Like the day..

Like the day we sat by the ocean
Speaking of fishes and sand and moon and the tide
Of how often the sea searches without
Only to once again find it all within.

Like the day we walked under those trees
Speaking of greenery and birds and war and peace
Of how cruel a cause can sometimes get
Of the pervert in every priest.

Like the day we sat on that mountain
Speaking of heights and depths and sunlight and rain
No, we didn't speak anything much
But Oh! we spoke so very much..

Like the day we sat in our lil ol' house
Speaking of memories and people and bygone days
No we didn't speak anything much
Yes, we spoke so very much!

Kalyan Varma's photography workshop - Of lenses and landscapes

Lalbagh has never seemed so beautiful or so complicated as it did this Sunday. "Perspective" is the word. Till today all I saw in Lalbagh was the never ending green patches of grass and some contrastingly colored beautiful flowers. See it from a "photographer with a mission" perspective and you'll marvel at how much Lalbagh has hidden in its moist grassy patches and that beautiful little hill top.

Kalyan Varma, the wildlife photographer ( and an amazing person ) conducts these regular photography workshops and I was lucky enough to be a part of this weekend's workshop. It was a basic workshop that discussed all the fundamental and extremely essential photography concepts which help make a good photograph. A two day session which armed the wannabe photographer in me with some great know-hows. Kalyan, who believes in sharing both his photos and his knowledge (which I respect to no end) gives you some of these wonderful insights about the nitty-gritty of making a photograph look the way you have always envisioned.

Our photography assignment at Lalbagh ( of course it was not a stupid theory cramming session at all ) was to capture the essence of the structure on top of the Lalbagh hill. Trust me, it certainly isn't as simple as it seems. However, I set out with great enthusiasm hoping to get some decent shots. To be honest, I was really surprised at how well some of my photos came out (though most others were as sloppy as usual). It's absolutely amazing how knowing about stuff like lenses and shutters can give an edge to what you capture! Recipe -> Know the basics, use your sense of aesthetics throw in some amazing guidance and voila!

The blurred look I have always craved for.. that striking sharpness I never got.. that particular smile, the soft look .. the seductive dewdrop - all this is now going to materialize!!

Learning the photography tricks - magical .. meeting the magician in person - an honour.

Yours "click"fully,
Gargi

The Stranger and the Baby

Darkness overcast
And Silent birds
A sleeping Baby
Amidst the woods

Comes a Stranger
Love and a smile
Lifting the Baby
Wrapping his arms

Smiles the baby
with silent delight
safe and huddled
with the stranger tight

Farewell world
I have seen enough
Take me stranger
Far enough

Away from all
To your land
Where I am yours
cuddled on the sand

I promise I'll be good
Everything understood
The Sun and the sea
The Stranger and the Baby

Best,
Gargi

Out of the blue.
--------------------------------------

You came out of nowhere..
as sudden as a flash of lightning..
making my life a poetic paradise
which suddenly had found all its meaning..

As welcome as a ray of sunlight
in the thick of the winter storm..
you came in like the long awaited rains
for a desert thirsty since long..

No color in the rainbow
Can describe the shade of feeling
No expression ever coined
Has the power to express the longing.

One look in the evening twilight
An entire song sung with a smile
Words seemed so redundant..
Your eyes had said it all.

Best,
Gargi.

Just another random thought.

Firstly, I don't know how much sense this blog is going to make but i am gonna give it a shot anyways :)

I can trace the origin of one of my "current most haunting" thoughts to a nice lil sentence i read a few days back which goes something like this.

“Really great people make you feel that you too, can become great.”

Mr Mark Twain must have told this on one of his exceptionally intelligent days :) .

I have this really odd habit of analyzing conversations, meetings, mails, chats and the like with people long after they are done and forgotten. It gives me special pleasure in doing so because every analysis gives me a new chain of thought, something that i had totally missed when the actual interaction was happening.

I have had the pleasure of meeting some really interesting/wonderful people. Intellectuals, so called "philosophers" :), teachers, managers :P , technical people, bankers, farmers, artists, musicians, etc etc i have met them all. Though they may not have been the "really famous" ones, they have been remarkable people by themselves. Some of them have been true and honest, some kind and understanding, some proud but very capable, some proud but seriously stupid and the rest plain hypocrites.

Regardless of what profession they have been in, regardless of their origin/place/birth, there are some things that are so insultingly common in all of them/us that it makes me wonder at times about the striking simplicity that exists amidst the seemingly complex human behavior. One of them, i have made an attempt to describe in this blog. This is just a personal observation done over a period of time :).

Let us imagine a situation where we have had the chance to have a conversation/interaction with someone who is considered "good" at something. Has the conversation made you marvel at the beauty and the elegance of the job they do or has its complexity amazed you? For me, it has almost always(with a few exceptions) been the latter. I always have wondered at that point, how any mortal could do something like that within such short time and the like :). There have been exceptions where the conversation has been successful in making me understand the job/work and realize the simple but profound logic in it :).
And time and again, life has proved to me that such people who make you feel their job is the easiest on earth and u can be as good as he/she is, are the ones who really know what they are talking about :)

When i say simple, i don't mean they have done it by down playing their job or work. They have done it by stating stuff in simple, straight clear terms what the job is all about and what it takes to get there. No fancy words, no frills, nothing.

Maybe we all do it at some point.. exaggerate everything a lil more than what it actually is. Use stupid jargon and confuse others. Make it sound really nice and wonderful. The really great just don't to do it.. they don't need to. And such people will always have all my respect and admiration :). Explaining something the way it is(not the way they want it to be), so that the other person understands the elegance in it is an art.. which unfortunately most people don't want to learn. Decorating something that should not be decorated might make it look nice momentarily but in turn makes it lose its central meaning, and its beauty.

Maybe we should all contribute by example to form a space devoid of hypocrites and big and empty talkers. Rather, look towards creating an environment of honesty and truth.. Looking at things as they are and telling them as they should be.

Just adding one of my most loved sanskrit subhashita that is kind of relevant here:)

Sampoorna kumbho na karoti shabdam
ardho ghato ghoshamupaiti noonam
Vidvan kuleeno na karoti garvam
gunairviheenaaha bahu jalpayanti

Best,
Gargi.

And here it comes :)

"Alright so where on earth is she going to sleep?? How are we going to keep her entertained? Will she feel lonely when i am off
to school?" my sister seemed to be over flowing with infinite questions. Mom and dad were pretty amused and equally
curious as all of us awaited the arrival of the newest member into our family. As far as i was concerned i just had a distant curiosity
towards this new member though i had my doubts about how we were going to include "her" with us.

It did seem like a really long wait. We were waiting since morning; it was already 12 pm and there was no sign of her at all.
My sister was on the verge of losing her patience and i on the verge of losing my interest. My grandma was dead against this new addition. She somehow
felt that this "extended" family would be more of a nuisance than anything else. But, its common knowledge that when my sister's
determination is combined with my mom's support it forms a deadly combination and something that people usually dont dare to oppose.

And all of a sudden we hear a very familiar yet a new voice.. My sister jumps out of her chair and screams "Mom, akka i think she is here!!".
I could almost taste the excitement in the air as my sister opened the door and let out a scream of joy.. All of us rushed
to the door to find out what exactly had caused such a reaction. Grandma resolutely stayed inside the room. There was this kind aunty
who accompanied her to our house to see that she would not have any trouble during the journey. Mom and sis welcomed them both with open arms.

Mom immediately took her in her arms as if it was her long lost daughter, my sis was just not in this world. Dad was laughing
at all the frenzy being caused and i felt it was pretty silly to be so exited about this new arrival though i did not dare to
voice out what i felt. I mean, just imagine being so exited about some furry creature running around all over your house, licking and smelling
everything on the way barking uncontrollably and making a nuisance of itself.. and for all you smart people who still have not guessed
lemme take the opportunity and tell you that this new addition was none other than our dog priya :P

This was about 8 years back :) Now Priya is a full fledged, most loved, most accommodating, most attractive (ahem),
and the sweetest member of our family. She is the darling of the entire family and the neighbors :) Its been 8 years and not once
have i felt or even bother to realize that she is not a human. She is much more than just a dog. She actually likes it if people
come to our house. She only barks if they park their vehicles outside our house and end up going to our neighbour's house :P

Well there have been one or two stray cases where she has really been a source of tension(for others :P) Priya in her childhood days
used to get this weird pleasure out of destroying our maids' slippers :P and of entering into any house where the door was innocently kept open.
But then all of us have had our bad days isnt it? Coming to the achievements our priya has managed, my grandma happens to be the one
who loves her the most now !!!( apart from sis that is.. ;) ) Anybody who happens to visit our house seems to find priya most engaging :)
Nobody leaves our house without actually speaking to it( including my uncle who is considered to be most stubborn and who at one point used to hate dogs :) )
My cousins whenevr they happen to meet me ask me " Hey gargi, soo how s priya ?? ", well i guess i will have to be satisfied
in describing priya's latest gimmicks rather than my boring, routine stuff :P .

I know it would be hard for people who never have had a pet to relate to this blog, but believe it or not once you have had a dog as
wonderful and as interesting as priya, you would never find another doggy related conversation boring :) Having pets is a pleasure
and having a pet as gloriously superb as priya is.. well.. just out of this world.

So here s hoping that out "priya" priya is always as happy, as wonderful and as cute as ever :)

Sister genius :)

The campus looks like a dream. Assam known for its beauty and its monsoons is a photographer's dream come true. Look around and you either see some breathtaking instances of mother nature's aesthetic sense or pouring rains, the former as lovely as the latter. In the lap of the mountains and on the banks of the river Brahmaputra resides the lovely IIT Guwahati. The campus spans around 700 acres of endless beauty and sheer intelligence in design. You see loads of IITians rushing around on their 2 wheelers (bicycles i mean.. one ingenius rule inside the campus -> no motor bikes. One of the reasons why the campus air is so pure and unpolluted).
The guest house meant for the parents and ahem sisters(and oh yea brothers too) of the chosen few is located close to the entrance and offers some wonderful rooms(ac, tv, balcony and the like ;) ) along with some incredibly finger licking oh-i-ll-never-forget-this-dish sorta food. You get to see the most beautiful, really big cricket ground right from your room balcony making you marvel at those genius IITians who are great even at sports.
I always had thought that a place like IIT would be full of geeks with only libraries all around and people who have forgotten how to be normal. I was in for a huge shock. Once you see the campus and interact with a few IITians, you realize IITians are as normal as u or i, albeit smarter :).
I had an easier time interacting with an IITian coz coincidentally this particular IITian happens to be my kid sister. I used to wonder why in the world she needed to study so hard, slog for two years just to get into this place called IIT. Now, i realize how stupid my thoughts were, because now, i am the proud sister of a lovely IITian :). The kind of reactions and expressions you get when u say u r the sister of an IITian is something you should experience yourself ;).
Once i saw the campus, i suddenly felt that if anyone deserved to study here its these guys who have slogged and dared and finally achieved their goal.
So to all you unfortunate people out there who have not had the chance to visit any of the IITs my only advice to you is -- please get your kid sisters or brothers to start slogging for the next two years :P.
I dedicate this blog to all those dedicated, smart, perfectly normal IITians who have achieved their goal, and especially to my special IITian for making me so proud :)