Bengaluru-Chennai Road Trip - In Conversations!

20:37 Hrs - What’s in a name? @ IIM-B campus

V: We have to call the car something, like a term of endearment

P: Champa...

V: Come on! Some nice girly name...

L: What are you guys talking about?

V: Giving some nice name to the car man

L: Which Car?

P: (in an orgasmic tone) Champaaaaahhh

V: No no... hmmm... ok how about Choi... the registration number is CH-01... kinda reads like Choi na!

P: Choi... sounds Chinese! Wokay with me!

L: You guys are serious about this aren’t you!

21:15 Hrs – When do I get to drive? @ Hosur Road

V: Hey P., when do I get to drive?

P: When you reach home and get to sleep and start dreaming.

V: Hey come on, you can’t be driving the whole journey!

P: Watch me!

L: (grins wide)

22:37 Hrs – Nice Cuppa! @A2B 17 Kms from Hosur

P: That’s some nice coffee I say! Let me buy myself one!

V: (angry with P. for drinking half of his) hmmm, ya I know!

P: (comes back in shock) Shit man, the Coffee costs 20 bucks! Crazy!

L: (grins wide)

00:07 Hrs – Chicken Run @ some toll gate after Krishnagiri on Blr-Chn Highway

P: Look at all those chickens on that truck, man!

L: They know they are going to get killed!

V: Naaa! They don’t have that sense right!

L: Whats there to have sense! They just see one being taken and killed. Its not that hard to figure out that you are going to be next soon.

P: (in an orgasmic tone) have you seen how they are killed?

V: Ya I have and I dont see what the big deal is!

P: It’s not right! There should be a more humane way to it!

L: A more humane way to kill?!?

00:10 Hrs – License to Drive @ some place 3 mins after some toll gate after Krishnagiri on Blr-Chn Highway

P: Ok V., Lets see how u drive now!

V: Ah! Finally!

L: You sure you wanna do this P. ;)

P: Hmmm. Ya, I want to analyse his driving.

V: Analyse, it seems! Ready to go! Start Music!

P: Wear your seat belts!

L: Here we go!

00:15 Hrs – Crash Boom Bang! @ some bridge 5 mins after some place 3 mins after some toll gate after Krishnagiri on Blr-Chn Highway

P: Stop! Brake!

L: Brake!

V: (silence) (braking) (praying)

P: Brake!

CRASH!

L: Shit! That stupid chicken truck!

P: Shit!

V: (silence)

P: I better drive V.

V: Let me just get off this bridge!

01:08 Hrs – Divorce speed & stay married! @ some place on Blr-Chn highway

V: It’s real annoying to see these stupid safety road signs after a crash!

P: Ha ha ha. Dont worry V.! Shit happens!

V: So whats you analysis on my driving P.

P: You drove too fast without knowing how much brakes the car would do! You were going faster than me!

L: Ya but that Chicken Truck could have cut in even when you were going at 100, P. It’s just a question of bad timing for V. I think!

02:45 Hrs – Waste of Parking Space @ V’s home in Chennai

V Mom: (in ok Malayalam) Go bring the car and park it inside! Why have u parked it so far away! Lots of looting going on around this area!

V: (in terrible Malayalam) na... thats ok Amma. I am sure that apartment's watchman will take care of the car.

P: (in Guntur Telugu) Silence... Namaste!

V Mom: (in English) you really should bring the car in. I think its very unsafe outside

V: not to worry amma! Am sure it will be safe. Lets go sleep!

V Mom: Hmmm. Good Night (sniles)

V Dad: Good night

V: Good night

P: er... Good Night!

08:30 Hrs – No Beach! @ V’s home in Chennai

V: Hey P. Wake up man! Its 8:30 we have to be there by 10. Wake Up!

P: Weren't we supposed to go to the beach at 7?

V: We were but as you can see we overslept! so just get up and get ready quick! We can't end up missing G's engagement after all the shit we have gone through! We have to pick up L. from his uncle's place as well!

P: Wokay wokay! Done!

10:00-12:00 Hrs – They are singing a duet @ G's engagment venue, Hotel Matsya, T.Nagar

P: Is this the place?

L: It looks like it!

V: Am sure it is! check the names!

P: Aah there he is!

L: What are they upto? I guess the engagement is over!

V: I think they are about to sing!

P: Thats what they do in an engagement?!?

V: How does it matter? Lets just wait for the food, eat and leave!

V,P,L: (in chorus) Hey Congrats G. Thanks and great food man!

G: Thanks for coming guys! Do drive back safely!

V: Hey P., we should send G. the bill u know!

13:30 Hrs – There goes P's record @ Bangalore highway, Sriperumbudur

CRASH!

P: Where did that truck come from?

V: (smiling)

P: Shit, how did I not see that?

V: (smiling) I am kinda relieved now Papi!

P: F#@$*R

14:30-16:30 Hrs – Random conversations

Are you a virgin? Aren't you disappointed with all the Marks/CG Race? Didn't you think IITians would be smarter/more intelligent? Whats your ultimate aim in life? Do you want to have coffee? Lets get some tea! What is the best way to evaluate an MBA student? Lets take the elevated highway!

17:00 Hrs – Choi gets a heart attack @ Silk Board

P: Oye, what happened to the car man?

V: Huh?

P: Its not starting, push it to the side of the road and lets call the service!

V: you think they will come on a sunday?

P: They better!

Service came on a Sunday!

19:30 Hrs - Returned to IIMB campus!

Waiting for Chennai Mail at Bangalore Cantonment

There's a nip in the air and the breeze brings with it the chill. Having a lousy cold is a big dampener but that does not take away from the romance of the moment. The familiar Nandini kiosk helps rekindle my relationship with hot badam milk and I quickly settle down on a bench to get a ring side view of a nail biting chase between two dogs and a wily rat.

The race between fear and hunger is ultimately won by fear and I am distracted by the mystical movements of a polythene bag being twirled around by the gentle breeze reminiscent of a scene from the movie American Beauty. The breeze draws an elderly couple closer as the wife rests her head on her husband's lap to watch a toddler being blissful in its ignorance and trying to scare a resting dog. I get up and stretch my legs and walk to the end of the platform to get a glimpse of the big mosque's Minars that used to welcome me back over the last year or so but sadly its not lit up.

The creaky loudspeaker, rather noisily for the time of the night, informs me that my train is about to arrive shortly on Platform No. 2 and soon enough the train creaks in and I board it with the thoughts of the nice warm cup of filter coffee I shall be having the next morning at home.

Wanted - Nair tea kadais in Bangalore

Its been awhile since my last post. Over the period of time, I have relocated to Bangalore from Chennai. After 2 months of the daily grind in Bangalore, I make my first post from Blore and my first sweeping judgement of the city - The tea shops in Bangalore suck! Chennai tea kadais rock!!!

You are starved for choices when it comes to tea here... and what makes matters worse is that there is not much of a choice in the biscuits and the cakes and the extra-curriculars that one can sip along while enjoying your cuppa. The biggest drawback is that the tea is more often than not pre-made and not made to order. So you dont really have a choice of strong, light, less sugar, more milk, no cream etc. etc. Only 2 choices - either u take it or u leave it!

Miss the tea stalls in Chennai. Those Nair Kadais, even if the tea maker was a Bihari it's always a Nair kada. A tea maker in Chennai worth his salt will be called master! In Chennai, the tea master was like an extended family member.

Kannan, the tea master in my college canteen could make a decent tea and he had decent memory. Always knew what I wanted and considering he would serve on an average nearly 1000 teacups a day, it's amazing he would give me strong tea with less sugar, as soon as I gave him the tea token.

Shekar, the tea master outside HDFC, Nungambakkam branch worked for 3 days a week most of the times. Always thought he must be a Pakistani spy or something but he had a super variety of snacks and short eats and he always had change on him.

Anderson is a chain of tea stalls in Chennai that was started in Anderson road, Egmore. So wherever the branch has been placed its called Anderson. The branch which I haunted lies at the end of Jegannathan street, Nungambakkam. Favourite haunt of the TV pros from Vijay TV. Its close proximity to the Bhai kada that served delightfully hot, crispy and sinfully oily Samosas, bajjis and vadas was a major plus.

The nice mallu tea kada in Besant Nagar, opposite the Vinayaka temple with a lovely sit out reminiscent of the ones in the Elysees road in Paris. Ok major exaggeration in the last statement, but the tea I am sure would have been just as good as the one they serve in gay Paris.

Maybe I should just quit my job and start a tea stall in Bangalore. I am sure to do well, considering the lack of competition.