ఏకాకి...

జగమంత కుటుంబం నాది

ఏకాకి జీవితం నాది

సంసార సాగరం నాదె

సన్యాసం సూన్యం నావే

జగమంత కుటుంబం నాది

ఏకాకి జీవితం నాది

కవినై కవితనై భార్యనై భర్తనై

కవినై కవితనై భార్యనై భర్తనై

మల్లెల దారిలో మంచు ఎడారిలో

మల్లెల దారిలో మంచు ఎడారిలో

పన్నీటి జయగీతాలొ కన్నీటి జలపాతాల

నాతో నేను అనుగమిస్తు నాతో నేనె రమిస్తూ

ఒంటరినై అనవరతం కంటున్నాను నిరంతరం

కలల్ని కధల్ని మాటల్ని పాటల్నిరంగుల్నీ

రంగవల్లులనీ కావ్య కన్యల్ని ఆడ పిల్లలని !!జగమంత కుటుంబం !

మింటికి కంటిని నేనైకంటను మంటను నేనై

మింటికి కంటిని నేనై కంటను మంటను నేనై

మంటల మాటున వెన్నెల నేనై

వెన్నెల కూతల మంటను నేనై

రవినై శశినై దివమై నిషినై

నాతో నేను సహగమిస్తూ నాతో నేనే రమిస్తూ

ఒంటరినై ప్రతినిమిషం కంటున్నాను నిరంతరం

కిరణాల్ని కిరణాల హరిణాల్ని హరిణాల చరణాల్ని చరణాల

చలనాన కనరాని గమ్యాల కాలాన్ని ఇంద్ర జాలాన్ని !!జగమంత కుటుంబం !

గాలి పల్లకీలోన తరలి నా పాట పాప ఊరేగి వెడలె

గొంతు వాకిలిని మూసి మరలి తను మూగబోయి నా గుండె మిగిలె

నా హృదయమే నా లోగిలి

నా హృదయమే నా పాటకి తల్లి

నా హృదయమే నాకు ఆలి

నా హృదయములో ఇది సినీవాలి

!!జగమంత కుటుంబం !!

సిరివెన్నెల కలం నుంచి జాలువారిని మరో ఆణిముత్యం. సినిమాకు సంబంధించినంత వరకు, పాట సందర్భానుసారంగానే ఉంది. కాని ఈ పాట ప్రతి మనిషి జీవితానికి అద్దంపట్టేలా ఉంది. ప్రతి మనిషి తన జీవితంలో ఇలాంటి సమస్యను లేదా సందర్భాన్ని ఎదుర్కొంటాడు. ఒంటరితనం నేర్పే పాఠాలకు పరీక్షలు ఉండవు. ఆ ఒంటరితనం అనే ఓడను ఈ జీవనసాగరంలో, తోడు అనే తీరం వైపు నడిపించడమే మనిషి లక్ష్యం. కాని తీరం చేరిన దూరం కాని ఒంటరితనం చాలా మందిని వేధిస్తూనే ఉంతుంది. ఈ పాటలో వివరించింది ఇదే సమస్యను. అసలు ఈ ఒంటరితనం మనసుకా, మనిషికా? మనిషి ఒంటరితనం మనసు ఒంటరితనం అవుతుంది కాని, మనసు ఒంటరితనం మనిషి ఒంటరితనం కాకపొవచ్చు. మనిషికి దొరికిన తోడు మనసుకు తోడు కాకపొవచ్చు. ఇలా బాధపడే వాళ్ళు కోకొల్లలు. కాని ప్రస్తుత స్థితిగతులు అంత సమయాన్ని కేటాయించనివ్వవు.

సాహిత్యానికి సంబంధించినంత వరకు పాటలో ప్రతి వాక్యానికి కవి సరైన న్యాయం చేసారు. "వెన్నెల కూతల మంటను నేనై", వెన్నెల మనకు చల్లదనాన్ని ప్రసాదిస్తుంది కాని కవి ఇక్కడ చెప్పాలనుకొన్నది, ఆ వెన్నెల రాత్రులలో, ఒంటరితనంలో తోడు కోసం తను పడ్డ తపన, ఆ దయనీయ స్థితిలో తను పడ్డ బాధను "మంటగ" వివరించాడు. గమనించదగ్గ విషయం ఎంటంటే రెండు వ్యతిరేక పదాలతో ఒక కొత్త అర్థాన్ని ఇవ్వడం. ఇలాంటి పదాలను Englishలో 'Oxymorons'అంటారు(తెలుగులో ఎమంటారో నాకు తెలియదు). ఇలాంటివే తెలుగులో కొన్ని "పగలే వెన్నెల", "హిమజ్వాల". కవి చివరి చరణంలో వాదిన ఒక పదం "సినీవాలి" , దీనికి అర్థం అమవాస్య చంద్రరేఖ. అమావాస్య చంద్రరేఖ ఉంటుందా, ఎమో నాకు తెలియదు. అమవాస్య చంద్రరేఖ ఆశావాదానికి ప్రతిరూపంగా కవి వాడాడు.

కవి చెప్పాలనుకొన్న భావం మనం అర్థం చేసుకొన్న భావం ఒకటే కాకపోవచ్చు. ఒక కవిత్వం కవి చూసే కోణంలో పాఠకుడు ఆలోచించకపోవచ్చు, అంతమాత్రాన పాఠకుడి అలోచనలు తప్పు కానవసరం లేదు, ఒకవేళ పాఠకుడి ఆలోచనలు అర్థవంతమైతే..

గొడుగు

నీ ఙ్ఞాపకాల నిలయం ఈ గొడుగు

మండుటెండలొ చల్లని నీ తోడులో

వేసిన ప్రతి అడుగుకి

సాక్ష్యం ఈ గొడుగు

హోరు గాలికి ఊరుకొనక పోరు పెడుతున్న

నీ కురులను సవరించిన ఆ ఘడియకు

సాక్ష్యం ఈ గొడుగు

జడివానలో తడినుంచి తపననుంచి

దూరం కోసం తనువు పడ్డ వేదనకు

సాక్ష్యం ఈ గొడుగు

ఇప్పుడు నన్ను

నిజం చెప్పమని నిలదీసి మూలుగుతుంది

మూలన చేరిన ఈ గొడుగు...

ఎమని చెప్పను

ఎల చెప్పను!!

ఙ్ఞాపకాల బాధలో..

ఙ్ఞాపకాల భయంతో...

తన వెనకే నక్కి కూర్చున్నాను అని తెలియక..

నిన్నటి బాసలే మళ్ళీ మళ్ళీ గుర్తుచేస్తుంది ఈ గొడుగు.

Neele Gagan...

This is one of the beautiful songs penned by Sahir Ludhianwi. He expressed the beauty of the earth beautifully using minimal words. The song was shot on Raj Kumar and Nanda. The song elucidates the way nature gets satisfied in her daily actions. He illustrates the beauty in each every errand of nature.

He... neele gagan ke tale, dharti ka pyaar pale -2
Aise hi jag mein, aati hain subahein, aise hi shaam dhhale...
He... neele gagan ke tale, dharti ka pyaar pale

Every line makes me feel happy to be part of nature (I don’t know if I am standing on the right side).

“Shabnam ke moti, phoolon pe bikhre, dono ki aas phale ...
He... neele gagan ke tale, dharti ka pyaar pale…”
(Formation of the dew on the leaves of the tree fulfills the desire of both leaf and dew.)

“Balkhaati belen, masti mein khelen, pedon se mil ke gale...
He... neele gagan ke tale, dharti ka pyaar pale…”
(The fluttering jasmine sambac play enthusiastically by twirling around the tree.)

“Nadiya ka paani, dariya se mil ke, saagar ki aur chale ...
He... neele gagan ke tale, dharti ka pyaar pale…..”
(The river water coalesces with the stream to reach the sea, there by following the very decree of nature. )

This song makes the world around us look beautiful. Now a day we really have to rely on songs like this to make nature look naturally beautiful, as many things in nature are already on the verge of thinning. I doubt if our next generation could able to see the resplendent nature. To make everybody aware of disaster and appreciate the beauty of the environment, every year on April 22nd, we celebrate Earth Day.

It doesn’t matter if we can’t contribute anything to nature as long as we don’t cause the downfall of nature. Be eco-friendly.

(I shall add the song on music player soon..)

Frog and Cream

Today, my colleague and I were having a discussion on the failure part of our project. We have been running the test since Mar 1st week, but still couldn’t quiet make it to the final cut. I was kind of tired of working on the same thing everyday and at the end of the day getting off with nothing to cheer on. I was just about giving up on the test, this morning, right then my colleague enlightened a small story on hope.

One day, two frogs were enjoying the day in the barn when they accidentally fell into the bucket of cream. The bucket was deep and frogs couldn’t get out. The two frogs kept swimming around and every once in a while tried climb out of the bucket. But all the efforts were proved to be futile. Right then, one of the frogs gave up the efforts and kept drowning deep into the cream, where as the other one kept swimming to keep himself up from drowning. Finally the pessimistic frog gave up and drowned completely. The other frog was sad at the loss of his friend but never lost the hope of bouncing back and kept swimming around. He kept swimming and swimming and finally cream turned into butter and the frog simple climbed out.

This story tells us even if you stumble at the beginning and even if people around you try to pull you down, never give up the hope, and never relinquish putting your efforts to rise up. You may fall down couple of times, but that’s not the destiny you have chosen, that might be the end of the story, certainly not the way you intended to.
As someone said, “Being defeated is often a temporary condition. Giving up is what makes it permanent.”
(I am still working on my project..)

Aftermath/Outcome of WC-2007

The world cup is over now. The festival of cricket has come to an end after 7 weeks of celebration. Let’s see the changes that have been brought on by the big event.

Australia:
Australia continued there winning streak successively for third time. They never had to sweat out to lift the cup. They were and are the indisputable world champions. They set themselves high standards which will take years for other teams to get accustomed to.
However, Glenn McGrath’s departure might prove dear. And the corridor at the outside off stump will always be empty without McGrath’s presence. McGrath’s long run of dominance with the ball comes to an end and the send off was a perfect one and we can say an ideal one for his efforts in bringing the cricket to high standards. He was the highest wicket taker in this world cup and in all world cups and also in any world cup. His departure would be a big respite to many world class batsmen, including Sachin Tendulkar. McGrath is undoubtedly one of the greatest bowlers in world cricket.
Another blow to Australia is the departure of the coach, John Buchanan. He took over the reigns in 1999 and since then OZs dominated the world cricket by winning three consecutive world cups. He worked hard in bringing the best out of every player. The new coach will have a huge task to maintain the same tempo among players.

Sri Lanka:
This time Sri Lanka was one of the under dogs of the tournament at the beginning. But the way they played the cricket was commendable and admirable. They bounced back whenever they were expected to, except in the final match. Jayawardhene’s captaincy was instrumental in bringing the players out of shell.
This tournament ends the long career of destructive batsman Jayasurya. Although, there has not been any official word on his retirement, I feel it is not harm in presuming his absence in the next world cup. Since 1996 world cup, he has been one of the strongest opening batsmen in the world cricket. We will definitely miss the flick on the square leg and ferocious cut on the offside. Unquestionably, Jayasurya was one of the best players who brought the revolutionary changes in SL cricket as well as world cricket. A decade of construction to destructive force comes to an end.

New Zealand:
The Black caps left the arena with disappointment and disenchantment. They were so close to winning the cup and yet so far. Amazing thing was, it was their fifth semi final debacle in nine participations. It proves that, they are definitely better team than many others but certainly not the best one. This left them to continue their hunt for the mantra of getting through semis.
The big change would be the stepping down of Stephen Fleming from the captaincy of ODIs. He was one of the longest and best captains of the world cricket. His decision to concentrate on batting and offer some change in the captaincy has been applauded by many of the senior players. Even though his success rate is less than 50%, his long reigns yielded many positives to Kiwi cricket. This spot could be occupied by Daniel Vettori, coz of unofficial buzz is in favor of him, as Fleming recommended to him to the board.

South Africa:
Yet another world cup fiasco for South Africa, this time spoilsport was neither weather nor the basic mathematics but themselves. Their cricket throughout the tournament was consistently inconsistent which is enough reason to leave the arena empty handed. All the huff puffs by Proteas were like writings on the water. On one occasion they scored huge against a minnow and in another they choked up against a minnow in disguise. Their hunt for hymn to peak continues.

England:
And the nightmare continues. The motherland of cricket still fell short of laying the hands on world cup by miles. Their disastrous record in ODIs continues in spite of some valiant and inspiring efforts from KP and Collingwood. They could able to pull off only one victory against a test playing nation. It’s the high time of ECB to concentrate more on ODIs rather than Test cricket. They need monumental change in their approach to the game leaving behind the orthodox and conventional cricket and should be trained to adapt the more entertaining contemporary cricket.
This event bids adieu yet another coach, Duncan Fletcher, who had been in that role for a quiet long time. Even though he worked hard in bringing the best out of players in test arena, but his efforts for a good ODI team were gone in vain. The new coach will have a mountain to climb to build an ODI team, players of which has been suffering from bizarre problems.

West Indies:
The dream to set the record of host winning the cup still remains a dream. The journey to regain the past glory by WI ended up abruptly and unyieldingly. The kings of the past never showed the qualities of regaining the reminiscence in spite of large home crowd advantage. In fact the home crowd advantage proved to be unbearable pressure which got them big time.
16 years of long and illustrious career of Brian Lara has come to an end during this world cup. One of the best batsmen of my generation has bid adieu in front of large home crowd. Lara holds the record of highest number of runs in test career, highest number of runs in a test innings, highest number of runs in an innings of first class cricket. After Richards, he is the only player to reach to that fame and name. Even though he couldn’t bring back the past glory, but his efforts were unquestionable. Thanks for such an endearing aggression through out career. We will definitely miss that shuffle across crease before smacking the ball over the ropes.

Pakistan:
This year’s event was an unfortunate one for Pakistan, as well as world cricket. Team Pakistan was knocked out of the tournament by Ireland in their second match only. 4 yrs of preparation for the cup was over within a week. They were out of the competition even before they savor the Caribbean reception. The repercussions back home were loud and clear and lethal, at times.
But the biggest disappointment is the murder of the coach, Bob Woolmer. One of the greatest cricket minds was found killed in the hotel room on the very next day Pakistan lost their crucial match against Ireland. Bob Woolmer was a successful coach and considered to be shrewd among coaches. His loss is irreparable. Even though killer is still to be tracked, his murder put an unsightly and indigestible tag to the cricket event. The downfall made to realize the reach of cricket game in the minds of few nations. Any how, this calamity couldn’t stop the event but Bob was surely missed by all.
Another blow to the Pakistan cricket was the retirement of Inzy. The big man at last got tired of his log career of 16 years. Inzy, who made the news with his blistering 60 in the semi finals of 92 world cup, was one of the greatest middle order batsmen till now. He was always known for his quiet and calm and nonchalant, yet composed way of approach in batting, and of course was notorious for his lazy running between the wickets. On the whole, cricket world will miss that back foot punch of and without him slips will always be empty.

India:
A bump on the way changed the fate entirely. A much expected (hyped) trip ended up in short stint. The team looked a balanced one with experienced players mingling with young and active players. On the flipside, team India was known for it's worst fielding efforts. Bowling attack was innocuous except in bits and pieces. Experienced players lost the zeal or motivation and young players were amateurs or immature, sometimes. The passion and enthusiasm to be victorious were seemed to be off of the minds of Team India. The fist match itself set them on the back foot. Third match with SL was a big disaster, and even before they start the game they were mentally down and were in bit panic about the ramification back home. The knack of winning the game was missing again. This time they have nothing to blame on but themselves. Most of the players in the team need a push up and push off from the team. The mindset of the players need to be changed, politics should stay away from sports.
This ignominy brought end to another Coach’s tenure. Greg Chappell, who had been the coach of Team India since Sep, 2005 had to quit the job after the failure of Team India in WC2007. Of course that’s not the only reason for his quitting the job. The disputes and discussions and debates on his coaching job have ended with his resignation. At last, Chappell savored spicy curry of dirty politics.

Bangladesh:
Bangladesh left the tournament with a big note. They pulled off a victory against India in preliminary rounds and stunned SA in the super 8’s. Thanks to Ashraful for his majestic innings to bring cheers on millions back home. Bangladesh showed an immense commitment with their discipline bowling attack and their dedicated fielding efforts. Their batting needs few more classes.
With this event, Dav Whatmore finished his tenure as Bangladesh coach with lot of cherishes. He certainly changed the face of Bangladesh cricket. He will all be smiling in the coming series of Bangladesh against India, while eyeing at the vacant position of Team India coach.

Ireland:
Ireland is one of the minnows who ended the tournament shining brightly. They pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the tournament against Pakistan, changing the fate of the WC2007. Their fielding was outstanding and bowling was simple and effective. They can become threat to many test playing teams when they meet in next world cup in 2011. I enjoyed the heroics of Potterfield (reminded me of Rhodes during world cup 92) and the chicken dance by Johnston.

Bermuda, Scotland, Netherlands, Canada, Zimbabwe and Kenya:
These teams need few more years of cricketing lessons to pose any threat to any cricketing team.

On the whole the event was entertaining and disappointing at times. The empty stands were always a concern to organizers as well as viewers on the television. But, as a cricket lover, I would say I thoroughly enjoyed yet another edition of world cup.

Triumphant OZs

OZs lifted the world cup, yet again, as expected. Sadly, there were no dramatic twists and turns. They stood tall like men among boys. They hit the highest point of cricket without much trouble. The only positive thing in the final contest was the fight showed by Sri Lanka, rather than bowing out like India and Pakistan in the previous finals.

I was all keyed up to see the final battle on sat morning and soon my excitation was subdued by the news of showers hitting over Barbados. After some on and off sessions, finally the show had begun. OZs won the toss and elected to bat first. Hayden was much expected to start off the proceedings. But, surprisingly Gilchrist stole the show with his naturally blistering innings, which gave Hayden a chance to relieve and enjoy the show closely. Gilchrist had gone berserk from ball after ball. He was smacking the ball hard and also his timing was as good as it gets. He hit ball the ferociously, mercilessly all around the park. And sometimes, he was, brutal and sometimes, vicious. He got OZs off to a flier and continued the mayhem even after powerplays. This kind of innings was a much needed one from Gilchrist. Gilly proved his vital role in the final battle yet again. In all three world cup finals, since 1999, he scored more than fifty runs. His score is the highest score in the finals of world cup. This kind of start put ‘some’ pressure on the SL bowlers and they didn’t hit the ball at right areas, as they did through out the tournament. The much expected Murali and Vaas failed utterly in bringing their magic to work. As expected, OZs middle order finished off their batting with a colossal total that put SL on back foot.

Scoring more than a run ball, right from the first delivery, against a quality attack like Aus is a huge ask for any team. Bracken drew the first blood by nailing Tharanga, who was fiddling out side the off stump. Then Jayasurya and Sangakkara played cautiously for another 30 mins, as if they were playing for pride. But, right then, from no where, these two left hander’s changed the mood with some atrocious shots, bringing some panic in Ponting’s camp. But, weather played the spoilsport and rain Gods showed up again. With the required run rate creeping up and the increasing hostile (unplayable) conditions (bad light and slippery surface and crumbled pitch) left SL team in disarray, and causing them to embrace the defeat with much aggravation and disappointment.

Even though, the result was anybody’s guess, the fight put on by SL was a treat to watch. They tried and tried till they exhausted thoroughly. I feel sorry for SL as they had to play in those unfriendly circumstances. The organizers should have taken a better care atleast for the final match. If only, conditions were better the result might have been different (I know I am being over optimistic here). The way organizers conducted the final match turned the bad impression into a irreparable indentation on the minds of cricket lovers.

Anyway, world cup is over now. Australia won the cup quiet comfortably. All those expectations by cricket experts by writing their chances off, in the beginning of the tournament, were answered loud and clearly. I guess OZs are the only team who won the world cup three consecutive times in any type of sports.
Congrats Australia, you are the best.

Almost Done

A four year event has almost come to an end. One final battle for the numero uno spot will be in couple of days. The battle for the best by sixteen nations (8 of these were minnows) has ended in bringing the two best teams for the final match. Of two teams, one spot was predefined; even though couple my friends kept rejecting the fact. Technically remaining 15 teams were fighting for one empty spot and I am happy that a subcontinent team proved to be the best one after Australia, again.

Of the two semi finals, first one was by Sri Lanka playing against New Zealand. Two teams played earlier in the super 8’s and SL won that match quiet comfortably. But in this one, they started off slowly and nervously. As soon as, Jayawardhane got settled in he smacked the bowlers all around the park. The way he paced the innings was quiet impressive. He played submissively, tamely and passively at the beginning and transformed into an aggressive, belligerent and destructive innings at the end. His innings was like that of Steve Waugh’s (one of the best captains in world cricket). The way he accelerated the innings in the second half was incredible and remarkable. Undoubtedly, this was one the best innings in ODI’s and Jayawardhene’s best innings in ODI’s, so far. Second half was not up to the expectations. Chasing the big totals on any kind of surface is not easy, especially when it comes to the big matches, like this one. Kiwis’ top order was bamboozled by Malinga’s pace and swing and completely restricted by the late swing from Vaas and resulted in loosing the wickets early. Even though Styris tried to keep the hopes alive but got out off an innocuous delivery, leaving the team in wreck. Styris’s wicket triggered the collapse which is lot similar to that of Team India’s in 1996 semi final at Eden Gardens (Sachin’s wicket triggered the collapse). Kiwis were outfoxed by Malinga and Muthu and Vaas, indisputably. On the whole, it was an excellent team effort by SL and Jayawardhene stood tall against all odds.

The second semi final was by Australia playing against South Africa. This was match was one of the most anticipated matches of the tournament. All the cricket lovers, around the world, were hoping for a nail biter. Lots of words had been exchanged; lot of mind games had been played before the start of the match. Proteas looked confident and were raring to go to take the revenge of the historical semi final match of WC99. But in the end it turned out to be lopsided game tilted more towards OZs. OZs thrashed and outplayed Proteas in all departments. Proteas never looked comfortable against the pace attack of McGrath and co. The match was over in first 10 overs. I never felt like watching a semi final match of the biggest tournament in cricket. one more time Australians proved to be the best when it comes to big matches. All the huff and puff by Proteas gone in the air against a quality attack, an omnipotent team.

On the whole, the two semifinals were not up to the sniff. Both Kiwis and Proteas failed one more time in bringing themselves closer to winning of the cup. The much hyped world cup gone from bad to worse with two unbalanced semi finals. With these two matches, organizers sunk further deep in the abyss of insolvency. The only consolation for the organizers would be a close contest in the final between OZs and SL. But I doubt, if it would be.

YOGI -Review

Yogi, another pathetic movie from tollywood. The only reason I watched this movie was, I had nothing else to do and nothing else to watch. The plot was as typical as it can be. Our hero is a rustic, naive and innocent guy from a village and comes to Hyderabad in search of livelihood. Without his knowledge he kills a thug who is notorious for his wrong deeds, and goes onto become a bhai called YOGI. His mother comes to Hyd in search of her son and eventually downfalls without meeting him up. Even though story looked emotional at the end, but watching it on the big screen would be a valiant effort. The music was weak and songs were sounding harmful to ears. The only good part in the movie was the comedy by Venu Madhav. Prabhas was a helpless tall guy. He put on a dismal effort as the protagonist of the movie.

These kinds of movies can only help me out in bringing my patience level up. I feel stronger, powerful after watching movies like this one. I even enjoyed a Jet-Li movie (with no gravitional effect)after watching this one. It’s high time that tollywood crew realize their inept effort in making, not excellent though, but bearable movies.

Tanha Dil...

Aankhon mein sapne liye
Ghar se hum chal to diye
Jaane yeh raahein ab le jaayengi kahan
Mitti ki khushboo aaye
Palkon pe aansu laaye
Palkon pe reh jaayega yaadon ke jahan

Manzil nayi hai anjaana hai kaarvaan
Chalna akele hai yahan
Tanha dil, tanha safar
Dhoonde tujhe phir kyoon nazar
Tanha dil....

Dilkash nazaarein dekhe
Jhilmil sitaarein dekhe
Aankhon mein phir bhi tera chehra hai jawaan
Kitni barsaatein aayi,
Kitni saugaatein laayi
Kaanon mein phir bhi goonje teri hi sada

Vaadein kiye the apna hoga aashiyaan
Vaadon ka jaane hoga kya
Tanha dil, tanha safar
Dhoonde tujhe phir kyoon nazar
Tanha dil....

‘Tanha Dil Tanha Safar…’ the more I listen to this song, the more I like it. Hats off to Shaan; this one is the best of bests. I bet every one of us must have felt that the song was made for us. You can see yourself in this song. I left the house long back first for the sake of knowledge and for the sake bread now. Whenever I look back to those days, I wonder where I left all those prolific moments. Now, all I have is memories to cherish the moments filled with affection and fondness.

One way or another, we all left our home or our land in search of food and living. At every stage of my life I met new people and I made friends with some of them and eventually missed some beloved ones. Even though, every stage felt like the target I was looking to hit, the target changed the form as time gone past. But one common thing I can find at every stage of life is ME, accompanied by solitude.
(you can find the song in the playlist of the Music player)

మధ్యతరగతి "మహానుభావుడు".

మధ్యతరగతి జీవితాలు బ్రతకనివ్వవు, చావనివ్వవు. ఎందుకంటే, హాయిగా చావాలన్న, బాధ లేకుండా బ్రతకాలన్న కావలిసింది ధైర్యం, లేదా ఆత్మ విశ్వాసం లేదా రేపటి పైన నమ్మకం. ఇవన్ని ఉంటే మధ్య తరగతి బండి లాగాల్సిన పని ఉండదు. అందుకే ఒక మహానుభావుడు అన్నట్టుగా, ఒక సగటు జీవి (మన దేశంలో సగటు జీవికి అర్థం ఒకటో తేదిన జీతం తీసుకొని, ఒక వారం తరువాత అప్పుల కోసం వెదికేవాడు అని, అంటే మధ్యతరగతి భారతీయుడు) కళ్ళు ఉన్నత వర్గాలపైన ఉన్న, కాళ్ళు మాత్రం పేదరికం లొనే పాతుకుపోతాయి. కాని కొందరి వైభవం వీరి పేదరికం పునాదులపైనే పుట్టింది. (కొందరు ఎందుకంటే మధ్యతరగతి తొ పోలిస్తే ధనవంతులు తక్కువే కదా, సంఖ్యలో) మార్కెట్టులో ప్రతి ఉత్పత్తిదారుడి గురి వీరి వైపే. వీరి సంపాదన ఖర్చు పెట్టించడమే వాళ్ళ లక్ష్యము. కలలు కనడం ఎంత పాపమో ఖర్చు పెట్టేంత వరకు తెలుసుకొలేడు ఈ వెర్రిబాగులోడు. కొంటే దరిద్రుడు అవుతాడు, కొనకపోతే చేతకాని వాడిలాగ మిగిలిపోతాడు. బాధలలో తక్కువ బాధను ఎంచుకో(లేని)నేస్థితిలో ఎదో ఒకటి ఇష్ట పడతాడు, నష్ట పోతాడు. ఇలా తనకంటు ఆధారం లేని ఈ జీవిపైనే దేశం ఆర్థిక స్థితిగతులు ఆధారపడి ఉంటాయి.

ఇలా జీవితంలో ప్రతి అడుగు లెక్కలు వేస్తు మునగడమే తప్ప, బయట పడే మార్గం దొరకదు. అనివార్యామైన మునకను ఆలస్యం చేయడం మాత్రమే నేర్చుకొంటాడు. ఇతడికి ఎంచేసినా అసంతృప్తే మిగులుతుంది. ఉద్యోగవేతనం విలాసాలకు కాదు కదా, రోజువారి జీవితానికి కుడా కష్టమే. ఇలా అని, దండిగా లంచం సంపాయించే ధైర్యం లేదు. (ఉంటే మధ్యతరగతిలో మగ్గేవాడు కాదు) ఇక ఈ చాలిచాలని సంపాదనతో ఇంట్లొ వాళ్ళ కనీస కోరికలు తీర్చలేక వాళ్ళు కార్చే కన్నీరులో నలుసు లాగ కారిపోతాడు, రాలిపోతాడు. (కనీస కోరికలు కోరిన కుటుంబ సభ్యుల తప్పేమి లేదు) ఇలాంటి ఈ బలహీనుడి జీవితం ఎంత సేపు ఇంట్లో కష్టాలు, ఉద్యోగంలో ఒత్తిడిల గురించి తలమునకలవడంలో ముగుస్తుంది. జీవితంలో ఉన్నత శిఖరాలు అధిరోహించడం కాదు కదా ఆలొచించడమే కష్టం అవుతుంది.

ఇన్ని కష్టాలు కన్నీళ్ళతో ముందుకు నడిపిస్తున్న (కుంటుతూ) ఈ జీవికి చావు బ్రతుకుల మధ్య తేడ తెలియదు. అందుకే మహకవి శ్రిశ్రి అన్నట్టు

"ఇటు చూస్తే అప్పులవాళ్ళూ

అటు చూస్తే బిడ్డల ఆకలి

ఉరిపోసుకుచనిపోవడమో

సముద్రాన పడిపోవడమో

సమస్యగ ఘనిభవించిన్

దొక సంసారికి.... "

సమస్యలకు ఎదురొడ్డి పొరాడే శక్తి చాలక, సమస్యల వలయంలో బలహీనుడిగ మిగలడం ఇష్టంలేక, ఆత్మాభిమానానికి అతీతంగ ఆత్మవంచనకు అలవాటుపడి బ్రతుకు(ను) "సాగ"దీస్తాడు, ఈ మధ్యతరగతి మహానుభావుడు.

"Paraskavedekatriaphobia"

'Paraskavedekatriaphobia', the word itself scares the hell out of me. I still wonder how they came up with this word, or with that spelling. I am not really worried about Friday the 13th. For those who don’t know what ‘Paraskavedekatriaphobia’ means, it is the fear of the Friday the 13th. And I am sure I am not the one among those guys as I was not aware of this till recent past.

"It's been estimated that [U.S] $800 or $900 million is lost in business on this day because people will not fly or do business they would normally do."

Wow, it’s amazing to know the affect of this date on the normal people (Can I call them normal). Some people won't go to work on Friday the 13th; some won't eat in restaurants; many wouldn't think of setting a wedding on the date. The incredible thing is fewer people choose to drive their cars on this day as recent survey revealed the increment in no of accidents by 50% compared to the accidents on normal days. Now, you can imagine the impact (Should I say indentation) of the Friday the 13th on common people.

I am not going against any belief or any religion, but the reason behind the fear (as they say) is the presence of 13 people at the last supper and betrayal of one of the dinner guests or disciples resulting in the crucifixion of Jesus Christ on a Friday. It is just a one of the reasons, I am sure there are hundred others.

I don’t know how far this belief is true, because it is just not the one belief that we follow blindly. Whatever may be the fact, I am happy (Should I be?) that I was born at 2:00AM early Saturday morning and the date was 13th, missed by a whisker.

Norm of Life..

kabhi kisi ko mukammal jahan nahin milta

kahin zameen to kahin aasman nahin milta

jisay bhi dekhiyay woh apnay aap mein gum hai

zuban mili hai magar hum zuban nahin milta

kabhi kisi ko mukammal jahan nahin milta....

bujha saka hai bhala kaun waqt kay shoulay

yeh aisi aag hai jis mein dhuaan nahin milta

kabhi kisi ko mukammal jahan nahin milta....

teray jahan mein aisa nahin kay pyar na ho

jahan umeed ho iski wahan nahin milta

kabhi kisi ko mukammal jahan nahin milta

kahin zameen to kahin aasman nahin milta...

Lyrics : Nida Fazil
Singer : Asha Bhonsle / Bhupinder
Movie : Ahistha Ahistha
Music : Khayyum

Meanings
Mukammal : Accomplished

This is one of the beautiful Gazals. Even though, it feels like song of a pessimist, it is just a lucid way of expressing the norm of life. The poet expresses lack of accomplishment in spite of all the luxuries and comforts. One way or another, everybody goes through the phase of unsatisfactory life. Even though that unsatisfactory prevails in everybody, no one has any complaints with the life, everybody learnt the way of living a life of nonchalance.

This is one of the songs you want to listen to, sipping a cup of tea (I prefer tea to coffee) on a cold day, standing in the balcony, staring into oblivion, thinking deep on your life. Let me remind you one more time, it is not a sad song or the mantra of pessimist; it’s just a way of expressing the widespread scarcity in our lives.

Get-Together

Get-togethers are always fun and relieving. Last weekend I made a trip to Connecticut. I had a small get-together with my Engineering friends. And, as expected, it was fun and pleasant. But, as they say, all the fun has to come to an end, I came back to Alexandria Sunday night. I still love to be around my engineering friends even after all these years, I still feel there is much more left to relish the taste of our friendship.

During my stay in Groton CT, I had a chance to visit Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University located close to Boston. I feel privileged to visit the MIT, and now I don’t have any regret for not able to think to get an admission there. I clearly believe, I am not capable enough to be there. The atmosphere was absolutely staggering. It’s amazing to see many international students at MIT, one way to prove the distribution of talent through out world. Our next stop was at Harvard University. It was quiet and nice. It has more number of old buildings than that of MIT. I felt MIT was more appealing than Harvard. Anyway, these two universities are the hallmark of excellence.

Coming to get-together part, as I said, these are always fun. We have been having these GT every once a year at least. After all, this is the maximum fun you can get, if you are single. All our GTs are filled with our retrospection. I still feel 4 years of engineering left us memories to cherish forever.

Condolences

The day started in typical fashion. Thursday, and on the top it was a day before a long weekend, I was ready to fly, to Connecticut, for a get-together party. I reached office by 8am, as usual, and had to do some tests on steam. I was ready to go through the pain of testing hot steam with the dream of getting off early in the afternoon. Right at that moment, from no where, my colleague informed about the demise of my supervisor’s son. I was shocked to learn the truth. He was 20yrs old, rather I would say, young. Even though, I don’t know the exact reason on the sudden disaster, I felt heartbreaking for my manager. I don’t really have knowledge of their personal life, but, as long as I know, father and son were very close to each other. They were affectionate and loving and friendly and also caring for each other. I still remember, my manager taking off to spend sometime, in playing golf, with his son. I think it would be devastating to my manager to realize the fact. I am afraid; it would take months to get over the trauma.

Not only him, I believe, it would be upsetting for any father to see his own son dying in front of him. Any parent, the last thing they want to see is the downfall of their blood. It’s just the love, affection that binds them close.

I was deeply saddened to hear the news about the sudden death of my Manager’s son. Sir, my thoughts are with you and your family during this difficult time.
May his soul rest in peace.

H1-b Hype

April 1st, renowned as Fool’s day, has its own significance in US, for job seeking International aspirants. The day the receiving of the petition begins for H1-B visa. This year, it was mind boggling. This year, the number of applications received by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) was humongous. The craziness of working in US, especially in our country (India), is growing rapidly over the years. I feel, it can be termed as insanity, or psychopathy. USCIS received over 150,000 applications, far in excess of available numbers. It usually takes couple of months before USCIS receive the applications to fill up the available quota, but not anymore. I believe, it’s a part of the filthy game played by the consultants, by creating immeasurable hype on the growing demand on H1B visas. It’s just one of the tricks in foul business by middle man, who loves to take the undue advantage of a common man by holding a finger on his pulse. It’s just the way life goes here, I mean, and everywhere.

Bahadur Shah 'Zafar'

"Na kisi ki aankh ka noor hoon, na kisi ke dil ka qaraar hoon

Jo kisi ke kaam na aa sake main wo ek musht-e-Gubaar hoon

Na to main kisi ka habib hoon, no to main kisi ka raqeeb hoon

Jo bigad gaya wo naseeb hoon, jo ujaad gaya wo dayaar hoon

Mera rang-roop bigad gaya, mera yaar mujh se bichhad gaya

Jo chaman fizaan mein ujad gaya main usi ki fasl-e-bahaar hoon

Paye faatehaa koi aaye kyun, koi chaar phool chadhaaye kyun

Koi aake shammaa jalaye kyun, main wo bekasi ka mazaar hoon"

- Bahadur Shah 'Zafar'

(Last Mughal King of India)

Meanings:
Noor : Bright, Light, Luminescence, Luster
Qaraar : Ease, Patience, Quietude, Repose, Residence
Gubaar : Dust
Habib : Beloved, Sweetheart, Comrade, Friend
Raqeeb : Rival, Competitor, Opponent, Enemy
Dayaar : Place, Residence
Bekasi : Despair, Helplessness
Mazaar : Mausoleum, Shrine, Tomb, Grave

lagta nahin hai dil mera ujray dayar main
kis kee banee hai aalam-e-na paedaar main

umr-e-daraaz maang ker laye the chaar din
do arzoo main kat gaye, do intezar main

in hasraton se keh do, kahin or ja basain
itni jaga kahan hai dil-e-daaghdar main

kitna hai badnaseeb zafar dafn ke liye
do gaz zameen bhi na mili koo-e-yaar main

- Bahadur Shah 'Zafar'
(Last Mughal King of India)

Meanings:

Aalam-e-na paedaar : Mortal Universe

Umr-e-daraaz : Longlife

Hasarat : Desire, Intense Sorrow, Longing, Regret, Wish, Yearning

Dafn : Burial, Concealment

Koo-e-yaar : Lover's street

to know more about Bahadur Shah 'Zafar' click the link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bahadur_Shah_II

My Perspective on 'Culture'.

One fine day during my engineering at Osmania University, I had this argument with one of my friends. Even though, it all started as mere discussion, but one thing led to another and ended up in a heated argument, resulting in no conclusion. The main topic of the argument was comparison of cultures. We took sides on different cultures. I was all supporting the American culture, in other words, Western culture, and was pointing at the imperfections of culture of India. On the other side, my friend was giving his shoulder to the culture of India.

Whenever I think about that incident, which happened seven years ago, brings a smirk on my face. I have been living in US for, almost, five years now. I feel I have learned so many things, which I did not even think existed here. I can say, I cultured enough about the Western culture. I feel I was being an amateur while discussing (probably in arguing) the differences in culture. At that point, I feel, I was not ready to accept the defeat. May be I was not ready look myself into mirror and realize the dark side of my face. So the preparation itself was an appalling one. I think the very first step to maturity is accepting the one’s own flaws, deficiencies or defects, if it’s proved correctly. The very motif of a discussion should be exchanging the ideas, understating the different opinions and analyzing the different views or observations. The discussion should always be a constructive one, if not, it should not be a destructive or an unhelpful/ or an unpleasant argument. There won’t be any positive outcomes in discussing with the people who are prepared not to acknowledge the positive intent in others. I feel I was very much like the person I explained here. I was not ready to accept my flaws; I was not ready to let my friend share his views. I was adamant, unbending, inflexible and stubborn, or headstrong.

After all these years, I feel I am wise enough to express my view or comment my feeling on that very topic. I feel culture is an individual thing. A culture develops over a period of time. A culture develops based on different conditions, may be geographical, it all depends the living conditions and resources available. In my view, comparing any two cultures would be an imbecilic act. No culture is ideal. Every culture has merits and demerits in its own way. After a certain point one should realize that no culture is better than any other. It is an absolute waste of time in praising one culture and pointing fingers at other. Most of my opinions I put forth during my argument with my friend, were taken from a movie/medium or heard from others. The media has always misguided the people in showing the other culture in accordance to their advantage. Hence, these differences. These differences can be altered. It is the people, who have to work truthfully, candidly to make a good culture, a better one. And an astute person is the one who learns the subtle difference between a culturist and a jingoist.

Culture is nothing but the way you live, they way you represent yourself, the way you receive others, they way you respect others, they way you show your feel for others. In other words, you are the 'culture'.

Ardh Satya

This is the poem from the movie Ardh Satya. Every time I read this, I get this feeling of indecision in understanding this in detail. This particular poem by Dilip Chitre is read by Om Puri in a scene where he picks up a book of Smita Patil’s and reads one poem out to her.
The poem explains the three different situations of a person. He compared the system/society with CHAKRVYUH, the complex maze in Mahabharata. The three phases of a person, before entering the system, during the time in system and after exiting from system. The same person was brave at one point and same person was an impotent at another point. It reflects a phase of person going through with uncertainity own identity. He feels strong at one point and coward at another. Even though his inner voice always provokes him to stand against to the evil of the society, he could not quite do that as his hands tied down by the big guns of society. In a way, an individual will be affected by system, not other way.

"Chakravyuh mein ghusne se pehle,

kaun tha mein aur kaisa tha,

yeh mujhe yaad hi na rahega.

Chakravyuh mein ghusne ke baad,

mere aur chakravyuh ke beech,

sirf ek jaanleva nikat’ta thi,

iska mujhe pata hi na chalega.

Chakravyuh se nikalne ke baad,

main mukt ho jaoon bhale hi,

phir bhi chakravyuh ki rachna mein

farq hi na padega.

Marun ya maarun,

maara jaoon ya jaan se maardun.

iska faisla kabhi na ho paayega.

Soya hua aadmi jab

neend se uthkar chalna shuru karta hai,

tab sapnon ka sansar use,

dobara dikh hi na paayega.

Us roshni mein jo nirnay ki roshni hai

sab kuchh s’maan hoga kya?

Ek palde mein napunsakta,

ek palde mein paurush,

aur theek taraazu ke kaante par

ardh satya."

When I was searching few details regarding this poem, I came across this translation. Someone translated this poem into English, with simple and effortless words without losing the essence of the poem or the intenstions of the poet, thanks to that 'individual'.

"Before I walked in, who was I ?

Now that I’m in, does it matter ?

When I exit, what then ?

Can’t a mercenary be a victim ?

Can a sleepwalker walk into his dreams ?

Won’t the lights of justice blind him ?

Between impotence and courage, how do the scales tip ?"

Gone with the Wind

Alright, there ends the short stint of team India at the world cup 2007, fading billions of hopes away, sinking the ship of glory right in the backyard swimming pool. One off day at the beginning brought them on kneeling down. In other words, the cornered tigers hid themselves in the hole of shame and disgrace, the hole where, team India buried alive themselves along with the hopes of billions.

Usually everybody learns a lesson from each failure. But in this case, I guess, they are better off learning the lessons, over and over. Even though, it was a cakewalk to get through the first round, Team India chose a hideous, sickening, and ugly way to continue their unlimited/unending affair with the 'defeat'. The only team, which has more experienced players than the Australia Team, which has leading run scorer in ODI, which has the strongest batting lineup, on paper showed the inexpereince in standing against the tide, the tide which sunk them to all time low, into a pit with no end. Now it’s all gone in vain. The defeat was humiliating, embarrassing and degrading. The participation in this world cup supposed to be an expedition of victories, but unfortunately turned out to be an errand of success and an unbearable agony of defeat. This defeat is an unanticipated outcome in this world cup, which could prove an ominous loss to the sponsors of the world cup. I believe, they always wanted India getting into super 8’s. I guess, biggest question would be the fate of Greg Chappell, whether he has to die or would someone else kill him?

As they say, it is not end of the world. After all, it’s a game. At the end of the day, somebody has to win. It’s the very moment, where we need to show our maturity towards the understanding of cricket, or sports. That’s all I have to console an Indian, I mean, myself.

Song to Remember, forever.

This is one of the best songs of my collection. Whenever I listen to this, makes me drive into my past. It’s kind of sweet pain situation. The composition by ARR is one of the best till now. It sounds even better, on the screen, with the timing and situation. They conveyed their victory inspite of their death.

I am posting the lyrics of the song along with meanings of few words.

aye saala

abhi abhi huaa yaqeen

ki aag hai mujh mein kahi

hui subaah main chal gaya
suraj ko main nigal gaya

ruu-ba-ruu roshni heyy
ruu-ba-ruu roshni heyy

jo gumshuda-sa khwaab tha
voh mil gaya
voh khil gaya
woh loha thaa pighal gaya
kichhaa kichhaa machal gaya
sitaar mein badal gaya

ruu-ba-ruu roshni heyy
ruu-ba-ruu roshni heyy

dhuaan chhataa khula gagan mera
nayi dagar naya safar mera
jo ban sake tu hamsafar mera
nazar mila zara

dhuaan chhataa khula gagan mera
nayi dagar naya safar mera
jo ban sake tu hamsafar mera
nazar mila zara

aandhiyon se jaghad rahi hai lau meri
ab mashaalon si bhad rahi hai lau meri

naamo nishaan rahe na rahe
ye kaaravaan rahe na rahe
ujaale mein pee gaya
roshan huaa jee gaya
kyon sehte rahe

ruu-ba-ruu roshni heyy
ruu-ba-ruu roshni heyy

dhuaan chhataa khula gagan mera
nayi dagar naya safar mera
jo ban sake tu hamsafar mera
nazar mila zara

ruu-ba-ruu roshni heyy
ruu-ba-ruu roshni heyy

aye saala
aye saala
aye saala

Menaings:

Nighal : Swallow

Lau : Ardent Desire, Attachment, Candle Flame, Expectation

Kaaravaan : Caravan

Dagar : Path

Pretty Ugly

19th March, 2007 is a historical day in the world of cricket. Pakistan was strangled by Irish and Bangladesh stunned India with the impromptu display of modern cricket. It was a slap on face for all those analysts of cricket, who were writing off the inclusion of minnows in the world cup.

We got up early on Sat hoping to watch team India’s batsmen thrashing the ball black and blue all over the park, as soon as we heard the news of winning the toss by Rahul Dravid. But, to our surprise, the plan was working for Bangladesh. The team India batting lineup, which is the strongest, on paper, fell apart facing the disciplined bowling attack of Bangladesh. Eventually, India reached to a defensible score, thanks to Sourav Ganguly and Yuvi and some late fireworks from tail-enders. Even though, it looked impregnable, team India never showed the commitment and the inquisitiveness to start off the tournament with a victory. All that time, on the field, Indian players were looked gloomy and embarrassed and wanted to get back to hut as soon as possible, otherwise which could have been an easy fruit to pluck and pouch it in. on the otherside, Bangladesh played a disciplined and controlled cricket, making sure they stay away from complacency.

On the otherhand, it was pretty much disappointing day in the history of Pakistan cricket. The repercussions back home will be loud and strong and could be lethal. They struggled right from the beginning of the innings. Their batsmen never got settled in the crease. The top order succumbed to the swing and movement of the ball in the early overs. Even though, they showed some fight in defending the score, as expected, they could not quite pull off the thriller, which could have been a miraculous day. This could be the last match of Inzy, who is considered to be one of the greatest batsmen of all time. Irish showed the character and the struggle for existence. The two Minnow teams (can we say that now) played out of their skins. They played like slaves, who had nothing to lose, except the shackles that tied them with the tag minnow, if they could hit the target.

For team Pakistan, it is a moment of frustration, disenchantment, upset, aggravation and annoyance and etc. For team India, chances of getting into super 8’s are tough but not impossible. They have to show real character and courage in their next two games.

On the whole minnows outplayed juggernauts in every department, ball, bat,field and mind, body and soul. The big question is, can tea Pakistan withstand to the consequences that will be developed back home? Can India bounce back and keep billions of hopes alive? Only time will heel the wounds, hopefully.

UNKNOWN

I have been getting UNKNOWN calls from India since my return to US from my recent trip to India. I have become so paranoid of these calls that whenever I get this kind of call, I call back home to my mom or Dad to make sure that things are fine. Even though, I know that, my parents won’t call me at odd hours of the day or night and if they have something to convey, they don’t hesitate to spend few bucks on my call.

How the hell all this started off? I guess, one way or another, I am responsible for this situation. In the beginning, I asked my relatives/friends to give a missed call, if they have anything important to convey, and then wait for me to call them back. This process works fine as long as I get to see the number they are calling from. This whole process turns into nightmare, if I get unlucky and get the display of UNKNOWN. I am not really sure, why the cell phone displays UNKNOWN, even when they are not using any special card to ring me up. When I see this UNKNOWN, I really can’t do anything, but to call my parents and ask about their whereabouts. Sometimes, they keep ringing me up still they come to some conclusion. That conclusion can be in favor of me or against me. They can consider me as busy at work or tired and sleeping home. They can also consider as it’s my ignorance towards their call.

Sometimes, I tried explaining this trouble, and asked them to leave a message, if couldn’t able to ring them back in five minutes. But, I don’t know why, they never leave a voice message. I always explained how easy it is to leave a voice message, I believe, it’s a piece of cake. I guess, it is the system where we grow up that makes the difference. In India, no one has this facility of voice message for missed calls. They don’t have that habit of leaving a message, if a person is not available to answer the call.

After all these, I really hope that they understand the trouble I am going through with their calls. They should also keep in mind the time differences prevailing at that situation. Even when I am typing all this, my cell phone was ringing and the display was UNKNOWN.

CWC-2007

Alright, it’s almost time to begin the battle for pride. The moment every cricketing nation has been waiting for four years. The commencement of World Cup Cricket, an esteemed position for every cricket playing/participating nation, is just round the corner. A fete of cricket comes onto the stage to entertain the cricket lovers all over the world. Get ready for some runs on board, some wickets back in hut, some sledging and a bit of bantering; let’s see some spirit in defeats and jubilation of victory.

Even though, it appears to be an open world cup of all time, I still believe, OZs have a fair edge over any other team. They have experience combined with energy, and electric in field and on pitch, in both ways. They have this knack winning the finals. Even though, they look a little down with white wash in the hands of Kiwis, they can never be ruled out of competition. Their level of expertise will be tested, I believe, while playing against India or South Africa or, for that matter, with Sri Lanka. Apart from winning and losing, there are many other things to watch out for.

There are few key players; I have been anticipating seeing them play. I would like to see atleast one aggressive innings from these players, KP, Dhoni, Hussey, Afridi, and Kemp, thrashing the ball all around the park. Of all the players mentioned above, Hussey can be considered as most versatile cricketer ever. His ability of changing the gears at required is stupendous. He can knock the ball around, if he wants, or he can thump the ball around the park.

One team, that’s missing its key players, is Pakistan. They, in fact all cricket lovers, will miss the explosive, mind gobbling hitting and all round services of Abdul Razzaq, one of the best entertainers of modern cricket on his day. They will also be missing the services of fire filled bowler, Shoaib Akthar and their new found swing bowler, Mohammed Asif, a McGrath of Pakistan.

Of all the above, millions of cricket lovers would be hoping to see Sachin Tendulkar leading India from front in bringing the world cup home.

Alright, let the battles begin…

సంధ్యా సమస్యలు - శ్రీశ్రీ

Where you 'Belong'???

During my trip to India, one day I had been to a village where my brother and sis-in-law work. It was a small village with a population of under 20,000 (In US it’s not small, but in India it is way too small). There I happened to meet with REDDY GAARU, the former chief of the village. After initial formalities, he asked me about my monthly salary, just in two minutes of confrontation. I feel bit embarrassed to give the details of may pay to a relatively new person. I felt, being asked about salary details itself was embarrassing, but what happened after was acme of the embarrassment. They started comparing the salary of mine with an unknown person, working in different field, in US.

One day at my work, we were having some discussions on the rules of prevailing unions in plant. During that discussion one of my colleagues, after 18 months of work at the same place, asked me about the type of position I was working there (F/T, P/T, or on Contract). I felt, so distant, even though, we have been sharing the same office and same workshop for 18 months.

In one incident, I felt as if my personal life was disturbed by an intruder, where as in the other incident, I felt as if I was living aloof in a crowded place. If I had not made it US, I would not have worried being asked about my salary details. I know it is a quiet common question asked in India. It is just the way people follow the formalities. If you do the same here, it is breaching into ones personal life. They consider these questions (so called formalities) as intrusion or offensive and it is just the way they have their laws of formalities. For people like me, who were born and raised in India for 21 years, and made their living here in US, it is hard to digest any of the above two incidents. One stage I feel offended, and I feel secluded or isolated in the other.

If you are ready to take the pain of seclusion, or ready to consider the seclusion as the formality, you can happily live in US, forever. If not, better get back to where you belong.

Freinds

The other day, I was speaking to a friend, who got married recently. The phone calls with him were always long and fascinating, but not anymore. After 5 minutes, I had nothing to speak about. For the first time, I was running short on words, with him. I have never felt this way in 8 years. What made the difference in the phone calls? Knowingly or unknowingly, there developed a barrier between us as a result of his marriage. What happens when a friend gets married? Why do we loose that past touch once our friend gets married?

When I entered engineering college, I felt whole college was my area. I was friends to everybody and vice versa. But, as the time passed by, I had that circle of friends which got smaller and smaller. I can count the number of friends; I had at my graduation, on my fingers. The familiar we got, the further we grew. As my job life started, that number squeezed in more. It got much smaller than it used to be. Previously we used to see everybody everyday. Then, we had long phone calls twice every week. But now, we just exchange information through emails, every now and then, to be accurate, once in a fortnight.

What happened there was, everybody got busy with their own life. Now everyone has their own responsibilities to take care of. Back then, we were like free birds. We just had rights, never worried about responsibilities. Even though, we don’t have that influx of emails, or long phone calls, I still believe that, I can count on him any given day, any given problem.

(to be continued..)

తను

మనతోడు మన గోడు వింటే మనకు జోడు
లేదా గొంతు కోసే బ్లేడు, ఉరి తీసే తాడు

పెళ్ళి ప్రతి ఒక్కడి జీవితంలో ఒక పెద్ద మలుపు.
అన్ని నచ్చితే మిగిలేది వలపు, దక్కేది గెలుపు
లేకపోతే జీవనపంటలో మెదిలేది కలపు.

తన చెలిమి విరిసిన పూల వనం
తన లేమి ఓడిన రణం, చావని మరణం
తన రూపం గుడిలో ధూపం
తన హాసం ఆరని దీపం
తను లేని ఒక్క క్షణం, రగిలింది నా కణకణం,
కన్నుల్లొ ఆగని వరుణం, గుండెల్లొ నాటిన బాణం.

Media

The very thought of imagining Amitabh Bachchan as President of India, itself is ludicrous. Recently a poll was conducted on www.rediff.com, and responses were really encouraging in opposing the idea. It’s happy to learn that people are clever enough to draw barrier between celebrity and shrewdness.

What was ‘rediff’ trying to do here? He has the most powerful weapon in democratic country and instead of aiming at useful ways; he is making money on the glitters of film industry by leading the people into realm of stupidity. On what basis one should elect AB as President of India. We all accept him as a supreme entertainer, a remarkable performer and an articulate host of KBC. But these are not the eligibilities to become President. The vanity and fame are not the requirements for that position. What was ‘rediff’ trying to do? Trying to re-write the eligibilities of President of India or they have forgotten the present eligibilities. Do they think it (Promoting AB for Presidency) as a prudent step towards the development of modern India?
Here, I am not questioning anything about the generosity of AB. To be clear, my questions are aimed at ‘rediff’, coz, as of now we don’t know if AB has willingness to become President of India or if it was his idea of carrying out an opinion poll through ‘rediff’.

I think, entertainers are not right fit to the politics. It is not the fairyland that they show in their movies. I believe, people are bright enough to decide, whom they want to see as their leader. When you have media in your hand, it does not matter if you don’t try to wake them up from the sleep of inanity, but what matters is compelling them deep into obscure by poisoning with brainless/ dim witted thoughts. So all you media people out there think before you ink something, because one stupid thought can sink billions.

Unseen Person??

My weekend was a typical, boring and a routine one. I drove up to Ruston on Friday night and came back on Saturday evening. My trips to Ruston are always fascinating ones. I always have fun in roaming on Latech roads and remembering those good old days spent with some of my ‘good friends’. Those memories are still fresh in my mind. I never want them to be erased off of my mind. I don’t know, why we always feel, gone days are better than the present ones. Is it just me or everybody has the same feeling?

Those early days in US always forced me to go back to engineering days at OU. But the same feelings I never had when I was in OU. I never wanted to go back to my Intermediate days. So, I believe, there is stupendous change in our way of thinking about human relations and there by acquiring the knowledge of social awareness, once we step out of teen-age maze. I mean, feelings were always there for friends and relations but, that adolescent age keeps us away from digging or dwelling deep into those thoughts. Once you are out of teen-age, you would come to a point where you choose to be emotional or sentimental rather than a tough innocuous person.

One has to be poignant and emotional, at times. It is just a way of expressing the feelings towards the other person. Emotional doesn’t make you an incompetent or impotent person, in any manner. Considering emotions and sentiments as weakness is preposterous. I feel, a person has to be able to express his feelings, his thoughts, his belief, and his agony atleast to one person in this world, whole heartedly. If you are able to find that person, you are at the acme of your life knoll.

Team India

Team India for ICC World Cup-2007

Rambabu

Yesterday came to know about the demise of a friend, Rambabu Deshetti. He jumped to death from fifth floor of a building. He was my batchmate in engineering. He graduated in EEE and worked for TCS. He was the gold medalist of EEE department in our batch. He was survived by wife. He was one of the calm, quiet and bright students of our batch. Even though, I never got a chance to build intimacy with him, but still I could count him as one of my good friends. I feel sad for his family. To be honest, I really don’t know what to feel on his loss. I am distressed as well as infuriated at his (in) decision.

Why do people commit suicide? One has to be brave to commit suicide. Committing suicide is more challenging than living with those unhappy, bothering incidents. But, in my view, committing suicide is running away from problems. It means that, you no longer can handle the load and you agreed your impotency. Their (the people who commit suicide) courage is always veiled under their impotency or the other way. I believe, death is not a solution for many problems. I am not here to comment anything on my friend’s demise, as I don’t know the reasons yet. Whatever may be the reason, death is not a solution, infact it left his family with numerous questions and sea full of tears. Everybody is given a chance to live, live to the fullest. Leave a mark at the end, not a remark of incapability. Nothing is precious than ones own life. Everybody has problems; problems only make a shrew out of you. Only problems are the measure to ones success.

Anyway, as they say “Life is like riding a bicycle. You don't fall off unless you plan to stop peddling”, so keep peddling, you will find a low every time after a high. I convey my deepest condolences to my friend, Rambabu. May his soul rest in peace, atleast now.

C&C

Changes are inevitable. And, year 2007 completely made it true, as any year. It’s just been a month since the beginning of 2007, and already I am witnessing some major changes. Two of my good friends are getting in married this February.

Cnu (Srinivas C. Nama) is into the wedlock on 7th. Cnu and I were roomies thru out our engineering. He is one of the sensible guys of my friends list. He did make us to prepare for GRE and TOEFL. He played instrumental role in applying to Universities for further studies. He used to calculate the required no of periods to attend to get our attendance above 65%. We were always ready to pay that fine for lack of attendance. Other than that, I still remember the fun days we had in D-Hostel room no-42. There is a long list of fun, fights and emotions, we had together, that could take days to write in here. To sum it up in one word, he is an honest and shrewd and nonchalant, sometimes, chap.

Chow (Pradeep C.Mandava) will be tying the knot on 9th. Chow was one of the slick and smart guys of our batch. Even though, he was short, but never refrained from walking tall. I am sure; he was the heart throb of many girls of our college. We both had some unforgettable moments along with Srujan and Phani. I still remember those long walks to Hilton café in the evening times. At times, he was supportive and encouraging, always. His extended support on phone calls to those, who were suffering from exam-phobia, was pleasure to eyes and melody to ears. I can not list all the fun we had, all the emotions we went thru and all the rubbish we did, as the list can be gigantic. All I can say is chow is a prefect example of beauty with brains.

I wish all the best to you guys. I hope you emerge successfully in all your endeavors. Hope to see you soon.

Business - Ethics

That day, I went to a bakery to buy some milk. I asked the shop keeper for milk with all the due respect. It took five minutes to get any kind of response from him, even though the store was empty and quiet. And the shop keeper was perfectly alright, physically and mentally (I was hoping so). Then what was the reason for delay? Nothing. All, I could see was shopkeeper’s face with all (UN) necessary answers, deep down shopkeeper felt as if he was saving the society from drowning with his commodities. And is his lunacy, he could not see how frown and furious I was, with irritation and impatience.

This kind of response you get most parts of the India. I used word ‘most parts’, as some of the city businesses are already in transformation towards westernization. What about the rest? Were people impatient before also? And here, by people I mean merchants. As a business man, one should provide the required customer service without fail, even if customer gets aggravated. As one of the fine business men in the world, we should learn the tact of attracting people with patience rather than with dorky face. Other than the business, one of the basic ethics of human beings is to respect and respond to fellow human beings with soft and suave. After all he/she is there to buy the goods, or in other words provide your livelihood.

Missing..

My trip to India was a long lasting memory. I started off with lots of dreams, plans and with lots of luggage. Even though my itinerary was lone one, but I had no complaints of fatigue. Staring at Hyderabad up above from Boeing 747 was an amazing experience. The curiosity levels of the mind had no boundaries. I was fully in control and myself when I landed in Begumpet airport. The reception at the airport was overwhelming and mind boggling. I was ecstatic to see all my people waiting outside the airport, waiting for my arrival, without showing a speck of irritation, even after a wait time of 4hrs. On the other hand, felt so guilty and embarrassed, for making them to stand for such a long time, just to have a first glimpse of myself. And then, I had too many question to answer myself, am I really worthy enough to get all these extra attention? Am I really there, where everybody thinks I am? Do I really have the capabilities of withstanding their expectations? Or do they really bother about these facts? And so on…

What happens when a person goes away for few years? They start to miss him/her; they start to realize the fell of his/her presence. Does it happen to anybody who goes away, or the person has to be really electric and active to get that feeling of ‘missing’. Anyway, I felt they missed me, as I did feel.

"పాత్ర-యాత్ర"

అంతా ముగిసింది
నిన్నటి వరకు అందుకోవాలనే లక్ష్యాలు
నేటి నుంచి అదుపులో లేని భయాలు
నిన్నటి తలపు, నవ్వుల వలపు
ఒక్క చీకటి మలుపుతో ముగిసాయి
నిన్న రాత్రి చీకటి జీవితమంతా కమ్మేసింది
తన గుండె నొప్పి, నా గుండెకు కోత మిగిల్చింది
తను విడిచిన తుది శ్వాస, నేను మునిగిన పెను తూఫానయ్యింది.
ఒంటిపైన తెలుపు నా జీవితంలో నలుపుకు నిదర్శనం అయ్యింది
మా లోగిలిలో పూసిన పూలకు రక్షణ పోయింది
తెగిన బంధం కదిలే కాళ్ళకు కదలనివ్వని బంధనం అయ్యింది

నిన్నటి వరకు అన్ని నచ్చిన పాత్రలే
ఒక బిడ్డగ, ఒక అక్కగ, ఒక చెల్లిగ,
ఒక భార్యగ, ఒక కోడలిగ, ఒక తల్లిగ
నేటి నుచి కొత్త పాత్ర,
కాదు మిగిలిన పాత్ర,
కన్నీళ్ళతో కడవరకు యాత్ర
ఒక వితంతువుగా
ఈ పాత్ర నేను పోషించగలనా??
ఈ పాత్ర నన్ను పోషించగలదా??

"खयाल"

दूर नजर तक मषाल है
जेहन मे बिन्जवाब के सवाल है
दिल मे एक हि खयाल है
हे दोस्त, तेरा क्या हाल है!!

"ఇదే'నా' జీవితం"

తెల్లారింది,
పక్షుల కిల కిల రావం వినపడలేదు
సూర్యుడి తొలికిరణం తాకలేదు
కాని అలారం కూత ఆగలేదు
మళ్ళీ పరుపులు వీడి పరుగులతో
అరుపులు కూడిన ఉరుకులతో మొదలయ్యింది ఉదయం...

ఆఫీసులో రెండు పూటలా రెక్కలు తెగేలా పని
రెండు చేతులా లెక్కలేని మనీ
రెండు మెతుకులు తినలేని శని

ఇంతలో సాయంత్రం,
మళ్ళీవంతెన దాటిన వరదలా
అడవిన ఆగని దానావలంలా
జాతర నుండి గూటికి పయనం
అక్కడితో ఆగని కూటి సమరం

రాత్రివేళ,
చల్లని గాలిలో, మెత్తటి పరుపులో విశ్రమించుటకు మూసిన నయనం..
చీకటి ధ్వనికి రేపటి పనికికలవరంతో కనుమరుగైన శయనం
ఇదే నా జీవితం!!!
ఇదేనా జీవితం!!!

"పయనం"

ఆఖరికి పయనం మొదలయ్యింది
ఎన్నో యేళ్ళుగా
చలనం లేని గమనంలా అనిపించే
శూన్యంలో ఖననంలా కనిపించే
నా జీవితంలో,
కదలిక కోరిన కాళ్ళు చేసే సంచలనం
మళ్ళీ శ్వాస కోసం మనసు పడే ఆరాటం
కరువు నిండిన గుండెలో కన్నీళ్ళ వర్షం
అమ్మ ఒడిని తాకాలని ఆకాశంలో పయనం.

"మా వ్రాతలు"

మా వ్రాతలు,
నలుగురి నోటిలొ కోయిల కూత కాకపోయినా,
నీటి పైన రాసిన గీత కాకూడదు
చెవిటివాడి చెవిలో మోగే మోత కాకపోయినా,
నీరసం తెప్పించే రోత కాకుడదు
నలుగురికి నిజం చెప్పే వాత కాకపోయినా,
మారుతున్న కాలంలో మరిచిపొయే నీత కాకుడదు.

చెదిరిన ఆశలు చిగురించే లత కావలి
పేదవాడి గుండెలో బంగారపు పూత కావాలి
ఒంటరిగానంలో గోడు వినే శ్రోత కావలి
వెన్నెల మంటలలో తోడునిచ్చే దూత కావాలి.

"పగటికల"

మిట్ట మధ్యాహ్నాం,
కళ్ళు మూయగానే కనిపించిందొక కల
కలలో కనిపించి కనిపించక గిలిగింతలు పెట్టే కన్నెపిల్ల

బాపు బొమ్మ స్నేహలా,
ఈవీవీ గుమ్మ ఊహలా,
జున్ను తేనేల ఊరించే జూహిలా,
మతిపోగొట్టి మత్తులో ముంచెత్తే మనీషాలా,
రంగీలాలో రంగులు నింపిన 'ఊర్మీ'లా,
పదహారేళ్ళకే పొంగులు నిండిన 'చార్మీ'లా,
సూర్య గుండెలో వెలుగుతున్న జ్యొతికలా
కమల్ కళ్ళలో ఆరిన సారికలా,
శ్రీమతిలా కనిపించి, మనమతి పోగొట్టే సౌందర్యలా,
నాభి అనే ఊబిలో దింపి ఉర్రూతలూగించిన రమ్యలా,

ఇంతలో
జలగల పీడిస్తున్న నా మిత్రుడి గొల,
కళ్ళు తెరిచి చూస్తే వాల్ పొస్టర్ లో "షకీలా"!!!

"తను"

తన అడుగు జలజల
తన పాట గలగల
తన నవ్వు కిలకిల
తన కోపం సలసల
తనకోసమే విలవిల
తను లేని నేను వెలవెల

"జననం"

ఒక వైపు,
తీరాన్ని తాకలనుకొనే అలలు, ఆ అలల అడుగున కరిగే శిలలు
ఆకాశాన్నే అంటే గిరులు, గిరులపై పచ్చని తరులు, తరులలో దాగిన విరులు
నేలను పందిరిలా కప్పినా అంబరం, అంబరాన్ని అలంకరించిన పక్షుల సంబరం
నింగిన విడిచి నేలను తాకె ముత్యంలా చిరుజల్లు, నింగిని నేలను కలిపే మార్గంలా హరివిల్లు
అలుపును మరిపించే కోయిల రాగం, వలపులు కురిపించే అమ్మ అనురాగం

మరో వైపు,
కళ్ళలోనే మిగిలిన కలలు, వాటి వేటలో తెగిన తలలు
మురిపించి, మరిపించి, మసిచేసే అరులు, నిండుపున్నమిలోను తొలగని ఇరులు
కాంతులతో భ్రాంతులలో కనపడని కుళ్ళు, క్షామంలో క్షేమంకై క్షోభించే కళ్ళు
కులం కోరల్లో చిక్కిన గోకులం, మతం పేరుతో ఆగని కలకలం
కూటి నుండి కాటి వరకు తప్పని పోరాటం, వెలి అయినా బలి అయినా ఆరని ఆరటం

వీటి మధ్య,
కోయిల కూతకు, కప్పల మోతకు తేడా తెలియక
అర్థం కాని బాణిలో, అలుపెరుగని వాణితో
'కేర్' 'కేర్' మంటున్నది ఎందుకో!!

అమ్మ ఒడి తాకినందుకో!!
ప్రకృతి మడిలో పూచినందుకో!!
గర్భగుడి వీడినందుకో!!
దుర్భల సుడిలో దూకినందుకో!!

ఎందుకో,
ఆ సడి ఎందుకో!!
ఆ తడి ఎందుకో!!

పిలుపు

ఆఖరికి పిలుపు వచ్చింది,
ఊబిలోంచి బయటపడ్డ కప్పలా ఆనందం
పంజరంలోంచి తప్పించుకొన్న చిలకలా ఆనందం
ఎడారి యానంలో ఒయాసిస్సు తాకినంతా ఆనందం
గుక్కపట్టి ఎడుస్తున్న చంటిపాపకు చందమామ అందినంత ఆనందం.

నాతొ పాటు నలభై మంది ఉన్నా,
నా అరుపే వినిపిచింది.
ఆఖరికి పిలుపు వచ్చింది,
జీవితం అనే పెద్ద మలుపు ముగిసింది.

నువ్వు-నేను

ఎడారి దాహం నేను
చిరునవ్వుల జలపాతం నువ్వు
మూగవాడి ఆర్తనాదంలా నేను
సరిగమల సంగీతంలా నువ్వు
అమావాస్య చీకటిలా నేను
ఉదయించిన ఉషస్సులా నువ్వు
వికటించిన నలపాకంలా నేను
వికసించిన సుమగంధంలా నువ్వు

నువ్వు లేని నేను, శ్వాస లేని జీవితం
ఖననం కాని శల్యం, మరణం కోరే శవం

చావు-బ్రతుకు

దూరంగా ఉన్నా ఎప్పటికీ వీడనిది - చావు
మనతోనే ఉన్నా ఎప్పటికి తొడవనిది - బ్రతుకు

ఆశ

నీవులేని ఈక్షణం జగమంత నిశ్శబ్దం
వసంతం వచ్చినా పూలు పూయలెదు..
వర్షం వచ్చినా నీటి తడి లెదు..
కళ్ళు మూసినా కల కనపడదు
కను తెరిచినా చీకటి వీడదు
అన్నీ తెలిసినా శ్వాస వీడలేదు
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