Kolkata Book fair 2006

Impressive Aren't they..Image power ..

Welcome aborad to 31st Kolkata Book Fair. Gave it a visit yesterday..Sounds quite old to me..I mean if u look at it fair started even before I was born..

Largest in Asia and largest attended ever in the world..Later attribute I believe is more due to sheer population we have rather than anything else..But still need to appreciate that at least nowadays ppl are back to book buying spree’s and publication do try hard at their end in luring them young..

Most of the parents were there to buy books for their kids..With the pretty hardcovers loads of pics and thinner size, they are easy on the pockets of the parents and minds of the kids..So much so that even I read those old kids tales standing there J
Sleeping beauty, Snow white Good to see them from time to time..

Mentioning of them reminds me of a teleserial Fairy Tale Theatres.Way back when I was a child must be in 80’s sometime I guess ..Not sure how many of u saw it.. Though I do not remember who was the producer director but some of the stories and images have stayed with me till date..Yummy.. I can watch it over and over again.Wish I could get my hands on to it..I ld like to tell me children one day, see I grew up watching this ..hmm

Ok now coming back to books,what I liked was the fact of breaking collection into separates stories per book..(Like separating Sherlock homes stories in a pocket book format..) Heard that sales are bettering day by day .Aggressive Marketing has its own advantages at times..

However quite surprisingly, somehow adult section was not as well defined as I would have liked it to be..I mean yeah u got loads of books for kids,growing up kids even sleaze section..But what abt the average avid reader..I felt quite left out there.. and discount a feeble amount of 10 percent.. Personally speaking I found the collection at Landmark, Oxford and Crossword far better..

I wanna go one more time..
This time will ensure checking out all the four entrances based on Spanish theme. I did click few book stalls..Check Kolkata Book fair 2006 album at
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/sangita_gupa/my_photos

For food I had sweet rice..This was a delicacy my grand ma used to prepare for us..Been years since I had that. Even though taste had a little weird connotation to it I lapped it over with a nostalgic aroma.

Day full of books,food and festivities. Yipee

Another Quote
‘Logic can take you from A to B. Imagination everywhere’

Trivia:Pics above are from Book Fair stalls. To me they mean freedom of expression, money(sponsorship) and knowledge (esp to kids)..All three fairly important for us to keep us growing ..

Tagged

Sherry tagged me..Now it is vary embarassing to say I have read abt being tagged it in other's blog but I was not very sure what it exactly is all about..

I mean do I just need to write anything under the sun about me..

But then she saved me by giving a set of rules..I am soo relieved..

Now here are the set of rules

1. The tagged victim has to come up with 8 different points of their perfect lover.
2. Need to mention the sex of the target.
3. Tag 8 victims to join this game & leave a comment on their comments saying they’ve been tagged.
4. If tagged the 2nd time, there’s no need to post again

Perfect Lover ..Definition itself has undergone such a huge change over span of years for me .Thank God I never got one as per my once upon a time thoughts ..

The happening attributes I want in my perfect lover.

Target :Male

1.Should give me space loads and loads of it..Yeah I hate being in anything
closed be it rooms, spaces or whatever..Do not sit on my head and tell me what to
do, how to do..Suggest and leave

2.Should be able to take my bouts of anger in mature manner and let me see on
what I missed on those grand hysteric moments

3.Should be intelligent,knowledigble and provide good insights on any thing we chat..
Have to be intelligent than me (Yeah I consider myself quite intelligent..Does that sound arrogant well let it be)

4. Should have the ability to think on the feet..Absolutely important

5.Should be able to tolerate my eccentricities. No need to love them but
never hate them..

6.Commitment & Respect..This I believe goes without even saying it

7.Shld pamper me at times..Note the word at times here

Gosh can I be more demanding than that.. Guess enough..

Now who do I make the victim..Ok guys here u go

Me
AngelDust
Rauf

Hey anobody else out there who wanna get tagged..

Ok so I have broken a few rules but fine rules are meant to be bent and broken..
Not bad

Phew ..Over to others

Trivia: Pic above is with hubby..Both of us amused at being clicked together after a long gap :-)
Cheers to us..

My Thoughts on Sonia

Few days back I was watching Sonia Gandhi’s interview by rajdeep..This led me thinking about her and what it must feel like to go through such a long personal and professional journey on one’s own..

Sonia Gandhi..Her name always spells an aura of awe, brevity and mystery for me..
Not that I am a political follower of Gandhi’s or Congress or any party for that matter..
But it is Sonia the person who has always made me wonder.

I know not much about her personal life apart from what is covered in media what is written about her in public domain and of course the way she has conducted herself amid all the controversies, all the adversaries..

Whenever there has been a debate on her foreign origin, on her poor Hindi communication skills, I have wondered as an individual what must have transpired in her mind to come to an alien country take on its customs, it ppl as one’s own and then to face such allegations from time to time. To me it is eccentric especially when you have no one to hold to, with a husband dead , ma in law long before gone..and two young children to be taken care of..

So many times I have thought only way I wld have reacted was ‘This country took my husband away, his whole family away, now wants to take my freedom away and then next target wld be my own children..I will not let that happen at any cost’ and then wld have gone back to my origins at the first given opportunity..

But she was different and that’s what lets me appreciate her..

Once she wld have started working actively into congress I am sure she wld have her own doubts on ppl accepting her, her learning graph and the unfortunate fate of all the Gandhi’s in past..

Also how can we forget issues raking her political career.. Issues of foreign origin ,her not speaking Hindi well and Indian citizenship

I find the issue of foreign origin quite interesting. How come a person who take’s her husband’s land as her own, works for the vision of her family rises out of personal trauma to work in her own way for the country is still not an Indian.. I find it an irony that her own children are considered Indian but not the mother who bore them..

For Sonia connecting to rural India would have been a huge task personally and professionally..Considering the barriers she had of language, origin .. she has surpassed them all..Being considered an icon for rural India itself says it all..Some of u might say polls are all raked up, but I must they might not be totally correct but have to be indicative of some trend being seen..A personal triumph for her.

I am not saying here that she is a great leader or something..That might be separate debate.. but wrt to challenges that life throws at us she has risen to every opportunity in the best possible manner she cld have .

Self Learning is a difficult task believe me.. and she has done it with élan..

Oops am I resurrecting Sonia Gandhi..Well nope just trying to portray a sketch of what I think ‘Sonia Gandhi an Individual’ must be like or must have thought

Opinions can very well differ..Some one might agree more with a view that she is a well scheming person who saw the power seat waiting for next gen of Gandhi’s and could not let it go..Everything she has done is a part of a bigger scene and the ultimate motive of seeing her own children on the pedestal somewhere their father their grandmother stood..

Now only thing I can say to that is being in democracy all of us have a right to
thought J
But I admire her for her spirit and her silent ways.

Now over to another quote I find amusing :
‘I am not not crazy, just in bad Mood for last 30 years’

Amazing Lives

Excess of everything is bad..so true Guess for last few days I had been so engrossed in my photographic world ,from taking the pics to putting them on blog making albums goshh..I am tired and now I feel like I am done with for next few days..(nope not weeks I guess, J)..

My mind is sooo empty today..this is a very rare feeling as generally it is stocked up piled up with so many things going on..Slept like a log yesterday Imagine it was only 8 in the night and I was already exhausted and on the bed..

Seeing loads of biographies since last few days.Courtsey History Channel.....Few interesting ones..
First one that interest me was Mario Puzo.. Mario wanted to be gangster as a young child..Being born in an immigrant family.. and spent earlier childhood years , in Manhattan's West Side , he had seen mafia at quite close quarters.. It was only his mother’s strict disciplinary actions that ensure he never had his childhood dream come true..

Reason we got a GodFather..A classic even in today’s time

He had written 2 novels before Godfather..Both gave him literary success and he was tagged a great writer in making..but none gave him the much needed money to support his family of five children

That is when he set to write a commercial novel and after an effort of 3 years came out ‘The GodFather’.. Mario even apologized for writing this saying this was never the best of his work


Another one that I watched and it really impressed me was Martina Navratilova..Might be lots of tennis fans out there already know but some of the facts I knew for the first time were an eye opener for me..They might explain her aggressiveness to a certain extent..or I like to believe so

She was already winning matches at 16 yrs of age for her country..but was under tough scanner from Czechoslovakia for her so called American manners.. she was made to share her prize money with Czechoslovakia’s federation.. Seems a very little of the amount was actually trickling to her.. Czech government even tried to restrict her from moving around and forcing her not to travel to US ..In the end she decided to defect to her own country and the cost was quite high..She did not see her family for another decade..

Imagine an 18 yr old in an alien country with no family and support..Well rest is history as we all know more or less abt her wins and her journey in tennis..

Good to see there are amazing ppl with a more amazing life and determination in this world

Trivia:Pic above is the pond I cross when I go for my painting class..

Science City

Here is the Part 2 of my trip dedicated to science City..A novel idea to popularise science across various factions and it does interest you..
The Science City, Calcutta was opened on July 1, 1997 by the the National Council of Science Museums and has been a hit with crowds ever since..
There are always new demonstrations coming up to ensure every visit is an unique one..This was my fourth visit and as interesting as ever..

Gear Up for the trip..





First View Inside the premises.. of the Space Theatre dome , Zoo and Main Entrance all in one go







Huge attraction for Kids..Outside the premises









Toy Train First Ride of the Day.Nice way to do an inspection of the area we are to uncover



Entrance to Evolution Park.Depicts our own evolution and habitat of age old animals..Moving models of dinosaurs are an absolute hit with kids..U can hear shreiking sounds inside..Nope not of dinosaurs but kids






Walk on Piano.U walk and it plays






Van De Graaff..Named after the inventor it produces high velocity electrons..Enough to raise hairs of the trial person and give electric shocks to ppl touching her. They did the demonstration on me :-(








Mirror magic Best section for the fun..Mirror Maze was show stealer..U got to be inside Mirror maze to get the experience.






Caterpillar ride..They did not allow us to be in there :-( So we shot the pic :-)









Maze on our way out..Explains number of scientific concepts in playful manner..



Yeah So here ends our small wonder trip..Hope u enjoyed :-)

Buzzing Days

Last few days have been buzzing with activity..(Of late I realized most of my blogs start with busy word so trying to change from that monotonous tone)..

My Devar was here to spend his break from the college..We did quite a roaming around time with our long walks to city centre..Yeah we voted hubby out for taxi with a vote of 2 to 1.

Last few days have seen me covering Kolkata from city centre to Victoria to Science city..Sharing those moments





Memo Shop..This carriage was used in one of the oldest steam engines in Kolkata and later on added here as a tourist attraction.







Sleeping Beauty..Vicky in deep sleep





Makar Sakranti Celebrations.Yipee we had our own traditional Dahi chooda and Goodh..(Hubby says write jaggery..:-))





Park Day for us.colorful isn't it..Though missing the bathing chirping kids who generally make it more colorful :-)








I always stop by gazing in awe at this tree .Check the spooky branches







Musical Fountain Extravanza..Absolutely breathless.We had mesemerizing half an hour here with those waters swaying to the beats of bollywood..Starting from dola re to oh hansini by kishore kumar to instrumental..Diffcult to capture the beauty of the moment but here it is..




Ride on the bagghi against the backdrop of Victoria Memorial. I always find it very romantic..









Our Last stop after a hectic day..Flurry's New cake decoration on display

Always fascinated by Chandeliers. One of the twin pairs at Flurry's..

We on our way back after an hectic day.Wedding reception in the lake..Sounds exotic..and Looked exotic as well

End of a Bright Day..Wish you all a happy Makar Sakranti

Disillusioned Beauty

Life goes on at quite a fast pace. Have u ever felt disillusioned. or say when u somehow have a very strong feeling that your efforts are somehow going in a wrong way..You know the path you are taking is not of your choice but then you shifting direction at such a point of time will lead to utter chaos..

I have had this feeling quite few times. After being avoiding this feeling for last few weeks now am sitting here trying to read into it. These are the situations where one’s opinions has been over ridden and for some valid or in valid reasons we are going thru the path slated for us by some one else.

So why do we let others over ride us , if it is leaves such a weird taste in our mouths(see how I have avoided using the word bad)..

Most of the times it is the uncertainty of our own visions which motivates us to take others guidance.
Nothing wrong in taking guidance except when we follow it blindly and never try to put in the effort to see we are on the way which is accepted by our heart/mind.

Dissatisfaction start with mild differences which we ignore till one day we have the eureka moment(trying to be sarcastic here ) of seeing this is not what we wanted..By the time realization has struck we are at least half way on the path with a total confusion encompassing our minds on what have we done..

What can be done when you r in such a dilemma. It would be too easy to generalize.But guess we need to avoid that tendency to overlook the feeling..acceptance of the issue’s existence and will to address are a must.
At times we simple need to carry on the path with all the dignity and accept the fact that we could not have done things in a better manner..In hindsight things can always be done in a better manner. Under circumstances & with the given constraints, might sound like trivial words but at times are answer to lots of things we did and why we did

However at other times we really need to take an immediate action might not be sudden 180 degree turn but yes something to that effect in longer run. With the intent not waste our precious time and energy into something which will take away the passion with which we started.

So which route I am taking this time ..Planning for second one.

Trivia: All these thoughts we triggered by the fact that my Umbrella gal(Nib Painting) is not coming as I wanted it to be. A bright and chirpy gal..But I am sure all of you would have faced bigger dilemmas in life.Saying of the fact even I can think of some in past..so hope will return to this blog next time

Oops..enough of some heavy stuff.. On a lighter note
Had my jeth and family at home.Was a nice feeling and I am in love with the cap I gifted to their little gal..and why are these kids are so mad abt skyblade..After buying I found out it is nothing but our old age lattoo with some added complexities to it

Seems they launch the skyblade whereas we simply used to play with our lattos.. Kids these days..but an enjoyable day I must say.

Missed clicking pics Later on realized..could have a whole set.. here r some

Kids trying to play Brainvita

Mishti with her cute smile and all cheers for the pic

Life has its own small wonders. Have a Nice day

Beautiful End & New Beginninngs

Had to wake up at this hour of the night just to get my creative independence (now whatever that is :-)

Clicked some of the beautiful Moments of our last Day of two thousand and Five..(WOW now that sounds different Doesn't it)..





Last Sunshine of the Year 2005










We on our way to City.kolkata is full of such pretty water bodies








Majestic Isn't it..we called it Indian Harrods.
Found out it is Grand Oberoi hotel built by an armenian..
125 yrs of history lurking behind those walls






StopOvers of our walk around Espalnade area had some interesting points. Check out the Indian entreprenueurs..Shop on the wheels and free of cost..





Clock Tower..2005 ticking away from us











Welcome 2006..





Check out the Complete 'welcome 2006' album at http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/sangita_gupa/my_photos

Wishing you all a Very Happy New Year..