Once Obama'time in Bombay...

South Bombay has never looked as spruced up and beautifully botoxed as it does right now. Like a readying bride awaiting her grom's arrival, the south of the city has been ornamentally decked with freshly relaid roads, fashionable street furniture, bright well-lit promenades, side walks, groomed to display pruned and manicured bylanes, public gardens,  lawns and, richly draped in green hues across the wide open brown spaces in keeping with the prevailing fashionable flavour of environmental chutzpah and chic!

The groom's arrived. Obama's here! Band, baaja, baraat et al. Aurr mehmaan-nawaazi ka kya kehna...uff, it'd put any blue blooded Punjabi shaadi to shame! Dekho to jaano paaji. This is the land of 'Atithi Devo Bhavo' after all!

All it takes is one visit from the President of the United States to jumpstart our bureaucracy, administration and babudom into the thick of electrifying action. Action, with startling results and, in minimal turn around times, mind you! It's so unbelievable, that I'm still lost figuring whether I'm more surprised by the quantum of work that got done over the past month in the run up to the Prez's arrival or,  impressed by the sheer outcome of the results achieved. Either ways, the one fact that coherently emerges from all of this 'abracadabra' of turntail transformation  - and we've known this all along now - is, that we definitely have the resources to execute action in our quest for desired results. What we lack is the willingness and the discipline to sustain the needed momentum in the face of routine.

And so, while many may crib about the inconveniences that the city's been put up to due to the US Prez's visit, seen as ill-timed given that it coincides with Diwali, one of India's biggest festivals, thereby putting paid to may a festive celebration in the city, I silently smile...watching my city, looking lovelier by the minute, blush with pride as she's painstakingly bedecked in bridal finery awaiting her big moment in time.

The groom's arrived. Obama's here...band, baaja, baraat et al! May his tribe increase!

Roy-ter Speak

Quite frankly, I'm amused and a tad beleaguered at the recent press coverage and political outcry over Arundhati's Roy's remarks on Kashmir. 'Seditious' and 'anti Indian' howled the media and the political class. How smugly self-serving and convenient indeed!

While, Roy may have overstated her case in suggesting that India is an occupying power that imposes its rule on Kashmir through torture, brutality and rape, she can't be labelled a traitor by any far measure. Her concern in connection with the state resorting to violence to kill violence, at the cost of violating fundamental rights and basic human dignity in the valley, is valid and, holds good in India as it would in any other democracy across th globe. Roy may have chosen strong words, in keeping with her characteristic style, but worrying about her remarks having serious consequences on the socio-political fabric of Indian society, is taking it too far.

A regional right wing political party head, known to have moulded his career in politics based on incitingly fiery speeches, even today continues to unabashedly provoke his partymen to not just take the law into their hands, but more often than not define the law for the land and forcibly play it out too. His speeches, partisan for the most part, are hard hitting, below the belt and slanderously libellous against individuals and religious minorities to say the least.  Indoctrinated by an ideology whose time has long since past, the party head has constantly encouraged the politics of caste and religious genocide, only to gain political mileage and votes.

All this is very 'Indian' by no means seditious I suppose, since at no point in time then or now have I once heard the media or political class even blinker about curtailing the right to this individual's right to freedom of speech. Strange no? If a curtailment, as is being mandated against Roy by these very folks, was ever warranted, it would first have to be mandated against this man. There is strong justification and documented evidence for it too. But no! Nothing of the sort has ever happened this far and the man continues to roar as and when it pleases him. It happens all the time, where politics is concerned, especially that of caste. So why now then, when there is absolutely no reason to believe that Roy's statements will have any such larger consequences, or fuel public outrage are these folks crying hoarse about curtailing the right to an individual's freedom of speech? Beats me, really. A case of different strokes for different folks, I'm guessing or, pure double standards, if you please.

To quote Vir Sanghvi, from his though provoking Op-Ed, in the Hindustan Times, last Sunday: while the principal of freedom of expression of speech can be curtailed on grounds of sedition, the principal of freedom of expresssion is far more important than any individual. Such curtailment should only be restricted to those times when there is real threat to the unity and integrity of the country. Point to be noted Tiger.

Auroville

...had one of the most perfect get-away weeks ever. It left me experiencing so much that I'm lost wondering where to begin. But all good times must be chronicled and so let me begin.

There's something about that place...a mysterious something that uplifts the senses and anchors the soul. It is barely striking, if at all, at first glance. On the surface it appears rather incomprehensible, leaving you wondering what all the fuss is about now really. And then, before long, the experiment that is Auroville unfolds. Auroville is not just one location. It is actually an entire area. I went there looking for an Ashram, I came back experiencing what it was to live in an evolving civilisation, also called by many as the 'Laboratory of Evolution'.

My stay there was hosted by Elumalai (Elu), my host, and member of the Auroville fraternity. He warmly welcomed me into his home and his family. The home was modest, but earthy and tastefully designed (by Elu and his wife), incorporating local influences of the land, spacious and sprawled over an acreage or two of dense greenery. The air was rife with a scent of wetted soil, very akin to the scent of earth after it has been freshly bathed by the first rains. The foliage had just been watered.

Before long I realised that all homes within the Auroville precincts were designed and constructed likewise; living spaces here are defined by the objective of imbimbing and nurturing eco-environmental sustainability! Psst...evolving civilisation, didn't I mention that one before. ;) The architecture across the breadth of this township is refreshingly welcoming and breath taking...be it the homes, activity centres, community spaces, youth hostels and eateries. Lovely!

Having settled down a bit, it was then time to move around and explore the place. Armed with my guest pass, courtsey Elu, I was all rearing to go. Time was a constraint and much had to been seen and accomplished within defined bounds.

I began with the Visitor's Centre, a complex of buildings specially designed to answer to the needs of casual day visitors and more interested guests alike. They played me, as they did other guests, a brief video on the the ideology* and making of Auroville.

After a brief peek-a-boo at the photo exhibition centre and the Seagull bookshop at the VC, I ventured into Boutique d'Auroville, the centre for arts and crafts and all other things Aurovillian; good place I'd reckon to pick up some 'arty' stuff, but a tad expensive for the uninitiated.

Along my way, there were many, many interesting stores hidden behind small non-descript signs, just off the road, selling various items like - clothes, crafts, jewellery, 100% natural soaps made from vegetable oils, hammocks, natural and soft washing detergents, lampshades, organic food, organic oils and a whole lot more. These are spread all across Auroville county. I couldn't help stopping by a few to check them out...did lose some time and quite some money in the bargain, but what the heck? I was her to partake of the experience anyways!

A tip that might help, don't let the lack of a jazzy storefront fool you into believing that going in isn't worth it. You're definitely missing something if you do.

Back on track now - and it's difficult maintaining one in Auroville - a kilometer and a half's walk through the idyllic expanse took me to Matrimandir, 'Temple of the Mother', the epicentre of Auroville...a sight to behold! Matrimandir emerges as a large golden sphere rising from the womb of the earth, symbolising the birth of a new consciousness seeking to manifest. The meditation centre is housed within this awesome edifice. However, one needs to book in advance to venture within and partake of the sessions held there, which I'm told is an 'outta-the-world' experience. That's on my list of to-do's whilst on my next trip here for sure!

Now for some food, growled my stomach, after so many visual treats, but nothing on its palette to chew and eat. 

Auroville is a treat for the food lover. Roma's kitchen, The Beach Cafe, Pour Tous café, the Solar kitchen and the Auro Bakery are names you don't want to, and can't easily forget for the spreads they dole out. Some great food in store for the hungry here ranging from fresh bakes to pastas, pizzas, organic foods, salads, soups, South and North Indian cuisine. The Auro Bakery deserves a special mention here for its oven fresh breads, tarts, croissants and biscuits. Trying out the homemade ice-cream and solar cooled nimbu sherbet at the shaded area kiosk - ensconced within a bamboo groove - is also highly recommended.

Next stop, Pondicherry, (New Hamlet, in Tamil)

Pondicherry was quite a hurried stopover, given the limited time I had at hand. But the place is truely worth a dekkho. The entire town is divided into two sections, the French Quarter ('Ville Blanche' or 'White Town') and the Indian Quarter ('Ville Noire' or 'Black Town'), with grid patterns and neat sectors across perpendicular streets.

Besides the usual list of places to see or explore there, I particularly liked Le Cafe - a French Cafe on the Promenade - the road along the beach. Now this is must see, must do! A beautiful place with some yummy treats on the menu and some off it too - the breathtaking view of the sea, with its restless waves lashing against the rockbed for one.

Walking down The Promenade made for another memorable treat. The police band, looking grand in their khaki uniforms and red caps, was playing at the Gandhi Statue alongside the beach. The band played some patriotic numbers that blended well with the mood that was setting in around sundown.

It had begun to drizzle by now, and the place slowly began emptying out. It left me feeling that I had the promenade all to myself now! Walking down The Promenade with droplets of rain trickling off my face, in the incandescence of the light emitted from stately lamp posts, teasingly rising into the sky along the dividers, , against the backdrop of old French villas on the one side and the sea on the other...was phantasmagoric!

An apt end to the eventful evening.

And that concluded my brief vacation in Auroville/ Pondi, as I readied to drive back to Chennai (another one of my top 3 favourite cities) for the remainder of my stay, before returning to Bombay. It's barely been a day since my return, and I'm already making plans for my next visit to Auroville. Elu, you'll hear from me soon!

* The purpose of Auroville is to realise human unity – in diversity. Today Auroville is recognised as the first and only internationally endorsed ongoing experiment in human unity and transformation of consciousness, also concerned with - and practically researching into - sustainable living and the future cultural, environmental, social and spiritual needs of mankind.

Thirty!

Aaaaand I'm 30! ;)

I just hit the big 'Three-O' and, surprise...surprise...it hasn't mOwed me dOwn in spirit...yet!

nOt that I dO see it happening anyway, but then at thirty One is expected tO maintain a balanced view On life as it were. And sO here I am at the dOOrway of 30 peering at an Open expanse that hOlds seductive prOmise of a life that can be but is nOt yet. Interesting pOssibilities...and a lOt more hOpe. I cOuldn't have asked fOr mOre tO begin with!

The 20's, for me, were all abOut experimentatiOn, begining with the search fOr whO I was and, what I really wanted tO be, as I attempted - hard at times - tO bridge that wide gap with my expirements with truth...truth in the way I saw and perceived it. My Truth!

But the 30's, I knOw, will be abOut experience. Experience Of having cOme intO my very Own, and richer fOr having successfully survived the cOnfusing 20's. All the life lessOns I learnt in my 20's, I can nOw apply. :)

While the 20's have left behind, with me, sOme of the mOst memorable times I cOuld ever have imagined, thereby etching their vibrant presence On my persOn fOrever, they alsO, I must admit, did present me with sOme Of the mOst trying situatiOns encOuntered ever. It was a time where I stOpped gOing with the madding crOwd and realised that there were many things abOut myself that I didn't knOw, cOntrary tO my belief that I did, and many mOre that I knew abOut but didn't like. Insecurity, hOvered like a lOOming shadOw over every bend in my way making me say and, worse still, dO things that, as I lOOk back retrOspectively, make me feel sheepishly gOOfy. Got wasted, acted like an idiOt and then gOt wasted again recklessly this time Over, to Overcome the accOmpanying guilt.

And being 29 sucked the mOst! It's such a silly age really. For all practical purpOses you are nOt part Of the 20’s crOwd anymOre but sOmehOw cling to this silly age because it's the last barrier between yOu and the apprOaching 30s's. That feeling's dOne with fOr gOOD now...and thankfully sO.

And nOw, having lived thrOugh it all, the way ahead seems refreshingly welcOming. A new start almOst, tO begin with. NO mOre barriers Of self-dOubt and eager anticipatiOn in askance Of that all sO overpOwering 20's phenOmenOn of 'peer acceptance'. I AM found. I dOn't seek anymOre and that means I get to BE and DO all that I need tO, respOnsibly, as an aware and cOnfident individual whO has a lOt to share with, and Offer tO the wOrld he inhabits. And that thOught itself makes me feel sO empOwered.

LOOking back, I'm thankful fOr my 20's and am now saying goodbye to them, those crazy, wonderful days, with fOnd memOries Of sOme of the best years of my life they brOught with it. And having said that, I have finally stOpped trying tO find myself anymOre and am nOw creating myself in ways I never knew were pOssible.

GOOdbye 20's. 30 here I cOme!

Here's tO a decade Of unending pOssibilities...

An afterthOught:
"Inside every older person is a younger person - wondering what the hell happened and then realises that life has got to be lived - and that's all there is to it!"