Posted 9:20 AM by The Consultant
Why am I happy even after the comprehensive defeat of the Indian team? Why was I happy when the rain stopped and the match began again?
Well, I guess I am not alone! A lot of my friends here in IIM Lucknow expressed similar sentiments. I am proud of my team. They played some absolutely wonderful cricket and we should welcome them just the way we would have, had they won the cup.
However, this particular event has made me wonder about one curious occurrence. There have been many great individuals who have not been able to achieve all that they set out to achieve.
Shivaji Maharaj never managed to win Janjira Fort. Bonaparte never won England. I wonder if the same thing will happen with Sachin. Let us hope it doesn’t.
Moving on to some rather serious events in Gulf, it is really sad to note that there is no nation which can stop this increasing US domination. I am not against US. But the way that USA is able to carry out its wishes despite the opposition in UN is not a very positive signal for world peace.
When Musharraf came to power, a lot of people were anxious. People were worried that if a madman comes to power in a country possessing nuclear weapons, the world is doomed. I wonder why people associate these fears only with the countries like Pakistan. It could very well happen in US.
Like Poirot said, it is not the victim that is the problem. The problem is with the changing mentality of the killer who thinks that he is Mr. Justice. Once he starts feeling that he has the moral responsibility to rid the world of all the evil, he becomes a part of the evil. Let us hope that countries like China and Russia progress, so that at least some sort of sanity and balance is maintained again in the world.

Posted 7:56 AM by The Consultant
A couple of weeks ago, I witnessed something incredible. It was one of the most destructive weapons ever made by the mankind. For this, I will always remain grateful to Mr. Sunil Joshi, my learned friend from Pune.
We were discussing some topic. Suddenly, Mr. Joshi made a statement that was absolutely baseless. I immediately jumped into the fray and dared him to prove it. He looked baffled at my stupidity. He said that he was not going to prove his statement at all. I was rendered totally speechless. I mean, you cannot have an argument with someone if he/she refuses to counter your arguments with his/her proofs and his/her counterpoints. The result was that I lost that argument completely. But I learnt my lesson and for it, I will always be indebted to Mr. Joshi.
It is a weapon that has been used for so many times in the history of the world. You pay absolutely no attention to the arguments put forth by your opponent. You just state that you have made this statement, it is the eternal truth and that under no circumstances will you make an attempt to prove it.
My life has been touched by this weapon. I have been quite liberal with its usage and there are a lot of harassed looking individuals in this campus giving me dirty looks from time to time. Now, it is quite possible that my foes or detractors will say that the reason of those dirty looks is different altogether. But, hell, I am not going to prove my statement! It is the eternal truth.

Posted 2:34 AM by The Consultant
Life is tough, really tough. One has to get educated, get married, find a job, raise kids and do a lot more things. In the heaven above, the God was watching all these activities with interest. He felt that there was not any challenge left in the human life, especially in the lives of people like me.
He smiled with sadistic pleasure and said “You just wait, kid!”
The kid (or me) was traveling in a bus to his destination. It was 10.00 in the night and the only thing that the kid wanted was some sleep and maybe a dream or two. The journey had just begun and he started to relax as the bus left the city limits and reached a deserted highway.
The cleaner cum conductor stood up and went near the television. The kid was slightly alarmed. He had traveled before and knew that the TV was just an empty threat. It usually did not work and if it did, the volume did not.
But the cleaner took a look around. His eyes lingered on the disturbed expression on the kid’s face for a moment. He sensed his discomfort and felt really motivated and happy. He started the TV. To the kid’s horror, it was working and the volume was OH MY GOD, LOUD!!!
With a flourish, which the kid felt was entirely unnecessary; he took out a video cassette and inserted it in the VCR. In a couple of minutes, the movie started.
Up to this point, the kid was praying like a batsman on 99 who has hit a six in vertical terms but not in horizontal terms. He was scared to death. He had noticed that the number of middle aged females in the vehicle was quite substantial. He felt that he could deal with the normal Hindi movie which is full of action, improbable physical and mental feats of the hero and such other similar ingredients.
God listened to his prayers with the same sadistic smile. The movie was “Dil to pagal hai”. The kid closed his eyes in utter despair. He knew that his game was up. There was nothing he could do anymore. Even closing the eyes was a feeble defense. The technology of that TV and the audio system was advanced, really advanced. The combined effect was intended to match the effect generated by an audio system embedded in the kid’s eardrum.
I will not continue this sad story. There are no twists here but just a straight boring road to the utter annihilation of that kid’s mental abilities.
I have suffered from these movies a lot of times. It is a horrible and a mentally draining experience. There are too many nice people wearing outrageously expensive costumes and living in palatial flats/estates. There are dogs, cats which are supposedly oh cho chweeeeeeeeeet! There are characters that crack jokes on which there is a loud cacophony of laughter. I must point out here with barely controlled anger that I do not like those jokes. They are not jokes at all.
But the worst part is the hero. He keeps smiling and smiling a lot. Just imagine this scenario. There is a flowerpot in which some beautiful flowers have been arranged. Suddenly, without any warning or 14 day’s legal notice, out pops a head from behind that flowerpot. It is none else but our hero. And he is smiling that smile. How can I describe that smile? It is, to put it gently, oh cho chweeeeet! I would rather have Hanibal Lector jumping out from behind that flowerpot.
Basically, I am a normal guy. I have emotions and I may even accept that in a moment of weakness. But making me watch such movies is a crime against humanity. Well, not humanity, but against guys like me.
I have nothing against these Suraj Badjatyas or their ilk. They want to make these movies, let them. People want to watch those, let them. But please, o God, don’t make ME watch those.