New Bike Achiever 150

This post is to outline that I have bought a new bike Hero Achiever 150.

My earlier bike was Hero Honda Karizma R 2008 model

You might say why did I go for 150 cc bike when I had a 223 cc bike.
The fact is that I did not want to hold on to a legacy technology.
When I gave the Karizma for servicing in February, I came to know that that Hero is no longer offering the Karizma.
In other words Karizma had been withdrawn. Upon research I came to know that it was suffering poor sales for several years.

• Karizma Sales dropped Sharply : Here it is clearly mentioned that at one time Karizma in December 2014 did not manage to sell even 7 units 
• Hero to phase out Karizma by 2018 : Hero took decision to phase out Karizma.
• Hero Honda Split December 2010 : Long before that Hero and Honda had parted ways in December 2010.
• Legacy Honda technology to be phased out by Hero Motocorp : Even after splitting in 2010 it took almost six years for Hero to get in a stage where it could decide to phase out Honda technology
• Karizma to be revamped? We are in suspense if a newer version of Karizma will come anytime soon

Check the above links.

• I had bought Karizma in March 2009 and so it was a 2008 model. 
• I could have used it no problem.
• But what happened last week its speedometer and odometer started not working. the tachometer was working.
• So I Took it to the showroom and they wanted to change the cable but it was out of stock and so they asked me to bring it next week.
• In the meantime I enquired the exchange price and even paid a Rs500 advance.
• What I thought. that I need to have the guarantee of the company of the bike I am buying and using.
• Much like what i had outlined in my blog post earlier
• Today the speedometer did not work. Tomorrow it could be any other part.
• And since Hero stopped producing the vehicles the parts also would be in short supply in the future.
• Before that happened I needed to switch the model.
• Also it is not a popular model like Splendour or Splendour Plus which has been around for 20 years plus which will ensure a steady supply of parts.
• I had experience of earlier bike Kawasaki Bajaj 4S Champion and how I had to sell it as scrap after 17 years.
• Now 8 years had passed since I bought the Karizma. In theory I could have used it for 7 years more.
•  In theory nothing will happen and the bike would continue to function like it always has.
• But then what i needed to do was not take it to showroom.
• Because if I took it to showroom with the legacy technology and all I would feel bad and inferior.
• I should take it to workshop outside and not authorised showroom.
• If I go to authorised showroom, I should have the latest technology the ones that they currently offer.
• I zeroed in on Achiever 150 because it was the biggest bike currently in the Hero stable.
• I also went to Bajaj, Honda, Yamaha and Suzuki showrooms.
• Bajaj models dd not seem right to me. Mainly V15 model. I was not interested in pulsar and Avenger to begin with. And those top end models easily cost 1 lakh plus.
• Yamaha had so many models that i became confused. Their top models cost 1 lakh plus.
• Honda was best and for a second over there it felt like "homecoming". Also their top end bike cost more than 2 lakhs.
• Suzuki had the Gixxer model and it cost 1 lakh plus.
• In times like this I found Hero Achiever 150 at Rs78000 to be ideal price. Other companies models were pricier excluding teh V15 from Baja which was in same range.
• I wanted to go for Honda Livo 110 cc initially but I saw it again and thought it was lesser height for 6 ft person like me. Honda CB Hornet 160 exceeded 1 lakh.
• Thus Achiever 150 was best option and is now my current bike.

Angry Indian Godesses, Life, Phillauri, Lucky Kabootar, Shikhar

Watched five movies as mentioned in the subject line:
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Angry Indian Goddesses
Watched this movie on Airtel Digital TV Miniplex HD Channel after recording on pen drive. Movie is okay for a one time watch. It is how girls bond together and take revenge after one of them is raped and killed. It is a girl flick all the way.
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Life
Watched this on the big screen. Rockline mall and Carnival Cinemas to be precise where I have an unlimited movie watching pass @www.moviecard.com.
Movie is okay for a one time watch. Similar to Gravity movie. Whereas Gravity dealt with the perils of space, this movie deals with the perils of alien life. The fact is if you allow alien life into earth you risk the existing species that is what it shows.
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Phillauri
Watched this on the big screen. Rockline mall and Carnival Cinemas to be precise where I have an unlimited movie watching pass @www.moviecard.com.
Movie is okay for a one time watch. This movie deals with a couple cut short of their lives and they get reunited as ghosts. And it takes the story of a girl getting married to a tree and turns it upside down and makes the guy marry a tree. A traditional horror story where a man ghost follows a girl after marriage to a tree I think it was shown in an episode of Zee TV Aahat serial, and makes it a romantic comedy.
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Lucky Kabootar
Watched this movie on Airtel Digital TV Miniplex HD Channel after recording on pen drive. Movie is okay for a one time watch.
It is a comedy movie and how a person along with village folk uses his wife's death to get compensation from Govt.
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Shikhar
Watched this movie on Airtel Digital TV Miniplex HD Channel after recording on pen drive. Movie is okay for a one time watch.
This is a very good movie. Simple but effective. I cant believe I was not aware of this 2005 movie. The aim of the movie is to show the importance of environment and trees and how they are important to avoid droughts and water shortage. Widespread urbanisation is more harmful than good and that is what it shows.
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Random Comments March 20, 2017

I have a few points to make and did not know what to give the heading as and so the heading reads.

•  Firstly I would like to continue about obsolete technologies and few more cases. the next case deals with my bike Karizma which has been withdrawn by hero Motors. Karizma phase out. Karizma has been very dear to me and I do not know why it is being withdrawn? The reasons could be (1) people do not like Hero anymore after it broke up with Honda. (2) there are not many tall and strong people to drive the Karizma anymore. (3) people think it is obsolete (4) the bike is so good that Hero company cannot profit from it? I mean Hero will do good if bike becomes spoilt easily and so people will go for new bike often? In any case my current bike became obsolete but I am not selling it. Considering that I bough it in 2009, it has until 2014 for expiry of its registration. But I know if I sell it now I will get some value but if I sell it in 2023 then I may get only scrap value. Much like what happened with my Kawasaki Bajaj 4S Champion which I sold for scrap value in Mumbai after holding on to it for 17 years.
•  Second is my desktop computer which is a Wipro model. And I know that Wipro stopped making desktops and laptops in 2013 second half. And the division just shut down. Now I have Intel i3 Chip and Gigabyte motherboard after the original motherboard crashed. I will update if more points come to mind subsequently.

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• Yogi Adityanath becoming CM of UP is also to be discussed. I must say that he is not a Brahmin but a Kshyatriya and that is dangerous. Because Kshatriya are warrior class in India and not Brahmin and Yogi Adityanath is doing works like Brahmin and that may be dangerous to the society. We have to see the Caste we have no choice. Even if we don't want we have to see peoples cast before thinking about the future.
• Now Modi RSS and BJP would have no choice but to make Yogi Adityanath as CM because they have to pamper to their core base of Hindu extremists. Else the same Hindu extremists will create a revolt which BJP and Modi may find it hard to contain. Thus what i feel BJP fears its own people or the people who have elected it and so they have to satiate them or satisfy them by making one of the hardcore leaders as CM.

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• Third segment today I will want to discuss about WWE and how last week RAW Mick Foley was assaulted and treated badly. I watched old episode WWE State of the Universe discussion before Survivor series and how Stephanie McMohan and Mick Foley had praised each othet.
• And it was clear at that Stage that Shane Mc Mohan and Daniel Bryan had criticised the RAW show were the stars were not getting the opportunities and Stephanie and Triple H were running the show as their own personal fiefdom.
• Somehow Daniel Bryan and Shane knew that this was coming. While Mick and Seth Rollins faced the hard core music in RAW at the same time we saw in Smackdown even if staged attack on Shane McMohan by AJStyles he was rewarded with a match at Wrestlemania.
• Then we go back as to how Shane McMohan wanted the control of RAW and things would have been different if Shane was running the show in RAW.
• Triple H set the tone. Definitely he classified "has been" to Seth Rollins and Mick Foley. No wonder Cruiserweight and NXt is of special interest to triple H. As there he scours for new talent and old stars just become obsolete just like the technologies I discussed earlier.

Machine, Beauty and The Beast

Watched two movies as mentioned in the subject line.
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Machine
This was seen on the big screen of Carnival Cinemas in Rockine Mall using www.moviecard.com
This movie is great. Totally shot in Georgia. Directors are Abbas Mustan and came to know from KRK review on Youtube that the hero is Abbas's son. This movie has got shades of Baazigar movie. I liked it.
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Beauty and The Beast
This was seen on the big screen of Carnival Cinemas in Rockine Mall using www.moviecard.com
This movie I believe is a "timeless" movie.
Who is the 'beast' in the movie? We can say that the beast in the movie is 'the other', the one which we fear. Why do we fear 'the other'? We fear the other because we do not know about it or them.
The other can be anyone. In the present day and age we can say the other is "Islam" and beauty is us or the ones who are following western culture.
We do not need to fear the Beast. The Beast is not there to get to us.
The Beast is just like us and in many case is better than us.
So we need to love the Beast. That is the conclusion we can draw from the movie.
Also the Beast is relative. From a Western view the Beast can be Islam or Asian or Hindu.
From White view they can be Blacks or Mexicans or Indian.
From Islamic view it can be Jew or Hindu or Buddhist.
From Hindu view it can be Buddhist or Sikh or Muslim.
"The other" is relative to person or culture or location. And The Beast needs to be love. If we love we are Beauty. If we do not love then we become the Beast. And then somebody has to love us to make us beautiful or normal again.

Obsolete and Outdated technologies

• I will say that we are living in a day and age which is very current and up to date.
• Obsolete and Outdated technologies have no value in this age.
• How did I come to know of this?
•  I came to know about it through hard way which is called life and experience.
• First case I would like to highlight is my Thread Ceremony Video cassette (VHS) from 1992. I became busy with my life and forgot all about it. I should have converted it to CD and DVD when I had the chance but it did not. I sat on it and thought of converting it to CD/DVD only occurred to me in 2011 i.e. after 19 years. I gave the VCR (yes we still had it) and the Cassette at a place in my native town of Bhubaneswar. He kept the VCR which was still working but he could not convert the VHS. Next I tried in Berhampur but he could not do it. Then I brought it to Bengaluru and gave it at two places but they could not do it. next I sent it to Scan Corner @Hyderabad and they could not do it. Subsequently now I have sent it to Delhi and still am hoping that it could be converted to digital video.
• Second is when I have uploaded the CD/DVD of my marriage to Youtube after converting it to MP4. If VHS tapes can afford not to function it can very easily happen to CD/DVDs also. they can get corrupted quite easily. During that time also I have found one DVD from my marriage which is not working. I mean I can see the files but when I try to play or copy they just don't work.
• Third was when I bought LED TV and that too a 42 inch TV. It was upgrading from a 29 inch box or Cathode Ray TV. At that time I came to know that old cable connection does not look good in LED TV and at that time I took Videocon HD Box when my Cable Tv just never gave a HD box because he never offered it. LED/LCD TV's are built for HD connection and vice-versa i.e. HD connection are built for LED and LCD TV. There was no looking back.
• Fourth was when I tried to get rid of my 17 year old bike which was Kawasaki Bajaj 4S Champion. I had bought it for 50000 INR in November 1999. I tried to sell it @19000 INR in October 2001 but my father said why sell it at so less price. So I held on to it and the thought of selling it never came to me until 2015 when 15 year validity of the vehicle had passed in 2014. But since the bike was at Mumbai and I was at Bengaluru that never happened. But in 2016 I got the time and went to Mumbai and tried to sell it for 5000 INR but no one was willing to give that to me. Finally i sold it as scrap for 1200 INR. That person who bought it as scrap said, "Do you think it has value? It may have value for you but for a prospective purchaser it has no value. It has no value not even parts have a value. Tell me. Do you see such a vehicle on the road? If you don't see one where will the parts be used?"
• Fifth case deals with mobile. I visit the website of Flipkart and Amazon and try to exchange my mobile. I had a mobile of Micromax which was Canvas 4 plus A315. It cost 14000 INR after discount and its glass cracked twice and then I spent 4500 and 4000 rupees twice for it but it fell again withing a week and I had to scrap it. Before scrapping it I tried to look for its resale value and I could come to the figure of Rs 2500 in cashify.in website. But if the glass is cracked then it is scrap value. Similarly about two years back I found the resale value of Nokia Lumia 610 to be Rs1000. That phone cost me 12000 and I have spent 2000 further. Now if we look at resale value of Lumia 610 it is 0. Nowhere it is available. I had bought Samsung galaxy tab GT P1000 and now if I try to exchange it, no one will pay a single rupee for it.
• Sixth is the connection we take for TV like Tata Sky or Netflix for example. We have to pay money either monthly or annually and then we are "guaranteed service and protection". We cannot say that two years ago we paid 15000 and so we are the customer. We are paying for the service for a "time sequence" and we are eligible only for that time.
• Seventh we can say what happened to demonetisation and old notes were outdated by Modi and BJP and they got in new notes. probably their inspiration was also this theory that outdated and obsolete things have no value. New notes will give new infusion to the economy.
• Eighth was when my desktop computer crashed and I had to change the motherboard. What the Computer Engineer said that this motherboard is no longer available in the market as it is obsolete and you have to change the set i.e. the motherboard and the processor together. I had no option and opted for it and now I have i3 Processor along with Gigabyte motherboard. Hard disk can still be used with the new set.
• Ninth is through watching Wrestling on TV. Shows like TNA Impact, Smackdown and RAW. We realise that only the latest episodes have value. I mean we can watch Pay-per-views if we miss some but the weekly shows are best enjoyed if the are watched in the current week if not live. A little bit late and they lose the value.
• Tenth is the Top 40 countdown. We realise that in India the foreign music channels like VH1, 9XO show all old music videos occasionally few are new not to mention Music Videos are edited/censored. Earlier Channel V International was there and their countdown used to be shown in Star World in weekend but they stopped it I think in 2007 or 2008. And then Rage program used to be shown in Australia Network in weekeend but then Australia Network also shut down and now Australia Plus Channel in new Avatar does not show Rage anymore and so I had to scour other sources like http://top40-charts.com/ for Top 40 songs. Current songs matter and not earlier ones when you want the latest.

So what we can conclude that in this day and age, nothing is permanent and outdated technology and equipment lose their value and we should get rid of them while they still have the value. If we continue to hold on to the old things and items, we may not get warranty, guarantee as well as replacement if they have any problem.
I am reminded of TNA Wrestling's Jeff and Matt Hardy song "I will fade away and classify myself as obsolete...obsolete."
Holding on to Old items is like doing illegal activity. We know that it is illegal to drive a vehicle which is beyond 15 years old if we have not got the fitness certificate from the Govt RTO Department.
Technology companies, automobile companies will also not support the old products and very likely they will end as scrap.
It is a very harsh reality that when we begin our association with a product like a phone or bike or car we believe it will last forever but the fact is it may not be so. Our time with it is limited. And we will face the harsh reality when its useful life nears it end. That is not our attitude when we begin after association with it.
In the end I would like to mention from the Calvin Harris/Ne-Yo song "Lets Go" "It’s not about what you’ve done, It’s about what you doing, It’s all about where you going, No matter where you’ve been"

Lion, La La Land, Mission Impossible Rogue Nation

Watched three movies as mentioned in the subject line.
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Lion
This movie was watched on PVR Cinemas after booking through Bookmyshow.com where voucher was offered which gave a discount of Rs 125 (BMS125). This movie is great and since it is a foreign movie it does not show Indian Gods and Godesses and rather romaticises the subcontinent and "cuts to the chase" where it shows sparsely populated region of India (not Calcutta) from where the boy hails in the movie.
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La La Land
This movie was watched @Garuda Mall, Magrath Road after booking through Bookmyshow.com where voucher was offered which gave a discount of Rs 125 (BMS125). Movie is great but it is too sad that the hero and heroine go separate ways and the fact that could be different is also shown.
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Mission Impossible Rogue Nation
This movie was watched on Amazon Prime Video. I liked the movie. It deals with a shadow organization called The Syndicate which carries out wanton acts of terror and destruction around the world and it is taken down by Ethan Hunt and his team. While watching the movie you feel that because he is Ethan hunt he can do it what he does in the movie. Anybody else could not have done it.

Badrinath Ki Dulhaniya, Logan, Kong Skull Island, Hebbuli, Bas Ek Tamanna

Watched five movies as mentioned in the subject line:
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Badrinath Ki Dulhaniya
This movie was watched at Carnival Cinemas after taking movie card at http://www.moviecardindia.com
This card gives me access to unlimited movies but I can only watch at one cinema of preference which is Rockline Cinemas at Jalahalli Cross.
This movie is definite okay and can be watched once. Though I will never watch it twice.
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Logan
This movie was watched at Carnival Cinemas with Moviecard.
This card gives me access to unlimited movies but I can only watch at one cinema of preference which is Rockline Cinemas at Jalahalli Cross.
This movie is definite okay and can be watched once. Movie runs on predictable lines. All villians are killed in the end and also the main hero. Now maybe a reboot can happen or else new actors carry it forward.
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Kong Skull Island
This movie was watched at Carnival Cinemas with Moviecard.
This card gives me access to unlimited movies but I can only watch at one cinema of preference which is Rockline Cinemas at Jalahalli Cross.
This movie is definite okay and can be watched once. Movie shows King Kong as hero and a God to the island people while earlier movies Kong was the villian.
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Hebbuli
This movie was watched at Carnival Cinemas with Moviecard.
This card gives me access to unlimited movies but I can only watch at one cinema of preference which is Rockline Cinemas at Jalahalli Cross.
This is Kannada movie and okay for a one time watch. Though I do not speak Kannada still I enjoyed the movie. Movie deals with an Army officer who returns home from kashmir and takes revenge for his brother's death who was trying to bring low cost generic drugs to the people.

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Bas Ek Tamanna
This movie was watched on Airtel Digital TV Miniplex HD Channel after recording on pen drive. Movie is nice movie and can be watched once without any problem. It is a simple movie but effective.
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