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Chowki dhani, Pune

First Sunday of eighth month this year (3-Aug-2008) I was in Rajasthan. Not exactly physically but yes the ambience and each atom of sand there made me believe I was in the largest state of India. For starters, Rajasthan is the biggest state in India, and this ethnical resort adds another acre to the state. From entrance to the starters ,from wall hangings to the way we sat having our food was all Rajasthani. This was an experience of a life time. If one was to be blindfolded and brought to this place, he would not recognize this place as being on outskirts of Pune. So what a wonderful way to share the space with my friends on this such a wonderful occasion. It took me some half an hour to appreciate the beauty of the place and let it sink it. this is desert king , this is pink city and this is hub of folk dance. To try a hand at clay mudding , to ultimate folk dancing to bumpy camel ride, everything around made my pulse increasing. The first thing I went ahead and did was to go to the walls, which had all the hand made and crafty drawings signifying the art in the desert state. The texture of the color, and the mild fragnance blended well with the theme. And in between , i saw this beautiful painting and possibly lost in the beauty of the lady holding the earthenpot. She was beautiful, and innocence at its best. Possibly the artist drew his heart out on the wall , which had lightings also in traditional manner. This phase was followed by a very entralling clay modelling session. The wet clay was as soft as the real desert soil , and one might be tempted to continue to keep it pressing whole day. the pot making process was not that difficult but the shapes required regular practice. I myself made a small pot , and all my friends appreciated my effort. The smell of clay was same as that left behind when first drops of rain fell on sand. This was probably the softest clay i laid my hand on, and am very happy what came out was a perfect small pot. Camel riding was as bumpy as expected. The hump was good , probably no water scarcity in Pune, and the healthy camel took us a trip around the place. Like a Rajput going to fight Mughals was the feeling we were having. Our request to make camel run a few steps was granted well and we think only thing missing was a big sword and a turban on the head. Possibly the feeling sitting on the top of world was so great, no doubt Rajputs used to challange anyone in the battle-field and came out victorious. What is Rajasthan without the folk, and the music and dance . Wow ... the perfect dancers with multiple earthen pots swaying to the beats of the traditional folk with energies bright enough to charge the dead batteries got the things rolling. With the dresses matched to occassions , and sitting down to enjoy the dance for half an hour. I was again lost in the magestic dance steps, the smile on face of dancer and above all with perfection her each sway was to the beat of the music. It was hard for me to avoid the music and we all started dancing. Seeing the enthusiasm in our group , we were called to dance on the stage. We knew we were no where to professional dancer but the energies were no less. Our group danced step to step and rocked the stage. Even if ours was not Rajasthani folk , we all managed a good show with synchronised dance moments and perfect co-ordination. All of Rajasthan for those brief two moments stood holding the breath for the angels from heaven dancing into the hearts of people. As the music stopped , we bowed. There was a big silence , like of the centuries. Nothing moves , even the air seemes to have paused for a moment to peep in what just happened. There was a fluctuation in the electricity and what followed was loud crisping clapping from all the places, and it seemed to go till eternity. All trees, buildings and even the dancer who had just rocked the stage came over, shook a hand and praised for the dance we had. She claimed it was best performance from anyone till date. The manager came up and gave us all a free entry coupon next time , and half of expenses paid by resort. The gem of the evening was still to come, the dinner. The seating was just like it happens in movies. Seating on ground with a small table and finger licking food. The food was as spicy as expected. First time i cried with fire in my tongue. But even with reddening of face, and sweat dripping down my face, the taste was unbeatable. This was probably the best spicy food i had in recent times. The sweet dish was real sweet , and most cherished. I came out of the pink city back in fast lanes of Pune , to come to office next day. Whatever be the case, the Chowki dhani just made my day , and i re-lived my life once more. a memory to cherish life long and experience to share through the close friends.

Walking on MineField

Serial Bomb blasts in Garden City , IT hub of country, the same followed with more terrifying bomb blasts next day , and I was wondering if the bomb scare which I faced as a kid way back in Delhi is back. I remember a big warning message at back of each DTC (Delhi Transport Corporation) buses , “Lawaris vastu bomb ho sakti hai” ( Any unidentified/ stray / unclaimed object can be a bomb) , and this was followed by a request to search the seats below. That was also a grim situation, but that was limited to capital of democratic government. Can I dare to compare the situation a decade back to what it is now. What is more terrifying, the bomb blasts in Mumbai or the un-exploded explosions in Surat on 29th July 2008? I was a kid way back then, but as a grown up now, I have felt the terror being in place where live bombs are detected in most busy malls, knowing more live bombs found in IT capital, in Ahmadabad , Soorat , and then explosives in Calcutta. These bombs are not to cause casualty to the masses, but to destabilize the thriving economy, the surging share index and stumble India from becoming the world power in next decade. But what is need of these explosions when even after deaths of scores of people, with over 50 bombs (exploded or live) recovered, and still the political allegations are not over.

What is the prime motive of the anti-social elements is still the thing I am not sure of. Is it inflicting casualty on the innocent, or to make a statement. The way the bombs were planted in Bangalore, and more importantly the place where they were timed, is grim. Were the explosions in Bangalore dry run before the actual target? Possibly a dry run would not have been possible in such a big city where a million odd engineers drive India into the next generation, a place where all companies seem to expand the Indian horizon. Then it was possibly a statement to tell if these bombs can be planted here , so can RDX or IED (improved explosive devices). The worst was the news channel claiming the bombs as low intensity. Look into the bus stand, a lady died. I agree that it can be low intensity with respect to sophisticated devices, but to claim low intensity was a mockery.

The condition in Ahmadabad was much more fearful. I sincerely don’t remember when was the last time I was glued to a news channel as much as I was on this weekend. Each breaking news sank the heart a few more steps. The city map where serial bombs exploded seemed like person making holes in the map. Entire city was shocked. After two cities were knocked down, there were news of email warnings to blow down the BSE, which no doubt is the life-line of so many hundred people and basic reason India is competing with the world. This week is no less scary. Last night explosives were discovered in Kolkata, and bomb scare in Mumbai. I don’t know what will be the breaking news today, and I still don’t know if I will be there to update this column tomorrow. I still don’t know if this is some reel drama real loss, or is it I am still in dream , and wake up to find all bomb blasts and this article a piece of fiction. I still wonder what satisfaction is achieved in revenging death to death. I still wonder when there will be a dawn of a new kind for mankind. We have developed so far and so high in altitude of developments has the mankind sacrificed the values. Do we intend to let it go this way forever, or we step and gear up to face the challenge of changing society.

Will we find a solution to the minefield mystery on the roads I walk today? Will I be able to put a step in a place with confidence to put my other feet at same place twice? Can we decode the minefield and still come out winners? Should we this time pardon the guilty, as we always have had. And then what follows is the kindness of a nation mistaken for the weakness. To pardon takes a great friend, but there has to be some limits defined. Can we preach non-violence forever. May be , we can, but for guilty should be taken to place, and the menace arrested before the ever soft sentiments of the democratic secular country are stirred. Find a solution before its too late, before a few can take advantage. Decide , define and develop a positive attitude. Identify anyone who tries to gain political or regional advantage from this sadist display of helplessness. Cooperate with all. Trust your friends. Tell your close ones you are there. Together, we can , and we will bring India back on course of becoming the most prosperous and developed nations in the world. A world where there is no scope for any terrorist activity, a place where we and our kids can walk fearlessly. A place where we can overlook these problems and vision for green world, think problems of pollution , population explosion, depleting natural resources and so on. We can aim for sky only when our feet are firmly embedded in a ground, without concerns of mine in next step.

Barsaat ki Ek Shaam ...

aaj is sunhere se chamakte aakash mien kahin se to bijli giri , kahin per to door ek badal ka tukda aa gaya mere hi ghar per , jaise talaash raha ho koi apna. kabhi mein usse dekh ker muskura deta to kabhi woh ek do vidyut ki tarange chod ker mere ko jaise ched deta. kuch der is tanha se ghar ki chat per baithe mein usse ghoorta raha, na usne palakein jhapkayi , na mein wahan se hata. Avichal akhand khade us badal ke saathi , uske saath judte chale gaye. woh jo chakshu bhar in aankho mein samaya pada tha dhara jitna vishaal ho gaya tha. ab us masoom se dikhne wale badal ke aakar ne sunhere aakash ko apne rang mein dhaal mein syaahi jaisa ker diya tha. us ne samjha ki mein shayad kamzor ho raha hoon , thandi hawayein mere jism ko cheerti huwi nikal ja rahi thi, maano ki meri rooh se jaan maang rahi ho. ek aadh paani ki boondein bhi padi, per haunsala adig, aur irada chataan. kuch der phele dikhne wala masoom sa bacha anayas hi bada ho gaya. kahin se ek aawaz aayi , aur meri hum-nafaz ki khanatki choodiyon ne jaise mere ander nayi jaaan bhar di. abhi aaker mere saath baithi hi thi ki woh gor se gharja. rimjim kerti uski boondo ne jaise nayi jaan si la di. woh khadi to huwi per jaise ek ki baat hriday ke madhaym se ho gayi. uske badte kadam ruke aur woh mere aagosh mein aaker baith gayi , maano ki jaise ek hi ho. Aur jhilmil se boodein rimjhim kerti huwi humne bhigati rahi. Kab aakash ka rang hum mein mil gaya ya hum uske rang mein kuch yaad nahi raha. Her chalakti boond mein ek naya geet tha. Ek aisa anupam sa ehsaas ki jaise her ek paani ki dhaara amrit ho. chand ghanto tak barasne ke baad woh badal haar maan ke ek naye deepak ko bhujane nikal pada. aur hum dono wahin ussi tarah ek doosre mein samaye huwe kab raat ke bister per so gaye kuch pata hi nahi chala ...