Babe,Snake And Camping Fun!

Dazillion medical camps later ,as a student ,I decided not to be part of any more such non-productive camps.This was decades back and I am no student anymore so when a senile and overzealous social worker friend ( all of that and more in one person) emotionally blackmailed me ,I did the same to a bunch of other people (read-hobbs-the hubby,six interns from my clinic,three staff members and of course Cookie and Muffin as tag-essentials!) and we were off to a very remote village in rural interiors of Maharashtra.

Having spent 24 premarital years hopping from one city to another with dad in a transferable job, small towns and rural scenes are not alien to me but nothing prepared me for what lay in wait this time.We were received at the nondescript station by a proud,self declared, matric- fail ,'taempuwala'.After we loaded our physical selves into and all over it, our tempo looked like this: 

                                            

tempo-courtesy google images 

We were piled and arranged like sardines in the vehicle in such a way that the younger bodies fanned out of the sides of the tempo and this arrangement gave the young blood ,ample opportunity to outstretch their arms in air like Shahrukh Khan!

courtesy google images 

I am not sure and I don't want to know why they seated me where they did ,inside the tempo.Thinking  I was privileged,I had short lived tears of gratitude  before I disappeared beneath a pile of smelly backpacks.They even arranged the bags to leave enough air pockets for me to breathe.Breathing and moi are related  at strictly subconscious level and any consciousness in that regard leaves me breathless and I have advertised this fact far and wide for my own safety.Next 30 minutes,I braved  the olfactory onslaught of the worst kind.Air reeking of perspiration,BO,deo, garlicky   pav -bhaji and vada-pao from dinner the night before and what have you...The twenty somethings  held on to each other's halves inside the tempo while the other halves continued with the bollywood tamasha.I recalled the old Fevicol ad :

Two German doctors in the group looked like ghosts at the end of the journey and had to be brought back to the living world .It was just a tin shed and four brick walls in the name of school and it was the only one for miles together.The camp was productive and I am not saying that because I was part of it.It  was just a question of ready resources at that stage and manpower of course, and both we had in abundance.The lack of basic facilities was no laughing matter but in this case ,for city youngsters out in the wild for the first time, it was both,-unbelievable and unbelievably funny.While they jotted down notes for each facility or lack of it,they also exchanged hilarious experiences regarding the same.The enthusiasm was infectious and energy levels,an all time high.

Giggles (German import, giggly girl in short)as she was aptly called,suddenly could not be found and a frantic search ensued.Evening was weary and night fast approaching.Giggles was found stupefied behind the bushes where she had gone to ease her overburdened bladders.She was rendered speechless and stunned by  a kid-snake crawling away a few feet across.Cannon ( another German so named ,as she was always clicking with her namesake camera) slapped her out of that state and all was well .

Giggles could be seen helping around as we assembled bedding necessities  for sleep time, viz.mattresses, old sarees as bedspreads and searched for elevations of any kind on the walls and around, to tie the mosquito -net- strings ,(naada to be precise, borrowed from village belles :D) .When the nets were tied together in sequence and then the whole thing hauled together to be tied to the hooks,nails,chair handles and window grills,the actual purpose of it all suddenly dawned on the two They were absolutely 'in character',Giggles broke into peels of giggles and Cannon went berserk clicking.

Cannon clicked everything in sight from all possible angles, poverty excluded ,team yougistaan  made sure of that .On our way back,Muffin , my son and Cannon were spotted with   their object of interest in a gutter just outside the railway platform.It was a pig in all its guttered glory .

                                                            courtesy google images
Tiny Muffin refused to believe his mother when she said that ,what he thought of as a new  animal species,  was actually a pig.Now this pig was no Babe ,he was as Indian in character as they come..half -and-half. like an order of Pizza  ie gutter side black and other side grey/brown /whatever..The beautiful  image in his mind of a pig called Babe was shattered !

I consoled him and reminded him of another fact of life he had learnt not so long ago..that milk actually is given by cows ,so what if it comes in clean tetra packs to our homes.He still has to come to terms with that but he  thinks aaji's and naani's habit of getting up and pottering about the house at 4 am is cool.





     

मंजिलें वही हैं ,वहीँ हैं

वो सबक ही नहीं , ज़िन्दगी की तालीम थी जानों 

बेबसी ये कैसी दोस्त ,रास्ता ख़त्म हुआ हो  मानो . 

एक कदम ही तो  पीछे हुए ,कदम थम तो न गए ,

हौले से चलकर छू  ही लेंगे आयाम  नए.

                                                                                   

वे भागते हैं , भागा करें ,

हमें रास्ते रास आते हैं ,

मंजिलें वही हैं ,वहीँ हैं

अब पहुंचे , या तब पहुंचें  

क़दमों को आदत है ,भागें
नज़रें चाहती हैं ..ठहरना 

हसीं नजारों को चख कर, फिर पीना 

क्या हुआ दोस्त गर  तुम पीछे,वे आगे  

देर सबेर ही सही, वहीँ मिलेंगे  जब सभी 

तुमने ढूंढा, या मंजिल ने तुम्हें 

क्या फर्क पड़ता है,

तब.. या.. अभी -अभी .

       

Back to school!

Watched Stanley ka dabba on Sunday.What a delightful movie!The teachers in the movie, were typical school teachers and I remembered a few special ones myself.Hobbs(hubby) and cookie(daughter) also contributed, we had a late night chat session again, and my post was ready.:p
Mrs M ,the tenth grade math teacher,was a stickler for discipline and in-charge of uniforms.Now,everyone who has ever been to school, knows, that the time taken to reach school from home( five minutes or fifty,immaterial!) is more than enough for students,especially boys to have tucked-in shirts pulled out,trousers threatening to fall down,sauce dropped on the shirt,buttons broken and hair looking electrocuted.Post first recess,appearances are supposed to be ignored ,but Mrs M being who she was,picked on a particularly naughty tenth grade kid repeatedly.
"Why is your shirt out boy, tuck your shirt in now ,tighten your belt and make sure your hair is not unruly.One more time I see you like this,I will take you to the Principal"
That day,post lunch, in the Math period,the teacher was surprised to find only girls in the class.One by one the boys started trickling in ,"Excuse me miss,may I come in?" A nod from the teacher and the boy entered with a painfully slow gait and after a deliberate halt at the teacher's desk,took his seat.The  boy had wet- combed his hair flat on his scalp with a mid parting,shirt firmly tucked inside his trousers which in turn were held high by a belt almost on the chest.As the first boy took his seat,the second one asked permission,then the next and so on .They all had wet flat hair ,trousers riding high and shirt tucked -in.

                                                                       image courtesy google images
The whole foyer saw the scene and the Math teacher had no choice but to join- in the fun.

Once,Mrs. M found a boy emerging from the rest room (if they could be called that, in those days!)  his hair Mohawk styled.Her booming voice could be heard till the end of the foyer"Look at you,you look like a cock. One more time I see you like this,I am going to cut your cock- hair ".After the guffaws and giggles across the tenth grade foyer,she gave the next period off.
History teacher Mr.D,had devised a special method for himself to discipline the kids in his class.He would stand behind the child very quietly,rubbing his earlobes gently, without disturbing his teaching.The ears would feel hot after a while and turn a deep shade of RED from the rub.No,the student getting the rub was not exempted from writing in his notebook while being rubbed!Other students who laughed were next in line for the  'rub'.Not a rude word uttered , no caning or murga pose for Mr D.After the class, 'RED EARS' were tell tale signs of homework not done,'chitchatting' in class,diary not brought etc.The recipient rarely repeated his mistake.
Ms K was very fond of scribbling little complaint  notes in students' school diaries.From a benign,-chitchatting in class,looking out of the window and disturbing the class,homework not done,spilled water on the desk,opening and eating dabba in class(eating without opening?How?),to more serious ,threatening notes.
One particular note, worth noting, read thus,"Poking partner's bottom with rounder."The girl's mom, after a bout of ROTFL (in the privacy of her room of course) had a tough time searching for words to write a suitable apology.It was easier calling up the aggrieved party and share a good laugh with that  parent.The two girls concerned, were busy gossiping on the other line ,injured bum forgotten!
That was years back,when teachers could take the liberty of disciplining the kids.The system had its own pros and cons.Now even a stern word can have the parent approaching the school administration to lodge a written complaint.Those days,parents hardly bothered and now parents are a bother.Today,new age schools with hi-tech teaching aids are churning out smarter kids, but in general I find that flair for writing largely missing.The advantage of the new system is, letting them think on their own about an answer to a particular question and not binding them to someone else's answers.Once I was surprised  to find a one line answer in Muffin's book.It was a personal response question .
Q: Do you think miracles exist?What do you think about miracles?
A: I know miracles do not exist so I do not think anything about them.
The teacher marked the answer correct and respected my boy's opinion.Had he been  part of a regular school ,I am sure I would have been sent a note and he would have been chided for the 'cheek'he had!

By the way, we have many late night laughter sessions but this one was slightly different .Muffin could not believe that I was a naughty kid  and could play pranks.I have to correct that ASAP.
Did not realize, when my serious profession took over my personality.Planning fun things for coming long weekend in August is top priority now.Any ideas?  

I am

It is human nature to be curious about other humans so in that regard you are not alone.

     Welcome to my blog where I rave and rant about anything and everything that catches my eye.I even  snoop    and eavesdrop on conversations in public.I am just short of staring at people if I find them interesting .

     Would like you to know me through my writing 'cause that's what I do when I stalk your blogs.Please read on...
Do leave a line or two and your link too!!
Love life and take care..

नींव

                              image courtesy Google images.       

               

मैं हूँ एक चंचल सैलानी , आना जाना ..जाकर, फिर आना ..

यही है मेरी कहानी .

                              तुम्हारी खुबसूरत वादियों ने जब पुकारा ,तो आकर्षित हुए बिना न रह सकी .

                               विशाल गिरी सा हृदय ,उन्नत गर्वित शीर्ष ,

                               समतल पर हिम हो जैसे ,श्वेत शुभ्र और नर्म .

अथाह सागर सा व्यक्तित्व ,अल्हड नदिया सा कलकल स्वर ...

धुले शीशे से, पारदर्शी- तुम,

ठगी सी रह गयी मैं .

                                 पर तूफां ने किसको छोड़ा है ...

                                 हर पौधे को छेड़ा है और हर कली को तोडा है .

उखड़ते डेरे के साथ -साथ ,जब मेरे पावं भी तुम्हारी जमीं से उखड़ते प्रतीत हुए ,

तो मैंने घबराकर तुम्हारी तरफ देखा ...

                                   तुम्हारी मुस्कान ने बहुत कुछ बयाँ कर दिया ,

                                    तुम्हारी आखें मानो कह रही हों ...

डेरे का उखड़ना तो शुभ हुआ ,नींव तो पहले ही डाल चुकीं 

क्या बसेरा नहीं करोगी?  

            

अलफ़ाज़ और अहसास

                                               image from google images


मुझे कुछ कहना है ...

   

        अलफ़ाज़, कहीं किसी कोने से निकले 

        और जेहेन तक आते -आते न जाने कहाँ गुम हो गए ..

         मुझे  अहसास हुआ कि वे निकले ,मेला किये और धुआं गुबार सा उड़ा कर 

         बादल कि तरह हवा हो गए 

                             न किसी को छुआ ,न उनके होने का अहसास हुआ ...

मुझे कुछ सुनना है ....

            अल्फाजों की आहट सी हुई,

             मेरे कानों में पड़े ज़रूर...

              पर अधर ,सिमटे -सकुचाते से दामन बचाते हुए ,

              आये और गुम हो गए  .

                               न किसी को छुआ ,न उनके होने का अहसास हुआ ...

सिर्फ सुनाई भर देते हैं दिल को न छूने वाले अलफ़ाज़ 

उनकी तीखी -मीठी छुअन ही दिलाती है उनके होने का अहसास .

  

                               

  

Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara ,Farhan and Zoya at PVR

                                                             image-courtesy google images

To say that I was looking forward to Zindagi na milegi dobara (ZNMD) ,will be an understatement.We ,as a family, live through the week looking forward to new movie releases every Friday and thanks to multiplexes ,manage to enjoy the movies on the day they release.This Friday was no different as I made sure all body parts were gathered in one place before I went to book tickets : Head (moi),Body (Hobbs -the hubby) and the extremities (Cookie and Muffin).I had to pat my back when I was informed at the PVR, Juhu  ( no other place for me, for movies) booking counter that the only show I could get four tickets together ,was the 6.50pm show and that all other shows were full.  I was not surprised to see the hands of the clock joined together in glee to mock 6.30 pm in my face.Point-1 , in favor of PVR-close proximity from home in case of emergencies like this,you can just hop in ,no need to skip and jump or even drive for that matter .
While I asked for four tickets to Zindagi...Muffin tugged at my purse to state that he changed his mind and he wanted to see Harry Potter first.There was no time for convincing etc so,three for zindagi and one for Harry potter 7.30pm.You sure HP ..alone..Yup, he said and  couldn't contain his smile.Murphy's laws never leave you alone in any life situation and  the counter staff promptly changed duties at that very moment.My facial muscles twitched as they exchanged more than duties and pleasantries ,as the next person filled the new  ticket roll,as he corrected the mistake of  the previous girl ( that could have landed four of us in 'chillar party' instead of HP and ZNMD) ,asked me my preference for seats and finally handed me the tickets.Meanwhile glued -to- TV- Hobbs and glued-to -bed-cookie ,both after a tiring day ,were bbm-ed  a smiley and and 6.50.Seconds later I my bb started pinging furiously as expected.I was used to the drill and pinged back: house keys with me,doesn't matter if you do not have cash ,no I won't sell cookies ticket,she can join after she is done with sleep,will leave her ticket with the doorman,Muffin has time to kill before his show,so your ticket he has and LAST but not at all the least..battery low .Phew!!done for the show.Muffin extracted 200 bucks and some  change ..and waited for Hobbs and Cookie .

                                                      image-courtesy google images

I rushed past an army of press photographers and suddenly  braked in my tracks to see a face in front of me asking in a shrill excited voice,-"kuch hua, ya hone waala hai??"Wha...!The eagerness and excitement could never, ever belong to a Mumbaikar's face and I didn't have the heart to ignore her."You see,two big movie releases today ,stars expected,that is why .." I said. Forget me,she forgot herself ,when she saw Farhan and Zoya alight from their suv.Me Mumbaikar ,so I did the expected,made sure I had a good look from only the corner of my eyes,felt glad at the sight and walked towards the lift.
Point 2 in favor of PVR,the regular  eye-candy  crowd of movie buffs and the regular spottings of  star eye -candy for company .I love it !
It was 6.50pm and my feet were restlessly tapping on the floor as I waited for the lift.My not-so-petite frame was first in line..Another eye contact as Farhan and Zoya joined us and then the voice of the eye-contact whispered -"You mind taking the next lift?" Ok ,I swear ,I love these situations..Farhan forgotten,I braced myself to give the offending guy a BIG piece of my (brainy) mind.Ask any Mumbaikar ,it takes really extraordinary circumstances for him  to forgo his place in any queue .The poor guy was saved from the newly learnt beep- beeps (Hate you Delhi Belly) as Farhan promptly questioned and rejected the idea with a simple, "WHY?" and the obviously wet- behind -the- ears assistant retreated .
We entered the lift ,one young mom waived her ticket and informed Farhan that she was looking forward to the movie. Zoya was fussing over her hair looking in the lift mirror just like any other girl and specially like Cookie.I took the opportunity to thank Farhan for saving his assistant from a nasty retort ( don't blame me from hiding the beep-beep part,girls in their forties are also entitled to 'impressions' and stuff ).A shrug and a smile is all I got :-( and no, I was NOT expecting a hug) .So Mr.Farhan,your status instantly got elevated from'I like him' to 'I am his fan'.
 I settled in my seat to be quickly joined by Hobbs first and cookie 5 min later.They glared at each other briefly,former for making him wait and latter for being left behind .Ah! all was well and soon they will be sharing popcorn till I remind them of my presence in the corner seat. That I did soon enough and they reassured me in unison that Muffin was in audi 5,safe, not to be disturbed ,and that the lights,ac, and all other switches at home  were off and the door was closed and yes, she made sure by pushing it thrice and by hanging on to the handle for 5 seconds.Satisfied ,I was ready for the movie .
I loved the movie.Paisa wasool for me as I soaked in the sights,scenes,humor,drama..the works..Couldn't believe,petite Zoya created another fine art.I loved her' Luck by chance' .She is talented and this movie proved that her earlier success and this, was not just luck by chance.Go watch it,ignore one song in the middle and you will love it .I did.