Nostalgic

Today has surely been one of the most wonderful days in a long long time. Not coz i won a lottery or something. It is something more precious than that. When one gets to spend time with ones friends, its the time of life. It had been more than 2 months since we spoke and some 5 since we last met. But then meeting him and talking on all matters for the past 3-4 hrs simply didnt feel odd. It was just the normal friend's talk.

Times like these remind u that real friendship is when u have a friend to stand by you and talk to u, even when u havent met or spoken to the person in ages. True friendship goes beyond the realms of time. Dont they say, "Time and tide wait for none" but i would add to this "but friends do" :):) All said and done, everytime i have spoken to my buddies or even better met them, there is an instant connect. Something as if we had just met the other day and here we sit discussing our lives, dissecting and arguing on topics associated to us or simly not concerned with anything in or around us. Formality, manners creep in at times in certain relationships, but then those are friendships i feel. For, true friendships are ones that dont end, or get complicated and difficult in case of absenteeism.
Today was one such wonderful day, with loads of time spent on phone talking to buddies and meeting up with one of them sitting late into the night doing bakar :P

Reminds me of those good ol days when we would hole up in a room in one of our houses and while our time away till morning came or someone else looking out for the noise and food trail.

Nostalgia also hits hard as the clock strikes 3:32am in the morning. Not a strange time for an MBA grad, but something very uncommon for a normal working fellow. Its a wonderful feeling being alone in the peace and tranquil of the night at this time writing down this piece as if reading the mind and expressing its thoughts.

How i wish i get to re-live many of those ol days. Its always fun to be friends, stay up at nights, do nothing much more than discuss philosophy, chicks, business and politics.... As for the time, i m sure such times are rare and too far apart to miss and not wish for more.
Cherish those wonderful days of life. Period.

Wave your flag !!!

When i get older i will be stronger they'll call me freedom just like a waving flag so wave your flag goes a song in this waka waka season.
But then, as the Ayodhya verdict nears, this song also gets a new meaning and a new direction. Who would be the last man standing ?? Good question i tell myself. I trust that the initial petitioners in the case are not even alive today. Its over 60 years that the dispute is going on and people including the media are getting excited about it. Everyone wants to wave their flag on the disputed property, claim it their own.
Why all this sudden hooplah on something that has been going on for the past half century ?? Why this appeal of peace from the PM ? We in India are hypocrites arent we? One on hand we claim that we are the world's largest democracy and on the other we are not sure if we can take a verdict which our acclaimed judiciary is going to give regarding an age old dispute. What is the dispute anyway one may ask. Its a dispute like any other land dispute. Do i own it or does mohammad bhai next door. There are religious sentiments behind this one, however does it really matter to the ramu bhai who comes to clean and sweep the building every morning or to rahim chai wala ?? Dubey the welder tells me that the court ruling is to come today. He was so excited about it. Not of what the verdict would be, but of the excitement and all the hype surrounding it. For him, it hardly makes a difference to him. As one gentleman remarked today, its not Hindu v/s Muslim. Its more like the title holders of the land who are in dispute and un-necessarily have dragged the hindus as a generalized set for political reasons.
Its high time India grew up to take such verdicts in its stride. We are a mature nation over 60 years old and we cant bend or buckle under pressure from unruly sources. Sadly Kashmir is still on the burner. Why would people not want their children to study ??? There is no way Kashmir is going to be free, not in the next 100 years !!! So why not accept it and live on. I mean, there are more benefits than problems if the unruly mobs stop pelting stones. I read the other day that a 15 year old has been charged of attempt to murder and is out on a Rs 25000 bail with a wailing father who is upset as to how he would get his 4 daughters married? Why have 5 children to begin with? Next, why should you allow your son 15 years in age to riot and throw stones on police ? If you do allow, there is no one to blame but yourself.
Phew !!! Relax people, i suppose now is the need is to breathe. Breathe in fresh cool air and relax.
Enjoy life these days though hate it is as much for it keeps me busy and gets me tired at the end of the day :) :)

Engaged !!!

"Duuuuuuuude... congrats " read a comment on one of the photos i had uploaded.
Unbelievable, hard to accept are just a few of the many emotions that i felt as the feeling set in, that i was finally engaged.

Many of the chums would ask me, isnt it a little too early? Some would simply ask me about the feeling while others would console me on the loss of my bachelorhood. For me, it was simply a long journey finally culminating happily. From the time nearly 4 years back, the road hasnt always been all this rosy and smooth and hence the feeling of relief, peace and sudden light feeling gives me the impression as if i can fly. For me, this small, brief quick so to say ceremony was nothing but the official recognition of our relationship.

Engaged, the word may have different meanings in different contexts, but the main crux behind it remains the same. Engaged - Attached. Attached with drr, with work, with life and with future. Its all in the word. Scary as some may put it, addition to the family. One would now have to worry on how the in laws would react, how they would perceive this etc etc and the cliche. But then, its all a part of the game aint it? Its all one big family. And with more members added to the jungle, its surely a fun thing. Placate one to annoy the other and irritate the third by making the fourth happy. Its feelings, emotions and a lot more.

As i get ready for the important innings in life, its obviously not going to be all that rosy ahead, but then... was it even till now i ask myself. Those days have passed and in future too will pass. Nothing is so enthralling as the feeling of being free. Free to talk, meet and discuss each other. Hold hands and cuddle. Free to think for a common future and the freedom to consult and be consulted.

Isnt it an oxymoron ? Engaged to get freedom ????
As it stands, its a wonderful feeling and one i will cherish for times to come.
21st feb 2010. The pics are by far the best of my own pics i have seen. Phew, i atleast managed to look decent.

Sachin just became the first cricketer in the history to make 200* in an ODI. Kudos to the Indian in this Marathi Manoos... :P

Released or captured

Life is funny. There are times of fun and sadness interwined together. There is never one more than the other. How in the world does God manage to give each and everyone just enough to be happy and sad at the same time???

Happy i resigned and sad coz i would actually have to work now on :P:P Hahaha.. jokes apart. The recent marriage of a friend was nothing more than that. Happiness and sadness together as if it were a package, incomplete one without the other. With the happiness of a union of two souls, it displayed what was more of an ego match being fought over a cause not even worth mention on my blog!!! (Imagine how small it was). An endurance test for me (One of the few after Paragana '08) it was a wonderful time spent with one of the best friends i have had and hence was a pleasure for me. Nonetheless, what happened after that, even i wouldnt know. How they fare is for them and their destiny to decide. But for the better good of their life and that of their friends and family, they bound together and accepted it as their solemn duty to be husband and wife. With all their agreements and disagreements, it was one ball of time for most of us. Tiring, enthralling, and a lot of fun with the pics sessions that we had, it was also a time to remember friends and catching up with them. Am sure, such times are hard to come by and rare. Missed DP. Would have been fun bitching more had she been there. :P

As for the professional life, well as i begin to take strides towards working with dad, i suppose i would have to make good the pay i get. The work would have to be worth every penny if not more and phew!! this after corporate life ?? Released or Captured is what i would have to ask myself. Undoubtedly it is nothing more exilerating than working towards what one feels is correct and for what we love most, but then its work right? This 'notice' time is for me to notice, how fun it is to work/not work towards the goals of the organisation and still be able to spend time in office. For me to notice, how callous, un-responsive and irresponsible certain colleagues are. Notice that it would be a tough time from here on when i would have to be working 6 days a week instead of 5 and would be getting no american type fringe benifits. But, all in all, it has been an eventful and not to forget a memorable week.

Last as always, Love u drrrrrr. Sorry i slept off early on your birthday, hope u like the watch :)

Woh Karo jo dil kehta hai !!!

Passion, love for something.
Have always heard, read and seen. Do what you love, do what you do best. I love machines and i ought to go back to them. Mechanical engg by heart, studied chemical so as to do good work and now yearn for energy conservation methods. MBA in finance, didnt know much when i joined and just a little more after i cleared it.
But then, what am i here to do? What is my purpose on earth? What is my calling?
These are the questions which children ought to be asking themselves and doing accordingly. Had people been doing that, they wouldnt have ended up as losers and morons seated in high positions in companies. They surely wouldnt have been running around doing practically nothing yet drawing sky high salaries and being called Heads of Dept. Heights to hypocrisy, they claim, we are a flat organisation and refuse to talk to executives from other departments. Lo !! They would send u an sms " MIS? " when their sister is getting married, however, in case ur appraisal results are out, you are to wait for a couple of days till they are free to tell u the % increment.
When people do stuff they are not meant to, it leads to people in positions they dont deserve, in turn causing imbalance in organizations, forcing young people to rethink their purpose working there, making them quit and do what is their calling, thus creating balance again. :P Funny isnt it ?

But then, what is my calling? Oh, i have always loved machines and building. I have always worked for new things, new projects, and even new organisations. Startups. Now, i intend to again start up a new life. A new career, something that i have dreamt of. Something that i can look upon 10 years later and be proud of. An empire that i have always wanted to create. What lies ahead? Hard work i suppose. Someone is smirking. I aint a star performer, I have been given a strong performer rating. Well, sadly its numbers people see. Efforts somehow are always silent and hidden. How can one beat this rat race of being the best, getting the maximum numbers? What is more important for a new company? Just the numbers they get on board or also the kind of support they provide their channel partners?
How can these things be quantified buddy? Here begins the issues. I am sure none of these would have mattered, not even the rating had one been pursuing their passion.
Now does my friend want to sell soaps or mobile sim cards or tyres or whatever. Are they really meant to be doing that?

How to teach a small kid to swim? Throw him into a well and he would learn on his own, my grandad would say. So, here I am jumping into this sea of opportunities presented by something called entrepreneurship. Lets see how things work out with machines, with the wonderful thing called chemical engg. If not anything, i know what iFast does and how :P

Here's to a wonderful year well spent (Nearly) in the first job.

Dilemma

Dont take yourself seriously, no one else does :P :P
Now thats an awesome saying that i read the other day. But these days, there is a battle going on in my mind. With the respect to the ones which we wage day in day out, this is something which is much more dangerous and more tiring than others. With the constant gnawing on my head and heart, this dilemma (spell check done from MS Word)is making life less peaceful.
Job or Business ??? Now come on some may say, why work for someone else when you can do something on your own. But, here too there is not much on my own. Though entrepreneur sounds like an amazing word, it surely has a lot to it than just making it big. For every successful one there are thousands who failed. For the thousands who failed there would be millions who thought but didnt try. And i surely dont want to end up in that basket. I am sure of myself when it comes to marketing the SG based company's online portal. But now when i am supposed to design, modify and even work on new un-decided projects at Suntrack, it is going to be one different ball game. From those 5 star hotel stays and those wonderful corporate look, i now decide to enter the unorganised and the less professional sector of family business. Less than family business it is more of a 2 man army. The 2 men in contention happen to be my father and his colleague both with the experiance of some 30 years in engg. What am i to add to their wealth of experiance, but learn from them and hope to reach higher than where they are today.
Leaving the luxuries of a fixed salary and less botheration at the end of each month, i now enter an arena where i would have to make my worth felt. My brains would be tested and so also my presence of mind. My salary cant be taken for granted and my growth not in someone's end. My work, my beliefs and my horizons have to widen. I would be entrepreneur and i ought to think like one. What the fck does that mean ?? well, possibly just that for once, i would have to put in practice real out of box thinking to lead the company to more pastures and greener grasslands. It would be obvious that i would have to expand the company and the reach to more areas. Areas, unexplored and where the ball would be than where it is today.

But, then i would be leaving behind an entire pie waiting to be explored. It would be more than anything a very wonderful learning that i would be leaving behind. One thing certain that i surely didnt get the best rating just like that. I if at all get one, would be after several discussions and convincing on my part. How i wish, i could have performed better and also got a boss unlike mine :P. On a more serious note, the small 1 yr stint here taught me patience. Appraisal or not, it is more of the learning that i take to my own business. The feeling of it being own. Now thats something to ponder :)

The dilemma may just be something superficial, but it is more of fear and the butterflies of getting into the unknown and the ability to be of use and be worthy of the pay that i receive.

"Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But dont worry, God doesnt blink"

Chaddi buddy ki shaadi !!!

Well, its just about time that the feeling has sunk in (physical trauma). Its over, its done and sealed. Not him, his fate. Yes, as one would have guessed even without the heading of the blog, my bestie got married.

The function as obviously in India was with the full rituals and fanfare expected at any wedding. Especially this one coz was the first in his family in this generation as well as coz was the first wedding in our group of friends.
The one who had decided to try and bite the forbidden fruit :P. As one of the chums put in at the end of the whole thing," We would now have to share him with one more person". Though, the love marriage meant that we knew our bhabhi since long and were more than aware of the happenings and the obvious happy ending, but for the actual process to materialize and hit us for something different from just knowing it.

The entire thing started with us dunderheads being called in for learning the dance to be done during sangeet. Now imagine, a bunch of nuts like us being taught how to dance !!. Not that we were any bad, but werent surely the prabhu devas. We surely knew how to shake a leg or two, but bring in coordination with not only the other leg that u had to shake but also hand and face movements meant that it spelled doom!!!! Thanks to Shailey (Apologise for the spelling mistake if any) that we nuts learnt to move our butts, and not in the normal ghati type dance that we know, but in a more coordinated fashion. Imagine, the time and effort she had to spend after us that each and every member not involved in the dance knew each and every step :P
Trust me, ours was the best dance, with all the rhythm and tempo that we had (or managed to get) by that time. Frankly those days of night time practice were the ones that we remember today and have the most attachment to. Those were the times when we would joke about, fool around and have fun with the whole bunch of his cousins and family. It gave us a sense of involvement beyond our daily routine and was a welcome addition to our daily activities.

The sangeet was ofcourse preceded by Bachelor's party of a different kind. Though, not to forget to the spirits, there were enough to put people(me included) on a fantastic high. Getting into the sangeet and the day next was wedding. It surely was the first wedding that i was attending where i got to dance in the baraat!! It was one life time of an experience. It meant that there was no reason to stop and that kush was surely not getting anywhere near the mandap any time soon. We started sometime 10.30 and after amazing stamina dancing by his IIM and IIT friends, that we finally allowed him to enter the hall and get a tilak by 12:40pm :P:P
Well, it surely meant that we danced outside the hall all for 1 hr with the best brains in the country shouting and dancing as if there were no tomorrow and surely there was not to be :) (He was going to be married)

The wedding followed by the reception meant that after the morning's ceremony, we were all tired physically but not on spirits and preparations for his night were made. It was decided to alarm him a couple of times at night involuntarily if so with the many alarm clocks in the room designated for them to spend their night together. That both of them were our best friends, meant that we had to be kind enough. Not to forget that our marriages were to follow sometime after theirs meant that that the tricks had to be small and innocent :P
Apart from delaying their entry into the room, we made sure that they were woken up at the best of the times :)) But then, as is said, what are friends for !!!

Jokes apart, this was the first time in ages that we had such marathon functions, day in day out at the end of which, we were all more tired and worn out ourselves. To follow up with these activities amidst our daily schedule meant that we had procrastinated a lot of our work for the days after marriage and meant that the first day in office after the wedding was not to be the most pleasant one.
Surely the times were amazing and ones to be remembered. One friend quoted in one picture,"We remember not days but moments". Surely the moments and the times were the best spent in a long long time and the most enjoyable. Thanks buddy !!!

Hope you guys have a wonderful and happy married life :) -- Fantastic 4 now fantastic 5 !!