IF

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you
But make allowance for their doubting too,
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream--and not make dreams your master,
If you can think--and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it all on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on!"

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings--nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much,
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And--which is more--you'll be a Man, my son!


--Rudyard Kipling



Some words...Some memories...Some people...stay with you forever!!

Musing on a Winter Morning!

Daylight fading…Silence deafening…Wind groaning…
A shiver down any spine…

Snug feeling…Sight breathtaking…persevering and pursuing…
No reason to whine...

Finding solace even on a solitary winter morning..!

On the other side of 25

Every birthday from now on will only count how “old” I get each year. Unless, I choose to see a different perspective.

Looking back, I would love to go back to my wonder years. Then again, there is so much more to look forward to..

I suppose age is the price we pay to earn wisdom and independence.

..how does it matter..
so long as you feel young at heart.. So long as you still smile with that innocence of yesteryear!!


As I post this,I wonder what my view will be 25 years hence ;)

Spiritual not Religious

A term perfectly coined for the likes of me even if it dawned on me only a few years ago.
I am certain that it calls out to each individual at some point in life due to the circumstances that prevail or out of plain curiosity. Either you choose to grow more aware of it or drift away from it..
No such view can ever be imposed, for one cannot practice what is enforced!

Bearing no disrespect to the agnostic, apathetic, religious or for that matter even the fanatics, those are the very concepts that elude me.
It was pointed out to me, that, If I am to be an individual on self discovery, I would be someone who is categorized as lost and confused with no definite direction or purpose to guide me..

It is to such people that I find my path difficult to define and justify for I have only made my humble spiritual beginnings.


All I can proclaim so far is that ..The more we seek to kindle our life spiritually, the more we are blessed with His graciousness.

Most times when I find myself in a quandary, the answer comes to me as well!

Be it from a book, a philosopher,a like minded soul or even an unexpected source!

चक दे इंडिया !

I feel very patriotic right now...
Is it living away from my country that has made me appreciate my roots better??
Don’t know…whatever the reason…I am just proud to be an Indian…and what better day to express it than today!

I choose to stay away from my country and it is only to meet my personal goals. But, in doing so, I am merely reflecting the free Indian spirit, that which can make a mark wherever it goes and which bears the responsibility of showcasing India to the outside world!

Jawarharlal Nehru hoped his legacy to India would be that all Indians be capable of governing themselves…
There is so much chaos in every sector of society; there is so much disparity in every socio-economic status. Yet, somehow, each Indian finds a way to survive it all, be it the sweeper or the prime minister and present an India which is dynamic and soaring to new heights every year!
It’s evident that his legacy still continues…


The billion dollar question is " Will our legacy survive??"


While The Times of India takes a Lead India initiative, we must each take our own!!


Every little we do counts....

Around the world in Eighty days....

Let your imagination run wild while you read about the antics of Phileas Fogg and his French valet Passepartout touring all around the world with a rescued Indian princess and a Scotland yard detective mistaking him as a bank robber.
OR
Get out there, like the television presenter Michael Palin did, and make that expedition yourself! The chance of finding a gorgeous Indian prince/princess on the way is slim, but you will certainly enrich yourself with the wisdom of the world we live in!

I do not know enough to work for Travel and Living but I have come to understand that the more one travels the smaller this planet seems to get…

When you embark on a journey…

You will interact with people who might never cross your path again...some eccentric and some almost angel like!

You will see sights that you may not visit again!

There is a thrill in getting lost and having to find your way back!

It’s always a pleasure to have your companions travel with you, but, it’s a pain to stick to a tour company!

The quirky me has travelled on a train with a ticket of an expired date( can’t believe how I managed to reach ahmedabad from pune on a jam packed train in 3rd AC inspite of that) and till date I check for my passport ten thousand times for fear of loosing it!

I harbour a passion for travel but there is a long way to go before I can call myself a connoisseur at it!
Need to earn my living first ;)

No Femme Fatale here

The movie ‘Water’ certainly touched my sentiments. I cannot imagine living in the 1930’s let alone years before that. Thank God the sati system is extinct. Thank God my parents have brought me up in an environment where my brother and I have similar rights and freedom of speech .
But,
It disheartens me to see the presence of exploitation and dowry even today. What is worse that it takes place behind close doors amongst the educated masses……(sick!!)

I just had to understand what a feminist is all about and was pleasantly surprised to find vast resources on it. There is so much to refer on wikipedia itself that I found it difficult to explain the term in a line. To sum it all –

You are a feminist if you believe:
1. Women matter as much as men do.
2. Women have the right to determine their lives.
3. Women's experiences matter.
4. Women have the right to tell the truth about their experiences.
5. Women deserve more of whatever it is they are not getting enough of because they are women: respect, self-respect, education, safety, health, representation, money.
-- Naomi Wolf, Fire With Fire

So…YES..I am a feminist ! I do not have to head a morcha to be one !
Personally, cannot stand a man who believes that a woman’s feet are made to be lifted only from the bedroom to the kitchen.

All I ask is to be treated as an EQUAL…

There is a good old saying
“Behind every great man there is a great woman”

I believe the vice versa holds true as well!!

A View from the Top

While trudging up a treacherous path, slipping on muck at many places, I cursed myself for climbing a hill when I could have been sitting at home and sipping Bacardi rum ;)
The desire to get to the summit superseded any other because every look back down convinced me that it would be worth it!

Once at the Top, the only word I could manage was “Woooow “. The silly in me would have shrieked out loud but I was too disoriented by then. There was the blue sky up above and the green grass beneath my feet. I could see the calm water of the sea reaching far up to the misty horizon amidst tall mountains. The sun was playing with the clouds while the cool gentle wind whispered past me. So peaceful that I could lie there for ever..
A perfect moment that no picture and no words can describe…

Somewhere, at a distance, I could hear the muffled voices of the city. I was happy to getaway from the mundane and the crazy.
But, after a while there was not much for me to do. I found myself ready to go back to that hustle-bustle!

The moment still lingers on with me and I will look out for many more like it. But city life beckons me for now!!

In the name of LOVE

"
You cut me down a tree and brought it back to me
and that’s what made me see where I was going wrong
You put me on a shelf and kept me for yourself
I can only blame myself, you can only blame me
and I could write a song a hundred miles long
Well that’s where I belong and you belong with me
and I could write it down or spread it all around
Get lost and then get found or swallowed in the sea

You put me on a line and hung me out to dry
Darling that’s when I decided to go to see you
You cut me down to size and opened up my eyes
Made me realize what I could not see

and I could write a book, the one they'll say that shook the world
and then it took, it took it back from me
and I could write it down and spread it all around
Get lost and then get found and you'll come back to me
Not swallowed in the sea


and I could write a song a hundred miles long
Well that’s where I belong and you belong with me
The streets you’re walking on, a thousand houses long
Well that’s where I belong and you belong with me
Oh what good is it to live with nothing left to give
Forget but not forgive, not loving all you see
Oh the streets you’re walking on a thousand houses long
Well that’s where I belong and you belong with me
Not swallowed in the sea

You belong with me, not swallowed in the sea
Yeah you belong with me

Not swallowed in the sea"-- Coldplay


Men might be from mars and women from venus, but im pretty sure, LOVE, overwhelms us all

My love,Where art thou? ;)

What is the measure of Success??

I honestly can’t comprehend the right formula for one to achieve success.
What makes a Bill Gates? What makes a Dhirubhai Ambani?
Stories of Rags to Riches are being told time and again.

There are constants in the equation we all know about. Diligence, perseverance, sincerity, wit have no substitute. But there are variables as well which are subjective.
I know of a few who have faced adversity with so much courage that only success beckons them today!

Personally, the past two years have been both gruelling and exciting! It surprises me how I have managed to come last in a race where I had a head start initially :) Clearly there is no triumph in that. Yet, I feel like a winner!

I understand my strengths and my weaknesses. I know of a few good men/women who will stand by me. I have learnt to believe in myself. Above all, I have realized my faith in the Will of God!

It feels like The End of a Beginning…rather…The Beginning of another End..There is no time to rest...Hungry for more!!

I only hope to keep growing and moving forwards always!

Here is something thats definitely kept me going..
FAITH is 'to believe in what you do not see'
The reward of faith is 'to see what you believed in'

“Have no regrets of the PAST, no anxiety of the FUTURE and no excitement in the PRESENT”

– Swami Chinmayanada

Lost In Translation

Girvan,
Scotland

Stark Reality- Naked Contrast

SCENE 1 :-

Dancing like there is no tomorrow and enjoying some lovely shooters alongside!
(yesterday night at a sangeet party)
Quit my present job to go back to pursue what i really want!
Rejuvenated and raring to go AGAIN!

I celebrate Life Today!


SCENE 2 :-

She ( prefer her identity remained anonymous) lost her husband today by a trick of fate. She experiences a shock known best to her, that which can be comforted only with time.

She mourns Death Today!



Quoting William Shakespeare

" All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players:
They have their exits and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages. "



Such is the business of LIFE,
Play your part to whatever BEST you can.

A thousand voices in my head

I hear a thousand voices in my head,
talking to me about -

"Success.. Failure.. Faith.. Despair.. Fear.. Poise.. Family.. Friends.. Boyfriends.. Love.. Lust.. Marriage.. Commitments.. Freedom.. Intelligence.. Dim wit.. Peace.. Aggression.. Power.. Fame.. Character.. Skills.. Life.. Death.. Past.. Present.. Exceptional.. Ordinary.. Nasty.. Benevolence.........."
So on and so forth to another thousand.

However noisy it may get,
The mind does not cease to think,
And
The heart does not cease to desire.

Run baby run.................................

I have been running....running...
Not an inch have i moved.
I am still running...
For mountains i will move!


Do not stop me,
Dot not curse me,
Run with me,
Or step aside!
You cannot help BUT acknowledge my kind!

Funny coincidence

Happened to walk past a lady at a restaurant yesterday who seemed strangely familiar.
It feels as if you have seen the person somewhere but can't come up with any plausible explaination for it.
I could not place her but passed by with a polite smile which surely confused her:)
( can't help smiling sometimes)
For me the incident ended there.....


Five minutes later I see my dad getting up from the table to talk to the same lady i just walked past. It so happens that he knows her as his patient.
Alright..its possible! I must have seen her at the clinic..remote..but possible

While we were permuting various reasons as to why i thought she was familiar, she happened to mention her son.
Surprise Surprise! he turns out to be a good friend(who i have only heard about) of my dear friend in the states!!

Couldn't get over the incident for a while..Coz i had just drawn a link to a person i knew nothing of in a matter of 10 mins.

Got me thinking about a topic RECENTLY discussed amongst friends
' 6 degrees of separation '
Very INTRIGUING after all!!

Yaar

Wish I was living in an apartment with all my dear friends close by.
Would be truullly wonderfullllll!!
Infact I am sure most of us have at least thought about it, especially the ones who love the sitcom F.R.I.E.N.D.S.

….But real life is much different from the reel after all…

Some of them married, some of them to be married,
Some of them so near, yet so far, busy toiling away
And then there are those who just disappear once in a while!
There are some I have grown up with and then there are some I have known only for a year
If there is one thing that remains constant..it is that special bond..

You might have not met in ages; yet, when you actually do it feels like you were together just yesterday!
One has to fight their own battles, but the support from a beloved friend makes that fight less miserable

Im probably writing this to appreciate every little thought, time and feeling given to me by each one of them…

Cheers to all you great friends out there!!!

Going back to REEL life..
Im thinking of...
'यारों दोस्ती बड़ी हि हसीं हैं, यह ना हो तो क्या फिर बोलो यह जिन्दगी है,कोई हो ना जुदा, पूरा हो तेरा खुवाब'
from Rockford

Thinking of Dil chahta hai.....

T I M E

Time doesn’t stop for anyone…It knows only to move forward..

Time gives hope…Even when you think there is none left...

Time is precious… Waste it and you will regret it...

Time is noble…Gives you another chance…

Time can pressurize…Ask anyone working on a deadline...


TIME is all that and so much more..YET it knows not how it affects us.

When one is sitting idle every minute goes so slow YET the same time moves so fast when you are busy working.
I have the time to watch movies YET complain of the lack of it when i have not called a friend in ages.

Constant in its action YET perceived subjectively as per the situation!


Time has seen the past, lives the present and probably knows the future..

Will it cease to exist after our death or is it Infinite?