afghan kids

the 'chicklet' kid...tired look


















this little boy works in the local grocery ... surprised by the flash.


















the little tea seller...pensive look...

Sheesha party

It was a freeky night...Emad Matter, our Q.C manager (Egyptian) brought out his Sheesha (hooka) and invited everyone to join the fun. Curiosity took the better of us and we joined the sheesha party. Everyone was enthused by the ‘gurgling’ sound made by the pot. There was an engineer who was not amused by this whole hangama at all and we later found that it was becoz he was all the time blowing into the pot instead of sucking in…

Since Iam not a smoker, I had no idea of what to expect. All I can say is that, I felt like a steam engine smoking out fume…but some regular smokers certified that, it was the best tobacco they had ‘tasted’ in years…whatever... I just ended up with sore throat!

a Face...

Boot polish kids

Rahuf and Wahid ...kids who make a living by boot polishing... around my office area..

Tea girl

This little afgan angel is selling tea for drivers close to my office....

In mood for some Fruits !




step 1  halfway thro'...

 

step 2  voila..the fruits are ready !!!



Today after many years I found some good mood to do a few paintings...But not with paint and brush on paper...I dont have time for that anymore..But on computer with a mouse using a very rudimentary software 'Paint'!

Sketches in MS Paint...

mother and child...






My Fist !

sketches made with MS Paint

Great day!

Today I moved to the next phase of my Life. Became a Dad ! at around 18.30 IST my daughter was born ! Iam walking on the clouds!

Boom boom booooom

I recently heard this old Tamil film song…
“Boom boom boom maatukaran theruvil vanthandi….doom doom doom melam kotti sedhi sonandi”…(very crude translation : the boom boom boom cow-man came on the streets …doom doom doom-he drummed and gave the tidings…).It woke up some sleeping memories.
In my childhood, for no reason the distant sound of the boom boom maadu (cow) will send shivers down the spine… this was utilized by elder bullies (read parents) “if u don’t finish your breakfast (read idlis), I’ll call the boom boom maatukaran”…(poochandi threat was reserved for dinner)…
Actually, it is only a harmless but holy temple cow. But its bizarre attire, its sharped horns, its violent head shake backed with the eerie drum will give chills to any kid.

The 'cow-man' would stand at the doorstep and make a boooing (cant think of a better word) sound by scratching his stick across his drum in a curious rhythm. The People of the house run to ask questions to the intelligent cow - which would shake its head vigorously …and this shake would be interpreted by the 'cow-man' for an answer. So it was sort of an advanced method to know your future, if you’ve got one. And of course a complicated method at taking alms!
The boom boom madu is another dying tradition now.
Iam sure many of today’s city kids many not understand what a boom boom maadu is… Just wondering what today’s bullies use to threaten their kids into eating idlis…………

(Photos: from the net - maybe the last surviving boom boom madu @ the meenakshi temple )

and the ' veeraval ' goes to...

I have no idea who this guy V. Balakrishnan is…I don’t know who are all the members of his Amutha Surabi Kalai Mandram…no clues what they do the rest of the 364 days in a year..but what they've been doing on one day every year is most amusing.They've been bringing to Madurai some of the iconic legends of Tamil filmdom like Vayapuri, Laila, Abirami, Shyam etc and presenting them with amazing awards and titles…in a gala event at Raja Muthiah Mandram.
This time they presented ‘veeravals’ (swords of valor) to Sneha, Priyamani and Padmapriya. Very brave ladies indeed…to come and accept such an award itself needs guts…so no need of any doubts here. And of course, Sneha made her acceptance speech in chaste ‘Madura tamil’ and made the day for the mob…Another ‘veeraval’ recipient was director Pee.vasu. He was once titled by this same mandram as ‘navarasa eeyakkunar’…for directing the silliest movie of all time ‘chinathambi’…man this was needless…for the quality of movies he makes, he already has the fitting title in his initials…I almost forgot. Some new actor called Prasanna was also encouraged with a veraval..but who cares for dessert, lets focus on the main dish…Sneha made her speech in…..ok ok I already said that

Well, the only glaring difference between this awards show and Oscars is that, here the award winners have to undergo an interactive question answer session with the audience. So guys, its just not fun but informative as well..

Nothing can match the fanatical film craze that this city embarrasses you with. Ok, Trichy still holds the Guinness record for building worship places for actresses…But what you see in Madurai is unmatched hilarity in its own way… So what, Sneha made her speech in……