Lutyens' Delhi

Its surprising how much notice if you care to - or if circumstances conspire so. Ive been to Delhi scores of times over the past few years on work. And yet its safe to say that I observed a lot more about the city than what Ive had the opportunity to do in all those 'morning-evening' trips Ive made over the years.

I spent 4 days last week in New Delhi. For a start I discovered my hotel is in a part of Delhi referred to as Lutyens' Delhi. Lutyens' Delhi is more than a label (like a Paris arrondissment); it is a title. Lutyens' Delhi is a city within a city. Roads so wide you would scarcely believe it, well maintained pavements, open spaces with well manicured lawns, large trees lining the roads and no hawkers. For that matter one hardly sees people on the street in Lutyens' Delhi. You may if their (large and expensive) car breaks down.

Lutyens' Delhi houses some of the biggest egos in this country. Ministers, judges, senior civil servants, et al stay in large and exclusive houses and no attempts are spared to make the dwelling even more exclusive. The gates are solid, large and invariably taller than an average Indian to discourage a passer-by from peeking over. And if some more discouragement is required, it is available in the form of armed guards in full uniform sitting in their booth by the gate. Not content with keeping the riff raff on the road out, houses here have picket fences erected on the top of the compound walls to complete the islolation.

Buildings in Lutyens' Delhi rarely rise above the height of the trees. There are several laws in place including forbidding buildings to rise over a certain height since the entire area is a heritage area. The roads are named on Indian kings, politicians or prominent Indians such as Akbar, Aurangzeb, Kautilya, Sardar Patel etc. The whole of Lutyens' Delhi is green - seriously green; atleast in large part a result of prohibiting unbridled construction in this area. Check the pictures taken from my hotel window at 8 a.m. At the cost of sounding repetitive, the picture covers the Colaba equivalent of New Delhi.

Also pasting an extract of a write up on Lutyens' Delhi

"Sir Edwin Lutyen, British architect and visionary, was called upon to design a new capital for the British rulers of India. His brief was unambiguous, the new capital should match, if not improve upon, the grandeur and vastness of the world’s best cities, yet capitalise on the intricacy of the Indian architecture.2800 acres of land was carved outside the old city, away from the hustle and bustle of Chandni Chowk and the ramparts of the Red Fort.

With a free hand to draw as he pleased, Lutyen sketched out the flowing lines of New Delhi - the Rashtrapati Bhavan (President’s House), the Parliament, the magnificent drive or Raj Path from the President’s house to the India Gate and the Canopy beyond for the statue of King George."

PS: I would never move to Delhi, even Lutyens' Delhi. Not even to please a dying aunt.

The King is dead, long live the King.....

In a shocking development, Indian cricket was found dead on the cricket field in Port of Spain. Initial reports coming in suggest that it was a case of collective suicide as the body was surrounded by hopelessness and despair. There was also evidence of complacency on the walls. This development comes on the heels of a loss to Sri Lanka in the World Cup 2007. It may be recalled that Indian cricket had set sail for the West Indies 2 weeks ago to stake its claim in the premier one day cricket championship.

Reliable sources have now revealed that Indian cricket was already suffering from money-monia and advert-itis for several years now and experts reckon it is likely that they played a significant role. While these pre-existing conditions were known to everyone, Indian cricket had gone on record to state that there was no connection between the two and these ailments would not hamper its performance on the cricket field. Or so they believed.......

Indian cricket was last seen alive after the series in Pakistan in 2004 when it won the test as well as the one day series. Thereafter, it seemed to have passed its halcyon days and an effort to recreate past glories had not yielded significant results inspite of desperate measures which included a heart and a head transplant and the misguided amputation of a seemingly gangrenous limb which, against all expectations, healed itself and grew back. Nevertheless, no one would have suspected that the end would come so swiftly.

Indian cricket was discovered slumped on the floor, unconscious and barely alive, after the match with Bangladesh by Faith, Hope, Adulation and Patriotism who went in to check when Indian cricket did not answer their impassioned pleas. It was rushed to the St Kitts hospital where doctors from Bermuda declared that nothing seemed to be seriously wrong since all tests carried out on the arms and legs suggested they were moving as required and looked equal to the challenges that were to follow. However, it turned out to be a false hope.

A preliminary autospy conducted on the body revealed no evidence of a spine and testicles. Frustration, Anger and Resentment revealed that this was consistent with manner of death and have now elevated the level of investigation to a full autopsy. We shall bring you the results of the same as and when they are released

Underwriter not available

It happened this morning. I was bitten by the blog bug.

Imagination took flight..........Maybe I have some talent hitherto undiscovered - some acclaim perhaps? A large sip of self indulgence rolled around the tongue and savoured............Maybe even a rank stranger moved enough to leave behind an approving comment - highest order of praise for a weekend blogger. Maybe...... maybe...... maybe even a book with a collection of posts one day!!! A BOOK ??!! It felt heady........

Guess humans are universally designed in a way to believe their own bullshit.

The set up process was easy enough. "Choose a name for your blog". Reflections? Musings? Whats in a name anyway? Come on, lets get this over with and get down to the real stuff. Substance over form; thats the way to go. Fortunately the weak moment passed. I couldn't name what will potentially become a book "Stray thoughts", "Stories from here and there". Too hackneyed.

I reminded myself, its a statement of YOUR personality. YOUR brand name. YOUR label. Make it count. I was like a first time father and fresh resolve surged through.

It should have a play on words. It should have a hint of self deprecation. Maybe some black humour. And it has to convey a person with pretensions to writing. Maybe a "Pretender"? Nope, unoriginal. Maybe an "Upstart"? Too sterile. Too bad Underwriter already means something else in the Queen's lingo. Hang on a sec. Play on words? Tick. Self deprecation. Tick. Black humour. Tick. Pretension to writing? Tick. Thats it! That wasn't tough was it?

I fed in the name. I wasn't even noticing the "check availability" field alongside. "Sorry, name is unavailable". Pipped at the goal post. "Underwriters" perhaps - same theme, almost identical to the original choice. Same result. "Under_writer", "Under_writers". I was getting desperate.

"Underwrite" - only available option. I regarded it with a jaundiced eye. I couldnt kid myself. It may bear an optical resemblance but it cant hold a candle to the original choice. But for now, it would have to do. The great journey would have to start with a faulty spark plug. Guess the world has a way for putting paid to the best laid plans

I wanted to be an underwriter but now I shall now underwrite. I consoled myself saying its only a matter of tense.

Cheers