It is funny that two people may have the same feelings about something, yet reach opposite conclusions. What keeps someone out of the vast ocean may draw someone towards it. This is the “Unknown” I am talking about. Quite often, I got repelled by the element of uncertainty associated with the “Unknown”. This time though, I chose to make an exception to my policies. That is why; I landed in Pune on a glittering Diwali night. I was received by a friend of my father, who, quite fitting to the situation I had met for the first time.
I was not sure whether my love affair with the “Unknown” would last. I accept that my decision was probably based on emotion rather than logic. When I say emotion, I unfortunately mean negative emotions here. These negative emotions were the product of 3 and ½ years of Manipal. Then, I had definitely not paid heed to the age old saying “Do not put all your eggs in one basket”. What had followed Manipal was an extremely painful and distressing 6 months in Noida .I had writhed in pain, anger and disappointment .It was one place where perhaps I made a fool of myself every single day. The simple yet important lesson of life got planted in my head – “Every man for himself”.
As I left Noida, rejected in both my professional and personal life, my first tryst with the Unknown had already been setup. This was the God’s own country. I do not know if it was the result of my low expectations or what, but things started falling in place remarkably well. The kind of attention I got there was something similar to my school days when I used to be the toast of every eye. It was hardly a month into my stay at Trivandrum
This Season was the one reason I fell in love with the Unknown. I chose Pune. As I started my journey in Pune, I saw people who precisely knew why they were here. I, however, had no idea why I was in Pune. A friend of mine recently pointed it out to me that it takes years to foster a healthy bonding, a bonding which is above the realms of demand and supply. Agreed. I accept that for me, an emotional void might be here to stay for long. I, however, believe that in this race of life, even the best car needs a pit stop. That pit stop often goes a long way in defining how you run and finish the race. Pune is my pit stop. I have often tried to be in total control of my life only to fail in the end. Life is too dynamic to be controlled. Sometimes it is vital to let life take its course. It has a tendency to throw unpleasant as well as pleasant surprises. Face the unpleasant ones with courage, so that when the pleasant ones arrive, may be from the past, may be from unexpected appreciations, and may be from somewhere close by, you are ready to cherish those, as I might be doing now J . You never know when the series of lasts might make way to the series of firsts .
I do not have words to describe how much have you said in such a few words. Full of positive emotions, so much so that it makes the reader (read me) feel positive. And yes, "Every man for himself" is the key in this mean world. I believe that some birds are not mean to be caged, and one of them is you. You'll soon fly away high, very high. :)
ReplyDeleteWhile I was at the last para, I looked at the position of the scrollbar. Was disappointed that it was too low :P
ReplyDeleteKeep Venting :)
I am not a good writer and consequently my comments should no way be the benchmark of judging the depth of your this article. By and large your articles remind me of the uniquness you have of expressing things and the spontaneous optimism out of some mystical pain..Waiting for the next :-)
ReplyDelete:)..:)..dat was nice...wen u write abt urself u will b able to express it more..its v clear 4m dis blog...i can jst say...it was impressive..n full of intelligence n emotions...
ReplyDelete@Shashank : I second your opinion . I felt the same that I should have increased the content . But then may be the quality would have got compromised . Will keep it in mind though the next time I decide to vent :-)
ReplyDelete@Anshul : You have been very encouraging all the way through :-) Thank you
ReplyDelete@aks : No one captures the essence of my writings as you do . And your comment this time shows you have begun understanding me like never before . Thank you so much :-) You got the actual feel of this piece .
ReplyDelete@Prachi : Believe me it was toughest to write about myself . When I write about myself on a public forum its always important to be wary of what to write and what not to write . Difficult to create hidden messages :-) .Thank you for your encouragement
ReplyDeleteNicely written brother.. best thing coming out from this is that you know yourself.. it surely is a step toward the "inner-peace' :)
ReplyDeleteWat a shot !!!! :) I have to admit Mridul, this will stand tall among all the bravest attempts ever written about oneself. Words which come direct from heart enter direct into hearts. I felt so connected with the concept of the "Unkonwn" and felt the pain in your so called hidden messages.The best line for me was: "What keeps someone out of the vast ocean may draw someone towards it". waiting for the next one :)
ReplyDeleteTrademark lucid expression.Rightly said(as i could understand) , it needs courage to put reasons(and 'reasons') behind and optimistically venture into unknowns and surely its a way to greater self-actualization and inner-peace.Happy to see u write with courageous and optimistic connotation.
ReplyDelete@Arjit : Thanks bro :-) Your words are always important
ReplyDelete@Ashutosh : Your words on record here and your words off the record told to me have given me the most satisfactory feeling I could have imagined after writing this post.You have made my day. Thank You :-)
ReplyDelete@Ashish : Thank You so much . You have been very encouraging all the time . It helps .
ReplyDeletei liked the style, liked the crispness in the language, liked the flow, but forget al dese i loved the optimism behind :) more appealin dan ur previous ones...as always waitin for the next
ReplyDeletevery well versed mridul .awsum writing .. one of ur best stuffs so far .. honestly speaking i liked the blog yesterday without even reading it but ashu bhai pointed it to me to have a look at it .. and seriously the decisions that u have taken might not be the easy ones but surely they will lead u to that plane of perfection which u had alws been dreaming of .. and as shashank sai ...keep venting :))) waiting for more of ur stuffs
ReplyDelete@Robin : Thank You for your encouragement . And most importantly thank you for reminding me that I needed to start writing again :-)
ReplyDelete@Rahul : It seems like I will now hire Ashutosh as my marketing agent apart from being my motivator :-P . And I would say one thing , the decisions I have taken have infact all been simple ones . They just seem blown out of proportion . I am lucky to have what I have and to be where I am and I have no complaints .
ReplyDeletei read it twice to believe that u r the writer...how beautifully u hav expressed urself.The concept of "unknown" was amazing.
ReplyDeleteafter reading this i think i dnt knw u yet....waiting for ur next piece of writing :-)
@Jassi : Thank You so much ... I am delighted that people have liked the concept of Unknown and felt related to it ... I will keep unraveling myself from time to time :-)
ReplyDeleteits very tough to write about oneself. even more so difficult to write something that others too feel connected with. you should seriously consider writing more often!!!! :-)
ReplyDelete@Satish : I am glad that people have felt connected to my post ... And your point is duly noted .. I will try to write a bit more .. It will help me improve ..Thank You
ReplyDeletewatever seriousness and gravity u keep while talking is truly getting reflected in ur writings also...
ReplyDeletereally hats off!!!
Thank You Ravi ... Those are very encouraging words from you
ReplyDeleteWell written Mridulji...Though m not a frequent blog reader but u are the only guy whose blogs i follow..This is the best one...i totally liked the concept of pit and yeah always Expect the Unexpected from life..Keep going..:-)
ReplyDelete