Just For Fun :)

After having come across various kinds of weird and humorous sign boards i finally managed to find this one and no this is not the funniest or craziest of them all. There are many more to leave this one far behind but this one has found its place here coz i managed to get the pic :P

Ok now can you please help me understand what exactly they are trying to say here? Plug the flower?? whats that?!!! I promise i wont 'Plug' the flower...really i wont...kasam se. Coz i don't know how to!!! Will anyone pls teach me?!! :)

Reel To Real

Today I saw the real life version of the movie Slumdog Millionaire. Checking out the view made up of concrete buildings outside the window, an old familiar song from a Hindi movie resonated into my ears. The train accelerated its trust on the tracks as I turned around to see where the song is coming from. In a land where Hindi is scarcely spoken, every time I hear a single syllable of the language it brings me a familiar feel. Though meduva meduva this familiarity is lapping Tamil too into its boundaries.



The song was ‘pardesi jana nahi’ from the movie Raja Hindustani and it wasn’t the rhythm of the music but rather the quirky voice made my head turn. A boy aged around 13 or so with an old harmonium hanging around his neck was trying hard to give his best shot to match the high notes of this song. Accompanied by two more kids, a girl around 5 year old and a boy of almost 10 year with one leg missing walking with the crutches and collecting alms from the passengers. The three reminded me of the kids from Slumdog Millionaire, Jamal, Salim and Latika. I don’t know what their story is but I am sure the desperation and abjection is not far from the storyline of the reel one.


When the innocence gets lost in the dust of the empty streets, living a life on the edges makes you street smart and that was clearly visible on their faces. As I looked into their faces many questions were aroused in my mind. Not that I was feeling pity for them, my encounter with such faces everyday have left me indifferent towards them, but today I was feeling a sense of anger. Anger on all of us for being just a silent spectator. Anger for those who make use of innocence for their benefit. And anger towards everyone who helps them achieve this by giving them alms. Was lost in the thoughts when the next stop came and the kids got down getting into another train. And before I could take out my mobile camera to capture a glimpse of them, they vanished in the crowd, leaving behind many questions unanswered. What am I doing for them? How can we tackle this menace? What if tomorrow our children are kidnapped and forced to live a life like this? Why don’t we understand that the real solution doesn’t lie in giving them some share from our change? Many laws and acts have been formed but all in vain. So what can be an effective solution for protecting the innocence being murdered on the streets? Do you have an answer? Do let me know.

Work Is Work

Being women has its own pros and cons. Leaving the cons aside (as a lot has already been spoken about them), the small little privileges that come our way from the government like the reserved seats in buses and trains are few things that we girls just love to take advantage of.  And yes I know all you men out there are jealous about it. :P Well in one hand we talk about equality in status while on the other we demand such kinda reservations too. I know not fair naa?!!…but then life is not always fair you see! :P

But what if you are not a woman yet you are given a share in these advantages which are especially reserved for the women. Have you ever thought how the entire experience would be to travel in a ladies compartment with you being the only guy around? Sounds embarrassing? May be for some but for most of the men I believe it would be a mixed reaction placed somewhere in the middle of excitement and embarrassment. Yaar just imagine… you would be “THE MAN” amidst a compartment full of hot chicks….eh I mean girls!!! Ahem…ahem...stop imagining now! :P Ask this policeMAN (in the pic extreme left) who was on duty for ‘our protection’ in the ladies compartment where I was travelling and you would know the answer. I wonder what would have been going through his mind while he was performing his job with a ‘watchful eye’. A little embarrassed or excited or just being indifferent and taking it as any other place of duty? Well whatever be the environment around, work is work…right?!!!

The Sword Of Cedilla

The Mighty Sword

The close-up

This is a sword. Yeah I know you can see that. But it is not just any ordinary sword. Cocooned inside a rusted scabbard at a corner in our office, especially bought from an antique shop in Thailand, the weapon belongs to Charlemagne (Charles the Great), the famed Medieval king of the Franks and first emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. And you reading this blog believe it is true?!!! :P Well the owner (one of our colleagues) believed so or something similar to this while purchasing it. But it didn’t take him long to realize that he was being thugged. Arrey he could not make out the difference between the ordinary junk and the precious one (antique)! :P

Ever since this realization of reality was made by him, the sword has found its new home in our office. And is now an essential part of our team Cedilla, giving our office a touch of royalty. Shifting from one hand to the other this sword is our stress buster at times of pressure clubbed with fun. If I say, holding a sword and faking your power is an experience out of the world then it would be an overstatement. But it certainly makes you feel powerful (momentarily though) once you get your hold on it. Perhaps that’s the reason why our boss likes to display his power by walking along with this sword at times. And when he takes his hands off it, it is we who do the honors! :)

‘Back’ing Up In The Bus

Being a backbencher is always a fun. Be it the last bench of a classroom or the end row corner seat of a movie theater, sitting at the back has its own benefits. The point is no one can watch you while you can observe each and every activity of the front. You know what I mean right? Good!


Coming ‘Back’ to the point. Was travelling in a bus few days ago when I saw this pair seated at the second last seat in front of me. Though PDA is largely a personal choice and I would not like to opine over it here. Just like any other lovebird, they too were completely lost in each other, unaware of the happenings around. Still am trying to figure out the reason behind my click, anyways it just came spontaneously giving me something to write on. Sometimes being in love makes you forget everything. And sometimes you are so much absorbed in everything else that you just forget the love. :P


P.S. I strongly condemn taking pictures of others without their knowledge or consent, provided it is harmless like the one above.

Good ‘Mourn'ing!!!

Cool breeze come uninvited from the window and whispers morning in your ears blowing a chilly kiss on the forehead…arms stretch to welcome the sweet sunshine but the feet is reluctant to step out of the warm cosy comfort of the blanket …but after much negotiations with the mind (dude u have already taken two days leave this month and you better don’t make your boss go crazy asking for more…!!!) the alarm snoozes off in support of the mind…finally the mind wins as the feet reluctantly fingers the cold calm tiles to start the journey of another working day….Wow mornings are sometimes beautiful….yeah even for lazy people like me!!! : P

Still somewhere drooping in the middle of the world of dreams and daylight…you suddenly realize the world has shrunk in size…eh?? Or perhaps it is not the world it is your eyes that have…what’s going on??!!…you splash some water to reflect the reality in the mirror….EYE FLU!!! Oh Shit!!!

It’s Complicated!!!

Bus journeys are always joyful. Ok not always especially when they are really crowded and you have no other option than to hop into one hanging yourself in the handles surrounded in the middle of similar tired exhausted and equally irritated souls and then when you find one loser standing at the back and trying to touch you at the press of every break and jerk!!! Yeah we all face it at some point or the other. And we all hate it equally!!! Sometimes submissive and at times aggressive, we try to deal with it in our own way. But then when it is a blessed day and you get to catch that window seat as your valued possession (just for a short duration though). The crisp air caressing through your face as you tune into that favorite track in your iPod while the lovely city breeze just blows away the tiredness and exhaustion with itself. Bliss it is!!! And then as you turn around, you find a face familiar to you sitting next. Who is also equally blessed as you today. And the two of you celebrate the joy of your ‘seat acquisition ceremony’ offering a friendly smile to each other. I might sound crazy here but then you would know how it feels to get a seat if you had to travel standing in the middle of a crowded bus for 4 hours every day. And if you don’t, then I tell you, you are certainly missing out something in life.

As the wheels role forward, moves further the friendly chat with my stranger. She is the very same whom i meet every day in the bus, pass to her the ticket in the crowd, also sympathize with her when she shows her frustration to those unfriendly touches that we all are part of. We both share a similar story and that’s fit enough to strike the wavelength. And then it becomes a regular affair. Sometimes we get to converse on such lucky days, and on the others it’s just a smile that does the job.

She is not a friend nor is she an acquaintance. A fellow passenger who is now a little more than the usual ones. We laugh. We talk. We share. Not much but yes a small slice of our everyday life. We talk about the weather, the city, the people and the work. We are different yet same, as I discover my reflection in her eyes. The age difference gets washed off in the tide of laughter on sharing of a light moment from the office or tickling on a joke. Some relationships (If you call them one. I do)are difficult to describe. In the intense bright neon lights of a hectic and frantic urban life where the intensity of close relations gets dim under the cloud of work and lack of time. One tries to find her share of sunshine and solace in the small little sharing of light moments with such strangers at times. You feel the city doesn’t care for you. Nor do you care for it either. But then someone in the middle of the crowd stands up to offer his seat to you as a kind humane gesture. Someone who is yet again a stranger. You don’t know him or his name. You don’t feel the need to ask as well. You bid him thanks as you get down, with the thought of gratitude surrounding your heart. An inspiring gesture that propels you towards positivity and compels to offer your humane side back. Some relationships are really difficult to describe.

Now it’s your turn to take pleasure in the joy of giving. You lose your valued possession and gain a blessing smile in return as you get up and offer your seat to that elderly lady carrying a heavy bag. She takes out an orange from her bag and offers you her share of gratitude as you smile back and politely refuse to it. But is certainly touched by her genuine gesture. Again some relationships are difficult to describe. And they are better not. True it is, relationships are really Complicated!!! :)

Happy Independence Day!!! :)

This independence day let us free ourselves from the boundaries created by region… the restrictions of religion…let us free ourselves from the confines of caste and class…the precincts of language…let us free our minds from all the inhibitions…let’s break the block and move towards building a country without any prejudices and discrimination…coz until we free ourselves from these fiends..We are not free yet…so break all the limitations and unite ourselves into a single identity common to all…

On this occasion of the 64th year of our freedom. Let’s forget who we are…let’s forget where we belong to…let’s forget the religion we practice…Let’s forget the region we live…and remember only one thing…Only one identity…Only one nation and one religion…the land of unity in diversity…from now on let us carry an unanimous identity for ourselves…an identity that is common to all… an identity that adheres the divide created by the politics of regionalism and religion…and preaches only humanity and peace…from this 15th of August let’s call ourselves Indian…just an Indian…happy Independence Day!

Below are few lines I have penned down when I see the bias around me in the name of religion and language.

I love Jesus… I love Allah…
I love Krishna…I love Buddha…

I love the oak and the beautiful teak
Paradise in the Himalayan peak
I love the cold chilly wind that makes me freeze
Oh, I love you my blue Marina for your soothing gentle breeze

I love the aroma of fresh tea leaves from the north-east
I love the delightful Dussehra of the east
Sensual sculptures of Khajuraho becomes a cynosure
Emotions engraved on rock; my heart adore

I love the colourful people and the royal palaces of the west
A place where the dessert looks at its best
They say we are different…colour caste religion and region
But still I don’t find any reason

Deep down I see them all the same
Carrying out a single aim in different names
They call me a North Indian; some find me a South-Indian,
I look at them and smile; “see me a human and call me an Indian’’ :)

Office Office

Workplace does not mean just Work, it comes with a whole package. A big bunch of experiences and emotions….eh emotions?!!! Well I think so!! At least in my case. Emotions of happiness and joy on a job well done, emotion of stress and frustration when things just don’t work in your favour etc etc…Your office is a place where you spend the maximum hours of a day. Though they are not your friends or your family, your colleagues are the ones with whom you spend more time than your family and after sometime you start knowing them better than you know your family and friends. Just a little observation does all the magic.

They say work is worship, I say it’s all about worshipping the Boss!!! Something I preach but have never been able to practice myself. May be perhaps I don’t want to or never felt the need. The attitude “Who cares?!!!” dominates here in “My World”…Who cares if people play politics around? Who cares if someone who claims to be a friend bitches behind your back? Who cares if someone else gets the credit for your hard work? Etc etc…Who cares?!!! Alright one cannot be indifferent for long and then comes a stage when you start caring and of course thinking as well…either you find a solution or you find a better job…resignation time guys!!! People come and people go…again who cares?!!! Or do they?

Now every coin has two sides and everywhere there are two types of creatures…oh colleagues I meant…!!! Well the survival of the bad depends on the existence of the good. Lucky to have comes across many from both the types and to be honest it has been a great experience so far…with both. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for all the wonderful experiences and for all the learning…and if you are reading this blog…then you know which one you belong to…don’t you?!!! :P

Things that I have learned from Life so far

“I have learnt silence from the talkative, toleration from the intolerant, and kindness from the unkind; yet strange, I am ungrateful to these teachers.” -Kahlil Gibran

I am a teacher and I teach students…or am I? Yes by profession I am a lecturer but I am still a student myself, or we all are student in this university called LIFE. The real learning doesn’t happen inside the four walls of a classroom. What happen inside those four walls are just discussions on some theories created by some dead specimen ages back, what the university calls its syllabus! If you want to make your own theories and perspective, one has to come out of the four walls as the real learning starts in the outside world. You don’t have to do much; all you need to do is live your life and observe things around.

Life is the greatest university and each and every person whom we meet during our lifetime becomes our teacher, as there is something to learn from everyone.

I have learned that your strength doesn’t lie into the materialistic power but the manpower you are surrounded with. It is not the property made of money; it is the riches made of people whom you can rely upon makes you powerful. And I have also realized that very few in this world realize to this reality.

There are certain things that I have learned from life. From the people who have come into mine. The people who became close to my heart, some not so close but everyone touched my life in a unique way. You meet people…few stay with us forever…few leave us just with their memories but it is their presence in our lives that we cherish forever. No matter how long or short their stay is, it is the experience and the relationship with them that adds up to our experience. Few of the experiences are good, few not so good…but it is these not so good ones that gives us the real experience of life and makes us the person that we are from within.

I have learned that to Forgive and Forget are two key things in life…yes it takes practice but sometimes they just come on their own...

I have learned that there are certain things in life that no matter how much hard you try you just cannot do. Love and Hatred are two such things. I have learned that sometimes no matter how much you love someone you cannot make that someone love you back…it is up to that someone to decide whether to return that love to you or not…all that you can do is love that someone and no one can stop you from doing so, not even that ‘someone’...the joy of giving at times is more satisfying than receiving…

Likewise it is easy to Hate but difficult to Forgive…but I have learned that sometimes it is very difficult to Hate and easy to Forgive…to say that technically, the degree of ‘Hurt’ is directly proportional to the ‘closeness of a relation’ but the amount of ‘Hatred’ is inversely proportional to the closeness of it….I have learned that when you truly love someone or the closer the relationship is the more hurt it causes to you but then when you love someone so much it becomes very difficult to hate that person even if s/he has caused you the biggest hurt ever…you just cannot hate them. Even if you try hard, you just can’t.

Now I realize why elderly people long to go back to their children even after being abandoned by them…it is their unconditional love that breaks the barriers of conditions put across to them by their own blood relatives, which still makes them love their kids in spite of no love left in their hearts for their parents. True love comes without any conditions…it just come from within…whether the other heart reciprocates the same or not…it just can’t see, as they say ‘Love is blind’…

I have learned whenever you say goodbye make that Bye a Good one…you never know whether you are going to meet that person ever again in this lifetime… I have learned that no matter how good you are towards them, some people just cannot be good to you...all you need to decide is continue being good or just become indifferent.

I have realized that when you laugh, the world laughs with you and you cry, the world laughs louder…no matter how much in grief you are the world won’t stop and cry with you…
I have realized that life is all about making mistakes and learning from them…I have learned that the most difficult thing in life is to say the three magic words, “I am sorry” that compensates for all your mistakes, but very few have the guts to say them…


I have learned that the only person you should keep an expectation with is ‘Yourself’. ( “If they answer not to thy call walk alone, If they are afraid and cower mutely facing the wall, O thou of evil luck, open thy mind and speak out alone”- Rabindranath Tagore)

And yes one thing that I have just realized is that speaking your heart out does help ease you. :)