Blood Bath!!

Light. Colour. Noise. Confusion. Excitement. Anger. Passion. Love. Hate. All the elements that go into making the perfect movie. And Maxinations 2007. What was supposed to be a competition between hostel blocks - to test all skills ranging from branding, promotion, strategy to innovation, creativity, general knowledge and much besides - soon degenerated into something else.

Every point counted. Every second made a difference. Every step was carefully measured. Every strategy fought over. Every inch hard won. This was war, no holds barred.

What makes a bunch of pretty normal guys turn into a single minded unit with a single aim? What is so special about a shield made of wood and brass? What makes people pour in energy, time and passion to win it at any cost? Why does it turn friends into enemies and normal sensible adults into immature children?

It brought entire blocks together, this shield. It turned XIM into a cauldron of seething emotions in three days. Creative juices flowed like never before. Sleep was a thing of the past. Everywhere there was a frenzy of activity. Everything that could possibly be used to catch attention was done. Charts, posters, cutouts, banners, flexs, audio advertisements, shouting, banging. Spirits were definitely awakened. Over 15 events in three days. Singing, dancing, dumbcharades, rock stars, quizzes, mimickery, comedy, collage. A pot-pourri in short that carried with it the prestige of the block.

It started off with the crash of breaking bottles and ended on a much louder note with a slanging match. It was amazing to see how quickly discontent spread. How quickly disagreements erupted. How quickly a small stirring of discontent snowballed into an avalanche of abuse and invectives.

If a piece of wood can cause a war, why not a beautiful face?

What’s So Great about Reading Anyway?

Some people read for pleasure. Some for knowledge. Some to impress other people. Some when they are really bored. Some because it is a good habit. And some for no reason at all. It’s just something they do like breathing or eating or walking or living.

Books have always been a part of my life as far back as I can remember. Right from the time I was a baby, busy tearing up and scribbling on all the books in the house, from the time I first learnt to read in school and then tried to finish reading all the books in the school library, from the time most of my relatives stopped buying books for me because they were slowly going bankrupt, from the time I got locked up inside the house because I couldn’t hear my father screaming out my name while I was sitting in a corner reading, from the time I was branded a “book-worm” for life. Till now, when reading an entire book in one sitting appears to be a luxury.

To people who don’t like to read, it seems such a solemn solitary past time, something that introverts like to do. It is a secret that “book-worms” carry around with them- the reason why books can be more addictive than heroin. It’s something hard to explain, there’s a totally different world inside. One that’s really difficult to beat. Reality doesn’t even come close.

I have lived most of my life through books, learnt things from them that nobody could have ever taught me. Ancient civilizations and modern day reality (with science fiction thrown in). England and India and USA and Africa. Good and Evil, Right and Wrong. Romance and Religion. Law, Horses, espionage, war, farming. Courage, Hope, Life. People. Ideas. I have learnt something from every one of them.

My idea of heaven is a great book, a rainy day, a warm blanket and a bar of chocolate. Nothing could make me happier!!