Hi after long… And introduction to my new blog! :)

Hi All,

I had a lot of hobbies like dancing, singing, writing, etc. At different phases there were different hobbies which were most prominent. When i was in school, I was well known by everyone as dancer, during college I started blogging and mainly covered news articles related to construction industry in crazyengineers.com. After that came the phase of preparing for my MBA entrance exams, and the 2- year MBA as well. Though this was the most difficult phase, it helped me in many ways. 🙂 But this 2- year penance (i’d like to say it that way 😉 ) made me sacrifice a lot in return for all the good that I was to receive. I had altogether stopped writing, dance classes were long forgotten, any extra time was used to catch up with some sleep, as MBA meant sleepless nights, endless deadlines, individual and group projects strangling you at once. :p And at last i’m done with this MBA!! 😀 *cheering self*

So I am back to having a lot of freetime in hand and to put this to some constructive use I started wondering what I could do. I was quite decent in sketching when I was a kid. So I decided to take a few days lessons and start with another hobby now!

“PENCIL AND CHARCOAL SKETCHING!!” 

So I thought it’d be a better idea to start a separate blog to put up my art works and so I introduce to you….

Niru’s Studio (www.pencilsncharcoal.wordpress.com)

Hope you guys will like my work there and support me! 🙂

Apart from that i’m joining work this July and will soon be travelling a lot! So more hope that I might continue writing more frequently here 😀 I’m not going to leave my empire abandoned, am I? 😉

Cheers!

Civilprincess a.k.a. Niranjana

A different “season” greetings altogether! :)

Come December, Christmas becomes the talk of the town everywhere… But not in Chennai, where, Music and Arts take the centre stage this season. Marghazhi season (Mid December to mid January) has been one important aspect of chennai’s culture.

Moods of Margazhi-one of the music and dance festival in Chennai

Chilly mornings, morning poojas at the temples, frequent sightings of dancers fully dressed in traditional dance costumes for performances, ladies clad in silk sarees visiting the sabhas to catch their favourite artistes performing are a regular sight in Chennai during this season. And this is one season I always look forward to. 🙂

With just a week vacation this term there isn’t enough time for watching all the dance shows and carnatic music katcheries that I want to watch 😦 But being able to attend atleast some of it has made me happy 😀 …Because after being away from Chennai getting a whiff of the music, dance and the traditional foods served at the canteens in Sabhas has made me feel ‘back to my roots’.

I watched the group dance performance by my dance class friends yesterday. It has only make me feel more and more bad about not being able to attend these classes which actually was an integral part of my growing up 🙂 Though I think I’m not a great dancer myself, I enjoy the dance and miss the classes which relieves me of the stress and makes me happy 🙂

I have a couple more dance performances of my friends and some dramas to catch up with this week.  Also there is a lecture-demonstration by my dance teacher (Smt. Anitha Guha Aunty) this Sunday morning where she will show some demonstrations from the dance dramas which has been staged by “Bharathanjali” (my dance school) for the past 10-15 years. This is one that I would never want to miss. With that it would be back to trichy and a new term starts when the year ends 😉

Now that’s all about this festive season and Chennai for you guys 🙂 Hope you guys are also enjoying a wonderful winter vacation. Wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy happy 2013 😀 I hope this year is better than 2012 for all of us 🙂

Cheers!

I become more philosophical…

I have my own reasons to firmly believe that whatever happens in our life is for good!
In May, when i was initially wait-listed 209 in IIM-Indore, that made me loose confidence and take up IIM-Trichy (Next option that i considered). I was scared to wait and lose IIM-T. the fear made me not wait for another year too. I chose to enroll in IIM-T and i can’t believe I am going to say this. But “I am glad I chose it”.

 

It has been 4.5 months since i came here. There has been mixture of emotions ever since I came here. there has been times i wanted to leave this place for good and go home… Times i missed my parents, sis, friends and Chennai  There has been infrastructure problems here along with all that i was already going through to make me get mad at times. My parents, sis and friends (here and at home!) had to listen to me whine and complain then. Sure they were great support! 🙂
But on the other hand there has been more good times too! First time i was away from home. People here have been very kind and considerate towards me. These make me feel that all hope is not lost. As months passed by, I found more new friends who have been making me feel good about the place. A close group of friends who always accept you for what you are makes you feel good. When you know that there are more people out there who are also friendly and make you feel comfortable it is a nice feeling. This place does have many nice people! 🙂

Day before yesterday for the first time since I came to Trichy I danced Bharathnatyam! A real pleasure. Though i was not feeling well and could not give my best, people have been very kind and appreciated me well and all that makes me feel that “Yes, like the coin has two sides, every thing has good and bad attached to it. It is best if we look for the good and ignore the bad”. This is so true! 🙂
When i was continuously rejected for 3 times by different companies for my summer internship, I had totally lost confidence and i became desparate for a job. but my family, friends and seniors kept motivating me and it really did help me. God knows how much i tortured everyone :p Thank god for all the nice people around me! 🙂 Finally I have got placed in one of my dream companies which i thought was impossible after all the rejections by other companies.
November 1st- A day i’d never forget! 🙂 🙂 I got my first job offer (just for summer internship though 😉 ). Thanks to all those who have been supporting me!

“To all those who feel that nothing is right in life… Just wait. remain positive and the tough phase will pass. Whatever happens is for good. look for the good stuff and oppurtunities around you. “

P.S: That’s the update from me after a REALLY long time. The hectic schedule at B-School has made it tough for me to blog. But i sure hope that i would be able to blog more frequently in the coming days. 🙂

Cheers!

Sayonora 2011! Welcome 2012!

Now there is minutes before 2011 bids us good bye once and for all and 2012 comes in to take its place! 🙂

Lets leave behind all the regrets and sad moments and fill the space with Happiness, joy and Love! Lets welcome the new year with open arms and full of hopes! 🙂

 

 

I pray that all of you have a happy and a prosperous year ahead 🙂 🙂

Happy new year friends! 😀

The Immortals of Meluha

Lets start this way…

Who is Shiva??? 

No… I’m not joking… Seriously. Who is Shiva? At least who do you think he is? 😮

I know i’ll get most obvious answer: “A God. The destroyer in the Holy Trinity of Hindu mythology“.

That is the exact answer I would have given if you had asked this question to me a couple of months back. The book “Immortals of Meluha” has made me question the same answer that I would have given. I tell you my respect for Shiva has not decreased even by a milligram… but I’ve started seeing him in a whole new angle… like a hero. 🙂

Set in the 1900 BC, The Immortals of Meluha is

The story of the man,

whom the legend turned into a God.

And this post is a review of this awesome book that I read recently. It starts with an assumption: “What if Shiva was a normal man just like you and me and he showed his capacity and rose to the post (if I can say so) of a “God””.

I know you must be so confused now… do read on.. 😉 😀

The first book of the Shiva Trilogy by Amish Tripati starts with Shiva as a tibetian tribal leader who along with his tribe moves from their homeland (Mansarovar, Himalayan Foothills) to “Meluha”, a land that was earlier mistaken to be the Indus Valley Civilisation. The history of this new land was that it was established by Lord Ram (another mortal who rose to the level of God). It is a really civilized place and there is not a single instance of disorder in the place. Within a couple of days since his arrival in Devgiri (Capital of Meluha), it becomes evident that he is none other than the legendary Neelkanth, the only one (The Chosen one) who can save them against evil. He then joins the Suryavanshis and decides do the job assigned to him by the prophesy, to fight the evil. There starts the journey which makes Shiva, the mortal man, worthy enough for the position of God.

The Suryavanshis wage a war on the Chandravanshis who have allied with the Nagas, the deformed humans with enormous strength and martial skills and also known as carriers of bad fate, and it is believed that they have been responsible for the terrorist attacks in the Meluha. The incident that sparks revenge against Nagas in Shiva is the killing of his beloved friend. In the war that is waged with the sole intent of destruction of evil, Shiva doubts if he has got his target right.

With an awesome flow of events, the story line is gripping. The writing style is fresh and the author’s eye for detail is clearly shown when he links the characters from the mythology to the characters portrayed in this story. This debut book of Amish has the right portion of every thing like action, comedy, love, drama, etc. The book is easily the best among the stories related to mythology. It is a book that couldn’t stop reading in one stretch. 🙂

Here are some trailers released by the author for the Shiva Trilogy I.

A lovely experience reading this book and it’s sequel (The Secret of Nagas)… 🙂 Now waiting for the third and last book of the trilogy! 🙂

Cheers!

Standing Tall!

This pic was clicked few months back at a temple in Tamil Nadu. This temple Gopuram (which are gateways through the walls that surround the temple complex, found in most of the South Indian Temples.) rises high and stands majestically!

Gopuram (Temple Entrance)

 

P.S: this is also an entry for the Thursday Challenge DOOR (House, Barn, Gate, Entrance, Cellar, Car,…)

Give them the right to compete and grow!

I recently read a column written by a fellow blogger bikramjit. it was about reservations based on castes. it made me angry and and hence i’m writing this post.

I have nothing new to say but to stress on the one thing:

Do not reserve seats on the basis of castes instead train the students to compete with the rest.

Reservation just disheartens and smashes the hopes of many. There are students who crave for seats into many prestigious institutions but just end up with nothing or some thing less than what they worked for. The hard work the students have put in for the single seat at the institution goes waste. What is the point of all the hardwork then?

I can quote my example for this. Three years back when i sat for my counselling for college admission i had got the course i wanted but not at the college i aimed for. I felt bad and blamed myself for not securing enough marks. Sometime later i saw that another guy who had the same cut-off as mine had got the same course at the college i very badly wanted. It made me feel that there was no point in preparing hard at all. Was it a curse to belong to a class that has no reservation?

I also have quite a few friends who have written their boards this year. They had got cut-off of 189 or 190 out of 200. Any other day it would be a wonderful score and would be celebrated. Come on 95% is an awesome score. But i see that these people have seen the last year seat allotments and decided that they wouldn’t get into the top colleges with this score and have “bought” seats under the management quota in different colleges.

The ranking based on castes is even more interesting. Marks come into play first (thank god!). Based on the marks the students are grouped. Among the people of same marks they are then ranked based on castes then individual subject marks and then the date of birth. If you think thats all then wait to see that the allotment also goes caste wise. First every one can claim seats under open category then its only the backward people with the chance.

But i want to say that even they are equally competitive! So they don’t need all this reservations. They are equally smart and can prove their mettle given a chance to compete with everyone. That would only boost the competition among students and in the process the standards of Indian students as a whole would increase! I have even seen people who have say that they don’t really need the reservations and that it makes them feel subordinate sometimes.

And the worst part is that most of the seats reserved for these students go waste sometimes with no body ready to take it or qualified to take it. This happens when there are thousands waiting to get that seat.

Instead the reservations systems could be used in training the students for the various exams. The students with limited resource can be given preference in getting trained for this exams and hence be made capable of  competing like every other student and proving his caliber. That will increase his self respect and make him feel confident of himself. There is no point in reserving a particular number of seats for any group and providing a separate competition among themselves. Sometimes students are sure that they would get a seat at the engineering college thanks to all this reservation and don’t put in fullest of their efforts. I mean give them a chance to grow! let them compete and increase their standards!

I can show you an example that all they need is proper guidance. This week the IITJEE 2011 results were out. I read an article in the newspaper that a physics professor had selected 30 students from the economically backward class and trained them rigorously to take the IITJEE this year. And 24 out of the 30 students have secured ranks. need i say more?

P.S: If this post has hurt anybody i apologize. It was just the flow of thoughts from someone who has been so much angered by this bias.

Thanks,

Crazy engineers make trends out of mistakes!

Today i sat with my sis to make an attempt at comic strip making. 🙂

It is not exactly a masterpiece but we enjoyed making it. Bear with the blurred images.

A mistake an engineer committed has inspired a trend of inclined buildings like the Capital gate of Abu Dhabi. 🙂

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cheers!

Hiya!

Hello visitors of civil empire,

I hereby proclaim this wordpress blog as my casual retreat.  All are welcome to enjoy yourself in this province too.

Enjoy the flow of words! 🙂

P.S: Sorry about the over-pompous-royal-tone 😉 The times at the civil empire has changed me. 😀

You can still find me at Civilempire too when i’m in my engineering mood 😉

Cheers!

A treat to the Rahmaniacs!

The first authorized biography of the music genius-A.R.Rahman published by OM books international will be released 6th, April, 2011. Titled “AR RAHMAN: THE SPIRIT OF MUSIC” it is penned by the well known writer Nasreen Munni Kabir. The book will be released by ace film maker Munirathnam. The last three years Nasreen Munni Kabir has been recording the journey and finally it is ready for release.  “This book also has a CD with A.R. Rahman’s compositions for free distribution with the first edition.”, Ajay Mago, CEO of OM said. 

Nasreen Munni Kabir has been made over 80 documentaries on Indian cinema. In this book she gives us an insight into the private life and his music. 

ARR had begun his carrer with small jingles for commercials and his first break into the film industry was  Roja (1991).  His film soundtrack albums have sold over 150 million copies across the world and he deservedly enjoys iconic status in India.

So a real treat waits the rahmaniacs 😉 


      Cheers!