Thursday, February 21, 2008
F for FASHION By Barath Lakshmanan (Nov 07)
DISCLAIMER: This article WILL NOT improve your vocabulary or increase your penchant for the literature. It will not have words that can be used among the “hip” crowd to make you popular. This will just be an impromptu attempt to share whatever I know and also to beat my stress (Yeahhh Rrrite). Oops and more importantly, this is primarily because I am expected to contribute something to GISO, being the roommate of its president (read “Dada”).
SPL DISCLAIMER: Here F is only for Fashion and not for “....” for all you perverts reading this and this picture is not that shady as you think!!!
Just when you think assignments and exams are eating away your time, why would you even want to waste your time thinking about how you well you dress??. Uhhhh common! Then why on earth are you reading the third line of something you don’t even wanna know??? Yeahhh, so this is for all the non- hypocrites who believe in the adage that looking the part is very important. Naaaahh I am not talking about being a Jlo’s in“Love don’t cost a thing” or having the most talked about Shahrukh Rukh Khanistic 6 packs in “Om Shanti Om” but just someone who will not be mocked at.
Well anyway, being a desi doesn’t help, does it? We will not be able to wear our very own “desi styled clothes”. If you are dreaming about Kajol in a white mini in the rainy “Mere Khwabon mein jo ” in DDLJ (See the embedded video), GISO is condemning it! Why dint I agree to write about fashion in movies instead? I could have a lot more to write about like” Hrithik’s and Aamir’s “Dhoom 2” and “DCH” style, the doe eyed Shriya’s “Sivaji-The Boss” clothes or Surya’s “Ghajini” look, Nagarjuna’s awesome style sense in “Super” and so on. (Did you notice that I was diplomatic in catering to all the audiences of Hindi, Tamil and Telugu???). Why is that we always restrict ourselves with this regional divide??? Why can’t we all say “Chak De India” even we are not watching the 20-20 world cup??? Noooo I am digressing!
Ok, you must have been really disappointed with the fact that the first two paras were not productive in terms of the tips. Don’t worry; you will be fortunate enough to read all my articles in the coming issues.
F for GIRLS: It is always thought that you are relatively more creative than guys. The premier dogma is the willingness to experiment. Be creative and having a penchant to try something different. We are here in a country where the person sitting next to you gives a rat’s ass. So just be you and try out different things (not just clothes, even professionally). You may want to experiment with the magic of the most celebrated color of the blondes, yeah you guessed it right. It is indeed pink. Another color that is being termed as the next black for this season is the shine. The silverish shade is what I am talking about. But for obvious reasons, it is not plausible for the school use. For the serene women, try green. You may want to get “V” necked tops and complement it with some earthly colored tanks.
You might also want to experiment white with the green. It is fresh and gives a very pleasant look. Don’t worry about the brands here; you will not have snobs sniffing around you. But for the brand conscious few, you will definitely want to own a few of Abercrombie and Fitch (A&F), Guess, Prada, Calvin Klein, Kenneth Cole, DKNY and a lot more. Common dudes, they are ambitious and distant dreams for graduate students like us.
F for GUYS: We are relatively more creative than the girls though they are thought to be so. Hahaha( A wicked one!). So lets use some of our creativity and move ourselves forward. Since this is the early stages of the semester, most of you will tend to get interview calls. So for pete’s sake, dress up for the occasion. It will not be apt for you to go in your normal pair of denim with and an unkempt tee. Please make an attempt to look decent. You will know your strengths. So if can carry it off, you may want to wear a normal denim with a polo. Shoes are a must! It will look extremely unprofessional otherwise. How many of you guys see men who work in the school with sandals??? I haven’t seen that many. I will strongly recommend you against it. If you think formals are a better option, you are wise and playing it safe. Who knows you might just end up getting that job. (Obviously not because of your clothes). I will definitely write about the comfortable school wear later in the coming articles. Since a lot more girls seem to have gotten the GATF jobs, I just thought that this is an important issue now.
I sign off here. N yeah before I forget, be creative for Parichay. The Mr. and Ms. Parichay will be crowned. As I had mentioned, you don’t have to really look like models but you could just pull it off with élan with your dress sense and attitude.
- Barath Lakshmanan
Over a cup of Tea
Before you all read this article please take some time out to appreciate the newsletter team to have come up with this concept of Dautya! A lot goes into compiling such a wonderful issue. Please read and contribute whole heartedly. Your contribution is imperative for the success of Dautya! All the best Team Dautya!
~ Vikram V. Shete
Over a cup of Tea
On an evening when I sit on the patio with a cup of tea, gazing at the skies painted in the finest colors of nature, I simply cannot stop the chain of thoughts, which inevitably throw me back in the past. A past which I cherish and wish it was the future! Someone has wisely put “Memories always make you sad: For if those were good, it’s the sorrow of having lost those moments and if those were sad the thought itself makes you unhappy!” So true…
The chain of thoughts is as simple as “So beautiful is the sky.
I can see it as far as
I am wandering on the streets of Mumbai, waiting for the auto, the odd bus 210, the 7.44 train from Borivali! The nostalgia is sweet even if it eats away two valuable hours!
Today the realization dawns, why “baba” (father) wanted me to have my clothes ready to be sent for ironing, why “aai” (mother) pleaded to keep food stored and refrigerated and not to mention the care, with which “aaji” (grandmother) made “batatychya kachrya” (spiced potato chips). All comes back when its late in the morning and I must squeeze in 5 minutes to get that darned shirt ironed, when the roaches attack, when hunger hits and there is no motivation whatsoever to cook or head to the kitchen!
Little did I know before applying for the program, that there is more to it than just studying and having fun in The US of A! The first semester demanded a heavy premium!! Everything that I had to do was a new venture, including banking, cooking, utensils, setting up electricity and on top of that, the Honesty Policy which turned out to be a nightmare (although that is one thing that I will cherish for long!). We have been used to making multiple copies from a couple of original versions.
I remember that, more than often the ratio of original to the last edited version was 10:4, a whopping 60 % reduction! The original copy would have 10 pages and the final version would be close to just 4! With that background, how could I solve a double integral of a partial differential of the Bessel function of the third order, all by myself!!
This was the least of all pains that I have endured so far. There were higher degree pains of funding, GATF, the graduate co-ordinator, the ever pushing boss, the course selection, finding a parking place.
I had to reach university before 9 am just to get a place near Cullen Engineering. How demanding can life be !! Oh how could I forget the apartment management and their weird
rules and regulations!! Gosh !! Life is that bad, is it ? I almost believed “Life is Beautiful”!
But I must agree and trust that the readers will also, that these are the experiences that go a long way in shaping us and making a strong character out of us! I strongly believe that the past 2 years have had a huge influence on my life. I have met some of the best people while working on projects, concerts, events and even team assignments! For the first time I witnessed the Indian diversity in its full blossom! Little did I know that there were more than one “South Indian” languages and that Oriya was as sweet as Bengali and there were distinctions in Punjabis, Sikhs and Sardars. The festivals, food habits, the slang, the mannerisms, so fine yet so distinct and unique! Please forgive if I have got it wrong! There is a lot more to it than what can be said or understood.
Most of my learning has come from the organizations that I have worked for and the people I have worked with. The prime ones being GISO and AID! Each having a purpose and a unique way to function!
F.Y.I. The gurus of this course are right here in
Sometimes it is frustrating to be a graduate student and there is this urge, to tell all my miseries to someone! But, when the eyes roll around searching for someone to talk about it, every other person I see is trying to find someone for obvious reasons!
It’s sad that I can’t vent out my frustration but then, the very fact that this is a commonplace makes me feel better.
Everyone is facing it and dealing with it so why not me ?? It’s really amazing that we’ve learnt ways to deal with it without succumbing to the pressure. Some find solace in music, some enjoy wine n dine whilst some spend time with near and dear ones in person or telecommunication! This deserves a round of applause! Some have discovered latent qualities that they wish to pursue! Every individual I see is tomes of experience, a legend by itself. Each one of us has seen things in a different perspective and it would be wrong to compare each other. It’s like comparing oranges to limes on the premise that they have the same shape! Let’s not pit against each other, the victory may not be sweet! Beat your past, race against the “Me” within! Now that would be a triumph of the mind over matter. That’s got to be sweet!!
Well as my cup of tea is about to hit bottom, the thoughts of future seep in and that’s when I realize that it’s time to get back to the “Prima Meta”. There are many more cups of tea to be thought over, but I do realize that such fundamental discussion in such or higher depth is definitely not my cup of tea!
I rest my case………………
-Vikram Shete
HARRY N ME By Ankur Shukla (Nov 07)
When I look back, it seems not long ago when I graduated. It was the year 2005. The year when the dream of a peaceful and cheerful student life came to an end. Well not exactly end, but sure a changeover. 2005: there are so many things that are associated with the year. Friends, good friends, best friends, parting friends. 2005 was the year when I stepped out from the shadows of my protective family. It happens to be the year when I stepped in my first professional shoes. 2005 was the year when a slowly fading animosity ultimately blossomed to a great and cherished friendship.
It was the year when I got my first ever salary. It happens to be the year when after a long and dreadful time I felt so good. 2005 also happens to be the year when Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince (HBP) was released.
Now don’t jump to conclusions!! This write-up is not a review of the great epic and cult which I follow and revere. Writing about Harry Potter will take pages from my side. I remember when my graduation was nearing, how I felt. There was a feeling of anxiety and trepidation around. I had chosen to stay in
It was then I decided that I will apply again in the US University. Well I cannot say that Harry is the sole reason I decide to come to US (I wanted it since long) but definitely a big turnover in decision making.
As the midnight approached this July 20th, I got ready and went to the book store. I was there enjoying a Harry Potter party. After all it was the release of the Last book (next after HBP) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I am here in
- Ankur Shukla
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