Singers I love listening to.....

I thought of writing this for a long time and now I got the chance... Few of the Young generation singers I love listening to anytime anyday and whose songs run repeatedly in my player.... A short briefing about them and my favourite songs sung by them....(Not in any order)

Karthik: If I could think of someone to succeed SPB it could be him. May be its an exaggeration, but his songs give me a feel of listening to the spontaneous voice of SPB.
Most Favorites: Kann Pesum Vaarthaigal, Anaarkali, Oru Maalai, Aval Ulaga Azhagiye

KK: Or Krishnakumar, the rocking singer of Hindi and Tamil. His songs in both languages are a delight to hear anytime and I have felt many times that his songs cannot be duplicated or can be done better by any other singer. Such unique is his voice…
Most Favourites: Appadi Podu, Uyirin Uyire, Neeye Neeye

Sujatha: The nightingale from Kerala who has sung everything from melodies to fast songs to pathos to classical.. everything… Even if she sings a few lines in a song it has a special feel to it..
Most Favorites: Pudhu Vellai Mazhai, Kadalamma, Pazhaya Kural, Mudhal Murai

Ranjith Nair: Yet another Mallu… I became his fan long back may his first song.. who knows?? He has a unique voice that has some tech be fromno feel to it… Songs with western touch turn awesome when rendered by this dude…
Most Favorites: Chillu Chillai, Suppose unna , Yela Yela, Yedho Nadakkudhu

Sadhana Sargam: A beautiful voice with a childlike feel to it. Her Tamil is not exceptionally good, she kills words many times, nevertheless I always feel fresh after listening to her song.
Most Favorites: Snegithane, Thayya Thaa, Kanden Kanden, Poovaasam

Tippu: His vibrant voice and fast renditions charge me up the moment I listen to his songs… Mostly prefer his songs to charge myself at work or get out of of some bad mood :-)
Most Favorites: Dhimsu Katta, Something Something, Kaadhal Vandhaal

Shreya Ghosal: I instantly fell in love with her voice the day I heard her songs in Devdas(Hindi). Her Tamil is in the same category as Sadhana Sargam but her honey like voice makes us forget and forgive anything…
Most Favorites: Munbe Vaa, Ninaithu Ninaithu, Khajraho

Anuradha Sriram: The magical voice that can sing in any tone, any pitch and any song… Right from Oppari like Yendi Soodamani to classical Anbendra Mazhayile to kuthu type Appadi Podu… Another rocking singer…
Most Favorites: Appadi Podu, Olli Olli, Enna Idhu, Nilave Nilave, Anbendra Mazhayile, Acham Acham Illai, Oh Podu etc etc

Chennai Day - August 22nd

Its Chennai’s birthday today. It is hard to believe that the city always young and vibrant coping up with dozens of cultures, religions, castes and languages had turned the 367th leaf in its book of history. And as I take a look at the city in the dark evening, amidst the noisy traffic and pollution, I could see the city sitting like a silent, innocent child accepting all the wishes pouring in with humility.

Chennai was not always the best place to live. Coupled with the usual problems of other metros like crimes, underworld, traffic jams and all that Chennai has a peculiar issue- the year long hot weather and water scarcity. May be that’s what is the foremost thing that puts off anyone who thinks of settling down here.

But for those who have grown up with the city, who have enjoyed every precious moment of their life here and who think of the city as a motherland, the city has much more to offer. Like a person in adolescent stage balancing himself with life and adapting with times… May be because of this never ending adolescence only the city seems young always:-D hee hee....

As the city glitters in its glory of 367 years, there are a few long time wishes from the heart of this Chennai Thamizhan which I would like to list down now…. Hope the corporations and the governments in the years to come will make my dreams true atleast by 2020 :P

1) A city void of water scarcity with self-sufficient supplies. The heavy rains and rain water harvesting has reduced the problem to some extent this year. Still, there should be long term plans devised to get rid of this permanently. Enough of losing our self respect begging neighbor states and seeing their hard face

2) A city eased out of congestions in traffic. Especially places like Panagal Park Jn, Teynampet Junction, Sardar Patel Rd , 100 ft road, Arcot road etc need severe reforms asap. And also areas like Perambur, Purasawalkam, Mylapore, West Mambalam etc. Before the situation goes to the “nothing-can-be-done-about-it” stage, hope something is done.

3) A city void of green color thingies running in the name of buses. Though different models of buses have been running in the city, still the oldest green color models are not out of sight. These buses don’t have proper seats, broken support rods and are always in ready-to-breakdown status. Yet they run for long distance routes breaking the backbone of passengers. And especially number of buses should be increased a lot. Its rare to se any bus withour standess these days!!!!

4) A clean and tidy city where everyone is provided with civic education. No more shitting on roads, spitting on walls, dumping garbage on streets or improper drainage facilities. Government bodies and NGOs are doing a lot but still its we, the people, who lack civic sense and don’t even care about our own city. From the administration side, the three rivers of Chennai namely Buckingham canal, cooum and Adayaaru should no more remain as drainage letouts.

5) Provided all the above are done successfully to some extent, we should look upon promoting the city with more tourist attractions than a mere show of tombs and old buildings (Legacy is appreciated but more of entertainment value is what I mean here). Singaara Chennai should not be a mere project of words. It should come out as an initiative from each and every citizen of Chennai!!!

If Dr.Kalam has set Vision 2020 for India I have set my dreams for Chennai 2020 with a minimum requisites of the above ideas. It should happen and I am sure it will happen. The Spirit of Chennai will make it possible to happen… Love you Chennai!!!

How to Be a Hero....

Just got these from How to Be a Hero website(Courtesy: Sundar)

Hello, Wizard.

Character Stats:

Rogue (4)
Warrior (6)
Wizard (19)
Paladin (19)

Your Profile:

You're intelligent, educated, and just a bit superior to everyone you know. If you're still in school, you probably make A's, if you're not too bored to waste the effort. If you work, your annoying boss relies on you to solve the problems no one else can figure out. You've never met a puzzle you can't solve. When it comes to leisure, you'd rather read, play a strategy game, or surf the 'Net than run around getting sweaty. You're a brainiac, and you're not ashamed to admit it.

Above all, you're a mastermind and a great thinker. You see the unknown as territory to be conquered, and the mysterious as something to be systematically unraveled. You don't have time for fools; you only spend your time with people who can comprehend your obfuscatory convolutions. You enjoy amassing knowledge, both useful and trivial.

Your Mission:

You were put on this earth to enlighten people. They will listen to you, because they are impressed by your vocabulary, your erudition, and your ability to grasp concepts that invariably elude them. You are the one who has to figure things out, because let's face it - you're the only one smart enough.

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to Discover Something. Something small, or something big. Find an unknown insect in your own backyard. Discover a cure for sunburn. Develop a faster way to get the dishes done. Calculate the number of molecules in the Andromeda galaxy. Discover a comet. Discover SOMETHING.

And do make it a priority. The Famous Adventurer of Silmaria has a crystal ball trained on you, and will be noting your progress.

A Warning:

Try to remember: you're not infallible. If people around you are all nodding and smiling, it may just be because they don't have the faintest idea what you're talking about. Check your facts and admit the possibility that even you can make mistakes. Loosen up. Make friends with a Rogue and have him or her try to poke holes in your theories. Who knows; you might actually have fun.

On another note - making plans and formulating theories can be quite stimulating, but at some point, you are going to have to actually DO something. Employ a Warrior, if necessary, to put your brilliant schemes into action. Just be sure your instruction manual is written in very small words.

My Inner Hero - Wizard!

There are many types of magic, but all require a sharp mind and a cool head. There is no puzzle I can't solve, no problem I can't think my way out of. When you feel confused or uncertain, you can always rely on me to untangle the knots and put everything back in order for you.

How about you? Click here to find your own inner hero.

Stalling Parliament costs taxpayers Rs 20,000 a minute

Today after reading this statistics from Rediff.com my hatred towards politicians has increased leaps and bounds.... :-(

The Rediff Special | George Iype
August 09, 2006

India loses nearly Rs 20,000 (about $400) every minute when politicians stall proceedings in Parliament.

Paralysing Parliament is a favourite political weapon for Opposition parties. When the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance coalition was in power, the Congress-led Opposition stalled Parliament on many issues.

Now that the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance is in power, the BJP-led Opposition keeps disrupting Parliament whenever it can.

"Politicians have lost the sensibility to understand that every minute they disrupt Parliament, the common man's precious money is going down the drain," says Justice V R Krishna Iyer, the respected, retired Supreme Court judge.

"Politicians are not worried because they live by exploiting the taxpayer's money in India," the judge adds.

The parliamentary secretariat does not have the exact figures of how much money is lost when Parliament is paralysed.

Six months ago, the non-governmental organisation National Social Watch Coalition published a report titled 'Citizens Report on Governance and Development - 2006.'

The Coalition study found that between 1951 and 2003-2004, the cost of running the two Houses of Parliament registered an increase from Rs 100 per minute to Rs 18,430 per minute.

That figure is now estimated to have reached Rs 20,000 per minute.

Some other findings of the Coalition's survey:

* In the 11th Lok Sabha (1996 to 1998) 5.28 per cent of the total Parliament time was lost in pandemonium. The figure increased to 10.66 per cent in the 12th Lok Sabha and more than doubled to 22.4 per cent between 1999 and 2004.

* The current 14th Lok Sabha recorded 38 per cent time lost in the first two sessions, thanks to the row over the induction of 'tainted' members of Parliament into the UPA government and the absence of 'absconding' minister Shibu Soren.

* The Rajya Sabha, reacting similarly to these issues, lost a whopping 46 per cent time in the corresponding 201st and 202nd sessions.

'The loss of time through pandemonium leading to the loss of designated parliamentary business eventually also translates into substantial loss of public money,' the report said.

The current Monsoon Session of both the Houses of Parliament is the fifth session of the 14th Lok Sabha. It began on July 24 and ends on August 30, and has 28 working days.

Out of this, there are three holidays: August 9 (Raksha Bandhan), August 15 (Independence Day) and August 16 (Janmashtami).

That means the Monsoon Session has 25 working days. At six hours a day, the session has 150 working hours to debate important national issues, discuss and pass several legislations, carry out a number of Constitutional amendments, etc.

On the first day of the session, the Opposition walked out in protest against the Manmohan Singh government's handling of terrorism and price rise.

By today, August 9, the members of Parliament should have spent 72 hours in the honourable tasks of legislations and debating national issues. About 35 hours have been lost because of Opposition walkouts, disruptions and pandemonium in both the Houses.

That means Rs 4.2 crore or Rs 42 million (about $800,000) has already been lost this session.

Pesticide cocktail in Coke, Pepsi

The following news snippet sends shivers down my spine as I read the bitter truth. Its high time that celebrities stop advertising for such hazardous chemicals and people realise the truth and shift over to traditional fruit juices and other hramless drinks!!!

August 02, 2006 20:13 IST
The Centre for Science and Environment on Wednesday came out with a fresh study claiming the presence of 'pesticide cocktail' in 11 brands of soft drink giants Coca Cola and PepsiCo, three years after the same brands were found to have contained pesticides.

The new findings, publicised after testing 57 samples of 11 soft drink brands of Coca Cola and PepsiCo collected from 25 manufacturing units across 12 states, claims that all the bottles examined were a "cocktail of 3-5 different pesticides" which was 24 times above the standards finalised by Bureau of Indian Standards.

"We have found pesticide residue in all soft drinks tested. Three years ago, when the tests were conducted we could spot only four pesticides. This time it has increased to five in some cases," Sunita Narain, director, CSE said.

The study - 'Soft Drinks - Hard Truth II' - claims that the average amount of pesticide residues found in all the samples was 11.85 parts per billion, which is 24 times higher than the BIS standards for pesticides in soft drinks (0.5 ppb).

It also found the presence of Lindane (a carcinogen), Chlorphyrifis (a neurotoxin), Heptachlor, Mealthion and HCH. Heptachlor, banned in India, was found in 71 per cent of the samples, at four times higher than BIS standards.

On an average, the levels of deadly Lindane were over 54 times above the approved standards while one Coca Cola sample from Kolkata had this pesticide 140 times. Chlorpyrifos levels were on an average 47 times higher and a Coca Cola sample from Thane tested for this particular pesticide at a level that is 200 times than the approved levels.

The full article is available at: http://in.rediff.com/money/2006/aug/02cola.htm