I was back to Calcutta during the pujo after a gap of one year. In fact, both of us had taken the decision to be in Calcutta this time for the pujo right after the durga pujo last year. Last year we had celebrated Durga pujo in Bombay, and sorry for saying this, it can nowhere be close to Calcutta, even after leaving out the family aspect out of the whole equation.
Durga Pujo, in the life of a Bengali, is far more than a religious occasion. It's a part of our culture and a way of life that we celebrate once a year. I guess, religion is the last that comes to our mind when we talk of durga pujo. And the true reflection of this statement can be seen if you are in Calcutta during the festivities. For the five days' of festivities, the city literally goes into a carnival mode and even as an outsider you can sense it as soon as you step into the city. It's all fun and frolic, eating out, wearing new clothes everyday, pandal hopping all night long, and most importantly it is the same routine for people from all religions......I guess this whole experience is so unique that you won't really find it anywhere else in the world. And also worth mentioning the artistic flavour in all this. Starting from the pandals, to the idols and the lightings, I don't think you can see something like this in the whole world. I may sound extremely parochial, but that is how it is.
For me, the major incentives to be in Calcutta during Durga pujo are to be with my parents and family, friends, spending some quality time with my wife and go down memory lanes to recapture our days' of courtship, and last but not the least - food. So literally, even before touching down to Calcutta, my itinerary gets more or less set for the five days of pujo till Vijaya Dashami. And, like in the life of every son, husband and friend, you got to really balance your itinerary to give proper attention to your parents, wife and friends. Otherwise, you know....!!! Hence, in that endeavour, I seemed to have done a pretty neat job, and ended up having a real nice time with all the near and dear ones around.
Meeting friends is always fun. It takes you back to those glory years of childhood and adolescence. There are around nine of us who had been together since school days and we are like family. Although professional life has separated us physically but we always remain in touch on a regular basis and make sure that we come together at least once a year during the durga pujo. This time was no exception and six of us made it to be together. One of the guys I was meeting after 7 years, but never really felt so, since we were so much in touch during these years. But it was always nice to meet face to face. And the best part to be with these set of friends is that you talk uninhibitedly and you really don't care about the world around. This time was no exception. People around wouldn't have really made out whether we were 30 year old married professionals or 20 year old college going brats. We visited all the so called hot spots of pujo, which were there during our hay days and hoped to find the same old hot faces, but alas, we were a bit disappointed in that endeavour. But we never left the hope and went on paying at least one visit every day to those spots. May be we forgot, the hot faces then would be now dutiful wives and daughter-in-laws of some conservative bengali family with a kid to take care of.
It was also a very nostalgic experience to go out with my wife and go to some of the places that we used to frequent during pujo in our days' of courtship. A big difference is that now we can strut around those places as a married couple, unlike those days when we had to be a bit careful to ensure that no one catches us dating.
Apart from all these fun, it is always very relaxing to be at home, just do nothing and be with parents and have some delicious home made Bengali food. The biggest positive to be away from home is that you can really get to decide the menu at home since your parents will always want you to have whatever you like during this period. Also, a realization that comes is that you never grow old in the eyes of your parents. If you are going out in the evening, you have to commit a time when you will return and at least for once they will say that don't be too late and no need to spent the night out.
Lastly, the blog won't be complete if I don't mention about food. It is literally a crime if you don't eat out during pujo and a crime, that could call for some capital punishment, if you do not have sweets (my benchmark is at least 5 during the day). Normally my itinerary is set in such a way that I have a full fledged break fast at home, mostly with puri or paratha and then at least one of the meals will compulsorily have to be outside, not to mention the evening tit-bits. Then, every in take of food had to be followed up by at least one sweet item. Also, worth mentioning in my case, apart from the break fast, all other meals and tit-bits during the day had to be non-veg items. And this typically is how it goes almost in every household during the pujo. This might sound like I have given up on my diet regime. But, it was only for those 4-5 days. And I had a real control on the quantity each time. It was not like 10 years back when I could easily have finished 10 chapatis.
In a nut shell, it was a time spent really well and these are the days for which you can really wait for the whole year. Can't escape the fact that things have changed over the years and somewhere the age has caught up, which really doesn't allow you to do the same things that you would have thought of doing 10 years back. Activities like pandal hopping on foot for the full night are no more priority. Now you just go and visit some of the major pandals, that too preferably during the day time and in areas where you can take your own conveyance easily. Otherwise, it is about spending quality time with the near and dear ones, chatting and having good food.
So, with these thoughts and reflections, we will be hopefully back to Calcutta next year to celebrate Durga Pujo. Bolo Durga Mai ki.....Jai. Asche bochor abaar hobe.....
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Sunday, September 20, 2009
The Cattle Class Furore
Quite a bit of air time and news print have already been spent on this particular phrase - Cattle Class, during the last couple of weeks. I thought...why not add to that myself.
Just for those who are oblivious of the whole subject........this was a remark made by Shashi Tharoor (MoS External Affairs) on Twitter while depicting his thoughts on the sudden austerity drive of the ministers and politicians of the ruling coalition, especially for their urge to travel in economy class. Unfortunately, the remark created a national furore and he was promptly snubbed by his own party and finally had to apologize.
I strongly believe that Shashi Tharoor is a man in the wrong place at the wrong time. He is educated, tech savvy, suave and has served as the Under Secretary General of the UN. Indian politics, which is full of uneducated, power hungry, money lusting old haggards, is not yet ready for a politician of this nature. There are only a handful of educated, young politicians who are gradually coming up the ranks, but mostly descendants of dynastic politics. It will be really a long way for Mr. Tharoor to make a place for himself in this filth of Indian politics.
Cattle Class is a very commonly used terminology in the western world that is directed towards airlines for stuffing people like cattle in the economy class. May be it's a mistake to expect that our grand old netas would appreciate this kind of a humour.......especially when most of them do not even understand basic English.
Moreover, what is this austerity drive all about? Are we saying that travelling in economy class, taking a 20% wage cut, living in Govt. bungalows with only basic amenities etc. are going to make people's life in this country better? Come on....let's get real. These austerity measures are not going to make our netas and ministers less corrupt. They will keep on minting money, amassing assets by sucking blood of the common people of the country. There are farmers in various parts of the country who are committing suicide everyday, majority of the population of the country still do not have access to safe drinking water, basic health care and sanitation, basic primary education. In the financial capital of the country itself, there are lakhs of people, including women, who address their everyday nature's call out in the open streets. The other day there was a news report showing a farmer who has got a cheque of Rs. 163 as drought relief from the govt. The poor soul has actually preserved it as a memento. And this is after the govt. declares thousands of crores for drought relief. Where do the money finally goes...if not to these poor farmers? Those actually go in the coffers of these money lusting netas who in the forefront goes gaga over austerity.
The current austerity drive is nothing but a farce. Most of the ministers are following it just to be in the good books of Madam Gandhi and powerful people close to her like Pranab Mukherjee. Living a so called austere life should be ones choice and who would be able to live it by example. What we as common folk really want is what one delivers as a minister. This is definitely not for people like Sharad Pawar who is perhaps one of the most corrupt politicians around.
I surely admire Shashi Tharoor for the man he is in declaring boldly that he lives in a 5 star hotel by paying from his own pocket. So what's wrong in that. The man has made honest money by being successful in whatever profession he had been in and is living life on his own terms. And on the other hand we have this so called lady called Mayawati who is busy building statues and parks by using tax payers' hard earned money. And when she is questioned on that, the law of our land actually gives her the right to challenge that question in a court of law. This when I really feel ashamed to be an Indian. A shameless creature like her should be immediately stripped of her powers.
So, Mr. Tharoor, life is going to be tough for you in this filth. You can hardly be candid, sense of humour is not going to work, you have to act to be austere because that is what matters and not what you deliver as a minister. Performance is the last in the agenda.
Hence, your choices are really cut down here. Either you learn the game and join the band wagon or you really try to make a difference and fight it out. As a young passionate Indian, I will urge you to go for the second option......but unfortunately that's the toughest one. All the best.....!!!!
Just for those who are oblivious of the whole subject........this was a remark made by Shashi Tharoor (MoS External Affairs) on Twitter while depicting his thoughts on the sudden austerity drive of the ministers and politicians of the ruling coalition, especially for their urge to travel in economy class. Unfortunately, the remark created a national furore and he was promptly snubbed by his own party and finally had to apologize.
I strongly believe that Shashi Tharoor is a man in the wrong place at the wrong time. He is educated, tech savvy, suave and has served as the Under Secretary General of the UN. Indian politics, which is full of uneducated, power hungry, money lusting old haggards, is not yet ready for a politician of this nature. There are only a handful of educated, young politicians who are gradually coming up the ranks, but mostly descendants of dynastic politics. It will be really a long way for Mr. Tharoor to make a place for himself in this filth of Indian politics.
Cattle Class is a very commonly used terminology in the western world that is directed towards airlines for stuffing people like cattle in the economy class. May be it's a mistake to expect that our grand old netas would appreciate this kind of a humour.......especially when most of them do not even understand basic English.
Moreover, what is this austerity drive all about? Are we saying that travelling in economy class, taking a 20% wage cut, living in Govt. bungalows with only basic amenities etc. are going to make people's life in this country better? Come on....let's get real. These austerity measures are not going to make our netas and ministers less corrupt. They will keep on minting money, amassing assets by sucking blood of the common people of the country. There are farmers in various parts of the country who are committing suicide everyday, majority of the population of the country still do not have access to safe drinking water, basic health care and sanitation, basic primary education. In the financial capital of the country itself, there are lakhs of people, including women, who address their everyday nature's call out in the open streets. The other day there was a news report showing a farmer who has got a cheque of Rs. 163 as drought relief from the govt. The poor soul has actually preserved it as a memento. And this is after the govt. declares thousands of crores for drought relief. Where do the money finally goes...if not to these poor farmers? Those actually go in the coffers of these money lusting netas who in the forefront goes gaga over austerity.
The current austerity drive is nothing but a farce. Most of the ministers are following it just to be in the good books of Madam Gandhi and powerful people close to her like Pranab Mukherjee. Living a so called austere life should be ones choice and who would be able to live it by example. What we as common folk really want is what one delivers as a minister. This is definitely not for people like Sharad Pawar who is perhaps one of the most corrupt politicians around.
I surely admire Shashi Tharoor for the man he is in declaring boldly that he lives in a 5 star hotel by paying from his own pocket. So what's wrong in that. The man has made honest money by being successful in whatever profession he had been in and is living life on his own terms. And on the other hand we have this so called lady called Mayawati who is busy building statues and parks by using tax payers' hard earned money. And when she is questioned on that, the law of our land actually gives her the right to challenge that question in a court of law. This when I really feel ashamed to be an Indian. A shameless creature like her should be immediately stripped of her powers.
So, Mr. Tharoor, life is going to be tough for you in this filth. You can hardly be candid, sense of humour is not going to work, you have to act to be austere because that is what matters and not what you deliver as a minister. Performance is the last in the agenda.
Hence, your choices are really cut down here. Either you learn the game and join the band wagon or you really try to make a difference and fight it out. As a young passionate Indian, I will urge you to go for the second option......but unfortunately that's the toughest one. All the best.....!!!!
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Is this me...
Is this really me who is blogging??? This I guess is the start of a new phase of my life. There I was...a typical cosmopolitan brat, grinding my a*** at work, hardly any time to socialize and spend time with family..... leading a non-sense life style in a nut shell. But, I guess my thought process started taking a new dimension when I visited Ladakh last year in July. Being in that enchanting world, I realized for the first time that the life I was leading was not everything I wanted. That was really a wake up call. But again, I was back to same old Bombay, and the realization I had in Ladakh slowly went into oblivion.
Come February 2009, myself and a colleague of mine were driving down to one of those meetings in south Bombay and we were discussing about the just concluded Mumbai Marathon and how people from various walks of life, social strata, age groups were really latching on to the phenomenon. The CEO of our own company has become an amateur marathoner himself since the last couple of years. That's when we thought....Why Not!!! Let's start preparing ourselves for 2010 and initiate a group from amongst our colleagues for the Run next year. The realization from Ladakh was slowly peeping out and was pushing me. We approached Mr. CEO and he agreed instantaneously to mentor the group and that's how we started our own office community called Go21. Almost 30 individuals enrolled, male and female put together. Mr. CEO prepared nutrition charts and training schedules for us. Although the group has shrunk to its half size by now, the movement is still on. Unfortunately for a ligament tear in my knee seven years ago, the doctor advised me not to go through the rigours of a 21 km run. So, I am now just looking forward to the 6 km Dream Run.
In this whole process, I became serious with my fitness and took the first step towards changing my lifestyle. I started maintaining strict diet (from being a voracious eater of all kind of eatables) and also became a regular at the gym. Because of my sedentary lifestyle of the last 5 years, I had become overweight, lost my edge (in all physical areas) and also had developed a pot belly. But with the new regime, thankfully, I am getting back to shape and have already lost 7 kilos. I started leaving office by 7 p.m. (as compared to 9 p.m.) to be in the gym and sweat out for at least an hour.
These were really changing times for me. But, at the same time I also made sure that work did not suffer. Here I was, starting to balance work and other aspects of life. In the process, my wife also had little to complain (especially the pot belly) and she had been a real support for me during these changing times.
Couple of months ago, I had gone to Crosswords with my wife. She is a voracious reader. And I am exactly the opposite. There was a time, in my student days, when I used to read. Books by Alistair Maclain, Satyajit Ray, some non-fictions etc. But somewhere, the brat in me wasn't excited. Around 3 years ago, I read a book called Da Vinci Code. Everyone said, it's really enthralling and I also thought so. So I finished reading the book......in 4 months. This was me all these years since the time I embarked on my career. So, coming back to Crosswords, I thought why not pick up a couple of books and give it one more shot, since I am anyway trying to change my lifestyle. so I picked up a couple of books - one by Barrack Obama and the other was the autobiography of Lance Armstrong.
I started reading the book by Obama, but somehow I was not getting hooked onto it. But still I used to push myself thinking that I shouldn't give up since I was consciously trying hard to do something different. Then, a colleague of mine suggested to go for the other one, by Lance Armstrong.
On a flight back from one of my business trips, I started reading this autobiography. It's just around 3 weeks now and I am almost on the verge of completing the book.
So, this is the new me. I am regular to the gym, maintaining my diet, reading at least two pages before going to bed, and now blogging (thanks to a colleague who explained me how to start). My wife really can't believe it all and keeps asking me...is this you???
Yes this is me......
Come February 2009, myself and a colleague of mine were driving down to one of those meetings in south Bombay and we were discussing about the just concluded Mumbai Marathon and how people from various walks of life, social strata, age groups were really latching on to the phenomenon. The CEO of our own company has become an amateur marathoner himself since the last couple of years. That's when we thought....Why Not!!! Let's start preparing ourselves for 2010 and initiate a group from amongst our colleagues for the Run next year. The realization from Ladakh was slowly peeping out and was pushing me. We approached Mr. CEO and he agreed instantaneously to mentor the group and that's how we started our own office community called Go21. Almost 30 individuals enrolled, male and female put together. Mr. CEO prepared nutrition charts and training schedules for us. Although the group has shrunk to its half size by now, the movement is still on. Unfortunately for a ligament tear in my knee seven years ago, the doctor advised me not to go through the rigours of a 21 km run. So, I am now just looking forward to the 6 km Dream Run.
In this whole process, I became serious with my fitness and took the first step towards changing my lifestyle. I started maintaining strict diet (from being a voracious eater of all kind of eatables) and also became a regular at the gym. Because of my sedentary lifestyle of the last 5 years, I had become overweight, lost my edge (in all physical areas) and also had developed a pot belly. But with the new regime, thankfully, I am getting back to shape and have already lost 7 kilos. I started leaving office by 7 p.m. (as compared to 9 p.m.) to be in the gym and sweat out for at least an hour.
These were really changing times for me. But, at the same time I also made sure that work did not suffer. Here I was, starting to balance work and other aspects of life. In the process, my wife also had little to complain (especially the pot belly) and she had been a real support for me during these changing times.
Couple of months ago, I had gone to Crosswords with my wife. She is a voracious reader. And I am exactly the opposite. There was a time, in my student days, when I used to read. Books by Alistair Maclain, Satyajit Ray, some non-fictions etc. But somewhere, the brat in me wasn't excited. Around 3 years ago, I read a book called Da Vinci Code. Everyone said, it's really enthralling and I also thought so. So I finished reading the book......in 4 months. This was me all these years since the time I embarked on my career. So, coming back to Crosswords, I thought why not pick up a couple of books and give it one more shot, since I am anyway trying to change my lifestyle. so I picked up a couple of books - one by Barrack Obama and the other was the autobiography of Lance Armstrong.
I started reading the book by Obama, but somehow I was not getting hooked onto it. But still I used to push myself thinking that I shouldn't give up since I was consciously trying hard to do something different. Then, a colleague of mine suggested to go for the other one, by Lance Armstrong.
On a flight back from one of my business trips, I started reading this autobiography. It's just around 3 weeks now and I am almost on the verge of completing the book.
So, this is the new me. I am regular to the gym, maintaining my diet, reading at least two pages before going to bed, and now blogging (thanks to a colleague who explained me how to start). My wife really can't believe it all and keeps asking me...is this you???
Yes this is me......
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