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.....
:)

Jai Ho

It is March 1, and I am late to write on the fairytale story of Slumdog Millionaire. Till now, millions of words have been written on the topic, and I am sure billions are yet to come.

At the outset, congratulations to 'The Slumdog Family', as they like to be addressed. My selection of an AR Rehman pic to represent this post should make it clear that I am particularly excited about his success. Also, greetings to Gulzar and Pookutty.

Let's hope that this is just a beginning, and that we see many more Oscars, coming to India. And one day it is an Indian movie that gets the naked lady.
But how big is the probability to see it come true in the near future? Answer is, very low.

And let me throw reasons, before all those yet-to-come-out-of-euphoria people start coming for my head. Well, let us accept this. Slumdog...... is a british movie. True, it is shot in India. But so was Gandhi. It is worth mentioning that Gandhi claimed the same number of Oscars as Slumdog - 8. This time, 3 Indians share the pie.
So, we have to accept that West, especially Hollywood is not yet ready to entertain the movies meant to entertain the Indians. True, there are many 'Class' people in our society, who would find Nandita Das sexier than Bipasha Basu and who think Amitabh Bachchan should take some acting lessons from Amol Palekar. But such people are a minority. Most of the Indians still love the naach-gaana, the romance, the action, which is so easily ridiculed by the 'intellectuals'.
And I am sure that most of the Indian Filmmakers are still making movies for Indians. And they shall not compromise on that, in order to lure goraa log. There may be target viewers -multiplex goers, urban young, rural families, etc. But essentially, a Farhaan Akhtar, a Mahesh Bhatt, an Ashutosh Gowariker, an AB, an SRK, an AK, all of them target those Indians who do not confuse themselves with Americans or Europeans.

One more thing. POVERTY in India and movies on it. I know it has been discussed at many fora. So let it be another one. It is true that poverty exists in our country, which is painful and shameful. And to depict reality should not be criticized. But figure this ------ Mother India, Salaam Bombay and Lagaan. Only 3 movies till date to make it to the final five. And they had one thing in common - depiction of poverty. Now Slumdog.... almost clarifies what does the West like to see in our films.

There is no denying that Indian filmmakers should learn to be more creative. They should find new themes to make cinema on. And books should always be looked upon as a better option to get 'inspired', rather than Hollywood. And the new breed of filmmakers are doing the same. But in order to woo the Hollywood...... they should never forget that they are making movies for India and Indians. Karan Johar can be exempted.

In the end, I would like to tell everyone that I am NOT among those who a call a rose a 'thorny rose'. I would call it a rose, and that's it. So, Congratulations, once again to all the Indians who won the Oscar. And mentioning Smile Pinki is imperative. Greetings to the documentary team.

Till next Oscars, let us cherish the success, hoping for more. Till next Oscars, Jai Ho.

New JOB

Now this one is a classic example to show the effectiveness in the working of Govt Departments in our country. It highlights the 'coordination' between them.
Friday, January 16, 2009. The clock was saying 'quarter to five' in the evening. Ding-dong. The speed-post guy. My brother received it, which was a letter meant for me. He told me that I was selected in IDBI bank as an executive, for which I had taken a written test and an interview, and it was my appointment letter sent by the bank. Okay people, IDBI is 52.3% govt. For more, read
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industrial_Development_Bank_of_India

The news came as a slight shock to me, although a happy one. Shock because they declared me 'not qualified' when I had checked results on the net. I thought that some factors other than my performance were responsible. But now, I became happy and started reading the letter, only to discover that a bigger shock was in store for me.
On turning the pages, I came to know that last day to report for the job was January 15, 2009. Are you getting the effectiveness and coordination that i was talking about? I got the letter a day later than the last date. In fact, it was dispatched on 16th. At least the stamp on envelope yelled that. It was just 10 minutes to 5. I had to report at Pusa Road branch, which would have got closed by 6. It was told on phone.Without wasting any time, I picked my certificates,and headed off for the office in an auto. My auto walla was a gem, who understood my situation and took me to the branch. He even took the pain of asking the whereabouts of the place. He was a very fine human being at heart, as he did not forget to wish me luck. And for all his wishes and contributions, Rs 150/- that he charged, for picking me from Safdarjang Enclave and dropping at Pusa, was just an offering, the farz that I had to fulfill.
Anyway, back to my appointment. They said that I was late. I was also prepared. To fight. To have heated arguments. But nothing of the sort happened. I explained the situation just once. And I was recruited, albeit next day, with some red tape involved.
And now, I am working there. Not for money. Not to make a career out of it. Being honest, I do not like the work. Though I am getting applause on daily basis. And i am getting it from the source that matters. My boss. She is a very sweet person. Many people have called me lucky to have Pooja Mam, as everyone calls her, as my boss. Other bosses are more interested in bossing around, rather than getting the things done. I noticed it today, when she said, "Yeah! No problem" when I asked whether tomorrow I could leave early.


I realize that I have been writing this post in a manner akin to sas bahu serials. Story starts at a place, then takes a digression. Then back. Then digression.
Anyway, coming back to my job, I have joined the bank because two years of studies at home has taken a toll on me. And by interacting with people, I hope to come out of the emotional vacuum that has got created around me. As for why this job, which is nowhere near the level of UPSC, well, I do not have marks to sit in Bank PO type exams. And SSC exams I have not taken. Corporate jobs shall pay me well. But then, time left to me shall be too less to be in touch with my books. So, this job has put me on an optimum place, if not the best....
Let's see what happens.

मर वे

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