Wedding bells chimed… metaphorically, of course. Crowds cheered, drinks emptied, cameras clicked, and speeches given. Another joyous occasion. And no, I am still safe, sound, and blissfully single. The wedding was of my prodigious cousin, Roshan Francis, and my multi-talented friend, Ashika Sharma. Wrongly rumored to be next in line, and the clear target for the loathsome ‘ooh-you’re-next-when’s-THAT-happening?’ speech, I sought refuge behind the camera lens… incognito as the unofficial photographer. The old hiding-in-plain-sight tactic. Not a bad strategy. Almost worked.
For those who came in late, Rosh is my high-flying, globe-trotting, wry-smiling, head-banging, crisp-talking, quiz busting rootin tootin cousin [...] Continue Reading…

I’m moving.

Yes, moving… shifting house… migrating… changing horses … jumping ship… altering my housing supplier. Some of you may be thinking of jumping up and down in joyous exuberance, while others might be crying deep within. While I protest more vehemently towards the first group, BOTH reactions are quite unwarranted in this case. I’m not moving very far. In fact, my new place is hardly ten minutes walk from my old place. I dare say that if I were exceptionally strong with my throwing arm, I may be able to fling a bag of moist manure at my old [...] Continue Reading…

It’s not everyone who can hold a drink. And no, I’m not talking about the fading art of balancing the wine glass. I was talking about the less literal, more common, and definitely more fun ritual most of our town toast to. Some people have iron, rust-proof chambers in their stomach that keeps them sober even if the drinks pour in directly from the assembly line. And then there are people like me who get that tipsy feeling right after the first cocktail.

And I’m blessed enough to know people from either spectrum. I have a friend whose tipping point [...] Continue Reading…

Regular readers of this site would know of the cold war and subsequent status quo between Hamish and his relatives over the quest for marital bliss. For those who came in late, I am at a stage in life where I put up trenches and shout “hold your fort” to imaginary comrades in the vain attempt to hold back the crushing force of aunts, uncles, cousins and parents, who feel it’s about time I start thinking about a significant other.

Now, I am not completely averse to the idea. Certainly, the proper life for a straight-shooting dude demands a [...] Continue Reading…

Those who know Hamish Joy are qualified to testify under oath - “Hammy? Oh, he’s Christian, I think, but he’s not really that religious, if you know what I mean.” Sure, I say ‘God’ and ‘Jesus Christ’, pretty often, but it is more frequently used as stress busting expressions than actual words of prayer. And just to make the record clear, I do NOT use the lord’s name in vain! The stress DOES get busted most of the time.

It would, therefore, make some people raise their eyebrows all the way up to their bald spot if they learn that [...] Continue Reading…

It’s really been no mystery… He’s had it in for me ever since the puddle I slipped in during high school. He has been a nameless foe fighting from afar, laughing in my face for I-don’t-know-how-long, but this is the first time I am documenting one of our fights. And I’d urge you to read very carefully. Because unlike most of my posts, there is a moral to this story, and it might help you sometime in life.

The Rain God has been a faceless opponent hitting me with showers every chance he got. You may be thinking “Oh, come [...] Continue Reading…

A cellular phone is more or less the norm for the people of today. You can’t throw a brick around Bangalore without knocking off somebody’s cellphone, crushing the teeny lil thing and eventually getting sued for a helluvalotta money. It is the cultural norm and a workplace necessity; the default gadget of popular askance. When people ask ME whether I have a mobile phone, however, I get to answer “yes” as well as “no” without compromising on my honesty. I have a mobile phone, yes, but I have been using the service of Spice Telecom.

Now Spice is a special [...] Continue Reading…

“What would you do if you had an unlimited amount of money?”. I was recently asked by my bespectacled cousin. It was a serious question; not the kind I could have slipped by with flippant answers like “Buy off the legal system and go ramming traffic police-vehicles with my customized Ferrari.” Now, unlimited financial freedom is too heavy a concept for my brain cell. My answers seemed to stem around the ridiculously simple ones.

“Hmm… Unlimited amount of money, eh? I’d start some business, invest my money…”
“Eh? Why? Dude, you don’t need any more money. You have an UNLIMITED supply”
“Oh. [...] Continue Reading…

I just bought a brand new laptop. I don’t really know how it looks like, I don’t know the configuration, and I don’t really know how much it cost me. All I know is that I have indeed bought a laptop, and that my buddy, Nash, feels it was a great bargain. For reasons undisclosed, Nash was packed and couriered by his company to the US of A for a period of three weeks, which is the accepted maximum duration any given geography has been able to withstand. This felt like a great opportunity; all I needed was to [...] Continue Reading…

The lighting was artificial, far from sufficient to navigate the terrain confidently. But he was thanful for whatever illumination it provided. The very thought of walking on the uncertain terrain in the dark brought a shudder to his spine. It was hard enough as it was.

His eyes darted across the place. Piles of random junk strewn sporadically. No apparent sense of order. No easy way to search for ANYTHING. If you lose something here, he reasoned, it has a good chance of never being found again. Not even by him, and he was reasonably familiar with the turf.  After [...] Continue Reading…