The marathon Marathon

Most times I am less troubled about things around me because I do not fully grasp the gravity of it; probably that’s the reason the last SCHM went about without the seeming troubles.

That does not mean I did not take stress, did not have sleepless nights, had to let go of a number of commercial projects for this one, keep away from the family and basically go nuts over and about it; but most times there’s a single-minded madness of doing it just right. The dumbness surely helps at times.

The event, that got well over a month ago, was an outright success. And it was a remarkable experience too – both for the organizers and for the participants! As an organizer, I can of course point out tens of error spots, but the fact remains that as a participant, one would have a ball of a time!

Yes it is a milestone in my professional and personal achievements and of Surti Runners group as a whole; but the lessons learned invaluable – some marathon-related, others event management centric & some very personal ones too!

But the biggest problem is that I am readying for more of them. A many more.

A week before the half-marathon

Blame it on the democratization of the mouse and the keyboard that all of us novices also get to write blogs on running!

This one is rather on the last week’s run-up to a half-marathon; and the ideas purely belong to the time spent with feet on street last night (on the practice run).

Here are 7 of my mantras that might work just fine in the last week before your run:

1.       Patience vs Practice: Have the patience to wait for the final run and not get carried away to go all out in practice run and also keep that practice going on, though taper it.

2.       Familiar roads: Running on the actual event route makes a lot of sense. You get a feel of the local conditions like road surface, bumps and twists & turns. In the case of Surat marathon, it’s the headwind you gotta get acclimatised with. Since it’s on VIP road, there’s reasonable headwind in one direction.

3.       The real rehearsal: Use the same gear and accessories planned out for the race day. Same clothes, shoes, hydration pack, etc. You would know what hampers and what compliments your run.

4.       Hydration: You already know hydration is mandatory. But what and how much are you going to carry? How often will you drink and hence need to refill? I’m sure there’ll be many like me who get tempted to not stop for hydration during the run and jeopardise the distance and stamina. Practice runs will also instil this discipline in you.

5.       Chaffing: Nipple chaffing is one of the most common physical discomforts (especially in men) when one runs long distance wearing a dry-fit t-shirt. (Add to it the humid climate of Surat in April and the prickly sweat it will give you.) If you’re running half-marathon or 10K, at least apply some lotion/ cream if not apply some taping on them.

6.       Run-tracker dilemma: Don’t get into the temptation of starting the run-tracker (watch/ phone) at the last time before the run. It’s a lot stressful and diverts attention. In the event, you’d anyway know the exact distance and also the time so chill out, start that tracker a little in advance and get over with it.

7.       Playlist: Ready that playlist well in advance and run with it too; you might be surprised how many of those songs on that list don’t make sense change it, change it again if the need be, and run with the final one to ensure it’s just the right music for your ears.

Mara-thon Tera-thon (part 1)

Just the 3^rd edition of Surat Night Marathon, and it hit a bump this year in form of the widely epidemic swine-flu. Though I’ve been just recently bitten by the running bug, I’ve had a more than a little company of some regular runners. And when it comes to marathon, my profession as an event manager enables me to see a probably-unseen side of it too!

It’s been just 5 hours the event has been officially postponed, thought will key in a blog about the top challenges from the marathon organizer’s point of view.

1.       The wagging tongue syndrome – Normally when an event of this scale is rescheduled, the tongues go wagging about the organizational capability and in some way gives the participants a dissonance.

2.       Domino effect of this one delay – A major event is but yet another professional project for the organizer. They want to do it in the best way possible and then move on to the next coz just 1 event doesn't pay all the bills! This might all the more be true for organizers here who are more into commercial rather than client-based events.

3.       Rescheduling the visitors – From elite runners to pre-booked international entertainers; all will have to reschedule their travel plans. usually there’re more drop-outs than add-ins in such cases; though let’s hope at least the elite runners will turn up on the next date!

4.       The increased ad-spend – A 2-month delay means to keep the visibility and hence the final impact as it is. It’s as simple as a monkey’s red ass that it is impossible. However, a second final-phase of ad-spend will have to be incurred in April to gain momentum and reach a shattering climax.

5.       Laxity in the revving event team – As an event reaches its final phase, the event team revs up and work at its peak. Such an event team has a lot of temps who come on-board just for that project; and go over to their studies or another project after that. A sudden trough like this will leave the team clueless at first, then worrying about the delay. Some attrition is bound to happen and organizers may have to re-train the new chaps.

6.       Dipping interest levels – It’s no rocket science that the success of an event is gauged by the participation levels. A lot of runners and enthusiastic junta were doing their last lag preparation and this cancellation will can it. Some might just not get in that mood again after 2 months.

7.       Loss of revenue – A lot of sponsors get on the bandwagon at the last moment – yes even in the last 1 week. (Just FYI, in case of Navratri, AT LEAST 30% sponsors are confirmed within the last 24 hours - before the 1^st of the 9 days.) I’m not sure if the same will happen in April also; considering that a lot of them may not have frozen their ad-spends for the next financial year and will take a while to decide (and miss the bus).

8.       The large looming shadow – Come next year, there’ll be a breed of stupidus-maximus who will nonetheless fill up the form; will also throw a jibe like – ‘aa vakhte pan tarikh padse ke shu?’ This one unavoidable rescheduling will remain in collective memory for around 5 years.

The changing facade of Surat

I’d not want to get into the cliché blowing of Modi bugle – especially when I see positive change in this entrepreneurial city!

Just the last week it was the fallen parking parapet of my office building – the one of the many that had stifled the road. I was glad the parapet wall made way for the bottlenecked road; though at a measly disappointment of losing my parking space! And today it was the freshly installed signage pointing, thankfully, in all the right directions!

This city (administration), like all the others, keeps abreast of changing times – as much as it can. One of my biggest compliments to it is the keenness to develop recreational spaces in the city. When the Science Centre came up on this very road 5 years back, I was super glad! Such spaces serve not only as recreation but are also a rich source of informal education! And the number of school students visiting it on regular basis, I’m sure it’s serving the right purpose. It has given the city not only a science gallery and planetarium, but also superb places for exhibition, conventions and concerts.

Then came the aquarium where I did 3 trips but came back coz it was pre-booked. This goes on to show how much this city needs such public places and how little has been done about it! Tapi river-front has been another strong step in that direction; hoping many more such come up in the near future. 

check check

Returning to this blog after a hiatus makes me go at the loss of words! I am spotting spelling mistakes and observing my reluctance towards them coz of the thought that the computer will correct them anyway. And some of blatant ones are not even being bothered about!

But it has been good to be back here. I started using twitter after stopping blog, considering it to be a micro-blogging activity and taking solace in it. But came back to this only after people around me did the same. I do not know if it is a wasted peer pressure or motivation.

The so-called micro-blogging turned out to be everything BUT that :)

I will sign off as I'm already distracted by the Complaints tab on the bottom right corner of this screen

Jootha hi sahi last night was fun. However, just for the 2^nd time they showed ‘I-want-her-coz –the-other-man-does-too' syndrome.

Madhavan leaves the girl and when sees her hooked to another one, starts vying for her again. Before this, I saw this being featured in an episode of Friends.

It’s yet another classic example of using someone else’s yardstick to measure yourself. And this innumerable circumstances and in or common lives. From the common question “Am I fatter than her?” that you throw to your husband to youngsters going for career counseling to the Madhavan syndrome I talked of earlier, it’s all about what the other person thinks of what I think or do. We have gotten so engrossed in this process that any individuality that comes around is either revered or snubbed. It is not regarded by us commoners as anything normal.

[Wonder if readers will like this!] ha ha ha

This & that

I am more than tempted to point out the similarities between 26/11 (2008) & 25/07 (2000). Yes I know what you're thinking, and any writer/ blogger would like to spice it up a little with an element of suspense.

26 November 2008 was when a warrant was issued against Hotel Taj & Mumbai by Ajmal Kasab & company; & 25 July 2000 was when the warrant issued against Balasaheb Thakrey by the world-famous (in India) Mumbai Police.

During the latter, I was in Bombay (is Thakrey & company listening?) & my friend & host Ashish called to tell me to duck under any desk, shop or covering nearby because it's supposed to be a catastrophic day. The same frantic calls were made, I am sure, on the former date.

On both the dates, a group of extremists romped the streets of Bombay (he he he) & destroyed property & harmed people. Police & administration failed to curb them for a lot of hours because of various reasons and the harm was done.

They knew they were doing the harm and o they were loving it; and proud of it.

I am sure the people who follow the blog are smart enough to add more points of reference. I sign off here, please take charge.

Hum Tum mmm mmm

There’s no guarantee of this blog coming through when I’s confessing my twisted views on sex & religion to Khushboo yesterday. And it actually wouldn’t have if I won’t have seen Hum Tum the same evening.

Watching that movie also reminded me that liberal or conservative views on sex are not decided by gender. It’s a surprise to a viewer when the woman, Rani Mukherjee, having spent a pleasant night with the boyfriend of one hour Saif, comes out in broad daylight blushing & unapologetic. And on the other hand, the guy’s head is full of guilt of pre-marital, though consensual sex. The confrontation & rona-dhona that follows is saved from being the typical Hindi movie one because of a simple gender reversal in the game.

There’s sure no pride in high divorce or teen pregnancy rates or post-Navratri high rate of abortions or nervous break-downs of bachcha log; but media will have to change more, so will have to entertainers, and artists and decision makers. Because the hues of society are changing, and rather than trying to reverse the flow, they might as well channelize it well.

Unapologetic Cinema

Watching Nishabda last week was the flash point for this blog - & I watched it despite a hundred warnings, including Nisha's, that it isn't worth a sniff.

And after watching Salaam Namaste last night , the starkness was unmissable. The combination of these 2 movies made me fully realize the amazing packaging of apologetic-ness, guilt & stereo-typing that Indian film directors do through laughter, songs and silly fights & romance.

On one hand is the sophomore film of Saif's 2nd inning (who I quite like for sneaking away Bebo from another man) where through fun, romance and PZ's maiden kiss the director tells us that the man in the relationship should always yield to the lady's fondness and pregnancy. And he doesn't take any chance and so passes on the same message through animated sonography, dramatic Doc, babe in the mall and even through Arshad Warsi. He says you got to get married if you don't want, you got to yield if the girl goes pregnant and you got to be apologetic if you even dare to think otherwise. And we've been, for all these years, lived in the time of apologetic mind-frame. This has been communicated and exhibited to us through movies, art, Kandahar plane hijack episode, ad of VIP undies and long queues at the train station.

Thankfully, there're people who have realized this across the years and have tried to tell their side of it - art movies, M F Hussain, Dhirubhai Ambani, Taslima Nasreen, Saurav Ganguly, Mahesh Bhatt & in a tiny way, Shri :) Ramgopal Verma.

I heard one such message from RGV when I saw Nishabda. The first reaction was of bemused surprise when, towards the end of the film, Big B confesses messing up and laments not only the loss of wife and daughter, but also the young muse! That was as unapologetic and vulgar as it gets. Had it been some other director, he'd have shot the scene where the protagonist throws out the young muse from the house; but then would have shown him guilty as hell and kneeling before the family and friends. But not this one, not this time. In this one, the Big Daddy of Bollywood says he misses the wife, the daughter and also the gone girlfriend. What a twisted old man! Not that I appreciate all such old men, but surely the director's brazen gut.

However, in the genre of unapologetic cinema, Rani Mukherjee scores teh highest. In Hum Tum, she scoffs at Saif's Sorry-for-premarital-sex attitude and shuns his I'll-support-you mindframe. Again in KANK, she leaves a perfectly normal and caring husband for charming ill-tempered Khan.

The audience should, rather than looking for moral lessons in all our films, appreciate different hues of story-telling. And also accept that these are nothing but the images of a changing society.

baby with the bathwater

Throwing the baby out with bathwater is common in any society; especially the one that’s threatening to turn fascist by the hands of moral police. This tide had ebbed, now I fear there’s going to be some reawakening.

The cause this time is a very unfortunate incident of a minor girl being raped by youth in the wee hours in Surat. The anguish is but predictable; so is my worry that in the name of security and moral policing, many a innocuous people will be blamed, and may also be penalized. The bigger threat, however is that ideas and thoughts will suffer a bigger blow and few will oppose it because it comes wrapped in and attached with a very sensitive cover.

Many a things around me force me to take such a stand – the pro-people language used by daily newspapers; the headline that writes – Muslim Youth – clearly citing and inciting junta; the news tag-line – Rape on Wheels - developed by Divya Bhaskar; blaming coaching classes for early morning class timing; totalitarian organization like the VHP announcing a bandh on Monday.

Hoping the victim kid recovers and find her life soon; and the hoopla that has surrounded the real issue doesn’t take too much toll; as a safety measure, I have taken off some party pictures from the online photo gallery.

99 = 100

Karan’s facebook status – 99 is 100% wouldn’t have helped if it wouldn’t have been the psychological pull to theatre after the strike is over. For this reason or that, however, I did watch 99. Like I didn’t realize in Fiza (name of the character) or Tamanna (ditto), it never occurred to me the movie featured a story of year 1999.

I still can not think of the reason they did it, but they did it nevertheless. Though I am not a very keen person when it comes to observing things, but have a list of the technically best movies. Khosla ka Ghosla sits at the top of the list; and then there’re a few more like Bheja Fry, Saudagar (the old one), Dor, etc. the newest entrant to this list is 99.

I didn’t fully realize the period element when they showed the bigger black mobile-phone first; then it all started to connect. Right from the bulky mobile phones, monotone ring tones, greenish displays to a mention of T20 cricket, the novelty in the concept of coffee shops, MAC Donald’s board – it was all there. The superb presence of Boman Irani, Cyrus Brocha and Vinod Khanna added to the charm of the movie. And for a change I also liked Soha & Khemu.

The superiority of the film was also reflected in the screenplay and dialogues. The innovative references used for Cyrus’s thick frame and the kaminapan of Boman Irani only helped make the movie complete.

99 sure is 100%.

Brand-Gandhi Erosion

I’ve always considered Gandhi as one of the biggest Indian brand. Nothing derogatory about it trust me; I’m myself an ardent admirer of him. But all that I’ve read of him (and I’ve read good), I’ve known him to be a cunning politician and a damn good strategist. And if I use the same shrewd analysis, he’s (also) an Indian brand.

It’s my love for Gandhi and for the field of Marketing that made me abhor the way ‘Gandhi Mela’ has been organized in Surat. The contrast is sharper when it’s sandwiched between the just concluded ‘Trade Fair’ and fast-approaching ‘Vyapaar’ exhibitions (and all three being put up at the same premises).

The organizers believe Gandhi is all about swadeshi, but they’ve put up completely vernacular and shabby exhibition. He preached autonomy but not low quality. Each of his political and national movements (even Upvaas) was well-thought of and well-timed. (Those who’ve read him would well recall that when he took it up the first time, it’s the mass effect of this tool that appealed him rather than Jesus Christ like I’ll-suffer-for-them philosophy.) Gandhi was (very) modern in his thought process and would have known that packaging and appearance will have to be smart enough to appeal the masses today.

The starkest thing that I noticed was the skew ness of the crowd there. almost the entire exhibition was made of students from government or trust-run schools, elderly and dilapidated people, social workers and government officers of the obscure departments like Khadi Board, Alternate Energy department, etc. where’s the college-going youth, the office-goer, the urban middle-class, the school kid (who has a brighter chance to represent the country and society in the international forum)?

They are missing the target by a long-shot.

Inside of a police station

Inside of a police station looks just like a clerical department of municipal corporation. The furniture, worn out and repainted several times, the indifferent and rouged staff dressed in checked shirts and metal rimmed glasses, calendars here and there, unwashed and discoloured window curta-

Oh well, sorry for the above, I’d wanted to write about something else.

The reason of my visit to the place which I described above. It’s that email I sent to the Surat Municipal Commissioner on 21st January about unorganized parking near the Kotak Bank building on the main road here; also narrating the actual difficulties faced in that narrow but important lane. And yes I had forgotten what else I wrote.

It’s Imran (that’s what he said – no salutation, no designation, no last name, no-thing) on the other end yesterday evening when he told me to please (yes he used that word) come over to the traffic division of the city police and give my ‘nivedan’ so that it can be taken ahead. I was in double mind till the time I got some casual encouragement last night.

But I did take the second step in my mission D O by going there today. They took the complaint, apologized it took long because the in-charge was on leave. They will now tow vehicles from there regularly and each time they do that, will call me. And thanked for getting it to their notice.

He didn’t show any sign of expecting that I’m done with it., and so I’m not. Next mails will go out tomorrow morning about excessive honking and zigzag driving.

If you survived the above paragraphs, please D O yourself. And you’ll be in for a lot of surprises and a little pride.

I’ve always hated soothsayers, of every form. But I’m going to make an attempt at it. As it’s the Chandrayaan team this year that bagged the CNN Indian of the Year award, next year it can very well be National Mission on Education (NMoE). Those who keep a tab of what’s going on in the rest of India would know that today NMoE is unveiling what is fondly termed the $ 10 laptop at Tirupati. The partners to this initiative are IIT and IISc. This will also provide some necessary breather to the critics of these high maintenance institutions.

It’s beyond imagination what such a gadget can do to the scientific, economic and social fabric of the country. Like the cellphone reaching the breast-pocket of every rikshaw-walla, pan-walla and kadiya-mistri; if all goes well, an i-enabled, printer connected laptop will be seen with subzi-walla, doodh-walla and the school-child in every Ramgadh of India. The cell-phones have done its part by providing connectivity and some other important gadgetry like GPS; it’s time to upgrade the tech-pocket of the 100 million Indians to the laptops.

If you’ve started to wonder I didn’t mention education, you sure will agree it requires more attention than the one-liners above. And if this dream comes true, it will get all it deserves in the next few years. The geniuses will come out of villages and hamlets; the lazy teacher will have to pull up his socks and the passionate one will be grinning all the way to school, respiration and condensation will be animated; the gadgets will bring glamour to school followed by students, coupled with mid-day meals (it) will increase school-goers, villages have software dukans and cyber-cafes – the list goes endless. As a ripple effect, some energy source will have to be made available, marketers will find a channel to reach the rural youngsters and upgrade their aspiration levels, who knows what will happen to number of hackers though! :)

This brings back to me what I heard from Dr C K Prahlad in year 2000 at IIM Ahmedabad. He had given a simple example of making ice-cream available to the marginalized and rural kids. No rocket science he said, just control the cost of refrigeration. No high-flying he said, use local burf instead of liquid carbon dioxide. I’m sure Dr Prahlad will also smile today.

I am D O –ing

The swarm of emails and join-this-forum requests that flooded my mail box after the recent Bombay attack was phenomenal. And I’m sure a lot of my friends can share the same story. All of them recommended joining such and such forum to be able to make a difference. So did the TV wallas, and wrapped them in pretty brand names. All throughout I was not able to ensure the end result of the actions of joining the forums and so on (though I did sign in for a few with compelling names)!

My dilemma was finally resolved when an old friend called saying he’s in the town. Since that call around a month back, I have met up with Anup thrice. And I’ve finally started to make the difference, albeit without joining any forum. He infected me with sort of a vulgar idea, naked of any analysis and support-seeking mechanism. If you see something going wrong around you, take note and write an email. THAT IS IT.

And within a month, it has started to show the signs of sure success.
1 The first set of emails went to Tata group and Neelkamal group because my car, which could have been laden with explosives, went unchecked and unnoticed in the basement parking of their Chroma and @ Home store building in Surat. Tatas haven’t replied yet, Neelkamal followed it up the same day and reverted.
2 Then mailed Pantaloon guys coz my wife (and I was) wasn’t checked with a metal detector at the entry gate of Big Bazaar Surat. Upon asking (by her) the whereabouts of the female guard, prompt came the reply that she was absent that day. the mail that was sent to their corporate email ID was responded to me in form of the phone call that the Surat store manager placed to me thanking me and assuring that the female guard will never by missing starting today.
3 The email sent to traffic department of Surat city reporting a particularly chaotic street hasn’t been responded or acted upon. The reminder will go out on Monday; and on every subsequent Monday till they do not act over it.
4 When I post this blog today, there’re 2 emails waiting in line to reach the mailboxes of 2 local schools whose buses didn’t show the brake lights working.

And now, like the friend of mine, I am also bent on spreading the virus. Whether or not you join any of the forums or do a silent march, whenever you see something going wrong around you, take note and reach out to the concerned authority. You will be amazed by the difference you can make by doing this.

Mother India

“India is truly a mother, a lady,” I heard someone telling, “and keeps on nursing the neighbours as one.” Mother (hood) India is not what I am concerned about, but it sure shows all the meekness of a fragile creature.

After the attack on Mumbai last month, she’s crying hoarse about Pakistan’s hand in the entire episode and claims having proof of the same. The trouble is, it is taking no concrete forward action accept for the usual rhetoric. I sure appreciate the political games being played out between our government, Pak and the USA. But it is not sufficient by any standard. Especially after there are supposed proofs that Pak is involved. I believe it’s missed out on taking the following assertive steps in the right direction –
Close the Paki foreign office and consulate in the country and make it a firm statement that a spade (read responsible-for-terror-state) is a spade;
Ask all the Pakistani citizens to leave the country;
Stop all the means of transportation between the 2 countries and bar the entry of any Pakistani national in the country;
If possible, bar all the direct routes of communication between the 2 states;
Withdraw the MFN (Most Favoured Nation) status of Pakistan under the UN umbrella; and
Clearly and precisely state that Pakistan is the enemy and that relationships have soured and will stay that way till the time it cleans up its act.

I am not against the inter-national cricket, or art, or commerce; till sometime back, I was a major proponent of it because I firmly believed it can make a difference. For the above understanding and frame of mind, I didn’t have any humanitarian or amorous thoughts; but I could clearly see its political and security fallouts. The more stakes you have in the other person; the more you’re concerned about her well-being.

But the time has gone when we could care about the relationships going sore; they already have.

Letter to Prime Minister

Dear Honorable Prime Minister

Like the other citizens of the country, I show my support in this mix of good and ugly natured attacks on Mumbai event and its resolution by our armed forces and security groups.

But Sir, the ugliness far outshines the feeling of relief now that the situation has almost been resolved. There’ve been people like me who feel angry that the terrorists and criminals can take the entire country hostage and do bomb blasts at their will whenever and wherever they please! We boast of the best of the armies and police forces in the world, a pile of nuclear weapons, intelligence and other strength showing signs but bow before such situations. We do a show of strength on our national holidays down the Rajpath but when the real need is felt, become helpless.

The resilience laden strength that we try to show features only in our words and fails to reflect in our actions. The political talks and analyses reach dead-ends and we continue to bleed in various parts of the country at different times. The empty talks and we-will-not-pardon statements that you give out through media to all of us have lost all meaning and are seen as a wrapping up exercise rather than a commitment, a promise of delivery. I am sure we are going to hear the same things this time as well; but for whoever’s sake, please, DO SOMETHING after talking it out and promising it to 120 crore of us.

Please
1. take responsibility of the mistakes that were made before and during the whole exercise (since that’s the only way they can be rectified);
2. investigate the current crime scenes and leads very keenly to book the culprits;
be affirmative and assertive in blaming whoever is responsible – from Pakistan to the likes of Sadhvi Pragya;
3. give very good compensation to the families of security personnel who lost their lives; and
4. put the defense, warning and reaction systems in place to tackle such situations in future.

Please do not take the mood of the country “restored” as it is far from it. If after this letter I do not write you any; or if every Mr Joshi goes to office tomorrow, it doesn’t mean everything is normal. I humbly remind you of the only two important words I have written above – DO SOMETHING.

Art wins

The end today, on 10th September 08 was a happy one. No not the end of the day, it has just begun. The end of the front page of the ToI.

It reports that the apex court has turned the tables on a case against M F Hussain. For years together (my memory goes back to 1999) the Hindu militant organizations and some extremists individuals have been pronouncing their own diktat on a lot of subjects and slamming (and stabbing) people left right and centre. They object to every third work of art saying it defames either the gods or the culture. This habit reflects in denouncing and threatening Hussain, attacking the nude painting at M S University (Baroda), etc.

It is heartening news that the Supreme Court has thrown away the case saying “It is an art like the sculptures.” The sculptures referring to – ofcourse – those of Khajuraho. “None gets scandalized looking at the sculptures.” It is shame, though, that we still have to hide behind those bare stone busts to justify a lot of sensible things.

Being in Surat, the recent terror blasts is a reality rather than the front page news; traveling to Ahmedabad even more so.

And I will tell you what hurt me the most. While on the Ahmedabad trip last week, I found umpteen billboards lauding communal harmony, steadfastness and bravery of the people of Gujarat. A few also preached the importance of non-violence in these times.

As a citizen of this state, this was the biggest farce I witnessed in the whole issue. I still can’t digest the need to put up a show of the qualities of the sufferers when the entire time, resources and energy should go in nabbing the guilty and punishing them! These billboards seem like an attempt to dwarf the gravity of the situation wherein one city witnesses terrorist bomb blasts and the other one two dozen live bombs.

Who are we kidding here Mr Administrator? By announcing that Gujarat is unaffected by such instances and will rise soon, we are actually making the whole issue too insignificant. I don’t say the police wouldn’t be doing anything to nab the guilty, but then why bull**** about all these and give a false feeling of bravado to the citizens? Admit that the going is not good and we are trying our level best to bring it back to normalcy; warn the citizens to keep vigil; strategize and act decisively and swiftly. But for the sake of a hundred hells – don’t tell me whatever happened was alright. BECAUSE IT WASN’T.

Didn’t I mention this to be the biggest farce! Now is the time for the biggest irony. The police have supposedly caught the people responsible for this and they have confessed. And half the people doubt police to have done some foul play to ease the pressure on it.

This 15th August

The national holidays have always been important for me. Back in school it used to be the prestigious NCC parade; and after that a flair for patriotic films and music.

I didn’t expect 15th august 2008 to be so different in spirit. This unusual national holiday came to me thanks to the late train booking that saw me on-board Ahmedabad Passenger train from Surat to Ahmedabad. This was my first time on this kind and as usual I’d booked myself online and was carrying the sheet along as the testimony of my constitutional and legal right towards seat number 35 in S1. Constitutional rights - b**lls. Legal rights - ditto.

After claiming my seat from a man and a child (no poetry here), I was surprised when the kaka started to rant that it doesn’t matter who booked the ticket, the whole of train is a common one for all passengers. And finally I was awestruck when a couple of ladiez claimed my seat as well. I was in half-mind whether to fight and push them off from my seat or to bear their presence on the crammed seat. I found myself fighting them off and showing them the ticket that bore the number in question; with the lone support of a passenger in my coupe.

I couldn’t help but think how a fresh civil engineer would feel in presence of a toughened and experienced supervisor! Foolish is one way to put it. I know I was down ‘cause I didn’t dare to push them off my berth and so atleast managed to make them feel guilty (or so I believe) by emphasizing my right on the seat they were on. What was absolutely stunning was that the people around (which also included the usual nuisance pass-holders) assumed it their right to encroach upon someone’s seat rather than requesting and getting that leeway! As a result, on a seat of 2, we were 5 people crammed up – though I had had the best share of the seat!

I can’t still make up my mind whether I was right in feeling the disbelief cum anger cum frustration towards them or not! I still am torn between Ayn Rand and Jawahar Nehru…