It’s the Christmas-New Year season and there was not much work to do in office so I was randomly browsing through people’s profiles on Facebook and stumbled upon Darius Sunawala’s profile. I just remembered how entertaining the radio shows used to be at that time. So, this blog is dedicated to Sunaina Lall and Darius who added fun to my mornings during school days.
I don’t really remember what this show used to be called, but I think it was called the ‘Breakfast Show’. Sunaina Lall used to host the show alone initially, and then Darius was brought on board. The duo used to play old English hits and new Bollywood numbers. They used to make it a point to play music that would complement the weather each day, this used to be amazing. The fights that they used to have on air used to be hilarious, with Darius losing the arguments always. We had a radio in the kitchen and would never miss turning it on at our breakfast time. I used to love it when it rained ‘cos I was sure they would play my favorite romantic numbers, and that would leave me in a dreamy mood for the rest of the day! :) (Ye! I know I’m hopelessly romantic!)
But this was during my PU days, once I started attending college, FM Radio underwent a huge change and Bangalore got a wider choice of radio channels to listen to. After that I was lost. I hardly got time to listen to radio.
The other things that I’m really missing from my school days are the videos of the song albums that used to come on TV. Lucky Ali’s ‘O Sanam’, Falguni Pathak’s ‘Yaad piya ki aane lagi’ and even Aslam and Shibani’s ‘Ho gayi hai mohabbat’. I was really crazy about those songs.
I miss the innocence of those years and the ability I had to dream about things so easily. It was an uncomplicated world, consisting only of school, books, friends and parents. Now, it’s so different, there’s work, competition,gossip, muddled up feelings, doubt, fear………….the works!! All driving us MAD!
Many people tell me that I live in the past, and should try to come out of it. But if the past brought more happiness to me than the present, why not live in the past??
Wednesday 28 December 2011
Monday 26 December 2011
My thoughts on Ramayana
I did my schooling in a traditional Christian school in Bangalore, so I did not know as much of Ramayana and Mahabharatha as I knew of the Bible. I was not lucky enough to hear these stories from my grandparents either, because they did not live with me. The other day when I found the book ‘Indian Epics Retold’ by R.K Narayan in the library, I picked it up instantly and brought it home, fully excited.
I just finished reading Ramayana from this book, and was fascinated by the story no doubt, but there were a lot of things that got me bemused. R.K.N has based his writing on Kamban’s Ramayana, and I really don’t know how authentic his version of Ramayana was nor did I bother to find out. I just treated myself to the brilliant narration of R.K.N and wanted to share some of my thoughts in this post.
After reading the first few chapters I found myself wondering why so much importance was being given to Rama alone. After all, Dasharatha had three more sons, and it was only natural that he should love Bharatha, the son of his favorite wife, Kaikeyi more than the other sons. Rama was the incarnation of Lord Vishnu,but the people in Ayodhya didn’t know about it, did they?
I really felt pity for Lakshmana throughout the story because he is almost always ignored. When Rama is going to exile, he readily follows Rama, and we see that Sumitra cries because Rama is leaving, but does not show any sign of grief for the departure of her own son. Lakshmana shows his intelligence in many situations, I’d say he was more brilliant than Rama, because he warns Rama before he kills Vali, and even when Sita tells him to go and rescue Rama during the Mareecha incident, he tells her not to jump to conclusions and stays by her side to guard her, but finally relents when she starts doubting his intentions. He does not take to believing people very easily unlike Rama. If Rama listened to Lakshmana, and did not blindly follow the Golden Deer he could have easily avoided Sita’s abduction.
The most intriguing part of the story was when Sita sees Rama for the first time when he’s entering the palace, and falls in love with him. The way the author explains this romance is really cute. He says that Sita becomes restless and cannot bring herself to sleep, nothing interests her, and she wonders who the handsome young man is. Rama too goes through the same emotions, but does not exhibit them because it is unbecoming of a man to let such petty things bother him. To think of Gods falling in love, was kind of amusing to me. :)
Vali’s episode brought tears to my eyes because he praises Rama a lot before going out to fight with Sughreeva , and finally becomes a prey to Rama’s arrow itself. I really felt bad for Vali, but Rama finally explains to him why he did what he did and Vali bids good bye rather happily.
The introduction of Ravana is kind of funny. His cruelty is showcased in a rather amusing way, he’s shown to have Gods working for him and the thing that got me laughing was that even the moon was afraid to pass through the corridors of Ravana’s palace for fear of being captured by him. Ha ha that was really naïve.
The characters like Jatayu, Ahalya and Thataka add spice to the story. Being a ‘diehard’ hater of the Harry Potter series, I’d say that Ramayana makes for a better read, and it is a complete package with romance, action, morals and everything that you’d want in a story.
I just finished reading Ramayana from this book, and was fascinated by the story no doubt, but there were a lot of things that got me bemused. R.K.N has based his writing on Kamban’s Ramayana, and I really don’t know how authentic his version of Ramayana was nor did I bother to find out. I just treated myself to the brilliant narration of R.K.N and wanted to share some of my thoughts in this post.
After reading the first few chapters I found myself wondering why so much importance was being given to Rama alone. After all, Dasharatha had three more sons, and it was only natural that he should love Bharatha, the son of his favorite wife, Kaikeyi more than the other sons. Rama was the incarnation of Lord Vishnu,but the people in Ayodhya didn’t know about it, did they?
I really felt pity for Lakshmana throughout the story because he is almost always ignored. When Rama is going to exile, he readily follows Rama, and we see that Sumitra cries because Rama is leaving, but does not show any sign of grief for the departure of her own son. Lakshmana shows his intelligence in many situations, I’d say he was more brilliant than Rama, because he warns Rama before he kills Vali, and even when Sita tells him to go and rescue Rama during the Mareecha incident, he tells her not to jump to conclusions and stays by her side to guard her, but finally relents when she starts doubting his intentions. He does not take to believing people very easily unlike Rama. If Rama listened to Lakshmana, and did not blindly follow the Golden Deer he could have easily avoided Sita’s abduction.
The most intriguing part of the story was when Sita sees Rama for the first time when he’s entering the palace, and falls in love with him. The way the author explains this romance is really cute. He says that Sita becomes restless and cannot bring herself to sleep, nothing interests her, and she wonders who the handsome young man is. Rama too goes through the same emotions, but does not exhibit them because it is unbecoming of a man to let such petty things bother him. To think of Gods falling in love, was kind of amusing to me. :)
Vali’s episode brought tears to my eyes because he praises Rama a lot before going out to fight with Sughreeva , and finally becomes a prey to Rama’s arrow itself. I really felt bad for Vali, but Rama finally explains to him why he did what he did and Vali bids good bye rather happily.
The introduction of Ravana is kind of funny. His cruelty is showcased in a rather amusing way, he’s shown to have Gods working for him and the thing that got me laughing was that even the moon was afraid to pass through the corridors of Ravana’s palace for fear of being captured by him. Ha ha that was really naïve.
The characters like Jatayu, Ahalya and Thataka add spice to the story. Being a ‘diehard’ hater of the Harry Potter series, I’d say that Ramayana makes for a better read, and it is a complete package with romance, action, morals and everything that you’d want in a story.
Wednesday 14 December 2011
Tribulations on a winter morning
This morning when the alarm went off, I woke up bleary-eyed, with a strong desire to bunk work, but as they say, “If wishes were horses, beggars could ride”, so I just pushed myself out of bed and got ready. The weather outside was making things worse for me; Bangalore’s winters can make you feel lazy, arousing all kinds of cravings in you. When I say ‘all’ it means ALL!!
It was so cold that I felt like skipping my bland 'low fat-low carb' breakfast for a day, and hopping into the nearby restaurant to feast on a plate of hot vada-sambar, but I didn’t have much time left to reach office, so just swallowed the dreary bit of breakfast and embarked on the long journey to office, and the drive to office was more saddening than I could imagine, here’s why….
First of all, the bone-chilling weather made it very difficult to drive fast ‘cos the wind was hitting me in the face and making my body shiver, I decided to drive slowly even if it meant that I would be late to office for the third consecutive day. I pass Mount Carmel College everyday on the way to work, and there were couples already sitting in the café opposite to the college at as early as 8.30 in the morning, enjoying their coffee and whispering sweet nothings to each other…..aww! that was a punch in the face for me. Anyways, I consoled myself saying they’ll also have to go to work some day and be in the same situation as I’m in now, and moved on.
Next, I hit M.G Road and saw a bunch of kids with their parents, just coming out of the Metro station all excited, presumably after their first ride on the train, another cause for envy! I just remembered my school and college days when we had to do nothing but sit in class, pretending to listen to the teacher and escape into our own dreamlands. I just wish I could turn back time! Really!
After battling a bit with the traffic near Trinity Circle and emerging triumphant, I finally reached office, and under the angry gaze of my manager, sat in my seat to begin the day’s work, and a new BATTLE just began!
Tuesday 6 December 2011
Merry Christmas!
Snow, carols, reindeers, bobtails, wreaths, bells, bows, and of course, our dear Santa….these are things that remind us that it’s Christmas time again. I don’t know why, but this time of the year almost always gets me into a nostalgic mood. I feel more cheerful around this time than in any other part of the year. It feels as though the whole world is in a festive mood, and it undoubtedly is.
I remember my school a lot, the Christmas plays that used to be staged every year, the ‘Secret Angel’ games that we used to play, and the restless wait to find out my Secret Angel and what she’d gift me….Oh! It used to be real fun. The best part of Christmas though, for me, is the carols; it excites me even now to listen to one of them, my favorite being ‘Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer’. I also miss the Christmas crib and the countdown to the Christmas holidays.
Well, life is very different now; we don't get long Christmas holidays anymore and the only places that I’ll find Christmas cribs are malls and restaurants, and each one I see puts a smile on my face anyway. Christmas is also the time for me to pig out.There are plum cakes, chocolates, cookies, truffles and every other thing that is a gourmet’s dream! (NOW you know why it’s my favorite part of the year, don’t you? ;) )
The festival brings a lot of cheer with it since it is also the time when one year is close to getting over and a new one is waiting to arrive. I love Christmas, I love the festivity and the liveliness it brings with it. I’m just hoping that this Christmas, Santa blesses me with the present that I have been praying for and makes it a memorable one! :)
(Uh…Santa, you know what I want this Christmas, don’t you??)
That I still believe in Santa is a different story altogether! :)
I remember my school a lot, the Christmas plays that used to be staged every year, the ‘Secret Angel’ games that we used to play, and the restless wait to find out my Secret Angel and what she’d gift me….Oh! It used to be real fun. The best part of Christmas though, for me, is the carols; it excites me even now to listen to one of them, my favorite being ‘Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer’. I also miss the Christmas crib and the countdown to the Christmas holidays.
Well, life is very different now; we don't get long Christmas holidays anymore and the only places that I’ll find Christmas cribs are malls and restaurants, and each one I see puts a smile on my face anyway. Christmas is also the time for me to pig out.There are plum cakes, chocolates, cookies, truffles and every other thing that is a gourmet’s dream! (NOW you know why it’s my favorite part of the year, don’t you? ;) )
The festival brings a lot of cheer with it since it is also the time when one year is close to getting over and a new one is waiting to arrive. I love Christmas, I love the festivity and the liveliness it brings with it. I’m just hoping that this Christmas, Santa blesses me with the present that I have been praying for and makes it a memorable one! :)
(Uh…Santa, you know what I want this Christmas, don’t you??)
That I still believe in Santa is a different story altogether! :)
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