spotless

Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind!

I wonder - if even anybody just dropped it all and started all over again. I have read a story about it ... but it was a story ...

Important Lessons !

This song is like one of those important lessons which must be dedicated an entire chapter in the book of life. . . such a simple lesson - to respect time for God knows what it will take away from us . . . Kal ho na ho !

I have been thinking of a part of this song since earlier this evening:

chahey jo tumhey poorey dil sey
(someone to love you with all his heart)
milta hai voh muskqil sey
(is difficult to come by)
aisa jo koi kahin hai
(should there be someone like that)
bas vo hi sabsey haseen hain
(he is the one - the most beautiful one)
us haath ko tum thaam lo
(take that hand ... )
voh meharbaan kal ho na ho
(for all you know, he may not be there tomorrow)

Which brings me to this:

This question may come across as a fairly simple dilemma for most, but I wonder - is there a right or wrong choice when life brings one to such crossroads;

If you had to make a choice between someone who you are madly in love with and that someone feels mildly about you but seems like they want to make it work and someone who is madly in love with you (to have held your hand through some pretty ridiculous times) and logically you know you can make it work - what would you do?

"Did he die fighting?"

Everyday a prayer goes out for those men and women who are fighting a war with faith in their heart that they are defending their country and countrymen and women. A prayer for the families of those soldiers for whom each phone ring or door bell ring could make their heart skip a beat!

Here is a story of one such soldier who will always be a role model. And here is an introduction to a father who raised such a soldier:

'Did he die fighting?'

By: Anshuman G Dutta

Date: 2009-07-22

Prof SK Nayyar enquired about his Mahavir Chakra winner son Anuj, who laid down his life at Mushkoh valley

At 9.30 in the morning, the phone rang and a restless Prof SK Nayyar hurriedly picked it up. It was from the brigade headquarters of his son Capt Anuj Nayyar. After the initial pleasantries, the man on the other side fell silent.

After more than a minute of ominous silence, Prof Nayyar asked, "Did he die fighting?"

"Not just the Indian Army but the entire nation is indebted to your son," the man replied.

Proud father, brave son: Prof SK Nayyar. The 17 Jat Regiment soldier Anuj was awarded Mahavir Chakra for his incredible bravery during Operation Vijay

But it was just the first frame of the story. Capt Anuj Nayyar went down while paving the way for his troops to take over the Pimple Complex in Kargil's Mushkoh valley with just a bayonet.

It was just plain luck that the daredevil got the job of leading his men to clear the Pimple Complex as the Charlie commander got injured and 23-year-old Anuj took over. After storming through enemy bunkers, Anuj braved heavy firing from the other side to silence the machine gun which had almost halted the Indian troops' advance.
Before being hit by a grenade shell, Anuj had cleared all the bunkers. The 17 Jat Regiment soldier was awarded Mahavir Chakra second highest gallantry award for his inspiring leadership and incredible bravery.

"He was a magnificent officer. He was like a true Jat soldier who never feared anything. As soon as the initial euphoria of the victory settled down we realised the biggest loss of our lives. The man who won us the post was not there to celebrate with us," said the then Delta company commander of the unit, Col Deepak Rampal, who was awarded the Vir Chakra.

Captain Anuj Nayyar called his father for the last time on the night of July 6, 1999 to inform him about his big mission in Operation Vijay. Before putting the phone down Prof Nayyar said, "Haar ke ghar mat aana warna goli maar doonga (Don't return without winning, or I will shoot you)." Anuj knew his father meant what he was saying and he shot back a reply which still makes his father swell with pride. "He said, 'Papa aapka beta hoon. Haar ke aane ki baat soch bhi nahi sakta. (I can't even think of returning without winning.)'"

Prof Nayyar spends his days at the Kargil Heights the petrol pump he was given by the government as compensation for the martyrdom of his son. His office is decorated with the photographs and memoirs of his brave ward. "I and Anuj were like buddies. He was very close to me, I miss him every single moment," he managed a smile while saying that.

Even after 10 years people who come to get their vehicles filled at Kargil Heights ask Prof Nayyar about his son and the Kargil war.

Letterman
Anuj used to regularly write letters from the warzone and in one of the letters he had written, "I am not that irresponsible that I will die without fulfilling my duties for the country. My army and this country has put so much faith in me, it would be a mistake to think of death at this time. Till the last enemy is there I will keep breathing."

Wanted dead or alive
Anuj was known as the most notorious student of his class. Even though he was a brilliant student, tired of his regular mischief, his teacher once had written on the notice board, "I want Anuj, dead or alive." "Even though he had broken almost all the window panes of the society he was loved by everybody," said his father.

Scary Reality!

Over the weekend, I watched the finale of an Indian reality show on tv, “Pati, Patni aur Voh”, Indian version of Baby Borrowers. It follows five minor-celebrity couples as they deal with pretend-pregnancy for a few days, followed by taking care of a baby for a few days, followed by a toddler and so forth and finally a teenager.

I never watched this show before – main reason, Rakhi Sawant! I could never understand why the channels even entertain this thing but I suppose she garners TRPs. Rakhi Sawant is a nuisance who makes more nuisance until someone writes about it! Anyway, I heard or read somewhere that her previous reality show, Rakhi ka Swayamwar (Indian version or The Bachelorette) garnered ratings which surpassed Indo-Pak cricket match. Her chosen bride-groom accompanied her to “Pati, Patni aur Voh” to learn what the whole world knew --- that with her it’s all a sham! & when the sham was up, I wanted to ask him, “whatttt wereeee yoouuuu thinkingggg???!!” and say, “jaan bachi aur lakhon paaye, laut ke budhuu ghar ko aye???!!!!” … This respective fellow is a complete gentleman and seems absolutely genuine. What is truly scary is that he would have actually married it!

The farce is up, but I was glued to random episodes of the Pati Patni aur Voh show on youtube over the weekend. I always thought parenting was instinctive. Majority of us grow up watching mom taking care of a younger sibling or aunts and uncles taking care of a little cousin or older cousins/siblings handling their young ones, etc. After wasting hours – I have still not figured out what was so entertaining about self absorbed people taking care of strange kids in front of a national audience to prove their parenting skills!

Although – the abruptly ill-behaved teenagers were funny! Didn’t their PR crew/mom n dad/ sabji vaali/English Ma’am/family Pomeranian tell them that they shouldn’t be such (poor) bad-asses on national tv – it has a very high possibility of scarring them for a long time.

In the finale, Rakhi broke up with Elesh as she sited some vague reasons . . . blah! For Elesh, as he put it, blessing in disguise… Oh well, all is well that ends well.

2009: White X-mas in Cali?!!

At Altamont Pass on 12-7-2009 @ 9:30 am
Also check out: Snow hit low elevations in Bay Area

aise hi!

hairaton ke silsiley

soz e nihan tak aa gaye

Worth some thought ...

Desh asked me to think about the difference in the following statements:

Christ says, "thou shall not kill" (Sixth Commandment)

vs.

In Kurukshetra, when Arjuna gets disheartened seeing that he will have to kill his loved ones, Krishna tells Arjuna that this is his duty and he must but he also tells him, "you can't kill"

Quote: 12-1-2009

During one of my much cherished and enlightening conversations with my friend, Desh, he said something which made me think for a long time. He made this statement as he was explaining the Karma Theory to me. He believes that God is nothing more than consciousness. A God who gives and takes and intervenes is a fragment of our long held belief system. What we have on our hands today is merely a reaction to our actions of the past. Hence:

Morality has no place in Spirituality.

-Desh Kapoor

Anyway

Anyway by Martina McBride

You can spend your whole life building
Something from nothin'
One storm can come and blow it all away
Build it anyway

You can chase a dream
That seems so out of reach
And you know it might not ever come your way
Dream it anyway

God is great
But sometimes life ain't good
And when I pray
It doesn't always turn out like I think it should
But I do it anyway
I do it anyway

This world's gone crazy
It's hard to believe
That tomorrow will be better than today
Believe it anyway

You can love someone with all your heart
For all the right reasons
In a moment they can choose to walk away
Love 'em anyway

God is great
But sometimes life ain't good
And when I pray
It doesn't always turn out like I think it should
But I do it anyway
Yea - I do it anyway

You can pour your soul out singing
A song you believe in
That tomorrow they'll forget you ever sang
Sing it anyway
Yea, sing it anyway
Yeah, yeah!

I sing
I dream
I love anyway

Quote: 11-19-2009

Confusion heard his voice,
and wild uproar Stood ruled,
stood vast infinitude confined;
Till at his second bidding darkness fled,
Light shone,
and order from disorder sprung.

-John Milton