Tere Aane Ki Jab...

Tere aane ki jab khabar mahke
Teri khushbu se saara ghar mahke

Shaam mahke tere tasavvur se
Shaam ke baad phir sahar mahke

Raat bhar sochta raha tujhko
Zehan-o-dil mere raat bhar mahke

Yaad aaye to dil munavvar ho
Deed ho jaaye, to nazar mahke

Woh ghadi do ghadi jahaan baithe
Woh zameen mahke woh shajar mahke

Kanha

I was five years old, when I asked mom what my name meant. "Radha," she told me "Kanu means Krishna, and Priya means beloved, so Kanupriya means the beloved of Krishna, that is - Radha.
So, on Janmashtami, here's to my beloved, Krishna - Happy B'day!
And for all Krishna devotees, here's a beautiful collection of pics (from the net) -

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(This one's my fav!)

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Chitvan

Chitvan
Janm-MaraN-Aakarshan

Chir swatantrata ki akanksha
Ya phir aTooT yah ik bandhan

Bhor ki komal shvet namee
Phir kaali raat ka woh anjan

Kabhie laakhon-laakh khyaalon mein
Kab nis-din ik hii dhun mein magan

Palkon ke tale sameTe hue
Dharti, taare, yeh chaand-gagan

Ik pal ko thame, phir chanchal yeh
Jeevan ke raag ka jyon gunjan

Love lost

Dear Diary,

It's our seventh year together, and my seventh year of being away from her...

I didn't really want to her to go - I know that she loved me. We were happy together, happier than we had ever been (or could ever be, perhaps). She was the future that I dreamt of, the future that could have been mine. Except that I ran away from it, from my happiness. I was too afraid it would leave me... I left that happiness.

Not that I miss her day and night, no! It's just when I least expect it that she comes - unpredictable as always. You know, that's why I hated her. She was so full of contradictions, in fact, all about contradictions. When she looked too happy, it was to hide herself from the sadness that was eating her. And when she was crying, you could be sure the next moment she'd be laughing at you for believing her crocodile tears. She lied with such authority, that her moments of truth looked like a saga of lies. She thought with her rational heart, and feeled with her sentimental mind. That is why I hated her... And loved her.

Because life was not a journey with her - it was a quest. Everyday you had to win her anew. She was not the same person you met yesterday, or could expect to meet tomorrow. That is why I loved her.

After all these years, I still find her memories scattered around me, here and there, now and then. As if you open a long-forgotten favorite book, and a rose that you had put in it years back makes you remember something and smile all of a sudden, or fills your heart with gladness (or sadness) - that is how her memories are. Fragrant, forgotten and fragile.

Of Rains and Bansthali

I came to office today, a saturday, to work. That's the bad part.
The worse part is, it's a beautiful day.
Worst is, I didn't do anything, and didn't go out.
Didn't do anything 'coz I was not feeling like. Just couldn't bring myself to ignore the showers, the cool breeze, everything about the nature so beautiful - and so rare in Noida.
Didn't go out 'coz - first, it was raining. Second, I'm not a full-fledged s/w engr yet, can't afford to flunk in my MCA final sem exams. And third, simply 'coz I didn't have anyone to go out with!
And don't know why, but with today's rain I din't miss
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So, continuing on Sunday......

..... but with today's rain I din't miss a romantic date, a long drive, chai-pakora or the usual rainy-day thingies as much as I missed Banasthali. Rains were one of the respites from the usually boring life there. And everyone really enjoyed! At times I miss Banasthali...

I'm already looking forward to going to Banasthali (yes, I'm leaving tomrrow :D) and meeting everyone yet again. There'll be new stories from different companies/cities/states and lots of treats, with many of our batchmates engaged.

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Colors and a Bench

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That's it
Dunno why
Dunno how
Some things just happen
Without any reason
Like this -
Colors and a Bench!




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Confusion

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No, I don't know what it is. I didn't know what I'd come out with when I started drawing this. I was just plain confused, and it shows. It's not even an original idea in its entirety. I saw something in various shades of green somewhere (though that was done using shading/texture/lightness effects) and got inspired.

Coming back to myself (ah, my favorite topic!) - as I said, I'm confused. So much so, that I goofed up (on my job) in something I had been doing almost everyday. And it was as stupid as typing something totally irrelevant in an xml file, and releasing it! 8-

So, I thought, maybe I need a break (yes I do) - but can't really afford one. We've to vacate our flat (for those who're interested - it's not about the four of us (me and my roomies) only, all the bachelors in our society have been asked to look for a new place to live in, 'coz some fool (read a drunk guy) jumped off the third floor and died! (how dumb can it get!) So all those living in Noida and reading this, if you have a room, contact me!!).

And now with my final exams a week away (at last!), loads of work at office, a new module to work on (that means many-many documents to read - apart from the ones I have to study for my exams), the last thing I needed was this confusion.

Especially, you, Mr. Mukherjee, if you're reading this - help me out! Help me understand what's going on.

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Coming back to the picture again, there's something missing in it, and I'm not able to put a finger on it. Maybe a light would all of a sudden emenate from atop the rod or something. I can actually see that, but alas! paintbrush is too primitive a tool for that *sigh*.

So, if you think something can be done to the painting's state (or mine), lemme know *sigh*. I'll try my best to *listen* (that's quite improbable though) and talk (all the more improbable).

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Current Music:
Tum bhi to tum nahin ho aaj
Hum bhi to aaj hum nahin

Doctors

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o Patients are really the most impatient people!

o Why is it that doctors call what they do "practice"?

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Missing Rewa

Rewa, the place I was born and brought up at - a typical small city in MP, where every time you get out of your home, you're sure to bump into at least 50 people you know - your relatives, your friends, your relatives' friends, your friends' relatives. Where the shopkeepers, postman, electricians, bai know you.

I used to get pretty irritaed when, as a teenager, every time I got back to my home, someone would ask - "Aaj PK School ke paas kya kar rahi thi?" or "Kyun, khoob chaat khaayi shaam ko?"

Every evening, someone would come over and talk about everything under the sun - right from PV Narsimha Rao's government to VermaJi's nephew's kanchhedan. Every evening (paani jaane ke baad) we'd spend our time shuttling between kitchen (chai) and drawing room (gap-shap), while every 7.3 minutes the doorbell will ring - announcing the visit of some neighbour, relative, chanda maangne waala, patient, patient's relatives, MRs (OK, the last three are specific to a doctor's home) and so on.

While shopping, name the thing and you know the shop you'll end up at. Greeting cards/Gifts - Vishal; Ice-Creams - Pick & Moov; kirana - Vishwaas; kapde - Apna Baazaar/Kanchi; sandals - Mayuri; cosmetics - Ada; bangles (yes, we buy a whole LOT of them) - khatkhahayi (some call it khatkhatayi, but I'm sure it's khatkhahayi - Rewa's ancient-most market). Phew!

It's one of those place where it's India in its truest sense. Where you can still find children playing cricket in the Football World Cup season; where people still read hindi newspapers - having sansanikhej khabar's like how a cycle got stolen from Nehru Nagar, or "Yuvti Apne Premi Ke Saath Faraar". Where you'd still find more 'government employees' than 'software engineers'. Where a girl living alone in Delhi is still looked at with awe.

There're still people - young girls, their parents, grand-parents, and some you not even know - who'd come to me and ask about how I live here, if the species living at Delhi (Noida is Delhi) is homo-sapiens, what we eat, why we don't eat what we don't, how do we go to office, how we come back - and all the other kinds of hows/whys/wheres/whats.

I can go on and on writing, but have to finish some work. So will keep it continued in the next part, if I can! Ciao :-)

Mitti ki hai jo khushbu

Tu kaise bhulaayega

Tu chaahe kahin jaaye

Tu laut ke aayega

Nayi-nayi raahon mein

Dabi-dabi aahon mein

Khoye-khoye dil se tere

Koi yeh kahega

Yeh jo des hai tera, swades hai tera

Tujhe hai pukaara

Yeh woh bandhan hai jo kabhie toot nahin sakta...

Two more "sketches"

Sorry Mr./Ms. Anon (from the shoutbox), but I just don't feel like writing anything these days! :-p
Anyway, as for Rozaana updates -
a) Met Shobhit yesterday
b) Got some chocolates ;) (finally ;) ;) )
c) Enjoyed!
d) Worked in office today ;) ;) (I love surprising everyone once in a while ;) )

As for the sketches, both were done yesterday (I was busy today, u c). Am trying profiles nowadays.

Like the idea of the first one, but not the face.

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Wanted to draw a girl (and not a face only) in this one, but it didn't turn out well.

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Saree

Guess I've developed this liking for dark background colors, usually Black. Anyway!

This was done when I had a lot of work, and nothing seemed to be going right. Very rough (the sketch). Dunno when I'll get over drawing female forms, and draw something else. They're easy, and it's more like a habit - whenever I start drawing something, it turns out to be a female :-p

Oh, by the way, I didn't much like the movie - Black. I mean, the acting/plot was good and everything, the subject was handled well - still! Things were a bit overdone, especially by AB. I watched Page-3 at the same time, almost, and liked it better. It was so well developed, and had some fabulous actors.

Again, I liked Atul Kulkarni in Page-3. But he went over the hill in Rang De Basanti at places. Loved Siddharth in it, absolutely. Such a subtle role, done with perfection. Sukhi was good, too - has a great sense of humor. Soha looked fresh, Amir old.

But he looks all the more old in Fanaa - which is a disaster! Veer-Zara Part-II. Only better for its acting. Story is missing in both. Thus in a way it's better than Veer-Zara - the real disaster. (OK, all the Veer-Zara followers - the views discussed are purely mine, don't hit me!)

Enough for now, I guess. Will be back soon. :-)

(The title looks so very out of place now. But, well, whatever!)

A Morning

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We had a beautiful morning today (though I got up late - at 0819), and a typical one too. It was drizzling since yesterday, and Noida got some fine weather at last! :-)
When I got up, and went to the balcony as a routine - I was in for a surprise. I love rains, and was cribbing to Saras last night about how lucky he is 'coz it's raining in Bombay. There were a lot of other people in their balconies as well (which is not usual on a working day in Noida), some sipping tea, some talking, some (like me) standing all by themselves, all of them enjoying the sudden change in weather.
There were some maids huddled together taking shelter in the parking, a driver enjoying FM in the car, 2 school-kids playing football in the rain, some empty benches in the park, 2 swings - one broken, a pretty girl in an umbrella, an elderly fellow rushing to his office, two guys going out on a bike, and even a postman! Even the FM-RJ was not in her usual rant-away mood.
But as it was, I had to leave for office. The three of us (me, Neha and Shveta) had only one umbrella in us, and we got pretty much drenched by the time we reached. But for someone like me who loves rains, it was a treat.
And in the office we had delicious gobhi ke parathe, thanks to Lokesh! :-)

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Eternal Dance

In Black and White

Adhoora Chitr

Ek adhoora sapna, jiske poora hone ka intezaar hai...

Do shaamein Banasthali ke naam!

Saturday, May 20, 2006
Went to Neha Sarin (Begam)'s place at South Ex with Neha G(upta). Met Shiva (Shivaji Maharaj) and Meenakshi there. Had good food, good laugh and a good time.

Sunday, May 21, 2006
While coming back to Noida, met Madhulika. Once back in Noida, met Shipra di (a senior) and went to Rashmi (my old roomie)'s place. Met Sandhi (another roomie), Shweta Singh and Swapna Ray there. Had good food again. :-)

In between, watched Gangster. Loved Shiney and the songs!

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nazm ulajhii huii hai siine me.n

nazm ulajhii huii hai siine me.n

misare aTake hue hai.n hoTho.n par

u.Date-phirate hai.n titaliyo.n kii tarah

lafz kaaGaz pe baiThate hii nahii.n

kab se baiThaa huu.N mai.n jaanam

saade kaaGaz pe likhake naam teraa

bas teraa naam hii mukammal hai

isase bahatar bhii nazm kyaa hogii

(~Gulzar)

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Smile

(Another one of the sketches I did the other day. Quite a raw one, as it's done using a thicker brush mostly. But it's more expressive, sort of! And the girl looks like Nanda somehow :-D )

Mere do nayan...

Tum ho mere dil ki dhadkan

Tum bin laage na mann

Tumko hi dhoondha karte hain

Har pal mere do nayan

(Had been given an assignment I didn't want to do. So decided to do what I wanted to instead - sketching! And here's what came out of it :-) )

Pseudo Random!!!

saath mere hain tu har pal shab ke andhere mein
paas mere hain tu har dam ujle savere savere mein
dil se dhadkan bhula dena aasan nahi hai
ab toh aadat si hai mujhko aaise jeene mein
juda hoke bhi tu mujhmein kahi baaki hai
palkon mein banke aansu tu chali aati hai

Current favorite song

Well, my current favorite song...

(Movie: Gharonda
Music: Jaidev
Lyrics: Gulzar
Playback: Runa Laila)

tumhe ho naa ho, mujhko to itna yakeen hai
mujhe pyaar tum se naheen hai, naheen hai
mujhe pyaar tum se naheen hai, naheen hai

magar maine ye raaj ab tak naa jaanaa
ke kyon pyaaree lagatee hai, baatein tumhaari
main kyon tum se milne ka dhnoodhoon bahana
kabhee maine chaahaa, tumhe chhoo ke dekhoon
kabhee maine chaahaa, tumhe paas lana
magar fir bhee is baat kaa to yakeen hai
mujhe pyaar tumse, nahin hai nahin hai..

fir bhee jo tum door rahte ho mujhse
to rahate hain dil pe, udaasii ke saaye
koi khwaab oonche makaanon se jhaanke
koi khwaab baithha rahe, sar jhukaaye
kabhie dil kii raahon mien faile andheraa
kabhie door tak roshanii muskuraye
magar fir bhee is baat kaa to yakeen hai
mujhe pyaar tumse nahin hai, nahin hai..

...

Vuja De - the feeling you'll be here later.

Pi R squared. Nooo! Pie R round, cornbread R square!

If at first you don't succeed, put it out for beta test.

Dogs crawl under gates, software crawls under Windows!

OS/2? What's that? Half of an Operating System?

DOS never says "EXCELLENT command or filename"...

ASCII a stupid question, get a stupid ANSI!

If I save the whales, where do I keep them?

What do computer engineers use for birth control? Their personalities.

Due to budget cuts the light at the end of the tunnel has been turned off.

A day without sunshine is like, you know, night.

Who is General Failure and why is he reading my hard disk?

Give me ambiguity or give me something else.

My truck does not leak. It's just marking its territory!

On the other hand, you have different fingers.

I wonder how much deeper the ocean would be without sponges.

Those who live by the sword get shot by those who don't.

When you kill a bug, ten more come for the funeral.

User - a technical term used by computer pros. See idiot.

She lives for others - you can tell the others by their hunted looks.

As the evening comes

I had always loved evenings for their freshness, vitality and colors.
But I no more look forward to them (well, I do - 'coz it means I'll be getting out of the office soon). But not the way I used to, for their beauty. 'Coz they're all the same to me. I know exactly what I'll be doing every evening (ok, 5 days a week at least) - sitting in front of my system.
And I no longer feel fresh - it's more like exhaustion.
It's not making sense I guess - we're all going through it.
But oh, I miss my evenings!

Your Girl

No more the girl you called your Sunshine!
No more the girl of yellows and whites...
No, not crimson either
Maroon maybe, dark and murky
And I won't fear black if you hold my hand
Won't mind killing if it were for you
Won't hate sins if you hold my hand

Oscar Wilde and others

"Whenever I watch TV and see those poor starving kids all over the world, I can't help but cry. I mean I'd love to be skinny like that, but not with all those flies and death and stuff"
~ Mariah Carey

"Smoking kills. If you're killed, you've lost a very important part of your life."
~ Brooke Shields

"That lowdown scoundrel deserves to be kicked to death by a jackass, and I'm just the one to do it."
~ A congressional candidate in Texas

"Half this game is ninety percent mental."
~ Philadelphia Phillies manager, Danny Ozark

"It isn't pollution that's harming the environment. It's the impurities in our air and water that are doing it."
~ Al Gore, US Vice President

"The word 'genius' isn't applicable in football. A genius is a guy like Norman Einstein."
~ Joe Theisman, NFL football quarterback & sports analyst


"If we don't succeed, we run the risk of failure."
~ Bill Clinton, former US President

"If we let the loggers go in and cut down all the trees we wouldn't have a problem with forest fires."
~ George Bush

A few by Oscar Wilde:

Anybody can sympathise with the sufferings of a friend, but it requires a very fine nature to sympathise with a friend's success.

Women love us for our defects. If we have enough of them, they will forgive us everything, even our intellects. (:-p)

*When a woman marries again, it is because she detested her first husband. When a man marries again, it is because he adored his first wife. Women try their luck; men risk theirs.

To get back my youth I would do anything in the world, except take exercise, get up early, or be respectable.

There is a luxury in self-reproach. When we blame ourselves, we feel that no one else has a right to blame us. *It is the confession, not the priest, that gives us absolution.*

There are many things that we would throw away if we were not afraid that others might pick them up.

The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. *Resist it, and your soul grows sick with longing for the things it has forbidden to itself.*

The basis of optimism is sheer terror.

Perhaps, after all, America never has been discovered. I myself would say that it had merely been detected.

Children begin by loving their parents; as they grow older they judge them; sometimes they forgive them.

Thirty-five is a very attractive age. London society is full of women of the very highest birth who have, of their own free choice, remained thirty-five for years. ( =)) )

The public is wonderfully tolerant. It forgives everything except genius.

But what is the difference between literature and journalism?
...Journalism is unreadable and literature is not read. That is all.

Only the shallow know themselves.

It is absurd to divide people into good and bad. People are either charming or tedious.

My own business always bores me to death; I prefer other people's. ( ;-) )

One's real life is often the life that one does not lead.

Work is the curse of the drinking classes.

Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else's opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation.

When the gods wish to punish us, they answer our prayers.

The true mystery of the world is the visible, not the invisible.

One should always play fairly when one has the winning cards.

Music makes one feel so romantic - at least it always gets on one's nerves - which is the same thing nowadays. ( :-p )

Most modern calendars mar the sweet simplicity of our lives by reminding us that each day that passes is the anniversary of some perfectly uninteresting event.

Morality, like art, means drawing a line someplace.

It is a very sad thing that nowadays there is so little useless information.

*I am not young enough to know everything.

**Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months.

Consistency is the last refuge of the unimaginative.

Biography lends to death a new terror. (:-p)

At twilight, nature is not without loveliness, though perhaps its chief use is to illustrate quotations from the poets.

Arguments are to be avoided; they are always vulgar and often convincing.

Anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination.

America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence without civilization in between.

A man who moralizes is usually a hypocrite, and a woman who moralizes is invariably plain. (hmmm...)

Crying is the refuge of plain women but the ruin of pretty ones.

Men know life too early. Women know life too late. That is the difference between men and women. ( /:) )

Women are meant to be loved, not to be understood. (...guys!!)

My dear young lady, there was a great deal of truth, I dare say, in what you said, and you looked very pretty while you said it, which is much more important. ( :)) )

Women give to men the very gold of their lives. But they invariably want it back in such very small change.

I am sick of women who love one. Women who hate one are much more interesting.

I prefer women with a past. They're always so damned amusing to talk to.

People who count their chickens before they are hatched, act very wisely, because chickens run about so absurdly that it is impossible to count them accurately. =))

It is perfectly monstrous the way people go about, nowadays, saying things against one behind one's back that are absolutely and entirely true.

*We are each our own devil, and we make this world our hell.

The world is a stage, but the play is badly cast.

Nothing spoils a romance so much as a sense of humor in the woman - or the want of it in the man. ;-)

One should always be in love. That is the reason one should never marry.

Young men want to be faithful and are not; old men want to be faithless and cannot.

Faithfulness is to the emotional life what consistency is to the life of the intellect - simply a confession of failures.

Nowadays to be intelligent is to be found out.

My day today

...was not exactly what I'd planned it to be (as usual, I had planned to study A LOT :-p).
___________
Anyway, I woke up at sth like 1 pm, which is late even by my standards.
___________
Another thing worth mentioning - I had missed my fairwell while I had been home to attend my sister's marriage (plan to write a blog abt tht too, if I get time). So like the good juniors that they are, my juniors came to meet (?) me, and I got my 'fairwell title' which went -

'Ek ada aapki dil churaane ki
Ek ada aapki dil mein bas jaane ki
Ek chehra aapka chaand sa
Aur ek zid humaari chaand paane kii'

I wish I studied in co-ed! :-p
Also got a beeeautiful photo-frame. Haven't yet put up a pic in it!
__________
Well, I'm not particularly financially sound these days, and to add to my 'gareebi', I came to know abt this book fair in Banasthali. I'd promised myself I won't buy anything. But as they say, promises are meant to be broken. So I ended up buying seven books (I had selected some 15 or so).

• A collection of stories by Edgar Allan Poe. I had always liked his style of writing, plus his feel-good stories.
• The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. I already had Tom Sawyer's, but Huckle's my fav and I absolutely had to buy this!
• Another collection of stories by Ismat Chugtai 'Chidi ki Dukki'. Seems interesting. Lesse.
• Yet another collection, by Bhishma Sahni, titled - Vangchu.
• Collection of Russian folk tales - 'Ilya ki Bahaduri'. I've always had this thing for russian tales, they're short, sweet and well written (almost always).
• Collection of Indian folk tales - reminded me of my Nandan days. I wish they're good. (both these folk tales' books are for Nanu)
• And, lastly - Midnight's Children. I had no particular reason for buying this, except tht I had nothing by Sulman Rushdie in my collection till now. Though I've often tried reading Booker winning books, I always end up promising myself never to pick another one up again. Still, I got this one. Lesse if I cud finish it :-p

__________
After a couple of hours of studying, as always my mind drifted away. And I realised there are songs which I like for no reason (I always find reasons for liking a song first, be it anything - lyrics, voice, music). But these are the songs which shud have come in my un-likeable category-

• Kyun Chhupaate Ho Mann Ki Baat (Mann) - A typical Nadeem-Shravan song, with typical Sameer lyrics, and typical Udit Narayan voice (I like UN thou'). There's no reason why I shud like this one.
• Diye Jalte Hain, Phool Khilte Hain (Namak Haraam) - I don't usually like songs abt friendship. Not this much. Maybe it's the RD-Kishore combo!
• Woh Chaand Jaisi Ladki (Devdas) - Why?! I don't know!!
  
• Haaye Rama Yeh Kya Hua - I want to hate this song, but I can't.

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~Yet again Pseudo-Random

T-Shirt Slogans

I've already sent this to some of you. For others, have a look :-)

"Upon the Advice of My Attorney, My Shirt Bears No Message at This Time"

"Two rights do not make a wrong. They make an airplane."

"Rehabilitation Is for Quitters"

"Where there's a will I want to be in it"

"Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like a banana."

"Automobile -A mechanical device that runs up hills and down people."

I'm not as think as you drunk I am.

I'm so old they've cancelled my blood type.

For the first 9 months i was trying to get out ... and ever since i am desperate to get in.

Computer science engineers with soldering irons are deadlier than electronics engineers with compilers!

I was an ATHIEST until I became an ANEASTHETIST.

BORN FREE!
My dad's a doctor:)

There are 10 kinds of people in this world..those who understand binary and those who don't.

"Take me DRUNK..I'm HOME!!"

French connection:
TO
BUSY
TO
FCUK

I am so poor that if I were not a boy I would have nothing to play with...

Life is sexually transmitted!

'4:20 am'
MEANS NOTHING.
Mind Your Own Business

Sick my duck

Who says nothing is impossible
I've done nothing in my life

Sorry if i look interested .....coz i am not!!!

Been nowhere, did nothing
Stole the T-Shirt

Dont look at this.
Get your own DAMNED T-Shirt

Warning: A Random One

(Edited)
After B.Sc. III year, we decided to stay back at Banasthali for our summer training. There were only six of us (me, Richa, Pooja, Ballu, Kimi and NehaG), with literally nothing to do – ‘cause the training consisted of developing a ‘software’ for ‘admission management’ in Banasthali (we basically had to design some forms using VB and provide a back-end in MS-Access :-p). So, there we were – the six of us, max-wellas.

Now, living in Rajasthan in May-June is not all that pleasant, so we spent our day (8 am to 9 pm) at the department (read, in the internet lab). From 0800 to 2100 only, ‘coz we were supposed to be back in hostels by 9. Now, what do 6 girls, who have nothing else to do but surf the internet for 13 hours, do? They find arbit people for chatting. :-p

Our (bad)luck – we found some 7-8 guys from IITK, also staying at their hostel, as wellas as us – some fakka-fied, some staying back ‘just like that’. Let’s call them B, J, S, M, V, N and U.

So, we chatted. About IITs and Banasthali, girls and guys, love affairs and frustration, families and expectations, about X, Y and Z. Now, we were new to chatting, and new to IITians too. Believe me, they’re altogether a different species. And I can say this even after knowing them for all these years. They’d crack the most chosen PJs, use swear-words as if that’s what they’re taught (that was sth very shocking to me at that time, now I really am not bothered), get all psyched up for no apparent reason, go into depths of depression at time, use each other’s Ids, and sometimes disappear without any prior warning. They’re not at all like what (we common people) suppose an IITian to be - bookworms, very sincere, you know the ‘chashmish’ type. :-D

It was with them that I came to know of terms like baap, bhai, fakka, zukka, bulla, lassa, dassu, GPL (this one came out after much coaxing) and so on. And it was with them that my vocabulary of swear-words built up. :-p

That reminds me of an incident. Let’s say I (as in me) and B are good friends, and I and J are very good friends. So B tells me, that ‘lasiyana’ (verb form of ‘lassa’) means ‘to chat’(Edited: it means - ishq ladaana or sth like that). Now J comes and the conversation follows:

J: Kya kar rahi ho?
I: B se lasiya rahi hoon.
J (shocked): Kya?!!
I: Suna nahin, lassa maar rahi hoon B ke saath!
J: Yaar, usse kyun lassa maar rahi ho?
I: Koi aur mila nahin, maine socha yahi sahi.
J: Vaise ek baat to hai, lasiyaate sab hain, lekin aise kahta koi nahin.
I: Ismein sharmaane waali kaun si baat hai?
J: Badhiya hai, lage raho!
I: Nahin yaar, bore ho gayi. Mere liye S hi theek hai.
J: Woh bhi?!
I: Aur kya? Hum Banasthali waalon ke paas aur kaam bhi kya hai, tum IITians ke saath lasiyaane ke alawa?!
J: *faints*

Car Bumper Stickers

• Caution: I drive like you do!
• No, I don't have PMS. I just really hate you.
• My mind works like lightning, one brilliant flash and it's gone.
• I'm a cruel and heartless bitch but I’m damn good at it.
• I brake for scholars, priests, and no apparent reason.
• I break for........................OH SHIT NO BRAKES.
• Stupidity is not a crime so you’re free to go.
• Watch out for the idiot behind me!
• Moooooove, I'm trying to speed!
• Buckle up... it makes it harder for the aliens to suck you out of your car.
• There are 2 types of pedestrians, the quick and the dead.
• Friends help you move; real friends help you move the body.
• IT'S IMPOLITE TO STARE.
• DRIVE IT LIKE YOU STOLE IT!
• I'm not driving fast-just flying low.

.

Hai iKhtiyaar me.n tere to mojazaa kar de

(I added a few word-meanings, if there's still some confusion, contact me for translation)
By Rana Sahri

hai iKhtiyaar me.n tere to mojazaa* kar de
vo shaKhs meraa nahii.n hai use meraa kar de

ye ret_zaar* kahii.n Khatm hii nahii.n hotaa
zaraa sii duur to rastaa haraa bharaa kar de

mai.n usake jor ko dekhuu.N vo meraa sabr-o-sukuu.N
mujhe charaaG banaa de use havaa kar de

akelii shaam bahut jii udaas karatii hai
kisii ko bhej koii meraa ham-navaa kar de
_______________________
*
mojazaa = miracle
ret_zaar = desert (I guess, not sure)

My perfect guy

Should know-

• that I don't talk a lot while eating.
• that I have a B-A-D handwriting.
• that I still cry watching movies, and reading novels. Even the most stupid ones, like K3G.
• that I love chocolates. And flowers.
• that I love beaches and mountains, too.
• that I'm always having moodswings.
• that making fun of people is not my idea of fun.
• that I like reading novels. And unlike some others who do, I don't finish them if I don't like them.
• that at times I'm not talking, I want him to talk to me.
• that I do absurd things.
  

MUST-

• have a good sense of humor.
• be someone my mom would like.
• be (reasonably?) intelligent. And must know about a lot of things.
• be stronger than me.

May-

• be crazy.
• be lazy.
• be weird. Not all the time though.
• flirt. I might get insanely jealous though.
• have his space and time, I won't bug him. At least I'll try not to.

And a lot of other things, I may add them later on.

By the way, I had always wanted my 'perfect guy' to be a doctor, too. :-p

It's been some time since I posted some true 'Rozaana' stuff. So, let's have some!

1. I'm having my midterms. I was almost certain I'd flunk, but looks like I won't!

2. The papers in V semester are not all that bad. Especially Reat Time Systems and AI. Guess I could like even Pattern Recognition.

3. I still like songs from Swades. The music and the voices, specially. Yeh Taara and Pal-Pal are my current favs.

4. I'm looking forward to going home, am kinda missing all the fun everyone's having back there.

5. Then I'm also looking forward to coming back, have my fairwell and annual cultfest after the vacations.
____________________________________

Then there's been this VERY interesting Chennai/Madurai trip. And I learnt a lot from it.
I don't like curd-rice.
I like Italian burgers.
I don't like olives.
I like nariyal-ki-chatni.
I don't like pudine-ki-chatni.
I like fries.
I don't like nuggets.

I'm a foodie. I eat everything. Even what I don't like. :-p

I try (Macy Gray)

Games, changes and fears
When will they go from here
When will they stop
I believe that faith has brought us here
And we should be together, babe
But we're not
I play it off, but I'm dreaming of you
I'll keep my cool, but I'm fiending

I try to say goodbye and I choke
Try to walk away and I stumble
Though I try to hide it, it's clear
My world crumbles when you are not near
Goodbye and I choke
I try to walk away and I stumble
Though I try to hide it, it's clear
My world crumbles when you are not near

I may appear to be free
But I'm just a prisoner of your love
And I may seem all right and smile when you leave
But my smiles are just a front
Just a front, hey
I play it off, but I'm dreaming of you
I'll keep my cool, but I'm fiendin'

I try to say goodbye and I choke
Try to walk away and I stumble
Though I try to hide it, it's clear
My world crumbles when you are not near
Goodbye and I choke
I try to walk away and I stumble
Though I try to hide it, it's clear
My world crumbles when you are not near...

Tears to shed (Corpse's Bride)

If I touch a burning candle
I can feel no pain
If you cut me with a knife
It’s still the same
And I know her heart is beating
And I know that I am dead
But the pain here that I feel
Try and tell me it’s not real
And it seems that I still have a tear to shed.

Guys I Like (Aug 11th)

1. Ajay Jadeja (Cricketer - India)
For the way he smiles. That's what I call "a smile to die for". :-D

2. Sourav Ganguly (Cricketer - India)
For his attitude.

3. Brad Pitt (Actor - Hollywood)
For his looks.

4. Jyotiraditya Scindia (Politician - India)
For the way he carries off himself.

5. Sushant Singh (Actor - Bollywood)
For everything! For the way he acts, especially.

6. Johnny Depp (Actor - Hollywood)
For The Pirates of Caribbean.

7. Richard Gere (Actor - Hollywood)
For his most decent looks.

8. Saif Ali Khan (Actor - Bollywood)
For his sense of humor.

9. Virendra Sehwag (Cricketer - India)
For his cricket, and his simplicity.

10. Abhishek Bachchan (Actor - Bollywood)
For his eyes, his smile and the way he speaks.

11. Zayed Khan (Actor - Bollywood)
Looks and smile, I guess.

12. Raul Gonzalez (Football player - Spain)
A good player, and looks good too. ;-)

13. Goran Ivanisevic (Tennis player - Croatia)

14. Rahul Bose (Actor - Bollywood)

15. Rahul Khanna (Actor - Bollywood)

16. Paolo Maldini (Football player - Italy)

17. Ricardo Kaka (Football player - Brazil)

18. Kurt Cobain (Leader - Nirvana - USA)

*I could go on and on... but it's no use really, is it?
*Listing in no particular order.

Nawab Ki Padhaayi

Dhananjay Singh Sisodiya, a.k.a. Nawab – my favorite cousin. And now, well, my student. You won’t think teaching mathematics to a 14-year old will be a tough job. Neither did I, that is, not till I actually began with it.

Even I’ve done my schooling from a hindi medium school, the same school as his, in fact. But I was yet again reminded how easily we forget things once out of touch.

Mathematics (Ganit) in shuddh hindi, believe me, that’s not easy.

K: “Haan to Nawab, first chapter kaun sa hai?”
N: “Pahla adhyaay Samuchchay hai.”
Now, now, I remembered that Samuchchay means Set, and was proud of the fact. But remembering something, and using it in your language are two different things.

N: “Kanu didi, Rikt Samuchchay kya hai?”
K: “Jis Set mein koi element na ho”
N: ?
K: “Jis Samuchchay mein koi avayav na ho.” (sigh)

And when you think you know it all,
K: “Samuchchay(Set) ka Sarvanishth (Intersection) nikaalne ke liye jo avayav(elements) dono mein hon, unhe lete hain, aur Sangh (Union) ke liye dono Samuchchayon(Sets) ke avayav(elements) lete hain.”
N: “To Sangh aur Sarvanishth ek hi hue na?”
K: 8-

How do you read A = {x: x is a natural number and x<=10}??
Samuchchay A, jahan A ke avayav x hai, jabki x ek Prakrat Sankhya hai, aur x is less than or equal to 10. (Jhappu, “less than or equal to” ko hindi mein kya kahte hain?)

Root 2? Square root of two? No! Do ka vargmool.

“Exercise 10.1 kar lena”
“Kya karna hai?”
“Abhyaas das dashamlav ek.”

You do get better with time! B-)

Trigonometry has never been more difficult.
K: “Dekho Nawab, ek Saral Rekha (Straight Line) ek sau assi ansh (180 degrees) ka kon (angle) banaati hai, aur yeh prashn mein diya hai ki dono angles ke beech ka antar (difference) right angle ke barabar hai. To a+b = 180, aur a-b = kitna hua?”
N: “Right Angle kya hota hai?”
K: “Nabbe ansh ka kon”
N: “To aise boliye na!”

Sankhyiki (Statistics), Trikonmiti (Trigonometry) – you learn mathematics from the scratch. And thank your stars for the wonderful teachers that you got!

Khaali dimaag ki upaj

(Suggest a title pls)

My ever-religious family is getting more religious every day. When you return home in vacations, you expect the kids to be at their naughtiest best. Not studying at all, playing a lot, attending all those summer camps and what not. All this is happening, no doubt, but along with it, some other things too.

Every Saturday evening, all the kids of the family (aged 2 to 18, around 20 of them) gather at one place, for 'Sundarkaand' path (from RamCharitMaanas). The Path is followed by Hanumaan Chalisa and some other rituals. Ofcourse, the whole affair has got family approval now, so more than the kids it's their mummas attending it.

Sunday mornings, it's Chinmaya Mission meeting, where again, all children gather at one place (our home), and we have Geeta path, MahishasurMardini MantrPath (which btw, is a beautiful collection of shlokas, written by Shankaracharya) and after that some discussion about life etc. (that doesnt make much sense for kids aged 10 or so, but mom thinks more than that it's important that they learn to live with all kind of ppl, whether they like them or not - and the meeting is a way to teach them this).

There's more to it. every morning when we drive Nanu for his tennis practice, we recite the twelfth chapter of Geeta (which Nanu has learned by heart, I still have to read it). Last to last time I came, I taught the kids the fifteenth chapter, and now they can as well teach me the twelfth one. For one thing, Nanu's got a clear pronounciation of shlokas and a good understanding of the chhandas and matras which I often find lacking even in girls my age.

All in all, there's at least one benefit - every weekend we get to spend 5 hours together, reason enough for all the religions.

In the end, religion, as Nida Fazli saw it-

"Bachcha bola dekhkar, masjid aalishaan
Allah tere ek ko, itna bada makaan?"

"Andar moorat par chadhe, ghee, poori, mishthan
Mandir ke baahar khada, Eeshwar maange daan"

"Ghar se masjid hai bahut door
Chalo yun kar lein
Kisi rote hue bachche ko
Hansaaya jaaye"

Maddham-Maddham Teri Geeli Hansi

Saathiya saathiya maddham maddham teri geeli hansi
Saathiya saathiya sun ke humne saari pee li hansi

Hansti rahe tu hansti rahe
Haya ki laali khilti rahe
Zulf ke neeche garpan pe
Subah-o-shaam milti rahe
Sondhi si hansi teri khilti rahe milti rahe
Saathiya saathiya maddham maddham teri geeli hansi
Saathiya saathiya sun ke humne saari pee li hansi

Peeli dhoop pahan ke tum
Dekho bag mein mat jaana
Bhanvre tumko sab dekhenge
Phoolon mein mat jaana
Maddham maddham hans de phir se
Sona sona phir se hans de

Taaza gire patte ki tarah
Sabz laal par lete hue
Sat rang hain bahaaron ke ek ada mein lapete hue
Saawan-bhaadon saare tumse
Mausam mausam hanste rahna
Maddham maddham hanste rahna
Saathiya saathiya maddham maddham teri geeli hansi
Saathiya saathiya sun ke humne saari pee li hansi

Kabhie neele aasmaan par
Chalo ghoomne chale hum
Koi abr mil gaya to
Zameen pe baras lein hum
Teri baali hil gayi hai
Kabhie shab chamak uthi hai
Kabhie raat khil gayi hai

Tere baalon ki panaah mein
Yeh siyaah raat guzre
Teri kaali-kaali aankhein
Koi ujli baat utre
Teri ik hansi ke badle meri yeh zameen le le
Mera aasmaan le le
Saathiya saathiya maddham maddham teri geeli hansi
Saathiya saathiya sun ke humne saari pee li hansi

Barf giri ho waadi mein
Aur hansi teri goonje
Oon mein lipti simti hui
Baat kare dhuaan nikle
Garm-garm ujla dhuaan
Narm-narm ujla dhuaan

That's why I'm Gulzar's fan! [:)]

Maa Ki Kursi

Mummy bahut samay se kahti thin vaisi ek kursi ke liye.

Aur phir unke birthday par humne theek vaisi hi kursi unhe gift ki. Unke kamre ke rang se milti-julti, vaisi hi badi aur aaramdaayak jaisi mummy chaahti thin.

Use laakar mummy ke kamre mein rakh diya gaya. Us badi si almaari ke bagal mein, jise mummy ne library bana rakha hai. TV ke theek saamne.

Badi izzat thi us kursi ki. TV par kisi bhi program ya movie se pahle hi turn lag jaati thi ki kaun baithega.

Kursi kya hai, couch hai. Kitni hi kitaabein padh daali hongi us par humne- kabhie baith kar, thak jaao to let kar. Ab to Nanu ki library bhi uske bagal mein hi aa gayi hai.

Mummy ne Jackie Chan ki dasiyon movies us par baith kar dekhi hongi.

Kabhie usi kursi ne bistar ka kaam kiya. Kahne ko sirf ek insaan ke baithne ke hi liye bani hai woh. Par hum sab hi uske ek hatthe par sar rakhkar, aur doosre se pair latkaakar kitni hi baar so chuke hain. Ek baar to school se thak kar aaya Nanu bag-bottle taange hue hi us par so gaya tha. Cheeku Dada ki shaadi ke waqt lahnga pahan kar hi 2 ghante us kursi par sona bhi yaad hai.

Paanch saal ho gaye use aaye hue, aur Sonu ke aaram se khana khaane, Nanu ke sketching se lekar Jhappu ke Board exams tak, sabmein anjaane hi uska naam juda hai.Uske baad bhi kitne hi furniture aaye ghar mein, lekin mummy ke kamre mein rakhi woh kursi aaj bhi utni hi khaas hai sabki.
Shayad isliye ki woh books ke paas aur TV ke saamne hai. Ya isliye ki woh badi aur aaramdaayak hai. Ya shaayad isliye ki woh mummy ki kursi hai, jaisi woh kitne samay se chaahti thin.

Playlist today

Zeehal-e-muskin, makon baranjish, bahaal-e-hizraan bechara dil hai
Sunaayi deti hai jiski dhadkan tumhara dil ya humaara dil hai

Woh aake pehloo mein aise baithe, ki shaam rangeen ho gayi hai
Zara-zara si khili tabiyat, zara si ghamgeen ho gayi hai
__________________________________________
________________________________________

Pyaar mujhse jo kiya tumne to kya paaogi
Mere haalaat ki aandhi mein bikhar jaaogi

Ranj aur gham ki basti ka main baashinda hoon
Yeh to bas main hoon ki is haal mein bhi zinda hoon
Khwaab kyun dekhoon woh, kal jispe main sharminda hoon
Main jo sharminda hua tum bhi to sharmaaogi

Pyaar mujhse jo kiya tumne to kya paaogi

Kyun mere saath koi aur pareshaan rahe
Meri duniya hai jo veeran to veeran rahe
Zindagi ka yeh safar tumpe to aasan rahe
Humsafar mujhko banaaogi to pachhtaaogi

Pyaar mujhse jo kiya tumne to kya paaogi

Ek main kya abhi aayenge deewane kitne
Abhi goonjenge mohabbat ke taraane kitne
Zindagi tumko sunaayegi fasaane kitne
Kyun samajhti ho mujhe bhool nahin paaogi

Pyaar mujhse jo kiya tumne to kya paaogi
Mere haalaat ki aandhi mein bikhar jaaogi
________________________________________
________________________________________

Yeh to nahin ke gham nahin
Haan meri aankh nam nahin

Tum bhi to tum nahin ho aaj
Hum bhi to aaj hum nahin

Ab na khushi ki hai khushi
Gham ka bhi ab to gham nahin
________________________________________
________________________________________

Jinko duniya ki nigaahon se chhupaye rakha
jinko ek umr kaleje se lagaaye rakha
deen jinko, jinhe iimaan banaaye rakha

tune duniya ki nigaahon se jo bach kar likhe
saal-ha-saal mere naam baraabar likhe
kabhie din mein to kabhie raat ko uth kar likhe

teri khushbu mein base khat main jalaata kaise
pyaar mein doobe hue khat main jalaata kaise
teri haathon ke likhe khat main jalaata kaise
tere khat aaj main ganga mein baha aaya hoon
aag bahte hue paani mein laga aaya hoon
________________________________________
________________________________________

koi yeh kaise bataaye ki woh tanha kyun hai
woh jo apna tha wohi aur kisi ka kyun hai
yahi duniya hai to phir aisi yeh duniya kyun hai
yahi hota hai to aakhir yahi hota kyun hai

ek zara haath badha lein to pakad le daaman
uske seene mein sama jaaye humaari dhadkan
itni qurbat hai to phir faasla itna kyun hai

dil-e-barbaad se nikla nahin ab tak koi
ik lute ghar pe diya karta hai dastak koi
aas jo chhoot gayi phir se bandhaata kyun hai

tum masarrat ka kaho ya ise gham ka rishta
kahte hain pyaar ka rishta hai janam ka rishta
hai janam ka jo yeh rishta to badalta kyun hai

After the paper

What you had thought you'd do-

1. Sleep
2. Packing
3. Get all the official work done
4. Study for the next to next paper
5. Go to the library and get some books issued
6. Go shopping you've been putting off for so long
   

What you do-

1. Sleep
2. ...
3. ?
4. !
5. Feel sleepy
6. Listen to some crappy remixes
7. Write a blog

Yeah.... but

Yeah I have exams, but I cannot study.
I know I have to study, but cannot decide which subject.
I wanted to read software engg, but dont have the books.
My roomie's arranged the books, but I cannot concentrate.

Yeah I'm hungry, but it's my fast today.
Fast is over, but it's not supper time yet.
Lunch is ready, but it's once again tinda.
I go to the mess, but I'm not hungry anymore.

We have to start with the project, but it's such a stupid one.
We enjoy the work now, but there're so many bugs.
Cured all the bugs at the room pc, but the floppy's got virus.
Finally got the proj on the lab pc, but it just wont compile there.
Got rid of all the lab bugs too, but the program hangs in front of the guide. :((

Yeah our project's ready for demonstration, but the external hasn't reached yet.
He's arrived, but discussing things with the dean now.
Demonstrations have begun, but he's in the other lab.
He'll come to our lab, but it's lunch break now. :((

Wanted to talk, but cannot find the right person.
Okay, anyone'll do, but noone's got time.
Met a friend at last, but s/he just wont understand.
Told all my problems, s/he says "to kya hua?" :((

Wanted to write something, didn't know what.
Decided a topic, but couldn't find words.
Wrote it finally, but it doesn't make sense!!!

Kaho Kaise Ho (Ek Kavita)

(Not my own, it's by Chandrasen Virat. And I've edited it)

Laut raha hoon main ateet* se,
Dekhoon pratham tumhare tevar
Mere samay! Kaho kaise ho?

Laut raha hoon main ageya* se
Socha tumse milta jaaun
Mere geet! Kaho kaise ho?

Laut raha hoon main yathaarth* se
Mann ho aaya tumhe bhent loon
Mere swapn! Kaho kaise ho?

Laut raha hoon main videsh se
Sabse pahle kushal poochh loon
Mere desh! Kaho kaise ho?

Laut raha hoon main jangal se
Socha tumhe dekhta jaaun
Mere manuj*! Kaho kaise ho?

Laut raha hoon main bichhoh* se
Pahle tumhe baanh mein bhar loon
Mere pyaar! Kaho kaise ho?

________________________________________
*
0. Ateet - Past
1. Ageya - Sth that cannot be sung
2. Yathaarth - Reality
3. Manuj - Human being
4. Bichhoh - Seperation

Teachers

I've learnt something from everyone. But there are some I've loved learning from:

1. Lakkad didi (Class-teacher, KinderGarten I)*
2. RL Pandey sir (Social Sciences, Std III, IV and V)
3. Vishnu Kant Tripathi sir (Physics, Std X)
4. Mamta didi (Hindi, Std VIII, IX, X)*
5. Smita jiji (Sanskrit, Std XII)**
6. Kusum Gupta Ma'm (Pascal, C/C++, OOP, BSc I, II, III)***
7. Sanjay K Dwivedi sir (OS, Compiler Designing, MCA III, IV)

_______________________________________________________
*Saraswati Shishu Mandir, Ma'm = Didi
**Banasthali Vidyapith, Ma'm = Jiji
***My favorite! [:-)]

Of chori and seenazori

*Lots of Hindi. The ones who have problem with Hindi can skip this one*

Well, if nothing, hostel life aapko chori zaroor sikha deti hai!.

Donno how it's possible, but we're all-time hungry here. "Jab jo milega, chalega!". Aur agar kuchh nahin mila to?... Well, to hum churaayenge!

I remember, it was my first year in hostel. We were six or seven 16-year olds. As usual, har raat humein itni bhookh lagti thi ki maangne ki naubat aa hi jaati thi. Then one day we thought we've had enough! We needed other sources too.

We held a meeting, and it was decided that we'd have to steal. Steal from where? Socha gaya, what better than the hostel store room? It had nothing but bread, and we knew it. But 2-3 packets of breads everynight will do. Plus, there was this adventure-factor, ofcourse! ;-)

The store room was at the end of our wing, and just in front of it was the warden's room. Risk to tha hi, lekin hum bhi khatron ke khilaadi the! Windows of the store room were kept open else the room would get too hot, jo breads ke liye achchha nahin hota. Khidkiyaan khuli hone ka fayda breads ke saath-saath humein bhi mila. The window had rods so that it'd be hard to get our hands inside. Moreover, packets of breads were kept at a distance from the window. So what we did was, we tied a knife at the end of a long wooden stick, and asked a skinny girl to be our partner-in-crime. (We needed her, humaare haath khidk ke andar ghus hi nahin paate) The idea was perfect, on the first night itself we were able to get away with 5-6 packets of bread. :-D

Bas phir kya tha, dastoor chal nikla. Hum har raat ko apni zaroorat ke hisaab se bread le lete the. Imaandaar the, kabhie extra nahin li! ;-) Raatein beetti rahin, warden ko pata bhi nahin chala. Anyway, negligence spells trouble. Ek din jaldi-jaldi mein, humaara auzaar (knife, alongwith the stick ofcourse) Ekta ke haath se chhoot kar us room ke andar gir gaya. There was no way out, hum sab jaake apne-apne rooms mein so gaye.

Next day- At the time of breakfast, the warden sat there on his usual chair, with the 'auzaar' in her hand, anger all over her face. (She looked just like a red-indian chief!). With every girl that entered the mess hall, she had the same question "Yeh tumhara hai?". Girls giggled like they do, everyone knew maajra kya tha! Anyway, criminal ka pata na lagna tha, na laga.

Ek woh din tha aur ek aaj ka din hai, store-room ki khidkiyaan band hi rahti hain.


(*This started our struggle for freedom. In a later incident, some more girls broke the lock of the other store room, and got 50 packets of Maggi and kilos of sugar which they (like true communists ;-) ) distributed among everyone. Equally.*)

Contradiction

Two contradicting thoughts I have had:

1. Live each day as it comes. Be ever-changing, ever-new. Be what the moment expects you to be. Dont cling on. Keep changing your ideas/thoughts as you get inputs. Grow with time.

2. Be constant. Be an integral entity, not a series of ever-changing adjectives. Set your beliefs, and follow them. Dont change with every tick in the clock. Contradictions and denials are not growth. Stand by the idea that is 'you'.

As Kids - (Part 1) Our escape from home

We were three - Pallavi didi, Sonu (my sis) and me. They're both two years older to me. We had formed this "secret" detective agency, called RP99. It was Richa-Pallavi and their ages. I was not a partner in the firm yet! :P

How serious we were with it! We'd actually go to all sort of weird places, and do real jasoosi. Our targets were usually any odd-looking person, all the patients (we live in doctor's colony), any big houses/kothis, the water tank of our colony (that was such a suspicious-looking place, secluded & dirty), and the crematorium near our colony. :)) In the hot summer afternoons when everyone slept, we'll spend hours looking for clues of any kind of crime. We spared noone. Everyone was either a criminal or a victim. We even had code names. Mine was Rakhi, the others were Rekha and Sridevi I think. What names!! Come to think of it, we were perhaps the most stupid kids around, but blessed with the best imaginations too.

One fine day when we returned home at 7 or 8 pm, having spent the whole afternoon & evening taking notes, keeping eye on all the 'criminals', mumma was furious! We got a good (verbal) thrashing and decided this was not the place for us. We had to find another home for ourselves.

The very next day, we took some bread, a comb and 25 paise each, and set on our journey. Where to go, everyone was keeping an eye on us (so we thought). We just roamed here and there, not talking to anyone, hiding behind trees & bushes for no reason and walking through dried up naalis. At last we saw a big house. Ah! Pallavi didi said "Dekho, hum Nagpur aa gaye. Yeh meri mausi ka ghar hai!"
R: "Andar chalein kya?"
K: "Mausi ghar par to nahin batayengi na?"
P: "Arey hum bas unse milke aur khana kha ke chale jayenge yahan se"

Knock-knock! Standing before us, a policeman with moustaches.
P: (to us) "Lagta hai Mausi ko kisi ne kidnap kar liya hai!"
R: "Bhaago!!"

And we ran for our lives. I hated it. Why did he had to kidnap Mausi, I was so hungy!

A few minutes of walking, and we were in the main market of Rewa. There's a place called Peeli Kothi, which was abandoned then (now it's been converted into a museum). A perfect place for us to live in, we thought! We went to the first floor using the creaky stairs. The first thing that we saw there was the scores of lizards and cobwebs all around us. Shrieking, we ran down the creaky stairs, which almost gave way under out feet.

We went to a shop. "Uncle, paani milega kya?" "!" We sat there, planning what to do next. I wanted to go home, I was so hungry! (I think they were too, but being elder to me they could not say this)
"Arey Sonu, tum log yahan kya kar rahe ho?" It was our uncle. "Munna mama?" (Thank God Rewa was a small place) I dont know of the others, but I was happy. At least I'd get something to eat now. He took us home. Where, before anything, we got lots of scolds and love, all mixed together. I dont know whether mumma was happy or sad or angry. I got to eat my favorite Gulab Jamuns that night. Lots of them.

Looking back at it, it's hard to believe we really did all this. There's so much to be said, I could write a book about our adventures. The Adventures of RP99. (Perhaps that's the reason I like Tom Sawyer, Calvin, Rusty and Swami so much.) :)

Lyrics: Ajnabi tum jaane-pehchaane se

Nothing special. Was just listening to this song. Kishore da, again.

Film- Hum sab ustaad hain
Music- Laxmikanth Pyarelal
Lyrics- Asad Bhopali
Sung by- Kishore Kumar

Ajnabi
Ajnabi tum jaane pehchane se lagte ho
Ajnabi tum jaane pehchane se lagte ho
Yeh badi ajeeb si baat hai
Ke nayi nayi mulakaat hai
Phir bhi jaane kyon
Ajnabi tum jaane pehchane se lagte ho

Tumne kabhi pyaar kiya tha kisi rahi se
Tumne kabhi pyaar kiya tha kisi rahi se
Tumne kabhi wada kiya tha kisi saathi se
Na woh pyaar raha
Na woh baat rahi
Phir bhi jaane kyon
Ajnabi
Tum jaane pehchane se lagte ho
Ajnabi

Dil me rahe aur hamara dil tod diya
Dil me rahe aur hamara dil tod diya
Saath chale mod pe aake rukh chhod diya
Tum ho kahin
Aur hum kahin
Phir bhi jaane kyon
Ajnabi
Tum jaane pehchane se lagte ho
Yeh badi ajeeb si baat hai
Ke nayi nayi mulakaat hai
Phir bhi jaane kyon
Ajnabi tum jaane pehchane se lagte ho
Ajnabi

Pseudo-Random Thoughts

I feel like a kid who's just found a new toy - life. I love it, I'm in awe of it, and I cant let anyone else be in control of it. It's mine, and there's so much to know about it.

I like the lyrics/music and voice of the (philosophical) songs that Kishore da sang for AB, Rajesh Khanna etc. And the mood too. His voice changes according to the mood. Listen to 'Yeh laal rang', 'Roop tera mastana' and 'Zindagi kaisi hai paheli'.

I hate myself for not studying. I really do.

I wish I were at home this Holi. But then, this is my last Holi in Banasthali. My seventh one.

I had thought life'd get more frustrating after Sonu and Rohini went home, but it's ok.

I've become very self-centered. See how the random thoughts begin with I and revolve around me.

Dil Se

Dil Se - Mani Rathnam's best flick as I see it. Dil Se is a disturbing (somehow) romance set in the backdrop of religious and nationalist fundamentalism, terrorism and violence.
The film's producers claim that the movie is a journey through the seven different shades of love, based on ancient Arabic thought. (I did not know that till today). Hub(attraction), Uns(infatuation), Ishq(love), Adiqat(reverence), Ibaadat(worship), Junoon(obsession), and finally, Maut(death). Bewitching, isnt it?
And lyricist Gulzar has captured all the seven shades in a single song, Satrangi Re. No wonder I find it one of the best songs ever written (and composed/sung). See the best of ARR in the compositions. All the songs stand apart, my favorite ones being Satrangi Re, Dil Se Re and Aye Ajnabee, though noone can deny Sukhwinder the credit for Chhaiya-Chhaiya.
Cinematography by Santosh Sivan is extraordinary. From the high altitude deserts of the north, to the pal,-fringed beaches of the south, India is shown in all her glory. And at her best.
Excellent performances by SRK and Manisha. Preity at her bubbly best (acted well too). And Manisha looks stunningly beautiful.
The story/screenplay was by Manirathnam himself I think. A very different movie. Sad that people could not understand it. Else they'd have loved it like I do.

I'm sick of

My perpetual headache
Sleeping too much
Not feeling good
Trying to be good
Failing badly at being good
Trying to make others happy
Failing badly at it too
Working a lot
Not working when and where needed
Meetings
Lectures
Bunking lectures
Parties and treats
Talking to people
(Even more) Talking to myself
Not getting (wanting) to talk

Bollywood - Faces I've noticed lately

Sushant Singh-
First saw him in The Legend of Bhagat Singh. Rajkumar Santoshi could not have chosen a better actor for portraying Sukhdev. His buoyancy was a perfect match for Ajay Devgan's intensity. Watched Jungle (he got a well-deserved Filmfare for it), Kaun and 16th December after TLoBS. And could not help but pat my back for the choice I have in movies, and actors. :D

Atul Kulkarni-
Even though I haven't watched his much acclaimed Satta, he's been outstanding in Khakee, 88 Antop Hills and Page 3. A very good actor, another one from the theatres.

Sandhya Mridul-
Was lovely in Saathiya (as Rani's sis, Deena) and better still in Page 3, as the ambitious, practical girl Pearl.

Sonali Kulkarni-
She never got the roles, or appreciation she deserved. Didnt she complement Saif perfectly in DCH? And does anyone remember the sweet, understanding wife in Pyar Tune Kya kiya? Given a chance, she can prove her worth even though she's not the 'star material' as they call it.

Rahul Bose-
Mr and mrs Ayyar, Jhankar Beats, Everybody Says I'm Fine, Chameli - he's been praised, but could never make his mark in the mainstream cinema. Lack of good roles, again. (I've seen only Jhankar Beats, and LOVED him in it).

Nagesh Kukunoor-
Teen Deewarein, the movie, was different and I liked it. And it was in it that I noticed Nagesh Kukunoor the actor. He acted brilliantly, and stood out even amongst the likes of Naseeruddin Shah and Juhi Chawla. Haven't watched Hyderabad Blues yet, but have heard it's another one of his good performances.

John Abraham-
He's hyped, 'coz he's been a supermodel, and now he's being liked as an actor too. Many hate him for this. But from what I see, he is a good actor, even if we forget his looks or physique. Liked his acting in Paap, Jism, Dhoom and Saaya.

Juhi Chawla-
:))
Well, watch out for her in Jhankar Beats and Teen Deewarein. Cannot help but love her!

Life's like that!

It takes the most unexpected turns. And makes you do the most unexpected things - things you have not even thought about until a moment ago, you do them as if that's what was meant to be done.
You buy a new house, the kind that you've always wanted. If there's an earthquake can you do anything but to leave it and come out in the open? 'Coz you know you can always build a new house, brick by brick. But if you stay in it, not wanting to lose it, you might lose everything!
You'll miss it for some days, cry for it perhaps, but life goes on. You find a new house, you start decorating it. It might not be easy, but it's fun if you find the right colors for the walls, the right furniture, the right curtains, the right people to share it with.

Changes are difficult, but inevitable. You have to learn to live with them.

The Aayam Experience

Aayam - the magazine of Control-C Association. I've been in the editing & production team for four years now. And every year it's a whole new experience.
We've grown together (Aayam & me), I've learnt so many things along the way. During my first year in Aayam, I felt very hesitant about rejecting any article (the girl took so much pain writing it, I thought), but with time you learn saying No.
You start to get used to people too. Initially I got irritated when others didnt show up for the meetings. I still do, but now I dont feel like shouting at them.
And you get to know how to make others write something. You cannot get useful articles by putting up notices at every wall of the institute, naah! There are tricks. Sometimes people are lacking in ideas. You show them the direction, and they'll come out with something extraordinary. You leave it all to them, they'll keep you waiting forever. We all need inspiration at time, dont we? [:D]
I've made so many new friends too. Seniors, juniors, batchmates. Some of them are really nice - the kind who give you this good feel, u know - Surabhi, Pooja, Sudhu are some of my favs. And I'm sure there'll be others too, we just need a little more time together.

Hmm... I'd say this magazine thing really is not a bad thing. I loved it, not so much for the readind/editing part of it, as for the learning part.

I'm back...

It's been long since I last posted a blog (It's more than 2 months ago, actually).
Just wanted to let u all know that I'm back. And I'll start writing again very soon. :D

PS: Thnx Raja, BD, Surabhi, Sudhu for reminding me time & again of my blogs!