Its 3.30am and the Dj Party downstairs is getting into full swing.... And what a sight it is from the 2nd floor balcony... U dont need to be on the dance floor to enjoy... Just stand here for 5 minutes and you will have a fabulous time...
There on the dance floor you see all types of people. U see the couples cosing to songs like "chalo ishq ladai" U can see the chemistry in the dance, the so called IMTian love that they share. Its the few chances they get to dance like Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol, happily enjoying the moment.
You see the single guys, mostly drunk to the brim, giving vent to the dancer within them. They are the most enjoyable lot. They dance without the least amount of apprehension and you do get a glimpse of the kid who used to dance to songs on TV when they were 3 yrs old. Its at this moment that all the brotherly love comes out, do not mix with the gay love. You see couples in them too, the brothers hugging each other, loving life just for its existance and the for the existance of Alcohol.
Next we meet, the single girls.. All dressed up, covered in layers of make up. They wear those Jhintak type of clothes, tight tops, all ready to woo the men on the go. The dance moves, as seductive as Kareena Kapoor in Don. Man you feel you dont need to go anywhere else. But the fact is that these girls are not the good looking ones. The good looking ones are generally already taken so :( If these very same moves were made by the taken ones, there would have been 100's of IMTians drooling over them but the ones that are there also get their fair share of attention.
A very interesting group of people are the WannaBe's. They are generally the seedha saadha bachchas who have never done such types of things or attended such parties. So here we have them desperately trying to be a part of GANG. You see them in leather jackets and stuff making full effort to be in. And the fact is neither can they dance well. So its our favourite Bollywood dance that enters and its real fun to see these dances to English numbers...
The song collection and the steps also attract great attention. Some old evergreen numbers bring back long forgotten steps... All the way from the Govinda special "What is ur mobile number" to "Who let the dogs out". The one playing right now is "Who the F*** is Alice" And how in the world can an IMT Party end without the college favourites "Yaaron and College days and Summer of 69. And the characteristic last 2 songs of every DJ party... Sutta and G*** mein Danda.
Even though i prefer staying miles off the dance floor but these parties are a very enjoyable experience for me too. I enjoy sitting and observing the dancers a lot. If you ever get a chance, step out and have the look... the moves, the expressions,the feelings...all are just a wonderful change from the daily routine... So go ahead and enjoy...
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Sunday, January 10, 2010
The Story of India.
This morning was having a discussion with my closest friend on the various tribes and communities we have in India and around. And i did realise my history was actually week. So with the work pressure less these days, i decided to use my day today researching on India, My India.
I hit upon a wonderful documentary on youtube, aired on BBC it was called THE STORY OF INDIA. India, the land of the golden bird, has been there for 10s of 1000s of years. It all started from the migrations of the first people on the earth, from modern day Africa to the coasts of South India, modern day state of Kerela. This was around 10000yrs ago, much before the existence of the other tribes worldwide and much much before the Pyramids of Egypt.
Around 5000yrs ago, the Indus Civilisation was the Manhatten of that age. With Harappa and Mohenjadaro, the 2 major cities of that time, it was a land of traders and great progress. They were much ahead of their times. The death of this civilisation can be accounted to climate and environment change.
The next phase, the phase of language and literature, came with the advent of the Aryans, on the banks of the river Ganges. The language Sanskrit evolved and kingdoms sprung up. Researches have shown a great similarity between the Sansrkit, Greek and Latin languages. Further research revealed the origin of Aryans to somewhere near Turkey from where people moved, some towards Europe and some towards India. This was around 1500Bc. This was the time of the longest poem in the world, The Mahabharata. The tale of the Pandavas and Kauravas also gives us the solution to every problem in the world, The Bhagwad Gita.
This was the phase, according to history, where we end the myths and where we start modern, factual history. Over the next 3000 years, people from all over the world came to India, the mughals, the turks, the portuguese, the french, the english. India cast its spell on all and went on to absorb and adjust with all. But the greatest thing of it all was that it retained its identity, India and its culture.
With the huge number of attacks and wars, the golden bird of yesteryear lost its place but we are back, back with a vengeance. The times of the West are over, India is back, to capture its long lost glory. From being the first superpower to being the next superpower. The Golden Bird is flying again !!!
I hit upon a wonderful documentary on youtube, aired on BBC it was called THE STORY OF INDIA. India, the land of the golden bird, has been there for 10s of 1000s of years. It all started from the migrations of the first people on the earth, from modern day Africa to the coasts of South India, modern day state of Kerela. This was around 10000yrs ago, much before the existence of the other tribes worldwide and much much before the Pyramids of Egypt.
Around 5000yrs ago, the Indus Civilisation was the Manhatten of that age. With Harappa and Mohenjadaro, the 2 major cities of that time, it was a land of traders and great progress. They were much ahead of their times. The death of this civilisation can be accounted to climate and environment change.
The next phase, the phase of language and literature, came with the advent of the Aryans, on the banks of the river Ganges. The language Sanskrit evolved and kingdoms sprung up. Researches have shown a great similarity between the Sansrkit, Greek and Latin languages. Further research revealed the origin of Aryans to somewhere near Turkey from where people moved, some towards Europe and some towards India. This was around 1500Bc. This was the time of the longest poem in the world, The Mahabharata. The tale of the Pandavas and Kauravas also gives us the solution to every problem in the world, The Bhagwad Gita.
This was the phase, according to history, where we end the myths and where we start modern, factual history. Over the next 3000 years, people from all over the world came to India, the mughals, the turks, the portuguese, the french, the english. India cast its spell on all and went on to absorb and adjust with all. But the greatest thing of it all was that it retained its identity, India and its culture.
With the huge number of attacks and wars, the golden bird of yesteryear lost its place but we are back, back with a vengeance. The times of the West are over, India is back, to capture its long lost glory. From being the first superpower to being the next superpower. The Golden Bird is flying again !!!
Friday, January 8, 2010
Tales from 200m in the air
There i stood at the edge of the cliff peeping in, desperately trying to see its bottom. I tried moving a little closer and seeing again but it was nowhere in sight. It was never ending. I looked up at my guide and waited for the worst." You are supposed to cross this". Cross this !!! At a height of 200m !!! Through the gushing force of the waterfall !!!
I put on the safety harness and was attached to the wire across the waterfall and slowly i started the descent along the slippery terrain. There was water gushing down behind me and taking every step slowly towards the edge. The closer i got to the water the colder the air became. And once at the edge I pushed hard against the edge with my shoes and Go.... I was in mid air, hanging on to a single rope for dear life and soon i was drenched with the gushing flow of the waterfall. The chilliness of the water disappeared somewhere in the excitement of being there. You felt free, no tension, no worries, just pure fun.. Living the moment, every moment. And before i could even register the whole experience, i was on the other end.
This end was a solitary rock in the middle of nowhere. Anyone stranded here can either go down 100m down to the bottom of the gorge or the only other way is to climb out another 100m. I had no option but to choose the latter. This was the difficult part of the adventure. With clothes all drenched and shoes also wet it was going to be a tough task to climb the flat surface of the hill. But that was my only way to live another day. I started my climb, attached onto the harness. One foothold at a time, one rock at a time. There came times when u were like where the hell do i hold onto, at times u felt ur foot not stable, at others you felt it was slipping. On one such step I pushed my leg too high and at that very moment i pulled my hamstring. Shrieking in pain i pulled my weight up and then took a rest of half a minute till the pain subsided. I could not turn back, neither could i give it up. The mission was still only half way through. At a few steps u noticed cracks in the stones you were about to put your weight on. So cautiously testing every rock the climb continued.
I looked up, i could see the two operaters standing at the top waiting for me to make it. With the finish line in sight, the last sprint to the top landed me on solid ground. With the first step up i threw of my harness and was down on the floor catching back on my breath, and thanking god to be safely out of this.
In those 15-20 min when you are in the middle of nowhere, one realises the importance of life. As i climbed up, i could sense that if something went wrong here, i would have too many dreams unfulfilled. My thoughts raced to the 2 most important people in my life and i knew i had to move out of it for them. They were out there, waiting for me, i had to..
Life indeed is unpredictable, so do whatever you wish today itself. So that even if tomorrow you meet death on the way, at least you wont have regrets.
On your deathbed, you dont regret what you did, you regret what you didnt do. So go on guys, do all those things you always wanted to. Go tell that one person how much u love him or her. Go tell your parents how much you love them. Go tell your friends how much they mean to you. Go do all those crazy things you always wished to do but put of for another day. Go live a lifetime....
I put on the safety harness and was attached to the wire across the waterfall and slowly i started the descent along the slippery terrain. There was water gushing down behind me and taking every step slowly towards the edge. The closer i got to the water the colder the air became. And once at the edge I pushed hard against the edge with my shoes and Go.... I was in mid air, hanging on to a single rope for dear life and soon i was drenched with the gushing flow of the waterfall. The chilliness of the water disappeared somewhere in the excitement of being there. You felt free, no tension, no worries, just pure fun.. Living the moment, every moment. And before i could even register the whole experience, i was on the other end.
This end was a solitary rock in the middle of nowhere. Anyone stranded here can either go down 100m down to the bottom of the gorge or the only other way is to climb out another 100m. I had no option but to choose the latter. This was the difficult part of the adventure. With clothes all drenched and shoes also wet it was going to be a tough task to climb the flat surface of the hill. But that was my only way to live another day. I started my climb, attached onto the harness. One foothold at a time, one rock at a time. There came times when u were like where the hell do i hold onto, at times u felt ur foot not stable, at others you felt it was slipping. On one such step I pushed my leg too high and at that very moment i pulled my hamstring. Shrieking in pain i pulled my weight up and then took a rest of half a minute till the pain subsided. I could not turn back, neither could i give it up. The mission was still only half way through. At a few steps u noticed cracks in the stones you were about to put your weight on. So cautiously testing every rock the climb continued.
I looked up, i could see the two operaters standing at the top waiting for me to make it. With the finish line in sight, the last sprint to the top landed me on solid ground. With the first step up i threw of my harness and was down on the floor catching back on my breath, and thanking god to be safely out of this.
In those 15-20 min when you are in the middle of nowhere, one realises the importance of life. As i climbed up, i could sense that if something went wrong here, i would have too many dreams unfulfilled. My thoughts raced to the 2 most important people in my life and i knew i had to move out of it for them. They were out there, waiting for me, i had to..
Life indeed is unpredictable, so do whatever you wish today itself. So that even if tomorrow you meet death on the way, at least you wont have regrets.
On your deathbed, you dont regret what you did, you regret what you didnt do. So go on guys, do all those things you always wanted to. Go tell that one person how much u love him or her. Go tell your parents how much you love them. Go tell your friends how much they mean to you. Go do all those crazy things you always wished to do but put of for another day. Go live a lifetime....
Tales of a Rural Indian Farmer....
As told to me on 07/01/2010 somewhere in the Satpura Hills...
"I am Sukhdev and am from the interiors of Maharshtra from a very small village called Bela. How small u will surely come to know as you get to know me further. I am 70 yrs old and own a small piece of land around 2 kms from the village.
My village has around 70-80 families staying in it so the population will be around 500. We even have a primary school here and that also till the 4th grade. If anyone wants to study further one has to go to the nearby town, 20 kms away. Water is obtained from the borewells but at times its not enough for everyone to use. The government has promised a water tank by next year and if that plan comes about properly then there will be water for everyone. But thats only when the government works. Electricity is there but only few hours a day. We have to go to the district head office and annually pay our rents or else that will also be taken away. There is no proper road to our village. We have petitioned to the government authorities a number of times but no one pays heed to us. Just this small, unpaved roads lead to our homes.
In my 7 decades of existance I have gone only uptill Amravati (a distance of 100kms). You know I have been their twice. Once when my first daughter was born and second, when my mother wanted to visit the religious festival over there. And before i die i wish to visit Nagpur (a distance of 225kms) Someday hopefully I will.
You see this field. Its mine. I generally grow Soyabean, wheat and some basic vegetables. Last year when the monsoon was good i earned Rs5000-6000 ($100-120 annually). Thats my income in a good year. This year i have not even managed that. It should have rained when the Soyabean seed was planted and when it had flowers but the rains failed both the times and I lost my crop. So i am trying to grow barley but i dont think this too will survive. Hopefully God is there. Thanks a million for reading my story. Thats me and my story."
So my readers here u have Sukhdev who is very happy when he earns a family income of 5000 annually and here we are cribbing that we arent getting well paying jobs. Isnt our monthly expenditure sure shot above 5000. And in the same amount he runs a family for a whole year. He has never been beyond 100kms from his village and has never sat in a car. He doesnt even know whats a mobile phone or a laptop or an ipod. Music for him is what he hears on the local radio station. His food is just enough to survive. He doesnt need Pizzas and Burgers and Ice Cream to survive. He doesnt demand Nike shoes and Levis jeans. All he needs is food, clothing and shelter.
This life given by God should be cherished and thanked. We have much much more and still we keep cribbing. Be thankful for whatever you have and be happy because happiness is the essence of life. Happiness and satisfaction that every human desires, knowingly or unknowingly, and people mistake this for power and money. Guys open your eyes and live fully
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