Audacity -A Free Digital Audio Editor.

Dt:18 Nov 2011

At some point of time in life,you got to take to music to release the negative energies and calm your soul.

Singing is something that I like to do irrespective of how good or bad I am as a singer.While not all of us have  a great voice but many of us can understand music.Today there a lot of tools available on the net to help you get it right.

After a bit of research I found AUDACITY a decent enough easy to use tool which helps you with recordings and wave corrections.

I used Open Drive to upload these recordings and Publish them.

My first attempt was with 'Jo Bhi Main Kehna Chahoon(Rockstar)'.It has come out good for a first attempt :-).Hit PLAY button to listen to this.


Jo Bhi Main Kehna Chahoon(Rockstar)



After this I got my bro on board and we decided to have some fun with 'Shehar me Hu main tere (Rockstar)'.This is an uncut version .You will get the full song towards the end (after 3 mins )of this recording .

Shehar me Hu main tere (Rockstar)





If you like what you hear,let me know,else suggestions are welcome :p.

Creating opportunities within Constraints

Dt: 24 Sep 2011

Yesterday I had the privilege to listen to one of the veterans of our parent organization, Mr.Sudhir Warde .He was invited to speak on the topic 'Creating opportunities within constraints'.
Some of the points that he discussed might be helpful to you as you move ahead in your professional life.

1.Luck alone cannot take you too far. You need to be good enough to make it big.
2.You cannot just sit there and w8 for a big opportunity to transform your professional career.You have to look at every opportunity small or big to make an impression.
3.Hardwork and dedication will eventually be recognized.You need not be depressed if someone fails to identify it for a year.If you are good you wont be ignored for too long.
4. Boss is not always wrong .A tough boss is better than an easy going boss coz he/she will push you to get the maximum of your capabilities.
5.There is no end to learning in the corporate world.The day u say I know all ,may be the last day of your growth.
6.Its important to be a host rather than the guest in your organization. You may rant about your organization inside the org but you must definitely not do that with outsiders.You never paint your family in bad light in public ,do you?
7.Changing ur job doesn't guarantee success.You need to excel in what/where you are doing currently  to excel in something else or somewhere else.
8.Dont blame someone else for your lack of success .You are the owner of all good and bad things happening to you.
9.Its important to have a goal in life and pursue that goal with a determined focus.You must revise these goals periodically to assess your progress.
10.While setting your goals its important to know what you want than to yearn for something which others have.You should not spend your hard earned money to get something that you dont want to impress someone whom you do not care for ;-}.
11.Its important that you identify your strengths as you go along in life and try to move in that direction and do a job which you love to do.
12.You must never leave an organization  for a bad boss ,bad appraisal etc.You need to evaluate many more factors like colleagues,work profile and satisfaction.Of course a bad appraisal will leave a bitter taste but if there are  things that you like about an organization then you must not leave it for a couple of bad things.
13.You must not cling on to the past bad experiences.Crying about someone who had given you grief for too long means giving undue credit to that person who doesnt even deserve it.Just move on .Life is too precious to be lost thinking about the past.

14.Practicing something that you are good at will make you better it.Never be too confident about your craft lest you lose it.
15.You must take good care of your health coz if you do not do so all your other principles go for a toss.

Lastly keep learning from your own as well as others mistakes.Life is too small to make all the mistake so learning from others especially elders is a nice way to gain experience.

This man had amazing sense of humour and  had the strength to hold a big audience captive.
That is why I spent some time listening to this person.You must learn from all oldies ;-}.

First edition of TOI after independence

Dt:17 Aug 2011

On the occasion of 64th independence day celebrations the Times of India team published a copy of the newspaper published on 15th August 1947.

 

There were many interesting aspects that I observed after going through this edition. The first thing being that the price of the paper was just 2 annas .today its 5 rs.[80 annas].From an economic point of view the value of the newspaper has inflated by 4000% in 64 years.

But apart from that there were some interesting articles covering Pandit Nehru's historic midnight speech .Jinnah's ascent as head of Pakistan, an article from the then Mayor of Bombay wishing India a happy independence and thanking India for letting him continue as Governor  till the end of that year.Also highlighted on the left corner is a list of ministers appointed to the first cabinet--most prominent of that being Dr.Ambedkar as Law minister.

Also highlighted on the first page was an economic settlement between England and India which ensured that Britain had access to India's funds till the end of that  year.Settlement stated that 35 million pounds from India's existing balances would be available for expenditure in any currency area and 30 million pounds were to be available to India at the disposal of The Reserve Bank of  India.

Also to be observed that Mr.Gandhi was fasting on this day to celebrate Independence[or may be to repent partition].....well history has its controversies...but what a great day for this nation.
 

Vande Mataram.Jai Hind 

Chalo Dilli

Dt: 29/07/2011.

The flight was scheduled to reach Delhi at around 0755 .But by the time I was out of the airport it was still 0750 hrs .I had booked an office accommodation at Vasant Vihar in Delhi and had earlier planned to check in there before going for the interview.The interview was scheduled for 1115 hrs  and as such I had nothing to do till then.

The first thing that I looked out for when I reached Delhi was an eatery as I was hungry by then.SpiceJet does not offer food on its flights unless you are not ready to pay for it  :p.And I avoided the airline food .So just outside the domestic terminal 1D I had a veg burger from a Fast Food corner .I was the first customer and had to wait a bit till my burger was done .In the mean time I kept wondering  as to what would I do with so much spare time left with me before the interview.The burger was good with a sachet of tomato sauce.I finished it up and then took one of the many empty seats outside the terminal.

Friends had advised me to avail the prepaid taxi service once at the airport.I went over to the  prepaid taxi counter and enquired about the cab to Chanakyapuri.The man at the counter told me that I would reach there in 30 mins  .I asked him if he could arrange for a small Dilli darshan around Chanakyapuri which he bluntly refused saying that they only do single point services.Well that would leave me with a lot of free time .Confused about how to spend a couple of hours in between I decided eventually to stay put at the airport waiting area itself as I did not wish to  get lost in a new city just before the interview.

Just like any other mode of public transport, to my amazement I found that the airport also can be a place where you can find different characters.For the first half an hour I was almost alone staring at the arrivals list .I made a note that most planes were on or before time except for one Bangalore flight which got cancelled.Slowly as more planes touched down i got more people for company.There was this Gujju family which apparently was waiting for someone to receive them at  the airport.Then there was another guy who had a placard with the person's name he was supposed to receive.He came up to me and asked if the flight info was mentioned in the placard.He didn't understand English and wanted me to help but unfortunately there wasn't any flight info on the placard.

[pic:aerial shot of terminal 1D at IGI airport,Delhi]

After spending more than an hour at the airport I decided to take a prepaid cab to Chanakyapuri.The taxi was an old OMNI and the moment I entered in I realised that the Mumbai taxis are way better than these.What a stark contrast to the early morning Meru cab.I managed to strike up a conversation with the taxiwala .He offered me a full Dilli Darshan in 8 hours for 800 bucks and when i told him that I didnt have dat much time he was quick to offer me a MINI darshan for  500 bucks.I reached the interview site quite early and had to wait for my turn for half an hour.In that time I came across a lot of people IT engineers,students,religious people etc .The interview went as scheduled and I was done by 1300 hrs.

Chanakyapuri can be called a consulate adda.Almost all the foreign consulates were  present here.I came out of the consulate and inquired the rickshaw walla for a place where I can have some food.He directed me to the Malcha market on the Malcha marg .A few minutes walk from there and I found a chinese restaurant {Lotus Garden}.I had VEG fried rice[it was a Tuesday....] and a mocktail{Lotus Delight }.The mocktail was surprisingly quite good but the food was bland.I partly agreed with it after I saw a lot of foreigners enjoying their meal there.

Once out  of there I decided to visit the India gate {the nearest attraction I could find on Google maps}.By this time the climate had turned very pleasant with a cool breeze and a light drizzle.I fancied a walk for some time to digest my food and asked a Taxi walla for directions.He gave me a surprised look and asked me "Aapke paas kya hai".I said 'Kya'.I realised that he was asking me if I had a vehicle.I said I plan to walk to India Gate .[Just to get a fair idea about the distance] .He laughed at me and said 'Yaha se left lo aur seedhe seedhe chalte jaao 6 km hian'.He must have expected me to immediately hire his cab after hearing that.But I had other plans.

Destination:India gate

Having done the usual long morning and evening walks over the years.I knew that the one hour walk[6km/hr] would end sooner than later  and that would give me some time to spend with myself..to introspect.But for that it was necessary that  I took the Akbar Road throughout.But I went on a round trip instead and slowly the 6 km walk turned into a 10 km walk .How long is the dream run in marathons?.Anyways..after going past  many circles I was beginning to get a bit irritated with my decision.The people of Delhi were helpful and were at all times guiding me with directions .What irritated me was that it was well  over an hour now since I had started walking. By this time I was walking on  Janpath and had reached  Motilal Nehru Palace[Shiela Dixit's residence].

I pondered about hiring a cab now as the walk was beginning to tire me down.One last stretch before I give up I told to myself.I asked a senior citizen whether I was heading in the right direction just to be sure.He pointed across to a garden and told me to cross it and take Akbar road.I asked him how much more time.He said only 5-10 mins.I wondered if he was right.I kept walking. In a few minutes I came across the All India Congress Committee[AICC] office.There were some reporters outside the office doing a story.I realised that I had come very close to my destination.

There it was standing in all its glory.Watching the Amar Javan Jyoti on TV for so many years ,you always felt the aura surrounding the  place.I always wanted to be here and experience it for real.Now the day had come I was in Delhi surrounded by the India Gate,Raj Bhavan,The Parliament House,The Rashtrapati Bhavan and other historical places.It was a feeling of excitement n joy never experienced before.I was tired by the walk but overwhelmed by the destination.This is complete  path of my WALK.

Once I had absorbed the moment I started repenting the fact that I was travelling alone and had no one to click pictures.Luckily I found this guy who helped me with this photo.Few years back when we had clicked a group photo at the Gateway of India the end result wasn't as great as this one and the service was not prompt as well .This photographer seemed to have a printer nearby and he actually even gave me a choice from 4 different poses.Now that's cool ;-}.

Tried best to pose for the cameras.This is the best I could manage.

Well that wraps up the Chalo Dilli part for you .I missed Chandni Chowk but theres always a next time ;-} .If you liked this part then keep watching this space for the last leg of this journey.

My First Flight. BOM-DEL SpiceJet #851

Dt : 06 Juy 2011.

As a kid living in Antop Hill I always had one dream to travel some day  in that huge white thing which has a few twinkling  lights,two wings a tail  and makes a lot of noise ,that which attracts everyone's attention and which puts the fastest of birds in the sky to shame.....an Aeroplane .

As time passed by I went on working hard in life to achieve that and many other dreams.But subsequently  life became more and more stagnant with everyday being a routine and nothing interesting to look forward to.So when I was asked to fly to Delhi to get my work visa I was very excited.

I had an interview at 1115 hrs in Delhi on 5 July and after exploring a lot of options I finally decided to fly on the morning of 5 July .The only risk was that I may be late if there are delays.After exploring all flight options I finally was booked on Spice Jet flight for both the to and fro journeys.

So the TO  flight (SpiceJet 851) was scheduled for morning 0550 hrs .I was happy that  I finally booked the flight but was surprised when I read the rules.You need to check in 2 hours before the flight   departure. After a little research I was made to understand that you can check in 45 mins before the flight which would be the final cut off time.

For a first timer like me it was important to reach the airport in time to avoid last minute running around.For that matter I had never been to the Mumbai airport before and had to ensure that I report at  the right terminal and in time.In Mumbai the domestic terminals are divided into terminals 1A and 1B.All the low cost airlines(SpiceJet,Indigo etc.) depart from trminal 1B and that is where I had to report.

I booked a Meru cab for  0300 hrs to avoid any delays .In hindsight it was too early a start as I reached the airport in 45 mins . Along with Papa ,we went around the airport observing people and procedures .Finally the checkin began and I went in to the security gate at around 0415 hours when the crowd started gathering in.Once the security checked my ticket printout  and PAN card I was allowed into the airport.
[Background music in my head at this time : Jane na Kaha wo duniya hain ...janne na wo hain bhi nahi...Jahan meri zindagi mujhse itni khafa nahi...{somehow the airport scene of Jane tu ya Jane na was goin on in my mind}]

As I had read a few articles on the net before ,I knew that I had to go the Spice Jet window and get my boarding pass.I went there tagged my baggage and got my boarding pass.As I had reached  in early I got a window seat(27A).The attendant asked me to go to Gate 6 to board the flight.I followed the instructions got myself and my baggage screened and went ahead to the waiting room.

I didnt know where next to go and what next to do .So I went in there and took a  chair and behaved as if I had been there and done that n number of times.I though got the feeling that a couple of people could tell that there was something unusual about my behaviour ;-).Ignoring them I started observing things around me.Eateries and book shops were thronged by people .Some sat calmly reading newspapers.Suddenly I heard an announcement calling people for a Hyderabad flight to reach the gate.I was relieved that I was at the right place !!!.Within seconds I found the TV displaying flight info and was happy to know the boarding details of my flight.The boarding gate number was on the pass and TV were different .I checked around to find if both the gates were accessible to me .There they were next to each other.I knew I was safe.



Waiting for close to an hour was boring.I picked up a newspaper but could not read much due to anxiety.Two things were unusual the early morning travel  and the chilling AC(I had forgotten what an AC meant as the one in office is always set to 25 deg or more ....) .Add to that the fact that I was traveling long distance alone for the first time in my life.It was a different feeling altogether and there were more to come.

So when the boarding sign was flashed I joined the queue and followed them as all of them seemed quite experienced .A SpiceJet bus was waiting outside .I boarded the bus and once full it took you  to the flight.Next few minutes were mind boggling.You could see flights taking off from the runway .Lights glittering on them .It was dawn and the setting was perfect .For the first time in a couple of years I regretted not having a camera phone with me.Nevertheless I  started capturing those moments in my mind.The plane was huge and it looked like  monster.The sound of the roaring engines was deafening .

Flight attendants welcomed us on-board .I started searching for seat no(27 A). and as I found the  window of 27 I saw a newly wed couple occupying the window and the next seat.I immediately complained to them that it was my seat.But popat ho gaya.He told me that my seat 27A was on the opposite side and that it was his seat 27D.I found that he was right and that I had missed the 'A' part of the seat number.I finally took my window seat.I just took time to understand the seat belt locling and then gazed out of the window.
[Background music in my head at this time : kaise mujhe tum(window seat) mil gayi..kismat pe aaye na yakkeen..{somehow the Ghajini scene was going on in my mind at this tym when Asin sells her Ambassadors and Aamir has to immediately fly....it was Mumbai airport...}] .

Once in the flight it was time to experience the takeoff .I was curious to know what was the feeling during a take off.I familiarized with the people around me .A big group of around  100 people were traveling to Amarnath{flight was bound to Jammu via dehi}.Sagli marathi mansa.Suddenly it felt like a Mumbai local.I conversed with a few and helped them with seat numbers now.the flight attendants started with security instructions once all were seated.

The flight was ready for take off at 0550 hours on time .The speed was zapping on the runway and as it traveled a few seconds it suddenly lifted off the ground and into the skies.It felt like a ride in Essel World with more speed and of course more height.The slums looked beautiful for the first time and then the sea and then the clouds.wow beautiful.!!!!!!.After half an hour the clouds didn't excite too much .The air hostess were less beautiful and more paint .But a foreigner couple cozying in each others company in seats  26A,26B kept my eyeballs busy for sometime.But eventually tiredness took over and I fell asleep.I woke up just minutes before landing to have look at Delhi from the top.Somehow got the feeling that there were less buildings and more empty spaces/fields  here.The lady in 26B made eye contact,smiled  and apologized for something.It didn't matter what she said coz she was so beautiful and.........

The plane landed in Delhi few minutes prior to schedule .I got off the flight and boarded the bus which took me to terminal 1D.At the Delhi airport I saw a lot of private planes apart from the usual passenger ones.Finally I  left the terminal and completed Leg1 of the journey.A long cherished dream accomplished and few new ones were created on this day.

What happened in Delhi is equally exciting .Keep watching this space for Leg 2 (Chalo Dillli ) of the journey.Till then .njoiii  reading My Heart ....


Trivia:When was the last time that you heard background music in your life as experienced by the author? ...

Osama found & killed in Pakistan by US --->How should India react ?

The first man of terrorism in the world ,the man who was credited with masterminding and executing the 9/11 attacks on the United States of America was finally killed by the US Seal forces on May 21,2011,nearly 10 years after the twin tower bombings. While the entire world heaved a sigh of relief after the death of Bin Laden, the place where he was killed and where he was assumed to be staying for the past five years has left our neighboring nation Pakistan deeply embarrassed.

Osama was killed in Abbottabad a province in Pakistan where he lived in a house very close to the military establishment of Pakistan.This new revelation about Pakistan has raised question marks over Pakistan's commitment to eliminating terrorism from the world. It has also now resulted in various groups within India questioning the Government’s extended effort to improve diplomatic ties with Pakistan post the cricket diplomacy which was initiated during the World Cup.

To begin with India has always maintained that the terror attacks in Mumbai were  masterminded by terrorists who were trained in Pakistan. While the Mumbai attacks  trial in Pakistan has been going on for quite some time, it has not resulted in any positive outcome which has irked the Indian officials. Therefore India was forced to reinitiate dialogue with Pakistan. Pakistan on the other hand seems to be in no mood to acknowledge any Pakistani hand in the whole incident. Pakistan has been a safe haven for a number of terrorist groups as well as some high profile criminals who run the mafia in India. India has enough proof that Pakistan has been sheltering these people but has not been able to act upon it. So how should India react to the current developments.

The first option is to resolve the issue by dialogue. The problem with carrying on dialogues with Pakistan though is that you are not sure if the present government has control over the Army and radical groups in the country. While you can keep exerting pressure on the Pakistani government the Pakistani Army might not take any of it and continue with its vague ways. Even in the past a lot of talks have failed because the government never seemed to have an authority over the Army in Pakistan. So irrespective of how long we carry on with the talks they are not going to yield much.

The next option we have is to smoke out the terror training camps in Pakistan .We can carry out these attacks in a similar fashion as done by the US seal forces. The Indian military has also acknowledged that they are capable of carrying out similar attacks on Pakistani soil. But for India to carry out any offensive against Pakistan ,we will have to take the world community into confidence. The South Asian region is of huge strategic interest to the world community and any successful attack by India on Pakistan will be detrimental to the interests of China as well as USA in the region. Therefore they would not encourage any such act by India unless there are unavoidable circumstances. India would not like to get involved in a war with Pakistan as any such decision would push India's economic growth  back by 5-10 years which we cannot afford. The risk of a Nuclear detonation on Indian soil also cannot be discounted. Also you do not want an unstable Pakistan at any point of time which will be difficult to handle. All these means that the option of aggression has to be exercised with restraint.

For the time being India is therefore better off to just continue with the peace talks irrespective of their outcome and make sure that the security of the nation is maintained. Pakistan is slowly detonating from within. The same terrorists whom Pakistan raised and fed are now getting back at them. In the recent past there have been a host of terrorist attacks in Pakistan in which Pakistan has lost a couple of newly acquired aircrafts as well. The US is also beginning to realize that its investments in Pakistan is going down the drain. Even they are building pressure on Pakistan to get hold of terrorists hiding within that nation. India has to keep a keen eye on these developments and also in the meantime continue with its economic development. Also India must use all possible means to raise awareness at the global stage about threat of terrorism originating from Pakistan.

A time will come when the problem of Pakistan will be solved all by itself.

Happiness is around the corner...............

Was feeling down and out today after a long week in office.A week where I made more mistakes than otherwise.A week where I took more incorrect decisions than the right ones.It was also a week where I  finally pushed something which was long pending from my side.Still the week didn't end on a happy note.

 When I reached home today I felt  this complete dissatisfaction and emptiness around me .Even the simplest of conversations with my family led to a venting out of anger and frustration.There was so much hatred filled within me I felt like I needed someone to vent it out on.

And what does GOD the master magician do.Well HE sends my long forgotten neighbor to my house with a silly software issue.His trial version software is not letting him save the work he does on it.  I feel of all the issues that are racing through my mind this little software bug is a no brainer.So I try to explain him a few tricks and tips to get it running. Suddenly I realize that my tips are Greek  & Latin to him, so I casually offer to go to his place and help him.

On reaching there I realize that how our kamina Indians who have some knowledge of computers are fooling around with this guy who just had a trial version software issue and a virus issue. Imagine a computer vallah installing an anti virus software on your system charging you 500 bucks and not even running an initial full scan to if nothing else test the antivirus that  he has installed :-).

My neighbour,poor fellow didn't know how to scan  the infected folder using the antivirus and was very tense and had come to me as a last hope . He knows little about computers but he uses it to  run his business and the software down was affecting his business.For us its just another  fixing a trial software and healing infected system with an antivirus.But for him I was some one who solved his problem and didn't charge a penny for it.The smile on his face when he saw the software up and ready to use , made me feel so happy that it negated a lot of the negativity which was there within me.

So it was  GOD's masterpiece by which he achieved two goals  of  cheering up two frustrated people of  their tensions temporarily.  ' Ek teer se do nishan ' .Its this thing which will keep me positive for the coming week .Its a hope that whenever u feel down and out ...do not worryy coz..................HAPPINESS IS ROUND THE CORNER :-)

< Ref: Image lifted from a word-press blog.Hope the author would not mind it.  If  it indeed is an original :-).>

India vs Pakistan -- World Cup 2011

Dt : 26 Mar 2011

Well its the match that everyone has been waiting for .India vs Pakistan in a World Cup game once again and this time they are playing for a place in the finals.It cannot get bigger than this .

While Pakistan seem to be more confident of their bowling .Indians are definitely relying on their batting to take them thru.It will be therefore exciting to see as to what the captains do  if they win the toss.Ideally Mohali is a good batting wicket with some help for the seamers.But for this world cup I am not sure of the pitch and how will it behave .Ideally whoever wins the toss would like to bat first and put up a big score on the board.
While India chased well to beat Australia in the quarter finals one must realise that   it must be difficult to chase successfully over and over again in a pressure game .

Ideally you would not like to disturb a winning combination but on that Mohali wicket Pakistan may be tempted to play Shoaib Akhtar and I get a feeling that Dhoni must give one another chance to Nehra .Both these bowlers have experience of  India -Pak games which can be helpful .

A lot of dimplomacy stunts have also been initated around this game with the Indian PM inviting Pakistan PM and President to watch the match. But one must not forget that the innocnet lives lost on 26/11 have still not been given justice and have been ridiculed in a way by this Pak Government.So even as this creates a perfect landscape for promoting international peace..India must not get carried away and let the world know that we r still upset abt wat happened in Mumbai.

Well if for nothing else at least for 26/11 we must not let Pakistan win the game and come to Mumbai. :-) This can be our small way of revenge but will be a big thing for the people of Mumbai.

Lastly one  thing that  I dont want to see is people staying in India  celebrating Pakistan's success on Wednesday.I believe there arent too many Pakistanis in India with work visas.Yet every now and then during an India Pak game  you get to hear fire crackers when Sachin gets out or one of our bowlers gets hit for a six.This one thing disturbs me a lot .There might be some differences amongst ppl  belonging to diff religions in our country but its a shame when people confuse religion with nationalism.I appeal to all Indians who will be watching the game on Wednesday to support and root for India till the end !!

Finally its just a game and incase we lose then we must accept it with grace .CHAK DE India ####

[P.S: The writer is not someone who has a religious bias but is a fierce nationalist.]