Arbit Scratchpad

I managed to watch a very good bengali play titled 'Daibaddha' at Ranga Shankara yesterday; which was accompanied by some very good acting by members of the theatre group 'Sayak' from Kolkata. It was an intense experience with a not very complex, but emotionally charged story that chips away at the rigid dimensions of the society that we live in today. More here: Daibaddha - SYNOPSIS Lately I have been losing interest in reading; which has been my favourite pastime. Having started reading several books I seem to be lacking both the energy and the interest to plough through them at this juncture – not sure if there is something like a reader's block akin to writer's block (which is also something I feel I am in the grips of ) – or perhaps 'book fatigue' – which apparently has set in for a while now. Among the ones in the 'Currently Reading List' for more than a few months now, none of which I have completed yet, are: 'The Tin Drum' by Gun...

I just joined Shelfari to connect with other book lovers. Come see the books I love and see if we have any in common. Then pick my next book so I can keep on reading. Join me on Shelfari! http://www.shelfari.com/ Shamit Bagchi Shelfari is a free site that lets you share book ratings and reviews with friends and meet people who have similar tastes in books. It also lets you build an online bookshelf, join book clubs, and get good book recommendations from friends. You have received this email because Shamit Bagchi (shamit@gmail.com) directly invited you to join his or her community on Shelfari. It is against Shelfari's policies to invite people who you don't know directly. Follow this link to prevent future invitations to this address. If you believe you do not know this person, you may view his or her Shelfari page or report him or her in our feedback section. Shelfari, 616 1st Ave #300, Seattle, WA 98104

The Exponential Wish Granting Ring “One ring for the absolute luckiest one, once worn shall it not be taken off” – Ancient wisdom. Her father would often lament, “Those days are gone. Back then values counted more than wealth, nature was a constant companion and the human touch was visible everywhere”. She didn’t know what was so great about all those good old days that her father, a government servant kept talking of. Their culture was different, our culture emphasizes the frugality of everything – non-possession, renunciation, poverty and charity as the true virtues, was a constant lesson she had grown up to. However, as if just the opposite she’d picked up an almost constant whim of wanting to possess – just as her well off friends did. Possess this and that, a new toy when a child, a new shoe, that gorgeous handbag when she grew older and now newer toys like the brand new gadget and then that lavish new car. Not that she was always denied, once in a while...

If the movies of Satyajit Ray recreate reality, and portray life's grief brilliantly without a hint of melodrama – those of the idiosyncratic Ritwik Ghatak are filled with vibrant melodrama, disillusionment, trauma and sorrow of everyday life that would squeeze your heart dry and yet, it is as if you wait for that elixir becoming available to the protagonist, that hint of hope present like the shadow, everywhere. You feel the recurring tragedy (most of Ghatak's films have heavy doses of the tragic, or have a strong hint of the same) and wait eagerly for it to melt as if hoping for some light at the end of the tunnel – not exactly in the way good destroys evil in the contemporary fare of movies but more like the myth of the phoenix – the self-effacing protagonist facing and undergoing even enjoying the pain and somehow reviving from it all. Not that any of his movies directly end with a light at the end of the tunnel, but they leave chinks of hope in the patina of absolute darkn...

Here's an update: Made it into the PGSEM programme @ IIM Bangalore. Got the offer letter on 1st May (Labour Day). From the IIMB website : The Post-Graduate Program in Software Enterprise Management leading to a Post-Graduate Diploma in Software Enterprise Management is an executive general management education program designed for the specific needs of professionals working in the software and information technology industry in India The PGSEM endeavors to provide the most current executive general management education to middle and senior professionals of the software and information technology industry who seek to pursue a career in management. The program aims to transform professionals with strong technical knowledge to business leaders with equally strong management knowledge and a global perspective. IIMB is proud to have partnered the Indian software and information technology industry on its journey to becoming a dominant force in the global market. Several distinc...