Khatte Mithe Pal Jeevan ke, nostalgia, experiences, family, humour

अजगर करे न चाकरी पंछी करे न काम,  दास मलूका कह गए सब के दाता राम! The literal meaning of the above saying is that “neither the python does any job, nor the bird does any work. Saint Maluka has said that the God takes care of all!” The moral of this saying is that even if one does not do any work, God is there to feed them. Now friends, before you bombard me with endless questions and infinite logics such as even the python has to make efforts to catch his prey and the bird has to get up early morning to catch worm etc., let me remind you, that the above words are not mine, they are said by Saint Maluka! The reason I am sharing this with you is because they help me console myself when I encounter some person being paid (especially by me) without doing anything and I am sure that these words might act as a consolation to you as well. I am sure, if the Saint would have been alive today, he would have taken his words back on seeing just how many people are desperately trying ...

  I agree that times flies, and happier time flies faster. So much has changed during these seventeen years… . From a little bundle packed carefully in warm clothes, you have turned into a tall girl, smartly dressed with matching accessories. As a two year old, you chose a sandal for me in a shoe shop and kept on insisting that I buy it, now I prefer taking you along to help me shop. As a three year old you cried so much as you wanted to wear the newly bought night suit while going for an outing, now you never step out of the house in a clumsy dress. On my birthday or marriage anniversary, you presented me cards made with your unskilled, little hands, now you surprise me with your beautiful post on my Facebook wall. You used to serve me imaginary tea and snacks in your kitchen set, now I cherish the ginger tea you prepare for me. I used to bring books for you and tried hard to make you read them, now you suggest me the books I should read make sure that I f...

The first time we visited Goa, the thing that fascinated my three year old daughter most was parasailing. I remember, she was so fascinated by it that she would start running behind the man carrying his parasailing equipment, and we had great difficulty in bringing her back. At that time she was not eligible for parasailing, and even if she would have been eligible, I would never have allowed her as my heart used to sink at the thought of flying in the sky, even if protected through the ropes. Though we enjoyed that calm trip sitting on the beaches quietly reading and making sand houses, there was no element of thrill in the vacation. So last year when we decided to visit Goa again, I was sure, it was going to be the same peaceful vacation sitting on the chairs outside shacks and relaxing. Our vacation started the way it was supposed to be, but took a turn when a man came to us offering parasailing in the adjacent beach. My daughter (now a teenager) and son both grew excited over t...

When my son was about three year old, this was a common scene in our home: I scold my son. He goes to the other side of the bed, saying,” मैं मम्मा से गुस्सा हूँ ! (I am annoyed with Mamma!) ” I try to mollify him, but to no avail. My husband also joins me, but no luck! Few minutes pass. My son:” मैं पापा से भी गुस्सा हूँ ! (I am annoyed with Papa too !)” My husband: “ मैंने क्या किया ?(What have I done?)” As time passes, I stop trying. My son, unable to continue his गुस्सा with his mother, comes to her and says,” लेकिन मैं मम्मा से तो खुश हूँ पर पापा से गुस्सा हूँ ! (I am happy with Mamma but annoyed with Papa!) ” Mother son duo reconcile and chat happily, while the father is puzzled, “ मैंने क्या किया है ?(What have I done?)”

Few days before Diwali, my daughter, while studying her Diwali essay stuck on a line,” Gujhiya, a sweet samosa is prepared on Diwali.” She asked me, “Mamma! What is this Gujhiya?” As I explained her about the delicious sweet dish made on Diwali, her record stuck at “Gujhiya, the sweet samaosa”. She kept on repeating that she wanted to eat the sweet samosa. I told her my mother made very tasty Gujhiya on Diwali and it is a very tedious process to make Gujhiya.  She suddenly asked me,” then why doesn’t my Mom make them? I want to eat Gujhiya, the sweet samosa.”  she kept on repeating these sentences, without realizing how difficult it was for me to control my watering mouth. I started imagining the taste of Gujhiya. Even the thought of Gujhiya took me back to the memory lanes of my childhood, where Gujhiya was an integral part of Diwali and Diwali was not just another festival. It was the biggest festival of the year, for which we used to wait for the whole year. Since my fathe...

They say you never realize the worth of a person until you lose him. Same is the case with the sad demise of the legendary cartoonist Pran. The characters created by him were so much part of our daily lives in 1980’s, that we never bothered about who created them. I remember that I started reading his cartoons before I could make out that प्रा 0I written is actually Pran and I pronounced it as “Pra zero one”. In those days, newspaper hawker was the most awaited person in the first week of the month (on 15 th also, if the magazine was fortnightly) and the first item to be read in any children’s magazine was invariably the comic strip by Pran. Even in the women’s magazine “sarita”, there was a comic strip Shrimatiji, which was the most sought after column by the children. We learnt that “ Chacha Chaudhary ka dimaag computer se bhi tez chalta hai (Chacha Chaudhary’s mind acts faster than a computer)” before we actually saw a computer. Also, the little fights chacha Chaudhary...

The word black signifies lack of any colour, but ironically it has the grace that cannot be matched by any colour. There are so many shades of black that you can have many black dresses and still not have enough of them. Here is the list of 5 black things I desire: 1.      A DSLR Camera:            T he first black thing I desire is a DSLR camera. My fascination for SLR camera dates back to my childhood, when I was impressed with the mesmerizing pictures clicked by my uncle with his SLR camera (that was not the age of digital camera). Photography was considered a very expensive hobby in those days, but it    was a passion for my uncle and despite his modest salary, he spent a lot on this hobby. In those days I yearned to have an SLR camera. When I grew up and got a job, this dream somehow took a backseat on my priority list and I settled for a digital compact camera. But now, I strongly feel that I should have a DSLR ...

When I was a school girl, my father got an offer for deputation in Assam, which he accepted. During the discussions in the family, somebody said,” Why do you need to go to Pardes (foreign land)?” (Probably the word was used as our family belonged to M.P.) I strongly objected to the word “ pardes ” saying, “Why are you using the word Pardes ? Assam is our own country!” During his stay in Assam, my father told this incidence to an IAS officer, with whom he was sharing the Government guest house. Upon hearing this, the officer said, “when you go home next time, convey my “ Namaskar ” to your daughter.” When my father conveyed his message to me, I could not understand why a “ Namaskar” was needed for a simple statement. Today, when I see our countrymen fighting and spreading hatred in the name of regionalism, it pains a lot. Now I understand, the feeling behind the “ Namaskar ” conveyed to a schoolgirl by the gentleman.

“You must understand the environment in Pakistan. This has become a money-making concern. A lot of people say if you want to go abroad and get a visa for Canada or citizenship and be a millionaire, get yourself raped." When in 2005,  I read the above statement made by Mr. Parvez Musharraf, the then President of Pakistan, the first thought that stuck my mind was how miserable the condition of women could be in a country, where the country Head kept such apathetic attitude about a crime like rape. But now I see that in India also, we are hearing such things from top level politicians and bureaucrats who are supposed to be responsible for safety of women. For example: 1.      Ladko sey galti ho jati hai. Kya rape case mein phasi di jayegi? (First girls develop friendship with boys. They when differences occur, they level rape charges. Boys commit mistakes. Will they be hanged for rape).” 2.      “If any woman, whether married or unm...

I had some vague idea about blogging but had never thought that I could enter this beautiful world! I always had an urge to write. As a child, I wrote some poems also, but don’t know why and how I quit writing. During the study of Engineering and subsequently landing upon a so called prestigious government job, the urge to be a writer was hidden somewhere. As writing noting on official files do not require any creativity, so the only sign that I was a creative person inside was the sense of humour displayed by me in witty conversation with my kids or the funny parodies I made to inspire them to eat their food or brush their teeth.  Also, during official functions, I was tired of giving welcome speech and vote of thanks, as I was considered the most suited for this work, but never took seriously the appreciation I got for it. After some years, when the children were old enough to provide me with spare time to write, I again ventured into writing from the spare time left from o...

There are some childhood memories which we can never forget. one such memory very close to my heart is the marriage ceremony of my doll, which became a grand family event. please go through my Hindi story based on one of my sweetest childhood memory ; my Hindi story published in online Hindi magazine  abhivyakti-hindi.org . Please go through the link below to read the story: Gudiya Ka Byah

The word nature itself brings a smile on my face, as it reminds me of my childhood days. As a child, I had never seen TV, leave apart computer and mobile phones, which were not even heard of. The only electronic gazette in the house was radio, which was always under the strict control of my elder sisters and even touching the knob of radio could be termed as a punishable offence, as it would force them to search again for the lost radio station.  It can be said that going to Mother Nature was a compulsion for the children in that era, but it never felt boring as each moment spent with nature brought its own surprises.  I become nostalgic remembering the moment spent under a tree in our own garden in the name of picnic. We used to collect peanuts, biscuits, toffee, water and head towards the tree for the picnic. The long summer afternoons appeared too short for such a picnic. Collecting berries, raw mangoes in the garden while w atching the numerous birds  was a great jo...

She was sitting in her room with teary eyes. She had overheard her mother-in-law telling a friend,” it’s good that my granddaughter is not dark complexioned like her mother.” Though her family always talked in derogatory manner about her dark complexion, her heart doomed each time hearing such conversations. Suddenly, her 4 year old daughter stormed into the room yelling,” Mom! Grandma says I don’t look like you! “Why am I not like you?” Her daughter continued,” You are the most beautiful in world!”                                            © Lisa F. Young | Dreamstime Stock Photos She felt her heart begin to heal …………….... ... She had got the greatest compliment in life! My post for  100 words on Saturday 2014 # 9

              Anushka was sitting with the ring in her hands. She had become so upset that she had almost forgotten her achievement which was once her greatest dream. The celebrations going on in the family for her passing the Civil Services exam seemed to be insipid to her. The centre of her thoughts today was Ishan, whom she was missing badly.  They both had always maintained that although they were engaged, there was no love between them. She started thinking about the strange way in which she had agreed to marry Ishan.              Anushka had developed a liking to her classmate Parikshit while doing graduation. Her family had also agreed for her marriage to him, who was a rich man. But few days before the engagement, Parikshit refused to marry Anushka on the pretext of huge disparity in the status of their families. Anushka was devastated. Her family was also cursing her for being in a relationship ...