"Madras is the best city in the Universe" I used to say whenever people told me it was hot, there was acute water scarcity or that the autowalas were all crooks. I loved the city and was always proud to be from TamilNadu. In spite of the fact that I dont have words to describe it , TamilNadu is just different.
But today after watching this video
http://bit.ly/7W2hvL
Of an injured cop begging for help and being left unattended by "Ministers" of the state, I am convinced my state has gone to the dogs. Any "human" with some amount of "common sense" would have taken the cop to the nearest hospital in his/her car. The ministers could have also used their influence to arrange for immediate and proper care for the injured. But all they did was call for an ambulance 8 min after seeing the victim in pain and arrange for the victim to be carried to the hospital 20min after they reached the site. WORSE: they said thats the best they could do Fing Morons
"http://bit.ly/78HMXM"
The victiom was a cop, he was attacked by criminals, this man was working for the government, the public, trying to make our lives betters and Ministers whom we voted into power did NOTHING to save this man.
If these two morons are not punished for their FELONY , we can safely conclude that TamilNadu has gone to dogs and is one of the most inhospitable places in the universe.
--Badri--
Disclaimer : Had these flow of thoughts lost night and they sounded good in my head, so wanted to write them down as a story, but as soon as I started writing down the story the thoughts got garbled and this emotional junk alone remained. Read at your own risk!!!
It was surely not love at first sight, I am pretty sure the first time we saw each other we instantly developed a deep hatred for each other. I loathed everything about her , the way she looked the way she treated people, everything.
But slowly things changed , I guess the more you interact with a person the more you start liking them. Its not a liking that comes because you find their traits good, in sync with your expectation but because you know them well enough to ADJUST. I guess thats the magic word, I learnt to ADJUST with her and our relationship improved.
The more time I spent with her, the more I learnt. Nah , she wasnt pedantic, I mean not always, but she had her own unique way of teaching me stuff and I loved it. I loved it cos I was learning and I loved it because I found her form of teaching absorbing.
A few years of association and then cupid's arrows struck. I dont know how it happened. Whenever someone inquired about our relationship I maintained that I just liked hanging out with her and it was nothing serious and I had no plans of settling down. But something changed , I dont know what, but I knew this, that the more time I spent with her the more I started falling for her.
There were others like her who were more beautiful, they even treated me better. They were nicer to me and let me go the way I wanted . She on the other hand used to tease me, irritate me a lot, confuse me, leave me stranded, in spite of all this I loved her. Perhaps I loved her because of all this, I dont know and I dont want to know, the fact is I was in love after a long long time and I was enjoying the feeling. But I was scared.
The previous time I was in love felt great too but sadly it dint last, we are still good friends and it sucks. So I was afraid this one would have an abrupt ending too and we will end up becoming "good friends". Also the last relationship I had ended around the same time I started telling everyone about it without asking her where she was in our relationship. So this time I was silent about my feelings. I dint want anything to disturb the peace I felt, I had only once been in a relationship and I knew fully well that being in love feels way better than being committed.So I wanted to let this feeling linger as long as it could.
Three years ran by and the feeling lingered, I never went past "I loved her" and she never said anything. Also all this while, I never tried to find out how she felt about me, but I presumed she liked me, she got more friendly, she cared more, she showed her frustration when I did things she dint like and I loved that I could frustrate her, her frustrations were beautiful too.
But this time, fate had different plans, even though I maintained silence we got separated, partly because I got attracted, to someone else I thought would be a better match and partly because it wasn't meant to be. Even though I tried to "move on" I rued everyday that I wasn't with her. Slowly the sorrow vanished and was replaced by a void that dint feel anything, dint know what the initial feelings were it just occupied a place in my heart and made me uncomfortable.
9 months after my separation fate arranged for a meeting between us, It was sudden and it was amazing. The moment my eyes saw her, I jumped in joy like a small kid who just received a fire truck(boy kid) as a gift, she just smiled , her most frequently used reaction and the one which I feared the most, for it hid lot more than it revealed. We spent 2 great days together and this time separating ways was easy or so I thought. So we said our good bye, we decided to remain friends and parted ways.
10 hrs after parting ways with her my heartaches, I cant stop thinking about her, I cant stop thinking how happy I felt in her presence, how at peace i was.....
--Badri--
pre 1947 Afghanistan and Burma split
1947 India, Pakistan formed
1953 Potti Sriramulu leads by example, dies fasting for creation of Andhra, Andhra is formed.
1956 States reorganisation act - Split states based on language and culture
1956 Madras Presidency split to form - TamilNadu , Andhra, Karnataka
1960 Bombay State split to form Maharashtra and Gujarat
1962 Pondicherry, Dadra, Nagar Haveli, Goa, Daman Diu made Union Territories
1966 Punjab split to form Punjav, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and UT Chandigarh
1971 Himachal Pradesh becomes a state
1972 Manipur , Meghalaya and Tripura are formed
1975 Sikkim joins India is made a state
1987 Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Goa become states
2000 Chattisgarh created out of Madhya Pradesh
2000 Uttarakhand created out of Uttar Pradesh
2000 Jharkhand created out of Bihar
2009 Govt gives nod to split Andhra Pradesh to create Telangana (29th)
???? Gorkhaland (Fasting begins on 21st Dec 2009) from West Bengal (30th)
???? Vidharba
???? Saurashtra
???? Bundelkhand from UP & MP
???? Coorg from Karnataka
???? Harit Pradesh or Kisan Pradesh from UttarPradesh (35th)
???? Go on a hunger strike , pay some morons to destroy public property, name your State and you will get it
--Badri--
This was originally the first part of the poem Separation that I posted last week. I dint like the poem so was unsure about posting it. But several people wrote to me saying the poem was good(or not as bad as i thought) so I am gathering all my courage and posting this original first part
I avoided posting this cos this is my first poem without a rhyme scheme and I dint put much effort into it. The entire poem took less than 3 minutes to write, I was at "coffee beans and tea leaves"(a coffee shop) and wrote down the words as they came to me so here goes ....
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Am still wondering how to say those words
Even though i know I should have said them a million times before
I know now is too little , too late
But babe I owe it to you
I know we arent together
And those words now might mean nothing
They wont fix those bad sores
Nor would they bring you back to my doors
Every time that I had to say these words before
I smiled, hugged you or gently kissed your forehead
And was convinced you knew what I meant
But never did I realize saying it aloud would be important
Like morning dew falling on cacti
You came into my life trying to make me soft
Little did you know that this cacti had thorns
That could tear down and hurt dew drops
I know I dont deserve you
But please tell me how i can thank you
I am sadly just an ordinary man
From expressing my love, to thanking I need to be told how
I wish I could tear open my heart and show you its made for you
But alas I cant and in words or actions
I know not how to show you what you mean
So sadly must I let go
I have become a better man cos of you
From making my bed, dressing smart to even combing my hair
You have taught me how I could be better than what I was
But I alas thought a few gifts will make up for my lack of words to thank
Damn why cant I word how I feel
You know I love you so those arent the words I want you to hear
There is something more important alas I fear
"Babe I am sorry for all those times that I was me"
Alas "me" am a cacti with several thorns
Its with you that I have a soft side
Its as "we" that I feel fresh, green and alive
Come back my dear, I promise I wont be me, I will be the 'we'
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P.S: I know it sucks but I if I don't post it I will lose it like the several other poems I have lost. So kindly bear with me.
--Badri--
"Kangal Irandal" - from the movie "Subramaniyapuram" Great music by James Vasanthan, great singing by Deepa Miriam and Belly Raj. The video is equally amazing too. Who said low budget movies cant rock.
Couldnt really translate all my emotions into words, nevertheless a poem it is... so here goes a half baked poem
-------------------------------------------
We both know that "we" are meant to be
But still i stay aloof and you ignore me
This Separation my dear is now starting to kill me
Like termites working on a book, slowly its destroying me
I dont know what love is
But I know you I so miss
Minutes without you seem like hours on a bed of nail
uncomfortable, torturous and by the second making me frail
I know you fell for me the very moment I first called out
But still only indirectly do you connect as if always in doubt
We both go about doing that stuff they call -living
We meet other, laugh, talk, play but oh god this is so sickening
Alas I am, without you near me just a zombie
Laugh, talk, play are all only pretense if one is just a zombie
There is hope in me that someday "we" will be
Hence I am not able to end this joke thats me
But dear if we are not going to happen
Please be merciful and end this joke thats me
Tell me that you hate me and walk away slowly
By the time my eyes lose sight of you I will be history
Cheers,
--Badri--
Earlier last week Ron Markezich, corporate VP of Microsoft Online called ZOHO , Google , Zimbra and the likes - Fake office.
"we're not seeing any inclination that Zoho or Google or Zimbra or any other of those offering fake Office capabilities can replace [Microsoft Office]," he said.
As expected the CEO of ZOHO Corp, Sridhar Vembu "took offense" or sensed a "marketing opportunity" (hopefully the latter) and wrote this blog on why Microsoft was wrong and why they should label Bing the fake search.
So far so good or was it ?
ZOHO created and launched http://fakeoffice.org/A site that had Ron's statement as its central banner message which backed by its video, testimonials, tweets and viral marketing, soon attracted visitors(I am sure the site attracted at least a few hundred thousands).
Wow , what a brilliant marketing idea - you think , but was it ?
Sure the site attracted a few hundred thousand visitors, perhaps a hundred thousand even became ZOHO customers but was this way to go, even if it was, did ZOHO cross the limits. Here is my take .........
i) It was Ron Markezich, one of MSFT's several VP's , not Steve Ballmer, but still ZOHO made such a noise around the statement, making me wonder if ZOHO is so desperate for attention that a random comment by someone is considered worthy enough to be used as a marketing tool by them.
ii) I am sure ZOHO felt comfortable to make all this fuss because it was someone from MSFT (Thanks to all the anti-MSFT crowd out there) who made the statement, wonder how they would have reacted if Eric Schimdt or someone important from Google had made that comment ......
iii) Its ironic that within hours of ZOHO making merry (cruelly if I might add) at the expense of Ron's poor choice of words, ZOHO's Rodrigo Vaca (Director of Marketing) felt it comfortable to call MSFT a "800-lbs gorilla" in the industry in his blog post here
"The question is, what do you do when the 800-lbs gorilla in the industry calls you a fake?"
What more he also adds
" Wow - Thanks! We are overwhelmed by the support everyone showed us on Twitter and else where after Microsoft called us "fake"......Tim O'Reilly also twitted about it:"
I am glad someone from ZOHO (even though by mistake) realized that Tim wasn't supporting them but "Twitting" them.
Overall, While it definitely is a big step forward for ZOHO that people in MSFT are noticing them and are worried about them(I am sure ZOHO knew this ages before Ron made the statement) , while the videos on the fakeoffice.org site display good creativity among the ZOHO folks, while Sridhar's asking "if ZOHO is fake office is Bing fake search... "is funny (and hence deserves the attention it got from people like Tim O'Reilly) .... It is sad that the great startup that ZOHO once was is displaying signs of becoming evil and may be even becoming arrogant.
For a few thousand users, they have IMHO taken the wrong road, displayed immaturity and forever attracted the attention of users and media who will have a field day when someone from ZOHO has a slip the way Ron did.
Compare this to the great wisdom/maturity that Eric Schmidt showed in his interview on Fox News in which he said "I’ve learned not to respond to quotes by Steve Ballmer." He irked Ballmer with his quote for sure, got the applause of several users and Google watchers and more importantly he "did no evil". Now thats what is called the High Road.
Hmm.. Perhaps ZOHO's actions are justified if one goes by the adage "All is fair in love and war" (or is it ?)
--Badri--
P.S: One thing beats me, why did they register fakeoffice.org instead of realoffice.org ?
P.P.S: Trash talks are good , they actually help in marketing. But the trashtalk must be subtle and funny (like Sridhar's Bing comment) and should stop there. What should you do next then ?.....
The safest route to take is to talk about your competitors as a group, keep the direct attacks to a minimum, and keep your focus on how you can better serve the prospect.(Source)
Disclosure: I started my software career at ZOHO Corp and still am in love with the company, I admire its progress and the brilliant software the team creates. The above post is made out of pain that I felt when ZOHO decided to make hay(cruelly) out of someone's slip.
Update: Its been 7 hrs since I made the post now and so far 3 people have written to me(about their take on my blog and while doing so also) saying they started trying ZOHO after they read my blog post. Wow , any publicity does seem to be good publicity. (will write a blog post on this later)
