the fight

         

 Survival of the fittest is the key mantra in this universe. Fitness doesn't get confined to only the physical domain but is more important in the intellectual levels and of utmost importance in the spiritual domain. The battle of David and Goliath had a huge gap in strengths at physical level, but the spirit of David surmounted the physical strength of Goliath.
          Each one of us face Goliath's in our day to day life. Avoidance, acceptance and many such words comfort us when we don't gather the courage to take on the Goliath.
          A huge hall was being done up and the false roof was fixed. We were supposed to be working in that hall fall a month. Since the very first day a couple of pigeons used to enter the hall and reach a particular corner and try to bang against the roof tile with there beaks, as if try to push open. They used to take turns in an attempt to dislodge the roof tile. Though a disturbance in the office work, they amused us and surprised us by their sheer courage and determination. I think it was the third day, I saw the tile dislodged and they found a way inside the roof and we all heard the happy chirps in the roof.
         At times we are also forced to take on the fight. Fight for our survival, fight for the honour and dignity, fight for a cause we believe in. Because if we don't fight, we don't survive. We are dead even before declared clinically. The enemy will always appear strong and powerful and the environment will add more weight and create a monster for you. But no monster has ever survived. The enemy could be your illness, your boss at work, your neighbour, could be a land mafia, a goon who disturbs you and the most important the one you create in your mind. Rest all can be neutralised, less the enemy in your mind, who will rob you of your sleep and mental peace. So never feed this enemy to make it too big to take on.
         Each war has many battles. you may win some, you may loose some. But the ultimate winner is the one who wins the last battle. At times one may feel tired and fatigued after few battles and the mind may start playing games telling you “its enough now, you cant “, “ don't get too emotionally attached” and things like that. Hang on, if you want to win. If you are tired, so is your enemy. It is the time when the inner energy shows up in terms determination, resolve and commitment. Try, try, try and you will succeed. The fight is your own. You are fighting it for yourself. Never loose focus.
          The opponent may be stronger than you physically, but the mental and spiritual strength needs no space. An ant can have more courage than an elephant. Strengthen yourself in all the three domains and don't get overawed by the opponent’s physical strength. The moment you raise the inner strength level, you have won your first battle. Its then the minor losses wont hurt you and will remain cool and undisturbed when you are required to act decisively.
          Lastly, its your battle so you be the one who decides the last battle.
                                         Good Luck

Soni ka Dhaba

The Himalayas are beautiful, enchanting, romantic and always inviting. The Dussera holidays opened a window of opportunity to venture into the beautiful folds of the ever-inviting mountains. The hill stations are not too far from the plains and the drive to them is mesmerising. The zigzag roads, though challenging for a driver, but opens a new canvas at each turn. One actually drives back in time. From the busy schedules with tight time lines, you feel a different relaxation, a pace too slow to comprehend and the inhabitants never chasing any deadlines, less the taxi drivers who are always in the hurry and a sore point in the pristine surroundings.

As you climb up, the turns become sharper and steeper, the vegetation is lush green and except for the narrow road, small plants and climbers cover the earth with different shades of green. Even the barks of the conifers are not spared. The temperatures start dipping and the freshness knocks at the panes, telling you to switch off the ac and sniff in the mountain fresh air. The aroma, though heavily laden with that of pine, invites you to a new place away from the city. A mild fog diffuses the sunlight and the afternoons appear like fresh mornings or romantic evenings. The small streamlets and cute culverts on them add on to the beauty and music the environment.

When all the senses of the body get activated, how can the taste buds be left alone? Hungry by nature, the search for the quest can’t be complete, without savouring the food of that place. A local guide without a second thought directed us to the “Soni ka Dhaba”, a place, couple of miles away from Chail. A hungry driver doesn’t need too many directions to home on to the eating joint. The last few miles were covered in no time, leaving behind some places to visit on the way back.

Soni Ka Dhaba is a small eating joint, on the narrow road surrounded by a few shops. I don’t remember whether, I saw the billboard, but the parked cars and restlessly waiting tourist in front of the shop indicated it loud and clear. The waiting was too long and restless city dwellers started thinking for an alternative option, but no one left. The ambience wasn’t any great to write home. From outside, the only thing I could gather was; there was a flurry of activity and the waiters were wading their way through the awaiting crowd and serving steaming hot beverages and ghee topped “fulkas”. The kitchen was in an adjacent shop. It was busy with a flurry of activity. A beautiful lady at the clay Chula baked the fulkas supported by couple of more girls, who with an unmatched expertise rolled out the rotis. Their speed proved my opinion of slow pace of the mountain people wrong. The exotic aroma, swift precise actions next to the hot chula and the beautiful cook, who managed it all so smoothly, without a drop of sweat on the forehead, attracted me. Hats off to her and her staff. With a load full of costumers from different corners of the country standing at the gate and equal number sitting in and ravishing as if there is no tomorrow, everyone worked with a smile. May be that was the key ingredient of the dhaba.

Soon it was our turn, to forget the rest of the world and savour the lunch. The hunger had reached its threshold and the sight of steaming food was making it uncontrollable. The menu was limited thus saved a lot of time browsing the menu card. I love the standard menus, it saves a lot of time and coming on to a consensus on the menu to order for a group is difficult than passing any bill in the parliament. The service was swift and quick. Each and every dish served deserved praise for its taste. My wife, an exclusive cook and my dear son the taste bud and a budding cook were floored by the elusive taste of the food. Thumbs up by my daughter, who is very choosy in her tastes just nailed it. I don’t know who was counting the hot steaming, ghee laced “fulkas”, but no one could say “No” for the next one. Each time a fresh lot landed on the table, it got divided into halves or quarters to reach everyone’s plate. The so-called diet and fat conscience inner voice was lost somewhere and never it did try to intervene. The only communication visible was that of a nodding head.

The taste still lingers on the tongue. May be that was the USP of that place, that it needed no board or a hoarding or a plush façade to draw the customers from all over. Wishing their team prosperity and happiness. Lastly never miss out on the meethi roti as a pudding. Even after a overfilled stomach, it’s awesome.

Kiss

     

      The night was dark and young. The stars shone brightly in the clear sky and awaited the moon to join them. There was chill in the air and the wind brought in the shiver. So many times I have been out at night. Each night has a different texture, different flavour and different music, but I was too preoccupied to notice any thing of it. The road was not the smoothest ever constructed in a far off place, amidst the huge mountains. It had its curves, twists and turns, ups and down, but still it was the only way out from the desolate place.

        The jolt was sudden and strong enough to throw me off in to a different world. Contrary to the freezing cold, it was warm, cosy and comfortable with a delicate breeze across the face. The perfume carried by the breeze was exotic and attractive. A faint music played at the backdrop as if some orchestra was on in some distance inside the gates.  I could see someone in the dark. She stood there with her arms wide open at the main gate. Her vibes were so strong, that I felt being pulled closer towards her as a magnet would do so. In the darkness, I could not see her clearly but her mystic aura was powerful enough to draw me closer towards her. 

        Though mesmerized and enchanted by the romantic surroundings and her beauty, some thing was holding me back. The way an anchor holds on the drifting ship similarly some anchor was holding me back. But her mystic charm was so strong that I wasn't able hold myself. With each inch I moved ahead, I was breaking the barriers, may be trying to get free from the anchor. The moment I reached closer to her, my arms opened for the warm hug and my lips pouted for the eternal kiss. I don't think I saw her in detail. I could not hear any thing else except my heavy breathing over the never so loud heartbeats. May be over the years I had forgotten that I too have a heart, which can beat louder than anything. The breaths were deep and strong. There were no thoughts in my mind and very unlike me I had lost my sense of direction. Though in a strange place, I wasn’t an alien. The thought of regaining back my composure never cropped up and I was finding peace in the drift. 

       Soon I was in her arms. I hugged her tight and kissed her. From the slow drift, I could feel myself being melted into a sublime vapour. The kiss was intense and passionate. Never in my life I was kissed with such a deep passion and love. I never wanted to break the lip lock and continue to taste the nectar. I could feel her intensity and passion for me. The kiss had an urge as if we were waiting for ages to unite. Though from different worlds we were finding solace and happiness within each other. I could feel how easily I was communicating to her without even speaking a word, unwinding my feelings, my emotions, pouring my heart. I felt the strong connect with her as if the lips had all the nerve points, which could be connected as in the movie AVATAR. May be in that short time I was communicating my entire life, my likes- dislikes, my happiness and my sorrows, my glories and my worries, my gains and my pains. She was absorbing each and every iota of mine as if she was quenching her thirst drinking through my lips. With each passing moment I was feeling the transfer of energies making me feel lighter than ether. For so many years, I had gathered so much in my mind, that the nerves were getting relieved as the knots started opening and straightening out. The feel was incomparable to any thing I had experienced so far. I was just transcending from a rigid solid form to a more volatile and free vapour. It was a bliss never experienced.

      Suddenly, I stopped and withdrew a bit, as if everything came to a screeching halt. I was trying to regain my lost conscious. She in her deep voice said, there is a battle inside you, which is holding you back. Yes, subconsciously I was holding myself back. I wasn't ready for such a huge transition. Though I was enjoying the feel, but I had so many things in my mind, a long list of to-do things, I had not even bid farewell to my beloved. My daughter was sleeping when I had left the house and I had promised to buy a birthday gift to my son. The doctor’s appointment for my wife was scheduled in the morning and I had to call my boss as soon I reach back. Why I was there so early and had so many unaccomplished missions. I cannot die.

        I turned back and jumped off the edge. I landed on the hard surface with a thud with blood all over me. I started feeling the chill in the air and the only thing warm, lying injured on the cold metalled road was my oozing blood. I was back to place where I belonged, where I could smell the dust in the air and feel the chill in wind blowing across my numb face. I tried to feel my lips, they were numb and they had lost the sensation. They were wet with blood. My injuries pained as I was evacuated to the hospital. I survived.

monsoon picnic

The hills around Mumbai are an exhilarating sight in the monsoons. The dark burnt hills get a fresh coat of greenery and the small water stream-lets bring in life to it. At places the streams get adventurous and jump off the cliffs, throwing themselves in the air creating beautiful waterfalls. There’s romance in the air and one can see birds in pair enjoying the light showers and drying themselves in some corner. 

         It is difficult to stay away from the beautiful nature. We, a group of college friends, decided to go out for a day in the beautiful and ever inviting arms of the nature. After a lot of research and discussions over the picnic site, we homed on to Malshej ghat, a destination famed for the waterfalls, not very far from the city. The Whats app provided us a beautiful platform to plan, discuss, fantasize, share responsibilities, suggestions and endless chat for all of us spread all over the globe. Excitement made the adrenaline flow through our blood and everyone waited and prepared eagerly for the D day. 

         At seven in the morning on Sunday, the D day, at the rendezvous we all started appearing out of nowhere and soon the environment was full of hugs and kisses, shouts and profanities. Meeting the old friends is such a divine feeling and emotions ran high. The bus journey brought back the old memories with the songs of our time. The Latas and the Kishores brought back those golden days and the bus was humming past the clean morning roads. Hot idlies and chutney satisfied the morning craves. As we neared the mountains and the curves on the road rolled us over each other, we could not stay in for long. A small tea break enroute followed by a photo session on the stream were the only halts we had before we reached our destination.

         The road was cut through the Western Ghats and it had countless waterfalls on the fringes. At places the road cut through the waterfall, and one could feel the water drumming the roof and sides of the vehicle and light showers finding their way inside. The first view of the chosen site was awesome and everyone just jumped off the bus to be the first one to get drenched beneath the fresh milky water. It was bliss. The water was fresh, energetic and refreshingly cold. We all managed to get beneath it and one could feel the gush of the water. It was washing off the travel fatigue, the worries, the tension and pressures we all carry in our professional and personal lives and many other things which still cling on to us. The feel was may be something of the nirvana, a state of happiness and the mind was cooled as a cucumber. The time stopped. No one wanted to get out from the euphoria. The chill in the water had engulfed and tied us to the fall and made us feel part of it. The fall though not so big had a big heart to hold us close to its bosom and caressed us, as a mother would do it for the children.

         With heavy legs we moved out for lunch. The food was savored in no time, as we were hungry like never before. A set of party games brought out the kids in us and allowed the food to settle down. The valleys echoed and reverberated with the laughter and cheers. The small little clouds could not hold back far away from the cheerful friends. They sailed over the valleys and showered their love and blessings. The light intermittent showers amidst the beautiful hills were the experience in itself. No one wanted to leave, even as the sun retired behind the hills, but the day had to end.

         As every one was getting emotional about calling it a day, and the cold wind was making us shiver. We halted for a cup of tea. A cup of tea can bring in life and energy to anyone. Catchy music played in the “pan tapri” caught our attention and it took no time to convert it into a hot dancing destination. The onlookers halted, the the passers by astonished and the shopkeeper shocked to see a group of friends dancing like free birds in the most unlikely place in the world. We carried the dance to the bus and that’s where the pole dance in the moving bus was born. The bus rocked and rolled and roared with the latest numbers. The day was not over yet. Everyone was on the feet swaying, swirling, twisting and dancing in whatever space possible in the moving bus. No one wanted to let go the feeling of happiness, no one wanted the bus to reach home so early and no one wanted to go home. Everyone wanted to hang out for some more time. It was a day to remember, a day of lasting memories, a day of fun and frolic.

         May be we were lost in the maddening world of work and responsibilities. May be we were busy parenting, busy with the families, busy as professionals and hardly had any moments for ourselves. Yes that day we lived it. 

Front gate

         

               As I walked through the village, I noticed the style and designs of the front gates. Each one made of steel, gave a sturdy look but also carried intricate designs painted with subtle colours. May be for a visitor, a first impression is the lasting one. As the village is getting a face lift and getting transformed from the thatched mud houses into the concrete ones, the style of the gates reflects the style of the house owner. Some years back, may be due to poor economy, everyone could not afford such a huge gate. So they  managed with different options like bamboos placed horizontally, which could be slid to open them.             

            I was just wondering how we all caught on to this idea of gates. But our infatuation towards  these gates is very old. India Gate, Gate way of India, Ajmeri Gate are to name a few and there are so many gates in the old cities. May be fall out of the main gates of the fort, where the main gate was the only option for heavy traffic in or out of the fort. A well guarded, heavily fortified entrance provided that secured feeling. Don’t we have a safety door in addition to the main door of the flats in the city, and a security guard at the entrance of the building and/or the society.

             May be the single house owner would not have felt the need for any additional security or may not have been  able to afford guards, but they were happy with a huge gate. It was a style statement, it spoke high about them in the society. So even one tried his level best to out do the other. Some even went further ahead by cutting down on the height of the compound walls, some had  it with no plaster on the walls, Some had to cut down on the budget for the house. At  one of the places I was shocked to see a beautiful gate with no wall. The inflammatory pressures did affect the house owners but it hardly affected the front gates. May be thats why all the property developers would construct a huge attractive gate even prior to laying the first stone for the residential buildings.

            At times I do feel our obsession towards the front gate. This obsession most of the times leaves us exposed and wanting some where. Hope we get over this obsession.

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Guru : Colonel JD Katkar

         

                  I switched on the news channel, just to see police restoring peace and calming the notorious youth. Later, I learnt, that these students were protesting for change in the pattern of UPSC examination, so that the non english speaking students could match up with the english speaking students. They were eyeing for the top posts in the indian bureaucracy and would be the SPs, DMs very soon. The so called pillars of the nation were destroying and damaging the government property even prior to their appointments, or even prior to their selection. It needs a deeper thought over the selection process of the sensitive appointments. The actions of burning a police van or vandalising a police station are not in any way, civic. So how can they be a cadre of Indian Civil Services. I only hope the instigators  are arrested and the students allowed to know of their wrong doings.
            Examinations and subsequent interviews or discussions were always in English for most of the important cadre. When we appeared in 1990, it was all in English and we came out successful.  Thanx to our beloved guru Late Col JD Katkar.
           Col JD Katkar was the director of Services Preparatory Institute, Aurangabad. The Institute provided training to the selected students from Maharashtra, so that they could pursue the noble profession of arms and provide leadership as officers of the defence forces. Col JD had a small team of instructors who taught academic subjects, a tall wiry warden who would enforce discipline from the morning tea till the lights out time. How can I forget “shukka”, the physical teacher. We all came from all corners of Maharashtra, some from big towns like Pune, Kolhapur, Satara, Nagpur and others from villages not traced on the Google. Pale Budruk was the first revelation and many more. Nearly every one came from a humble background and most of us were non english speakers. Some had studied in Marathi medium till tenth and the others though studied in english medium, were no great shakes either. We all carried our accents with us and when our search engine failed to find any appropriate english word, then obviously the mother tongue would take over. It was a great place to learn, be it the values of life, be it discipline including bathroom etiquette, table manners, sports or academics or be it the leadership traits. We learned from our instructors, our seniors and from each other. All this, under the watchful eye of the “Diro”.
            Apart from regular interviews, the Diro would find time to be with us in the dining room, sports field or in the ante rooms. Till then we pronounced water as water and ate mangoes by cutting it into 4 pieces. Its him, who taught us the right pronunciation of water and it took us some time to speak water by making an O of the lips. Some of us had come from remote villages where drinking water was not readily available in summers. Similarly, new words started getting the right blend of spellings and pronunciation. One day during our lunch break, he showed us how to eat a mango. There were couple of us who were brought up in the mango orchards, but we wanted to learn.
           A true soldier and a thorough gentleman. I am yet to meet a colonel who could match his stature. He used to say “There are no reservations or concessions in the battle field”, and we knew it. However huge the monster appeared, we had to tame it and hard work is the only solution. Now I know what the protesting students missed. Young men, you may cross one hurdle by lowering it, but its your skill which will take you over the remaining ones.
           He still lives in us. Each time I say water, I hear him. We miss u sir.

Beautiful Letter to a son

Beautiful letter written by a father to his son  

Following is a letter to his son from a renowned Hong Kong TV broadcaster cum Child Psychologist. 

The words are actually applicable to all of us, young or old, children or parents.! 

This applies to daughters too. All parents can use this in their teachings to their children.

Dear son ,

I am writing this to you because of 3 reasons

1. Life, fortune and mishaps are unpredictable, nobody knows how long he lives. Some words are better said early.

2. I am your father, and if I don't tell you these, no one else will.

3. What is written is my own personal bitter experiences that perhaps could save you a lot of unnecessary heartaches. Remember the following as you go through life

1. Do not bear grudge towards those who are not good to you. No one has the responsibility of treating you well, except your mother and I. 

To those who are good to you, you have to treasure it and be thankful, and ALSO you have to be cautious, because, everyone has a motive for every move. When a person is good to you, it does not mean he really likes you. You have to be careful, don't hastily regard him as a real friend.

2. No one is indispensable, nothing is in the world that you must possess. 

Once you understand this idea, it would be easier for you to go through life when people around you don't want you anymore, or when you lose what/who you love most.

3.Life is short. 

When you waste your life today, tomorrow you would find that life is leaving you. The earlier you treasure your life, the better you enjoy life.

4.Love is but a transient feeling, and this feeling would fade with time and with one's mood. If your so called loved one leaves you, be patient, time will wash away your aches and sadness. 

Don't over exaggerate the beauty and sweetness of love, and don't over exaggerate the sadness of falling out of love.

5.A lot of successful people did not receive a good education, that does not mean that you can be successful by not studying hard! Whatever knowledge you gain is your weapon in life. 

One can go from rags to riches, but one has to start from some rags!

6.I do not expect you to financially support me when I am old, neither  would I financially support your whole life. My responsibility as a supporter ends when you are grown up. After that, you decide whether  you want to travel in a public transport or in your limousine, whether rich or poor.

7.You honour your words, but don't expect others to be so. You can be good to people, but don't expect people to be good to you. If you don't understand this, you would end up with unnecessary troubles.

8. I have bought lotteries for umpteen years, but I never strike any prize. That shows if you want to be rich, you have to work hard! There is no free lunch!

9. No matter how much time I have with you, let's treasure the time we have together. We do not know if we would meet again in our next life.

With lots of luv, Your Dad.

Have a nice day

Bollywood : a true reflection

                 India is a land of festivals. Some festival is always on. May be advantage of a multi religious community. The festivals would dissolve the differences and the friends and neighbours would savour delicacies like “shirkurma”, laddus, christmas cakes, kheers, biryanies ……….. Its mouth watering and we would put our differences in a corner and enjoy the good feast. The government has also been kind to declare holidays on the festivals for everyone to catch on with the lost sleep, complete homework, catch up with friends and find some time for a movie. The Bollywood wise make sure to time the release of a block buster around the corner.
                Salman Khan starer Kick was released on the eve of Eid. Being a holiday and a true bollywood fan, I sneaked into a movie hall to get the kick. As always, less for a few exceptional movies, I enjoyed it to the hilt. At times I had to hold myself in the chair to stop myself from dancing on the floor to the pulsating music. I feel its a dream journey travelling to the exotic places, singing the new songs, speak it up to your bosses or the villain which you hardly get a chance, smash countless bad people for a right cause and justify your wrongs for a right cause. but whatever it is, I felt fresh, rejuvenated and relaxed. In the evening as I was switching the channels, Dabang 2 caught my attention. Inspector Chulbul Pandey is a dream cop and an attractive personality. So I continued watching it.
             After watching both the movies one thing is very clear that God had to come down in some avatar may be as Ram or as Krishna or may be as chulbul Pandey or as Devil who would terminate the evil and allow the weak and the infirm to grow. We all await for that miraculous personality who would come forward and fight the evils for us. The recent example could be of Kejriwal, People found hope in him to fight the mammoth giant named corruption. hope he comes true.
          The second glaring revelation is that the lawful means are inadequate to bring some high end criminals to book and the hero has to outthink, outwit and outpace his opponent. May be thats why in real life, the cases against them keep on moving till countless years and at the end most of them get off due to inadequate evidence or some technical hitch. Everyone wants instant justice, which the hero gives them. Though short lived and illusionary, one gets happy over the victory of the good over the evil. We are not too much bothered about the means to achieve it, we just want a win over the evil.
          Overall one feels nice to be at the centre stage and wage a war against the evil, pick up a cause to be the purpose of your life, be a help, how small it may be to the needy. Dance to the choreographed numbers amidst the item girls, as such there are hardly any places or events left where one can dance leaving behind the inhibitions. Lastly it takes me home to mumbai, eventually each bollywood movie carries some part of mumbai. 

weeds

        Monsoon is the best time to lay a lawn or mend the old and ageing lawn. The grass feels fresh and energetic to grow, spread laterally, cover the gaps if any, turn fresh green and eventually soft in feel. The ready availability of the twin requirement of sunlight and adequate water make the lawn sing and attract the onlooker. Morning is the best time for it to absorb the sunlight and also for anyone who wants to get the feel of the morning dew beneath the naked feet. A bare foot walk on a beautifully laid garden is the most refreshing and energising experience one can get. A good lawn is an asset unmatched and the lawnmower would take pride in it and would take extra efforts to select the right quality of grass and then maintain it.
          The weather is also conducive for growth of weeds. The atmosphere is full of pollen and the stronger variety of weeds, following the law of the nature of survival of the fittest, would make its presence felt. The effect of the weeds would depend on numerous factors. It is akin to any infection we catch in our life.  At times we resort to home remedy or may be pop up a pill and back to work. If serious, then a doctor or a specialist comes into play, who would generally carry out a thorough investigation and recommend a course of treatment. Similarly for a few weeds, just uprooting them would solve the problem and for serious damage some more scientific options need to be exercised. But eventually the bottom line is to de weed. Its a laborious process and a shoddy work would leave some roots still in the lawn, which will soon force you out for de weeding. A stitch in time saves nine.
          Similarly our mind, the most fertile thing in this world gets infected by the weeds. At times at a manageable level and if unattended gets worse. These weeds take away the peace and makes it restless, resulting in loss of your charm. The way the weeds spoil the beauty of the lawn or a minor infection affects the health, similarly even a few weeds in the mind erodes your glow.
        Meditation and reading literature of wise are the ones which helped me to de weed my mind. It helped me for the peaceful sleep I enjoy today. It brought in a visible change. It cured my physical ailments. I thought I would share this. There are various other methods to de weed and its essential to pick up the right one. Lastly a beautiful lawn will always stand out from the unkempt one.