A warm, tight, final hug to Engineering...!!

The full text of my Convocation-cum-Farewell Speech today in the august presence of my batch-mates. A big thanks to Tanya Sarna for giving me this opportunity which I grabbed with both hands and an even bigger thanks to the lively audience who supported, clapped, rejoiced (probably hooted too) and makin this otherwise dull day come alive....


" It was 4th September 2006, technically the first day of college for our batch and I dunno how many of u remember but we had our Orientation seminar on that rainy day. unless u bunked on that day too… we were made to listen to the history and geography of this institute where today we complete 4 full years of our course that have enriched us on various levels, given us so many memories to cherish for a lifetime, given us amazing friends wid whom we have spent the best times in these years; these 4 yrs hav given us practically everythin except a slightest idea abt the logic behind our course syllabus..

We meet on this day where we are all decked up to accept our Graduation certificates from the very University that we hav unitedly hated irrespective of caste, creed or language barriers. For some of us, these 4 yrs may also remind us the emotional grind we went thru when we got unexpected KTs on one or more than one occasion. For some, these years may define the absolutely unadulterated fun we had spendin a whale of a time doing practically nothing but sitting and chattin in the college canteen.

For some, these years have been transformational too.. Such was the classroom experience here that even sincere, hard-working pets have transformed into habitual defaulters.. or even vice versa for that matter…

Irrespective of what we gathered individually, the one thing that will probably remain on top of my college memories will be the I.V. days in Shimla-Manali. I’m sure many of u share that view.

This last semester ensured that many of us have our future course charted out in the form of placements. Many among us here have enjoyed Engg so much that they hav opted for an MS. On the other hand, some have hated it so much that they wont mind sellin Dabur Amla Hair Oil and call themselves MBAs. Some of you will join ur family business, some will take the unconventional route and opt for totally different careers. For the undecided ones, I’m sure better things are coming your way too…. But wherever you go and whatever you do, Make Yourself Count ( ok that was cheap advertisement of my personal blog but sorry I cant help it )

Now that I suppose I am famous because of this speech, I hope to be invited to your engagements and weddings whenever they take place. There’s a brand new hall right here so I m sure discounts will be offered to ex-students.

As I conclude, I wud tell u to admire the institute you study in, especially ours. Very rarely will you get to see a defaulter deliverin a convocation-cum-farewell speech 2-months in advance when he has no 'beeping' idea what the next week holds for him.

THANK YOU & ALL THE BEST… and 3 cheers to all of us....!!! "

Incredible India !!

No, I am not launching a new series of commercials for the Ministry of Tourism, certainly not. I don't even think this is an appropriate title to what I wish to write. But still, Incredible India !!

How many times have we basked in the glory of our successes (or excesses) in varying fields only to stand witness to its equally glorious downfalls? How easily we have converted individuals from humans-to-paranormal achievers-to-demigods and then easily brought them down to the rank of frauds and criminals? The vice versa is equally true in my beloved country.

Naming a few will clear the clouds as to what & who am I talking about. Take for instance, Lalit Modi. Not too many days ago, this ugly little duckling was a sapphire in a coal-mine for all of us. He had achieved the impossible. He wrapped the same old popular game of Cricket in a nice little package and promised us an entertainment bonanza every year. Bonanza for you, overdose for me. This alpha-male showed us that nothing is insurmountable if you are driven; even kissing, hugging, hi-fiving beautiful bolly chicks and cheerleaders is possible inspite of being ugly, unkempt and soda-glassified...... STOP --> PLAY CURRENT TRACK and you find the same name Lalit Modi today also stands for kidnapper, drug peddler, fraud, misdirected genius and what not. A typical case of an otherwise irrelevant past coming back to haunt your present. Success is difficult to achieve, but even more difficult to digest. Modi is a victim of his own ingenuity. I will not mention what the media says about him because news-reporting has transformed itself into a beautiful showbiz providing prime-time entertainment like any other over-the-top reality show. Meanwhile, you and me are busy rooting for our favorite teams.

But politics beats it all. Here we have a sophisticated, 'proper'-English speaking, career diplomat and ex-MoS Shashi Tharoor who loses his job as well as an untarnished reputation for mentoring a commercially profitable consortium (a punishable but excusable misconduct even by the strictest standards) whereas on the other side we have career-scamsters who manage to orchestrate a humongous scam even in cattle fodder and still be ministers for full terms. Not just that, they also qualify themselves as chief guests at our top B-schools lecturing the young bright future entrepreneurs on..... MANAGEMENT, if you really get what I mean. How on earth was a person who did not spare animal food allowed to look after the largest rail network in Asia that employs millions and earns millions too? The answer is by Management, my dear, management.

The Satyam fiasco, the match-fixing scandal, the Indira Gandhi story, the Narendra Modi syndrome, the Rajiv Gandhi persona (from best PM to tainted ex-PM), the Naxal issue ; have all been examples of pendulum shifts in perception. The have cost the nation its image on the international front. Worst, they have challenged our ideals and work ethics and exposed our people, our governments whom we looked upon as our saviours, our heroes. We, as mute spectators, aren't left much far behind in our contribution to the chaos. We worship them at our convenience and we also go hammer and tongs when it suits us. 'Yeh public hain, sab jaanti hain' is the most clever sentence aimed at fooling the public itself. We think we matter even when we know we don't. India and Indians are incredibly incredible indeed.

As for the actual 'Incredible India' campaign carried out by our Tourism Ministry, you just need to google to find out the rapes per month of foreign nationals that take place on Goa's beaches and I bet you will hate that term for the rest of your lives. Btw, Goa is the smallest state of our Incredible India.

Pak Infiltrates, China threatens, Aus attacks : Welcome to India's Century

The 21st century belongs to India. It sure does. We're in the news all the time. And for all the wrong reasons. First things first , 14 months and we still haven't managed to get a single person convicted for the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai. Gone are the days when Pranab Mukherjee (then Foreign Minister) sounded the war bugle on Pakistan in response to the cowardly attacks but ended up taking instructions from them on how to proceed legally to secure convictions for a crime that was documented LIVE on World Televisions. In UPA-2 some divine intervention told him about his advancing age so he conveniently shifted himself to the more cosy Finance Ministry leaving the Foreign Ministry charge to a docile SM Krishna 'ably' supported by his assistant Shashi 'Twitteroor'. I'm sure they both got to settle a lot of other differences first before they start taking their jobs seriously. Meanwhile, Pakistan has played its side of the game smartly. Rarely do we see a country come out unscathed after inflicting such macabre humiliation on its neighbor. Even the pea-sized Palestine bombed the mighty Israel when challenged.

China, on the other hand, badly cuts us down to our size, both physically and diplomatically. Physically; by claiming Arunachal Pradesh & Aksai Chin. Diplomatically; by vetoing crucial treaties and accords against us in International Bodies, investing money and manpower in mineral-rich Africa and oil-rich South America, gaining political clout in countries like Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh which have traditionally been India's friends. The Chinese economic growth story is a result of their own hard efforts. The political arrogance is just an expected consequence. Unless we keep them in check and learn to expand our own base, we will be to China what Canada is to America. Living under fear is bad but living under denial of it is worse.

The newest hot-spot for Indians for education and tourism, Australia, is in the news too. What started as stray street attacks on brown people with the motives being robbery or sexual assault has transformed into full-fledged racist attacks with Indians being singled out for special treatment. Before we even discuss the reasons behind it, I strongly believe that the job of the Australian government is to protect its people (citizens, tourists alike) from such brutal attacks and not get philosophical about job losses and domestic unemployment being the reasons behind these acts of sheer cowardice. India, on the other hand, has taken 3 months just to request the Australian authorities to set up a committee to look into the matter. Parents have lost their young children, some have been lucky to settle with a permanently disabled young man in their house, some plan to return soon, many have cancelled their plans of going. If the govt had guts, it would have issued a strict travel advisory prohibiting Indians from touring Australia in the near future and banning any visits by Australian ministers or industry tycoons. But our policy of pliability prevents us from taking decisive steps. Instead, we had the Australian Foreign Min, Dy. PM and PM himself as state guests recently who either conveniently avoided intrusive questions on the racist attacks or gave textbook answers that would keep the diplomats happy. An Indian is probably running for his life or being beaten to death on the streets of Melbourne even as I post this blog.

Push has come to shove, and the shove to a Tombstone Piledriver, but we lay bare and naked knocked out without putting up a fight. Unless we stand up and be counted, the world will dismiss us as just another over-sized country that is too busy with its one-dimensional growth to care for the life & property of its citizens or diaspora. The way things are going, we must count ourselves lucky to even co-exist in this world amidst some fiercely self-respecting countries that will not give up an inch of land or let go a single drop of blood without making the aggressor pay heavily for it.

Maharashtra Elections : An Exercise in Futility or a Serious Chance for Change ?

Well we are welcoming another long weekend after the Pateti and Dussehra weeks. But this time, its slightly different. The 13th of October is election day and not just another festival. It is indeed a festival of democracy but I won't be wrong in assuming that very few people perceive it that way. The general public mood regarding elections was evident in the recent Lok Sabha elections where the voter turnout from a cosmopolitan city like Mumbai was a pathetic 43%. So I have decided that I won't waste anymore time in trying to inspire the disinterested souls to come out and vote. This is meant purely for those who are eagerly waiting to exercise their franchise and elect the candidate and government of their choice.

The marked difference in these elections compared to the 2004 elections is the rise of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena or the MNS. Etched out of its parent party Shiv Sena (SS), the MNS is a by-product of the sibling rivalry between cousins Uddhav Thackeray (Exec. President, SS) and Raj Thackeray (President, MNS). Helped by Raj's powerful oratory laced with sarcasm and satire, the MNS is a one-man army aiming to carve an independent identity for itself.

But this is not what bothers me. Simply put, I am totally confused whom to vote for. I am not someone who would vote for an individual. Its his party and its people policies that matter. In that regard, we have a ready reckoner of the incumbent Congress-NCP government's performance in the last 10 yrs that it has ruled Maharashtra. In my opinion, Maharashtra has seen little or no governance in the last decade. We have no idea who is in-charge. The state has seen 4 chief ministers in 10 years. The Union Agriculture Minister hails from Maharashtra but farmer suicides are the order of the day. Terrorists attacks, more prominently 26/11, have raised serious questions about the state of internal security. The snail-paced development in areas like infrastructure, education, e-governance and police reforms has cast a shadow on the very commitment of this government towards its people. The situation worsens when ambitious ministers are seen washing dirty linen in public. As a result internal squabbles for one-upmanship completely overshadows the business of governance. Yes there have been no major communal out-breaks but that alone can't be a reason to vote this government back to power. The proof of the pudding has to be in the eating.

The Shiv Sena-BJP saffron alliance have struggled to come to power since the last 2 elections. Their urban support base kept eroding due to their street-style politics. The sons-of-the-soil issue further alienated them from non-Maharashtrians who have been living here for a long time. Declaring unilateral bandhs, burning buses, causing immense damage to the social fabric of the city is what defined the Shiv Sena of the 1990s. Their long absence from power has not given us a chance to assess their renewed sense of commitment, if any. But it has to be noted that this alliance was keen to show its mettle in its 4 yrs in government. The completion of the Mumbai-Pune Express Highway, around 50 fly-overs all over the city's clogged arterial roads, the Bandra-Worli Sea Link are accomplishments that have largely proved beneficial to the city's populace. Quite a few ministers were known to be tough administrators and the alliance usually sheds its communal image (on which they seek votes) once they are voted in power. Yes we may have to make do with Chhatrapatization of old and new city landmarks but atleast it will be a welcome change from stumbling across everything that sounds even remotely Gandhi. For your information , the Bandra-Worli Sea Link is officially called 'Rajiv Gandhi Setu'.

Last but not the least, the newly-formed MNS is already a force to reckon with. The party fought the Lok Sabha elections just as a warm-up to the October Assembly election and to check its popularity among youth. But it surprised itself by coveting a major chunk of the urban votes thus seriously under-cutting Shiv Sena's might. Its candidates even came second in some important constituencies. The party has certainly appealed to the first-time voters as well as women and the elderly. It has successfully managed to raise issues of day-to-day concern. It has lambasted both the government and the opposition for failing to take up the cause of the Marathi manoos as well as in tackling civic issues. However, the party cadres resorted to violence and thrashing of North Indian students and workers who have a constitutional right to earn their livelihood anywhere in the country. Their blatant disregard towards law and order and inciting regionalist passion among Maharashtrians acts as a serious threat to civil society. That may still appeal to the psychopants or misdirected youths but it surely holds no good to the Maharashtra of the 21st century. But there is no denying that the party shows promise. Its leaders seem approachable. They are young and raring to go. They have the gumption to take on the spineless government in its own backyard. If they get enough numbers to dictate terms to a future government, they will surely use that opportunity to get things cracking. Never mind the sleepless nights for the government in power.

Again FYI, the other parties in the fray are Republican Daavi Lokshahi Samiti, Bahujan Samaj Party and Independents ofcourse. But then they barely stand a chance so why bother. I probably wrote this blog to clear my own notions about these parties. You may agree or disagree with them but I will be glad you will atleast develop an independent opinion. The scenario is interesting yet so confounding. The opinion polls have already forecast a hung Assembly. But thats not our headache. Our sole responsibility is to make intelligent decisions and cast our precious vote seeking change. Personally, its been a hell of a task to arrive at a decision and I may not necessarily select the lesser of the three evils, but select I will. Elections are the heartbeats of democracy and certainly a chance for change but when successive governments fail to deliver irrespective of their stated ideology, they do become an exercise in futility. The choice is yours. What is important is that you make one...

How I Met My F.R.I.E.N.D.S.!!

Seems like a sleazy two-title rip-off of the hugely popular TV series, doesn't it ? But rest assured, the intentions are noble. Nobler are thou friends for whom i write this. Although by God's grace I hav been gifted with a whole bunch of good friends from school , junior college and degree ; I would like to specifically talk about those whom I met in my Engg degree college and am still gung-ho about spending the remaining few months of my Final Year in their pristine company ;)

The first day of the first year in college was a lonely journey. None of my old friends from school, classes or jr. colg were with me. Nor anyone even remotely familiar through friends of friends of friends. Not that I used to sit in one corner of the classroom and interact with no one, that not possible for me. But I certainly was friendless. Striking friendships on the basis of mother tongue was the easy way out of perennial loneliness for many classmates but I didn't specifically wish to bracket myself in a lingual group. I just didn't want this thing to appear as 'thought or planned'. It just had to happen.

And so it did. Conversation is the art of the possible. It helps you know and understand people whom you perceived as strangers just moments ago. A free-flowing conversation with Rahul (the charming guy smack in the centre of the pic) on the most silliest and crappiest topics , bursts of laughter at the drop of a hat, and the slight nudge into knowing more about him personally set the stage for a gold-mine hunt that runs even today. Rahul had befriended a guy called Parashar (the one resting all his colossal weight on me) who was a silent witness to the mutual admiration club opened by myself and Rahul. The selective types, he was probably rubbing his hands in negative excitement at the prospect of being introduced to a challenger ;-)

The introduction was quick and easy. Though reserved, he made me feel more than welcome in the herd. Then Lalit (tall, skinny, red n black guy) was the next entrant. I hated to sit with him during lectures as the slightest accidental elbow nudge from him would cause enormous pain. And he used to sit on the bench like a cheese-spread without a care in the world for his partner. The only saving grace was he was 'straight'.

Soon it was boom time and thus the need for aggressive expansion. God, I'm kidding all along. I mean soon enough we were joined by Dattaram (black leather jacket) , Vinay (white something jacket) and Haris. The best part is that we all became close buddies sitting together for lunch in the college canteen. We used to discuss movies, songs, novels, careers and even politics (thanks to me). Personally I was glad to know that all my friends had very intelligent opinions on the state of affairs in the country. At the same time I also realized that I was a rank novice in matters of English songs, rock bands, movies and fiction novels. Parashar ensures that I keep listening to one new hit track every week and Rahul provides me with dvd-rips of latest as well as old must-watch movies. I switched over from non-fiction to reading fiction novels on their advice. Matter of factly , I am enjoying this exposure.

Vinay is the proverbial hen with the golden eggs. Ohh shitt!! Wat m I sayin...?? sorry vinay ;-) I mean what else do you call a person who introduces you to fantabulous games on PlayStation2 that too on 29" flat screen TV. Ohh shitt sorry again for droppin the secret. We all have enjoyed long, long non-stop hours of gaming at his place with yummy snacks and cold coffee for company. He's an all-nonsense , un-fussy, adorable grown-up KID. We call him the Maggi Kid.

Haris is the serious types. I dare you to call him Jalaal or Hari Sadu when he's around and I can vouch you will get an earful. Now Dattaram. Dattaram hates his name. He calls himself Aniket and wanted to establish himself by that name in college. Unfortunately, true to our wretched-ness, we didn't let him do that. Afterall how many times out of a million do you get a chance to tease a person with his own name?? Hahahahaha...!! Nahi yaar , achcha naam hain. Sab naam bhagwan ke naam hote hain. Lekin DATTARAAAAAAAM.... Muhuahahahahahahaaha....!!

Coming back to Parashar (still resting his colossal weight on me in the pic) , he is the transformational types. Ever reachable, great listener, sociable and rock-solid companionship are qualities that very few possess. He's there for me whenever I need him. He is special coz he makes us feel special. I still remember how one of our late night phone chats went right till 5 am and that realization dawned only when the milkman rang my door-bell. He's been there to share all my happy as well as sorrowful moments. The best part is, he can actually make me roll with laughter at my own past follies on which i cringed once upon a time. Rare species , hain naa ??

Everyone is. And this is How I Met My Friends in Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Technology, Andheri West. And its emotionally draining to even think of going our different ways once we graduate into engineers. Of course, we will always be there for each other but can anything really replace the college years ?? I hope so...

INDIA @ 62

India celebrates its 63rd Independence Day on the 15th of August 2009. A vibrant democracy that it is today , it still remains a 'perennially developing' country (a near-synonym for 'underdeveloped'). The Independence Day in itself has become an annual ritual for our leaders to make high decibel speeches and ensure that we remember the contribution of the late Mahatmas, Nehrus and Ambedkars. Remember we will , Gandhi for disintegrating India and showering crores towards Pakistan at our expense thus firmly proving his craze to attain immortality; Nehru for his tactless haste in seeking UN's intervention during India's first war with Pakistan where our army was so close to taste ultimate victory; Ambedkar - possibly the most hurting- for leaving behind an acerbic legacy of 'Reservation in Education' on which our politicians feed and continually add their own versions of Reservation to ensure their political longevity. The Indian Independence Struggle could well be defined as the struggle to achieve 'political independence' and nothing else. Deep within its system , India is still a casteist nation. Economic disparity of the extreme sense further fuels discontent in its people. To add to the poor people's woes, our law-makers spend precious time arguing over feuds among the delectable Ambanis than debating the Education Bill or a permanent solution to the Bihar floods.

Such is the importance attributed to non-issues at the highest level, a taxi-union strike forces the govt. to give in and increase freight charges within 2 days but at the same time it can afford to waste 31 days of indecision over increasing the salaries of teachers in govt. colleges. A former Home Minister is accused of abetting murder of his own former associate. Prosecution of a certain Mulayam (disproportionate assets case) or Mayawati (same yaar) depends on their political affiliations and not on the merit of the case. The good old days of a People's President have been laid to rest with the entry of Mrs. Pratibha Patil who clearly perceives Presidency as Sharad Pawar's rakhi gift to her, something she will enjoy till her tenure ends - or she ends, whichever. Terrorism continues to engulf our country from all sides. Our problems on this front have only multiplied inspite of scoring stunning military wins over Pakistan in the last 5 decades. To compare India's CBI or RAW agencies to US' FBI or Israel's Mossad will be the most nasty joke on the eve of Independence Day.

Information Technology has been India's claim to fame in the 21st century. We keep churning out s/w engineers, coders & now MBAs too; year after year. But is there one weather forecast software or an Agricultural Manager that will help our poor farmers out when the rains fail them every year? Can we really claim that the technology our Armed Forces uses is at par with the best in the world? Do we really have the best Intelligence procurement officials in our Security Agencies? Doesn't it sound dispiriting when 10 Pakis could so easily infiltrate in our country through the sea-route and force their way in some of our prestigious hotels making a mockery of homeland security? We were attacked , fine , but who stopped us from retaliating? What came in the way of employing precision or surgical strikes inside Pakistan where we suspect (we're dead sure) terrorists having set up training camps?

Lathi-armed policemen, scamster politicians, sluggish bureaucracy, self-centred citizenry and corrupt 'everyone'; are reasons enough to not celebrate this Independence Day but to sit and ponder whether we can regroup and revitalize our system and its people so that we work towards a much stronger, secular, competent and independent society. Only then will we be able to justify the colourful words thrown at us by Nehru in his first Independence Day speech :
'....At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom.....'

Rains Rains Come Again , Go Away Another Day...!!

"Rains wreak havoc in city" , "Milan Subway submerged" , "Mithi river overflows" , "Highest rainfall recorded in city's history....."

Sounds familiar , doesn't it ?? That used to be the front page story of every newspaper since the historic 994 mm rainfall in Mumbai city on 26th July , 2005. The Milans and the Mithis of the city finally got their due attention.

The city witnessed unusually torrential rains lashing it left, right and centre since 2005. Yes we blamed the government and municipal authorities for their laissez-faire. Yes we wrote petitions to sue the authorities for their shoddy preparedness for the monsoons. Yes we got the Municipal Commissioner and Chief Minister to intervene and make Monsoon Management a priority. Yes we forced communal and disruptive political parties to raise issues of civic concern. So much for those rains. But it seems that wasn't enough.
They say nobody prays more devoutly for the rains than the poor farmers of our country. But if at all prayers have been answered, those were of the crooked lazy babus who feared for their jobs in case the rainfall caused a major infrastructural collapse.
We were already witness to one of the most scorching summers of this decade and if there was one reason why we patiently put up with it was the mere thought of the approaching monsoons that would bring a welcome relief. And lo behold ! look what a cruel joke Mother Nature has played with us. Those slight showers seem less as signs that indicate a normal monsoon but more so a reminder that this is all we will get , all that we deserve. Thats the cruel joke I am talking about.


For someone who remembers 26th July floods not for its devastation but for the sheer fun of walking 8 km from college to home totally drenched with friends for company, for seeing spirited young men helping the elderly & complete strangers trapped in difficult situations, for seeing a friend running to save a little kitten taking shelter under a kick-started auto-rickshaw caring less for the books and journals in his bag, for having hot pakodas and coffee after a hot-water bath ; memories that have nothing to do with the intellectual garbage like Disaster management , Brihan Mumbai Storm-water drainage system, Municipal negligence, self-aggrandizing govt. stats & figures on improvements and the lack of it etc.

All I ever want is to hear the thundering clouds in the coziness of my house and then seriously discussing with friends if college were to be closed the next day, we all could go for a movie instead. I still recollect my first heavy rainfall experience almost 10 yrs back when I was in the fourth grade and it was raining cats and dogs while I was already in school. The school authorities announced that school buses won't be able to ferry us back home due to water-logging and we were supposed to stay put till someone from our family came over to pick us up. These developments actually excited me. For some reason I was sure that parents and guardians would find it extremely difficult to find access and pick us up and would prefer letting the school authorities arrange for our one-night stay till the rains subside. I was pretty sure no one from my family would be able to turn up as it was only my mom , granny and grandpa who were present at home. My mom never ventured out much on her own and granny and grandpa were in their early-seventies. I certainly had no issues with that.

The mere thought of spending the remaining day (and night) enjoying with classmates in the security of our classroom and class teachers was enough to ward off any infantile fears that fourth graders are known for.
But that was not to be. Sooner than anyone expected, harried and anxious parents came along one by one to take my friends away from me unknowingly crushing my small little hopes of enjoying the day in a different way. Yes some offered to drop me home too but the teachers won't allow (neither would I). The desolate classroom acted as slow poison. I wished my dad was in the city. I still wasn't angry on my mom though. I understood her problem. Grandparents? Physically impossible!! I reconciled to the fact of staying with the remaining classmates with whom I never talked much. A boring hour or two passed and teachers kept calling names of students whose parents had come to pick them up. It was 5.30pm and I started feeling like an islander. At 6pm another name was called (as if I cared). But to my surprise , it was my name on which my teacher was straining her vocal chords. I sincerely wondered -- 'Who The Hell....?' ;)
Guess Who ???

---> My 73 year old grandpa

Not even in my wildest dreams did I expect him to come for me. To try and explain in words my feelings the moment I saw him would be sheer injustice on the innocence of a fourth grader. His presence felt so reassuring. From that day he was no longer my septuagenarian grand-father but my Superman. The dress wasn't exactly Superman-like but his guts were. It was only when he was walking me back home hand held firmly did I realize the enormity of the rainfall, the floods and the challenges he faced while coming to receive me. The flood water was waist-length for him but for me, at 3 feet 10 inches, it was imminent death due to drowning if not for his firm grip. His coolness about the entire journey made me fearless. I could even see other people trapped in the same situation admiring him for his nerve. My grandpa was a Rockstar. The rains gave me an opportunity to understand the meaning behind words like love, care, concern, guts, innocence, admiration and the futility behind the word Age. This Rockstar lived his last 10 years loving me to the fullest with minimum words and maximum doting actions.

And that is what these rains mean for me. That is why I so eagerly wait for them. That is why I can't tolerate news that says we will have poor rainfall this year. I can't even understand the basic logic behind the song 'Rains Rains Go Away , Come Again Another Day...'. Maybe it suits the land of the poet but not the land of Rockstars. Hence the liberty in conveniently changing it to 'Rains Rains Come Again , Go Away Another Day....!!'

My Grandpa wid my nephew