Initial Impressions!

A week that started on a rotten note ended with me " putting my feet up" as Ricky Ponting would put it. Though it has been a couple of weeks with my first employers, my weeks still run from Monday to Sunday (for the uninitiated, weeks in office run from.....Oops! I forgot what they told me during my induction. Good riddance!).

Roger lost; India lost and worst of all, I had to wake up at 7 in the morning after spending a weekend with customary rainy-season blues. Though Indian cricket has ceased to captivate me ever since the Dravid-Chappell era, my jingoism and misplaced sense of national duty make me want India to win every time they play. But I would still take an Indian defeat for a Federer slam! How can somebody not like Roger? His equanimity, confidence, humility and class have meant that my support for him has always been unequivocal. Besides, I have always found Nadal's physique repulsive and obnoxious.

Getting sacked by your first firm within two weeks of joining wouldn't necessarily constitute a "peak in your career" and being a firm believer in journalistic propriety, I shall stay away from that. So what about India's greatest paradox, Mumbai? The standard organizational answer for that seems to be the "place where the slum-dwellers and the millionaire co-exist". I have found Mumbai to be a pathetic city to be honest with deplorable representation in the IPL. I am still to comprehend the fascination for this city that seems to be omnipresent amongst creed of our kind. I bet that there would be no other city in the world where you would require a train, a two-wheeler, a four-wheeler and a boat to really feel comfortable about moving around.

It is a city with messy traffic jams; gargantuan property valuations and uncomfortable pollution levels so much so that I reckon it won't be long before slums start constituting a reasonable bedroom, hall and kitchen integrated 1 BHK. The positives would be the pubs, the malls and of course the ubiquitous opposite sex. I wonder if girls have a similar priority list too! The only thing that has really elicited a chuckle out of me would have to be the cops. All cops look eerily similar; have greying moustaches the length of which would have given Veerappan a run for his money; have those big tummies with a book in hand and an Enfield for support and keep chewing something or the other. They would indeed make good brand ambassadors for the pan/ghutka firms though I may be naive in assuming that they have not yet shifted to friendlier confectioneries.

All these inconvenient truths about Mumbai reminded me about the 'trinity of books' that V.S. Naipaul -guess I have to call him Sir but again I am in an organisation which is extremely flat and discourages such practices; just to prove I wasn't sleeping all along during my induction- wrote about India which I unsuccessfully tried to complete during my vacations. The innate pessimism and inherent negativity about India made me give up finally. Vidya Naipaul might have praised by the sycophantic Indian media for the positive specks that he might have thrown out but I find it hard to reason why we seem to be ever so keen to embrace him as Indian. I consider him to be as much of an Indian as I consider Shobaa De to stand for the whole of humanity. Her penchant for female chauvinism would come a close second to the Left's China posturing as far as cliches go in Indian society.

Talking of which, I am really starting to get worried about the high rates of inflation and the economic recession for the first time in my life. I have got a pay coming up and have got a decent list of necessities, comforts and luxuries to procure. Most of my friends have already felt the pinch after a couple of dinners with their girlfriends - one of my luxuries by the way- and have already started anticipating their next pay. Some of my friends are also in the pursuit of trying to figure out which job would suit them best and are in the process of shifting already. Choosing the best place to work has all of of a sudden become as complex as solving Schrodinger's wave equation or understanding with certainty, Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle. You can carefully examine all options at hand and get confused; you can pick one out of those at random and still get confused after you start working or you can pick the one that pays you most and still get confused about the intricacies of the pay package. Maybe one of those IITians working should think of doing some research on how to solve this conundrum and come up with a mathematical equation . The very words 'higher studies' should only serve to add to his confusion.

Thus passes an uneventful life! Got to sleep now or I might well end up emptying the coffee-vending machine at office in my attempts to stay awake.

Vivam Joga Bonito

The football aficionado had given up on Euro '08. Without the ebullient energy of the Africans-so beautifully exemplified by that Senegalese midfielder, Papa Bouba Diop at the World Cup a few years back-and the creative and technical brilliance of the South Americans, he had forecast a bland, insipid tournament with the inherent fear- so much a characteristic of European sides-making for tedious viewing. It was a prognosis which had a background to it as Otto Rehagel had so efficiently but boringly illustrated with his Greek outfit four years back.

But just a week into the tournament, we have already seen some of the most exhilarating football on display at the international level in recent memory. European football has been given a whiff of fresh air by five sides playing some of the most pleasing (read audacious) football: Portugal, Germany, Spain, Russia and the Dutch.

The Oranje have undoubtedly been the story of the tournament. Renowned for introducing the concept of total football by that brilliant Rinus Michels and epitomised so brilliantly by the legendary triumvate of Ruud Gullit, Frank Rijkaard and Marco Van Basten at the '88 Euro Championships, the Dutch performance has indeed been a pleasant surprise. Notorious for internal bickering and attitude problems, Van Basten has made them communicate effectively through the medium of football. Their free-flowing style has been given impetus by the adventurous Van Basten and it is not difficult to see why Real Madrid want to get Ronaldo to complement Van Nistelrooy, Robben and Schneider. Now that would be quite a combination!


But let us not forget Portugal who have looked invincible albeit in an easy group. Very few coaches have achieved consistency at the international level in the manner Big Phil has and he continues to reap rich rewards with that system of a single forward, a playmaker and two defensive midfielders backed by - the now-to-be-certain World Footballer of the year- Christiano Ronaldo.

Spain are also flourishing by gambling with Elnino and the Mestalla favourite- David Villa- up front. But there are fears that Aragones' penchant for Xavi over Fabregas might cost them dear in the later stages at which Spain have been notoriously succeptible. Germany have just carried off from where they left in the last World Cup playing a brand of football that is so distantly German. For all the talk, Klinsmann has indeed been able to leave behind a legacy and inspite of that loss to Croatia, the presence of that talisman Michael Ballack must still make them contenders. Few footballers turn up for the big occasion as frequently as Ballack does and with the best 1-2 strike partnership in the tournament, they will be there at the business end of the tournament.

Guus Hiddink might have branded his team 'naive' after the loss to Spain, but there was a distinct Hiddink stamp in the way Russia played. The miracle conjurer- as Hiddink is known for his exploits with South Korea and Australia- has his task cut out, but there is unmistakable promise in this young Russian unit.

The most positive aspect about the tournament is that England haven't been missed and that is testimony to the football that has been on display. All the football aficionado can now say is Vivam Joga Bonito.

The IPL review

So,time to set aside egotism and make a few candid admissions:

1) The teams with the two best captains in the tournament entered the final. If the franchises are watching, this should lead to a paradigm shift in the way teams are constructed next season. From this point on, the author shall never question M.S. Dhoni's intentions as a cricketer. He has throughout this tournament shown his versatility as a batsman and the final loss only enhanced his reputation as a captain. At least this phlegmatic character will no longer carry the mridiculous tag of a lucky captain. He led his team with great composure to win the Fair Play award by a distance; he was tactically excellent throughout the tournament and the way he rallied his troops after the loss was for me the moment of the tournament.

2) The best team in the tournament won. PERIOD Mr.Hollywood won the battle hands down against Kollywood. The battle lived up to its billing but finally it was the colourful and enigmatic but inspirational champion, Shane Warne who had the last laugh. Though the author whinged at the fact that he was allowed to get away with pathetically poor over rates, Warnie was spot on with his tactical nous. Emerging Media- the laughing stock befor the tournament displayed all its cricketing acumen acquired from years of T-20 success at Leicestershire. The only outstanding choice they made was that of Shane Warne outside of Yusuf Pathan. But the champion leg-spinner tweaked it all together as only he can.

3) India's most revered cricketers were exposed as very poor captains. Ganguly, unsurprisingly, made some very smart moves as captain at the auction but had to suffer as a result of the no-show of Shoaib and Gayle as well as his own poor form. Laxman was let down by a set of non-performing assets including R.P.Singh and his injury and the collective tactical naivete didn't help. Tendulkar's choices were questionable and it was not until that PR man for all times, Harsha Bhogle brought in Bravo and Smith that Mumbai got going. Tendulkar was poor tactically in the close games but undoubtedly had a presence about himself. Dravid had nothing but his runs to crow about.

4) DC and RCB had awesome cheerleaders. RCB would have won the style quotient award any day with that leggy lass Katrina Kaif hogging more camera time than the team itself when she was present. The closing ceremony paled in comparison to the opening one as well.

5) The IPL was a bumper-hit in India. For an idea whose lead time was barely 7 months, the IPL was brilliantly packaged and executed. The gala and glamour was truly world-class; the organisation was brilliant and for once even the controversies were handled profesionally by the BCCI.

What I wrote about the IPL months back!

Lalit Modi is considered to be amongst the 30 most powerful Indians today. Heir to the Modi business empire; Vice-President of the BCCI; Commissioner of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and already it is a pretty heady list. And this canny businessman from Rajasthan deserves every bit of the accolades coming his way. A 7 fold increase in BCCI revenues over 2 years and a brainwave, the IPL that has sent the ICC and other member nations scurrying for cover and holding emergency meetings. The question that will inevitably rise once the pandemonium prevailing calms down would invariably be: Is the IPL here to stay?

Modi himself called the IPL India’s answer to the EPL (England’s club football championship for the less initiated) – the ubiquitous fad amongst today’s generation fed on an overdose of cable television. To the average sport enthusiast, this might sound perfectly reasonable and exciting. But the devil lies in the details.

Club football had its genesis in the later half of the 19^th century; a good half a century before international soccer kicked off. The Arsenals and the Liverpools of the world were well established by the time international football really kicked off with the first World Cup in the colonial era. Similar is the case with English county cricket which has its own history and hence is the most revered domestic competition. The IPL on the other hand is forced to do it the other way around. International cricket is already the established product and through the IPL we are initiating ourselves to the franchisee/club model.\

Here are a few numbers to digest first!

Going entirely unnoticed last year was a successful bid by ESPN to the tune of 1.1 billion USD for 18 ICC tournaments including the next two cricket world cups (one of which will be held in India) and a few T-20 WCs. Reconcile that with a SONY/WSG bid of 1 billion USD for the IPL over a period of 10 years. If you are left flabbergasted, it is with good reason. ESPN which had broadcast rights to the recent T-20 WC got advertisers to shell out 16,500 USD for a 30 second slot for primetime games like India-Australia and India- Pakistan. Even accounting for the same rates holding for the entire duration of the IPL (which is a fascinating assumption to put it mildly), Sony/WSG makes around 60 million USD annually which still represents a considerable loss. ESPN’s net advertising revenues during the hugely controversial and entertaining series of Australia was just 81 million USD. Whether the IPL is going to get as many people hooked on is anybody’s guess.

Now for the franchises!

The fascinating aspect about the franchise bidding was the valuations of some of the cities. While Mumbai, Bangalore and like were valued at sums in excess of a 100 million USD, cricket crazy Kolkata, Mohali and the rest were valued for sums sub 80 million USD. This is the clearest indication that the bids had more to do than pure business sense. Such wide differences would have been acceptable with a Delhi or a Jaipur which are not considered to be amongst the glamour capitals but what about Kolkata and Mohali?

The terms of the IPL say that almost four-fifth of the amount the IPL gets from media rights, sponsorship rights and television rights is shared amongst the franchises adding upto 10 million USD per year per franchise. CEOs of most franchises admit that local stadium rights, ticket revenues, merchandising and corporate hospitality could gain franchises a maximum of 8 million USD per year. This is assuming jam packed stadiums with ticket pricing at the levels of current international matches. Reconcile annual revenues of 18 million USD to annual operational expenses of around 8-9 million USD including player salaries and the initial investment that has been made to acquire the rights to the franchise to the tune of 7-10 million USD per year. For a logical accountant, the business sense doesn’t quite kick in. The franchises have been given the option to get listed on the Stock Exchange, but the detail lies in the fact that franchises and Sony/WSG, the two major investors stand to make losses for a considerable part of the 10 year period even considering a bumper-hit IPL.

And the lesson from the EPL is that clubs running losses generally sink in no time unless you are Mr. Roman Abrahamovich running Chelsea to get a foot into the glamour pie. Even if Mr. Ambani and Co. have similar intentions, it is certainly not a viable business model for a format very much untested.

This brings us to the question whether the IPL will take off from a cricketing perspective. If past flirtations with the franchisee model in India are anything to go by, the IPL is in for disaster. The hugely hyped Premier Hockey League is hardly in the news these days after a very successful first season. Similar is the case with the ICL. Rationalists will immediately point out to the viewership gap that exists between the two sports in case of the former and the ICL not really taking off with the latter. As cricket expert Harsha Bhogle points out, “The endurability of the IPL will depend on whether people will come out and support two teams at the same time: the national team and the respective franchise”. Critics feel that the IPL couldn’t have got its timing any worse with India threatening at long last to be a world power on the field of play. At this point in time, it seems too much to ask the average supporter to set aside nationalist jingoism for regional parochialism which would be required. This is unlike the EPL where years of national mediocrity have made supporters take refuge in the solace that the local club provides. Besides, there would also be a large chunk of uncommitted viewership in the Hindi heartlands, players from where have been largely responsible for India’s renewed strength. It is going to be difficult for a Mumbaikar to root against Agarkar playing for Kolkata bowling to Tendulkar. Similarly, the youth brigade would find it extremely hurting to root against Mohali which threw up some of the performers of the Australian tour.

Truthfully speaking, the IPL will provide a lesser spectacle in terms of the best in the world competing against each other when compared to the ICL. On careful analysis, most franchises wouldn’t be left with more than two mainstream international stars when the IPL reaches its climax due to international commitments. That leaves us with nothing but a jacked-up version of a regional T-20 tournament which was held last year, not surprisingly in empty stadiums. Most ICL teams on the other hand, have at least 4 international stars, albeit a few recent retirees.

The biggest obstacle that the IPL faces could very well have to do with the BCCI’s pretensions to help youngsters through this venture. The ICL which would be categorized as a damp squib for all practical purposes has however managed to send the BCCI into a corner over the state of domestic cricket in India; hence the move to have players from the franchise territory and U-22 players. It is undoubtedly going to cut little ice with anybody, least of all the cricket enthusiast who would rather have a full fledged ensemble of cricket stars. Astronomical salary packages would then be an exception rather than the norm and the issue of defections to the ICL would no longer arise.

Besides, it would make more sense if an Ishant Sharma turns out for a Delhi and a Harbhajan Singh turns up for Mohali because that could at least bring in some semblance of a franchise base. I expect the regional imbalances to correct themselves once transfers are allowed after the first season

If the IPL is espoused as the success of the free market, it should be allowed to operate in such a manner for it to be successful. Restrictions on the number of foreign players per team have only resulted in a few Indian players being over-valued. If reversed, the IPL would then be a star studded event even in the midst of international cricket as it would give the franchises options of buying based on the international calendar and huge salary differentials between international cricket and the IPL- the crux of most problems would be non-existent. .

Comment: In terms of a pure cricketing spectacle, the IPL might struggle to reach the heights that are being hoped for. It will be down to the hype-creators to package it as a commercial spectacle. But as in life, when your core product doesn’t have a very strong foundation there is only so much your marketing men will be able to do. The bitter truth is that T-20 is still not considered to be a serious enough form of cricket internationally and players very rarely bring in the same sort of intensity unless there is a significant prize at stake. Also bring to the table the fact that players are being bound just monetarily to these franchises and it is hard to see from where the competitive juices are going to flow in. It will be an entertainer because there is always a prospect of a Sreesanth staring at a Symonds and the Dada captaining at the Eden Gardens. But whether it will arouse the same passion that Sreesanth’s catching out Misbah did or the Dada ripping off his shirt after the Natwest Trophy triumph did is highly doubtful. It is moments like these that bring a cricket fan to the ground and make us follow sport. But when the stakes are considerably lesser, can the mere spectacle of a contest between bat and ball sustain itself to the audience? The IPL will certainly have to rewrite the rules of history for it to be successful.

Meanwhile, I shall enjoy the exciting climax to the EPL season.

Can we give champions their due?

A word on the 'corporatisation' of cricket. T-20 has been till now more of an exercise in fun and frolic. Some of the reactions from the owners have been immature and childish to say the least. A Mallya questioning the cricketing acumen of a Dravid and a SRK doing the same with Dada is untenable. This format has been popular just because it is so unpredictable. To expect captains to bring in consistency when this format is at such a nascent stage is foolhardy and cynical. The fact of the matter is that we are almost through the IPL and there are still no definitive patterns emerging about what constitutes the winnability quotient. The Rajasthan Royals still have the two cricketers reviled the most in the first week of the tournament- Munaf and Kaif; the Kings XI Punjab have two cricketers who have become the laughing stock of the nation- Sree and V.R.V Singh; the Deccan Chargers, most people's favourites at the start are competing for the Wooden Spoon and the Delhi Daredevils, favourites midway through the tournament are in all likelihood not going to make the semifinals. While the Kings XI are succeeding through their power-packed batting, the Royals have their bowling strength to thank.

The only deduction that can be drawn is that the successful teams have good captains and backroom staff. But, again, Kolkata have though I hate to say it, the most successful Indian captain, the most successful coach and towards the start, the most successful international captain. Rahul Dravid has been mocked for picking a 'test side' but his reasoning behind that was fundamentally sound. One-day cricket when it started was dominated by the West Indies, the best test match side then and Australia have been the best T-20 side putting aside the WC aberration. Ironically, Dravid's two biggest flops have been Misbah and White, heralded T-20 specialists and his biggest hit, Wasim Jaffer, who unfortunately got injured.

The way forward maybe lies in scouting for the best available Indian talent, something the RCB and DC teams haven't done. But there is no way that you could have forecasted that at the start of the IPL. It is a fact that wouldn't have escaped The Wall's attention.Just give Jammy another chance, Mallya! He has led a side with under-performing foreigners with great dignity all through the IPL in face of all this criticism and the fierce determination and passion of his mate from yore, Kumble and his could be felt in their last game. He has re-invented himself all through his career much to the surprise and delight of supporters and consternation of opponents and I wouldn't be surprised if the man has the final laugh next year. Anybody waging bets on a RCB final next year? Meanwhile, I get back to supporting Sree and his Kings XI side this year.

Sydney Test- Po(i)nting speak

What Punter Ponting's newspaper column would look like:

We were delighted to win the Sydney test match and get on level terms with Tugga's 16 match record streak. Though a part of that particular squad myself, I must admit that it is a special thrill when you are captain of the side and the record is something we are looking forward to obliterate in Perth.

I do understand that a lot of friction has been created courtesy events during the last 5 days and a lot of it has been blown out by proportion by the ever-discerning media. Admittedly, the umpiring was not of the highest standard but it isn't the first time that it has happened nor will it be the last. To suggest that we won the test match because of the officiating is unfair because this team has showcased over Melbourne and Sydney why it is the best in the world. I have also read players writing about how decisions seem to favour us in Australia all the time. I would like to remind them that we have been at the receiving end of some very ordinary decision-making in the sub-continent which we have always taken in the right spirit. Even in the recent ODI series, there were instances when Tendulkar had the "rub of the green" more than once.

There is no doubt about the fact that India are a very fine side led by an excellent and a widely respected skipper. We have been part of some gripping contests in recent times which players from both sides have cherished and played in excellent spirit. It is therefore indeed a pity that the gamesmanship has taken such a plunge as it did in India and in Sydney. I do back Roy Symonds fully and it seems to be interesting that the Indian management's complaint seems to be aimed more at the evidence on which Match referee Mike Proctor acted and not the decision itself.

Finally, there have been accusations that we have not upheld the spirit of the game. The Australian cricket team firmly believes that the umpires are there to take decisions which ought to be respected. There are hardly any international cricketers who walk these days which is understandable given the pressures of the modern game. We don't expect other cricketers to walk and we expect to be judged against the same benchmark. As far as the incidents of excessive appealing go, we all know which team has been pulled up most for the same. I have been extremely disappointed with comments from respected commentators about us cheating. I still reckon that there was no way that the ball touched the ground when I grasped it and Pup Clarke's case was similar too. Video technology according to most cricketers has been misleading when it comes to contentious catches and to go by that might not be very judicious.

We do like to play our cricket hard and party harder when we do win. It is very rarely that you have the opportunity to be part of such gripping contests and to come out better off is indeed very special. The victory was made all the more special considering that we had our backs to the wall on Day 1 at 134/6. It was undoubtedly a terrific performance by the guys and the 10 day break is indeed most welcome after the grind. We are already looking forward to the test at Perth and are keen to keep up our highest standards and etch our names in the record books.


This is utter nonsense according to the jingoistic author and you are most welcome to spew venom at Ponting and his men in the Comments section.

joie de vivre

In keeping with the theme of my tryst with destiny...oops, diseases every 15 months, here is the story of what can be euphemestically termed as "an experience which has made me mentally stronger". It started off with typhoid one fine March morning in the year of 2005; a severe bout of jaundice followed last year and then some disease last month too long (Say X) to be committed to memory. In hindsight, I don't know what afflicted me . Not to speak of the various bouts of fever, cold (common and not so common), amoebiosis and you will begin to get the picture of quite an exhaustive list.

Each one has been an 'enriching' and enjoyable period of time where I have had to do nothing sans eat, sleep and of course watch Liverpool get beaten. They have been ominous too for if jaundice struck me on my 20th birthday, my first surgery courtesy Mr. X happened "at the stroke of midnight" of my sister's 16th birthday as Nehru would put it. It has also enhanced my respect for the healthcare facilities in Varanasi. If jaundice made the docs feel that I was having a viral, Mr.X was diagnosed as a petty insect bite. If I were Sir Sunderlal, I wouldn't be visiting Sir Sunderlal Hospital any longer for personal healthcare.

Mr. X was the result of months of perseverance and sweat literally. It was some strange sort of fluid accumulation near my spine which didn't grant me the luxury of sitting, standing or sleeping. Life can be quite interesting in such situations when you spend considerable amount of time trying to optimize posture and pain. When the pain made me wonder whether it was an insect bite or an insect, I made the trivial mistake of visiting some King Edwards Memorial hospital in Mumbai during my Dussehra hols, a hospital which made me wonder whether we still lived in the days of colonialism. I have often believed that Government hospitals are hybrids between jails and asylums. You are held captive and finally you go insane. Much the same happened with me as I was operated upon without getting myself mentally prepared nor knowing about the status of the Liverpool game that night. Needless to say, the operation was an unqualified disaster and all it left me with was an ellipse with major axis far greater than the minor axis with a depth of 5 cms near the bottom of my spine. (I have been reading Geometry of late for CAT).

After two unsuccessful attempts in getting me to sit, my parents decided that home had to be the remedy for this. I didn't mind it too much for this meant that I was going to be able to fly business class at last though I was quite miffed at the choice of airlines.

I am still to fly by Kingfisher.

The flight was the most torturous two hours I had had. I wriggled myself into a ball on the seat and had at least 5 protective cushions. The menu was quite exotic but all I was supposed to have was 'cut fruits'. I tried hard to convince my parents that eating nothing constituted a significant drain of resources, but when pain becomes considerably greater than greed, you are forced to optimize better.

Trivandrum was funny because the doc felt that I didn't require any anaesthasia for my second surgery and I was smiling after my operation much to the dismay of my parents. I bet I woke up everyone in the hospital during that operation. Now this left me with a cuboid with length considerably greater than breadth and roundabout the same depth. Another week passed off in hospital in which I counted 103 injections when I was awake. Worse, the doc kept pulling my leg asking me to quantify my pain. My yells grew progressively shriller as a consequence.

Now, back to campus and the problems are much the same. Attendance, tests and assignments give me a feeling of deja vu. India and Liverpool continue to play poorly; Dravid continues to be treated badly and I am still lazy. But being able to stand, sit and sleep I guess is a considerable improvement. CAT has become an acronym for Come Another Time and I quite fancy my chances of becoming a medico if denied an engineering degree. My senses have dulled; my verbatim is just a fraction of my old self as you would have noticed throughout this post but I still for some inexplicable reason am back to my cheerful best. A word of thanks to all my friends who were with me through what was undoubtedly the toughest 20 days of my life. Meanwhile, I await my next tryst with destiny.

Getting Tagged!

This post was overdue for long courtesy my prodigal namesake (sorry for the cliche, mate) who was desperate to know me better as a person inspite of having spent the best part of 7 years together and had the gumption to tag me. So here are the rules of the tag:

1) Players start with 8 random facts about themselves.
2) Players tagged should post these rules and the 8 facts.
3) Players should tag 8 other people and notify them about it.

So, here is an attempt at convincing everybody that I am as weird as it can get. If you didn't know already that is!

1. I am a person who likes to seek everybody's attention though I do put on a deliberate 'fabricated' air of modesty and humility. I hate to be photographed or caught on video. I guess I am not the first 'celeb' nor will I be the last one to have a similar approach.

2. My favourite pastime would be watching Tiger Woods playing golf. I follow all outdoor sport and my friends will second my claims to being a great sports analyst. My recent predictions include India winning the F-50 World Cup and bowing out in the first round of the T-20 World Cup :-) My dream job would be being a sports journalist and going by past record, would make a good fist of it.

3. The only species I hate giving me company are mosquitoes and ants. I don't mind cockroaches, lizards and even snakes and have a fetish towards stray dogs. A tradionalist who believes in the adage "Live and let live", I believe I would have taken to the Stone Age just like a hippo takes to water.

4. I am a bit of a chauvinist in that I do believe that I am right in all my thoughts and actions. Though a good listener, I do get worked up very quickly when there are some thoughts brandished about which are very much against my central beliefs.

5. I am very poor in handling relationships and social networks. My parents consider me to be the worst introvert in the household though my friends will tell you otherwise. I do form conclusive opinions about people quickly and am very shy when it comes to dealing with a peer group of the opposite sex, something I would attribute to my background of hailing from a boy's school :-( However, it has given me a committed friends group whose company I cherish a lot.

6. I take my reading very seriously and feel very uneasy if I have spent an entire day without learning something new or significant. This reading includes anything but my academic text-books which I shun religiously.

7. I try and enjoy every moment of the life I live and feel very bad if somebody is wronged even if I ain't remotely involved. I consent to most requests made to me and have this annoyingly irritating characteristic trait of being unable to say 'no' to anybody.

8. I like to stay lazy and hence rate myself as being very poor at executing. I generally conceptualise and strategise pretty well and have a pretty good idea about how things should be done. I can give a flawless lecture on how to bowl leg-spin but if you want to see how it is done, look elsewhere!

Vikalp, Ravi, Paddy, Rai, Gopal, Anish, Akshay and Anand...You are at the receiving end of the misfortune!

Democracy or Hypocrisy?

In a couple of days, India's finest sportsperson till date and its only undisputed World Champion will add another feather to his already well-celebrated hat and it won't occupy anything but a passing mention in the remotest corner of the print media.

Viswanathan Anand has done more to Indian chess than Sachin Tendulkar has done to Indian cricket. For a sport that had been the pastime of the intellectual elite in India, chess has gone from being a no-hoper to India's most realistic medal prospect at the Olympics whenever it does get included.

India were already World Champions before Sachin started playing competitive school cricket.

Vishy has been the epitome of anti-Indianism when it comes to sport. Consistency, big-match temperament and an unique humility that has never caught the eye of the millions who lined up Mumbai a couple of days back or the State Governments and the Private Sector whose actions bore greater resemblance to a bidding house than institutions responsible for social development.

One can't grudge the plaudits that have come the T-20 team's way. Sreesanth might have been compelled to go back to his dancing roots had he dropped that catch after an insipid bowling performance. With such stakes and pressure, the rewards have to be commensurate. But rewarding individuals in a team sport? Australia didn't reward Warne even after 700 test wickets. It is quite sad that this idol worship takes place just in India and Pakistan and it is reflected in the fact that neither team has never ever had a truly outstanding year in international cricket. How can there be camaraderie in the team when certain individuals are being openly favoured?

This game of one-upmanship between the State Governments in favour of individuals was anything but in the spirit of democracy. My esteem for Narendra Modi grew when he refused to reward the Pathan brothers, but our cursed democratic fabric allowed the Congress to attach ridiculous communal undertones that forced Mr. Modi to budge. It is a democracy where failed international cricketers become pundits and pour vitriol at the cricketers thus incensing the non-intellectual masses whose memory is shorter than the 'Gobbits'. Koneru Humpy, Sania Nehwal and the shooters take loans to fund their foreign travels and the babudom sees no travesty in this. Even the Marxists don't talk of an egalitarian society and the rights of the 'underprivileged' when it comes to cricketers.

The future of all this? Expect friction to grow between Yuvraj and Dhoni and see India plunge back to its mediocre depths (Read 1-6 against Australia) interspersed by individual brilliance. Sportspersons of the 'OBC ' (others but cricket) category are likely to go on more hunger strikes and we will be celebrating the democracy in all this since our society allows such individuals to have a platform to ask for other rights.

Meanwhile, far off in Madrid, Spain, a mild-mannered champion would be taking off his glasses and telling Aruna Anand, "What a hypocritic country!".

Interview Travails-II

Life of a dummy

Interview Bloopers

Interview Travails-I

Note: The above cartoon has been reproduced from other sources and is not original work.

Spoilt for Choice!

It is one of those phases in life where you are called upon to make one of those decisions which everybody; family, friends and even the guy you meet on the street insists will make or break your life. Rings a familiar echo? Choices were supposed to be made after school and college but in most of our case, deliberately ignored.

Physics states that flow happens from a region of higher potential to one of lower potential. It might have been the flow trajectory that carried us after our higher secondary through our engineering dreams and the inevitable coaching institutes and deposited us as sediment in this beloved abode. Physics also states that every action has an equal and opposite reaction. This inherent contradiction seems to be too far beyond our grasp; or are we letting things drift by choice?

The greatest civilizations were borne out of these sediments.

The point is are we still not mature enough to make that choice. My time back in the institute has been a far cry from what it used to be. Pay packages, eligibilities, interviews and current affairs have taken over from the uninhibitted joy and gay abundance that used to be available in unlimited quantities. Be it the girl on the street or a batting debacle, discussuions these days have veered towards the intellectual with etiquette given prime importance. There is an uneasy eeriness prevailing just like the calm before a storm.

My experience in HUL was a real eye-opener in more ways than one. It impressed upon me the importance of doing what I wanted and not to be carried by the current. I didn't quite enjoy my time over there and even though I ended up completing my project better than expected and ended up with a fair pay, I didn't leave the place all smiles. I might have delivered but I sure hadn't enjoyed the process. I did drop hints that I wasn't interested in one of the funniest interviews that I will ever come across. I don't think that I would have stood a miniscule of a chance even if I had been interested. Companies' recruitment mantras are simply incomprehensible though this is not intended to be a slight against anybody.

I am delighted with the end result and am proud of my choice even though I don't have the slightest idea as to what comes next. Uncertainty about other options is surely not a good enough reason to opt for superficial fulfilment.

With the placements coming up, here are a few aspects that I felt needed to be shared in making that 'choice':
1) Never shy away from taking decisions. You are the best judge of your abilities and if you can't take a decision about your life, you are going to be doing no better with decisions on wind turbines and distillation columns. Company standing is important but you always have better growth prospects in companies that aren't exactly the toast of the world. There is lots of work to be done in such organisations and it could just provide your pathway to glory.
2) One of the major problems faced by all industries is the attrition rate involved. People are less likely to do well what they don't enjoy doing. You might develop a thick skin now and talk about adapting and developing cross-cultural relations but performance has always been related to satisfaction and external pressure. Pressure might have got us through the initial years but at this stage, satisfaction will supercede pressure with all individuals.
3) Salary packages are exactly that- mere packages. Understand the work profile, development prospects economically and mentally besides compatibility. Company X might be offering you a few lacs less at this point of time but you might be earning more in a year's time. As my friend remarked, "Look at the larger picture. You will get to know the finer details".
4) Start exploring what you would want to do in life. We have been guided by fixed targets thus far like a JEE exam or a four year B.Tech. but now......? The very purpose of existence will cease to exist without those definitive targets.

The above might seem a load of the most sensible crap ever brandished but a year down the line, this could top the charts with most people. After all it is a question of 'to be or not to be'.

T-Raining Jobs

As I embark on one of the more significant assignments of my self-proclaimed professional career, here is wishing everyone good luck in all his/her training assignments. For some strange reason, the melancholy associated with parting has already befallen me after bidding all my seniors an emotional farewell. I have been through all this before in school but since 'we' were entering an exciting phase of our careers with the parting of a more temporary nature, it wasn't something that kept me down for long. I still keep in touch with all my classmates!

The reason why I am doing all this crap is because this is probably the most significant year in our lives (Haven't we heard that before? ). There must admittedly be some nervy people around wanting to crack a CAT, score well in a GRE, get a dream placement and some goddamnit who would just want to get placed. But in all their inner selfs, they would be wishing that college life could go on for ever with the little challenges that life throws up. I just wish all of them good luck especially the ones who have a chance of getting themselves placed by the end of these two months- the ones over at Ashok Leyland, Reliance, GE and Tata Steel. I have had some of my most rewarding moments and some real eye-openers in my life over the last three years and would honestly be the second person to be heart-broken if somebody's plans didn't fructify. I guess it is futile deliberating for 'as you sow so shall you reap'. But sentiments override sensible thoughts and despite all the heated exchanges I have had courtesy a bloated ego, my sense of importance or plain immaturity all I can conjure up is, "All the best, guys. You simply are the very best".

My first crush

Copyright Akshay Rajagopalan.All rights reserved throughout the world

Why India needs Greg Chappell..

A visionary without peers; an objective analyst without a semblance of a bias; a radical mind with an innovative approach...Greg Chappell in an honest appraisal in a soliloquy days before India left. Wouldn't India be better off with such clarity of thought???

Excerpts:

What makes a Cup-winning team?

It basically boils down to the fact that through my 50 or so years of experience of watching, playing, commentating, selecting, talking, living cricket, I have learnt that there are certain things that work, and certain things that don't work, and so we better focus on the things that do work.

So then that was the focus: we said if we wanted to build a team that had a chance at the World Cup, there were certain things that we had to do well - batting bowling and fielding being the basic components of the game.

But there also had to be belief - belief is very important. One of the things that the support staff and the coaching staff and the team management was very much focussed on over the last 20-odd months was that we had to build that belief.

"We didn't have a lot of time to waste"

You know, going back to whatever World Cup it was that Germany won in soccer, where they had this total football, Australia has worked towards total cricket and I think most teams have to build the flexibility, build the depth, have replacements for key players in place.

When we took over -- I talked about where we began -- Ian Frazer has been a very important part of what we have been doing here in India, and one of the reasons why, one of the... from the start is that his training and his bent, if you like, is in how can you train better, how can you develop more quickly... How can you change from doing it one way to doing it another way in the shortest possible time to get the most benefit. And with only 21 months from the time we started to this point, we didn't have a lot of time to waste.

"The best lessons have been when we've done badly"

So we sat down with Rahul Dravid when he took over as captain around July 2005 and we looked at what would the team that won the World Cup look like?

And so we looked at a whole range of things, all of the facets of fielding, batting and bowling. The team that wins the WC will be a good fielding team. The team that wins the WC will have flexibility and depth in batting, and it will have bowling that will also have flexibility and depth, and more than flexibility, you know, the mental creativity to be able to adjust.

So, with Kiran More as chairman, with Rahul Dravid as captain, and with the support staff, particularly Ian Frazer and myself, we sat down and we looked at the components. And each step along the way, we had to review - before each series, after each series, we sat down and said how are we going in regard to this blueprint. And funnily enough, laugh if you like, the best lessons have been when we've done badly.

"We've made mistakes..."

Following the West Indies tour last year was a great time to review where we were at. The Champions Trophy, the Malaysian series before that, they have all had good lessons for us, some of them quite painful lessons, but lessons we had to learn if we were going to get to the point to do well at the WC.

We had fixed views on the qualities that were necessary, but there was no fixed view that we had to have this player, we had to have that player. And we've made mistakes - again, you have to make mistakes to learn some lessons. None of this is a perfect science, development of people generally is not a perfect science. It is a combination of experiences that all come together to develop the individual.

We've had to take risks, we've had to put players under pressure, we've had to give them challenges that they have never had before, you know, if they only think the way they have thought before, then they'll do the things they've done before and they will get the results they got before.

Now in the West Indies, we saw things we hadn't seen prior to that. You know, we had that run of 20-odd games where we won 18 of 22 or whatever it was, including a world record of 17 chases. That didn't teach us as much as failing in the West Indies. We realized that we were in danger of going down the wrong path here, we need to rethink this and change direction.

"We couldn't afford to have fixed views..."

A cricket team is a work in progress at any stage. At no point can you say, right, this is it. We can't go to the World Cup and say, right, this is it, we've got the format to win us the World Cup. We will have to be flexible enough to change our attitude and our thinking on certain things at various stages during the World Cup. So we, the coaching staff had to be flexible enough to do that, the players had to be flexible enough to cope with.

And I think one of the big things, one of the big challenges for the coaching staff in the time that I've been here is that you know, I think certain players and certain segments of the media had fixed views about the roles for certain players. We couldn't afford to have those fixed views because otherwise, the team wasn't going to progress.

If you only look at wins and losses, and this is something we have had to do along the way, we have had to take the risk of losing a few games to gain some advancement, to be a better chance for when we came to the World Cup.

We threw the batting lineup around, because we had to find out which players had the capacity to cope with pressure, which players had the capacity to perform well in this role, you know, was he better placed to do a role in this position in the batting order or in this position? Was he better placed to bat early in the innings, later in the innings, or in the middle of the innings?

So if we didn't try the different combinations, we wouldn't know what we had got. We have had to risk losing games to get some answers, because you can't get those answers in the nets, you can't develop players in the nets.

You can do a lot towards developing them, but if they can't take those lessons from the nets to the middle, then you haven't advanced them at all. You know, some of the players haven't been happy at times, because it is not the roles that they felt they were best suited to, or that was best suited for them, but we had to find the best roles for the team for each of those individuals, and I think we are as close as we can get to having worked that out.

If two bowlers are best bowling at this period of the game against this type of opposition because they've got a lot of left handers, or they've got a lot of players who play spin well, or they've got players who are susceptible to pace, then we have to change the format of our bowling attack for that particular game.

If we go in and say that this guy is going to bowl at this particular stage of the game in every game, we won't do as well as if we prepare to change that depending on the conditions. And what we have tried to do is give ourselves back ups for key players.

"When we lost Yuvraj, it exposed us..."

And it was nothing to do with - probably the best example of how important players can be and their role in the team can be was when we lost Yuvraj. He was probably one of the best one day batsmen in the world at the point when he got injured. And he was a key component in that successful run of 18 wins. When we lost Yuvraj, it exposed us to what problems we really had.

On Rahul Dravid

So all of a sudden - no, not all of a sudden because we were already planning down that path, and Rahul Dravid has been heavily involved in this from day one; I mean, Rahul Dravid is the captain, we haven't done anything that Rahul hasn't supported, and rightly so because he is the captain, he is the man who has to go out there in the middle. And there have been times when he has said no, I don't think that is the best way to go, this is the best way to go, and that is fine, because again, he is the guy that takes the team out on the field, and as much as he has been criticized at various stages for not being his own man, he has been very strong at various points along the way, because if he is unhappy with the team that he has got, that is going to impact on his ability to lead that team.

But, you know, we've pushed him as well, from a captaincy point of view, you know -- he came into the captaincy without a great deal of experience, I mean, he captained India on a few occasions but it is different being the real captain to the stand-in captain - it's been a huge adjustment for him and I think he has done a fabulous job, to be honest.

His captaincy during that period of 18 wins had a big bearing on us winning those games. And he is learning all the time, he is trusting his instincts better and better all the time, you know, he has had a strong input - for instance, when we came back from the West Indies, one of the areas that we had to change, tackle, was we realized that those overs 20-40, maybe even 15-40 but particularly 20-40, are critical overs in the one day game as it stands today, with the three power plays, and particularly playing on wickets that are less true.

"Sehwag had been struggling at the top of the order"

So we looked at the personnel that we had. It didn't work very well for us in the West Indies, we didn't feel we had the right balance in the middle order for those middle overs, so we looked at who were the best personnel to do it.

We felt that there were overs where you needed power to go through the field rather than just going over the field, you had to have creativity; the one player that we identified during that stage was Virender Sewhag, as one guy who had that power, had that creativity. Sehwag had been struggling at the top of the order, so here was an opportunity to give him a new challenge and learn something about, from two aspects, learn something about batting in the middle overs because for most of his life he had been batting at the top of the order, but also understanding some of the difficulties of the guys batting in the middle order, so that even if he didn't eventually finish up being the man batting there, he would have a different perspective as an opener of how difficult it is for these guys in the middle overs, as the ball gets softer, as the field spreads - you know, it does become harder, and for him to have a proper understanding of that will make him a better opener...

It didn't quite work out because the one series where we wanted him to try out was the in Sri LankaWest Indies. Where we made the mistake was in going to Malaysia and deciding that ah hell, we are running out of time, we'll try it here. We tried Sehwag in the middle order in Malaysia. It wasn't the right type of wickets, it didn't work very well and we had to rethink it. I think maybe the Champions Trophy might have been a better time to have tried it but again, you know, it is difficult, we came into the Champions Trophy, we saw it as an important stepping stone for the world cup, and we perhaps missed an opportunity to keep our development process going. and that series got washed out. They were wickets that replicated a number of wickets we played on in the

We thought we'll go with what we've got, and we didn't do very well. Again, it was probably a good lesson for us. South Africa on top of that, South Africa was always going to be a tough tour

Without Yuvraj again, we were exposed in the middle order so again, it caused us to stop and rethink. And to Rahul's credit, I mean he has been fantastic through all of this, I mean he has been willing to be the one to go to the top of the order, go down the order, go wherever he has had to go for us to find out different things. I mean if leadership is not about leading by example then I don't know what it is, and Rahul's been very good in that respect.

So coming back from South Africa, we weren't sure still at that stage whether Yuvraj would be fit for the World Cup. So the one thing that we've been working the hardest on, we being the playing group and the coaching group, is to find a solution to our middle order if Yuvraj isn't fit.

Sehwag probably wasn't that comfortable with the idea of batting in the middle order; so we talked to Sachin about it. By this stage Sourav had come back, so that had given us another opening option and a very good opening option, because he has had a good record as an opener.

So we asked Sachin to try it. I think it is fair to say that he wasn't, you know, that he preferred to bat at the top of the order, but when we explained to him the reasons and the need from the team point of view, he was prepared to try it and I think he has done a wonderful job with it so far.

A lot of people look at Suresh Raina as a failure. I don't see it as a failure at all, in fact, the kid's got a lot of talent, and if you have a look at the stats on Cricinfo of the last couple of years in one day cricket, his record in partnerships, in different areas, has been fantastic. He has been a good cricketer for India in the past, unfortunately for him there wasn't room in the 15 for this World Cup.

The good news is that he was forced out by others that brought things to the group that we could use. You know, Robin Uthappa has been a godsend, that's not probably the word I would like to use, he's been a blessing for us anyway, you know, he's a good field, he's a good thinker, he's an impact player that we can use at the top of the order, so he gives us backup.

"Yuvraj is on the way back and ready"

So we were looking for backups for key players, Sachin has provided us some back up for Yuvraj. Thankfully, it looks like Yuvraj is on the way back and ready. Rahul coming down the order also gives us some flexibility in that middle order

At this stage, we've had the bonus - Yuvraj is back and he is looking good. Dinesh Karthik has been sort of misunderstood, the flexibility he brings to the group is slightly misunderstood. We - and I use the royal we, Rahul Dravid, Ian Frazer, the selection panel, myself and others are involved in it - we played a couple of trial games in Chennai before we went to Malaysia and Dinesh played in the opposition team and opened the batting and played a couple of brilliant innings.

So all of a sudden we saw him in a different light. We saw him as an obvious backup for Dhoni in the sense that we've got a wicket keeper, a designated wicket keeper, not having to again cast Dravid into the sort of role to give us the balance, and he has the flexibility to bat up the order or low down the order, and as we saw in Cape Town, he has a great temperament, and he can fit into the fielding side very well, so he is an all rounder.

"We put a lot of faith into Irfan"

You know we put a lot of faith into Irfan because of his all round status. The potential that he has to make a big difference to our group - and again, the flexibility; if we want to go with five bowlers, five specialist bowlers, he is the only one that gives us that flexibility because he can bat. And again he can bat at the top of the order, he can bat down the order.

You know, I think he is best suited as an impact player at the top of the order and that is how we've used him, and with some success. Nobody factored in that he would lose confidence and form with his bowling, but he's been through that before and he's come out of it, and who's to say that something on the lines of the World Cup isn't going to bring the best out of him, because one thing we've found with him is he's got an amazing temperament -- we threw him into roles in batting that challenged him enormously, and he came through nearly every time.

It's been a challenge; it's been an important part of the development process of the group to get them to understand. I mean, we broke them up into small groups, because leadership in the field is critical to the development of a team, and what we found was that in the meetings, the senior players spoke and no one else spoke, because of the hierarchical nature of India and all of that stuff.

Munaf's been a very important part of that development; Zaheer coming back in the form and the mindset that he has had has been fantastic. Harbhajan has done a wonderful job for us in the middle overs; we are getting better at bowling at the death though we can always get better with that - again, you know, we've tried different combinations and for different situations and different conditions we've got a bit more flexibility. If we could get more flexibility it would be great, and Irfan coming back into form would be an important part of that; it would give us a bit more flexibility.

But we've got Sehwag and we've got Sachin and Yuvraj and we've got three pretty useful, you know, Sourav is medium pace and we have got three useful spinning options, I mean, Sachin can bowl seam up if he needs to or he can bowl off spinners or he can bowl leg spinners or a combination - very clever. So I think again, we have the flexibility to allow us to play to our strengths, and that is all we can ask for.

The End

The carnival has begun!

A week in which I had the party of my life at The Ramada; a week in which Muckshay (Mr.Shell) complimented me twice for the content on my blog and then linked all this crap on his blog; a week in which my academic output touched a nadir and then the icing on the cake-The commencement of the IXth Cricket World Cup.

Even though the Opening Ceremony lacked the pomp and colour of the previous one in South Africa, the way of life in the Caribbean was captured impressively and as is the case with everything else associated with this World Cup, people were willing to accommodate all the little glitches for this is the place where the Calypso style took its roots.

The tournament got off to a cracking start with two evenly matched sides on one of the finest one-day wickets I have seen. West Indies outplayed and outclassed Pakistan courtesy the 'Dwaynes'. The performance convinced me even more that Brian Lara is the most under-rated captain in World Cricket and that the West Indies will go a long way as predicted in http://adidasaddict.blogspot.com/2007/03/world-cup-swat-west-indies.html

This is a side that understands its limitations and Lara demoting himself was not a defensive move as suggested but an aggressive one giving sufficient leeway to the prodigal Samuels and attractive Sarwan to dominate. Gayle's sudden propensity to get himself out within the first couple of overs should be rectified with the minnows up next. Even though the bowling is considered to be their achilles' heel, what one saw was nothing short of world-class. Powell, Taylor and Colleymore constitute a high quality combination of pace combined with swing and accuracy. They have options and variety in the form of Bravo, Smith, Gayle and Samuels and an astute captain. If West Indies are able to hold back Smith as effectively as they were able to do while batting against Pakistan, expect some carnage.

Pakistan surprised nobody with their performance and tactical ineptitude. They continue experimenting with their openers thus depriving themselves of some well needed depth in their cricket. Inzy batting down the order is a decision taken out of fear for he is one of the finest players of fast bowling going around. Younis Khan needs to open the innings along with the talented Hafeez who should be told to curb that rush of blood. That would mean Shoaib Malik doesn't always fight out a lost cause as has become the case. Azhar Mahmood could add some tooth to an attack short on penetration. Their bowling is at best disciplined with the outstanding Gul their only real wicket taker. Naved's selection is bemusing to say the least. Akmal bats as if he needs to head to the loo real quick and the less said about Pakistan and its fielding, the better.

India needs to take in some lessons from the Pak. match for its side is structurally very similar to the Pakistan one, admittedly with more spine in the batting department. The way West Indies were able to wriggle their way out of trouble against Kaneria and Hafeez (read Harbhajan and Sehwag) should serve a reminder to Dravid about the need to play Pathan be it as opener. Spinners the world over are no longer a major wicket taking force and Pathan bowling cutters and opening the innings would not be a very bad idea against Bermuda and Bangladesh. The Bangladesh game will be a close one and will be watched with great interest. India struggled against Samuels and Gayle the last time they were here and coupled with India's inability to deal with left arm spin of late, it will be interesting to see whether Tendulkar and Sehwag in the middle order can deal with the impressive left arm trio of Rafique, Razzak and Saqibul. Aftab and Ashraful are the two match winners with the bat and Harbhajan and co. will have a contest on hand. India should win a close encounter.

England continue to be nothing but an over hyped side with its contingent of coat and tie commentators inculcated in the MCG manuals and their defeat against New Zealand highlighted the lack of depth and quality in their cricket. Kenya will trouble them on a slow track as will Ireland trouble Pakistan on a quick Sabina Park track.

Snapshots of something by the name of Opulence

The stage is set (literally) !!

n
Short Nap Underway!

Hehe! Food up for grabs (FOR FREE)!!



We ain't too far behind!!




Mother of Big Arguments






"........with engineers let us have sex".

Does Kota get a quota here too??

MBA or not, too young to be marrying........





And the perception is that 4th yearites are a lazy lot!!






And some most photogenic faces !!

Leveraging the 'spotLIGHT' !

The magnum opus!!

And I thought Opulence was the Annual National Management blablabla

MANAGING with bare minimum necessities??

A house packed! Or shall we call it 'Kakared'??





Some are a bit hard to please.....

In NAPt attention!!




Even Prahlad Kakar goes around with 'Black Cats'!!






Czar of the War finalists
Prisoners of War???




Star-gazing for 50,000 in cash...

Czar of the War finals in progress




The Czar of the War
Anwesh (IBMT, Bangalore)

Brimming or rather Grinning with cash

Winding up....(yawn)

The Opulence report by co-convener Ravi Bansal

P.S. All characters appearing in the above work of art are partly fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living,dead or sleeping, is not entirely coincidental. The author disclaims any responsibility in case of copyright infringements or violations and has hence deliberately not included himself in any of the snapshots inspite of being the chief protagonist, planner, schemer and executionist par excellence of Opulence 2007.

The above was just a snapshot of Opulence 2007. In case you want the complete collection of Opulence 2007 photographs for free, mail the author at varun.adidas@gmail.com

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