By Aditya, on July 21st, 2010%
It had to happen sooner or later. The amount of water Punekars waste was soon going to come back and leave them high and dry. And with no rains for over a month now, the time has come. Starting tomorrow, Pune will receive water supply only once in two days. Which will mean everyone is storing enough water to fill up swimming pools!
Jokes apart, though, it is always painful to see the city use water in a callous manner. We often see tankers on the roads transporting water while they spill most of it en route. Every area and locality will have their share of water wasters. This current shortage cannot be attributed solely to the administration. It is of our own doing as well.
It helps to realize that the authorities are as helpless about lack of rain as the common man is. It is pointless going to the met . . . → Read More: Pune is a dry city now
By Aditya, on June 18th, 2010%
On the menu card at Good Luck, Pune: Tawa Kheema and Kheema in eggs.
In the “Kheema in Eggs” one, is there more Kheema or more eggs? The waiter at the restaurant answered, “One way or another, it’s the same thing!”
So there.
We ordered. Was great.
Also seen at the restaurant, a signboard declaring:
Don’t sit here without any work.
Do not comb or brush your hair. It may fly into other people’s food.
Both the instructions were on the same paper stuck between papers announcing Malai Kulfi for Rs 18 and other desserts on the menu (namely Caramel Custard, Caramel Pudding, Bread Pudding and Fruit Funny). We don’t think there’s any connection between the two instruction, but there could be. See, someone sitting without work is more liable to comb and/or brush hair thereby sending it into other people’s food. These old-time restaurants have it all figured out, I say.
Jus sayin’!
Speaking of desserts, we also asked . . . → Read More: Food, Pune and the Irani restaurant.
By Aditya, on April 26th, 2010%
It’s a good name. I quite like it. But for the “Sahara” at the start, it’s a name that will catch on. It is also a good thing that they did not listen to our suggestions!
The logo of the team too is pretty nice and does reflect all it needs to. What remains to be seen yet are the colors of the team. There’s enough red and blue in the IPL already. Only Chennai (yellow) and KKR (black and now purple) are different. So how about orange?
Speaking of the SPW (now that’ll take time getting used to), the new stadium in Pune seems rather impressive. Take a look at the proposed stadium… and the walkthrough.
Finally, Pune seems to be looking and behaving international. Or are we being too optimistic too soon?
Stadium link and video courtesy Amit Paranjape’s Blog.
. . . → Read More: Sahara Pune Warriors
By Aditya, on April 23rd, 2010%
Pune’s roads are notoriously unsafe. And free-willed at the same time. They run on the will of the drivers. Who run about freely without any regard for safety or rules. Ergo, free-willed.
So last weekend, I had a minor run-in (of the verbal sorts) with one such free-willed driver. While planning, attempting and then being halfway through the U-turn, the following ensued:
As I flicked on the indicator and initiated the right turn, I realized that I wasn’t going to make the turn unless I started a tad wider. So I made the minor adjustment and then proceeded to turn. In the meantime, an enterprising driver decided he should go ahead from my right (while I turned). Upon suddenly finding my car blocking his way, he became angry. Rightfully so. Who would want their progress stalled suddenly by a car across the road. He proceeded to reprimand me for my callous ways…
Driver: . . . → Read More: The indicator has two meanings…
By Aditya, on March 8th, 2010%
Warning: Long post. Potentially enjoyable.
The BCCI probably doesn’t want Pune to have an IPL team. That’s why they postponed the bidding process due on Sunday (March 7). That’s what I would infer if the insightful thoughts part for the postponement of the bidding was up to me!
But it does help that for whatever reason, the BCCI has taken a reality check and is scaling back on its monetary demands. In other words, someone has told them to open their mouths a bit less!
Coming back to my original argument, it wouldn’t make sense for the BCCI to have two teams from cities just three hours apart. Having said that, Delhi and Punjab (KXIP, based in Mohali) are no different. So a franchise from Pune with the Mumbai Indians already present would perhaps dilute the Mumbai Indians’ fan base. Didn’t happen with Delhi/KXIP and don’t think would’ve happened with Pune/Mumbai.
What does amaze . . . → Read More: Why Pune deserves an IPL team
By Aditya, on November 9th, 2009%
What a sorry, sorry state of affairs. The World Cup cricket returns to India after 1996 and there is no game for Pune.
Nagpur, on the other hand, gets four games. Including some big tickets ones including AUS v NZ and IND v SA in addition to two smaller games. So where does that leave Pune?
The MCA has done nothing of note to build a stadium worthy of international games in the city. Even recent Ranji Trophy matches have taken place at the Poona Club ground or at the Deccan Gymkhana ground neither of which have seating.
It’s pitiable, but a reflection of what the city is doing to itself. While definitely lacking in basic infrastructure, it is certainly better in support infrastructure (hotels, restaurants etc) than Nagpur. But the basic missing link – a ground – has yet again cost the city.
As Mr Kalmadi, our esteemed MP continues to bungle the . . . → Read More: No World Cup matches for Pune
By Aditya, on September 18th, 2009%
Yes, it’s one of my pet peeves. And I can’t be like some who find Zen in it. No disrespect… just that, I’m too hotheaded!
But there is hope yet. Some solutions can go a long way in “curbing the overenthusiasm” on Pune’s roads. Suggestions:
Place spikes (big enough to puncture bus tyres too) at the STOP line that come up when the light turns yellow and go down only when it turns green. This will not only control speed, but also stop that irritating habit some have of standing across the line or zooming through before the traffic light has turned green. Or worse, after it’s turned red!
Create separate routes for buses and trucks. Ideally, don’t allow trucks into the city from 8am to 10pm. That’ll ease the roads.
Allow citizen policing. That is, if I see someone breaking the law, I can report them. Or beat them up. Maybe just report them!
Refuse . . . → Read More: Saving Pune’s traffic. Maybe.
By Aditya, on September 10th, 2009%
It’s a fee paid for enabling contact or a service. That’s how I understand it. I’m not against it, but at times, can’t understand the value demanded by those who live off it.
Prime examples of commission proving to be a pain in the seat is when house hunting. And I’ve felt this pain many times over the last few years. None more so than in 2007 when I moved into my current rented accommodation in Pune. I’d paid commission in Mumbai and Bangalore previously where the norm was one month’s rent by the tenant and one month’s rent by the landlord (or so I believe… I couldn’t know for sure since I was always the tenant). In any case, I had never paid more than 30 days’ equivalent of rent to a broker/agent.
In Pune, though, landlords are truly lords. They don’t pay commission. The tenant needs to pay for two months’ equivalent. And there is really no scope for negotiation. 45 days? Bah. 50? Get out. 60 days’ minimum. Continue reading Commission.
     
By Aditya, on September 2nd, 2009%
1. Some of the comments in this article may well apply to stores of the chains mentioned in other cities as well, but my experiences are limited to the specific outlets I visited. I don’t aim to generalize my opinions for the entire chain.
2. The disclaimer above is to ensure that none of those big stores sue my a** off!
Now that we’re done with disclaimers (and their disclaimers!), it’s time to tell you the dirty truth about electronics store chains in Pune.
Recently, I have been around looking for an iPod docking station, a laptop, an LCD/Plasma TV and cell phones. I have bought all these items from different stores. That itself begs the question: what are these massive one-stop stores good for?
Yes, the hint is at Croma. As someone who takes his electronics quite seriously, I do expect store salesmen to be well informed. I don’t expect them to know all the minute details, but their suggestions should mean something. And at no store in Pune have I found this. The obvious incentive for them to push a brand/product is the commission they or the store stands to earn. In this regard, Vijay Sales (Sadhu Vaswani Chowk) is perhaps the best of the lot. Continue reading Electronics shopping in Pune
By Aditya, on August 12th, 2009%
That would be the normal retort if we knew which pig to blame for the flu. As cities start to panic and people start to believe anything they hear, the government is starting to make some knee-jerk decisions. Take Pune, for example, where the outbreak seems to be the worst.
As of Tuesday morning, Pune had reported 5 H1N1 deaths of the total 8 in India in addition to over 300 other confirmed cases. While this hasn’t come about overnight, it is a typically lazy response to what now seems like a pandemic.
So what one saw on the streets of Pune this morning was a Sunday-like but only eerie silence. There was a heaviness about and one could really gauge what was being thought. As everyone adorned the “bandit queen” look, the ridiculousness of the entire situation was overwhelming. Despite repeated reports that the masks are to be used for just a day and not all masks are useful, people continue to buy them en masse. A report claims that almost 250,000 were sold across the city on Monday! Good business!
The solutions by the powers that be? One of the first things that the authorities have done is stay away. Pune’s two ‘powerful and influential’ ministers — Suresh Kalmadi (Congress I) and Ajit Pawar (NCP) have been conspicuously absent. Except for Mr Kalmadi’s face on posters welcoming Digvijay Singh to Pune, the city hasn’t heard so much as a peep out of him. And Mr Pawar responded to a newspaper report about his absence by making some nonsensical statement. Ignore, please. Then, remotely, they have administered the shutdown to the city. For those who aren’t aware, all schools, colleges, malls and movie halls are to remain closed for 3-7 days starting Tuesday. When some people were asking for this action about a week ago, there was ridicule that we should not bow down to it. Continue reading You Swine!
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