Who is an intellectual ?

Almost all of us think we have an intellectual bent of mind :)
There is absolutely no problem with that...to each his own school of thought.

There are organisations that claim that they can certify you as an intellectual like Mensa. They have an exam that tests your IQ and cerify you if you clear that. It should look good on your CV and perhaps the interested parties can use this link here. You are allowed to take the test only twice. I havent taken the test yet, but am thinking about taking it sometime.

Is an intellectual the one that has his own way of doing things and does not care about the society...usually turns out to be a social misfit..( Ayn Rand type) ? or

Is he an influential thinker who combines his ideas with pragmatism and helps the society move forward ( Albert Einstein type) ? or

Is he the one with radical ideas that go far beyond his time and is denounced by the society as a heretic ( Copernicus type) ? or

Is he the saint, the philosopher, the inventor, the spiritual guru or the leader?

Or is he just a nondescript member of a society like the dhobi who washes your clothes or the plumber who fixes your tap or the programmer who writes stunning codes?

Or All the above ?

But what defines intellect? Has it just to do with numbers...a high IQ score perhaps? Can a person who doesn't actually tip the scales in an IQ test not be a intellect? Some questions are better left unanswered. :)

In this regard, Prospect magazine has come out with a poll that determines the worlds leading public intellectuals in contemporary society. The list has people like Noam Chomsky, The Pope, Yusuf al-Qaradawi and others. The Hindu report here.
The actual story and the list on Prospect here.
Noam Chomsky of whom I first heard of while studying a paper called 'Principles of programming languages' during my under-grad years seems to be the early favourite. The results will be announced in November and voting has closed. I just missed it by a couple of days. :)

Namma ooru gumbal!

The holiday season has kicked in :) The newbie in the blogging world that I am, I got to meet lot of gurus and thalais from the blogging world over the past few days.

Barista's Besant Nagar on Sunday and the one on G.N.Chetty Road on Monday!

Sunday was the turn of the younger junta. The meet was made possible thanks to the enterprising and persevering Jagan :P. Barista's followed by bajjis at the beach!

L-R: Dada, Jaggu, me, Virdi, Priya

Virdi: The 'mama' of the group. Oringinally from Punjab, but dont get fooled by his accent. He can say 'Bainjoo' with a Bengali accent and confuse you. Looks and speaks like a true IITian that he is. Currently at Frost & Sullivan. ' Harbhajan Mann'

Vatsan: Also another 'mama' of the group, not in terms of age but size :P. Has a Bullet to go with his macho look and a dhadi to boot. Also has critical and radical views on everything... Was one of the three guys with a 100 % attendance. ( Jagan and myself brought up the rest of the vetti gumbal). Enga 'area dada'.


Priya : Chinna ponnu...rowsu..also the lil sis of one of my batchmates at college...:P Chk out the snap. Jokes apart, she was a funny girl ( I mean, to laugh at) and thanks to her, all of us had a nice time! 'Monalisa'

Jagan: Hasnt changed one bit since his college days. A cool, nice guy and a super timepass! 'Morpheous' ( For obvious reasons)

Vee-jay: Moderator Aunty..better not say anything bad about her. Kept the conversation going and was mainly responsible for all of us having a great time! The modern house-wife..had to rush back home to get ready for the poojai. 'Avvai Shanmugi'

Samy: Ivuru Samy illa...asaamy. Throughout the evening, I was sitting and wondering where I had seen this guy before...has a really familiar face...Claims he can drive from Adyar to Ashok Nagar in 10 minutes..konjam over dhaan...adjust maadi :P 'Then Indiya Schumacher'


Jayanthi akka : Last but not the least,adhigama aasa padra aambalayum,adhigama kova padra pombalayum ozhunga vaarzhndhadha sarithrame illa. Going by thalai's dialogue, she is going to live for a long while. Silent party...sweet smile. Chance kedaicha udane office laendhu escape aagi vandhutaantga! ' Silent Sornakka'

L-R: Dada, innocent man, Jagan, Schumey, Shanmugi and Sornakka!

A filmi kinda trivia!

Well....this is my space! And I have the license to try out whatever I want right?? :))

My first trivia post...:)
What movies do these dialogues come in ?

1. (i) With insomnia, nothing is real. Everything is far away. Everything is
a copy of a copy of a copy.
(ii)Guys packing into the gyms, all trying to look like what Calvin Klein
says. ( Couldnt resist the 2nd one...I love that dialogue)

2. Are you trying to convince me that the reason you're not doing the job that I am paying you to do....is because there is no job to do ??

3. When you love someone, you've gotta
trust them. There's no other way.
You've got to give them the key to
everything that's yours. Otherwise,
what's the point? And, for a while...
I believed that's the kind of love I
had.

4. * Would you tell us the nature of your relationship with Mr. Boz?
* I had sex with him for about a year and a half. I liked having
sex with him.He wasn't afraid of experimenting. I like men like that. I like men who give me pleasure. He gave me a lot of pleasure.
* Did you ever engage in sado-masochistic activity with him?
* Exactly what do you have in mind, Mr. Corrigan.
* Did you ever tie him up?
* Johnny liked to use his hands too much. I like hands and fingers.

Clue: In the midst of all this, one of the all-time greatest scenes in Hollywood also sneaks in ;-)

5. BARTENDER (shouting over music) How's the game going?!!
Hero : It's been the longest hour of my life.
BARTENDER What?!
Hero: (at the same volume) I'm running away with your wife.
The Bartender, not able to hear him, smiles and flashes
a thumbs-up before moving away.
Cool, man!

Tamil Section :)

6. Driver: Thambi, vandi pinnala sevura idikardha paaru pa...
Hero : Seri anne...(later) idikala vaanga...aan idikala vaanga...innum vaanga
Driver: Innuma ?
Hero : Innum idikala vaanga...( car rams into the wall)...aan ippo idichiduthunga!

7. Telephone rings...
Caller : Hello...yaaru pa pesaradhu..
Hero : neenga dhaan sir pesinadhu...
Caller : Velayaadaadha pa...yaaru ya pesaradhu ?
Hero : Yo venna...call pannittu yaar pesardhu nu nee kaekkara?

Questions 8, 9 and 10 are a special dedication!!

8. (i) V : Kannu...nee indha thozhilukku pudhusu...na nenaicha innum enni eyezhe nimishathula un uyira edukka mudiyum...( points somewhere)
Hero: Hahahahaha...enakku eyezhe second porum...konjam angey paaru kanna!!
(ii) : Ulle po....( No response)....ULLLEY PO!!

9. Hero :( Over spilt coffee) Anger is the cause of all miseries.
One must learn how to control that. Otherwise, life will
become miserable. Last...but not the least....

10. Hero : Nee innum enna nanbana dhaan pathurka...INDHA NAAAAAL
...unnoda calendar la kurichikko...epdi enga veeta idichi ennayum yen kudumbathayum nadu theruvukku kondu vandhiyo...adhe maari
unna vida panam, paeru, pugazh, andharsthu adhigama sambadhichi...
unnayum un kudumbathayum nadu theruvukku konda varala...yaen paeru...:)) illa

Bonus question : just comes in the movie....I like the hero as well as this movie..where his wit stands out!!

Anne....Rasagulla....rasagulla dhaan!!! :))

Guess that should do for now! :) Most of it is pretty easy...all modern flicks that have done well at the box office and are really popular ( English section )
Tamil Section is pretty simple too...if you are a thalaivar fan...and also like sarcastic humour heroes :P

What is love ?

No offense to people who are in love...just my shot at a short tale!!

At a restaurant, two blind dates break the ice...and finally get to the point..

M: So...what is your take on love?
W: Oh...love is like a dream...a fantasy that turns into reality...
M: Oh really?
W: You can never explain with words what love actually is...Its like finding what you want...a taste of heaven on earth...sheer bliss. You would want to wake up everyday, and hope that the day never ends when you are with the person you love...You should actually experience it to know what it really is...
M: Hmmm..Interesting...Have you ever been in love ?
W: Oh yeah. Five times. And three relationships. They were a roller-coaster ride till they lasted. Have you ever been in love ?
M: Never mind! I have to go now....Nice meeting you!
( Signals to the waiter) Bill please!!