Two rupees

What is two rupees? Is it a single tissue to be used and the thrown keeping in mind the highest standards of hygiene? Is it the fancy pencil used by kids these days? What is two rupees worth?
Well , one samosa.
Today thanks to an abundance somewhere , kids at the helping hands were in for a treat . I was distributing them and then this little girl took her samosa. After some time, I noticed she wasn't eating hers. when I asked her why not ? She said she was going to take it home and share it with her papa.
I was in tears, imagine a little girl of kindergarten who was barely 6 herself , wanted to take back her treat to her father.
I have never thought about it , but the state and extent of poverty is frightening ,scary and is a reality. I am disturbed since evening wondering and wondering more. The little girl comes to class with her other brother , sisters , and they all sit together on one towel spread out so that the grass doesn't hurt them! Priya, looks like a boy and is tanned , ragamuffin who speaks fast .. but the love shines through.
she taught me something , love is precious and sharing is caring. A little poor girl who wants to share her samosa with her father made me cry and reminded me today to say I love you Dad.

Ps two rupees isn't much , but it sure buys a smile .

Do we have split personas'?

Do we live in a world, which is real or virtual? Why do we have two distinct personas’?

The world has increasingly become technology oriented. We need to log in check our accounts, mails, the news, the temperature, the financial markets, even to the extent a missed call from the maid which indicates another day of slogging in the kitchen in the heat (no replacement for the Indian bai, till now). The Japanese have been working on this secret project (imagine the billions) but this maid is generic to India only, no replacement.

The world has become dependent on this techno world for information and processing .We actually do everything, just about everything on the phone except for our basic ablutions. Love, sex drama they are just all available now downloaded for free or at any price.

According to philosophers, all human stems from perception rather than reason. Our brain uses this input, to interpret the world around us and create the experience of what we call a reality. But is what we perceive a reality? Or does the fact that the data passes through our mind and then we interpret.

So what happens when the virtual world takes over our daily lives, the networking connections? Face book has 500 million active users and growing, Twitter generates 140 character tweets all the time, trending, not trending, followers, the numbers; reducing all of us to tweeting like little birds. Have we all been blessed with the power of language, the language of the Gods and now chirping away like birds, avian-like .

The virtual world is a safe haven of imagination and creation away from real life world problems. As one user puts it, it’s a dopamine effect. We have become addicted to checking in, posting statuses,uploading the perfect photos, becoming photo snobs. Where has all the dirt, filth, grime, un-perfect pictures gone? Why do we run away from reality in a safe cozy environment so that we are temporarily shielded from excesses? Why do we have split personalities? A Dr Jekyll / Mr Hyde kind of split where on line we are on our best behavior , courteous, always saying and sounding right ; while in real life our beliefs are all opposite. Going by the support on feticide, environment issues online ( for example) we should have effectively solved these basic yet alarming issues. So are we all a generation of all talk but no action?

Yes , use the technology ( I do , too otherwise how would I bring this topic across) for its benefit but don’t cross the line . When was the last time you picked up a phone to say hello to a loved one rather than posting a one liner on the wall ? Coming to this wall , if it was  so easy to scale and bring down the walls which exist  between countries and borders causing war , strife mayhem ,technology would have served its purpose.

Ravneet Sangha.

love in the times of price rise!

And they say talk about love? Love builds bridges, makes the barriers , stops wars, makes us happy and all the sorrows are gone. Love that invincible emotion for which countless lovers died, as they couldn’t be parted from their beloveds. Every day horrific honor killings dot the newspapers where love was stronger than caste, creed. Love is that special feeling which is inexplicable, no dictionary no words can pen down and describe in exact words the euphoria and the ecstasy. Every saint, poet has tried to express the love, the anguish he feels for his loved one, but no one can put it down in precise words what this enigma is.

Love for a child, a lover all has different meanings. But, now we come to two different scenarios of love in the 21^st century. Love, these days in this day and age means, a status update, a BBM status declaring more for the world what their love is. It comes in three varieties, either you are in a relationship, or are single or its complicated. Does complicated mean that you love him or her but he or she loves someone else? Does this also mean that you are confused but you love her enough to warrant a mention but still keeping her in the loop? Does love also mean showering gifts more for society / for conspicuous show in the form of (sic) pink/red teddy bears? Love , in this day and age is blatant in the face and more for the world. One is in love with the idea of love rather than love, itself.

Love faces the toughest test of fire in the ‘paapi pet ka swaal’ times, just imagine trying to love in the times when rajmah, dal and the good old’ chai is so expensive that we all are British by default! Just a spot of tea is such a British phrase but the Indians have adopted it with prices hitting where it hurts. The rupee gets stretched like a rubber band and that too snaps with the plastic being inferior as always.

The famous Punjabi hospitality is in danger of extinction not from war, or invasion but just plain old price rise. How is one supposed to love and spread the good word of cheer and humor if you can’t serve the guests? The masalas, the condiment have been reduced to keeping in the spice rack just for display rather than actual use.The famous world wide use of ghee has been reduced to just the aroma being released more for show than for effect as buying ghee is beyond any one’s budget . Maa ka Pyaar is a thing for the past and just for Bollywood films as love can’t be justified anymore by feeding mountain loads . Price rise is the number ne reason which is leading to cut in family food budgets being slashed …..  

Love gets tested to its stretching point on an empty growling stomach. Imagine getting all amorous and romantic and the stomach starts growling and making funny noises when you get close holding hands in the moonlight edging closer for the perfect kiss and union!

Love in the times of price rise is tested by the spiraling costs of food, basic necessities, petrol, water electricity .The rupee does not stretch anymore.

God is also getting expensive. His love, affection blessings have also gone expensive in the times of price rise. An akhand path that was rs1100 a few years has spiraled to three times the price.

What will mere mortal love do when God and his love is available at a higher price?

I however, believe in the old adage taught in school, love conquers everything except price rise.

 Ravneet Sangha

SHE

She fights to be born. At every step even before she takes birth, she has to evade the obstacle course of sex- determination tests and the horrifying abortions and a termination which can even result in the death of a mother (oh, forgot, she is a she; expendable you see). This society will worship the woman in the Devi form (Goddess) but will kill, debase, rape, plunder sexually exploit sell woman in human form.

What makes a woman so vulnerable? Is it the fact, that she is an easy target in every form? Be it the draconian laws that exist where even divorce is not possible now or the fact that we have invisible laws that govern every moment of our lives. Do this, don’t do this, this is not done you are a girl. How many of you have grown up hearing this? Behave, girls are not supposed to do this, what will people say? Girls are a victim created by us.

We make them a victim of our minds as they are growing up so that they fit into our preconceived notions how they should behave. Why cannot we stop the men from behaving wrongly, obscenely? Why cannot an example be set where men should be eve-teased, pinched, whistled at? Why cannot men get their own medicine back, with acid thrown back on them?

Why do we as a collective nation extoll the virtues of every saint but forget that they were born from the womb of a woman? Why is she killed at the altar of science, in this way it was better to be in the dark ages; then we did not have ultra-sound machines to kill us?

She, a giver of life, nurturer of life, provider is killed, made an object of baser desires just because you can. This mindset, mentality of being bully because you can speak louder, have more muscles and you have been getting away has seeped into the prevailing subconscious of our society and men continue oppression.

When a boy and a girl are growing, chances are that a girl will be asked to curb herself more than a boy. Last week, on a social networking site, when the Anand marriage act said that divorce is not possible for a Sikh woman, a person’s comment that women have to surrender no matter what the situation or advancement in society or world affairs is.

All over the world, women are targeted for being too flashy, too daring with their clothes, too provocative, they are the ones who incite, instigate. Well, hello why can’t men control themselves? Do we ever comment on how they dress or why they are wearing the certain type of clothes?

Women are targeted for showing their ankles, too much skin , how bizarre is this? Has there been regression since the world started? Where is the freedom, or is it just an utopian word so coined to fool us women into believing that yes it exists.

The worst case scenario which exists . In India is the disparity when one wishes to adopt a baby boy is adopted @ Rs2,50,000 and a baby girl at Rs 50,000.

Why? Is our psyche so damaged? Is the society beyond help? Is the mindset so lithographed that we have become so closed?

Ravneet Sangha

12/5

We went from strength to strength . 84 and more , I wonder are we stuck to  the auspicious number which so figures in Indian religion. The number makes me wonder do we have providence working for us.Well , God yes, and so many benefactors who are contributing silently , behind the scenes. I was cynical at first thinking everyone would want names on a board or some kind of acknowledgement and I wondered how I was going to go about ; imagine my surprise that they all belong to the silent generation
This is a big thank you to all the sweets who amaze me with your strength and generosity . In fact , the support which we are getting from people is what makes us stronger for the future.
The best part was distributing clothes sent again by someone who just believes in the cause ; the happiness , the glint in the eyes when they all got something was priceless. Master card advert just sells an idea , well I saw it yesterday .
Priceless is the word.Come join us for an evening and you'll be sold.

What do Woman want?

 It 's pretty simple. We are not like rocket science that you need deciphering or trying to understand the wiring. There are no set  of instructions which are available in the black market or for that matter available to the select few men who keep the women in their lives happy.
Woman just want what you all want , respect , self-esteem , love and a bit of space. The molly coddling is a bit over rated , some may want it but as I always say it takes all kinds to make this world. just love us, respect us , give us our due , in fact with all the multi- tasking and roles we don we just need acknowledgement .
Men have their sights set high ( coz they are shortsighted u see) they do not women but women who they perceive will suit them . This tussle is what makes both sexes unhappy . Men think women should cater to their needs , at the drop of the hat and be available to their whims and fancies. Men want the ego boost at all times , it's interesting to see men complain or have an imaginary check list where they want their wives/ girlfriends to measure up ; forgetting what they are. If you want her to be looking beautiful, sexy attractive , umm how about measuring up to be the handsome devil ?
Just get real folks, woman want love which grows with time ,is realistic , how long is that sugary sweet dolled up version going to last? Excess of sugar also kills. I think keeping it simple is what matters in the long run.
There have been interesting posts on this , my friend just answered , woman want the moon , and heck yes! Why not ? She deserves that old man in the moon and more . Maybe thats why even God conspired to give us the bigger brighter moon tomorrow. I mean what can mere mortals do , if He intervenes ?
The plasticky , empty headed babe comes with an expiration date . And to answer that woman do not know what they also want , well try her and you would be surprised .
And about the smart guys out there in the world who think we can be deciphered with an app, umm ridiculous. Just imagine , the phone turning a yucky green when you get it right and a lousy red when you don't . You'd fry your phone faster than you can say Rumpelstiltskin . But who am I to argue with the smart man who finds himself included in the WO-MAN .