total timepass...

The first time I had come across something real from the India-China War of 1962 was around 1997 when I spent a considerable amount of time in Arunachal Pradesh. I heard stories from people around, how terrible the war had been for India, how bravely the soldiers had fought for India but lost their lives and so on. Even till the 90s, there were times people would find bunkers with skeletons of soldiers with guns still in their hands. And I also knew we had lost the war badly and it had been an utter defeat. I had also heard anecdotally that India had kept poking unilaterally at China with small border skirmishes and China had attacked India just to teach her a lesson. And so after the war, they had retreated unilaterally, giving back all the land they had taken during the war. But I never believed it. India has always been a peace-loving nation, we could have done nothing wrong?! Of course it was China which was the aggressor and bully. And so I thought (or preferred to think!). Bu...

I read Home Deus almost a year ago but never got to writing the review till now. To be honest, it was still a fun read with quite interesting titbits but I did not find it up to the first of the series. Anyways here are a few interesting parts of the book I felt like highlighting Terrorists can be compared to a fly in a china shop. They rarely are able to cause damage by themselves but the reaction to their actions can. Like the war in Afghanistan started based on what Osama did If people become immortal and could only die of natural causes, they will stop taking risks, like even driving and trekking! If humans got pleasant sensations from anything for long, they would not survive. So naturally we derive satisfaction and its all momentary and goes away. The green lawn has evolved as a symbol of luxury from medieval dukes in France and England. It costs time and money with no real benefit. And now its taken over the world 😊 Sensations, emotions and desires are all just algorith...

Manikarnika is the story of one of the most famous queens of India, and a warrior queen at that. It stars Kangana Ranaut as the protagonist and that is enough to polarize the feedback for the movie 😀. There are enough people who liked it and a similar number who have a completely opposite view. My first feeling when I started watching the movie was the surprise on realising that even though I think I know enough about Indian history, I knew nothing about the Rani of Jhansi, except that her horse's name was Badal and where she had jumped from at the Jhansi fort (thanks to my travels to Jhansi). Other than that, I knew nothing about her background or her life. Even the fact that she was related to Tatya Tope and Nana Sahib, I initially assumed was a creative liberty taken by the writers! In fact, during the movie itself I checked on wiki whether that was true. And it was. It set the tone for the rest of the movie where I trusted it to be closer to history. And this also showcas...

I generally prefer watching Hindi movies as compared to English ones as Hindi movies don't require you to think. They are made in their own fancy world for pure entertainment and nothing else. And then once in a while comes a movie which is both and it affects you in such a way that you don't even realise it did. Raazi is one such movie - it is such a brilliant piece! It was enjoyable while watching it and stayed with me long after I had got out of the theatre. Raazi is the story about an Indian Kashmiri girl who is married into a Pakistani army family in 1971 with the aim of spying on the new family for India. She transforms from a college-going girl to a brave spy, willing to go to any lengths to do something for her country. The film follows her journey, with tense moments where she does things no one, even her could have imagined her doing. On the whole the movie follows a typical storyline, but the end... The acting by all the characters in the movie is perfect. As i...

Again a very interesting and light read where the authors highlights that success is not just based on talent and skill. A lot of other factors including luck, the time you were born, your parents, environment and many more external factors contribute as much if not more to a person's success. The examples he gives are quite convincing too. I would almost say its a must read book for anyone interested in reading about people and life... Some highlights and examples from the book are shared below: A lot of external events affect success. One example is the date or month you are born. A lot of games have a cutoff date when young children are chosen to be trained. And children born right after that date, are at an advantage as they are a year older than the rest when the next cutoff date comes. So they are more often selected and trained more and make it big. While other children who were born later in the year don't get in and generally do less better on an average The ten...

A very interesting and easy book to read, with a new take on how underdogs and the disadvantaged can turn their disadvantages into an advantage and win over huge Goliaths! A must read for anyone interested in psychology and life! Below are a few interesting observations highlighted in the book: Its not always the giant who wins. Sometimes their advantage can become their disadvantage too. And sometimes being unconventional can help you win! The story of David and Goliath is the perfect example where Goliath's size becomes the reason for his downfall. And another example of this would be playing full court in basketball as done by a few not so talented teams. By taking the unconventional route, you can surprise your opponent and even win with limited talent. Of course doing this is risky and tougher than taking the conventional and easier route. But this may be the only way underdogs can win Being rich parents is good and advantageous up to a point but parenting becomes toug...

This book has a very interesting take on some of the key countries of the world, why they do what they do and links their history and actions as dependent on their geography. Most of the observations were very interesting, am sharing a few below: Russia : Moscow is located in a vast flatland and was always at risk of attack from either the Central Asian powers in the south or from Western Europe in the west. Therefore it has always conquered land all around Moscow to keep a buffer zone, and that has been a driver of its foreign policy for a long long time. Till today two geographical limitations do matter to Russia and drive its actions – it still needs a port which does not freeze in winter. And it needs to protect itself from the great western plains of Europe and hence needs an ally in the Baltic States and Poland at all times. China:  The hinterland of China again is located in an open plain and therefore it has conquered other regions like inner Mongolia, Xinjiang and Ti...