What an idea, Sirjee!

HAVE you noticed how acceptable and widely-used English has become? Even when people are speaking Hindi, English words keep popping up.

I’m sure this is equally true of conversations in Bengali, Tamil, Telegu, Assamese or Kashmiri. In contrast, Hindi purists seem to have faded away. There was a time when the Mulayam Singh Yadavs were sticklers for ‘klisht hindi’; now I can’t remember when he last objected to the use of English.

My case, however, is established by simply listening to how people speak and pausing to think about the words they use. Consider a few examples. No one — not your mates, nor the sabji-wallah or the taxi driver — reels off their mobile number in Hindi. People may still say ‘ikees’, ‘arsath’ or ‘ninyanbe’ but a mobile number is always spelt out in English, regardless of how misleading the pronunciation maybe! Actually, that’s also true of ordinary phone numbers.

Better still, eavesdrop on conversations and notice how frequently English words crop up. Here’s a selection of sentences I’ve heard in the last week alone: “Aap ke liye message hai”, “Woh hamesha late aatein hein”, “Mujhe medicine leni hai”, “Phir kaam pe no-show hoge’, “Meri salary bahut kum hei”, “Promotion nahin mila”, “Mujhe loan chahiye”, “black aap ko bahut suit karta hai”, “uski baby girl hui hai”.

In each case the English words were used deliberately but they sounded natural. That’s because they seem to fit in, they feel as if they belong.

Now consider how people describe themselves. When your door won’t shut the guy who’ll come to fix it calls himself a ‘carpenter’. When the tap won’t shut it’s a ‘plumber’, the chap at the gate is a ‘guard’, and your letters are brought by a ‘postman’. ‘Mistri ‘, ‘chowkidaar’ and ‘dakya’, which were common in my childhood, aren’t used anymore.

In fact, omnibus English words such as engineer, mechanic and operator are used by Hindi-speakers to describe a variety of professions; only the bijleewala stays the same! In contrast, certain Hindi words like daftar, rasoi, gaddi, kameez and diya-salai have been comprehensively replaced by office, kitchen, car, shirt and matches. In other cases, so common is their usage that pant, pen, picture and party have virtually become Hindi words!

Twenty five years ago when my Cambridge chum Satish Aggarwal would call his parents ‘Mumji’ and ‘Dadji’ I would laugh. It seemed such a strange combination of Brit affection and desi respect. Little did I realise Satish was way ahead of his time. Today, young cricketers call Tendulkar ‘Sachin Sir’ whilst junior correspondents call their boss ‘Rajdeep Sir’ and it feels perfectly right. Even ‘Neelu Madam’ and ‘Rinku Madam’ doesn’t raise eyebrows.

Is this anglicisation? No, it’s Englishification. Although that’s a pretty dreadful word, what it points towards is three important and, I suspect, irreversible facts.

First, an increasing number of people are deliberately using English words either because they are better suited to what they want to say or more impressive.

Second, modern lifestyles encourage people to use modern speech which, simultaneously, sounds casual, cool and cosmopolitan. And English fits the bill. Third, English — or, at any rate, English words — is both the link between different Indians and, paradoxically, the distinction between our use of English and that of the English-speaking world. It cuts both ways.

However, I would go a step further. The ever-multiplying reliance and acceptability of English shows that we have become comfortable with ourselves and our unique history and circumstances.

The colonial hangover which led an earlier generation to protest against English is past and forgotten. We’ve internalised the language. It’s no longer ‘phoren’, it’s become Indian. Second, we’re now sure of our identity. Borrowed phrases or concepts don’t undermine it. In fact, we often prefer foreign words to express ourselves.

And, third, being Indian is an umbrella concept, an omnibus idea, it embraces many, often contradictory, qualities and we’ve become well adjusted to and increasingly happy with that.

Well, what do you say about all this? My answer is: ‘What an idea, Sirjee’!

(This piece was written by eminent journalist and columnist Karan Thapar in Sunday Hindustan Times)

A cracker that burst too loud...

IT was a Diwali that my colleague-friend would like to forget as soon as possible. The festival of lights has doomed darkness for him; that charm has evaded though trying hard to keep a smile on his face.

He is trying to keep himself occupy with work, but still the thoughts somehow sneeks into his 'busy' mind.

Just a few days before the Diwali, his life was rocked with the news of his fiancée's sudden death. I don't know the exact cause but that incident came like a storm in which everything got blown away. He says, "Mujhe abb pata chala ki dukh kise kehte hai.

"Till now, whatever I have seen is nothing as compared to this. Nothing has hit me so hard." He has always been a big flirt in his entire life, that is what he used to tell me. He has had affairs with en number of girls.
"But this was one girl for whom I was ready to spend my entire life," he confesses. "I never felt like looking at any other girl after meeting her."

This is one of the wonders of having your Mr/Ms Perfect in life. It's a magical and the best feeling one can ever experience. My heart goes out to him especially because it was a match he had to wait for 35 years to find. He was really struggling to find a proper arrange-marraige girl. And when he finally got it, destiny gave death in return.

It comes as a shock for me because those things are still fresh in my mind when he announced his engagement a month ago.

My friend still thinks it was one of those bad dreams in his sleep. But unfortunately, it isn't. Almost a week has passed since Diwali but all is still not well with him yet.

I don't know what he will decide for his future... Will he think of marrying someone again? Will he have similar feelings for anyone else? I sincerely hope he comes back to normalcy soon.

When tragedy strucks, we tend to put off living. I hope it is not the case here.

When I sold my guitar…

WE often miss those things most when they are not there. I am in a similar state these days after I sold my guitar.

It was one of the toughest decisions of my life. It was certainly not easy for me to let away my guitar after taking care of it for almost five years. I used to always ask for another chair to keep my guitar, whenever I hanged around with my friends in hotels or anywhere. It was like my girlfriend.

There are so many sweet memories that are hard to detach from me. Like playing it all day in college and in between the lectures; getting dedications from friends and even from professors and teachers sometimes. Playing the guitar for my girlfriend on my first official date at a restaurant in Bandra was so special. At times I might forget to carry a book to college but never my guitar. It was that special.

My guitar was very much part in establishing my identity. Apart from just being getting noticed, it helped immensely in developing my confidence.

We would be the toast for the inter-collegiate and youth festivals. Fresher’s or farewell party were the prime days when we were loved and adored with all the attention and accolades. It was such a great feeling. An artist, after all, thrives for a round-of-applause.

But suddenly, it all ended after my college was over. My guitar hanged behind the cupboard of my bedroom where no one would notice it.

In all these years after passing out, I hardly remember the last time I opened my, forget even playing it. I don’t know why I did this. Time was just an excuse. There was no motivation left, in fact.

Probably, that is why I decided to sell it off because it was just not happening. There was no more that touch left in it. Or perhaps I am now concentrating on my classical singing, which may have prompted me to take this step.

I handed my guitar to a dear friend at a musical instrument shop near Metro theatre in town after a little repair. Coincidentally, it all ended from where it had started.

Hats off to America!

I AM not an American fan or anything of that sorts. But I am impressed with the way they have handeled terrorism.

I was astonished when I found out that there were 34 blasts in India since May 2008 (including the Delhi blasts on Saturday, September 27), which killed at least 150 people (official figure) and left hundreds injured. Imagine THIRTY FOUR bomb blasts.





And look at America... can you remember any terrorist attack after 9/11 in 2001? There haven't been any infact. This goes on to show how efficiently they have not negotiated with security of their people. It is the will of their government to mainatin high security measures throughout. But sadly, it is not the case here.

I was surprised when home minister Shivraj Patil said this after Delhi serial blasts, "We knew that blasts will happen. We had prior information."

So, what were you'll waiting for... the bombs to ripe! This is such an irresponsible state of act by our government. By this it is clear that we can't rely on them to help us out if there's another terrorist attack.

India is clearly becoming as vulnerable as Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan where a bomb blast is a natural phenomenon.

It's time we take care of our selves. Be alert.

Maan gaye Mckee...

Wanna know why... just check this link.
Superb guitar driffting.

http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=Ddn4MGaS3N4

ONE BEDROOM FLAT...

Written by an Indian software engineer... A Bitter Reality

AS the dream of most parents I had acquired a degree in Software Engineering and joined a company based in USA, the land of braves and opportunity. When I arrived in the USA , it was as if a dream had come true. Here at last I was in the place where I want to be. I decided I would be staying in this country for about Five years in which time I would have earned enough money to settle down in India .

My father was a government employee and after his retirement, the only asset he could acquire was a decent one bedroom flat. I wanted to do some thing more than him. I started feeling homesick and lonely as the time passed. I used to call home and speak to my parents every week using cheap international phone cards. Two years passed, two years of Burgers at McDonald's and pizzas and discos and 2 years watching the foreign exchange rate getting happy whenever the Rupee value went down.

Finally I decided to get married. Told my parents that I have only 10 days of holidays and everything must be done within these 10 days. I got my ticket booked in the cheapest flight. Was jubilant and was actually enjoying hopping for gifts for all my friends back home. If I miss anyone then there will be talks. After reaching home I spent home one week going through all the photographs of girls and as the time was getting shorter I was forced to select one candidate. In-laws told me, to my surprise, that I would have to get married in 2-3 days, as I will not get anymore holidays.

After the marriage, it was time to return to USA , after giving some money to my parents and telling the neighbors to look after them, we returned to USA . My wife enjoyed this country for about two months and then she started feeling lonely. The frequency of calling India increased to twice in a week sometimes 3 times a week. Our savings started diminishing.

After two more years we started to have kids. Two lovely kids, a boy and a girl, were gifted to us by the almighty. Every time I spoke to my parents, they asked me to come to India so that they can see their grand-children. Every year I decide to go to India … But part work part monetary conditions prevented it. Years went by and visiting India was a distant dream.

Then suddenly one day I got a message that my parents were seriously sick. I tried but I couldn't get any holidays and thus could not go to India ... The next message I got was my parents had passed away and as there was no one to do the last rights the society members had done whatever they could. I was depressed.

My parents had passed away without seeing their grand children. After couple more years passed away, much to my children's dislike and my wife's joy we returned to India to settle down. I started to look for a suitable property, but to my dismay my savings were short and the property prices had gone up during all these years.

I had to return to the USA ... My wife refused to come back with me and my children refused to stay in India ... My 2 children and I returned to USA after promising my wife I would be back for good after two years. Time passed by, my daughter decided to get married to an American and my son was happy living in USA ... I decided that had enough and wound-up every thing and returned to India ... I had just enough money to buy a decent 02 bedroom flat in a well-developed locality.

Now I am 60 years old and the only time I go out of the flat is for the routine visit to the nearby temple. My faithful wife has also left me and gone to the holy abode.. Sometimes I wondered was it worth all this? My father, even after staying in India , had a house to his name and I too have the same nothing more.

I lost my parents and children for just ONE EXTRA BEDROOM. Looking out from the window I see a lot of children dancing. This damned cable TV has spoiled our new generation and these children are losing their values and culture because of it. I get occasional cards from my children asking I am alright. Well at least they remember me.

Now perhaps after I die it will be the neighbours again who will be performing my last rights, God Bless them. But the question still remains 'was all this worth it?' I am still searching for an answer.................!!!

START THINKING IS IT JUST FOR ONE EXTRA BEDROOM??? LIFE IS BEYOND THIS …..DON'T JUST LEAVE YOUR LIFE …….. START LIVING IT ……

LIVE IT AS YOU WANT IT TO BE …….

Have a heart, guys!

IT is a sight that hits you hard when no young cricketers turn up to pay their last respects to former players, who helped them in their emergence.


Ashok Mankad's former teammates turned up at the Shivaji Park crematorium for the funeral, but sadly there were no current players in sight.


It was no different when India lost stalwarts like Polly Umrigar (below) and Dilip Sardesai (down), who passed away in 2006 and 2007 respectively.Mankad was no stranger to them. He was coach of the Mumbai team from 1999 to 2001.


The impressive Bandra-Kurla Complex ground is due to the efforts of Umrigar, who would spend hours in the afternoon heat to prepare the wicket and ground.Sardesai had an eye for talent. He would visit the maidans and keep a tab on performances of budding cricketers.

'Kaka' Mankad led Mumbai to Ranji Trophy triumphs in 1974-75 and 1975-76. The likes of him would willingly pass on their expertise to youngsters.

Have a heart, guys.

Should women be considered as weaker sex?

THAT'S the million-dollar question that always arises, especially when I am travelling in BEST bus.

I am always in a fix whether to offer my seat to the ladies who are standing. I understand if she is an old or a pregnant lady, but in other cases, I just cannot decide.

Actually I fight with my conscience in such cases. Because I do not want to think and for that matter consider that women are weaker to men. Why should I sympathise with them? By offering our seats we are proving that they are WEAK.

Today we see women not just walking shoulder-to-shoulder but also surpassing men's in all walks of life. They have come out of the shadow of dependence. These are the women of 21st century. They are strong, confident and bold. In fact in many cases I have seen that men are dependent on the women.

But that doesn't mean that I am against the reservation of women seats in public transport. They should be given seats first considering the jam-packed buses in peak hours.

A message from Chetan Bhagat

THOUGHT I should should share this with you

Thank you for giving me this chance to speak to you. This day is about you. You, who have come to this college, leaving the comfort of your homes (or in some cases discomfort), to become something in your life. I am sure you are excited. There are few days in human life when one is truly elated.

The first day in college is one of them. When you were getting ready today, you felt a tingling in your stomach. What would the auditorium be like, what would the teachers be like, who are my new classmates - there is so much to be curious about. I call this excitement, the spark within you that makes you feel truly alive today. Today I am going to talk about keeping the spark shining. Or to put it another way, how to be happy most, if not all the time.

Where do these sparks start? I think we are born with them. My 3-year old twin boys have a million sparks. A little Spiderman toy can make them jump on the bed. They get thrills from creaky swings in the park. A story from daddy gets them excited. They do a daily countdown for birthday party - several months in advance - just for the day they will cut their own birthday cake.

I see students like you, and I still see some sparks. But when I see older people, the spark is difficult to find. That means as we age, the spark fades. People whose spark has faded too much are dull, dejected, aimless and bitter. Remember Kareena in the first half of Jab We Met vs the second half? That is what happens when the spark is lost. So how to save the spark?

Imagine the spark to be a lamp's flame. The first aspect is nurturing - to give your spark the fuel, continuously. The second is to guard against storms.

To nurture, always have goals. It is human nature to strive, improve and achieve full potential. In fact, that is success. It is what is possible for you. It isn't any external measure - a certain cost to company pay package, a particular car or house.

Most of us are from middle class families. To us, having material landmarks is success and rightly so. When you have grown up where money constraints force everyday choices, financial freedom is a big achievement. But it isn't the purpose of life.

If that was the case, Mr. Ambani would not show up for work. Shah Rukh Khan would stay at home and not dance anymore. Steve Jobs won't be working hard to make a better iPhone, as he sold Pixar for billions of dollars already. Why do they do it? What makes them come to work everyday? They do it because it makes them happy. They do it because it makes them feel alive. Just getting better from current levels feels good. If you study hard, you can improve your rank. If you make an effort to interact with people, you will do better in interviews. If you practice, your cricket will get better. You may also know that you cannot become Tendulkar, yet. But you can get to the next level. Striving for that next level is important.

Nature designed with a random set of genes and circumstances in which we were born. To be happy, we have to accept it and make the most of nature's design. Are you? Goals will help you do that. I must add, don't just have career or academic goals. Set goals to give you a balanced, successful life. I use the word balanced before successful. Balanced means ensuring your health, relationships, mental peace are all in good order.

There is no point of getting a promotion on the day of your breakup. There is no fun in driving a car if your back hurts. Shopping is not enjoyable if your mind is full of tensions.

You must have read some quotes - Life is a tough race, it is a marathon or whatever. No, from what I have seen so far, life is one of those races in nursery school, where you have to run with a marble in a spoon kept in your mouth. If the marble falls, there is no point coming first. Same with life, where health and relationships are the marble. Your striving is only worth it if there is harmony in your life. Else, you may achieve the success, but this spark, this feeling of being excited and alive, will start to die.

One last thing about nurturing the spark - don't take life seriously. One of my yoga teachers used to make students laugh during classes. One student asked him if these jokes would take away something from the yoga practice. The teacher said - don't be serious, be sincere. This quote has defined my work ever since. Whether its my writing, my job, my relationships or any of my goals. I get thousands of opinions on my writing everyday. There is heaps of praise, there is intense criticism. If I take it all seriously, how will I write? Or rather, how will I live?

Life is not to be taken seriously, as we are really temporary here. We are like a pre-paid card with limited validity. If we are lucky, we may last another 50 years. And 50 years is just 2,500 weekends. Do we really need to get so worked up? It's ok, bunk a few classes, goof up a few interviews, fall in love. We are people, not programmed devices.

I've told you three things - reasonable goals, balance and not taking it too seriously that will nurture the spark. However, there are four storms in life that will threaten to completely put out the flame. These must be guarded against. These are disappointment, frustration, unfairness and loneliness of purpose.

Disappointment will come when your effort does not give you the expected return. If things don't go as planned or if you face failure.

Failure is extremely difficult to handle, but those that do come out stronger. What did this failure teach me? Is the question you will need to ask. You will feel miserable. You will want to quit, like I wanted to when nine publishers rejected my first book. Some IITians kill themselves over low grades - how silly is that? But that is how much failure can hurt you. But it's life. If challenges could always be overcome, they would cease to be a challenge. And remember - if you are failing at something, that means you are at your limit or potential. And that's where you want to be.

Disappointment' s cousin is frustration, the second storm. Have you ever been frustrated? It happens when things are stuck. This is especially relevant in India. From traffic jams to getting that job you deserve, sometimes things take so long that you don't know if you chose the right goal. After books, I set the goal of writing for Bollywood, as I thought they needed writers. I am called extremely lucky, but it took me five years to get close to a release.

Frustration saps excitement, and turns your initial energy into something negative, making you a bitter person. How did I deal with it? A realistic assessment of the time involved - movies take a long time to make even though they are watched quickly, seeking a certain enjoyment in the process rather than the end result - at least I was learning how to write scripts, having a side plan - I had my third book to write and even something as simple as pleasurable distractions in your life - friends, food, travel can help you overcome it. Remember, nothing is to be taken seriously. Frustration is a sign somewhere, you took it too seriously.

Unfairness - this is hardest to deal with, but unfortunately that is how our country works. People with connections, rich dads, beautiful faces, pedigree find it easier to make it - not just in Bollywood, but everywhere. And sometimes it is just plain luck. There are so few opportunities in India, so many stars need to be aligned for you to make it happen. Merit and hard work is not always linked to achievement in the short term, but the long term correlation is high, and ultimately things do work out. But realize, there will be some people luckier than you. In fact, to have an opportunity to go to college and understand this speech in English means you are pretty damm lucky by Indian standards.

Let's be grateful for what we have and get the strength to accept what we don't. I have so much love from my readers that other writers cannot even imagine it. However, I don't get literary praise. It's ok. I don't look like Aishwarya Rai, but I have two boys who I think are more beautiful than her. It's ok. Don't let unfairness kill your spark.

Finally, the last point that can kill your spark is isolation. As you grow older you will realize you are unique. When you are little, all kids want Ice cream and Spiderman. As you grow older to college, you still are a lot like your friends. But ten years later and you realize you are unique. What you want, what you believe in, what makes you feel, may be different from even the people closest to you. This can create conflict as your goals may not match with others. . And you may drop some of them. Basketball captains in college invariably stop playing basketball by the time they have their second child. They give up something that meant so much to them. They do it for their family. But in doing that, the spark dies. Never, ever make that compromise. Love yourself first, and then others.

There you go. I've told you the four thunderstorms - disappointment, frustration, unfairness and isolation. You cannot avoid them, as like the monsoon they will come into your life at regular intervals. You just need to keep the raincoat handy to not let the spark die.

I welcome you again to the most wonderful years of your life. If someone gave me the choice to go back in time, I will surely choose college. But I also hope that ten years later as well, your eyes will shine the same way as they do today. That you will Keep the Spark alive, not only through college, but through the next 2,500 weekends.

And I hope not just you, but my whole country will keep that spark alive, as we really need it now more than any moment in history. And there is something cool about saying - I come from the land of a billion sparks.

Thank You.
Chetan Bhagat.

Deepika Padukone outshines dad Prakash

MAY be I am too cynical in my view on this but it was a sight I would NEVER like to see again.

It was disheartening when Deepika Padukone grabbed all the limelight while her legendary father Prakash stood quietly on the other side of the badminton court during an exhibition match on the final day of the Tata Open All-India badminton tournament at Bombay Gymkhana.

The Arjuna awardee Prakash could only look at the fanfare from the other side of the net while holding his badminton racquet. It was a rare sight to see when the flashbulbs were not on India’s all-time greatest sportsman.

I am sure had Prakash been a cricketer than that wouldn’t have been the case.

I agree Bollywood and glamour rules but Deepika isn’t a Madhuri Dixit Nene or Madhubala yet. She is just a one-film wonder. So, the feeling was naturally strange.

Compare this to OSO ‘Dreamy Girl’ father’s sporting career. Prakash, a former World No 1 shuttler, was the first Indian to win the coveted All-England championship in 1980.

He also holds the record of being the junior and senior National champion in the same year (1971). To add more feathers to his cap, he won the Commonwealth Games, Denmark Open, Swedish Open, London Masters and other major titles by beating the best in the world then.

But I know the gentleman Prakash wouldn’t care whether the attention was on him or her daughter. I am sure he must be feeling a proud father.

His humility makes him greatest ever.

Stings for SALE!

I WAS shocked to learn that sting operations are bought for a price. Various sources in the media informed me that there are private agencies, which sell these stings to media groups, specifically to television channels to shoot their TRP rate at regular intervals.

I have also learnt that stings are available on various issues ranging from Bollywood to corruption, politics and administration. One just has to order when the time is right or when the TRPs are going down.

For example: The recent cash-for-vote shame during the trust vote in Parliament. It is learnt that the private agency (generally detective group) shot it and approached various television channels for a fixed sum. The tapes were bought by CNN IBN.

Though I have my doubts over the expose and its timing, it was a shame on the part of such a reputed channel to air the story without even checking the authenticity of the source.

This is one thing I strongly object of sting operations. One shouldn’t make a trap to catch the culprit red-handed. Would you resist, when someone offers an ice-cream on a humid day?

I would like to give my own example when I did a sting operation to expose computer scam. The operation was to find fraud computer engineers who charged exorbitant price in respect to the problem.

The problem: We loosened the plug, which connected the processor of the CPU. We were largely successful in our operation because we managed to find quite a few frauds. Only to connect the plug we were charged between Rs 250 to 450.

During the operation, many a time, a senior colleague and I could have made the same mistake — of making a false trap to catch frauds.

But we made a quick check and adhered to the most important ethics of sting.

A sting operation should be full proof. Sadly, till date there isn’t one in this regard. Why do they always look stage-managed?

Why do sting operations fade soon after making a huge flutter in the nation? Why isn’t the sting an enough evidence to take action against the guilty?

Is anyone listening!

A day in School again...

I NEVER liked going to school but coming back was the best thing to happen that day.
I was invited to my school — Victoria H S, Mahim — for an inter-class advertising competition, since I am a media person.

I was hesitant to take up the task of judging the students but after some insistence I accepted the invitation.

By my experience, I was fortunate, as the sweet childhood memories came gushing back to my mind, just like re-living the golden period of one’s life.

And what a coincidence, it was!

I would either reach school just a few minutes before the final bell to go or be late always. Apparently, it happened again on that day. Because of late night shift at work I could not make it on time. I reached half-hour late from the scheduled time 9 AM.

I ran non-stop to school the moment I left my house. Ditto every morning during my school days. Even the teachers had a great laugh, when I told them.

It was a nostalgic moment to meet my teachers after a long time. Some couldn’t recognise (though they tried their best), as I have changed physically in last eight years.

I did not feel bad because neither was I a topper, famous or naughty. I was a shy and an introvert person in school. I would be lost in my own world with my best companion — music.

But there was a teacher — Miss Agnees — who I knew would recognise me. She was my class teacher in Class IX and X. Miss Agnees was touched by the gesture that I came to meet here. Emotions were high on both sides.

She was awesome because she made me do all those things that I liked. In fact, she knew the interest of maximum students in her class.

I remember she made a surprise announcement during the farewell party that I will present a song. I was not prepared but she gave me the confidence, which was very vital in my development over the years.

Well, coming back to the advertising competition. I entered the school premises of the primary section. The staircase is still the same — huge ones. I remember we would slide on the side bar on the staircase. We had got many warnings to stop it.

Then once I was the Blue house captain (there were four houses like Red, Blue, Green and Yellow). I got it after making many requests to my class teacher. There would be a batch that we proudly tug it on our chest. My job was to maintain the discipline of my house. It was great fun.

We also had some powers. The feeling was incredible. I would actually feel like a King, but sadly only for a month. Because there were others waiting in line for their turn to be king.

There was this special classroom on third floor. I would sing a song ‘Aaja meri gaadi mein baith jaa’ almost everyday during recess. The Baba Sehgal track was a hit among my friends, especially with girls. I would often get request for it.

The toilets used to be a great place to play all the pranks. Once a boy from other class blew a rassi bomb in the toilet. There was lot of damage and some pipes got leakage.

The canteen is still the same, very EXPENSIVE. To eat a Vada Pav meant saving your whole week’s pocket money.

But the aunty is still there… as sweet and charming like before. She had harrowing time during recess. Students would flock for here hot vadas and samosas. It is still the same even today.

Later, I realised the school was renovated and got a new paint. But still something’s never change. I miss all that very much.

That’s Mr Chatterjee!

PAST couple of days have been a great fun following the Parliament proceedings.

I have never done this, except once when I had no option but to watch Doordarshan as the cable guys were on strike during my childhood days.

MPs barking at each other (even if they have a microphone in front of them), beating up another opposition MP with chappals, passing livid comments at opposition camp and making a ruckus over an issue are a common site in Indian Parliament.

But the way Speaker Somnath Chatterjee handled the BIG debate over N-Deal was amazing. In his very own comical and jovial way, Chatterjee handled the proceedings really well.

He was funny at times and rude at the other moment. Sometimes he would make a strong statement and as the House comes back to normalcy, he breaks into laughter. He was just too good. I wonder how he kept his patience.

It would be appropriate to recall a moment where Chatterjee was at his best.
Opposition leader Lalkrishna Advani was giving his speech when a ruling party member tried to interrupt by rubbishing all the facts that Advani presented.

The Speaker repeatedly asked the member to speak when his turn comes. But the member still raised his voice to make his point.

In spite of warning him that nothing will be ‘recorded’, the errant member did not stop.

Adamant Chatterjee asked Advani to carry on with his speech. To which a member from Advani’s camp appealed to the Speaker to ask that members shut his mouth.

To which Chatterjee replied, “What shall I do? I told him to be quite but he isn’t willing. Kya main uska galaa dabaa kar maar duu (shall I strangle him to death).

God! It was so hilarious.

Hats off to Mr Chatterjee for the way he handled. Seriously our MPs are really tough to handle!

Amidst the news that Chatterjee is quitting from the post, I wish Chatterjee to continue as the Speaker.

Airtel breaking bonds

THE recent breakdown of Airtel network in Mumbai due to fire has caused many problems to their service users.
Thankfully, I am not an Airtel customer anymore.

Obviously, people have suffered a lot due to the inconvenience. But this one is something different.

I was travelling in my favourite BEST bus to office on Tuesday. There were these two men sitting in front of me. Both were relatives. One of them got a call on his Nokia 6600. He attended the call but suddenly got disconnected.

The man then showed his cell to the other and said, “Can you see, the signal (network) is not proper. It is not constant.” As the other man was having a look at it… the phone again rings.

The man tries to explain to the same caller that Airtel services are down here and service is badly affected. They have a short argument over it and as they had just started to speak on that all-important matter for which the call was made, the phone again hangs up.

The man, now frustrated, said to his fellow person, “I am trying to explain him that Airtel is not functioning properly, but he is just not ready to take my words.”
He then added, “He thinks I am purposely disconnecting his calls. Woh naraaz ho gaye hai mujhse.”

Actually the caller has every right to get upset.
Anybody would be taken for a rude shock that Airtel is not functioning properly for almost three days now.

It is pathetic to be in a situation like ‘only-lucky-callers-get-connected’. It is shocking that a multi-billion company like Bharti does not have a back-up system in place.