Sparrow

This bird is my favorite. I remember there was a pair of sparrows building a nest in my home when I was about 8 year old. So, I even now recollect the way the pair brought straw pieces and put them on a railing in our veranda where we can't reach the nest (or so the poor birds thought). Then one day I could here some chirpy sounds which told me that the little ones have come to this earth. The mom and dad used to bring food and it went on till one day the little ones were quite big to fly. Today sparrows are nowhere seen in the main city. I believe the reason is mobile. But I think it is because of buildings. They can't build in the new type of buildings. I even now see quite a big number in the nearby hospital's quadrangle. You can hear them making lovely noise together in the twilight of the evening. I have seen a big number when I was in Muscat. The villa where my sister lived, they used to come and peck the raw rice and cooked rice left by my sister. It is a lovely bird to watch. The male has a lovely dark brown ring round his neck and the female is small and cute in light brown color. I used to show these birds to my son when he was small. Well, things change. some things are bound to extinct because of the civilization. Pity, I think.

Multiple personality Disorder

This is a new name for split personality I think. Split is only two. If it is more than two, it is MPD?

I remember seeing Actress Jayanthi doing a great job of the split personality roles in Eradu Mukha. (2 faces). She is the timid Ramaa for a moment and the vivacious, sexy Umaa the next moment. The reason given in the movie is that the person becomes various persons when his/her desires are left unfulfilled. To fulfill those desires, they get vertically split. In real life there was a person who had more than 40 faces! My God, how difficult for that person to come back to the first real person! Anyway, the unfulfilled desire is what? Is it so difficult to get that? If not, is it very difficult to forget that? I think we must move on. If we hang on to something which we never get, what is the big deal of waiting? The Hindu philosophy says, if you run behind something (example fame), it runs away from you. If you keep it away, it comes in your search. I think all should give a try to this. Why not? if we can get something what we badly want, why not? But is it worth all the pains and troubles? If it becomes an obsession, it shows on our health, work and family too. Is it why we have come to this earth? Can we not think above this? Is it something impossible?

Half a cup of milk

One thing which is really bothering me is my mother's health. Whether it is failing or improving is difficult to understand. She looks frail and fragile. But she looks strong also. So, the confusion. She could be very sharp in her talking. This could be attributed to her helpless sleeping posture. But it could also cause some skirmishes at home! The kids won't take the nonsense (As per them, this is utter nonsense). With this background, what with my mum's ears being sharp and tongue being quite mobile, the words will roll out brewing unnecessary trouble at home. Seriously I do not know whom to blame. There was this scene in the evening. My sister heard me through the phone me shouting at my mother. She heard it from the USA. The advices started pouring from that long distance. Don't do like this, that etc., She is meaning good. But I too mean good about me shouting at mum,because her sharp words could cause irritation to children and they start their tantrums. what with about 2 hours free time after coming back from office, I did not want that. So, I told my mother firmly in a stern voice. Still she called me.I went with a frown. She told can you get me glass of milk please? I told why. There are others. She said, ' you make me drink it quite smoothly and I like it. can you do it today also please? My eyes became moist. What a simpleton my mother is.

Wedding Reception

My colleague Venu is getting married tomorrow. Today was his reception. The pair was very enthusiastic since they were making an official public appearance for the first time! The hall was full and we had to go through Bangalore to reach the wedding Hall. By the time we reached it was 8 pm which meant we have taken more than one and half hours. When we were waiting for our colleagues to come, there was a scene. A man was shouting at an old man. I don't know the reason. May be the old man could not stand properly and had to support himself by putting his hand on an old lady presumably the mother of the younger man. The Younger man started shouting. What a sad thing! The fights I have seen when the vehicles touch each other even without knowing. Then the drivers start outshouting each other. They may even go to the extent of holding each other's shirt collars. But in a Wedding Hall? That too when they are just guests? pathetic! I could see from a distance the groom having a worried look though accepting wedding wishes from his well wishers. But unthinkable these fights! Anyway, let me congratulate Pushpa and Venu for a happy and long married life. I had given the words used in his wedding card. The bride said everyone liked the words. I asked how about you? She was very happy I believe. I felt happy. But I still went and told her, let those not be mere words. Please be together in all walks of life I said. Good luck Venu. Good Luck Pushpa.

Again novel!

It is almost 8 years since I have done any solid writing. The reason is simple. I am plain lazy! I can't think of any other reason for my non-writing. But after much much deliberation, I have decided to write something. Mostly non fiction. Let me see. Once it is shaped up,I shall share the news. I do need to think a little more because I am also planning a novel. This time a teasing novel. This has to have some heavy dosage. Otherwise the story falls flat. For non fiction I have to search for the proper words so that it is an interesting reading. Generally it is very difficult to make a non fiction an interesting piece of writing. Fiction is actually easy if you do not consider the logic etc.,! Non fiction would make the people bored. Probably they would put the book down after reading the first 3 lines. ( I do it! So no wonder if someone else also do it!!) But still I shall try my best. Seriously thinking of giving the articles to some magazine for serialization (for name and of course the monetary benefit!!!) and then should pass it on to a publisher who would be interested to publish non fiction. But let me write first even before anything else! This dilemma would continue till I really put my effort. The hindrance for non writing continued in the form of laptop not working. Nowadays I have become so lazy that my handwriting won't be understood by anyone.So no choice but to type!!!

Here's a story

I have written 52 short stories. Really not a great number for 18 years of writing. But not much of a writing after 2002. A sort of hibernation. But some of them are good. I am proud of writing them. When I wrote another novel of mine in 2 days, I was sure it would lack quality. But it did not. It came out well. I even tried a trick used by Sidney Sheldon in Windmills of Gods. A trick which is very easy in English. But in Kannada gender is stressed upon in the verb. So, it would easily be known to reader that the person is male or female. But in English if you use came or went with a name, it won't tell whether the person is man or a woman. So it was a challenge in two ways. Not to give chance to the reader that the character of the particular character. The suspense has to be maintained till the end. The reader should keep on guessing what would happen in the end. I had the deadline of 2 days to handover the script. But all these things were done in two days. Even when I read again, I feel proud of the story which has not got tarnished either by story or by time even. I have a title of sincere writer from a great writer and editor. May be because of this, I am unable to write any trash. So, the subject is getting churned in the mind - Mana Manthana!

How to write?

I was happy to see an article in one of the women's fortnightly in Kannada giving tips for good and interesting reading. Well, quite long ago my favourite author Sri. Yandamoori Veerendranath had written a book called 'how to write popular novels, Dramas, short stories ?' In fact it even gives tips to write screenplay for movies and TV serials. No one probably thought in those lines those days. He even conducted workshops for writers. One of them became quite popular and wrote some beautiful novels. Some others took theme from him and wrote novels. I too took tips from a renowned editor of a Kannada Weekly who just showed me a news item and asked me to develop a novel. Actually I could write a 160 page novel based on the particular news item. It was not easy because I was enticed by an assistant editor of another popular daily to write it in 3 days! My mother fell ill and hospitalized. At that time I sat the whole night and finished the novel. I even interspersed the novel with the news item based on which I wrote. Those were the days. I have written in 2 days another time. The only condition we have to put ourselves is that we are not going to compromise on the quality no matter how many days you need to complete the book.