Myth of "The Common Man"

Disclaimer: This article may push you to believe you're uncommon. Please don't try anything stupid after reading this. I'm not responsible for your actions.

“Common Man”, like Superman and Batman is a figment of someone’s imagination.

We are all statistics like the neon green digits pouring down against a dark background (pun intended) in The Matrix trilogy.
You and I will fall in at least three of the categories if not more. Interestingly no one is spared from this. Not even the dead or the new-borns. As a matter of fact, even the ones in the womb are not spared. Everyone’s a part of some god-forsaken list.

Earlier in the days, the right way of addressing a crowd would be “Ladies and Gentlemen” or at least that’s what they made us believe in.
The mysticism of the “Common Man” would still be alive in that environment.
Today we’re mostly addressed as “Tweeps or trolls” and that’s supposed to be cool. If you believe otherwise, you don’t belong. Don’t worry that you got bumped off the “cool” list. You automatically fall into some other group. You’re still NOT common. While you’re not alone, you’re not as BIG or common as you would want to imagine.

One social activist who really believed in the phenomenon of “Fast” has demonstrated it to us in the recent past. He created a political party believing the legend/myth and has further created groups of believers and non-believers. He vanished as “fast” as he came into the limelight.
We misunderstood what “Fast” really meant, didn’t we?

Wonder why we crib about our age-old caste system? Or wait a minute; we still love it, just feel the need to rename it and make it more in-sync with TIME. And we like to believe and blame the Brits for bringing in the “Divide and Rule” policy. How ignorant can we get?

Sample this.
You’re a follower, a fan or a troll. You are either too gullible to be impressed by anything and everything OR you’re an unreasonable critic who is bordering on cynicism.
You’re either on the social media OR you’re missing the big picture.
You’re a soldier, jihadi, a victim or a hapless bystander waiting your turn.
You’re either conducting the sting operation or being a “Bakra” yourself.
You either “like”, “comment” or “Share”.
You’re either a native or an immigrant (further divided into legal and illegal).
You’re either a nation that demands answers or you’re the one who’s being questioned.

If you still believe, you don’t fall into any of the above categories, clearly – you’re NOT common.

So, it’s time for one of the Studios to take this opportunity to cash in on.
Once we have all our Black Money back, who do we spend it on?
C’mon we still have the 500 crore club to be created.

Disclaimer: The above article is written with the intent of humour and to showcase the irony of life; definitely not with the intent to offend any group, major or minor.

PS: Afterthought – Maybe such disclaimers are the only ones that are really common these days.

Recharge Yourself at Dandeli Forests!

It’d been 3 years since we’d taken a vacation. We all needed it dearly. Obviously the struggle began with zeroing in on a location after haggling with the dates. I suddenly remembered my failed attempt at going to Dandeli from Chennai some time back. Re-visited my mails and found the link and phone numbers. Made another attempt and was lucky to have the same friendly voice on the other side. After a few questions, the bookings were made. I read through a few reviews and must admit; my expectation only lowered and was worried somewhere if I was taking a big gamble for a vacation that came after three years.

Somehow I followed my gut feeling and kept those fears to me and was pepped up to leave. Best part being, we decided to make this a “Road-Trip”.

We left at 0430 as against the scheduled time of 0400hrs. The estimated drive time was around 10 hours. We took close to 13. However, when we reached, the place simply mesmerized us.

And that’s the last thing we remember. We all slept for the number of hours we drove in.
The next morning, we woke up fresh to all the unheard sounds of the jungle.

That’s when we realized we were in the middle of a thick forest – Really thick. That was an island on the Gangavali River. We had parked our car at the other side of the river and ferried our way in.
Having skipped dinner, we were expecting breakfast when our Resort manager announced it was time for our first activity, “Kayaking”. Our four year old was excited at the word, activity. Anything that keeps her away from “food” is always exciting. The kayaking guide probably liked us and allowed us to paddle far and away enjoying the scenic beauty of that place. The view was breathtaking. Lush green mountains all around, river flowing beneath us, clouds gently kissing those mountains; and all this, while there was a philharmonic orchestra of the birds and peacock playing in the background.

After the refreshing start, we had a sumptuous breakfast. It was time for water-rafting, an activity that the little one was not allowed to participate in. She smiled, cooperated and stayed with the manager while wife and I rowed off towards the rapids.
The view we had while negotiating the currents, was priceless. One can’t experience that view from anywhere else; the pristine sound of the water flow, absolute serenity and no sound of any machinery whatsoever. Since none of us could get cameras, we were focussed on enjoying the ride. It was an 8km stretch with decent rapids and two places where we could take a dip in the river. Our raft was stuck at two places and we were involved in a rescue episode as well. We were ignorantly enjoying our moment in the water floating around and gazing at the sky as time and clouds passed by.

After the exhilarating experience, we came back fully drenched to our daughter. She was envious of the fact that we had so much fun without her. We felt guilty too but that’s as much we could do at that time. We had lunch in soaked clothes as we were lined up for waterfall rappelling next. While we were waiting for our batch-mates to come in, the little one insisted an activity for herself. The manager accommodated a small fishing boat for her.  It was a little ironical. Fishing is known as a therapeutic activity of patience and this was given to a restless bundle of energy. I was more than shocked to see her actually enjoy it. She was lucky enough to catch a small fish. She got scared at first, admired it for a while and then let go to ensure the fish lives.

By then arrangements were made for waterfall rappelling. Our princess was allowed to witness this and soon we were trekking along the water to the cliff from where it took a plunge. The rappelling experts were waiting for us with all the gear and equipment. As against conventional rappelling sites, this site was NOT flat and was totally uneven and rocky. We could not see it since we were on the top. I volunteered to go first. With all the gear, I was kicked to set the ball rolling. Least knowing, I was doing it literally. I actually rolled down the first few steps.

Badly bruised at my knees and elbows, I did not give up. Took further steps and got a grip. Just as I was preparing for the jumps, noticed the rock below was uneven and a jump would mean I would smash my face against the rock. As I took careful steps, I slipped and fell yet again and was completely under the force of the waterfall. I was having a battle of my own while the experts were howling out commands for me to get back to safety. After a few moments, I managed on my feet again and finished the rest of my descent. Despite all these hiccups, the experience was thrilling to say the least. Before I could un-gear myself, noticed my better half was next and was almost prepared. I did not utter a word or give out any cautionary statements. I wanted her to have her own experience. Was glad to notice she was provided with an elbow cap as well. With her descent, she managed quite well. She fumbled at the place where the rock got uneven.

As we realized later, no one could negotiate that part without falling. Relieved, we were no exceptions.

The sheer thrill of all these adventures gave us enough adrenalin rush and the right amount of fatigue to our heap of flesh to eat well and rest well for the day. After all we had to start the next day afresh.

We had planned the second day with lesser activities and more of sight-seeing to soak in the natural beauty around us. We repeated kayaking on Stuti’s insistence, and then headed to see “Yaana” Rock formation.

Post that, we returned for lunch and after a siesta, took another guided trek to “Hanging Bridge”.

I really can’t do justice to the sights we saw in words and will leave it at that. It’s a MUST go place and would be awesome if you get to experience it first hand before it gets commercial and spoilt.

To conclude, we all came back fully charged enough for a year and to charge others as well. The moral of our vacation was simple. We MUST vacation every year and have vowed to see a new place and to experience something new every time we set out.

स्वतंत्रता - एक एहसास

आज कि मांग है
सोच में बद्लाव कि
औरों से उम्मीद के पहले
अपने आप में इसे जगाने कि

‘पहले आप’ के तहज़ीब वाले इस देश में
अब गूँज रहा है खुदगर्ज़ी का नारा
"हमारी माँगें पूरी करो" कहते सुनते
प्रदेशों में बट रहा है देश यह सारा

अनेकता में एकता का हमेँ कभी था अभिमान
लेकिन अब धर्म और जाति के तनावों में झुकी है हमारी शान
अपने माँ और बहनोँ कि सुरक्षा से मुँह मोड़े, ज़मीर है सोई
भारत माँ कि लाज बचाने वाला क्या सच्चा है कोई?

अपने देश की रक्षा करना केवल जवानोँ कि नहीं
ज़िम्मेदारी तो हम सब कि है
बुनियादी ज़रूरतों कि ख़्वाहिश
जनता कि यह आस तो कब कि है

बढ़ौती और उन्नति में बड़ा फ़र्क है
इस तृष्णा से अपने आप को बचाना है
देश के आबादी को एक ज़रिया बनाना है
उमंग कि लहर को प्रगति के सैलाब में बदलना है

किसि के नक़ल की हमेँ कया ज़रुरत?
आओ अप्नी कल्पनाओं को एक नयी उड़ान दें
ख़ेल, कला और संस्कृति में
उत्कृष्टता कि एक अपनी पहचान दें

मनाने को स्वंतंत्रता एक "दिवस" मात्र नहीं
वह तो हर पल महसूस करने वाली एक जज़्बात, एक एहसास है
अतुल्य भारत तो है ही - आओ मिलके इसे बनाएँ
एक प्रचंड भारत; एक अखंड भारत

Peace of Mind – ‘The’ Key

Just as a needle in the haystack
Or the priceless treasure in the deep sea
I ended up losing my soul in this mayhem
Search I shall, to unlock it with the mystical key

Then came the dreaded dilemma
Should I first find my soul or look for ‘The’ key
Maybe some help, I could seek
But what if they just stand there and see

Even worse, what if I’m imposed by opinions
And feel obliged for assistance which was offered without a fee
Answers were hard to find
But the questions kept buzzing like a bee

As I dived deep to find my answers that were hidden
Like a tool in the most inaccessible corner or a kite perched atop the highest tree
Visually the sight was that of going down
No matter who saw it, she or he

Just as you can’t hide the shining jewels
Efforts of no matter what degree
Rise I shall, like the phoenix from the ashes – For I’ve now found my soul
While I continue my hunt for the transcendent key

Time to mull over!

This morning I woke up with a very sordid analogy. I cursed myself for being so cynical and distasteful.
But that thought was persistent and the more I pondered, the more I saw some sense in it.

The thought was, “Is today’s service industry a sophisticated emulation of slavery?”

Disturbing thought, isn’t it? The first few memories that came to my mind were a few quotes I’ve heard in my professional life. Sample these, “If you can go to the doctor, you can come to the office as well”.
“Even if you’re dying, come to the office and die”. “You can’t leave before doing these XYZ things”.
I’m pretty sure; many of you may have heard similar lines with some degrees of variation. The emotion or intent must have been the same. What’s worse? I’ve been guilty too.

The slaves were at least allowed to sleep to be tormented physically all over the next day. When was the last time we slept without worrying about the report that needs to be sent / high-profile presentation / month-end / year-end targets? I’m not even going anywhere near the blackberry culture.

When I started to pen this down, I thought maybe I should sugar coat this and present it as a satire on today’s work-life or induce dark humor. But the starkness stopped me from indulging in literary celebration of a naked fact staring at our faces.

Expecting productivity and accuracy for the salary paid is normal.
But in the quest of lowering the costs, are we pushing it too far?

Found this intriguing quote by Ayn Rand!


It certainly is food for thought.

Equilibrium

When reality is challenged by Imagination
We witness a bold display of optimism
When reality conquers imagination
We’re lurched in the abyss of pessimism

Polarized with two extreme ends of a spectrum
Events and emotions skirmish to strike a balance
Perennially stuck in between, LIFE an unbeatable Drum
Wisdom over knowledge will wade you through imbalance

Strange are our mind-games that boost confidence
When our thoughts defeat a person and not just ego in guise
Making it personal is not really pretense
Conquering negativity instead of the character always springs a surprise

Opportunities promenade around like loud wedding bands
The façade or disguise is really in our eyes
True ability is in our mind; not, as rumored, in our hands
Essential to focus on the goal, struggling on the path would simply be unwise

Imagination does not discriminate
It propels you for the leap
Excuse of practicality is plain unfortunate
Can't really wake up who pretends to sleep

Artificial Intelligence Found!

As science and robotic engineers fight out to create artificial intelligence, there are a few things we humans have learnt from robots and machines.

If we simply detach the emotions (ours and theirs) and record ONLY data points, what would happen?

Would our decision making be better and crisp? Emotions would be nice if it is used the way it is meant to be. We use “Templates” in 90% of our responses. Invariably our responses are limited to a few emoticons. A smiley, a Thumbs up, a Clap, a Kiss, a hug etc. as the situation demands. Sometimes, even that is botched up. Hey after all, to err is human.

What about the rest 10% of situations?

Just like the computers and the internet, we humans have to deal with lots and lots of information. Brain needs to process it and fetch out the most vital data-points when needed.

But darn, that seldom happens. We are usually over-ridden with emotions.

We for sure, as prescribed, most of the times, live in the present but alas, that is ONLY to REACT.

The way our brain (at least most I've seen, sometimes including mine) processes data is in the following manner:

1)      Event occurs (in front of our eyes OR on the other end of the ‘smart’-phone)

2)      We ‘hear’ the first few words and our brain goes on an over-drive to search the database for any such string of words that we first heard. We don’t listen.

3)      Brain comes up with a search result of a few words. Meanwhile, the other person is still talking and the event is still unfolding. Our eyes and ears are recording, but our brain is not catching up.

4)      The search results are associated with a few ‘characters’ and their certain set of ‘emotions’ along with the time-stamp of our ‘frame of mind’.

5)      Our mind already starts reacting and is busy completely ignoring the intent and the completeness of the message of the current deliverer.

6)      All this IF we are not distracted by our buzzing/vibrating electronic devices stitched to us.

This happens inside at a rapid pace at all times viz., while watching a debate on TV, during a pleasant conversation, when playing agony aunt, at work, going through counselling, etc.

Talk about free-flow of information, there is now a “How-To” guide for everything – right from changing baby diapers to methods of safe and silent odor-free farting. (Don’t go and search for it now).

The trigger for this blog however is a message I received about applying triple filter for all our conversations.

1)      Is it true and verified?

2)      Is it good about the subject?

3)      Is it useful to me?

While this triple-filter is just as effective as millions of other life-altering philosophies, the speed at which we are bombarded with such information, our brain is unable to analyze and triple-filter all of this. We are not manufactured by “Kent”, are we?

We simply choose to out-source that to someone else by “Forwarding”. Maybe it gives us a delusion of delegating that data-processing. The result could be another mind-numbing philosophy.

With all the fake concerns and robotic automated responses for almost all situations, our intelligence has after-all become “Artificial”.