Guess Who?

Can you guess who's this celebrity enjoying (supposedly) private time? A friend sent this pic - but I'm not convinced. I'd like to see if any of my blog readers can guess.

Spring Cleaning

What does a single gay man do on a rainy, April weekend morning? Clean his wardrobe!

Anyone who lives in a temperate climate endures a bi-annual ritual known as "changing of the wardrobe". A long, arduous, linty, sneezy affair. It involves taking down everything from the hangers and folding everything into two neat piles, one for storage and one for Goodwill. That's only half the task. The other half is opening your storage boxes and taking out all those skimpy, short-sleeved summer clothes, trying them on to see what fits, discarding the ones that are oh-so-last-year and hanging up the ones that could still work. Ok - there is some washing and pressing involved, but how much can you do in one day?

There's a refreshing, misty, cool breeze blowing in through the open window. Perfect weather for some pakodas and chai.

TV Wisdom

The Toronto Star ran this piece on all the "wise" things we hear on TV. Here's an interesting one from Brenda on Six Feet Under.

"Academia is one huge circle jerk. All the sequestered people defending the one good idea they've had in their lives."

Is that why they have tenure?

Washington DC

Literary Gem?

"His penis is so beautiful ... I just want to knit it a hat"
-from the movie "Prime".

That line threw me into a loop. When I see a penis, tiny woolen hats are the last thing on my mind. I don't knit either. I dabbled in some crochet as a kid, but that's another story. In fact, I don't look at penises that much. I don't find them visually attractive. I am more interested in the bodies they are attached to. And the only hat I want to see on a penis is a rubber one.

What to do - I'm like this only.

[A little inside joke - for those who watched MTV India in the mid 90s.]

Sone Ki Chidiya

Saffron

That's the source. As beautiful as the aroma and flavor it exudes.


Came across this picture on Wikipedia and just had to post it.

Washington Bound

It's been 9 months since I left the DC area. Washington DC has the most beautifully landscaped public spaces in North America. Every Spring, they reward us with a splendid display of nature's bounty. Starting with the cherry blossoms that blanket parts of the city, the manicured trees and lawns of the National Mall burst forth with fresh green foliage, rinsed clean by the April showers. Cool, crisp Spring breezes make exploring the city on foot a delight.

This April I have the opportunity to visit my beloved city once again. Following a training class on Thursday in Reston, I will be spending the long weekend (it's Good Friday) with my dear friends in Washington DC.

Meanwhile, here are some pictures I took around DC last Spring.

Spring

Spring is in the air. The mercury has been climbing. The sun's out in full force. The street musicians are back. So are the sketch artists and vendors. Most importantly, the tourists are back! Nothing says Spring in Toronto like the hordes of American tourists.

Random observation. There are two neo-classical edifices on Yonge St - just North of Queen. They're each about the width of a typical storefront. Separating them is a driveway leading to some uninteresting buildings. The gap seems oddly out of place - as if the structures were once connected - part of a larger structure. Got my curiosity going.

Another random observation. The area South of Bloor and just West of Spadina has some beautiful homes. Each decorated to the nines. Remided me of the homes around Dupont Circle in DC.

Walls Do Talk

She snuck into the building right behind me, carrying a tray of leftover sandwiches. About 5'2" tall and slightly overweight. She wore a bright red spring jacket. I had never seen her before. We both walked briskly towards the waiting elevator. She hit #15 - my floor. Could it be? I brushed aside the thought. The elevator stopped at #4 and the other guy got off. I began the small talk, "I guess that's dinner". ".. and lunch", she quipped. "I am stuffed, but my boyfriend is probably starving", she added. The elevator stopped at #15. "After you", I said. She walked out. I reached for my keys and walked to #1501. She stopped at #1502 - the apartment next door. We both looked at each other. A silent acknowledgement.

She fakes them quite well.

Random Thought

Isn't it ironic that when you have lots of time, you have no money to do stuff, and when you have the money, you have no time to do stuff?

15 Park Avenue

My vegetative state last evening, thanks to a neck cramp, was a convenient excuse for some heavier TV watching. I popped in the DVD for 15 Park Avenue, mixed up some salad, poured me some wine and watched the movie. (On an unrelated note, when they say Ibuprofen and alcohol will give you stomach ulcers, they mean business. My gut feels sand-papered this morning).

Aparna Sen is a good director who, for untold reasons, happens to be obsessed with street addresses. 15 Park Avenue comes across as an attempt to bring art cinema to the Indian masses. Pick a contentious social issue, throw in some talented actors and film most of it in exotic locales. That Aparna Sen formula, which I first encountered in Mr. & Mrs. Iyer, has been carried forward to this movie.

The contentious social issue is mental disorders (with rape thrown in). The talented actors include Konkona Sen Sharma - who delivers, Rahul Bose - whose talents are completely wasted, Shabana Azmi - who mostly plays herself and Waheeda Rehman - who has limited opportunities to shine, but shine she does. Shefali Shetty (Ria from Monsoon Wedding) gives an highly underrated performance in a supporting role. The exotic locale is the Kingdom of Bhutan - rarely seen by the outside world.

The actors put in a good effort, however the end result comes across as uncoordinated. The cinematography comes across as too flat. This was probably intentional, as any creative use of lighting effect renders Indian cinema to the dusty depths of the"art-movie" pile. (My mom's words echo in my mind -"what a dull movie - it's always so dark".)

The plot is revealed slowly and carefully. The characters build up over time. We can soon put the pieces together. And just when we felt everything was coming together, the movie ends. Like a dangling sentence. Leaving us to stop and think, and reflect on Meethi's existence. This much-disliked ending was my favorite part of the movie.

Friday Humor

Brokeback Mountain in 30 seconds.

Holi Hai

Wishing everyone a Happy Holi. Too bad I missed it by a few days.


Music: Rang Barse from Silsila

March Monsoons

It rained. In Bombay. In March!!! Never happed before in my 21 years in this city. The intense aroma of raindrops hitting parched earth. The thunder. The clouds. The respite from the harsh sun. The chilled monsoon winds wafting in through the windows.

I haven't experienced a Mumbai Monsoon since 1997. This was a bonus!

Happy Women's Day

Today is International Women's Day. Here's a bow to all the fabulous women out there who make the world more bearable.

Bombay Rediscovered

Phew. I finally got a break from five, non-stop days of exploring this city from a whole new perspective, with a whole new set of people from all over the world. I haven't had this much fun in Bombay since 1996. Some cool new finds:

- Seijo: Fabulous lounge hidden away on the 3rd floor of an inconspicuous building on Waterfield Road. Equally yummy-looking resraurant next door, although I didn't get to eat there. Thanks Vik for dragging us out there!

- Salt Water Grill: So far, my favorite meal in town. Possibly THE best place in South Bombay for dinner and drinks on a good-weather day. Beach-chic ambience. We sat on the lovely couches in the bar area. The table was a rough-cut sheet of stained wood resting on coconut palm stumps. Great view of the Queen's Necklace. Soft sounds of surf crashing on sand. Eclectic lounge music. Tiki-torches and discreet mosquito coils keeping various flying objects at bay. Amazing Italian food. Great drinks menu. World-class service.

- Konkan Cafe (President Hotel): This is my comfort food. Fabulous fish delicacies. Equally fabulous vegetarian selections. Restaurant is decorated like a traditional konkani home - reminiscent of grandparent-era homes I had the fortune of visiting during my childhood. Memorable cocktails (thanks Alana and Andy):
- coconut water + Absolut Kurant
- fresh lime soda (sweet) + Bombay Sapphire

Memorable moments from the past five days:

- standing around in a huddle outside Elephanta caves, surrounded by an army of monkeys, and a few dogs, trying to eat a sandwich

- eating Black Forest cake at the Sea Lounge, as part of my early-birthday celebration. Thank you Manu, Andy, Mark, Alana and Ryan (not necessarily in that order). I couldn't have asked for a better way to turn 30! Well - almost 30. And did I mention they were playing elevator-ABBA in the background?


- the big-breasted woman at Swati Snacks with "Hooch" written on her shirt, which my dirty mind promptly mis-read and led to a Mexican wave of laughter around the table

A huge thank you to Andy for making that detour, to Manu for instigating this trip, to Mark for being my travel buddy through the first few days and putting up with that train-ride from hell, and to Alana and Ryan for taking the long train ride down from Kandivali almost every single day. Speaking of Alana and Ryan - you guys rock! This city is not for the faint of heart and I wish I was half as brave as you when I was your age. If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere.

Bombay Bound

Tumne bulaya aur hum chale aye

It's been 15 months since I got my last dose of the crazy megalopolis called Bombay (well - actually Mumbai - but we'll ignore that for now). Looking forward to an exciting week of friends, family, partying, shopping and culinary delights, not necessarily in that order.

Hope to see some of you in Bombay!

Double Standards

Help! The Arabs are taking over our ports!

We like globalization but only when we can explot cheap third-world labor, and sell the product back to them at an enormous profit. Such is the double standard being exhibited by the US of A right now. Even the worldly literati (like Maureen Dowd in today's Toronto Star) are crying foul. I can't characterize this reaction as anything but selfishness. I'm sorry America, but you can't expect the world to let you lead when you portray such blatant double standards.

On one hand the argument goes something like this. We're the world's most powerful nation. We don't like Arabs. We feel very scared right now. So we must have everything our way. Well - guess what America - you don't have everything your way. Here's what the politicians are not telling you. Your enormous national debt is being financed by Japan, China, Saudi Arabia and many emerging economies. A fraction of your oil dollars are ending up in the hands of terrorists. Your own domestic oil industry is heavily owned and controlled by Arab oil interests. One of your biggest banks - Citigroup - is controlled by Arab sheiks. All your consumer goods are made in China - a communist nation. Many of your well-respected corporations are incorporated offshore - outside the clutches of US law. Do you feel scared now?

On the other hand, does the world cry out when the US Navy controls all the major shipping channels in the world? No. Does the world complain when Microsoft collects $99 on (almost) every PC produced in the world? No. Do we flinch when yet another American CEO collects a $100 million bonus? No. Do we complain when Wal Mart wants to set up shop in our backyards? Maybe a little.

Now one might argue that American busiiness are held to higher standards and accountability as compared to a shady Arab outfit. Well, first of all not all Arab outfits are shady. Citigroup is one of the world's largest, well-respected banks - with the biggest shareholders being Dubai-based sheikhs. Secondly, two of the world's largest bankruptcies happened in America: Enron and Worldcom. As far as the security question goes - America still has the world's largest military. They created the TSA because private airlines couldn't be trusted with security. Why are ports any different? Besides, guarding the ports is a well-defined function of the US Coast Guard anyway. So there you go.

Dubai is one of the largest, most efficiently run ports in the world. One would think they qualify based on merit to operate a large volume of the world's shipping trade. The only argument that should be raised here is the issue of consolidation. It's never a good idea to concentrate too much in the hands of one power group.

Raat Baki

Raat baki, baat baki
Hona hai jo, ho jane do

Socho na, dekho to
Dekho haan, janeja
Mujhe pyaar se

Kashti jawaan dil ki toofan se takara gayi
Manzil muhabbata ki ab to kareeb aa gayi
Aaa dekhle, hai kya maza, dil haar ke

Awaz yeh hai to anjaam hoga haseen
Deewane parwane marne se darte nahin
Aa dilruba, khul ke zara, mil yaar se

Downloaded and heard this song after AGES. Pretty fucking cool. It's like one of the earliest songs I remember taking a fondness to :) Parveen Babi swooning over something ... can't remember. Gawd I was gay!