A few days back, the cover of my car key remote peeled off. I had never even considered the possibility of such a thing happening, but there it is. I examined what was left of the key in a fuzzy, wool…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. XXV: Mobiles: Quiet & Dignified | PG Bhaskar
’You’re not on WhatsApp?’ people ask me, looking at me like I was a piece of some pre-historic fossil that had suddenly fallen onto their dinner plate. No, I’m not. ‘Why not?’ Well, I have good reason…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. XXIV: Nirvana | PG Bhaskar
The requirement these days in banks to use customers’ full names while opening their accounts has made life very difficult for tele-marketing staff. These poor people do not know the customers and hav…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. XXIII: Disturbing Dreams | PG Bhaskar
Last night I had this dream. A nightmare, rather; one in which I was an employee in a multinational technology firm – possibly one of those which aims to place servers on the moon or enable cell phone…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. XXII: Fast Cars| PG Bhaskar
Some men are ‘car men’. They talk cars, read about cars and stare at pictures of cars. They drive cars with relish. If a car stalls, they take great pleasure in fiddling about inside its hood. They ke…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. XXI: Smart Phone People | PG Bhaskar
Look, I admit don’t know what will eventually lead to the end of the world. But I’m pretty sure that the seemingly uncontrollable use of smart phones is one very solid contender. I read a report recen…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. XX: Nobody’s Business | PG Bhaskar
When my wife, son and I left for New York three weeks ago, we briefly fantasized about buying business class tickets. I checked the price, uttered a horrified yelp and quickly abandoned the thought. S…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. XIX: Basements & Brawn| PG Bhaskar
I was at a friend’s house in Long Island in New York yesterday. He was proudly showing me around the house. He took me to the living room, the bedrooms, the guest room, the kitchen and the room. We sp…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. XVIII: The Big Apple | PG Bhaskar
So in a sudden change from being comfortable and complacent in good old Dubai, I have, this week, plunged headlong into the rush of life in the Big Apple. I’m still trying to come to terms with it. St…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. XVII: Quizzes & Whizzes | PG Bhaskar
In my youth, I was a quiz enthusiast. I rarely left a bookshop without buying a quiz book. On Emirates flights, I would much rather play the quiz game on their in-flight entertainment than watch a mov…
This, That & Other Nonsense: Social Media Dilemmas | PG Bhaskar
By the time Mark Zuckerberg was born, I was already out of my teens. So obviously, by the time I dipped a tentative toe into the world of facebook, I was already well into middle age. I found it a ver…
This, That & Other Nonsense: The Next Man | PG Bhaskar
We’ve had Batman, Superman, Spiderman and now Ant-Man. So what exactly is it, I wonder, that makes these ‘men’ succeed? What is it about them that holds us spellbound? Why have they caught our fancy? …
This, That & Other Nonsense: To Kill a Watchman | PG Bhaskar
In 1960, Nelle Harper Lee’s book To Kill A Mockingbird set the literary stage on fire, winning her the Pulitzer prize. After a few years in the limelight, Lee seemed to have gone into hibernation exce…
This, That & Other Nonsense: Obama Kenya | PG Bhaskar
President Barack Obama has constantly been on my mind these last two weeks. Not because of the Iran ‘deal’ but because of reasons ‘closer’ to me. I first heard of Obama some eight years ago, when I wa…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. XII: Rage Against Time | PG Bhaskar
We’ve all been brought up on lessons about time; how to tell time, the importance of time. We’ve been told that time is money, that it waits for no one and that a stitch in time saves nine. So we stri…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. XI – A Writer’s Delight | PG Bhaskar
Last week, I saw a man standing under a kind of halo. He was emanating incredibly positive vibes, an aura of some ethereal sort. His smile was captivating, beatific; his demeanour, munificent. Fascina…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. X – Green Peas | PG Bhaskar
I was at this hotel in Uganda last week and being very fond of peas, ordered ‘green peas risotto’ through room service. Half-way through the meal, I realised there was no green peas in it.…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. IX – Tweet Tweet | PG Bhaskar
Few of us took precis-writing seriously in school. Possibly, if we could have foreseen twitter and had an inkling of what a big thing it would become, we might have paid more attention to precis while…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. VIII – IPL Observations | PG Bhaskar
The IPL is over. And I have several profound, earthshaking observations to share. They say nothing is impossible, so there must be some way of making Gautam Gambhir smile. But it is best attempted on …
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. VI – Driving Jitters | PG Bhaskar
My wife is an exceptionally brilliant driver. She has good steering control, great reflexes, an extraordinary sense of anticipation and an incredible feather-touch foot on the brake. She is a genius a…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. V – Anyways | PG Bhaskar
I tell you, the ‘ways’ of this world are getting on my nerves. Everyone has some favourite words that resonate with them. But I think it’s more common to come across words that really piss you off. Bu…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. IV – Net Neutrality Nightmare | PG Bhaskar
Over the last few days, I have been hesitant, tentative and wary; ducking sudden questions and beating a hasty retreat if I spy any Indian in the vicinity. There is a hunted look on my face and I have…
This, That & Other Nonsense Vol. IV – Net Neutrality Nightmare | PG Bhaskar
YOUR NAME YOUR FIRST NAME YOUR FAMILY/LAST NAME YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS YOUR TITLE YOUR BRAND debate,india,makr zuckerberg,net neutrality,pg bhaskar,saturday column,smile,this,this that & other nonsenseOver the last few days, I have been hesitant, tentative and wary; ducking sudden questions and beating a hasty retreat if I spy any Indian in the vicinity. There is a hunted look on my face and I have developed a tendency to jump nervously when spoken to. Most of you are probably brimming with […]