Rumbles and Tumbles are Part of the Game

Scent of Love (1)

2021-04-03T14:42:00.000-07:00

You must have heard something like, no one would have seen more sincere "love yous" and "good byes" than an airport would have. Well, that's quite true. Kalki was waiting at the international arrival, wearing a white sleevless kurthi and blue jeans. She looked nervous, holding a huge trolley bag. She kept looking at her watch but, time seemed to have frozen...

The text marques on arrival didn't seem to change either. "Damn, I just hope no one identifies me here! I hope I got the time right!" And a hundred other worries fogged her mind. Suddenly, people gushed out of the airport arrival, pushing their stories of luggages - one passanger even seem to have disappeared behind his luggage! Kalki stood on her tiptoe and peered over the crowd hoping to get a first glimpse of that one person she has been longing to meet for years now. And there he was... the last person to come out of the arrival gate. He was pushing his luggage in one hand and gulping down some water as he was moving towards her. Butterflies, fireflies and what not started flying in her stomach, "do I hug him? Do I tell him he looks like a giant in person? Should I just say I love you?"

"Watsupppp" Karthik said in his usual teasing tone and hugged her gently.

"Is that how you really intended to greet me after waiting for what seemed like an eternity? Wow!" Kalki almost shreiked.

"I obviously want to hug you tight and plant a kiss on you, but this is India. Who knows my relatives might be lurking around!"

"Oh yeah! Why am I not surprised. Here starts our secret mission!"

The last time Kalki "met" rather, "barely noticed" Karthik was some six years back when the school seniors lifted him after winning a football match. He was hardly noticeable being a tiny little thing among the tall and well built seniors. Kalki and Karthik hardly ever noticed eachother in school. But, when they did they were miles apart!

To be continued...

Heaven comes down to Earth!

2014-07-25T00:14:00.001-07:00

To stay honest to the quote, “A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving” I agreed to join the trip to St. Mary’s Islands with a group of friends. Thanks to the gentleman who opted out of the trip at the last minute, I neither had an idea about the travel time nor the destination. The car was on its wheels for what it felt like eternity!

It was a tiring 12 hour road trip from Bangalore to St.Mary’s Islands. The minute our vehicle stopped at the shores of the beach, we fleeted towards the water as if we spotted an oasis in the middle of a hot dessert. We chose the right time to visit the beach – it was towards the end of July. At least that’s what the rest of the gang said with contentment. However, for a person like me, any month or day of the year does not make a difference when it comes to visiting a beach. I hail from Chennai where visiting the beach is just a weekend ritual or just a peaceful stretch for a morning walk.

I scanned around and told my friend, “There is nothing great about this place, except for a patch of land floating a little away from the beach!” That was just an outcome of witnessing an island with just patches of sand and some coconut trees after a long, cramped travel.

We took a ferry till the Island and walked to the other side. What caught my heart and soul on the other side of the Island cannot be explained through words. For a minute, I could not believe I was in India. The Island was full of crystalized Basalt rock, a unique rock formation that is not found in many places around the world. Most of the formations stood tall like pillars, some had a red tint to it and some had green. The glassy green sea water between the Islands together with the rock formation along the long curve of the beach simply looked tranquil.

Our bodies forgot tiredness but our minds took a break. We spent hours walking around and swimming till our eyes and heart quenched its thirst for nature. The last ferry to go back to reality arrived, and we boarded it with a mind and body so light!

How to Skin a Giraffe

2013-08-05T06:33:00.006-07:00

It’s been ages since I stopped doing many things that was very much a part of my life. So, grabbed the chance when a friend invited me to this play, “How to Skin a Giraffe” that was staged in Rangashankara.

Most of us are into a delusion that plays are for the intellectuals. I say, the delusion by itself is a delusion! (Honestly, I could not relate the title of the play with what they showcased on stage. Not that I was expecting the artists to demonstrate skinning a giraffe, simply put, I just didn’t get it man!). Having said that, I was looking forward to a highly incomprehensible play, which might lull me to sleep or give me an ego crunch.

Sitting among a sophisticated crowd that dressed mostly in crisp cottons (the Fab India types), and a bunch of sophisticated, intellectual, and crazy (ex) colleagues/friends made me feel like a duck in a parliament of owls (ahh…finally putting the collective noun to use!). Luckily, I got a place in the second row – less chances of getting distracted by the owls.

The play begun with soothing live music and artists entering the stage, acting like puppets - good enough to trigger the thought, “100 mins of boredom awaits”. Fifteen minutes of that and the play took a twist. The dialogues shifted from English to Hindi and then to Tamil, Kanada, and Malayalam, and were quite simple to comprehend. The artists brought a palette of brilliant expressions on their face. The music became more interesting – kept me wondering how such outstanding music can be produced using simple instruments such as a mouth organ, lute, chimes, and so on. The use of properties was creative and the occasional interactions with the audience made the play even more interesting.

I came out with a flushed face (of merry and laughter), satisfied that I did something awesome after sluggishly spending months, doing nothing that I can talk or blog about. Keeping my fingers crossed that I spend the rest of the year enjoying similar “blogable” stuff! ;)

You complete me!!!

2013-05-14T11:57:00.002-07:00

Time passes so fast….

Within you, I am so lost….

Our love will never exhaust…

Am not losing you at any cost…

Thanks for being such a lovable friend

Thanks for being so understanding

Thanks for the meaning you add to my life

Thanks for completing me

Kanavu

2013-05-14T11:38:00.001-07:00

காற்றாய் இரு... நான் சுவாசிக்க
காதலாய் இரு... என் இதயம் துடிக்க
நினைவாய் இரு... நான் காலம் மறக்க
கணவாய் மட்டும் இருந்துவிடாதே... நான் விழிக்க மறுக்க!

You are where I Belong

2013-05-14T11:36:00.000-07:00

I lived my life so long, not knowing you exist

When I met you, my destiny took a twist

You made me fly without wings

Filled my heart full of yearnings

I don’t know what took over, destiny or luck

But we both were love struck

Neither you nor I could hold the secret

Maybe cupid shot us with a musket!

Every second we spend together

I wished it to last a little more, like forever

Every second we spend apart

I wished it fleeted fast

When this long wait comes to an end

I’ll show my yearns that are now penned

Even if the wait lasts lifelong

Baby, you are where I belong

The English Teacher

2013-05-14T11:11:00.002-07:00

Something worth sharing…

"Wife, child, brothers, parents, friends... We come together only to go apart again. It is one continuous movement. They move away from us as we move away from them. The law of life cannot be avoided. The law comes into operation the moment we detach ourselves from our mother's womb. All struggle and misery in life is due to our attempt to arrest this law or get away from it or in allowing ourselves to be hurt by it. The fact must be recognized. A profound unmitigated loneliness is the only truth in life. All else is false... Loved ones...They scatter apart like the droplets of a water spray. The law of life. No sense in battling against it."

A different genre of fiction that I finished reading today had the above lines in the last but one page. Of all the lines in the hundred and eighty four page book, this impelled me to blog again, after a long time. To accept the realities of life is indeed difficult. But, life goes on no matter what and at the end; to not to love yourself is ignominious of your presence in this universe!

Love is...

2012-10-24T12:30:00.001-07:00

A momentary mistake of the iris…
Stuck in the maze of sulcus and gyrus…
Spreads like a virus...
To hell! There are no survivors!

Life's Many Questions!

2012-10-02T11:22:00.000-07:00

People love to laugh; all the more, the ones who make them laugh! However, does anything change when they find out that the one who makes them laugh is a complete bogus and uses every possible opportunity to take advantage of the needy opponent who seeks happiness, in the pretence of making them “happy”?

Poison Ivy

2012-05-03T12:46:00.000-07:00

A cloud of darkness twined around,
the hidden evil is now expound.

My sweet evil gardner...

You watered my poison ivy,
with a smile so dewy.
The flower is about to bloom,
now, why do you gloom?

This isn't the time to renounce,
it's too late to trounce!
The darkness is all around,
i just cannot keep it impound!

My sweet evil gardner!
This ain't an ignoble weed,
you'll regret if you let it bleed!

‘Loss’ Why is it painful?

2012-02-10T09:06:00.000-08:00

Today was not like any other Friday! Today was a long and painful day!

It was a complete shocker to hear that my Friend’s dad passed away in a heart-attack!

“He had no health issues; he was not a cardiac patient! I can’t believe this! It’s very difficult, it’s very difficult” she said with eyes blinded with tears. I have never seen her like that and it was painful to see her that way. I had no words to make her feel any better! Looking at her face generated painful spasms in my heart, but I had no words for her!

I really hope you feel better soon!

Home Away

2011-10-14T00:37:00.000-07:00

Staying away from parents is not an easy job. At least not for someone like me! All my life I have been guided by my mom. My dad mostly leaves things to me. He believes in the concept, “You reap what you sow, I have given you life and education. You now know what to do with your life”. On the other hand, my mom is concerned, over concerned I should say. To be exact, she fears that we shouldn’t go out of the name, morals and ethics that our family has displayed so far. Now, that’s why she plays the role of our (me and my brother’s) life guide.

The moment I stepped out of my house to peruse my life and career. Hell came down, I was always named a “rebel” in my peace loving family and now they called this “the ultimatum”. After all initial “don’t go dear” followed by “Get lost, never come back!” it’s finally peace now (at least that is what I assume!)

After all that, here I am, writing how difficult life is without you ma. It’s not the comfort of home I am talking about; it’s your company and warmth that I miss. I miss doing all those home chores that you would have to yell ten times for me to do. I really do miss that. I miss the way you feed me when I rush to office in the morning. I miss taking you for a drive. I miss calling you from the super market to read out the list of grocery that I always forget at home. I miss you yelling at me for not picking the dried clothes before it gets wet in the rain. I miss your face-to-face polambals. I miss your chella kovams.

It’s been quite a while I saw your pretty face and I feel life is so lonely already! No one in this world can put up with me but you ma. I miss you so very much. I know you will never read this, still, someday you will know that I am not happy being away from you. But I have to stay put for a little while. As you say I learn by burning my fingers, let me burn it a little more. When this episode winds up, I will have some stories to tell. You will have your, ever happy to say, “I told you so!” to tell.

On a Rainy Night...

2011-10-12T10:51:00.000-07:00

The place was deserted, justifying the unusual eerie silence. Faint footsteps of a pair of boots came closer and closer. It was clear that someone is nearing. Yet, Tammy refused to move her head away from her computer screen.

“Hey, haven’t you left yet?” a bright clear voice hit her from behind. It was Vishwanth, her manager.

“Damn Vish, you startled me! Your laptop was nowhere to be seen so I thought you left.”

“I gave my laptop for an upgradation and went for a smoke break. So why are you staying late? Well… I don’t remember assigning you a Solitaire game to play!!!.” Vishwanth peeped into her computer screen with his trademark “naughty” smile.

“Ah! Don’t worry boss I sent my review to the onshore team. They’ll take a week to get back on that. Don’t tell me that you have extra work for me now!” Tammy clutched her lips with disappointment.

“ha ha… no Tam, definitely not on a Friday evening. Why are you staying late playing Solitaires anyway?”

“Vish, I guess you are losing your memory. I had applied for a week off and you approved it yesterday. Remember?”

“Oh… yea I remember. Days pass so fast! So, all set for your vacation? What time is your flight?”

“It’s at eleven. I thought I can hang around for a while because It’ll take days to travel from my apartment to the airport.”

“At eleven? Are you kidding me? I think you have to start now. My brother said the traffic is pretty bad today. A truck rammed into a car and vehicles are moving at the speed of an inch per hour!”

“What? Damn! Okay see you then. I will hurry up.” Tammy clicked the shutdown button without even closing her game of Solitaires. She dumped her headphones, notepad, and pen into her already stuffed travel pack and loaded it on her back.

“Tam, wait up! I will drop you.” Vishwanth pulled his car keys out of his loose jeans pocket.

Tammy froze. “Vish dropping me? In his car? I had to sit beside him for more than an hour? That will be a nightmare!”

She said “nightmare” because she had a huge crush on Vishwanth from the day he threw his charming smile at her. Every time Vish calls her to discuss work. Her heart will start pumping more than it should. There are days that she was tempted to ask for a change of project just because she couldn’t take her eyes off him during every discussion.

“…..and now he is asking me to travel with him for more than an hour? What if I keep ogling at him and he finds my little secret out? Damn! It looks like a good offer but NO Tam, DO NOT take it!”

“Tammy, why on earth are you looking like a freaked out puppy? Come on it’s getting late”

“Errr… I will take a rick. Ricks are smaller and they can zip zap zoom in this kind of traffic. Moreover you stay in the other side of the city. I don’t want to trouble you”

“Oh come on Tam, it started raining too. It’s a very bad idea to take a rick now. I really don’t mind travelling. I love driving and you know that!”

“Duh…In this mind wrecking traffic too?

“Now come on! Don’t waste time. I am sure rick is not a good option. You wanna go home or not? Your call!”

“agrr… fine I agree. Drop me please boss!”

“ha ha… alright then. Move fast”

Down in the parking, Vishwanth helped Tammy settle her huge back pack in the rear seat of the car while Tammy kept biting her nails, praying that she shouldn’t do anything stupid that will give him a hint of her crush.

Vishwanth, the gentleman he is, pulled the door open for Tammy. “Now stop biting your nails like a kid. I will make sure you catch the flight. No worries!”

Tammy smiled and slid inside the brand new BMW. “Geez… how can he afford such a car! His parents must be rich. Real bad idea to have a crush on a rich guy. Now I can be confident that he is not ‘my type’ Tammy will never go after rich men! Can never trust them you see!”

“Hey Tam, you are unusually silent! Still worried?” Vishwanth asked with the same old amile that Tammy can never resist.

“Nice car!” Tammy almost screamed unsteadily.

“That’s not an answer! Anyway, thanks! This is not my car. It’s my brother’s. I am planning to buy a Black Corolla in a couple of months”

“That’s a great choice!” Tammy sounded pretty unnatural to him. She was almost sticking to the door like a lizard, very consciously avoiding any small physical contact.

The rain subsided slowly and the roads showed no sign of traffic. “looks like your traffic update is not accurate!” Tammy, finally in her natural chirpy tone.

“Oh! Guess what? I said that on purpose because I wanted to drop you myself”.

Tammy was shocked to hear what Vishwanth just said. “WHAT? WHY?” She tried to sound angry but couldn’t hold back her blushing cheek.

Vishwanth did not answer her, “Well, here we are! You have one more hour for the flight. Clear all your formalities and give me a ring. Have a save flight Tam”.

“Bu… but why would you want to drop me? Why did you lie about the traffic?” Tammy sounded perplexed.

Vishwanth pulled her bag out of the rear seat and helped Tammy put it on “I thought you are a smart girl Tam! See ya! Will miss you, I hope you will miss me too!” He gave her a gentle hug “You have a flight to catch mam! You better hurry up. The airport is pretty busy before festivals.”

He got into the car and pulled down the windows. “Have a great vacation Tam. See you soon” Vishwanth threw his usual wink-and-smile at her and zoomed out of the picture.

“This is just a dream! Else am interpreting things in the wrong way! God! I just can’t believe this whole episode!” Tam mumbled as she walked into the airport.

The Girl on The Runway

2011-09-27T08:56:00.000-07:00

I met this girl on the runway of life

Big eyes gleaming with love. Love for someone or something that only seemed like a distant dream

Eyes so deep like a black hole echoed the bottomless search for the purpose of life.

I met this girl on the runway of life

Stranded by her, and the rest of the world

Scared by every effort that went into love and life.

I met this girl on the runway of life

Begging me to give up, on her

Give up staring into the mirror, at her, every day and night.

I met this girl on the runway of life…

Changing Era

2011-09-21T10:12:00.000-07:00

I am really surprised to hear that some men are now choosing their GF based on the school and college that they went to, organisation they are working for, and their designation! Looks like all proposal letters are going to include three more magic words “PFA my resume”!!!

Dude… isn’t this concept called “Arranged Marriage”?

Mankatha

2011-09-04T08:08:00.001-07:00

Watching a Thamizh movie in a cinema hall is a complete NO NO in my list. Yet, I watched Mankatha for a few reasons such as I was totally vetti, I sensed depression is slowly getting on me, I didn’t go home this weekend (I really should have! Am angry on myself for that!), and I promised my Bengali friend that I will take her to a Thamizh movie! Also, I was curious to find out if Ajith has imitated George Cloony throughout the movie. (Thank fully he has not. But, he does resemble him in some angles) I actually loved his natural greys and honestly appreciate it too ^_^ Mannn…some men become more handsome as they age ;)

So ya… this is no movie review. I spent 150 bucks on this movie and enjoyed watching:

The dash of comedy by Premji – He kind of repeats his dialogs and dialog delivery style in every movie. However, it tickled a laugh out of me.

Ashwin kakumanu – His obvious good acting skills and extreme good looks kept me glued to my chair ;) (Boy, how did I not notice this guy in Nadunisi Naygal?!?! )

Vhaibav Reddy– A Tan skinned, fully bearded, average height guy with cute little eyes portrayed as a Romantic and SINCERE HUSBAND! :D (If we minus the “duh… he was a thug in the movie!” part, he’s my kinda fantasy guy :D) Boy Vhaibav, you are getting better and better at your acting : ) keep up the good work boy! ; )

Trisha – This lady is ever so gorgeous! Though she was not given much of a screen space, I Luved her costumes and the lady herself ;) she is beautipul for sure!

If you think this post is more of a “drool over”, it is completely Mr. Venkat Prabu’s fault! Oh yes, the story was totally predictable, the music was a great disappointment, same pubbing, clubbing, alcohol, smoking, gals in bikinis or almost bikinis…. Ufff am a bit tired of watching that crap!

Summing it up, two nice looking guys and a gorgeous lady on screen, a dash of comedy by premji, and a cup of coffee in a dark theatre with two office pals is not a bad way to spend a Sunday evening! :D

All in a 40 min Ride

2011-08-23T10:32:00.000-07:00

“Kemon acho? apni kono kaj koren na keno?” , “barthavu barthavu…. Cabu late”, “mujae kya karon yaar? Subeh se shaam PPTs dheke aanko karab kogay”, “nyan achanandae parayalla chaechi”… this kichadi of verbal delicacy is what will flow in to your ears if you are on your way back home in my office cab. Though it is a positive sign of diversity in a cab it sometimes becomes VERY annoying! (That too after a looong day of fighting with macros and putting up with the, “I will take my own sweet time to load” servers!) The big bad city is already noise polluted, you can neither open your windows to listen to a serene city environment nor ask these people to lower the volumes in their vocal chords!

The little pleasure you can take in these ‘verbal kichadi’ cab rides is to identify the words that are similar to your mother tongue and say to yourself, “ah…hah! I know this word! (The word might completely mean something else, but does that matter anyway?)

Even if you try your best of best to find one tiny weenie positive point in a ghastly cab ride, there comes the “be my navigator” part where you have to give precise directions to the cab driver. Otherwise, you will end up going in circles around the big bad city! And this is the case every day!!!

P.S: Did I hear anyone say, “c’mon you get picked and dropped by your office cab. It must be so convenient!”? ah uh… you should try it! It’s fun… like a roller coaster ride in a fish market!

Golden Word Heh?

2011-08-19T00:18:00.000-07:00

“Maths is life! Do not ignore it dear, please take it up as one of your subject in Junior College” said my senior at school. I did understand what he said, but the fact is that I just had a total aversion towards maths (I think i have arithmophobia! O_o). So I went on… led a life without bothering much about maths for all these NINE years. Now, I can’t help but recollect the phone conversation I had with my senior when I heard, “I think I should reconsider my relationship with you, considering your terrible maths!” from my guy! Okay senior, now I get it… looks like maths has the power to determine everything! Uuff!!! Watta life man!

Uncertain

2011-07-16T01:07:00.000-07:00

I wish I could pull down the blinds

On all ye curious minds

With all questions piercing me like lances

I can’t answer taking my chances

For life is so uncertain

Who knows what’s behind the curtain!

The overwhelming amount of uncertainties that life brings does not make it even a bit interesting. “Live the moment, life is fun”, some say. However, in my opinion, it is just a trick to cheat your brain from sinking into the swirl of confusions, boredom, and worries. Perhaps I feel that way because I am now living all by my own, swirled by uncertainties. Every single person I meet somehow ends up popping a question for which my possible answers will be “mmm…I am not sure!” or “uugghhh…I have nooo idea!”

I did not get into what those questions are because for now I have no answers for anything! My temporary objective is not to live the moment but to let it pass…waiting for that moment which can give me some answers! (Am tired scratching my brain you see!)

Journey

2011-07-09T00:24:00.000-07:00

Moments of bliss became past

Brimming with memories that will everlast

Where we head, no one knows

But honey, I know the path is no bed of rose

Hold my hand and walk with me

The path doesn’t matter as long as it’s with thee.

Impressions

2011-06-22T06:06:00.000-07:00

It feels like I almost forgot to write! But today, I felt it’s about time! So, here it goes…my first impressions of the city that I now live in.

For a moment, it appeared as if the tall sky scrapers where held straight by golden stings that pierced through the clouds. The vast mass of coconut trees, cheerfully danced with the wind. At a distance, I was able to see only a little of the large lake, brilliantly reflecting the dusky orange and maroons of the sun. The pet hump of the city, the Nandhi hills was swirled by foggy clouds. A couple of Kites went in circles, looking for their prey. And a flock of bright green birds flew against the direction of the fiery wind.

This is a magnificent view that I see every evening from the top of my office building. I didn’t realize that this place is actually beautiful until today! Hopefully this place will be one source of inspiration that will keep my blog going!
Cheers to b’lore!

~The Rain Crab

You Hurt Me!

2010-12-06T03:41:00.000-08:00

I have read and heard a lot of people say that “You don’t get hurt unless you let someone hurt you”. Well… there are two ways of looking at it. One, you become so curt a person that you don’t let them talk anything that will ever hurt you. The second way is, whatever crap they give you, you just smile, let it trespass your earlobes to the other ear, and finally out of your entire system.

According to many….If you are the former they say you are good to go! A strong headed, confident person maybe! But if you are the later, you are not a confident person, an easy prey for others to take advantage of! Or someone who cannot speak up for themselves when someone is tearing them up for their own pleasure!

I totally disagree : ) just try to be the later…. You know how many nerves and muscles are put to test! How difficult it is to be “The Saint” ^_^

Your system imbibes patience only with the passage of time! Maybe that’s why I feel sooooo old!!! ^_^

P.S: This might sound like a filler! I really need to get into the "blog bloggin" sooon!!! : )

Painting a Pain

2010-10-28T11:40:00.000-07:00

The pain is as dark as it looked

Do it once, it gets you hooked

It tests your strength,

even if you paint a granth

Some who are in vain,

try painting their pain!

I never thought I will take such a long break from blogging, but hey… it’s always like that isn’t it? You never know what happens next! Too many things happening and too many things to do, yet, time remains too little for everything!

Well, in this too little time I had for myself in the past couple of weeks, I accompanied my friend to a weird weird place that made me wonder if hell would look similar. It was filled with nerve wracking, hard core rock songs and a weird smell, was that liquor? I really don’t want to know! The music was too loud that my heart tried to escape through my throat! And how that felt was not pleasant, trust me!

No no I am not talking about a pub or disc or something. It was just a small tattoo parlor run by two freaky looking guys! I really don’t know how smoke (smoke is my friend’s best name ;)) and those guys managed to have a conversation in that ear bleeding-music filled room. I escaped the pain of listening by just giving a “thumbs up” when they finalized on the design!

The tattoo guy traced the design on a special tattoo print sheet, pressed it on smoke’s arm, and peeled the sheet away…you know just like the boomer tattoos! :P but then came the real action! The guy started puncturing a thousand holes on the traced design with a sharp needle. Well, at first it looked as simple as embroidering a cloth to me, but then I realized it was a hell a lot of pain when I saw my friend’s weird expressions and fake smile. (The pain looked obvious smoke! :P)

“So why all the pain? The design is going to stay on your arm forever. Won’t you ever get bored of it?” I questioned.

“A physical pain to get over the worse that’s inside.” He replied with the same fake smile.

Hmmm… I am never getting myself a tattoo! Not really for the pain… I get bored easily! : )

Happy 1st B'day Bloggy!

2010-09-27T23:38:00.000-07:00

Dear bloggy...
Happy b'day!
Thank you for putting up with all the crap I write
and thank you for all the blogger friends you earned me!

Deep in the Woods

2010-09-27T05:59:00.000-07:00

Deep in the woods, I was alone, dancing with the air

You came in like a knight on a mare, out of nowhere

Embraced me with an arm around my waist

Pulled me closer, barely spared an inch untraced

Closer, until my senses quenched with your scent and taste

While your deep wine eyes pierced into mine, testing my chaste

Out you vanished taking my soul in your snare

Deep in the woods, I was alone, dancing with the air

Waiting for you in the depths of despair