Baatein Kuchh Ankahee Sii...

About the time when I saw an accident and did nothing

2012-01-24T10:00:00.000+05:30

"Hello, hang on there for 5 minutes. Let me follow your bike, since I don't know the route to the auditorium." A friend called me while I was on my way to an auditorium in the heart of the city, to watch a drama. It was already getting late. I told him I would drive slowly until he catches me. I took a left lane and started driving slowly. And in a matter of 30 seconds, to my horror, I saw a 2-wheeler skid. It had just passed by me. I noticed there were two 20-something girls on the bike. The one driving - couldn't notice the speed-breaker on the sloping road. The vehicle because of its top speed just flew off a bit in the air and skidded down. While the girl who was driving could quickly get up, the pillion lay down unconscious on the busy highway road. The mob quickly gathered. They lifted the girl lying down and took her aside on a footpath. Thankfully there was no blood spilled. But the girl was still unconscious. I was only observing. In such situations, I don't usually like to be a mere spectator and create a road block. I simply pass by, if it looks sure that there are people to take care of the situation. But I stopped by, more because I had to wait for my friend anyway. I could have easily got off my bike and offered some help. But I did not do that. I wanted to leave from there immediately after my friend's arrival. Getting late for the drama bothered me more.

While she was being taken to the footpath, somebody in the mob shouted for water. I looked around to see if somebody's getting water for her. I noticed a medical shop. Getting a water bottle from there was easier. But I just did not get off. I was totally acting like a passive LOSER witness. Then all of a sudden it struck to me that I was carrying a water bottle. I paused for a second or two to check if someone else was getting water from anywhere. Another woman was trying to check whether she had any water left with her. I shouldn't have waited and thought as much before offering the water. I felt disgusted with myself and quickly took out the bottle from the bag and offered. The girl was still unconscious. A man began sprinkling water on her face and started feeding her some water through her mouth. I was still on my vehicle observing and thinking. I could not thank enough to the fact that I wear a helmet everyday. The helmet has become old, it is not at all fancy. It spoils my hair everyday (I'm obsessed with my hair). But life is too precious to lose because of an unnatural incident, so I wear a helmet. And I could not thank my friend enough who had called me and asked me to hang on. I had slowed down and had changed the side. Otherwise, who knows I could have dashed into the accident as well. I then started pondering about when my friend would come, so that I would take the water bottle back and leave. I checked - the man was still feeding water to her. I was wondering as to when the usage of the bottle would get over, so that I could quickly leave. And another thought flashed my mind, "Wait, what! There's this woman who's lying unconscious because of a frigging accident. The least you can do is to pray for her; and all you care about is - your water bottle!!!" I felt like a complete LOSER. I loathed myself. I thought I did not deserve to be there at that place, in that crowd who was handling the situation with sheer humanity, willingness to help and quick action. I decided to leave the scene, without the water bottle.

माता-पिता

2011-11-06T13:44:00.001+05:30

बचपन और बुढापे में मन और शरीर दोनों बहुत नाज़ुक होते हैं. इसीलिए किसी बच्चे को या बुजुर्ग को संभालना, उनकी देखभाल करना बड़ा मुश्किल हो जाता हैं

वो कहते हैं की बचपन और बुढापा एक सरीखा होता हैं.

लेकिन क्या हम जो कहते हैं, उसे अपनाते हैं?

अपना बच्चा अगर बीमार हो तो उसकी देखभालमें हम रात-दिन भी गुज़ारे तो नहीं थकते.

क्या हम अपने बूढ़े माता-पिता की सेवा में उसी प्रकार तत्पर रहते हैं?

बच्चे ने जगह जगह फैलाई हुई गन्दगी, उसकी विष्ठा, उसका बहता नाक इससे हम शिकायत करे न करे

लेकिन माता-पिता का रहेन-सहेन हमारी modern lifestyle से मेल नहीं खाता हैं और घृणास्पद लगता हैं

कल मैंने एक ४ साल का बच्चा देखा जो किसी फिल्मसे प्रभावित होकर शर्ट की collar को उपर चढ़ाकर, उंगली ऊँची उठाकर "आवाज़ नहीं करनेका" ऐसे शब्दोंमें फिल्मके हीरो की नक़ल उतार रहा था. आसपास बैठे हुए सभी लोग अत्यंत विलक्षणतासे और कौतुकपूर्ण नजरोसे बच्चे को देख रहे थे.
मैंने सोचा - बीस साल बाद इन्ही हावभावोंके साथ बच्चा उंगली से इशारा कर तुम्हे घरके बाहर निकालेगा, इतिहास फिरसे दोहराएगा

बच्चा चीखे चिल्लाये, रो कर, जिद कर अपनी बात मनवाए - हम मन में कोई नाराज़गी नहीं रखते

फिर क्यों कभी माता पिता आवाज़ ऊँची चढ़ाकर या करुणता से हाथ जोड़कर कोई बात आगे रखे तो हम आगबबूले हो जाते हैं?

किसी भरी सभामें बच्चेके कुछ embarrassing कह जाने पर हम react नहीं करेंगे, थोड़ी शर्मिंदगी महसूस होगी या नहीं भी होगी. लेकिन "बच्चा ही हैं" ये सोचके बात को टाल देंगे

पर अब तो अक्सर हम माँ-बाप को कहीं लेके जाने में ही embarrassment महसूस करते हैं. उनका होना हमारे status symbol के आड़ आ जाता हैं

ऐसा नहीं की हर बच्चा निहायती नालायक और हर माता-पिता आदरणीय और सहनशील होते हैं

पर दूर दूर तक सच्चाई यही हैं की प्रेम और आदरभाव के अभाव में कई माता-पिता रोते हैं

आज हमारा लगाव हमारे बेटे के प्रति ज्यादा और माँ-बाप के प्रति कम हैं. ये परंपरा तो चलती रहेगी, हमारे बुढ़ापे में कहानी ज़रूर पलटेगी और फिर तकलीफ होगी. बुढ़ापे में बच्चे से अपेक्षाएं बढेंगी लेकिन हमारा बच्चा उसके बच्चे की अपेक्षाएं पूरी करने में व्यस्त हो जाएगा और तुम्हारी तकलीफ बढ़ेगी.

मुझे लगता हैं - काफी समस्याएं कम हो जायेंगी यदि हम - हमको जन्म देनेवालोंके प्रति स्नेह ज्यादा और हमने जिनको जन्म दिया उनके प्रति लोभ कम रखें.

Sir Ken Robinson: Bring on the learning revolution! | Video on TED.com

2011-06-17T13:58:00.000+05:30

Sir Ken Robinson: Bring on the learning revolution! | Video on TED.com

He talks impressively about Intelligence, Talent, Ability and Passion and how education needs an organic model than a mechanical model. With 10th and 12th results out and a new academic year about to begin, this makes a brilliant watch.

Politics and Hypocrisy

2011-06-08T23:19:00.001+05:30

At an interview with Barkha Dutt on NDTV, senior congress leader Digvijay Singh mentions that Anna's Hazaare's comparison of "Police action on Ramlila Grounds" to "Jaliyanwala Baug" is Shameful. Fair enough. I also believe the comparison was extreme (although the police action was totally uncalled for and thus, is not appreciated at all). Then too, if Mr. Digvijay Singh calls the comparison Shameful, point noted.

Now, I also remember Mr. Digvijay Singh calling BJP "Nachaniyon ki party" yesterday on opposition leader Sushma Swaraj's dance on patriotic songs in front of Raj Ghat. Isn't it shameful to use such an uncivilized word against a respectable woman leader of opposition? I am not a huge supporter of BJP (not especially after Atalbihari Vajpeyee left the political circle), but where was Mr. Digvijay Singh's shame gone when he was kicking Sunil Kumar (the guy who waved a shoe at Congress Spokesperson Dwivedi)?

I think Anna Hazare's comparison was still honest and civilized. I don't think senior political leaders like Mr. Digvijay Singh should be involved in picking up uncivilized words against a woman leader or in kicking somebody in mob and on top of that, saying that he does not regret what he did. Moreover, what annoys me is his total disregard for the "Nachaniya's" who're still a section of the society. Nachaniya's are not substitutes for any abusive language. They still have a life - a freaking respectable life whatsoever their profession is.

These reactions more or less seem to me as panicked expressions coming out of discomfort created because of the tide that's turned against the UPA governement recently. And such reactions only talk about hypocritical nature of Mr. Digvijay Singh, who represents a whole community of hypocritical politicians. Mr. Digvijay Singh, you have lost my vote already!

Women and Education

2011-03-13T09:33:00.000+05:30

Happened to read this horrifying piece of news in newspaper currently –

“A Joint family staying in Mumbai killed 2 innocent children, aged 5 and 7, in the house. This is because they all suspected that the children carried evil spirit in them. Apparently one of the ladies had implanted this very thought in parents’ mind that the children embodied evil spirit and it was best to sacrifice them to the God”

Let’s leave apart the heinous act, the superstition issue and everything else. Let’s come down to a basic problem here – of no education to women. As soon as I finished reading the piece, a single question crossed my mind – what if the woman who led the act was educated enough? The family hails from a small town in Rajasthan. It moved to Mumbai to make a living - the reason enough for me to believe that the women in the family were definitely not educated. I disregard the possibility of the woman being envious of the mother and hence wanted to kill the children. If that was the case, she could have done that herself. Or maybe I’m wrong and she really wanted to get the kids out of the way and like a typical K-serial, she drafted a plot, a conspiracy to get the children killed by their parents. I would still want to stop my CID and come down to the very basic problem – what if the woman was really educated enough? Educated enough to be aware that there are much better issues to be dealt with than really believe that the evil spirits do exist. Educated enough to be aware that the world has anyway become a difficult place to live and every day, one needs to fight through many odds. The life is too short to start paying attention to things like evils.

Women, with all the dignity and integrity they carry, can be very powerful to solve problems that really affect our lives and not create problems n shatter others’ lives. And we have seen this happening in the past. We need Sabrina Lall’s, Medha Patkar’s, Mother Teresa’s in the world. Educated women can really be the epicenters of the quantum change that can bless nations and generations. Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru was not wrong when he said, “If you educate a man, you educate one person. But if you educate a woman, you educate an entire family” I fully agree to this! Of course, there's a lot of awareness now in Tier-1 and Tier-2 cities of India. But I come from a small town and that too, from a conservative society. I know how restricted views people have when it comes to education of women.

A few counter-argue when it comes to Women-education, saying it’s of no use and after the marriage, kids and kitchen are the only destinations in a woman’s life. While I don’t discard their thought process fully, I have heard from my aunt of a very wise angle to this. She says, “Sure I want to educate my daughter, even though I foresee only kids and kitchen as her destinations after marriage. But if tomorrow, God Forbid, she would have to live a separate life or a life without the husband, she can be on her own at least. Her education would come to the rescue then.” Nice!

Of course one can now start talking about basic rights of women, freedom, equality, etc. and how education is important to women. But not everyone can have a basic level of understanding to accept these values. That’s why I think the aunt’s answer was a solid counter argument to the counter argument behind no education to women. It’s fairly practical, if not ideal. Amen!

There are only lessons in Life...

2010-09-16T15:31:00.003+05:30

Experienced a small but very defining incidence recently and hence sharing it:

Place: A Ganpati Pandal, right in the heart of a very crowded chowk (Nal Stop) in Pune.

Time: Peak Traffic Hours, 7.30PM. The traffic's really bad at Nal stop at this time of the day.

Description: A healthy guy in his 30's with Pan/Gutkha in his mouth, was playing very loud and irritating music at the Pandal. He looked very rowdy. I started hating him in first glance itself. Let's call him Pandal manager.

So, I was waiting near that Pandal for a friend. We were supposed to meet at a restaurant close to the Pandal. I was in my own thoughts and had already started making judgments and heavy criticism about all the Hungama that people create in Ganesh festivals. My thoughts were interrupted by a loud ambulance siren. The signal at the chowk was Red. Huge PMTs were lined up. I felt helpless for the ambulance 'coz there was barely any way it could make through. Vehicles were not moving. A bumper to bumper traffic situation. And to add to the misery, the noise levels at the Pandal were so high that I doubted whether vehicles upfront could listen to the siren and make some moves for the ambulance to pass. I started cursing the Pandal manager even more. I felt like going to that Pandal manager and ask him to stop the music. And to my surprise, he had already started lowering the volume. He infact stopped the music and quickly rushed towards ambulance. I could see there that if one or two vehicles could just shift towards their left, the ambulance could have made it. I thought I should go there and help to save the situation. By then, the Pandal manager had taken the control of traffic. He made 2-3 vehicles move and Bingo! The ambulance got its away. My sophisticated and restricted mindset felt pathetic. It needed more presence of mind to save the situation. I could not stop appreciating the Pandal manager that he was quick enough to act. Who knows his quick thinking and action probably saved a life!!! Kudos to the Pandal manager.

Well, this incidence is open to interpretations, opinions and comments. I don't want to provide any conclusion. I don't want to make any statement on humanity, presence of mind and blah, blah either. I'll only share what I learned through this incidence that

"There's so much to learn even from a person whom I don't like apparently at the first glance. What I see in a person at the first glance is just the illusion. Instead of being judgmental, I should focus upon the fact that there's so much of learning. Just because I'm qualified, well-educated and a white-collar job holder civilian, it does not mean that I'm superior. अहम् में, गुरूर में और नफरत में काफी दरवाज़े बंद हो जाते हैं. Stay Humble, Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish!!! Let's stop making judgments 'coz nothing can be generalized!"

Thanks to my friend who was 5 min. late. Those 5 minutes certainly shook my beliefs to some extent.

ज़रा गौर फरमाओ

2010-09-02T15:58:00.002+05:30

Disclaimer: I don't mean to offend anyone by this post. With a complete respect to the working class, which is the heart of Indian Economy, I'm writing this. This post is dedicated to all those white-collar software job holders who crib about their lives 24*7

Another Disclaimer: The poem's completely original.

शुक्र करो,

की तुम तपती धूप में पसीना बहानेवाले किसान नही बने

न तुम युद्धभूमि में जान न्योछावर करनेवाले जवान बने

तुम किस्मत के अभागे, सड़कों पे सोनेवाले भिखारी नही बने

न तुम जंगली जान्वरोंके साथ खेलनेवाले मदारी बने

तुम नींद भूख प्यास और घर छोडके के सवारी पे जानेवाले ड्राईवर नही बने

न तुम काली रातोंमे जिस्मफरोशी करनेवालों के सौदागर बने

तुम हररोज़ बासी बर्तन धोनेवाले कामवाले भैया या बाई नहीं बने

न तुम गली मोहल्लोंमे अकारण दहशत फैलानेवाले भाई बने

तुम किसी राजाके पैरों के धूल समान दास नही बने

न तुम medical college में इस्तेमाल किये जानेवाली लाश बने

तुम न जाने क्या क्या बन सकते थे! एक बहुत ही आम ज़िन्दगी जी सकते थे!

तुम में शारीरिक क्षमता की भी कोई कमी नहीं

फिर क्यों तुम रोते हो? अपनी किस्मत को कोसते हो?

अपने काम की इज्ज़त नही करते? और बस निराशा और मायूसी की आहे भरते?

तुम एक काबिल engineer हो... ऐसा engineer जो AC में बैठके 9-6 duty करता हैं. वो भी सिर्फ सोमवार से शुक्रवार!!! काम से शिकायत होना लाज़मी हैं... काम से satisfied न होना भी गैर नही. बड़े और बेहेतर काम की चाह होनी चाहिए. लगे तो उस दिशा में कदम उठाओ. लेकिन काम और मेहेनत करने की तमन्ना ही न हो तो क्या रहा? सोचो तुम क्या क्या बन सकते थे और आज क्या हो? आज तुम जिन सुख-सुविधाओं में जी रहे हो; उनको पाने के लिए शायद तुम्हारे माता-पिता ने और उनकी पीढ़ी के तमाम लोगोने कई साल गुजारे होंगे. आज भी देश की अधिकतर आवाम तुम्हारे जैसी ज़िंदगी जीने को तरस रही होंगी. अगर फिर भी तुम अपनी ज़िन्दगी से खुश नही हो तो उस में बदलाव लाने की ज़रुर कोशिश करो. पर यूँ हाथ पे हाथ धरे ऑफिस के ऐशो-आराम में बैठके keyboard पे "I hate my job, Damn! Work tomorrow, Monday, Tuesday, WTF" लिखो मत ! यही तोह उम्र हैं मेहेनत करने कि, सपने सजाने की और उन सपनोमे उड़ान भरनेकी!!!

PS: To make myself clear, the post is about those who don't like TO work; rather than those who don't like their work, the current work in hand.

The joy is multiplied when it is shared :)

2010-07-31T00:18:00.005+05:30

I got my first salary today. Precious!!! Actually at moments like these, it's not the money which is precious. It's the pure, immense joy and satisfaction that comes with it, that's precious!!! I had my eyes wet while coming back from the office today. I talked to my biggest inspiration, my Dad!!! Talked to my uncles and aunts... I can not even begin to express the joy they felt... and the deepest satisfaction that I got. Overwhelming! As I mentioned, the monetary amount is no concern, It's the purest feeling of starting with a new career, starting professional life, getting rewards of what you've strived for 4 years, being financially independent(or atleast the start of it). This may not be the career I'm meant to be in... This is possibly not the ultimate goal of my life. So it's not really the joy of getting settled in the career in that sense. It's not like it's the greatest accomplishment of Life. It's just the feeling of a small little achievement that marks the start of a new phase of life... The feeling of joining the workaholic class, which is the support-system of the family, of the nation. The feeling of being a responsible human being henceforth.

Before I came home, I bought some sweets and distributed them to some beggars near a temple. I was lucky this day that I got to share my joy, my first earning with 2 very special people, my grandparents. They came from my native place a few days back. I can not thank them enough for their blessings, the moral values that they taught me. My jiju told me to share my first earning with my family. I agree, it's their right in every sense. It's because of them that we all are so very capable. I was in tears again when I was offerring a small token to my grandparents. They din't accept it though, asking me to spend the money myself. And ofcourse, I could meet a few of my best buddies too :)

To my fellow readers, if you're yet to witness this joy, I wish that happens sooner. I wish you could resonate with my feelings sooner. Please don't feel left out by this post. To all those who're currently witnessing this joy, I urge you to share your joy with your family. Aaj unka haq banta hain. To all those who've already been through this, I would like you to share your experience :)

Take care you all...

The Last Leg

2010-05-30T22:57:00.009+05:30

Wanted to capture this moment in words and digitally... I am not really hit by the huge tide of those emotions of "end of an era", probably 'coz I'm too occupied with the IT-farewell planning and a ghostly subject like SOM, which kick-starts (and kicks my ass) the last leg of engineering, the final exams tomorrow. Or it's also because I have had enough of those nostalgic feelings and posts. I'm almost saturated.

I dunno what is this meant to be?, how is this feeling supposed to be? The feeling hasn't really sunk in yet. I don't feel like I'm grown up to be called an engineer. There's so much for me to learn. I don't feel like ending the engineering studying stupid subjects(Blame the BE syllabus). I think I have long miles to go. Engineering suddenly looks like a casual affair, like a quick ride. I just don't want to stuff this post with the descriptions of how engineering was to me. Then too, I wanna record this moment. Who knows, I may want to cherish this moment again(virtually, if not live)! And somehow, this post will come to me as a completely different one and maybe make me cry! Although I'm not yet sentimental (which is weird!) about this whole thing, I can just think of those last 10 mins. of my last paper. Will I be in any mental state to write anything then? Plus after my exams, I have a lot to catch up with; which means not having to meet my regular friends for a while. The office joining follows quickly. And it eradicates the hope of meeting my friends on the 1st day of new semester, as it used to be. Will I be perfectly okay with the fact that there's no more this "1st day of semester" left in my life? At the start of every semester there was this one thing I always used to look forward to: An Art Circle Meeting. That phase's gone and I've to come to terms to it. I won't feel like I will be owning the college campus anymore, like I do now. Currently, it's my place. I'll be a visitor tomorrow. And the time difference isn't even big enough to let me live it off. Goosebumps! I wish I could portray my feelings well. I'm ruining this post. I should stop.

Nothing Else Matters!

2010-05-18T15:25:00.004+05:30

So close, no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
and nothing else matters

Never opened myself this way
Life is ours, we live it our way
All these words I don't just say
and nothing else matters

Trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us something new
Open mind for a different view
and nothing else matters

never cared for what they do
never cared for what they know
but I know

So close, no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
and nothing else matters

never cared for what they do
never cared for what they know
but I know

Never opened myself this way
Life is ours, we live it our way
All these words I don't just say
and nothing else matters

Trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us, something new
Open mind for a different view
and nothing else matters

never cared for what they say
never cared for games they play
never cared for what they do
never cared for what they know
and I know

So close, no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
No, nothing else matters
--

For all those who know (and worship, therefore) or do not know, this a chartbuster track from Metallica. While I'm not much into metal, this song simply takes my breath away and mesmerizes me like anything. They call "Metallica" Gods... I don't need to ask why, if they can boast of such heavenly compositions. I can resonate so much with the feelings expressed in the song. WOW! This is what I am, this is what I've done in my past four years, this is what I would call an "anthem" (As Manan puts it) for my beloved art circle. Metallica, take a bow! \m/.

Please give a listen to this song, if you haven't! If you've missed it, it's like missing living in the era when the God of Cricket played (and still playing), like missing the monsoons of Mumbai, like missing your Birthday Cake, like missing so much!

Here's the link to the song, it's S & M version, the best by Metallica. Courtesy: Manan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAsA00-5KoI

Happy Mother's Day

2010-05-10T09:54:00.008+05:30

"अरे प्रतीक, उठ जरा! जा, जाऊन भाजी आण!"

"ए झोपू दे न ग आई! काल उशीर झाला झोपायला..." (मी आपला रात्री gtalk आणि facebook वर 'busy ' असल्यामुळे साहजिक च सकाळी उशिरा उठणार)
माझी किरकिर सुरु च होती. नव्हतं जायचं मला!

"अरे उठ ना रे! मी काय रोज जायला सांगते का तुला?"

"मी रोज गेलो पण नसतो" मी ठामपणे सांगितले. असली कामं नाही जमत मला. कशाला सांगत असतेस? मी मनातच बोललो.

"अरे म्हणूनच! आज चे दिवस तरी जा"

"बंर! ठीके! काय काय आणायचंय?" मी चिडचिड करत उठलो.

"ही घे list. नीट बघून आण भाज्या. खालच्या stalls वर चांगल्या मिळतात भाज्या"

झोपेचं खोबरं झालं म्हणून स्वतःशीच चीडचीड करत मी जवळ च्या Reliance Store मध्ये गेलो. Stallsच काही बुवा आपल्याला कळत नाही, तिथे आई करते तशी bargaining काही आपल्याला जमत नाही, ह्या विचाराने मी Reliance वर "Rely " करायचे ठरवले. तिथे खूप भाज्या होत्या. List बघितली. भाज्या निवडताना कुठली चांगली कुठली खराब हे कळतच नव्हतं. "वास घ्यावा का?" मी मनाशीच म्हटलं. तेवढ्यात एक काका आले. माझ्यासमोरच्या भाजी च्या टोपल्यातील भाजी पटापट निवडून पुढे गेले. मला काही कळलंच नाही. "ह्यांनी काय बघून भाजी निवडली?". आई ची आठवण आली. "आई ला बरं कळतं भाज्यांचं. आपलं कधी डोकं चालणार? कि मला अनुभव नसल्यामुळे "confusion" होतंय? जाऊ दे! जास्त डोकं नको लावायला" असा विचार करीत मग मी पटपट भाजी घेतली. एखाद्या भाजी समोर म्हणजे कोबी दिसली तेव्हा उगाच कोबी हातात धरून तिचे चौफेर निरीक्षण करून "ही दिसायला तर shape मध्ये uniform दिसते आणि रंग पण कसा हिरवागार आहे!" असे निरीक्षण लावून मी "मला पण कळतं. मी जिंकलोय" ह्या आविर्भावात भाजी घेतली आणि घरी गेलो.

दुपारी जेवणात कोबी होती. खूप चरबट लागली. चव जरा वेगळीच होती. मी आई कडे त्याची complaint सुरु केली. आई, "थांब भाजी जरा ठीक करून देते" म्हणाली. तेवढ्यात मला सकाळी भाजी आणल्यानंतर आई ने केलेली तक्रार आठवली. "भाजी fresh बघून का नाही आणली? कोबी निव्वळ कच्ची आहे." पुढच्या terms मला काही कळाल्या नाहीत. "मग असली कामं मला सांगत नको जाऊ" असे मी तिला निक्षून सांगत पुढचे conversation ignore केले. ह्या सगळ्यांचा विचार करत असताना आईने परत शिजवलेली भाजी समोर ठेवली. मला स्वतःचीच लाज वाटली. मीच भाजी आणली होती आणि मीच आता complaint करतोय. मला कळायला हवं. आई सोबत चारदा जाऊन भाजी आणली तर च कळेल, कसं असतं ते? भाज्यांचंच काय? कुठून श्रीरामपूरचेच पापड मागव. नाशिककडचाच भात आण. अमुक ठिकाणचेच तमुक मागव and so on! अशी सगळी धडपड सुरु च असते तिची. बायकांची कामं mindless असतात असा बर्याच पुरुषांचा (गैर)समज आहे. पण आज भाजी आणल्यावर मला कळालं कि आमच्या "so called " brain ला योग्य "खुराक" पोचवण्यासाठी बनवलेल्या जेवणासाठी पण किती विचार करावा लागतो! रोज चा मेनू विचारपूर्वक वेगळा ठेवणे. अमुक गोष्टी सोबत तमुक खाल्ल्यास ते बाधते ह्याचे लक्ष ठेवणे. परीक्षेच्या वेळी, गरमागरम पण सुस्ती न आणणारे पौष्टिक जेवण घालणे, हे सगळं आईलाच कसं भारी कळत. घरातली प्रत्येक वस्तू, खायची, वापरायची, आई किती काळजीने आणि विचारपूर्वक आणते. मला complaint करायला सोपं आहे कि "हा कप च हिडीस आहे. आज जेवण च नाही आवडलं. घरात घाण च किती." complaints काही थांबत नाहीत. पण शेवटी आई आमच्याच सोयी साठी तर झटते. धन्य आहे स्त्री जात. कमाल आहे आई ची. मी आई ला मनातल्या मनात "sorry" म्हटलं आणि खूप धन्यवाद दिले.

Oh , BTW , Happy Mother 's Day ...!!! Respect your Mother and care for her. We have no idea how much she cares for us, in small and little ways!

Boondein...

2010-05-03T02:03:00.006+05:30

Life at 1.45 am, Place: My Bedroom, State of mind: Stateless...

Life is found to be at perfect bliss! Finished watching my favourite shot from movie 'Wake Up Sid!'. It's the climax scene where in Ranbir realises his love for Konkona while reading her dream article in Ranbir's dream magazine when Mumbai's aah-so-beautiful first rain descends. They both meet at Nariman Point - one place I would always want to be at, to experience the rains! Cudos to the director! He's captured the rain so beautifully! And to make the scene even more lovely, you have 2 wonderful, fresh n full-of-life actors, Konkona and Ranbir. Adorable! Okay, back to me n my room! There's amazing weather outside. The Nature God dawned upon us today. Very soothing and surreal breeze was flowing in the evening taking away the scorching heat. A perfect time to hang around with close friends. Not just hang around! Roam around!!! Where do we find ourselves? Khadakwasla. Crowded place. (We later realized it was a Sunday :)). Nonetheless, it din't stop us from having our share of fun. Rain started pouring in. My very first experience to be so much near the water and be blessed by the divinity of Rain-God! Could I ask for more?

Kaash hum har lamha dil me kaid rakh paate? Kyaa Kare... Dil toh baccha hain jee...!

On a different note, why look for joy elsewhere and be sad for not finding it, when it is "showered" upon you in small and little ways?

and now I switch back to the super-awesssome track of the movie,

"Jo Barse Sapne Boon-Boond, Naino ko Moond-Moond
Kaise Main Chalu? Dekh Na Saku! Anjaane Raaste......."

Photo-courtesy: Anuj Kolekar.

PS: I recommend everyone watching the movie Wake Up Sid! - a very coming-of-age film. Not the typical one!

PPS: I just realised, I've finished one year of blogging. Anniversary! Reasons to celebrate. YAY! I'll do the year-roundup soon :)

दिल आज शायर हैं!

2010-04-30T11:03:00.004+05:30

My poetic venture after a long long time... Hence special to me :)

ये मेरी धडकनों का शोर हैं?
        या तुमने चुपकेसे कुछ कहा हैं?

ये मेरी चाहतों की हैं खुशबु?
        या तुम्हारे आने से आँगन महका हैं?

ये मेरे इश्क की आंधी हैं?
        या तुम्हारे एहसास से मौसम बहका हैं?

क्या जानू? कैसा जहां लुट गया हैं?
        और मेरे दिल का क्या हाल हैं?

अब तो साँसे भी चलती नहीं
        बिना तुम्हारी आहटों की इज़ाज़त पाके

दिल भी क्यूँ बहलता नही?
        बिना तुम्हारी निगाहोंसे निगेबान होके

सब कुछ कितना अधुरासा धुंधलासा खोया खोया

सारा समा जैसे करवटे बदलता, न जागा न सोया

तुम शह्जादी सी, ख्वाबों के आशियाने से उतरके हकीकत में आई
कोई नीलमपरी अप्सरा सी मेरी सारी दुनिया पर छा गई

अब ऐसा आलम पाया हैं...
        की मेरी हस्ती मिट गयी
        और मेरा न मुझ में कुछ रहा

बस अब तुम्हारा साया हैं
        तुम्हारी धुप से ही ज़िन्दगी निखरी हैं
        और सोनेको हैं तुम्हारी ही छाया

तुम्हारे आने से ज़िंदगी का मायना बदल गया हैं
और ये आवारा प्रतीक फिर आज शायर बना हैं...

Happy (?) Birthday...

2010-04-17T14:11:00.005+05:30

My Birthday's approaching... No huge excitement as such. I'm going to be 21. But with recent changes in Law, I can do almost everything legally once I'm 18. So there! Well, I consider myself fortunate enough that I've got loads of friends to wish me their greetings on my Birthday. My sisters have already gifted me a nice shirt. A few of my friends will bring cake for me. I can easily skip college. I'll go out n do something. In short, I'll have all those luxuries to celebrate my Day, my Way...!!! Next year again, I'll have to meet this day. I'll be working maybe, in an IT company. I can not skip the work. But I would have already made my plans to share the fun and joy of the day.

Birthday holds a special significance for oneself. It is one special day where one's the master of the day, possibly the centre of attraction for the day. Is it really so for everyone? I can think of a certain Nandu Kaka, who works in a mine. His wife did a tika to him in the morning and He left for the work. Work's worship for him. He can't skip the important work even if it is his day. No time for celebration, eh!

Or consider a Veer Jawaan Sandeep Singh. It's his day. His beloved Mumma gave him a call this morning, with loads n loads of blessings. He talked to his newly wed wife. He only wished if she was there with him. But there he was, fighting on the border. "Would this be the day of my death, too?", thinks He.

and then there's this 7 year old cute Niharika. She's been dressed like a princess today. She is waiting for a few of her friends to come up so they all can start the celebration. It's a theme party. Baloons, beautiful candles, decoration, a huge cake, chocolates return gifts, relatives and so many little angels...!!! Her parents have left no stone unturned to make their daughter's day special.

And Munnibai! The eunuch...!!! She's just hoping this day allows her to take a rest from her usual routine of roaming around the streets, clap in a certain manner, collect money and offer 'dua'(blessings). Isn't there anyone to bless her? She's only been thinking of how beautiful in childhood this day used to be, until...!

On the other hand, you have this 18-year old super rich kid, Arjun. His dad gifts him a car today. He's thinking of going to a long car drive with his secret girlfriend. He's already made plans. A bottle of wine, a candlelight dinner, a beachside resort...

What about those innumerable malnourished, underprivileged children on street? Can't they get their own pie of cake, bought/made only for them?

There's also this old couple, Mr. and Mrs. Joshi! Their children have been away, set out to make their own careers and families. Mr. Joshi has planned a few small and cute things for his beloved wife's Birthday. A walk down the memory lane - a collage of their old photographs! A lunch specially cooked for her. A "Gajra". 2 Tickets for a recently released Play. A poem specially written for Mrs. Joshi by Mr. Joshi...

What about all those choiceless sex workers or maybe their children??? No different 'business' even if it's a special day, eh?

and then there are many of those, who don't even know the day they were born. Couldn't they enjoy this special day even once?

I can list down many, like those listed above, who have this 'special day' in their lives. It brings different meanings to different classes and creeds of people. It gets me thinking. What meaning can I find in my 'special day'? The day has started losing the significance for me. Can I make it meaningful? Can I make it significant? I can... This post gives me the answer while raising the question as well. How can you all make your special day, your birthday... meaningful and beautiful? And I am not imposing that it always ought to be meaningful. But if special occasions like Birthdays call for it, we should think, right?

---

update: I've received some really great and honest comments on this post. Do have a look at them if you've liked or have not liked this post. Also lined up are my reply comments. I hope I've conveyed my thought well. Enjoy Reading.

Chaah ho toh...

2010-04-03T23:00:00.003+05:30

I happened to go to a local park with a few close friends today. Walking by, I saw a group there which was practising a few dance stunts like Headstand, cart-wheel, etc. They were doing it on the lawn...!!! I could only observe n acknowledge the group for the sheer gut n enthusiasm with which the practise was on. Okay, so, their stunts were really cool n all that...!!! The point I want to make here is the Passion they had for the dance.

I am a dancer. I have my likings in folk-style of dances. But I've never ever been that passionate about dance or for that matter, about anything else. I could be a better dancer than what I am, if I'd taken the dancing seriously. I always had my share of excuses for not attending the dance class or learning new dance forms in particular. Excuses like, "noo yaar, I gotta study", "I don't like these kinds of danceforms", "Can we do it sometime later" and blah...!!! Okay, forget my dancing interests! But that wannabe group left me awestruck today. They might not have got a proper hall or enough free space to practise maybe...! Maybe they had a lack of funds. But that supposedly never took their spirit away. They chose to practise on those lawns. And plus, they really got a naturally smooth surface for stunts. This is how possibly the best success stories are written. And it's not only about dance as such. The spirit lies there, common to many of those who dream, nurture their dreams, strive hard and bring those dreams into reality. Someone's correctly said, "Chaah ho toh raah nikal hii aatii hain". I got my lesson too. There are no excuses for anything that you want to achieve in life. What you need is a great passion and a lot of hardwork...!!! I wish those guys all the very best in all their endeavours!

Being veggie...!!!

2010-03-15T08:50:00.004+05:30

Was out for a dinner with a few friends last night. During the casual discussion of how the day was spent, one of my friends, who was sitting next to me said that he had "Biryaani" during lunch! Chicken Biryaani...!!! Arghhhh...!!! I couldn't continue my dinner comfortably. Okay, for all who don't know, I'm a hardcore vegetarian! As in, I could not imagine myself sitting next to the person who had gulped an innocent chicken just a few hours before. The pictures of that poor life residing into my friend's stomach were flashing in my mind.

This may sound funny to read. But on a serious note, we crib so much when we find a cockroach or any small insect in the food. How can we be happy killing million such innocent lives, of chicken, of goats, of cows and what not, only to satisfy our taste buds? Imagine, A chicken is being killed "live" in front of you!!! Can you see that? Can you bear that? I guess not. Ek zindagii kii peeda hum kaise dekh sakte hain? And if it is about being health-conscious, fit and strong, look at veggies! They're absolutely fit and fine. So can everyone else be, without being a non-vegetarian!

Moving on...

2010-03-06T09:29:00.005+05:30

We are taught to say "NO" to people... Around us, we can see many of those who deliever lectures on how to say "NO"... But should we also not be taught to listen to "NO"? I mean, one comes across many situations in routine where one has to listen to the unwanted. It seems not a pleasant fact to hear. It's definitely not likeable, may it be in the form of honest criticism or a taunt or a passing comment or a rude answer. It terribly terribly affects your mentality, your routine, your line of thinking. It causes serious depression to a few. The reason behind it not being likeable, in most cases is that our dear ego gets hurt or at times, it's just that we're not habituated to listen to something awkward like that.

I don't intend to analyse how and why does it hurt OR should it hurt or not! Coz "getting hurt" for any reasons whatsoever is an undeniable fact. It's just another problem amongst all the problems that we face daily. And so if it a problem, could there not be any solution to it? "Leave your ego behind" is the most obvious answer that one could get. But it somehow sounds impractical, especially at times when one's already hurt so much and is in no mood to listen to friendly/unfriendly advices. What one needs is a practical solution but an advice.

Basically, when someone says something which hurts you, it has to be seen who that *someone* is...!!! Is it your dear friend, a family member, an acquaintance or just a passer-by? The point is, it has to be seen how much that *someone* really matters to you! If that someone is the one who's really close to you then he/she obviously says it for your well-being. And even if not, you can always discuss stuff with him/her and sort it out, BECAUSE that person is CLOSE! In another cases, if somebody passes a vague comment, do you even have to care? Okay, if he happens to say something really serious, you can always talk your way out, even if the person next to you is a complete stranger. Most of us possibly go wrong here. We somehow don't dare to take a stand and speak maturely. And if we do, we tend to get into an unnecessary argument. How does an argument/debate solve the problem? Does that really provide a conclusion? I guess not! Coz, apparently both parties are seen defending themselves. which is fine! My question is, to what extent should we really defend ourselves? If you know you're right and you find a need to defend your point of view, which is being ruthlessly suppressed by others then it makes sense to logically prove your point. But people often tend to defend a few arguments, which they might not really believe in or which might be wrong. All we need is an acceptance. We need to respect and accept others' points of view.

Enough said, I ultimately believe the single fact that everything around us has something to teach in it. And we gotta learn, grow and improve, till the end of our lives. If someone puts forth an honest criticism, grab the chance to improve upon the points mentioned. If someone speaks in an unlikeable or a rude manner, you get to learn *how not to speak to people*. Who know an unlikeable sounding something may also inspire you to write a blogpost :-). Like this one! :P. We've to move on. When in a problem, talk to your friend, to your siblings, to your family. Kyun hum apnose baat karne mein darte hain? Don't we have better things to focus upon? Why make things unnecessarily complicated? It's very simple to let things go and relieve ourselves. Life provides better avenues to explore. There's adventure around, so much joy and care around. Why stagnate in something which leads you to beer, a prostitute, a suicide, a crime and what not! Waste of life!

3 One-Act Plays

2010-01-07T12:33:00.001+05:30

Well, it's pretty late to do this. Better late than never though. Here's the update:

A few of the (current and ex)alumni of Pune Institute Of Computer Technology(my alma-mater) and its Art Circle are performing 3 one-act plays. These plays were finalists at Purushottam Karandak(a very prestigious inter-collegiate theatre competition in Pune) in year 2006,2008,2009.

Details:

Order: Ivlasa Abhal (2009),Children Of Heaven(2008),Asach Kadhitari(2006)

Day and Timing: Friday, 8th of January, 2010. 9pm to 12 midnight.

Venue: Bharat Natya Mandir, Pune

Here's the link to the publicity poster: http://tinyurl.com/ye57oym

Tickets available at the venue. You can also contact 9823837667,9970102502

I can vouch for all the 3 plays for they've been written excellently, executed brilliantly and enacted beautifully. They all have been award-winning plays(acting, writing and team prizes) and surely won the audience's hearts. Live music, which includes very melodic compositions of Yanni, Evanescence,etc., is going to be played for Children Of Heaven, one of the 3 plays.

Please be there. Thanks :-)

Virus deletes your files, eh?

2009-12-20T20:56:00.002+05:30

Does it? No seriously, does it? I see this happening most of the times to many people... Some creepy virus enters your pendrive and suddenly, you see all your folders missing...!!! You try antivirus, but in vain! You think antivirus got rid of the virus-infected files...!!!

Well, antivirus *does* delete a few virus files, but your files and folders. It so happens that your original folders on the pendrive gain OS privileges, when the virus is being healed/quarantined by the antivirus. And so, these folders go hidden(and not deleted!!!). You can very well see these hidden/missing folders, with an acquired lock on Ubuntu. But then on Windows, you can't see these folders even if you check "Show hidden files and folders" in the "View" tab of "Folder Options" on the toolbar. So, to gain an access to such folders, you can try one of these 2 options:

1. If you're lucky enough and remember some or all of you folder names, you can type the path for the same in address bar of Windows. For ex: K:/New Folder, if the "New Folder" is the folder which has gone missing. It works for Nested hidden folders too viz. K:/New Folder/Songs and Bingo! You're inside the "Songs" folder. Well, these folder names need to be exact and Case-sensitive though. You can't get an access to "Songs" folder if you type in "songs"

2. You might not always be lucky enough with your folder names, as in step one. Well, step one won't be required, with this particular step. You simply go to "Folder Options", go to "View" tab and uncheck the option "Hide protected operating system files" and click on "Yes" in the dialog-box that appears. And Magic...!!! You see all your missing folders, back again :). To avoid doing this step again n again everytime you insert the pendrive, simply cut-paste the contents from the hidden folder(once you get an access to it) to a new folder.

So, next time, whenever you think you've lost your files, this one should help definitely. There are exceptions at times. But that's a rarity. So...

Take Care,

Pratik

PS: WOW! With this post, I go technical in my blog. But that's not an indication of any sorts, that you'll see more of techie stuff on this blog henceforth. Sorry! There are better people to post technical stuff. I'm just a mere mortal.:)

PPS: I could have posted some screenshots. But I'm posting from Ubuntu and am very lazy to "Google" the screenshots n upload here. Good Luck.

Kal Ho Na Ho

2009-12-05T19:52:00.004+05:30

Had a terrible dream this afternoon, while I was asleep... Apparently my youngest cousin, the total sweetheart in the family, went missing(in the dream). She's just a year old and liked by everyone in the family. My chachi's all worried. It's been 4 days. Nobody knows where she is. There's no kidnapping call. No sign of whether she's alive n in safe hands or *you know what*! Everyone's absolutely depressed n worried... I woke up out of horror.

The thought of losing someone is terrifying indeed. In a recent piece of news, I read about a software engineer going missing when she was on a trek with her friends to Sinhagad. Till now, there have been no absolute traces of her existence. It's been 15 days...!!! Nobody knows whether she's alive or dead. What trauma her family must be going through! What it must be for a mother to lose her son on CST during 26/11! For a husband to lose his beloved wife in an accident! For a child to lose his/her mother in a burnings' case! For those innumerable families who lose their kids in kidnapping cases! And for all those, for whom the death of their beloved ones, strikes like a deafening crash...!!!

Well, parting is the supreme truth. One has to agree to and accept it at some point in one's life... To the very fact that Death exists, wandering around... It may knock my door any given day, or hit someone else close to me. I surrender! I know it's unpredictable n out of my hands. The only thing I know and can have a control upon is to make sure I confess my love, sorrow, gratitude or apology to my loved ones, to people close to me from time to time. I believe, it's very important to be vocal in any, any damn relationship, to express what I feel for the person next to me, to be free of mind n speak out, before I'm led to a regretful death otherwise! Coz, when needed, I may not get a chance to apologise to those whom I've hurt or to express my gratitude to everyone who made a difference to my life or to bid a goodbye, confessing everyone I know, how much I love them all...!!! Kya pata? Kal Ho Na Ho...!!!

Tension Tension

2009-11-27T23:35:00.003+05:30

खूप दिवसांपासून मनात होतं कि मराठीत लिहाव. आज तसा topic पण मिळाला. सध्या काय आहे ना, कि सगळीकड़े टेंशन चीच भाषा आहे. परीक्षेचा माहौल आहे ना!

मग काय, अभ्यास होत च नाही, Kantaala च येतो, झोपच येते, बराच अभ्यास राहिलेला असतो, Distinction तरी मिळेल कि नाही ह्याची चिंता वाटू लागते, 'backlog' आणि 'externals ' नावाचे भूत डोक्यावर अगदी थैमान घालत असतात. इंजीनियरिंग useless वाटते, 'काय फायदा आहे अभ्यासाचा?' ह्याच्यावर debate सुरु होते आणि बरंच काही! सगळ्याच प्रकार चे विचार मनात गर्दी करतात. "कसा सुरु आहे अभ्यास?, किती झाला अभ्यास?, तुझी तर बुवा revision सुरु असेल" अश्या वाह्यात चर्चा ही मग सुरु होतात. माझं daydreaming सुरु असतं. अभ्यास न करण्याचे excuses मी शोधत राहतो. Pressure ला kill करण्यासाठी मी बरेच प्रकार आजमावतो(No wrong signals here, eh!). पण एक गोष्ट मात्र सतत ह्या वातावरणाचा भाग बनून असते, "टेंशन". खरं म्हणजे, विचार केला(PL मध्ये अभ्यासापेक्षा जास्त घडणारी गोष्ट, विचार, daydreaming !) तर हे टेंशन "foul" वाटायला लागतं.

खैर मानो, "उद्याच्या भाकरीचा प्रश्न कसा सोडवावा?, आज बस परत late आली तर नोकरी गेली, परत एक मुलगी जन्माला घातली तर माझी काही खैर नाही, भाजी ला आज बाजारात भाव मिळेल का?, stock market परत कधी stable होणार?, "layoff " मध्ये आज माझा तर नंबर नाही ना!, आईचा दुखन थांबतच नाहिये, तुका शहीद झाल्यावर पुढे घर चालवणार कोण?" आणि तत्सम टेंशन नशिबात नाहीयेत अजून. उगाच फ़ालतू टेंशन पायी किती दिशाहीन आयुष्य घालवतो मी!!!

तर असा हां सगळा विचार मनात येतो आणि मला माझे अभ्यासाचे टेंशन थिटे वाटू लागते. परीक्षाच आहे, जीवन मरणाचा प्रश्न तर नाही हे समजल्यावर मग मी चुपचाप अभ्यासाला बसतो, without any tension...!!! :)

update: Do I sound a little sad in this post? Naah... I'm actually enjoying every bit of my last winter PL... The post is only about dealing with a very cute non-existent pressure situation in PLs. I mean, why to get carried away by the tension? If I sit back n give a thought, All Izz Well, Mamu...!!!

Rahul kaa swayam'var'???

2009-11-19T09:42:00.003+05:30

As much as I try to avoid cursing/ignoring these freaky reality TV shows and the news surrounding, something or other keeps coming my way which I can't resist talking about.

I Just read the news of the Swayamvar(to be launched on a TV channel soon) of Mr. Rahul Mahajan, son of late Mr. Pramod Mahajan. I somehow find the usage of term 'Swayamvar' very funny. As long as I know, the word Swayamvar, in mythology, means choosing your own 'var'(husband). Got the point, eh!

The news also reads, the Swayamvar - Part 2, has got several thousands applications from girls all over India and abroad. Woooahhh!!! I pity those girls. The show ain't for you girls...!!!

I wonder why ain't there any application from a guy... The name 'Swayamvar' states it, guys...!!! Afterall, several applications from guys will only add some spicy controversy to the show and to the controversy king, Rahul Mahajan himself...!!! Rahul Mahajan, who's already generated a lot of controversy in a 'consumption of drugs' case, his broken marriage, his participation and infamous exit from Big Boss-2, will have a lot to cheer about, with this one... if only he's listening. TV channels, are you listening too??? TRPs, eh...!!!

Contract marriages and pregnancy

2009-11-10T00:00:00.008+05:30

Forget love marriages and arranged marriages, the recent news of renewal of contract marriage, between Hollywood celeb couple Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise has made me write this post. I have nothing to comment upon Contract marriages as such. There's this piece of news which is rather shocking:

Apparently, while the contract b/w the celeb couple is up for renewal, here are some demands made by Katie, for the same:
1. An extra $500,000 for supporting Scientology, the religion that Tom follows
2. An annual increase in her annual clothing allowance from $750,000 to 2 million dollars
3. Katie reportedly received a $3 million bonus from Tom when she gave birth to Suri. For more children, Tom has increased the additional offspring offer as an incentive for Katie to get pregnant again. He's ready to pay upto $5.5 million for Katie, to get pregnant, with a 2 million dollar bonus if she conceives by 2011. Katie, however, seems to wants at least 11 million dollars if she gives birth and 5.5. million dollars if she 'tries and fails'.

The first 2 demands sound both, very funny and strange. It's the 3rd demand which has kinda invoked a disgust in me... I mean, WTF guys??? Apparently, giving birth to a child, is a very beautiful process. It's beautiful and miraculous to give life to a new life. God's greatest gift ever. The best thing that can ever happen to a woman is to be a "Mother". It's priceless. And thus, it's absolutely disgusting to see Katie pricing her motherhood. On Tom' side, I can only laugh my a** out when I imagine a situation, where, Katie is half way through delievering a baby and Tom could only manage to pay $10 million by then. The baby is half out, half in. Katie tells Tom, "Baaki ke 1 million dollar pay karo, warna mein bachche ko baahar nahii aane dungi...!!!" LOL :)

If Tom's got so much money, then instead of spending it on Katie's "motherhood contract", he can atleast fund it to all those innumerable families who can't afford the hospital charges of delievering a baby and so, give an unhygienic and an unsafe birth to the baby at home, resulting in mother's or child's death in some cases. God help him.

On second thoughts, though I'm happy this system of contract marriages does not exist in India, what if it were to exist? I see an advantage...!!! If women start asking for money, before getting pregnant, I can see an end to a lot many problems like,

1. Women will start earning, sitting home. They can really be independent n self-sufficient.
2. There will be a lot of population control, if fathering/parenting a child comes at a cost.
3. There won't be any case of unwanted pregnancy and of killing innocent infants further, because Pregnancy will be a "calculated and financed" effort :)
4. There won't be any abandoning of girl child any further. Who would want to abandon a child worth Rs. thousands???

On the other hand, farfetched it may sound, I'm afraid this system would also bring a day into our lives where we'll get to hear conversations between kids, like,

A: Mera janam 5000 Rs. mein hua hain.
B: Abe, teri kuchh bhi value nahi hain phir! Mera janam to 1 lakh mein hua hain.

As it is, we all are sick of being witnessed to racial, financial, national, regional, caste n religion-based divide amongst people. I just pray to God, I won't ever have to see a new kind of divide, the one based upon the birth-value, as mentioned in the conversation above. I'm sorry...!!! I would prefer a peaceful death, before seeing any such day.

Hahaha

2009-10-31T09:08:00.004+05:30

I was switching through TV channels yesterday, where on a certain channel, I came across a reality(?) show about Mom, dad n a kid... It's called Pati, Patni Aur Woh... and has Rakhi Sawant in it... Not that I follow the show. I only know the show is about giving certain celeb couples, a real(or reel?) life taste of handling the kids.

Well, there was some interesting piece of conversation going on between Rakhi and her so-called-fiancee Elesh, over the introduction of new villain(?as Rakhi puts it) in their house, a dog, as a part of TV show. So, along with the kids, they now had/have to take care of this really cute dog too. Rakhi, too tired with handling a kid, was all worried about taking care of a dog as well. Here's what she had to say, on which Elesh, unknowingly commented something, which made me laugh my a** out... Here's the piece of conversation:

Rakhi: Pehele to inhone bachche sambhalne ko bola tha. Ab inhone kutte bhi de diye. Toh ab kya hum kutte paida karenge?
Elesh: Aisa koi challenge nahi hain jo hum poora nahii kar sakte... :P :D

ROFL! I need not explain this piece of convo. Readers are intelligent enough to understand. For those who din't understand, please read the question put at the end, by Rakhi and read Elesh's immediate reply :P. I dunno what they call it, colloquialism, is it? Well, what Elesh would have possibly meant to say was, Hum kutte sambhalne ka challenge bhi poora kar sakte hain... Par Elesbhai, tumne rakhi ne poochha hua question suna na!!!
It somehow amuses me, how Elesh or TV channels or the TV censor board failed to notice this. It was purely unintended though. But, it surely gave me a good laugh for 5 minutes(Nobody was at home, thankfully), thanks to Elesh's dumbness or Rakhi's weird n silly question or the fact that I happened to switch the channel, with a welcome as funny as this.

The conversation further, was another piece of cracker...

Elesh: Woh kutta mere bhaai jaisa hain. Hum usse mere bhaai ki tarah palenge.
Rakhi: Toh ab kyaa main usse dewar bulaoongi?

Well by that, I dunno, whether rakhi means to treat dog, as human or call Elesh a dog. :P. You all decide. I understood what I had to... :P

Bollywood Aaj Kal

2009-10-26T10:53:00.006+05:30

Okay people, here's my take on a few of those stereotyped, overly melodramatic, typical hindi movie dialogues... What if I had to re-write those...
Note: I may get nasty at times... Please don't mind it... People with a weak heart, Beware...!!! :P

Ladki: Thakursahab, Meri Izzat ab aapke haathon mein hain...
Thakur: Par mere haath toh khaali hain...

What about this classic one?

Lady: Main tumhaare bachche kii maa bananewali hoon
(Does that mean, she confirmed it with 2-3 other guys and thus, she means to say, Main tumhaare 'hi' bachche kii maa bananewali hoon :P)

and what if the herione's mother had to convey the same to the guy?
would it be, "Main tumhaare bachche kii naani bananewali hoon" :P

another one,

an aunt: Ye din dekhne se pehle main mar kyun nahii gaii?
me : well, Yamraj tumhe kabse maarne pe tula hua hain. Ab tumne officially consent diya hi hain toh ab mar jao.

fir khushi ke maare, on listening to a good news,

Lady: Tumhaare mooh mein ghee shakkar
me: I'm sorry, they make me put on a lot of weight. Kuchh aur milega? :P

something on romantic note,

Ladka: Main tumhaare liye chaand-taare tod laaonga
Ladki: Dekho, woh meri dost Priya ke chaand-taaronse khubsoorat aur mehenge hone chahiye. Aur dekhna, koi defective piece naa aaye...!

and one more,

Ladka: Chalo dildaar chalo, chaand ke paar chalo
Ladki: Wahan 'privacy' toh milegi naa?

and the last one for now,

somebody: ab main unhe kyaa mooh dikhau? OR main tumhe kis mooh se batau?
me: tumhaare kitne mooh hain?

This is it for now. Will write more if I find something more interesting.

Stay connected...

2009-10-08T23:05:00.007+05:30

A post after a huge break... Pretty huge break, in fact... Life's been very busy... As one of my friends puts it, "If you're not busy enough, you're not doing good enough"... So, true... Besides there was no good topic to write upon... It was only this busy, hectic and gruesome schedule that made me realize how time makes one go away from one's own people... I mean, there's a choice that I made, to keep myself busy and involved and updated and blah... To make every second count... and I have no regrets about this choice... It's only that now, I've begun to realize the value of my own people, that how their presence matters so much, that how pale and dry my life would be without these people... I may not be able to stay in touch with them every-time around... But, I have this faith, they're still there, around me... for me... wanting to understand me... understanding me... So, I somehow want to thank this busy affair that it made me go away from my own people only to make me realize their importance...

I basically stay away from my native place and thus my family, for my studies... Being mamma's boy, I'm used to talk to her on phone almost every alternate day. But I've hardly talked to her in past 15 days... and whatever little chat it was, was very formal, of "what's up" and "how are you" types??? Sad... In another case, I stay in the same city, that's Pune, as my best pals from junior college do... but, I've not met them for at least 2 months... There's not even been an exchange of messages... Even, the advent of technologies, with cellphones, internet, gtalk does not seem to help. They say, with globalization, the world is getting shorter. True it is, but only to an extent that you can "reach" any person anywhere in the world in a single ping. But, that won't help too when one does not have willingness(coz of being occupied) to reach to the people. Because, whatever time's left after accomplishing your daily chores is needed to be spent with oneself, one's own self...

So, it was just another day, when it came to my mind that "why not write letters to my beloved ones"...!!! Through e-mail maybe...!!! And bingo, I started writing one to an old friend of mine... Lihitaana saglya bhavananna vaat mokli karun dili... Written media has this magic... You get to write and confess everything, you've been hesitating to speak about...!!! Take an example of blogs :)... Or remember all those messenger or g-talk chats where one went on to talk to one's friend for hours... One doesn't speak so much to his/her friend probably on phone(besides, one has to worry about horrifying bills, right? :P) or in presence, too... Be it any emotion, happiness, joy, guilt, sorrow, forgiveness, confession, fights... *text* magic has worked for me... And does it not feel very special, when all of a sudden, you get a message from your friend at midnight, saying something, which gives you an emotional high?

Anyways, it's a session of digital letters for me currently... And I'm simply loving it :)

Reality... Bollywood isshhtyle...!!! (Part Two)

2009-09-04T22:45:00.006+05:30

Okay friends! This one comes late. Even more lately than the D.Y.Patil professor who'd missed the flight. Lol :)

So, here it comes, I'm at the airline desk totally baffled with the hostess' reply. WTH? What have I done wrong to miss the flight? My siblings, for whom too this was a maiden flight experience, were as much surprisingly shocked as me.

"I can't help it, sir! Apparently, your seat was booked with another person named JC. I'd asked him about you, while he was reporting. He had no clues about your coming! So, I had to reserve the seat for the next guy that came" I had no answer for such a dumb reply. Paying full 3000 bucks and reserving a seat much before time is all that was sufficient to assure me a seat, I'd thought. This was no bus or train journey, damn it.

What next? Call up Divya Ma'am, the summit in-charge. She was busy managing other people outside. On explaining the situation over the phone, she wasted no time and arrived at the desk. "What's the matter?” She asked the hostess. I was busy talking with my siblings and discussing what to do if I missed the flight. We'd asked our car driver to wait outside for me, if I happened to miss the flight. I dunno what the exact conversation was, that followed later, between Divya and the hostess. "I've booked the tickets for the whole group. This shouldn't have happened. He has to go." "I understand, ma'am. I'll see what I can do". Period. Divya to me, "I'll just come in 5 minutes. There are other people waiting outside. You just wait here. And don't worry at all. You're going in". Her voice had a certain assurance. "And what are you both doing here?" Divya again to my siblings, "Do you wanna miss the flight too? You have your boarding passes, right? Go get in". Both of them didn’t want to leave me behind. I'd to assure them that I'd be fine. They left. Divya left. "Patience, baby! You have nothing to lose if you don't get to go". Afterall, back in college, Firodiya play preparations were waiting for me. I wasn't really keen on going to Bangalore first, skipping Firodiya. My Dad had convinced me a lot to go. And moreover, the whole list of guest lecturers and their topics for the summit were exciting enough for me to take a call and go. "But it's okay if I don't get to go now. Things that remain behind in your subconscious mind turn out to be true", I thought.

There came in another person, must be 40-something (He was a mere 30, as I got to know later). He appeared to be a very high-profile person and had actually come to my rescue. I din't know who he was. He had a small talk with the hostess and then another manager. The way he was talking to them, it seemed he knew them all. Maybe he was a regular at the airlines. "Don't worry", He said to me and left. I had no choice. It was, though still unsure whether I would go. 20 more minutes. There came in another family. A 35-something guy, with his wife, 2 children and a thick oily haired Amma. Must be, South Indian! It took me time to register that they had come together, till I heard the guy yelling at the hostess, "Bloody how can this happen? I've done my reservation on time! Is this how you treat your customers?" As I could understand, they all were stuck into the same problem as I was. The guy continued shouting at the hostess, "You bloody don't talk to me. Call your manager. I'll speak with him. I don't want any money back. You have to get me and my family in the flight now!!!" He was reasonably rude and harsh. But he was talking rubbish too. As the argument went on, I could see the situation worsening. People were staring.

“Should I join the guy and start yelling at the hostess?". No, I thought and quickly gave a call to Divya. "Are they not still allowing you in??? Wait I'll come in". Coming in, she directly approached the officer lady. With her, she quickly moved to another airline desk to find out whether there's a seat in there. But, in vain. I could see Divya trying hard to get me in somehow. She wasn't rude but firm and commanding while speaking. She managed the conversations like a charm. Communication skills matter a lot. But her endless efforts amidst all the chaos bore no fruits, it seemed. I'd already made up my mind. I didn’t mind going back.

Darshan, my cousin, meanwhile gave me a call from the flight. It was yet to take off. I assured him I was fine and wished him a nice journey. Divya again had disappeared from the scene. I was blank. And for a second, I felt like a dumb. The other guy was still arguing. He'd managed to create a huge scene out there. 5-7 minutes to go. I called up Darshan again to ask for the car driver's number. His phone wasn't reachable. I kept on trying. I called up my sis too. Feeling pathetic about myself, I left the desk and started walking towards the trolley where I'd kept my bag, when an officer lady, with a walkie-talkie in her hand, interrupted me. “Pratik, quick and quiet, pick up your bag and follow me”. I had no clues about what she was talking about. Maybe, she didn't want the other guy to notice this. I chose to follow her. Hope at the horizon. Maybe I'm taking the flight; a sudden thought came as a flash of lightening. But, how? Maybe the other flight; I thought, as I could see her walking towards their desk. “No”, I said as we passed by the desk. We were going ahead. “Maybe they are arranging a taxi for me way back to home”, in wake of making up for their blunder. I couldn’t talk to the lady as she was busy on her walkie talkie. We arrived at a door. “Okay, now quickly take out your cellphone. Keep it in your bag and give the bag to me. You go rush to that door while I put your bag under scanner”. She was quick and yes, I figured out, I was taking the flight. The flight was actually delayed for me, for 5 minutes. It was 6.05 already. She asked me to skip all the security checks and gave my bag to me. She was working like a servant to me.

SRK would have called a press conference looking at me being asked to skip all other checks. And just when, I arrived at a door, that separated the runway and the inside of the airport, the lady showed me where my plane was and said, “There you go. There's your captain. Now run!!! The flight is waiting for you.” And there I was, running with all the possible energy I’d gathered in my morning cup of milk, towards my plane, on a rather unmanned runway, in a business suit. I could sense my ears listening to the sound of “Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gum”. Woooaaahhh!!! I’d cursed and abused KJo a 1000 times, everytime I saw SRK’s running towards his mom after getting off the plane, in K3G or in general, actors’ chasing a plane in a bollywood movie. But, it indeed, did happen to me. I never chased a bus or a train, thinking I would get another. And there I was, chasing an aeroplane in real, "Bollywood isshtyle".

Contrast

2009-08-23T20:15:00.005+05:30

Define "Contrast"

It's Pune that you saw 8 days before and Pune that you'll get to see in next 8 days. Cheers :) The festive spirit in Pune is back.

Meanwhile, I'll finish the epilogue to the previous post sooner.

Reality... Bollywood isshhtyle...!!! (Part one)

2009-08-19T18:12:00.004+05:30

"Excuse me Sir! I'm in the process of confirming your reservation. The system is taking little(a little?) time to respond. Let me check that out for you. Can you please shift aside till then? I need to avail boarding passes to next customers".

This was how I was welcomed by a hostess at a private airline desk on Pune airport. "Okay", I said, without questioning, falling to my custom of providing complete silent co-operation to the customer service desks. "I've done my reservation long time back. I have paid the full sum so I shouldn't be on the waiting too. It's only 5.25 am in the watch. My flight is at 6.05 am. There's still time for the departure. It's okay. I need not worry", I had to assured myself on my maiden flight experience.

My sister and a cousin, who were before me in the queue, had got their boarding passes. We three, as a part of a contingent of 50, divided into 2 teams, were about to leave for an entrepreneurial summit to be held in Bangalore on 24th and 25th of Jan'09. The contingent included top business executives, MBAs, CAs, first generation entrepreneurs, engineers and few students from Pune. The two teams were supposed to leave by 2 different flights with a gap of about 40 min. We three, were a part of the earlier team, which was busy collecting boarding passes. "I'll get mine too. Par kambakht system ko bhi abhi bighadna tha???", a restless thought hit me. Period. "Wait! This seems something else...!!!", as I could see people behind in the queue collecting their boarding passes... I told myself, "This does not seem to be the system problem or maybe the problem got solved now". I reached to the lady, "Is there still a problem?"("I'll get my boarding pass, right"). "Yes sir, gimme some time". "Okay...!!!". No worries. I had all the time in the world. "5.30 am. Still good 35 min. to go". I again shifted aside.

Whiling away, I was observing people around, which is my favourite pass time when there's nothing to do on bus stands or railway stations. Everyone seemed to be in his/her own world. Jitni bahar ki duniya badi utni hi badi andar kii duniya hoti hain. I was lost into mine. "Excuse me! I have a flight at 5.40. Here's my reservation slip", a rather shrewd voice of a 40-something adult, broke my chain of thoughts. "I'm sorry sir. You are late. You've missed the flight". "What? Oh come on, it's still 5 minutes to go naa! It's 5.35. How can the flight take off?", the guy said. "I'm sorry sir. The flight leaves in 5 min and the wheels have already started rolling. You should have come at least 15 min. before".

"Stupid fellow", I said, "Dude, this is an airline service. Not a bus, not even a railway. Look at me! I was 45 min before time". The guy again, "But I'm from DY Patil. I'm a professor. I need to attend an important meeting. Tell your pilot to wait for 5 min". "I can't do anything, sir! I don't have an authority", the hostess said. I wanted to laugh at that guy. I mean, so what if you're from DY Patil or any other politician's institute? You have to suffer when you don't follow time. The flight HAS to leave on time. It can not keep on waiting for anyone for that matter. I felt proud of the hostess. She answered him politely and did her duty well. "Okay, let me talk to your officer". "Sure sir, but the flight HAS to leave on time". The guy left. I exchanged a smile with the lady. A bit worried now, I asked calmly, "Please look at my problem. I'm much before time". "Sure sir!". Period. A minute later, "I'm sorry sir. You can't take this flight. It's full".

"Whaaaaaaaaaattttttttttt?", I said to myself and now with more concern I asked, "May I know how and why?"

To be continued...

Note: Sorry for the lengthy post. This is not the end of the episode though. There's even more to come. I'm breaking this incident into 2 posts coz there's a lot to tell. And it won't be fun reading the whole thing into one post. I would appreciate if you would comment honestly on this one so that I can write the latter post in a more crisp manner. Btw, everything written above is true and has actually happened to me. It's perfectly sketched in my memory. I've tried to portray it as it is, without a single bit of fantasy.

PS: If you find the title a little out of context, please bear with it for now and wait for the next post.

Cheers,
Pratik. :)

ABC Tag

2009-07-31T10:08:00.006+05:30

Again, this one's a new way of getting to know each other in the blogosphere and letting people do what they like to do (i.e. writing about themselves :).. though there's always an exception).

I was basically tagged by Rohan. Thanks Rohan... :)

So, here it goes...

1. A – Available/Single? Not available if I'm not single :). Currently though, single! And I like it
2. B – Best friend? I'm friends with many. But close to few. They know me in and out
3. C – Cake or Pie? Cakes, cakes and more cakes
4. D – Drink of choice? My day compulsorily starts with a full mug of Milk with Bournvita
5. E – Essential item you use every day? My phone and internet
6. F – Favorite color? White, Blue, Red sometimes
7. G – Gummy Bears Or Worms? None
8. H – Hometown? Beed
9. I – Indulgence? Reading, Eating, Hanging out with friends
10. J – January or February? February
11. K – Kids & their name? If art circle is a family, then yes :) (a few juniors)
12. L – Life is incomplete without? Love, Hope and Optimism
13. M – Marriage date? Still time
14. N – Number of siblings? An elder and a younger sister
15. O – Oranges or Apples? Apples
16. P – Phobias/Fears? Fear of losing my beloved people
17. Q – Quote for today? "Live Life, Don't Exist :)"
18. R – Reason to smile? I need no reasons to smile. Do you need a reason to be happy?
19. S – Season? Summer
20. T – Tag 3 People? Yes
21. U – Unknown fact about me? Till 10th std, I din't know that there existed streams like 'arts', 'science' and 'commerce' in college. My Maths was good, so I wanted to pursue commerce. My mom had enrolled me to IIT-JEE classes without my knowledge. So, I had to take science. Science and engineering, happened by chance. :). I'm very much thankful for that to my Mom though
22. V – Vegetable you don’t like? None
23. W – Worst habit? I take things too casually at times. I'm not punctual when it comes to attending college
24. X – X-rays you’ve had? Tooth, Stomach
25. Y – Your favorite food? Anything veg under the Sun. I've got a sweet tooth though
26. Z – Zodiac sign? Taurus

I tag Manya, PD and Aruna

Pauus...!!!

2009-07-24T11:29:00.009+05:30

Baaher kasla bhaari paus padtoy. Kadhi lecture sampel asa hotay. Lahaanpani kasli majja yaychi pavsat kheltaana. Kadhihi bindhaast khelaycho. Aata kaay? Ya kaahi varshat kadhi mansokt bhijloch naahi paavsaat.

He 4 wheeler waale kiti sukhi astaat. Pavsaacha traasch naahi hyanna.

Baliraaja, tujhi ashich kirpadrushti asu de amhavar.

Shit! Kiti kaam rahile aahet baaherche. Baaher nighta pan yet naahi. Kiti bhur-bhur bhur-bhur padtoy paus. Kaay ekdacha padaaycha aahe to padun ka ghet naahi paus? Kinva Paus ratrich sagla kaa padat naahi?

Aaj sutti maarto office la! Itka sundar paus. Hila masta bhaji talaayla sangto aani mag special chaha aani maza aavdta pustak. Kyaa baat hain!

Aga baai, Paus??? Achanakch kaay? Baap re, ghari kapde waalat ghatle aahet. Chinu laksha naahi thevnaar. Sasubaaina uthta yenaar naahi. Hyanchya kapdyancha udya kasa vhaycha?

"Ye le, ye le pavsa, tula deto paisa, Paisa zaala khota, paus aala mothaaaaa…!!!"

Eee…!!! Pauuuuuus! Mhanje aata kiti kachkach honaar. Sshiii… Bus madhye tar ajun ghaan vadhte aani rastyavarun chalayla tar vaitaag yeto.

Haa krutrim paus (artifical rain) aahe kaa?

Paus jevha hava tevha kaa yet naahi aani jevha nako tevhach kaa yeto? Mhanje paavsacha timing evdha kaa gandta?

"Ae adya, arre gaadi kadh… 'Mittya'la pan sang. Chal, lonavalyala jau yaar. Ved majaa yeil."

Arre Pavsa, please ardha taas thamb. Mala aaj interview aahe. Kapde bhijaayla nakot yaar. Ardha taas thamb. Mag jevdha padaaychay tevdha pad.

YAY, Pauus!!! Mhanje shaalela sutti aaj. :)

Baapre, andhar padlay. Paus thambaycha naav ghet naahiye. Hi activa pan suru vhayla traas dete. Riksha pan bhetat nahiye. Mi ghari kashi janaar? Hyancha phone pan laagat nahiye.

Hmmm… Paus! Mi aani ti, CCD madhye baslo aahot. Maage radiovar mast ‘hoshwaalon ko khabar kyaa’ suru aahe. Kiti tari vel ithech basavasa vatatay. Paus thambuch naye. “2 More Coffee Please”. Wow…!!! What a perfect date!

Privileged

2009-07-17T23:57:00.007+05:30

Remember, me mentioning about the joy of that particular guy who'd be amongst those to have got placed first, I'd never have imagined I'd be one of those... and I am... :)

Yes, I'm placed at S-One, a banking solutions company...

Imagining the joy was easier... Feeling it is exasperating... The feeling hasn't yet sunk in... Dunno how to react to the fact that I'm now on the other side of pool... And I can see my friends trying to make it... I hope they make it... I've not really been one of those to have made it so early.. So, it's pretty different feeling too...

Life is great... It surprises you every now and then... Cheers...

It's that time of the year again

2009-07-14T14:17:00.005+05:30

Okay... So, this is it... That time of the year has arrived, this time, with a different flavour though... But there's not a slight bit of change in the zeal, the curiosity and the anxiety it brings about, with it. Everyone's talking about it. The air's filled with confusion, concerns, curiousity, nervousness, tension, pressure. People are trying to master the tricks of this new game. A kinda new race has begun for everyone.

Nobody wants to lag behind for sure. Everyone's trying to put in the best. Old, tacky books are being revisited. I personally haven't spent so much time in the library before, than I'm spending now. Everyone, now a days, is worshipping the new God, 'Shakuntala Devi' (Did I 'puzzle' you with this one? [:)]). People discussing about movies, girls, crushes, food, sports and technology otherwise, are now discussing about the very fresh and blue, you guessed it right, the 'Placement season'. And so, one can normally listen to conversations like "Kaunsi company kab aa rahi hain?... Kitna package de rahi hain?... Yaar, package agar '4' (4 lacs) se kam hain to main nahi baithunga uss comapny ke liye... Company kiss domain mein kaam karti hain? Kyaa kyaa questions poochhe jaate hain? Yaar 'apti' to clear hona chahiye... Tu toh clear ho hi jaayega... 'xxx' company 'yyy' namak student ko to pakka uthayegi... Hardly 10-12 log place honge.. Mere chances to kam hain... Tum ek baar select ho jaao to dusri comapny ke liye baith nahii sakte... Abhi placements kyun hain? Muze GRE/CAt ke liye padhna hain? Aage jaake main kuchh bhii karu lekin abhi agar job mile to sort of 'backup' rahega" and blah and blah and blah... Now you can see the whole 'new' BE batch, together at a time in college... a rare scene... A certain company, which used to be less on priority till last year, has become 'the hot favourite' suddenly. Everyone's(?) now neatly dressed in formals... Even I had to go and buy some formal clothes. (something which I hate to do... buying clothes... shopping in general... coz my parents have been doing it for me more often and I even hate more to wear formals)...

Looking at this whole atmosphere, I get a feeling that I'm back to where I started... that I'm a fresh HSC passed student, who's sort of trying for the 'Best engineering college' with a desirable branch... It's just the same now, as it was before. Just that, we'll be facing few added rounds of interview... Otherwise, it's just the same glow in everyone's eye... That desire of wanting to be at best possible place.. The nervousness of not screwing up the tests and putting career at stake... And that, after getting into one of the 'Best engineering colleges', that reaffirmed sigh of relief that the future is now safe since this college offers best jobs... Until... until it turned out that ours would be the unfortunate batch, which would be hit by downsizing and which meant 'no jobs' for few more months. And for now, this is pretty much the scene that only 10-12 amongs 300 odd students will get a job. Nevertheless, I'm pretty optimistic that things would change by coming december. I hope nobody's dream, after stepping into college and living with that dream for 3-4 years and working hard to achieve that, gets shattered. I hope my fellow batchmates(including me :)) will get a respectable job or atleast, will get to do PG at a good university.

Somehow, I'm loving this shorter round of placments though. Pretty odd to have 2 rounds of placements. But this will prepare us for the bigger picture that would hopefully arrive in december.

I can only imagine right now, the joy of that particular guy, who'll walk out of the interview room triumphantly, and that, he'd be the first amongst we all, to get placed.

Cheers... :)

BEFORE SUNRISE

2009-06-30T00:43:00.004+05:30

Saw this unusual movie recently. Unusual, because, it revolves around only two characters for the whole movie. The pair constantly keeps on conversing throughout and there’s no end to it. Some may find it boring and drab. But it takes sincere gut and conviction to make such a kind of movie, where the whole perspectives about life and love, by 2 totally different individuals, are woven so neatly, crisply n subtly that you don’t mind wanting to fall in love with a complete stranger (that’s why I support arranged marriages maybe. :P ). Opposites attract, they say! I mean the very idea of getting to know and spending time together for around 24 hrs in a completely strange city with a complete stranger, you’d met on a train journey seems very enticing. (No doubts so, Titanic, Jab We Met, Mr. And Mrs. Iyer and etc. are my favourite movies) I won’t talk about the rest of the movie much. If you find this much description interesting enough, go and watch it. Just a word of caution: If you don’t have enough patience to hold on to 100 minutes of complete sensible chatters, this one’s not for you.

After I finished watching the movie, I was just wondering if isn’t life in a longer run somehow about that? About some kinda thrill, some excitement, something unusual, something thrilling n interesting around the corner. I can not really imagine my life devoid of this thrill, of the excitement of meeting new people. There’s this unanswerable, unfathomable, acute sense of oneness or belongingness you feel within, when you land up with a person, who’s entirely new to the surroundings as much as you are, more or less. I remember my Trekking camp in Mahabaleshwar, when I was in school and how I met one of my soulmates in a guy called Ajinkya Kurdukar there. Or an NTSE camp at Aurangabad. I met Madhur, my beshteshht buddy there. Or recently concluded Object Boot Camp and Art Of Living – YES!+ DSN course. I met some amazing amazing people there. These memories and many more, are the ones that will be cherished for the lifetime. And it is memories like these, which give you a feeling, that life is truly beautiful. And it’s not only about these particular camps or courses. I can write to no end about people I met in my college life, both at Fergusson and at PICT. There’s just so much to learn from people around, in general. That gives one a very humbling feeling (and actually a feeling of uniqueness too. :P) and that you start believing the World is not selfish after all and Love abides us all.

I sometimes (always, actually) feel very grateful to each n every person I met on this planet, for they had in them something or other to make me learn. I just sometimes want to complain about prospect of getting away from the people, you start growing your affection towards. Why, O Lord, every damn thing is associated with pain of parting? When recently my dear senior friends finished their graduation and that meant no more college for them, I could not help digest it. Or at ThoughtWorks! While working together with people from TSEC, Mumbai & Shravanesh from Ghaziabad, we had so much fun that when it came time to say Good-Byes, we all really wished if we could have more of it. Times and memories like these, still linger around and it is precious memories like these, that one keeps on striving for. Maybe that’s the whole fun of life. Parting is pain! It sucks. But, it is that unknown chase, that wanting for something fulfilling, that desire to make each moment, each memory precious, to make the time you spend with people, the best time you could ever have spent, that keeps you moving on. And so, I would call it off with one of my favourite dialogues from Titanic (This was when Jack was invited over to the royal dinner at the party).... “Life is... To make it count”

Cheers!

Spread cheer, spread love!

Keep Smiling! :)

Love marriage-2

2009-06-11T10:28:00.005+05:30

Note: Before reading this post, please read previous post.

It's me this time... As I'd mentioned earlier, I had to come up with this post...

There's sort of some history behind this post. Lately, I've seen 2 inter-cast weddings(love-cum-arranged) in my family. Since, we are living in a so-called modern world, it's obvious to question, how does that matter? And that I need to grow up! And it all sounds so regressive from the very first sentence of the paragraph. Well, it somehow matters in a typical orthodox big fat Marwari family, where marrying a guy or a girl of own choice has been a taboo. Obviously, when it comes to arranged marriage, choice is given to the eligible bachelor who's about to marry. But, love marriage...!!! Noooo...

Alright, so now, as it has taken place in my family, I'm very happy for two of my cousins that they got to marry a girl of their own respective choice. What has left me wondering is somewhere related to the girls(my Bhabhis now) with whom they've married. I mean, it's okay for guys, for nothing's changed for them even after marriage, except that they now have to shoulder responsibility of a new member in the family. But for the girls, who've left their culture, religion, family, lifestyle and values behind, it seems really difficult. I salute to the woman power that it makes women compromise, with so much patience and ease and understanding, everything with which they've lived for 20-25 odd years. And the compromise is somehow expected outta them, after they come to a new place and new family. And if they do not match up to those expectations even a few percents closer, they're all blamed and accused and not the guys. I personally find it ridiculous. And that's why I somewhere agree to the previous post below, that many of us want to do love marriage only b'coz it's "Jawaani ka josh" and in "fashion". But as it is observed, most of them do not give it a complete thought, before taking a decision, which has its impact over the whole lifetime. And failed or wrong decisions obviously lead to frustration, compromises, fights and eventually failed marriages.

By this, I do not 'at all' intend to oppose the concept of love marriage. It's in fact very beautiful to marry a guy/girl you love and spend the rest of the lifetime happily with him/her. Somewhere, little compromises, sacrifices, fights are expected. Big deal about it. That's part and parcel of any marriage. What is to be looked after is, if, before marrying, a complete thought is given to the things and circumstances which may affect the marriage later? Be it any kind of marriage love marrriage(which takes place after 50-60 odd meetings) or arranged marriage(which takes place after 5-6 meetings). Personally, I can't ask my girl to make any sort of compromises after marriage, except she does it at her own will. Then too, i won't be very happy if she'd have to make compromises just because she'd have to. And if, not making those compromises, is gonna create troubles for everyone then, I'm not going to indulge in that kind of marriage at all, be it love or arranged or love-cum-arranged. The risk of post-marriage is somehow understood and anticipated in arranged marriages at least. It is far less seen in love marriages. Not that, love marriages are totally immature on this front. I'm just speaking probabilitywise.

PS: I'm just 20. And this post, is somehow not expected outta me right now. There are better issues to discuss. It so happened that, I'd gone to Chokhi-Dhani with my friends and then went to a Jyotish there. After asking him about my love life(It was just for fun), he refused a possibility of my love-marriage left, right n center. Not that I'm going to trust him afterall. But ironically, considering my love and respect for my traditional family, I've always been considering an arranged marriage for me.

PPS: My 2 cousins are very happy and so are their respective spouses. I salute to my Bhabhis for they've really given up everything of their own and have accomodated themselves to a totally new lifestyle.

Love Marriage

2009-06-10T12:23:00.003+05:30

लोक म्हणतात, हल्ली लव्ह मॅरेजेस जास्त होतात. आपल्याला ते पटतं. लोक म्हणतात, अलीकडे लग्नं जास्त मोडतात.उघडय़ा डोळ्यांनी, समकालीन वास्तव बघणाऱ्या कोणालाही हे पटण्यासारखं असतं. पण ‘‘एवढं लव्ह मॅरेज असूनसुद्धा..’’ लग्नमोडलं म्हणून लोक आश्चर्य व्यक्त करतात, ते मात्र आपल्याला निदानपक्षी मला पटत नाही.
लव्ह मॅरेज किंवा प्रेमलग्न जास्त टिकणार टिकायला हवं हे आपण कोणत्या विश्वासावर मानतो? तर त्या वधू-वरांनी स्वत:च्यापसंतीने लग्न केलंय, म्हणजे त्यांनी एकमेकांना पुरतं ओळखलं असणारच या विश्वासावर. जास्त काळ एकत्र घालवला म्हणजेमाणसं एकमेकांना जास्त नीट पारखतील हा विश्वासच मुळात तपासून घेण्याजोगा आहे. ती संधी मिळेल हे खरं, पण ती वापरलीजाईलच अशी हमी कोण-कधी देऊ शकेल? तितकी प्रगल्भता किती लोकांमध्ये असते? याइतकी महत्त्वाची गोष्ट म्हणजे

इतक्या गंभीरपणे लग्न ठरवण्याकडे किती लोकांनी बघितलेलं असतं?
तर तसं तितकंसं बघितलेलं नसतं असं मानण्याला जागा दिसते. अलीकडे पुष्कळवेळा शिक्षण- नोकरी- व्यवसाय अशा कारणांनी तरुणतरुणी एकमेकांसमोरयेतात. रोज किंवा वरचेवर बघून बघून एकमेकांना ‘बरे’ वाटायला लागतात. एकमेकांची पदवी-पगार असे निश्चित मोजतायेण्याजोगे निकष ते तपासून घेतात. कारण त्यात फसवाफसवी करणं सहज शक्य नसतं. (काही महाभाग त्याही बाबतीतसफाईने फसवू शकतात. याला इतिहास आणि वर्तमान साक्ष आहे!) बरोबर जास्त वावरणं झालं की एकमेकांच्या आवडीनिवडी-सवयी- लकबी जास्त कळायला लागतात. यौवनाच्या भरात एकमेकांना खूश करण्यासाठी या माहितीचा हुशारीने वापर केलाजातो आणि एक दिवस दोघांपैकी एक जण- म्हणजे बहुधा जोडीपैकी पुरुष- दुसऱ्याला तो लाख मोलाचा प्रश्न विचारतात, ‘‘माझ्याशी लग्न करशील?’’ हा प्रश्न विचारण्याच्या अगोदर संभाव्य जोडीदाराचं घरदार बघणं, जवळच्या नातेवाईकांना भेटणं,त्यांची दैनंदिन जगण्याची पद्धती बघणं, त्यांचा मूल्यविवेक बघणं, त्यांचा भूतकाळ आणि आपल्या स्वत:च्या भविष्याविषयीच्याकल्पना यांचा मेळ लागतो की नाही हे तपासणं अनेकांना जमत नाही. किंवा गरजेचं वाटत नाही. एकूण प्रेम-लग्न-संसार याकल्पनांचं आत्यंतिक गारुड त्या टप्प्यांवर मनावर असतं आणि ‘‘आम्हीही हे करू शकतो’’ हे दाखवण्याची हौस अनावर होते.
नव्याच्या नऊ दिवसातच या हौसेवर पाऊस पडायला लागतो. मुलींच्या बाजूने अगोदरच लागतो कारण त्यांना स्वत:चं घरदार-माणसं- परिसर हे सोडून अचानक एका नव्या वेगळ्या परिस्थितीला सामोरं जायचं असतं. संपूर्ण शाकाहारी मुलीनं मांसाहारकरणाऱ्या घरात जाणं, खेडवळ मुलीनं महानगरी, पॉश घरामध्ये जाणं इतके टोकाचे फरक तर दूरच पण साधं शिक्षणाचंमाध्यम, विशिष्ट देवाची-बुवाची भक्ती, कुटुंबाच्या माणसांची संख्या, त्यांच्यातल्या नातेसंबंधांचे तिढे यांच्यामधूनही जोडप्याच्यानात्यात ताण यायला लागतात. तीव्र शारीरिक आकर्षणाचा सुरुवातीचा काळ संपला की ताणांची तीव्रता जाणवते आणि ज्यालग्नसंबंधामुळे या ‘कटकटी’ वाटय़ाला आल्या ते लग्नच नको इथवर काहींची मजल जाते. आसपास कुजबुजीला विषय मिळतो, ‘‘एवढं लव्हमॅरेज असूनसुद्धा..’’
खरं तर लव्ह मॅरेजमध्ये ‘एवढं तेवढं’ काही नाही! त्याच्या आदर्श स्वरूपात असेल, पण नित्य व्यवहारात नाही. घरच्यांच्यासांगण्यावरून भावी वधू-वर लग्नापूर्वी पाच-सात वेळा भेटून ‘अ‍ॅरेंज्ड मॅरेज’ करतात. तर स्वेच्छेने लग्नापूर्वी पन्नास-साठ वेळाभेटलेले तरुण वधू-वर ‘लव्ह मॅरेज’ करतात एवढाच तपशिलात फरक. शिवाय वेगळ्या अर्थाने लव्ह मॅरेजवाले निराधारहीअसतात.
वास्तविक स्वत:चं लग्न स्वत: जमवणं, अपरिपक्व वयामध्ये आयुष्यभराचा वायदा एखाद्या व्यक्तीशी स्वत:च्या हिमतीवरकरणं ही एक अवघड जोखीम आहे. आई-बाप किंवा घरचे मोठे लोक मुलांची लग्नं जमवायचे तेव्हा पुढे त्या लग्नात काहीहीखटकलं, फिसकटलं तर त्याचं खापर फोडायला मुलांना एक हक्काची जागा मिळायची. ‘त्यांनी असं कसं लग्न जमवलं? ‘त्यांनी’कशी घाई केली, ‘त्यांची’ दूरदृष्टी कशी कमी पडली हे रंगवून (निदान स्वत:ला तरी) सांगता यायचं. लव्ह मॅरेजवाल्यांना ही सूटहीउरत नाही. आपल्या अपयशाला टांगायला आईबाप ही एक ‘लाडकी खुंटी’ प्रत्येक उभरत्या पिढीला असते. तीही या पठ्ठय़ांनीगमावलेली असते. चांगलं झालं तर कोणी फारसं कौतुक करणार नाही, पण वाईट झालं तर क्षणोक्षणी उद्धार व्हायचा थांबणारनाही. ‘‘एवढं लव्ह मॅरेज असूनसुद्धा..’’
जवळजवळ दोन र्वष हिंडून फिरून प्रेमलग्नात शिरलेलं माझ्या परिचयातलं एक तरुण जोडपं लग्नानंतर वर्षभरात वेगळं झालं.

PS: This is not written by me. Courtesy: An E-mail from a friend

PPS: I'm not saying I agree to this view completely. I partially do.

PPPS: Before commenting anything on this post, please read my next post.

PPPPS: This e-mail exactly comes when I'm all confused between love marriage and arranged marriage. Talk about artificial intelligence.

Bliss

2009-05-24T11:13:00.007+05:30

I have my university exams tomorrow. Gotta read a lot for tomorrow's paper. And here I am, bugged, bored with continual readings and studies, coming up with yet another post.

Well, that's not actually the point of the topic. There were/are a few 'bliss'ful things, which accompanied me all through this PL and made me survive through the 'worst' of all semesters of engineering, what with 3 full-length highly generic, theorotical and philosophical subjects to mug. Arghhh...!!! But, thanks to the 'bliss' list. These are certain things, which I found/continue to find my bliss at. Materialistic few of them may be! There are layers, deep deep unfathomable layers in their creation:

1. A. R. Rehman's music. Listen to Latika's theme from SM, or Dil gira dafatan from Dill-6 or that last classical piece from Rehna Tu or Arziyaan. And it ain't just about his recent work. There's so much more. So many other tracks. Masterpieces!

2. Gulzaarsaab's poetry and lyrics. I've already mentioned about my craze for him in my past posts.

3. My senior - Sayali's writing - Her blog. It's just so unbelievably deep and mature. Never I've seen so much complexity of thought in anyone's writing. And yet, she's put her views in so much simple and plain manner, letting that depth n complexity emerging subtly. Truly admirable.

4. Aamras - It sure ensured me a so-much-wanted, sound sleep in the afternoons and not-at-all-wanted extra weight that I've put on and little curved fatty tummy. Nooooo!!! But, that doesn't stop me from enjoying the Bliss of the season.

5. Madhuri Dixit - her million-watt smile and breathtaking acting.

6. F.R.I.E.N.D.S. - need I say more?

7. Good cinema. Good acting. Caught up on few of my favourite movies.

Dor - for both Gul Panag and Ayesha Takia

Life in a Metro - for Sharman Joshi and music and Mumbai

Titanic - true splendour

Khoobsurat - for Rekha and Hrishida's simplicity

Rock On - for music, well-written characters, cinematography, Prachi Desai, Purab Kohli

More later, probably after exams. Amigos. Adios...!

Dil Gira Kahi Dafatan

2009-05-19T20:40:00.006+05:30

Have grown immense-immense liking for this song from Delhi-6 recently. Kudos to the God - A.R. Rehman. It's a must listen for Rehman lovers. Prasoon Joshi, too, has done brilliant work with the lyrics. His style is very reminiscent of my favourite - Gulzaarsaab. But, that doesn't take away any credit from Joshi's brilliant writing. He truly is a highly-talented, new-age lyricist.

Oh btw, Dafatan means suddenly. Cheers. :-)

25 things about ME

2009-05-10T19:34:00.009+05:30

Okay, so this bug has taken over me as well... and anyway, this seems to be the perfect way to kill time and keep the blog updated... I wonder why it's 25? I mean, it could be 40,50, how much ever I wanna write... Whatever, let's do it...

1. I'm a complete womaniser. If I choose to, I can be a big FLIRT. But I'm not one. I respect women and keep myself away from cheap flirting. By this I don't mean to say that flirting is always cheap. It's not just my cup-of-tea.

2. I absolutely love my Mom. She means the world to me. Just her lap to sleep in and end-of-all-the-problems to me. I'm a typical Mama's boy.

3. People call me boy-next-door. And I like to be one. Wait, before you get me wrong, neither am I inspired from the movie, Girl-next-door, nor am I a Gigolo!

4. I take life as it comes to me. Up-spirited and ever smiling, that's me.

5. I love to cook. Though I don't know much in cooking and I don't cook very often, I would really love to learn cooking. and the plan surely is on cards.

6. I'm in absolute awe of Gulzaar-saab. The way he pens down the most complex thoughts in the simplest of words, hats off to that. Well, Clothes off.

7. I'm MAD after Madhuri Dixit. Totally Fida. I aspire to fill my whole bedroom(when I get one of my own) with her photographs.

8. I am a voracious reader. I can read any random interesting thing.

9. I hardly get angry. and if at all, I get angry, I can not really vent out my anger on anyone. Kids laugh at me when I try n do that.

10. I'm a complete foodie, strictly vegetarian though. I've got a sweet tooth.

11. I'm completely against non-vegetarianism and alcoholism.

12. I don't really have big aspirations set out for myself. I wanna live a simple life, filled with love n care. That's it.

13. I love old-hindi music. Prefer semi-classical, soft and subtle music, with real good lyrics.

14. I prefer n try to speak correct English. And it irritates me when someone goes grammatically incorrect.

15. I hate it when people abbrevate every single word while writing. I mean, "h r u" for "How are you" is still okay! But, what about something like this: "i knw mumbai wl rock...... realy srong team...... mumbai definatly wil rck". Jesus, save me from the horror!

16. I'm quite photogenic. Though, while clicking, I've to be very particular about my hair.

17. I love to sing. I can't sing well though. Wish I could be a singer.

18. If I choose to, I can really argue well and bring people down to their knees. I just have to be in the mood to do that.

19. Of very few things that I'm proud about myself, the fact that I can speak/write good n correct English inspite of hailing from a Marathi-school set in a small town called Beed, gives me immense pride. I attribute this achievement of mine, to my class 10 English teacher and my daily dose of newsapers. I've a long way to go though!

20. "I know", "hey", "as in", "well", "actually", "...right?" are few of my patent words.

21. I avoid/hate long talks on phone. I can hardly speak to anyone on phone, more than 5 minutes. Ironically, I can sit and chat on gtalk for long long hours.

22. I believe in democracy, the freedom of speech. And I make it a point to raise my point against/make people raise their voice against anything going wrong.

23. I refrain myself from judging people.

24. I underestimate myself a lot.

25. At times, I can speak endlessly on any topic. Endlessly... because I tend to go recursive. You never know. I may stop now... But, I may come up with few more facts about myself, sometime later.

I wish, I could make it shorter. But hey, that's ME!

Woh Do Ped

2009-05-02T21:30:00.000+05:30

A simple, beautiful and hearwrenching poem I came across.. presents an essential fact of this era, which has failed to find its way through humanity... its heart and mind...

Hope our next generation would never have to write anything like this one..

Woh Do Ped...

Barso pahle

abdul chacha ke abba ne

mere ghar ke kareeb

ek neem ka beej gaaDa tha

uske kuch dino baad

dadaji ne bhi theek wahin

aam ki guThlee fenki thi

barsat ke dino me

dono beej, poudhe ban gaye the..!!!

kahte he ki

abdul chacha or pitaaji

un poudho ko paani seenchte gaye

jab tak poudhe jawaan na ho gaye

bachpan me, rahman or mein bhi

usee ki chhanv me khelte the..!!

basti waale bhi , unhi peDo se,

keriyaa toDte the or nimboli bhi..

hindu aurate tyoharo me un peDo ko

pujati thi.. to

neem hakeem bhi wahin aate the..!!

neem ke peD ki ek Daal,

mere chhat tak aati thi

kabhi-kabhi usi Daal ke sahare

mein or rahman ek dusre ki chhat par,

aaya-jaya karte the...

Ek roz ek netaaji ka kafila

hamari basti se guzara tha

unake prachar-rath par lage jhanDe

neem ki Daal se aTak rahe the,

so Daal kaat di gayi.....!!!

abdul chacha or hamare bhi jazbaat juDe the,

neem ke peD se...

magar kuch roz baad

aam ke paD ki Daaliya bhi kaaT di gayi...

keriyaan bhikhari paDi thi..

laasho ki tarha, puri basti me...

ab rahman bhi chhat par

kahan aata tha..

Daal jo kaT chuki thi....

ek roz

subah-subah

basti me matam ka mahoul tha

abdul chacha ki laash laTak rahi thi,

neem ke peD se...

sab log moujood the wahan,

magar netaji nazar nahi aa rahe the,

basti jalne lagi thi......!!!!!!!

Barso baad bhi....

woh dono peD,

wahin moujood hein..

us ujaaDi basti me....!!!

neem ka peD

shayad abdul chacha jeisa lag raha tha

buDha, TuTa hua sa

or aam ka paD

mere dadaji jeisa,

bilkul laachar...!!!!!

There's nothing to tell...

2009-05-02T14:50:00.001+05:30

Hi all,

apparently... The title chosen for this post happens to be the first dialogue in popular american sitcom "F.R.I.E.N.D.S", the series I am a complete fan of... Well, to start with first ever blog post of mine, I surprisingly have nothing to tell... A regular follower of few of my my friends' blog, the thought of creating one of own excited me...

I assume my bloggin experience would/should be like wine.. should/would get better with time... I im into a lot of reading now-a-days.. I read many random things and I just love doing that.. That's my favorite passtime... So, I'll be using my blog to share the stuff which I read and personally like... So, I claim none of the contents posted to be mine, unless specified...