Uttara Bhoopa is a famous book written by BeeChi (Rayasam Bheemasena Rao), a well-known Kannada humorist. I bought this book a couple of years ago but never had a chance to read it. However, I was lucky to see the drama directed by Antaranga at H.N Kalakshetra, Bangalore on 29th Dec 12.

The play starts with a couple's discussion on finding a suitable match for their daughter. The couple think how the to be son in law should be in terms of the maturity, character.. so on and so forth. But their daughter is of different opinion and thinks she can find the man of her choice. The couple and daughter have an argument unlike any other parents or children do. The couple decide to publish an advertisement in the newspaper to find a suitable groom and the expected qualities. They interview the young men who had applied and finally, manage to select the three. Now, the daughter is in difficult position whom to select among the three.

The play is a comedy and you would love every joke. I am yet to read the book and I am sure I can complete reading the book in a day or two. ;)


Does she find the man of her choice or reluctantly marry one among the three chosen by her parents? Find it by yourself seeing the play at the next theatre.  

Cost of the ticket - Rs 70/-

The year 2012 was a very memorable one with lot of learning, happiness, sadness, going places on my own and last but not the least, coming back to hometown and meet my family and friends after an year and five months. I was sad to leave Melbourne, Australia and at the same time happy to meet my parents after a long time. As I have mentioned in my earlier posts from Melbourne, it was my first time, away from home, living in  another country which was 5585 miles from Bangalore. Melbourne has its own charm which cannot be expressed in words. No wonder it has been ranked the most livable city in the world and any one would fall in love for first time and so did I. :D

When I would ask someone who was in the US, "Don't you miss anything here?" and they would reply,"What do you expect to miss?". The same happened to me. Melbournians were always kind enough and always amicable to anyone who come there. I would like to narrate an incident where I fell on the footpath. People walking around came to help me get up and left until they were assured I was all fine and no injury. I felt this gentleness was missing in my home country itself where you are injured on road side and none comes for your help which is sad!

I had a chance to watch IPL, ODI (India Vs Australia) and Footy matches at MCG (Melbourne Cricket Ground) and also witness huge Indian crowd singing "why this kolaveri di".. Opera House, monorail, the world famous Bondi beach, jet boating, cemetery at Brunti, John Carter at IMAX, climbing the Harbour Bridge, meeting an friend after a decade at Sydney! Kangaroo Island at Adelaide, Tesselar Tulip Festival, Cooks Cottage, Great Ocean Drive, meeting backpackers at Tasmania, Steam engine train at Puffing Billy, Grampians, Melbourne Aquarium, Werribee zoo. Long working hours at office made a way to new hobby: Swimming and work outs at Fitness First. ;)

A three day holiday, exploring Singapore all alone where I reach Merlion at 1 AM and folks who see me would question-"Are you all by yourself?" I would smile,"yeah, Singapore is safe place where you can roam around alone even during midnight."

Back home, it was time to spend time with family and friends. Gokarna beaches with Sneha, Kannada play "Uttara Bhupa", same old day to day not interesting routines which anyone would crib about.

I realized huge difference what we gather about the West from media or word of the mouth and you, having lived abroad which I would explain in upcoming posts.


&copy Manasa. All rights reserved.

I had a chance to attend the Indiblogger meet at Fortune Park JP Celestial, Race Course Road, Bengaluru on Sunday, 20th Jan 2013. The meet was sponsored by HP and HaperCollins. I also had a chance to meet bloggers with the myriad interests - few familiar faces and many new ones and also win gifts. The blogger meet was to discuss on Fake Vs Original. I would like to pen down my experiences on using counterfeit and original products.

When I was a college student, I found the imitation sold at street side very fascinating and affordable compared to the cost of the originals. One could find the named brands such as Gucci, Esprit, Nike and even MAC cosmetics at an inexpensive cost. As time passed by, I have realized the importance of the originals and appreciate their usage.

There are two circumstances here:
1. People buy counterfeit products willingly because they are inexpensive or say "affordable" or in plain terms call it "cheap" since they are close to the original product.
2. People are cheated and sold counterfeit products without their knowledge.

Some products cannot be identified as fake until you have used them for at least 3 months or even less and then you identify the results of wear and tear.

There isn't one particular product where you find counterfeit products. There are electronic items, cosmetics, watches, bags, books, mobile phones, softwares and what not. You name it and they have it!

Though the counterfeit products look great and inexpensive at the time of purchase, in a long run, they cannot withstand wear and tear. It also results in loss of money when you are looking for goods in long run. There is no warranty or any sort of guarantee for such products. Most of them are sold street side without any bill commonly called "grey" goods.

Say for example, you buy any of the below Counterfeit products,

Fossil watch -> Rs 100.
-Might stop working after 3 months.
Dior Perfume -> Rs 250.
-Damages the fabric color and causes head ache.
MAC Foundation -> Rs 300.
-Itching on the face and redness.
NIKE shoes-> Rs 400
-Sole torn after a run.
Shantaram Book -> Rs 150.
-Paper Prints missing after 300 pages.
Lord of the Rings DVD -> Rs 30.
-Bad video print affecting eyes with missing parts
Pirated Adobe Photoshop -> Download free from Torrent
-No updates available and laptop goes for reboot due to the bugs.
HP Printer ink -> Rs 450
-Bad quality prints and degrades the performance of the printer.

The above outcome can be avoided by using the respective original brands. Originals offers warranty, services when something goes wrong. Most important - you are paying "respect" to the creator/designer who has spent day and night to bring out the ideas into the products to be a huge "Success". Remember, Even those who imitate the originals always fake the best in the market. Then why not buy the original?

HP is now offering the ink cartridges as low as Rs 449.

What if am cheated saying its original? 

HP has advised to look for the below while purchasing their refill cartridges:
Look for HP QR code. The QR code reader app can be easily downloaded on smart phone to determine the genuineness of the ink.


What if I do not own a smart phone?

You need not worry about it. Go to HP website and check for authenticity entering the code.

HP also offers a door delivery of the inks, free of cost,  within 6 to 8 hours on placing an order. You can place an order by dialing 1800-425-4999 or placing an order online here: https://h30042.www3.hp.com/SureSupply/?AppName=OACLanding&loc=in&lang=en. The website has set of instructions on choosing the printer, model.

I would like to quote an example here. Every book has an ISBN code with the thick and thin lines. I recently installed Goodread app on my iPhone which would scan the ISBN bar code and display the title of the book. I scanned many books in my personal library and the title would populate within a few seconds and the title was always appropriate.
Few years ago, I bought a fat book with 1000 pages-Gone with the Wind which had good print and strong bind. When I scanned the bar code, it returned an error saying the book was never found! The book was a counterfeit and I was under the impression that it was a genuine copy all these years. Apps like these help us to identify the originals.

Many book publishers are now releasing the low cost edition books that are original and affordable for the avid book readers to own.

Thus I conclude the topic saying: Always go for and encourage buying the originals.
As a person who always dream of owning brand and a responsible citizen, always opt for genuine product and test for its authenticity so that you are not cheated.

Scan the below QR code to test.

The blogger meet was an interesting event with fun filled events like tweeting about the quote which your mother or father scolded, mime be it Mr. Potter or Chronicles, best pose for photograph, finding the complete quotes... The speaker from HP advising on the benefits of Original product Vs Fake. The admins who were always cheerful from the beginning till end of the end of the meet. Interesting gifts and high tea.

Few pictures from the event:





Oh yeah, not to forget it was my second memorable Indiblogger meet. 

I have been signing up various book reading challenges for the past two years and haven't been able to complete any of this. I wish I can read at least the books which I have been longing for, in 2013. :)

Puffed Rice in English or Kallepuri in Kannada, usually mixed with salt and masala are sold road side, are the  best evening time snacks in Bangalore. Kallepuri vendors are commonly found at Lalbagh where walkers buy the kallepuri wrapped in a sheet on old paper, after a tiring walk around the park.
They cost less than Rs 10/-

Shot at Chitra Santhe 2011. 

Found this wall hanging at Archies, Garuda Mall, Bangalore.

11th May 2012, Melbourne
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I had begun to feel that I was spending most time on social networking site facebook either commenting on friends status or browsing through some groups and liking them,  or even thinking what to upload or update daily when others would ask, "Oh, no updates from you" or "Show us more of Australia", "Pics are so-so, could have clicked better, having known you for such long time...". Off late, I began to feel very unsecured sharing any updates on day to day life or even a photo of mine or ones which I have clicked. Or someone would ping you saying how much weight one should lose!

Initially, when I signed up facebook or orkut, finding good old mates from school or college and staying connected was important and fun. As time passed, I begun to receive requests from those whom I knew little or friend of friend of friend who just wants to have a good count of friend list and show off or someone from office who would just gossip on you, what you did, what your routine is.. Folks on your friend list make comments which you never expect. Though, good and bad are existent, have been seeing the other side of it.
Its been 10 days that I deactivated my account and feeling much better.

Oh, yeah. I can survive without Facebook. ;)