This morning I woke up to a familiar yet so recently unheard of sound. It was an old Doordarshan ad for national integration that was so famous in the pre-cable TV era. Made me feel nostalgic about my childhood in the 90s. How simple things meant so much back then. How a Doordarshan and a couple of satellite channels made such a great time on TV back then. How people are so true when they say, "There is nothing on TV to watch nowadays".
Growing up in the 90s ensured one thing for all kids of my generation.That they would grow up, watching and idolising the master, Sachin Tendulkar, as he went about pulverizing the opposition. With such a 'model image' of a role model for kids, no wonder this generation will be the best in this country's history.
If you were a male child in the 90s, toys meant a few Hot Wheels or if my were a female, a couple of Barbies. Watching Disney Hour after playing cricket in the neighbourhood was a treat in the evenings. Oh! I used to hate art class on Sunday mornings so much! That meant I had to miss The Jungle Book cartoon that used to air then. Eventually, I could only listen to the intro track 'Chaddi Pehen Ke Phool Khila Hai' from the class while being stuck there. Cricket was such a central part of my childhood, although the Indian team was in such a bad shape in those days. Man, whenever India won, however scarce those victories may be, the scenes were just awesome. Even if India lost, we took solace that Sachin scored a century! I still don't know why people were so crazy over Chitrahaar. It was just a video playlist of Bollywood songs. Late nineties meant a transition from the TV to video games as a source of entertainment. I still remember the games I used to play day-in and day-out. Super Mario, Battle City n da lot.
I don't know why is it that people just want to return to the past. Is it the uncertainty of the future or the dissatisfaction of the present. Whatever that may be, I would surely love to return to the 90s!
P.S.: This was the ad which woke me up :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gstRrEmTcBc
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Manchester United n Me
When someone supports a sports team, it usually is due to some allegiance due his country or his hometown or province. But, as in the case of most Indian fans of European football, its very hard to put a reason to why you support a team!
My tryst with the Red Devils started when they won that memorable treble in 1999. The way they won, the reactions of the media to that triumph, (mind you at a time when English clubs had little presence in Europe), made me an instant fan of Manchester United. But things quietened a little after that for me. Then came a phenomenon called David Beckham. Well, he was playing for them since the 90s but his super stardom coincided with the expansion of the United fan base exponentially in the early 2000s. The Fergie Fledglings made up of Beckham, Scholes, Giggs, Butt, Neville brothers made the midfield and had some kind of an appeal for me. The unsung duo of Caribbean Dwight Yorke and Andy Cole deserve more than the reputataion they get nowdays. Then came 'The Flying Dutchman' - Ruud van Nistelrooy. Scored at a rate unheard of in the English game, and created an impression of Manchester Utd in Europe after some disappointing seasons in Europe after the treble. But unfortunately, he too had a fallout, like Becks, with Sir Alex and had to be transferred. Roy Keane and Ole Gunnar Solksjaer were two of the favourites among ManUtd fans, showing their loyalty towards the club throughout their career (unlike Cristiano Ronaldo).
Well, only two of the old guard remain, Giggs and Scholes, and how they have helped their club in this season. Whispers of retirement of Sir Alex are heard all the time but he seems strong for a lot more seasons. The legacy he will eventually leave behind would be hard to match by any manager.
The memorable matches which straightaway come to mind are plenty. The dramatic injury time comeback at the 1999 Champions League Final would be on top of the list. Then, there would be the 4-3 victory over Real Madrid in 2002. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough for them to progress. The 7-1 demolition of AS Roma was a first for an English club. And who can forget last year's Champions League final.
As I write this, they have won their third consecutive Premier League title and will be raring to add a 2nd consecutive European title later this month.
My tryst with the Red Devils started when they won that memorable treble in 1999. The way they won, the reactions of the media to that triumph, (mind you at a time when English clubs had little presence in Europe), made me an instant fan of Manchester United. But things quietened a little after that for me. Then came a phenomenon called David Beckham. Well, he was playing for them since the 90s but his super stardom coincided with the expansion of the United fan base exponentially in the early 2000s. The Fergie Fledglings made up of Beckham, Scholes, Giggs, Butt, Neville brothers made the midfield and had some kind of an appeal for me. The unsung duo of Caribbean Dwight Yorke and Andy Cole deserve more than the reputataion they get nowdays. Then came 'The Flying Dutchman' - Ruud van Nistelrooy. Scored at a rate unheard of in the English game, and created an impression of Manchester Utd in Europe after some disappointing seasons in Europe after the treble. But unfortunately, he too had a fallout, like Becks, with Sir Alex and had to be transferred. Roy Keane and Ole Gunnar Solksjaer were two of the favourites among ManUtd fans, showing their loyalty towards the club throughout their career (unlike Cristiano Ronaldo).
Well, only two of the old guard remain, Giggs and Scholes, and how they have helped their club in this season. Whispers of retirement of Sir Alex are heard all the time but he seems strong for a lot more seasons. The legacy he will eventually leave behind would be hard to match by any manager.
The memorable matches which straightaway come to mind are plenty. The dramatic injury time comeback at the 1999 Champions League Final would be on top of the list. Then, there would be the 4-3 victory over Real Madrid in 2002. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough for them to progress. The 7-1 demolition of AS Roma was a first for an English club. And who can forget last year's Champions League final.
As I write this, they have won their third consecutive Premier League title and will be raring to add a 2nd consecutive European title later this month.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
An FPL?
The recent demand by India's women cricketers of an IPL-like tournament for women got me thinking. The possibilities are quite interesting!
1. Ahh! Vijay Mallya would then source his calendar girls from his own team. No more paying super models!!
2. Male cheerleaders? (Ahh!! The mini-skirt hating politicians would love this. This is what Bharatiya Sambhyata is all about!!)
3. Shane Warne would love to try his coaching skills here!!
4. Miss Bollywood SA might be a player herself.
5. 'CeeTee Moment of Success' might be the the one who gets the most whistles from the crowd. :P
6. There wont be any 'Kings XI', 'Superkings', 'Knightriders' or 'Daredevils'. (Woah! So many male-centric team names!)
7. No more Preity Zinta hugging controversies.
8. Maximum Sixes award will go the person hitting 1 six in 6 games. Sad :(
1. Ahh! Vijay Mallya would then source his calendar girls from his own team. No more paying super models!!
2. Male cheerleaders? (Ahh!! The mini-skirt hating politicians would love this. This is what Bharatiya Sambhyata is all about!!)
3. Shane Warne would love to try his coaching skills here!!
4. Miss Bollywood SA might be a player herself.
5. 'CeeTee Moment of Success' might be the the one who gets the most whistles from the crowd. :P
6. There wont be any 'Kings XI', 'Superkings', 'Knightriders' or 'Daredevils'. (Woah! So many male-centric team names!)
7. No more Preity Zinta hugging controversies.
8. Maximum Sixes award will go the person hitting 1 six in 6 games. Sad :(
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Once Upon a Time...
There was a kingdom in some nearby land. All its inhabitants were unique but yet similar. Two of the famous people in the kingdom were Purki Bazaar and Nrityam, both being the darlings of the dark side. Nrityam did all the assignments, worked hard, studied for the tests, and ran after professors. Only to have his work copied everytime! Nrityam did his ‘flashy’ dance and got into a power company. Purki got into so many jobs, that at last count,.. Well I lost count! Deep Blue, known for his love for Brazilian rivers, once pissed Bazaar off. But I guess everything got straightened out in the end. DR. Psychiatrist extolled the virtues of free software. Well, it took me sometime to know that free doesn’t actually mean free! Last heard, he got into some headgear manufacturing company.
And that pain-reliever, what was its name? Yeah, Amrutanjan. Well, he never relieved any pain of mine. But I know how he sucked blood from Mosquito Squad! Poor mosquito squad. He never swatted the biggest mosquito near him. Then, there was this tall guy, who sold some product whose name started from G (not weed), which I had never heard of before (Still don’t know about it!). He and short guy Land On looked really funny together.
And these guys from some activity centre had the most fun. One of these guy’s passport must rival the number of stamps on the passport of an UN diplomat!
Dhoti Lehra was one guy who was mostly misunderstood by others. But, sometimes you got to give the guy his due. Crusty Purnima was one serious looking fellow. You can count on your fingers the number of times he smiled in 4 years. Others included some politico types, without the white garb and the beacons, the don’t-give-a-damn types, and a Playa’ from Himalaya.
Sometimes the peace in the kingdom was disturbed by hardware downloaders, al-gore-rhythmers, and intelligence units. But the inhabitants managed it all well in the end.
DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fiction. Resemblances are purely coincidental. Even if it doesn't seem coincidental, well, just see the funny side of it. If you find it crap and totally so-unfunny, well, I apologise. :)
And that pain-reliever, what was its name? Yeah, Amrutanjan. Well, he never relieved any pain of mine. But I know how he sucked blood from Mosquito Squad! Poor mosquito squad. He never swatted the biggest mosquito near him. Then, there was this tall guy, who sold some product whose name started from G (not weed), which I had never heard of before (Still don’t know about it!). He and short guy Land On looked really funny together.
And these guys from some activity centre had the most fun. One of these guy’s passport must rival the number of stamps on the passport of an UN diplomat!
Dhoti Lehra was one guy who was mostly misunderstood by others. But, sometimes you got to give the guy his due. Crusty Purnima was one serious looking fellow. You can count on your fingers the number of times he smiled in 4 years. Others included some politico types, without the white garb and the beacons, the don’t-give-a-damn types, and a Playa’ from Himalaya.
Sometimes the peace in the kingdom was disturbed by hardware downloaders, al-gore-rhythmers, and intelligence units. But the inhabitants managed it all well in the end.
DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fiction. Resemblances are purely coincidental. Even if it doesn't seem coincidental, well, just see the funny side of it. If you find it crap and totally so-unfunny, well, I apologise. :)
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Lalchi Modi
Well, if you thought IPL had got all the avenues covered from which to earn money from, out comes a new ingenious idea by the to put more TV ad airtime in. Euphemistically called "Strategic Time-Out", it consists of a 7 and a half minute breaks in between innings.
But Mr. Modi, you will be really pissed off upon learning about how I watch my cricket! I watch it timeshifted. The kind of what Aamir Khan advertises for Tata Sky Plus. So, a 3 hour match for me is over in at most 1 and a half hours, after skipping through ads and 'Strategic Time-Outs'. Skipping through deliveries saves a lot of seconds from my viewing time. I have some interesting observations to make out of this. Generally, I have noticed fast bowlers take about 30 seconds between completing the ball and Ashish Nehra wins the award hands-down for the slowest of the lot. The spinners normally get two balls in this time!, the slowest of them being (no surprises really!) Anil Kumble. He takes ages between deliveries, changing his field after every other ball and yeah, of course, for the famous tweak of the ball in his right hand!
But yeah, somehow I'm not able to ignore the unavoidable words, 'DLF Maximum' and 'Citi Moment of Success'. :(
But Mr. Modi, you will be really pissed off upon learning about how I watch my cricket! I watch it timeshifted. The kind of what Aamir Khan advertises for Tata Sky Plus. So, a 3 hour match for me is over in at most 1 and a half hours, after skipping through ads and 'Strategic Time-Outs'. Skipping through deliveries saves a lot of seconds from my viewing time. I have some interesting observations to make out of this. Generally, I have noticed fast bowlers take about 30 seconds between completing the ball and Ashish Nehra wins the award hands-down for the slowest of the lot. The spinners normally get two balls in this time!, the slowest of them being (no surprises really!) Anil Kumble. He takes ages between deliveries, changing his field after every other ball and yeah, of course, for the famous tweak of the ball in his right hand!
But yeah, somehow I'm not able to ignore the unavoidable words, 'DLF Maximum' and 'Citi Moment of Success'. :(
Blog 2.0
My re-attempted entry to scorch the blogosphere. How long am I gonna last? Your guess is as good as mine! ;)
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
