THE DREAMS FULFILLED

This article is dedicated to my paternal grandmother, Mrs. Vathsala Badrinarayan, who celebrates her 78th birthday on 22nd January 2019. Here's wishing her a very, very happy birthday. May the year lying ahead fill your life with a lot of happiness and light! A few days back, I decided to experiment doing something. In other words, I decided to take a break. I left everything aside- books, computer, mobile, everything you could think off. All I had with me was me and my inner soul.  Over a period of time, I had realised that I often took the wonderful aspects of my life for granted, and my mind drifted towards negativity. I closed my eyes and decided to think about all those wonderful things gifted to me by the Almighty.  The first image that came was that of my wonderful family. I decided to delve a little deeper. I wanted to find out what was it in my family that made me (or for that matter anyone else) respect it.  And, the first image that came up was- my gra...

"A professional writer is an amateur who didn't quit." - Richard Bach Writing is such a beautiful activity, one that stimulates a person to large extent. It is indeed difficult to write about 'writing' because the experience cannot be put in words. It is much beyond that. It is a process where a person learns a lot, not only about the external environment, but also about the inner self. Writing is also a very satisfactory task. When we write a page or two, we feel that we have written something original, and that feeling of satisfaction is insurmountable. Using good vocabulary, phrases, idioms and metaphors make us feel all the more pleased with our write-ups. Moreover, if our writing helps someone else, it makes us feel very contented.  You too may be experiencing something similar when you write. But, what if, sometimes, you are unable to put your thoughts into words? What if you feel that your content is not at all good? What i...

Once, there was a man called Ram Prakash. He was taking an early morning walk in his lavish garden. He found that there were many flowers blossoming, and felt really happy when he saw how colourful and lively the garden had become. But, he also discovered something else. Something that caught his attention. There were many bees hovering around, and they were taking their turns to sip the nectar from the flowers. He stood there and just admired the cooperation displayed by the bees.  That got him thinking. He reflected upon his life, and thought about all those moments when we had quarreled with his wife over trivial matters like- who will get milk from the market, or who will help their child with studies. He looked at those bees once again, and saw how beautifully they were taking turns to sip at the nectar. Even though he could not look at their facial expression, their mere cooperation itself displayed empathy towards the fellow bees. He learnt a lot from that ...

That six will remain etched in Indian cricketing folklore My favourite moment in T20 internationals came this very year in the month of March, to be precise on the 18th of March, 2018. My board examinations were going on, and the tension was mounting in the air. But, cricket is always there to light up our lives. The Nidahas Trophy was not followed very closely; but that victory holds a close place in my heart for many reasons:- 1.      No Dhoni and Kohli :- After a long time, India was playing a series without their best players Dhoni and Kohli. It was time for others to step on the gas, and boy didn’t they do that!  Washington Sundar  had an outstanding series, picking up wickets at an economy rate of under 6 runs an over.  Vijay Shankar  had a decent series with the ball.  Shikhar Dhawan   was absolutely outstanding with the bat. It was a complete team performance. 2.      Coming back aft...

ईश्वर ने हमें यह प्यारी ज़िन्दगी दी हैं/ अक्सर हम लोंग इसका एहसास नहीं कर पाते हैं/ लेकिन, यदि हम गौर से निरीक्षण करें, तो हमें यह एहसास होगा कि ज़िन्दगी हमें कितना सिखाती है/ यह कविता हमारे जीवन के उन सब छोटे भागों का बखान करती हैं, जिन्हें  हम अक्सर देख कर भी अनदेखा कर देतें हैं/ यदि हम खुशियाँ  फैलाते रहे, तो हमारा यह संसार हमें और लुभावित करने लगेगा / उम्मीद हैं कि  आपको यह कविता अच्छी लगेगी 😊/ सफर हैं यह ज़िन्दगी का  सफर है यह ज़िन्दगी का  जहाँ हर पल स्मृति में तब्दील हो (badal) जाता  हैं  और हर पल, रेत की तरह  हमारे जीवन रooपी  हाथों से   फ़िसल जाता  हैं/ सफर है यह ज़िन्दगी का  जहाँ ख्वाब तक़दीर में बदल जाते हैं,  जहाँ कामयाबी पाने की हम करतें हैं कल्पना  और हमारे सपनों के महल आसमान को छू जाते  हैं / सफर है यह ज़िन्दगी का  जहाँ शब्दों को हुकूमत मिलती हैं,   जहाँ अल्फ़ाज़ों में छिपें  है अनमोल रत्न  जो बदलाव क...

I sat down a couple of weeks back, thinking of which book I must read next. I decided to look through my book-shelf; could not find anything significant. Then, I looked through my father's shelf, which was filled with reference books for GMAT and other engineering courses. In between, I found a book that caught my eyes. It was 'The White Tiger' written by Arvind Adiga . I had heard a lot about this book, particularly because it had been adjudged with the Man Booker Prize for 2008. Thus, I decided to read this book, and finished reading it in three weeks time.  As  I flipped through the pages, the content actually kept me hooked onto the book. Yet, there were certain grey areas that I would like to highlight. PLOT:- Since there are so many characters in the book, it won't make sense to introduce all of them. So, let us get to the crux of the story. The story is written in the form of a letter addressed to Mr. Jiabao, a Chinese Premier. It comprises of seven ch...

यह मेरी हिंदी में पहली कविता है. उम्मीद है की आप को यह अच्छी लगे:- वह चींटी जब निकलती है बांबी से , वह कोयल जब पंख फड़फड़ा कर गाती है मधुर वाणी से , वह बादल जब कोहरे के साथ प्रतीत होता है भोर आने से , विशाल तपोवन में जब सुंदर फूल खिलते हैं वसंत आने से , वह मोर जब  गहन गर्जन  के धुन में बेफिक्र नाचती हैं , वर्षा आने से  इन की अनुभूति  करना ही   कवी  की   कला  है।