Rock for Relief

Not even the prospect of a rainy day could prohibit concertgoers from attending the 'Rock for Relief' concert on September 7 at the STM hall. Where there is music, head banging and charity concerned nothing could possibly go wrong! Yet the event suffered a low turn out of people and could not recover until the very end. When asked about it, Salman, one of the organizers said, “There was a major concert involving Artcell just last week, here. After that we had very little time to arrange this concert.” Nevertheless this concert, the proceeds from which will go to alleviating the woes of the flood affected, was able to attract even those shyer types you usually do not see hanging around in a concert.

The concert started with Altered offering their rendition of Megalomaniac. The awesomely original Ajob followed them. Their track “Ache Moja” got the crowd moving while bass player Risalat literally wowed many. Then Reborn took over and the crowd went a bit more animated. Starting with “Kheeno Manush” and ending with “Aagrashon” they put a neat flow into the whole event. Then it was Stentorian that got on the stage and kept the vibe on. They were followed by Arbovirus starting with “Omanush” and ending with “Obhishaap”. The population at this point of the concert was at maximum. Purbo Poshchim came next. Their careful use of the flute, tabla and other mainstream equipments fused to form a sound delicious to the ear. Then it was Black's turn and this time the regular vocal and drummer switched position putting a grin on everyone's face. Jon armed with his eccentricities tried to mimic Tony, the drummer while Tony mediocre Jon. Tony though did a mediocre job at the vocs, DID get the crowd singing!

Then DNA came up on stage as the MC announced it to be their final appearance at any concert. When asked about it, Ashfaque from DNA stated, “We, the members actually decided to not to carry on any more, earlier. As this was a concert for flood relief we got together for some jamming and came out to play here.” He DID say they would be back if they get presented with an opportunity just 'right' for them. They grinded the concert to a halt with “Amar Shomadhi” among loud cheers. If this is the shomadhi for DNA itself I do not know. But let's just hope not.

A commendable effort, a rocking concert, all made up for a very memorable event

By Hitoishi Chakma

Like gaming?

Who doesn't? Whether you're just a casual gamer playing RPGs, or happily beating the computer in FIFA 07, nobody can deny their love for games. Nowadays, people aren't just content with playing at home, alone. They want to compete with others, and prove themselves better, and what better place to show of your skills than the gaming cafes of Dhaka? If you want to join in on the Dhaka gaming scene, all you need to do is show up at the cafes (with money) and start playing. Some of the more popular games today, are listed below.

Warcraft 3 Frozen Throne - DOTA:
Not the actual name of the game, DOTA is simply a 'map' for the game, and for the last two years the most played game in the cafes. For starters, think of it as a short term, fast paced RPG from a strategic viewpoint. There are two teams, The Sentinels and The Scourge, with 5 players on each side. At the beginning, you get to choose a hero character, which you use throughout the game. The game ends, when one team destroys the other's base.

(Warning: This is addictive and players have known to play this very, very long hours. DOTA map can be downloaded from www.getdota.com)

Counter Strike:
Next up is Counter Strike (CS). Everyone has heard about CS, but for those who haven't it's an FPS (First Person Shooter) consisting of, yet again, two teams- the terrorists and the counter-terrorists, where the former either plants a bomb and make sure it goes off where one team either tries to diffuse a bomb or rescues hostages and one prevents them in doing so. CS is the second most played game in Dhaka right after DOTA.

FIFA 07:
This game's mostly played at home, and not really very popular at gaming cafes. Though, there are still a lot of very good players there, ready to take up a challenge. If you're good in FIFA 07, go there and ask someone for a game, and you might get to have a lot of fun.

Unreal Tournament 2004:
Currently THE LEAST played game in the cafes, but it has a good reason. Apparently, some of the gamers have gotten so good at it that nobody dares challenge them, except themselves. If you do play with them, no matter how good you think you are, you will quickly learn why nobody plays UT anymore. It's an FPS game, where you mostly 'frag' each other... At one point there used to be matches between teams, but those are the thing of the past now, sadly.

If you are up for it, and want to try something new, find yourself a gaming cafe, and go for it, and have some fun.

By Zaim 'Annihilator' Alam

Unknown facts about F.R.I.E.N.D.S

1. The reality show Joey worked in 'Days of our lives’ is actually the one daytime drama that Jennifer Aniston (Rachel) starred for several years in real.

2. As the official language of F.R.I.E.N.D.S was English the directors brought speakers from other countries that mingled the languages on Korean, Chinese, French, and Spanish and took roles of Phoebe, Joey, Rachel, Monica, Ross and Chandler.

3. Judy, Jill, Janice, Estelle, Mona, Carol are infact the Friends' of the F.R.I.E.N.D.S.

4. A team of over 12 writers day and night write the script of the F.R.I.E.N.D.S series and discuss how they can make it funnier by time.

5. At the middle of the 'one in Las Vegas' scene the writers were stuck and they didn't know how to write the next script.

By Fariha Shafi

The Aga Khan School Inter-school Debate 2007

The Aga Khan School, Dhaka Inter-school Debate Festival 2007 took place between September 6-8 with 9 institutions: AKSD, BIT, Manarat, The Red Brick School, Mastermind, Notre Dame College, SFX Green Herald, Scholastica and Sunnydale participating in a format that was an amalgamation of the British Parliamentary as well as the World Schools styles.

With two preliminary rounds selecting the top 8 teams for the knockout rounds, the tournament saw debaters from all over Dhaka debate regional and global issues, displaying outstanding oratory prowess and superb reasoning skills as the tournament went on.

A unique addition to this competition was the introduction of the motion/side toss, which the Organizing Committee believed would ensure maximum transparency for all parties concerned. Debaters were given 4 motions on a particular theme per round and a toss was carried out which enabled both one side to either choose the motion while the other automatically was allowed the right to choose the side and vice-versa. The motions for each round were thematically categorized and included topics from areas such as politics and economics, law and crime, environment and animal welfare, culture, etc. The tournament saw outstanding performances from BIT and the AKSD teams however it was the dark horses Red Brick School who booked their place in the final confronting the powerhouse team from Manarat.

September 8 saw Manarat and Red Brick square off against one another in a final that was sure to be a heated debate. One of the catalyzing factors might have been the theme for the final being “Women issues” and the debate lived up to the hype as the final motion was chosen to be one regarding the women in the armed forces being allowed to serve in combat roles. The top notch 9 judges (who were selected in the panel for the final included national level champions and national level selectors who had been previously involved in international competitions) had to come down to 5-4 split decision to announce the final in favor of the team from Manarat and which just went to prove how tight the debate really was. The best speaker of the tournament was judged to be Hasan from Manarat. The festival also included a social function in which soothing tunes were performed by the AKSD students to ensure that the experience was indeed an all round one.

With a two week preparation time it was remarkable to see the student organizers and volunteers of AKSD organize an event which ensured that timetables and schedules were strictly followed and they should be commended on finishing each day's proceedings 15 minutes early.

All in all, it was a valiant effort taken by the AKSD debating community who wished to promote debate for future debaters of the country who would enjoy the art for its true value and we all hope that AIDF would be highlighted in the upcoming years' annual debating calendars.

By Maimun Mustafa

…and thus it has been written down
by the drowsy moon on water leaves
that the drunk monsoon dew
shall never sway with the wind;
cuddled up within its slumber
it shall lie entranced by the ruffled rain
drizzling against the night sky
reflecting the stars that gaze upon;
it shall thus keep warm
the blade of grass it ponders on
bend over it,
and whisper “grow, grow…”

By Adnan M. S. Fakir

A walk in the monsoon rain

Have you ever taken a walk in the monsoon rain?
Blazing wind and crystal raindrop ease your pain.
Never that I believed I would be in such agony
Never that I believed I would lose my joy.
It was few years back when I used to laugh
Running in the rain, kissing those grey clouds
Remembering my sweet childhood memories
My Grandfather, as my earth was the heavens.
Yet one day all my happiness turned into sorrow
Felt like those raindrops have
turned into stones
And the cotton clouds have turned into ashes.
Now I walk into the rain, which feels like tears
Only to ease my pain and to recall those memories
Your presence still lingers in these raindrops
My Grandfather and your emotions of innocence
Will you come back again in the Monsoon?

By Ben Zaman