septemberthe22nd - Updated !

After I was Tired and almost met a freak accident, I have updated my photolog with pics from my Chandratal trip last september.

Please see and as always put some comments :) Here is a sample ... to show off the hidden photographer in me !

Chandratal - Revisited - The Lake - Upside Down?



In September last year, I went trekking to Chandratal and it was one helluva trip. Here are some more pics from the forgotten land.

The Chandratal Lake - Upside Down
2005 September: Chandratal Trip

Chandratal - Revisited - The Serpentine Roads !


In September last year, I went trekking to Chandratal and it was one helluva trip. Here are some more pics from the forgotten land.

The Serpentine Roads
2005 September: Chandratal Trip

Chandratal - Revisited - Dusk? Dawn?


In September last year, I went trekking to Chandratal and it was one helluva trip. Here are some more pics from the forgotten land.

Dusk? Dawn?
2005 September: Chandratal Trip

Chandratal - Revisited - Living on the Edge


In September last year, I went trekking to Chandratal and it was one helluva trip. Here are some more pics from the forgotten land.

Living on the Edge !
2005 September: Chandratal Trip

Price Arbitrage at Delhi Metro

Delhi Metro is one of the coolest things to have happened to the Delhi Infrastructure. Traveling is not a hassle anymore. You are saved from the Delhi weather, you save on a lot of time and people don’t spit anywhere and if you can believe, people actually take a bath before boarding Delhi Metro.

I love Delhi and like Delhi Metro not only for the convenience it offers. It also offers a price arbitrage opportunity. Delhi Metro uses an automated magnetic token system for ticketing. You can buy tokens for a single journey or you can buy a travel card valid for longer durations or more number of journeys. These travel cards are available in multiples of 50 bucks and a refundable security deposit of 100 bucks. You can thus pay 150 bucks and get a card that would have a travel allowance of 50 bucks. And yes, Delhi Metro gives a 10% added bonus on the amount you put in. In effect I get 55 bucks worth of travel money if I give them 50 bucks.

And this is where things get interesting. Now if I return this card, I get 100 as the refund and I get whatever amount is left on the card, I get that back too. Basically if I return the card without using at all, I can get 210 for putting 200 upfront. We are talking about a ROI of 5% without doing anything at all.

And if someone has the intent and patience, he can stand there all day long and buy and return and buy and return and so on and so forth. I am not even counting the annualized rate of return that one can make on Delhi Metro.

More details about Delhi Metro are available here.

Happy birthday Shahrukh Khan

SRK is one person I have started to idolize recently. If I was asked a reason for this sudden spring in admiration, I would not have any answers. Its just that he is one of those people who have achieved whatever they set out to do.

A friend told me about his life and times right from the time he was a schoolboy in Delhi. He has excelled at anything and everything he has put his hands into. Then in one of the interviews he has said he always wanted to conquer the world one day and hasn’t he realized it already (he has turned 42).

There are more things that I would like to write but as always I aint got no time to spare.

And yeah if anyone is actually reading this, please understand that my preferences in life have not changed. Men can also like (read admire) other men.

The problems of being jack of all trades

I have always considered myself a jack of all trades. I have been and still am a writer, reader, philosopher, cricketer, politician, strategist, painter, photoshop artist, collector of things, singer, dancer, stock trader, blogger, biker, and a lot many things that I cant recall at this moment.

As I always say there are two sides of a coin - a good one and a not so good one. Good one is easy to see and interesting to know about. To start with I know and get to know a lot of things about lot of subjects (had I been a management consultant, I could have called myself a 360 degrees consultant). Secondly I can stand in a mob and talk about things (and I would be a wrong a lot of times). Thirdly I can move from one thing to other and then another and never get bored of things. Fourth and most importantly I would have good memories of doing these things.

And since there are proverbial two sides, I should also talk about things I think are not good about being a jack of all trades. First and foremost you are not considered an expert or an authority on a subject until or unless you show the world that you have spent all your life in pursuing higher truths in a particular subject. For example I can be a remarkable photographer (which I am not), I would not be considered even an average photographer till I have a huge website with million links to other photography websites and extensive articles talking about merits and demerits of different cameras and tripods and technical details of shutter speeds etc.

Ok so you are not an authority, what next? I think second people (read crowd) would fail to give you credit for some masterpieces that you might have produced. Again the basic assumption is I want credit and second (actually second should be first) I might actually produce some masterpiece. For simplicity (I love it), lets assume that both of the assumptions are true. What happens if you are not given due credit for your masterpiece? Me, I am just a mortal human being with all the feelings that intellectuals talk about, I would get hurt (to put it simply). And second I would not be given more work which I am sure I can do as good as anyone else (or may be better too).

Authority - no, credit - no, whats next? I think third worst thing about being a jack of all trades lies in the later part of maxim … jack of all trades but master of none. This one is more personal than the first two. I would not be very comfortable with a lot of things if I see gray matter. There should be two end to a point. You know it or you don't know it. If you are jack of all trades, there is a higher probability that you won't know it. There is still a chance that you might know it all and this is the place where I am trying to reach ... !

Lukka Chuppi - Rang De Basanti

Ths is one of those songs that are too beautiful to be a MOM-SON song ...

Title: Lukka Chippi
Movie: Rang De Basanti
Singer: Lata Mangeshkar, AR Rahman

Luka Chuppi bahut huyi saamne aa ja naa
Kahan kahan dhoondha tujhe
thak gayi hai ab teri maa

Aaja saanjh hui mujhe teri fikar
Dhundhla gayi dekh meri nazar aa ja na (2)

Kya bataoon maa kahan hoon main
Yahan udney ko mere khula aasmaan hai
Tere kisson jaisa bhola salona
jahan hain yahan sapno vala
Meri patang ho befikar udd rahi hai maa
Dor koi loote nahin beech se kaate na

Aaja saanjh hui mujhe teri fikar
Dhundhla gayi dekh meri nazar aa ja na

Teri raah takey aankhiyaan
jaane kaisa kaisa hoye jiyaa (2)

Dhire dhire aangan utre andhera, mera deep kahan
Dhalke suraj kare ishara chanda tu hai kahan
Mere chanda tu hai kahan
Luka Chuppi bahut huyi saamne aa ja naa
Kahan kahan dhoondha tujhe thak gayi hai ab teri maa

Aaja saanjh hui mujhe teri fikar
Dhundhla gayi dekh meri nazar aa ja na (2)

kaise tujhko dikhaun yahaan hai kya
Maine jharne se paani maa tod ke piya hai
Guchcha guchcha kai khwabon ka uchal ke chuwa hai
Chaaya liya bhali dhoop yahaan hai
Naya naya sa hai roop yahan
Yahaan sab kuch hai maa phir bhi
lage bin tere mujhko akela

Aaja saanjh hui mujhe teri fikar
Dhundhla gayi dekh meri nazar aa ja na (3)

The Nidhi Kapoor Story

Did you like this post? May be you want to read my first book - The Nidhi Kapoor Story.

Check it out on Amazon or Flipkart?