Rendezvous with Roger

It would be an understatement if I said Roger Federer is my favorite player. He is simply the best and I love him. Recently, I had a chance to meet Roger and we had a gala time. Here’s a tête-à-tête with Roger, the Emperor of tennis world. Enjoy as I explore his life!!


Krishna (K): Are you REAL? What do you do to go on playing even when the audience is against you?
Roger (R): I focus even harder. I think it’s my focus that gets me through such matches. I assume you could see it very clearly when I played Agassi in the US Open final, for example.

K: Dear Roger, do you like tennis or do you love tennis?
R: I love tennis! I’ve always felt like this because it is such a classy sport with a great, competitive flair to it. There is no body contact but it is still very physical. That’s why I love it and always will...

K: Is your name pronounced the English or French way?
R: As my mother comes from South Africa, my name has always been pronounced the English way.

K: Do you have a pet name? My friend loves you. And fondly calls you Rogi. Do you like the name she has given you?
R: Rogi? Hmm….nice pet name. I kinda liked it the moment you said it. I would love to meet the person who gave me this name. Would she like to meet me?

K: Do you dream about your matches, the ones you lost and the ones you won?
R: Yes, sometimes. All other times, I just dream about Mirka. :)

K: If you weren't Roger Federer who would you like to be?
R: I’m OK with who I am!

K: Roger, Who inspired you most?
R: Boris Becker, Stefan Edberg, Michael Jordan.

K: Is there something you always carry with you for good luck, something that is very special to you?
R: Yes, a Tweety dressed like a ladybird.

K: What is your favourite ice cream flavour?
R: Strawberry

K: In your wonderful country you make wonderful Swiss chocolate. Which chocolate do you like most?
R: I love white chocolate and milk chocolate.


K: What car do you own and what is your dream car?
R: I already own my dream car :o)

K: I read that you are scared of dogs. Is this true? If so, why?
R: Actually just sometimes if I don’t know the dog. ;-)


K: All your female fans think you are the most good looking guy on the earth. What do you have to say?
R: Well, success makes you better looking. ;)

K: I’ve noticed that you wear a necklace while you play, what is on the necklace. Also what is your lucky number?
R: I have got several necklaces, most of them are presents from Mirka. My lucky number is 88 (my birthday: August 8).

K: Do you see the actual structure of tennis changing in the future due to technological advances?
R: No rule changes please. I am No. 1 with the rules in place right now! Every change would make me a horrible player and I would have to consider quitting. :))

K: Just wondering who your favourite actor and actress are.
R: Johnny Depp, Tom Cruise and Sharon Stone.

K: Roger, fans are always asking you questions, what is one question you would like to ask the fans?
R: Why do you support me and why are you my fan?

PS: Subah ho gayi mamu. Ab to uth jaa. Din mein bhi sapne dekhta hai. Ailaa…was this a dream. Sigh!! I thought I was actually interviewing Roger.

Kaise kaise sawaal poochte ho ji

Last evening, a friend called me up after a long time. Now, when you meet or talk to a long-lost langotiya yaar types friend, you tend to become emotional. And that is what we became after the customery hello-hi-how are you lines. Our conversation went something like this…
Friend: Abey tu kahan tha ab tak yaar?
Me: Isi duniya mein yaar.

And the conversation continued for some 15 mins. till we had nothing to say or tell to each other. Now, in situations like these when both of you go silent (as if Mallika Sherawat just said I luv you to you), you tend to go blank as how to continue the conversation. Tabhi mera dost bol pada, “Kuch kaho?”.
Me: Kuch
Friend: Matlab?
Me: Abey tune hi to kaha ‘kuch kaho’.
And we burst out laughing.
Ab iss tarah ke aur bhi bahut saare incidents hain. Apni Dilli ki DTC bus ke conductors ko hi lelo. Bolte hain Ticket bolo..ticket bolo. Aur kuch yaatri maje lete hue kehte hain ‘Nahin bolunga…ja kya karega’. Conductor bolta hai ‘Abey gaadi tere baap ki hai. Ticket bol.’ Yaatri bolte hain, ‘Ticket. Ab kush? Aur kitni baar bolun ticket?’

In school days, we used to ask for lifts on our way back home. Ab jaise hi koi autowallah aake rukta tha..the conversation was like…
Me: Bhaiya Adarsh Nagar jaoge?
Autowallah: Haan
Me : To jao
:P

Doosra tareeka autowaale ko pareshaan karne ka…
Me: Bhaiya khaali ho?
Autowallah: Haanji Bolo.
Me: Hamare saath cricket kheloge. Wicket keeper ban jao.
Autowallah: grrr….

These days TOI ppl are giving a lot of stress on ‘I’. According to them, ‘I’ should not be written in capital, it should be in small caps as ‘i’. Reason: Other letters are also written in small case. So y allow I to be in upper case. Ye kaun sa editor hai jo Queen Victoria ke English ko challenge kar raha hai, bhai. So, in every article, the humble ‘I’ now appears as less than humble ‘i’. Kitna ganda lag raha hoga hamare ‘I’ bhai saab ko. Aisa feel kar raha hoga jaise John Abraham ganja ho gaya ho. But, I found the importance of ‘I’ only when a few days back saamne waale Chauhan uncle advertised for a vacant room by putting up a ‘To Let Available’ sign on his main gates. Now, gali ke ladke itne shaitaan hai ki beech mein ‘I’ daal diya. Ab batao, jo dekhe woh hanse. Kyon? Bhaiya mere, ab sign board per likha tha ‘ToILet Available’.
Last heard, some landlords have put the 'To Let' sign a bit above so that they remain out of the reach of shaitaan children. And some landlords of our colony are advertising for vacant rooms in local newspapers. After all, ‘To Let’ ka sawaal hai.
:)
You ppl have got any such things to share? Do tell me.

Isse kehte hain success...

At age 4, success is... not peeing in your pants.
At age 12, success is... having friends.
At age 16, success is... having a driver's license.
At age 20, success is... having sex.
At age 35, success is... having money.
.
.
.
.
.

....At age 50, success is... having money.
At age 60, success is... having sex.
At age 70, success is... having a driver's license.
At age 75, success is... having friends.
At age 80, success is... not peeing in your pants.

Injection of Life

A day before my second semester French language exams, I was trying to gulp all that was taught in the class. The second semester had not gone well. My reputation of being a bright student had been dented. None other than Kavita Ma’m, my first semester professor, whom I had met a few days back in the corridors of AFD, told me that she was all praise for me while talking to Charu Ma’m. But Charu Ma’m told her otherwise. That I am not even 10% of what Kavita had told her. And I was all embarrassed facing Kavita. I could only muster “Don’t worry, Kavita, I’ll pass the exams.”
“Is passing exams your objective?,” replied Kavita, a little upset.
“Je suis desole. It’s not,” I said chokingly (God! Save me. She is gonna kill me now). “What not. Passing exams is not going to take you anywhere. You stupid,” Kavita scolded me.
Frankly, I was kinda shaken and stirred. I had taken the second sem lightly believing that I would anyway come out on tops in the exams. I wasn’t sure if I would be able to clear the sem. But I had promised Kavita of passing the exams. And at this moment, that was the best I could do to salvage my pride..and hers too. So, here I was slogging at the 11th hour. While I was going through my class notes, I just said to myself, “Uff…lagta hai first sem tukke mein clear ho gaya.” My brother, who was busy playing computer games, overheard my words and instantly replied, “Dost, tukke bhi achche khiladi ke hi lagte hain.”
As funny as it sounds, this is what I needed at that moment.
“Wow man! What a great thought,” I was impressed.
All my energy, which had gone on vacation, was back. Those words acted like magic and I must confess they reaffirmed my belief in myself. No wonder, I am now into my third sems (Why? I passed the exams with flying colours yaar.). And this time, I’m lovin’ it. J
At that moment, I realized how a few encouraging words said at the right time can rev up someone feeling low in life. Sometimes, when we are low on confidence, sometimes when we feel like giving up after all our hard work, a few words of encouragement from anyone can boost our morale and inject a new life into us. We need such injections to live life happily. Don’t you think so? Those few words act as elixir. Moreover, it’s not necessary that the words of encouragement come from your mentor. And, you don’t need to attend costly motivation seminars, listen to management gurus, or read motivational books to recharge your senses. It may come from anybody. Anyone surrounding you. May be an elderly person, a friend, your boss, your colleague, a stranger, or even a kid. For me, my brother was the mentor at that moment. And I am happy, I could extract something from his words. Some people have this habit of saying goods things at the most appropriate time, which has a magical effect on others. They are all around us. We just need to look for such people. We just need to separate the wheat from the chaff. So, whenever in doubt, just look around and find someone who can inject a new life into your beliefs.

VIVA TEQUILA

Tequila is fun. Is it? Haven't tried ever. Heard it's an exotic liquor. Has anyone out there tasted tequila ever? How does it feel? Do tell me..I wud luv to sip this exotic liquor. After all, life is a matter of taste. Ain't it? ;)

Meanwhile, see the life through tequila. :P

Fourth Finger

Here's a post i read on Priya Iyer's blog. Liked it very much. Thought i wud share it with all my friends out here. Hope you too like it. :) Don't forget to try it and tell me wat happened. I, at least, found it true in my case. :)

"Why do we wear our wedding ring on the fourth finger?
As has been glorified a number of times by our very own Hindi films, the left fourth finger has a nerve that goes to the heart. It is for this very reason that the wedding ring is worn on this finger. Direct dil se connection, you see?
This mail, however, has something different to say. The thumb represents parents, second finger represents brothers and sisters, center finger represents our own self, fourth finger represents your partner and the last finger represents your children. (as per the Chinese people).
The mail goes on to say that God created this as a miracle. Put both your palms together and fold down both your third fingers.

Now, if you try to separate your thumbs, you will be able to do so. This indicates that our parents will leave us one day.
Now close the thumb and try to separate the first fingers. Again, you will be able to do this. This indicates that our brothers and sisters will leave us, as they will have their own families.
The center finger signifies our own self, so it is not considered in this game.
Now, join your first fingers together and try to separate your last finger, i.e. the little finger, which signifies our children. This indicates that our children will move away from us sooner or later, when they have families of their own.
Now for the best part. Join your little fingers together and try to separate the fourth fingers. You will not be able to separate them. At least, me and my friends were not able to. As per the legend, these fingers represent the husband and wife and the lack of separation indicates that they are meant to stay together throughout life, through thick and thin.
The mail ended with the line “Real love will stick together forever and ever.”
I tried it out without folding down the third fingers, and it still worked.
I don’t know how far this is true and what is the ‘logical explanation’ for the ‘miracle’ that happens, but I found it rather sweet. It appealed to the illogical, mushy part of me. :) Do try it out and let me know your views in the comments section.

I am very much tempted to add a joke that I read somewhere:
Mrs. X: Mrs. Y, why are you wearing your wedding ring on the wrong finger?
Mrs. Y: Because I married the wrong man!!"

love me...love me....love me..

The other night...well actually midnight, I was listening to radio when I heard this song. Its so beautiful...the lyrics. Ain't it beautiful? Does someone hav this song. I wud be soooo thankful to you if you can give it to me.

I haven't slept at all in days
It's been so long since we've talked
And I have been here many times
I just don't know what I'm doing wrong


What can I do to make you love me?
What can I do to make you care?
What can I say to make you feel this?
What can I do to get you there?


There's only so much I can take
And I just got to let it go
And who knows I might feel better
If I don't try and I don't hope


What can I do to make you love me?
What can I do to make you care?
What can I say to make you feel this?
What can I do to get you there?


No more waiting, No more aching
No more fighting, No more trying


Maybe there's nothing more to say
And in a funny way I'm calm
Because the power is not mine
I'm just gonna let it fly


What can I do to make you love me?
What can I do to make you care?
What can I say to make you feel this?
What can I do to get you there?

And love me...love me....love me..

Cloud No. 9

Someone just experienced something special. Let's see if you can guess what I m talking about...Read on...

Over the moon,
Above the sky;
My honeybunch, sugarplum butterfly;
She got the tickets,
For a match of cricket;
Stars in her eyes,
She went to watch him live;
Over the moon,
Above the sky,
My cuppycake, gumdrop sweety pie;
Her eyes aglow,
Waiting for the little master,
To bat in full flow;
Prayers on her lips, she kept waiting,
For him to appear,
But God wasn’t listening to her prayer,
Hey God! You’re my friend na..
I wanna see him badly enough;
Let’s do a deal.
I will get you a delicious chocolate truffle;
Choc. Truffle? Yummmmiiiieee!!
God was delighted
Here baby, here…
Here he comes;
Out came Sachin,
And she went up standing on her feet,
Cheering for her hero;
Over the moon,
Above the sky,
My honeybunch, sugarplum butterfly;
Feeling like the red wine,
She was on cloud no. 9
;)

She tasted cigarette

She just tasted a cigarette...She's gone wild. Feels she is on cloud nine...wants to be more adventurous, more mischevious. She is 25, but feels like she just touched 15. wats on her mind? Dunno. Hey gal, atlast u njoying life..rt? Go on, do whatever u want to, 'coz there's nothing wrong, nothing right. It's u who decide what is right for u.
So this one's going out for you...

Taste a cigarette,
without any regret;
Taste a cigarette,
when you feel low;
Slip in the butt,
when you feel aglow;
Light up the stick,
when you feel crappy;
Bet you're gonna be damn happy;
Blow the smoke and revel in the haze,
Life will be clear without any maze;
Bad habit they say,
so what, it makes my day;
Hey you..mischevious soul,
try it once, its pretty cool।
;)

Anything for u ma'm

Hi! It's been a long time since i did anything worthwhile...i mean, with my blog. So here i am...back without a bang. Actually, after a long time i read a gud novel, which again forced my to write something abt it. A book recommended by a wonderful reviewer..only she doesn't realise. The book i m referring to is...Anything for u ma'm by Tushar Raheja. Cool, lovely, emotional, and most of all, a hilarious, funny account of a guy's luv for his gal. This one's a must read for all those who have fallen in luv. I m not going to talk much abt this book 'coz it ll spoil the charm..read it n ya ll know y i liked it so much.
Another book that i just finished reading was Joker in the Pack. I picked up thinking it wud be smthing similar to Anything for u ma'm. but it turned out to be a very boring account of an IIM guy's life at IIMs. Nothing worth mentioning, except it cost me double the amt that i paid for Anything for you ma'm. :(
And in turn gave me less than half the entertainment that i got from reading Anything.... :(

One-Night Stands..Huh!!

A few days back, I had my first one-night stand. And, boy! Did it turn out exciting?
Actually, it turned out to be a lot more than exciting – adventurous, charming, hypnotic, playful, and completely gratifying.
I fell in love – with Love Story. First time, I completed a book in one night. And it had to be Erich Segal’s Love Story. Segal’s Love Story is one novel that made me respond to the characters and their emotions. Erich shows his dexterity by the names he chose to give his characters, Oliver and Jennifer (I instantly fell in love with the names), and the way he intermixed humour with sorrow.
I liked the humour bit more, though. Both Jenny and Oliver indulge in a lot of wisecracking, spontaneous, and sly humour. Savour one instance…when Oliver graduates to a lawyer with third rank in his class and pops the news to Jenny…

Oliver said, “Hey, you went overboard for me.”
“Don’t’ be too cocky,” she replied. “Third is still only third.”
“Hey, listen you bitch,” Ollie said.
“What, you bastard?” she replied.
“I owe you a helluva lot,” Ollie said sincerely.
“Not true, you bastard, not true,” she answered.
“Not true?” Ollie inquired, somewhat surprised.
“You owe me everything,” she said.

And, this instance, almost bugged me. What do you think when you read this sentence?

“It is not all that easy to make a baby.”

The moment I read it, I thought what the heck. How can a man make a baby? I mean we don’t yet have the techno to make babies, right away. Righto? And goddamn it, it’s after all God’s job to make babies, not men’s…know what I mean?

Now read what followed the above sentence.

“I mean, there is a certain irony involved when guys who spend the first years of their sex lives preoccupied with not getting girls pregnant (and when I first started, condoms were still in) then reverse their thinking and become obsessed with conception and not it’s contra,” reveals Oliver.

Huh! Now you understand why it bugged me. I mean, it’s almost certain that when I assume, I generally ass u and me.

And that is not all. The later part of the story – about Jenny dying at age 25 without experiencing motherhood and Ollie suppressing his emotions – was so touching, so very profound, it pulled a few strings of my heart. And, I would be lying if I don’t confess that it almost moved me to tears. For once, I felt being in Ollie’s place, clutching the hands of Jenny, pleading her not to leave me. Don’t go Jenny, don’t go. Please, for God’s sake, I can’t live without you…

Check out an innocent afterthought that Oliver indulges in when he talks to Jenny who doesn’t yet know she was dying.

“And I told this to God, whoever and wherever He might be, that I would gladly settle for the status quo. I don’t mind the agony, sir. I don’t mind knowing (of Jenny’s impending death) as long as Jenny doesn’t know. Did you hear me, Lord, sir? You can name the price.”

For once, I’ve taken to heart Jenny’s message – Love means never having to say you’re sorry.

Finally, to paraphrase a review of Love Story - this is the book for people who are in love, were in love, or hope to be in love. One thing I’m sure of, you won’t be just a reader, you’ll feel the characters, you’ll respond to their emotions, laugh with them and share the sorrow. I bet, once you read it, it won’t remain a one-night stand, the experience will last for a lifetime.

Message In a Bottle

chef-d'oeuvre - One word that sums up Nicholas Sparks' beautifully crafted, deeply moving and one of the most touching love stories. Sparks weaves the emotions in words and brings out a sparkling love story.

When I first picked it up, I was apprehensive if I'd understand the emotions of love for I have never fallen in love. Instead, I was expecting it to be a touchy feely, light-hearted teenage love story. But I forgot that when I 'assume', I 'ass u n me'.

'Message In a Bottle' is a mature love story. It's between two people who are struggling with their own lives. It tells us that true love can't be denied, and if you truly love someone, then be prepared to make sacrifices.

Sparks describes the emotions so beautifully that even the most unromantic of species would like to fall in love. There are lots of romantic moments in the story but the one I found most romantic was when Theresa and Garrett part each other.

Theresa says, "Go home, Garrett, and do me a favor?"

"Anything," says Garrett.

"Dream about me, okay?"

And there are lots of funny moments too that make you smile intermittently. Here goes one instance...

"Pulling back, he mumbled," I should really be going." He didn't sound as if he meant it.

"I know."

"But, I don't want to," he said with a boyish smile.

"I know what you mean," she said. "But you've to. You got to teach us how to dive tomorrow."

"I'd rather teach you a couple of other things I know."

"I think you did that the last time I was here," she said coyly.

"I know. But practice makes perfect." :)

And yes! how can I forget those beautiful letters. I was amazed and pleasantly surprised - that a man can be so romantic in his thoughts and so innocent in this actions. Until now, I thought, only women can express themselves so beautifully.

The friend, who recommended this book to me, said it was her first time - I mean, reading a romantic novel :). And proudly claimed that it's the best book she ever read. I was amused at her choice - that a romantic novel can be someone's best read. I have no choice but to confess that it's become my favorite too. Actually, it has become the centre of gravity in my bookshelf. Hey! thanks so much...for recommending this book to me. I think you are a great reviewer...It's ur praise about 'Message In a Bottle' that forced me to read it...It's an immortal possession.

Finally, to all book lovers out there, if you don't mind a few tears in your eyes, read it. If you want to live a tragedy long before you understand it, read it. And if you want to experience a tightness in your chest, read it.

happy reading!! :-)

Stars Shinedown!

IT's thirty minutes past midnight. And I hv been sitting here on the parapet of my terrace for an hour or so. Doing nothing, thinking nothing, just wandering aimlessly. My mind's creating bubble thoughts that diffuse as fast as they pop out. The stars are shining and twinkling as if they are happy to see me. For a moment, it seems they are moving. Am I in a trance? Seconds later I realize, it's not the stars, it's the after-shower clouds - yep! as i like to call them - that are taking their own course after soaking the earth whole evening. I m luvin this after-shower cool breeze. It's caressing my cheeks, as if wanting to tell me that it luvs me n wants me to stay here thruout the night. N i 2 m not able to resist the crispness in the air. It's so calm out here. I m feeling lighter than a leaf. I can see the world around me sleeping, except a few lights are still open in some distant corners.

Hey! wats this? just wen i thot the night sky is getting clearer, the clouds hv again started playin hide n seek. Are they coming back? Will it rain again? Luks like i ll hv to go back to my room. I think, sumthing when given in plenty, spoils its charm. Don't u think so? If it rains again, it might spoil the beautiful weather that was created after the first rain. Neways, the cool breeze that is still blowing, is enticing enuf to force me to stay here for a few more mins. The night sky 2 is beautiful. I feel lik reaching 4 the stars. I want to touch them, feel them, see each one of them closely. i know it sounds childish, but i want to go back in time n be a child again :). I hv been fascinated by all things universe - stars, constellations, planets - since i first read abt them in std X. Since then, it's been 1 of my dreams to buy a big telescope n see wats happening inside those beautiful little..err big, i guess bigger than big..creatures up there in the milky way.

It's one now..n it's getting late. I think i shd get back to my room. Subah uthna bhi to hai. But the pleasant weather, specially this breeze is holding my hand, as if forcing me 2 stay here. I tell her it's 2 late..lemme go...But, she wont budge..Like an innocent child, she wont listen to me. Umm....i guess i'll hv to submit to her 4 a few more mins. Let's see 4 how long... :-)

sweet dreams!!