Fair & Dark!

Fairness is spoken about everywhere and everyday in India- some are obsessed with it, and some slam it. Well, whatever the case may be, the West is obsessed with tan.

On my recent visit to Europe I was quite surprised to see 'self-tanning' lotions and creams, something I'd never heard of! (Of course, what I did know was that they love to sunbathe, but probably because the sun hardly shines in some countries). And these tanning lotions sell like hot cakes.

What a contrast to our best-selling products, huh?

OK, so what do we do? Buy tanning lotion or fairness cream?

The answer is quite obvious. But you can put your foot down.

Mom's friend had come to sell make-up. Lipsticks, eyepencils, etc. and fairness cream. She recommended the latter. I refused. Mom said, "Why not?" But a no meant a no. We didn't buy it finally.

Bah to fairness creams!

Tehelka!

Tehelka.com is known for putting big-shots in trouble. Now the tables are turned. Call it political motivation, or trying to cover up one's sins, the bottomline is that Tarun Tejpal is now on the political hitlist. First, being accused tampering with the tapes (no one except them is sure about the tapes), then having a CBI raid, and now, being accused of bribing people to cover up their unethical acts.

I wonder if the Tehelka guys will be summoned now for having one passport.

Wimbledon's here!

Just a minute, sports freaks. With all the excitement and hype surrounding the FIFA World Cup, many have forgetten that the Wimbledon has begun. With its usual surprises and some interesting and some not-so-interesting matches, the Wimbledon's still the same.

Kournikova's out (I'm not all surprised), and so are my favourites, Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi. Poor Jelena Dokic struggled hard in her first round match against Kveta Hrdlickova (woah, I can't pronounce that!).

Football's on hold till Sunday (i.e. the Final- Germany v/s Brazil), so till then enjoy Wimbledon! (My fingers are crossed for Brazil!)

Radio Mirchi's Hot!

Personally, I prefer WIN or GO, but Radio Mirchi has come up with a great publicity stunt- the 9-8-3 contest. If you have the numbers 9, 8 and 3 in any sequence or your credit card or birthdate or car etc., you can win prizes!

Wow, Radio Mirchi has some hot (pun intended) PR officers! ;-)

The Legend of Bhagat Singh - the Teacher

Like my prediction a few days earlier, this movie was shown to children as a part of their history lesson on Bhagat Singh and his comrades. So finally some good did come out of the umpteen number of Bhagat Singh movies. So what if the producers failed to recover their money? At least they did some good- providing great entertainment and educating children.

Unfortunately, it was the glamour that attracted children the most and not the martyr.

Hmm....... should we be surprised?

Indo-Pak tensions in Detroit

So we thought Indo-Pak tensions affected only Indians, Pakistanis and a few world leaders.

Sit straight and buckle up. For this seemingly-true, allegorical story by The Onion belies all beliefs.

Top 5 Ways to Become Famous

5. Read a book on health and open a health clinic or gym.

4. Join a high-profile football team and play badly.

3. Join the Al-Qaeda.

2. Write an article on an ageing leader's failing health, and possess two passports.

1. Run for President.

Disappointments galore!

First it was France that was kicked out (pun unintended), then Argentina, Italy, USA, England (though I couldn't be happier Brazil won), and now Spain.

The football bug is biting everyone now. Even the ones who aren't the least interested in football. My mom, for example.

The only thing I wonder now is: couldn't they have had better referees?



PS-- Surprise! Surprise! English fans didn't turn into hooligans!


Time still in trouble

Don't take panga!(Means: Don't challenge us!).

The PMO has had enough of Alex Perry & Co. Seems that the Daily Telegraph reported something similar about Vajpayee.

Alex Perry was called for interrogation. The official reason- He has two passports. The unofficial reason- No prizes for guessing.

So we come back to football/soccer. World Cup History and Trivia. Interesting and (ahem!) educative. :-)

I loved it- you'll love it too!

Cool Comments!

Thanks Enetation, for your commenting system. I'm glad I found you! ;-)

And thanks Ashwini, for your comments.

Time for Trouble

Caught asleep at the wheel or not, the Time article by Alex Perry(now concerned about his safety) has angered not only BJP and the Samata Party, but also displeased Indian journalists.

The article is undoubtedly in bad taste and Mr. Perry has taken advantage of his role as a journalist and the non-censorship of the press in India.

Even though Mr. Vajapyee is aged and has had his knee cap replaced, his health does not come in the way of his decision-making. And if he is influenced by Brajesh Mishra and the 'hawkish' L K Advani (in Mr. Perry's words), I doubt if he is the only leader to be influenced by his advisors. Do you think Mr. Bush and Mr. Blair make important decisions by themselves, or do they take the advice of their Chief of Staff and cabinet memebers? Of course it is natural for any leader of any nation to take consult his right-hand person, and it is also natural that one of his chelas (meaning disciple) will be his favourite.

Why then should anyone make a mockery of the Prime Minister of the world's largest democracy?

As for his eating and health habits, that is best left to him. He is the best judge of his health and himself, isn't he? He has the right to choose what he wishes to eat and what he does not.

Speaking your mind is one thing, and lowering someone's dignity is another thing. What slips Mr. Perry's mind is, that Atal Bihari Vajpayee, for god's sake is the Prime Minister of a nation. No one has the right to disgrace someone, right? (We call this basic manners!).

But this is not the first time that a derogatory article has been written about an Indian leader. When President K R Narayanan visited France in April 2000, he was referred to as 'an untouchable in Elysees' by two leading newspapers of France.

Monsoon Football!

Okay, so the south-west monsoon has finally arrived. And with it has come the World Cup.(I still can't believe France is out and Italy lost to Korea!).

Football mania has caught on here too. When the matches aren't on, you see muddy kids playing football like nothing else matters. Even when it's pouring cats and dogs. Wonder what's on their minds while playing in the rain. I've never played in the rain. Heck, I've never played football. ;-) Cricket, yes. It's never too late to learn, is it?

Coach needed. ;-)



Bad Timing!

Inspiration, they say, can come to you anywhere, anytime. That's what happens to all those writers and scientists and other such people in need of the much-desired sudden idea.

To me, it comes late at night- when I'm tossing and turning in bed, thinking of nothing in particular. Not that I need any inspiration, but sudden ideas and thoughts that would make a difference to me pop up at the most awkward time.

Has it ever happened to any of you?



Acne!

Hmmm....well, this may not be everyone's favourite topic (nor is it mine), but I think a teenager's blog would be incomplete without a mention of boyfriends and/or pimples. Since the former is not on my agenda, a zit is the best(!) thing to mention.

Ah, what I'd do to get rid of these things!

Any dermatologist reading this?

Bhagat Who?

Forget the Bhjagat Singh movies for a while.

Pre-Bhagat Singh movies, if you had asked a school kid if he knew who Bhagat Singh was, the reply you'd get would probably be,"Yeah, some freedom fighter, right?" You couldn'y blame the child for that- because most history textbooks focus on Gandhi's ideaologies and Bhagat Singh remains just some person with just a paragraph dedicated to his fight for freedom.

Well, the scenario is a bit changed now. People know who he is now.

Out of curioisty I asked a few people about Bhagat Singh. And I was surprised to learn that almost the entire city of Amritsar had taken to the streets to protest against the hanging of Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev. Many even fasted 63 days along with Bhagat Singh and comrades.

If this isn't patriotism, then what is?

Anti-Gandhi or not, these films have achieved their second objective (if not the first one to earn money)- create awareness about people who did much for their country, but aren't remembered that much.

Tall People make Good Lawyers!

This is the ground-breaking story I heard about yesterday. It didn't seem to have been backed up by much research, and, since the theory isn't as complicated as the Quantum Theory of Physics, I'm sure it will be easily understood by all. (Budding midget lawyers, beware!)

Here are the postulates of this ridiculous and absolutely bizarre theory: (yes, I finally spoke my mind!)

• A tall person can make people turn. This is a necessity in a courtroom(?).
  
• The more people who look at you, the stronger your case is. (Forget the cross-examination and arguing).
  

So I guess the corollary of this theory is: Shorties don't make good lawyers.

But what is more important in a courtroom: your height or your oratical and cross-examining skills?

I leave this open for debate.

PS-- Bah!




Tribute to Hansie

Hansie Cronje may not have been the most-loved cricketer in recent years, but he certainly was popular before being exposed. (I'll let you in on a secret- he was on of my favourites before the match-fixing scandal.)

Unlike his Indian counterparts, he confessed and divulged all details, expressing his regret. His fans forgave him for his final display of honesty.

I wonder why the others didn't follow his footsteps. Their crimes would have been forgiven, if not forgotten.

RIP, Hansie.