Almost there… not quite yet!

This is that feeling of being almost there… You know… when you think that you are just a second away from where you want to be and then something terribly horrible happens… and then you aren’t quite where you ought to have been.

 

You have been planning and strategizing and making your moves carefully all for just being there. You gave up things on the way, made sacrifices... big and small, had sleepless nights, you did everything that you didn’t have to… all for this one future moment which you want to hold in memory forever… the moment when you will be the happiest…

 

Take a simple example… you plan a special birthday gift for a close friend. You go around for a whole month, getting the perfect gift, pre-booking the perfect dinner joint, getting all close friends together, planning the whole day, maybe a trip to one of the close by resorts… or a long drive… and when you reach the restaurant, you realize they haven’t made your reservation and you’ll have to wait a long time… that is just one factor… the other factors could go for a toss as well.

 

Another home example: You’ve been dying to watch a movie for the last one year... a friend tells you in passing that the movie is on the TV this weekend. You are very excited, work more hours on Friday, cancel your lunch appointment with friends, have a brunch on Saturday morning so you wouldn’t have to get up in between the movie for lunch, make you kids take an afternoon nap or pretend that you are letting them stay over at a friend’s place so you can see the movie in peace, make sure your generator is working ok, why take a chance with the power supply? Finally, everything is perfect... you can now see that movie in peace on Saturday afternoon. As you turn the TV on and sit with the remote control in your hands, the advertisements are on and you can barely wait… and then as the titles of the movie begin to scroll, the cable connection’s gone. Simply gone. If you are in Kerala, you’d understand what I’m saying. Frantically, you call the operator and he tells you... please hold on madam… and you know exactly what that means… you hold till you are sure the movie must have reached interval and you finally give up. Then when you switch it off, you realize the kids are sleeping, your friends aren’t there for lunch, there’s no office work left to do… so just kind of sit around…!

 

Life has it’s funny ways… there are so many instances… some as unimportant (or important, as the case may be) as this and some of very grave consequences… and all this effort suddenly gets flushed down the drain… and you feel so pained and there is nothing you can do about it. No, it definitely wasn’t because you didn’t take precaution… you did. And it wasn’t because of others... what vendetta would the cable operator, for example, have against you?

 

So I guess that is why they say… what has to happen, will happen. You can go only so far to ensure all might be well. If it is meant to be, it will. What is our take home then? Do your bit. That is all! J Leave no room for regret. There is probably something better waiting for you just around the corner!

A Miracle called Chechi

Chechi. It means elder sister in Malayalam. Some words have relevance only so far as its meaning would take. But with chechi, it’s different. I didn’t have an older sister. And I have often wondered if I am being an ideal sister for my younger sister. Because I don’t know how I should be! I do my best, but I don’t know if I do it right. And I have always been jealous of friends who have an older brother. Typical Indian movies show the heroine have a rough and tough older brother who’ll pull her out of every scrap, fight with the villain and protect his sister at all times. I must say I was in no such danger. Ever! J But it was a sort of fantasy for me to have an older brother. I never thought about having an older sister… till I got one!

 

Yes, I have been bestowed upon with an older sister at the age of 21! J Miracle? Oh Yes! When I joined Amrita School of Business on the 17^th of June, 2007, I was new to the place, like everybody else. In the initial days, there were huge groups… Often the groups were of people from the same State or who spoke a common language. I did not fit into any of them because I belong to nowhere. Why I belong to nowhere is a totally different story and will have to wait for another day. For now, I shall continue this narration.

 

As time progressed, I found that the huge groups were getting fragmented into smaller groups… there were cold wars and spite and ill will. I wasn’t a part of this aftermath either. J I was adopted by an intelligent, simple and loving girl. She hung out with me, played with me (yes, little kids do!J ), taught me subjects, watched movies with me, shopped with me, and most importantly, she was always there for me.

 

She is the one who has mellowed me down. (She probably got some of my short temper! Hehe :P ) She taught me not to think too much. (She does that herself though! :P ) She will ask me to sleep early when I have a class the next morning. (But she herself will sleep at 4 am!J ) She ensures I do my assignments. (Although she volunteers to help me out almost alwaysJ) Her room is always open for me, I know! (Mine is open for her too, but it’s pretty unhygienic… if you know what I mean :P)

 

I know I have told her in jest many times, but I mean it with all sincerity, she has the world’s best shoulders to cry on. I can only pray to God… not to reduce my troubles, but to make her shoulders strong enough for my crying sessions J :P! She’s strong willed, has a mind of her own, is awesome to hang out with, is smart and witty, emotional at times and very caring. I know whatever troubles I’ve had in the day will be gone when I come to her and speak about them at the end of the day. She is allergic to gossip, does not talk ill about anybody till I do. J Even that she mostly only listens. She is always hopeful and optimistic. She’s obsessed with cleaning her room. I offered her options to extend her services to my room, which she bluntly refused… every time! J :D

 

There are some things that I’m most comfortable doing only when she is around. Like talking in Malayalam! J Try as I might, I always struggle and fumble to talk with anybody else in Malayalam :P. I take all sorts of mad pictures only with her around. Nobody understands my madness like her. She totally understands… that I’m mad! J That is because she is too! Hehe J. I like packing for home only when she’s sitting in my room. She’s a nicer reminder of things than little notes on my cupboard! J I like going for long walks in the evening with her by my side. Not only do I enjoy her company but it also reminds me sometimes of my own younger sister and the times we had exploring new streets and lanes back home. J I like sipping hot coffee in the evenings when she is around. I think the coffee somehow tastes better when her jokes are in the air! J

 

Now when I look back, I am a little scared. Of many things. I know she has always been there for me, but have I been there for her? I know she always advices me right, but have I advised her right always? She helped me see right from wrong. Have I learnt it well? She mellowed my temper down. Have I, unknowingly and unintentionally made her an angry person? It really scares me. For all that she’s been for me and done for me, I feel I have not reciprocated enough. I probably took her for granted sometimes. But I don’t know how to make it up. No, nothing is wrong now. All is fine. But I wish I had been a better younger sister! It was a new role for me! So I guess I should be given some allowances for the new job profile… :P And I don’t care for an older brother now. An older sister is so much fun to have… I am truly lucky to have her in my life. There are some people we wish we had known earlier in life. She is one such person… I feel I wasted 20 odd years not knowing her! But tell you what, knowing her is what matters! And I do now! I have my own chechi now. My Ani chechi. I love her so much and would do everything in my capacity to keep her happy. I will always wish the best for her and will try to be at least half of what she has been for me! If I fail in that regard, I can only ask for forgiveness…

The Anti-Indian at the Oscars!

On International television, at the premier Oscar Awards Ceremony:

 

Interviewer: “I will give you thirty seconds… What message do you have for the Indians? What do you have to say to the audience back home?”

 

Anil Kapoor: “We love you all, we love Mumbai, we loveMaharashtra!”

 

My response: What the heck?!

 

Amidst the pride that Rahman and Pookutty have brought upon India, there we have Our Hero, from Amchi Mumbai- proclaiming his undying love for Mumbai residents and those in Maharashtra!!

 

America brought to the tables a brand new term… ROW- Rest Of the World. Anil Kapoor has clearly indicated his contribution to this new phenomena- ROI - Rest of India! As a representative of 1.3 Billion strong population, Our Hero goes on to say He loves Maharashtra! What does India mean to him?

 

Next question for a Million Dollars: Amongst all the categories of people who divide the Nation, who is the most dangerous?

1. Politicians
2. Ram Sena/Shiv Sena
3. Forefathers, when they divided the States, in 1947
4. Terrorists

 

Answer: None of the above!  The most dangerous are the insensitive idiots vested with the power of changing minds of others, like Our Hero, Anil Kapoor, and the other is the Common Man err.. Not to antagonise any group.. Common Man/Woman.

 

Are we one hundred percent sure of the answer? Oh yes!

 

Here is why: I was standing there, watching television, all goose-bumpy having heard Rahman bagged two Oscars and Pookutty bagged one, when Our Hero, Anil Kapoor came up with that brilliant message for “Indians”!! Er… I wonder if that message was incomplete… It talked about Indians in Mumbai first, then mentioned Indians inMaharashtra. What happened to ROI?!

 

That was Our Hero. Now I will address the Common Man/Woman.

 

When the awards were announced, I was overwhelmed and immensely proud… Two Indians finally bagged the much coveted and perennially evasive Oscar Statuettes. It took a couple of minutes to register… Indians at the Oscar… not as audience, not just as Nominees, as the Winners! Wow, that is making History. India witnessed History being made. And just when I was beaming with joy and pride seeing Rahman and Pookutty being aired on every channel, my Mera Bharat Mahan dream comes crashing with a comment one of my colleagues makes.

 

“Pookutty is a Mallu. He’s from Kerala! In fact, he is from Kollam!” Er… what?! So, he’s a Keralite, now what? Has Rahman ever been looked at as a Tamilian? He is the face of brilliant music. He is the Guru of Bollywood, Tollywood, you name it. He took India to the the World. He took India to the Oscars. To many, he simply stands forIndia! Pookutty has done us equally proud. He brought glory to India. A glory of the kind that has never been seen. India’s first Oscar this season. First Oscar for background mixing. Pookutty has made as much history as Rahman has, atleast in terms of Oscar, for honestly, I don’t know him that well. But what shattered my dream is not that he is little known (Not many knew him till Slumdog Millionaire happened). What broke my dream was the regionalism that came with that comment. Ok, he’s from some place. So what?! It has come to a low ebb now. What I imagined were two Indians winning 3 Oscars has turned out to be A Malayali winning one Oscar and a Half Tamil-Half Malayali winning two Oscars! How sad can it get?!

 

And here we are thinking that it is our politicians and the Government and miscreants and Shiv Sena and God knows who else who are creating the unseen divide in the Nation. It is disheartening to see that it is the highly respected, reputed and popular figures like Our Hero Anil Kapoor, and the well read, experienced, soon-to-be-Global Managers  who create the dividing lines.

 

I really think it is time we stop cribbing. It is time we changed. Not as far as how India should grow and change; let us begin at home- let us begin with us.

Jai Hind!