Diary of joyoti senhttp://belapur.rediffiland.com/Diary of joyoti senen-usA Complete ManMy mind took me back immediately till about a couple of years ago when I used to frequent the United Services Club at Colaba , Mumbai- of which I am still a member - where Mr. Tata would come regularly when ever he was in Mumbai.
We were all regualr walkers at the club and Mr. Tata is also very fond of walking. Our club nestles close to the sea. There is a huge golf course and edging the course running parallel to the sea is the joggers track.
The view is awsome. You can see the vast expanse of the open sea, dotted with ships and the old lighthouse standing majestically. Amongst all this majesty Mr. Tata arrives in his car, with his dog Tango and dog trainer and simply glide out of his car into the flying breeze. His hair flies free in the wind - free of the corporate boardroom- and his steps jauntily spring on the grass as he heads towards the joggers track. There we are all walking and he joins us , yet maintains a shy distance, till someone goes up and says 'Hello'. He replies very humbly and walks along without any airs or graces, acknowledges all the smiles and greetings and even indulges in some samll talk with aquaintances without a hint or trace of arrogance. He has so much in him yet makes us all feel as if he is one of us.
He loves animals. He talks to all the dogs at the club. He loves even the stray ones. A little stray pup called Julie was injured and his driver told us that he made sure Julie received treatment and he and he had paid for it. It was another matter that Julie did not survive!!

Thus it was not surprising when he said in a recent interview that the sight of an Indian family on a scooter on a wet Mumbai road set him thinking. He saw an Indian family in potentila danger and he conceptualized the Nano, an affordable car for those who can afford only two-wheelers.

He is truly a businessman who can be ruthless- see how he dealt with Corus!! - but a humanitarian, a lover of nature and animals. a visionary, a patriot ; in short as Raymonds will say 'A Complete Man'!!





]]>Tue, 15 Jan 2008 10:32:42 +0530http://belapur.rediffiland.com/blogs/2008/01/15/A-Complete-Man.htmlWinterHi Everyone,


I am back to Mumbai after my vacation. It is extremely hot out here, in the afternoon one would think we are in the middle of May. On the other hand in Delhi , where I have just been, the weather is absolutely marvellous. We don't sweat. The air is nippy in the evenings and the chrysanthemum plants are all ready with their buds. You can see these eager plants ready to show off their beautifully coloured blossoms to us, in parks, and in private gardens.


It is sad that there is no winter in Mumbai. People living here do not know the beauty of winter. They have never experienced the fun of wearing woollens and the joy of going to school in winter early in the morning. They have also never felt the pleasure of working late and yet not feel tired because of the rejuvenating power of winter. Then finally the beautiful pinkish blue winter sky..I miss it so much. And sitting in the winter sun while studying or reading or eating ..those are things that I can never dream of in Mumbai. Will it ever haapen that Mumbai sees some real winter for a change due to some freak of nature?


I hope so. Do my friends here support me ? Or do you think I am being foolish?


Bye for now,


Joyoti


]]>Mon, 29 Oct 2007 15:44:01 +0530http://belapur.rediffiland.com/blogs/2007/10/29/Winter.htmlGoing Home !!!!Well folks it is that time of the year again when Bengalis get into the annual festival mood. Maa Durga is coming , she will soon be here with us and there is no time left.
I will be spending my holidays at my hometown, Lucknow. So my train or rather my plane is going to turn northwards this time.
I will be visiting North India after almost 16 years. So I cannot express my delight and anticipation at the prospect of seeing the Gangetic plain again. For those who don't belong to that part of India, the Northern Plain will be just a flat piece of land. But it is not so for us who belong there... it has some of the world's best mango orchards (Dussheri aam) that were planted by the Mughals originally. Then there are the great rivers fed by the Himalayan glaciers. In between the orchards and rivers are the most fertile fields of the world that feed most of India.
I know that at this time in Lucknow all the shiuli flowers will be in bloom, the ponds will be full of blue and pink lotus flowers , the Durga pandals are being set up, shops are filling up their stock and the sound of the Maa Durga's dhak will be heard soon. Ramlila mandals are getting their act together. They too will be performing non stop during Navaratri till Vijaydashami.
Nature is clean and green because the monsoons have done their Municipal Corporation act and cleaned up the environment.
Amidst all this nostalgia and excitement I will visit you, my beloved city.. after so long that I had almost forgotten you dear Lucknow amidst the hectic life of Mumbai.
But suddenly you have surfaced proving that loved places like loved friends are never forgotten.

I will refamiliarize myself with my hometown because people have told me a lot has changed. Of course some old places will be there, for example the Residency and the Dilkhusha Gardens where the War of 1857 was fought 150 years ago. So will the monuments and palaces built by the Nawabs of Awadh be standing majestically. The old shops, gardens and bungalows are there for people like me to see and feel at home again.
However in my own neighbourhood many neighbours of my parents' generation are no more. Their places have been taken up by unknown faces. Will I be welcomed as warmly by them? Will those who knew me in my college days be still there? Will I still be greeted with warm smiles ?

I pray the change has been superficial and that the essence of Lucknow has remained the same because when I return to Mumbai I want to carry a bit of MY Lucknow with me. But this time I'll make sure that my beloved city stays in the foreground of my memories. I will not let Mumbai overpower my hometown. Because the moment you let go of your memories you lose a part of yourself.

Bye everyone for now..
More from me after the Pujas are over!!!
Love,
Joyoti


]]>Fri, 05 Oct 2007 23:56:56 +0530http://belapur.rediffiland.com/blogs/2007/10/05/Going-Home.htmlPune's Deccan GymkhanaHello Everybody,

I am writing this piece from Pune. I am here on a short working visit . However the purpose of this short text is not about my work but about this beautiful and historical place where we are staying. Firstly the area is called Deccan Gymkhana and those of you who are familiar with this part of the world will know its historical importance. Right in between our hotel and our office is the gracious and elegant bunglow belonging to the Theosophical Society. The Poona branch was established in 1926. Dr. Annie Besant had laid the foundation stone. Till today meetings are held twice a week at 6:30 pm. . It is open to all who seek the subtel, sublime and the finer points of life. In fact the word 'Theosophy' originates from Greek and means ''Divine Wisdom''. If translated into Sanskrit it means 'Brahmavidya'.

All around this place there are hundreds of trees. Many of them are flowering trees. Some of them may well be 100 years old. These flowers are of various hues, yellow and white champa, fierry gulmohur, small and delicate white flowers with orange stalk (Bengali name Shiuli- Hindi name is Harsingaar) and the chameli tree. Their fragrance is awsome. No perfume in the world can match the sweet smell that pours out from them. Just across the office is Ferguson college road. Between the office and this road are about 10 huge florists shops .All along the roadside all you can see are huge buckets of rajanigandha, roses, asters, chrysanthymum. Their fragrance wafts across this area all the time. I feel as if I am sitting among flowers. You don't have to visit any valley of flowers, there are so many here. Since there are so amny trees can birds be far behind? This is the most beautiful place to come for work, of that I am sure. Those who are stressed out in Mumbai must make a short visit here to destress.

Bye for now everyone..

till next time.

Joyoti

]]>Wed, 19 Sep 2007 15:27:01 +0530http://belapur.rediffiland.com/blogs/2007/09/19/Pune-s-Deccan.htmlMumbai LocalBut that is only one aspect of the Mumbai local. I take the 7:09 am local every day to work and then the 6:00 pm back again when I'm homeward bound. Those who have never travelled on our locals won't believe a word till they actually see for themselves what happens. Every day the train enters the platform punctually at 7:09. You must be there at least 2 seconds before. Then as the train slows down you better start running along and hop into it as fast as you can because it is already 3/4 full. If your speed is anywhere short of lightning then you'll miss the two or three available seats and you jolly well keep standing till your destination. On a lucky day (while standing) you may get breathing space and may even get to say 'hello' to some of the regulars, otherwise be prepared to stand in a fixed postion like a statue till it is time to get down.

My stop is Kurla!! This is a station( built sometime during the British Raj) that should be bombed by the Central Railway and rebuilt from scratch. Anyway till such a thing happens those who have to get down at Kurla must start inching their way towards the door right from Chembur (two stations before) so that they don't miss the chance of placing their feet on the platform at Kurla.
Once the train reaches Kurla on platform 8 all the people pop out on the platform like popcorn. Then comes the nightmarish journey of climbing the high ramp(equal to 100 steps ) and running like olympic sprinters across the overbridge and then down the ramp(equal to 100 steps again) to platform 1 and out to the bus stop to catch the office bus. This part is not difficult , you'll say. Now hold it!!! In between there are 6 more platforms and Kurla being a junction there are trains pouring in from all directions and pouring out their passengers from all directions. So as thousands of you from your train try to go move westwards there'll be thousands more trying to move eastwards, each one running as if there was a tsunami chasing them. In between there is bound to be a terrible collision and you have to negotiate that, plus keep an eagle eye open for pickpockets and those who wear saris hold on to it with your dear life otherwise you'll end up in jail for indecent exposure.

Somehow you manage to keep yourself intact , reach your workplace smile at your colleagues and boss and behave like your'e fresh as a daisy. Everyone knows what you've been through but no one mentions it because everyone is pretending to be a daisy. You work 8 to 9 hours then head home. The journey to the station is bearable if there is no traffic jam.

Then comes the return train journey. Now this one is incomparable. Tempers are running high on all the 8 platforms of Kurla because the surrounding temperature is high. Add to it there are some whose blood pressure is high because they got a solid one from the boss. The train chugs in, already bursting to the seams because it is carrying homebound workers plus shoppers and non-working mothers and their kids also. You push and punch your way in, (you can't do it any other way) and enter. The compartment is so tightly packed that even breathing becomes difficult. If your arm is bent or you are bent at 45 degrees you stay that way. It is no different from a gas chamber and you'll feel like a victim who is going to be gassed.
By the grace of your luck you manage to reach your station. You don't have to get down. Just be near the door and you'll automatically come down. When you finally reach home you'll feel you have conquered the world.

This happens 365 days a year minus the holidays. However we cannot ignore our local trains . The Mumbai locals adore the railway locals because without them offices will shut down. If Mumbai shuts down you can imagine what'll happen to Mr. Chidambaram's 12% rate of growth!!!
So though we are managing Mr. Lalu Yadav please do something before your 45 lakh daily commuters get suffocated in your gas chambers. The fate and future of India lies in your hands!!!!!!


]]>Sun, 16 Sep 2007 16:17:41 +0530http://belapur.rediffiland.com/blogs/2007/09/16/Mumbai.htmlGanpati ChaturthiMumbai and Maharashtra's favourite God, Ganapati Bappa will grace countless homes in the state along with all the major street corners and minor bylanes of Mumbai. So for the next 10 days Mumbai will be decked like a bride in the evenings, we'll forget all our sorrows and the mundane events of daily life and get into the festive mood.
I know what will happen at our office. Ganapati stays in most of our homes these ten days and there will be a daily round of sweets, modak, farsan, aru vadi, Pune chikki and the fabulous Maharastrian Chivda. There will be a party every day during the lunch break and we will all forget to watch our waistlines. In the evenings everyone will go out to view the Ganapatis ..big and small and seek his blessings. We need him very much in a city like Mumbai where we wonder whether we will return home safely or not!!!

Once Anant Chaturdashi dawns Ganapati will leave us. We will bid him farewell as we sing 'Ganapati bappa moriya, furcha varshe laukariya' . We'll miss his presence but not for long because it will be soon time for Navaratri, Dandiya and Durga Puja. The cycle of fun will continue and more about it later..
Bye and cheerio till next time..
Joyoti



]]>Mon, 10 Sep 2007 23:27:34 +0530http://belapur.rediffiland.com/blogs/2007/09/10/Ganpati.htmlHelloHappy blogging,
Joyoti


]]>Sun, 09 Sep 2007 00:01:33 +0530http://belapur.rediffiland.com/blogs/2007/09/09/Hello.html