Rock On - a few thoughts...

I was watching 'Rock On' for the nth time and still enjoyed it like I did the 1st time. But this time around the movie made me ponder over certain things. Everyone has a past - a life that they lived; some enjoyed it some didn't. People often want to go back to the old times especially the good old times - the times when they were happy, the times when they were surrounded by their loved ones, the times when there were no worries, the times when all they could do was enjoy. Again there are people who want to run away from their past; people who are glad that it is all over; people who had hard times and are now out of it.

While watching the movie when Sakshi delves into Adi's past I was asking myself "Why the hell does she need to do this?" (I mean they had everything they needed). But then Sakshi goes on to say that she wants him to be happy. It all seemed meaningless at that time for Adi as he was leading the life he had chosen and was pretty successful. But then when Adi actually meets his old friends from 'Magic' he seems so much at ease with himself and his friends and they all mix so well that it seemed nothing had ever happened between them. And they were all happy. And this made the whole effort taken by Sakshi worthwhile.

In their lives - barring a few - most people would want to go back to the good old times. Its something people always wanted to do and so it comes to them easily. The moment a football touches the feet, of someone who used to play football, the tricks come back automatically. So is the case with other sports like TT, carrom, badminton etc. How easy it is to go to a old friends home after a very long time and act as if u have always been there, ask aunty for a cup of tea, walk to the fridge and take out a bottle of water. Its so convenient that when three friends get together at someone's place the usual activity (that used to happen when they were in college) takes place without the need for asking. How the lyrics fall in place when one hears an old song which one hadn't heard for long but now one starts humming.

There are lot of such things which brings up the question - why do people move on when they want to hold on longer at the the place they are? It works in different ways. In the movie Adi became successful and so did KD but they let go their passion for music. But Adi never made peace with his past and was unhappy while KD was happy as he had made peace with the past. Similarly Joe and Rob continued their passion and both were not that successful but were happy that they could continue doing what they wanted. But apart from this Joe was overall unhappy while Rob was happy. So what is it that one should do? The answer would be a personal choice. Like in the movie all four of them made a choice and chose to live by their choice until fate brought them back together which made everyone happy. Well life is not a movie...

Being in the situation - An Encounter

Things look so different when you are actually in the situation. This may sound cliche but it is true. I am not saying this because I have been through something similar (I must admit that I have been in one situation recently) but because there are times when you just can't act the practical (read suggested) way. Its not that you don't want to do it; its just that you can't do it - can't here doesn't mean that you actually can't do it but it means you don't feel like doing it. (Quite confusing isn't it - but I believe you have understood :P)

Some scenarios could be leading a normal life after a break-up (this isn't the reason I am writing this blog ;)), returning to football field after having broken your leg while playing football, saying no to something a beautiful girl asks you to do when you wouldn't have done it for anyone else, getting up early for some workout, spending time learning something on a holiday, etc.
All of the above are some scenarios when you don't do what you should ideally do but give in to the situation which - if you ask me - is perfectly fine as long as you don't regret doing it later. The reason I say this is that there are times when people have to decide; and at these times they either chose to do something or not to do them. The situations and choices keep coming - many a times people don't even realize that they had an option to chose as they just go through the flow, which is fine I guess.

So what brings me here to write this blog? It happens to be an ENCOUNTER. Encounter not in the real meaning but an encounter here means meeting your prospective bride/groom :). The term is not coined by me but is unanimously used in my friend circle. And yes I happened to have an encounter about a month back.
Now I am not going to talk about the details of the encounter but I will talk about something else. A lot of my friends are going through this phase and I am helping them find their right partner. Guiding them hasn't been that difficult as I always thought it is not that difficult to judge if he/she is the right person. In fact I had planned the way mine would go if any happened. But when the time actually came all my plans were left wanting; not because they were not planned well but because when I was in that situation I was caught in a hurricane of thoughts. And the thoughts revolved around things that I hadn't deemed that important earlier but at that moment it all took top priority.
Being in the situation really made the things look different. I knew this but never thought it could be so different... and that too with me. But I guess I was wrong and this encounter made me realize this.

What is it with night?......and with Mornings?

I have observed this happen many a times but haven't been able to figure out why this happens. There's got to be some reason but I haven't been able to reason it out.

Why is it that at night your mind is full of different thoughts but in the morning almost all are gone? At night your mind goes through all the incidents of the day; even to days before today - in fact sometimes way back. You remember all the things you always wanted to do, the things you forgot to do and things you could have done better. Your mind starts making sense from un-attached events and tries to form a pattern; as if it was a movie. You feel as if everything was planned and you are just acting it out; which incidentally might be true.

So what all does the mind go through? There's nothing specific that the mind goes through but its a host of a hell lot of things depending upon your mood and how the day has gone.
For instance if you had a bad day at office then your mind goes through the entire sequence of events step by step. It analyzes all the events that had occurred, tries to find a pattern in it and also tries to find how differently things could have been done.
If you had a fight with a friend you again start going through the entire sequence and do an analysis of the entire thing. You tend to criticize yourself or your friend depending upon how your nature is. You also have a decision to make as to whether you should start talking to him or if you should wait for your friend to take the first step. By this time you have an entire list of pros & cons for both sides.

Also at night you are all geared up to formulate plans for the next days. You are all gung-ho to start something new or to start doing things you always wanted to do but never started doing; sometimes you realize your mistakes and make it a point to apologize to certain people; sometime you remember old friends and decide to catch up with them the next day; so on and so forth.
But come morning and everything you planned is gone. You had decided to wake up early and exercise but alas you wake up late. You had decided to call your friends but now you decide against it or postpone it. You had decided to jot down a plan for you but now you don't feel like doing that - in fact you can't even remember the things you had planned.

I wonder at times what is it that a night does to you - its somehow always better to speak to your friends/dear ones; its almost always much more fun to have night-out with friends than any other time; its easier for most people to study at night; its makes it better when you watch movies at night; and so on.
It seems that nights give you the desire or maybe the experience to do things right - it could be related to the end of a journey when you experience the things that went wrong and/or could have been done in a better way. And similarly a morning is like a start of the journey where you think of taking things as they come. Or maybe you feel its just the start and you will have plenty of time to correct things if they go wrong.

Random thoughts ...

If intent and action are not in sync which one to follow?

If you are upset and not trying to hide your feelings and people in front of you don't notice should you mind?

When you are upset and not trying to hide it and your friends can't make out that your mood is not good should you react?
If your friends do make out finally but after quite some time should you be happy that they could make out or should you be upset that it took them so long?

You have a news and according to you it is a bad news; but it is not related to you but related to a friend - why does your mood get affected by it?

When your friend is upset and you try to find out how they are, they get further upset thinking you are doing so because they are upset and feel that you should leave them alone; while you are doing that because you care. What do you do then and how do you react?

Little moments in life

Life often gives little moments. It is up to an individual whether he/she wants to enjoy it or let it pass by. The moments might not seem special and one might ignore it; but here one forgets that no moment is special in itself - its the actions or events that make it special.

For instance consider a few examples:

There's a official party going on. There is large gathering as these kind of parties are few and far between. It is for the duration of 1-2 hours. One has the option of going there or opting not to go and carry on with one's daily chores. Many assume the party to be boring and don't go. Some attend the party but find it dull and find it a wastage of time. There are a few who participate in it and make full use of the time. Which category do you fall? Majority of people fall under the 1st two categories.

One is travelling in a bus or metro. He/She is standing. He/She is just a couple of stops from his/her destination. A seat gets empty as some passenger sitting there gets down. Most of the people would keep standing thinking what's the benefit of sitting for 2 stops. Very few people would actually go and sit for the small duration.

There's a get-together of old friends. Some would not attend it thinking it would be boring. Others attend that. Of those who attend some are just passive who later think it was a wastage of time. The rest do the talking and try to make the most of it.


These were just a few examples; there are many such instances. What I am trying to say here is that people are forgetting to enjoy the moments. They are so caught up in their daily routine that even when they have the chance to enjoy they let it pass by waiting for the big opportunity which rarely comes. The message here is 'Make the most of every opportunity you get and enjoy even when the world is thinking what to do'

Suddenly the world has turned busy

Suddenly the world has turned busy. Or else how have I gone alone? I mean the second weekend running I am at home with none of my friends available. It wasn't like this nor was it meant to be like this. I mean with my mobile full of nos I can't find a no to dial. Oh that doesn't mean their nos are not working; its just that they are all busy. And I can't blame them for being busy as they can't help it. So here I am sitting in front of the computer, on a Saturday afternoon, writing this blog.
Let's look at a few things people are busy with these days -
Marriage is one major factor. Some are married so have to be at home. Some whose marriage are fixed are busy shopping and doing other things including spending a lot of time on phone. Others who are looking for partners, well their weekends are busy meeting prospective partners.
Office is another major reason keeping people busy. Either they have working weeknds - at least one day. Otherwise they are so exhausted with working overtime on weekdays that they can't think of anything but sleep & rest on weekends.
Guests/Relatives have become another major factor. Unplanned visits and occasions are keeping some people busy which they have to attend to and thus are busy.
Other reasons for people being busy is their weekend chores - washing clothes and cleaning for bachelors staying away from home, going home for people whose native place is nearby and household work for people living with family. Weekend courses are another thing that's keeping some people busy (it kept me busy for 2 years when I did my MBA)

These things had always been part but I always found someone :). I guess my luck has run out for once. Its been difficult finding people lately. But I guess what it is doing is allowing me to spend time with me - something which people hardly get time to do. I can indulge in things I have been wanting to do but don't find much time. For instance watching a movie at home with no disturbance, eating my favourite dishes, writing blogs, playing games and planning.
Wow! There are lots of stuff to do and I have been complaining. I guess this sums up how our life goes - "We wait all our life waiting for the right opportunities but often when they come we don't realize that and then we keep waiting". On second thoughts I think I will keep this thought aside and continue wondering what I should do now :)

Watching a movie alone

I am alone at home these days (starting yesterday and for some 10 days). Mom, dad and sister have gone out. Yesterday I decided to go out for lunch. I wanted some company so I started calling my friends to see if anyone could come down. I called some 5-6 friends one after the other but everyone was busy in something or the other and so I was all alone. I decided to go to Shipra Mall and have lunch. I was also thinking about watching a movie. But watching a movie alone was something I had never done before.
I reached Shipra Mall and went to KFC for lunch. After finishing the lunch I thought let me check the show timings. It was 1 PM and there was a show for 'Ishqiya' at 1:45 PM. I had nothing else to do so I bought the ticket. It was 45 mins to go before the movie started, so I started roaming around aimlessly. Since I had no one for company I started observing people. Groups of boys and girls entering and exiting shops, couples moving slowly holding hands, guys trying to get girl's attention, parents playing around with their kids, people waiting for their friends, sign of 'Sale' on almost every shop and many more things.
The entry to the movie area started and I went in. Still 30 mins for the movie to start. I now had a very limited area to roam around. And more and more people started coming in. There were couples lost in themselves, small groups laughing around, some families as well. The only person alone there was me. It was the getting very difficult to pass time. Of course there were a few beautiful girls around but they all had partners :P. Finally the movie theatre opened and people started getting in and taking their seats. I had a decent seat and since I had no one to talk to I hoped the movie is good. The movie was okay - no story as such but brilliant acting and screenplay. Moreover it had Nasiruddin Shah and Vidya Balan - 2 of my favourite actors.

It was my first experience of watching a movie alone. I had never ever imagined me watching a movie alone; but as I had nothing else to do and no company I decided to give it a try. Watching the movie alone is not bad but to pass the time between buying a ticket and the starting of the movie is very difficult, rather boring. Will I do it again? Like I say "Never say never"