dilli ki sardi!!!!............the homecoming!

Aaaaaah!!!! Can't describe how it feels to be back home! So won't even try to! Let's just say that now I can understand how a prisoner would feel after doing his time n finally going home. The best thing about this break is that it comes after a particularly grueling and horrible semester......and it's winter time!!!! There are just 2 ways about it, some people detest Delhi winters (like my mother), while others simply adore them.....I'd like to believe the latter outnumber the former. The city's aura and feel are completely different in winters. Somehow, it seems prettier draped in the white fog. It brings out the greenery n freshness even more, the monsoons having washed off all the dust accumulated on the leaves during the dry summers. I could go on and on, and the day the poet in me also wakes up, i'll try n pen down an ode to the city in all it's winter glory. Till then, let's just make do with the nihyaati cheesy, n vulgar offering from Bollywood.........cuz after all, it is about our dilli ki sardi!!


When I was not a NRD (Non - Resident Delhiite), I used to be proud of my tolerance and resistance to the cruel, bone-chilling Delhi winters. However, a year and a half in Pondi has robbed me of that!!! The cold is getting to me like never before!! I'm kinda beginning to understand why my usually calm mother shrieks and shouts when I mercilessly pull off her warm quilt!! What else will that Damn city take from me!!!!??

Anyway, as I enthusiastically await another 31st Dec night spent in front of the television watching the infinitely interesting New year specials and bouncing from one channel to another like a ping-pong ball in pursuit of something watchable, I ponder over this horrific year that just went by. Really, 2009 has to be the worst in recent history of my life, with very few gains and a mountain of losses!! The only good things that i can recall to have happened to me are Grey's Anatomy, and maybe this blog. Really! God bless Shonda Rhimes for creating that show, and whoever did the casting for it. It really got me through some tough times. It was my addiction. Some people take to alcohol, some do drugs, some do meds......I took to watching Grey's Anatomy. I'll post sometime later discussing the merits of watching that show at length, but for now it would suffice to say that it helped to know that there could be more screwed up lives than yours, and more screwed up people than you!!! (even if only in someone's imagination!! Anyway, 3 cheers for Grey's!!

And all I can hope is for 2010 to be happier, better n more fulfilling than its predecessor. Wishing u all a 2010 full of love, laughter, happiness, realized dreams n fulfilled ambitions. And to quote Ms. Phoebe Buffey, "God bless us everone"! (Sorry, Mr. Dickens, but I doubt many people would know Tiny Tim now). Okk, i guess I better take off, the New year specials would be starting soon..

Arundhati Roy -Instant Mix Imperial Democracy (Buy One Get One Free) Speech

Laments of a ‘Sciency’

They say - great men do not rest on past laurels. Or something to that effect. But I'm not great. And I'm lazy. So here's an article I wrote way back in 2nd year of graduation at Venky, DU. I believe it's one of the best things that ever came out of my pen. So here it is!!!

First of all, for the uninitiated ‘Sciencies’ is a term often used to refer to science students – that unfortunate breed of human beings generally looked upon by others with pity, wonder and in some cases relief (as in, thank God I am not one of them!). Students, or for that matter, people generally associated with science are thought of as boring creatures continuously buried in books or lost in thoughts and their idea of fun is to win a quiz, ace a test or watch Discovery channel on TV. This is probably why science students (the serious ones, that is) have acquired the iconic status of a GEEK; well oiled hair, big spectacles, braces and the likes. The English language has recently incorporated a new word for them – NERD. Unfortunately, some of the afore mentioned allegations cannot be denied. Being a member of this breed (however, not sharing the afore mentioned anatomical features) and after having analyzed the social behaviour, conversations and general lifestyle of my fellow ‘Sciencies’, I have discovered (at the risk of generalizing) that this widely respected (and ridiculed) community, does deserve many of the stereotypes associated with it.

For starters, the incorporation of scientific terms, laws and principles in routine conversations (unrelated to science) and then very artfully diverting these conversations to science is a disease which inflicts a majority of this population. For instance, just the other day a casual remark on the size of the apple being eaten by a friend sparked a lively (and informative) discussion on global warming, climate change, its impact on the Indian subcontinent (and apple cultivation) and so on! You never know when and how a casual discussion on pets can turn into a vociferous debate on animal behaviour, brain and neuronal activity etc.

Another common accusation against us is the constant analyzing (some might say over analyzing), debating and arguing over each and every trivial matter and always trying to go to the bottom of the issue, one question followed by a series of others (usually without any fruitful answers) with no end in sight. Seriously if you come across a group in the canteen making a racket which will put a bunch of howling dogs to shame, be sure it’s a group of science students (don’t raise your eyebrows, yes we do pay that occasional visit to the canteen!). Everyone keeps on talking at the same time without really hearing what anybody else is saying.

The next allegation against us is that we constantly live within this impermeable scientific bubble which clouds our thinking so much so that it becomes too factual and objective and leads to a scientific perception of everything. This is probably what leads to constant diversions of conversations to science. this might not be so much of a trouble to us but for our unfortunate non-science brethren it often proves to be a pain in the neck as this one unfortunate lady discovered the other day at the hands of a couple of my friends while traveling in a DTC bus. After completing a strenuous three hour session of rat dissection, apparently these two were not satisfied and started discussing the day’s exploits right there. As these two went on nonchalantly with their exchange of views and successes and failures in their endeavors of tearing through the rat’s anatomy and meandering amongst its fascinating arterial system, this woman sitting next to them bore the torture in silence. But as the details got more and more graphic (and bloody) she got so disgusted that she had to cover her snout…, oh sorry! her nasal area with her dupatta. And here’s where the elusive fun side of the sciences kicks in; seeing this woman’s misery just spurred my friends on to give an even more enthralling and descriptive account of their foraging through the rat’s internal organs! I surely do sympathize with that woman who became the victim of my friends’ dark sense of humour. And unfortunately, this constant preoccupation with science (one’s subject of study), is no guarantee for success in examinations! In fact, most of us are inflicted with all these afflictions without any pleasure in them. They are like that abominable scar or mark on your face that will always be there. You just have to live with them.

Some people say that science students have very little knowledge about fields or subjects outside their domain or to rephrase, have very poor general knowledge. This allegation I am not very sure about, because it’s highly generalized. Anyways, we all are aware of the level of general knowledge in the student community as a whole!

The bottom line is, gone are the days when being a science student was an instant claim to respect and awe from peers and elders alike. Now it’s more of a cause for pity and ridicule. This much maligned community, though still a long way from extinction, is losing its shimmer and the alpha – community status. So hats off to the brave souls who still dare to plunge into this deep abyss and to those unfortunate ones for whom it’s a “pit or the well” or ‘where if not here’ kind of situation. But still, in our own little queer ways, we learn to snatch those hard to come by light moments from life or better still, learn to extract fun from work itself, and that is what is claimed to be the aim of all education nowadays. In fact, our teachers also try their best to bring in an element of fun in the classroom, and occasionally they succeed too! As for the conventional kind of fun like bunking classes to watch movies, or laze around in the canteen, go for frequent outings and so on, yes we do that too, though I think not at the frequency that might be expected from a regular college student. Knowledge of science provides another kind of high too and that is the knowledge of science itself. Some of us take pleasure in the ignorance of the ‘layman’ (the use of this term, for people not well versed with scientific principles, itself provides a great sense of superiority, though one might be failing their own exams) and then laughing at them. Some of us like to show off our knowledge to the ‘layman’, however inaccurate, wrong or inappropriate it might be with respect to the situation at hand. Though it might sound a little conceited and shallow, but can you blame us when we are always urged not to think like a ‘layman’ or are asked questions like “how would you explain XYZ to a ‘layman’?” by our teachers?

So saving this endangered species might require a humungous effort, even bigger than ‘project tiger’; with the popularity of professional courses increasing by the day. But to those brave-heart specimens found in the science block (not the ones found bottled in the laboratories) roaming in the corridors, or more appropriately, sitting in the classrooms, all I can say is - Hang in there!

A Bus Ride in Pondi!

My university is situated around 12 Km away from the main Pondi city. So it's almost situated at the border between Puducherry and Tamil Nadu. And the place is a forest, situated right on the beach, spread over an area of 900 acres almost. So basically, we are like tribals living on the outskirts of the big bad city, just that in this case, the tribals (university students) are much more cooler, and hepper than the city populace! ;-)

Occasionally, we tribals have to hit the city, you know, to buy certain essentials, and to treat our tired bodies and souls with some decent, edible food. And to go to the city, one has to take a Pondi city bus, analogous to the infamous Delhi Blueline buses. Yup, the Delhiites reading this would get the picture.....the very thought of travelling in a blueline fills the heart with terror and a big lump in the throat appears from nowhere. Now just amplify that felling ten times, and you'll get an inkling of the feeling i get whenever there is a prospect of geting into a Pondi bus.

First of all, getting in is in itself quite a struggle! The same principle of packing people in the bus like cattle or hens being taken to the slaughter-house, that operates in Delhi works here too. A non-crowded bus is a rarity. But, there are many perks that a ride in these buses provide, for example;

• pleasure for your olfactory senses - as soon as you get in the bus, a unique combination of smells - beer, desi liquor, rotten fish, salty sea water, and jasmine gajras - hits you! Now isn't this a super concoction!? I'd suggest one of these celebs to bring out a perfume line using this combo..........a blockbuster on your hands!!
• Human touch - since Pondi is the place to be for all connoisseurs of cheap liquor, you'll see plenty of old, really old men, usually homeless, travelling around, bare-foot, and stinking drunk!! these men form the majority of the bus commuters. And they have no qualms in snugging up to you, resting their tired heads on your shoulders, trying to sit on your shoulders or head if you were lucky enough to grab a seat, and the likes. yup, people here are very loving!!! :-/
• Music!- And for all the music lovers, most of the drivers are very thoughtful! they keep the interests of their commuters in mind, and play LOUD, ear-splitting, head-banging tamil songs! And by head-banging, I don't mean the Metallica sort of head-banging. I mean, literally, it feels something like a hammer is banging on your head!! And the volume is so loud that stuffing your ears with your mp3 player will not work too.......though sometimes, the music can be good too!
• Thrills - Ever wished while watching Formula 1 that you could be in one of those cars, speeding away to glory!? just get in one of these buses- same speed thrills, and just for Rs. 4. Plus, the thrill of having your life in peril for a good half an hour is thrown in for free!!! :P Really, the Blueline and DTC walas have a lot ot learn from their Pondi counterparts in this regard! They lag waaaaaaaay behind!
• No Reservation! - Yup.....there are no seats "reserved for the ladies". But, there is general understanding here. Men, get in from the front. Women get in from the back. Even if they are travellin' together!!! So the back of the bus is jam-packed with women, and the front with the men. And even if the bus is heavily crowded, and a lady is sitting on the three-seater, no man will dare to sit there, even if the seats remain empty. And to think of it! In Delhi, there are guys who wouldn't budge from the reserved seats even when an old aunty ji shouts her lungs out at them! :P

So, these are some of the characteristics which make a bus ride in Pondi so eventful and exciting. You'll be thinking, "Gosh! that's horrible!". And that's my fault. This was just one-side of the coin.If you get past the smell and the crowd and the general discomfort, you'll see the humane and kind side of the people here, which is associated with most of the small towns in our country. Here, when those homeless, poor, old men try to get in the bus, the people and/or the conductor, help them get in, hold their sticks and make way for them. Even if they are filthy and reeking of alcohol, no one shuns them. I can not imagine that happening in Delhi, where people would shudder at the slightest touch of such an unfortunate individual. Here, everyone is welcome to ride the bus, of any status, any position. Street urchins are not shooed away like stray dogs, as is done in Delhi. Here people do not fight for a foothold, they make way for one another. Everyone adjusts with a silent, mutual understanding. They don't stand rigidly in your way when you are in the middle of the bus and have to get off. They make way for you, so you don't miss your stop. AND ya, EVERYONE BUYS THE TICKET..................WILLINGLY!!! Really, dilli-walas too have a lot to learn from the denizens of Pondi.