Priya...!!!

My day at The Amar Chitra Katha Studio

2013-03-23T16:25:00.001+05:30

As I was playing my twelfth Quiz With No End on the 19th of March, I got a comment from The Amar Chitra Katha Studios that the quiz is closed now. I closed all the tabs where I was searching for answers and questions and continued with my work. I was refreshing the page every 15 minutes to check whether the winner was announced. I left office at 5.15 PM and reminded myself to check as soon as I go home. But, as I could not resist myself, I again started refreshing the page on my cellphone to check whether the winner was announced. And lo! At around 6, I saw that I had asked the more number of questions and I was announced the winner. As I scrolled down to check which book I had won, I could not believe my eyes when I saw the Golden Ticket. I did not need a Hallmark to check whether this "Gold" was authentic. I started calling literally everyone to talk about this. I was overwhelmed !! The team had asked me for my email and contact number which I shared and was waiting for their call or email.

The next day at sharp 10 AM I received a mail from Ms Sanjana Kapur congratulating me again and asking me when would it be feasible to meet them. We discussed and decided to meet on Friday, the 22nd of March at 10 AM. My day-counting started. I could not sleep on Thursday night.

The D-day arrived !!

My parents had to come with me as my husband was busy. I left home early not wanting to be late, but still, thanks to the infamous Bangalore traffic, could reach there by 10.15.

I was welcomed by a sign at the entrance of the Studio. As I entered, I received the golden ticket and was given a warm welcome by Ms. Reena Mam and Ms. Sanjana. As I walked upstairs, I entered the research, writers and editors room. It consisted of 5 beautiful ladies. Ms. Reena Mam, Ms. Sanjana, Ms. Shalini, Ms. Aparna and Ms. Nimmy.

It was truly a dream come true for me. I had seen the room only in pictures of the Facebook page. The covers pinned up to the board with a picture of Uncle Pai. There was also a board mentioning the next titles to be released with the timeline and also a board which had the names of people who had answered the weekly quiz questions on the Facebook page. We had a small chitchat and then they showed me their work. The way they conduct the research (Must be the toughest part after seeing the books they refer - Huge ones), put them in panelised word document with a description of the picture supposed to come and the dialogue.

I also did not know they take weekly turns in maintaining the Facebook page. The turns were also pinned up on the board.

This is a small glimpse of the team I was talking about. The mixture of beauties and brains !!

The next was the Art team. They were placed in the adjacent room. As soon as I entered the room, I felt like entering a comic book. The world of art is amazing. So, are the artists of the Amar Chitra Katha team. They were the ones who put scripts into pictures and make it more interesting. The artists were drawing, inking, coloring and what not. I was surprised when I got to know that coloring a page itself takes about 1 day. Getting to the right gradient and precision takes time. Each one explained to me what they specialize in and why they are called specialists needs no explanation as their work speaks for them.

As I went back to Reena Mam's room, we spoke for some more time about other things and as we were about to leave, she handed me a copy of Anant Pai. That would be the greatest gift I had ever received.

We also met the digital team briefly. Last but not the least, Brownie !!! The resident dog. I forgot to mention him earlier. He had greeted me on the doorstep itself. Now, he was sending me off. I could not spend much time with him though. Also, the team made it a point to send me off at the doorstep which is a very wonderful gesture shown by the them.

All in all, I must say, they was the most memorable moments of my life. Love to see you again and again Amar Chitra Katha team. Special thanks to you for making me feel so special.

The Deposed Trust

2011-08-04T16:27:00.000+05:30

This is a story originally written by me. I had sent it as an entry to a short story competition. But didn't make it. Thought I will share it here in my blog.

It was the 28^th of September. The date brought some disturbances in me. I was afraid, I was getting back some dreaded memories which I wanted to forget. But as intended, they came back and haunted me. I just closed my eyes, leaned back and moved the cursor across my memory and it started on the 28^th September of 1986.

The winter had started and all the boys at the orphanage jumped out of their beds to get dressed up to attract childless couple to take them home. In those days, adoption was less popular and not preferred by many families even though they were childless. The boys were around 8-12 years old. Everyone wore their best outfits, stood in a line and looked confident. It was not the case with me, as I was always the unwanted, due to my crippled leg. I was at the orphanage ever since I remember things. Whenever I saw young couples get out of their expensive cars, heading towards the orphanage, I would pray God that they take me home. But even before they came to me, I knew it wouldn’t happen.

I could not speak much to anyone due to my insecurity. I did not mingle with the other boys during studying or playing. Though I was extremely good at studying, I could not make an impact even with the boys at the orphanage. I stayed alone most of the time with my books and crutches. Few days ago, a new boy joined the orphanage. He had a bed next to mine. He always consoled me when the other boys teased me for my leg. I realized that he is the one to spend my time with, Ajay.

A couple got down their Ford, the woman in her late twenties and the man in his early thirties. As they got down, a smile lit the young faces. Everyone wanted rich parents. We both went too. I was standing before him in the line. The person in charge of the adoptions introduced all the boys in the line.

“Satish, aged 10, good at volleyball, bad at studies”

“Vimal, aged 8, a bit naughty”

The list continued for the next twenty boys and finally came to me.

“Rohan, aged 10, extremely intelligent but...” and stopped.

I put my eyes down. I had started my prayers before they reached the first boy. The prayer stopped when they moved to Ajay.

“Ajay, aged 9, a young and handsome boy, good at studies too”.

I could see the flicker of motherhood in the woman’s eyes. I had not seen it before in any other women; but for Ajay. I did not want him to go. He was my only friend at the orphanage. I was never jealous of anybody else getting adopted. He had aroused the strength in me and he was the one who made me feel low again. I realized my inability now.

I was waiting outside while Ajay was in the office for some formalities to be fulfilled. I saw him run towards the room. He started packing his bags, with a broad smile on his face. He was surrounded by boys, who were congratulating him. His smile was intact. He lifted his face. The moment he saw me, he rushed towards me and hugged. He was extremely excited about the new turn his life was taking. I forced a smile on my face though I cried deep in my heart. I could see the loneliness engulfing me with his departure.

Years had passed by, I was 23, but still at the orphanage. I never showed up to childless couples after the day I was rejected for Ajay. I stood up with the help of my crutches and moved to the mirror. I saw a handsome face with hazel eyes and dark hair. I could not see my legs in the mirror. Maybe, that was the reason I appeared presentable. I was expecting my results that day. If this too was positive, I would be awarded with an MBA certificate. I had done extremely well throughout my academics and was sure of completing it with flying colors. I had very badly wanted to take up some job and earn for myself. I had lived my whole life on charity and wanted to end this.

I was happy to find out I had cleared it very well, well enough to secure a job with one of the MNCs and support myself. I started applying wherever possible the very next day itself. Many offers I got would be ruined for my crippled leg. The reason would be ‘physically unfit’ though I don’t remember lying down due to a fever. I debated within myself that my inability to walk without crutches cannot be called physically unfit. But they had their reasons.

Finally, I was selected by a small company, for a lesser pay than I expected but just enough for renting a new home. I worked there for around six months, giving a part of my salary to the orphanage and saving the rest for a shelter. I finally rented a house with just a kitchen and a bathroom with the money I had saved. I moved into this place within three days as I liked the locality very much and it was also nearer to my work. My job was also going on good. I was happy with my life until I met the person I never wanted to see in my life. The person I hated.

It was a tiresome Tuesday. I came home around 7.30 p.m. and found a man in front of my door. I was surprised as I never expected any guests. As I moved closer, I could see the man’s face more clearly but not clear enough to identify.

He said, “Hello Rohan, remember me?”

I stared at him for a few seconds. I was shocked to see him.

“Ajay!! Is that you? I never expected to see you. I am surprised. Come in”.

We entered and I made 2 cups of coffee and gave him one. Like our first meeting, he broke the silence between us.

“So, how is life?”

“I am doing fine. I am much better now, staying away from free food. I am happy about my job, home, actually everything. How about you? How did you find me?”

“I am doing fine too. The company you are working with is my dad’s. I recognized you when the new employees list was sent. My family is in Mumbai. I came to Bangalore this morning to meet you. As soon as I landed here, I went to the orphanage. They directed me to this place. I will be taking over the company soon. I thought I might take you with me, as you are much more intelligent than me. You will get a good position in the company. Will you come with me?”

I was shocked.

“What? I need time to think. I can’t take such a big decision in just a day”.

“C’mon Rohan, you know me. Why do you need time? I told you everything is fixed. We are going.”

I felt a closeness I never felt before after he said this. I looked down for a second or two and lifted my eyes. He understood what I wanted to say. Yes. He was very happy. He took out two tickets to Mumbai from his pocket. We left Bangalore the same night. I wonder if it is the faith he had in me or in himself to convince me to do this.

I still remember the night we landed in Mumbai. I was a lot happier but showed very little on my face. I did not want to seem desperate. The family, Ajay’s dad and mom, accepted me and forced me to call them ‘Dad’ and ‘Mom’ too. The very next day, dad wanted me to know about the company. I wondered what the hurry was. I thought I would be spending some time in the city, the only city which I had seen other than Bangalore.

Ours was a software company, having numerous businesses worldwide. Though I was not trained for building software, I was good at management, in which Ajay was bad. On the insistence of dad, I enrolled in some of the classes that provided education on it. Ajay neither had knowledge about administration, finance, taxes etc., nor at computers. Sometimes I even wondered whether he completed college.

I was at the helm in the company and the annual reports reflected my performance than anyone else. The company recorded the highest profit ever; I couldn’t take the credit for this. Whenever there were any lucrative projects, Ajay would go for it and return empty handed, mostly. He lacked the confidence to speak and was horrible at marketing.

One day, I was surprised when I saw Ajay in the office around 12 noon. He usually never turns up. He came straightly to my cabin and took some papers out and said,

“Dad wants to retire. I want you to sign some papers.”

“What papers?”

“Applications for change of nominee to all my bank accounts. It was actually my dad who was the nominee, but he wanted me to change it to you due to some reason.”

“Nominee? Fine. No problem.” I signed it.

“You didn’t even bother to read it? That’s bad for the company. Don’t tell me you sign papers without reading them.”

“I trust you.” I don’t know where those words came from. Maybe, it was just to prove I was not foolish enough to sign it like that.

He laughed at it and left the office.

The next day, the newspapers, featured an interview of Ajay. He was the ‘Businessman of the Year’. I was angry and stormed into his room. He was still asleep; I woke him and asked about it. He said,

“I came home around 11 last night. I came to your room to tell you but you were sleeping. So, thought of telling you today.”

Sleeping? I had not closed my eyes for a second last night. But still I didn’t want to tell him. I smiled at him with great difficulty and came out of his room. He called me.

“You know what? Our company has recorded the highest profit this year. I feel great.”

I had slogged for it and knew the figures by heart and this fellow gets up in the middle of his sleep and tells me we have made profit.

In the car, I joined the pieces together. He always took advantage of me. I came to know that he had brought me here to look after his company. He just wanted to enjoy his life. He misled me. I slogged for his company and he enjoyed the limelight. I was disappointed.

Days passed by, It was a Monday. I started for work pretty early as I had a seminar on banking. The purpose was to improve the newly appointed staff’s knowledge on banking. They usually would have just passed out of college.

I was happy to see a good number in the audience when I started the presentation. In the front row were dad, Ajay and some senior officials. I started with all the greetings, introductions and slides and also spoke about loans, sureties among other things. While I was saying,

“A nominee is a person who the client of the bank appoints. The nominee will be able to claim the money if the client dies.”

The words ‘nominee’ and ‘dies’ rang a bell in me. I suddenly remembered I was the nominee to Ajay’s accounts. I was calculating something when I saw something move in front of me. It occurred to me I was onstage. Ajay had gestured, I continued. I wound up early and got back to my cabin.

Ajay had never been a reason for my smiles since he was adopted. But now, he was. The rest of the day, I was thinking of some ways to gobble up his money. But I don’t know why I couldn’t wait till he came of age and died. I came up with a simple plan to kill him. I was also confident I would not be held for his death even by his parents.

The day had finally come. He was at the dinner table, coughing a lot. He must have been smoking of late. I told them I had a bad day at work and needed some rest. They were still at the table. I stealthily went to Ajay’s room. I emptied all of the toxins got from the roadside pesticide seller into the bottle of the cough syrup lying on his bedside table. I wanted him dead. The road to heaven was open. I hurried back to my room.

I was excited. I could hear him cough for a while. After that, silence. Dead silence. I was curious to see what happened but didn’t want to. Now that it was confirmed he was dead, I was afraid. I didn’t know what to do. I could easily escape from the hands of law. But still, I was a murderer. I put all that aside and thought of the things I would have. First of all, lots of money and then, a nice wife. We would have kids. Maybe, I would even adopt a kid from the orphanage. I don’t know when I slept.

Finally, it was morning. I took a hot bath and came down. Ajay was not there. I was not even expecting him. Dad was reading the newspaper and mom was in the kitchen. They had not yet been to his room. Time passed by. It was 10 a.m. Ajay had not yet turned up. Mom went to his room to wake him up. I could feel sweat trickling from almost all parts of my body. I was expecting a loud cry anytime. But nothing happened. I looked up. I could see mom with a dumb-struck expression. She was trying to tell something. No words came out. Finally, we could hear the words.

“It’s all over now.”

Dad was horrified too. “Is it? But the doctor told he still has 3-4 months left.”

Mom started crying. She didn’t even bother to hear what dad was speaking. I could not understand what dad was speaking about. We rushed to his room. He saw me confused and took me out of the room.

“I need to tell you something, Rohan. Ajay was diagnosed with a severe kidney problem 3 years back. He was undergoing dialysis every week. He used to take treatment in London once in every three months. The doctor gave him 4-5 years to live. It was then he wanted us to have another son as he could not live longer. He told us about you. Fortunately, we found you in Bangalore and brought you here. I wanted you to look after the company. If he had told you all this before, Ajay thought, you would never accept it. He changed the nominee in all his banks and I transferred my property to you. Everything is yours now. We don’t want to live luxuriously without our son. He was everything to us. I am sorry if I hurt you by not considering you as my son. I trust you with the company and money. Just the way Ajay trusted you.”

I was speechless. The word ‘trust’ had a very bad impact on me that I could not bring myself back to senses. Dad went back to Ajay’s room. I followed him. I saw a different person on the bed now. He was pure in his thoughts. He was not misusing anyone. He lay peacefully in the bed. My world had come to an end. It was not he who died, it was me. I was left all alone again on charity throughout my life.

After all the rituals, dad told me they would be on a spiritual trip from now on and never come back. I was an orphan again; due to my greediness. My life completed a circle and came back to the starting point, the point where I belong. I spent all the money and built an orphanage in his memory. That was the only way I could repay him.

Even today, after 5 years, I could not take him out of my mind. I was lost in thoughts when I heard a tap on the desk. I looked up. I saw a person with a boy. I was at the orphanage. The person told,

“Sir, this boy is my neighbor. He lost his parents due to a flood. I heard from a friend that you provide good education, good clothes and food to the kids here. Please do the needful.”

“That is not a problem. Just give me his parent’s death certificates and fill in the application form here.”

“Sure, sir.”

I looked at the boy. He was smart. He must have been around 6 years.

“What is your name?”

“Ajay.”

“Come to me.”

He held his crutches and dragged himself near me.

The person told, “The boy is a cripple, sir. He lost his leg in the flood.”

Diversity in Unity

2011-02-25T11:13:00.001+05:30

Every morning I see loads of children standing for their school buses, chatting or laughing. One such school bus stop is near my bus stop and I was waiting for the bus as usual. I noticed two girls standing next to me. They belonged to a very prestigious school in the city.Their uniforms were 'Cool' as the kids of today call, with a short tie and short skirts exposing almost one-third of their legs. They were chatting with each other in their best English. At the same time, another bunch of kids came to the same bus stop, but for the regular bus. They must have belonged to some sort of a Government school which has a sky blue shirt and navy blue skirt as a uniform. It consisted of two elder girls, maybe high school and five to six younger children of middle or primary school.

The girls started passing comments on the faded and extra long uniforms of these children and started laughing at them, called them names. I gather one of the girls knew them, she was asking them whether the uniform belonged to their mother while she was going to school and such things. By that time, they got their school bus and took leave. I too got my bus.

In the bus I remembered a lesson I had read in my school regarding the purpose of uniforms in school. It was required so that the children get a sense of uniformity and do not poison their minds with the feeling of high or low with respect to caste, economic status etc. But, nowadays it is not the case. The schools itself are causing this divide. The students of a high society school are always treated better than students of a low society school. Does that require a name called 'Uniform' even now?

I just hope in the future, there should also be a uniformity in the uniforms of different schools too. Only then will the children learn the real purpose of a 'Uniform'.

Valentine's day (???)

2011-02-14T11:34:00.000+05:30

It is my first ever Valentine's day today. After spending more than 2 months with my husband Varun, I keep thinking why didn’t I ever meet him before. When I had met him on the first day, we hardly spoke for 2-3 minutes. He is a man of not just few but much lesser words. On that day itself I found a strange sort of love in his silence. We both agreed and got to know each other very well in the past few months. I am sure I would have not found anyone better than him for myself. Every morning, I find it very difficult to part with him to go to work. He has to literally push me out of home. Even in the bus, I constantly message [We don’t want to talk as it hurts our privacy] him till we both get to our seats at work. I also like his “Oota aaytha?” message around 2 or 2:30 every afternoon. In the evening, the messages continue.

I was a bit late today and had to get in a crowded bus. I found a seat finally next to a man of around 35-40. He was dressed well, though not a hero in looks. He was on phone, talking loudly in a sort of fake American accent. At first, I thought I will let go of the seat but thinking of the 2 hour journey, chose to sit. I was about to start messaging Varun, but realized my phone was out of currency. I had not noticed in the morning that it was one-rupee-a-message day and had shared some joke with some of my friends in the morning which ate up all my currency. I had no choice but to sit through the journey. With the man next to me talking like a crier on the streets, I could not help listening to his one-sided speech.

I gathered he must be talking to some woman over the phone as he was addressing her as “Jaan”. He was sharing a lot of things with her so it had to be his wife.

“Jaan, Bangalore is getting hotter nowadays. I wonder how it is in Delhi. Are you uncomfortable in the weather dear?”

I thought she must be living in Delhi and he is missing her a lot.

“Arre.. Nahi Jaan. How can I ever do that to you? I love you more than anything else in life. Do you think I booked the tickets next week to Delhi just like that? It is my Valentine’s day gift to you.”

“Agra? I don’t think that will be possible as I have taken just 3 day’s leave.”

“Arre.. You are still caught up with the same thing? What should I do to convince you that I love you?”

“Gaana?? Yahaan? Is bus mein?”

“No Jaan. I can’t sing in a bus.”

“Arre.. Fine.. Kaunsa?”

“Ha ha.. Koi kannad ka gaana baj raha hai. How should I know what it is?”

“Ok. Hrudayave bayasithu ninne.. Oh God.. This is difficult.”

I was controlling my laughter a lot. I was surprised how his wife was making him dance to her tunes even from a distance of 3000 kms. I was thinking of Varun’s reaction if I had asked him to do that. He would have simply told “Why only sing dear? I would dance too, but only in front of you. I don’t like Public Display of Affections.”

The man continues..

“Kaunsi? Saath Khoon Maaf? Theek hai. Kya baat hai? Pati ka khoon toh karne ki nahi soch rahi ho na? Ha ha..”

“I was just kidding Jaan. Come on. Tum toh meri sweetheart ho na.”

“I sent you the photos of my new flat in the morning. Did you check?”

“Ofcourse. I can occupy it by 15^th March. When are you planning to come to Bangalore?”

“Haan. You can stay till May 23^rd Jaan. After that my wife and children will be back from her mother’s place.”

I was shocked when I heard it. I was used to the fresh and innocent love of Varun and could not get myself to believe that few men are like this man too. How could anyone do that to his wife who had given up her family to make his family happy? I was praying to God I find another seat and get away from this devil next to me. I usually imagine myself in their place when someone is suffering and decide. But I did not even want to imagine myself in her place as I would be insulting my husband. I finally got a seat three rows ahead of mine and I just went and sat there. I did not want to start my first Valentine’s day on a sad note but I sure did.

Why grow up..!!??

2010-11-12T11:16:00.002+05:30

This is the question I am always haunted nowadays. Why did I grow up?? I keep asking this to myself, my mom, dad, God.. well everyone who were with me in my growing years.

1. Was I not happy with the mud puddles I used to play with? Why am I given complex codes to work on?

2. Was I not happy with 1st/2nd ranks in schools? Why was I subjected to such huge ranks in Entrance tests?

3. Was I not happy with my so-called flowering plants and my little garden? Why am I a reason for global warming now with constantly working on computers in Air conditioned offices?

4. Was I not happy with my Comic books and novels? Why did I have to study 1000 page books for my engineering degrees?

5. Was I not happy eating Golguppas and Bhuttas on the road? Who made me forget those days and eat in Coffee days, McDs and Pizza parlours?

6. Was I not happy with standing in my Dad's shoes and carrying his Laptop and pleading him to bunk Office for a day? Why am I working for 9 hours everyday?

7. Was I not happy with the people I used to chat and have fun? Why did you give me people who want me sit and do their work?

8. Was I not happy being my teacher's pet during school and college days? Why did you give me Supervisors and Managers?

9. Was I not happy with playing with the kitchen set I got as a gift from my Granny? Why am I made to learn cooking at home with such big and boring utensils?

10. Was I not happy with my scooty rides to college? Why am I traveling 4-5 hrs per day in bus?

I was going on with the list.. My mom got bugged with these questions. She thought she will answer these fair and square

1. No wonder your clothes are cleaner nowadays.. !

2. You were happy with your ranks in school, but I wanted you to know there are millions of 1st rankers.

3. You were happy with your flowering gardens, I wanted you to plant trees.

4. You were happy with your comic books, I wanted you to now gaining more knowledge is heavy.

5. Are you eating a lot of Junk food? Please stop that...!!!

6. Why do you still do that? When you know it is difficult to bunk, please allow him to go to work atleast now.

7. It is because in colleges you would pay, but in offices, they pay you. They expect something from you.

8. Just for you to know that, buttering a few people for marks would help only in schools and colleges, not in real life :-)

9. Please.. Don't tell me you are cooking.. Are you serious???

10. I felt bad for the scooty.. Thought buses are better since you don't know how to drive them.

Me: Ok. That's enough. !!

Some more PJs

2009-03-05T07:05:00.001+05:30

I came back from my aerobics class, tired. I saw my dad reading the newspaper. I had submitted some entry for an article in DNA. I wanted to see whether it was published. There was no chance of me getting the paper when my dad was reading it. I tried my luck.

"Daddy, DNA kodthya?"

"Yaavaaglo kottiddeeni. Even before you were born." He said it smiling at me.

"Beligge beligge irritate maadthya? Hmmm.. You only read it." I started reading Bangalore Mirror.

After a few minutes, my dad spoke.

"Mirror kodu."

Finally, my turn.

"Sorry dad, I am not so strong."

"What?"

"Room nalli fix aagbittide. I can't pull it out."

My dad started laughing at this.

Our roads got some new boards with crosses, mains and street names. They gave some names of rivers. The previous road is named Tunga and ours Bhadra, with reference to the famous south Indian twin rivers Tunga-Bhadra. I had noticed it in the morning. I didn't think of it much. That evening when my dad returned, he was happy. He said

"I feel safer now.."

"You feel safer cos they put some crosses and mains??"

"No. Didn't you see the name? It says Bhadra Road."

"So?"

"Have you forgotten Kannada? Bhadra means Secure. This is a secure road."

"Heights dad!!!!"

Angel in Disguise

2009-01-02T09:10:00.003+05:30

A person ate 7 Ferrero Rocher chocolates in 1 minute and won himself a Guinness World record. Another person carved a pumpkin in 24.03 seconds and he gets another record. A person buries 77,882 unwanted and abandoned corpses and goes unrecognized..!! The person is Mahadeva who has been doing this work from the past 20-25 years. He was doing this in the premises of Victoria Hospital in Bangalore. He was given several awards from the state government but a work like this one deserves more than that. He retired a few years ago. But this does not end his work. His son is following his steps. His son, Praveen Kumar, aged 21, has already given a decent burial to more than a 13,000 unclaimed corpses. It is no big deal if a politician's son gets a political seat or an actor's son in spite of being untalented gets a lot of offers in acting but following his father in a work like this is highly surprising. Praveen Kumar has been supporting his own education from the past couple of years. He is currently pursuing his Master's degree in social work.

Praveen has been helping his father since he was 9 years old. His father, too had started this work around the same age. At his present age of 21, when other people prefer hanging around the posh localities of Bangalore, this boy goes to Victoria Hospital in search of these corpses. His daily routine includes attending college in the morning, and as soon as he returns to his home in Rajarajeshwarinagar, he takes an auto to Victoria Hospital and also NIMHANS. From there, he collects the unclaimed corpses, which may vary from 1-4 per day. A day without unwanted corpses is very rare! He takes these corpses to the burial grounds of Wilson Garden and gives them a decent burial. The police entrust him with this work and pays him Rs.350 per body. But by the end of the day, after paying the bills of mortuary and the burial grounds, he is left with Rs.25, which is very less for his work and for supporting his family. In spite of all this, he never claimed publicity. He was not doing this work for money. He said he did it for his satisfaction. Being the eldest son of four children, he makes his family proud.

I read about him in an article in the December issue of a Kannada magazine. I was not sure that many would have read it. So, thought of writing about him in the net. A news photographer K. Venkatesh who saw his work, had a display of around 50 photographs of his routine in Chitrakala Parishat in November. The people in the following picture are the true "Angels in Disguise"..

I miss 2008!!

2008-12-31T17:39:00.001+05:30

The year 2008 has been the best year for me. Some of the most important things happened this year. Though I am dying to face my future, I miss this one. The year started for me at The Leela Palace, where the new year party was arranged by my dad's office. The same night, we met with an accident, so bad that it took around a fortnight to get our car back to normal. It was around 1.30 am. The roads were filled with drunkards and there was so much noise everywhere that it was impossible for my dad to concentrate and we hit a bike which seated 3 people. Our luck started there. None of us were injured, not even those 3 in the bike. Our vehicles were completely damaged though.. Again, the policemen were luckily near the site, else, the drunkards on the road could have pelted stones at our car. The police took over the case and it was discharged smoothly..
My 5th sem exams were actually going on at that time. We still had 3 subjects to complete. I could have missed them if there was any sort of injury. Academically too, the year was great. I faced 2 VTU exams this year, and both the times, I got a distinction. The first being the 5th sem exam, I got 72% and in the 6th sem, I got 78%, and was the second topper in our class..
I got placed through Campus Interviews in Infosys and Oracle Financial Services in this year only.. Both offering a good pay for a fresher. I am actually planning to join Oracle because they are likely to post us in Bangalore.
My dad got promoted as an Associate Vice President of the Corporate Legal Dept in his work place, GMR group of Companies. He was so excited, he finally started giving me a respectable pocket money. He always gave me money whenever I asked him, whatever may be the amount. But, I insisted I have some pocket money, so that I can manage my accounts in a better way. Well, that has not stopped me from asking him extra money though..
After much persuasion and convincing for about 10-15 years, my mom finally quit her job. Initially, she did not want to leave her job as she had no problem with it. She had worked for 22 years in BSNL and did not want to leave it as she had no clue how a housewife spends her time. Though she was working, she always had time for me and never left me uncared for. I have heard a lot about working women not having enough time for their kids. But my mom had managed it so well. I did not want her to work as she deserved some rest as her office was getting more crowded. She is actually a lot more busier now.
Our house got a completely new look this year. It had been 8 years since we shifted to this house. We wanted to change a few things about it. It looks more homely and comfortable now..
A lot other small and petty things happened this year which made my year great. It maybe my cousin's marriage or my trip to Goa with college and other things which are too much personal and cannot be mentioned here... ;)

Food v/s Money???

2008-12-20T10:03:00.004+05:30

I don't understand how I got the courage to write this post at this time of my semester. By using the word 'courage' I mean my externals are going on. I wrote my first paper yesterday. I just could not resist sharing an incident which took place while I was on my way to college.

I saw a man in rags in the dumping grounds near Bangalore University. It is a highway and passing that road in the peak hours is a nightmare. The traffic moves at a snail pace and one has to stand on feet until some of the vehicles move. I was standing there when I saw this man. He seemed mentally unstable. He was picking up some papers from the dump and was making a small bonfire nearby. When there was enough heat, he picked up a dead rat and started roasting it. I was shocked !! I could not see a man eating a dead rat. I turned around. I was even more shocked to see the people around me. Some saw him and made faces as though they were disgusted, some were laughing at him and some were indifferent. That man eating a dead rat made no impact on anyone.

The traffic began to move. I had to act fast to stop him from eating that rat. I was a bit scared to talk to him. May be because of his appearance. But still I did not want to leave him like that. I opened my wallet and took out a 50 rupees note and put it in front of him. I left the place with my vehicle and stood at a distance to check whether the man took the note. He came near the note and looked at me. I forcibly smiled and left for my college. As I told you I had my exams and forgot all about this.

While coming back, I remembered the incident and thought of checking whether he had not eaten the rat. I didn't see him anywhere, took a U turn and came to the place where he was previously there. I was shocked again as I saw some leftovers.. probably of the rat and a charred 50 rupees note!! He had used the money I gave him as a fuel to his bonfire!! I was disappointed but that gave me some sense. I realised it was food that was more important to him than money. Everyone knows the value of hunger. As I told you before he was mentally unstable. Probably I should have thought of it at the time of giving him the money. I am not disappointed that he made a wrong use of my money but I am disappointed that the money I gave him did not help him with his food the way I wanted it to help..

Bangalore will surely develop!!!

2008-11-18T20:33:00.002+05:30

I was on my way to college around 11.30 in the morning as I was attending only the second internals today. Near Rajarajeshwarinagar, I happened to see an accident. There were no threats to life but it was a Road roller which had crashed into two electric poles. The electric poles were damaged and the whole road was blocked. I cursed the driver as I had to take a very long route while trying to avoid this road. I made a mental note not to take this way for another 2-3 days before they repair the whole thing. It took me an extra 5 minutes and I reached the college to attend my internals.

I had forgotten all about the accident in college, as I was more concerned about doing the internals well as I had to get a 25 in order to make my average 25.. I did it well and spoke for some half an hour with my friends and started towards my home. It was around 3.30. When I reached the same road, I remembered about the accident and I hated myself for forgetting it all this while. I could have taken a whole new route from college and reached home faster. I was imagining about the road block, the traffic jam, the hot sun, the way I had struggled in the morning amidst the cars and made my way out.. Suddenly, I realised that I had passed that road completely. Not even a slightest hint of the accident.

I was afraid I had hallucinations about the accident and had been imagining things. I went back to the place of the accident and noticed that they had repaired the electric poles so well that there was not a single flaw in the pole. I have never heard a good opinion about BESCOM for years. I started to leave. All the way home I was happy to see their efficiency as they had managed a lot of damage with expertise and perfection in such a short span. Bangalore will definitely develop if people take more interest in making things work faster and more efficiently.

Superstitions

2008-10-17T11:45:00.013+05:30

Superstition is said to be a belief in certain extra ordinary or singular events, or magic, omens, prognostics and other things like that. It is said to be believed from a long time back right from our great grandparents and theirs.. But have you ever wondered what they actually mean.. Cut out the scientific reasons. I wont be giving you the scientific reasons behind them like today's parents. Just the funny part of it.. But take it a bit seriously guys...

A glutton who called himself a family friend had come to visit my place for Diwali. He managed to eat the whole of a sweet box which was meant for the whole family. I was actually gaping at him.. My grandma hushed me saying it is bad on my part to gape at what others eat... They will suffer a bad stomach the next day. I thought, obviously he has to suffer if he eats so much.. Whether I stare at him or not..

There was a crow cawing at the top of my house. My grandma started preparing some good dishes that day saying there will be some guests coming home as the crow was cawing at the top of its voice. The dishes were so yummy but we were not allowed to touch any as they were meant for some unexpected guests. Well there were no one that day and it actually belonged to us. From that day we started putting some grains on the terrace so that in attracts some crows and my grandma starts preparing tasty dishes again..

My dad was leaving for the airport early in the morning in a cab. The cab driver seemed to be in his early twenties and was a very rash driver.. [ He may have given Karthikeyan a tough competition I guess.. ] He had put loud music what my dad hates and had covered the whole of his head with a monkey cap.. Suddenly a black cat crossed his path.. He screeched the cab to a halt and was completely blank.. My dad did not want to be late to the airport and asked him to continue. He hesitated to move further but my dad insisted [ He doesn't believe these things].. The driver was a changed man.. He put on a devotional song and did not speed up more than 40kmph the whole of the journey.. The black cat was good for my dad and there was nothing bad for the whole of the journey..

I heard someone say that 3 people cannot leave the home at the same time and go to any auspicious places or marriages.. I have also seen some people carrying a stone with them if they are 3 and it can't be avoided.. Does the stone mean a person??? Well.. I think its better to have a stone with them as the auto drivers in Bangalore charge extra if there are more than 3.. We are 3 in our family and we don't carry stones whenever we go out.. In the age of nuclear families you just can't help being 3..

I have seen a lot of people not starting anything good on a Tuesday.. I was wondering why was Tuesday named as Mangalwaar by our ancestors instead of Amangalwaar. I saw a person not attending an exam as it started on a Tuesday.. He was confident he will make through the supplement exams without even knowing about the main exam.. I was surprised when I found out his mother had asked him not to attend the exam.. It is definitely bad for his future if he doesn't attend his exam on a Tuesday.

Well this exactly is not a superstition.. but it is a popular belief in India that some people can predict a person's future by reading the lines on the palm.. This was an incident which took place with me..

I had been to a marriage. I saw many people crowding a person at one corner of the hall. Being a girl, I had to be curious. I made my way through it with great difficulty and found out it was a palmist. Everyone circled him to find out what the lines on their palms meant. I was about to show my palm to him when my eyes fell on a little boy who did not have his right hand. I felt strange. I stood there staring at him. He smiled and called me. When I went there he was laughing at those people flocking near the palmist and told me Didi.. mera haath nahi hai tho mera future bhi nahi hai kya?? Yeh sab bakwaas hai.. Mat maano.. I hugged and kissed him.. He was an eye opener. That was the last day I worried about my future..

Yaadein Yaad Aati Hai...

2008-10-10T14:11:00.006+05:30

I got a call at around 5 in the morning. I woke up with a start and found out it was from my friend. He had called me to wish me on my birthday. I was half asleep but still managed to respond politely. We spoke for around 15 minutes and I lied down on my bed realising I was getting older.. I am 21.. I couldn't sleep after that nor could I get out of my bed. I started thinking how much of my childhood can I recollect.. I hardly remember 50-60 days of my life.. That's roughly 2 days per year.. To kill the time, I thought I will just make a list of the days I remember in every year of my life.. The good and the bad days.. I came up with this list..

1. I literally don't remember anything in the first year

2. I remember walking on my grandpa's neatly ironed shirt and my grandpa scolding me with a wide grin on his face.. [ That is the only incident of my grandpa I remember.. ]

3. I had complained about the woman who used to pick me up from home to the Montessori that she had made me walk all the way instead of carrying me. My dad scolded me instead not to complain about silly things.

4. My first day at school. I still remember the way everyone were screaming at the top of their voices and I didn't know what to do. I don't remember my reaction..

5. My birthday at Holiday Home. I was 5 years old and I had asked my dad to get me some food before cutting the cake. I was famished.. But still.. I feel so embarrassed now..

6. The parent teacher meeting. My class teacher Mrs. Jayshree was telling my parents that I used to return my answer sheets within 15-20 minutes yet I used to score great marks. I started crying thinking she was scolding me. She consoled me saying I was her best student.

7. I had eaten a mango in the class. The teacher had called my parents to tell that.. That was the last day I ever ate anything when classes are going on.. [I am doing my B.E. yet I don't have the courage to face that incident again in my life]

8. I had asked one of my teachers Mrs. Kiran Gupta why she had the name of a man. She smiled and tried to convince me that names like Kiran are used for girls in the northern parts of India.. I was not convinced until I saw the movie Darr.

9. I had got a 100/100 in two of my subjects Science and Social Science but still got a second place.. So I am confused whether this is a good memory or bad.

10. I had fallen down while playing at the school grounds and hurt my lips so badly that I looked like SRK in the last scene of DDLJ..

11. The last day of my exams when my friend and I had walked all the way from our school to home.. A roughly 6 km stretch and our legs were aching like hell for the next 2 days.

12. My science experiment demonstration.. We had demonstrated an artificial volcanic eruption using ammonium salts and magnesium wire. We had got the first place as it got through beautifully. I had done the presentation of the experiment and I was beaming with joy when I came to know we had got full marks for presentation alone..

13. My annual day at school. I had taken part in a Sanskrit play where I was a thief from the olden days but still the protagonist. I was looking weird with a false moustache and a false mole that many people could not recognize me.

14. My most favorite teacher Mrs. Alka Bokil had praised me a lot for my Science project and wrote a long note to my dad about it in my diary.

15. The day I was announced the School Captain. I was happier when I found out it was decided by polling and the result was unanimous.

16. My chemistry lab when I had broken a burette during a titration. I was totally freaked as I thought the punishment will be bad but was relieved when I found out I simply had to pay for it.

17. My college trip to Goa and Jog Falls. We had left Bangalore on the night of my birthday and one my lecturers G.Sreenivas had sung all night long in the bus. He had dedicated a few songs for me too..

18. My first day at the engineering college. It was similar to the first day at my school.. All new faces.. But they were smiling at each other eager to make new friends..

19. My trip to Mumbai. It was the first time I boarded a flight that too on a Kingfisher Airlines one. The same day, I was standing outside Hrithik's building for about half an hour in Mumbai.

20. The new year party at The Leela Palace which was arranged by my dad's office. It was a great experience. It was the first time I had the opportunity to get into the Grand Ball Room of Leela Palace.

21. The days I got placed in Infosys and iflex.. I can't forget both the days for sure. My 21st year has been the greatest year as of date in my life..

PJs...

2008-09-14T08:56:00.007+05:30

My dad cracks a lot of PJs. He tries to make me laugh as much as possible because I turn out to be very serious at times. But as I am in a good mood today, I would like to share some of our chats with you.. Its a treat to me when he is at home thinking of some unique things which can make me laugh.. smile at least.. because I hardly smile. There are some times when he cracks jokes on me making me foolish in front of others. Even though they are great, I control myself from laughing. It is very difficult not to laugh but still I have to.

These are 3 of my favorite ones...

1. This is for the ones who know kannada

It was the day of Kannada Rajyotsava. My dad and I had challenged that whoever speaks in other languages except kannada should accept defeat and prepare coffee in the morning next day [both of us hate it.. so mom came up with this idea...]. I was down with fever but that din't stop the competition. I had high temperature and was just lying down. My dad hates to see me like that and came up with his suggestions..

Dad: Kaage paapa thogo.. sari hogaththe..

Me: wha...? enu? [controlled myself from saying what??]

Dad: Kaage paapa... adanna thogo.. mai bisi hogaththe..

Me: sumne nan thale thinbeda... maryaade inda enu antha helu..

Dad: neenu naale beligge kari kashaaya[coffee] maadtheeni antha opkondre heltheeni..

I could not accept defeat but still he was unbearable.. I could not even think what he was trying to tell.. I gave up and accepted.

Dad: Crocin thogo sari hogaththe..

Those who din't get it.. he meant Crow sin

2.The next day, I had been to the doctor and he gave me some antibiotics. I came home and was about to have the first dose when the tablet slipped from my hands and fell on the floor. I went for the other tablet when my dad asked me to take the fallen tablet only. I refused.

Me: I am not taking it.. Its fallen down..

Dad: So what if it has fallen down.. No probs.. take it.

Me: What's wrong with you? There maybe bacteria on the floor. First of all I have fever. U want me to lose my classes for some more days?

Dad: I think this is an antibiotic.. What do antibiotics do?

Me:It gives resistance to the body by destroying bacteria..

As I finished the sentence, I had come to know what he actually meant.. He was quicker..

Dad: So.. it will destroy the bacteria present on it's surface too....

And he winked at me..

3. Again for the ones who can understand kannada..

I had started driving car. We used to go on drives every sundays.. That is the only day when I get the car to myself. My dad was next to me and we had been to the BDA complex near my home. The parking was full and we went to the next road.

Me: Elli park maadli? [ Searching for a place to park]

Dad: Yaake park maadthya?

Me: Yaake andre.. I have to get down and go to the complex. I have not come here to sit in the car of course..

Dad: Adakku park maadakku en sambandha?

Me: Ninninda nange eegale high BP baro chance ide.. U test my patience a lot.

Dad: Eh.. Come on.. BDA avaru aagale park maadidaare.. Y do u want to make a park??

[he said pointing to the BDA park next to me]

and he again winked at me leaving me laughing.. I could not control this time..

Two faces of a Rs.50 note

2008-09-05T15:23:00.005+05:30

My mom's office is a place of fun for me. She is working as a cashier in one of the BSNL customer care centres. The place is always crowded as it is situated in the heart of south Bangalore. It is a place consisting of a few middle aged women who always chat about their children, the way TVs and the movies are "ruining" their children and also why bosky and prianca fought( hey they also watch the repeat episodes of Splitsvilla when we are not around). They keep scolding people if they come to pay the bill even at 7:30 p.m. even though the counter closes at 8:00 p.m. Whenever I go there, I wonder what BSNL gains by keeping these women for work when their competitors like Airtel and Reliance have better girls on the counters.

There was a strange incident when I had been there. A fellow from a shop in DVG Road had come to pay his bill. He may have been nearly 60 years old. A thin lean man with some crooked features ofcourse due to his age. He paid the bill of 650 with a Rs.1000 note. My mom gave back the change and he too went. After a few minutes, he came back with a 50 rupee note saying his master asked him to return the money as it was exceeding the change. My mom is usually good at handling cash but she had a bad headache that day and was not able to concentrate much on her work and also because it was more crowded than the usual days. We were shocked to see the man. There were many reasons why we were..
The first thing was that he himself could have noticed the extra change and could have pocketed it without telling the master.
The second thing was that the master could not have sent back the cash because there was no receipt for this cash.
Next is that even when the master asked him to return the cash, that fellow could have taken it as the master would not have enquired with the BSNL people.
None of this happened. Instead, the old man, who looked poor enough, came all the way back to the office to return a mere 50 rupees. My mom gave him the money from her own pocket due to his honesty. Ofcourse he refused it but she insisted him to have it and he left the office showering my mom with blessings for that 50 rupees.

Another incident, coincidentially happened on the same day this happened. A smart man came to the office with his MNC company's ID card hanging on his neck and a huge laptop bag on his shoulder. He appeared to be in his late twenties. He had to pay his bill of Rs.2450 and gave my mom 3 Rs.1000 notes. She took the cash and gave back the change and turned for the next customer. He saw the change, gave my mom a silent stare and was moving away. My mom suddenly called for him as though something struck her. She asked him to show the change she had given him. He said he had already kept it in his wallet and it had mixed with his money. She insisted him to show it as she was sure something was wrong. When he opened it, there were 2 Rs.500 notes and around 5-6 Rs.100 notes and some Rs.10 notes but there were no Rs.50 notes. My mom had mistakenly given him a 500 and a 100 rupees note. He was caught red handed for lying. The people present in the queue scolded him so much and made him return the amount. Again it was the same, Rs.50.

I wonder how that happened on the same day. The two people, so different from each other had behaved in a way completely different to themselves.
A man who was working for his daily wages in a shop had come all the way back to return Rs.50 which would have meant so much to him if he had kept it for himself and a man who would be earning in lakhs but still was not willing to part with the same Rs.50 which did not belong to him.

STRANGE!!!

Love or friendship???

2008-08-31T07:51:00.001+05:30

Pictures speak a thousand words. I came across such a picture in the net that I wanted to share it with everyone. I dont know whether this is real or just a work in the Photoshop. Even if it is the latter I think its a great job..

New kid on my block

2008-08-23T14:50:00.000+05:30

I was so excited in the morning. There was a new kid coming home who does not have anybody to look after. Many belonging to the kid's race are being killed. When I just remembered him again a smile lit up my face and I was already foreseeing the future MAN.

It was two days back that I saw him in the nursery, along with so many children but this one caught my attention. He was a bit black with mud all over and wrapped in plastics. It was a dreadful sight. But I simply could not take my eyes off him. He was just so smart even with all the dirt around him. As I moved along the place there were so many other babies more beautiful than him and more CLEAN but I still could not take him out of my mind. My dad and I left the place after that, my mind still fixed on him. On the way home I just told my dad that I want to get the baby home and look after him. My dad was shocked. He never imagined me to be so senstitve towards these kind of things. He, at first did not like the idea of getting him home. Not that he is insensitive but because there is no time for any of us to look after him. I insisted I will look after him and also I am ready to pay for him from my allowance and then came the green signal. Well the outcome of this is that he is coming home . My dad is getting him home.

I have arranged a place for him. A nice, airy and well ventilated place so that he can never feel bored or out of place. He is so weak now. But I strongly believe that he will definitely be strong and sturdy.
I already have a lot of plans for him. I always want the young people to be doctors. I want him to be a doctor one day. I believe he is a born doctor. The people belonging to his race are always doctors in someway or the other. Most of them, ayurvedic as they belong to the tribes in the forest who are not CIVILISED as people of the city. He can also be a dentist or a skin specialist or any other field because his family is always an expert when it comes to medicine...
At first I thought he may be a nuisance to my neighbours but hey.. it is my place as well and he is going to be in my place. I dont care what others say about him. HE IS MY CHILD.....!!!
Many of them just dont care about his ancestors. He has got such a royal lineage and his ancestors have been here from so many years but nowadays nobody just cares about him and that hurts me a lot.
Whenever I see people of his race being killed ruthlessly an instinct in me tells to sue them to the court. But then I come back as they already have got a notice from the court to kill them. MERCILESSLY. Not many of them adopt him or are willing to give him a place to live in their homes or atleast in their colonies. One such child per colony can do lots more than the colony's children. Ah! Now it just flashed to me about the colony's children. Oh god! The mischievous lot. I just don't know how they will treat him. I don't want them to hurt him or treat him badly or let their dogs on him. Afterall, he is also a kid.

Hey.. here comes my dad.. with him. Oh he is so beautiful. Fresh in the morning sun. And his blackish complexion has gone. He looks more greener and brighter. He smells so good. He is smiling at me. I hope some day he grows up big and strong inspite of all the constraints and I can proudly tell that

HE IS MY NEEM TREE
I HAVE ADOPTED HIM