Life goes on...

This picture is timed during Israel-Lebanon conflict during Aug, 2005. And that’s the picture that got the “ World press of the year 2006” award. When I saw that news few days back in TIMES OF INDIA I felt a strong impulsion to post it on my blog. No, its not for the females who are sitting pretty on some good old sports car.

I know you must be wondering on what grounds this photo was considered for the award. It needs no photographical skill to click this except for a camera with a basic knowledge which any beginner should have.
But you know why it was chosen for the award. World Press Photo jury chair Michele McNally describes the winning image: "It's a picture you can keep looking at. It has the complexity and contradiction of real life, amidst chaos. This photograph makes you look beyond the obvious." Yes, it’s the real life. When people die in your neighborhood your life doesnot end.Nor need to. Innit?? It just goes on. Work. Worship. Party. Sex. Sports.

For more pictures of world press photo:

http://www.worldpressphoto.com/index.php?option=com_photogallery&task=blogsection&id=17&Itemid=146&bandwidth=high

“ Recently, I was surprised and upset to learn that there are similarities between some passages in my novel….& passages in these books” these are the words of Kaavya Viswanathan, which I just happened to see on the website after I published my previous post here. It is also reported that there are at least 29 passages that are strikingly similar. Well, I just wonder if that book published in 2001 had so much fame to be bought by a film making company but the fact is “ How opal Mehta got kissed, got wild and got a life” has it. Just go kaavya go!!

A Game Called Life

In a large enough world India and Indians including persons of Indian origin are always on the news, good or bad whatever it may be. This time it is 19-years-old Harvard sophomore, kaavya Viswanathan- an Indian American filling up the spaces in print media. But what’s put her on the story? She has penned her debut novel named “ how Opal Mehta Got kissed, Got wild and Got a life” published by Little, brown and co, in march. She is the youngest author signed by that publisher company in decades. And that’s not all!! Her story would be coming to a theater near you, days are far may be, as the movie rights of the story has already been bought by DreamWorks.

That gives much cheer to the Indian community wide spread across the world. This has raised her to the status of a star in the skies of English literature works. But with fame, pride and stardom comes allegations, altercations and controversies. Kaavya is no exception to this, after all none can be spared in this game called life.

Now a high decibel debate is being roared over the authenticity of her works. There are claims of similarities- of plot, characters, style and the language to a book published by author named Megan Mcafferty in 2001. this is the moment kaavya, a name to Indians proud, should display stoic endurance and get ahead with her creative prowess with added vigor. V.S Naipaul, Salman Rushdie, Arundhati Roy- looks like the list is to get longer. It augurs well that kaavya is a writer to be watched out for.