Have you seen my new black car?

'But surely, that's white...' you say.
'Really?' I ask.
'Of course. Are you colour blind?'
'Oh - didn't you know white is the new black, my friend?'

For generations, people never wanted to drive a white car. Why? Because it was meant for the not so well-to-do folks - remember the white van man?

'So why now?' you ask.
'Have you heard of ostentatious austerity?'
'What's that?'
'In times as grim as these, when economies are in recession, people like to be seen as parsimonious...'
'No way.'
'Believe me. Even Rolls Royce is launching a smaller [cheaper] version.'

Apple TV: You may say I'm a dreamer...

Apple TV - not in its current form where you connect it to your Samsung or Sony and watch a few downloaded movies or stream some. I mean an Apple TV in flesh and blood. But why, I hear? Why? Because after leading the sound revolution [iPod] and carrying the success to web interface [iPhone], it's high time someone came up with a new television rather than fiddling with screen sizes and thinness.

It amazes me that the brains at Samsungs and Sonys are still trying to fight a lost battle - creating mp3 players with a difference. The world is very happy with the iPod - no one wants another mp3 player guys - not even if you start giving it for free – okay I am exaggerating, but you get the point.

Remember Sony Walkman? It ruled the world; we had Hitachi, Toshiba, Philips and every electronic brand making them, but everyone wanted the Walkman. How did it die? As Al Ries said – a brand is locked into an idea in the mind. If that idea becomes obsolete, the brand becomes obsolete. Polaroid was instant photography, Xerox was copiers, Kodak was film photography and Walkman was portable cassette player. The audio cassette died when Compact Discs came along and the Walkman died soon after – the hearse took a while because of traffic in the developing markets. [CDs were exorbitant initially]

The only way the iPod domination can break is if an alternative media [like CDs to mp3] takes over from mp3 and someone else gets it right - first. It will need a paradigm shift in audio format to displace the iPod from its leadership, not another button on the mp3 player. Or maybe a prayer - that Apple goes into slumber, might help.

Coming back to my vision of Apple TV - it's a telly [not a surprise] and a super-speed, circa 2TB hard-drive Mac in one. And what does it do that others don't today? Well - the list is infinite but let me highlight a few:

Before we begin, you get your entire iTunes library on the Apple TV and synch your iPhone with it [using home Wi-Fi]. Now:

· Want to download and watch Godfather from iTunes? No cables required…press buy on iPhone and start
· Want to blast Rolling Stones on hi-fi? No amplifier or docking station required
· Want to check tomorrow's weather on the web? Don't need to squint your eyes on a small screen...sit back on the sofa with a wireless key board or iPhone and surf
· Want to check the detail design on that cocktail dress? Use multi-touch on iPhone to zoom
· Want to see pictures of your Morocco vacation? See and show them on the big screen
· Want to play pool? Download from application store; aim on the big screen, shoot on iPhone
· Want to have a audio conference? Dial on iPhone and the whole room of people can participate

Got it? You may say I'm a dreamer but I'm not the only one. I can bet at least one wise guy - currently on sabbatical, must have already planned it. Not sure, how long it will be before he pulls out the ace. Watch this space.

The Suspicions of Mr Whicher: or the Murder at Road Hill House

On the morning of June 29th 1860, the Kent family woke up to find their 3 year old boy missing from the house...only to find his body in the privy outside. What intrigued everyone was that the house was found locked from inside therefore all the inmates became suspects – the father, the siblings, the servants...

The police were baffled; Jack Whicher, one of the most distinguished detectives of the time, arrived at Road Hill House* after two weeks and faced the horrible fact - to unravel the mystery for the mourning family where every one of them was a suspect.

From the open window of the drawing room...to the lost night-dress...to the blood stains...to the missing murder weapon, Whicher tried his best to reconstruct the scene but could find nothing more than circumstantial evidence...

It's a true story and the case is in the police files – it's even published on the MET police website – if you want to ruin it for yourself.

The book is a work of genius; a masterpiece – one can see [read] the amount of research and effort Kate Summerscale has put in to recreate the story. It is one of the best books I have read in the last few years. A must read.

*The village of Road is now spelt as Rode; the Road Hill house also changed its name to Langham House in 1870's

Adios Amigo: Vish Dhamija

It's not surprising that we start liking products, services and celebrities based on behaviours and likings of our peers, friends and colleagues – after all we spend considerable amount of time with them. What might stump you is that I picked up [sic] a liking for a particular celebrity [hereafter referred to as the celeb] only because one of my colleagues despised her.
It all started one day by two of us [another friend and me] – as we returned after a heated discussion on the celeb at lunch. We slyly planned that to have more loud discussions and interesting lunches [and also tease and annoy our friend] we should call me an ardent fan of the celeb –the rest is history. As new people joined the department, totally clueless of the little conspiracy, they were convinced that I was a die-hard fan and hence some of them actually brought me stickers and pictures of the celeb. Some of these are still pasted on the soft-board in my office.
Unfortunately, my celeb-hater friend is moving on [end of this month] and he will no longer be working with us in the same office. The left side of my brain tells me that I should pull down the pictures, as they carry no meaning after he's gone...there's no fun. Nostalgia might keep them there for a few days, but I guess it's time to move on.

Good luck RnB!

Watch me if you can: Vish Dhamija

Once upon a time, all watches were mechanical. Then in the late 60's, quartz movement came to the party and by the 80's, they took most of the watch market from the mechanical watch industry - we had pens that had a window with digital time display, then pagers, mobiles and now everything else tells us the time. A lot of people have eliminated watches from their wardrobe. Watches still tell the time but that's not all; they are pieces of jewellery. Here are two of those complicated jewels:

Giuliano Mazzuoli raced Alfa's in the 70's. Inspired by the cars, he designed the Contagiri watch that he's dedicated to Alfa Romeo, with the rev counter at the heart of this beautiful, yet simple watch. It's got an automatic mechanical movement with a 42 hours power reserve. What differentiates it from other watches is that, like a rev counter, there's only one arm [central hour hand retrogrades in an arc of 270°] that goes from 1 to 12 and jumps after that to return. The watch does not have a crown; instead, there's a gear-shift lever that you have to pull to make the bezel move to wind or set time.

Details:
Black dial; Luminescent one-hand, Diameter: 44 mm; Thickness: 13.3 mm; 29 Jewels; Launched in 2007
Price: From £13K

Franck Muller’s Crazy Hours is powered by a self-winding mechanical movement with a power reserve of 40 hours. At a mere glance, it appears that this tonneau-shaped watch has Arabic numerals [hour-markers] in random order. However, they are not; they have a defined arrangement. The chronology is maintained by skipping four numbers every hour to give you the perfect time.

Details:
Available in platinum or 18 carat gold case; 21 Jewels; Uncoordinated centred circular date indicator; Launched in 1986, with additions to the range.
Price: From £9K

I wonder which one is my wife saving money for?

Squirrels & Rats: Vish Dhamija

I wrote another synopsis of my book - as I found the last one too generic. Your opinion matters so tell me what you think - please leave a comment.

Mumbai, they say, is a city of dreams. More people dream there than in any other city in the world...and some dreams go awry.

Michael D'Cunha is called in to investigate a fire incident in the middle of the night at Mumbai's posh Worli Seaface apartment where the owner has died. He is convinced it is arson, not an accident - either for insurances or an adulterous relationship gone sour. But the only beneficiary is out of the country and the suspected other woman has more alibis than he can count. No one else seems to have any motive to finish the guy...

Who said joining the dots was ever easy?

An accidental death, a huge inheritance, an over suspicious police inspector and an inquiry that goes cold – a journey that starts in Mumbai, moves to London and continues.

Slumdog Millionaire: The jury is no longer out!

After all the nominations, awards, good and bad press and my own presupposed contentions, I finally watched the movie. There is not a dreary moment and it keeps the viewers gripped till the very end even though the outcome is known, which is the most meaningful yardstick for any movie or book.
Three things stand out: first - the story; I am not sure who deserves a bigger credit here - the author or the screenplay writer, but it's brilliant work. Second - director Danny Boyle gets full marks for capturing the essence of the tale, and the third – incredible performances by the three kids. For each of these three categories, it deserves all the awards. I am not sure about the rest though: AR Rahman has composed much better music than this; in fact the music does not even standout enough to be noticed in this movie.

I understand and appreciate that the poverty shown in the movie is intrinsic part of the story –a slumdog with no formal education wins a national quiz show - hence reminiscences from his past, entwined in abject poverty and crime, come to the rescue and provide answers to the questions asked. What I do not comprehend is why does the game-show host have to play such a negative role by repeatedly humiliating the contestant - Jamal. And it does not end at humiliation, but I won't spoil it for you here. [No wonder Amitabh Bachchan and Shahrukh Khan declined the role].

To call it a feel good film is either naivety or a bad joke. The outcome of the game-show was known from the beginning so it does not bring in any cheerful surprise, but the cost of getting the childhood love back was not exactly upbeat, in my opinion.

On the whole, it’s an entertainer and the jury [numerous awards and nominations] has agreed many times over.

Click here for trailer:
Rating: *****