Glimpses Of Shangri-la

So it turns out that my favourite hang-out place in town is not J-cubez, the pub.
It is infact a place thats the definitive antithesis of a pub!
The Indian Institute Of World Culture.
Funny how I've been there in the past and failed to bask in its magic.

I visited the place one fine lazy afternoon last week, when I suddenly felt like delving into some of Killinger's Existentialist Philosophy stuff. Out of the blue. Off the cuff. Do not ask me why.
Its an ancient rambling library-cum-auditorium kind of a place. The kind thats smells deliciously of old books and is peopled by genteel well-read old men and women with particular taste for The Economic Times. The building itself is very inconspicuous which makes it every bit of a misanthrope's dream. Oh and there's a Jethro Tull fan in the neighborhood who plays Acres Wild exactly mellow enough to make reading bliss too!
One old gent even exclaimed, "Magical!". Such a neat crowd!

But you should know they say a lot of "Krishnaa" or "Venkatramana" each time they sneeze, and loudly.

So I was looking around and the first book I found had to be yet another Douglas Adams masterpiece!
Yes I found The Salmon Of Doubt!
And I allowed myself the luxury of rendering the Manu version of one of his ideas.
Just a fun thing. Here goes:

Dream Film Cast:
Kevin Spacey as a rock musician and now a fugitive, Jack Nicholson his loudmouthed manager and Minnie Driver a love interest in a movie loosely based in post-war Britain circa '70.

Dream rock band:
Eddie Vedder on vocals, Pete Townshend on rythm, Joe Satriani on lead, Robby Krieger on keyboards, Lars Ulrich on drums, Geddy Lee on bass and backup vocals, Vikku Vinayakram on percussions, Ustad Ali Akbar Khan on Sarod and Pandit Hariprasad Churaisiya on flute. A band that knows no musical limits!

Dream project:
Given unlimited financial support, I would fund a research to study feasibility of life on one of Jupiter's moons. A mass teleport vehicle would then take me there along with the Indian cricket team, Manchester United and some hot pit babes.

Dream Lover:
Monica Belucci, with due respect to Tyra Banks and Rakhi Sawant.

Dream cuisine:
Indian, without a shadow of a doubt.

Dream holiday:
Wake up to the sweet chirping of birds in Galapagos, shower at The Bath, have breakfast by a brook in the Danube Delta, scuba-dive from the Grand Canyon, lie on the grassy plains of Northern Australia overlooking the Ayers Rock, catch the sunset at Venice and drop by Hong Kong for dinner on the way home.

I have the Mach 8-Squillion Pan Galactic Jetblaster; geography can hence kiss my ass.

Dream alternative careers:
Train Driver
Shepherd
Wine Critic
Music Journo
CEO, Google.

Dream home:
A cosy little place by a yellow desert stream in Eastern Kashmir with a good view of the Leh hills, a fast broadband connection and a plush white sofa.

Its a good life, fellow dreamers. A good life.