Outpressions

Navaratri is the most anticipated time during our school days, mostly because of long holidays. Of course we do get longer holidays during Christmas, Pongal and summer, but Navaratri is not just about holidays. The anticipation factor rests on the unexpected invitations along with gifts we receive during thaamboolam collection. Dussara as it is called is a 10 day festival of celebration equally dividing first nine days and devoting it to Goddesses Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati. The tenth day is celebrated as vijayadasami. It is considered the auspicious day to start anything new. This day is considered to be the day when Godess Durga killed the Asura named Mahishasura. In South India, it is called “Golu”. The idols of lords are kept in sequence of steps neatly arranged and decorated. Call it what so ever, it is mostly related to Godess , it is the women who enjoy the limelight all ten days.Women get decked up every night, to visit neighborhood golus collecting thaamboolam and gifts ...

I came down here , adjusting myself inside the mini bus stand near my college. God know when it would rain, so does he know when would the bus arrive. But today, the first one arrived unexpectedly before the second. Lots of men and women gleam the corner of the road, to get a glimpse of bus so they could get to choose the best seat in the bus. Roads are slippery, with water filling the corners. So are the seats in the buses. This would be the only time one would find people preferring to stand in spite of abundance of seats filled with water. Everyone glances the corner again with anticipation, but fate disappoints everyone replacing the bus with a lorry. Bus stand has become a refugee camp not only for humans , but also for flies, street dogs, chameleons and lizards. The spot one would find a perfect harmony and coexistence during rainy days. Being 45 km outskirts the city, the place never would give the cell tower  a chance to receive the signals. The signal in the mobile...

“Bala see if u can get a auto , it is time” my granny muttered.” It wouldn't have been a problem if either of us knew driving” responded Latu. “ I am gonna learn driving” she added. “ Do u mean  you would like to learn a car” I casually asked.” Nope I am going to learn to drive an auto, maybe we can afford that” she surprised me. Transportation during end of 90’s, wasn't so  developed as much as today. Those were the era where the name WiFi was unknown and word mobile was newly added to dictionary. Internet were restricted to the desktop computers affordable only  for elite socialites.For the middle class browsing was a dream far from reality. at a peak rates for browsing. Ola and Uber were ofcourse or not been discovered. Being middle class family, our only mode of transportation other than public transport was autos and rickshaw. Every middle class household would have a standard semi-permanently employed auto or a rickshaw man. He would be bestowed upon w...

Music season is full of enthusiasm and joy. It is a hectic time for musicians to hop from sabha to another for tight schedule of concerts. Rasikas oscillate between sabhas too! While one of the kind enter main hall while the other kind would jump  for meals(canteen). If you would visit a canteen during weekdays, the probability of you bumping an IT professional is quite high. If you would end up in weekends, you will be able to meet all dolled up rasikas showing off their new saree.If you have a habit of seeing one's attire first and then the face,you might probabily then realize the face to be quite familiar. It will then occur  after couple of minutes to you that he/she was the one sitting on the dais yesterday  who tried best to not let you sleep in the afternoon katcheri after a heavy meal. Sometimes rasikas doll up more than the artists that people would be misguided. Once it so occurred that a old thatha  went on to wish a rasika( who was dressed ...

It so happened that I had to travel to a concert(to enjoy listening only) by train during the Margazhi season. A familiar face ,in almost nearing 70's sat next to me. This thatha went to "ekantha nelai" closing his eyes when the train started to move. Once or twice he would extend hands, making some actions as though shooing a fly. I then observed him hearing music through wireless earphones(blue-tooth hopefully). His rasikathuva( ability to appreciate music) was mistaken to be a kunfu step or perhaps a dance step by a small kid sitting opposite. He parallelly started to sing along the music he was hearing unaware of its consequences outside( as he was still closing his eyes). Nobody dared to take a seat next to him on the other side until I got down at Mylapore. I took an auto to a sabha. It was 10:40 am by then. It was a instrumental concert which was going on. I slided quietly into a row taking the cushioned seat. Air conditioned hall, cushioned seat, ...

While I was grazing the newspaper on a hot summer, an article on beards got my eyes. Only then I realized and observed all male population in my college had beard or a mustache or any sort of a facial hair. The next day when I was supposed to be on a video call with my age old friend, I cut the call seeing a stranger's face on my monitor screen. It suddenly strike me that it was none other than him. He looked unrecognizable having a beard which he didn't have the last time we met. Poor little guy, he had to introduce himself formally after seeing my reaction to his sudden transformation. Long back ,I would mock the stupidity of the characters such as Ramachandra Murthy in film Thillu Mullu for being so dumb, not recognizing that Indran and Chandran were one and the same. Both the characters portrayed by Rajnikant had no much difference then a mustache. But it's true ,that men go unrecognizable with a beard ,once you haven't seen them for so long. Other time ,I was wa...