Who Am I?

When someone asks, who are you, what do you say, your name, maybe your education or your profession. If asked to elaborate, you may say the state you belong to or the language you speak. We take hours to prepare the most obvious interview question "Tell me something about yourself". Well, that is because, we cannot really define who we are and our nationality/religion/profession etc. does not really tell who you are. The answer to this question takes a lifetime to answer. We are constantly changing and moreover we don't know ourselves completely. There are many things which remain the same throughout, and many others which change with time. The key thing is to be aware of yourself.

The following is the song which I truly love -'Bulla ki jaana mai kaun' by Rabbi Shergill. I am also inserting the lyrics and meaning of the song (source:http://rabbism.blogspot.com/2005/07/bulla-ki-jaana-rabbi-shergill-lyrics.html) Do listen :)

Na maen momin vich maseet aan Na maen vich kufar diyan reet aan Na maen paakaan vich paleet aan Na maen moosa na pharaun. Bulleh! ki jaana maen kaun Na maen andar ved kitaab aan, Na vich bhangaan na sharaab aan Na vich rindaan masat kharaab aan Na vich jaagan na vich saun. Bulleh! ki jaana maen kaun. Na vich shaadi na ghamnaaki Na maen vich paleeti paaki Na maen aabi na maen khaki Na maen aatish na maen paun Bulleh!, ki jaana maen kaun Na maen arabi na lahori Na maen hindi shehar nagauri Na hindu na turak peshawri Na maen rehnda vich nadaun Bulla, ki jaana maen kaun Na maen bheth mazhab da paaya Ne maen aadam havva jaaya Na maen apna naam dharaaya Na vich baitthan na vich bhaun Bulleh , ki jaana maen kaun Avval aakhir aap nu jaana Na koi dooja hor pehchaana Maethon hor na koi siyaana Bulla! ooh khadda hai kaun Bulla, ki jaana maen kaun

Not a believer inside the mosque, am I Nor a pagan disciple of false rites Not the pure amongst the impure Neither Moses, nor the Pharoh Bulleh! to me, I am not known Not in the holy Vedas, am I Nor in opium, neither in wine Not in the drunkard`s craze Niether awake, nor in a sleeping daze Bulleh! to me, I am not known In happiness nor in sorrow, am I Neither clean, nor a filthy mire Not from water, nor from earth Neither fire, nor from air, is my birth Bulleh! to me, I am not known Not an Arab, nor Lahori Neither Hindi, nor Nagauri Hindu, Turk (Muslim), nor Peshawari Nor do I live in Nadaun Bulleh! to me, I am not known Secrets of religion, I have not known From Adam and Eve, I am not born I am not the name I assume Not in stillness, nor on the move Bulleh! to me, I am not known I am the first, I am the last None other, have I ever known I am the wisest of them all Bulleh! do I stand alone? Bulleh! to me, I am not known

Not A Secret Anymore!

How many of you believe that man makes his own destiny? And how many believe, that your fate is pre-written?

I personally  and very strongly believe that you can achieve whatever you want to. The toughest of problems usually have the simplest of solutions. The challenge is to find it. Here I am going to introduce to a theory which will help you do just that. It is called the Law of Attraction (LOA)

So what is Law of Attraction? In simple words it means – like attracts like, whatever you think or believe strongly, is what is going to happen.  “When you really want something to happen, the whole universe conspires so that your wish comes true”, quoted by Paulo Coelho, in his book The Alchemist is exactly what LOA preaches.  LOA is just like any other law of universe- like the law of gravity. It is impartial and omnipresent. There is a whole bunch of science out there which proves my claims, but I want go into that. 

Now the important question is how to apply it? Simply, think and live what you really want to be. Picturise yourself as the CEO of a big firm, it is quite likely that you will eventually become the CEO. The important thing is to do it with passion and do it regularly. What people normally focus on is what they don’t want. I don’t want it to rain today, I don’t want to be stuck in the office. I don’t want to look fat. All these will actually aggravate the situation. The universe doesn’t care about what you want or don’t want it just gives back more of what you are thinking about. So, the right way to go about is to imagine a nice sunny day, a calm peaceful journey to office and to imagine yourself in your 26inch waist jeans which fitted you a couple of years back.

All this said, it doesn’t mean that if you sit all day and chant money, money, money and expect to become a millionaire. Obviously not! There are three important things to keep in mind. 1) You have to work towards your goal actively. 2) You have to actually believe that you will be a millionaire; you have to have faith in yourself. 3) You have to picturize the end result constantly.

This law may seem a bit hard to digest, because of its simplicity but trust me it works. Try applying it for small things and see the results. Most of you would have actually experienced LOA working for you. Have you given an exam with the least preparation but you feel that you will do well, and you actually do well? That’s LOA in practice. Do try it for small things and see how miracles happen :)

Some TP on TP!

I finally got my new ThinkPad after a seemingly loooong wait. Its a relief to be able to check mails and scan Facebook statuses from my own laptop. After owning a Vaio which is known (only) for its looks, TP may look like its grandmother. But I have learnt a lesson, and a relevant one indeed - Do not judge a lappy by its lid. ThinkPad is just awesome. Nice and sleek keyboard, and track point (yet to get a hang of it though!). Sound, display everything seems great. Lets hope TP is loyal to me unlike Vaio (or maybe I wasn't loyal to it..whatever!). Suddenly, I am feeling bad about Vaio. It did serve me for four years and lots of  memories are associated with it. The endless chats, DC++, movies, TV series and a bit of studies too. And of course the Vaio bashing - Dell praising sessions with friends. We owe many a laughter on Vaio's behalf. Its currently lying there alone in the darkness of my cupboard while i have conveniently moved on. Before you start wondering, yes i do remember, I am talking about an inanimate object :)

PS: I hope you understand the first TP stands for Time Pass. I am pretty sure BITSians would, but a little unsure about the Jokans (Jokans? IIMCalcians? huh..whatever :|)

  

Well I have much more to say about Joka, but more about that later!
Have a happy Weekend! :)

Know Me Better

9 Of My All Time Favorite Songs

•     You are Beautiful – James Blunt
•     Reason - Hoobastank
•     Dil ko Tumse Pyar hua – Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein
•     In dino - Metro
•     Broken - Lifehouse
•     Home - Chris Daughtry
•     Kuch iss tarah – Atif Aslam
•     Edge of Desire – John Mayer
•     Choti si Asha – Roza

8 Movies I can Watch Again and Again

•     Swades
•     Dil Chahta Hai
•     A Walk to Remember
•     Ramona and Beezus
•     Dil to pagal hai
•     Taare Zameen Par
•     50 First Dates
•     Notting Hill

   7 Places I want to Visit

         The Taj Mahal

         A Wild Life Safari

         Italy

         The Pyramids and The Sphinx - Egypt

         Niagara Falls

         A Cruise

                                                               Paris

6 Things I Totally Love To Do

•     Shopping for clothes
•     Reading books
•     Sketching
•     Watching movies with friends 
•     Watching F.R.I.E.N.D.S
•     Amusement Rides

5 Things I Just Can’t Do

•     Make-up
•     Flirting
•     Sweet-Talking
•     Get Directions
•     Get up early in the morning

4 Peculiar Things About Me

•     I get dreams that I don’t have the right clothes to wear for an occasion
•     I don’t like pets at all. I dread touching them.
•     I hardly ever like the way my hair looks when I let it down, which is very rare ofcourse
•     I fall asleep only after at least half hour how much ever tired I am.

3 Regrets I have From My Life Till Now

•     I never learned a sport
•     I don’t read newspapers regularly
•     I am a bad planner

2 Things I hate

•     Hypocrisy
•     Fights

1 Thing I Believe In

•     Whatever happens, happens for the best.

Rainbows of Joy

I somehow don't like Sundays. You know why? Simply because they are followed by Mondays. And I better not get started on how much we hate Mondays. I love Saturdays though and again for the same reason – they are followed by Sundays! (Of course, nowadays Friday is the new Saturday) Its kinda sad na? So much is dependent on what future holds for us. We just feel happy by thinking about a holiday, not knowing it may turn into a disaster and when we do get a holiday we feel blue about going to work the next day. I mean we have so many hopes and feelings based on what may or may not even happen. I think most would agree, that the trips that are unplanned and sudden, more often than not, turn out  to be most fun. Even the thrill of an unexpected holiday is better than the approaching weekend. I am sure everybody loves it when it starts pouring on a hot and sunny day, when you least expect it. And that's when we see the rainbow. Unexpected joys are like rainbows, vibrant and short-lived, and they always bring a smile on our faces. We spend so much of our time planning and contemplating about our future. We have hardly any time to enjoy when it’s actually the time to cherish the rainbows that life leaves for us every now and then. Planning is important and but too much planning can kill the fun sometimes. Plus, It creates hopes and expectations and end up hurting us when the plan doesn't work out. I guess somethings should be just done on impulse. Take a day off just to read that book you wanted to since you bought it two months ago. Call that person you had a crush on but never had courage to talk to.  Make prank calls to your friends. Try that recipe of the chocolate truffle cake, you saw on the TV. Visit the salon and get that complete makeover you read about only in magazines. Rejoice the unexpected joys of life and let future unfold at its own sweet pace.

Once Upon A Time at School

“A hound it was, an enormous coal-black hound, but not such a hound as mortal eyes have ever seen. Fire burst from its open mouth, its eyes glowed with a smoldering glare, its muzzle and hackles and dewlap were outlined in flickering flame. Never in the delirious dream of a disordered brain could anything more savage, more appalling, more hellish be conceived than that dark form and savage face which broke upon us out of the wall of fog. ..“ – went on Miss Sunita, my English teacher. She was narrating the story of The Hound of Baskerville.

My classroom had windows facing the balcony and I was sitting next to the window. In the middle of the narration, I heard a noise outside the window. I looked out but did not see anyone. I got engrossed in the teacher’s narration again. After a while, I heard it again and this time when I looked, I just froze. Right there in the balcony not more than 10 feet away from me was the very hound of Baskerville, standing and staring back at me. I was just too scared to move or speak or even blink. It took me a good two minutes to take in what was in front of me. I nudged my bench mate and gestured him to look outside. He let out a small shriek of terror which alerted everyone including my teacher. In no time the entire class was aware of the presence of this hellish creature in our close proximity. Acting quickly, the teacher closed and bolted the door to the entry softly.

Now the atmosphere in the room was very tensed. Not a single sound to be heard. Slowly people started moving towards the other end of the classroom, occupying the farthest corner of the room, all huddled up. All this while the hound was just standing there looking at everybody through the window, its fiery eyes moving from one corner to another, with a kind of coolness in its eyes, which made us even more petrified.

After what seemed like hours, I stood up and went near the window. On looking down beyond the balcony, I could see a lot of people had gathered there. I could see school staff, parents of my classmates and I could even see some people in khakis, may be the police or people from animal control. I don’t know exactly why they were just waiting there and not doing anything. May be even they were scared of the hound too and didn't know what to do. For sure, it wasn’t natural to find a hound in a school.

While I stood there trying to reason with my little brain and trying to make some sense of the situation, I heard my mother’s voice and instead of comforting me she was scolding me. Something about how I have overslept and I will miss the school bus. It then hit me I was just dreaming! I should have known it, it was so illogical and unreasonable, but that’s not how dreams go, right? ;)

My Acknowledgements with Truth

Disclaimer: This post may have an overdose of sentiments and emotions, people who are averse to matters which come straight from the heart please stay away.

Yay! Gossip Girl is back and so am I! The events of this week, if asked to describe in a word i'd call it Life-changing ( yeah I know, stolen from GG :| , nevertheless very true). Yes, I got into IIM Calcutta! *Applause* Even though my dream college was IIM Ahemdabad, I am ecstatic with this result, to say the least. In fact, getting an admit in only one of the top 3 colleges in the country has its own advantages. For one, I know for sure that I am going to a good college and two, I don't have to break my head over deciding which college I should go for. Should I go for the college with the better brand value or the one which boasts to be best finance college in the country; or which is more tolerable: sun-burnt skin or taking multiple baths in a day due to sweat?

The journey to this goal of getting into IIM's officially began in January 2010, when I joined coaching for CAT at BITS Goa but truly speaking, for me it began in the summer of 2010 when I sat down and went through the CAT syllabus for the first time. It has seen its share of ups and downs. The most comforting part was, I wasn't alone in this journey. I had the guidance and support of so many people around me. Foremost would be my parents. It was my dad's dream to see me getting an MBA degree from IIM since as long as I was in school. Both my mom and dad have constantly encouraged me ( in a very non-interfering manner) and helped me in any and every way possible. Any number of thank you's would mean nothing in comparison to the support they have given me.

My parents were geographically far from me, but there were so many people near me, most of them sailing in the same boat as me. I can't thank Kinshuk enough for his constant motivation and never-swaying trust in me and my capabilities. I must have cried a thousand times about my not-so-good score in the mock tests but still he listened to all of it with immense amount of patience and understanding. My friends Kinshuk, Rajoshi , Hitesh have beared with my mood swings and sacrificed a good number of outings so that I could attend my CAT classes! If it weren't for Komal, I think I wouldn't have survived the long and painful Quant classes and boring Verbal classes. I remember the frequent nervous and self-loathing (for not studying seriously) sessions with Dhanlakshmi. Every once in a while we used to knock at each other's door and discuss about how scared we were and how less time we had before the C-day. Even after the results we used to constantly discuss about how to prepare for GD/PI and update each other on any news about the results. Though Deepak was not on campus, his timely advice, time management strategies and above all, his dedication towards the exam, kept me motivated. All these people and so many more (Devina, Trishla, Prakhar, Ajusal, Rohit, Himanshu, Pankaj, Rashmi, Priyal, Paridhi..) have helped me in more ways than one and made my dream come true. A big thank you to all you guys. Will forever be indebted to you. :')