Epitaph for my lost mobile

An epitaph for my lost mobile 3100: You came into my life when I needed you the most! You recorded the best and worst moments of my life (in photographs). You were the one who helped me talk to my my friend, philosopher and guide! I shall remember you ALWAYZ..I just wish u happiness wherever you are....ALVIDA! :D
Anyone who wants to pay last tributes to my 'late' cell can do so...right here!

Ad-filmmaker Prasoon Joshi expresses his grief...

Is baar nahin
Is baar jab woh choti si bachchi mere paas apni kharonch le kar aayegi
Main usey phoo phoo kar nahin behlaoonga
Panapney doonga uski tees ko
Is baar nahin
Is baar jab main chehron par dard likha dekhoonga
Nahin gaoonga geet peeda bhula dene wale
Dard ko risney doonga,
utarney doonga andar gehreyIs baar nahin
Is baar main na marham lagaoonga
Na hi uthaoonga rui ke phahey
Aur na hi kahoonga ki tum aankein band karlo, garden udhar kar lo main dawa lagata hoon
Dekhney doonga sabko hum sabko khuley nangey ghaav
Is baar nahin
Is baar jab uljhaney dekhoonga,chatpatahat dekhoonga
Nahin daudoonga uljhee door lapetney
Uljhaney doonga jab tak ulajh sake
Is baar nahinIs baar karm ka hawala de kar nahin uthaoonga auzaarNahin karoonga phir se ek nayee shuruaat
Nahin banoonga misaal ek karmyogi ki
Nahin aaney doonga zindagi ko aasani se patri par
Utarney doonga usey keechad main,tedhey medhey raston pe
Nahin sookhney doonga deewaron par laga khoon
Halka nahin padney doonga uska rang
Is baar nahin banney doonga usey itna laachaar
Ki paan ki peek aur khoon ka fark hi khatm ho jaye
Is baar nahin
Is baar ghawon ko dekhna hai Gaur se
Thoda lambe wakt tak Kuch faisley
Aur uskey baad hausley
Kahin toh shuruat karni hi hogiIs baar yahi tay kiya hai

Mumbai attacks: A msg for the terrorists!

Dear friends across India and the world,
We're all feeling the shock of the awful attacks in Mumbai. All our hearts go out to the victims and their families. The attacks were aimed at our people, our prosperity and our peace. But their top target was something else: our unity. If these attacks cause us to turn on each other in hatred and conflict, the terrorists will have won. They know that hatred and chaos feed on division. As radical extremists, their only hope of winning is by turning the rest of us against each other. Let's deny them that victory. We're launching a message to extremists on all sides and all our political leaders, one that will soon be published in newspapers across India and Pakistan. The message is that these tactics have failed, that we're more united than ever, united in our love and support to each other, determined to work together against terror and call on our leaders to do the same. If millions of people sign it, our message will be unmistakable, click below to sign it and please forward this email widely:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/india_undivided/98.php/?cl_tf_sign=1
It's time to speak out, let's do it together.

Thanks,
Venkat Ananth

Mumbai attacks: A msg for the terrorists!

Dear friends across India and the world,
We're all feeling the shock of the awful attacks in Mumbai. All our hearts go out to the victims and their families. The attacks were aimed at our people, our prosperity and our peace. But their top target was something else: our unity. If these attacks cause us to turn on each other in hatred and conflict, the terrorists will have won. They know that hatred and chaos feed on division. As radical extremists, their only hope of winning is by turning the rest of us against each other. Let's deny them that victory. We're launching a message to extremists on all sides and all our political leaders, one that will soon be published in newspapers across India and Pakistan. The message is that these tactics have failed, that we're more united than ever, united in our love and support to each other, determined to work together against terror and call on our leaders to do the same. If millions of people sign it, our message will be unmistakable, click below to sign it and please forward this email widely:
http://www.avaaz.org/en/india_undivided/98.php/?cl_tf_sign=1
It's time to speak out, let's do it together.

Thanks,
Venkat Ananth

Mumbai attacks: 'An eye for an eye'

An 'eye-for-eye' seems to be the refrain of terrorists these days... They seem to be having a go at every other city in India... (experimenting, I suppose!)... The chronology is completing itself in an alphabetical order too: Ahmedabad, Assam, Bangalore, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Delhi, Guwahati, Kolkata, Mumbai... and this list continues.
Even as I am writing this blog, fresh firing and explosions can be heard at the Trident and Oberoi in Mumbai. The Taj Hotel, Mumbai's oldest hotel, is slowly getting destroyed by terrorists who have lost their humanity and are fanatic robots following orders of emotion-less 'terrorists'!
Apart from terrorists bombing our country, our own TV channels seem to be no less in sensationalising the terror attacks across the nation. They keep bombarding and raising the heckles of the public with their striking headlines! India TV even went, rather stooped to the extent of airing an interview with an atankwadi who belonged to a terror group called Deccan Mujahideen. In the history of Indian television, no terrorist has directly spoken to a channel...then why choose India TV...The questions asked were as follows: (As if terrorists care about India TV, huh!):
India TV: Aap kitne log hain Taj mein?
Aatankwadi: Hum kyun bataye hum kitne log hain
Interviewer: Dekhiye, agar aap sab bol rahe hain ki is waqt aap Taj mein hain, toh hum jaanna to chahenge hi...
Aatankwadi: Achcha, hum saat log hain
Interviewer: Ab bataiye ki aap kyun yahan par aaye hain? Aap yahan kyun aatank macha rahe hain?
Aatankwadi: Hum bas hum par (musalmanon) par ho rahe atyacharon ka badla le rahe hain!
Before the interviewer could start asking any further questions, the 'aatankwadi' hung up on him...
The media has made a circus of the entire gun firing and encounter - it looks more like the T20 match where the commentator updates us ball-by-ball about how many wickets are gone! Ironically, this time it is innocent people holed up in the hotels...what have they done? and a news anchor constantly shouting out into the mike about how many terrorists have taken ppl hostage! To top it all, idiotic politicians criticising the government and their policies and indulging in mud-slinging.
I am actually numbed about the fact that Mumbai and India in general has become so vulnerable that anyone could attack it from anywhere - sea/road/rail/even air!
Anger seeps in when I find politicians hogging all limelight just at a time when the NSG and Army and all the armed forces are uniting to save the hostages...
We talk about voting for the right government, but where is that 'right' person! Whichever govt comes, India is always attacked. Why can't our politicians think beyond votebanks and for once help create one federal body, and try and work out stern measures to root out terrorism from India! The very fact that terrorists attack only India and Pakistan (in South Asia) (looking back at statistics, I come to the conclusion that China, Korea and Japan have remained unscathed), shows that we are totally TFGs (taken for granted). Our Govt has been so soft on terror and terrorists that external elements now feel it is their birthright to attack us left, right and centre! All I want is that arrested terrorists must be given capital punishment so the next time they come attacking here, they will think twice!
People often poke fun at me being proud of being a Mumbaiikar - but so wat? I cannot stop caring for a city and its people even if am not living there...My birth city has given me my identity, afterall! So, I would also want as a citizen of India, to ask the Government to become more responsible and help uphold the nation's pride! For now, Jai Mumbai, Jai Maharashtra!

Driving away mid-week blues with Shafqat Amanat Ali

Read my interview at: 

https://smallscreenaddict.blogspot.com/2021/03/i-can-connect-to-god-through-sufi.html

https://www.hindustantimes.com/music/i-can-connect-to-god-through-sufi/story-wtIgpMthH4Qh47zOVGUZbM.html
 

Sufi music has been popular with people who liked soft music while going on long drives. 

It has remained an all-time favourite of people especially after NDTV Imagine's programme Junoon: Kuchh kar dikhane ka. 

Of late, a genre called Sufi rock has taken birth. Pakistani, as well as Indian bands, are popularising it. 

Be it Jal, Strings, Abida Parveen, Allan Fakir, Kailash Kher, Rabbi Shergill or the latest Sufi sensation Shafqat Amanat Ali - Ustad Amanat Ali's son - all share one common factor in them - they all specialise in this genre. Shafqat Amanat Ali's Sufi rock cured me of all my day's blues on a rainy Wednesday evening. 

Braving heavy showers, like other Sufi lovers, I too managed to reach Siri Fort well in time for the concert. 

Let me confess this was my first live Sufi concert and probably my dream one, too! I had butterflies in my stomach as I took my place in the packed auditorium. The concert kicked off with an introduction to Shafqat and the launch of his latest album Tabeer. 

As the hall became dark, Shafqat with his band Fuzon, belted out my favourite numbers Mora Sayyan (Khamaj), Yeh Haunsla (Dor), and all songs from his latest album. Shafqat even went to the audience and invited three people from the audience who sang 'Yeh Haunsla' with him on the stage. He was also the voice, which enthralled listeners with 'Mitwa' from the movie Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna. His album Tabeer was launched by Music Today through a three-city launch tour, in New Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata. 

One identifiable feature about his voice is that when he speaks on the mike, its barely audible, but at the same time, you would be shocked at the pitch that he sings in. After the formal launch of his new album, he transported the audience from the real world to his own world - the world of music. 

For two hours, we remained entranced as the music ebbed and flowed from soft numbers like Teray Bina, Khairheyan de naal, Mora sayyan, Ankhon ke sagar, naina to fast-paced rock numbers like Dum-ali-dum-ali.

Books for a Woman's soul!

Have you ever wondered what is it with women and that self-help' book section in the bookstore? Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus, Who Moved your Cheese?, A Fish Tale. These names may sound familiar to you. In case you haven't you can go to any bookstore's 'Self-help' or 'Non-fiction' segment and check them out.
Wait, in case you are still wondering what I am talking about, then let me tell you that I am actually talking about the Chicken Soup series and the How-to-win-back-your-husband/girlfriend/boyfriend type of books - those which you might scoff at and end up believing, sometimes even following the tips given in these books to solve your life's crises - very religiously!
In fact, having read a few such books, I remained curious behind the psyche of picking these books from the bookshelf to simply even flip through! The titles too attract your attention. Some even have an attractive coffee table book jacket with some good eye-catching graphics.
I spoke to most of my friends and a few colleagues - some of whom agreed, while others disagreed with my theory that self-help books become a part-and-parcel of a woman's existence, helping her through the most difficult times.
Sumegha, a student of Delhi college of Arts and Commerce, says that she read some of them more out of curiosity, initially. But admits the main reason one would pick up such books are when you may feel low or defeated. For instance, she read Born to win after she was rejected in LSR college, and says she got good vibes and positive thoughts after reading it.
Sometimes bitter personal experiences make one read these books too. Twenty-seven-year-old interior designer Amrita Singh, who has had several heartbreaks, has now turned to relationship books to find solace. "I have read a couple of books on relationships by Paulo Coelho, but found them very depressing. I recently read 'The Secret' by Rhonda Byrne and found the chapter on love and friendship very interesting. Another book that I have read is 'Brida' by Paulo Coelho, which is also about love and finding your soulmate," she says.
If these books are so 'preachy', then what is the reason behind such a huge readership? Well, surprisingly most women feel that they could either identify with the protagonist of the book or one of the situations mentioned in it. Media professional Nitasha Sharma says that when she began reading Sheila O Flanagan's Yours faithfully, she began to identify with the second wife of the man in the book, even thinking of what would she as the second wife do after she found out about her husband's first marriage. Such is the involvement that the author creates with the reader!

Some say these books even help them analyse their present situation/crises in their life. Media professional Kanika Mehta says she reads them to just analyse her feelings and reactions to people. "They kind of reaffirm my stand at times," she explains, saying that most people read these books to know their boyfriends or life partners better. Both guys and girls want to sort out problems between friends and more than 50 per cent are low on confidence and use these as morale boosters. How true, isnt't it?
For Srishti Jha, a student of Miranda House, these books have never ended up mapping her life. She says, "Reading books on relationships makes me to look at life in different colours and strengthens my approach towards relationships in my life. Such books really help me discovering my limits and the limits that I should pose to people in my life. I have read the God Of Small Things. But, they have never influenced me nor have they changed my way of thinking."Agreeing with Srishti, a former staffer of Crossword, Suja Pisharody says women can read these books, but they cannot expect to live their life according to the diktats of the book. So, one must not take these books seriously - especially to improve your relationships with your family/spouse/even friends!
At the end of it all, I was even more surprised when I found out that even men read such books. DJ Madhu Prasad admits he just wanted to read these books to find out what people think when they write about these topics. "I have read Boundaries: When to Say Yes, When to Say No to Take Control of Your Life by Henry Cloud and John Townsend," he says.
Women after all have been known to be 'emotional' fools and it's an open secret that all women at some point in their life, do read these books - accept or reject it!