In this new e-age where young men & women live far from where they were born & brought-up it is expected that these people would like to hold on to their cherished childhood memories.
Saraswati Pujo or Swaraswati Puja is a very popular religious activity among Bengali’s. Any educational institute or any house with a family member still studying would like to have this performed at their place.
People also say that this is Bengali’s Valentines Day. Well it is spring & love is in the air. Girls dress up in traditional dresses & look cute. Guys get to meet the gals at the different Puja Pandals. The opportunity to meet without a “guardian” standing over your shoulder is usually not missed & …
But as always I had started deviating from what I had started this post with.
Last weekend when I was getting ready to take asylum at Srisailam, a friend of mine calls me up.
“Yes tell me”
“You are doing the Saraswati Pujo at our place next week”
“I cant do it”
“Give the phone to your apartment-mate”
30 seconds later my apartment-mate gives back the phone.
“What did u say?”
“I said Yes”
“WHAAAATTTTTT”
“Don’t…. I am not ready to think on this… Let the cyclone pass”
That was last Sunday. On Wednesday we are reminded that we are supposed to perform some rites. We realize my apartment-mate (henceforth referred to as The Priest) is going to perform the rites of the Pujo for the 1st time. He confirms my worst fears saying “I cant back out now”. On top of that we do not know any of the slokas’. We do not know any of the rites either. We decide we would google the next day or else we would ask some-one to courier us the study-material in time. Friday evening I am in office when suddenly my friend (henceforth is referred as The Client) calls up. I pick up the phone filled with apprehension.
“I have procured the Idol. Panchami is till 4:30 in the afternoon”
“ooh… ok”
I get back home & finally when my apartment-mate/the Priest returns we start discussing what to do. He calls up his father at 11:30 in the night & takes dictation of all the slokas. Please note he had taken the dictation in English.
Next day like any typical Saturday, we wake up late at 10:30, confident that we would be able to make it well ahead of the deadline of 4:30 to complete the rituals. Unfortunately the electrician comes to fit the fans, which has been lying on the drawing room floor for the past 2 months. We are forced to postpone (actually thankfully) our target time of departure.
We had initially planned to take the bus (to save money) but given that we had a new issue, we revised our mode of transport to auto. But the priest took a look at the heat-wave (yes Hyderabad is already hot. 33C to be precise) outside & demanded that we call a cab. He said that we would get it reimbursed from our Client.
We leave finally at 12:35. The priest is wearing a crushed formal shirt (because that was the only freshly washed shirt he had), a pair of jeans, torn chappals (we had plans to get it repaired on the way at our own expense) & a pair of cool sun-glasses.
He had the most prized object in his pocket, the paper which had all the slokas written down.
We reach at their place to realize that 1 room has been totally dedicated for the Pujo. The idol was in position. There was a brief confusion on which direction it should be facing but 1 phone call to a senior member of the family ended the problem.
We started arranging all the utensils & other objects got from the shop for the Pujo. The Priest comments “I doubt if I can use all the resources that are placed here”. He has no idea what he is supposed to do with what.
The client pushing his memory to the extreme arranged the best he could. His wife pitched in with declaring that Khichuri is on the gas. This declaration fueled the speed of everyone’s activities.
In between the Priest goes & takes a power-nap while all the rest are buzy deciding on how to get the decoration done. The final solution was to take print-outs of the necessary decoration & cut them out.
Finally at 3:05 we embark on the execution of the rites keeping an eye on the watch (because the deadline is approaching fast) & at the kitchen (where the payment remained). The paper with written down directions & the print-out of some more sloks are placed in front & the priest begins. It is a fight trying to get the pronunciations correct but I must say he did a formidable job. With only the minor hiccup of saying Goutam Kumar Gotro instead of Goutam Gotro & over-using the flower resource he completed the rites. Inputs were regularly & gladly accepted from the Client(s).
At the end of the day it is the FAITH which matters...
Monday, February 2, 2009
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Hurdles on the Road
Have you pondered on the in-numerable hurdles that one comes across on the road?
Nah am not talking of the Road of Life. Life is too complex & filled with hurdles to even dare to ponder (onit). I am talking on the regular roads, the paved paths, which take you from point A to point B.
What is there to ponder on?
Take the example when you are riding with a pillion rider. Heaven help you if that person can also rides on his own. He would be pouring on advice which he believes you won’t be thinking off. Or he might firmly believe that you are totally deaf & blind & are riding purely on luck.
Even if you don’t have someone polluting your ears, there is the traffic on the road. Every driver believes that given the opportunity they would beat Michael Schumacher or Valentino Rossi by at-least a lap. On top of that they also believe that they own the road. Hence if you are in the driving seat you would have to constantly guess what the other drivers are going to do.
On top of all this you would have to take into considerations the incoming vehicles & people at any moment (with-out warning obviously) from any side of the road.
I was given a piece of advice (from a friend of mine) regarding folks crossing the road.
If it is a young kid or an oldie then hit your horn hard & accelerate. The person would get frightened & stop & you can safely pass them from the front.
If it is a teenager or a young man, don’t bother to hit the horn just slow down. They would be over-confident & aggressive enough to continue on their path & you can safely pass them from the behind.
But if it is a young female then brake & begin to pray. She is too unpredictable for you to be safe. And heaven forbid if you even come close to hitting her. All the people around would become her brother & bash you up. Yeah I know the last part is bit cheap but the advice was so…
If you were not completely wrecked thinking so many stuff after trying to figure out which route to take then there are some more hurdles.
The traffic police for one. The main job of the traffic police is to ensure smooth movement of the vehicles. But most traffic personnel I have come across are more interested in some other actions. Pocketing money. So while riding/driving you would have to keep an eye for the traffic police & if you spot one immediately check off all the reasons he can apprehend you & take proper evasive action.
I would not go into the potholes & the sudden horizontal dug-ups (for laying some object like wires). Riding around pot-holes is something you must learn fast if you want to increase the life-time of the shock-absorber & not have a cross-country ride right in the middle of the city.
There are also some unexpected objects which might jump up in your path.
A public bus which had a break-down is standing right in the middle of the road. And some stones & a branch are jutting out. & it is just twilight.
Puts a shiver down your spine, while the heart jumps, as you evade it.
Or an auto riding through the middle of the road. Some of my friends know how badly I had reacted.
But the best one ever was a _________. Thankfully I was not at the driver’s seat. But I must say that this one extends the imagination a bit but it was actually true. Imagine a dark night. Cloudy no moon night. The roads are empty & the street-lights are off. All of a sudden you see 2 red-lights light up. & you are approaching it very fast. You brake & shift on the left side of the road. As you pass the suddenly braked car throwing as many explicit you can remember. You are shocked to find a white horse standing in your path. Blinded from the headlights it stands in the middle of the road. Poor creature. And Maneka Gandhi is the last thought before your mind before it crashes out.
Nah am not talking of the Road of Life. Life is too complex & filled with hurdles to even dare to ponder (onit). I am talking on the regular roads, the paved paths, which take you from point A to point B.
What is there to ponder on?
Take the example when you are riding with a pillion rider. Heaven help you if that person can also rides on his own. He would be pouring on advice which he believes you won’t be thinking off. Or he might firmly believe that you are totally deaf & blind & are riding purely on luck.
Even if you don’t have someone polluting your ears, there is the traffic on the road. Every driver believes that given the opportunity they would beat Michael Schumacher or Valentino Rossi by at-least a lap. On top of that they also believe that they own the road. Hence if you are in the driving seat you would have to constantly guess what the other drivers are going to do.
On top of all this you would have to take into considerations the incoming vehicles & people at any moment (with-out warning obviously) from any side of the road.
I was given a piece of advice (from a friend of mine) regarding folks crossing the road.
If it is a young kid or an oldie then hit your horn hard & accelerate. The person would get frightened & stop & you can safely pass them from the front.
If it is a teenager or a young man, don’t bother to hit the horn just slow down. They would be over-confident & aggressive enough to continue on their path & you can safely pass them from the behind.
But if it is a young female then brake & begin to pray. She is too unpredictable for you to be safe. And heaven forbid if you even come close to hitting her. All the people around would become her brother & bash you up. Yeah I know the last part is bit cheap but the advice was so…
If you were not completely wrecked thinking so many stuff after trying to figure out which route to take then there are some more hurdles.
The traffic police for one. The main job of the traffic police is to ensure smooth movement of the vehicles. But most traffic personnel I have come across are more interested in some other actions. Pocketing money. So while riding/driving you would have to keep an eye for the traffic police & if you spot one immediately check off all the reasons he can apprehend you & take proper evasive action.
I would not go into the potholes & the sudden horizontal dug-ups (for laying some object like wires). Riding around pot-holes is something you must learn fast if you want to increase the life-time of the shock-absorber & not have a cross-country ride right in the middle of the city.
There are also some unexpected objects which might jump up in your path.
A public bus which had a break-down is standing right in the middle of the road. And some stones & a branch are jutting out. & it is just twilight.
Puts a shiver down your spine, while the heart jumps, as you evade it.
Or an auto riding through the middle of the road. Some of my friends know how badly I had reacted.
But the best one ever was a _________. Thankfully I was not at the driver’s seat. But I must say that this one extends the imagination a bit but it was actually true. Imagine a dark night. Cloudy no moon night. The roads are empty & the street-lights are off. All of a sudden you see 2 red-lights light up. & you are approaching it very fast. You brake & shift on the left side of the road. As you pass the suddenly braked car throwing as many explicit you can remember. You are shocked to find a white horse standing in your path. Blinded from the headlights it stands in the middle of the road. Poor creature. And Maneka Gandhi is the last thought before your mind before it crashes out.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
India & Israel
2 countries sharing some common straits. Both share the same letter of alphabet to start with. Both have been terrorized with, if I am allowed to use the term, “Islamic Terrorists”. Both countries have a history which dates back to BC.
This is going to be a serious post & perhaps long by some people standards. Folks you are more than welcome to stay away from this post if you are not interested.
“According to the Torah, the Land of Israel was promised to the three Patriarchs of the Jewish people, by God, as their homeland; scholars have placed this period in the early 2nd millennium BCE. According to the traditional view, around the 11th century BCE, the first of a series of Israelite kingdoms and states established rule over the region; these Israelite kingdoms and states ruled intermittently for the following one thousand years.”
“The first known permanent settlements appeared over 9,000 years ago and gradually developed into the Indus Valley Civilisation, dating back to 3300 BCE in western India.”
A few days ago 2nd December 2008 to be precise, I received an email from a friend of mine asking me to sign an “Online Petition”. “endeavour is to collect at least 1 million signatures” was one of the lines of the email. Does 1 million in a country of over a billion residents make a difference? It is just 1 thousand part of the country (going by the popular US version & not the UK). “Probably such mass need may stir the administration to take visible and needful action”. MASS????!!!!!! It is an accepted fact that exceptions in INDIA run into millions. Mass in India (covering pan-India) would need to have atleast over a quarter of billion Indians. Has Indians been so stirred into action since 1932? I would seriously doubt that. It is not that I do not have the similar pain & feelings that the person(s) behind this petition but I have to point out that I seriously don’t believe that any politician would have an iota of time or interest to read these online petitions. Also the politicians have their own channels to get the pulse of the nation (on which they would rely more).
When I had responded back to the dear friend of mine, who had with lot of faith forwarded me that petition, clarifying why I could not support or sign, I got an instant retort back pointing out that had the 26th November incidents taken place in Israel then the whole situation been completely different. He had cited 2 examples to support his views. Entebbe Operation & Operation Wrath of God.
The current Israel 2nd wave of offence in the Gaza today, reminded of that conversation & compelled me to write this post.
I would like to draw the attention of the readers to some more similarities between the 2 countries.
“Between the time of the Israelite kingdoms and the 7th-century Muslim conquests, the Land of Israel fell under Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, Greek, Roman, Sassanian, and Byzantine rule.” Ignoring the (controversial as per a school of thought) Aryan Invasion in sometime 1500 BC, “Following invasions from Central Asia between the 10th and 12th centuries, much of North India came under the rule of the Delhi Sultanate and later the Mughal Empire.”
“The newly created United Nations approved the UN Partition Plan (United Nations General Assembly Resolution 181) on November 29, 1947, dividing the country into two states, one Arab and one Jewish. On May 14, 1948, the day before the end of the British Mandate, the Jewish Agency proclaimed independence, naming the country Israel.” “On 15 August 1947, India gained independence from British rule, but at the same time Muslim-majority areas were partitioned to form a separate state of Pakistan.[31] On 26 January 1950, India became a republic and a new constitution came into effect.”
Ethnic groups in Israel : 76% Jewish, 19% Arab, 5% minority groups
Ethnic groups in India : 80.4% Hindus, 13.4% Muslims, 6.2% Others.
Jews or “an ethno-religious group originating from the Israelites” are found all over the world & they still follow their traditions even if they are 4th or 5th generation living there. & do I need to point out the slow Indian colonization of the world?
I can go on in this line but I believe that I have made my point.
What differentiates Israel from India?
The obvious are geographical, demographical, constitutional, GDP (Total as well as Per-capita) etc. There is another distinctive difference in the outlook of the people.
Indians are by nature (& historically proven) are the absorbers of all forms of traditions. Over years (if not instantly) Indians find out a perfect amalgamation of the original & the new. Or atleast they co-exist. I have personally seen people who are equally comfortable appreciating to classical music in the afternoon & shaking their leg in the evening to the latest pop tracks. I do-not know much about Israel or Israeli’s but I have come to believe that they are slightly more rigid in upholding their traditions. Yes there are exceptions but in India exceptions run into millions & may be actually greater than the population of Israel.
Israel is surrounded by hostile countries on each side. India is similarly surrounded by unfriendly countries. But surely the hostility between India & Bangladesh or Sri-Lanka cannot be compared to that to any of Israel’s neighbours. Or can it be?
Hamas had fired missiles into Israel for 8 consecutive days killing 4 people before the Israeli armed force attacked Gaza. The latest Mumbai attacks killed nearly 200 people & India is still trying to put enough “Diplomatic Pressure” on Pakistan to accept that the attacks were planned & executed by Pakistanis.
There is another major difference between the 2 situations. Pakistan has nuclear arsenal & a nuclear holocaust is not something anyone wants. Israel is safe in this respect being the only country in that region to have a nuclear arsenal. And any military operation by India would give the Pakistan army an excuse to take over. They have already taken away forces from the western borders giving the Taliban a free reign.
The whole Mumbai carnage has more that what it meets the eye. And I would really like if all truths came out. Am not sure if it would actually make any difference but there are too many confusing parts to it. Take this link for example.
There has be a huge hue & cry from the residents of both the countries to take some form of aggressive strike against the terrorists & Israel went into the offensive immediately while India is still to do something concrete.
Will either route make any difference? Israel had for long fought against PLO. But by defeating them did they achieve peace? PLO gave way to Hamas & today the battle continues. India has got UN to put a ban on Jamaat-ud-Dawa. But it would just change its name to Tehreek-e-Hurmat-e-Rasool & continue its operations. You can chop off one head of the monster but a new head in a new form spring up there.
It hurts every time a person gets killed. Be it in India or in Pakistan or in Zimbabwe or in Iraq or in Malaysia or in Russia. Any form of terrorism by minorities or religious or even state is not to be condoned. But why is it that humans after so much time still fail to realize violence will never give the solution.
I really wonder how Gandhi would have reacted today. He had removed his support from the Civil Disobedience Movement in 1932 after the Chauri-Chara incident. That had postponed the Indian independence by over a decade but he had the integrity, strength & faith to continue in his path.
Martin Luther King had started the civil rights activism in the 50’s. And it is perhaps his legacy that the 44th President of USA would be Barack Obama. Abraham Lincoln had fought his way to end slavery 1863. But the “Jim Crow laws” were present till 1965. (please note I use this only to point out that violent means would not be totally successful. I still believe Abraham Lincoln was one of the greatest President USA has ever got)
Nelson Mandela had brushes with violence but he had finally won his war only through negotiations.
You must be wondering where I am getting to. No I don’t have a solution to all the terrorism. But I believe that the way for the terrorist or the people against whom they are acting, is not through violence. Both need to give up violence immediately & apologise to the other side for all the pain & loss they have inflicted. Both parties need to first accept that they have a problem & have made mistakes & come to the negotiating table with an open & unbiased mind. Until you can even look at what the other side is talking about you would not be able to put your views across.
It is not what you intend or say but what the others perceive.
PS: I have heavily borrowed from Wikipedia for facts
This is going to be a serious post & perhaps long by some people standards. Folks you are more than welcome to stay away from this post if you are not interested.
“According to the Torah, the Land of Israel was promised to the three Patriarchs of the Jewish people, by God, as their homeland; scholars have placed this period in the early 2nd millennium BCE. According to the traditional view, around the 11th century BCE, the first of a series of Israelite kingdoms and states established rule over the region; these Israelite kingdoms and states ruled intermittently for the following one thousand years.”
“The first known permanent settlements appeared over 9,000 years ago and gradually developed into the Indus Valley Civilisation, dating back to 3300 BCE in western India.”
A few days ago 2nd December 2008 to be precise, I received an email from a friend of mine asking me to sign an “Online Petition”. “endeavour is to collect at least 1 million signatures” was one of the lines of the email. Does 1 million in a country of over a billion residents make a difference? It is just 1 thousand part of the country (going by the popular US version & not the UK). “Probably such mass need may stir the administration to take visible and needful action”. MASS????!!!!!! It is an accepted fact that exceptions in INDIA run into millions. Mass in India (covering pan-India) would need to have atleast over a quarter of billion Indians. Has Indians been so stirred into action since 1932? I would seriously doubt that. It is not that I do not have the similar pain & feelings that the person(s) behind this petition but I have to point out that I seriously don’t believe that any politician would have an iota of time or interest to read these online petitions. Also the politicians have their own channels to get the pulse of the nation (on which they would rely more).
When I had responded back to the dear friend of mine, who had with lot of faith forwarded me that petition, clarifying why I could not support or sign, I got an instant retort back pointing out that had the 26th November incidents taken place in Israel then the whole situation been completely different. He had cited 2 examples to support his views. Entebbe Operation & Operation Wrath of God.
The current Israel 2nd wave of offence in the Gaza today, reminded of that conversation & compelled me to write this post.
I would like to draw the attention of the readers to some more similarities between the 2 countries.
“Between the time of the Israelite kingdoms and the 7th-century Muslim conquests, the Land of Israel fell under Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, Greek, Roman, Sassanian, and Byzantine rule.” Ignoring the (controversial as per a school of thought) Aryan Invasion in sometime 1500 BC, “Following invasions from Central Asia between the 10th and 12th centuries, much of North India came under the rule of the Delhi Sultanate and later the Mughal Empire.”
“The newly created United Nations approved the UN Partition Plan (United Nations General Assembly Resolution 181) on November 29, 1947, dividing the country into two states, one Arab and one Jewish. On May 14, 1948, the day before the end of the British Mandate, the Jewish Agency proclaimed independence, naming the country Israel.” “On 15 August 1947, India gained independence from British rule, but at the same time Muslim-majority areas were partitioned to form a separate state of Pakistan.[31] On 26 January 1950, India became a republic and a new constitution came into effect.”
Ethnic groups in Israel : 76% Jewish, 19% Arab, 5% minority groups
Ethnic groups in India : 80.4% Hindus, 13.4% Muslims, 6.2% Others.
Jews or “an ethno-religious group originating from the Israelites” are found all over the world & they still follow their traditions even if they are 4th or 5th generation living there. & do I need to point out the slow Indian colonization of the world?
I can go on in this line but I believe that I have made my point.
What differentiates Israel from India?
The obvious are geographical, demographical, constitutional, GDP (Total as well as Per-capita) etc. There is another distinctive difference in the outlook of the people.
Indians are by nature (& historically proven) are the absorbers of all forms of traditions. Over years (if not instantly) Indians find out a perfect amalgamation of the original & the new. Or atleast they co-exist. I have personally seen people who are equally comfortable appreciating to classical music in the afternoon & shaking their leg in the evening to the latest pop tracks. I do-not know much about Israel or Israeli’s but I have come to believe that they are slightly more rigid in upholding their traditions. Yes there are exceptions but in India exceptions run into millions & may be actually greater than the population of Israel.
Israel is surrounded by hostile countries on each side. India is similarly surrounded by unfriendly countries. But surely the hostility between India & Bangladesh or Sri-Lanka cannot be compared to that to any of Israel’s neighbours. Or can it be?
Hamas had fired missiles into Israel for 8 consecutive days killing 4 people before the Israeli armed force attacked Gaza. The latest Mumbai attacks killed nearly 200 people & India is still trying to put enough “Diplomatic Pressure” on Pakistan to accept that the attacks were planned & executed by Pakistanis.
There is another major difference between the 2 situations. Pakistan has nuclear arsenal & a nuclear holocaust is not something anyone wants. Israel is safe in this respect being the only country in that region to have a nuclear arsenal. And any military operation by India would give the Pakistan army an excuse to take over. They have already taken away forces from the western borders giving the Taliban a free reign.
The whole Mumbai carnage has more that what it meets the eye. And I would really like if all truths came out. Am not sure if it would actually make any difference but there are too many confusing parts to it. Take this link for example.
There has be a huge hue & cry from the residents of both the countries to take some form of aggressive strike against the terrorists & Israel went into the offensive immediately while India is still to do something concrete.
Will either route make any difference? Israel had for long fought against PLO. But by defeating them did they achieve peace? PLO gave way to Hamas & today the battle continues. India has got UN to put a ban on Jamaat-ud-Dawa. But it would just change its name to Tehreek-e-Hurmat-e-Rasool & continue its operations. You can chop off one head of the monster but a new head in a new form spring up there.
It hurts every time a person gets killed. Be it in India or in Pakistan or in Zimbabwe or in Iraq or in Malaysia or in Russia. Any form of terrorism by minorities or religious or even state is not to be condoned. But why is it that humans after so much time still fail to realize violence will never give the solution.
I really wonder how Gandhi would have reacted today. He had removed his support from the Civil Disobedience Movement in 1932 after the Chauri-Chara incident. That had postponed the Indian independence by over a decade but he had the integrity, strength & faith to continue in his path.
Martin Luther King had started the civil rights activism in the 50’s. And it is perhaps his legacy that the 44th President of USA would be Barack Obama. Abraham Lincoln had fought his way to end slavery 1863. But the “Jim Crow laws” were present till 1965. (please note I use this only to point out that violent means would not be totally successful. I still believe Abraham Lincoln was one of the greatest President USA has ever got)
Nelson Mandela had brushes with violence but he had finally won his war only through negotiations.
You must be wondering where I am getting to. No I don’t have a solution to all the terrorism. But I believe that the way for the terrorist or the people against whom they are acting, is not through violence. Both need to give up violence immediately & apologise to the other side for all the pain & loss they have inflicted. Both parties need to first accept that they have a problem & have made mistakes & come to the negotiating table with an open & unbiased mind. Until you can even look at what the other side is talking about you would not be able to put your views across.
It is not what you intend or say but what the others perceive.
PS: I have heavily borrowed from Wikipedia for facts
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
The year is coming to a close
2008 is gonna end. Bye bye.
2008 a year it was. Was it not? Well it has not yet ended I agree… but a few more hours only left in it. Did it not have more incidents packed into this 1 year?
Well there was the global melt down. You know it started with the sub-prime crisis last year. Did you have the faint idea that it had set its after effects last 31st December? Well I did not.
Well last 31st I was promising a friend of mine that we would celebrate the next 31st some-where outside India. Likely place Thailand. My friend well in time launched a plan to land up there. But I feel guilty to say I was the first person to turn it down. I had my reasons. At that point I was strong not to succumb. Not that I didn’t want to lose out & book the tickets but with strong mettle I subdued my strongest desire & watch the whole plan to go to blazes. I had not been able to call him up ask forgiveness or to even ask what is his final plans for the new-years eve. The reason is totally different though. [:-P] I am confident that he has made his plans deleting all the irrelevant stuff & heading somewhere grandiose. I simply would not like to be jealous. BTW I am already jealous by thinking that he had something better to do. AND am also jealous of all those friends / acquaintances of mine & also those who have no relation with me & having a blast at NEW YEARS EVE. Have fun folks.
I would now take the opportunity to share with you the year it has been.
I would let my mind ramble. I would give you snippets of my minds thoughts as & when in random they come to prominence.
The first one is about my brother. My maternal cousin in his blog has added my blog link. He has for his own reasons (which I have been dying to know) has named me as Shuvojit [The future is scary!]. I have 2 maternal brothers & I like both of them extremely & I would go on record that I expect great things from both of them. I would in the forth coming year like to have the opportunity ask him why he really things that my blogs (if I am not) is scary. Because letting my hyper-active wild mind alive over the internet exposed is a scary thought for myself. It is scary what else of my dark soul has he seen?
My other thought still in continuation is a question to my other maternal brother. What trick has he up in his sleeve? Does he have the gut feeling that he needs to bring out a spectacular show in the next year to survive the image he has. The image he has created himself even if he apparently may claim that he had no intention of creating but just happened.
Sorry to have completely deviated from the regular methodology of talking about a year. History is always told chronologically. I remember from my academic years. We should try to bring in some chronology in this post.
Like I had started last 31st I was with a very close friend of mine promising ….. Yes last 31st night those who remember/know I was at my HOMETOWN. We parted ways right before the stroke of midnight. Well right after that I spoke to the person who at that point of time was at-least far above my friends but just below the 2 persons of my life who would hold the top spot. My MOTHER & MY SISTER. Well it is the truth. I would give my right hand for those two persons. For my friends I would give my head away. For that person I had already given away…
I got back home. Had a talk with Ma, before going to sleep in a bed which gives me more comfort than any other bed. In the first moments of the Year 2008 I felt I was with the most important people in my life & the most secure place.
Woke up next morning to catch a flight to Hyderabad. There was a stoppage in my flat in between the arrival at Howrah station & departure from Netaji Shubhas Airport. Sadly for the taxi taking the route through Rajar-haat I missed the flight. A fine start to the year that was to come!
Well had I known that this incident would underline the year that was to come I would have refused to believe. I was perhaps living in a fool’s paradise. Or I might be compared to the ostrich
Anyway I caught the next day early morning flight to come back to Hyderabad. I get the news that Dean is planning me as the SPOC for the team. Who is Dean? Well Dean Charette is a guy from Canada. He completed his academics in US & joined UBS in perhaps Quantitive Research. He moved into the European Power & Gas Research Desk in mid 2007 as the lead structurer & was the person who had recruited me for UBS to help him in his work. He had been the person who was not only managing me & the rest of the team in Hyd but also setting up work for us which would enhance our career along with knowledge. Dean was the perfect gentleman who I would like to thank. He had in the brief time that he was with us had set high standards for us & explained if not proven to us why & how we can achieve them. It was very unfortunate that the month of January was filled with turmoil & when I was placed as the SPOC I had on the very 1st day on my new role had spoken crap without having any idea of what has been going around. It was sheer good fortune or the fact that Dean was too busy with his own life that I was not sacked then & there. The European Power & Gas desk got scrapped soon after with Dean moving back to US. Dean also got engaged. Congratulations to him & may he have a great life ahead. Also thank you Dean, for heaping so much praise on me that I got promoted.
In the 1st quarter of the year I was extremely busy. Traveling to & fro Kolkata. 3 of my close friends got married. 2 to each other. The frequent travels took a heavy toll on my credit card which I had to finally payoff later, but then I was on a roll. I had the world with me. The second quarter blew in the changes which I had refused to look in till then. Well actually I tried to fight the changes & had to surrender at the end of the 3rd quarter. Not that I relished it.
In-between the whole world watched in awe the effects of exceptional high inflation with setting recession with effects of financial meltdown. My country on the other hand was going totally crazy. There was flood. There was anarchy. There were fanatics creating mayhem everywhere. Maharashtra, Kashmir, Orissa, Karnataka… the list is endless. I was numbed with the utter chaos I was seeing everywhere. I had my own personal demons to kill aggravated with all that I was observing around. Not being able to tell it anyone led me to finally start writing this blog.
The Olympics came & went away. India got a few medals. The gold medal winner got tons of money for accomplishing to shoot straight. Not that I deny him a ounce of accolades but it hit me hard when it was announced that the martyrs of the Operation Tornado are to be given only a pittance.
I have to give kudos to those strategists in Pakistan. By a series of blasts & finally by the attack in Mumbai they have been able to shift all the pressure from them. The Taliban’s are now friends of the Pakistan army & the hogwash war can end. The great uniting factor SEIGH by India is on tracks again. When has India ever attacked a foreign land? We have failed to protect our own land again & again over centuries now. The latest show of navel-power near the shores of Sudan was a dud.
Barrack Obama got elected the 44th President of America. The country that many hates. Maybe because they can & others can-not. Maybe because they are apparent show-offs & the rest of the world must pay for it. Or maybe because it is still the land of opportunity & someplace where you can still dream to make it big. Whatever the reason you can’t but help it. What is bit confusing to me is why is someone elected on November 4th have to wait till January 20 to actually start getting his act together. I hope he actually does something significant & is remembered as a great world leader & not just the 1st non-white President of USA. Although I have little hopes that he would be able to solve the India-Pakistan issue. But I really hope he does a better job at more critical issues. The climatic changes & destruction of the world needs to be properly & correctly answered. The growing food problem needs to be sorted out. The Energy Crisis which is looming just on the horizon needs to be tackled correctly.
Coming back to the more personal front I had plans to go & “chill” in my hometown during the “Puja’s”. But as luck would have it I got to know on the 3rd day of the trip that UBS has exited the Commodities Business & hence our team has been scrapped. My then manager asked me to complete my holidays. I did spend the out the holidays but you can guess what state I was in. I couldn’t let my Ma know what was up nor most of my friends. Anyways I got back & after over a month of pure agony I finally landed up with a role in a team in the same company. What role what actions? Let’s scrap that part. In this complete freeze in the job-market I have had to take whatever came my way.
My Didi came down to India after 4 years. Met her after 2 years. It was great.
Things I have learnt this year. Many. Primarily it is only on yourself you can depend on at any point. There is a saying in bangla. “Jibone eshchi eka jete hobe eka”. You have to go through everything on your own. If you are lucky you will have the money power to drag you out. Also it is only the closest of the family from whom you can expect help. Another learning which has been hammered into me is that it does not matter what you think or what you intend. It is only what the other person perceives.
I have changed a lot. I have become more cynical. I have become angrier than before. I have become ruder. I have lost the romanticism I used to have. I have totally un-learnt to be carefree. I have lost the eye to see happiness. I have become a cribber. I don’t like what I have become. Unlike before I have got short-sighted & not being able to look beyond “I”. But above all I have given up caring
Goodbye 2008. Hello 2009
Wishing everyone Happy New Year.
2008 a year it was. Was it not? Well it has not yet ended I agree… but a few more hours only left in it. Did it not have more incidents packed into this 1 year?
Well there was the global melt down. You know it started with the sub-prime crisis last year. Did you have the faint idea that it had set its after effects last 31st December? Well I did not.
Well last 31st I was promising a friend of mine that we would celebrate the next 31st some-where outside India. Likely place Thailand. My friend well in time launched a plan to land up there. But I feel guilty to say I was the first person to turn it down. I had my reasons. At that point I was strong not to succumb. Not that I didn’t want to lose out & book the tickets but with strong mettle I subdued my strongest desire & watch the whole plan to go to blazes. I had not been able to call him up ask forgiveness or to even ask what is his final plans for the new-years eve. The reason is totally different though. [:-P] I am confident that he has made his plans deleting all the irrelevant stuff & heading somewhere grandiose. I simply would not like to be jealous. BTW I am already jealous by thinking that he had something better to do. AND am also jealous of all those friends / acquaintances of mine & also those who have no relation with me & having a blast at NEW YEARS EVE. Have fun folks.
I would now take the opportunity to share with you the year it has been.
I would let my mind ramble. I would give you snippets of my minds thoughts as & when in random they come to prominence.
The first one is about my brother. My maternal cousin in his blog has added my blog link. He has for his own reasons (which I have been dying to know) has named me as Shuvojit [The future is scary!]. I have 2 maternal brothers & I like both of them extremely & I would go on record that I expect great things from both of them. I would in the forth coming year like to have the opportunity ask him why he really things that my blogs (if I am not) is scary. Because letting my hyper-active wild mind alive over the internet exposed is a scary thought for myself. It is scary what else of my dark soul has he seen?
My other thought still in continuation is a question to my other maternal brother. What trick has he up in his sleeve? Does he have the gut feeling that he needs to bring out a spectacular show in the next year to survive the image he has. The image he has created himself even if he apparently may claim that he had no intention of creating but just happened.
Sorry to have completely deviated from the regular methodology of talking about a year. History is always told chronologically. I remember from my academic years. We should try to bring in some chronology in this post.
Like I had started last 31st I was with a very close friend of mine promising ….. Yes last 31st night those who remember/know I was at my HOMETOWN. We parted ways right before the stroke of midnight. Well right after that I spoke to the person who at that point of time was at-least far above my friends but just below the 2 persons of my life who would hold the top spot. My MOTHER & MY SISTER. Well it is the truth. I would give my right hand for those two persons. For my friends I would give my head away. For that person I had already given away…
I got back home. Had a talk with Ma, before going to sleep in a bed which gives me more comfort than any other bed. In the first moments of the Year 2008 I felt I was with the most important people in my life & the most secure place.
Woke up next morning to catch a flight to Hyderabad. There was a stoppage in my flat in between the arrival at Howrah station & departure from Netaji Shubhas Airport. Sadly for the taxi taking the route through Rajar-haat I missed the flight. A fine start to the year that was to come!
Well had I known that this incident would underline the year that was to come I would have refused to believe. I was perhaps living in a fool’s paradise. Or I might be compared to the ostrich
Anyway I caught the next day early morning flight to come back to Hyderabad. I get the news that Dean is planning me as the SPOC for the team. Who is Dean? Well Dean Charette is a guy from Canada. He completed his academics in US & joined UBS in perhaps Quantitive Research. He moved into the European Power & Gas Research Desk in mid 2007 as the lead structurer & was the person who had recruited me for UBS to help him in his work. He had been the person who was not only managing me & the rest of the team in Hyd but also setting up work for us which would enhance our career along with knowledge. Dean was the perfect gentleman who I would like to thank. He had in the brief time that he was with us had set high standards for us & explained if not proven to us why & how we can achieve them. It was very unfortunate that the month of January was filled with turmoil & when I was placed as the SPOC I had on the very 1st day on my new role had spoken crap without having any idea of what has been going around. It was sheer good fortune or the fact that Dean was too busy with his own life that I was not sacked then & there. The European Power & Gas desk got scrapped soon after with Dean moving back to US. Dean also got engaged. Congratulations to him & may he have a great life ahead. Also thank you Dean, for heaping so much praise on me that I got promoted.
In the 1st quarter of the year I was extremely busy. Traveling to & fro Kolkata. 3 of my close friends got married. 2 to each other. The frequent travels took a heavy toll on my credit card which I had to finally payoff later, but then I was on a roll. I had the world with me. The second quarter blew in the changes which I had refused to look in till then. Well actually I tried to fight the changes & had to surrender at the end of the 3rd quarter. Not that I relished it.
In-between the whole world watched in awe the effects of exceptional high inflation with setting recession with effects of financial meltdown. My country on the other hand was going totally crazy. There was flood. There was anarchy. There were fanatics creating mayhem everywhere. Maharashtra, Kashmir, Orissa, Karnataka… the list is endless. I was numbed with the utter chaos I was seeing everywhere. I had my own personal demons to kill aggravated with all that I was observing around. Not being able to tell it anyone led me to finally start writing this blog.
The Olympics came & went away. India got a few medals. The gold medal winner got tons of money for accomplishing to shoot straight. Not that I deny him a ounce of accolades but it hit me hard when it was announced that the martyrs of the Operation Tornado are to be given only a pittance.
I have to give kudos to those strategists in Pakistan. By a series of blasts & finally by the attack in Mumbai they have been able to shift all the pressure from them. The Taliban’s are now friends of the Pakistan army & the hogwash war can end. The great uniting factor SEIGH by India is on tracks again. When has India ever attacked a foreign land? We have failed to protect our own land again & again over centuries now. The latest show of navel-power near the shores of Sudan was a dud.
Barrack Obama got elected the 44th President of America. The country that many hates. Maybe because they can & others can-not. Maybe because they are apparent show-offs & the rest of the world must pay for it. Or maybe because it is still the land of opportunity & someplace where you can still dream to make it big. Whatever the reason you can’t but help it. What is bit confusing to me is why is someone elected on November 4th have to wait till January 20 to actually start getting his act together. I hope he actually does something significant & is remembered as a great world leader & not just the 1st non-white President of USA. Although I have little hopes that he would be able to solve the India-Pakistan issue. But I really hope he does a better job at more critical issues. The climatic changes & destruction of the world needs to be properly & correctly answered. The growing food problem needs to be sorted out. The Energy Crisis which is looming just on the horizon needs to be tackled correctly.
Coming back to the more personal front I had plans to go & “chill” in my hometown during the “Puja’s”. But as luck would have it I got to know on the 3rd day of the trip that UBS has exited the Commodities Business & hence our team has been scrapped. My then manager asked me to complete my holidays. I did spend the out the holidays but you can guess what state I was in. I couldn’t let my Ma know what was up nor most of my friends. Anyways I got back & after over a month of pure agony I finally landed up with a role in a team in the same company. What role what actions? Let’s scrap that part. In this complete freeze in the job-market I have had to take whatever came my way.
My Didi came down to India after 4 years. Met her after 2 years. It was great.
Things I have learnt this year. Many. Primarily it is only on yourself you can depend on at any point. There is a saying in bangla. “Jibone eshchi eka jete hobe eka”. You have to go through everything on your own. If you are lucky you will have the money power to drag you out. Also it is only the closest of the family from whom you can expect help. Another learning which has been hammered into me is that it does not matter what you think or what you intend. It is only what the other person perceives.
I have changed a lot. I have become more cynical. I have become angrier than before. I have become ruder. I have lost the romanticism I used to have. I have totally un-learnt to be carefree. I have lost the eye to see happiness. I have become a cribber. I don’t like what I have become. Unlike before I have got short-sighted & not being able to look beyond “I”. But above all I have given up caring
Goodbye 2008. Hello 2009
Wishing everyone Happy New Year.
Monday, December 22, 2008
And Megha gets married
In a not so far city there was a finance off-shoring company. What is the name of the company? Would the name make any difference? The finance world is in a meltdown. Let us not go into the gritty details please. The company as in most out-sourcing companies in today’s world was filled with young men & women.
Imagine a fresh college pass-out, a twenty three year old lad. What is his name? What difference would it make? Let say his name is Wang. Didn’t like the name? Ok let his name be Abhi henceforth. Happy now? What now? You really want the name of the company. Ok then the company would be called ABC. Seriously dont know what would you do with that name. Planning to apply there? Ooh. Well most companies have a freeze on hiring.
Where was I? Oh yes I was introducing you to the lead female character Megha. Megha was another employee of ABC. Another twenty something fresh graduate who, unlike Abhi, had joined ABC just a couple of months back.
Abhi like millions of other males had not been able to get himself a girlfriend till then. What??!!!! Getting a GF is not difficult!!!! Man you must have been extremely lucky. Well for your information as per statistics there are only 913 females for every 1000 males (it is high time some thing is done about female infanticide). Hence 73 males must go single. And if you add those females who have not any contact with males other than immediate family or those who are not so eager to mingle freely with males & make a boyfriend you can realize the number wont be very small. But we are deviating from the main topic.
I know you must be wondering about Megha. Well not that she has not been with guys in college, but she never had a serious fling. Well she did nothing more than hang around with a very close circle of friends where males were nearly non-existent. Also she knew that her parents had a conservative view & would not accept her marrying someone outside their community. She took the safe way. Not getting involved with anyone & enjoy life as it is.
One fine morning Abhi & Megha found themselves in training together. They had seen each other a few times in the bay as well as the cafeteria. Ok there is a correction here. Abhi had noticed her in the 1st week she had joined. Megha was good looking & like all straight males Abhi was always on the lookout for good looking girls. Thank you Bird-watching is the word. Abhi had in couple of days figured out the best times to be in the cafeteria to watch the densest collection of “babes” (as he calls them).
Nothing special or significant happened during the training. Well Megha & Abhi got to know each others names. Megha realized that Abhi was a good speaker when he had something to say. Abhi realized that Megha had a really cute face with a good figure.
After the day long training got over Abhi & Megha both found themselves in the cafeteria. Neither of their regular colleagues was in the cafeteria at that moment. So they sat down together with a cup of coffee. The talk started with the training & as the cup emptied they realized that they had a lot in common. Both were new to the city. They did not have any friends at that place. Found it hard to spend spare time. Both were lonely. Etc etc etc…..
Over the next few days they would have their evening snacks together. They even plan to meet up outside office.
In the meantime Abhi’s childhood friends came to know about this. Like all guy friends they started advising him not to miss out on this chance. In a popular online site in their community they post stuff like “Megha is the one”, “Megha is clouding Abhi’s mind”. Why is it as soon as a male & a female start coming close people around would like them to take it beyond friendship or end it? Why can’t friends or families or acquaintances not just let them be?
Megha had a friend from college. Who was as workless as any other guy sitting on the “bench”. He one fine morning started googling with the names of his friends. Especially the females he had come across. When he typed the name “Megha” he came across the posts that Abhi’s friends had posted. He instantly called up Megha & asked “What is going on? You have a BF now & don’t let friends know” Megha was shocked. She checked out the posts herself. She was obviously unhappy/disappointed with the whole turn of events. She was hurt that Abhi has discussed her with his friends & his friends had made such posts. She immediately calls up Abhi & tells him to delete all the posts. Abhi asks his friends to delete them.
Next day they come face to face in the cafeteria. Abhi has Hi but Megha doesn’t respond. Megha just takes her coffee & sits in a table which is way off where she usually sits. Abhi is egoistic enough not to try & go talk with her. He also starts ignoring her. Few days pass & life moves on. Abhi makes new friends & Megha starts taking guitar lessons.
Few more months pass by & Abhi all of a sudden comes face to face to Megha. Megha is all dressed up. She has “mehendi” on her hands with lots of bangles. She has got married. Abhi says “Hi”. Megha smiles back & says “Hi” too. Abhi’s next statement is a question actually. “You got married?” Megha just gives a grin. Abhi then asks “Where are the sweets yaar?” Megha responds “Come to my desk”.
This post was inspired from the incidents which took place & I happen to know. I was wondering why a relation between a male & a female so complicated. Why is it that any friendship can’t begin & end as just a friendship? What really does a guy want from a female acquaintance & vice-versa? What does he/she want when the other person becomes a friend? What expectations are justified & what are fantasies?
I would also like to apologize on behalf of those friends. Friends who are far apart & can keep in touch only through some calls & through online desperately want to go back to those days when they had boundless fun together? Any reason to have harmless banter among them is not to be missed. It is a separate point that some banter among friends turn to harm someone else. But it is not intentional.
Finally I would like to congratulate Megha. May you have a fantastic married life & all the happiness.
Imagine a fresh college pass-out, a twenty three year old lad. What is his name? What difference would it make? Let say his name is Wang. Didn’t like the name? Ok let his name be Abhi henceforth. Happy now? What now? You really want the name of the company. Ok then the company would be called ABC. Seriously dont know what would you do with that name. Planning to apply there? Ooh. Well most companies have a freeze on hiring.
Where was I? Oh yes I was introducing you to the lead female character Megha. Megha was another employee of ABC. Another twenty something fresh graduate who, unlike Abhi, had joined ABC just a couple of months back.
Abhi like millions of other males had not been able to get himself a girlfriend till then. What??!!!! Getting a GF is not difficult!!!! Man you must have been extremely lucky. Well for your information as per statistics there are only 913 females for every 1000 males (it is high time some thing is done about female infanticide). Hence 73 males must go single. And if you add those females who have not any contact with males other than immediate family or those who are not so eager to mingle freely with males & make a boyfriend you can realize the number wont be very small. But we are deviating from the main topic.
I know you must be wondering about Megha. Well not that she has not been with guys in college, but she never had a serious fling. Well she did nothing more than hang around with a very close circle of friends where males were nearly non-existent. Also she knew that her parents had a conservative view & would not accept her marrying someone outside their community. She took the safe way. Not getting involved with anyone & enjoy life as it is.
One fine morning Abhi & Megha found themselves in training together. They had seen each other a few times in the bay as well as the cafeteria. Ok there is a correction here. Abhi had noticed her in the 1st week she had joined. Megha was good looking & like all straight males Abhi was always on the lookout for good looking girls. Thank you Bird-watching is the word. Abhi had in couple of days figured out the best times to be in the cafeteria to watch the densest collection of “babes” (as he calls them).
Nothing special or significant happened during the training. Well Megha & Abhi got to know each others names. Megha realized that Abhi was a good speaker when he had something to say. Abhi realized that Megha had a really cute face with a good figure.
After the day long training got over Abhi & Megha both found themselves in the cafeteria. Neither of their regular colleagues was in the cafeteria at that moment. So they sat down together with a cup of coffee. The talk started with the training & as the cup emptied they realized that they had a lot in common. Both were new to the city. They did not have any friends at that place. Found it hard to spend spare time. Both were lonely. Etc etc etc…..
Over the next few days they would have their evening snacks together. They even plan to meet up outside office.
In the meantime Abhi’s childhood friends came to know about this. Like all guy friends they started advising him not to miss out on this chance. In a popular online site in their community they post stuff like “Megha is the one”, “Megha is clouding Abhi’s mind”. Why is it as soon as a male & a female start coming close people around would like them to take it beyond friendship or end it? Why can’t friends or families or acquaintances not just let them be?
Megha had a friend from college. Who was as workless as any other guy sitting on the “bench”. He one fine morning started googling with the names of his friends. Especially the females he had come across. When he typed the name “Megha” he came across the posts that Abhi’s friends had posted. He instantly called up Megha & asked “What is going on? You have a BF now & don’t let friends know” Megha was shocked. She checked out the posts herself. She was obviously unhappy/disappointed with the whole turn of events. She was hurt that Abhi has discussed her with his friends & his friends had made such posts. She immediately calls up Abhi & tells him to delete all the posts. Abhi asks his friends to delete them.
Next day they come face to face in the cafeteria. Abhi has Hi but Megha doesn’t respond. Megha just takes her coffee & sits in a table which is way off where she usually sits. Abhi is egoistic enough not to try & go talk with her. He also starts ignoring her. Few days pass & life moves on. Abhi makes new friends & Megha starts taking guitar lessons.
Few more months pass by & Abhi all of a sudden comes face to face to Megha. Megha is all dressed up. She has “mehendi” on her hands with lots of bangles. She has got married. Abhi says “Hi”. Megha smiles back & says “Hi” too. Abhi’s next statement is a question actually. “You got married?” Megha just gives a grin. Abhi then asks “Where are the sweets yaar?” Megha responds “Come to my desk”.
This post was inspired from the incidents which took place & I happen to know. I was wondering why a relation between a male & a female so complicated. Why is it that any friendship can’t begin & end as just a friendship? What really does a guy want from a female acquaintance & vice-versa? What does he/she want when the other person becomes a friend? What expectations are justified & what are fantasies?
I would also like to apologize on behalf of those friends. Friends who are far apart & can keep in touch only through some calls & through online desperately want to go back to those days when they had boundless fun together? Any reason to have harmless banter among them is not to be missed. It is a separate point that some banter among friends turn to harm someone else. But it is not intentional.
Finally I would like to congratulate Megha. May you have a fantastic married life & all the happiness.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
The Good Doctor
Today evening I went to a play. The name of the play was The Good Doctor. It was presented by Dramanon. Dramanon is a drama-troup which originated with young people from Manipal. The 2 act play containg 3 sets each, was set in Russia during the 19th century, written in Chekhovian style.
The independent acts were connected by an writer enacted by the director R K Shenoy. A multi-talented guy R K Shenoy had made a fan in the 1st 5 mins when he was introducing the audience to the concept of the play.
The 1st set was about a junior clerk who sneezes on the Minister during a play. How he makes a fool of himself trying to ask for forgiveness by being obsessed in making an apology was hilariously presented. And being true to Russian plays also in a set of dialogues displayed the socialism/communism divide.
The 2nd set was how an over-zealous father wanted to educate his 19 year old son to be a man. Actually he wanted his son to learn the intricacies of love making from a prostitute. The father literally forces the kid to almost go after he has bargained with the prostitute for a fair price. & then as a twist when he calls him back stating we can educate you next year & have an umbrella as a gift this year. The turning point was when the kid says “father I would go now your small son & come back a man”. Parents sometimes really would not like their kids to grow up. Or as many have said to a parent the child is always a child.
The final set of the act was about a Casanova. The Casanova shows us his tricks in hooking wives of people he knows. No I wont be sharing his technique. No I wont be trying to emulate them either. The ending was lovely. The wife is totally smitten in love with him & comes to meet him. But at the last moment reveals that she is intelligent enough to realize her status. She says she would not oppose any of his actions but she also points out that she is in a happy MEDIOCRE love life & would regret all her life to have made a has of the total love her husband has for her. She requests the Casanova to do the right thing. And if he leaves her she would be eternally grateful. The Casanova has a momentary urge to complete what he has started but finally succumbs to his self-righteousness & leaves. Ratika the female protagonist had awesome expressions.
The 2nd act started with a banker who is harassed by a lady. The lady demands that the bank pay some dues of her husband who is mentally ill. The bank is no way connected to the man but the lady by creating mayhem achieves what she had set out for. This set had the audience nearly rolling in laughter due to Madhu who was playing the very loud lady
The next set was completely different from what was being shown before. The mood suddenly became serious. The story was about a gent who was pushed into paying for an entertainment. The entertainment was in the form of a person who cant swim enacting a drowning man. The fact that pain is not welcome, as long as it is not inflicted on us, was well depicted. We don’t mind in getting enjoyment or more specifically get interested in watching people in pain. Does Reality Shows & TRPS ring a bell?
The final set of the evening was actually a question. An old widower meets an elderly widow in the park. They are lonely & welcome the company. They ask would it be wrong if they seek solace or company or whatever they miss out from life then. This is mainly expressed by a song sung by R K Shenoy & Sarah. Finally the male protagonist asks her out for a cup of tea on a chilly autumn evening. She says tomorrow.
I had a lovely evening. I must thank my apartment-mate in dragging me out tonight.
In the return trip we took an auto. The auto driver played two songs for us.
The 1st was
Jeeyen to jeeyen kaise bin aapke
Jeeyen to jeeyen kaise bin aapke
Lagta nahin dil kahin bin aapke
Jeeyen to jeeyen kaise bin aapke
Jeeyen to jeeyen kaise bin aapke
Kaise kahoon bina tere zindagi ye kya hogi
Kaise kahoon bina tere zindagi ye kya hogi
Jaise koi saza koi badd-dua hogi
Jaise koi saza koi badd-dua hogi
Maine kiya hai ye faisla
Jeena nahin hai tere bina
Jeeyen to jeeyen kaise bin aapke
Jeeyen to jeeyen kaise bin aapke
Lagta nahin dil kahin bin aapke
Jeeyen to jeeyen kaise bin aapke
Jeeyen to jeeyen kaise bin aapke
The second was
Why did you break my heart?
Why did we fall in love?
Why did you go away, away, away, away?
(Dil mera churaaya kyoon
Jab yeh dil todna hi tha
Humse dil lagaaya kyoon
Humse munh modna hi tha) - 2
Why did you break my heart?
Why did we fall in love?
Why did you go away, away, away, away?
Ho, dil ko dhadakna tune sikhaaya
Dil ko tadapna tune sikhaaya
Aankhon mein aansu chhupe the kahin
Inko chhalakna tune sikhaaya
Seene mein basaaya kyoon
Dil se jab khelna hi tha
Humse dil lagaaya kyoon
Humse munh modna hi tha
Dil mera churaaya kyoon
Why did you break my heart?
Why did we fall in love?
Why did you go away, away, away, away?
Ho, milti thi nazrein jab bhi nazar se
Uthte the shole jaise jigar se
Saanson se nikla jaise dhuaan sa
Banta tha mujhse jeete na marte
Aag kyoon lagaayi jab
Bujhaaye dil chhodna hi tha
Humse dil lagaaya kyoon
Humse munh modna hi tha
Dil mera churaaya kyoon
Jab yeh dil todna hi tha
Humse dil lagaaya kyoon
Humse munh modna hi tha
Why did you break my heart?
Why did we fall in love?
Why did you go away, away, away, away?
The record had been played at-least a million times & the sound quality was truthfully pathetic. Yet I enjoyed those 2 songs. IRONIC? I guess few would understand. Also I don’t have a very definite choice in music or entertainment. I would listen to anything as long as it appeals to me. I was concentrating in the lyrics (for a change) & the tune than what was being played at that moment.
Should I ramble now? [:-)]
No I would not. I let you folks to come up with questions & I would be more than happy to answer them.
The independent acts were connected by an writer enacted by the director R K Shenoy. A multi-talented guy R K Shenoy had made a fan in the 1st 5 mins when he was introducing the audience to the concept of the play.
The 1st set was about a junior clerk who sneezes on the Minister during a play. How he makes a fool of himself trying to ask for forgiveness by being obsessed in making an apology was hilariously presented. And being true to Russian plays also in a set of dialogues displayed the socialism/communism divide.
The 2nd set was how an over-zealous father wanted to educate his 19 year old son to be a man. Actually he wanted his son to learn the intricacies of love making from a prostitute. The father literally forces the kid to almost go after he has bargained with the prostitute for a fair price. & then as a twist when he calls him back stating we can educate you next year & have an umbrella as a gift this year. The turning point was when the kid says “father I would go now your small son & come back a man”. Parents sometimes really would not like their kids to grow up. Or as many have said to a parent the child is always a child.
The final set of the act was about a Casanova. The Casanova shows us his tricks in hooking wives of people he knows. No I wont be sharing his technique. No I wont be trying to emulate them either. The ending was lovely. The wife is totally smitten in love with him & comes to meet him. But at the last moment reveals that she is intelligent enough to realize her status. She says she would not oppose any of his actions but she also points out that she is in a happy MEDIOCRE love life & would regret all her life to have made a has of the total love her husband has for her. She requests the Casanova to do the right thing. And if he leaves her she would be eternally grateful. The Casanova has a momentary urge to complete what he has started but finally succumbs to his self-righteousness & leaves. Ratika the female protagonist had awesome expressions.
The 2nd act started with a banker who is harassed by a lady. The lady demands that the bank pay some dues of her husband who is mentally ill. The bank is no way connected to the man but the lady by creating mayhem achieves what she had set out for. This set had the audience nearly rolling in laughter due to Madhu who was playing the very loud lady
The next set was completely different from what was being shown before. The mood suddenly became serious. The story was about a gent who was pushed into paying for an entertainment. The entertainment was in the form of a person who cant swim enacting a drowning man. The fact that pain is not welcome, as long as it is not inflicted on us, was well depicted. We don’t mind in getting enjoyment or more specifically get interested in watching people in pain. Does Reality Shows & TRPS ring a bell?
The final set of the evening was actually a question. An old widower meets an elderly widow in the park. They are lonely & welcome the company. They ask would it be wrong if they seek solace or company or whatever they miss out from life then. This is mainly expressed by a song sung by R K Shenoy & Sarah. Finally the male protagonist asks her out for a cup of tea on a chilly autumn evening. She says tomorrow.
I had a lovely evening. I must thank my apartment-mate in dragging me out tonight.
In the return trip we took an auto. The auto driver played two songs for us.
The 1st was
Jeeyen to jeeyen kaise bin aapke
Jeeyen to jeeyen kaise bin aapke
Lagta nahin dil kahin bin aapke
Jeeyen to jeeyen kaise bin aapke
Jeeyen to jeeyen kaise bin aapke
Kaise kahoon bina tere zindagi ye kya hogi
Kaise kahoon bina tere zindagi ye kya hogi
Jaise koi saza koi badd-dua hogi
Jaise koi saza koi badd-dua hogi
Maine kiya hai ye faisla
Jeena nahin hai tere bina
Jeeyen to jeeyen kaise bin aapke
Jeeyen to jeeyen kaise bin aapke
Lagta nahin dil kahin bin aapke
Jeeyen to jeeyen kaise bin aapke
Jeeyen to jeeyen kaise bin aapke
The second was
Why did you break my heart?
Why did we fall in love?
Why did you go away, away, away, away?
(Dil mera churaaya kyoon
Jab yeh dil todna hi tha
Humse dil lagaaya kyoon
Humse munh modna hi tha) - 2
Why did you break my heart?
Why did we fall in love?
Why did you go away, away, away, away?
Ho, dil ko dhadakna tune sikhaaya
Dil ko tadapna tune sikhaaya
Aankhon mein aansu chhupe the kahin
Inko chhalakna tune sikhaaya
Seene mein basaaya kyoon
Dil se jab khelna hi tha
Humse dil lagaaya kyoon
Humse munh modna hi tha
Dil mera churaaya kyoon
Why did you break my heart?
Why did we fall in love?
Why did you go away, away, away, away?
Ho, milti thi nazrein jab bhi nazar se
Uthte the shole jaise jigar se
Saanson se nikla jaise dhuaan sa
Banta tha mujhse jeete na marte
Aag kyoon lagaayi jab
Bujhaaye dil chhodna hi tha
Humse dil lagaaya kyoon
Humse munh modna hi tha
Dil mera churaaya kyoon
Jab yeh dil todna hi tha
Humse dil lagaaya kyoon
Humse munh modna hi tha
Why did you break my heart?
Why did we fall in love?
Why did you go away, away, away, away?
The record had been played at-least a million times & the sound quality was truthfully pathetic. Yet I enjoyed those 2 songs. IRONIC? I guess few would understand. Also I don’t have a very definite choice in music or entertainment. I would listen to anything as long as it appeals to me. I was concentrating in the lyrics (for a change) & the tune than what was being played at that moment.
Should I ramble now? [:-)]
No I would not. I let you folks to come up with questions & I would be more than happy to answer them.
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