समाधी साधन…

हे भक्तीगीत ऐकले की मी एकदम वेगळ्याच जगात जाते. जुने दिवस आठवतात. घरातले त्या वेळेला घडलेल्या घटना जशाच्या तशा डोळ्यांपुढे राहतात. खरं तर त्या घटना काही एकदम वेगळ्या अशा नाहीत. पण कसे कोण जाणे, पण ह्या गाण्याचे आणि त्या गोष्टींचे एक association झाले आहे माझ्या मनात.

कालंच ऑफिस मधून परतत असताना हे गाणं कारमध्ये ऐकलं. डोळ्यांसमोर पहिली गोष्ट उभी राहिली ती म्हणजे पाठमोरी आई ओट्याजवळ, चपात्या करताना. वेळ आहे सकाळी पावणे आठची.

आणि मग पूर्ण दृश्य उभे रहिले. शाळेचे आणि कॉलेजचे दिवस आठवले. आई सकाळी उठून आमचा डबा बनवायची. त्या वेळेस आमच्याकडे चपात्या करायला बाई नव्हती. आईच करायची. तिच्या चपात्यापण किती मस्त व्हायच्या. एकदम खुसखुशीत, माऊ, आणि ताज्या. तव्यावरची एक गरम-गरम चपाती घ्यावी, आणि नुसती खावी. काय स्वाद असायचा! मला 'समाधी साधन' हे बाबूजींचे गाणे ऐकले की तो चपात्यांचा घमघमाट पण येतो.

आम्ही कायम उशीरा उठायचो शिकत होतो तेव्हा. आई दररोज ओरडायची. चपात्या करत असताना स्वयंपाक घरातून आवाज द्यायची. सकाळी सात पासून. आम्ही कसे-बसे आठ-सव्वा आठला उठायचो. तो पर्यंत आईची भाजी टाकून झालेली असायची आणि चपात्या सुरु झालेल्या असायच्या. 

बरोब्बर त्याच वेळेस सकाळी रेडिओवर भक्तीसंगीत लागायचे. अजूनही लागते म्हणा. बरोब्बर त्या वेळेस उठणं व्हायचं. बाबा काम करत असायचे, सकाळच्या आवरा-आवरीचे. आणि आम्ही निवांत कशा-बशा उठणार. "किती हाका मारतेस!" असे म्हणतच उठायचो. 

मग आमची हळू-हळू गाडी सरकणार पुढे आवरायला. आरामात तयार होवून, मग शाळा अथवा कॉलेजला स्वारी निघणार. तो पर्यंत आई-बाबा, दोघांचे आवरायचे, आणि ते पण त्यांच्या कामांना बाहेर पडायचे. 

सगळ्यांचाच नवा दिवस सुरु व्हायचा, भक्ती संगीताने आणि खमंग चपात्यामुळे!

Baba As A Teacher

Baba has always been a great teacher, be it English grammar, Sanskrit shlokas, English literature, and even Marathi literature. He has always helped us understand the grammar rules and the logical ways of learning a language. And he has always been a humorous teacher. He would explain things in a funny way, giving funny anecdotes, play on words and bring out the humor in the language.

But of all this, I become proudest when I hear his praises from his students. All over Pune, somewhere in a mall, on a road, in a hotel, in a ticket line, we come across his students. All of them say that he has not changed a bit since all those years. They name the students from the batch, the year when he taught them.

Baba never remembers them. He never remembers names or faces. But his students remember him even after so many years. That, I think is the sign of the greatness of a person. That people remember him even after so many years, including the way Baba taught, what subjects he taught, his jokes, his personality. That is when I feel proudest!

I feel emotional and extremely happy to see his students bowing down to take his blessings. I grin madly when I hear the students telling their spouses or friends who are with them about how wonderful a teacher he was, how much it has affected them, and how much they still remember him.

Baba has taught students of standard five to right up to the university. Now-a-days he teaches English to students appearing for competitive exams. There have been so many cases where students have remembered him in the smallest possible ways and repaid him.

I remember a Bengali student, Shaunak, who used to come home to learn English. After he passed his exams with flying colours, his parents had specially come to present Baba a gift. They had also gifted Aai a saree. Frankly, it was completely unnecessary to gift a saree to Aai. But that was the power of Baba's teaching and Aai's hospitality.

Another incident that happened recently was when a student offered them a trip to Goa, all costs paid. It is extraordinary how people have reciprocated their appreciation and love. And I love it all. I say it again, I feel extremely proud.

I am so glad to have a father like Baba. My sister and I have been really lucky. Love you Baba!

ती. बाबांस आणि सौ. आईस,

ती. बाबांस आणि सौ. आईस,

शि. न. वि. वि. पत्र लिहिण्यास कारण खरं काहीच नाही. सहज मनात आलं, की तुम्हा दोघांशी पत्रातून बोलावं. म्हणून हा प्रयत्न. खरं तर मी तुम्हा दोघांना खूप जास्त miss करते. बऱ्याच वेळेस असं वाटतं की तडक तुम्हाला येऊन भेटावा. पण वेळे अभावी नाही जमत.

आज लग्न होवून दोन वर्ष होत आली. मी रुळले आहे नवीन घरी, नवीन ठिकाणी. तरीही तुमची आठवण पदोपदी आल्यावाचून राहत नाही. आज आई-बाबा काय करत असतील? आई निघाली असेल का कामाला ? बाबांचे क्लास्सेस कसे चालू असतील? असे कायम विचार येतात.

तसे आता "रुटीन" चालू झाला आहे. खर तर, काही महिन्यांपूर्वी असे व्हायचे की खूपच आठवण येते आहे तुमची. पण आता, जसे प्रत्येक जण सवय करतो, तशी मला पण झाली आहे सवय तुमच्या शिवाय राहायची. तुम्हा दोघांना पण झाली असेल कदाचित. तुम्ही "मुलगी सुखात आहे" यातच तुमचा सुख मानता. पण म्हणून मला तुमची आठवण येत नाही असे नाही.

घरात स्वतः काही गोष्टी करताना विचार येतो, की मी कशी होते लग्नाआधी. मग विचार येतो की आई-बाबांबरोबर कसे करायचे मी ह्या गोष्टी. मग थोडा लग्नाआधी करायचे ते, आणि मला जे बरोबर वाटते, अथवा करता येते, जसे करता येते तसे, असे दोन्ही एकत्र करून एक वेगळ्या प्रकारे केला जाते. त्यात पण गम्मत आहे.

आधी सगळेच नवीन आणि वेगळे वाटायचे. पण आता माझा स्वतःचे वेगळे आयुष्य चालू आहे. काही गोष्टी ज्या मी आधी कधीच करायचे नाही त्या करते. आधी ज्या करायचे, त्या आता बिलकुलच करत नाही. खूपच वेगळे आहे, तरीदेखील सारखेच आहे. प्रत्येक लग्न झालेल्या मुलीला असेच काहीसे अनुभव येत असणार.

मला फक्त कधी-कधी असे वाटते की मी मुलगी असल्याने तुमच्या जवळ नाही राहू शकत. त्याही पेक्षा, मुलगी म्हणून स्वतःच्या आई-बाबांची जबाबदारी कमी, आणि सासू-सासर्यांची जास्त, हे बऱ्याच वेळेस ऐकते, त्याचे वाईट वाटते. तुम्ही देखील किती तरी वेळेस म्हणाले आहात...की आता त्या घरचे आधी सांभाळायचे. त्याचे थोडे वाईट वाटते. मग जास्त आठवण होते. असा आपल्या समाजात का विचार केला जातो, हेच कळत नाही. आणि आवडत त्याहून नाही.

मला कायम वाटत राहते, की शेवटी मुलीच्या आई-बाबांचे हात रिक्तच राहतात का?

असो! एव्हडेच सांगायचे होते की मी मजेत आहे. काळजी करू नये. पण तुम्ही दोघे नक्की स्वतःची काळजी घ्या.

तुमचीच,

प्राजक्ता

To Babai

Babai in a pensive mood

Dearest Babai, who is right now not as healthy as she used to be. It is heart-wrenching to see her like that.

Babai, my Aai's Aai, has always been this one strong woman, who has never ever bowed down. To see her in the bed all the time, too weak to talk is very disturbing.

When me and my sister were kids, we used to stay at my grandmom's place after our school. We used to be dropped by our rickshaw-wale kaka in the afternoon, and stayed there till evening, when Baba used to come to pick us up.

Those were magical days! Babai and Kaka (my Ajoba) used to stay at Prabhat Talkies, literally in the heart of Pune city. They had a two-room home that housed so many people at a time. We used to have all our cousins, uncles, aunts, nephews, nieces, all together under one roof. But the house always seemed enough for all.

Babai was almost the head of the house, taking care of the kitchen, the kids, the grocery, everything around. She was a solid support for my Mami who continued working as a nurse. My cousin, my sister, and I used to spend afternoons together after school. We used to fight during lunch for the place closest to Kaka. We used to fight again for the afternoon siesta for a place closest to Babai. She would pacify us saying that she had long hands and would reach up to all.

She was the one who taught us to read time. She had this old, broken-down clock that she used to tune and change the hour and minute hands, and then ask us to guess the time. I can never forget that red-faced clock and those "timely" hours spent in the balcony.

Babai had always been strong, at times very, very headstrong, to the point of being irritating. She always gloried in the work that she did, the contacts she maintained in her big family, be it on her own side, or her husband's side. Everyone in the family used to respect her, love her, and never forgot what she had done for them. And she really did do everything possible for everyone. No one left her threshold unsatisfied. She was there for everyone, a lighthouse, a beacon, a solid wall of support.

She had her flaws. She was too headstrong. She had been too much in the limelight, too much in the power to give up easily. She always wanted things her way. She has had a tremendous ego. But all in all, she never bowed down, never gave up.

Today, when I see her in the hospital, I can only remember how she was once upon a time. She is diminished, faded, and tired. After 85 years of being headstrong, it is hard to see her bowed down due to her age. She is slowly losing against time.

We all love you, Babai! Just one more loving request we make of you...do not go away by losing away to life. Fight back! Be your own self! Be the iron lady you have been! Make your final exit on your own terms. Not by simply fading away!

Happy Birthday Buba!

Dearest Buba,

Wishing you a very Happy Birthday! May you always have a lot, lot books to read!

This wonderful man, my dad, turned 70 today. He has been the kindest, calmest man I have met. He has been a scholar of English, Sanskrit, and Marathi. I am amazed at how many things he knows...philosophy, religious, political, language, happenings around him, people around him. His vast accumulation of knowledge is unbelievable.

Today on his birthday, I just want to let him know that I miss him and think of him everyday. His calm and quiet nature, support, wisdom, and humour is all that I miss.

I wish him good health in years to come. Good Luck Baba!

An Year Is Already Gone...

... I can't believe it.

What started as a casual acquaintance has turned into a deeper relation.

It's been a whole year of learning to understand each other, adjust for and with each other, learn and discover newer things about the other, caring for and fighting for each other, and of course fighting with each other.

And in spite of the whole year gone by, it seems just yesterday that we had met.

There are so many things that I have learnt...whether be it new roads, new avenues, new places. I have learnt to share things, be there for someone, keep away selfishness, be caring, supportive, helpful, useful.

But I have also at times expected a lot, fought a lot, misbehaved, mistook things, demanded unnecessary things. I have also been fidgety, unhappy, unreasonable, stern, moody, abrupt, unclear of things, angry, adamant, and lots of nasty things. But in all this, Sanjeev has been by my side, supportive, and helpful. Thanks for everything.

Today, after one year, I wish for a wonderful, beautiful life together. Hoping that all our dreams and wishes are fulfilled. Hoping that I help you realise your goals just as you would help me realise mine. I know that in years to come, we will have a good life together, supporting each other through thick and thin. Hope you have a great First Anniversary! Take care!

Two Days Full Of Surprises

November 7-8, 2011

What memorable days!!

Yesterday, I had a double surprise of getting two awards in office: Pat-on-the-Back and Team-of-the-Quarter.  It was awesome. Though, I really didn't do a lot of work in this. But it was good to be recognised and appreciated.

And today, what can I say!! The day started at 00.00 hours with Sanjeev wishing me. The wishes just kept coming. It's such a great feeling to feel loved and remembered!

My BMC gals turned up at the office and surprised me with a cake and flowers and showered me with love and affection! It was just too good. I was so touched to see them all by my side, celebrating with me, and being there with me. Love you all gals for your support! Thank you Zainab, Revathi, Aparna, Pallavi, Deepa, and Pooja!! Thanks for making my day memorable. I won't ever forget your love and support!

And there's still some more...heading for a quiet dinner with Sanjeev. I am looking forward to the evening!! Thanks for the wonderful evening, Sanjeev. This day is not complete without you!

Thanks everyone!

I Know...

That's what I learnt from The Everywhereist.

And that's what I want to say to all those things that bother me at times, to those people that irritate me, but who still love me the way I am, seeing the good in me, helping me, loving me, being with me, supporting me, and most importantly, overlooking my flaws.

Those things and those people might have their flaws. I know. But I still love them! Thanks Almighty for each of them!

Cheers!

Pottermore

For all Harry Potter fans, here's something that J.K. Rowling is coming up...Pottermore. Apparently, it's going to have a lot of reader interaction, and she herself will be sharing a lot of trivia that she has not added in the books. Available on the Pottermore website will be e-books and audio books.

Here's what J.K. Rowling has to say about Pottermore:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oYs1d3jAdG0&feature=player_embedded

Don't know if I am excited enough, but it is definitely something worth looking forward to. Till then we have to be satisfied with the HP books and look forward to the second movie part of the 7th book that will be released soon.

Cheerio!

लाईट गेले की असं होऊ शकतं

Eagerly Awaited

The eagerly-awaited, ever-soothing, greenery-giving, splashy, beautiful, life-giving, romantic rains are here. Out with your raincoats, umbrellas and all your wet gear.

I can't wait for the weekend!

I love rains!

A Perfect Scrabble Game

Last week, I and Mukta played Scrabble after a very, very long time. We were at home and alone (read without Anay, who otherwise wouldn't have allowed us to play.)

And what a game it was...a perfect one. We finished off all the tiles and made some really cool words on the board.

Here's the picture of the board.

Mukta won with a flare and we enjoyed playing the wonderful game after a long time! Cheers!

The Table Tennis Guy

It is kind of exhilarating to have a star as your husband. Overwhelming too. And you get to share the glory even when you have done nothing yourself. And there's great joy in it.

This time, even after great persistence (read nagging) from me asking SP to participate in the TT competition, he flatly denied to participate. As is always the case, he had to participate because there was no one else to take part. So there he was playing doubles.

I watched him play for the first time. That too, I watched only two of the four matches he played. I think he is really a very good player. Perhaps, I am quite partial here. Probably I think so because he is after all my husband. But then, what really stuck me was the sheer number of people who had come to watch him. And I am not being partial here. I did find people who had come to watch him play. I have also heard him being mentioned as "the table tennis guy."

It was very nice to see him in action. It was wonderful to see him as a team player learning from earlier mistakes, taking quick decisions, co-ordinating with his partner, discussing quickly the strategy to play the next move, and above all, to watch his cool attitude while playing. It was great fun.

SP has forbidden me to consider him as some sports hero. I guess I am guilty of portraying him just that in this post. Forgive me for that. Also, forgive me for sounding too much of a husband's-trumpet-blower. But I did want to write about him this time.

Ohh...and just for the records, he did win the doubles title!

Old Books, Past Times, and Great Friends

I got three big piles of my old study books at my new home and it was time to go down the memory lane. All those old University days came back to my mind with extraordinary ease and quickness.

I remembered how we used to appear for exams, prepare for the exams, read plays together, attend lectures, discuss essays, poems, plays, novels, apply different literary theories to the works of literature that we studied, search through books in the library for some particular essay, get the books photocopied...aaah! What days!

And in all this, two friends were there all the time. They were there as we had fun, studied, and enjoyed being students. Thanks S and R for being there. Remembered our time together when we studied Shakespeare and Satyajit Ray! Cheers to our friendship!

< 20

OMG!

Excitement, nervousness, what's-happening-to-me-ness, where-did-those-days-go-by-ness, how-is-all-going-to-work-out-ness, why-is-not-the-whole-world-happy-like-me feeling, do-i-deserve-so-much-of-happiness feeling, and finally, I-think-I-have-gone-crazy-as-in-"gandliye" feeling.

Diwali Is Here

Do you know what I did today? I took my Scooty, took my camera, and just went for a ride in the city. Just went on all those roads that are now glittering with lights and lanterns, and akashkandils and roshnai. It was such good fun.

When I was driving from Narayan Peth, I could smell besan peeth being fried for besan laddu. It was so tempting. Yummy! Just the Diwali flavour and festivities round the corner. I am so glad I could take a round clicking away to glory all the beautiful lanterns.

Here are some pictures that I took...

Stephen Fry Kinetic Typography - Language

This is awesome!!! Do listen to it!

Committed And In Heaven

So, it's finally happening! I am engaged and soon to be married...sounds so filmy. But true it is.

Preparations have started for the wedding and it is getting crazier by the minute. Right from the date, the time, office leaves, shopping...it's bizarre!

But in all this, I am the luckiest! Sanjeev Pradhan, my fiance is not only handsome and cool, but is also the most understanding, loving, and caring person that I have met. I am indeed lucky. I guess the mutual understanding and respect that I have seen in the two of us is indeed rare. Touch wood!

Life will move on. But I know that I will have the solid support of one person who right now dominates my thought, hopes, and dreams. Unbelievably, life has given me much more than I deserved, much more than I wanted, much more and wonderful than I had hoped. And I thank Him for that!

Here's to our new journey ahead, Sanjeev! Cheers!

To Sweetie Pie!

To the naughty, bubbly, talkative, kind, smart, a-little-bit-manipulative-in-a-very-sweet-manner, darling of his parents' eyes, and extremely well-behaved Nanu! Happy Birthday!

Bless you!

To A Sister!

Two years elder, two times better, and two times worthier. That's my sister-Mukta.

A voracious reader, a confident lady, a learned and intelligent person, yet open, brave, strong-minded with a ready-to-take-on-the-world attitude. That's her! There are only few girls that I know who have been brave enough to lead life as they want, and without support. She's from that elite group.

Her never-say-die and no-nonsense attitude are something that I always wonder at. In spite of the hectic schedule she has every day, I see her full of energy even at the end of the day when she is with her son, playing with him, entertaining him, making him have his dinner, and putting him to bed. It's amazing.

You should see her face when someone gives her gift, or when things happen as per her wishes. It's that one look that assures you that the world is a good place, indeed.

Her support and well-wishes are some things that I treasure a lot. I know she will always be there for me. And I'll be there for her, supporting her and relying on her.

It's her birthday today and I wish her immense joy, happiness, and serenity. I wish that she gets all she wants out of life. I wish her a healthy, glorious life. I wish that may all her dreams and wishes come true.

Here's a big hug from me! Happy Birthday!