The next generation..

I have been lucky to have some of the most affectionate and understanding cousins/uncles/aunts..They have showered me with gifts on special occassions,advised me when i needed it..bad..been there for me,basically...

Consequently,i believe I owe it to the next generation,their daughters,sons,etc to be as affectionate and loving..Even otherwise,they need to remember "ritesh uncle" and not let him fade into oblivion just cos he's not in the same town..
:-/

I work around that problem by buying them audio cassettes,cards,etc..chocolates,esp. hersheys worked before..they dont anymore..even kids are getting choosy abt the chocolates they eat !
One particular niece doesnt like 'foreign chocolates'..cos she ate bitter chocolate,once..and has sworn off them...for life ! she's 8 !!
:D
She eats only vanilla icecream..and no amount of baskin robbins/hagendaaz magic will convince her,otherwise..uff !
:)

Well..one of them sent a mail today..this niece is the same one who sent the earlier mail..saying she's opened an email account..
I've been chatting with her,on and off..over mail and phone..
I make a list of things to talk about,before i make the call..it's tough talking to people who are not your age..nowadays,yaar ! atleast for me !
:)
She makes her view known..very succinctly..
:)
Starting with the subject..

Sub: 'very angry with u'

"hi
when on earth are you going to buy a new camera!!!!everyday i open my mail box to see if you have sent me any new mails but that never happens.i am very,very angry withy u [humph]please email to me everytime you have something good for me
till then have a great day
yours k,
bangalore."

Like i said..she does have a way with words...
:D
Now...what do you say to something like this ? I am still wondering about an appropriate response..
:)

Mr. Murphy and...Mom's funda...

*Note:Looooong post..dont say i dint warn you ! :D*

Ho hum..just another day...na...not that john secada track..but that's a good one,na ?
Especially...when love-lorn and...love-sick..sick of love,that is..
:D
*so many one-hit wonders....even amongst our indi-pop hot-flashes-in-an-even-hotter pan...
where's baba sehgal,man !? Missing him...and his "aaja meri gaadi mein baith jaa !" :D
Daler Mehndi, Anaida, Viva, Aasma, this,that and all that ken ghosh trash ? :P *

anyways..travel travel travel..rusayl mabella ruwi...thats 300 km day ! up and down !! :-/
*I havent done so much travel...ever ! even in india !! :-/*
issa,my driver...and his fascination for "Mann"...
:-)
*I know all the songs now...the sequence,even ! that aamir-khan flop..and i know all the songs ! Issa-fake-ismail will pay !!! dearly ! :D*

*Btw,the best travel/long-distance commute track...the one that suits any mood...
Lucky ali...with "dekha hai aise bhi.." AWESOME ! Do listen,the next time on a long drive..
Also..I havent heard of a single person who says.."Lucky ali..yeah,so ? he's ok..."
They are always opinionated abt him..always ! People either hate it..or love his music..i love it !
Stereotyped,yes..but wow ! so dependably,stereotyped ! :)*

Anyways..By second half i was done..with work...decided to have lunch..
I hate having my meals,alone..unless infront of the box..so..i had it with V..
*You want me to be depressed all day..make me have my meal alone..that shld get me thinking..and depressed :-/*
but...uff,kitna bolta hai yaar,V..bambaiyya gujjus and the stock exchange..uff,when will that love affair ever end ?! :-/
Kabhi kabhi sun na bhi accha hota hai,bhaai ! doosron ke liye naa sahi..apne kaanon ke liye,alteast ! :D
best lunch in town..the mall in rusayl...simple stuff..
No spice..just the way i like it,for lunch...yoghurt..chapati..green peas..dal..life !
:)
*Not much of a foodie..homely-types khaana/saapaad/oota..haan,curd-rice-types-guy hoon :D
Am fine,thanks..no fork-knife,chopsticks,pizza-nonsense,PLEASE ! :D*

and...the problems started..

Surd called..to say "kuch nahi...bas aise hi...hi..hello..bolne ke liye..." :)
*"haan ! aur bol champion/hero/*beep*/*beep beep*"..standard opening lines from surd :P
Wonder if he'll say that to his wife too,someday !?? "haan bol item !" =))
With hands folded behind his back,yellow tie..and soft voice..
"yessir..that's rite..the springboks play rugby,which is why they are good at cricket..." :O
when trying to be all formal =))*

anyways...i said that - "hi...hello..." and promptly cut the call...I WAS EATING ! =))
My phone fell into the jug of water just as i was balancing it on my ear !!
what are the odds !!??
2 phones ?!! in 6 months !!! not quite..
this one is a "'made for india'-'s blundering idiots" and...survived..wet..but alive..
:D
My boss coming to town..to take over..and hopefully release me..from this madness..
I am on my way back to office..to take the cab to the airport and receive him later..but he calls up a full 2 hrs before schedule..
and says "yeah..i am here already ! took the connecting flight from dubai..it was empty..and here i am..."
"WHAT ? err...anyways...ok..will be there..gimme 15 mins..Issaa ! quick ! U-turn at the next roundabout ! A'seeb airport..no,no..not office..airport..
no...i am not going back to india ! and no,i cant sell you my laptop ! it's not mine,thats why ! "
"Err...kini,slight problem..theres a problem with my visa..and i have been detained...in a room in the departure lounge..
will be sent back to india on the next available flight.."
":O !!! What ??!! Ok...gimme a call in 5 mins..will be in office..and will arrange something..soon.."
"Issaa...sorry yaar..err...U-turn again ! yeah,i know...we indians are crazy !"
Mini-emergency time..get the PRO involved..letterhead..letter in arabic...signature..politics..war of words..and egos later..
We were on the way to the airport...
*Turns out..for a 1 year biz visa like my boss has..if he doesnt step into town for >6 months..it's invalidated...automatically ! the HR here made a 'mistake'..'sorry' :-/*
Nothing worked..we werent allowed to meet him,even.."This is NOT india !" :O !!!!
That made me almost lose it with the guy at the counter..i was told later that his shoulder lapel suggested "Major" in the Royal Oman police..
:O
Close shave...closer still..more to come..we leave...
talking to the boss on the phone..and he's been told now that he'll be put on the return flight to chennai,at midnite..
and he's laughing his guts out..cos,he's being "deported"...and it will be something to tell his grandchildren abt,someday !
:))
Hysterical wife calls(boss cant be reached..intl' roaming costs a lotta money and his charge is over ! things are getting better,every passing minute! :)
i try my best to keep her cool...not easy when she assumes detention = 3rd degree....
aeroplane..and "feetsoles-are-the-softest-part-of-the-body" images...
Too many sathyaraj,simbu and adi-aaL tamil movies,is my guess..
:)
Call from P..."what happened ? any news ?! I have got 3 calls from your boss' wife already..shes worrried !"
"Am at the bar...will call you...and her..back.."
Hurriedly leave the bar :-/..Finish the condolence call with her..tell her that i'll inform her once the flight departs...and he's in it !
From the flight manifest info..available with P's friend..who works in the airlines office...
and then back to P..
"What ?! you are at the bar ?!!! your boss is in detention ! and you are partying ??"
"What do you want me to do ? Stand outside the airport morosely..or plan a raid and get him out ? There's nothing we can do..we tried..didnt work..
he'll be put on the flight back to india..he reaches madras..and sends us a msg/calls us..matter complete..
And..there's a difference b/w having a quiet drink..and partying !! "
He was not convinced...
anyways...I was awake till his flight landed and i got confirmation...4 AM !
*My sleep is so damn important to me..and all the action has to happen 3-4 AM !! :-/*
My boss managed to get back to india..safe...his baggage is in egypt tho..
=))
He hopes to walk freely into muscat..sometime next year ! :-/

And all i could remember through this whole thing...was Mom and her words...
Immortal..true..always works..

As a kid..Whenever I was ill..or going through a particularly tough time..and made a fuss..she'd say..

"Of course...I know you are in pain..and if i could take your pain away from you,i would..
but..i cant do that..even if i wanted to..and i am your mother..you are a part of me..will always be..
If I cant do it..I see no point in sitting next to you all day..and sympathising with your situation..
Your pain is not lessened by my sitting next to you...is it ?
Experience it..and you'll learn from it..
your immunity grows..you wont experience it again,next time..
cos..you'll be more careful...and stronger..
So..call me when you need something..i will get it..
now,let me go about doing my work ! "
:)

Exactly ! Mom has some rock-solid fundas..and some not-so-solid fundas...
*Talking abt the maid's daughter's 3rd kid's drunk husband...is not a priority on international calls,MOM !! *
:D

So...If you can help somebody and it's within your control,please do..give it your 100% !
But..if it's not..no point thinking about it..and lose out, on having a good time...
Sympathy..pity..understanding..sharing the burden..yeah,sure..all words,according to me...net-nett..effect ? zero...
Your own Mom,people ! 'Same-same'...flesh and blood and she cant do much about it...when you are in pain..
And you expect somebody who's not even blood to help you get through a tough time ?? Ridiculous !
:-/

Mom was good at these kinda things..working Moms usually are..
Balancing a hundred things..and still coming out trumps..

*Dad was abroad,in KSA..for a few years..and Mom had a fantastic time balancing - 2 demanding kids..and a full-time job ! :D
Her ex-colleagues-and-now-friends still joke about the 9:00 AM bus she took..to reach office at 8:45 AM ! :D*

Pity..the world lost out on somebody who would have made a fantastic psychologist..she was trained by some of blore's best..
and gained a bank employee..for 20-odd years..

And to this day..when my sis and I need to indulge in emotional blackmail..for personal gain..
We say.."You didnt really care about us when we were kids...you were busy with your job..work mattered a lot more to you..than us ! :("
And she immediately gets depressed...and then we have to do damage-control...uff !
:))
She was like that..had to be as good at work..as at home..with her kids...100% !
:)
Today she is well on her way towards her next mission...with her husband and sis for able support...
her daughter's marriage ! :D

So..
If i am decently mentally balanced today,credit to her..
If I am independent..and have the confidence to take a situation head-on..credit to her..
If I can shrug off a failure..not think abt it,the next day..and..look forward to the next challenge..credit to her..
If I have even an iota of 'good habits'..credit to her..
If I am honest abt what i say..and dont really care abt what others think of me...good/bad..credit to her..
And..If...I dont take myself too seriously..credit to her...
*She's awfully good at pulling me back to earth whenever i indulge myself in my "i-am-the-best-thing-to-happen-to-the-world" modes :D*

If after Murphy spent the whole day with me,
i am able to play with 8-year old Rukhsaana on the swing..
have a coupla games of cricket..and baddie,each..
A quiet drink at the bar..
Watch a DVD movie to goto sleep...in one evening/nite !
all credit to her...
:)

It's another story...That i lost my way somewhere in between,once i stepped out of home...
The credit for that..goes to Me...and me alone !
:)

It happened ! Maa-kasam !!

Disclaimer: All characters and/or events stated in this story aren't fictional. Any resemblance to persons and/or events past or present are not coincidental or unintentional.

A mail..from a mail-group i am a part of..cos,i was part of a month-and-a-half long organizational induction programme..at a company i joined after passing out of PG..

This actually happened..and proves the point...
1. We are absolutely responsible for the Firangs perceiving us the way,they do..
2. The goras really do think that we ride elephants to school...and
3. the indian rope trick..is a normal everyday occurrence...


-----Original Message-----
From: T, N(ODC-ABC)
Sent: Wednesday, February 01, 2006 6:39 PM
To: WXYZ, ABC Endeavour; ABC Endeavour
Cc: ABC FGSD DJF; ABC WXYZ M; P, S (WXYZ)
Subject: Finding an Elephant

Team,
We have promised D (US XYZ head) that we would arrange an elephant ride for him while they are here in Mumbai.
D himself is quite keen too on riding on an elephant while in India.
The problem that we are facing currently is quite simple - how /where do we locate an elephant in Mumbai and hence have D to ride it?!!
The task for the team is simpler still - if you were to notice an elephant loitering around (or even stationery for that matter) kindly ask whoever owns it if we can lease the thing for an hour or two.
I know all this may sound funny or even ridiculous - it is however a serious issue and your help in this regard will be highly appreciated.
Any thoughts / suggestions directed towards helping us locate an elephant will be highly appreciated.

Thanks & Regards,
N T
ABC Engagement Manager
WXYZ Endeavour -
WXYZ,I******* Bldg., ABCDE,
Mumbai 4000yz
Email: n_t@abc.com
Ph: +91 22 gdsfgdfd
Mobile: +91 dhdhhdghdy
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
PS: Remember..these guys are senior pros at the firm..and bring in multi-million dollar deals..so..when they need an elephant,they..get an elephant !
:)))
Btw, I am grateful to that company..it gave me my first break..and i learnt a lot..in bombay...but...right now,i cant say,my heart is swelling with pride..
:)
My question,tho..
The guy in the team,who eventually managed to get the elephant...
Under what head was this point added in his appraisal sheet ??
Intrigues me...

Times..They are a changing..

Now..please dont read anything into this post...This place will remain as meaningless...and fun as before...
I cannot put it up at a place that i usually put up such stuff at..some blogger problem...
Gives me an itch..when i have something pending..
This is just something i am interested in..
always been..will always be..not many people know abt it..
except maybe a couple..one was sudeep..a batchmate...
smartest person i have ever met..ever !
studies,cricket,poetry,philosophy,boozing acumen..all-rounder item..ekdum !
*In the field of amateur poetry, i think his "Mein jab khud se mila" is the best i have ever come across ! Had a blog,musaafir..with a lot more stuff...deleted it..dunno why ! now..he's married..and my million-dollar idea of a book out of it,is down the drain..there will be love songs now...and nobody bothers abt love songs anymore..too many of them around :)*
Works for Narayana Murthy now :-/
*I have opinions abt being an employee vs. an employer..which is why,the :-/...
that,another day..*
anyways...sudeep and I used to scout and find magazines,articles..
on..nationmaster..guerillanews...old newspapers..magazines.. anything..
To know more abt history..our history..

Bob marley..and..Buffalo soldier..
"If you know your history,
Then you would know where you coming from,
Then you wouldn't have to ask me,
Who the 'eck do I think I am."

So..here goes..

If there was any era that I would have liked to be a college student/passout in..
it would be the one..that i was in..y2k..
a pass-out in 2k..contributed to me joining 100s more...on the information superhighway..no regrets..not much anyways...
i dont think i would have/have had a better quality of life in any of the allied/non-allied fields..
Dont think i could have been worse/any better in any other field,either..
life's been a lot more easy..compared to our earlier generation..and maybe even better than any generation..to come..
*when you arent really sure what you want to do,in life..and are confused...it doesnt really matter what you do...
I mite have been a better painter..a better song-writer..drama/theatre artist...an astrologer ! a bus driver...who knows ??
Yeah...alice in wonderland..and Lewis..to thank for that funda..:D*
but..if there's anything that came second best..and if i could change anything...i think it would have been..
the era that i would have loved to live in..to feel the pace of...to experience..to be a part of..
the late 70's,early 80s...india...

thoda si socialism..thoda si idealism...
thodi si communism..thodi si capitalism..
Bahut si 3P(poverty,population,pareshaani)..thodi si dilli CP...
Bahut si "Mee Maharashtracha..Maharashtra mazha.." bhaasahaN... thodi si bambai taxi..
khadi kurta..chota sa jhola...chai at coffee house..university elections..naarebaazi..
Choti si Aashaayein..bahut saari baatein..
Neta...abhineta...ghoos...badhboo...
sab jaayaz hai...as long as..license hai...

A turbulent period..so many incidents..so many defining moments..in my country's history...
And i have scoured books...read columns...newspaper articles...i am fascinated by the time..
*Read the "25 years ago"-the-same day section in your local newspaper..and you'll know what i am talking about..*
Illustrated weekly archives..sportstar archives...india today archives..you name it ! anything i could get my hands on !

Have just kinda jotted down..what i believe were some of them...based on whatever i have read/heard/learnt..
*Of course,it goes without saying..it's very little..simply bcos of the amount of stuff that happened..and...my ignorance...i prefer to call it my 'innocence'..but,anyways:)*
Also..Some were directly related to india..some were not..but they all had a say...in defining what we see around us today..

Asiad...appu..new delhi...rail museum..India's first major train accident...
Mills..labor unions...thackeray'bhau'..the rudraksh beads..wine..."ganapati bappa morya"..shakha-pramukhs..the rise of the sena...
Bhopal...and the isocyanide...What ? who ? how ? no answers....how many ? over a 100 thousand..and counting..
Sanjay...forced nasbandi..forced evictions..the emergency...plane crash..dead ? phew !
The inverted red triangle.."Hum do..hamaare do"...Mala-D..nirodh..primary health centres..anganwadis..balwadis..
Operation bluestar..Indira assassination...bodyguards...
Tytler...Bhagat..kill,maim...and..."ek pagdi bhi bach na paaye !"
Anti-sikh riots...delhi burning..lotsa sikhs...burning...
Bofors..the super gun..Quattrochi..Rajiv..V P singh...
Sam Pitroda...the PCOs and the STD booths..
Ram manohar lohiya..a non-congress option..The Janata party..regionalism..casteism..psuedo-secularism...Naxalbaari..."peace or..pieces ?"
Chernobyl..Moscoviska..Russian MiGs...and english-speaking,"dont-know-how-to-read-cyrillic-guages" pilots...the crashes begin...
Greenpeace..and the dolphins...
Afghanistan...and Mr.Kalashnikov...
Israel..munich olympics..Palestine...black september..Entebbe...Idi amin..
The N-bomb...Pokhran..Glory to the ones who did it..but..what...was it ?
The US food embargo...the russian bailout..the green revolution..
Mere Desh ki dharti sona ugale..ugale heere moti..green fields...and greener money..
Pakistan...Mohajirs..The MQM...sunnis vs. shias...fund,encourage,keep Karachi burning..
China...tianmen..that armored tank...Hindi-chini bhaai bhaai...aksai chin,back ?? please ? No ? Tibet ? Not our goddamned business ? fine..
Srilanka...Tamils and the tigers...Sinhalese and the lion..LTTE..PLOTE..EPRLF...Mandapam camp...refugees...
Fund,encourage,train,push to jaffna...keep it on low flame simmer..RAW..the Dravidian movement solidifies..
Keep our borders,unsettled..and hope to live..in peace...ironical...but our foreign policy,then..and worse...even,now...
under the watchful eyes of...the Rodina..
and the 7th US Navy fleet...based out of the indian ocean..
License raj..corruption...black money...the death of the independence spirit...delays..inefficiency..
Rahul bajaj's statement..
"Who needs a marketing department ?! I have 10000 odd customers waiting..for delivery !"
Tibet...refugees...burma..refugees...Nepal..casinos..grey market stuff..and Zeenat Aman...Dum maro dum...
Bombay..varadarajan mudaliar..bombay's first organized crime don..the underworld corporatized..organized..deadlier...
ishq vishq pyaar vyaar..over coffee and tooty-frooty icecream :)
Mughal gardens...brindavan gardens..bollywood discovers the "running-around-trees" phenomenon..
It also discovers the art of financing films..with...kaali-daal(black money term,as used by dons,then..apparently:)...
and don-sponsored stage shows...don-son birthday parties...
Sharjah..and betting..Ind-Pak matches..umpiring..jaaved..imran..kapil..shastri...
'83...and kapil kissing the cup...srikanth & amarnath all smiles...
a nation wakes up..to a new religion...
'85..world series cup..the car...the entire team..on it !!
shastri...sivaramakrishnan..sadanand vishwanath..
and the 'i-dont-care' attitude..booze...their undoing..a tragedy..
kamal hasan..tik tik tik...poo malarthindhada..the ultimate road-romeo song =))
and..realization dawns.. the 'moustache' doesnt work..in hindi movies..south,yes..north,no..
Jumping Jack Jeetu...white shirt,white pant and white shoes..mithunda..and the disco-dancer..
Runa laila...and Nazia hasan..Reena Roy...and...Rekha..Umrao jaan..and..Muqaddar ka sikandar..
bappi lahiri..and "i am your chicken fry..you are my fishu fry.." =))
LSD...and..NSD.....amol palekar...naseer,dipti naval,farooq sheikh...
ijaazat...choti si baat..golmaal...Gharonda..katha...rajnigandha...baaton baaton mein...
Love story...ek duje ke liye..sholay..
the anti-hero character emerges...Lawaris..deewar...
the rise of the angry young man..aur beech mein....Shiv-hari's experiment...silsila...
Prithvi cinema..maratha mandir..Jehangir art gallery....."chicken a la poos"...
drama..theatre..tolstoy..kafka..and kishore kumar songs..in 'kaaka' movies..
philosophy and idealogy..mixed with politics and "bhrasThachaar"....
aur ban gayee 'art' movie..thoda 'hatke'..
*An Upturned leaking tap..in a bombay chawl...
that scene in 'katha'..for me...signifies the india at the time...Awesome movie,btw ! *"

Itna sab hone ke bawajood...inspite of all the despair...
it was the time when india's 'middle class' decided..ok,the only way out of this mess..is education..
Padhao..apne bacchon ko..sabko...let them know no limits..except the ones imposed by us :)
and..we are where we are today..cos of a time like that..an era like that..

The decisions taken then..
Subsidising higher education,increasing grants to the iits..
the scale-up in the number of iims..
all...have had a major say in how the present generation walks into a firm..with confidence..
and walks out..with a job..and a career...

Wow..what a time to have been a fresh outta-college grad !
Dont get me wrong..our time was great...but the fact remains..
that era had a lot more..charm...a lot more romanticism,involved..
Much less materialistic.....much more creative...
Ideals...Morals...ethics..principles...and all those things that count as 'unimportant' in a cynic's mind,nowadays..
A lot more..true...

PS:Yes..i know..i am living in the past...
but then..i dont really have a problem with it..
and dont really care...if you do...
Howard Roark..and Ayn Rand..yep ! :)

PPS:
Statuatory warning : Listening to Buffalo soldier on a weekend..can be injurious to your brain..I'd know ! this post was the result of one such 'nashe ka gash' !
:)