That was my phrase for 2012. The sub- headings on that would read- To attempt to extend the current limits of performance. To innovate, or go beyond commonly accepted boundaries. Inside the envelope you are safe. There is minimal risk because you are wrapped in a cocoon of the predictable and known. All that […]
Year: 2012
A Letter To Me
Dear Me, This feels weird. You’ll be wondering why the letter is addressed to ‘me’ instead of to you by name. I know you hastened to read the signature at the bottom before you began reading the letter. I know that the ‘ME’ in the signature line has confused you even more. I […]
Untamed
I gasped in shock as the scream slammed into me. It took me a few moments to realize that the awful guttural sound of pure rage had emerged from my own throat. All of the past year I have tried to run away from that scream. It was the sole witness to that truth you […]
Life Watch
The little girl sat on the window sill, watching life amble past. It was late afternoon. Her parents were out, working. She, all of four years, was alone at home. It never bothered her, on the contrary. She preferred to be alone. Her house was on the road. One opened the front door, went down […]
Mango Flavored Summer
It was the summer of ‘91. I am sure if I tried, I could come up with a score of reasons why the summer of ‘91 was momentous for the world at large. Maybe it was, maybe not. All I know was that it was momentous for me. In hindsight, the self- absorption of a […]
Turn Around
Malini was devastated. Her sister Shalini, whom she hero- worshipped, was lying helpless like a rag doll on the hospital bed. If this were not bad enough, Raja too seemed strange. She couldn’t come to terms with how much he had changed after the accident. He barely came to visit Shalini at the hospital. […]
Freedom
Oppression is intrinsic to mankind; as compelling a force as rebellion. The desire to oppress and the impulse to rebel against it go together, like the two sides of a coin. Whatever its scale- family, community or nation- the core is the same. When an individual or a group wishes to gain advantage at […]
Preparing For Apocalypse
I noticed something funny at Linkedin. All day, the most numerous updates I get on Linkedin are from these two females who keep ‘connecting’ with people all day long. The grim zeal with which they connect with an average of 70 people a day (each) is frightening. One of them has a profile picture […]
As Simple As That
I wake up most mornings with one thought dinning in my head. The thought tumbles over itself exuberantly in the sleep dimmed spaces of my mind. I can almost hear the screech of the thought ricocheting with supersonic speed in my skull. It is an irritating sound; it sets my nerves on edge. Over […]
Unlimited Canvas
There are days, like this wet, chill morning, when I feel as if I have turned into a sheet of unlimited canvas. On this blank canvas, an artist unleashes his passion in vibrant color and bold forms. His images etch themselves on me. In his all- consuming passion of creation, he forgets to notice […]