Indian cities pi**sing contest

[R K Singh]

Originally posted by Pradip Bhat:
This can be found in most cities in India. If people dont smoke they will be called backward. Who wants to remain backward?

If I count cities where girls and boys are having booze and cigrette together I can count on my fingers.. I really dont understand what do you mean by in "most cities" ?? :-|

And I dont think, not smoking cigerette has anything to with libralisation or being forward or backward.

What do you say about those who smoke Bidi ??

It would be really great to know why some choose to smoke and some not.

I want to go to downtown after 7:00pm

[Pradeep bhatt]

I really dont understand what do you mean by in "most cities" ?? :-|

Should I make it all cities ?

[R K Singh]

Originally posted by Pradip Bhat:
Should I make it all cities ?

Its only in metros or in big cities.

[soumya ravindranath]

Hey,

looking at the teenage crowd even in comparatively smaller cities like Mangalore, I must say Varun is right in saying "most of the cities".

I am not sure if you will not find such things in Chennai, Kayal. You might have just missed it while you were inside your airconditioned car I must do some research on this aspect with cousins now

And after seeing that most of the girls who come abroad are already well into wine and beer ( I call it alcohol ) and many are from Chennai, I have mastered the art of keeping my surprise to myself.

More and more of us are getting desensitised now, don't you think ? I don't get shocked so much when I see them anymore. I do feel sad, though. I remember being shocked seeing a 'normal' looking woman smoke in Casa Piccola, B'lore 10 years ago

Soumya

[Pradeep bhatt]

am not sure if you will not find such things in Chennai, Kayal.

Chennai has gone out of control.

[Pradeep bhatt]

looking at the teenage crowd even in comparatively smaller cities like Mangalore

How often you go to Mangalore?

[soumya ravindranath]

Originally posted by Pradip Bhat:


How often you go to Mangalore?

I don't want to see a rancher in Mangalore of all the places

[Manish Hatwalne]

Originally posted by R K Singh:

It would be really great to know why some choose to smoke and some not.

I hate smoking be it a man or woman!!!
Unfortunately, I can walk upto a man and tell him not to smoke because I don't want to be a passive smoker, but in my city I cannot do that to a girl because they'd think I am typical conservative, MCP!!!

Why I hate smoking -- My dad was a chain-smoker, hated that smell. Stayed in a room with 3 chain-smokers and used the same toilet that they'd use. Made me swear off smoking for the rest of my life.

Watch how smoke kills your system slowly -- haven't you sen ppl fagging couple of cigs so that they can go totoilet, otherwise they have constipation.. wait and watch!!

Oh the city, told ya guys - Pune is cooool!!

- Manish

[Venkatraman Kandaswamy]

cigarrette - a white stick with a fire at one end and a fool at the other.

These kids Chennai,Pune,Bangalore wherever - they just dont get it. Show them this site : death clock !!

[Raghu Ram]

Kids will say - Why worry about tomorrow let's enjoy today!!!

Originally posted by Venkatraman Kandaswamy:
cigarrette - a white stick with a fire at one end and a fool at the other.

These kids Chennai,Pune,Bangalore wherever - they just dont get it. Show them this site : death clock !!

[R K Singh]

Originally posted by soumya ravindranath:
looking at the teenage crowd even in comparatively smaller cities like Mangalore, I must say Varun is right in saying "most of the cities".

But they are students who are living in hostels/rooms independently, not with their families. And it does make difference.

[soumya ravindranath]

Originally posted by R K Singh:


But they are students who are living in hostels/rooms independently, not with their families.

Did I say that

And it does make difference

Of course it will make a difference, because these days parents tag along with the kids wherever they go the whole day, huh ?

( honestly speaking, I am very worried about the years to come, as a parent )

[Sameer Jamal]

obody wants to live in Delhi

[Arjunkumar Shastry]

Delhi is a dangerous city to live.In major areas men/women can't walk on the streets after 8 PM .Also crime rate in Delhi is very high.Delhi is good for politicnas who roam with 500 police officers.

[Kedar Dravid]

Well, Pune easily takes the cake for all it's got.
Bangalore, ah, good ol' Bangalore, they've screwed it up all-right, haven't they?
Well, as for the crowd, Chandigarh's the place to be. No 2 ways about that.

[Raghu Ram]

Originally posted by Arjunkumar Shastry:
Delhi is a dangerous city to live.In major areas men/women can't walk on the streets after 8 PM .Also crime rate in Delhi is very high.Delhi is good for politicnas who roam with 500 police officers.

You are humourous guy.

[Pradeep bhatt]

Originally posted by Sameer Jamal:
obody wants to live in Delhi

I would like to live on Panchsheel road.

[R K Singh]

Originally posted by Kedar Dravid:
Bangalore, ah, good ol' Bangalore, they've screwed it up all-right, haven't they?

Yes.. we screwed Bgl... we made Garden city, a garbage city.

[Pradeep bhatt]

The crime rate is increasing exponentially in Banaglore. Lot of Auto drivers involved in the crime. People riding 2-wheeler during night are robbed every day. I am worried.

[Arjunkumar Shastry]

These things will increase till Bangalore becomes Mumbai or Delhi where there are one rape in three days,four deaths in accident per day and many reported and unreported robberies. . Govt. will be relctant to change any policy as they might fear loss in their revenues.Builder lobby will control the city.They are already doing it now.

[Pradeep bhatt]

Bangalore police have arrested 2 s/w engg (techies ) for robbing a woman of her gold chain. The techies are working in a s/w company in Domlur,Bangalore. S/w enggs in India are different kinds of activities. May be these guys got bored of coding and wanted to try something different.

[Ed Villamizar]

Please tell me more about Chennai!!

I might have to go there in the future.

[kayal cox]

What exactly would you like to know?

[Ed Villamizar]

Originally posted by kayal cox:
What exactly would you like to know?

Everything

Well, the opportunity I have is for a long term assignment (2 years) with my company and it involves relocation. I cannot say more because the decision is not final yet and some of our employees might be "listening"!

I'd like to know about neighborhoods, places to go during the weekends, restaurants, the people, the languages, "openness" of the people, internet providers, cost of living, safety, etc. That's me. My wife would like to know about the expat community (how big and easy to mingle with), schools (we have two boys in school age), transportation, how widely is english spoken, volunteer opportunities, that sort of things.

Cost of living is of special interest. I have no idea whatsoever. How much could an American or British school be? What about renting a comfortable house (3-4 rooms) in a safe and nice neighborhood? I'd probably need a driver/helper? What's customary?

I found some sites that talk about that but sounds like corporate talk. I'd like to know real persons' opinions and I noticed many people from Chennai in this thread.

How far is Bangalore? How would you go there for a 3-4 day business trip. Train? By car? Commuter plane?

Just wondering those little things...

Thanks a lot in advance,

Ed

[kayal cox]

Ok, let me try to give whatever info I know about the points you have raised. Warning: its gonna be a long mail.

neighborhoods
Chennai, as against the other, newer, shinier, "IT hub" cities is bigger, older, and has many manufacturing industries, and factories (not just IT) that require low cost labourers drawn from the sorrounding areas. Consequently, the city has people from all economic stratas, and certain pockets of the city are as not as "good" as others.
The better, safer neighbourhoods with good schools etc, would be Adyar, Alwarpet, Anna Nagar, Thiruvanmiyur etc. It would be helpful to get a home close to your workplace, the commute can be difficult.

places to go during the weekends
The beach, movies, theme parks, clubs etc. Chennai has the second longest stretch of beach in the world. Marina beach, Elliot's beach are the most popular. The latter tends to have younger, "hip" crowds than the former. Mahabalipuram, Tiger's cave, Pondichery etc offer a more secluded atmosphere, and there are lots of beach resorts alongside ECR (East Coast Road) that are good. There are discos called EC 41, Hell Freezes Over, Socko etc, and you can get alcohol served in all of the 3+ star hotels.
There are good, air conditioned shopping areas like Spencers Plaza, Shoppers Stop, Globus.
T.Nagar has MANY nice shops for ethnic clothing, jewellery etc. But the streets can be crowded.

restaurants
There are so many restaurants that I dont know which ones to list. Other than S.India, N.Indian, you can find places where you get Indo-Chinese, American, Mexican, Malay, Korean food. Just make sure you always drink bottled water. Most 3+ star hotels offer lunch buffets that are good value for money.

the people
Words I have heard being used to describe people here are conservative, nosy, helpful, and friendly.

the languages
Tamil is the language spoken, but English should get you around mostly.

internet providers
We have Sify broadband at home, and it is good, comparable to cable internet in the US. You will also find NetCafes at every other street corner that are cheaper, but slower.

cost of living
Chennai has a relatively low cost of living. But it depends on where you live, what kind of schools you pick etc. Food tends to be quite cheap.

safety
Try to avoid going alone late at nights. There can be two problems, one is muggers, the other is cops. Cops catch people loitering around late at nights to curb crime, drinking, prostitution etc. So if you need to go out late, have verifiable reasons for doing so (save movie ticket stubs, or have business cards ready etc). Also follow common sense rules, like not flaunting cash in wallets etc.

the expat community (how big and easy to mingle with), schools
hmm, i don't know.

transportation
the city is well connected by buses. But they would be bursting with people. Autorickshaws, "share-autos", call-taxies would be better alternatives.

how widely is english spoken
Widely enough to get around. But it would be heavily accented, and "broken"

volunteer opportunities
Many exist. You can contact Udhavum Karangal (helping hands), Association for India's Development (AID), The Banyan etc.

How much could an American or British school be?
Googled and found this American school. Fees are way more expensive than normal Indian schools, but its probably worth it. Foreign kids would find communication very difficult and syllabus much tougher in other schools.

What about renting a comfortable house (3-4 rooms) in a safe and nice neighborhood?
I would expect the rent to be between Rs.8000 and Rs.10000. example
It is customary to give 5-10 months rent as a refundable deposit.

I'd probably need a driver/helper? What's customary?
yep, hiring driver/help-maids is very common.
Get references and try not to trust them too easily, till you really know them well.

How far is Bangalore?
8 hours away. You can take over-night trains or buses or drive yourself. Flights are not very expensive, and are time saving.

Other stuff:
The climate in Chennai is really hot.
There would be beggars and hawkers trying to follow you around.
Always bargain.

Hope that helps. Good luck!
[ May 12, 2005: Message edited by: kayal cox ]

[Kishore Dandu]

I heard Hyderabad is also a happening place now-a-days.

[Ed Villamizar]

Originally posted by kayal cox:
Ok, let me try to give whatever info I know about the points you have raised. Warning: its gonna be a long mail.

...

Hope that helps. Good luck!

[ May 12, 2005: Message edited by: kayal cox ]

Thanks a lot Kayal, great information. Some is new for me and some other confirmed what I got from other sources.

[Arjunkumar Shastry]

{
Other stuff:
The climate in Chennai is really hot.
}
Yes.There are three seasons in Chennai: hot,hotter and hottest.

[Arjunkumar Shastry]

Originally posted by Kishore Dandu:
I heard Hyderabad is also a happening place now-a-days.

Yes.Bangalore with its exhorbitant real estate prices is loosing.Hyd/Chennai are better.Underworld is now controlling some prime areas in Bangalore.Offshore shops generally don't think twice while investing here.But in near future many companies might move if situation continues.

[Pradeep bhatt]

Originally posted by Arjunkumar Shastry:

Yes.Bangalore with its exhorbitant real estate prices is loosing.Hyd/Chennai are better.Underworld is now controlling some prime areas in Bangalore.Offshore shops generally don't think twice while investing here.But in near future many companies might move if situation continues.

Police have shot dead a underworld gangster after he was troubling some corrupt real estate builder and congress politican. Whenever politicians are involved police act very quickly. Otherwsie they