'BASKI'in IIT

"Basketball doesn't build character it reveals it"

"Good, better, best. Never let it rest. Until your good is better and your better is best" - Tim Duncan

"Be strong in body, clean in mind, lofty in ideals"
--Dr. James Naismith, the father of basketball


The basketball season is in full swing in IITD. Every other person seems to have caught the 'baski' virus and i am no exception. i have never had a craze for any game till now (not even tennis). i love all games and to be honest and humble, i have a knack for all of them. i just need to spend some time at it.
things have changed with basketball. its become really addictive. such an interest in the game was not found when i was in NITK. this can be explained by the following reasons:
1) i was more into tennis
2) no one taught me the game with the intention of teaching me. people used to teach me with their style in mind and asked me to adopt to it. honestly, such a method of teaching is bullshit.

out here, i have a friend who taught me from the basics but encouraged me to develop my own style of playing. hes a treat to play with, always encouraging you to aim higher (like Tim Duncan said). Plus he makes it fun, something i was never able to see when i was in NITK.

Moving away from my story, let me give you a brief outlay of whats been happening in the inter-hostel basketball tournament. My hostel Shivalik is into the semis where we are going to face the defending champions, the Nil Bulls (from NIlgiri hostel). Incidentally, we are the Shiv Guns. Our progress to the semi was littered with a defeat and two victories. We beat Vindhyachal and Kumaon but were thrashed by Jwalamukhi. jwala is a one man army with its all purpose missile being a chap called Bhandari who has played for Rajasthan state. Semifinal matches start on Wednesday with the following line up.
Shiva vs Nilgiri
Jwala vs Karakoram/Aravali (i am not sure of the grp A standings)

Heres hoping for a cracker of a match and hopefully a victory and still hopefully a tournament win....

Surajkund

a must see for anyone visiting north india (to be precise, the delhi-haryana-rajasthan belt) is the Surajkund craft mela.this mela is basically to showcase art, crafts and products that are made by artisans who do not get an opportunity to display them and make sales like many of their more privileged colleagues.surajkund is located just outside delhi. you can reach this place by taking any bus that goes towards badarpur border.the fair is well organised with ample drinking water facilities, eateries, garbage cans,toilet facilities and yes good crowd control. (kudos to haryana police for this).the best part of this fair is that each stall bears the name of the artisan, the place from which he/she hails from, details of awards secured by the artisan and the specialisation of the artisan which indirectly is a pointer to what you can expect in that stall. the stalls are located amidst lush greenery and add to it the late winter sunshine, man..........its a deadly recipe for fun.now to the stalls themselves. they are well stocked with fresh stocks being made at the back of the stalls. woodwork, cotton, silks, leather stuff etc are a few samples of whats available. check out the handlooms from J&K and the north east (i really wonder how the fuck we can afford to behave in such a high handed manner with the people from these places.) jute work from bengal is also worth mentionmusic and dance also forms an integral part of this fair with a separate stage set for artistes from various parts of india to perform.what intrigues one the most is that with such talent and hardworking capability in our country, why is it that we lag behind a lot? maybe its because for every one of such dedicated people, there are 100s of people who are the epitome of laziness............

Andhra Bhavan

Every university student who stays away from home desires nothing more than good homely food. Efforts are made in various forms to satisfy their taste buds. As a student of IIT Delhi from South India, it is but natural that i desire southern food. (nevermind my recent supportive statement "Northie food has more variety than Southie food").
I have access to food from all southern states except Goa. Tamilnadu food is obtained at 'Tamilnadu mess' @Munirka, 'Sagarrathna' @Malviya Nagar; Karnataka food at 'Karnataka' @Yusuf Sarai, 'Udupi' @Munirka; Mallu food at 'Keraleeyam' @Munirka and Gulti food @'Andhra Bhawan', Ashok Road (near India Gate).
Among the above mentioned eating places, the best one is Andhra Bhavan. Andhra Bhavan is the official guest house of the Andhra Pradesh government. Every state of the Union of India has a 'Bhavan', but its only Andhra Bhavan wherein the canteen is opened to the public. (According to some sources, Karnataka Bhavan also opens its canteen but the food is bad. Wont comment on this till I experience this personally.) The cost of vegetarian food is Rs.50/-. The menu includes unlimited rotis/puris, unlimited helpings of gravy, unlimited rice and limited helpings of papad and sweet dishes. Non vegetarian dishes cost Rs.100/-. No clue about the menu.
How to get there:
(1) Board a bus going towards India Gate and alight there
(2) Walk from India gate in the direction of CP and ask for directions to Ashoka Road.
(3) Andhra Bhavan is clearly visible at the intersection of Ashoka Road and Jaswant Singh Marg.
Note:
(1) You may have to wait for a long time during peak hours.
(2) Be forceful with the host, else some other smart asses will nudge ahead of you in the queue.

SHUBA BHOJANAMU........