That time of the year…

This is the time of the year that I really hate. This is the time u see some things for the last time in your life. We know that one day we all have to part. We know that this day would come. But may be we thought that this day is far away. How far… we never calculated. And one fine morning when you wake up.. you realize that the worst nightmare,… the day is finally here. And tomorrow you will have to start a new life. Everything new.. new friends, new atmosphere… And there is an unknown fear, deep down in the heart. A feeling which cannot be put in words. Till today, you know…

The friends who will take care of you when you cry,

The friends in whom you can confide everything,

The friends with whom you share your joys and sorrows,

The friends, with whom you quarrel, fight and again make up,

The friends who stay with you during your bad times,

And today is the day when you have to part and you will have to lead your own life. And you never know when you would meet them, those with which you have spent four lovely years with. Those years which would be cherished forever. Those years in which you discover your real self. Those years which decide the rest of your life. And tomorrow you step into a new world… A world where self motives and personal gains rule. And you are gonna face that new world without friends beside you. You are alone. You do not know whom to trust and whom not to. You are at the end of a joyful journey. And today I stand there at the end of that beautiful journey. And its time to say good bye to my dear friends.. those who have stayed with me for the four crucial and memorable years of my life. Its time I thank them for all the wonderful things they bestowed upon me. I am gonna cherish all those moments when we laughed together, supported each other, quarreled with one another, patched up again, had a few classes together,… for the rest of my life. I have no more words. But I can just tell you..

I love you and miss you…

The MiGs

Lots of crazy dreams.. and lemme share one such dream..

I just finished watching Top Gun and I already started admiring Tom Cruise. I just wondered if I could ever see a MiG leave alone the thought of flying one. But my heart was craving for one such experience. This was a few months ago. Days passed by …. One fine morning, in the emag class, the Prof announced a trip to air force station at Kalaikunda. I gave my name for the trip without any second thought. And finally the day came…

5^th of February, 2008...We gathered in front of the ECE dep at 8 am.I bunked 4 classes that morning. We were asked not to carry cell phones or cameras. And I am very crazy about photographs from my childhood days. Disappointed.. yet excited about the trip, we drove off to the base. Spring season… Pleasant weather… Greenery everywhere on the way.. reached Kalaikunda in 20 minutes.

We were welcomed to the (5 Wings) Kalaikunda Air Force Base by the Air Officer Commanding (A.O.C), Air Commodore P.S. Gill (VM- Vayu Sena Medal) and a detailed presentation was made by Wing Commander Mehra (Commanding Officer, 18 Squadron). We were briefed about the air force operations in India. This was followed by an action packed visit to the Air Traffic Control Tower. A very detailed explanation was provided with a lot of patience by Flying Officer, Jyothi. We not only got to hear the ongoing conversation between the traffic control and the flying pilots, but also got to see the MiG 27 and MiG 23 in action at very close quarters, both while taking off and while landing.

Next a visit to the aircraft service and maintenance section was organized, and an over view, that went into minute details, was given by Wing Commander Aaron Hurtis (STO- Senior Technical Officer). Squadron Leader Pahwa, very diligently explained the innards of the Mig 27 and also the functioning of the Electronic systems inside the aircraft. We were not only allowed to get close to, but also to touch these very sleek birds.

Next, a visit to the ultra modern, Air Traffic Control Radar (Rs.36 Crores) was organized and Wing Commander K N Venkatesh was brilliant in explaining to us the principles of this nodding Radar encompassing the whole gamut of electronics, from Digital Signal Processing to Electromagnetics!

Lastly, the memorable visit to the station was given a grand finale by squaring off with High Tea at the Air Force Officers Mess. The delicacies prepared by the Air Force Kitchen, the accompanying splendour, will not be easily forgotten by most of us. The officers mess secretary, Wg Cdr N.K.Kohli (also the Senior Meteorology officer) himself was there to personally ensure the high standards of the Air Force Messes. This whole affair was planned and managed with Military precision by Flying Officer Manoj Kumar (Public relations Officer).

When I saw the MiGs taking off and landing at such close proximity, I could not ask for anything more. I was more than elated. Then we boarded the bus and as the poem goes

A gentle breeze,
Blowing.
Carrying a faint sweet scent.
A sweet smell
And I get lost
In memories...

And when I open my eyes.. I could see the main insti building and written on it are the words “ Dedicated to the service of the nation”.

Winter of '08

It was unplanned , and which now seems to be the best thing that cud have happened. Just came out of the blues… a trip to Shimla… booked the tickets. But not confirmed. Finally the day came and still it was under waiting list. Suma and Darshi were in lab. I and Rach went to the station at 2 in the afti and luckily got 4 tickets confirmed under EQ. The train was scheduled at 5:40 in the evening. We rang up the people in lab and gave them the good news. We had just one hour to pack.

Next scene.. We were sitting in the train. As we moved towards north, the temperature began declining and we started putting on more clothing. It was supposed to be a 28 hour journey, but the train was delayed by 3 hours. Prabhjot thankfully had brought a nice thick blanket and when we were nearing Delhi we found each of us fighting for it, and Prince Blanket in highest demand [:P] We played Cards. Suma was busy solving her Sudoku puzzles, Darshi absorbed in Paul Coelho’ s ‘ Zahir’, Prabhjot as usual busy in sleeping :D, Rachana in clicking pictures every 5 minutes, myself and Mehak playing cards. Finally we reached the country’s capital at 1 in the night ,and O my god ,it was so damn chilly . Prabhjot’s bro our saviour ,he came to receive us and took us to Chandigarh. I was fast asleep n don’t remember the journey. I woke up at Prabhjot’s sweet home.

I couldn’t still believe that we were in Chandigarh. It all happened in a wink. A capital of Haryana and Punjab, Chandigarh is India’s first planned city and is known for its high standard of living with the highest per capita income in the country. And it is rightly called ‘The City Beautiful’. We visited the Rock Gardens which has an exquisite artwork made from industrial and urban waste. Thousands of animal and humanoid figures made out of multicoloured useless stones, industrial and urban waste and other throwaways is the main attraction of this unique Rock Garden. Streams and waterfalls weave around the pathways. The Rock Garden can be fully appreciated only by visiting it, by walking through it and studying it. And we had a great time there. And then in Sukhna lake, we went on a boat cruise. There we met the “ You-know-who” (sssh….) who gave us a tr8 at sector 17.

The next day we were there in the innova travelling all the way to Shimla, across the mountains, ups and downs, twisted curves, leaving our stomachs upset. Shimla, the ‘Queen of hill stations’ was considered as the summer capital of India before independence. At 5:30 in the evening,(prabhjot’s expected 1hr journey turned out to be long 5 hrs, ahh we know dats quite normal wherever she’s involved ) we reached Shimla and wandered about on the mall road. It was so cold that I took out my blanket and used it as a shawl in spite of putting on a sweater and jerkin besides 2 tops. It was -0.8 deg C at the ridge point. We met the You-know-who (???) there. We were expecting snow fall but ohh we had to wait for it a bit more. We were eager to get back to the guesthouse and get rid of the biting cold in the open. It was freezing inside the guest house also. The effect of the room heater was felt only in a radius of 2 feet. I wonder if we could build houses with materials which keep the interiors warm without being influenced by the outside temperatures. Hmmm.. Should I enroll myself in a PhD program and work on this?? Naaahh.. That doesn’t sound good. Anyway, that night we saw ‘Kaufnak’ a horror serial before going to bed.

Scene 2…..On the way to Kufri. As we moved towards Kufri, we could see traces of ice on the way. We were so excited and when we reached Kufri, there was snow all around us and the snow fall has also begun. Our happiness knew no bounds. We were thrilled. We saw people on horse backs riding up a pathway. So we also decided to mount horses. A pair of horses were tied up and led by a person. Four of us mounted on 2 pairs of horses. As we moved up, we were scared. The pathway was just 5 feet wide. One side fenced and the other side a deep valley. One wrong step and you would be in heaven. We were terrified but thrilled at d same . Horses were slipping. In the midway, it was too steep and so we had to walk there. There was frozen ice beneath our boots and we were slipping down. Finally the hard way was over and we mounted on horses again. We reached the topmost point. We were at an altitude of 2510 m. It was freezing but we did not feel the cold because we were scared. There we got down and visited the nag mandir, apple gardens and fun world. We also played with snow. Now we were literally shivering. Time to get back. And horses again through the dangerous route. This time it was all the more terrifying. All four horses were tied like train compartments. Mine was the last and Suma’s was third. A small kid was leading the first horse. As we moved on, my horse was moving faster than Suma’s and to give way Suma’s horse was heading towards the valley. Suma was shouting and screaming on top of her voice. I then realized that I was also screaming but Darshi was still so excited and thrilled and was enjoying every moment laughing at our screams , I just felt like kicking her :P She failed to realize our hazardous situation :D At that moment nothing mattered except life. No grades, no placements, no movies,.. nothing. Just wanted to live. Wanted to reach KGP safely. And nothing else. We were literally praying. But we could not stand this any longer. So we stopped the horses and walked all the way down. That was one terrifying experience of my life. Then, we travelled back to Chandigarh. The Shimla chapter was over with lots of exhilaration and exalt, and hundreds of snaps each narrating its own story.

The next day we visited various Gurdwaras in Chandigarh with parbhjot’s mom and Dad . We travelled back to Delhi although no one was in a mood to get back from there. Then again a long journey back to Kharagpur, but this time no enthu no excitement, after all who wants to get back to the routine again. The best part of the trip was that I learnt hindi thanx to Darshi nd Prabhs..[:P]

Six days of fun. An awesome trip(with more than 80 hrs of journey). An amazing experience. A memorable journey. And thanks Prabhjot. We had a great time at your house and with your cutie pie Tingu Singh, muaaahh !!!

At the Central

The other day I caught up with a best friend of mine at the Hyderabad Central. A perfect spot for hanging around. Both of us love to shop or atleast to just move around and have a look at the latest things in the market. So we moved on from counter to counter and had tried different things but could not select atleast one. Then we saw a gal in her teens. She just walked about and picked 4 to 5 dresses, while talking on her mobile and then went to the cash section, paid the bill and left... Everything was over in 15 min. And we were wandering there for about two hours or so. Then we thought, 'after the next six months, even we are goin to come and shop that way.' I doubt when would the next six months come. Now, the place seemed boring and so we decided to change place. From there we headed towards the City Center, had an ice cream but realising that it was not enough we went up to a Chinese restaurant. We had a sumptuous meal. By the way it was a treat from my friend and I love treats. Now apparels seemed to be boring. So we turned towards footware. And then books. And then we saw something interesting..yes hats!!! Ever since I have watched the movie 'Titanic', I have become crazy about those hats. So, we tried the hats. They were marvelous. And then we looked at the prices. My heart skipped a beat. Luckily we had a cam with us. So immediately we clicked the pics and placed the hats back in the original places and walked out decently. We looked at the time and realised that we had been hanging out for 6 hours. And my friend purchased just a pair of chappals. And me nothing. So we had a recap of all the things we saw and then quickly decided what to buy and went back to get them. Then the moon was up in the sky and it was time we bade goodbye to each other. By the way you can see my dearest friend, Lavanya in the pink hat. She loves pink. And me blue.

A trip to old traditions

Last one month was a period of solitude and peace,.. away from the deadlines, exams, presentations etc,... It was time I visited my native place.. far from the tall buildings, crowded roads, noisy cars and busy life. A serene place.. a stream that flows by the side of the road, fields on either side, a pleasant climate where you dont have to wrap yourself in swetters and blankets... a truely warm welcome. But slowly even these beautiful places are undergoing transition.. towards a fast and busy life.

I wonder that the work here is still carried out by the old methods. Its not that the new technologies aren't introduced here..but it is the mind set of the people that makes a difference. There are gas stoves, grinders, etc,.. but their use is minimal. When I asked them why... they simply said, 'taste the food cooked by using stoves as well as by the old means. You will know why.' I did and I truely understood why.


How many of us just go to the garden and decide which curry is to be cooked today and get most of the ingredients required for cooking from the garden? Today we have got neither space nor time. How many of us go to a nearby library and spend some of the leisure time by turning the pages of our favourite books? When my mom described the way they used to celebrate the festivals in her childhood, I was dumbstruck to see the drastic change. Today on any festival, we just cook something special, do some puja and then sit in front of the telivision or computer. We just wish friends through emails. It is just a holiday for us. But in those days,every festival be it ugadi or sankranthi or deepawali, was celebrated in a unique way. I wonder how many people still make rangolis in front of their homes during festivals. In the name of development, even in villages many of the traditions are being wiped out. By running after the comforts offered by the modern technology , we are missing the delicacies offered by our old culture and traditions. I do not ask to adopt the old ways and abandon the new ones. I only ask to take some time once in a while and try the old ones out. Lets preserve the old traditions for the next generations or they will never know!!!