I am writing after a very long time. Actually my father motivated me to write another one after reading my first blog.
Fun is when you read blogs on your own and not when the blog writer drags you and make you read his/her scripts which might be happening right now. Anyways, try to manage.
So i wish to talk about Mahabharat as i recently saw a related play at Prithvi and found it quite interesting. Reasons were many, and are detailed below:
- I have been a regular at 'Prithvi' since last August and the ambience of the place is very soothing, even though at times the plays don't live up to the hyped expectations
- Since my employment, my dear cousin had come for the first time to Mumbai, and I sincerely wished to give her a good time
- Also, my office often reminds me of the plays i see. People wearing masks, enacting scripts to perfection, trying hard to prove a point they have never made and emoting with effortless ease.
This is fascinating if you try to view it from the top. But if you are in it, you know someone else is enjoying it for sure
So the play came in to picture once me and my cousin(from now own - Pihu, although Akansha is her 'school name', but Pihu for us is always more comfortable) were done with a Bowling session and a visit to Shah Rukh Khan's main door. We met the celebrity guard who had previously told a Punjabi aunty that 'Sir' is out shooting.
I tried to entertain my sister who was by now looking visibily disappointed majorly because of three reasons, again detailed below:
- One, we got access to Shah Rukh's main door only
- Two, I had already irritated her through one of my poorly timed jokes- Why the latest Shah Rukh's movie was not named 'My Surname Is Khan'
- She had already spent half a day with me with no significant entertainment, I had even taken some of her shots in the bowling session
So, inorder to best utilise the rest of the evening, Prithvi seemed a safe option. And as three is always a company, i invited one of my friends to share the spoils.
The play was named 'Andha Yug' and as my flat partner had previously given a decent review, i asked him to get three tickets booked. And immediately, we were driven into the 'Andha Yug' as only half of 'ticket confirmation' sms displayed on my mobile. I had a gut feeling that this will go either ways - Either Pihu won't like the play or both Pihu and Anu (my friend) won't like it. Finally, the play started with a bang. It was a fusion, hence there was music combined with intermediate dialogues.
It revovled around Ashwatthama, who led a devastating campaign against Pandavas in Mahabharat. The various means of deceit adopted by Pandavas in winning the war had deeply aggrieved Ashwatthama and he revenged this by tragically killing draupadi's five sons believing them to be the Pandava brothers.
While the show was great and the direction/acting everything touched perfection, i noticed two anomalies:
Anomaly 1: Almost after every five minutes in the play, there were actors shouting 'Ashwatthama , Ashwatthama' in unison and running all around with great urgency and anger
Not that it was a complete shocker, we have seen serials/movies like Shaktiman/Spiderman, but no one ran in those..
At one point of time, we even had our good old blind Dhritrashtra shouting 'Ashwatthama' as he ran in great fury through one of the doors.
The only explanation which i could derive was that as the actor who played Ashwatthama was also incidentally the director/producer as well, he might not have paid the other actors satifactorily, as a result of which their disappointment was coming out in this form
Anomaly 2: Although the set was deftly made and the actors wore rich ancient uniforms, yet almost all of them were wearing SPORTS shoes. Now, either you don't provide uniforms or if you do, have some sense. Even bare foot would have been alright.
See, you get my point, a play at Prithvi, with such good actors, performances, sets and crowd..
You give so much emphasis on details and then you wear sport shoes.
Although Pihu and Anu did not notice it, or may be they did but were so engaged that didn't mention, i realised that there can be one logic.
And yes, wasn't that logical...!!!
All the lead actors, be it Aswatthama, Dhritrashtra, Vidur etc. wore branded Reebok, Nike and Adidas while the supporting cast like Kripacharya, Jatayu and others had worn Bata/Action/Non Recognisable local shoes.....
It is amazing that even fighters of the glorious Mahabharat era discriminated, or else the efficient 'Andha Yug' playwriters would not have allowed such a mojor rip off.
Finally, after convincing myself that the 'Sport Shoe' inclusion was a well thought 'play within the play' like the one in Shakepeare's Hamlet, we strolled out.
Finally, we had to eat something after the gruelling two hour 'Ashwatthama' session, so we moved in to a 'Class' restaurant which served 'Executive Veg Thali'. I could not comprehend how a hotel can name itself as 'Class' and serve 'Executive' food.
The realisation came pretty quickly, when we came to know that it is mandatory to order separate thalis for each individual and you can't share food. However, we were told that unlimited food system is applicable which was quite exciting for us hungry souls.
So, non sharing and individual ordering was the 'executiveness' and 275 bugs for a 'Veg' thali was the 'Class' act.
However, the food was quite good and the waiters gave extra attention to the ladies while I was somewhat ignored. They cajoled Pihu and Anu to eat extra while I was told that Gulab Jamuns are served only once. Seemingly, their unlimited food theory had certain limitations.
The day was coming to an end as we dropped the now yawning Anu at her home with the famous lines of Nida Fazli in my mind:
'Kabhi kisi ko Mukammal Jahan nahi milta,
Kahin Zami to kahin Aasmaa nahi milta...'
Quite clearly, in my case, Gulab Jamun was my 'Aasmaa'.....!!!
Monday, March 1, 2010
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Rollercoaster Ride
It was the summer of ’07. 26th june. We were all safely registered a day before and entering Arjun, looking out for any known faces dat we might remember during interviews and registration and of course, PagalGuy. If there is one thing dat I wud like to thank god for, then it wud be my shifting to FTB from FTA. Actually, there were 2 of us, initially enrolled in FTA attendance list- Shahan and me. These past 2 years have been literally a rollercoaster ride for almost all of us. All the events, good or bad, that occurred in FTB produced perfect ingredients for the success of any movie –
drama(johri and urshita spitting fire),
action(tamal and rishu at swords in one of our parties),
romance(sadly, none of the rumours graduated into a reality, including mine, albeit the family came closest),
emotions(I just remember urshita and shilpa with brimming eyes, tired of constant public scrutinization),
suspense(PLAN B, and who leads the joota chati faction),
comedy(list is endless viz. Prusty’s Faculty Exchange Ekta Kapoor ishtyle, again Prusty’s ‘fingering’ habits),
war(monthly fight through chain mails viz. sanky vs. johri, ruchir vs. shilpa, tushar vs. pavan and more…always and always entertaining for the rest of the class) et all.
For the first few days, we all mastered in one thing – introducing ourselves in a very ‘resumeic’ manner in which My Name was the clear winner though Mrs. Brand Equity offered this coveted recognition to Mr. Kaul – naam to yaad rahega.
Now how few of us would be remembered not just by our names but also by our acts in class:
Shahan – Mr. Bean
Neeti – global queen
Neha Asthana – cultural shock
Neha Rastogi – now Tandon…..sorry guys
Pankaj – chota coke
Pavan - bodybuilder
Piyush – bhagwaan
Prasad – treadmill walking
Prashant – Big B
Puneet Goyal – My Name is …
Rahul Gupta - latecomer
Rahul Jha – shayar of IMT
Rahul Kaul – opener in every ppt
Rahul Bhagat – his one word reply to every question asked in class…. ‘OB’
Rishupreet – US ambassador
Ritika – part time
Roshan – his unending love for maa-behen
Ruchir – his hands asked more questions than his words
Sahil – DON
Sankshep – 19.75
Saurabh – tau
Shailesh Agarwal – Shailesh sir
Shailesh Jha – IT troubleshooter
Shenoy - Nadal of badminton
Shilpa – chatterbox
Shobhit – abhimanyu
Sid Juneja – daydreamer
Sudeep – statistician
Tarun – dadda
Uday Bhaskar – Mr. Matakkali
Stuti – kid of our class
Urshita – never ending slides in a PPT
Vaishali – we will take it ‘offline’
Johri – first bencher, be if left or right side
Chadha – FTB Rocks
Vishnu – pervert singer
Vishu – no brakes
Co-author : Pratik
drama(johri and urshita spitting fire),
action(tamal and rishu at swords in one of our parties),
romance(sadly, none of the rumours graduated into a reality, including mine, albeit the family came closest),
emotions(I just remember urshita and shilpa with brimming eyes, tired of constant public scrutinization),
suspense(PLAN B, and who leads the joota chati faction),
comedy(list is endless viz. Prusty’s Faculty Exchange Ekta Kapoor ishtyle, again Prusty’s ‘fingering’ habits),
war(monthly fight through chain mails viz. sanky vs. johri, ruchir vs. shilpa, tushar vs. pavan and more…always and always entertaining for the rest of the class) et all.
For the first few days, we all mastered in one thing – introducing ourselves in a very ‘resumeic’ manner in which My Name was the clear winner though Mrs. Brand Equity offered this coveted recognition to Mr. Kaul – naam to yaad rahega.
Now how few of us would be remembered not just by our names but also by our acts in class:
Shahan – Mr. Bean
Neeti – global queen
Neha Asthana – cultural shock
Neha Rastogi – now Tandon…..sorry guys
Pankaj – chota coke
Pavan - bodybuilder
Piyush – bhagwaan
Prasad – treadmill walking
Prashant – Big B
Puneet Goyal – My Name is …
Rahul Gupta - latecomer
Rahul Jha – shayar of IMT
Rahul Kaul – opener in every ppt
Rahul Bhagat – his one word reply to every question asked in class…. ‘OB’
Rishupreet – US ambassador
Ritika – part time
Roshan – his unending love for maa-behen
Ruchir – his hands asked more questions than his words
Sahil – DON
Sankshep – 19.75
Saurabh – tau
Shailesh Agarwal – Shailesh sir
Shailesh Jha – IT troubleshooter
Shenoy - Nadal of badminton
Shilpa – chatterbox
Shobhit – abhimanyu
Sid Juneja – daydreamer
Sudeep – statistician
Tarun – dadda
Uday Bhaskar – Mr. Matakkali
Stuti – kid of our class
Urshita – never ending slides in a PPT
Vaishali – we will take it ‘offline’
Johri – first bencher, be if left or right side
Chadha – FTB Rocks
Vishnu – pervert singer
Vishu – no brakes
Co-author : Pratik
कभी अलविदा न कहना
यह पल है कितना सुहाना,
इस पल में है डूब जाना ।
इन लम्हों को बारिश की तरह छूलूं
इस वक्त को पैमाना बनाकर पीलूँ।
इनको तो एक दिन यादें है बन जाना।
मैं वो पुलिंदा ले जा रहा हूँ, यादों से भरा।
मुठी से फिसले रेत है, थाम हौले से ज़रा।
पल पल चड़ता सूरज नया सवेरा लाता है,
रात की मीठी चांदनी को चुरा कर ले जाता है ।
इस पल ने हमको वो दिया जो न हमने सोचा था,
रिश्तों के कच्चे धागों में गांठे का धोखा था।
कुछ पल चले थामे हाथ, वोह याद तो हमेशा आएगी,
आँखों से छलकता पानी, और होठों पे मुस्कान लाएगी।
दोस्तों के साथ बिताये हुए दिन, वापस आने को तरसायंगे,
सामने जाती गली से गुज़रे तो कदम अपने आप रुक जायेंगे ।
अब हर महफिल का पैमाना, कुछ फीका फीका होगा,
क्या टकराएँ प्यालों को हम, हमने क्या जीता होगा ।
इस शिक्षा के मन्दिर मैं, हम पुजारी की हँसी उडाते हैं,
सर पर रखे हाथ जो वो हमारे, दिल से दुआंए दे जाते है ।
हम आगे पद चिन्ह को देख कर, कदम अपने बढाते है,
एक बार पीछे देख ले, हर कदम फूल बनकर दुनिया महकाते हैं।
मैं बस येही दुआं करता हूँ, ओड़े तू मेरी यादों का गहना,
हँसे तू, खिलखिलाए तू, पर मुझसे कभी अलविदा न कहना.
इस पल में है डूब जाना ।
इन लम्हों को बारिश की तरह छूलूं
इस वक्त को पैमाना बनाकर पीलूँ।
इनको तो एक दिन यादें है बन जाना।
मैं वो पुलिंदा ले जा रहा हूँ, यादों से भरा।
मुठी से फिसले रेत है, थाम हौले से ज़रा।
पल पल चड़ता सूरज नया सवेरा लाता है,
रात की मीठी चांदनी को चुरा कर ले जाता है ।
इस पल ने हमको वो दिया जो न हमने सोचा था,
रिश्तों के कच्चे धागों में गांठे का धोखा था।
कुछ पल चले थामे हाथ, वोह याद तो हमेशा आएगी,
आँखों से छलकता पानी, और होठों पे मुस्कान लाएगी।
दोस्तों के साथ बिताये हुए दिन, वापस आने को तरसायंगे,
सामने जाती गली से गुज़रे तो कदम अपने आप रुक जायेंगे ।
अब हर महफिल का पैमाना, कुछ फीका फीका होगा,
क्या टकराएँ प्यालों को हम, हमने क्या जीता होगा ।
इस शिक्षा के मन्दिर मैं, हम पुजारी की हँसी उडाते हैं,
सर पर रखे हाथ जो वो हमारे, दिल से दुआंए दे जाते है ।
हम आगे पद चिन्ह को देख कर, कदम अपने बढाते है,
एक बार पीछे देख ले, हर कदम फूल बनकर दुनिया महकाते हैं।
मैं बस येही दुआं करता हूँ, ओड़े तू मेरी यादों का गहना,
हँसे तू, खिलखिलाए तू, पर मुझसे कभी अलविदा न कहना.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened.
It’s said that a man's feelings are always purest and most glowing in the hour of meeting and of farewell. Why can't we get all the people together in the world that we really like and then just stay together? I guess that wouldn't work. Someone would leave. Someone always leaves. Sometimes u jus have to let things go…coz as they say…every good thing comes 2 an end…but friends this is a beginning and not an end…its time to plunge into the journey called life...to remember the past…to relish the present…to welcome what future holds for us… its that time of our lives which one of us eagerly hope to accomplish …each one of us prays and works so hard that the very attainability of the same seems untasteful…it leaves us at crossroads…demanding the heart to change…for good or for bad…as change is the only thing permanent and who knows better the cusps of life but one who has never been there…done that…
The 2 yrs at IMT…undoubtedly were one of the most memorable ones and has deeply impacted each one of us…both professionally as well as personally…it has taught us of hardships as well as of easybirds…it has shown us various facets of life which would have been unexplored had we not been here…it has brought us all together and to quote one of the clichés of “everything happens for a purpose” and the purpose was” we”. It gave us a platform to be ourselves…to bask in the glory of who we are and to wander into the hinterland to do the ultimate soul searching…
FTB ROXXX…always used to take it with a pinch of salt…but now seems like this was home….this was destiny and above all this was the place I got whatever name or recognition I could gather (if any…) in these 2 yrs…those introductory lectures…someone taking it as a culture shock while someone taking it as just another story in the book of life…classes of Prusty and orgaanaaational behavior and OK singh and numerous such incidences which most of us enjoyed to the core…also the menace of Subhojit Bhattacharya…hovering around the 5 point scale…with my peer scaling heights of a 7 point or an 8 point…
Namankaran of a different genre with weirdos like “ my name” , “keshyaa”, “panki”, “sankshi”, “rit”, “pti”, “tika”, “porn nema”, “lesh sir”, or the final one “lilli” for anyone and everyone who is a combination of stupid and idiot…
Just want to wish you all the very best in life and hope you all tread the path of glory scaling new heights and making one and all proud of you… goes on to show how lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard. Leaves me wondering where is the good in Goodbyes.
“Don't be dismayed at goodbyes. A farewell is necessary before you can meet again. And meeting again, after moments or lifetime, is certain for those who are friends. “ ~Richard Bach
(Written by Bhagat)
Monday, March 2, 2009
Saturday, February 28, 2009
The best one frm Suvidh
His very much coveted so called "PLAN B"
Hi all
Wishing my entire class a very happy new year and hopethat each and every one of you gets what they desirefrom life....may u all of u be placed in the best ofthe companies with the greatest of packages by the endof this year.It was a great 6 months being with such an amazing setof people who know how to be the best n whatever theyset out to do. i ve really been missing all u guys forthe one week i ve been home and really want to bethere with you guys but then sometimes we have tosacrifice something to pursue our dreams.Yes this mail is being sent to you to let u guys knwand at the same time for apologising that i didnt tellu ppl earlier that i ll not be coming back to IMT now.The CAT 07 result is gonna be out tommorrow and i amhoping that my gamble pays off as i am expecting IIMcalls.need all your best wishes for the same.or else ill resort to my plan B which is already underway.I ll shortly be writing individual mails to u guys tothank you for whatever contribution big or small youguys have made in making our relationship stronger.
and yes....ALL THE BEST for the end terms
do well
warmest of regards
Suvidh Arora
07FT-105
FT-B
Friday, February 27, 2009
The Most dardnaak Birthday Ever celebrated in IMT!!
The Mummy
Last Rites for the Mummy
The Mummy Returns!!
Finally, The Tharki Mummy Rests in Peace!!!
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