Majestic

photo courtesy David Antony

This picture is typical of San Francisco and it tells a story.

Old monuments have held its own against the winds of time. The shadow at the bottom of the clock is that of a huge highrise just opposite. But the old and the new co-exist so well here. Niether at the cost of the other. The city respects and loves its past and thus preserves it.

And unlike in India the overhead cables dont look so ugly.

Or is it something to do with the clear blue sky that I like this pic so much. I dont know but somehow I can watch this for hours.

Visa Balaji, Bengalee Lyadh & an Open Mind

A post inspired by RIP's rants.

Statutory Warning: To be able to appreciate the nuances of this post you must read all the comments of my previous post and ofcourse lived and worked in more than 3 different cities.

In India the migratory instinct is displayed in some specific pockets. Tamilnadu (Chennai is the second busiest consulate in the world), Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and to some extent Karnataka. In the north it is mainly displayed by the Punjabis' mad rush to move to greener pastures. That is my take though.

In Hyderabad there is a temple called Visa Balaji. The Chilkuru Balaji is also called 'Visa Venkanna' or 'Giver of Visa'.

Rip is right. There is indeed a mad scramble to head abroad. But I think at most times it has to do with money.

While in the east I was pretty untouched by this phenomenon. I think Bengalees have much less penchant to earn, save and stack up money for future generations.

In this context I have to mention my immediate role model, my paternal grandfather. During a single lifetime he lost everything in Bangladesh, started from scratch, acquired immense wealth and finished it off in a single lifetime. He left a lot of debts, a house, a car and some happy lives which would not been happy but for him.

But he is not special. It is a phenomenon typical of many Bengalee houses.

So I was pretty untouched by this going abroad phenomenon till I shifted to Salt Lake. Our cooperative society had some NRI quotas. Suddenly I was interacting with people who had amassed huge wealth in different countries (Canada, Papua New Guinea, Malaysia, US, Libya, Oman, Australia, New Zealand etc) in different occupations (truck driver, sergeant, foreman, doctor, shipman etc).

People who are were Probasis (I cant translate this). Their love for Rabindroshongeet, Bangali Khabar (food), Sharee, Dhuti Panjabi seemed so superfluous. Very few of those who scramble to go abroad actually end up enjoying their stint and become he hybrid human. Have you seen the Tygon or the Liger. Perfectly normal yet so hideous. No inner beauty. An existence in experiment.

I dont like US (and I dont care to explain it). I think it will be another overdeveloped Mumbai or Delhi. But one has to be in a place to be qualitatively qualified to criticise, admire, belittle or judge.

For example after moving to Hyderabad I realised that there is an anti-Hyderabad bias of most Bangaloreans and vis-a-versa. Many people think Calcutta is still infested with the Chittabroto Majumdars (God can anyone please tell me if he is still alive and they dont know he is usurped by Mamata). And many of these folks have not visited or stayed in any of the places that they criticise.

But I respect each place that gives me an opportunity to make a living. And I have gone to each place with an open mind. Only problem I horribly miss my family when I visit a place without them. I feel bad that they dont get an opportunity to interact with a new environment.

So RIP you are right but there is perspective to what others are saying.

P.S - Does anyone know if Chittabroto Majumdar is still alive?

Another One from June

June finally seems to have understood that we are in Hyderabad which is not Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai or Kolkata. But she also has some strange associations in her mind.

Sorry folks the father is not to blame.

The three of us are in the car coming back from somewhere.

Me: June! Dont put your fingers in your mouth. You are a big girl now.

June doesnt respond and continues sucking her preferred fingers as she keeps brushing her eyebrows with the index finger of her other hand.

Me: June put your fingers down!!

June (taking out her fingers): Scout mukhe haat dei? (Does Scout put fingers in her mouth)

By the way my daughter has this Scout fixation which has increased of late. So all and everything starts and ends from there.

Me: No. Scout doesnt put her finger in her mouth.

June takes out her fingers out and is enjoying the song. But suddenly she asks her Mom.

June: Scout ekhon ghumocchey? (Is Scout sleeping now?)
Mun: Yes
June: Scout Bangalore ey?
Mun: Yes
June: Amra Bangalore pore jaabo? Train ey kore? (Shall we go to Bangalore later in a train?)
Mun: Yes, we will go.
June: Ghetu Scout er shonge ghumocchey? (Is Ghetu is sleeping with Scout now?)

Please forgive our daughter. She didnt mean a thing. Also please forgive me for writing about this. But this was so well timed by her. I wonder how she comes to these assumptions.

But we took care to point out that Scout and Ghetu stay and sleep in seperate houses which will be homes someday.

Just Another Interview

My first adult stopover at Chennai. It is not bad. But then this is not Chennai. I am at the lobby of Trident Hilton. Each moment reminds me of her.

But it feels good to see your own name on a placard in the hand of a smiling suited chauffeur. Trident is good. And next day when you are dropped to the US Consulate in air conditioned comfort you dont even let the Chennai heat get to you.

However the moment of truth arrives when you step out at the US consulate in Chennai, the second busiest in the world. You are a commoner from whom the US of A would like to know why you want to meet uncle Sam.

For those who have had the ignominy of attending a walk-in, a visit to the US Consulate will augur similar emotions. As one moves forward, each progressive step, one starts feeling a little more edgy. Depends on how badly you want to travel. You peep out to overhear what the other guys are being asked. Your heart skips a beat each time you hear "Sorry! I cannot give you a Visa."

I was trying not to be nervous. I was not. But I confess my muscles were not very loose either. I am human after all. The whole buildup; your immigration team's briefing session, the several suggestions and counter suggestions, the experience at the consulate leading to your interview cannot help but make your muscles tight.

I was never one of those who badly wanted to travel to USA. It would be nice to visit but my life would'nt be incomplete if I never visit USA.

For me it has always been Europe, Latin America and ofcourse Scandinavia - my dream destination. And so it seemed the same with my Consular interviewer.

He had the man next door look but he had already rejected two applicants out of the 5 before me. He had got deep into the last 4 asking questions like "What's the difference between http and https" and "Whats the job of a network switch?".

I cannot lead him to get too technical I determined. After all I was struggling to remmember the full form of ERP while in the queue.

My turn came. I stood legs crossed (they cant see your legs). "Hi!", we greeted each other. "How are you doing?" he asked. Is this is a trap? "Fine" I said and kept it short. Get on with it. And he did and startled me with his harmless query, "So you are an SAP expert?".

For those split seconds when everything goes blank something was trying to make me blurt out "Yes". But I won and said "No, I develop training materials around SAP".

"So you work for Deloitte," he seems to have some respect for my firm. I replied, "Yes", avoiding the temptation to speak more.

Next, another shocker, "So what is SAP?". Did'nt he know that already. Why does he need me to explain it to him. "It's an ERP solution", I replied. "See, I am not a techie like you, so please dont use jargons and your techie terms. What is ERP?".

Quiverishly I said "Enterprise Resource Planning???". The question was more in mind than in my answer. "So what does it do?". "It helps increase the efficiency of a firm by streamlining... blah, blah, blah".

Sorry folks I dont remmember a word. I crossed the fingers of my legs. "Hmm.." he said and then suddenly "You have been to Denmark?". "Yes!" my muscles finally loosened. "Is it beautiful?", he asked. "It is very beautiful, the entire Scandinavia is beautiful". "You bet it is. But you will enjoy the US. Goodluck."

P.S. - I did check later that ERP is indeed Enterprise Resource Planning