The curious case of Krishna Kalyan

Today’s the day I feel weirdly nostalgic about! Its Krishna’s (my brother’s) birthday. If he was around, we would have gone out to eat at some ridiculously expensive restaurant, and he would have demanded a ridiculously expensive gift (like a macbook pro).But since I am saving so much money, I decided to dedicate this post to him.

When he was born and I was about three, I remember being wildly angry at my parents and kicked, screamed and demanded them to go right back to the hospital, and leave him there.But since then, I’ve grown quiet affable to his presence (OMG I’ve endured 20 years of torture, no wonder our family turned spiritual).

Though we fought like cats and dogs, and I’d always outwit and outdo him at any combat. That is until 14, when gods suddenly decided to grace him with height, and he started resembling a bean pole overnight, and I knew that I was physically (rather vertically) challenged to fight our brutal wars. As a kid he was a FAT baby, and he would hardly talk, little did we know that the seeds of a master arguementator was being sown, and now with his words, he can baffle the most accomplished of word smith (even dad).

He loves speaking about himself, My earliest memories of krishna talking about himself in past tense when he was two years old, saying “ Jab main one dena half ka than na..(when I was one-dena half...).” And he would say that till he was 5.

At 6, I did something that he would never forgive me of, I poured half a bottle of vinegar (very smelly) on his head, and he smelt of vinegar for one week!This started the onslaught of our fragrance wars. Our dad had gone in a ship and brought these two horrid human repellent Jasmine perfume for our mom. And we caught hold of these and used it as our arsenal. One threat of using these would stop the most intense fight. But there were times when we did use it, and then we’d have to open all windows and switch on all the fans and only then could we breathe.

He started displaying leadership qualities at mere 9 years, when he became the youngest leader of a gang comprising 12 and 13 year olds (no proof, strictly his claims, citation needed). And finally at 15 he transformed into human magically after doing YES course with Shreya Didi. Read here about it. And then well, we all lived happily ever after.

That's it. Happy Birthday bro. When (and if) you are really famous one day, I promise to be your official biographer, and we will make millions and become really rich.

Drenched in Kollam

Pic Credit: Srikanth

Things haven't been easy since the first moment I’d decided to go to Kollam. But I knew with some quirk of fate (called grace) I would land up. It was exactly one year ago that I saw Mahashivratri in Surat on TV and decided, that no matter I wanted to be there next year.

So after a lot of external conflicts (Boss, parents, missing train and a bus to Kollam) a few internal conflicts (when I missed the train), we finally landed in Kollam after a bumpy 14 hour bus ride in the end corner seat, turning all my insides into marshmallow. I’d already been feeling unwell for the past week, and could predict myself getting worse, so I thought, If i’m gonna get sick and take leave anyway, I might as well get sick in Kollam.

The first thing I hear as I reach the grounds is Gurudev’s voice taking Mahakriya, and it was then that it finally sunk in! I was finally finally finally here!
During the course of the day we went to the beach, and by evening we got ready and finally made it to the venue for the finale.
The blazing sun had finally shown signs of setting in, and as the twilight rays scattered the sky, it felt as if the whole environment was Drenched in a sacrosanct energy. There was a ramp that was constructed that was almost half a kilometre long, and nine feet high, where Gurudev could walk amidst the squealing public. There were satsangs, dance performances and even a powerpoint presentation, but most were oblivious of it, slipping into meditation before event the vibrant chanting began.




The next thing I know is that everyone around me standing on the chairs to get a glimpse of Gurudev walking on the ramp, in utter love and bliss. I have seen Guruji so many times, in so many satsangs over the past five years, but seeing him in this form, was like seeing him for the first time, like seeing pure unadulterated, uncensored divinity, that can knock out anything that has even an iota of life.

Then it was over in a blink of an eye, and here I am back at my office desk, typing out my experience in the hope of reliving even one moment of that.

And not for the first time, I realise how inadequate words can be when it comes to narrating some experiences.

My best friends wedding

For once I actually thank the Indian railways for delaying the Kurla-Coimbatore, I was almost 25 Kms away from the station, somewhere in Kanakapura, when Goli called me to give the good news. "The train is one hour late".

So we reached Coimbatore 6 am, checked into our hotel, after some suryanamaskar and meditation, we ventured to the city. The wedding function wasn't until evening.

Thanks to Goli and his adventurous spirit, we visited (climbed up) the Murugha Malay temple, and then had lunch in one of the popular 'Annapurna' chain of restaurant.At last I stood at the wedding venue, in Ree's room where she was getting ready for the wedding.

I myself had properly preened for the wedding spending close to 3 hours in the salon (and a bill to match it). "I'm fighting with Prasanna", she said with a mischievous glint.

Here I was, looking at the girl, my best friend, who I've seen growing up, from that weird Bong Mumbai snoot, to a child like Tamilian Iyengar mami.

And the transformation was unbelievable. A part of me wanted to scream, "this is totally child marriage, and that's illegal", and another part of me stood in awe, at Ree's sudden maturity which was alien to me. This was certainly not impulse queen I'd known. This was a woman ready to start a family.

My throat chocked as I saw her carrying the maadu saree, with such a grace, that even I as a Tamilian probably couldn't.

Reema in Maadu Saree

The wedding ceremony took place in proper traditional Iyengar style with unjaal (swing) and Kashi yatra, and Ree even sported a cute aandal kondai, and it was so touching to see her entire family following the instructions with an innocence of a child. And Coimbatore provided a perfect setting for it.

At the photo shoot

We left from the wedding next afternoon, after a hearty elay pota shaphad (banana leaf meal) with mixed feelings.

Having grown up all over India, mostly in north, it would be an understatement if I said I have not always appreciated my culture. But In Ree's wedding when I saw a family who were complete outsiders, embracing the culture, probably even better than their own, I felt quiet unnerved. And here I was, barely able to make a proper conversation in my own mother tongue.

Pruth and me

I really did not know about Tamil movies, or literature, and certainly did not know how to read or write Tamil. It strikes me, that its not that 'I don't know', its was 'I don't care'.

But I've decided to change that.

Life is all about deepening roots and broadening your vision and here is one of my active attempts.

Pic credits: Goli , Avinash and Vikrant (Reema's brother)

Being centered

I am going through one of those 'god-why-do-I-exist' phases again! Imagine a day like this
I wake up late (already a bad sign), take an auto to office,
then I realise I forgot my
wallet at home. Thankfully the auto guy is nice enough to accept the fare next day, so takes my phone number.
Get to work. Make stupid mistakes, and was threatened to get fired 3 times. Finally I get chucked out of making the pages (I work for a newspaper). And at this point I just observe how I feel. Things going wrong is not really big deal for me, by now, I am a self confessed expert at it. But then inevitably I always go into 'this-always-happens-to-me', or 'everyone's-here-to-give-me-a-hard-time' mode.
But today, as my boss screamed on top of her voice so that the whole office could hear how badly I screwed up, I could just detach myself and watch what was happening and just smile (internally).
And a strange calmness enveloped me. And then I felt just empty, blank.

And then a realisation of how impermanent each situation is hits me. And how empty they feel as they fade away in the magnitude of time. And every time I get back to this emptiness, I get in touch with truth. As I walk back from work to home, in the busy MG road every single day, I feel, I am at the centre, and events, happenings, emotions..are all revolving around me. While I remain rooted, untouched yet ephemeral.

Tender lovin care

The shop and restaurant windows are full of pink and red heart shaped balloons, the Brigade road it is swarming with couple holding hands.
On one hand we have Muthalik's army, Ram sena, crusading against a cause that is so a non-issue, and on the other hand we have these people (those against Ram sena) making an issue out a non-issue of a non-issue. The amount of debate that this has sparked off in Bangalore, is ridicules. I mean doesn't nation of 1.5 billion have better things to talk about. If couples want to hold hands, let them, and if Muthalik has made some retarded proclamations, let him. Seriously we have better things to worry about. Like:

1) Global warming- Apart from the fact that it has been reduced into a glamorous word in the vocabulary of beauty pageant contestants, It is a REAL PROBLEM. And oh we didn't do much, by being a Non Vegetarian, we only contribute towards 27% of global warming.

2) National Security- Right around the time last year when the media warped up the inconsequential 'Arushi murder case', India was invaded by China three times!

3)Naxalism-is the single biggest challenge that India faces in the next decade. The communist rule is weakening India internally by funding naxalites, and externally through maoist attacks from across the borders. In poor villages in India, especially the UP-north east belt, the naxalism is so rampant, that children of impoverished villages aspire to be naxalites in order to combat extreme poverty.

4)Politics- Our country is being run by a bunch of senile freaks, who still follow the legacy left by British- divide and rule in order to win vote banks. How can you blame them, the young educated population of India, is too busy to vote (myself included) but not to busy to complain.

5)Education system-Its about time we read 'real history' of India in our text-books, rather than suppressing our true history, where stuff like Jaliawala Bagh murder just gets a two line mention.

6) Terrorism- The basic intolerance for other religious and cultural ideologies, and this could include something as stupid as the Ram sena attacks. In the name of preservation of cultural heritage, gross violation of human rights and human values are being committed.

So its my sincere request for the youth of this nation to get into some action. Our country, our world, our environment is crying out for some love and affection. And if we focus our energies there instead of retarded (non)issues created by sensationalist media (I know I am a part of it),
This Blog has been inspired by Bawa's blog, on how, its out Nation that needs utmost TLC.
Here are some of the ways to get started

1. Attend the YES!+ workshop (contact me for details)
2. Register at http://www.jaagore.com/, to Vote
3. Read up on real Indian history on Francios's website
4. Become a vegetarian (no arguments, just do your research)

Now that's not a bad start, if you've checked the above on your to do list, its time to get others on the bandwagon. Else trust me, you'll be stuck behind a seedy screen your whole life, with your only significant contribution after reading this blog being increasing the traffic rate on google.

Why I did not post for so long

I know its been ages....and its about time I do the official sri ganesh of posting my first blog this year. Here are some of the significant events, that kept me too busy to blog the past month

1. Krishna's (my brother) visit , twice to the city, and he is now a proud owner of an ipod 160GB classic

2.My first YES!+ course in Bangalore Indira Nagar (will upload pics soon)

3. Interviewed : Emraan Hashmi, Neha Dhupia, and a couple of other's you wouldnt recognise

4. Attended my college alumni meet (and gave a brilliant speech) and was

5. Called as guest faculty to teach feature writing at SSCMS, and gave my first lecture.

6. Road trip from Coimbatore to Bangalore via Ooty and Bandipur national reserve with Avinash and Sadie, where we spotted Elephants, Deers and Peacocks.

7. And lastly and most significantly went for Reema's wedding yesterday. Got really senti..Its weird to see you best friend getting married, acting all grown up and propah!

Is my life happening or what! but that does not excuse me from going absconding from my own blog. All of the above events deserve an individual post dedicated to them. And that's what I intend to do in the coming days, which just seem to get busier

1. YES!+ course in Koramangala, Indian Heritage centre, 12th- 18th feb

2. Guitar lessons with Sahil

3. Lectures as guest faculty twice a week

4. Mahashivratri on 23rd Feb at kollam with Guruji.

I cant bear to go on anymore, seem like I'm on a verge of a panic attack. Why cant a day have more than 24 hours!

Moving on

Moved into a new house at JP nagar second phase,

And it still hasn't sunk in that i'm here for good. A part of me still feels like i'm on an

extended holiday, and will go back to Hyderabad.

This new house, the new job...all feels pretty unreal to me.