Monkey Business

The verdict is out and Harbhajan has been cleared of the racism charge. After the extreme drama where Mike Procter handed out the initial judgement to the constant pressures applied by the BCCI, this has been the ugliest story of the cricketing season. While the suspension was pushed away until this hearing so that the tests could proceed as planned, BCCI took to extraordinary tactics to put pressure on ICC and CA (Cricket Australia). They threatened to cancel the tour, kept their players in Adelaide etc.

Predictably, the Aussie media retaliated with criticism of the reversal of the charge against Harbhajan. They all talk about how CA & ICC bent over to accomodate BCCI. However, the Australians are missing the point. There issue snowballed because (a) Ricky Ponting decided to escalate the issue despite Kumble's suggestion not to (b) the obviously biased Mike Procter gave a horrendous decision where he took one man's word over another's. That the trusted party was white does not help matter.

Australians need to understand that this isn't the first time Indians and Asians have been at the receiving end of such treatment. The Mike Deniss incident was another case in point. It is the pent up frustration of this treatment at the hands of non-Asian teams and match referrees that has led to this.

If BCCI put on pressure, its only because ICC and CA would understand only that language. The fact is that the first judgement was wrong that the only right thing was its reversal. Is it so difficult for anyone to see? In what court of law would you proceed on one man's word over the other? If it can't be proved that Harbhajan uttered the racist comments, then obviously the charge against him is without basis. I am not a big fan of BCCI. It is a powerful yet greedy organization which has never cared for the betterment of cricket. But on this issue, I support their actions. It is a matter of national pride, an assertion of identity. Non-Asian teams have rolled over the Asians for years now with the consent of the ICC. Now, there's no need to take that kind of nonsense anymore. I can clearly see how only BCCI could have achieved this. Imagine if this would have happened with a less influential cricketing board like Sri Lanka. Do you think the player would have had a second trial and be exonerated? That being said, players like Harbhajan and Sreesanth need to be told by the BCCI to conduct themselves better on the field. For all the drama, Harbhajan had a very ordinary series and I would definitely rather pick Murali Karthik for the upcoming series against the South Africans. Put your performances where your mouth is. There is a reason no one sledges Tendulkar.

London Chronicles

As promised, here are some select photos from a stop over at London. This was an absolutely touristy stop over in the city and the photos will reflect that

1. Buckingham Palace

Waited and waited for the queen to call us in for a cup of masala chai and some farsan, but that did not happen.

Instead we were greeted by the sights of a bunch of guards going in and another coming out for the routine change of guard that draws in the crowds. Guess the guards got their dose of caffeine.

2. London Eye

London ki aankh! The slowest ferris wheel I have ever been atop. For all of thirty minutes, people get into 'capsules' that take you high and above the ground allowing for really good views of the city all around.

The light had been ordinary till then, and we weren't sure how that would affect what we will get to see. Instead we got some fantastic views of the Parliament and the Big Ben with the light peeping through the clouds as shown here.

Here's another picture from a different height and angle. I love the detail that is evident in the bridge across the river.

3. Westminster Abbey

A place for a lot of famous royal ceremonies, we missed out on seeing this from the inside because of a time clash and some unexpected closures. I didn't have too many good pictures of the outside. Here's a rare one.

4. Tower Bridge

The fun part is that I always thought this was the London bridge whose fall was being reported to the fair lady. Oh, the things you find out when you step on the actual London bridge. My camera is lousy at night shots. While a little blurred, this is still a tolerable picture.

5. Lords

My personal high point of the trip. There was a one and a half hour tour, most of which was spent in the pavilion and long room as seen in this picture. There was also a museum with the original Ashes urn. I felt like an enthusiastic kid in class, shooting my hand up to answer all the trivia questions that the tour guide was asking.

Here's a view of the media center on the other side of the ground. Fairly modern structure for a ground so old. The view from the media center itself is fantastic, since it directly overlooks the pitch. The famous Lords slope is also very evident from there.

Here's a magnificient view of the ground basking in daylight. A fantastic visit overall. Of course, it helps that my wife is also an ardent cricket fan :-)

6. Sherlock Holmes Museum

A neat idea. They constructed a Victorian era house based on the description of Sherlock Holmes' house in all his stories, and better still, situated it on Baker Street. In the house, they had a bunch of wax figurines of characters from some of his stories. Shown here is the man with the twisted lip.

7. Bath

A small town an hour and a half away from London, this is from the times when London was a Roman city. The focal point, not surprisingly is a bath, a natural hot water spring which was considered a sacred healing place by Romans. The bath itself wasn't anything major to write home about, but the structures were fairly nice.

The actual bath shown below.

8. St. Paul's Cathedral

One of London's most famous landmarks, this was a fantastic place to go see. Its marvelous to see such an old construction still retain its magnificience when surrounded by all things modern. The views from the top were also very nice. Unfortunately, there was no photography allowed inside the cathedral.

Hindi Film Songs: Best of 2007

In continuance of an annual tradition, I am back with the fourth edition of the list of my best Hindi film songs from the year. Thanks for the clamor. It makes the effort worth it.

Reiterating the disclaimers:
1. The songs aren't listed in any particular order. I have just listed them in the order in which I came across them.
2. I try to listen to each new album that comes out at least once. However, there are simply too many new movies and too many songs to follow. It is possible that some may have been omitted. In particular, I have not followed any of the December releases well since I was on vacation. I might include them next year.
3. Some of the movies will be releasing next year (eg. My name is Anthony Gonsalves) but since their songs have released this year, I am including them. Similarly, movies that released in 2007 were covered in the 2006 list if their music was out then (eg. Guru)
4. I am going to attempt to limit the number of songs per movie to two. That does not imply that there aren’t any more on the movie’s list that I like. For eg. Saawariya has more than two songs that I enjoy. I follow that rule under most circumstances just to keep the length of the list in check.

A new feature this year has been added on request. Instead of just listing the song, I am also going to attempt to provide a direct link to the song. You can click on it and hear it out. Caution: I have noticed that musicindiaonline tends to be very flaky at times, so if the link doesn’t work, scoot over to other sites, but do listen to the songs.

I am open to suggestions on songs that you think should be on the list but are missing. I am also open to debates on my choices but as is the nature of blogging, one who owns the blog has the final say. Hope you enjoy it.

Song : Chak De India
Movie : Chak De India
Music Director : Salim-Suleiman
Singers : Marianne D'Cruz, Salim Merchant, Sukhwinder Singh
Lyricist: Jaideep Sahani
Why is it on the list? : The song that rocked the nation. Its an unconventional song for an unconventional movie sung by an unconventional singer.

Song : Aaja Nachle
Movie : Aaja Nachle
Music Director : Salim-Suleiman
Singer : Sunidhi Chauhan
Lyricist: Piyush Mishra
Why is it on the list? : The song got into an ungainly controversy around the use of the word mochi. That aside, it’s a typical Madhuri Dixit composition, if there is such a thing. What was surprising to me was the use of Sunidhi instead of Alka for this song.

Song : Ishq Hua
Movie : Aaja Nachle
Music Director : Salim-Suleiman
Singers : Shreya Ghoshal, Sonu Nigam
Lyricist: Jaideep Sahani
Why is it on the list? : Regulation romantic song with what is fast becoming a very successful combination of singers. Fine breezy composition.

Song : Apne
Movie : Apne
Music Director : Himesh Reshammiya
Singer : Sonu NigamLyricist: Sameer
Why is it on the list? : Despite their much publicized spat, Himesh-Sonu got together for this song which is excellently composed and rendered. It is also effectively used in the movie.

Song : To Phir Aao
Movie : Aawarapan
Music Director : Pritam
Singer : Mustapha Zahid
Lyricist: Sayeed Quadri
Why is it on the list? : Yet another pakistani singer with strong rendition abilities. The song is beautifully written and sung but sounds so similar to the other Pakistani group Jal. The original composition I believe is by a group named Rox3n.

Song : Bhool Bhulaiyya
Movie : Bhool Bhulaiyya
Music Director : Pritam
Singer : Neeraj Sridhar
Lyricist: Sameer
Why is it on the list? : Is it possible to not list this song this year? Another one that really caught on.

Song : Laal Laal Dikhe Hai Mujhko
Movie : Big Brother
Music Director : Anand Raaj Anand
Singers : Ustad Sultan Khan, Zubin Garg
Lyricist: Anil Pandey
Why is it on the list? : Didn’t expect to find a sufi/qawwali composition in a Sunny Deol movie. Well composed and the odd pairing of singers make it worth hearing.

Song : Baatein Hawa
Movie : Cheeni Kum
Singer : Shreya Ghoshal
Music Director : Ilaiyaraaja
Lyricist : Sameer
Why is it on the list? : Very refreshing tune refreshingly rendered by Shreya.

Song : Cheeni Kum
Movie : Cheeni Kum
Singer : Shreya Ghoshal
Music Director : Ilaiyaraaja
Lyricist : Sameer
Why is it on the list? : Old wine in new bottle still tastes as good.

Song : Bhula Diya
Movie : Dus Kahaniyan
Music Director : Anand Raj Anand
Singer : Anand Raj Anand
Lyricist: Ibrahim Ashq
Why is it on the list? : ‘Tis the year Anand Raj Anand resurfaced in a big way. Nicely composed, written and sung.

Song : Jaaniye
Movie : Dus Kahaniyan
Music Director : Gaurav Dasgupta
Singers : Sunidhi Chauhan, Aanchal Malhotra
Lyricist: Virag Mishra
Why is it on the list? : This is an odd selection. A sensuous female duet, a throwback to the days of Nadia Hassan, especially with the disco beats. This beat out some other good songs from the movie to make the cut.

Song : Roya Re
Movie Name : Dhokha
Singer : Shiraz Uppal
Music Director : MM Kareem
Lyricist : Sayeed Quadri
Why is it on the list? : Bhatts generally do better than this on music. This is the only song from the movie that registered with me. Nicely written.

Song : Kitni Der Tak
Movie Name : Delhi Heights
Singers : Rabbi Shergill, Sonu Nigam
Music Director : Rabbi Shergill
Lyricist : Rabbi Shergill
Why is it on the list? : I liked the song enough to actually blog about it during the year. Refreshing composition, very well rendered by Sonu.

Song : Tere Bin
Movie Name : Delhi Heights
Singer : Rabbi Shergill
Music Director : Rabbi Shergill
Lyricist : Rabbi Shergill
Why is it on the list? : I am still fully deciphering the Punjabi lyrics and it has been several months. Yet, that hasn’t changed the way I feel about this song.

Song : Chanda Re
Movie Name : Eklavya - The Royal Guard
Singer : Hamsika Iyer
Music Director : Shantanu Moitra
Lyricist : Swanand Kirkire
Why is it on the list? : This gem of a song stood camouflaged in a largely songless movie. This appears very briefly in the background if I remember correctly.

Song : Hey Baby
Movie Name : Hey Baby
Singers : Loy Mendonsa, Neeraj Sridhar, Pervez Quadir, Raman
Music Director : Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Lyricist : Sameer
Why is it on the list? : Among SEL’s weakest music scores, this was the only stand out song from the movie.

Song : Sajnaji Vaari Vaari
Movie Name : Honeymoon Travels Pvt Ltd
Singer : Sunidhi Chauhan
Music Director : Vishal-Shekhar
Lyricist : Javed Akhtar
Why is it on the list? : Rendered with gusto by Sunidhi, this is one of the better fast numbers of the year.

Song : Yeh Ishq Hai
Movie Name : Jab We Met
Singer : Shreya Ghosal
Music Director : Pritam
Lyricist : Irshad Kamil
Why is it on the list? : I was in India the whole of December and if there was one song that I heard over and over again wherever I went, it was this. I liked it the first time I heard it because Shreya has sung it in a manner which is a departure from her usual style. The lyrics are catchy and I wouldn’t be surprised to see this song feature in the annual awards.

Song : Aaoge Jab Tum
Movie Name : Jab We Met
Singer : Ustad Rashid Khan
Music Director : Sandesh Shandilya
Lyricist : Irshad Kamil
Why is it on the list? : Here’s the googly. Off all the songs I could pick as my second song for the movie, I picked this beautifully sung number. I thought this would have been cut off in the movie, but surprisingly it was left as is. As a footnote, I didn’t escape Mauja Hi Mauja in my India trip either. Overall this soundtrack was fairly replete with good numbers.

Song : Move Your Body
Movie : Johnny Gaddar
Music Director : Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Singers : Shankar Mahadevan, Ehsaan Noorani, Loy Mendonsa, Hard Kaur
Lyricist: Des-C, Hard Kaur
Why is it on the list? : One of the most well made movies of the year also got a well thought out soundtrack to go with it. Although the songs make the list, it is actually the background pieces that were absolutely brilliantly scripted and used in the movie.

Song : Johnny Gaddar
Movie Name : Johnny Gaddar
Singers : Suraj Jagan and Akriti Kakkar
Music Director : Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Lyricist : Jaideep Sahni
Why is it on the list? : The song, especially the opening riffs build an aura of suspense that blends perfectly into the mood of the film.

Song : Jhoom Barabar Jhoom
Movie Name : Jhoom Barabar Jhoom
Singers: Kay Kay, Sukhwinder Singh, Mahalaxmi Iyer, Shankar Mahadevan
Music Director : Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Lyricist : Gulzar
Why is it on the list? : If you have survived the movie, congratulations to you. The music was much better and much more tolerable and this song is evidence. There are multiple versions of the song for those who want to savor more.

Song : Kiss Of Love
Movie Name : Jhoom Barabar Jhoom
Singers : Vishal Dadlani, Vasundhara Das
Music Director : Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Lyricist : Gulzar
Why is it on the list? : This might be another surprise for most, but I am hooked to this inane number. The tune gets in the head and stays put.

Song : Ram Milaye Jodi
Movie Name : Just Married
Singer : Sukhwinder Singh, Sunidhi Chauhan
Music Director : Pritam
Lyricist : Gulzar
Why is it on the list? : This movie had an interesting combination of music director and lyricist. The results were mixed. This was probably the best of the lot, a situational song.

Song : Khoya Khoya Chand
Movie Name : Khoya Khoya Chand
Singers : Swanand Kirkire, Ajay Jhingran
Music Director : Shantanu Moitra
Lyricist : Swanand Kirkire
Why is it on the list? : The song has very good orchestration throughout and it ends especially well.

Song : O Re Paakhi
Movie Name : Khoya Khoya Chand
Singer : Sonu Nigam
Music Director : Shantanu Moitra
Lyricist : Swanand Kirkire
Why is it on the list? : A song written for Rafi that only Sonu can execute in modern day. A throwback to the songs of yore, this one is a classic that rides purely on Sonu’s voice.

Song : Its Rocking
Movie Name : Kya Love Story Hai
Singer : Alisha Chinai
Music Director : Pritam
Lyricist : Shabbir Ahmed
Why is it on the list? : An intro with ‘Ude jab jab’ seamlessly blends into the song which is refreshingly composed and sung. In a movie that sank without a trace, this song was the only redeeming factor.

Song : Laaga Chunari Mein Daag
Movie Name : Laaga Chunari Mein Daag
Singers : Shubha Mudgal, Mita Vashisht
Music Director : Shantanu Moitra
Lyricist : Swanand Kirkire
Why is it on the list? : A tour de force by Shubha Mudgal, this is a very interesting take on the Manna Dey classic with commentary by Mita Vashisht.

Song : Ehi thaiyya motiya
Movie Name : Laaga Chunari Mein Daag
Singer : Rekha Bharadwaj
Music Director : Shantanu Moitra
Lyricist : Swanand Kirkire
Why is it on the list? : My second unconventional pick from this movie. A rare thumri by the rarely heard Rekha, this is beautifully composed.

Song : In Dino
Movie Name : Life In A Metro
Singer : Soham
Music Director : Pritam Chakraborty
Lyricist : Sayeed Quadri
Why is it on the list? : Soham’s big break (he had sung unnoticed for movies like Kaal in the past). This follows the soft rock tradition combined with classical singing brought across from across the border. Nicely done.

Song : Kar Salaam
Movie Name : Life In A Metro
Singers : Pritam Chakraborty, Soham, Suhail
Music Director : Pritam Chakraborty
Lyricist : Sayeed Quadri
Why is it on the list? : A song with a lot of energy, be it the singing or the guitar pieces. The tune is reminiscent of Koli numbers in its lilt. The lyrics are good too, and aptly comes in the culmination of the movie.

Song : Tum Mile
Movie Name : My Name Is Anthony Gonsalves
Singer : Kay Kay
Music Director : Himesh Reshammiya
Lyricist : Sameer
Why is it on the list? : The tune sounds fresh and could almost have been an Anu Malik composition in the 90’s.

Song : Jab Bhi Cigarette
Movie Name : No Smoking
Singer : Adnan Sami
Music Director : Vishal Bharadwaj
Lyricist : Gulzar
Why is it on the list? : Creates the aura of jazz in a seedy bar. Gulzar had enough practice with Beedi to write authoritatively on a smoker’s mindset.

Song : Phoonk De
Movie Name : No Smoking
Singer : Sukhwinder Singh
Music Director : Vishal Bharadwaj
Lyricist : Gulzar
Why is it on the list? : More on smoking ironically from a movie which says No Smoking. Even the Rekha Bharadwaj version is good, it has a much different treatment.

Song : Main Jahaan Rahoon
Movie Name : Namaste London
Singer : Rahat Fateh Ali Khan
Music Director : Himesh Reshammiya
Lyricist : Javed Akhtar
Why is it on the list? : Another excellent composition by the much vilified Himesh.

Song : Ajab Si
Movie Name : Om Shanti Om
Singer : Kay Kay
Music Director : Vishal-Shekhar
Lyricist : Javed Akhtar
Why is it on the list? : Delightful melody, though an interesting theory I heard was that Abhijeet singing this song would have turned out better. Yet, very hummable.

Song : Main Agar Kahoon
Movie Name : Om Shanti Om
Singer : Shreya Ghosal
Music Director : Vishal-Shekhar
Lyricist : Javed Akhtar
Why is it on the list? : A violin piece that sounds like a tribute to RK, a song set to the beat of waltz and that man Sonu made this my second choice for this movie. Shows my bias towards Rafi I guess. I picked this over ‘Jag Soona’ and the taxing ‘Dard-e-sabko’

Song : Soni De Nakhre
Movie Name : Partner
Singers : Labh Janjua, Sneha Pant, Wajid
Music Director : Sajid-Wajid
Why is it on the list? : Irritating yet addictive. Masala track.

Song : Thode Badmash
Movie Name : Saawariya
Singer : Shreya Ghoshal
Music Director : Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Lyricist : Nusrat Badr
Why is it on the list? : How do you pick two songs from one of the most comprehensively good soundtracks of the year? I loved the music of this movie with its emphasis on melody. Barring the Kunal Ganjawala tracks who I don’t believe has the range for these songs, all the songs are exquisitely handled. I picked this one because of Shreya’s rendition. Notice how the opening alaap is similar to ‘Dil Cheez Kya Hai’.

Song : Yoon Shabnami
Movie Name : Saawariya
Singer : Parthiv Gohil
Music Director : Monty Sharma
Lyricist : Sandeep Nath
Why is it on the list? : There are layers to this song and the tempo changes several times yet never loses hold of you. Beautifully rendered. The climax beats sound remarkably similar to those used in ‘Taal’.

Song : Aakhri Alvida
Movie Name : Shootout At Lokhandwala
Singer : Strings
Music Director : Strings
Lyricist : Anwar Maqsood
Why is it on the list? : The piano piece is a straight lift-off yet the song is done in typical Strings fashion. It grows on you.

Song : Thaare Vaaste
Movie Name : Shaka Laka Boom Boom
Singers : Shaan, Sunidhi Chauhan
Music Director : Himesh Reshammiya
Lyricist : Sameer
Why is it on the list? : A movie on the music industry had surprisingly insipid music. This is the only one that stuck in my mind.

Song : Maa
Movie Name : Taare Zameen Par
Singer : Shankar Mahadevan
Music Director : Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Lyricist : Prasoon Joshi
Why is it on the list? : A kid’s perspective written and sung sensitively by adults.

Song : Taare Zameen Par
Movie Name : Taare Zameen Par
Singer : Shankar Mahadevan
Music Director : Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy
Lyricist : Prasoon Joshi
Why is it on the list? : I like the arrangement of this song. Soft yet evocative. Excellent lyrics.

Song : Beete Lamhein
Movie Name : The Train
Singer : Kay Kay
Music Director : Mithoon
Lyricist : Sayeed Qadri
Why is it on the list? : Mithoon follows up Anwar from last year with some more trademark beautiful composition. Kay Kay sings it with the right amount of pathos, and the languid pace of the song takes you in.

Song : Mausam
Movie Name : The Train
Singer : Mithoon
Music Director : Mithoon
Lyricist : Sayeed Qadri
Why is it on the list? : And he can sing too. I love the use of piano and drums in this song.

Song : Saaiyaan
Movie Name : Ta Ra Rum Pum
Singer : Vishal Dadlani
Music Director : Vishal-Shekar
Lyricist : Javed Akhtar
Why is it on the list? : Odd choice of singer but he delivers. Movie with big expectations but no music worth speaking of.

Song : Aasmani Chatri
Movie Name : The Blue Umbrella
Singer : Upagna Pandya
Music Director : Vishal Bharadwaj
Lyricist : Gulzar
Why is it on the list? : The composer and lyricist paint a vision of hills and magic and a little blue umbrella with this song.

Song : Kiya Kiya
Movie Name : Welcome
Singers : Anand Raj Anand, Shweta Pandit
Music Director : Anand Raj Anand
Lyricist : Anjaan Sagari
Why is it on the list? : Doesn’t Anand Raj Anand sound like Sukhwinder at times? One of the hits he has delivered this year.

Song : Uncha Lamba Kad
Movie Name : Welcome
Singers : Anand Raj Anand, Kalpana
Music Director : Anand Raj Anand
Lyricist : Anand Raj Anand
Why is it on the list? : Tune is good, though the lyrics are very ordinary.

Song : Cash
Movie Name : Cash
Singer : Sunidhi Chauhan
Music Director : Vishal Dadlani-Shekhar Ravjiani
Lyricist : Vishal Dadlani
Why is it on the list? : Ode to Pulp Fiction? Very catchy.

Song : Naa Puchho
Movie Name : Cash
Singer : Sunidhi Chauhan
Music Director : Vishal Dadlani-Shekhar Ravjiani
Lyricist : Vishal Dadlani
Why is it on the list? : The voice over by the male voice in parts is a fantastic improvisation.

Song : Billo Rani
Movie Name : Dhan Dhana Dhan Goal
Singers : Richa Sharma, Anand Raj Anand
Music Director : Pritam Chakraborty
Lyricist : Javed Akhtar
Why is it on the list? : Poor man’s Kajra Re, yet good enough to make it to this list.

Song : Ya Ali
Movie Name : Aap Ka Suroor
Singers : Himesh Reshammiya, Sunidhi Chauhan
Music Director : Himesh Reshammiya
Lyricist : Sameer
Why is it on the list? : Good composition and rendition in this singer centric movie. Also check out Kya Jeena from this movie.

Song : Dard-E-Disco
Movie Name : Om Shanti Om
Singers : Sukhwinder Singh
Music Director : Vishal-Shekhar
Lyricist : Javed Akhtar
Why is it on the list? : By public demand

Song : Jaagte Raho
Movie Name : Just Married
Singer : Sonu Nigam
Music Director : Pritam
Lyricist : Gulzar
Why is it on the list? : On repeated insistence and my soft spot for Gulzar sahab.

Neitherland

I am back from my fourth trip of the third world. It is heartening to see that the bridge between the third and the first world seem to have reduced, yet the distance needs to be traversed. It is as if there is a narrow suspension bridge one has to cross, and until the traversal is complete, life itself remains in suspension. It is as if one is in no man’s land. The body is neither here, nor there. I wake at three in the morning and threaten to collapse on my office desk after lunch. There is the strange experience of food not being presented to you, and the temperatures in Fahrenheit over here are remarkably close to the temperatures in Celsius in India. The sounds of silence around make me yearn for the mindless honking I had begun to anticipate. My brain is probably missing the place more than my heart is. Neither here nor there.

My mind is torn between the myriad tasks to be done. I have around eight hundred photographs to download, process, and stick to my customary routine of uploading with captions to the awaiting audience of family and friends. I am hounded by what should be a delight: multiple topics on which to post on my blog. My annual Hindi film song list, my experiences of India, photographs and stories from London. All that need to be done today, yet can’t be, since time has still continued at its usual pace. Then there’s the allegiance to the paycheck and responsibilities of the house. The state of suspension needs time to resolve. Thank you for the messages in my absence. I had the unique experiences of celebrating several new years as I flew west on the night of the 31st. Hence, I’ll accept unique wishes from you for the unique new year’s I passed. I am hoping to resume normal services soon. Till then, I’ll wait for the surreal to pass me by.