Not all treasure is silver and gold ~ says Capt.Jack Sparrow

"We have been friends together
In sunshine and in shade."
~Caroline Sheridan Norton

I was introduced to this thinner than me boy-cut-still-cute female on a sunny Hyderabadi summer day. She was chatting to a scaringly chipkoo guy, who later became so damn famous that we all learnt the vanishing act at the very mention of the first alphabet of his name. She gave me condescending look. Forced a customary Hi from her mouth and was back to her listening mode. (He hardly used to give others a chance. Bliss in one way, you can dream of a holiday with your fantasy lover and he would go on blabbering about that girl in blue skirt).

New to Hyderabad with my kuntry mallu ways, funny Hindi and funnier English, I was looking for a fellow mallu. I ended up meeting this enigma called Nair. Farthest from that stereotyped girl, she scared me enough that it took me nearly a year to learn to talk to her without shivering on my knees. The next day onwards I have always found her either alone or with some Rashtra Bhasha speaking company. I never dared venturing into her territory.

Everyday, whenever she made her royal entry into the class, I used to stare at her with my eyes wide open trying to decipher what material on earth was she made of. She had this funny looking spectacle, that I am sure is a product of an artist crazier than she herself, with a Mickey mouse’s picture on its frame!!! (Later she disclosed that tightly kept secret – she used to buy all her stuffs from the kids section. She had to reveal it when someone wanted to buy her a birthday gift).

As time flew, we happened to stay in the same flat and scariest of all, in the same room!!!! I was very cautious in my approach. I used to make sure that I didn’t get into her way.

Two years have passed since those days and now she knows me in and out, upside down, knows the best in me and the worst in me. She has seen me laughing my guts out and seen me crying like mad. One of those rare people who have seen me cry. Even my parents haven’t seen me crying after my toddler days.

I simply admire her. The most talented and smart girl I have come across. But don’t ask her to dance. I know she just can’t. Once she managed to make some weird (and weak) gyrations supposed to be taken for a dance. We all pardoned her for that clowny act 'cos we simply adore her.

But you want her to sing? Due to some early childhood set backs she stopped singing. But still hums sometimes. I must agree, she can.

Barring those Pulitzer/Booker/Nobel laureates she is the best when it is comes to the-way-with-words. Poetry in particular. I still have a sheet from our college magazine which I keep with my precious possessions in which one of her poems are printed. Poetry had always been greek and latin to me. She is one of those rare breeds of poets who write in English, and write it well without confusing me much by using the oxford dictionay in its entirety.

We used to go for long walks round the college almost all night, rather midnight. Then we come back and sit in front of college just staring up to the sky, till the mosquitos literrally drive us off that place. There used to be this dog whom I strongly suspect was a mad admirer of her in his last birth, who might have taken his life when she haughtily rejected his marriage proposal. Though she claims to be a "pet-lover" , this pet was a bit too much to be loved in the normal sense. She knows and I know what happened. Rest is left to your imagination.

One day she would call me and scold me for wasting money and give a long long lecture on the need to start saving at the earliest age and the next day call me and say that she spent like mad that day. She has got the most innocent and cutest smile ever; that is deceptive, ofcourse.

Anytime I make a Himalayan blunder (considering that there were quite a few), she is the only one who tells me it is just human to err. But once I am emotionally settled down she would open her bag of be-a-good-girl advices followed by this dialogue - "I know I make the same mistakes, but when I advice you I should tell you the right thing". Loads of hugs and kissess for that, sweety.

Whenever it rains, she would call me twice, without fail: once to warn me to leave office early and then to make sure that I am home.

If you're alone, I'll be your shadow.
If you want to cry, I'll be your shoulder.
If you want a hug, I'll be your pillow.
If you need to be happy, I'll be your smile.
But anytime you need a friend, I'll just be me.
~Author Unknown

Tomorrow, this lovely lady is getting older by one year. I am posting it today itself so that I am the first to wish her as I know I will have a tough competetion if I am to wait for the clock to tick 12. A couple of wishes for her year ahead:
May you get over with your dread of Mumbai local trains
May you stop doing the "same" blunder the fifth time
May you stop driving me mad with your choice of clothes
May your give your mom & dad a little less reason to worry about
May your "bhuddi" boss give you good ratings
May you become a little less of a confused soul thereby giving us all peace of mind
May your phone go dead when you feel like calling me at odd times and scaring me with all your crazy views on life
May you go onsite (oops....then whom will I call and whine about my self-created problems? I take it back)
May working in an IT giant boost up your knowledge on computers a bit more and may you not need to give the user name and password of your blog to me
May all your dreams come true !!!!!

There are times I wonder what life has in store for us. Personally & professionally, we both happen to go thru similar ups & downs one after the other. Once I painfully finish consoling her, it would be her turn to be the only solace to me. We are still going through the rigamarole of we-don't-know-what-and-whys.

Let me be frank, if God ever gives me a choice, I would never want to have a kid like her, though I will insist I want her as my dearest friend all my life. Sad that it took us two decades to meet each other. I am amused at her ability to find the most complex answers to the simplest of questions. Believe me, she is her best at it.

Our dear lady-with-a-singing-heart was a marketing wonder back in college. I get to hear that in her career also she is making small time wins. I am sure you are going to make it real big one day. One day I may find your photo in the newspaper the vegetable seller wraps my potatoes in. I am sure I am gonna yell at him: Hey, thats nair, u duffer. How dare you do that with her photo?

I wonder, will you keep the same hairstyle then? Keep that "mute" giggle intact, dear.

Whichever guy is your destiny, what a lucky soul he is !!!!!!!!!!

Thanks for taking me "as I am", with all the wierdness and foolishness
Thanks for still telling I am the best
Thanks for making those STD calls and consoling me all night
Thanks for taking me in your flat when I had no place in the big Mumbai outside
Thanks for letting me use your make-up kit when I was forced to drape a sari in college
Thanks for letting me take the credit and making me feel "great" for helping you

Love you sweetie, may our friendship last till our last days on earth.

May we have a computer, internet connections and TIME even after we are married off to two "handsome & millionaire hunks” at the two extremes of the world where we are busy cleaning, washing and bathing our crazy offsprings who come in dozens. Amen..

*still wondering what material on earth is she made of. may be something specially sent from heaven(hell?) or so*

Fighting Davy Jones

Faster than a speedin bullet!
More powerful than a locomotive!
Able to leap over tall buildings in a single bound!
Look!! Up in the Sky!!
Its a Bird!Its a Plane!
No.. Its Su-perman!!

Everytime I read/hear/see anything on SuperMan, SpiderMan, BatMan and even Krish, I wonder why there is no movie called "Wonder Woman"? (If there is some movie by that name, please pardon me for my poor knowledge of Movies).

The idea of doing wonder-acts, has always been fascinating for me. How thrilling it will be if I can jump over the tall buildings and kick off the BadMen of this world. What a pride it will be if the BadMen and their kowtowing army are to quiver at the mention of my name. I will stick to the all-black-and-shiny dress code. Black is classy and elegant. I think I would even prefer a stylish mask, 'cos as somebody said "obscurity sometimes rhymes with security".

Not being a movie freak, my association with the occult powers can not go beyond the faint recollection of the Rajnikanth Movies I have watched at an innocent age. I think those movies sowed the seeds on my vulnurable mind.

Though in real life we hardly come across people who can even be remotely associated with such gimmicks or powers (as you choose), I am sure that we all have seen traces of that talent in someone or the other, atleast during our childhood days.

In all my life I have known only one such lady. She is the only one who showed me the vanishing act back at home. She used to be seen near my house and in a split second she would get vanished along with a couple of crockery, bucket and some clothes drying outside. Since Achan is a staunch follower of Ahimsa and a global peace seeker, Amma used to get forced to give up her ideas of raiding that lady's house to claim back her things.

I have never seen her flying over the tall coconut trees. And till the time I had known her no one in Kodakara had seen a pistol. So I assume, atleast till then, she hadn't faced any bullets; which leaves me in a postion of not being able to answer questions such as "Did the bullets hit her eye and got crunched?" and "Did the bullet hit her head and bounced back?". Yet she was the first and the last soul who could give me any real life taste of such admirable acts.

It was during the long vacation after my 10th standard that brother first introduced me to my all time Hero - JetLee. I don't recollect the number/names/stories of the JetLee movies I have watched. For that matter, I have hardly understood any of those stories. Sadly, these days I don't often get to watch him. But I still remember his long pleated hair and the handsome face. Not to mention the enchanting martial arts tricks. I guess he was my first ever serious crush. All I remember is the name of just one of his movies - The Hero - though I have watched many.

Whoever has happened to stay with me has always found me watching those martial-arts/woder-acts/occult-powers movie in awe. Even now, I hardly understand the story. I am not even bothered about it. All that catches my fascination is the way they fight in the air, the quick moves and the incredibly adventurous surroundings.

Last weekend I managed to force Nair to watch The Pirates of The Carribean with me. I have watched the first part almost two years back and since then, I am so much lured towards being a pirate.

Despite all the scientific advances that has happened, what a dull and withered era are we living in. How thrilling it would have been for all those pirates to rule over the sea and hunt for secret treasures. It is not the never exhausting treasures that I long for. It is the excitement and the challenge of the treasure hunt.

Everthing said and done, I am still a woman at heart. I don't want to hurt/kill innocent people for the fun of it. I swear I will follow the foot steps of the great Robin Hood. But I would sure want to fight other evil pirates wandering on the sea. Who knows, I may find the Flying Dutchman and conquer Davy Jones to free all the captured souls from their myseries.

Sigh ... I think I am day dreaming

Notes: Thanks to Pirates of the Carribean for adding to my fascination thru Flying Dutchman and Davy Jones

aFTerMaTh

I didn't expect the aftermath to be like this. Though, on the macro level, it looks like a ridiculous move, I personally feel we should give our Govt some more time to settle down themselves.

The reason why I still empathise with the rest of my blogger friends is the ludicrous logic behind the ban. I have certain doubts.

1> What makes you think that the masterminds behinds serial bomb blasts and hijacks are lamentably dumb, if we laymen can access the blogs despite the ban?

2> If blogs can be potential threats, don't you think internet in any of its myriad forms is a threat in intself?

3> Isn't it a serious vioaltion of the most important fundamental right "freedom of speech and expression" for the non-terrorist lot?

Though I still prefer to beleive this is a short time ban and keep mum about it, there is a potential threat with that. I don't see the religious fundamentalism or terrorrism in its bigger form ending in any near future. Despite the best of precautions, there will still be sporadic outbreaks of violence. So, if the Govt is to respond each time the same way, Republic of India will be in no way different from a Taliban ruled state. Ironically, the Govt will be forcing democracy over us.

Now, if it is a long time ban, all I have to say is "!!!!!!!!!!!!!!". May be it is "the brain drain". All our good brains are in US. Phew...

My experiments with Indian Railways

~ This is a mail I have sent to a couple of my friends, few months back. I was going through my archives and found it. It is after getting tired of my such mails that some of my friends suggested me to start a blog. Who cared? So finally, Rose herself started one for me and pasted one of my never ending mails as the first post. ~

Some people have something in their face that we never forget them, even if the meeting last only for 10 minutes. I met such a guy this morning.

I was getting out of the station and walking as if I am participating in Olympics. It was already 10.15 and I badly wanted to change the tag of a late comer. With 15 minutes I would have barely managed to make it on time at 10.30.

That's when this guy came in front of me. All white attire, clean and thoroughly pressed. Can't actually tell he is handsome, short and fair, middle aged with curly hair. I was too busy to notice him. But he didn't want to let me go. He pushed his way through the crowd and stood in front of me. "Tickets, please".

I put my hands inside the bag and kept on searching for a season ticket that I didn't have for the last one week. After doing that for 5 minutes he humbly told me to sit on the bench there and search patiently. Smart chap,I guess I am not the first crooked traveler he is dealing with.

You can't actually blame me. I never had any intentions to fool the IndianRailway. Its just that by the time I get to the station the queue at the ticket counter is formidable enough that I am left with no option but to put off the ticket buying for the next day. Everyday, exactly at that time I make a resolution to get up early next day and make the pass. As thesaying goes, tomorrow never comes.

After around 10 minutes, I had exhausted all my acting skills. I didn'teven had to tell anything. He said "260 rupees". The tickets would have costed me 9 rupees and 15 minutes. That means I would have bought exactly 28.88 tickets with that. All the passers by, without the exception of one,was giving me "that look". I hope now you understand why I really didn'twant to bribe him and settle the matter with 100 bucks.

Good and efficient guy. Lallu Prasad has a good team at Indian Railways.

a few words

I am fine.

After an evening of cunfusion, jammed phone lines, concerned relative & friends and a possibility of seeing death in close quarters .... I feel terribly sorry for the city.

A silent moment of prayer for all who lost their precious lives to someone else's insanity.
We all share the grief of your families.
And those who are injured, the whole of Mumbai is behind you. So is the rest of the nation. Even the enitre world outside.


I wish those who died had lived a little longer to see brighter days and calmer nights.

May humanity wake up and people learn to live as human beings.
May we stop being beasts.........

the visual way ..

Thanks to Mathew & Deepa for this.

1. Most desired celebrity















Sigh.......... Good Bad or Ugly, he is an eternal crush

2. Want to do this some day




















I nuture this dream of taking an elephant ride for the last couple of years. I remember the day I fought with Achan to let me do that. We were at some exhibition. There was this small elephant that was available for a small ride @ Rs10. It was a "kid" elephant and only "kids" were availing of the entertainment.

Achan said he had no problems as long as I do it when he was not around. He said his grown up daughter can't embarass him by choosing an entertainment only kids upto 10 year old were taking up.

I was adamant that I wanted to do it and he was adamant that I can't as long as he was around. FInally we reached at a compromise. He gave me 10 bucks and told me that I could do that after Achan, Amma & Brother had reached outside the gate. I was supposed to take the ride on my own, without making much fuss about it and join them in 10 mins.

All this was happening at 20 mtr distance from the elephant. Once Achan left I approached the elephant with shivering knees. I could see Achan throwing casual glaces in my direction. I was determined. As I was approaching the elephant I could get the strong smell of its excrement. I couldn't breath. While I was waiting for my turn in the long queue of clammering kids, I thought I would puke.

Half of the kids backed off as they approached their turn. Out of the other half, almost all of them screamed their lungs out. Well, I am light hearted. I didn't wait it to be my turn. I just turned back and ran back to the protecting circle of my loving family, waiting outside.

Brother hasn't forgotten about it till date. I have taken both a Camel ride & a horse ride as a preparation. I am two steps closer to my destination. Next time I see any elephant wandering on the Mumbai streets, I am gonna bribe the mahout. All I want is a photo of Her Higness sitting on it, to throw at a never-forgetting brother.

3. Want to visit this place














"If there is a paradise on earth, it is here, it is here, it is here."

His Majesty Shihabuddin Muhammad Shahjahan, the fifth Mughal emperor.

4. Random Favorite

And I call it beauty !!!!!!!!!!

I have seen pictures of Taj. Have seen those miniature models. Never understod what is the beuty of this much touted building.

Then I got a chance to see it. When we enterd the main gate and got the first glimpse, I stood there, gasping for breath. Taj was glowing, right in front of my eyes.

I haven't seen much of the world. But I doubt if any other man made sturucture can beat it when it comes to beauty. My pooer vocabulary doesn't let me describe how I felt when I was there. So far, I was never so awestruck.

Was it Stalin who said Taj is nothing but the tears and lives of thousands of poor and helpless laborours? Could be, still I can't stop admiring it.

If you ever get a chance, go and feel what beauty is.