Gibberafternoon.

Often one doesn't know how to express. But I believe that anyway, one should. Here is a little bit of my life in gibberish. Tell me what you hear.

Argameshun jes tiapro, ti veragutan bee muzadarika. Seemprashuda zesh yo vanista dembo ki ki.

Helwith juha kishee bishee, drik zwik gik.

Mezarukee gembo ikki tikki rikki.

Swamby sheshe origi zeperasush?

Yewo teke honotuda zele opy bekher.

(Now read it again in an angry tone, then a sad tone and finally by making funny faces)

Ho ho ho! The season is here!

Hello guys!

Merry christmas and a very happy new year, in advance. This post is a dedication to a very close friend who has completed yet another year of awesomeness.

I was dressed up as Santa yesterday and was sculpting balloons for children at a well known store. I got a picture of how much one Santa can do for so many children- create or sustain a world of fantasy which exists only in childhood.
If not that much, at least get smiles on the faces of the older kids. Yes, kids can be a pain sometimes. But, at the risk of sounding like a parent already, it all feels worth it to contribute a little bit of happiness to their lives.

It felt so good to really go out there and spread happiness and that too, was overly exaggerated for me because I never say ,"HO HO HO!" thirty times an hour. It made me realize what we really miss out on thanks to our inhibitions of being open in expressing what we feel for people, maybe at the risk of sounding stupid. Yes, I had apprehensions about being a public Santa. But I thought it to be worth the risk. And yes, it was. There was a lady who came with an infant in her hand and spoke to him saying, "Oh see! Your first Santa!". The mother clicked a photograph of the seven-odd month old in his father's arms with me. And all that I could think of was 'Wow!'. There were some six year old's who gave me one of the best responses for the balloons I sculpted for them. So much happiness.

It was a pain sometimes because there were seventy odd children and managing them, their emotions and their mother's emotions and turning them into happiness was a task. I had to build impromptu stories and manage the crowd as I simultaneously pumped air into the balloons and twisted and turned them into Christmas goodies for the children.

The experience made me realize how I am different when I was known to the world as Santa and not Avinash Shahri. The former had a huge deal of happiness to provide. The latter was tired after the event, but left fulfilled. Same person.

To think of it, this whole episode reminds of this birthday girl. Why? Because she always spreads happiness. That's it. She spreads, happiness. Happy birthday.Andwatelse?

Float like a butterfly, Sting like a bee

I am going through a very typical 4:14 am syndrome. A syndrome which puts a lot in one's head to think and overrides sleep. To go through this syndrome is beautiful as it ceases to exist only after a blog post is put up. A blog post is expression in the form of text. I feel that one would benefit a great deal by having a habit of regularly expressing in a certain form - dancing, painting, writing and singing being the popular ways. Eventually, one does gain a certain expertise over such a form of expression, so much so, that one begins to enjoy it.

Each one of us has a different approach to forms and styles of expression. Each one of us will be different at it. Any two Bharat-Natyam dancers, with a similar body structure and training period, who train under the same guru will be unequivocally different in their stage performance. One's way of doing things is heavily influenced by one's style of expression. Taking into consideration the larger picture, one's profession and style of communication become an expression of humanity that the world remembers, even after one is dead. Then the world defines this person in a line, or maybe a few words.

I am moved by the definition (nickname) that a certain person got from humanity. He is called 'The Greatest'. His name is Muhammad Ali.

They say, that Muhammad Ali was a good fighter, but when he would attack, there could possibly not be anyone better- "Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee" . The following video captures the last few seconds of the famous match between the two greats - Muhammad Ali and George Foreman, popularly called as 'The Rumble in the Jungle'.



You will see in the video that he is calm and playing along as if it's the normal business that he is into. But he knows. He knows when his real game begins. He has calculated that already, but even as the planned time to begin the blitz nears, his head is as cool as a cucumber, muscles are as relaxed as they could be in a boxing match and overall performance is that of an ordinary pugilist. With the blink of an eye, in an unexpected moment, Muhammad Ali as if transforms into an angry salivating predator. And even before one cares to notice - Bam Boom Bam Dhish! K.O.

I am in so much of awe of Muhammad Ali as his approach has always worked for me. And when I consciously decided to 'Float like a butterfly and sting like a bee' it worked even better. Infact, it gave me this result of winning luxuriously with a good lead from the runner up, a feeling of being 'The Greatest' in my small little game.

So, who is your inspiration?

Aaj tere tiffin mein kya hai?

As I was reading a post- Healthy. Wealthy. And almost Wise. by a fellow blogger , who mentioned in that the joy of sharing food, I realised how I deeply enjoy this and hence thought that this definitely deserves a blog post, which of course is only an extension of her idea!

It happens everywhere- when colleagues open their lunch dabbas in offices, when small cute kiddos, who leave home with water bottles around their necks, open their double-decker boxes in short breaks. (The boys often show off the pokemon, superheroes and wrestling star designs on them)

It happens everywhere- when we see three auto-rickshaw wallas sitting so that two are behind and one is in the front facing them, late in the night or early in the evening, waiting for that guy to open the dabba who had his turn to cook that day.

It happens everywhere, and this being the best food sharing ever, when Gujjus meet Punjabis, when Sindhis meet Andhra-ites and when Keralites meet Maharashtrians on overnight journeys while sharing berths in trains. Because then, there is Bhatura-Shaak, Chhole-Dhokla, Koki with Pudina Chutney, Sai bhaji with Hyderabadi Biryani, Vada-Appam and Fish-curry with Pav.

The awesomeness that this is, I have heard, does not exist abroad. And Dev Kolhi, while writing lyrics, forgot to mention this one in his song "It happens only in India". There are chances that I settle abroad. Chances that a CA student has at thinking after a full day class at JK Shah Classes (that being the most popular one..yes this one's for you my friend!).But anyway, if I ever settle abroad, this might just be the thing which will pull me back to this beautiful country.

Superhero Comeback

Sitting in the corner of his room,
With his knees pressed to his chest,
Praying for a magic broom,
He is far, far from his crest.

He has more than one to care for,
More than one battle to fight,
Everything is moving fast in his head,
Searching for the light, now out of sight.

He could, with just a flick, die,
And all the world could suffer,
That would be because Mr.Superhero,
Was actually, a complete duffer.

Heavy duty, heavy fear,
And nothing is not unclear,
Weariness of the mind,
Leaves him far behind.

Another story on the news
Of Humanity's abuse,
He stands up and holds his head,
"This repression will not last", he yelled.

Makes a plunge to the ceiling,
And out into the sky,
a loud divine pealing,

(The audience would surely sigh)

Mountain strong, Cannonball-King Kong,
The world at his feet,
"Superhero, superhero", pointing to him,
A boy yelled out on the street.

After this all the action lies,
When he beats the bad guy's ass,
Saves the day, saves the city,
And in the end, he gets his lass.

Morning by the Sea

 The wind from the sea hits my right cheek,

As my feet get salty and wet.

Sleepless, my walk is meek,

The radio of my mind, at one station I can’t set.

Every step leaves a deep mark in the wet sand,

And when my feet get sticky with muck,

The frothy waves make every grain disband,

But some between my toes, themselves tuck.

The last deep mark I leave behind I can see,

When I turn around to look at its depth,

I see no other footprint of mine and look at the sea,

The sea of life that does magic with its stealth.

So then why do I see my steps,

Right or wrong,

With the eye of my mind and reminisce

Everything I did in the form of a song.

The sand, though, doesn’t end,

It goes on, till the end of land,

So much more energy left to spend,

I start to run, only to make the percussion grand.

Winning the Shield

I dedicate this post to my close friends and family who helped me reach to a state described at the end of this article. And if you are wondering whether you are a part of this group, stop wondering fool. You are.
 
In our life, some things are more important than the others. That is always how it works. Some might call this phenomenon 'Setting Priorities'. Same thing.

Sometimes, we lose a very important thing, that is, one of our priorities. What I mean to say here is, that we as human beings think that we can live without some people/objects and cannot live without some people/objects. Well, I am not going to talk about objects here. That is because if we lose an object, we can get it back. That is not true with people.

Some of us think we cannot live without our parents, whereas for some of us a partner is most important. And then someday, we lose that particular friend, partner or parent. What happens next?

Life stands still? Of course it does. It feels as if time has frozen. Numbness arises not in body, but in the mind. At the most, we are touched by our close ones, that too only to a certain extent. It is only that warmth that penetrates through the invisible shield we build around us.

It is intrinsic to human nature- the building of the invisible shield. Some shields take years to break, some shields break in a day and some shields never break. The shields that do not break in a lifetime are rare cases. They involve extreme intensity in the relationship. They are quite often seen in the cases when a mother loses her child. The next frequently observed case is the case of lovers parting, who have taken to a great level of attachment. Except in these cases, which become the talk of the town because they are so few, the shield generally does break.

Now let me tell you about the rules of the shield. These rules do not point to a new discovery, it is just the way I express the dictum of the old and the wise, as I experience and learn. The shield makes productive emotions dormant and puts them into a lull. Now, productive emotions could be any emotion that assists us in getting forward in life in any way. Whereas, the unproductive emotions get magnified. This is because the part of our unproductive emotions which are for people in our lives, get redirected towards us as a function of the shield.

All in all, it is a pathetic and messed up state. So how do we help this? How do we get ourselves out of this? All of us put effort and fail in these phases of life where upset only seems to be growing like a rolling avalanche. The more we try, the harder we fall. So what is the way out?

Well, I have come across a possible answer to this. There is no way out. It is life. Life will get us out of such phases. And in a way, which makes us believe in life, more than anything else.Some call it God, some call it their own hard work. I do not say that working hard to get out of the situation is not required. But I choose to call it life. I could also call it time and I truly believe in the concept of time healing all wounds. There could be scars, but the wounds get healed. But I call it life, because life is bigger as it not only removes the shield, but also leaves us with something beautiful at the end.


Last night, I got rid of such a shield.

Laugh

If you are thinking too much,

You’re right,its too much,

And you will know it as such,

That  it was all a mind’s lurch

Sir laugh, sir laugh,

It was all a stupid faff.

And the sad morning

Will set the sun winning,

The player should not stop

The music rocks on with jazz pop.

Sir laugh, sir laugh,

It was all a stupid faff.

 God too, has many a problem,

That day he told me some of them,

One was an identity crisis,

Some call him Allah,some Jesus.

So sir laugh, sir laugh,

It is all a stupid faff.

Well you know that words change it all,

Some meaningful and some small,

But have you ever thought my dear mister,

That they could also mean nothing at all.

So sir laugh, sir laugh

It’s all a stupid faff.

You are born to live,

But never die to live,

Is that something fair or dark,

Is a lark always as happy as a lark?

And sir laugh, sir laugh

It’s all a stupid faff.

Game?

Directed by Yann Samuell, this French movie, Jeux d'enfants (Love Me If You Dare) is an unconventional, colourful movie which steps in between two worlds- one world being the world that we live in, which acquiesces to social norms and conventions and the other being the one which is the home of fairies and elves. But on the whole, the plot attempts to depict love and companionship in a very different light. 

The two characters in the movie are best friends since childhood. They tread an unusual path in their life using their childhood game of daring each other to a certain task. This game is extended by the two from their classroom environment to the big bad world, from the innocent days to the days when one starts meaning serious business. And this is exactly how the roller coaster starts moving on dangerous curves.

This movie makes us think about the right and the wrong, the appropriate and the inappropriate and the penny in the pocket while we pursue more, but only in hope.

It leaves the audience with a vagueness, which will only further thought. Gripping to the core, this movie makes you enjoy the journey of the two characters in love and their ups through heaven and downs in hell. All in all it is a lot of fun and leaves you, at times aghast and at times in peals of laughter.  

I just have one word for this movie. Mad. 

One

So many times I feel I disappear,

When love fills up the atmosphere,

Feeling light, I feel so free,

I dont understand what's wrong with me!

The music is going down into me,

From the head right into the knee.

I forget worries, I forget all pain,

Only sounds flow into my pulmonary vein,

The heartbeat is perfect percussion,

Strings of nerves complete composition.

The music is going down into me,

From the head right into the knee.

I slowly, lose my identity

Becoming the music, the music becoming me,

Every tune reminds me of someone,

That is how, you and I will be one.

The music is going down into me,

From the head right into the knee.