On your face

This was at the Mumbai airport on Fri Morning while I was waiting to board my flight to Bengaluru. I usually dont like to sit idle; I am either reading  a newspaper or a book, or best talking to somebody. But this time around, I didn't pick any of these options. Rather, after my security check I chose to sit and stare all others  going through the check.

What an insight...!!( ofcourse into the minds of the people). Obviously the Ladies section was shielded by a curtain, so cudn't read them.There were gentlemen...all well built and in all frames and shades. As the security personnel frisked each passenger, the expression that each one bore was interesting. First of all , everyone was aware of what was to be done...hands upright and all metalic belongings on the desk etc etc. But the best thing to note was the tinge of suspicion that everyone had. There were tons of..'what if's ' on their minds...which they definitely couldn't have dared ask anyone. From the corner of their eye, a few glanced at the adjacent passenger, and whether he was being frisked well enough! 

All thanks to the 26/11 incident, the face of terror and the events that follow are clear enough in each one's mind. I can't get myself to be a normal ..cool and calm passenger anymore. Yes I admit, I am paranoid. So are the 25000 odd people at the airport....or rather peope across the country. Be it a school, a railway station or even a hospital. 

I had about 25 minutes to board the flight, and I managed to observe atleast 50 of them. My concentration gave way finally. But I couldn't stop thinking of the lag in security from the starting point to the boarding port(Iam definitely not letting them out here...!!)

No amount of badmouthing the terrorist will do, no amount of political match plan will work. Can't help being cynical...I see no escape. The answer was there some decades ago, but now the true-lies have been so nicely interwoven, that even the best of the best feel handicapped and captive. 

Bloody Terrorists!  

Let go

I waited for the spring...its here

I waited for the winters..it was here

I waited for the monsoon..it was also here.

now again I am waiting..

Bouts of sadness and happiness abundant,

Oh they keep coming all the time.

of when I choose one, the other haunts me

Colors manifest living, which isn't about life

every second lived is every second died

fearing the unknown, why cry

for time isn't enough to know all whys.

Hope is a new season, for life for love

butterflies and lillies all around

subtle winds of change blow

Let go; for you need to enjoy

I love caffeine

Today was just like any other morning..me with my usual cuppa filter kappi. Yes, I just cant live without coffee!! Waking up to a lovely cup of life is what I look forward to every day. Today was nothing special either, the perfect  taste of filter coffee as everyday. Yeah, being a South-Indian, I can claim this to be the best form of rejuvenation ever! As the flavours awakened me, I decided to read about this special bean later during the day. And interestingly, loads of stories, history and legend is into these magic beans! Particularly I liked this one-

According to legend, Ethiopian shepherds were the first to observe the influence of the caffeine in coffee beans when the goats appeared to "dance" and to have an increased level of energy after consuming wild coffee berries.The legend names the shepherd "Kaldi." ( Wiki)

I kept reading the different types of coffee..how  they are named in each different place, the little variations in taste and color...etc. There is a lot more to read though! Coffee is not just a drink, it represents civilization. Obviously when I order a cappuchino or a latte, I dont really care to know anything further. All I can say is ..I know my coffee well.

The likes of starbucks, Zaraffas, Baristas and Cafe Cofee Days ..and many more are probably trying to savour this through the coffee culture. Ofcourse retailing and cashing on the coffee-culture is a bigger agenda; the least I can expect them to do is to brew it right and Serve it hot!Iam not sure how many coffee lovers have actually read in detail for curiousity's sake...but I did so today. Not too late!

Mono- tone-us

"Namashar, kya mein Prem Venkat se baat kar raha huun? Airtel se mein XYZ baat kar raha huun. Aapka request lodge hua tha pincode change ke liye. Kripya note karein, wah abh change kar diya gay hai. Appke agle bill mein reflact hoga. Airtel se sampark karne ke liye dhanyavaad. XYZ se baat karne ke liye aur aapka samay dene ke liye dhanyavaad. Aapka din shubh ho."

All this in just 15 seconds...

I dont exactly pity these customer care associates. Why should I pity them?..afterall they are doing their job, they chose their job!What amuses me is the sheer monotony that has crept in the response methodology. I bet only 3/10 would be avaiable to listen to the entire script, whereas the rest are just there to get point-to-point info. The company expects them to be courteous and respectful to the core as we are their honorable customers. Beyond a limit it gets too much though. Should I or should I not bother that XYZ could not even get my name right?

Including me, customers are funny. If we are intimated about a request completed, we fret about being reminded about every little thing. If not, we crib about lack of proper information. What then is an associate supposed to do? 

This is just one I spoke to, there are millions across the country calling- from- the call-centre. Low cost country we are ...Iam sure. Monotony mahots..that's also what we are!

Henna of hope

As the henna leaves the cone,as  the intricate design that then beautifully adorns her palms, all she does is hope for a life as beautiful as that art. Little curls and curves that merge and seperate from each other..somewhere is a hope for a life with subtle tides. As patterns fill her palms, she begins to cherish not just that moment, but every moment till that one..Something in her is so joyful, so lively, so womanly, so childish. Yet, she waits to see the pattern finish. Moreover, although she knows its beautiful; she longs for the greens to show as a different shade of love, the shades of her expression for him. Her love is genuine, feelings pure; yet there is hope for it to turn darker and deeper. She wants the world to know its her day; that she celebrates the begining of a new life with her beloved. Her friends around, chirping and giggling...echoes of hope for all. Somewhere there is a bond, a common thread of hope in all. The fragrance tickles the mind to think of that someone special; whether he exists or not. They are there to celebrate her life, again with a desire to live-her-day as soon as possible. 

I write this for my friend, for her joyful life ahead, for her pursuit of love, an above all for the hope in the rest of the clan.