Foreigner's Guide to India

Planning to come to India in near future, may be for Common Wealth Games, well here's a ready reckoner to find your way around.

1. Try to have a mobile which has at least Google Maps with location finder feature. That might help you get an idea of where you are and where you are heading while commuting.

2. Try consuming Mineral Water to as much extent. Because unlike the developed world, in India... Tap water is not same as bottled water!!

3. Be careful about your luggage and belongings when outdoors.

4. Try wearing casual floaters or slippers as they would be the most comfortable in case it rains or even otherwise.

5. When you reach airport, rather than coming out and taking an Auto Rickshaw, for the feel of it, just book a cab from the terminal itself as the Auto Driver would surely overcharge you to the tune of a A/C taxi fare. You can find info about various radio cab services on Google for eg: Meru, easy-cabs etc.

6. Keep an Indian acquaintances number handy to help in case of an emergency or even just to ask directions. Don't hesitate to ask any passerby in English, if they know the language, they'll surely respond.

7. A lot of governments like Australia, have issued a long list of diseases prevalent in India, as if we are ogres living in swamps. Its not that bad at all. Just eat at proper places and drink clean water and you would be fine.

8. Our government suggested that you carry your own toilet paper or tissues as our public toilets are not clean enough. Well this is a problem even in western world, I rarely found a clean public toilet even in Amsterdam shopping malls during Christmas.

9. Don't worry about the health care in case its required. You would find world class health care facilities in India.

10. For any flight or Hotel bookings. try the travel sites rather than going through travel agents as they will surely try to rip you off.. There are a lot of good websites which may help.. For example: yatra.com, cleartrip.com(Train Booking Also), makemytrip.com etc. You'd find that in terms of Online services/bookings/shopping, India is far ahead then what you might think.


Let me know through comments in case you need any specific info... Enjoy your stay! :)

My Baby..

Did you see “Baby Geniuses” or “Look who’s talking” or “Baby’s Day Out” all these movies had babies as the lead characters, thus giving us an experience of what a baby think of. Babies have not seen much world, their thoughts and perceptions are not cluttered by the pre-conceived notions or fears. And this fact makes a baby’s perspective as the freshest and least biased.


How wonderful it would be to get such a perspective from a baby itself. I am lucky enough to be living with one such baby. She looks at everything in terms of colors, freshness and her own parameters of good and bad. When she praises a mobile phone she saw somewhere and I ask her which one it was.. she says "A red one". When I ask her if she remembers the route she used last week.. she says " yes yes, there are green green trees on the sides and pink flowers on the road divider". She would anyday choose a pink nano over a white BMW.


All these little things keep me smiling even when I am not with her, there are not enough hours in the day I can spend with her.. :)

My music is music, Your music is noise!!

What is music.. a sound which is pleasing to the senses.. Although this definition has remained same over the years, but its perception has changed drastically over the years. Especially in terms of Hindi film music.

Gone are the days when you could find meaning in each and every word of a song, when lyrics were as important as the rhythm, when song writers had enough words to put in between bits of music and when melody was enough to attract listeners.

Nowadays, all that a song needs to have is a catchy main tune, a few words related to love or lust and you have a winner at your hands. “Kaho na kaho” or "Bheege honth tere" from movie Murder are a case in point. The songs have only one tune which is repeatedly fit on all the stanzas and still the songs were major hits. Hard beats and Bass has become so prevalent in all sorts of songs that sometimes even rhythm doesn't matter if the song has loud enough beats.

There is another peculiar type of Hindi movie songs, one that seems to be melodious and deep(or atleast having some meaning), but when listened carefully is actually crap lyrics fit over a good tune, for ex. most of the songs of "Kuch kuch hota hai" and for the deep seeming song example, "Ya Rabba" from Salaam-e-Ishq.

There are still great songs being made, just that the frequency has reduced to hardly 10-15 an year. But.. if you want to savor the beauty of words meshing in with the tune along with minimalistic use of instruments, then listen to “Abhi na jao Chhodke” from movie Hum Dono. It’s a classic duet song with least amount of instruments involved and most playfully written lyrics. How I wish we had more writers like these, and less of music directors like we have today (except A.R Rehman).

The (NOT-SO) great act!!

What the hell is happening to our politicians. They are bloody loosing their touch. Earlier around elections, they used to put up acts for public, but made it subtle or less obvious. But with this Varun Gandhi drama, the act has gone as bad as any RGV movie can go.

Even Varun is not sure about his making the alleged speech!! First he profusely said that he did not make the comments.. it went on like this for two days... slowly support started pouring from entities like Shiv Sena and SRS.. so now with prospects of gaining political mileage out of the issue, BJP has projected Varun as a hero of hindutva! But a few things aren't clear, why the hell is he courting arrest for his principals or faith when he is still maintaining that he didn't make that speech. Does his ideals tell him to go to jail for a crime he hasn't committed?? He says the CD is doctored, and then goes out to say that he can die for his faith!! Mr. Gandhi, pls explain how the two things are connected?

Anyways.... with this drama being made the big issue for this elections, i really don't see the point of BJP indulging in such an elaborate and obvious pretense. For i myself prefer BJP over congress, but with this useless indulgence i don't see BJP's popularity getting a push in the right direction among youngsters.


I just hope whatever government is formed, is formed with an absolute majority for a single party (Either BJP or Congress, NOT THE THIRD FRONT), so that politics of appeasement is given rest for atleast next five years!!

Shri Ram Sena k side effect!

One of the best works of Jophy Joy, an accomplished cartoonist at Infosys,Pune.

The Last Rites (or wrongs)

Recently a very dear aunt of mine passed away due to cancer. The death though imminent was a bit sudden. The various rituals performed and yet to be performed tasks made me think about the business of death which various priests run in the name of religion.

Death, in india or to be more specific in Hindus is as elaborate as wedding. As soon as the news spreads about the sad demise of an individual relatives, friends and neighbours start streaming in for mourning, to share the grief, often causing more grief by crying in front of immediate relatives who've already cried their hearts out. Even after the day of cremation, people will keep on visiting the family as per their own sweet convenience.

The family is required to perform various prayers for long period of time and provide an year's worth of food to the priest conducting prayers. The meeting(kriya) organised after 12 days of death is visited by most of known people and is an elaborate occassion requiring setting up a caterer for food. The family which has already lost a member is lighter by a few thousands before all the rituals are over.

Relatives or visiting people are the least of botheration that a family goes through, the botheration comes from the various rituals that are deemed mandatory by our religious scriptures, without which the deceased will not attain moksha or mukti!

So a recently widowed/orphaned person has to perform numerous tasks and chant umpteen verses before the pyre is lit with holy fire.

Death is the point where all scientific logic and reasoning becomes irrelevant. Almost every religion has some beliefs related to life after death, or the concept of heaven(swarg) and hell(nark). It is these beliefs from which these rituals are born.

The family of deceased may not be totally convinced by these beliefs but still most people prefer not to take chances in case some small effort from them might improve the afterlife of their loved one.

It is this fear of unknown or concern of ours which some godmen may take advantage of.

So at the cremation, after every little ritual, relatives are asked to pray and put some money at the feet of deceased. Money which the priest promptly picks up before next ritual.

At the time of flowing of ashes in the holy river ganges, the local priests will list out the denominations of prayers that they'l undertake for the deceased's well being in the afterlife. They'l unashamedly say that the costlier the prayer the more is the degree of moksha attained. I can't believe that our scriptures link attainment of moksha with amount of money spent by family on rituals, wasn't it all about Karma.


Death of a loved one is an emotional moment for us but for them its their livelyhood. Every ritual ends with some money going into a godmans pocket, so being the more scientific n logical generation, if indeed we want to do something for the peace of our minds and our loved one's souls then rather than maximizing godman's profits and earnings, its better to feed a few poor people whose true blessings might indeed help the deceased..

$ Slumdog Millionare $

One of the best movies i've seen in a long time.. Slumdog millionare deserves every accolade its been receiving worldwide.. The director has made mumbai slums look artistic.. Although the movie could've been more researched but still the few holes in the plot are filled by exceptional performances, especially by the child artist playing jamal.. He was as convincing as any senior actor without resorting to overacting, something which every kid in indian movies does.

Its a story of slum dweller jamal.. Who catches nation frenzy as from a chaiwala in a call center.. He goes on to win a million rupees on game show..

He is suspected of cheating and picked up by police.. Then begins the movie where the boy explains how each question he answered had somehow been answered in his life..

The only noticeable flaw for dumb critics would be.. Jamal talking in hindi as a kid and in accented english when adult.. Anyways.. The movie is too gud for these minor niggles to stop u from enjoying it..

By all means.. Go for it.. :)

Somebody save me..

M on my way to home and accompanied by the most irritating family i've ever met.. The lady keeps chatting up anyone and everyone about anything and everything. The gentleman keeps playing with the camera clicking pics of his wife or just lighting up the flash.. But the most annoying is their cute little 2.5 foot tall daughter who keeps on shouting from the depths of her lungs and bumbling here n there all the time. This is really scaring me about my future n having kids.. There should be some school where the children could be sent once they reached this annoying age n brought back once they are again of sensible age..

Lets hope i'm not annoyed to the extent that i start pulling my hair (or little girl's)

May god give the kid some sense and calm.. Or atleast a volume control knob..!!

I'm posting this via mobile from a train.. So this is my live ordeal.. :(