Pune - 12

Pune has been trending on Twitter for the last 2 days. It has to do a great deal with David Guetta. Frankly, I feel he is overrated. Anyway, it made me think of Pune and what I miss most about the place...

1. The dense traffic and driving my Kinitec or Duddu's Activa almost brusing off other bikes on the way. At the traffic signal, aligning the bike neatly in the maze of vehicles like playing a live 'Bricks' version.
2. Going to Sinhgad early morning on weekends and getting back in time to catch some awesome breakfast at Vaishali.
3. Partying at Thousand Oaks - sitting on same table every single time, next to the speaker. Amazing music, friends and great spirits!!
4. Getting up late the next day and grabbing brunch at Grubshub, Katta or Yorkshire. Laughing till it hurts and waiting till getting kicked out!!
5. Unplanned last minute late night movies at City Pride Kothrud - always regretting going there - deciding never to go again - but yet go again the next week.
E square - never finding a parking spot, always running late, getting irritated by the pony teenagers, missing 'quality' of city pride kothrud.
6. BIG BAZAAR!!! The crowd, the chaos, the discounts, the chocolate fondue, buying absolutely useless items and never regretting it.
7. Walks on the polluted, crowded road - roadside food - Mankar dosa, Kalyaan Bhel, Amrutulya Chai, Mastani House and Kopryavarche kaka pani puri.
8. Playing Baddy on the roads in the night, late night coffee, late night gossips sitting on random stairs.
9. Bus ride to every morning (well almost) to Magarpattacity. The freshness of the mornings, the urgency in the air, the crappy radio, that horrible bus driver and that grumpy girl on the next seat.
10. TEKDI!! Meeting lost friends and distant acquaintances - Subway after the climb down!
11. Being close to Konkan and so many great mountains - those weekend trips in to the wilderness.
12. The Puneri Attitude - That's the one I miss the most. The curt answers, the sharp wit, the closed shops, the simple pride of being a PUNERI!!!

I can go on to a 100 points but this would be a good bullet point to stop as we are Pune-12 :)

You can take a person out of Pune but never Pune out of a person!  

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…

Happy B'Day to me !!!!

"Happy birthday to me... Happy birthday to meeeeeeeee"

That was 20 days back though, but doesn't matter, its a Bday I will cherish for ever like last 2 Bdays :D :D Every time I think "This is the BEST a Bday can get" n BANG the next Bday is even better.

2 years back:
Smuggled out of the hostel.... Blindfolded at midnight on a bike in full speed... Tripsy... Blindfold opens... A familiar looking place, decorated wid balloons n candles n all Idiots(read friends) grinning... "wats this place?? looks like... err..." ..... OH SHIT.... The Pyramid Megastore's outer landscape, one of ma fav hangout places then..... Wow, how did they manage?? CRAZY ppl... (Murli had used her communication skills to persuade the watchman to let us do so....) Skills.... Shift of place... Z- Bridge... 1 AM.... Laughter.. Euphoria... Madness... Gifts... Singing... All the ppl I want around.... :D :D

Couldn't get better I thought.... PROVEN WRONG...

1 year back:
Hostel room... "why am I not being taken out...Its almost 12!!!".... Damn looks like no plans :( Sudden blast.... Everyone in hostel at midnight... "how did they get in???".... Shhhhh... Matron may come... Wat the heck... let her come, I'm past cloud 9.... Gifts lined up... Opening begins at 2AM.... ends after 5 AM.... Letters... Hand made gifts... Cartoon strips.... Mugs... Books (pages missing :P)... IPOD... Small pictorial biography... like that was not enough.... A hand made BAND... Lotta pics... Crazy dances n non stop chats... Exams coming up in 5 days.... Absolute unadulterated FUN... aaah how I miss it!!!!

THIS yr:
Too many things changed after college... Bdays were no more celebrated like 'Festivals' :P Not cos the emotions had died but time restrained us... I had no big expectations for my Bday, just wished the ppl who matter be around. But Mr. God has decided to become a good guy :P [Well, I have always cribbed bout Him in all my previous posts and I guess as He can't 'comment', he decided to "Act"] The news of training in the US broke somewhere in May... Dates were negotiated... As soon as possible... 6 months... no no 6 weeks... Late July... Mid May.. Some other work... 31st May FINAL... NO... Just a day short of getting to celebrate my Bday wid Friends... But then the opportunity of landing in US ON my BIG day... 31st May tickets not available :D :D... Final tickets booked for 1st of JUNE... My Bday.... So I was gonna take off on my BIRTHDAY... Double celebrations... Packing... Shopping.. Bday plans.. Office formalities.. Crunched for time... Friends coming from all over... House full of shopping bags... Hugs... All the best-s... Make the most of it... Big day huh... U made it on ya Bday buddy... Lucky eh.... Wow!! Felt great... Books n loads of books (as gifts)... All smiles... Apprehension of leaving... Excitement of flying... Hint of pensiveness on going away... MIDNIGHT.... Happy Bday to me.... :D :D.... Cakes, candles, chocolates.... Suddenly away from the scene of action and watching it like a Third person... Feeling TRULY lucky to have what I have... Feeling blessed and overjoyed...

Phew... That was a short nostalgic trip to the last 3 Bdays... Hope this unbelievable joyride continues and I'm sure it will.... :)

Moving on, Changes, Homeless and crap like that!!!

For those of you who have me on your Gtalk lists must be wondering what this HOMELESS jazz is!!! The only purpose of this post is to clear my mind a little and enlighten those who have been wondering...

Moving on or shifting has never been new to me... I have changed houses (call it homes) every 3 years, even more at times (thanks to my Dad's transferable job). There was a different thrill and adventure to it, of meeting new ppl, staying in a new house, new school, new friends... But each time it was equally disturbing and very difficult for me to say the least. It was combined with a concoction of very complex emotions....... of leaving: old friends, my fav corner of the house, my shelf where I kept my books, the table and the wall where I stuck those lil post-its of things to remember, the swing nearby where me n my bro used to fight to sit every evening, the boulevard where we used to go for long walks after dinners, the gallery where mom used to keep waiting for me n bro when it was time for us to get back from school/college, the bed next to the window where I used to lie down staring at the sky for hours, the warmth created at that place with each passing day, the doodhwala who smiled effortlessly each morning, the kaamwali who told stories of hope from slums, the neighbor's dog who would jump with joy each time he saw me, the unknown old lady in the small hut across the road who became part of the routine....

All these memories were wiped and recreated off course. But knowing it didn't reduce the pain a tad bit... And this time it takes its toll.... Ppl give me "Nothin is permanent but change" kinda shit and that time I wanna shout "I know it bloody, but it sucks". I never actually shout that way though, short of those privileges. Got all settled at one place, happy and content. But Mr. Prankster (The Almighty) was toying around with the idea of throwing around another challenge. I'm sure he never throws any thin at me that I can't handle, I just wish he didn't trust me so much. :P

Lotta premise there, now the actual jazz… After leaving hostel, I shifted to this very awesome place in a good location on the 5th floor. Completely furnished and sparkling clean. We got a new TV, Fridge and all that was needed at that place. It became the center of activity, a HEADQUARTER for all my friends' activity. Every small get-together, fierce discussions, general TP, hang out, movie center, night out spot… This place was everything. It was HOME. In a very small duration of time, a different level of attachment was created. And just when everything seemed Perfect, Mr. Prankster jumped into action. It was 1st April and my owner calls. "I would like to have my house back"…. BEEP BEEP…. I was shouting inside… On the outside "Uncle, I understand your position, but…. Bla bla blu blu.."…. Old guy unperturbed and fully determined to KICK us out was unmoved with my emotional rant. So, here I'm, leaving the place which I totally and completely loved and adored. But, what can be done… Moving on is must…..

Moving on, I just hope its as exiting as it has been so far. And as my earlier post says, the journey is more fun than the destination. And these kinda pit stops make the journey more interesting and memorable. Cheers to the new place (which I'm yet to find) and the new obstacles.... Till then... Peace....