What is Home to you???

What is home to you?

Is it the room with four walls

And a roof overhead

That you return to everyday

To rest your weary head

After a long and tiring day?

In this you'll have several homes

We are by nature nomadic 

Moving from one place to another

Be it searching for a job

For further education 

Or the pursuit of happiness and freedom 

Renting out houses 

Buying properties

Staying as guests

Making several homes

But is this what we can truly call home?

Home is wear the heart is

It is where we feel secure and loved

It may not always be a place 

But also in a person

Home resides in our hearts 

In our minds

No matter where life takes us

We always take a bit of home with us

Cause home will remain with us forever

Helping us make wherever we may be

A little bit closer to home

Troubles may try and bring us down
When we feel lost
We can always be found

Telling us well never be alone

Cause the home in our hearts

Will make any place your home

Respect at Sacred Places

As a person who regularly visits St. Anthony's shrine, in Pune, every Tuesday, I've noticed there are many people from other faiths who visit the Shrine. What I've seen is that these people pay much more respect to the holy place much more than anyone present there has ever showed to the place. It not like we do not respect the sanctity of the place. It's actually wonderful to see their action. Like facing their back to the alter, bowing in reverence to the altar, kissing the bible or the statues, even placing their forehead on it. Hope we can follow their examples and in some way show a greater respect to our sacred places.

Slumdog Millionaire

Ever since it swept the 81st annual Accademy Awards, also know as the Oscars, on the 22nd of February, there has been plenty of debate on whether the film actually deserved all the accolades. Well they was always going to be a debate about that from the very first. Firstly because it wasn't you typical Oscar type movie, at heart it was a much better version of a Bollywood movie. And secondly it was an outsider's view of a situations. So there was definetely going to be a debate.

Many scoff movie as an attempt to further stereotype the nation's poverty, to the extent of glorifying it. True we are known as a 3rd world country and for poverty, but we can't deny that it isn't present. for those who say this haven't much been to these places let alone seen these. What you got to admire about the director is that he had the guts to film the movie on real location. Where Indian directors like the Chopras and the Johar constantly use foreign locales and sound stages as a stand in for actual locations, here you had a foreign director actual filming the movie in actual locvation with people from those areas. You got to commend Danny Boyle for that.

Many say that the movie earned these awards based on sympathy votes because of the attacks on Mumbai. Others believe that movie was marketed well for it to earn these awards. Well firstly I wouldn't say that these were sympathy awards and don't think promotion of the movie had anything to do with it. Then we need to remember that movie swept all the major awards like the Golden Globe, the Critic Choice, The BAFTAs, the SAG, before the Oscars. So that does count in favor of the movie. Secondly the movie's message of hope against all odds was was pretty uplifting and boded well for time when all the major economy is in the state of depression.

Many say that this wasn't A R Rahman best work, he's done better before. I would say "so what if this isn't is best work, it did earn him two Oscars, that does stand for something. Plus it is the first time that an Indian music director was given such a platform and succeeded in winning alot of admiration.

On the whole everyone is entitled to their own views, but then its not right to put down the picture so badly. I did watch the movie and I truely loved it.

The End of Another Year

In another two days we would once again be saying goodbye to yet another year and would be welcoming a new one. With the old year we just want to forget all the pain and sorrows and start the new one with the hope that it will be better than the old one. But what are doing to ensure that this new year is not same like the old???? We squarely blamed the politicians and the police personnel for lack of proper security for the attacks on Mumbai. We blamed them for not taking any responsibilities and called for heads to start rolling. But in all this what did we do??? We have the biggest hands in this whole thing. It is we people who have elected these politician to govern us or have chosen not toe exercise our democratic right to vote. So if we have selected why do we complain about their skills. It is we who have corrupted the police with bribes and underhand tactics to get our work done. So now that they used to it, they can be bribed even by terrorist organization. So why do we complain, after all it is we who have encouraged them. We tens and thousand of celebs who have spoken about these attacks, because this time it hit them the most. What were these people doing during the other bomb blast??? Why do they come on the media with all their fakeness and crocodile tears???

The only solutions to this problem and for a better new year is if we improve ourselves. If we try to exercise our democratic rights in the way it was meant to...in the right spirit. And yes be vigilant and good. Only then we can ensure a safe and fruitful new year.