November 2005

PayPal Sucks

PayPalAnd I mean it. Last night I logged into my PayPal account to check how much moolah I’ve got. Surprisingly I saw a “limited access” message boldly written on the home page. Upon some frantic searching from some places I found out that I needed to provide certain documents to verify myself. That’s fine but when I clicked on the link to resolve the issue it just wouldn’t give me the checklist of items that I needed to produce. It is quite suffocating to know that my money has been unnecessarily blocked and I can’t appeal against it or speak to them.

My troubles worsened when my case ID couldn’t be found in the database which meant that I do not know why my account has been de-regularised. Inspite of writing 3-4 mails via the contact form on the website, I got the same replies for all of them. It was probably an auto-responder. It sucks to think that Paypal which is handling finances globally should resort to such practices especially when it knows that the users will be located in different geographies and time zones. At this moment I have lost all hopes of getting back my money. The least that I can do is set up another account and hope for some business to come my way. If somebody has faced a similar situation and has a solution please contact me immediately.

Weekend Movie Treat

Deewane Hue PaagalI am sure after reading this passage a lot you guys would term me as a movie buff. This is the third weekend in a row where I have watched a movie. This time it was Deewane Hue Paagal (DHP) with the affable (rascal) Akshay Kumar. I also wanted to see the FAME Raghuleela at the shopping mall by the same name. This mall culture has surprised me to no limits. We’re constantly bridging the gap between the manufacturers & the consumers in that goods are now easily procured.

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A Taste of the East

AntarmahalI went to see Antarmahal at FAME Andheri on Sunday – a bengali language film starring Jackie Shroff, Soha Ali Khan, Abhishek Bachchan among others. The setting is of the old bengal in the 1800s when the zamindari system was still prevalent. The film is based on a short story written by Tarashankar Bandopadhyay called Protima. It deals with the oppression of women by the hands of the zamindars and the hindu priests of those times. The most enduring aspect of the movie is the excellent light and shade cinematography by Abhik Sen. That really moves you well before you have settled down in your seat.

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Garam Masala and More

John Abraham & Akshay Kumar in Garam Masala I have been a fan of Akshay ‘Akki’ Kumar and his partnership with Priyadarshan (Hera Pheri) had left an indelible mark with his comic timing. No doubts then that I decided to catch up with his latest offering Garam Masala which was running at Fame Malad. This also meant another golden opportunity to visit InOrbit Mall and the shopping gala ;-)

This time around I took my car and Aadesh both together. This combination is the most fruitful as far as user experience is concerned :D Then I also had to get a haircut from the Exquis Salon of L’Oreal. From the onset, it would look like the same but the barber (forgive me for using that name for him) actually used numerous scissors to get my hair into shape. After a meal at Pizza Hut we headed for the Fame.

The movie is about Makarand (nicknamed Mac and played wonderfully by Akkie) who wants to show his superiority to his “senior” Shyam (nicknamed Sam played by John Abraham) and to do it he goes around with 3 gorgeous air hostesses Sweety (Neetu Chandran), Priti (Daisy Bopanna) and Pooja (Nargis Bagheri) all at the same time while still being engaged to Anjali (Rimi Sen). The funny part of the story is when you realise that all the 3 stay at his posh villa and none of them ever get a whiff of each other anytime. The support cast is awesome too and let me bow to the greatest of all Paresh Rawal who plays a cook cum housekeeper called Mambo. His comedy has come to a level where he doesn’t need to resort to flimsy actions and jugglery – the kind of which we’re so used to in Bollywood. There are some very funny moments in the movie and would be a spoiler if I described them to you but I felt it got a bit stretched towards the end. Watch the movie to see Akkie in action albeit in a comic one and the lovely damsels too.

I also have taken the Fame Purple Privelege membership and they have promised a lot to me. Tickets, meeting with stars, etc. Only time will tell the difference between fact and fiction.

Fun @ Mocambo

Mummy out of town means party for me. Yesterday I had continental lunch at Cafe Mocambo situated at Fort in south Mumbai. I like experimenting and this proves it. I had continental food for the first time which was an Italian rissoto – rice with american sweet corn and lots of cheese and other stuff. I have forgotten what it’s called. The food was delicious but when I go there next time I am going to order rice with stirred fried mixed vegetables. My colleague Asha ordered the same and it sure looked colourful and delicious. If ever you come to Mumbai please pay a visit to Cafe Mocambo. Day before Aadesh and I went to a restaurant called Urban Tadka which is situated at Thakur Complex in Kandivli. The food was superb and delicious. It was later told to us that showing the TCS ID would have got us a 10% discount. No regrets though.

Ever since I have come back from Nasik I have this thriller story in my mind which I want to write but I can’t seem to get the peace of mind that I need to fulfill it. Neverthless once I complete it I am going to display it here for you guys to rate me as an author :-)