FRIENDSHIP – THE FLAVOUR OF THE WEEK

It’s almost that time of the year when the seniors (4^th and the 5^th years) are busy job-hunting with the majority placed already by now. This is the time of the year where the sweet memories come rushing back. Strong hormone surges in the brain makes us wonder whether we can live to see such days again. Still having 2 more years to go with my stay here in KGP, I am anxiously looking forward to the day when I set out to attain loftier goals I have set for myself. Again, why am I drifting away from what I had to say?

Just wanted to say one of my personal favourites, something that plays quite a few times everyday on my Comp…, caught the emotions and piquant nature of the situation quite superbly in its lyrics. A must listen for every music lover. I like enjoying the emotions carried by the lyrics.

Here it goes

Song by VITAMIN C

Titled "Graduation (Friends Forever)"

And so we talked all night about the rest of our lives
Where we're gonna be when we turn 25
I keep thinking times will never change
Keep on thinking things will always be the same
But when we leave this year we won't be coming back
No more hanging out cause we're on a different track
And if you got something that you need to say

You better say it right now cause you don't have another day
Cause we're moving on and we can't slow down
These memories are playing like a film without sound
And I keep thinking of that night in June
I didn't know much of love
But it came too soon

And there was me and you
And then we got real blue
Stay at home talking on the telephone
We'd get so excited, we'd get so scared
Laughing at ourselves thinking life's not fair
And this is how it feels

[1] - As we go on
We remember
All the times we
Had together
And as our lives change
Come Whatever

We will still be
Friends Forever
So if we get the big jobs
And we make the big money
When we look back now
Will our jokes still be funny?
Will we still remember everything we learned in school?
Still be trying to break every single rule

Will little brainy Bobby be the stockbroker man?
Can Heather find a job that won't interfere with her tan?
I keep, I keep thinking that it's not goodbye
Keep on thinking it's a time to fly
And this is how it feels
La, la, la, la:
Yeah, yeah, yeah
La, la, la, la:
We will still be friends forever

Will we think about tomorrow like we think about now?
Can we survive it out there?
Can we make it somehow?
I guess I thought that this would never end
And suddenly it's like we're women and men
Will the past be a shadow that will follow us 'round?
Will these memories fade when I leave this town
I keep, I keep thinking that it's not goodbye
Keep on thinking it's a time to fly

For those of you who haven’t heard the song before, I recommend it’s a must listen. For those of you who have heard this before I guess you share the same feelings as me and that you echo my thoughts.

A Big THANK YOU

This is all I can say after the tremendous response to the post. “A BIG THANK YOU”. The concern everyone showed, the get well soon messages through the comments and the phone calls to SIVA makes me mighty satisfied. For all the love and concern each one showed, the prayers everyone made for his recovery, HE is discharged from B C ROY (THE INSTI HOSPITAL in KGP, for the uninitiated), is doing quite well and is ready to carry on. Last but not least, I thank “THE ALMIGHTY” for the valuable lessons we learnt, for strengthening the bon called FRIENDSHIP, for letting the world know the real ME and more importantly, for SIVA’s speedy recovery. Thankfully, The ALMIGHTY smiled on him and he could get through with the minimum possible injuries/damage. Now that everything is fine… Itz time we take him to TAMROLIPTO or GARDEN INN and demand our treat (hehe J) …. As I had already mentioned, I am just waiting for the BIRD FLU EPISODE to pass over.

An ODE TO THE 8 SHINING KNIGHTS

......Ajay,Aravind,Giri,Kiran,Ravi,Nag,Praneeth,Shankar..

“Good luck seldom comes in pairs but bad things never walk alone” - Chinese Proverb

I believe the happenings in Life are pre-destined. God’s will is ultimate and everything happens for a reason. It;’s high time I realise the importance of being a bit more careful and also taking life a bit more seriously.

After a dreadful trip to CALCUTTA… I had to take the mantle of sharing my experience with one and all… to let everyone know

“EVERYTHING DOESN'T GO AS YOU EXPECT ALL THE TIME”

Well, here is a conversation between someone (whom most of you think you know….neways keep guessing) and me. Again it’s upto you to decide whether this piece of work is fictional or factual…. Go ahead and have a look into the happenings of one day I will never forget in life………..ever. Without beating around the bush, let’s jump straight forward into the conversation.

ME: am jus back from Calcutta

“SHE”: yea ok...

“SHE”: ohhh nice

ME: And today has been one of the worst days I’ve ever faced... jus like the day I dint get thro my JEE......

ME: dumbest day I ever had

ME: and nine others’ day too was spoilt by jus a lil bit of carelessness on my part

“SHE”: ohh why........

ME: wait lemme tell ya

ME: Well 10 of us planned to go to Kolkata today. Just for some masti, Rang De Basanti and a dash of babes. Huge planning went in. We got up at 4:30 in the morning and made a dash for the train to Howrah.... a fast passenger.... how we never imagined the things that lay ahead

“SHE”: yea...

“SHE”: hey...no suspense...tell wat happnd

“SHE”: okay...

“SHE”: u keep tellin...

ME: and then

ME: we could catch the train at 5:40 and then we alighted at Calcutta at 8:30.

“SHE”: okay...then

ME: barely had I walked a few metres down, towards the exit gate.... did I realize that my mobile was missing

“SHE”: ohhh my god...

ME: this act of carelessness will weigh over my head for years to come..........

ME: I should have checked my pocket once I got up from my seat....but then things were destined to be different

“SHE”: ok ...did u really lose it...did ya find it...???

ME: we rushed back and all of us ran back to the passenger, which already was jus hooting for its return journey

“SHE”: ok

“SHE”: ohhh...

“SHE”: then...

ME: we made a frantic dash to the passenger train and each of us... I mean we were 10 in all.... got into different coaches of the passenger

“SHE”: ohhh...

ME: 4 of us ... Siva (U will remember this name for long), Kiran, Praneeth and me were in the same bogie.... and this passenger train doesn’t have vestibules for ur extra comfort.

“SHE”: ohhh ok...

ME: all the others who boarded the running train also could courageously check the seats of the coach they were in and get off at Howrah itself without any untoward incident happening

“SHE”: ok

ME: but the 4 of us stayed back in the bogie (the aforementioned 4) with the thought that we could get off the next station and check the remaining coaches.

“SHE”: hmmm....

“SHE”: haha...

Giri, Ravi n Kiran after a hectic day....

Is it the smile or the exhaustion???

ME: We started feeling tense........ And before a minute could pass during that terse situation... something really unwarranted, something unnecessary happened in an instant... jus like that.......... wham

“SHE”: wat was tht

“SHE”: Ur cell rang is it??

ME: Please stop foolin around and listen

ME: why would that ever be unwarranted?

ME: Siva was leaning outside the entrance and before he could realise, a huge steel structure from the back caught his head and he was on the ground in an instant.

“SHE”: yea ok ok...sorry

“SHE”: tell

“SHE”: my goodness...

ME: Before we could realise anything that utterly sonorous steel pounding on the head.... that made a whirr in the ears

“SHE”: okay...

ME: I made a dash to the pull the chains.... but it being a local train... (And that too a west Bengal local), neither the train nor the engine driver would respond to the emergency situation... and we were moving away from him(Siva) at full speed... without the slightest hint as to what had ever happened to this guy after he fell... My head was full of insinuations... and ugly thoughts as to what all could have happened

“SHE”: hmmm...ok

ME: I could not control my mind from wandering into the various possibilities that might have arisen as a result of his fall.

“SHE”: ok ok

ME: We got down at the next station with not much effort going into searching for the cell phone.... but much more concerned abt the person who, right before our eyes, had a heavy dose of steel thump his head....

ME: Various situations crossed my mind

“SHE”: okayy...

ME: Luckily Kiran and Praneeth too had mobiles and we could intimate the other 6 in the station abt the freak accident... I wonder if I can term it freak..... Things like these would have been averted jus with a slight dosage of common sense... And we were walking back to Howrah on the rails.... to the person we expected to be lying on the rails... I would never think of putting on paper the range of thoughts that crossed my mind... One could make plethora of Final Destination sequels with just the thoughts that swirled and swooned in my head for roughly about 20 minutes... I must admit those 20 minutes of my ignorance about Siva's condition was the maximum limit if tension that my brain could withstand, the pressure in the blood inexplicable

“SHE”: wat happnd ra...I’m not gettin ur messgs....don’t write long ones...

“SHE”: okayy..........

ME: We called Siva (Luckily for us..... He was having a mobile too) and he was able to speak.... His being able to speak lifted a huge burden of our heads. I admire Kiran for the calmness he showed at such an odd situation. Always figuring out what best to do next

“SHE”: ok...

ME: we completed one fourth of the required length we needed to go to reach Siva on the rails when we had a phone call saying that Siva had been shifted to the first aid room with the help of the six guyz out there

“SHE”: ok ok...good

ME: I instantly heaved a huge sigh of relief.... But then I was still worried abt the extent of injuries that might have occurred... both internal and external

“SHE”: hmmm...ok...

ME: We walked all the way back to Howrah station... a good distance I bet

“SHE”: yea then wat...ok....

ME: When is saw that guy lying so helplessly on the cot at the first aid centre... I instantly felt something was wrong... Hardly do my intuitions turn out true... but then one cannot ignore everything everytime

“SHE”: okay....thenn...

ME: Blood was oozing from the back of his head and let me tell you the sound of the steel on his head was running through my ears so clearly and the whole event was moving like a tape right in front of my eyes.

“SHE”: hmmm.....looks so cinematic ra...then wat happnd...hope he is fine

ME: he had scratches on his face, his back, a lot of flesh removed on the hand and he was so pathetic looking

“SHE”: ohhh...

ME: Such an energetic, vivacious, bubbly person seemed totally out of life... His gait suggested that he was too weak to do anything

ME: We allowed him to rest for a while

“SHE”: ok ok

ME: and then later took him to a nearby Private hospital where the doctor did preliminary tests and asked us to go for a CT scan to determine internal injuries to the brain if any

“SHE”: ohhh ok ok...

ME: We were referred to the Govt. Medical College... and it was almost 12:30 by the time we reached there

“SHE”: ohhh...

Glimpse of the Howrah Bridge from the taxi

on the way to Govt. Medical College.

ME: The CT scan was done... and after some doses of ELECTRAL and a few biscuits... this guy started feeling better... The CT Scan report was out and it read no DISCREPANCIES or ABNORMAILITIES.......Things started looking better (let me not call it rosy). We were beginning to feel better until a medico in the clinic spotted a white lobe in the CT scan and suggested that there might be internal bleeding in the brain... in which case it would be really dangerous for survival in the first case

ME: But he wasn't sure of his findings because the patient was awake and was able to recall all the things properly and was looking fit.

“SHE”: okay...

“SHE”: oh my...

ME: But the seeds of doubt had been planted and we had to head to SSKM hospital where we had to meet a neurologist for his final opinion.

“SHE”: hmm...ok

ME: After a lot of waiting for the neurologist, he finally had a good look at the CT scan and then decided that nothing was wrong... That there were only external injuries and the doc talked quite well (He was in IIT for 4 months... was a Patelian it seems) and informed us not to worry at all

“SHE”: ok...good

ME: All through this none of the nine members had anything to eat since morning... It was one sincere dedicated show of unbounded friendship... and I truly salute the spirit everyone showed in carrying on each one’s duty responsibly during the time of such adversity.

ME: I knew how jaws dropped when we were told that there was internal bleeding in the brain…. The emotional stress everyone was in

Giri, Ajay n Aravind..... Jus b4 the storm erupted

Relief after recieving the CT Scan report

ME: how some of us started praying God for a speedy recovery

ME: how some cried for all the shit that was happening to us

ME: how some were looking forward to resolve the issue at the earliest possible and provide the patient ample rest

ME: how some were fighting adversity as though they had been stabbed in the back by fate several times in the past... like seasoned campaigners

“SHE”: hmm...cool

“SHE”: yea...things happn together...

“SHE”: hmm...Ok

“SHE”: yea...can understand

ME: All this while I am narrating to u... I salute the true spirit of friendship.... Though in retrospection, This will be a day where a lot of bad happened... I will surely remember this primarily for the Essence of Spirit of Friendship.

ME: All through this... I had forgotten to tell you about my mobile phone

Finally, The MAN in question himself... SIVA

Cooling off at Victoria Memorial after the entire fracas

“SHE”: yea...definitely...things happen for a reason...

“SHE”: yea tell...hope u got it!!!!!!

ME: Some b@$t@rd picked up my phone... every time I called from someone else’s cell he used to lift the phone and speak nothing other than Bengali (Am I beginning to hate this language??? Hope I do not earn any brickbats for saying this)

ME: Finally we could get a decent looking educated man in Howrah to talk to the guy in BONGLA (Bengali for the uninitiated)... by calling up my cell number

“SHE”: okay...

“SHE”: hmmm...

ME: He was reluctant to give any info abt where he was or who he was... and it was quite clear that this guy would trouble me/us a lot........It was quite straightforward and obvious

“SHE”: yea...

ME: Through a wingie of my friend Prem, We could find someone who could converse with this guy in Bengali and finally I could get some info out of the bastard...

ME: will be back

“SHE”: okay...

“SHE” : come soon ra...atleast tell the endin and go

ME: yeah… back ….. it was the milkman

“SHE”: ohhh...

ME: I am going nowhere until I tell ya all that happened

ME: So where was I?

“SHE”: ok

ME: First I need to know Prem's wingie who helped us a lot by talking with those guyz in Bengali and keeping us informed of what to do

“SHE”: ok ok...

ME: I need to thank him a lot for his help.... This bloody SOB who had my phone started demanding 2000 bucks in return for handing over the phone and that we could get the phone at a station named BAGNAN.... he was very reluctant to come over to Howrah... he knew he would be in a soup if he would come over to Howrah

“SHE”: yea ok...

ME: Finally we fixed a meeting at 5 in the evening at the BAGNAN ticket counter... He would hand over the cell and we were supposed to give him 2000 bucks in return

ME: We left Siva in Calcutta with Ravi, Giri & Kiran. The rest set out to BAGNAN... an hour’s throw from HOWRAH on the way to Kharagpur....

“SHE”: ohhh..so far

ME: We were quite late and got stuck up with Siva that we could board the train at 5 and reached BAGNAN at 6... And that b@$t@rd wasn't there... On contacting him again through Prem's friend.. He was reluctant to meet us.... and he made us wait for an hour promising that he would be there soon

“SHE”: ohhh ok...

ME: later he disclosed he wasn't coming and that we could have the mobile phone only if we could go to his residence.... and that was about an hour from the station we were at. The worst part was that he is member of the ruling CPM party and there’s not one thing that can be done…. Hope IITians are reading.

“SHE”: hmmmm...then

ME: All this looked like some trap – with all that political hullabaloo- and we decided to stay out of it... So I finally decided that I forget about my cell.

ME: and get the sim blocked at the earliest. Got the sim blocked. Now I need to contact the NOKIA customer care to block the cell piece.

“SHE”: ohhh...okay...

“SHE”: so u don’t have the cell now???

“SHE”: my God...thts a bad

“SHE”: endin

One for da Album: Picturesque VICTORIA MEMORIAL

ME: Dead Tired, with no more fluidity in our limbs, we boarded the train to KGP and lo we are here

ME: We went to Kol with the hopes of seeing Rang De Basanti n I also wanted to make a few purchases.. certain camera accessories.

ME: But then the whole trip turned into a nightmare... but hey there is always the right side of the coin, the brighter side of life

“SHE”: yea...

“SHE”: always

ME: No masti, No partying, No MOBILE tooo.... But loads and loads of wisdom

“SHE”: wisdom of life...

ME: That’s true

“SHE”: it wud hav been good if u wud hav got the mobile....

“SHE”: feels bad

ME: Learnt a lot today...... But then I did not have the courage to tell mom all that happened...

ME: I made it known to her... the two facts that I needed her to know..1) My Mobile is missing 2) Siva got badly injured

“SHE”: ohh ok ok...

ME : But in order for her to take the pill easily (better said to save myself and my integrity) I told her that Siva was pushed off a moving train and that My mobile got lost as a result of it being in his hands at that point of time.

“SHE”: ohh...nice twistin bluff....

ME : Finally that makes me guilty.... All this wouldn't have happened had it not been for my hint of carelessness. It feels bad that I am the one responsible for that huge injury... Everything would have been fine had I put my cell in place.

“SHE”: u dint do it wantdly na....things which had to happen ...happnd thts all...

ME: Lying to mom is another difficult thing... but I had to do that to make the pill taste a bit better. I know mom wouldn't have scolded me much for my losing the cell... but then I would have got a lot of reprimand for Siva's actions... Lying to Mom makes me furthermore guilty... But as they say all that happens is for our good... and I hope I can carry forward from today "the memento of priceless friendship"... Beat it if ya can??? Friendship can never be matched. Friendship is ultimate.

“SHE”: yea ra...exactly

“SHE”: even I don’t tell many a things the same manner it happens to my mom...cos ...they think from heart rather than mind...

“SHE”: so it wud become lot more emotional...

ME: ok so telling ya all this reduced a heavy burden... I feel more relaxed... though that remorse feeling still persists... I feel a lil bit better

“SHE”: yea good...

“SHE”: I too feel I hav finished readin a novel

“SHE”: much better effect than tht

ME: is it a compliment or................?

“SHE”: of course a compliment....

“SHE”: unexpected twists and turns...

ME: thanx a lot

ME: after the juggling in and around hospitals, dispensaries and railway stations my whole body had reached the maximum permissible stress strain levels.

ME: So I need to catch up on some valuable sleep

“SHE”: yea sure carry on....

ME: Ok i will use this chat transcript with ya in my blog.... I do not have the time resources to reproduce the entire stuff again... Would ya mind???

“SHE”: no probs...

“SHE”: use it...

ME: ok say somethin else

(continues......)

So that’s it folks. Hope this could teach ya thing or two. Essentially we need to learn from life and make a few changes to our outlook and carry forward in life. As for me.... Though i lost my cell phone, I gained a lot of wisdom. (Hope thats clear from the chat). Some bitter sweet memories. Tonnes n tonnes of friendship that I hope can last for an entire lifetime if not more. Do feel free to post your comments after you complete reading though I am sorry for the length of the post. I could not have made it any shorter. And always remember…. LEARN FROM LIFE & THE WORLD WILL FEEL INFINITELY BETTER.

SF mein MASTI

I am uploading a few photos (obviously taken with my new prized DigiCam) from SPRINGFEST 2K6.... The few days IIT KGP really rocks. But this time around there was dearth of excitement in me....... maybe beacuse i had seen it all once last year. Anyways it is the most happening event in our KGP Life.





The INSTI GATE made in tune to the JUNGLE theme this year around.... Last year was an indian village theme and i was one of the fine arts volunteers.... though i ain't a good hand at drawing or painting... hehehe











Euphoria was the first evening's higlight... though i felt that it was dampener of sorts













The lead singer of Euphoria -- Dr.Palash Sen!!!!
Treat to the ears or..................... Torture????










Shankar Mahadevan in full flow... Man did he rock??? He was simply awesome.. You had to be there to see it.













DA GANG.... Cooling Down after a fiery red SHANKAR MAHADEVAN NITE












DA GANG.... at V G S o M

Yipeeeeeee!!!! My Cam's here

The wait is finally over....... Managed to purchase the CAm of my dreams. I have been waiting for long to purchase a digicam and right now am ecstatic with this sleek creature in my hands. This is a SONY CYBERSHOT DSC - T5 and boy, oh boy, did I love it. It was like love at first sight. The moment my eyes fell on this gorgeous babe... I knew it had to be mine. Now just wish me happy photo-hunting with this.

Illu Frenzy

Man.....Illumination 2005 ---- Disturbing Memories for years to come.
People will not be able to forget the controversy behind the judging of the competition.
Review of that later. Jus enjoy the foto for now.

What to Write

To blog is one thing, To be creative is entirely different. I was wondering yesterday on what next to blog about. Various topics crossed my mind. Should i write fact??? Will a critic of some existant material do fine?? Or Shall i attempt writing a short story or a poem??? What should i then write about??? I was totally confused. So i thought let me look at things i liked reading. What would others like to read could very well match with what i wanted to read myself.
Now another intriguing question pops up. What kind of write ups do i like reading??? Did i know??? After a long thought, i found out reading creative articles - true life incidents, especially -- really captivated me. So i thought i would put on paper [CyberPaper, dunno what else to call this space] certain incidents from my life.
Well, done. But Now which incident is the immediate question. Springing up immediately are these fascinating situations i had to face in life :

1. The Opposite Sex -- U Can't help getting Fascinated..... and Finally attracted
2. Mild Flirtations -- MY FRIENDS in their PRIME
3. Confessions of a Tortured Mind -- One year of Fear in Nalanda preparing for JEE
4. KGP -- Am I Satisfied with this Place????
5. Was I in the wrong place??? -- Stay during Class 1,2,3 in the Girl's Hostel
6. What kind of a place is a Hostel? -- Musings of a 15 year hostellite
7. OP --Orientation Period -- Terrifying????? Naaaaaaaaaah!!!!!!!!!!!!
8. I prefer Snail Mail 2 e-m@il -- Wat abt U?
9. The Nyu Face OF English -- Redefined Spell in the New Era
10. Why I Hate Madras -- 10 Solid Reasons

Ok that was enough.

NEW AIM : All these topics to be posted before the start of END Semester Exams.

END PHRASE : GOD, Please help this confused man, He Thinks Real Absurd.