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July 12 Resilience personified!Resilience personified!
“The spirit of mumbai”, “the resilient Mumbaikar”, “Salaam Mumbai”,“the city that never sleeps”…phrases that seem so much a cliché now so much more than before thanks to the 7/11 blasts that rocked this metro yesterday evening. In the wake of the aftermath that followed, undoubtedly the heroes of the moment were neither the police authorities nor the administrative set-up…but the average middle-class 9-4 “mumbaikar”…yes!..He is just he same man who enjoys vadaa-pav and chai at the local eatery bunk, thrives on cricket and bollywood and works in a straight-jacketed routine of home-office-home…and then office again the next day.
Rather unlikely as it may seem it’s the unflinching spirit of such an “average” mumbaikar that has helped Mumbai cope up with this disaster so much so that terms like “resilience” and “spirit” seem superficial. But what needs to be reflected upon is this : are we taking the mumbaikars resilience for granted?…be it a natural calamity as in the case of 26/7 or the more recent rains lashing through Mumbai or the series of terrorist activities that have been rocking Mumbai ever since 1993-94.Yes,the spirited mumbaikar does come together in times like these and exhibits an epitome of unshakeable hope, belief and support that probably no other city can boast of!(So much for being called the rudest city,eh?!) But the larger picture is this… two weeks post 7/11 life is going to continue unmistakably as “normaly” as ever before…. even the slightest traces of a major destruction being smartly silenced amidst the banter of bhajans and gossip in the local train compartments. Will Mumbai be the same as it always was? …Most certainly yes!…the answer comes almost reflexly from every die-hard mumbaikar. “Resilence” is what the perennial optimist terms it…but a faint voice from a practical headed junkie yells…”ignorance”...Hahhaha so much for the saying, “ignorance is bliss”…
There is no undermining the undefying spirit of mumbaikars but there is only hope hat this spirited attitude to see justice happening is not restricted only to post-disaster states. What we need today is consolidated continuous efforts from mumbaikars like you and me to shake the somnolent government from its deep slumber. We do not need another 26/7 or 7/11 to wake them up, a force of thousands and lakhs of mumbaikars is indeed a force enough…if only this force was “one force”…a myth as it seems in todays times of hectic daily routine. The only thing that plays on mind is my priorities. Catching the 6:51 churchgate local…boarding a near packed train…reaching my office on time…finishing the daily work schedule well in time for lunch break to occur…enjoying a li’l bit of a post-prandial nap…and then hurrying back in time to catch he 5:45 andheri local…who has the time to think of what the BMC or the government should or should not be doing…the resilient and spirited mumbaikar jus throws off his magical robe...just like a Spiderman or superman would do...and gels in with the crowd…one with the crowd…herd mentality…
It makes me wonder…wouldn’t it have been so much more better if these concentrated efforts found their way to the corridors of mantralaya and to the offices in the BMC head-office? Aren’t civic authorities taking the mumbaikars for granted just as the terrorists are?….while we have organized “terrorists” to wreck havoc in public life…it will take just one more 26/7 for terrorists to emerge from the throes of civic administration…or rather the lack of it!
Are we equipped to tackle another disaster?…morally and emotionally yes!…of course but in reality in terms of logistics of infrastructure….the answer is an obvious NO…who is to be blamed then?…(’cuz all of us love the blaming game!)…Johnny Joseph and his babus…AN Roy and his set of hooligans...better known as Mumbai Police…Vilasrao Patil and his cabinet...or is it you and me, the average mumbaikar?… July 04 SchismSchism
Quizmaster:there are how many types of schizophrenia according to ICD-10? participant1:7 Quizmaster:wrong 9 participant2:hell yar,we were jus there...
7 and 9 ..not a big differnce,huh?...It may seem rather trivial to any layman on the street for whom every mentally ill person can be equated with just one term"mad"...as the aam junta puts it,"lunatic"...as the elite would term it,"off his rocker"...as the PYT nextdoor may exclaim....and "psychotic" as the seemingly more learned may state...
How narrow minded and myopic can we get?...'cuz theres is an entire world out there which belongs to just one person-"the victim" or "the patient" as he/she may seem..."diseased" is your diagnosis,your conclusion,your perspective....ITS YOUR PERCEPTION...perfectly correct undoubtedly as per universal mental health standards maybe....BUT SOMETIMES...maybe just sometimes its worthwhile to peep into his mind..into his "perspective"...
Things are blissfully rosy...all is so hunky dory...peace and calm in every way possible..at the cost of what you ask?...the so called "delusion"...the mind being deluded into believe what it chooses to,what it desires,simply put whatever makes it happy!!!...its a mirage out there...a facade far from reality...a closetted world where your fears safeguard you and your fantasies guide you....far far away form the bad REAL world...
It makes me wonder...if its all about perception and belief...is it they who are deluded into believing that which is untrue or is it YOU & ME (seemingly healthy and "normal" beings) who are being deluded into believeing that which is being projected to me as true?...
Politicians want me to believe that they are working always in the best of mankind while their bank accounts convey a differenet story...finance czars want me to believe that the nation is progressing when facts and figures are manipulated day in and day out...advertisers want me to believe that their product is better than that of their rival company's which in fact is out to prove just the opposite...the weather bureau wants me to believe that its gonna be sunny all day when in reality i can see a storm brewing up,my neighbour wants me to believe that he thoroughly admires my new car when the glint of jealousy is more than evident in his eyes...We seemingly live in a make-belief world...where you make me believe what you want me to believe and I do the same unto you...Theres nothing called the "absolute truth"...there is only your and my version of what we choose to call the "truth"...
"Schism" means split...a discord between what is and what it should have been...and what sort of a discord are we talking about..No longer is this schism restricted to the essentially "mental" discord...its reflective of a discord in every walk of life...a delusion which threatens to engulf the few traces of "truth" that exist on this planet...the pure,unadultrated,divine TRUTH....
My eyes wander towards the same spot on the streets where the so called "lunatic" used to stay...and i'm immediately reminded of this scene from 15 PARK AVENUE..when the psychiatrist questions shabana azmi,"How do you know that her(the patient's) reality is any less real than yours?,is it she or is it you who is being deluded into believing what you want to?"...
Though I am fully aware of what hardcore science has to say,my mind is still clueless...
February 14 just friendshi!!...didn't really feel like writing anything new for a while...have a couple of thoughts playing on but haven't got the time or maybe its just the absolute urge to pen it down as yet....so till i bounce back wih an original piece heres an interesting fwd that i came across..makes for a good coffee table read...check it out...
"Just friends"!?!
December 27 FW: Fwd: Fwd: [funonthenet] Q&A: What makes us yawn?Hi folks....this is a fwd I received via mail...makes an interesting read...must say,its a unique and rather wierd concept ... check it out!..
What makes us yawn?
From HSW Next time you're in a meeting, try this little experiment: Take a big yawn, cover your mouth out of courtesy, and watch and see how many people yawn. There's a good chance that you'll set off a chain reaction of yawns. Before you finish reading this question of the day, it's likely that you will yawn at least once. Don't misunderstand, we aren't intending to bore you, but just reading about yawning will make you yawn, just as seeing or hearing someone else yawn makes us yawn.
What's behind this mysterious epidemic of yawning? First, let's look at what a yawn is. Yawning is an involuntary action that causes us to open our mouths wide and breathe in deeply. We know it's involuntary because we do it even before we are born. Research shows that 11-week-old fetuses yawn.
There are many parts of the body that are in action when you yawn. First, your mouth opens and jaw drops, allowing as much air to be taken in as possible. When you inhale, the air taken in is filling your lungs. Your abdominal muscles flex and your diaphragm is pushed down. The air you breath in expands the lungs to capacity and then some of the air is blown back out.
While the dictionary tells us that yawning is caused by being fatigued, drowsy or bored, scientists are discovering that there is more to yawning than what most people think. Not much is known about why we yawn or if it serves any useful function, and very little research has been done on the subject. However, there are several theories about why we yawn. Here are the three most common theories:
The simple truth is that even though humans have been yawning for possibly as long as they have existed, we have no clue as to why we do it. Maybe it serves some healthful purpose. It does cause us to draw in more air and our hearts to race faster than normal, but so does exercise. There's still much we don't understand about our own brains, so maybe yawning is triggered by some area of the brain we have yet to discover. We do know that yawning is not limited to man. Cats, dogs, even fish yawn, which leads us back to the idea that yawning is some form of communication.
Have we provoked a yawn out of you yet? If we have, hopefully it's not out of boredom, but by the power of suggestion!! December 26 An Epilogue to Premarital Sex ...(not literally!) I owe this one to a visitor (dunno the name)....and his/her line of thoughts in response to my previous entry on premarital sex.....so this ones for you dear visitor....
An Epilogue to Premarital Sex ...(not literally!)
Here is the reply to my blog entry...
Pretentious pda my ass !!!! no offence but u hav ta understand something . Physical desire is a part and parcel of loving someone otherwise whats the difference between a sister and a girlfriend ? when u try to "control" your sexual urges you land up with a nation , pretty much like india full of sexually suppressed indiviuduals , where they make bar dancing illegal and say premarital sex is taboo when they have hawkers selling porn and dildos in broad day light on the main streets of mumbai !!! Talk about subtleity . The difference between the dog that would rut with any sexy bitch and a human being is that we make a choice , sometimes to "control " our urges and sometimes to give in . But the biggest difference between an animal and a human being , which u have overlooked is that of our emotions . We love and so choose to demostrate our love physically . What is wrong in that ? NOw as long as couple can take responsibility for their actions whats the problem ? Who is the government of india to tell us what we can or cannot do with our personal lives ?
Besides you cannot "control" you sexual urges . It just doesnt happen . The victorians tried it n they all turned gay !!! i mean you are an indian . India is a land that has never denied its sexuality until the british . we worship the shiva linga for cryin out loud and you want ppl to "control" their urges !!!!???? jeez ... Talk about a double standard here ... besides im sure it would be terribly easy for you to "control" your urges when ur in love with a teriibly sexy woman !!!!
Anywayz , didnt mean to be rude , was merely pointin a few incosistencies with you argument .... keep writin... good stuff !!!.....
And heres what I have to say...
hI diva....well by "control" i didnt mean repress...theres a whole lot of difference betwen sexual repression n opression and some "self-control"....and I firmly belive that one can figure out where to draw the line if you so intend to..secondly,its not at all about denying your sexuality,its just abt, lets say not over exaggerating vehemantly..so wheres the question of double standards, huh?....and most importantly....the "physical desire" as you term it is not at all contemptuous (btw,the sister v/s GF argument is kinda,DUMB!!) but what most definitely is,is its overt display not withstanding definitions of time space and emotion..the point is you NEVER have to "demonstrate" your love for anyone anytime...when you need to "demonstrate"....ITS SIMPLY NOT "LOVE"!!!!....all said and done...i totally agree wid your take on "emotions" differentiating man and animals!Roger that!.....guess i missed out on that one!...Newazz...thnx 4 ur comment and do keep droppin in...psst:..i highly recommend the previous post by this blogger!!..check it out!...chao December 24 From Pre To Post...From Pre To Post...
A little while ago a raging controversy threatened to enter our minds,our lives and even our bedrooms..when Sania Mirza,Khushboo and probably every other celebriy worth his/her celeb status opining on the hitherto taboo-ish issue of premarital sex.."Accept it or not its a realiy which modern day india cant quite shy away from". The public reaction to this fracas was as varied as could be..unacceptable to a few...welcomed with open hands by some while a majority of the rest couldn't care a damn...but the fact is that your or my disapproval or for that matter even approval is of the least concern to the couple in question...which just goes to reiterate the take,actress turned director Pooja Bhatt and Ms.Wannabe Noveau Deepal Shaw had on a talk show on NDTV when they said,"the whole issue needs to be seen from the perspective of the couple in question....its entirely their prerogative and we are no moral guardians to dictate their prefernces"...well point taken.
So,whats new,you ask?..let the people concerned take the call...thats the most common opinion one encounters when such kind of a question is posed to them...probably thats exactly what your mind is thinking now...that was my first reaction too...an impulsive one?...maybe...READ ON...
It took the brains of someone else to come up with this thought which i put forth 2 u...on the face of it my "opponent" brought forth this point only to score an ace over me in our mock "debate"...but well in retrospect I must say...it makes a whole lot of sense...
What exactly provokes ....or lemme say stimulates a couple to indulge in premarital sex?....its an instinct...the uncontrollabe urge you'd say rite?...now we all have instincts and sex is one of the most rudimentary instincts guarding humans or rather living beings just as say hunger,protection and fear are..but what differentiates MAN or the quintessential homo sapiens sapeins is that we..you and i are "supposed" to be an evolved lot!!...evolved not just in terms of ur dressing sense, ur music tastes or your dining styles, evolved not just in terms of your accents, your bank balances or your mannerisms, evolved not just in terms of you not having a quadriped gait, or a tail to wag or chip-munkish face...EVOLVED YOU ARE...(rather suppsed to be) in terms of thoughts,opinions and goal directed action...
Evolved if you truly are then,in that case,would it really be soo difficult to say NO..to draw the line ,to exercise some much needed CONTROL?..."hmmmm, such things happen in a flow...you can't really say this is fine and this is not...boundaries are difficult to define"...agreed...difficult but not impossible...whats the difference then between you and that stray dog on the sreets who couldn't control his desires when he spotted a sexy bitch....and the rest was history
One trip down bandstand or juhu bach or any public place you can think off and it doesn't take an Einstein to spot the typical oh so couchie-cooing and all-so-geared-up couple to whom the term "rebel" merely means a licence to free sex in public places...people clamouring over one another,people desperately trying to make a futile point, people trying in vain to defy authoriy and legislaion all in the name of an unadultrated sentiment called "love"....but wait a sec...love does not mean physicality guys....think...
To cut a long story short,we live in a "civilized society",take pride in calling ouselves "cultured","civilized" and "educated"...If only half of those words had drilled in some sense into the reckless minds boasting of those qualifications...
Are we so weak that we let our instincts rule us,giving in to deep dark desires at the drop of a hat?..are we animals?..Well i take pride in calling myself a HUMAN being...and am willing to partake the responsibility the term entails...the quesion is ARE YOU?... November 13 what links sex and shah rukh?huuuuusssssh ...and finally i break the silence and decide to emerge out of this (obviuosly not self imposed) hibernation and give my readers a sneak peak into the minds of a self confessed literateur...as i (quite wrongly) call it...
What links SEX and Shah Rukh?
Neha Dhupia...one more name from the "im going from sleaze to substance" breed of gen next actresses quite thoughtfully (or lesssly) wagged her tongue a while ago from now and out came this quotable quote..."in this industry only sex and shah rukh khan sell"....well well its been a couple of days since the media blitz kreig decided to re-tackle (if thats possible) the issue of SEX in the lives of indians in comparision to their western conterparts....
Magazines galore and invariably u hv at least one every week or fortnight reportin one survey or the other (cooked up or real...who knows...who cares?) suggesting the rise of infidelity,frequency of intercourse, incidence of extra marital affairs:wifes cheatin on husbands, husbands cheating on secretaries, secretaries cheatin on boyfriends...whoa!!..incest, homosexuality, virginity...the list is truly unfathomably endless...
Hype ,hoopla and sensationalisation ensures that the magazine sells...readership soars...the paper is a rage...advertisers are happy and publishers accounts are stacked with hard cash..SEX SELLS.PERIOD......readers respond variedly to such "news" items..some talk it off as a gimmick...some mull over it...some discuss it as hush-hushed guy talk...some do so rather eloquntly in trains,buses,offices and wherever u can imagine...and some get the kicks out of it...but the underlying fact being THAT PEOPLE READ IT....
Marital rape,pedophilia,child abuse,incestual practices...offences of a different though not rare kind...page 1?...sorry page 6,7,8,9....maybe...may not be..."The average age for loosing virginity in India 19.whatever as compared to 17.whatever in the west....FRONT PAGE NEWS....and so much for journalism..."A contsable raped a teenager in a police chowki"...FRONT PAGE NEWS AGAIN...but the key words in his case that any wise-crack may easily notice are: the CONSTABLE and POLICE CHOWKI...double standards do I hear someone screaming...well thats the way it works,honey!
Sex...a basic instinct (not the movie obviously!)...so innate and inseparable that blowing the issue out of proportions seems a rather well calculated ,selfcentred move of corporate houses reado rake in the moolah and cash in on an easily invokable sentiment..if it can be called hat..
If "Times" (TOI) can so can we...and so u have a media blitzkreig of publications and dailies one after the other...quoting similar if not the same surveys...so why should magazines fall behind...The femina , IAGT not withsanding even supposedly "true reporting" centric magazines like "the week" now describe one more cock n bull survey exploring the bedrooms and fantasies of Indian men and women across the globe...
Journalism to be effective must be appealing...agreed but whoever thouight that journalism to be effective would turn out to be a gimmickry of every facet of life u can think of...i mean today u hv the media discussing issues like virginity and extra marital affairs...and tomorrow you would probably have sizes and statistics up there on front page of a nation-wide daily....Picture this: "The averge size of an indian male organ during an act measures blah.blah inches as compared to blah.blah of an afro-asian or a europen"....yuuuccccckkkkk...and we always thought we read a "news"paper!!!!...great kinda "news" huh!But one things for sure: that particular issue would be a guaranteed best-seller!!....and so would be a slew of publications that would obviously follow suit!
So,at the end of he day...where do we draw the line....who draws the line?...In this "nexus" between the media an its viewers...who is to be blamed?...the publishers? or the readers?...but more importantly...is ANYONE to be blamed t all?..huh!
Well folks lets hand it over to the "bird brained bimbette simulating brainy headed creatures"...Ms.Neha Dhupia....for hitting the bulls eye...purely by chance of course...SEX AND SHAH RUKH DO SELL...no second thoughts!
P.S.: I owe it to spriha for kinda re-kindling the flame and coaxing me to resuscitate this near-to-death blog!..thanks!
September 17 Nerves of steel and hearts of ???...Hiya!...this week i give u one of my articles published in this years Rhapsody (our college mag)...guess most of u haven't read it as yet...so check it out n lemme kno ur reviews... Nerves of steel and hearts of ???... The nagging couldn't have gotten any better...he pulled on the seams of my shirt and refused to let go inspite of the initial indiffernce and the extreme look of disgust that i bestowed upon him.But the poor little thing refused to budge even an inch... that street side urchin.
I walked a few paces more and he finally gave up...seeking a new patron,a few coins maybe.The journey ahead definitely didn't seem as pleasent....his face kept beckoning me time and again...the pain,the sorrow ,the anguish....of helplessness,of dependence,of despair.
Every single day you and I embark onto this "wholesome" journey called life."Sophisticated" as we like to think we are...our egos convey a different story.It surely doesn't take more than just a second to pause and ponder.Would just a rupee or a 50 paise less make me any poorer?...Then what exactly deters us from doing that one noble deed of "charity"?...Your ego...(and a king-sized one at that)...may I point...
"If i can slog to earn my livelihood,so can he.....he is as able bodied as i...LET HIM WORK...nah..you shouldn't spoil children like this.....I didnt have a great day anywyas,no point....Oh,I don't believe in all this...uuuggghhh...puh-lease,those folks stink!!...I think this is a deep rooted social menace....the issue needs to be addressed by a larger authority,the government maybe?..excuse me,WHY ME,of everyone on earth....giving alms to beggars...thats just so middle class!...some "logical" thinking huh?...smart alecs maybe..but a the end of the day...NO ACTION.PERIOD.
I walk a little ahead and a sense of deja-vu hits me in the face...."able bodied men"... "stinking men"....."spoilt children"...people who believe in the cause of their work...people having the time of their life in their work....people creating a social menace...enjoyable,fashionable and stylish as it may seem to shun this "downtrodden" class,escapism is what I prefer to call such an act.
Famished bodies,desperate souls,exhausted beings...but who cares...tattered clothes,wrinkled faces,helpless hands....but who cares....mutilated limbs,pained voices,distraught children....but who cares....
Do we care....did we ever care....
For the sake of millions who toil in the name of an unexpressed, unfruitful, ungrateful profession...as shabnam rightly says:do we really care for those unheard voices,unspoken agony and unseen misery?...
September 14 Tum itna jo muskura rahe ho...Hiya folks!...felt like writing some poetry after a long long time..but couldnt really get myself 2 pen somethin totally new...so here i present, ladies and gentlemen...one of my as yet unpublished,unreleased(though previously written) works..which nevertheless fitted the mood and so here it is...an exclusive preview!...
No Goodbyes...No Sorrows....
The tears refuse to flow,
I won't choose to be sad,
I tell myself;but alas...
The pain is stil there.
The tears have dried up,
I've overcome the sorrow
plunging into tomorrow,but...
The pain is still there.
My eyes are red and weary,
Its been such a long journey.
With each tear i've grown,but...
The pain is still there.
Sorrow,happiness,happiness,sorrow,
I've seen it all.
I've made my choices & wiped my tears,but...
The pain is stil there.
The pain,the suffering,the agony,the anguish,
continue to haunt me...then and now.
Even as I live each day with a smile,
The pain is still there.
.....worth mentioning here,i guess are a few lines frm one my fav ghazal..."tum itna jo muskura rahe ho"....by my fav ghazal singer- Jagjit singh.....so here i go once again wid these lines...
Ankhon mein nami,hasi labo par,
kya haal hai kya dikha rahe ho...
kya ghum hai jisko chupa rahe ho,
tum itna jo muskura rahe ho....
Jin zakhmo ko waqt bhar chupa hai,
tum kyun unhe chede ja rahe ho...
Kya ghum hai jisko chupa rahe ho,
tum itna jo....
.......well well is been a long day and an unusual write-up 2de maybe...but do lemme kno wot u guyz think..c ya keep comin back! September 11 Quarter - life crisis....hi folks....well well......THIS IS NOT AN ORIGINAL PIECE....but found this one as a fwd....must say i rate it as a thumbs-up...SOMETHING THAT U CAN DEFI RELATE TO IN ONE WAY OR THE OTHER...well at least,i could...have edited portions of it that seem a wee bit irrelevant..all in all it makes 4 a good read...lemme kno wot u think!Quarter - life crisis... It is when you stop going along with the crowd and start realizing We call it the "quarter life crisis"!!!.... |
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