Sparsh

Howard Marks once said that “I became famous overnight after writing for 10 years.” Mr. Raj Shamani shared a valuable insight that sometimes people who are less smart, less prepared, and less talented still succeed and achieve bigger things. He emphasized consistency as a key factor enabling such success despite lacking typical advantages like talent or preparation.  I got inspired by that short to write down this blog post. A truly self-aware person recognizes that their greatest strength lies not in constantly accumulating new skills, but in nurturing and deepening the qualities that already define their unique identity. By embracing and building upon what is innately mine, I can offer a piece of life to the readers and viewers.  Hence, I am looking to work behind this YouTube Channel with imperfection and consistency.  I am thrilled to reintroduce the What good is a life if it trails behind work?  YouTube channel, a unique space that has been cultivating a rich ar...

I had palnned Sikkim/Bhutan Trip in festival session of Nuakhai . That trip was cancelled due to backing out of the friends. Hence, I was looking towards other options. I do view it as a now or never situation in planning travel schedule. I took quick decision with help of my friend at IIM Ahmadabad. Udaipur and Jodhpur were prime destination of two days short trip of Rajasthan. I was lone traveler this time. A balanced tourism is more about connecting with the local people and their culture, rather than site seeing like Maharajas of distant land. Talking for long session (1/2 -1 hour) with remarkable people like Shambhu (auto-rickshaw driver at Udaipur) and Yarden Gerest- Mar (Student of Computer Science at Hebrew University, Israel) were good experiences of the whole trip. Touring India is always mixed bag of praise, platitudes and panning. Foreign tourists are confronted with unfamiliar sights on a daily basis, such as open defecation that are no longer seen in the developed nati...

I planned to Tawang for my dreams to see Buddhist monasteries . The three musketeers (Gautam, Mriganka & Himanshu) were the travelers. We had finalized our tour itinerary for Arunachal after reading all tour reports on travel sites. We started from Bhubaneswar and reached Guwahati via Kolkata. Route to Tezpur from Guwahati was unexpectedly a plain grassland and took nearly 5 hours with state bus service. We got our permits done at Tezpur office only just before closing of the office. It seems sad to take Inner Line Permit to visit in our own country. But when we have draconian acts like AFSPA in Northeastern India, this seems to be less of our all worries. This part of India is seeing a grave human rights violation and things will go messy in future due to our state actions today. We took a 6 days tour package from Tezpur ASTC agent Miraz. The route from Tezpur to Tawang have patches of really bad road. Bhalukpong was the start of Arunachal Pradesh. There is a proposal of train l...

To travel is to discover that everyone is wrong about other countries. ~Aldous Huxley. The reality of India depends on where you stand, what you seek and how you choose to live. I went to Kolkata for two days with Gaurish in Durga Puja festival. This travel tour was a way forward to learn about diverse cultures as I know very little about my own country. And, yes this was welcome break from avalanche of bullshit mountain of patriotism on the virtual word of facebook. This travel tour was a chance to enjoy a festive season with Bengali people. With arrival in Kolkata, I was caught in the race of hundred of people looking for exit at railway station. Watching the city for the first time was like reading through the pages of history with one's own eyes. The city was dipped in colors of Puja festival and I was trying to figure out the spirit of the Kolkata as few call this as city of joy. And yes, everything was either appearing either holy or historical. While traveling around ...

I was reading a Jug Suraiya's column : Atheism is the best worship recently. I sunk deeply in the memories of city that I detest heavily. That city is Varanasi, notorious for touts. I will quote a paragraph here for the context : A French sociologist has likened personal prayer and the giving of votive offerings to bribery. He has noted that in countries where the tradition of personalised God-worship is most entrenched –as in India, and in Roman Catholic Italy – the incidence of bribery in everyday life is also proportionately high. If God himself is a Babu who can be bribed to do your bidding with a prayer and a few diyas or candles, where’s the harm in slipping some currency notes to a bureaucrat or politician or policeman to do what you want done? Doesn’t God himself teach us to bribe? In which case, how can bribery and corruption be bad things, if they’re God-given? Those 2004–2008 years in Varanasi felt like living inside a timeless aarti, with semester deadlines drifti...

In plucking the fruit of memory one runs the risk of spoiling its bloom -Joseph Conard. A journey back to Nanital has keep me guessing about this quotes. I have grown up in Nanital till the age of five years. There is always a sense of excitement attached to old memories. Especially, of the places where one grows up. Memories are altered by present day reality and the sweetness is lost. We are grown up on the tales of childhood and in weaving an endearing and engaging past times. There is tale made by elders about ours association with these places. Only fogy scenes appear in the mind about childhood days when even memories were not even saving in the brain. Back then, life was blossoming with the present. Neither care for future and nor drag of yesterday. When I want to re cherish those moments and reached to the place after twenty years, everything was changed. I was hoping for the time frozen land of my memories welcoming me with a cheer. All the landscape was different than imag...

The world is conquered by the travelers. Voyage of Marco Polo , Christopher Columbus , Vasco da gama has changed the course the history .The boundaries are for weak and xenophobic people. The brave wanders without borders. He always led mankind in the frontiers of each field. Nation or society is only misguided by self proclaimed intellectual rusting at a place. Every country falls in dump where inhabitants rest at a place. The world is conquered and ruled by the people who left the home to achieve something. The water of river may be polluted somewhere, but constant flow makes it clean. The water of well appear sweet for some days but become polluted with time. Traditions are always spread by the roaming ambassadors of the culture. Any person or society can only be prospered by coming in contact with each other. Boundaries of India were extended to Cambodia, Malaysia & Indonesia. Then preachers of Hinduism decided to reside at home. Crossing to seven seas was losing the reli...

Che Guevara is the role model of many youths across the world. Everyone can feel the voice of Latin America in his thinking. A young man pursuing medical course was transformed into revolutionary by a travel. As a young medical student, Guevara traveled throughout Latin America and was transformed by the endemic poverty he witnessed. His experiences and observations during these trips led him to conclude that the region's ingrained economic inequalities were an intrinsic result of monopoly capitalism, neo-colonialism, and imperialism, with the only remedy being world revolution. He became the eminent face of communism in 20 century. Now, compare yourself with him. You will be the person who has not traveled so far yet.But who am I to tell you to do these adventurous things. Simply NOBODY;Stop reading here if you will be stuck in same place after these lines OR just hear what I want to say. I started reading novels with “Gulliver travels”,"Around the world in 80 days" and...

I was once asked about famous people hailing from my home town, Azamgarh. I cannot name even one of eminent fellows. Few of us will know the name of Rahul Sankrityayan or Kaifi Azmi . Fewest of us have heard the name of Ayodha Singh ‘Harioudh’ & Shibli Nomani . These names are not even famous now in Hindi or Urdu speaking belt of India. Contrary to this, Dawood Ibhrahim, Abu Salem & Ejaj Lakedwala are renowned names from Azamgarh to Dubai. I have mentioned them in my previous post: Welcome to Azamgarh Now, Abu Basher has added his name in this eminent list of role models. It is slight different case now. All of the previous names were criminals but now emerging names are terrorists. There is a place called Saraimeer in the Azamgarh district. It is strong hold of Muslim population. Sadly, most of the wanted criminals originate from this place. But in truth, Azamgarh is like a dormant volcano. Only lava of this volcano is erupting and causing destruction at different places. Som...

Do you know any city named Azamgarh? Off coarse, you will be briefed by various news channel telling Azamgarh as den of terrorists. Azamgarh, a small sleepy town in eastern UP, is under scanning again, for all the wrong reasons in national bulletins. But,my amazement to these lies in the fact that this city is mine hometown. I will give you 3 links to understand the unique background of this place. 1-Azamgarh in Wikipedia 2-Azamgarh in Government website 3-Azamgarh in Historical Percepts Few days ago, I was tracing the roots of cultural,political and social fabric of this district.I have not lived at this place from my birth. My paternal side belongs to Azamgarh and maternal side belongs to Mau (a district formed by the division of Azamgarh in 1988). Still, except my father all my relatives are in these two district.This place really is far beyond any city in India at least 20 years. Azamgarh backwardness lies in the mindset of the people residing there. People can't think beyond ...

While going through Internet for Randy Pausch,I stumbled across one of the eye opener description about Air India.Before reading article,I became quite happy to see that he was an ITBHU alumni.Afterwards,i felt sorry for him.Narrator, Sharad V. Oberoi is pass out of 2005 batch of civil engineering.I think,my colleagues will remember it as a batch of person named MAKKU SHARMA. Ok,leave that stuff...Here is the link of the : Tour de Air India

I had completed my journey to 2 of the holiest places in India till 15th March.Khwaja Sharif at Ajmer & Brahma Sarover at Puskar were these two places.I had planned with Vijay to visit or wander in different places of India together.So the starting of multiple stage program began at Ajmer.I had taken Night out to prepare myself for tour.Train was direct and reaching Varanasi to Ajmer in 24 hours.It was much better option than catching Marudhar express for Jaipur and changing train for Ajmer.Itinerary was ready and so were us.Bond and Chandu dropped us at Lanka in the morning.There was perfect cleaning of road from railway station to BHU due to upcoming arrival of Dr. Manmohan Singh .He was the chief guest in the 90th convocation of BHU . Arrival of Prime minister in university was of no concern to us.For most of guys, it is a minor incident as face to face interaction or conversation to PM or full day vacation on this occasion is not possible. Journey till Agra was fine.In th...

Continuing my journey from last blog post : I met a person named Ram at Delhi Airport. He works in Kuwait in the petroleum sector. He was an IITB alumnus- 1983 pass out. I was really pleasured to meet him. He told me that he was more interested in music than studies in his younger days. A bit off talk take place and I was informed of a most amazing fact/fiction by him; That his interview of DRDO in 1983 at IIT-B placement was taken by President Kalam who was then Director of DRDO. I was tired and slept in the Airplane. I have reached Kuwait from Delhi at 9 am (Kuwait timings). Then, we parted without saying goodbye to each other. My next flight was at 9 AM only but it became 1 hour late. Talking about Kuwait airport, I can only say an oasis made in desert from petrodollars. It's like barren and sandy for miles around but i do not visualize country as a part of Arabian Nights. Then, I met a German lady [40 years of age]. She was with me from Delhi but we never talked till Kuwait....