and Fashion show onto a single thread ended as a delightful event that would be cherished by everyone who performed and witnessed it, for long !

This idea was built upon on, shared, brainstormed on, debated upon , dreamt of and what not to be fabricated as SWAGAT ! With a core team in place, the hunt for  dancers, actors, musicians and models got underway  as  nominations were called for, from fresh talents  to audition . The sea of fresh talent were shortlisted following the grand auditions, which received an overwhelming response.

Following many more meetings and discussions , with the theme decided upon - the dance, music and drama teams set out on getting their respective arts underway.

The scriptwriters, dreamt of ‘The Awakening’ as they penned down the story of Ram Vinayak and his legacy. The actors lived through the script. The dubbing artists rendered the sound for the audio track. The choreographers, danced to the tunes of ‘The Awakening’ . And the musicians practiced the songs of ‘The Awakening’. 

After very many days and nights of 100+ artists trying to get their act together..perfecting that act, on the 11^th of August, the first ever live movie @ Trinfy opened to a full house at 5:30 pm. What unfolded on the stage in the next 3 hours was brilliance !

Hangover – The Trinfy Music Band mesmerized the crowd with few soulful numbers. Title track of Kannathil Muthamittal, Enamo Yedho and Oruvan Oruvan Muthalali to name a few.

InZync – The Dance Club set the stage on fire with 5 back to back high energy performances that stole the hearts of Trinfoscions.

Trinfy Theatres – The Drama team enacted ‘The Awakening’ – The live movie.  The Awakening told the story of Ram Vinayak, a freedom fighter driven by his love for his motherland , who’s legacy inspires and awakens his Grandson Rohan – from being  an aimless youngster to a mature citizen  involved in initiatives that help make the world a better place to live in !
With stellar performances from each and every actor on stage, with aptly chosen songs and very well choreographed dances, with a brilliant Fashion Show that depicted the costumes of various eras, regions and sects across the length and breadth of our motherland, with seamless transitions between past, present and the future.. The Trinfy crowd witnessed an evening that will remain etched in their memories for long.

The wonderful audience they were, Trinfoscions applauded and appreciated the efforts of the Swagat team with a standing ovation, an applause that brought tears to many a folks as the sense of having achievement dawned !

And now if I need to summarize SWAGAT in one word, it would be:A SPECTACLE !

For a better tomorrow....

Here we are...64 years of being a free nation..a democracy..an emerging global economic..industrial superpower!! But suddenly you look back and realize there  is a li’l less enthusiasm and a li’l less ‘feel-good’ factor about  this August the 15^th, than the previous ones.. :|

That’s the kind of mood we are in..right? On any other eve of Independence day you would see patriotic songs being played on the otherwise-idiot box, glimpses of the freedom struggle, replays of ARR’s soulful  Vande Mataram etcetera. But I don’t find that inspiring air on air today !                            
Maybe it is just that I haven’t watched enough Tv tonight or I happen to find more INTUC and DYFI flags than the tricolor in Trivandrum..or I miss the independence day ceremony in school..or I miss chatting with my dad on various National topics while tying up a pole to hoist the Indian Flag the next day.. or I miss buying Indian flags and tying them onto my bicycle.. but yes..I see that I don’t have the right amount of feeling of pride that comes with this day, right now.
I watched News on various 24X7 channels for a while. Learnt that Manoj Kumar happens to be the greatest on-screen patriot, Congress is now accusing Anna Hazare of double standards and calling him corrupt, India’s string of losses is now named the death of Indian cricket and in between all this we have multiple brands drawing your attention with Independence day wishes ! While there are still many positives…It seems all negative..all very depressing..this ain’t the state of affairs we all look for !
 

We don’t want a Govt, where the civil society with unelected representatives has to arm twist the government to get them to act on an issue of national growth..national pride, one of utmost importance. Anna Hazare all of a sudden is the next Gandhi.. the satyagrahi who wants a just government..an uncorrupt one! But do we want a leader who burns copies of a Govt. draft of a bill, on the streets...do we? It really is a sharp double edged sword. He and his panel members are accused of corruption.. and you cant help but doubt it cos almost all of us believe that to stay away from corruption [committing one or pretend to ignore one] is practically impossible in our land. And the congress can bluff such an accusation cos they noe they hardly have a good rival party which could endanger their power of the centre, even if they are to be proven wrong. While the Govt. and UPA are in a mess.. so is the NDA. Not to mention the so called ‘third front’.  In a time of national crisis wouldn’t it be heart-warming to see every party come together and work together to overcome the situation than all the blame games and stalling of the houses of parliament?

The CAG indicts someone or the other comes with a report on mismanagement of money or power every other day..which is good cos you know they are doing their job.But, its worse cos it means someone else isn’t ! Wouldn’t it be good if the CAG also comes out with reports on Govts and Govt offices and highlights a job done well and clean and spread the news so that the common man knows it and feels good?

Indian Team has been losing it like anything over the last one month.. and you have a Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponappa winning bronze at the World Badminton Championships, claiming that for India in the prestigious event after a gap of 28 years! Did you know?  Wouldn’t it be nice if the 24X7 channels spend at least 7 mins of Showtime on other sports for every 24 on cricket?

Indian Team has been losing it like anything over the last one month and the media coverage is maddening. They call it the death of cricket and talk about overhauling it. you have some so called ex-cricketers who have not even come close to achieving what some of the legends who are still part of this team have, diagnosing the problem with our cricket ! 4 months back they were national heroes, remember? Like they all hit a purple patch together then..they have all just lost it now..unfortunately..all of them, together! Now..surely SRT, Dravid, Dhoni and co. would’n be feeling too great about it too ! Would’n it be nice if the media reiterated that we still have at least 3 legends in that team.. and that der ll be a turn around..sooner or later..and wish them good luck and stand by the in these tough times ?!

Couple of media giants conducted a state of the Nation poll recently.. but then..dont we see that the media itself sets the mood of the nation? Next time, say Sheila Dikshit is indicted by CAG, can we not see the headlines as SHIELA DIKSHIT IS CORRUPT and see it is SHEILA DIKSHIT INDICTED BY CAG, TO BE PROBED. ?? Can we not have misleading news that only helps these giants fetch more TRPs? Can we have more sensible, responsible journalism?

It is not just the media then.. the elected representatives in power..the Govt. officials.. everyone.. can we have good, sincere effort going into ur jobs?  The loss of the Left Front in WB and DMK in TN are clear indictors that if you don’t perform..your govt wouldn be voted for ! If your party is elected to power..would you want to stay there longer? So why don’t you put up some good governance and steer the country’s growth? Then, we would like you to continue doing so !

Then again, can’t WE all do that? In this age of social media..with a hugely large population still young..and many of it on FB and other networks. Cant we play a huge role in uplifting the mood of the nation? Where information travels faster than ever.. can we all  ensure that we, as responsible citizens share good, heartwarming news? News that brings us pride, happiness and joy? While also being responsibly critical of national issues and national matters??

Joy can be diffused..  Enthusiasm is contagious.. Peace is addictive.. A li’l effort can go a long way.. when you see things in positive light..they seem easier to work upon. Hope for a better tomorrow.. good laws..uncorrupt, good governance..better forms of protest..better performances in sports, cinema etc. better business, better infrastructure.. all better.. all good. Then we shall surely have more cheerful, prideful and inspiring Independence days !

Jai Hind !

What If SRT Were Run Out Like Bell?

Because this is my first post..and because i don't want you to be turned off by the very first post.. here goes a disclaimer.

"If 'Bells Bizarre run-out' rings any bell.. please read on. If you are thinking how did a bell run when it is supposed to ring..apologies..but this ain't for you ! " But because you took the pain to get here..i can tell you is that this is about the 'Gentleman's game' - Cricket. 

And just in case you love Cricket but missed out on Bells controversial run out..here goes the brief.

Then i came across this article and i thought it would be nice take on the different side of the story ! But Nah.. just turned out Andy Flower defending him n his captain knocking the door of the Indian dressing room.

Then i thgt i could pen that different take that i expected to read..n here we are :)

What if Sachin were run out like Bell?

- England would have had champagne, instead of tea.

- India wouldn go knock on the doors of the English dressing room. We are too nice for that and not so desperate to win ;)
- Everyone would hail England's presence of mind and advocate No.1 status for them.

- Dhoni would have slammed umpiring in the post match press conference and forced Asad Rauf into an early retirement.

- Spirit of cricket would have been damned..not cos of England claiming SRT's wicket..but cos Dhoni marked his disappointment.
- English Media would bash Dhoni for his lack of sportsman spirit. Indian media would hail the goodwill of SRT for not making a fuss about it.
- BCCI would have arm twisted and had ECB to confess that they timed the tea break incorrectly.
- Ravi Shastri and Naseer Hussain can go have a go at each other with something more controversial than DRS.
- Die hard Sachin fans would shout to out England supporters "How dare you..No one but God decided when to break for tea.." !

- Lastly, Dhoni would have had another, more genuine excuse for the loss !

Cheers !

This and That ! - Curtain Raiser :)

Hello World !
Yeah.. you guessed it right..I am a techie.. and that's always the first output for every new code we folks try, isn't it? ;)
So after much shilly-shallying i have finally got my lazy self to sign up here and type some..this and that !
In case you wonder why such a title.. well..frankly i din't think too deep into it. when i asked myself what i would probably blog about..the only answer i could come up was.. this and that..i mean, it could be anything.. could be my dreams or my screams, my views and my takes.. even i dunno what exactly might pop up here !
So i hereby declare my first blog - OPEN ;)

Cheers,
Sri