I’m Fine, Thank You!

May 25, 2020

First experience of loneliness happened in 2013. After initial hesitation, I started embracing it. And slowly, I realized I am making myself comfortable with it. Eventually my loneliness became my comfort zone. Everyday, my daughter used to come back home in the afternoon, my wife in the evening, and I could not even express my feeling, the problem with my loneliness to them. Gradually I started realizing that, loneliness was no more a problem to me, it had become my solace, it has turned into solitude. … More I’m Fine, Thank You!

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Mann ki Baat: Testimonial of an Anti-National (Part Two)

March 5, 2016

So, Afzal had to die. Even the final judgement of the Supreme Court of India mentioned that they stressed more upon the “collective conscience of the nation” than “concrete evidence”. “Afzal is characterised as a “menace to the society”, whose “life should become extinct” to satisfy “the collective conscience of the society.” … More Mann ki Baat: Testimonial of an Anti-National (Part Two)

Mann ki Baat: Testimonial of an Anti-National (Part One)

February 26, 2016

Next day morning they were taken to the interrogation room. He was forcefully stripped off naked and electrocuted by wrapping both his hands with copper wire. Hussain wanted to shout with all his life but couldn’t as cotton balls inside his mouth suppressed any sound that were about to come out. These balls were changed immediately once they got wet with blood, saliva or vomit. Next they forcefully inserted the wire in his penis and electrocuted. … More Mann ki Baat: Testimonial of an Anti-National (Part One)

Tale of a Dream Come True, or Beginning of a Dream

January 29, 2016

Nidhi was telling: For our case arranging the deposit money of the Scorpio was a big challenge. But for bike it won’t be a big amount. The main challenge would be getting the visas. Normally people fly from one country to another. They mention the arrival date accordingly while applying for the visa. But for our case, there was no fixed arrival date, as we did not know when we would arrive in which country. You are entering a country on your vehicle, by road, and exiting the same way – the embassies normally doesn’t want to grant visa in such cases. For us, the Ministry of External Affairs came as a big help. For every issue, they helped us in getting the Visas. It was not much trouble ultimately. … More Tale of a Dream Come True, or Beginning of a Dream

Ladakh – Part Twelve (and Last)

September 16, 2015

I was sleeping, but it was not a full sleep. I could hear sounds of songs being played inside the Dhaba – old Hindi songs; Mohammad Rafi, Asha Bhonsle … was that Bani Jayram? I could hear Sumit ordering Lassi, Gurdeep ordering lunch, I could hear the Dhaba man was saying “Yahaan se do kilometer aage ek nehr hai, wahan thanda paani milega, chaaho toh jaa kar nahaa kar aa jaao.” (Two kilometers from here you’d get a canal, you can go and take a bath there, the water is cold). I was not actually sleeping; I was rather in a semi-conscious mode. After some time I got back to my sense, sat straight on the chair; and asked for some water. … More Ladakh – Part Twelve (and Last)

Ladakh – Part Eleven

September 8, 2015

While stationary, you get chance to talk to your fellow riders, but while riding it is horribly boring. The darkness, broken road, countless negotiations with trucks – the brain behaves differently in this situation. I started singing a song myself, after sometime I found myself reciting a childhood rhyme – Amader chhoto nodi chole aanke-baanke. I murmured as long as I could remember and then I discovered myself singing another song – Jab koi baat bigad jaaye – and then again I was reciting something else – Aami jakhon chhoto chhilam, khelte jetam megher dole. … More Ladakh – Part Eleven

Ladakh – Part Ten

September 2, 2015

Yes, I was literally “thrown out” of my moving bike, but I actually landed in slow motion in a very, very soft cushion of ice, I was not hurt at all. The bike was lying at the other side of the narrow road. But I took no chance; I sat idle for few seconds, making sure my breathing rate does not increase. Oxygen is very, very scarce here. … … More Ladakh – Part Ten

Ladakh – Part Nine

August 28, 2015

Vineet, Preeti and I engaged in a quick discussion. I suggested to go with the worst possible plan. We would proceed, in case rooms are not available at Khardung village, we would have to come back twenty five kilometers back to Khalsar, and next day again we would have to go this twenty five kilometers extra. Leh is one hundred kilometers more from the Khardung village. The fuel we had in our bikes were just enough to take us to Leh, but for this extra fifty kilometers we would need at least one to one-and-half litres of petrol each. If petrol is available here, we would purchase in black, and move ahead, if not, then no question of moving ahead, we would stay at Khalsar. … More Ladakh – Part Nine

Ladakh – Part Eight

August 21, 2015

First Sumit, then I hugged him tightly. I was so mesmerized by his performance, I could not even take a single picture of him rescuing my gloves. Gurdeep smiled, as-if nothing had happened – No big deal, I took mountaineering training for few days. This exercise was no big thing for me.

I was speechless, just held his hands. Totally unknown to each other, can anyone take such a risk for somebody else? We just met for few days, we’ll go back and no one knows whether we’d meet again or not after this trip – could I take this risk for him?

No, I could not take. I do not have that guts. Silently I put on the gloves, and started my bike. … More Ladakh – Part Eight