Reclaimed My Soul

This post, it's been a long-time coming: 1 year, 2 months and 10 days to be precise. 1 years, 2 months and 10 days ago,  India faced Bangladesh in the first match of the tournament that went on to become the best tournament in the history of Indian Cricket. And on the same day, I returned from my honeymoon, i.e. honeymoon with my bike - Blackbird. We set off for the honeymoon on 15th Feb, exactly 1 day after the Valentine's Day.

When you're on the honeymoon with a girl, it's about the destination; but when it's your bike, it's about the journey. The highway is your bedroom and the sweet sound of the engine is the sound of love. Well, our bedroom was 500kms+ long NH8s stretching from Mumbai to Ahmedabad. Ahmedabad is not exactly a honeymoon-ey destination if you're with your wife but my word, the tarmac on NH8 is as orgasmic as it can get. Now, some of you smarty pants would ask, "But why you went to Ahmedabad? You could've take the Konkan belt and gone to Goa or explored the Sahyadris." Well, the reason I went to Ahmedabad is because that's where my childhood friend was getting married, and I could've taken flight, train or bus, but I didn't. Had I done that, I wouldn't be able to write this post, right? 

Besides, the journey that I took, it stood for everything that I am and everything that I believe in. That journey didn't just got me to Ahmedabad, it got me back my soul. I took that journey just days after leaving a boring desk job which most others thought was a "lucrative job" with "exciting prospects." No prizes for guessing why I prostituted my soul and took up that job in the first place: To earn enough money to buy myself the bike. Yes. 

In simple words: Sold my soul >> Took up the job >> Earned money for bike >> Bought the bike >> Kicked the job on it's ass >> Went out on the NH8 >> Got my soul back. 

Understood?

And for those of you who're thinking, "you're lucky, your parents give you the freedom," let me bust it for you, that it took days of pestering, arguing and convincing to get OKAY from them (Dear foreign readers, in Indian family system,  we do take our parents' permissions before embarking on a journey that may end your life). That OKAY came at the 11th hour, literally; it was 11pm when I got the green signal for the trip that I would eventually embark on 7 hrs later. After 11pm I packed my bags, got 5 hours of sleep and set forth on my way without knowing if I will make it in one-piece. Because everything got finalized at the last minute, I never bothered getting my bike serviced, oil changed or pack any spares; it was just me, a full tank of fuel and the open road. 

At this point of time, I would like to show a middle finger to all the "kuch toofani karte hai" & "darr ke aage" commercials, who pretend to be too macho doing CGI stunts. Guys, try taking the open road. The one which you've never traversed before. Without any preparations what-so-ever. And do it for 500 kms. On the bike. All alone.

Getting the the go-ahead is the easy part, the difficult part is the road itself. Nothing can ever prepare you for a 500 kms solo bike trip. Absolutely nothing. As much as it's fun, it has it's fair-share of pain as well. Especially when it's your first one. The sweet pain, as the virgins would say it. But nothing can compare to the feeling you get when you come out on the top (pun unintended). 

The Open Road & YOU

Mumbai - Ahmedabad: Tied my bag behind me on the pillow seat, tanked up the bike, checked the tire pressure and I set off. As far as Mumbai is concerned, February is not exactly "wintery" but trying riding to Manor (about 80 kms. from Mumbai) at 7am and you will feel the chill in your bones as your traverse through the sea of dense fog with 100 meters visibility. It took me less than 100 kms. to realize that it's not going to be a rosy ride. 95 kms. from the Mumbai, got the tire punctured. Thankfully there were a series of garages alongside that mended it. 

Tip: If you have tubeless tires, don't waste money paying the mechanic for the puncture. On the highway they rip you off charging as much as Rs. 140-180. My local mechanic told me, that you can get a small strip of the puncture material for 300-400 and you can use it 8-10 times, get that and mend it yourself.

Five kms. down the road, heard a big "phussshshhhshhh" & flat went the rear tire, on the spot. Bike speed: 95 kmph. Apparently, the mechanic thingy had done a shoddy job. Thankfully, right in front was petrol pump with a mechanic under it's shade. The puncture had become too big for the tire to go on with another patch. Either I had to get a new tubeless tire, nearest place to get it was 100 kms. away at a Yamaha showroom in Mumbai OR to convert my tubeless to a tube-tire thingy using the old tire (with half a dozen punctured patches) that he had. Oh, did I tell you he had never worked on a Yamaha FZ before and hence it was a trial-and-error for him to get the real wheel detached? I finally got down and got my hands dirty (literally!) and helped him remove the real wheel and get it affixed as well. But not before he would keep me awaiting for 1 & half hour while he would fix up the truck tire. Given the fact that he was the only mechanic in a radius of five kms., I had little choice but to sit there and look at the cars zipping by. I was 6 hours in to the journey and I had covered a total distance of 100 kms., had 2 punctures, bike's real wheel was no longer tubeless and it now contained an old tube from Hero Honda Karizma which had been punctured about 457 times before. I spent next 6 hours covering the remaining 400 kms. 405 to be precise. In that, I took exactly 3 pre-planned stops. One stop every 100 kms. 

Tip: While taking long distance journeys, stop your bike once every 100 kms. or every 1 hours, turn off the engine and let it cool off for 5-7 mins. Meanwhile, get off the bike and get some blood circulation going in your feet and also stretch yourself before your back crescents permanently. Keep someone (parents/friend/spouse) informed about your trip and call them every time you take this mini-break and update them about your latest position, so in case something goes wrong, they know where to look for you.

Since I wanted to reach before dark, couldn't afford to take a food-break. It was 500 kms. without a grain of food. Finally reached the destination at 6.30 pm, i.e. just after sunset.

Tip: Avoid night journeys on bike. If you can't take food break, keep yourself charged up with chocolates or energy bars. You can have a chocolate bar, once every hour when you take the break. Won't take up your time and it'll keep you energized. Drink water to keep your hydrated but not so much that you'll need to take frequent loo-breaks.

If you thought, this was the end of the hardships, let me tell you, this was just a warm up. The 500 kms. return journey was yet to come and Mr. Murphy had new plans for me.

Ahmedabad - Mumbai: The return trip started with an auspicious event called stomach ache. The stomach motivated the whole body to shiver since I started my journey even before the sun woke up. Also for the first time I got a first hand experience of how you can fall asleep while driving/riding. I still don't remember how I covered the distance between Ahmedabad and Baroda. At the A'bad-Baroda Expressway & NH8 intersection, stopped by a took out a tee from the bag and covered myself in double layering. 

Tip: Make sure you wear a thick jacket or a double layering or at least a thick tee during early morning else even if it's a pleasant day, during early mornings when you're riding at 80-100 kmph, you will catch cold and/or shiver and fall sick.

Spot the Sun.

That was the first of many unscheduled stops. Through the rest of the journey my stomach decided to take more breaks than my back. Had to stop a thrice for loo-breaks, twice for soda/lemon juice and once to buy medicines.

Tip: Always carry medicines and glucose powder.

Just when it seemed that my stomach is holding up and I'm on the home stretch, about 70 kms. from Mumbai, on the ghats, in the middle of nowhere,  a 3 inch nail decides to kiss my rear tire. I had to push my bike with an upset stomach and fever,  2.5 kms. uphill before I managed to find a mechanic. 

Tip: On NH8, you'll come across many sign boards of towing services and their numbers, in case you break down. Make sure you note them down. Also, keep the number of the NH8 Emergency Services handy.

Once I mended my bike, for the very last time, I jammed the headphones in my ears and set off towards the final destination. On the playlist was '21 Guns' & 'Time Of Your Life' on loop.

"When you're at the end of the road

And you lost all sense of control

And your thoughts have taken their toll

When your mind breaks the spirit of your soul"

"So take the photographs, and still frames in your mind

Hang it on a shelf in good health and good time

Tattoos of memories and dead skin on trial

For what it's worth it was worth all the while

It's something unpredictable, but in the end it's right. 

I hope you had the time of your life. "

Finally, 1009 kms, 102⁰ fever, 3 punctures, 3 loo-stops & 1 rear wheel later I was back, back to being a free soul!

"Wind in the air"? - Cliche.

"Open road"? - Vague

"Biking god"? - Irrational.

"World is at my feet"? - Sounds like a dictator.

"I feel like God"? - Subjective.

Nah!

Honestly speaking, no adjective or phrase used in any of those bike commercials or brochures can possibly describe the feeling that you get at the end of your honeymoon with your bike. The sense of freedom, rebelliousness and superiority that you feel, cannot be described by mortal words.

Objects In The Mirror Are Closer Than They Appear

Honestly, I don't really think so anyone will read this thesis that I've written in the name of the blog. Even if no one reads it, I'm glad I managed to tell this story which I was willing to share since a long time.

Keep riding!!!

A - Z of G+

A – Another Social Networking site – Another social networking site, or should I say, another social networking site from Google. *phew* After Google Wave failed to create any waves and everyone asked Google Buzz to Buzz off, this is Google’s third attempt at taking Facebook head on (not considering Orkut as it was developed before Facebook became famous).

B – Businesses (separate acc. Strategy) –Google doesn’t want any company, business or product to have an account on Google+. Not right now, at least. They’re completely clear with their strategy and currently, all the accounts are only for Homo sapiens. Google+ has a separate strategy for businesses and they’re right now busy refining the last bits. In Product Manager, Christian Olsten’s words, “We have been watching Google+ take shape over the last week and we’ve seen some really great companies get involved. But frankly we know our product as it stands is not optimally suited to their needs. In fact, it was kind of an awkward moment for us when we asked Ford for his (or was it her?) gender!”

C – Circles – Google+ lets you add all your friends in different circles hence you can safely post that NSFW video and share it with your College Circle without worrying that your aunt from Amritsar will see it. You can also tell all your friends that you’re chilling in Goa while keeping your boss who’s in the Do-not-share-anything-with-Boss Circle, under the impression that you’re down with viral. Here are some other circles you can possibly use to categorise your friends. Facebook friends circle, Twitter friends circle, Real life friends circle, Colleagues-to-be-included-in-conversation-while-ranting-about-office circle, Family-members-you-can’t-tell-you-like-DK-Bose-song circle.

D – Direct Messages – One of the most unique feature of G+ is how to Direct Message or Inbox someone. Technically speaking, there is no ‘Inbox’ feature. You never go in that shell where you feel safe, secure and private to make personal conversations like Facebook, Twitter & Orkut. Everything stays on the Timeline. Only difference is, you share the post only with that particular person(s) instead of sharing it with ‘Public’ or a circle. It can be classified as Direct Message in a way, but it will take some time and plenty of near-misses getting used to it, as that security of conversing in private folder cocoon is out of the window.

E – Equinox – Here, equinox can be referred to as that site which has found a balance between Facebook & Twitter and have engineered their way in combining best (functionalities) of both world, which in a parallel universe caters to the entire spectrum of users.

F – Following/followers – “People in your circles / People who’ve you in their circle” sounds more like “People you’re following / People who’re following you”. Google+’s friend list resemble Twitter more than Facebook.

G – Gtalk – Users have faced awkward situations where they’re being pinged on the Gtalk by people they’ve never added in the first place. Turns out, when you mutually add each other on G+, they get automatically added to your Gtalk. Given the fact that Google already has Gtalk, you don’t really expect them to program a new chat server, do you?

H – Hahaha gifs. They logged on, they uploaded and they left. Since the first day, G+ has been littered with gifs and jpgs of how G+ has kicked FB’s butt. It’s either a cheap marketing ploy by Google where they’ve asked their employees to circulate these images or they’ve been created by anti-facebookers who’ve been waiting for someone to do come up with something that can rival FB.

I – Invitation – This yawn-worthy marketing tactic have now official earned a ‘cliché’ status. Like every new website/product wants you to think that they’re going to let only a select few mere mortals have the honour of testing their new thingy and to earn that once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, you will be required to cry out loud on Twitter and Facebook a million times to gain a so-called ‘invitation’ which will catapult you to Megatron levels of stardom and will change your life forever, even Google+ created the same noise where people were ready to give up their one limb to earn that coveted invitation to be one of the first people to have an account on Google+. Google+ created hype by giving out only a few thousand invitations in first few days which have now swelled to millions. In fact, Google did the same with Buzz and Wave. Grow up Google, instead of using such tactics, just make a great product, user base will take care of itself.

J – Joke’s on MySpace – MySpace which was acquired by News Corp for $580 million & valued at $12 billion at one point of time, was recently sold for a mere $35 million. We all know that Google silently prays to Santa that Facebook also spirals down like MySpace. Whether Facebook goes down MySpace’s path or Google+ meets its cousins Buzz & Wave in hell, remains to be seen. But, as it stands today, MySpace is a Social Networking joke.

K – Kleptomania – Maybe. Although, G+ has tried to stay away from the Facebook structure as much as possible and despite using terminologies as different from Facebook as possible, similarity to FB is pretty obvious. It's evident that G+ is nothing but a lovechild of Facebook and Twitter from features point of view.

L – Links – As of now, for an average user there is rarely anything to do on G+ apart from checking out tons of links that everyone is forwarding on G+. There are hardly any photos or any unique updates about friends which you haven’t read before on FB and/or twitter. It will take some time till the site gets populated and one can actually think of spending (read wasting) substantial amount of time on Google+.

M – Mute – All those people who’ve regretted congratulating a friend on his new relationship status after being bombarded with half a million notifications, will love this feature. In short, all of us. Mute allows us to mute notification about comments that people post on the same updates which we’ve commented on, hence, you will no longer feel shy to comment “RIP” on your friend’s “Getting married next week” update.

N – No thanks, not interested in Auto Upload – That’s what the users of Android App for G+ seem to be saying. It seems that Auto Upload ON is the default setting for the Android App and hence ever single photo clicked from the phone gets uploaded to G+, which at the end of the day is hurting the user in terms of data usage and money. It isn’t necessarily cool to see even your blur and just-to-kill-boredom photos being uploaded. So, if you’re an Androidian, be sure to turn the feature off.

O – Orkut - The fact that Google decided to develop a new site altogether to take on Facebook despite having Orkut in its arsenal says scores about Google’s faith in Orkut. It seems Google also agrees that Orkut is just that, ‘Orkut’ aka. A poor man’s Facebook.

P – Plus one – Plus One or +1 is equivalent to Facebook’s ‘Like’. But +1ing on Google+ won’t make it appear in your +1 section, so you needn’t worry that your family will come to know that you’ve +1ed Tara Reid’s Wardrobe Malfunction video unless you +1 it anywhere on net.

Q – Quintessentially minimalistic – Like everything Google, G+ too followed Google’s classic design philosophy and kept the site to bare minimum. Let’s enjoy the neatness and spaciousness that the site offers, till Adwords fills up the empty space.

R – Reality Check – Google+ is the fastest growing website but still it’s far from catching up with Facebook’s 750+ million users. And Facebook is just one step away from Gmail once @facebook.com mail id starts working in its full fledged avatar.

S– Sparks– There are no fan pages on G+ instead they have something known as Sparks which is essentially RSS feed of things that interests you, which may range from anything from “Aston Martin” to “Hot pics of Katrina Kaif”. Google seem to have employed some complex algorithm which probably takes into consideration page hits/rank from a little know search engine known as Google.com, to decide which news/links to throw up for your Sparks

T – 25 Million users – Google+ has already crossed the 25 million user mark is the fastest social networking website to reach this mark. Don’t get impressed by the fastest-social-networking-site-to-reach-25m-mark award, yet. Given Google’s might and the fact that it only took a Gmail account to register for Google+, it’s no surprise that they’ve achieved that feat in only a month’s time. The so-called “by invitation only” was only a marketing gimmick.

U – Unlimited photos – 1 album = 1000 photos. Unlimited albums = Unlimited Photos. Wohoo!!!

V – Video Chatting – Video Chat or Hangout as they call it, has to be G+ ‘s “deal maker”. The fact that one can video chat with up to 10 people at the same time is for sure a big plus.

W – Why should I be on G+? What’s the point? – That’s question you will be left asking yourself…So, what’s the point of G+? Well, let me ask you, what’s the point of any social networking site? Photos, Connectivity, News, Interaction, Staying in touch, Status Updates…. ? It’s the same with Google+. It’s just a case of old wine in new bottle. Facebook or Google+, or both. Whatever you suits you.

X – Chromosome X – Google+ does seem to have that air of prejudice where it already considers itself better than anything else. But, despite everything, it seems, Google has finally found that Chromosome X lying in some corner of their Mountain View Office which can possibly make G+ capable of throwing a serious challenge at the reigning Heavy Weight Champion - Facebook.

Y – Young – G+ is still in its early days, almost an infant from a social networking point of view. Although, initial signs may point at G+ to be a prodigy but it’s premature to call it a “Legend Killer”. Give it some time and let the kid breath and stop jumping to conclusions yet. Let the time speak…! 

Z – Zuckerberg Mark – Mark Zuckerberg has been added in circles by highest no. of people 461698* on G+. This figure is more than the combined strength of Google founders Larry Page (272604*) & Sergey Brin’s (184897*) followers. That’s like someone crashing in your birthday party and becoming the most popular guy in the house. It seems Mr. Zuckerberg, whose bio reads “I make things”, is keeping an eye on the competition. No harm in being a little cautious, right Mark? 

*indicates follower count at the time of writing this article

Contented Remorse

3rd April 2010, wasn't a typical Saturday afternoon. There was an air of discomfort and yet the day was a special one. Being a football lover, I was waiting for that day since many weeks, if not months. On that day, Manchester United were going to play against Chelsea. The championship had more or less been a 2 horse race from the beginning and the two sides were going neck & neck. The football pundits had predicted that, that match would decide the fate of the championship and so it happened.

Given the gravity of the situation and the fact that the match was scheduled for an early kickoff (5.30 pm IST), I almost fought with my boss while telling him a not-so-real story about an imaginary friend meeting with an unreal accident requiring me to leave early. Call it karma or the usual bad luck that I carry around, my not-so-imaginary friend Alok with whom I was going to watch the match over one too many beers, screwed up the plan at the 11th hour stating some excuse of him visiting an imaginary relative in some unrealistic hospital.

Nevertheless, I went ahead with the plan, as my house was getting renovated and there wasn't any possibility of watching television at home. Hence, I reached the Sports Bar and hopped onto one of those stool thingy they have at the bar and ordered first of many pints I had that evening. In fact, going all alone proved to be in my favor, as I got the bar stool, right in front of the screen. Had that bastard Alok been with me, we would've struggled to find a table with a good view of the screen as most of them were taken. Now, this is what I call, ditched yet happy. *ding* Two opposing forces!

Barely few minutes had passed in the first half, Man United missed a close chance to score.

"Dammit!!!", I exclaimed out of rage, banging my fist on the bar almost spilling whiskey of the guy sitting next to me.

"Sorry.", I said. He was still perplexed. Turned out, it was more 'cause of the fact that we missed a goal than my physical exclamation.

"Shit, just missed.", he said.

I asked, "What the goal or the drink?" We both had a laugh over the pun. As a matter of fact, guys easily bond like chaddi-buddies over drink & sports. Being ardent Manchester followers, both of us started enjoying the game together with hi-fives over goals and "ohhhs" & "ahhhs" over missed chances. The match ended in a disappointing loss for Manchester and a big blow to their title hopes, which Chelsea went on to win at the end of the season.

While finishing our drinks, Vivek & I got into a typical post-match analysis like boys generally tend to do. Conversation moved from football to cricket and later to F1; to which he told me, he was planning to watch Abu Dhabi GP that year. That's when I learnt, he's basically from Dubai and he's here on a personal trip.

Just then his phone rang..."Hello". "Oh, you're here, already? Great! Come inside, I'll finish the drink and we'll leave in 5-10 minutes." Not being the nosy kind, I never bothered asking, who it was. Just then a gorgeous yet familiar face walked towards us. He got up and gave her a warm hug.

Introducing us he said, "Remember, I told you, I'm here on a personal visit? She's the reason I'm here. My fiance, Khushi. It's her birthday today!!!"

Dumbstruck I became. Of course, I remembered it was her birthday. How can I ever forget? Her birthday was the very reason I was disturbed since morning. 2 years back, on the exact same date, she was holding MY hand at the time of cake cutting. Till 1 and half year back, she used to be in MY arms at parties. The hug that he give, I used to gave thoat to her every day at the college. An avalanche of memories overloaded the heart.

Even she looked stunned. I guess she too couldn't believe her eyes that I was standing in front of her. With the amazement, I could also sense her discomfort and fear.

In the mean time, Vivek finished the last sip of his drink and said to her, "Give me just 2 minutes sweetheart. You just wait here with him, I'll quickly go to the restroom and then we'll leave."

As he left, Khushi looked at me and asked, "How you've been?"

"How do you think, I've been? Alive, I guess.", I replied angrily.

She asked surprisingly, "Why are you talking like this? You used to be one of the most ambitious & positive guys I've known. Now look at you. You look a pale shadow of your ownself. What happened?"

I answered shockingly, "What happened? You of all people should know what happened?"

Khushi: "Please don't tell anything about us to Vivek, we're going to get married soon. Besides, it was all in the past. It's been more than a year, since you and I..."

"Irrespective. Love & feelings are not bounded by time frame, my dear. Sadly you'll never understand those things," I said angrily.

Khushi: "You mean you still...??"

The conversation was broken by Vivek's arrival. "So what are you guys discussing, huh?", asked in a happy & curious tone.

Silence, all around. Neither of us, said a word.

Vivek broke the silence saying, "So we'll leave now, it was nice meeting you buddy!"

We shook hands. I moved my right hand towards Khushi and said, "Happy Birthday".

Her trembling hand met mine and with a deep nervous voice, she said, "Thank you."

At that moment, I looked into her eyes and everything stopped. Seemed like, I was thrown back in time. She was struggling to maintain eye contact. Out of nowhere came out the words, "I'll miss you, Khushi. I still do..."

These words are hard to digest for any guy who loves his fiance. "Hold on", said Vivek. "You guys know each other?" he inquired in a strong voice.

Khushi, "No."

Some how I garnered the courage and said, "Yes, we do." All the trauma and sadness that I've gone through because of her, pushed me into a state of trance and I yelled out the bitter truth, "Apparently, we dated. We loved...no, correction, I loved her. She...ummm...she only passed her time. Your beautiful fiance at that time was only looking for a companion to pass her time till graduation. I was ready to do anything to be in the place where you are right now, but she would never marry her college sweetheart. She only wanted a boyfriend to enjoy the college years, and later on go and marry a rich NRI businessman to enjoy material pleasures of life. Money over Love. You over Me. That's her. And if you think, I'm lying, maybe you should try to search for truth in the tears that are rolling down her cheeks right now." Stunned silence. She couldn't believe that I told Vivek everything. Even Vivek couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"Vivek, I've been wrong only once in my life in recognizing a person. And from our interaction today, I can tell that you're one of the nicest guys around. So, whatever you do with your life, think about it once again. All the best."

I looked towards Khushi and said, "I request only one thing from you, whatever you do in your life never break a man's heart. You wouldn't know, but it hurts. It really does. Really badly. Take care." and I stormed out of the bar, hoping never to see her again.

I don't know if they're still together or not, but as I walked out, there was an indifference on my face and peace in my mind. The restlessness brewing inside me since 1 & half year was all gone. I was surprisingly calm.

There was guilt of probably ruining someone's life but also a contentment of paying back to someone who almost ruined mine. I still don't know if I was satisfied or filled with remorse, I don't know if I did it out of love or hatred, I don't know if what I did was correct or not...nonetheless I did it. No looking back now.

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This post is written for Close Up "Fire-Freeze" Contest on Indibloggers.

I suggest everyone to log on to Close Up fan page on Facebook and Like it and post similar stories of yours where you had experienced two opposing emotions at the same time.

Also, if you liked, what I've written and if you have lil time, you can go my contest entry on Indibloggers and vote for it there. Here's the link. I hope you do this as I don't like to ping (spam) friends individually with my blog link asking them to vote/comment for me. Thanks in advance.

Audi A8 L 3D integrated campaign

Audi A8 L 3D integrated campaign is actually a campaign about Audi A8's latest model that is as long as the name of the campaign itself. Don't take my word for it, look at the "L" in the name, that signifies it's Long. Long Wheelbase, to be precise. 

Being an auto enthusiast, I was excited about it ever since Srinivas informed me about it. Anyways, so this campaign was organized by Creativeland Asia at PVR, Juhu who takes pride in having waterless toilets.

The event being on the fifth floor of a multiplex, it was nothing like a traditional car launch which I earlier misunderstood it to be.

And no, the campaign was nothing like it's shown in the above pic.

Nope, she wasn't present there either. 

Between you and me, actually we don't go to public functions together. She went to the Australian launch while I went to the 3D campaign here in Mumbai, so that, neither of us miss the event, at the same time the paparazzi doesn't clicks us together. Jennifer looks gorgeous in this LBD isn't it? Ya, I know. I keep telling her the same.

Coming back to the event; so finally I reached the 5th floor where the event was taking place, not before being frisked thrice on my way to the 5th floor. Damn, people seriously don't believe that a 20 something guy can actually afford an A8. Maybe, they're right. Heck. So upon arrival, I was greeted by this guy wearing a Creativeland Asia Tee who asked me where I'm came from (he meant company/publication probably)? Apprehensively, I told him I was a blogger and pointed out my name in the list. Much to my relief, I wasn't thrown out, instead was asked to wear this particular friendship band.

While heading toward the open bar to drink some daru interact with other bloggers, ran into a pretty girl called Malvika, (the very girl who mailed me the event's invitee) who educated me more about the event.

Just then I met Srinivas (who was carrying a camera) & Sudeep (who was carrying a beer mug). After the casual hi...hello, we thought of going inside the screening hall and take seats but were stopped as liquor wasn't allowed inside. Sudeep had to finish his beer in about 27 seconds (not his personal best though). Thankfully, Srini didn't had any such problems with his camera.

As we entered, the organizers gave us 3D glasses. The entrance was lined with photographers and cameramen. *Phew* Paparazzis, I tell you.

Inside the hall, there were black boxes and grey folders (containing press release & a DVD) under which seats were placed on which we were supposed to sit.

Soon, Raj who happens to be some big guy in Creativeland Asia, started the proceedings with introductions and gave us all a thorough why, what, who, whom, where, withered, without, watered, whaddup & what not regarding the whole 3D campaign which inshort was the world's first 3D integrated campaign and it was about Audi A8's newest version, the Audi A8 L (2011 edition). Raj would either talk about the campaign (which he did for a time period which in mathematical terms was 2.57 eternities) or would get into Philosophical mode and talk about peace of mind, contentment, yoga, higher level of existence, chastity (okay maybe not chastity) & blah blah. Whatever happened to focusing on the product?!?! It was almost like the owner of the Opera House coming out and talking about the effort he and his crew put in, in vacuuming the carpet and the seats, instead of welcoming/felicitating the musicians.

Along came, Michael, Director of Audi India, who seemed to be a jolly good fellow & more importantly, talked about things that were less boring. Finally, someone spoke about the product. About the company. About the car. About Audi. About A8.

At first, they showed us an advert/short clip of the new car in 2D and then later on in 3D, with the glasses on. More on that later. First, let me tell you, what that mystery black box contained. Nopes, it didn't contain a scale model of the A8, unlike my high expectations. Instead, it had this...

*tadaaaaa*

It's a pair of 3D glasses for home viewing their website. :-S

Funny thing, this one is. It actually has two different colored glasses (blue & red). It looks more like the glasses used to track Mr. India's invisbility. The box also contained a 3D picture booklet of A8 which looks like its misprinted given its 3D appearance. Well, it's supposed to look that way if you see it without wearing those 3D glasses.

Coming back to the short clip, I'd say it's one of the coolest adverts ever. And no, I'm not paid to say this. Well, not yet atleast (someone listening?).

From what I understand, the advert is actually about this guy... 

...who has Rajnikanthesque superhuman power; who, if bothered can inhale from the bottom of his stomach in such a powerful way that it throws him backwards...

Not only that, but his inhaling is so powerful that all the components of the car are drawn towards him...

Seats, headrest, suspension, c pillars, arm rests, wing mirrors...

steering wheel, satnav, clock, volume & AC controlling knobs, jumbojet-takeoff-shifter-lookalike gear lever...

headlights, windshield, bonnet, wheels & all the remaining bits and pieces come together and make this beautiful car.

Not to forget, this was all done by a single breath...infact half a breath. Do, notice how the car levitates in air for a while.

And the car drops to the floor, only once he's done breathing in & is about to exhale.

WHAT. A. CAR!

& more importantly

WHAT. A. MAN!

Hence, I wonder, why they made the whole thing around the car when it was this gentleman who was responsible for it all? Confusing souls these creative people are.

Click here to see the clip. Or here if you hate intros.

After the clip, there was a small question-answer session with Michael to whom, yours truly asked a couple of questions about Audi starting their single make races in India too, to which he replied that, they're looking at racing aspect in India but would take a more concrete decision once F1 track is laid down later in the year.

Post presentation was the drinks session, where I waited the entire length 2 wine glasses for Richard to get done with the interviews, so the petrol head in me can go up and talk to him one on one and ask a few more questions but sadly by the time I reached 3rd starter, he had left.

Nonetheless, it was an interesting experience! Now, just waiting for the invitation for the official launch of the car where the car is present in physical sense and I'm not made to wear some funny glasses to get the feel of it.

Ahmedabad Traffic (non)Sense

So last week, I was in Ahmedabad. Went there after almost 15months. IMO Ahmedabad has the highest potential difference between the best roads and worst drivers. I'd stick my neck out and say, the roads over there are even better than what we have here in Mumbai but the people over there have driving sense (or should I say 'driving nonsense') of Mr. Neanderthal.

I hate to admit it but most Mumbai autorickshaw drivers are angels compared to 97.37% Ahmedabadis possessing a driving license. Ahmedabad has great infrastructure, no doubts about it. But, after laying awesome tarmac, the local authorities over there undid all of it by constructing huge circles instead of traffic signals at most of vehicle-overflowing crossroads. You know, you use circles instead of traffic signals only at places where people have basic understanding of how turn signal & rear view/door mirror works. Also, it seems that the guy in charge of switching on the traffic lights is on a sabbatical & hence you feel you're in the middle of some 'Die Hard 4' movie. Also at places where the traffic lights ARE working, the traffic police exercises their VETO power. 

Speaking of traffic police, I believe they're the unfearfullest traffic cops I've ever seen. I mean, here in Mumbai whenever you see a traffic cop, you go through a mental check list of things you should have - license, helmet/seat belts, Insurance, PUC... and if even one box is unchecked you keep a low profile and drive/ride to the extreme right hiding behind a lorry/truck & try to get away. It's not the same in Ahmedabad. They're not bothered if you're wearing helmet or not or you jump a red light when the traffic from the other end is slim. In Jeremy's words, Ahmedabad's like Greece; the authorities have given roads saying, "Look here's the road, you drive. If you get mangled, don't come crying to us". If you ask me, that's how it's supposed to be. Give us great infrastructure, leave it to us, how we wanna use it w/o the guys in uniform stopping us every 27 meters. :P
All in all, I'd say, Kudos to infrastructure in Ahmedabad but 4 thumbs down for the drivers. Combine Ahmedabad roads with Mumbai traffic sense and you have an Epicwin, other way around is Apocalypse.