Learn and unlearn

Life offers many teachings. We learn multiple good things while unlearning unwanted things. This process of learning/unlearning is lifelong process. As it happens quite often I am in mood of preaching. So here go some words from the preacher in me.

To begin with below things could be added to learn activity.

1: Empathy : One has to interact with large number of people in modern world. So one has to understand what others think and feel.This becomes prerequisite for understanding new problems , decision making , conflict resolution , successful negotiation . Consideration of empathy can induce long lasting peace, happiness, harmony, fraternity. In present times of conflicts , wars , intolerance empathy in way ahead.

2: Stand for others : We should stand for others rights , help them , empower them . This is required for larger good of the society and world. In era of interdependence it is critical to help others when they are stuck up. Helping others should be done in good faith e.g. without seeking any specific return for oneself. Civilization has progressed with collective effort . This is requirement in present era as well as we face new challenges and concerns.

3: Love and care : Spread love and care for people around you. This can be done by keeping all channels of communication open. Acknowledge dignity and existence of others. Power of little smile , act of love and care is immense which is underestimated. Excuse of fast paced life laced with stress takes us away from social life. Idea is to remain close with people around you while you walk your chosen path.

4: Hobbies : Everyone has own way of maximizing happiness . Having multiple hobbies is one way of doing this. Not doing anything is not an option , so choose what you love to do . Try multiple things till you find something according to your wish. As a motivating factor hobbies help in remaining healthy , increases creative potential , lets you make friends and provide wholesomeness to life. Go ahead with dance , music , painting , reading , exercise , games . Options are galore , find what you love. It's never too late.

Below things may be added to unlearn tasks.

1: Prejudices : This reflects in form of negative attitude towards people , places . Removing prejudices can be done by application of logic , reason ,seeking facts , rational scientific outlook . Constant vigil can minimize prejudices which we might have developed.

2: Stereotypes : Generally this goes with prejudices which we may have generated. This shows in way be eat , talk , walk , wear, think , believe , act. Stereotypes can limit our potential. Narrow outlook towards people around us and ourselves is harmful for progressive outlook towards life.

3: Ego : This is basis of negative personality and fuels other negative things e.g conflict , hatred , violence etc. Solution lies in being humble and have long term perspective rather than short term show of muscle and power. Ego can be easily controlled by having good sense of humor. 

4: Comfort zone : With mundane life activities a sense of inertia develops. This limits the possible progress . Change can be painful but nothing is as painful as being in situation/place you do not belong. Way forward in this case is to seek challenges, enhance capabilities, rest but not too long , choose freedom over comforting chains , broaden the outlook and expectation from life. Rise and shine,  which is not possible by remaining in comfort zone.

The list can certainly get longer for learn/unlearn. May be those can be added in later blog posts.

Goal of human life is to be good human being while maximizing happiness. Let good things get attached with you while leaving bad ones. Let the process begin and continue...

From the Cook in Me

My tryst with cooking has been fairly old affair. Starting with simple tea i did try new things and experimented with the ingredients and the process of cooking . I had fair count of finger cuts , burns , spilled milks etc to make the story full of exciting moments.

Cooking certainly tests multiple things as human being . To be one good cook one should carry fair amount of patience , ability to learn from mistakes , innovate , experiment , be careful , good observer , learn from others etc. Honest effort and love one adds shows in the end result. Cooking is one way to show how much you love yourself and people around you. Here goes some of the learnings from my cooking experience .

1: Time : As a cook one has to develop sense of timing for adding ingredients. Order of ingredients matter as well . End result can be drastically different based on the timing and order of adding ingredients. One example can be taken of oil. As general rule oil should be added to the frying pan when the pan is moderately hot. Further let oil get hot before adding other things e.g onion , spices etc.

2: Chemical reaction : Cooked food get flavor and color due to chemical reaction which take place. Ensure that you understand the ingredients and what you expect from resultant product. One example can be taken for smoke point of oil. All oils have smoking point above which smoke starts coming. At smoke point trans-fat is created. This should be avoided during cooking i.e. Cook at low flame or choose the oil as per cooking needs having smoking point in mind.

3: Salt : Cliché statement is applicable in case of salt e.g. add as per your taste. Oil helps salt in uniform spread e.g. inside of vegetables. So add salt after initial around one minutes of frying in oil when the vegetable starts turning reddish. Considering health needs less salt should be part of meals.

4: Onion : This is part of gravy base of innumerable vegetable dishes. Try onions chopped in different sizes to add variety to your preparation. Onions of small sizes added as whole can be good experimental proposition as well. Same can be said for using baby onions.

5: Khichdi : This has been one of my favorite dishes . Saviors for the times when you are too tired or too lazy to do much manual intensive tasks. Add rice , pulses , vegetables , spices and salts into pressure cooker and boil everything for 3-4 whistles . Give takda to the preparation using cumin seeds and oil. Certainly an activity of optimal returns for minimum effort.

6: Washing Utensils : You can not be good cook without good at taking up clean up act e.g washing utensils , cooking area etc. This is important for hygiene and aesthetics as well . How to proceed with washing utensils? I think act of patience comes into play here. Let your favorite song play in your mind and proceed with the task. Clean utensils present happy picture and is motivating factor to accomplish the task of cooking wonderful dishes. Use minimum utensils for cooking to avoid dealing with mountain of them for cleaning.

7: Buying vegetables : Always go for the fresh and seasonal vegetables . Out of season vegetables are excessively costly and lack taste and nutrition value as well. Here again choose the desi varieties which may not look great but they are far ahead in taste compared to the hybrid ones . e.g. desi tomatoes have more water content. One side comment can be made to carry your own bag while buying vegetables. One weird fashion has crept in recent times to use plastic bags . That is bad for environmental reasons. So discard plastic as far as possible.

Cooking and related activities can add good value to one's personality . Healthy mind lives in healthy body and being a good cook is a step in that direction . I have introduced myself into this world , i shall continue with the process and try to become better as time passes. Bye folks

p.s : In due course I shall share some of my recipes. 

Repository of smiles

Knew someone who is repository of smile ,
Chirpy while talking , always brimming with energy ,
Admired the words even when repeated ,
I learn , apply , improve and feel privileged to know one.

Sometimes I can speak non-stop without inhibition,
Some words which make some sense, others without much sense ,
Time played spoilsport as it moved fast,
Not before multiple precious moments got created.

As i reflect back , want to extend wishes ,
Wish for you all love and care ,
Reach new heights , explore new frontiers ,
Dream big , add colors to your dreams ,
To repeat , spread happiness as you always do.

Worries and concerns for you will continue ,
Don't skip meals , eat healthy and on time ,
Take care of health , be emotionally strong ,
Take work less seriously , add other attributes ,
Be regular with exercises and walks , pick books to be read .

Journey of life is full of happy surprises ,
Surprised that introvert in me can find special people as I walked ,
Some lines meet only to separate ,
In helplessness happiness could be found ,
Special bonds will get older and better with time ,
And I knew someone who is repository of smiles :-)

 p.s : I shall try to be regular with blog entries.

Life you go on

With twists and turns you were uncertain ,
times when I was tentative , times when I was wrong ,
Errors-corrections-more errors , Sure you got complex ,
Complex for slowly changing goals and evolving priorities.

perceptions prejudices had to be amended ,
Felt burdened overdoing things ,
On occasions not giving full dedication ,
Of being in love and care , overshadowed by moments of loneliness ,
Introspection , smiles , understanding the thin lines ,
You had multiple colors , I kept changing with you.

Quest for wider perspective ,
Search for future with reason to value ,
Remain on positive side when in trouble ,
Know that past should not be burden ,
Future should hold reason for hope .

Realize performance as per potential ,
Think , decide and act but do not stop ,
For you continuity is only constant ,
Overcome helplessness with knowledge about truth.

You will become formidable soon ,
As i will try to hold on forte and improve,
Retrospect view indicates what is yet to come ,
Time to renew eagerness to rise ,
Time to add wonderful chapters to life.

p.s : On new year eve time to wish Happy new year to all friends .
Let's renew resolve to leave bad habits and continue with good work towards better future.

Let the story continue

Counted days for long , finally it came ,
did wait to have moment of pure joy ,
had to hide excitement , to live in the moment ,
when one wants to speak too much ,
One ends up with much less.

 When one wants the moment to stop,
All it does is to pass so fast ,
Not to forget , happy memories created in between,
To remember and smile always.

As the story moves on ,
The journey will require continuous effort,
To say, start itself was courageous ,
Conclusion will be worth the effort ,
I shall wait to see your successful endeavor.

Things will keep changing in path ahead ,
Light will reveal the unexplored path ,
Some obstacles may seem insurmountable ,
It will require motivation and confidence ,
take one day at a time , remember your good points.

 As for me , I shall treasure all moments ,
Will keep finding excuses to remain in contact ,
Motivation series will be elongated for sure,
I just hope time-space won't diminish it in long go.

Remain always just the way you are ,
Keep spreading smiles , as you always do,
Just to repeat , I'm happy to know ,
I came across a wonderful soul like you.
Let the story continue...


************************END**************************

Simple and beautiful

These thoughts have persisted in my mind over the years. It's better to assemble them at one place for future reference. Here it goes , some thoughts , beliefs , memories from past which leave me all smiles . Years considered for these are circa 1993-98 .

1: It was ritual to keep reminding dad to get new pair of slippers , shoes . Measurement of the foot size was handed over to dad using cotton thread. Sometimes the footwear had to be returned for not fitting perfectly. In hindsight these were cute and priceless moments for sure.

2: It was customary to check what dad got while returning home. Closely associated activity was to tell dad what to get while returning home. Mostly , eatables in form of fruits , sweets , toffee etc used to come. In due course i did develop special interest for Samosa . Even now , when i visit home, dad acknowledges my presence by affectionately bringing hot Samosa as evening snacks.

3: Visiting vegetable market with brother was enlightening activity. More often than not it was our habit to ask each vendor for the associated price of almost all vegetables on display. Even if buying was not on agenda , just knowing the price was all important. Brother used to buy from poorest and probably most marginalised ones sitting in corner or outer area of the market. Now i know it can be called equity in decision making and one should have sense of empathy to do that .Sadly , lack of empathy and equity are reality in everyday life.

4: Counting number of wagons in railway goods train was priority activity. Bragging about the longest goods train one had seen was some sort of prized experience. Deciphering the meaning of letters written on the wagons was another associated fun activity. Even reading all lines written on back side of trucks was hilarious for sure .  To name a few , TATA , Fir milenge , Horn OK Please , Baba tera sahara , Awaz do and many more .

5. I still remember the curious expression of mother's face when i told her that we should give tip to the waiter in the restaurant we had visited. She quipped , " Is is mandatory? ". I had replied , " of course not" , as we moved out all smiles. Even now its difficult to explain to mom that people do spend thousands of rupees for one meal.

6: Among kids there was special fascination for content of movie posters. Reading anything and everything in the posters was done with utmost care. There was general consensus that the instances of hero falling in love with heroine was absolute non-sense. It was assumed to be a grave sin to even think about love and romantic things in real life. Thanks to movie fight sequences, we kids used to fight in slow motion with sound effects created from our mouth.

7: We kids used to feel bad for coming into world quite late. British had left long ago giving independence to India. Gandhiji was no more to lead the people of the country. We used to subscribe to the idea that Subhash Chandra Bose was alive and will return to India soon. India fighting war with Pakistan was only hope we thought we could use our life meaningfully for the country.

8: I do not from where it had started but all kids used to believe that Dev Anand was not permitted to wear black shirt. Reason circulated was , many girls had committed suicide on seeing him in black shirt. Exploits of Dara Singh and Kapil Dev used to be part of folklore as well.

9: Running after butterflies and dragon flies for hours was done with excessive dedication . Disturbing sister when she applied high degree of concentration to catch dragon fly added to unlimited fun and uncontrolled laughter..

10: My morning wake up signals used to come in terms of mom shouting incessantly proclaiming since how long sunshine is there and since when birds are chirping. She used to say only a "kumbhakaran" like person can sleep like this. This has not changed over the years. Somethings never change , undiluted love with same intensity.

I treasure these things and are so close to my heart. I have changed a lot over the years , the kid in me is alive and keeps reminding me the past that was there . It helps specially in difficult moments. Message is laud and clear , life is beautiful in simple things :)

Do it Better

As it took twists and turns ,
Struggled to keep it simple ,
Confused myself , what to do next ,
Thought that should had handled it better ,
Felt struck, At times too weak to move forward ,
Giving up was not an option ,

Somehow had to find Will power to rise again ,
Quest to write future of own ,
Promise of working with determination ,
Felt lonely as i tried it better ,
I knew its about rising after each fall;

Searched solace in unknown ,
How to decide which path to choose?
Things can get complex in no time ,
Felt bad for people whom i care,
May be i should had cared more ,
Quest for excellence ,
Grace of accepting failure ,
Hope that good chapters are to follow,

path should not remain like this,
Things will improve in the story,
Its time to gather all courage,
Get ready for challenging times ahead,
Time to be strong more than ever,
Time to give colors to my dreams.

The Carrom Moments

Over the years I did came to know that this is means to be part of memorable moments. I remember, when I was eight year old , I used to whine before dad every day in quest to get my own board , the carrom board. After initial reluctance dad had relented thanks to my over-zealous-incessant-demands. To my delight , later on , I did manage to get a custom made board as well. Then it seemed some sort of dream , now i can’t stop smiling thinking about those demands and wonder how dad used to handle that .Even though cricket has been my favorite game , carrom did command considerable interest and it manifested in multiple special moments.

While initial association was to take a break, best carrom-moments were to follow during college days. In college, people had almost endless-time to kill and carrom room was prominent place for doing this. Soon all kind of players were to assemble around the board. Some novice , other beginners , some with their peculiar but efficient style of playing . One interesting part i was missing earlier , it’s not all about playing , it’s also about speaking while playing. I was privileged to meet people who could actually make people around them go ROFL. Jokes flowed , taunts and counter taunts were hilarious to say the least. Some used innovative expletives to show their disgust and anger on themselves and their team members  , when critical shots did not bring desired results. One friend applied probabilistic style of playing ,while other friend  took really long time to execute his trademark shot which tested patience of souls present around the board. Not to forget the controversies about rules and expert opinions. In short , almost all basic and necessary ingredients of memorable moments were present in carrom-moments. Just to add ,it was heartening to see novice players become good players in due course.

Life is some sort of quest to add happy chapters and one can easily find means , people and places to create those chapters. Now , as I look back , its slightly difficult for me to comprehend and replicate the excitement which was associated with carrom-moments. What I can  easily do is remember those vibrant faces and smile for few minutes without any reason. All good things must come to an end with one-dimensional flow of time ; may be this is how life has been designed or maybe there are many more chapters to add , equally good , if not better. The quest must goes on :)

Words that count

Moving sometimes without any direction ,
Pulled back many times by the emotions ,
Felt lonely with people all around ,
Worrying almost always without any reason,
Questions galore , thoughts continue .

Courage to rise again on each failure ,
To say each time i can manage it better ,
Hold tears for happy moments ,
Search for the hug when going gets tough ,

Energy to go that extra mile ,
Empathy to understand hidden stories ,
Resolve to never give up on hope ,
Quest to be better with each mistake.

Strength to accept mistakes ,
Resolve to remain grounded with humbleness inside ,
Joy of getting cared and caring others ,
Love in the moments for being unconditional.

Be proud of future which is possible ,
Build up on small dreams ,
Honesty being all time companion ,
Respect and know your limits.

Unending talks do continue ,
Difficulty when no one is there to listen ,
Being the person what you are ,
Caring yourself without being selfish ,

Give more than what it takes ,
Wait for the chances, Overcome fear with truth ,
Use your best in worst of times ,
As they say , do it with plan B .

Follow the heart when mind gets numb ,
Story will have many chapters to explore ,
Dont' hold on the chapters too close ,
Do let it go when the time demands so.

p.s: One of my favourite lines before closing ; " Greatness is not in never falling , It's about rising everytime you fall".

Mornings with Smile

Moments when i did wait for morning to come ,
For this i slept early , sometimes i woke up early ,
Sometimes time did pass fast , sometimes it seemed it has stopped,
Sometimes i waited patiently , on others i initiated the conversation,
Never knew which option is better.

As i tried to act smart , i knew it's more of stupidity ,
As tried to hide it with smiles ,  i felt weak inside ,
Tried to get away , when i wanted to get close ,
Spoke words when i wanted to listen ,
Couldn't know which option is better.

Wondered how i did sound when my mind went blank ,
did it show when my heartbeat was fast?
Tried to know if i am right or wrong ,
Was too scared to know the answer ,
I knew , it can get difficult to console myself.

Hating myself was not the solution ,
Hugging pillow was not an option ,
If only , I could manage things better ,
Some questions remain unanswered .

Days when i did smile whole day without any reason ,
Unknown person can get this close and be special,
I became better person in between,
If feeling of getting cared is special ,
Caring someone more than yourself is more than special,
May be its difficult to show everything,
When heart overcomes the mind.

Knowing there is no escape ,
May be time will erase them ,
Sense of ending is too scary ,
I don't know if could explain it,
For now , decided to accept the incomplete story.

p.s : Feeling good to come back to my blog after 1 year gap :)

You will be there

Whenever i search you , i can feel your presence ,
stupid talks with unnecessary information ,
Some repetitive ones and some not so new ,
In moments of hopelessness and in moments of joy ,
Tried to ignore with open eyes ,
At times i Could hear you without any voice ,
Somehow i held on and said all will pass.

All i did was was with no bad intentions ,
Felt bad when i did want you to turn ,
On one side i did respect your decision
Felt bad when i could not hold those emotions ,
As you said ," don't want you to see that way "

Why i felt it that way , why i stood there for so late?
May be i don't want to know the reasons.
Why some paths intersect , why some stories intercept?
I know  , I'll never find  some answers.

There are moments when you are missed ,
when i walk with slight slow pace thinking you are by my side
When i try to sing with voice not so nice ,
As i try to correct my bad habits ,
I hear you say , " don't want to see you that way "

I wondered if this search has any ending ,
May be you will never show up ,
I know you will giggle listening this part of the story ,
Anyways, you will know the other part of the journey.

Confusion galore , i know for sure ,
I shall clear the the path we shall walk together,
I will listen more and speak less ,
Will read you and won't bother about writing ,
Caring you will be like getting cared ,
Slow motion it is as i try to peep into my future ,
It feels good , at last , you will be there.

Make it count

From tears to pristine and vibrant smile ,
Then i was worried , now I'm proud of you ,
You are going for something what you like ,
i know it requires courage ,
to go against the flow ,to walk on unknown path .

I wish for you all strength and confidence ,
Do it with truth and fearlessness ,
Never let evil to become a hurdle,
Handle responsibility with tenacity ,
Manage others non-sense with rationality.

Do devote your time to hobbies ,
Enjoy your favorite songs in free time,
Do search where they have music concert ,
Do explore the joy of eating street food ,
If possible , do pick up that nice book,
utilize your energy at dance,
Don't drop the mobile phone quite often,
Keep back-up money if you forget wallet at home.

Do review what you are doing ,
make corrections for wrongs ones , Persist with good ones.
Always Carry ready-to-eat food as back up ,
Cultivate qualities of Scofield of Prison Break,
Always remain calm , work on the plans ,
If plan A fails ,  be ready with plan B ,
Don't waste time over small hurdles,
Look as far as possible.

Sometimes we meet people to add-up to sweet memories ,
I shall aspire to live some moments again,
With a cuppa of coffee or with sip of tea,
given an option it'll be tea at roadside dhaba.

To conclude i will say , " Make it count ",
Now you know things don't end , they get transformed

The Manchurian Nights

History of Manchurian dishes in India can be as old as Indo-China relations i.e. 2500 years old . We may have not-so-nice feeling about Chinese people but we do a lot of business with them , 73 billion $ to be specific and we love their food for sure. Chow mein and noodles are ruling many homes in India and some Chinese restaurants are doing business like never before example : Yo! China has become a brand in no time . Like all foreign things we did successfully Indianize many Chinese dishes according to our style . We eat butter Naan with veg Manchurian as if both were made for each other . Chinese Samosa is another nice fusion . Anyways , this article has nothing to do with intricacies of Chinese dishes or Manchurian dishes for that matter . It's about Mr. Darsha , evolved version of Adarsha , as he is fondly called , a genius of a brain and a wonderful friend.

The thoughts take me back to college days when special dishes were served on Wednesdays and Sundays . Nothing was special about the servings , worse then normal days one can safely add . These were the days when eateries inside/outside the college campus used to do more business than usual days . Menu was not extensive as one may wish to but there was enough to keep us involved. Me and Mr. Darsha were regular at the OC-restaurant in our college campus on the nights when 'special' dishes were served in hostel. Looking back , it may be said we did not want more in the menu as our order was uniformly same e.g. Veg Manchurian and chapati . On some occasions Chicken-Dehati-Chapati combination was gentle deviation as well . Manchurian was cost effective way to fill up stomach and call it special dinner session . By the time one realizes some friendship bonds get created having long term proportions . Extra time taken to get our order served used to provide ample time to explore different facets of friendship . After all , world seems a better place when you wait for your food at dinner table and you have people over the table who have innumerable stories to tell . Some stories which get repeated , but they are equally enjoyable . Even when Manchurian was there on table we had to wait for more time for Chapati to arrive , invariably this used to be extended wait . Onion peels were used to compensate for some time during chapati-wait-session . We hardly complained when we used to get colored hand after Manchurian dinners, thanks to adulterated tomato sauce . Extra chili usage ensured that we asked for sugar and sauf ( fennel seeds ) after paying the bill amount and walked away leisurely .

Most important thing which makes Mr. Darsha special is the genius inside him. When you spend time with people having special talent you try to expect same level from everyone around you in due course , which is difficult if not impossible . By watching Mr. Darsha's style of work One could secretly appreciate with awe the genius at work . I used to give the B'day bills , and other similar bills , to Mr. Darsha to ensure the sum calculation was fine . By doing this i wanted to see human calculator at work , without paper and pen , in-air-calculation . By Second semester Mr. Darsha had become a known and important figure at my home . We used to travel together during holidays during almost all vacations . In return journey separate package of Sattu-paratha-Aam-ka-Aachar was packed for Mr. Darsha . While i was mostly silent creature in those days , even now i am mostly silent creature , but in front of Mr. Darsha i was able to speak for considerable amount of time . In Mr. Darsha we had very good teacher and it was not unusual to find so many people running towards his room during exam time . I used to collect doubts and move towards his room as part of two-hours-before-exam preparation . Not to forget the frustration sessions when all of us used to get worried at the same time about career e.g. life after college . Then it was difficult to understand the confusion was to continue long after moving out of college.

Marriage make the changing times look evident .Recently Mr Darsha got engaged , a girl has "agreed" to marry him . Suddenly things we used to talk as part of  fun talks is becoming a reality . It's so nice when we can see the happiness in the voice of friends . When close friends start moving towards marriage world you realize inevitability of change. All the best to Mr. Darsha for married life ahead . I shall patiently wait to see his great exploits in future which will be many in number for sure.

Concluding with Manchurian talks .Its difficult to give words to all special moments which passed . May be manchurian nights count above others.  Even now i order Manchurian dishes , sometimes without looking at the Menu and price. This happens not because i am some sort of fan of Manchurian dishes, but because i want to get the flavor of the Nights which passed......The Manchurian Nights i call them.

P.S : I did come across a moment which got added to my all time favorite moments list. A sweet friend , sweeter than 'hunny-bunny' Idea's jingle , queried about The Big bang theory during the chit-chat over evening snacks table . While introducing Penny's role i said , ' she is highly dumb type character '. To which the sweet friend interjected saying , 'just like me?' . I wish i could pause the time for that moment and save the same , if only i could . Effortless innocence and sublime facial expression made that moment special.

Economics of Love

Since time immemorial humanity has glorified Love . Many great minds did devote precious time in knowing length and breadth of the same. In the process , history did see many great exponents of love who became part of folklore . Ironically all great lovers were losers . This grave truth has not stopped generations from falling in love . As civilizations rose and fell , economy did influence love as it had to be sustained by materialistic approach to life. Many Wars and battles were result of some direct/indirect influences of hate induced due to love. Love did bring to the fore the poet in Kalidasa who gave imagination new heights in Meghdootam . Manu advised to keep distance from lovers when it came to get wise opinion. Ignoring other aspects , its interesting to see love from eyes of an economist . Here it goes...

Some start it as early investment , some wait for right opportunity and apt sentiment , some subside due to lack of know how . Like monsoon it keeps everyone guessing , those who are interested , those who are not.Some have all the know how , infrastructure and time but they lack the human resource. Some daring enough go for a " start up " when each lovable moment is hard earned. We do see many whose life seem a successful love story , but may be the actual story is difficult to decipher . We know a few who achieve this with wise maturity . So far so good , the story continues for those who become part of the game , for others its simple bane . For those who are in the game , suddenly things achieve unmanageable proportions. Fiscal deficit haunts the most when there are financial liabilities to be completed with cash crunch and no help of FII . Current account deficit is strained by b'day , monthly celebrations , random lunch , dinner and gifts and other " invisibles ". Entertainment taxes force you to take austerity measures e.g take cheap public transport , enjoy street food etc. But the austerity measures are difficult to sustain for the whole financial year. Soon you have to pretend as if you've really deep pocket. If availability of foreign brands was cause of  headache , thanks to 100% FDI in single brand retail , things are sure to get more difficult as policy measures will open up the market further e.g more foreign brands to consume Hot money. How can the monetary and strategic regulators e.g Mom-dad would remain subdued for long. Their policy measures to tighten up the liquidity in your bank account is something which you had ratified once you came into this world. With regular audits the anomaly in the balance sheet becomes apparent which leads to warnings and apprehensive words. Rates are revised regularly to keep control on  the spending and other 'self welfare' requirements. In addition to Mom-dad-regulatory-Body  your Love interest ( LI ) acts as self appointed vigilance-officer and information-commissioner . Your every activity is tracked and your actions are heavily regulated . LI's advice becomes the rule , every request has to be pre approved. Capital investors ( friends ) loose confidence in you and your credit rating takes a hit e.g junk.

With present looking hopeless and grim , long term benefits seem almost a void from the relationship . Can this scenario lead to meaningful and sustainable result ( Happy Marriage ) .what policy reforms can be taken to avoid complex situation and maintain NPA ( non performing assets ) to the minimum? Same old question comes to mind whose answer will remain unknown for ever i.e What then love is? May be its a journey after which you can say/write , " It has been long and unexpected journey and i'm proud you were on my side in this " . The journey which is long will for sure have bullish and bearish phases . Sometimes paradise will be lost due to cruelty of time , but the quest will continue . May be better lovers and true soul mates will walk on earth in future and new folklore will be created . Some best paintings are never complete , some stories will not find conclusion because journey itself is the destination.

On other side

"Graha is dancing over your head...Soon it will be taken care of" , Loose translation of hindi line ," Tumhare Sar par grah naach raha hai.....Jaldi hi utar jaayega " . This sweet little warning from mom/dad reverberates in my ear drums when i think of word "graha" from yesteryears when they were angry due to my idiosyncrasies. The meaning of the warning was very much implicit , " Behave yourself or you know the consequences" . Those were the days when one was learning the good/bad of the world . family values were being injected which were to define me in the future to come i.e when i was to take decisions based on those values. But there is small price one had to pay while being typecasted as good/bad. What about being in the other territory? Can i know , always , what is bad without getting a feel from other side. In short , difficulty of being good can not be ignored for ever. Without much effort one used to venture into other side just for sake of curiosity and sometimes out of power of rebel inside . What were some of the joys of being on wrong side ? Here it goes....

1: I remember i took out rupee 20 from dad's pocket bypassing chain of command . I had breached my discretionary powers only to be caught while availing the gains of misappropriated hot money. The amount of money, in class two days , was enough to raise alarm among the self proclaimed security agents ( Seniors ) . The money was confiscated immediately and rest is another small story i.e  After returning home i was handed unceremoniously to mom for further action. This was first memorable instance from being on wrong side moment.

2: The child grew , he reported honestly all his movements to concerned authorities e.g. mom , dad , brother , sister etc . However on some occasions he used to trespass to mango/Guava/palm orchids . Sugarcane field was another noted attraction . Being chased by the Garden watchman was experience worth having ; James bond type feeling!!

3: Watching movies in Cinema hall was a no no in our family . Entertainment expenses were minimized for financial reasons . Later on i did get chance to watch late night shows . It feels strangely good when you walk home at 1 am in night on deserted road. Specially when you have crazy friends with you who try to scare each other with ghost noises. We used to warn each other that police will catch us for walking at this time on road . Somehow that never happened.

4: We knew that 11 pm is the time for college campus main gate to close . Most of us had not been on other side of the gate after 11 pm . We had heart stories of daredevilry and caught-by-patrolling-guards stories of more accomplished college friends who were regularly on wrong side of the gate on most nights. The moment came in later half of stay in college . When gate keepers don't allow you to enter from main gate and one has to take forbidden route through jungle , you can't help but appreciates  the joy of being on wrong side.

5: Quite a few train journeys i did take when i had no reserved tickets . With over crowded general compartment , the attraction was to get into sleeper class . At least i will get space to stand . Sight of TTE was scary moment , but the ready made answer was , " Sir student!!! " . Sometimes they used to smile and move and on other times was asked to move to general compartment . Times change, the joy of being on wrong side become part of sweet memories .

Bottom line remains , there is no harm in crossing the line to be on other side to know the pros and cons . May be you will realize that it's not wrong by any standards . Life is about looking at various shades of grey. At the same time one should not hurt someone in the process . Retract to your territory in time . Enjoy the dance of graha over your head until it is "taken care of" :)

p.s : Graha is associated to Astrology.

p.p.s : There are other memories of Being-on-wrong side. Hopefully words will be found in due course.

My 100 fav songs@100th Blog entry

After almost four years of meandering the count has reached the numerical figure of 100 . May be the numbers speak more than it deserves but this numerical  count gives chance to take notice of good and bad which did take place. To be specific , this is my 100th blog entry at blogspot.As quite obvious, at  the beginning it was difficult to comprehend the love which i was to generate for Reading/writing in general and blogging in particular. It can be safely  said my best is yet to come , ant it's far away, as i am yet to give  better words to my thoughts, but the journey is very much on...

Question was what should i write for this blog entry and the answer eluded me for quite sometime. During last few months i was updating one file containing my favorite songs list . Some of these songs continue to entertain my eardrums with reasonable frequency. These are some associated memory with each song in the list. This list is very much random, not sure but i may have missed some of my favorite songs. But this list essentially contains the majority of my  favorite songs over the years.Here it goes...

1: Main tenu samjhawan : Rahat Fatah Ali : Listening to Rahat Ali takes you to different world, music is some sort of medicine for sure .

2: Tujhko Jo Paya : From movie crook : Somehow its difficult to ignore songs picturized on Imran Hashmi.They are reasonably good most of the times , this song is certainly in positive list.

3: Tune Jo na kaha wo main sunta raha : New York : Liked it for slowness and consolation one tries to attain.

4: Mere sang to chal jara : New York : Another one from this movie , was in my playlist for good duration.

5: Lila lila lilla  :  Kim Kay : While hopping though some Arabic compositions i did come to know about this . When played at full volume it was a delight.

6: Uthe sab ke kadam : Baaton baaton me : I can not resist humming this song.

7: Jonny we hardly knew : I had read many articles on Irish wars , this song said many things about the same.

8: Piya na man basiya : Tanu weds manu : This movie had surprisingly all good songs . They became my favorites in no time.

9: I see you everywhere : Beautiful composition http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-E8popAkPm8

10 : Main to tere pyar me diwana ho gaya : Dilruba : A gem from Kailash kher , he used his distinctive voice beautifully in this song.

11: Jugni : tanu weds manu : Liked it for the energy and Mika factor.

12: Badri badaria : coke studio : Flow of the songs makes you sing it while listening it.

13: Madari : coke studio : No wonder singing has been termed as art. Traditional music can be fused with other forms quite easily and with good effect.

14: Chadd de murakh : coke studio : Liked it for philosophical content.

15  tonight i'm loving you : Enrique : A must have when you want to dance

16: Baby i like it : Enrique at best in this song

17. LMFAO : I'm sexy and i know it :  This song became a rage not for no reason

18  Dungar dukh na de  : A love song , folk music , Artistic singing , loved it!

19: Baatein kuch ankahin si : One wonders how the music world might had been without glorification to love.

20: Counting crows : Accidently in love : Came to know about this while watching Shrek . World seems better place with love around.

21: Unforgiven 2 : Metallica : I was curious to know why people are so crazy about Metallica , i got answer with this song .

22: Fuel : Metallica : This happens when you sing a song with Mt. Everest like energy.

23: Sabka katega :  Bodhi tree : Though other song from same band is more celebrated , this one is quite a beauty as well.

24: LMFAO : Party : Aptly named " Party anthem "

25: Aarambh hai prachand : Gulaal : A song full of vigor and strength. We were introduced to class of Piyush Mishra through this song.

26: No woman no cry : Bob Marley : One of better songs from Bob . Liked other variants of this song. Same lyrics can be given a totally different and equally
good music.

27: All good things come to an end : Nelly furtado : This was in playlist of blogger friends. It's like knowing secret from girl's world , girls are more 
crazy about love than boys can imagine.

28: Choti si Asha : From movie Roja : Mr. Rahman overwhelmed quite a few with this melody . I was one of them , used to wait for 15th August when "Roja" 
came on doordarshan.Innocence of this song has only few competitors in its genre.

29: Neele neele Ambar pe : Kishore da : You certainly want to learn to play Guitar after listening to this song , Kishor Da is at usual best in this song.

30: PSY Gangnam style : A Korean song will take the world by storm, a hard to believe reality. This will certainly become a case study for the Viral Marketing Moguls.

31: Hey jude : Beatles : When i started listening to English songs Beatles was obviously first in the list.Listening to their albums i can say  this song stands apart. It seemed me all great things have already happened before i came to this world.

32: Ruby Tuesday : Rolling Stones : This song was referred in the novel "God of small things". I got introduced to world of "Stones" from this. Very 
emotional song , one can feel the pain even if one is not in love.

33: Summer of 69 : Ricky Martin : Being Nostalgic can get this cool . Just play this song when when you want to feel the power of Nostalgia.

34: Guanthanmero : Richard stallmann : Those were the days when i did come to know about "Open Source". It was curiously strange to know that Mr Stallmann 
has such distinctive taste for music. Beautiful song even if you don't get the Spanish words in it.

35: Ek fariyad dil me : Tum bin :  My room mate had audio cassette of this. Rest is history :)

36: Jungle jungle baat chali hai pata chala hai : From the times when i actually believed that there exists a world of Jungle book. It is a master piece from
Guljar Sahab. unforgettable!

37: Nani teri morni ko : This song beautifully represented the family bonding which one developed as child . No wonder every child ,it seemed , was crazy about this song.

38: Lakdi ki kathi : This song was sang by a group of seniors as part of weekly school program. It was new experience , people could remember whole song and sing with such alacrity . Everyone became a fan of this song and it became a regular occurrence in weekly cultural meet of the school.

39: China company : Nepali song :  Only one word to describe it , sweet.

40: hat ja Tau : Haryanvi :  Haryanvi is cool 24/7 , When you want to dance weird , this is the song .

41: Bade Miyan diwane : Rafi Sahab showing strength of his might.legendary song from great singer.

42: Ek ladki bheegi bhagi si : How many times we did come across a situational song and say 'wow'? Not many

43: Hangama kyu hai barpa : Ghulam Ali : Ideally a song for the drunkards who are not able to sleep. But this song has equally good effect when you are unable to sleep at 1 am in the morning. My exam time favorite , you can study with this song.

44: Madhusala : Whole poem in song : Certainly a must have when you don't want to use your eyes to read this poem.

45: Naina milaike : Kawali : No Kawali session is complete without this , more you listen to this more you love the power of kawali.

46: Hips don't lie : If the song has nothing special about it , the video is special for sure , You wonder who can dance like that...Shakira Shakira!!

47: Dilruba : Kailash Kher : Another must have song from Kailash Kher.

48: Comfortably numb : Pink Floyd : Song to fall to in frustrated moments  when it seems you can't take anymore , you are useless and the path is blocked completely. After the song you are re-energized without any external inputs.

49: Yellow submarine : Beatles : The group song effect of this makes it special .

50: Jaane Kya Chaahe Maan Baawra : Pyar ke side effects : This song is 'hat ke' and distinctive for the lyrics used .

51: Baatein Kuch Ankahein Si : Life in a..Metro : I tried to remember lyrics for this song , partially successful.

52: Aashayen : From movie Iqbal : A song for the moment when you want to set up high standards for yourself . Its a reminder to achieve the bigger things in 
life.

53: Subha Ho Gayee Mamu : Munnabhai MBBS : A song for every morning when you have so many things to do , happening!!....Subah ho gayi Mamu!

54: Jaane kyu log pyar : Dil Chahta hai : A beautiful composition supplemented by nice music . The conclusion remains , no one knows why people fall in love.

55: Tu Aashiqui Hai : Jhankar beats : Glorification of love , accepted for now :)

56: Hothon se chu lo tum : Immortal singing by Jagjit singh in this.

57: kitni muddat baad mile ho : Ghulam Ali : World of Ghulam ALi is wonderful and this song is a rare gem.

58: Chalat musafir moh liyo re : Reminds of the village life where people celebrate life while singing. Hats off to the greats who could being to screen such
unadulterated celebration of life.

59: ye jeewan hai : Listen to this when you feel down , low and going gets tough. Music can catch up very diverse moments .

60: kun fayakun : Rockstar : World of sufism when music takes one to higher level . Intoxicating!. You don't have to a believer to enjoy the power of sufi 
music.

61: Aawarapan Banjarapan : Jism :  Became fan of this song when first time i did listen to this.

62: Chot dil pe lagi : This has been a regular in my playlist .

63: Jaadu hai nasha hai : Jism : Another good one form the same movie

64: Abhi Kuch dino se : Dil to baccha hai ji : Light and good. You end up singing this every time you listen to this

65: Lagan lagi tum se man ki lagan : If you are  a fan of Rahat ali you will get variety for sure , this is distinct in style and effect is same i.e lovable

66: Soch raha hu kis se puchu os ladki ka naam : From grand old days of kumar Sanu . One can easily like it for the flow of the song.

67: Dayal baba kola khaba : Bengali song : Due to richness of our culture we can love the songs of different languages. Catch up the video for stylish , weird and beautiful dance.

68: Tere Ishq Ki Inteha Chahta Hoon : Rahat fatah ali Kawali : This song will tell how kawali becomes part of tradition. You listen to same thing from 
different people and appreciate them equally.

69: Rules.. Choro na mujhe : For the moments whan you search for someone special.

68: Wahan kaun hai tera : R D burman : Has philosophical content . The message is clear , when you walk , slow down and enjoy the surrounding because When you move fast, things become hazy.

69: Main zindagi ka saath nibhata chala gaya : Relaxing!!

70: Baanwara man dekhne chala ek sapna : From Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi : This song is as good as this movie , used to play it incessantly.

71: Dil Ka Bhanwar Kare Pukar : When they say old is gold they mean it.

72: Dooba dooba rahta hun : Listen to this and you will know Mohit chauhan was as good as he is now.

73: Allah ke bande : May be this will remain best song of Kailash Kher even if he will become a better singer.

74: ye hawa kahti hai kya : Easy to sing this song when you are alone .For the moments when you become your entertainer , best way to keep yourself entertained when nothing else is available.

75: Sar jo tera chakrae ya dil dooba jae : Memorable for duo of Rafi-Jonny walker ( Badruddin Jamaluddin Kazi )

76: Jaane kahan mera jigar gaya ji : Innocence!!. See the video to relish one of better songs of our film industry.

77: Hai Apna dil to awara : This was quite a regular in Sunday Morning "Rangoli" on Doordarshan. Later on i realized this song had made into my favorite 
list.

78: O sanam muhabbat ki kasam : This song of Lucky ali with Arabic locales in video was special. One wondered , do Beautiful girl wander in desert without any reason?

79: Mere sajan Hain os par : Certainly a classic! . Its good to choose from such great collection of old songs we have in our film industry.

80: Meri duniyan hai maa teri aanchal me : A tribute to all mothers ; Among all species.

81: Mera naam karega rausan jag me : I still remember when dad was very particular about showing this song to me. I was sleeping that Sunday morning , he 
woke me up to show this song on "rangoli". Quite a few memorable moments associated with this innocuous program of doordarshan.

82: Baby i was born this way :  Lady gaga : You can love/Hate lady gaga. If you want to love her, this song will certainly help.

83: love you the way you lie it : Rihanna & Eminem : Rihanna is a phenomenon of our times . This song is another example of the fact that girls are crazy 
about love , sometimes more than boys. Eminem will make you think why rapping is such a cool thing.

84: Don't stop the party : Black Eyed Peas : There are many songs which will make you dance , this is certainly among top of them.

85: when i need you : Leo Sayer , Celine Dion : romantic song , Just play it and carry on with your work, soothing!

86: My heart will go on : Celine Dion : World is certainly small place, you can listen to someone from Canada love it like everyone.

87: Downtown : Petula clark : Loved the hope signified in this song.

88: Gali Gali Sim Sim : Title track of Our Own Sesame Street : The child in us never subsides ; Everytime i listen to this title track of the show i feel 
like 10 year old boy who loved to eat milk powder.

89: Mamma Mia : ABBA : Beautiful song and good to have in my collection. From this i got slight idea how saying "Mamma Mia" became a common thing.

90: Bego to oont Gado : Rajasthani Song : One of first songs that i did come across on You tube making my diverse collection richer. 

91: Lamha Lamha : Gangster : Another song which one can easily remember and sing as per requirement.

92: Ye ladki zar si diwani lagti hai : Love story : Special for the happiness that comes out after listening this.

93: Yu hi chala chal rahi : Swades : Its effect is best when one is traveling. A song to be played in full volume.

94: Ye duniyan agar mil bhi jaaye to kya hai : Pyassa : A song which which truly represented the frustration like never before and never after. Then our 
movie industry had high standards. When we can get next such intense song?...lets wait.

95: Do Dil Mil Rahe Hain : Pardes : Truly romantic track , one word for it "soothing".

96: Rula ke gaya sapna : Don't know when this song became regular in my playlist , a spontaneous entry.

97: Bulla Ki jana main kaun : Rabbi : I thought i will miss one Punjabi song in the list. Punjabi has rich tradition and culture. An area to be explored 
more. For the moment his song is favorite for the music and style of singing associated with it.

98: Es diwane ladke ko koi samjhaye : This was my favorite in those days and used to wait for this song to play on Vividhh Bharti ( radio )

99: Jadu Hai Tera Hi Jadu : Movie Gulam : Nice song from not so nice movie . Those were the times when Rani Muknerjee was adorable. long time!

100: Ye tumhari meri baatein : Rock on : Slow songs slowly earn a niche for themselves. This song stands apart in the album.

Before closing , I am thankful to my friends who did patiently read my blog entries and gave feedback. Looking forward to new friends and would like to know more human souls.

The Sunday Afternoon : Tata Crucible Delhi Edition

It happens only a few times when you get chance to do what you love.  Life does take many twists and turns , in a way one had never thought when one was a kid . Its not so difficult to see there are so many intelligent brains moving around. Time and again one does experience the fact , " Its not impossible man!". One gets chance to admire the confidence , tenacity , almost mountain like energy ; Its difficult to not get motivated. From school quizzes in obscure town to getting chance to see the National level competition , things can become really happening . Finally , I got chance to be part of Tata Crucible Delhi Edition-2012 ( A business quiz ). Looking back , i knew there was something called Bournvita quiz on TV but never got chance to see that as we had only Doordarshan at our home. Scanning through 'wisdom', 'Gk today' and news papers became regular in coming years. With Priorities changing , did drift away from the quizzing world and got immersed in calculus-coordinate-Organic-Algebra-optics etc. Some interests remain attached to you forever...

With location of the quiz at Hotal Taj palace i did get chance to enjoy hospitality that Taj offers. Truly admirable i must say , without much effort one feels very special and can't help but appreciate the elegance of the place. More than 100 teams did turn up for the event with fair presence of fairer sex. To believe that business quiz can generate interest among girls is slightly difficult. Anyways girls have clearly made huge mark as cricket fans , so they can surely enter other male dominated areas, certianly welcome signs. Girls made their presence felt with their witty answers to questions passed to audience. Age band of participants was not less admirable , from guys fresh out of college to uncles reaching their retiring ages. Highly distinctive participation for sure.

G Gubramaniam aka 'Pickbrain'' , the quizmaster , was at his usual best as i had heard/read.His humor quotient was sufficient to entertain the packed crowd. Prelims had 25 questions , something for everyone to take interest.Level of competition was quite tough as it is supposed to be at place like Delhi. NTPC ran away with Non-TATA track finals with their almost invincible show of quizzing. TCS took the TATA track after overcoming stiff resistance from other teams in finals.

After long time i got chance to see such energetic crowd with thirst for knowledge. Palpable excitement filled the hall throughout the Sunday afternoon.It felt like going to a temple when one has full faith in existence of absolute power. When i came out the motivation leval had improved , some negative energy gave way for hope and determination to make the future count.

Hilarious moment of the day : Picture of Maria Sharapova was shown as one question i.e guess the brand she was endorsing . Someone tried with wild guess i.e Huggies . " Pickbrain" remarked , " sharapova and Huggies!!!!???? "In the mean time one gentleman interjected with information that recently sharapova had pregnancy scare and that's why she didn't participate in cincinnati open. "pickbrain" quipped back , " hhhowwww do you khow this?" . Evryone fell into long laughter!!. Truely hilarious moment for the day.

                                                                                              
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Prelims questions :

1: Which company in hospitality industry has taken initiative Planet21

Ans : Accor

2: Innerwear from jagannath textiles , comes in three parts Basic , next , extreme.

Ans : Crusoe innerwear

3: CSI in hospitality industry  , something which we eat.

Ans : club sandwich Index

4: Clearvue range glass , R&D in India for india .

Ans:  Philips

5: Ad campaign photograph.

Ans: United colors of benetton ( UCB )

6: Danish Shipping Magnet , died on Apr 16 2012 . Name of the company

Ans: maersk

7: Bank in Italy , started in 1397 , What was name of the family.

Ans. Medici family

8: Economist and president of American economic association. Was Australian minister of finance 1948.

Ans. Joseph Schumpeter

9: Logo horse chariot

Ans. Hermes

10: Sara Blackly started with savings of 5000 dollar

Ans. Spanx

11: Founder of National stock exchange and credit agency CARE

ANs: R.H Patil

12: Name of package of benefits that allows employees to make choices.

Ans:  cafeteria

13: First published in 1968 , had character name Cheeku.

Ans: Champak

14: " Babu samjho esare " : which car was used?

Ans: Chevrolet

15: Advertising agnecy from india ( Could not get the question )

16: Difference between actual and potential GDP?

Ans : Okun's law

17: Nodal agency for buying Agricultural commodities?

Ans : NAFED : NAtional agriculture co-operative Marketting federation of India.

18: chocolate from parle containing cardamom ; had become virtual currency. Company had to stop its production.

Ans. Kismi bar


19: Beyond universe waste management , in partnership with NIKE. What is name of organisation?

Ans. NASA

20: Photograph of Maxis deal accused.who has been alleaged to paid bribe to Marans.

ANs:  Ananda Krishnan

21: What LOPSOD means? It's Based on political party manifesto . Index to measure Advertisement promished.

Ans. Long on promise , short on delivery

22: In 1897 Bayer chemist created new drug which cured his fathers rheumatism

Ans :Aspirin

In 1899, a German chemist named Felix Hoffmann, who worked for a German company called Bayer, rediscovered Gerhardt's formula. Felix Hoffmann made some of the formula and gave it to his father who was suffering from the pain of arthritis. With good results, Felix Hoffmann then convinced Bayer to market the new wonder drug. Aspirin was patented on February 27, 1900.

The folks at Bayer came up with the name Aspirin, it comes from the 'A" in acetyl chloride, the "spir" in spiraea ulmaria (the plant they derived the salicylic acid from) and the 'in' was a then familiar name ending for medicines.

23: 1897 this company sponsored almost everything for queens visit to India : but one tea was not sponsored...what was that?

Ans. Lipton

24: What Grexit means?

Ans. Greece exit

25: Ad campaign : Never hide

Ans. Rayban
 

p.s : My favorite song for the moment is title track from movie 'Barfi'