Pray to God
Our politicians never fail to flabbergast me! The one that still has the power to startle me though one has come to expect the most ludicrous and preposterous statement from her is our very own CEO! The latest in her exceptional repertoire was her one line answer to a...
Another tale of two Indias
Last week a young 11 year old became one the youngest to undergo bariatric surgery. She was born normal but undue spoiling and the lifestyle of the rich made her morbidly obese. This is the same country where babies on the other side of the fence are born with...
In a plastic bag
What would you do if you had to carry the body of your dead child in a plastic bag for miles at an end from the hospital where he was born? I am not joking but dead serious. This happened last year to a tribal couple in a country that boats of luxury hospitals, swanky...
Fit for human consumption
Following the terrible tragedy that killed 23 children in Bihar, our city went into reviewing mode with officials taking stock of the situation of midday meals in the capital city. An article published this morning in a leading newspaper details the issue. I was...
Death at noon
The writing is on the wall if anyone, just anyone is willing to see. We know politicians and their cronies and administrators and their lackeys will look away and go an hunt for the most implausible and far fetched explanations that no one, but they, will buy. The...
grain drain
It is a reality that should make us hang our heads in shame. In a country where millions go hungry every day, where 5000 kids under the age of 5 die every day of malnutrition related diseases, we allow food grain to rot every year. The latest report comes at a time...
Health a la carte (2)
This is in continuation of my earlier post Health a la Carte. I had ended the post with the following words: So as per plan we shipped the husband to the hospital late in the night! Imagine my surprise when I was told that he had been given a single room!...
It has a name
The beast gnawing mercilessly my loved one for the past year now has finally been exposed. It has a fancy name meant to scare you and hold you in fear: Hodgkins t cell histiocyte rich large b cell lymphoma. This is the third time it has dared attack my loves ones and...
It’s a bloody shame
A news item this morning brought back memories I had vowed to forget. The item entitled: Rice with insects, clothes with holes took me back to so many instances of shameless beings who feel that anything is good enough for charity. We have had our share of...
Emotional bank
Emotional bank is an expression I heard for the first time some days back during Utpal's session with his therapist. She was explaining to us the fact that as Utpal had finally begun to think of ourselves as his 'family' or the closest thing to a family, it was...
The choice to live our lives as we want
I have always believed that nothing in life is fortuitous. This in reality is a lesson my father gave me quite early in life when he told me that no at single leaves moves without the will of a higher spirit. For the religious I guess it is God in whatever shape, for...
apologies and a small entreaty
For the past month or so you may have seen a flurry of posts that sound more personal and often have nothing to do with pwhy or any of the subject I usually rant about. I seek your understanding and extend my apologies. I am a mere mortal with her shares of problems...
3 days for 13 years
How would you feel if your labour of 13 years was judged in 3 days and dismissed as inadequate and unworthy to be given a second chance? Not good I presume particularly if you have spent 13 years of your time to build it brick by brick from scratch. Sadly this...
The last battle and a walk down memory lane
My very first encounter with the word 'cancer' was circa 1957. My grandmother was diagnosed with 'cancer'. I was five. All I remember is mama's silent tears as she read a letter that was delivered to her through the weekly diplomatic bag. We were in Rabat where my...
Health a la carte
Blissfully till now my trysts with the medical mafia were few, far away and second hand. They were oft recounted by people I knew and sometimes by my project why family for whom private - commercial - modern medicine is a sine qua non to social mobility. Just like for...
Missing you
Popples a.k.a. Utpal left yesterday morning. It was heart wrenching as for the very first time after many comings and goings he was sobbing. Normally I got a Bye Maam'ji as he hopped into the car and most of the times did not look back. This time however there were...
Rain Sweat and Tears
I was waiting for the rainsThe dark clouds to gatherThe skies to openI waited and waitedHolding on to the tears I needed to shedI wanted to take a long walkStomping in the rainMy face turned up to the skySo that the tears would mingle with the raindropsAnd no one...
Don’t lose faith in her…
Don't lose faith in her were my pa's final dying words. 'Her' in this occurrence is India. That was 21 years ago. I must admit it has been no easy task to keep the faith, specially as for the past 13 years I have seen its underbelly in more ways than one. One...
What is striking India is indifference
But what is really striking to me about India, much more than most other countries I have been to, is the indifference of privileged sectors to the misery of others. These words are an excerpt of a recent interview Noam Chomsky gave to a leading magazine. If one[...
No life is worthless…. the story of two souls
Some time back a relative conveyed to me trough the convenient sms medium that I was incapable of valuing relationships because I had no siblings. I blogged my hurt as writing out in the open is the best form of catharsis I know. The truth is I had a...
The curious case of the meat cleaver
One of the first 'demands' of parents of the slum where we began our work way back in 2000 was to teach their children English! Somehow these illiterate parents knew intuitively that knowing English would give their children a better start in life. We heeded to their...
Rani – a lesson in compassion
The very first day I started visiting the Kalka temple every morning at 7am, my attention was drawn to a woman many would called a beggar as that is how she supports herself. But I was drawn to her as to me she seemed regal and beautiful in a haunting way. On days...
One proud maam’ji
Utpal won two medals in a skating event held by a local skating club. It was a national (!) event as there were participants from other states. Utpal life on skates is a long saga. In the summer of 2011, when he was very disturbed and almost unmanageable, Radhey...
Buy me a ride
As always Nani was on ride duty yesterday evening! Rides at the Kalka Temple which are my grandson's preferred ones. And the all time is the 'jump jump' which is a big inflatable copy of a Disney character. It is also Utpal's all time comfort place...
Everybody Loves a Good….
Everybody Loves a Good Drought is a disturbing and thought provoking book written way back in 1996 by P. Sainath. One could substitute drought with flood or any other cataclysmic event. Just like the telling book about hunger, Ash in the Belly, that makes you...
a little box from way down under
It was hot and humid and I had survived a rough morning. The mood was definitely not the best. Things were not getting better as no one was answering the door bell. Someone finally did. But before I could vent my annoyance my eyes fell on a packet lying in on the...
who do they belong to
[Saturday is the day I visit the Shani Temple in Govindpuri. I have been doing so for quite some time now. It is a quick ritual as one lights a lamp and bows one' head and scoots off. Last Saturday as I was wearing my shoes, an man entered the Temple. He must have...
A letter to Kamala
Dear Kamala,It has been exactly 23 years since you left me. And every minute of those years I have missed you. I have missed your smile, I have missed your grace, I have missed your words that were always the ones I needed to hear. I have memories of you that go way...
It went from my head and out through my feet
It went from my head and out through my feet! Wonder what that means? I give you three guesses or maybe I should just reveal the meaning! But to get to that a little background. When my grandson left India a few months ago he spoke Hindi like a native, English with a...
being Nani
My little grandson is back. He will fly in tonight and revive our home and hearts for the next 2 months and one week. The last months have been bleak for more reasons than one. Nanou has not been well, Nani has been running like a headless chicken not knowing which...
Heart has its reasons
Heart has its reasons which reason knows nothing of wrote Blaise Pascal. This saying often crops in my mind when I find myself doing something that defies my Cartesian upbringing and my ever questioning mind. Yet I often find myself sprouting out words that seem to...
Of childhood, siblings and valuing relationships
I am hurt! I had thought that some passed aberrations that plagued my personal life for quite some time had been, if not healed, at least laid to rest. I had made my peace with all the ugly and unnecessary yet distressing events that shook the very core of my family...
You become responsible forever for what you’ve tamed
“People have forgotten this truth," the fox said. "But you mustn’t forget it. You become responsible forever for what you’ve tamed. You’re responsible for your rose” wrote St Exupery in the Little Prince, a book that I have always found solace in. To some it may just...
To infinity and beyond – educating nani
Exactly one year ago, almost to the day I was learning about Chutki, Doraemon and seeing Mamma Mia at least 4 times a day! You guessed my teacher was no other than my grandson Agastya. I had also mastered expressions like: this is my spot! The preferred toys were cars...
Think – Eat – Save
Think Eat Save is the theme of this year's Environment day. Many of us often brush aside the warnings environmentalists send our way. We often feel it does not concern us as we have plenty of everything and are quite comfortable wasting water and food, using...
Project Why all stars
The class X and XII results are out! As always all our kids have passed! As always they have done us proud! For me it was the moment to walk down memory lane, to the day when it all began. It was in 2001 when we ran spoken English classes for primary and secondary...
A reality check on so called social programmes
When the Government announced with great fanfare the passing of the Right to Education (RTE) Bill, I was among those who hoped against hope that the Government would adopt the neighbourhood school policy and upgrade all State run schools to Central school quality so...
a clumsy winged voyager!
This is the picture that is sits on my computer and on my phone screens. It is my feel good shot and normally can bring a smile on my face under any circumstances. But for the past weeks or should I say months the magic has not worked. True the smile does appear but...