Feast for Thought

Complete the following: India is ............................. a: Incredible. b: Unforgettable, it stays with you c: Wherever you are d: all of the above. Right, here are a dozen pats on the back for choosing option 'd' as the answer. To me and to you, India is all this and much more; India is also a paradox. If you were to ask me, all I'd like to say is: these people knew what they were talking about when they wrote or spoke about India - see Quotes on India  and  In Praise of India However if you want something more than just several pats on the back, all you need to do is submit images for the India Is Global Photography Challenge .  If your image  conveys the essence of any of the above themes exceptionally well, your submission can get you - "All-expense paid trips to India Weekend Getaways all across India at Taj Hotels Digital Cameras Exposure in travel magazines such as Conde Nast Traveller India Special photography Workshop Passes E

Yesterday was the festival of lights.  Perhaps the festival of noise, smoke, wasted paper and wasted energy too. Deepavali.  Through my window, I heard enough the whole day.  Through the same window, I hear the "music" of brooms cleaning up after yesterday's excesses.  The sound of that music has just moved on, and yesterday's leftovers are out again, to create further leftovers.  This in a city where there is no place to dispose of solid waste intelligently.   They bought. They came. They celebrated.  They bought more, They celebrated further. They left, but didn't pack up. Then they came. They swept. They did their bit. All I can do is spare a thought for her and her colleagues, and hope for better attitudes and understanding next Diwali. God bless them... There is a lot to be said for "Moderation in everything. Everything in moderation", isn't there?  

With a TEDx edition happening in town, it was not difficult to get oneself a ticket (₹750 per session) to attend the event at the Trivandrum Technopark campus. The newbie organizers did a great job though they must have faced several hiccups. One cannot but like the  convenient and attendee-friendly format (18 minutes per speaker) that  TED events follow. Have a look at the list of visionaries / thinkers / speakers: Sabriye Tenberken of kanthari Mathew Jose of Paperman The one and only Sashi Kumar T.P. Sreenivasan, a former Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations Bina Paul of India Foundation for the Arts G.Vijayaraghavan, a former CEO of Technopark. The bonus at TEDxTrivandrum, on 10 November, 2012, was a video featuring Mallika Sarabhai's Nov 2009 TED talk  (see Mallika Sarabhai: Dance to change the world ), and a brief rendition of instrumental music by a local amateur group. Here's what the group of passionate TED enthusiasts have to say abou