Language unspoken...

After days of complete "nothing-ness" and advanced boredom, I came across this soul touching story of a deaf and dumb girl. I am not talking about Sanjay Leela Bansali's adaptation of the life of the famous Helen, Black. This is a movie named Mozhi (well you can forgot about the pronouciation) meaning "language" in Tamil.

It was not exactly the movie or the technical aspect that caught my imagination (Well, I do not claim to be a film critic and as you read on, you will understand that this is not a review of the movie either.).It was the grit, her determination to lead a normal life, the self confidence, her will-power and most of all the dignity with which the girl lives her life. She is only 3 yrs old when her father,because she is deaf and dumb, leaves her mother to marry another woman. She is then brought up by her mother, who dies 3 yrs later and then on by a loving grandmother. Her journey in life does not allow her to view the world with rose tinted glasses as she is aware of the bitterness of leading the life of a physically impaired person. Despite the reality of her situation, she lives to prove that she is as capable as any normal girl, but her ideas on men and marriage are completely distorted. She sees her disloyal father in every being of the opposite sex and is completely against the idea of marriage. The story, however, is about how she meets the hero and how he manages to bring all the good things that she had missed, back into her life.

There is one particular point in the story where the hero imagines a voice for the dumb girl and so when she converses with him, he translates it mentally into the voice he has imagined for her. On learning this from the hero, she is not pleased and instead tells him that if it was so difficult to converse in her language he could rather quit talking to her. In the beginning, I wondered why the thought that she had an imaginary voice vexed her, but when I thought about it I realised that she was completely content with her life. The fact that she is happy and very comfortable even without a voice made me wonder at the numerous things that I crib about not having. The smile with which she admits that she is deaf and dumb shows her pride , something that touches a cord, you don't pity her instead you admire her courage and dignity.

This movie was probably made with the intention to entertain with all the comedy nicely mishmashed into the story. Yet it was the girl who stood out for me. She made me realise all the things that I had taken for granted, the things that I should be grateful for . She taught me the simple truth of life that nothing was beyond reach if you tried. It may not have changed my lifestyle but it sure has changed my outlook on life, to believe in the power, rested in every individual, called me.

A&A Inc.

I had the privilege to be a part of this company, bear with all the losses, profits and expenditure in general and so, I decided why not, let the world know who owned it, Anand and Aparna my two lil' cousins !!! They specialized in breaking, disturbing,ruining the furniture with their baby poo poo(total nuisance!!!) and being nasty to anybody who came to stop them,to say the least they were two lil' devils(You could confirm this with the sales girls of the departmental stores where their mothers shop for groceries.The girls could never fulfill their dear wish to cuddle the cuties coz they had to keep track and get billed all the goodies that the "cuties" would pick off the racks and consume). Aparna , though being the younger one, was the master mind behind most of the work. In other words the brain behind the success and Anand a willing executor!!!

There is this particular incident that I vividly remember, my cousin was asked to baby sit the two imps(well hardly an easy job!!!). He had loads to study and so he decided to lock himself and study as the two had decided to watch TV. When he came out of his room everything seemed quiet and the two "cherubs" seemed to be completely engrossed in watching their favorite toons. Not bad at all you may think, well so did he(I assure you, he regretted thinking so!!). Since the two "darlings" seemed busy, he went out to meet a friend and returned in about 10 mins I gss only to encounter the most hilarious sight(I do not think he found it hilarious at that moment. Must have got the shock of his life, but later we had a great time laughing over that particular scene!!!). The scene of crime, as I prefer to call it, was the very living room where they were so sweetly watching TV. They had managed to (when I say they, I mean, Anand responsible for doing and Aparna for planning!!) pull down a curtain and throw it onto the fan. Jus when Anand was about to go a notch above and switch on the fan, Aparna sighted their baby sitter (mind you, she was standing right next to the door to warn Anand of any kind of lurking danger!!!) and began frantically screaming out to him, to bring the curtain down(or was it "he is coming" !!!).

Well,this was just one of the many incidents that took place, they wreacked havoc, said nasty things but they were the cutest, cuddliest, bundles of fun and we enjoyed everything they did(even if it took hours of cleaning up after them!!) It takes Two To Tango people say, and well they were in it together!!!

The spirit called Rajini!!!

I call myself this actor's biggest fan and when the star's latest release was set to hit the theatres, I wanted to be there for the firt day, first show..well, that is just a dream for an ardent fan!! First day or not I had to watch the movie so wednesday night show, it was to be...and it happened!! Tickets procured, dinner completed, I was all eager to watch Ranjini Kanth's latest flick "Shivaji-The Boss"!!

Jus when we decided to start out for the theatre, it began to pour..(well, pour in the superlative degree would be appropriate)..and there were bolts of thunder and flashes of lightening...(I don't intend to sound cinematic but then it was quite bad and we could not imagine reaching the theater on time..)..and the transformer burst..perfect, I thought... Well rain or shine, I had to make it to the theatre and so, driving through the water logged roads of Chennai(I am the ardent fan,jus in case you have forgotten!!), we reached the theatre just in time for the show...It is here(at a local theatre screening Rajini's latest flick) that you really get to see people from a cross section of the society..flower sellers, vegetable vendors(in their very best!!)..bussiness men, children, families,street urchins,students, handicapped and the list is endless(well, when I say a cross section I mean it..)

Once we made it to our seats(which wasnt easy, either), I was all set to watch the movie. Shankar(the director), through his movies fights the ever existing problem of corruption and Shivaji is another feather in his cap. He has managed to give the character a shade of the super star's reel life image so that the audience enjoy the Rajini "antics" and the all popular punch lines. Each time Rajini delivered them..the audience went into raptures (cat calls, hooting, whistles, dancing...coz of which you never get to hear what the star is actually saying!!!). The movie has all the ingredients of a thourough entertainer..well, it has to be one..it is a Rajini starrer!!. Rajini wowed the audience with all the comedy and witty onliners..My favourite is the way the superstar says.."Shivaji da..pere kettale..chumma aderedile!!" The audience(other than me) seemed to have watched the movie a ten times over, since they were screaming even before the super star delivered it!!!

Well, the movie was worth all the trouble,I probably sound like just one more fan but that is what I call the "Rajini spirit", I enjoyed every moment, be it action or comedy or the antics..it was fun and imitating the dialogue in the movie..anji(5) ke aprama aar(6) da..Rajini aprama yaar da!!!

Speaking of love and da likes..!!!

Calvin and Hobbes is my favorite comic strip and I happened to chance on this truly funny and innovative definition of love...

Calvin asks Hobbes very innocently.."What's it like to fall in love?" and Hobbes replies.. Well, say your object of affection passes by... First your heart falls into your stomach splashes all your innards. All the moisture makes you sweat profusely. This condensation shorts the circuits to your brain and you get all woozy. When your brain burns out altogether your mouth disengages and you babble like a cretin, until they leave... Calvin stupefied asks..and that's love...to which Hobbes promptly replies "medically speaking!!"

You may call this the thought of a 5 yr old...I think it is perfectly true...and nyone in love will agree with me..though I am not the expert!!!

09/July!

I will not call this day special..but I dedicate it to the one person who is really special...my Grand Pa!!! Today happens to be his birthday..but I do not need a birthday to remind me of what a beautiful person he was or of all those wonderful moments that we spent together...they are memories that will alweyz remain my favourites...

He was a very respected and loved professor, teaching was his passion and his students will vouch for this, he was as strict as any professor,(teaching an all boys institute demanded that!!!) and yet soft on the inside. Back home he was our grand pa..full of fun, he played like he was one among us some of our favorites were "fixed deposit", " contact programme" and the good old hide and seek and my poor gran ma had to be the law enforcer. I went to live with my grandparents when I was 2 and a half years old(I was not an angel I assure you and could be very demanding..!!!) and they put up with every tantrum and whim of mine, when they would go to meet my uncle in the hostel, I would want to tag along but never empty handed, my book, color pencils and some flowers for my uncle would be part of the baggage(which I would neva bother to carry!!!). When I joined school I lived in the hostel but I would meet them every sunday and every sunday was special. Inspite of his age my grandfather made it a point to walk down to my hostel every sunday to spend some time with me, as I grew older, he couldnt make it to every meeting but whenever it was an exam (specially mathematics!!) he would be there to help me with statistics...or moral support nything where he could help.. In my 12th std, when I fell ill before my boards..he came to take me home so I could recoup before I went to attempt my final exams...(I wonder if anybody would be as lucky as me..and I thank God every day for giving me such a loving grand pa!!) he used to give me my medicines on time...checked if I wanted nything,since I was on antibiotics and that could be weakening he would give me sugar water to help swallow my medicines..every thing was taken care of..the periodic check up with the doctor...even to the neurologist when I was diagonised with severe migraine..my grand pa was there every time I needed him to support me or to pamper me..I was, to him, his best grand child!!!

Whenever it was holiday time..he would accompany me, at times, back home..and those were the best journeys...there was food at every stop and there were games, nicknames and all fun things in general, well this was his all time favourite, he would sit behind us(my cousin and I) and hit one of us on the head and when we turned back he would blame the other..we never figured out who was behind this for a very long time...we were still kids ..but we enjoyed it!! I grew up lissening to his stories, enjoying his pranks, playing with him, learning and understanding new things, he was a teacher,my fren and my gran pa!! I feel his loss today and I know he will neva be replaced.. At this moment the lyrics of a song come to my mind....

If only you could see the tears in the world you left behind
If only you could heal my heart just one more time
Even when I close my eyes
There's an image of your face
And once again I come to realise
You're a loss I can't replace

Soledad
It's a keeping for the lonely
Since the day that you were gone
In my heart you were the only
And your memory lives on!!!.......

Am I what I claim to be??

Is there something more that you cannot see...Do you realize there is someone behind the mask that is me...Am I what I claim to be?

Every individual goes through this phase in life...searching for their true identity..perhaps I am in a similar phase!! My education taught me that my religion was secularity..but my reasoning proved that secularity was a farce..this is just a small example...so..I ask you do I follow my reasoning or do I lissen to the principles taught, by education? Socitey,today expects you to abide by its norms...so is that exactly what our education teaches us, to be good citizens, not to reason ? Can I choose the path that suits me best..Live my life the way I like it..!! I dare not..so what happened to the lessons on individuality, the ideas of being the leader, the promises that I made the day I stepped out of school to live, to change and to search for the true me..reasoning again proved the master...betta to flow with the tide it said..n I followed...so is this what I really am or am I jus any other living being..with no identity, no idea of where I am heading and whether I am really enjoying what I am doing? I, like any of you, am putting on a garb and leading the lie that is called my life!!

Chronicles of Munnar- III

The next morning we headed straight to a place called the top station...(a point from where the state of Tamil Nadu can be seen!!!) It was the most beautiful sight..mountain peaks trying to find their way up through the clouds, the mist, the dew and the tea gardens..like God's new found home!!! At that point,it was like having a tete-a-tete with the clouds and the mountains,standing there I felt the innate desire to part of all this beauty...this was Munnar at its zenith!!!

We drove down slowly and sadly back to the hotel room..it was our last day in Munnar and so we decided to dedicate the afternoon to visit a childrens park and the tea musem....(I can now call myself a connoisseur )...we learned...smelled and understood the way(atleast managed to understand inspite of the heavy accent mixed very generously with the language!!) tea was made...(the leaves do not smell like how we know it to...funny yet true.it is only after crushing it and oxidising it that you actually get the oh so well known smell of tea!!) With a lot packed into the last day we narrowly missed the shower and got back into our rooms...to pack...we were going to leave for Kochi the next morning!!!

The journey back was a quite one..we thought of the bright orange juicy carrots that we would miss..cut mangoes with masala toppings ..the monsoons..the clouds...and bid adieu to the mountains that had been home for the past 3 days...Moments captured, memories treasured...we went back to where our duties were calling, and a part of us still wanting to be there..

Chronicles of Munnar- II

On reaching Munnar we checked into our hotel room(would like to think of it as a suite though..but far from that).Once ready we were itching to rush out and enjoy everything the place had to offer.(but of course we took our own sweet time to get ready..so we had to hv lunch and then start!!!) Well our first hot spot was the National Park...we drove down to the place..if we wanted to take our cameras we had to pay extra..so we decided not to...which was I assure you was a big mistake.The National Park in Munnar boasts of an animal called the wild goat..also the flower called "kurinji"..which bloom once in 12 years..making the mountains look blue...must be a pretty sight..a pity we missed it.Anyway we had to take the bus provided by the govt. to visit the National park...as the vehicle climbed higher and higher...the beauty of the mountains was so appealing that I wished I could stay there a lil' longer..but, it was scary too..to be at such heights..and in a bus..God knows that I thought of him a lil' often while going up!!!Well the buses take you upto a point and then you have to walk the rest of the path...it rained so hard that the visibility was zero!!...We neva got to see the wild goat..nor did we see the kurinji..but the feeling that stayed on..I will cherish..forever..... Back on ground level..(which was a few thousands of feet above the sea level!!)..I solemnly swore that I would get back there!!!

..A well slept night sparks off a happy morning..(I know so!!)...and so we were up the next morning in a happy mood but with no idea of where we were heading...our driver, Vinu, decided he knew where we needed to be that morning..and so we went to the Mattupati dam...there is nothing beautiful or awesome about the size and the working of the dam...but the area surrounding it..slopes of green fields(maintained by the govt. for the cows in the dairy farm!!!)..n the river between high mountains....was beyond description!!! Picture perfect in other words...to one end you could see a mare grazing..some cows lazily sitting...reminding me of an English country side. Well,that was enough to make us want more..so we drove further up to another dam...captured a few fine moments there too..(Now when I look back ...I know that they are memories of a holiday I will cherish for life). The monsoons add a different shade to Munnar(a very pretty tinge of green), but as alweyz they play spoil sport....because we had to be back in the hotel by mid noon to escape the fury of the rain gods.. which is why, we also missed the boat ride!! Once back in the safety of the room,we relaxed for a while before the older gang set out for spices shopping (which wasnt a day's work ,wat with all the planning of quantity and checking of quality...whoever said "Building Rome was a day's work")...That was another beautiful day in Munnar.

....contd

Chronicles of Munnar- I

An unspoilt fresh...green and breath taking feeling surges in whenever I think of Munnar....At first,I wasnt really excited about my trip..apart from the thought that I would be away for a while...and on a holiday...nothing caught my attention in particular(considering that we were supposed to be holidaying at darjeeling and gangtok!!).Well,we started off on a monday afternoon..(trust me..Chennai is most unpleasent in the afternoon..what with all the heat and humidity...and in a railyway station..it only got worse!!).Once safely tucked into the AC comfort of the train...my cousin and I chose to sit away from the older gang...The journey was fine..except that we had to wake up at 4 in the morning..to get off at Ernakulam station(there are two stations...Ernakulam and Kochi..we were not particularly sure of which station to get off at..decided Ernakulam was safer..!!).I assure you..Ernakulam station is not a welcoming sight..I thought we had got off at the wrong place..(it did not look like the station of a town..leave alone a city!!).Apparently our driver(Vinu, a common name among the ppl of kerala!!!)..did not know that we would be there by four..so we had to wait in the station till he arrived..(Well,here I got to give him credit, unlike other drivers..he was smart enuf to reach us early..!!!).With all the luggage loaded and all of us packed into the car...we began our journey..from Ernakulam to Kochi...(Kerala is truely in every sense God's own country!! They have a heritage that they have managed to preserve, every house, however small, has a garden around it.)..to Munnar

...The journey wasnt that long..(quite a disappointment!!)...going through every bend and curve..as we climbed altitude after altitude it jus got betta..and I finally got into the holiday mood...Every house ..every garden...every brook...every mountain...(well I am beginning to sound poetic..!!).seemed perfectly in place..in harmony with its surroundings green roof ...long unending stretches of tea estates..ladies(not soo pretty,like in the ads)..picking tea leaves...quite oblivious of the hustle and bustle of the tourists...the place was heaven..with music...(fittingly,Country Roads by John Denver..)... the perfect holiday was about to begin.

.....contd

Finally outta college!!!

Well am I happy or sad(okie this is not a story of opposites!!..sorry bad joke)??...When I sit back to think...I do realize that I will miss those days...not that they were only happy memories.....coz then I wud be untrue to myself...like a curate's egg..college life had it's advantages and..some not soo good advantages(prefer not to talk in the negative..:P!!!)..I remember...my first day at college..(okie who doesnt...!!)..alweyz turns out to be the most interesting day in college life...I went straight upto a senior(..that wasnt deliberate...I assumed he was an attendant!!!) and asked him for the first year classroom...n promptly he led me to his classroom...(imagine getting stuck in a classroom full of seniors..omg..quite a nite mare!!)...well..thank god!!!...there was a lecturer in his classroom...orelse...I wud hv been toast...when I cum to think of it..I actually..innocently(rather ignorantly!!!) peered into the room and asked if it was the first year classroom(well how was I to know I hadnt seen my batch mates before..!!!)...From then began my journey in coll...freshers party...(was fun...!!:D)...being ragged...n trying those interesting tricks on my poor juniors..those looong yet..happy bus journeys..catching up on lost sleep...bunking classes(legally n illegally!!)...acads found their place the moment an exam was announced...stupid fights...some dull moments...the campus placements..n yet..I say finally outta college...well...I m not sad that those days hv gone by..I had fun...n now...I look forward to work n progress in life...n soo..I question myself am i happy or sad???