Friday, September 25, 2009

25 random things about me

1. I love writing, I don’t remember when I got a hang of it but now I truly enjoy Blogging.

2. I’m one hell of a procrastinator. I cant get to speed unless the 11th hour has passed.

3. I spent my first dollar in the US on a Starbucks Coffee, I still have that mug.

4. I hate being taken for granted. I’m like a child who constantly seeks attention.

5. On my first visit to college after graduating, one junior actually walked up to me and took my “Autograph” :D :D

6. I love gadgets. Technology n gadgets are big turn ons for me.

7. I have a theory proposed called “3 phases of friendship” it hasn’t failed till date and everyone who has heard bout it agrees to it.

8. I have dropped my cell in a shit hole once. No more details will be revealed.

9. My present cell phone takes 3 minutes to open one text message… Duh

10. As a child I wanted to be a Post-man, then a Police officer, later a Doc and finally settled to be an Engineer… And still don’t like it.

11. I once got the “Worst singer award”

12. I cannot distinguish any colors apart from basic ones. Tan, Purple, Lavender, Mauve etc totally perplex me.


13. As a child I had an imaginary friend and I myself was a different character in that world.

14. I’m afraid that I’m a minor Kleptomaniac. No raised eyebrows, I just have the urge to take things, I don’t actually steal them.

15. When I’m travelling alone, I play a totally different character from what I am and chat with ppl. (Once I played an NRI who has come back to India to find her ‘roots’ :P)

15. I'm proud the fact that I’m a Gemini.

17. I Google anything and everything. I have the most unimaginable searches under my belt. The top search being my own name...

18. I am also a minor case of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) I need the furniture in the exact place, books in a particular order, all frames aligned, etc etc…

19. I’m NOT really a happy-go-luck or don’t-care person, but I like to entertain that fraudulent idea in people.

20. I love planning Bday n surprise parties for my friends. The happiness is infectious and glint in the eyes is incomparable.

21. The most horrible movie I have watched in a theater is Jhoom Barabar Jhoom.

22. My favorite pass time at public places is to check out the brands various ppl are sporting, observing their body language and gestures.

23. I want to get a tattoo done but still wondering what and where.

24. As the name of the blog goes I’m stentorian (very loud) and so are my friends; we have been thrown out of every possible place due to the noise levels.. Lectures, Labs, Coffee shops, Hotels, Bus stops, Parking, Roads… Every damn place….

25. I ride a second hand (third hand really) Kinetic. I totally love that bike :D





Monday, September 14, 2009

Nostalgia… Theater days!!!

Aaaawaj konacha….. Arararara ghumtaye kon……

These slogans still never fail to make my hair stand at the end….
Even two years after being away from the action….
As I’m sitting in my hotel room on a sleepy Sunday afternoon, an e-mail pops up declaring my college makes it to the final round of Purushottam… And miles apart, in the US, I’m so excited that I can’t sit at one place…. I just wanna go back and congrulate the team, hug them, shout slogans with them….. Alas, all I can do is write a post…..

[For those who are unknown to the this world of Theater in Pune some information…
Firodiya Karandak and Purushottam Karandak are inter college Drama competitions. But it doesn’t stop there, for passionate ppl, its their life.. its an addiction.. Firodiya and Purushottam are synonyms for zeal, enthusiasm, passion and moreover a complete learning experience…]

It all began in Junior College when I used to read stories about theater, the impact it makes and how it totally changes rather enhances ones personality. I couldn’t wait to start college and become a part of a drama group. Thanks (duh…) to the slow admission procedure, by the time I got in the college, the auditions were done… And there went my one yr of excitement…. Nonetheless I joined the cheering group and did my tad bit for the team… That was my ONLY time on the other side of the curtain while in college.. 

Came second yr and I was all set to get in the team… There wasn’t a place to act but I was game for anything and acting is not really my cuppa tea… It was much more than I had painted a picture of… Endless hours of practice, exhaustive discussions, an attempt to explore every hidden emotion…I was backstage but still a part of all these activities…. Various theater exercises made me ponder over so many nuances of my own being and life. Interpretations of a touch to silence, tried to understand all. We focused on minutest details from costume, music, set to the feel. I was learning so much in so less time, it was over whelming at times. But this was better than anything I had ever done before. We made it to the finals… Euphoria…. Won the BEST EXPERIMENTAL PLAY in the finals…. Jalooosh!!!! Happiness had no bounds…

Next yr we were burdened with higher expectations and bigger responsibilities… And guess what, we withstood all of that :D :D The Ekankika (play) was a HUGE hit.. We were heroes in the campus and even outside… My heart still swells with pride when I hear ppl talking about the play… I had my first rendezvous with the feeling of “accomplishment”…

NOW, I was the captain of the Ship… Sitting in the Director’s chair was NO easy job. Auditions , team formation, timings, motivation, everything had to be taken care of. Always, had to make sure I reach before time, had a dialogue with each team member, kept the spirits high and the aim clear. It was my idea to take more fresher in the team so that the saga of theater will continue. It was a tough task, knowing it will need a lotta patience and energy. But to build something big, the foundation has to be strong, and I always kept telling myself, this is the foundation. I tried to share all I had learned, hopefully I did. Maybe, they learned more from my mistakes :) We tried everything within our limits but couldn’t make it to the finals. After tasting victory for two consecutive years, defeat was indigestible, but guess theater had one last lesson to teach me, to accept defeat and still not be a loser. :) I was crestfallen but still had to give hope to the team, that was ironical but true. Why didn’t we win, what went wrong, why did this happen during my time only, why, why why…

I keep getting answers to these questions in bits in various incidents that happen. More than the victories, the defeat had left a bigger impact, had taught much more. And today, when finally my juniors made it, I have some more answers… All the efforts didn’t go in vain after all, in fact now I know, they never do.

Cheers to theater and its rich experiences…