A pen in hand

It's mind boggling. I found an old yellowing notebook in my cupboard when I was cleaning it to make space, and without any reason, I just skimmed through its pages. And in one of them lied a one page write up in my own handwriting with the headline "A pen in hand". And I kid you not, I don't remember that I wrote it, leave alone remembering the thoughts in those lines. Icky feeling! Like someone else came in my mind and guided my hands to write it. Uhh.. I often get such feelings when I go through mails that I sent four or five years back. Isn't it strange to be taken aback by a thought that came out of your own mind? Anyhow, below is that small writeup(without edit). It my sound weird or incorrect or poorly edited when you read. Never mind.

A pen in hand

The power of pen is so elusive. I've had it for some years in my hand. And only now can I realise its true power. Where was I heading? Why did I learn typing? I'm a pretty fast typer. May be it's the side effect of gaming that seeped into me. Computer gaming. No, I shouldn't deviate in that direction. I've to stay here. So, power of pen. How is it different from power of keyboard. There is no research to be done on who receives it, the product of writing. Rather it's the process of generation of thought that is getting tweaked. A pen in hand is like the subconscious talking to me so fast. I've written this big bullshit in less than 2 minutes. So fast. My brain sends pen a message. Hand in work. Fingers forming pressure on the pen in a systematic way that we learnt in school from nursery to may be 1st or 2nd. And now we're accomplished. You see, there is no dishonesty involved because it's our honest childhood learning in play. However, when we type, we fudge as we learnt that somewhere in high school(i know it's sad to hear). We were mixed breeds by then with convoluted and complicated thought process. We are not who we are but the mix of our acquaintances. Really. No matter how ungiving and steady you are, you are not pure. And if you are in search of that pristine, of that original being of yourself, then grab a pen... grab a pen... and let it do the talking... to you... because my dear friend..Pens don't lie. 

Pens don't lie

Welcome Strangers

Sometimes a short conversation changes the course of life.

We all have some theories and counter-theories inside our minds and they just keep fighting. They perplex us. They stagnate us. Be it the context of career or relationship or conflicting dreams or conflicting personality traits or pragmatic vs ideal thoughts or principles vs adaptability or confusing buying decisions, we keep getting in the labyrinth. And coming out of it often seem impossible. You are already in some of these mazes. Aren’t you?

Well you just need to talk. Talk to different people. People from varied backgrounds. Do a survey. Meet a stranger. Make a new confidant if you don’t have one. Tell him /her about your dilemma/circumstance. Someone somewhere said that meeting one stranger a day is one of the greatest hobbies that you can inculcate.

All in all you must bring in the dynamics of change, of a stirrer, of someone-to-show-you-the-mirror, of someone-to-show-you-the-unseen-world-in-the-medieval-period. And only in that dynamic state would you encounter vision, decision making power, thoroughness of knowledge and strength of character.

Infuse thoughts. Attract ideas. The tagline “An idea can change your life” isn’t untrue.

Most of the time, when you encounter a new head, you receive ideas that just fit in your circumstance and the way forward becomes strangely obvious. That’s why you must keep getting those conversations, however uncomfortable they may be, going. But, if you are a lonewolf and you don’t want more wolves in your private enclave, then just read. Read biographies. Read about a similar personality or a person with similar dreams or one who dealt with a similar problem. Know the minds of the greats. Know how they think. Converse with them. Books when read well, becomes a lively conversation.

Mind you, I’m not asking you to randomly send facebook friend requests or to call unknown numbers or to add unknown google ids to your chats. You need to step out of the door man. We are social animals, not social media animals.

So, where to find such eligible conversant? Where to find a would be confidant? Where to find wolves?

Yes, I know it is a difficult question to answer it convincingly. But let us have that intent. Since, where there is intent, there is attempt. What I’m trying to converge to is, why can’t we have a stranger meeting club? No forms. No registrations. Just come and meet.

Now there is already a service called “Meetup” that arranges meetings but they are contextual or interest-based. Hereby, I’m ideating a TOTAL STRANGER club. I think it is a lot better than telling the GoodReads community about the books you are reading currently.

May be it all sounded like bullshit. Spare me if it did. I just had to write something on this boring afternoon.

See you.

True tribute to the India's daughter

Leave girls and women, no brother, leave brother, no HUMAN Indian wouldn't have not felt a piercing sting in the heart over this tragic - what do I call - incident? rape? murder? moral demolition? beginning of an end of conscience? Whatever it is, it points a finger at us in the face and says - "You can do nothing about me. Can you? Can you?"

HELPLESSNESS

This morning my friend told me about her death. Emotions soared high. Feet wanted to move. Palms clutched air. And that's it.

Arnab Goswami on Times Now is asking to maintain calmed demeanor and rightly so "as it will be a great disservice to the martyr to take a violent form on this occasion". We need to introspect. What will happen by protesting at India Gate? Only some visual images would stimulate those on the other side of the camera to give them this (non)sense of something is happening. Like people standing up and calling quotes and displaying posters will change us for the better. Nope, I'm afraid, not. If it were to happen, it would have happened. Aaye din TV pe ye cases aate rahte hain. Nothing taking away from "probably the greatest tragic incident in India" (as quoted by Mr. Jethmalani), I strongly feel such violent upheaval wouldn't prove much benefit to the society. A good example is Mr. Anna Hazare's demeanor against that of Baba Ramdev in the anti-corruption movement and their respective effects on public mood.

Mr. Manmohan Singh is asking us to "channelize our emotions in a constructive way" which means - keep mum like him and see the next parliament session on DD National. We'll do that. Is it? Or is it not? The shame in this "shameful incident" is on us.

Us - The watchful spectator, the silent Indian.

No. Not this moment. Just not this moment. Let's not forget the bravery.

The Braveheart- The very next day the news of gang rape was aired, three of us friends were discussing over the interplay of emotions that that girl would have been facing in case she were conscious. "Should I live? Or should I better die? How can I live with so much trauma for the rest of my life?" Ms. Jaya Bacchhan wept in the parliament empathizing with the girl. And, the fact is that she wanted to live. In such serious condition she battled for 13 days. For life. For dignity. For cause.

"A girl on death bed may have changed the course of young India" said a reporter.

I 'd be happy to think of the positive. So, what is that course? It is not being violent and definitely not being silent. To list few common formulations:
Nationwide violent protests (leads to nowhere, only agitates what is in the bowl)
Talking to friends and colleagues (time pass?)
Candle light marches (temporary arousal of emotions)
Better voting decisions in next Lok Sabha elections (this is a lazy excuse)

Those listed above aren't proper measures in regards to the rape cases. Plus, we as a general public aren't participating in the removal of this social malice. Let me list a few measures whose effectiveness can be discussed over.

1) Every girl over a certain age (may be 15) should be provided with free rechargeable electric stunners, which they may carry in their handbag. Just as the TB patients are being provided free medicines from medical shops. If government doesn't provide free, buy it.

2) Value education - Insert moral builders in the morning pledges of schools such as what Prince Hector says in the movie Troy "All my life I've lived by one code. And that is simple. Love your country. And respect your woman". If the day comes when India registers zero cases of rape, it will only be through value education.

3) This is for the social entrepreneurs. Invent small GPS enabled gadgets like pagers and link it to local police systems. On press of a button from a would-be victim a red alert will be sent to nearby policeman who will be having the receiving pagers. (Policemen are also humans. they are just not inspired enough. If they know of such an imminent incident in the vicinity they will surely run to help.)

4) Compulsory martial arts for girls from class 5th to 12th. In incidents like this one where attackers were a group of men, it may not be useful but in other cases it may be life saving.

5) Make being silent witness to such an incident a crime officially. Indian girl is lot more vulnerable since independence and there must be some necessary changes in law. If such an incident is happening in front of someone, he must try to stop it no matter what.

6) Stop guarding and start arming - Tell your sisters and daughters that they can take care of themselves. Truth is you cannot always protect them. It's about mental strength too. They will act smarter if god-forbid they are cornered.

7) Capital punishment - This is a nuclear weapon. There are problems applying it in the legal system. But again drastic situations calls for drastic measures. Problem is that there may be cases in which innocents can be tricked into a forged rape case. Supreme court stuff.

There can be lot of other improvements and most of us know them. Let us give ourselves a day to think about it and do whatever we can. If we really want something, it will happen.

Condolences to the girl's family and salute to the girl who after the heinous incident faced multiple organ failures, a heart attack and finally cerebral edema, today un-clutched her fist forever.

Time to pay true tribute to the India's daughter through actions.

I'll leave you with following quotes in air related to the incident.



"Abnormal people. Human beings don't do such kind of thing"
"Respect is still so entrenched in the society that the public's anger became evident at India Gate"
"Time bound justice required"
"Must have at least traffic lights on all the roads"
"They must be tried in Saudi Arab style"
"Occasion of speechlessness and grief'
"Not to be taken just as an incident but as an awakening and constant battle"
"We should make sure that we introspect over this loss"



---- Thanks to Shalabh Kumar and Ankur Kalia for their thoughts.

A day at TEDx Gurgaon

Picture courtesy - IILM Blog

Providence. On 31st August I googled ideas and events in the city and what did I find- TEDx Gurgaon on 1st September on the theme “Taking Road Less Travelled”, an event that happens once a year in the city! Hints like these just say out aloud that there are things outside the cause-n-effect loop, lying around you but playing a little hide-n-seek, waiting to be discovered. So I followed the white rabbit and registered for the event.

The next morning was a Saturday (sadly a work-day for me). I woke up at the same getting-ready time and drove off to IILM campus, the venue. Now it’s been a long haul since college. So every time I step into one, I get a kick of nostalgia and a wave erupts off the plain and placid self. And if you put a nice cloudy weather, heartily welcoming volunteers, a cheerful college crowd, open spaces between buildings for cultural activities, lawns, trees and a lively cafeteria in the canvas, one just can’t stay on foot. A lovely setting to explore the ideas and their power.

So I was escorted to the Auditorium, one with an optimal size to accommodate the audience and to support proper acoustics. I was an hour late but the event hadn’t kicked off yet. India! Be it TED or Metallica Concert, we always follow the great Indian tradition of “buffer time”. Hereby, I’m taking nothing away from the organizers, for the 9:30 time on a Saturday morning could be too much for some, including me :0.

I quickly grasped a comfortable seat in fourth row. It was my first attendance in TED, so I waited with closed hands and open mind. The anchor greeted the audience and made us aware of the agenda for the day. Following the tradition, the event kicked off with an audio-visual wherein Chris Anderson, the curator of TED conference explains – “Why TEDx and what it means”. In short, TEDx is an independently organized TED event, where eminent thinkers and doers of the society come and speak their mind for the greater good. Anyone licensed under TED can organize it.

Image courtesy - IILM

Soon after the AV, the first speaker, Abhinandan Chatterjee took stage with a slide in background – The road less taken. Abhinandan, who works as an iTrain consultant in the field of learning development is a great story teller. Every next sentence in his story reveals a bit and puzzles a bit. But this little speech was even special and more engrossing as it came straight from heart. He shared how a person who did splendid in his career, tumbled and lost the edge due to health problems, but kept toiling for a better life only to lose breath in the end; the person being his father. The event changed his outlook of life and guided him to a road of his own. He worked himself to identify his past accomplishments and to categorize them according to different parameters- easy, hard, common and unique. The “unique” ones, he said, defines you and is important part of self-assessment. The highlight of this speech was captured in this little story: A decent fisherman was advised by a fellow to go early in the morning to fish. Fisherman asked why? Fellow said to catch more fish. Why? You’ll buy more boats and more fishes. Then what? You’ll be rich. Then what? You’ll be able to relax and be happy. What do you think am I doing now? The message was: do unique and enjoy it RIGHT NOW. I took a note to thank him for this candid and moving speech during the tea break.

The breaks are an important part of TED. Students, entrepreneurs, corporate professionals, tech geeks, hackers and social enthusiasts all converse together on varied topics. For me that is the USP of this event. And yeah, unlimited snacks and coffee are also available.

Image courtesy - IILM

After another filler of TED video, arrived an ever-energetic Ashish Sachdeva, founder of Green Dream Foundation, who talked about “going green as a road less travelled”. He said it’s all there in the media and in our talks. But do we really understand and follow the concept? What forbids those who are not going green? He said some of us are so overwhelmed with environmental problems that we feel our efforts won’t contribute much. We need to change this feeling. He stressed upon changing our costly habits, which are costly to environment, to simpler, cleaner and cheaper habits. His green speech was centered upon getting the public aware about little things – switching off lights, using organic products, conserving water, taking a stroll to market etc. that contributes to a better environment, a better future.

The next presentation was from Abhijit Bhaduri, Chief Learning Officer of Wipro. He delivered a powerful presentation over how should one go about making choices- especially professional choices in life. According to him, it is very easy. Here goes the formula. Talent is the ability to CONSISTENTLY perform something at a competitive level. Now, one’s choices must lead one to identify and build upon one’s talent. If he is confused between something he enjoys and not very good at and something he is good at but doesn’t enjoy much, he must choose the former because skill is the easiest part to learn. “You first identify what you enjoy and then get trained in it.” And there is no age to this identification and changing the course of career. He remarked that he himself did it 3 or 4 times in his career. On first glimpse this idea seems too brave but if thought carefully, it seems more logical and ensures higher guarantee of success in the long run. He shared his story from childhood to present and boasts now of being “in love with what I do”. I thought “Did he just solve the most confusing problem of life”. Right after this speech, I ran up to him and thanked him for his insights.

Image courtesy - IILM

Image courtesy - TEDx

With that we left for lunch in the college’s canteen. The food was too good. I reserved myself to a light and talkative lunch with few friends that I made on that day. Soon after the lunch all TEDers assembled in the lawn in the T-E-D formation posing for the overhead cameras. [Anyone who has these pictures of better quality please notify in comments]

Image courtesy - IILM

On the way back to auditorium, someone told me that next presentation was the most special. It was from the “Tiger Woman of India”. Blessed with a voice full of sympathy, touch, affection and humility, Dr.Latika Rana narrated her story of tiger conservation. At the start, I must confess, I didn’t understand her passion and perspective. I’ve been inquisitive towards few pet dogs but rarely felt a CONNECTION with animals. On the contrary I’ve felt anger towards some as monkeys pestered me a lot during childhood. I understand now that I greatly misunderstood them. She started by showing several snapshots of jungles, tigers and their habitat which were collected over a long period in her research. Tigers like to assemble in groups and socialize, she said, removing the anti-social tag associated with them. Everything from how cubs play, cuddle, tease, compete, and get trained by their mothers showed they are not so solitary predators. They are exquisitely beautiful, definitely important for the ecosystem and India must be proud of this elegant animal. Then came a slide with numbers. The number of tigers in India has decreased from 40,000 in 1947 to just 1700 in 2012. I felt the pain and agony in her voice when she said “….and no one is bothered”. She says we all talk about tiger conservation like it’s a rocket science but it is not. They just need their habitat as it is and be left aloof and nature will take care of their growth. Caging them is not the solution as that way we would be losing the WILD tigers. She detailed how poachers and nearby tribes are killing them illegally just for money. There is just not enough law enforcement in place. She, through her foundation, took steps in coherence with government to rebuild the lost habitat, to provide employment and health facilities to nearby tribes etc. She is still delivering for the cause. I’m certain everyone present in the audi felt a trickle of unformed tears for the condition of our national animal. A stunned silence was followed by a congratulating applause.

Image courtesy - IILM

The last speech was an overwhelming surprise. No, it was not a speech embellished with profoundness but a simple talk that percolates your heart. The anchor called upon Vicky Roy and all eyes set upon a humble boy may be in his early 20s who took stage with deep eyes and greeted all with a Namaste. He delivered in Hindi, the struggling story of his lifetime. When he was very young, his parents couldn’t afford keep him. Vicky fled away from his grandmother’s home who put him to strenuous work when he should have held a copy and pencil. He roamed around railway stations in Delhi and was caught by a social service community. Again, he was captivated and again he fled. He stumbled places to places, did nightmarish work for a boy of his age- picking bottles and doing construction jobs. As fate took a turn he hooked onto a job of assistant to a cameraman. He learnt camera-skills and some English too. He beautifully amalgamated this serious story with humor and made us laugh. In next few years he had clicked numerous photographs that depicted his past life. And were they admired! His efforts saw him host his first photo galleria for public and it was very successful “kyunki papa bhi dekhne aaye the. Unka ladka ghar se bhag ke bigda nahi tha.” said an emotinal Vicky and all TEDers erupted with an emotional applause. Vicky was one of the four international photographers who were called to shoot the Ground Zero and was the only such Indian. He was even summoned for a lunch with Prince Harry! Phew. Indeed the story is a Bollywood flick and Vicky an instant hero. Junta rushed to pose with him!

Image courtesy - IILM

Next were entertainment sessions - first was an awesome performance by the lovely Jasleen Royal, semi finalist of India’s got talent and the second was a Bhangra Dance. I’ll upload the videos that I captured though the quality is not that good.

   

Later the young junta (including me) joined the Bhangra dancers on stage just like college and danced like mads :) After we drenched ourselves we assembled to cut the TED cake. We even had a B’day boy who held the knife to celebrate his most memorable birthday.

Yeah, the memorabilia was pretty and useful for lately I’ve turned into a coffee addict. Thank you organizers!!

Waiting for the next TEDx !!

For more pictures visit - this page and this page. And if anyone has my pic please share especially while I was dancing :P