Heavy.

If you’ve listened to the song ‘Heavy’ by Linkin Park, then you probably would know where this post is taking you. I, through my previous posts, have talked about different things, including my own experiences. But through this post, I want to talk about something which is part of a lot of people’s life. Some are trying to deal with it, while some don’t even know about it.

What I’m talking about here, is Depression. A lot of people would find it boring to read about it, and that’s where the problem is. People don’t know what it is and that is why they don’t take it seriously. But depression is real. And it’s darker than it seems to be. It is a lot, lot more than someone just saying “I’m depressed.” It is a state of mind which could eat you alive on the inside and you would still seem normal on the outside. In terms of psychiatry, it a state where one loses the ability to feel the happiness, joy, and positivity like a normal person would do. In extreme cases, it can take the life of the sufferer. Yes, you read it right. Approximately 800, 000 lives are lost to suicide annually. The reason? Depression. So how exactly does depression works?

To make the answer as simple as possible, it doesn’t work at all. What does the job is our own mind. As we all know, our mind works in mysterious ways. But this is a mystery no one would want to be a part of. And yet somehow many are. Depression doesn’t have a face. It resides in ones mind, where only the person inside whose mind it is, is able to look in to. Have you ever seen someone who is always happy? Someone who is always jumping up and down with joy. By whose only presence would light up the room. All of this seems right, doesn’t it? But as soon as that person is on his/her own, alone, the devil starts to take over. The person suddenly gets lost inside the mind of their own. Thinking about things that don’t even exist, but are malign. The mind starts stacking up problems that are so unnecessary *and that’s a line from the song*. Many times, even being with other people doesn’t work. Imagine you are with a lot of people. Chilling, having fun. But suddenly you find yourself out of that place, mentally. Your mind totally disconnects from all the positive things going on around you without you realizing it. That feeling, is depression. If you want to get a hint of how strong and dark it could get, take the example of Chester Bennington. Listening to him, his songs, no one would have ever thought he would leave us like that. The person who had helped innumerable people get through depression, would lose the battle of his own. If a person that strong could not stand against depression, what would a normal person do? 

Considering all of this, it is extremely vital that we take this seriously and act upon it. How do we do it? Talk. Whether you are going through it, or you know someone who is, the best thing to do is talk as much as you can. If you don’t, things start to pile up inside you which makes it heavy to carry. So just let it out. No matter how difficult it seems, tell everything you feel to someone who would understand. And if you know someone who is going through this, just go and have a conversation with them. May it take time, but eventually the person will open up. Besides this, try to do things you would really love to do. Give it some time. Depression is not a small thing. But if we fight hard enough, it would never be bigger than us.

P. S.: YouTube/Linkin Park/Heavy. Depression is a lot more than whatever you just read, and this song literally says everything about it. Also, be open to talk to people. I would request all of you who’s reading this, to be aware of it and share it across. Positivity is the key!

Till next time, peace!

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Better India or Bitter India?

Is India really a free country?

If yes, then we need to ask this question to ourselves again. Not just to ourselves but to all those who had taught this to us. I still remember when in school we used to say a little pledge every morning that started with the lines “India is my country and all Indians are my brothers and sisters…”. Back then, what I used to be concerned about was if all the Indians are brothers and sisters, who would be my girlfriend? But as I grew up I realized that I, whichever ways, was not gonna get one. Well, jokes apart! Soon as I grew up I understood that India is NOT my country. And I got the answer to the question- YES. India in fact IS free; but the youth is not. Why? The answer’s ahead, coming straight through my frustration.

From quite a while now, we all have come across the slogan “Unity in Diversity”. So what does it mean? Does it mean to unite and be ignorant? To love your own people, your own language, your own pride so much that no one else willing to be a part of it is encouraged? The bitter truth- Yes. It does mean all of these. Today’s India does not believe in Unity in Diversity but believes otherwise. If you observe carefully, every other state in India wants to be diverse, and unite to show other states and people of the other states down. Today’s India loves its pride more than it loves it’s citizens. It is no more a “one for all, all for one” place.

So I live in the beautiful state of Karnataka. One of the most happening cities in the country- Bangalore. I hate to break it to you guys that there are certain conditions that apply for it to be happening for you. To state a few, you must know the language, and you, again, MUST know the language. There are a lot of people here who are nice to you and might not care if you are not a Kannadiga, the people from my workplace for instance(Yup, they are nice). But there also are some people who will treat you as if you have raided their houses and stolen all of their bissi belle bhaath. They’ll hate you on your face, for real! And all of this would be just because you are not a Kannadiga and you don’t speak the language.

This happened to me twice in last 4 months. I was riding the bus, heading to a friends place quite far from where I live. I had the Google maps with me to guide me where to get off but just to be sure, I asked a guy, “When will HSR layout(the place I was going to) arrive?” Yes, I asked this in English. And the reply I got from him? “Gotilla. Kannada dalli mathadu.” I understood what he said as I had learnt some words from a friend. The guy meant, “Don’t know. Speak in Kannada.” And then he mumbled something to his friends again. I don’t know whether he knew about the place or not, but he surely didn’t want to answer my question just because I didn’t ask him in Kannada. This happened to me once again a few days later. And not just this, many people are against your freedom too. Gather up with your friends for a normal chit-chat session or for a cup of tea and people will crawl outta their houses like owls in the night. A few words with them and you’ll be threatened in the name of police complaint. Or if you are standing on a roadside and you have a few girls in your group, heads will turn 180 degrees and until they can’t turn it anymore. People will look at you as if you are dancing around naked with the opposite sex. At times I feel like screaming on top of my voice and say “What the heck is the matter with you?!” After 9 hours of butt-whipping at work, can’t somebody have a nice time with their friends? Is it so difficult for people to accept a group of boys and girls having a good time?

“I hate this place” is what I find myself whispering to myself these days. And it’s not just this place. There are other places too where people put their pride first. Don’t know how to converse in Marathi? It’ll be difficult for you to survive in Maharashtra. If it’s not then people will make sure it gets so. And the list of places goes on and on. Again, not everyone is the same. But there are certain kinds of people who just love to hate the “Indians” who do not belong to THEIR culture. Now I know some of you may get offended reading something against the country or any part of it. But I don’t mean to hurt anyone’s feelings or offend any culture. This is what I have experienced and seen or I can say, people have portrayed themselves as. And maybe I would never know why.

P.S.: This one was a bit lengthy, but I had to pour it all out. I don’t mean to speak ill of any culture, language or any set of people but this is what the truth is. This is what TODAY’S INDIA looks like.

In a World Like This.

Look around yourself. Go out on a walk and observe silently. What do you see? People? Trees? Automobiles? Now go and stand in front of the mirror and take a look at yourself and ask “How do I relate with this world?” “Am I good enough to live in this place?” “Is this world right enough to live in?” And trust me, you will be surprised by the answers you will get. The fact itself will surprise you that you have never ever asked these question to yourself before. Everyone on this planet, in one way or another, is living in monotony. Following the same routine, seeing the same faces, going to the same places every single day(put aside the nomads). And the interesting yet scary part is, we never realize this!  What we all need to do is go out there and explore wildly. Having new experiences is just as important as your boring, everyday job. Try living alone for a while. Be broke. Meet new people and engage into crazy conversations. If you have any problem doing the last thing, go and read out my previous post. So what I’m trying to say here is, be open and vulnerable to new experiences. Not only this will add that buzz to your life but it’ll also help you learn some crucial lessons that no one ever is going to teach you.

One of the secrets to a happy living is to have a purpose. Once you know what your purpose is, work your ass off to serve it. Sleepless nights, restless days, blood and sweat, put every damn thing on the line for it. Ask yourself at the end of everyday, ‘Did you put in enough effort today to get yourself a little bit closer to your purpose?’ If yes, keep it up! If no, work harder! And don’t just keep the things you know to yourself. Share it with as many people as you can. You might be of some help for someone and also, people will get to know that you are smart and you know stuff!! But a lot of people have special powers to turn every positive thing into negative. You’ll find people with such powers all around you. Maybe the person sitting next to you is one of them! So, how do you overcome this power of negativity? The answer lies within those three magical words. Oh it’s not what you are thinking. The words are ‘Let-It-Be’. Maybe the most powerful words that could push away all the negativity and the problem in a snap. Let not all of the bullshit bother you and take you down. All those greedy, selfish, mean people are going to be there no matter what you do. So why not try letting them do their job and you do your own; which is to stay positive and work towards your goal, your purpose. And music will always be there to get you through with this. Listen to ‘Let It Be’ by The Beatles or ‘Life is Worth Living’ by Justin Bieber. Maybe you’ll get to know what I mean.

I think this is enough motivation for you guys. At least for a little while. So just try following what you read above, adapt that in your life and see the change! Hope this helps in one way or another. I would love to hear from you guys. What you have to do is just ask those questions to yourself and try to find out the answers. Buzz me on Whatsapp or in the comments and let me know what you get. I’d love to see what do you guys think and feel about yourself and the world around you. So till the next post, Happy Self-realization!!

P. S.: Here’s where you can ping me: +91 80 00 313797. *service available 24/7* 🙂

Cheers!

“We need to Talk”

Joy and sorrow are just like the two different sides of the same coin. The only thing that matters is that you keep flipping the coin to stay right on the edge. But sometimes its good to share the coin with someone just to make your pocket a little bit lighter for a while, isn’t it? So how do you make your pocket a little lighter? No. You do not give away the money outta your pockets. You are stupid if you are taking it literally. What you do is share the joy and the sorrow with someone who you feel is good enough to talk to. Just to let you know, it does not matter if it’s someone you already know or someone you’ve just met on a bus or in a metro. What matters is how comfortable you are with the other one and how easy that person is to talk to. One of the reasons why we restrain ourselves from talking to a stranger or a random person is that *the bitter truth* we are so into appearances. But what we all need to know is that what we see is just a layer that needs to be uncovered. And the key to do so is to converse. Nothing can open up a person better than a good, tight conversation. All that needs to be done is go up to the person, smile and pull out a “Hi” or a “Hey” or whatever you feel is right. The moment you do that you’ll find the other person smiling at you. Or maybe at least faking one. And that’s it.

Starting a conversation is one thing and holding it is another. You wouldn’t want to initiate a conversation and then stand there like an idiot turning heads in all the directions. Pick up a good, interesting topic and shoot! No one’s ever going to slap you for talking to them about a random thing. That is what we all need to know and learn about the people. Yes, there are a lot of different people around us. And no, not everyone’s the same. But when it comes to talking, who wouldn’t be interested in having a laugh about how Rahul Gandhi sleeps in Lok Sabha and calls it intense listening, or bitch about how bad the traffic is? The point here is, do not hold yourselves back and not talk to someone just because you are not confident enough or because of their appearance. Stating the old and famous quote by, I don’t know whom, but it says “Do not judge a book by its cover.” Talking not only helps you grow verbally, but it also builds up your confidence. And moreover, it spreads joy. Try smiling at the man in the sanitary department in your office and ask him how he has been doing. You’ll instantly feel his happiness and see it on his face. That’s what it’s about people. Talking never harms anyone but spreads joy and divides sorrows.

So how exactly do you walk up to someone and start a conversation out of nowhere?

The rules are simple. Smile. Initiate subtly. And ease into a conversation. This one’s a bit complex but hey, “Practice is the key to success!” Always know where and when to put a period. Not everyone is comfortable talking to a stranger beyond a certain point of conversation. Be polite and please, keep your hands and other body parts to yourselves. Maintain that distance. Confidence will take you a long way ahead. And the moment the other person starts talking, turn your body fully towards them to let them know that you are interested and are listening to what they are saying.

So the basics have been stated. All you need to do is throw away the “appearance ka chashma”, break the barriers and get talking.

Hope you guys enjoyed reading. Stay tuned for more. Peace out!

 

 

The One with Winnie the Pooh.

Maybe not yellow skinned, but we all want friends like Winnie the Pooh who always make us happy. Just even looking at their face would bring a smile to our face. But we can’t deny the fact that everyone has a cartoon of their own in the shape and size of a normal human being, labeled as friend. No matter what the situation is, a friend always knows how to turn it into a laughter show. No matter how bad your day goes, just talking to that person makes it all go away. Whenever you are down, they would turn into jokers to make you go nuts.

Friendship doesn’t need time to grow. All it need is that perfect connection between two people. So whether it’s that girl you know since childhood or the guy you just met at work or that crazy group from school time, what matters is how well you get along with each other. And the only way to find it out is…you don’t. Friendship isn’t something that can be found out. It’s something you just know when you have it.  It’s that spark when you meet them with your inner voice saying, “That’s the crazy creature that is going to make you laugh for the rest of your life!” It all can begin in a moment, and last for a lifetime.

30^th of July or the first Sunday of August, every year people all around the world get high on friendship and show their love to their friends by tying a friendship band. In Chandler and Joey’s case, a bracelet which had “Best Buds” carved on it. For every stupid, crazy and childish Joey, there’s an unbelievably   sarcastic but mature Chandler. For every unreasonable and bitchy Rachel, there’s a bossy, equally bitchy Monica. And then there’s an emotional fool like Ross or a weirdo just like Phoebe who chews her hair. No matter how crazy, stupid, bitchy or bossy, friends always look out for you. Even though sometimes they might be cruel on your face, but behind your back, one word against you and the person saying it is walking away with broken bones. Word of advice – start watching F.R.I.E.N.D.S!

So, all the people out there in the unfriendly world, take a moment to thank your friends who have always been there for you regardless of the times and consequences. Or maybe you can go and slap them or punch them in the belly and say “You are one hell of a friend!” -and run away from there as fast as you can because you are going to get that back! Also, much thanks to Dr. Ramon Artemio Bracho for proposing this sweet idea of World Friendship Day. Such a friendly man he would have been!

 

And lastly, I wish everyone a happy and rocking Friendship Day!

P.S.: Our guy Winnie the Pooh is the International Ambassador of Friendship. Yeah, so now you know the reason behind the title. Cheers!

The First One.

“Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.“

Quotes always intrigue me for the reason that they say a lot in a handful of words. Reading has always been one of my favorite things to do since I was a kid; be it quotes, books or any piece of article from the daily newspaper. Reading has never hurt anyone but provided knowledge. I believe that every time you read a little something you gain a little something, and that’s what got me into reading in the first place. And what I gained from reading is the desire to write. I would have been 14 when I wrote my first poem; the first time I portrayed my mind on a piece of paper. All the appreciation from my classmates and the teachers encouraged me which made me want to write even more. But the craze was just for a year and it all faded away with the passage of time. And in the 10th grade, all a guy would read is the science books, which never made me write anything but my answers in the sheet. So to keep my love for words alive, I have decided to write, on a bigger platform, with a larger number of ‘classmates’ and ‘teachers’.

A dancer. A sketch artist. A ‘F.R.I.E.N.D.S’ fanatic. A guy with big dreams.
All of these things might not sound off the track for a normal person having a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science. Except that it did to my college mates. Some may think that having an artistic character is not very common and makes the one having it stand out from the rest. But the fact is that there are a lot of people having the same talents as yours. They are having the same big dreams as you. And this makes me aware of the fact about how much I have in common with the world. So what makes me stand out from the rest? What makes me the moon amongst the stars? Except that someone told me I’m one in a million, it is the power of words. The ability to portray my thoughts with the help of a pen; a keyboard to be precise. Many put their interest in reading but only a few put their interest and time in writing. Especially in this busy world, not everyone would want to spend their evenings or weekends writing some stuff. But a lazy, jobless guy like me has all the time in the world to write and share my mind with other like-minded prepossesing homo sapiens.

So through this blog I’m going to share lots of stuff, not bound to any particular genre or any specific subject. Stay tuned for more. Till then, sayonara. Peace out!