Enter Kamala Nagar Market and the word that registers and lingers on your temptation glands is 'SALE'. For those who haven't shopped to their heart's content, the end of season sale can very well serve as the beginning of college sale. Looking for ethnic wear? Head to Dhara: 20, UB Jawahar Nagar, Kamla Nagar Market.
Those of you who are looking for street wear need to be street smart too. Bargaining is the only way out and digging through the heaps of clothing is inevitable if you're at Bungalow road. And at Bungalow Road you'll be, if you shop for the entire season in one go. But time and patience is inversely proportional to the cash you shell out.
Wish to make your own style statement? The Tibetan Refugee Camp at Majnu ka Tila is yet to be discovered to its fullest potential. But don't forget to indulge in the momo-mania at Tee-Dees, where assortments of dumplings come with an assortment of names.
Momos, priced at Rs. 30 for a full-plate of chicken and Rs. 20 for vegetable have hooked onto DU's taste-buds. Ready to eat and steamed (steaming hot should be more like it), they serve those in hurry and the health-conscious respectively.
For those who worry their figure too much, there are not only sprouts but sprout laddoos too on offer at Rs. 10 at the Arts Faculty Canteen. You can get some fresh fruit juice and vegetable juice there too.
For the occasional binge go to Chacha ke Chhole Bhature, where the aloo bhaturas are a rage. It continues to attract North Campus alumni even today. Kashyap's bread pakode, chauffeured by Kashyap himself on his push-cart near Hansraj College (Rs. 10 per plate) are sold-out before you can get enough of the hot snack smothered with chaat-masala. Banta and chuski is available at the gol-chakkar when the spicy treat gets the better of you.
Moving down south, DCAC and JMC flock to Satya Niketan Market to share their food with Sri Venkateswara College. Mithas, as the Anand Lok Market Square is popularly known for the restaurant it houses by the same name is a common favourite of Gargi, Kamala Nehru and Institute of Home Economics. At Gate No. 3 of Siri Fort Auditorium, 2 'o' clock onwards, you can witness the magic of chatpati chaat at the kiosk there. SDA Market opposite IIT Delhi Main Gate is a hang-out for hookah-lovers, Frankie-connoisseurs and Subway bingers alike. You can get 2 pizzas at Rs. 100 from the Pizza Square outlet there.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Orientation Programme? What Orientation Programme?
A day before Delhi University officially re-opened, various North Campus colleges, namely Hindu College, St. Stephen's College, Sri Ram College of Commerce and Hansraj College scheduled their orientation for freshers. This year, most colleges made an attempt to keep the programme short and sweet, and at most places the 'formality' was over within an hour and a half, unlike last year's record five hours. "We'd expected speeches and we were delivered speeches", laughs Anupama Labar, English Honours 1st year at Hansraj College. "It could have been more entertaining", she complained, hinting at a possible inclusion of more presentations from the various societies active in the college.
Contradicting popular opinion, most freshers felt the orientation would have been an 'orientation' in the true sense if seniors were around since they are expected to give a better picture of what college really is about. Many were actually looking forward to breaking the ice through the "friendly interaction". Tirthankar Bose, 1st year, Maths Honours, clarified that this doesn't imply walking into the lion's den. His class-mate, Indrajit Banerjee shares, "We wanted to check out the college canteen but weren't sure of who might pounce onto us there".
Since parents too were invited for the orientation, a lot of children came with their entire family tagging along. Debanjum Singh, 1st year Physics Honours, Hansraj College, couldn't enter the auditorium as kins of fellow students occupied space intended to seat other students. The venue was brimming over, with people sitting on the floor and on window-sills. "The memory that I'm taking back of my first day in college is standing outside the auditorium listening to disembodied speeches and besura music", he commented. Priyanka Dey, 1st year, History Honours at Hindu doesn't agree with the claim that the idea of parents accompanying their wards is silly. "Parents are obviously interested in their children's welfare, where they are going, what they are upto. Beyond this, in any case, they are letting us be, which is difficult for both parent and child". Hindu College managed the crowd very well in terms of seating but at refreshment counters things went out of hand with students struggling to keep their food from tipping.
Contradicting popular opinion, most freshers felt the orientation would have been an 'orientation' in the true sense if seniors were around since they are expected to give a better picture of what college really is about. Many were actually looking forward to breaking the ice through the "friendly interaction". Tirthankar Bose, 1st year, Maths Honours, clarified that this doesn't imply walking into the lion's den. His class-mate, Indrajit Banerjee shares, "We wanted to check out the college canteen but weren't sure of who might pounce onto us there".
Since parents too were invited for the orientation, a lot of children came with their entire family tagging along. Debanjum Singh, 1st year Physics Honours, Hansraj College, couldn't enter the auditorium as kins of fellow students occupied space intended to seat other students. The venue was brimming over, with people sitting on the floor and on window-sills. "The memory that I'm taking back of my first day in college is standing outside the auditorium listening to disembodied speeches and besura music", he commented. Priyanka Dey, 1st year, History Honours at Hindu doesn't agree with the claim that the idea of parents accompanying their wards is silly. "Parents are obviously interested in their children's welfare, where they are going, what they are upto. Beyond this, in any case, they are letting us be, which is difficult for both parent and child". Hindu College managed the crowd very well in terms of seating but at refreshment counters things went out of hand with students struggling to keep their food from tipping.
Evening College tag a stigma
11 Evening Colleges were sanctioned by the UGC to the Delhi University in the 1970's. These colleges basically catered to students who wished to pursue further studies but were simultaneously working in the morning. Now most of these colleges strictly disallow students who are working and classes begin by two 'o' clock, hence the prefix 'evening' continues to be an issue for debate. As Principal of Dyal Singh Evening, Deepak Malhotra puts it, "The term 'evening' College is a misnomer. 'Second-shift' or even 'Afternoon' college is a better alternative."
Evening colleges offer the advantage of doing add-on courses, vocational courses and/or language courses in the morning and attending classes later in the day, besides the assurance that you will be up in time to attend the first class. Colleges like Dyal Singh Evening and Zakir Husain Evening are doing considerably better than their morning counter-parts in terms of their score in university exams and excellence in ECAs. As far as Dyal Singh Evening is concerned, the Evening College came before the morning one. But despite their success students continue to opt for Morning colleges over them.
Sushant Sharma, Secretary of PRO Wing of Art and Culture Association of Dyal Singh Evening provided insight into the situation. "When we counsel freshers to take admission into the Evening College rather than the Morning one, they express their apprehension. For most, it is still their last resort since they couldn't clear the comparatively higher cut-offs at the Morning colleges. When our theatre team has gone to perform at various fests, we've been greeted with snide comments. At various occasions we've felt discriminated against by the jury too in terms of the prizes going to less deserving teams thanks to the Evening College tag." Re-structuring the B.A. Pass course and calling it B.A. Programme worked wonders for its acceptance amongst students. Who knows, renaming 'Evening' College might just remove the stigma attached to it!
Dr. Satender Kumar, Principal Satyawati Evening lists the problems faced by an Evening College. "For girl students, Evening Colleges aren't their first choice due to the timings. Teachers have to stay back till even later than the students and this obviously breeds discontent amongst the staff. Other than that, Morning College students have to vacate the college premises for the Evening College by 4. Students involved in extra-curricular activities and sports wish to use the auditorium/common rooms and grounds, respectively, for practices. These stay-backs tend to spill over the prescribed time which remains a bone of contention between the two unions."
Before the Co-ordination Committee came into place, there were other issues too, such as fights for the better courses, the Morning College principal governing both the colleges and the Evening College Principal acting as a subordinate, etc. which are now more or less resolved. The Morning and Evening College now function as distinct entities with separate administration, separate offices, separate staff, separate libraries and in some cases with separate auditoriums in the same building. Suggestions such as the Morning classes being started early and additional floors being added to the building have regularly featured in discussions.
After Khalsa's Evening College moved in with the Morning College as Sri Guru Teg Bahadur Khalsa College, the number of Evening colleges stands stationary at 10. Mail Today asked the principals of infra-structurally superior colleges why a second-shift isn't run at their institutions. To that Hansraj College's principal said, "Our College offers science courses which means students need to use labs till much after classes get over. For an afternoon shift, classes have to start by 2 which wouldn't be possible. The professors who teach in the morning won't teach in the evening which would mean new appointments and compromised standards." Dr. Pratibha Jolly, Principal Miranda House quotes the quality over quantity maxim. "Education isn't just about class-room teaching. We offer holistic education to our girls and we're barely keeping our head above the water with the number of activities we've introduced."
Evening colleges offer the advantage of doing add-on courses, vocational courses and/or language courses in the morning and attending classes later in the day, besides the assurance that you will be up in time to attend the first class. Colleges like Dyal Singh Evening and Zakir Husain Evening are doing considerably better than their morning counter-parts in terms of their score in university exams and excellence in ECAs. As far as Dyal Singh Evening is concerned, the Evening College came before the morning one. But despite their success students continue to opt for Morning colleges over them.
Sushant Sharma, Secretary of PRO Wing of Art and Culture Association of Dyal Singh Evening provided insight into the situation. "When we counsel freshers to take admission into the Evening College rather than the Morning one, they express their apprehension. For most, it is still their last resort since they couldn't clear the comparatively higher cut-offs at the Morning colleges. When our theatre team has gone to perform at various fests, we've been greeted with snide comments. At various occasions we've felt discriminated against by the jury too in terms of the prizes going to less deserving teams thanks to the Evening College tag." Re-structuring the B.A. Pass course and calling it B.A. Programme worked wonders for its acceptance amongst students. Who knows, renaming 'Evening' College might just remove the stigma attached to it!
Dr. Satender Kumar, Principal Satyawati Evening lists the problems faced by an Evening College. "For girl students, Evening Colleges aren't their first choice due to the timings. Teachers have to stay back till even later than the students and this obviously breeds discontent amongst the staff. Other than that, Morning College students have to vacate the college premises for the Evening College by 4. Students involved in extra-curricular activities and sports wish to use the auditorium/common rooms and grounds, respectively, for practices. These stay-backs tend to spill over the prescribed time which remains a bone of contention between the two unions."
Before the Co-ordination Committee came into place, there were other issues too, such as fights for the better courses, the Morning College principal governing both the colleges and the Evening College Principal acting as a subordinate, etc. which are now more or less resolved. The Morning and Evening College now function as distinct entities with separate administration, separate offices, separate staff, separate libraries and in some cases with separate auditoriums in the same building. Suggestions such as the Morning classes being started early and additional floors being added to the building have regularly featured in discussions.
After Khalsa's Evening College moved in with the Morning College as Sri Guru Teg Bahadur Khalsa College, the number of Evening colleges stands stationary at 10. Mail Today asked the principals of infra-structurally superior colleges why a second-shift isn't run at their institutions. To that Hansraj College's principal said, "Our College offers science courses which means students need to use labs till much after classes get over. For an afternoon shift, classes have to start by 2 which wouldn't be possible. The professors who teach in the morning won't teach in the evening which would mean new appointments and compromised standards." Dr. Pratibha Jolly, Principal Miranda House quotes the quality over quantity maxim. "Education isn't just about class-room teaching. We offer holistic education to our girls and we're barely keeping our head above the water with the number of activities we've introduced."
The Unpublished Article
Shyam's father is a rickshaw puller while Shyam works at a chai-stall as his contribution to the household income. Shyam wants to become a Chartered Accountant one day and as soon as he's relieved from his day's duties, he gives his all to his books by the street-light. Shyam scraped to pass out from the neighbourhood central school where, occasionally, but teachers do find time to teach. His dream of making it to B.Com at DU shattered; he has lost all motivation to pursue further education. Shyam's father had to shell out most of his monthly income to pay for Shyam's studies in a government school. The very idea of a private university is unthinkable when a private school was out of question.
The Trehans sent their only boy to the best public school in the city, provided him with personal tutors for every subject. The boy, despite all the investment, sees no incentive to study, after all 'he will have to look after the family business in the end', and scored badly. When the possibility of paying his way into DU was ruled out, the Trehans doled out whatever was required to enrol him into a private university. There is nothing such as a free lunch.
DU offers scholarship to 'talented' students in terms of full fee concession or part fee concession at both the college and university level to those who can't support their studies themselves. An application plus documentary proof of income for those who have an income below 5,000 per month can get one admitted 'on the basis of merit on scholarship' to IP University. But the question remains, what about those who couldn't secure sound education at the school-level due to their economic inferiority?
Deputy Dean of Student's Welfare DU, Dr. Gurpreet Singh Tuteja, answers, "Evening colleges have reduced cut-offs and allow the student to work in the morning hours too. Besides that the non-collegiate women Education Board is admitting students at 14 centres. Students can opt for vocational courses and still manage to do well in life." He suggests short-term diploma courses, correspondence courses and School of Open Learning, for which just passing one's 12th boards is enough, as alternative options. But the compromise is evident and so is the bar on dreaming big.
Amity University has tied up with various banks which are based on the campus itself and give out education loans to students, which they themselves repay once they get a job. Since Amity assures a 100% placement, the guarantee is taken by the institution while the onus isn't on the parents. Anshum Pant, pursuing his B.Tech. from Amity University adds caution, "How well you get placed depends on your score on the aptitude test besides the degree isn't of as much value as that of a government university's."
Sumedha Upadhyay from Amity Law School, Delhi (affiliated to IP University) strongly disagrees that Private Universities are actually alternatives to Government Universities; they still continue to be the last resort. "In today's time free and compulsory education for all children below 14 years isn't enough; it should be ensured at graduate level too if the unemployment problem really needs to be resolved."
The draw-back of Government Universities is their lack of infra-structure and assured placement which private universities offer. The major disadvantage of a private university is its high fee due to lack of subsidies given to government-aided institutions besides the threat of de-recognition. As Rashmi Atal, PR Officer puts it, "Public-private partnership is the bridge between the gap in the future and IP University is a successful example of that. But there is still a long way to go."
The Trehans sent their only boy to the best public school in the city, provided him with personal tutors for every subject. The boy, despite all the investment, sees no incentive to study, after all 'he will have to look after the family business in the end', and scored badly. When the possibility of paying his way into DU was ruled out, the Trehans doled out whatever was required to enrol him into a private university. There is nothing such as a free lunch.
DU offers scholarship to 'talented' students in terms of full fee concession or part fee concession at both the college and university level to those who can't support their studies themselves. An application plus documentary proof of income for those who have an income below 5,000 per month can get one admitted 'on the basis of merit on scholarship' to IP University. But the question remains, what about those who couldn't secure sound education at the school-level due to their economic inferiority?
Deputy Dean of Student's Welfare DU, Dr. Gurpreet Singh Tuteja, answers, "Evening colleges have reduced cut-offs and allow the student to work in the morning hours too. Besides that the non-collegiate women Education Board is admitting students at 14 centres. Students can opt for vocational courses and still manage to do well in life." He suggests short-term diploma courses, correspondence courses and School of Open Learning, for which just passing one's 12th boards is enough, as alternative options. But the compromise is evident and so is the bar on dreaming big.
Amity University has tied up with various banks which are based on the campus itself and give out education loans to students, which they themselves repay once they get a job. Since Amity assures a 100% placement, the guarantee is taken by the institution while the onus isn't on the parents. Anshum Pant, pursuing his B.Tech. from Amity University adds caution, "How well you get placed depends on your score on the aptitude test besides the degree isn't of as much value as that of a government university's."
Sumedha Upadhyay from Amity Law School, Delhi (affiliated to IP University) strongly disagrees that Private Universities are actually alternatives to Government Universities; they still continue to be the last resort. "In today's time free and compulsory education for all children below 14 years isn't enough; it should be ensured at graduate level too if the unemployment problem really needs to be resolved."
The draw-back of Government Universities is their lack of infra-structure and assured placement which private universities offer. The major disadvantage of a private university is its high fee due to lack of subsidies given to government-aided institutions besides the threat of de-recognition. As Rashmi Atal, PR Officer puts it, "Public-private partnership is the bridge between the gap in the future and IP University is a successful example of that. But there is still a long way to go."
Queue Chats
The situation was chaotic at most DU colleges the day admissions opened. Counters for roll numbers, document verification, fee submission, etc. were all in different corners of the respective college campus making the lengthy process a further complicated one. "Taking admission in a DU college is an equivalent of a three hour maze of going from pillar to post" said a hassled Soumya Chadha from Summerfields School. Ankita Bhardwaj, Vice President, Student Union, Kamala Nehru College agreed that "It would definitely have been more convenient if all the counters were on a single floor."
"Timings should be extended", was a common demand. The bank counter, which was supposed to be open between 10 and 1 didn't open as per timing at many places. Even though the forms weren't made available after 1, the information wasn't clearly conveyed at the college gates which, for many, led to a lot of wastage of time besides their adding to the already teeming crowd. "Not enough volunteers at help-desks" and "under-staffed" counters were other complaints one couldn't miss while standing in various queues.
There was a lot of confusion regarding the cut-offs for the innumerable categories besides the subjectivity of subjects considered as vocational. Aspirants also faced trouble due to the differing demands at different colleges in terms of list of required documents for admission. Not being conversant with individual prospectuses, some students carried attested photocopies as specified by Jesus and Mary College instead of originals as required for admission at KNC. Provisional certificate, letter of recommendation by Principal of last school attended (for students applying through ECA category at Lady Sri Ram College), Certificate saying the level till which Hindi has been studied in school were cause for difficulty compelling many to repeat trips.
Parents accompanying students couldn't figure how to cut time. Except for the guardian's signature, most of the formalities are required to be done by the student and hence parents weren't allowed beyond a certain barrier. Thus every fifth minute volunteers had to deal with enquiries from worried parents about their children's whereabouts. Dipali Patel, applying to History Honours at KNC says, "Doing everything on my own was new to me, but I enjoy the independence."
"Timings should be extended", was a common demand. The bank counter, which was supposed to be open between 10 and 1 didn't open as per timing at many places. Even though the forms weren't made available after 1, the information wasn't clearly conveyed at the college gates which, for many, led to a lot of wastage of time besides their adding to the already teeming crowd. "Not enough volunteers at help-desks" and "under-staffed" counters were other complaints one couldn't miss while standing in various queues.
There was a lot of confusion regarding the cut-offs for the innumerable categories besides the subjectivity of subjects considered as vocational. Aspirants also faced trouble due to the differing demands at different colleges in terms of list of required documents for admission. Not being conversant with individual prospectuses, some students carried attested photocopies as specified by Jesus and Mary College instead of originals as required for admission at KNC. Provisional certificate, letter of recommendation by Principal of last school attended (for students applying through ECA category at Lady Sri Ram College), Certificate saying the level till which Hindi has been studied in school were cause for difficulty compelling many to repeat trips.
Parents accompanying students couldn't figure how to cut time. Except for the guardian's signature, most of the formalities are required to be done by the student and hence parents weren't allowed beyond a certain barrier. Thus every fifth minute volunteers had to deal with enquiries from worried parents about their children's whereabouts. Dipali Patel, applying to History Honours at KNC says, "Doing everything on my own was new to me, but I enjoy the independence."
26th June THE D-Day
26th of June remains the dreaded day, beating in anxiety levels the day the Board result is out, hands down. Especially since this year most news papers didn't feature the exhaustive first cut-off list, it was back to campus-hopping for checking individual college's cut-offs. A lot of students trotted down and stood waiting for hours on end, under the impression that the first cut-off will feature a list of their names, if they have cracked the course in that particular college. Another extension of the illusion was that students applying through individual forms to colleges will definitely see a name-based cut-off list which isn't so either. The colleges do not have the sanction to differentiate between people who have applied through individual forms against those who applied through the common pre-admission forms.
'Crazy', 'Unreasonable', 'Murderous' were some of the extreme adjectives used to define the first cut-off list this year by those, very obviously, discontented with the demanded percentage. Lady Shri Ram's cut-off list was received with shock universally. English, the subject as well as the course made for many a miserable day. Amongst the few happy faces were those of students who had managed to crack the Journalism entrance, which requires a very reasonable minimum eligibility as criteria to sit for the exam; despite the lesser intake of students, as compared to last year. Those who hadn't made it through the entrance failed to comprehend why. "The entrances were so simple and went well too but I still haven't made it to any of the colleges offering the course" says a disappointed Nikita Dhingra.
Students were anyway suggested by volunteers at help-desks to visit the colleges they seek admission in, to check up on the riders such as the minimum marks required in the subject concurrent to the course, English, math. Colleges also differ on the courses considered as vocational subjects for which 4% is deducted from the Best Four aggregate. Ridhima Bhatnagar of Tagore International felt cheated by Kamala Nehru's decision to chart Entrepreneurship as a vocational course which is compulsory for all students who opt for Humanities as a stream at Tagore. For a lot of the students who had given their 12th boards in these subjects, the negative weightage was still bearable as compared to including their fifth subject. Worst-hit were those who had more than one of these Vocational Subjects.
B.A. Programme and Geography besides Socio received an overwhelming response from students while B.Com (Pass) remained a reconciliation for a lot of those who had initially aspired for B.Com. (H). As far as the response from the OBC category was concerned, as a volunteer at the Gargi help-desk informs, "Not many have woken up to the fact that for verification of their belonging to the category, OBC's need to carry at the time of admission, a certificate of proof. We've received a lot of forms without attested photocopies, which would obviously mean that they can't receive the advantage sanctioned to them for belonging to Other Backward Classes."
'Crazy', 'Unreasonable', 'Murderous' were some of the extreme adjectives used to define the first cut-off list this year by those, very obviously, discontented with the demanded percentage. Lady Shri Ram's cut-off list was received with shock universally. English, the subject as well as the course made for many a miserable day. Amongst the few happy faces were those of students who had managed to crack the Journalism entrance, which requires a very reasonable minimum eligibility as criteria to sit for the exam; despite the lesser intake of students, as compared to last year. Those who hadn't made it through the entrance failed to comprehend why. "The entrances were so simple and went well too but I still haven't made it to any of the colleges offering the course" says a disappointed Nikita Dhingra.
Students were anyway suggested by volunteers at help-desks to visit the colleges they seek admission in, to check up on the riders such as the minimum marks required in the subject concurrent to the course, English, math. Colleges also differ on the courses considered as vocational subjects for which 4% is deducted from the Best Four aggregate. Ridhima Bhatnagar of Tagore International felt cheated by Kamala Nehru's decision to chart Entrepreneurship as a vocational course which is compulsory for all students who opt for Humanities as a stream at Tagore. For a lot of the students who had given their 12th boards in these subjects, the negative weightage was still bearable as compared to including their fifth subject. Worst-hit were those who had more than one of these Vocational Subjects.
B.A. Programme and Geography besides Socio received an overwhelming response from students while B.Com (Pass) remained a reconciliation for a lot of those who had initially aspired for B.Com. (H). As far as the response from the OBC category was concerned, as a volunteer at the Gargi help-desk informs, "Not many have woken up to the fact that for verification of their belonging to the category, OBC's need to carry at the time of admission, a certificate of proof. We've received a lot of forms without attested photocopies, which would obviously mean that they can't receive the advantage sanctioned to them for belonging to Other Backward Classes."
English, English everywhere... Not a mark to spare!
2008 will go down in the history of DU admissions as the blunder year for experimenting with the be all and end all of subjects - English. The criteria for calculating Best Four, on the basis of which one compares one's aggregate to the various cut-offs, is one language (which is taken to be English in most cases) plus three electives and as we all know, the scores in English are, universally, the most erratic, whichever be the board. Can't do with; can't do without! English then becomes a horror for most public school and private school students, especially those which offer Functional or even Core English to their students. Year after year, the threats for negative weightage for these two have come and gone, and finally this year DU authorities have decided to reward Elective English with positive weightage instead. Since the school unanimously decides which one to choose from amongst these three options for all students, the children feel unfairly penalised for something they are bequeathed with.
Anshu Khanna, Anshika Khanna's mother is extremely upset. "My daughter wishes to apply to Sociology Honours and has scored 96 in Socio which awards her a 3% relaxation at most places. Her best four is more than 10% above the cut-off at Kamala Nehru but the rider on English debars her from taking admission since she has scored a 55 while she needs a minimum of 70 in the wretched subject." Junior Khanna asks, "What does my score in a literature-based paper have to do with my doing sociology?" The Khannas are genuinely depressed since Anshika's best five is more than her best four and if she literally calculates her 'BEST' Four i.e. minus English, her aggregate shoots up by another 7%. She has cleared the first list for History in Jesus and Mary College and is wait-listed for Political Science. Anshika has no option but to surf these alternatives since her preferred course is not available to her in any of the reputed colleges.
Another bone of contention has been the disposal of English entrance exams. The entrance exam for B.A. Honours in English had previously served the dual purpose of being a safety valve for those who are yet undecided on which career path to take and have nowhere to go besides acting as a filter for recruiting the truly deserving. Arushi Sharma, President of Students Union at Gargi contemplates, "Another one of the University's annual experiments I guess. The ever impending decision to have a common entrance exam for all colleges offering English (Hons.) has never gone down well with individual colleges since that would mean a hierarchical segregation on the basis of ranks. Who decides who gets the top scorers?"
But with the limited time between the date DU admissions start and the date the cut-offs come out, there is bound to be a clash in dates of the entrances, especially since there are entrances for other subjects too. Generally students who appear for journalism entrances also sit for English and vice-versa. "But this isn't the solution", says Kanupriya who has just passed out of DPS RK Puram. "At least earlier we had a choice between two or three entrances which, no doubt, on the basis of merit, but gave us a chance as contenders. Now there is no hope whatsoever!" Stephen's cut-off for Commerce students was set at 98%. "Why would someone who gets a 98%, take up English in the first place, I completely fail to understand!" vents Aditi, Kanupriya's class-mate.
Anshu Khanna, Anshika Khanna's mother is extremely upset. "My daughter wishes to apply to Sociology Honours and has scored 96 in Socio which awards her a 3% relaxation at most places. Her best four is more than 10% above the cut-off at Kamala Nehru but the rider on English debars her from taking admission since she has scored a 55 while she needs a minimum of 70 in the wretched subject." Junior Khanna asks, "What does my score in a literature-based paper have to do with my doing sociology?" The Khannas are genuinely depressed since Anshika's best five is more than her best four and if she literally calculates her 'BEST' Four i.e. minus English, her aggregate shoots up by another 7%. She has cleared the first list for History in Jesus and Mary College and is wait-listed for Political Science. Anshika has no option but to surf these alternatives since her preferred course is not available to her in any of the reputed colleges.
Another bone of contention has been the disposal of English entrance exams. The entrance exam for B.A. Honours in English had previously served the dual purpose of being a safety valve for those who are yet undecided on which career path to take and have nowhere to go besides acting as a filter for recruiting the truly deserving. Arushi Sharma, President of Students Union at Gargi contemplates, "Another one of the University's annual experiments I guess. The ever impending decision to have a common entrance exam for all colleges offering English (Hons.) has never gone down well with individual colleges since that would mean a hierarchical segregation on the basis of ranks. Who decides who gets the top scorers?"
But with the limited time between the date DU admissions start and the date the cut-offs come out, there is bound to be a clash in dates of the entrances, especially since there are entrances for other subjects too. Generally students who appear for journalism entrances also sit for English and vice-versa. "But this isn't the solution", says Kanupriya who has just passed out of DPS RK Puram. "At least earlier we had a choice between two or three entrances which, no doubt, on the basis of merit, but gave us a chance as contenders. Now there is no hope whatsoever!" Stephen's cut-off for Commerce students was set at 98%. "Why would someone who gets a 98%, take up English in the first place, I completely fail to understand!" vents Aditi, Kanupriya's class-mate.
Accomodating the first-cut off list
As the first cut-off list comes out students are in a mad rush to find a place to put up at, now that they are more or less oriented into which college they'll make it. With the commercialisation of education to the extent that it exists currently, property dealers will themselves approach you but if someone is completely on their own and doesn't have any acquaintances in Delhi, things are going to be tougher to deal with. In North Campus the area looks more like a bazaar or mela; the situation is such that you will find ads, flyers, hoardings and boards everywhere, the walls are barely visible.
The prevalent rates for PG accommodations are at Rs. 3,500-4,000 for a two-seater, 25 square feet room and Rs. 7,000-8,000 for a 50 square feet room. On the 23rd of this month, there was a student demonstration at Batra talkies against the hike of prices by property dealers where they made 2 property dealers come upfront and say on the mic that they won't charge commission to students. A lot of these brokers mislead freshers into illegal establishments which haven't registered themselves. Commission might be charged by some on a daily basis, sometimes the process might take 15 days, at other times even a month and you can accordingly do the calculation.
Students are lead through a maze of small and dingy, over-priced, low-quality rooms. They are shown a different room and given a different one. A lot of them had to move two-three times in one month alone. Out of desperation, the student pays commission to more than one broker. Tenants and land-lords too do not co-operate. They insist on people who come through brokers so that they aren't liable to issues of verification later. 50% of the rent is charged as commission so the initial investment can amount up to Rs. 12,500 (Rs 5,000 for rent + Rs. 2,500 commission + Rs. 5,000 Security, which is non-refundable). If you want a tiffin facility the prices are hiked further but it is strongly advised against by those who have experienced the stale quality of food given by these service providers.
For girls, Gandhi Vihar, Nehru Vihar, Dhaka Timarpur, Parmanand areas are complete no-no's. Vijayanand, who puts up at Mukherjee Nagar, which is one of the better off areas in comparison, shares "My kitchen is separated from my room and it's outside the premises of the flat. My gas cylinder and kitchen equipment was recently stolen and when I asked my land-lord he completely shrugged it off". South Campus which is predominantly girls colleges should look up the list of the suggested and black-listed PG accommodations, which too will be out today, before starting the search. Lamba House in East of Kailas, E-227 in Amar Colony, GK N-Block, South Ex and National Parl are the places which have the maximum people renting out their flats to PGs.
The prevalent rates for PG accommodations are at Rs. 3,500-4,000 for a two-seater, 25 square feet room and Rs. 7,000-8,000 for a 50 square feet room. On the 23rd of this month, there was a student demonstration at Batra talkies against the hike of prices by property dealers where they made 2 property dealers come upfront and say on the mic that they won't charge commission to students. A lot of these brokers mislead freshers into illegal establishments which haven't registered themselves. Commission might be charged by some on a daily basis, sometimes the process might take 15 days, at other times even a month and you can accordingly do the calculation.
Students are lead through a maze of small and dingy, over-priced, low-quality rooms. They are shown a different room and given a different one. A lot of them had to move two-three times in one month alone. Out of desperation, the student pays commission to more than one broker. Tenants and land-lords too do not co-operate. They insist on people who come through brokers so that they aren't liable to issues of verification later. 50% of the rent is charged as commission so the initial investment can amount up to Rs. 12,500 (Rs 5,000 for rent + Rs. 2,500 commission + Rs. 5,000 Security, which is non-refundable). If you want a tiffin facility the prices are hiked further but it is strongly advised against by those who have experienced the stale quality of food given by these service providers.
For girls, Gandhi Vihar, Nehru Vihar, Dhaka Timarpur, Parmanand areas are complete no-no's. Vijayanand, who puts up at Mukherjee Nagar, which is one of the better off areas in comparison, shares "My kitchen is separated from my room and it's outside the premises of the flat. My gas cylinder and kitchen equipment was recently stolen and when I asked my land-lord he completely shrugged it off". South Campus which is predominantly girls colleges should look up the list of the suggested and black-listed PG accommodations, which too will be out today, before starting the search. Lamba House in East of Kailas, E-227 in Amar Colony, GK N-Block, South Ex and National Parl are the places which have the maximum people renting out their flats to PGs.
What's so special about the U-Special?
Ask a student from a South Campus or an Off-Campus college what the U-Special is, and you'll get an assortment of interesting responses. One said he thought it was probably the youth section of some newspaper; the other thought it was a segment on some radio show.
'U-Special' stands for University Special, the DTC buses, the life-line of DU, which basically ferry students from South Delhi to North Campus. The first bus starts at 7:30 in the morning and the last picks up students at 3:30 p.m. The service was introduced in 1960 and since 1965, is available at the nominal cost of Rs. 12.50 per month. One can get a U-Special bus card made for Rs. 75 for 5 months. The buses are the breath and blood of South Delhi students for this part of Delhi still remains disconnected from the metro. There are some buses that move from East to South for e.g. there's a bus which takes students from Faridabad and drops them off at Gargi.
Delhi Metro might have made things convenient for students of East and West Delhi but it has simultaneously removed them from, not just another routine but, a complete cultural aspect of college life. As Sakshi Bhardwaj, 3rd year student of economics (honours) from Hindu College, tells us, "I became very thick with a few students from my own college thanks to the U-Special. I wasn't even aware of the fact that they are from my college earlier. Besides that, I have a lot of friends from D-School, only because they travel by the same route I take." Deepshika from Hansraj who puts up at Chirag Delhi, is all praise for U-Specials, particularly the Mangloi one which has the reputation of "woh nahiin aayegi toh koi aur bhi nahiin aayegi". As far as the social circuiting is concerned, she comments "Everyone is extremely amiable and conversation flows with ease; it hardly matters if the students are your seniors. For that matter, as co-travellers I've discovered friends in a lot of students pursuing their education at the PG level." Students with their own vehicles abandon their bikes and cars and prefer the U-Special for both the convenience and companionship.
Udit Khurana, 2nd year, maths (honours) student at north campus, amongst others who put up in and around IIT, isn't too happy. Ask him about the congenial atmosphere and he says he hasn't been given the fair opportunity to experience it. "They never come on time and if I wish to make it to the 8:40 a.m. class on time, I'd rather wish on a star to be president." He feels he has to first reach to the metro to judge its effectiveness and just by introducing the metro the DTC transport facility doesn't improve.
If not for the U-Special some students might even need to change two buses to get to the nearest metro station from where they take a rickshaw, which costs more than double of what a U-Special charges, besides the extra 45 minutes you have to invest in being hassled. No doubt, DTC is comparatively comfortable to travel in than the Blue-line buses but even if one bus doesn't come on time the other bus is brimming over with people. The C.R. Park Special and Vasant Kunj special has been regularly irregular. The afternoon routes of DTC's U-Special service are discontinued for the three months around exam-time and there is no provision for students who participate in ECAs and need to stay-back beyond 3:30, the time when the last special leaves from the Patel Chest Stand.
'U-Special' stands for University Special, the DTC buses, the life-line of DU, which basically ferry students from South Delhi to North Campus. The first bus starts at 7:30 in the morning and the last picks up students at 3:30 p.m. The service was introduced in 1960 and since 1965, is available at the nominal cost of Rs. 12.50 per month. One can get a U-Special bus card made for Rs. 75 for 5 months. The buses are the breath and blood of South Delhi students for this part of Delhi still remains disconnected from the metro. There are some buses that move from East to South for e.g. there's a bus which takes students from Faridabad and drops them off at Gargi.
Delhi Metro might have made things convenient for students of East and West Delhi but it has simultaneously removed them from, not just another routine but, a complete cultural aspect of college life. As Sakshi Bhardwaj, 3rd year student of economics (honours) from Hindu College, tells us, "I became very thick with a few students from my own college thanks to the U-Special. I wasn't even aware of the fact that they are from my college earlier. Besides that, I have a lot of friends from D-School, only because they travel by the same route I take." Deepshika from Hansraj who puts up at Chirag Delhi, is all praise for U-Specials, particularly the Mangloi one which has the reputation of "woh nahiin aayegi toh koi aur bhi nahiin aayegi". As far as the social circuiting is concerned, she comments "Everyone is extremely amiable and conversation flows with ease; it hardly matters if the students are your seniors. For that matter, as co-travellers I've discovered friends in a lot of students pursuing their education at the PG level." Students with their own vehicles abandon their bikes and cars and prefer the U-Special for both the convenience and companionship.
Udit Khurana, 2nd year, maths (honours) student at north campus, amongst others who put up in and around IIT, isn't too happy. Ask him about the congenial atmosphere and he says he hasn't been given the fair opportunity to experience it. "They never come on time and if I wish to make it to the 8:40 a.m. class on time, I'd rather wish on a star to be president." He feels he has to first reach to the metro to judge its effectiveness and just by introducing the metro the DTC transport facility doesn't improve.
If not for the U-Special some students might even need to change two buses to get to the nearest metro station from where they take a rickshaw, which costs more than double of what a U-Special charges, besides the extra 45 minutes you have to invest in being hassled. No doubt, DTC is comparatively comfortable to travel in than the Blue-line buses but even if one bus doesn't come on time the other bus is brimming over with people. The C.R. Park Special and Vasant Kunj special has been regularly irregular. The afternoon routes of DTC's U-Special service are discontinued for the three months around exam-time and there is no provision for students who participate in ECAs and need to stay-back beyond 3:30, the time when the last special leaves from the Patel Chest Stand.
Ubad Khabad sadkein DU ki
You'll certainly miss the good old school days, the memories of parents and teachers contriving together so as to make you study, as you stand at the college gates, 'coz at Delhi University the tables are turned! You want to study, study anything anywhere just so that you can study further and there's nowhere to go, no one to take you in. To the deaf ears of DU Administration, wake-up call from ailing students...
Aatir Zaidi, pass-out from Cambridge school, has applied to journalism and psychology honours courses in colleges of Delhi University. Journalism is his first preference, but being unable to crack the Delhi College of Arts and Commerce (DCAC) journalism entrance he doesn't exactly feel on top of the world. "I've given Maharaja Agrasen College (MAC)'s journalism entrance too and I'm keeping my fingers crossed. It's my last hope of making it to journalism in DU since there is no other co-ed college other than DCAC and MAC that offers the course. Mass Comm. was never an option as Bachelors in Mass Media and Mass Communication is only offered by Indraprastha College which is a women's college." Unfortunately for Aatir the prospects are dim in psychology too, with only 3 co-ed colleges in DU boasting of a department in Psychology.
Outraged students continue to protest against OBC reservations, maybe still unaware of the fact that general category seats aren't affected. But that raises a very valid question as to how the management plans to incorporate the students from reserved categories in the existing infra-structure? Kalindi has a single loo, Vivekananda has a hostel with 50 seats; something is better than nothing they say. The Principal of a highly reputed college, who wishes to remain anonymous, says, "We have increased the seats as per SC guidelines for the OBC quota but we just one tank of drinking water, so will the new students remain thirsty?"
Regular classes still don't take place in all colleges, even though university has introduced rules to keep a check on teachers' attendance. A teacher from an off-campus college tells us that most of the staff of her college comes to college just to collect their pay. Students make the best of it, by taking up part-time or even full-time jobs to earn extra pocket money.
Despite university rules stating that all DU colleges must have their libraries functional on Saturdays for reference, if not for issuing and returning of books, few practice theory. When the students can come to college on Saturdays, why can't the library staff? "If the staff is given an off on a rotational basis, why only Saturday, libraries can be made functional on Sundays too!", says Sneha Datta, this year's pass-out from Delhi School of Social Work (DSSW). Two years back, Sneha and other students of Masters in Social Work (MSW) took matters into their hand and mentioned the hiccup to the HOD. The Student Union took the plea to the general body meeting and now the issue stands resolved.
Akshay Gambhir, 2nd year student of Bachelor in Business Studies from Shaheed Bhagat Singh College of Business studies mourns the loss of their beloved canteen. "It's been nearly a year since our canteen closed down due to some tiff between the library staff and the care-taker. Now we need to run outside college even to grab a bite between classes or study on an empty stomach."
All said and done, DU must be commended for its sense of humour. All these glitches serve as infallible excuses students tell us. All of the above can be turned around as valid answers to questions like, why didn't you manage a decent college, why don't you go to college, why didn't you submit your assignment on time and why can't you concentrate in class, etc. No pink slips for ECAs? Excellent excuse for short attendance! Come exam time and Priya Goswami cries "Boyfriends should go on a break!" Go on DU, Pass the buck!
Aatir Zaidi, pass-out from Cambridge school, has applied to journalism and psychology honours courses in colleges of Delhi University. Journalism is his first preference, but being unable to crack the Delhi College of Arts and Commerce (DCAC) journalism entrance he doesn't exactly feel on top of the world. "I've given Maharaja Agrasen College (MAC)'s journalism entrance too and I'm keeping my fingers crossed. It's my last hope of making it to journalism in DU since there is no other co-ed college other than DCAC and MAC that offers the course. Mass Comm. was never an option as Bachelors in Mass Media and Mass Communication is only offered by Indraprastha College which is a women's college." Unfortunately for Aatir the prospects are dim in psychology too, with only 3 co-ed colleges in DU boasting of a department in Psychology.
Outraged students continue to protest against OBC reservations, maybe still unaware of the fact that general category seats aren't affected. But that raises a very valid question as to how the management plans to incorporate the students from reserved categories in the existing infra-structure? Kalindi has a single loo, Vivekananda has a hostel with 50 seats; something is better than nothing they say. The Principal of a highly reputed college, who wishes to remain anonymous, says, "We have increased the seats as per SC guidelines for the OBC quota but we just one tank of drinking water, so will the new students remain thirsty?"
Regular classes still don't take place in all colleges, even though university has introduced rules to keep a check on teachers' attendance. A teacher from an off-campus college tells us that most of the staff of her college comes to college just to collect their pay. Students make the best of it, by taking up part-time or even full-time jobs to earn extra pocket money.
Despite university rules stating that all DU colleges must have their libraries functional on Saturdays for reference, if not for issuing and returning of books, few practice theory. When the students can come to college on Saturdays, why can't the library staff? "If the staff is given an off on a rotational basis, why only Saturday, libraries can be made functional on Sundays too!", says Sneha Datta, this year's pass-out from Delhi School of Social Work (DSSW). Two years back, Sneha and other students of Masters in Social Work (MSW) took matters into their hand and mentioned the hiccup to the HOD. The Student Union took the plea to the general body meeting and now the issue stands resolved.
Akshay Gambhir, 2nd year student of Bachelor in Business Studies from Shaheed Bhagat Singh College of Business studies mourns the loss of their beloved canteen. "It's been nearly a year since our canteen closed down due to some tiff between the library staff and the care-taker. Now we need to run outside college even to grab a bite between classes or study on an empty stomach."
All said and done, DU must be commended for its sense of humour. All these glitches serve as infallible excuses students tell us. All of the above can be turned around as valid answers to questions like, why didn't you manage a decent college, why don't you go to college, why didn't you submit your assignment on time and why can't you concentrate in class, etc. No pink slips for ECAs? Excellent excuse for short attendance! Come exam time and Priya Goswami cries "Boyfriends should go on a break!" Go on DU, Pass the buck!
Saturday, June 21, 2008
DU ko bhookh lagi hai!
They say you'll find more students in the canteens than in the classes at colleges of Delhi University. After all, how can you expect a student to concentrate on an empty stomach? To add insult to injury, other than the empty stomach, there's an equally empty pocket the regular DU going crowd has to deal with! Mail Today dishes out all the reasonably-priced kiosks and eateries which serve as the popular hang-outs for Delhi University... Bon appétit!
North Campus:
Uncle Tony – This is one guy who has made hay while the sun shines. A cheap imitation of Uncle Tom, he has built fort in front of Miranda, where confused students and mourners alike come and have his Masala Maggi (Rs. 15). He serves banta as an antidote to the cries of "mirchi".
USP: Pick-up on the way to the metro station
Hindu Bhel: That's what the bhelpuri wallah who sits right beside the Hindu College gates is popularly called. The snack costs Rs. 15 and goes well with the nimbu masala banta priced at Rs. 10.
USP: A lip-smacking must-have!
K-Nags: Or Kamala Nagar Market has a lot of cheap outlets which are unanimous with the very existence of North Campus. Chacha ke Chhole Bhature (not for those who are crowd-phobic), Majnu ka Tila (Tibetan and north-eastern cuisine, known for its momos besides its Beef Chilly), Momo King and Momo Point top the list (Budget: Rs. 30-50). There are a lot of dhabas you'll find here which have an amazing variety of paranthas to offer.
USP: Variety
Other hot-spots: D-School canteen (Dessert anyone? Check out their jelly and cream for just Rs. 15), Hindu canteen, Stephen's Cafe (you better get that right, "It's not a canteen, it's a cafe!") where you'll get minced meat cutlets like none other and cheese magi which you wouldn't get anywhere else. The hostel for girls pursuing PG courses opposite Miranda is a haven for girls.
Occasionally you can burn your pocket at: The Nirula's opposite Faculty of Arts (or "Arts-Fac", to get the lingo right), CCD, Barista, Bercoes and Ziya's (for hukkah-lovers, this the Mochas for North Campus).
Budget: Rs. 100+
South Campus:
Chowrangi Lane – Located at the mouth of the gully right opposite Sri Venkateswara College, this place is famous for its rolls. The veg. and egg rolls start at Rs. 15 and the non-veg. rolls range between Rs. 25 and 60. Venky swears by its mutton seekh rolls (Rs. 40).
USP: Run and grab a bite between classes!
Chinese Food Plaza- Further down the same gully, the Chinese Food Plaza (CFP) is the place to go to if you want a fuller tummy. CFP keeps south campus students happy with its Happy Hours (10:00am -1:00pm and 3:00pm - 6:00pm) where you can get a complete Chinese meal with momos et al for just Rs. 30-35.
USP: Sit-down, chill-out point
Other Hot-spots: Go to Keventer's for their oh-so-popular milk-shakes (students vouch for their Chocolate milk-shake). You can also get maggi and sandwiches from there (Budget: Rs. 20-25). Head to Giggles pastry shop for your regular dose of junk (cold drinks/juices, tea/coffee, chips, pastries, etc.). Venky's canteen has great South Indian food to offer.
Occasionally you can burn your pocket at: CCD, Barista, Nissan's multi-cuisine restaurant, China Bowl (market lane running parallel to the campus).
North Campus:
Uncle Tony – This is one guy who has made hay while the sun shines. A cheap imitation of Uncle Tom, he has built fort in front of Miranda, where confused students and mourners alike come and have his Masala Maggi (Rs. 15). He serves banta as an antidote to the cries of "mirchi".
USP: Pick-up on the way to the metro station
Hindu Bhel: That's what the bhelpuri wallah who sits right beside the Hindu College gates is popularly called. The snack costs Rs. 15 and goes well with the nimbu masala banta priced at Rs. 10.
USP: A lip-smacking must-have!
K-Nags: Or Kamala Nagar Market has a lot of cheap outlets which are unanimous with the very existence of North Campus. Chacha ke Chhole Bhature (not for those who are crowd-phobic), Majnu ka Tila (Tibetan and north-eastern cuisine, known for its momos besides its Beef Chilly), Momo King and Momo Point top the list (Budget: Rs. 30-50). There are a lot of dhabas you'll find here which have an amazing variety of paranthas to offer.
USP: Variety
Other hot-spots: D-School canteen (Dessert anyone? Check out their jelly and cream for just Rs. 15), Hindu canteen, Stephen's Cafe (you better get that right, "It's not a canteen, it's a cafe!") where you'll get minced meat cutlets like none other and cheese magi which you wouldn't get anywhere else. The hostel for girls pursuing PG courses opposite Miranda is a haven for girls.
Occasionally you can burn your pocket at: The Nirula's opposite Faculty of Arts (or "Arts-Fac", to get the lingo right), CCD, Barista, Bercoes and Ziya's (for hukkah-lovers, this the Mochas for North Campus).
Budget: Rs. 100+
South Campus:
Chowrangi Lane – Located at the mouth of the gully right opposite Sri Venkateswara College, this place is famous for its rolls. The veg. and egg rolls start at Rs. 15 and the non-veg. rolls range between Rs. 25 and 60. Venky swears by its mutton seekh rolls (Rs. 40).
USP: Run and grab a bite between classes!
Chinese Food Plaza- Further down the same gully, the Chinese Food Plaza (CFP) is the place to go to if you want a fuller tummy. CFP keeps south campus students happy with its Happy Hours (10:00am -1:00pm and 3:00pm - 6:00pm) where you can get a complete Chinese meal with momos et al for just Rs. 30-35.
USP: Sit-down, chill-out point
Other Hot-spots: Go to Keventer's for their oh-so-popular milk-shakes (students vouch for their Chocolate milk-shake). You can also get maggi and sandwiches from there (Budget: Rs. 20-25). Head to Giggles pastry shop for your regular dose of junk (cold drinks/juices, tea/coffee, chips, pastries, etc.). Venky's canteen has great South Indian food to offer.
Occasionally you can burn your pocket at: CCD, Barista, Nissan's multi-cuisine restaurant, China Bowl (market lane running parallel to the campus).
Expect surprises at Interview
Going to Delhi University? Who said it all depends on your board result? The wild goose chase has just begun. There's first a cut-off to clear to sit for the entrance exam then there's the entrance exam itself, with its 1:5 ratio of getting selected, then a group discussion if you're heading towards BBS/BFIA, which if you manage to survive leads you to the guillotine... The Interview! Those who went under the blade and managed to save their necks tell their gory tales.
Upasana Roy who has just completed her graduation from Stephen's in Chemistry Honours shudders when she recollects, "The first question they asked me for my interview was what my name means and where does it originate from. That was pretty simple. It was when they asked me if I knew who had found the Upasana Meditation Centre that I was caught off-guard. I still don't know if such a place even exists". Kartik, who is a second year student pursuing BBS from Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies was asked why he was wearing a tie and if someone had advised him to dress in formals. "I wonder what they did to those who were sporting shorts, for there were quite a few of them at the time I had come to give my interview" he shares. The institutions wish to enquire if students are taking coaching to prepare for the admission process, for a lot of such centres have come up in the recent past that provide guidance on these matters. Aanchal Mehta, Kartik's batch-mate was confronted by the genie in the bottle. "What would you ask for if you were granted three wishes they asked me", she relates.
A yawning Krishnan, pass-out from Stephen's, tells us, "The colour of the wall behind you and the number of steps you had to climb to reach the room where the interview is being conducted are all old tricks in the book". He observed that people applying to arts courses are the ones persecuted, while the science stream gets questions that are more or less related to the stream, by which he nowhere implies straight out of textbook stuff. Science faces the numericals, which means an interview might not necessarily mean it is going to be oral, it could very well be written too. At Stephen's the panel is eager to gauge if you're applying to the course or THE College.
Journalism entrances are basically about your favourite News Channel/ News Show Host/ Newspaper/ Newspaper column/ Journalist should be on your tips besides a few others if asked to list/name. You should have valid reasons for your preference/ dislike. Interviewers for media courses might occasionally ask about issues you feel strongly about. Commonly asked questions are: Introduction (which includes your name, the school you come from, the stream you opted for, subjects/favourite subject if asked and your interests/hobbies besides Family Background), why the respective course/college, why should the institution take you. Mili Aggarwal, 2nd year Journalism Honours, Kamala Nehru College, adds a word of caution,"Never make up stuff, it's always better to politely decline the question. You're not expected to know everything, anyway." Generally one question leads on to the other so remember you're the person in control. Take it on from there!
Upasana Roy who has just completed her graduation from Stephen's in Chemistry Honours shudders when she recollects, "The first question they asked me for my interview was what my name means and where does it originate from. That was pretty simple. It was when they asked me if I knew who had found the Upasana Meditation Centre that I was caught off-guard. I still don't know if such a place even exists". Kartik, who is a second year student pursuing BBS from Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies was asked why he was wearing a tie and if someone had advised him to dress in formals. "I wonder what they did to those who were sporting shorts, for there were quite a few of them at the time I had come to give my interview" he shares. The institutions wish to enquire if students are taking coaching to prepare for the admission process, for a lot of such centres have come up in the recent past that provide guidance on these matters. Aanchal Mehta, Kartik's batch-mate was confronted by the genie in the bottle. "What would you ask for if you were granted three wishes they asked me", she relates.
A yawning Krishnan, pass-out from Stephen's, tells us, "The colour of the wall behind you and the number of steps you had to climb to reach the room where the interview is being conducted are all old tricks in the book". He observed that people applying to arts courses are the ones persecuted, while the science stream gets questions that are more or less related to the stream, by which he nowhere implies straight out of textbook stuff. Science faces the numericals, which means an interview might not necessarily mean it is going to be oral, it could very well be written too. At Stephen's the panel is eager to gauge if you're applying to the course or THE College.
Journalism entrances are basically about your favourite News Channel/ News Show Host/ Newspaper/ Newspaper column/ Journalist should be on your tips besides a few others if asked to list/name. You should have valid reasons for your preference/ dislike. Interviewers for media courses might occasionally ask about issues you feel strongly about. Commonly asked questions are: Introduction (which includes your name, the school you come from, the stream you opted for, subjects/favourite subject if asked and your interests/hobbies besides Family Background), why the respective course/college, why should the institution take you. Mili Aggarwal, 2nd year Journalism Honours, Kamala Nehru College, adds a word of caution,"Never make up stuff, it's always better to politely decline the question. You're not expected to know everything, anyway." Generally one question leads on to the other so remember you're the person in control. Take it on from there!
Girls colleges: Required?
Today, 20 of the 70 colleges in Delhi University are women's colleges. This implies approximately 28.56% seats are reserved for women in Delhi University. Additively some courses in co-ed colleges are offered at 3-5% recession in cut-off for women. Women can apply to the remaining 50 colleges as well, since there isn't a single all-boys college in DU. St. Stephen's College was initially a men's college but became co-ed in 1950. Mail Today asked Delhi University: Isn't it about time that women's colleges followed Stephen's footsteps and turned co-ed too? This is what DU had to say…
Sakshi Kapoor who comes from a convent school feels awkward interacting with the opposite sex and would definitely prefer a co-ed college over a women's college to get over her inhibitions. Besides, she's very confident she'll manage getting through one with her aggregate. This self-assurance is shared by other girls too. The pass percentage of girls who appeared for CBSE class 12 examinations in 2008 was 85.44 while that of boys was 77.59. The question that arises is that do girls continue to feel challenged when it comes to competing against boys for pursuing education? Udit Khurana, 2nd year B.A. (Hons) Maths can't comprehend why. "Most girls make the cut-off with ease as they tend to perform much better than boys in the board exams" he comments. Arushi Chanana, doing Sociology Honours, from JMC thinks the situation reflects a gender bias. "Most of my male friends had to shift out of Delhi since Delhi University has co-ed colleges that are either nearly impossible to get through or not good enough to want to make it through. The ones who've stayed behind have had to compromise on their choice of course to get admitted to the reputed colleges", she shares. Even though Arushi sympathises with the opposite sex in this regard and thinks, ideally, women's colleges should turn co-ed, she fears the standards might come down. "Not a bad idea but it will be difficult to implement", says Della, Arushi's class-mate.
"Easier said than done", Anshika Joshi, a pass-out from Miranda suggests that the premier women's colleges should let be and first the experiment should be carried out with the average ones. Bulbul Maira, an aspirant, questions, "Why not simply introduce new colleges just for the boys"? Jagriti Gangopadhyay, Vice President Miranda thinks that women's colleges have just begun to find themselves and there's still a long way to go. "It is rather fortunate that they have a good standard. You can't blame women's colleges if they're doing well! I'd say it's easier to bring up the standards of existing co-ed colleges than to turn the women's colleges into co-ed". Surabhi Bahl points out to the sex ratio in co-ed colleges which favours boys, "There are 150 seats for boys and 53 seats for girls in SRCC; if LSR too becomes co-ed, where will the girls go?" Gauri Bhola, mother to two sons; one already in DU the other an aspirant, is severely against reservation of any kind whatsoever. "It isn't a child's fault if he or she is born a girl/boy, Hindu/Muslim/Christian, into whatever sect/caste/class/tribe. Reservations end up re-enforcing rather than reducing differences".
Mail Today asked if it is administratively possible to carry out the conversion. Dr. Shalini Anant, a counsellor in a women's college responded, "I don't think there's a need; if there was a requirement we'd have already gone ahead and made all efforts to make the provision possible". The urban-rural divide is still visible in terms of parents being comfortable sending their daughters to co-ed colleges others feel. Girls coming from smaller places are continuing further education only because they are in women's colleges. Veena Puri, Superintendent of exams, Bharati College, who has been associated with the college since its inception 36 years ago gives insight into the situation. "A certain percentage of parents still don't like to send their daughters to co-ed colleges and if we refuse to consider them, who does? It is also true that the freedom the girls feel does get affected if they go to a co-ed college". She feels the college will lose its essence if it turns co-ed; "the girl-boy interaction is just one overly politicised aspect of this debate".
Women's colleges were established in times when the segregation between men and women was extremely prominent. "30-40 years ago parents felt if their daughters mixed up with boys they'll get all sorts of wrong ideas. No doubt things have changed but parents whose daughters haven't been able to get through women's colleges still come and request us to take them in for they feel they are negatively influenced in co-ed environments. We tell them the girls wouldn't have any less number of male friends just by shifting to a women's college. Step onto North Campus and you'll realise how inter-connected the students of different colleges are. We actually encourage interaction with the opposite sex and allow our girls to compete with boys at various inter-collegiate events". As a Biology professor, Dr. K. Nirmala, Admission in-charge at Daulat Ram, feels a co-ed environment is naturally a healthier representation of society. She adds that "converting women's colleges into co-ed will definitely be a big leap and require a lot of policy changes. We do have these debates from time to time and the girls always speak in favour of DR turning co-ed but parents still prefer their girls in women's colleges".
Sakshi Kapoor who comes from a convent school feels awkward interacting with the opposite sex and would definitely prefer a co-ed college over a women's college to get over her inhibitions. Besides, she's very confident she'll manage getting through one with her aggregate. This self-assurance is shared by other girls too. The pass percentage of girls who appeared for CBSE class 12 examinations in 2008 was 85.44 while that of boys was 77.59. The question that arises is that do girls continue to feel challenged when it comes to competing against boys for pursuing education? Udit Khurana, 2nd year B.A. (Hons) Maths can't comprehend why. "Most girls make the cut-off with ease as they tend to perform much better than boys in the board exams" he comments. Arushi Chanana, doing Sociology Honours, from JMC thinks the situation reflects a gender bias. "Most of my male friends had to shift out of Delhi since Delhi University has co-ed colleges that are either nearly impossible to get through or not good enough to want to make it through. The ones who've stayed behind have had to compromise on their choice of course to get admitted to the reputed colleges", she shares. Even though Arushi sympathises with the opposite sex in this regard and thinks, ideally, women's colleges should turn co-ed, she fears the standards might come down. "Not a bad idea but it will be difficult to implement", says Della, Arushi's class-mate.
"Easier said than done", Anshika Joshi, a pass-out from Miranda suggests that the premier women's colleges should let be and first the experiment should be carried out with the average ones. Bulbul Maira, an aspirant, questions, "Why not simply introduce new colleges just for the boys"? Jagriti Gangopadhyay, Vice President Miranda thinks that women's colleges have just begun to find themselves and there's still a long way to go. "It is rather fortunate that they have a good standard. You can't blame women's colleges if they're doing well! I'd say it's easier to bring up the standards of existing co-ed colleges than to turn the women's colleges into co-ed". Surabhi Bahl points out to the sex ratio in co-ed colleges which favours boys, "There are 150 seats for boys and 53 seats for girls in SRCC; if LSR too becomes co-ed, where will the girls go?" Gauri Bhola, mother to two sons; one already in DU the other an aspirant, is severely against reservation of any kind whatsoever. "It isn't a child's fault if he or she is born a girl/boy, Hindu/Muslim/Christian, into whatever sect/caste/class/tribe. Reservations end up re-enforcing rather than reducing differences".
Mail Today asked if it is administratively possible to carry out the conversion. Dr. Shalini Anant, a counsellor in a women's college responded, "I don't think there's a need; if there was a requirement we'd have already gone ahead and made all efforts to make the provision possible". The urban-rural divide is still visible in terms of parents being comfortable sending their daughters to co-ed colleges others feel. Girls coming from smaller places are continuing further education only because they are in women's colleges. Veena Puri, Superintendent of exams, Bharati College, who has been associated with the college since its inception 36 years ago gives insight into the situation. "A certain percentage of parents still don't like to send their daughters to co-ed colleges and if we refuse to consider them, who does? It is also true that the freedom the girls feel does get affected if they go to a co-ed college". She feels the college will lose its essence if it turns co-ed; "the girl-boy interaction is just one overly politicised aspect of this debate".
Women's colleges were established in times when the segregation between men and women was extremely prominent. "30-40 years ago parents felt if their daughters mixed up with boys they'll get all sorts of wrong ideas. No doubt things have changed but parents whose daughters haven't been able to get through women's colleges still come and request us to take them in for they feel they are negatively influenced in co-ed environments. We tell them the girls wouldn't have any less number of male friends just by shifting to a women's college. Step onto North Campus and you'll realise how inter-connected the students of different colleges are. We actually encourage interaction with the opposite sex and allow our girls to compete with boys at various inter-collegiate events". As a Biology professor, Dr. K. Nirmala, Admission in-charge at Daulat Ram, feels a co-ed environment is naturally a healthier representation of society. She adds that "converting women's colleges into co-ed will definitely be a big leap and require a lot of policy changes. We do have these debates from time to time and the girls always speak in favour of DR turning co-ed but parents still prefer their girls in women's colleges".
About Choices and Compromises
The common pre-admission form with its provision to fill in every course in every college might have conveniently postponed, for most students, the dilemma of deciding which course to take up and where. Now, with the various first cut-off lists round the corner, it's inevitably 'inky-pinky-ponky' time. Mail Today set out to survey the various factors that influence the choice of course and college for the students of Delhi University and this is what we discovered:
'Two roads diverged in a wood and I-/I took the one less travelled by,/And that has made all the difference' said Robert Frost in 1920 and it still stands true. Wafa Rizvi, presently standing at the fork in the road, swears by Frost. "These days everyone has the option of converting his/her passion into his/her profession; small wonder then that students are shifting their attention to the fields they are better at instead of the fields which are considered better off." Professor S.M. Ishtiaque, who is currently teaching Textile Engineering at IIT Delhi, adds to the thought. "If you're a carpenter, be a good carpenter instead of being a mediocre engineer who easily gets lost in the crowd". Faisal Haq, who teaches Journalism as Visiting Faculty at KNC and DCAC cautions, "The glamour, jazz and glitz might attract students to media but the amount of hard work and struggle in this field fizzes out the infatuation."
Akshay Singh fears he might have to sacrifice in love, his infatuation for DU. "My girlfriend's parents are forcing her to do law; since my parents are fine with whatever I'm doing so I guess I'll have to be the one who has to make the compromise." Shalini Anant, Counsellor at Miranda House delves into the Parents vs. Peers debate a little further. "We come across both, varieties of unreasonable parents and varieties of unreasonable children on a daily basis. There are parents who want to live their dreams through their children by making them achieve what they could not in their own lives and then there are children who want to pursue a course only because their best-friends/boyfriends/girlfriends are doing that course."
Sadly both parents and children remain ignorant/unaware of all the career prospects and promising courses available. Ravneet Kaur's parents, for instance, want her to take up B.A. Programme despite the milieu of options now available, because that was the most coveted course in their time. But parents still do have their children's best interest at heart. A student applying to Stephen's felt that children today are independent but not knowledgeable enough. He wanted to go into Multimedia Designing but wasn't too sure. His father recommended him the civil services and he trusts his father's council. He has no complaints in this regard for he knows if he had been decided enough his father wouldn't have intervened. Most parents today are highly supportive of their children in whatever they do. But they still continue to have an inkling towards options which offer job security rather than job satisfaction.
Amrita Bahri, DUSU President points out to another disturbing trend. "A few days back this girl approached me at the help-desk, heavily opinionated on the fact that Eco (Hons.) is the 'in-thing' and defines the 'fashion statement'. Eco (Hons.) happens to be one of the most difficult courses and if you do not harbour a genuine interest you won't be able to cope with it, I pointed out to her, but apparently she had already made up her mind." Many students just float into a course because they are still undecided on what to do, so they apply everywhere and take admission wherever they get through. Just out of school, sick of the heavy bags and school uniforms, college is 'chill-out' time for most, a time to relax. So they pick up any general course which isn't too demanding and doesn't limit their options later.
'Two roads diverged in a wood and I-/I took the one less travelled by,/And that has made all the difference' said Robert Frost in 1920 and it still stands true. Wafa Rizvi, presently standing at the fork in the road, swears by Frost. "These days everyone has the option of converting his/her passion into his/her profession; small wonder then that students are shifting their attention to the fields they are better at instead of the fields which are considered better off." Professor S.M. Ishtiaque, who is currently teaching Textile Engineering at IIT Delhi, adds to the thought. "If you're a carpenter, be a good carpenter instead of being a mediocre engineer who easily gets lost in the crowd". Faisal Haq, who teaches Journalism as Visiting Faculty at KNC and DCAC cautions, "The glamour, jazz and glitz might attract students to media but the amount of hard work and struggle in this field fizzes out the infatuation."
Akshay Singh fears he might have to sacrifice in love, his infatuation for DU. "My girlfriend's parents are forcing her to do law; since my parents are fine with whatever I'm doing so I guess I'll have to be the one who has to make the compromise." Shalini Anant, Counsellor at Miranda House delves into the Parents vs. Peers debate a little further. "We come across both, varieties of unreasonable parents and varieties of unreasonable children on a daily basis. There are parents who want to live their dreams through their children by making them achieve what they could not in their own lives and then there are children who want to pursue a course only because their best-friends/boyfriends/girlfriends are doing that course."
Sadly both parents and children remain ignorant/unaware of all the career prospects and promising courses available. Ravneet Kaur's parents, for instance, want her to take up B.A. Programme despite the milieu of options now available, because that was the most coveted course in their time. But parents still do have their children's best interest at heart. A student applying to Stephen's felt that children today are independent but not knowledgeable enough. He wanted to go into Multimedia Designing but wasn't too sure. His father recommended him the civil services and he trusts his father's council. He has no complaints in this regard for he knows if he had been decided enough his father wouldn't have intervened. Most parents today are highly supportive of their children in whatever they do. But they still continue to have an inkling towards options which offer job security rather than job satisfaction.
Amrita Bahri, DUSU President points out to another disturbing trend. "A few days back this girl approached me at the help-desk, heavily opinionated on the fact that Eco (Hons.) is the 'in-thing' and defines the 'fashion statement'. Eco (Hons.) happens to be one of the most difficult courses and if you do not harbour a genuine interest you won't be able to cope with it, I pointed out to her, but apparently she had already made up her mind." Many students just float into a course because they are still undecided on what to do, so they apply everywhere and take admission wherever they get through. Just out of school, sick of the heavy bags and school uniforms, college is 'chill-out' time for most, a time to relax. So they pick up any general course which isn't too demanding and doesn't limit their options later.
Accomodation Problems faced by DU students
"Bookings for PG accommodations begin in March, and by July every reasonable place is booked. The freshers are then fooled into the most expensive places" comments Aditi who is currently lodging in a rented flat at Hudson Lanes in North Campus. Shrishti Khattri, who has just passed out of English Honours from Hansraj, advises out-station candidates applying to Delhi University to get a taste of hostels, college-owned or private, before going in for PGAs or rented flats. She feels the practice harbours a sense of responsibility which is vital for survival if one has to live completely on their own. Unfortunately all aren't as lucky as Shrishti to have the choice of hostels over PGs, even more so the choice to shift out of a hostel when they manage to get one. Students putting up at Karol Bagh and Ber Sarai, for instance, don't share the affluence of Kamla Nagar, Indra Vihar, Haqeeqat Nagar, Anand Lok, GK-1, etc. Students living in the lower-rung PGs generally see convenience in their proximity to the Administrative Services' coaching institutes present here. Those appearing for the second or third time generally have to take up part time jobs to support their education. Otherwise, as Manik puts it, "Students' parents don't exactly compromise on rent. Finding accommodation is a mad goose chase, you can't afford to be picky-choosy. Grab whatever you get! It's the people who are working, and not the students, who strive to save their money by compromising on cleanliness and hygiene".
There is no denying that the current situation truly reflects the effects of Privatisation. Contrary to popular opinion, the current trend supports PGAs over hostels. Parents continue to vouch for hostels but their children aren't too happy with the early curfews (7:00 pm hostels, 11:00 pm in PGAs). Students who have enjoyed hostel facility in their first year of college turn it down in their second year and move to PGAs. For that matter, students (which indirectly implies that their parents too) are willing to bear the extra cost of living in rented flats rather than messing around with land-lords. Vatsala, who is working in a call centre, to earn extra pocket money, returns by 3:00-4:00 am, minus the hassles. She's paying a rent of Rs. 6,000 per month for one room. Bringing in a friend for an over-night stay isn't an issue either. She has to cook her own food though. But then it isn't as if food is a convenience in PGAs. Some land-lords don't allow paying-guests to keep gas stoves, others offer stale food. Land-lords aren't too keen on keeping initially made promises after a few months. Prices of PGAs are double that of hostels. While hostel fee is Rs. 2, 500, PGAs/rented flats cost anywhere between Rs. 5,000-9,000 depending on the facilities provided. Internet, AC, food, round the clock availability of running/drinking water, laundry, safety of neighbourhood, proximity from college, number of room-mates are factors that affect the cost of the room.
"Kamala Nehru College is going to come up with a hostel very soon" informs Ms. Rina Mandal, Vice Principal who simultaneously feels for the local candidates who are in abundance there. Colleges with hostel facility are popular among out-station candidates which gives locals a better chance in those colleges which don't. Hindu too will have a girl's hostel in the near future while the main South Campus is striving for the facility commonly for all the colleges there.
Ironically, there's a gender bias here too. This time the discrimination is against males. If you have noticed the flyers outside colleges offering PGAs, they start with 'Girls wanted for...'. Saif, a 2nd year student pursuing Eco Hons from Zakir Hussain, lists the reasons for this favouritism. "Girls follow curfews more religiously and are more punctual in paying rent. I guess that's because girls get more money. Guys with girlfriends have to spend on their maintenance while others invest in smoking or drinking which eats through their allowance". Other than that he says boys are a noisy, boisterous, partying lot which are a real pain to land-lords. "But", Saif adds, "guys have contacts and find their way through to an accommodation despite the preference for girls" who he thinks are better off in hostels.
Veterans advise that freshers should look for other freshers as room-mates since older tenants tend to impose their seniority on the new-comer. Better still try to work it out with your friends. Aditi shares her experience, "Aman, my ex-roomie stole my debit card and cashed out an amount of Rs. 12,500, since then I take extra care to lock up everything before I leave". Shrishti too thinks finding a place isn't as much a problem as is adjustment with people. In her own words, "Compromise is the mother of all accommodation problems!"
There is no denying that the current situation truly reflects the effects of Privatisation. Contrary to popular opinion, the current trend supports PGAs over hostels. Parents continue to vouch for hostels but their children aren't too happy with the early curfews (7:00 pm hostels, 11:00 pm in PGAs). Students who have enjoyed hostel facility in their first year of college turn it down in their second year and move to PGAs. For that matter, students (which indirectly implies that their parents too) are willing to bear the extra cost of living in rented flats rather than messing around with land-lords. Vatsala, who is working in a call centre, to earn extra pocket money, returns by 3:00-4:00 am, minus the hassles. She's paying a rent of Rs. 6,000 per month for one room. Bringing in a friend for an over-night stay isn't an issue either. She has to cook her own food though. But then it isn't as if food is a convenience in PGAs. Some land-lords don't allow paying-guests to keep gas stoves, others offer stale food. Land-lords aren't too keen on keeping initially made promises after a few months. Prices of PGAs are double that of hostels. While hostel fee is Rs. 2, 500, PGAs/rented flats cost anywhere between Rs. 5,000-9,000 depending on the facilities provided. Internet, AC, food, round the clock availability of running/drinking water, laundry, safety of neighbourhood, proximity from college, number of room-mates are factors that affect the cost of the room.
"Kamala Nehru College is going to come up with a hostel very soon" informs Ms. Rina Mandal, Vice Principal who simultaneously feels for the local candidates who are in abundance there. Colleges with hostel facility are popular among out-station candidates which gives locals a better chance in those colleges which don't. Hindu too will have a girl's hostel in the near future while the main South Campus is striving for the facility commonly for all the colleges there.
Ironically, there's a gender bias here too. This time the discrimination is against males. If you have noticed the flyers outside colleges offering PGAs, they start with 'Girls wanted for...'. Saif, a 2nd year student pursuing Eco Hons from Zakir Hussain, lists the reasons for this favouritism. "Girls follow curfews more religiously and are more punctual in paying rent. I guess that's because girls get more money. Guys with girlfriends have to spend on their maintenance while others invest in smoking or drinking which eats through their allowance". Other than that he says boys are a noisy, boisterous, partying lot which are a real pain to land-lords. "But", Saif adds, "guys have contacts and find their way through to an accommodation despite the preference for girls" who he thinks are better off in hostels.
Veterans advise that freshers should look for other freshers as room-mates since older tenants tend to impose their seniority on the new-comer. Better still try to work it out with your friends. Aditi shares her experience, "Aman, my ex-roomie stole my debit card and cashed out an amount of Rs. 12,500, since then I take extra care to lock up everything before I leave". Shrishti too thinks finding a place isn't as much a problem as is adjustment with people. In her own words, "Compromise is the mother of all accommodation problems!"
Campus Fashion
Come to college and it is good-bye to school uniforms; time to step back into the world of colour. But shopping for college can be a horror for some and, by default, an eyesore for others. Mail Today conducted a small survey on the ever-changing campus fashion: what's "so totally in" this summer, the absolute "no-no's" or the "oh-so-yesterday's", where to go, what to buy and how much to pay for it. DU fashion experts come to the fresher's rescue with this summer's fashion forecast…
DO's
Colours: Light/pastel colours (white, relatives of yellow, coral/peach pink)
Prints: Minimum, if at all then floral/graphic/illusion prints (graphic and illusion prints are more wintery)
Fabric: Cotton, linen, denim
Western
Uppers: Ganjis, formal white shirts with waist-coats, long T-shirts, shirt dresses/short dresses and shirts for guys
Lowers: Loose shorts, dungaree shorts, harem shorts (knee-length), pyjamas, white cotton three-fourths, denim capris, skin-fit/straight-fit jeans
Indian
Salwar-Kameez/Kurta-Pyjamas: Anaarkali style, long kurtas with churidaar pyjamas, printed patialas with chikan work kurtas
Accessories: Chunky (single long beaded necklace and single wooden bangle), Metallic (particularly silver), Glass jewellery (colourful bangles) besides big bags, shades, stoles and cloth belts
Make-up: Nail art with bold colours in nail-paint (green, blue, purple, golden), light blush-on, kajal/kohl (black/grey/blue/green), mascara
Hair-style: Wavy/curly/messy
Foot-wear: Oshos, Floaters, Canvas shoes
Brands: (Western-Uppers :) Westside, Benetton, Mango, (Western-Lowers :) Numero Uno, Levis, Lifestyle; (Indian :) Cottage Industries, People Tree, Sabhyata, Fabindia; (Foot-wear :) Nike, Converse, Crocs
DON'T's
Colours: Bold/Dark colours
Prints: Polka dots/ stripes in prints and sequin work
Fabric: Lycra, Corduroys, Silk, Velvet
Western
Uppers: Frilly dresses, balloon dresses, peasant tops (balloon short-sleeved ones), and asymmetrical dresses
Lowers: Flared jeans, acid-washed/faded jeans, leggings, harem pants, cargoes, asymmetrical skirts
Indian
Salwar-Kameez/Kurta-Pyjamas: Short kurtis over jeans/patialas/churidaars
Accessories: Golden/silver bags, too many beads, anklets, loud dangler ear-rings, jholas, bandanas, scarves
Make-up: Lip-stick, black/red nail-paint, eye-liner
Hair-style: Poker-straight, hair colouring and/or streaks (especially golden/yellow/bleached streaks)
Foot-wear: Heels/stilettos and boots, golden/silver belles with ribbon bows
ONE-STOP SHOPS
· "Delhi University swears by Sarojini Nagar market and Janpath" observes NIFT's Keerti Kataria, next door neighbour to Kamala Nehru, Gargi and Institute of Home Economics. Sarojini Nagar was unanimously voted as the ultimate shopper's haven when it came to tops, T-shirts, etc. (Budget: Rs. 150-200 per piece).
· GK-1, M-Block market should be approached by those with generous parents (Budget: Rs. 250-300 per piece).
· Go to Tantra/People Tree for slogan T-shirts (Budget: Rs. 150-200 per tee).
· Janpath is good for accessories (Budget: Below Rs. 50 per article) and so is Khan Market. Khan Market is for the unconventional, style-statement making 'elite'. People Tree has some great stuff too.
· Good quality jeans are available at GK, South-Ex and Kamla Nagar Market. Wait for sale-time.
· Fabindia (GK N-Block, Lajpat Nagar, CP) and Sabhyata (Lajpat Nagar) have taken the Indian-wear scene by storm and continue to be, more or less, high-priced (approx. Rs. 300 for one kurta).
· For canvas shoes head straight to Converse. Oshos (Flip-flop jute chappals) are still in, still priced at Rs. 100, and still all over the place. Stick to brands for floaters and shoes.
· Check out the fari Market opposite McD's Priya Complex, Basant Lok for bags.
To sum it up in Designer, Sidika Kapoor's words "The formula to looking good is feeling good. It's all about your creativity, sensibility and street smartness; where you buy your clothes from and to where you wear them. Carry off whatever you wear with confidence, wear your attitude!"
DO's
Colours: Light/pastel colours (white, relatives of yellow, coral/peach pink)
Prints: Minimum, if at all then floral/graphic/illusion prints (graphic and illusion prints are more wintery)
Fabric: Cotton, linen, denim
Western
Uppers: Ganjis, formal white shirts with waist-coats, long T-shirts, shirt dresses/short dresses and shirts for guys
Lowers: Loose shorts, dungaree shorts, harem shorts (knee-length), pyjamas, white cotton three-fourths, denim capris, skin-fit/straight-fit jeans
Indian
Salwar-Kameez/Kurta-Pyjamas: Anaarkali style, long kurtas with churidaar pyjamas, printed patialas with chikan work kurtas
Accessories: Chunky (single long beaded necklace and single wooden bangle), Metallic (particularly silver), Glass jewellery (colourful bangles) besides big bags, shades, stoles and cloth belts
Make-up: Nail art with bold colours in nail-paint (green, blue, purple, golden), light blush-on, kajal/kohl (black/grey/blue/green), mascara
Hair-style: Wavy/curly/messy
Foot-wear: Oshos, Floaters, Canvas shoes
Brands: (Western-Uppers :) Westside, Benetton, Mango, (Western-Lowers :) Numero Uno, Levis, Lifestyle; (Indian :) Cottage Industries, People Tree, Sabhyata, Fabindia; (Foot-wear :) Nike, Converse, Crocs
DON'T's
Colours: Bold/Dark colours
Prints: Polka dots/ stripes in prints and sequin work
Fabric: Lycra, Corduroys, Silk, Velvet
Western
Uppers: Frilly dresses, balloon dresses, peasant tops (balloon short-sleeved ones), and asymmetrical dresses
Lowers: Flared jeans, acid-washed/faded jeans, leggings, harem pants, cargoes, asymmetrical skirts
Indian
Salwar-Kameez/Kurta-Pyjamas: Short kurtis over jeans/patialas/churidaars
Accessories: Golden/silver bags, too many beads, anklets, loud dangler ear-rings, jholas, bandanas, scarves
Make-up: Lip-stick, black/red nail-paint, eye-liner
Hair-style: Poker-straight, hair colouring and/or streaks (especially golden/yellow/bleached streaks)
Foot-wear: Heels/stilettos and boots, golden/silver belles with ribbon bows
ONE-STOP SHOPS
· "Delhi University swears by Sarojini Nagar market and Janpath" observes NIFT's Keerti Kataria, next door neighbour to Kamala Nehru, Gargi and Institute of Home Economics. Sarojini Nagar was unanimously voted as the ultimate shopper's haven when it came to tops, T-shirts, etc. (Budget: Rs. 150-200 per piece).
· GK-1, M-Block market should be approached by those with generous parents (Budget: Rs. 250-300 per piece).
· Go to Tantra/People Tree for slogan T-shirts (Budget: Rs. 150-200 per tee).
· Janpath is good for accessories (Budget: Below Rs. 50 per article) and so is Khan Market. Khan Market is for the unconventional, style-statement making 'elite'. People Tree has some great stuff too.
· Good quality jeans are available at GK, South-Ex and Kamla Nagar Market. Wait for sale-time.
· Fabindia (GK N-Block, Lajpat Nagar, CP) and Sabhyata (Lajpat Nagar) have taken the Indian-wear scene by storm and continue to be, more or less, high-priced (approx. Rs. 300 for one kurta).
· For canvas shoes head straight to Converse. Oshos (Flip-flop jute chappals) are still in, still priced at Rs. 100, and still all over the place. Stick to brands for floaters and shoes.
· Check out the fari Market opposite McD's Priya Complex, Basant Lok for bags.
To sum it up in Designer, Sidika Kapoor's words "The formula to looking good is feeling good. It's all about your creativity, sensibility and street smartness; where you buy your clothes from and to where you wear them. Carry off whatever you wear with confidence, wear your attitude!"
Campus Hopping - Necessary Exercise
One week since DU admissions opened, and the sale of forms still show a rather dim picture. There has been enough contemplation on the current state of affairs. Some say that the internet is the culprit; others predict a last minute rush. Officials have reconciled to the low tide by saying less applicants means smooth admissions with minimum disappointments. All said and done, if students look beyond their web of convenience, there's a lot they are missing out on by not doing the necessary campus-hopping exercise. Here's a list of reasons as to why you must pay a trip to your prospective colleges:
1. The minute you step onto a college campus, you get a vibe from the place. Consciously or unconsciously, it shapes your decision to join the college or not. Students have left a college at a later stage on the pretext of it being 'unwelcoming'.
Students Speak: "I had wanted to sit for Kamala Nehru's Journalism entrance exam only because otherwise LSR's would have been the first such exam that I would be giving. But when I went to fill the form, I immediately felt connected to the place. The campus has a very homely feel to it", says Vrishnika, 2nd year Journalism (Hons), KNC.
2. When you interact with the staff and/or student volunteers, you gauge an idea about not only the administration but also the functioning of the college. No amount of research will match your first impression of the place.
Students Speak: Indrajit Banerjee, a B.Sc/B.A. Maths (Hons) aspirant says, "Colleges which have student volunteers always make for keener aspirants to these venues".
3. Meeting fellow aspirants is always a lot of fun. Why miss the chance of making friends? It is always better to know a few people before hand.
Students Speak: Udit Khurana from Hansraj comments "In my class the best of friends had met each other for the first time while standing in queues at admission time".
4. Campus-hopping is always more interesting for girls. Before you go and do your college shopping, it's always better to study the campus fashion.
Students Speak: Naam, a member of her college's fashion society comments on the ever-changing campus fashion, "Cling jeans are out, straight cut is in, while straightened hair is so past, one can sport anything from wavy to curly to messy this year".
5. It is always fun to go and check out the different canteens and eating joints in and around colleges. If you're a 'foodie', here's your chance to conduct your own survey and prepare your personal food-guide.
Students Speak: "Admission time was one-whole week of eating out and eating cheap everyday", recollects Manas, this year's pass-out from Stephen's.
The more effort you make to get into a college, the more involved you feel with the affairs of the college; you already feel like you're a part of it. What are you doing then, still sitting at home?
1. The minute you step onto a college campus, you get a vibe from the place. Consciously or unconsciously, it shapes your decision to join the college or not. Students have left a college at a later stage on the pretext of it being 'unwelcoming'.
Students Speak: "I had wanted to sit for Kamala Nehru's Journalism entrance exam only because otherwise LSR's would have been the first such exam that I would be giving. But when I went to fill the form, I immediately felt connected to the place. The campus has a very homely feel to it", says Vrishnika, 2nd year Journalism (Hons), KNC.
2. When you interact with the staff and/or student volunteers, you gauge an idea about not only the administration but also the functioning of the college. No amount of research will match your first impression of the place.
Students Speak: Indrajit Banerjee, a B.Sc/B.A. Maths (Hons) aspirant says, "Colleges which have student volunteers always make for keener aspirants to these venues".
3. Meeting fellow aspirants is always a lot of fun. Why miss the chance of making friends? It is always better to know a few people before hand.
Students Speak: Udit Khurana from Hansraj comments "In my class the best of friends had met each other for the first time while standing in queues at admission time".
4. Campus-hopping is always more interesting for girls. Before you go and do your college shopping, it's always better to study the campus fashion.
Students Speak: Naam, a member of her college's fashion society comments on the ever-changing campus fashion, "Cling jeans are out, straight cut is in, while straightened hair is so past, one can sport anything from wavy to curly to messy this year".
5. It is always fun to go and check out the different canteens and eating joints in and around colleges. If you're a 'foodie', here's your chance to conduct your own survey and prepare your personal food-guide.
Students Speak: "Admission time was one-whole week of eating out and eating cheap everyday", recollects Manas, this year's pass-out from Stephen's.
The more effort you make to get into a college, the more involved you feel with the affairs of the college; you already feel like you're a part of it. What are you doing then, still sitting at home?
Theatre in DU
Our education system has, time and again, been severely criticised for its cruel preference for scholastic achievers. Fortunately things are changing. All DU colleges, as per university rules, recruit students through ECA and Sports quotas, and roughly 5 students (colleges largely differ on the criteria and the number) are admitted per society/sport into the college post rigorous trials. Every DU College boasts of an active Drama and Dance society, at least.
Around admission time, every education counsellor professes that one should opt for choice of course over choice of college, since in the long run 'it is the course that stays with you, even beyond the three years you spend at college'. But what if a student wants to opt for a non-academic career? Is it then wrong to join a college for the extra-curricular activities it offers?
Personality Development is a very important aspect of college life, and what could be a better measure of the personality development that a college offers than its co-curricular and extra-curricular activities. Certain colleges that haven't been as prominent as the so-called 'brands' have also done exceedingly well in this sphere. South Campus/ Off Campus colleges (Dayal Singh (Evening) and Maharaja Agrasen, for instance), which are usually behind the scenes, come to the fore-front, in this respect.
DU colleges have made a commendable effort in reviving the dying arts, especially that of theatre. 'Experimental Theatre' and 'Campus Theatre' are two genres that have become unanimous with DU's theatre tradition. The following are the colleges whose Drama Societies have been performing consistently in competitions over the years and deserve mention (aspiring actors, please note):
STREET THEATRE
Dayal Singh (Evening), Maharaja Agrasen, Kamala Nehru, SRCC, Gargi
College: Dayal Singh (Evening)
Name of the Drama Society: Junoon
Street Play(s) performed (2007-08): Street Play called 'Soch' (based on discrimination on the basis of caste and class distinctions).
Achievements: 30 prizes (approx) in all, which include 1st position at IP College of Women, Miranda, Maharaja Agrasen Institute of Technology, IP University, Dhirubhai Institute of Technology, Ahmedabad, Deshbandhu, Deshbandhu (Evening), Bhagat Singh, Janki Devi Bhim Rao Ambedkar, Rajdhani and Lady Harding besides 2nd position at AIIMS, IIT-D, IIT-K, Hansraj, SVC, KNC, MAC amongst others.
USP: "Most respected society for its enthusiasm and comic timing; presents the hardest of facts in the smoothest style." (President, Drama Society, Gargi College)
College: Maharaja Agrasen
Name of Drama Society: Abhinay
Street Play(s) Performed (2007-08): Street Play called 'Teesra Sach' (based on Trans-Genders)
Achievements: 1st position at Youth Nexus, Hindu, Gargi, JMC, IHE, and MDI, Gurgaon
USP: Original theme, natural attention-seeking tendency.
College: Kamala Nehru
Name of Drama Society: Lakshya
Street Play(s) Performed (2007-08): Street play called 'Iss raste par' (based on Road Rage)
Achievements: 1st position at SRCC, LSR, Gargi, Hindu and Dayal Singh (Evening)
USP: Unconventional, infectious energy levels.
College: Sri Ram College of Commerce
Name of Drama Society: Dram.-Soc.
Street Play(s) Performed (2007-08): Street play called 'Aham Bramhasmi' (based on Communalism)
Achievements: Held 1st position at IIM Bangalore, NIFT and Indian Institute of Labour and Management, Gurgaon
USP: Spontaneous, amazing talent pool, versatile, catchy music.
College: Gargi
Name of Drama Society: Kshitij
Street Play(s) Performed (2007-08): Street play called 'Haan Main Samajh Gaya' (based on the loop-holes of the Indian Education System)
Achievements: 1st position at MAC and Mata Sundri
USP: Simple to comprehend, constant motion.
STAGE THEATRE
Lady Sri Ram, Kirori Mal, Hansraj, Sri Venkateswara
College: Lady Sri Ram
Name of Drama Society: Dram.-Soc.
Stage Play(s) Performed (2007-08): Hindi Stage play 'Kharashein' (K) written by Gulzar, English Stage Plays; Mahesh Dattani's 'Tara'(T) and Woody Allen's 'Death' (D) besides the Public Production 'Final Solutions' both written and directed by Mahesh Dattani
Achievements: (K) 1st position at IIT Powai (Bombay), MICA; (T) SRCC, IIM Bangalore, DCE; (D) NLS Bangalore and JMC.
USP: "Brilliant timing; be it comedy, drama or tragedy; campus theatre in professional taste." (Member, Drama Society, Hansraj)
College: Kirori Mal
Name of Drama Society: The Players
Stage Play(s) Performed (2007-08): Hindi Stage Plays 'Holi' (written by Mahesh Elkunchwar) and 'Line Mein Lago' (written by Nigel Williams). English Stage Play 'Ground Zero'(self-scripted)
Achievements: Holi and Ground Zero performed 15 times, out of which 11 were competitive performances where KMC received in all 13 prizes (approx). Holi has had a reputation of either winning or being disqualified completely. Ground Zero, on the other hand, uniformly received high critical acclaim.
USP: Amazing actors; offer variety without compromising on performance.
College: Hansraj
Name of Drama Society: Theatrix
Stage Play(s) Performed (2007-08): English Stage Play 'Vagina Monologues' (an adaptation of the popular novel by the same name)
Achievements: 1st position at BITS Pilani, 'Vagina Monologues' voted as the 'Best Play' at SRCC, IP College for Women and Miranda House
USP: Risk-taking attitude; limited resources, maximum utilisation.
College: Sri Venkateswara
Name of Drama Society: (Hindi) Anubhuti/ (English) Verbum
Stage Play(s) Performed (2007-08): Hindi Stage play, Vijay Tendulkar's Baby. English Stage play, Adaptation of Woody Allen's 'God'
Achievements: Hindi Dramatics Society won in all 18 prizes while the English Dramatics Society won 6. 14 prizes out of these went to the Stage Play Category (both Hindi and English)
USP: Bold choice of script; merging the difference between campus theatre and professional theatre.
Non-competitive performances were held in terms of various theatre festivals and special performances on invitation basis. Most of the above-listed colleges were present at one or the other of these venues: NSD, IHC, KMC, Stephen's, Hansraj besides Govt. College University, Lahore.
Around admission time, every education counsellor professes that one should opt for choice of course over choice of college, since in the long run 'it is the course that stays with you, even beyond the three years you spend at college'. But what if a student wants to opt for a non-academic career? Is it then wrong to join a college for the extra-curricular activities it offers?
Personality Development is a very important aspect of college life, and what could be a better measure of the personality development that a college offers than its co-curricular and extra-curricular activities. Certain colleges that haven't been as prominent as the so-called 'brands' have also done exceedingly well in this sphere. South Campus/ Off Campus colleges (Dayal Singh (Evening) and Maharaja Agrasen, for instance), which are usually behind the scenes, come to the fore-front, in this respect.
DU colleges have made a commendable effort in reviving the dying arts, especially that of theatre. 'Experimental Theatre' and 'Campus Theatre' are two genres that have become unanimous with DU's theatre tradition. The following are the colleges whose Drama Societies have been performing consistently in competitions over the years and deserve mention (aspiring actors, please note):
STREET THEATRE
Dayal Singh (Evening), Maharaja Agrasen, Kamala Nehru, SRCC, Gargi
College: Dayal Singh (Evening)
Name of the Drama Society: Junoon
Street Play(s) performed (2007-08): Street Play called 'Soch' (based on discrimination on the basis of caste and class distinctions).
Achievements: 30 prizes (approx) in all, which include 1st position at IP College of Women, Miranda, Maharaja Agrasen Institute of Technology, IP University, Dhirubhai Institute of Technology, Ahmedabad, Deshbandhu, Deshbandhu (Evening), Bhagat Singh, Janki Devi Bhim Rao Ambedkar, Rajdhani and Lady Harding besides 2nd position at AIIMS, IIT-D, IIT-K, Hansraj, SVC, KNC, MAC amongst others.
USP: "Most respected society for its enthusiasm and comic timing; presents the hardest of facts in the smoothest style." (President, Drama Society, Gargi College)
College: Maharaja Agrasen
Name of Drama Society: Abhinay
Street Play(s) Performed (2007-08): Street Play called 'Teesra Sach' (based on Trans-Genders)
Achievements: 1st position at Youth Nexus, Hindu, Gargi, JMC, IHE, and MDI, Gurgaon
USP: Original theme, natural attention-seeking tendency.
College: Kamala Nehru
Name of Drama Society: Lakshya
Street Play(s) Performed (2007-08): Street play called 'Iss raste par' (based on Road Rage)
Achievements: 1st position at SRCC, LSR, Gargi, Hindu and Dayal Singh (Evening)
USP: Unconventional, infectious energy levels.
College: Sri Ram College of Commerce
Name of Drama Society: Dram.-Soc.
Street Play(s) Performed (2007-08): Street play called 'Aham Bramhasmi' (based on Communalism)
Achievements: Held 1st position at IIM Bangalore, NIFT and Indian Institute of Labour and Management, Gurgaon
USP: Spontaneous, amazing talent pool, versatile, catchy music.
College: Gargi
Name of Drama Society: Kshitij
Street Play(s) Performed (2007-08): Street play called 'Haan Main Samajh Gaya' (based on the loop-holes of the Indian Education System)
Achievements: 1st position at MAC and Mata Sundri
USP: Simple to comprehend, constant motion.
STAGE THEATRE
Lady Sri Ram, Kirori Mal, Hansraj, Sri Venkateswara
College: Lady Sri Ram
Name of Drama Society: Dram.-Soc.
Stage Play(s) Performed (2007-08): Hindi Stage play 'Kharashein' (K) written by Gulzar, English Stage Plays; Mahesh Dattani's 'Tara'(T) and Woody Allen's 'Death' (D) besides the Public Production 'Final Solutions' both written and directed by Mahesh Dattani
Achievements: (K) 1st position at IIT Powai (Bombay), MICA; (T) SRCC, IIM Bangalore, DCE; (D) NLS Bangalore and JMC.
USP: "Brilliant timing; be it comedy, drama or tragedy; campus theatre in professional taste." (Member, Drama Society, Hansraj)
College: Kirori Mal
Name of Drama Society: The Players
Stage Play(s) Performed (2007-08): Hindi Stage Plays 'Holi' (written by Mahesh Elkunchwar) and 'Line Mein Lago' (written by Nigel Williams). English Stage Play 'Ground Zero'(self-scripted)
Achievements: Holi and Ground Zero performed 15 times, out of which 11 were competitive performances where KMC received in all 13 prizes (approx). Holi has had a reputation of either winning or being disqualified completely. Ground Zero, on the other hand, uniformly received high critical acclaim.
USP: Amazing actors; offer variety without compromising on performance.
College: Hansraj
Name of Drama Society: Theatrix
Stage Play(s) Performed (2007-08): English Stage Play 'Vagina Monologues' (an adaptation of the popular novel by the same name)
Achievements: 1st position at BITS Pilani, 'Vagina Monologues' voted as the 'Best Play' at SRCC, IP College for Women and Miranda House
USP: Risk-taking attitude; limited resources, maximum utilisation.
College: Sri Venkateswara
Name of Drama Society: (Hindi) Anubhuti/ (English) Verbum
Stage Play(s) Performed (2007-08): Hindi Stage play, Vijay Tendulkar's Baby. English Stage play, Adaptation of Woody Allen's 'God'
Achievements: Hindi Dramatics Society won in all 18 prizes while the English Dramatics Society won 6. 14 prizes out of these went to the Stage Play Category (both Hindi and English)
USP: Bold choice of script; merging the difference between campus theatre and professional theatre.
Non-competitive performances were held in terms of various theatre festivals and special performances on invitation basis. Most of the above-listed colleges were present at one or the other of these venues: NSD, IHC, KMC, Stephen's, Hansraj besides Govt. College University, Lahore.
A FRESHER'S GUIDE TO THE CAMPUS
For all the excited campus-hopping DU aspirants, here's a statutory warning, all isn't as hunky-dory as it seems from the outside. Veterans give an insight into what is in store for freshers. From 'friendly interactions' to transport, pocket-no-money to notes, here's a one-stop guide to all your college problems.
RAGGING
"Nothing constructive has come out of banning ragging", says Nikita, now a 2nd year student. "Freshers who resisted ragging quoting the 'Say No to Ragging' rule faced the music throughout the year. Such behavior never goes down well with seniors and these students earn themselves a negative reputation amongst peers too". Some schools are reputed for churning out the so-called "snobs" or "snoots". Another 2nd year warns against the not disclosing the school name tactic. "A girl from my batch initially refused to name her school, on insistence she took some other school's name. Since students from that school were present there, her act fell flat on its face. Nothing could have been more embarrassing".
Veteran Tips:
1. Dress down, there will be a lot of time to show off later. Do not unnecessarily invite attention to yourself.
2. Without sounding over-enthusiastic, volunteer to do the safer, more regular stuff such as singing, dancing, acting, etc. Go prepared with interesting alternatives, seniors too do run out of ideas and novelty never goes unappreciated. Make it enjoyable for yourself, you'll be telling practically everyone about these incidents the rest of your life.
3. If you find something you've been demanded to do provocative, genuinely sound confused and do a miserable job at it. The seniors eventually get bored of non-performers and move on.
4. Find seniors from your school and remain in groups. Very large groups, too attract attention.
TRANSPORT
It's about time you became conversant with Bus Routes. In any case you're safer 'on' a blue-line than on the road using any other mode of transport. Chances are you'll live longer. There are certain sites that have come up in the last six months which offer services like second-hand bikes and organize car-pool. Girls, especially, shouldn't hesitate in asking men to get off women's seats if they wish to make their bus journeys more comfortable. Dial 100 if an auto-wallah refuses to run by the meter. Do not practice courtesy when it comes to asking people who are travelling alone in an auto and going the same direction as yours. This one might not be applicable to the girls.
ALLOWANCE
You will barely be left with any money at all after paying your travel expenses and getting books photocopied, which will be on a daily basis if you wish to submit your weekly assignments on time. You'll have to do away with your food money at times. Go for momos or chhole kulche which are not only available everywhere but cost Rs. 10-15 and are light on the pocket and filling enough as a mid-day meal. Between classes, there wouldn't even be time to eat more. If you carry food from home, carry a serving size of 3-4 if you wish to get your portion of it.
NOTES
If you have been boasting of not issuing a single book from the library throughout school, you'll have a tough time coping up with college. The concept of textbooks is redundant. You'll be running after books which might have just a para on the topic you're covering. With the number of assignments you get on a weekly basis, and the number of reference books required per assignment, photo-copying is a must. At the end of the three years of college, you'll regret you didn't buy a photocopy machine. Borrow notes from seniors, but don't sit over them, share your resources. The best idea is to make your own notes immediately as you will reduce the garbage-disposal problem you'll face at the end of the year. Since your seniors are dying to get rid of the kabaad, getting their notes out of them shouldn't be much of a problem.
RAGGING
"Nothing constructive has come out of banning ragging", says Nikita, now a 2nd year student. "Freshers who resisted ragging quoting the 'Say No to Ragging' rule faced the music throughout the year. Such behavior never goes down well with seniors and these students earn themselves a negative reputation amongst peers too". Some schools are reputed for churning out the so-called "snobs" or "snoots". Another 2nd year warns against the not disclosing the school name tactic. "A girl from my batch initially refused to name her school, on insistence she took some other school's name. Since students from that school were present there, her act fell flat on its face. Nothing could have been more embarrassing".
Veteran Tips:
1. Dress down, there will be a lot of time to show off later. Do not unnecessarily invite attention to yourself.
2. Without sounding over-enthusiastic, volunteer to do the safer, more regular stuff such as singing, dancing, acting, etc. Go prepared with interesting alternatives, seniors too do run out of ideas and novelty never goes unappreciated. Make it enjoyable for yourself, you'll be telling practically everyone about these incidents the rest of your life.
3. If you find something you've been demanded to do provocative, genuinely sound confused and do a miserable job at it. The seniors eventually get bored of non-performers and move on.
4. Find seniors from your school and remain in groups. Very large groups, too attract attention.
TRANSPORT
It's about time you became conversant with Bus Routes. In any case you're safer 'on' a blue-line than on the road using any other mode of transport. Chances are you'll live longer. There are certain sites that have come up in the last six months which offer services like second-hand bikes and organize car-pool. Girls, especially, shouldn't hesitate in asking men to get off women's seats if they wish to make their bus journeys more comfortable. Dial 100 if an auto-wallah refuses to run by the meter. Do not practice courtesy when it comes to asking people who are travelling alone in an auto and going the same direction as yours. This one might not be applicable to the girls.
ALLOWANCE
You will barely be left with any money at all after paying your travel expenses and getting books photocopied, which will be on a daily basis if you wish to submit your weekly assignments on time. You'll have to do away with your food money at times. Go for momos or chhole kulche which are not only available everywhere but cost Rs. 10-15 and are light on the pocket and filling enough as a mid-day meal. Between classes, there wouldn't even be time to eat more. If you carry food from home, carry a serving size of 3-4 if you wish to get your portion of it.
NOTES
If you have been boasting of not issuing a single book from the library throughout school, you'll have a tough time coping up with college. The concept of textbooks is redundant. You'll be running after books which might have just a para on the topic you're covering. With the number of assignments you get on a weekly basis, and the number of reference books required per assignment, photo-copying is a must. At the end of the three years of college, you'll regret you didn't buy a photocopy machine. Borrow notes from seniors, but don't sit over them, share your resources. The best idea is to make your own notes immediately as you will reduce the garbage-disposal problem you'll face at the end of the year. Since your seniors are dying to get rid of the kabaad, getting their notes out of them shouldn't be much of a problem.
DU ADMISSIONS: DAY 1 OF THE MADNESS
Day 1 of DU Admissions might have been "lukewarm" as a DUSU volunteer put it, but the heat, it seems, has taken its toll on the DU aspirants. With the centralized form promising to be simpler, the queries became more original this year. Let's take a look at the Not So Frequently Asked Questions that made it to the Help Desks at various colleges.
A bunch of genuinely confused boys approached a volunteer at Miranda House seeking re-assurance that the building isn't housing Khalsa College on its premises. What bothered them even more was the information that Miranda House is a women's college, which by default bars boys from admission into the college. Another man in their league was adamant on filling in JMC for his younger brother. Small wonder then, that three Urdu Honours male aspirants justified the concept of Girls Colleges as a refuge for those females who felt "unsafe" in their presence. Girls held their own, claiming co-ed colleges are the place to be and they can take the competition head on. The concept of Girls Colleges to them was a thing of the past.
We received interesting opinions on the debate on entrance exams too. Subverting popular belief that entrances are an irritant to most students, the majority seemed to favour them. And yes, this is the year DU has ruled out entrances for English Honours. The grass is always greener on the other side? The College vs. Course discussion continued; ideally tilted towards the choice of Course. People were refreshingly realistic about their preferences though B. Com still won hands down as the most opted for subject.
A bunch of genuinely confused boys approached a volunteer at Miranda House seeking re-assurance that the building isn't housing Khalsa College on its premises. What bothered them even more was the information that Miranda House is a women's college, which by default bars boys from admission into the college. Another man in their league was adamant on filling in JMC for his younger brother. Small wonder then, that three Urdu Honours male aspirants justified the concept of Girls Colleges as a refuge for those females who felt "unsafe" in their presence. Girls held their own, claiming co-ed colleges are the place to be and they can take the competition head on. The concept of Girls Colleges to them was a thing of the past.
We received interesting opinions on the debate on entrance exams too. Subverting popular belief that entrances are an irritant to most students, the majority seemed to favour them. And yes, this is the year DU has ruled out entrances for English Honours. The grass is always greener on the other side? The College vs. Course discussion continued; ideally tilted towards the choice of Course. People were refreshingly realistic about their preferences though B. Com still won hands down as the most opted for subject.
PAIN IS GOOD
I'm picking at my wound again (unbeatably my favourite pastime these days)... Adiba yells, "Can you quit putting your chot up for display for God's sake?" and looks away, eyes tightly shut, disgusted! I can understand... or well, can I? As in I'd do that if I were in her place! So how's this different???
I guess I know better than to look away from my own troubles... I have to face them, sooner if not later... Blah! They're mine after all... 'Mine'- Possessive article.
You'd think people identify better with you when you're dealing with the negatives... Isn't that exactly why they can't see you happy? Isn't that why they keep pulling you down all the time? Irrespective of the fact whether you're already at the bottom... They fear you'll get better than them if they let you... so they crush you right in the beginning... 'Coz then they can use your shoulders to stand over you. "One down; n to go!"... You're no more than a rung in their ladder to get to the top...
Even otherwise, does anyone really care? Obviously they'll tell you they went through something similar and like duh they understand, but eventually look away when the cut is at its ugliest and where the itch most irritating! "Mess with it when I'm not around..."
I reproach myself for showing off and pull my sleeve over my elbow... But then again, why? What's there to hide or what's wrong with show-off (if at all you call it show off)??? Don't all of us seek sympathy? I mean at least I do, for all I care, and that too in volumes (now that I've admitted it :P)... After all Insecurity does this to you sometime or the other... But then I do enjoy the pain too... It does take my mind off things for a while... Suddenly all my problems seem to be centred around that one single blood clot, and somehow I am convinced that bit by bit removing the dead skin gets me rid of them somewhat... Strangely enough I ignore the scars and blemishes it leaves behind in that moment of blind hope...
Accidentally I pull where it is still cathected to the skin; and the sight of fresh blood oozing out stabs me back to my ugly reality... I feel my stomach turning... the pain comes rushing back... "Nice to see you again! At least you're always there when things are at their worst..."
I guess I know better than to look away from my own troubles... I have to face them, sooner if not later... Blah! They're mine after all... 'Mine'- Possessive article.
You'd think people identify better with you when you're dealing with the negatives... Isn't that exactly why they can't see you happy? Isn't that why they keep pulling you down all the time? Irrespective of the fact whether you're already at the bottom... They fear you'll get better than them if they let you... so they crush you right in the beginning... 'Coz then they can use your shoulders to stand over you. "One down; n to go!"... You're no more than a rung in their ladder to get to the top...
Even otherwise, does anyone really care? Obviously they'll tell you they went through something similar and like duh they understand, but eventually look away when the cut is at its ugliest and where the itch most irritating! "Mess with it when I'm not around..."
I reproach myself for showing off and pull my sleeve over my elbow... But then again, why? What's there to hide or what's wrong with show-off (if at all you call it show off)??? Don't all of us seek sympathy? I mean at least I do, for all I care, and that too in volumes (now that I've admitted it :P)... After all Insecurity does this to you sometime or the other... But then I do enjoy the pain too... It does take my mind off things for a while... Suddenly all my problems seem to be centred around that one single blood clot, and somehow I am convinced that bit by bit removing the dead skin gets me rid of them somewhat... Strangely enough I ignore the scars and blemishes it leaves behind in that moment of blind hope...
Accidentally I pull where it is still cathected to the skin; and the sight of fresh blood oozing out stabs me back to my ugly reality... I feel my stomach turning... the pain comes rushing back... "Nice to see you again! At least you're always there when things are at their worst..."
REJECTING THE SYSTEM.....
And randomly I pick up the first register in my reach, flip it to its last pages and begin to scribble with the only pen that writes that I happen to fumble upon in the dark... the way I always begin on anything! Too much of a co-incidence won't you think? Sometimes I feel I am part of this secret controversy by one of those Greek Muses that dictate from your shoulder or as they might put it "inspire" you... another puppet in the invisible hands of fate, probably with imbalanced if not broken strings...
So, I haven't been able to put myself to sleep and am coming up with all sorts of after-dark insomniac, crazy ideas to distract myself... but then a part of me recognises them as futile attempts at suppressing the nagging desire to write... The razai seems warm no more and I surrender to the urge, wondering if I really had any other option... Catharsis I call it... Writing comes to me naturally as the only other way besides weeping to get it out of the system and I don't want to cry right now... Even the light from the heater seems sufficient; rather inviting I'd say...
It's about time that I stop lying to myself and admit it... I AM GOING TO MISS SCHOOL AFTER ALL... no matter how many pain-in-the-ass bruises it has given to my ego, for I cannot deny DPS RK Puram's role in helping me discover besides teaching what it means and nurturing it... Yes, these last two years have been looooong and I'm happy that they're over... but no matter how much I try to run away from the fact... the truth remains that I am a Dipsite and the school campus has been making me sick with nostalgia the past FEW (and no more, you get that?) days... I guess its been my Defence Mechanism: 'Rejecting the system before the system rejects you' as Rejection continues to stand out as my strongest fear!
Now to all those of you whose calls I'm repeatedly ignoring and others with whom I've been conversing in monosyllables without making eye contact... I'm learning to live without you and its SLIGHTLY uncomfortable even without your INSISTENT glares... Very bluntly, I don't know how to deal with farewells and goodbyes (with GOD KNOWS how much of good intended at heart)...
As my parched throat hurts, I can't help letting go of withheld tears rebelling against my strength to prevent their outbreak... and as they stain my strained cheeks... It finally sinks in... I'm leaving my second home!!! For so many years I had been successively growing complacent and in a matter of a few days everything becomes uncertain to the limit of being unsettling... and its like "13 years down the drain... What the heck???"... But then at the same time I know (or do i?) who all are walking with me beyond the school gates and no doubt they are very few... Its disheartening to know that you're leaving so much behind... but then again, everything that has made a difference is a part and parcel of me now and however hard I wish to rip out all of it; I realise that's what makes me what I am and minus this I am nothing... My luggage suddenly seems heavier as the ends of my lips twitch into a meek smile...
So, I haven't been able to put myself to sleep and am coming up with all sorts of after-dark insomniac, crazy ideas to distract myself... but then a part of me recognises them as futile attempts at suppressing the nagging desire to write... The razai seems warm no more and I surrender to the urge, wondering if I really had any other option... Catharsis I call it... Writing comes to me naturally as the only other way besides weeping to get it out of the system and I don't want to cry right now... Even the light from the heater seems sufficient; rather inviting I'd say...
It's about time that I stop lying to myself and admit it... I AM GOING TO MISS SCHOOL AFTER ALL... no matter how many pain-in-the-ass bruises it has given to my ego, for I cannot deny DPS RK Puram's role in helping me discover besides teaching what it means and nurturing it... Yes, these last two years have been looooong and I'm happy that they're over... but no matter how much I try to run away from the fact... the truth remains that I am a Dipsite and the school campus has been making me sick with nostalgia the past FEW (and no more, you get that?) days... I guess its been my Defence Mechanism: 'Rejecting the system before the system rejects you' as Rejection continues to stand out as my strongest fear!
Now to all those of you whose calls I'm repeatedly ignoring and others with whom I've been conversing in monosyllables without making eye contact... I'm learning to live without you and its SLIGHTLY uncomfortable even without your INSISTENT glares... Very bluntly, I don't know how to deal with farewells and goodbyes (with GOD KNOWS how much of good intended at heart)...
As my parched throat hurts, I can't help letting go of withheld tears rebelling against my strength to prevent their outbreak... and as they stain my strained cheeks... It finally sinks in... I'm leaving my second home!!! For so many years I had been successively growing complacent and in a matter of a few days everything becomes uncertain to the limit of being unsettling... and its like "13 years down the drain... What the heck???"... But then at the same time I know (or do i?) who all are walking with me beyond the school gates and no doubt they are very few... Its disheartening to know that you're leaving so much behind... but then again, everything that has made a difference is a part and parcel of me now and however hard I wish to rip out all of it; I realise that's what makes me what I am and minus this I am nothing... My luggage suddenly seems heavier as the ends of my lips twitch into a meek smile...
FUSS MACHINE - Nobody's Perfect; I am Nobody!
Isn't it irritating that our very basic vocabulary comprises of words which are subjectively defined? Good, Bad, Right, Wrong even True and False, for that matter, are debatable courtesy conflicting contexts. The problem word in question is "Perfect". Wouldn't it be perfect is at least 'PERFECT' was perfect??? 'Perfect' is probably the superlative to best since best itself is superlative for good and better [Good; Better; Best]. For bare minimums everyone would agree that it lies at the upper-end of the continuum. That in itself is enough to detect the loophole. The concept of perfection is similar to that of infinity. NOT DEFINED! Even two infinity signs can't be equated however much we would wish for convenience's sake. So that quite explains why no one gets full marks on English. Nothing is completely right and nothing is entirely wrong! Everything is relative and the w.r.ts (with respect to’s) aren't standardized! "SUBJECTIVITY" is the name of the game!!!
So! With so much of ambiguity, how did the (so-called) "Perfectionist" come around? At the very outset I would like to differentiate between a Fully Functioning Person (FFP) or a Self-Actualized Individual and a Perfectionist. For all those who are laymen to the Humanistic Approach in Psychology; a FFP is "one who is sensitive to the needs and rights of others, but does not allow society's standards to shape her/his feelings and actions to an excessive degree." Self-actualization is a related concept viz. a state in which people have reached their own fullest potential; a holistic approach focusing the larger picture. The Perfectionist in contrast is too obsessed with the onion rings being congruent in shape, every hand-written letter being a photocopy of the same elsewhere and the groceries being kept in alphabetical order (Danny Tanner in Full House, Monday to Friday 1800 hrs Zee Cafe) to go beyond anything but detail!!! Food for thought: How many of you have wondered while eating Pringles the amount of wastage involved in packaging one single stack of identical chips?
When did you last hear someone boasting of being a Perfectionist? First of all Perfectionists are far from perfect so the very notion of Perfectionism is wrong. "Nobody's Perfect" still stands true through the test of time. Coming to the "I am Nobody" of the refined maxim; there's absolutely NOTHING to boast about in being a Perfectionist. The point being Perfectionists have some serious issues in life. I reckon they suffer from Obsessive Compulsive Disorders. They can NEVER have long-term relationships! They tend to withdraw at the peak of a relationship. Why contradict myself by addressing the "Perfect Relationship" (happy, content, satisfied, ideal, successful are complete no-no’s for me in the circumference of this article) when the Fuss Machine would put people off even before they enter into a relationship with her/him? Even another Perfectionist would be subjected to rejection by a Perfectionist! You know how the make of the human being is; there has to be at least ONE flaw, and when you get too close to the perfectionist, that one negligible fault becomes a glare-in-the-face for her/him. And after you've scratched your head enough trying to figure out where Ms./Mr. Paranoid vanished in the middle of an intimate kiss... You'll discover... IMPERFECTION!!!
Never at Peace...
Signing out... Perfectionist
So! With so much of ambiguity, how did the (so-called) "Perfectionist" come around? At the very outset I would like to differentiate between a Fully Functioning Person (FFP) or a Self-Actualized Individual and a Perfectionist. For all those who are laymen to the Humanistic Approach in Psychology; a FFP is "one who is sensitive to the needs and rights of others, but does not allow society's standards to shape her/his feelings and actions to an excessive degree." Self-actualization is a related concept viz. a state in which people have reached their own fullest potential; a holistic approach focusing the larger picture. The Perfectionist in contrast is too obsessed with the onion rings being congruent in shape, every hand-written letter being a photocopy of the same elsewhere and the groceries being kept in alphabetical order (Danny Tanner in Full House, Monday to Friday 1800 hrs Zee Cafe) to go beyond anything but detail!!! Food for thought: How many of you have wondered while eating Pringles the amount of wastage involved in packaging one single stack of identical chips?
When did you last hear someone boasting of being a Perfectionist? First of all Perfectionists are far from perfect so the very notion of Perfectionism is wrong. "Nobody's Perfect" still stands true through the test of time. Coming to the "I am Nobody" of the refined maxim; there's absolutely NOTHING to boast about in being a Perfectionist. The point being Perfectionists have some serious issues in life. I reckon they suffer from Obsessive Compulsive Disorders. They can NEVER have long-term relationships! They tend to withdraw at the peak of a relationship. Why contradict myself by addressing the "Perfect Relationship" (happy, content, satisfied, ideal, successful are complete no-no’s for me in the circumference of this article) when the Fuss Machine would put people off even before they enter into a relationship with her/him? Even another Perfectionist would be subjected to rejection by a Perfectionist! You know how the make of the human being is; there has to be at least ONE flaw, and when you get too close to the perfectionist, that one negligible fault becomes a glare-in-the-face for her/him. And after you've scratched your head enough trying to figure out where Ms./Mr. Paranoid vanished in the middle of an intimate kiss... You'll discover... IMPERFECTION!!!
Never at Peace...
Signing out... Perfectionist
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
THE SPIRAL OF SILENCE
Comment:
‘Girls play with Dolls’
Typical Male Response: “Like duh they do!”
Typical Female Response: “How extremely Sexist!”
Comment:‘Boys Don’t Cry’
Typical Male Response: “But obviously they don’t!”
Atypical Female Response:
Yeah! That’s where I come into the picture (article, if you insist on getting technical).
Has it ever occurred to you that the debate on gender discrimination somehow tends to get limited to the Vagina Monologues? I mean, isn’t it appalling that in a patriarchal society like ours, there are no ‘Men’s cells’? Laughable? Go ahead and ‘Laugh Out Loud’! It’ll buy me time to think.
[TIME OUT!!!]
Rubbish it as another self-fulfilling prophecy; but the fact remains that since inequality against men is such an unheard-of-phenomenon, it indicates towards a set of suppressed or maybe never-raised voices. In my view, this is a serious restriction, if not __________ denial of the Fundamental Right to Speech and Expression for men. You might argue that there is no inequality against men and hence there has been no objection to the same. Aha! There’s the catch, the missing word is ‘indirect’…
Chuck all that! We’ll get back to it later. Right now we have with us a very special celebrity guest. Allow me to introduce to you, Mr. Alpha Male. Tall, Dark and Handsome… Oops! I mean Big, Strong and Burly. Not to mention HUGE ego (fed by society, of course) Mr. Alpha Male is known to all!
Interviewer: “Mr. Alpha Male, Are you comfortable crying in public?” (Uh-Oh!)
Mr. Alpha Male: “I don’t. Cry. Period. Not in private. Not in public. Ek baar pooch liya, ab dobara mat poochhna!”
Ahem! Ahem! So there you go… Mr. Alpha Male doesn’t cry! Crying is, but obviously, a sign of weakness. Mr. Alpha Male isn’t weak (shame on me, to suggest something so preposterous). Mr. Alpha Male symbolises ‘Endurance’. [I wonder, how would Mr. Alpha Male look 8 months pregnant?]
Now, Mr. Alpha Male is very considerate. He realises that he must teach his ‘lesser counter-parts, arre baba Females, ‘Endurance’. Let’s take a sneak peek into Mr. Alpha Male’s daily routine:Mr. Alpha Male works very hard all day long (with all sorts of ‘elements’).
Tedious Work = Tension/Pressure
Tension/Pressure = Frustration
No crying = No outlet for frustrationNo outlet for frustration = Aggression
Aggression = Wife Beating, Rape, Other forms of torture
Wife Beating, Rape, Other forms of torture = ‘Endurance’
[Hence Proved.]
I thank God that I’m a woman.I thank society I’m allowed to cry.Otherwise, God only knows how I would last in society.
‘Girls play with Dolls’
Typical Male Response: “Like duh they do!”
Typical Female Response: “How extremely Sexist!”
Comment:‘Boys Don’t Cry’
Typical Male Response: “But obviously they don’t!”
Atypical Female Response:
Yeah! That’s where I come into the picture (article, if you insist on getting technical).
Has it ever occurred to you that the debate on gender discrimination somehow tends to get limited to the Vagina Monologues? I mean, isn’t it appalling that in a patriarchal society like ours, there are no ‘Men’s cells’? Laughable? Go ahead and ‘Laugh Out Loud’! It’ll buy me time to think.
[TIME OUT!!!]
Rubbish it as another self-fulfilling prophecy; but the fact remains that since inequality against men is such an unheard-of-phenomenon, it indicates towards a set of suppressed or maybe never-raised voices. In my view, this is a serious restriction, if not __________ denial of the Fundamental Right to Speech and Expression for men. You might argue that there is no inequality against men and hence there has been no objection to the same. Aha! There’s the catch, the missing word is ‘indirect’…
Chuck all that! We’ll get back to it later. Right now we have with us a very special celebrity guest. Allow me to introduce to you, Mr. Alpha Male. Tall, Dark and Handsome… Oops! I mean Big, Strong and Burly. Not to mention HUGE ego (fed by society, of course) Mr. Alpha Male is known to all!
Interviewer: “Mr. Alpha Male, Are you comfortable crying in public?” (Uh-Oh!)
Mr. Alpha Male: “I don’t. Cry. Period. Not in private. Not in public. Ek baar pooch liya, ab dobara mat poochhna!”
Ahem! Ahem! So there you go… Mr. Alpha Male doesn’t cry! Crying is, but obviously, a sign of weakness. Mr. Alpha Male isn’t weak (shame on me, to suggest something so preposterous). Mr. Alpha Male symbolises ‘Endurance’. [I wonder, how would Mr. Alpha Male look 8 months pregnant?]
Now, Mr. Alpha Male is very considerate. He realises that he must teach his ‘lesser counter-parts, arre baba Females, ‘Endurance’. Let’s take a sneak peek into Mr. Alpha Male’s daily routine:Mr. Alpha Male works very hard all day long (with all sorts of ‘elements’).
Tedious Work = Tension/Pressure
Tension/Pressure = Frustration
No crying = No outlet for frustrationNo outlet for frustration = Aggression
Aggression = Wife Beating, Rape, Other forms of torture
Wife Beating, Rape, Other forms of torture = ‘Endurance’
[Hence Proved.]
I thank God that I’m a woman.I thank society I’m allowed to cry.Otherwise, God only knows how I would last in society.
QUALITY CONSCIENCE – BUSINESS PHILOSOPHY
Dad is supposed to present a paper in a conference on QUALITY CONSCIOUSNESS FOR QUALITY PRODUCTION... The flip-side of being a journalism student:
In today’s world of means and ends, they say it’s the intention that matters but it’s the deed that counts. We’ve all become modernistic heroes who in order to achieve a good end result abandon righteousness when it comes to the means. In such a context, re-establishing the classical hero is important i.e. one who would take only the ideal path to reach the ideal goals.
Goal Selection
The above statements stand on the pre-supposition that one’s intention is honest i.e. there are no ‘hidden agendas’ while selecting one’s goal. But such is not the case, for if it were so, philanthropy wouldn’t have existed. Unfortunately today, Philanthropy is a way of the extremely rich to relieve their conscience. Coming back to Goal Selection, one should aim at the greater good of mankind over selfish interests. Or better still; make the greater good of mankind one’s selfish interest. For instance, I go around stating the purpose of my existence as the strife for a Utopian World. Why? There is a lot that needs to change. And why should that bother me? I can’t see the suffering of mankind. Or simply put, I’m happy when I make others happy.
From the above example we come to another important point. Set short-term goals in order to achieve the long-term i.e. first try and change yourself before you set out to change the world. As every individual in the institution becomes accountable towards the institution, the institution’s working also becomes transparent and hence adds the attribution of legitimacy to the overall system.
No doubt you’ve heard all of this jargon time and again. But ask yourselves “What do I want from life?” Surprisingly it’s the most difficult question to answer. Ironical, isn’t it, that we don’t know our purpose of existence.
Goal Execution
Once we’ve chosen our goals, it’s important that we stick to them religiously. The time-table you made yesterday demands from you that you should be studying Economics and not sitting and making another time-table. If we abandon our goals somewhere in the middle they would become lost causes, wasted investments.
This is the stage where the majority of the minority of us that boasts of having a goal loses out. We lack determination, run away from hard work, and are insincere performers. We seek the easier way out, look for short-cuts to success when there are none. We might be excellent at theorizing, but we remain poor practitioners. India’s systemic failure is purely due to lack of implementation and lack of application. Principally we are very strong.
Another very important factor here is failure. Failure is always temporary and success is never permanent. Failure should hence not deter us but act as an immunization. The point is, let’s not just aim towards utopian goals but let’s also make the journey worthwhile. There is so much scope for creativity and novelty of thought yet we continue to imitate, steal from others efforts, plagiarise. Not only does that count as an unethical practice but it also leads to lower levels of satisfaction. I do not imply that we should work in isolation and not learn from our predecessors; only we should acknowledge their achievements and our short-comings before we add or subtract to or from either.
What can we do to increase our levels of satisfaction from our work? If you ask me, it’s all in the mind. We all have a different level of priority towards work against responsibility. A responsibility has to be met, work can wait. No wonder then that work always seems more tedious than responsibility. This is to a certain extent due to our being more accountable towards our responsibilities than towards our work. If we work responsibly or rather consider work as our responsibility, not only would work seem lighter it would also be more satisfying. Let’s pledge to treat work as worship.
Goal Achievement, Goal Maintenance and Goal Improvement
Once we have achieved our goals by fair means we should share its benefits with others. We shouldn’t become greedier, for the more we have, the more difficult it becomes to handle, and the easier it becomes to lose it all. The more we distribute, the longer it sustains. Also value additions are possible only if we make our successes available to the masses.
I hope we all agree that in business, human being is himself no more than a product. Why not then treat this resource objectively and conceptualise a QUALITY CONSCIENCE – a code of conduct which every individual implements on himself and monitors himself with. This in turn will develop an overall sense of ‘Quality Consciousness’. Quality In = Quality Out. Voila! Your Quality Product is ready! Sounds like an advertisement, doesn’t it?
Fantastic as all this may sound, it is as real as you and me; for it is you and me who make it real. The idea of zero-defect might seem unattainable but let’s at least start moving towards zero…
Amen!
In today’s world of means and ends, they say it’s the intention that matters but it’s the deed that counts. We’ve all become modernistic heroes who in order to achieve a good end result abandon righteousness when it comes to the means. In such a context, re-establishing the classical hero is important i.e. one who would take only the ideal path to reach the ideal goals.
Goal Selection
The above statements stand on the pre-supposition that one’s intention is honest i.e. there are no ‘hidden agendas’ while selecting one’s goal. But such is not the case, for if it were so, philanthropy wouldn’t have existed. Unfortunately today, Philanthropy is a way of the extremely rich to relieve their conscience. Coming back to Goal Selection, one should aim at the greater good of mankind over selfish interests. Or better still; make the greater good of mankind one’s selfish interest. For instance, I go around stating the purpose of my existence as the strife for a Utopian World. Why? There is a lot that needs to change. And why should that bother me? I can’t see the suffering of mankind. Or simply put, I’m happy when I make others happy.
From the above example we come to another important point. Set short-term goals in order to achieve the long-term i.e. first try and change yourself before you set out to change the world. As every individual in the institution becomes accountable towards the institution, the institution’s working also becomes transparent and hence adds the attribution of legitimacy to the overall system.
No doubt you’ve heard all of this jargon time and again. But ask yourselves “What do I want from life?” Surprisingly it’s the most difficult question to answer. Ironical, isn’t it, that we don’t know our purpose of existence.
Goal Execution
Once we’ve chosen our goals, it’s important that we stick to them religiously. The time-table you made yesterday demands from you that you should be studying Economics and not sitting and making another time-table. If we abandon our goals somewhere in the middle they would become lost causes, wasted investments.
This is the stage where the majority of the minority of us that boasts of having a goal loses out. We lack determination, run away from hard work, and are insincere performers. We seek the easier way out, look for short-cuts to success when there are none. We might be excellent at theorizing, but we remain poor practitioners. India’s systemic failure is purely due to lack of implementation and lack of application. Principally we are very strong.
Another very important factor here is failure. Failure is always temporary and success is never permanent. Failure should hence not deter us but act as an immunization. The point is, let’s not just aim towards utopian goals but let’s also make the journey worthwhile. There is so much scope for creativity and novelty of thought yet we continue to imitate, steal from others efforts, plagiarise. Not only does that count as an unethical practice but it also leads to lower levels of satisfaction. I do not imply that we should work in isolation and not learn from our predecessors; only we should acknowledge their achievements and our short-comings before we add or subtract to or from either.
What can we do to increase our levels of satisfaction from our work? If you ask me, it’s all in the mind. We all have a different level of priority towards work against responsibility. A responsibility has to be met, work can wait. No wonder then that work always seems more tedious than responsibility. This is to a certain extent due to our being more accountable towards our responsibilities than towards our work. If we work responsibly or rather consider work as our responsibility, not only would work seem lighter it would also be more satisfying. Let’s pledge to treat work as worship.
Goal Achievement, Goal Maintenance and Goal Improvement
Once we have achieved our goals by fair means we should share its benefits with others. We shouldn’t become greedier, for the more we have, the more difficult it becomes to handle, and the easier it becomes to lose it all. The more we distribute, the longer it sustains. Also value additions are possible only if we make our successes available to the masses.
I hope we all agree that in business, human being is himself no more than a product. Why not then treat this resource objectively and conceptualise a QUALITY CONSCIENCE – a code of conduct which every individual implements on himself and monitors himself with. This in turn will develop an overall sense of ‘Quality Consciousness’. Quality In = Quality Out. Voila! Your Quality Product is ready! Sounds like an advertisement, doesn’t it?
Fantastic as all this may sound, it is as real as you and me; for it is you and me who make it real. The idea of zero-defect might seem unattainable but let’s at least start moving towards zero…
Amen!
ARZ KIYA HAI
Kuchh humne bhi jeene ka jaam chakha tha...
Kuchh humein bhi shayari ka shaukh chadha tha...
Do ghoont ishq ke aur nasha utar gaya,
Dhuain ke saath saath maza bhi udh gaya!
Ab hum marne ke liye jeete hain; aur jeene ke liye marte hain...
Zindagi se maut ki dua kiya karte hain
Bachpan mein bade hone ke liye beqarar the...
Budhape mein bachpan ki yaadein jiya karte hain!
***********************************************************
KHUDAHAFIZ
Khamoshi ki goonj mein,
Qayanaat ki dhool mein,
Naam ek aur jud gaya...
Aag ka dhuan reh gaya.
Dard ka bayaan nahiin,
Chot hai nishaan nahiin,
Dawa-e-maut dil ko choo gaya...
Kafiron ko rooh de gaya.
Har qadam ki aahat se,
Sab dilon ki chaahat se,
Har taranh se door ho gaya...
Tu khuda ka noor ho gaya.
*************************************************
GILA
Milke bichhadna hi duniya ka dastoor hai.
Woh waada kiya kyon jo nibhaane se majboor hai?
Zareeya banoon main - teh dili khwahish;
Yeh chiraagh zamaanon se benoor hai...
Kafiriyat humein jaise virasat mein mil gayi,
Jism ki nas nas ke khoon ko mal gayi.
Palkon ka pehra utthayein kaise, Haya?
Har jaganh unhika paakeeza suroor hai...
Sare-aam apna haq qaraar doon,
Tareeqa yeh humein kabhi qabool hi na hua!
Tauba karoon ya sajde karoon main;
Dil mein khayal yeh jo ikhteyaar hua...
Ghalat fehmi ka shikaar yeh beemaar dil,
Na humaara raha, aapka toh kabhi na hua!
Apne hi aansoo pi pi ke zinda hai;
Gunaahe pyaar ka yeh kasoorwaar hua...
*************************************************
NASEEB-E-AKHIRIYAT
Hasrat-e-maut bhi chaukhat tak aake mud gayi;
Zyarat ho aapki yeh dil ne tamanna hi na ki...
Aur aaj jo barzakh bani hai yeh zamin,
Meri mayyat utthayein hain aap kaandhe pe!
Chalo, jaan yeh ghurbat mein barbaad hi sahi;
Pade toh qadam barkat ke ghareeb-khaane mein...
Maana iss din ko dekhne ko main zinda na rahi,
Farsh-e-aza toh bichhi hai mere darwaaze pe!!!
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
GLOSSARY
Bayaan:Statement/Record
Kafiron:Non-believers/Aheists/Pagans
Zariya:Medium
Kafiriyat:Atheism
Mal:Dirtied
Pehra:guard
Paakeeza:Puritan
Suroor:Aura
Qaraar:Claim
Tareeqa:Method
Qabool:Accepted
Sajde:Kneel one's head at someone's feet
Ikhtayar:Shaping of an idea (in this context)
Kasoorwar:Guilty
Hasrat-e-maut:Wish for death
Chaukhat:Threshold
Zyarat:Pilgrimage, Witnessing something/someone holy
Barzakh:The place where the dead wait till doomsday (qayamat) to decide their fate in heaven or hell; A Promotion from hell in this context
Mayyat:Plank used to carry a Dead Body
Ghurbat:Poverty
Barbaad:Wasted
Barkat:Prosperity
Ghareeb-khaane:Poor(wo)man's cottage
Farsh-e-aza: The holy white blanket spread on the floor during majlis (mourning) in the month of Moharram to honour the dead prophet and his 72 followers who sacrificed their lives for Islam
Kuchh humein bhi shayari ka shaukh chadha tha...
Do ghoont ishq ke aur nasha utar gaya,
Dhuain ke saath saath maza bhi udh gaya!
Ab hum marne ke liye jeete hain; aur jeene ke liye marte hain...
Zindagi se maut ki dua kiya karte hain
Bachpan mein bade hone ke liye beqarar the...
Budhape mein bachpan ki yaadein jiya karte hain!
***********************************************************
KHUDAHAFIZ
Khamoshi ki goonj mein,
Qayanaat ki dhool mein,
Naam ek aur jud gaya...
Aag ka dhuan reh gaya.
Dard ka bayaan nahiin,
Chot hai nishaan nahiin,
Dawa-e-maut dil ko choo gaya...
Kafiron ko rooh de gaya.
Har qadam ki aahat se,
Sab dilon ki chaahat se,
Har taranh se door ho gaya...
Tu khuda ka noor ho gaya.
*************************************************
GILA
Milke bichhadna hi duniya ka dastoor hai.
Woh waada kiya kyon jo nibhaane se majboor hai?
Zareeya banoon main - teh dili khwahish;
Yeh chiraagh zamaanon se benoor hai...
Kafiriyat humein jaise virasat mein mil gayi,
Jism ki nas nas ke khoon ko mal gayi.
Palkon ka pehra utthayein kaise, Haya?
Har jaganh unhika paakeeza suroor hai...
Sare-aam apna haq qaraar doon,
Tareeqa yeh humein kabhi qabool hi na hua!
Tauba karoon ya sajde karoon main;
Dil mein khayal yeh jo ikhteyaar hua...
Ghalat fehmi ka shikaar yeh beemaar dil,
Na humaara raha, aapka toh kabhi na hua!
Apne hi aansoo pi pi ke zinda hai;
Gunaahe pyaar ka yeh kasoorwaar hua...
*************************************************
NASEEB-E-AKHIRIYAT
Hasrat-e-maut bhi chaukhat tak aake mud gayi;
Zyarat ho aapki yeh dil ne tamanna hi na ki...
Aur aaj jo barzakh bani hai yeh zamin,
Meri mayyat utthayein hain aap kaandhe pe!
Chalo, jaan yeh ghurbat mein barbaad hi sahi;
Pade toh qadam barkat ke ghareeb-khaane mein...
Maana iss din ko dekhne ko main zinda na rahi,
Farsh-e-aza toh bichhi hai mere darwaaze pe!!!
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GLOSSARY
Bayaan:Statement/Record
Kafiron:Non-believers/Aheists/Pagans
Zariya:Medium
Kafiriyat:Atheism
Mal:Dirtied
Pehra:guard
Paakeeza:Puritan
Suroor:Aura
Qaraar:Claim
Tareeqa:Method
Qabool:Accepted
Sajde:Kneel one's head at someone's feet
Ikhtayar:Shaping of an idea (in this context)
Kasoorwar:Guilty
Hasrat-e-maut:Wish for death
Chaukhat:Threshold
Zyarat:Pilgrimage, Witnessing something/someone holy
Barzakh:The place where the dead wait till doomsday (qayamat) to decide their fate in heaven or hell; A Promotion from hell in this context
Mayyat:Plank used to carry a Dead Body
Ghurbat:Poverty
Barbaad:Wasted
Barkat:Prosperity
Ghareeb-khaane:Poor(wo)man's cottage
Farsh-e-aza: The holy white blanket spread on the floor during majlis (mourning) in the month of Moharram to honour the dead prophet and his 72 followers who sacrificed their lives for Islam
POTTERY AND POETRY
Clay Pots
We've walked miles together,
And come a long way.
Always there, next to each other;
I wish I could stay!
There have been up and downs,
Different joys and pains;
Seasons in the sun,
And moments in the rain.
Time never mattered,
But now we're counting days!
Recalling all memories,
Moulding out of clay.
***
Forgotten Favours
For you I lied,
A million lies;
For you I cried,
To sore my eyes.
For you I fought,
With all the world;
Though I was left,
A broken girl.
For you I walked,
And scabbed my feet;
Always smiled;
When faced defeat.
I shed my blood,
So you could live;
Surrendered all,
That I could give.
But now at times,
I tend to think;
When you slept;
Not once I blinked.
So why tonight,
Cannot I sleep?
When you aren’t there;
Why do I weep?
My tears were yours,
Not a smile I owned!
So do I cry,
‘Coz you are gone?
You didn’t realize,
What it cost!
And that is why,
Darling; I lost.
I failed to make,
You aware,
That every moment,
I was there!
So it is I,
Who is to blame!
That for you today,
I have no name!
Maybe to you,
It is all the same.
Yes sweetie..
Nothing has changed…
***
Buried
Wounds fresh,
Eyes wet,
Silently, I make my way,
Through the night;
Walking slowly,
Broken sobs; keeping pace.
Blood smears;
Chapped lips;
As I dirge, at your grave.
Dressed in white,
Digging deep,
Next to you, I lie in bed.
***
Drowned
A cloudless clear sky
Canopies a misty night
Tear-like, pear shaped dew
Freezes on blades of grass
I feel like breaking down
Crying out my heart
A moonlit valley tumbles
Down the slope of sleep
And in the depth of solitude
I wander out alone
The meadows quietly echo
Whispering my painful song
The cold and clear lake
Reflects my pensive mood
I savor my moments of joy
Companions in grief
Kissing and immersing my body
Enfin m’amour je trouve…
***
Atheism
Solemn in the hollows of silence,
Discriminated by joys of happiness,
My heart is an isolated island,
Calm before the storm…
Pain is symbiotic with air,
Need breathe to survive!
Comforted solely by despair,
I wasn’t made for this world!
Numbness rips my feelings,
Spirituality leads to hell!
Pessimism is most appealing,
As God doesn’t exist…
***
Devour
Teary eyed,
Parched throat,
You’re not in sight,
I have to go!
One glimpse,
Will last one life,
Be my savior,
Don’t leave me alone!
Turn back,
Don’t walk away,
Ruining me,
In just one blow!
Have mercy,
O savage beast,
You’re bloodthirsty,
I await devour!
***
Infatuation
Expressions left unemoted,
Pain kept hidden,
Feelings are incomplete
And dreams are forbidden.
Originality is lost,
Life is a burden,
Tears are brushed away,
Happiness uncertain.
Nights are sleepless,
Days are hazy,
It’s the end of the world,
And I’m going crazy.
Realism doesn’t exist,
Fake is in fashion,
Trust is meaningless,
Suicide is passion!
***
By My Side
When with you;
Dreams come true.
You give me strength
To start anew.
Never leave my side,
Together we abide,
You and me,
We’ll take the world in our stride.
***
Sacrosanct
What I cannot express,
Is beauty at its best.
What I cannot unwind,
Are words simply divine.
What I cannot feel,
Is pain embedded deep.
What I cannot deny,
Is that I envy solemn pride.
What I do not realize,
Is that I’m grateful to those eyes,
Who see someone in me;
Unknown to humanity.
I have no words to say,
To show gratitude to that day,
When a child like you was born,
Who lives to be adorned.
***
The quiet settles in.
The painted sky of dusk;
Dissolves in shades of sin.
The birds mourn the death of day;
The momentary end.
Dressed in white, Head bowed;
The moon does descend.
Illuminating the earth,
It gives its condolence.
Providing us with hope of light,
And bestowing its presence.
While gradually the night grows;
Darker and dense...
Engulfing the entire world;
With sleep at its defense.
***
Washed down
Standing with my eyes closed;
Tilted head, soaking rain.
The wind blows against my face,
Sweeping locks of hair away.
I feel your presence in the air;
As tears mingle with rainwater.
Through my body surges pain;
Wasted efforts to keep you farther.
Somehow it gives me satisfaction;
To watch blood trickle down my wounds,
Washed down by raindrops slowly.
I gaze at the partly clouded moon;
It gives me peace, a silent promise,
Calms me down with a broken smile.
It's nice to know that someone's there,
Shining at me from the night sky.
***
Feminism
While standing apart from the crowd
I sense an uncertain pride in being different
Continuously swimming against the tide
Aware its lonely at the other end
Who says the grass is greener there?
(I ask you what’s green, by the way?)
The direction I'm heading; the destination in mind,
It's painted only in shades of gray
The world runs after happiness
("Elusive" they say, isn't it?)
I know its strange but I believe in maintaining distance - Keeping away
The only red I ever knew
Is the crimson of bloodshed and mutilation
The hue symbolizing love always had pain as an accompaniment
Away from the tears, away from the hurt
(So what if it means away from 'love'?)
It seems I've found happiness at last
A 'slight' deviation from the original meaning of the word.
***
Riot
Blending with the rhythm
Of skipped heartbeats
Comes the muffled sound
Of slacken defeat
Blemishing the azure
The colour of the sky
Crimson- coloured blood
Ear-piercing cry
Another conflagration
Engulfs a handful hearths
And another widow
To an orphan gives birth
***
Defeat
A dream that never left my eyes
A tomorrow so real that could be felt
Now drifts away like the sand of time
Slipping out of clenched wrists.
The more that I run after it
And harder I try to hold on
The more it flies away from me
The more is lost, the more is gone.
Time has come on a standstill
Stopped in its track, each minute; an hour
Blood has thickened; doesn’t flow
And frozen tears taste sour.
The soul cries, the heart bleeds
Body and mind are numb with pain
Head bowed; I’m down on my knees
God bless me death I pray…
***
Immortal
Beauty can scarce the remain unnoticed
Love might be blind but can never die
Life can end but memories remain
Like the ashes of dead flames fly
Wounds can never be healed completely
Pain remains though tears will dry
Convincing yet fake smile
Complete the agony of subtle lies
I can never forget your touch
The electric impulse down my spine
Our love story forever immortal
Embossed in silver in the history of time.
***
Images of Paradise
For hours altogether,
I feast my eyes upon,
Deformed postures;
Your body pertains.
As you grope for light,
In the depths of unconsciousness,
I sit back and observe,
The gradually relaxing perturbation;
Causing your brow to knit.
Little beads of perspiration,
Slowly dissipate.
As you lose touch,
With the virtual world.
Leaving yourface,
Calm and serene,
You meditate,
Into deep sleep.
Ecstatic with the simple joy,
Of unbroken, unshattered,
Images of paradise.
***
We've walked miles together,
And come a long way.
Always there, next to each other;
I wish I could stay!
There have been up and downs,
Different joys and pains;
Seasons in the sun,
And moments in the rain.
Time never mattered,
But now we're counting days!
Recalling all memories,
Moulding out of clay.
***
Forgotten Favours
For you I lied,
A million lies;
For you I cried,
To sore my eyes.
For you I fought,
With all the world;
Though I was left,
A broken girl.
For you I walked,
And scabbed my feet;
Always smiled;
When faced defeat.
I shed my blood,
So you could live;
Surrendered all,
That I could give.
But now at times,
I tend to think;
When you slept;
Not once I blinked.
So why tonight,
Cannot I sleep?
When you aren’t there;
Why do I weep?
My tears were yours,
Not a smile I owned!
So do I cry,
‘Coz you are gone?
You didn’t realize,
What it cost!
And that is why,
Darling; I lost.
I failed to make,
You aware,
That every moment,
I was there!
So it is I,
Who is to blame!
That for you today,
I have no name!
Maybe to you,
It is all the same.
Yes sweetie..
Nothing has changed…
***
Buried
Wounds fresh,
Eyes wet,
Silently, I make my way,
Through the night;
Walking slowly,
Broken sobs; keeping pace.
Blood smears;
Chapped lips;
As I dirge, at your grave.
Dressed in white,
Digging deep,
Next to you, I lie in bed.
***
Drowned
A cloudless clear sky
Canopies a misty night
Tear-like, pear shaped dew
Freezes on blades of grass
I feel like breaking down
Crying out my heart
A moonlit valley tumbles
Down the slope of sleep
And in the depth of solitude
I wander out alone
The meadows quietly echo
Whispering my painful song
The cold and clear lake
Reflects my pensive mood
I savor my moments of joy
Companions in grief
Kissing and immersing my body
Enfin m’amour je trouve…
***
Atheism
Solemn in the hollows of silence,
Discriminated by joys of happiness,
My heart is an isolated island,
Calm before the storm…
Pain is symbiotic with air,
Need breathe to survive!
Comforted solely by despair,
I wasn’t made for this world!
Numbness rips my feelings,
Spirituality leads to hell!
Pessimism is most appealing,
As God doesn’t exist…
***
Devour
Teary eyed,
Parched throat,
You’re not in sight,
I have to go!
One glimpse,
Will last one life,
Be my savior,
Don’t leave me alone!
Turn back,
Don’t walk away,
Ruining me,
In just one blow!
Have mercy,
O savage beast,
You’re bloodthirsty,
I await devour!
***
Infatuation
Expressions left unemoted,
Pain kept hidden,
Feelings are incomplete
And dreams are forbidden.
Originality is lost,
Life is a burden,
Tears are brushed away,
Happiness uncertain.
Nights are sleepless,
Days are hazy,
It’s the end of the world,
And I’m going crazy.
Realism doesn’t exist,
Fake is in fashion,
Trust is meaningless,
Suicide is passion!
***
By My Side
When with you;
Dreams come true.
You give me strength
To start anew.
Never leave my side,
Together we abide,
You and me,
We’ll take the world in our stride.
***
Sacrosanct
What I cannot express,
Is beauty at its best.
What I cannot unwind,
Are words simply divine.
What I cannot feel,
Is pain embedded deep.
What I cannot deny,
Is that I envy solemn pride.
What I do not realize,
Is that I’m grateful to those eyes,
Who see someone in me;
Unknown to humanity.
I have no words to say,
To show gratitude to that day,
When a child like you was born,
Who lives to be adorned.
***
Condolence
The sun drowns in the sea.The quiet settles in.
The painted sky of dusk;
Dissolves in shades of sin.
The birds mourn the death of day;
The momentary end.
Dressed in white, Head bowed;
The moon does descend.
Illuminating the earth,
It gives its condolence.
Providing us with hope of light,
And bestowing its presence.
While gradually the night grows;
Darker and dense...
Engulfing the entire world;
With sleep at its defense.
***
Washed down
Standing with my eyes closed;
Tilted head, soaking rain.
The wind blows against my face,
Sweeping locks of hair away.
I feel your presence in the air;
As tears mingle with rainwater.
Through my body surges pain;
Wasted efforts to keep you farther.
Somehow it gives me satisfaction;
To watch blood trickle down my wounds,
Washed down by raindrops slowly.
I gaze at the partly clouded moon;
It gives me peace, a silent promise,
Calms me down with a broken smile.
It's nice to know that someone's there,
Shining at me from the night sky.
***
Feminism
While standing apart from the crowd
I sense an uncertain pride in being different
Continuously swimming against the tide
Aware its lonely at the other end
Who says the grass is greener there?
(I ask you what’s green, by the way?)
The direction I'm heading; the destination in mind,
It's painted only in shades of gray
The world runs after happiness
("Elusive" they say, isn't it?)
I know its strange but I believe in maintaining distance - Keeping away
The only red I ever knew
Is the crimson of bloodshed and mutilation
The hue symbolizing love always had pain as an accompaniment
Away from the tears, away from the hurt
(So what if it means away from 'love'?)
It seems I've found happiness at last
A 'slight' deviation from the original meaning of the word.
***
Riot
Blending with the rhythm
Of skipped heartbeats
Comes the muffled sound
Of slacken defeat
Blemishing the azure
The colour of the sky
Crimson- coloured blood
Ear-piercing cry
Another conflagration
Engulfs a handful hearths
And another widow
To an orphan gives birth
***
Defeat
A dream that never left my eyes
A tomorrow so real that could be felt
Now drifts away like the sand of time
Slipping out of clenched wrists.
The more that I run after it
And harder I try to hold on
The more it flies away from me
The more is lost, the more is gone.
Time has come on a standstill
Stopped in its track, each minute; an hour
Blood has thickened; doesn’t flow
And frozen tears taste sour.
The soul cries, the heart bleeds
Body and mind are numb with pain
Head bowed; I’m down on my knees
God bless me death I pray…
***
Immortal
Beauty can scarce the remain unnoticed
Love might be blind but can never die
Life can end but memories remain
Like the ashes of dead flames fly
Wounds can never be healed completely
Pain remains though tears will dry
Convincing yet fake smile
Complete the agony of subtle lies
I can never forget your touch
The electric impulse down my spine
Our love story forever immortal
Embossed in silver in the history of time.
***
Images of Paradise
For hours altogether,
I feast my eyes upon,
Deformed postures;
Your body pertains.
As you grope for light,
In the depths of unconsciousness,
I sit back and observe,
The gradually relaxing perturbation;
Causing your brow to knit.
Little beads of perspiration,
Slowly dissipate.
As you lose touch,
With the virtual world.
Leaving yourface,
Calm and serene,
You meditate,
Into deep sleep.
Ecstatic with the simple joy,
Of unbroken, unshattered,
Images of paradise.
***
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