Dr. Sheldon Cooper invented an algorithm to find friends. Although no such thing can actually exist, I kinda liked the name. Earlier, Sunil Gavaskar has written books like Idols & Sunny Days giving details of his compatriot cricketers and Farhan Akhtar has created a film, Dil Chahta Hai, on his friends. But I’m neither a writer nor a creative director. So, that leaves me writing this treatise chronicling my friends. Please feel free to write about me....
AMONI MONDAL:
Amoni aka Dhritiman Mondal is the one who has endured for the longest time with me. Coming July we will complete 19 years of friendship. I met him first in Std. I at Shirinbai Neterwala School, Maneck Nagar, Tumsar. He was a chubby kid with a stammer in his tongue. To be frank, this stammer only bought him closer to everyone. He had huge difficulty in talking but that never slowed him down. He had fitness issues and a slight bout of Asthma as well. But Amoni is a fighter and he has overcome all these odds. One more reason of his popularity was that he was the nephew of our teacher Sil Madam, who was slightly unpopular due to her strictness. But she is really cool, peaceful, loveable and a very good cook!
Although we had professional rivalry (Examination results), he and I continued be the best of the friends. One great thing about him is that he takes all the jibes along and never ever shows any displeasure. Let it be his stammer or his somewhat incorrigible stories, he has been the centre of jokes for long. But I have never seen him getting angry and getting overboard. In school, he was my very good friend and the only one who visited my house.
We don’t have the closest of the relationships and is not at all a Jai-Veeru friendship. We didn’t share some exclusive cherishable moments and were not party to some unforgettable events. There were others who were more close to me but alas they are not there now but Mondal stayed. One thing I must say, I’m very partial to him and generally overlook his sometimes overbearing attitude.
After 10th, I went to Bengal and he to Morshi, Amravati. We lost contact. But as soon as we returned back to Nagpur for graduation, the contact resumed. Most of my friends cut contacts as soon as they joined engineering but he didn’t. He would visit me at least twice a week and introduced me to some of the fiefdoms of engineering including the Telangkhedi Mandir. After his engineering, he went to Kolkata & I to Pune for my PG. His calls were infrequent but we stayed in touch. But he couldn’t stay longer there and came straight to Pune. Again the meetings and contacts resumed.
It would not be wrong to say that he is my sweetest friend and I would be hurt the most if he one day turns his back and never to say a Hi to me again!
KAUSTUBH AKANT:
I met Kaustubh first in Std. I but our friendship really kicked off in Std. V or VI. We were a group of 4, me, Harish, him and Chandan. We ate together during lunch and had long talkathons on topics spread over a variety of topics straight from studies to sex. In class 10th, he sat next to me and we had a lot of fun.
He is a good player and played almost all games with ease. He had the habit of leaving our cricket games to play basketball with senior girls. He was quite popular and that counts the girls as well. He is highly sociable, unlike me, and can make anyone at ease in matter of minutes and hence never had a dearth of friends.
During graduation, his home was a popular haunt for watching movies and matches. He is also responsible for my friendship with 3 of his good friends, Aditya, Kshitij & Aniket. We had loads of fun during those years. A joke amongst us was that Gandhi Buddha i.e. him will have to marry a girl of his parent’s choice because he would never be able to flirt a girl. But he defied all predictions and is the only one with a real girl friend and mind you a great one. The contact remained strong in Pune as well. His house is where I stayed until I got my hostel and yeah he was my local guardian during my entire post graduation.
He is a cool guy who has adapted himself to precincts of the society. He has this great quality of marching forwarding without looking behind at all. He is a guy who believes in future and always locks the past and throws the keys and never searches for them. Although it’s not what my doctor ordered, but seeing his success I sometimes think about trying the medication.
But of late, our relationship has not been the same as before. It’s nobody’s fault but communication has decreased and the relationship has not remained so warm as before. I hope it’s a transition phase and all will be well soon.
ARIJIT GHOSH:
I first met Arijit in Std XI in the hostels of Holy Home, Serampore, on the pretext of borrowing money to register myself for my Computer Science class. We were only on talking terms before the closely knit friendship actually kicked off. Computer Science classes, Cricket, Sanjay and story books brought us closer. We were both avid readers and my love for Sherlock Holmes & Sidney Sheldon is due to this very guy. He was quite affable and was a veteran in terms of being in a hostel. I learnt many things from him and my stay in Holy Home was enjoyable, pleasing and comfortable because of him being one of the factors. He was the gateway which led to my subsequent friendships with Sanjay and Baishishtha. We did play an important role in many of the mischief’s, the one with the fire extinguisher being the most dangerous, or our excursions to the fifth floor to look across the courtyard towards the girl’s hostel but we were always let scot free because of our good academic and behavioural record. We were especially close to Rajkamal Sir, who once during one visit had let us go saying that he took complete responsibility of us being untainted! (We in reality are verry goood fellows. Believe me!)
We lost contact after 12th. But God bless mobile communication which joined us again. He was the one who laid the cables. He had only one number of my uncle but he relentlessly went on to gather subsequent numbers to reach me. Once again he proved the gateway for my subsequent contacts with my Holy Home friends through mobile and Orkut.
This is one friendship which has survived the test of time and distance and progressed with constant speed.
SANJAY DEY:
He is another veteran hosteller and a very very dear friend of mine. He is completely different from all friends I ever had. He is not much educated or cultured as we so called high profiles would think us to be. But he has a heart of gold and he takes all decisions from the same golden heart. We were at different poles altogether and I actually had heard lot about him even before he came sometime in the middle of September. I was so afraid of him that I left my dormitory soon after his arrival .But thankfully I came back after the Puja vacations. Slowly I got to know how great and cool a man he was. He was impressed by my GK and I had to answer many times on his behalf when he had arguments. He liked me very much and was like a big brother to me. We were a team while watching the matches on our dorm television and my data was used to impress others. He gave special attention that I don’t fall to drinking or smoking and stay focused on my studies. I lost contact with him but Arijit and mobile brought back us together. He is a frequent caller and is rare when he fails to call once in a month.
ANIKET AGARKAR:
Aniket can be described only as crazy & weird if you don’t know him properly. Behind this façade is a sad guy who loves to have fun but something unseen withholds him. I came to know him because of Kaustubh during BSc I. Our first meeting was at Aniket’s house and we mutually disliked each other. But later because of being in the same college, our interactions increased and within a month we had cemented a strong friendship. He was little troubled and has troubling opening so easily to strangers. But surprisingly he liked me and shared many of his views with me. Whenever his grandmother used to go out of town, his home became the den to watch movies and have fun. The other criminal in this gang was Aditya. We used to laugh all night over trivial jokes and watch late night movies. In college we were part of a bigger group of mostly computer science students (I though was an Electronics student).
He was my intimate contact with the outside world in Pune. Every fortnight, we will meet and go to Deccan, park our vehicle at Apte Road, roam around Z-bridge & FC Road, eat dinner (mostly at Maharashtriyan, JM Road) and come back. We did it as a routine but this is what kept our friendship going strong and maintained sanity in our otherwise scheduled lives. Later, after my PG, his room in Pune became my sanctuary whenever I went there. He is quite unsocial and weird and in some ways are birds of the same branch. Even then I like him very much and become worried and sad if doesn’t call once in a week.
PRASAD JOSHI:
He is one of my closest 3 friends along with Aniket & Amoni. I met him first in my first year of BSc. What made me drawn to him was that he was from Tumsar. He was earlier reluctant to talk and generally used to stay with his relative, Kedar. But soon our friendship kicked and we became quite inseparable. Rarely would be a day when we will not meet at his uncle’s house where he stays. We were from the same batch and practical partners. Soon, I shifted my rooms to Abhyankar Nagar from Dhantoli which was near his home. Now we used to go colleges, tuitions together. Slowly and steadily our life fitted into a pattern. College, Tuition, talking and then home. Saturday we used to go to the Telangkhedi temple, check out gals at Futala and then have samosas at Shankar Nagar and come back. He is the one with whom I shared my joys & sorrow, beliefs & disbeliefs, friends & foes and many others. He was like the comforting cushion to me.
Even though a great guy he has the negative behavioural traits of having tinges of jealousy and more often tries to shroud him in excessive secrecy and mystery. This sometimes causes annoyance and irritation but that’s the part and parcel of the game.
After graduation, he helped me lot in my one year break to stay calm. During PG as well, we had great communication and the friendship strengthens everyday by leaps and bounds.
AVDHOOT DATAR:
I met this guy first in Hostel 3, University of Pune. He was my immediate neighbour and was kinda interesting. What brought us together was history & politics. We used to discuss all these sometimes well into the dead of the night. He is a great guy but extremely lethargic. This lethargy many a times caused tiffs between us but his dead-pan jokes always changed the scenario. It would not be wrong to say that his quest for Bengali made him a popular hunt for fun. I was his teacher and what I taught was only slangs in which I was ably supported by my other Bengali friends who had a better vocabulary than me. But he was innovative beyond measure and created slangs which instead of being abusive became hilarious. He generally took all this fun with the stride but sometimes I needed to play the pacifier.
The second phase of our friendship will be certainly the MSc-II year when we had our Astro classes together with Kaushalya. We had fun doing classes and practicals. At Ballava, whenever he came, the sordid dinner became Taj Mahal special. But here again his punctuality always troubled us. Even if we had to meet at 5, we will call him at 4:30. But then also he will come late by 15-20 minutes. We got angry and even scolded him but then he will win us over again. His lack of seriousness but over ambitious zeal for success and love for Mr. Thackrey got flak from us time to time but then Avdi is Avdi…
He was one of the most popular guys in the university across all subjects & strata. It is highly probable that he will find someone whom he knew perfectly well in busy Deccan as well as deserted Range Hills. His benevolence, easy-go attitude, coolness & stupid foolishness have won him many friends including me. I hope he remains the same albeit with little degree of seriousness added and yes remains my friend forever even if he gets a good wife!!!!
BARREL:
Barrel aka Soumyajyoti Haldar is one of my chubby buddies. We call him Barrel because he likes so. Most actually don’t know his real name. I met him first in MSc-I year. He is what we call a bit unsocial type and loves to stay away from controversies and gals. But that doesn’t stop him from being a team man. He has been a constant help during my studies. He is what many will say as “अखडू” and which cannot be discounted completely but one thing I’m sure about is that he has a heart of 24-carat gold, delicate but pure.
He hates big groups and especially if the fairer sex is a party as well. We have been to quite a few places together and the Ajanta-Ellora trip wouldn’t have been so fun without him. He is highly competitive, enthusiastic and I’ve always found him party to things which were challenging but within the permissible limits. Outside the limits, he is a man whom you can’t even budge a millimetre. His anger sits on the tip of his nose and many times his overbearing behaviour has brought in anger and opposition but at these times he behaved like an unruly kid. And I hate spanking kids. So, if we neglect these traits in character, don’t meddle with him much and let him be like he is, we can see the actual Barrel who lives behind this false façade. This guy has love, emotion and compassion but veiled by the false façade. Great to him as one of the individuals in my schemes of life.
ARADHANA NIKAM:
She is a girl and she is my friend. That is like finding water on the moon. Truly rare.
Aradhana Nikam is the best girl I’ve met in my short lifetime. She is the sweetest and most likeable gal I know. And this is not only my opinion. It’s an opinion shared by all who know her. She appears to be thin and fragile but that is completely untrue. She is fit both mentally and physically. She is an avid climber, has good grasp on Marathi literature and history, works for others through the NGO Jnan Prabodhini, benevolent, helpful and beautiful. Well her inner beauty surpasses any exterior beauty I know of.
I generally don’t like girls. But she is an exception. It would not be wrong to say that the influence she wielded on me is just next to my mother. She was my teacher cum guide not only for the city of Pune but also for life as a whole. Even though I knew her only since August-2007, the first time I talked to her properly was about a year later when she was to visit an art gallery on SB Road. I went to see that with her and that was the beginning. I don’t know how it happened but I surely asked her for help freely whenever I needed. She took the same place in my life that Prasad has. The friendship is still strong but little slack due to our quests for a great career.
Hope she remains the same as she is.
HIMADRI SONI:
I met Himadri in TIFR, Mumbai when I went there for a summer research programme. She used to sit at the adjoining computer in CM-30. For the first part of the programme, it was just a customary Hi & Hello. My computer although christened Hercules was the weakest in the room. Hence I had to use computers in DTP and in my lab for regular chatting. But slowly our interactions increased and we became good friends. The best fun we had was when we played that great Antakshari game during our trip to GMRT. Her friend, Aarti, our other CM-30 roommate, was feeling the heat of the project and had to work harder in the low temperature lab. We both were quite relaxed and along with Satti actually enjoyed our leisure time. Satti used to download movies for us and we used to watch them on my laptop. We had formed a small group of me, her, Sooraj, Janu, Arun & Satti (if not flirting) and generally tried to have our dinner together.
She is the rare combination of beauty with brains (She made me write this !!!!!! But if we neglect 'rare' it’s nevertheless true.)
After TIFR, an occasional scrap or a mail kept us in contact but not in that great way. But INAT-2008 cemented our friendship. And then the visit to Baroda strengthened it. She is a very dear friend of mine and I hope she will not forget me (Ha ha ha)!!!
HARISH KUNDARGI:
Another one of our quad from SNS. He was the only one who kept contact during 11th and 12th through ordinary mail. We had a rock solid friendship which continued over the mobile when we were in graduation. After that communication has minimized. We do have an occasional chat on gtalk.
SAURAVENDU BOSE:
Another of my good friends in Holy Home. He was from Deoghar and like me had a deficiency in Bengali. Works in Merchant Navy now. Always calls when he is on Indian shores.
KAUSTUBH NIMDEO:
He is different from any average teenager. Cool, reserved and not at all a masti-type. We share a friendship at the intellectual level and he is a great morale booster. Is in regular contact and my knowledge in money and economics of India gets big boost-ups due to him.
ADOSH DIXIT:
Another one of my good friends. Friendship blossomed due to avid interest in Geography, girls and general knowledge. Is in regular contact.
ADITYA DESHPANDE:
We share the same birthdate. Have never met a guy so much full of life and happiness. Of late communication has minimized. SMSinggggggg keeps us in touch.
ANUSTUV PAL:
My roommate in Pune for one and a half years. We tolerated each other to the utmost and had very few fights in such a long period. His another role apart from teaching computation was to supply movies. He is the one because of whom my knowledge in movies increased manifold and got addicted to Friends & Big Bang Theory. One friend whom I would not like to lose.
TARESH SHENDE:
Fellow Nagpurian. Friendship increased more because of Chiti & Barrel. Of late the only contact to physics in Nagpur. We meet regularly and have a steady friendship going on.
KAUSHALYA PATEL:
Astro partner. We had huge fun during the last year of MSc and especially during the late night practicals riding tripsy on Avdhoot’s M80 to Shivajinagar for a hot cup of coffee. Earlier I didn’t consider her at all. The only interaction I had in first year is when she wrote the invitation letter for the gathering. But as I started knowing her, I found my conceptions about her to be totally untrue. The only fault in my behaviour is that I don’t consider her much of a girl and talk in front of her uninhibitedly. She does complain about it. But I’ve not changed. She still remains one of the guys to me!
SUDHANVA LALIT:
Himadri’s Friend. This is how I came to know him. Friendship accelerated during INAT-2008 and my subsequent visit to Ahmedabad in May 2009.
DEAD ENDS:
BULBUL:
My earliest friend. She is just 2 days younger to me and we were acquainted even before we started studying. She studied with me till 10th. Was very good at heart.
DUSHYANT SORATHIA:
Friendship blossomed when in KGs. His father was a big officer where my father worked but our friendship stood rock steady till Std V, when his father was transferred. Have lost contact since.
MANISHA SINGH:
A true Leo. Had misunderstandings but were sorted out. Studied together until Std X. Have met a few times during graduation. She keeps a low profile nowadays and hence is unreachable.
CHANDAN GADVE:
One of my sweetest friends. We were a part of the quad I mentioned earlier. Have lost contact almost.
PRITI SURJAN:
One of the most intelligent girls I know. Stood first in our school in 10th boards. We had a good rapport during school days but now for the last 9 years we have absolutely zero communication.
ANAND AGRAWAL:
One of my best buddies in school. Had a great influence on me. We studied together during 10th. No communication since last 8 years. I even don’t know where he is.
BIKASH CHOUDHARY:
My first friend in Holy Home. But later communication minimized due to unknown reasons.
BAISHISHTHA MAZUMDAR:
One of my best buddies in Holy Home. We two were the only one without cigarettes, alcohol and girl friends. No contact since 12th.
SUJOY KARAN:
My first friend in Pune and the only one with whom I had a fight and a break-up.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Monday, March 29, 2010
Abnormal & Weird: The Adjectives Which Define Me The Best
My students term me weird and abnormal. They think that I’m different from what they perceive is normal for a human being. Well abnormal means anomalous (in Greek, an- not, homalous- even) which means irregular, out of pattern. Truly speaking, it’s nothing new for me to hear these adjectives. They have been said by different people in different circumstances at different periods of time in my life. And I have found it to be correct 99 out of 100 times. Yeah, I’m quite queer and sometimes my weirdness stupefies me as well!
Well, abnormality (out of norm) has been a feature of my existence and has stuck to me since my birth. I was born as a very weak child (had only a well formed head and butt). Nobody gave me more than a week to live. But I, with extreme care and love of my uncle and aunt, defeated all odds and am still living sound and actually have move towards the fatter side! While every child around me was walking on their fours, I was using my butt as the fulcrum to glide forward. I cried so much that not a single bird ever dared to venture towards my uncle’s house! Everyone used to think that I would be normal as soon as I grow up! They were wrong!
When my brother was born, I used to sit on him to test his weight taking capacity! You have guessed correct, I was spanked black and blue. As a kid, generally nobody has difficulty in finding friends. But yours truly was different, he needed biscuits as baits to catch friends. Bait finish, Friends gone! I was not able to get a single friend but what I got was chicken pox at the age of 4. This incompetency brought me close to my first love, books.
Another trait of my character is the uncanny love for written things. Let it be paan-stained newspaper cuttings, newspapers, hoardings, books or Hardy Boys. While others in my class were playing, I surprisingly was gulping books way beyond my reach. I read “Man on the moon” in class 4 or 5 and read “Hardy Boys”, “Nancy Drew” & “Three Investigators” in class 9. Totally other way round! I was so engrossed in my story books that I used to finish one every day and actually screwed my class-9th result! People used to think me over-smart as I used to discuss and argue with not only my class-mates but also with teachers and seniors. I actually had gulped copious amount of books on different subjects and needed to discuss them which often lead to arguments. This knowledge made my life chaotic. Now, it was becoming difficult to accept things without reasoning and with my reasoning always different, I am always at loggerheads.
(While people find order in symmetry, I find order in chaos. “Ordo ab chao” is the motto for me. This habit of mine has crept into my life-system and is in most probability going to stay forever.)
My weirdness obviously made me a loner. I was a library where people visit but don’t stay! People don’t understand me and I don’t understand them either. Till class-10th, at least I had friends. Later it became difficult for me to make friends and even acquaintances. The more I grew older, the more I became queer and loner. The biggest problem maybe is my disbelief in the institution of society and relations. I have always a different set of ideas regarding any topic and it more than often irks people! Like, I hate anyone who carries his religion, caste, community up his sleeve. But that’s not, I presume, how it works in the society. We are supposed to support a group or the other, preferably the majority but then Subhasish Chandra is weird, right!
These differences in opinions and views have led to the development of a trench in between me and others. Others think I am weird as I am not like them and I think why can’t they be like me? Obviously, the other side is in majority and I get the adjectives! There have been occasions when it becomes difficult for me to tolerate myself. I have been asked by many, including my mother, to be little normal. But for some reasons, I can’t get along with the norms of the society. If they fit me then I have no problems. Otherwise I have to protest or neglect them. In that case I will be decorated with the adjective. And frankly speaking I don’t like most of the social norms. Recently, I came out of a temple because it needed the worshipper to do his ‘aarti’ in Indian clothes which I didn’t like! My friend felt offended and thought my actions weird as well because I was not even going to do an ‘aarti’ over there!
This is not the only case. There are several occasions when my actions have actually offended people but I found it reasonable at that time and even though I felt bad later, not because of my actions but because someone else was hurt, it’s highly probable that I would repeat the same again! Just can’t help it. Pleasing others is something which is not in my veins and I hope it never appears as well. Hypocrisy just doesn’t work for me.
If you have seen the sitcom, “Big Bang Theory”, you can readily associate me with a person who is 80% Sheldon & 15% Leonard. Rest is a mix of Howard, Raj and even the comic book store owner, Stuart!
Caution:
If you have found not a single trace of weirdness in me then you don’t know me at all.
If you have found weirdness in me and hence decided to keep a distance then you are a sensible being.
If you have found weirdness in me and yet like to associate with me then either you are a Mahatma or a weird like me.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Parental Pressures
This topic was in my head for long. 3-Idiots, interactions with my students, sudden surge in student suicides and the forthcoming board exams have acted as an opportune occasion to relieve my ideas.
Students across the world face peer pressure in whatever they do. Most cruise away but a few fail to do so and succumb to it. Every parent wants his ward to be the most successful in this universe whether the junior likes it or not!
Most parents start forcing their children to excel (beyond their limits) during class X boards, some little earlier and a few from day one. Everyone wants his child to be the Numero Uno. They want them to be a Sachin, a Lata, a Bhimsen Joshi, an Einstein, a Kalam or aka some other great. And if the kid fails to do it, pressure starts mounting on him. But if we look into the lives of these greats, parental pressures & interference were at a minimal. This only allowed them to succeed. {Remember 3-Idiots!}
When the kid fails to live upto their expectations (which can even surpass the height of Mt. Everest!), guardians start chiding, arguing with them. Some even resort to emotional blackmailing, bribing, abusing and even merciless beating. They think that their excessive strictness will bring their kids back to the correct path. But more than often this has a negative effect on the kid. Not allowing kids to watch TV, curbing their playing time, not allowing to mix with other kids, stopping their favourite pastimes, saying no to every demand (sometimes even before listening fully) may seem as strict disciplinary measures to the seniors but for a junior it may act as the first seed of rebellion. They become discouraged, unhappy and eventually rebellious. They lie freely and don’t give a damn to what their parents say. Mostly this goes in their head:
साला जो करो उसी में इनको परेशानी रहती है ,
करो तो डांट नहीं करो तो डांट,
अब कुछ करूँगा ही नहीं,
देखें क्या होता है !
करो तो डांट नहीं करो तो डांट,
अब कुछ करूँगा ही नहीं,
देखें क्या होता है !
Another trouble is the comparisons faced. Parents compare them with their more successful siblings, friends or relatives. Even teachers resort to this kind of comparisons as well. This leads to an inferiority complex among such kids and they feel discriminated and alienated. This may lead to decline in his performance in all walks of life and even can result in a suicide.
{A classic example of contrasting yet successful siblings is that of R K Narayan & R K Laxman. While Narayan is a celebrated English novelist, Laxman passed XIIth barely. But the great cartoonist was not discouraged and he made a niche out for himself. His ‘Silent Man’ speaks more than volumes of books!}
In the mad race of ‘Who’s Better’, parents involve their kids as well. They want their wards to excel for the enhancement of their respect in the society. Slowly and steadily we join the bandwagon and become horses running for their pride. Soon we acquire the contagious disease of ‘Who’s Great’ and may well pass onto the next generation as well. {It’s same as: “We rag because our seniors did so to us!}
Let’s change the world now. Let’s not repeat what our guardians did to us. Let’s put an end to this nonsense and allow our next generation to live freely and not entail them to the same miseries as we went through.
Also the kids who suffer should understand that the existing ‘Who’s Great’ disease cannot be cured fully. So, they should do a small compromise. They should study enough to get a respectable 60-70. Believe me it won’t be difficult if you encourage yourself to think it as the gate-pass to your free life. The parents should also accept this fact their ward is not the genius they wanted. But that doesn’t mean he is a no-brainer either. He may be excellent in some other field which you would have chosen to overlook. Cultivate his potentials and he will reap in a successful and a happy life. Isn’t it what all parents want !!!!!!
So, it’s an earnest request to all seniors that please be on your children’s side when he needs but don’t forcefully guide him to tread the path that you have chosen for him!
P.S:
Suicidal tendencies: Of late many kids are killing themselves, unable to handle pressure. My request to them is that life is precious and can’t be lost for some minor failures. You are not asshole losers to die like this. Life doesn’t end here. Picture तो अभी बाकी है मेरे दोस्त !
Monday, February 15, 2010
Terror Strikes Again
13th February, 2010 now will be remembered as a “Black Saturday” in the history of Pune. Bloody bastards who think themselves warriors of religion struck terror in Koregaon Park. The locality is posh, peaceful & cosmopolitan and is frequently by foreigners. Osho’s ashram is close to the Jewish Chabad and the German Bakery (place of incident), a popular hangout, makes it a picturesque location of communal harmony. And such locales have always been on the target of these incongruous bastards.
Anything nice & peaceful across the world pricks like thorns in their eyes. Many were saying that these terrorizers were afraid to do something on a large scale after 26/11. But I always believed the calmness to be the lull before the storm. Few days back an incident was averted in busy Howrah station as well. Now it seems these rascals are turning their attention towards tier-II cities! I always believed that cities like Kolkata, Pune, Vadodara acted as their backup centres from where they got their technological help. {Last time around all wires lead to these cities!} But now it seems they are going all out!
I strongly condemn these actions but it seems that very less can be done by us. These people dream of breaking our country because of the amount of unity among is decreasing day by day. The way we are distancing ourselves on issues of religion, languages, caste, this, that, … is actually helping them.
The Pune blast is another example. While the state police was trying to ensure that beleaguered Senamen don’t create any nuisance, the terrorists got a free hand & struck! When will these people understand this simple thing! If they continue with their activities, it would not be difficult for the outsiders to blast the hollow & derelict shell!
With my condolences to the deceased, I sign off with the impossible hope that this terrorism stops!
Jai Hind!!!!
P.S: Watch this video from Krantiveer where Nana Patekar talks about the modern India. The movie is of 1993 but the situation from then has not improved but worsened!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-DNavQ5l9w
Anything nice & peaceful across the world pricks like thorns in their eyes. Many were saying that these terrorizers were afraid to do something on a large scale after 26/11. But I always believed the calmness to be the lull before the storm. Few days back an incident was averted in busy Howrah station as well. Now it seems these rascals are turning their attention towards tier-II cities! I always believed that cities like Kolkata, Pune, Vadodara acted as their backup centres from where they got their technological help. {Last time around all wires lead to these cities!} But now it seems they are going all out!
I strongly condemn these actions but it seems that very less can be done by us. These people dream of breaking our country because of the amount of unity among is decreasing day by day. The way we are distancing ourselves on issues of religion, languages, caste, this, that, … is actually helping them.
The Pune blast is another example. While the state police was trying to ensure that beleaguered Senamen don’t create any nuisance, the terrorists got a free hand & struck! When will these people understand this simple thing! If they continue with their activities, it would not be difficult for the outsiders to blast the hollow & derelict shell!
With my condolences to the deceased, I sign off with the impossible hope that this terrorism stops!
Jai Hind!!!!
P.S: Watch this video from Krantiveer where Nana Patekar talks about the modern India. The movie is of 1993 but the situation from then has not improved but worsened!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-DNavQ5l9w
Friday, February 12, 2010
Today’s Show: Shiv Sena vs India
‘My Name Is Khan’ failed to release.
The reason:
Shahrukh Khan, the film’s hero, had innocently said that Pakistani players should have been allowed to play in IPL-III. Shiv Sena thought otherwise and decided to protest. They as usual have threatened to hold a Sena-type protest i.e. destroying public property and resorting to mass scale hooliganism and vandalism.
Resorting to violence is not new to Sena. Their leaders i.e. the Thackreys have always liked to hit and make their point. They actually don’t know any other way to make them known. Right now they are in a corner. They have lost the elections again even though the incumbent government fared really poor in the last term. Nephew Raj has floated a new party, the dreaded MNS, which works on the same lines and is eating into their vote share. {The immediate beneficiary of this catfight is Congress & NCP. Almost half of the Mumbai MPs in this Loksabha election won by very thin margins thanks to MNS! } Balasaheb had taken a vow, in 2004, not to cut his beard until BJP-Sena won the assembly elections. He has to wait at least another 5 years for that. Add to that losing important leaders like Chhagan Bhujabal & Narayan Rane. Now even BJP has openly decided to leave the coalition. So, Sena needs issues to stay in limelight. What to do! That is how their style of politics runs. People will forget them otherwise and they know that.
From the very beginning the party’s motto has been very regional or specifically local i.e. Mumbai is for Marathis! So, sometimes they protest against the Madrasis, sometimes Bengalis and lately North Indians. Pakistanis have been their favourite as well (They tried to blow them up in 1993!). Lately they have been interested in Australians as well.
Now coming to the MNIK issue.
Even before SRK went against Sena’s diktat, Sachin Tendulkar, Mukesh Ambani & RSS had crossed their lines as well. They all voiced that Mumbai is for all Indians! Now that is going to irritate a Marathi loving party. But Sachin is himself an ardent Marathi Mumbaikar, the most famous and most revered actually. So, he was just reprimanded. Ambani was also left out. RSS chief is again Marathi. But this time Sena lashed at Ram Madhav, a North Indian. A little scuffle happened but calmed down. And then SRK praised the Pakistanis! {He has Wasim Akram as his team’s bowling coach. God knows what happens to it! Many of us actually want to see the likes of Afridi, Malik, Asif & Aamer in action!} That was enough for the Senamen! They started burning effigies, posters and then decided to boycott the movie. They even termed him as traitor and even pulled other Khans into it {It was not the ingenious idea of US authorities to stop SRK at Newark airport then! Khan is a taboo word in Sena dictionary from time eternal}. But Rahul Gandhi’s whirlwind Mumbai tour just swept the feet out of Sena. He travelled in a local train! Goddamnit nobody in Sena, leave alone doing it, has ever thought about it even in their dreams. Even SRK gave some reconciling tweets. Sena decided to drop the issue. All seemed calm. Everyone was happy from SRK to financiers to the common spectator. But Mr. Pawar, after suggesting us to drop sugar from our tea, went to meet Balasaheb. What tea he drank there and what the hell he mixed in Balasaheb’s tea is beyond us! But the next day MNIK destruction tirade was back in action! Maratha unity’s great example!
Pawar said that he wanted the cooperation of Sena for smooth conduct of IPL-III. Good intention! But my question is why he went to Matoshri? He should have gone to the Mantralay. Isn’t it where Maharashtra is ruled from! Sometimes seeing the way our politicians reel around Balasaheb, it seems that Subhash Nagre’s (Sarkar) resemblance with Balasaheb goes much beyond the looks! He actually rules Mumbai. And he has proved again. No multiplex owner has garnered courage to stand against his diktat. The repeated offer of security and help by the state government has gone unheeded. Some have even said that the police fail to do anything when Sena attacks.
I’m not chaperoning Sena policies but the truth lies that everyone is afraid of the attacks. It’s high time when we have to shed our inhibitions and stand up against Senamen. It’s us who have to do everything as the government is going to be a mute spectator even if they come and destroy the whole mantralay. In Vidarbha, the Senamen fail to inspire as people here don’t pay much attention to them. Same treatment has to be meted to them elsewhere as well. Otherwise they will continue to take out their petty frustrations on different issues. Today it’s SRK, tomorrow it can be anyone. If required let’s give them the taste of their own music.
In the end I quote from Nikhat Kazmi’s review of MNIK in ‘The Times of India’:
But eventually it’s Rizwan Khan who walks out with you, branding the fundamentalists as ‘liars’ and telling all those who doubt his integrity: “My Name Is Khan and I am not a terrorist, a non-Mumbaikar or an unpatriotic Indian”.
Jai Hind !!!!
Jai Maharashtra !!!
The reason:
Shahrukh Khan, the film’s hero, had innocently said that Pakistani players should have been allowed to play in IPL-III. Shiv Sena thought otherwise and decided to protest. They as usual have threatened to hold a Sena-type protest i.e. destroying public property and resorting to mass scale hooliganism and vandalism.
Resorting to violence is not new to Sena. Their leaders i.e. the Thackreys have always liked to hit and make their point. They actually don’t know any other way to make them known. Right now they are in a corner. They have lost the elections again even though the incumbent government fared really poor in the last term. Nephew Raj has floated a new party, the dreaded MNS, which works on the same lines and is eating into their vote share. {The immediate beneficiary of this catfight is Congress & NCP. Almost half of the Mumbai MPs in this Loksabha election won by very thin margins thanks to MNS! } Balasaheb had taken a vow, in 2004, not to cut his beard until BJP-Sena won the assembly elections. He has to wait at least another 5 years for that. Add to that losing important leaders like Chhagan Bhujabal & Narayan Rane. Now even BJP has openly decided to leave the coalition. So, Sena needs issues to stay in limelight. What to do! That is how their style of politics runs. People will forget them otherwise and they know that.
From the very beginning the party’s motto has been very regional or specifically local i.e. Mumbai is for Marathis! So, sometimes they protest against the Madrasis, sometimes Bengalis and lately North Indians. Pakistanis have been their favourite as well (They tried to blow them up in 1993!). Lately they have been interested in Australians as well.
Now coming to the MNIK issue.
Even before SRK went against Sena’s diktat, Sachin Tendulkar, Mukesh Ambani & RSS had crossed their lines as well. They all voiced that Mumbai is for all Indians! Now that is going to irritate a Marathi loving party. But Sachin is himself an ardent Marathi Mumbaikar, the most famous and most revered actually. So, he was just reprimanded. Ambani was also left out. RSS chief is again Marathi. But this time Sena lashed at Ram Madhav, a North Indian. A little scuffle happened but calmed down. And then SRK praised the Pakistanis! {He has Wasim Akram as his team’s bowling coach. God knows what happens to it! Many of us actually want to see the likes of Afridi, Malik, Asif & Aamer in action!} That was enough for the Senamen! They started burning effigies, posters and then decided to boycott the movie. They even termed him as traitor and even pulled other Khans into it {It was not the ingenious idea of US authorities to stop SRK at Newark airport then! Khan is a taboo word in Sena dictionary from time eternal}. But Rahul Gandhi’s whirlwind Mumbai tour just swept the feet out of Sena. He travelled in a local train! Goddamnit nobody in Sena, leave alone doing it, has ever thought about it even in their dreams. Even SRK gave some reconciling tweets. Sena decided to drop the issue. All seemed calm. Everyone was happy from SRK to financiers to the common spectator. But Mr. Pawar, after suggesting us to drop sugar from our tea, went to meet Balasaheb. What tea he drank there and what the hell he mixed in Balasaheb’s tea is beyond us! But the next day MNIK destruction tirade was back in action! Maratha unity’s great example!
Pawar said that he wanted the cooperation of Sena for smooth conduct of IPL-III. Good intention! But my question is why he went to Matoshri? He should have gone to the Mantralay. Isn’t it where Maharashtra is ruled from! Sometimes seeing the way our politicians reel around Balasaheb, it seems that Subhash Nagre’s (Sarkar) resemblance with Balasaheb goes much beyond the looks! He actually rules Mumbai. And he has proved again. No multiplex owner has garnered courage to stand against his diktat. The repeated offer of security and help by the state government has gone unheeded. Some have even said that the police fail to do anything when Sena attacks.
I’m not chaperoning Sena policies but the truth lies that everyone is afraid of the attacks. It’s high time when we have to shed our inhibitions and stand up against Senamen. It’s us who have to do everything as the government is going to be a mute spectator even if they come and destroy the whole mantralay. In Vidarbha, the Senamen fail to inspire as people here don’t pay much attention to them. Same treatment has to be meted to them elsewhere as well. Otherwise they will continue to take out their petty frustrations on different issues. Today it’s SRK, tomorrow it can be anyone. If required let’s give them the taste of their own music.
नफरत जो सिखाये वो धर्म तेरा नहीं है |
इंसान को जो रौंदे वो कदम तेरा नहीं है |
Let’s believe in these lines by Sahir Ludhiyaanvi and try to live them. Let’s stop these divisionalists or else we have to suffer like this forever! Let’s uphold the sovereignty and integrity of our country and make ‘Free India’ a reality that our forefathers dreamt of.इंसान को जो रौंदे वो कदम तेरा नहीं है |
In the end I quote from Nikhat Kazmi’s review of MNIK in ‘The Times of India’:
But eventually it’s Rizwan Khan who walks out with you, branding the fundamentalists as ‘liars’ and telling all those who doubt his integrity: “My Name Is Khan and I am not a terrorist, a non-Mumbaikar or an unpatriotic Indian”.
Jai Hind !!!!
Jai Maharashtra !!!
Sunday, February 7, 2010
बड़े होने का बुखार !!!
No, I’m not talking about growing up of an individual. I’m talking about the people who suddenly self-elevate themselves on account of tiny successes. They reach cloud nine with a speed faster than the speed of light! {Yeah such phenomena can violate laws of nature} And once there, others who failed to reach there are considered unworthy by the new demi-gods!
The path to reach cloud nine is not unique. Everyone can be propelled by different forces of varying proportions. Some common forces are:
Admission into an fancy college, new bike, fancy car, rich father, influential relatives, acquiring a girlfriend/boyfriend, hint of a foreign trip, better friends (as compared to the existing ones), better result, job, new and costly accessories & any other blah blah. The list is actually endless.
Once when greatness is achieved, his/her majesty stops interacting with the commoners who at times prior to the ascendancy were inseparable entities in his/her life. They even change their lifestyle and all other things that were associated with the previous life. So, others who were not able to get up to that platform feel left out suddenly. It feels discriminating, then embarrassing and then disgusting. In the end we stop bothering about such individuals and the relationship dies after turning sour.
Such, experiences have occurred to me, you, he, she, anyone and everyone. It’s a complex chain. We hurt others and then some other hurt us and the cycle continues.
My parents always said,
One whom people think as a great is actually great. }
I believe everyone has been taught this in some form or the other. But in due course of life, all these become worthless.
Actually the art of thinking oneself as great and discrimination is learnt from this society which we live in. The society is based on the unhealthy unbalance of up & down, rich & poor, educated & illiterate, boy & girl, this & that. So, one idolizing himself will tend to discriminate others. This will lead to dissociation of relationships which end in absolute alienation and elimination and lead to the divisive life which our elders live and soon we will follow!
So for the common good of the society, let’s put an end to this nonsense and nip the evil in the bud itself. Let’s work for the ‘White Globe’ thought up by Auro, a world without boundaries, without discrimination, without hatred!!!
The path to reach cloud nine is not unique. Everyone can be propelled by different forces of varying proportions. Some common forces are:
Admission into an fancy college, new bike, fancy car, rich father, influential relatives, acquiring a girlfriend/boyfriend, hint of a foreign trip, better friends (as compared to the existing ones), better result, job, new and costly accessories & any other blah blah. The list is actually endless.
Once when greatness is achieved, his/her majesty stops interacting with the commoners who at times prior to the ascendancy were inseparable entities in his/her life. They even change their lifestyle and all other things that were associated with the previous life. So, others who were not able to get up to that platform feel left out suddenly. It feels discriminating, then embarrassing and then disgusting. In the end we stop bothering about such individuals and the relationship dies after turning sour.
Such, experiences have occurred to me, you, he, she, anyone and everyone. It’s a complex chain. We hurt others and then some other hurt us and the cycle continues.
My parents always said,
নিজেকে যে বড় বলে বড় সে নয় |
লোকে যাকে বড় বলে বড় সে হয় |
{ One who thinks himself to be great is never great.লোকে যাকে বড় বলে বড় সে হয় |
One whom people think as a great is actually great. }
I believe everyone has been taught this in some form or the other. But in due course of life, all these become worthless.
Actually the art of thinking oneself as great and discrimination is learnt from this society which we live in. The society is based on the unhealthy unbalance of up & down, rich & poor, educated & illiterate, boy & girl, this & that. So, one idolizing himself will tend to discriminate others. This will lead to dissociation of relationships which end in absolute alienation and elimination and lead to the divisive life which our elders live and soon we will follow!
So for the common good of the society, let’s put an end to this nonsense and nip the evil in the bud itself. Let’s work for the ‘White Globe’ thought up by Auro, a world without boundaries, without discrimination, without hatred!!!
Monday, February 1, 2010
Nagpur Marathon: Run of Chaos
31st January, 2010, Nagpur ran for non-violence and peace. Yes, the 2nd Nagpur International Marathon was held on the occasion of International Non-Violence Day (Gandhiji’s death anniversary) which fell a day earlier.
Registrations had started more than a month ago. I had done mine and my brother’s registration and had secured the yellow T-shirts after an hour long tussle 15 days earlier.
As usual the quad comprising of me, Santu, Prasad & Taresh set out on Sunday morning for the 5.7 Km Non-violence run or the Ahimsa Daud. This time we missed the KP poha (It was all finished when we reached)! Lot of publicity had been done for the marathon and people had responded well. About a lakh participants were there. While the traditional races had the numbers limited to a few hundred in each category, Ahimsa Daud had a whopping 77,000 registrations.
While the other races were organized satisfactorily, Ahimsa Daud was a total chaos. At the race venue, Kasturchand Park, people started the race at their own accord. There was no formal announcement of a start and more confusion was created by the cultural programme going on there, in which people were actually coerced by the organizers so that they don’t mix with the participants of the competitive races. While many, including us, were watching the programme, the crowd at the rear started thinning. Then only we realized that we should also make the move. Even when the race un-officially started, the cultural programme continued! So, much for co-ordination!
Different banners and logos were being showcased on different issues as it is generally in these kinds of events. Near Institute of Science another mismanagement came into picture. The water pouches were strewn all over and it seemed like a water tanker had upturned at that place! No volunteer was seen and nobody had cared to stop this waste of water. Ironically, when we reached the aforesaid place, the banner in front of us was showcasing, “SAVE WATER. SAVE LIFE!” “ALL IS WELL” was the most famous banner and that is what kept the race going!
Lot more water was wasted at the finish point i.e. at Yeshwant Stadium. The road was again drenched along with the participants. Organizers were unavailable to stop this wastage as well. We, drenched a little, entered the stadium for the final ceremony. A yellow crowd welcomed us there. It seemed like a yellow sea had entered the stadium. There was no organization over here as well. Water pouches were being thrown here and there and the programme was disoriented. When Vaishali Samant was singing, a band and later a dance troupe was performing on the other side of the ground. We spectators were confused and later the coming of the Full-Marathon athletes totally diverted our attention away from Miss Samant! She eventually had to back out. At the race front as usual, Africans were at the front.
Then came the chief guests! When Azharuddin came, little confusions started broiling. Many boys who were in the field, unlike us who were in the stands, started foraying into the VIP area. But when Arshad Warsi, Vidya Balan & Neetu Chandra entered, the crowd went beserk. All the journos crowded the whole aisle with their microphones and cameras. And more and more of the crowd dashed into the VIP area. Everybody wanted the stars for themselves!
Disgusted and disappointed with just the satisfaction that we had glimpsed Azhar & Vidya, we moved out.
The event was really ill-managed. Even a high-school function is organized more properly. Even though the race was suppose to champion Gandhian values, I am sorry to say it just failed. Add to this two camera crazy fools who turned up as Gandhi! Who cares about Gandhiji’s values, it’s the vanity and pomposity which sells. Even though it was an international event, which could actually act as a platform to showcase Nagpur to the world, the leaders failed to break the party lines. The event had participation from only one political party while other parties maintained a respectable absence. Only few days ago all of them were hobnobbing for separate Vidarbha. The event showed unity and solidarity of the Nagpurians, all turning up at so early in the morning, wearing same clothes, running side by side and then the collective rowdiness. But it also exposed the shallowness of these politicians!
Lot more effort has to be put in to organize such events in future. And I’d also like to condemn the actions of the participants. They should be well-behaved next time. This time they have just ruined the reputation of Nagpur with their silly actions.
Hoping for a better function next time, I sign off.
Jai Hind!!!
Registrations had started more than a month ago. I had done mine and my brother’s registration and had secured the yellow T-shirts after an hour long tussle 15 days earlier.
As usual the quad comprising of me, Santu, Prasad & Taresh set out on Sunday morning for the 5.7 Km Non-violence run or the Ahimsa Daud. This time we missed the KP poha (It was all finished when we reached)! Lot of publicity had been done for the marathon and people had responded well. About a lakh participants were there. While the traditional races had the numbers limited to a few hundred in each category, Ahimsa Daud had a whopping 77,000 registrations.
While the other races were organized satisfactorily, Ahimsa Daud was a total chaos. At the race venue, Kasturchand Park, people started the race at their own accord. There was no formal announcement of a start and more confusion was created by the cultural programme going on there, in which people were actually coerced by the organizers so that they don’t mix with the participants of the competitive races. While many, including us, were watching the programme, the crowd at the rear started thinning. Then only we realized that we should also make the move. Even when the race un-officially started, the cultural programme continued! So, much for co-ordination!
Different banners and logos were being showcased on different issues as it is generally in these kinds of events. Near Institute of Science another mismanagement came into picture. The water pouches were strewn all over and it seemed like a water tanker had upturned at that place! No volunteer was seen and nobody had cared to stop this waste of water. Ironically, when we reached the aforesaid place, the banner in front of us was showcasing, “SAVE WATER. SAVE LIFE!” “ALL IS WELL” was the most famous banner and that is what kept the race going!
Lot more water was wasted at the finish point i.e. at Yeshwant Stadium. The road was again drenched along with the participants. Organizers were unavailable to stop this wastage as well. We, drenched a little, entered the stadium for the final ceremony. A yellow crowd welcomed us there. It seemed like a yellow sea had entered the stadium. There was no organization over here as well. Water pouches were being thrown here and there and the programme was disoriented. When Vaishali Samant was singing, a band and later a dance troupe was performing on the other side of the ground. We spectators were confused and later the coming of the Full-Marathon athletes totally diverted our attention away from Miss Samant! She eventually had to back out. At the race front as usual, Africans were at the front.
Then came the chief guests! When Azharuddin came, little confusions started broiling. Many boys who were in the field, unlike us who were in the stands, started foraying into the VIP area. But when Arshad Warsi, Vidya Balan & Neetu Chandra entered, the crowd went beserk. All the journos crowded the whole aisle with their microphones and cameras. And more and more of the crowd dashed into the VIP area. Everybody wanted the stars for themselves!
Disgusted and disappointed with just the satisfaction that we had glimpsed Azhar & Vidya, we moved out.
The event was really ill-managed. Even a high-school function is organized more properly. Even though the race was suppose to champion Gandhian values, I am sorry to say it just failed. Add to this two camera crazy fools who turned up as Gandhi! Who cares about Gandhiji’s values, it’s the vanity and pomposity which sells. Even though it was an international event, which could actually act as a platform to showcase Nagpur to the world, the leaders failed to break the party lines. The event had participation from only one political party while other parties maintained a respectable absence. Only few days ago all of them were hobnobbing for separate Vidarbha. The event showed unity and solidarity of the Nagpurians, all turning up at so early in the morning, wearing same clothes, running side by side and then the collective rowdiness. But it also exposed the shallowness of these politicians!
Lot more effort has to be put in to organize such events in future. And I’d also like to condemn the actions of the participants. They should be well-behaved next time. This time they have just ruined the reputation of Nagpur with their silly actions.
Hoping for a better function next time, I sign off.
Jai Hind!!!
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