For Mumbai..

15 hours... i have been following ibn news... feeling soo crappy!!
Everyone is tired but this is still not ending...
Blackening out our blog to condemn the attacks...
Hoping we will have peace soon and we will return to our original white...
hoping, praying and wishing we could help...
Now is the time to show the power of Knowledge, Love and Smiles... Spread the light and help to fight the darkness... Woh savera aayega!!!
Love
Sangeetha

Boundry

As pitiful as it may seem to be,
In our own vibrant mother country
Regionalism is outcome of regional boundary.

Winds, sky and rains are free
So is the animal and bountiful tree.
Is humanity a burden which we carry?

Navigating in our home is migration,
Earning our livelihood is competition.
Are we refugees in our own nation?

Our opportunities are reserved.
Returns for our merit are undeserved.
Has equality ever been preserved?

Air is divided and so is the sea
Minds are narrower than ever they could be
Are we independent…Are we free?

Jay

Car and Life

It was lazy Saturday evening, while I was returning home when a weird idea struck me. I have been driving a lot these days trying to gain the perfection. And while the soothing breeze was caressing me, I realized that car is so much similar to our life.

Here is how the analogy works. Car is similar to life. Both keep on moving. They get battered, colored, maintained and loved. People use them, abuse them, overuse them, under-use them. Both need fuel. Our energy and enthusiasm is the fuel that charges our life. There are five gears in non-automated car. First gear is family. It’s very difficult to get the car moving or the life moving without family-support. Second gear is the friends. While we drive in the narrowest of the lanes in the city, Second gear is the most important. When we face massive obstacles, complex confusions, our friends are always there for our rescue. Third gear is the life partner. When life picks up pace and when amazing things start happening to a human, when potential and motivation to really go the next level is required third gear is comes into picture. Other 2 gears differ for different people. For a few them its career, for others it may be status, fame, money or any other thing that can be materialistically be equated to success.

Clutch is the heart. Irrespective of whatever we want to do with the car, clutch is the most important part. We use the clutch and put our car into different gears. We think from our heart and continually shift our priorities and our gears. Brakes are the reality checks which keep us guarded. They keep us humble and grounded. They teach us to be considerate, be respectful towards other cars. Accelerator is the passion that pushes the enthusiasm which in turn takes life ahead. Slopes on the roads are like the hurdles in life. We need a greater amount of push to carry life ahead when obstacles work as speed-breakers towards our destination of success. Again here I re-iterate the importance of friends. If we try to push our car into the space of the other car, both the cars face damages. This can exactly be mapped to the lack of space in any relationship.

All the car-maniacs will be massively disappointed because somehow I cannot find the right analogies for engine, windows, keys, wipers and so many other miscellaneous things. However I have just sparked a flame. It would be great if all the readers can chip in with theirs two cents about the equation between life and the car…

Jay

Thoughts...

Last night, I saw this movie, Fashion. Yes, it was an effort to show the real, not so beautiful, side of the glamorous world and the people living in it. But, I felt this story could be just any body’s story.

We all dream… we all have ambitions… and as we pass those small milestones we set for ourselves, we find that we are just not happy. We always want more. We forget how much we wanted what we have and what effort we had to put in to get there. All we see is ‘Hey! He’s got more than me.’ And we run and run and tire ourselves and at the end are not even happy.

Going with the flow is the easiest thing to do. It helps in getting things done faster and you are able to climb this ‘ladder of success’ faster. But, what is the point if you reach the top and suddenly don’t want to be there anymore. You suddenly realize that you don’t even recognize yourself! And when you have lost touch with yourself that’s when you know you are truly lonely.

And when you run, you don’t have time to think. The thin line between right and wrong begins to fade out. You tell yourself; “Be practical.” What is practicality? Ceasing to be what you are? Refusing to listen to that voice inside your head which is always right? Killing your conscience? And you become shallower. If this is what growing up means, then I would rather remain a kiddo.

It’s not just our fault. This is what has been taught to us. We have been told that you have to be successful. May be it is true. But the meaning of success is not taught to us. We are told that success means heavier paychecks, success means having a wonderful flat, success means owning the best car. We are told that we have to think of being better than others somehow. We have to compete and we have to win. So we run everyday constantly trying to please ourselves, our parents, our relatives and the society and nothing seems to make anyone happy. The reason being we don’t understand success. We don’t understand happiness.

Success means recognizing and respecting your individuality. Success means always being in contact with your inner voice which helps you be yourself. Success means having the courage to accept that you are different and cannot compete with anyone. Success means understanding that you are this unique piece of a larger jigsaw puzzle. Once you see yourself helping to form the the bigger picture you realize your own worth and that gives true happiness.

-Sangeetha

Mud (Jay)

High time we posted this..

It was the reason we started blogging together...

Same story 2 views...

enjoy n comment... :)

Luv

Jay & Sangeetha

Mud

Rains can be a lot of fun,

Especially when drizzly evening

Sets up the scene for

the perfect date.

I was waiting wearing whites…

at the local CCD.

It was 6 pm…

Sun decided to hide,

Clouds decided to cloud.

And a light drizzle started.

I was in the Ac room.

I decided to stand outside…

Under the paanwala’s tents

to soak in some fresh earth.

The smell made me feel more romantic

The eagerness to meet was a sweet misery.

But as rains got a bit stronger…

The wait transpired into a concern.

After trying a futile cellular tries,

I decided to call Remya at her home.

Invariably, when I call her at home,

Her mom picks up…

In my well practiced feminine voice,

I ask “Aunty…Is Remya there?”

“ava football valayada poirka”

(That is Tamil)

Being a Mumbaiyan Gujju,

I didn’t pick a word…

“Ok aunty…thanks...”

I disliked the Indian diversity for once,

Decided to go to her place…

Walking in rains, in those muddy streets

Is the last thing I like.

But they say…”Love makes man do not

So lovely things”

I reached her building.

To my surprise a few girls

were playing football in the mud.

I thought of them as a few “babes”

Who were wasting a super evening,

Having no one to meet…or cherish.

Till I couldn’t believe my eyes,

To see Remya also playing!!!

Wow, I did not know how to react!

A girl, whom I know since two years,

Plays football…that too in mud!!!

Was getting over this shock,

till I heard her abuse her opponent…

“You bi…, F*** you… Go learn to play!”

Well it’s a ’bit’ dangerous, to hear

the “Doll” abusing someone.

She was sliding in the mud…

I know her idiot dad…he would have

Shown the true character…by not buying

her studs.

On every slide she made,

The mud covered her lovely face…

Now I was discovering the real beauty.

She wiped the mud from her face…using

her tender hands.

As rain poured, the drops of water,

On her smooth forehead made me feel…

“Boy I can see her play football the whole

Of my life”

Her grace when she runs…Her tact when she passes,

Her powerful kicks…her swirling free kicks

Made me feel…

”Hu kem nanpan thi cricket ramuchu?”

(Why the hell do I play Cricket?)

Till a hooligan kick from her opponent

Made the ball come in my direction….

Here was my girl… joyous of the fact

That she had got some corner kick,

Till she saw me…

The aggression turned into guilt…

Her eyes looked straight into mud…

The ball remained stagnant at the corner…

For a minute she could not face me.

I was actually enjoying this…

I have seen her in the mud…

Now again I am seeing her…

Though I was enjoying her play,

I had a look on my face which said.

“Weren’t we supposed to meet?”

Boys get a very few chances

to make brownie points.

Here she was…candid with guilt.

Somehow the thought of her mate,

Seeing her in that state, and the added

Guilt of forgetting the commitment,

Made her so shy…
I felt like time should stand still…

Remya means beautiful in Tamil.

I somehow applauded the foresight

Of her parents…

She said “I will get ready in 5 minutes”

She quickly went home…wiping mud off her face.

She came down in ten minutes…

This was the third shock for today…

“My girl was wearing a sari!!!”

Too many new discoveries made me feel,

“Do I really know Remya?”

Well the date ended…

I dropped her at her place…

At night, while I was on the bed,

I analyzed a few things,

I felt that the mud was so lucky…

At least she can touch her skin…

And best part for the inhumane mud

Is that she herself slide to touch it.

I felt that mud really was very lucky.

Since that day I certainly have started

respecting mud.

I had discovered the beauty in the mud.
- Jay

Mud (Sangeetha)

The smell of the earth after the first rains… it takes me to yet another time… a happier time when girls were not yet taught how they ought to behave…

THUD…… Splash!!!

“You bi…, F*** you… Go learn to play!”

God knows why this Deepa tries her hand at football…

FOOTBALL and RAIN. A lethal combination!! Rolling in the mud... getting dirty like crazy… and the rain falling on you washing away the mud… and there again you fall get dirty and it goes on…

“C’mon Remya get it!!” Lakshmi cheered. I winked at her. And, now it was time for some magic…

ZOOP………… “That was a cool one…”

Now, that’s difficult to assimilate, isn’t it? A girl playing football… well, balls to you, you MCP!! Coz it’s because of people like you that in spite of loving this game so much, I have to shut up about the fact that I even play. My mom has made me promise that I’ll never play in a college team or tell anyone about my secret passion… it’s only after all those beseechings and pleadings and that I even get to play in my colony…

“Remya check out that one…”

‘Shit!! Deepa at her worst as usual…’

“Corner!!”

Sometimes I wonder if she were playing for the opposite team!!!

Was that a kick?? :@ Safely evaded it though… Lucky for me… may have lost an eye… Ronak ko kaise dekhti fir?

RONAK??

‘Yeh kidharse aaya?? Hold!! Shit! Kaise bhool gayi yaar main! Yeh saala baarish sab kuch bhoola deta hai…’

The ball now lay there… still. I was feeling dumb. He had caught me red (brown) handed (& faced). What could I say? ‘Hey! You’ve come for Remya? Hi! I am her twin. Wait, I’ll just call her in a moment…’??

He had a look on my face which said. “Weren’t we supposed to meet?”

‘Saala! Chance pe dance karta hai!!!

‘Kya zaroorat thi aane ki… I must be looking soo ugly. Man! Have to make up for it somehow. Itna dur aaya mere liye. And bechara shock me rahega.’

“I will get ready in 5 minutes” Dunno wot I managed to do in those 5 mins… Clean myself… Aargh!! Itna ganda koi kaise ho sakta hai? Yaar yeh earring ka pair kidhar gaya… and where did I put the bracelet last time I wore it??

I used to always wonder what Ronak would have to say when he would come across that ‘guy’ in me… Got the answer today… ‘He was simply speechless!’

He was there waiting for me. ‘Abbe, kitna ghoorega?? Meri koi twin nahi hai!!’

That night as I walked back through the grounds, careful not to allow the mud stain my sari, I thanked it for helping me clear things with my love… we had grown closer that day. I had feared that he would not appreciate me if I were not feminine and charming. But this guy was different! But one thing was for sure. RONAK would always remain my second love… my first love being MUD

- Sangeetha

The three mistakes of my Life (Review)

Jay Gandhi

I am not an avid book reader, but I always have an opinion about the ones which I do manage to read. I recently had gone to Gujarat for three days. I knew that traveling will eat up many hours and hence I should have some source of constructive pass time. I decided to take along the book, “The Three mistakes of my life”. I have read all the books of the author Chetan Bhagat till date and hence I guess I have got a hang of how his algorithm of writing works. Enough of the background… Now I shall get started.

I feel that the protagonist of the book, Govind Patel can be any boy living in the city of Gujarat. I, also being a Gujarati can certainly relate to the way Govind’s mind works. The first best thing that Chetan does is make believable characters. The next smart thing he does is fits his story amongst the various major events that happened in India in last decade ex: India v/s Aus Kolkata, Gujarat earthquakes, Gujarat riots etc- these events not-being-too-old, are still fresh in the minds of Indians. So, the writer quickly calculates that

(Believable characters + believable events) is equal to Sure shot success. To make the pot-boiler more interesting, he throws in a romantic story track, a wonder-kid story track, a happy-ending climax and few amazing Chetanisms. Chetanism is a new term which I just invented after having understood his style of writing. He mixes a little charm with a little humor and garnishes it with grammatically apt noun forms. I know this will be a little difficult for normal readers to understand. I shall explain it though. Terms like:- no-internal-off-button, fathers doing PHDS on Indian newspapers, mothers asking their kids to eat more and study more, life being big optimization problem… etc easily separates Chetan’s writings from that of other authors..

Overall, the book is surely going to enthrall the Indian college youth. It shall appeal to all the people who love Hindi movies. It shall attract all the cricket lovers who don’t mind reading on a wet rainy day. The book will be read by all the BHAGATs of Chetan. I would suggest all the young people who do not like reading to start with this small book. The language is not that complex to understand, the scenes are believable. Grammar is itchy in certain areas. I can distinctly remember one error where sentence states India playing with SA. It should have been India playing AGAINST SA. Over all, the book is good pass time.

Chetan Bhagat is Karan Johar of Indian books… that’s all I have got to say…

My rating:- 3 on 5

- Jay