Arbit Scratchpad

Being from Bangalore I had never experienced this sort of cold. In June it was 5-6 degree Celsius... what on earth would it be like in the winters? And the real reason was that I was totally unprepared. During the late entry of the bus (around 8 PM) along the circuitous roads with hairpin bends, firstly the mind was shocked and numbed, then a downpour started and as I got off the bus having reached Badrinath with only a jacket on - the chill hit me - hard. Initially it was manageable but later the second day the body was slowly giving way to the onslaught, unexpected, un-acclimatized and unprepared as it was. I managed to reach the GMVN Yatri Nivas asking many people on the way as it was dark all around and the drizzle intensifying and ebbing all the time.  The Yatri Nivas though spacious it had these flickering yellow lamps reminiscent of massive halls of some old and dilapidated mansion. The cold outside had me blinded and it took me some time to get adjusted, the dor...

Dedicated to all my friends – old and new - active and dormant ones too… As I was going back home that night, In the red air-conditioned bus, in mid-flight. I looked around, for there was some noise, Ringtones and mobiles had turned modern day toys. There sat on a seat - a sister and a brother. The sister was elder, the brother the joker! The girl dressed in black, the boy in brown and white, One would have been thirteen, the other ten, not quite. They made a jocular pair, the girl trying on a serious face As the boy continued clowning with his ‘Bugs Bunny’ grace. As he made faces to her, she laughed and giggled,  Enthused, the boy in his seat, further joyfully wriggled. Mumbling jokes, stories and comments he made. Mischief and energy glowed on the face of the brother The sister at times would scold and admonish,  Once resorting to complaining to their mother! I could feel the palpable warmth and the joy of the siblings. You share and care and yo...