The Nation Sings ..!!

26th January, 1950 saw a change in India. India emerged as a Republic Country, its constitution was framed and Dr. Rajendra Prasad was elected as the first President of India. Hence onwards, this red-lettered day is celebrated every year on the 26th day of January as the Republic Day of India.

As a kid, I have known this day as one on which the national flag "Tirangaa" is hoisted... sweets are distributed and patriotic movies are telecasted on television. But as the mind matured, I started learning the deepend thoughts behind these celebrations. One thing that could not change is the effect of the patriotic songs telecasted before... Mile Sur Mera Tumhara, being one of them. This legendary video was telecasted for the first time in Doordarshan (India's number 1 channel then) on 15th of August in the year 1988. It has some kind of mesmerized effect which lasts till date. It fills one's mind with the sense of oneness and makes one feel proud for being a part of the great culture of a great Nation. The song featuring the wide diversity and mixed cultures of India is composed of 14 languages namely- Hindi, Odia, Bengali, Marathi, Punjabi, Assamese, Kashmiri, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, Kannada, Malayalam and Urdu. Then finally it ends by fading into the final notes of the Indian National Anthem. The video consists of various famous personalities of India from various fields like movies, sports, art, culture, etc. Some of the notable faces in the legendary anthem are of Amitabh Bachchan, Mithun Chakraborty,Tanvir Ashai, Kamal Hasan, K.R.Vijaya, Revathi, Jeetendra, Waheeda Rehman, Hema Malini, Tanuja, Sharmila Tagore, Shabana Azmi, Deepa Sahi, Om Puri, Dina Pathak, Meenakshi Seshadri (Actors: Film and T.V.) Mallika Sarabhai (Dancer), Mario Miranda (Cartoonist), Mrinal Sen (Filmmaker), Sunil Gangopadhyay, Annadashankar Ray (Authors) Bhimsen Joshi, M Balamuralikrishna, Lata Mangeshkar, Suchitra Mitra (Singers) Narendra Hirwani, S Venkataraghavan, Prakash Padukone, Ramanathan Krishnan, Arun Lal, PK Banerjee, Chuni Goswami, Syed Kirmani, Leslie Claudius, Gurbux Singh (Sportsmen),etc.

The song was re-recorded and telecasted again on January 26, 2010. The lyrics were same but the order of the appearance of languages changed. The song features Indian musicians, singers, sportspersons and film personalities from the current generation. The current version (little over 16 minutes) runs longer than the older version (little over 5 minutes) and has been directed by Kailash Surendranath who had directed the original Mile Sur Mera Tumhara as well. The new version also retains music composer/arranger Louis Banks who had co-composed/arranged the original Mile Sur Mera Tumhara as well. Though some eminent personalities like Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam and Sachin Tendulkar are missing in this version, yet this is also loaded with stars like Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, A R Rahman, Sonu Nigam, Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, Aamir Khan, Prasenjit Chatterjee, Baichung Bhutia, Mahesh Babu, Deepika Padukone, Ranbir Kapoor, Shahid Kapoor, Shaan, Bhupen Hazarika, Kavita Krishnamoorthy, Dr. L Subramaniam, Anoushka Shankar, Mammootty, Shivkumar Sharma, Rahul Sharma (musician), Gurdas Mann, Juhi Chawla, Ustad Zakir Hussain (musician), Thetakudi Harihara Vinayakram, Vikram, Surya, Abhinav Bindra, Sudarshan Patnaik, Shilpa Shetty, Abhinav Bindra, Vijender Singh, Sushil Kumar, Karan Johar, K J Yesudas, Shiamak Davar, Shobana Chandrakumar, Shreya Ghosal, Rohit Bal, Priyanka Chopra, Louis Banks, Rituparna Sen Gupta, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, Amaan Ali Khan, Ayaan Ali Khan and Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy. Although the new version came into being, yet it could not deteriorate the effect the originl score had. But I would say, it's a very good attempt indeed. Though I spent the whole day watching the premieres of the new one, yet it could not energize me the way the previous one had. But all the same, the whole idea is conveyed... our nation is one, despite all its lacunae and differences... we stand united, despite all the conflicts and barriers... singing the anthem "Mile Sur Mera Tumhara.... Toh Sur Bane Hamara"..!!

A Brief Intro ..!!

Many a times, I keep mentioning about my friends at Ness which has confused quite a good number of readers now. So I thought, I would write a few lines about each so as to increase the readability of my users :-) Now, thinking this is quite easier than its implementation... because here also I have got a big group..!! Let me start with those, with whom I work under the same ceiling in the same floor... have my breakfast, lunch and snacks even. Now, there's one more challenge before me, about whom to write first and then next... because all three are equally good, though different in nature and ways. To resolve this conflict, I thought of beginning alphabetically (easy way of sorting indeed) :-)

ASHISH :- I saw this kind of person for the first time in my life. Very talented... but doesn't look one (he he..). Always hates coming in the forefront, yet his behaviour is not that easy to be hidden from others. A good player... a lover of cricket... a great drinker of tea. Has the ability to take 3-4 cups of tea in a break of just 5 mins... though we restrict it for 2 only. A very helpful guy with a lot of ambitions. He has also the capability to reach the height of his ambitions and I am sure, he will make it someday..!! One who get to knows him more can never ever keep himself/herself refrain from his friendship. I tease him a lot.. but he has always been good. I would like to treasure a friend forever..!!

SHIRISH :- Another sample here :-) A very good friend of mine since the training days. I really admire his sense of humor... it's just so perfect..!! He can give comic punches in such a serious way that the other party couldn't help laughing. A silent worker. A hardworking and intelligent guy, whom I really admire. Quite helpful in nature and surely deserves good things in life, always. Enough of good points... now the thing which I don't like about him is... he always escapes to his home during holidays ;-) Jokes apart, this guy is really nice and a good friend indeed..!!

VIPIN :- The one mentioned before is no doubt good humored but God must also be having a fun time while creating this creature. Quite funny... always lost in his world... forgets everything. Can speak songs (one of the best talents he has got... God gifted:-)). Cool attitude but gets serious sometimes, while working especially. Intelligent, helpful and hard working enough. Dumps me daily at my place (he he..). Half mad.. but this kind of friends are also necessary in life..!! Can irritate you easily by his philosophies :-) A great company to be with.. though has a little brain but a good energy. Always active and a bit ambitious even. This post, I guess, is special for him as it's his birthday today. Happy Birthday, Vipin..!!

A Special Birthday Celebration ..!!

5th Jan is my birthday as per paper works... which had no meaning in my life till date... which I never celebrate... but 5th Jan, 2010 was really special. Being into a office, this official birthday got some kind of importance. I got gifts from Ness... friends and colleagues from office wished me... it was a great experience all total. The surprise I got from my dear friends was amazing... left me completely emotional. We had a cool party (I won't say grand... my friends will say that..!!) and also lots of fun..!!
Thanks everyone (Mouli, Vipin, Ashish, Shirish, Jahnavi, Arathi, Sanjeev, Anjana, Vidya, Vishal & Yuvraj) for making my day so special.

Happy Birthday to Smarak... Aadit... Richee... Rakesh Bhai... Me :-)

So often we don't say I Love You because we fear losing someone... but more often we lose them because we fear saying I Love You..!!

New Year Blast ..!!

2009 came to an end quite eventfully and came a New Year with new hopes, new dreams and new aspirations. We (Me, Mouli, Vipin & Yuvraj) thought of giving a very nice farewell to 2009 for being so wonderful (though sometimes harsh), and thus had a party at one of the finest restaurants in the Garden City. The party was great. The next day... 1st Jan,2010 was scheduled for a trip to Mysore... a place of historical importance. The trip was awesome. We (Me, Mouli, Arathi, Yuvraj & Vipin) visited the Banyan County, then saw the Jail of the great ruler Tipu Sultan. Then we made our way to Srirangapatna Temple where the deity of Shri Narayan is worshipped. The crowd was actually dreadful but we were also firm in our motive of seeing the God..!! Then we went to see the Summer Palace of Tipu Sultan, a place of importance especially during summers. Finally we saw the Great Palace of Tipu Sultan.. that was just wonderful. It clearly depicted the luxurious lives of our great rulers. The palace was not less than a dream land and we were completely lost in its beauty. Great architecture indeed..!! We had a refreshing time at a confluence called Sangam of three rivers. The boating was cool..!! The day was really special, in a single day, we witnessed the holy places of different religions... The Srirangapatna Temple, The Jamia Masjid and The St.Philomena's Church. I guess, nothing could have been more better than this..!!

But there's something, I definitely miss... my good old times... the fun I used to have with my friends..!! Hey friends, wish you all a very very happy new year... keep up the spirit high always and keep enjoying. Miss you a lot :-(

New Year's 1st step was good... hope all good things keep coming our ways... Amen..!!

Happy New Year 2010