F R I E N D S .

NOTE : The EXTRA DOTS can be avoided at times ;)

We are born naked and the first thing we receive from outer world is a SPANKING !!! Then we are taken over by THE ONE who loves us the most. As time passes by, we get to interact with the world and its people…a large no. of different kinds of people. We Hate some, we like some, we Don’t quite like some, and we don’t know millions.

Being at the same point of time and space, we interact with some people more than the million others. We develop likes and dislikes, love and hatred. There are people whom we simply HATE. There are people whom we like to avoid. There are people whom we dislike so much that we can’t like them. And then ….. there are people whom we like so much that we forget to dislike them. And to top it all, there are people whom we simply LOVE…from the bottom our heart. They form the core of our world. They become a part of our very existence. They control us. No one is allowed to enter the core. No one is allowed to hurt the core. Any kind of encroachment is intolerable.

Of course, there are fights, i-won’t-talk-to-you phases, i-hate-you phases…..but they only add colors to our world. (After all whom do we say “I Hate You”!!!) Giving someone a place in our heart is an irreversible process…..and it is firm and stable enough survive minor turbUlences. So the bottom-line is that you and I Love oUr worlD…..it is the happiest place to live in.

May GOD Treat All of us with Loving and beaUtiful FrienDs. AMEN!!!

BANGLA YATRA

With a lighter heart (well…lets ignore the weight of the heart for the time being) , I boarded the train back home …. KHARAGPUR>>ADRA>>ASANSOL PASSENGER. Inside a train with THREE towns (?) of BENGAL in its name, with lots and lots of PASSENGERS, I was ready to be BENGALIFIED. (BTW I am writing this with due respect to Bengalis, no offence meant…really). Slowly and gradually the train was gaining weight. I occupied a ‘single’ seat and entered DIGITAL FORTRESS. But I could not withstand the POWER of BENGAL as I was dragged out of the FORTRESS by a fight….a typical BANGLA FIGHT. After 15 minutes of High-Speed Fight ( in terms of number of words spoken per second), it stopped and I could understand nothing. And let me tell you…with a pseudo-Bengali Mother, a Bengali one-of-the-best-friends, 7 out of 10 friends in school being Bengali, 5 Bengali neighbors and 3 years in Kharagpur…I can understand BANGLA a bit…and NO…. I WAS NOT BROUGHT UP IN BENGAL !!!!

Anyway, I re-entered the FORTRESS and was wandering inside when the POWER of BENGAL pulled me out for the second time…..

“cha koto taka ?” ( how much does the tea cost?)..the boy sitting in front of me enquired

“Teen taka” ( 3 Rupees)

“Locaale TEEN taka !!” (3 rupees in local ?)

“Hain.. Teen taka.” (yes.. 3 rupees)

“Aaar…expresse?” (and in express?)

“Chaar taka” (4 rupees)

“Locaale TEEN taka aar expresse CHAAR taka !!!” (THREE Rs. in local and FOUR Rs. in express!!!)

“hain” (yes)

“Locaale to DU taka chhilo” ( it was 2 Rs earlier in local)

NO REPLY………

“Aachha ..diye daw” (okay..give one)

He accepted the cup of tea and had a sip…..thought something…..and asked the chaa-waala for another cup…...I wondered if he really felt hot…or…….

I re-entered the FORTRESS only to be dragged one more time.

“Aapni ki Bankura naamben?” (will u get down at Bankura?)

“Na”, I replied. (No)

The man talked to his friend standing beside him. Then his friend asked…

“Aapni ki Bankura naamben?” (will u get down at Bankura?)

“Na”, I was wondering who didn’t understand Bangla…me or the first guy !!!

I entered the FORTRESS yet again…and thankfully BENGAL decided against testing its POWER on me again.

I remained in the FORTESS thereafter, occasionally looking at the world outside. Two things knocked on me…..

1) A man offered his seat to a standing lady. I mean….how many of us offer our seats to a standing lady in a crowded train.

2) The people, children and grown-ups alike, in the fields passing by were waving the train a GOOD-BYE. I know this happens quite often…..and I love the innocence of this gesture.

Humanism isn’t extinct yet !!!