Creativity on the street!

River !

 Berkeley is full of surprises and amusing people ! Today, when I was walking home from the Metta Center, I came across this young man named River, painting on the streets with his walkman on.  What an amazing name to have ! Pretty much living upto his name, River has a passion for travelling. He started painting two years ago. He paints and  sells his paintings on the streets so that he can just make enough for the days expenditure and for the travel to his next destination.Completely living on the edge!

What was even more impressive was that his paints are usually picked up from the garbage cans or are leftovers of wall paints and pastels. His canvas is the wood he finds outside people’s houses. Recycling is the way to go!   A very smiley young man, his next destination is Seattle. I am just amazed at how creative people can get ??and how they can dare to live on the edge!

Dream and dare to accomplish it !

June 21,2009

Service Dog !

I was travelling by the BART (train)with Brandi to meet John.

An old man, guess he was deaf and mute, his helper and a lady with black glares were sitting besides us.  I was observing the conversation that took place mostly in sign language and was thinking about the deaf and blind people in India, comparing the ratio, health care and the facilities available. I was thinking of all my interactions I have had so far with disabled people in India.  And then, out of nowhere, I see this dog appear, I get all excited and tell Brandi about a dog in the train!!  She casually says that’s a service dog.

SERVICE DOG ! Service dogs have been specially trained to assist disabled people with daily chores, lifting bags, picking things from the floor, leading the way etc - Brandi explains.

 Service dogs ! woow it took me a while to digest this concept! I kept staring at the dog untill the blind lady got up to leave. phew ! I could see my head spin from side to side in almost animated format in sheer disbelief ! this is for real!

I am not sure if the concept of service dogs exists in India, may be it does and  I am just ignorant and haven’t seen one yet.. But yes ! service humans there are plenty in India ! And for some reason, I could hear myself say, I love it that way in my country !

Dog in service ??? !!!  :)

Smile :)

-

  Ganesh – Manavsadhna (Ahmedabad)

Someday, a smile on a child’s face is all I have dreamt of …

Another day, I want to see the world turn on its head …. And if my enthusiasm dies and fades away into conflicts which I am trying to grapple with, there will be one more enthusiast waiting to take up.. Take on the conflicts within ourselves and outside and with the bubbling zeal of youth take on the constant process of change…

                                                                    – Footprints (Beyond Borders)

Complexities of life !!!

Nature so profoundly resembles our life … and in so many different ways and forms ….. Beautiful sunset, romantic rains, angry storm, serene and calm river !!! The photograph above, truly sketches the complexities of human life…… the entangled relationships, the confusions , rebellious nature, mixed emotions and constant conflicts with one’s own self against the Backdrop of beautiful bright light !!

To think of it, complexities are directly proportional to ones age, just like responsibilities… As a toddler, I never bothered about what’s wrong and what’s right… I just did it if I wanted to … never thought about who is looking at me, analyzing my behaviour and what is my progress report… who cares ??….. I just followed my dreams …. hmmm .. sometimes, I wish, I could go back to becoming a kid.. Ignorant, innocent and Naive ! Throw tantrums when I badly want something.. do crazy stuff and yet always keep smiling ….

hmm.. on the other hand, I wonder if life would be as much fun if everything was perfect … prim and proper to the core!!! …… Without these wild adventures and raw emotions…passionate moments, love, pain, anxiety, frustration, disappointments and desires …… may be not !!

It’s hard (and may be a little painful too) to believe that life is beautiful when its incomplete !! One moment , my heart is craving to become a kid again and the very next moment, I feel like smiling at the complexities of life !!!

Freezing to death !

 The busy buzzing Mumbai city is now shivering to death … temperatures have dropped to single digits .. its 8.5 °C  today !!! Unbelievably cold man and the wind chill factor is making it even worse..!!  Mumbaikers who have never experienced a winter like this before , are now showing off their new jackets and sweaters … Its bizarre how this city reacts to climate change.. deserted streets, packed coffee shops, and most important off all, vacant trains ….   

hmm however, this is just the partial take on the  scenario…..

BANDSTAND – BANDRA

 The poorer section of the society is struggling to fight the cold and I am amazed as to how they are surviving !! I was out with friends today, at Bandstand … While, i was just getting out of the car, a small 8-10 yrs old kid comes to the car asking for money! He is wearing a thin blue cotton shirt and shorts …shivering his ass off in the nail-biting sea breeze at bandstand…Unfortunately,  this is not the case with only him but, over 250,000  street kids of  Mumbai ….. Crazziee figures ha !!

 Infact, i was just browsing through pictures of my treks, in the Sahyadri range, in Maharashtra and realized, that, most kids there in the villages were either naked or half -dressed.. they dint have enough clothes to cover themselves  in summer!! Thinking about  how they are coping with this winter,itself  is giving me goosebumps … the winter is killer this year !!

Kids at Rajmachi Village – Lonavala

 Just imagine… how fortunate we are to have everything at our disposal !!  hmmm .. a little speechless at this point yet amazed as to how God gives eachone the strength to survive and fight their own battles  … 

Kid at Waghachi wadi village

In prayers,  for those who are fighting for their survival……. insha’allah the weather will be back to normal soon   

Bawra Mann!!

—

__

Bawra mann dekhne chala ek sapna,

bawra mann dekhne chala ek sapna….

bawre se mann ki dekho bawri hai bateein,

bawre se mann ki dekho bawri hai bateein,

bawri si dhadkane hai, bawri hai saasein,

bawre si karwaton se nindiya door bhaage,

bawra se nain chahe, bawre jharokhon se,

bawre nazaaron ko takna.. 

bawra mann dekhne chala ek sapna…

 –

bawre se is jahan mein, bawara ek saath ho,

is sayani bheed mein, bas, haathon mein tera haath ho,

bawri si dhun ho koi, bawra ek raag ho,

O bawri si dhun ho koi, bawra ek raag ho,

bawre se pair chahe, bawre taranon pe,

bawre se bol pe thirakhna… 

 bawra mann dekhne chala ek sapna…

–

bawra sa ho andhera, bawri khamoshiyan,

bawra sa ho andhera, bawri khamoshiyan,

thartharti louh madhdham, bawri madhoshiyan, 

bawra ek ghoongta chahe, haule haule dil bataein,

bawra ek ghoongta chahe, haule haule bin bataein,  

bawre se mukhde se sarakna.. 

–

bawra mann dekhne chala ek sapna

bawra mann dekhne chala ek sapna…

                                                    - Hazaaroon Khwaishein Aisi

_________________________________________________

__

This should have been my first blog post …. After all, my blog is named after this song!! The song is from Hazaroon khwaishein aisi- a movie based on the immense political turmoil in India.. The movie is super super inspiring just like the song!!

…

I have never been sooo addicted to a song before … the lyrics are truly inspiring and divine with a lot of depth and meaning …everytime i hear this song, something within me stirs !! It’s an all time favorite ..in the lowest of the lows and the highest of the highs!!

…

Trust me, this song has the potential to make you act, make you smile when you are just about to cry, make you jump with a bubbling zeal and an undying spirit and most important of all, it makes you DREAM

Inspired to the core

Naitra ! My first encounter with a hijra!

July 2007 

IT was a cloudy day , Anurima and I, were on our way to prithvi cafe, in an auto rickshaw to discuss about the new Beyond Borders project we were about to take up .. In our last meeting, we had come up with a number of issues and Anu had put forth the issue of rights of Hijras. Having no knowledge whatsoever about them and their life, i was extremely fascinated by the project idea.

So, we were at the Andheri signal, stuck in the usual Mumbai traffic, and we see a few transgenders begging at the signal .. i guess first time ever, i was so observant about them and their behaviour.. next , we see a transgender in a multi-coloured saree come towards us. Earlier, when I was approached by them, I would look for the fastest way to get rid of them.. either pay them a few chillers(coins), or ignore them completely..But this time, it was different, since, we were planning to do a project with them there was a lot of curiosity…. This made us engage in a small conversation with the transgender who was now standing in front of us. 

Anu asked her, Aap ka naam kya hai ?( what is your name?).A little amazed by this question she smilingly replies- Humara naam Naitra. (my name is Naitra). From her broken hindi and the accent we guessed that she was from south India.

she is still standing and smiling at us, finally, she once again asks- Paisa Babi? (Money baby)..

Paisa kyun chahiye ? (why do you need money?) A very foolish question to ask but i guess, i was just getting comfortable with her.. and then came the most obvious answer- Khane ke liye ! (for food)

This time, we dint want to give her money, we said : aap chalo, hum leke chalte hai , aapko kidhar khana hai? ( you come with us, we Will treat you, where do you want to eat ?)

5 Star ! the most astonishing reply i have ever heard :S … I was still thinking what to reply to this now, when anu said: 5 star !!! wahan toh hum bhi nahi khaate hai , par aapko chahiye toh aap humare saath chalo , hum bhi khaneko ja rahe hai? ( 5 star! even we don’t eat there , but if you wish , you can come with us , we are also going to eat ?)

Surprisingly, she agreed and was almost sitting with us in the rickshaw, just then, one of her friends called her and she gets out to leave..but before she says bye to us, she showers loads of blessings for Anu and me (In india, people believe that the hijras have the power to either curse or bless someone)  … Finally, signal lights turn green and our auto starts moving….

This may not seem to be a remarkable incident, but for Anu and me, it’s our first and biggest ice breaker in this project and in our lives …. When Naitra sat next to me for the first time, my heart was beating faster, not because I was scared or sumthing but I guess,b’coz I was extremely happy.. It was a liberating experience ..This was the first time a hijra was sitting right next to me, the closest I have come to a transgender in my life so far… Stereotypes, that I have had for 20yrs of my life were finally broken  …

_________________________________________________________________

I have met Naitra several times at the same signal after that..  we have exchanged smiles, hugs , ganpati laddus ( sweets ), chocolates and a bit of our lives at times…:)  it’s a connection that I have made for life..Naitra’s profound smile is something I will never forget…   

My first step !!

Finally ! still pretty unsure whether i really want to do this or not  .. hesitating … logging in and out of this wordpress account, that was created by Deane for me,  on 22.feb .07 … almost after a year, I take this first step now… 

Inspite of being encouraged , nagged and pushed by many of my friends all this while,  I dint end up writing .. the reason is not that I am lazy or bored but just that I am write-o-phobic .. Finally, inspired by bloggers like Nipun, Mark, Madhu and manymore, I write for the first time in hope of just being my self and writing for myself

“Aum”