Monday, July 25, 2005

A little bit of sunshine

A recent edition of "The Week" carried an article about MBAs.It said that a 1993 IIM passout commanded an average annual salary of 50 lakhs in 2003.
My sister read this article at her college Library.She gasped , quickly got up from the desk , ran out of the Library , took out her cellphone and dialled mom's number with trembling fingers. "Ma , Munnu is going to get a minimum of 50 lakhs per year in 2016.".The details of the sensational week article were duly passed on to ma.Ma dropped the plate carrying the potatoes she was peeling , dropped the kitchen knife she was peeling the potatoes with and stagerred to the nearest chair.After downing a bottle of Bisleri , or maybe it was Aquafina , she called Dad at the hospital.My dad dropped the scissors in the tummy of the guy he was operating on , did a little jig to the tune of "Dil le gyi" by Jassi , and yelled "my son will be rich" so loudly that the window glasses of buildings within a radius of 4.23 kilometers of the hospital cracked.
I hope that was exciting enough.Now picture the exact opposite of this.It was me who read the article .Later , when I was talking to mom on the phone , I remarked about the sultan-of-brunei-sque sum of 50 lakhs to mom .I am not sure if mom even heard it , because she immediately proceeded to ask about the stuff I had in the evening snacks.I paused , and then said sandwiches.Then she warned me against skipping dinner.This is what really happenned.
My family is a "small dreams" family.And this has been inherited by me.My idea of a perfect day at the age of 50 is taking out my cute little wife and two cute-er and little-er kids to a comedy movie , laugh a lot with them , throw popcorn at people , sing loudly with the songs in the movie , then go to a little cosy restaurent for dinner , spill a lot of food , laugh a lot , drop things in each other's glasses when they aint looking , and then sneak home without paying the bill.I do not know if I will get that "potato-dropping-window -glass-shattering" salary , and to be as honest as a lie detector machine , I do not care.
Being in an IIM assures me that I will attain a minimum standard of financial status , that I would not need to sell my wife's "mangalsootra" and my daughter's barbie collection to buy dinner.So though I have not "earned" a cent in my life yet , though I did steal a pencilbox in class fourth , if we can call that "earning" something , money is no more a motive in my life.I am intent on loving what I do .And money will come by as a by product as fleas come by with a stray dog.
All I want is a nice and simple life.Where nobody cries much , and even if they do , there are always people to offer a nice smelling handkerchief.And it is this simplicity and innocence which the world seems to be losing.Looks like a little dream of an innocent smile is becoming too much to ask for.
A 13 year old girl was raped yesterday in the Salt Lake area of Calcutta.Raped before her parents ,by four men.She was the daughter of a domestic help.She went to school , class VIII.Maybe she would have had dinner a few hours before being raped.Maybe her mother would have prepared her favorite dish as dinner.She would have enjoyed eating it , then maybe she would have studied a little.Studied some english lesson maybe.Then her mother would have finished the household chores and mother and daughter would have chatted.Chatted about her classes at school that day , imitating with glee the strange pronunciation of her south indian Maths teacher , expressing her difficulty with Physics to her illiterate mother , maybe asking her mother to get a new pair of socks the next day.A normal girl , maybe like my sister would have been at 13.Then she would have slept.
And at 4 in the morning , four men drag her out of bed , push her to the floor , and rape her brutally as her gagged and tied mother and father watch helplessly.Watch their little girl undergo something she is too young to understand.They watch all the moments , the moment their daughter took her first step , the moment she stepped into her school for the first time , the moment she made her first "chappati" , the moment she used her pocket money to buy flowers on her mother's birthday , they watch all these moments heartlessly trampled by four men.
Is it foolish to dream and hope in such a world ? I say this to myself and my friends , but is life really beautiful ? All I want is a life bathed in a little bit of sunshine , but is the darkness too much ?

31 comments:

Anonymous said...

huh so much for a beautiful life.did someone say "life is stranger than fiction". i totally agree with that someone. it is so inhuman to do something like that to a child. it makes u suspect all men even the perfectly sane and civilised ones ,which is very wrong but u cant really help it.

Anonymous said...

I have not lost hope with this world.. it is bad as hell and gloomy.. but the onus is on each individual if the world has to change.. i do not know if you realise but you certainly are making a huge diffence with your blog in your own small way by talking about such issues and putting it in the right perspective.. If everyone adopts this approach of effecting your immediate environment and spreading the sunshine then the world will change. Have you sen the movie ' Pay it forward ' a beautiful portrayal of this idea..

sona said...

hi abhinav

we all r running after materialistic pleasures which surely doesnt last longer. we hv to stop n think hw we r doing our part of helping society, children n our country. every effort makes a difference...a huge difference

Unknown said...

there can never be too much darkness, because all darkness has to be followed by a lot of sunshine, you just have to wait.

But yeah, its easy to say all this while the victims of the little bit of darkness will suffer for the rest of their lives

Tipsy Topsy said...

had the kind of evening u wish for. dinner with family at a cosy restaurant with incessant leg pulling and loud laughter. can't imagine a world other than one like this.

As for the crime...u can feel the insecurity girls/women live in. we r not sfe even when we go to sleep at night in our homes. this aint the angle u r talking about, i know. but this is the thought that came in my head so i put it here. i dont mean it as an argument or anythg.

Anonymous said...

Brilliant post mate! I could identify with it, at least the first part, and wouldn't have been as articulate in explaining the same beliefs. Shall be linking this post to one that I am making at my blog, hope that's not a problem?

Anonymous said...

Hi Abhinav,

My name is Nazia.
I saw your name listed on a friends blog and thats how i came across ur blog.

I read some of your articles from the archives....u are a sensitive writer...and ur stenghth lies in the fact that u r not afraid of showing ur vulnerabilities.

Great job! Keep up the good work!!

LovingAndLosing said...

All rapists who are caught should be castrated. No point in putting them behind bars. Just chop off their bloody balls!!!!

Vidhi said...

each post of urs carries a message...a very touching one at that...whether the world'll ever be a better place to live in, God alone knows. we can just play our part...by observing humanity as the greatest religion...

Enchantica said...

Munnu, Nice post..

And for your kind information physics starts from class IX and not from VIII ;)

Koun se school gaya tha munna???
bad memory...r u sure u in IIM :))

Blog didi :)

Anonymous said...

hi abhi
a very nice and touching post once again.its gud that people like u bring these things forward which people are so averse to discussing. "Sacred Feminine" has lost its meaning and it reflects in everyday life. In my opinion rape is the most despicable act of crime a man cud ever commit. Sometimes wen u hear bout these kinda incidents u feel that u r so lucky whereas as some others are not. Suddenly u dont feel like crying for ur own troubles but for others. Life can be beautiful and it can be ugly depending upon which side of the life do u wanna see.

Anonymous said...

@dreamz : Yeah buddy , the contrast was horrifying.But so is life ,a very contrasting aggregate of experiences.

And you just expressed it yourself , a expensive cellphone and a plea for a few more life saving rupees.But now that you have got it , have fun .But no long chats !:)

@karthika : yeah we do need to thank god each day to end up safe.but did god need that 13 year old girl to pray to him to spare her all this agony ?

And hope you do a good job at your ne workplace.To imagine a little innocent kid like you working at a company.wow.

@divya : i know.Life , which is meant to be a carefree joyride is getting to be a constant vigil for women.And its we guys who are to blame.n i dont see how things can improve.anyways , u keep at churning out the bestsellers , miss.rowling .:)

@Harsh : Hey Its nice you think so.i dont really see myself as doing something worthwhile though.:)And I placed one of those aish pics as my wallpaper.;).wenz the next lot coming in ?

@Sona : Now I dont need to say anything to you.My respect for you has gone through the ozone layer since you have joined deepalaya.Fever over.good.:)

@Adi : Hey Adi ,thats the attitude which can carry us through.And chunnu beta , how are your exams going on ?All the best.Make me proud.;)

@TT : I am real jealous , steam coming out of ears and all.You always write about all the fun things you do with your lovely family.May god keep all these smiles going.:)

And its fine yaar , i know everything you say is not an arguement.I am not so critical about you , ask MK !

@Arnav : Thanx for liking that buddy.And you can link it , no problems , you can send me the cash later.;)

@Nazia : Thank you Nazia.And weaknesses , hiding them from the world I can do , but I cant hide them from myself.So I better accept them , rather than fueling a false ego.Right ? :)

@Ms.V : For a change , I support you.And I do think shoaib akhtar is hot.

@vidhi : rightly said , vidhi.The day a men become humans , life will be much better.And why aint you posting ? your fans are waiting.

@Shipra : Offo , a little too much of logic kills a situation sometimes.:p.Lagta to iim hee hain jahan baitha hoon.:)Take care sister.

@jammer : Yeah brother , life is the way we see it.But the only chance of the ugly part improving is in people from the better side of life coming in to improve things.Though the darkness may never go away , the candle has to glow and keep fighting.

Nidhi said...

abhinav !!
ur blog rox !!
that post was wonderful
:)

bbye
tc
nidhi

Fursat said...

it was a sweet n true post. at begin its sweet n at end its a bitter truth.

these incidents are taking place all over and dont know what the hell is happening.

we need just love n respect and peaceful life. Money is just a narrow way to go there. it cant fulfill one's heart.

good post.

God bless u !

Anonymous said...

i heard about da rape too...sad isnt it....sometimes i wonder how people can be so sick...
~shreya
http://hardtoget.rediffblogs.com

pissoff said...

You know I say the same thing all the time. It's not the money I'm concerned about it's about being happy, my kids being happy, enjoying life. I just want enough money to get by and money isn't my main objective. I know from experience that the thirst for money clouds everything else in your path including family, which should come first.

You never know when the tide will change and what life has in store for you. Money may not always be there but family will so respect and enjoy them.

Kroopa Shah (Kr00pz) said...

My prayers are with that girl and her family. Its shocking to see how dreams can suddenly be shatterred so brutally without any warning. Recent attacks in London are proof of just that.
The world has become so greedy and selfish that we don't care for anyone else anymore other than ourselves. Its just that for some people this greed overcomes their senses to such an extent that they are incapable of differentiating the right from wrong. And innocent people suffer.

Priya said...

i dream of a simple life as u suggest.. but want bring abt sumthing revolutionary to help the needy...i dunno how far i'll go.. but im glad i have evryone who read this blog and especially the one who wrote this thought provoking blog to join me :-)
..p..

amit said...

what a transition.......

from a life wht i dream of, not abt acquiring loads of money, but being able to spend time with family n enjoying to one of the most despicable crime which a human can inflict over another....

yaar again it depends upon individuals... sum people really feel pained when others r in state of misery while sum others enjoy putting them in this state of trauma and agony to satisfy their materialistic desires n lust....

Anonymous said...

hi there!!reached ur blog by chance nd I aint regretting it...maybe my boss is...lol

Tabula_Rasa said...

Spent my years growing up in Salt Lake & on reading this incident in the very place where i spent carefree days..fills me up with an emptiness,a hollowness,a feeling of despair,a burning rage & wonder why Man is taking two steps at a time towards beastiality.

Anonymous said...

cool one dude wht i most like in ur post is with the honesty with which u pour ur words....the world has really filled with lust filled rogues some lust for money ,some for positions,and some rascals for girls....its this 4 letter word which does not make man a 'MAN'..

Anonymous said...

@nidhi : I got a new fresh set of PJs ready for you.

@neetie : yeah neetie , money is a means , but is being treated as an end in itself now.we need to wake up to this fact.If you wake up to this fact and realise how shallow is the use of money ,give your money to me.:p.kiddin.god bless you too.

@shreya : yeah , people can be very very sick.my uncle spent three months in hospital once.;)

@pissoff : your insight coming straight outta experience is very wise and complete in itself.:)

@kroopa : yeah kroopa , london bombings , rapes , floods , ongc fire..i just need to flunk in my next exams n the disaster list wud be complete.

@pradyot: I wont mind a mercedes.But even a moped would do.:)

@priya : yeh priya , even a small thing we actually do is bigger than 732612 words written about the desire to do it.

@amit : yeah lakho , and its good to see you expressing.We never talked of such thinz at college.:)

@suvir : Am i bringing down india's gdp .get back to work.

@nomadic waves : we all wonder.but i wonder if anything can change.i dont think so.it can only go worse.

@suraj : right bro.another four letter which adds to the problems.

Anonymous said...

hey !! thins time i wont spare u !!

i too have some pj's ready for u :P

will buzz u some time.. bach k rehna !! :P nahi to status invisible kar liyo :P

bbye
tc
nidhi

Dreamcatcher said...

That was so touching. Especially the last line.

Anonymous said...

U certainly qualify for the title --'A Beautiful Mind' :)

Anonymous said...

@DC:uhmm...ahem...yeah..wat do i say..kya yar..just take this smiley then:).

@anon :thanx bhai.though john nash wud be crying lakes on hearing this.

Fathima Sagar said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Fathima Sagar said...

Sorry for the girl. Y don't they give severe punishments as in South Western Asian countries to these ppl?

Unknown said...

you are a really wonderful soul, god bless you...

Anonymous said...

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