A long time since I wrote on the serials that has got me hooked for all of the foreseeable future and hence whole of eternity from my point of view. So here we go:
1. Dexter- Absolutely love this series. This series is not meant for everyone and if you belong that subspecies( I try to differentiate them from me :P) who faint at the first sign of blood, then it certainly is NOT meant for you. However if you are a Tarantino fan and if you give "Fight Club" a rating of minimum 4 on 5, then this series is tailor made for you! Watch it and trust me, you will be clawing your way to the next epsiode. :D
2. Boston Legal- To quote the words of the great "CB", it is "Inspiring!". I can't think of a better word to describe this series. "Oh_my_God_,_I_don't_know_what_just_hit_me" level dialogue coupled with a dismissive air of superiority that the actors seem to carry themselves around with, makes this show pretty much the slickest one on T.V. Watch this and I guarantee that you would think at least once, make that twice, about getting the hell out of here and becoming a lawyer in U.S :)
3. Lost- This is my old(all?) time favorite, been around for more than 3 years now. Starting its 4th season in January, I would be lying if I tell you I haven't missed it dearly. A show that practically reinvented the wheel and proved that it is worth doing so, the only catch being that the wheel should be capable of doing stuff other than just rolling on a plane ground.:D Plane crash in an island, people having no clue where they are, and noone to rescue them. If a deja vu has never been this strong then, yea, you probably went through one of those yourself . However, if you take this cliched plot, mix it with the right amounts of science fiction, supernatural nonsense and a bit of totally arbit nonsense which noone has no( double negative!) clue about, then bingo!, you have LOST. And yes, you yourself will be pretty lost for most of the time that you watch this series. But its good, both the feeling of being lost as well as THE lost. :)
4. Prison Break- Self explanatory title and a show that is desperately trying to be what it used to be. Period
5. How I met your mother- A wannabe "Friends". Probably the only series which has got even close to the timeless masterpiece. Good fun, totally worth wasting time on.
6. South Park- Makes you realize that whatever that you have seen till then is not the grossest thing which can be seen. Whatever you have heard of till then, is not the most insane thing that can be done. You realize that there are people who don't give a damn about anything, and I mean anything. And finally you realize that Eric Cartman is gawd. I bow to thee o Cartman.
7. Heroes- This was touted to be NBC's answer to ABC's LOST. Personally I would pick LOST over this anyday, but that doesn't mean its bad. The concept in general is good, the characters are good and the actors are also doing a pretty good job out there. But somehow the direction and screenplay leaves a lot to be desired. The series has immense potential if the director and script writers can exploit it properly. Lets wait for the second half of the second season before passing the final judgment.
P.S. The numbers doesn't, doesn't , indicate any ranking of sorts. These are just the order in which the respective shows came to my mind :)
Friday, December 28
Thursday, December 27
Shock
I can't help but write about this. I am fully aware that these words will not influence anything in anyway. And I am also fully aware of my own inability to affect things that happen in this world. Still..
I am shocked, angry, appalled, sad, disturbed and more than anything feel a sense of incredulity at what has happened in Pakistan. How can someone, who had the highest level of protection, be murdered just like that? That too hardly 10 days after a failed assassination attempt. If the secuirity forces in Pakistan and their counter terrorist measures are this bad, then I would seriously advice each and every politician/ruler of Pakistan to start supporting the extremists and be nothing more than their puppet, if elected.
You might think why I, sitting so safely in India, in the comfort of my room, not being affected in a direct way by anything that happens in Pakistan, feel so strongly about this. I have no answer, but I DO. Benazir Bhutto might not have been Mother Teresa reincarnated, but she was as good a politician as politicians get. Educated at both Harvard and Oxford, one can at the very least assume her to be intellectually sound and politically aware ( in a global sense). For all the allegations of corruption against her, she showed her integrity and loyalty to Pakistan by taking the decision to leave the comfort and safety of London and return home to fight elections at a time when her country was being rampaged by dictators and terrorists.
Assassinations are not a new thing in South Asian politics. Still, this is the first time I have been exposed to one, alive as it happened. The shock that I feel, makes me think about what people in Pakistan must be going through. It is probably that very same feeling of shock and disbelief combined with anger and fear that drive nations into turmoil when leaders are killed. I can only hope that such a thing doesn't happen in Pakistan.
As UK Prime Minister said, the people who did this are nothing but cowards, "cowards afraid of democracy". Pakistan should now make them fear it even more.
I am shocked, angry, appalled, sad, disturbed and more than anything feel a sense of incredulity at what has happened in Pakistan. How can someone, who had the highest level of protection, be murdered just like that? That too hardly 10 days after a failed assassination attempt. If the secuirity forces in Pakistan and their counter terrorist measures are this bad, then I would seriously advice each and every politician/ruler of Pakistan to start supporting the extremists and be nothing more than their puppet, if elected.
You might think why I, sitting so safely in India, in the comfort of my room, not being affected in a direct way by anything that happens in Pakistan, feel so strongly about this. I have no answer, but I DO. Benazir Bhutto might not have been Mother Teresa reincarnated, but she was as good a politician as politicians get. Educated at both Harvard and Oxford, one can at the very least assume her to be intellectually sound and politically aware ( in a global sense). For all the allegations of corruption against her, she showed her integrity and loyalty to Pakistan by taking the decision to leave the comfort and safety of London and return home to fight elections at a time when her country was being rampaged by dictators and terrorists.
Assassinations are not a new thing in South Asian politics. Still, this is the first time I have been exposed to one, alive as it happened. The shock that I feel, makes me think about what people in Pakistan must be going through. It is probably that very same feeling of shock and disbelief combined with anger and fear that drive nations into turmoil when leaders are killed. I can only hope that such a thing doesn't happen in Pakistan.
As UK Prime Minister said, the people who did this are nothing but cowards, "cowards afraid of democracy". Pakistan should now make them fear it even more.
Tuesday, December 11
Quote
A couple of days back, The Grandfather of All Knowledge shared a piece of his infinite wisdom with me, while we were vetting our appetites at the good ol' tiffanys. The story in itself, though a rather short one, is not of importance here. The important part here is the final line, and it goes something like this:
" It feels good to be wanted".
" It feels good to be wanted".
Saturday, December 8
Musings
During one of thoes enlightening moments on campus ( and trust me, they are very very rare), I came to this realization that learning new stuff is actually fun. Such a realization came when I was having a conversation with the one grandfather of all knowledege whom I had personal access to. As usual he was putting gyaan to the surrounding mortals on those things that only he knows how he knows. Then I realized one more thing, its not the topic that makes it fun, more so its the person from whom the gyann is recieved! AND trust me, this grandfather can probably make even Man-Tech intersesting to a 4th yr mech student...... Thats saying a lot!
The purpose of me taking the pain to type this out here is rather simple. It is to re-empahsize the fact that teaching is arguably the most important of all proffessions, perhaps even more important than doctors. Teachers have such a great effect on society, yet we fail to take note of it , much less realize the sheer magnitude of it. We are living in an age where all the Toms, Dicks and Harrys who cant do anything else, end up teaching. As a high school student, I consider myself very lucky to have been taught by a select few, who had the abiliy to inspire their students. But with deepest regret, I must say, in the premier institute of technology in India, a lot is left to be desired in terms of faculty.
What is the solution here? As far as I can see, the Right to Teach should be made an exclusive one, just like the Right to practise Law or Medicine. One thing that most people don't realize is that people with a sound technical base or scientific know-how are not always the best teachers. Therefore the current practise of a Ph.D or M.S being the passport to teaching should be changed. There should be mulitple levels of qualifications which a teacher should clear and these levels should be an indication of both knowledge as well as the ability to teach. In this manner those who clear the highest levels should be made to teach in the premier institutes and they should be paid generously as well.
All this may sound complicated and cumbersome, but the social benefit of having good teachers will easily surpass the costs involved. More on this topic later.
The purpose of me taking the pain to type this out here is rather simple. It is to re-empahsize the fact that teaching is arguably the most important of all proffessions, perhaps even more important than doctors. Teachers have such a great effect on society, yet we fail to take note of it , much less realize the sheer magnitude of it. We are living in an age where all the Toms, Dicks and Harrys who cant do anything else, end up teaching. As a high school student, I consider myself very lucky to have been taught by a select few, who had the abiliy to inspire their students. But with deepest regret, I must say, in the premier institute of technology in India, a lot is left to be desired in terms of faculty.
What is the solution here? As far as I can see, the Right to Teach should be made an exclusive one, just like the Right to practise Law or Medicine. One thing that most people don't realize is that people with a sound technical base or scientific know-how are not always the best teachers. Therefore the current practise of a Ph.D or M.S being the passport to teaching should be changed. There should be mulitple levels of qualifications which a teacher should clear and these levels should be an indication of both knowledge as well as the ability to teach. In this manner those who clear the highest levels should be made to teach in the premier institutes and they should be paid generously as well.
All this may sound complicated and cumbersome, but the social benefit of having good teachers will easily surpass the costs involved. More on this topic later.
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