There was a time, a long long ago, in the era of cassettes, when one had no idea about whether the entire soundtrack of the movie would be good. One just bought it on the first day of release, sometimes relying on the music director/s, or snippets heard as ‘forthcoming attractions’ from the previous soundtrack released by the same company, if it was T-Series, TIPS, HMV etc, or by begging the shopkeeper to open that cellophane wrapper and play the tape for a while. And thus, in those days, one would sometimes receive serendipitous delight and be transported by the music. Closed eyes, smile on the lips, and body slowly rocking, lost in the world of some ethereal track. These days, even if you don’t go searching for tracks, they find you, either on FM or through the algorithm of some feed that is supposed to have gleaned your preferences. (more…)
Category: Life Ordinary
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Naturally good
Towards the end of The Way of Zen, Alan Watts has a line that creates a binary between natural and good. I must admit that I felt some validation there!
Over many years and experiences, the resident (and dominant) cynic in me has come to believe that “naturally good” in terms of a person’s character and behaviour can only be an act. This is also coming from the unoriginal observation that we have a “delusion of free will”. The choices we make are less based on a conscious free will, and controlled more by a combination of genes which have fought and survived over millennia and one’s own experiences and environment. While cooperation and goodness are indeed a part of the survival toolkit, they are not the dominant aspects. We’re selfish, the only difference is in the degree of the act, and how much we have trained ourselves. (more…)
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“Let them know you’re thinking about them”
You’re familiar with that – it’s one of Facebook’s birthday reminders. Until some time back, I used to religiously wish folks on their birthday. But I have stopped that, it felt like cheating. To me, this sort of wishing reduced the significance of the event and the wish, and almost brought it to the level of an already degraded currency on the network – the ubiquitous ‘Like’. I know, this can be argued quite a bit. At a very simplistic level, wishing someone on the birthday could be like a little shot of dopamine for them, and easy for you to provide too.
But I have at least two perspectives against this. Call it over-analysis if you will. The first is where I draw a parallel with travel. In the case of places, increased access and convenience tend to bring in people with motives different from an earlier set. From travelers to tourists. Right or wrong is subjective so let’s just say that the character of the places, and their residents change. Arguably, the first set of folks had a deeper bond with the place and more of an interest in its well being. And so too, with the wishes on Facebook. My birthday is off Facebook and I know that those who wish me now really have me in their thoughts. (more…)
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An account of statements
In 2010, would the name Ramdev be familiar at all to you? 7 years is a long time, and we’ll come back to that. But don’t worry, this isn’t an ayurware post. This is actually a sequel. It features the successor of a companion of 7 years, who called it a day last month, after 7 years of service that began in January 2010, when the world was a different place.
The first month in this genre of books is always an eye opener because it all happened far back in time. Even the mundane makes a story – the ‘maid + cook’ is now paid close to 3.5x, but the mobile bill has actually fallen! Spar became Auchan and then Spar again. But the more profound ones lie beyond the routine accounts of a month. The inverter we bought in January 2010 was with us until last month. But the house whose EMI we used to pay now belongs to a different family.
We haven’t been to Blossoms in years, but it’s heartening to see that it’s still around. So is Woodstok in Indiranagar, a place that hasn’t disappointed us. My early days in Myntra are marked by a series of visits to Grigliato. Sadly, 3 Storys, a lovely coastal food restaurant off Lavelle Road can barely be found even on the internet, and cannot be found offline anyway! Through the years there are others who have fallen by the wayside – Veekes & Thomas, Sahib Sind Sultan, Huckleberry, and so on. (more…)
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Home Outgrown
On our way to the airport, for what would be one of our shortest trips to Kerala, I told D that I didn’t see myself making this journey a decade from now. At least not framed in the way we do it these days – a trip home. I was wrong – it happened way sooner than a decade.
It wasn’t a comment made lightly – after all, to borrow a phrase, I was referring to a city which had all the places that made up a couple of decades of my life.
What does one go home for? The obvious answer is easy – to spend time with people who matter in one’s life. To note – even that changes during one’s lifetime. But if I have to dig a bit deeper, Rana Dasgupta’s words make sense – when one becomes homesick, it is not a place that one seeks, but oneself, back in time. And when one does that, the props matter. The places, the faces, all reminders of different phases. When they no longer exist, the place is no longer a cure for homesickness. (more…)