Letter to the Unknown

I may be wrong in my emotions,
I may look weird,
I may be unfit for your reciprocation,
But I am not fake
Genuineness is what my feelings are,
From the shades of tree to the cool breeze.
Everything that you feel real ,
I carry with my emotions.
I am the subtotal of empathy,
An unending sentence.
I am just a different path,
You may not choose.
I am just a wish,
You never wished for.

But remember
Things that matter most is
The truth and memoirs.
The things which just has no meaning
Yet makes you nostalgia.
Things which you never wished
But gave you comfort and peace.
Look back, again and again.
Did you feel little cold being in summer?
Yes. It is what I wished to be,
The non-existent feeling
Unwanted yet, so much soothing
No expectations, look at me
Dissolving with time
With making you more comfortable
Just feel it and let go.
Just feel it again.

#EveryWordIsForYou

 

Happily…

Hide and Seek

Never ever I tried to play with the beast
Its roar though rhythmic gives me goose bumps
It’s like the piano and the waves act like the keys
I tried calling it, the voice dissolved with its roar

While trying to build a connection, I saw a little crow
With all its ease, playing around
Happiness is the freedom it has
Happiness is the carefree life it enjoys
Hardly it used the wings
The tiny jumps wee good enough to escape

The jealous me, yet to find a connect
Still calling the beast to join me for a conversation
I was feeling like a loner
The motor boats were approaching the coast
The little crow was still busy
Some stray dogs joined now
All are having fun
I am left out.. the loner !

What is that I am missing it here
Why I am unable to connect
The other side of the corridor, I am clueless
The dancing waves, playing piano
The musical mystic morning
And the happy little crow
All are god enough to make my nerves down
I am broken, not into pieces but into multiple thoughts

Why I am feeling, some words I am unable to decode
The words of the waves
The musical piano
Come, let’s play….
This came from inside…
Forgetting past
Not being Nostalgic
I looked at it with questioning eyes
Started decoding the words of the waves
Started getting into the lyrics of the piano
Trying to find the rhythm which made the little crow dance
And I was broken into thoughts

Slowly I am getting into it,
The waves that are coming near and going away
Again the same things
On a repeat mode
Trying to escape from my eyes
My eye-lashes moving with its every move
My mind is shifting as it comes nearer
It is clearing out every footstep I had created
Wiping out the names I had written on the sand
I am trying again and it’s doing the same
Is it not it deliberate..¡¡¡
The words are clearer
The moves are more appropriate now
I can sense it loud
Enough for self-realisation
For my wish of playing with the beast
Hide and Seek …

Happily…

Rough roads, beautiful memories

Off late the surgical strikes of Indian Army has been making news and after Saheed Hanumant Thappa Indian Army has gone viral in social media. In some places as the social media shows, BJP made posters on election campaign, Mr Kejriwal asked the PM to provide proofs of the attack and Congress released cross LOC attacks in public. The Uri attack and our return fire made lot of us little patriotic and what’s app also flooded with a candle wala DP and many forwarded messages.

Being a silent watcher of those activities I visited Srinagar, Leh, Nubra, Turtuk and Pangong where every single day and every single hour I saw a numbers of Indian Army personnel, their camps, their trucks, rocket launcherss and many things which I want to share it here.

First of all, above all bullets and kinds of guns, there lies a lot of artists. All army camps I went across during my visit are colorful. Beautifully decorated, well maintained and clean. I was amazed to see their cretivity and trust on my words, the arial view of any army camp of these places I mentioned will give a natural smile in your eyes.

There creativity is not only limited to colors but also in terms of words. All the camps are beautifully named and some mountains are creatively carved with those names along with the tricolor. There comes  BRO; a Familiar name you will see in every hundred meter with signage and boards. Its not the gen X term ‘Yes Bro’ kind of stuff rather an organisation originated from Indian Army. Officially known as Border Roads Organization (BRO) has been mainting and developing roads across borders in India. The people are so creative, every hundred metre you will see some funny, witty, informative and useful messages on road safety and cleanliness. And let me tell you, you can’t avoid reading them even if you are at a speed of 80km or more. They will hold ur nerves and put pressure on your right hand to lessen the accelerator.

Some messages are like

“Don’t be a Gama, in the land of Lama”

“Drinking whisky, driving risky”

“Do not gossip, let him drive”

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Above all, I have never seen any armed force or security agency so much hospitable. While crossing the hilly difficult terrains, amidst all tension and adventure what makes you smile is, you salute any army truck or jeepsy or any officer on he way, they will revert back with saluting you back and with a million dollar smile. They will give you ways to pass the roads safely. When there is jamming, first they will make your ways clear and then they will move. Remember the tracks might carry cooked food, water or fuel for the jawans at the base or at different check posts. They make sure, you travel safe.
They are more hospitable than any service industry. Can you see the softer hearts behind the tough soldiers??? I did every time during the trip.

Now let me come to the point what I have been waiting to spell out loud. I was crossing a check post and got time to interact few army personnel. It was on my way to the northern most village of India, Turtuk which was once a part of India. The check post was in the valley where, on the west, there was Pakistan just a mountain away and on the east, there was China again a mountain away. It was near the Siachen glaciers and the Hanumant Thappa point was not very far from the check post. They narrated till 1971 that post was under Pakistan and we won that during 1971 war. The valley was freaking beautiful and I was amazed to know, they remain their round the year no matter how cold it is. This is the condition of all such check posts and all such base camps. And in winter the temperature go beyond zero degree and they experience that for the sake of serving the country.

I wanted to hug few of them and let them know how proud I am feeling. But it was lunch time and they said to meet them while coming back. I crossed the check post and visited the last Indian Village Turtuk. It was worth achieving. The village is one of the beautiful experience I had during my trip. The children are most beautiful in India as many previous visitors say. These Balti tribe children are with blue eyes and blond hairs. The army has set up schools there till class 12th and you can see some children going to such schools in army trucks in fact. They will wave their hands to the visitors and with a cute smile and that will give you goosebumps.

While coming back, I crossed the same check post and I saw new army personnel and I asked for the familiar name I had met few hours before while crossing the post. The tall dark smiling face came from the down the bridge with a camouflage T-shirt and was looking fresh after his lunch. I shaken hands, we talked again. I asked his well-being. He reverted with the same. But why he is so important and why I am mentioning about him is something that will make you little emotional.

He was nonother than, an Odia bhai from a southern odisha city. Thousands miles away, when I was fascinated about Indian Army, I met this man with an Insass and when he saw my passport started talking to me in Odia. What could be more proud moment for me !!!

It felt, each member of Indian Army is someone from my family, my city, my state. They are just like us. They never bothered about what we post social media. Not bothered about what political parties claim on their victory and efforts. They don’t bother about how much salary our corporate employees get and how much they deserve. They stay with limited connectivity, limited food, limited resources, limited options. But they don’t complain. They do not show their outrage in Facebook or through open letters. They just stand there, putting their life in stake, keeping the family away, entertaining oneself with nature and with memories.

I have taken a lot of pictures and selfies during the trip but this is my personal favorite. A selfie with the man himself, can’t mention his name. I hugged him and said we all are proud of them. I hugged his friends as well.

I crossed the check post and moved ahead waving a salute and getting few in return, saw a series of army trucks few meters later and I was murmuring the song in mind.

“Kandhe se milte hain kandhein, Kadmo se kada Milte hain,
Hum Chalte hain toh aise jab, Dil dushman ke hilte hain”

Happily…

India Surf Festival : One Fest Many Hues

The fifth edition of India Surf Festival was a beautiful amalgamation of arts, sports and tourism that attracted water athletes and visitors from around the globe

By Ananta Prasad

Kneeling on the surf boards, putting the paddle in front and focusing while standing up gently with both legs apart, bending the knees slightly and pushing forward on the water, taking on the ripples with the focus of a yogi – this was the most common scene at the India Surf Festival (ISF) at the Ramachandi Beach in Konark this year, be it sunrise or sunset. It was as if everyone was meditating on water amidst the gentle blue waves and surrounded by the shining white sand.

The fifth edition of ISF ignited the swell and the sands with surfing, music and art as it brought together not only surfers from across the country and abroad but also artists, musicians, designers and famous lens-men. More than 200 water athletes from across the world apart from thousands of the daily visitors added zing to an interesting event in the state’s tourism calendar.

However, the name “India Surf Festival” is a little misleading as the festival features way more than just surfing. Organised by the Surfing Yogis (a group of like-minded people who combine surfing, yoga, and nature), it’s an eco-friendly celebration of oneness that provides a creative platform for freedom of expression encompassing adventure, music, dance, art, and photography.

ISF is a joint effort of Rangers Adventure Foundation (RAF) and Surfing Yogis, held at Ramachandi beach in Konark for the last five years. “The festival is an eco-friendly approach to surf for the cause ‘Carbon negative, Earth positive’,” said organiser and RAF Founder Sanjay Samantaray. “This year, ISF left no stones unturned to offer a variety of learning sessions and workshops to all its camping residents and visitors,” added Samantaray.

While Puri is traditionally known for being a temple town, over the last few years, devotees of a different kind have been thronging its shores, courtesy the India Surf Festival. The fifth edition too made a splash in November over a weekend devoted to the art of surfing, with activities for both enthusiasts and newbies.

“This festival is really impressive. I have never been to such a festival that has so many interesting elements to it. I have not been doing wave riding for long and I am really looking forward to visit this place again,” said Stephen, a surfer from Austria.

“I am a biker and I love to travel unexplored places. This Surf Festival has given me a reason to come out and explore these beautiful beaches of Odisha,” added Bulgarian tourist Mark.

Workshops

ISF has always given special importance to workshops and this year too, the ‘Walk on Water’ workshops were one of the major highlights, which witnessed experienced SUP surfers coming together to try out their skills. Like every year, Alina from Spain conducted the workshop for stand-up paddle. As she mentions, stand up paddling is something that gives you peace of mind. Beyond the festival days, Alina did workshop for local residents near Kusabhadra river with 12 stand-up boards. Worth mentioning is the fact that the ISF SUP cup, which is one of the major attractions of the India Surf Festival, witnessed a few competitors who had been trained by Alina at ISF itself!

The event featured skim boarding for the first time along with various other water sports. Four participants from Philippines experimented and also taught skim boarding to beginners at the beach. Dundoy, the skim boarding expert from Philippines said, “This time, skim boarding came to ISF and India for the first time and we were happy to see that people were so much enthusiastic about it. Skim Boarding is beyond sports. It’s adventure and also an art.”

15 participants from Active 8 Sports Association of Pune and 22 participants from Long Board Crew India of Mumbai took care of the skating workshop at ISF. Long boarding and skating has been an integral part of the festival and it attracts more and more children to join the sport.

Art Installations
More than being a surf community celebration, ISF is a melting pot of ideas and creativity utilising art, music and ocean adventure and attempting to promote and encourage the use of self-sustainable and eco-friendly ways of living with the Mother Nature. It’s a congregation where everyone inspires each other through their ideas, artwork, designs, adventure, music and sometimes conversations, contributing to a cleaner ocean and beach.

This year, ISF saw some excellent art installations that hogged the limelight for all the right reasons.

Orifice: This art installation was the most clicked element during ISF 2016. Almost every moment, visitors were seen taking selfies and photos in front of the installation. Named as Orifice, it was literally created out of nothing! Dibyush Jena, a resident of Bhubaneswar and volunteer at ISF created the magic out of some bamboo, dried twigs and branches of a tree.

Describing his thoughts on the installation, Dibyush said, “I created this when I was sitting all bored. For me, this installation sends out a strong message that if we focus enough, we will find perfect shape amidst lots of chaos.” Well, his installation did help a lot of people to find their perfect Facebook profile pictures!

Contact: ‘Contact’ was an amazing idea from the festival curator’s mind. Vinay Pateel, the man behind the atmospheric designs of ISF, is the reason why the festival flaunts a beautiful look every year. Pateel’s installation, ‘Contact’, was a creative masterpiece that particularly grabbed eyeballs during the evenings.

With the perfect use of lights along with bamboo, cloth and metal in the shape of three flowers, Pateel had created the pathways to contact aliens so that they too could join the ISF from outer space!

Baba Tower: This was a multi-purpose tower which had the main stage on the ground floor for all performances. Designed by Faustino Canessa from Argentina, the first floor was the DJ stage and the third floor was a Watch Tower. Made completely with bamboos, this tower was looking amazing with the super moon over it on the full moon day.

The Pointer: Shreejit Nayak from Odisha had used bamboo and lights and managed to create the beautiful installation which showed ‘the paths in life’. The installation depicted that despite the hectic lifestyle we have today; there will be these pointers that will show us the right direction.

Apart from all these organic art installations, there were these wooden sign boards designed with lots of colourful arts by Nusha Pchelkina from Russia. Then, there was this projection mapping inside domes, mapping on water and illuminated paddle boards, which symbolised the fusion of art and sports, and which was brought together by Sofi from Colombia and Alina from Spain. The desi bamboo auto rickshaw and ISF wooden cut-outs were the other eye catching elements at the festival, which were designed and executed by Faustino.

Performing Artists:

If ISF was all about surfing and adventure during the day, the evenings were dedicated to performing artists and their freedom of expression. From folk dancers to fire dancers and juggler; DJs and live bands to Indian classical music and open air concerts around bonfire, ISF this year experienced entertainment of a different kind that jazzed up the evenings.

The famous Thallavatam from Bangalore performed live music which he created from PVC pipes and plastic bottles. His music kept people hooked not to their seats but to the beach till midnight!

The Sitarsonic from France did magic with his fingertip. His fingers were as musical as the sitar strings. He played some awesome fusion with sitar and mouth organ.

Another interesting element of the festival was Ami Shroff, the first female bartender of India doing live juggling with musical beats. She did a lot of tricks with both her hands, which was
exceptional and at the same time creative. The festival also experienced some local artists performing fire martial arts.

With so much happening, the fifth edition too turned out to be an amazing amalgamation of arts, sports and tourism. Visitors from Russia, Spain, Argentina, Colombia, UK, Philippines, France, Germany, Sri Lanka, Austria and Ukraine joined the festival and appreciated the efforts.

Of course, like every year, the festival also had different competitions including ‘ISF Surf Cup’ and ISF SUP Race (Stand up Paddle Race). Dundoy from Philippines won the SUP Cup followed by Chennai’s Apu and M Murthy as first and second runners up. Notably, the SUP Cup is India’s biggest Stand Up Paddle (SUP) competition. Racers from more than 10 countries showcased their skills along a challenging river course. Among its many attractions was the Walk on Water and Yoga on Water events, as well as skateboarding.

In the ISF Surf Cup, Chennai’s Apu stood first followed by Dharani and Satish bagging second and third positions. Surfers from Chennai received four awards in various categories.

That apart, a special ISF outfit known as ‘Girl Power’ had invited children and students from all backgrounds to their sports workshop two weeks prior to the  festival, providing immense opportunity to the local community to learn and understand the sports from experts. Focusing on empowerment of girl child across the globe, this initiative of ‘Girl Power’ encouraged many women into adventure sports with special focus on local communities.

The festival came to an end with the promise to remain committed to its motto for better environment by launching community afforestation programme and cleaning the local beach as part of its celebration.

 

Image Courtesy : Ananta Prasad/CCubeEvents

 

(This article was first published in www.mycitylinks.in )

 

Happily…

 

Voice of the Valley

I am Srinagar
A misspelled word
Not once, time n again
Used abused and misused
Like never before.
They came, they saw and they conquered me
On their own wishes
And own style.
Not even once
I could say what I wanted to.
My voice was curtailed
With bullets or landmines and now the palet guns,
I don’t know who is a militant or army or who has what, AK 47 or 56
I took them all
In my chest.
Every bullet fired since decades
I have only seen blood, hatred.
I am little tired now
Not for the bullets but for the battles, I am fighting within me.

 

Early morning fishing at Dal lake.

 

I am just stand-still
Amidst the simplicity
The beauty of nature
The curvy roads and wooden glass houses
The Jhelum and Dal,
I am Srinagar, I am alive.
Ask me, what I want
Ask me, the solution of your problems.
Ask me, what you do not know.
Ask me, before you take a stand about me.
I am a silent monk
Preaching peace, but nobody cares
I am Srinagar and i m struggling
Between life and death
Between love n hatred
Between stones n bullets
Between misfortune and mistakes
Yes, I am alive, like you all.

I am not a symbol of Indo-Pak tension.
I am the valley of affection.
The nature at its perfection,
I am just like your favorite music
You listen to it once
Again, once again, then again
I am the messenger of peace
With much love to spread across the hearts,
I am the silent strings of a broken guitar
Been failing to be tuned in.
My wishes are in shambles.
I m scared of losing myself
In the crowd of political jargons
Amidst the laws that hold me tight
Even tighter.
I am unable to breathe.
Losing my confidence
To fight back to all adversities
And judgemental eyes
Quite unsure about the future
Rather I must say next day,
I am Srinagar, alive
Just alive without the Life
I am Srinagar, alive
Just alive, with a mere hope
Peace prevails everywhere.
Peace prevails everywhere.

Happily…

 

 

 

Obsession is bliss

With every passing day
I discover a new in me.
I change like the time flies
Perhaps as if we compete
The change is constant
With a new obsession
A new me..

The age old theory of Darwin
We evolve, we grow, we change
We cry we shout and we scream
We seek, we fight, we achieve
We smile, being content like a winner
What we ultimately conquor
Is a new Obsession
We are humans

Who is Buddha or Vivekananda
A human, a saint or god
A belief or a force
What made them immortal
Just a propaganda ???
Oh yes, The energy
The power to diminish the obsession

Look around
People by your sides
From Hilary to trump
From Osama to Obama
Modi to Mamta
You, me, and everyone
Are we good enough
With our thoughts
With the values we carry
With the message we spread
The paths we follow
Are not we victims
Of hipocricy
And arrogance
Rather collective obsession.

Ever tried looking at things you love most
Ever looked at your best moments
Ever thought about your biggest achievements
The best gift, the favorite dress, last holiday trip,
Memorable birthday celebration, That match when sachin scored 200
The one Sourav took off the T-shirt
All belongingness
The nostalgia moments
The #tags and all checked-ins
You know what!!!!
Didn’t you realised ???
Well, yes. You are obsessed.

Now don’t get surprised
Of all obsessions you have in life
Some I reminded and some you are connecting now
Do you think it to be wrong
Being obsessed ?
Do you think you are poised with mere obsessions in life.
Hold on your breaths.
Just another few seconds
Let me make it loud.
You are normal
Not insane
Not poised
Neither at fault
Intentionally or being innocent
Just feel free and normal.
Because
Things what we call Obsession
Is just another Synonyms of life
You are obssesed
Means, be happy. Be content.
And thank your God or Allah or Ram.
You are OBSESSED. You are ALIVE

 

Happily…

 

A Date With Dutee

The weather was cloudy but I wasn’t waiting for the rains. I was inside the huge open air corridor of Hyderabad’s Pulela Gopichand Badminton Academy, excited to meet the fastest woman of India, sprint queen Dutee Chand. The rains poured and my heart thundered in my ears as I saw her entering the academy compound. My ‘date’ with Dutee was about to begin…

As I saw her approaching towards me, I also noticed the shopping bags in her hand. Last minute shopping before Rio, I presumed. The academy was teeming with badminton trainees, all of whom had an air of sophistication around them. But Dutee dressed in black colour track pants, a blue T-shirt and a red coloured sleeper, somehow stood out for her simplicity. She looked at me and smiled, and her smile reached her eyes too.

I realised I was feeling hungry but seeing her made me forget about food as I suddenly developed this appetite for a candid interview of sorts. But thankfully for me, Dutee had not taken her lunch either. Just as we shook hands and were about to make our lunch plan, a phone call came. And, so she handed me over the keys of her scooter as she took the call. I got the cue and we headed for some good food since the lunch time at the academy canteen was over long time back.

Although she was over phone, she could easily guide me to the destination. Exactly a ride of 1300 metres on the Hyderabad Mumbai Highway, she asked me to stop by a South Indian restaurant. Till then, she was on the phone and she appeared to be upset. From what I could understand from the conversation, she was talking to some corporate guy who probably was bargaining with her for an advertisement. Dutee denied bluntly, not for the small amount they were offering but for his bargaining attempts. For a player who has made her state and the country proud, more than money, respect mattered and I could understand her decision.

To me, Dutee personifies excellence. Although her eligibility to participate as a female athlete in the Commonwealth Games was questioned, she fought back and how! I asked her about her anger and outrage. She was calm and replied with a smile, “I had little scope to mourn and so I had to fight back and I got the victory of a lifetime. Now, none can question me about it.”  She smiled at me again and this time it reflected her confidence.

By the time she completed the story, we had ordered some fried rice and ginger chicken with some starters. The waiters at the restaurant were hospitable to her. Later, she informed me that the one who serving us was from Kendrapara and that she was regular at the joint since both the food and service were good.

I moved ahead with my questions. The next thing I wanted to know was how she was dealing with the expectations of people right now! Being the fastest woman of India and making it to Olympics 100 metre race after PT Usha is a big responsibility. The hopes of 120 crore Indians are now pinned on her. And then came the pertinent question – What are the chances of winning a medal at Rio? She took a pause and replied with an example. “It’s very difficult to predict or assure about winning a medal. Earlier I have failed to better my own records despite best preparations. Victory will depend on my physical condition that day, my mental stability, the weather and also the condition of my opponents. Basically, if everything falls into place on that day, you become a winner. So, I don’t want to talk about winning a medal right now and pressurise myself. I am practicing hard and I want to give my best on that day. It does not matter if I win a gold, silver or bronze. For me, what matters most is that I will run for the country and for the Tri-colour.” I had goose-bumps seeing the patriotic spirit and passion in her eyes.

I drifted from the topic and asked her about her family. She appeared content as she mentioned how her sister athlete Saraswati Chand had a huge impact in her life. As she stated sharing more about her family, she became a little nostalgic.

I got her back to the present world with a question that was relevant for all sprinters from Odisha. Is the state government doing enough to promote them considering the fact that we have so many talents, be it Rachita Mistri, Anuradha Biswal, Amiya Mallick, Dutee Chand, Srabani Nanda or Budhia Singh? She rightly pointed out, “Infrastructure for sprinters is not good in the state.” However, she also praised the government for helping her out many a time.

By the time, we were done with our lunch, it was pouring outside and so we sat for some more time in her favourite South Indian joint. I utilised the time to discover other interesting facets to her. Since she was so popular, I wanted to know about her social media presence. She was quick to answer with a laugh, “Do I really need it? But I am happy people are talking about me on social media due to my achievements. I do not believe in self-propaganda.” However, she does have two Facebook profiles, one official Facebook page, a dedicated Twitter handle and little presence over Instagram.

We chatted some more, till the rains stopped and then it was time for her afternoon massage. By the time we came out of the restaurant, the rain soaked streets had started getting crowded. We clicked a selfie and shook hands. I gifted a packet of Salepur rasogulla to her and wished her for Rio. She bid goodbye, turned back and started walking. I kept looking at her till she merged with the crowd. I looked atop and saw a beautiful rainbow in the sky.

And, that’s how ended my beautiful date with Dutee Chand.

 

Happily…

 

(The article is originally published in My City Links )