Kahani : The Rise Of Vidya Balan

SPOILER CHECK PASSED: NO SPOILERS

Vidya Balan is on a roll with her roles. And looks like having Vidya as a prime protagonist in a movie is also raking in all the moolah, not once (which can be termed as one time wonder) but twice that too back to back. Even-though I didn like "Dirty Picture" as much as reviews made it out to be, "Kahaani" is something which I loved especially for the story line. Even though I got the feeling that this movie was a bit inspired by some western movies, the fact that I couldnt pin point the exact movie makes up for the talent of the writer/director. (Similiarly the great SD Burman got inspired by some brazilian/latino music and composed the tune for "Mere Sapno Ki Rani", but the fact that even if you listen to both the tunes together you cant confirm the inspiration---- That is talent :)  )

Movie starts with the Vidya Bagchi(Vidya Balan) a heavily pregnant women,  landing in Kolkata from London in search of her husband who is missing from the past 2 weeks. When she starts visiting the places frequented by her husband, everyone denies having seen/met her husband. But she is determined in finding the fate of her husband , but the locals think that either her husband has left her for good or she is imagining things that never existed in the first place. The story telling is done in a great fashion, as and when the story unfolds a new layer is revealed. Even though the professional reviewers hailed the cinematography as top notch, exposing the underbelly of Kolkata I couldnt find anything striking or unique.

Thankfully there are no song and dance routine in the thriller/serious movie which makes it all the more gripping. I can understand item numbers in masala movies popping out at random times, but when such a thing happens in a serious thriller then it would surely messes up the intensity , which was the case with "Chikni Chameli" shocker in the latest Agneepath. The actor playing Sub-Inspector Rana does a commendable supporting role (the closest thing to a male hero u get in this movie :P). Even though there are some plot holes in this movie, considering the entire package it can be forgotten with ease. Overall I would rate the movie a 4.5/5, with the majority of it being for the storyline , followed by Vidya's acting. The best bollywood movie of 2012 so far. Dont miss it.

Kudremukh TreK : A Tale Of Sweat,Tear,Tan and Sunburn

Split Personality

Woah !!!! no travelogues from my side from the past 4 months... got to be some sort of personal record. But as quoted by some unknown person "The only thing constant in life is change", a very big and expensive change indeed :P. Initial plan was to trek to the mysterious Ombattu Gudda which has eluded us for the past 2 years, but due to an unfortunate incident of a fellow trekker meeting his end and the forest officials on their toes, made us to look at some alternate options. After a lot of speculations finally it was decided to trek to Kudremukh and Kurinjal Peaks on 2 successive days. Since Kudremukh area was recently converted to a tiger reserve, there were rumors that this peak might be shut down permanently for trekkers , hence we were a bit keen to cover this easy trek as early as possible even though the season we had chosen to go was a bit unconventional, with pretty much everyone getting a tan under the hot sun in the open grasslands and some even getting sun-burns :P.

As is the norm wrt our weekend treks we (Shravan, Shashi, Vineeth, PPR, Umesh, Raghu and Myself) left Bangalore on friday night (2 Mar 2012) on a 10.45 pm KSRTC Volvo bus to Kalasa. We had expected this to be a dry - hot season but as soon as we got down at Kalasa, 6am in the morning, it was literally freezing. Surprisingly the interiors of the ac bus seemed warmer than the outside climate at Kalasa. Kalasa town at this time of the day was pretty much deserted, with a few shops selling tea/coffee just opening up. We had previously contacted  Satish , a trek organizer cum home stay owner who stays on the fringes of Kudremukh Wildlife santuary. He had given the directions to reach his place , the first stage of which was to catch a bus to Balagal which was around 15 kms from Kalasa. The first local bus was at 6.30 am.

Light and Shadow

Landed at Ballagel to continue towards Satish's home at Mullodi, but now the route was through rough terrain and the means was a 4x4 Mahindra Jeep. Reached Satish's home, which was a traditional village home with tiles for roofing and red oxide flooring. Finished our morning chores and had out breakfast for the day. Unlimited Idlis ...  A "stuff till you burppp" invitation :P.

Peak In the Background

After that we started the trek at around 9 am. Loaded with water and our afternoon lunch. Since this was a protected forest, one needs to take prior permission from the forest office at Kudremukh town. For us this was arranged by Satish himself, but unfortunately one doesn't get permission to camp overnight. Hence one has to trek the entire 20km or odd km in a single day, even then this trek can be termed as an easy one. Initial part of the trek was alternating between grasslands and shaded forests. Within the shaded forests we came across quite a few water bodies , so I guess water wouldnt be a problem even in the summer seasons. The name of the peak was kept so, since it supposedly resembles a Horse's face, but to me it resembled more of a human's nose... a very big nose indeed :P.

Milestones

But by this time the temperature was soaring and we were getting roasted in this weather. It was really a freak weather condition, freezing mornings and nights and extreme heat in the afternoons. Even then the views were pretty decent , and with the bright sun its pretty much a treat for photographers with deep blue sky against brown grasslands offering a very contrasting image. Some mountains were even turned to black thanks to grassland fires that seems to be starting by itself every now and then, at some random location and we were witness to such fires quite a number of times.

Peak Snap: The Group

With A Flag At the Peak

Atleast in such conditions one would expect the participants to be properly prepared with caps, glasses etc but Vineeth, Shashi and Shravan didnt even bother to get one. In the end they were more or less the worst hit. Technically speaking this route doesnt require a guide with the route pretty much straight forward, but a guides presence ensures that you can access some hidden watering holes which are plentiful enroute. After trekking continuously for about 4hrs we hit the peak at around 1 pm. Having conquered the second tallest peak in Karnataka at 1894 m. Of the 10 km we trekked from Mullodi village only the final 3 km can be termed as a climb with the rest of the distance being just a walk along a flat gradient. The view from the top was pretty mesmerizing. On one side you had endless grasslands and on the other we had endless mist/cloud filled regions which we couldnt make out whether it was land or (quite preposterous as it might sound) 'the Arabian Sea' :). The only animal sighting we had during this trek was what looked like a giant Malabar squirrel :).

Lunch Spot

After spending 15 mins near the peak we started descending and our guide took us on a detour to have our lunch. The lunch spot was a cozy place in the afternoon sun, with trees for shade and a stream gurgling beside it. We spent close to an hour having our lunch and relaxing under the shade. After resting we descended the peak pretty quickly and at around 5 pm we reached back to Satish's home, taking 8 hrs to complete the trek. We then went to a small waterfalls nearby (Somavathi Falls), spent some time having a dip in the chilled water. Spent the remainder of the day indoors playing UNO pretty much until the middle of the night.

The Contrast

Woke up the next day, and we were still planning to attempt Kurinjal trek. But when Satish informed us that we might have to spend 275 bucks/head again (we paid that amount for Kudremukh permission, dont know to what extent we got ripped :P ) for permission to this relatively unknown trek, the majority of the gang was against this trek and with Raghu having a mild sprain it was finally decided that we would spend the day checking out nearby places. First destination was Hanumagundi Falls and we got a direct local bus from Balegal. After descending a lot of steps we reached the falls, which eventhough had lesser quantity of water looked gorgeous. We explored a path which went to the top of the falls , which quite frankly was quite a taxing climb. Finally at around 12.30 noon we were about to leave this place for Horanadu after getting to know that there were no more places worth visiting.

Hanumagundi Falls

Reached Kalasa at around 2.20 pm, went to the best restaurant in the town which was Hotel Suprabha which was pretty decent. Caught a bus to Horanadu, reached within half an hour , rented a room in the temple premises and spent the rest of the day sleeping , visiting temple and roaming around. Finally at around 10.15 pm caught the Volvo bus to Bangalore and reached Bangalore sharply at 5 am in the morning. This was how a quarter break was spent in a life of a poor management grad. The things people do to breathe in some fresh forest/grassland air, quite insane indeed :P.

Peak Snap: You Shall Not Pass

Trek Details --->
Total Trek Distance--> 10 + 0.5(lunch detour) + 10 -> 20.5 km
Difficulty Level ---> Easy
Total Cost Per Head --> 2100 bucks
Price Charge By Satish :
Home Stay + Food (2 Breakfast+ Lunch+ Dinner+ n no of teas)----> 400/head
Forest Permission ----> 275/head
Jeep Rent -----> 450 per side
Guide Charge ------> 500/group

Contact Info Of Satish ----->  08263-249595 / 9481074530 / 8722847688

Tree Of Life

Snaps Link ---->
https://picasaweb.google.com/112114250378515450499/KudremukhTrek
https://picasaweb.google.com/100919899222671268664/Kudremukha?authuser=0&feat=directlink 
https://picasaweb.google.com/108118793084917245817/KudremukhaTrek
 

Mere Brother Ki Dulhan !!!!!!

It felt like having returned from some other universe. One complete week of no checking mail, no deadline worries, no assignment submission (thanks to my IIM-B team mates :) ), so much so as not even receiving calls or sms's thanks to our accommodation in an isolated village on the outskirts of Udupi. All this for my Brothers Wedding :). Below is my performance on D-day minus one. This took my 11pm to 1am slots every night for over 15 days. Thankfully non of the neighbors complained :P.

This performance was and is dedicated to Bhaiyya aur Bhaabhi :)

P.S> Dialogues in Kannada and Hindi. If the window is displayed as too small click on the youtube icon on the progress bar to directly take you to the site.

Cycling In Bangalore, A Guide

There is rather a cliched saying that whatever activity you do in the beginning of the New Year , you are pretty much guaranteed to do that for the rest of the 365/366 days. Well quite freakishly that was the case for me in the year 2011, so considering that I am predicting that I will be doing a lot more of cycling and blogging in the year 2012. Who knows I might be giving a blow by blow account of the events leading to the apocalypse of Dec 21 2012 :P.

Anyway here I am trying to list down all the important pointers a cyclist of Bengaluru might require to enjoy cycling in its vicinity. Majority of the pointers are from my experiences and may not necessarily work for others.

Some Pointers For Riding In Bangalore :
1. Maximize your visibility with bright cloths and front + back lights. Even if that means you look like a peacock :P. The more a cyclist is visible , the less the chances of accident. Atleast here in India when you are riding with all your cycling gear, other motorists actually slow down to have a glimpse. So a win win situation for both :P  Keep to the left and when riding through the footpaths (not sure whether legal in Blore , but abroad it is) ride slow since footpaths here in Blore will be broken at many places.
2. Avoid riding within the city in the evenings (6-8 pm). This is the time when the streets are polluted the most and cyclists suck in almost 3 times more the polluted air than a normal motorist. If unavoidable wear a face mask preferable with a replaceable filter. Also preferably cover ur eyes, ears , mouth and skin too. In short cover all your openings :P.
3. After a long ride remember to stretch the legs. Even though I found stretching to be maximum effective after a run, it doesnt harm after a bike ride too. After a long ride lie down with ur legs above your body for atleast 5-10 mins.
4. Climbing an elevation with the highest gear ratio doesn't really result in bigger and stronger leg muscles. It just results in straining the legs. Keep changing the gears according to the elevation.
5.  Keep the speed limit in the city within 35 kmph. Even though the aluminum framed bikes can go much faster, streets of Bangalore are so unpredictable that its safe to ride along with the traffic speed and not above it.
6. Keep exploring some inside narrow lanes etc for your daily commute. Use google map apps to find out those hidden routes.
7. Keep yourself properly hydrated even if for an office commute. Riders think since Blore's weather is pleasant majority of the time they wont loose much water content.
8. Dogs are another problem cyclists face here in Bangalore. The trick is not to over-react when they come chasing/barking at you. They get attracted the most at the pedaling feet , couple of options would be stop/slow pedaling and/or shout back at them. Works for me all the time :P. Also avoid wearing bright colored shoes, even though this contradicts with Pt no 1.
9. If you are buying a cycle for a first time or after a long hiatus and plan to do atleast some medium distance cycling, then get some tips and advice from the experienced folks.(Here is a good forum for cyclists of Blore - https://groups.google.com/group/Bangalore-bikers?hl=en)
10. Rainy season can be a mess for cyclists. So always get mudguards (either steel or fiber) to cover those wheels even if it kills the looks of your bike. With a already strained drainage system in Bangalore you never know what is getting into your face along with the rain water :P.  Better option is get those fixed from June to Oct months (Peak Monsoons) and remove for the rest of year. Also keep cycle properly oiled especially during this time.
11.One trick to reduce the fatigue of cycling against a headwind is to draft behind some bigger vehicles, preferably moving at your pace. Eg tractors, auto(do at ur own risk :P)
12. And last but not the least, keep yourself motivated. The easiest way is to get a GPS enabled smartphone and keep track of how far you cycled and the  time you took. At least in my case this keeps me highly motivated to keep on bettering my previous records.


3 External Factors which matter the most for cyclists:
1. Headwind
2. Elevation
3. Weather

So riding against a headwind and climbing a steep elevation in the middle of the day is pretty much the worst case scenario a cyclist can encounter. 


Headwind Direction depending on month (Courtesy : Wind Energy Resource Survey Of India - I) :

Climate Of Bangalore (Courtesy WikiPedia)

Elevation Profile Of Some Popular Routes(Courtesy : TFN & Bangalore Bike Rides)

Bangalore - Mysore Highway
Bangalore - Mysore (via Kanakpura)
Ooty - Mysore
Nandi Hills
Chikkatirupathi Circuit


Weekend Rides I have explored so far:
Pearl Valley 
Nandi Hills
Turahalli Forest
Hessarghatta Circuit
Bannerghatta Circuit
Chikkatirupathi Circuit
Manchanabele Reservoir

Routes Yet to explore : 
Siva's Road
Blore-Maddur-Malavalli-Kanakpura-Blore (Even though having done this n no of times in my motorcycle)


Checklist for a long ride :
1. Special Padded tights. (Even though most cyclists are uncomfortable wearing this, this is a must for long rides. A good measure against saddle sores. )
2. Gloves (you need some cushion for your hands with 1/3 of the body weight supported by it.)
3. Puncture kit (Handpump + Rubber patches + required tools)
4. Full arm t-shirt preferably of quick dry type. (Good for both winter and summer, very good measure against sun burns)
5. Helmet. (for protecting the processor)
6. Sunglasses/clear glasses depending on the time of the day.
7. Front and back lights. (As mentioned earlier more the visibility less the chances of an accident.)
8. Electoral sachets. (You need to replenish the salts you loose at regular intervals. )
9. High energy food, rich in carbs (bananas, energy bars etc) (To prevent hitting the wall)
10. Sunscreen
11. Water, but usually you get bottled water easily at many places along the road. So no need to carry more than 2 lts. Get a sipper + Bottle Cage installed in the bike.


Some Good Shops To Buy Cycling Gear in Bangalore :
1. Decathlon - Sarjapur Road + New One Started in Bannerghatta Road
2. Bums On Saddles Jayanagar
3. RR Cycles near Madivala.

Music That Inspires

They say music is without any boundaries either geographically or culturally. If this is not fact then how could one explain the fact of Indians shaking their legs for western music in Discos, Westerners doing an aerobic session for a Bollywood item number, or Chinki's gyrating to a Rajnikanth song and so forth. As expected in all the above scenarios the chances of an individual of actually understanding the lyrics right away is pretty slim , but what catches everyone's imagination is the music score accompanying the song.

Being a lazy person who literally finds some or the other reason to skip a workout in a freezing December morning, music that inspires is really a lifesaver. There is nothing more inspiring  (except if u have a few extra Kilos accumulated since the Diwali season :P ) for a person to run/cycle in those finger numbing temperatures than a good set of truly inspiring numbers. It wont be surprising if ones performance is actually improved when listening to those kind of music, hence resulting in me and my music player being inseparable during those tough times called "workout". Even though I am not a music person (I cant name all the members of the Metallica band, or for the matter of fact, not even a single person :P ), have come across some great numbers which I have "painstakingly" collected over a considerable period of time.

So here I am trying to list down some truly inspiring songs I have come across (And Kolaveri Song is not among the list , although it gave a tough competition :P). I would also be interested if the readers would recommend numbers which inspires them, hence increasing my arsenal. With 4 kgs of extra flab I have accumulated since the Diwali season it is time to get down to business. Have chalked out a rigorous session in middle of the winter and any help will be highly appreciated. Do some social service people :).

1. Dream On Aerosmith
 + a version by Eminem which is also pretty good

2. Sadda Haq - Rockstar

3 .American Flyers - The entire album is a must have.. A movie which inspired our desi version which is Joh Jeeta Wohi Sikander (The title track of which is also inspirational)

4. Back in The Saddle-Aerosmith (Default first track when I get to cycling after a long time :P)

5. Driving With The Top Down - Ramin Djawadi (A track used in Iron Man)

6. Dum Title Song  THe only good thing abt the forgetable movie. Watch with the video :)

7. Final Countdown

8. Right Here - Right Now : Fatboy Slim with some interesting video  

9. I want it all/ We Will Rock You- Sucker Punch The perfect mash up of 2 great classics from Queen

10. In the End - Linkin Park . Became a fan of Linkin Park after this song, even though their other numbers are not as good as this except a few.

11. Iron Man- Black Sabbath

12. Just Like You Imagined - Nine Inch Nails (Full heavy metal track)

13. Danger Zone - Kenny Loggins (Figher Jets... Sexxxxyyyy)

14. Kill Bill Theme Song - Wu Tang Clan

15. 3 Doors Open - Kryptonite

16. Numb - Linkin Park

17. Lose Urself - Eminem - Some intense lyrics from Eminem :P

18. MI Theme

19. Not Afraid - Eminem

20. Ride Of The Valkyries --- Variety is the spice of life... Orceshtra for u :P

21. Rock Climbing Music - Lakshya - Some Pretty good Moves and awesome music for an Indian Movie

22. Rock You Like A Hurricane - Scorpions

23. Rocky Soundtrack

24. Separate Ways- Journey

25. Stronger - Kayne West

26. Survivor - Eye of the Tiger : Another great track from Rocky stables.

27. Till I Collapse - Eminem : Yet another track from Eminem. Looks like I get inspired the most when I hear expletives :P.

28. Die Another Day - Madonna

29. Vandemataram- Lata Mangeshkar  A Truly inspirational number from the queen of Indian singers.

30. Azaadiyan - Udaan

31. Smells Like Teen Spirit - Nirvana