MOHE RANG DE BASANTI !!!!!!!!!

Happy Independence Day to all u fellow Indians. 60 years of freedom, now thats an achievement.
When i was in school all this day meant to me was a half day at school (it was compulsary to attend the flag hoisting in the morning). Though i havn't attended a flag hoisting in ages but this day means more than just a day off now. Last year this time i was in the States and like most young Indians today i wanted to live the American dream. But as they say the grass is always greener on the other side. We might not have the best of roads here, but atleast we have public transport (in the US unless u live in a big city there's none). We might not have the best of neighbors here but atleat we know their name and can count on them in case of an emergency (in the 4 months i stayed in the Us i didn't even see my my neightbour's face leave alone knowin his or her name). We might not have the most co-operative bai's here but atleast we have them ( Trust me its not fun when u have to wash your own clothes and clean the bathrooms everyday). On a more serious note i never had to think ten times b4 goin to a Dr here, the Doctors here might not be world class physicians but i don't feel like i've been ripped off every time i go to one.
On my way to the States they showed the movie Rang De Basanti on the plane. Its happens to be one of my favorites. I always feel very patriotic when i watch the movie but this time i felt i like i was running away from My Land, My Culture, My country that gave me everything. I felt like a coward who was runnning away from her responsibilities. (By thw way if u havn't seen this movie then u my friend shud run this very moment and get a Cd of the same and watch it u can read the blog later. Unlike most patriotic movies this one's specially for the youth of today. Its not jus tellin us what the freedom fighters of yesteryears did but it also tellin us what we as young Indians can do to make this country what we want it to be. The passion of the filmaker jus cums across in every scene. Its a master piece. Movies like these are not made everyday. And when i am old and grey i'll tell my kids i belong to the time when the movie Rang De Basanti came out. Rehman's music rocked in the movie ).
My stay in the Us was obviously not very long. There were a no. of reasons why i decided to cum back one of them being that if i had to work , if i had to be sumthin, if i had to contribute to the economy of a country then why not my own. There is this sayin that "Charity begins at home ". If u want to contribute towards the society then why not the one that has given u everything. I see many young Indians who want to settle abroad today. I am sure all of them have their own reasons. But i just wanna tell them that there is no place like home...................
With my first step at Mumbai airport when i came back i could breathe freedom in the air. Trust me when i say this but i've never felt more free in my life. Freedom to live life the way i wanted, freedom to travel on my own (i wanted to hug the BEST buses, no kiddin) as late as i want to. I know its not possible in every city in India but its is Mumbai (I luv this city, there is gonna be a separate blog on my darlin Mumbai). The freedom to talk in Hindi. The freedom to play Holi on the streets. And how can i 4get the food. No more payin 12 $ for badly cooked Indian food buffets. The tasty vada pavs, the amazin raste ka pani puri, the delicious Juhu beach ka pav bhaji and golas, i had it all (that kinda explains the weight i've put on now). But its all worth it. As u can see i am a true blue Indian today. I am proud of the country that i live in. This is my culture and these are my roots. And this is where i belong.

My Song

This is one of my favorite songs sung by the band Junoon. Junoon was one of the first pakistani bands which performed in India. I hope i can go to one of their concerts sumday. This is not one of their popular songs. But i luv it. Hope u guys like it too.

Mitti main mil jaein gaey bhoolo na

Jaein gaey to phir hum laut kay na aaein gaey
Bhoolo na

Khwab hain jo teri meri aankhon main
Saare mitti main mil jaein gaey
Bhoolo na

Geet hain jo teri meri sanson main
Saare mitti main mil jaein gaey
Bhoolo na

Raaz hain jo teri meri baaton main
Saare mitti main mil jaein gaey
Bhoolo na

Mitti main mil jaein gaey bhoolo na
Jaein gaey to phir hum laut kay na aaein gaey
Bhoolo na

If Luv & Marriage are a mystery to u then read on to get the anwers

The story given below was mailed to me by a friend. Its sumthing that i felt i had to share. Its so true..........................

A Student asks a sage, "What is love?" 
The sage replied, "in order to answer your question, go to the wheat 
field and choose the biggest wheat and come back. But the rule is: you 
can go through it only once and cannot turn back to pick." 

The student went to the field, going thru first row, he saw one big 
wheat, but he wondered.... may be there is a bigger one later. 
Then he saw another bigger one... but may be there is an even bigger 
one waiting for him. 

Later, when he finished more than half of the wheat field, he started 
to realise that the wheat is not as big as the previous one he saw, he 
knew he had missed the biggest one, and he regretted. 
So, he ended up went back to the sage with an empty hand. 

The sage told him, "...this is love... you keep looking for a better 
one, but when later you realise, you have already missed the person....its too late"* 
"What is marriage then?" the student asked. 

The sage said, "in order to answer your question, go to the corn field 
and choose the biggest corn and come back. But the rule is same you can 
go through it only once and cannot turn back to pick." 

The student went to the corn field, this time he is careful not to 
repeat the previous mistake, when he reach the middle of the field, he 
picked one medium corn that he felt would satisfy, and came back to the 
sage. 

The sage told him, "this time you brought back a corn.... you looked 
for one that is just nice, and you had faith and believed this is the 
best one you get.... this is marriage." 

Things i wanna do before i die

This really nice guy i had known for years died a couple of days back. He was just 27. He left behind him a very young wife and a beautiful baby girl. His death came as a shock to the family and the cause of his death is still a mystery. His death has made me realize how unpredictable life is. For all i know the angels of death could be knocking my door tomorrow. So i have decided to make THE LIST. You know the list of things i wanna do before i die.....that list. I know this sounds kinda cliche, but i don't really care.
I don't wanna die thinkin there were so many things that i wanted to do but never had the time or the resources, etc, etc....
When i die, i wanna be at peace. I don't want to have any unfulfilled wishes. At least i am gonna try not to have any. So here it goes, this my friend is my list. Warning: i think its gonna be kinda long so pls read it only if u hav enough time to waste.

1. Learn yo speak a foreign language.
2. Get a tattoo that says FREEDOM .........i hav been wanting 2 get this 4ever.
3. Go backpacking.............its one of my dreams
4. Study psychology.......It fascinates me
5. Volunteer for a Children related cause
6. Learn to play a music instrument.........i've given this a shot already, didn't really work out. But i am gonna give it another shot for sure.
7. Date a firang..........would be an icing on the cake if he has blue eyes;-)
8. Travel to Ladakh......if u see the pictures u'll know y i wanna go here
9. Adopt a child.........I am so sure i am gonna do this, i think its my purpose on this planet. I jus hope i am a better person when this finally happens
   
10. Go river rafting...............i don't know how to swim though so i guess thats next in the list
11. Learn to swim...........I almost drowned once. But its high time i conquer my fear
12. Send my sister to Italy...........she has been wanting to go there 4ever. May be i'll accompany her
13. Read all the e-books i have.............this is gonna take a veeeeeeeeeeery long time.
14. Celebrate Valentines day with someone special.............my ex didn't really believe in all these days Which includes the anniversaries, no wonder it didn't work out;-)
    
15. Go to a concert of my favorite band Junoon....................these guys are awesome
16. Learn yoga
    
17. Gift my bro a car............he's an amazing brother; i would give him the world if i could
18. Learn to cook..........this one is gonna require a lot of work
19. Go sky diving...........ok the thought of this scares me but i think thats the reason i wanna do this
20. Throw a surprise party for sumebody........i luv the surprised look on people's faces
21. Get along with my parents.................the chances of this happening are very steep LOL!
    
22. Get my own house..............i really want this to happen hopefully in the near future
23. Donate money for a charity...........i am a good person u know
24. Learn photograhy.........this is sumthing that interests me a lot
    

Ok so this is my list for now. I am kinda surprised that its over. I thought its gonna be longer than this.
Will add more things that i have missed out in the next couple of days. In the meanwhile have to start workin on stuff mentioned above.

4/01/08- A quick update on my list.

20. Done- threw a surprise B'day party for my sister. Cudn't manage to surprise her as i wished cos she kinda had an idea. But alls well that ends well. Had fun arrangin the whole thing.

23. Done- Donated money for this charity Asha Kiran which works for educating Street children, but i am sure i can do more.

18. & 24 are in process- Baked a cake which by the way turned out pretty decent and have started readin articles on photography. Infact even went to shoot pics of Marine drive a couple od days bak. The pics were not that gr8 but i cudn't hv started takin pics at a better place LUUUUUUV Marine Drive

Will keep u guys updated on THE LIST....

20/3/08- Latest updates

4. So it turns out only people who have taken psychology at graduation level can take it at PG level so this option is ruled out. In fact i even tried findin a course on counseling but that too requires gradution in psychology or medicine which i am not. But don't worry folks i am not givin up that easily will try findin a long distance course or sumthing. In the mean while if any of u know anything abt sum course then your suggestions are most welcomed.

5. I am officially a CRY volunteer now so no. 5 has started though havn't been able to attend their meetings as regularly cos of college, also i was kinda let down cos their work doesn't really involve direct interaction with children. So planin to join sum other NGO now

6. This actually is not mentioned in my list as no 6. but its sumthing that i felt like doin cos i hav never played a sport in my entire life other than the kiddy games we played in our building as kids but i have started playin tennis and though as of now i suck at it but i think i'll get better with time. But i am enjoyin he whole learin process!

19. Went prarsiling sum time bak and though i hav done it b4 this time it kinda seemed more scary. Also though i cant swim i went for a banana boat ride and i luved it.

I am not cheatin or anythin but was jus wonderin, 2 times parasailin + banana boat + jet sking is almost equal to sky diving isn't it. Well wat the heck am i supposed to do they don't hav sky divin in India!!

7/5/08

Ok so i am very embarrassed to admit that i havt been able continue no.'s 5 & 6 mentioned above cos of college, exams and my laziness. Also the tennis coach was a pain in the ass and 5 in the mornin is nor really my fav time 2 play any sport....

4. I hav decided that i don't need a bloody degree or certificate , i like the subject and i am gonna read abt it anyways.

Life Is Beautiful !

There is sumthing about this picture. Everytime i look at it, it makes me smile. I can't help but wonder wat are these 2 lil angels happy about. They don't seem to be livin in the best of conditions. Unlike most grown ups kids don't over think things. I guess thats wat makes childhood so amazing.

Its true when they say that happiness comes from within. If you have a positive outlook then even the worse situations don't seem so bad. Its how we look at it. In the end what matters is inner peace. Every time i have gone through a bad phase in life, its has just made me stronger as a person and wiser. I think the key lies in not wondering why it happened but learnin from it and movin on .....