Summary

Life Updates

2007-06-06T21:30:00.000+05:30

Some updates from Life...................
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This week I tried to laugh, and make people laugh. God knows how much I succeeded, but will try to keep laughing and make people laugh.
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Some people try to talk to themselves, as if they are in a real situation. However, sometimes the situation actually is Utopian, created by them to replace the real situations. Reality can sometimes be frightening, so illusion works. How much, is the answer to find.
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Some one challenged me this week. I replied, but failed. The challenge repeated itself. Will take care of that in other blogs. Darna to kabhi humne sikha hi nahi.
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Learnt a new word—nincompoop. Was very happy, till I found its meaning—moron, silly. Imagine how I would have fealt when I heard Steve Martin using it in the film Sgt. Bilko.
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Madan Lal wants to be the coach of India because He feels that he has become a better communicator since he was the coach of India. Anyways, have any one of you ever had a chance to hear him? You will know what I mean to say.
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Wonder sometimes, how Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri Manage to get time off to pick the coach of Indian Team. Don't you know, they always decline to become the coach because they have prior commitments to different television companies?
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Indian Idol is looking better in the absence of Anu Malik. Some one please take care of Alisha.
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Tulsi is dying. She is being replaced by Gautmi. Who will she replace, Tulsi or her corpse? Well leaving it to Ekta... she knows better. Well I have an Idea for her. Rather than jumping 20 years in future (which she has done 20 times. So all her characters are more than 500 years old.), she should jump 5000 years in Back and show how Baa had been married to 70 different characters, divorced 70 different characrters, and loved 100 different characters. This will take her serial to a new life. She will take care of the TRPs.
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What else?

Cheers
Kundan

Some voices-and answers

2007-06-01T20:35:00.000+05:30

Someone read my blog yesterday (finally) and tried to give me a fitting reply. Each point in my blog was picked up, trashed and then left to cry in pain.

When I read my blog after coming from my office with the fading sense of hope that someone might read (one day) what I write, I was pleasantly surprised to find a lonely comment (hanging out of my blog like one hangs out of a STA bus in the morning while coming to the office).

I immediately remembered what the Forrest Gump's mama used to say, "life is like a chocolate, and you never know what you get inside". After seeing the blog, I felt the same way, "blog is like a chocolate, and you never know when you find a comment attached to it".

I felt like Goustave Courbet, suddenly being told that his paintings have fetched the highest prize in the Paris Salon, and that he does not need to paint 'Burial at Ornans' to prove that he is a Bohemian.

But! Alas! The comment killed all my enthusiasm; I was forced to reconsider my views on comments. And then I thanked my Hanuman Ji, for it was only because of him that I got a comment and a chance to reply to that comment. First, take a look at the comment itself ( written in such a beautiful way and with such great sense that I was forced to past the entire comment for my wider audience). The comment says:

thanks for a nearly perfect gastronomical analysis of me. i would only add one thing, 'she eats anything and everything' is not exactly correct. I beg to state that I detest any kind of health food ...and m more interested in non-edible or edible but non-efficacious things. Please do make a note!
Now for your answer to my question, some observations :
1. I fast on Tuesdays because it gives me an opportunity of not seeing something that I have been seeing for my entire life; the food. Next day, I am fresh to eating.
Going by the same logic, can you perhaps, not breathe one particular day of the week? so that the next day fresh air seems fresher??
2. I fast because it cleanses my body of all the toxins that keep accumulating for all the week.
....what is the point, if after a one-day break you go back to the toxin-intake routine?
3. I fast because I believe in the strength of hanuman ji. He is the only god that could give us the strength to fight against the odds that we face in our life. And Tuesday is his day.
But y exactly do you think hanumanji would give you more strength if you refrain from eating? has he categorically stated such a condition of his benevolence anywhere?
4. I fast because it saves food.
but i am sure u make up for it rest of the days of the week. y not diet? for greater effect?
5. I fast because it gives me the opportunity to understand the pain of hunger, the pain of not eating.
give me a break dear..to just said u fast to please hanumanji. that is quite a selfish reason. dont try to pass it off as empathy or sympathy...
and old, cliched and boring but they are true and written from the heart; not from the stomach. stomach? or mind with dwindling grey matter?????

Thanks for such wonderful comments. Now I will try to reply all your points, though I know that I would be difficult matching you style and substance. So I will start from the bottom. Only then you can sense the Zenith of victory.

1. Comment 1: stomach? or mind with dwindling grey matter?????
Answer 1.: I always believe that a writer writes from his/her heart, not from his/her mind. Because he knows that mind has gray matter that dwindles. But heart is made of a unique muscle tissue (cardiac) that has nothing to worry about dwindling. More importantly, it feels. And feeling is the most important factor that forces you to write.
Why not stomach? Because, when it is empty, it remains in the influence of Saiitan.

2. Comment 2: give me a break dear..to just said u fast to please hanumanji. that is quite a selfish reason. dont try to pass it off as empathy or sympathy...
Answer 2.: Some consequences are unintentional, but they happen. Remember, trains were introduced in India to exploit the hinterlands of our country, but unintentionally they became one of the factors to unite India. Mine is also unintentional, but it happens, and I can't help it.

3. Comment 3: But y exactly do you think hanumanji would give you more strength if you refrain from eating? has he categorically stated such a condition of his benevolence anywhere?
Answer 3.: Ramanuja said, 'Bhakti is all about unconditional love between a bhakt and his bhagwan'. I truly believe this. Why should I wait for Hanuman Ji to come and tell me to Fast. I do it to show my unintentional love towards him. He in return, which I am presuming, have been giving me his unconditional blessings.

4. Comment 4: ....what is the point, if after a one-day break you go back to the toxin-intake routine?
Answer 4.: An action is the reaction of the totality of circumstances. You should have toxins in your body to get rid of that. Without toxins in my body, my totality of circumstances would not be complete. And my fasting would become somewhat redundant.

5. Comment 5: Going by the same logic, can you perhaps, not breathe one particular day of the week? so that the next day fresh air seems fresher??
Answer 5.: Despite your noble intentions of killing me, I still have an answer to you comment. I want to take a day off from something that I can see. I can see food, and that tempts me. But I don't see air, so I don't have any temptation for it. I am not Benjamin Franklin who believed in taking fresh air bath. I am satisfied from the amount of air that has been given to me by my Hanuman Ji.

6. Comment 6: thanks for a nearly perfect gastronomical analysis of me. i would only add one thing, 'she eats anything and everything' is not exactly correct. I beg to state that I detest any kind of health food ...and m more interested in non-edible or edible but non-efficacious things. Please do make a note!
Answer 6.: You are too good a person to be analyzed solely on the basis of what you eat and what not (it may or may not be efficacious). You are very right in detesting health foods. God has given you enough health; anything more would be ............ Well it would force you to fast.

Well, keep eating everything (non-edible or edible). It makes you unique. It's better to be unique than to be lost in the crowd and then struggling to find one's identity.

Cheers
Kundan

why do I fast on tuesdays?

2007-05-31T20:44:00.000+05:30

This was the question asked to me by one of my colleagues. I thought it would be wise to write a blog and share my views on fasting to a wider audience, ha, ha, ha! But before I elaborate on reasons for my keeping fast on Tuesdays, I would like to give you a glimpse of my esteemed colleague, who asked me this wise question.

She is an antithesis to fasting. In fact, even hearing the word "fast" makes her hungry. She eats anything and everything. These days she eats a mysterious seed-like thing, which comes out from and anar dana like bottle. God knows what that seed is. If that is for digestion, then she needs that more than any one on this solar system. Why??? Because, her eating session starts from 9 :30 in the morning and ends at 6 in the evening. She eats paranthas, seeds, sabzis, rotis, chawals, and even pen. Yes, she is the serial killer of all the pen that comes in her vicinity. The back of the pen is chewed continuously with such precision that nothing is left of that. Sometimes, ink from the pen finds its way out in to her mouth.

Yes sir! She is the best person to ask the question. Recently, UN has contacted her to for becoming the brand ambassador of 'how to eat and what to eat and why to eat and when to eat'. (God save me!!!!)
Now the reason for my fasting on Tuesdays:

I fast on Tuesdays because it gives me an opportunity of not seeing something that I have been seeing for my entire life; the food. Next day, I am fresh to eating.
I fast because it cleanses my body of all the toxins that keep accumulating for all the week.
I fast because I believe in the strength of hanuman ji. He is the only god that could give us the strength to fight against the odds that we face in our life. And Tuesday is his day.
I fast because it saves food.
I fast because it gives me the opportunity to understand the pain of hunger, the pain of not eating.

All these reasons may sound old, cliched and boring but they are true and written from the heart; not from the stomach.

Cheers
Kundan

making sense of an ad

2007-05-06T18:38:00.000+05:30

Recently, I saw an ad of Aditya Birla Group. It was a visual treat; good shots, great camera work and a very simply tag line- taking India to the world. But the entire ad forced a common man like me to ask a very common question-how these jumping models, walking on fire, sand and water, would take India to the world. Maybe, these ads are not meant for us (remember, common man) or I am not made for these ads. But, for me, the Aditya Birla Group ad fails to say what it intended to speak to its audiences; who ever they are. Let us take a closer look at the ad itself.

The Aditya Birla Group ad starts with a model running on water. He hits the water hard creating a cyclone. Some drop of these water hits an another model that is standing on a sand dune in a desert. And he whirls his kurta and we see a woman doing the same. She, however, is standing on a dragon. Oh! Fire is coming out of the dragon's mouth. Phew!!!

What could be the obvious meaning of this ad?

The ad may say that Aditya Birla Group is gaining enough momentum to walk on fire, water and sand. Air, earth and sky were the obvious missing factors.
The ad could even suggest that Aditya Birla Group is launching a product, not available in the world that could work alike in fire, water and sand.
The ad may suggest that Aditya Birla Group is a textile company that has launched a new textile range that could keep you warm in winters and cool in summers.
The ad could even suggest that Aditya Birla Group is an ad that nobody understands.

These are my explanations, I may be wrong. But, what I feel is that Ads are meant to communicate a product and a concept to the possible customers. They have to be simple and straightforward.
An ad may attract tricks to gain attention, but it has to justify that attention. It has to say something, loud and clear. It can't leave its audiences guessing.

Ads and the entire process of making them have evolved. They have become more inclusive.

They may adopt different strategies, but all these are meant to be more engaging, more inclusive. An ad may make you laugh or cry, but it has to convey its message. An ad that manages to convey its message in simple and clear words is a winner. Those who give more emphasis on style part lose out.

Cheers
Kundan

India singing

2007-05-06T11:03:00.000+05:30

Singing is the new hobby of India these days, or so it seems. Every TV channel is preparing a new singing sensation that will rock India. And every Indian is preparing itself to become the latest singing sensation.

Let us count the number of shows that are busy churning the great Indian singing talent. Sony has started a whole new season of Indian Idol 3. Zee TV has waged a world war with its show Sa Re Ga Ma and Star Plus is going to compete with its new show.

Indian Idol has 4 judges, almost 10 million singers (the number may be even more!) and two hosts. Anu Malik is the head judge and he is being assisted by three other judges, Alisha Chenoy, Udit Narayan and Javed Akhtar. All the three judges ( Anu, Udit and Alisha), except Javed Akhtar (perhaps), are jobless.

Anu Malik has nothing to do, so he waits patiently, every year, for the new season of Indian Idol. He behavior on the show is close to being rude, and it appears that Mr. Malik feels that without him, the Indian Film Industry would have been song less, or would have been deprived of music. He pretends to be the Mozart of the Indian Music but some of the participants, whom he has rejected, sing better them him. My advise to Anu: Please, please forgive us, for all our sins and retire. We don't want to see you.

Alisha Chenoy gets another chance to showcase her omphs and ahs. She does nothing else, she will do nothing else. No point talking of her.

Udit is freash from the lawsuit filed by her legal wife. He is unemployed..wonder when he sang his last song.... He does nothing on the show-----mujhe lagta hai...un, un, un, apko mumbai aana chahiye---un, un, un, phir mein sochhta hun---un, un, nahi. Oh god! give me a beak.

Mr Akhtar is yet to show his antics. I am waiting.
Do you by any chance know who was the last Indian Idol or what happened to our first idol Mr. Abhijit Sawant. I bet you don't have any clue. Don't worry, you don't need to know.

My Question: Does the 21st century India need a singing idol to take it to the world scene?

I have refrained myself from commenting on the other two shows simply because I have not seen them, nor I intent to do so. Forgive me, all you singing giants. These shows do nothing good to us. They are simply a crude way of playing on the Indian sensibility to churn money.

Cheers
Kundan

funny but true

2007-04-27T21:13:00.000+05:30

Two Delhi bus conductors are discussing the sorry affair of the traveling habits of the delhi passengers:
Delhi bus conductors 1: Yaar, sara din maro, chillao, galli do, galli khao, pur apne hath kya aata hai...4 hazar, 5 hazar rupaye
(Dear friend, we die every day, shout, abuse, get abused... but what do we get...only 4-5 thousand rupees.)
Delhi bus conductors 2: Yaar, sab kuch passenger ke mood pe depend karta hai. Kabhi to khali bus pe bhi nahi chadte... Kabhi Bhare ke pichhe bhagte hai.
(Dear friend, every thing depends on the mood of the passenger. Sometimes, they don't get in the empty bus. Sometimes, they will run after the jam packed one.)

Who says psychology is taught only in classes.

Cheers
Kundan

shilpa, kiss, morality and immoral

2007-04-24T21:55:00.000+05:30

No, no, no......, I am not writing this article to pass a judgment on the morality and immorality of Shilpa and Gere's Kiss. What I am pondering on is the after affect of the kiss that happened on a public forum. Shilpa Shetty was furious on the so called moral police of Indian Society. She was livid by the attack on Mr. Gere's alleged attempt.

Well, its true that it is the personal affair of Miss Shetty. She is the citizen of free India and has the right to kiss or get kissed by any one whom she prefers. She has all the right to defend herself and be offensive. She, however, has no right to stop those who feel that what ever happened that eventful day was wrong.

If she has the right to defend herself, then those who did not like her act has equal right to criticize her.

Cheers
Kundan

Lara, the genius

2007-04-22T16:27:00.000+05:30

Lara played the last match of his career. The match ended in a defeat for the West Indies. But for Lara, it has been a wonderful journey, a journey full of ups and down, many highs and as many lows, some good memories and some not so good. But most importantly, he can walk out of the ground holding his head high. He thrilled us all the cricket lovers all around the world. A truly magnificent servant of the game.

Saying sorry-makes you feel better

2006-11-04T09:43:00.000+05:30

This morning, I was in a hurry to reach office. Any my scooter did the trick. It brushed the hand of a very decent looking man. I did not give any notice to the incident. Unfortunately for me, I had to stop just a few steps ahead from the incident. The man came and very decently asked me, " thare bahut jaldi ho rahi ke." (It seems you are in great hurry.)
" Kyon, kya ho gaya bhaisahab?" (Why, what happened?), I replied. My reply added salt to his injuries, if there were any.
"thare pata bhi nahi kya hua?" (You don't even know what happened?)
I don't know from where I got this divine revelation, but I suddenly said, " sorry bhaisahab."
He was taken aback. He was least accepting such a reply. All his plans of preparing himself for an eventual verbal fight came dashing on the ground. He could not reply for a minute.
I again said, " dil se sorry bol raha hun". (I am feeling sorry from my heart.)
I hold his hand. He did not say a single word and simply left. I felt nice. Saying sorry not only makes the other feel better, it also makes you feel nice.

Cheers
Kundan

Lane (ing) the highway-how safe, how fast

2006-10-28T10:58:00.000+05:30

I have been traveling, though occasionally, on the Bangalore-Mysore highway for almost 5 years. It was around 2000 AD that I went to Maddur and traveled through the highway. More recently, I traveled 4-5 days back, when I went to Mysore. The highway has changed and changed considerably.

Maddur lies around 80 kms from Bangalore on the Bangalore-Mysore highway. It is a quite place with a temple of Lord Shiva or Iswara. Surrounded by a river and beautiful valley, it is an ideal place to start your journey of exploring the South India. It is believed that the lingam is 800 years old and has great divine power. So it was Maddur that gave me the taste of , which was chaotic and filled with diversions. The average traffic speed did not cross beyond 50 kmh.

Now the highway has four lanes with huge divider separating the two way traffic. My father drove at an average speed of 85-90 kmh. It was great fun. However, while enjoying the thrills of great speed, I stated to think of the importance of fast highways in the development of a country. Yes, the fast highway reduces the amount of time spent on traveling, thus reducing the cost spent on fuel and thereby helping the economy of a country.

Fast highways may reduce your traveling time, but it can also be more dangerous than a chaotic highway. Fast highways have to be induced as a culture of the country. The new four-lane Bangalore-Mysore highway may have reduced the time of travel, but has also created several other economic and safety problems. The highway passes through several villages and small towns. Each of them has small lanes that connect them to the highway. These innumerable invasions can be of great danger.

For example, when we were coming back from Mysore, three men were crossing the highway along with their motorcycle without being worried about the approaching super fast vehicles. In India, driving at a speed of above 100 kmh is super fast. They were immune from any kind on danger to them or to the vehicle that may hit them. The scratching sounds of several vehicles also did not have any affect on them. They simply moved on. However, by the grace of god, any causality was averted. Why did they do so?

The answer is not so easy. Highways in India are the product of political manipulations rather than economic considerations. They are used and treated politically, either by the politicians or by the general public. We have to move a step ahead. The common men have to be made aware of the importance of fast highways and have to be made a part of them. They have to be aware of the importance of such highways in their own life. It is difficult for a common man to understand the trickle effect of the economics. They have to be made the part of the highways. After all, highways are made by the people, for the people and of the people.

Cheers
Kundan

Grading a book-Where to start?

2006-10-27T18:19:00.000+05:30

To arrive at a grading system that takes into account every aspects of a book-from conceptualization to its final reading- is easier said than done. The final product that a reader has in hand goes through a long gestation period. It passes through several stages that somehow affect its character. Each stage plays an important role in shaping the final outcome.

In this article, I would briefly point out each step that has a role in making a book. In the subsequent articles, I would explore each of them in great detail in order to find out their real importance and how they affect a book-positively or negatively. I would also try to arrive at a grading system that takes into account each of them and in turn remains true to the book.

Let us start the journey.
The book that you read travels a lot through different stages. What are these stages?

Demand for a book in the market
Editor(s) visualize a book or a goes ahead by visualizing a full series (more true in the case of children's books)
Hunt for an author
Editor meets an author
Author writes the manuscript
Manuscript goes through intense scrutiny
Manuscript is corrected
Manuscript is send back to the author
Manuscript again goes through intense scrutiny
The final correction
Layout is decided
Images are hunted
Text and images are placed
Spreads are sent to the author
He gives his final remark
Copyediting of the manuscript
Final crosschecking of the facts and text
Proofreading done
Final correction
Book is published
Book is graded
Book is marketed
Readers buy and read
They make their final comment

These steps more or less suffice the entire book making process. I may have left one or two steps here and there, but all in all these are the major steps through which a book passes and becomes a book. We will talk about them in great detail in my subsequent articles.

Cheers
Kundan

Grading a book-understanding the role of market

2006-10-27T10:45:00.000+05:30

Let us be very clear! Books are made at publishing houses. The teacher may want a specific book for his/her students or a reader may like a particular book that can satisfy his/her curiosity. But the fact remains that books are made at publishing houses. They may follow certain rules and specifications (this may be different for different publishing houses), which have to be followed before making a book. They may take into account a teacher's need or a reader's curiosity into account while making a book, but they make books for market. Their editors use their brains to utilize the demands of market. All in all, books are made by publishing houses for the market.

My assessment may appear very simplistic or crude or economy dominated. But the force of the market is clearly very dominant in making a book. Each step, each process and everyone involved in making a book works under the influence of market. Even those who grade a book work for market. Their grading may affect the sell of a book, and in turn they are working as a force of the market.

Let me simplify. The publisher makes a book that he or she thinks will the bestseller. He/she does not want to take any chances. So the book is sent to the grading agencies. The publisher has made the book for a particular group of readers. But the grading agency thinks otherwise. It allocates a grade that is different from what was originally planned. What happens? The grade has actually changed the character of the book. This is the top-down view.

Let us consider the down-top view. The publisher knows the parameters on which a particular agency grades a book. He/she makes a book that follows all those parameters. What happens? The grading agency and its parameters have acted as the force of the market and changed the character of the entire process of book-making.

So, for me, in order to understand the grading systems and their parameters, we will have to understand what goes behind the scene while making a book. Any grading system that ignores the forces of market while grading a book undermines the book itself.

Am I ignoring a teacher's requirements or a reader's curiosity? Certainly not. They play a very fundamental role in creating a market. In fact, they provide the very basis on which the foundation of book market is created. They provide the demand for a book, and in turn create a market for the book. They start the very process of making a book. They can never be ignored.

One of the basic flaws of the parameters of the grading agencies is that they assume the reader and the teacher as a homogeneous category. They assume that every 5 year old kid thinks and demands in a similar way. They take it for granted that every primary teacher has the same requirements. This assumption is far from truth. Each kid is different from other. Each teacher thinks and acts differently from his or her counterpart. So a particular grade may restrict the role of a book. We need a grading system that removes all the restrictions on a book and allows it to be different for different readers.

Let us have a grading system that does not limit a book within the boundaries of its parameters. A book can not be limited within boundaries for the simple reason that it assumes different character for different readers. Let us have a grading system that first remains true to the book itself and then forces the book to transcend its boundaries, if it has any. Let us create a boundary-less grading system.

Cheers
Kundan

Grading a book-why and how- II

2006-10-26T15:11:00.000+05:30

The difficulty with a single line of text, the things that it states and hides and the effects that it can have on reader were discussed in the previous post. In this part we will talk, in brief, about the use of an image.

It is believed that use of image or images are vital in children's books. They collaborate with the text and make the reading interesting and understanding easy. However, using an image(s) creates several problems.

Let us take an example:
To collaborate with the text 'Butterfly is an insect', we need an image. Remember, the age group of our book is 3 to 5. Now we have to think on several issues before finalizing an image:

nature of the image, i.e. whether it would be a photograph, or illustration, drawing or a cartoon
If it is a photograph then whether it should be a cutout or include surroundings. Which butterfly will be used in the photograph? Whether the background should be the natural habitat or something else?
If we are using the drawing, what should be the color of the butterfly, what should be the angle of projection, which part of the life should the drawing depict?
If we are using cartoons then how true cartoons should be with the reality?

These are some of the problems that we face while using a single image. The problem can continue. How many images do we use in a single spread? What will be the main image and why? How other images should be different from the main image? Should we remain consistent in our layout-throughout the book or throughout the series?

Book making is not an easy job. Problems are many. The article Grading a book-why and how has tried to outline some of the basic problems that we face with two of the fundamentals of a book-text and image. The following articles would deal in detail with each book making process. I would try to find out how these process can and do affect the parameters on which we grade a book.

Cheers
Kundan

Grading a book-why and how-I

2006-10-26T10:46:00.000+05:30

Creating books for children is a catch-22 situation. You are forced to restrict the flow of your creativity to match with that of your target group. However, your creativity can't be too chaotic or closed. It has to give the sense of being open and fluid.

In USA, there are several institutions and agencies involved in grading a book. The entire book is throughly studied in terms of the total number of words used, images, illustrations, page layout, page size, use of complex and simple sentences and many other parameters. For example, Fountas and Pinell, the leading book grading agency of USA has developed several similar parameters to grade a book. A book can be graded between Grade A to Z. Grade A being the book for children that are learning to read, while Grade Z being the book for children who are reading to learn.

I have been an editor working on children books for many years. I have been involved in almost every procedure and aspect of making or creating a children book. And I can safely talk on almost every aspect of book making processes. What is the importance of book making processes in grading a book? Are they more important than a book itself? Why do we need to grade a book? What is more fundamental in grading a book-" the teaching experience or the reading experience"? In other words, who should be considered while grading a book-a teacher or a reader? Does grading restricts and limits the entire purpose of making a book? Who can grade a book-those who make or create it, those who read it, those who use it to teach or those who are independent to all aspects of a book?

I would, in several articles, try to answer and find answers of these and many other queries that are important in understanding a book itself. In this article, I would limit myself on understanding the difficulties of grading a book.

One day my managing editor called me and our entire department in the confrence room. He was serious and that indicated that he meant business. He asked all of us to be ready to make a series of books on animals for the children between age group of 3 to 5. I was shocked, 'how can a 3 years old kid read and understand the complex world of animals'. Atleast I never did that. I asked and he replied that books for this age group are made as a refernce book for parents. They read aloud these books to their kids. The idea sound great. Wow! we are involving parents in the reading business.

But what if parents themselves have little idea about the animal world. Lets take an example.
The chapter on butterfly says- "Butterfly is an insect".
The above sentence assumes that the reader (read the parents) knows:

what an insect is
that there are the other insects, and
insects are animals.

There are many other things that the above sentence assumes:

that the reader knows that we use an before any word that starts with a vowel
that the reader knows what the vowel is

There are many things that the above sentence hides:

It does not say that there are other butterflies
It does not say that insects are animals

to be continues...................

Cheers
Kundan

A day in the city of palaces

2006-10-24T20:41:00.000+05:30

On 23 rd, we decided to head for a one day excursion around Bangalore. After debating for hours and oscillating between the religion and fun, we finally decided to go to Mysore. Our destination at Mysore was Brindavan Garden and Mysore Palace. Brindavan Garden is 20 Kms northwest of Mysore. It is located at the base of the Krisnarajasagar Dam.

The dam was built 1932. The garden became famous in 1960s, when it provided backdrop from several films. Spread in about 150 acres of land, the garden is filled with several beautiful fountains. The dam provides the majestic view. One should surely visit the garden and take a walk at the top of the dam. The view from the top of the dam is breathtaking.

After spending more than 2 hrs at the dam and in the garden, we headed towards our next stop, the Mysore Palace. The palace is simply magnificent. It grandeur and royalty can not be described in words.

The palace was made in 1912 after the previous palace was destroyed in fire. It was designed by designed by the British architect Henry Irwin and cost over 41 lakhs of rupees. The architecture of the palace is filled with domes, columns and beautifully carved pillars. It was made in Indo-Saracenic architecture. Indo-Saracenic architecture is the mixture of Hindu, Mughal, Rajput and Gothic arts.

The palace was made during the reigns of Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV [1895- 1940], who is also believed to have played an important role in creating the the modern township of Mysore.

Wodeyars were the feudals of the great Vijaynagar Empire. However, they were successful in creating their own empire by defeating Srirangaraya –the then Viceroy of Vijayanagar. One of the queens of Srirangaraya cursed Raja Wodeyar, which resulted that no ruler of the Wodeyar dynasty ever had a male hair. All the rulers were adopted sons.

The grandeur of palace however remained intact.

Cheers
Kundan

coming to Bangalore

2006-10-24T10:20:00.000+05:30

Bangalore has always fascinated me, not only as a city but also as place that has its own life. So, whenever I get a chance, I always come to Bangalore. Apart from my inner soul, I also come to Bangalore to meet my parents. Yes, they live in Bangalore.

This diwali, my wife decided to celebrate her diwali with her maa (my mom). So, we left for Bangalore on 19th of this month. Since flying was not feasible, we decided to travel by train. And when it comes to train, I always prefer Karnataka Express, or simply, the KK. Traveling on KK is like wondering between geography and history. The train ride from Delhi to Bangalore is amazing because of the variety of landscapes that it passes through. I will talk of it on my next blog. KK has several myths associated with it. Yeh itni fast thi, do bar palti kha gayi, 'the train was so fast, it fell down twice'. Pahle jab train daund se khulti thi, to solapur tak dacaiton ka khatra tha, ' Earlier, between Daund to Solapur, there was always the fear of dacoits.

This time, I was traveling with my wife and my sister. So, I was little apprehensive about my co passengers. Traveling on train is as much private as it is public. No one can disturb you till you don't want to get disturbed. However, you can't remain isolated for long even if you don't want to get involved. You can't shut you eyes and ears. This time we had Ganguly family traveling with. We also had a philosopher soldier.

Ganguly family consisted of a old yet pretending to be young Mr. Ganguly, his very nice wife, who later on became our aunty, and two grown up yet childish daughter. They were coming to Bangalore for the first time to meet their daughter.

I always like Bengalis. They have a very strong sense of their own little personal space. They eat when they wish, and eat too many. They sing when they wish and sing very nice. They laugh when they wish and laugh too much. This little space is religiously guarded, outside intrusion is not allowed. Gangulies too had their own space, but this time we were accepted as their own.
We shared a good time. We shared recepies, sang along with them, ate with them and most importantly, laughed with them. All my best wishes to Mr. Ganguly and his family.

The train reached Bangalore on 21st. My father and my brother were waiting for us. I finally reached Bangalore, a city I love to explore. And explore I will in my next blogs.

Cheers
Kundan

Editor: to be or not to be!!!!!!

2006-10-12T16:38:00.000+05:30

I have been working as a book editor for years. Well, if reading books were supposed to be difficult, then editing books is simply a pain in the neck. I don't want to discourage the probable book editors, but my experience has made me wiser and compelled me to think on this line.

An editor has several other jobs to do apart from the traditional editing. Traditional editing is knowledge oriented. It requires knowledge of grammar and sense of books. Those who have the knowledge and the natural instinct, prove to be good editors. Editing, in traditional sense, is the natural inborn ability. You have it or you don't. If you are natural, you have fun while editing. You learn and discover several new things. Traditional editing or hardcore editing as some may say is fun.

But editing goes beyond hardcore editing. The process starts with visualizing the book. You tend to make sense of the book that you have thought of. A natural editor loves this challenge. He likes to be in the thick of the action. He wants to be the creator. He takes pride in creating a book.

After visualizing, the editor has to look for the content. The content might come from an author or the in-house content gatherers. Content gatherers are the new breeds of author-like species. They are the result of the great Internet revolution and its motto of free knowledge readily available for all on a finger click.

The author writes according to his whims and fancy. He does not like being tied to write for a particular audience or for a particular age group. He has the boon to flow freely. And the bane of the editor starts. He collects the manuscript from the author and tries to tailor it according to the requirement of the book he once visualized. Or did he? Forget it. The editor also has to keep in mind the great ego of the author. The tailoring should not alter the manuscript to such an extent that it catches the eyes of the author.

Consequently, the editor than relies heavily on his own in-house content providers or gatherers. He does not have to watch for their ego. The content gatherers are to some extent dormant editors. They don't explode or in most cases refuse to explode. They don't want to (sometimes they are prevented to) be the part of the entire process. They simply give content, which is supposed to be edited.

Lets talk about such contents. For a 14-spread book, the content can range from 100 pages to infinity. In between, there are several loose ends that fail to end. These days they are given on MS-word. The word document of such contents use at least 1000 fonts and 1500 formatting styles.

Now the editor is supposed to edit the precious content file. However, sitting for endless hours on the hard chair just to figure out the head and the tail of the document creates all the symptoms of spondylitis. The neck starts to pain.

Somehow, using tried and tested old tricks, the editor finally writes the book he once visualized. Did he? Oh! May be he did.

The book then goes to the creative department. They are supposed to make the layout of the book with the judicious placement of text and the images. By the way, in the developing countries, the responsibilities of image lie with the editor. He has to search for appropriate images that would appear in the book. Remember he once visualized the book.

Since, there are several stages of development, so there are several types of developing countries. Some are more developed, some are less. They are all developing, nonetheless. India for instance is a rapidly developing country. So, the Indian Publishing Creative Departments are progressing even rapidly. They demand less from the editor. They only ask for images that are of better quality with a resolution of 600, which could be printed twice. Oh! They also ask for different angles and poses. I am not making any sense, do I? They also don't make any sense, but they do ask.

An editor, then out of the fear that the book that he once visualized might face a radical twist of the fate, makes hard efforts to sit with the creative book designers. However, his attempt invokes severe resistance from the designers. The resistance transcends the boundaries of book making process and travels to the plane of creativity. They are creative, because they design. They design because they know software. They know software because they know keyboard shortcuts. They know keyboard shortcuts because they have worked umpteen times on that software. And since they have worked umpteen times on that software, they are designers. It's a great designer's vicious cycle that an editor has to resist, before giving his inputs or before his inputs are taken.

The book is some how completed. The designs appear far better than what was originally thought of (this is obviously the great achievement of the designers) and the text is superb (this for the end product that an editor keeps with him, who once visualized a book). The editor is forced to identify only with the text part of the book.

Tell me is being an editor fun? I am not a sadist. Well, editing still is a fun. You know why? Just after taking such as great journey of book making, the editor again starts to visualize a new book!!!!!

Cheers
Kundan

Kiran 'Booker' Desai

2006-10-12T10:00:00.000+05:30

Finally, someone from the Desai family managed to win a Bookers Prize. Congratulation. Kiran Desai was awarded the Man Booker Prize for her book The Inheritance Of Loss. Her mother Anita Desai was also nominated five times but could not manage to win. Kiran is the third Indian after Salman Rusdie and Arundhati Roy to win this award.

Many congratulations to Ms. Kiran. It took her 18 long years to write a new book. She recently confessed that she had dificulty finding publishers for her book. Now she does not have to worry. Publishers would chase her to write something or anything.

Wonder what happened to MS. Arundhati Roy. After her date with God of small things, she did not write anything substantial. Though, she makes some contributions from time to time in form of articles on social issues, she did not write any new novel.

Awards have a significant contribution in enhancing the moral of the writer. But sometimes I feel that it can prove detrimental too. For instance, an award puts undue burden on the writer to better his or her previous book or novel. In doing so, some produce briliant piece. However, many fail to write itself.

I sometimes feel that a readers reaction is the best award that a writer can have.

Eating thali

2006-10-11T17:54:00.000+05:30

Jaipur is a nice city. It has all the elements of being a huge metropolis, while it has still successfully maintained its ethnicity. When I reached Jaipur, it was time for lunch. After exploring several options, I decided to go for traditional thali. The thali promised unlimited food, such as roties, rajma, dal, aaloo dum, rice and salad. And the entire course was not so costly, only 30 rupees. I filled my stomach with great satisfaction and even payed the waiter a 5 rupees tip.

market recreats traditions........sometimes

2006-10-11T17:44:00.000+05:30

I recently went on a one day trip to Jaipur. On the highway, few kilometers before the city, I saw several palaces. These are modern palaces made by several hotel groups, such as Le Meridian. I started to wonder why traditional rajasthani architecture styles have been used. And I realized that market sometimes reinvents traditions to sustain itself. Rajasthan is known for its palaces and royalty. These hotels are recreating the same old palaces and royalty to sustain themselves. You can't own a real palace? Well no problem, make a new one.

My profile

2006-10-11T17:13:00.000+05:30

Hi I am Kundan kaushav. I am new to blogging. So, I may make mistakes. Thats fine. But the main purpose of my blog is to create a platform that enables everyone like me to shre their veiws on almost everything.

I have named by blog "summary". The name is used to act as metaphore. We always tend to summarize anything that happens to us or anything that we witness happening to others. I think that the ability to summarize is the one of the basic instincts of humans.

I want to create a platform that gives us the chance to interact with each other through our own summaries.

Cheers

Kundan