Category: Blog

Till today, I didn’t think that thinking was tiring. But as I lie on my bed typing this out, I’m pretty pooped. That too after taking an afternoon nap, which is especially uncharacteristic for me.

Today was the first day of my grandfather’s one-year death ceremonies. They went off well, and the next two days should go off smoothly too.

Today was also the first time I met my Chikkappa on this trip. My dad’s younger brother, he’s always been the cool uncle, essaying a role where distance genuinely breeds affection. Him and I spent three weeks together during summer when I used to come to Pune, and I have a lot of fun memories of us. He was the reason I had an extended bedtime – because he used to come home from the clinics/hospitals he visited only past 11pm, so I got to stay awake just to talk to him and watch TV. He was also the cause of my love of counterfeit books, uppinkai, and chutneypudi.

More than anything else though, I have three highlighted memories of him. The printouts he made to welcome me to Pune, which were colourful WordArt posters, every single year. The “Road Rash” I played on his computer. And the FIFA World Cup 2006. That was my second FIFA World Cup, and I had watched every game in Pune with my Uncle. Come the day of the final we slept in the hall so we could wake up on time to see the game. He woke up and discovered that the electricity had conked off, so didn’t disturb me. And then he woke up and saw the last few minutes – including the headbutt. When he tried waking me up, I refused to budge, and slept soundly through the night – seeing the controversy in the paper the next morning.

Catching up with him is always great.

Today’s been a super chill day at home watching cricket with my dad.

Pune’s like an enforced break for both of us because of the limited internet access we have here, so it’s always a great time to chill with him, and with my grandmother, of course. Seeing my dad with his mom is seeing a different side to him. And to her. They’re both just happier around each other. Which I think is a given considering my dad left home (to go study in Bangalore) in Grade 10, and pretty much since then, he’s been a wandering spirit moving away from Pune as a result of job changes and such.

Also, a junior of mine sent me this (a video I love), so that’s something I definitely need to share. Read more, friends!:

Ah, Pune.

Early morning flights haven’t been a particular strong suit of mine. I can do flights anytime before 3AM. Or even at 3:30AM. Anything past 4 and I find my day off to a tired, slow start. As it was today. I literally fell asleep on the couch, and then dozed off to sleep for two hours after eating breakfast. Waking up, I felt like the day had only just begun, although my parents were already out of the house and I had woken up in the middle a couple of times to have chats about things with my grandmother.

For lunch, I managed to catch up with someone I really enjoy speaking to. My mom’s colleague is someone who treated me like an adult when I was in Grade 6, insofar as he tried understanding my perspective on things, asked me some difficult questions, exchanged books, fed me pizza, took me to my first international cricket match. I understand that these are not all examples of someone treating you like an adult, but there was some sort of space he gave me to speak my mind. And he was new in my life – without any other attachment or relationship with my parents, and I instantly knew he wasn’t someone who would relay information we shared with them. He also forced me on my first bus. So of course, I had to trust him.

I can recall all our conversations, because they’ve always come at moments in my life where I’ve needed a sounding board. It’s not been: “Hey, I’m in a bit of a patch, can we speak?”, but even our catch-up calls, which happen maybe once in two months or so have evolved into “Okay, so what’s up, what’re you thinking?” kind of conversations. And maybe I don’t realize it before the call, but I’ve always emerged from our conversation with fresh perspective, or something to consider which I hadn’t before, or some more clarity on a frame I was seeing through.

Yes, I make this sound horribly abstract, but they’re honestly delightful, jovial conversations. There’s a lot of laughter and some great jokes. Some friendly banter, and a lot of pop culture talk.

I’ve sort of also seen the way our conversations have grown, and how they’ve kept pace with the things I’m interested in. What I really enjoy is that my mum’s colleague is very open-minded and curious. He doesn’t mind disagreements that are civil. Where he doesn’t know stuff he asks questions about it. And listens.

And it’s not like he isn’t well-read. It’s rare to find well-read people who are humble enough to listen to others.

This is the kind of conversationalist I aspire to be. And if I’d wish for something more today, I’d like people to enjoy their conversations with me the way I enjoy conversations with my mum’s colleague.

[P.S.: When I told him I wanted to do Law and study for CLAT, he literally drove me to a friend of his who ran CLAT coaching and spent time with me as I understood the basics of the exam. That was when I knew that he was always a “mentor” to me. But without putting confines on things, the fact that he drove me there in his free time stand out. Also, literally. He took me to Blossoms for the first time ever. If introducing someone to second-hand books isn’t friendship, I don’t know what is.]

Today’s my last day in Bangalore. And thus, a day with family was called for. It’s rare that my parents and I are in the same city to do family trips and visits, so if one of the family days get called for, they’re usually top priority for me. I don’t think I could have charted my last day in the city any better.

I got to visit my great grandmother and some of my favourite people, eat some amazing breakfast, then spend time with my grandparents and my aunt & uncle. I saw my parents complete something they’ve worked on for the last 12 years now – and I saw a contentment consume their aura. My mom and I cooked, my dad and I packed.

It was delightful.

I enjoyed the comfort of my room’s AC while playing the piano after they went to bed. And I know I’m going to miss all of this homeliness I feel in Whitefield, but I also know how much I took advantage of it on this trip. I’ve had a whale of a time.

Onto Pune now.

As my time in Bangalore is winding down, I’m trying to pack into it as much of what I wanted to do before I came to the city.

Since I’ve lived in Whitefield for all my time in Bangalore, there are several parts of the city I didn’t have too much context to before I left for college. The Bangaloreans who were on campus talked about several places on MG Road that I had to acknowledge I was merely aware of, but hadn’t actually visited. These included pitstops that are essential to the heart and soul of the city: like Meghana’s Biryani, and even Nagarjuna. A lot of these places are places I subsequently made it a mission to go to. Acquainting myself with the central part of Bangalore, and the popular parts of the city became a goal in the first year, and as time flew by and I began staying on the south side more – with my aunt & uncle, I learnt a lot more about the city and a lot more about it’s character.

My first two internships here took me to stretches of the city I had rarely been to: Vasanthnagar, and then Malleswaram. But at the end of my sixth semester, I had a whale of a time interning bang on Brigade Road. It was beautiful. It’s been the finest experience I’ve had internship wise – because I was able to balance having a good social life, eating at home, and coming to the office in a record 10 minutes from home. The work was also amazing. And I got to stroll down MG Road every single day.

My aunt previously worked on this stretch when I was younger. We used to use it to our advantage by scheduling MG Road trips around her work hours, so she could join me on my quest to find my mother and father one gift each. I also have fond memories of going to Amoeba and Pizza Hut with my aunt and uncle. So there was some element of familiarity, but the one month on that road allowed me to breed a lot more.

I spent today on MG Road. And while I didn’t do as much socially, I did get a lot of work I had done. And I ate some great pizza.

I’m a United fan so last night was very difficult for me.

But football is beautiful.

I loved this:

If you’re unwell, the worst thing you can do is to give yourself one day of recovery to get better. You’ll feel a lot better on the second day, but overexerting yourself & pretending like everything’s ay-okay with your system is likely to lead to you being tired again.

That’s what has happened with me today. So I shall nap some and nap some more.

All plans for today have been cancelled because my excessive socializing has meant the body is now feeling the toll.

Sleeptime beckons. A lot of sleeptime.

Guess who is driving again? That’s right! My mother trusts my driving skills enough, which is a fabulous thing because it means I have the freedom to drive her around as long as someone she trusts is sitting on the seat next to mine.

This is the biggest achievement in the last few days.

We’re still scoping out venues for a birthday party for my father, would you believe? And there’s also this collection/anthology of poetry that’s in the works. Hopefully it all turns out fine.

Today’s been super duper hectic. Which means I’m not exactly in a mood to write too much, but the purpose of this blog wouldn’t be served if I decided not to write. So, you’re stuck with a recount of what my day has been like.

I attended a boxing class today – the first time I’ve ever done that. While my arms are fine at the moment, I’m fairly certain I’m not going to be feeling too great when I wake up tomorrow. After that I went out for lunch, which was both a meet-up with someone who has played a massive role in my life, as well as an opportunity to perform a location recce for a surprise birthday party for my dad (he knows the party is happening, but doesn’t know the scale we’re planning it at).

The food culture in Bangalore, and it’s evergrowing nature is something that has fascinated me from when I used to live here. It’s such a fantastic part of the city’s identity – with new outlets and options popping up daily, almost, in every nook and corner available. While the current fad appears to be gastropubs and microbreweries – each trying to outdo each other with the kind of vibe they give off, and each providing a unique ambience, the scene here has been through so much change, it’s a foodie’s delight.

Post that was a fun catch-up with a French teacher of mine whom I have been privileged to be taught by. The last time I saw her was more than a year ago, and a LOT has changed since then – more in my thinking than much else. I’m fairly certain it was an information overload for her, but then I feel like that’s how most people feel after they interact with each other after ages: there’s so much context to be exchanged and so many stories to share, it’s a wonder.