Life without money

I recently bought a new phone, oneplus one. You guys must have heard of it. It is my first smart phone. Isn't it great how technology can touch our lives? I mean you look at those mac-books, DSLRs, Airbuses, spaceships, nukes, cure for malaria and polio…boy who would have thought that was possible. Wow, we have come too far…too far from the time when we couldn't even figure out how to light a fire!

You see many of these technological and medical advancements couldn't have been possible without the motivation of money. Of course you could argue that these were a result of the great dreams a few individuals saw. But could they have been possible without the unrecognized contributions of numerous other people who helped these great individuals achieve it? Those numerous people who worked with these great minds with just 1 simple motivation, money! Money to feed themselves, money to feed the ones they love, money to help them survive, money to help the ones they love thrive. Would it be possible without this great evil motivation? Well the answer isn't NO. I believe it would all have been possible. We would still have all of this. But it would have taken a lot of time. Without so many people working to make it possible, it would have taken many more years for these dreams to come true. The world as you see it in 2015 probably would have been the reality of the year 3075. That is how important money is. A world without money would have taken us back generations.

But when I think of a life without money, it fills me with immense satisfaction and happiness. I believe a life without money would have made us more human. I say this because then we would have been closer to humans and humanity. In today’s stupid rat race, in spite of kind intentions, we end up thinking only about us and our family at the end of the day. Without this chaos, we would have cared more about humans and humanity, traveled more, talked more and would have respected Mother Nature much more than what we do now. We would have been humans, not animals.

I’d like to conclude by saying that without money, life would have been more peaceful and people would have been satisfied and happy. As I already said we wouldn't be as advanced as we are now, but personally I couldn't have cared less about it.

It really amazes me when I think how much I would have traveled around the world without the restrictions/need for money, which I can’t now. Oh I would have loved it! But then, would there be sufficient means to travel? I wonder, I wonder!

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Playing in my head: 'Kabhi Aisa Lagta Hai' by Luck Ali

To Ziva, Dhoni’s Daughter - We salute your Father

Hi Ziva! By the time you are old enough to read and understand this, you must have already heard everything about the great achievements of your father – Mahendra Singh Dhoni aka Mahi aka Dhoni aka MSD.

It has been more than 20 days since your arrival and your father hasn’t been able to see you, hasn’t been able to hold you, hasn’t been able to see you smile. He hasn’t been there with you because he was on national duty – leading team India in the ICC world cup 2015. And oh boy, what a leader he has been. He had enough time to return back to India for a couple of days to see you but he chose not to. He chose to stay in Australia and made sure that he and his young team were fully prepared to fight against the world in order to retain the world cup, which India won in 2011 under his superb captaincy.

Sadly, today is when it ends. Soon your father, along with his team, will pack his bags and return back to India because India lost against Australia in the semi-final today. I want to tell you that the whole country is proud of your father and the way he led his team in this world cup. Team India had a pretty rough couple of months leading to the world cup, 2015. We performed very badly in the series prior to world cup and no one expected India to perform well in the most coveted competition of the cricketing world. But we did…your father and his team made sure we did.

Don’t believe anyone who says otherwise. Team India, under your father’s captaincy, won 7 matches in a row in this world cup. We topped the group stages and went on till the world cup semi-final where Australia defeated us today, ending the dream run. I want you to know that even in loss, we are proud of what your father has done for us. He led a team of young boys and motivated them to act like men, always leading from the front. He was cool when catches were dropped, he was cool when catches were taken, he was cool when the required run rate was 15, he was cool when the required run rate was 5, he was cool when we were losing and he was cool when we were winning. No wonder we all adore him as the captain cool.

I would also like to tell you that your father was a great leader. His coolness, calmness and understanding of the game were something that is unparalleled in the cricketing world. I won’t even mention the records that are under his belt because this is not the time for numbers, this is the time for words. You can ask anyone who has ever worked under a manager or a leader in any organization and they will tell you Dhoni’s qualities are what they would like to see in them. He motivated the youngsters, always led from the front and whenever required, never hesitated in getting his own hands dirty, making sure that the job was always finished by staying there till the end.

I want you to know that just like billions of Indians even your 'cool' father will go to bed tonight with a heavy heart and a head full of thoughts. I want you to know that even though we feel the pinch of pain, your father would be the one taking the maximum toll. But let me tell you, your father will be back, stronger than before. Because that’s what your father is – a true cricket fan. Come tomorrow, he will carry on with the learning from this series and will improve himself and the team. He will do what he does best – play cricket and lead from the front.

I would like to conclude by telling you that you should be proud of him. Just like the whole country is proud of him. Even today he fought bravely and made sure that we didn't go down without a fight even though players on the other end kept on leaving. I am sure that if you are reading this today, you would already be proud of your father because there’s no reason why he wouldn't have been an equally great father to you. And from all the cricket fans across the globe, we thank your father from the bottom of our hearts and wish you both a very healthy and happy life.

Thank you Dhoni, thank you for being a great leader, a true gentleman, a thrilling finisher and an honest cricketer. We will never forget your contributions to Indian cricket! #DareToBeDhoni

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Playing in my head: 'Zinda' from Lootera

I pledged not to break traffic signals!

Some incidents happen in your life that make you miserable. Some other incidents, they change you forever.

This is a story of learning. About the day I realized why following traffic signals is necessary. Hoping that you guys will understand and implement this too. It was a big change in my life! #StartANewLife

Being an Indian, we just love not following rules. More so, when we are out on the streets. No wonder, we have such pathetic traffic congestions every other day. I am not any different from you all. I never really followed traffic signals. It was like one of those rules that you are ordered to follow in schools which don’t make sense. Even more so, when the traffic is less. It was one night a few months back and I was returning from work very late, around 9.30 pm. I was driving my car while listening to Snow Patrol’s compilation album. As was my habit, I was moving ahead breaking one signal after the other. Since it was so late, there wasn't much traffic. Suddenly my phone started ringing and I decided to take it. I was near a traffic signal and decided to stop as the signal was red, which would also allow me to receive the call. Few seconds later, a car crossed me, breaking the signal in the process. I didn't really cared at that moment. But behind it, another 2 wheeler came in full speed. The guy riding the 2 wheeler assumed that the road was clear because the other car had just crossed the signal. Under this confidence, the biker didn't bother to check and kept on coming. That was when I noticed another car coming in from the left side prepared to cross as the signal for him was green. He was also not expecting anyone would be come from the lane in which I was parked. Both the car and the bike hadn't seen each other and were confidently moving on in their stride. I noticed it but had no time to act. I somehow prepared myself for the inevitable and was about to close my eyes when I suddenly realize I could alert the car driver. As a reflex action, I started furiously blowing the horn and flashing the dipper. Thankfully, my idea worked and I was able to alert the car driver. It all happened in a moment but the car stopped right at the centre of the road with enough space for the biker to squeeze through without a scratch.

That was the day I realized that even though you may be confident, others may follow you when you break the traffic signal. This is actually over-confidence, not confidence. I pledged that day not to break traffic signals ever again in life.

Watch the video below to see how https://housing.com/ started a new life. If I can and they can, then even you can do it!

You are never too far to forget

Distance is just a number. I have been in all kinds of relationships, at least all the major ones. I have been a son, a friend, a brother and a lover.

I am sure we’ll agree that your home, where your parents live, always welcomes you with open arms. You may be in a different location for studies or job but every time you come back for a vacation it still feels the same. Countless kilometres of tiring journey never detaches you emotionally from your parents and that is kind of expected because family, we always take them for granted.

What actually amazed me about humans and human nature is that when a person apart from your family is not near you, we still remember that person and cherish their presence in our lives. That’s how some people touch our lives!

I recently met an old friend and it was one of the best days of my life. That meeting also taught me a few things about life. He was an old friend and a pretty close one when we were studying in school. Over the course of last few years, our interactions first reduced to monthly calls and gradually faded into yearly birthday calls. Although believe me, they used to be crazy long calls, almost stretching to 90 minutes and sometimes even more. Obviously cause we had so much to catch up! I had started to believe that whenever we meet next, ours would be a very strange and boring get-together. I was very sure that we would both run out of words in a couple of hours looking at the fact that we both were leading such different lives, exclusive of each other. But what happened actually was totally unexpected. It was one of the most unforgettable day of my life. From the moment I landed in his city and till the moment I boarded my train back, none of us kept mum for even a second. We discussed everything under the sun – right from our good old school days, our old classmates and the ice-cream seller outside the school to the state of politics in the country, Sunny Leone’s item song and the exciting start-up culture growing in India. We ate, drank, talked and roamed around the city and in the end, we found ourselves hungry for more. When I came back to my senses, I found myself standing at the door of the train, waving him goodbye. All of this, just like that!

The whole way back to my destination, I kept on thinking about what happened and how terribly wrong I was. As it turned out, we both always had mutual respect and admiration for each other. We cared for each other and accepted each other the way we are. Years of separation and kilometres of distance couldn't take that out from us and that’s what relationships are made of: RESPECT.

In order to summarize, I’d just say that respect the people in your life and stop taking people for granted. I have often seen people taking their family for granted and not having enough time for them. That’s not how life works, that’s actually how we kill our life.

In case you are leaving your city for a job and are looking for a house, go check out the listings on https://housing.com/. And once you have your house ready, make sure the people staying in it are valued and respected. In the end, all that your family expects from you is your time. So don’t disappoint them. Believe me, #together with the people whom you love, every other day is going to be memorable.

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Playing in my head: "Baby Doll" from Ragini MMS 2