Jul 28, 2005

பிரிய சகி

Pic adopted from Nowrunning


பணக்கார நாயகி.. நடுத்தர வர்க்க நாயகன்.. இவர்கள் இருவரும் காதலித்து திருமணம் செய்துகொள்கிறார்கள். அவர்களுக்கிடையே நடக்கும் கருத்து வேறுபாடுகள் எப்படி பெரிதாக்கப்படுகின்றன என்ற புராண காலத்துக் கதையை அதியமான் மீண்டும் அரைத்திருக்கிறார். பழைய கள்ளை புதிய மொந்தையில் சரிவரக் கொடுக்கும் வித்தை எல்லாராலும் முடியுமா என்பதற்கு அவர் ஒரு சரியான உதாரணம்...

படத்தின் மிகப் பெரிய பலவீனம் கதை-திரைக்கதைதான்.. படம் ஆரம்பித்து அவசர கதியில் சகியும் (சந்தானகிருஷ்ணனின் சுருக்கப் பெயராம் - மாதவன்) பிரியாவும் (சதா) காதலித்துக் கல்யாணம் செய்துகொள்ளும்போதே தெரிந்துவிடுகிறது.. என்ன என்ன நடக்கப் போகிறது என்பது.. சதாவின் கர்ப்பமும் அதன் பின்னர் வரும் சில நிமிடக் காட்சிகளும் கொஞ்சம் யூகிக்கமுடியாதவையாக இருந்தாலும் அதன் பிறகு இறுதிக்காட்சி வரை எல்லாம் எதிர்பார்த்தபடியே போகின்றன.. சகி எல்லாருக்கும் முன்னிலையில் பிரியாவை அறைவான் என்று நினைக்கும்போது, சதா பிரிந்து நடக்கும்போது குழந்தை அழும் என்று நினைக்கும்போது, அப்பாவி கணவன் க்ளைமாக்ஸில் மனைவிக்கு ஒரு அறை கொடுத்து அடக்குவார் என்று நினைப்பதெல்லாம் நடக்கிறது.. நினைப்பதெல்லாம் நடந்துவிட்டால் ஆர்வம் ஏதும் இல்லை என்று பாடத் (அழத்) தோன்றுகிறது..

இருந்தாலும், கணவன் - மனைவி சண்டையில் மாமியாரையோ நாத்தனாரையோ கொண்டு வராததில் ஒரு சின்ன ஆறுதல்.. இல்லையென்றால் மெகா சீரியல் போல ஆகியிருக்கும்.. பிரியாவும் சகியும் சண்டை போட்டுக்கொள்வதற்கான காரணங்கள் எல்லார் வீட்டிலும் நடப்பதுதான். கண்டதும் காதல் கொண்டு பின் விளைவுகளைப் பற்றிச் சிந்திக்காமல் வருவதால் வரும் பிரச்சினைகளை அதியமான் நன்கு சொல்லியிருக்கிறார். காதலிக்கும்போது பெண்களின் உணர்வுகளை நன்றாக அறிந்து தான் விரும்பும் பெண்ணைத் தன்னை விரும்புமாறு செய்யும் சகி, கல்யாணத்துக்குப் பிறகு எல்லாமே தத்துப்பித்துத் தனமான காரியங்களை செய்து வாங்கிக் கட்டிக்கொள்வது உதைக்கிறதே.. கோர்ட் காட்சி வரை இயக்கிப் பார்த்து போர்-அடித்துப் போய் வேறு யாரோ ஒருவரை இயக்கச் செய்ததுபோல கதை எங்கெங்கோ ஜவ்வாகப் பயணிக்கிறது.. இப்படி ஒரு தீர்ப்பும், கோவை சரளா வீட்டோடு தங்கி ரகளை பண்ணுவதும் எந்த மரத்தினடியில் அமர்ந்து சிந்திக்கும்போது அதியமானுக்குக் கிடைத்ததோ..

மாதவனும் சதாவும் உணர்வுபூர்வமாக நடித்திருக்கிறார்கள்.. மாதவனாவது கல்யாணம் ஆனவர்.. மனைவியுடன் சண்டை போடும் காட்சியில் நடிப்பது அவ்வளவு கஷ்டமாக இருந்திராது.. ஆனால் சதா போன்ற இளம் நடிகை முன்கோபம் கொண்ட மனைவி பாத்திரத்தில் தத்ரூபமாக நடித்திருப்பதற்கு ஒரு சபாஷ் போடலாம். மாதவ்னும் தன் கோபத்தை அடக்கிக்கொள்ளும் காட்சிகளில் வெளுத்து வாங்குகிறார்.. ஐஸ்வர்யா அம்மா வேடத்திலா? சுத்தமாகப் பொருந்தவில்லை.. கோவை சரளா எரிச்சலூட்டுகிறார்.. ரேகா, சீதா, ராஜலக்ஷ்மி, சச்சு, பிரதாப் போத்தன் போன்றோர் ஓரிரு காட்சிகளுக்காக மட்டும் வந்து போகிறார்கள்..

மாதவனின் அவ்வளவு பெரிய வீட்டில் ஒரே ஒரு TV மட்டும் ஏன்? ஐஸ்வர்யாவும் பிரதாப்பும் என்ன தொழில் செய்து அவ்வளவு பணக்காரர்களாக இருக்கிறார்கள்? கல்யாணம் ஆகி ஒரு வருஷம் ஆனபிறகு விவாகரத்து செய்யமுடியும்.. விவாகரத்து வழக்கு தீர்ப்பு வரும் நாளிலிருந்து ஒரு வருஷம் ஆகவேண்டும் என்று அதியமான் தன் வசதிக்கு சட்டத்தை மாற்றியிருக்கிறார்.. குழந்தை பெற்றுக்கொள்வது பற்றி முன்கூட்டியே பேசிக்கொள்ளாத அளவுக்கு மக்குகளா இருவரும்? ஒரு டைரி விவகாரம் பூதாகாரமாக உருவெருப்பதும் அப்படித்தான்.. கணவன் - மனைவி இருவருக்கும் நடக்கும் விவகாரங்களில் மாதவன் மீது அதிக தப்பு இருப்பதாகக் காட்டிவிட்டு பின் பாதியில் ஒரு பெண் என்றும் தாய் என்றும் இருப்பதற்காக சதாதான் இறங்கி வருவதாகக் காட்டியிருப்பதையும் தவிர்த்திருக்கலாம்.. கடைசிக் காட்சியில் அம்போவென்று நடு ரோட்டில் நிற்கிறார்..

மருந்துக்குக் கூட காமெடி இல்லாதது ஒரு குறை.. பரத்வாஜ் இனிமையான இசையில் காதுக்கு இரைச்சலில்லாமல் பாடல்கள் கொடுத்திருக்கிறார்.. ஆனால் எல்லாமே எங்கேயோ கேட்ட மாதிரி இருக்கின்றன.. மொத்ததில் படம் பெண்களுக்கும் நடுத்தர குடும்பங்களுக்கும் பிடிக்கும்.. மெகா சீரியல்களில் கட்டுண்டவர்கள் அல்லவா..

மாதவன், சதா நடிப்புக்காக B- கிரேடு கொடுக்கிறேன்.


Jul 26, 2005

Safety in Labs

OK guys.. couldnt resist the temptation to write this soon.. so, here I go..

I love chemistry. I chose chemistry after my school because I love those colorful experiments. I remember doing 'exciting chemistry' at my home when I took some salts and sulfuric acid from my +2 lab all the way to Rameswaram and demonstrating in front of my folks by adding some acid and making all of us cough with some stupid gas generated. When I think of it now, I have mixed feelings. What a terrible mistake it is.. When I said my dad that I chose chem., he was quite worried for this reason.

The level of safety and hazard awareness in most Indian school is pathetic.. All of you guys would have done chemistry practicals at school and some at college too, right? Have any of you been instructed to enter the lab with safety goggles on? I seriously doubt whether even the best of the schools do that.. In my B.Sc. days, no goggles.. I heard that, even in reputed institutes like IIT's, in MSc chem. labs, no goggles!! Even in IISc, when I started my research, many labs across the chemistry departments never bothered about it.. How terrible.. Nobody needs to be taught about the importance of eyes.. in those young days, when one is playful and less responsible, accidents easily happen.. What if a drop of anything other than pure water falls into the eyes!!

I talked to my colleague here at UF and came to know that, even in their schools, they ought to wear goggles. I wasnt surprised at all.. All the profs in IITs spend a few years in the western countries and they are certainly aware of the safety issues. It is the responsibility of them and others to make sure that no one enters any chemical lab anywhere in the country without any protection. How much does a goggle cost? I am not talking about the high-end special plastic ones.. even those, which people buy from roadside shops while driving 2-wheelers, would suffice, to start with. How much does that cost - 20, 25 bucks? If a school or college orders it bulk, it would be cheaper and it would easily last for the 2 or 3 years the student spends.

Next thing that makes me boil each time I think about is how the laboratory wastes are handled and disposed.. I will write about it sometime later..

Jul 24, 2005

Introspection

Hi guys.. I took an unexpected break from blogging due to the following reasons: a) Tight work; b) Wanted to finish reading Ponniyin Selvan; c) To see whether or not I am addicted enough to not take a week off from blogging; and d) Why blogging?

Dont we Indians like chutter-puttering a little too much? Ram mentioned that his official and personal life took a little suffering due to blogging so he too took a week's break.. If the software professionals like most of you, who sit in front of pc almost the entire day, feel your work affected, then a synthetic chemist like me got more than affected.. so, my blogging would be during the weekend... may be 3 per week, I will try to stretch it to 4.. around the weekend.. but, do visit mid-week too.. if I could sneak out some time and if some interesting stuff is there to write about, I surely will..

Coming back to the topic, I have seen in the campus, most Indian guys always on fone, especially after 9 PM and during weekends.. Another similar class who roam talking on cell fone is that of American girls.. Not many American guys.... and relatively less for desi girls.. What is there so much to talk about, yaar?

My best period of academic success was during 1998-1999 during which period I worked like mad.. I hardly watched movies, hardly sat in front of pc and TV for pastime, hardly chatted for long.. I was near workalholic.. Didnt miss all the things really.. The satisfaction of work and the pouring resuls was there.. The reason for where I am now is mostly due to my hard work during those two years... The past few years havent been so good.. esp. the last year and half.. Gotta shrug off the cobwebs and back to full time work and work-outs..

If you do a google search for Padmanaban or G Padmanaban, "I am feeling lucky" would take you directly to the link in my PhD lab.. there is one more veteran G Padmanaban, who was the director of IISc and one of the most famous biochemists of our country. It is high time I pull my sox up and restart my journey towards greater heights..

Jul 16, 2005

Oh, Beauty !!


Flowers.. beautiful.. in different colors.. in different combo of colors.. Why? How?

It is a truly intriguing question.. well.. the world is full of lot of mysteries when you look deep and deep at the molecular level.. But, the color and beauty of flowers always amaze me.. For the sake of argument, let us not say “God made.. blah blah..” This is post is for those who think otherwise…

Color.. an easy concept but quite complicated fundamentally.. The flowers get the color due to some ‘pigments’ or, in simple terms, ‘dyes’ which absorb certain portion of sunlight so the remaining color is what we get to see. Now, the question is, how the plants, which are way low the food chain and supposedly less intelligent, create those astonishing colors..

Suppose I am a plant.. I want to spread out, so I want bees, insects, etc. to come and take the pollens from my reproductive organ, i.e. flower, and take it to some other flower.. How do I make them come to me? Fragrance is one way (which is another complicated matter, so let us leave it aside or for some other discussion), and the color is the other.. How do I know what the insects like? By accident, I saw a nearby plant producing a colorful flower (trying something new, according to Darwin’s theory), to which insects went in bunch so I got sad and decided to make them myself? Or, do I have to die a slow death and the ‘accidentally clever’ nearby plant would survive as the smartest? Is it the only plant from its family which made the beautiful flowers or did all of them who are in ‘hearing distance’ decided in a conference and implemented it? Oh man, I donno the answer so I deserve to die..!!

Ok.. so the nearby plant had some intelligence, and used its scientists in the chemical factory to come to board, draw a few structures, discussed which one will absorb in which region of the light and hence which color it would look, did a few trial-and error experiments inside to create some dyes and then waited for the bees? How did they know what the bees like? Any color, that’s why different plans have different colors in the world? Then how come different combo of color? Who taught to mix different dyes in different amounts at different parts of the flower? Most of all, can the plants ‘see’ what beautiful flowers they have made? Or, am I missing something?

Jul 14, 2005

பாம்பும் பசுவும்

நேற்று என்னுடைய 'ஹரிஹரன் ஹிட்ஸ்' இசைத்தட்டைக் கேட்டுக்கொண்டிருக்கும்போது 'விடுகதையா இந்த வாழ்க்கை' வந்தது..அருமையான பாடல்.. அதில் எனக்கு மிகவும் பிடித்தது....

பசுவினைப் பாம்பென்று சாட்சி சொல்ல முடியும்...
காம்பினில் விஷம் என்ன கறக்கவா முடியும்..

நல்ல ஆழமான வரிகள்.. அற்புதமான தத்துவம்.. என்னுடைய குதர்க்க புத்தி இப்படி மாற்றிப் பார்த்தது...

பாம்பினைப் பசுவென்று சாட்சி சொல்ல முடியும்...
காம்பினில் விஷம் என்ன கறக்கவா முடியும்..

இப்படிப் பார்த்தால் எதுகை மோனை இன்னும் நன்றாகப் பொருந்துகிறது இல்லையா.. (பாம்பு.. காம்பு)

அதோடு அர்த்தமும் சூழ்நிலையும் மாறிப்போகின்றன.. முன்னர் சொன்ன வரிகள் ஒரு நல்லவன் பழிக்கப்படும்போது பாடப்பட்டால் நான் மாற்றிய வரிகள் ஒரு கெட்டவன் நல்லவனாகச் சித்தரிக்கபடும்போது வரும்..
ஒரு கெட்டவனை (பாம்பை) நல்லவன் (பசு) என்று சாட்சி சொல்லலாம்.. அதைப் பொய்யாக்க யாராவது காம்பிலிருந்து விஷமா கறக்கமுடியும்..

மனம் நிறைந்த பிறந்த நாள் வாழ்த்துக்கள்.. கவியரசு அவர்களே.. உங்கள் பணி நீடூழி வாழ்க!!

Jul 13, 2005

New Ond-day rules and India

In a concluding part to my previous posts on the super-sub rule and powerplay 5 rule, this piece focusses on the Indian perspective. Harish Dugh, in Indian Express, has expressed fears that these new rules would be disadvantageous to India and drive Indian cricket the way Indian Hockey went, after the rules were suited for more muscle-power.

Let us have a look at the current Indian team. How many players have the experience and skills to make it into the one-day team?
Our batsmen: Sachin, Sehwag, Saurav, Dravid, Laxman, Yuvraj, Kaif, Mongia. (8)
Bowlers: Zaheer, Balaji, Irfan, Nehra, Harbhajan, Murali, Kumble (6)
Wicket-keepers: Dhoni and Dinesh Karthik. (2)

I didnt mention about other contenders like Badani, Sriram, Sodhi et al. who are reasonably good too.

Let us suppose that Dravid no longer wants to keep wickets, so one wicket-keeper is a must.. Dhoni did well against Pak, so he deserves a good run. That leaves us 11 places to fill with, but we have 14 batsmen + bowlers !! Even if Sachin and Saurav dont play in the forthcoming tournament, we have 12 players. Go with the remaining 6 batsmen and 5 bowlers (leave Kumble). For this tournament, choose a bowler as the 12th man, since the batting is little weak. After this tournament, when the batting is in full strength, choose a batsman as the super-sub.

In the three games of the Natwest Challenge, we have not quite got a full glimpse of the new rules. But, one thing is certainly clear. The toss HAS become more important than before. As you can see, all the three games were won by the team winning the toss. In the third game today, Vikram Solanki was used as a super-sub after the England batting collapsed near the half-way mark.. so England was left short of a valuable bowler like Simon Jones.

Leave the luck factor aside and hope & pray that it evens out during the course of any tournament.. In that case, I dont see any reason why the super-sub would be disadvantageous to Indian batsmen. The same would apply for the powerplay 5 rule too.. It is not true that all the muscular batsmen are great hitters. We have seen examples in all our major batsmen in India, Pakistan and Srilanka who, when in form, have torn apart any bowling challenge thrown at them. Unlike baseball, which is a slam-bang game and thus requires strong muscles, cricket requires a fine coordination of brain, eyes and hand..

Hence, in conclusion, these new rules demand a smart-thinking, risk-taking, in-form captain. The rules need to be fine-tuned, of course, to remove the toss bias, and may be, as few suggested, make a batsman pick one player as super-sub out of three announced. That would be more interesting.

Jul 12, 2005

பொழுது போக்குகள்

(Pic adopted from acdsystems)

அவனுக்கு போர் அடித்தது. சரி.. கொஞ்சம் ஏதாவது கடலை போடலாம் என்று யாஹூ மெஸெஞ்சரில் நுழைந்தான். ஒவ்வொரு அறையாக நுழைந்து யாராவது பெண் பேச கிடைப்பாளா என்று தேடினான். அப்போது சொய்ங்... ஒரு பேச்சு அழைப்பு அவனுக்கு வந்தது. பெண் பெயர் 'அழகான இந்திய பெண்- 22'.. ஏதும் விளம்பரமாக இருக்கும் என்று விட்டுவிட்டான். திரும்பவும் ஒரு அழைப்பு.. "ஹேய்.. நான் உன்னோட அறிமுகத்தைப் பார்த்தேன்... நீ பார்க்க அழகாக இருப்பதாகவும் உடற்பயிற்சி செய்து நல்ல உடம்பை வைத்திருப்பதாகவும் அதில் எழுதியிருக்கிறாய்.... எனக்கு உன்னைப் பார்க்க வேண்டும் போல் உள்ளது.. நானும் அழகாக இருப்பேன்.. உன்னிடம் கேமரா உள்ளதா.." என்று அழைப்பு சொன்னது..

அவனும் "நன்றி.. ஆனால் என்னிடம் இப்போது கேமரா இல்லை.." என்று பேச்சு கொடுக்க ஆரம்பித்தான். அவள் மெதுவாக அந்தரங்கமாக பேச ஆரம்பித்தாள். இவனுக்கும் ஜாக்பாட் அடித்தது போல அளவில்லாத மகிழ்ச்சி.. 'ஆஹா.. பழம் நழுவிப் பாலில் விழுந்தது மாதிரியாக அல்லவா இருக்கிறது!' என்று தனது கற்பனைகளை எல்லாம் அவிழ்த்துவிட்டான். உற்சாகமாக அந்தரங்க உரையாடல் சென்றுகொண்டிருந்தது.. கிட்டத்தட்ட அரை மணி நேரம் சென்றிருக்கும்.. திடீரென்று ஒரு குறுக்கீடல்.. "ஹேய்... போர் அடிக்குது பா.. டீ போர்டு செல்வோமா?" என்று அவள் கேட்டாள். இவனுக்கோ ஒரே குழப்பம்.. 'அவளுக்கு எப்படி நான் இங்கு இருப்பது தெரியும்.. ஒரு வேளை IP அட்ரஸை எப்படியோ கண்டுபிடித்து நான் இருக்குமிடத்தை கண்டுபிடித்துவிட்டாளோ.. அவளும் இங்குதான் வேலை செய்கிறாளோ.. ஒரு வேளை எனக்குப் பரிச்சயமான பெண்ணாக இருப்பாளோ.. எப்படி அவளை எதிர்கொள்வது..' என்று நொடிப்பொழுதில் நூறு எண்ணங்கள்..

'சரி.. ஒரு பெண்ணே என்னைப் பார்க்கத் தயாராக இருக்கும்போது நான் ஏன் யோசிக்கவேண்டும்' என்று நினைத்த அவன் "நீ புத்திசாலிதான்.. நாம் இருவரும் எப்படி அடையாளம் தெரிந்துகொள்வது?" என்று கேட்டான். அதற்கு பதில் "நாம் இருவரும் ஏற்கனவே பார்த்திருக்கிறோம்.. பேசியிருக்கிறோம்" என்று வந்தது. மீண்டும் குழப்பம்.. கேள்விகள்.. "சரி.. க்ரேட்.. நீ தெரிந்துதான் என்னிடம் பேசியிருக்கிறாய்.. எப்படியோ என்னைப் பற்றியும் மோப்பம் பிடித்துவிட்டாய்.. உன் பெயர் சொல்' என்று கேட்டான். கிடைத்த பதில்: போடா.. நான்தாண்டா அபிஜித்.. உன்னோட ரூம்மேட்..

Jul 8, 2005

Ponniyin Selvan - Anyone ???

For long time, I had a wish to read Kalki's Ponniyin Selvan. During my childhood, I have read several classics like Sivakamiyin Sabatham, Kadal Puraa, Chithira-p-Paavai, Parthiban kanavu, Kanni maadam, etc. by both Kalki and Chandilyan. I was really fascinated by the way the authors portrayed the Chola and Pallava dynasty by their amazing imagination and depiction. Ponniyin Selvan was around, but it was too long for me to read (when I first got access to it, I was 11).

Now that I wish to read it, I saw a few websites (Amazon and Indiaclub) but couldnt find the Tamil version. Only place I found it was udumalai.com, which is located at West Mambalam. So, if anyone of you knows where I can get it in the US, plz. let me know.. I would really appreciate you I promise..

Jul 7, 2005

Powerplay Rule

The second new rule to the one-dayers is regarding the bowling under fielding restrictions. After my first post on the super-sub rule, this is my analysis of how it would affect the game..

What is the current situation?
Fielding restrictions are in place for the first 15 overs. Only two fielders are allowed outside the circle. Usually a high-scoring opportunity for the batsmen. Bowlers who err even to a small extent in line and length get punished severely. For the rest of 35 overs, the field is spread out. So, until the slog overs, usually batsmen look for consolidating and take lots of singles and twos.

What does the new rule do?
Fielding restrictions would be in place for the first 10 overs. After that, the fielding captain has to enforce it in two batches of 5-overs each.. which means that there are maximum 20 overs per innings with the fielding restrictions on. More headache for captain, since he has to take into account various factors before deciding to bring the field in. The average one-day score would go slightly up, since there are 5 more overs for batsmen to swing their bats freely.

What are the finer points?
The new ball is easier to hit.. so, after the 10 overs, when the ball is still relatively new, the field spreading out would discourage the batsman to hit freely. When the ball gets older, and when spinners operate, the chances for a mishit or stumping are higher.. the ball doesn’t come on to the bat that easily, so only the batsmen with good hand-eye coordination can hit the old ball to the boundary. This means more demand for a better technique. On the other hand, with wickets in hand, the batting team would be waiting for the field-restricted overs during the closing stages of the innings eagerly.. so, only the bowlers who can bowl wicket-to-wicket and intelligently can survive an onslaught.

What would be the strategy?
Unlike the super-sub rule, this involves a lot more strategy.. the captain has to be on his toes all the time.. A lot of factors are to be considered before deciding when to go for fielding restrictions:

a) Bowling strengths: Usually two best pacemen would bowl the first 10 overs. If atleast one of them can bowl another couple of overs, and if there is a good support bowler, then the captain would be tempted to finish off atleast 15 overs on the trot (Aus is a good example with four good bowlers who can bowl even in the first 20 overs). If the run-rate is under control and if the batsmen are struggling to score, then all the first 20 overs can be field-restricted. If the scoring rate is high and/or more than 1 or 2 wickets hadn’t fallen, then spread the field out and wait for the dangerous batsman to fall and a new guy to come in.

b) Pitch/weather conditions:
If the pitch is assisting the fast bowlers, keep the fielding restriction ON and bowl in a test-match-like scenario to take as much wickets as possible and keep the run-rate as low as possible by tight bowling. If it assists spinners, bring the fielders in and and let the spinners have a go at the batsmen with a slip, silly point and/or forward short-leg..

Experience from the first match:
Both the captains took the safest route.. of finishing off both the powerplays within the first 20 overs itself.. while it made sense for England, considering that (i) the openers were scoring at a slow pace and (ii) Gilly departed in the 16th over and Hayden in the 17th, it cant be said so for Australia. With a mediocre 220 to defend and with both the England openers going strong, he could have spread the field after 15 overs… worth noting that during the second powerplay period, the English batsmen started swinging their bats.. so controlling the runrate could have been a better idea.

காலையில் ஓர் கவிதை

புலர்ந்த அந்த காலைப் பொழுதில்
உணவகத்தில் பாலோடு காத்திருக்கையில்

பச்சைப் பசேலென வந்தாள் அந்தப் பைங்கிளி
யாரிவள் மனதைத் தாலாட்டும் பூங்கொடி

சிவந்த உதட்டினிலே அழகான ஒரு புன்னகை
கண்களும் சிரிக்கும் அவள் நான் காணாத ஒரு மேனகை

உணவைப் பார்ப்பதா
அவள் உடையைப் பார்ப்பதா

உணவில் மிளகாயைப் பார்ப்பதா
அவள் கையின் வளையலைப் பார்ப்பதா

அவள் என்னைப் படுத்தும் பாடு அவளுக்குப் புரிகிறதா
இதழோரத்தில் தோன்றி மறையும் குறுநகை எனக்கு ஏதும் சொல்கிறதா

அவள் சூரிதார் அணிந்த விதத்தில் ஒரு நேர்த்தி
அவள் கூந்தல் புரளும் அழகில் ஒரு நேர்த்தி

அவள் உண்ணும் அழகை நாள் முழுக்கப் பார்த்துக் கொண்டிருக்கலாம்
பால் அருந்தும் அழகை கண் கொட்டாமல் ரசித்துக் கொண்டிருக்கலாம்

இப்படி பெண்களைப் பார்க்கும் ஆண் அல்லவே நான்
இப்படி ஒரு பெண்ணைப் பார்த்திராதவனும் நான்

இதுதான் அவள் தினம் காலை வரும் நேரமா
இதுதான் கதிரவன் பனியை உருக வைக்கும் நேரமா

அவள் என் கண்களை நேருக்கு நேராய்ப் பார்த்தபோது
ஒரு நொடி நின்று பின் துடித்தது என் மனது

அழகான ராட்சஸி என்று இவளைத்தான் பாடினானோ
அன்றலர்ந்த மலர் போல் இன்று தான் பிறந்தாளோ

இந்த தேவதையின் பெயர் என்னவோ
அவள் பேசும் மொழியென்னவோ

குட்மார்னிங் சொல்லியிருக்கலாமோ
ஹாய் இப்போதாவது சொல்லலாமோ

வார்த்தைகள் வெளி வராமல் தவிக்கின்றனவே
மூளையும் வேலை செய்ய மறுக்கின்றதே

எனக்காகவே இன்று ஸ்லீவ்லெஸ்ஸில் வந்தாளா
இவளுக்காகவே நான் வைகறையில் எழுந்து வந்தேனா

அன்று நான் உண்ட உணவு மறக்க முடியாதது
இன்று வரை அவள் நினைவு மறக்க முடியாதது

New Super-Sub from tomorrow

I got quite a few comments on my previous post on the super-sub (super-substitute) rule in one-dayers, to be introduced from tomorrow, when England takes on Aus. Firstly, I was wrong on my assumption that the captain can choose any 11 players after the toss, so the substitution would happen only after the match starts, i.e., after the first ball is bowled. Apparently and disappointingly, that is not the case.. the captains have to announce the super-sub aka 12th man before the toss. That doesnt make sense to me..

In Prem's blog, Chandan posted this useful link: http://www.ecb.co.uk/england/natwest-challenge/new-one-day-international-regulations-explained,609,BP.html, which officially answers the FAQ's on the new rule. It appears plain ridiculous because of the following reasons:

a) As SR put it, "now comes the toss....if team A has a batsman sub and team B a bowler sub ...then toss becomes useless ....OR if both teams have the same sub ... then the team loosing the toss is f***ed so toss becomes even more crucial .... ???"

there is nothing like the sub should always be a batsman or bowler ....the only thing that can be said is that team with a batsman sub (starting 11 with 6 bat and 5 bowlers) would 'prefer' to chase and vice versa (starting 11, with 7 bat + 4 bowlers + bowler sub, would like to bat 1st)

b) Rahul suggested in my earlier post that a batsman can substitute an 'already-out' batsman, which, according to the rules, cant be done. So, if your team has done badly by losing all the batsmen with only bowlers left, towards the end you can bring a batsman to replace a bowler who hasnt batted, and then try to prop up the score.

If you try to remove the 'luck' elements from cricket, the rule needs to change to give the flexibility of choosing any 11 after the toss. So, it would be a full-strength team both while batting and while fielding. Otherwise, my suggestion is as follows:

Suppose you announce a batsman as super-sub (and you wish to chase). But, you are asked to bat first in bowler-friendly conditions and start losing wickets.. If too many wickets are lost (6 and above) with quite lot of overs left, it is Ok to try to ask 1 or 2 bowlers (better bowlers) to go for quick runs.. if they fail, substitute the super-sub for the bowler who is poorest among the bowlers both in terms of bowling and in batting.. And pray that the super-sub stays till the end and help post a reasonable score for the remaining 4 main bowlers to defend.

This makes sense to me.. Every bowler is a batsman but not the otherway around. So, if you had already completed the substitution after, say, 6th wicket falls and see that no more wicket fell until the close of play, its useless. Also, no point in substitution unless if the 6th wicket fell around 40th over and atleast 4+ "Powerplay 5" overs are left.

Suppose you choose a bowler as super-sub and then you are asked bowl first.. you have given away too many runs in the first 10-12 overs.. you are in bad shape.. so remove a batsman-fielder and bring the super-sub to try to restrict the run-flow.. because, if you have to chase over 320-330, no use in having even 7 batsmen.

Jul 6, 2005

test

இன்று நான் முதல் முறையாக தமிழில் எழுதப் போகிறேன்.

Jul 5, 2005

So cute! ! !



My favourite panda

New rules in One-dayers -What would be the strategy??

The ICC cricket committee has decided to introduce some more new rules into one-day cricket, which, many thought, were becoming very predictable. First, one substitute would be allowed, who, like in soccer, can replace a player of the playing XI any time during the match. When I think of its impacts, this is what I get:

The current scenario:
A few substitutes are allowed, who can do only fielding. Usually you get some athletic fielders coming in place of sluggish ones, especially in the second innings. Most teams choose 4 bowlers, a wicket keeper and 6 batsmen, two of whom can bowl reasonably well. So, a genuine alrounder gives many good choices to his captain. Teams such as South Africa and Pakistan go in sometimes with only 3 regular bowlers, with players like Kallis or Afridi or Razzaq being good enough to bowl 10 reasonably good overs. More the alrounders, better. Rarely do teams choose 5 specialist bowlers, as in case of what India did for the TVS cup final in 2003 (which we lost, failing to chase a reasonable score).

What would the rule do to the teams?
The teams would announce the playing 12 before the toss. The team batting first would go in with 7 batsmen and the bowler with least batting capability (such as McGrath in Australia or Ntini in South Africa or Sami in Pakistan or Harmison in England) would be the 12th man. The fielding side would go in with 5 specialist bowlers and one of the batsmen would sit out. He could be (a) least athletic and/or (b) most precious batsman, but having a minor injury and/or (c) worst support bowler.

How does it affect the quality?
The effect of an alrounder would be surely lowered. In addition, players such as Shane Watson and S Sriram, who are more of utility players with both bat and ball, would not be considered. They would be replaced by better batsmen and better bowlers. So, the quality of cricket for the entire 50 overs would be surely better. A fifth bowler or sixth bowler, who operates in the middle order is not usually serious or not taken seriously.. that would change..

So , I would prefer the super-sub to be a bowler, who will remove the 'weak link' in the team, viz. the fifth bowler.

How will the teams look like?
Let us see two examples, the world cup finalists.
Aus – Batsmen: Gilchrist, Hayden, Ponting, Martyn, Symonds, Clarke, and Hussey; Bowlers – Lee, McGrath, Gillespie, Kasprowicz, Hogg. 12th Men: Batting – McGrath; Fielding – Martyn.
Imagine an Aus bowling line-up with all the four fast bowlers and Hogg, backed up by Symonds and Clarke..

India – Batsmen: Sachin, Sehwag, Dhoni, Ganguly, Dravid, Yuvraj, Kaif; Bowlers – Zaheer, Bhajji, Balaji, Murali Karthik, Nehra /Pathan. 12th Men: Batting – Nehra or Bhajji. Fielding – Dravid or Sachin.

So, overall, the new 'substitute' rule is sure to make one-dayers more interesting.. Anything can happen anytime.. uncertainity is increased.. Quality would go up.. Some players would get some much needed rest. Bits-and-pieces players would be compelled to go either way - either become specialists or alrounders or perish..

About the other rule on the fielding restrictions, watch out this blog in the near future.

Jul 1, 2005

Anniyan - Review

(Pictures adopted from Hindu, Chennai Online and Yahoo!)

My rating: A- for Vikram, Shankar and Sujatha.

Anniyan is another fantasy product from Shankar’s dream factory. It is similar to Indian in terms of a sad flashback featuring an unnatural death, the resolution of the protagonist to change the system by punishing the offenders, thereby issuing a warning to all the defaulters, a police officer in hunt for the law-breaker and, in the end, though being caught, he still remains ‘free’. But, the similarity ends there. Shankar has brought in a new dimension of ‘multiple personality disorder’ (which, with Jo in Chandramukhi, seems to be a hot thing in tamil cinemas.. many more are sure to get MPD..) and Vikram has done a tremendous job in this new challenge.

After showing his anger on our educational system and on corrupt ministers (Gentleman), corrupt government officers (Indian) and selfish, narrow-minded politicians (Mudhalvan), Shankar is now pointing fingers at every one of us, Indians. We cant agree more, we nod our head in approval. So, Anniyan punishes such people whose crimes either don’t have a punishment in our laws or lukewarm punishment. Those include a person who refuses to help an accident victim, a money-hungry landlord, a lazy jobless drunkard, a food supplier who doesn’t care about the quality and a hardware businessman manufacturing low quality products. Each of them is punished according to what they would have got in the ‘hell’ after their death, according to ‘Garuda Puranam’.

Anniyan is an identity within Ramanujam aka Ambi, a lawyer who is a perfect man in the imperfect world. He loves Nandini (Sadha) but is too shy to propose to her. When he does, after much pressure from his childhood friend Chari (Vivek), Sadha promptly rejects his love, saying that he is too much of an algorithm for any girl to fall in love with. With the dejection, is born another identity, Remo, a rampwalk model. He impresses Nandini with his cool yo-yo looks and poetic words, to fall in love with him. In a moment, she sees all the three identities; in fact, the sweet-talking Remo turns into a deadly Anniyan hunting to kill her. A psychiatrist (Nasser) hypnotizes Ambi and then comes the sad childhood flashback, a reason for the birth of Anniyan and Remo.

The script is terrific, though filled with quite a lot of holes. But, forget the logic, and you get three hours of mind-blowing experience. Vikram gives a complete performance, especially as Ambi and Anniyan. His body language, speech, expressions and mannerisms are totally different for the three personalities and he has made it all look so simple. Another national-award winning performance from him. It is a very intelligent use of the long hair for all the three. Stand-out stuff was the pre-climax fight with Prakash Raj.

Sadha looks good as a Iyengar girl. Her dialogue delivery and acting have improved since Jayam. Vivek is back to his best with his typical on-the-spot comedy. There is a mention of Tsunami here too, which could have been avoided. His scenes never go out of context of the main story of the movie. Prakash Raj looks refreshingly different from his previous negative roles and Shankar has managed to still bring the best out of him. His usage of the Garuda Purana punishments during interrogation has brought out his well-thought out quest for vengeance. The support cast of Nedumudi Venu and others at the Agraharam bring out some lively, less-cinematic performances.

Sujatha has penned the dialogue, as one can see, quite enjoyingly, since the Iyengar dialect is from his own routine life. Harris Jayaraj’s background music is more impressive than most of the songs. It helps the audience go through the various paths the different identities take. Kumari is my favorite, beautifully shot during the flower season of Amsterdam. Choreography is OK. Stunt-coordination is worth applauding, though inspired from Matrix. The blend of time-freeze and DTS makes the fight scene at the martial arts center a sure ‘once-more’ item. Cinematography by Manikandan and Ravi Varman is pleasing, be it in India or Netherlands, day or night, indoor or outdoor, songs or action.

In the end, kudos to Shankar. Surely, the message is well-conveyed. The screenplay is characteristically smooth. It could be seen that lot of thought-process has gone into each and every scene. The use of a less known ‘Garuda Puranam’ and the colloquially used “you/he/she will go to hell” curse is real clever thinking. Though the issues dealt are quite different than the ones I thought, they have been handled well. The climax scene is well-thought one. Here we see a ‘refined’ and smarter Ambi-Anniyan. It seems as though the two years of idleness has brought both the identities together with a split personality becoming one, half of both. If you dig deep, there are pieces of brilliance and nice paradoxes all over the place. In the first scene, Ambi says "I hate disorder" but what a disorder he has got!!

On the down side, Shankar has missed a few points: One – how famous Anniyan has become to the public is not shown. So, when the stadium gets full with the public and media personnel after his announcement, it is hard to believe that so many had already known about him. Two – unlike in Gentleman and Indian, the police officer doesn’t get much closer to his target as the movie progresses. No mention about the worry for the reason behind the serial murders. The net-tracker says the complaints on all the 5 defaulters were launched from the same phone line, but we see that Ambi uses a cyber café in a railway station to lodge one complaint.

Anyway, the movie has become a huge hit all over the world. The most important question is, whether the viewers would consider this as just another movie, or take the message home. If they do, the claps in the movie halls make sense.. if they don’t……