BLore --- Vacationing Time

It's been a looooooooooooooong work time for me and after quite a while I have decided ( and also been granted I wud say :) ) .... to take a BIIIIIIIIIIIG BLore Break ..
So far the trip is working out to be great .. Had an awesome party , a total laughter riot with my cousins , a nostalgic gush of yesteryears and off course hot steaming tasty BLore dishes as prepared by all my aunts..
2 days already bhind me and only 7 more to go ... Guess I should rush and have more fun ...
So I will move ahead people and create a second blog with update on this funtime and the pics related to it ..
Till then have fun , and happy Christmas

When Absurd is still Beautiful ! (... just a thought)

My first post , posted again......for my friends - Ravi (7/23/2008)
"I am today.... the happy, very happy and the feel like top , world top!" ...

Thunderous applauses filled the auditorium.What would seem like an absurd statement in English, grammatically wrong and to some literary scholars a humorous statement, actually brought spirit in the air and cheers of hip hip hurray in the crowd!

Smiling faces looked upon a bright young lad who was clad in nothing but a simple khaki kurta with the sleeves pulled up and adorning a modest white dhoti, bare-footed and the head decorated with a humble maroon turban.The lad in turn, seered his eyes through the screaming crowd, searching for a known face. His yellow-teethed smile coupled with the teary eyes proclaimed his sense of victory to the world. Yes he had done it , something great , at least it seemed so at that moment. He was least worried about tomorrow now. All he wanted to do was to enjoy that moment and celebrate it to the fullest , but with a special person, a person who was responsible for everything he was at that moment.


Vikram was an educated brilliant student who had achieved nothing but medals all his life. For a person who had not known him , it would seem as if he had a big hobby of Medal collection. But it was not so. Throughout his life he had seen one success after another. If stories were to be believed he was almost close to be the youngest whiz teen in his state. He felt like a winner all the way. People around were always full of praises for him.His teachers, his friends , his mother were so proud of him.But sadly his father never felt that way about him."Vikram, life ain't about just achieving medals.There is more to life!".That's what he always said, something Vikram could never understand. After all he had done it all but his father would never be proud , no matter what he did . He would just say "Good. Hope for better!".It was so difficult to satisfy him.


Saket never expected much from life. He was just contented with its routine . Being a close friend of Vikram, he hung out with him all the time. In any spare time that was left from the daily study and hanging out was spent at a place they lovingly called "The Tapri". Tea and snacks flowed in and out of that smoky place and tired sweated young hands carried crate after crate to ever screaming and yapping customers. 10 customers a day would mean an earning of a rupee.
Saket always felt this was an underpayment of the efforts put by those young people aged approximately more or less same as him.But being a take-it-easy guy that he never thought about it for more than a minute or so.All the evening was spent at this tapri with a few childhood buddies , sipping hot chai and talking about the beautiful yesterdays and fantasy-filled-tomorrows.


Running among these customers the underprivileged youngsters made a hand-to-mouth living so that they could survive the life a day more and dream of a beautiful tomorrow hoping that it may come true one day. Really,hope was all they had. Among them was a youth who barely spoke a word or two but kept cheering the customers with a soothing teethy smile.Throughout the day he dexterously manuevered through the crowd without spilling a drop at all. But his shoulders were drooped all the time showing the signs of an intimitated person,of someone who does not have much confidence in himself.Hailing from a small village called Uppur , the city life seemed to be a big challenge for him.People called him by different names.Sometimes they would say Ustad ,sometimes Guru , sometimes Saavre( referring to his color) , but mostly he called by one and all as Chajju , Chajju Chaiwaala.


It was a cold winter evening. Saket and Vikram were their way to home.Vikram barely spent any time outside college. He was a time-table. College on time and home on time, adjusted to his routine of study and sports and study and internet and study.And Saket accompanied him uncomplainingly for most of the day.But that day was different. Saket wouldn't listen to him. He continuously insisted on a hot sizzling cuppa to beat the cold. Finding no end to his nagging, Vikram finally gave in. They both entered the tapri and sat on a bench far from the burning vessel. "Namaskar saaheb. Kitna bolu?",Chajju hit his normal style. On receiving his order from Saket , Chajju shouted on his top of the voice, "Do cutting maska pav ke saath jaldiiiiii!!!"

Two hot teas arrived at their bench with some bread and they sipped quietly without talking or discussing anything.Vikram had his eyes fixed on his watch all the time( he had received it from his mother last year on topping the class!) . He had a schedule to catch , a time to keep.
4 sips later the tea and bread was over and the unpaid bill lay on their bench. Saket, being forgetful as always was, had forgot his wallet.Vikram was already getting late , so without any further delay murmuring some angry words to himself, he shelled out the money laid it on the plate and dragged Saket out of the tapri to keep up with his time schedule.This was his work time. An unfinished science project awaited him at house. This one could fetch him a intercollege trophy if it worked.

Scurrying hastily Vikram reached home.His project was still in its first phase. He had been working on it for a month now.Only a month more to go and so much was left to be done. No he could not lose the medal, that was not him! Without changing his clothes,he sat down to stabilize his mega structure which refused to stand up straight.He was planning a mega bridge like structure projected over a rocky standstill mountains with a small lever that would break apart the bridge at multiple locations thereby handling the traffic flow above and the ship passage below at the same time. Something like the bridge over the Hoogly river in Kolkatta but a better version of it. He had just started when there was a slight knock on the door. Already frustrated by the delay Vikram pounced at once on the door ready to attack the nuisance maker who troubled him at this unearthly hour in the evening.

Panting heavily Chajju raised his hand , in it there was a note of 100 Rs , "Aap yeh dukaan par gira aaye ( u dropped this at the store!)". Initally mad at the person who disturbed him, Vikram regained his calmness happy to receive his 100 Rs.Seeing Chajju panting , he asked him to wait and fetched him a glass of water. As Chajju sipped on the water,Vikram took a dreaded look at his project and shouted aloud on its failure blurting many words in English. Chajju though unaware of English heard and understood enough to know the problem. "Ek danda left mein aur ek killi us nichle bhaag mein ( One stick to the left and a nail at the bottom)" said Chajju. Astonished and surprised Vikram could think of nothing but subconsciously follow Chajju's lead and make the changes, only to find that it helped his project and added to the structure's stability.

Being a laborer's son Chajju had spent most of his time around dams and bridges and had seen enough to understand the basics of the stuff. What Vikram achieved through rigorous studies and books on truss , came as common sense to Chajju . After knowing all about it from Chajju , Vikram decided to use this lucky mascot and his common sense to complete his already behind-the-schedule project and asked him to come in daily after finishing his work and promised him some goodies daily. The mention of goodies made Chajju nod his head immediately and he agreed to join Vikram daily for his project.

So began a weird friendship, a paid friendship .Chajju used to daily visit Vikram and give him inputs for the project and Vikram in turn would put forth a plate full of goodies for him.Saket would accompany them for some time initially but with time Saket started drifting away from these sessions.Vikram really did not mind that as he had found a better company in Chajju. Time passed and they began to know each other. Vikram found out that Chajju was a year younger to him and about his family conditions and many other things. Later one day Vikram also learnt that Chajju had a great interest in music and a God-gifted voice too but that was very raw. Vikram did attend music classes some time ago , not because he wanted too but because he had to best at everything.And mind you, he had bagged a medal in that too , only he did not continue it. He had some instruments including a guitar , a tabla and an old harmonium.Vikram had a very good knowledge of music , he was good at grasping things, and he just grasped the theory behind music too. So Vikram started a new thing. As an act of gratitude, Vikram started teaching Chajju the harmonium and tabla . He shared with Chajju whatever knowledge he had gained during music sessions ,and whatever tips he had heard his Guruji tell the singers.

This went on for some time. Vikram had a successful project and needless to say bagged the trophy for the best project adding another feather to his cap. Now sessions with Chajju were no longer needed. But something had changed for Vikram. He had started to like these off-the-routine sessions with Chajju. So he continued . Not only did he teach him music but also helped him learn English . Slowly slowly letters formed words, words formed sentences and sessions became more and more interesting . Chajju was a dedicated student and Vikram had found in him a passion to learn , a yearning as seen in a small child who is keen to utter his word, eager to take its first walk. Bit by bit Chajju rummed up everything put forth to him and did his best to keep his teacher happy. Vikram also had started to feel the power of creation , as if someone had given him a mound of raw clay and asked him to breath life and shape into it. Perhaps thats what felt like to be a God.Whether it was the new felt power or the eagerness of the his student or Vikram's own interest to help Chajju that Vikram kept going on .He never knew it , but just kept going.Chajju too waited the whole day, humming while he served cuppas to the people at tapri, for the sun to set , so that he could go to another session of growth and music.

Days rolled into months and months into a year.Chajju spoke some English sentences on his own now.And he had mastered the instruments and his voice sounded so melodious that Vikram would lose himself into its serenity and purity.Chajju was slowly turning into a confident young lad , independent and off course astonishingly melodious. The God's creation was nearing perfection .

One day a commitee at Vikram's college decided to held a function for the youths all over . This was done as a promotional activity as the college's commitee head , a professor, was a part of an NGO community which tried to encourage growth of art and culture . Vikram was so happy to show his creation to the world that he roped Chajju in the musical competetion. He began helping Chajju daily for rigorous practice with the aggression of the warrior. He was a trophy winner all his life and he saw this opportunity as one more.

Days went by and finally the D-day arrived . One after one all the competetions got over and finally the musical competetion began.It had been kept last as it was the center attraction of the event.The performers lined up. They had come in from different parts of the city and the college had brought in a distinguished band to judge the performance. People gave their best singing all types of song from folk to rock coupling it with dances or instruments. Then came in Chajju , and Vikram's heart leaped. Something weird struck him as if he himself was about to perform .
Chajju came in and started with a soft musical harmonium performance and batched it up with a folk song. A song which he sang melodious that it filled the air with love, pride , happiness , and awe. The dumbstruck audience connected instantaneously with this soft , innocent and pure from-the-heart song and were completely mesmerised by it. The competetion ended with some more great performances but Chajju had captured the judges heart and they declared him the winner of the evening.

A packed house cheered as he stood up on the podium to receive the brightly lit trophy .
"I am today.... the happy, very happy and the feel like top , world top!" ...said Chajju and thunderous applauses filled the auditorium. But Chajju didn't stop there. He looked through the crowd and shouted "Vikram Bhaiya please come up!" . Hundreds of eyes looked towards Vikram and he look at silently at Chajju surprised by his call. But Chajju repeated it twice more and Vikram was forced by a cheering crowd to the podium.Chajju bluntly looked at Vikram and then at audience and said, " I no win , he win. He teach me . He my guru.I everything because of him.I do this because of him .Trophy his." and thrusted it in the amazed Vikram's hand and bent down touched Vikram's feet and smiled and descended the podium. The crowd applaude louder praising Vikram , shouting Hip Hip Hurrays.But Vikram stood frozen.This was unexpected.People don't give away their trophies.They possess it , they collect it , they cherish it.. .... they crave for it...they....

..And then in that crowded shrieking screaming atmosphere, the same weirdness struck Vikram second time in the day. A weird sensation struck his heart, a weird feeling of completion, a weird victorious feeling that no trophy had ever given him. At that moment it did not matter what others praised about him , what mattered to him was the feeling of completion that moment and that experience gave him.It was something he did not bother or want to show off or be praised on. It was his own learning that encouraged new growth and understanding in him.It was then that Vikram understood his father. It was then that he realized , he was not the teacher, he was the student all the time. Chajju by his simple nature and this simple act had taught him a very valuable lesson . "Success is not counted by the number trophies you have, success is the feeling of content and happiness you get by achieving it. It does not matter whether you win or lose , what matters is what you gain by the experience and how much it mattered to you.Life aint about achieving medals ..... There is more to it!"

Tears rolled in his eyes , ".... I feel top..world top...." What an absurdly put grammatically incorrect statement thought Vikram but it sounds so great, so passionate, so complete, so satisfying...... so beautiful!!!