Skip to main content

Posts

lock up stories repeat offender with a silver touch This is the story of a petty offender’s 42-year-long romance with prisons. ‘Silver’ Srinivasan first saw the inside of a jail in 1966. He was arrested for stealing a silver tumbler from a marriage party in Tiruchi. Since then, he has been involved in more than 100 cases and jailed almost as many times. Now aged 72, he has spent more time in jail than outside it, say advocates and jail authorities who know him well. But ‘Silver,’ as he is affectionately known among fellow prisoners and authorities, has his principles. Rule number one is that he only steals silver articles. “If I come across about 100 sovereigns of gold, I either leave the entire lot untouched or take just one or two sovereigns. If I take away the entire booty, the family would be completely ruined. But not many would go to the police for the loss of one or two sovereigns, especially if the rest of the jewellery is intact.” What if it is silver? “Then...
Recent posts
it's useless getting nowhere on time mukul sharma HERE’S a good pop-psychology sort of New Age advice: “ Take a walk — but don’t go anywhere . If you walk just to get somewhere, you sacrifice the walking.” The homily basically exhorts us to try and get out of the rut of a programmed existence where we always need to reach a given destination. As it’s quite clear, they’re not talking about physical activity of moving from A to B but even things like a treadmill. Because on those machines too we usually pace ourselves to get to a point — perhaps a higher calorie shedding count, faster stride rate or an ultimately elevated heart beat. In the process the “walk - ing”, the actual the thing that happens in the spaces between events, people and places is lost. Which is a shame because it reduces us to a connect-the-dots kind of lifestyle that overlooks the importance of the lines separating the dots or bringing them together. One can’t exist without the other. Here’s another...
walk in the rain As we embrace the gentle rain and the small sprinklings of life, we prepare ourselves by learning the lessons the heavens give us at the perfect time, and place, says Marlene Buffa The rain in our life brings opportunities for growth. Be still sad heart and cease repining; Behind the clouds the sun is shining, Thy fate is the common fate of all, Into each life a little rain must fall, Some days must be dark and dreary. — Longfellow Whenever it rains, i am reminded of what my father always said. “You won’t get wet. Just run in between the raindrops, and you will be just fine.” I also think of that saying when life rains down hard on me and i wonder how to dodge the drops, then, too. Daddy’s gentle and humorous confidence that life always worked out for the best instilled in me the same optimism and joyful outlook on life. When we realise that the inevitable rain showers come and go in our lives no matter how much we try to avoid the dampness of the moment, we ...
Being in Twenties Something … It is when you stop going along with the crowd and start realizing that there are many things about yourself that you didn't know and may not like. You start feeling insecure and wonder where you will be in a year or two, but then get scared because you barely know where you are now. You start realizing that people are selfish and that, maybe, those friends that you thought you were so close to aren't exactly the greatest people you have ever met, and the people you have lost touch with are some of the most important ones. What you don't recognize is that they are realizing that too, and aren't really cold, catty, mean or insincere, but that they are as confused as you. You look at your job... and it is not even close to what you thought you would be doing, or maybe you are looking for a job and realizing that you are going to have to start at the bottom and that scares you. Your opinions have gotten stronger. You see what others are doing...
Keeping pace with turtles! We drove down a narrow, dusty path that leads to the Panaiyur beach. Once we alighted from the car, darkness enveloped us and I wasn’t too sure if I really wanted to do this. There was an uneasy calm and the only sound was the lashing of waves against the shore. Being a sucker for horror movies, I half expected to see a lady in white strolling around. Earlier, it had taken an hour’s drive to reach Dr. Supraja Dharini’s house. She is the founder and Chairperson of the Tree Foundation, an NGO which works in collaboration with the Tamil Nadu Wildlife Department for the protection of sea turtles and their hatchlings. Supraja is my guide for the evening and we were joined by a few volunteers from the Tree Foundation and a couple of other turtle enthusiasts. Soon we set out on our turtle walk adventure. Place of action On reaching the beach, we first headed to the hatchery where turtle eggs are kept in incubation in a protected environment. A grid is made with ro...
மழை சாட்சியாய்..... நேற்று மாலை பேருந்தின் ஜன்னலோரப் பயணத்தின்போது வழக்கம் போல உன் நினைவு வந்தது. தொலைதூரப் பயணங்கள் எப்போதுமே சுகமானவைதான் இல்லையா? அவசர அவசியங்கள், செய்துமுடிக்க வேண்டிய பொறுப்புகள் ஏதுமின்றி சாலையோர மரங்களையும் கடந்துபோகும் மனிதர்களையும் வெறுமனே வேடிக்கை பார்த்தபடியிருக்கலாம். சேருமிடம் வரும் வரையில் நாம் செய்யக்கூடியதென எதுவும் இருக்காது, விரும்பியதை சிந்தித்திருத்தலைத் தவிர. அதிலும் பக்கத்து இருக்கைப் பெண்களின் முழங்கை உரசல்கள், அநாவசிய விசாரிப்புகள், எரிச்சலூட்டும் நெருக்கங்கள் ஏதுமின்றி தன்னந்தனியே ஒற்றை இருக்கையில் சாய்ந்து கொண்டு, கம்பீரமாய் நகர்வலம் போவதாய் கற்பித்துக் கொள்வதும், கூடுதலாய் உன் நினைவுகளைத் துணைக்கழைத்துக் கொள்வதும் வெகு செளகரியமானதும் கூட. நேற்றைய மாலைப்பொழுது இதுவரை சந்தித்திருந்த சாயந்திர வேளைகளை விடவும் மிக அழகாயிருந்தது. ஒவ்வொரு மாலையும் ஏற்படுத்தும் அதே பிரமிப்பு.. அதே கிளர்ச்சி.. அதே ஆனந்தம். ஆனால் ஒவ்வொரு நாளும் தனித்துவமாய்... மேகங்கள் வெகு சோகமாய் ஒன்றுகூடி கருமையாய் திரண்டிருந்தன, அழப்போவதன் அறிகுறியாய் உதடு பிதுக்கும் குழந்தை போல. உ...
தப்பித்தலின் சாத்தியங்கள்... நான் விதைக்கப்பட்டிருக்கும் சின்னஞ்சிறு பரப்பினை வன்மமாய் நினைவூட்டுகின்றன இந்த தொட்டிச்செடிகள்.. விடுபடலோ விட்டு விடுதலையாதலோ சாத்தியமாவதில்லை எப்போதும்... வேர்களால் உள்வாங்கி பூக்களாய் எதிரொளித்து தளிர்நுனிகள் அனைத்திலும் உயிர்சொட்டும் விருட்சங்கள் காழ்ப்புணர்ச்சியோடு கசப்புத் தருகின்றன... தப்பித்தல்களுக்கான இடம் தேடிக்களைத்து எங்கேனும் எதிலேனும் ஒளிந்துகொள்ள முயன்று முடிவாய் மறைந்து போகிறேன் கவிதைகளின் பின்னால். credits gayathri http://gayatri8782.blogspot.com