Bye Bye Dear Noida

However it has been 7 days since I have left Noida still it is not out of my mind. You can not forget any place so easily where you have spent your more than 2.5 years of life. So it deserves a small mention at least on my website. There have been many experiences with this city good and bad both but if you feel good then nothing is bad.

New Okhla Industrial Development Association aka NOIDA as known to most of us comes under NCR that means we can have the facilities like Water, electricity, mobile and broadband plans are like Delhi and here the similarity ends. You may say that development of flats and roads and industry is because of Delhi  too but it is just because of not like. There are lots of things those need to be improved for it to be similar to national capital like police, traffics, transport services, metro reach etc, etc.


Chalo chodo. Our ancestors have always said," Jitna mile usme khush raho" (Be satisfied in what you get) and I try to implement this in my life. The first time I reached noida through a direct bus from ISBT to Sec 62 and that was one of the 2 times that I was able to get direct bus in 2.5 years. This area I really want to improve. There is very high volume of people who have to take auto and then 2 metros to reach Kashmeree gate ISBT which can be done by a single bus only either by DTC or UPRTC. No reason why they are ignoring. Ohho again started complaining. Human nature :)


On the first day of office, itself, one thing was clear to me that it is not easy to commute in Noida without your own vehicle. One reason was the area where my company gave me accommodation for 10 days and other reason was great timings of my project more suitable to client. So I took a single room near to my office with help of my cousin brother. Room was more of a servant quarter than a home but as I was always going to my home on weekends so it was inexpensive way of living here.


Noida is more famous for its crime graph rather than development as it is quite near to Ghaziabad and nearby UP areas. But I used to come by walk most of the time even at 3:30 in the night always having a belief that you need not be coming in night alone to be robbed. You can be robbed in the day light also if robbers decide to do so. Also what robbers will get from me, a 3 years old phone and some money. So I always walked away from office at any time I wanted and thanks to god and my well wishers that the 3 years old phone is still with me.


If I was not at home or office, then only one place was there where I can go. TOT mall, dont go over the name, it is just a small open shopping complex in sector 62 having shops of general requirements like eating places, juice corners, book stalls, medical shops and general stores. My dinner if I was going to do outside office was always there. Speciality of this complex is that here you will get more ATMs at same place than any other complex.


The main place of shopping or time pass in Noida is Sector 18 or Atta market. If you dont have anything to do or want to buy some thing branded or non-branded then it is the one point destination. I visited this place some times mostly GIP mall for some shopping and some meetings with my very good friend. Always crowded and great time pass. I wasted some money too but it was very less as compared to what I spent in chennai or hyderabad malls.


When talking about the movies apart from watching downloaded movies, I watched movies in last 2 weeks only in Noida both in Spice cinemas. Experience was not that great but good and expensive. Everything looks good when you are with you friends.


There are many memories associated with Noida which will be with me for long time.


1. The first thing that comes to my mind is walking on the road outside my apartments with my very good friend eating ice-cream for hours and hours discussing our concerns, issues or any thing related or unrelated to us. This used to be quite refreshing for me at least.


2. Always taking a shared auto to reach either City Centre Metro or Sector 37 to reach ISBT for taking bus to home and coming back late on Monday by same route to my office.


3. My single room apartment which I believe the most secured place on the Earth with dedicated security guards knowing each and every person of the apartments by face.


4. Eating Ice-cream when coming late to home.


5. Surprised Birthday gift from my friends at 1 AM in the night which I never got in my life before and will not get any time in future too :(.


6. Availability of every thing within 10 minutes walking distance from my home ranging from Paranthas, Couriers, sweets, medicines anything and everything.


7. Coming back to home in My friends' car or at bikes. They are really gems and were very helpful to me.


8. My great great office. Where I learnt lots of things, most importantly office politics.


9. Late night calls which started in Noida due to of lack of sleep. Now I am available 20*7 and sometimes 24*7.


10. So many new friends which I believe will be for long time. 


Some things were bad and many things were good. What ever it was, it will always be in my mind and will be compared with all the future cities where I will live but surely it will come in the top cities to live. Love You Noida!!!

Happy Independence Day...Amreeka. Our Beloved USA

On Friday, I came to know by my friend Sumit that there are 2 holidays in USA on Monday and Tuesday. We sometimes have to work on our holidays to support onsite at the name of compensatory offs which we never get but it never happens that company ask us to enjoy a holiday when there are holidays in USA. Still there is an internal happiness that gets generated that we will not have to bear them for that day :). However I did not feel like knowing the reason for holidays as they have their own weird reasons for holidays.

On Saturday, when I was coming home with my brother on the scooter, for time pass sake I asked him whether he is having holiday on Monday. I knew the answer, when I am not having the leave how can he has it. He said, "No, what is on that day?" Then suddenly it strikes my mind that  it is 4th July. America's Independence day. I am not sure from where I recalled it. Whether it was my 9th standard study or the movie 'Independence Day'. Perhaps it was movie. I told my brother that it is USA's independence day.


The next question was quite reasonable. Was america ever ruled by anyone? Seeing the current scenario, it looks like impossible. It is very hard to imagine that such a super power was not independent. 
Seeing the India, I can say that on any day China or USA can take over the country. Though we claim to be next super power, still it does not feel like independent when you have to live under the fear of all the powerful men around you. Even a constable can make your life a hell if you are not enough rich or does not have any power or not even contacts of any politician or police man.


A middle class person carries all the documents with helmet on his head while taking his scooter away from home still he just hopes to not to be trapped by any police men for violating the law and he is more than happy when returns home with out any fuss.


If we write about our great India then we can keep on writing till all the trees in the world are converted into paper and still nothing will change so better to move to our great great USA. I like to call it Amreeka since when I have seen 'Tere Bin Laden'.  Ali Zafar was too good in calling USA as Amreeka in that movie and the passion with which he used say, I loved it. 


Coming to independence as I was thinking about 4th July, year 1776 came into my mind. This was surely the result of  my study most probably 9th standard. At that time we were given the responsibility to free all the countries from their rulers of which we did not know even the location in map (many of them I still dont know). So many countries were there, but it looks like is in the blood of us (Indians) that we are quite fascinated by word USA. It has attraction of its own. I dont even remember the name of other countries whom freedom fights we crammed in our class but I still remember the year of USA's independence. That shows our eternal love :).


We software engineers have a unique quality, we are never free. Even though we have nothing to do, we will keep on right clicking the mouse and refresh the system. Most of the time I keep myself busy in this way. But as it was america's independence day so I feel a bit curious even at 2 AM to know and tell my busy software engineer community the brief history of USA's independence. 


As expected and suspected, USA was ruled by the Great Britain too similar to India and Pakistan. That may be the reason  USA behave as big daddy of India and Pakistan as all three have been tortured by Britain. 
As per history on 2nd of July, 13 colonies(which became USA) were legally separated from Great Britain and on 4th of July, declaration of independence was signed explaining the decision. This is the same document which we saw in Nicolas cage's National Treasure if you got the chance to see that movie. It was enough for me as I was not interested in American Revolution. I always hate history as its very hard to remember all names, dates and locations other wise I would have done BA and then MBA in place of doing software work :(.


Its quite interesting to imagine if USA would have been still under British rule, we might have miss so many things, like


1. Atom Bomb, biggest gift to the world by USA, because of which most of the countries keep on buying weapons from USA even though they show that they dont have money to feed their own people.


2. Biggest terrorist in the world, Osama Bin Laden which they created to fight against Soviet in Afghanistan and later on killed him to claim them selves as the leader against terrorism.


3. The biggest Terrorist country in the world, America. They can attack any country at their will when they feel it is dangerous or in reality feels that it will be highly profitable if they can take the controls of oil wells like Iraq.


4. One of the most coward country, India who has to ask USA to what to do even when Pakistan directly send the terrorists with obviously USA provided weapons. They cant even hang red handed caught terrorist as they are pleading against USA that he was Pakistani resident and want justice from USA. What a shame!!


5. Lots of gadgets like Iphone, Ipad, Ipod, smart phones on which we waste our hard earned money, giving back their money to them. Remember we are from the country of one of the greatest donator Karna from Mahabharata.


6. Software Industry where we keep on running for getting VISAs( L1, H1, B1 anyone will work) , impressing our managers, burning our oil night or day to impress the client for their occasional fondling so that we can earn in dollars.


However bad USA may be, still we have to pray for him. He is our Lord, our GOD. A small recession in USA cause loose motions in Indian industries. Our appraisals become nightmare. In place of hike we get deductions. Jobs become rare and hard to save. 


So our only prayer to GOD is that please keep this local GOD well. Give him the power to rule the world. Let him destroy the world but please take care of him so that our bread and butter keep on coming in our homes. A bit selfish but its better to die by an american bomb than by lack of food caused due to american recession.


God Bless Our Beloved Amreeka. Happy Independence Day.

Delhi belly - Shit happens

Delhi Belly - Shit Happens

Cast:- Imraan Khan, Vir Das, Vijay Raaj, Kunal Roy Kapoor, Shenaz, Poorna

Running time :- 1 hour and 40 minutes

You may or you may not have given due consideration to the tag line of the movie. SHIT HAPPENS. Although name contains Belly and shit comes from it. But still shit has been given more emphasis. If you are thinking about What the Shit I am talking about then go and watch the movie. This is the first movie where you have to see Shit on screen (however it must have been artificial) ;). You may feel like vomiting and laughing both at the same time.

The movie has nothing unique in its story. There have been better movies if you talk about story and treatment on the same concept of misplacement or replacement of money bags or diamonds. 1 chalis ki last local is I believe the best movie in this category as well as 99 and Sankat City are the other better one. The only thing special in this movie is that director has never tried to make this movie a family movie. He has tried to make it as real as possible. You will hear abuses in both english and hindi. However english abuses has no competition with our local hindi ones and we have lots of varieties too :).

The basic plot of the movie is of 3 friends Tashi(Imraan khan), Arup (Vir Das) and Nitin (Kunal Roy kappor). who are journalist, cartoonist and photographer respectively. The movie revolves around replacement of Diamonds with the stool sample of Nitin. Diamonds belong to a don (Vijay Raaj) which is my favorite actor so most of the time I was waiting for him to appear only and I am sure you will too after he comes on screen :). 

After 30 minutes of movie is passed, chase starts and the real action begins after entry of Vijay raaj and he is excellent as usual. There is no special mention of Delhi in the movie and it can be named Amritsar Belly if they want to say chicken was the main reason of stomach disturbance and all this but I will agree that such a chicken can be found on road side of delhi only as Punjab will not compromise with quality:).

I watched the movie in Hinglish or you can say more of english apart from our patent hindi abuses and some dialogues. I am not so good at english yet I was able to understand it. If you are going to watch then please watch in Hinglish only. You will get some laughs for sure. Though Imraan khan is the lead actor with two heroines yet Vir Das and Kunal Roy Kapur got  most of the funny scenes and dialogues. You are sure to get some scenes where you can laugh upon if you understood the dialogue otherwise you will at least listen to laughters of other people in the cinema hall after every short while may be after every 2-3 minutes.

There are other actors too like Shehnaz as Tashi's gf, Poorna as a ultra modern separated colleague, Paresh as house owner and Rahul Singh as Poorna's ex husband. All of these are good and do there work aptly. 

Songs do not come as a separate entity but as a part of the movie mostly running in the background apart from Ja Chudail in the mid and I hate you in the end featuring Amir khan.

I dont like Amir khan particularly but I appreciate him for his business sense as he know what to sell, how to sell and to whom to sell. He did not promote Dhobi ghat and peepli live much as he knew he will not be able to get much of the profit even after huge promotion where as case was different when Ghajini and 3 idiots came. This movie falls in second category as he knows he will be able to sell it and yes it will work and give him good profit. 

This is not a path breaking movie and have loads of loopholes in the script specially climax yet there are some scenes which you will have in mind after getting out. There is one such a scene when Arup's boss told him that "Banana Cartoon is looking more happy than necessary. Make it 7% sad". Go and make your self atleast 7% happy or more as happiness and smiles have become very rare now a days.

Keep smiling and Take care