Do they? Don’t they?

Do they? Don’t they? is my latest article at fuchha, please do rate it there , and any constructive feedback is most

welcome. ENJOY!!!

Valentine’s day just passed us by, the city was full of romance and hope,but soon after the day got over it probably witnessed a few (if not a lot of) broken hearts and relationships ending. One such romance that ended abruptly was that of AAP’s alliance in Delhi. Some might say it was a tragedy waiting to happen, due to crafty compatriots. After all, people for whom the highest calling has always been serving their own interests rather than those of the community could hardly be expected to back a party which is actually willing to serve. But let’s look back at the highlights and see what did Arvind Kejriwal and the AAP achieved and failed to achieve in their brief period in office.

Starting with the free water conundrum (I say conundrum because there was a hue and cry about the whole “free” affair). What really caught my attention was the great incentive for preservation. Quite frankly 700 lts a day is fair and more importantly, if majority of the city starts to keep themselves within the `free limit’ the water shortage problem will have at least one effective solution – less usage. But this is limited to independent meters only and there are no provisions for housing societies so one might say a little thought could have been put in that direction.

Moving on we have the reduced electricity rate. I don’t think electric subsidy should be the real point of attention here, rather one should talk about the audits being called on the distributors. Why? Well because the subsidy was anyways a temporary measure (as per AAP).Whereas it is the detailed study of the DISCOM’s books which would hold the answer to where the money flows. Also to be fair compared to the food security bill this isn’t exactly blowing that big a hole in the state’s pocket, so I don’t know what the hoopla is all about.

Now, addressing the elephant in the room –AK’s resignation over Jan Lokpal Bill. I find the whole incident both disturbing and inspiring. Disturbing because, `how could AAP not see this coming?’  It doesn’t exactly take a genius to see that the whole arrangement was a deal with the devil, given the nature of their allies and the intent of the opposition.A lot more planning (read convincing) was required on their part before trying to table the Bill. And inspiring because they did what they set out to do. I would have been happier had they completed the job but still how many CMs/ruling parties do we know which actually took the steps taken by him/them. They promised Delhiites something and did their best to deliver, and that to right from the day 1. Could things have been better if they didn’t have to run such a messed up combination?Maybe. Honestly, I don’t know. But personally I admire his stand for a firm Lokpal Bill without the center’s approval, and given that the center itself passed a very feeble version of the Bill, I seriously doubt there was a whole lot of choice.

And finally the million dollar question – “Should they be given another chance, with full majority?” Again it is not a query easily answered. They have shown the determination to deliver actively, something hitherto seen before, but that was without sufficient foresight and with (apparently) limited planning. They came good on their promises almost promptly (at least the ones that could be addressed in the short span) but maybe they were a little too prompt, maybe in too much of a hurry. They acted instead of just talking but,were those actions always in the right interests? These questions we all would have to deliberate upon and come to a conclusion which would serve well in the coming future.

PHOENIX – As he told it

The Phoenix is a legendary symbol of rebirth, and rebirth may not necessarily be literal for it can simply be an over the top substitute for change. Based on this interpretation and, what we see and hear in our day to day lives, I am making an attempt to come up with a series of compositions. Here is the first one.

'In flames it wore down leaving only ash behind,

 but from that sooty dust was a new head raised,

 what was assumed devoured by the flames wasn't gone.

 It died only so from the inferno it may be reborn.

 His voice was raised so were his hands,

 his eyes bulging and the gesture quite grand.

`So son', he said wrapping the child with his arm,

`what do you make of it, is there anything you could take?'

'It's all too fantastic', said the little one,

'all so mythical, that world of make-believe.'

 The father looked at the child with a stupefied stare,

 then with pride realized that nursling was quite aware.

`Child though you are right, this is just a tale,

 but only if you forget it after hearing at night'.

`When heard and understood it puts in perception,

 how there is no setback that couldn't be returned from.'

'Identify the Phoenix for me will you my son?'

 The child pondered but with no answer, he looked up

`No father I do not know, if you do please make me aware.'

 He said 'It's you', face adorned with delight and a knowing smile.

`The Phoenix is you', caressing the face he explained again.

`You are that bird of fantasy, that creature of wonder and of beauty '.

`And the fire that would be the cause of your rebirth

 at a time when you can only despair, is not but your will'.

`Now before you are lost in the world of dreams,
let me repeat this lesson of significance  my Phoenix,
when all the doors are close, and you see only darkness,
it is this fire that will determine, who you are when you come out’.

No such thing as ….. “Just a regular guy”

No such thing as ….. “Just a regular guy” is my latest article at fuchha, please do rate it there , and any constructive feedback is most welcome. ENJOY!!!

Arrey!!! You got new neighbours. Met them yet? What are they like?” “Amm…., they are okay, you know, just a bunch of regular people”. Sounds familiar. Probably so familiar, that people don’t even notice that it’s probably the most superficial, judgmental and quite possibly inaccurate statement. A statement that goes around so easily and that it stays unnoticed behind its subject. But I don’t blame anyone for that, as we live in a society with growing intolerance for anything that does not conform with set generic opinions, most of which date back generations. In fact being termed regular, or common, is probably the highest social acceptance reward that one could hope to achieve.

Tell me this – how can someone be ‘just regular’ when every step of the system, that we survive in, is defined by setting oneself apart from the herd. Take any domain or stage of life. Let’s start from the very beginning; admission to schools – government has been trying hard to interfere for some time now but the schools, at least the one’s which the parents really want to send their kids to, check thoroughly of applicant’s pedigree to judge how good a student the child may become (I mean come on!!!). Next step, college, if you don’t set yourself apart you’ll be lost in the crowd and nobody is going to give a damn, and let’s conclude with the jobs – most common interview question, “What is your USP?”, and each one of us prepares for that, so labelling any of these young boys and girls as ‘just regular’ people would be inaccurate to say the least.

Ever heard of the phone book reporter? Haven’t. Please allow me to introduce him. This person is a reporter in Lewiston Tribune who has been printing a front page column for more than a decade and a half. His subjects – random people chosen from a phone book. And he has been successfully telling their story all this time, you know why – because Mr. David Johnson believes (also the title of his column) that, when given the proper attention, “Everyone Has a Story”. And in a country like ours, with rich heritage and history it is as much if not more true as probably anywhere else in the world.

When one tries to follow Mr. Johnson’s footsteps one couldn't but agree with him. Families which had to move across International borders due to partition, people  leaving their comfort zone to make a mark in this world, kids with fantastic dreams in their eyes, teenagers moving across the country for higher education each and every one of them, and others alike, is a remarkable person hidden behind the veil of being regular.

Finally, after going through all this, if someone still manages to find a person who could only be termed as regular, wouldn't that – in a way make him, or her, or even them, ‘special’?

There and Back Again

Contrary to what the title may lead you to think this is not a hobbit’s tale. This is a sequel to the first half of my journey to Chail  (in – Getting There Is Half The Fun). Well now that is all cleared up, where did we leave!! Ahh yes, after spending a night and Pinjore and driving for nearly four hours on snaky but scenic mountain roads we arrived at Chail around lunch time. It goes without saying that we checked into our rooms and made a dash for the Chail market. Even though I have refrained from mentioning the names of any private establishments so far, but here I just have to mention our hotel – Hotel Sunset Grand which is quite aptly named. The hotel rooms towards the valley give you a beautiful view of the sunset in the evening, on the whole this place has nice rooms, good service, friendly staff and even though the rent isn’t cheap it isn’t over the top either.

View from the hotel room

Well we decided to stay in for the day as it was already four o clock and once the sun goes down around quarter past five it gets dark really fast and the only downside here – no lights on the street so driving can be a pain after six thirty in the evening so it goes without saying, if you want to plan your day start early. Now let me make one thing pretty clear Chail does not have a whole lot of tourist attraction but what I found really attractive is that it is clean, green, friendly and most importantly very peaceful and laden with pretty decent trails for hiking. I almost forgot to mention that we had some good luck on our side – it snowed there a few days before our arrival (a little unusual as per a maid at the hotel) but the roads had cleared off and yet there were remnants of that snowfall on the road sides (on the side of the mountain that didn’t get enough sunlight or is completely covered with dense foliage) and on a few hiking trails I’ll be sharing one with you.

Next day I decided to go to the Chail market for a morning walk (approximately 3.5 kms from our hotel) it was a wonderful experience and even though I have already mentioned this this before; this is what the air is supposed to smell like – absolutely nothing (except for occasional hint of pine), it was fresh and cold, terribly cold, but so rejuvenating. I was back in an hour and we headed out around nine after breakfast that included several cups of tea.

During the morning walk

Our first stop was ‘Mata Ka Tiba’ and it is exactly what it sounds like ‘a temple on a mountain top’. Being an agnostic I didn't have a whole lot of interest in the temple but you get a magnificent three sixty degree view from that place and after the horrifying drive – oh trust me the road to that place is narrow with loose gravel and every time a vehicle came from the opposite side I had a minor heart attack, and it just gets worse when you are coming down. Despite that the trip was worth it. Our next stop was another temple (mom just couldn’t get enough of them so we had no choice), but this time around the road though almost as narrow was better can’t say the same about the view though. From there we headed towards the Chail cricket stadium – the highest cricket stadium in the world. Honestly I has huge hopes for that place but at the time it was just a huge playground for the monkeys, settled there in huge numbers.

Our next stop the Chail Palace, built by Bhupinder Singh after he was exiled from Shimla (and to the best of my knowledge the cricket ground was also his contribution) by Maharaja  of Patiala, in 1891. Apart from the history lesson it also happens to be a well maintained and beautiful place but the most fascinating thing about the palace is that one can actually stay there. It is being run as a hotel by the Himachal Pradesh Tourism to provide tourists with a royal experience, for a price (make that a significant one). Apart from that the compound also houses several cottages that one could rent, but my favorite part – hiking trails galore and it is here that we found a snow covered trail. It is generally advised that if you don’t know what lies beneath the snow or how thick it is stay off it well, let us just say we took the advice. By now it was almost five o clock so we called it a day and headed back.

The Snow covered path near the Palace

We kept the next and our last day just to relax and fool around a bit and I recommend, if I may, when visiting a tourist destination for the first time always try to keep a day for which nothing is planned it gives you some space to get to know the place or in case it has been a very active tour just to put your feet up.

Morning of 29^th December we were packed and ready to head home. I might have not mentioned that while driving here most of the time we had mountains towards our side so, it comes to reason that this time it was valleys vertigo anyone. Coming back all I could think was how wonderful the trip had been, a great way to finish the year. I felt so free, relaxed and I don’t know why for some reason really upbeat even though the trip was over, and that euphoria still continues to stay like my very own talisman. A friend of mine used to say everybody has a perfect place to retreat, I think I found mine, I hope you do yours.

Getting There Is Half the Fun

We were really surprised albeit pleasantly so when my dad just told us to pack saying- we are going for a vacation. Okay maybe I exaggerated a little it wasn't that big a surprise, we knew something was on the cards but we had not idea that it was going to be a 360 km road trip, of which almost 100 kms would be covered over snaky mountain roads. As one may expect the woolens were packed (it is Christmas eve so you can imagine) so were all other essentials, well that is a relative definition as for my sister a star map was important as we were expecting clear skies. Anyways with all in the bags and rest wrapped around us we were off to CHAIL.

You just have to get 20 kms out of the city and you could feel the change in the air it wasn't very nippy but definitely a bit cleaner. The newly made expressways connecting Delhi and Chandigarh are really good we cruised along for almost an hour and a half before nature calls caused us to stop almost halfway and then we were back on track to Chandigarh. Well for those who don't really care about site seeing and are just stopping for the night, may i suggest to do so in Pinjore there are quite a few decent and affordable lodging options there and that too in close vicinity of Pinjore Garden, and if i may add a must visit - wouldn't take more than an hour of one's time but its beauty is refreshing, I say so because that's what we did. Next morning we left early, that would be recommended particularly in peak tourist season, for Chail.

This second leg of the journey was almost entirely on mountain roads which despite all my apprehensions and fears are actually very well laid and maintained. The Shimla Highway is excellent and given the mountain road status fairly wide. During this journey the road narrows out once you reach Kandaghat the town acts like a fork between Chail and Shimla once that is crossed the largest town that one will encounter will be Solan known for 'Mohan Brewery' one of the oldest breweries in India and also Mushrooms. Oh and a word of caution even though the roads are pretty good don't get carried away - apart from the obvious reasons there is also the extensive heavy vehicle traffic due to orchards and a number of pharmaceutical manufacturing plants, so watch out but apart from that have fun and enjoy the view.

Onward as we got to Dharampur, a small town, there is this great roadside eating joint which advertises with a picture of a rooster which asks the passer by to 'meet him anywhere but eat him there'. With stomachs filled this party pushes on towards Sadhupul(literal translation 'Sage's bridge'). As we got out of the car to get a cup of tea we could feel the bite in the air almost immediately, here you can see a small rivulet being fed by two streams a really great view and really clean stream. Once through Sadhupul it is just another 29 kms to Chail about an hour or so. We could see the vegetation changing slowly as we made our way up the mountains - wide leaved trees gave way to ferns.Finally, four hours after leaving Pinjore we reach our destination and there lies the second half of our experience.

Read on as our journey continues in There and back again.

Those Days

Its those days again

when some smile,

and others despair,

they all ran for it but,

only a few could reach the finish.

For those over the line i have something to share,

its the beginning dear friends, no where close to end.

Rest now seek help to,

to understand and be repaired.

So, they come to me with a plea,

"please relive what you despair".

Nobody gets it that it is tough.

going back to the place in my mind

where, i lost not merely once but twice.

How do i help them at all,

as they don't want to fight

all they want to listen is,

its just one of those days when,

nothing comes out right.

Life through the Fog

Weightless, wonderful and all consuming,

seasonal, limited but all surrounding,

covering, hovering and very limiting,

so beautiful, so pure and embracing.

These thoughts in my mind were racing,

as through a fog bank I was pacing.

But it all began with an overpowering dread,

all was white and i couldn't see ahead.

I didn't know if any soul was near,

nobody, for a long time, I could hear.

Till the time I could calm my fear,

I kept wondering what I was doing here.

As I found some nerve in this, new to me, place,

I felt there was a sense of serenity to this space.

Unfreezing my sole I took a few steps,

through the soul a sense of enlightenment crept.

Few lessons of life abruptly rose from the scare,

although some may say they were always there.

Moving onwards passed an old man,

turning around I don't see where he stands.

Just as in life it reflects about the past,

dwell not, but remember, and let it pass.

Pondering upon it I paused and looked,

for not letting it sink in it would take a crook.

Looking on ahead I began to wonder,

It was just like facing future's thunder.

We can be careful, bright and lay a good plan,

it still stays uncertain no matter how much we scan.

As I stare into this thick white blind,

it felt like liberation of the mind.

Standing there I got the vital most learning,

be mindful of the place on which standing,

and there was no need to look behind or forward to a yearning.

One needs to focus on their present time,

because a seer you are not and living in the past a crime,

just step sure with a smile on the lips and in heart a hymn.

It was twice the dearth of clarity got me to stop,

each time message was - careful before you hop,

as important is caution never fear should you opt.

As a youngling my father told me this, sitting on a cot,

son the life is a mystery to be tread not a sucking bog,

somewhere i feel he too must have seen, life through the fog.

Take Away

Onwards we go on a journey very long,

let us wait, take a moment and ponder,

It is time again to refresh and reflect

as also it is the time to firmly resolve.

You may have felt a long tiring drag,

there might have been  lot on your shoulders,

the days might have been long and toil punishing.

From this take away companions, wonderful and forever.

There might have been times when you were down,

times when there was much pain and tears,

as you fall to a bottom which couldn’t be seen.

From this take away that which brought you back.

Maybe though justified, you might have been rude,

uttered words that you wish never had been formed,

received from others hurts and bruises in like.

Among that take away the blessings given and received.

Take away the love and affection of dear.

Take away the yearning to grow manifold.

Take away the fact you are bolder than before.

if not then take away the wisdom you amassed.

Whatever the year gone by presented you,

take away all that makes you grow.

As you think on my request to you for the year that passed,

all the while hoping you take away more, from one yet to come.

The Door

Big, broad, dark and strong,
deep brown, as a grizzly, with strips along.
Framed with curves and craft that enhance its show,
the remains also so ornate, artist take a bow.
So calm, so composed and unyielding to a foe.
All this hovers my mind, when i see this majestic door.

It had been years, in scores, since it let me pass,
I was then barely worthy to even ask.
But now I remember not what it stood guard.
Are its treasures still unplundered or all is gone,
or maybe it has changed its fealty to some other.
As I stood thinking, my hand on the knob,

There I pondered, what it held within,
Some relics of old maybe,or broken things was a possibility,
could be a few books, if they had survived.
Maybe just an empty hollow with several moldy lines.
Could be ceilings which with cobwebs adorned.
This jailer might hold captive both known and unknown.
As I stood thinking my hand on the knob still.

Jumping to conclusions could be a mistake it might be a dam instead,
holding the torrent back and not withholding prisoners.
It could be keeping in check the flood of memories in mind,
thoughts long lost in time or, words and phrases that no longer rhyme,
Could be images. with broken frames, of events I once craved.
As I stood thinking my hand on the knob still.

Once I shake hands with this old friend,
and invite myself into its memory filled den,
Maybe I will know again what i knew once,
or I could be staring at a stranger like a dunce.
The rush of not knowing, all would have gone
As I stood thinking my hand off the knob.

I turn away without entering feeling, dread filled, cold.
It is better not knowing, I tell myself, anyways it's old.
And I walked away with that lie,afraid of what might lie,
Till this date i do not know what lay beyond the magnificent door.

As i wait ...

As I wait for the phone to ring
I am left with my thoughts about a ping
‘Do this please’ , ‘Take care of that too’..
They do not care if I am in the mood
I have added so much without a CR
Don’t they realize for them it’s a bad PR
I can curse, I can swear but to no avail
All I am going to say, Lead I hail,
Now I come back to my call,
the one that hasn't started at all.
I can't be late even for a while,
though I may be stranded about a mile.
But they can come in with flashy guise,
appear to be humble as they apologize.
Hell, as I said in the starting ,
the call has started so there I am darting.
I can swear, I can crib all that I like
but I have to attend it , it's out of my might