A lost love

Soulmates- they were,
He came into her life as a breath of fresh air.
It was the start of a carefree affair.
Their love was deep, like a deep blue sea.
But soon the tides turned and one could see.
Their love was not meant to be.
He stayed aloof,
Saying it was for her own good.
He cared, but he never dared.
He did it for her, that's what he said.
Was it true? Or was he through?
What was the reason he let her depart?
No exchange of words, not a single touch.
Just a mere good bye
And souls were torn apart.

आम इंसान

"आपने मेरी ज़िन्दगी बर्बाद कर दी पापा"।
सुहाना के ये शब्द सुनकर राधा बुआ के कदम वहीँ रुक गए।

"पापा आपसे बेहतर मुझे और कौन जानता है? मेरी आदतों से आप अच्छी तरह वाकिफ हैं। मेरी पसंद - नापसंद जानते हैं। मेरी शादी करते वक़्त कम से कम मेरी ज़रूरतों का तो ख्याल किया होता। आपने मेरे लिए अथर्व  को चुना? ना उसके पास अच्छी पर्सनालिटी है ना ही कोई स्टाइल। मेरी पसंद से बिलकुल अलग है वो, बिलकुल एक आम इन्सान। आपने कैसे सोच लिया मैं उसके साथ खुश रहूंगी? ना उसके पास हमारी तरह बड़ा घर है ना कार। एक स्कूटर है जो उसे जान से प्यारा है। और ये घर? मुझे इतने लोगों के बीच रहने की आदत तो है नहीं। कितनी भीड़ है इस घर में। कैसे adjust करूँ मैं खुद को यहाँ पर? अथर्व  जैसे आम आदमी से मेरी शादी करके आपने अच्छा नहीं किया पापा।"

सुहाना के पापा नम आँखों से उसे देखते रहे। कैसे समझाते वो अपनी बेटी को? वो जानते थे की सुहाना बुरी नहीं है, साफ़ दिल की है। लेकिन बिन माँ की बेटी को उन्होंने बड़े लाड से पाला था, कभी किसी बात की रोक टोक नहीं थी उसे। शायद अपनी बेटी को थोड़ी सयानी बनाने के लिए ही उन्होंने इस प्यारे से परिवार में उसकी शादी की थी। लेकिन सुहाना अभी नादान थी। अथर्व  और उसके घर वालों की अच्छाई उसने समझी नहीं थी। और फिर उन्होंने तो सुहाना को अथर्व  की तस्वीर दिखाई थी। उसने खुद हाँ कहा था शादी के लिए। बस पापा ये नहीं जानते थे की बॉय फ्रेंड से झगडा होने पर सुहाना ने गुस्से में बिना तस्वीर देखे ही शादी के लिए हाँ कर दी थी।

पापा बस इतना ही कह पाए " सुहाना अथर्व  को जान ने की कोशिश करो। हर आम इंसान में कोई ख़ास बात होती है।अथर्व  में भी है। उसे मैंने अच्छे से जाना है, परखा है। "

पापा मायूस होकर वहां से चले गए। चाय- नाश्ता देने आई राधा बुआ भी उलटे पैर लौट गई। अपने लाडले ईशान के बारे में ये सुनकर उन्हें बहुत बुरा लगा था। अभी दो दिन भी नहीं हुए थे अथर्व  की शादी को। इतने दिन में ही सुहाना ने एक राय बना ली थी अथर्व  के बारे में।

बुआ से रहा नहीं गया। वो बड़ी माँ के पास जाकर रोने लगी। सारी बातें उन्हें बता दी। बड़ी माँ समझदार थी। वो जानती थी सुहाना पैसे वाले घर में पली- बढ़ी है, उसका रहन सहन उनसे बिलकुल अलग है। उसे थोड़े वक़्त और थोड़े प्यार की ज़रुरत है। उन्होंने राधा बुआ को थोड़ी धीरज रखने के लिए कहा और सुहाना के कमरे की तरफ चल पड़ी। सुहाना भी रो रही थी। वो जानती थी बुआ ने सब सुन लिया है। "आप भी मुझे डांटने आई है ना बड़ी माँ?"

" नहीं बेटा। माँ बस अपने बच्चों को समझाती है। तुम्हे अथर्व  पसंद नहीं ना सही। लेकिन किसी इंसान को जाने बिना सिर्फ उसके दिखावे पर से उसके बारे में राय बनाना सही तो नहीं है ना। बेटा कोई इंसान आम नहीं होता। हर आम से आम इंसान भी किसी ना किसी के लिए ख़ास होता है। हम राह चलते रोज़ कितने ही लोगों को देखते हैं। कभी उन्हें मुड़कर दोबारा देखते भी नहीं है। वो हमारे लिए आम है लेकिन उसके घर कोई है जिसके लिए वो ख़ास है। घर पर कोई नज़रें गडाए उनका इंतज़ार कर रहा होता है। बच्चे अपने पापा को ना जाने कितनी कहानियां सुनाना चाहते हैं। बीवी जाने कबसे तैयार हो कर पति की राह देखती है। माँ-बाप बेटे के देर से घर लौटने पर कितने परेशान हो जाते हैं। हर किसी के लिए वो बन्दा बड़ा ख़ास है।एक औरत जो दिखने में भले ही कोई परी ना हो उसका पूरा घर उसके इर्द- गिर्द घूमता है। ऑफिस में भी वो अपना काम पुरे चाव से करती है। सब कुछ संभाल लेती है। ऐसे हर इंसान अपने आप में ख़ास है बेटा। बस उसे देखने की लिए नज़र चाहिए। तुम्हारे पास भी वो नज़र है। बस अपनी आँखें खोलो और अपने आस पास जो हो रहा है उसे देखो, समझो। ये सब तुम्हे अपना सा लगेगा। अथर्व  हम सबका लाडला है। और तुम भी, हम सबकी प्यारी छोटी सी बहु। थोड़ी तुम कोशिश करना, थोडा हम साथ देंगे। सब कुछ बहुत आसान हो जाएगा। ऐसा करोगी ना बेटा?"

इतने प्यार भरे शब्द सुनकर सुहाना बड़ी माँ से लिपट गई। ज़िन्दगी में पहली बार उसे माँ का प्यार महसूस हुआ। इस घर को अपना बनाने की पूरी कोशिश करने की उसने ठान ली.

P.S. Inspired by a tv serial.

Lasting impressions

There is one incident that happened during my school days, which has somehow stayed back in my memory. I am sure i'll remember it forever bcoz it has left quite an impression on my mind.

Our hindi classes were going on and suddenly there was some sound of mischief from one corner of the room. Since our ma'm had her eyes on the book she didn't know who exactly was behind the mischief. She just asked a boy from that corner to stand up and leave the class. The guy argued that he was not at fault, but ma'm didn't listen to him and he had to leave. The class resumed. But then, after some time, one boy stood up and said that it was his fault and not the other person's. I don't know what led him to the confession, but eventually he too had to get out of the class. At this point, one girl asked ma'm to call the other person back since he was innocent. Ma'm refused. When the girl insisted, she asked the class if we too agreed with her. Sadly, no one stood up, including me. Maybe we were too intimidated by the teacher or didn't have the guts to stand up for the truth. Looking back, i m quite ashamed of myself for not speaking up when my words could have made a difference.

This is quite a small incident and it didn't hold much significance at that time. But today when i look at the bigger picture, i realise it's importance. We see lots of things happening around us which are not right, some things which need to be changed. But we don't speak up and just let it be. People will speak hundreds of words when its absolutely un-necessary, but they fail to speak up when required. They just don't have the courage to stand up for the truth.

Hats off to the girl for having that courage at such a young age. I haven't met her after school. But wherever she is, i hope she will be making a difference in her own small way.

Mommy's dearest

This blog is dedicated to all the parents in waiting, specially a very dear friend of mine. While i was carrying my baby, i used to get all sorts of advices from people. There were talks about how our life changes once we become parents. People told me to be prepared for sleepless nights, baby tantrums, hectic schedules and small tensions related to kids. Someone even advised me to garner as much sleep as i can before the birth as i wouldn't be able to get enough later. As if the earlier sleep would make up for the lack of it later. Whatever they told was with good intention as they really cared, but then they missed out on the fun part. No one ever told me how much fun it is to be with ur kid.

Life surely changes, but only for the better. Schedules are hectic for the first few months, then u get used to it. And we really don't miss out on other activities. We go for outings, restaurants and even caught up a movie recently. My son enjoys himself and behaves quite well when we r out. Quite understanding, u c. Afterall, what's a greater joy than watching ur baby's antics?.

Watching ur small baby grow up into a naughty kid is quite fun. His cute pranks, the shy smile, the way he tries to learn new things, the endless banter, the innocent look on his face when he's asleep ( actually he's quite a brat when he's awake), the way he comes running and cuddles up to u when u call him........ u really don't mind the sleepless nights.

So friends, don't worry. Be prepared to welcome ur bundle of joy.

Power play

I was watching my favourite show on television the other day and suddenly the screen went blank. Doing some important work on the pc and there goes the power. This power play doesn't spare me even in the kitchen. I was trying to bake a yummy cake, and just when i was going to switch on the oven, there it went off again. If u are staying in Bangalore, this is a routine for u.

Born and brought up in a city that never had any power cuts, i initially used to get quite annoyed by these frequent failures in bangalore. But then i learned to live with it like all other bangaloreans. But this doesn't gel well with the image that bangalore carries, one of the most developed cities in india or 'HITECH CITY'. It rules in technology but it still struggles to supply some of the basic necessities to it's ever bulging population.

There's one positive thing about these power cuts though. We can take consolation in the fact that by consuming less electricity, we are saving energy. Thus, we are doing our bit for the environment , however, forcefully. Sometimes i think that these cuts are deliberate so that we can help the cause against global warming.

So fellow bangloreans, summer is coming. Be prepared to sit without electricity in the summer heat and help bring down the heat on our planet Earth.

P.S. It is often said that Bangalore was a small town and it was never meant to be a big city. So, the problems. But now that it has grown out to be quite a big city, what can we do? Mass migration?

It might be the voice of India

When i first read it, i resisted writing anything. Then i read it again and couldnt resist myself. When i read all this, my reactions ranged from anger to humour then frustration and finally disappointment. There was this article in TOI few days back, 'Why Gujarat is Special'. And i couldn't help laughing at the ideas expressed by the writer. He claims to have gone deep into the psychological analysis of Gujaratis and studied well the history of Gujarat. He feels communalism is deep rooted in Gujarat since centuries. There were the somnath riots in last century. Then Gujarat lost mumbai almost half a century back. And Gujaratis are angry over these losses and their suppressed anger is coming out in the form of votes to Modi. At least he agrees that the people of the state had reasons to be angry and injustice was done to them in the past. But i wonder how many gujaratis had somnath riots and mumbai on their minds while they voted. Infact i didn't even know about that ages old riots. And what about the cosmopoliton public living in the state and also those muslims who voted for modi? What lured them to vote for such a person? The writers views are just strange and too far - fetched. He is astonished at the elections results. So intead of justing sitting and wondering that how could people elect a person like Modi, why doesn't he do some ground work? Just visit the state and ask the voters. Go and see exactly how much maldeveloped the state is. ( he referred to Gujarat as a maldeveloped state. And it has been among the most developed states of the country since years).

Then i read 'Blame the middle class'. Ahhh! That prompted me to write something.The writer says that the urban middle class of the state is responsible for the politics of hate. Well, how many money-minded gujaratis exactly have caste and religion on their minds on a day-to-day basis? Then here's one quote ' Development in the state now justifies amorality, abridgemet of freedom and collpase of social ethics.' Since when is a job well done called amoral? Is not allowing people to resort to corruption called abridgement of freedom? If a person has the power to lead people and motivate them to work for development is following him called collpase of social ethics? All that the middle class wants is development, a peaceful life and stability. If modi provides that, what's wrong in electing him? At least he is better than these so called intellectuals and psychologists who cannot get the rubbish about caste and religion out of their minds. They are the biggest communal people. Don't they realise that they are doing nothing to help the affected people? Infact they are bringing back the old memories. That's the reason people don't trust them. Those who can't take this rubbish out of their heads cannot rule a state. Because they are the ones who will spread politics of hate. They conveniently forget that there have been no riots in the state post 2002. While Modi was talking about development , they provoked him to talk otheriwise. He talked about terrorism and how the central government has failed to curb it. He talked about how such incidents were stopped from occuring in the state. So blame yourself ' psuedo-secularists'. I fail to understand one thing. Why is gujarat so special? Why do people jump to condemn anything that happens here while turning a blind eye to a similar situation elsewhere? It is not Modi who provokes the people of this state, it is these people who don't miss a chance to say something derogatory at every instance. Afterall it was one of these writers who suggested that decades old suppressed anger is coming out now. And he is adding fuel to the fire.

Alas, 2002 will remain a blot in the history of the state. Everything that happens here will be dissected, analysed and viewed under a microscope. Gujarat has to learn to live with it.

Lastly, there was a question, 'Is Gujarat India?' How about giving India a chance to decide?

The place of my birth

Gujarat has been in the news since past some days, and mostly for the wrong reasons. But being born and brought up in ahmedabad, i can say that the city and the state are among the safest in the country. I am staying out of ahmedabad since past five years, but i miss the genuine warmth of the city. One can never feel alone or left out when in ahmedabad.

The city is my native, so it's natural when i shower praises on it. But this sentiment is echoed by my friends who have come from different parts of the country and settled here or even stayed here for a while. They feel at home here, sometimes even more than their own natives. The people are so friendly that they instantly make u feel at ease. But its not that they intrude into ur life. If u want company they are always there, and if u want to be alone, they'll let u be.

The only regret i've is that amdavadis are not vocal about their love for the city like mumbaikars or even bangaloreans. Perhaps because they (and gujaratis in general ) would rather let their work speak for themselves. Maybe thats the reason the state is progressing even when some people and the media choose to stay stuck up in the past. What's the point in bringing up the same issues time and again, bringing back old memories and hurts? Just look at the way the state and the city have progressed inspite of everything. Storms, earthquakes, floods, droughts, riots, nothing has broken the spirit of the state. It has always risen from the ashes. The people here have moved forward with resilience. They have just kept quite and continued with their work. But this has allowed some people to take potshots at the state time and again.

Resilience is good, but what's the harm in being more vocal?