911-what's your emergency?

last night was one i'll not forget in a long long time.

it was 9:00pm and we were all watching tv at home. suddenly we heard loud incessant honking under the building. we got totally pissed cuz we assumed the driver of the car was too lazy to open the gate himself. i went outside to look and i saw the 4th floor kid-viven calling out to his father(dr. iyer).

i came back in and continued watching tv.the calling and honking stopped after a while but soon there was loud knocking and ringing of the door bell accompanying the calls to the father. i went upstairs to see what was happening and found that viven was locked out of the house while his dad was inside but wouldn't open the door.viven was wid another uncle who lives opposite to our building, mr.bhatt.

i came down and told ma about it and she went upstairs to find out exactly what was going on. apparently viven had gone out for a school concert while his dad had come home at 8:30(as reported by our neighbour).when at 9:00 viven got back nobody opened the door despite several phone calls and shouts. the lights in the hall were on and the tv could also be heard.

by this time our other neighbour razia was also wid mum outside dr.iyer's door.my mum called my dad, and dad and mr.bhatt together banged on the door and tried calling the landline and mobile phone. both the phones could be heard ringing inside the house. also, their dog Rodger kept barking from the inside. my sis by now had called the boy downstairs-noor to help break open the door. his mum-sarah aunty also came upstairs and now there was quite a scared and worried crowd outside dr. iyer's door. dr.iyer's brother and parents were called and they too tried all they could.but in vain.

meanwhile dad and mr.bhatt came up with torches and some tools to break open the door or pry the lock open. but nothing worked. the door was too sturdy and the lock way too strong to be fiddled with a screw driver.

suddenly someone realised that the spare keys to the house would be with the driver or the maid. a frantic search began for their phone numbers as we got to know that neither of them had a mobile phone. as noor and our marathi neighbour(donno his name but he is the father of the 4 yr old twins ankur and ankit)went in search of the driver, i ran down to ask an old lady who lives in a hut like place just adjoining our building about the maid.

as i spoke to the old lady, her daughter supriya made hurried phone calls to the driver(ravi)'s friends and neighbours to get in touch with him. the old lady told me that there had been a fight between dr.iyer's maid and driver about the spare keys and there is quite a possibility that the maid might have a set of keys. she offered to go get the maid.

as i ran upstairs to dr. iyer's house ,i found out that the fire dept had been informed and were on their way for the rescue. by now Rodger had stopped barking which was even scarier. dad. mr bhatt and dr iyer's brother went up on the terrace to see if there was a way in. but the only way was to jump down in to the balcony. also, viven ran to the adjoining building to see if anything could be seen from the window facing his dad's bedroom. but the curtains were drawn and the lights seemed to be off.

it was almost half an hour since the fire dept had been called and there was still no sign of them, it was past 10:15 and everyone was really tensed by now. the kids in the building were all awake and excited with the activity and noise cuz they dint really understand what was going on.

we then heard the siren of the fire brigade and breathed a sigh of relief. but the tension had mounted and everybody feared the same thing- what would the fire men find once they were inside?

as 2 firemen hurried up to the 4th floor, 3 of them stood under the building awaiting orders. i ran downstairs to see what their plan was and learned that the 2 firemen who'd gone to the 4th floor will try getting into the house from the terrace and only if it dint work out, they would go up from the front with the help of the ladder.

by then, the driver -ravi and the maid had both arrived. the maid had the keys.

but as we stood outside dr.iyer's door we heard a loud crash as the firemen jumped into the balcony and broke the glass doors that led to the hall. dr.iyer's brother asked the firemen to open the front door first before he went in search of dr.iyer. as soon as the door was opened, he rushed in and saw Rodger outside the bedroom refusing to let any one in.

we stood outside wit our hearts beating 1000000miles per sec and silently praying that things were ok. the firemen went inside the bedroom and found dr.iyer lying on the bed. he went up to him and shook him violently.

and dr.iyer woke up from his sleep as though nothing had happened....

he found the whole building population inside his apartment with worried and now relieved faces. he'd apparently just been asleep and had heard none of the knocks, calls, barks or anything.

everybody breathed a sigh of relief that dr.iyer was alright and nothing was wrong. he was simply in a daze and couldn't figure out what the commotion was about.

the firemen were thanked for the help all the neighbours too were thanked profusely for everything. everybody went back home talking about what had just occurred. i ran down to thank the old lady for her help.

it had been a long and scary and adventurous night, and there were a few things i realized after this incident.

** the marathi neighbour(ankur ankit's mom) inspite of only having lived in the building for a few months, was the only one who knew where the driver lived. we really dono as much about our neighbours as we should.

** the old lady who went to call the maid has always been perceived as a grumpy old twit who's always screaming at everyone and making a racket for nothing. i learnt that u should never judge a person until and unless it's based on personal interaction and experience.

** all the people in the building, even though they haven't had as much interaction or anything in a long time, still got together to help. it's at times of trials and tragedies that people truly unite and become one.

** the fire dept is out there to help anyone in need. yet i now realise that they too take everything way too lightly. when they were called for help, they suggested that the job was more of a carpenter's than a fireman's, and this wasn't really an emergency.

** you'd expect a doctor to be vigil and alert at all times in case of an emergency. but this was the total opposite. not that it was anyone's fault, just that even doctors are human beings.

Lights ! Camera ! Action !

Even though drama is a passion, i'd never thought of myself as being part of a 'movie'..i mean i'm not built for that. but you never realise what it is unless you've tried it. and now that i've gotten a chance, i love it!
shweta, a friend of mine from college, asked a bunch of us if we'd act in her bf sameer's movie as part of a film-making class submission. and though it initially started off as a simple favour, im now so glad she asked! we've been goin over the script, scenes, dialogues etc since about a week and i love every bit of it!
it's a horror flick and i play a 17 year old ghost, who'd slit her wrist outta loneliness and depression. it's a freaky story and me being me, i was totally scared of my own role! for the past week, i've had some incredible experiences playing a ghost, staring into the camera lens in a demented spooky way, lying dead on the floor in a pool of blood, crouching in a corner staring at the protagonist(kushan) who has no idea i'm watching him.
but besides all that, i've also substituted for a couple of people while they weren't present and even handled the camera in some shots, learning about various angles and positions that would best suit the scene.
2 days ago we went to the location to rehearse before our final shoot on sunday. this place, chanod, is about an hour's drive from baroda. there's an old semi-deserted haveli that's perfect for the movie. with hundreds of bats flying all over the place, creaky stairways, doors that lead nowhere, rooms without a ceiling, storerooms filled with antique furniture, and a massive dog-the place is made for horror flicks!
with the final shoot beginning tomorrow, i'm super excited to get into my costume and make-up and scare the living daylights outta people!!

love is....

last Sunday i heard the priest say something that really got me thinking..he was talking about 'love' and he said, " relationships usually don't last when you fall in love ,not with the person, but with an experience he made you feel.." so when the experience wears off, the love does too..i wonder how true it is....

think about it

"When we recall the past, we usually find that it is the simplest things -- not the great occasions-- that in retrospect give off the greatest glow of happiness." -- Bob Hope

the whole truth

I woke up today and opened the Baroda Times to see page3 featuring a story on Goa.my heart immediately did a lil jig. i love reading about Goa. good things though. anyway, i saw the columnist's name and frowned. she gets on my nerves, this woman. she babbles on randomly, never making a point. and then she gets paid for that!

I'm digressing. sorry. I'm as bad as her!

So anyway, the title read "Has Goa lost it's groove?" and i prepared myself to read yet another Goa bashing article(post the tourist tragedies).

This time her complaint was that Goa is losing its charm. its "glamour" if you please. that people are fed up of "the booze and the beach". that life isn't getting anywhere and 'we' need more things to perk it up out there. WE?? well excuse ME if all that your life consists of is parties and celebs wasting themselves!










































I get really pissed off when people all over the country associate Goa to just a place of getting sloshed and laying on the beach. it's so much more than that!! its about the people.it's about their hospitality. it's about their smiles. it's about their attitude towards life. it's about being content with what you have. it's about being grateful for all the blessings. it's about the beauty at every inch of the land. it's about the greenery. it's about the swaying coconut trees.it's about the pleasant wind. it's about the red soil. it's about the scents. it's about tiled roofs.it's about the sound of the waves. it's about the sand beneath your feet. it's about the chimes of the church bells. it's about the hugs of the people. it's about the bustle in the marketplace. it's about the cries of the fishermen. it's about the melodies of the folk songs. it's about the strumming of the guitar. it's about the dance at weddings.it's about family. it's about home. it's about laughter. it's about gladness. it's about LIFE..




Feel Goa for what it is..not what the outsiders make it..

roll no 465?...uh....present...?

As i got ready to doze off at the Easter mass last night, i saw something that made me suddenly sit up in attention..i saw the man i had dreaded for 3 years at St.Xavier's Ahmedabad..the man who gave me nightmares even in the midst of the most blissful sleep..the man in whose hands lay my future and career..the man at whose sight, students ran in every direction in fright..
Fr. K Raj-the attendance in charge at Xavier's..also vice principal.

STRIKE ONE-
i remember my first year..i was a shy timid kid just outta school..and as luck would have it, i landed up in the "black list" of those with a low attendance (i.e.below 75%)as i stood outside his office in the looooooong line, i realised that it was not gonna go well..for one, i was most inappropriately dressed to be in the vice principal's office- a short sleeveless top that showed off my trim waist( not something to be proud of when you're in trouble)as i stood in line pulling my t-shirt lower and lower, i knew i had it coming my way..i'd been terribly irregular in college cuz i'd taken way too long to adjust(the first 6 months were spent at home in Baroda with an invisible and incurable "fever") as i slowly and softly entered his office, he took one look at the papers, read my name, saw my attendance and screamed-"get out of my office NOW!!!" i dint know whether i was supposed to obey or would it b rude if i left..i hung around..drawing circles with my foot.. he eventually told me to leave the college and get admissions elsewhere.. i apologised over and over until he agreed to lemme stay with an apology letter signed by the warden of my hostel..piece of cake! i left his office, wrote a letter and signed it myself!

STRIKE TWO-
second year at Xavier's i once again found myself somewhere in the middle of that dreadful black list.. my excuse this time? being in the Core Committee (a student body of the college)i'd been busy with alot of activities throughout the year and i had evidence and witnesses to prove it..luckily i had the rest of the Core Committee also in the office for the same reason.. so this time, all k raj could do was grunt and let me go.

STRIKE THREE-
third year was a not so pleasant time as far as k raj was concerned.. surprisingly and with no fault of mine this time, i was-undoubtedly- on the black list.. this time as i made my way into his office, one word is all it took for my world to crumble- "PARENTS" i left his office and cried my head off..i had to call my parents before the 23rd of December..it was somewhere in the beginning of the month..i had to find a way to somehow let my parents know of the situation, convince them it wasn't my fault and bring them here.. it all happened. Mum wasnt happy at all..but i told her how regular i'd been this year especially and that i could have any professor vouch for me.. it somehow made Ma a lil ok..and we sat outside the office cooking up stories to tell k raj.. inside, he ranted on and on about how i'd been bunking classes and crap..and how its impossible to let me stay with such a low attendance.. since Ma knew i was telling the truth, she demanded to see my record. and k raj softly said ,"actually its not so low..just above the limit..but its my duty to inform parents,na? u understand." my Mum simply nodded, smiled and we left.

never again have i let my attendance be taken so lightly. and proof is my first semester record at MSU that shows i have a 93% attendance in class, 3rd highest!!!

no more nightmares
no more threats
no more new colleges

This is Attitude

Another bunch of clever and wise lines that popped into my inbox this morning:


"IF AN EGG IS BROKEN BY AN OUTSIDE FORCE..A LIFE ENDS.
IF AN EGG BREAKS FROM WITHIN...... .LIFE BEGINS.
GREAT THINGS ALWAYS BEGIN FROM WITHIN ."



"IT'S BETTER TO LOSE YOUR EGO TO THE ONE YOU LOVE.
THAN TO LOSE THE ONE YOU LOVE, BECAUSE OF EGO"



"WHEN YOU TRUST SOMEONE TRUST HIM COMPLETELY WITHOUT
ANY DOUBT....... AT THE END YOU WOULD GET ONE OF THE TWO :
EITHER A LESSON FOR LIFE OR A VERY GOOD PERSON"


"THE WORST IN LIFE IS 'ATTACHMENT' : IT HURTS WHEN YOU LOSE IT. THE BEST THING IN LIFE IS 'LONELINESS'
: BECAUSE WHEN YOU LOSE IT, YOU GET EVERYTHING."



"You never conquer a mountain. You stand on the summit a few moments; then the wind blows your footprints away."