My bizarre 'sting operation'!

Now you know why they say, 'Outer space exists because it's afraid to be on the same planet with Dale.' ;-)

I was on the G-Chat on my comp, when these two love-birds (lets call them that till we zoom in) circled around me, as if they wanted to catch my attention. Have you been able to spot them in the frame? Nah? Not yet? Ok, click next.

They went and sat on my window grill. Can you spot them now?

I realised what they were up to ;-) So I quietly picked up my camera and started clicking. Slowly zooming in on the love-birds.

Yes, the love birds were actually love-flies. Hee hee.

Believe it or not, they were having a ball, making out in the cool 'n fresh breeze, perched comfortably on my window grill.

Little did they realise that a good PR's eyes (read lens) could be superior to their camouflage. My 18x zoom caught the tiny things in the act... up, close and personal, mischievously ripping through their privacy. It was as if I had done a 'sting operation' on the normally stinging characters.

Look at them. Aren't they cute? Are you saying "cho-chweet babies"? Ha ha.

Mini Me

One of my school pals put this pic up on Facebook and tagged me. That's when I realised I was in it. Ah! I know what you are doing now! Nah! Not that easy to spot me, dear! Or is it? Check check.

Ok I'll give you a hint. I'm sitting in the same row as the teachers. Put in your guesses in the comment box below and I'll see if you can give the 'sahi jawab' ;-)

Libran v/s Libran

A file photo of Mr Bachchan and me at his birthday bash at The Leela in 1995.

Mr Bachchan was born on Oct 11. Many years later, I was born on October 2. In 1995, while I was working as Chief Sub-Editor in 'Cine Blitz' magazine, I happened to manage an Exclusive interview with Mr Bachchan almost in the middle of a Press Conference. My editor was super-thrilled with me. (After all, its rare to come back with an Exclusive from a PC, where hundreds of scribes are clamouring for quotes and bytes. ) But the bigger surprise came a week later, when Mr Bachchan invited me to his birthday bash at The Leela in Mumbai. The food was yummy and Big B was very courteous. He also smiled and laughed a lot then (something he needs to do more often now). I vaguely remember a comment he passed, "Librans are flirty till they are 90". Being a Libran myself, I kinda like to agree to that one, though it never created any controversy. Today, the "Jana Gana Mana" song version in Ram Gopal Varma's 'Rann' does. Sadly, Mr Bachchan seems to take his life (and such controversies) very seriously now. I wish he'd chill out a bit. Like the good old days. I still do.

Party sharty and lil arty

I wonder what I was thinking of when this picture was taken! Was I thinking, what’s the use of being born on October 2, if I can’t put on this T-shirt and add in a few quotes of Gandhiji on this blog !?! (No offence meant to Munnabhai!)

Here are some words of wisdom from the Mahatma: 

• “Man often becomes what he believes himself to be.” 

• “Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.” 

• “The good man is the friend of all living things.” 

• “Our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world as in being able to remake ourselves.” 

• “Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.” 

• “There is more to life than increasing its speed.” 

• “The right to err, which means the freedom to try experiments, is the universal condition of all progress.” 

• “First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.”

Pic Talk

Please don't ask me how I feel being on Mr Bush's agenda... ;-)

But I do feel nice that Mr Obama has taken over :):)

Old is gold

Hindustan Times was inspired by my bicycle fetish and decided to begin the above article by mentioning about my craze for my bike. 

Sometimes I wonder what my actor clients would have thought if they'd spotted me riding a flashy bycicle on Mumbai roads? Would they have laughed at my bicycle fetish? Or would they have been plain jealous? Ha ha. Be it shine or rains, three years ago, I had almost got into the habit of leaving my car behind and riding this brand new Taiwan-made state-of-the-art ‘Xidesheng - King of Kings’ mountain bike everywhere I went. And let me tell you, this was no ordinary bicycle. It was loaded with some  awesome goddies like suspensions, more than a dozen gear combinations, power brakes and number locks for enhanced security; all rolled up into a super-light aluminum frame. No wonder, I had even thought of applying for an insurance cover. I wish did. Cause one unfortunate day, my bicycle got stolen. And now, I'm dependant on my car again.

My favourite poem

Robert Frost's 'The Road Not Taken'

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveller, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

 

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim

Because it was grassy and wanted wear,

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

 

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I marked the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way

I doubted if I should ever come back.

 

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,

I took the one less travelled by,

And that has made all the difference.