When I came to know that I had to travel to Pune for official work I was elated beyond definition. It would be a homecoming of sorts. Pune is the city which I would always call home.
After a seminar in Mumbai, I leave the next morning in a cab. As I pass the ghats of Lonavala and Khandala, like a mother calling out to her child Pune outstretched its arms to me. Emotions began ringing inside - a feeling of nostalgia, elation and joy to the point of ecstasy enveloped me. As the cab crossed the Toll Expressway and reached Wakad I was like a child who got his/her first toy. I was giggling inside as the cab passed through Baner, University Circle, passed by E-Square past Shivaji Nagar and as we passed by the famous ‘Le Meridien’ hotel I knew I was in the safe arms of Pune.
On reaching my hotel in Koregaon Park, I stepped out of the AC air I was breathing and stood in the driveway just when a cool breeze of Puneri air brushed past me. I took a deep breath and a smile broke out. I really was in Pune!!
I then proceeded for my meetings of the day in Baner Road and Aundh. After that, for nostalgia’s sake I took a trip to NIBM Road from where we had left for Bangalore exactly 6 months ago. I missed the wide roads, open spaces and airy home (so airy it changes the definition of airiness) so much in the crowded alley in Bangalore that we live in that I really made it a point to re-visit them all…and how!
In the evening, out of all the possible things I could do to enjoy myself I wanted to do nothing….just take a stroll in Koregaon Park Main Road. Seeing the Osho Ashram, German Bakery, Prem’s restaurant (where I have been to several times…for some unknown reason)…it was revisiting of old memories.
The end of this trip turned out disappointing as I left from Pune airport. For the emerging city that Pune is, it just doesn’t have an airport befitting its stature. It is no more than a sophisticated bus stand. SpiceJet has a separate boarding area away from the boarding areas of other airlines (situated upstairs). The toilets were locked from outside and there was only one eatery catering to the morning rush of Pune passengers serving limited (maybe even stale) stuff. In short, the one hour spare time I got (which I got thanks to the heavy luggage I was carrying…which is a separate story in itself) was spent just waiting for the departure call.
Pune has given me many things – my first convocation ceremony, my first job, my first salary, my first days as a married man, my first car (Oh yes…I wanna buy many more!), my first genuine friend and on the flip-side many other firsts like my first bike accident, my first resignation letter, my first (out of innumerable other) fight with an auto-rickshaw driver. For all of these, and above all lots and lots of memories which I’ll cherish forever, Pune holds the most special place in my heart.
I’ll sign this post off by just saying Pune…I LOVE YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART! Please keep calling me again and again for I just can’t get enough of you…
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Adversity brings out the best in someone
How often has this phrase been used? V.V.S. Laxman steers India to a Test victory yet again, NSG commandoes take out terrorists from an initially highly disadvantageous position, Mumbai city stands together to help all its fellow citizens who've just been affected by a cloudburst or by a deadly terrorist attack...and many more such instances.
But, I've to talk about an entirely different context. Borrowing slightly from Srijith's (my brother) blog http://srijithadvtg.blogspot.com/2009/12/hello-auto.html , I'll be talking about driving on Pune's roads.
As I'm bracing myself to take the plunge in driving in Pune, I'm getting myself mentally prepared for how the experience will be.
A normal Puneite is a nice, gentle, at times laid-back and peace-loving person - be it at home, at work, in shopping malls, railway stations (even if standing in long waiting queues). So then, where does the Puneite dissipate all the energy generated by eating all the vada-pavs, misal pavs, bhakri-usals et al......Where else? On the ROADS!!
On a straight road with no traffic, all vehicle drivers (2,3 or 4 wheeler drivers) will do a sleepy 10 or at the max 20 km per hr. But the moment traffic appears, this very driver drools at the prospect like a lion which has just tasted blood. The denser the traffic, the heavier the drooling. He accelerates past vegetable hawkers, cows, buffaloes, sheep, oncoming traffic, buses and all possible obstructions twisting and turning at impossible angles and manoeuvring at unimaginable speeds. It is here that the age-old adage mentioned in the title comes into play.
All vehicle drivers in Pune seem to live life on the roads by this adage. This is coupled with a confident assumption that 'Not only do I love my life you love yours too!'. So, they pose instances in front of oncoming traffic, vehicles they are overtaking which force them to bring their legal paths to grinding halts or make similar unamiginable manoeuvres themselves!
Each journey on the streets of Pune is a different story. Each vehicle on the street can be a potential threat. Anything on the road can bring a different twist to your journey.But the moment they step out of the vehicle, the peace-loving gentle Puneite steps out as though having had a rebirth.
There are so many things to factor in while mentally preparing to hit the roads in Pune...Let's hope for the best!
But, I've to talk about an entirely different context. Borrowing slightly from Srijith's (my brother) blog http://srijithadvtg.blogspot.com/2009/12/hello-auto.html , I'll be talking about driving on Pune's roads.
As I'm bracing myself to take the plunge in driving in Pune, I'm getting myself mentally prepared for how the experience will be.
A normal Puneite is a nice, gentle, at times laid-back and peace-loving person - be it at home, at work, in shopping malls, railway stations (even if standing in long waiting queues). So then, where does the Puneite dissipate all the energy generated by eating all the vada-pavs, misal pavs, bhakri-usals et al......Where else? On the ROADS!!
On a straight road with no traffic, all vehicle drivers (2,3 or 4 wheeler drivers) will do a sleepy 10 or at the max 20 km per hr. But the moment traffic appears, this very driver drools at the prospect like a lion which has just tasted blood. The denser the traffic, the heavier the drooling. He accelerates past vegetable hawkers, cows, buffaloes, sheep, oncoming traffic, buses and all possible obstructions twisting and turning at impossible angles and manoeuvring at unimaginable speeds. It is here that the age-old adage mentioned in the title comes into play.
All vehicle drivers in Pune seem to live life on the roads by this adage. This is coupled with a confident assumption that 'Not only do I love my life you love yours too!'. So, they pose instances in front of oncoming traffic, vehicles they are overtaking which force them to bring their legal paths to grinding halts or make similar unamiginable manoeuvres themselves!
Each journey on the streets of Pune is a different story. Each vehicle on the street can be a potential threat. Anything on the road can bring a different twist to your journey.But the moment they step out of the vehicle, the peace-loving gentle Puneite steps out as though having had a rebirth.
There are so many things to factor in while mentally preparing to hit the roads in Pune...Let's hope for the best!
Monday, August 2, 2010
SLAVERY…IS THERE A SOLUTION?
Every human being wants to live a free life in a civilized world – free from all possible restrictions. But is every human being actually able to live such a life?
Today, we are past the first decade of the 21st century, yet little has changed to ensure a free life for all human beings. Oppressive regimes in Iran, China, North Korea, Zimbabwe, Myanmar, Somalia etc have scant regard for human rights. Life is nothing short of hell in politically unstable regions such as NWFP (Pakistan), Afghanistan, Iraq and Palestine. Even in the civilized and democratic world racism, religious fanaticism, gender discrimination is rampant.
All these issues show a common pattern - the tendency of a human mind to oppress that of another and enforce his/her school of thought by whichever means possible. A wicked tendency to make fellow human beings SLAVES – of your stream of thought, of your way of life or simply of the fact that you are a man (or, if it happens anywhere….that you are a woman!).
Which brings me to the major issue….’Slavery still does exist! Can it be solved?’ Well, I don’t have a readymade solution but I have a few thoughts on it.
Slavery by definition means, “The involuntary and complete ownership and control by a master”. Here, the key words or phrases are ‘involuntary’, ‘complete ownership’ and ‘master’. I’ll return to this definition later in this passage to make myself clear.
Slavery can come in all the various forms mentioned above, but the most wonderful (pun intended) among them is the slavery of nature. Mother Nature makes every human being a slave of all its needs. How many times in the morning have you fought off the urge to go back to sleep and wake up to go for work? How wonderful is the slavery towards sleep? Similarly, isn’t the slavery towards delicious food delightful? What about the slavery by sweet fragrances, the slavery to amazing scenery …Delightful indeed! All these are examples of involuntary and complete ownership of us by Nature. So, they indeed are all forms of slavery.
Why can’t slavery take a form wherein the subjugation is involuntary and complete but pleasurable? Can’t masters become custodians of the dreams and ambitions of their followers? Can’t masters be the motivation for followers to rise above the ordinary and perform miracles? Can’t masters set the trend and make the word ‘peace’ look cool all over again? Can’t masters urge their followers to work towards bridging all disparities in the world? I really think so. By achieving this only can a master be called a true leader and by achieving this only will ‘The involuntary and complete ownership and control by a master’ be something to be proud of.
Until then, the word SLAVERY which sums it all up is a sad, ugly and inevitable truth!
Monday, July 26, 2010
What am I here for?
Isn't this the one question everyone has in their minds but is either so scared to ask themselves for fear of the answer or is so misled to believe that what they're doing is what they're in this world for.
But, I dare to pose myself this question....What am I here for?
I strongly believe that the all-powerful force named differently (God, Bhagwan, Bhagwati, Allah, Zoroaster, Yah'weh...or even Great Leader) as per different beliefs has brought us for an all-important purpose. Lifetimes pass away in the pursuit of understanding one's purpose in His giant scheme of things.
Gautam Budhha's purpose was to spread the message of universal peace, love and brotherhood. Swami Vivekananda was on the planet for transforming the degrading, barbaric and materialistic human mentalities. Mother Theresa had the sole aim of healing pain through love and compassion. Mahatma Gandhi was chosen as the leader to bring the curtain down on one of the greatest empires human history has known and through a method never used before. Abraham Lincoln was the torchbearer of the struggle for equality of all humans. A struggle which lasts to this day.
All above men and women achieved and excelled in their fields because of a strong passion to go against all reasonable logic and to dream dreams so wild. But they made their passion contagious and their dreams spread.
Am I here for any such task? If so, what is the overarching dream for which I can put everything that I have with me at stake? What is it that I am so passionate about that I can communicate heart to heart with hundreds or thousands or millions? Am I cut out to shape and decide destinies of others? Do I really have it in me?
At the moment I have no answers. I have no clues. But, I know the answers will not come to me. That is a quest in itself. Understanding the purpose of one's life is only half the struggle, fulfilling it is the remaining. I'm yet to get past half of it. Will I be prepared for the struggles? Only time will tell.
Till then.....my quest continues......
But, I dare to pose myself this question....What am I here for?
I strongly believe that the all-powerful force named differently (God, Bhagwan, Bhagwati, Allah, Zoroaster, Yah'weh...or even Great Leader) as per different beliefs has brought us for an all-important purpose. Lifetimes pass away in the pursuit of understanding one's purpose in His giant scheme of things.
Gautam Budhha's purpose was to spread the message of universal peace, love and brotherhood. Swami Vivekananda was on the planet for transforming the degrading, barbaric and materialistic human mentalities. Mother Theresa had the sole aim of healing pain through love and compassion. Mahatma Gandhi was chosen as the leader to bring the curtain down on one of the greatest empires human history has known and through a method never used before. Abraham Lincoln was the torchbearer of the struggle for equality of all humans. A struggle which lasts to this day.
All above men and women achieved and excelled in their fields because of a strong passion to go against all reasonable logic and to dream dreams so wild. But they made their passion contagious and their dreams spread.
Am I here for any such task? If so, what is the overarching dream for which I can put everything that I have with me at stake? What is it that I am so passionate about that I can communicate heart to heart with hundreds or thousands or millions? Am I cut out to shape and decide destinies of others? Do I really have it in me?
At the moment I have no answers. I have no clues. But, I know the answers will not come to me. That is a quest in itself. Understanding the purpose of one's life is only half the struggle, fulfilling it is the remaining. I'm yet to get past half of it. Will I be prepared for the struggles? Only time will tell.
Till then.....my quest continues......
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