Another Onam goes by....

And it’s that time again. The time when the small state of Kerala rises as one to celebrate Onam – the return of King Maveli.

And here I am, thousands of kilometers from home, doing nothing but with memories of Onam long gone by.

Onam for me in school was always about exams and the vacations.  We used to wait eagerly for the last exam and then rush home. Grandpa, grandma, uncles, aunties n cousins, everyone was there.  It was about trying to get up early in the morning, gathering flowers, making pookalam, going to temples, pookalam competitions etc. And back then the biggest craze was getting the new dresses and wearing them.  Of course it has to happen with a beautiful sadhya. Looking back after all these years, it was pretty simple then but those were the best Onam I ever had. 

And then things started to change slowly. There were no new dresses or pookalam. Onam during college days in Bangalore was pretty much restricted to a sadhya. If we had one, then it made our day. Well it was not exactly a sadhya, a Kerala lunch at most. Onam was spent in the hostel rooms, making calls, writing exams, collecting whatever little money we could find and searching for a hotel anywhere from Kalasipalayam to Madiwala which would serve a sadya. Still remember one particular Onam when there was some holiday and we were unable to find a hotel that had sadhya. Wherever we went, it was over and finally we had to settle for a fish curry meals on Onam day. Then there was another Onam where one of the bikes got punctured and we had to push it all the way to mechanic.

Time moved on, got a job. Different places at different times. Mysore, Chennai, Mumbai and so on. In Mysore, we had a holiday but had to return next day.  One of my friends was going to Kannur by vehicle and me and another friend joined him. The journey was exciting. But the worst part was not having sadhya on Thiruonam. I had to start by noon that day and it was definitely a worst feeling. And in return journey we were chased by elephants!

  

In Chennai, it was always about trains. Trying to plan my holidays, booking train tickets in advance, cancelling them, rescheduling, waiting for special trains, booking tatkal tickets, trying to complete work before time, the Onam celebration in office, rushing to catch the suburban train to Chennai Central. And finally when the train starts there is a sense of calm, an excitement of what lies ahead.  As the train moves towards my home next morning, it always pleases me to watch the greenery, children getting ready with the pookalam, families going to temples. For a moment in that journey, I used to forget everything around and just enjoy the view  and the rhythmic sound of train.

And now here I am, when Kerala starts celebrating Onam, writing a blog in middle of night. I am still not sure what made me do it. As someone once said, the farther you are from something, the dearer it will become.

To all the Malayalees everywhere, have a great Onam. And may Maveli bless you all. :) 

Speechless...

There are certain times when you just know just don't know what to say. There have been numerous such instances and here are a few that I can recollect.

Winners

My friend had been to a cricket tournament during weekend and when I met him on Monday in office he was pretty sad. I went up to him and asked him the reason. He told me that his team lost in the finals. I then asked who won the tournament. He replied, “The opposite team".

Username

In one of my projects, I was helping the client with testing the various interfaces. The users wanted to test an application which was not available for testing earlier. No one seemed to be aware of the application and finally somehow I got a person who knew it. He installed it and I tried accessing it. It prompted me for a username and password. I asked the person for the same. He replied to me in mail - "Rohan, We don't have any usernames and password for this application".

Leave

One of my friends went to his lead to ask for a leave.

Friend: I want leave on Monday and Tuesday.

Lead: Why?

Friend: My sister’s marriage.

Lead: Hmm… (Staring at his outlook calendar for a couple of minutes).

Lead: Can’t you postpone it?

Friend: %^&*$#@

Cricket

Cricket - I think it runs in blood of almost every Indian. It had once run in mine too. Yeah once upon a time even i had followed it religiously. I have lost count of the matches that I have watched without missing a single ball. The match fixing scandal of the late nineties was an acid test. Initially like millions out there even I felt depressed. But gradually the madness was back.

The fab five - Sachin, Anil, Sourav, Rahul and VVS were instrumental in rekindling my interest. Each special in his own way. Each has brought smiles to millions. Each has become a part of the Indian cricketing history.

Sachin Tendulkar. The man who has ruled cricket for two decades. The man who carried Indian cricket through the turbulent nineties. When it was accepted that India wins only if Sachin plays well. The magician with the bat. The most important quality is his ability to bounce back when people write him off. Just as he done with his double ton the other day. I was lucky enough to have watched it in office. And i did not feel like doing any work for nearly three hours after watching that innings ! Here is one man who has brought us cheers when there was gloom around us. The man who taught India to believe in herself. Who thought us that we can win through hard work and passion. I bow to thee, Little Master.

My fav : The Sharjah storm.

Anil Kumble. The synonym for sheer perseverance and determination. The one who couldn't spin a cricket ball but ended up taking 619 test wickets. One of the great sights of Indian cricket

was Kumble bowling with his fractured jaw and taking the wicket of Brian Lara. The first time i remember watching him was during Hero cup against the Windies where he took 6/12. Ten wicket haul that made him a legend followed. But the thing that impressed me the most was the way he captained the team during the Aus tour of 2007. The famous quote after the infamous Sydney test says it all - "Only one team was playing in the spirit of the game".

My fav - 10 @ Kotla

Sourav Ganguly. The bravest captain that India has ever had. One who believed in an eye for an eye. He is the most controversial of the fab five. The 'God' on the off side he had a dream start to his career (if his ODI debut in 92 is ignored). Instead of switching off the TV sets when Sachin gets out, people started waiting till Sourav is at crease. His four man of the match performances at Toronto helped India in a rare one-sided series victory against Pakistan. Controversy has always been his favorite companion. Be it waiting Steve Waugh for toss or the famous shirt waving at Lords. Bad form and ugly spat with coach led to his removal from the side. But as he has done always he bounced back in style signing off with a series victory against the Australians.

My fav - 144 @ Brisbane

Rahul Dravid. The architect behind most of India's famous test victories. Remember Eden Gardens, Adelaide, Kingston, Hamilton. Mr.Consistent @ 3. No matter where the match is played, no matter what the state of the pitch is, more often than not he delivers for India. The man for whom team comes before everything else. Keeping wickets, batting @ no 6, whatever the captain asks he will be ready to do it. He makes sure that most of the times the bowlers earn his wicket. Initially criticized for his slow pace in one days cricket and also dropped from the time. He worked on his game and came back with a vengeance by becoming the highest run getter in the 99 world cup. Again showed his character against Australia in 2001 after a poor show in the first three innings. Demoted to number 6, he scored 180* to script one of the greatest comebacks in cricket. A professional par excellence.

My fav: Test victory against Aus @ Adelaide

VVS Laxman: 281. That says it all. The artist with magical wrists. Technically least sound of the above players. But he makes it up with his timing and the use of wrists. He had to struggle a lot in initial days. The stable middle order meant that he had to play as an opener, not his favorite.

Dropped from the side, he forced his way back by scoring heavily in the Ranji trophy. Showed his first sign of greatness during his 167 @ Sydney. But again he was unable to perform consistently. Then came Eden Gardens. He has always reserved his best against the Australians. Be it Adelaide, Mumbai, Eden Gardens or Sydney. But despite so many performances always his place in the team is in doubt. One of the best batsmen to watch when in flow. And my favorite cricketer.

My fav: 281. What else...