Made in Japan, this product is just unbeatable

Do you laught out loud? Like laugh till you are rolling on the floor. When was the last time you did that? When we are younger these moments are a plenty but as we grow older laughter seems less in our lives (may not be the case in yours) but that was generally speaking. As for me I do laugh out really loud and I love a good rip roaring laugh. Laughter afterall is a very good medicine for one's well being.

But I was hardly prepared for what I was going to see on YouTube on Wednesday the 9'th of January. I have been addicted to YouTube for sometime now (a post is pending on the same) but what happened that Wednesday night will be a day to remember because I have never laughed so much in probably my entire life. I laughed so much that my stomach and head were aching bad, maybe reiterating the statement that too much of anything isn't good. I was laughing so loudly and was alone in my room. It was late at night too and I was wondering if security would come knocking on my door. So the first thing I decided was to spread the news. I had a rocking time at Suji's place when I showed her the videos and then with Sathish and Sneha at my place a few days later. Mother saw it a few days ago.

Before I display the links let me actually set up the stage. Sometimes my writing could could also make you expect a lot but if you have been watching programs like Candid Camera (which I later began to dislike) and Just for Laughs, Gags on the Pogo TV Channel you are going to see something similar. I repeat only "something" similar. You have no idea what these videos are going to show you. So let's watch them, Japanese style. Honestly I don't think anyone else could do it better and I never knew the Japanese had such a taste for humour too. Even though the language is Japanese you will understand every bit of the fun and pun. Watch them in the order that I have presented below and enjoy.

This first, called Taxi Drivere is similar to the a People's Choice video on Just for Gags but there is absolutely no comparision. In fact I actually wanted to close the browser but I am more than glad I didn't.



Fun at the Ski resorts



and to top them all, The Amazing toilets



There is a sequel to the Taxi Driver, Taxi Driver 2 and here it is.

Another Uncle passes away.

This time my father's elder brother and once again when Saarang is going on at I.I.T, Madras. I read in "The Hindu" that Lucky Ali and Karthik stole the show with the biggest crowd ever to assemble for a Pro-show. Feel like I missed a good show but I have my doubts particularly about the Audio. But who knows, the sound could have been made better afterall. But my prayers go out for my uncle and his relatives in Orissa, particularly my cousins. I have met him only on few ocassions with him in all his 75 years of life and now he is gone, after his role on this earth. How far am I from this event? Only God knows. These days "The Obituary" in "The Hindu" speaks more things to me than ever before.

Did I miss the Black Eyed Peas too?

Before The Scorpions, the Black Eyed Peas had rocked Bangalore. Though I have heard a couple of their hits before there was this one video on T.V that caught my eye. That was several months ago but I couldn't forget the song. Last Friday when the seniors danced to "Bebot" at my son's school's annual day I instantly recognized the number and was simply taken away by the performance. For the past two days I might have watched the video countless times on YouTube. I am not surprised it has already been watched more than Two Million times by viewers.



I should have gone for their concert in Bangalore at least for this one song. It is always a nice thing to watch a current top band even though their music may not be the kind of thing you might not always like. Not that veteran bands don't rock. Uriah Heep is a good example but isn't watching Uriah Heep in their prime time a better thing.

And there was Jamelia's Superstar (we checked that song on YouTube too) for which my son, Chaithanya had danced. It was cute watching him perform on stage. But "Bebot" was the real killer that day.

Happy New Year 2008, I miss the Scorpions

First of all, here's wishing you all a very Happy New Year 2008. 2008 is almost 9 days old.

I just couldn't afford to miss my friend Sridhar's wedding reception. If only I had been to his marriage I could have skipped the reception and I would have made it to the concert for which another friend also had a couple of premium passes. What a miss! And that too for a second time. It was fun though to see old Vizual staff at the wedding reception though. I compensate for this with a trip to Kerala and Vega Land with my brother and sister's families and our parents. A short and sweet trip just before the New Year. Just before the trip I lose my "Bolle" sunglasses at an Internet Cafe. I am quite sure who took it (it happened in a matter of minutes) but didn't tell the person so because I didn't see the person taking it or rather stealing it. I really miss the glasses.

This is also one of the first years where I did not send new year greetings via e-mail. I only responded to those who had greeted me via e-mail and via SMS. Work is dull as it is during this time of the year but it should pick up. With the hope and expectations and promises the New Year brings, let us move on...

Avial

Ok, here is a "real" rocking band. On my recent trip to Kerala I was so fortunate to watch them on the Rosebowl channel and twice. Calling themselves the first ever Alternative Malayali Rock band "Avial" is a band to watch out for. Guys,note that they sing Malayalam. Yes Malayalam, and that's what make them stand apart. I was instantly hooked. Back in Chennai I tried searching their album (which by the way is long overdue and very eagerly awaited) on the regular sites but check out following links from YouTube. All their performances on Rosebowl are there. Awesome stuff!

Karukara must be your first song. (The girl in the band is not a permanent member of the band.)



the others:

Chekele



Adupambe



Nada Nada



even the remixed video of Nada Nada is good.



Awesome stuff! Check them out.

Malayalees are you listening? If these guys go on with songs like these they are going to become part of culture.

Avial online is at http://www.phat-phish.com/avial/

The other band that rocked was Bennet and the Band with stellar performances from Karthik, Jyotsana and Gayathri doing extended versions of popular songs fused with classical and western music. It was nice to watch these singers unwind and do something other than what they normally do.

Diwali Eve, 2006 - Vizual springs a lovely surprise!

And I continue blogging again...

This is a report that was supposed to go out last year but as they say it's never too late.

Many could have hardly imagined that the employees of the company would spring such a beautiful surprise as they did on Diwali Eve, 2006 when it was declared as "Ethnic Wear Day" coinciding with the Diwali festival. Departments competed with one another to win the prize for the Team with the best ethnic theme. Boy was it a day to remember! The ladies were in with some very pretty and colourful sarees, jasmine flowers, colourful bangles and et all really making it difficult for me to decide who the best dressed one was though I could narrow to a handful of them after some difficulty and some tips from friends. As for the men, with traditional Dhoties many of them looked like prospective grooms.

As the smallest team in the competition we opted for a simple design, Rangoli, painting on a chart and decoration with lamps and decorative lighting. I think we did best without our important performer, our Manager who had to take off that day due to personal reasons. Our neighbours the Technical Suppport team were the noisiest of the lot but for good reason. No one could match their zeal. They had a bigger Rangoli done, elaborate decoration with Banana shoots, Mango leaves and even a game for visitors. I think they deserved to win for their enthusiasm.

The developers (.Net) were the only guys who had a solid theme. QA was the other team with a theme and they did well to decorate their very big department well but fell short of their performance. Maybe their theme just didn't click with the judges. However I wish (like another friend said) QA had received a consolation prize for their ladies who had come dressed so well.

But the PST team was the one that took everyone by surprise. What they did was Surreal! Located in the basement they creatively set the stage for winning the competition, jointly with the Tech Support guys. I wish I had captured their display exactly how it looked with a manual setting on my camera instead of using the flash. Their their theme might not have been the best but the ambience (lights, music) and hospitality were what I guess got them the prize.

The prize finally went to both the PST Team and the Tech Support team. Here are some pics. All these snaps from my SLR were scanned from prints so if the clarity is less
adjust your monitor's brightness and contrast settings. Click on the image or open it in another instance of the browser to view it bigger. In any case I have provided a link at the bottom of the article to download the entire original set.

Starting with the people who made this happen, Pallavi and Vivian, who also partly judged the competition.



Next the guys who made the basement a "romantic" getaway. The PST Team.



Of course who could forget the vociferous Tech.Support team that day.



Another pic of the Tech.Support team without their star "cheerleader", Sathya.



The ever-growing QA team.



Don't they look a bit over crowded? So let's split them up. The ladies first.



..and then the gentlemen.



The Developers team.



Front desk, Accounts/Finance and IT Hardware teams.



And finally not to forget my own team, the Fab 4 from Technical Writing.



If you need the original sized pics you can get them at the following link.
Vizual Ethnic Day, Diwali '06 Pics
You will need Winrar from www.rarlabs.com to open the .rar file. It is similar to Winzip.

Vizualites, I am not with you guys but I hope you have a rocking Diwali this year as well. Best wishes!