!!...Wo 15 Din...!!

"Faanus Banker jiski Hifaazat Hawaa karey..
Wo Shamaa Kya bujhey, jisey Roshan Khuda Karey.."

A night got imprinted on the minds of the family members, Forever...
That fateful day in 2007 when the whole world was celebrating
Diwali, the festival of lights..
The Boy was sitting at the reception of a reputed Heart Care
institute, praying from the deep reaches of his heart,
trying to connect to God, wishing his Dad to get well soon...

The Heart beats of his father ,who was in ICU since the last
4 days, were more music to his ears than even the greatest
melody ever composed by Mozart.. With passage of each minute,
the rhythmic and consistent beats of his father gave him more
courage and strength to hang on and stick together in those
tough times....

He walked out of the hospital building to get some fresh air ,
and glanced back towards the windows at the second floor..
all having their blinds drawn, and thought...just next to one
of them, his father was there, invisible to his eyes but not to
his soul, trying to regain his lost strength after a major
Bypass procedure.. called CABG (Coronary Artery Bypass Graft)
in medical lingo....

He wanted to ask his dad..., "Daddy, why didn't we go together
this time to buy sweets , crackers and other decoration stuff..."
or like "Daddy, why aren't we cleaning our house and renovating
it this time...".
He was sure his dad would have loved to reply to his earnest
queries....

The doctors, no doubts, were competent enough to take all the
requisite precautions pre and post the surgical procedure.. But,
again, everything on this Earth is Not pure Physics or Mechanics..
The Divine factors always chip in, in the most subtle of ways,
and make us believe that Someone up there.. perched high up above
all the scalable heights, holds the Vital Key to our very basic
sustenance...That slightest of smile on His Divine face can bring
eternal Happiness to an otherwise distressed family....

And Yes, the Buddha did Smile ...
And so did the family ....

More than a week after the festival came the much awaited and the
much needed respite for all of the family members..The Doctors
had finally issued the orders of transferring the father from the
ICU to the private ward as they were confident enough of the
Stable condition of their patient...

And it was that day when the family actually felt the warmth of
a festival.. Tears naturally rolled down the cheeks and all
embraced each other with love and compassion...

The boy had to leave and join back his office, and so went to
say bye to his dad. Those moments of silence that passed by
between him and his dad, were no less filled with the most
blaring music than that of a Carnival parade...

Parting wishes were exchanged in the most subtle manner..
The mother and uncle promised to take care of dad, and the
boy promised to be back with them in near future... The
sister and the Bro-in-law kept the spirits high.. And the
icing on the cake was when even the dad chipped in to crack
some jokes...

Fifteen days at the heart care institute had changed the boy's
outlook towards the life.. The issues at workplace, that earlier
used to pest him at times simply vanished into thin air...
It was then when he realised what were the necessary ingredients
of happiness in life..

Waiting for his flight, the boy was sporting a smile that might
have even given the famous 'Julia Roberts Smile', a serious run
for its money..

And the reasons were simple for any wise mind to comprehend...

the Buddha had Smiled...And so had the Dad..

the family were happy..And no one was sad.. 

The Boy was Happy...He was so full of Glee..

And I know all this.. As the Boy was ME..!!

- K_J

Ganpati Bappa Moriyaa..

The highly ornate Ganesha Idol sparkled under flash lights...
The 'Mandap' was intricately decorated with flowers, garlands,
pooja saamagri, incense sticks and other paraphernalia ..

But what was totally outta place, was the audio system blaring
the latest 'Johnny Gaddaar' OST...
and the devotees ( now i doubt whether they really were..)
gyrating to the rhythm..

Next came 'Aapka Suroor' and other Himesh's chart busters...

My ears kept longing for 'Ganapati Bappa Moriya' songs..
but after 3 hrs of non stop music.. the mandap fell silent ....
And as it was already 1:00 AM at night, i too went to sleep....

Ganapati stood there, still with a smile on his face ...

!!...We are JUST friends...!!

Now this JUST is not Just at all...

What i mean to say, is that this statement is a classical
example of the ease with which a mere jugglery of few
words can grotesquely undermine the nature and depth
of an otherwise important and beautiful relationship.

Scenario
---------
A guy and a gal have been very nice friends since quite
some time and have seen each other through the various
highs and lows of each others' lives. They share the most
platonic and purist form of friendly relationship that
mirrors the highest levels of spiritual and non-materialistic,
non-carnal yet highly refreshing and flambuoyant
co-existence...

One fine day, while enjoying a nice cup of tea together,
they bump into an old acquaintance who , suspicious of
the closeness he perceives , raises his eyebrows ...

so characteristically human..and whispers to the guy...
"Sahi hai yaar, tuney kab ye bandi patayi...."
("Good work dude, when did you get this babe...")

And, Alas...Pat comes the highly cliched statement of
self defence from the guy..
"Arey nahi yaar, We are JUST friends..."
Again this defensive act , so characteristically human..

Now the zillion dollar question, that may NOT hit many
with the speed of light .. but has always given me so
many sleepless nights.. is ,
"How much importance this dude actually gave to this
Friendship.. Not much , i guess.."
Why , seriously why, did he use the adjective 'JUST' ...
(the meaning that he intended was 'barely,merely,Only' )

People are definitely at a loss if they are unable to
understand the gravity , the profundity of this relationship,
called Friendship ....We social beings cannot, Simply
Cannot paint our relations in shades of Black or white.
On the contrary, what happens in reality is display of
orphan behaviour towards these friendships..
between a guy and a gal....

And so, we finally zero down onto the eternal intriguing
question...
"Cannot a guy and a gal be just Friends...."
The answer is ,
"They definitely can .. but then, the friendship should
be JUST..."

And now this JUST (read fair, righteous, proper..)
is really JUST (read Apt, accurate...)

"Unhone humari Zindagi ka , Fasaana Samajh Liya"
"Hum nibhate rahey Dosti.. usey Dil ka lagaana Samajh liya"

- K_J

... Woh Ajnabee ...

Na Namaz Aati Hai Mujhko, Na Wazoo Aata Hai...
Sajda Kar Leta Hoon, Jab Saamnay Tu Aata Hai...

-- Mohammad Iqbal Naqibi

It's really remarkable to know how a plain n simple smile,

jostling on the face of somebody who is not even remotely

connected to you, can lend you a fresh lease of life, even if

the probability of the extent of this new found life, just
being a day long, is quite high...

And I , my friends , am not any exception..

What sanky doode pinged me may have been just another

of his successful searches on orkut, but the damsel's smile
was no less than a fresh glass of Elixir for me...
The effervescence was sparkling , and the freshness was
equivalent to that of early morning dew, that glistens in
the warm morning Sun...

The affect , i guess, verifies the famous 'Dual Nature' of matter..
I mean, most of the times, we individuals are like particles... We
more or less bypass other individuals by miles... But there are
times, like the most recent one, when despite of the geographical
proximity NOT being very good one (..we are not in the same city),
we start behaving like waves (that too, not in 2-D , but in real 3-D
world...) and surpass whatever discontinuities that come our way....

So, as the waves travelled accross various realms and dimensions,
they suddenly became aware of another similar wave patterns...
What I saw, was the most colorful and vibrant display of shades
the spectrum had ever shown me till date...
The vibrations were quite Holy in nature, and yet quite exuberant...

Well, wat else can i say other than the fact that , given a chance,
i have a vision, that our waves can eventually give rise to a
beautiful Diffraction caused by the Constructive Interference
of our waves...
Reason being --> our waves seem to be of the same wavelength,
and i don't see ANY phase difference between the two...

"Ek Chehra..Ek Hansee.. Ek Shakhs ka Muskurana..."
"Eid ke Chaand ka Jaisey Aasmaan main aa Jana...."

-- K_J

..." Haanth Ki Safaii "...

Zor ka Jhatka, Dheerey Se lagey...

Humorous it may sound, but the above phrase may hold
much a shock for the person facing the music...

The day was Saturday and as usually, was about to
pass eventless...But, as the evening dawned on the
Horizon , and the " V " factor started its ascent up
the Zenith, none of us had the slightest of clue
what was gonna happen in the coming few hours...

8:15 PM :- The Jinxed Call...
Sanky calls from his mobile ( ironically ) and syncs
up for a late nite show of the latest flick in town
- Jhoom Barabar Jhoom. In a matter of minutes, the
" V Brigands" decide to touch base @ Mc' Donalds...

8:30 PM :- Falling of Pieces in place ...
Garora calls me up, says to meet directly at the
Mall. We both take off from our respective launch
pads and land in 20 mins flat at joint.

9:30 PM :- Bakrey Ki Amma Kab Tak Khair Manati..
We all eat our hearts out at Mc-D's and head for the
inauspicious "Priya" Theatre, for one amongst us is
ignorant of the fact that he is feeding himself ,
just to go under the Butcher's Knife ...
And so, Ignorance is NOT always So Bliss...

9:58 PM :- Lights / Camera / Action ...
The place is crowded with localites, who have
thronged the place to catch a glimpse of the Sultry
Sirens that gyrate so often on the Prime Time.
Obviously, the gentry is very much a reminder of the
Population explosion of which India has been a faithful
testing ground.

10:00 PM :- **IT Happens ...
And like a flash in a thundering Nite, Sanky gets
deprived of his valuable possesion- N 93 (33 k dude !!)
Before we could even catch our breaths, the sickening
fact had slowly drained into our brains that, it is
too late now, we ain't gonna get our Nokia back...
The expressions on Sanky's face were a mixture of
pain and disgust, wrath and anger, grimace and
helplessness... But , nothing could be done to undo
what had already taken place.

10:30 PM Onwards :- Final Curtains ....
Franatic searches on the entire cinema hall premises,
talks with authorities, localites and others, a visit
to the local police station , and a last effort to
get in touch with local miscreants, nothing actually
worked.
The tickets we had bought with so much of vigour, just
an hour back, were sold back.

The Silence that persisted on our faces, was really
depressing , but as we always knew, it was on no use.

The gone was gone, nonetheless, leaving behind just few
memories of impromptu directorial stints we all had had
in not so distant past, thanks to our N-93.

Zindagi ki bheed main, Kuchh Hasratey reh jaati hain...
Juda hoker, kuchh cheezon ki, Bus yaadain reh jaati hain.

'V' for Vengeance....

Hell of a way to end a Partnership....

And i thought they were nevertheless my friends,
come what may, they would stand by me and the
'V' Wall would remain unconquerable, for eternity..

But Alas, i was wrong after all...
As my enlightened friend Garora had once said..
something like "to bury the Hatchet... in your Head..."
So my erstwhile league mates beleaguered me .....

O-Ren Ishii...(Ankit)
Vernita Green....(Sharad)
Elle Driver....(Sanky dude)
Gogo Yubari.....(Creed Kumar)
And Bill...(Ankush)

All of theses venomous Vipers , stood next to each other ,
and waited for the rite time to kill...

And when the time arrived (Lunch , 8th Jun, 2007),
the sky was the limit of notoriety .. and the common
target was Me.
The venom boiled and the skies roared , as the
Sons of Satan chose the final path.. to decapitate
my soul.. to uproot the existence of Faith..
to give me the Final Ditchaaaa.....

And as i called these guys one after the another,
me still so innocently ignorant of the recent turncoats,
the laden clouds outside helplessly tried to give me
the signs..
the signs of treachory....
the signs of filth...
the signs of Ditcha.....

And when after a full one hour wait for the lunch,
i contacted them again, i heard the sound of the
death knell... the clang of hammer hitting the
last nail in the coffin... the laments of the wailing
Banshee....

I was One and they were Five..
We were so happy, we were so Live..
They didn't even say Good Bye...
They didn't take the Time to Lie..

They Shot me Down Bang Bang....
I Hit the Ground Bang Bang ...
That awful sound Bang Bang ...
My Brothers Shot me Down.. Bang Bang...

But i assure u all, the Yellow track suited
assassin WILL return...
Hell will break loose...And Acid will rain..

With Blood stained hands i sign off...,
not knowing whether i would see
another day's sunrise or not..
whether i would live to Die another day....

But , bottom line is , "I 'LL Be Back...."
To " Kill All".. To do 'rm -rf'...
Period.

Cheeni Zyada....!!

Yesterday(4th June 07)...
my Sugar level leaped over Mt. Everest..

..thanks to sweets brought by Sanky, Anky and many of my team
mates, i guess I will be observing selective fast to filter out sweet
delicacies from my diet for coming few days...

And i guess , it's certainly these guys' fault .. I mean, when the
sweets are already so sweet, then why the ****
(help yourself, use any 4 letter word) do these guys come with
such brimming joy and friendliness that is characteristic of a
firm fraternity (bhai-chaara..) ..
The sweet quotient of such friendships can give the much hyped
'3-D' dosti of Akash, Sameer and Siddharth (clues not required..)
a run for their box- office collections..
And i can bet my yearly bonus on that ....
(nothing much to lose anyways...)

Well, as a matter of fact, such bonds have to face changes of
seasons,.. they have to live and breathe in the thickest and
thinnest of atmospheres...

To change the topic, let's talk about the recent released movies.
Spidey 3 , although a hit, wasn't crafted well enough to go down
the annals of cinematographic history as 3rd classic sequel in a
row... it was so , 'so-so'....
Metro , hmmm, i can say was a mirror to lives of many of us..
(Well, some people still grapple with the fact that how can
some guys 'manage' things so efficiently....)
Kya Love Story hai... was a disaster in disguise.. and i will
never forgive Khalil miyaan for dragging me there for the show...

But, a major cut above the rest , i bow to the makers of ,
yes, u guessed it rite : Fool 'N Final .... I know, the human race
is gonna laugh on all of the fallen few - me , khalil , ankush,
suhasaria, and sharad ... But, they will never get to know what we
felt when we were all ears n eyes to the cinematic brilliance..
A movie that was just few steps short of running
the Golden Yard ( so far run only by 'Gunda'...)
The level of ecstasy that FnF induced in the air can very well be
judged by the fact that our eternally effervescent Sharad was
reduced to a meek spectator, gasping for the tiniest shred of hope
to eject out of the voyage that was going to take us to
the Final Destination....

What really baffled us was the proficient way in which the
movie maker had successfully woven an abominable fabric
out of some good quality (few will even object to this ...) strings
- Paresh Rawal, Arbaaz Khan, Jackie Shroff to name a few...

Nonetheless, it was only that midnite chai ( Rs 2 /- )
and sutta (Rs 4 /-) that saved our souls in peril...
But yes, the final Elixir came in form of the wine that we had,
courtesy (as always..) Ankush...

And so we sang finally , "Nothing Else Matters..."

Exit Interview...

Disclaimer : Any resemblance to any person dead / alive
is Surely Intentional....

Scene : Exit Interview of a Software Engineer
Location : Manager's Cabin
Actors : Munna Sarkaar (MS) and his Manager (Mgr)

MS : Sir , may I come in.?
Mgr : Oh Hi MS, why not..come in please..!!
(asks MS to take a seat..)

MS : Sir, I have come to ask you something...
Mgr : Yeah , sure, tel me...!!
(with a beaming and reassuring Smile...)

MS : Well,actually I want to resign,and i have come to ask for an
early release from the team..!!
Mgr : Whaaaat !!!
(Totally taken off his seat...)
(But manages to re-stabilize his composure..)
But MS, I thought you were really happy working with us. Then what
happened suddenly ? Let's talk it at length and try to sort out
things. I am sure we can put things back into place.If you had any
concerns, regarding any matter ,you should have come to me earlier.
Anyways, tell me, why are suddenly resigning... ??

MS : (Sheepishly..) Well Sir, you know... lately I was not finding
any good work for me in the team.. So I thought it's better i make
a decision regarding this rather than wasting my time...
And also company's time ( Adds to cushion the blow..)
Mgr : No No MS, it's just a temporary phase u know..we are onto new
release and we will have loads of quality work for sincere resources
like you. You needn't worry about that, we will fill you with good
work just few months down the line.
Moreover, I have seen that you work very sincerely and i was thinking
to put up your name up the higher management for an exceptional
promotion.( trying to lure him back..)

MS : (Maintaining his poise , but not bulging..) Thanks Sir for this,
but I guess lately I have become a bit reluctant regarding the kind
of work i am getting here.
It has ceased to interest me and I guess it has entirely stopped
driving me. So in that case, I feel i am not doing justice to
either me or my team.
Mgr : Oh No MS, i guess you are simply a bit lost it seems, you don't
worry, that happens to all the young people who are at your age.
(Characteristic Managerial tactics start now..)You see, when we
come out of college, we are full of new found confidence and energy.
We start thinking that the only way we will be able to do justice to
ourselves would be by doing 10 different things at one go, and there
lies all the trouble.
What we all must learn gradually, and i am sure you will also learn
in due course of time, is that sticking to the kind of work that you
get and then trying to do the best out of it is the only sincere way
of marching ahead in career.
If one fails to understand this basic thing, then one certainly
becomes frustrated and dissatisfied and then harms his own career.
One the brighter side, if one understands this , then one sincerely
strives to become an expert in the kind of work he gets, and as such
moves ahead in career.

( Talks a pause , sips water from glass...)
You see MS, the other day i was talking to my manager and we were
planing new things for you, and i can say with full confidence that by
staying here, you will only be thanking God afterwards that you took
the correct decision...!!

MS : ( Pauses, thinking what to say, eventually talks about the actual thing...)
Yeaahh,, all true...But you see, my new company is also offering me
good package and remuneration, other than good work off course...!!
Mgr : ( Now, a bit offended...)
Well MS, I can say that we are one of the best pay masters even
today in campuses all over the country. I am sure that it's not
exactly the package that is driving you towards them.
And we are also going to get annual hikes (which is approx. 20%)
after this month,after which I am sure their lucrative offer would
not hold much ground.
Tell me, what are they offering you as a raise from your current
package - 15 % , 20 %...at max 25 %..( and smiles sarcastically....)

MS : ( Without showing any emotions on his face.....)
They are offering me 110 % raise and 50 % joining bonus ...
and i am also getting a company leased car....
Mgr : ( Dumbstruck .... )
OHhhhh.....
( Flabbergasted .....)
OHhhhh....
( Hurt ......)
Ohkay.....

!! ...Exit Interview Ends... !!

!! All MS's frenz get a treat from him
in the only 5 Star Continental Hotel in city !!
!! His Mgr has to explain this sudden
departure of a good resource to his group manager !!

Jhooom Barabar Jhooom...

A night that was ... extravagant, flambuoyant, vivaciuos...
An evening that was ... Humungous, Magnanimous, Voluptuous...

No dudes, don't take your guns off and fire salvos at me .. and save your brain waves from that Wild Goose Chase ..
Simply put, 10-D RoCkS...
Lights , Sound, and Camera were there... and for the Action.. We were there....!!

Well, Mr. Mackey (SouthPark) had once said :
" So first of all, Smoking's bad, you shouldn't Smoke ......
Alcohol is bad, you shouldn't drink alcohol.....
and as for drugs...,
Drugs are bad, you shouldn't do drugs...!!! "
... COMmmme ONnnnn Mr. Mackey.. give it a try.. After all, didn't u loved it when u took Grass for the 1st time... Nuthing is BaDddd... MmmmKhey !!!!

All I have learnt since childhood (..it has always been 1st Hand experience..) is that drinks have a miraculous effect .....They tend to make the Best out of Me...!!!

3 large Premium Scotch down, and I became the Guru.. be it the issues that the current world grapples with (Reservations / Politics / IT industry / Fin Industry...) or be it the issues that weave the Socio-Psychological fabric of the World Pysche (..Pride, Greed, Lust, Wrath, Gluttony, Sloth, and Envy ).. I gave a brief extempore on them...with the most classy and well poised elegance..

But , the best part comes next , After 5 pegs , all i can feel is my OneNess with God.. but , as my steps tend toward the final destination, there comes the 'Thump' ...
The loud blarring War Cry of our Earth's Gaya, disguised within the 10,000 Watts of Pure Vibrations, engulf me, trap me, seduce me... and i no more belonged to myself... !!!

HeisenBerg's Uncertainity Prinicple started taking effect on me, and I start existing from 'Minus' Infinity to 'Plus' Infinity..... As somebody had once said.. "Live like there's No Tomorrow.." and "Dance Like No One's Watching ..."
But thanks to some of the 'Divas' dancing next to me , after all , Mr. Heisen wasn't entirely correct ;-) And so, i was confined to a small square of foot length...but as the History had to make it .. the patch became the Greenest patch of the entire floor...

Anyways, DJ was a Sacred Angel .. as he broke Hell on the Dance floor.. the awesome numbers took us to various levels of Trance and Transcendental levels of existing....
" Lut Gaya Sardar.. Rabba Khair Karey..." and " Let's The Music Play..." were the eventual crowd pullers.....


All said and done, kudos to Annie for dragging me there .. I owe u guys a big party yaar.. pakka..!!

And as I drove back towards my place.. all i could hear was the resonance of "Jhooom Barabar Jhooom......"