yossarian's diary

The LAW ---- Social Phenomenon

2009-05-03T23:31:00.000-07:00

Six years back, when I had entered law school, life on the main street was great. Lawyers were the best paid lot. Many after the first few years of the law school movementr in India , actually started jumping the engineering ship regularly to join LAW. While, it is still not as HOT as MBAs and also the weird profession of being a NRI, it was at least for a while and possibly still is figuring in the top list of the upwardly middle class.

As a professional now and as a student then my views are quite contradictory , as is always the case with most issues across certain age stage in a man's life. It has been intriguing however to see the transformation of a simple profession of Transaction/ corporate lawyers into a social class, that can flaunt a lot of style, so what if at times at the cost of 'life'.

Over the last one year, as a legal enterpreneur, trying to establish a nationwide transaction / corporate law practice, my partners and I have seen and experienced 'recession' up, close and personal.

The recession , in my humble opinion, is a major economic and social correction. While it might have stolen sleep from many of our eyes, it also makes the global economy more efficient over time with only the most smart and well run businesses surviving the onslaught.

However, such correction has also meant that, the same companies which were easily coughing out millions on legal fees are thinking twice about it. Naturally, those astronomical starting salaries of kids passing out of lawschool, now . look terribly inflated and inefficient. may be it is not yet time for anm outcry but it certainly is a necessity and a lesson learnt in time.

Ill behaved, Xenophobic, uncultured, bunch

2008-12-26T01:52:00.000-08:00

Well that is what sums up natives of the City of Gardens. The older people here believe that every body who is younger than them are their servants. For those who have grown up in real metros like, Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata- Bangalore is genuinely a city that is akin to a zoo. The average behaviour towards younger is something we will not mete out to anyone and if my parents ever saw3 me doing it, I will be thrown out of my house summarily without a hearing.Business is good though , but I wonder whether these oldies of the city truly understand that this is part of the Union of India and the country has different cultures. Plus someone please teach them English and make them understand what is a public place.

Anyways, more I meet these kind I know why Bangalore's great GDP groth is primarily driven by non-originals of the city.

Cheers

Bangalore, life, recession ........

2008-12-22T20:51:00.000-08:00

I have recently moved from my beloved old Kolkata to the southern tech city of Bangalore. As a first impression, the city is no more a city of gardens. Some of the villages in other parts of the country have better roads than this city. Interestingly though food is not an issue as there are many good inexpensive eateries out here.The native are, as a rule unfriendly without realising that, we the outsiders not only just take their jobs we also create jobs for them. The people are generally much more rude when they take it for granted they are speaking to some kid, but fun starts when they find out that we are the owners of our office.

Me and my 'corporate comrade', Mr. Anuj Sahay, have an Activa to ourselves and are thoroughly enjoying our new found bohemian freedom. We keep getting lost in the new city, keep breaking signals and keep getting rebuked for what is perceived to be against the law but actually is not. Even police in the city have no clue that smoking on a public road is expressly allowed in the new central Govt. directive. I request all who care to listen to educate Bangaloreans in law.

But the city presents opportunities, the enterpreneurial attitude of the city and its people is a welcome break from my beloved home. Working here is exciting as everyone is brimming with ideas. The ability to look in the face of recession is reminiscent of my days in Bombay, where ups and downs are just considered as expected in life.

This is not my professional space , but certainly our office here enjoys the vast freedom to experiment given to us by folks back in Calcutta.

In the midst of all this attempt to grow, here continues the global slide downwards to recession.The key is now to build cost and performance efficient business models and I am focussing all my energy on people.The right team and even more the right attitude in them can go a long way in making the foundation of any corporate organisation strong enough to have purely organic rise at anytime of the economic cycle.

It is however , painful to see my juniors back in lawschool, going through the horrors of recession and the strong possibilities of unemployment. Some of them are really bright and have done nothing wrong themselves, and are thus being forcefully grown up to understand that life is not as simple as ' work hard and everything will fall in place'. Their young , fresh minds have just one query, 'how will things fall in place and why did it have to be us'.

In general, my own life reflects the state of transitition that my chosen lifestyle affords me everyday.I am happy and look forward to my days going forward as everyday presents the opportunity of making new mistakes and learning new lessons. Do not know what future holds and only want to know when it is the 'present', but as of now certainly we are both getting pretty much the best , life has to offer.

Merry Christmas to everyone and hope the new year begins well.

The Best of Times

2008-11-10T13:54:00.000-08:00

It was the best of times and the worst of times. very reminiscent of the classic beginning of A tale of Two Cities. Three years back, around this time I was perched at the crossroads of my life as a lawstudent, but foremost in my mind was the ignonimous exit that seemed to await my favourite hero in Sourav Ganguly.
Have been reading a lot about his glorious retirement now and for many of us it is indeed the end of an era. The mood of change is hanging everywhere across the Globe.It is just amazing to see how our national religion portrayed it.
Am not going into serious analysis of good and evil of transitions as this has never been an issue blog but more of a wall to which I speak and which has no way of not giving me the fullest attention.
I have been an Obama backer, a Sourav fan, a self proclaimed BJP follower at a time when Congress had monopolised Indian politics, a great believer in derivatives ( as not being financial weapons of mass destruction), industrialisation of my presently rotting mother state of West Bengal -- common point being a great love for change. Yet at times the brashness or the absolute political correctness of these changes have baffled me.

Today I am stunned to see that many of those changes just reestablished the well trodden. Sourav fought against parochialism and almost became the most shining symbol of one as bengal became blind to rationality, Obama is insane in his economic ideas and does not seem to understand the rule of sunrise and sunset economic sectors ( even though many might believe that Krugman would be a democrat), BJP is just a wild and extremist Congress ( with dynastic behaviour sipping in replacing the organisational supremacy) and Buddha babu ( a person I hold in high regard) has completely botched up legitimate industrialisation drive through some naive politics and inexplicable inability to leverage his great party machinery.
Thus at what many says is the best times for world citizens to see historic changes, I doubt if change ever happens. I doubt if bailouts will ever stop in Wall Street and if greed will ever leave the famed street of financial capitals.

I stand shocked to see how our generation, the kids who only saw booms, will ever know why even their best education never got them the right job as some greedy geeky traders in wall street did their jobs with lack of any vision ( not even myopic).
I am looking for the answers.......But I am also wondering whether these are the best of times or the worst of them..........worse still it could be neither and that would mean nothing will change yet again.

Bye
Y

The Paradox of Friendship

2007-09-12T13:45:00.000-07:00

The last five months have revealed a lot about life to me.But unlike , in case of a novel, life is a mystery that becomes more and more complex with every revelation.For one, the last few months have proven to me beyond doubt that 'ego' is man's greatest motivator and almost always the price you have to pay to buy one's integrity. one may find the statement strange. But power , even in its most nascent or miniscule form is worse than an addictive drug and if well used in the form of delegation can be a great source of relief.I had decided from the beginning to make this my year of experiments. in my mind this phase will atleast continue for a few more years may be three or four.In my experiments , I have been enlightened by the true nature of friendship and attempts ( at times unabashed) of one upmanship that might ruin such tender relations.In my book though such attempts by some 'great friends' have only helped me in strange way by proving to me how necessary this excercise was.It has given me a new perspective on loyalty as it is understood today and more importantly dignity( a word almost disappearing from modern vocabulary.Nothing wrong. Every age in history has a right to redefine its own values.The age has come to terms with it, but have I? Well the last few months have suggested to me that its time I wake up and smell the trash. Ya trash .I must adapt or at least must pretend to . And that I will.

This is a very vague and ambiguous post. But that has its reasons. When the sphere of experimentation moves on , I shall reveal all. But till then social values require me to shut up.

See Ya

Y.

Aesthetics of My Judgement

2007-07-21T13:15:00.000-07:00

It is amazing how blogging gets me back to my days of utter controversy almost as soon as my return to it.As a young law student aesthetics of judgement have always attracted me.I have tried hard to make myself oblivious of external factors and have to my own credit pretty much succeeded. But very few around me have the keen ability to attract trouble as I do. While that can be a great source of entertainment for them all it is extremely frusstrating for the individual who goes through it.

In my early days in Law School , I have often felt hard done by incidents that may or may not have been intentional or even aimed at me and certainly least expected to affect me.But I have been lucky in a way that i did not indulge in self pity and foster fancy but frustrating ideas of global conspiracy against me. often enough , I realised, the system is simply insensitive to individual issues , not necessarily unfair.

Unfair , would necessarily mean a system that is arbitrary. Subjectivity if excercised without bias and with reasons however cannot be considered as bias.Procedural fairness is again what man can control as substantive fairness is so subjective that it is invariably unfair to the sufferer.

The reasons for this write up are two confidential to be disclosed as much as unnecessary for the context. This blog is a mirror of my understanding of life and its experiences.And what's life without its share of quirks and twists

Bye.

On the Return Trail

2007-07-20T13:42:00.000-07:00

It has been almost a year if not more than that since I had last blogged.The reasons for this incidental hiatus have been lessons to me by their own rights. If you are shocked by the change in English, let me tell you that the reasons for the grammtically experimental English is my new formed distase for form.

Let me start with why I aws away from blogging all these days.Amazingly a simple and honest answer is that I in words of someone dear aws not stagnating for once. Or so it may seem.Notably, I slowly phased myself (unintentionally) almost immediately after my unexpected succes at ELSA.From then on my journey and quesrt for ego satiation took me to levels I had previously not imagined for myself and generally awed at.

I did do a few things here and there almost hoping my actions were taking me to the Bird's eye I had set for myself called law Firm Job. The question is not whether I have succeeded or not but whether I have enjoyed the process or not.

In hindsight, this process though flawed philosophically has been very revealing fopr me and possibly in years to come be either completely irrelevant to the larger scape of my life or the very hinge on which it evolved.

The last wto years and especially the last few days have taught me to enjoy a process as the final goal often changes through the duration and evolution of the process.The onus on process also makes you far more dispassionate about the things you do and therefore makes you less fearful of failure and far more open to criticism.It is always better to do things from an outsiders perspective as at the ned of the day acceptibility and success are both decided by the outsiders.

My stagnation in the last two months might have brought me back to my dear old blog but the significance of this sabbatical is in the change in perception ( from my side) about life per se and human values in depth.For me now it is an ideakl effort to understand myself and the subtle but engraved changes in human perception that a man may undergo through some apparently eventless times.So while history may not understand the value of a bad quarrel between two friends or husband and wife or two colleagues, it is these subtle human interactions that often influence history the most.

I shall let the readers if I have any left, ponder about the hypothesis as I myself go back to the placidity of my apparently eventful life.

Bye for Now.

CLARIFICATIONS

2006-07-14T12:52:00.000-07:00

I rarely ever feel the need to clarify myself as that in my eyes amounts to taking myself too seriously .But if it means anything to anyone , I think I need to make myself clear .

This is for a very good friend who started blogging regularly quite recently .Being the amazingly gifted and hardworking person she is , her posts reflected her true quality as a communicator of thoughts .But of late the classy approach which had marked her initial posts seem to be missing .I as a reader therefore felt I should point out and I clearly want to limit myself to that .As far as one's views are concerned I ( if needed ) shall use her blogspaace for the purpose .

Next is my stand on reservations .I am not anti-affirmative action , nor anti-reservation.Reservation however should take in serious economic factors as that is allowed by the constitution .Reservation is not opposed on any other ground but the quantum of it and the national productivity impact of it .

Generally now I close this chapter as I feel goddamn sleepy .
SeeYa

FILTH-Let us change the tradition

2006-06-09T14:26:00.000-07:00

True to tradition ------- ya that's what everything around me seems to be .Respecting the sensitivities of a public forum , let me say this that today I accept some people around me definitely have not read the meaning of civilisation . True what was in contention is strangely valued ( overvalued ) in this place where I spend the most of my days .But does any level of desparation entail this ? Let us ask ourselves is it even worth the trouble to do what we are doing ? At the end of four years of seeing this I confess today that even at the threshhold of my starting life as a lawyer I hate the fact and repent that I ever joined lawschool .

I am just happy that I have stood by those values I was taught to value and I hope such situation will never happen in life when even for moment I feel I have failed my values .But it seems Nietzche was right values differ accross the society .I do not know if this has a fiscal connection or a simple social -regional issue . But seriously life in lawschool is a piece of shit actually lawschools are shit holes where once you are in you are destined to get dirty and stink .

Any ways I needed to burst out and thanks blog for being a great listener .

SEE YA

2006-06-05T15:02:00.000-07:00

It is unfortunate that over the last few days I have lost my touch with Blogging .I might be writing a littkle disjointed but that's more due to my current state of life .In an eventless life there is nothing to write but surely an urge to catch the eventlessness as a quantifiable state .

Sometimes I wonder why so few stories are made out of the true middle class and the answer lies in man 's inability to communicate non-happenings .It is possibly for this treason that even the best of the French existentialists needed the help of absurdity and intriguing backdrops to sketch their glorified pictures of non- happening . That is why Camus forces his character to smoke on his mother's funeral as non-action won't create a story .

That is why the hero has rto get drunk in Amsterdam and not a small villege bar in Switzerland . This also possibly explains our need for a hero and our attraction towards action .

Thus , in this state of my life when I feel like I am sitting on an arm-chair perched cautiously on a plateau whose edges are visible but not close enough for panic , it is beyond me to describe the ramblings that stop inside the deep folds of my much abused ( luckily not bruised) Brain .

It shames me how we the people of this world tend to praise flair and talent even though we know and man should get no credit for his talents as that along with property have been the greatest banes of mankind .Both these born out of inheritance are the most divisive tools of our civilised surroundings .Yet we as a society have failed to respect hardwork and there fore like Schumachers to alonso and Barichelos and Tendulkars to Manjarekars .

That is why as a nation we prefer a Warne over Kumble even though individually the latter hasdone more for a nation's cricket .

Ya my writing today has no direction but that's because it has to reflect the confusion inside me .CONFUSION - of values , existence , goals , needs and beyond all mindset .

Till the next sleepless night .
See Ya

back again

2006-04-20T09:00:00.000-07:00

It has been a long time since I have visited the blogosphere and that's because of my legendary laziness .This is an impoirtant phase of my life .Rohit is moving to Mumbai and I am going to Geneva forELSA but I do not know which one is goingto be more significant .

Importantly ELSA has taught me a lot especially man management and my new foundpassion for Trade law and policies .The team has had no huge fights while small quarrels are natural when the stakes are so high .Joydeep is a genius and that is a proven fact for me . I wish the University never loses its mooting tradition as it is the single effective learning process available for law students in India and it takes application to a new league .Most important as I said is man and time management and the exposure it brings .Even if I remain at a personal low ELSA has been my greatest friend and distraction through thesetimes of crisis .

Praying andawaituing a great time in Geneva .

SEE YA

INVERSION of VALUES

2006-04-03T23:23:00.000-07:00

Ask me what.I am surprised by the way people tend to eulogise others after death .We put these successful visionaries up on a pedestal and then have a problem if someone points out his human shortcomings . Example .Best is Netaji .Great man , good commander , superb organiser and a fine leader. All said and done what in history said that he was a celebate ?Then why the hue and cry when a well researched movie depicts his wife and daughter .Worse still , his family accepts it but the common masses and some jobless historians want to make this atheist a saint .

This however if true is not even a short coming but a human right allowed by Hindus to be enjoyed by their gods as well .

GEN X

2006-03-26T04:59:00.000-08:00

A Hindu Article on 26th March says that 90% of the present 20s of our country are unemployable .They , according to the athour are only interested in earning money and do not have any depth of knowledge or personality to actually add value to the human resources of the Employer .
It is alleged that the present gen thinks they deserve some good things out of life but are not willing to do the hard work .

I personally agree with it while stating that the general IQ ,KQ and EQ of our gen is shockingly bad and that we need to be more self critical to improve .Remember those high salaries do not grow on trees - the economic pie is limited .

I urge one and all to opine on this matter as I believe that the best way to approach life is to have the philosophy that LIFE DOES NOT OWE ME A PENNY .

This might solve the problems .

SEE YA

EMS

2006-03-26T04:48:00.000-08:00

EMS is my friend from school .One of the few who can be truly happy at others success .It is a great value to have in a human being especially if you come from the sad part of country called Bengal where people take extra pleasure in bringing people down .Thanx M you have been a very good friend and in a tough world like this it has been a privilege knowing ya .

Glynk I guess I overreacted but that's because I am a bit raw about the entire episode of my life .As for deletion , I do not delete msgs and let the author control his expressions .I blog with a faith in free speech but will not like to hurt someone who means the world to me .So I hope you get the point .

I am may be settling down in this huge village that is Delhi and as known to all who know me I hate this show-off glitteratti culture of the capital . Then again I guess that's what life is about -adaptation

SEE YA

In Trouble

2006-03-24T22:22:00.000-08:00

Yeah I am .No money for ELSA and no money for survival in Delhi .Not exactly a settled place to stay .Resourcefulness is great but there is a limit to everything irrespective of what AIRTEL thinks .Oh that reminds me I have no money on my cell .I honestly am dead .But happy that the blog war is over and the damage I believe has been minimal .Must thank my more sensible friends for this .

Never felt so uncertain about life before .But may be it can get worse .

Over and Out

2006-03-22T06:17:00.000-08:00

I have tremendous respect for Evolution and do believe it has gone on longer than desirable .Look the idea of change was to create a more harmonious atmoshere in College and I hope we will not lose sight of it .As for Ashish , Chill dude .Nothing's gonna happen to anybody s that is not desirable .But , harmony requires tolerance and sacrifices and they will be made . For that the onus will be on seniors and therefore I draw curtains to this conflict .
SEE YA

Strange Reactions

2006-03-14T13:48:00.000-08:00

Our life and times are strange . Otherwise what will explain one of my classmates faith in mine despising her strongly enough to scrap against her in Orkut ? Well I am jobless but not so much and surely not anybody I have differences with , do I hate . There are quite a few I rarely agree with but have respect for their self belief and honesty .These incidents do not hurt anymore but they surely disturb as these show the low trust and opinion I evoke among some of my Batchmates .

As for the other erstwhile 'friends ' and now self-proclaimed goliath ,one can only say ,atleast show dignity .

Hoping for better days .
SEE YA

Last Rites

2006-03-13T12:58:00.000-08:00

I have a question .Why have last rites ? Destruction is inevitable and therefore even if the means and the time do catch us by surprise , one can hardly connect absurdity or the joy and shock to the happening of this inevitable .Then why even consider it important enough to commemorate or celebrate ? Think about it .

See Ya .

Welcome Sarathi

2006-03-08T12:23:00.000-08:00

This is good .Finally my good friend Sarathi has has come on board .Thanks Mickey for inspiring this poor soul .I do not know why this day though as this is the day when our man blazed the Constitutional History paper with his brilliant creativity .

But surely nice to find a new blogger .I will not write about him as the time has not come but will like toremind one and all that Sarathi is actually a person who had made history .Ask him how he has been a trend setter in NIJS and man he will tell you .

Anyone remembers one of my early blogs -- Chariots on Fire ? Thbat was about this colourful and lion-hearted friend of mine .
P.S. It's always easier for people like us ( me and him ) to be lion hearted as we have nothing to give and therefore nothing to lose .

Happy Blogging Sarathi .

See Ya

yossarian's diary

2006-03-08T05:53:00.000-08:00

I have reached a conclusion .At the present rate , I will flunk agri exam and also not write memorials .Placements are turning out to be a headache .Do not know where future will take me .But I guess events of the last three months have left an indelible mark on my mind and I guess for the first time in my life I am struggling to forget .I really hate my memory now .

Orkutting has become a dependance as it means so many friends .Seriously need to get my act together .
SEE YA

2006-03-02T08:43:00.000-08:00

Sorry everybody and specially Evolution but just that I have been very busy in the recent past .Xams went well but the ELSA mess is still difficult to gulp as in how can you cancel the nationals -I simply do not understand .

College elections were interesting but got dirty at times .I hope we avoid these situations in future and that finally the student body gets back some relevance for the common students of this place .

Ny ways these 5th years are about to leave and with that two of my closest friends in college .Will get into the reminiscent mood some other day .

SEE YA

UNWINDING.......

2006-02-15T00:23:00.000-08:00

I am at a strange juncture of my life .Careerwise I have never been in deeper trouble .This is till now my all time low and I am not sure if it's going to get worse .

Also I am afraid that things and people around me are slowly unmasking themselves .True one should find out the original selves , but if such selfs are so ugly then I would rather not find out .

A very few people had stood with me through thick and thin and I simply admire their strength of character .

Well , this post is actually not for anyone else but oneself and is extremely haphazard .That's the way thoughts pass .
I am trying to start studying again .My vacation has been way too long .So I wish myself luck for successfully mugging Jurisprudence .

Meet you guys when I am thinking more straight .
SEE YA

ROHIT DAS - Anyone wanna know?

2006-02-09T01:33:00.000-08:00

No journal of mine can ever be complete or even be a keyhole to my life without a few thoughts on my Best Friend Rohit .For all those who are in NUJS , you might think you already know enough about this super-stud .But what I am gonna post isn't about hard facts but about my thoughts on this enigma .

A legendary mooter , a leader of students ( the only one NUJS has had ), a super legal mind ,tremendous athlete and an over-enthusiastic dancer .
But that's not him , that's the way we want to see him as we need a hero .

He ( of course in my eyes ) is a brilliant mind whose single greatest skill is his understanding of human mind and behaviour and the maneouvring skills that come with it .This is not negative but a neutral take .He indeed has very strong personal and professional ethics and is definitely not capable of stooping as low as some others in our college .

He is not a superstud as many might infer from the entourage of girls he moves around with and is rather naive when it comes to issues of emotion .( sounds contradictory ?-he is full of them )

Rohit's been a long friend and our friendship is all about difference in opinion than agreement .He is fiercely loyal and is incapable of being godfather to anybody in college-simply against his values .

But I truly believe our man is confused , insecure ( he obviously does not accept ) and at times immature .One advice -Do not ever try to reason with him.He makes up his mind then invents reasons and theories to justify even the most ridiculous stands. Bbasically , only thing he actually is good at is LAW .

However , the need of the hour is to tell him a few home truths -Do not Dance , you are only good at law and remember the world does not share your values .

This is not the right time to write about our friendship , but that would surely appear on this blog someday .
SEE YA

2006-02-08T22:12:00.000-08:00

Over the last few years I have learnt not to get surprised by various events in life.But somethings that still surprise me are to do with myself .Why is it there are certain events in life which left no mark in my mind and certain others which on hindsight possibly changed my life .

My breakup with Koel is a case in point as it was the least painful breakup .I aws never really in love with that babe and found it O.K.to get rid of such undesired bindings .But that was when I had last seen stability .I have moved on in law school and somehow achieved a bit for myself. But there has never been the old feeling of being rooted .People's opinion had never really mattered before somebody changed my mindset .Today I am a new person and hopefully an improved version as my life and a FRIEND .

That has made me more aware of the needs of people around me. This also means for the first time I am tensed about my academics .This could well be the defining few months of my life though I have always believed that no single event or period can change one's life forever .

Let's see how things turn .

SEE YA

AT PEACE

2006-02-04T00:49:00.000-08:00

I have finished my work on the Media Law project and have tried settling down a few legal issues that might cripple the astonoshing growth blogging as a culture has experienced in recent times .

After a long time I got involved with any sort of University activity .I have to concede that a few people have succeeded me feel allien in my own college and that alienation is near completion .But Saraswati Puja is close to my heart and I could not stop myself from rendering my services .I have done as much as I could but once I returned home for Puja it was difficult for me to get the same enthusiasm to go back to college .

Sometimes I pray this ordeal comes to an end and all i care for is a job now . My recently created distance from college has helped me in achieving some peace for myself and I am glad that I could get this much . But I congratulate Ashutosh , Bunty and Joydeep for the way they have put their heart and soul into organising college events -----but I pray that they get a better deal from their college mates .

GREAT FRIENDS.....

2006-02-01T23:06:00.000-08:00

Read a nice posting on Evolution's blog.It refreshed other memories and allows me this chance to remember a few seniors who had made a serious difference in my life at lawschool .

Abhiroop Mukherjee: He is one of the nicest people I have met in law school and definitely does not belong to this dirty profession .Guided me in a period when I knew nobody in lawschool and was a great help in settling me down at this place .Shared some fantastic moments with him in the first two years of my stay .

Deepto Roy: Intellectually most capable in this university's short history .Opened me into looking at legal problems ina different way and has been a great help academically .Definitely , one of them whom I idolise .

Kushagra Shah: Simply a great friend and like an elder brother .Still extremely close at a very personal level .A nice human being .

Pinky da: I know his real name but that will not serve any purpose .A brilliant person and a great personal friend .Do respect his immense knowledge of Constitution and media law .

Shagnik: Just a fantastic support over the last three years especially in the recent past .We have seen a few ups and downs between us and that has only strengthened our friendship .

Rohit Das : Nothing much to write .A very average friend .Ha ha. Honestly , my friend , philosopher and Bro.This ordeal called lawschool is all worth in gold only because of him .We do not agree on most things and never will .But that is given when two stubborn people become friends .

This list only talks about extremely close friends or important influences from the first and second batches .

WHAT'S NEXT

2006-01-25T22:47:00.000-08:00

Our country's political think tank seem to be extremely patriotic especially when it comes to safeguarding our much hailed Premier Institutes .This surprises me as their actions and bio-data clearly show that they have not gained much from this system .
India and its skilled negotiators and trade policy makers had argued and negotiated their butts off to get India crucial concessions and drafting advantage in the GATS while India as a trade-off relatively lost out in TRIPs and AoA . Much of the loss was unavoidable as india then had not garnered as much collective bargaining poweer as it has managed today .

But the gains were significant as India has registered serious growth in the Services Sector over the last Ten years and is now the a serious contendor for being the Services Hub of this World .But now when the Country's premier management Institutes are planning to cash in on this WTO regime on educational services some strange logic (lack of common senseand archaic insular politics) is coming in the way of this grand expansion.
This in my understanding should have been a decision resting with the Commerce Ministry and not the HRD which has truly become the 'Last resort of s******el'.
Please Comment on this extremely important issue .

YOU KNEW BETTER

2006-01-22T23:24:00.000-08:00

Often life throws up new problems before us and it is a pity that i have reacted recently in such a slack manner to these challenges .I had believed that I can fight to the hilt but I forgot there are somethings you cannot achieve through sheer talent or ability or even will to achieve .

But this is one of the many lessons I have learnt recently and the other is more profound and far-reaching in many ways than one .I completely understand the extreme number of shortcomings I have as a human being but I refuse to accept some allegations thrown at me .I deserve this -I agree and therefore I accept especially I feel responsible for much of the easily avoidable bitterness , but yes I never intended anything but the good of that person . What I foolishly forgot is that one is the always the best judge of his or her own good .

A disclaimer I may not be as bad as you think , trust me I am worse .Let's not bury the past but completely cleanse it as if it never existed .That at least suits me fine .I however still apologise for my behaviour over the last few days .

SEE YA

BLOG -REGULATIONS

2006-01-22T23:02:00.000-08:00

I am trying . Yes just trying to come out with a comprehensive paper on various legal issues facing the blogging practice in our country and world wide . My firm belief is that the people in San Francisco have jumped the gun by asking for a specific legislation as limitations to First Amendment Rights and the defamation laws are good enough for this sector . For other side issues they could have all solved the problems by simply amending and adding to the 'Safe Harbour' standards and the Digital Millenium Copyright Act . The arguments for the same will be elaborated in my paper along with a future blueprint for similar legal structure to be installed in India which I believe is fast catching up with the fad .

HANDS OFF DUDE......

2006-01-18T21:42:00.001-08:00

Glynk ,dude get your act right .I do not know how sportily Sarathi might take your jibes at a public forum but my experience says that such friendly jibes can be potentially fatal for a nascent boy-girl friendship.

As for me I do not know what relevence your post has and exactly what you wanna say but dude I truly believe these are matters that need not and should not be discussed on public forum .

Even in our days these are the kind of friendships that are bound to come under pressure and unfortunately in most cases it is the culmination of consistent and long drawn Peer interest and conjectures .

Therefore I request one and all to show more restraint about such sensitive matters and also to not do something that makes one of them insecure enough to become possessive and take away the breathing space which I think every human alliance requires .

SEE YA

HANDS OFF DUDE......

2006-01-18T21:42:00.000-08:00

Glynk ,dude get your act right .I do not know how sportily Sarathi might take your jibes at a public forum but my experience says that such friendly jibes can be potentialluy fatal for a nascent boy-girl friendship.

As for me I do not know what relevence your post has and exactly what you wanna say but dude I truly believe these are matters that need not and should not be discussed on public forum .

Even in our days these are the kind of friendships that are bound to come under pressure and unfortunately in most cases it is the culmination of consistent and long drawn Peer interest and conjectures .

Therefore I request one and all to show more restraint about such sensitive matters and also to not do something that makes one of them insecure enough to become possessive and take away the breathing space which I think every human alliance requires .

SEE YA

LIFE ROLLS ON

2006-01-14T17:16:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since I had last blogged .I ahve been extremely busy with the ELSA , but all the trouble I hope will be worthwhile. I am extremely honored to have tagged by Evolution .The viva is round the corner and I sincerely know nothing .
But that's not new for me . What irks me is a feeling that I have not really moved on with life .I feel I am stagnating but I do not know why and therefore cannot change the rut .
What I am like will be clear from reading the Books which I have listed as my favourite.Otherwise there is no need to know more as there is hardly anything interesting about me .
For the record : I am a money - obssessed , extremely boring ,lazy , jobless guy who is desperately trying to find some purpose in his joblessness .
For Now .
SEE YA

MY TAKE ON POLITICS

2006-01-03T23:33:00.000-08:00

Have you heard of the " FORBIDDEN FRUIT" ? Well , if you have not , know for a fact that the uninitiated in our modern "intellegentia" considers it to be politics . I do not disagree , but raise a simple question-was it such a bad thing that Adam ate the apple ?

Therefore , politics might at times be dirty , but that is about the means taken by the practitioners , while the end remains the same - powerplay .

Isn't that what man and his history all about - the inherent power struggle against nature and among themselves .Well , if it is , then why do we frown upon it and worse still why is it so fashionable among our socalled educated youth to denounce something that is so real and everyday ?

Let's face it . No human relationship or unit can survive without politics and diplomacy as man needs an athourity and clash of egos ,especially in today's world is inevitable .

Families run on politics and naturally organisations see it harder and possibly dirtier .

Therefore , it's important for us, the so called educated youth , to ask ourselves whether we can afford to keep out of the system or to master it in order to improve it in future .

SEE YA

NEW YEAR

2006-01-01T23:10:00.000-08:00

I will not say happy New Year .To me it makes no sense .I rather desparately need a library card .It's been a long time since I wrote nonsense . But the New Year's eve went well and I am happier than I used to be , because for once after joining law School I start the year without a plan . Simple . Less you expect from life , less chances of disappointment .Therefore , better for life .

I am at crossroads with no idea which turn to take . Therefore let time be my guide and well for those who believen New Years resolution , I will cut down some how on booze and try to be less emotionally attached with friends .

SEE YA

R(E)VOLVER

2005-12-30T23:22:00.000-08:00

Well , this is hotting up into an interesting conversation .And just a disclaimer -no fights , Evolution is a respected blogger and more importantly a good thinker .

" Modern man has two occupations- to fornicate and to read newspapers ."
This modern man's tendency to collect information is not what I call thought . But what I had intended to mean , is that not so abstract para existence called MIND which makes Jean -Baptiste make such a profound observation .

For whatever has happened in my life , and whatever I might have caused to others , I feel responsible , BUT NOT GUILTY . I do not know whether I should feel guilty for not feeling guilty .Well , the rest is too personal for discussion in a blog .( REASONS ARE ALSO PERSONAL)

Man's evolution i believe is less an issue of will and more that of experience .Like law life is also experience .Every event , adventure or MISadventure are enriching in someway for the evolution of a human personality( thought ) and the will only helps in the final form not the substance .

As for my rather crass comment on girls and life . Well , it is a friendly advice which the guy will find is pragmatic -this obviously does not mean that I have never allowed myself to be ruled by my CARDIAC ORGAN and hormones have been dominant .I have had my time in the sunshine , but the setting sun definitely makes you more pragmatic .

SEE YA

HEY EVOLUTION

2005-12-30T01:46:00.000-08:00

Evolution's take on my previous post was interesting enough to warrant a separate post and it also gives me a godsend opportunity to keep my promise to my Blog .
Well , to start with , even if I aceept that might is not right ,what bothers me is that I never wanted to get into such discussion .My intention was to uphold the inherent romanticism of our modernday complex existence .
My philosophy is not in favour of lack of effort .All it says is that the expectation should be none and hope should not exist .However , conviction is very welcome and in my eyes one should take life on with what he has and try and make the most of what life throws at you . That at least ensures survival and I firmly believe that in our times even survival is an achievement .

Such is our times , that life moves on but thouights do not evolve .Therefore , Evolution , it's not the man but his thoughts that require to experience evolution .

SEE YA

EXISTENTIALISM -- A WAY OF LIFE

2005-12-27T02:02:00.000-08:00

I was reading a book by the ex-Algiers goalie . The book , for all its qualities has the striking name of THE FALL .

The book made sense to me especially at this point of time .I have always wished the wisdom of Jean Baptiste Clamence and today I am convinced that is where the future is .I will not make things difficult by trying to put words where they can only compliocate simple logic as it would then turn out to be yet another Jurisprudence class .

I ahve always believed in my working and mostly student life that if a horse is unwilling to drink water , drown it . But unfortunately that does not happen in human relations and friendships especially those which are in an unnamed space .Ihave only believed in living for the moment and therefore fail to understand this modern man's affinity towards pegion-holing all human relations and interactions . This is what makes the wild more attractive as nature is the greatest liberalist .

When one ruminates over the past and rebuilds ( or atleast tries to) on the ruins of humane adventures , the romanticism of our very existence hits you as that is when for once we go back to the basics .For me atleast , at the base we are just animals and should never therefore ignore our instincts .

Once our horizon widens beyond right and wrong , is and ought , we tend to look back at our days with marvel at its complex simplicities . Well , this is what life is and the day we enter the ivory tower called human existence , the inherent simplicity of our time awakens us to the brutal realities , in its own way , through a rude shock .

May be a lot for the day , but we will talk later .Blog , the greatest virtue of my new found friendship with you is that I can take you for granted and possibly get away with it .

SEE YA

UTILITY / FUTILITY

2005-12-25T19:16:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I wonder what exactly I am doing in this strange prison that is law school .Very honestly the question that haunts me is what is the utility of this 5 years ordeal that culminates without drama in a licence to lie .not that I mind the work and I love the profession's deviation from set and generally accepted ideas of moral and ethics .But the rat race that is created among wannbe lawyers and their guardians as regards the money this place apparently can ensure if you pump in 5-10 lakhs o'er a 5 year period , baffles me .
Life has more to it .At an individual level I have believed in living my passions and therefore such longterm investment is not my cup of tea .I rather saw a greater benefit out of this place -five years of glorified parent sponsored unemployment and then a moral and intellectual high ground to talk crap . Both ensures not being asked about future by anyone in my vicinity .
These are obviously personal view and I do not claim them to be the pareto optimal moral position for a budding lawyer ( the growth is subject to consistent supply of fertiliser and pestisides and absence of conflict with GMOs like toppers in my batch .
SEE YA

CLOSED CHAPTER

2005-12-22T21:56:00.000-08:00

Men may come and men may go but I go on for ever .
Well , the brooke and my life are pretty similar and definitely in the book of my life a few pages have been turned today and the only remorse I have is that , in the process I ended up dogearing a few of them .

yes this does not mean the slate of my memory is completely clean and that should not happen with fond memories . But , closing the chapter helps a lot in moving ahead ( not sure for the better ) and before dust collect on my memory slate I wish to pick the pieces of my life and put them together for a race to the future .

Every phase teaches man a lot and this has taught me a lot of lessons on life and human relations even if at the cost of my till now unwaivering faith in friendship .

Now , let's see what Destiny has for me and more importantly , what I have for Destiny .

SEE YA

LAW SCHOOL AND LIFE

2005-12-19T23:15:00.000-08:00

At times I find the people around me at law school to be very strange and to say the least interesting .I have lost a lot here , most important among them my ability to mix with everyone including those who I did not like . This place has made me less tolerant , more so due to the elitist approach to life and fixed notions which are so much an inherent element of our Institution .

But I am grateful to a few who have given me a patient hearing and have been more than a great support in my hours of crisis at this place .Naming people is not my way of blogging in most cases and therefore I refuse to name them .but I have been as honest to you as possible , Blog , and therefore now you are a great mirror of what I think .

As for my friend Glynk , I have one cliched advise - just move on .Don't believe in God as that is a loser thing to do , but believe in destiny , that's what experience has taught me .And yes learn to fight life only then It becomes liveable .

For you I have two lines and these can be applicable for me and many others .
BICHHAR GAYA HAR SAATHI DE KAR PAL DOPAL KA SAATH < KISKO PHURSATH HAI JO THAME DEEWANO KA HAATH ?

SEE YA

2005-12-17T10:52:00.000-08:00

Sometimes one wonders what exactly to expect out of life and what not . But every time one makes the mistake of feeling that he has got a hang of things around him life springs a surprise .fair enough as long as you can take it .

I have never succeeded in settling down in law school and that itself has become one predictable part of this life .One of my dearest seniors calls me Yossarian and how I wish I could have the same Intellectual and philosophical depth as Yossarian or the non-chalance Jean-Baptiste Clamence , then it would have been much easier to fight this immense personal crisis .

One advice for Sayak , in life even after the worst failure , never say never again .
SEE YA

ASHAMED TO BE INDIAN

2005-12-14T10:51:00.000-08:00

Today truly is the saddest day of my life and even though I am going through personal crisis this has nothing to do with it .Today I am ashamed of my identity of being an Indian .Have we not been taught the basic ethics of honouring our heroes . Connossieurs of India's secular religion should today come together to condemn the events of the last twenty-four hours .

Sourav's exclusion pains me for its inherent injustice , illogic and sheer political brashness . The myth is gone . For a generation of bengalis and cricket lovers who believed that there was no such thing called anti-bengal sentiment in Indian cricket and merit was the only criteria , today's events are a rude awakening .For a man who taught India the meaning of the word aggression and therefore changed the mindset of the mothers for the first time introducing a new social value called "spunk" , this is a humiliating and forgettable end .

I pray for the well-being of other stars that they including india's greatest batting hero after gavaskar ( Rahul Dravid )should not ever lead India to historic test victories or world cup finals as then they will either end their career being unceremoniously sacked from the squad ( Ajit Wadekar , Sourav Ganguly ) or be forced into breaking down before an International channel unable to take the insult of being accused of being a match-fixer ( Kapil Dev ) .

Those who believe that cricket is truly our religion then please protest against this grave blasphemy and let Kiaran More not become the Pontius Pilate of our times .

SOME DAYS ARE DIAMONDS , SOME DAYS ARE STONE

2005-12-12T16:38:00.000-08:00

THAT'S WHAT Denver would have said . Well all I can say is that this is a truth of any life . It is however all stones for me for the last few days . My life has actually changed for ever . The reasons are irrelevent but the fact is that only I can help myself through this phase in life and may be whatever has happened will help me evolve as a better person . more importantly a stronger person .

I have always believed that life owes me nothing .And in this time of crisis I feel lucky that I have always believed in this .Otherwise life could have been much more difficult .

I just wish I had my dearest friend with me in this crisis , but one of my well-wishers is right , it's time I just moved on may be that would make everyone happy .

SEE YA

PARNAB VISITED

2005-12-08T05:51:00.000-08:00

One of the greatest obsessions of quizzers who blog and wannabes who blog is to discuss and if the need be defame PARNAB MUKHERJEE. I have dabbled in quizzing over the last 10 years and have managed to win a few and more importasntly give a few memorable answers .

I have read many posts on Parnab by various bloggers and do appreciate the way they have wasted their valuable internet time on Parnab . Let's put it in perspective . Parnab is the busiest individual quizmaster in the country . My little experience says that all quizmasters even those working with a team come up with one or two wrong questions a quiz . But they are not as reachable as Parnab and neither half as arrogant .Therefore this attempt to pull him down . The problem is we as Indians hate spunk and therefore try to bring down those who have it in plenty .

This is not in defence of anybody but is an attempt to tell fellow bloggers that let us not reaffirm the popular belief that blogging is the pastime of the jobless .

See Ya

ACADEMIC INSIGHTS

2005-12-08T05:11:00.000-08:00

I am back afteer a while .The last few days have been whirlwind and not too happy . I have managed another disaster for myself in the academic front - nothing new as I have always harboured a disdain for those academically inclined .

Though I do not question the present education system in India , the reason for that is different . I think it is the proof of absolute joblessness to criticise the education system in place here .

I think the same about the entire IIPM mess . Who gives a flying f*** ? Coming from a lineage of professors and scholars I have never found enough material satisfaction in pursuing academics and I know come what may this cannot change .

I wonder how the girls do so well in studies but rarely replicate the success in profession .But I believe the problem is with the attitude . Girls when they become women are burdened with tremendous social pressures of conforming to others whims and fancies . This takes away from them their greatest strength of singleminded dedication whereas guys are conditioned to " take it easy " and this attitude is what wins the race .

I must congratulate all those who have surprised me with A+ and Es in Constitution as I do not think all of them truly deserved it . That's because I do not think marks should only be proportionate to mugging , let us for once see application .

Though this does not mean those who have achieved it do not deserve credit .I just request some of the members of the academic world to have the same scale while judging different batches .

I do not know which way ELSA is going but what I am sure of is that I want to win and I want this more than ANYTHING IN LIFE .

I have missed my friends very little in Delhi and if at all anybody it was you know who .
For now
see ya

HARD DAY"S NIGHT

2005-11-30T11:43:00.000-08:00

Some of the best moments of one's life often goes unnoticed when they come .Therefore the great importance of hindsight and memory .Not that everyone does not have it but reminisence as I see it is an art .I say this because as I take my sweet friend's advice and dive into ELSA workload , my greatest support is turning out to be the little moments of joy I have somehow managed to share with my acquaintances in this place .

But today I want to remember those whose words influenced me most -in our university jargon " 5th years " . Even those with whom I did not get along very well are heroes to me and I respect though kushagra is a friend and Deepto an Idol .But even others will be important .After they left life has been difficult for me and after Rohit's batch goes I will be seriously lonely .

I will leave for Delhi on third just after the Convocation .Hopefully will find good stuff there .
SEE YA

WISHES - STRAIGHT FROM HEART

2005-11-27T22:37:00.000-08:00

One of my favourite and much mis-understood senior in college once wrote about me that I am brilliant . But the fact is I am an extremely average person .This very knowledge of my lack of inherent talent has been of great help to me especially in a world where as it seems now everybody has a worth .

Unfortunately , i do not . Those who know me very well will vouch for this .But that is not my fault I have tried doing the best of whatever little I have and i am sure that's the only way I can survive among such bright people .

I think Rohit knows me best and understands that I have very little ability and yet for a guy of his stature and talent I am glad he accepts me as a friend .

The brilliance that Sayak sees is what I acquired in the form of experience through this uphill struggle that is life .I agree with Rohit that I should not do politics yet the problem is one of difference in perception .I am impulsive - nbut that is only because I am not intelligent enough to be xcool and calculative but even if i am who gives a f*** .

I am glad sagnik has found a mooring in his life . I always thought he deserved better than what he was getting .But i hope certain things had never happened between some of us who used to be great friends .

Alas . The person i care most for in college , does not seem to be really bothered about how i feel . But that's OK , life owes me nothing and never thought it did . Ignoring the fact that I have an uncanny ability to intrude into people's lives and become overbearing towardfs them , I really hope people I care for so much at least tried understanding me . But , indeed I have to accept i am quite obnoxious and must be damn pissing off .But if I have to believe in Sagnik's philosophy , then being a nice ( may be dumb) human being I hope one day I will get better from life .

Spoke to Deepto today - as usual an enlightening experience . he is somebody besides Rohit and Arun whom i have always looked upto .

SEE YA

MORE WISHES

2005-11-27T12:12:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I wonder whether we ourselves make life too difficult . Our aspirations often are contradictory , unrealistic and beyond our abilities .from childhood I have heard elders say that if you aim very big only then you can achieve something .Now let me create a situation where I come across a canal extremely deep and 7 m wide and i need to cross it . Though I know even some of the world's best longjumpers struggle with 7m range I aim big following elders advice , i decide to aim big and therefore leap . The chances are I will fall and die .

This is why the funda of elder's advice is utter crap and nobody should listen to people who in accounting terms have negative value du eto tremendous depreciation .

My family people all wanted me in science and even my peers , but that is what they did wrong . I hate taking advice from living fossils and therefore chose a field which nobody in my family knows anything about .

This is the last time I explain why i am in law for those who care as this question irritates me a lot .

Now for tghe person who has been so important to me that she has found a mention in almost all my posts . The reason is simple -there is something about her that keeps me going especially when i need to work long hours .Though she is exact opposite to all I am , and will hate me for writing about her , her presence works like a burst of oxygen for me . But sometimes I wonder whether it is better to be born as a dog than a human as being the former would have atleast meant that she would have definitely cared for me .

But then there are somethings one cannot change and she is somebody I definitely do not wanna change .

Nothing Intellectual

2005-11-26T09:37:00.000-08:00

I was shocked today that my friend philosopher and guide in a university senior thought it pseudo- intellectual of me to name my blog in the name of the lead character in Catch 22 . I do not care about being either an intellectual or a pseudo one . But it hurts to know that people do not understand the importance of this character and its similarities with my way of thinking .

As usual like any other day this one also was full of controversy and I can't speak on it as there is an embargo .But the good news is I am gelling really well with my speaker and we have similar attitude towards life .

Our seniors I believe will be returning to University soon for our first convocation and I really want to meet some of them as they were a bunch of absolutely brilliant people who knew how to have a great time .

See Ya .

CHARIOTS ON FIRE

2005-11-25T20:45:00.000-08:00

The rumour mill ( a horrid blog) claims that our charioteer is on fire . Since I have the misfortune of being his closest in law school , I wish I could clear the air for the rumor is far from the truth . the truth to put it simply is that even though there was a time when charioteer had a garage full of 14 chariots ( or may be 12 ) , now all his chariots are on fire and even as his ROME burns our friend has failed to be a NERO .

Any ways , this was an extremely hectic day and I am beginning to get tired of controversy and I do believe I deserve better . But whoever did what he or she did will have to pay for this .But friends like Sayak are of great help , though I know it is a tough ask .

ELSA work has just started and we are very optimistic about our chances .I always believe that's the best approiach to any challenge in life . Well , I have got to read all night , but hope to see sopme concrete results out of tomorrow's GB meeting .

I was glad to find yesterday that our man Maurya mandal got the significance of the name Yossarian as it best reflects my situation in this strange profession .
See Ya .

A Full Circle

2005-11-24T22:30:00.000-08:00

Hey this is my first post and I am an absolute newcomer to the entire idea of blogging . A very important person ( obviously to me ) disapproves of airing one's innermost feelings in the public domain but it's a need I have felt for a long time .

Honestly we men tend to be judgemental about others and even if we are law students as I am we hardly believe in audi altarem partem at a personal level . Therefore this attempt to get a space for myself .

It is but ironic that I am writing this blog on a day when blogging made me feel my worst in law school . When posts cross a level of decency one tends to get pushed especially if it involves people you really care for .

However , it's my first day with my team and I feel this will be a great experience especially as my team-mates are very friendly and more than cooperative .
Bye for today
See ya .