I have started Blogging :)

2009-04-22T08:04:00.002+05:30

Day 5-11

Time is flying by...and it has already been 11 days in the US for me. 3 more to go :( And what a trip it has been. I know it will be a while before I meet M again, but then there are so many sweet memories to take back from the visit. 10 months of separation are over, the remaining 8 will quickly pass.

So what have I been up to in the past week? A lot. Which includes staying away from the Internet for days at a stretch- which is quite uncommon (and difficult) for me.

Some quick highlights from the past week:

Wednesday

1) Lazed around at home spending some quality time with M
2) Prepared some shrimp and Rajma for a friend we had invited over for dinner

Thursday

1) Trip to the beautiful town of New Haven, which also happens to be the home of one of the most prestigious universities of the world- Yale

Friday

1) Roamed around Boston downtown, visiting the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Prudential center etc etc
2) Went clubbing to celebrate the victory of a friend who got elected as the President of MIT' s student body

Saturday

1) The D day- My first wedding anniversary!
2) Had lunch with the family of my manager from my previous job- brought back all the sweet memories of SC and its wonderful people
3) Dinner with M at the Cheese Cake Factory to celebrate one year of togetherness and marital bliss

Sunday

1) Headed to New York City early in the morning
2) Travelled..Travelled...Travelled the whole day, exploring this wonderful city full of energy and diversity with so many different colours and flavours
3) Key highlights: 3 hour cruise across Manhattan island, times square, statue of liberty, empire state building, little Italy, central park south, 5th avenue, Harlem, Brooklyn Bridge, Manhattan Bridge, NY skyline from Brooklyn...
4) Stop over for the night at my Dad's friends residence in Hicksville ( a suburb which takes an hour by train to reach)

Monday

1) More of New York (but the weather was really bad as it was raining most of the time!)
2) Key highlights: Lunch at china town, NYSE, holding the balls of the wall street bull!, UN headquarters, Rockefeller centre...
3) The bus back to Boston in the evening

Tuesday

1) Visit of a dear friend who came all the way from the west coast- sweet, isn't it?
2) A very heavy (and delicious!) home cooked lunch (prepared by M) with him - Burrrrp!
3) Dinner at Mela with my friend and his other friends
4) Ready to sleep after I complete this blog ;-)

This is about it for now. More later...

2009-04-16T02:49:00.002+05:30

Day 3 & 4

I know. I skipped a day in between. Friends have been hurling abuses- reminding me of my neta like ways of not sticking to a promise (of blogging every single day during my vacation). So without making lame excuses, I move on.

The last two days have been amazing. And if I have to pick one fabulous experience which stands out amongst the many, it definitely would be my visit to the Harvard University and the Harvard Business School.

The highlights from Monday and Tuesday:

Monday

1) A tour of the MIT campus, its so huge and spread out. You walk..walk...and walk.....till your legs hurt..and then realize that you haven't even covered 1/4th! But the sights, sounds and aura of the place just take you over.

2) A visit to the Boston Harbour (which happens to be one of the most romantic places I have ever been to!!) in the evening and dinner at one of the most renowned restaurants in Boston- Legal Sea Foods.

Tuesday

1) I walked up to the Harvard square, and took a left on JFK street to be enthralled by the beauty of the Harvard undergrad campus. On the other side of the Charles River, right across the Anderson bridge lies the sprawling campus of the mecca (arguably :P ) of business education- Harvard Business School. Everything, right from its beautiful campus, to its friendly (this was a surprise as I was expecting a lot of snobbery) students simply put me in awe. Bottomline- I LoVeD it!

2) During the day, I got acquainted with a German guy who was travelling alone in Boston. Seemed pretty lonely. So much to the dismay of M, I invited him for a dinner with us :) We had a lovely American dinner at Cambridge Brewing Company along with a few glasses of locally brewn beer. My German friend seemed pretty happy, I was thrilled, and M didn't seem to mind much - end to a puurfect day!

Travelling tomorrow to New Haven. More later....

2009-04-13T18:15:00.002+05:30

Day 2

Yesterday was really hectic. I think I am having a great time here. Time is flying.....Its 9 in the morning and I am sitting in the Stratton student centre (while M is away attending class!) making the most of the comfortable sofas and the free wifi connection!

Its a wonderful feeling watching students, professors and staff - each lost in their own world- walking around, having a quick bite to eat, a hot coffee to drink, grabbing a warm donut to relish.

A quick recap of the last 36 hours:

Saturday

1) It was a rainy day and the weather was extremely chilly! Nearly 3 degrees C. Went out to the Harvard square and enjoyed a LONG lunch at Fire and Ice

2) It was dark (and still raining) by the time we came out and jet lag was gradually setting in. Reached home at around 6:30 PM and just crashed. Woke up on Sunday at 6 AM :D

Sunday

1) Went on my jog. This time across the Harvard bridge, running against the strong chilly winds which made the run tougher but more exciting!

2) Left home at around 8 to meet a senior from my college. Spent the entire day at his house, eating, drinking, chatting and playing with his cute son!!

3) It was 9 by the time we reached home and there was not an inch of place in the stomach to have dinner. Watched Roadies (on the Internet) and slept.

Another day awaits today...lots to do...too less time. Lets see how it goes. Till tomorrow..Ciaos!

2009-04-11T21:06:00.003+05:30

My 2 Week Vacation- Day 1

After a long time- in fact nearly an year- I have got a chance to go on a long vacation. As some of you already know, I am visiting my wife in Boston. And since blogging had taken a back seat for sometime now, I thought this is an apt time to start writing again. So......I have decided to blog every single day while I am here. Without wasting more words in setting the context, H E R E...I... G O.

Day 1

I set off for Boston (from Mumbai) on 10th morning at 5:10 AM (India Time). Though I knew it would be a long journey, I never thought it would be so tiring. A quick recap of the journey:

Mumbai- Doha ( 3 Hours)

Doha Transit (2 hours and 30 mins)

Doha-New York (13 Hours)

New York- Boston (4 hours and 30 mins by Bus)

So it took me nearly 27 hours to reach the final destination.But I enjoyed every bit of it. The key highlights of Day 1 follow :)

1) The commotion and crowd in New York. I just love bheed bhaaad....in fact in terms of energy, I found New York very very similar to Mumbai. I found the vicinity, en route my train journey from the airport to the bus station, ejjactly like it is around Indian rail tracks. Graffiti, slums, construction etc etc

2) On reaching the bus station, I found out that all buses going to Boston were full because of the long weekend rush. So I was placed on something called a standby line. Luckily, just like it happens in Multiplexes in India, since I was alone and needed just one seat- I managed to get into the bus. many couples and people in groups were left behind..he he he

3) The bus journey was really uncomfortable. I was already tired by travelling nearly 24 hours and add to it the very little leg room in the bus. The 4 and a half hours in the bus seemed to be longer than the entire journey so far. However, I got some respite from the fact that the bus passed through very beautiful surroundings and there was a movie playing.

4) Reached M's hostel around 11 PM and there was some excellent food awaiting! Pork Ribs...Rice....Baked Beans..and some white and red wine. Dozed off after a sumptuous dinner.

5) Thanks to the jet lag, got up at 6 AM. And I really thank the jet lag for it. Coz I experienced one of the most beautiful mornings of my life. Since I was up early, I decided to go on a jog. The weather was cold, and for a minute I decided to go back to the room and get a cap. But then I thought, "what the hell" and started running- and within a few minutes I was totally immersed in the surrounding and was enjoying the chill in the wind. Cambridge is just so beautiful. So calm, so peaceful, so scenic. The run down the charles river was just so refreshing. The cool breeze rising from the gently flowing water, the sight of ducks floating in harmony, and the thrill of watching the ongoing rowing race between MIT, Yale and Harvard sucked away all the pain and tiredness of my long trip.

6) After the run, I deserved a heavy breakfast! So eggs, bacon, toast and juice it was :D :D

I have promised my self 3 things:

a) I will run every single day in the morning while I am here
b) Will eat and cook a lot
c) Will blog everyday

Till tomorrow..ciaos!

2009-02-09T16:32:00.004+05:30

Poker Faced

Its only now, that I understand, the logic behind this commonly used term.

Last thursday, friends were home and one of them happened to be a good poker player. Upon his insistence, all of us decided to try our hand at Texas hold'em poker. After about 20 mins of real time poker lessons, we were all set to begin. Infact I was extremely excited because apart from a few technical differences, I found the game to be extremely similar to our very own teen-patti.

Since we didn't have poker chips, we decided to bet on paper and then settle the dues (which eventually never got settled!) . But our friend (the Poker champ) seemed to be offended by the fact that we were not using chips- in Poker world, you either use chips or just don't play! Somehow, we managed to convince him and so began our round (or shall I say multiple rounds) of Poker.

And apart from learning how to play poker, I was exposed to some Poker terminology. Flop, turn, river, fold, burn, call, raise, check...

End result: I lost rupees 140, we ended up playing till nearly 2 AM on a Thursday night, and I realized that from next time onwards, I better learn to keep a poker face if I intend to win some moolah in poker!!

2009-01-31T21:56:00.003+05:30

Whats goin' on...?

...well the last couple of months have been eventful, crazy, happy, sad and "LAZZY". My wife tells me that I used to be much more enthusiastic and proactive in college! And I know that she is right. But more on this, some other time.

Now since I haven't blogged in 2 months, I thought it would be a good idea to scribble down some of the happenings in my life during this period. So without wasting more words- here I go!

Morning aarti at Sidhi Vinayak and visit to Haji Ali, with Sushant, at the wee hours of the morning after a night of wild revelery ;)
Blast at Avlesh's wedding with Maadoo, Raaja, Arun and Sanjiv...it was so refreshing to meet Sanjiv Ranjan (IITian!) after a long time- as expected, his hospitality floored me
Impressive (huh?) gyaan imparted by Arun, Maadoo and me to JEE aspirants at Sanjiv's coaching institution in Patna!!
Wonderful hospitality of Kevin on christmas eve, and...........
....most importantly Varun and my "Gravity" (undifferent attitude!!), when we met Carol Gracias
My wife's visit- blissssss..............
My little sisters engagement- happiness and satisfaction
New years eve with Kevin, Varun, Greg, Rabeeya and my sweetheart! A night to remember
M's trip back to the US- heart crunching :(
My little bro's good performance in MBA entrance exams- a sweet reward for all his hardwork
Baba's Hibernation....
Balan and Raaja's visit to Mumbai- Had a great time guys!!
Bhavanjay's awesome new look and mindblowing dance moves in Blue Frog
Balan's 15x optical zoom SLR put to full use at Blue Frog!! I loove those hooott pics ;)
Fabulous (road + ferry) trip to Alibaug with Madoo, Raaja, Bhavanjay and Balan
The perinially refreshing heart to heart with Balan in Hiranandani
Wait for Nadal's win tomorrow against Federer in the Australian open- Tiger and Kevin are sure gonnna crrrry!!!

So this is a snapshot of what has been going on in my life lately. Till we meet again- shubhraatri, shabba khair!

2008-11-29T16:52:00.003+05:30

Small.....

Sometimes in life circumstances make you contemplate- "Am I really worth any good?". You feel shallow and small in front of those who have the courage to lay down their lives for others without any expectation of an incentive (money, publicity, so on and so forth.........).

Since the past few days, I have also been undergoing the same thought process.

Mumbai was held hostage by terrorists. Many innocent people lost their life. Politicians played the blame game. Media exhibited courage and sensibility. Commandos fought valiantly to bring the situation under control. Two of them lost their lives along with 14 policeman. Their children lost their father. Their mothers lost their sons. Their wives lost their husbands. While I followed news like I had never done before..........

As events unfolded...hotels burnt...death toll rose... I felt shocked and angry. But not too sad.

Why? I don't know.

But every time I heard of a policeman or a commando laying down his life- I had goose pimples. My heart sunk. My eyes were moist. And I felt small. I might me making more money than them. I might be leading my life in much more comfort than them. But still their life has been more worthwhile than mine. I aspire for the kind of courage these martyrs had. And salute the valour with which they sacrificed their lives for the safety of a nation which in all likelihood will forget them in a matter of months.

Shaheedon ke mazaaron par har baras lagenge mele...vatan pe mitno walon ka yahi baaki nishaan hoga.....

2008-10-19T17:49:00.002+05:30

The 35 things I miss about you.....Bengaluru

It has been more than a month since I shifted to Mumbai and my schedule has been totally crazy over this period. I owe this craziness greatly to two factors. First, the entire "Change Management" thing associated with any move and second, to my childhood habit of not managing my time very well.

However, this blog is not meant to discuss any of the above. Below, are a few things which I really really miss about the city (and its people) I have been in love with for nearly three years- Namma Bengaluru.

Zipping through town on my KA-51H-8497 with M for company
Being always prepared to pick up a fight with the Auto-Waalas
The awesome food cooked by Ramesh Ji (my cook)
BTM layout
Watching movies on a high with Raaja at PVR- with both of us wearing dark sunglasses
Ankur and mine "Kaa Dealing?" greetings
Tiger's "Budgeddddddddd" right in front of Mc' donalds
My bakchodis with Baizzy which only both of us could comprehend
The natkhat KK
"Just Live life...Kingsize" naarabaazi with Thakur and Preeti
Working with a team of really wonderful people in the Platform team
Vivek calling me the "Information Superhighway"
The prestigious backend teams "Together we can and we will...." motto
Pulling Cheeku's leg day in and day out
Singing "Barsaat ke mausam main..tanhai ke aalam main" with Rahul Sharma
Hitting Charsi's bachelor pad at odd hours, after all the parties were over
The Kairali lunch marathons with Anish and Vinay
Our TERRA gang- The masti, the enthu, the fighter spirit, the parties.........
Soumya's (Medamm's) ability to understand me so well despite all my idiosyncrasies
Rajesh's smile and silence
Sharing all my Altus sentiments with Yedi, who always understood
Making fun of chaks with Raghu Daa and being christened "Priyaks"
That special bond with Neekhara sahab and our sessions in Aranya
Ravi Singh's "enthu"
Poo's bindaaas attitude
Being the most active "passive smoker" at Sterling
Weekend getaways of the ISM gang, which always resulted in some mishap
Firangi Paani
Madan Pub
Utsav
Eating some awesome food at Empire and Paramount at wee hours of the morning
The numerous mutton sessions at my house
The first two wonderful months of married life
Varun's (Sadana) wierd fundaa of not drinking for 6 months of the year (though doping was allowed)
The amazing bunch of genuine human beings at Sterling Commerce

Disclaimer: The list above is totally random and not in any order of importance!! :)

2008-09-02T10:35:00.003+05:30

Jawani Mix.....

On August 8th, Team Terra finally clinched the Altus trophy after having lost it by a whisker on the past two occasions. This was one of my happiest moments at my present company, as my team won (finally!) before I leave. For the uninitiated, Altus is the umbrella under which a series of cultural events are organized over a period of 6-8 months at my present company . All employees are randomly distributed such that they belong to one of the six teams (Aqua, Terra, Lamina, Ventus, Ignis, Itis) which compete for the coveted Altus trophy!

This years Altus concluded with the Music Video Competition. Entertainment and masala being team Terra's forte, we decided to take some cues from the recently released Dasavatharam where Kamal Hassan performed 10 roles. The only catch- given the time and technical constraints at office we could handle only 4.

Our video was titled Jawani Mix (as the blog suggests) and can be viewed here!

Statutory warning: Some might find the video vulgar and senseless! Just like most Govinda movies, please don't apply logic- it will spoil the fun ;-)

2008-08-29T16:38:00.002+05:30

What's with a name?

So while M is busy figuring out ways to change her last name, destiny had this in store for me!!It so happened that, while I was getting married, my colleagues at work had other plans. They decided to change my name.....removed my name plate...and instead scribbled "my name" + "M's last name" , with a piece of pen, in the name plate slot.

While I was away on a recent holiday, my super dilligent office staff assumed that I seriously wanted a name change and this was my way of suggesting the same. Without any confirmation from me or anyone in my team, they decided to go ahead and present me a brand new name plate!!

This goof-up, however, has provided me an excellent souvenier towards the end of a highly memorable stint at my present company. This is one memoriblia which will always stay with me, and bring a smile to my face whenever I see it.

2008-08-15T00:08:00.003+05:30

Maa Tujhe Salaam....

It is 12:07 am IST (Indian Standard Time) and a friend pings me on IM…..”Maa Tujhe Salaam”. Today is 15th August 2008- 61st year of India’s independence.

This is the first Independence Day of my life when I am not in the country…and I guess this is the reason I am posting a blog on the occasion and suddenly this day feels more special than ever.

I am in Singapore for some time to meet my wife. This is my first day here…and guess what? This experience has already started helping me understand myself better- philosophy huh! Well for the starters, Singapore is a beautiful country. Very well organized, excellent transportation system, clean roads, well mannered people, and a system in place for almost everything. But, don’t know why, all this felt very robotic to me. Suddenly a thought popped up in my mind…Where’s the chaos?

WTF! I have always hated the traffic in Bangalore, the rowdiness of the Auto waalas in Chennai, the “show-off’s” in Delhi, and the chaos of Mumbai. And here I am, in a country sans all this, and I am already missing the madness back home. The noise, the interest of complete strangers in your daily affairs, the honking on the roads, people doing general bakchodi (useless talk?) etc etc etc.

So I have come to the conclusion that without the daily dose of hoch-poch in my life, I can never be completely in bliss.

At this point in time, I really feel like humming a song from the movie Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani….a song which is a personal favourite and whose lyrics I really believe in.

Hum logon ko samajh sako to samjho dilbar jaani

Jitna bhi tum samjhoge utni hogi hairaani

Apni chhatri tumko dedein kabhi jo barse paani
Kabhi naye packet mein bechein tumko cheez puraani
Phir bhi dil hai Hindustani….

Thode anari hain thode khiladi

Ruk rukke chalti hai apni gaadi

Humein pyaar chahiye

Aur kuch paise bhi

Hum aise bhi hain

Hum hain vaise bhi

Hum logon ko samajh sako to samjho dilbar jaani

Ulti seedhi jaisi bhi hai apni yehi kahaani

Thodi hummein khushiyaan bhi hain

Thodi hai nadaani

Thodi hum mein sachchaai hai

Thodi beimaani

Phir bhi dil hai Hindustani….

Aankhon mein kuchh aansoo hain kuchh sapne hain

Aansoo aur sapne donon hi apne hain

Dil dukha hai lekin... toota to nahin hai

Umeed ka daaman... choota to nahin hai

Hum logon ko samajh sako to samjho dilbar jaani

Thodi majboori hai lekin thodi hai manmaani

Thodi tu tu main main hai aur thodi kheecha taani

Hum mein kaafi baatein hain jo lagti hain deewani

Phir bhi dil hai Hindustani….

2008-07-30T23:07:00.002+05:30

Chala Murari Hero Banane........

Apart from other great opportunities, my current company has every now and then provided me a platform to keep my creative juices flowing. I say flowing because, more often than not, a few years out of college are enough to subside all your enthu.

In February 2007 I actually got a chance, together with some highly talented colleagues, to make a short movie and act in it too! And was it an experience!

Thirty years down the line, I might not have very many interesting stories to tell from my professional life, but I will always have something to boast about from those cherishable experiences whilst making our movie.

For the curious one's, here is Main Mera Manager Aur Woh . Happy viewing! Please feel free to leave comments- if any!

2008-07-17T23:00:00.003+05:30

Ek woh din bhi thhe..........

ek yeh din bhi hai........

ek woh raat thi........

ek yeh raat hai......

raat yeh bhee guzar jaaegi......

Today while digging through some old photographs I stumbled upon the one above- published in Hindustan Times many blue moons ago. Suddenly, vivid memories from the past are flashing in front of my eyes as I am humming this song written by Gulzar.

This may sound cliched, but those really were the best days of my life :)

A lot has changed between then and now. Like? Well.....my weight, my hairstyle, my martial status, my outlook towards life, my misery(yes!!)...... etc etc. And then, there are somethings which time has not succeeded in changing - my friend circle (barring a few additions), my energy, my non-stop speaking, my quest for information (read gossip!), my fighter spirit, and my mood swings.

There were struggles then and there are struggles now. Just that the definition of struggle has changed a bit.

I was happy then and I am happy now. Just that the definition of happiness has changed a bit.

I used to write then(diary) and I write now (diary+blog). Just that the medium of expression has changed a bit.

And before I completely loose track of what I am writing.....here is a toast to life- Cheers!

2008-07-08T16:32:00.003+05:30

To friends getting hitched......

Sometimes you are aware and yet choose to be blissfully ignorant. Circumstances force you to keep your trap shut. So was the case with me for a while now......till Harry met Sally.

I simultaneously went through three emotions when the news was broken at Firangi Paani (a pub in Bangalore).

"Wow! It was always meant to be"
"WTF! Why didn't she let me know earlier, despite those several indirect hints?"
"Boy, am I smart? I always knew!"

The third one, of-course, was a big ego booster :) Moreover, the news couldn't have come at a better time- a day before my birthday!

Don't know what future beholds for the new found lovers, but this is wishing them all the very best for the journey ahead.

Disclaimer: The title of this blog is inspired from minimousya's blog!

2008-06-28T13:05:00.002+05:30

Missing Her......

Bangalore suddenly feels quiet and empty. M has left, and she is gone for good. She has made me proud and ecstatic by her achievements. Achievements which she never desired......after all everyone is not driven by the same priorities in life.

If it was up to her, she wouldn't have even taken this step (a major decision on our part) and left. It was me who pushed for it really hard and I have no regrets. There is satisfaction, like never experienced before,....and yet there is the emptiness. Every nook and corner of the house (and my heart) is craving for her presence.

The next 18 months will be tough. But I know we will steer through, overcoming all challenges. But at this point, the only thing on my mind is to hear her voice as soon as her flight lands.

This song, I guess, best describes my state of mind. Sometimes it feels it was custom composed for our situation :)

2008-06-23T11:31:00.002+05:30

De Taali....Taali De....

Saw De Taali yesterday with maa and M. Apart from the title song being really hummable and catchy, following are my comments:

Aftab Shivdasani: Yeh hero kaise, kab, aur kyon banaa?? Isko hero kaa role kaun aur kyon offer kartaa hai? He is one actor who has survived in the industry for quite sometime now giving the same expression for every emotion known to mankind!

Ritesh Deshmukh: Uber cool! This guy is so damn smooth on screen. There is not one film of his in which I have not liked his performance (yet!)

Ayesha Takia: Chubby atom bomb! She is one of the few actresses in bollywood who has some "Meat" on her. She is hot!

As far as the movie is concerned- nothing spectacular. It is one of those films which is neither good nor bad. Just sit for 2 hours in an air conditioned hall and enjoy the few good moments while sleeping through the rest!

2008-06-18T18:45:00.004+05:30

Restroom...huh?

I had been wanting to right this post for a very long time. It is something which has been on my mind for a while now.

When I was in school, I distinctly remember using the term "Toilet" for the place we visited often to part ourselves from all the water we drank from our waterbottles (and sometimes the tiffin which we ate!). I am sure all of us remember using the term "Maam, may I go to the toilet please?"

At home, "Bathroom" it always was.

Time flied by or what..... when I joined my first company there were sign posts all over the place pointing to "Restrooms". Wow! I thought. I have chosen the perfect company to work- they have rooms for employees to actually rest. I hardly knew that I was in for the shock of my life.

Toilet-->Bathroom-->Restroom, they are all the same.

Like most human beings, driven by societal pressure, I make it a point to address Bathroom/Toilet as Restroom in public arena- "Which way is the Restroom please?"

Would appreciate if someone could point out if it was always Restroom for them or I am the only dumb ass around here?

2008-06-18T15:58:00.004+05:30

Threadless

I was reading an article today.....and I just got lost. Lost in a world where ideas rule the roost...where people think beyond the routine....where youngsters dream and have the courage to live their dream.

I started wondering about the immense potential the web has in general and the numerous untapped business opportunities waiting to be unearthed by Indian entrepreneurs. Frankly speaking, compared to the countries of the west, Japan, even China...we are way behind as far as using Internet as a platform to implement successful business ideas is concerned.

The more I read about successful web-based business ventures, the more I realize that starting a successful web-based business is more about the innovation, than about the technology. You can either find a gap in people's life and try to fill it or just think of something weird and crazy, yet having the potential to become a rage, and implement it. Trust me (though I am no authority on entrepreneurship!) , if you have the idea, technology will never be an hindrance. Today, there are so many tools and vendors available at highly reasonable or no cost (depending on the level of technical expertise required) that you don't have to be highly tech savvy to take the web route to starting a successful business.

What's stopping you then?

2008-06-12T12:39:00.003+05:30

Back to Blogging

It has been 1 year and 4 months since my last blog. Not that I am a rage in the blogger world and people were desperately waiting for my post [:P]........but it feels good to be back!

Why have I been away this long? My name (Matiaoo) suggests it all. Matiaao, simply put, means......lazy. I started blogging in Nov 2005- and this is my 16th post. This makes it nearly 6 posts a year.....man I am lazy!

A friend of mine has started blogging today and I felt that this is the apt time to revive my blog as well. Will try to post more frequently from now on......let's see how long am I able to sustain it.

Cheers to blogging!!

2007-02-04T14:57:00.000+05:30

Rocky Balboa(It ain't over till its over)

Rocky Balboa is back!! And I must say back with a bang. There is something about the Rocky series of movies which makes me watch them again and again. I guess its their spirit. Everytime I see a Rocky movie I go through the same set of emotions. With this last one in the series it was no different.

From the moment I entered the hall ( which was like always ,15 minutes late!) and got seated, I was just glued to my seat. Rocky Balboa is someone which we all want to be . If not exactly a boxer like him ,we all want to have that same courage, confidence and a never say die attitude. That's the beauty of these movies, as you watch them you get immersed in your own world(atleast I do :) ). You feel invincible, you want to go after your dreams likeyou never did before.

In Rocky's own words(arguably): It doesn't matter how many times you fall, its how many times you get up and fight back is what makes a man.

2006-12-19T14:18:00.000+05:30

The Female-Synonym for Sacrifice?

(Passing Thought)

I have been thinking this for a long long time. To what extent can men make sacrifices when compared to women? And from my experiences I have always come to the conclusion that the extent is very less. I am sure if we the menfolk think about the sacrifices made by our mothers,sisters,girlfriends,wifes,friends(female) for us ,we are sure to ponder over the caption of this blog.

2006-11-23T11:29:00.000+05:30

Heart Filled With Love

He wrote

Love is the greatest feeling,
Love is like a play,
Love is what I feel for you,
Each and every day,
Love is like a smile,
Love is like a song,
Love is a great emotion,
That keeps us going strong,
I love you with my heart,
My body and my soul,
I love the way I keep loving,
Like a love I can't control,
So remember when your eyes meet mine,
I love you with all my heart,
And I have poured my entire soul into you,
Right from the very start.

I love you with a permanence
That will endure the passing years.
I love you with a joyfulness
That subdues all doubts and fears.
I love you with an honesty
That was born within my heart.
I love you with the calm belief
That we will never part.
I love you with a confidence
No earthly force can sever.
I love you with the certainty
That I’ll cherish you forever.
I love you with the humbleness
Of one who has been blessed.
I love you with the reverence
Of all that word suggests.
I love you with a passion
That time cannot reverse.
I love you with the truest love
That poets put to verse

When you'l not be here to share my days and nights
My life will be so incomplete
For you are my heart, my soul
The ‘oneness’ I had known to seek

Without you I will merely exist from day to day
With you I know that I will find
All that I have been searching for
My completeness, my eternal peace of mind

You are the keeper of my dreams
The girl who holds my heart in her hands
The one I want to spend my life with
The one with whom I will always stand

Stand beside through thick and thin
Through all that life will throw our way
Knowing that this special love we share
Will guide us, each and every day

This journey was started long ago
Before this time and place
The journey of completeness
As two hearts and souls embrace

Forever is what I want with you
For the search is at an end
Our hearts have found each other
As lovers, as soul-mates, as friends.

So often when I am embracing you,
It seems that you exist in this world
only because of me and I exist because of you.

It's not easy to wander in this world
and not lose one's way,
but the greatest happiness of all
is in giving joy to one's beloved.

And if the king can have his throne,
and if the bird can have his Spring nest,
and God can have his heaven,
then I, my sweetheart, I can have you!

All I ever wanted was to be part of your heart,
And for us to be together, to never be apart.

No one else in the world can even compare,
You're perfect and so is this love that we share.

We have so much more than I ever thought we would,
I love you more than I ever thought I could.

I promise to give you all I have to give,
I'll do anything for you as long as I live.

In your eyes I see our present, our future and past,
By the way you look at me I know we will last.

I hope that one day you'll come to realize,
How perfect you are when seen through my eyes.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ----------------------------------------- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

She wrote

One day in my dreams ....
I met God and asked him
"My dear
tell me something clear
about the little pranky guy ...
who is a shiny star in u sky "

The lord replied ...

He has
" The purity in the heart ,
The kindness in the soul ,
Beauty in the smile ,
and truth in the eyes"

He has
" The bundle of Joy ,
The ocean of love,
The freshness of dew ,
Like him the world does not have even few"

He has
"The sweetness of nectar ,
The fragnance of flower ,
The color of life,and
My blessings in disguise "!!!!

My dear child ,said the dear lord with a sweet smile
"Though Naughtness and laughter is his way of life ,
but its a reason for u 2 to smile,
Just be loving and nice to this sweet guy ...
I brought to u in u r life"

2006-11-23T11:21:00.000+05:30

Miss Confusion

“Hello! Are you an Indian?” “Yes,” she said, “but my family is settled in America for the past 8 years.” “OIC, so what are you doing at the Vienna airport?” “Well, I am going back to India to visit my naanijee in Delhi and had to change my flight enroute”, the way she pronounced the word naanijee with a heavy American accent brought a smile to my face, I just wanted to burst out in laughter but somehow curbed it thinking she might feel odd.

Luckily we were to be on the same flight to India. Before we met there were still 3 hours to our fliht and I was really looking forward to getting bored, as another Indian student who I had met at the airport and got friendly with (I am addicted to being friendly with people I don’t know, it indeed is very adventurous getting to know strangers and then as you start getting familiar with them, it gives you the feeling of unpeeling of an orange rather slowly and seeing the real sweet fruit inside the outer protective layer which it weaves around itself)was about to leave by another flight. Though I have relatives in the US, this was the first chance I got to become familiar with a teenager of Indian origin settled in the ‘Land of opportunity’ as they call it. For me it was an opportunity I couldn’t have missed, as I had always been very keen to get into the mind of an “India born, America bred, confused Desi” adolescent.

The 3 hours that followed at the Vienna airport were really very intriguing. I was so full of questions that I started shooting immediately. One of the first things I observed was, her slight inhibition in the beginning to let go, which is so characteristic of Indian girls. But on the contrary she was very comfortable and had no airs about her when chatting to a stranger of the opposite sex that was ‘Me’, this is so uncharacteristic of most Indian girls.

I noticed that her watch was still set according to the American time. The reason she gave for this was , that by doing this she always knew what was the time back home and would know when her parents and friends were awake, this was something which I found really amusing. Although she didn’t make it obvious, her eyes showed that she was missing her family. She was also very cautious about the flight timing, there was still more than an hour to the flight and she wanted to move towards the departure lounge, this again made me smile. I am sure like all Indian parents she had got strict instructions from her family to be careful and alert all the time (well, the same was the case with me, but you know ‘Boys will be boys’).This was more evident to me when I saw that she was carrying a piece of paper on which her father had so carefully compared the time zones in the US, Austria and India.

She was very excited to be visiting India after 8 long years. I think she still had a mental picture of India from her 8 initial years spent here. Her mind too, was filled with all sorts of questions about India. One of the first questions she asked me was that how normal was it to have a boyfriend/girlfriend in India and to hang out with him/her. I really wanted to laugh out loud this time. “Well, it’s very common as long as you are spending the days together and not the nights!” She just blushed.

One of the most interesting facts I came to know from her was, in spite of spending so many years in the US, most of these desi’s still hang out in the desi circles majority of the time. I also think that the range the word desi covers these days has increased manifold. Most of the friends of Miss Confusion are Indians, Pakistanis, Afghanis(her best friend is an Afghani girl who speaks hindi)and Bangladeshis(she calls them Bangaalis).This was personally very nice to know as back in India ,majority of people still don’t have a very good opinion about the Pakistani’s and to see how these south Asians live in harmony in the US reiterates the fact that there is hardly any difference between us ,we are all so same in terms of our language , culture, food habits, social values etc. Let me tell you that the boyfriend of my Miss Confusion is a Pakistani.

Now, as confusion is an integral part of the life of our desi’s ,in spite of all the peace and harmony I just talked about, her mom is dead against this Pakistani boy and has given red signals to our poor little gal that “No getting involved!!” From what I can make out, it has nothing to do with the boy in particular, it’s just the fact that he happens to be a Pakistani, more particularly a Muslim. Now this is something which I have never been able to figure out. I used to think that after so many years in the US these anti Muslim feelings (specially if your son/daughter wants to marry one or go around with one)might be getting reduced but I should have known, its hard to change us desi’s, no matter where we are , “Aakhir dil hai Hindustani.”

I always thought that it was these western people, specially the Americans who were racists, but my my…never underestimate us Indians. I donno whether its just she and her friends or the whole Indian community in America, but they call the white Americans the ‘Gore people’ and if you thought that nigger was a derogatory word ,then so is calling the African Americans ‘Kaale people’ !! The way she uttered these two terms with her heavy accent really made me laugh (Ya, once again!!), she really sounds cute speaking Hindi.

Finally it was 1:35 P.M and time for us to board our flight. She asked me what my seat number was and as I had expected our seats were miles apart. But being polite and a friendly smile always helps, and in spite of the flight being jam-packed the airhostess managed 2 adjacent seats for us.

“Are we on the right flight?” was her first question before taking her seat next to me. “No! ,this flight goes to Moscow and I am very sorry for lying to you for so long,” I spoke these words with such a poker face that I could see her getting pale and numb for a moment, but the last thing I wanted was to make her cry ,so I started laughing the very next moment. Once again the same thought popped in my mind, that she was just another Indian girl(no matter how Americanized she had become),very cautious and slightly nervous at being away from her loved ones for the first time.

As the flight took off, her grey eyes(courtesy, her contact lenses!!) could be seen gleaming with excitement and joy. I too knew what this excitement was, it had hardly been 2 months and 8 days in Europe for me and I was already having this strong urge from within to get back to India. I don’t know what, but there is something mystic about India which inspite of all its heat, population and the anomalies which the so called developed nations find, seduces you. For me, the thought of getting to see my parents, relatives and friends back at college was just too tempting.

I had been in Salzburg, Austria for slightly over 2 months for an internship at a research firm. Summer is the time when most of the European universities and technical firms are brimming with Indian interns from reputed universities across the length and breadth of India. These small stints give the Indian students an excellent opportunity to learn, not only in terms of their work but also in terms of getting familiar with new cultures and an altogether different way of living .The best part is that you don’t spend a single penny from your pocket as the stipend you get is more than enough. Moreover, the host company or the university takes excellent care of you and you also get a chance to see most of Europe if you plan your weekends well.

Since, I was unable to see a single Bollywood movie during my stay in Austria, I was really looking forward to seeing the on flight movie. But, as luck would have it, the film buff inside me had to wait longer. To be precise, I got to see my first Bollywood movie in over 2 months only after I landed in India as they were showing a really stupid movie ‘Love in Nepal’ (no hard feelings intended towards the makers!!) on the flight.

In one way it was good I thought, as I would get more time to interact with Miss Confusion. But the poor girl, she had not slept in 2 days courtesy the erratic flight schedules fuelled by the difference in the time zones. She was not looking very good, I could sense that there was something wrong. She couldn’t sleep and also didn’t feel like eating. “Are you alright??” “Yes,” her faint voice indicated that she was not well, but this is something I really find funny with people ,whenever they are not okay and someone asks their well being, they always give a nod as if they are on the seventh heaven. Within minutes she had to rush to the toilet to puke, now this really worried me. I just wanted the girl to reach India safely into the protective cocoon of her family. When she came back I asked her if she was really feeling okay, she smiled and said that she tried to throw up but couldn’t. However, within the next few minutes she was sleeping and this time I smiled, I knew she would feel much better when she got up.

While she slept I listened to some music and did some thinking, that’s when the term Miss Confusion struck my mind like lightning. In her own words, “I am so Indian yet so American.” “I am really excited to be visiting India after so long!! But I miss America and my family too.” She loves wearing salwaar kameez but wears it only when she goes to a mandir or on some special occasions. She celebrates Christmas and the 4^th of July (which also happens to be my birthday) with all her passion but doesn’t celebrate 15^th August. On diwali they generally do a barbeque, ironically most Indians don’t eat non vegetarian food on diwali!! When I ask her that whether she celebrates rakhi, she says that she is not that American not to celebrate rakhi!! She loves her independence, supposedly has her own car and a partime job in a shopping mall, but says that working in a shopping mall is okay but McDonald’s is out of question as it is considered cheap or low class working there.

Before this encounter I always thought that movies like “American Desi” were just too exaggerated but after looking at things from Miss Confusions perspective I was forced to change my opinion. If not all then at least parts of movies of such genre really succeed in portraying the dilemma, call it culture clash, in the lives of teenagers of Indian origin living in America.

Talking of movies, I really think that Indian directors should stop making films which have Pakistan bashing, considering the fact that Bollywood movies have a huge market especially in Pakistan, America and United Kingdom. As I mentioned earlier we have so many Indian’s and Pakistani’s in America and U.K who hang out together and share very friendly relationships, now the situation really becomes embarrassing if they go out together to watch some of these movies. One such situation occurred when Miss Confusion, her Pakistani boyfriend and his mom went out to see ‘Deewar’ which is about Indian P.O.W’s escaping from a Pakistani jail. I can well imagine how embarrassed she must have felt. One thing which I would like to mention here is that personally I have always loved watching such movies specially since my father is in the army, but now I strongly feel or at least partially that we shouldn’t be making such movies.

As I came out from my world of thoughts, I saw that she was getting up from her sleep, she looked much better. “How are you feeling?” “Nice,” and this time I felt that she really meant what she said! Within minutes we were on with our chatting and an interesting term was added to my vocabulary. I thought that it was only back in India that we made fun of these Indians living in America, but I should have known!! She told me that if I were to come to America sometime and make friends with some of these desi’s I will be called a F.O.B(fresh off the boat).People will find my accent or to be frank everything about me funny. The only positive point about F.O.B’s is that they are considered to be smarter than the desi’s. F.O.B is a term these desi teens use for Indians who are new to America and the American way of life.

Due to the air pressure I was having some pain in my ear and told her how it would have helped if I had a ‘toffee’ to chew, she just smiled. I asked her what was the smile for, to which she replied that it had been very long since she had heard the word toffee, she was now used to the term ‘candy’, this made me smile too. I thought that from each others perspective we were both so different and yet we could relate to each other. This definitely had something to do with the Indian gene in both of us.

We could see on the screen in front of our respective seats that we would be landing in India pretty soon. I could see the tinkle in her eyes and perhaps she saw it in mine. I knew that my father, chachajee and cousin would be there at the airport to receive me, for them I think more than anything else it was a matter of immense pride that I had taken up the right path in life at such a young age. I just hope that I continue on this path and climb the ladder of success not for anything else but to make my family proud.

Both of us were giggling like 5 year olds, it was the excitement of landing in India that made us feel so happy. I could feel it in my stomach that the plane was descending, I clasped hands with her and said “Welcome to India!”, she just kept laughing.

As we landed and came out of the plane, I could smell India and also feel the heat. She was smiling but looked lost, she had all reason to, afterall she was more or less a firangi now having been away for more than 8 years. As we cleared immigration and moved towards the arrival terminal to get our luggage we hardly spoke. I guess both of us were engrossed in our own thoughts. Her mausijee was supposed to receive her and as we waited for the luggage she turned up from behind along with her husband and hugged Miss Confusion. Then there was the usual “kaisee ho?”, “kitnee badi ho gayee ho,” flight kaisee thee?”, “koi problem to nahee hui?” I said my hellos to her mausi and mausa and answered the usual questions like what do I do and why was I in Europe. My luggage arrived in the meanwhile and I was feeling kind of odd in this family reunion, moreover I had to buy a bottle each of Johny Walker Black Label and Chivas Regal for my dad who is sort of a connoisseur of liquor. With a smile on my face I said goodbye to her. ”Write me an email,” she said and smiled.

As I walked out towards the exit, my eyes constantly searching my father, I thanked god for showing me my own country from a different perspective. I was suddenly feeling more mature in terms of my thoughts and I had a logical justification as to why our young desi’s in America were so confused, they really have a reason for it. As I pen down my experience, I have greater sense of respect for these Indian teens leading their lives in America and still trying to preserve their culture. It shocks me when I look around as to how some of my own age group living in India are forgetting their culture and traditions in the race to become more hip and cool and I thought that Miss Confusion was confused!! Now who really is confused??

2006-10-30T11:33:00.000+05:30

Brats...Booze...Babes...The new age India......

Yesterday we went to the Great Indian Octoberfest held at Palace grounds,Bangalore.You can't really call it a cheap imitation of the German beer festival by the same name(Octoberfest).The organizers did a pretty decent job.However what caught my the eye most was the changing social/cultural scene in the country.
Most of the crowd looked like hardly out of their teens.Now since beer was dearth cheap(120 bucks for 5 cans of Kingfisher!!) people were drinking like crazy.One guy who looked totally inebirated was causing total nuisance by passing cheap comments to anybody passing by(specially girls).Looked like a spoilt brat of a rich daddy.I was sure he would pick up a fight and so did he. Looked like he passed some comment to a girl accompanied by her boyfriend(thats my guess) and unlike most others who were ignoring his shit this guy reacted and a brawl followed.But like with everything,people(including me and my friends) were watching the fun from a distance.Everything is just so exciting and funny as long as it doesnt happen to us.And then we say the goverment is like this and that,people these days are self centered and more blas blas of the like.
On one of the tables I saw a bottoms up competition going on.There were as many gals as were guys taking part(No,I am not a sexist!).And to my surprise,one of the gals gave the guys a run for their money.She guzzled down 4 mugs of beer in less than 4 minutes I guess....not bad...not bad at all!!
Then there was the DJ rocking the DJ Dome(specially constructed for the night).Sadly we couldn't enter,it was couples only.Man I wished Reena was there!!But we stood outside the dance arena for around 15 minutes,just to see whats going on.And man!!was it amazing.Gals fully drunk(again,I am not a sexist...just that looks like its difficult for gals to hold on to their drink!!) gyrating to the music and people accompanying them having to control them from falling.Some guys were damn lucky,they had more than one gal dancing around them,not to their tunes but to the Djs. I saw one girl holding on to a stranger and asking him to kiss her...man had to see the look on his face...was he embarassed or what!
One of my friends had once said...if his parents see stuff like this they will say "Dharti par narak hai to yahi hai"(If there is hell on earth,this is it)!

2006-10-03T14:03:00.000+05:30

A Close brush with Yamraaj

The weekend gone by still flashes in front of my eyes intermittently.I am not sure(like always) as to what impact it has had on me. But one thing I know for sure is that I will be much more carefull next time while venturing into the deep blue sea.
Monday being a holiday(Gandhi Jayanti),ten of us decided to visit Mangalore.The thought of swimming in the virgin white sand beaches which this city boasts of was irresistable.After covering almost 375 kms and 12 hours on road we finally reached our destination.Without wasting a second we jumped into the water.The child in all of us took over and we started swimming,falling,jumping and in the process drank a lot of saline sea water too!!Everything was just so perfect.
After about a couple of hours 2 of our friends who didn't know swimming ventured into the danger zone.They didnt realize that suddenly the water was over their head and they were drowning.When realization struck it was too late.The thought of seeing my friends being drifted away by the mighty sea sent shivers down my spine.I tried holding them and pulling them back towards the shore.However both of them clung to me strongly and it was getting difficult for me to pull them both back to the shore.So,I just pushed one of them towards the shore and luckily he with the help of one of our friends managed to reach safe grounds.
While I was trying to push one of them to safety the other one had drifted farther as I had lost grip on him.For a second I felt helpless.On one hand my selfish self was telling me to go towards the shore and try and get some help as I myself had taken in a lot of water.Moreover I was also scared that in the process of saving him I too may get drowned. And on the other I knew that if I recede now he will be swept away to the point of no return.Knowing the fact that you alone are responsible for someones life or death and in the process your life too is at risk is a scary feeling.....very very dark.
In a matter of second so many thoughts flashed in front of my eyes.What will my loved ones go through if I perish???What will I tell my friends parents if something happens to him ???And what not..............Finally I gathered some courage,got hold of him and started pulling him towards the shore with whatever strength was left,at one point I felt that I could not carry on any longer.However at this very point I saw one of my friends who knew swimming coming towards us.The sight of him coming towards us and the fact that he knew how to swim pumped me up.He held to our friend tightly and I pulled both of them towards the shore,luckily for all of us he was wearing a vest which made my task of pulling simpler.By this time our friends had formed a human chain and we were very near to the shore as well and could be easily pulled out.
Finally after this 7-10 min ordeal we were all safe.However this will be one of those experiences which I am sure all of us will never forget.God has his own ways of reminding us that how precious life is.

2006-10-03T12:07:00.000+05:30

Whats goin' on??

This is a question I have been asking myself since I don't know when.My last blog was writtenon 18th April .If you ask me what I have been doing since then....the answer would be hmm...letme think.....lemme think hard......ufff.....give up!!Coz I really dont have an answer.Barring performing well at work and winning accolades,I dont think I have been doing anything.If I look at myself from an outsiders perspective,I have got everything.I have a nice job and am not doing really bad at it,I am making a lot of money for someone my age,I am blessed to have a loving family and a few friends who I can bank on for anything.But then beyond a certain point does performing well at work(which you are not even sure you like or not), or making loads of money matter?...atleast not to me.The next obvious is question is:What really does matter???The answer to this is pretty simple,atleast I cannot cheat myself on this.I am not very clear as to what really matters. But what I think matters,I don't have the courage to pursue .The good thing is that I know my weaknesses,every human being has some.The frustrating part is that I have been unable to overcome them yet.There are reasons plenty,one of them being, not trying hard enough.Whats goin' on???

2006-04-18T16:29:00.000+05:30

Antt(The End).......

The D-day....Convocation....... just an hour before it..sab kahatam....back to square one.....I was not sure when I would come back to ISM in the future and if I had to cut my crop short it had to be here....jahan se kahaani shuru hui thee......

My parents just hated me in my new roop....had been coaxing me for ages(atleast it seems like ages)to get a haircut.....but I never heeded to their request......they told me kee beta degree lene se pehle to katwaa lena baal.....and early morning still drunk from the night before(I didnt know what transpired) I along with DP sir and Ankur went to the barber shop..............

I don't think I need to mention what I did there.....Ankur had a shave and DP sir got his hair coloured yellow...the damage:240 bugs....and what do you expect..yes we didn't have money to pay.....I had never expected that the shop owner will let us go..specially after he had heard us talking about all our escapaded last night.....but I was amazed when he let us go....of course we payed back later.....

2006-04-18T15:13:00.000+05:30

Shuruaat(The beginning).........

It has been a long time since I last blogged....reasons are..hmmmmm.....not plenty..just that old habits don't die hard....matiaoopan....

So what you see above is madhulika Dhanbad...yes I was back to ISM after a gap of one year for my convocation.Things had changed and so had all of us....mere baal badhaane kee kathaa yahin shuru hui thee......this pic was taken when Arun was nice enough to invite me and baba to his treat jo usko Reena de rahee thee......this was the day before the convocation......

I had just come back from my internship at salzburg and due to the extravagant rates of haircut (15 euros!!) I decided to have a haircut when back....but that never happened (courtesy my pals) who advised that I was looking very smart(now I know what they realy meant) and should go for this new look.....yahin se shuruaat hui thee baal badhaane ke kahani.....

2006-01-31T10:43:00.000+05:30

Rang De Basanti

After a long long time,I had the opportunity of seeing two great movies back to back.Friday night we feasted on Zinda and saturday we devoured Rang De Basanti......man was it awesome!!It gave me a kick which no amount of boozing has ever given and made me ponder that as the youth of this country, is making moolah the only thing I should be bothered about??Or do I have a greater purpose.....

But as it always happens, I knew that as soon as I leave the theatre and move towards my abode, adrenalin will rush in my blood like a storm in the sea. Enroute home I will fantasise all sorts of things.See myself as a leader,a social worker a revolutionist who will change the face of this nation.And then....as I will doze off in my comfy bed and wake up in the morning....eureka!!! Control-Alt-Delete.....sab gaayab!!As if yesterday was a dream.....all the thoughts that are conjuring up in my mind will be lost....everything I want to become ,all that I want to do for my nation will just fade away and reside somewhere in the pool of thoughts in mind.

Just waiting for another Rang De Basanti to bring back those thoughts to the surface and then ofcourse send them back to the deep dungeons of my thought......afterall,like most Indians I believe in thoughts and not action...

2006-01-09T18:34:00.000+05:30

Yummmmmm....
After having finally settled down in Bangalore(I came here on the 26th of Dec),this weekend I was free for the first time.The cook in me was screaming on top of his voice and so I decided to try my hands at cooking.Carnivorous as I am,it was chicken I decided to cook.
It was 4 P.M and we had just finished or I should say half finished watching Bluffmaster(the 2nd CD was not working).Bhavanjay and I set out to Food World to buy all the stuff needed for yesterdays food extravaganza.
After having bought all the tel-masaala.Bhavanjay moved back to the flat for some onion and bhindi chopping.Yes,there was a slight change in Menu,I love bhindi and so decided to cook some bhindi bhujia also.In the meanwhile I rushed to the chicken shop and bought some freshly cut chicken.
KK and Vivek were also to join us for the gala event so I had to wind up before they were home.Bhavanjay was done with the chopping by the time I reached.So I took of my shirt(I like cooking in my ganjee) and started the chicken marination.Ginger garlic paste,chopped onions,namak,haldi,lal mirch,chicken masala and some sarso tel...all these were mixed with the chicken and left for half an hour.Then me chadhaing the pan on the stove and cooked the chicken till it was tender and all set to eat.The bhindi bhujia hardly took 10 minutes.
KK and Vivek had already got 6 plates of rice for 4 of us(we were very hungry!!).As soon as the bhindi was ready we all just gorged on the food..........god it was awesome........
Don't believe me?????Just send a mail to bhav,KK or Vivek..they will second me....

2006-01-05T17:19:00.000+05:30

How Good am I??
I donno this happens only to me or with everyone???But neways I will go ahead.Either I doubt myself too much or I have not been stimulated enough.
I have never realised my capabilities.I have never known how much potential I have.Now this causes a lot of unrest in my mind.Can I do this??Will I be able to this??Am I as good as him/her??
Finally when the job is done..its like ,it was not that difficult after all.But then why on earth I wasted so much energy on bothering????
I strongly feel that its the atmosphere and people around you that stimulate you .You need to be challenged enough to get out the best in you.And you need to be strong and determined enough to look for those challenges.Most of the time we dont try hard enough to reach our potential.
Why don't we try hard???Well its pretty simple....fear..fear of failure.What will people say....does it matter???What the f***,I am just wasting the one life I had,wasting it without taking a shot at it.

2005-11-20T14:02:00.000+05:30

Interpretation of "Madhushala"

The late Dr.Harivanshrai Bacchhan wrote this great piece, which on the surface seems so simple.But as one tries to see under the surface and probes deeper into the words,you find so much to ponder over and learn.Everytime I hear the prologue in my weak moments,it gives me a new lease of life.

"Madiraalay jaane ko ghar se,chaltaa hai peene waalaa

Kiss patth se jaoon asmanjas main hai yeh bhola bhaala......"

The destination:Madiraalay

The seeker:Peene Waala(Sharaabi)

For the drunkard,the ultimate destination is the Madiraalay.He starts off from his house and wants to reach the Madiraalay where he will find the elixir of life,which for him is the sharaab or madiraa.Similarly, all of us want to find and reach our lifes ultimate goal.

But,he is confused (&%^*#).He has lost his path and doesn't know how to reach the Madhushaala.Being naive he is unable to find the right path.

The same applies to all of us.Though we have a vague idea as to what we want from life,more often than not we just don't know how to get there.

"Alag alag patth batulaate sab...par main yeh batulaata hoon

Raah pakad tu ek chalaa chal...paajaaega madhushaala....paajaaega madhushaala....."

The problem:Confusion/too many advices

The solution:Single minded focus/devotion/belief

In his quest to find his way to the Madhushala,he comes across many people.Each one telling him to tread a different path ,resulting in more confusion for him.Finally in a chance encounter he meets the poet ,who advices him to follow one path with all his heart and soul. He assures him that this way he will reach his Madhushala.

When on our way to realise and achieve our goals,we come across so many people ,each giving his own suggestions,ideas,words of wisdom whatever you may choose to call it.More often than not they do more harm to us than good.Its not always that people give us unwanted advice,most of the time its we who want it and run after it.

The poet ,in just one line offers a solution which seems so pragmatic.It reminds me of why Arjun(from the epic Mahabharat) never missed a target.He just saw the birds eye,nothing else seemed to bother him.So,if we just know where we want to reach and focus on our goal without drifting here and there,there is high probability that we may end up reaching our destination(Madhushala).

2005-11-15T14:47:00.002+05:30

Mental commotion

Words like "self discovery" have become a fashion statement these days.So,I thought why not become fashionable myself.

Its been quite some time(many years infact) that I have been trying to find out who I am and what I want from life.There are very few people in this world whose work is their passion,the rest,like me end up where life takes them."Life takes them"??Well I don't neccessarily agree on this one.Its we who are responsible for shaping our lives but what we do most often is follow others.Now there is nothing wrong in wanting to be like someone but then there is a difference between respecting someone and being in awe.

My father told me once that son "Never be in awe of someone,it hampers your own individuality",and I totally agree with him on this one.Take my life for example.When I was small I wanted to become a cricketer but I soon realised or was made to realise that I am not good at it and moreover there is a lot of risk involved so it is always dangerous to tread the unknown path.But the fact remains,that did I realy want to be a cricketer or was it the fascination for the likes of Azhar and Sachin that made me think so???

Went through school mostly enjoying life and neglecting studies,if given a choice I would have dropped out.But then,guys from nice families don't become dropouts,they become Doctors or Engineers.I was not even sure which subjects I liked.But as it happened,I started scoring well in maths and physics and so it was assumed by everyone around me and to some extent by Me too that I had a great future as an Engineer.The next obvious step was IIT-JEE, indias toughest exam for getting admission into the top Engineering schools.You know ""IITians earn a lot","IITians are this","IITians are that",so so so......as usual I went with the flow. I landed up in an engineering college,realising that I didn't have any aptitude whatsoever to become an engineer.Still I continued for 4 years and managed to pass with relatively decent grades.What the hell!!

In college I realised that since I hate the idea of becoming an Engineer,so I should look for other options...the next option was and still is, an MBA.Why??? bcoz,well an MBA's job profile is supposedly better than an engineer,he earns more and being an MBA is kewl.

The present scenario(or call it irony) is,I am in a software job,which I feel sucks!!Still, I wanna switch jobs and do very well in this field.I also wanna go for an MBA from an international B School,I wanna be rich,famous,like him,like her.........but I have stopped hearing what that faint voice inside me(which died many many years ago) which realy speaks for me ,has to say...I realy donno who matiaoo is and what he wants.I donno wether the last 23 years of my life have been lived by "Me" or by trying to become someone who I never realy was or am.

Someone once said : "Its very easy to become brave from a safe distance."

2005-11-12T13:50:00.000+05:30

Who says I don't Blog??

After months of following blogs,I have finally decided to start one of my own :) Don't ask me why.Maybe I love writing....do I??Or maybe coz blogging is the next IN thing.Well, I am not too sure either.Reading blogs was the easiest and most interesting thing...but as I write "My First", I realise that its not that easy after all.I don't have the slightest idea as to what I am writing,why I am writing or do I really wanna do this.....but neways it gives me some satisfaction that I finally wrote my first blog and I will get an opportunity to send the link to many friends of mine who blog...huh!!No big deal,I can blog too :-)