Second Innings...

Its pretty inappropriate to pen a post in this blog today because practically I am no longer a Bangalorean.
But the wonderful few years spent in Bangalore since Sep 07, which instigated millions of beautiful thoughts in my brain  and had inspired me to share many of them through these posts,still deserves a worthy goodbye.Therefore I wish to dedicate this post to the City of Gardens,to Bangalore,where I had scored a wonderful first innings of my work life!
Nothing could really describe the state of mind I came with to Kolkata Airport on 30th of March. I was unable to decipher my own thoughts. I felt a strange longing for Bangalore. The Bengal air seemed so queer to me that I couldn't relate to the surroundings even when I had spent the initial 20 long years of my life here. A strong feeling of loneliness and forlornness was stifling me beyond imagination.The sight of the Bengali crowd around me could draw no fellow feeling from me that day.It shouldn't have been so since I had reached the land of my near ones, which was my dream since I had left home 3 years earlier.Yet at that very moment I terribly missed Bangalore, and all of my friends there.
Soon some bright smiling faces came towards me and welcomed me with a warm hug.Those were the faces I had longed to see and those were the people whom I wanted to be near me always and now I had reached my goal.I felt so happy seeing them.God gave me what I wanted....what I desired and what I had struggled for in the past few months. And here I was, being this selfish girl who didn't know how to be grateful to Him, to the one who had bestowed such a grace upon me.The strange feeling somewhat mitigated to a small extent after registering the above fact in my mind.
Nevertheless , the unsettling feeling was evaporating and I started to regain my composure.The city of joy was slowly making its energetic vibes seep in my veins. And as I rested my head in the back seat of the famous yellow- black Kolkata taxi, I could see a friendly smile of the city spread across the horizon ahead , welcoming me to complete my second innings here and to be one of its people who loved it immensely and adored to be a part of it!!

Kidding around !!

I love kids !! I suppose they love me too. The incident that I am going to narrate right now should be a proof enough.
To begin with, a brief history will cosy things up a bit.

I am the second eldest among all my cousins. That is the reason I am always surrounded by kids whenever any family get together takes place .And honestly they all adore me .They seem to love hanging around me so much that I sometimes feel a scarcity of privacy in those occasions, not even finding enough time and space to talk to my boyfriend. Not that I hate them for this. Nor do my love for kids ever dilute due to these petty reasons. I still love to be with them, watch their antics and play with them despite the huge age difference. Aunties and Masis feel safe keeping their kids with me while they gossip away with friends and neighbors (a rare bliss since they had a kid) during parties or other family occasions.

Family aside, even in public places like malls, parks and theatres, I feel drawn to kids. Their cute ways and naughty smiles make my day .They bring a positive energy around me and relieve me of the day's stress in a jiffy.


Coming back to Bangalore, the area where I stay is a residential area and hence kids are plentiful!! One fine evening, I managed to sneak early out of my office. I was merry and the spring season elevated my mood. There's a supermarket near my apartment and I felt the need to while away some time of the evening there. After one full hour of unproductive but relaxing window shopping, I was on my way back to my home. Soon some chirpy sweet laughter caught my ears and as I turned back I had a glimpse of an angel! She was a little child of about a year old with twinkling green eyes and a cherubic smile!! She seemed to look at me while her mother cradled her in her arms .I couldn’t resist myself and went up to her mother and congratulated her on having such a darling child. When I touched her small fingers , she chuckled and to my and her mom's surprise, she jumped towards me .I took her in my arms and fondly cuddled her. She appeared to love every moment of being with me .I felt a weird connection with that child at that instant. As the child and I bonded, the helpless mother seemed to be worried and so I quickly took control of my emotions and gave the kid back to her. Wonder what happened next? The baby started crying and stretched her arms towards me. The look in those watery green eyes conveyed the longing of the child to come to me. Even I wanted to take her in my arms once more and shower my love upon her. The mother looked at me with awe. I was amazed and speechless too. Somehow she managed to stop her baby’s tears and then left the place quickly.
I wondered rest of the day what could be the logic behind this strange incident. Why was the child so drawn to me when it was the first time I had met her? Does this mean that I had some alien and unfamiliar bond with this child?


I didn't believe in past life but the episode left me pondering about the verity of the fact that the child could somehow be related to me in my past life.

Nature is the best teacher !!!

Last week in Bangalore was one of the hottest weeks in recent years.Scorching heat ,sweltering days are few terminologies which were hardly applicable to Bangalore weather.Summers with breezy mornings and cool nights are always experienced here.Winters are not too cold and usually bearable.Thus Bangaloreans had taken this for granted that nature would never fail them and always satiate them even when the entire country is either baking under the fierce sun in summers or freezing in winters.


The first lesson which I being a Bangalorean was taught by nature was,never take anything or anybody for granted !This happened on the first week of February ,when Sun God decided to pour his anger upon us Bangaloreans.Bangalore saw two torturously sunny weeks which made everyone sweat,puff and pant throughout the days and then the nights too didn't give any relief.Even few months back, sudden rains had ruined the Christmas and New year holidays.It made me realize that nature is still unpredictable and Bangalore is no exception.This clearly indicates that you still have to be patient and tolerate nature's fancies.It is still in the hands of the Almighty to decide certain things and we should agree to His ways without taking Him for granted.


The second lesson that nature taught me is to believe in the adage "There's always a light at the end of the tunnel".This was demostrated when nature lifted its fury and flooded Bangalore two days back with the coolest wind ever and brought a smile to all tired faces.The scorching heat was replaced by a pleasant nip in the air.It really removed the tension that had brewed up in my mind in the last few hectic weeks and filled my mind with freedom and calmness.The tranquitilty of the weather imbibed upon me a sense of pacificity.It reminded me that there's always a glimmer of hope even in hardest of situations.We just need to be a bit patient and wait for the right moment.

Pursue your dreams....

It is true that no matter how old we grow we still slyly preserve and fulfil our childhood dreams more often than we think.Since I am still reluctant to come out of my childhood memories and cravings , I fondly cherish the dream of going on a date with the utterly gorgeous Hrithik Roshan!!Many a times I would still day dream of having a wonderful dance with the superstar.The dream is yet to be fulfilled but recently I met with a similar opportunity.An opportunity to meet a star ,though not Hrithik ,but surely one of my favourites .Presently he is the heartthrob of millions and girls go wild over him ... he is none other than the Kapoor son, Ranbir Kapoor.
I saw the advertisement in Sunday's paper. Ranbir was to visit the newly opened mall in the city to promote his upcoming film. I was afraid to miss this chance so soon I was cajoling my roomie to accompany me so that I could meet the dashing Kapoor.She being a fan too, fell for it.And in another one hour I was in the mall with her,waiting in the first row of the enthusiastic crowd, ready to live my dream!!
After 30 perplexed minutes of waiting ,there he was ,in blue jeans and purple sweatshirt ,coming down the glass elevator,waving and smiling at the cheering crowd.The crowd went wild with each word he uttered.Girls were literally ready to jump on him.I was in the front and was happy just to see a star from a feet's distance.He looked so very cute in his ways and his way of dealing with the crowd made my heart melt.Soon the dream was going to end and we frantically tried to shake hands with him as he moved through the crowd towards the exit.Only a touch of his fingers was all I could call a hand shake,but it was still worth bragging to all my friends later.
That was how I nearly achieved my childhood desire and then preserved it as one of my precious memories of Bangalore!Even after days of telling and retelling this tale has never lost its charm to me.The episode still makes me happy and I know it will always make me stronger and remind me to follow my dreams even if they are too quixotic and wild!!!

A night to remember!!

31st December 2009.Evening 8.25PM.
A perfect night for partying and merriment for all.A night of frenzy and alcohol for some.A night for candle light dinner with a loved one for few.....
Still some people are left out in the above count.Guess who?
Yes,few unfortunate people like us who are prisoned indoors due to heavy downpour happening all over Bangalore!!Right.The city where pubs and restaurants have very long back announced for new year eve parties and DJs ,is literally in shackles tonight.Its been raining cats and dogs since 5 o'clock in the evening here!!
And here I am,making a fool of myself ,sitting far far away from my family and my beloved,penning down my miseries after having cancelled a plan of going out with my friends.
Really Bangalore can bring you surprises!It helps you understand the meaning of the common phrase "expected the unexpected".Just like ,few days back ,when almost the whole nation was shivering in the chilly month of December ,Bangaloreans were seeing the ferocity of the sun!And today after a great bright and sunny day,hell broke in the form of rains here.
The evening when I should have swayed and grooved to the music of the DJ with friends or when I should have just walked towards the sea in the moonlight at the beach holding hands with him....or when I should have just spent my evening enjoying a long drive and dinner with my family....I am sitting here bound by the four walls of my room,with a sad face,repenting of the boring new year eve anybody would have imagined!
This post is a result of depression and frustration as any sane being would surely have understood by now.Thus ,unlike my previous posts this may not be interesting(I hope they were!!) enough.This is just a reflection of what I am feeling at this hour.But whatever it is this really helped me in spending some more dull moments of this eve.....
Ohh!!Cross your fingers,yeah its true!!!Oh dear, to my utmost joy,the rain is ceasing....and yes,the night is still not over.I can still hope for a wonderful dinner with my friends and of course a good night's sleep.
Great is God's power I believe.He can make you smile even after a long period of suffering...
So here I take this smiling moment to thank the Almighty for making the year 2009 a great year for me....for helping me overcome whatever hindrances,frights and unhappiness that crossed my way and also for providing me the strength to stand for myself wherever needed.
I hope He blesses me enough for the coming year too so that I can help myself,my friends and my near and dear ones to experience a wonderful year ahead!!

Live your Life!!

Okay,I'm not here to preach anybody about living your life,as the title would suggest,only that I wanted to share a trifling yet crucial fact about life which most of us fail to notice.
The day I watched 2012 , made me ponder about this.
Would our fate really lead to such a catastrophe?
And,if so,what should be our plan of action be to encounter the situation when it strikes humanity?
No,I am not referring to how to avoid it,its about how we prepare ourselves to face it.Since then I have been thinking of what all can be done in this short span of two more years so that I can be satisfied with life and thus become ready for the debacle.But alas!Too much thinking can do you no good and I was left with nothing but a question mark...which lead me to assumption number one:Since we can't predict the unknown,better deal with what's known.We know our past and our present.It would be a fool's idea to reform the past which leaves us with only one option,improve your present!
And assumption(but its a fact) number two:Satisfaction comes from within,also, when and how a person can be satisfied varies from person to person.But God forbid,if such a mishap really happens in another two years,we have to reduce our benchmark of satisfaction ,that is do a curve fitting (As Wikipedia cites,Curve fitting is the process of constructing a curve, or mathematical function, that has the best fit to a series of data points, possibly subject to constraints).
Keeping the above assumptions in mind, I decided to splurge myself into all things that would make me and my family happy without thinking twice!!I decided that I would rather spend a whole day shopping at Commercial Street(didn't I mention its my favourite past time?)than sulking about what happened the other day at work or how some people manage to outsmart you when you are obviously the smarter one.I made myself promise that I would indulge myself with all that I crave for (examples being ice creams,chicken and pani puris) without thinking about how many extra calories I must have gained after having those.And even visit my parents whenever I felt homesick without worrying about flight fares!!
Yes these things might seem very trivial to some but to me that's what makes me happy and since happiness leads to satisfaction,viola!!!We have met our goal!!
Truly speaking ask your heart what you yearn for,go for it,forget about what pains you secretly possess,seek happiness in smallest of ways and definitely you will be satisfied !!Don't get me wrong,that was a mere suggestion and any opposing ideas will be surely entertained and appreciated.

An untimely visitor

A visitor or a "Mehmaan" as known in India, is considered equal to God in Indian culture ,irrespective of the fact whether he is welcome or not. But what would you say if one fine day, Sri Hanuman visits your insignificant abode? One may feel greatly blessed unless the Hanuman belongs to Mother Earth rather than the heaven or wherever Gods live, that is ,unless he is none other than our own ancestor ,the monkey of the trees.
This unlucky (my mind still can't decide whether it was actually lucky) incident happened one calm Sunday morning. As usual a hectic week had just got over and my roomies and I were finally able to sleep till 11 am that morning. After having the morning cup of coffee we settled at having a brunch, unable to make up our minds whether its appropriate to have breakfast or lunch at 12.30 noon. I, secretly wanting to try out some new recipe, declared that a sumptuous meal will be ready in sometime. Unlike expected, all agreed in unison. Perhaps the coffee was not strong enough to pull them out of the slumber. Good, I thought. No disturbance then.
I was ready with my bhindi, dal and rice in an hour. Yes I know that’s not anything new ,but I had to adjust since I had failed to gather the required raw materials for the dish I had dreamt of preparing. I called out to my roomies to help me in serving.
Soon Sayantani and I started laying the plates and serving. We happily chatted about anything and everything under the sky while we served in the kitchen. Suddenly a tail attracted my attention. I scolded myself silently for day dreaming and rejoined the spicy gossip once again. Another movement of something or somebody distracted me once again and I looked back. Oh my god!!!! There he was. Sitting in a relaxed manner with anything but amiable looks in his eyes….there was a huge monkey at the kitchen door.
We were stoned by the suddenness and the reality of the situation. To the contrary, the giant animal looked defiantly at us and the food. There was no way for us to get out of the kitchen. The kitchen entrance was in strict guard by his highness himself. We were in peril. As he shone his pearly whites at us, our bodies decided to try for the door even though our minds knew the rare possibility of getting to it. We took a step forward. Mr Monkey grew cautious and turned towards us. We stopped. He looked at the bowl full of bhindi in my hands. I dropped it on the kitchen counter. This proved to be a clever trap. The monkey proceeded towards the bowl and taking advantage of the situation we two moved out of the kitchen and ran inside our rooms.
Some stunned moments of silence passed as we waited patiently for him to leave our kitchen. Then he came out of the kitchen like a gallant soldier just having won a battle for his country, with only a boiled potato in his hands!!!! He had left all other dishes untouched and only the potato had seemed edible to him(So much to my effort .. huh!!!). Anyway, I was hugely relieved that my entire toil and accomplishment of cooking a brunch was not wasted.
Finally he went of our house through the balcony happy with his fruit of labour, the potato.
Thus ended our “monkey business” and after a long round of discussion about the encounter we just had, and we finally settled down for our lunch.