Hong Kong is an interesting place . Its got to do with the strange mix of history and culture as it has been a british colony till 10 years back when it was handed over to China so it retains most of its britishness . Like Londoners in any weather , they are dressed perfectly everyday . The skyline also reflects the engineering learnings from London with the metro , waterways and taxi systems .
Walking through the lanes of Tsim Shat Tsui is amazing . The cleanliness never ceases to appeal . The long escalator that takes one down from Victoria heights to downtown through the streets of residences and restaurants is an interesting concept . The sound and light show on the islands harbour is great too . Disneyland is built on an island an hours drive from teh city and has its own share of chills and thrills . After having read Eisners Disney war , it was quite an experience . That the Chinese are hard working people can be made out from their gait - brisk and fast .
As you take the train to China , the world changes dramatically . For one , the immigration form in HongKong airport does has a tick box for 'media' in profession of traveler , but in China immigration their is no such column . I was carrying the South China Morning Post's Hong Kong edition to catch up on the Benazir assasination the day before . My travel agent pounced on me and pulled the paper away saying its illegal to read foreign newspapers . Next , as we walked from the Hong Kong side of the station to the Shenzen side in China , it was the general untidyness of the place they hit us - looked just like Mumbai . The bins were overflowing , the windows were broken , people dressed shabbily and walls had graffiti . Well , with over 2 billion people , thats' the best you can manage , I guess .
But , as you walk into windows of the world - that great park they have created that has all the important landmarks from all over the world in one park , you are absolutely amazed at the Chinese obsession with the art of 'copying' ! The Taj Mahal looks more magnificient here than in Agra , so do the Eiffel Tower and Niagara Falls .The couple frolicking in the bloated balloon on the waters in the park was another interesting innovation .
'We have been noones colony , so we have great pride ' said Christy , my guide , smiling her cheery smile .
But , food was an issue everywhere - bland and non-spicy .
The best Chinese food you get is in Mainland China in Mumbai !
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Get shorty !
Whats common to Louis Gestner , Napoleon , Hitler , Amir Khan , Naresh Goyal , PV Narasimha rao , Nicholas Sarkhozy , Sachin Tendulkar , Ricky Ponting , Rani Mukherjee , Salman Khan and Sunil Gavaskar ?
They are all short guys who have made it big in life .
So what makes short guys tick ?
I think its the tenacity of purpose , it's the need to prove themselves and the desire to go the extra distance that makes them work . Each of them goes the extra mile when many give up so that they create the success they need so badly . Because for the rest of the world , looking good itself is a reward , being tall , handsome and good looking in itself gives it a sense of accomplishment and then to further actualize they need to create a newer 'need' - need for recognition , need for money or power that will then drive them to greater heights . But for the shorties, being short itself is the beginning .
Naresh Goyal has pulled out an airline out of the blue while the goodlooking blokes like Pervez Damania abandoned their plans mid-day for the good life . Sarkhozy sweats hard to make the French toil harder for their bread and pull his country from dangers of global recession .
Hitler and Napoleon created havoc across countries with their exploits , driven by their own inner desire to actualize and prove a point . Again , beyond a point how much land does a man need ? Look at Boris Yelstin and Michael Gorbachev - handsome guys both , created new revolutionary political concepts but gave it up before implementing any of the Glasnost and Perestroika they talked about .
PVN Rao stood like a dwarf amongst world leaders wherever he went , but created the most sustained economic revolution that india has ever seen lasting as of today a full 18 years . Ponting , Tendulkar and Gavaskar were great at their craft and took the game to the next level with sheer grit and tenacity .
Even in the Army , during the NDA and IMA periods , it is the tall and lanky guys who get most of the plum assignments and get to dance the most beautiful girls during parties , but its the shorter officer who works his way upto the Chief of Army Staff position by agreeing for all the dirty assignments , winning people in the trenches with empathy , driving himself to the hilt and walking away with the final glory .
See a short guy around ?
Keep an eye on him . He could go places .
Better still , be like him and you will go too .
They are all short guys who have made it big in life .
So what makes short guys tick ?
I think its the tenacity of purpose , it's the need to prove themselves and the desire to go the extra distance that makes them work . Each of them goes the extra mile when many give up so that they create the success they need so badly . Because for the rest of the world , looking good itself is a reward , being tall , handsome and good looking in itself gives it a sense of accomplishment and then to further actualize they need to create a newer 'need' - need for recognition , need for money or power that will then drive them to greater heights . But for the shorties, being short itself is the beginning .
Naresh Goyal has pulled out an airline out of the blue while the goodlooking blokes like Pervez Damania abandoned their plans mid-day for the good life . Sarkhozy sweats hard to make the French toil harder for their bread and pull his country from dangers of global recession .
Hitler and Napoleon created havoc across countries with their exploits , driven by their own inner desire to actualize and prove a point . Again , beyond a point how much land does a man need ? Look at Boris Yelstin and Michael Gorbachev - handsome guys both , created new revolutionary political concepts but gave it up before implementing any of the Glasnost and Perestroika they talked about .
PVN Rao stood like a dwarf amongst world leaders wherever he went , but created the most sustained economic revolution that india has ever seen lasting as of today a full 18 years . Ponting , Tendulkar and Gavaskar were great at their craft and took the game to the next level with sheer grit and tenacity .
Even in the Army , during the NDA and IMA periods , it is the tall and lanky guys who get most of the plum assignments and get to dance the most beautiful girls during parties , but its the shorter officer who works his way upto the Chief of Army Staff position by agreeing for all the dirty assignments , winning people in the trenches with empathy , driving himself to the hilt and walking away with the final glory .
See a short guy around ?
Keep an eye on him . He could go places .
Better still , be like him and you will go too .
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Two young kings !
Nine amazing days in Egypt introduced to this wonder of the world called Egyptian history . It wasn't so much the pyramids , but the entire experience of sailing on the Nile for four days , the zipping through Greek and ROman history in Alexandria , the ceaseless haggling over antiques , the hunt for cleopatra's bust , the felucca ride to Banana island , the saharan climate with miles and miles of desert and the lovely overnight train ride from Cairo to Aswan and then back from Luxor to Cairo .
The Egyptians have done an outstanding part of packaging their history and also knocking out that part of Greco-Roman history that does nto suit them . The absence of Chinese fakes all over the curios and antiques shops is the real wonder of the world .
The blueness of the mediterranean sea is rivalled by the blueness ( yeah, right - 'blue'ness ) of the red sea .The two kings that have created Egptian history are Tutankhamen and Alexander ( my fav king al them all ) . King Tutankhamen was king when he was 8 and died when he was 18 , while Alexander died at 32 . They pretty much had half the world under them by the time they died .
The Luxor and Karnak temples were eye-popping.
The most exhilarating thing of it all was getting clicked next to the bust of Alexander near the bibliotheque alexandrina on the corniche at Alexandria !
Enchanted enough to do a trail through Saharan Egypt someday .
The Egyptians have done an outstanding part of packaging their history and also knocking out that part of Greco-Roman history that does nto suit them . The absence of Chinese fakes all over the curios and antiques shops is the real wonder of the world .
The blueness of the mediterranean sea is rivalled by the blueness ( yeah, right - 'blue'ness ) of the red sea .The two kings that have created Egptian history are Tutankhamen and Alexander ( my fav king al them all ) . King Tutankhamen was king when he was 8 and died when he was 18 , while Alexander died at 32 . They pretty much had half the world under them by the time they died .
The Luxor and Karnak temples were eye-popping.
The most exhilarating thing of it all was getting clicked next to the bust of Alexander near the bibliotheque alexandrina on the corniche at Alexandria !
Enchanted enough to do a trail through Saharan Egypt someday .
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Irony
A harmless figure of speech pointing to incongruity of action and results that Irony is , it has some stark illustrations in real life .
Christopher Reeve , the tall handsome actor , played ‘Superman’ in many a movie and its sequels becoming famous as Clark Kent , the superhuman do-gooder ,while ridding the world of many of its tyrants , terrorists and megalomaniacs . Reeve , the Superman , as fate would have it , was dealt a severe blow when in an equestrian competition , his horse pulled him down breaking his spinal cord for life . The resultant paralysis confined him for many years to a wheel chair . Isn't it just plain irony that it had to happen to 'Superman' – whose massive fan following of awe-struck movie-goers gave his producers superhuman returns at the box office for years . The 'man of steel' died early , at the age of 52 , serving probably as a warning , that , man is after all mortal .
The world has long endured the ridiculousness of the slavery system even after it was officially abolished by Abraham Lincoln centuries ago . Here was an entire civilization of people from an continent considered ‘dark’ , pre-historic and primitive . Michael Jackson has tried hard to run away from his colour by cosmetic surgeries , Cassius Clay threw his Olympic gold medial into the Hudson river and converted to Islam on being called a ‘black nigger ‘ after having won the World Boxing Olympic gold medal for the US . The latest episode of Big brother boots out a contestant who calls another a ‘nigger’ . Alex Haley’s autobiographical book ‘roots ‘ traces the history of Blacks over centuries as an oppressed clan , operating on the fringes of society , fighting for acceptance . So the most ironical achievement of it all is the fact that the most premium , upper-class , uber-cool and super-richest sport of them all , Golf , is dominated by a black - Tiger Woods !
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto , became the 8th Prime minister of Pakistan after having been the president for 2 years . A keen lawyer , he had earned his spurs under the military dictatorship of Gen Ayub Khan , who India had defeated in the 1971 indo-pak war . After having won landslide vistories in Pakistani elections , he claimed his prime ministerial berth for a second term . But that was not to be . Gen Zia-Ul-Haq , his chief of army staff , de-recognised his government , arrested him in the middle of the night and threw him into jail .Despite international condemnation , Zia made sure the popular Bhutto was hanged . Zia-ul-Haq then re-interpreted Islam to favour the military , unleased a wave of terror into India , encouraged the influx of refuges from Afghanistan into Pakistan siding the US in the proxy war with the Soviets in Afghanistan . His helping the Afghani Mujhahideen fight the Russians ensured Pakistan would become a permanent US ally . He created a larger than life image for himself . I distinctly remember watching the Asian games hockey match between India and Pakistan in 1982 that he came to attend . Pakistan defeat India 8-0 in that match . The goalkeeper Negi was psyched that Zia was in the stadium and gave in to all the attacks from their side . Such was his demeanor . Ironically , for all his power , he had the worst death a political leader can have . He was blown into bits mid-air in an aircraft crash . Not a piece of his body was found . He couldn’t even be given a leader’s farewell like his slain adversary Bhutto had got .
The US was formed on the basis of everything the England did not stand for . The traffic was reverse , cars were all right hand drives , the shakespearean spellings were dropped – colour became color etc, the dress sense are informal , jews were accepted with open arms , excellence was encouraged and any form of dynastic rule was discouraged . Yet , ironically it is heading for a dynastic rule – eight years of Bush senior were followed by eight years of Clinton , followed by eight years of Bush junior and probably eight years of Hillary Clinton now . Dynasty !
Michail Gorbachev , the first post-communism President of the USSR , had faced a very tough childhood under Stalin when his grandfather was arrested for hoarding grain in their farm . Passports were regulated , so he did not have one for many years and he had not visited any other country . He became the President after Konstantin Chernenko died in 1985 . His lifetime in Russian politics was dedicated to building a stronger USSR , aimed at achieving twice the per capita income of the US . He was the first party leader who was born after the revolution and the youngest general secretary of the communist party . He used his visionary concepts of ‘Uskoreniya’ –acceleration of economic development , ‘glasnost’ – openness , ‘perestrioka’ – restructuring of the economy to build a new powerful Soviet Union . He started the concept of free speech in Russia , looked west for inspiration , traveled and interacted with world leaders to expand his vision . Yet ironically , the very foundation of his vision saw the absolute reverse effect – the Soviet Union dis-integrated dramatically and broke into its various sub-nations and creation of many new countries with independent heads of state and policies . In just five years , he had dissolved what had taken seventy years to build , he lost control , his deputy Boris Yelstin openly confronted him , leading to absolute anarchy and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics splintered into many many different countries . Hs stood for re-election as President , but won 0.05% of the votes . And he is back to what he was doing earlier – lecturing in universities around the world . A man who started something so huge that it consumed him and his entire country , becoming larger than he had ever envisioned .
Olof Palme , Sweden’s President for 18 years , created a great country whose principles of social democracy resulted in enormous prosperity . Sweden has produced a strong economy creating many multinational brands like Saab , Ikea , Ericsson and it has the longest life expentancies in the world , lowest employment , inflation , infant mortality , national debt and cost of living . Sweden has also the lowest instances of crime in the world . Ironically , Olof Palme , who built a crime free Sweden , and was generally without bodyguards was shot dead as he was walking back from a movie with his wife . He was the first and only ever person to be ever assasinated in Sweden . The incident had a deep impact on me and I remember thinking about it for many many days . Ah ! the ways of irony .
Amitabh Bachchan , was rejected by All India Radio when he went for an audition to do a program on radio many years back . Today , most movie-goers love his deep baritone and more than half of radio commercials imitate his voice . Alexander , the great , conquered half the world with his famed conquests , but died of a mosquito bite in Babylon .
Bobby McFaren , sang the song ‘Don’t Worry , Be Happy ‘ which was featured in the 1998 Tom Cruise movie ‘Cocktail’ and to date is one of my personal favourite numbers . It was the no1 US pop hit and won the Grammy for The Song of the year 1988 . Lots of rumors floated a year later that Bobby McFaren had committed suicide . That he didn't was true , but the rumors spread like wildfire suggesting that he had attempted to kill himself .
That would have been the ultimate irony .
Christopher Reeve , the tall handsome actor , played ‘Superman’ in many a movie and its sequels becoming famous as Clark Kent , the superhuman do-gooder ,while ridding the world of many of its tyrants , terrorists and megalomaniacs . Reeve , the Superman , as fate would have it , was dealt a severe blow when in an equestrian competition , his horse pulled him down breaking his spinal cord for life . The resultant paralysis confined him for many years to a wheel chair . Isn't it just plain irony that it had to happen to 'Superman' – whose massive fan following of awe-struck movie-goers gave his producers superhuman returns at the box office for years . The 'man of steel' died early , at the age of 52 , serving probably as a warning , that , man is after all mortal .
The world has long endured the ridiculousness of the slavery system even after it was officially abolished by Abraham Lincoln centuries ago . Here was an entire civilization of people from an continent considered ‘dark’ , pre-historic and primitive . Michael Jackson has tried hard to run away from his colour by cosmetic surgeries , Cassius Clay threw his Olympic gold medial into the Hudson river and converted to Islam on being called a ‘black nigger ‘ after having won the World Boxing Olympic gold medal for the US . The latest episode of Big brother boots out a contestant who calls another a ‘nigger’ . Alex Haley’s autobiographical book ‘roots ‘ traces the history of Blacks over centuries as an oppressed clan , operating on the fringes of society , fighting for acceptance . So the most ironical achievement of it all is the fact that the most premium , upper-class , uber-cool and super-richest sport of them all , Golf , is dominated by a black - Tiger Woods !
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto , became the 8th Prime minister of Pakistan after having been the president for 2 years . A keen lawyer , he had earned his spurs under the military dictatorship of Gen Ayub Khan , who India had defeated in the 1971 indo-pak war . After having won landslide vistories in Pakistani elections , he claimed his prime ministerial berth for a second term . But that was not to be . Gen Zia-Ul-Haq , his chief of army staff , de-recognised his government , arrested him in the middle of the night and threw him into jail .Despite international condemnation , Zia made sure the popular Bhutto was hanged . Zia-ul-Haq then re-interpreted Islam to favour the military , unleased a wave of terror into India , encouraged the influx of refuges from Afghanistan into Pakistan siding the US in the proxy war with the Soviets in Afghanistan . His helping the Afghani Mujhahideen fight the Russians ensured Pakistan would become a permanent US ally . He created a larger than life image for himself . I distinctly remember watching the Asian games hockey match between India and Pakistan in 1982 that he came to attend . Pakistan defeat India 8-0 in that match . The goalkeeper Negi was psyched that Zia was in the stadium and gave in to all the attacks from their side . Such was his demeanor . Ironically , for all his power , he had the worst death a political leader can have . He was blown into bits mid-air in an aircraft crash . Not a piece of his body was found . He couldn’t even be given a leader’s farewell like his slain adversary Bhutto had got .
The US was formed on the basis of everything the England did not stand for . The traffic was reverse , cars were all right hand drives , the shakespearean spellings were dropped – colour became color etc, the dress sense are informal , jews were accepted with open arms , excellence was encouraged and any form of dynastic rule was discouraged . Yet , ironically it is heading for a dynastic rule – eight years of Bush senior were followed by eight years of Clinton , followed by eight years of Bush junior and probably eight years of Hillary Clinton now . Dynasty !
Michail Gorbachev , the first post-communism President of the USSR , had faced a very tough childhood under Stalin when his grandfather was arrested for hoarding grain in their farm . Passports were regulated , so he did not have one for many years and he had not visited any other country . He became the President after Konstantin Chernenko died in 1985 . His lifetime in Russian politics was dedicated to building a stronger USSR , aimed at achieving twice the per capita income of the US . He was the first party leader who was born after the revolution and the youngest general secretary of the communist party . He used his visionary concepts of ‘Uskoreniya’ –acceleration of economic development , ‘glasnost’ – openness , ‘perestrioka’ – restructuring of the economy to build a new powerful Soviet Union . He started the concept of free speech in Russia , looked west for inspiration , traveled and interacted with world leaders to expand his vision . Yet ironically , the very foundation of his vision saw the absolute reverse effect – the Soviet Union dis-integrated dramatically and broke into its various sub-nations and creation of many new countries with independent heads of state and policies . In just five years , he had dissolved what had taken seventy years to build , he lost control , his deputy Boris Yelstin openly confronted him , leading to absolute anarchy and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics splintered into many many different countries . Hs stood for re-election as President , but won 0.05% of the votes . And he is back to what he was doing earlier – lecturing in universities around the world . A man who started something so huge that it consumed him and his entire country , becoming larger than he had ever envisioned .
Olof Palme , Sweden’s President for 18 years , created a great country whose principles of social democracy resulted in enormous prosperity . Sweden has produced a strong economy creating many multinational brands like Saab , Ikea , Ericsson and it has the longest life expentancies in the world , lowest employment , inflation , infant mortality , national debt and cost of living . Sweden has also the lowest instances of crime in the world . Ironically , Olof Palme , who built a crime free Sweden , and was generally without bodyguards was shot dead as he was walking back from a movie with his wife . He was the first and only ever person to be ever assasinated in Sweden . The incident had a deep impact on me and I remember thinking about it for many many days . Ah ! the ways of irony .
Amitabh Bachchan , was rejected by All India Radio when he went for an audition to do a program on radio many years back . Today , most movie-goers love his deep baritone and more than half of radio commercials imitate his voice . Alexander , the great , conquered half the world with his famed conquests , but died of a mosquito bite in Babylon .
Bobby McFaren , sang the song ‘Don’t Worry , Be Happy ‘ which was featured in the 1998 Tom Cruise movie ‘Cocktail’ and to date is one of my personal favourite numbers . It was the no1 US pop hit and won the Grammy for The Song of the year 1988 . Lots of rumors floated a year later that Bobby McFaren had committed suicide . That he didn't was true , but the rumors spread like wildfire suggesting that he had attempted to kill himself .
That would have been the ultimate irony .
Monday, May 28, 2007
Marhaba Dubai U/C
They don’t stamp your passport in Israel . Because the Arab Middle-East does not permit you into any of their countries if you have been to Jewish Israel . Drawn from over hundreds of years of battle for homelands , jihads and fatwas , this strange law has come as a by-product of the Arab-Israeli conflicts that take place every single day since Israel has been created in 1945 . The Israelis , not wanting to play spoilsport , stamp the Visa on a piece of paper which you clip onto one of the passport sheets . Throwing this clipped-on sheet away as you exit Israel leaves no trace of your Israel visit . The Arabian middle east then welcomes you with open arms .
As the Emirates plane began its descent , the landscape that met the eye was just miles and miles of desert , giving the earth a very plain unimaginative feel , quite contrary to what Dubai actually turned out to be. ‘Welcome to Dusty Dubai ,’ the captain announced ,as we landed onto the hazy afternoon weather around the airport .
The whale-shaped airport building is like a primer to the architecturally splendidly built Dubai . There is an effort to look different and stand out by investing in the façade by all the buildings. It is a small city , but it makes a very good impression .In the middle of the desert they have created , probably , the most remarkable Arabian city ever .
David , ,the cabbie who came to pick me up , was sweating profusely , having waited for me outside the airport for a good half hour . ‘Its 44 degrees today ’ he said pointing to the dial on the dashboard.
I had felt the immense heat on my face as we had jumped into the car .
‘Is this the hottest ?’
‘No , it crosses 50degrees on some days . And the government declares a holiday on those days ’
We sped out of the beautiful airport building onto roads full of , what looked like , zillions of cars .
‘Dubai has just about 1.2 mn people .’, said David, introducing me to the city as we drove to the office . On the wrong side of 50 years , he is a well-informed Malayalee who has spent over half his life in Dubai . Listening to a Malayalam radio channel in the car , he resisted my request to change to a Hindi radio station , as he was in the middle of listening to news live from Kerala . Soon as the news finished , he tuned into 101.5 FM Dubai’s #1 Hindi station , playing the new ‘Cheeni Kum’ number .
Just 1.2 mn people !
To put that in perspective , there are just as many people only in Bandra , the suburb of the 20mn+ Mumbai city , which I call home .
The starkling thing about Dubai is that it is a city under construction . And as I met different kinds of people in different professions , I realized that it will probably stay that way till 2010 , when all of it will come to a head and Dubai will be the final destination for every office goer , worker , tourist or potential immigrant .
Mohammad Ali , a son-of-the-soil arab , is a first citizen amongst the 1.2 million people who inhabit this desert paradise , sixty percent of whom are immigrants from India . Rest are Arabs from other parts of the middle east and around 2-3 percent are westerners, who are here for business , Bush and his politics be dammed .
Ali is funding a part of the contruction frenzy in Dubai . He has a young European woman manning his front office and several Indian managers at senior positions .
‘All investments .All investmenst . Inshaallah , Dubai will be the world’s destination in 2010’,he says projecting into the air an expansive stroke as if to indicate the world .
Ambitious , surely .
‘70% of the world’s cranes are in Dubai ‘ said Satish , the marketing head of a local construction company , which is offering a private jet to people who offer to buy properties in its project Damac .
‘Can’t be true ‘
‘It is . In fact , Mahammed Alhabhai is building Dubailand – a US $70bn city within a city over a 3 billion square feet area with the worlds largest mall , sports city , , snowdome , the city of Arabia and the universal studios amusement park complete with Jurassic era dinosaurs et al . That one project itself has over 300 cranes all over the place and he is expecting to finish it next year ’
Asia Asia ,’added Satish , ‘will be the world’s largest hotel complex created by the Bawadi hospitality project in Dubai . And Tiger woods is building the world’s largest golf course here ’
I don’t know about the 70% , but the sheer amount of construction seen here is remarkable .
Yet , the city is very clean . Speeding on the Sheikh Zahed road , which connects Dubai airport to Abu Dhabi non-stop without traffic signals and snarls , one wonders about the ambitions of these filthy rich sheikhs sitting on oil reserves for the next 200 years and ploughing money into outlandish projects . The streets are littered with the swankiest cars – Aston martins , Mercs , Lamborginis , BMWs , Toyotas , Hondas ,Landcruisers – speeding away effortlessly – this could pass for any city in the US .
In the afternoon , we met Assad , a Syrian head of a Emaar , the Dubai state-owned construction company which is building the Burj Dubai ,which looks like a glass syringe , standing tall at over 800 metres ( beating Taipei towers 508 metre landmark ). Burj is Arabic for Tower.
‘The first rule when building the world’s tallest tower is to keep its height a secret , else someone else will beat you to being the tallest ‘said Assad .
I laughed , assuring him that to public knowledge , no such construction was taking place anywhere in the world .
‘The International Finance Tower in Hongkong is only 415 metres tall and the Shanghai World trade centre is 500 metres tall , no other building is taller than them right now. You have a 300 metre lead !’ , I said laughing
‘ Inshaallah . It is rising a floor every 2 days .’
‘That’s some speed , Ten storey projects in Mumbai take 3 years ! Where do you get the labour from ?’
‘ Lot of Indian workers are working there .’
‘Is it expensive to own a house here ?’
‘A 2-bed apartment on 75th floor of the Burj Dubai costs $1.5mn . But there a projects where a flat can cost around 150,000 to 600,000 dirhams .’
‘That’s not much ‘,I said . ‘My house in Mumbai is , well , 2.5 mn dirhams , 4 times as expensive ! ‘
‘Mumbai is expensive city . That’s why you should buy here ‘
Ah ! I see the logic pretty clearly . Dubai is two and a half hours from Mumbai , less than the time it takes to go to Kolkatta . The city gives a first world feeling at the price of a local ticket ! And with the construction keeping its pace , this will rival Singapore soon.
‘2010 is the year . It will be a landmark year as all the billion square feet on construction gets over and the city will be architecturally the most brilliant in the world ‘, Assad reiterted
‘But what is the source of the money to buy all properties here ?’
‘ Dubai is the financial hub of this country . It is a huge trading centre .People living here don’t buy properties here , it is an investment hub for people from all over the world ’
‘ Is there a manufacturing base ?
‘No, nothing is manufactured here due to the tax laws . You can’t own anything , 51% has to be owned by the government . There is a free zone created where things are beginning to get manufactured , but , you see , there is great political instability in the region . American companies don’t want to own anything here and show it in their books of accounts . Owning an asset in the gulf is worthless according to them . Iran is forty minutes from here . Tomorrow , they bomb Iran and a missile lands in Dubai , this dream is over , my friend ’ , Assad said gesturing furiously .
What a thought .
‘The new French president , Mr Sarkozy’s is a Jew and he could be close to Israel and therefore create create discord . Chirac was a friend ’,Assad said about the new political development after French election results .
Jacques Chirac was vehemently against the Israeli government as they competed for arms suppy into the gulf region . If Sarkozy leans to Israel , the Arab states will have an enemy at their gates .
‘ Life sure looks complex , Assad . This is just another world ‘
Sari Bou Karroum is an easy going Lebanese who , just as a lot of other Lebanese, is part of the advertising fraternity in Dubai . The biggest skillsets they bring to the table is the ability to speak Arabic and think well . Also they could easily pass off as Europeans with their great skin colour , a matter of great regard for Arabs . It gives them pride and therefore are not the easiest of people to deal with , unlike the Iraqis .
Sari is the Lebanese media supervisor of the firm Global Media Works ,Gmw.
‘I have heard of Bmw, now I know Gmw !’said me , wanting to break some ice.
Sari broke into easy laughter . The office at the Al Thuraya Towers overlooked the under-construction Palm Jumeira and the world , which is the map of the world being built in the sea , created out of reclaimed land . It would have many houses , offices , resorts and parks and bridges connecting the continents . A new definition of the world .
Man, what money can do !
‘So how are things back home ?’ , I asked him . Lebanon had just had a series of bombings by the Government in the internal areas of Beirut , apparently to weed out the terrorist group that was threatening not to rest till all of its Christian citizens had evacuated the country . The Lebanese government didn’t quite like the idea and threatened to bomb till the terrorist group didn’t leave Lebanon and an air of serious conflict erupted with many deaths .
‘Fortunately, the bombings are not near my home . Some miles away ‘said Sari , non-chalantly .
‘It’s a pity , that these things happen ‘ I said
‘For years ’, he said before jumping to shop-talk.
Zulfikar was another Lebanese head of international media buying at OMD , one of the largest advertising agencies in the region . He was very similar to Sari in his need for lots of data , SEC profiles and logical reasoning of the opportunity to look at India as a market .
Emad Al Enizy , on the other hand , the laid-back Iraqi is a great guy to talk to . He is all heart , as one can make out in the first ten minutes of conversation , even if it all hinges on work .Reddish in colour with a deep baritone , he is tough-looking without intent . Emad connected well as he shared life issues with us . His immediate need is to complete his education he felt , having had to stop it mid-way.
‘India , I want to study there’he said
‘Any college in mind ?’ I asked in earnest
‘No,no. I enroll for the course online . They send me books ,I appear exams online.’
‘An open university , you mean ?’
‘Yes,yes. I like Indian teachers ‘
‘Really’
‘Yes, in Baghdad , lot of my teachers were Indian . We understand very well from them . They are good teachers .’
‘ Interesting ’
‘I want to do degree in arts . In todays age , need to have education , Don’t know what kind of jobs are there and where one has to work ‘
‘Yeah ,lot of people study in India . I stayed once with a Palestinian army major who was studying marine science in Goa’
Palestine is close to everyone’s heart this part of the world . Their homelessness and general Israeli dominance of the region cuts a cord and gets the Arabs closer .
Emad had a tired look in his eyes , unlike the bright sharp look of lots-of-bombing-back-home -Sari or Zulfikar . Sari would have been younger , probably by a good five years .
But the one thing they all had in common was hope and optimism , inspite of being subjected to political , mental and physical tortune over years .
I stopped by at a corner store to pick up some water .
‘1.5 dirhams ‘, said the malayalee owner of the store
Thats quite normal , translating to about 16 rupees . But , a small comparison stumps you - Petrol costs only 1 dirham per litre .
Marhaba Dubai – petrol is cheaper than water here !
One can say that the middle east’s claim to fame is the control of more than 40% of the world’s oil reserves . The price of oil has surged from just under $20 a barrel in 2002 to over $70 a barrel last week , catalyzing a burst of very rapid growth in the region . The US has been trying to therefore destabilize this region so as not to let them rule the oil pricing with their sway over OPEC . The Gulf Cooperation Council –GCC , is set to emerge as a parallel powerful body with all the middle east countries not wanting to get influenced unduly by the western hegemony . And seeing the spirited growth of India and China , the arab states are using renewed control over oil prices to redefine prosperity in the region , attempting to end their past fluctuating fortunes .With a huge demand from India and China and other emerging market countries , there could be a trillion dollar windfall awaiting the Gulf and the economy could grow by leaps and bounds .
Oil has also defined fame ,friendships and fortune in this region . Iran has fought Iraq . Iraq has run over Kuwait . Lebanon has bombed Syria . America has friends in Saudi Arabia .
Religion has defined the rest of life . Israel and its Jews have fought every Arab around them – Syrians , Lebanese , Jordanians , Egyptians , Saudi Arabians and Arafat’s Palestinian Liberation Organization for years . While UAE and Saudi Arabia have put oil to good use in increasing prosperity for people , Iran , on the other hand , as the fourth largest oil producer in the world is struggling to grow . It severely lacks oil refining capabilities making it a simple exporter of crude . Its seven million cars consume the same amount of oil as the 35million cars on UK roads due to the primitive engines of fuel-inefficient locally made Peykans . This India-China demand opportunity staring at Iran must have made America look at creating a fresh disruption in the region . With Iraq out of the way , Lebanon facing internal strife , probably Iran is their next target .
Dubai has oil for the next 40 years , but its economy isn’t dependent any longer on the fortunes of oil trade . That has been very smartly maneouvred by its ruling family of Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Makhtoum , to be least dependent on Oil , instead creating a new structure of growth using the auto , finance , construction and tourism sectors . And making it un-islamic , it has attracted people from all over .
Hopefully , neither oil nor religion will show its ugly face in Dubai .
I saw the Ski Dubai yesterday . It’s just what money can do , in the middle of 45 degree heat , these guys have created a minus 15 degree experience .It is freezing cold inside , you need to wear extremely warm clothing , gloves else you could get frostbite , caps , mufflers as if you are in Swiss Alps . It has cable cars , ski-able slopes that stretch right to the top at a 60 degree incline and coniferous forest covered with dense snow all around !
Aslam , the Pakistani taxi driver , one of the many pak drivers here , who drove me back to the hotel was an easy conversationalist. With Hindi songs from the newest movie blaring from the radio sprinkled with conversations with Preity Zinta , it could be just another day in good ‘ol Mumbai.
We hit 160 on the speedometer on Sheikh Zayed road , the official speedlimit for this 8-lane highway that connected Dubai airport to Abu Dhabi non-stop without a signal in between . The average speed in Mumbai is , well , on a good day , 15 kmph .
‘How many years have you been here ?’ I asked
‘Fifteen years ‘
‘You have family ‘
“Yes ‘
‘Kids’
‘Yes , one ‘
‘You like it here ?’
‘It’s a Good city . Cleaner than any city in Pakistan . no dogs , no beggars ’.
No crows , if I may add , coming from the crow capital of India.
‘I agree ’, I added enthusiastically ,‘And just an hour and half away from home for you from Islamabad , maybe ’
‘Yes ‘
As we sped through the highway crossing one of the largest malls in Dubai called the Mall of the Emirates , I saw the sheer height of skyscrapers here . Many 80-100 storey building dotted the landscape . Photographing them was irresistible .
‘Money is good ?‘
‘You make much more money that you can ever make back home .
‘Good for you. But do you think Benazir will be back in power ?’
‘No way. ‘ he said pointing to a huge white building , most buildings in Dubai are white ,
yeh Benazir ka hai . Ab who wapas nahin jayaga ‘ Pakistanis , I have realized , speak Hindi in a deliberate sort of way , using masculine for everything . They just sacked their foreign minister for huggin her eighty year old paragliding instructor after a jump.
‘Musharaff nahin jayega ‘ he concluded on his country’s political quagmire .
‘But aren’t you secondary citizens here ?’I asked him getting him back to the conv.
‘There is lot of respect for people here. The police is very strict . You can be jailed for the slightest crime . Justice is swift . No sheikh can say a bad word to me , I can complain and he will be behind bars ’
‘That’s a good feeling ’
‘If you commit a crime , you are instantly deported to your mulk . Women are safe here too, there is no crime here ’
The city is , I guess , wants to be un-Islamic as much as it can . There is a temple , a church , there are burial grounds for each religion , dress code is liberal .
The other day at the disc Touch , in Sheraton where I was staying , women were wearing close to nothing as they swayed away to rock music .Backless tops tied together by simple strings over short denim skirts is in no way Islamic . PDA was all around . Even muslim women don’t wear their black dark robes all the time . Shakira and Mariah Carey do concerts here . Alcohol , absolutely against Islamic law , is served in restaurants and even on the official airline , Emirates . . The city helps immigrants feel at home with its democraticity .
It is truly the land of the free.
The Desert safari was exciting , just as Christine , the ever grinning philipino travel agent executive had said . The Toyota landcruiser negotiated the soft dunes around the Oman border very well and with burly Pakistani Mohsin at the wheels , the monster gave us a great feel of miles of desert sand . The huge brown desert almost looked like a nude curvaceous woman as we drove up and down its contours . Four of us , two Turkish women , one american and me enjoyed the thrills of sand-dune driving .
Mohsin’s cellphone rang . I was amazed .
On top of one of the highest mounds , we could still catch the Etisalat signal .There are places in Mumbai where the signal is weak and here in the middle of miles and miles of desert with 44degree temperature on the dial , you can pick who you want to speak to and go ahead .
The two turkish women with us didn’t know a word of English and it was no fun communicating with them . One of them , wife of an engineer in Dubai for a conference was constantly referring to the Turkish-English dictionary for translation , killing all the excitement of knowing anything from these people of the Ottoman empire .
She did a small attempt at comparing skin colours though . I was the darkest , she was reddish with a tan that made her look very young and her companion stark white , the Paki was fair and the american was fairly white . She had a funny name too , but she looked in body frame pretty similar to someone beautiful I knew very well in college .
We exchanged snaps of our familes on our cell phones as we sat on cushions on the floor . The American didn’t have any snaps to share .
‘No family . No job . Just three strangers for company . ‘ he said , feeling out of place . Earrings on both his ears looked strange and his candidness was amazing.
Michigan , where he came from had seen severe depression and he was out of a job for some time now ,making odds meet by selling spectacles and glasses . So he took up his friends offer to come and see the middle east . From the part of the world he comes from , action had moved on , clearly to India and China .
Later at the camp, we were treated to the belly dancer’s performance . Didn’t like it as much as beautiful Brazilian Veronica’s back home in Pune .
Mohsin had earlier driven us through the Kings palace , the path to which was outlined with peacocks in full splendour . Just as one aimed to capture a peacock in the frame , a beautiful deer speeds across the road .
‘There are rabbits around too’, said Mohsin ‘And if you enter the palace , there are live tigers inside ‘
‘Real ?’
‘Real and alive .but they don’t harm you .’
‘The sheikh has over fifty cooks , one for each type of cuisine from each part of the world. And he has many wives . But we can’t talk about them , you know .
‘This , Peter , is royalty ’, I said ‘ Wealth , Women and Wine !’
Peter , the unassuming American from now-downtrodden Michigan , nodded .
‘Oil , Women and Sherbet , appropriately ’, I corrected myself
The two women nodded as if they understood what I was talking about .
Sheikh Naveen Jahanpanah would like to have Lebanese chicken with a dash of
Japanese sushi served with Russian strogonoff for lunch today . And do arrange for two of your best Turkish belly dancers to serve him his lunch with delectable Arabian roohafza date drink .He has decided not to go for sales calls today .
Aaaaah !
Saw the new movie , ‘Shootout at Lokhandwala ’,an alleged takeoff on underworld hitman Maya Dolas who was shot in an encounter years back in Mumbai, at the Grand Cinema at the imposing Hyatt complex .Apparantly , this is where don Dawood married his daughter off to Javed Miandad’s son .
The theatre was crowded with Indians . With an equal number of Indian , particularly Hindi , Malayalam movies and English movies everyday, the place mirrors multiplexes back home during a show .
Unlike a lot of other countries , there are Indians on all sides of the economy in Dubai . The Indian who sells at shop counters works for an Indian owner , and sells his products to Indian customers on the other side . Chances that the manufacturer is an Indian could be high too . The American economy is now throwing up many Indian heads of companies at firms like Vodafone , Pepsi , Citibank , but in Dubai they are heads of a huge number of businesses .They just only don’t run corner stores here .
With a local edition of the Malayala Manorama newspaper , 4 Hindi radio stations , 2 Malayalam stations giving news about Kerala every hour , local TV feeds of Sony , Star , Zee and Malayala Manorama , central schools , temples and movie premiers with film stars regularly , the 8 lac Indians here surely don’t miss home .
My hunt for an Apple ipod took me to the interiors of Deira . Friday is Dubai’s Sunday so nothing opens till 4 pm . So I caught Pirates of the Carribean in the afternoon and plunged into the streets of Deira lining the Makhtoum bridge and Al Gharir city malls .
Stopping by at the Jumbo electronics store looked like a good idea .
A huge apple shaped display with ipods hanging all over greeted customers at the entrance . The famed Dubai duty free street furniture just outside the shop was probably deliberately planned to be there .
‘Is it really cheap at the duty free ?’ I asked the bihari attendant at the counter straight.
‘Dekhiye , sasta toh hai . But no worldwide warrantee will be given ‘
‘How much will this ipod cost there ?’
‘For 2 Gb with 500 songs , our price is 599 dirhams , you could get it there at about 550 dirhams ‘
A bad shopper that I am , he confused the hell out of me . In New York , the Apple store on 5th avenue was selling this at $200 two years back, I remember . That’s 8200 rupees as per current dollar rate of 41 bucks to a dollar and here 550 dirhams is about 6000 rupees , cheaper than the Indian rate of 7500 rupees even today .
‘ Where is it made ?’
‘Apple policy , made in China , designed in California ‘
‘Made in China ?’
‘Assembled in China . Can’t manufacture in Japan anymore . Costs are very high’
‘I saw the full page ad in Khaleej Times on the riot in the new shop Sharafa in the mall of the emirates . They are selling at 550 dirhams with a free charger costing 50 dirhams . Do you have a similar offer ?’
‘We are launching an offer next week . But I don’t know details yet ‘, said he honestly .
Duty Free would have it cheaper , it was evident now. Since 550 dirhams was the lowest a retailer could go and Jumbo was matching the price .
‘599 dirhams ‘ , said a terse phillipino woman at the counter of Dubai Duty Free Electronics shoppe .
I dropped the idea again.
The Khaleej Times blaring headline today reported of the largest assembly of 9 warships holding drills off the coast of Iran through theStraits of Hormuz , a narrow channel in international waters and a major artery for he global oil shipments , with nearly 40% of global oil passing through these straits .
Iran vehemently denied having full nuclear capabilities in a press conference early in the morning today . But the warships have stealthily moved in in the night already .
Life in amazing under-construction Dubai goes on , utterly ignoring the political heat around it .
As the Emirates plane began its descent , the landscape that met the eye was just miles and miles of desert , giving the earth a very plain unimaginative feel , quite contrary to what Dubai actually turned out to be. ‘Welcome to Dusty Dubai ,’ the captain announced ,as we landed onto the hazy afternoon weather around the airport .
The whale-shaped airport building is like a primer to the architecturally splendidly built Dubai . There is an effort to look different and stand out by investing in the façade by all the buildings. It is a small city , but it makes a very good impression .In the middle of the desert they have created , probably , the most remarkable Arabian city ever .
David , ,the cabbie who came to pick me up , was sweating profusely , having waited for me outside the airport for a good half hour . ‘Its 44 degrees today ’ he said pointing to the dial on the dashboard.
I had felt the immense heat on my face as we had jumped into the car .
‘Is this the hottest ?’
‘No , it crosses 50degrees on some days . And the government declares a holiday on those days ’
We sped out of the beautiful airport building onto roads full of , what looked like , zillions of cars .
‘Dubai has just about 1.2 mn people .’, said David, introducing me to the city as we drove to the office . On the wrong side of 50 years , he is a well-informed Malayalee who has spent over half his life in Dubai . Listening to a Malayalam radio channel in the car , he resisted my request to change to a Hindi radio station , as he was in the middle of listening to news live from Kerala . Soon as the news finished , he tuned into 101.5 FM Dubai’s #1 Hindi station , playing the new ‘Cheeni Kum’ number .
Just 1.2 mn people !
To put that in perspective , there are just as many people only in Bandra , the suburb of the 20mn+ Mumbai city , which I call home .
The starkling thing about Dubai is that it is a city under construction . And as I met different kinds of people in different professions , I realized that it will probably stay that way till 2010 , when all of it will come to a head and Dubai will be the final destination for every office goer , worker , tourist or potential immigrant .
Mohammad Ali , a son-of-the-soil arab , is a first citizen amongst the 1.2 million people who inhabit this desert paradise , sixty percent of whom are immigrants from India . Rest are Arabs from other parts of the middle east and around 2-3 percent are westerners, who are here for business , Bush and his politics be dammed .
Ali is funding a part of the contruction frenzy in Dubai . He has a young European woman manning his front office and several Indian managers at senior positions .
‘All investments .All investmenst . Inshaallah , Dubai will be the world’s destination in 2010’,he says projecting into the air an expansive stroke as if to indicate the world .
Ambitious , surely .
‘70% of the world’s cranes are in Dubai ‘ said Satish , the marketing head of a local construction company , which is offering a private jet to people who offer to buy properties in its project Damac .
‘Can’t be true ‘
‘It is . In fact , Mahammed Alhabhai is building Dubailand – a US $70bn city within a city over a 3 billion square feet area with the worlds largest mall , sports city , , snowdome , the city of Arabia and the universal studios amusement park complete with Jurassic era dinosaurs et al . That one project itself has over 300 cranes all over the place and he is expecting to finish it next year ’
Asia Asia ,’added Satish , ‘will be the world’s largest hotel complex created by the Bawadi hospitality project in Dubai . And Tiger woods is building the world’s largest golf course here ’
I don’t know about the 70% , but the sheer amount of construction seen here is remarkable .
Yet , the city is very clean . Speeding on the Sheikh Zahed road , which connects Dubai airport to Abu Dhabi non-stop without traffic signals and snarls , one wonders about the ambitions of these filthy rich sheikhs sitting on oil reserves for the next 200 years and ploughing money into outlandish projects . The streets are littered with the swankiest cars – Aston martins , Mercs , Lamborginis , BMWs , Toyotas , Hondas ,Landcruisers – speeding away effortlessly – this could pass for any city in the US .
In the afternoon , we met Assad , a Syrian head of a Emaar , the Dubai state-owned construction company which is building the Burj Dubai ,which looks like a glass syringe , standing tall at over 800 metres ( beating Taipei towers 508 metre landmark ). Burj is Arabic for Tower.
‘The first rule when building the world’s tallest tower is to keep its height a secret , else someone else will beat you to being the tallest ‘said Assad .
I laughed , assuring him that to public knowledge , no such construction was taking place anywhere in the world .
‘The International Finance Tower in Hongkong is only 415 metres tall and the Shanghai World trade centre is 500 metres tall , no other building is taller than them right now. You have a 300 metre lead !’ , I said laughing
‘ Inshaallah . It is rising a floor every 2 days .’
‘That’s some speed , Ten storey projects in Mumbai take 3 years ! Where do you get the labour from ?’
‘ Lot of Indian workers are working there .’
‘Is it expensive to own a house here ?’
‘A 2-bed apartment on 75th floor of the Burj Dubai costs $1.5mn . But there a projects where a flat can cost around 150,000 to 600,000 dirhams .’
‘That’s not much ‘,I said . ‘My house in Mumbai is , well , 2.5 mn dirhams , 4 times as expensive ! ‘
‘Mumbai is expensive city . That’s why you should buy here ‘
Ah ! I see the logic pretty clearly . Dubai is two and a half hours from Mumbai , less than the time it takes to go to Kolkatta . The city gives a first world feeling at the price of a local ticket ! And with the construction keeping its pace , this will rival Singapore soon.
‘2010 is the year . It will be a landmark year as all the billion square feet on construction gets over and the city will be architecturally the most brilliant in the world ‘, Assad reiterted
‘But what is the source of the money to buy all properties here ?’
‘ Dubai is the financial hub of this country . It is a huge trading centre .People living here don’t buy properties here , it is an investment hub for people from all over the world ’
‘ Is there a manufacturing base ?
‘No, nothing is manufactured here due to the tax laws . You can’t own anything , 51% has to be owned by the government . There is a free zone created where things are beginning to get manufactured , but , you see , there is great political instability in the region . American companies don’t want to own anything here and show it in their books of accounts . Owning an asset in the gulf is worthless according to them . Iran is forty minutes from here . Tomorrow , they bomb Iran and a missile lands in Dubai , this dream is over , my friend ’ , Assad said gesturing furiously .
What a thought .
‘The new French president , Mr Sarkozy’s is a Jew and he could be close to Israel and therefore create create discord . Chirac was a friend ’,Assad said about the new political development after French election results .
Jacques Chirac was vehemently against the Israeli government as they competed for arms suppy into the gulf region . If Sarkozy leans to Israel , the Arab states will have an enemy at their gates .
‘ Life sure looks complex , Assad . This is just another world ‘
Sari Bou Karroum is an easy going Lebanese who , just as a lot of other Lebanese, is part of the advertising fraternity in Dubai . The biggest skillsets they bring to the table is the ability to speak Arabic and think well . Also they could easily pass off as Europeans with their great skin colour , a matter of great regard for Arabs . It gives them pride and therefore are not the easiest of people to deal with , unlike the Iraqis .
Sari is the Lebanese media supervisor of the firm Global Media Works ,Gmw.
‘I have heard of Bmw, now I know Gmw !’said me , wanting to break some ice.
Sari broke into easy laughter . The office at the Al Thuraya Towers overlooked the under-construction Palm Jumeira and the world , which is the map of the world being built in the sea , created out of reclaimed land . It would have many houses , offices , resorts and parks and bridges connecting the continents . A new definition of the world .
Man, what money can do !
‘So how are things back home ?’ , I asked him . Lebanon had just had a series of bombings by the Government in the internal areas of Beirut , apparently to weed out the terrorist group that was threatening not to rest till all of its Christian citizens had evacuated the country . The Lebanese government didn’t quite like the idea and threatened to bomb till the terrorist group didn’t leave Lebanon and an air of serious conflict erupted with many deaths .
‘Fortunately, the bombings are not near my home . Some miles away ‘said Sari , non-chalantly .
‘It’s a pity , that these things happen ‘ I said
‘For years ’, he said before jumping to shop-talk.
Zulfikar was another Lebanese head of international media buying at OMD , one of the largest advertising agencies in the region . He was very similar to Sari in his need for lots of data , SEC profiles and logical reasoning of the opportunity to look at India as a market .
Emad Al Enizy , on the other hand , the laid-back Iraqi is a great guy to talk to . He is all heart , as one can make out in the first ten minutes of conversation , even if it all hinges on work .Reddish in colour with a deep baritone , he is tough-looking without intent . Emad connected well as he shared life issues with us . His immediate need is to complete his education he felt , having had to stop it mid-way.
‘India , I want to study there’he said
‘Any college in mind ?’ I asked in earnest
‘No,no. I enroll for the course online . They send me books ,I appear exams online.’
‘An open university , you mean ?’
‘Yes,yes. I like Indian teachers ‘
‘Really’
‘Yes, in Baghdad , lot of my teachers were Indian . We understand very well from them . They are good teachers .’
‘ Interesting ’
‘I want to do degree in arts . In todays age , need to have education , Don’t know what kind of jobs are there and where one has to work ‘
‘Yeah ,lot of people study in India . I stayed once with a Palestinian army major who was studying marine science in Goa’
Palestine is close to everyone’s heart this part of the world . Their homelessness and general Israeli dominance of the region cuts a cord and gets the Arabs closer .
Emad had a tired look in his eyes , unlike the bright sharp look of lots-of-bombing-back-home -Sari or Zulfikar . Sari would have been younger , probably by a good five years .
But the one thing they all had in common was hope and optimism , inspite of being subjected to political , mental and physical tortune over years .
I stopped by at a corner store to pick up some water .
‘1.5 dirhams ‘, said the malayalee owner of the store
Thats quite normal , translating to about 16 rupees . But , a small comparison stumps you - Petrol costs only 1 dirham per litre .
Marhaba Dubai – petrol is cheaper than water here !
One can say that the middle east’s claim to fame is the control of more than 40% of the world’s oil reserves . The price of oil has surged from just under $20 a barrel in 2002 to over $70 a barrel last week , catalyzing a burst of very rapid growth in the region . The US has been trying to therefore destabilize this region so as not to let them rule the oil pricing with their sway over OPEC . The Gulf Cooperation Council –GCC , is set to emerge as a parallel powerful body with all the middle east countries not wanting to get influenced unduly by the western hegemony . And seeing the spirited growth of India and China , the arab states are using renewed control over oil prices to redefine prosperity in the region , attempting to end their past fluctuating fortunes .With a huge demand from India and China and other emerging market countries , there could be a trillion dollar windfall awaiting the Gulf and the economy could grow by leaps and bounds .
Oil has also defined fame ,friendships and fortune in this region . Iran has fought Iraq . Iraq has run over Kuwait . Lebanon has bombed Syria . America has friends in Saudi Arabia .
Religion has defined the rest of life . Israel and its Jews have fought every Arab around them – Syrians , Lebanese , Jordanians , Egyptians , Saudi Arabians and Arafat’s Palestinian Liberation Organization for years . While UAE and Saudi Arabia have put oil to good use in increasing prosperity for people , Iran , on the other hand , as the fourth largest oil producer in the world is struggling to grow . It severely lacks oil refining capabilities making it a simple exporter of crude . Its seven million cars consume the same amount of oil as the 35million cars on UK roads due to the primitive engines of fuel-inefficient locally made Peykans . This India-China demand opportunity staring at Iran must have made America look at creating a fresh disruption in the region . With Iraq out of the way , Lebanon facing internal strife , probably Iran is their next target .
Dubai has oil for the next 40 years , but its economy isn’t dependent any longer on the fortunes of oil trade . That has been very smartly maneouvred by its ruling family of Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Makhtoum , to be least dependent on Oil , instead creating a new structure of growth using the auto , finance , construction and tourism sectors . And making it un-islamic , it has attracted people from all over .
Hopefully , neither oil nor religion will show its ugly face in Dubai .
I saw the Ski Dubai yesterday . It’s just what money can do , in the middle of 45 degree heat , these guys have created a minus 15 degree experience .It is freezing cold inside , you need to wear extremely warm clothing , gloves else you could get frostbite , caps , mufflers as if you are in Swiss Alps . It has cable cars , ski-able slopes that stretch right to the top at a 60 degree incline and coniferous forest covered with dense snow all around !
Aslam , the Pakistani taxi driver , one of the many pak drivers here , who drove me back to the hotel was an easy conversationalist. With Hindi songs from the newest movie blaring from the radio sprinkled with conversations with Preity Zinta , it could be just another day in good ‘ol Mumbai.
We hit 160 on the speedometer on Sheikh Zayed road , the official speedlimit for this 8-lane highway that connected Dubai airport to Abu Dhabi non-stop without a signal in between . The average speed in Mumbai is , well , on a good day , 15 kmph .
‘How many years have you been here ?’ I asked
‘Fifteen years ‘
‘You have family ‘
“Yes ‘
‘Kids’
‘Yes , one ‘
‘You like it here ?’
‘It’s a Good city . Cleaner than any city in Pakistan . no dogs , no beggars ’.
No crows , if I may add , coming from the crow capital of India.
‘I agree ’, I added enthusiastically ,‘And just an hour and half away from home for you from Islamabad , maybe ’
‘Yes ‘
As we sped through the highway crossing one of the largest malls in Dubai called the Mall of the Emirates , I saw the sheer height of skyscrapers here . Many 80-100 storey building dotted the landscape . Photographing them was irresistible .
‘Money is good ?‘
‘You make much more money that you can ever make back home .
‘Good for you. But do you think Benazir will be back in power ?’
‘No way. ‘ he said pointing to a huge white building , most buildings in Dubai are white ,
yeh Benazir ka hai . Ab who wapas nahin jayaga ‘ Pakistanis , I have realized , speak Hindi in a deliberate sort of way , using masculine for everything . They just sacked their foreign minister for huggin her eighty year old paragliding instructor after a jump.
‘Musharaff nahin jayega ‘ he concluded on his country’s political quagmire .
‘But aren’t you secondary citizens here ?’I asked him getting him back to the conv.
‘There is lot of respect for people here. The police is very strict . You can be jailed for the slightest crime . Justice is swift . No sheikh can say a bad word to me , I can complain and he will be behind bars ’
‘That’s a good feeling ’
‘If you commit a crime , you are instantly deported to your mulk . Women are safe here too, there is no crime here ’
The city is , I guess , wants to be un-Islamic as much as it can . There is a temple , a church , there are burial grounds for each religion , dress code is liberal .
The other day at the disc Touch , in Sheraton where I was staying , women were wearing close to nothing as they swayed away to rock music .Backless tops tied together by simple strings over short denim skirts is in no way Islamic . PDA was all around . Even muslim women don’t wear their black dark robes all the time . Shakira and Mariah Carey do concerts here . Alcohol , absolutely against Islamic law , is served in restaurants and even on the official airline , Emirates . . The city helps immigrants feel at home with its democraticity .
It is truly the land of the free.
The Desert safari was exciting , just as Christine , the ever grinning philipino travel agent executive had said . The Toyota landcruiser negotiated the soft dunes around the Oman border very well and with burly Pakistani Mohsin at the wheels , the monster gave us a great feel of miles of desert sand . The huge brown desert almost looked like a nude curvaceous woman as we drove up and down its contours . Four of us , two Turkish women , one american and me enjoyed the thrills of sand-dune driving .
Mohsin’s cellphone rang . I was amazed .
On top of one of the highest mounds , we could still catch the Etisalat signal .There are places in Mumbai where the signal is weak and here in the middle of miles and miles of desert with 44degree temperature on the dial , you can pick who you want to speak to and go ahead .
The two turkish women with us didn’t know a word of English and it was no fun communicating with them . One of them , wife of an engineer in Dubai for a conference was constantly referring to the Turkish-English dictionary for translation , killing all the excitement of knowing anything from these people of the Ottoman empire .
She did a small attempt at comparing skin colours though . I was the darkest , she was reddish with a tan that made her look very young and her companion stark white , the Paki was fair and the american was fairly white . She had a funny name too , but she looked in body frame pretty similar to someone beautiful I knew very well in college .
We exchanged snaps of our familes on our cell phones as we sat on cushions on the floor . The American didn’t have any snaps to share .
‘No family . No job . Just three strangers for company . ‘ he said , feeling out of place . Earrings on both his ears looked strange and his candidness was amazing.
Michigan , where he came from had seen severe depression and he was out of a job for some time now ,making odds meet by selling spectacles and glasses . So he took up his friends offer to come and see the middle east . From the part of the world he comes from , action had moved on , clearly to India and China .
Later at the camp, we were treated to the belly dancer’s performance . Didn’t like it as much as beautiful Brazilian Veronica’s back home in Pune .
Mohsin had earlier driven us through the Kings palace , the path to which was outlined with peacocks in full splendour . Just as one aimed to capture a peacock in the frame , a beautiful deer speeds across the road .
‘There are rabbits around too’, said Mohsin ‘And if you enter the palace , there are live tigers inside ‘
‘Real ?’
‘Real and alive .but they don’t harm you .’
‘The sheikh has over fifty cooks , one for each type of cuisine from each part of the world. And he has many wives . But we can’t talk about them , you know .
‘This , Peter , is royalty ’, I said ‘ Wealth , Women and Wine !’
Peter , the unassuming American from now-downtrodden Michigan , nodded .
‘Oil , Women and Sherbet , appropriately ’, I corrected myself
The two women nodded as if they understood what I was talking about .
Sheikh Naveen Jahanpanah would like to have Lebanese chicken with a dash of
Japanese sushi served with Russian strogonoff for lunch today . And do arrange for two of your best Turkish belly dancers to serve him his lunch with delectable Arabian roohafza date drink .He has decided not to go for sales calls today .
Aaaaah !
Saw the new movie , ‘Shootout at Lokhandwala ’,an alleged takeoff on underworld hitman Maya Dolas who was shot in an encounter years back in Mumbai, at the Grand Cinema at the imposing Hyatt complex .Apparantly , this is where don Dawood married his daughter off to Javed Miandad’s son .
The theatre was crowded with Indians . With an equal number of Indian , particularly Hindi , Malayalam movies and English movies everyday, the place mirrors multiplexes back home during a show .
Unlike a lot of other countries , there are Indians on all sides of the economy in Dubai . The Indian who sells at shop counters works for an Indian owner , and sells his products to Indian customers on the other side . Chances that the manufacturer is an Indian could be high too . The American economy is now throwing up many Indian heads of companies at firms like Vodafone , Pepsi , Citibank , but in Dubai they are heads of a huge number of businesses .They just only don’t run corner stores here .
With a local edition of the Malayala Manorama newspaper , 4 Hindi radio stations , 2 Malayalam stations giving news about Kerala every hour , local TV feeds of Sony , Star , Zee and Malayala Manorama , central schools , temples and movie premiers with film stars regularly , the 8 lac Indians here surely don’t miss home .
My hunt for an Apple ipod took me to the interiors of Deira . Friday is Dubai’s Sunday so nothing opens till 4 pm . So I caught Pirates of the Carribean in the afternoon and plunged into the streets of Deira lining the Makhtoum bridge and Al Gharir city malls .
Stopping by at the Jumbo electronics store looked like a good idea .
A huge apple shaped display with ipods hanging all over greeted customers at the entrance . The famed Dubai duty free street furniture just outside the shop was probably deliberately planned to be there .
‘Is it really cheap at the duty free ?’ I asked the bihari attendant at the counter straight.
‘Dekhiye , sasta toh hai . But no worldwide warrantee will be given ‘
‘How much will this ipod cost there ?’
‘For 2 Gb with 500 songs , our price is 599 dirhams , you could get it there at about 550 dirhams ‘
A bad shopper that I am , he confused the hell out of me . In New York , the Apple store on 5th avenue was selling this at $200 two years back, I remember . That’s 8200 rupees as per current dollar rate of 41 bucks to a dollar and here 550 dirhams is about 6000 rupees , cheaper than the Indian rate of 7500 rupees even today .
‘ Where is it made ?’
‘Apple policy , made in China , designed in California ‘
‘Made in China ?’
‘Assembled in China . Can’t manufacture in Japan anymore . Costs are very high’
‘I saw the full page ad in Khaleej Times on the riot in the new shop Sharafa in the mall of the emirates . They are selling at 550 dirhams with a free charger costing 50 dirhams . Do you have a similar offer ?’
‘We are launching an offer next week . But I don’t know details yet ‘, said he honestly .
Duty Free would have it cheaper , it was evident now. Since 550 dirhams was the lowest a retailer could go and Jumbo was matching the price .
‘599 dirhams ‘ , said a terse phillipino woman at the counter of Dubai Duty Free Electronics shoppe .
I dropped the idea again.
The Khaleej Times blaring headline today reported of the largest assembly of 9 warships holding drills off the coast of Iran through theStraits of Hormuz , a narrow channel in international waters and a major artery for he global oil shipments , with nearly 40% of global oil passing through these straits .
Iran vehemently denied having full nuclear capabilities in a press conference early in the morning today . But the warships have stealthily moved in in the night already .
Life in amazing under-construction Dubai goes on , utterly ignoring the political heat around it .
Thursday, October 12, 2006
Formula One!
It’s been quite many years since I consumed movies like a glutton – once in college when it was a night of six back-to-back porn movies with the seventeen rogues in my hostel and once as an over-achieving sales manager watching a movie a day for twenty one days in the small town of Hubli , after having achieved my revenue targets with 30 days to spare.
This time , over the last two weekends , I binged on six new movies in town with a vengeance , four of them in succession . I have now realized that there’s a lot of formula-format in most movies that adhere to the rules of great screenplay , resulting in a sense of satisfaction as one leaves the theatre .
The typical great-movie-screenplay formula is :
Setting - Introduction of characters - Dramatic Event (Conflict 1 )- Reactions & Interplay of characters - Dramatic event (Conflict 2) - Resolution - Climax .
Here are the reviews , with the realization that great movies stick to the format , no matter what the plot –
Dor : The most riveting movie of them all . A movie that began slowly but gathered tension and momentum as it went along , making us cringe in our seats and shed a tear or two is about this woman who’s husband has been accused of the murder in an Arab state and is sentenced to death . His death penalty can only be waivered if she can get a pardon letter signed from the widow of the murdered man .
A Great plot , it adheres to the typical format of a movie screenplay which goes something like this :
Setting : 2 settings actually – a hilly Shimla & a dusty Jodhpur
Introduction of characters: 2 women- the will-be-widow & the gritty-pardon-seeker
Dramatic Event –Conflict 1 : The accidental death of husband 1
Reactions & Interplay of characters : The search for the widow ;meetings ;interplay
Dramatic event - Conflict 2 : The refusal to pardon
Resolution : Push factors – Father-in-Law wanting to trade her off for the house ;
Climax : Signing of the pardon letter ; emotive station scene & widow’s freedom
Exactly the same format was adopted by another great movie Khosla Ka Ghosla that dealt with the travails of a middle-class household wanting to move to a new bungalow which is to be bought and constructed with hard earned life-time savings .And how land-grabbers and brokers play kill-joy , tugging at the heart strings of guys in the audience who can relate and don’t want this to happen to them . The movie is quite brisk and covers its large canvas of the plot and characterization pretty quickly. Towards the very end there is some moments of gripping tension as one fears for the schemed plot going awry , but there’s a huge sigh of relief as the story moves on as planned leaving behind a good vibe . The format is , however , just as Syd Field said , except for the accommodation of more conflicts to highlight the many characters . Someone actually outlined the maximum number of characters for a good screenplay to be 3 , with 2 being preferred since each new criteria adds another aspect of communication and complicates the plot further . This movie manages to rise above the complexity of 7 important characters , and gives way to laughter at various turns in the plot .
Setting : A middle class family wanting a new house
Introduction of characters: one son going to US ,one son useless ; one girlfriend with separated parents ; a greedy land-grabber ( thrilling Bomen Irani ) , a harassed grandfather , a poor theatre company owner , the visa agent
Dramatic Event –Conflict 1 : The purchase of a plot of land
Reactions & Interplay of characters : Excitement , planning the structure
Dramatic event - Conflict 2 : The land grabber takes over the land
Reations & Interplay of characters : Panic , the prodigal son wanting to stay back
Dramatic Event –Conflict 3 : The plot hatched to get cheat the land-grabber
Resolution : The execution of the hatched plot – suspense – the hired labours
Climax : The sweet taste of Revenge .
Surprise , Surprise . A nice feel-good movie You , Me & Dupree which had Matt Dhillon , Michael Douglas , Kate Hudson & Owen Wilson doing some great roles , also followed the great-screenplay format to a tee ! The thematic was based on someone who is not cut out for a regular job , but who is a do-gooder with a great heart who believes that one should live a great life – job or no job . It creates a new concept of ‘ness ‘ – a verb which added to ones name defines the person as unique in this world . As if follows the challenges of a good guy getting married into a rich family and his stresses , one can’t but recount similar occurrences as one struggles up the corporate ladder .
The Formula is back in action .
Setting : A marriage of a man into a millionaire household
Introduction of characters: the millionaire father , the beautiful bride , the groom and his best friend of twenty five years
Dramatic Event –Conflict 1 : The friend has no place to go so comes to stay
Reactions & Interplay of characters : Husband being suppressed by FIL , surname , project , work hours , promotion & demotion
Dramatic event - Conflict 2 : The realization that the jobless-but-with-a-big-heart-friend has won over the wife & FIL
Reations & Interplay of characters : The harassed husband vs wife vs great childhood friend vs Pop-in-law ; friend highlights the loss of ‘ness’ in his buddy .
Dramatic Event –Conflict 3 : Friend leaves home
Resolution : The clarification of mis-understandings – pardon by FIL
Climax : Friend starts an academy on ‘Not losing ones ‘ness’ ‘.
The biggest disappointment was United 93. United 93 is the story of the 4th plane in the 9/11 bombings planned by Osama Bin Laden that couldn’t reach its target – White House , as its passengers revolted against the highjack and crashlanded the plane in the plains of Pennsylvannia , twenty minutes from its target . While the movie did manage to whip up appropriate tension at the right time , it could’nt resolve the tension appropriately and left a feeling of having seen a documentary at the end of the day . There was no emotional interplay , no names of characters , no action except in the dying minutes and killed a could have been tragic movie . Imagine Titanic without Jack& Rose and their chemistry not as a backdrop but as an in-your-face romance larger than life portrayals of values , relationships , love and freedom and then the tragedy with its magnitude . A documentary not worth watching . That’s what United 93 lives up to be .
Krishna was a good animated attempt at looking at young Krishna’s childhood , his antics and his achievements in mathura .Animation in India is still to reach the heights achieved by Disney though one hears that part of Toy Story and Narnia was done in a lab in Bangalore .The animation is pretty crude , the story is jerky , but the attempt is sincere .
Woh Lamhe , the unauthorized biography of Parveen babi was disturbing and pretty depressing though the characterization and portrayal was done very intensely by both Shiney Ahuja and Kangana Ranaut . It was a story , had all the elements of great screenplay , but since it was showing the story of a great yesteryears actress driven to schizophrenia by the fragile insecure relationships of the movie business , it couldn’t have been a happy movie .
Setting : The house of a movie actress
Introduction of characters: The aspiring director , the famous movie star with her boyfriend
Reactions & Interplay of characters : The treatment of the actress by the two men ,her search for meaning , the date-rape, resorting to alcoholic relief
Dramatic Event –Conflict 1 : The schizophrenic effect on the actress
Reactions & Interplay of characters : The director’s love – kidnapping –caring
Dramatic event - Conflict 2 : The suicide attempt
Resolution : The Director at the hospital
Climax : Death , Remorse
And it was good that I saw You,Me and Dupree just after I saw Woh Lamhe as the great humor and comic timing of Owen Wilson and Michael Douglas managed to wipe out the strong negativeness of Woh Lamhe .
A quick reflection on all historical great movies further confirms the One formula-different plots theory of movie-making . Most stories are different from plots , but there's a formula lurking somewhere for them , I guess .
This time , over the last two weekends , I binged on six new movies in town with a vengeance , four of them in succession . I have now realized that there’s a lot of formula-format in most movies that adhere to the rules of great screenplay , resulting in a sense of satisfaction as one leaves the theatre .
The typical great-movie-screenplay formula is :
Setting - Introduction of characters - Dramatic Event (Conflict 1 )- Reactions & Interplay of characters - Dramatic event (Conflict 2) - Resolution - Climax .
Here are the reviews , with the realization that great movies stick to the format , no matter what the plot –
Dor : The most riveting movie of them all . A movie that began slowly but gathered tension and momentum as it went along , making us cringe in our seats and shed a tear or two is about this woman who’s husband has been accused of the murder in an Arab state and is sentenced to death . His death penalty can only be waivered if she can get a pardon letter signed from the widow of the murdered man .
A Great plot , it adheres to the typical format of a movie screenplay which goes something like this :
Setting : 2 settings actually – a hilly Shimla & a dusty Jodhpur
Introduction of characters: 2 women- the will-be-widow & the gritty-pardon-seeker
Dramatic Event –Conflict 1 : The accidental death of husband 1
Reactions & Interplay of characters : The search for the widow ;meetings ;interplay
Dramatic event - Conflict 2 : The refusal to pardon
Resolution : Push factors – Father-in-Law wanting to trade her off for the house ;
Climax : Signing of the pardon letter ; emotive station scene & widow’s freedom
Exactly the same format was adopted by another great movie Khosla Ka Ghosla that dealt with the travails of a middle-class household wanting to move to a new bungalow which is to be bought and constructed with hard earned life-time savings .And how land-grabbers and brokers play kill-joy , tugging at the heart strings of guys in the audience who can relate and don’t want this to happen to them . The movie is quite brisk and covers its large canvas of the plot and characterization pretty quickly. Towards the very end there is some moments of gripping tension as one fears for the schemed plot going awry , but there’s a huge sigh of relief as the story moves on as planned leaving behind a good vibe . The format is , however , just as Syd Field said , except for the accommodation of more conflicts to highlight the many characters . Someone actually outlined the maximum number of characters for a good screenplay to be 3 , with 2 being preferred since each new criteria adds another aspect of communication and complicates the plot further . This movie manages to rise above the complexity of 7 important characters , and gives way to laughter at various turns in the plot .
Setting : A middle class family wanting a new house
Introduction of characters: one son going to US ,one son useless ; one girlfriend with separated parents ; a greedy land-grabber ( thrilling Bomen Irani ) , a harassed grandfather , a poor theatre company owner , the visa agent
Dramatic Event –Conflict 1 : The purchase of a plot of land
Reactions & Interplay of characters : Excitement , planning the structure
Dramatic event - Conflict 2 : The land grabber takes over the land
Reations & Interplay of characters : Panic , the prodigal son wanting to stay back
Dramatic Event –Conflict 3 : The plot hatched to get cheat the land-grabber
Resolution : The execution of the hatched plot – suspense – the hired labours
Climax : The sweet taste of Revenge .
Surprise , Surprise . A nice feel-good movie You , Me & Dupree which had Matt Dhillon , Michael Douglas , Kate Hudson & Owen Wilson doing some great roles , also followed the great-screenplay format to a tee ! The thematic was based on someone who is not cut out for a regular job , but who is a do-gooder with a great heart who believes that one should live a great life – job or no job . It creates a new concept of ‘ness ‘ – a verb which added to ones name defines the person as unique in this world . As if follows the challenges of a good guy getting married into a rich family and his stresses , one can’t but recount similar occurrences as one struggles up the corporate ladder .
The Formula is back in action .
Setting : A marriage of a man into a millionaire household
Introduction of characters: the millionaire father , the beautiful bride , the groom and his best friend of twenty five years
Dramatic Event –Conflict 1 : The friend has no place to go so comes to stay
Reactions & Interplay of characters : Husband being suppressed by FIL , surname , project , work hours , promotion & demotion
Dramatic event - Conflict 2 : The realization that the jobless-but-with-a-big-heart-friend has won over the wife & FIL
Reations & Interplay of characters : The harassed husband vs wife vs great childhood friend vs Pop-in-law ; friend highlights the loss of ‘ness’ in his buddy .
Dramatic Event –Conflict 3 : Friend leaves home
Resolution : The clarification of mis-understandings – pardon by FIL
Climax : Friend starts an academy on ‘Not losing ones ‘ness’ ‘.
The biggest disappointment was United 93. United 93 is the story of the 4th plane in the 9/11 bombings planned by Osama Bin Laden that couldn’t reach its target – White House , as its passengers revolted against the highjack and crashlanded the plane in the plains of Pennsylvannia , twenty minutes from its target . While the movie did manage to whip up appropriate tension at the right time , it could’nt resolve the tension appropriately and left a feeling of having seen a documentary at the end of the day . There was no emotional interplay , no names of characters , no action except in the dying minutes and killed a could have been tragic movie . Imagine Titanic without Jack& Rose and their chemistry not as a backdrop but as an in-your-face romance larger than life portrayals of values , relationships , love and freedom and then the tragedy with its magnitude . A documentary not worth watching . That’s what United 93 lives up to be .
Krishna was a good animated attempt at looking at young Krishna’s childhood , his antics and his achievements in mathura .Animation in India is still to reach the heights achieved by Disney though one hears that part of Toy Story and Narnia was done in a lab in Bangalore .The animation is pretty crude , the story is jerky , but the attempt is sincere .
Woh Lamhe , the unauthorized biography of Parveen babi was disturbing and pretty depressing though the characterization and portrayal was done very intensely by both Shiney Ahuja and Kangana Ranaut . It was a story , had all the elements of great screenplay , but since it was showing the story of a great yesteryears actress driven to schizophrenia by the fragile insecure relationships of the movie business , it couldn’t have been a happy movie .
Setting : The house of a movie actress
Introduction of characters: The aspiring director , the famous movie star with her boyfriend
Reactions & Interplay of characters : The treatment of the actress by the two men ,her search for meaning , the date-rape, resorting to alcoholic relief
Dramatic Event –Conflict 1 : The schizophrenic effect on the actress
Reactions & Interplay of characters : The director’s love – kidnapping –caring
Dramatic event - Conflict 2 : The suicide attempt
Resolution : The Director at the hospital
Climax : Death , Remorse
And it was good that I saw You,Me and Dupree just after I saw Woh Lamhe as the great humor and comic timing of Owen Wilson and Michael Douglas managed to wipe out the strong negativeness of Woh Lamhe .
A quick reflection on all historical great movies further confirms the One formula-different plots theory of movie-making . Most stories are different from plots , but there's a formula lurking somewhere for them , I guess .
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Pluto 1930-2006
It's been a strange month .
We lost Pluto , our 9th planet .
Probably , in our lives , it will be one of the biggest losses .Imagine losing a planet ! There it was , quietly tucked away in the universe , merrily ruling a sun-signs , inspiring cartoon characters and giving hope that one-day man might land on it to discover new life and poof !, it's left eight planets all by themselves in the universe .
The terse CBS/AP news report read out its dramatic redesignation ' Pluto, beloved by some as a cosmic underdog but scorned by astronomers who considered it too dinky and distant, was unceremoniously stripped of its status as a planet Thursday. '
The International Astronomical Union, dramatically reversing course just a week after floating the idea of reaffirming Pluto's planethood and adding three new planets to Earth's neighborhood, downgraded the ninth rock from the sun in historic new galactic guidelines. “Pluto is smaller than our moon, not of planetary size,” astronomer Sir Patrick Moore told CBS Evening News interim anchor Bob Schieffer. “If we call Pluto a planet, there are others: Xena, Verona, Terran, Ceres — the list is endless. In fact, that makes no sense at all.”
“Science is an evolving subject and always will be.” Powerful new telescopes, experts said, are changing the way they size up the mysteries of the solar system and beyond.
Pluto, a planet since 1930, got the boot because it didn't meet the new rules, which say a planet not only must orbit the sun and be large enough to assume a nearly round shape, but must “clear the neighborhood around its orbit.” That disqualifies Pluto, whose oblong orbit overlaps Neptune's, downsizing the solar system to eight planets from the traditional nine. Astronomers have labored without a universal definition of a planet since well before the time of Copernicus, who proved that the Earth revolves around the sun.
“It's disappointing in a way, and confusing,” said Patricia Tombaugh, the 93-year-old widow of Pluto discoverer Clyde Tombaugh. “I don't know just how you handle it. It kind of sounds like I just lost my job,” she said from Las Cruces, N.M. “But I understand science is not something that just sits there. It goes on. Clyde finally said before he died, 'It's there. Whatever it is. It is there.”
' The decision by the IAU, the official arbiter of heavenly objects, restricts membership in the elite cosmic club to the eight classical planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.
One man's meat is another man's poison . While astronomers have knocked out Pluto , astrologers are stuck !! Scorpions don't have a ruling planet !
Here's a definition of Pluto - it is associated with spiritual changes, development, and political power. A person under the strong influence of this planet will experience many different upheavals in their life, such as rebirths (transformations and regenerations of both the spirit and the mind). It exerts much force in bringing about changes and plays a key role in identifying spiritual lessons during a lifetime.
It seems a lot of it has been suddenly applied to Pluto itself !
Plutos energies are intense and when unleashed it can actually change your entire life, for good or evil, so much so that the person seems caught up in a whirlwind until the phase passes and leaves a complete set of new ideas, ideals, or morals instilled in the very core of their being. It also has a purifying energy that allows one to rise to higher levels of awareness. Before this rise can come about one must consciously seek to eliminate anything that would hinder them. Sometimes Plutos energies are perceived as destructive but they are, rather, a reflection of energy being returned to itself; this effect has often been associated with the subversive elements of society and with the underground.
Due to the slow orbital journey ( Pluto takes 278 days to orbit the sun ) it is seen as a generational influence, as with most of the outer planets, its natal house position has a much greater meaning. Its influence is neither mild or subtle, it destroys the old and builds the new.
Consumed by its own definition , Pluto is suddenly not a planet. But as I look around , noone seems to be bothered about it .
Bye Pluto .
We lost Pluto , our 9th planet .
Probably , in our lives , it will be one of the biggest losses .Imagine losing a planet ! There it was , quietly tucked away in the universe , merrily ruling a sun-signs , inspiring cartoon characters and giving hope that one-day man might land on it to discover new life and poof !, it's left eight planets all by themselves in the universe .
The terse CBS/AP news report read out its dramatic redesignation ' Pluto, beloved by some as a cosmic underdog but scorned by astronomers who considered it too dinky and distant, was unceremoniously stripped of its status as a planet Thursday. '
The International Astronomical Union, dramatically reversing course just a week after floating the idea of reaffirming Pluto's planethood and adding three new planets to Earth's neighborhood, downgraded the ninth rock from the sun in historic new galactic guidelines. “Pluto is smaller than our moon, not of planetary size,” astronomer Sir Patrick Moore told CBS Evening News interim anchor Bob Schieffer. “If we call Pluto a planet, there are others: Xena, Verona, Terran, Ceres — the list is endless. In fact, that makes no sense at all.”
“Science is an evolving subject and always will be.” Powerful new telescopes, experts said, are changing the way they size up the mysteries of the solar system and beyond.
Pluto, a planet since 1930, got the boot because it didn't meet the new rules, which say a planet not only must orbit the sun and be large enough to assume a nearly round shape, but must “clear the neighborhood around its orbit.” That disqualifies Pluto, whose oblong orbit overlaps Neptune's, downsizing the solar system to eight planets from the traditional nine. Astronomers have labored without a universal definition of a planet since well before the time of Copernicus, who proved that the Earth revolves around the sun.
“It's disappointing in a way, and confusing,” said Patricia Tombaugh, the 93-year-old widow of Pluto discoverer Clyde Tombaugh. “I don't know just how you handle it. It kind of sounds like I just lost my job,” she said from Las Cruces, N.M. “But I understand science is not something that just sits there. It goes on. Clyde finally said before he died, 'It's there. Whatever it is. It is there.”
' The decision by the IAU, the official arbiter of heavenly objects, restricts membership in the elite cosmic club to the eight classical planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.
One man's meat is another man's poison . While astronomers have knocked out Pluto , astrologers are stuck !! Scorpions don't have a ruling planet !
Here's a definition of Pluto - it is associated with spiritual changes, development, and political power. A person under the strong influence of this planet will experience many different upheavals in their life, such as rebirths (transformations and regenerations of both the spirit and the mind). It exerts much force in bringing about changes and plays a key role in identifying spiritual lessons during a lifetime.
It seems a lot of it has been suddenly applied to Pluto itself !
Plutos energies are intense and when unleashed it can actually change your entire life, for good or evil, so much so that the person seems caught up in a whirlwind until the phase passes and leaves a complete set of new ideas, ideals, or morals instilled in the very core of their being. It also has a purifying energy that allows one to rise to higher levels of awareness. Before this rise can come about one must consciously seek to eliminate anything that would hinder them. Sometimes Plutos energies are perceived as destructive but they are, rather, a reflection of energy being returned to itself; this effect has often been associated with the subversive elements of society and with the underground.
Due to the slow orbital journey ( Pluto takes 278 days to orbit the sun ) it is seen as a generational influence, as with most of the outer planets, its natal house position has a much greater meaning. Its influence is neither mild or subtle, it destroys the old and builds the new.
Consumed by its own definition , Pluto is suddenly not a planet. But as I look around , noone seems to be bothered about it .
Bye Pluto .
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