Moral Policing

In the land of Kamasutra and Khajuraho temple, moral policing strikes a blow.

MORAL POLICING: How less or sufficient should it be done? Should it be exercised at all?

     With the recent ban on pornographic websites in India, blackmailing couples through spurious raids in hotel rooms, willfully catching couples in public parks and on Valentine's day for being together, kissing etc. I wonder where the policing is heading in our country. As a responsible citizen, I do feel policing is right, we should have some limitations. But at the same time, I also feel we, the literate beings, even if watch porn, or kiss and indulge in such things, won't commit rape and things like that. However, the illiterate and the deprived ones are more susceptible to such acts. Therefore, banning such websites might be a solution (I still wonder how). But, what really should be the right way? Radhe maa being sued for wearing short dress in a country where Naga sadhus walk naked during Kumbh mela, Digambar jains don't wear any clothes due to religious reasons, what is the right way of doing things?

I read this article today by Garima Sharma (Member of Central Board of Film Certification) and liked it so thought of sharing it..

Recently, the government lifted a ban on watching pornography after an overwhelming response decrying the move, because what you watch in the privacy of a room, SHOULD be your business not the government’s, right? However, why have we as a nation not addressed the issue of the government blackmailing couples through spurious raids in hotel rooms, when they’re already being harassed by the moral police for kissing?

In a country, where there is no privacy for the young, this kind of easy targeting ruins the balance of sexuality and freedom in an already repressed society. If two consenting adults want to have sex, what right does the government have to SHAME and blackmail them about it, for? Nobody has sex after announcing to the whole world that they are about to, because for a lot of people, including society and the government, it’s a private thing to be indulged in discreetly (or at least that is reasoning we are given about kissing). AFFECTION SHOULD BE PRIVATE. Okay, understood.

However, the deeper question is – how should this privacy be exercised? In the cities, a lot of couples either live with their families in small households without enough privacy to go to the bathroom let alone, get a person of the opposite sex to their home without offending the whole locality and “destroying their family name” by being labelled as someone promiscuous, sleazy, cheap, easy or worst of all (Outrageous GASP!!!) – a sex worker. In a culture where the parent-child relationship is considered sacred, forget having sex, but even making out in the same house as them or even doing it in your own house while they are absent (those who are lucky) would be considered pathologically sickening at its worst or weird at the least.

So what is the other option? “Friend’s house?” Not likely. Not everyone has friends who have empty houses that they rent/lend to friends for sexual enoyment. Aside from downright humiliating and strange this can also be a favour that most people would not like to take from friends in lieu of being blackmailed later. Considering all the list of options, only Marriage (which is a very big life decision that SHOULD never depend on sexual curiosity or experimentation) an anonymous hotel or abstinence (celibacy) remain.

Let’s start with celibacy. Do we really think, in a country with the third largest population, owing to a VERY DEEP gap between sexual education, sexual health and sexual practice we will actually able to stop young people with raging hormones, curiosity and a host of issues about their personality, ambition and identity; from having any sex at all? That’s the worst kind of unrealistic expectation that has caused the population issue in the first place- unrealistic body images and expectations. There is a reason sex is one of our basic needs along with food and shelter.

Coming to the idea of marriage, any RATIONAL, LOGICAL person will understand that marriage is an institution that is SUPPOSED TO legalize monogamy and the domestic securityof individuals who CONSENT to living with each other and sharing legal responsibilities as well as sexual ones. The most important, sacred and holy of all the things next to GOD in this universe for those who believe in such a concept, and even for those who don’t is and SHOULD be CONSENT.

However, in most cases and especially in this country, nothing happens with the consent of the people who are the MOST AFFECTED from decisions. Those in power- the authority figures such as parents for example, usually are the ones who use their unlimited pool of consent as a tool to stamp and approve the sexual union of their children thinking they know what is best for them. Any good statistical study will show you that this is not the case. Like a popular and rather tart message making the rounds since sometime, apply summarizes, “Our parents tell us ‘Never to talk to strangers’ yet ask us to sleep with one after marriage.” Next, come the real challenges of a marriage and the responsibilities that make it the hallowed and sacred union it is supposed to be. Honestly, however, how many of the people in this country can say that their parents’ marriage was perfect or any marriage for that matter is perfect? Like any other relationship, it is not. If marriages were the magic resolution to solving the issue of rapes, unwanted pregnancies, prostitution or adultery by enlightening the heathens, there would be no marital rape (because ANY sex without consent or force is RAPE and a man or woman’s god-given right as a spouse does not make it any less of a moral crime, even if this country refuses to acknowledge it), domestic abuse, extra-marital adultery or prostitution ( you will NOT be surprised to know how many prostitutes have confirmed of servicing married clients).

Now, seeing that we have some of the most hassling options out of the way, what would ideally be the most anonymous, private, safe, guilt-free and fun option of spending some romantic, intimate or sexually-thrilling/ enlightening time with someone we really like, enjoy being with a lot, love or, wish to/are about to marry? A HOTEL ROOM where we respectfully pay for the services of availing some privacy from our family home as well as the undesirability of gossiping aunties, uncles, colonies, friends – you name it (who must have likely done or wanted the same thing when they were young) and as adults get to explore our sexuality/love towards someone, right? WRONG.

Because like every other kind of moral policing that blames “western culture” for harming our nation and corrupting the innocent with short-clothes, Chow Mein, cigarettes and sex, the police uses the all powerful battering ram that is the shaming of society; of the moral narrow mindedness of this country’s citizens -who blame all the ills of society on western culture without ever examining who or what really is causing the deeply inherent problems within our system- to BLACKMAIL, threaten, scare and hurt people who have not harmed anybody while indulging in a perfectly legal act of being with a loved one who is an ADULT and who has CONSENTED to the intimacy. These people, are often targeted under the pretext of “raids” and “disruption of sexual nexus’ involving sex-trafficking” which effectively silence all pleas and protestations of a person’s fundamental rights. Such fun, no?

As a person researching and working with NGO’s regarding real-life sex trafficking, let me tell you, the authorities who conduct raids on lover-bird hotels are the least likely to ever nab any real sex offenders. Harassing common people is their easiest way of extracting money or proving their usefulness in the force by conducting arbitrary “checks” which are nothing but an abuse of authority. Instead of a crack down on real rape-related issues, these authorities imply the horrifically flawed logic that any unmarried woman having sex is a prostitute and therefore must be punished (because prostitutes are not, human beings, right?)

Okay so you’re not yet going to a hotel to have some privacy and sex? Even then, this constant threat of looming authorities and moral garbage will haunt you, if you are one of the countless young couples or even group of friends who travel together around India, you will still be questioned about the status of your relationship as if you are committing a crime because of “out of wedlock travelling”.

The recently released film, Masaan highlights this excellent, corrupt and ruthless wolf-of –authority-in-sheep’s-clothing phenomenon, along with another film -Gulcharrey that some friends of my mine (Anubhav Syal , Varun Tandon , Amitesh Mukherjee ) made straight out of college, addressing this issue realistically. It is ironical how proud we feel of Masaan winning international Awards across the world, but wilfully ignore what it is trying to say about our cultural hypocrisy.

Personally I think, everybody young in this country is under the threat of this kind of moral bludgeoning, with the government and authorities stigmatizing our sexuality, our judgement as well as shaming our parents into repressing another generation of young people into thinking that sex between individuals of consenting age is bad, when it is not. Sexual abstinence will never happen and stigmatizing the issue with this kind of ridiculous reasoning and empathetic-bankruptcy will not lead to any kind of solution.

Though many people say that the youth are empowered, I don’t see that happening. Does having power or being a good person only mean something when you are a saint/monk practicing celibacy or making friends and falling in love with the consent of your parents? Isn’t coming of age hard enough, with suicidal and depressed teens always lurking in the background, with this added atrocity making well-adjusted young people also wanting to end their lives? This is unfortunate and criminal on a whole another level.

India is a country with the highest number of young people. We claim to be the largest well-functioning democracy. We push for young leaders who will change the way the world looks and imagines reality, but in truth we want the youth of this country to do all of it without their human needs and flaws (perhaps, they same we like our Gandhi and Gods to be). We want them to be sexless or authority (parent/state) abiding citizens who place God and some weird kind of “cultural” paradigm before engaging in the most natural, legal and basic of all human needs.

We might as well cut off the genitals of the unmarried young in this nation. Perhaps that will resolve all this country’s problems like MARRIAGE, INDIAN CULTURE and GOD have.

There are the bigger crimes in our world which everyone knows of and condemns, but these indignities, these psychological traumas like sexism, discrimination and humiliation are the smaller bricks that lay the foundation of injustice. You may think that you will never be a victim -that is what everyone thinks to comfort themselves, but let me tell you that if it is affecting this nation, affecting our world, it is affecting you and someday, you will too stand face to face with the burden of these smaller injustices or crimes as I call them.

From the archives

So careless and laid back I am. As I was scrolling down through the memory of my past adventures and fun trips, I could remember my trip to London. So, It was my first international trip therefore I was excited. I was going with a friend for a summer school in UK. Our flight was at 6:30 in the morning, so we called a taxi at 3:30 am as it used to take just an hour from our hostel to the Bangalore airport. Since we had to do the immigration and all, so we kept 2 hours for all that. As my close ones would know me, I don't do things initially but you will find me running unto everything at the eleventh hour. So the other friend had packed everything, talked to everyone and done all the things that one needs to do a day before. And here I was , till 1:30 am of that morning, packing my stuffs, forget about talking to anyone.  I slept at 2 am, planning to get up maximum by 3 so that in half n hour I would take bath and get ready before my taxi arrives.

I asked my friend to call me at 3 am, so that in worst case, if my alarm clock fails to wake me up, her call would definitely do that. I asked her to give me a ring and instead ring the door bell of my room , even though her room was just two rooms away from my room. The pact was if I disconnect her call, it will be a signal to her that I have woken up.

So, the clock ticked 3. As I had slept for just an hour.  I am quite famous to have a 8 hour long sleep), so my alarm failed to wake me. My friend called me and in the pleasures of my "deep sleep" I disconnected her call without realizing it. In parallel, my friend took a head bath, straightened her hair and had breakfast that she cooked and sipped coffee . It was 3:30 and the cab arrived. I was still sleeping. :-|

At 3:40 am, my door bell rang, I did not answer. After 3-4 times, I heard something and woke up. After 4-5 seconds I realized what I am into. I opened the door, saw her all decked up..and I could only say, Shit, Shit..shitshitshitshit..shiiiiiit innumerable times. My friend and others who had come to see us off got worried. I still had some packing left for some small-small things. Thanks to my friends, they picked up everything from everywhere and just buried in my bag. I could not do much. Just brushed my teeth, don a t-shirt and started for airport. Very little time was left, so we asked the driver to scurry. Thanks heavens, we could catch the flight.

Phew!

P.S: My hard drive crashed, so the 2500 pics I had of that trip, went by that too. Sad moment. :(

A treat for just130!

Where? Where on this earth you would find this luxury?
When you can treat your buddies for as low as 130 Rs and still go home laughing like monsters having an absolute ball..

Shoes

2014, Daejeon,South Korea

Shoes...are funny things. They take you everywhere. Somewhere where you belong to and some places you don't.  They are the evidence of everything you have done and enjoyed or regretted doing it. They are something you feel good about wearing them, for they are your friends-forever. They promise you an adventurous start to the day and not leaving you mid-way in a crisis. They promise you a comfortable ride by giving you confidence to do that  and reach onto that place. You love them and they are truly your prized possession.

2012, Wiltshire, UK

Although shoes were just a utilitarian thing for me style didn't mean much; I always wanted a good pair of casual shoes for myself. I would usually wander through the shops for days and find nothing that would satisfy me. Very often I would lose hope and buy anything that at least seems fitting and then solemnly regret it. 

I thought it would be the same with this pair but I could not have been more wrong. As soon as I saw them on the shelf I immediately got attracted to them for I knew this is it. This is what I was yearning for years and finally I had it in front of my eyes. 

2013, KGP, India

As far as I remember I bought them at 50% Sale in a Reebok outlet somewhere during the early winters of 2011 in Bangalore. Even after a hefty discount, it had still cost me quite a deal at that time L. I still remember how happy I was to buy them for several reasons. They were stylish yet not eye catchy, perfect fit and long-lasting. We shared a 4 years long bond.

2012, London, UK

I went so many places in them.  First Bangalore, then Delhi, UK, KGP, South Korea, and many more places here and there.  I remember how they made me feel every time I put them on. It’s good to have one ideal pair. Sadly, I've lost one shoe in the pair. Its time I have to start looking for another new pair, but I m going to miss them. 

Guess it’s time to be in someone else’s shoes… :P

Making choices

I believe what you do to others; comes back to you sooner or later. Therefore, it is important in life to not become mean enough to crush somebody else’s dream. Not to climb that ladder which has steps made up of someone’s hopes. Those who does that, though enjoys the happiness of achievement temporarily, later of course God levels up everything.

Well, nobody’s perfect. Nobody’s life is a walk on a piece of cake. Everyone has had their share of struggle in life. The sooner it happens, better it is to enjoy rest part of your life in comfort, with ease. It’s like assume, if human's average life expectancy is 70 years, one half i.e. the one comprising of 35 years will be a struggle, the other would be the joy reaped because of the former.  The sequence depends entirely upon you and your choices in life. 

At Midnight

Sometimes you like being alone,
Sometimes you like being hurt
Sometimes You like the pain..
It is such a real feeling, A

Loving the silence, the darkness of my room
Loving being alone right now
and listening to nothing but me
Its such a real feeling

With noodles and coffee as my dinner
and some half left notes
and tomorrow's plan of work ready
I feel so light standing on the cliff...
After all, its such a real feeling

and I only remember this..
Its a damn cold night
Trying to figure out this life...

Farewell

Married monsters!

It seems everyone is getting married these days and if you ask me honestly I have no problem with it but I do share my disgust with particular kinds. These are people who forget their individuality, their personality as if it never existed or they have got incarnated..so much into this  marriage stuff. 

Their talks, their pics, their FB profile everything stinks of obsession, obsession with marriage. They stop calling you, then they stop picking up your call, they only appear in-two's or may be three's everywhere. I mean once my friend brought her kid into the mall, and I was like, what-to-do or how to behave now. All my  three best friends have got married, two are also having kids :D 

Decisions

Fuck! I am so stuck.

Don’t know what to do.

What to choose and what to leave behind.

In any case, I’ll be feeling bad afterwards..

Can I have my Krishna here?

'Carrie' me along

I love Carrie Bradshaw from “sex and the city”.
She is the woman of substance. I hope her; Sarah Jessica Parker, in real life too is same as my Carrie. I love her lifestyle, her lucid writings, her dressing sense, her way of dealing things, no matter how stupid they were. I love the way she used to come to a conclusion, the storytelling she used to do was brilliant. She’s got some amazing friends which I truly admire, for they are genuine people. When I see them, it feels I’m one of them. I know one person she truly loved was Mr. Big. He liked her too but I don’t know what his problem was. May be he was commitment phobic. Now-a-days everyone is. In a way it is good, making no commitment is better than a fake commitment. I love the Manhattan streets, it feels I have already done a visual course through the series many times, but I would love to go there sometime, sit in the same Chinese restaurant or the same breakfast joint where these ladies used to go. Hope they are all the same. It was her Birthday on 26th March, and mine a day later, feels good to know about that too.

Quoting a dialogue by Carrie:

"The most important thing in life is your family. There are days you love them and others you don’t, but in the end they’re the people you always come home to. Sometimes it’s the family you’re born into. And sometimes it’s the one you make for yourself."

Bad Choice

What is wrong with Ms. Padukone? After her show with the cleavage drama she’s back with the pseudo-women empowerment stint. Somebody please tell her to first go home, finish schooling and then come back, seems sh's drunk the entire time. It also seems she lacks basic sense in everything. Maybe she’s become too attention seeker. No doubt, her films aren’t doing well. But what was that, literally? My Choice? Really!

Would opening your bra strap makes you empower? Would having sex pre or post marriage empower you? If that does, then I am sorry, you need to take some medication.  One need to know first, who actually needs empowerment in this country? Not those women who are in dilemma to have sex or not, but those who are crushed to have an opinion in a joint family or those who don’t have a say if their family wants her to abort the girl child and only have a boy child. It’s those people. I am sure there are lot bigger issues than thinking of loving someone or lusting forever. I used to dislike Sonakshi Sinha earlier, but damn, at least she has better mind than you. Learn from her, it’s never too late.

Unfortunately, there are still people especially women, who felt so empowered watching that video for reasons unknown to me. Just imagine, if men stop acting when you say you hate their beer belly or you want to have a gold jewelry, what if they also start having sex post-marital saying it is his choice, or what would you say to a man who refuses to marry because you had a consensual sex with him with a thought that he would marry, but now he has made his CHOICE, and now you file a rape case against him? Would you give him the same privilege? No! I am sure NO! Why, because there are so many pseudo- feminist existing in this country who will cry every time for equality and women empowerment but when it comes to having real equality among beings, they shudder!

Being a woman, I also seek empowerment for all those who needs it, like Sonakshi said: we are living a luxurious life; it should go to the deep ends of the society. But, I am also pretty clear that empowerment doesn't mean that you are above the rest.  It means you are equal with everyone else. In this case, Men & Women. Not only the video was hostile, but also sadly ineffective. I do understand that Ms. Padukone must have had good intentions before doing this video, but she should shape her thoughts prior and consult at least ten people before publishing her thoughts.

Let the equality and empowerment prevail!
Hope no one is suppressed and everyone has right to love their life freely.

Daejeon, South Korea!

I am so happyyy!!!   

Finally I ' m back after an exhilarating trip to Daejeon, South Korea. It took few months to finalize everything and give it a Go! Usually if your trip is official, in my case academic, you have to do many formalities like applying for funding to different Govt.agencies, booking everything, fixing up your accommodation and etc. Thankfully, I got it all done on time. The only thing remaining till my day of departure was my poster which was not complete :P Usually if its an academic tour, it eventually turns out to be a recreational one because you don't have a check on you to attend all the sessions and prepare a report or something. This is funny but I just got reminded of the two great people who came from Reliance Industries from India, and how for them it was mandatory to attend all the sessions during the conference as they had to prepare some descriptive report or something. I on the other hand had all the freedom to utilize my time elsewhere and I left no stone unturned.  After I landed in Delhi from kolkata, i had an eleven hours of halt at Delhi so it was great time to be at home and start the further journey from there. It was little cold, colder than Bengal in Delhi and as my senior told me it was much colder in Korea, so I had to take along with me warm clothes. Like every time, as I do all the things at eleventh hour, I did this too running here and there.  Please don't blame me for being a Procrastinator. You know what, I love doing it this way, it gives me adrenaline rush. So 12:30 am I had my flight to Seoul. I reached easily and it was pretty good time for me as it was not my first international journey, so I was pretty much okay with everything. 

Upon reaching Seoul, I had to take this Bus to Daejeon. It took almost 2.5 hrs for me to reach Govt.Complex stop where my senior came to pick me up. I was so happy to see him as he was the only one who arranged everything for me there and my trip turned out to be just amazing. I give all credits to him. So from there, he took me to his flat where we had dinner and had long talks after which he dropped me to my hotel. The hotel had everything for me so I was perfect in there. The next day conference started and it was good. Met some great scientist whose research articles I read or refer everytime and seeing them in front of my eyes was one great moment. For that  matter, my senior is also my one inspiration as I have read all his papers and he doesn't even know I have a older of his initials in my desktop where I have saved all his publications and refer to them every time I need to. The conference was great, I was the junior most there and therefore enjoyed all the care and support from everyone ;P We went from the conference to see places and clicked so many pics. I met Prof. Pramod K Wangikar from IIT Bombay and we went out, he is such a cool prof. So different yet he is doing amazing research. He was just one youngster among us and we never felt as he is some orthodox prof. Listening to Michael Borowitzka, John Benemann, Yusuf Chisti and other great scientists in front of you, whom you follow religiously is like  dream come true. 

Koreans are humble people, very helping and so cultured. 

And the Korean Girls!!!! My god. They are so pretty, though they use make up but they take care of their health, are fitness freak and intelligent. I then visited my seniors institute KAIST where he is the post doc, the labs were sooooo good. I wish I work somewhere like this sometime. They use LED based air-lift reactors for algal growth and use SIGMA chemicals only. Isn't it obvious? hmm.. 

It was so cold there, I had to wear layers of clothes but for nice pictures, I dont mind shedding few :D

The Best Best thing was I got the Best Poster Award among hundreds of other people, so this is also one of the reason to be super happy. The last day we went out totally, did shopping, lunch in an Indian restaurant called Bukhara and again shopping, and so many other things. All in all, I had one amazing time there. 

I don't like to dress up!

Yes. It is true. Unlike all the other girls who just look for opportunity to dress up their best and go out or something, I on the contrary finds it as a complete burden. I'm not saying that I am correct and  there's something wrong with others (may be its vice-versa :P ), I absolutely salute them for this skill, how gracefully they dress by matching make up, earrings, shoes etc. It suits to the occasion and gives a whole festive feel. I dont know why but if I have to dress up for either some party, festival or some occasion, I feel a huge pressure on my shoulders. I do have lots (believe me, lots of) clothes, shoes, make-up everything, but given a choice I would love to go in my shorts, pajamas or a simple plain jeans and a tee. This Diwali, when all the other girls were wearing sarees and etc. I was happily bursting crackers in my jeans in the hall :D 

And yeah, this Diwali was super fun with my hall mates and our illumination celebration!!! 

Down the memory lane...

So, after spending a week long vacation at my home in Delhi, I have returned to kgp on 8th. As always, the next one week is gonna be real dull and filled with homesickness and of course my efficiency for work will touch the bottom. Alas, I have no option. So, a day later we have our fortnight lab presentation. Thank heavens, I had already carried out an experiment for determining the boundary conditions of CO2 studies with my algae. I can present this data in the ppt. Friday evening from 5:45, it (ppt) started and went up to 9 pm. Ok, we have some latest movies put up in Netaji Auditorium every Friday and this Friday it was Bang Bang. I wanted to watch it but every time it happens so that all the good movies are showcased on the same Friday with my presentation. I sure missed it but I am planning to watch it on Sunday. [Sunday they have a student show at 9 am..yeah am :( but still I will go]

Its always good to download any movie from the internal LAN DC++ of our institute but watching a movie with your friends at Netaji is super fun. Not for the theater experience, since it is just a auditorium with not a hifi sound system..but the overall experience is always good every time I watch a movie there. I remember watching a crappy movie called "LUCK" once during my M.Tech..it was such a horrible movie but all the comments of fellow students made it an out-of-the-blue experience. So I simply go there for a good laugh. Anyways! I know I have absolutely deviated from my thought that I started this post with.

Down the memory lane..yes..its a Saturday afternoon, I am in my room with a hot cup of tea and outside its drizzling. The weather is pleasant and mood is relaxing. I have tons of work but I will not do any. Because this whole set up makes me memorize all the beautiful times that I had..meeting so many people with their distinct personalities. All of them have taught me something or other. I am thankful for all my enemies,friends and well wishers. But what I have realized is that everyone is selfish in one way or other (including myself). Obviously, you want good for you and your family so being a little selfish will not do any harm. It's good actually. But after I heard the news of Kailash Satyarthi getting the Noble Peace Prize 2014, it really knocked me down with a feather.

Some people have dreams and they pursue it. I am so glad to know that there still are people in this world who think of others before them. This is inspiring and motivating. I didn't know about him before he got the Nobel. Definitely this is not a good thing. He is someone who is not as young as the 17 yr old Malala, but he started the crusade against Child servitude from 1980. Giving up a lucrative career (He was an Electrical Engineer) for a cause like this is not an easy task. He must be driven with great enthusiasm. His perseverance, patience and persistence have got him the most prestigious Nobel Prize after three decades.   Congratulations!

Hypocrisy

This is height! You want to titillate men while shaking your booty and flaunting your breasts but when they really admire your assets and talk about it, you find it insulting. Either in your real life you never wear low cut dress or show your cleavage , else don't go all concerned and fighting for women spirit all over the media. If you talk about equality, that starts right there where you started. First being a calender girl, then shooting in two-piece in movies like cocktail and doing innumerable photo shoots for magazine covers, you please don't talk about feminism and then do all this publicity gimmicks right scheduled at the launch of your new movie Finding Fanny. Finding Fanny? (Oh God, yes!)

The Maintenance Secy

Why would you touch the two red knobs at the rear side of water cooler? As a logical person, while taking water, you would press the button to fill your bottle and one your are done, you would switch it off and go to your room. What I don't understand is why you have to touch those two red knobs and tell the world they have problem in them? Similarly, one guy reports his cycle bell is missing from the cycle stand and other suggests him (while aptly cursing the committee that they wont help in this regard) to put up wireless CCTV camera to catch the thieves.  Also, one guy wrote in order to rectify a water problem that existed some time back in our hall, that he has written an email to CM of the state Ms.Mamta banerjee since this is an "international" issue. The list have so many other interesting cases to tell but I would stop..

We are mature, we are educated and we are sane. Then, why does it take so much to talk sense. I have realized, some people always have complaints for you no matter how much and hard you try to help them. Being a Maintenance secretary of our hall for 2013-14, I think I have learnt a lot about people psyche's and totally understand how it is to be at a responsible and authoritative place. Let me tell you, it is not at all easy so now I relate myself whenever I see people mindlessly blaming the govt. or actors or administration. It is very, very easy to comfortably sit in your room and throw an email vomiting your problems but how to solve it is a real game. You will have no idea what it is to play in mud until your hands are dirty.  In this whole year, I am sure many would have talked ill about me on the back, some think that I haven't done anything substantial but  believe me when I hear appreciation from some real genuine people that I was good and brought a change, everything else doesn't matter. And then it feels that you can not make everyone happy, for your own happiness you have to be real, genuine, true and little selfish.

That's me!

I am mad, I am impatient, am not haughty but yes I am proud of myself, have a little ego, short-tempered, immature but I am playful, funny,have a good heart, adventurous and not boring, loves my work, ambitious, a bit conservative. You can be on either side of this but I know my side. And trust me I am narcissists on this. I love myself. I think I am lot better than many other people in my thoughts, understanding,personality, habits, mannerism and style. Therefore I am proud of myself. Though I do not much believe in sun signs but if you describe an Aries person, that is what I am. I might not reveal my emotions but I would expect you to understand me, I don't know how but you got to do it. This doesn't mean I am egoistic as I won't take the first step to start but once it has been taken I am IN totally. 

 :)

Success has a price to pay

Ok, This is a copied text from somewhere but I found it to be so true.

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Most people want to be successful or want to win in their pursuits, be it exams, business or life, but only a few are successful. Simple reason is the fact that there is a price to be paid in terms of sacrificing leisure, sleep or sometimes sacrificing your entire comfort zone. Most people are success hungry but too lazy, too reluctant to pay the price and blame their bad luck which is the easiest scape goat. You lose because you simply are too lazy to follow your dream and you don't want to take risk or put the bet on yourself. You look for safe options and blame luck in the end. If you are looking for a magic formula and you hope it will work, trust me, odds are really against you. Think of athletes, sportsmen they sacrifice time in practice in childhood which you spent watching TV and then when they strike gold, I have heard many people complain that cricketers get it easy, is it so? I meet so many people every day and many are curious, many have ideas but only a few with intent and drive to convert thoughts to action.

Simply put to win there are prices to be paid. I will quote an often quoted line,"there is nothing like a free lunch."

One night and six amazing people!

Happy people :)

With a hectic schedule and days full of tiring work and responsibilities, I chose to hit the high side of life by accepting this proposal from one of my junior to join them for an exhilarating trip to the longest drivable beach i.e Mandarmoni.  A night before our journey we gathered at Lake Side, just behind Gymkhana to do the necessary planning, booking and the excitement began that time itself. So, I was the senior most in the group, others being B.Tech and M.Techs. Since I had been to the place earlier, I took the initiative to book the cab and divided other responsibilities with the rest. We started at 11:30 pm on 27^th June with some amazing tracks, thanks to Ritvik for the superb collection, it added elements of joy. The driver was a fun guy too since he was driving safely as well as by being a sport to all our non-sense. The only thing that was suspicious was the presence of Police every 4-5 kms in the highway road that we were travelling into. In a way I felt safe because of the presence of Police and on the other hand intrigued by the thought. A white Sumo following us and playing with the speed of car to match ours also added to the experience. I was li’l scared but I ignored it. Throughout the journey, we were cracking jokes, singing songs and feeling awesome. The roads were quiet and empty, cloudy sky, cool atmosphere was making me feel as if there is much more to the life than what I am experiencing already.

Selfie :P

After some time, we reached to a place that was desolated, as if there lived no people yet there were constructions. We saw at a distance, there were two cars and some people. When we reached there, we were told to stop. It immediately filled us in suspicion. Thank God, there were two policeman and they were looking for something. But still we were in doubt, as to why at 2 am this kind of thing is happening. The guys went out to speak and we were sitting inside. One of the policeman who was smoking, constantly trying to look at us. We were wishing to scurry from this place asap. But our stupid driver, who was fond of talking, was talking to them for unnecessary amount of time. Anyhow we started from that place to continue our journey. By the way, there was a loot in bank on the same day, that’s why this kind of search was going on. We covered 110 kms and were about to reach our destination. We were talking about ghosts that time and god knows what happened to our driver when he suddenly put off the lights of moving car and said,”Dayan bulaun kya” (Shall I call the ghost?). We realized it was all dark, we did not know where we were that point of time. It looked as if we are amidst some forest where there is no civilization. For once we thought he was joking and he put on the lights, we burst into laughter but he did the same again, and everyone got suspicious (Beacause of my love of horror movies, I thought he is possessed or something). We changed the topic and praised him for driving nicely and he got going. Phew! We reached our lodge. The place was good and we could hear the sea waves but did not go to see it as we planned it to go during sunrise. So it was 2:30 am and we did not want to sleep. For 1.5 hours we talked and had some fun. We played games and had a great time. The time flew in seconds and there we were at the amazing view of nature. The vast sea, cool winds, mad clouds and we were there alone. From dark, it was becoming light.

The view was mesmerizing. 

Limitless boundries..

The peaceful atmosphere brings a sense of relief to one’s soul.  The vast sky and unending sea shore made me feel like I am nothing in this universe. My existence is inversely proportional to the expanse of this sea or this sky. The mad clouds were at their best sometimes channeling out the rays of sun at a distance looks like it was a cosmic experience. We lolled on the sand, played Frisbee, did some crazy things. Listening to the waves crashing on the shore, I could drive away all bustling pressures. I felt life. 

On the contrary, I think I am getting to understand the meaning of relation more as I am growing up. I was always a family person, but with time I think I feel a bond which is so strong that as soon as I think of it I become emotional and tears fills up my eyes. My family means everything to me. My father, mother, sister and brothers are the strong pillars of my being. If not for them, my life would be nothing. I can say confidently, I can go to any heights for them. 

Apart from this relationship, other relationships also teach you a lot. Whether it is a friendship, love, enemy, student-teacher relationship, all of them teaches you many things. I think everyone should for once in life live alone, as a bachelor. This way, he will get time to ponder a lot and make meaning out of so many things. It not only makes you strong emotionally but also gives you the knowledge you can not acquire otherwise.