Sunday, August 10, 2008
Surviving Delhi Bus Rapid Transit Corridor III
Just because it's disappeared from the front pages of newspapers doesn't mean commuters are now in some sort of heaven. They are just resigned to the fact that there's no getting away with the bottlenecks at Chirag Dilli and Archana crossings.
The time taken is the same but the hot May sun is no longer beating down on motorcyclists and cars.
When you are waiting in the BRT line in August, the rain splashes down, dribbling down the car's windscreen and you can sit back and relax, armed with the knowledge that the car in front won't move another inch anytime soon.
Yes, the rain gods had pity on Delhi's hapless BRT commuters -- making that interminable wait at least tolerable.
But that doesn't make the corridor project a success. Hindustan Times claims people are adjusting to BRT, that Delhi has learnt to live with it. They should have asked me, I guess. Or anybody who goes through the BRT corridor day after day, month after month.
What worries me is this Times of India article, which says the Delhi government is planning more BRT stretches. It seems Sheila Dikshit hasn't learnt her lesson yet. Does she really want to lose the next election?
If only she had spent a few extra crores and extended the Delhi Metro till Khanpur. People would have been singing her praises. Alas! Each commuter on the corridor has only curses to offer.
My colleagues don't believe me. They feel I use BRT as an excuse.
"How bad could it be?" they ask.
"Travel down the corridor and you will see," I reply.
Unfortunately, they don't live anywhere near the BRT. And they will never experience the torture. After all, the rains will go away soon, the sun will come out and the commuters will sweat again -- and their murmurs would grow louder and louder still.
ALSO READ
Surviving Delhi's Bus Rapid Transit Corridor Part I
Surviving Delhi's Bus Rapid Transit Corridor Part II
Sunday, August 03, 2008
July 2008 Blog Mela
Nomad on Mallu men and beef
Bikerdude goes ga-ga over Bangalore's Commercial Eat
Silverine goes down frustration lane
Mama Says So feels like an impostor at the school gate
Jabberwock takes a flight to Chennai
Idea-smithy goes for a waltz in Matunga
18,000 RPM is in for some software-engineered cooking
Madhusudan Katti wants to catch a neutrino in the tiger's den
YOnEarthNot is the Crazy Biscuit Lady
That's all for now. The August 2008 Blog Mela returns early next month. But before leaving, do please vote for the best post in the July 2008 Blog Mela.
Check out previous Blog Melas
March 2007
April 2007
May 2007
June 2007
July 2007
August 2007
September 2007
October 2007
November 2007
December 2007
January 2008
February 2008
March 2008
April 2008
May 2008
June 2008
Did you just come across a quirky, interesting or something-that-tugs-at-your-heartstrings blog? If yes, feel free to nominate it for the August Blog Mela being hosted here on September 2
Blog Mela Rules
- Posts must have been written by Indians or have an Indian angle
- Only posts published between 1-31 August, 2008 would be accepted
- If possible, please nominate individual posts, not the whole blog
- Feel free to nominate something you have written. Immodesty appreciated
- You can nominate as many blog posts as you like - provided you really like them
- Only nominations received before midnight on September 1 stand a chance to be featured on the Top 10 list
- No, you don't get any moolah for nominating or getting featured in the Blog Mela. That could change once I am a millionaire but for now you'll just have to bear with me
- Yours truly reserves the right to nominate good posts which you ignore
How to Nominate
- Leave a comment on this post OR better still - Mail me at toeknee (at) gmail (dot) com
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Amit Varma in race for Asian Literary Prize
The Man Asian Literary Prize is an annual award for an "Asian novel unpublished in English". And this year their longlist includes Varma's debut novel "My Friend, Sancho".
The largest single group of submissions for the Man Asian Literary Prize was from India -- accounting for around half of the 21 books in the longlist.
These will be whittled down to a shortlist in October this year while the winner will be crowned at a ceremony in Hong Kong the following month.
"My Friend, Sancho" is set in Mumbai. Abir Ganguly, a young journalist on the crime beat, is asked by his editor to write a profile of Mohammad Iqbal, the victim of a police encounter. In the course of writing about another man’s life, his own is transformed. The reason is Iqbal's daughter, Muneeza – or Sancho, as her father used to call her.
Varma is busy finishing his novel-in-progress (which made the longlist on the basis of its first three chapters) and India's most famous blogger may not get enough time to work on the India Uncut blog, which is usually updated several times a day.
In a post on Tuesday, Varma wrote he needs "to submit my entire manuscript by August 1 to remain in contention for the prize, and I’m not quite done with it yet. Thus, for the next few days, I take a break from India Uncut."
Which is bad news for all those addicted to daily updates from India Uncut on Bollywood, media WTFs, 'where our taxes go' and Indian cows.
But here's hoping for some good news on the famous-blogger-turning-prize-winning-novelist front.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Osian's Cinefan Film Festival 2008 Awards
ASIAN AND ARAB COMPETITION
Best Film - Tokyo Sonata by Kiyoshi Kurosawa
Best Director - Nuri Bilge Ceylan for Three Monkeys
Best Actor - Ammor Hakkar in The Yellow House
Best Actress - Hiam Abbas and Rona Laipaz-Michael in Lemon Tree
Special Jury Award - Salt of This Sea by Annamarie Jacir
FIRST FEATURES AWARD
Confessional by Ruel Dahis Antipuesto and Jerrold Viacrucis Tarog
INDIAN COMPETITION
Best Film - Gulabi Talkies by Girish Kasaravalli
Best Director - Remo D'Souza for A Story of the Red Hills
Best Actor - Rajat Kapur for The Prisoner and Govind Namdeo for Kabootar
Best Actress - Umashree for Gulabi Talkies
IN-TOLERANCE AWARD
Hidden Faces by Handan Ipekci
NETPAC AWARD
Bioscope by K.M. Madhusudhanan
FIPRESCI AWARD
Ramchand Pakistani by Mehreen Jabbar and Salt Of This Sea by Annemarie Jacir
AUDIENCE AWARD
The Band’s Visit by Eran Kolirin
(Official website)
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Death of a Poet - Palash Kumar
Were the following lines, penned by this poet, to prove prophetic?
And thus ended the cycle of pain and love,
He walked away with a baggage of longings --
--- which refuse to fade
She walked away with a look in her eyes,
And a prayer on her face
Listen to his story, his Guftagu, in a silent place - his world, his blog, a place where Palash lives on, in words etched for eternity. Read on
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
June 2008 Blog Mela
Purple Cow goes to Assam
Zigzackly knows exactly how to quit smoking
India Uncut has a storyline for Savita Bhabhi
Mudra Mehta reveals the difference between girls and guys
Idea-smithy reveals why she hated being a woman
Stupendous Man discovers the source of Ekta Kapoor's inspiration
Jabberwock is waiting for Ekta Kapoor ki Mahabharata
Twisted DNA is a guy who goes to the gynaecologist
Krish Ashok has not written a review of Dasavathaaram
That's all for now. The July 2008 Blog Mela returns early next month. But before leaving, do please vote for the best post in the June 2008 Blog Mela.
Check out previous Blog Melas
March 2007
April 2007
May 2007
June 2007
July 2007
August 2007
September 2007
October 2007
November 2007
December 2007
January 2008
February 2008
March 2008
April 2008
May 2008
Did you just come across a quirky, interesting or something-that-tugs-at-your-heartstrings blog? If yes, feel free to nominate it for the July Blog Mela being hosted here on August 2
Blog Mela Rules
- Posts must have been written by Indians or have an Indian angle
- Only posts published between 1-31 July, 2008 would be accepted
- If possible, please nominate individual posts, not the whole blog
- Feel free to nominate something you have written. Immodesty appreciated
- You can nominate as many blog posts as you like - provided you really like them
- Only nominations received before midnight on August 1 stand a chance to be featured on the Top 10 list
- No, you don't get any moolah for nominating or getting featured in the Blog Mela. That could change once I am a millionaire but for now you'll just have to bear with me
- Yours truly reserves the right to nominate good posts which you ignore
How to Nominate
- Leave a comment on this post OR better still - Mail me at toeknee (at) gmail (dot) com
Monday, June 23, 2008
God is not deaf. Even at night.
A pundit with a not-so-pleasant voice leads the congregation (my neighbours and their friends and friends of friends) in singing bhajans praising God in all his divine glory.
They start at around 10 pm and go on till dawn. Which means I either have to drown out the cacophony with the television on at full blast or stuff cotton in my ears.
Unfortunately, neither is a solution because the night festivities are held next to my bedroom window. Plus, the microphone the pundit uses is a particularly effective one.
And why, you wonder, I don't complain. Well, I do grumble in the privacy of my home. But I don't say anything to my neighbours -- we have to maintain good relations, you see.
In Delhi, your average middle-class, well-educated Uncleji is quite capable of deflating car tyres or letting loose a volley of unprintables when the occasion calls for it.
God is not deaf. And for all I know, he sleeps at night too. When will my neighbours realise this?
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
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Tuesday, June 03, 2008
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