To Love, With Love!

She was there, he was here.

They knew they could not become a pair.

Yet, their hearts, could never stop loving any less.

Being without each other, they were a complete mess.

They kept fulfilling their duties, gave everything their blood and sweat.

But away from one another, though their hearts cried, only the eyes looked wet.

They always knew that loving each other did not seem, as per analysis, like a deal which would give gain.

But for them, continuing to love and do everything for their beloved, was worth taking up life’s every pain.

They learned that love never snatches, just happens, and stays, even if you deny or make a fuss.

How we treat it, honor it, fulfill it, and live for it, fail for it, doing all we can for our love – is upto us.

They kept loving each other, without thinking of looking like selfish, stupid or clever.

All they knew was, that this love was Genuine, Irresistible and Unconditional, Forever.

On tolerating intolerance

The last few days and weeks have been a sad commentary on seeing a nation getting divided.

Like it or not, want it or not, only two words have dominated all the headlines of late:
असहिष्णुता and Intolerance

You know there is something seriously amiss if, despite what's going on with our (and the global) economy, the Paris attacks, and umpteen other far more important things, we seem to be hellbent on fighting about where there is tolerance or not, in our country.

The only thing we seem to be doing, is to make intolerant attacks against each other - making it an us vs, them ugly spat fest, where we simply can't tolerate any remark against our side!
If we can leave aside and forget our respective political affiliations or camps for a moment, what does that do or say about us as a nation?

Irrespective of whether one likes it or not, we are today at a state where we, as citizens of a nation that prides on its inclusiveness, are taking positions on which side of the fence they are.
I mean, what are we achieving by doing so?

I understand politicians jumping over each other to make a killing and score points for themselves.
Unfortunately, practically speaking, why should one expect any different or any better from them?

However, what bemoans us?
We, the people of India?!
What stops us from being impartial and objective, at least when it comes to national interest?
Are we doing a good job of uniting the country in our own little way by doing (or not doing) whatever we can or are our actions or inactions creating fissures, negativity and divisiveness within people, within the nation?

I am sorry.
I am sorry I cannot relate to either of the two positions:

Not the Hindustan Hindus ka hi hai nor the India ab (hi) intolerant ho gaya hai!

I don't agree that those who think India has become intolerant need to be thrown out to Pakistan, nor do I believe that intolerance has come to be only now.

Doesn't the fact that people are talking about intolerance, debating it, protesting against the perceived lack of it, convey something in itself?!

Also, if India is truly as tolerant as it always has been, why are we getting so touchy about each other's camps?
Are you pro-Kejriwal or pro-Modi?
Are you "sickular" or "communal"?

We might have a preference or bias towards any of them, but how better are we than those who are milking people like us, to talk and fight amongst ourselves?
Look at your social media feed today.
Look at any lunch/coffee table discussion.
Look at any news channel's coverage.

Aren't we running each other down too much for too little?
Isn't it time that we stopped such divisive talk and talked meaningful stuff?

Today is 26/11.
If there is anything I would like all Indians to not tolerate, it is our unfortunate experience(s) of terrorism.
If there is anything we should not tolerate, it is inaction against those who are still unaccounted for, even 7 years after that horrific day.
If there is anything we should not tolerate, it rather be something we all stand for, it rather be something that units us, and not divides us.

For everything else, there must be tolerance and mutual respect for every opinion and for every point of view, if it already isn't there, that is.
If we have to consider, then let's consider objectively and dispassionately.

Let us choose to not tolerate anything other than:
No appeasement of ANY religion, no pandering to the vote bank of core/extremist Hindu or core/extremist Muslims, not making selective references to intolerance, keeping the same benchmarks, remembering the reactions and sense of outrage from the media, the intellectuals, and the public at large, during all time periods and not just after May 2014.

And once we consider all the opinions and still find some people at a divergent opinion, on the diametrically opposite side of whatever our stand/view/conviction may be, let us learn to co-exist peacefully, happily, and lovingly.
Without any hatred or ill-will while also ensuring its merits are made known, instead of it being misinterpreted as appeasement or weakness.

It seems like a funny irony (almost like an oxymoron) to say so in the same breath, but the only thing we should not tolerate, is intolerance itself.

God and the Devil

To my family (my parents, my in-laws, brother's family, in-laws' family), and of course, to Priyanka and Pranav Dhaundiyal :

The entire credit for this post goes to my son, Pranav - who wants me to write about God and The Devil.

I have often wondered, what defines a good human being.
We keep listening, reading, learning about becoming good, doing good, etc.
But what exactly does all this mean?

What constitutes the definition of a good person when we have both God and Devil, all within us?


There have been so many occasions when I have been rude to my family members. There have been so many occasions when I have hurt others.

There have been times when I have felt, appreciated, and given love. There have also been times when I have been happy about my conduct my heart, and my belief system.

Yes, quite simply, a good person is someone who, while conquering his inner demons, devils and weaknesses, also champions every effort channelizing on his positive, selfless, love-filled side.

True, life is full of challenges and temptations presented by the devils.
However, opportunities to be selfless and loving, abound aplenty too.

It is up to us to make the decision.
It is up to us to choose.
Every moment we spend, every decision we take, every action we make: let's ask ourselves:
In doing or not doing anything, are we siding with our inner God or our inner Devil?
If we can decide and act in consonance with this question as our guiding principle, I am sure, eventually, we would be happy with the way we led our lives :)

And no reason to worry about making this a tall order. Let's just climb one step at a time.
One day at a time, one act at a time, one decision at a time.


Hopefully, every such effort will be an exercise in making us a better person, a closer-to-God-than-to-Devil person every single day!

It will be a loooong and tiring journey of questioning ourselves everyday, but surely, this is one query which will be worth all the effort!

It is our life, and therefore, our own responsibility to do all we can, to make our inner God stronger every day, and vanquish any vestiges of anything negative or devilish from within.

Good Karma: It's never too late (and never too much)!

This one is more of an exhibit, than an article.
I write today, to just share an inspiring account of two lives - incidents from the lives of two individuals, to show the power and impact of good karma.

Credit to this Facebook post, for illustrating a wonderful instance of just how wonderful and powerful it is to practice any good 'karma'.

If you go through the post, what it teaches us is that it's never too late!
It's never too late (nor too much) to practice any good 'karma'.

Perhaps this account might inspire more and more people to understand, believe, and implement the ineffable joy and cathartic delight that one could experience through any (number of) good karma!

It's never ever too late, it's never ever too much to do any good deed, any number of times!

Sincerely hope and pray that may all of us always strive for and achieve being able to practice performing any (and every possible) good deed that we can ever perform, at any and every given opportunity, all our lives!

So let's do good, be good, to all, always!
Amen, to that! :)

Happy Raksha Bandhan!!

One of the many amazing things about living in India is the sheer abundance of festivities that celebrate some occasion or the other.

Being a melting pot of a huge chunk of humanity, practicing multiple faiths and belief systems, something or the other is always going on (or, worst case, just round the corner) at any given point of time!

However, even among the multitude of such events, there is a day that always stands out for me: Raksha Bandhan.
There aren't many occasions as pious as a day celebrating the love of a brother for his sister, and vice versa.

Without even any religious copyrights or boundaries, one that is completely understood, liked, practiced across all faiths - appropriately enough, because its idea and concept is not endemic to a religion but to humanity. No wonder, any sane person/family appreciates, understands, and even practices it, irrespective of any religious affiliation.

A day that also recounts and reaffirms a brother's duty and sense of responsibility for his sister.

Quietly.
Piously.
Warmly.
A simple ceremony where the sister ties a rakhi on her brother's hand, does a simple teeka/tilak, followed by a pooja (equating and acknowledging a brother to no less than a divine blessing), and the brother too, as a token of his love, exchanging sweets, gifting his sister, and most importantly, acknowledging, appreciating, and reaffirming his love and responsibility towards her.

Without any shenanigans.
Nothing over the top.
Nothing against any other festival but this is a day, which neither carries the baggage of liquor-induced tamasha of a Holi nor the agonizingly gory display of self-inflicted violence of a Muharram. Heck, not even the ear-deafening blitzkreig on a Diwali.

Nice, plain, and simple.

As part of a sense of the occasion, what is also worth sharing and is something I've always felt could be extremely helpful in today's times of lack of trust and safety for women, is a sense of responsibility towards every woman.

I must also confess that it would be too idealistic or foolhardy to expect that everyone should see every woman (except his wife) as his sister only.
Yes, this ain't Satyug yet.

However, what surely is possible, is that no one should count it as his right to harass anyone.
You might not need to see/call everyone as your sister but please do have a sense of responsibility towards everyone's sister.

This video (courtesy/credit: Varun Pruthi) is perhaps a wonderful example of what it is truly, to celebrate Raksha Bandhan, in the best way not only on just that day, but also on every single day.

A nice, simple, and wonderful way to make our society better.

We have also had cases of women misusing their current status to manipulate/harass men too, but I believe, that just like most men aren't bad, most women aren't either.
Just a case of a few rotten apples on both sides, who unfortunately, tend to dominate our view when it comes to forming opinions about any person/gender.

So if I can ask anything of every guy, it is only this much:
Even if you cannot call everyone your sister, let us all make sure that we protect and care for not only our sister(s), but also everyone else's.
No one (across any gender) has the right to harass any individual.

Perhaps the day when we could see every guy adopting such an attitude as part of his core, conscious belief-system, that day would be the day when we would be making our world such an infinitely safer and better place.
That would be the best way to celebrate Raksha Bandhan!

Here's to a much happier, safer, caring, responsible, and empathetic world: Happy Raksha Bandhan!!

Hichkiyaan

हिचकियाँ 

कहते हैं कि कोई याद करे, तो हिचकियाँ आती हैं
कोई दिल से बुलाये, तो गले के ज़रिये बताती हैं |

माफ़ कीजियेगा, पर ये तो है एक झूठ सफ़ेद
वरना मेरे याद करने पर ही क्यों करेंगी वो ऐसा भेद ?

उनके आने-ना आने का तो राज़ नहीं जानता हूँ
पर अपने मन की भावनाओं को तो पहचानता हूँ ।

उनके प्यार में अंकित आँखें सिर्फ उन्ही के लिए नम हैं,
उनकी मिठास के आगे दुनिया भर की चीनी भी कम है।

जिसने हमेशा मुझे हर पल सिर्फ और सिर्फ बेशुमार प्यार दिया,
जिसके लिए दिल की धड़कनों ने पागल हो जाने का इज़हार किया
उस पर  कैसे ना हो ये दिल हमेशा के लिए निसार ?
कैसे न निभाऊं मैं उस से, ज़िन्दगी भर अपनी तरफ से भी प्यार?

आखिर क्यों ये दिल उनसे दूर होकर भी हर दर्द ख़ुशी से पीता है?
क्यों ये मन हर वक़्त, हर पल सिर्फ और सिर्फ उन ही के लिए जीता है?

तुमसे प्यार सिर्फ कह के नहीं,
हर तरह से कर के भी निभाउंगा 
जो भी तुम्हें ख़ुशी देगी,
हर वो बात, हर चीज़ ख़ुशी से कर जाऊँगा ।

जैसा भी हूँ, हो सके तो रखना विश्वास,
कि मैं ख़ुशी से हूँ हर पल तुम्हारे साथ
तुम्हें प्यार करता था, करता  हूँ,करता रहूँगा,
हमेशा थामे रखूँगा तुम्हारा हाथ।

झूठ कहते हैं लोग, कि किसी को याद करने पर हिचकियाँ ज़रूर ही आ सकेंगी
ग़र ये सच होता ना मेरी जान, तो तुम्हारी हिचकियाँ तो कभी भी ना जा सकेंगी ।  :)

Thankyou for a special century!!

I will keep this one short and simple:
This post is meant to simply express my heartfelt gratitude to all the readers for their support to this blog, over all the years!!

My sincere thanks to all the readers of Choc-a-blog, for your support, in crossing a special milestone:
We are now 100+ on our FaceBook page.

I promise to continue writing whatever I believe I can add to.

Thanks a lot, for all your support!

Happy Reading :-)

An Open Letter to our Pride Minister

Dear Pradhaan Mantri ji,

Hope you are doing better than what you were/did on May 19.
I am not among those who think you are the wrong person in the chair, but you might not be able to count me as your blind-to-any-fault supporter either.

Perhaps even your strongest critics do not doubt your charisma and public speaking skills.
However, this one time, the script has perhaps gone haywire.

Your speech in Shanghai, China has evoked a strong reaction on social media with your "earlier-you-were-ashamed-of-being-an-Indian".

Well, it must be said that the comments were avoidable, to say the least.
It could be a fact that Indians feel more proud an assertive today than in times gone by, but that does not mean we were ashamed of being Indians.

Sir, your claiming it and ascribing it on a billion people as their mentality is certainly inappropriate and flawed.

Yes, we might have had (and continue to have) our flaws here and there (which country doesn't?), and there have very well been more reasons to be proud of ourselves as Indians.

However, this does not mean that the people of this country were ever ashamed of being Indians before you came to power.

For all the progress we have made in recent years, with or without you at the helm, those pessimists/cynics who felt ashamed earlier, might well continue to feel so even now, or later too.

We cannot pronounce judgement on an entire nation's mentality, on the basis of a miniscule group of such critics and cynics.

There was also a more than obvious hint there inyour speech, which seems to suggest, that the (flawed sense of) shame went and was replaced by pride in being an Indian, almost as a direct after-effect of May 16, 2014: or after May 26, 2014 to be precise:
Dates when the election results were announced sweeping you to power with an unequivocal, absolute majority, and the day when you were officially sworn in as PM, respectively.


Sir, please do not doubt the patriotism, pride, and sentiments of all Indians, based on a handful of the kinds who exist everywhere, in every country.

Please do not assume that we (surely, the majority of Indians) were ever ashamed of our identity.
Just as any other country, we reveled and took (and will continue to take) pride in what we and our country achieved over the years.

The problem is not in the shame being felt by any individuals. The problem is in it being foisted as a national sentiment for everyone, and imposing your copyright on us now feeling an enhanced sense of self-esteem, thanks to this government and your leadership alone.

Please ensure that as you lead us, we, as a nation, become the pride of the world.
Everyone's self-pride will take care of itself.

Regards,
Just one of the forever-proud Indians

Sachiiiiin Sachiiiiin!!

I had written a few years ago on the same day, same occasion.

It is that time of the year again - yes, the day when India was blessed with one of the greatest cricketing superstars the world has ever seen.
Not just a supremely gifted and larger-than-life cricketer, but also a gentleman, and a wonderful human being.

Thankyou Sachin, for the memories you have provided - from that scintillating strokeplay to that astute cricketing acumen you always seem to have possessed in abundance.

Thankyou Sachin, for teaching us that talent alone is not enough. That even the most talented must remain the most disciplined and most passionate, as well as the most humble.

Thankyou Sachin, for showing us that it is still possible to remain grounded, even with more than a billion hearts idolizing you all the time.

Thankyou Sachin, for teaching us that nice guys can also finish first!! :-)

I'm sure I say so on behalf of many more like me:

Wish you many years of health, happiness, and success in all that you do...from one of the many big fans of not just your talent and achievements, but also of your conduct and temperament.

Best wishes and cheers!!
Just another fan :-)

Whose Shame Is It?

Imagine coming back from a long, tough, and hard day at work.
Don't we all have days when we ourselves are disappointed that we could not do as well as we normally do?
Don't we already feel low about our competence and productivity on that day?
Does that mean we have become disloyal or unscrupulous?

Imagine being the subject of stupid jokes or lengthy gossips about your beloved - by one and all, just because that person happened to come by, watching you or if you happened to call/talk to that person in the middle of an already terrible, avoidable day.

Imagine your integrity, commitment and passion towards your job being questioned because of this one day?
That too, by people who do not even know a fraction of what all challenges your job requires, and what all efforts you put in, despite the lack of performance/desired results?

Imagine all this being done to you and your family/loved ones - being subjected to judgements being passed, by anyone and everyone, non-stop, in full public glare, across social networks, television debates, tea-time idle gossip sessions.

Perhaps this is just the kind of emotion that is running through our cricketers who would have failed yes, but who - if you could care to give the the benefit of doubt - could also have wanted and tried to win as much as (if not more than) anyone else would have wanted to.
Ofcourse, since the result did not turn out as expected, there must have been mistakes.
But to blame them to lack of commitment, intention, passion, other priorities, affairs - without any credible proof?
How fair is that?

Yes, so we gave it back, we came a cropper in the match against Australia, bowled timidly, batted tamely, could not defend our crown, okay.

Of course, it hurts.

But there are a couple of things that rankle more than the loss itself:

1. The Media's Uncalled-for Hysteria and Baseless Outrage

2. The Incessant and Nauseating Bashing of a Couple

Both these events, highly deplorable and unprofessional, came about only and only because we lost.

Yes, we understand the angst.
Yes, as true-blue (in more ways than one) fans, we have the right to demand that our cricket stars perform to their very best.
But no, we have no right - no one ever can have - the right to dismiss their performance as lacking in intensity, and/or worse, even lacking the will to win!

Have we not beaten any such (in fact, even better) teams comprehensively ourselves too?
Did we (or their media) then question our vanquished team's motives?
Did we (or that team's media) then cast aspersions on their sincerity or commitment?

To attribute our loss to ulterior motives and sinister behind-the-scenes conspiracies without even a shred of evidence, is downright despicable.

I do not say that we are living in Satyug.
I understand that there could well be the odd black sheep somewhere.

However, to pass a judgement without understanding or empathizing with the subjects themselves, is completely irresponsible.
To attribute a bad performance, howsoever pathetic it may be, to lack of motives, is absolutely abominable, to say the least.

Right from the day we lost, Times Now, a famous/infamous news channel, with an even more famous/infamous host, notorious for his verbal soliloquy, ran a disparaging news campaign: #ShamedInSydney

To all those who say are-yaar-ye-to-easy-(shot/catch)-thi...paise-khaye-hain, sincerity/commitment/intensity hi nahin hai, I have only one submission:

Ok, I can't say for anyone else, but surely, I can say for myself, right?

They say, before we judge anyone else, the best way to understand a situation is to try and put yourself too, in that same situation.

All I can say is that I have played my share of competitive cricket and I don't care if anyone would like to believe this or not, but at least I surely know in my heart of hearts about myself, that I have played it with passion and integrity all my life.

Yet, of course, I have dropped the easiest-looking catches at times.

I have also played such shots in some situations, which I would not have played, had it not been for the match situation (with a run-rate going out of control or due to a belatedly-realized misplaced confidence in my ability to pull it off).

However, mind you, none of this was due to any irresponsibility or lack of will to win/commitment/passion/sincerity.

I have not necessarily showed/displayed emotion or intensity when I did not feel any less intense/passionate/emotional.

My only point is, before we jump to conclusions about the sincerity and commitment of a cricketer, let us not
jump the gun.
Let us try to understand that even a sincere attempt can look horrible if it does not come off.
Why should an incorrectly chosen shot-selection be panned as selling one's soul or not the player not wanting to win?

Yes, we are hurt when we see such a shot, but (if you could believe that a cricketer need not have done so deliberately), pray, tell me, wouldn't the cricketer in question himself be hurting more than anyone else about his dismissal or poor-performance?

Wouldn't he himself be feeling low - without having to be told and reminded through often the choicest of abuses or sarcasm - when we behave the way we do?

I ask of you - what exactly is (more) shameful?

Our team losing to a better team on a given day?
Or us, fans, losing our senses, passing judgements on the sincerity, character, passion, commitment, and integrity of our team - without knowing any better?
Just put hand on your heart and ask yourself.

If I could share, let me tell you what is more shameful.

No, losing is not shameful - not even when losing badly, if we tried our best - to a better team on the day.

What is shameful is our insensitive, crass, and instantly judgemental reaction.
What is shameful is our inability to separate reason from emotion and pull down someone's integrity, so easily and publicly.

What is shameful is to see that people who have never held a cricket bat, go on to question the commitment of a team, just because the captain did not cry as much to their liking, after we lost.

What is shameful is that we pass judgements on a couple - especially on a lady who is out there cheering for her love, the way any other better half would - just because she happens to be a celebrity and a lady who has openly admitted her commitment status - just because it seems easy for us to make them our favorite target.
How easy it is for us to send jokes, one-liners, sarcasms, even give our own spin to what happened and what all they were doing before the match by our know-all 'experts'.
ALL THIS is what is indeed shameful.

Congratulations, Team Australia - not just for getting the World Cup back and playing top cricket, but lucky you, in also getting fans who would not indulge in passing judgements about your (and/or even your better half's) character on the basis of your win/loss.

Any and every team - including Team India - deserves better too.
We keep asking our team to get better all the time.
Fair enough.
Perhaps, it's a good moment to reflect and ask, whether Team India too, deserves its fans (and media) behaving better than this.

Straight from my heart

Sometimes, words are not enough, to express what we feel..
Sometimes, the heart takes more importance, than every logical appeal..

I feel when that happens, it's an indication from someone above..
It's at these moments that one understands the true meaning of love..

The only thing that matters, is to make you genuinely and heartily smile..
To get you that sparkle in your eyes, every single day, not just in a while..

To keep you happy, is the only thing I love doing, without questioning why..
'Coz my own life & happiness, is all about your smile, till I live, & till I die.

Happy New Year!!

So, it's 2015, and we are in the year of the Cricket World Cup.

As I write this, most people's new year resolutions would have gone for a toss.

Nevertheless, here's my wish list:
I wish we all have a healthy, happy, peaceful, non-violent, cordial, and amiable 2015.

I wish we get a stable government in the Delhi assembly elections this year.

I wish we get better bowlers and become a much better cricket team, eventually going on to reclaim the Test#1 spot.

I wish we win the World Cup, and also become champs in one other less-heralded sport: such as badminton, tennis and/or hockey.

I wish women do not feel unsafe anywhere ever, and in general, may everyone feel safe at all places and in all times.

Last but certainly not the least, I wish to see a day when Pakistan and India would bury the hatchet, and would strive to eliminate all forms of terrorism.

Amen and wish you all a Happy New Year!!!