Swetha Banda

"I have no regrets, says porn star" That was the main headline in the paper today. Big and bold. Well, I have no issues with the porn star not having any regrets with her way of life. I think its perfectly alright. But what I don't understand is, how is it relevant to my life, and to the thousands of other normal, middle class people sitting down to read the paper. I admit, I did end up reading the whole article. And undeniably, this kind of news increases readership. But what has happened to our sensibilities? Where has normal, intelligent news gone? Why don't we want to read anything sensible these days? I turned the pages of the paper. Page after page has news about random celebrities and gossip about them. I don't really care if a certain celebrity has gained a few pounds and yet wanted to pose in a bikini. I am sure a lot of magazines are there specifically for this kind of news. Daily news, really? Well, I am not being some kind of moral police here, but I r...

I read this passage in the book "Into the Wild" by Jon Krakauer. The passage is taken from Family Happiness by Leo Tolstoy. He was right in saying that the only certain happiness in life is to live for others.. "I have lived through much, and now i think I have found what is needed for happiness. A quiet, secluded life in the country, with the possibility of being useful to people to whom it is easy to do good, and who are not accustomed to have it done to them; then work which one hopes may be of some use; then rest, nature, books, music, love for one's neighbour - such is my idea of happiness. And then, on top of all that, you for a mate, and children, perhaps - what more can the heart of one desire? " Seems like its my idea of happiness too.....

Everyone around me was fast asleep. I was the only one staring out of the window. Try as much as I can, I just can't sleep during the 1 hour journey to and from home to office. Its been like this for almost 2 years now. Damn all the horns blaring in the background. It irritates the hell out of me. So, this morning I was sitting in the cab, the same scene as of all days, everyone dozing off and me wide awake just staring into oblivion. I was just thinking of the kind of drivers there are. There are guys who ride their bikes like they are super heroes straight out of super movies. And usually, these guys are inspired by movies like Krissh... A personal observation has been the when the bike is extraordinarily good, the guy riding it usually sucks and vice versa... And then there are the cab drivers. And when I say cabs, I mean Tempo travellers, swaraj mazdas, sumo's, qualis' etc. (basically company cabs with sleeping employees). These guys are always in a hurry. They always ...

I woke up this morning with the feeling that I want to accomplish something today. But I am still sitting here without any motivation. Not that I know what I want to acheive. I just assumed that I would get this stroke of inspiration and I'd know what I want to do. But nah... it doesn't seem to work that way. I guess I wanted to write something radical today. But as I set out to write I realized that I don't care about too many things. I dont have strong opinions on anything. I dont feel passionately about any cause.I have a general feeling of carelessness and indifference to most things around me. I dont bother about global warming or about how the IT is spoiling the culture of old time Bangalore. Or maybe its just the mood that I am in today. The more I think about it, the more I realize I am just an Average Jane, with not too many concerns about the ways of the world. I am not setting out to change the world or make a difference. I dont think any of the generations beyon...