I have been to several weddings and similar large social events in India over the past 8 months. I typically prefer the wedding ceremony itself to the reception afterwards for closer friends and family as one gets to be a part of a smaller more intimate group.
But for the ubiquitous photographers, I really enjoy people-watching at these events. The photographers seem to have decided that since they will be recording the event for posterity, they are the most important persons in the hall. Hence regardless of the seating position, the most prominent sight for you is the posterior of one of these abominations.
And then they turn away from the event itself, only to show their backs to the dais and now click the audience trying to gawk around their girth at the goings-on that they came to see. I have seen the indulgent photographers miss entirely on clicking key events such as the tying of the mangalasutra no less, and then ask for an action replay so that they can provide it for future replays by the families...
I always thought we meet to create memories, and that we part to preserve them...and that photographs are only an aid to memory, not the memory itself!
Monday, March 27, 2006
Thursday, March 23, 2006
The Best Airports in The World (In My Experience)
One of the positives of the extensive travel my job entails is that I get to see a lot of hotels and airports around the world. It is a pain in that the trips typically are just the airport, a hotel room, the venue of the meeting(s) and back to the airport.
I have been to Japan over a dozen times over the past 2-3 years and seen Mt Fuji only once - from an aircraft as I flew from Tokyo to Seoul! I have been to Beijing and not seen the Great Wall and had actually been at least 5-6 times to Orlando for various conferences before I actually set foot inside one of the theme parks at Disneyworld.
But I digress. The huge positive is the sheer number of airports that I get to see. And my favorites are (in order):
1. The new Kuala Lumpur International Airport (http://www.klia.com.my/ ). An absolute masterpiece, the cornerstone and the flagship of the stated direction of the Malaysian government to ensure their nation is classified as a Developed nation in a few years. It is by and far one of the best airports for transit passengers - there is little else that I could have asked for from amenities, quality lounges, great shopping and very comfortable seating in the common areas. I have never been into Kuala Lumpur so unlike the other airports on this list, that one thing remains a question mark - on ease of access to/from the city.
2. The Incheon Airport serving Seoul, S Korea (http://www.airport.or.kr/eng/airport/) - which is a testimony to what the city of Seoul wants to become! Its 5th birthday is coming up on the 29th of this month and is a magnificent work of architecture with its soaring highlights. As one very well equipped terminal handling all the traffic, it is very very easy to navigate. The only drawback to this airport is that it seems rather lifeless, perhaps because though it does handle a very high volume of traffic (passengers and cargo), its construction and opening seemed to coincide with a downturn in the Korean economy which is now being overshadowed by the explosive growth of China and the emergence of Shanghai's Pudong International Airport as an alternate hub.
3. The new Hong Kong International Airport (http://www.hongkongairport.com/eng/index.html) - beautiful struture, very lively and humming with activity, flights go to almost every corner of the world from here and one sees a veritable smorgasboard of nationalities and skin-tones in the transit halls. Slightly removed from the city - but that is its only drawback. With the floor-to-ceiling windows offering fantastic views of the Hong Kong Bay and more, this is truly an awesome airport!
4. The Greater Pittsburgh International Airport
I first flew into the PIT in 1974 - remember flying on the Allegheny Airlines to NYC then but that is all. My more conscious memories stem from my visit there in 1987 - it was a tiny airport still then serving this burgeoning region of western Pennsylvania, South-Eastern Ohio and West Virginia.
But all this had changed when I flew in again in the late 1990s - by now they had built this spectacular new airport (http://www.pitairport.com/AboutUsServlet?option=pit_background) and actually made it like a complete mall inside. No airport's retail initiatives were harder hit by the security restrictions post-9/11 than PIT. The volume of transit passengers has never been too high - this has mainly comprised regional travellers from the immediate catchment area transitioning over to a longer-range jet at PIT. Hence the airport mall was designed for the good denizens of the Pittsburgh area to come in and shop at. Now they cannot even enter the terminal.
Pittsburgh is where I was introduced to the concept of "landside" facilities v/s "airside" facilities. Thus an airport restaurant may be considered "landside" if it is located outside the security check area where visitors and so on can also access its services. "Airside is just the converse".
That being said, PIT is one of the most efficient airports for passengers planning this as a destination, and is an outstanding option for those planning to only transit through. By and far the best airport in the US, surpassing even the newer ones in Minneapolis and in Detroit. The sheer length of my association with this great city makes the Pittsburgh Airport one of my personal favorites.
5. Amsterdam Schiphol Airport: An airport that is still very good inspite of its advanced age - the only one on this list that was constructed primarily before 1990. Inspite of that, it has a unique character, ease of access, an in-airport casino and an actual in-airport edition of the Rijk Museum with original Rembrandts on display, and so much more. Must be one of the great all time airports simply for its longevity and continued relevance.
6. Sydney Airport: A relatively small airport, but beautifully equipped and maintained
7. Singapore's Changi Airport: The general seating is not very comfortable, the signage not very clear and the shopping very very in-your-face. Also, very small and thus crowded always. That being said, it is like all things Singapore - very controlled and correct, every check-box for a good airport ticked off including orchids all over to provide some pale imitation of greenery and so on.
8. The new McNamara Terminal at the Detroit Metro Airport: If you must fly into Detroit, the only way you should do so is by Northwest Airlines so that you get to land in the new McNamara Terminal there. Spacious and sumptious, this is everything the old Metro Airport is not. With a single one-mile long terminal, the elevated tram linking end to end complemented by moving walkways at the floor level, great eateries and more, this is truly amazing. There is very little local feel to it however, and also the fact that this is only used by NW Airlines (and its alliance partner) passengers prevents it from securing a higher ranking. However, it is by and far the best airport in the US after Pittsburgh International.
9. Honolulu Airport: This is exactly how the gateway to Hawaii should be. Very wide open, low-slung and spread out, the excellent vistas and more make it much better than San Diego's Lindbergh Field with which it shares several attributes. The Honolulu Airport has actual greenery growing all over the terminal (and much more natural, not force-fitted into the structure as at Singapore's Changi). It is however, much more of a domestic airport in terms of amenities and shopping - plus as an airport in Hawaii, it is intended as a destination airport and not a transit one.
10. Zurich Airport: One of the most family-friendly airports in the world. Very well appointed with observation decks to watch flights take off and land, great children's play area well designed to address the need of the tired parent, excellent shopping and fabulous views of the Alps outside.
Yet there are some airports that are distinctly overrated. The prime example of this category is Shanghai's PuDong International. Now if one goes by the assumption that China and its amenities (till a few years back) were comparable to the pathetic ones provided in India, then the PuDong International (as also the Beijing National) are both evidences of a magnificent transformation.
However as compared to the great ones around the world today that China is truly vying with, the PuDong International is at best very functional and adequate, lot of the Soviet/Mao era design features continue including shapeless open halls and more; shopping very very limited; ok destination airport especially with the new high-speed MagLev connnection to downtown Shanghai
The bad ones:
1. Frankfurt Airport: Very busy, very cluttered, very poor quality seating, the smell of cigarette smoke pervades all over the terminal, the signage is pathetic with way too many ups and downs, the airline lounges, esp the Lufthansa ones, are utterly substandard in space, amenities and seating
2. Tokyo Narita International: An airport that has by and far outgrown its purpose. The biggest positive is the high speed Narita Express train connecting it to downtown Tokyo but even this is undermined by the enormous number of escalators one needs to climb (with your baggage) to get to the checkin area. When you land there, god forbid you are forced to land at one of their so-called "bus-gates" on either a cold day in winter or a wet day in July...
3. Bangkok International Airport: Another airport showing signs of its age. Or perhaps that it is still a 3rd world country's airport and that it is not yet fair to compare it with the ones in Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong and Singapore. For those in the US, this is like the old Detroit Metro Airport where it was possible to check in on time and miss a flight by the time you walked to the gate proper.
4. The Abu Dhabi Airport: Which would not have figured at all but for two trips in-transit through this of all available airports. It is a strange design - with tiles more akin to bathroom tiles (in shades of deep blue and white) plastered all over the dome shaped (actually more donut like with a dip in the middle of the dome) ceiling. Very jarring on the eye and characterized by a clutter for seating.
5. London Heathrow: Distinctly showing signs of age now. A creaky, outdated structure redeemed by the excellent connections to downtown London and the very lively passenger waiting area. However, moving between terminals is a time-consuming challenge, and the signage pathetically inadequate.
6. Atlanta's Hartsfield - badly designed relatively new airport with the sole redeeming feature being the excellent train connection into downtown Atlanta
7. La Guardia and JFK -in New York enough said.
8. Boston's Logan International - unless you are landing and taking off on Delta out of the completely rebuilt Terminal A, the terminal experience is pathetic. Compound this with the hopeless traffic arrangements, the difficult to reach rental car terminals and the totally inadequate Blue Line connection to the city, this is a pity of an airport.
Then there are ones that are so bad that they are off the charts entirely.
This category has to be headlined by the Indian airports. All the Indian airports - Bangalore's is a joke but even Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai are hopelessly inadequate and out of keeping with the increasingly global role India plays - are absolutely pathetic. Ranking the airports in India from best to worst is an interesting exercise in itself but worth doing...
1. Chennai's Meenambakkam Airport: Easy transfer between the domestic and international sections, adequate though small lounges, like all Indian airports pathetic in-airport retail, all are compensated by the relative efficiency and cleanliness of the airport. Getting around is another thing entirely, with the Madras cabbies and auto drivers historically notorious and only getting worse.
2. Mumbai's Santa Cruz Airport: The Sahar International is bad and badly in need of a total overhaul - the Santa Cruz Domestic Airport, esp the new departure terminal, is quite modern though badly architected. The big plus here is the ease of getting to the city from here and the in-airport retail and lounges are nice. A big reason to use the airport is the Hotel Royal Orchid just outside - just what the doctor ordered for tired transit passengers.
3. Hyderabad's Begumpet Airport: One of the most accessible of Indian airports, this has a very elegantly designed (and adjacent) domestic and international terminals a la Chennai. Very clean bright lines characterize this airport - only rumors have it that it will be "retired" once the new airport comes up in the southern outskirts of the city near Shamshabad. I hope it is not - it still has a key role as the urban airport quite like Chicago's Midway and the Washington National.
4. Kolkata Airport
I have been to Japan over a dozen times over the past 2-3 years and seen Mt Fuji only once - from an aircraft as I flew from Tokyo to Seoul! I have been to Beijing and not seen the Great Wall and had actually been at least 5-6 times to Orlando for various conferences before I actually set foot inside one of the theme parks at Disneyworld.
But I digress. The huge positive is the sheer number of airports that I get to see. And my favorites are (in order):
1. The new Kuala Lumpur International Airport (http://www.klia.com.my/ ). An absolute masterpiece, the cornerstone and the flagship of the stated direction of the Malaysian government to ensure their nation is classified as a Developed nation in a few years. It is by and far one of the best airports for transit passengers - there is little else that I could have asked for from amenities, quality lounges, great shopping and very comfortable seating in the common areas. I have never been into Kuala Lumpur so unlike the other airports on this list, that one thing remains a question mark - on ease of access to/from the city.
2. The Incheon Airport serving Seoul, S Korea (http://www.airport.or.kr/eng/airport/) - which is a testimony to what the city of Seoul wants to become! Its 5th birthday is coming up on the 29th of this month and is a magnificent work of architecture with its soaring highlights. As one very well equipped terminal handling all the traffic, it is very very easy to navigate. The only drawback to this airport is that it seems rather lifeless, perhaps because though it does handle a very high volume of traffic (passengers and cargo), its construction and opening seemed to coincide with a downturn in the Korean economy which is now being overshadowed by the explosive growth of China and the emergence of Shanghai's Pudong International Airport as an alternate hub.
3. The new Hong Kong International Airport (http://www.hongkongairport.com/eng/index.html) - beautiful struture, very lively and humming with activity, flights go to almost every corner of the world from here and one sees a veritable smorgasboard of nationalities and skin-tones in the transit halls. Slightly removed from the city - but that is its only drawback. With the floor-to-ceiling windows offering fantastic views of the Hong Kong Bay and more, this is truly an awesome airport!
4. The Greater Pittsburgh International Airport
I first flew into the PIT in 1974 - remember flying on the Allegheny Airlines to NYC then but that is all. My more conscious memories stem from my visit there in 1987 - it was a tiny airport still then serving this burgeoning region of western Pennsylvania, South-Eastern Ohio and West Virginia.
But all this had changed when I flew in again in the late 1990s - by now they had built this spectacular new airport (http://www.pitairport.com/AboutUsServlet?option=pit_background) and actually made it like a complete mall inside. No airport's retail initiatives were harder hit by the security restrictions post-9/11 than PIT. The volume of transit passengers has never been too high - this has mainly comprised regional travellers from the immediate catchment area transitioning over to a longer-range jet at PIT. Hence the airport mall was designed for the good denizens of the Pittsburgh area to come in and shop at. Now they cannot even enter the terminal.
Pittsburgh is where I was introduced to the concept of "landside" facilities v/s "airside" facilities. Thus an airport restaurant may be considered "landside" if it is located outside the security check area where visitors and so on can also access its services. "Airside is just the converse".
That being said, PIT is one of the most efficient airports for passengers planning this as a destination, and is an outstanding option for those planning to only transit through. By and far the best airport in the US, surpassing even the newer ones in Minneapolis and in Detroit. The sheer length of my association with this great city makes the Pittsburgh Airport one of my personal favorites.
5. Amsterdam Schiphol Airport: An airport that is still very good inspite of its advanced age - the only one on this list that was constructed primarily before 1990. Inspite of that, it has a unique character, ease of access, an in-airport casino and an actual in-airport edition of the Rijk Museum with original Rembrandts on display, and so much more. Must be one of the great all time airports simply for its longevity and continued relevance.
6. Sydney Airport: A relatively small airport, but beautifully equipped and maintained
7. Singapore's Changi Airport: The general seating is not very comfortable, the signage not very clear and the shopping very very in-your-face. Also, very small and thus crowded always. That being said, it is like all things Singapore - very controlled and correct, every check-box for a good airport ticked off including orchids all over to provide some pale imitation of greenery and so on.
8. The new McNamara Terminal at the Detroit Metro Airport: If you must fly into Detroit, the only way you should do so is by Northwest Airlines so that you get to land in the new McNamara Terminal there. Spacious and sumptious, this is everything the old Metro Airport is not. With a single one-mile long terminal, the elevated tram linking end to end complemented by moving walkways at the floor level, great eateries and more, this is truly amazing. There is very little local feel to it however, and also the fact that this is only used by NW Airlines (and its alliance partner) passengers prevents it from securing a higher ranking. However, it is by and far the best airport in the US after Pittsburgh International.
9. Honolulu Airport: This is exactly how the gateway to Hawaii should be. Very wide open, low-slung and spread out, the excellent vistas and more make it much better than San Diego's Lindbergh Field with which it shares several attributes. The Honolulu Airport has actual greenery growing all over the terminal (and much more natural, not force-fitted into the structure as at Singapore's Changi). It is however, much more of a domestic airport in terms of amenities and shopping - plus as an airport in Hawaii, it is intended as a destination airport and not a transit one.
10. Zurich Airport: One of the most family-friendly airports in the world. Very well appointed with observation decks to watch flights take off and land, great children's play area well designed to address the need of the tired parent, excellent shopping and fabulous views of the Alps outside.
Yet there are some airports that are distinctly overrated. The prime example of this category is Shanghai's PuDong International. Now if one goes by the assumption that China and its amenities (till a few years back) were comparable to the pathetic ones provided in India, then the PuDong International (as also the Beijing National) are both evidences of a magnificent transformation.
However as compared to the great ones around the world today that China is truly vying with, the PuDong International is at best very functional and adequate, lot of the Soviet/Mao era design features continue including shapeless open halls and more; shopping very very limited; ok destination airport especially with the new high-speed MagLev connnection to downtown Shanghai
The bad ones:
1. Frankfurt Airport: Very busy, very cluttered, very poor quality seating, the smell of cigarette smoke pervades all over the terminal, the signage is pathetic with way too many ups and downs, the airline lounges, esp the Lufthansa ones, are utterly substandard in space, amenities and seating
2. Tokyo Narita International: An airport that has by and far outgrown its purpose. The biggest positive is the high speed Narita Express train connecting it to downtown Tokyo but even this is undermined by the enormous number of escalators one needs to climb (with your baggage) to get to the checkin area. When you land there, god forbid you are forced to land at one of their so-called "bus-gates" on either a cold day in winter or a wet day in July...
3. Bangkok International Airport: Another airport showing signs of its age. Or perhaps that it is still a 3rd world country's airport and that it is not yet fair to compare it with the ones in Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong and Singapore. For those in the US, this is like the old Detroit Metro Airport where it was possible to check in on time and miss a flight by the time you walked to the gate proper.
4. The Abu Dhabi Airport: Which would not have figured at all but for two trips in-transit through this of all available airports. It is a strange design - with tiles more akin to bathroom tiles (in shades of deep blue and white) plastered all over the dome shaped (actually more donut like with a dip in the middle of the dome) ceiling. Very jarring on the eye and characterized by a clutter for seating.
5. London Heathrow: Distinctly showing signs of age now. A creaky, outdated structure redeemed by the excellent connections to downtown London and the very lively passenger waiting area. However, moving between terminals is a time-consuming challenge, and the signage pathetically inadequate.
6. Atlanta's Hartsfield - badly designed relatively new airport with the sole redeeming feature being the excellent train connection into downtown Atlanta
7. La Guardia and JFK -in New York enough said.
8. Boston's Logan International - unless you are landing and taking off on Delta out of the completely rebuilt Terminal A, the terminal experience is pathetic. Compound this with the hopeless traffic arrangements, the difficult to reach rental car terminals and the totally inadequate Blue Line connection to the city, this is a pity of an airport.
Then there are ones that are so bad that they are off the charts entirely.
This category has to be headlined by the Indian airports. All the Indian airports - Bangalore's is a joke but even Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai are hopelessly inadequate and out of keeping with the increasingly global role India plays - are absolutely pathetic. Ranking the airports in India from best to worst is an interesting exercise in itself but worth doing...
1. Chennai's Meenambakkam Airport: Easy transfer between the domestic and international sections, adequate though small lounges, like all Indian airports pathetic in-airport retail, all are compensated by the relative efficiency and cleanliness of the airport. Getting around is another thing entirely, with the Madras cabbies and auto drivers historically notorious and only getting worse.
2. Mumbai's Santa Cruz Airport: The Sahar International is bad and badly in need of a total overhaul - the Santa Cruz Domestic Airport, esp the new departure terminal, is quite modern though badly architected. The big plus here is the ease of getting to the city from here and the in-airport retail and lounges are nice. A big reason to use the airport is the Hotel Royal Orchid just outside - just what the doctor ordered for tired transit passengers.
3. Hyderabad's Begumpet Airport: One of the most accessible of Indian airports, this has a very elegantly designed (and adjacent) domestic and international terminals a la Chennai. Very clean bright lines characterize this airport - only rumors have it that it will be "retired" once the new airport comes up in the southern outskirts of the city near Shamshabad. I hope it is not - it still has a key role as the urban airport quite like Chicago's Midway and the Washington National.
4. Kolkata Airport
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
On Moving To India
It was with some anxiety that I first contemplated the idea of shifting to India from the US when it was broached about a year back.
The crowds are maddening and the traffic worse, especially in the one-time garden city of the country. Tech palaces built by the likes of Infosys and others rub shoulders with squalor and filth of a kind that is alien to those who knew of the Bangalore of the 1980s and before. An interesting study quoted in the Times of India here a few weeks back stated that Bangalore has perhaps the slowest average traffic speed in the country of about 14 or 16 kmph - the best is Hyderabad at about 24-26 kmph, a singular tribute to the previous Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu and his vision for Hyderabad.
Yet Bangalore continues to grow, and grow rapidly. Companies are still expanding here despite an ongoing outcry for civic improvements. Housing prices are soaring sky high, and yet any new development is being lapped up in a hurry. Public transport is non-existent, crime is rising with pollution keeping pace and yet there is no other Indian city I would rather LIVE in than Bangalore.
The weather is still much more moderate than any of the contenders in India - Hyderabad and Pune are much hotter in summer and Chennai (and Mumbai) are both way too sultry. Crime is still lower than any city from the North, the choices of cuisine for eating out are outstanding!
The Bangalore airport must rank as one of the worst I have seen anywhere, period. The domestic departure terminal is bad; the international departure terminal is worse. And international arrivals - all one can do is to hope and pray. They have exactly ONE baggage carousel in international arrivals - and around midnight, there are jets landing from Frankfurt, Paris and Singapore, full of people and their baggage. Retrieving your bags and getting out can take anything from 30 minutes (if you are lucky) to over 2 hours.
And yet I love Bangalore and am thoroughly enjoying the move back. Now that I have been back for just over 9 months, I must confess it has been an exhilarating experience.
The crowds are maddening and the traffic worse, especially in the one-time garden city of the country. Tech palaces built by the likes of Infosys and others rub shoulders with squalor and filth of a kind that is alien to those who knew of the Bangalore of the 1980s and before. An interesting study quoted in the Times of India here a few weeks back stated that Bangalore has perhaps the slowest average traffic speed in the country of about 14 or 16 kmph - the best is Hyderabad at about 24-26 kmph, a singular tribute to the previous Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu and his vision for Hyderabad.
Yet Bangalore continues to grow, and grow rapidly. Companies are still expanding here despite an ongoing outcry for civic improvements. Housing prices are soaring sky high, and yet any new development is being lapped up in a hurry. Public transport is non-existent, crime is rising with pollution keeping pace and yet there is no other Indian city I would rather LIVE in than Bangalore.
The weather is still much more moderate than any of the contenders in India - Hyderabad and Pune are much hotter in summer and Chennai (and Mumbai) are both way too sultry. Crime is still lower than any city from the North, the choices of cuisine for eating out are outstanding!
The Bangalore airport must rank as one of the worst I have seen anywhere, period. The domestic departure terminal is bad; the international departure terminal is worse. And international arrivals - all one can do is to hope and pray. They have exactly ONE baggage carousel in international arrivals - and around midnight, there are jets landing from Frankfurt, Paris and Singapore, full of people and their baggage. Retrieving your bags and getting out can take anything from 30 minutes (if you are lucky) to over 2 hours.
And yet I love Bangalore and am thoroughly enjoying the move back. Now that I have been back for just over 9 months, I must confess it has been an exhilarating experience.
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
The Strange Story of VVS Laxman
I read a great statistic today - that in the 9 test matches that VVS Laxman has played since Greg Chappell became the coach of the Indian side, he batted in 9 innings and has 2 centuries, 2 50s, a solitary duck of a suspect lbw decision in Pakistan, and is still not considered worthy of a place in the side. That Laxman in this timespan has the second highest average in the team (only after the resplendent Dravid) only adds to the intrigue. And the average is not a doddering number either but a splendid 65 or thereabouts!
Yuvraj Singh does command a place - because he alone scored runs in Karachi, and then had a wonderful ODI series in Pakistan. Also is supposedly a better fielder - but at cover point, not in the slips where dolly after dolly of a catch was dropped while India's best slip fielder sat out the game. In the same way as we are picking horses for courses, should we not be picking fieldsmen by position in the field. So if we are picking a 1-day team, absolutely pick Yuvraj - but then performance in the one-dayers should not be used as a predictor of performances in the longer form.
Laxman should be the 2nd slip by default in the test team.
The irony is this. I think that when Laxman is sure of a place in the side, he bats better. And when he bats well, of course his position is not challenged. When India goes overseas, nobody questions the value of the second-best "wall" in the side, thus he is assured of a spot and seemingly does so much better than in home series on the dead wickets of the subcontinent.
I know he will be a fixture on the tour to South Africa - and will come back with at least one more century and one 50 if not more in the tests there.
Yuvraj Singh does command a place - because he alone scored runs in Karachi, and then had a wonderful ODI series in Pakistan. Also is supposedly a better fielder - but at cover point, not in the slips where dolly after dolly of a catch was dropped while India's best slip fielder sat out the game. In the same way as we are picking horses for courses, should we not be picking fieldsmen by position in the field. So if we are picking a 1-day team, absolutely pick Yuvraj - but then performance in the one-dayers should not be used as a predictor of performances in the longer form.
Laxman should be the 2nd slip by default in the test team.
The irony is this. I think that when Laxman is sure of a place in the side, he bats better. And when he bats well, of course his position is not challenged. When India goes overseas, nobody questions the value of the second-best "wall" in the side, thus he is assured of a spot and seemingly does so much better than in home series on the dead wickets of the subcontinent.
I know he will be a fixture on the tour to South Africa - and will come back with at least one more century and one 50 if not more in the tests there.
Saturday, March 11, 2006
College Basketball and NBA Players...
There is a frequent debate amongst my circle of friends about the relative importance of a college basketball program with respect to preparation for subsequent success in the NBA.
For example the much heralded Duke program has really produced just 2 top-notch and perhaps one or two tier-2 NBA players in the last decade or so - Grant Hill and Elton Brand qualify in the "Outstanding" category and Shane Battier and the player who was perhaps the best NCAA basketball player ever, Christian Laettner, are perhaps the two others who have gone on to have meaningful professional careers. The jury is still out on Carlos Boozer and Luol Deng, Jay Williams' career emerged still-born due to an off-field mishap and in general Duke basketballers including Mike Dunleavy Jr have failed to match their college success without the nurturing coaching of Mike K and the avid support of the system from the great Univ in Durham NC.
Their legendary rivals from across the Research Triangle Park, the UNC Tar Heels, have done a far better job of preparing players for a career as professional NBA players - apart from MJ and James Worthy, several others have had very distinguished NBA careers including Larry Brown, Rasheed Wallace, Sleepy Sam Perkins, Jerry Stackhouse, Antawn Jamison, Vince Carter, Bob McAdoo, Kenny Smith and Rick Fox.
Two very productive colleges in recent times have been the Univ of Arizona (Mike Bibby, Richard Jefferson, Damon Stoudamire, Jason Terry, Clifford Robinson, Andre Iguodala and one of my personal favorite player-philosophers Steve Kerr stand out) and the University of Connecticut (Ray Allen, Richard Hamilton, Emeka Okafor, Ben Gordon, etc). Georgetown has produced a profusion of outstanding big men incl Patrick Ewing, Alonzon Mourning and Dikembe Mutombo though my personal favorite from there has to be the inimitable Allen Iverson.
For sheer numbers of NBA players produced, few colleges can compare with the profusion from Kentucky, UCLA and Kansas, though their greatest products came out a long time back.
Here is a very helpful link for analyzing NBA players grouped by their alma mater... http://www.basketballreference.com/players/playerbycollege.htm
For example the much heralded Duke program has really produced just 2 top-notch and perhaps one or two tier-2 NBA players in the last decade or so - Grant Hill and Elton Brand qualify in the "Outstanding" category and Shane Battier and the player who was perhaps the best NCAA basketball player ever, Christian Laettner, are perhaps the two others who have gone on to have meaningful professional careers. The jury is still out on Carlos Boozer and Luol Deng, Jay Williams' career emerged still-born due to an off-field mishap and in general Duke basketballers including Mike Dunleavy Jr have failed to match their college success without the nurturing coaching of Mike K and the avid support of the system from the great Univ in Durham NC.
Their legendary rivals from across the Research Triangle Park, the UNC Tar Heels, have done a far better job of preparing players for a career as professional NBA players - apart from MJ and James Worthy, several others have had very distinguished NBA careers including Larry Brown, Rasheed Wallace, Sleepy Sam Perkins, Jerry Stackhouse, Antawn Jamison, Vince Carter, Bob McAdoo, Kenny Smith and Rick Fox.
Two very productive colleges in recent times have been the Univ of Arizona (Mike Bibby, Richard Jefferson, Damon Stoudamire, Jason Terry, Clifford Robinson, Andre Iguodala and one of my personal favorite player-philosophers Steve Kerr stand out) and the University of Connecticut (Ray Allen, Richard Hamilton, Emeka Okafor, Ben Gordon, etc). Georgetown has produced a profusion of outstanding big men incl Patrick Ewing, Alonzon Mourning and Dikembe Mutombo though my personal favorite from there has to be the inimitable Allen Iverson.
For sheer numbers of NBA players produced, few colleges can compare with the profusion from Kentucky, UCLA and Kansas, though their greatest products came out a long time back.
Here is a very helpful link for analyzing NBA players grouped by their alma mater... http://www.basketballreference.com/players/playerbycollege.htm
Friday, March 10, 2006
Rishi Kapoor's 20+ Debutante Heroines....
...I have heard Rishi Kapoor refer to having launched the careers of 20+ heroines in Bollywood...been struggling to compile a listing of these young ladies. Here is what I have come up with -
- Dimple Kapadia - Bobby
- Ranjeeta - Laila Majnu
- Shoma Anand - Barood
- Kajal Kiron - Hum Kisise Kam Nahin
- Bhavana Bhatt - Naya Daur - not really this sometime starlet's first movie but perhaps her only significant one
- Jaya Prada - Hindi entry through Sargam
- Kim - Naseeb (again benefit of doubt)
- Padmini Kolhapure - Zamaane Ko Dikhaana Hai (again benefit of doubt, Ahista Ahista would probably qualify as the former child artiste's first movie as a leading lady)
- Radhika - Naseeb Apna Apna
- Sonam - Vijay (a bit of a stretch considering the multi-starrer Vijay but let's grant it for now)
- Vinita Goel (Janam Janam)
- Sangita Bijlani (Hathyar - just preceded the more famous Tridev)
- Zeba Bakhtiar (Henna)
- Rukhsar (Inteha Pyar Ki, technically her second Hindi Movie as heroine)
...the Turning 40 Generation...dob 1965-66...
...across a broad spectrum of life, there is a group of celebrities who have, often very quietly, turned 40 over the past 12-15 months.
Stefan Edberg, the gentleman Swede who captivated a whole generation with his outstanding battles with Boris Becker, turned 40 in typical relative anonymity in Jan 2006. He espouses the best of great champions - they know how to win, they know how to win with grace, they live life by their own lofty standards, and when they feel those standards cannot be sustained they go away...very few sports personalities have shown this ability to know themselves and their limitations as well. I have fond memories of the epic come-back at Wimbledon in the summer of 88 against the mysterious and vastly under-appreciated Miroslav Mecir - that to me is a game for the ages... I still remember the impudent Michael Chang upsetting Edberg's rhythm at Roland Garros by standing inside the baseline for his FIRST serve and costing Stefan the opportunity to win the one grand-slam tourney he never won...
...very different in upbringing and polish, very different in terms of social milieu and comfort in the limelight was Scottie Pippen. More misunderstood than appreciated, Pippen for numerous fans of the NBA from the late 80s through the early 2000s represented the quintessential team basketball player. While showing an ability to light up the scorecard, Scottie is best remembered for the times he did not do anything statistically and yet changed the outcome of games and playoff series. Who can forget the defensive job he did on Indiana's Mark Jackson taking the point guard out of the game entirely with his swarming defense and leaving the potent offense in shambles.... the series of charges he took from Karl Malone as he proved that he could defend all 5 positions on the court (of course having Greg Ostertag at Center helped!) in the two NBA Finals series against Utah. His occasional blog on espn.com is remarkable for its candor and honesty - hopefully he will find a way to get back and involved in the game of basketball again. The NBA could use grassroots champions like him to sustain the game as it becomes increasingly elitist...
...JK Rowling turned 40 in July 2005... again a champion like Pippen who goes to show that where there is a will, there is definitely a way... how else can one explain the metamorphosis of a single-mother on welfare creating one of the most significant alternate worlds since the heyday of Tolkien...
For fans of Bollywood, Aamir Khan, Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan all turned 40 over the course of 1965... amazing coincidence this.
Stefan Edberg, the gentleman Swede who captivated a whole generation with his outstanding battles with Boris Becker, turned 40 in typical relative anonymity in Jan 2006. He espouses the best of great champions - they know how to win, they know how to win with grace, they live life by their own lofty standards, and when they feel those standards cannot be sustained they go away...very few sports personalities have shown this ability to know themselves and their limitations as well. I have fond memories of the epic come-back at Wimbledon in the summer of 88 against the mysterious and vastly under-appreciated Miroslav Mecir - that to me is a game for the ages... I still remember the impudent Michael Chang upsetting Edberg's rhythm at Roland Garros by standing inside the baseline for his FIRST serve and costing Stefan the opportunity to win the one grand-slam tourney he never won...
...very different in upbringing and polish, very different in terms of social milieu and comfort in the limelight was Scottie Pippen. More misunderstood than appreciated, Pippen for numerous fans of the NBA from the late 80s through the early 2000s represented the quintessential team basketball player. While showing an ability to light up the scorecard, Scottie is best remembered for the times he did not do anything statistically and yet changed the outcome of games and playoff series. Who can forget the defensive job he did on Indiana's Mark Jackson taking the point guard out of the game entirely with his swarming defense and leaving the potent offense in shambles.... the series of charges he took from Karl Malone as he proved that he could defend all 5 positions on the court (of course having Greg Ostertag at Center helped!) in the two NBA Finals series against Utah. His occasional blog on espn.com is remarkable for its candor and honesty - hopefully he will find a way to get back and involved in the game of basketball again. The NBA could use grassroots champions like him to sustain the game as it becomes increasingly elitist...
...JK Rowling turned 40 in July 2005... again a champion like Pippen who goes to show that where there is a will, there is definitely a way... how else can one explain the metamorphosis of a single-mother on welfare creating one of the most significant alternate worlds since the heyday of Tolkien...
For fans of Bollywood, Aamir Khan, Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan all turned 40 over the course of 1965... amazing coincidence this.
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