Season Finale

The season has come to an end. It was an amazing journey, one which has re-awaken my senses. I have fallen in love with India. Her spirituality, her heritage, her colours and chaos. The amazing people Ive met, the emotions Ive experienced, the sights Ive seen, all cherished and held dear. As I told my superiors at work, I feel I have taken away so much and yet contributed so little in return.

As I walked towards the bus stand at 6am today, I wondered if I had left my mark on India. Would She miss me? I thought about all the people Ive met over the short 8 weeks and if our relationships would dissolve in time or if we would ever meet again in this lifetime.
Suddenly, an old man stopped short infront of me and stared at me. He looked like he was up and about for a morning jog. "Where have you been for the past 2 days, I havent seen you?"
With a grin told him about my trip to Ooty and my internship in Ashok Leyland. And then he smiled strangely and walked off. I never knew that man existed up till that moment, but it seems people have felt and noticed our presence. I turned to Stanley, "Looks like even random strangers will miss us when we leave India".

Thank you for all those who have travelled on this journey with me hand in hand, as we left our footsteps in the sand. I would like to close this blog with a favourite quote: "If you manage only one prayer in your life, and that prayer is simply 'THANK YOU,' it will be sufficient." - Thomas Merton, catholic mystic.

Dedicated to my dear family and friends

Episode 8

On the Dinkum Show this week, we travel to Ooty - Queen of the southern hills. Catch the episode live on a screen near you: http://www.flickr.com/photos/episodedinkum
Special mention goes out to the script writer who blessed us with lovely weather and respite from the monsoon.

This week at work

"RIZWAN, WHO YOU LOOKING FOR?" Asked Mr.S, as he walked pass me while I was walking around aimlessly searching for another intern.
I grinned and told him, "Well.., you Sir!"
"THEN LOOK!"
I stared at him and traced his outline from head to toe and back to his eyes again.
"Ok, Thanks." And I walked away.

"Im so pissed off with Mr.K right now..."
"Yeah Riz, go bite his head off"
"Mmmm... But then again, my dad always says I should respect a man, if not for anything, respect him for his age or his wisdom"
"And Mr.K sure is older!"

The Wedding

I managed to grab a bouquet for Rs300 at the neighbourhood florist. Shwet, Stanley and I decided to share the cost of the wedding gift. We planned to meet at 8pm at the mandapam (wedding hall).

We arrived just as the showers began and were greeted by a huge building shining brightly against the night sky. Surely no one has even been unable to locate a mandapam. You simply cant miss it! The decorations were elaborate, but the people were even more colourful. Women donned in every imaginable colour were walking in accompanied by their rather simple and drab looking men. I opted for a retro looking, Persian inspired shirt while Stanley put on his very first kurta. Shwet, being the rebel he is, had to come in a solid black shirt.

Mr GG was delighted to see us, he extended his arm across the crowd towards me, while signalling for us to come forward. We climbed the steps up the dais and were introduced to the lovely couple. Mr GG's son is your typical software engineer working in USA while the bride is an MBBS graduate. I must say that these form of graduate pairings have become all the rage in India. From the daily matrimonial ads I read, it hardly deviates much from this reality. Its always an MBA or an Engineer from Dubai or America searching for an MBBS or such. Alot of emphasis is placed on career and education. Anyway, the couple were very well spoken and you could tell they represented the booming future of India. Smart young people getting married, moving abroad and working hard but still holding on to their distinctively Indian heritage. An Indian can never forget India they always say. Its Bharat. The motherland.

The wedding reception was amazing. Vegetarian yes, but it was really tasty. And these men in white sarongs/dhotis keep traversing up and down the aisles making sure your plate is never empty. Then a family member of the couple will make his rounds, asking each guest individually if you're satisfied and if you need anything. Simple Indian efficiency at its best!

The wedding was an experience in itself. It was great to see Ashok Leyland colleagues out of uniform and as usual, i regretted overeating. After some handshakes and photographs, we took our leave. Catch it live at www.flickr.com/photos/dinkumadventures

Life Lesson VII

One guru tells another, "Always say things that cannot be checked." "Why?" asks the second guru. "Because," replies the first guru, "if you say 'Mars is peopled by millions of undiscernible beings, and I have met them,' people will not dispute it. But if you say, 'It is a nice day today,' some fool will always reply, 'But not as nice as it was yesterday'. And if you put up a sign saying WET PAINT, who will take you at your word? You can tell how few by the number of finger marks the doubters leave on it."

Today I saw a boy peeing into the wind.
:)

For Karma's sake

I stepped onto the road feeling dazed. Unsure of what just happened. My face felt numb and all I wanted to do was lie down. The experience was surreal, bordering on weird. The moment he told me to remove my shirt I knew I was not prepared for this. All I wanted was some pampering after a hard week.
I had made an appointment for a Varnyam assuming that it was simply an ayurvedic (indian holistic & herbal) facial. What I didnt know was that traditional ayurveda treatments have nothing in common with their western counterparts. This was more of an hour long face massage than any facial.
A multitude of oils were used, each slowly massaged into the pores. I know understood why I had to remove my shirt, but lying down on a hard traditional wooden plank while he kneaded my face made me more tensed than relaxed. The oils really reminded me more of my grandmothers kitchen than a beauty salon. I was half wanting to stick out my toungue. But instead I just squeezed my eyes tight as he tuned my chakra (life force) and reestablished balance to my karma.
Whatever it is, there were actual results! After the redness faded away, my skin felt really smooth and i had regained my colour! I looked just like the very day I landed in Chennai. So I think, for the sake of my karma, I will have to go again for a follow up facial treatment. ;)

Face it

Tell me now, when something unfortunate happens, how would you react?

"F**k, Why did it have to happen to me nooooooooowwwwww!"
or
"S**t.... Woaw, thank god it happened only now!"

Allow me to let you in on a little secret. The reality is that
Life, is fair.