My review on Sterling Holidays MariGold Ridge - Yelagiri

It was long since I took my wife & parents and a vacation was long due.
Being in Chennai, finding a vacation spot is quite a task but considering the amount of time we had, Yelagiri was an obvious choice. Being a frequent traveller myself, I had never being to Yelagiri but have heard a lot of reviews (positive) about the place and this added to the reasoning behind the choice of destination. Finally after a lot of research and lot of reviews on various websites, we picked up Sterling Holidays MariGold Ridge as our place to stay. We booked the hotel from 14th Jan to 16th Jan through MakemyTrip & they gave us some decent offers with a pricing of 4k/per room/day

Location:
The hotel is located right next to the Lord Murugan temple and hence finding the place isn't a challenge.

Parking:
The parking space in front of the hotel premises can accommodate around 5-6 cars and since it was a Pongal holiday, we couldn't get a space because of the brimming crowd. Nevertheless, they have a additional parking half-a-km from the hotel and that space can accommodate more than 10 cars.

Property:
It's a decent sized property which has an old design It's a four storey building with rooms on the three sides & a swimming pool in the middle. You can visualise the Centaur Hotel which we would have seen in a lot of Bollywood movies however the size is much smaller.

Rooms:
Brilliant.. Brilliant.. Brilliant! I asked for a hill view and the rooms exactly gave that! The rooms are quite big with good moving space. This was important to me because we had an infant with us :)
The highlight of the room was the see-through big glass door which divides the room and the balcony. The bright view of the hill & the greenery from the bed is simply outstanding. Aesthetically the rooms are premium with beautiful lighting, paints and bed location. It also has an additional sofa-cum-bed or can be termed as a recliner. The bed is quite big and ultra cozy! Pl see if your door locks work because we found it late in the midnight and had an issue fixing it.

AC, TV & Fridge -
Of course it has AC and thankfully works brilliant including the remote. You have a mini fridge for the bar usage. The room is equipped with a 20-22 inch LCD TV with STB.

Facilities:
The property provides a host of facilities like Gym, game room with TT and carrom tables, swimming pool with child area, trampoline for kids, Meditation room. They have a Spa which comes at an additional cost. They organise party games with music based on customer request & since it was festive time (Pongal), they had some events in progress during our stay. I also get to know from them that they organise treks and team building games on request.

Food & Dining:
A big heartbreak for the tipplers - this place doesn't have a bar. So if that's a part of the agenda make sure you have it before you end up here.
Food is good but when it comes to the cost, it comes at premium! The breakfast spread is huge and most people would enjoy it the most because it comes for free however when it comes to the Lunch or Dinner, the spread & quality doesn't justify the cost. The hotel provides room service but as I said earlier charges gold.


Staff:
Huge plus of this place! Very helpful and courteous people.
The place is filled with some Oriya & Bengali people and since I am from Bengal, it was easy to connect. You have native language speakers as well and communication isn't a challenge at all in this place!

Ambience: 
I would say the ambience is good if not excellent. Given the backdrop of the location the ambience could have been much better. Since the swimming pool is right below your room, the commotion & pandemonium creates a lot of disturbance. This I found was quite irritating.
Apart from this, the walk area isn't that big given the size of the property however it serves enough for a quiet walk after dinner with your spouse.

Overall - I would rate this property Sterling Holidays MariGold Ridge a 3/5

OnePlus One - my review

Just a month back my Nokia Lumia 820 conked off and its display got screwed up! Courtesy - my wife!

Lumia 820 was a fantastic phone (and it still is!) with great display and camera however was handicapped because of the Windows OS. Mind you Windows OS is pretty good but for a person who has tasted the Android blood, this OS may be primitive stuff.

I got the Lumia 820 one day after its launch which is more than 2 years and hence I decided to go for a new one.

There were lot of mobiles in my contention like ASUS Zenphone, Moto G (2nd Gen),  Xiomi but then when I did some research on the OnePlus One, I was bowled over.

I would consider it as the Numero Uno phone of the segment and it would give the rest of the "master" androids a run for their money.

After a lot hard work over the social media for the invite finally ordered the phone with 10 mins in hand for its expiry.

My take:

Size: one of the features where I was a little apprehensive cos I find 5.5" a little too big. I have used Dell Streak earlier and people used to gaze with awe because 5" during those days was a big deal. In two days when i got my OnePlus, this fear went out of the window.

5.5” inch is big. Yes it is, but you can handle it with two hands it’s easy. Size is one of the best features of this phone and you would realize this only when you watch a few videos on this phone. Remember the Sandstone finish? – gives a super awesome rough grip.

Display – is a stunner with 401 Pixel/inch! It has awesome color reproduction with great sharpness.  Auto brightness and the warm hue are additions for ambient lights and eye fatigues.

Call Quality – Fantastic call quality with noise cancellation

Battery Life – I would say is average compared to their tall claims with 3100 mAh battery. For me it comes around a day with decent use (not heavy for sure!) and I think my phone battery is still getting acclimatized with my usage. Pl remember I DON’T game at all and I have hardly 80-90 apps overall with 20 odd apps always active in the background.

Design – Absolute beauty! Thin, lightweight (trust me!) and the finish gives it a posh look. It is made up of high quality plastic but nowhere would you get the feel of that material. It will fit into the pocket but riding a bike with it is a challenge because you would be cramped for space when you bend your legs for the gear/brakes.

Processor - Snapdragon 801 Quad Core Processor clocked at 2.5 GHz for flawless performance and Adreno 330 GPU for perfect acceleration at par with iOS devices. The Device has 3 GB of RAM and works like a war horse!

Media & Sound: Full HD support and plays almost all the important file extensions. Sound quality is better than the most and with the headsets (JBL Silver Bullet), I cannot ask for anything more.

Camera – plays a spoilsport here. 13 MP rear camera with Sony glasses and 5 MP front. My selfie pics are much much better than the other pics from the rear camera cos of motions blurs resulting due to the absence of IS. I think the rear camera pic quality is poor compared to the Lumia 820 carl zeiss lens though was had less mega pixels.

Storage – 64GB (Internal only!) is like a world in your phone! What more?

Price – 22k, is awesomely priced for this featured phone which would beat its competition with same or similar features hands down.

Overall there’s lot hype behind this phone but after a month and more of usage I think this phone is a beast. It is the best Android device available in the marked and would go on to kill its competition in the same circuit. The invitation is a pain but it’s worth it!

For me: Air, Water, Cloth, Food, RE Bullet & now OnePlus One! :)

KG Kaptures - A new brand in photography!

"You don't take a photograph, you make it" famous American photographer Ansel Adams once said. Photography is an art, on par with perhaps music and poetry. It captures the moment for years to come, allowing that one instant to live in the memories of generations in the future.

With my characteristic observational and non-intrusive style, candid photography is my calling. The leisurely yawn, the gregarious laughter - moments shared with unsuspecting candour find a new life through my lens. Viewed from this perspective, weddings, family reunions or any occasion of joy finds a whole new dimension of expression.

The clichés are many. A picture is worth a thousand words. Let your actions speak louder than your words. The list goes on. Yet, ever since the shutterbug bit me rather late, this has been the characteristic of my work. I allow my pictures to do the talking, being a man of few words myself.

Every picture tells a story, brings back memories, crystallises experiences.  Years after you have forgotten that moment of time, a picture has the power to bring it all rushing back to you in a wave of nostalgia. It is this pursuit of deriving and spreading the joy that drives me to photography.

My portfolio includes various conferences and events such as TiECON, TEDx events across the city and flashmobs apart from a multitude of pictures taken for family and friends. For anyone who asks what I do, the answer is simple – I shoot people.

Benjamin Franklin is believed to have said “Lost time is never found again.” Grandmother’s tales draw a parallel to trying to hold a fistful of sand that quickly slips through your fingers. The question of capturing time is said to be impossible.

My answer is simple. Try me!

KG Kaptures

https://www.facebook.com/kgkaptures

Sachin - in their words

Some famous quotation about Sachin :

• I have seen God, he bats at no. 4 for India – Matthew Hayden
• I saw him playing on television and was struck by his technique, so I asked my wife to come look at him. Now I never saw myself play, but I felt that this player is playing with a style similar to mine, and she looked at him on Television and said yes, there is a similarity between the two…his compactness, technique, stroke production – it all seemed to gel! – Sir Donald Bradman
• We did not lose to a team called India. We lost to a man called Sachin – Mark Taylor, during the test match in Chennai (1997)
•  India me aap Prime Minister ko ek baar katghare me khada kar sakte hain. Par Sachin Tendulkar par ungli nahi utha Sakte.– Navjot Singh Sidhu
• Harder he works, the luckier he gets – Ian Chappell
• I’ll be going to bed having nightmares of Sachin just running down the wicket and belting me back over the head for six. He was unstoppable. I don’t think anyone, apart from Don Bradman, is in the same class as Sachin Tendulkar. He is just an amazing player – Shane Warne
• He can play in any era and at any level. I would say he’s 99.5% perfect – Viv Richards on Sachin Tendulkar
• Beneath the helmet, under that unruly curly hair, inside the cranium, there is something we don’t know, something beyond scientific measure. Something that allows him to soar, to roam a territory of sport that, forget us, even those who are gifted enough to play alongside him cannot even fathom. When he goes out to bat, people switch on their television sets and switch off their lives – BBC Sports, on Sachin Tendulkar
• He has defined cricket in his fabulous, impeccable manner. He is to batting what Shane Warne is to bowling – Richie Benaud
• India’s fortune will depend on how many runs the little champion scores. There is no doubt Tendulkar is the real thing – Sunil Gavaskar
• There are 2 kind of batsmen in the world. One Sachin Tendulkar. Two all the others – Andy Flower
• Sachin Tendulkar has often reminded me of a veteran army colonel who has many medals on his chest to show how he has conquered bowlers all over the world – Allan Donald
• On a train from Shimla to Delhi, there was a halt in one of the stations. The train stopped by for few minutes as usual. Sachin was nearing century, batting on 98.  The passengers, railway officials, everyone on the train waited for Sachin to complete the century. This Genius can stop time in India! - Peter Roebuck
• Sachin is a genius. I’m a mere mortal – Brian Lara15. Sachin is the greatest role model I’ve ever met – Gary Kirsten

Source: http://www.sachinandcritics.com/quotes_on_sachin.php, 

https://rammipr.wordpress.com/category/sports/

Sachin - his road ahead

A week before I was watching the WC match between Aus & NZ. It was such a fantastic contest between the leather and willow! Despite Aussies losing it, Starc won my heart. The precision and the consistent pace were worth watching. As a cricket player myself, I understand the hard work that goes behind every performance at the highest level. And whenever we talk about hard work, I can't think of anybody else than the Master himself. There have been a lot of talks about his talent, of he being a child prodigy, of his passion about the game but for me what stands out is the "discipline". Incredible!

Let's take some examples:

1. Sachin practiced 12 hours a day at the age of 12-13 and used to doze off at the dinner table. 
2. Sachin doesn't smoke nor drinks.  
3. He ensures he gets good sleep before a cricket match. However before the match against Pakistan in the 2003 WC, he had a lot of sleepless nights. He was preparing how to handle each bowler to such an extent that he would have played an entire innings - in his head!
4. He would have a lot of discussions with the bowlers to understand their thought process when it comes to challenging a batsman. He would set imaginary fields and tries to see how he can work through them.
5. In English tours, there would be a lot of rainy day situations during matches. The rest of the players would be having a day out but Sachin would be the only person practicing with a tennis ball to face the bounce. 
6. Sachin and Kambli started at the same level. Both were equally talented and gifted in their own ways however when it comes to discipline, this is a solid case study of discipline in contrast. Kambli's performance took off in style and he bettered Sachin in the international stage. Success got to Kambli's head and his focus shifted to off-the-field or non-cricketing activities while on the other hand, Sachin was meticulously working on his batting. We all know what happened in the end

I can keep on writing on this topic however my main intention was to pen on how Sachin can contribute to the future of Indian Cricket?

India is a country gifted with the passion for cricket. While one indulges in cricket at a very young age, we have decent academies to ‘teach’ them on the technicalities. The difference is taking it to the next level and this is where Sachin’s contribution would be invaluable.

For e.g. What if Sachin can be the ‘coach’ of the Under-16 or Under-19 National side? Sachin understands cricket like no other keeping aside his experience on the field. It’s obvious that he is a demi god and the youngsters emulating him are like “grass is green”. He can provide such strong perspectives on the technical aspects of the game and at the same time provide thoughts on how to approach a problem. He can teach the young players how to read the bowlers, how to adjust according to the conditions and so on. I feel he should be kept away from cricket administration and should mainly be given the job of laying a strong foundation to the future of Indian cricket by coaching the U-19/U-16 national teams. What say? :)

TEDx Chennai 2012 was quite an experience

I have been a part of lot of events till date but have never seen such an enthusiastic and bubbly crowd ever.. Immensely dedicated, disciplined & talented ppl like Balaji Vijayaraghavan Balaji Ramaswamy Natarajan ShyamSundar Etios Aarthi Rajagopalan Gayathri Seshadri Kabeer Nen, Vignesh Srinivasan & so many of them not only made us feel young but motivated further to work harder! Guys, take it from me - you have a sensational future ahead! my best wishes for that..
Hari Balaji maintains a low profile and let his work do the talking! Exceptional designs my friend! Sheer brilliance!
Sandeep Chaetan is an experienced brat and thru his digital magic, made the social net work for us!
Last but not the least, how can an opera run without its conductor - Samuel Eddy himself?! Taking the bull by its horn aint that ez and moreover spearheading an event of this length & breadth needs nerve, skills and in the current scheme of things requires a lot of endurance.. It wouldn't have been possible without his leadership and vision! - RESPECT!
It has been an incredible journey and today, we all can sleep contended & satisfied!
Give yourself a standing ovation,a royal salute & a lot of applauds! You deserve it the most!
I am heartened by the love and respect showed and pl accept my sincere gratitude for all those kind words of appreciation! These would go a long way in my "pursuit of happiness" in the form of photography!

Looking forward for many such events 

Hewlett-Packard lifts Blue-Sky Corporate League Trophy (2006-07)

Hello All,

On a sunny Sunday morning, with the whole nation celebrating the festival of colors "HOLI", we entered the ground with a sincere attempt to rewrite record books, bringing more color and glory to the team.

Our last column had analyzed the performance of team during the most frenetic stage of a one-day match - the run chase. This time the focus shifts to the start of the innings as well our lethal bowling attack, an aspect which is likely to be vital in key tournaments on tracks which are unlikely to provide much cheer to the bowlers. The days of openers playing themselves in and exercising early caution have long been replaced by a whole assembly line of dashing, throw-caution-to-the-wind style of openers, making the new-ball bowlers' task a pretty tough one as well.

This was really the intention of our opening batsmen yesterday, but unfortunately after we were put into bat by Irevna Research, it was a pretty jolter of a start as we lost all the key players, Hemanth (a mistimed pull), Ramesh (dubious caught behind decision) and Karthik Sridhar (failing to read the line of the ball) very soon. Lakshmi Narasimhan and Rajesh Muralidharan then started to consolidate the innings, essaying few delicate cuts and square drives, which did not last long as they too lost their wickets to over ambitious shots after scoring 20 each. Manchi Rajanikanth too fell for a poor umpiring decision. This left us stranded at 60/6 after 11 overs.

Yesterday, to our advantage, Hewlett Packard had the batting experience and depth plus the resilience of K Karthik and K G Sriram to play sensibly under pressure. It looked like they continued from where they left off in the semi-finals. Their shot making and running between the wickets were incredible which enabled us surpass the early storm. After settling in, KG Sriram threw caution to the winds with two exquisitely timed boundaries and an amazing six which kissed the hoardings on the terrace. KG Sriram was finally out for a brilliantly made 30 off 30 balls. If KG Sriram was only very good,  K Karthik was simply outstanding. His unbeaten knock of 52 (39 balls) was studded with 3 fours and two sixes - a straight six being the pick of them. This knock won him the "Man of the  Finals" award. He displayed silky elegance as his innings was a signature of beautiful brutality. KG Sriram and K Karthik shared a partnership of 68 runs off 52 balls. Lakshmi Narayanan was finally unbeaten on 6. After a bad start, we took the total to really competitive levels, ending at 166/7 after 25 overs, giving some encouragement for our bowlers.

With batting coming good after an initial jolt, the big question mark was the ability of the bowlers to hold it together when they are attacked in the field restriction period of an innings. To everyone's delight, we did raise the bar and the bowling was truly outstanding. We picked up wickets at regular intervals and kept applying the pressure with innovative field placing.

As usual, Vikash, Ramesh and Rajesh were the pick of the bowlers. Ravindran and K Karthik supported them beautifully with their excellent line and length.

Vikash has taken his bowling to ultimate levels which enables him pick up wickets at ease. He looks like getting a wicket of every delivery he bowls. He was totally dominant yesterday picking 3 wickets with in-swinging deliveries. Ramesh and Rajesh (The Spin Doctors) really treated us with an outstanding and economical bowling picking 3 wickets each. Hemanth showed his agility behind the wickets accounting for two crucial stumping. Vishal substituting for Karthik, took an outstanding catch at long on.

Finally, it boiled down to 25 runs off 2 overs with only a wicket remaining in the opposition ranks. Karthik Sridhar accounted for the final wicket effecting a run out from where the celebrations started to begin.........as Hewlett-Packard won the finals of the Corporate White- ball Blue Sky League Trophy by 19 runs.

"During the presentation ceremony late in the evening, everyone started saying, the team to watch out for in the future, is clearly Hewlett Packard. They have the firepower in their bowling  attack, they have the depth and firepower with the bat, and they have the momentum. All they need to guard against now is complacency. We thanked all our well wishers and vowed to carry this momentum forward..."

Allow me to sign off as the statisticians are busy updating the player profiles. Keep watching this column as some amazing player profiles are going to treat your eyes today.