Makeshift

They say first times are real hard to let go,first love,first house,first car(you get the point).
My first 15 seconds of fame is a similar case.It was all makeshift,but it has etched itself onto me.

There I was cheering on to this band which called itself Makeshift,while they rocked my socks off.Little did I know that I'd soon be a part of them.
So like the name suggested,the band was makeshift,which lead-bass-vocalist being permanent members,whilst the rhythm and drummer were added to line-up later on.Anyway,trying to be a groupie,it spilled out that they were in search for a rhythm guitarist and I happened to be one.One thing led to another,and an audition later,woohoo,I was officially part of Makeshift!

Pretty soon it was practice time,as we were nearing our college's "Rock Show".There we were,a vocalist,a bass,a lead and a rhythm,but no sign of a drummer.A few calls here and there,and we found a drummer,a freaking metal drummer,with a shinny Tama kit,and then shit just got real!

A whole week off from lectures,practicing,cursing,laughing,lame-ass wannabe air-guitaring,gate-crashing our drummer into the college premises,head banging,a cutting chai at the end of it,discussing about shit,getting home,practicing even more,Nirvana,Floyd,Maiden ringing in head the whole day,and night,ain't nothing better than that.

D-Day,hands shivering(I swear it was the air-conditioning),and sweating at the same time(again,the air-conditioning)and we go back stage saying,"Lets not shit out  there and lets have some fun.In God we trust,and Rock we must(Anna you effing genius)".
There was I was watching my band perform Yellow,waiting anxiously to get on stage.The song ended and I made my way onto stage,and was handed my axe.Plugged it,checked sound levels,thumbs up and we were good to go.

Drummer gave count and I to a pin drop silence,I started my Smells Like riff,and holy fuck,wheres the sound.Nightmares-nightmares!
Anna stepped onto my processor a few seconds before start and detached my main cable.(Anna,kutte!)
Plugged in again,got the count again,and this time it smelled like teen spirit!

Nirvana-Deep Purple-Maiden,we did it all.And the best part,most of it,like our band was makeshift.A day or so before the performance,we were just sitting,talking,and suddenly someone plays Hallowed,drummer starts off,bass starts,and hold on,lets cover this.And just like that,Maiden made it to our list.And it didn't stop there."Abbe Fear of the dark karte hai,dekh aaise..",and before we knew it,another Maiden song got onto the list.

Sure I sucked,I shit a lot.At one point in Maiden,I even let go off my guitar and joined Anna on the mic,and sure as hell sucked at vocals as well,but who gave a fuck?I was high,high on this elixir called music.Those 30 odd mins,sublime.

Year two was even more better as Makeshift had for change 5 permanent wannabes.I even said lets change our name to something else.Mother-Haggers,Make-Shit,among others were my prominent suggestions.
Year two saw us headlining the "Rock Show",but that wasn't the real deal.The set list we had planned was the effing reason why I was so looking forward to the show.
Zero,The Doors,Pink Floyd,Metallica,GnR,we had planned out on everything.Heck,I was doing the leads on an instrumental.Heck heck,my lead let me take the limelight!(This is primarily why I respect you guys so much,we never had any ego clashes,it was always about music).

Jam sessions were even more better,even more heavier,even more fun,and yet full of shit!
We still followed cutting chai discussion at the end of the day.

D-Day all over again,hands shivering and sweating,again(darn you air-conditioning),the same prayer again,and we were at it again!
Same shit,same high,only much-much longer and better.The set list just kept getting better,and then we reached the penultimate performance,"Emosonal Attyachar".And,the whole place went gone nuts.I had never witnessed something of that magnitude.This one couldn't have been topped,and we called it off without the Metallica medley(saalon,kutton!).

At the end of it,packing up our stuff,I realised something.This was my last year with Makeshift.As much as I was high on the performance,this fact hit me somewhere.
Two years of memories flashed before me.All the music we played,all the music we talked about,all the shit we talked about,all the nicknames we made,all the noobs we made fun of,every freaking thing!

Sure,I went on without you guys the next year,sure I enjoyed,sure I got high,but it wasn't Makeshift!
The jams weren't the same.The double bass was missing.The Papdipoop wasn't there.
Anna's on-stage antics weren't there(No one can make the crowd go wild,the way you do),no Matrix moves(Sridharan),I relied on tabs rather than my ears(Ambuj),no more kick-ass drumming(Mukul).

Kutton,we need to jam.Get your asses back here!

Twenty20

Growing up,I always felt a little jealous of my elder brother.I always wished I would grow up quickly,and enjoy all the freedom in life,being alone,going to the movies with friends,pocket money,et al.And it was a never ending phase,because when I became what he was,he would move on another step and become even more awesome,making all my years of waiting seem worthless.
Hence,when he graduated and started working,started being independent,I just couldn't wait for the day I would I start earning.And now that I am living the phase which I had been dreaming about since the last 9 odd years,I have realized that it is nothing like what I had anticipated for.

For any teen,my life would like a fairy tale story.Still in my early 20s,working for of the top IT company in the country,staying in the city that never sleeps,friends who specialize in douchiness;yes,I live the dream.People find it hard to fathom,how someone can still be frustrated with such a life !
I used to feel the same,when my brother had started working.I would laugh at him,when he cribbed about his job.I would say,"How can you hate this?I can't wait for this phase of my life to begin !"

It started off the way I had always dreamt it would be like.It was a high.But then,the roller-coaster just decided to go for a plunge and never return.And,I knew,to be precise,like Leonard would say it,"I was attached to another object by an inclined plane,wrapped helically around an axis !"

World was shrunk to a size of 10x10;word/excel/paint was where I was immersed in;cell-phone and instant messengers were one of the most hated things,because of the constant work related calls/pings;changes were no longer inevitable,they were only requests;but the most difficult thing to do was to explain people,who knew nothing about my work,my work so that I can get their approval,to do my work.
Being saturated with frustration,PG seemed the only way out of this hell.But fate had some other plans.It seemed as if I had,the Sadim Touch.Tried to start preparing for MS,suddenly rupee decided to take plunge.Tried to quit,job security became the primary aim,in the tumbling economy.Tried to start preparing for MBA,government decided to make admission test common all over the country.

With no choice but to continue with the job at hand,I struggle to see the path ahead,try to survive in the rat race,where sycophancy is the way of life.I sit there,seeing my youth being wasted,at a rate of 12 hours/day.

Algorithm to buy a cellphone

Step 1 : Watch the launch of  "the future of smartphones" online.Keep talking about it,read the reviews,drool over it,till the phone is officially released.

Step 2 : Check the price of the phone.

Step 3 : Login to your net banking account,and check your balance.Sulk as much as you like.

Step 4 : Say to yourself,"Hmmm .. maybe the prices will drop in a couple of months.Till then I can make do with my current phone".

Step 5 : Check the price of the phone again in 2 months.See a strikeout on the 30k price tag.(Enjoy the moment).
Scroll down to find the new price,Rs. 29,499.
Start off a series of swears.(Language no barrier).

Step 6 : Check for the next best phone.Say to yourself,"Hmmm .. maybe the prices will drop in a couple of months.Till then I can make do with my current phone".

Step 7 : Check the price of the phone again in 2 months.See a strikeout on the 20k price tag & an offer badge next to it.(Enjoy the moment).
Scroll down to find the new price,Rs. 19,499 and a case free !
Start off a series of swears.(Language no barrier).

Step 8 : Check for the next best phone.Say to yourself,"Hmmm .. maybe the prices will drop in a couple of months.Till then I can make do with my current phone".

Step 9 : Check the price of the phone again in 2 months.See a strikeout on the 15k price tag.(Enjoy the moment).
Scroll down to find the new price,Rs. 10,499.
Find the "out of stock" label next to it.
Start off a series of swears.(Language no barrier)

Step 10 : Look at your current phone and ponder as to why you need a new phone.
After some deep thought,reach on a consensus that you have absolutely no reason to buy a new phone.

Step 11 : Check the leaked images of a new cellphone about to be released in a couple of days.Go gaga over the blurry images.
Go to step 1.

A year on ..

Last year,this day,I was a different person.

A naive fellow,who was just done with his graduation,finished all the sitcoms,movies and games on his portable,who couldn't wait to start working in the IT industry.IT industry at that time was like a fairy tale,a 5 day week,8 hours of work,friday night parties with team and a handsome salary at the end of the month.Not to forget,the onsite opportunity in just a couple of years.Yes,thats what the guy had always imagined the IT industry to be like.Little did he know his life was going to turn turtle,and shatter his tale,in just a couple of months.

The first 3 months was just what I had imagined it to be.5 days of "work" a week,outing on weekends,hogging with friends,football,mafia,movies.And the best part,we were getting paid for it.Oh,how I loved those days.Little did I know that was the just the lull before the storm that was headed my way.

About a month into the training,we were asked to put in a preference for our base branches along with the stream of choice.Without even a moment's hesitation,I opted for Mumbai,and Java,the latter only because it the maximum seats for the former.At that moment,it seemed like the perfect choice.
Heck,I even tried my friends to opt for Mumbai and Java.But they were skeptical.I considered them as fools to let go off such an opportunity.
And since I was still living in the fairy tale world,I could see myself signing my visa papers in a couple of years,with that choice.
Looking back,I realize,I was just signing off my soul.

A year on,things have changed,drastically.Words no longer mean,what they used to.

KT:
KT is synonym with every engineer.No point in explaining !
Well,now it means the times when you need to sit after work and have your dose of knowledge transfer.

PL:
PL the month before exam,where the first 26 days were spent on movies,sitcoms and games,and the next 4 days searching/buying books and "trying" to study.
Now,it means the person who makes you work for 26 days,so that you realize the importance of the 4 days.

Deadline:
Deadline during engineering meant the day you need to start doing your work.
Now,it means the day you need to finish your work,get it tested,fix all the bugs and move it onto production.

Sleep:
The happiest time of your day,whether you were at your home,or in college.
Now,its a term,which is almost driven into oblivion.

But,somethings are still the same.
-All the good looking girls are in the other projects/buses/buildings and are committed.
-You still snooze your alarm and wake up to your mom's yelling.
-You still can't figure where your money goes.
-You hate what you do,and you wish you'd be doing something else.
-You still want to watch the next Himesss Resamiyaa movie.

All said and done,there are a couple of things I've learned over the year.
-Writing emails.
-How to get your work done.I've have mastered the art of 'cc'-ing a mail,and keeping people in the loop.
-Keyboard shortcuts and impeccable speed with alt+tab.
-Working with MS Excel.

If anything,this year has been an eye-opener,a preview of what your life is going to be.Lets hope I make mends with it.
Till then,I'll enjoy my first appraisal and hope some a good looking trainee joins my team. :)

No,nothing else matters

I didn't believe in love,but the moment I heard,"I Disappear",I knew I was in love with Metallica.Yes,it was love at first sight(or hear,if you may),and I've looked back since.The more I listened to them,the more I fell in love.Initially,I didn't get what the songs meant,I just loved the riffs.
But as time grew,I could relate myself to what they were trying to say.James Hetfield,you are a fucking genius.I can't understand how you can come with something so brilliant and still convey it with such ease.Not to take away any credit from Kirk Hammett,Lars,Cliff Burton,probably one of the best bass players,then the man who had to fill into the shoes of that person,Jason Newsted and of course,Robert Trujilo as well.

Anyway,its almost 12 years into this relationship and up and until the first 5-6 years,I thought listening to them was the best thing.It was then that I saw a couple of videos from S&M,that I realized,listening to them is nowhere close to the experience of watching them play.And eversince that day,there hasn't been a single day of my life where I haven't thought of them playing here in India.

I still remember having a discussion with my friend after watching a Big 4 video and my friend cribbing about the fact that how they'll never come to India.And to my amazement,just a week later,Robert Trujilo,uttered the words that I'd been dying to hear,".. and we'll be doing a gig in India".The following few days were just anxious waiting for confirmation on the news.And yes,this was no rumor as their website officially confirmed a tour in the "Uncharted Territory".
30th October was marked as my date with destiny.And the build up was nothing less than the gig itself,with friends sharing song of the day,cubicles overflowing with Metallica print-outs,frantic searching for t-shirts,bus tickets,plane tickets,deciding the place to stay,journey from the place to the venue.

28th October 2011 : Metallica cancels gig at Delhi,due to safety concerns.
Friends calling,depressed,nervous if Bangalore is going to the same as well.But me,I am all happy.
Why ? Because I wanted to attend THE FIRST GIG by Metallica in India,and with this news,I would be doing exactly that.(Am I Evil ? .. Yes I am !)

30th October 2011,D-Day and we were at the location and still hours before the gates would actually open,but who gave a fuck?Hours of pushing-shoving-false alarms of Metallica van-TV interviews later the gates were finally opened and we rushed as close as to the stage as we can.
After some "Safety First" tips came Inner Sanctum,and man were they good.Awesome beginning to the show.
Then came the party spoiler,whom I wont even mention.An hour later it was time of Biffy Clyro to awaken the dead crowd.And that they did to perfection.Ah,awesome music,rains and head-banging,it just kept getting better.But with all due respect Biffy Clyro,you played one too many songs!
Around 6.30,Biffy Clyro ends its setlist,signing off by saying,"15 years ago,we attended a gig at Glasgow and we saw Metallica perform,and it made us pick up the guitar and start making music"(Respect sir !)

Then came a Shinning White ESP Explorer,and was she sexy !And slowly the whole Metallica setup was on stage.Sound check in progress and we couldn't wait to just get a glimpse of them.30 mins .. 1 hour still no sign of them.Crowds getting restless.Fatigue starting to build up.Patience at stake !My friend turns up to me and says,how much more longer ?,and all I could say was,I've waited 12 years for this,I can wait more :)
People chanting swears.An hour and a half,and still no sign of them,and my friend turns up to me again,"Dude,now even you must be pissed !",and all I did was smile.

And then suddenly the screens lit up,I see Eli Wallach,yes its Ecstasy Of Gold.Yes,they are here !
30th October 2011,at around 8.00 pm,was the moment my dream was realized.Yes,I was there.To that sweet symphony,I saw 4 men walk onto the stage.This is no dream,this is my reality !
At that moment,Nothing Else Mattered.

And without wasting any time,they started off with Creeping Death.Drums which made my heart resonate on its beats,bass lines which hit me like a wall,solos that gave me a high,heavy riffs which made my head bang and lyrics which made me yell out of top of my voice,and I had officially attained Nirvana.There cannot be a more divine feeling than this for me.
With each song,the crowd kept getting louder and Metallica started getting happier.Oh I wasn't the only one in love at that moment.The whole place was in love.And Metallica sure as hell was in love with us.
Those 2.5 hrs were probably the best 2.5 hrs I've ever spent.If I could,I'd just stay there,forever.I had witnessed my Gods,live,playing the songs I've grown up listening to,with the people I've grown up,listening them with.Words cannot do justice to that day.

We didn't want them to go,neither did they want to leave us,such was our bond within those 2.5 hrs.If that isn't love,then what is ?

"So close,no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart
Forever Trusting who we are
No,nothing else matters"

                       3.50 - 5.40 : This memory shall always remain !

Dude,you spoke to a girl !

Girls,Girls,Girls .. Thats all we think about !
But,no matter what,when it comes to talking to a girl,we all are sissies !
Having the guts to approach a random chick and just say "Hi",and live to tell the tale,makes a you a God amongst your friends.

"Dude,you spoke to a girl !",is a ubiquitous sentence in a guy's life,but in each phase,it means a different thing altogther !

Phase 1 : The BlunderYears
This is the phase of a guy's life when he is surrounded by hot wheels and g.i.joes!
Girls are the last thing on a guy's mind,and the thought of being friends with one is way behind that.They are like our enemies !

And the day he is caught signing a peace treaty with one of them,all his friends will say is,"Dude,you spoke to A girl ?",emphasizing on the fact you've sinned,by betraying your own.

This probably the only phase in a guy's life where a girl approaches a guy,and the guy says,"No,thank you !"

Phase 2 : Teenage Years
Up and until 12 yrs and 364 day and 23 hrs,59 mins and 59 secs of age,a girl to a guy is what Microsoft is to Apple.But the moment the clock strikes 12,and he officially becomes a teen,he has an epiphany,and he goes,"What the hell was I thinking all this while?"

Everything has to be somehow related to a girl.Girl is the word for us."Hi,I am blah .. Will you Fransheep me ?".Though this time its the girls chance to say,"No,thank you !"
They just wont bloody talk with us !(Probably payback from the childhood)

And the day he says,"You know,that cutie from the next class .. Her bag touched me,so she turned around and said sorry,and I said okay its",he suddenly becomes a demigod !

"Dude,you spoke to A girl !",over here means he actually managed to do what all of the others just think of doing,talking to 'A' girl.

Phase 3 : Desperado Years
After years miserable failure,we become desperate for success.We dream about scoring the hottest babe in college,when in fact we are bonkers over the shy girl,on the first bench.We make up stories about how we spoke with her,how we are in the same classes(though she never notices you,and always hangs out with a senior),till the day you have a drink too many,and cry your heart out,and state the facts.Its the time when the wiser bud says,"Grow a pair dude,tell her how you feel.The other one is a bitch,don't screw your life over her !"

And the day you tell them you poured your heart out in front of her,they'll say,"Dude,you spoke to THE girl !",stressing on the fact that you managed to talk to 'THE' girl you wanted to talk to.

Phase 4 : Committed Years
Ah,the committed guy,a guy whose monthly phone bill is greater than his pocket money,whose weekends are defined by watching the crappiest of the romantic flicks(and still loving it),and visits to the coffee shop.Its a bliss when you aren't that guy(spare a thought for the poor guy,though).

Its time again for the wiser bud to step up and say,"What the fuck is wrong with you man ?You didn't come for the match,neither did you turn up the time we all went drinking",and all the poor guy can say is,"She wanted to shop,she had made plans already,sorry".
"Grow a pair,tell her to shop with her girl friends.You belong here,amongst the buds".

The few who manage to grow a pair,end up being single,and end up crying their hearts out yet again,over the same girl,in front of the same people,having the same drink,and all they get is "Dude,you spoke to the girl !"

Phase 5 : Denial Years(Applicable only for the ones who broke up in the previous phase)
"I hate girls,I'll never speak to one again,ever!",somehow makes its way into every second sentence uttered.This is the phase where the guy starts to listen to songs like,"Dust in the Wind",shaves once a month,doesn't give a shit of anybody,and doesn't even know what the hell is doing.
All he knows is he'll never speak to a girl again,and all he wants to do is drink with his buddies.And all his buddies can't help but think about the fact that he's more pain in the ass now than he was when he was committed.

This is until one fine day,a girl cutie will come up and ask,"Bhaiya,time kya hua ?" and all he can do is say,"Bahut accha",and the guy is back to his desperado phase.This time though,no wise guy tells him not to carry the shopping bags.

"Dude,you spoke to A girl !",emphasizing on the fact that,the same guy who used to recite the pharse,"I'll never speak to a girl,ever again",actually asked a girl out !

Phase 6 : Married Years
And so,the guy finally manages to settle down with the girl of his dreams.He has a wonderful life,everything is a Cinderella Story,and one fine day,an intern joins in the office,and the whole office drools over her.

He sits with his friends,talking about how others in the office make a desperate attempt to grab her attention(including himself,though he'll not mention that),and how he used to be so subtle back in his day.Everyone laughs it off,and tell him shes out of his league,even in his day.But the guy sees it as a challenge to his manhood,and one fine day calls her and with every iota of manhood on stake,he says,"Excuse me,whats the time?"

And just to cut some slack on the poor guy,they tell him,"Dude,you spoke to THAT girl !",stating that he still has it in him.

The Visionary

Its not often that you feel sadden by the demise of someone not related to you by blood.
Its not often that you wake up on a beautiful day,and feel sad.

Its not often that wherever you look,its the same news floating around.

Its times like these,that you know the world has lost a a great man,a visionary.Alas,today was one such day.

Jobs' life wasn't a fairy tale.He wasn't a child born with a silver spoon in his mouth,he earned it.He earned his life,the respect of all.That's what sets him apart.

He always believed in changing the status quo,and believe me did it.
It is this man's belief that computers can be a part of each house,that right now you own one.Hell,he even convinced IBM,who believed that computers were only meant for offices.And he even had the balls to "Welcome IBM" to the PC market,and make them believe what he believed in.
Jobs took what Xerox had,and took to a different level altogether.He believed in the success and he sure made it simpler for us.

It is the Mac-Windows war in the 80s that the computer has evolved to what it is now.Always trying to get the better out of each other,it was the consumers who always benefited.

He was driven out of the company he build,by the person he hired.But did that stop him?No !
He created NeXT,the roots of which are now used in OS X and iOS as well.

He changed the way movies were made,with Pixar.He pushed CGI to its limits.

All this while his brain child,Apple was going into drains.They had no other option but to call him back.And he didn't say no.Not only did he join,he brought the company back to where it belonged,with the iMac.
Years later,he revolutionized the personal audio industry with the iPod.He didn't "invent" it.He just took what existed and made it into something which was worthwhile.Thats the guys vision.

Soon after,Apple Inc. was back amongst the riches,all thanks to this man.But that didn't stop this guy.

He brought in the iPhone,which completely changed the way smartphones were made.Again,he didn't "invent" it.Smartphones existed,touchscreens existed,but,they never co-existed.He integrated all the great platforms into a one single device.Now,almost all smartphones are based on the same platform.
Again,we as consumers are benefited by this ever-growing competition.

He then took over the tablet world by storm,with the launch of iPad.Again,tablets did exist before the launch of iPad,but they truely came into being post the iPad.The iPad has come to a point where PC manufacturers fear it'll drive the PC market into oblivion.

And he didn't stop there.He kept making these devices more better and user-friendly.
Every WWDC,keynote was the event of the year,to understand what the future lies in store for us.

He IS the Da Vinci of technology.I can't imagine the world the world of technology without this man's brilliance.

He pushed the limits of his worker,too.He made them think,he made them work.He made them make his dream a reality.He was a leader.

Though he was often described as arrogant and petulant,at work as well as in personal life.Sure,he was.He did things which had no explanation.But then again,who doesn't? He is just like us,a human being,after all.What set him apart was the way he changed the world.

It was a sad day to see him step down as the CEO of Apple,for somewhere I felt no-one could think like he did,no-one could innovate like him.Still the fact that he was on the board of directors,gave a glimmer of hope.

The keynote a couple of days back was not the same without Jobs.I missed the man in the black turtle neck.I missed the guy telling me why I need to buy this product,why its better than the others.The same location where he revealed the iPod 10 years ago,wasn't the same without his presence.Something felt missing.

And today,to wake up to the news of his demise was really sad.Somewhere,the revolution in technology has also died,for his innovation and ideas is what propelled the market.Sure there,will be thinkers,but none like him.He will be missed.
Goodbye Mr.Jobs.Thanks for everything.You made the world a better place.You will always be one of the reason,geeks are the way they are.You will always be one of the reasons why I love technology so much.

I hope one day I'll join the legacy of 1 Infinite Loop.Bless me sir.

"Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do .. "