The Lucky One.

Raj was a having a terrible day, the worst in a line of truly bad ones. All day he'd been the victim of a cosmic conspiracy which was out to ruin his aspirations, goals and everything in between.

Or so he thought all day. 

He missed his usual train to work and ended up reaching an hour late to the office. That would've been alright had this not been the day of the big meeting with all the associates. His tardiness caught the bosses' eyes and cost him that coveted promotion he was eyeing all year. 

Or so he thought all morning.

Afternoon did not bring any respite with Raj having to skip lunch to work on an absolutely critical presentation. It didn't help that his co-workers were out on a fabulous team lunch at a newly opened fine dining restaurant. He knew they ditched him on purpose.
Or so he thought all afternoon.

As if things weren't bad enough already, Simran, his date for the evening, called up and cancelled on him. He was absolutely certain she was cheating on him and seeing that weasel Prem from management.
Or so he thought all evening.

As the work-day came to an end, Raj felt he was possibly the unluckiest person in the world. He decided to simply call it quits and head to the pub across the street for a stiff drink to drown his sorrows.

As he made his way across the street he noticed a small crowd gathered. Walking closer to the crowd he saw they were witnessing a performance by what appeared to be school kids, no older than 10. Although he wasn't in the mood to appreciate performances, the energetic movements of the dancing children were hard to ignore.

The dances continued for another ten minutes and Raj found himself glued to the ground as he felt overwhelmed with awe of the spirits of these little angelic children. As their performance drew to an end, the children all huddled around one of the performers, the youngest and the most energetic of the lot, and held up a banner with an arrow seemingly pointing to the child who was the centre of attention. Raj began reading the wordings of the banner. What he read made him wince -

"This is Ajay. He is 8 years old. He is HIV+ Please help support him with a small contribution"

Raj stepped back. Suddenly all the sorrows, the troubles, the hinderances he had faced all day seemed inconsequential. Here was a child, who for no fault of his own, was suffering from a disease with no cure and for whom the future held nothing but bleakness. Yet he was smiling, dancing and living his life.

And so Raj thought, for the rest of his life, he was the lucky one.

Wanderlust - Siem Reap

The Angkor Wat Temple at dawn.

Despite not being the capital of Cambodia, Siem Reap is probably more famous than the capital city (which is Phnom Penh by the way!). Why you ask? Well simply because of the world famous Angkor temples that lie a few kilometres on the outskirts of the town. In fact, almost all of the tourist traffic to this town is driven by these stunning testaments to humanity's devotion to the gods.

Interestingly, although the iconic Angkor Wat temple is featured in most travel brochures for Siem Reap, they are but a fraction

The Couple - A Short Story

It had been a long day at work for Divya. Her week long work conference had left her completely exhausted. Fortunately she was able to leave a day earlier. All she wanted to do was reach home and have a glass of wine with Arun. In her haste to catch the next flight out, she missed informing her husband of the change in her schedule and then later decided to surprise Arun.

Once she reached the apartment, she removed her keys to open the door. She was a tad concerned that the door wasn't locked. She figured that Arun must've left in a hurry that morning and missed locking the apartment door. Once she entered the apartment, a few other things caught her eye that raised her suspicions about something not being right. There was loose clothing lying around the living room leading a trail to the bedroom. She began tip-toeing and followed the trail of clothes, all the while trying to keep her imagination from running astray.

Once she reached the bedroom door, what she saw completely surprised her; her husband in bed with Mrs. Kamini Mehta. The adulterous couple froze as soon as they caught a glimpse of Divya. Divya's husband stumbled to get words out of his mouth, anything that could help him with the rather awkward situation he was in. Unfortunately all that he could manage was "What are you doing here?"

Before any other words were exchanged, Divya stormed out of the bedroom and left the apartment. As she entered the elevator, she removed her handphone and dialled a number. The telephone ring at the other end was abruptly cut short as a friendly male voice answered - "Hey!".

Divya replied gleefully - "It's me! Guess who I caught cheating with YOUR wife? Yep, MY husband! Looks like we won't have to worry about the divorcing our spouses after all, Arun."

Wanderlust - Bangkok: A Photo Essay

The Royal Palace Complex

We (the wife and I) had the opportunity to visit Bangkok over the New Year Eve weekend. Although the trip was about ringing in the New Year in style, we ended up walking around the metropolis exploring the myriad sights and sounds. Here's a compilation of some of the snapshots

Iron Man Three: A Review

There's no denying that Favreau's Iron Man was single-handedly responsible for not only resurrecting the Marvel franchise (after Spider Man 3 and Fantastic Four 2, it was kinda bleak) but also responsible for the success of Marvel's cinematic Phase One  endeavour.

Iron Man Three is set post The Avengers and incorporates a few sub plots and background stories from the ensemble super hero flick. Primary among them being the anxiety that Tony experiences quite frequently all through the movie. We are introduced to a menacing Bin Ladenesque terrorist leader, The Mandarin, played masterfully (on many levels!) by Ben Kingsley. Guy Pearce plays a scientist colleague from Stark's past who seems to have a hidden agenda.

Comic book readers will already know that the first two movies were partially based on the Extremis storyline. The threequel exploits a huge portion of the same storyline including characters and the virus itself. Although with a few cinematic adaptations and modifications.

It's worth noting that IM3 isn't directed by Favreau, but instead by Shane Black. Now that may not be a huge cause for concern for most viewers. However the movie does echo his style and does become a tad different in terms of style and execution as compared to the preceding two flicks. This may be a good or bad thing based on our affection for them.

There are some truly cool moments in the movie such as the Iron Man suit being donned by none other than the oh-so sexy Gwyneth Paltrow and the kick-ass army of Iron Men being summoned by Stark. But I'll be honest. Overall I wasn't blown away by the movie. The main storyline almost delves into a Fringe/ X-Files kind of procedural investigative drama when Tony sets out to uncover the true perpetrators of the so-called terrorist attacks. And for some reason a few of the anxiety attacks that our protagonist experiences were a tad underplayed and comical IMHO. I understand this isn't Shakespeare, but maybe they could have done something about it.

Another complain I had was with the entire Mandarin storyline, or rather the lack of it. Mandarin is the arch-nemesis in the original comics and fan-boys were probably expecting a substantial plot with the Mandarin being involved, especially since there was an allusion to his existence right in the first movie. So yea, if you're planning to witness some major Iron Man - Mandarin showdown, you'll be sorely disappointed.

The story does put a logical conclusion to the cinematic rendition of Iron Man, which may also mean that we may not see him appear in Avengers 2 (set to be released in 2015). Although the conclusion could have been a tad more full circle if elements from the first movie were used to wrap things up.

Despite it's flaws, I still enjoyed the movie simply because of RDJ. He's the Jack Sparrow of the Iron Man movies. The plot and story may be under performing, but they're bearable simply because the talented RDJ is in the movie portraying the protagonist. It is almost impossible to imagine anyone else donning the Iron Suit for future instalments of this highly successful super hero franchise.

Is this the best Iron Man movie in the franchise? No. Should you watch the movie? Absolutely! Especially if you loved the first two movies and are a comic-book/ super-hero fanatic such as myself.

Let's Talk

I'm a software engineer by education. Well technically I'm an Information Technology graduate. But well, becoming a software engineer is the most obvious career choice. In my line of work, developing or customising applications is a major portion of the job description. Major, but not the only one. Documentation is an equally crucial and required aspect of application development, maintenance and modification. From simple comments explaining changes within the application code itself to drafting technical specifications detailing the approach and changes.

From time to time you also need to liaise with folks who aren't all that tech savvy and need to be briefed about the application. Naturally apart from written matter, oral communication forms an integral part of this interaction. And like most businesses across the globe, communication in our line of work also takes place in the Queen's English.

Trouble is that most folks in the IT industry aren't all that concerned about their communication skills. And no, I'm not being judgmental. This is based purely on personal observation and experience. And I'm not talking about violations to Wren & Martin's English, I'm referring to the utter lack of elementary knowledge or understanding of basic communication in the English language.

Trivial things such as pronunciation of certain words, forming simple sentences or even the correct usage of words and phrases seem akin to uphill tasks for these folks. And the worst part is that almost none of them are aware of the faux pas they commit on a daily (in some cases hourly!) basis. It's truly frustrating for someone who has been brought up to subscribe to the notion that communication should stem from use of proper diction, grammar and enunciation. I've come across examples of simple email communications gone awry due to the use of absolutely incorrect language. There have been phone calls where I've bit my lip from laughing at the funny pronunciations of commonly used words and truly creative rendition of standard phrases. And I cannot count the number of times I've had to mentally correct the other party when involved in face to face conversations.

So what's the problem here? Are the folks in the industry not interested in speaking and/or writing correct English? Or is it something beyond that? In my opinion this phenomenon can be attributed to a couple of factors.

Let's start from the start (Duh!) English as a first language isn't common beyond certain private schools in most countries globally. As a result education is imparted in another language and English becomes a second (or even third) language for many school children. Think about how proficient you are in a language you learned as an additional one way back in school! Not that good at conversing in high school French or Spanish are you?

As students progress through their high schools and later their colleges and universities, this starts getting to be a slightly larger issue. Students need to focus their attention to their subject majors which are usually related to coding. Little known fact about programming, most of the syntax and semantics aren't bound by the laws of regular english grammar! Oh yea, there maybe a subject which is meant to educate the kids on the importance of Communication and proper English. But let's face it, when you're studying to major in Advanced Database Management, conversing in English isn't on your top ten list!

Even the hiring process for fresh graduates is no different. A major portion of the evaluation process focusses solely on your technical abilities and puts quite a minimal amount of focus on your conversational or communication abilities. After all, the employer is paying you for your knowledge of writing that complex piece of code, not for your flair to use the right words when describing your Curriculum Vitae. Are they wrong in doing so? Not entirely. After all they ARE looking for technical experts, not Shakespearean orators. Any other skill, decent communication or otherwise, is simply an added bonus, not an essential qualification.

The industry too is not very critical of your lack of grammatical knowledge. Of course no one wants to spend (read waste!) their time attempting to correct the other person's communication. Partially because they don't wanna snub the other fellow, but mostly because they just want to get the real job done, the technical one. You'd be surprised at how many times I've heard Project Managers putting up with truly ungifted conversationalists simply because they didn't want to lose out on his technical prowess by correcting his (or her) god awful grammar.

And please remember that communication goes beyond just the proper use of grammar. Etiquette is an important aspect of communication as well. Something as common as clicking the "Reply" instead of the "Reply All" button when responding to emails or avoiding the use of brightly coloured or image heavy content when sending memos across to multiple recipients. Or even the tone and pitch that need to be adopted when speaking to someone over the phone or in person are lost causes.

So, the question is, does it matter that the IT folk can't hold up a decent conversation in English without succumbing to making grammatical faux pas? Well, that's something I'll let you, the reader, decide.

*Disclaimer - Although this post talks about the lack of grammatical knowledge among the IT folk, there is a very good probability that the author of the post himself may have committed numerous grammatical mistakes as well. Go easy on him alright. Do not feel obligated to post comments!

Oz The Great And Powerful - Reviewed

L. Frank Baum's The Wizard Of Oz is perhaps the most popular work of fiction to have been adapted for the silver screen and stage alike across the decades. From the iconic movie adaptation starring Judy Garland as the naive Dorothy to the off beat version with an all african american star cast, Hollywood has been inspired time and again by the author's beloved children's book.

And the fictional universe of Oz has served as the breeding ground for other writers/ own take on the memorable characters. Chief among them being the Wicked: The Life And Times Of The Wicked Witch which also sprang a hit broadway musical. So it was about time someone made a movie with the titular character, the Wizard, as the protagonist; Oz The Great And Powerful is that movie.

Opening in Kansas, we get a glimpse of the life of one, Oscar Diggs, a travelling circus magician who is interested in a life beyond the confines of simplicity and humility. A con-artist and a ladies man, Oscar "Oz" dreams of greatness and is willing to step over anyone to achieve that dream. However fate decides to choose otherwise and our con-man's aspirations are literally "twisted" when a stray tornado spits him out of Kansas city and into the wondrous land of Oz.

A seemingly fairy-tale land, Oz is filled all sorts of colourful flora and fauna which enthral Oscar till he meets a beautiful stranger who believes Oscar is the prophesied "Wizard" who shall rid the land of the wicked witch and bring peace and prosperity to their land. What begins from that point on is our beloved "Oz's"  journey from selfish grifter to a selfless hero. Along the way, Oz faces some perils and befriends a variety of colourful characters, some of whom foreshadow events and people from the original story.

Directed by Sam Raimi, this story serves, in many ways, as a prequel to the 1939 movie The Wizard Of Oz. Like the earlier movie, Raimi's film opens in black and white and goes into full colour once our protagonist enters the land of Oz. The look and feel of Oz are also pretty similar. And the resemblance between the Wicked Witch of West in both movies is also quite consistent. These similarities, as stated by Raimi, are intentional and serve as an homage to the classic movie.

First timers, who watch the movie with no knowledge about the Oz universe, let alone the Wizard, will probably scoff at the ludicrous characters and locations. However the script does manage to stand on its own and should not bore the noobs. For those who have read or watched the original story will be delighted with the numerous allusions and homages sprinkled throughout the movie.

Visually the movie relies on CGI extensively and as a result does a great job. The musical forest sequence is quite cool and well orchestrated. But don't fret if you are reminded of Avatar at some point since the two movies share the same art director. Raimi's trademark in-your-face scary visuals are present in portions and are a throw back to his Evil-Dead days. Speaking of Evil-Dead, Raimi's trusted cohort, Bruce Campbell also stars in this movie. (Extra points if you can spot him at first try!). The rendition of Emerald City and Glinda's Castle are truly masterful.

This story is set approximately 20 years prior to the original Wizard Of Oz, so there's scope for a set of additional prequel stories being planned with the same cast, which is a good thing since all the cast members (even the voice cast!) are excellent. Mila Kunis and James Franco are truly talented actors and are a fine fit to the story.

I'd definitely recommend the movie to fans of Baum's Oz universe. And if you're one of those noobs, you'll still come out of the movie hall smiling. So go watch Oz: The Great And Powerful!