It really does! Today, one man from my building expired.
It is the 4th cancer related death ( due to Smoking/Chewing Tobacco ), I've seen from close range.
The end is horrible. For last 2-3 years, he was on a liquid diet, as he could not take normal food; because, his mouth, throat and lungs were badly affected. He had become thin like a 'stick' and barely able to walk as he was extremely weak.
His face had become greyish due to excessive smoking, and begun to look horrible because his entire mouth portion had become deformed due to cancer.
Last few months, he had to be fed through a pipe inserted through a hole made in his chest. He was in extreme pain.
Everyone knew, including himself, that his end was near! And he died!
Please do not choose this kinda Death, and dump tobacco immediately if you are a smoker.
!! Smoking also causes Impotency !!
Stay Healthy! Love Yourself and Take Care - Hate Cigarettes/Tobacco/Gutkha.
Bombay has been my home since 1988, so, its been quite a long connection I've had with this city. That time I was young and did not hear of any North Indian migrants issue, though, I was aware of a movement against South Indians in 1966.
Presently, since last few years, every other day media has been flashing ~
>> news of north indian students [ http://content.msn.co.in/msncontribute/Story.aspx?PageID=1fbc01fa-164e-4aae-b8e6-12224c98973b ]
>> as well as north indian taxis/autowalas being beaten up in the name of saving marathi culture [ http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Raj-appears-in-Kalyan-court-tight-security-in-place/376562]
[ http://mumbai.metblogs.com/2008/02/06/mns-and-the-outsiders ]
>> the son of soil be given first preference [ http://www.indianexpress.com/news/raj-has-a-new-line-irrigated-land-only-for-marathi-manoos/584700/ ]
>> Banks were warned to make forms / signboards in marathi [ http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Banks-must-put-up-signboards-in-Marathi-Sena/articleshow/6193560.cms ]
[ http://www.rajthackeray.info/Bal-Thackeray-warns-Mukesh-Ambani-to-stay-away-from-Marathi-issue.html ]
>> make marathi compulsory [ http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Mumbai-cops-dont-know-Hindi-should-speak-Marathi/360994/ ]
>> multiplexes were attacked if they didnt show marathi films [ http://www.zeenews.com/news647423.html ]
[ http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/18-MNS-workers-arrested-for-vandalising-multiplexes-in-Mumbai/articleshow/6326754.cms ]
>> shops vandalised if they didnt put up marathi signboards,
>> even some MLA slapped for not speaking in marathi in assembly [ http://www.indianexpress.com/comments/abu-azmi-slapped-by-mns-mla-for-taking-oath-in-hindi/539149/ etc etc. ]
>> politics of convenience [ http://www.mid-day.com/news/2010/aug/170810-raj-thackeray-ramzan-posters-tie-suit-hindi-urdu.htm ]
>> burn newly registered autos on non-maharashtrians [ http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/raj-thackeray-claims-major-scam-by-maharashtra-govt-in-buying-autos/1/616294.html ]
All these incidents troubled my mind. Its somewhat understandable if you try to promote marathi in rest of Maharashtra, but if you try to force the same in Bombay then history has to be re-read and examined.
So, I decided to try and read Bombay's history to find out justification about all the goondagardi these people were doing on pretext of saving marathi culture. Well, what I found out was very interesting. Bombay has historically never been part of Maharashtra. It was an entirely different state altogether, comprising of little parts of coastal Maharashtra and Gujarat. British had developed the island which was originally inhabited by handful of konkani fisherman.
Sindhis, Parsis, Gujratis, Madwadis settled there initially, on invite from British, where they set up businesses/mills. Then came the UP bhaiyas and Marathis from mainland, and all together they contributed to its growth. This fact proved that all, including the marathis, were migrants unless they want to claim that they are all descendants of the konkani fishermen. That's be weird.
In 1960, after 13yrs of independence, Bombay state was merged with Maharashtra. Since, only last 40 yrs, its been part of Maharashtra, these politicians and their goons gave no right to force Marathi on anyone at least NOT IN BOMBAY! In rest of Maharashtra by all means protect it, nobody would object.
For their own selfishness and lust for power, these politicians are raking up such issues playing with the marathi sentiments. Once they come to power, I'm sure such issues wont exist any more. However, their goondagardi and vandalism, supported by the marathi public by not opposing and being silent spectators is portraying marathis in a very bad light ~ as intolerant people who hates fellow Indians (NI's). What would be the difference between Jihadis who hates non-muslims, harasses and kills them ( with other muslims not opposing the jihadis ) and these politicians/their goons hating north-indians, threatening and beating them up while the other marathis are not opposing?
In my opinion, creating hatred amongst fellow Indians is a huge crime, which in future may have adverse effect; which, might even lead to division of the country if its not nipped in the bud!! Bombay is over crowded no doubt, but, by beating up any north-indians who comes here, is that the solution? For that matter, vandalising cinema halls that do not show marathi movie, is that how law should be enforced, by taking law into own hands and creating an atmosphere of fear and negativity? Isn't there a legal way of doing things?
Why only north-indians be stopped from coming to the city? It should apply to other marathis migrating to it as well, if we go by the history of the city. They are certainly not sons of the soil and are as migrant as others! Someone once claimed to me that Hanuman was Maharashtrian proudly ( though it sounded funny ), to which I replied that in that case Sri Ram was a UPwala north indian, so why hate north-indians then?
Govt can enforce some measures to stop the influx of migrants, but it should be done with other marathis as well [ strictly going by the history of Bombay ]
Why not make few cinema halls specially dedicated to showing marathi films all year through instead of bullying and threatening multiplex owners? If they are committing crime by not showing as per law, then file a case and let law takes its own course. The example of the Jumbo Vada Pav outlets all over city maintaining the culture, without attacking the Mc.Donalds/KFC and other restaurants for not selling vada pavs should pave the way for peaceful solutions.
As for forcing others to speak in marathi, why do these same politicians send their children to english schools and abroad for education? Why don't they practice what they preach at home, and set an example for others rather than being hypocrites! [ http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Raj-men-fight-for-Marathi-send-own-kids-to-English-schools/540015/4/ ]
As for me, I have grown up in the city, have lot of wonderful marathi friends. Marathis have a warm friendly culture, it saddens and horrifies me to see the hatred and intolerance being seeded into their minds.
One day, I was travelling by train in ladies compartment. There was some commotion regarding a seat between a marathi lady and a girl [ punjabi or sindhi perhaps ]. There was very less space, as there were already 3 sitting on the seat. The marathi lady tried to sit in the remaining corner, but due to lack of space she pushed the other three to make herself comfortable. Then that girl asked her not to push....and the marathi lady started yelling at her ~ that these people come from outside, eat everything here etc etc. I'll do this, do that and lots of abuses. The hatred for non-marathis was clear in her abuses. While she kept on ranting the whole journey, the girl kept quiet throughout. If this happened in one railway compartment before my eyes, such instances may be happening elsewhere as well....which is sad.
Once again, by all means do whatever you want in rest of Maharashtra and promote marathi as much as you want, but, leave Bombay Alone!!! Let law rule in Bombay and not some goons! Bombay has its contribution mostly by other communities, respect that, if you want them to respect you!
Are we really Free? 63 years of freedom from colonial rule, yet, we are not free from poverty, corruption, scams, riots, terrorists, disasters, inflation, bad governance! So, how are we Free? --
On 15th Aug, we'll celebrate our Independence; momentarily, we will remember the freedom movement, the blood our freedom fighters shed, sacrifices they made so that we could be free ( some won't bother at all as they take everything for granted ), and then later, forget all about it till next 15th Aug comes .
This subcontinent has the bloodiest history. It has seen invasions, loot, conversions over and over again. We were bunch of princely states scattered all over without any unity. Outsiders took advantage of it and ruled over us for centuries. Now even after attaining freedom, we see separatists and naxal movements in almost all states. In north, if we have Kashmir, Khalistan issue; in east we have Naga/Bodo/Manipuri, Ulfa militants, illegal Bangladeshi and jihadis. In south we have Kerela jihadists; in central parts we have mao-naxals. In west we have Raj Thackerey type politicians with regionalism, concerning the north-indian migrants issues. Then in almost all over India, we have caste issues, farmers committing suicides, we are among those with highest poverty levels, inflation and price rise of essential commodities, uncontrollable politicians in one scam or the other, bureaucracy infected with corruption, communal riots gripping the country in various parts every now and then..not to mention, India holding the record for maximum amount of terrorist attacks ever faced in its soil, in the world!
The urban youth have become ignorant immune couch potatoes, inspite of seeing everything happening around them. They are nonchalant about it. We continue to bring those people to power who has only further ruined and corrupted the system, we don't participate ourselves to weed out our seething problems..and then, blame others for all the wrong things. We as Indians, have to unite, irrespective of caste, language, religion etc, only then, the country will be strong, instead of hiding behind our respective 'groups' which only divides the society further.
We divided, enemies succeed; we united enemies defeat! So give it a serious thought. Are we really free?
On A Lighter Note - Azadi kya hai? School mei teachers azad hone nahi dete. Office me boss azad hone nahi dete. Jab shadi na huwa ho to parents azad hone nahi dete. Shadi ho jaye to spouse azad hone nahi dete. Aur buddhe ho jawo to bimariya azad hone nahi dete. Marne ke baad kabr/shamshaan azad hone nahi degi... Mujhe to dur dur tak azadi nahi dikh rahi...to hum azad kaise huwe? :p
Kashmir is the Crown in the head of India, however, since last 60+ years it has been the major headache for India ~ with 4 wars fought over it with Pakistan ( 48,65,71,kargil ), and the on going Proxy war last 20 yrs. Hindu king had annexed the muslim majority kingdom with India in '47. In 48, Pakistan sent its tribals/kabalees across to grab it, which resulted in the war. Gandhi sat down on a fast for Rs55 crore to be given to Pakistan (one main reason stated by Nathuram Godse why he shot Gandhi as India would be perhaps the only country in this world giving the enemy country money in middle of a war) ( We had already seen million deaths and destruction during the partition )
As if it wasn't enough, Nehru made the kashmir problem 'international' by taking it to the UN, promising to hold plebiscite. Gandhi and Nehru gifted us with this problem which has cost numerous lives not to mention loss of money, property with the various terrorist attacks our country has been facing via the Pakistan sponsored proxy war. Why does Pakistan want Kashmir? Only because of muslim issue? Doesn't seem so, because, there are other places in India with more muslims. Pakistan want Kashmir because of its water resources. Akshai chin wasn't useful that's why that part they gifted to China. After loosing several wars with India, it started the proxy war whereby they gave moral and logistical support to kashmiri youth, brainwashing them with the rigid wahabbi islam doctrines which spread quickly all over the valley spewing hatred against kafir India and its army.To further fulfil their Islamization of Kashmir agenda, they threw out the 4 million kashmiri pandits from the valley who are living as refugees in their own country since 89'.
Kashmir which used to be a sufi influenced culture, and the kashmiris liberal and secular, is now gradually moving towards strict wahabbi non-inclusive islam. Kashmiri women never wore burkha for centuries, but now, burkha/niqaab are common sight in the valley.With the article 370 giving special status to kashmir, no indian can purchase property or settle there.
These factors are alienating Kashmir more and more from mainland. Ever since independence, congress has been in power majority of its years, still, it has been a complete failure in solving the kashmir problem. Congress the most communal party with its vote bank politics and its obvious soft favoritism towards terrorists. Why else a convicted terrorist like afzal guru [ who attacked the Indian Parliament ] not hanged inspite of Supreme Court orders, also announcing compensation to terrorist families. ( FYI, Afzal Guru has been since hanged )
Indian army has an extremely difficult job at hand where pro-paki separatists e.g Geelani are being tolerated, likes of which have been instrumental in anti-india speeches and slogans throughout the valley which easily brainwashes the youth. Pakistan has been successful in using islam sentiments/emotions like it did with talibans during soviet era.
Kashmiri youths stone pelting at army has become a common practice like palestinians do with Israely army, and situation is getting worse with the new generation having seen bullets, violence and deaths since the last 20 yrs. An average 20yr old kashmiri has seen only bullets since birth..so its easy to understand the growing frustration.
Will India lose Kashmir? Highly likely, if we don't take immediate measures. India can't bear to loose kashmir, because with the head gone the protection that the mountains provide will be gone, and pakistan and china will be literally on our heads! The water resources of Kashmir are important for hydro-power projects, and moreover, its an integral part of India. So India can't afford to loose Kashmir protecting which many of our brave soldiers laid down their lives.
The Govt should take strict actions against the pro-paki jihadi separatists and not allow them upper hand in the name of freedom of speech. Those wanting freedom from India should be deported [ immediately to their favorite place - Pakistan ]. Their dream of Azad Kashmir is a big myth, because, POK & so called Azad Kashmir controlled by Pakistan is nowhere azad. ( Pakistan has settled their afghan kabalees and punjabis in bulk in those regions )!!If azad means being part of Pakistan, then, we have to treat those separatists harshly!!
However, immediate removal of article 370 is the main step for Indians to really claim Kashmir [ not to forget the violent reactions in the valley with the decision to give land to make fascilities for the Amarnath yatris, which had to be later revoked, (that's how they treat hindu minority rights in muslim majority region; whereas, in rest of India, minorities are to have first right to resources as declared by who else but by the congress Govt itself ) ]
Govt should resettle back the kashmiri pandits better armed, also sikhs and hindus in large numbers from other parts so that jihadis are outnumbered. Only then, this throbbing headache will subside.
My earliest introduction to the World Wide Web was during Feb'2000. Those days Yahoo, Hotmail, Rediff were the only websites we knew about. Needless to say, from then onwards, I've seen the web grow right before my eyes. More important however, has been the growth and evolution of my ISP [internet service provider] which I witnessed 'cos it was most important than web itself - as it connected me to it. Journey of my ISP has been a roller coaster as well!
There was no broadband, Wi-fi...and we were totally dependent on the whims and fancies of Almighty Govt's poor telecom services such as Bsnl, Mtnl which provided the typical Dial-Up connectivity.
The internet bill ran into thousands, hence, was quite expensive. Then slowly cyber-cafes began sprouting in every corner which provided access at somewhat reasonable rates, which was a far better option if we were to chat for hours with strangers in various Yahoo and Mirc chat-rooms. Mind you, there was no social networking sites like Facebook, Orkut, Itimes etc that time. So, these chat-rooms were the only place where we used to hang around. It was blind-chatting those times, 'cos nobody shared pics/videos/cams; so, we did not know who we were talking to :O However, it was more than enough for us, and we were on the verge of becoming net addicts. I sure as hell was :-)
Then broadband came, which was still expensive for personal connections, until, the cost started climbing down with options like low cost-free night surfing etc, while day time peak hours remained high. Then by God's grace, and those techno wizards, marvellous inventions and tiny little miracles started flooding the market. These devices were gprs/cdma/wap enabled Iphone, Blackberry,and other Smart phones which brought internet literally at the palms of our hands compared to the bulky desktops and expensive laptops we have been using so far. Now internet had gone mobile.
Mobile internet cost much less compared to broadband. Of course, 3G/4G's are costly, but, the normal Gprs/Cdma connections are far cheaper and worked fine. I remember, my first internet bill was almost Rs.7000 a month, way back in Feb'2000 ( which set my parent's eyes rolling..lol ),now same unlimited access via gprs was Rs.98 a month, which is damn cheap I say, when I think of the thousands spent over the past years. [ Hopefully rates would get lower or become totally free in coming days. Wi-fi is already free in public places also known as Hot-Spots ]
Initially the wap/mobile browsing loaded pages only filled with texts which was bit dull, now however, with compressed data technology new browsers load full websites with all their graphics/videos which is a big Treat. You can access full website on mobile, and you can literally throw away those desktops/broadbands!
So Web changed, 'Connectivity' ie my ISP changed, but did I change? No! I'm as addicted as ever ;) and will be for a long long time! For ever ! ;)
This must be the exact story with all of you reading the blog right now. All would agree the journey of the ISP has changed our lives altogether !
My life gets paralysed without my ISP!
Who likes Food? It seems a silly question! Of course we all like food; even if we don't like, we need food to survive in this world. So, everyone has to have food. We eat to live!
But on the other hand there are Food Fanatics [ like me ] who just lives to eat. Our kind exists in great numbers, and as for me I can unashamedly admit, food is my weakness. Food comes first for me....even before Music, which is my passion/profession. If I place food before Music, then, one can only imagine how obsessed I'd be ~ for food. It seems, I'm forever Hungry!
But hey, the Food got to be tasty, delicious, yummy, attractive....'cos my fondness for food is simply the fun of eating; the pleasure of tasting new things. I love food simply for the enjoyment it gives, to satisfy my taste buds.....so, it has got to be tasty! And, whole lot of things in this world are damn tasty....which just leaves me craving for more!
Surprisingly, for long time, almost till my late teens...having a working mother, the only food I knew about was 'maggi, dal, rice, chappati, sabji, bread, butter'. The family outing or 'Dosa' trips were the only luxury I knew! When I lived alone in Bombay for sometime, things got trickier! I loved the freedom I had, so excitedly, I bought whole lot of recipe books eager to try my culinary skills! What a disaster it turned out to be.
All the foreplay of washing, chopping, frying, boiling, cooking...made the end result extremely unattractive. I was not attracted to the food I cooked. Maybe, others would have liked it or found it palatable, but, I simply could not eat the food I cooked! Damn, it was frustrating......not to say the least.
My neighbours saw my plight, and often would offer me dishes they cooked. I discovered bengali, konkani, marathi, sindhi, punjabi, guju food thanks to my neighbours from all these wonderful communities. But how long could I rely on them? I needed other options. I needed to explore. And Explore, I did...to the fullest.
Bombay, being a multi-cultural city, is the melting point of various cultures hence all the cultures bring their delicious cuisines with them, and Bombay is the ultimate place to explore food. Of course, it has international cuisine as well, which is simply irresistible !
Hence ...I've tasted food from all corners of the city, and I'm so impressed by it. But the best of all, is the Street food like pani-puri, bhel puri, ragda pattis, dahi puri etc street-food. Nothing can beat these wonderful tasty items which simply excites our taste buds to orgasmic extremes! And, the thousand varieties of snacks, starters, sizzlers......I'm so addicted to them.
Yeah...yeah.....I know, what you are thinking that all the love for food must be making me an obese, fat and all those health dangers that come along with it. Nah! Over-eating can lead to all that, however, if you eat everything, yet, lead an active life, gym out the caloriesl ~ you can have good figure, and yet eat whatever you want. So, my practice is never to over eat...though, I get tempted and regularly exercise/walk. Of late though, I've become quite lazy :|
Now comming back to food........the most tempting are the desserts! These are those devils that you simply can't resist. They are pretty to look, and very colourful too, as if inviting----come-eat-me, and we just go after it devour it!! Deserts are the reminders that the food adventure ain't over yet...
Fraudsters/Scamsters :: Bombay is filled with it! At times I'm really disgusted. When terrorists often target the financial capital also known as Mumbai. My heart goes out to the innocent victims who loses their lives while travelling on the local trains or buses in a constant hunt to make a living, but most people I've encountered are so fraud, money minded scamMers that I wonder is it God's way to punish Bombaikars for being so materialistic, money oriented? Not justifying the terror attacks, but, when I see a scam happening in front of my eyes, I do wish these people are taught a lesson of a lifetime!
[CASE-1] : My Fraud PR
Recently, I encountered a fraud person myself and was so disgusted with him when I found out the game he was playing. I wanted to punish him real bad for taking advantage of my obvious naivety! I was to hire the person as my PR which required trust 'cos I was about to hand over handling of the media to him in relation to my work!
So, it happens, that I wanted to book some ads, for each unit he charged me Rs.10400/- per coloured unit, whereas, actual price of the same was Rs.2448/- per coloured unit and black/white was Rs.1248/- to which he had lied that price of black/white unit was same as coloured. I was to order 10 such coloured units, so you can add/divide/minus/multiply to calculate how much profit he wanted to make by fooling me! Anyway, I called up the company head office to enquire about such outrageous rates and soon found out the bluff! When I asked him why he charged me such outrageous rates he was at loss for words. When I asked for a formal receipt,he meekly said to me that the price can be reduced! Whoa....in beginning he had claimed that prices are fixed and at no point will they be discounted or altered, infact, he had said that 50% will be deducted if I cancelled the order, and suddenly, with my demand for a receipt all his words changed!
I soon lost all trust in him and asked him my money back and cancelled the whole deal!
So lesson 1 - Before you hire agent/broker be aware of the real market price by calling up the company directly you want to do business with.
Lesson 2 - Never give the money without taking a formal receipt.
[CASE-2] : The Surfer that simply refused to surf!!
Ubisurfer, supposedly a ubiquitous surfer from Datawind, comes with free surfing i.e pay for the device not the usage. You are supposed to get 30 hrs per month free surfing and unlimited option is Rs99 per month. Ok so the surfer worked or seemed to work in the beginning. When I upgraded to the unlimited option it just refused to surf anymore. The distributor who sold it, asked me to call the customer care number based in Amritsar! The customer care instructed me to deposit the unlimited amount of Rs99, which I did to their account in ICICI after they promised they'll give access as soon as their account gets updated. Their account never seemed to be updated inspite of thousand calls to them [ Imagine in this day and age, that too of a Bank like ICICI!].
Later, they asked me to scan and email a copy of ICICI receipt, which I did. They said, they'll give access after 24 hrs. Well that did not happen. Days passed, more calls to the toll free number, more emails. They gave excuse that it was under process of activation since their office is in Canada [ hmm....how did I get access in the beginning as it was activated when I bought it, if suddenly they seemed not to be able to give connectivity? ]. Their excuse - Canada offices remains closed when its day time here, and their offices remain closed when its daytime in Canada, which is a big LOL !
After many days when I called them again to ask why no connection yet...they seemed to be surprised that I didn't have connection, by asking its not done yet? Well its obvious, I was calling them up 'cos my connection was blocked. They said, don't call, that they'll call back instead...which they never did. By now, I was sure they just wanted to sell the device with promises but had no intention of delivering on those promises.
So, I contacted the Mumbai distributor to take back the device as it was of no use to me 'cos they simply would not give the connection inspite of my already paid for the device [ Rs.8000 ] as well as 1 month unlimited [ Rs.99 ]. At first, they said they won't refund, but will replace. Thankfully, there was refund option in the warranty card which they could not dispute. They said, they'd send someone to collect the device and refund. When no one came, I tried to call again....but all their numbers were switched off. Since the distributor had come to my house to sell, I didn't know how to get hold of him! When their numbers were on they'd would not pick the phone. So I called from another number which they picked up not knowing it was my number. They argued that I was doing so much hungama only for Rs.8000....well bloody, I told them even for Re.1 I wont leave them once I've discovered their fraud policies. I told them my next step would be to expose the fraud in the press, which seemed to work finally. ( Before that, I tried my own snooping, and tracked the distributor to a Videocon workshop, near Kandivali, from the landline number he had used - although, he wasn't in office that day ). Anyways, after my threat, they said, they's send someone the next day. Well....atlast, they had to take back the device and refund!
So lesson is don't fall into free this/free that traps! Nothing is free in this world. In this case, I had paid extra so it was no way free, yet, they tried to dupe!
[CASE-3] : Call Centre Scams ! Beware !
If you open papers such a Midday/Mumbai Mirror or any other you'll come across hordes of call centre advertisements, promising you jobs at your location/age no bar etc etc. While not all may be fraud, most of them certainly are! Their sole aim is to milk out the money from you!
The process is as such :
Usually, you go to the venue reading such paper advs, or you'll find someone near station or busy areas [ they stand near their office so that they can quickly show you the way or escort you themselves ] giving you a flyer/chit of paper announcing such call centre openings! Spot Offers! Once you reach, you'll be asked to fill their resume application. If you are with friend, you'll be strictly asked not to talk or discuss anything, infact, one of the boy will stand over your head, so you can't talk to your own friend till you leave the premises. [ Its actually to prevent you from discussing/or decide not to join after all ]
Once you are with the H.R, you'll be asked the usual questions, name, qualification, talking skills! Then the H.R will say you are selected from his/her side [ even though you may not have answered/or remained dumb throughout ] but that he/she will forward your resume to the senior H.R for approval, and for that you'll have to book your ID which he/she'll provide once you register amount of Rs300-350/-! If you hesitate, he/she'll ask you to pay half payment, rest pay after you are selected, so, you'll be ready to book for sometimes as low as Rs10/- even and upwards. You'll notice he/she'll really try to get a initial payment from you so that you are trapped. [ The ID number is actually the Branch code+Receipt number (so you can count how many they already fooled that day before you/they have many such receipt books) ]
Beware ! because, there's no senior H.R waiting to approve your resume. Its just a trick to take your money. If you've paid full amount, they'll give you another date to come so that they can send you for training [ which is held in some college in kandivli and shelling out of another Rs.300/- from your pocket ]
And if you've paid half, they'll call you later to say you are selected [ remember, there's no senior H.R, so, its just a pretence ] and come to pay the balance. After you come to pay balance, you'll be asked to come few days later for training as mentioned above!
So you lose Rs600+ in total in such interview scams!
Do you really get any job? The answer is NO! They may keep one or two of such candiates attending the training as office boy/H.R in another of their branch [ they have a network covering practically all over bombay/thane so its a wide scale scam ]...and the rest go home, empty handed!
If you really want to join call centre, only go to the company authorised and registered ones! And never shell out money for registration and all that bullcrap! Never !
[CASE-4] : Cancer NGO Scam
Ok here, you go to interview seeing Rs.25000/- package. And they select you. Next 3 days, you are to observe what your trainer/team leader does closely! You are not allowed to talk to other new ones same as you [ as you may discuss their policies/disagree/leave ]
What the trainer [ they have many such trainers/team leaders ] do is, carry some case files of young cancer patients [ you do not know if they are new or old patients ], go from offices/shops/roads saying these patients need urgent treatment. While offices/shops are expected to shell out in thousands, individuals are expected to shell in hundreds. Every day the target is Rs.5000/- each individual, ( more the better ) considered high roll potential of becoming trainer yourself if you do it 4 days,and next is Rs.3000/- considered Ok job! through not team leader material yet! Those who bring less should be prepared to face wrath of the chairman!
So do these funds collected really go to patients? [ Each branch [5 currently] has around 35+ so called volunteers [ actually employees ] bringing huge cash in everyday. They constantly take in freshers with ads in paper everyday ]. Not All goes! Not a big Amount! Only a minuscule amount actually make it, sometimes not at all; instead, maximum goes into the pockets of the chairman and other branch managers/team leaders who score more!
The lure of the offer is, if you bring in more, you are likely to have your own branch with a huge package! [ remember! the money was initially for cancer patients ! ]
Cancer is a serious issue! And to fool public to collect their money in the name of cancer patients, just to fill their own pockets, open new branches in new Malls & posh buildings to fool more public is a big big SCAM ! Read the Complaints - Here & Here & Here & Here & Here | Mushrooming NGOs
[CASE-5] : Reader's Digest Sweepstakes Scam
They are a big brand, but yet unfortunately, they are running this scam for years in many countries including India. They keep sending various sweepstakes documents declaring you as the finalist in their sweepstakes, meanwhile, pushing many products for you to buy throughout the year; adding that if you purchase, you have a higher chance of winning. In the end, they manage to milk out a big sum out of you, and you of course, end up with nothing except the crappy products that you have purchased from them. Never saw anyone ever claiming that they have won the RD Sweepstakes Prize like they do for other contests especially when the prize amount is such a big sum of Rs.32 Lakhs, plus cars etc. They release names of unknown winners, and some pictures that they have released are fakes too. Very rarely they would give a low amount pegasus prize to someone to make it look genuine. I get many of their sweepstakes documents asking me to purchase their stuff, and them declaring me as finalist. Of course, I won nothing but they on the other hand, got my money. Like this, they fool many people. So my advice will be don't participate in this scam ( even though, they may be a big brand name ), and make others aware.
[CASE-6] : Online Scammers
Many of us would be familiar with all those emails that land in our inboxes, saying we won lotteries, or someone left a will and help needed to transfer the money offshore. Nice percentages are offered as well. However, to claim the money we need to pay some 'courier' amount or some 'legal representative's fees' who would fascilitiate the transaction. While being aware of these scams, I never responded. However, one day I thought lets see how this game is actually played.
So, I replied one such mail, saying that, I'd help. However, in this case the person hadn't asked for any fees, and sounded quite genuine too. And what more, I got a call from a Bombay number saying the money had arrived and to meet in a hotel for that purpose. I freaked out and never picked up their phone calls again. I thought, if I went I could be murdered or kidnapped. I was so scared that ultimately I changed my number.
But another interesting thing happened. My father once had responded to one such mail that a millionaire had expired and help was needed to transfer the unclaimed bank amount. My father agreed to help and maybe even sent the required 'fees', because a black negro man arrived in our house with a big locker. He said, there was some millions in it. He opened a bundle and showed some notes by rubbing into some solution that he said was used over the notes. However, he said the solution bottle had broken during his journey and would require 2-3 lakhs to replace it, otherwise, it'd be difficult to remove the stain. He went back after locking the locker and kept it in our house ( however, he took the keys with him ). When I was at my native place, we decided to break it open. After all who doesn't want to see millions right? Hence, we called a person and broke it. We saw several bundles of black notes, all black. My father innocently said, if they were mixed in the solution the black notes will become real notes. As we didn't have the chemical solution, we decided to use some soap water. Nothing happened. My mother took some dollar note that my sister in USA had given. We measures the sizes of the notes and found that these were way smaller than the standard notes. At once my father realised that he was conned. He never said to us how much the negro man took from him, but both me and my mother believe that fraudster definitely took a large sum. It was a 'ha ha, ullu banaya, bara maza aaya' moment for this negro chap perhaps. ( Many of these negro scammers work from within India itself )
[CASE-7] : That Pushy Realtor
A personal experience here again. This lady employee of a builder/developer firm, a cunning one at that, tried something totally atrocious with me, but failed. I had gone to buy a house, and while showing around, she told me, whatever she was showing was 'all inclusive' in the price. But later, when I went to book, she suddenly told me I'll have to pay an extra 15k for Electricity, Tax and Water receipts. Whatever happened to her famous term of 'all inclusive' I wondered, wherein, she had mentioned the same was included too very clearly. Anyways, I paid that. However, I tried to reconfirm about the water-tank, since that would need sometime to install and I wanted early possession; she then said, that would cost an additional 10k. So, immediately I told her I don't want it, although, I had seen the same installed in all the houses she had shown me so far, and thought it was included too. She lied, that they install only when people asked. And those houses weren't even booked. She knew I had the requirement of a safety door, so later one day, she calls me up with an offer ( asking me not to tell the builder about it ), that, she'll get the safety door and water-tank installed at 12k ( 6k each ). I didn't like the lady, so I refused, telling I'll try to see cheaper options myself. I thus ordered, a safety door from another vendor. I was still undecided about the water-tank. I thought, I'll get a drum later on. Then suddenly, one day she called me to say, that the water-tank work was already done in the house and that she'll ask the builder not to attach any additional bill for the same. Since, she said that a couple of times, I didn't say anything ( maybe, she said that way, else I'd again tell her not to do it, hence, disrupt the work ). Anyhow, after 1 week or so, when I had gone to see what work was completed, she suddenly dumped a bomb on me that I'll have to pay 10k for the water-tank. I was furious. I had never asked for it. Later, back in the office, she started asking me money for it ( as though, I carry money in my bag all the time, duh! ). Since, she was pressurizing so much I said, okay I'll try to pay 7k, not more. I also told her to take the damned thing away. She said, how it was impossible to break it now, it'll damage the house and so on. Anyhow, that day I didn't pay. I needed more time to think. Another day, I was in the site for the door fittings when she called me up, asking for it again. I told her once again, to cancel the thing, that it was an unwanted burden she had dumped on me. Funnily, she lied, then that the worker had threatened never to work for them again, whereas, that time he was standing right in front of me. She did her pressure tactics again. One more day, I had gone to oversee some cement work that needed to be done on that same door, the lady called me at the site and started asking me money. Saying, a worker will come to collect. By this time, I had decided her pressure tactics won't work with me, and put it bluntly to her to take the stuff away, and that I won't pay anything. Her reaction was hysterical to say the least. That evening, I confronted her in the office and she started making up blatant lies that I had said I'd pay. Sure, I had said once or twice, but that was after the thing was made ( and not before, like she was claiming ), and in extreme mental pressure she had put me in. I stood my ground that day, understanding her whole ploy. Not a chance, I thought. She said, to cancel the whole deal then. I said, sure, return whatever I paid in full amount. She said, there was some 'clause' of deducting 20% in cancellation. I was like, wow, you create this mess and I have to pay 20% for your stupidity and greed. I told her, I didn't come here to pay to see her bloody face, give full refund or stay shut. She was shouting at top of her voice hysterically the whole time, as though, shouting would prove her right. She asked the worker to pull the water-tank down. I asked her to take away the stone slab too. She then blackmailed that she'd not complete the pending grill work. Well, I had another answer for that. The Agreement! She had chosen a wrong person to mess with. All in all, I've never seen such an unscrupulous greedy woman in my life, my god. Such a blatant liar too. And to think, she used to say, beware people will try to take money from you. What the fuck was she doing all this while then, I'd like her to reflect upon that. I had later met the builder myself, and told him the whole story. He assured, he'll get the grill work done. But later, when I asked the lady, she again tried playing tricks, that she needed green signal from builder, when in front her only I had made the builder agree to complete the job. I reported the incident and that lady's harassment to the locality's police, so that they can show not just green signal, but all kinds of signals.
[CASE-8] : Bombay Beggars
Begging is a huge Mafia! Try to avoid them as much as possible unless they really need it! Many are quite healthy and fit to work, never ever give them anything. However, some fake their incapacities cleverly as it happened recently. I saw One middle-aged slim woman in the ladies compartment with a haunched back, her face nearly reaching her knees. Everyone took pity on her and started shelling out coins. When a station came, she got down still abnormally bent; however, once on the platform, soon she straightened herself in a perfect erect position with a straight back and walked off into the crowd like a super-model cat-walking the ramp! I was astonished, and at the same time found it hilarious too how she had managed to con everyone by faking the illness! She was perfectly ok!
In another case, I saw a couple beggar, perfectly healthy! Both sing bollywood songs and beg. The man pretends to be blind, while the wife stands behind him and collect the money. Once they prepare to get off from the train, the husband peeps into the steel bowl to see how much was collected! Remember, he was supposed to be blind! His eyes are perfect which he looks upwards and flutters, while pretending; whereas, a normal blind person can be easily spotted!
Whole life we keep complaining and bragging about all the daily struggles and challenges we face. We are not happy even if we have everything. We look at others with envy and want what they have. Life never seem to be satisfactory 'cos we always want something or the other our whole lives!
When we were young and in school, we just could not wait to grow up and become adults...thinking adult life is so cool. We crave for adult life 'cos it means lots of freedom to take our own decisions, and live life exactly as we want. We keep building dreams that we'll do this or that when we grow up! Days seem to be so long, never ending......we just want everything to happen fast..yet, it seems like its distant..and takes years and years to get what we want. Life seem so long then! Life is never ending then....
Now, when we are adults...we are at the stage where we seem to have got everything what we wanted during our school days, yet, we are not satisfied. We look back at our childhood days with nostalgia and wonder where the hell all the time went? How did the years go by so fast?
Being adults we have seen Death, Diseases, Depression, Devastation, Destruction all around the world around us, and we are faced with a reality that our ultimate Destiny is our own Demise!
No one can escape Death, and, we see it coming closer and closer as we grow older and older, not to mention the unpredictability of it with so many man made disasters.
Our life seem so short, that we have so little time yet there's so many things we have to do or want to do! And, we have not even fully explored our planet yet, leave aside space.....
We'll never fully achieve it ( in our lifetime, atleast )..even if we set out to do it!
Life is indeed short......days seem long yet the years are so short !
Pakistan is a phunny country...everything they do is phunny. Actually they do acts of horror against non-muslims/minorities all the time. So I'll try to find humour in their Atrocities !!
Wanna live in muslim majority country like Pakistan? Be ready for - This and if you are already dead then they might do - This Haha...now this is a typical case of 'AA BAIL MUJHE MAAR' - More This is something I've been telling all along. Now even the Paki media says it. Phunny pakis can't live in peace unless they convert all their minorities ( esp Hindus ) forcibly - More & More Pakistan's prime minister ruled out "business as usual" with the United States on Monday after a NATO attack killed 24 Pakistani soldiers and the army threatened to curtail cooperation over the war in Afghanistan (lol) MoreUSA is such a foolish country, it pumps money in billions into Pakistan in hope for their co-operation in the war on terror. Pakistan in turn trains and arms jihadis with that money to fight the US/nato army. A big Lolwa! Before any drone attack paki army informs the jihadis who runs to safe cover!This link is certainly not a joke. Infact this link will reveal why Pakistanis are sick Jokers and where they get their special skill from>> Click here to learn their Secret A Big Laugh!! The Lahore High Court has directed Pakistani authorities to ban all websites, including Facebook, that are involved in spreading religious hatred, and has asked them to submit a a compliance report by October 6th. Now we all know who spreads terror and hatred throughout the world! ;p Hilarious, A Pakistani minister wants US President Barack Obama to offer Eid prayers at Ground Zero in New York and become the "Amir-ul-Momineen" or Caliph of Muslims. MoreIndia to give $5million to pakistan for floods, after they misused £300 million during earthquake 5yrs back diverting those funds to militants. India surely doesn't learn its lesson does it? and what more Pakistan has accepted like beggars!
I again say Pakistan is a very phunny country, while it has eased its visa regime for Aid workers of all other countries,it remains strict for Indians! Go Figure That....Plane crash dead body of a hindu person was labelled as Kafir---usual pakistani attitude to degrade its minority citizens? or so that nobody cremates it by mistake thinking to be muslim..you decide! I hope the second one for once!In one recent incident, one hindu boy happened to drink water from a cooler outside a mosque, hell broke loose as hundreds were hindus were threatened to leave that area at once and evicted from there.They are scared to go back to their homes for fear of their lives!!So Pakistan bans 17 websites which includes Youtube, Twitter, Facebook, Hotmail etc instead of banning Lashker-e-Taiba and Jamaat-ud-Dawah...its quite hilarious! More hilarious is their dubious distinction of being No.1 in Porn related searches in Google which is world's largest most accurate search engine!So that makes Pakistan the country with highest number of porn searches!
They get upset over harmless cartoons and springs into action of banning, but inspite of India sending 11 dossiers... they still don't have evidence?? against their terrorists killing innocents everywhere! omg...pakis...get a life!! With terror at their backyard they still don't learn a lesson....its high time!And they have no issues with Porn!no ban for that? lmao www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gwcuG2jb9k
MEN ARE GREAT COOKS :: Almost all restaurant cooks around the world are men, so it proves that men are indeed fabulous at cooking
In our homes we are taught that a woman's place is in the kitchen, but, if a man from childhood is taught cooking, think how impressed his wife would be! Man cooking at homes would ensure a long lasting happily ever after married and family life !! Because a woman really loves a man who can cook !
So run to your kitchen guys! ....while we women, cook our err stories n gossips :DFUNNY BLUNDERS :: Yesterday, I bought a packet of Haldiram Bhujiya. Being extremely finicky about Mfd and Exp dates, I asked the shopkeeper to show. It read May'10.
I don't know where my mind was b'cos I insisted that it was old pack of last year. He showed me the exp date as Jan'11. Still, I kept insisting to give me a new pack.
Fed up with me, he showed another pack written Mar'10 ( previous pack was May10 ). Then I told him happily,'See this one is new'! It had exp Oct'10, and I took it, while the man had a funny expression in his face
Later I realised he was showing a new pack all along, while I insisted and bought an older pack!
Whoah!! Do you make such funny blunders? TWITTER STARS :: These days every tom, dick, harry n their cousins are on twitter...which is a nice thing for celebs to give their egos a boost, but at the rate celebs are using twitter to promote themselves or their movies, are fast eroding the starry status they used to have and made them seem despo attention seekers. I may be wrong or right but its what I've observed. In past celebs used to have a mysterious air about them 'cos they were not accessible; now, they are too eager to accessize themselves, that it can be really boring, what with them appearing on TV all the time! Twitter is great to communicate no doubt...but at times, there is no more difference between a celeb and a common man which takes the fun out of it! CRUSH ENEMY NO.1 :: Mosquitoes our common Enemy regardless of our religion, race, caste, creed, colour, language, and all of you would agree.........
Why da hell God made mosquitoes? What pleasure He gets by seeing them bite us and suck our blood, and give disease like Malaria? Make a pledge to show No Mercy to these blood sucking vampires and crush them when you see them!
Shout a war cry 'I hate Mosquitoes' ! STRANGE PROBLEM :: Im having a rather strange problem....I can read hindi very well (newspapers, articles, books) But when it comes to writing, I donno how to write hindi at all.
In school, I had learnt my native language, so, did not learn hindi. Whatever I learnt was by watching hindi movies, tv..as a result, I understand and speak very well
When I shifted to bombay during h.s.c, I took hindi for a year and learnt it from scratch, however, after h.s.c it was not required, so ignored it.
Now funnily, if I'm asked to read some hindi literature I can read perfectly, can recognise all the alphabets and the grammar...but, if someone asks me to write in hindi I simply don't know how to write! And feel helpless!
What is this problem called? Koyi ilaaz? LIFE IS A BATTERY
How do we know Happiness, if we've never experienced Sadness?
How do we know Laughter, if we never had Tears in our eyes?
How do we know Success, if we have never tasted Failure?
How do we enjoy birth of a newborn, if we have not seen Death of someone very dear?
Every moment of Life is Precious.
Life is like a Battery, we need both the positive and negative sides to charge it up!
We need the negatives to truely value the positives! IS RACE A MYTH?
Many Indians who suffer from the skin disease Lucoderma, loses their skin colour and become white/pinkish and almost look like European. While many Europeans who does sun bathing gets a heavy tan and almost resemble a brown skinned Indian. So are 'race' just a myth? Its all a trick of the skin melanin which increases or decreases? However, would love to know how the African get the fat lips and Chinese get the small eyes!?
