Animated Dance of Love to....Teri Meri...

A beautiful animated dance of Lovers, of Love, of Separation, of Longing... the underlying song making all the more poignant and touching... Teri Meri...from Bodyguard Circa 2011..

Such an insipid existence is thine,
so how can you say you're doing fine;


You know that one fine or not so fine day,
if you were simply to fly away,
you'd be missed but like a stray feather,
which gave tender but temporary pleasure;


You know that were you to seal your lips,
its not the loss of your words that'd be mourned
rather the peace of your silence welcomed,
your unbearable quietude ardently adorned;


You know that were you to hide yourself
just to see where someone may look for you,
you'd find them sitting unconcernedly, at ease,
resting and perhaps a bit relieved too;


You know that were you to walk out or away,
it would be some long miles on your own,
before you decide to walk back the way you came,
for you'd rather have company oblivious to you, 
than be obviously alone..


So when they clash, the lonesome and the banal,
the fear of solitide beating the one of ennui,
you know then that come rain, storm or sunshine,
you'd better look happy and say you are doing fine..

Laxmi - The Goddess of Wealth

PROLOGUE

I had decided to write a story but I didn’t know about what though and how.Not that I had a dearth of things to talk about nor was I suffering from a Writers block. Rather a strong lack of it and too many ideas flitting and flying through the mind. Hence I was unable to focus and therefore unable to start.

But then came my cup of tea, literally, in the hands of my maid Laxmi, the girl who turned up on my doorstep a year ago asking if I needed a childcare maid or cook. Well I needed one back then as I still do today but somewhere through the months, the girl has ensured we need her, instead of just any maid.

  

STORY

 Her name is Laxmi and she was born in a little village in Odisha, a beautiful state in Eastern India, about 20years ago. Her mother died in childbirth, her father remarried and her stepmother was like a fairytale one-who had wanted to poison her or abandon her up in the dense jungles of Sundergarh. So her grandma- her mom's mom took her in and brought her up. You'd think her life was rosier since but not really for a poor child living in the tribal belt of Orissa. 

Picking Mahua flowers and seeds from the jungles, processing them into country toddy, oil and papads, selling fish, constructing buildings and and roads, she had done it all and was quite proud of the way she had supported her family all through her childhood, with the one wish - that nobody called her a burden or cast her away like her own father had. 

Then when she was just 8yrs or so, she came back from a river visit feeling feverish and 2 days later her right leg swelled up and began to throb with intense pain. As is rampant in illiterate villages, a quack was immediately called who promised quick recovery. Though her leg suddenly erupted into a violent reaction, they took her to the local hospital only after 4 long days of waiting and worsening it. The Doc actually advised amputation of her leg due to the severity of the infection by that time, but her gran wailed in front of the CMO who finally prescribed some heavy-duty antibiotics and allowed her discharge. How was he to know that the caring Gran would then proudly renounce all faith in modern medicine, throw it all away and start treating the girl in her own way - country remedies of Neem and Turmeric. Well she did heal the wound but only superficially. The recurring pain was always treated with home remedies and the skin around it remained dead. Nobody had the time or the need to look at her wound more, least of all the girl who just stayed grateful that her leg was not cut off. 

Her Gran then sent her to the village school where she did fairly well, could have made a good life for herself perhaps. But her own Maternal uncle, unemployed, drunk and violent got wild with the money being spent on her (and this when she was not only earning but also getting a study grant from school) and started wreaking havoc in her school-threatening her and everyone around with sharp weapons. He wanted to simply 'end' it all, with her. So the teachers asked her to leave, for everyone else's safety and the little child of 12 never saw school again. 

Cut to June 2010, she was working as a maid in my house, taking care of my baby, the cooking and umpteen other things. She was to go back to her village and get married in December, and was full of dreams for the future. Only that the shadows of the past came back to haunt her.

That leg of hers had all this while been decaying inside and was now in an advanced stage of Osteo-Myelitis- thats medical lingo for Bone Infection. The Orthopedic surgeon said the infection probably entered through her bloodstream all those years back and afflicted her bone was never treated; only thin scar tissue got built which kept exposing her leg bone (Tibia) on simple, minor cuts as well. This could lead to bone cancer or bone TB if left unattended for long, he said and as no medicinal treatment is possible-the choice was a bone & skin grafting operation or just status quo in sheer helplessness. The surgery would need an Orthopedic surgeon and a plastic surgeon. Net cost was upwards of 2 Lakhs but look at God's grace that the one Orthopedician I chose to go to , does charity work, in NCR , and agreed to take up her case. Yet the cost remained around Rs. 70,000 or so.

Laxmi means "Goddess of Wealth" and ironically she had been such to her family and friends all her life. But now, her family suddenly had no money (after having given 3 pending feasts to the villagers and buying a fridge, a cooler and an almirah, apparently for her wedding!); her erstwhile caretaker "Didi" holding some Rs. 12,000 of hers(her prev. salaries) but was still "struggling to return her money", though she had just built a house in her village in Bihar! Her own reserves, after being dipped to by her family for 'house rent' in Rourkela and a TV were just about 10,000.

So where did that leave me?! The easiest option was to send her home, leave her to her family's care, just hoping things will be alright and not caring too much. After all she had been with me for just over an year and was anyways going back in another 4-5 months, so how did it matter! 

But sometimes the easiest roads are the toughest to walk on. I knew letting her go back without an operation could ruin her only chance of permanent healing and destroy her life perhaps. Hence after years of armchair activism, I gave myself a chance to make a genuine difference in someone's life, to really try and save a life. But that was not an easy road at all, certainly not one I could walk alone and reach a good end that could basically give the young girl a good start. 

And here comes the Miracle that makes everyone believe in GOD, a bit more. Hence I reached out, in the best place I knew - FACEBOOK and was rewarded with hordes of little angels reaching right back.It was surprising, heartening and blessing to get such immense help, from so many friends and quarters, people who were barely in touch over 10-20 years and who without a trace of hesitation eagerly came forward to help. The money accumulated kept going up, enabling the poor girl's operation and post operative treatment/ medication.  In fact the money left was high enough to support not 1, not 2 but at least 9 different NGO-driven charity plans. Well intentioned money, well spent and so many brownie points gathered by one and all. Laxmi is back on her feet, healthy, young and again full of dreams. Hope her dream-savers are in her prayers always. 

My Anniversary poems..

Hope your ride with me's been okay so far, 

& if its not, just grin some more n bear ;), 

coz this is just the beginning n am here to stay, 

to be by your side,every night n day,

6 long years its been, eventful, sad and happy,

Would love to stay married to you for some time more..

umm..not much, maybe..

another 60-70 Yrs and a coupla' more to go....:B...

Never An Afterthought

Never shall I be an afterthought,

No more handing out a Forget-me-Not,

Neither shall I seek a simple response,

to a mail written to the closest of pals;

Nor shall I expect any damn call,

no matter who has promised to make,

Never shall I await so long n some,

for the elusive cherry on the cake;

Its time to grab what is in me, what is near and what is with me

Its time to feel blessed for what I have, what good I get ceaselessly

For don't they say that about staring so long,

at the doors that are shut

the open ones seldom remain forever,

never wanting to be an afterthought;

Slumdog Ahoy!

Ok, so the toast of the Season seems to be the surprise superhit Slumdog Millionaire and I have totally gone ga-ga over the movie, so how could I possibly NOT write anything about it on my blog! 

So it all started a few weeks back when I hadn't seen the flick and a few overseas colleagues of mine had and one of them said that its probably going to be the most widely watched movie about India at present, so it shouldn't have shown certain things the way they were (read grim reality), as he was having to answer quite a few odd questions at work about India and if things really were that way out here. 

Well, being a big fan of the book the movie is based on, I had to jump into the fray defending something I had no busines defending then! The movie was said to have portrayed the real grimy world of India, slums, poverty, shitholes and jumping into them et al, but THAT is India as well I believe, the jhuggis lining the 'posh' complexes, filled with BPLs who help me run my house so I can keep raising my NetWorth..the people who don't let me throw away nethin saying they will either use it or sell it be it food, bottles,  or even mere 'disposable' curd containers! The movie, I had heard, showed their way of life, albeit even darker sometimes but then Darkness sells, Death & loss reaps higher returns at the BO..maybe thats why. But yes, for people abroad facing weird questions, they could come back to India for a change?!

And then I watched the movie. Boy, WHATTA movie and WHATTAN Acting!  With the lead Dev Patel doing full justice to his role, with the rest supporting perfectly in harmony, especially the subtly crafty Anil Kapoor as the Quiz show host, this movie rocks!

Ok, so SM IS a Masala movie but one thats made with its heart in the right place..I don't understand the moviemaking technicalities except maybe a lil bit of cinematography, editing and aptness of background scores, and this movie scored well on those angles, so for me, this is IT! Some people are blasting the movie for exposing India as full of squalor, as 'poverty porn' (Did this guy see somethin we didnt!!), Someone Big said it wrongly depicts "India as a third world dirty underbelly and that such places abound in developed nations too" Of Course! BUT..then this movie is not about a developed nation, or for that matter, about a developing one either...it is a movie about 1 young man, his struggle, his survival, his dreams and his will or sheer desperation to make it come true. Now Jamal just happens to be a slumdweller or at least start as one, so the movie had to show poverty, dejection, loss and the slums the way they are and trust me, as someone who did her summers doing mosquito repellant research in SEC A,B,C, I have seen some of the worst slums in Mumbai, Dharavi et al...and it IS this and worse..so it may be realism, it may be a tad too in-your-face, it may be a lil 'eeyoooh' in places but a fine film it still is...and with Rahman's mindblowing music added on, its magic, in cinemascope :). 

And for this I hope it gets ALL the awards its been nominated for...esp AR, who's the current Ruler of Indian film music.

On the terror attack that shook Mumbai on 26/11/08

It is going to be difficult to forget that fateful evening. Though we are miles away in Gurgaon, some of our closest family members are in Mumbai and were there on the night of 26-Nov-2008. I remember there was an important cricket match that day and we almost switched off our T.V once that got over, only to switch it back on after a phone call from my hubby's brother. "Did you watch the T.V?", he asked, "there's been some firing at VT Station & Taj hotel". We quickly surfed the channels and found to our utter shock the extent of the attack and fearingly so, the audacity. 10 terrorists had crossed the High Seas under the noses of our Coastal security, taken 3 v.significant places hostage and were wreaking havoc with their huge arms & ammunition supply, killing people, killing police, and just creating mindless bloodshed. The Taj, Oberoi & Trident hotels, C.S.T station and a private house cum religious hub of Israeli Jews. There was the Mumbai police, NSG Commandoes and the Navy special teams combating these fanatics and the episode finally ended with over 250 killed and scores injured. All our near and dear ones are safe but the attack has shaken me too much. Mumbai has often fallen victim to such villains in the past, maybe because it the one of the most succesful cities of the country,  most flamboyant, most colorful and most famous. Many a time we have had bomb blasts and several hundred victims but this time somehow it is more spine chilling.

This time its been even bolder, even faster and even more well planned and so fine an execution that you can't help shudder in awe. But enough of 'Bharat ke dil pe Hamla' and enough of testing the 'Mumbai spirit', don't you think? Of course we shall bounce back, of course we shall punish the villains of this particular episode but what of the next time and the next?! High time for the leaders to stop talking and DO something. Heaven knows what I will fling at the TV the next time I see our ex Hon. HM or any other politician come in their impeccable & unruffled attire and mouth empty rhetoric..with due respect to their followers webwide fans in the group, don't most of them remind you of some foolishly regressive & adamantly dumb boss/colleague/prof?! There are far too many like them around to miss the prototype!

People are praying for strength to tide over these times, I think we should pray for guts to combat these times head-on and take it to victory. Enough of vote bank politics, enough of appeasing this class and that community, enough of so-called 'human rights advocates' popping up whenever we have someone solid apprehended - boss, even the ones being massacred is humans, be it innocent victims or the police, how about treating THEM as one? Enough of "tehkikaat jaari hai, hum apni karyawaahi kar rahe hain, aap jald hi parinaam dekhenge"..KAB dekhenge? America had one 9/11 and look at the way they answered back. God knows how many more such 9/11s we need to move our Govt. to absolute, unflinching, indiscriminate action against the terrorists(though I am not known as an advocate of violence as such, this is a matter of OUR Human Rights after all!). 

This time its too close home for me. Just half a km away was where the villains disembarked,across a narrow sea looms the burning Oberoi, the sky behind greyed with the flames of the Taj, the way to work strewn with signs of the violence, the lively station waiting room, our halting place many a time all through my childhood, which must have been filled with so many people with dreams of going home, perhaps to enjoy a vacation, now a bloodbathed, empty hall...all this ....its too close for me to not just be moved but downright scared. God bless us all! Take care...

Post 07/11 Mumbai Blasts..

On 12-Jul-2006, on the way to office, as we were stuck in innumerable traffic jams, I was wondering when we'll get to office and the evening before it had been "when will I get back home"...and so on..and this instantly steered my mind to the Mumbai incidents of 11-Jul...as anything these days does....so here goes wht I managed to key in amidst my wrk so far..

I got thinking how little we do vis-à-vis the big things we think about. We do speak aloud why we are so quiet, why we are so tolerant and why India can't launch a strong offensive against these terrorists. But when it comes to doing something, we stay back…we just don't pressurize the Govt. enough in such situations…and this includes not just the media, but also the victims and their friends, the general public and even the students who are supposed to be the fiery and proactive face of the country!

At times like this, media no doubt is giving coverage and organizing SMS polls etc but is it enough...Where is the collective "voice of the nation", why haven't the stirs and demonstrations started as yet demanding the Govt. to get offensive at least NOW...asserting that its been too long we have borne and tolerated the havoc wreaked over us time and again...

The media was teeming with views, counterviews and forums galore in cases like Jessica Lal's murder and the AIIMS strike against reservations etc., which were no doubt important and justice needed to be done...But isn't this longstanding, imminent and dangerous threat to our entire nation and its millions as important, if not more?! We shook a whole city when someone desecrated a statue of a mother figure in politics but we utter no word and shake no limb when someone does the same to our motherland? What resilience indeed!

Isn't it time for the people of India to raise their voices together, once more, for someone to spearhead the struggle once more and lead the masses to shake the govt. out of its peaceful slumber…? There are several courageous and affected souls out there who do want to act you know including you and me too but we need leaders who'll show the way.

But WHO are those leaders...I shudder to think they are those Govt. reps who stroll down the aisles giving "we condemn the act" statements, hovering in meetings perhaps discussing how many more commandoes they would need for themselves and irking the public further by their long motorcades. So then why aren't we, the people who have elected these so-called leaders, urging them to look up for while from their scams and money & power-hungry races to do what they were meant to do in the first place?!

And then I realized suddenly how vague (for lack of a better word) we are…we run around and raise our voices for almost everything under the sun, from rise in tomato and diesel prices to a power plant construction, to changing laws to reducing pollution etc., but there’s just not enough focus on the matter that ought to matter most to all of us...aren't we tired of this inaction or are just being plainly and lazily foolish?

We have been espousing ideals of non-violence and tolerance since time immemorial but absolute non-violence in the face of such fanatic terrorism seems nothing short of foolhardiness. Forget proactive, we are not even a reactive nation as of now- 12 years since the Mumbai blasts but not an ounce of action against anyone. The July blasts were just waiting to happen, weren’t they?

No other country in the world has exhibited such a level of patience but what worth is it than a couple of peace awards and some international acclaim for our “exemplary” behavior! But there’s got to be a limit to this, coz how long are we expected to be struck, fall down, rise back again, only to be struck once more. Amazing resilience indeed but of what use is it after all when it won’t save us and our dear ones from death.

Every time a tragedy strikes, our PM keeps telling us "we shall always stand up, we shall not be defeated by the terrorists”, no sir, we shall not be defeated by them, only massacred mercilessly and dead people don’t get defeated anymore…Its time Sir, to gather up all our guts, oil the tanks and guns, shake up the armed forces and launch a brave, bold and big-time offensive against those who dare to kill us and violate our lives time and again!!

Hope better sense and actions louder than words prevail this time around!

Passing Thoughts on Friendship - PART I

This morning, one of my friends called me to his room to show something he had written and whatever I write here, its only because that writing, straight from his heart, stirred something deep within mine...

Right now, what I am living are the last few days on campus, the last few days of student-life for most of us, the last few carefree days of fun and mirth, before we set foot out(again for me) into that so-called tough, wide,world.

I went through such a phase when I was leaving engg college, that too was one such foray into the "big, bad world" but things were different then. My age for one, was a good 4 years less and then, the pangs of separating from the friends you had literally grown up with, overrode all other worries and apprehensions. You knew you would be able to meet only a few of them sometime later but the larger chunk would perhaps ever be able to get together again..not like THAT at least. And the friends stayed, so did their friendships, through the better part of these 4 years. Why I wonder, as I look back from where I am standing right now.

I think because our friendships back then were never made on the foundations of needs and benefits. They were not made for getting work done, for winning prizes or marks, for reducing "per-head" cost or for getting some additional space to spend our times in. In fact, we used to say we were friends for "simple time-pass" but somewhere beneath all that thoughtless masti and merrymaking, the bonds deepened. Over time, they got seasoned by genuine care and concern for each other and of course that all-important feeling of love. And became the the bonds worth reckoning. The bonds that started over a cup of tea, sealed over a hot samosa from the canteen or a pattice at Ding-Dong, flavoured with an ice-cream from Jal Mahal or a pastry from Bake Hut and got toasted to by a glass of booze. They blossomed into something stronger and trust me, that helped. The power of the strong but simple friendships that were forged there gave a strange kind of strength when we met the corporates on our first jobs, some of us barely stepping out of our teens, some as kiddish as ever. It helped us shine, rather outshine a lot of "mature" people, and make our mark out there. And these bonds, these friendships still live on, through the ups and downs that the times dish out, they breathe on,in our thoughts, hearts, in our lives.

Passing Thoughts on Friendship - PART II

When I came back to campus, I thought I'm getting another chance to forge as good relationships, to meet as good people, to shower my love on as equally caring souls. But little did I know what the bargain was. 'Twas a much closer gathering no doubt, much more intertwined lives but much further distances. A larger chunk of almost everyone lurked below the surface and what met the eye formed a face, you could only watch, see and smile at. Forget seeing that face break into joy for you, or those eyes welling up with tears for your sake. The rules were different here. You were not supposed to fall into the "trap of friendship" with "people who could not be of any use to you", you were not supposed to like someone "just like that", you were not supposed to be too frank with people and fie on you if you chose to be apolitical. That simply couldn't happen here. You only had to choose to make things simple and people would accuse you of being "dumb", "cowardly" or "cunning and power-hungry" too! A "KingMaker" is what you would be called if you chose to ever support your friend and stay out of the run, an "over-ambitious and double-standards" person is what your would be called if you simply expressed a cherished wish someday but chose not to pursue it as badly as the others. And dare you go against the all powerful "cartels" and your head would be rolling somehere, its respect I mean. Your very friends would be turned against you and the whole campus would be agog with how scheming you've been. A beautiful picure, right?!!

Well, what could I possibly have to say about friendships when a major portion of them were made not for companionship or sharing the good and bad times but for completing assignments, for having someone to share the expenses with or for having someone to crack jokes with. Seek someone out in distress and hear the sheer ingenuity of excuses. be Be ready to be remembered only when you are needed, not when you need somebody. Believe in someone and be stabbed with rumours about you by that very person. Help someone out by being a pal and be prepared to lose yours to them. Its happened here, happened to many of us, many a time but some just choose to laugh at it, some blow their top, while others just recoil into their cocoons. A real hopeless scenario, ain't it? And you wonder how people like a few of us who've tasted what true friendships can be like, survive in a place such as this Hades..

Passing Thoughts on Friendship - PART III

That, my dear readers, is what would like to end this trilogy in. Finally, I can come down to my last few thoughts, about people who though only a meagre handful have made a tremendous difference in my life here. They are those who love their friends not because they need to get their work done but because they would like to make someone's life happier and face cheerier. These are the people who have held their heads high and shoulders strong through the worst of times and who've never fliched in taking up a good cause. These are my friends, the rarest of specimens your would find in a place like this, and treasure them I sure do, with as much care that I can. Of course they have had their weak moments when they might have forgotten me or when they chose to believe someone else, but they are the ones who've always come back, who've always taken Me back, with open arms and no questions, people who've been there for me at almost all those times I sought them out.

These are the ones who've dared to stay apolitical, who've chosen to be in the hubbub of things, yet have safeguarded their integrity and sanity. These are those people who may not shine at the top of the class, who may not be the so-called stars, who may not be the most outstanding personalities, yet they possess something that perhaps even Satan may kill for, that fundamental humane nature, that closeness to the Almighty that keeps them on the righteous path, that beautiful heart filled with joys higher than the material pleasures.

And this might as well be a pean to them I guess. A rather longish Thank You note while I part from these precious people. Hope the Gods bless your lives with a lot of success, prosperiety and peace and fill their milieu with love and togetherness.

And the rest, well, I do owe something to you too. After all you spared no sweat in your efforts either. Thanks for having helped me learn about life and the world, the harder way no doubt. For were it not for you, I would have lost out on such valuable lessons though I only hope you don't get to learn anything in the way I did.

God bless all of you...all, nevertheless.

Hey Folks..close to one year since I wrote in here and I think my blog might have gotten around to missing me sometime at least. Not that my life has been uneventful or anything like that, in fact, it's been quite on the contrary actually..running like never before..the million assignments and exams and presentations (not really a million but those who know about Saggi exaggerations..will understand?..:-)..Wrote a couple of poems, a trifle abstract and complex and both incidentally during two boring MBA lectures( with due apologies to my profs if they're reading this too)..and a lot of mails too (God save those who got them though but I thought they asked for it..but if God's watching..here comes my apology..:-)..sorry dudes..) and I think I'll come up with some glossary kinda manual to help my readers read my stuff..which include some million highly customised short-forms and abbreviations n I know the pain ppl go thru to understand them..;-). Also on the cards is this book I'm planning to write on y experiences in Mumbai..aptly to be titled as "Of Bhelpuri and Vada Pav"...or something similar. Suggestions are of course welcome..

But right now, a brief intro to wht I am about to write. For those who've missed out the action in my life, I'm right now in Mumbai, doing my summer training in an esteemed company (I think the name's to be kept a secret..as per professional standards or something!!). I have this bunch of people who are with me from the elite B-Schools in India and who thankfully are not the obnoxious and snobbish kinds. rather, they are these enthusiasitc and awesomely funny chaps and chappettes (sorry Wren n Martin..but had to invent a word..!) and what I am about to do is this. Attach a list of some e-mails that were exchanged by two of us over our yahoogroup..just for kicks..nothing serious and nothing important. But worth a good laugh, especially if you are familiar with the Mumbaiya language and stuff..thought it might just make you smile a lil..

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[MY FIRST MAIL TO THE EGROUP]
Hi Budds..

So I AM added onto the grp..except tht cudn't chk this deluge of mails in the beautfiul scenic slums tht I've been visitin since last evenin.. n hence dear DJ's req to Shri Ram..
The latest frm this side of the world:

Our Prabhu's gone visitin the kem-ccho land..an a lot of "Gujarat ki Kudis" wud be makin it to his "I Hate" list..which in case u didn't know is his bestseller countdown..

The Seth gal is all wild(with anger..) n lonesome tonight..toDAY
actually..without her guide n sub-guide..ohGod..she's even started
hummin.."sara sara din tum kaam karoge toh pyaar kab karoge.." Sara...r u listenin..this cud be for u too...makes me go all hmm-umm..

An of course the Harappa dude..wht an original n profound name I must say..for wht else cud fit hisa kinda specimen..except the first civilisations of the world..though "pandu neanderthal" wud be more befittin..kya bolta hai public log..;-)...??

Guess all of u must have gotten into the groove..for May 12 is the D-Day..to get laid..in the grave baba..wht were u thinkin, gotta keep up the stds out here...oh boy, wht a public floggin bef tht sumptuous lunch..ever heard of "bali ke baad bhojan"..feel it then..

Whassup at the Gurukool room yonder? Roadrash n NFS in full swing uh? I, on behalf of my dear grp here would like to extend an..oh hell..drop in netime palz..
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[REPLY FROM A certain Mr. D J]
hey wht is this going on ... this girl is coming from slums and talking all bad
bad things ??wht is this ?? STD and gettin laid and all ... wht is this
nonsense ... this is a attack on indian culture and all ... we must stop this at once
,,,
so says :"angry ganesen"

cool babe dudes ... so says "hygiene harappa "
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[REPLY FROM ME AGAIN]

Hey..watt is the piroblem appa..just tryin to get ppl loaf a lil, esmail a lil..ande u arr malainin my good name..u "bina chhat ke building" (courtesy govinda).."bina pani ka nal"..bina..grr..bina alu ke vada-pav(this HAS to be courtesy me only...vada pav..mmm..)..u just kip kwiet n donn't espeek about my dear dharavi..emosional kar deta hai apun ko..very deep effect it has had on me in this lil time..most strong on my languaje..I saw "hotel deleicius" and "favorit restaurant" and wht not..c wht this has don to my inglis..pttcch..am so praud of being an Indian u know..kharach Bharatiya..wht up you will do holding of Indian culchur bhau.. u can't even hold up your guide's tame..

No ophences meant to any human being, alive or dead (the latter meant Wren n Martin n Milton n Shakesspeare n the kinds..the alive..of course no prizes for guessin..)

N fr those who r way-way confused by my mails, pls feel free to mail me
for further clarifications..till our 12-hr helpline gets workin..;-)...

Cheers..(if only I had a peg to add the "natural touch"..)

Soum
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[D J AT IT AGAIN]

dear beloved ,
we r again gathered here this time to celebrate the renaming of dharavi slums as "Soum - Vihar" alias "the earth that bore her weight" ... from now on we would treat this location as a national heritage site under the protection of ASI (archilogical survey of india ..for the uninitiated ...) and SHRIMATI SOUMYA herself .. we would be arranging buses for pilgrims who would like to visit the site where "Her Highness" set foot from the "DHABA" (another smaller holy site where "Her Highness" visits regularly and causes miracles like sudden
disapperence of all food and the manager hides out of fear .. )... all those interested should mail her immideatly

yours truly ,
haklu halwaai
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Hope you understood bits and pieces and hope there was at least a sligh chilling out of your nerves and a slight relaxing of your grey cells!!

Shall try to be back with my poems a lil later..Have a great life.

Soumya....
"Those who said money can't buy happiness, didn't know where to shop"