Sunday, August 15, 2010
Monday, July 5, 2010
Carrie convinced me...
His hello was the end of her endings
Her smile, their first step down the aisle
His hand would be hers to hold forever
His forever was as simple as her smile
He said she was what was missing
She said instantly she knew
She was a question to be answered
And his answer was I do
--- Carrie Bradshaw
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Alice Grunge
Alice was at a rock concert. The crowd was in a trance, mesmerized in the tunes and words of Floyd. Alice was dressed in a black and red garment bizarrely snipped by the Mad Hatter. A cigarette on her ringless fingers and a bottle of red wine in another hand, she found herself swaying in trance and head-banging to the guitar when the rabbit looked into her eyes and showed her the time on its watch. Alice was distracted. She ran behind the rabbit hurriedly.
The rabbit said “Don't you have any sense of direction? You are on the wrong way. Don't follow me. Hurry back on the path you left behind.”
"Why should I go back to the path of hopeless emptiness? The path that echoes silence and offers a tempting feast on a platter but is tasteless when consumed. The path that is planned, predictable, almost time-tabled"
“That's your path of conformity, Alice” warned the rabbit.
“I am just curious! Besides, I will be back.”
“What if you get lost and never find your way back” grinned the rabbit.
“That's a risk I am willing to take” announced Alice.
The rabbit laughed, as if in ridicule and scurried off.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Un-dry this State
Infuse life into days,
days that number into years;
undry this state,
unfreeze those tears
let us hear the cacophony
of giggling inebriants,
intoxicated murmurs
of the sinning valiants
the tired co worker
with his pitcher of beer
who gulps down his ego
that he holds dear
the lonely teenager
outgrown into an adult
a kid inside
who follows the cult
the restless hair-dos
of gossiping kittens
the conversing intellectuals
the love- smittens
we serve for them all
carefree joys,
we serve unlimited
pour out, vent
the music goes deeper
this song is your story
you didn't order for
this life of luxury
while you chose the comfort
and gave up the city scape
you settled for the suburbs
for the comfort of a dry state
will inebriation make it all go away
or do u long for a new poison everyday
are you really done with this town
does the sea call upon a new dawn
change you seek,
the hammock of monotony breaks
now you long to try a new drink
another story to create
Infuse life into days,
days that number into years;
undry this state,
unfreeze those tears
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Monday, March 1, 2010
A happy weekend in Amdavad- part 2!
As promised to the dude who gave me a bumper discount on my purchase of LCD from the brand that he works for, I write one more post on Shishir Mishra’s adventures in gujjuland.
Life could not get any duller than it was. So dull, that I didn’t even realize that holi was coming this weekend. It was that one rare weekend where we gujjus get two simultaneous holidays. (Unfortunately, in my workaholic company, Saturday is a full working day!) Somebody did ask me, what I was doing for the weekend, but I had long forgotten that this was a holi + Shishir-visiting-Amdavad special weekend. So I replied “nothing, as usual” in the tone of the loser that I have become after staying in this dry state for so long.
But when Saturday evening arrived at last, my boss took off to Udaipur and then I took off to spend two full days sleeping, having completely forgotten about holi n all. You see, unlike my sister I don’t put too much pressure on myself thinking ‘o shit, it’s a weekend; it’s a festival, what’s the plan? I can’t be at home, doing nothing while the world is out there celebrating!!!’
Sunday was a quiet afternoon spent with Sasha and Shishir discussing laptops, Russian dancers and those secret seats outside CCD, which are actually places to meet blind dates according to a theory by Shasha! We all decided to meet the next day morning to celebrate holi together.
However the next day, while Shishir was still asleep (that’s an understatement)
The next day, while Shishir was sloshed somewhere with half a bottle of a gin named ‘Bombay sapphire’; my sister and I had already started our holi celebrations with the half friends-half strangers gujju gang at my apartment. After an hour of colors, water being splashed from hoses and balloons splat from building tops, Mohit and Nisarg (Anu’s friends) decided to get some cigarettes. The four of us, went to the terrace from where we watched the world under our feet. While they smoked, we tapped our feet to random bollywood songs played on Nisarg’s phone. Meanwhile, holi celebration at the society was over and people had bathed squeky clean and come down for a sophisticated lunch. Anu and I were the only two people still looking like rag pickers with green and yellow colored hair, waiting endlessly for Shishir to turn up. At last he did. And brought along a friend whose name is spelt R-I-S-H-A-B-H; riding on a royal Enfield bullet that deserved a red carpet welcome.
Too late for holi we thought. Heck, who cares! Anu and I went to the first floor, knocked on yet another half friend-half strangers’ door and asked him to throw buckets of water on Shishir and Rishabh. Meanwhile, the duo was standing right under the balcony, waiting in great anticipation of the water that was conspired to be thrown. In fact, the bucket idea was theirs. It just wouldn’t feel like holi without a little bit of water and colors, would it!
Couldn’t let my friends leave town, without having drenched them. So, I gave them an Amdavadi holi to cherish. So what, if it lasted for only 10 minutes? The Enfield rode off with goodbyes and the red carpet was all rolled up!
Happy holi!
Life could not get any duller than it was. So dull, that I didn’t even realize that holi was coming this weekend. It was that one rare weekend where we gujjus get two simultaneous holidays. (Unfortunately, in my workaholic company, Saturday is a full working day!) Somebody did ask me, what I was doing for the weekend, but I had long forgotten that this was a holi + Shishir-visiting-Amdavad special weekend. So I replied “nothing, as usual” in the tone of the loser that I have become after staying in this dry state for so long.
But when Saturday evening arrived at last, my boss took off to Udaipur and then I took off to spend two full days sleeping, having completely forgotten about holi n all. You see, unlike my sister I don’t put too much pressure on myself thinking ‘o shit, it’s a weekend; it’s a festival, what’s the plan? I can’t be at home, doing nothing while the world is out there celebrating!!!’
Sunday was a quiet afternoon spent with Sasha and Shishir discussing laptops, Russian dancers and those secret seats outside CCD, which are actually places to meet blind dates according to a theory by Shasha! We all decided to meet the next day morning to celebrate holi together.
However the next day, while Shishir was still asleep (that’s an understatement)
The next day, while Shishir was sloshed somewhere with half a bottle of a gin named ‘Bombay sapphire’; my sister and I had already started our holi celebrations with the half friends-half strangers gujju gang at my apartment. After an hour of colors, water being splashed from hoses and balloons splat from building tops, Mohit and Nisarg (Anu’s friends) decided to get some cigarettes. The four of us, went to the terrace from where we watched the world under our feet. While they smoked, we tapped our feet to random bollywood songs played on Nisarg’s phone. Meanwhile, holi celebration at the society was over and people had bathed squeky clean and come down for a sophisticated lunch. Anu and I were the only two people still looking like rag pickers with green and yellow colored hair, waiting endlessly for Shishir to turn up. At last he did. And brought along a friend whose name is spelt R-I-S-H-A-B-H; riding on a royal Enfield bullet that deserved a red carpet welcome.
Too late for holi we thought. Heck, who cares! Anu and I went to the first floor, knocked on yet another half friend-half strangers’ door and asked him to throw buckets of water on Shishir and Rishabh. Meanwhile, the duo was standing right under the balcony, waiting in great anticipation of the water that was conspired to be thrown. In fact, the bucket idea was theirs. It just wouldn’t feel like holi without a little bit of water and colors, would it!
Couldn’t let my friends leave town, without having drenched them. So, I gave them an Amdavadi holi to cherish. So what, if it lasted for only 10 minutes? The Enfield rode off with goodbyes and the red carpet was all rolled up!
Happy holi!
Saturday, January 2, 2010
A quarter life crisis
A bit too soon to get here, but it's a sad little, queer world when you are 20 something and don't know exactly where you belong. This is more full of surprises than the much hyped about adolescence, teenage or mid life crisis. At least, you get a warning before all of that!!
The situation here is rather simple. At office, my colleagues and therefore good friends are all people in the age group of 30 to 40, mostly married- on the other side of the hill. Incidentally because I am the branding in charge of the preschool business- Redbricks Junior, I have conveniently become a personification of the preschool mascot called 'Junior'. I am the giggling kiddo, who is always at the service of these baaps and 'heads'. At the same time, I get the 'golden opportunity' of hanging out on the other side of the hill. This includes intellectual conversations, self actualizing stories, camel cart and cycle rides as healthier option to cars, sophisticated plays and a crazy sense of workoholism and commitment. Enjoying all this, while giggling like a recently transformed adult who used to be a kid-in-a-candy-store.
After the giggling in office is over, I need my kind of recreation too. That means dancing, coffee shops, bike rides et al. Dancing vis a vis intellectual conversations on progress of the economy, cheap coffee shops vis a vis 'fine dining experiences and motor bike rides vis a vis. Honda civic drives. So, enter 'Spin Academy'- my dance classes with Aakash Karnataki. Just when I thought mera bachpan laut aaya; I realized 'dude, this isn't where I parked my car!' I find myself attracted to this adorable guy who dances amazingly well. The next day he tells me he is in 11th standard, after addressing me as 'ma'am'. After doing a stage performance with 'baccha party' I returned home.
My sis gave me a sweet assurance; “You want friends? You can hang out with my friends (batting eyelashes)”. Lovely as she is, her offer sounded even better.. Xavierites in their early 20s seemed a far better option compared to school going kiddos. Enter New Year's eve party with sis and her gang! Alas, they address me as 'Didi' but I don't get discouraged by this minor set back.
I suddenly realized that in the company of younger people, you automatically, invariably and uncontrollably start acting like a 'mother goose'. When one of them was priding herself on not owning a mobile phone I started harping a lecture on the harmful effects of electromagnetic radiations emitted by cellular phones. Just some knowledge dished out by one of my office colleagues from the other side of the hill (that is to say, the academic head who has a daughter of my age and I went out for coffee with her - not the daughter, the 'head').
Anyway, here too I found it hard to place myself. Mature or immature? Young girl or career woman? Party hopper or intellectuality seeker? Been-there-Done-that or Innocent fool? Who am I ?(at the risk of sounding like Peter Parker).
Among all these confusions, it failed to occur to me that I have the best of both worlds. The carefree random simpleton fun of growing-up life and the responsibility and commitment of a grown-up's lifestyle.. Neither of these people are my friends, I walk alone. They are momentary companions of my transcendental existence unbound by time, age and human bonds. Just as they say 'tweet is a lonely man'; hey blog is a lonely women too!
The situation here is rather simple. At office, my colleagues and therefore good friends are all people in the age group of 30 to 40, mostly married- on the other side of the hill. Incidentally because I am the branding in charge of the preschool business- Redbricks Junior, I have conveniently become a personification of the preschool mascot called 'Junior'. I am the giggling kiddo, who is always at the service of these baaps and 'heads'. At the same time, I get the 'golden opportunity' of hanging out on the other side of the hill. This includes intellectual conversations, self actualizing stories, camel cart and cycle rides as healthier option to cars, sophisticated plays and a crazy sense of workoholism and commitment. Enjoying all this, while giggling like a recently transformed adult who used to be a kid-in-a-candy-store.
After the giggling in office is over, I need my kind of recreation too. That means dancing, coffee shops, bike rides et al. Dancing vis a vis intellectual conversations on progress of the economy, cheap coffee shops vis a vis 'fine dining experiences and motor bike rides vis a vis. Honda civic drives. So, enter 'Spin Academy'- my dance classes with Aakash Karnataki. Just when I thought mera bachpan laut aaya; I realized 'dude, this isn't where I parked my car!' I find myself attracted to this adorable guy who dances amazingly well. The next day he tells me he is in 11th standard, after addressing me as 'ma'am'. After doing a stage performance with 'baccha party' I returned home.
My sis gave me a sweet assurance; “You want friends? You can hang out with my friends (batting eyelashes)”. Lovely as she is, her offer sounded even better.. Xavierites in their early 20s seemed a far better option compared to school going kiddos. Enter New Year's eve party with sis and her gang! Alas, they address me as 'Didi' but I don't get discouraged by this minor set back.
I suddenly realized that in the company of younger people, you automatically, invariably and uncontrollably start acting like a 'mother goose'. When one of them was priding herself on not owning a mobile phone I started harping a lecture on the harmful effects of electromagnetic radiations emitted by cellular phones. Just some knowledge dished out by one of my office colleagues from the other side of the hill (that is to say, the academic head who has a daughter of my age and I went out for coffee with her - not the daughter, the 'head').
Anyway, here too I found it hard to place myself. Mature or immature? Young girl or career woman? Party hopper or intellectuality seeker? Been-there-Done-that or Innocent fool? Who am I ?(at the risk of sounding like Peter Parker).
Among all these confusions, it failed to occur to me that I have the best of both worlds. The carefree random simpleton fun of growing-up life and the responsibility and commitment of a grown-up's lifestyle.. Neither of these people are my friends, I walk alone. They are momentary companions of my transcendental existence unbound by time, age and human bonds. Just as they say 'tweet is a lonely man'; hey blog is a lonely women too!
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