Time Travelling

Some weeks back I decided to head down to South Bombay (SOBO) to shoot some street photography and in the process try out some new/old equipment. And by that I mean the Olympus IS-10 film camera which was new to me and old to my uncle who gave it to me. 

In a nutshell, its a pretty crappy camera. I don't know what Olympus was trying to do with this bridge, 35 mm full frame camera with limited functionality but I, sure as hell, am not going to use it again. Its plain frustrating to use and the noisy sound that the AF makes while operating made me flinch every time I tried to focus. It was also my first time testing the Lomography 100 film. Most of the shots came out overexposed and I could only save a few after some post processing. 

While shooting there, I re-shot a couple of images of the Taj Hotel in a similar way as I had done a couple of years ago on a different SOBO street shoot. Back then I had used the digital Sony A-200 and was a funky post-processing junkie as is clearly evident from the comparison below (The sepia jpeg is the only version that I haven't deleted from my photo archives).

The images on the left are digital while the ones on the right are film. Despite the completely different shooting  experiences between then and now, I still prefer the film photos over their digital counterparts. After all, there ain't no school like the old school!

First Salary

So I've completed about a month and a half at my first ever job and also had my first salary experience at the start of this month. Weirdly enough, as I held the cheque in my hand, I didn't feel any surge of excitement or for that matter I didn't feel anything at all! I was disappointed about that.

But that changed quickly too...turns out spending money is more exciting than earning it. Go figure! Especially when money is in its electronic form. I would've definitely felt a sense of hesitation were I handling hard cash, but paying it online was way more convenient and quicker. Anyway, I purchased seven rolls of film and a couple of great books on cinema and another book on photography (that's yet to be delivered). Browsing through online retail shops can be addictive!

Strings Attached

A few days back, some friends and I decided to head down to the Furtados shop in Mumbai to buy a brand new, shiny guitar for another friend of ours. His birthday was coming up in a few days and he's destined to leave for the States by the end of July, and as we aren't gonna meet him for at least a couple of years, we thought that the guitar would definitely be a great birthday/parting gift!

So we caught a train from Thane to CST, and then walked the remaining way down to Furtados. The shop looks pretty awesome with guitars, drums, keyboards and other instruments all over the place. While we were there, we saw a guy playing an electric guitar quite well while a girl sat next to him gazing at him with this love-struck expression in her eyes.

Watching this particular scene immediately brought to my mind the image of Lord Rama with his bow in his hand with Sita next to him, gazing at him imploringly with affection. The times may have definitely changed but certain elements clearly haven't. There's still the man, there's still the shiny, stringed instrument and there's still the woman with the nauseating gaze. The purpose of both instruments are obviously different, but they do seem to have the same effect on women. You've gotta admit, there is some sort of hold that a man with a stringed instrument has on a woman! To me its just simply incomprehensible. 

Anyways, after some pointless haggling over the price we did finally purchase the guitar that we wanted (it was a Granada acoustic with an electrical attachment thingy) and I volunteered to carry it on our walk back to CST. On our way back, as we passed St. Xavier's College, I found myself getting many stares from both sexes...women more than men! A few raised eyebrows and a few repressed smiles later, I realized it was the guitar on my shoulders that was creating such an effect.

Women do have a strange affinity to the guitar and I sure as hell don't understand it. Its probably the same reason why band groupies give initial preference to the guitarists over the drummers. Anyways, my friend loved the Granada guitar!

I wonder if he'll experience the same effect when he goes to States......

The Dark Knight Rises

20th July 2012, 11.05 am :


The cinema hall is already noisy as late comers scurry to their seats in sanguine anticipation. The screen lights up and the hall quietens as everybody eagerly looks up at the screen. They all let out a collective sigh of disappointment when they see the usual Vicco Vajradanti advertisements playing. On any other day they would've gleefully watched those advertisements and joked along with their friends about it's longevity in Indian cinema halls. But not now, not today. Nope, today they were to here to watch the end of a series, a trilogy to be more specific...the Batman Trilogy.

Everybody had seen the earlier two movies namely Batman Begins (2005) and The Dark Knight (2008). Expectations were high, after all it is a Christopher Nolan movie. And I've gotta say, we sure as hell weren't disappointed!


For the three hours that all of us sat in that cinema hall to watch this movie, we were like a single human entity. We were all feeling the same emotions and exhibiting the same emotions. We cheered collectively when he came on screen and gasped collectively when he was being beaten.


We gaped at each other in shock at the scene when the movie paused for the interval. At that point he had fallen, and along with him so had we. After the interval we saw his struggle, and along with him so did we. As we saw the Dark Knight rise from the depths of hell, along with him so did we!


Never before have I ever had such an awesome movie watching experience wherein you can literally see, and more importantly, feel the impact that the movie has had in the cinema hall. And for that, all the credit goes to Christopher Nolan and his team!


Excellent script, camera work, screenplay, editing and direction! A complete package that one could find in a movie. Some of the dialogues literally give you goosebumps that stay longer than usual. Absolutely fantastic! It took me a day to put these feelings into words and I know I'm still falling short right now.
(Although I have to say that the kissing scene kinda broke the hold that the movie had had on me...only for a little while though!)


If you haven't watched this movie yet, then you're clearly missing out on something great. That's all I have to say.


PS: They showed the promos of Man Of Steel during the interval. Now, although I'm not that great a fan of Superman, as is evident from this previous post here, I still am excited about it as Nolan is the producer! *crosses fingers*

...and I'm back.

Its been two years since I last posted here. A lot has changed in these past couple of years... for starters :


1.
My initial dislike for film photography has died ever since I had a taste of digital. After all, there ain't no school like the old school!
Procuring film and then getting it processed is pretty expensive though :(
So, I should be posting photos from both mediums!


2.
I have changed as well...at least I think I have. I guess evolved is a better term to describe it...people don't really change who they are.
I find myself laughing at how pathetically naive some of my old posts on this blog were, but I've decided against deleting any of them 'coz well, they are kinda responsible for who I am today. Hell, a couple of years from now, I might find myself laughing at the naivety of this post!


3.
I'm done with my four years of Mechanical Engineering. The results are rumoured to be out soon, and if they're good enough then I begin working at my first job, sometime in August...but more on that later!


4.
I'm still pretty unsure about what I want from life, I finally seem to have begun understanding what I don't want from my life. I'd like to call that progress! :)

I started this blog in 2009 with no general purpose and I'm happy to admit that even after three years, I intend to continue it in the same manner. I should be modifying the layout of this blog within the next week, once I've figured out the changes that have happened in Blogger since I was last here.

I'll try to post more often, whenever I find something worthwhile from the mundane jungle that is my life.

But as of now, we're open for business!

Whats in a name??

Being the diverse country that it is, India and its people have always been classified into various religions,castes and groups...and to identify which group you belong to, your last name is more than enough. Now, what came along with that package were also stereotypes.

Whether its the warm hearted, loud mouthed Punjabis, the miserly Gujaratis, the eccentric and always inclined towards the arts Bengalis, or the fact that all South Indians are Brahmins and are strict disciplinarians ...we can't seem to escape these stereotypes even though we know that there are many exceptions to the generalised rule. But since this is my blog, I shall only rant about the stereotype thats been associated with me since birth.

My name is Pranav Shetty. Yep, I'm a Shetty. Now,ever since I can remember, the moment I introduced myself in this manner, I have always received this standard response, "Oh! Your a Shetty, eh? So, how many hotels do you own?"

Yes,'coz thats what Shettys are known for. Thats the stereotype thats been associated with my name all my life. And if you actually think about it, it is in a way justified. Because about 85% of Shettys are hotel/restaurant owners. Of the remaining 15%, around 5% are underworld dons (the ones that are called "Anna"..meaning brother) and the remaining 10% have,what we can call the "other" jobs.

So, my response has always been with an apologetic smile, "No, I don't own any hotels. In fact,nobody in my immediate family owns one."

Some of 'em would accept this reply...'coz its true. But, there are some idiots who go like, "What!?! Stop lying man.You can tell me the truth, I'm not gonna come there and ask you for a free meal!"


Idiots, I tell you.

The worst incident happened about a year back, when I had a welding workshop session in college. Surprisingly, my classmates were ignorant about the stereotype until I had the above,exact conversation with my workshop teacher.Soon, the news spread.

About a couple of hours later, my faith in grapevine and exaggeration increased ten fold, when an idiotic classmate of mine came up to me and asked me the exact whereabouts in Goa, of my two hotels which went by the names of Hotel Alfredo and Hotel Alberto.

While a part of me mulled over as to why a Shetty would give Spanish names to his hotels, another part of me decided that enough was enough. So I came up with an alternative...I changed my way of introducing myself.

Now, my introduction goes about like this, " Hi, I'm Pranav Shetty...and no, I DON'T own any hotels!"

Bah! I know its kinda lame. But, its sure does work as an ice-breaker ;-)

The 'F' word...

All my life I'd read and heard various articles on success,failure and other sorts of related bull shit. Examples and analogies were thrown at me, but never once did I understand any of 'em. Reason- I'd never experienced either...nor did I ever give so much importance to any event in my life that would drive me to have such huge expectations from myself.

But after 19 years, 10 months, and 18 days of my life, Ive finally tasted one of 'em. FAILURE.

It can be sure be a bitch. It stings, it hurts, it frustrates and it angers. Thats what I am right now.Angry.

Lets roll back a couple of days....

It had been nearly a month since I'd shot something. College work and stress had kept me restrained from my camera, from my hobby. But then came the college festival and I was like 'Hell..why not?!?!". So on the last day of the festival I lugged my SLR film camera around my neck as I waded amongst the crowd that had gathered to see the Hindi band finals.

Concert Photography--understandably one of the toughest kinds of photography that one can encounter; owing to the dimmed,flickering multi-coloured lights and the non-stationary,non-caring, shrieking-as-if-you're-in-hell crowd. But hell, I don't blame 'em.

Throughout that day, the anticipation and the excitement mounted within me. By the time it began, I was high on enthusiasm...and by the time it ended I was high on my very own expectations. Exhausted and flushed out of energy, I returned home to my warm and faithful bed.

The next day I gave the film in for processing and scanning. The guy said he'd have it ready by tomorrow. After a bit of arguing and negotiation I convinced him to get it done by 8.30 pm, the same evening. An entire day of frustration which arose from anticipation didn't really help the situation. Every second felt like an eternity, as I sat looking at the ticking clock. At 8.30 pm sharp I was at the shop.

The photographs sucked...big time. Disappointment is a bigger bitch. What started next was the blame game that ran for around 5 seconds in my brain. First I blamed the studio guy (crime: for ruining the pictures) ;then I blamed the crowds (crime: for not standing still and causing the blurred images); then I blamed the poor lighting (crime: for not providing enough light that was required);then I blamed my camera (crime: for being an old film one and not a modern digital one); and then finally I blamed the photographer...me (crime: for being a bad one).

Everything numbed....all sounds and noises dimmed as realization hit me. I'm a failure. That thought rang around in my head as all my expectations came crashing down around me.

As I lay on my bed staring up at the dusty ceiling, I asked myself a thousand questions. Questions doubting my abilities, my passion, my hobby, raged through my mind as I noticed that there were some weird smudges on my ceiling that were probably caused due to water leakage. I shut my eyes and let the inner voice speak. All I got in response was "So...what??"

So what if your pictures sucked, so what if your not a good photographer, so what if your not that good at the only hobby you actually ever gave a damn about. Are these factors decisive of the future thats yet to come? Hell it certainly is NOT!!

Recovery is great.I'm not angry anymore. Its cool. Its okay. I'm fine.

It took me 19 years, 10 months and 18 days to finally taste Failure. I sure as hell know that its not gonna take me that long to taste Success.

Who's Better ??

Okay,this particular post has been long overdue. Ive been meaning to write about it for a long time but the combined efforts of Captain Procrastination and Lady Laziness have deterred me from my path. But now I'm back on track, so here goes nothing...


Ever since I was a kid, I've witnessed people from both genders and different age groups argue over this social issue with a lot of aggression and enthusiasm only to end up without any consensus. What would begin as a normal suggestion to the discussion would eventually turn into a full-fledged debate...which frankly speaking lead to nowhere. So I have taken up the task to address this issue and finally prove to the world out there as to why (considering all the situations that one can even think of) .....


Why Batman owns Superman


Oh yeah... that's right.


(1) Batman is human and unlike Superman he isnt an alien from some other planet. This fact instills within us humans a hope that we don't need superpowers to become a superhero.


(2) We all know that Superman is extremely strong ... so any fight he gets into isn't that interesting as we're all like "Okay the man of steel is surely gonna win this one...all thanks to his brawn power. Bah! How predictable". But in the case of Batman we as viewers are more interested to watch the fight as Batman resorts to his intellect and intelligence to fight opponents who are way stronger than him. And it's this very fact which makes us all go like "Holy shit!! That was so fucking awesome! How did he do that? :-O "


(3) Lets have a look at their disguises okay. All that Superman does is change into formals and put on a pair of glasses and voila he becomes Clark Kent!Wow that makes him so bloody unrecognizable! Kinda like SRK from Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi ..and we all know how that movie was ridiculed. On the other hand nobody knows that Bruce Wayne is actually the real Batman which just proves as to how careful and efficient he his when it comes to hiding his identity which is of utmost importance when you're a superhero.


(4) Superman wears his red briefs over his costume.I think that statement speaks for itself.


(5) Superman's powers were like a gift..he was born with them. Batman had to work hard...train in martial arts...design his gadgets,his Batmobile,an effective costume which was not only bullet-proof but would also help him glide in air without the help of any shitty gadget like a jetpack which probably would be the first option on any other humans mind.


(6) Superman can't even woo a simple woman like Lois Lane. All he does is stay in the friend-zone and smile like a wuss. Batman, on the other hand is a natural chic magnet. His persona and his charisma as Bruce Wayne is irresistible to any woman. Hes the very basis on which the character of James Bond was designed.


(7) Superman's best opponent was Lex Luther who was nothing but a mortal businessman and even then he finds it hard to defeat him.But Batman has an entire cabinet full of enemies its deadliest being the infamous Joker who as everybody knows has some amazing tricks up his sleeves at all times. That makes him more challenging than Lex Luther and hence more hard to defeat. Yet Batman even manages to do that.


(8) Superman lost his parents when he was just born.He never knew them at all so he didn't have to live with any sort of grief. Batman on the other hand actually witnessed the murder of his parents and also realized that in a way it was his fault that they died. Grief + Guilt => more sympathy towards Batman.


(9) It isn't difficult to defeat Superman. All you need to do is carry a green rock in your pocket and tell him its Kryptonite. The idiot will believe you and stay away from you. You need to be really intelligent to defeat the Dark Knight though.


(10) The popularity votes that the Batman movies garner are way more than the Superman movies.


Ladies and Gentlemen... I think we have a clear winner.

Bollywood C-rap

Since the past few years,it has been clearly evident that Bollywood has employed the use of rap in their music.Now,you can call this changing with times.Well,I call it un-originality.C'mon, aren't we ashamed of copying movie plots from America's very own Hollywood that we have to even copy their music now.And we aren't even doing a good job of it.But what the hell,the masses enjoy it,so nobody really gives a shit.
As for the trend,well now its being continued by stunt maniac Akshay Kumar.You may be under the impression that it was started by the (supposedly) cool dude Abhishek Bacchan, but it was actually started by Nana Patekar,Mamta Kulkarni and Atul Agnihotri.Surprised?Well,all I can say is just watch the video:


I'll not say much on this topic except that I'm glad that I was only four at that time and was saved from suffering any sort of mental trauma from watching this video.
I think this is one of the few videos where you'd find Nana Patekar dancing, let alone show his expertise in Marathi rap.

I Hate............

1) I hate attention seeking people.
Reason: They're insecure douche-bags.


2) I hate attention giving people.
Reason: They're even bigger douche-bags.


3) I hate people who do stuff just because other people do it.
Reason: They have no fucking imagination.


4) I hate people who believe whatever astrologers say.
Reason: They're common sense is always on vacation.


5) I hate wasting food.
Reason: Its as good a sin as murder.


6) I hate people who waste food.
Reason: You already know it.You don't want me coming after you for that.


7) I hate going for shopping,especially with women.
Reason: Its like an exercise.


8) I hate it when people judge me at buffets.
Reason: It makes me feel guilty.


9) I hate it when people photograph me when I'm eating.
Reason: They always catch me at the wrong time and with the wrong facial expression.


10) I hate it that by this time you're already considering me to be an opinionated asshole.
Reason: I can't help it.

The Poet

Has it ever happened to you,in one of those weird pensive moments when everything just starts to rhyme and the next thing you know you start writing poetry which otherwise you suck at.Well the following poem has been a result of one of my pensive moments.I just cant figure out whether its a poem or a rap song......
A word of advice:Read it slowly to feel it
_____________________________________________________________________


There she stood in the pouring rain,
waiting for the bus,since she had missed the train,
From across the street I looked at her,
To me she was beautiful,others begged to differ.


But I didn't care,mesmerized that I was,
just looking at her waiting for the bus,
And then suddenly realizing that soon she would go,
I left my company at the booth by the window.


Stepping out into the rain,I ran across the street,
Wishing that my exit had been a little more discreet,
all along wondering what to say,
anything straight that wasn't gay.


So I asked her out,in my voice so deep,
All she said was "Get away from me you creep",
Surprised that I was,I took a step behind,
At that moment I was out of my mind.


Next thing I know I'm in a hospital bed,
wondering at first whether I was alive or dead,
But that was until I saw her face,
where the tears of relief had left their trace.


For the first few days,I was incapable of walking,
So we spent our time doing a lot of talking,
Soon she helped me walk on my feet again,
With her beside me,I couldn't even feel the pain.


And then again,I asked her out,
Hoping against hope,that she wouldn't yell or shout,
What I had felt you can only guess,
the moment I heard that beautiful 'yes'.


So we dated a bit and I got to know,
That it was better to take it a little bit slow,
Inside my head I was still a mess,
my true feelings for her I couldn't confess.


So I left it all in the hands of Fate,
who played his cards on that fateful date,
when on a clear day we went to the park,
little knowing that soon,situations would get dark.


I lay on the grass my head on her lap,
Within her gaze,I felt myself entrap,
Those two brown pools in their seas of white,
as beautiful as the moon in the dark of the night.


"I've never felt this way before",said she,
"I need to know...Do you really love me?"
I looked into her eyes,so filled with doubt,
And for some reason the words failed my mouth.


She mistook my silence for a 'no',
With tears in her eyes she arose to go,
And at that moment it hit me more than ever,
that I wanted to be with her for now,forever.


So I grabbed her hand and held her close,
I kissed her cheeks,I kissed her nose,
I wiped her eyes off their dew,
As I whispered in her ear "I love you".

Layout Sources

The blog title came first.Don't ask me why I came up with it, because even I don't know.Maybe, because of the eerie and mysterious aura that constantly surrounds it.Yup, that's the one I'm talking about.You'll get the effect if you'll say it in your head in the deep voice of that creepy old guy who stays next door to you.Yeah,just like that.

OK,that's enough.Spine-chilling,eh?That's what I thought too.

The pic came later,though.It's a 1942 painting by Edward Hopper that portrays people sitting in a downtown diner late at night.It's name is 'Nighthawks',probably the painter's take on the term 'night owl' ,used to describe someone who stays up late.Apparently,he began painting it immediately after the attack on Pearl Harbor.I got all of that from Google.

Anyways,I liked the painting and it's really awesome.The entire eerie glow caused by the light spilling out on the pavement,the shadows,the positioning of the customers,the splendid use of the colours,the bartender,his awesome hat,those two kegs probably filled with........

Sorry I tend to drift away from the topic sometimes.I seem to be doing that a lot lately.I don't know if it actually is a psychological problem or not.Maybe,I should visit my shrink again......

Anyways,it took me a lot of time to find this pic and I liked it the moment I saw it.It kinda fits the bill,doesn't it?What do yeh think?

The Curse of the Crapping Crows

Crows.
The Al-Qaeda of the Bird world.Those ugly,black birds who love to torment smaller birds and terrorize the hell out of them.Who when they open their mouth make singers like Anu Malik look good.Who have got to be stopped before they can cause anymore destruction!

But maybe its too late now.Because the human race has been hit with it.The human race has been hit with the Curse.The Curse of the Crapping Crows.I have been one of the victims of the Curse and this is my story.....

I was in junior college back then.I was scribbling on my friend Jha's book when I was unceremoniously thrown out of my IT lecture for not writing the notes.Jha was excused from writing the same as he had a crepe bandage around his hand to show that he had injured it.Although it had been a month since he had recovered,he still sported the bandage for more than obvious reasons.Anyway,back to the story.....

So there I was standing in the corridor wondering what to do,when I suddenly started getting these hunger pangs.So,I decided to head down to the cafeteria to get a vadapav.On my way there I passed some other teachers,nodded at them and continued walking towards the cafeteria.I knew that later,they would probably kick my butt for that.

So I decided to get two vadapavs.

I mean,if you know your going to get screwed in the future,you might as well enjoy the present.It's all about living in the moment,you see.Well,with these pleasant thoughts I entered the cafeteria.

Now the cafeteria of our college is an open air cafeteria.There is a counter from where you could get your food,chairs to sit on and tables too.There was a large tree with a platform built around its base as an alternative seating area.Holding both vadapavs in my hands I dragged a plastic chair with my leg and placed it under the tree,in front of the platform.I sat down on my chair,stretched my feet out on the platform and took a bite of the delicious vadapav.

Just then a crow flew down to the platform and started staring at me.I knew that it wanted some of my vadapav and that's when I committed my first mistake.
I yelled out,''BOO!".Advice #1: Never boo a crow.Even if your friends challenge you to do it,never ever boo a crow.

Crowing away at the top of its lungs,the crow flew back to the branches above.Five seconds later,all the crows perched on the branches of that tree started crowing loudly.That was the war cry.That was supposed to be a warning sign for me but lost in the ever so delicious taste of the vadapav,I made my second mistake.
I ignored it.Advice #2:Never ignore the war cry of the crows.The moment you hear it,you better leave everything and run for your life.

And then,they attacked.Within ten seconds the war was over.The debris of their crap bombs surrounded me.Fortunately,most of them had a bad aim.I was still hit in five places though.I was injured by two bombs on both legs and another two on both shoulders.The fifth bomb was the most painful.

It had landed in my vadapav.

I suffered from post-traumatic-shock for the entire of next week.And the worst thing that could happen was that the Curse continued.There was no looking back from that incident.Rather,it was all about looking up,and watching out for the next bomb;for from that day onwards I was attacked at least once a week.

I thought it was never going to end.No amount of weird tribal dances and animal sacrifices helped.I was just about to go crazy,when it suddenly stopped with that one last attack.
My friend Varun and I were on his bike and were just riding under the huge tree diagonally opposite to the Mc'Donalds near Thane station,when the bomb struck me.This time it hit me square on the face.The moment it hit me,my vision blurred and I thought that we had had an accident.But I still felt the bike moving,and thats when I got the smell and thats when I realized.The entire right side of my face was was injured.I yelled at Varun to pull over.I jumped off the bike and started tearing off papers from my book to wipe my face.

Varun turned around to see what happened and burst out laughing.He stopped laughing the moment I told him that some had even landed on his Mumbai Indians jersey.People can be so insensitive you see.I mean,come on I looked like Two-face from Batman.

But after that incident the curse started wearing off;the crows started missing their aim,and I was relieved.I think thats the objective of the Curse.The only way to be free from it, is to be hit straight in the face.

That's how I survived to tell the tale.I'm just hoping now that Danny Boyle reads this and makes an Oscar winning movie out of it.I mean if he could make Slumdog win an Oscar.......................

My First Post

When I first heard the word 'blog' I immediately assumed that it was some game that some crazy kids must've came up with,which probably involved throwing stuff at one another.I don't know why I thought that,but I did.Anyways,as I gradually learnt about the entire concept,a new theory started forming in my mind.I came to a conclusion that all these bloggers are actually a bunch of attention seeking people who constantly want other people to know about them,to follow their views and also engage them in their day-to-day lives.All so that they can go to bed at night knowing that somewhere,someplace their thoughts and experiences have affected somebody in some way or the other.How pathetic.


But that was then,and now is now.

Now,as I'm writing my first post on my blog,I just realized something about my bloggers-are-attention-seeking-idiots theory.

I realized that I was bloody RIGHT all this time!!
I mean c'mon the mere fact that there are a certain bunch of people in this world who are actually spending their time reading the shit that you write is so freaking awesome!!!
But hell,who am I to comment;because after all even I've joined the bandwagon now and I've got to admit I'm finding that blogging thing is kinda cool.So this is it......My First Post.