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A proud moment

Apr 202009

The satellite ISRO launched into space yesterday carries a micro-satellite called ANUSAT, that was designed by Anna University, my alma mater.

ANUSAT is the first satellite developed by an Indian university (Anna University), which would demonstrate the technologies related to message storing and forward operations. University sources said scores of students and faculty from different streams had worked on this satellite for the last six years.

ANUSAT is a store-and-forward communication satellite that will help transfer confidential academic materials, including exam question papers, to prevent question paper leakages. It will also help monitor drought and wasteland, urban planning and other studies.

While my only contribution towards this effort was to not disturb anyone involved with it, it gives me and every other alumnus of Asia’s oldest engineering school immense pride at the achievement of our peers. Congratulations to all the people involved in this (some of whom I know personally)!

Suryan FM online

Chennai, Music, Tamil 8 Responses »

Oct 192008

A few months ago, I had posted the links to Suryan FM’s live stream.

A few readers have commented that the stream no longer works. This is true. I checked Suriyan FM’s website, and I see that their live online stream is “under process“. So it is possible that the folks at Sun Network are working on this, and that they might resume live streaming in the future.

Previously Aahaa FM 91.9 Chennai had live streaming on its website. They still do, but now you have to register on the site (free) and be logged in to get the stream. The website is http://www.aahaafm.com

“Java down-unga!”

Chennai, Culture & Society, Miscellaneous 9 Responses »

Oct 142008

(Warning: Lotsa brackets, like this one.)

Back in 2001-02 (ah, the good ol’ days), when the stock markets recoiled after the dotcom bust and thousands of people found themselves out of a job in Silicon Valley, thousands of miles across the face of the earth, the impact was felt in Chennai. The great Indian IT boom 1.0 had ended, and this was the period before v2.0 commenced (the period when folks were recruited in hordes; the “Trespassers will be recruited” days).

At the turn of the century millennium, every Ram, Shyam and Hari was enrolled in a computer-training course. It didn’t matter what you did, what degree you were pursuing, what your life’s ambitions were etc. All that mattered was to enroll in the nearest NIIT or SSI centre (or something not that far off, if there were “incentives”).

These institutes were unbelievably good at marketing. They tapped into the general “Whatever you learn today is going to worthless tomorrow” belief. And added, “… but you must learn it from us nevertheless.” The ads in newspapers, and there were more ads than news content on most pages, teemed with TLAs and FLAs. TLA stands for Three Letter Acronym (which incidentally is a three letter abbreviation). So, if COM was the hot topic in 1999, it was DCOM in 2000, CORBA in 2001 and Coldfusion in 2002.

It didn’t matter what these meant; the rule was to be abstruse, condescending and inviting all at the same time.

But Java changed all that. Everyone’s son and daughter and neigbhor was learning Java. Soon, however, Java, as it was used in conversations, did not directly refer to the programming language that Sun Microsystems came out with. It morphed into more of a folk term.

People felt comfortable using the term Java. (Like you bring a girl home, and your mom frowns; but you tell her that her name is Gayatri, and frown turns to contented smile.) I guess the Tamil mind felt that C was too small a name for a serious programming language. C++ should have fit the bill, but for some reason, it escaped them. Maybe the additional “+” was off-putting. But somehow Java became the chosen term. It was what people on the street threw in the midst of a conversation to prove that they were also buzzword-compliant.

(Perhaps the crowing glory of the language came when the comedian Vivek included the language in his now-famous ettu pulli kolam dialogue – remember “atomic energy coupled with cosmic energy”?)

So, in 2002, I walk into the neighborhood saloon. (Didn’t I say, good ol’ days?) It is Sunday morning, so there is a crowd, so I’m forced to wait in line and read Dhina Thanthi.

(Have you seen the folks reading Dhina Thanthi in a saloon? They are the unluckiest of the most unfortunate. They cannot get to lay their hands on the magazines; those are all taken; nobody is interested in the papers, and those with the papers are doing their best to peer into the magazine in the hands of the person sitting next to them, while actually giving an impression of reading the paper. They should be extra careful not to be caught in the act. Yenda indha maanamketta pozhappu?)

The person sitting next to me is an elderly gentleman. He also has a paper in hand, and is evidently not interested in it. So he turns to me and asks, “So what do you do?”

I tell him I study engineering. Like everyone else does, I don’t add.

He: “Computer engineering?”

I: “No, electronics.”

He: “Nalladhu dhaan. Java down aayiduchunga!” (literally “That’s good. Java is down”; what he meant was “Java is out of demand.”)

I: “Oh!” (I’m thinking if he understands fully what he is saying.)

He: “Yes, my daughter studied Java. She is unable to find a job now.”

I: “Sorry to hear that”, and the conversation peters out.

Friends, Chennai-vasis, now that we are in another downturn, do you hear stuff like this these days on the road, in the bus, in the saloon?

Madras

Chennai, Personal 4 Responses »

Jul 212008

… is the greatest city in the world.

But isn’t that as obvious as stating that paruppusili is the greatest food item ever?

When the earth quaked…

Chennai, Personal 6 Responses »

Jun 272008

It was from a friend’s status message on Google Talk (“Chennaiyil oru bhookamba kaalam”) that I came to know that Chennai had felt the aftershocks of an earthquake that rocked the Andamans. Was glad to know that there was no damage reported to either life or property.

This is the fouth reported earthquake to hit Chennai in the last 7 years. (And during the 18-year period before that, I don’t think there was any.) And this is the fourth Chennai earthquake that I have missed. Of course, earthquakes are no fun, and I pray to God that I just keep this record going (and also, that there be no earthquakes at all!).

And though I have missed them all, here are my earthquake stories.

The first time I remember an earthquake struck Chennai was on January 26, 2001. It was a Saturday (and Republic Day as well), and that morning, my parents and I were visiting the famous Lakshmi Narasimha Swami Temple in Sholingur, about 100 kilometres from Chennai. You might recall that this was the same earthquake that devastated Gujarat – Bhuj, Anjaar etc.

The second time it happened was on September 25, 2001. The reason I remember the date well was because it was a Tuesday, and just two Tuesdays earlier, 9/11 had happened. (I think something happened on Tuesday September 18 as well, but I cannot recall what it was.) When the earthquake occurred, sometime between 8:30 PM and 9 PM, I was on my bike heading home from college. It was a minor quake, so I knew nothing about it. When I entered my street, I found that all my neighbours were on the street, standing just outside their compound walls.

You can picture the scene, it was as if the entire street was waiting to catch a glimpse of some VIP’s cavalcade. My first reaction was, and I am promise I’m not making this up, “Wow, have I won the Nobel Prize or something?” Remember, the houses were all intact; the people were outside chatting; it was dark, so I couldn’t make out their reactions, but they were all looking at me rather incredulously. I slowed down my bike a bit, and my next thought was that of the old Coca Cola ad for the Olympics – something to do with cyclists, and it ends with “Coca Cola salutes Olympics fans everywhere”. So I was trying to imagine myself as that gold medal-winning cyclist.

Well, all my hallucinations burst as soon as I made out that my mom and dad were on the street themselves. And then, much to my disappointment, the news was broken to me that the promised Nobel Prize wasn’t going to be mine.

The third occasion was the most tragic. It happened on the morning of December 26, 2004, which triggered the fatal Boxing Day tsunami that left almost 150000 people dead, and lots more shattered. The aftershocks were felt early in the morning, at around 6:30 to 7 AM. It being a Sunday, I was fast asleep (oh well, as if…!), so I did not feel a thing. My mom did recount later that she had felt something at that time, but had discarded it as a non-event.

The funniest part of that morning came before the news of the tsunami had broken. The folks at Sun TV were recording the 8 AM news broadcast about an hour earlier, and the newscaster, while reading the news, paused momentarily, and said, “Edho shake aaguthu… Shake aagara maadhiri irukku… Hey, illa, edho shake aaguthu…“, and then rushed away from the news desk. (“Something is shaking… I feel some shake… Hey, really, something is shaking…“)

The guy is actually a familiar face on Sun TV; I forget his name, some Rathnam, possibly. As this was just a recorded bulletin, they shot it again before 8, and it did not appear in the news. It was however broadcast an hour later when the first news story about the Marina being inundated was broken. It was funny, but the events of the morning left everyone feeling wretched. It did evoke some debate the next day at work whether the footage was for real or was stage-managed by Sun!

There was another interesting coincidence. The Friday before the tsunami, I found that there was a discussion on my company’s general bulletin board (relating to Poompuhar, I think), and someone had mentioned Dhanushkodi, the coastal town near Rameshwaram that was lost (submerged in sea) in the 1960s. Another person, hailing from Calcutta, had replied asking what Dhanushkodi was. I sent him a reply letting him know whatever I knew about Dhanushkodi (which, in fact, wasn’t much.) He replied back to me, and his message read thus: “Vijay, thanks for the reply. It seems as if the seas near Chennai are interested in gobbling up the land.” Less than 48 hours later, the Boxing Day tsunami happened.

Those are my earthquake stories; or rather how I missed them, or maybe, how they missed me. I reiterate, earthquakes are no fun, and I am thankful not to have had the misfortune of enduring one. The intention behind this post is not to sound unsympathetic or condescending to those who have been involved in one, directly or indirectly.

If you have an interesting earthquake-related incident, do share.

Suryan FM live

Chennai, Media, Tamil 36 Responses »

Jun 032008

Suryan FM 93.5 is streaming their Chennai radio programs live online. Just go to their website, register for free and start listening (kELunga, kELunga, kEttukittE irunga!).

I had already written about Aahaa FM which streams live online.

In case you are interested in the URL for the streams:

Aahaa FM — mms://74.54.85.4/AahaaFM or rtsp://74.54.85.4/AahaaFM
Suriyan FM — mms://66.180.172.26/suryanFMchennai or rtsp://66.180.172.91/suryan_FM

Chennai Super Kings: Pride of the South

Chennai, Cricket 10 Responses »

Apr 272008

One of the nicest things about the Indian Premier League is that the Chennai team lead the pack now. Still the only unbeaten team in the league, the Kings of Chennai rock!

Incidentally, I thought the Mumbai Indians would do better than lose four in a row.

A landmark no more…

Chennai No Responses »

Apr 132008

The Woodlands Drive-in Restaurant just off Mount Road in Chennai is not just another idly-dosa-vada place. A landmark, it has its place in the city’s modern heritage. It was the first, and for a long time, the only restaurant in Chennai where you could enjoy your food amidst the tress in your car. I remember the food itself to be delectable, but the unique experience of being served in your car was unbeatable.

The Hindu reports that the 46-year old restaurant has been directed by the Supreme Court to close down its operations, or, according to some, discontinue its drive-in service. All that the photo in the article states that the land belongs to the Horticultural Society of Tamil Nadu. Whatever it be, one of the city’s landmarks is lost to the future.

More waves in the air

Chennai 9 Responses »

Sep 222006

For the past few days, some new radio channel has been testing out the airwaves in Chennai. They broadcast for a few hours, in the late afternoon and early evening; you can tune in to 106.4 FM. As of now, there are only songs, no announcements, let alone advertisements. So, I have no idea about the channel’s name.

The Hindu reports that another radio channel is launching in Chennai next week. The name is BIG, and it comes from the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani group. BIG will be beamed on 92.7 MHz. This pushes up the number of commercial FM channels in the city to seven.

Suriyan FM (Sun Network) – 93.5
Radio Mirchi (Times Network) – 98.3
FM Gold (Chennai Radio) – 105.0
Radio City (STAR India) – 105.8
FM Rainbow (Chennai Radio) – 107.1
Unknown – 106.4
BIG – 92.7

There are two other FM radio stations, run by Anna University (Anna FM – 90.4) and MOP Vaishnav College (MOP FM – 91.2); these come under the Community Radio category.

I feel it would be better if the new channels provide some variety, instead of crowding out the airwaves with more of the same type as is being served by the existing providers.

Updates

BIG FM is launching on Monday the 25th (today) in Hyderabad. The Chennai station is up, but it is not playing any songs as yet. Actress Asin is the brand ambassador for the channel in the South. In the near future, 20 cities from the North, 7 from the East and 9 each from the South and the West can tune in to 92.7.

106.4 FM has no name still. I’m temporarily naming it as Boys FM, because whenever I tune in, the station is playing the soundtrack from the movie Boys.

Chennai joins the Metroblogging bandwagon

Blogging, Chennai 2 Responses »

Mar 272006

Till yesterday, I didn’t know what Metroblogging meant. Well, I don’t claim much knowledge even now. But Chennai has been placed on the Metroblogging circuit, and that’s great news!Many thanks to Kaps, Kiruba, Nancy, Keerthi, Chandru, Vatsan and Echo.

The sacred lily tank

Chennai, Religion 1 Response »

Jan 312006

Most people in Chennai would be baffled to know that there is a famous locality in the city whose name translates to “Sacred Lily Tank”. This one can attribute partly to the classicism of the name, and partly to the anglicism of the same.

Triplicane, a name which which actually can pass of as a borough in some English county, is the anglicised form of Thiruvallikkeni, whose Tamilised form is thiru alli keni, and hence sacred lily tank. I consider the Parthasarathy temple in Triplicane different, rather unique because it is probably the only temple where one can find Lord Vishnu sporting a moustache. The explanation I got was that the Lord (Partha + sarathy = charioteer to Arjuna, the fabled bowman) was taking part in the Mahabharata war, and hence he was depicted as being bellicose.

The pushkarini or the temple tank (from which the area derives its name) is generally dry around the year owing the lack of rains in Chennai. This time, however, thanks to the more-than-copious rainfall, the tank is a visitor’s delight.

Here are a couple of pictures I received in the mail. The pictures were taken on the 1st of January, and show the tank full of water. Nice ones, I thought. For those who know the place, the sender wishes to add that the photos were taken from east to west, in front of the Yadhugiri Mantap.

The Chepauk curse

Chennai, Cricket 3 Responses »

Nov 222005

The Chepauk stadium is considered (not just by people from Chennai) as one of the best venues in India not just for the laurels India has won on this ground, but also because it is “reputed to be the most knowledgeable and appreciative in the country” (Cricinfo.com).That sporting crowd has, in the past few years, gone home disappointed every time because Mother Nature decided to play spoilsport. The ground where India won its first ever Test match played sad witness to a rained-out fifth day on which India were chasing a gettable total in the fourth innings against Australia. Sehwag’s form, the previous evening, seemed like it would ensure a squared Test series, enabling India to retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Similarly, the previous ODI against New Zealand was also abandoned due to rain, after India had climbed to a respectable position. Sachin Tendulkar, who claims Chennai to be his lucky venue, and where he played one of his best Test knocks (the 136 against Pakistan which India lost by a small margin), was denied a fifty that day.

And the little master would have claimed another record (maximum ODI appearances – 357) had today’s match not been abandoned. I think the last completed international game at Chennai, the stadium where Pakistan was given a rare rousing ovation after their Test victory, happened four years ago – a victory against England.

Let’s hope and pray that the upcoming Test match against Sri Lanka goes on without any problems, treating the Chennai audience royally.

A day in Cherrapunji

Chennai 5 Responses »

Oct 282005

Is this Chennai? A city which rejoices if there is cloud cover for 40 minutes was lashed, battered (and at places, bruised) by 40 hours of non-stop torrential downpour. Yes, 40 hours! Of those I know, only Soumyadip should have experienced such rainfall.Now that the rains have stopped for almost a day, Chennai starts limping back to normal. Some places have been hit badly, but the water has already started receding from many parts.

One really appreciable thing in all this is the swiftness of the city’s police force and also the Corporation. I’ve heard quite a few tales of how the police helped stranded citizens by offering a lift across short distances, and sometimes even to their houses!

Also, the Corporation has swung into action and is trying to mend damaged roads. I myself came across more than a dozen such instances, where Corporation workers were filling up potholes and craters with stones, which would then be flattened by a roadroller. I wonder why our roads are so vulnerable. Why resort to such stopgap fixes, instead of doing it right first time?

Jaggy has put up this excellent photo-feature on his blog.

Udit, stop it!

Chennai, Culture & Society 11 Responses »

Oct 032005

Indians, in particular, Tamilians are known for their hospitality. The way we adapt with other peoples and cultures in evident from the popularity of many filmstars and politicians. Rajnikanth, KJ Yesudoss, SP Balasubramanian do not hail from Tamil Nadu, and yet are followed fanatically.In the past few years, Udit Narayan has risen to prominence in Kollywood circles. In fact, every Vidyasagar movie will have at least one song sung by him. Reception for Udit has always been mixed, with one side claiming that he brings a “kick” to the song, and some others who feel that he is murdering the Tamil language. The song “Kaadhal Pisaase” from Run comes to mind, as a case in point. I have always sided with the Udit supporters, until…

I was listening to Radio Mirchi this morning, and the song “Eeshwara, vaanum mannum…” sung by Udit was being played. My friend suggested that I pay close attention to the lyrics. At one place, Udit sings “Periyamma ponnai rasikkalam”. That was sacrilege because it means “Let us have fun with our aunt’s daughter”. The actual line is “Priyamana pennai rasikkalam” (“Let’s have fun with those we like”). Such a glaring error, and everyone let it pass. My friend informed me that when the soundtrack of that movie was released, the lyricist Vairamuthu was ambushed by journalists at this outrageous line. Only then did everyone realise that it was caused by Udit’s prowess.

This is not an isolated instance of mispronunciation. In fact, this is the rule with most singers from the north. I don’t belong to any cultural, moral or language police, but the average person would agree that there is not even a million-to-one chance of an SPB or a KJY (or Susheela, Janaki, Chitra) creating such a mess.

The Larger Picture

This comes at a time when there is a nationwide debate about what’s wrong with Chennai. First the dress code in colleges, then Kushboo’s comments on pre-marital relationships and then the Park Hotel scandal. The question posed is “Are we being too conservative, old-world and resistant to change?”

It seems to me that Chennai is an India inside India. The way Indians of the north view Chennai isn’t much different from the way the Westerners view India – hot, conservative and mired in outdated opinions and traditions.

It can be observed that if people migrate from their place to a different one, they tend to follow the customs and practices of the new place, not forgetting their roots. Indians who have migrated to the West are a good example. Indian Americans celebrate Diwali with lot of pomp and grandeur.

[What is surprising is that, we in India celebrate a lot of American events, though there is no great influx of Americans. We celebrate Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Great Grandfather's Day etc. of our own accord. In the coming years, India will overtake America in celebrating Halloween and Thanksgiving Day. Pundits of globalisation would remark that this marks the arrival of the global Indian. But if this were true, why are Indian festivals like Pongal (Shankaranti) not celebrated by Americans with the same zeal and fervour that we display on their fad days?]

Chennai isn’t a confused city with outdated views. It is, like most others, an evolving city. The selfsame people who raise a hue and cry about moral policing in bars… where were they when Ricky Ponting was thrown out a nightclub in Calcutta during the 1998 series? Does that make Calcutta conservative and old-world?

The fact is each city is different, and has its own ways of life. Chennai’s nightlife isn’t as pulsating as Bangalore’s not because we are short of electricity. It is the way the city is. Those who hold conservative views are considered boring. But the fact is, it is those who wear the tag of liberals who are a boring lot. They want Chennai, Bangalore, Mumbai, Kolkata and every other city to have the same party circuit as New York City and Paris. To them, individual identity is a strict no-no. And a city which tries to guard its identity is mired in contradictions.

If Chennai doesn’t want to let go of its traditions, then that must be respected. We need not change our value systems for the worse just to accomodate those whose definition of liberty is to get drunk late in the night in bars without license and run over pedestrians.

Who cares about little Johnny?

Chennai, Miscellaneous 1 Response »

Jun 212005

This past weekend, some of my project members went to Vishakapatnam to attend the marriage of a colleague. As they returned to work yesterday, most of them were sporting an undesirable tan! At more than 45 degrees C (113 F), the sun was merciless. On an average they should have imbibed 10 litres of fluids each day! Even the nights were no less tortuous.

Not that we’re complaining of incessant snowfall in Chennai, but to know that other places are suffering much worse under the heat wave brings mixed reactions – I pity the people who have to toil under such searing heat, while feeling happy that I’m better off here. I remember reading in some book (maybe Word Power) a pithy line under the title Classroom Classics, a collection of common goof-ups because of the misuse of vocabulary: “The climate in Bombay is such that its people have to live elsewhere”. I think such a statement can be applied to 80% of places in India.

Last evening provided some much needed relief. A week of 100F days seems to have disturbed even the rain-god and woken him up from his deep slumber. Chennai was screened by some lusty-looking cumulonimbus clouds and was lashed by — nay, sprinkled with — some showers. The much excitable Chennai population, and the trigger-happy media (Radio Mirchi, for one) declared celebrations… and since then, there hasn’t been one droplet!

I’m certain that young children are spoilt big-time in schools. One of the first rhymes the tiny tots are taught is “Rain rain go away! Little Johnny wants to play!” It is one of the examples of how pathetic and mindless the teaching system is in our country. Kids should be taught something meaningful, practical and relevant. Whenever there are dark clouds, these toddlers sing in unison and drive the rain away. The power of prayers? Public opinion?

If you live in Chennai or some such rain-forsaken place and want to do something about it, I suggest you talk to the authorities in the schools in your area! After all, it is time to revamp the education system…

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