let the festivities begin

This week kicked off the festive season, starting with coinciding First Navaratri Day and Eid on the same day. The colours and celebrations would carry almost all the way up to Diwali and New Year, when Kites await their turn. Its amazing how each of the festival has its own food linked to it. Naming them here would be injustice to the ones that I forget, so I better not try. Even more amazing to me is the fact that schools and colleges remain closed on each of the major festivals. So if you ask a school kid, he’d like all festivals because he gets holidays. They know more about the festival schedules than elders. What a way to push for universal brotherhood!

I wonder why different families have different pet festivals. A few of my friends would make sure they are home for Diwali, some for Kite flying, some for Holi and some for Navaratri. I think it would be the elders psyche which permeates into the behaviour of the members of the clan. If I like something, I’m sure people around me would try and make it special (well maybe not if its outrageous). Like the Bachchans’ Holi is now well known, as Big B likes it. The funnier parts when the *stars* and wannabes addresses in the plethora of TV channels and now websites - "Hi, I’m so n so and wish you a very happy XXX."

The heads of the governments for the states and the centre would address the nation on the National Channel – Doordarshan, which again is such an amazement. Austerity and simplicity of DD will remain un-matched, forever. I’ve come across a parody celebrating its 50 years here. However jokes apart, what they achieved then, at that scale, was by no means a simple task and ridiculing it, I couldn't laugh at. At the risk of sounding to protective towards the civil or nationalized services, I would consider spectacularly managed channel networks less challenging today than a single channel in those times. I’m sure DD has lot of loyalists even now. Technology enables them with better ways of managing their services, if only they could manage their content better. The debates of what the state should or shouldn't regulate or control, but that's another story.

In today’s times, with many new ways of doing things, the way people communicate will evolve with time. But things don’t abate to amaze us do they? Like the Tharoor Tweetorama, a simple funny statement creates a furore, MPs squabble on TV shows like they’ve nothing better to worry about. I’m sure there’s more to come..

:)

American Ramayana !

This is a forward which I partially liked and thought was worth sharing..

Dude!
----------------
A young second generation Indian in the US was asked by his mother to explain the significance of "Diwali" to his younger brother, this is how he went about it...

"So, like this dude had, like, a big cool kingdom and people liked him. But, like, his step-mom, or something, was kind of a bitch, and she forced her husband to, like, send this cool-dude, he was Ram, to some national forest or something.... Since he was going, for like, something like more than 10 years or so.... he decided to get is wife and his bro along.... you know...so that they could all chill out together. But Dude, the forest was reeeeal scary shit... really man...they had monkeys and devil s and shit like that. But this dude, Ram, kicked with darts and bows and arrows... so it was fine. But then some bad gangsta boys, some jerk called Ravan, picks up his babe (Sita) and lures her away to his hood. And boy, was our man, and also his bro, Laxman, pissed... all the gods were with him... So anyways, you don't mess with gods. So, Ram, and his bro get an army of monkeys...Dude, don't ask me how they trained the damn monkeys... just go along with me, ok...

So, Ram, Lax and their monkeys whip this gangsta's ass in his own hood.... Anyways, by this time, their time's up in the forest... and anyways... it gets kinda boring, you know... no TV or malls or shit like that. So,they decided to hitch a ride back home... and when the people realize that our dude, his bro and the wife are back home.... they thought, well, you know, at least they deserve something nice... and they didn't have any bars or clubs in those days... so they couldn't take them out for a drink, so they, like, decided to smoke and stuff ... and since they also had some lamps, they lit the lamps also...so it was pretty cooool... you know with all those fireworks.... Really, they even had some local band play along with the fireworks... and you know, what, dude, that was the very first, no kidding.., that was the very first music-synchronized fireworks..... you know, like the 4th of July stuff, but just, more cooler and stuff, you know.. And, so dude, that was how, like, this festival started."

The mother fainted...

Amazing timestamp

It's been a lot of backlog that I've got to cover! It's been a busy month so far and promises to be even busier.

Just realised it's going to be an amazing date time in a few minutes and wanted to get a post in!

Aiming for 09/09/09 09:09 ;) might not hit it, but anythings worth a shot isn't it?

Cheerio

Independence Day Celebrations - Salute to Martyrs

India celebrates the 62nd Anniversary of our freedom from the British Raj. Its supposed to be a day where we feel patriotic paying homage to all the freedom fighters and visionaries. A lifetime is less to describe or even name all those who were involved, famous and infamous, known and unknown, men and women, adults and kids, national and international supporters.

15th August is the day we all used take for granted as being born in free India. Lets make sure we don't any more. We've come a long way, still a long way to go. 62 years of democracy neighboured by a failed model of similar attempt, we face our own challenges currently internal and external. Patience and acceptance being the virtue of people anticipating change. While we see our troops parading at the red-fort and PMs speech, lets get inspired by the doers of the gigantic task of Independence and start doing, growing up from our petty issues. World now submits their acceptance of a growing superpower. A time to remember all our martyrs with the struggles before and after the freedom struggle whether be Siachen, Kargil, Longewala or 26/11 Mumbai. All we can remember and all those have been eroded from memory filled with media crazy nonsense..

Respect

musical week and random

Its been a few musical days. With lots of things happening around the world like the Massa accident and eventual Schumacher returning to Ferrari, be it for a single race. Its an event. Clinton's diplomatic heroics demonstrated with emotional scenes of the reporters re-uniting with their families after scary speculations.

August is usually a month I very much liked as a kid in school, college and even working back home. As its got many public holidays. Like the National Portal of India's August Newsletter reports :-

Raksha Bandhan: Literally meaning, 'bond of protection', Raksha Bandhan is a festival that celebrates the bond of love between sisters and brothers. On this day, sisters tie a beautifully decorated thread called a 'rakhi' around the wrists of their brothers and exchange sweets and gifts.

Janmashtami: Also known as Gokulashtami, this festival marks the birth of Lord Krishna. On this day, fasts, pujas and other rituals are conducted at temples and homes that are beautifully decorated. In Maharashtra, teams of youngsters form human pyramids to break the 'Dahi Handi', a pot of buttermilk hung at a height.

Independence Day: This National Holiday honours the anniversary of Indian Independence from British colonial rule. It is characterised by march pasts, kite flying contests and public displays of patriotism. Citizens commemorate the sacrifices made by freedom fighters and strive to take the Nation to greater heights.

Ganesh Chaturthi: This ten day festival celebrates the birth of Lord Ganesha, the God of wisdom, prosperity and good fortune. During this period, large idols of Ganesha are worshipped. On the eleventh day, these statues are taken in colourful processions to be immersed in local water bodies amidst much ceremonial grandeur.

Join in the festivities by sending your near and dear ones some of the amazing e-cards available at india.gov.in.

Attended a musical evening performed by a very energetic upcoming singing sensation in the folk music genre. Kirtindan Gadhvi turns out to be closely related to a very good old friend, Anand Rudach. Socializing with families and people at that event was good. Twitter and Facebook slowly becoming the places where microblogging has begun from my end, hence the reduced frequency of posting here.

Looking forward to see Dharmeshbhai (my first cousin who's become a local star in sunderland news for his calligraphy exhibition).

Anticipation

Excerpt from the Speech given by Chetan Bhagat at Symbiosis

Life is one of those races in nursery school where you have to run with a marble in a spoon kept in your mouth. If the marble falls, there is no point coming first. Same with life, where health and relationships are the marble. Your striving is only worth it if there is harmony in your life. Else, you may achieve the success, but this spark, this feeling of being excited and alive, will start to die.

One thing about nurturing the spark - don't take life seriously. Life is not to be taken seriously, as we are really temporary here. We are like a pre-paid card with limited validity. If we are lucky, we may last another 50 years. And 50 years is just 2,500 weekends.Do we really need to get so worked up? It's ok, bunk a few classes, goof up a few interviews, fall in love. We are people, not programmed devices.

"Don't be serious, be sincere."

Start Enjoying from moment................

globalised export of Indian spirituality

The 11-19 July days have been indescribable in words. Attended my first Ramkatha live, an introspection for me at least. Lots of seeds planted in the brain which will bloom into flowering plants whenever appropriate weather and supporting conditions arrive.

The additional comfort and pleasure comes from the fact that each day more than ten thousand seekers - young and old alike turned up to listen to the humour filled and amazingly articulated oration of Moraribapu. I wouldn't even attempt to summarize what the moral of the Ramkatha is because its not supposed to be summarized, its just beyond anyone’s ability to do so. Its expanded and convoluted meanings are supposed to be experienced rather than explained. I would point other seekers to summarized translation in English from each day from a very learned scholar Shri Naginbapa here. The notable surprise being a very few British Indians would be actually understanding the language of the oration as it was in Gujarati dialect. God bless the organizers for a very gigantic and noble cause, which millions like me benefited in person and across satellite broadcasts.

The clapping and the reciting of age-old sayings reverberating from tens of thousands beneficiaries lifted the Wembley Arena with oceanic tsunami each day. Renowned artists from back home made the occasion musical each day and sang and played straight from the heart. Notable ‘celebrities’ from different walks of the society made their presence felt e.g. David Cameron praising Indians for their law abidingness, least criminal record and close family relations. The part that most hit me from his well delivered speech was him looking up to Indian way of life as an Ideal and that’s where he wishes Britain should move towards. I hope it’s not just A rhetoric to please the audience at hand and a strong belief.

Another such experience from history pages was advanced course at Bangalore, AOL Ashram. The serenity of the place still comes to the head. I think it’s good that spiritual leaders are receptive of the 21st century needs and have evolved for it. Everyone who can make a difference, is trying to. There are young people in their entourage who assist them in modern day technology dependencies like media and internet. All the notable people would have a website with lots of information on them now, this to me as great step and building block for a better tomorrow.

A picture is worth a thousand words, so will try and put together a few pictures of the whole event in this weekend. The whole week was very busy, with a lot of patchy showers throughout the week, just walked home in the midst of one such shower, staring in amazement at the fully coloured rainbow.

Colourful