Reaching There

If you have ever spent hours to prepare a dish you'll immediately know what I am going to talk about next. It's been a while since I cooked but I do remember spending hours trying to perfect a dish and eventually just adding a bit more of 'that' to get 'that' taste (feel free to fill in for the that'). The 'that' that comes to the rescue could be a bit more salt or it could be one of those exquisite Indian spices. Regardless the search for personal perfection is a continuous and tough job. A lot of times people have ended up with bitterness that follows a failure. Some claimed to have found perfection others have just faked it. In any case those who have continued to earnestly pursue the path have lived fulfilling and wonderful lives. For starters, this article is not about food. Someone in a more philosophical mood than I am currently in, compared life to wandering around in darkness. A rather gloomy thought to consider lost under the dar...

Complicated, clustered, burdened, lost. These and many more similar words fly around in our lives almost everyday. These words somehow manage to touch each and every aspect of our lives; affecting personal as well as professional fronts. The constancy with which these "emotions" appear in our lives is sometimes outright scary. However there are certain counteroffensive measures that can be used every time these emotions threaten to destroy the peace of our minds. Humility Perhaps the most underrated and overstated of emotion, which a human being can possess. In almost all religions humility is considered as a virtue. In fact in Hinduism it is considered as the foremost trait of a saint. What is so powerful about this emotion that even Gods' are attracted to it? Humility is submission to the fact that I am flawed. This acknowledgement immediately punctures the balloon called "ego". The second that balloon gets deflated I have relieved a great burden from myse...

I was wondering about my doubts and prejudices I have at this stage of life. It is in human trait to suffer from these emotions. But history has given enough evidence to form a case when humans have risen beyond their flaws I recently saw the movie "Invictus". It is based on the true events that lead to South African national rugby team, the Springboks, winning the 1995 rugby world cup. The movie shows how two persons from completely different backgrounds rose above their beliefs and prejudices to unite a country broken by apartheid. These were South African President Mr. Nelson Mandela and the captain of the South African rugby team Francois Pienaar.  Clint Eastwood directed this movie. It stars Morgan Freeman as Nelson Mandela and Matt Damon as Francois Pienaar. The movie is thought provoking and inspires you to dream big. It in its' limited time depicts the segregation created by decades of apartheid in South Africa. However I was captivated by the song played ...

For most of us the best days of our life were the childhood days. Everything was fresh and exciting. A piece of paper to a toy gave us a world of endless possibilities. Each and every moment we were ready to learn new things. Almost nothing felt boring. Lack of ideas or no time for play was boring! God! Everything felt like a source of endless possibilities. Success, failures, disappointments, anger, selfishness and other emotions just felt like a phase that would bring something and then go. Fast forward twenty odd years ahead, you're in your twenties nearing thirties (or any age you are in). Life has become a drab and you are pushing your way through it. A piece of paper is just a piece of garbage. A toy, I can't even understand now why I played with those "things"! The moments of learning have given way to a seemingly endless race of fighting for the next level of success. The excitement of finding something new in small things has faded away and financial wants...

I went inside the theater to watch Rajinikanth's Endhiran ("Robot") in Tamil with no expectations. And I came out after almost three hours of extravaganza comprising of breathtaking action, loud but good music, hyper excited audience and having no idea what most of the dialogues meant (sadly I don't understand Tamil)! But I do feel I know now why Rajinikanth is considered the God of "Indian" cinema; more than twenty four hours later. But this new found admiration for the man is more to do with his off screen personality rather than his onscreen panache. A little bit of background of "The Man" as millions of people across southern India and world would describe him. According to online magazine Slate, he is the second highest paid Asian movie star after Jackie Chan. During his 61 years of earthly life he has starred in more than 150 movies. And what the magazine says next is probably the most funniest as well as dandiest words anyone can ever use ...