Some Cricketing Thoughts

DRS - I saw lot of criticism of the supposed 'howler' made by the Third Umpire Shaun Baig upholding the On Field Umpires LBW decision against Daryl Mitchell. Hotspot indicated an edge, while the Snicko was flat. As per ICC protocol, Audio Based Snicko takes precedence over Thermal Based Hotspot in the event of a Conflict, and as such the Third Umpire was quire correct in upholding the decision based on 'no spike' in Snicko (Ultra Edge). Since the whole review was being shown on the Big Screen in the Stadium, the batsman was convinced he was hard done by, and one can't blame him too for being astonished and aggrieved. A bit of a mess, but not one that should lead to condemnation of DRS, which has really improved the quality of decision making, and has given the teams a chance to review an apparently bad decision.

Cricketing System: A decade ago, everyone was gushing about the Australian System of Cricket, and there was a beeline for imitating their system. Suddenly, Australian Coaches were much sought after, and we had absolute disasters like Greg Chappel ( a great Cricketer, a good coach but a poor Man-Manager), John Buchanen et al. Australia dominated only because they had a blend of extremely talented cricketers playing together. If the Australian system was so good then, why are they struggling now? By the same token, India is the Powerhouse today. The Indian team creates the same awe as the West Indies of 1980s or the Australians of 2000's. IPL was supposed to be the death knell of Indian Cricket, but IPL brought in riches for the poorly paid domestic cricketers, directly and indirectly. This has led to more youngsters taking up cricket as a profession, as it even rewarded players like, say Basil Thampi, with enough money to be secure for life. The moot question is why is no country trying to emulate the Indian System or go for Indian Coaches? White Man's bias? Perhaps. Talking about Cricketing Systems, England is in doldrums because their Country Cricket is not throwing up talent. Once Anderson and Broad hangs up their boots, England will be worse than the current Australian team. India is on the up and up because they have found a bunch of top quality Medium Fast bowlers in Bumrah, Bhuvi, Shami, Ishant, Umesh Yadav. If one were to look at the domineering teams of the past, they always had match winning bowlers - the fast bowlers of West Indies of 1980's, Shane Warne and McGarth of Australia, Muthiah Muraleedharan from Srilanka, Imran, Sarfraz, Qadir of Pakistan. For India add Ashwin, Kuldeep in the Tests, and Kuldeep and Chahal in ODI/T20 and we suddenly have a combination capable of bowling opposition out in any format at any venue.

MS Dhoni: I have never been a great fan of Dhohi, despite his achievements and have always believed that he should have hung up his boots long time ago. But watching him in Australia and New Zealand, I am convinced he should play for a year more. His glove work is still superb (though he still wont go for catches beyond his reach), is fit, bats well but more importantly his leadership qualities and mentoring skills adds immense value to the team

Budhi Rakshasan is back on Prowl

With election around the corner, my friend Budhi Rakshasan (BR) is busy with his bundle of inside information from the political circles in Delhi.

BR: Hello Swamy! Long time!

Me: Hi. What is new BR?

BR: Despite all the Luteyans Media and the Opposition Crooks ganging up, Modi is looking comfortable, especially after him taking the wind out of the opposition with the 10% reservation for the Economically Backward, the IT exemption up to Rs 5 Lakhs, Basic Income Support for Farmers and the Interim Budget

Me: I thought Modi lost it a bit during the past one year. Especially him not taking too much interest in pursuing the corrupt opposition leaders

BR: I too felt the same way. Modi and Shah are street smart. They kept politics away till recently. Any action taken earlier would have been forgotten by the people by the election date, as voters have short memories. Ditto for IT Waiver. I am sure there will be two more major announcements this month, before the Code of Conduct kicks in.

Me: Ram Mandir?

BR: Most probably yes. It is an emotional issue. Elections are won on Emotional issues in India, and not on Developments done by the Government. Optics are important. It is why Vadra being questioned by ED, Mallya being extradited, Chidambaram Family and Sonia Gandhi Family running from Court to Court, or Mamata having to protect her Confidante Cop from CBI. Modi and Shah are slowly building momentum, and is likely to peak by the election day. Meanwhile, the opposition has already peaked, and is on a downward spiral

Me: Hmmm. You have a point. I was worried when BJP lost MP, Rajasthan.

BR: In hindsight, this is the best that could have happened to BJP. MP was a narrow loss and BJP did better than expected in Rajasthan. You need to add Karnataka too. But people already has seen the horror of a coalition government in Karnataka, the broken promises in Rajasthan and MP and are disenchanted already with Congress. The repercussion will be felt in the Loksabha elections in May 2019.

Me: How about Priyanka entry?

BR: Congress made a big mistake in exposing Priyanka. She carries the burden of Robert Vadra around her neck, and that cannot be shaken off. Also, Rahul was gaining some steam on his own at last, but now the focus is on Priyanka. The USP of Priyanka is that she looks like Indira Gandhi! And Indira died in 1984. Voters who are 35 years and below, who constitute more than 50%, have no memories of Indira, and has no connect with her. Voters 35-50 have only bad memories of Indira, and hates her. If Congress thinks that Priyanka, just because she resembles Indira, will win them seats, then they must be cuckoo. But....

Me: But.....?

BR: I am hesitant to state this. But I am afraid there could be an attempt on the life of someone from the Congress first family prior to the election. And that will be orchestrated internally. Something tells me Priyankas entry points to this. I hope not.

Me: So summing up NAMO again?

BR: Definitely NAMO again.

Revisiting Childhood - Vadakara 1968-1972

As one gets older there is an inclination to revisit the childhood. It is not conscious. Why do I remember certain things, I don't know. Here are some Vadakara memories (1968-1972 when I was 4 to 8 years old)

• Earliest memory of school is my walk holding on to an Aluminium School Box when I was in 1-2 Standard from my home in Paravanthala to School in Vadakara. I had two bags. One Khakhi coloured, to be worn in the shoulder and then the Aluminium box. It was a pretty good walk to the school, climbing a flight of steps, hearing the steady sound of the handlooms in the houses nearby, and splashing water that flows down the steps during rainy season. Being the son of the Assistant Executive Engineer of KSEB, I got a bit of VIP treatment in the school. This was the time I got two prizes - one a mirror with a stand, and other a Soap Box. I remember the mirror was a prize in a singing competition, and always believed, considering my singing skills, the Soap Box was given as an encouragement to me for not singing again.
• Vadakara used to host a National Level Volley Ball Tournament every year. Once, my father was the Chief Guest for the Final, and obviously he took his youngest son, who was 7 years old with him. There were huge temporary stands that allowed more than 5000 people to watch, and the atmosphere was electric. I can recall the ferocious spiking of Balwant Singh of BSF. Every time Balwant Singh jumped, the crowd roared. 
• The songs that drift in the air through loud speaker from the various local functions and payattu was my first introduction to music, which stayed with me for a long time. I also fondly remember my sisters friend, a dark lean girl, who had a melodious voice and once sang 'Thamara kumbilallo mama hridayarm..................' while on a visit to our house.
• I lived in Vadakara till I was 8. There was a boy who came mid way through the 3rd standard. His father was a Judge. The Boys name was Balasubramanyam, and was very street smart. When we asked him his name, he retorted ' Perakkai'. This was a shock to most us, as we were  always told to be polite to others in a rural place like Vadakara. He had lived in big towns, and this was perhaps my first exposure to someone from the City. We became friends later.
• Another friend was Rakesh. After I left Vadakara for Palghat in 1972, I got a black and white picture with about Rs 2 in a postal cover from him. He owed my money for something and returned it. The honesty of the rural people
•  Being very frail, my father thought it fit to send me to the RSS Shakha in the Paravanthala Subramanya Swamy Temple premises. Owning and wearing the Khakhi trouser, sleeveless white banyan, belt was a dream come true for a child, who used to watch RSS guys having their disciplined games and shakha practices every day.
• It was during this period that father bought me my first cricket bat from Thalassery - it cost him all of Rs 6. He bought a HMT watch for my elder brother when he cleared his SSLC with good marks. He wore that watch for a decade, and then it was passed on to me.
• Twice father took me to Thalassery to watch Ranji Trophy matches. Kerala vs Hyderabad, and Kerala vs Tamil Nadu. I was fortunate to see Abbas Ali Baig, Pataudi, M L Jaisimha, S Venkataraghavan, etc which encouraged me to take up the sport seriously. The matches were played on matting wickets, and Kerala was a very weak team then. There were not tickets, and we just sat on the ground in the boundary and watched the whole day.
• I remember Sarojini, our maid, who was very fond of me.
• Then there was our neighbour, Raman, and his family. His mother used to call me out whenever their cow was milched, and gave me a very small glass of raw milk, straight from the cow's teat,literally.
• The owl, that lived on the roof, was benignant and stared back dolefully whenever I looked up at him.
• Our family doctor used to move around Vadakara in his lemon green Volkswagon Beetle. As a child, I used to watch the car with wonder. In 1972, he brought a new Volkswagon Beetle, and my father moved in quickly to buy the old one. It cost a princely Rs 17,000 in 1972 and ate up all the savings of my father. For a 8 year old child, this was the pinnacle of his childhood and something beyond even dreams. Soon, father was transfered, and we all drove down in the Beetle to Palghat.

I never had a chance to visit Vadakara again.

Hindu Rashtra - the Need of the Hour

There is far too much talk about Left Wingers and Right Wingers in India. Communists, Congress, 95% of Media, the so called 'Intellects' (who are nothing but) and 'Cultural Leaders' form the backbone of the Left Wing Ecology, while the Hindu supporters, BJP, the larger Hindu Parivar form the core of the Right Wingers.

This is a misnomer. We do not have genuine Left Wingers or Right Wingers in India. Anyone who knows Kerala Politics are aware of the Communist Government hobnobbing with Multi millionaires. They all have business interests with them, their children hold high positions in the so called 'Bourgeoisie' Companies owned by these Businessmen, mostly from the minority community who 'manage' the money looted by the leaders. Less said about Congress's commitment towards left ideology the better. The wealth amassed by the family and top leaders is an indicator of the lip service given by these crooks. The intellectuals and cultural leaders, media persons have enjoyed the privilege, foreign money and are wealthier beyond imagination. When it comes to personal wealth creation, which is against basic Leftist ideology, all of them are in the same boat.

Neither is BJP and the greater Hindu Parivar Right Wing. Modi has done more of wealth redistribution than any other Prime Minister of India. In fact the BJP Government at the Centre can be accused of being more leftist than anyone else. The larger Hindu Parivar might be Culturally right, but they do not have a clear stand on where they stand with respect to Economic Philosophy.

Actually, both are Centric in their thinking.

I would rather categorize those involved into Hindu Wing (HW) and Chrislamist Wing (CW). 

The CW comprises of the so  called LW mentioned above. Their only aim is to block Hindus from asserting themselves and their identity. During the past few decades they have ensured the narrative is created favouring them, and have placed their people at the head of all Institutions, the Supreme Court being the prime example. They use the media effectively (though they have lost credibility completely), now control the social media like twitter and facebook (which ban the HW people indiscriminately at the drop of a hat), and are well funded by their Abrahamic Religion patrons overseas. They continuously attack everything that is Hindu.

The so called RW are the HW. They would like to uphold Hindu Traditions, at least push back the CW agenda, but are handicapped infrastructure wise. They have a lot of catching up to do. Years of anti hindu bashing of school books have led to a situation where todays children are bereft of any knowledge of the rich and powerful hindu culture. 

The HR Ministry under Modi has seen some stand out pygmies making a mess of it. The need of the hour in the next Modi Government is to find someone like Nitin Gadkari, a doer, who will ramrod the cleansing process in a couple of years. We do not need incremental corrections, but all the books have to be trashed and completely rewritten. Even then it will take at least 20 years for the HW to change the mindset. Sanskrit should be made compulsory across the Country. English should be promoted as only an additional language required for International Communication with English speaking Countries alone. In any case the relevance of USA is diminishing, and UK is virtually no one in the Global Economic Scenario. We can make a beginning by getting out of Commonwealth and telling Britain, who are patronizing, to get off.

A systemic purging of our Institutions of the CW people should be a priority. Anyway Modi gets a bad name from these people, despite letting them carry out their agenda. Why not then turn the screw and put them in their place?

Till we do this, and create a sense of pride amongst the Hindus, the CW will hold the upper hand.

We need the Hindu Rashtra in all its Glory.

2019

January 1 as New Year has no special significance. For me it is just another date. No significant astrological change happens normally on January 1 that has the power to change ones destiny on a New Year Day. It cannot also be said to be the beginning of something new or letting go of the old. This can be done any other day. January 1 is only that, Just Another Day.

But this year, astrologically both Mercury (Budhan) and Venus (Sukran) transit on January 1st. Hence, it is possible to see a just noticeable change in one's fortunes from the New Year day, at least for the month of January.

The real change is likely to be from first week of March, when Rahu and Ketu transits to Mithunam and Dhanus respectively, which has the power to change your fortunes for the next one and a half years.

Transit for Saturn (Sani) is not indicated this year, though the planet goes through a long period as retrograde in 2019. 

Jupiter (Guru) in Vrichigam at the beginning of the year is in his friend Mars' house, and in Parivartana with Mars, which augurs well. It also has the ability to reduce strife generally. But it has an athisara motion in March to its own house Dhanus, before returning to Vrichigam, and finally moving forward in late November to the more favourable Dhanus for the next 13 months, where it will deliver better results.

With General Elections in April-May, when Saturn is in retrograde, post Rahu-Ketu transit, and when Jupiter is in Athisara followed by retrograde motion, it will be interesting to see what this combination brings. With Indian elections spread over 45 days where planets are in turbulent state, I predict a mixed result, with different outcomes from different phases of polling. Modi is Vrichiga Rasi born. He is in the last phase of his 7 1/2 Sani. He has worked very hard during the past 7 years, and hence Sani is likely to bestow him with another term. If he wins, then his next term is likely to be very smooth. Also, Guru going in Athisaram in March - April is likely to favour him. I would expect him to call for an election in March - April.

Retrograde motion of Saturn and the Athisaram of Guru is likely to make this year not a drab one for everyone, as the fortunes are likely to fluctuate.

So, do not expect a sedate, steady year but gear up for a reasonably dynamic one.

Sabarimala Thoughts

Swamiye Saranam Ayyappa;

At last I saw the spark amongst Hindus in Kerala, that I thought never existed.

 

During the past few decades, Christians and Muslims have grown in influence so much that the Hindus in Kerala were marginalized completely in decision making. All key Ministries, Postings were shared between the two communities, leaving crumbs, if any for the Hindus.

 

Though Hindus are still a majority in Kerala, they have been infiltrated so much by the Communist ideology that makes them ashamed of being a Hindu, and organizations like NSS and SNDP, who flirted with both LDF and UDF for the personal gains of the leaders of the Organization, and never protecting the interest of the true Hindu. BJP struggled to go beyond its 15% vote share, though Hindus constitute nearly 50% of the population.

 

Finally, Hindus had enough. They are reacting and how!

 

The Supreme Court Judgement that permitted entry of Women between the age of 10 and 50 to the Divine Sabarimala Temple changed everything. In the first place, the case should never have been admitted as it was not filed by any devotee from Kerala or neighbouring state, nor any devout Hindu woman. It was pure mischief by a group of young lawyers, following the agenda of Communists, Atheists and Chislamists, who just did not have any locus standi in the first place. The SC should have thrown out the case at the admission stage itself.

 

But our SC wants to play God and one thing they learned and will continue to learn is that you don't mess around with a powerful deity like Ayyappa. All they have to do is ask the millions of Ayyappa devotees for whom the annual pilgrimage is a period of rediscovering oneself and cleansing their system.

 

Sabarimala Dharma Sastavu is extremely powerful, and has yogic powers. He is also a naishtika brahmachari. There are powers beyond our knowledge in this world. I am religious, but quite progressive in my thinking. I have been asked why Ladies who are menstruating should not be allowed to do pooja even at home, let alone going to temple. This has got nothing to do with them being treated as impure. During menstruation, their body gets weak, and resisting power is very low. Any pooja or temple visit creates a powerful force field around the person that it may prove detrimental for the menstruating women. No one checks whether the lady is menstruating or not, but they don't go during menstruation, which is more of self control and self discipline. There are Gods who are not Sathvik, like Lord Shiva or Devi who resides in Kavu. Ladies abstain from temple visits for the first 7 days of Menstruation in these temples.

 

The same is true of people who are sick, male or female. In Kerala, almost all the people take a head bath before visiting a temple. This is not possible when one is sick, and hence they stay away on their own as they are unable to take in the power of the God as manifested in the temples. Unlike in Christianity and Islam, where Churches and Mosques are places of gathering, it is totally different in Temples, especially the Kerala Temples. The Temple architecture is so pristine and based on vaasthu calculations that the Energy emanated from Sanctum Sanctorium is unbelievable. Devotees understand this, and hence the Temple is closed when there is a death in the locality, opening only after the dead body has been removed, for death brings in negative vibes which can clash with the positive vibes of the temple. Devotees also don't visit temple for a prescribed period after a death in the family or a birth in the family. Amongst Tamil Brahmins, we do not enter the temple for One Whole Year after a death in the family. We may pray from outside the temple after 6 months, but wont enter on our own volition.

 

Each deity has his or her own rituals and preferences. In Sabarimala, ladies who are of menstruating age are not allowed. In Mannarassala, the eldest lady Antharjanam is the most important person, in Attungal only ladies are allowed to offer Pongala, in many temples gents are not allowed to wear shirts, Padmanabhaswamy Temple insists on male wearing only Veshti, in none of the Mahakshetrams you are allowed to touch the Shanthikar, taking small children to the temple is not encouraged for if they urinate, then Shudhi kalasam has to be done. (With Diapers, this issue is taken care of. What people don't understand is that hundreds of people congregate in a temple, and the chances of a baby getting infections is high. The system is actually for the benefit of the baby). Ladies (velichapatu) drink and dance to visit Kodungallur Devi during Bharani, singing abusive songs all the way. If any normal person does it, he or she will be booked and arrested for indecent behavior in public. But this is not applicable to Kodungallur Devotees.

 

Many of our rituals have deep meanings, and have evolved over many generations. The real intent has somehow got lost in the process.

 

The British colonization followed by 7 decades of education which took pains to belittle everything that Hinduism stands for and the Chrislamists agenda, funded in crores from abroad, is thought to have weakened Hindus in India. Even the BJP Government led by Modi, has not take any pro active steps to right many historic wrongs.

 

But Sabarimala judgement by SC is a turning point. The ladies, who the SC and Communist Govt in Kerala thought will come out in droves to visit the temple, surprised everyone but us devotees by their ready to wait campaign. They came out of their houses in thousands, held peaceful namajapa yathras, protested peacefully, made the men come out to support them, forced even those Parties like BJP and Congress who supported SC Judgement initially, to take a U turn and brought the arrogant CPM led Government of Pinarayi Vijayan to their knees.

 

The SC has agreed to hear the Review Petitions and the Writ Petitions after the Season is over, without staying the earlier decision. The chances of SC, who are drunk with the power of judicial activism, reversing their decision is next to nil.

 

It is up to the Government of India, elected by the People of India, to abide by the wishes of millions of devotees and bring in a law to overturn the SC Verdict. All it has to do is to turn over Hindu Temples to the Devotees, ask the Governments to get out of running temples (they have no business to do that, in any case). This shall have the effect of each temple ceasing to become a Public Property, whereby allowing them to have their own rules and regulations.

 

Will Modi bite the bullet? It is high time he, who won based on Hindu Pride, stands up to be counted.

 

For others like Pinarayi Vijayan, CPM, Left parties and SC, I have only sympathies. Ayyappan is extremely powerful, and the retribution will be severe. Only he can help them! And therein lies the irony.

Interesting Characters I met in my Life -3

My father, who was an Executive Engineer in Kerala State Electricity Board, was transferred to Chittur from Palghat in 1975, which was 14 kms away. He was 45 at the time. A very tenacious man, he learned driving a two wheeler at that age, and travelled to Chittur every day, while we stayed in Palghat as our Schools and Colleges were in Palghat. One needs to remember that, those days, a 14 kms travel by bus or car or 2 wheeler was equal to travelling for 40 kms today. Father had a health issue in 1978 which forced him to shift the house to Chittur, which meant we had to travel instead of him. My brother, who is 8 years elder to me, had completed his education and had joined a Bank as Probationary Officer, and had moved to North India.

 

The first person we met in Chittur, was my brothers' friend. He was just 22 then, living with his aged Aunt. He was the youngest of 4, with 3 domineering elder sisters. His mother died when he was a toddler, and his father, who was a disciplinarian, and who worked in a Multinational Firm, brought up the kids in a Culture that was more Western oriented than Indian. The Children were raised by the their father as a single parent for a long time, till he remarried, late in his life. The kids, who were all teenagers by then, and brought up hearing the stories of Cindrella being harassed by her evil Step mother, never gave her a chance to settle down, though she was a very sane lady, educated, and cultured. She lived with her aged mother in Chittur in 1978. My brothers friends' father had died by 1978, leaving him with a huge house, agricultural land and couple of sisters to look after, which he found a bit too difficult to handle. In short, he was a confused youngster, jobless, 22 years old with a heavy burden on his shoulders, struggling to cope up with the Indian Culture in a remote village town, for he was raised to live in a Western society by the father.

 

There were 4 of them including my brother in their gang. Our guy was very close to my brother, and thought a lot about him. I have always felt that my brother never really had the same feeling he had for my brother.

 

When we landed up in Chittur, he took over the task of settling us in and became a regular visitor, or rather a member of my family. He looked upon my father as his godfather, and had all the freedom a son had in our house. He was a good brother to me and my sister. A left hander, with a slightly feminish look, he became a part of our life in no time.

 

My father was his advisor, and soon he got a job as a Medical Representative, a profession that was common to most graduates those days. A compulsive talker, and a guy who loved to move around in two wheelers, the job fitted him like a glove. The freedom it gave also helped him to look after his Farm in remote areas.

 

He was there to play Badminton or Carroms with us, and was boisterous and argumentative.  When he was barely 25, he walked in and announced he wanted to marry, and sought Father's support. My father tried to dissuade him telling him that he was too young, and immature to marry. But he was adamant, and finally settled down to marry a sweet traditional Palghat girl, who was the complete opposite to him. But they hit off well. She also became a part of our family. During my Sister's and Brother's marriages, they were treated as one of my parents Children and honoured accordingly. This was not to the liking of some of my relatives.

 

Not blessed with sound General Knowledge, sometimes he made himself look silly. Once we were playing Carroms, when father remarked that Yuri Andropov has died. Andropov was the leader of USSR at that time, and one of the two most powerful figures in the World. Our guy casually remarked that "Chess world has lost a rare talent". My father and me stared at him in disbelief, for Andropov never played Chess. USSR was the Chess Powerhouse those days, and our guy connected a Russian Name to a Chess Player!. Father remarked "Thank god for small mercies! At least you are aware Andropov is a Russian!"

 

The Palghat bye pass was constructed in early 1980's. The Palghat - Chittur Road cut the bye pass vertically. Remember this road is a small 2 lane, 2 way road. Highways had Speed brakers on the Palghat - Chittur Road on either side of the Highway. Our guy one day, in all seriousness remarked, "Our Highway guys are idiots. I can understand them laying speed breakers before the highway, but why have it after we have crossed the highway?". The poor guy never thought that the speed breaker on the other side was for those motorists coming from the other direction.

 

He had a heart of gold and was in the forefront during my sisters wedding. His elder daughter was a our pet, and spent most of her time our house as a toddler.

 

He as talkative and boisterous, and made the life in a sleepy, quaint chitter a bit colourful.

 

He used to drive his Vijay Scooter at nothing less than 80 kms per hour, without a care in the world for his  or his pillion riders safety. At 8 pm one night he and his wife left Palghat town to his wife's house 7 kms away. He started the vehicle and told his wife to get in the back and as is usual, he took off at a high speed, talking to his wife non stop for the next 15 minutes. When he reached home, his mother in law asked "Where is your wife? You went out together." "What, she is in the pillion seat" and looked back, found the seat empty. He rushed back to town, and found a small crowd around his wife, who was crying. What had happened was he asked her to get into the pillion seat and took off just as she was mounting, she fell on the road, and was a bit hurt. The crowd gave him some 'nice advice', but he was unfazed. He put all the blame on her for the incident.

 

He was a Chain smoker and used to justify saying it was a stress reliever. But he never smoke in front of my parents. After a while he started drinking lightly, and then heavily. He became an alcoholic and had to be dragged home. He was in his mid to late 30s.

 

I moved on to do my MBA, later joined HPCL, resigned and started NIIT in Thanjavur. A hot tempered guy, who took things personally, I couldn't bear to see his wife, with whom I shared an excellent rapport, suffer due to his alcoholism. I showed my displeasure by cutting off my ties with him and didn't speak to him for nearly 6 years.

 

With great difficulty, he got out of his alcoholism and turned a new leaf. He had moved to Ernakulam by then. One day he visited my parents and complained that though he has turned a new leaf, he was sad that I was not talking to him. Father asked me to visit him or call him up. But I didn't, as I was still seething at what I considered was his betrayal.

 

One day in late 1990s, we got a call from my brother in Delhi asking us to go and visit his wife, for he had died in a two wheeler accident a few days back, leaving his young wife and two teenage daughters behind. We were devastated. The saddest part was that the person who never had an accident when he was driving at 80-100 kms per hour was driving at 40 kms when his a Lorry carrying Steel Rods in front of him suddenly braked and a rod pierced him. He died on the spot. He was 44 when he died. His wife was inconsolable. She told me that his great regret was that I was not talking to him. I couldn't look at her straight, for my heart was gutted.

 

Life teaches one many lessons. His unfortunate death taught me not to carry grudges, lest we regret later.