Auf wiedersehen

Meeting people and making friends is one of the common behaviors of any individual. I am not different in that regard. I do love meeting people. But I am a bit choosy in making friend. I generally take a little more time than general to open up with any one. But once I open up with someone, I love being part of the inner circle of that friend or would like to keep him / her in my inner circle of the relationship. In short, I believe in long lasting friendship. I try being or keeping that person near to me. But what is not important is what you like but important is how time wants things to be.

In this much little life, I have made very few good friends. I do have spent a considerably good time with them. Enjoyed every moments of togetherness with them. But what is really painful is departing with them. Not because of any misunderstandings with them but because its time that feel there are certain thing which is more important than the togetherness. Departing with those friends is like something is being torn apart from within you. And while in such a moment I could not be able to express my emotions over my face. That’s because perhaps I am not a good actor. Whatever, but the truth is that, such moment of departure is always a painful experience. However that painful emotion remains momentary for me as I know that this is just a geographical distance not the emotional parting.

Thank God, I never have lost those good friends from life. And certainly this time is not an exception.

Pour Out Disputs

Its rainy season here. I love this season very much. And riding bike in rain is one of the most cherished adventures of my life. To enjoy this rain a little more, I planned to visit one of the nearby small villages called “Chhati” on my bike with one of my colleague. Since morning, it seems like raining, but didn’t rain. We finished our work there and were coming back to Raipur. The rain was a little levelheaded and didn’t have demented us during doing our work. Perhaps the rain knows very well that enjoyment comes after work. So while coming back, it started raining.

I was in mood of enjoying the rain, but of mizzles only and not of those heavy water fall. So, we decided to take a shelter at any first place we will see on the highway. My colleague stopped the bike at one of the hut of the first village that came on the highway. This village was “Birejher” and that hut like structure was a police chowki. Three – four policemen were sitting outside the hut on a bench in the porch like structure intruded out of the hut. Like any common countryman, my colleague is also having a kind of obvious fear about the policeman. He was a little vexed once he came to know that this shelter was a police chowki. To avoid his nervousness, he started talking to me. Though I was more interested on rain rather than what he was talking. There was lot of greenery spread till the stretch of our visual modality. The color of leaf was looking deeper after being sprinkled by the rain. Some bikers and few four wheelers were still running with hastiness on the road, as if they were in a hurry to reach home before the rains worsen the situation. Some people were passing by on their bicycle, enjoying the rain. Kids of the village came out of their hut and were running behind each other while enjoying the rain. Very mesmerizing scenery. A real enjoyment for me of getting such a beautiful visual treat. My engrossment broke only when two people came into the chowki in a hurry. Perhaps those policemen knew these two guys as they replied to their greetings calling their names. Those two persons get involved in some discussion with the police. I was not having anything to do so unintentionally get involved in their discussion as they were trying to address their talk to everyone present there.

They were father – son duo. They came there to take some follow up about their pending case with these policemen. The case was, they were having some plot of land in the village which is being captured by some other person of the village. These two persons lodged a complaint to the police against this. The case went to court. After a much awaited trails, the honorable court had given their verdict in the favor of the father – son duo and has schooled the local police to help them get their land back from the convict’s possession.

The FIR had been lodged by them about 12 years back, honorable court took 11 year time to give a final verdict in the case and now since 1 year they are coming to the police station almost daily to get back their land. The police are every time giving them some condones and showing their incapability of helping them out as the convict had taken the case to the High Court and had successfully got a stay order from there. Now since the case is in higher court, police is unable to help them out in the case. The issue is, since last 12 year, the convict is using this altercated land and getting crop from it year after year, making money from the land and using some part of that earning in extending the case to every passing year.

Huh…

Strange. What to say? How to react? Enjoying the rain has eloped suddenly after seeing this incident. A lot of thought process started. I think, this is one of the areas where we not only as a human being but as a nation need to look upon. I mean, what to say... Really don't know what I need to think upon this issue or what can I do for them. I am a bit confused. But one thing is for sure that I somewhere is not feeling good to hear this whole story...
Really really very much confused of the situation.

Complicated Anthropology

I really don’t know the exact meaning of Anthropology; neither have I known better what exactly this stream of study is for? But one thing which always attracts me is observing and understanding individuals or groups. While doing so, lot of observations comes out. Though, I feel a little discerning about delineating any ratiocination, as this sometimes hurt my thought.

One such observation I came across last days was people’s behavior towards different groups. We in our lifetime remain part of many groups. For different groups our behavior remains different, even our affiliation to different group remains different. Our comfort level remains different. Like a group of Managers stay connected more with the fellow group of managers rather than a group of his own sub – ordinates irrespective of the fact that a manager is manager because of his sub – ordinates. Similarly, a group of HR fellow feels to be in more comfort zone in the same group rather than the employees of the organization, irrespective of the fact that it is people who make an organization and not just HR fellow. Same is the case with the Finance or Marketing stream guys. While being more associated with one group, we often forgets that the group that we are snubbing or rather less prioritized over the other is also our own group which helps in giving us identity and acknowledging us.

It is really not a wise idea to ignore one group while being more associated with the other. I think, plowing a group and making a balance in that, in such a way that our presence is felt everywhere is rather an art than merely a human behavior. And mastering this art would definitely a learnt behavior and not the innate one.

Relevance

I was reading Gulam Abbas’ story. He may be less known author in India but is one of the cherished authors in Pakistan. The story was “Anandi”. He very beautifully had written the thought of society about something which a society think is not good for society’s cultural health but most often a society itself get structured around it. This was the story of a red light area which was in the middle of a “cultured town”. The municipal corporation of the town had passed a bill to shift those prostitutes to some 15 km away from this cultured town. So the area had been shifted to a very abandoned part of the outskirt where there were bare lands all around with barbed herbs. Though far away from the town, this business still flourished there and people started doing there small business to cater visitors and residents of this new colony. To do the business conveniently here people build their own house. And then over a period of time, a town interposed around the colony of the prostitutes. Then a time came when the respectful people of the municipal corporation of this newly built town had called a meeting to discuss how and why this red light area is situated in the middle of the town which is not good for the cultural health of the town.

Very beautiful story, written in a very interesting way. Hats off to Mr. Gulam Abbas. I wish to read him more.

This is a kind of incidence which generally happens around us. Many a times we do observe it though do not put our brain much over it.

There was a same incident that happened just two months back around me.

I am staying in Raipur at one of the good society of a very low profile area. Actually, while passing through this area you would hardly imagine such a good society in the middle. While passing through this area, I often had to put my feet firm on the break as there was a liquor shop on the way to my society. And the area around the liquor shop always happens to be crowded. This had became my routine to ride dead slow while crossing this liquor shop. There was always a kind of glitter I was finding around this shop. Lots of people standing in queue in front of the liquor shop to wait for their number to get their quota of the night. Lots of temporary shops of snacks were having those kerosene lamps with shivering flames, trying to attract drunkards. A group of police man targeting people to earn some penny as a bribe in the course of maintaining the law and order of the area. Some drunkards were found lying on the road after gulping his dose of the day. Some were wandering on the road very abruptly in the effect of alcohol. Quite a lively atmosphere, creating livelihood of lot of people by using their own hard earned money of the day.

One day while passing through that same shop I find something unusual. The liquor shop was closed and there was a group of people doing some dharna to close this shop as this is creating a kind of cultural contamination to the society. This lasted for 3 days and finally ended when the shop owner had put down the board of the liquor shop from its place. And in this way a lively atmosphere of the surroundings had came to a halt with the closure of the liquor shop, allowing the culture of the society flourish at its extreme. 

Just two days after this incident, while coming back to my home, I took other road which was another way to reach my society; I saw the same kind of glitter there which I was seeing near that liquor shop. I saw a big crowd like that of the crowd around the liquor shop, those temporary stalls of snacks seller with the shivering flames of the kerosene lamps, those wandering drunkards and those fallen drunkards. The same group of police man making money while putting the law and order of the area in place. Oh my god, the sign board of that same liquor shop I found there in one of the newly built under construction single story shop. It was the same liquor shop which was being closed after some dharna by some so called social activists. Every thing was same except the fact that this shop was being opened some 200 meters away from its old place.

And suddenly the story of “Anandi” and the Author Gulam Abbas waved in front of my eyes. I just smiled and put my foot firm over the break.

Flame buoyant Euphoria

It was a kind of euphoria which I was feeling after getting some compliment which is not that much big to feel euphoric. I had to courier some document so I went to a stationary shop to purchase envelop. There a boy in his late teen age was sitting. He seems to be sitting there to help his father as his school was having summer vacation. I asked for envelop. And along with the envelop, he gave me compliment that this is first time he had heard the right pronunciation of envelop. Great but nothing that great. You little kid, any one says an envelop an envelop and even pronounce the same way. Perhaps this is first time when you have noticed it. Whatever, I moved ahead to the courier office with a kind of unnecessary euphoria.

While going back to my home, I had been caught by the traffic police. No, not for the rash driving or dishonoring the traffic signal, but for a routine check. I generally carry all the papers of my bike, so I was not panic of this sudden stoppage by the traffic police. I showed all the papers of my bike to them. But it seems that they didn’t have stopped me or others just for checking papers. After checking all my documents, the policeman finally ended up finding some flaw in that and asked for one of the insignificant paper. While all that drama was going on, I saw a lot of folded palms meeting each others. Folded palms of those halted bikers meeting folded palms of policemen.

Ok, so you are really not interested in checking papers, but to have some money. I generally do not appreciate bribing and even do not take part in any such activity. In fact, I hate this. But this time was exception. The single star bearing policeman checking my paper was repeatedly asking me for the other paper he asked for.

I said, “I don’t have that, now tell me what to do?”

He said to pay fine.

I said, ok, tell me how much fine do I have to pay? For this he was not answering anything and again was giving me all the gyan of carrying all the papers while riding bike.

During all that probing and re probing by that guy, one thing was clear to me that he had stopped me to get some money, without any reason. But I was rigid about paying fine rather than bribing him. It took half an hour, and I was standing there like a fool observing bribing and hearing his gyan.

Finally I gave up, took out 2 notes of hundred out of seer infliction, kept those notes in my folded palm and let my folded palm meet the folded one of that policeman. To this he grin and said, would you have done it before, you would not have wasted your and our half an hour.

I was feeling like I should kill that bastard. To me that policeman was not different than any terrorist or Naxalite or anyone who is hampering the real soul of our motherland with their insane act.

Just an hour before the unnecessary euphoria with which I was passing through turned into the great vexation towards that policeman and even for my own self.

Seven Life To Pay One Debt

In every ones life a time comes when he or she regrets for some of the acts of his / her past. I am finding myself in the same kind of situation. I don’t know I was wrong at that point of time or not but I am feeling that whatever I did then was definitely not an act expected from a human. This is not first time when I am feeling sorry about that moment. Many a times, that incident waves over my eyes and wet them.

I was studying in Std 4th or 5th when my exams were over and was having winter vacation. This was for about a month and was given a lot of homework by my school. Those days, I was having a habit of reading comics. I even was having a collection of comics and books. I always use to read and re read them during my vacations. I remember, Patna was having a huge book fair every year during January or February. I was regular in that book fair and always use to wait for that book fair for the whole year. My father use to give me a Rs. 100 for that book fair every year. He was expecting me to go to the book fair, eat, and enjoy there with my friends. But I was always saving money for the whole year to purchase some books from there. So including the money which I was receiving from my father, I always use to purchase lots of books from there. This was making my father happy as he is having great respect for goddess Saraswati.

But that year I didn’t have received even a single penny from my father for the purpose of purchasing books. Perhaps he was facing a very sever financial crisis. I remember he even was going to his office walking instead of taking some rickshaw or bus to save some coins. And that time when I asked for money for book fair, he said no and said try to manage this time and not purchase any book. But I started shouting that I need money and that’s final, he said, see my boy you already have lot of books in your bookshelf. So this time don’t purchase any book. Next year I will give you double money to purchase books. I know, he was saying this in a great pain but even he was helpless. So I went to my room and stopped talking to him. Two days after this incident, I asked to my Mother that I need Rs 20 for purchasing a pen as I don’t have any pen and will have to finish my homework. My mother said, beta you already have lot of pen so use them only as you father is very much in depression due to the kind of financial crisis he is facing.

But I was firm over my stand that if you didn’t have given money to purchase books then give me money to purchase a Pilot Pen. Otherwise I will not do my homework. With a lot of pain, my dad handed over a 20-rupee note to me and I went to market to purchase a Pilot Pen. I purchased one, which literally was insignificant to me as I was having a lot of collection of pens.

Two days after that I was coming home in the evening from one of my friend’s home whose home was near to my Dad’s office. I was on my bicycle. I saw my dad on the way to home walking. I felt shock to see him walking down to home from his office that was about 6 Km. Just to see me happy, he had given Rs. 20 to me for a pen which surely was not required by me. He was suffering from this financial crisis and never had let us feel the situation. I was shocked. Should I cry or what to do…

I came home and went to my room, locked my room and started crying. I still have that pen with me for which my father has suffered. I don’t know would I be able to return this 20- rupee to my dad or not. Even if I work for my whole life, I wouldn’t be able to save, rather earn that 20-rupee to return my dad…

Coming Back To Roots

This starts where the dominion of advance, progressive and glamorous India ends. It starts where the rosy picture of modern life style comes to a halt. It starts where modern means of transportation ceases and imagery travels through the muddy, dark uneven roads. Yes, this is REAL INDIA. An India, which does not wear expensive, imported cosmetics but still looks as beautiful as heaven. An India, which knows that their body is giving an olfactory sensation to the surrounding but still, enjoys the smell of their elbow grease. A India which don’t know the name of person sitting next to her in a bus or train, but still try to take better care of him or her during the journey irrespective of her own comfort. Yes this is the Real India which is more beautiful than the so called its progressive counterpart. The India which may not be financially as strong as the other, but is more stable than the other part which always keep looking upon the every movement of SENSEX for identifying its own stability status.

Perhaps this is my first introduction to the REAL INDIA or perhaps this is first time when I am closely sussing out this India.

It was a very hard decision for me to shift to a rural part of the country, where wind carries lot of mud and where travel is a nightmare, from the highly developed part of nation where everything, even breeze is blowing with a kind of sophistication. In fact I almost started complaining about the place and even my this decision of moving to this place. Now that work is completely taking me to the ride that I am hardly getting time for myself, this India appeared to me.

The India, which is more innocent than the other India where inconsideration has become habit, rather attitude of people. The Real India where the land is worshiped rather than seen as a means of business. So what that people here are able to take only two crops from their land, they are happy feeding the country while staying empty stomach in between the two crops. So what, that they may not be a prospective customer for multi nationals, they are happy going to their haat and giving tough crusade to the counterpart. Where smile is given not to lurk pain or heinous act but to show real concern. Where wearing cloths is more of need based than to show off the world the dressing sense. Be it the kind of dress this India is wearing or the way they are eating, or the way they are talking to you, you will start loving everything of this India once you start believing this India and these Indians. My job demands a lot of traveling. These days I am traveling to every nook and corners of this rural India. The more I am traveling the more I would like to extend my travel to experience different aspects of these Indians life. Whether I am traveling through a train, a bus or a cab, I always find myself spell bounded with the surroundings. It always gives me a good feeling agaze upon people and observing them so as to understand everything.

Oh this is really beautiful India and Indian. I wish I could live this India forever and ever.

"S" (Success) Comes After "F" (Failure)

It is said that failure is the first step to success. I agree. I agree, because I have seen it time and again in my this much life. Although I can’t say that I didn’t have seen success in my life, but whatever the little success had came in my life, came late and after taking my whole lot of effort.

I remember the day when I didn’t have got selected for NCC Navy Core during my school days and was reluctantly went to join Scout. I remember my difficult survival for Rajya Puraskar in Scouting. I was almost abject of me passing out in this camp, but got cleared. I remember my selection for President Scout in the year 1998 because of my longevity as my contemporary batch mate was out of the school and went to study some good convent school. During this bivouac in Madhupur, a beautiful Railway Learning Center in Southern part of Bihar, I was getting cleared of by just a couple of marks more than the passing marks. My passing of this camp was appearing almost impossible. This really had frustrated me a lot and I worked hard in the final test. Out of a miracle of my really hard work at the eleventh hour, I happened to be the only guy from Bihar who get cleared into this camp and became President Scout. Oh god, how can I forget that moment when the CO of that camp had declared the result of that camp on the last day!

I came home after the camp and had announced my passing into that camp and becoming President Scout, the highest grade of the Scouting, my Dad felt so happy and had went to market to bring some Jalebi, a local Indian Sweet, for the entire family to celebrate my this little success which literally doesn’t have any significance in making career in future. Whatever, a success is a success, be it a small or big. Moreover I know what it took to get this success.

I remember my MBA days, when I was considered to be a mediocre student. It was the first semester of MBA and like most of the other student in that college, I was more into enjoying this time and was not studying much. Than a time came when our exams started hovering over our head and we then have started studying. That time intention was just to score leastways that much marks to keep the terms. During our internal exam, I scored highest in Managerial Economics. I probably had got highest marks because of my good handwriting or probably all had studied equally and I would have got advantage because of my way of writing answer. This actually had given me relief, but pain to one of my classmate. He was so depressed of me getting highest marks in this subject which that guy was having an opinion that he is the best in this subject. So in this state of mind he commented over the internal politics and face value than the intelligence for getting marks in internal exam. Again a failure, if not totally than partially, had motivated me to work hard and harder to get an edge. Goss, I scored a good mark even in the external exam and stood among 5 top students in that semester. This initial success actually had motivated me to work hard. In fact, I had got a taste of success and started studying hard and finally stood Topper in Marketing Stream. Another little success that came after some initial failure. In fact, every time I got success only after some initial failure.

If I recall my past, I could figure out that I had never been taken seriously. People started noticing me only after some successes. I learned that to get noticed you need to perform. This fact had given me strength to work hard and harder to make my good name into the arena of which I am the part of during that point of time.

This was not end of the difficult time in my life. I think the worst had to come yet into my life. And it doesn’t took much time to experience me that worst in my life.

I remember my days during my practically first job in Cadila Healthcare Ltd. I got selected into this esteemed Pharmaceutical Firm and went for about a month long training program in Ahmedabad (Gujrat). There a batch of training had already been started and I joined that batch after about a week of its commencement. There some of the experts were giving us training on subjects related to human systems and application of various chemical molecules over the system. Since I joined this training program after a week of its start, some of the basic course had been covered. It was whole lot of new subject for me to study. So I was finding some difficulty in adjusting with the training program. It wasn’t because I was dumb in that subject, but because I had missed the basics, which were being taught in the very first week. Hence I was not getting all the things that were been taught in that training. At the top of it, they were taking test every evening about what they taught us. In those test, I could not be able to perform. A day came when the training manager Mr. Mahadev Rao had berated me for I am not answering questions he asked in the classroom and am not up to the mark intellectually to join this organization. He told me to keep my luggage packed and go home if I could miss even a single question next day. This had given me a great feeling of failure and I studied for the whole evening and night. When other roommates of my room in the hotel were playing and enjoying their time, I was studying and trying to cover all the subjects, which was being taught. It was not because to save my job, but to show the world what I am. I didn’t have taken sleep that night. My roommates were saying to leave the training program before the class to avoid any embracement in the classroom. Even they were not having faith over me to clear this challenge. After this much vilification, I do wanted to leave this training and job, but not as a failure but as a winner. Next morning, the class started at 8 in the morning. Mahadev Rao came to the classroom and asked me to come to the dice and give presentation. When I asked about the topic that to on which topic should I give presentation, he said, “It doesn’t matter on which topic you want to give presentation today, as this is your last day in the training camp and will have to leave the training and company after your presentation. I suppose, you must have packed your luggage”.

I said, “Yes sir, I have packed my luggage. I would like to start this presentation from the basics and would slowly proceed to whatever had been taught in this training program till the date”.

As I started my presentation, Mahadev Rao was hearing it very casually. With the progress of my presentation, Rao started listening and at the end of my presentation, he commented, “See he write alphabet “S” very differently”. Yes I write “S” very differently and I always write it better than anyone. After joining my territory in Mumbai, I did what was dreamt of doing in that territory. My bosses have noticed me into the company and my good work have been appreciated by all.

Same thing had happened in my next company Nestle India Ltd, where initially I have not been noticed, and then when I started performing, got a good éclat in the company.

I don’t know whether I should have to get motivated of my past failure or not but every time I get failure, I try to sharpen my axe to get an edge over others.

This is just a start of my life; I don’t know what time has stored for me in future.

Those Old Days Emotions

Many a times, you do something or experience something in past and time let you forget that with its every passing bits. And then while traveling through your memories lane, all of a sudden you come across something which in past had amused you, when it was happening somewhere near to you. When this happens, you just export yourself to the past to re-live that moment, to see your expression at that point of time when that special thing had happened to you.

Same kind of feeling I am experiencing today. This was the incident when I was studying management. There was that beautiful and innocent lady in my class, whose presence just revitalizes everyone. When she is near to someone, no one was using his/her brain but just was enjoying her presence. Although she was not fool or dopy. But the way she speaks to people or her logic over anything simply was bringing smile over everyone’s face. Not even a single boy tries philandering her. She was only a soothing presence for everyone, be it a boy or a girl. Everyone was so diligent while talking to her. This obviously had attracted me towards her. It had nothing to take with flirting with her or kind of. But I wanted her presence in every bit of my life. She was so decent that I could not be able to express my feeling to her except to show extra care. I think, even she would have felt the glow in my eyes, which unwittingly bobs up when she would be around. She always was telling me that my eyes are so expressive and could not conceal the emotions coming to my heart. Although I could not be able to read in between the lines what she says. Perhaps because it is not my habit to understand what is not said. I always believe in straight communication rather than something to speak to let people guess what is the meaning of the said idiomatic expression. She always used to ask, why I am caring her so much. But as a habit of mine, I always had been so introvert in expressing my feelings very clearly to her. This was not because of the reason that I fell sort in verbalizing but because I always have feared of loosing her from my life if I express my feelings to her.

So the time passed, and she was still the game for me. Then a day came when we were about to graduate from the college. All the people of college were enjoying to the extreme in last few days of our college. Perhaps college or school days are always some of the precious period of everyone’s life which people always use to keep at the bottom of their heart to avoid any chance of its being stolen by someone. We knew that after this, we would not get any chance to enjoy like a student of University but would have to proceed to the professional life where we even don’t know what our fate has written over the paper of time.

One evening, after some fun in canteen, we were going back to our rooms, that pretty lady came to me and offered to have a cup of coffee with me. I was surprised, in fact surreal. Why she want to have coffee again if we already had one in-group! But without going through a lot of conjectures, I started walking the street with her to the nearby restaurant. There, we had a long hush. This silence was killing me. I became very apprehensive and ultimately tried to break the ice to start the talk. I was very anxious to see the kind of expressions coming over her face. I don’t know, what she wanted me to listen to her silence. Now if I remember that moment, I could understand the meaning of her silence, but wouldn’t be able to understand at that point of time. Ultimately with a very impenetrable voice, she started, “Saheb (This name had given by her to me), I perhaps know your feelings, your emotions towards me. I know, you like me and all my forms. The kind of care and affection you had given me in last two years is very rare. I think, the way you took care of me is something which I didn’t have got even from my family members, my parents. I do have same kind of emotions for you, what you have for me. I do want your presence in every moment of my life. Isn’t it possible that we should live together till eternity?”

I was speechless. I don’t know what to react. I did not know that she is that much sensible. I do have liked her. But was unaware that she could be able to express herself this much strongly and clearly. God, I was not having that much dares to express myself such strongly. And see, what she is saying.

Now it was my turn to express. I said, yes I would like your presence in every thick and thins of my life. But would you be able to walk with me till the end of our life!

Again a big silence. But this time she was really verbalizing with her expressions. I could clearly be able to read her eyes and perhaps her heart.

She said, “I know this is too late to give such commitments to you. But I would like you to be always around me whether I am with you or not”. With this she closed her talk and had given me a notebook with a paper inserted in it. She said, “This notebook is having a lot of thing written over its every page. I have written all my emotions for you on this notebook. If you can read, read it”. I didn’t have opened that book immediately. I don’t know for how long we were sitting there in restaurant. We didn’t have spoke even a single word after that but was listening and understanding each other. We left the place only when the waiter said, its time to close the shop.

I walked with her to her hostel, with a hush. Came back to my room. Opened the notebook. The notebook was completely blank except a page inserted separately into it which was having something written. This was written in English. It was a very crude English. I could not be able to understand what she had written over that piece of paper, but could be able to understand the circumstances when she would have written this. Probably she was trying to write a lot of thing and in this course of hurry, she wrote something understanding which is very difficult. The notebook was complete blank. This blank notebook was something where she really would have written her feelings but I was unable to read that time.

Now that suddenly this notebook came to my hand while arranging my stuff, I could be able to read all her emotions, and have read each and every page of that blank notebook. Yes I know it is still a blank notebook, but the time have overwritten a lot of things over every page of this notebook. Yes I can read what is written and overwritten over its every page, but it is too late now…

Differences in Diversity

This is marriage season. Everywhere you will see some barat going on with all the band and dances. This is creating a kind of traffic cram in the city roads. While you are in one such jam, you have got two options only, either you frustrate with this jam and clapperclaw people for no civic sense or you will enjoy the barat procession. In either case you could not be able to change any thing except your that passing moment. Just by enjoying that, you can make that moment dulcet. And that is what I am doing, generally.

Yesterday evening while going back home, I got stuck in one such traffic. There one marriage party was going on with all the dance and crackers on the road. This had created a massive traffic jam. On the top of it, everyone was trying hard to come out of this traffic jam and hence had literally exacerbated the situation. It had created a great mayhem on the road. Even if I was the part of this heavy traffic, I was out of it and was enjoying this marriage procession. I was just observing people in this crowd, their enjoyment and their unusual dances. Very Indian dance with all those snake dance movement, tapori dances, wrestling dances and “Only God Knows” kind of dances. This marriage procession was of some Muslim family. Everything in that marriage was same like any other marriage of any community except one thing. And that one thing was the songs which band party was playing. All the songs were taken from only those films where either Arabic music was there or had portrayed some Muslim family. No one was asking band to play some recent popular hit numbers. This was something which aroused my interest the most.

We say that we the Indian are same and only our names are different. We say that we all share the same tradition called India. But we conveniently differentiate ourselves with others by strictly adhering to what we call is our own. A professional dancer can dance on any track irrespective of the fact that which religion he or she follows or which tradition that songs belongs to. But dances done in marriages indicates the common people of the country and their faith and beliefe. That is very much distinguishing from each other. And that distinguishing thing creates differences among us. Our faiths are so much strong in these traditions that we cannot think of deviating from it and stay intransigent about it. We refuse enjoying even on the songs which we feel is not ours and belongs to some other religion. This I feel somewhere leads to all the communal vexing. This somewhere tells us that though we are sharing the same space called India but we are totally different than others. And this is one “Diversity in Unity” and “Differences in Unity” and “Differentiation in Diversity”.