Visually Impaired?
The 'Mall' culture is very much en-vogue in Chennai. It is an irony that they've become the most happening place in a city with wide variety of spots for out-door entertainment like beach, theatres, temples and exhibitions. Yesterday, was my first visit to Citi Center(yeah, a li'l outdated, but for some reason, it didn't appeal to me as much as Spencer's or Lifestyle showroom did).
While I was there, I just realized that 'Lifestyle' is not only the name of a showroom but is a loud and clear statement by itself. It reflects the changing lifestyle of the people of Chennai - More so, related to the topic, 'lifestyle of parents and kids'!
I see more parents in 'mukkaal touser'(3/4ths?) and 'cut banian'(sleeveless t-shirts). Well, it suits the weather, so no complaints. While I was walking across the shop floor, with raised eyebrows looking at the price tags, designs and people looking at them, a loud sharp cry disturbed not just me, but, all the shoppers.
'Somebody help me!' yelled a 'mukka touser' lady. All eyes on her as she continued..
'I lost my kid, somebody help me, my daughter is missing - Aarthi..'
Before, the crowd could react or the situation could sink in, her husband came from somewhere, carrying a one-year old. The kid had a blank look, oblivious to the tension. She hadn't even realized that she got lost.
He said, 'Don't worry, I found her, she's here'.
After this, the lady reacted like Kamalhassan! a mixture of tears, smile and a growl.. and loudly enough, asks the one year old in Junoon Thamizh- 'Enga da pone nee?'
She has been so careless and engrossed in her shopping to miss a one-year old! And, to top that, asks the one-year old toddler, 'Where have you been?' !!! The crowd literally laughed at her.. and hope she realized it.
How did mothers of yesteryears manage with 8-10 kids in a kovil thiruvizha(temple festival)? I wonder!!
That was not it!
After a while, as I was walking, I saw a 50cms tall kid walking alone in front of me. I brushed her hair and heard a voice from behind,
'Is that your kid?'
(Err.. 'Not that I am aware of.. what made you think I'll own up with my parents around?' Thought me..)
But, said 'NO'
The lady then replied, 'I think she has lost her parents and is searching around'
!!!!
We walked behind her, a little worried. Then the lady stopped her to check if she needed help.
That was it. That was the cue for the kid to get scared and cry! All this while, she was searching for her parents, panicking, but not showing it out. The moment a stranger stopped her, she started yelling. The lady who stopped her, looked rather embarrassed and nervous. She didn't know what to do. I saw myself, backing up a little, just to indicate, 'I didn't do this'.
In about 2 mins, her parents (surprisingly another mukka touser mother) found her...
Now, am not against mukka touser, but wondering if it's got anything to do with losing a kid, missing the apple of the eye(topic has to be related). My saree clad mother, never lost me?!
Monday, June 26, 2006
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Lawgical?
My knowledge on Indian Law is almost -Nil-. All the knowledge I have gathered is mostly from the movies or media and a minuscule from hearsay, reading and practical experiences. So be it. This doesn't mean, that, I shouldn't ask questions in my blogspot. Questions that shamelessly reveal my ignorance. Questions on issues that I think are contradictory.
Now, coming to the question, Is an arrest under NDPS Act bailable?
If yes, why did the media create so much hype and called it 'Non-bailable' when Rahul was arrested?
If No, why is he granted a bail now?
It is ironic that excluding the lawyers, judges and law students of our country, almost 98% of the population (or should I say 99.99%?) are completely ignorant and illiterate in the subject of law. We don't have to know the intricacies, but isn't it our duty/right to know the basics?
We are not civil engineers, but we still learn to measure land, calculate square foot, do some mason work
We are not doctors, but we still use Crocin, Cold Act, inject insulin, decide to take a vitamin
We are not electrical engineers but we fix our fuse, change bulbs, connect wires
We are not a CA/MBA, but we manage our finance, calculate ROI, Save tax
We are no psephologist but we analyze and talk so much about elections
When we take so much effort or should I say, effortlessly learn the basics of other Sciences, engineering and art, why do we ignore law so much?
Of course, We do know things like
When you are over 18, you can take decisions on your own, Section 420 is for cheating A little on fundamental rights - A little here and there...
But have we ever thought of knowing anything more? If suddenly, one day, police comes to arrest me, yes, I am knowledgeable enough to ask for a warrant, but after that? I wouldn't even know what section, if it is bailable? I wouldn't even know how an FIR or a court notice looks like.
If Income Tax comes in for a raid, do we know that there is a limit to the amount of gold we can possess? Do we know that the limit varies for men and women and depends on their marital status?
IMO, Basic literacy on law, should be made mandatory.
But, so what if the govt. is not doing that? Schools can take it up as part of Civics lessons. Don't they teach computer science and Java programming to VII- IX std. kids?
Still, so what if the schools don't teach, Can't we take an initiative and get some awareness just as we learnt to fix a fuse or take medicines?
I really wish the day is not far away!
Getting back to what I started with, it is ironic, that in such a law-illiterate country, we are all aware of one un-written law.. All are not equal in front of the eyes of law. Sahil Zaroo is not equal to Rahul Mahajan.
Quoting my favorite lines from George Orwell’s Animal Farm:
'All animals are equal. But some animals are more equal than the others'.
Now, coming to the question, Is an arrest under NDPS Act bailable?
If yes, why did the media create so much hype and called it 'Non-bailable' when Rahul was arrested?
If No, why is he granted a bail now?
It is ironic that excluding the lawyers, judges and law students of our country, almost 98% of the population (or should I say 99.99%?) are completely ignorant and illiterate in the subject of law. We don't have to know the intricacies, but isn't it our duty/right to know the basics?
We are not civil engineers, but we still learn to measure land, calculate square foot, do some mason work
We are not doctors, but we still use Crocin, Cold Act, inject insulin, decide to take a vitamin
We are not electrical engineers but we fix our fuse, change bulbs, connect wires
We are not a CA/MBA, but we manage our finance, calculate ROI, Save tax
We are no psephologist but we analyze and talk so much about elections
When we take so much effort or should I say, effortlessly learn the basics of other Sciences, engineering and art, why do we ignore law so much?
Of course, We do know things like
When you are over 18, you can take decisions on your own, Section 420 is for cheating A little on fundamental rights - A little here and there...
But have we ever thought of knowing anything more? If suddenly, one day, police comes to arrest me, yes, I am knowledgeable enough to ask for a warrant, but after that? I wouldn't even know what section, if it is bailable? I wouldn't even know how an FIR or a court notice looks like.
If Income Tax comes in for a raid, do we know that there is a limit to the amount of gold we can possess? Do we know that the limit varies for men and women and depends on their marital status?
IMO, Basic literacy on law, should be made mandatory.
But, so what if the govt. is not doing that? Schools can take it up as part of Civics lessons. Don't they teach computer science and Java programming to VII- IX std. kids?
Still, so what if the schools don't teach, Can't we take an initiative and get some awareness just as we learnt to fix a fuse or take medicines?
I really wish the day is not far away!
Getting back to what I started with, it is ironic, that in such a law-illiterate country, we are all aware of one un-written law.. All are not equal in front of the eyes of law. Sahil Zaroo is not equal to Rahul Mahajan.
Quoting my favorite lines from George Orwell’s Animal Farm:
'All animals are equal. But some animals are more equal than the others'.
Wednesday, June 07, 2006
P.ORR.& Sons
Annamalai & I went on a shopping spree last afternoon. We had a list of things to buy and were stealing one hour of office time during lunch to get over with this. Since we had definite things in mind and all the shops were on the same street, blocks away, we shouldn't have any problems or delay. Or so we thought.
Having summarized that, now, I should say, shopping for a digital alarm clock at P.ORR & Sons was a tiresome experience! They had a good collection of alarm clocks and we chose the one we wanted in about 7 mins and were happy to have accomplished the task so quickly. Little did we realize then, that getting out of the store was a 45 min ordeal.
The sales boy (yeah, young fellow about 18 yrs) showed our choice to the old security and said 'Idhoda box venum anna' (Need the box for this!).
The security carelessly said 'Ange dhaan irundhadhu - Ulle room le paaru'.
The sales boy handed over the time piece to a sales woman and went in search of the box. After about 15 minutes he came back saying, 'Akka, box enge irukku nu theriuma?'
The saleswoman now carelessly said, 'Ange dhaan irundhadhu - Ulle room le paaru!' and she told the security 'Neenga poi paarunga'.
The security replied 'Paathaachu DQ/5000-34 model dhaane? paathaachu. illai.'
Malai feebly muttered 'Vera box le pottu koduthudunga, appadiye gift wrap pannidunga'
Saleswoman was walking out saying 'Oru 5 mins wait pannunga sir. kedaichidum'
Another 10 mins went by and now Malai asked 'Bill pottudareengala? box kedaikaradhukule?'
Now, if you, thought billing would have been done in a couple of minutes, you are wrong! Yes, it was computerized billing. The computer dated back to PC invention days and the billing system, running on old blue-green FoxPro, dated back to early days of computerization. That is not it. The person in the counter dated back to pen & paper days! Since the installation of the computer, he seems to have used only his right hand for keying in.
Malai put his credit card out as the person started typing with his right hand the clock model number. Now, it is not an automated process and once the model number is entered, the brand details do not appear. He had to type out the manufacturer (Q&Q). Q was fine, but for typing out Shift+7 to get the '&', he did some finger floor-gymnastics and finally got it. After finishing, he looked up, with a blank face and asked 'Credit Card a?'
He had created a cash bill! It has to be re-done for credit card, after some more finger-gymnastics, the bill was done.
Just then, the box also was finally found. The saleswoman, the boy and the security now accused each other for misplacing, not searching and carelessness. The saleswoman put the clock inside the box, stapled it up and then realized she hadn't put the guarantee card inside!. She tried shoving it inside thru stapled gaps! Malai said 'parava illai, thaniya koduthudunga' and we ran out! After all this, we didn’t have the nerve to get it gift wrapped!
To add to all this, it was a very hot day to be in a non-A/c store which had just 2 pedestal fans blowing out hot humid air.
There were 2 other shoppers on that hot afternoon, and they made a sales of close to Rs.3000 at that time!
Will I ever visit the shop again? Naaah...
Not sure if it was a bad day just for us, nor, do I know if all P.ORR & Sons outlets are like this. But, the store and the experience reflected the totally unmotivated, out-dated staff oblivious of customer service.
Having summarized that, now, I should say, shopping for a digital alarm clock at P.ORR & Sons was a tiresome experience! They had a good collection of alarm clocks and we chose the one we wanted in about 7 mins and were happy to have accomplished the task so quickly. Little did we realize then, that getting out of the store was a 45 min ordeal.
The sales boy (yeah, young fellow about 18 yrs) showed our choice to the old security and said 'Idhoda box venum anna' (Need the box for this!).
The security carelessly said 'Ange dhaan irundhadhu - Ulle room le paaru'.
The sales boy handed over the time piece to a sales woman and went in search of the box. After about 15 minutes he came back saying, 'Akka, box enge irukku nu theriuma?'
The saleswoman now carelessly said, 'Ange dhaan irundhadhu - Ulle room le paaru!' and she told the security 'Neenga poi paarunga'.
The security replied 'Paathaachu DQ/5000-34 model dhaane? paathaachu. illai.'
Malai feebly muttered 'Vera box le pottu koduthudunga, appadiye gift wrap pannidunga'
Saleswoman was walking out saying 'Oru 5 mins wait pannunga sir. kedaichidum'
Another 10 mins went by and now Malai asked 'Bill pottudareengala? box kedaikaradhukule?'
Now, if you, thought billing would have been done in a couple of minutes, you are wrong! Yes, it was computerized billing. The computer dated back to PC invention days and the billing system, running on old blue-green FoxPro, dated back to early days of computerization. That is not it. The person in the counter dated back to pen & paper days! Since the installation of the computer, he seems to have used only his right hand for keying in.
Malai put his credit card out as the person started typing with his right hand the clock model number. Now, it is not an automated process and once the model number is entered, the brand details do not appear. He had to type out the manufacturer (Q&Q). Q was fine, but for typing out Shift+7 to get the '&', he did some finger floor-gymnastics and finally got it. After finishing, he looked up, with a blank face and asked 'Credit Card a?'
He had created a cash bill! It has to be re-done for credit card, after some more finger-gymnastics, the bill was done.
Just then, the box also was finally found. The saleswoman, the boy and the security now accused each other for misplacing, not searching and carelessness. The saleswoman put the clock inside the box, stapled it up and then realized she hadn't put the guarantee card inside!. She tried shoving it inside thru stapled gaps! Malai said 'parava illai, thaniya koduthudunga' and we ran out! After all this, we didn’t have the nerve to get it gift wrapped!
To add to all this, it was a very hot day to be in a non-A/c store which had just 2 pedestal fans blowing out hot humid air.
There were 2 other shoppers on that hot afternoon, and they made a sales of close to Rs.3000 at that time!
Will I ever visit the shop again? Naaah...
Not sure if it was a bad day just for us, nor, do I know if all P.ORR & Sons outlets are like this. But, the store and the experience reflected the totally unmotivated, out-dated staff oblivious of customer service.
Monday, June 05, 2006
Schools Re-open!
Crisp smart(sometimes long!) uniform,
New bag, pencil box, stationery
Fresh covered books and notebooks
Bright white/shining black shoes,
Brisk walk, excited faces,
Cheerful recharged souls,
Tiny head full of holiday stories/fantasies,
Anticipation to meet old friends,
Nervousness about making new friends in new schools,
Pride of being in a higher class,
Planning for lunch time/evening games
Looking forward to new class teacher
Crying kids and worried parents of K.G
There is so much of excitement in the city... cha, really miss that good old days.
School days(Especially L.K.G to Class 10) - One period of life when everybody else worries about you and does the work for you. Parents make you learn, teachers teach and give you notes, conduct special classes for the weak. They take care of you and your studies. You just gotta play around!
Wish I could get back to my school days again!
New bag, pencil box, stationery
Fresh covered books and notebooks
Bright white/shining black shoes,
Brisk walk, excited faces,
Cheerful recharged souls,
Tiny head full of holiday stories/fantasies,
Anticipation to meet old friends,
Nervousness about making new friends in new schools,
Pride of being in a higher class,
Planning for lunch time/evening games
Looking forward to new class teacher
Crying kids and worried parents of K.G
There is so much of excitement in the city... cha, really miss that good old days.
School days(Especially L.K.G to Class 10) - One period of life when everybody else worries about you and does the work for you. Parents make you learn, teachers teach and give you notes, conduct special classes for the weak. They take care of you and your studies. You just gotta play around!
Wish I could get back to my school days again!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)