Destination Infinity's Blog, page 29
July 31, 2018
Selfie with Somdev Devvarman :D
Somdev Devvarman, as you know, has been the No. 1 Singles Tennis player in India for quite sometime. Today, I got an opportunity to take a Selfie photo with him at the SDAT Nungambakkam Stadium, Chennai, as he came to the promote the Marina Open 2 – Indian Wheelchair Tennis Tour event.
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PS: Woohoooo 
Marina Open 2 (Indian Wheelchair Tennis Tour) @ SDAT, Chennai
IWTT (Indian Wheelchair Tennis Tour) and Aastha are organising the Marina Open 2 Tennis tournament for wheelchair-bound people. This tournament is scheduled to be held at SDAT Stadium, Nungambakkam, Chennai.
Dates: August 1 to August 4, 2018.
Timings: 9 A.M. to 4 P.M.
Entry: Free of cost.
I made the above video to help the organisers promote the event and I also went to the press release function held on July 31, 2018 at SDAT Stadium, Nungambakkam. Below is a video I made to show you all the glimpses from the Press Release & Player Registration function. Psst… Somdev Devvarman, the former Indian No. 1 Singles Tennis player is speaking in this video!!
Here is the Official Press Release –
31st July 2018
II Marina Open AITA Ranking Wheelchair Tennis Tournament Begins
A record 42 players are to participate in the second edition of the Marina Open AITA Ranking Wheelchair Tennis Tournament to begin on Wednesday, 1st August at 9 a.m. at the well-known SDAT Tennis Stadium, Chennai.
Mr. C.B.N. Reddy, Hon. Secretary, TNTA said Tennis is a game for all – able and differently abled. He said that these events should also be held in the districts. He appreciates ASTHA founder Mr. Sunil Jain for his untiring efforts to promote the tournament.
Sunil Jain, a Chartered Accountant from Bangalore and Founder of ASTHA Foundation said that the Wheelchair Tournament will the beneficial for the disable will be held year after year. We thank the Sponsors especially the Main Sponsor L & T for Contributing wholeheartedly to the cause. The fact that the number of entries has increased from 32 to 36 among Men and 6 to 8 entries for Women denotes the steady and growing popularity of the Sport. He also thanked the other supporters Canara Bank, Apollo Hospital and FM Fever.
Somdev Dev Varman, India’s former Top Tennis Star hailed the development of Wheelchair Tennis in India. It was important that sport of Tennis spread far and wide and included the disabled. He was confident that in time these players will also make a mark in the International sphere.
Paneesh Rao, Head of HR, L & T Technology said “It gives us immense pleasure to support this great initiative of Wheelchair Tennis In India and partner with Indian Wheelchair Tennis Tour in achieving the vision of producing Indian players amongst the Top 100 in the world in this category.”
Nar Singh of AITA who is in charge of wheelchair Tennis development in India appreciated the organisers for conduct of the National Ranking Tournament once again this year. He said that annual conduct of such events augurs well for the sport.
Mr. Hiten Joshi, Tournament Director highlighted the salient features of the tournament. The number of entries for the Men’s event was 36 and the top seed is Shekar Veeraswamy of Karnataka. Tamil Nadu is represented by eleven players S. Balachandar seed 2 and D. Mariappan seed 4 are leading the Challenge. In the Women’s Event, there were a total of 8 entrants with Prathima Rao of Karnataka being the top seed. Other in the fray are K.P. Shilpa of Karnataka and Khushbu Ganatra of Maharashtra
The Men’s Winner will get 30 points and the Runner Up will get 22 points while the Women’s Winner will get 15 points and the Runner Up 12 points. The Men’s Doubles events will also be conducted. The tournament carries a total Prize Money of Rs. 2, 32,000/-.
The first and second rounds of the Men’s Singles and the Round Robin matches in the Women’s event will be played best of 17 games and from quarterfinals onwards the matches will be played best of 3 sets.
The Finals will to be played on Saturday, 4th August 2018
July 30, 2018
Drone Camera in India: To Buy or Not to Buy
Over the last few days, I have been searching the Internet on what people think about buying and using an entry-level drone camera in India. I would want to use it mostly for personal/recreational purposes but sometimes I may want to take it to a few events to get short photo/video snippets from a different angle.
Looks like this question is more complex than it sounds.
In fact, one major online publisher even wrote that it’s legal to buy a drone in India, but illegal to use it! Drone pilots are facing problems at multiple places across India – the Internet is filled with such stories.
It seems any drone weighing more than 250 grams needs to be registered with Govt. authorities along with region of use and purpose, and a drone pilot license needs to be obtained. Not sure how easy or difficult that is as there is not much info online, but the very concept is discouraging. It seems most commercial users are buying it online and using it illegally, but I don’t want to do that.
So I went on to evaluate drones weighing less than 250 grams which are categorised as “Toy Drones” that don’t need any license.
I found only one entry-level drone camera that was good enough – The DJI Tello. Although this one has good navigation and controls, it supports only 720p video resolution (not 1080p) and streams video data to the phone over WiFi (where it is saved) due to which there is data loss and visible pixellation – sometimes. I wish they had included the memory card and GPS features in it.
Here is the Promo Video for DJI Tello (Actually Ryze Tello that incorporates DJI tech) –
I hope some company will make slightly better quality “Toy drones” in India within that 250 grams limit. Until then, all my drone scene-puttifying dreams will have to remain as dreams only 
July 27, 2018
India’s Best Travel Destinations
Travelling makes you a different person and brings out the best of you. Be it solo travel, a couple traveling together or a family trip, it is always great to spend some time in a serene and secluded place, and maybe capture the moments you spend there to save special memories in a photo album.
If you’re looking for some travel ideas, here are some must-visit travel destinations you should definitely explore in India.
Leh, J&K
Leh lies in the beautiful division of Ladakh in Jammu & Kashmir. The barren mountains, lush green valleys and snow-fed rivers paint a serene picture at the top of the Himalayas. Leh has a lot to offer, especially for solo travellers. Leh is a safe place to travel for men and women alike. A solo trip to this place will induce you to put on your exploration hats and get closer to Himalayan tribes, beautiful destinations, spirituality and yourself.
Jaisalmer, Rajasthan
Jaisalmer in Rajasthan is surrounded by sand dunes of the Thar Desert. Taking a solo trip to this place will bring you to a whole new culture with musical nights right in the middle of the desert while the Milky Way shines above. Camping amid vast sand dunes, maybe a camel ride in the evening and rendezvous with the locals in Rajasthan is every solo traveller’s dream. The hospitality of Rajasthan is surely not to be missed.
Munnar, Kerala
Trekking, mountain biking, spotting rare animals, you name it, and Munnar is ready to offer all of it to you. For couples, roaming through tea estates and staying in tree houses is the best experience one can have here. Munnar opens up a whole new south India to couples. You can also ride on a Shikara on Kundala lake. For adventure junkies, Munnar offers rock climbing activities for that ultimate adrenaline rush.
Goa
Goa has proven to be the ultimate honeymoon destination for newlyweds. Couples find Goa interestingly attractive and a great place to get to know each other better. The non-conservative environment of Goa helps people open up to each other better which is why honeymooning couples find this place the most suitable one to bring them closer to each other. From strolling on the beaches to visiting churches, Goa has a lot of places where one can just take a step back and think about themselves and the world around them.
Port Blair, Andaman Islands
Ignored a lot of times, the Andaman Islands in India also form perfect holiday destinations for families. These islands offer adventure sports, scenic resorts and recreation areas for the whole family to have fun and enjoy themselves. You can shop till you drop while the kids get to know a bit more about the father of the nation at Gandhi Park. The Andaman Islands are a great way to escape from the usual and explore a new place altogether, while staying in India.
Kaziranga National Park, Assam
If your kids love knowing more about animals and if you are a wildlife junky, Kaziranga National Park in the northeastern part of India will surely be a destination you’d want to come back to time and again. Kaziranga National Park houses the one-horned Rhino along with a variety of other animals and birds. Take a jeep safari and explore them all with your family. The area also includes the largest river Island in the world called Majuli. You can also get a peek into the famous Assamese tea estates.
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You cannot have enough of all these destinations which is why most people like to click them and print the photos to make it into a beautiful holiday photo album, which you can do with Photojaanic. And of course, there’s always the option of revisiting the destination again!
Book Launch ~ SPONGE: Leadership Lessons I Learnt From My Clients
This is a press release.
Brand Strategist and author, Ambi Parameswaran, will be launching his latest book – SPONGE: Leadership Lessons I Learnt From My Clients at MMA Management Centre, Chennai on Wednesday, 01st August 2018 at 6:00 PM.
Ambi will be in conversation with S Mahalingam, Former CFO & Executive Director, Tata Consultancy services & Ramesh Ramanathan, Managing Director, Sterling Resorts India Ltd.
SPONGE is an attempt to present the interesting conversations Ambi has had with the doyens of the corporate world, in an easy to read anecdotal form. The book is for corporate executives, management students and anyone interested to learn more about the world of business and marketing.
With Ambi, Mahalingam & Ramesh, you can expect an insightful and eventful evening! Seating on first come, first served basis, so do come early.
Host : Madras Management Association.
Venue: MMA Management Centre(Google Maps link), No.240 Pathari Road (Off Anna Salai), Chennai-6.
Date: Wednesday, 01st August 2018.
Time: 6:00 PM.
Entry: Free of cost.
July 26, 2018
My New Promo Video
Here is my new promo video for wowsuper.net. Howzzz itt?
For Indian Startups: Next Big Idea Contest 2018
Today I went to the ‘Next Big Idea Contest 2018‘ Chennai-launch event at Atworks Co-working campus, Guindy. This contest is for innovative technology startup companies looking to expand to the North American market.
According to the organisers – Zone Startups India & Ontario, Canada this contest offers winners an all-expense paid two-week market access program to three cities in Canada to explore Canada’s startup & innovation ecosystem; incubation opportunity; customer, investor & partner connections.
The speakers from Canadian Govt. mentioned that Canada provides an easier gateway to the larger North American market, including the U.S. market which maybe difficult for entrepreneurs to access directly.
They also mentioned that since Canada is a multi-cultural country, it welcomes immigrants more openly than their Southern counterpart. It seems the cost of doing business is lower in Canada and they have good University and talented workforce within the country. Besides, they’re expecting to welcome more than a million skilled immigrants in the near future.
They told us that one of Canada’s main focus is Artificial Intelligence, so if you are a startup focused on AI, you might want to tap into their ecosystem.
The state of British Columbia in Canada offers a Startup Visa program. They also offer grants like BC Tech Fund, CIIP Innovation Fund & GGI. So if you are looking to expand in Canada, you would want to look at Vancouver @ British Columbia, according to their spokesperson today.
So if you are a Startup wanting to participate in this contest, make sure you apply to this program before August 31, 2018 on the NBI 2018 website. 
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July 22, 2018
3D Print Yourself or Someone else!
Today we went to the Image Expo photography exhibition at the Chennai Trade Centre. While we found many useful products and services related to photography, one of them stood out.
That was the 3D Printing service launched at this expo by ikix My 3D. They had displayed many 3D printed models at the expo and you can see some of them in the above collage. It seems, if we send our photos, they can 3D print us or someone else on ceramic (I guess). Ain’t that cool?
A 3D printed model of someone will make a great gift, don’t you think? Actually I was aware of a few services that make such models using craftsmen, which we considered as a gifting option for a relative’s wedding. But we decided against it because of the long delivery time and our late planning.
It’s now good to see gifting as an application of 3D printing slowly reach the common man. 3D printing has many more applications, of which industrial and architectural applications are catching up fast.
According to the company’s brochure, you can contact +91-7824878248 or send an email to ikix@my3d.in in case you want to enquire about their services or buy from them.
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Disclaimer: This website is not associated or affiliated to the above mentioned company/service in anyway. Make sure to verify their claims, credentials, quality of products, and other terms before buying. This article is for information only and is not a recommendation.
July 12, 2018
Tamil Padam 2 = S.U.P.E.R. F.U.N. (Review)
Tamil Padam 2 is S.U.P.E.R. F.U.N.
I think it’s better to watch the movie in the theater as the crowd’s enthusiasm catches upon you as well. You can enjoy more if you’ve been watching other hit movies recently (particularly Tamil films). But even otherwise, it’s a marana kalai of new/old Tamil movies, English movies (Yes), Politics, and even e-commerce 
July 10, 2018
Tik Tik Tik is an Excellent Movie. Watch it in the Theater!
Tik Tik Tik is a GOOD MOVIE. Just watched it at Rohini Complex and I think all of us should watch it in the cinemas. We should encourage bold, experimental movies like this, especially from Kollywood!
There may be a few logical flaws and many scenes may be unbelievable. But the movie worked as a whole and the story was gripping enough to keep me engaged.
The CG work was comparable to Hollywood standards. I am glad to see such good work in a Tamil movie. What we don’t know is, there are studios that routinely work for Hollywood from here and they have produced excellent graphics earlier too.
Tik Tik Tik deserves to be the first decent Space Movie from India. Thankfully, my fan video made many months ago, did not go waste 
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