Thanks for your wishes

Sanjeev, Swati, Dr Mona, all those who wished me on my birthday through their valuable comments on this blog, I say Thank You to all . I also thank those who wished me through other fora. My family, my sister, Saurav, Michael, Tarun, Anjor, Gaurav bhai, Anna, Alka, Ruchi, Sanchi, Rajni, Farah, Shivani, Mannu, Pooja mam, Satya sir, Vaibhav, Gary, Ankit, Vijay, Sanya, Bala, Navdha, Monika, Ashis, Roshan sir, Dhiraj,Arti, Manmohan, Ranvijay, and my whole team. The list is endless. Apologies called for, if I have forgotten any name.

I also thank those who wished me in their hearts and shall tell their feelings the next time I meet them. And shall tell how busy they were to .........

Hehehehehe.

A special thanks to the person who introduced me to a new dimension of celebration. I always thought that the birthday boy/ gal has to throw a party. But this time, i was treated to a marvellous lunch. Custard was YUMMY. Thanks Naomi.

Ok buddies, till next time, ciao.

P.S. Do NOT forget to take a bite of THIS cake. :P

Ironical

HAPPY NAVRATRI TO ALL.

Yet again I am posting a post. And yet again I am late in doing this. I must change this habit.

The navratris have started and are being celebrated all over the country. I need NOT tell anyone that these navratris are considered to be the MOST pious days among Hindus. It is the GODDESS SHAKTI in her 9 forms who is worshipped.

FINE. GOOD.

But look who is worshipping the Goddess. A lady who worships her so that her daugher-in-law shall be 'blessed' with a male child.

Take this. There is a group of bhakts in my area, who would NOT leave any chance at a crowded place to brush against the body of a female. Boys in this group seem to carry permanent lust in their eyes. I wonder whether they do carry the same feelings for their own sisters and mothers. And this so called group of bhakts is 'organising' a jagaran of MAA DURGA. Give me a break.

There is this man in my locality who would beat his wife at any instance. Abusing must accompany the beatings. He has become a saint these days. Chanting Jai Mata Di.

I feel so helpless.

It is NOT that good people do not observe navratris. But then good becomes a relative word when we make comparisons. What is the use of worshipping a female deity, when our females do not feel safe while travelling in our cities? What is the bloody use of observing fasts when female foetuses can be found in backyards, and that too in scores?

I know I should NOT be getting too much negative. I should be sharing good thoughts on the holy occasion. And that is why I have NOT spoken for other issues like dowry deaths, molestation, discrimination, and numerous crimes that are committed against the fairer sex every single second.

I am not able to think of remedies to these problems. I really feel bad and helpless. Confronting the culprits at the metro or in a bus is something that does not kill demon once and for all.

I can only wish that Every single girl is allowed to take birth, achieve equal opportunities.

Happy Navratris.

Happy Independence Day

... ab ke baras tujhe dharti ki rani kar denge, ab ke baras...

I was enjoying my breakfast when this line from Manoj Kumar's Kranti fell into my jolly ears. The hitherto upbeat heart started an introspection of sorts. And this line proves to be a dream even today.

But then, I swore back at myself. 15th August should be a day to celebrate. And celebrations in my heart still continue, till writing of this post. Sixty two years since we became soverign. WOW!

But yes, we MUST learn to value this independence. We must tackle the threats to our Motherland that come in different faces. Terrorism, failed monsoon, rising prices, Swine flu, public peeing, eve-teasing, caste-system, corruption.. the list goes on.

Ooppsss........... again I took the track that seems inappropriate when the mood should be merry. Okays, let me put rest to my mind, that is speaking through my fingers at the moment.

Hey hang on! I am NOT done yet.

Okay, I wind up by saying that let us celebrate our nation's independence.

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY TO ALL FELLOW INDIANS.

And yeah, we have to keep humming..... ab ke baras tujhe darti ki rani kar denge..... and mean it , too.

Ever given a thought?? Have we?

On my way to office today, I saw someone "special" in the bus. Someone who would never attract anyone. Instead would cause some frowns. I was no different. I did opt for standing, rather than sitting beside her. I did not look at her. Wondering who she was? She was a Leper. Those 10 odd minutes in the bus seemed tortorous to me. My conscinece said, "Kunal, u were never like this." Anyway, I do not intend to express my feelings for myself or for the poor gal. All i can say is that now I hate myself for the said feelings. What I get to learn here is that...... we always cribb for something or the other. We are always ready with complaints. and we hardly thank the Almighty for giving us what we have.
Isnt it worth a thought?

An unplanned trip

Hey, it's yours truly in the centre, with Sunny on your right and Nikhil is the third one. We had visited Damdama lake on that day. It was turning out to be a boring Sunday. I was sure of not touching any book. Sunny and Nikhil didn't want cricket, for a change. So we had this sudden trip to the lake.
The place is in Gurgaon district, some 50 kms from our house in Safdarjang Enclave. It was a typical hot summer day. But the very thought of visiting Aravallis kept us going. And when I told the two dudes that our mobiles shall be on roaming there, I could see excitment in their eyes. Everything was very exciting, very pleasant. Even the weather gods came to party with us. So much so that we had a boating session - although the summer season made the lake look more like the water stretches that we see during train journeys, with buffaloes giving us company, from a distance.
Sunny and I even did some 'mountaineering' and reached a height of around 100 feet :)
On the way back, the laddoos and maththees were icing on the cake.....

Sometimes, unplanned events can spell magic. I felt recharged due to this trip, with all the mental fatigue gone.

India - 2 Nations in One

Walking through the streets
Often do I smile, with a tear in my Eye.

Inequality galores.
And I do get nightmares, That it Is here to stay.
But we have achieved, too.
That is something i can proudly say.
Sometimes the smile hides the tear,
Sometimes it is the other way.

Confused often as I am
Do wonder, what lies ahead.......
Glorious years to come,
Or fight for water and bread.

But then my heart speaks up
This is OUR country
and We have to keep it pious
Come what may.


I wrote these lines a couple of years back, and chose them to represent me in my Orkut and Facebook profiles. Now when I feel like changing the profile, these lines are too valuable to be lost. Hence, you see my creation in this blog.

Happy Birthday :)

Smile, frown, grin and tear
I have been through all this in the last year!!!!

Yes!!!! It's the first anniversary of my blog......
Though I love to write, but the number of posts on this blog, till date, reflect otherwise.

Today, i have kinda rediscovered myself, through this blog. Though not posting anything special at the moment, but shall be doing that now, more often than not.

Till then, Happy Birthday, My blog.....
:)