Click! Click!

The idea of putting fingers to keyboard - who puts pen to paper in this age? - on the subject ‘clicked’ to me during my recent trip to visit Taj Mahal in Agra. The moment I entered into the precinct of Taj Mahal, the sheer magnitude of tourists who had come to witness one of The Seven Wonders of the World hit me like a bullet. There was one more thing which was hard to miss – Camera. Almost every other tourist was equipped with a camera like a machine gun that would go click after every 10 seconds. Those who were not carrying any photographic equipment were flocked by tourist photographers who competed against one another to get prospective clients. The deal was simple. They would click you and provide you the hard copies reflecting your best face in exchange for some money. And, boy oh boy, the deal got lapped up and how!

Stand straight, chin up, look into the camera….wear your best smile….nice, ready?  – CLICK!

It amazes me no end that, barring a negligible lot, the entire population in urban cities is smitten with photography syndrome. They either are in love with being photographed all the time or are completely given to photographing every passing moment of their lives. And it baffles me in equal measure that, to some extent, I am one of them. (Yes, I admit guilty. Hang me now!)

But if we try to understand the psychology behind the syndrome, we should not really be as surprised. See there is a reason why we are obsessed with photography so much. Human beings, since time immemorial, have been in love with their 'images'. We love it when we see our reflection in mirror. And like it all the more when it smiles back assuredly. We look only at ourselves first in family videos and photo albums. The professional photographers at tourist spots know this human weakness and don’t shy away from exploiting it to their own advantage. They simply feed our ego and vanity by promising memorable portraits. And then we don’t even mind spending a few hundred bucks in exchange of getting something which is so rewarding and self-assuring. Yes, a good photograph gives THAT assurance better than anything else.  

In fact, the corporate world knows it too and markets their products accordingly. One gentle touch upon our weak nerves and we end up eating out of their hands. A few examples - mobile companies coming out with impressive front and back cameras in their handsets; fitness centres installing life-size mirrors for their members; and fashion designers dictating the latest fads and dismissing fashion faux pas!

Coming back to my Taj Mahal visit, after soaking in and admiring the beauty of the mausoleum for a while, I took a moment to observe the behavior of people around me. (It always interests me to notice how people carry themselves around a camera.)

To start with, I noticed one American tourist who went berserk taking photographs of Taj Mahal from every possible angle. The sound of his high-end SLR camera taking shots in series reminded me of a machine gun - Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! Click! Click!

I am sure he saw the beautiful structure only through the lenses that day. Poor guy, only if he knew how mesmerizing the monument looked if seen from naked eyes. 

Hundreds of school children were sitting in clusters on the lawns of Taj Mahal, chit-chatting with one another, doing harmless fun, monkeying around escaping the vigilant eyes of teachers who were managing them. Soon a firang couple noticed them. Don't what actually it was but I guess they must have liked the carefree, energetic and guile-free nature of the school kids or perhaps, their innocent countenances may have appealed to them. The couple started photographing them. Finding themselves to be the centre of attention all of a sudden, the little devils went into a roar and started posing before the camera like seasoned rockstars! The collective noise reached such crescendo that I am sure Mr Shah Jahan and his begum must have felt uncomfortable for a few moments in their graves and cursed back. But they would dare not think about coming up out in the open and complain because, I am sure, shutterbugs would not have spared them either.

Mrs & Mr Shah Jahan, stop cursing and look here...no no no...you have to dust off your fancy costumes first...and please put your jewelry pieces in order. Now stand straight, chin up, look into the camera….wear your best smile….nice, ready?  – CLICK!

A couple in the distance seemed to have a rough day. The girl was not happy for some reason and the guy was trying hard to cheer her up. Again, I don't know the background but it was not really the best of days to visit the symbol of love. For one, the precinct of Taj Mahal was crowded like hell and second, there was a long waiting line. As long as one can see through naked eyes. Standing and waiting in queue for long hours does take the fizz out of your romantic bubble. Failed at all attempts to bring smile to her face, the guy finally used the brahmmaastra (a deadly weapon in Hindu mythology that always brings the desired result) – an SLR Camera!
He started capturing his beloved randomly.

Girls are wired differently. Put them before a camera for a few seconds and they become a different person.

The next thing I knew the girl was in a cheerful mood and happily posing for the camera. Poor guy! He didn’t know what he was trading for in the quest for putting a smile on the girl’s face. Gauging the mood of the girl, I knew that Mr Photographer was in for a long day.

A couple from the northern belt had come to visit The Taj. It was almost impossible to miss them with the couple leading the trail of FIVE kids! It made an amusing sight. What a contrast between couples in urban cities who fuss over rearing the only kid in the family and their counterparts in tier-2 and 3 cities who don’t even start thinking before bringing at least half a dozen kids to the world. The men of such families, I have noticed, walk with a sense of pride as if producing so many kids with their women was the only reassurance they could have got about their virility. I overheard a brief conversation between the couple when the man asked his wife to pose for a photograph.

'Seedha khada rahiye naa, aur thoda muskuraiye toh!’

‘Jaiyye hamein naa chhedein, hamein nahi khichwani hai photo-shoto.’

‘1 minute ki hi toh baat hai, seedha khada rahiye, pallu sar par rakh lijiye aur muskuraiye.’

‘Hamein sharam aati hai.’

Oh. My. God. Isn't it a funny world? I can bet she would not have felt this embarrassed even when her husband was knocking her up every other year.  But here she is, coyness personified, when asked to pose merely for a photograph!
(Pardon me if I sound a little offensive here but it had to come out.)

The best of the lot were the elderly couples. They seemed to know how to enjoy themselves while they were there. I guess old age and wisdom do that to you. You become more observant, calmer and at peace with your surroundings. They were quietly observing the façade, the lawn, the towering minars, the naqqaashi (artistic patterns) and Urdu inscriptions on the walls and so on – as if absorbing every beautiful thing about the wonderful structure. Unlike the younger lot, they were taking pictures only occasionally. They seemed more interested in clicking the wonderful atmosphere through the lenses of their eyes and then storing the moment for keeps in the memory cards of their brains.

All said and done, the bottom line is that humans’ obsession and fascination with their own image will never cease to exist.  And for the same reason, their love for camera is only going to increase and touch new heights of madness. Now, some of us may choose to stand back and criticize others for being hopeless narcissists when the truth is that they themselves are no better than the object of their criticism. The only difference could be the degree of obsession. Rest is all the same. Wait a second....where are we going with this? And why are we even talking about it? Let’s not waste time any more, get ourselves together and pose for the camera instead!

Yes, you got me right. Now stand straight, chin up, look into the camera….wear your best smile….nice, ready?  – CLICK!

Vivekananda Reloaded!

Fun – if you don’t value it, chances are that you never had any in your life. For those who did, would swear by the richness it brings to life. See, no doubt that life is a serious business and one must pursue and execute one’s duties earnestly. I totally agree on that point. But, what’s the harm in mixing it all up with a bit of fun and frolic. Let’s not be too grave about life for it will come to an end anyway…sooner or later.

Now before you guys pull out your guns at me and be your trigger-happy selves, let me be straight with my stuff. I do not intend to get preachy here. So, please discount me on the fact that it will be completely unintentional if I do sound like one at any point.

Of late, I have noticed that things are not as difficult as we make them out to be. And, frankly speaking, I didn’t need to look beyond me to realize that. Just the other day, I was…..errrrr. Wait, I am not going to embarrass myself on a public platform with truckloads of stupid episodes that I have encountered lately. Instead, I will be a bit generic and start from Level 1.

Scary as they sometimes seem to be - a job interview, an upcoming review meeting with a client, facing a girlfriend after having failed to stand up for a date, we-need-to-talk sessions with your wife etc – our mind tends to work overtime and lean towards the negative aspects/ outcome more. And before you know, the fear engulfs you so much that, most of the time you choose not to walk that road at all lest things will turn from bad to worse. FEAR is the root cause of all problems as one cool dude (Swami Vivekananda) figured out almost a century back. 100 goddamn years have passed by ever since but we, the human race, have failed miserably to get that simple thing. So, for once, let’s ride on a new wave today.  Today, we will not focus on fear but FUN.

See, fear is something that was, is and will always be there to trouble mankind. The trick lies in becoming aware about its limitations and knowing how we can mitigate its impact on us. Yes, we should combat fear with fun. Now, fun can mean different things to different people. But for me, it means overcoming fear and to be able to see what lies beyond it. Just try to think of what immense possibilities and rewards await you if you subdue all your initial fears and take that first leap.

There could be a dream job waiting for you if you choose to put your fears behind and take that INTERVIEW. You never know you may be the candidate they have been looking for.

I agree a REVIEW MEETING can go either way but if you deal with it by being bundle of nerves, it is sure to go only one way – southwards.

 A GIRLFRIEND may be mad over you for getting stood up on a date but, if you really do care about her, call her back or rather meet her with genuine remorse and show some promise for future. Wait…what am I saying?!?! NO WAY! Listen guys, DO NOT DITCH your LADY….EVER on a DATE! Because chances are you may come back from dead but there is absolutely no redemption here.  

And lastly…..DON’T avoid we-need-to-talk sessions with your life partner. Being a continual sore is a different thing but realizing it and acknowledging the same before your wife is a completely different stuff. Who knows, doing the latter may make your wife think of you in a different and positive light. Nothing works better than a sincerely-felt apology. And don’t you ever try to fake it. Women can see through put-ons. BEWARE!

The point is that the balance between fun and fear changes with age and maturity. Fun usually rides over fear when you are a kid and growing up. Once we come of age, God knows what happens to us and the equation changes diametrically. Must not we then hold on to that attitude which saw us through tough times during our childhood! After all, what is life without a bit of fun here and there. Fear, as I understand it, is here to stay. And if you too have come to terms with it, why not make its existence less troublesome with an attitude laced with FUN! 

Unsolicited Marriage Solicitor

As they say, when time passes by swiftly, it means you have had a good time. It’s been over 15 months now and it still feels as if I got married last week only. All thanks to my life partner, Hema, who has made life all the more beautiful for me and worth living a thousand time over. I can’t thank you enough for coming into my life.

The beautiful thought of two people tying the knot and being united in mind, spirit and body (urrgh…I can see a lot of imaginative minds working overtime) has struck a chord with me. But, at times, it also directs my attention towards current crop’s take on it.  A lot of bachelors I meet in my social circle voice their thoughts about marriage being a dreadful prospect. Reason? They say with it comes responsibilities and accountability which will curb their free way of life. Come on guys! I mean this is no reason to delay what is a logical next step in life once you settle down in the cushion of a well-paid job. Some say they get afraid of what they see happening around them. Rising divorce cases, bickering couples, frustrated and struggling spouses are a great deterrent. This argument also doesn’t hold much water for me. For every one such bad case, I am sure, there must be 10 good examples which are worth emulating. To cut the long argument short, I would say you are not required to form your opinions - which become stronger by the day and transform into misplaced beliefs later - basis one or two examples in society. These cases are mere aberrations and not the norm.

As for your freedom, who said that you can’t follow your spirit after getting married!? Just try to win your life-partner’s confidence and trust…and be a bit more giving. Trust me, your life will change only for better. And not for one second fool yourself into thinking that it is fun being a wanderer and a footloose all your life. It will get too boring that way. Won’t it?! I am only too sure that you will come to realize this sooner than later and understand the point I am trying to drive home.

 I can say so because, as a bachelor, I too had my own share of doubts but all my misgivings about the limitations of a married life turned out to be mere illusions. And all of them flew out of the window within one week of meeting my life partner and how!  Now, having lived a considerable period of time together, I have wisened to the fact that life becomes more interesting and double the fun when you get hitched to a person who is on the same wavelength as you.

Take my case. My initial doubts about marriage had its roots well placed though. To begin with, I am not at all an easy person to get along with. My idiosyncrasies have the making of a legend but that’s another story. Hema has walked into my life like a fresh breeze. She has complemented me in more ways than one. We are like the proverbial foil to each other. She has helped me become a balanced person today and I feel better equipped to take on the challenges of life.

See, don’t read this blog as if it has been written by a person too obsessed with his marital status and already cutting loose with unsolicited ‘gyaan’ to the unmarried ones. The problem - Yes! It is called a ‘problem’ nowadays - with me is that whatever good & happiness I experience in life, I wish the same for all the people I care about in life. And thus, pieces like this keep coming out of me.

 I know, for a marriage to become successful, it needs to go through the vicissitudes of life and come out victorious. As a married couple, we have just embarked on that journey.  We still have a long way to go but we know that we have started well and as someone has rightly said, “well begun is half done.”

So, the whole thing is that ki bhaiyya main ye nahi keh raha hu ki you should rush into marriage for the heck of it. Nahi. Bilkul nahi. All I am saying is take your time, meet like-minded people and see where it goes from there. My advice to everyone who think they are better off being single is simple and straight – give marriage a chance. Believe me, it can do wonders to your life….and if it doesn’t do so, well….I will not shy away from writing another piece for you!

Stay happy, stay blessed. J

And Delhi Ran Again...

After a hiatus of about a year, the time was right here again. Airtel Delhi Half Marathon was waiting with open arms to embrace the enthusiastic and fitness-freak Delhiites. Wintry morning bike ride to the venue (Jawahar Lal Nehru Stadium) ran the same chill down my backbone that I, for some inexplicable reason, enjoy to the hilt. Parked the bike and my worldly thoughts at a friend’s place, I quickly changed into the running gear and was off to the venue to meet the synergy that thousands of Delhites create at this juncture every year. The atmosphere was bubbling with common spirit to support noble causes that Delhi marathon offers individuals to run for. I felt one with the feeling too.

I have been a regular at the Delhi half marathon for the past three editions. The entire idea of awakening weary souls from lazy bodies through an event as big as this struck an instant cord with me three years back. It's like a reality check regarding our sedentary lifestyle. What else, we get to donate the participation fee to a cause we feel for. My money was for providing quality education to one and all.

Young ones, oldies, bodies that were in superb shape and the ones that I would refrain from describing here for want of socially-acceptable expressions took part in the marathon with the same gusto. I met an old colleague (ex-boss) and a regular marathon bunny at the event – Anup Sharma. His enthusiasm for running is contagious. I joined hands with him yet again and headed towards the starting line. Delhi CM Hon’ble Sheila Dikshit, Superstar Shah Rukh Khan, Glam doll Bipasha Basu and new-handsome-on-the-block Rajeev Khandelwal were present there at the do to flag off the race and support the cause.

People wearing fancy costumes, flashing messages to overcome evils of society and inspiring music by professional rock bands were the highlights of the event. Corporates, like every year, sponsored their employees and chipped in with substantial money for various causes ranging from eradication of poverty, female foeticide, gender bias, racism and promoting quality education for underprivileged lot among others.

I participated in the ‘Great Delhi Run’ category and completed the entire 6-km stretch; this time round without stopping once. May be my stamina has improved from last year or it could be the curved lips that decorated beautiful faces running alongside which proved to be my motivation. At every bend, there were percussionists, guitarists, folk dancers and singers who jammed to buck up the runners. Rock bands from Delhi University were missing though due to internal exams. All in all, it was a great fun activity and I enjoyed myself as much as I had expected. Looking forward to next year now and hopefully I will be able to participate in the half-marathon (21 kms) next time. That will be quite an achievement for me. But the next season is one entire year away from the present. Time for me to start checking my calorie intake and being a regular at gym now.

Rancour With Past

Loved you, hated you and finally made peace with you;
O Past, why did you torment my soul so much before realising its hue?
As I say this, I am falling into a deep moat of Introspection;
Society, family and friends – meeting everybody with rejection.
Wasted sources, untapped potential, missed opportunities and unwanted clout;
Estranged fellows who could have been friends-for-life otherwise without doubt!

Why did you keep my faculty on tenterhooks?
Not even falling once for its tender looks!!
Taking a deep sigh now as the curtains drew,
O Past, why did you torment my soul so much before realising its hue?


Felt burnt, flushed, bruised and jaded;
When hardship presented itself before me stark naked.
Standing my ground, I refused to budge an inch;
Just to show adversity that I am not the sorts who would flinch.
Staring into my eyes, it demanded absolute submission;
Remained unperturbed, I refused to abort my vision.
With just a ray of hope in heart and no divine harness,
I climbed on the mountain of litmus test devoid of tenderness.
Got several wounds in the process that time would not heal,
Almost gave myself away, losing self-confidence in the deal.
Would have been a dead meat but for a sane advice,
That lifted my spirits and invigorated life.

Though I fought back and feel a better man now,
One rancour still stays put in my heart that refuses to bow.
How come you didn’t get the square view?
O Past, why did you torment my soul so much before realizing its hue?!

Kasauli Kick

WOW!!! A long cherished dream of hitting the road with college friends finally got realized. Post-college, Upasana, Mayank, Reshma, Akhilesh, Neha, Sameer, Nidhi, Gaurav, Richa, Kamal and I….practically, everybody from the group got busied preparing for the real world and building up our respective careers. Thus, the thought of making a memorable trip together actually never advanced through the threshold of the planning bit. But now with half the group confirming their availability for what was going to be a cracker of a trip, we were determined to make a go at it this time round.

The other half of the group, who couldn’t make it to the trip for their professional and personal reasons,was with us in spirit. Though we couldn’t help with their impending absence, we geared up with ones who were to make the journey together - Reshma, Akhilesh, Upasana, Mayank, Garima (Upasana’s friend from her hometown – Lucknow), Sameer and I.


We started off gathering information about the tourists’ spots that fall within the radius of 300-350 kms from Delhi. The break-neck working schedule on all weekdays and a small window of two days during the weekends don’t leave out enough scope for fancy (read farther) places anyway. Rishikesh, Nainital, Solan, Kasauli, Jaipur, Dehradoon and Mussoorie crossed our minds as options. I would like to admit here that any planning that involves people from different cities, family backgrounds and mindsets has the potential of turning into a tedious, exhausting and frustrating experience. The same dreaded thing happened with us but I am skipping that bit as I do not want to relive through those agonizing moments 

Finally, a consensus was reached and we settled for Kasauli – a small hill station in the lap of Himachal Pradesh.

Akhilesh and Reshma had arranged for our stay in a nice hotel – Winnies Holiday Inn. I had the responsibility to take care of the transport and had hired an Innova for the weekend trip. All of us had taken a half-day leave from our respective offices and had assembled at my office in Mayur Vihar. We left Delhi at 1430 hrs for Kasauli. With a good supply of booze, nice buddies and cheerful selves we were on a roll. But wait a minute……how could the journey have been completed without our share of troubles! Just 40 minutes into the journey and the AC of our cab became dysfunctional because of some snag. I can never forget the moment it dawned on my friends that the AC was not working. I met with strange looks giving out signal as if they would eat me ALIVE!

Anyway, the AC problem injected the much needed adventure into the trip. To add to our woes, the weather was very unrelenting. The Sun in the month of June never looked as torturing as it was that day. The mercury had crossed 40 degree C outside. Soon, in the absence of AC, the temperature inside the car rose to 35 degree. We couldn’t even open the side and rear windows for it was still 1600 hrs and the heat waves were intolerable. We had to stop at every 15-20 kms to freshen up. The stopovers became even more frequent as we had to attend to nature’s call too (guys, don’t forget we were carrying booze!). At last, we pulled over to one side of the highway near an auto workshop in Karnal. Leaving the car with the mechanic, we headed towards a motel nearby for a quick light meal.

An hour later, around 1800 hrs, we resumed our journey to Kasauli. The mechanic had done what was expected of him – kaam-chalau jugaad. The AC was now working intermittently. But by that time, we had come to terms with its lousy mood. We reached our hotel at 2300 hrs.

Hotel Winnies Holiday Inn is a beautiful property, away from the hustle and bustle of the city and is situated on the main kasauli road on the slopes of sanawar hills. The property shares a common boundary with Lawrence Sanawar School and is surrounded by reserved forest on the other side. It is located midway on the dharampur-kasauli road – 6 kms away from main kasauli bus-stand. Our rooms were spacious and cozy. But we couldn’t focus on anything as hunger was getting to us. Barely checking into our rooms, we had come downstairs to the dining room to gorge on the last meal of the day. There was a short delay in dinner being laid out before us. We guys were so hungry that, in sheer impatience and desperation, we could have sprinkled some salt on the kitchen staff and eaten them alive. But our prudent self foresaw that we needed them for the next two days to serve us again. So the fleeting idea went into the garbage bin without much elaborate thought. At last, the food came and we let the animals hiding inside our selves come to the fore. The food was average but the hunger was so intense that we relished the food and felt as if we had the best meal of the world.

All of us returned to our rooms and changed clothes. Though we were tired from the AC-less journey, the sleep was nowhere in sight. My friends thought of doing some gup-shup before calling it a night but the health-conscious in me – which otherwise turn a blind eye when I gorge on fast foods like a pig – prompted me to cajole them to move out from the hotel and go for a looooooong walk together. Reluctantly though, they accompanied me for the walk (I love you guys). Later on, all of us assembled in one room and bantered the entire night away. We shared funny anecdotes, gossips, dirty talk, sensible conversation, relationships status quo and many other personal experiences that fateful night. Interesting and worth sharing though, I won't be able to share content of certain 'subjects' of our discussion here as I am not qualified enough to present the same in a sanitized manner on a public platform (Reshma, I am keeping my word on not divulging any details). Waise bhi, what happens in Kasauli, should stay in Kasauli. Finally, we retired to our respective rooms at 0500 hrs in the morning to catch the much needed forty winks.

Five hours later, we woke up to a wonderful day, had our bed-tea and then the banter resumed. Since I knew that no one else would agree, I asked Upasana to come along for a short morning WALK. She was sportive enough to agree. A little later, when we were back in our rooms, she taught me some yoga postures (Surya namaskar to be very precise). She was so diligent in telling me how to go about it that I thought of following the yogic postures every day. It’s a different story that I discontinued performing surya-namaskar after adhering to it merely for 5 days. Anyway, after our morning ablutions, we nibbled at a light breakfast and left the hotel to visit the famous Monkey point. The Shimla Monkey Point is located in Kasauli. This is considered to be the highest tip of Kasauli. The Monkey Point of Shimla also houses a temple in the name of Lord Hanuman. The place is about four kms away from the Kasauli bus terminus. There is a legend that goes with the Hanuman temple. As per the existing lore, Lord Hanuman, after collecting the herb from Himalayas, was on his way back to Lanka (presently Sri Lanka) and touched this hill and for this reason the hill had taken the shape of a foot. From the mountain top, one can have a panoramic view of the Chandigarh plains where the Sutlej river appears like a thin silver thread. On a clear day, the view of the distant city of Chandigarh is simply amazing.


Post visiting the temple, we roamed around the Kasauli market. Visited the church, shopped a bit, bought some more booze and came back to our hotel. After having the lunch, we got into a relaxed mood. We opened up our liquor stock and the drinking binge started. Our weary souls befriended the booze and soon the friendly relationship changed its status to a passionate one. The romance lasted till the supply almost ran out. We had to attend a terrace party in one of the posh hotels in the Kasauli market a little later but the enthusiasm for the same had somewhat died down. Nobody…nobody showed any sign of moving an inch after the daaru-session got over. Reshma was having a head-ache (aur piyo vodka!); Akhilesh (being the good Samaritan and a caring boyfriend) was tending to her; Pappu (Sameer) was still romancing with his quota of daaru and cigarette packs; Upasana thought she would be better off watching the idiot box and decided to stay back with the weary pack. The sporty guy in me would have been counting his last too if it were not for Mayank and Garima. They agreed to come for the party and then three of us got ready in no time. The hilly areas feel amazing in the night (believe me, I am a pahadi guy) and it is so quite that even music being played at a low volume in the distance can be heard clearly. The venue was hardly 3-4 kms away from our hotel. We could hear the party music when we were nearing the venue. The party turned out to be a damp squib. But as the saying goes it is the people who matter and not the venue or occasion. Mayank was sharing his famous one-liners to keep us in good humour. Garima joined in the fun too but was wary and made sure I do not go on a drinking binge at the party too. Gauging her concern over it, I also changed my mind and settled for mocktails. I can never forget Garima's famous words (takiya kalaam). Every time we would say something untoward, she would say, "Ohooo...fir shuru ho gaye. Bhagwan ke liye shubh-2 bolo". All three of us enjoyed ourselves at the party. So much so, that even the two poor guitarists (at the centrestage) making desperate and fruitless attempts at entertaining the audience seemed great performers.


We came back to our hotel around 2230 hrs and settled in for a late dinner with rest of the gang. Next morning, fresh from an 8-hour sleep, we were back to our energetic selves. The breakfast session entailed playful conversation. Some dance routine, leg-pulling, lots of weird, cute n non-sensical activities followed. Whoever said making sense all the time is good must have missed out on the fun that is there in being part of some real non-sense. At times, doing some non-sense does knock a lot of sense into our otherwise pragmatic selves. Now, here goes the preacher in me...you should never take yourself too seriously and never forget 'the child' in you! It was a total fundoo session because full-on masti was at its core. By and by, it became so interesting and funny that I secretly hoped the time to get stalled just at that.

Finally, the 'Goodbye' moment knocked on the door. We sat down for a short while and shared our accounts (trip expenses). Before checking out of the hotel, an elaborate photo-session followed wherein we posed like only we could. And while everybody had checked out of the hotel and was busy settling their luggage inside the car parked in front of the hotel entrance, I perched myself on the balcony of my room that overlooked a beautiful garden and got me a wonderful view of the Kasauli hills. For a few minutes, I just stayed still and looked into the distance. Don't know what it was. May be, I was trying to soak in the Kasauli experience and breathe in the purity of the natural surrounding so much that it would last me for lifetime. Soon, I got out of the trance and quickly joined my friends. With rekindled interest in life, we took a cab back to our homes. GOODBYE KASAULI….WE WILL MISS YOU!

Friends in tow, trip to Lucknow

“Listen guys, meri shaadi hai Lucknow mein………aur tum sabko aana hai. Koi bahana nahi chalega……warna tumhari khair nahi”, said Manisha, my old school mate, inviting us in a gathering of school friends for her marriage. The threatening words said in a cute manner had the desired effect on us and resulted in five commitments on the spot. Nitin, Tulika, Partho, Nisha and I gave her our word. Others remained tentative for they were not sure how they would be placed at the time of marriage. But, Manisha was content as she knew that five confirmations weren’t too bad to start with, especially when there were still good seven months to go for the marriage.

February 11, 2011 – The day had come when we had to honour our word. We had a train to catch at 11:30 in the night. Everybody was gearing up for the journey except for one guy – Partho. Unfortunately, we had to cancel his ticket just at the eleventh hour. Though he was in Bangalore on an official tour, he tried his best to make it to Delhi in time so that he could accompany us for the marriage. But as luck would have it, he was to reach Delhi not before it was too late to think about attending the marriage. Anyways, four of us – Tulika, Nitin, Nisha and I – reached the station in time and boarded Lucknow Duronto Express. Tulika’s parents had come to see off their daughter. While bidding goodbye, Tulika’s mom told me with a touch of Bengali accent, “Ae sun......hamada Tulika ka khaayal raakhna.’’ I was itching to reply in the same amusing accent but settled with much sober and convincing words - “Ji Auntyji”.

Before we could settle in properly, a middle-aged snooty woman (co-passenger) came to join us. She was carrying scores of luggage and got them shoved, with the help of a porter, in and around our berths. Even at the cost of exaggeration, I would say that she had so many luggage that we could stuff an entire warehouse on a 50-acre land with them alone. She, unabashedly, made herself comfortable by unsettling everybody around her. Though heavily cheesed off with her (mis)conduct, we tried to keep our cool and made light of the situation by continuing our usual banter. Strangely, it didn’t go down well with the woman and she expressed her displeasure at not being welcomed well ever since she entered the coach. She straightforwardly said that she felt offended with some people (us) as they didn’t look too happy with her presence and gave her the cold shoulder. Even to this day I don’t know what whimsical thoughts drove her to say what she said. I so wanted to attend to the psycho woman and return the crap but changed my mind at the last minute. I guess my sanity prevailed over my impulse. We immediately cajoled her out of her displeasure, or else she would have ruined our mood even before the train had moved an inch from the station. The train departed from the New Delhi junction at 2330 hours sharp and we got busy in making our bed, doing our best to ignore the fretful woman all along. In the meanwhile, the train gathered speed and – much to our delight - soon the gentle movement of the coach lulled the woman to sleep. Phew!!!

We had made our respective beds but hitting the sack was far from our mind. We sat around facing each other and the ‘gup-shup’ session started in no time. By and by we graduated to discussing serious stuff. A gamut of emotions flashed before our eyes as we relived our school days, first encounter with each other, blunders, jubilations, madness etc. All four of us took turns and shared many a things that we felt about ourselves and each other. This exercise brought us even closer to each other and the bond of friendship strengthened. We happily chatted our way to glory till the wee hours. All of a sudden, our considerate selves awakened and we realized that we had a long day ahead. So, we decided to catch the much necessary forty winks before reaching Lucknow.

Day 1 – 12/2/2011

At 7 in the morning, we found ourselves waiting for our taxi outside the Lucknow station. Nisha had pulled a few strings and made arrangements for us in a cosy guest-house (in Dali Bagh) and a taxi that was to be at our beck and call for the next two days. The taxi took us to our haven. Trust me, an unknown city looks much familiar and receptive when you have a decent place to stay in and a cab at your service round the clock.

After sprucing ourselves and having our first meal of the day we left for Manisha’s place. Our dear friend had been expecting us since morning. She kept calling us to give directions, thereby making sure that we did not lose our way. Nearing her place, to our pleasant surprise, we found her waiting for us on the highway. Gosh! It took us a couple of minutes to realize that ‘the bride-to-be’ herself had come to receive us.

We got a very warm welcome at her home which, for a few seconds, made us feel like cricketing heroes who had won over the rest of the cricket-playing nations and brought the much-awaited World Cup back to India after 1983. We also happily rejoiced in the moment. What followed was usually expected of friends who meet up after a while - fun-filled discussions, leg-pulling, turning nostalgic and a lot of catching up.

After a couple of hours, we took leave from the bridal family and left for Hazratganj – better known as the Connaught Place of Lucknow. Hazratganj is a major shopping area of the city. It houses showrooms and retail stores of almost all major consumer-goods manufacturers in India. From car-dealers to jewellery stores to antiques, one can shop for almost anything at Hazratganj. The place lived up to its image and had us enchanted with its surroundings. We were enjoying ourselves thoroughly while checking out the market. Tulika and Nisha scouted for a local mehendiwala and got their hands embellished with the color of skillfully-applied henna designs. Sporting the colored hands, the girls looked every bit of bridesmaids.

As we had to attend the marriage in the evening, we thought of going back to our guest house and taking a nap before we get into action again. In the evening, I got a call from one of my close friends – Upasana aka Khargosh – who happened to be in Lucknow, her hometown, at the same time. She was to leave for Jaipur in a few days. And since both of us were not too sure about our schedule for the next day, we decided to meet up the same evening. So now, I was to meet her at Hazratganj on our way to the venue of marriage. Gearing up for the marriage, Nitin and I got ready in no time but Tulika and Nisha took longer. Girls being girls usually spend considerable period of time in decking up. And, believe me, when it comes to getting ready to attend a marriage, it takes eternity and still at the end of it they would end up feeling that they could have looked better. Ditto was the case with our very own Nisha. :-)
Looking at the silver lining, this episode made us (Nitin and me) realize how patient we are with girls. Also, it gave us enough time to sneak out of the room for a stroll and we had an interesting man-to-man discussion over the facts of life.

Finally I met Upasana at Hazratganj in the company of her friends – Garima and Saurabh. Meeting Upasana always turns out to be a memorable rendezvous. As expected, Khargosh was in her elements that day too. After settling down, post the exchange of greetings, she examined me from head to toe and said, “Yaar Negi, tu toh bilkul ande (egg) jaisa ho gaya hai. Khana kam kha aur exercise shuru kar!” Don’t know about the exercise but I have stopped eating egg altogether since that day. ;-)
We introduced our respective set of friends to each other and spent some quality time together before we set off for the marriage venue.

Manisha looked very beautiful in the bridal dress. It is quite a feeling when you see your friends getting married. We were waiting for the bridegroom and the procession in anticipation. In the meanwhile, Nisha and her obsession with camera came to the fore. Her insistence on being clicked on every occasion turned Nitin into a full-time photographer. Though feeling a bit riled up in the beginning, I brought myself around to understand and accept her love for getting photographed all the time. Nitin did a very decent job with camera and captured some great moments. Suddenly, we heard some firecrackers and boisterous voices in the street…..the baraat had arrived. Manisha and her man, Mr Som Prabh, made a very good couple together. The happiness that comes with being together was writ large on their faces. We gave our best wishes to the couple for their new innings and then submerged ourselves completely into the party mood. Nitin and I danced like hell that day. With some pretty girls joining us, the dance routine carried on a little longer than intended. Around midnight, we took leave from the couple and retired to our guest house.

Day 2 – 13/2/2011

Tired from the previous day’s activities, we woke up a bit late in the morning and had no intention to leave bed for another couple of hours at least. But Tulika wanted to see Manisha at her Bidaai ceremony. After a quick thought, we also relented and hurried to Manisha’s place.

Bidaai – This is one moment when most of the eyes are usually moist with emotions. Being thoughtful about the situation, we also played to the gallery by being uncharacteristically quite for a short while. The prized moment was when Manisha clung to her dad saying, “Papa…. (sob sob cry cry)…papaaaaaaa…(some more sob sob cry cry)….papa nahi jaana….aap logo se door nahi jaana”. I am telling you it was said with such intensity that even the strongest of characters in the world would have cried buckets that day. And I was wondering as to how the event would have unfolded if Manisha had continued with the traditional drama for a bit longer. There is every possibility that the bride’s papa would have taken it literally. Losing his cool, he would have told Manisha in no uncertain terms, “Kya baat kar rahi ho!!! Aur kaise nahi jaana tumhe….ek toh dono partiyo ka itna kharcha karwa diya hai aur ab kehti ho nahi jaana. Ye bhi koi baat hui bhala...mazaak samjha hai kya!!!” Jokes apart, with everybody’s blessings in tow the newly-wed couple left to begin a fresh chapter of their life.

With half a day still in hand (we had to return in the night), we decided to go for Lucknow darshan. Being driven around the beautiful city of Lucknow was quite an experience. Gomti Nagar, situated on the bank of river Gomti, consists of both residential and business settlements and is one of the largest and upcoming areas of Lucknow. Gomti Nagar is an organised settlement developed by Lucknow Development Authority (LDA). It is home to high-end premium residential projects, Malls, IT parks, Commercial property, SEZs, Plots, Business centers, Multiplexes, Clubs, Banks, Food courts, Entertainment centers and Finance institutions. To me, Gomti Nagar with its modern touch appeared to be the face of emerging Lucknow.

As Manisha suggested earlier in the day, we first decided to visit Bara Imaambara - a historical edifice situated on the bank of Gomti river. We hired an official guide who showed us around the historical building. We were told that the Bara Imambara was built by Nawab Asaf-ud-Daula in 1784 and its designer was Kifayat-ullah who was said to be a relative of the architect of the Taj Mahal.

Looking at the marvellous architecture, all of us were wonder-struck. The main imambara consists of a large vaulted central chamber containing the tomb of Asaf-ud-Daula. At 50 by 16 meters and over 15 meters tall, we were surprised to learn that it had no beams to support the ceiling. It is one of the largest such arched constructions in the world. There were eight surrounding chambers built to different roof heights, permitting the space above these to be reconstructed as a three-dimensional labyrinth with passages interconnecting with each other through 489 identical doorways. This part of the building is better known as ‘bhoolbhulaiyyah.’ It is possibly the only existing maze in India and came about unintentionally to support the weight of the building, constructed on marshy land. The guide, while sharing the details about the historical monument, was constantly chipping in with cheeky humour. Though the information provided by the guide was more or less correct, he was ticking us off with his I-am-smarter-than-thou attitude.

The cocky guide then showed us a blocked (tunnel) passageway which, according to legends, leads through a mile-long underground passage to a location near the Gomti river. Other passages are rumoured to lead to Faizabad (the former seat of power of the Nawabs), Allahabad and even to Delhi. They still exist but have been sealed after a period of long disuse as well as fears over the disappearance of people who had purportedly gone missing while exploring. The guide made it sound quite spooky and mysterious….huh!

Feeling a bit hungry, we left for Aminabad that has existed from the times of the Nawabs of Awadh. The market in Aminabad is a very large and congested one made up of narrow lanes and bylanes. Traffic movement is next to impossible in the interiors of the market. But this is the real beauty. We took a rikshaw ride and negotiated well through the bylanes of the market. We saw small and medium sized shops selling items of daily usage, ornaments, jewellery, fashion garments, fancy dresses, chikan kurta, chikan sarees and ladies wear, chikan mens wear, footwear and other fancy items. The market is also famous for its eateries. Many a non-vegetarian stalls, sweet shops, baker's shops and Paan shops adorned the market. We stopped over and had our lunch in the famous non-veg eatery of Aminabad known as ‘Tundey Kabab.’ After eating to our fill, Tulika and Nisha wanted to shop some chikan kurtas and sarees for their moms. So we checked out a local shop and bought some fine stuff.

After the shopping binge we called it a day. On our return to the guest house, we packed our luggage and settled the accounts with each other before having dinner. Carrying our stuff and lots of unforgettable memories, we rushed to the railway station to catch our train in time. We spent the last few hours reflecting on the two eventful days spent in the city of nawabs. While in the train, everybody in the group was ecstatic as they were going home carrying a lot of memories from luck now. Strangely enough, my happiness was mixed with a tinge of sadness. I knew not why it was so until a few moments later when I finally figured out the real reason……Although I took with me some wonderful memories from Lucknow, I HAD LEFT A PART OF ME BEHIND.