Hey, it's a birthday!

I commute to office every day, for about an hour, at daybreak & return home as twilight prevails, in an automobile called as tempo traveler. We get to know new people who travel with us. We make friends. We also miss those beautiful people who, in the journey of life, at some point, prefer to take up different trails. We do hang out on weekends & we do celebrate birthdays of our cab mates. DON'T WE?

I remember seeing one of my senior friends eyes being moist at his birthday party, planned as a surprise. It was for the first time, in more than three decades, he was celebrating his birthday, ceremoniously. It was for the first time he blew candles & cut a cake, a delicious one. Birthday boy, oops birthday uncle, was very delighted at this pleasant surprise. His joy had no bounds yet he had it humble. His glittering eyes had an incredible happiness to share.

Birthday...Isn't it the best day of your life? Is it not the day which you eagerly await a whole year? I am damn sure you will nod your head in concurrence. I DO. Is it not the day you wish to be happy (more happy than on other days, though)?Is it not our birth right to remember our friends' birthdays? YES IT IS! Will we not be guilty if we forget & fail to bring a smile on a person's face by not wishing happy birthday? YES WE WILL BE.

As a famous joke goes, "best way to remember your wife's {(Don’t read it as wives) (girl friend's for bachelors) birthday is to forget it once. You will never forget it again". Don't you agree?

Social networking sites, these days, will keep saving if you do not remember any of those birthdates. You get hundred's of wishes, on your wall. So called best friends will wish in their own styles. Even if you give thousands of excuses, you will be made to pay a hefty bill. That is the best way it can happen. I love it.

There will be a few formal wishes from friends, acquaintances and also from people whom you might take a while to remember their name, if you happen to bump into each other. Thanks to Facebook, orkut, twitter etc. etc.

Have you ever realized what happens if you choose to turn off those notifications? How many names in your friends list remember YOUR BIRTHDAY? Check out.

By the way, how many do you REMEMBER?

Children of a lesser God!

Aamir's television show Satyamev jayate inspired me to post this, again. This is one of the earlier posts on my blog (two years ago, to be precise). From past one week i had nothing running in my mind which i can blog about, so thought of writing (editing) this again.

No, i am neither talking anything about Mr Aamir Khan nor his show. Also, the title of this post has nothing to do with the eighties' melodrama. 
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Sanath, tell me the names of at least 5 cars you know?
Maruti… Honda… Indigo…Maruti, Honda, Indigo…
Say it loudly Sanath, I can’t hear, u have 2 more to go. (This time more articulate from the teacher)
Maruti, Honda, Indigo… (The boy was very hesitant to answer further)
Will u not answer if someone is looking at you Sanath?

This was a conversation between a teacher & her student. To be precise, this was perhaps a conversation between a teacher & a ten year old student, Sanath. You might be wondering why such a simple question was asked to a ten year old. In fact boys of this age can answer a lot more difficult ones than this one. If you are thinking if something was not proper, yes your thoughts are right. Sanath is mentally challenged. I witnessed this above conversation at ‘Apoorva center for AUTISM’ located at JP Nagar, Bangalore. Sanath is one among the 22 children who come here every day for special kind of schooling. This is the school meant only for children with Autism. The children of lesser gods.
 

Sanath's Elephant ...Jumbo Elephant!

Autism is a neural disorder in kids. It causes them to experience this world entirely different from the way most other kids normally do. They cannot express their feelings to others through words. They cannot eat, they cannot walk properly, they cannot play, they cannot feel, and they cannot. They just cannot.

My son is 18 years old. He is here for 15 years now’ Lakshmi madam, who is the caretaker of this noble institution, told this. She gave up her banking job to look after her son. He was 3 years when they noticed his disorder. Her elder son works for a reputed firm in US.

Every kid at Apoorva had different behavior. Some were happy on seeing strange people walking up to them & trying to be friendly with them. Some resisted, some shied away, and some not even tried to have an eye contact, as in case of Sanath. One of them was crying profusely just to avoid mathematics class. He hated numbers.

These kids, mostly, prefer to be alone, sometimes they don’t respond no matter how much loud you talk & sometimes they get afraid of even a meager noise. They don’t have a real fear of dangers. Sometimes they show their extreme distress for simple or no apparent reason. They find it extremely vulnerable to interact with other people. They never like to see any sort of change in their routine.

Autism doesn’t have any particular symptoms related to health, as per doctors. Kids’ behavior is the only way to figure out the disorder. Usually AUTISM in kids can be detected when they are around 18 months old. Worst part is that there is no treatment for this disorder. Early detection, Doctors’, therapists & the special teaching alone can bring any difference to these Children of a lesser God.

Some of the beautiful paintings at Apoorva

"The tallest man is he who stoops to help a child" are the humble words you will get to read on Apoorva's website.

Many thanks to my friend D who took me to this place.

So cute!

Her death, under mystifying conditions, had all the family members perturbed. But astonishingly, there were people who seemed not only insensitive to the bereavement but were content with the news of her demise. Not even in their wild imagination did they believe she would come alive to avenge (haunt) her rivals.

When the time had come to put an end to her vengeance, she finds herself in a deeper grave. Unfolding situations had left the bitter truth of her life stand naked in front of her. It was hard to acknowledge the reality that those she believed to be her parents all her life, were not the ones who gave birth to her. To make the situation more vulnerable, she comes across her sister, who happens to be her identical twin, who also is a partner in crime.

I am not trying by hand on fiction. I would certainly want to but not anything, even slightly closer, to the one above. You might be shocked to know that it is the story of a saas bahu (mother in law, daughter in law) tele serial broadcasted during the prime time on one of the leading channels. If I am given a chance, I would shoot the writer at point blank range. Can you even imagine it to be any closer to reality? I wonder how do people follow it so closely.

Literally, there would be world wars happening if anyone dares to browse any different channel other than the ones airing these stupid soaps. Many thanks to one of the leading lady of Indian television (can be read as Ekta).

Let me not divert my intention of coming up with this post. I think I have already deviated much. Last weekend, thank almighty that they let us have television remote controls on weekends, while browsing through, I stopped at one of the reality dance show. Having enjoyed the success for more than a couple of years, this reality show is quite admired by all age factions.

Auditions are more interesting and most of the times hilarious to watch. All kinds of people put their talent at stake in front of the judges and also millions of viewers. This year it is time for the kids to unravel their blooming bundle of talent. I bet a fortune that watching these kids is far better than watching some idiotic serials. (Let me not elaborate why did I watch one of those serials)

No matter how worse or how chaotic your day at work would have been, watching these kids shake their leg to the peppy numbers will, of-course, make you feel better. You might not have seen cuteness being personified. I am sure you will.

Prabal Bhandari & Arya Jain

Last week it was these two cute & pretty kids, five year old boy & four year old girl, performing to a duet song, which must have left the masters of dance wondering. Those two kids had put the best of the dancers at shame. They were flawless. They danced to perfection. They danced in sync. They had put the stage on fire. They made everyone watching them smile. They had innocence in their dance. They had happiness.

Enjoy watching them here.

PS: I am not paid for promoting the show or the channel J

Desperate Eyes

googled image

Rubeena, with her melodiously sweet voice was talking to one of the many callers on her show called ‘flashback with Rubeena’ on radio. I was falling in love with Kavitha Krishnamurthy who was at her vocal best in one of her songs being aired. Next to follow was the legendary voice of Mr. Jagjit Singh, singing one of the best gazals of all time. Humming to these serene tunes I was couched comfortably at the navigator’s seat of a friend’s car.

Rubeena had an interesting topic being discussed on air. She was asking her listeners to express their childhood memories where in they had anything mischievous to hide their wrong doings. One of the interesting caller, believe me she also had an amazing voice, went on to narrate her tale. We were at a traffic signal when a boy, who had been to this world around a decade ago, approached us to sell a toy.

His bones were wrapped around with a thin layer of skin, which could have easily been torn apart, without prompting much of a pain. His hair screamed they had never been caressed with the smoothness of oil. His clothes had seldom tasted water. His dark eyes were so so desperate. His voice uttered emotions.



The toy!

One thing which impressed me is that though life had pushed him to extremities of deadly hunger and poverty, it hasn’t got the best of him, yet. He was not begging. More often than not we see people resorting to all sorts of drama, just to beg. Having finished his day at school, yes he is to join fifth standard now, it was the time to earn money, by selling toys. His parents are working at a nearby construction site. I wonder what this kid would have answered to Rubeena if she asked him if cherished his childhood?
Would you buy a toy if, by any chance, spot any of those burdened boys around? It might cost us not more than ten or twenty rupees, but it might change their lives. He politely answered that he earns fifty to hundred rupees, if he has a lucky day. Wish every day brings a fair bit of luck.

Positive perspective!

Imagine you wake up to read a headline “Skilful pilots land copter on terrace” or to read this “Engine fails Helicopter lands on apartment terrace”. These are the headlines of two different leading national news papers, through which a majority of Indians begin their day. It occurred a few days ago in Bangalore when a helicopter developed failures in the lone engine. Pilot & the trainer ensured safe landing on the terrace of a building, averting a major mishap.

Do you see any difference in those two verses of a literature considered to be of high regard?

These above statements carry two different perspectives in it. One has a positive, motivating message being conveyed where as the later showcases the failure. The larger picture, to understand, is the ability to come up and try something new. The later statement has, undoubtedly, suppressed the immense talent and the ability of a young potential pilot, using his skills, avoided casualties.

Ill fated Helicopter

When an entire nation wakes up to read these national news papers, it is obvious that it bears lot of influence on people's perspective towards a country’s ambition to develop new technology, towards it’s strive to achievements, towards its path to glory.

When some alien showcases the dark side, and the so called slums, of our country, it wins enormous accolades across the globe. Where in these honorable, self proclaimed journalists, just for the sake of making profits, strip the pride of our country in front of their own citizens.

Do these journalists realize they are, or they can be, catalysts in changing the mindset of people? When will they realize the importance of being mature enough to support in harmony rather than inculcating in needless criticism?

A word of appreciation - Awesome blogger!

Appreciation is a wonderful thing: It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well - Voltaire.

Appreciation is always married, in fact very happily, to motivation. A word of appreciation, to an aspiring person, is like millions of ways towards perfection. The one who appreciates will, and must, deserve utmost gratitude. Voltaire is true.

Alka Narula is one such graceful person who appreciated my work in the bloggers world. She has bestowed upon me an award, Awesome blogger award, which is equal to an Oscar, for me. I am a beginner when compared to some of the indomitable writers. I knew her through Indiblogger, one of the most suitable forums for bloggers.

I thank you for your noble gesture Alka. You have been an inspiration. Thanks a lot. This award means a lot to me and i hope to live up to expectations.

As per the rules for accepting this award, i have to do this:

• Thank the person who conferred this award to me
• Share 7 things about me (the most difficult part)
• Pass the award to 15 newly discovered great bloggers ( Alka, can i change this rule? Next person can present this award to any number of bloggers he/she would like to. You must know it better how difficult it is to select only a few. Every blogger deserves this. Do you agree?)
• Contact these bloggers and tell them about the award

I hope i have done justice to the first obligation, of thanking the person. Let me come to the most difficult part of sharing few things about me.  

1. I am an introvert. It takes a lot of time for me to get along with a new person i meet, particularly girls. It literally took me three months to start a conversation with a girl travelling along with me, every day in my office cab. Please don't laugh.
2. On the contrary, I am very jovial person. Peep into my facebook profile, you will come to know.
3. I am single. (hehehehe I am finding it difficult to write a few things about me, already)
4. I love to drive. Enjoy long drives with friends
5. I love playing cricket. It doesn't mean i play only cricket, i do play lot of other sports too. (two more to go...huh)
6. I adore my Blog (needless to say though)
7. I don't like a lot of things about me (For obvious reasons, i cannot disclose those things)

Oh that was pretty tough. It is time now for me to pass on the prestigious award to the people who deserve and are far more worthy than i am. It is an honor for me to pass this on. And the award goes to:

• Ajeya
• Sujatha 
• Mangala 
• Deb
• Arun
• Joshi Daniel
• Arti
• Rajkumar
• Deepak
• Rupertt Wind
• Sonia
• Valady Hariharan
• Abu
• Sarabjeet
• Rads

Thank god, i am done. It is very hard to select fifteen out those fifty plus bloggers i know. Rule number two is changed.

All readers are bloggers' inspiration to come up with something new. I hope it continues. Thanks a lot. Happy reading.

Bikhre Bimb - a perspective!

Aap log to sirf mujhe dekhte hain stage pe… par iss performance ke peeche 15 aur logon ka haath hai. Mai chahti hoon ke aap un sab ke liye ek round of applause dein, Dhanyawad. (You people see only me on stage, but there are 15 more people who contribute to this performance. I want all of you to give a round of applause for them. Thank you).


These were the humble words by Arundhati Nag at the end of a mesmerizing performance for a play called Bikhre bimb at Rangashankara. Every person in that glorious auditorium was up on their feet to applaud. They had every reason to do so. They were applauding a wonderful actor, a humble personality, a flawless fantastic performance, a brilliant director and a hard working team.

Arundhati Nag

Arundhati Nag, who won a National award for best supporting role for the movie PAA, is a well-known actress & theatre personality. On stage, she is such a grace. She, all by herself, kept a house full of audience attentive to her performance for the entire show. There was never a dull moment.

Enacting a play is not as easy as we think. Unlike movies where in there are several re-takes, spot boys to help actors with script and what not. On the contrary, here a performer has no option re-takes. Everything is live in-front of the audience. There is very limited, or I can say, NO ROOM FOR ERROR. Arundhati Nag is one of the finest among all and the standing ovation was, perhaps, a proof of it.

Bikhre bimb

Bikhre bimb (Broken images) is a play written originally in Kannada, odakalu bimba, by noted playwright, poet, director, actor Girish Karnad. Bikhre bimb (co-directed by KM Chaitanya) is all about Manjula Naik, a professor of English literature, who also writes short stories in Kannada. Her life changes drastically after she comes up with a novel in English. Even though the audience thinks this as the epitome of the play, but the story moves on to take a lot of interesting twists and turns.

Though this is a mono act, it is the brilliance of Mr. Girish Karnad, who makes the audience feel the presence of other prominent characters, Manjula’s husband & her sister, on stage. The play has an elegant touch of humor which enthralls the audience. I would honestly urge those who live in Bangalore, not to miss this play.

The essence of this play is about a human being’s existence and his conscious. No matter how you present yourself to the world, your conscious will know what you are.

Rangashankara



Located in one of the prime localities of Bangalore, Rangashankara is an inception of late Mr. Shankar Nag. Husband of Arundhati Nag, he was a prominent actor, director and a visionary. Ambience is quite scintillating. Auditorium is very decently designed to seat an audience of more than a couple of hundreds.

Things to remember

Unlike movie theatres, there are no seat numbers at Rangashankara. You have to be present at the venue half n hour before the show time. And most importantly, if you are late by even a few minutes, you will be denied entry in the auditoria, reason – Very obvious, you can not disturb others.

Plays begin on the time. Pin drop silence prevails. You will be requested to turn-off your mobiles phones, even though there are jammers installed in the premises, to ensure there in no inconvenience caused during the entire performance. There is every measure taken to let you enjoy the show. So better do it.

Happy Women's day!

Happy women's day to all female friends, followers and my dear readers. I am pretty sure that no words are enough to explain a woman. But here is a expression of gratitude towards thier existence. Thank you for being a woman.

You bring strength as a sister, love as a wife, happiness as a girl
Serene as ever, you are marvelous as a pearl...
Sacred as a mother, under her feet is the heaven
You are so wonderful,i thank you for being a woman...

Respect!

As a youngest member of our family I have to follow all the instructions and also obey the orders passed by my parents:-). One of those is to be their chauffer. Since we moved to Bangalore from our hometown, which is 200 kms away from here, my parents never miss or never want to miss any of their relative’s weddings. It is their chance to mingle with their buddies and relatives who live far away.

Recently I accompanied my father to one of his best friend’s son’s wedding. It was very hard and perhaps an embarrassing moment for me since I barely knew any one at that wedding. The only person familiar to me was my father, of-course.

My father was very delighted to meet his good old friends from his hometown. The conversation started with a very obvious and curious question Hegide saar bengloor lifu? (How is Bangalore life, sir?). Without any hesitation my father replied nammoor maatu ee ooralli illa saar (This city is never better than our hometown). He loves his hometown and given a chance he would prefer to go back.

After finishing my dinner in less than four and a half minutes, which is very unusual of me, I walked out of the wedding hall to be comfortably seated on my bike. While I was waiting for my father to come back, I saw a person smoking cigarette. He was in his early forties. All of a sudden he went and hid behind a car. I was confused to see what he was trying to do.

All the while he was also watching me watch him. A couple of minutes later he came out smiling and even though I did not start any conversation with him, he went on to explain what he was doing. He said my elder brother was passing by; I went aside to hide so that he should not see me smoking. Out of curiosity I asked whether his brother knew about this habit of his or not? Laughingly he said his brother knows it very well but it is the respect which stops from smoking in front of him. It brought a pleasant smile on my rather grim face.

Not long ago, I read an article which mentioned about some foreign countries where the traffic comes to a halt or slows down when an elderly citizen is crossing the road. The author was trying to highlight the differences in culture. I would say we Indians are not far behind.

Unfortunate

I never miss any opportunity to visit my most dear cousin S who lives in Hindupur, 150 kilometers away from Bangalore. This weekend was one such opportunity which I grabbed without any hesitation. She is the best cook I have ever met and the delicious food she cooks is just mouth watering. This post is not about my visit to her but it is all about my return journey to Bangalore.

As usual I was comfortably seated in the last seat of the bus in which I was about to travel for the next four hours. Unfortunately, most of the times, I end up getting the last seat. After an hour of the strenuous journey, there was a buzz inside the bus. There were two elderly men who went to each of the passenger checking if they were travelling with a legal ticket. This was for the first time I was witnessing such sight. For me having travelled frequently in trains and busses had never come across this activity.

I showed my ticket which I had kept safely in my valet to one of the checking staff. The person sitting next to the window after a couple of seats from mine was horrified and searching all over the place for his ticket. He had lost it. He looked like a decent person and I am sure he was not lying about losing his ticket.

In a couple of minutes the conductor of the bus was also summoned and those three people started shouting at him. That guy looked helpless as he was taken to task in front of so many people. One of the co-passenger was brave enough to intervene and asked the conductor to check his electronic ticket issuing device for data about the tickets sold and the number of persons travelling on bus matched or not. Ashtella detailaagi nodakke aagalla saaar (I cannot check those entire details sir) is what the conductor had to say.

I thought the devices must be good enough to check if the person had really lost the ticket after buying or had deliberately not bought a ticket. It was indeed shameful even though none of the passengers knew that person.

Next time you travel, ensure to have your tickets with you all through the journey.