Loving Calcutta

The quirky city which has forever been my vacationing spot, has suddenly occupied a new place in my heart. I hold Calcutta responsible for not having toured the hill stations, the sea beaches or the forests of India. While every kid would narrate grand tales about their visit to simla or Jim Corbet or the backwaters, i would just listen to them and take a quick virtual tour to these places in my mind. This is all because, come summer and we would pack our bags to Calcutta. Its like a ritual that I've been performing for twenty odd years. I always liked Calcutta, after all it was where my grandparents and cousins lived. But i always liked it like a vacationing spot. I liked it because every time i went there my grandfather brought home bags and bags of Bajar and my grandmother prepared treats for us. It was where i was allowed to loaf around the house all day and night without being interrogated. Being in Kolkatta was like being in a festival. Everything happened in a grand scale and royal style. And pretty much like a festival, it ended in a short time as well. Yet, no matter how terrible i felt going back home, i always loved "home" better than Calcutta. I could never imagine living in Calcutta, I grew up to pride myself over my cosmopolitan coolness and looked down upon the general crowd. It was too dirty, to sultry for my everyday living. It was a city i liked because i was treated well and made to have fun by the conscious efforts of my grandparents and cousins.

Now, Calcutta has changed quite a bit. It has definitely come up in terms of infrastructure and is climbing the steep steps of the cool-o meter! But irrespective of this face lift, the heart of the city still remains untainted. The spirit of the city is unshakable. This time when i went to Calcutta( I just got back yesterday!) i saw a different side of it. This time the city gave me a brand new perspective. Although the motive of the visit was an unhappy one, i would say this was probably my best visit. For starters, I got to spend a lot of time with my brother which made me realise how strongly we bond. I met members of the family, of whose existence i had no knowledge of. And this time i got to meet some really good people. My brother and i have a common friend and because of these two i got to meet their other friends. I had very stringent notions about the kids in Calcutta and they mostly weren't good. I exclude my cousins from this categorization, coz after all i have my own biased opinion working here. I had always heard of all these friends of my brothers but honestly, i weighed them very low on my opinion metre. I don't know why i did that, i had no reason to, but somehow by the virtual appearance of the matter and by the workings of my general hang ups i thought them nothing great. But now I've learnt not to judge a book by its cover. I think i had the best time with these people. Things went beyond my expectations and i found myself liking all of them. The very things that i disliked earlier were the things i thoroughly enjoyed and fell in love with. I never expected myself to be amidst a bunch of Calcutta kids and like them and wish being a part of them. It is still pretty surprising to me! I liked the way they talked, their lingo and the way they were. They are so different from what i have around me, and i liked this difference. They are such good people.

All of this started as a joke when i said that id like to shift to Calcutta for the food. I never meant it. And then i saw the Ganges. All my life I've been to this city with the river trickling through it and never did i interact with the river this closely. Strangely thought but my grandfather made way for this to happen. Having the Ganges in front of me and experiencing its grand beauty and the the local flavour was to die for. This was particularly very good, but also otherwise i was shocked to find myself liking things that i hated, was embarrassed of. For example i detested how bongs were always so loud, they screamed at the bus driver if he drove slow, they spoke bangla almost everywhere and they spoke weirdly too. But in Delhi if u scream at the driver he could bash you up and actually its only good that there the people are so vocal. After all a bus should be on time. I liked that. I liked that we went out for dinner and i could talk to the Stewart in bangla. I liked that i could call shopkeeper kaku and not bhaiyya/uncle, friend's parents were kaku kakima instead of uncle aunty, the kaku-kakima's were like real parents and not parents who were replica's of the "cool" twentieth century mothers on television. For the first time i lived with a pet, a big golden Labrador who is a complete brat. Sheroo who's presence in the house was a big point of apprehension for me turned out to be my bed buddy! The guy would invariably climb onto the bed once everyone was asleep and place his royal ass right at my feet coz everyone else has the gift of good height but me! So sleeping at my feet meant more space for mister spoilt! Not just that, Sheroo would very innocently place his face on my lap during every meal in the hope of making a share of my food. And God alone knows why, but for the first time i did something with him that I'd never do with anyone else. I shared my prawns. Prawns, the most precious thing on any one's dinner plate went into the guys big belly! Ah well i must say i couldn't bear to have him stare at me with hopeful eyes for that long. But now that I am back there is no dog to come home to, who would sniff and jump at you, wag his tail and follow you around.

By the end of it all i felt that I whose is so averse to change had taken a big leap! Yes, i fell in love. I fell in love with everything about that city. I know all of Calcutta is not Salt Lake but I still like it. All my life i tried to stand apart from the people of the city and all my life I lived with a myth, a myth of a fake sense of superiority. These people that were so hospitable to me, were mocked by me and then i realised that in my desperate attempt to hold myself different i was not being Me. I was trying to be someone else, i was trying to be other people who were not Me, who i thought were cool and to whom i wanted to belong. All this and all was a fake notion because in my Delhi bubble world i never realised that in my desperation of detaching myself from those Calcutta people i never realised that i was actually one of them. And now i wouldn't be lying if i said i want to shift to Calcutta. A part of me wishes i was there and a part of me craves to be there. But now i am back to my cold urban apartment, with its cold walls, cold bed, cold closet and heavy silences. I miss the warmth of the city, the voices and sounds of the house and the strange cycle rickshaw horns.
I am never as comfortably as I am in Calcutta. It seems like, my place. This is not just because of my Mashi and family who make every trip of mine every so good, or the city centre or Khadi, but Calcutta makes me happy. With all its quirkiness, abandoned tram tracks, monginis, CPM graffiti, cotton saris, palm trees, potholes, rolls and taxis; I have fallen in love with Calcutta.

Absence

Absence means to have a mark on the attendance register, that manages to keep all the DU students on their toes! Absence means a note in the almanac and a flu faking kid! Or does absence mean something more?
Only a couple of days back i was standing at the silt kissed banks of the Ganges participating in a job highly despised. Honestly, it was a beautiful morning with the locals splashing around, the massive straw roofed boats and the silhouette of the Howrah bridge. Memories of The Namesake and the Hungry Tide were flooding my mind. But amidst such pleasing sights, there i was with my brother throwing my grandmothers shakha, paula and shidur into the water. Shaka is a shell bangle and paula is a red coloured glossy bangle that are symbolic of a married woman and they are usually worn by Bengali women. Shidur is of of course the vermilion worn by almost all Hindu married women in India.
My grandmother had packed her things well. There were those old rusty tin boxes where she stored her things and i was thinking that there must be so many memories attached with them. She was married off when she was all of fourteen and its since then that she and my grandfather were companions. My grandfather was handsome; he and his other three brothers, all exceptionally good looking men. Men of honour, men of great knowledge, compassion. But when people leave, some material belongings have to go as well. So we threw those ancient tin boxes, one of which once had a coat of yellow paint on it and the head of the queen of England embossed over it. We threw those belongings of my grandmother that were her friends from over fifty years, just like my grandfather.
Its a job i suggest one should avoid doing till the very possible point. Trust me, that was a moment that i probably can't forget for the rest of my life.
The things floated and after a while they were no longer visible.
It was like the closing of a transaction, the end of a chapter and the beginning of absence.
Not being there physically is equal to absence; but doesn't absence also have a certain presence embedded in it?

Why are we running after white skin?

Hum kyon gore twacha ke taraf bhag rahein hai? This is a literal translation of the title, though i think it only unveils the secret of my poor hindi than the sentiments behind it. But anyway, a couple of days back i saw this ad on television which had a swarm of gora men n women dancing around on screen and most importantly they looked very happy. Now, now.....is being gora directly related to being happy or beautiful? The product was called ponds white skin beauty or whteva the hell it was......it was pissin off. The heroine of the act had a pale white face with pink radiance to die for(whteva!!!) and the silly(equally white) hero was oggling at her like a white snow owl. Even the fuckin mother was paper white. I don't think i saw a single coloured person in that ad.
Well...whr exactly are we going with all this shit? How can rubbing some creme on your face(tht makes u gora) make life picture perfect? Ronald Barthes would be able to provide substantial criticism and i wish he would do that. Its a perfectly smart strategy on the ad makers part coz he has successfully lured us with the pictures of the make belief after effects of using the product. So, what the ad says is that use our creme, become fuckin pink and hey maybe an equally pink boy will oggle at you! Thats tempting enough for the majority of the population to go purchase the creme. But i have certain doubts regarding the product. Now, what if u r not naturally gora n instead blessed with some colour; what happens then? I mean, imagine a dark chic with pink cheeks....yikes!
Anyway God bless the grand creators of these products and God bless the brigade of naive people who actually believe it will work.
Well in my opinion if you want to become gora there is only one sure shot solution - Call michael jackson.

Party Fragrances

There are so many different kinds of parties but every party has a distinct fragrance of its own.
Parties in the summer always smell of the fresh air of the air-conditioner. Have you noticed that a room smells different when it is air-conditioned for a long time? That's the smell i am talking about.
There ought be a wild concoction of everyones perfumes tingling together like a wicked mist in the air, and untill you sit close to someone you never know whos wearing what. And then amidst all this are the other fragrances that are desparately trying to make their presence felt.
Mr. Jonny Walker neednt work that hard on it, and nor Mr. Benson or Hedges! They have had a long alliance with our nasal chambers, we know. Somewhere around the corner is also miss Apple Cider clothed in her shimering green attire. So what if she is non-alcoholic, she still does makes up a great deal with her ever sweet taste! And how can we forget the lingering fragrance of the freshly cut up melons and mint, goin along side kebabs and cocktails?
You can pick up an ice-cube and look through it while sipping on your Forster, but the fragrances around will not change the picture through the ice.
The warm glowing lamp, the candles floating on the monuental terracotta bowl, or the pink and white hibiscus flowers floating along the light; they all have their own fragrances. But best of all are the fragrances of conversations, of warmth, and of joy. I recognise seasons by fragrances and hold memories through the very same aromas that once concretized in my mind can refresh fond moments anytime with its slightest touch.

5 Best Romantic Movies

So i just finished watchin When Harry met Sally and thought it would be quite interesting to put down a list of five best romantic movies. Of course this list is mine and my prejudices ought to be at work here! hehe! Well i have quite a few of my favorites to mention here but it is hard to put them in any order of sorts, so i am just gonna bring em up without rating them.
Starting with Dirty Dancing - yes it has been a favorite of mine since quite some time and i have seen it again and again, almost everyday thanks to zee studio. I dunno why i like this movie, i can't express it in words but i sure do know that by the time we reach the ending i am taken over by this triumphant feeling that actually goes beyond the ordinary sense of "triumphant feeling"!
Love love love the last dance. It totally takes my breath away! Gosh i can't believe i wrote so badly and inadequately about one of my most favorite movies. My feelings for this movie cannot be tapped in words, its just that i like it a lot. Why, I dunno myself.

Now, moving on to my latest favorite, Love Actually - One of the primary factors that makes this movie so beautiful is the British accent....hahahha..so awfully silly, but that's what makes me crazy about Notting Hill....Hugh Grant kick starting the film with his breathtaking soliloquy in his extremely sexy British accent! haha! Getting back to Love Actually, ummm....yes apart from that, the background score is an absolute winner...its different, its rare and its just the way i like it! It becomes even better because of Colin Firth who is just phenomenal in the film, especially after playing Mr. Darcy, seeing him do Jamie was so cool. And I guess I have made it quite evident that I have quite a huge crush on him! Aurelia and Jamie were the cutest couple, with their little language issue going on. Colin Firth's language school scenes were so funny! Hugh Grant's dance was a killer concoction of "sexy-sweet" and undoubtedly got me into splits. Keira Knightly's track was one of the best, she looked gorgeous. The little kid's part was also one of my favorites. Claudia Schiffer bit was just hilarious! The last scene is the cherry on the cake.

Ok now is the turn of When Harry met Sally. I know why i like this movie. I like it because of Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan. Billy Crystal more...no Meg Ryan more...urghhh can't decide. Actually this movie is so wonderful because of both Harry and Sally, and the way they are. Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan just pulled it off really really well.

And now i am in a fix between Notting Hill and Pretty Woman. Pretty Woman was like my introduction to romantic movies so its quite special. Besides it is pretty damn good! We all love Pretty Woman, it is such a feel good movie and so is Notting Hill. Both have the "wish fulfillment" motif built in and its a formula that is highly appealing to all human beings so one can't go wrong there. The fantastic element of the films make em so popular because we all love fairytales. But i would still say that i hold Pretty Woman at a much higher place than Notting Hill.

Ah now to my summer holidays special! I saw While you were sleeping one summer and fell in love with it. It is such a sweet movie. Its a simple story but well told. It doesn't have fancy costumes or locations or anything but it still is so cute. Its a very special film for me. It makes me very happy!

But, Love Actually has the most effective feel good factor; for me at least.
So these were a couple of my favorite romantic movies. Everyone need not agree with it or may find it a perfect replica of their list but these are still very popular movies that i have spoken about, there are some movies that i love which people haven't even heard of!