Tushar Mangl's Blog, page 36
March 30, 2015
What's Happening?
Life is good. At least it looks good. I am residing in the capital region of India these days and its turning out to be a good ride.
Back home Punjab is a wealthy state. Here the glamor of money is different. Its like India was never a poor country.
But I miss writing. Really do. Shifting here has paused development of all my upcoming books. And it makes me very sad. Soon however a new book would be launched. I am scraping away time and collecting my focus. Spring motivates you to write like nothing else. I wrote both The Thakur Boy and The Avenging Act in spring of 2007 and the weather always makes me yearn to write more.
Food here is awesome and I have rediscovered the foodie in me.
Back home Punjab is a wealthy state. Here the glamor of money is different. Its like India was never a poor country.
But I miss writing. Really do. Shifting here has paused development of all my upcoming books. And it makes me very sad. Soon however a new book would be launched. I am scraping away time and collecting my focus. Spring motivates you to write like nothing else. I wrote both The Thakur Boy and The Avenging Act in spring of 2007 and the weather always makes me yearn to write more.
Food here is awesome and I have rediscovered the foodie in me.
March 27, 2015
The other day in the Delhi Metro
"So, I have more than 20 years work experience now." The man was boasting to a his companion and fellow traveller about his work. The speaker was short, plump and wore a shirt that might have been in fashion in the 1970's. I suddenly woke up from some thought as I realized my station was near and in this crowded train I found this story interesting.
The man went on, "So in Secundarabad I was working in this PSU years ago, when they offered me VRS." Now VRS is the voluntary retirement scheme offered to employees to take some money and retire.
The listener was a young man, in polos and jeans and was simply awed by this elder personality.
" And after a year or so, I got hired back to my old post." I was amused at this. Retired and back. "But how could they hire you back? After retiring you I mean?" And what happened to that money you took for VRS from govt coffers? I wanted to ask him. The man just gave a sly smile. His oiled moustache suddenly looked bigger. " Anyway I worked for few years, retired again and moved into the private sector. Been here ever since. " The young man simply nodded perhaps like me wondering about his own career path. As if to puncture such thoughts, the man spoke again "20 years now, I am 57 or 58 now." It came down more as a question than a statement.
One of the good things about Delhi Metro is the continuous announcements. So as soon as the lady announced that my station is next I got up from my seat in a hurry. And tried my best not to look back at the grey and black haired man and think of my life in middle age
The man went on, "So in Secundarabad I was working in this PSU years ago, when they offered me VRS." Now VRS is the voluntary retirement scheme offered to employees to take some money and retire.
The listener was a young man, in polos and jeans and was simply awed by this elder personality.
" And after a year or so, I got hired back to my old post." I was amused at this. Retired and back. "But how could they hire you back? After retiring you I mean?" And what happened to that money you took for VRS from govt coffers? I wanted to ask him. The man just gave a sly smile. His oiled moustache suddenly looked bigger. " Anyway I worked for few years, retired again and moved into the private sector. Been here ever since. " The young man simply nodded perhaps like me wondering about his own career path. As if to puncture such thoughts, the man spoke again "20 years now, I am 57 or 58 now." It came down more as a question than a statement.
One of the good things about Delhi Metro is the continuous announcements. So as soon as the lady announced that my station is next I got up from my seat in a hurry. And tried my best not to look back at the grey and black haired man and think of my life in middle age
February 4, 2015
Book Review Ramayana Game of Life #2 Shattered Dreams
I was reading the first book of Ramayana By Shubha Vilas for the second time when I received the email that I had been chosen to review the second book in the series as well. My first reaction was like 'finaly' the book is out. The first book was simply great but it was just the beginning of a story that changes your life.
The second part starts off with King Dashratha deciding to abdicate his throne in favor of his son Rama. What follows is a series of jubilation and unfortunate heart breaks. This is the beauty of Ramayana. We know how it starts and ends still love to read it again and again.
Also interesting are the facts and stories that are in between. Shubha Vilas masterfully narrates and explains these to us. He has weaved in various forms and versions of Ramyana, from Valmiki's Ramcharitmanas to Kamba Ramyana and other popular versions of the legendary tale.
As in the first book I liked the idea of footnotes. They are something to look forward to. Each of them are like little gems of wisdom. We move in from Rama's marriage which we read in the first book to Ram's coronation and exile. Like I said before it breaks many hearts but it also shows us inspiration in form of characters like Sita, Bharata, Lakshman. Each one in their own way showing a strength of character which we should emulate in ourselves. Then we have other interesting people in the story like Urmila, Lakshman's wife who pays a heavy price of her elder brother in law's exile.
The book is a treasure of knowledge and their is nothing in it that won't teach you something. The narration is very precise and exact. Their is no overload of mythology or preachings. Plain simple facts and statements.
The second part starts off with King Dashratha deciding to abdicate his throne in favor of his son Rama. What follows is a series of jubilation and unfortunate heart breaks. This is the beauty of Ramayana. We know how it starts and ends still love to read it again and again.
Also interesting are the facts and stories that are in between. Shubha Vilas masterfully narrates and explains these to us. He has weaved in various forms and versions of Ramyana, from Valmiki's Ramcharitmanas to Kamba Ramyana and other popular versions of the legendary tale.
As in the first book I liked the idea of footnotes. They are something to look forward to. Each of them are like little gems of wisdom. We move in from Rama's marriage which we read in the first book to Ram's coronation and exile. Like I said before it breaks many hearts but it also shows us inspiration in form of characters like Sita, Bharata, Lakshman. Each one in their own way showing a strength of character which we should emulate in ourselves. Then we have other interesting people in the story like Urmila, Lakshman's wife who pays a heavy price of her elder brother in law's exile.
The book is a treasure of knowledge and their is nothing in it that won't teach you something. The narration is very precise and exact. Their is no overload of mythology or preachings. Plain simple facts and statements.
January 26, 2015
Rajeshwari's story of courage and dare
When I was reading the details of the activity at BlogAdda, Use Your And, one thing that instantly struck me was Rajeshwari and her story. It seems apt for me to bring it here to share it with you all.
Hers was an arranged marriage. There was love and long vacations. Life was good and Rajeshwari enjoyed an enviable social position.Her husband was a well known industrialist. Until one day wh
en an accident claimed Sunil's life. Her world was shattered. Not even in her wildest dreams she could have imagined being a young widow. Coping up was extremely hard. She shut down the doors of her heart and home to anyone who came knocking.
What she didn't know that the worse was yet to come. Bankers, not confident about Sunil's company anymore started calling in the loans. There were rumors about financial bungling by some company officials. Up til now, Rajeshwari hadn't even bothered to know much about her husband's business. As a habit he seldom talked about his work. And she had never asked. Now she wished she would have had asked.
Slowly, she came out of her grief and decided to run the plant herself. The bankers smirked and scoffed. The officials of the company sniggered at the suggestion. How can she, a housewife till now run her husband's business? Even her relatives suggested to close the business down and save as much money as she could.
But she persevered and worked hard. Today the same company is even larger than what Sunil had left behind. The same people who had once doubted her intelligence were left in awe. She has won a lot of awards and recognition by top organizations worldwide.
“This post is a part of #UseYourAnd activity at BlogAdda in association with Gillette Venus“
Hers was an arranged marriage. There was love and long vacations. Life was good and Rajeshwari enjoyed an enviable social position.Her husband was a well known industrialist. Until one day wh
en an accident claimed Sunil's life. Her world was shattered. Not even in her wildest dreams she could have imagined being a young widow. Coping up was extremely hard. She shut down the doors of her heart and home to anyone who came knocking.
What she didn't know that the worse was yet to come. Bankers, not confident about Sunil's company anymore started calling in the loans. There were rumors about financial bungling by some company officials. Up til now, Rajeshwari hadn't even bothered to know much about her husband's business. As a habit he seldom talked about his work. And she had never asked. Now she wished she would have had asked.
Slowly, she came out of her grief and decided to run the plant herself. The bankers smirked and scoffed. The officials of the company sniggered at the suggestion. How can she, a housewife till now run her husband's business? Even her relatives suggested to close the business down and save as much money as she could.
But she persevered and worked hard. Today the same company is even larger than what Sunil had left behind. The same people who had once doubted her intelligence were left in awe. She has won a lot of awards and recognition by top organizations worldwide.
“This post is a part of #UseYourAnd activity at BlogAdda in association with Gillette Venus“
January 24, 2015
The story of Lila and her courage
She had been working at our apartment building for months and still I never knew her name. Yes, our paths did come across but I seldom talked to her or even gave instructions. They way she wished to clean and wash, was OK with me. One day Mrs. Bannerjee who lives on the third floor (I think) met me on the stairs and asked, "Did Lila come to work today?" I do not know the Bannerjees well enough, and her striking a conversation seemed odd to me. I just said a no and moved on.
It was only when I had entered my apartment did it strike to me, Lila. So her name was Lila. Maybe the watchman had told me her name, when I had hired her. I was not even paying attention then. All I needed was my apartment clean, my utensils and crockery washed.
As if on the cue, she knocked and entered the apartment. I couldn't help but notice that her eyes were puffy and red.Now as you know by now I have a very impersonal relation with the maid. Its not about employer employee thing, its just that I am far too occupied in mornings to talk to anyone leave aside the lady whose name I never bothered to remember.
What do you do, when the only other person in the room has a sad face? You get curious and ask the story.
Lila was married off at 16 to a guy from the neighboring village. A couple of years later, Ramesh her husband brought her to the city where he worked as a driver. She took up the job as a maid not by choice but because Ramesh forced her to. He never failed to explain to her how much economic burden she was on him. She took up the odd jobs and struggled on her own as the babies arrived. For whatever she earned, most of it went to feed not her children but Ramesh's liqor habits.
I guess you now know what followed. The beatings when she refused to part her hard earned money. Exploitation of women for money is not new in India. We have been perfecting and improvising this art for centuries.
Except that her Lila showed exceptional courage. Not minding the taunts of her society, the snide remarks of her relatives, she threw her husband out of the tiny house she lived in. This room was given to her by our building manager to live in. Soon Ramesh had quit his job to enjoy the perks and money his wife earned.
I remember what she told me that fateful morning, " I love my husband. I love him very much. But I love my children more. I love my work more than my marriage. You know why saab? I get so much respect, money and all of my employers are so nice to me. I work hard and and can educate my children. Is this wrong?"
I never answered that question and still feel guilty of not being able to express my admiration for the courage she had. At that moment, someone called me on my phone and soon I was immersed in the hustle and bustle of my work. Now I keep giving her unused diaries and pens I get from work for her children.
I really salute this woman here for rising up the life's challenge and taking a decision on her own strength.
“This post is a part of #UseYourAnd activity at BlogAdda in association with Gillette Venus“.
It was only when I had entered my apartment did it strike to me, Lila. So her name was Lila. Maybe the watchman had told me her name, when I had hired her. I was not even paying attention then. All I needed was my apartment clean, my utensils and crockery washed.
As if on the cue, she knocked and entered the apartment. I couldn't help but notice that her eyes were puffy and red.Now as you know by now I have a very impersonal relation with the maid. Its not about employer employee thing, its just that I am far too occupied in mornings to talk to anyone leave aside the lady whose name I never bothered to remember.
What do you do, when the only other person in the room has a sad face? You get curious and ask the story.
Lila was married off at 16 to a guy from the neighboring village. A couple of years later, Ramesh her husband brought her to the city where he worked as a driver. She took up the job as a maid not by choice but because Ramesh forced her to. He never failed to explain to her how much economic burden she was on him. She took up the odd jobs and struggled on her own as the babies arrived. For whatever she earned, most of it went to feed not her children but Ramesh's liqor habits.
I guess you now know what followed. The beatings when she refused to part her hard earned money. Exploitation of women for money is not new in India. We have been perfecting and improvising this art for centuries.
Except that her Lila showed exceptional courage. Not minding the taunts of her society, the snide remarks of her relatives, she threw her husband out of the tiny house she lived in. This room was given to her by our building manager to live in. Soon Ramesh had quit his job to enjoy the perks and money his wife earned.
I remember what she told me that fateful morning, " I love my husband. I love him very much. But I love my children more. I love my work more than my marriage. You know why saab? I get so much respect, money and all of my employers are so nice to me. I work hard and and can educate my children. Is this wrong?"
I never answered that question and still feel guilty of not being able to express my admiration for the courage she had. At that moment, someone called me on my phone and soon I was immersed in the hustle and bustle of my work. Now I keep giving her unused diaries and pens I get from work for her children.
I really salute this woman here for rising up the life's challenge and taking a decision on her own strength.
“This post is a part of #UseYourAnd activity at BlogAdda in association with Gillette Venus“.
December 22, 2014
Immigrant
I am an immigrant
A Mexican in New York
A Pole in London
A Nepalese in Mumbai
I run, I chase
I strive, I thrive
I am an inspiration if I make wealth
I am an outcast otherwise
The locals hate me much
But their survival is all thanks to me
I am the wheel on which their cities run
Like a wheel I roll and run
Carrying the burdens of all
I am an immigrant
This city is not mine
These streets don't have my home
Do I belong here?
It is what my soul asks me everyday
A Mexican in New York
A Pole in London
A Nepalese in Mumbai
I run, I chase
I strive, I thrive
I am an inspiration if I make wealth
I am an outcast otherwise
The locals hate me much
But their survival is all thanks to me
I am the wheel on which their cities run
Like a wheel I roll and run
Carrying the burdens of all
I am an immigrant
This city is not mine
These streets don't have my home
Do I belong here?
It is what my soul asks me everyday
December 7, 2014
Do away with classroom hunger
In India, we need modernization of education. It is just not a need but an urgent necessity. We have to educate our young ones and equip them with knowledge. Then and only then can India become a force to reckon with. Only then can we overcome the multiple problems being faced by our society.
Food is one thing that is stopping the spread of education. Ravi is a bright student. His parents are poor, daily wagers working at a construction site. They are very vocal about the need of education for their son, even though they get a lot of job offers for their 12 year old son. They want him to study hard as they believe it is with education that he could buy a house like the ones they build but can never afford to live in. But despite that his results are not very impressive. They give him full marks for dedication, they feel he is focused, the family atmosphere is supportive, still something is stopping his intellectual growth.
I guess you would have guessed it by now. Its hunger. Plain and simple. Let me tell you more about Ravi's schedule. He wakes up at 5 a.m. in the morning to go to a school, 25 minutes away from his house. His parents don't own a gas connection and lighting an angeethi so early in the morning can be a daunting task. Mostly, he does away with breakfast. Or just grabs a biscuit or bun. Then he walks over twenty five minutes to school. Just imagine, you walk almost empty stomach for twenty five minutes or so and then sit down to learn algebra, grammar, politics, etc.
Hunger is stopping the growth of Ravi and thousands like him. We have to stop this. We need to give them good quality, nutritious food so that they can learn well and be prepared to compete in world. How sad it is that just for a few chapatis or some dal, he may not be able to achieve his goals.
What can be done here? First, we need to create awareness. We need to spread awareness so that people come forward to help. It does not take millions to help. You can just contribute a tiny sum, a meal for a day or volunteer to make a difference. Another thing that should be done is to take the Mid Day meal scheme for school children away from govt control and make it more society controlled. Daily, we hear of so many incidents of poisonings and rampant corruption. So the money is there. All that is now needed is the will, the will of the educated middle class to come forward and volunteer to help run these schemes better.
Once we combat these challenges, what will be the impact? A better, advanced society of knowledgeable individuals. People who are ready to deal with whatever that is pulling our society backwards.
I am going to #BlogToFeedAChild with Akshaya Patra and BlogAdda.
Food is one thing that is stopping the spread of education. Ravi is a bright student. His parents are poor, daily wagers working at a construction site. They are very vocal about the need of education for their son, even though they get a lot of job offers for their 12 year old son. They want him to study hard as they believe it is with education that he could buy a house like the ones they build but can never afford to live in. But despite that his results are not very impressive. They give him full marks for dedication, they feel he is focused, the family atmosphere is supportive, still something is stopping his intellectual growth.
I guess you would have guessed it by now. Its hunger. Plain and simple. Let me tell you more about Ravi's schedule. He wakes up at 5 a.m. in the morning to go to a school, 25 minutes away from his house. His parents don't own a gas connection and lighting an angeethi so early in the morning can be a daunting task. Mostly, he does away with breakfast. Or just grabs a biscuit or bun. Then he walks over twenty five minutes to school. Just imagine, you walk almost empty stomach for twenty five minutes or so and then sit down to learn algebra, grammar, politics, etc.
Hunger is stopping the growth of Ravi and thousands like him. We have to stop this. We need to give them good quality, nutritious food so that they can learn well and be prepared to compete in world. How sad it is that just for a few chapatis or some dal, he may not be able to achieve his goals.
What can be done here? First, we need to create awareness. We need to spread awareness so that people come forward to help. It does not take millions to help. You can just contribute a tiny sum, a meal for a day or volunteer to make a difference. Another thing that should be done is to take the Mid Day meal scheme for school children away from govt control and make it more society controlled. Daily, we hear of so many incidents of poisonings and rampant corruption. So the money is there. All that is now needed is the will, the will of the educated middle class to come forward and volunteer to help run these schemes better.
Once we combat these challenges, what will be the impact? A better, advanced society of knowledgeable individuals. People who are ready to deal with whatever that is pulling our society backwards.
I am going to #BlogToFeedAChild with Akshaya Patra and BlogAdda.
November 29, 2014
Oh! Why didn't I shave?
It was a routine Sunday afternoon. Brunch was leftover Pizza from the previous night. At the time she called I was doing my laundry. A pretty boring task, if you ask me but then you need clean undies man. Anyways coming back to the point. She called me up and said, "hey, I am at JN market right now, if you can come within 15 minutes, we can meet." If a girl as pretty as Snigdha as you to meet her in next 15 minwutes, will you say no to her? Of course not. I said yes. Left the laundry on the bathroom floor, had a rushed shower and ran my way to JN Market. The market is not very far from where I live But you know girls right. They will call you, suddenly out of the blue and ask for things you can't say no to.
Snigdha and I had met at a mutual friend's birthday treat and things went quite well from there on. Except the first kiss. We talked on phone a lot, went on long dates. My fingers ached with all that messaging, for that one smily from her made my heart melt.
But no kiss so far. We both were just going with a flow, but I knew that the opportunity was coming. And I was pretty sure that today would be the lucky day.
And it went so fine. Sitting in the plush coffee shop, way after our mojitos were finished, we looked into each other's eye dreamily. She placed her fingers on my cheek and I moved forward.
She suddenly moved back and said, " you haven't shaved today?"
Believe me guys it was so embarrassing. Here I was on the cusp of a great kiss with the most beautiful woman ever and she remarks on my stubble.
This post is a part of #WillYouShave activity on BlogAdda in association with Gillette
Snigdha and I had met at a mutual friend's birthday treat and things went quite well from there on. Except the first kiss. We talked on phone a lot, went on long dates. My fingers ached with all that messaging, for that one smily from her made my heart melt.
But no kiss so far. We both were just going with a flow, but I knew that the opportunity was coming. And I was pretty sure that today would be the lucky day.
And it went so fine. Sitting in the plush coffee shop, way after our mojitos were finished, we looked into each other's eye dreamily. She placed her fingers on my cheek and I moved forward.
She suddenly moved back and said, " you haven't shaved today?"
Believe me guys it was so embarrassing. Here I was on the cusp of a great kiss with the most beautiful woman ever and she remarks on my stubble.
This post is a part of #WillYouShave activity on BlogAdda in association with Gillette
November 2, 2014
Quikr Shopping Fiesta - Got a new RedMi
Hey all,
I just got a new Red Mi phone from Quickr.Com. And here goes my story of purchasing a product for the first time from Quickr.com. So, as you know this new Redmi phone from Xiaomi (Often called the Apple of China) is flooding the Indian market with its amazing features and great price. I had an eye on this product but on Flipkart it sells out too quickly. It is virtually out of stock. So I thought of trying to buy a phone over quickr. People say, it has a lot of a variety and a lot of phones are up for sale from people who no longer want to use their phones.
So my hunt began on quickr.com home page. It had an option for choosing a location which I set up as Delhi. And Oh My God, there were so many options. As in, you can buy any phone of any make or model. For my nominal budget I could buy any phone. I researched various phones which I could buy. Research looked like an uphill task but it was quite easy because of the navigation panes on the left hand side of the page. For example, I wanted to see phones according to manufacturer name. So, I kept checking one by one and looked out for the bargains for each handset. Just because I had a preference for Xiaomi does not mean I could not look out for other options. Then there are other options like price range, features etc. to help you to look for things in a structured way. There are a lot of postings from dealers. But I was not very enthusiastic to buy from a dealer. So there is this option where you can choose between postings from individuals or dealers or both. Just check an option and move on. These selections are very important for the sheer volume of postings on Quickr. If you check on the options, one you are able to be specific in your search and second, you are able to eliminate a lot of listings which would be of no interest to you.
The category list was
http://delhi.quikr.com/Mobile-Phones/w635?dtfilter=1&pageType=last
Finally, I shortlisted about seven ads and called them all up. Two ads were such, where number was out of reach or did not exist. In any case I used that button they have, to reply to this ad. It is such a simple tool, why should any call? Some of the numbers are busy or people are busy. I say, just type in a message and drop it off for the ad poster to read and reply. So one by one I contacted all sellers. Mostly I focused on Xiaomi Red Mi, but I also called up for Moto E phone and Micromax handsets. With the Micromax one, I was not satisfied with the product specs, so I politely told the guy no. For Moto E phone, the person selling was visiting a relative who was sick in Faridabad, so I told him I will call him back, in case he come back early. In the meantime I queried other people.
It was then that I got a call from this guy Umesh. He was one of the sellers whom I could not contact due to number being not reachable. He had received my message with my contact number and so had called me back. I liked his way of explaining things, especially when I told him his number was not reachable he said, he might have made a mistake in the number he had listed. So while on call only, he checked and explained that yes he had made a mistake. I asked him his location in Pitampura that was the place he told me he lived at. He suggested we meet at Netaji Subash Place in Pitampura. I immediately agreed for I was heading towards Delhi Haat, which is directly opposite to Netaji Subhash Place.
[image error]
We met at this place, a good eating joint, where he showed me the phone intact with box and all accessories. I asked him, for I was curious to know, why would he want to sell his new phone. Frankly, he said, “I don’t like its looks. When I purchased it, everyone was like, it is a good phone, buy it, buy it. So I registered for it and eventually bought it. I never had seen this phone with anyone so did not how it looked like. The features of the phone are fantastic, so I think you will love it.”
Well I liked the looks of the phone. It is metallic grey in color and has that rugged look that feels so rough and tough. The screen size is huge which is a huge plus for me, as I have to read blogs, messages and emails a lot on the phone. Bigger screen size facilitates reading. The 1 GB RAM thing is a good idea too, making the phone a good value buy. I chatted for a while with Umesh, then asked him to wait as I went outside to discuss with my cousin over the phone and once done, I asked Umesh to accompany me to the nearest ATM, where I withdrew the cash and handed over to him. Over all it was a value buy for me. All thanks to Quickr and Blogadda the facilitators of the campaign I am now a proud owner of a new phone.
Here are some pics of the same.
This post is a part of Quikr.com activity at BlogAdda.com
I just got a new Red Mi phone from Quickr.Com. And here goes my story of purchasing a product for the first time from Quickr.com. So, as you know this new Redmi phone from Xiaomi (Often called the Apple of China) is flooding the Indian market with its amazing features and great price. I had an eye on this product but on Flipkart it sells out too quickly. It is virtually out of stock. So I thought of trying to buy a phone over quickr. People say, it has a lot of a variety and a lot of phones are up for sale from people who no longer want to use their phones.
So my hunt began on quickr.com home page. It had an option for choosing a location which I set up as Delhi. And Oh My God, there were so many options. As in, you can buy any phone of any make or model. For my nominal budget I could buy any phone. I researched various phones which I could buy. Research looked like an uphill task but it was quite easy because of the navigation panes on the left hand side of the page. For example, I wanted to see phones according to manufacturer name. So, I kept checking one by one and looked out for the bargains for each handset. Just because I had a preference for Xiaomi does not mean I could not look out for other options. Then there are other options like price range, features etc. to help you to look for things in a structured way. There are a lot of postings from dealers. But I was not very enthusiastic to buy from a dealer. So there is this option where you can choose between postings from individuals or dealers or both. Just check an option and move on. These selections are very important for the sheer volume of postings on Quickr. If you check on the options, one you are able to be specific in your search and second, you are able to eliminate a lot of listings which would be of no interest to you.
The category list was
http://delhi.quikr.com/Mobile-Phones/w635?dtfilter=1&pageType=last
Finally, I shortlisted about seven ads and called them all up. Two ads were such, where number was out of reach or did not exist. In any case I used that button they have, to reply to this ad. It is such a simple tool, why should any call? Some of the numbers are busy or people are busy. I say, just type in a message and drop it off for the ad poster to read and reply. So one by one I contacted all sellers. Mostly I focused on Xiaomi Red Mi, but I also called up for Moto E phone and Micromax handsets. With the Micromax one, I was not satisfied with the product specs, so I politely told the guy no. For Moto E phone, the person selling was visiting a relative who was sick in Faridabad, so I told him I will call him back, in case he come back early. In the meantime I queried other people.
It was then that I got a call from this guy Umesh. He was one of the sellers whom I could not contact due to number being not reachable. He had received my message with my contact number and so had called me back. I liked his way of explaining things, especially when I told him his number was not reachable he said, he might have made a mistake in the number he had listed. So while on call only, he checked and explained that yes he had made a mistake. I asked him his location in Pitampura that was the place he told me he lived at. He suggested we meet at Netaji Subash Place in Pitampura. I immediately agreed for I was heading towards Delhi Haat, which is directly opposite to Netaji Subhash Place.
[image error]
We met at this place, a good eating joint, where he showed me the phone intact with box and all accessories. I asked him, for I was curious to know, why would he want to sell his new phone. Frankly, he said, “I don’t like its looks. When I purchased it, everyone was like, it is a good phone, buy it, buy it. So I registered for it and eventually bought it. I never had seen this phone with anyone so did not how it looked like. The features of the phone are fantastic, so I think you will love it.”
Well I liked the looks of the phone. It is metallic grey in color and has that rugged look that feels so rough and tough. The screen size is huge which is a huge plus for me, as I have to read blogs, messages and emails a lot on the phone. Bigger screen size facilitates reading. The 1 GB RAM thing is a good idea too, making the phone a good value buy. I chatted for a while with Umesh, then asked him to wait as I went outside to discuss with my cousin over the phone and once done, I asked Umesh to accompany me to the nearest ATM, where I withdrew the cash and handed over to him. Over all it was a value buy for me. All thanks to Quickr and Blogadda the facilitators of the campaign I am now a proud owner of a new phone.
Here are some pics of the same.
This post is a part of Quikr.com activity at BlogAdda.com
October 25, 2014
Book Review - God is a Gamer
I really admire the writing style of Ravi Subramanian and his book Devil in Pinstripes is one of my favorite books. His latest book God is a Gamer is another stupendous work of writing enthralling its readers all the way. The writer takes us across the globe, New York, Goa, New Delhi each destination raising the pitch of suspense and mystery.
The financial angle common to all his books is present in this one too. The story revolves around Aditya and Varun. One runs a gambling firm which is suffering losses. Another is a drug dealer. Add in bitcoins and virtual money and this thriller won't let you stop unless you read off the complete book.
This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program
at http://www.blogadda.com. Participate now to get free books!
The financial angle common to all his books is present in this one too. The story revolves around Aditya and Varun. One runs a gambling firm which is suffering losses. Another is a drug dealer. Add in bitcoins and virtual money and this thriller won't let you stop unless you read off the complete book.
This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program
at http://www.blogadda.com. Participate now to get free books!
