Dor - Nagesh did it again

Nagesh Kukunoor is one of the few movie producers/story writer who solidly thinks about the end of the movie before starting it. His latest creation Dor is another addition to his bag of success which ends remarkably. The movie is long, a little boring in the middle, unbelievable easyness of the set quest but the end changed the theme of the movie. A good watch for those folks who are interested in neo-bollywood style of film making.

Good going Greg!

Here is the Indian record under Greg's mystery coaching before the next cricket world cup:

1. Lost terribly to Australia
2. Lost terribly to West Indies
3. Lost terribly to South Africa
4. Suddenly Indian cricket team has no reliable openers.
5. Suddenly the team has lost the pace and its' pacers.
6. The team now only looks up to aging Sachin and Kumble, again.
7. Dravid has failed miserably as a captain.
8. Sehwag? Is he a threat anymore?
9. Does a middle order exist?

Good going Greg!

Argentinian robs Bush

We have to make this world a safer place... And then,
"ABC News in the US says the robbery went unnoticed by the heavy secret service force protecting the family." Read More

A good read on Dvaita philosophy

A good read for the folks interested in Dvaita philosophy of Hinduism. And an answer to misinterpreted Varna pratha:

Interpretation of the Caste System

* Madhva interprets the concept of VarNa mentioned in the Vedas (Purusha Sooktha) as not being defined by birth, but by the nature of a Soul. For example a Soul having the nature of a Brahmin could have been born as a Shudra and vice versa. The caste system decided by birth is actually Jaati and not VarNa. The VarNas simply define the disposition of the Soul, for example a Soul classified as BrahmaNa VarNa is disposed towards learning, a Kshatriya Soul is dispose towards administration and a Shudra Soul is disploed towards performing Service.

LoE from PoC to production

I am not sure if estimation is an art or science but its tough. Usually the level of effort required to build a production quality application is approximately three to four times (may be more) the effort required for the proof of concept or prototypes. Why?

1. You would need to translate the If-Then-Else in PoC to a proper pattern in prod.
2. You would need to translate the "invoke this" to an independently runnable task.
3. JUnit classes are missing in PoC.
4. for with in for is okay for a small dataset but this won't be true in prod.
5. PoC doesn't have to deal with multiple and heterogeneous systems.
6. That hidden hard coded value won't hide any more.
7. Did you add code reviews and documentation?

One day in the life of a consultant

1. Got the CLA - project approved.
2. Nope I won't be available to help because I am going to a new project.
3. Hey buddy! I got a local project. Cool Man!
4. Sir, could you please send me the documents.
5. Mom! Don't worry I am starting a local project this week. There won't be no travel.
6. Ashish, we are really sorry the project has been canceled.
7. I wanna go on vacation?
8. Do you have enough left?
9. Dirty clothes piling up. May be I will wash them tomorrow.

The vow WestIndies

One game and they are at their best, the other sub-average. One game 80 all out then defeat Aussies in the next. Talk about the uncertainty of Cricket.

The just war going wrong

Men by nature are hunters. This violence is an in built characteristic. Wars are in their blood. And one thing they still do not understand is the nature of war. Don't start one but finish it if you are in. After 9-11 the war against terrorism and the terrorists was necessary. It lost its way and ended up being creating more. But now what? What would it mean to leave it as an unfinished business? Remember what happened to Afghanistan when Russians left? Their presence in Afghanistan was unjust but leaving in the middle left the country reeling under the wave of terrorism. War has another characteristic. It also creates long term friends. It takes a lot of courage to side with someone cuz, staying neutral is the easiest thing to do. Leaving in the middle will also leave your ever shrinking friend base in danger. You protect your war friends by any cost. Leaving Iraq now as is will lead to some major massacres and its the responsibility of the western forces to prevent it. Learn from the British past how they fought wars. Make more friends while you are fighting. Warriors are not those who can start a war and fight one but who can finish it. Lets be good warriors.

Did Iraq change the US regime?

With house going to Dems and Senate a tie it looks like it...

How much is Saddam worth?

Saddam is sentenced to death. Who cares? Does Iraq care? What will it solve? What message does it give and to who? After all its not the Saddam supporters who are fighting in Iraq. A criminal should not be hanged if the only reason is revenge and not to give any message to other similar criminals. Hanging him would neither give any message to anyone nor will it solve any problem. He has lost his regime, he has lost his commanders and I don't think he has any clout to come back. He should be either sentenced to life imprisonment or exiled.

Why I won't watch Umrao Jaan

For those who did not understand the title of the blog - Umrao Jaan is a remake of an old Bollywood classic of 1980's. The character Umrao Jaan Ada belonged to an Indian city Lucknow which is my birthplace too and anything even distantly related to the city grabs my attention and gets me emotional. With all the bosh-posh happening in other Indian cities, Lucknow has so far successfully kept its character - struggling but trying. The city of Nawabs famous for its' culture, soft natured people, poetic endeavors and "first you" ethos. My friends called me Nawab in my college and my first job for my laid back, lazy, couch potato attitude. What can I say I am from Lucknow and to the dreg proud of it.
Now, why won't I watch the movie? Because I don't want to see it through somebody's else eyes. The classic which the likes of Mujjafar Ali, Khayyam and Shahryar had produced is irreplaceable. My Umrao Jaan Ada can't be replaced - my first love at the age of 7. I saw that movie with my father and his friends. Those irreplaceable Dad-Son moments. I still remember every moment of that day and the dinner after the movie. The nervousness I had when my Uncle asked me what my hobbies were? And I kept drinking a single glass of water forever till my Dad explained what "hobby" means. The day which I still remember as is after 26 years can't be replaced. No I won't watch the new Umrao.

The distance from mind to mouth could be sometime..

..too far	..Or too close