Dear Jaggi Sir, Anusha & All Pet Lovers in Sobha Palladian!

Folks,

I do not hate Dogs / Cats / Pets.

I was brought up in a big house in Dehra Dun where we had 3 mongrels and 2 cats that had adopted us.

And at different points in time we had many puppies and a litter of 4 kittens as well.

So, I am aware of the love and emotional bonding between them and us.

And I have gone thru  those heart-breaking times when we had to give away the young ones to friends and complete strangers.

And Anusha, like you and many other residents in Sobha Palladian, I have also travelled to many beautiful cities abroad.

And Jaggi Sir, like you I have also taken many early morning walks in gardens, central parks and run on jogging tacks around many condominiums.

And I have walked late evenings by canals, river streams and along seashores & beaches.

And I have seen many dogs on leash. And seen many of us Indians as well with their pets.

But I have never yet seen a big dog pee or a poop anywhere!!

But the small and little ones – yes, a few times.

And barring that exception, every pathway and every lawn was beautifully maintained. And not a patch of brown grass discoloured by a pet.

And I have seen most folks carry a long-handled poop collector that they quickly push behind their pets at the right times. Not the messy way people use their hand here in Sobha Palladian.

Once the poop is laid, the damage is done!

No matter how much of water or justification is given!!

And Jaggi Sir, I have visited friends in IMA campus, batch mates in Delhi’s Palam Vihar, Army Navy Residential complex in Delhi & Bangalore and been to Navy Nagar in Colaba Mumbai many times.

And I have seen the spotlessly clean campus, beautiful lawns, freshly painted brick linings all along the pathways.

And these are regular, plain and simple campus, like every other such establishments. No Super luxury tag on them.

And I have seen some huge and majestic looking dogs too, walked by orderlies and silver haired big brass.

But no trace of any pet mess anywhere!!

Jaggi Sir, Anusha & all the SP pet lovers,

If all Indians abroad and some Indians in India can create and maintain a poop free environment, why can’t we @ Sobha Palladian?
Is it too much to expect, or am I being unrealistic ??

(By the way, we Indians in Singapore are far more conscious of littering and  pet mess than the locals and Malays and other expats – whether they live in private condos or in HDB flats!!)

And Jaggi Sir, why cannot we also follow and instill the same army/defense forces discipline that you and a few more residents are so familiar with.

You do not compromise in the army. There is Zero tolerance!

So, all I am requesting is the same discipline and Zero Tolerance Zone here at Sobha Palladian.

So, can we follow and enforce

No walking on the lawns.

No walking of pets around the pathways unless they have poop collectors attached to their behind and Tails.   You can buy them @

(https://www.amazon.in/Collector-Piqapoo-Silicone-Pooper-Scooper/dp/B07FQRFBXD/ref=pd_sbs_199_t_0/258-2265274-2490327?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B07FQRFBXD&pd_rd_r=0b374f62-77ac-4691-ad11-179fb62a855a&pd_rd_w=Dxb85&pd_rd_wg=b161V&pf_rd_p=21bbdc4d-873b-48c5-a88a-70e643377944&pf_rd_r=0EG5CK8YG15ASAT43R19&psc=1&refRID=0EG5CK8YG15ASAT43R19)

 

And Folks,

We all have paid a bomb each for this super luxury apartment complex.

And I do not remember paying for dog poop and many such mess.

It has come free, along with some of us.

And we do not want these freebies please!!

Krish..

Trivia : In Dehra Dun, we called all our dogs "Tommy". Our big bushy Tabby cat was Rajesh and the aggressive brown & brick one was Mumu. Named after Rajesh Khanna & Mumtaz  (of Do Raaste fame).
And a scrawny small one we called Champavati (after the famous song O meri pran sajini Champavati  aaja)

Can we let an incident happen ??

Long long back, some 27 years ago, I managed the customer support for a midsized IT company. And we maintained hardware, software and network infrastructure for our large machines and workstations. And we assured our customers 98% up time in our support contracts.

And we had a nice polite word for any breakdowns, system crashes and other IT failures. We called them ‘Incidents’, Incidents of failures. So, a terminal or a workstation station breakdown was an incident. A huge disc crash was another incident. A campus wide network blackout was also an incident.

And I figured that the harmless sounding word  ‘incident’ was most appropriate. Most IT support folks live on high tension wires. So, no point in rattling their sensitive frayed nerves further with such alarmingly sounding words like a Crash or a Breakdown.

So, anything out of ordinary and disruptive meant an incident and a call got logged for a its proper addressal.

An let me tell you about another incident.

I stepped into a fresh laid dog poop (presumably by a very large dog) on the footpath, during one of my morning walks thru a posh locality in South Delhi. Not a great way to start a wonderful early summer day in Delhi.

And I had to abandon my favourite 2-year-old well-worn Nikes and walk home in my socks.

And coming back to Sobha Palladian..

No one can guarantee that the best of well-trained pets, will not poop or pee on our lawns & bushes.  And as some pet owners claim, the dogs are entitled to poop & pee on the lawns, just like children are equally entitled to scatter chocolate wrappers all around!!!

So, let’s wait for many more unsuspecting resident to walk into an uncleared poop here and let a few of our kids get infected with the toxic pee (we already have one case)

Do we want to have such frequent incidents  ??

A few days back my wife, Jayanthi overheard a bunch of excited young cycle riders near the exit gate ramp, “Lets us go down to the basement and start from there, OK ??”

No one can guarantee that an unlucky kid might bump into an equally unlucky elder.

So lets wait for such a 7 year old to speed test his new birthday bike and bang into a senior citizen and break a few bones for both parties .

Do we want to have such an incident ??

No one can deny that deep frying and serious cooking in front of Block 5 and inside Clubhouse pantry (which is not designed for such use) is a messy and dangerous affair.

So, let’s wait for one careless cook to topple a boiling vat of oil and pakories or something much worse.

Do we want to have such an incident ??

Most of us know that the Indane gas cylinder delivery person (Raju?) is rude, cheats and extorts money. Even Col Jagi Narula’s family was cheated once.

So, we can les this deliver person continue to extort us and pick up fights with security and get emboldened enough to seriously misbehave with one of our residents.

Do we really want to have such an incident ??

And do you really want me to continue further ?

About stray cats and placing potted plants on balcony ledges and so on ??

And it is a real credit to all SP residents to be so polite, understanding and silently suffer the    many many inconveniences like

litter thrown by residents from top floors,

overflowing balcony wash water,

pets disturbing people late nights and early mornings,

people smoking and throwing butts thru the chute or accidently toppling ashtrays on other’s gardens,

 see  patches of our lawns getting discoloured  by people taking shortcuts on the grass &  dog pee

and other lawn patches like opposite Block 5 get permanently damaged,

and  children shattering glass panes and kicking footballs recklessly,

and people not taking garbage segregation seriously and placing foul smell garbage in the corridors,

and  people encroaching common spaces (including me as per the MC notice),

and cycles piled up near stairways

and on and on I can go !!

And how long with the poor patient and extremely understanding good rule abiding residents bear such totally irresponsible and unacceptable behaviours ??

Very soon their patience will dry out

Temper will flare up

The fuse of politeness will blow out

And they will take action, pick up fights and turn our entre society into a fighting and squabbling grounds!

Yes. Very soon Whats App war of words will get face to face and then fist to fist !!

People, I have seen it happen!

 For 25 years I have lived in Delhi and Gurgaon colonies, small and large apartment complex.

I have see ugly scenes between pet owners and dog haters.

I have seen windowpanes getting shattered every other month, fights with kids, balls and bats getting confiscated and stumps been broken in retaliation.

I have seen sober, soft-spoken South Indian mamas and mamis engaged in bitter shouting matches with party loving Punjabis.

I have seen nasty arguments between young parents of noisy unruly kids (utterly spoilt brats to be precise) with belligerent and bad tempered 70-year-old couples.

Between smokers and non-smokers on their entitlement to smoke in parks.

Over blowing loud car horns late nights, car parking spaces, loud music/drinking /dancing ………

And more and more.

Fights every Sunday morning. Bitching and bickering all throughout the week.

Not pleasant at all.

And do we wish our community to degenerate to such an extent??

Wise people learn from other’s mistakes.

And the wiser ones?  They anticipate and take proactive action !!

Isn’t it time for all of us to take proactive action, some hard decisions, discipline ourselves & work towards building a  nice, safe and a beautiful society ?

So pl decide, Folks !!! 

We must draw up some very clear code of conduct and strict disciplinary guidelines and follow them religiously.

And for a starter, let’s stop walking and taking short cuts on the grass ?? Let’s  Use the nicely paved pathways all around.

And same for pets and  children above 6 years &  cycles/strolleys .

As the wise one said

Its time to tighten your belts, people..

Or you can risk losing your pants !!

Living in a beautiful, clean, safe and hygienic society is our entitlement!

And we have paid a bomb for it!!

Krish..

Pongal - O - Pongal

At Sobha Palladian, we celebrated Pongal for the third time in as many years.

The first time, Jan 2018, it was a tame affair. A few enthusiastic families got together, rustled up the ingredients, some firewood and a Ponga-Panai and we got going with a small group in attendance.

Year 2, Jan 2019, we were better organised. We made an elaborate kolam, had sugarcanes, a PA system and homemade vadais from Freeda & Raja.

This year, on 18 Jan 2020, the organizing team went Pro !!

We had the works!!

2 beautifully decorated Ponga Panais lined up on the cricket pitch.

5 elaborate kolams greeting all visitors to Sobha Palladian.

Ample firewood and a  huge stock of thick juicy sugarcanes.

Lots of flowers and decorations and lots of chairs for folks to sit down and relax.

An evening full of music and entertainment.

A senior citizen guest speaker – Sri Venkataraman

Bought out vadais and special homemade Venn Pongal from Nirmala

And a surprise event, URI ADI - a wonderful initiative by Krishna Kumar.

Uri Adi = Hit the JackPot

And Hang on!! 

We had the men folks making their debut in dancing – Puliattam!! And they were awesome.

And we also discovered that Raja dances as good as his better half, Freeda !!!

And we had a whopping 120 plus turnout.

From 3 PM onwards, the Jovial Grounds (aka. CA Site) started bustling with activity.

And the eager and enthusiastic Palladiian folks turned out in Flaming orange Sarees and spotless white veshtis.

And the children in their elaborate dance ensemble.

And I would not be surprised if next year these enthusiastic folks rustle up a few bulls for a Jallikattu at our grounds!!!

Jallikattu = Bull taming sport

As the folks came, they were greeted by a set of 5 beautiful Kolams and the entrance to Jovial Grounds decorated with the traditional banana fronds and Poo-Malai (string of flowers)

 Kolam!!

 Kolam is generally drawn in front of all houses in villages. Generally, it is of small size. However, on the day of Pongal, the streets of the villages are decorated with larger ones. The squarish kolam symbolizes / depicts life being intertwined with a lot of smaller problems. But there is always a solution and a way to come out of challenges.

The circular  kolam resembles a taambaalam (large plate) which holds different offerings to god in the form of fruits & flowers.

On the 1st day of Pongal, the sun god moves from Dakshinayanam (south) to Utrayanam (north) on his chariot. The Chariot kolam depicts this travel of the sun god. Hence that day’s kolam is called Uttrayanam Punya kalam.

The overflowing pot is the classic depiction of Pongal.  Sugarcane and Turmeric  adorn the two sides of this pot.

In villages, Pongal is celebrated for 8 days and the 8th day is called Mayileru and on that day, all the houses are adorned with Peacock kolam.

Preparing the Ponga Panai..

It’s a tradition to have a new pot, newly harvested rice and jaggery from newly harvested sugarcane for the Pongal. The design used as a decoration on the pot as this is dedicated to sun god

 Making Sarkarai (Sweet) Pongal!!!

First pour fresh milk into the pot and let it boil and overflow the pot.

This signifies the welcoming of a new year overflowing with riches and prosperity!

And then all the folks take turns to add all the ingredients and lend a hand to cook and stir the pot.

And a hundred pairs of eyes eagerly watching this cooking process.

And finally, when the Pongal is ready to be served piping hot, its absolutely lip smacking and finger licking. The organizers made sure we lick our fingers for they did not give us a spoon!

And then the evening event started.             

So, Saran welcomed the assembled gathering in chaste Tamil and picked up a few unsuspecting victims and asked them to translate a few words in Tamil.

Then our senior citizen Mr Venkataraman gave a wonderful in-depth discourse on the meaning & the spirit of Pongal and the history and tradition behind this event..

Followed by Anil Bajpai who shared a few points on Makara Sankranti as well.

1. Thai Pongal :  Dyuthi kicked off the celebrations with a short talk on Thai Pongal  and then played a popular Pongal folk song. 

 Thai Pongal is a multi-day Tamil harvest festival of South India, particularly in the Tamil community.  It is observed at the start of the month Thai according to Tamil solar calendar, and this is typically around January 14.

It is dedicated to the Hindu sun god, the Surya, and corresponds to Makara Sankranthi, the harvest festival under many regional names celebrated throughout India. 

The four days of the Pongal festival are called Bhogi Pongal, Surya/Perum Pongal, Maattu Pongal and Kanum Pongal.

Today we present Thai Pongal celebrations through traditional folk dances

 The dances are inspired by the elements of nature - Earth, Water, Fire, Wind, and Space, which is the foundation for    our sustenance.

2. Karagattam:   And as the young dancers assembled ready to perform, Sanjana’s clear voice rang out on the PA system. And she gave us a small primer on Karagattam and then played the song to which the young dancers performed so wonderfully.

 Karakattam or karakam is an ancient folk dance of Tamil Nadu performed in praise of the rain goddess Mariamman.  The performers balance a pot on their head. Traditionally, this dance is categorized into two types: Aatta Karakam symbolizes joy and happiness. It is mainly performed as entertainment.  Sakthi Karakam is performed only in temples as a spiritual offering. Karakkatam invokes rain through a classical Tamil dance. The most common song employs Amrithavarshini Ragam. Tamils believed that mother nature gives bountiful rain and protects the harvest.

 This is a dance inspired by Water!

3. Oyilattam :  Hello Riya, Can you tell us something about Oyilattam and play  us a song??

 Oyilattam meaning dance of grace is a folk dance with origins in the Madurai region of Tamil Nadu. It was traditionally a dance where a few men would stand in a row perform rhythmic steps to the musical accompaniment.  Typically, the musical accompaniment is the Thavil (drum)and the performers have coloured handkerchiefs tied to their fingers and wear ankle bells.

 Oyilattam is mainly performed at village festivals and themed based on great epics like Ramayana, Mahabharata and lord Muruga's history.

 This is a dance inspired by Wind!

4. Kummi :  And then our young DJ,  Preethika picked up the mic and announced Kummi Dance. And she put on  racy track!!

And the ladies glided in, dancing in rhythm to the lively beat of this song.

Kummi dance is an engaging folk dance performed by the villagers and tribal community of Tamil Nadu. The dance revolves around the daily lives of villagers. The origin of Kummi dance is dated back to the prehistoric times when no traces of any musical instrument were found. Since the dance has originated without accompaniment of any musical beats, the dancers clap their hands to keep time.  Performed usually by the womenfolk, Kummi dance is enacted in circular movement.  The performers are essentially agriculture centric and thrive on occupations like farming, harvest etc. which is reflected in the poem being sung and in the dance performances.

 Here we present to you Kummi and this dance is inspired by Space

              

5. Thappatam :  And this is what Mihika said about Thoppattam.

 Thappatam / Parai Attam is a special type of dance in Tamil culture in which folks beat parai and dance to its rhythm.  Parai  or Thappu is one of the oldest drums used in India, especially in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It consists of a circular wooden frame with one end closed with cow skin membrane and the other end open. Thappu is played with two sticks, one being larger and thinner than the other. It is performed in dances, funerals, temple festivals and sport events. In ancient days, this instrument was used as a communication mechanism to convey messages to people and alert against danger.

 

 This is a dance inspired by Fire!

6.  Puliyatam :  And finally, as the men folks tightened their veshti mudichu (waist knot),  Suhana got on air with an explanation on Puliattam the Tiger dance !!

And then she let loose a wild number.

 And that galvanised all the Pulis into action!!

 Puliyattam (means Tiger Dance) is an old folk-art dance of Tamil country. A highly exuberant and cultural festival, this dance form usually comprises a troupe of 6 performers aping the movements of the majestic, predatory tigers. Their bodies are painted by the painstaking efforts of local artists in vibrant yellow and black to resemble an exact replica of a tiger.  The paintings include the ferocious looking fangs and convincing headgear replete with ears, paws with claws and a long tail that conjures an accurate picture of the savage beast’s graceful movements.  The thunderous roars of drums beating wildly along with several local instruments reproduce the snarls of the regal predators and complete the picture.  Apart from the tiger, the dancers are often adorned in the beautiful spots of a leopard or the eerie dark shades of a black panther.

 This is a dance inspired by Earth!

And while people converged around the Pongal table, 

Uri Adi got started. And the children guided and lustily cheered the blindfolded participant on their way to the suspended Uri and make a strike.

Only one lucky Som got to crack the suspended pot and get away with the bounty!!

And finally the Palladian Music Club got into action with some nice songs!.

And On behalf of the Sobha Palladian community, my sincere thanks to all the organisers, the contributors, the participants and the attendees for making this event a very memorable occasion.

To Sri Venkataraman his wife Mrs. Rajalakshmi for gracing the occasion. Mrs Rajalakshmi inaugurated the Pongal making ceremony by lighting the fire under the first Ponga Panai.

To Nivedita and her famous dance troupe for putting up a fabulous performance. And to the brave Pulis (Tigers) – you guys are just awesome!!!

To KK & Nirmala, Saran & Leela, Raja & Freeda, Mohana & her entire Family, Venki & Ahila, Jovial, Vikas, and Jayashree & Sukanya.

And a special thanks to Gayatri for keeping a strict eye and monitoring the garbage disposal mechanism.  

And to the many other folks  who pitched in enthusiastically to make this event a wonderful evening for all of us.

And my personal thanks to Nivedita for providing me with subject matter expertise to write this blog and to Manoj for his brilliant photos.  
Manoj, Tussi Gr8 Ho !!!

Thank you, folks, once again for your encouragement & wonderful support!

Krish..

No Deep Frying Please !!!

Dear Folks,

Normally I do not comment or write on issues specifically related to people or families without their prior permission.

However, on the issue of “Deep frying and serious cooking inside SP Clubhouse pantry and in front of Block 5 entrance:”

I wish to come out strongly against allowing such a practice in future!!

For more than 2 years I have been seeing cooking being done outside Block 5 entrance, the pathway dirtied with patches of oil and black soot, inhaled  the strong and acrid smell of burnt oil and onions as I pass by, the pantry area left in shambles, garbage strewn all over  and the clubhouse left in a post war condition.

However, I must say things have improved somewhat, but a lot is left to be desired.  Even now, serious cooking and deep frying happens, oil spills all over, and many times the event organisers leave the pantry and clubhouse without cleaning them properly!

And I must acknowledge and appreciate the maturity and patience of all the residents in Block 5 for putting up with this mess. They politely bear this nuisance each time, raise their voices each time in whatsapp group and then calm down.  Only to restart when the next incident occurs.

WHY ??

If I was in Block 5 I would not just take a picture of a frying poori, post it in our group and be content with it!

I would first ask the cook to stop his work, pack up and go.

And I would request the organisers to be considerate.

And I might even lend my big car & driver to them to buy an alternative dish which is as tasty and maybe more nutritious.

And if this approach does not work, I might just pick up a big  fight , create a nuisance and ruin their party!!

So, my stance is clear.

Ban deep frying and serious cooking inside Clubhouse pantry and outside as well!!

No other option and no alternative compomise formula either !!

I am tired of reading hundreds of whatsapp messages. Meaningless conversation leading no where (with my apologies to all for this harsh comment). We have been going on for more than 2 years now.  And our MC  has been soft-pedalling on this issue for so long. Some of them offer polite suggestions – some for and some against. And then they wait for the emotions and the interest levels to die down.

Like the wise one once said,

When all is said and done,

More will be said than done!!

And when the next incident happens, we repeat this same process.

And after another 6 years and 3 more new MC teams down the road, we will still be posting pictures and discussing on this subject.

A strong and unambiguous stance in necessary. Great Countys and robust communities are run on strict and strongly implemented rules and clear boundaries.  Rules and decisions are not meant to please everyone

SO,

Ban Frying.

No more discussion.

And no GAIL gas in pantry!

And if we do not implement this and other similar difficult (non-palatable) measures now,  then  let’s not have a delusion that we are living in a super luxury apartment!.

We can happily let cooks fry pooris and pakoras openly!!

We can let our campus look and smell like parathey wali gali in Chandni Chowk.

We can happily allow our children to ride cycle & wave board dangerously all around and bang into senior citizens.

We can allow all the courier and delivery boys to litter our foyer and pathways and abandon empty cartons everywhere.

And of course, we can allow all our dogs to pee and poo all over our lawn and bushes!

And Personally?  I have no problem with that.

I will reset my mental bearings.

And it will be easy for me to accept the fact that I am no longer living in a Super luxury apartment complex.

But in one of those government housing colonies in Delhi’s RK Puram, or Sarojini Nagar.

Or in one of those Maharashtra housing board complexes in Andheri East or Antop Hill !!

And my only regret, I have paid a bomb!!

Krish..

Conversation with a Cab Driver !!

In my job, I used to travel frequently.

And long cab rides to and from airports were twice as frequent!

And I would strike up conversations with my driver many times. Sometimes these talks lasted for a very short period after which I would hook on my iPod or fire up my notebook to watch a couple of Ted Talks.

And sometimes they would get so engaging that the long 60 to 90 minutes ride would zip by before I reached my destination.

My cab rides would be mostly in a private cab hired by the office or one of those Yellow top ones that I hired at the taxi stand outside airports.

And now I must comment on the Yellow top Taxis.

Very Sad, Yellow Tops are facing extinction in India!!

Once upon a time a Taxi meant a Yellow top only !!

 And they would be found at every street corner in Mumbai, at dusty Taxi pool grounds in every mohalla in Delhi and in the side lanes of congested Calcutta roads.

Smart well-polished black Fiats / Premier Pasdminis with Yellow painted roof on the Mumbai roads. And the driver would drop his hand gear to second before rapidly pushing it up to first as he quickly accelerates in a jack rabbit dash the moment the signal switched to green.

And tired looking bulky Yellow top Ambassadors driven by Sikhs mostly on the Delhi roads.

And in Calcutta it was the all yellow battered Ambassadors, with paan chewing Bihari drivers! And you could clearly hear the grinding of the toothed wheels as he slowly engages his floor shift gear to first.

And their number plates were also black on Yellow!! Chk it out ?? 

Today the Ola and the Uber have driven them out of business.

And I still retain nostalgic memories of riding in such taxis all around these cities, talking about the road condition, the weather, the elections & local politics and sometimes on life and philosophy as well. And a few times I have even dared to probe into their personal life.

Two such conversation I recall and had documented them as well. 9 to 10 years back.

1.       Rich Girl will not obey our orders, Sir !!

So Ramesh, are you married?
No Sir,
What are you waiting for ??
Pause – no answer ..
Do you have any sisters ?
Yes Sir , one , she is married .
Good ! So it’s your turn next , no ??
Yes Sir , my parents are already looking .
Excellent Ramesh !! Ask them to find you a rich girl !!
No Sir!

Why? No rich girl ??
No Sir. Rich girl will not be good Sir .. We have experience Sir .
They are looking for a poor girl only , Sir .

Why Ramesh, what is wrong with rich girls?
Sir, Rich girl … we will want them to.. to obey ..
Rich girl will not obey our orders . Sir .

OK … and ??
Sir,  they will want money and want to be happy only .
Ramesh , is that not what all of us also want in life ??
Not that Sir . Poor girl will know lot more, she will know lot more house things. She will be nice because she will know sadness also Sir !!

And that is how the conversation progressed and finally totally erased the prospects of any rich girl marrying Ramesh , the taxi cab driver who picked me up at Bgl airport and dropped me at home..

2.  My son wants to do CA, Sir!!

A Conversation in Hindi – transcribed in English .
I settled down in the front seat, fastened my seat belt and observed the Swift cab driver . After some time …
What is your name?
Ramkrishn sir.
Very Nice name ! ( Ramkrishn is a combination of Sri Ramchandra and Sri Krishna , two of the most popular Hindu deities in India )
Thank you sir.

We drove for some time while the ladies in the back seat kept chatting away ..
So where have you come from ?
UP sir – Banda
Banda ??
Small village behind Jhansi sir .
More silence as he expertly negotiated some heavy & unruly traffic near a signal .
And why did you come to Delhi ?
After a subdued, soft laugh .. sir, everyone comes to Delhi .
Oh ?
Better living & good children education, Sir

 So, how many kids do you have ?
2 sir. Elder boy in 12th std and a girl.
Wow ! You do not look that old Ramkrishn !
Thank you sir. A soft laugh once more …
In villages we get married much earlier sir.

True ! In my assessment Ramkrishn would not be a day older than 35 years – and already has a son 18 years old . So he must have married at 16 ?

and his wife much younger ??
Not surprising at all ! Pregnant girls @ 13-14 ; young mothers @ 14-15 and a second kid at 16 years are not uncommon sight in Indian villages !!
Ban on child marriages ?? Still some way to go !!

And we continue ..
12th std ?? very crucial ! So what does want to become – engineer, computer engineer ??
No sir – my son wants to do CA .( a very uncommon career aspiration for a young boy in Gurgaon! )
That’s great , Ramkrishn !! By why not Computers?

No Sir, my son does not want to do IT Job Sir. Very bad. Late night work. And the boys and girls there are not good, Sir. And drugs Sir. He will get spoit.

Obviously, he meant the young teenage population working in the Call centres in Gurgaon.

And when these kids start earning good money so early in life, some do get spoit.

And because of a few random incidents his impressions of those hard-working kids has become totally negative. Real Sad.

And your daughter – encourage her to study more than your son , OK ??
Yes sir .
And soon after, I get off from the cab …
Drive safe and slow Ramkrishn !
And the ladies in the back seat pause their chatting and wish me
Bye ! Bye !! Bye !!!
Have a safe trip back !
Sure, OK , Good Night !!

And I rush off to join the long Q at the New Delhi Terminal 3 airport entrance.

Krish

Die Rich – An essay on the Middle class Indian Psyche!!

Some 30 years ago..

I had landed at Hyderabad airport after a late-night flight from Delhi.

And I was on my way to my hotel in a local taxi.

And I got along talking to the old driver wearing a taqiyah (muslim cap) and his beard dyed brick red with henna.

Along the way he turned philosophical and started reciting some Sufi couplets in Urdu.

And then he asked me a profound question, “Janaab, do you know what is the universal jhooth?’. Jhooth = Lie.

And he answered, It is life itself!!

It is the belief that you will wake up alive tomorrow! Everyone who goes to sleep tonight believes that he will be alive tomorrow. Is that not a big lie??

That is an interesting perspective, I agreed.

And Janaab, what is the ultimate truth??

And I knew the answer now.

It is Death!!

Han Janaab, we all will experience the truth when we die and meet with Allah! He pronounced.

And as I recounted this conversation, I thought of writing about death.

And what better than dying rich? After accumulating so much wealth and fortune we hardly get enough time (and energy and good health) to enjoy them fully as we speed towards our expiry date.

And sadly, the Lord does not provide us any baggage allowance on our final flight..

and then i wrote this piece ..

If you are a middle class Indian, chances are high that you will die a rich/wealthy man/woman.

And if you are rich already , then its no brainer. And if you are sane and sensible  as well, then you will die much richer & more wealthy!!

If you are posted in plum government job, or if you are a self proclaimed Bhagavan,  then you will die as a colossally rich person (barring exceptions).

And if by chance you become a successful politician, then again, barring a few exceptions, you are bound to die obscenely & colossally rich!!

And in varying amounts you will have a number of fixed deposits, residential falts, houses, plots of land, shares, some commercial establishments as well. And a couple of lockers scattered over a few major banks. And a lot of gold in various forms and shapes . And you would also have sensibly invested a substantial amount in your children’s education.

You may even have secret enclosures in your house(s), false bottoms/hidden receptacles under your flooring/roof, hollows in your tiled bathroom walls and many many other spaces that would really challenge a master treasure hunter without that elusive and secret map on a parchment paper.

And some of you would leave behind a Swiss bank account &  locker where you would have stashed huge currency and valuables. And whose secret password you probably will not share with anyone except with St. Peters at the pearly gates,  in exchange for a platinum club membership in the heavens above.

Yes, we Indians save money like crazy. We squirrel away money right from the day we start putting small coins into our small clay  gullaks (piggy Banks) when we are children, to recurring deposits when we start earning and then graduate to SIPs (systematic investment plans) and other investments, chit funds, money multiplier schemes, long term growth funds, pension funds  and reinvestment and more.

And we save more and more and we start hoarding and hoarding, be it cash or property or pure gold!!!

Now I focus on the middle class Indian. The lower middle class, the middle middle and the upper middle class folks. The wage earners, working in Govt offices, public and private companies and PSUs the professionals and the first generation entrepreneurs.

And those poor folks who got rich the conventional and hard way. I sincerely pity them, and most times really wonder how naive & stupid they can be.. especially my generation folks who have not seen much money in their childhood and have always been brought up under strict austerity measures.

Be Frugal.  Waste Not, Want Not was our dictum drilled into our heads.

We have worked endless hours sacrificing our health and our families. And we have been thrifty, consuming less and saving more to see our savings grow painfully slowly.  And each year consistently we add an incremental amount to this growing kitty and feel happy at our results.

Now, while the world situation and modern attitudes have changed , our mind set has not changed much.

I would not buy that premium top of the line model car displayed in the showroom, but settle for the next lower model. A few fancy lamps and wood paneled interiors is not worth the additional amount , I will rationalize.

I would prefer taking a Volvo bus or an auto rather than a taxi.

And I  diligently keep track of all my monthly expenses and tally them each year to check if my total expenses is well within my FD and mutual fund returns. And not only that, I also recalculate and ponder if  this earnings amount , which is gradually getting lesser each year, will be be sufficient in the future. To cover the yearly inflation and rise in the cost of living 5 years from now.

And I start tightening my belt from now itself to prepare for this uncertain future . Sad!

Really Sad.

And yes, I feel sad for folks like me and my earlier generations. We are constantly afraid of the future. Of the fact that one day we might run out of money. We never feel financially secure, no matter how much we have in our savings. And we tighten our purse strings (and belt) every time  a big scam happens, a huge company goes bust and when RBI reduces the repo rate by 50 basis points. And also when the Sobha Palladian MC announces the revised maintenance charges that they propose o collect monthly. And so on.

But I guess most of this misery and apprehension is self inflicted! Chances are that none of us will ever die of hunger, not for want of anything essential.  But that’s no consolation.

 And we will continue to live a frugal life not daring to erode even a rupee of our invested capital. And the many financial advisers have also learned to play this game well. – advising  such folks into investing in capital protection investment plan  or plans where you continue to invest for 5 or 10 years and then you get a meager pension each month while they still hold on to your bloated capital.

So that you can die happily (I am not sure)  but definitely very rich!!

And sadder still are those elderly couple who live in old mansions (that could be worth tens of Crores) struggling each day for basic comforts. Their children having migrated abroad and have  almost abandoned them in their old age.  A phone call once in two weeks in not a great solace. And while they continue to live bereft of any  good care, joy or happiness, they will die being a Karodpati!! 

Hasn't it ever occurred to them that they can sell off their house and check into any of the best retirement homes? 

Like some of my own relatives. Still hanging on to their huge house  and substantial bank deposits, but living in one part of their dilapidated house. While their estranged children wait patiently for them to die (very rich of course) so they can divide up the inheritance !

We Indians, except for a few folks ( including a sizable ones in Punjab) have not  yet learned to live life King size.

For example,

How many rich Indians own a 40 foot Schooner or a powered sail boat.  

Or how many take a sabbatical and travel year long across the world?

And forget all that .

How many retired rich folks really plan  to spend all their savings before they meet their maker.

Very few.

And I am still in the look out for a financial wizard who can show me a plan that ensures that we ( my wife and me)  completely deplete all our entire savings and splurge all the amount before we call it a day!

And wouldn't it be fun to die being absolutely broke?

And be able to quote Alexander’s last words, “When you bury my body….keep my hands outside so that world knows that a person who won the whole world had nothing in his hands while dying..” 

And add my two bits to it ..

 ‘And absolutely nothing to leave behind either’!!

Krish..