Getting out of your comfort zone..

Gosh.. Its been two n a half yrs since I wrote my last blog... Time flies.. Every time in these last few yrs I would be like I should restart but somewhere in this rat race you get caught up.. And trust me, thats not where you want to be..

And someone has rightly said, 20yrs from now you wont regret what you did, you will regret what you didnt do.

So coming down to my current post. Life is good, earning a good big handsome salary. But somewhere down the line, the dreams are much, much bigger and somewhere my heart wants to achieve those dreams. A minor setback here and a minor setback there and casually I started looking for more options. Something new to do, something challenging to do. And after a 3 month search I cracked an offer. And thats where I came face to face with reality.

It is damn damn difficult to breakout from your comfort zone. I love my current job, I have wonderful colleagues, the company is fantastic and I am in my comfort zone. But then should I let this offer go, will I live to regret it. The confusion was maddening.

And thats when it dawned on me... What would go wrong? Max to max I would be in the job market again after another yr. Thats it. Nothing more than that. Its not going to kill me
But what if its the right decision? Then I flow with it. I flow with it to greener pastures. I flow with it closer to my dreams. I flow with it to the sky
My decision was made. I had got my answer. And within a couple of hours I had put in my papers.

I am yet to join my new organisation. But I know its gonna be awesome.

So as I sign off I am pasting something I came across on the internet yesterday which sums up everything I want to say
"“As I go off into the big black abyss of my future, I have to admit that I am terrified and also a bit insecure in my decisions. But, I also realize that anyone who has ever gone off into uncharted waters must have felt similar to the way I feel now, which gives me a small ounce of comfort. I don’t know how to do what I am doing, I have no way of knowing if this is the right way or not. But I guess I’ll never know until I get there. So, this is me, being a pioneer.”  - Leigh Herskovich"

"Mehangai dayan khaye jaat hai"

The words of a Hindi film song fits apt to the post I am about to write about.. "Mehangai dayan khaye jaat hai" (The witch of Inflation is eating us up).

The way things are shaping up in India, the witch of inflation is not far from eating us up. Its the 26th day of December of 2012. We have proved the Mayans wrong and we are moving ahead towards the beginning of 2013. What will that year bring for us? Peace? Happiness? But the way things shaping up, its gonna bring more Inflation !!

Sorry guys, even though I have been a commerce and economics student for so so long, I still cant explain how does the Indian Govt manage to do this. Prices are rocketing. Few years back when I rode a bike petrol costed Rs43/- Today it costs Rs80/- Almost 100% increase.

Why do we go back few years, lets take the difference of just a year. Examples may show just a Rs1-2 increase but the percentage jump shows it all. My shared auto went up from Rs7 to Rs10 in 1yr. 50% increase. My ironing guy hiked rates from Rs3 to Rs5 per clothing. 66% increase. My roadside dosawala hiked rates from Rs15/- to Rs20/-. 33% increase.

Gosh where are we heading? Are incomes increasing? NOOO

I feel I am more than comfortable in what I earn. As of now I only have to feed myself. No wife no kids. If I am feeling the pinch of this mammoth jump what about that guy who earns Rs10000/-, who has a wife and two kids, who also has to support his old parents, his kids are in class 10th and 12th and he needs to fund their education. He needs to save for his old age, he needs to save for his childrens college fund, he needs to save for his old parents health needs. Does he manage it? NOOO

One gas cylinder which costed somewhere arnd Rs350-400 now comes for Rs1000/- in the black market thanks our government.. Our Prime Minister, God knows what do we need to do to get him to speak.. He is the personification of the line " ek kaan se suno and doosre kaan se nikal do" and better still " tension lene ka nahi, dene ka"

Chalo, chhodo. No use complaining. Rehna toh yehi hai. So lets back to working, lets back to slogging, and lets back to getting the government to earn through those LOVELY taxes. Hamara kya hai. Jee lenge, kaat lenge.

I realise it now...

There u sit in office and the lunch time draws near. You see everyone in office getting together and opening up their lunch boxes. Out comes, not only daal, sabzi and roti, but also love and care. You notice the amount of love, the mothers and wives have poured into those boxes. And there u r sitting, waiting for the peon, to get you something to eat.

Its evening and you leave office. You see everyone so happy and joyful, going back to their loved ones at home. They ring their bell and their come their kids, joyfully and happily greeting them. The hug, the kisses, the love. It makes all life worth living. And there you are riding back home in the auto, knowing very well the only thing waiting at home would be ur TV, ur Laptop and ur Mobile...

Night falls, and dinner time comes by. You know everywhere, there would be the garam roti greeting most people. And here you are, walking off to the local market to buy some roti and sabzi to fill ur hungry stomach.

Guys, its not that I dont have loved ones. I perhaps have the most loving mother and the most loving girlfriend in the world. But its at these moments, that you realise the value of human warmth and touch. When people used to talk abt a warm hug, one never realises it. I do it now.

When things go tough, for example in office. Targets are missed, pressure is immense, all you want is someone to come up to, hold ur hand and say.. Its gonna be ok.. When you come back home, tired and broken, all you want is someone to take you in their arms and say.. Its gonna be ok...

The human touch has that power and I realise it now. When I do get a chance to meet her, maybe once a month or so. I always tell her.. I hold ur hand and I forget all my tensions.. Its not a mushy dialogue from any movie.. It happens and I realise it now...

So all you guys, who are lucky enough to stay with their mom, dad, wife, kids or whoever. Dont forget to go give them a hug today. Dont feel embarrased to go give them a kiss and tell them how much you love them. Dont mind in holding their hands and letting them know you are there for them.

For its this touch that I miss. For its those hugs that I miss. For its that warmth that I miss. And I realise it now...

Relaunching into the blogging world..

Hey guys,
14months after my last post I am back again and in a completely different world than where I was 14months back. For those of you who dont know I switched jobs 10months back and then suddenly life changed, and it has changed so drastically that I havent been able to keep pace with it.

From a world where job satisfaction, salary, job profile everything was below my expectation, i suddenly found myself at the level that I expected myself to reach by end of 2013. And I would like to thank God for every bit of it. He has proved it again and again, no matter how tough the situation may seem, no matter how dark the night, he will give you what you deserve. Thank you God

There was a time when I use to look at my uncle and wish that I fly like him, every other day. Today in this country, tomorrow in another. And lo behold, my prayers got answered. Not countries to countries, but at least cities to cities. Flight travel has become my most used mode of transport.And let me also tell you, its not as exciting as it seemed from outside. Consistent travel and constantly living out of the suitcase, after a time does get on your nerves.

There was a time when I use to sit on Marine Drive and wish for a chauffer driver car wherever I go. And lo behold, my prayers got answered. Not Mercedez and BMW but yes, any official work out of office, I can call a chauffer driven car. Wherever you go you are treated with respect for the position you hold. Its like suddenly being catapulted into the big league.

Even though there has been a lot of progress, but there is still a long way to go. A long way to fulfil those dreams that I dreamt and the dreams I lived. Its no time to sit and bask in the glory, its time to keep striving and breaking new dawns in life. God, you have been very kind to me throughout, all I pray is that Your Hand is always beside me, with me.

Even now I sit in a hotel room in Hyderabad writing this post. As morning will dawn tomorrow, I take a flight back to Kolkata, before going forward to my base location, Siliguri.... Siliguri, where is that? Dont worry, if I continue with my blogging, I will surely tell you about my life in Siliguri...
Hasta la vista, Baby !!!

The days I ruled the world...

It has been 2 yrs...but the memory as fresh as yesterday... The day i walked out of that Qatar Airways flight and walked into the City of my Dreams, the City of Love...PARIS... The chilling cold...Sending shivers down your skin....

The night on the floor of the airport and the first bus in the early hours of the morning to the railway station... The first ride on the TGV, the worlds fastest train... Across the fields of France at 315km/hr...

The first sight of Dijon, the excitement of walking into that dream house, the arguments on the selection of the rooms. The first walk to the boulangerie...the first walk to school...the ice skating experience...the trip to the vineyards....

The first view of the Eiffel Tower, the Luxemborg garden, the free hugs, the Moulon Rouge...

The walks to school...the first snowfall...the parties at home... the swimming days.. the trips to Toisan D'or...the shopping at Carrefour...the new pair of rollerblades... the numerous falls...

The games of Mafia late into the night,... The sil vous plait shouting neighbour in the middle of the night...The coffee session with Bob and Elizabeth... The cooking sessions... the Rice and the Pulao... The fights over the number of onions to be used...

The headache to get Ashok to be ready on time..The colors nightclub...the atmosphere nightclub...

BNP Paribas, the Virgin store, JP Billu...My boulangerie friend...

The wonderful trip to Lyon..The double decker church....The ride in the boat down the river...

The night long ride to Cannes...Seeing the red carpet where the greats walked the path to glory...The boat ride to the end of the world... The walk in the middle of nowhere..Finally peeing out in the open (Indians manage that everywhere)...The shooting boat that we saw and ran off...The lit up road at Nice...the rain soaked Nice trip...The gurgling of the waves against the stone beach....

And before I realised the dream had reached its end... The TGV moved out of Dijon, the tears rolled....

The 4 month dream ended and i was thrown back into reality...But it gave me enough memories to last a lifetime..Memories enough to push me on....Memories....are only memories...

Someday...I wish......

From the diaries of a bachelor...

7.00am and the alarm is ringing away to glory...From under the blankets out comes a hand and SNOOZE....
10 min later the alarm goes off again and again the process repeats itself....

And in the sizzling winters of Delhi, Sampark opens his eyes and goes straight for the phone...Ohhhhh Shit its 9.45am...He is late and then the mad rush begins.. Where is the shirt, Shit again, its not ironed...Where is yesterdays shirt, No problem will manage it for today at least...

Where are my house keys...drawers, nope...office bag, nope...table, nope....Oh god now where r my keys...A treasure hunt amongst the overflowing laundry bag and out come the keys from yesterdays dirty jeans...

No time for breakfast, no time for tea its just RUN....

Wrapped completely in sweater, muffler and gloves out he walks into the foggy Delhi morning...

The day passes along, mostly at events since the last few months.. Its sales and customers and convincing all day long...Feels great when customers give you complements... Best go on to say, love your marketing style, you can befriend anyone...people can just love you..But what these guys dont realise that at the end of the day, that person returns to a lonely room across the River Yamuna with just 4 walls, a laptop and cold dabba of food...

7.00 pm.. Its time to go home...Pack up...its a lonely walk to the metro station...Hey look at that couple, they having pani puri together, look at the love in their eyes.. Sampark just smiles, thats all he can do..He can only think of her, far away in the City of Joy...His joy is there and he here in the mad mad rush of Delhi...The metro zooms into the station..Their standing amongst the 100s of other passengers, he is lost, just one of them...

His favourite pass time is to just observe people... Their is this man slowly cuddling his son as he sleeps peacefully...Sam cant help but just wish that he was that little kid..."Dad, I miss you" is all he can think off.. Their at the other side of the compartment, a middle aged couple seem to be discussing their daughters education.. Seems like her exams are near and they seem to be more worried than her..The guy opposite seems to be dozing off.. A hard days work comes to an end for him...2 friends seem to be coming back from college, they seem to be discussing the new girl one of them is trying to woo..

And then their in that crowd stands Sam.. everyone who stands there has a story of their own...Noida Sec 18, announces the sweet voice over the microphone...A 10min rickshaw ride later and back to the 4 walls from where the day began...

Out comes the lappi and back to his only connection with the world, Facebook... She asks him a lot of times, dont u get bored of the net...He does, but what else can he do... A day which begins and ends only with office, at 8.30pm do you even expect he has the time for anything else..

There use to be a time, when he did his MBA when friends surrounded him 24x7... MBA ended, most went off to Mumbai, Bangalore and beyond... and his life landed up in Delhi...Without friends, without family, without his love...

His only consoling factor is his mobile, his SMSs and his lappi...thats what life has become...

O god...His clothes are dirty...There in the chilling winter of Delhi and chilling water he struggles to do his laundry...

Dinner done... Just dump the dirty plate in the sink...will wash it whenever i need it next...

Sitting with his latest book, Richard Branson's Losing my Virginity, Sam gets lost into the world of the billionaire who created The Virgin Group from scratch...Eyes at the watch,11.30pm... He better go off to sleep or else tomorrow will be another mad dash...and slowly the light fades away and a motionless body disappears again into the blankets...

Dreams take him back to Mom...back to MBA days...back to France... and back to Her... But within a few hours dawn will break and the story will repeat itself....again the dash, again the loneliness, again the monotony....

Middle Finger to the World..

There come those days in life where u feel, " F*** what am i upto". Office seems to be like," Eeeks whats happening" And you dont know where to go or what to do.

Instructions come from one side, " This is important, finish this first" From the other end something else seems more important. Its like you are actually caught up between poisonous snakes on one side and a raging fire on the other. Then it strikes to you, do u actually deserve this stress, this tension. Are you a slave, have you been sold off to someone...But then thats the life we have got ourselves stuck into.

In this modern world it has become so difficult to break the shackles and live for yourself. Its takes guts to do something like that. The competition, the need to succeed materialistically, the expectations, the living standards all make it more and more difficult.

But then what is one supposed to do. Keep hanging the middle, not being able to do anything well. And in the end what does one get, " You are lazy, you are not capable, you cant do this much also." It is for all those people out there who feel the ingratitude towards their colleagues and employees. Just tell them on face, I CARE A SHIT AND I CARE A DAMN... F** OFF... and just show them this straight on their face...