You have My Collection of Books!

I still remember this day last year, when I witnessed what I have always been taught was inevitable!  I met people whom I have never met before, heard things that I never heard before and felt helpless like I never felt before. People being ushered in and out of the house, people being consoled, pacified were being asked to maintain calm; amidst all this pandemonium He lay there calm, unmoved, dauntless and at peace. His wife lay in the next room trying to figure out what just happened.

His treasure of books rested in the shelves waiting for him to get back and caress them, read them an savor what they had to offer, but they didn’t knew he had ceased to exist. The last time I visited him in the hospital- his face was wreathed in a small yet bright smile, though pale he still managed to carry the same charisma he always had. I could barely look in to his eyes, for all I know they were signalling a cyclone that was about to sweep through our lives. 

“I might miss FIFA Euro World Cup this time, but, I never knew he really meant it. Lying on the bed he said it’s about time I start counting my days and I think I am done, and all I could do was look at him helplessly!” 

He is possibly the most practical person I have ever been with, and possibly the only person who has had so much of an impact on me. I can possible never imagine of an encyclopaedia like him, he read, read and read like a dog. He lay awake till late in the night through the morning just reading! Had it not been for him I would have never inherited a library. He always said “reading is what makes you come alive, no matter how long we stay together for the rest of our lives, you will always have my collection of books”.

The last time I spoke to him at length was during my counseling sessions with him regarding my career ahead, and these sessions never ended on positive note. I have asked him to wait till my graduation result and we shall discuss it post that. But, I never knew that I would make him wait for the rest of my life! The results were declared one day after he died and so did the counseling sessions. 

He always wanted to be ahead of life, prepare ourselves before life throws surprises at us and we stay dumbstruck. Well, he failed to succeed and he left all others dumbstruck. His attitude towards life is the only thing that I could manage to inherit, because he was unique in every other aspect! 

When he finally was about to be taken for the last rites, which I was supposed to perform, I could see people breaking down, weeping relentlessly my mom weeping looked at me wishing I could manage to pull out a miracle like one from the movies but, I could barely meet her gaze and I kept telling myself, “this is just a dream, I shall wake up soon and everything will be back to how it was earlier- Dad can never leave without saying goodbye!” 

P. S: I have graduated with flying colors, I am now earning Dad. Also, mom has been a real fighter she has managed to bare us for the past one year, she has a few complaints against us but, I am sure you will overlook them. All through our lives that we have spent together we have shown love caring in myriad ways, I have never really said this- simply and plainly I love you!

"I never thought I would be writing something so sober, but, I realized sooner or later one has to reveal his inner soul."

From Symphony to Cacophony!

“Chookar Mere mann ko, kiya tune kya ishaara, badla ye mausam....lage pyaara jag saara!” Aah!  What a melodious song. Now classics like these have transcended the music to a whole new level. And now we are greeted with cacophony everywhere. The other day I was flipping through the channels on television and then realised how times have changed, how people have evolved in the lousiest way possible.

I switch on television to pamper my ears for some time and then I go all deaf, for fact that music is all about munni and sheela. Who cares if “Munni is badnaam or not?” “Mere photo ko chipkale saiyaan fevicol se!” Seriously, who in the right mind would do that, the last time I checked fevicol was an adhesive that is supposed to be and is being used for wood (the moment it came in to existence) and not for human body, neither interior nor exterior. Dafaq!

 

If Md. Rafi, Kishore Kumar and the other legendary music directors were to come alive and transcend the music to an all new level, they would prefer dying all over again. They were days well I was lulled in to sleep with the euphony of their voices. These days all we are lulled in to irreparable trauma for the fact that we have Sheela, Munni and not to forget the latest Babli who is adamant about the fact that she is badmaash! 

Long gone are those days when people grooved to the classics on radio, it is now the generations of Smart Phones which do everything for you except eating your food and cleaning the poop that follows, generation of iPods on which most of the tracks these days are hokum. I see people popping in the ear phones and their palpitating like a mindless raccoon and when questioned they say I am going all “Gangsta man, ya’sup! “

Soulful music these days has become moot. Yes, a couple of tracks from A. R. R and others on and off cajole our ears, but then music that soothes our souls is long forgotten. Bollywood is all about Sheela, Munni and not to forget Babli and Laila. As far as Tollywood is concerned it is screwed ever since the legendary Ghantasala and the people like him were laid to rest. Except for some a few songs these days the rest is cacophony. And, Hollywood hardly comes out with an erred music, except for the blabbering of Justin Beiber, Nicky Minaj, Miley Cyrus and not to mention they hail from the outer space, if you ever encounter a music that does not sound pleasing, hear to Eminem’s tracks- he can make up to everything, mark my words “E.V.E.R.Y.T.H.I.N.G”!!! J

At times (read as all times) I wish I could go back in time and bring back to those old days of classic music and then die there in the very moment, for all I know I am little scared and a little concerned with the growing Jawani of Sheela, the Badnaami of Munni, the Badmashi of Babli & of course who isn’t scared of Beiber! *Claps Hands*.

*Aah! Done with an other post!*

Vision 2020?? My Foot!!

 

I still remember my school days when we pledged “India is my country all Indians are my brothers & sisters, blah blah...... will strive to develop it by 2020.” Now, what part of this phrase are people having trouble deciphering? What’s wrong with people, how come the I-will-save-my-sisters men are assaulting their own sisters?

Hey, You! Would you be cool if this were to happen with own sister? Or rather would you go through the pain that a helpless woman goes through when you are all over again like a mindless animal? No, you wouldn’t you pervert! How about you assault and play with yourself for an instance and put yourself through the agony that a woman goes through; just for once you mindless retards.

Now, the past Delhi rape incident, the so called “the-case-that-shook-the country” the case that I assume: have changed many a people, the case that bought many reforms, agitations, new laws most importantly the case that is lying in the same unattended pile of cases. Amidst that very agitation, many more hearts which were brave were laid to rest. A couple of agitations, candle light marches, debates in all news channels, seeking opinion of bureaucrats, spokes-persons on what measures to be taken and the next morning you wake up it is déjà-vu all over again, switch on the television, grab a news paper both writhe in pain of helpless minor being raped to death.

Alright now, the recent 5 year old rape case; how on earth a human being in the right mind assault a 5 years old? She is not even woman yet, what kind of a planet do people like that hail from, the land that craves for castration I suppose. The incident the other day in Jaipur, where a man’s cry for help of his wounded son and dead wife and an infant fell on deaf ears, seriously the apathy of the people is what makes me dumb-struck. What kind of people are we turning ourselves into? With this squalid state that we are in, we dream to be a country that everyone will look up to? My foot.

People said girl’s attire kindles a man’s desire and sets his libido humming; now what kind of a man’s libido would hum seeing 5 years old? Only a man who would want his balls cut off and fed to the dogs, well, help him for God’s sake. Such a horrible shame, we Indians are so vulnerable to terror attacks, we fed a terrorist who was responsible for deaths of innocent people and respected officers for years, then hanged him, with chest wide as an ocean pretending to have set an example for future attacks, seriously who are we kidding?

I heard our beloved government taking harsh measures to halt the assaults like these, but then I realized they are just all words lacking action. Rapist held, FIR filed, hearing to take place next week- why waste so much time in delivering justice, go for castration put a bullet in his head, end of story. That should not be difficult. We have been holding, rapists, filing FIR’s and hearing cases for years now, it is time to pull up our socks and get to business. Looking at the stats, deciphering them, telecasting them and opining on them is not going to solve a thing.

 “Justice will be served”,” stringent laws will come in to force”, “swift justice needed”, these catch-phrases are designed only to cajole a human ear, not the heart. Justice will be served stale, stringent laws are and will be on their way for ever before either of them arrive, we will have many more hearts to cajole and many more souls to pacify.

P. S: All the readers of this article, request you to help me if I am “arrested” for publishing the article, and voicing my opinion!

Cheers!

Till Life Did Us Part!!

I still remember the last day of my graduation, people elated, relieved and not to mentioned tired. The day had finally arrived for which we have been waiting from the day when we realized the true essence of graduation- probably the first day I suppose!  :P

Chanting, shouting, screaming, jumping high in the air, and getting pictures clicked by all the class-mates. Promising them that we shall stay in touch for the rest of our lives, come what may, we shall cross paths every now and then, call up each other twice, thrice a day, meet up twice a week and make sure every day is just an another day at college.

8 months after the last day at college, and in to this so- called corporate life style, I realized I made promises that I can’t keep, I hardly meet my friends, all the I’ll be in touch phrases seem to be long forgotten. I refrain myself from dozing off after I have my dinner so that I can call a friend of mine and get to know how is he doing, but in vain. Even if I manage to call up a friend, most of the time the conversation happens to be about mundane things and ends up on a “let us meet some time” note!

After 5 days of work, getting out of my bed seems to be an herculean task let alone going out and hanging out with friends. Everything despite being monotonous and thrill-lacking one is bound to be sucked in to the same rigmarole day after day.

At times I become nostalgic, just listening to my brother talk about his day at college. The records, exams, lectures, slogging for attendance, last minute run for the evaluation of records, seminars, bunking classes; which once seemed to be never ending, is now history which carved numerous memories on our hearts. Every day an adventure, joy full and awesome!

I still remember the pocket money crunch I had at times, that made me settle only for a couple of "Samosa’s" and my appetite admonished me for not saving the money properly.  Now it is the other way round where the appetite has grown smaller and money has taken lead. I wish I could go back to the college days and cease to exist in that very moment. Because life now has only one thing to offer- Nothing! Eat, Poop, Work, Sleep  and well eat and poop again. 

 Though we made stringent promises that our “lives” would be the same even after the college days as it turned out life itself did us part.

Adios!!