Diwali article in Khaleej Times!

Hi Guys, I just realized that an article of mine on Diwali came out in the Weekend Magazine of Khaleej Times over the weekend. I've scanned the article for you guys below if you want to have a read. I was asked to write about what Diwali means to me and what traditions I follow on the big day. Also, if you haven't already, please go get the latest issue of Ahlan Masala and check out the Bloggers feature they did on Kiran's Corner, and my pick for the most "blog worthy Asian."
For now, enjoy my Diwali article, and please click on it to zoom and read.

Khaleej Times article- What makes the iPhone4 special?

Did you guys catch my article in the "Tech Talk" yesterday? Friends of mine wrote in to tell me it had been published, otherwise I'd have had no clue!
I'd written this one the day after the phone had been announced, so if it seems a bit dated, it's KT's fault and not mine. Here is the article-

On the 7^th of June, Apple launched their fourth generation of the iPhone, the iPhone 4, and proudly proclaimed on their website, “This changes everything. Again.” I couldn’t agree more. I haven’t been this excited about an Apple product since the launch of the original iPhone. Even the iPad frenzy didn’t quite get me as excited as this device, and considering I, along with the rest of the world, thought I had already seen the new device and knew whatever I needed to about it, it’s quite something. It’s like Steve Jobs proclaimed tongue in cheek during his keynote address at the launch, “stop me if you’ve already seen this,” referring to the lost iPhone debacle going on, before quickly adding, “Believe me, you ain’t seen it.” Touché Steve!  

If you’re not an Apple fanboy (or as in my case, fangirl) you’re probably wondering what the fuss is about, and your feelings would well be justified. There is nothing revolutionary about the iPhone 4 that other products out there don’t already do. “Face Time” which is what the iPhone calls video conferencing, has been around on 3G phones for years! Pick up an old iMate device from a couple of years back when iMate still existed and still made phones people wanted to use, and you’ll see staring back at you a front facing camera to do just that- video chat. While Jobs is showing of the phone’s 5 megapixel camera and HD recording, the Sony Ericsson Vivaz has been touting an 8 megapixel camera along with HD video recording for months already. Same with Apple’s claim of it being able to multitask- Android and Palm users have been multitasking for months. Gorgeous screen? One look at the HTC HD2 will have you tossing your iPhone 3GS in the bin. So really, what gives?

When Apple talks, the world listens- It really is as simple as that. Micro Sim cards were unheard of till Jobs announced that the iPad 3G would be using the tinier avatar of the Sim. Suddenly, all network operators worldwide, including Etisalat in the UAE where the iPad has not even been officially launched yet, has the Micro Sim option ready and available for users. When the iPad was launched, a lot of people complained and said it was an extra device which they had no use for, and essentially called it a large iPhone. Apple has since sold 2 Million iPads, and my 63 year old mother quickly nicked mine when I upgraded my WiFi only to a 3G version, and watches her Indian TV shows on it nightly. Having a camera built in to a phone is old, old news. Yet, the iPhone has literally hundreds of applications that allow you change the look of your photographs- change it to make it look like it’s taken from an old camera, convert them into comic strips, make you look fatter/thinner/older/younger or insert your face into various cut out pictures on it. I’ve heard of art galleries display “iPhone art” and one even made it on the cover of the New Yorker. Hermes, Chanel and Louis Vuitton all have special iPhone cases, with Chanel, style.com, Net-a-porter and The Sartorialist all having dedicated fashion-apps for the device. Listening yet?

With the iPhone 4, I see video chat going from “nice-to-have” to de rigueur. While my best friend halfway around the world has Skype and a webcam on her computer, despite many promises and zero attempts to webchat or Skype, we still rely on Etisalat and AT&T to connect us. With no hassles of now having to schedule our communication, we can now (presuming she gets an iPhone 4) chat face to face over WiFi, while paying zilch to our respective network operators. How Etisalat, who has blocked the Skype website in the UAE, is going to react to that news needs to be seen. I see the iPhone slowly replacing clunky boardroom video conferencing devices, and I see it being used by very many suspicious spouses to catch their philandering partners. To keep in line with iPhone art, I see iPhone movies taking over YouTube, especially with Apple’s proprietary video editing software, iMovie, available for the new device.  I expect gaming companies out there to take advantage of the better screen resolution and come out with even more outstanding games with better resolution for the device. And with better battery life than before, I see gamers increasingly give up their handheld gaming devices and opt for an all-in-one product instead. After all, while you can play the best of games on your PSP or DS Lite, can you really harvest your craps in Facebook’s Farmville on them? On the iPhone 4, you can.

I’ve always maintained that the Killer App of the iPhone really is the App Store, and a device these days is only as good as the number of Apps developers out there are willing to make for it. I believe Steve Jobs when he says this 4^th generation device is their biggest jump since their first iPhone, and I believe it will change the shape of mobile telephony forever. When that happens, please remember you read it here first.  

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Kiran's Corner back in the Khaleej Times!!

"Kiran's Corner" was the name Khaleej Times had given to my monthly column that appeared in the Weekend Magazine. A year after I stopped writing for them, I started my blog, but from today I've restarted my column with them- only this time in the main paper! It appears in the "Opinion" section and will be appearing fortnightly or of course be found here under the "KT Corner" tag. Here is today's article for your perusal, that was very aptly written on the joys of blogging- 

Two nights back I met up with a friend at a party, and after chatting for a bit, the topic turned to blogging. Recently, I have taken to blogging daily, and after almost two months of being fervishly dedicated to mine the obvious question came up. “Why do you do it?” she asked, “What exactly is your motivation?”

For those who don’t know what a “blog” is, the Wikipedia definition is this  “A blog (a contraction of the term “web log”) is a type of  website, usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in reverse-chronological order. “Blog” can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog.”

Just as Wikipedia has changed the shape of dictionaries and encyclopedias, blogs are changing the shape of how individuals communicate with the world. While “Facebook” and “Twitter” help people to stay in touch with each other and exchange pictures and/or messages in short bursts, blogs allow them to go one step further. Each blogger in their own little blogging universe essentially becomes an Editor of an online magazine of sorts. In fact, on a blog a person is able to communicate views on a subject or a variety of subjects, without even having to create their own content. While Vogue, the fashion bible of the world, spends hundreds of thousands of dollars in maintaining their relevancy in the fashion industry while financially viable at the same time, a fashion blog would have it a lot simpler. It is not uncommon (neither is it illegal) for the blogs to quote parts of the magazine, or even scan its pages to showcase to its readers. While fashion photographers like Irving Penn and Annie Leibowitz have spent decades perfecting their art and etching their name onto runways of the fashion world, they are quickly being replaced by the likes of Scott Schuman and Garance Dore, who on their blogs, showcase the best in Street-style photography. A style of photography that over the past few years is becoming increasingly relevant in today’s world. Exactly how relevant? The most recent Fashion weeks world over often saw the bloggers take front row seats alongside the likes of Carine Roitfeld and Anna Wintour—The Queen bees of Vogue Paris and Vogue US, respectively.

There are blogs relating to fashion, there are those related to technology, there are those immersed in spirituality, some are religious, others dedicated to worshiping the devil. There are auto-blogs, news blogs, photography blogs, opinion blogs, review blogs or even blogs on other blogs. As many subjects in the world there are to talk about, you can bet there will be those many number of blogs, with that number growing exponentially daily.

Three years back in 2007, a dream of mine came true and I was asked by Khaleej Times to have my own column as a part of their Weekend magazine. I was thrilled! I loved being able to make my “voice” heard and share my writing with the world. Unfortunately, due to a change in format, they decided to not have any columnists in the magazine, and I never realized how much I loved to write, till there was no place to write for at all.

One day, I was doing my daily round up of going through my bookmarked blogs, when I suddenly had an idea. Why not start my own blog? I went online and checked out the different sites that allowed me to be up and running with one in less than five minutes. “What do I call it?” I asked myself. I wanted to keep a name that allowed me to express myself, and yet maintain a certain standard and quality in my posts, just as my column had done. The name became obvious, and Kiran’s Corner, the online version at www.kiranscorner.com, was born.

I absolutely love it and it allows me to be much more creative with the type of content I want to put out, and to answer my friend’s question, That is why I do it. To see comments from readers or see my number of hits increase exponentially daily, gives me the satisfaction that I need and the encouragement to keep writing! Kiran’s Corner in some ways became even more popular in its online format, than it was in it’s printed form. But, of course, when the Editor wrote to me and asked if I’d like to restart my column, there wasn’t even a moment’s hesitation. I thought of the adrenaline that surges through my veins on seeing my name in print right below the caption, and I just couldn’t wait to hand in this—my first submission. It’s so great to be back!

 You can also read it online on the Khaleej Times site here