Chaiwala And His Curiosity

Few days ago a guy came to my place for delivering tea and parathas on my roommate's order. This thin guy who was about 18 years, got very curious about computers and we discussed several things.

"Bhai jab bhi me aaya hun yahan sab computer chalate rehte hain. Main sochta hun ise chalane se hota kya hai?".

I tried to explain with an example, "Dost, jab plane aasmaan me hota hai wahan raasta pata nahi chalta. Use computer se hi control kartey hain".

He got more confused. I tried one more time. "Mobile me jo game khelte hain vo computer per hi to banate hain".

"Achcha samajh gya". He continued with excitement, "Vo jo mobile me game khelte hain?". I nodded.

He added with  disappointment "Mere paas touch wala phone hota to main aapse game dalwa leta. Vaisa wala mobile haina usme chalega nahi".

I asked, "School jaate ho?".
He replied, "Bhai school to nahi jaata. Tuition padhta tha. Mere paas ek Bengali rehta hai. Vo tuition padhata hai. Bhut mushkil padhai hai uske paas. Jo bhi usse padh leta hai kaamyaab hai."

"Tum kyu nahi padhte?", I asked.

"Bhai time hi nahi milta. Yahan raat me 11 baje tak parathey banata hoon. Uske baad jaake so jaata hun. Kuch dinon me doosri jagah kaam shuru karuga. Phir padhai shuru karunga."

Few days later he again arrived to deliver tea. I had no idea what should I ask him. I do not wanted to make him feel low or disappointed.

While I was still thinking, he asked, "Bhai ye angrezi gaana baj rha hai kya?".

My recent favorite, Adele's "Someone like You" was getting played, so I replied, "Yes".

He looked at the monitor and asked, "Isme video nahi aata?".

I replied, "Aata hai", and played a hindi video song for him. 

Meanwhile, I found the common thing I could discuss with him. I asked, "Namaz padhte ho".

By this question he was not ashamed but he looked guilty. 

He replied, "Nahi aajkal to nahi padhta. Shaytaan bilkul peeche pad gya hai. Jab ghar se aaya tha to roz jaata tha. Ab InshahAllah ghar se aaunga to padhta rahunga".

When he was leaving I told him, "Dost 5 minute lagte hain padh liya karo. Aur humare liye bhi dua kar dia karo". 
He nodded in agreement and left.

The song which was playing:

Selfie Addiction And What Elders Think Of It

Image Source

After a recent family function, a discussion with Uncles and Aunts about the other side of family made me realize some funny things about our popular culture. I was already expecting the comments about how sleeveless and low cut dresses are indecent. There was much more to it this time.

Aunt 1, disappointingly : "I don't understand which type of people they are. The are all namuney."

Aunt 2 : "They don't even know how to get dressed for a wedding. One of the girls was wearing a dress made out of bed sheet."

Aunt 3 : "They are all mad. One girl was continuously taking her pictures herself. She was making strange faces. She even took pictures with her tongue sticking out".

I smiled. I knew she was talking about 'selfie'. It is obvious that my Aunties were unaware of the popular selfie culture like most other elders in family. Even I agree with them, taking too many selfies in the middle of so many people makes you appear insane. Especially if you are pouting, making duck face and sticking your tongue out.

Interstellar - The Movie Review

Interstellar is a science fiction adventure film directed by Christopher Nolan. The movie is based in near future when earth is no more habitable so NASA decides to send space travelers in search of new places which are able to sustain humanity.

Although, I was not waiting for its release, not even heard about it till the previous day. But I agreed to join my friends because I needed a dose of entertainment after a long and tiring day in office(on Saturday). I may not be following Nolan religiously but I am aware that his movies require a functional brain.

About the movie:

• This movie is the only application of "Theory Of Relativity", which I unsuccessfully tried to understand during engineering.
• Please learn the basics about Relativity, Quantum Mechanics, Murphy's Law and Universe before booking tickets.
• Even if you are not from Science background please participate in clapping after the movie. You can later justify that you loved the direction and physical portrayal of time.
• One of those movies which give you homework.
• If you are a Salman fan and watch movies only for Entertainment. Go to the same multiplex and watch "The Shaukeens" on the other floor. Later, smile at people who come out confused after watching Interstellar.
• Like a typical Sci-fi and Nolan movie, it too leaves many questions unanswered.

(Spoilers begin)
As explained by my friend Daud,the most interesting question is the loop. In the end, Cooper is able to save humanity by transmitting the message through Gravitation. But he transmitted the message from future to save humanity in the past. If he is in future, how could he survived the past. To make it simple, the question is who saved whom? Is it people from future who sent a message, saved their past. Or people in the past saved their future.
Who came first hen or the egg?

About 2 Movies and 1 Defect

Recently, I watched the movie, Haider, and really loved it. Although Haider is based on Shakespeare's Hamlet. It also very nicely portrays the plight of Kashmiris. Apart from great direction and story, Vishal made sure he used local Kashmiri music and real locations. Everything look and feels very authentic. I liked it more because of Faiz's ghazals which are part of movie's music(check it below).

About the defect:
This one defect(a software bug) came to my plate last week. I was supposed to fix it by Friday. Somehow, I wasn't able to focus on work last Friday so I spent most of my time working with others on their issues. I thought I will fix the defect over the weekend but all the time is already gone and now Sunday night blues.

About the other movie:
This movie is one of the reasons why I wasn't able to fix the above defect. Last night, after working for about an hour, when I was about to find the root cause for the defect, I somehow decided to take a short break. I started checking out few songs in my hard drive. Somehow, I clicked on the file containing this movie called "Khoobsurat". The idea was to check out some scenes and watch it later if it appears interesting. Within 2-3 scenes it aroused my interest and I decided to continue it for few more minutes. It turned out to be a romantic comedy which I started enjoying. The comedy iss light and all performances are very natural, I ended up watching it till the end. No actor tried to overact. Sonam's role of a quirky girl and Kirron Kher as her outspoken mother were entertaining. I have decided to copy Fawad's style soon.

The defect remains unfixed. :(

Last Few Months

Like every blogger who posts once a month, I also feel I should write more. Its not only about finding time. Also about the mundane life I am living now a days

Last three months:

In July, I moved to a new project in office which required more aggressiveness. During the whole month of Ramzaan I struggled with sleep and guilt of not utilizing the holy month. It was during the last week of the month when I took holidays and went home, I felt relieved. After coming back I again spent most of my time in office. Facing new deadlines everyday. At times its frustrating, however, there is this satisfaction that I am learning new things everyday. My capabilities were questioned which made be more serious and dedicated towards work. And it is going to continues the same way till November. Meanwhile, I am finding solace in poetry and music.
A recommendation:

Teri Yaad Aayi

        

Image Credit- Vinot

  

جب سکڑتا دیکھ کسی نے چادر اڑھائی، تیری یاد ائی-

جب کبھی کسی نے اچّھی چائے پلائی، تیری یاد ائی-

جب ہارنے کے بعد کی کسی نے حوصلہ افزائی، تیری یاد ائی-

جب پھٹے کرتے مے خدبخد ہوئی سلائی، تیری یاد ائی-

جب کبھی ڈر کے آنکھ کھلی اور کسی نےپیٹھ تھپتھپائی، تیری یاد ائی-

جب میرے بھلے کے لئے کی کسی نے میری پٹائی، تیری یاد ائی-

جب میری حمایت مے کی کسی نے دنیا سے لڑائی، تیری یاد ائی-

جب ہر ٹھوکر پہ کسی کہ لب سے "الله خیر" آواز آئ،  تیری یاد ائی-

جب بیماری مے دوا سے زیادہ کسی کی دعا عصر لایی، تیری یاد ائی-
جب کبھی کسی نے اچّھی بات سکھائی، تیری یاد ائی-
کبھی بے وجہ کبھی بے سبب بس یہیں، تیری یاد ائی-

- A poem dedicated to my beloved mother.

Ghazal : Ab kiska intezaar hai.

Image Credit : Khawar

Is tarah dhadakne ki kya wajah hai,
Aye dil, tujhe ab kiska intezaar hai.

In khamoshi se behte aansuon ka kya hai matlab,

Kyu itna yakeen hai, kyu ab bhi aitbaar hai.

Us khudgarz ke jhootey waadey they ya koi jaadu.

Jo mujh par ab tak asardaar hai.

Mujhe kya mila apne jazbaat, khwab-o-khayal luta kar,

Bas ek jism baaqi hai aur vo bhi beemar hai.

Khwaabon me mulaqaat ki hai ek aakhri  ummeed,

Magar soney ke liye bhi uski zulfon ka saaya darkaar hai.

Us ke chehre ki kashish ka nahin koi muqabla,

Jis ne door se ek jhalak dekha vo ab tak qarzdaar hai.

Chand khushiyon ki khatir kitne aasu bahaye aur minnaten ki,

Kehne ko to hum bhi badey khuddar hain.

Aur kuch na mila to uske sarey ghamon ko hi apnaya,

Usko ghamon ki kya zaroorat, uska khushiyon ka kaarobaar hai.

Khushiyon se dil bhar jaaye to usse kehna mujhse aa kar mile,

Jahan mera jism dafan hai, uske ghamon ka bhi wahin mazaar hai.

 Urdu Version:

اس طرح دھڈاکنے کی کیا وجہ ہے اے دل

تجھے اب کسکا انتظار ہے

ان خاموشی سے بہتے آسوں کا کیا ہے مطلب

کیو اتنا یقین ہے کیں اب بھی اعتبار ہے

اس خدگرز کے جھوٹے وادے تھے یا کوئی جادو

جو مجھ پر اب تک اسردار ہے

مجھے کیا ملا اپنے جذبات  خواب و خیال لٹا کر

بس اک جسم باقی ہے اور وہ بھی بیمار ہے

 خوابوں میں ملاقات کی ہے اک آخری امید

مگر سونے کے لئے بھی اسکی زلفوں کا سایا درکار ہے

اسکے چہرے کی کشش کا نہیں کوئی  مقابلہ

 جسنے دور سے اک جھلک دیکھا وہ اب تک قرضدار ہے

چند خوشیوں کی خاطر آسو بہاے اور منّتیں کی

کہنے کو تو ہم بھی بڑے خددار ہیں

اور کچھ نہ ملا تو اسکے سارے غموں کو ہی اپنایا

اسکو غموں کی کیا ضرورت اسکا خشیوں کا کاروبار ہے

خوشیوں سے دل بھر جائے تو اس سے کہنا مجھسے آکر ملے

جہاں میرا جسم دفن ہے اسکے غموں کا بھی وہیں مزار ہے

Finished TV Series: Shehr-e-Zaat

Today, I finished watching a TV Series called Shehr-e-Zaat which means "The City of Self". It was just 19 episodes long, still it took me more than 2 months to finish. The series is very interesting and requires attention. The problem is with me, I cannot finish one thing before moving on. Anyway, it is based on a novel by the same name.


The title track, Yaar Ko Hum Ne Ja Ba Ja Dekha, of the drama was sung by Abida Parveen. It is haunting, devastating and stirring. It is somehow magical. I listened it time to time for several weeks, on loop. It made me Abida's fan.

I loved the series more because unlike most Indian TV shows I can very well relate it to our culture. And the message it conveyed about love, desires and relationships somehow applies to me, maybe all of us.

 It is about a very beautiful, modern, self obsessed and spoilt girl. And how she adapts simplicity, patience, humbleness and finally manage to get rid of unnecessary worldly and hollow pursuits.

Dialogues I remember:

• Dil ajeeb shay hai....Ajeeb cheezain mangta hai....Ajeeb kaam krnay ko kehta hai.
• Allah Ki Mohabbat Ke Siwa, Har Mohabbat Ko Zawal Hai.

Voted for Identity

It is not very normal for me to get up early on a holiday. Still, I decided to get up early to cast my vote before its too hot and crowded outside. It looked like a normal morning in Zakir Nagar with minimal traffic. It was after reaching Batla House Chowk, I observed something different. There were more than a dozen Policemen, two of them on Horses. Road was blocked for vehicles from one side to allow only pedestrians. Few people were sitting on a chair-table in a corner and were browsing through sheets of paper. I moved on towards Jamia School, my polling booth.

The whole School campus was full of security personnel. The buildings, walkways and atmosphere inside the School felt very familiar. Within seconds I went down the memory lane and imagined younger version of myself looking at me from one of the classrooms on the top floor. "It is my school", I thought and smiled. The Good old days. I spent four most memorable years of my life in that campus.

My Electoral Stain / Voter mark

Although I am yet to receive my Voter's Id card, my name was there in the list. After several levels of verification, I was inked and allowed to vote. I pressed a button, a red LED blinked with a sound. And the woman, who inked me, confirmed that my vote was successful. I thanked her, smiled and left with a sense of achievement.

The place was't very crowded. I found more women than men at the polling booth. Even while returning I observed women coming in groups or with their husbands. They all looked more excited than men. When I came out one man, while starting his scooter, said to another man sitting on his bike, "Umeed hai is baar kuch to Gandgi kam hogi", and smiled. The other person nodded. It was clear that he voted for a clean system.

I voted for identity and self respect. I hope well deserving and responsible people come to power. And I am so glad that this election season is over.

I live in Jamia Nagar and I am not a terrorist

Its not very often that you read about your locality in a national newspaper unless you live near 10 Janpath. It wasn't about a minister's well publicized visit or an advertisement about a new Mughlai restaurant. Not even just any negative news about petty crimes. What attracted me today was a statement from a veteran leader belonging to a national party, claiming our locality is a terrorist's hub. "Jamia Nagar is a safe house for terrorists", he claimed.

This election season all politicians in India have made all sort of allegations against each other. But Mr Malhotra went a step ahead and blamed a whole community for terrorist activities. Such irresponsible and baseless statement in order to polarize voters on communal lines will only harm his party.

I was shocked to read that such a senior leader thinks like that. Claiming someone to be a terrorist is not a small allegation. This is complete "Identity Crisis" for us, in our own country. Such inflammatory remarks can create social unrest. A criminal case should be registered against him.

This Election season, for most people, it is so simple to choose anybody considering the issues like Development. It is we who also have to face and prove many other things.

Now, you can imagine what made me write this sher in my Ghazal:

Naujavaan hun mujhko behka do, ya dehshatgard keh ke phansa do.
Ilzaam koi sangeen lagao, be-gunaahi ke saboot bhi mita do.

Meri kamzooriyan maloom karo, aur unhi pe mujhko aazma lo.
Sitam se sar na jhukega mera, Zillat se mujhko hara do.

References:

• http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Jamia-Nagar-Batla-House-terrorist-hub-V-K-Malhotra/articleshow/32685459.cms
• http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/congress-aap-slam-malhotra-remarks/

My first Ghazal

Image by : crdot

Sochne pe lagaao paabandi, boloon to zabaan jala do.
Ishq ki mujhko saza do, deewar me mujhko chunva do.

Naujavaan hun mujhko behka do, ya dehshatgard keh ke phansa do.
Ilzaam koi sangeen lagao, be-gunaahi ke saboot bhi mita do.

Meri kamzooriyan maloom karo, aur unhi pe mujhko aazma lo.
Sitam se sar na jhukega mera, Zillat se mujhko hara do.

Ilm se pehle hi bhut door hun, chand kitaaben hain unme bhi aag laga do.
Koyley bach gaye to deewaron pe na likh dun, is tarah jalao sab-kuch raakh bana do.

Namaazen bhut si qaza hain, Rozay bhi saare chudhwaado.
Duniya me maine khud ko tabah kiya, Aakhirat meri tum barbaad kara do.

Urdu Version:

سوچنے پے لگاو پابندی ، بولوں تو زبان جلا دو
عشق کی مجھکو سزا دو ، دیوار مے مجھکو چنوا دو

نوجوان ہوں مجھکو بہکا دو ، یا دہشتگرد که  کے پھنسا دو
علزام کوئی سنگین لگاو اور بیگناہی کے سبوت بھی مٹا دو

میری کمزوریاں معلوم کرو اور انہی پہ مجھکو آزما لو
ستم سے سر نہ جھکیگا میرا ذلّت سے مجھکو ہرا دو

علم سے پہلے ہی بہت دور ہوں ، چند کتابیں ہیں انمی بھی آگ لگا دو 

کویلے بچ گئے تو دیواروں پہ نہ لکھ دوں ،اس طرح جلاؤ سب کچھ راکھ بنا دو

نمازیں بہت سی قضا ہیں ، روزے بھی سارے  چھڈوا دو 
دنیا میے مینے خد کو تباہ کیا ، آخرت میری تم برباد کرا دو

 
Husn-e-Ghazal(Best 'sher' in Ghazal) bataiye?

That Awkward Moment

That awkward moment when your friend by mistake(or carelessly) uses your toothbrush. How should one decide? Either to take revenge or use your own.

This happened with me. And I finally washed my toothbrush 10 times and used it. I still sometimes feel, Errr..

Internet is full of Entertainment

At one conversation about "Religion vs Science", someone commented:

"Can you show me a software? Can you show me gravity? Can you show me electricity? You would just show me the effects. So, why do you want to see a soul to believe in it?"

There is lot more entertainment over internet than we can ever imagine. hmm... Yes, knowledge too exists.

Irreversible Destruction

Photo By: ShineALight

It is so damn easy,
To fake happiness, to fool ourselves.

I sat there thinking if being happy is a sin,
Loosing control over my body.

Feelings were getting awkward,
with every passing second.

I felt too clothed among attractive,
Like a sole spectator among performers.

Music started flowing in my veins,
Heart pumped at irregular intervals.

Colorful liquids were served in transparent glasses,
and caused people to shake legs madly.

Yes, I surrendered,
not sure to devil or to my true self.

Dreams and Reality are Related

There is something with dreams. At-least some of them in some way represent future. Few days ago, I met one of my childhood friends in a dream. The same day I received his friend request on facebook.

I don't understand how this works. And its not like all my dreams come true. Most of them are all rubbish. All major religions believe that divine messages are delivered through dreams. However, no religion would make sinners like me eligible for receiving divine knowledge.

Science also have an explanation for this. Its called "Deja vu". According to Wikipedia, "It is the phenomenon of having the strong sensation that an event or experience currently being experienced has been experienced in the past, whether it has actually happened or not".

Whatever it may mean but it really feels good when your dreams become reality.

Koffee with Stars

Just now I watched two episodes of Koffee with Karan. All this while, when the show was off for years, I used to think that I was so immature earlier to choose it as one of my favorite shows on TV. I thought how can I get entertained with all the false information that stars give just for increasing TRPs of a show and earning money. But then that is how entertainment industry works. You should neither believe nor take anything to heart said over TV. I tried this and again it became my favorite show.

There are many things that one can learn from this show. One of them is how to answer most personal questions and insult people without actually acknowledging their name. One of the questions that I feel to answer now is "top three agendas of life". Without taking much time I found this answer:

• Career: Definitely, its always there in mind, all the time. I always wonder what I will be doing five years from now. Will I ever be good at anything? 
• Life after Death : This should be on top of this list. But I am too weak and get carried away with smaller issues everyday. This agenda is most important but most forgettable. Really need to set my priorities straight. 
• Wedding: Hmm.. Yes. Few of my friends are getting married next month and I am yet to meet someone I can think of spending my whole life with. This was always in top 5. Now in top 3.

Something is wrong

Like all Science students, I have this habit to ask "Why?" before accepting anything. I need a reason before storing any new thought or theory in my memory. During college days, Logic, Reasoning and Calculation occupied most of my abnormal brain. For years, my brain's firewall stopped me from exploring my artistic and romantic side. As soon as I came out of college many more questions regarding religion, politics, history and culture started to stack up and attack the firewall. All this made me feel very uneducated.

Photo Credit:  Dullhunk

Education is all about knowing everything about something and something about everything.

Eventually, I decided to shift my interest more towards arts and literature. Enrolled for learning Spanish, but failed to accommodate the classes into my corporate routine. To keep going I started reading everything except science. Internet came to my rescue and the destruction began.

In a few months I found myself reading more Urdu poetry than anything and its magic started working. Although I was not very fluent in Urdu but online dictionaries made it easy to understand. I also started enjoying Qawwali, Gazals and Thumri. All my favorite singers got replaced by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Jagjit Singh, Iqbal Bano and Rekha Bhardwaj among others.

I call it destruction because I am spending lots of time listening music and reading many unrelated theories about everything. I wonder if I am really gaining anything other than confusion. Do I really know where am I going? Unlike Science, there are no limits in Arts, no boundaries, no resistance for imagination. Although brain is sending regular warnings but somehow I am enjoying this journey.

"Jo radd hue thay jahan main kai sadi pehle,

   Woh log hum pe musallat hain is zamanay main." 

 : JaunElia

Recognized for Mapping

It feels so good when you are recognized for your hobbies. I never thought I will be among the winners of Google's Mapathon. I started mapping in college as a hobby. The idea was to help in making Google Maps better and contribute to Open Source Community.

Today I received a Certificate and a Google T-Shirt for my contribution. Feeling encouraged to pursue other hobbies with passion too.

2013 Analysis

Credit: http://www.lendingmemo.com/

2013 haven't brought any big change into my life. 

This happened last year:

• I kept going to same office doing similar work. 
• Got cured of an illness which took me to hospital. 
• Got more serious towards learning new things but did not took any action to proceed.
• Got much more entertained than last few years, more movies and TV. 
• Increased blogging and other online activities.
• Traveled to a new place, Jaisalmer.
• Read many blogs and few books, got more confused.
• Spent more money than ever.
• Got older not much wiser.

New year started with lots of office work. Got promoted, with no big compensation change but more responsibilities. The list of things I want to achieve this year is too long. Even if I could finish half of them, this year will be successful. Need a proper plan and a well prioritized list of actions. From where should I begin?