Pongal Bhogi Makara Sankranthi...!

The first day of Makara Sankranthi or Pongal is celebrated as the Bhogi. The theme of these festivals is Thanks giving to nature and gods who blessed people with a good harvest. Bhogi panduga is in honor of Lord Indra who is the God of Clouds and Rains. Lord Indra is worshiped for the abundance of harvest, thereby bringing plenty and prosperity to the land.

Sankranti(A.P,Karnataka),Pongal(Tamil Nadu),Makar Sankranti (Maharastra and Gujarat) and Lohri (Punja and Haryana). Sankranti which is the most important festival for us Telugus and is called 'Pedda Panduga' ( big festival) signifying that it is a time to discard the old and welcome the new and is the harbinger of more light and sunshine in life.Sankranti is celebrated over four days, the first day(14th Jan) is called 'Bhogi', the second day(15th) is 'Sankranti', the third day(16th) is, 'Kanuma' and the fourth day (17th),'Mukkanuma'.

Inspite of the fast changing times with people migrating from villages to bigger cities in search of greener pastures and with cities expanding ,the spirit behind the way we celebrate our festivals has not quite changed.Bhogi,the first day is marked with gaiety and is celebrated on the eve of Sankranti or Pongal in all its entirety with traditional practices and customs which have been followed since our forefathers.

Early in the morning at 4 a.m ,a bonfire (Bhogimantalu) is lit on the occasion of Bhogi symbolizing ringing out the old to ring in the new.Old brooms, baskets,clothes,junk firewood,broken wooden furniture are all thrown into the fire signifying the cleansing of the house and a fresh start to the new year.Life is seen as a continuous renewal.This is the picture of our Bhogimantalu on Bhogi day at 5 a.m

Another great sight in every village during Sankranti is a decorated bull with multi-coloured attire moving from one house to another led by its master who plays the nadaswaram (flute) to the accompaniment of the dol (a drum). The 'gangireddi' is trained to perform a variety of feats like nodding in acceptance, kneeling and bowing down and even dancing!You will find the decorated bull going around each home here in the city too during the festival season.Old clothes, raw rice and money are given away to the gangireddula vadu (bull’s master) in charity on the occasion of Sankranti.Here's a picture of a fully adorned gangireddu with his gangireddi vaallu (masters) performing a feat in front of my ammamma's(grandmother)home.

WHO ARE YOU...!

When Yesterday haunts in the name of truth
and When today becomes history
I'm questioning myself
Shall I ask you too?
WHO ARE YOU?
Just ask your heart, Who you really are!!


You're not a name, not some place, not the face
You're not cash, Then What?
You're not time, not dream, not game either
You're You, Then what?

Are you a Columbus in the search of self?
Are you chorus, who sings with self?
Are you Hercules bearing yourself?
Are you chess, who plays with self?

A game?
A song?
A hunt?
A hunter?

WHO ACTUALLY ARE YOU?

Even before the invention/birth of fire, You've got desire/determination(fire) in your heart
Even before the invention/birth of water, You've got those tears  ( in your eyes)
Even before you've inhaled air, You've got a tornado in your breath
The presence of Land, sky is itself a question infront of you now.

Fire?
Water?
Air?
A question?

WHO ACTUALLY ARE YOU?

Happy Birthday to me...! Happy Birthday...!

DD/MM/YYYY was not an ordinary day.
Early in the morning, before the sunrise, a Baby Girl Fairy was dropped from the Fairy Lands to the Earth.
There were songs of joys and rejoices everywhere.
Cool breeze was playing and running across the meadows.
Dew drops were dancing and floating over the leaves.
Birds were swaying and singing in chorus:
"Happy Birthday Happy Birthday Happy Birthday (Name),
Happy Birthday Happy Birthday Happy Birthday to you.

BECAUSE LIFE BEGINS AT 25

Last year January, I turned 24.

I had friends contacting me on different channels, and some of them making up some plans. But, what did I do? I stayed holed up in my room all day, accompanied by a bottle of Milk, and a pack or more of Peanuts.

And what was the thought that kept me in that morbid state the whole day, detached from everyone I know? The fact that I was only one year away from turning 25!

Here I was, living up my life, in the prime of my life, and the number 25 loomed rather heavily over me. It was meant to be, I told myself. But, I also told myself immediately – it was earlier than I thought! I felt like my life had barely begun, and I was becoming old already. I had not bungee-jumped, I didn't do a skydive yet, I didn't do an open-water dive yet. Hell, I couldn't even thread in water properly! And here I was, just one year away from the dreaded 26.

Of all the things that I had done that day, I had taken a stock of my life. Not for the pathetic prelude of a dreaded number, but to see how prepared I was for it. And for the first time ever, I tried to make birthday resolutions, and stick to them.

Today, I AM 25!

As the midnight hour approached on the 13th,I was at Room. Alone. I have not replied to all those good friends wishing me a happy birthday. And have been holed up at home, and then at the office.

All I wanted to do, was be alone. Reflect. Recompose. Remonstrate. Reconcile my inner differences.

And having reached that dreaded number of 25, I want to revisit those resolutions I made the last year, and see where I stand. 

1)      Health

I had lived a rather healthy life till the end of my college days. But after Self employment, life made me a different man; a Business spoilt me in the mornings and money spoilt me in the evenings. I was having fun, I was content. Which meant that I was drinking and eating like someone who was prosperous enough to afford it. But I was also out-of-shape. On my 24th birthday, I had weighed in around 71 kilos. 

Resolution: Get healthy. Don’t go into your 26’s with a beer belly like a man of reason would.

Current status: Since the last birthday, I’ve been working out religiously, at least 4 times a week. And it shows. As of today, I stand at 68 KG, a clean 3 kg drop from previous year. I am eating very healthy now, I know what an Atkins diet is, I know what my nutritional requirements are, and what proteins and complex carbs I need for my daily sustenance. My fat % dropped from 24% to 13%, and is further going down. I can backpack Spain for 10 days straight, or bicycle around Jeju for 3 days and not feel tired. I actually feel younger.

Remind me to revisit this resolution after a year.

2)      Travel

I fell in love with travel, and particularly travel photography, about 4 years ago. But then, it was all about official travel. There is nothing better than getting to see different countries, and knowing that you are not paying a penny for a thing!

But then, I never planned for any of those trips. And I was restricted to the countries I could visit, and the places I could go. I was restricted to what I could do during a trip. In effect, I slowly realized the difference between a traveller and business tourist. And until last year, I was mostly the latter.

Resolution: Travel the world. Not on business visa. And travel to places that you have never heard of. Live the budget traveller lifestyle.

Status: I think I trumped this section of my resolution. 4 countries visited in the last 12 months. At least one trip every 2 months. I maybe broke like an old table, but I have memories to show for it. And pictures in thousands.

3)      Career

I have been a very ambitious kid since my early 20’s, climbing up the corporate ladder quickly. I worked hard, put in late hours, managed to sacrifice a lot on my personal life. But I managed to grow. And then came a point a couple of years ago, when my youth started subsiding, and my experience started gaining the higher ground.

Resolution: Give your 100% at work. But stop at 100. Don’t go the extra mile everyday. Don’t put in late hours, or work weekends, or promise unreasonable project timelines. In short, play by the god-damn book, and stop trying to write your own.

Status: Sense of super-accomplishment! Took up projects, whined about short timelines, maintained project budgets. Yeah, its all good.

A good friend once told me – when I was 21 and he was 30 – that life begins at 30. I know our perspectives were different, but I can’t agree more with him at this pivotal junction of my life. I know what I plan to do in my 30’s. The countries that I will visit. The number of times I will hit the gym, working towards that elusive single digit body fat%. The stupid career mistakes that I will make.

The life I will live.

And that life will be good. Because life begins at 2, people.

New Year Eve

Happy New Year To everyone around me


But the Last day of 2014 was filled with tensions and Sadness, the day was not Good with H...!