chaotic order

The story of English Dictionary. On my flight back last Saturday, after a cozy lunch served in the first class cabin, I settled down to read for God-knows how many’eth time the wonderful play of Shakespeare - “the Twelfth night”. I have a quite a strange affinity for Shakespearean drama. From my school days - when the very name of Shakespeare evoked immense disgust (because of its convoluted language, obscured imagery and bygone contexts) and the need to memorize huge tracts of painful orations - to the present time, when I almost love every written word ever penned by this great bard - the journey had been enriching and fruitful (to say the least), and like vatted wines, his dramas and sonnets have aged imperceptibly within me invoking a delectable taste in my literary buds, improving its sublimity and taste with each fresh reading and contemplation. Shakespeare wrote most of his plays and sonnets between the years 1590 and 1613 - the most prolific, productive and to a large ext

Rajni - a Janus-faced life It is not surprising to find a Hollywood actor professing or proselytizing a religious faith or spiritual practice. Tom cruise is known for his commitment to Scientology; Richard Gere, a catholic by birth, a Buddhist by choice has been active in the Tibetan freedom movement for a long time; Madonna, the pin-up girl of the eighties and nineties has switched allegiances multiple times from being a Jew, to a practicing Cabbalist, and then to Islam; Rain Wilson, a rising comedian indulges in Bahai - a Persian faith; Steven Seagal , the uncrowned king of martial art movies believes himself to be a reincarnation of the Dalai Lama; Robert Downey Jr, interestingly confesses that he is a “JeBu” – a Jewish Buddhist; or Russell Brand, the British actor, who chose to marry his girlfriend Indian style, is a committed practitioner of Kundalini Yoga( Incidentally, his Indian guru is now a very rich man!!) - The list seems to be endless, and this fashion statement to be

“Bala, each day I am becoming more and more insecure with my job. It is kind of odd because when I entered software industry fifteen years ago, I had very little knowledge but abundant energy, but now it seems as though the tables are reversed. I am becoming more self-conscious of my role, and every new task assigned seems an overwhelming burden. I am not able to plunge into a task with that gay abandon that I used to before. Something pulls me back, and saps all my energy…” I was talking to an old friend of mine a couple of months ago. He had called me from India, and after exchanging pleasantries, he broke into this monologue recounted above. I know he is doing well for himself - career wise. He joined a small company as a developer many years ago, and very quickly rose up the ranks to become a tech lead and subsequently a Project manager. About five years ago, he got married and now lives in a posh three bedroom apartment in Bangalore. Recently, he did achieve the distinction of

Junot Diaz’s “The Brief wondrous life of Oscar Wao” - A literary work of fiction What most of us often get to read in history books is this : ‘Christopher Columbus discovered Americas in 1492’; and after that, in a short few paragraphs, pages or chapters (depending upon who is writing the book), the focus shifts to formation of the Union centuries later, its civil war and all the rest of it. What is largely left out of these narratives is the wonderful account of Santa Domingo, the oldest European city in Americas and the first Spanish establishment in the new world; and the first stop of Columbus on his fourth voyage sponsored by the Catholic royalty of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain. The city was christened after its patron Saint Dominic. Rich in gold and fertile with abundant alluvial plains, it was a milking cow for the ailing Christian monarchy; and within half a century, the unbridled avarice and voracious appetite for much needed gold to replenish the impoverished royal cof

" Of late, I find no energy, intensity in daily life. You know, I am comfortably placed. Happy family, Decent house, respectable job ; but somehow, I don't find the energy to do the things I want to do. For example, I have been holding on to a book for the last three weeks, reading a few pages each day and then I begin to procrastinate. Similarly with Music, Drama, sports and all my creative interests - I know I got to be doing these things, but somehow focus eludes me. A lot of unfinished projects in my life , Bala..." We are sitting in coffee shop after our swim. Both of us are almost of the same age. He works in a senior management position in a bank, keeps shuttling between the West and east coats for work. A Well read person, and a very good conversationalist - I enjoy being in his company whenever I can. I replied.. " Yes, Drake (name changed). You are right. What you say is true of many of us. It is interesting though, that in my case, things changed aft

Shashi Tharoor : The rise and fall of an intellectual. Historically, the clan of “Tharoor” traces its origin to nearly two thousand years. They were an integral part of Namboodri’s, the great matriarchal lineage of Malabar - Theravada of Kerala, a community known for its learning, racial superiority and social exclusivity. Even today, a Nair (a member of this clan) in Kerala is a distinct breed; easily spotted by a demeanor that can only come with generations of genetic purity and polish. A cursory glance at Shashi Tharoor in the media, as he prepares to address an audience; or as he speaks in an interview; or as he saunters in a gathering, brushing shoulders with Lutyen’s crowd or seasoned intellectuals; or posing for a picture projecting his well-groomed persona embellished with impeccable taste - one senses, that, here is a man who was born privileged, bought up in the lap of luxury and now lives audaciously with aplomb and style. Born in London in 1956; educated in Montfort,

The dark lure of a towering Man, clad in black with a flowing cloak caressing the earth as he strides – tall and scrupulously groomed; magnetic deep eyes that seems to beckon from a world far removed from the present, a voice that is at once seductive and charming; a physical attraction that draws young nubile and lissome women irresistibly into his arms, yearning for that solitary long warm, wet and lascivious kiss that could appease their seething passion; their placid white swan necks yielding itself like a flower to the Sun with its throbbing veins pressing itself against their glistening skin - and then the Count lowers his face with a rapacious look in his eyes numbing the beholder with its hypnotic intensity, his red lips opening up ever so slightly revealing short, sharp fangs, ready to bite just enough into their succulent veins throbbing with blood; evoking a light lusty, throaty hiss from his victim, slurping up all vitality in the form of cabalist red liquid; those ghos