The Private Life of Dale Bhagwagar

No secrets !?!

2010-10-02T20:07:00.005+05:30

Lot of people say, my life is like a big secret. I say, hardly. Here's what I've been up to from the last 15 days. Hired new cook. Finished PROP workshop. Sending lotsa press releases for my lovely client Neetu Chandra. Preparing to roadroller a nasty journalist. Publicizing my new determined client Ashmit Patel. Thinking of you and all those who are helping me smile. Watching loads of movies. Sleeping till late. Working late nights. Eating sizzlers and pizzas pretty often. Playing tricks and pranks on close friends. Nursing my sprained wrist. Listening to Brian Tracy. Chatting away on BlackBerry messenger. Giving quotes to media and interviews to college students for their thesis and projects. Thinking of going on a vacation to my fav hill station Matheran. Reading new articles on PR. Making new friends. Preparing for the next PROP workshop. Living the process called life. That's all. Rest is secret ;-)

Things you didn't know about Dale Bhagwagar :

2010-10-02T18:56:00.005+05:30

Dale was born on Oct 2 and calls himself "the modern Gandhi". Dale does not use toothpaste, he uses neem bark powder to brush his teeth. Dale does not use soap, he only bathes with water and two drops of eucalyptus oil. Dale prefers Himgange Oil to Navratan Oil to cool his "supersonic" head. But Dale uses his explosive TV interviews to cool his "overactive" mind. Dale can sleep at 3am and still wake up by 11am. Dale loves Gourmet thin-crust pizza from Dominos (yummm). Dale always asks for extra garlic and pepper sauces whenever he has sizzlers at Yoko's. Dale has been told his little paunch is cute, but he doesn't think so. Dale loves to snack on Parle Cheeselings and Cadbury's Gems. Dale can think like a wiz when he's in the washroom. Patna journalist Subhash K Jha remains Dale's "amusement". But Pakistani actress Meera is Dale's "biggest amusement ever". Another Pakistani, cricket scandal girl Veena Malik, is his "current amusement". When Dale is not "amused", he is "more amused". Dale wants all pigeons and crows in Andheri and Juhu to be replaced by parrots and sparrows. Dale is sane. At times, Dale makes this concoction of palm jaggery and cold milk, and calls it "coffee". By now, he has fooled four of his friends into believing its "coffee". Shiney Ahuja is an ex-client Dale craves to have back in his portfolio. Dale is a tea addict and loves roadside tapri ki chai. Dale doesn't like the chai at Shreejee's, but has it, just to give company to his friends. Dale quit colas, alcohol, cigarettes and meat four years ago and ended up losing 17 kgs of weight since then. Dale hates weight loss. Dale is scared, girls might feel his bones. Dale himself wrote all this, which makes him the biggest idiotic narcissist on blogspot.

My bizarre 'sting operation'!

2009-07-29T20:33:00.009+05:30

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 Madh Island 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.

What do u think?

2009-07-22T00:20:00.004+05:30

Ramachandran Srinivasan thinks I look like Shashi Kapoor in my pic. What do u think?

Mini Me

2009-06-06T00:46:00.003+05:30

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

2009-05-12T21:40:00.002+05:30

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

2009-04-20T22:35:00.001+05:30

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.”

Mere yaar ki shaadi thi...

2009-03-05T14:21:00.002+05:30

Kunal has been my friend ever since I landed in Mumbai some 14 years ago. And we've shared a love-hate relationship ever since. He loves his pen and hates me for trying to manipulate it. I love to control and manipulate and I get a kick when Kunal gets all worked up with with me for that. But from within, we both know that we are great great pals. Kunal married a few months ago and it was one of the coolest events I've attended in a long long time. But it was not my best. Coz that big crown goes to his wedding announcement party a few months earlier, which was even better than this one. He's got a lovely wife and I wish my pal continues to get the best in life.

Pic Talk

2009-02-15T21:38:00.000+05:30

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

2009-02-01T15:35:00.000+05:30

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.

TAKE AWAY ????

2009-01-03T13:01:00.000+05:30

Wonder if it is the girl or the signboard above her that amused my 'bestest' friend Anil on this New Year. Over to you, Anil ;-)

My favourite poem

2009-01-02T20:49:00.000+05:30

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.

Dale's den demystified

2009-01-01T10:10:00.000+05:30

When the great Greek warrior Achilles is undecided about going for the war in 'Troy', this is what his mother tells him: “If you stay in Larissa, you will find peace. You will find a wonderful woman, and you will have sons and daughters, who will have children. And they'll all love you and remember your name. But when your children are dead, and their children after them, your name will be forgotten... If you go to Troy, glory will be yours. They will write stories about your victories for thousands of years! And the world will remember your name. But if you go to Troy, you will never come back... for your glory walks hand-in-hand with your doom. And I shall never see you again.” Next morning Achilles leaves for Troy.

As of now, I have left for an island called Madh. This is where I stay now. And hope I get loads of glory, minus the doom ;-) I stretch and watch from my new den... while the world wonders a little about me; a little about recession ;-)

My drawing room...

The idiot box... where my daily dose of news comes from...

That place on the right is one that I can't stay away from... and also where I improvise my culinary skills...

Ahhh.... am quite a show off guy... photo shoto et al...

Thats the breathtaking view from my balcony... close your eyes and breathe...

Bluuuue...

Greeeeen...

Narial paani, anyone?...

Spot the boat...

My breakfast chair (but only if my morning happens to happen on the balcony)...

A window view...

All play and no work, makes me a dull boy... here's my desk.

Comp calling...

Feelin' lazy?...

My lil' bedroom system is mainly powered by the attached pen drive. I listen to a lot of Brian Tracy, Norman Vincent Peale, Dr Wayne Dyer, Stephen R Covey, Deepak Chopra and Steve Chandler these days. They give me what I want... that smile on my face.

Please close your eyes... its a bad habit to peep in here...

The guestroom... where privileged ones decamp...

A view from the guestroom... mark closely, and you can see the Bollywood hub; the concrete jungle of Mumbai's Lokhandwala, a few kilometres away. I dream from my den that my roar would reach all the way there ;-)

And now, for an arial view...

Of beaches, man and the island...

The birds might be jealous of man... and the den...

Up, close...

Left right left right...

Terracotta pathway to heaven...

Fountain of nice life...

A walk with the leaves...

What's life without a club with a pool, tennis court, squash court, gym, steam, sauna, jacuzzi et al. So here we go...

This is the pool you might often find me in...

Hey, don't look too hard; I seem to be absent today ;-)

Beautiful shrubbery at the club...

And lovingly tended gardens...

Did you expect an amphitheatre at the club?...

An amphitheatre could also be a beautifully tranquil space to ponder life, if it has grassy steps like these...

Time to take that lazy walk around the club (My favourite path)...

On the lawns at the club...

Relax...

Enjoy... life in progress...

PLEASE CLICK ON THE 'COMMENTS' LINK BELOW AND DROP IN A LINE OR TWO. I'D LUV YOU FOR THAT :):)