BRAToSPHERE

Author: Bharat Jhurani

  • Happy new year 2018

    Have always penned down my ramblings here and I observe it has been about 12 years that I have been maintaining this online journal. There have been many things that have changed and transformed in these so many years and yet there are so many things that have remained absolutely the same.

    12 years sure is a lot of time.

    With 2017 behind us, we are now ushering in a new year with new goals, renewed promises and hopefully recharged batteries to make this a truly phenomenal year to each one of us. (I have been bombarded by a lot of Robin Sharma on my insta feed of late!)

    This gets me to wonder – what exactly changed with the new year? You are still your old self on Jan 1st like you were on Dec 31st. For most, Jan 1st is probably the wasted version of theirs from the previous evenings binge. If I have to look at it in a complete rational manner, it is just a date change, so why attach so much importance to it, and assume that life is now about to change?

    I realize that these new year resolutions are not something new, and have remained since times immemorial across cultures. This piece in The Economist – The origin of new year’s resolutions explains with alacrity the existence of such phenomena from four millennia ago.

    So what is this?

    It probably is the human brain and the dreams that we keep feeding it with that tomorrow is going to be good. The basic tenet of Human life, hope is at full play here.

    How many times have we heard someone say – “Monday, I am going to start dieting..”, “I will start going to the gym starting 1st of the next month”, we always try rationalizing our procrastination behavior by setting a distant date as a target. And to avoid complex maths in the brain, and for ease of remembrance we set the easiest one possible – beginning of month, beginning of week, birthday, or beginning of the year.

    Well, this year gives no excuses. Jan 1st in 2018 is the beginning of the year, beginning of the month and beginning of the week. It probably is also your birthday!

    And well, if you have not started yet, no stress. Today is as good as any other day!

    A very Happy New year 2018 to you!

  • An Ideal Holiday

    Writing this in the middle of greens, surrounded by the majestic hills, snow-capped mountains and a calm serene sound of the water flowing through the mountains. The birds chirping like they are singing to each other with their melodious voice and the mountains as their audience. The scene is perfect.

    I am in a small Village, Called Naddi, close to Dharamsala, atop a mountain. A small tiny village and a scenic eco-hotel in the middle of the Himalayas is exactly what I was looking forward to.

    I am here on a short weekend holiday escaping from the hustle bustle of the city. The last eight months have been chaotic if anything and in the constant hustle bustle, you miss out on the small moments of life. These short breaks help one rejuvenate for the ensuing time to come.

    What is an ideal holiday? Well, it means different things to different people. It means different kinds of places for different people – beaches, Mountains, Historic places, pilgrimage, etc..

    Irrespective of the kind of place, my ideal holiday is one where I just get to spend time in peace with myself. An idyllic setting – be it a beach or on a hill, in a scenic location – be it in a AirBnb or a star hotel, with a good book for company along with a wonderful companion. Perfect.

    I would spend all day doing nothing or like I call it, “Chill” all day. This feeling of nothingness makes me achieve a lot. I catch up with all my reading and writing and more importantly with all the thinking for which I always yearn for precious little time in day-to-day life.

    Of late, in addition to the nothingness, Airbnb has allowed us to mingle with the local community and understand the local customs and their way of living in a better way. Like our stay in Sri Lanka last December where we met a wonderful young couple – Lankan guy married to an Australian woman and now settled in Galle. Their story was so romantic and inspiring, something the bland sameness of a hotel can never offer. These small nuggets of the local life leaves us enriched post the trip and gives a feeling that we have always belonged here.

    Always, when I return back from a holiday, I am inevitably asked what all did I see and do. “I did nothing. I just chilled!” is my standard answer which baffles many. But that is what I did. Other than maybe hopped a couple of cafes browsing through different leftover books over cups of coffee.

    Well, this is my ideal holiday and I totally enjoy it and look forward to it.

    What is your ideal holiday?

  • Writing in a cafe

    There is something about writing at home that makes it plain jane boring and the creative juices just do not flow to get the thoughts out of my mind into this digital odyssey. So what do i do?

    Jump into the coffee shop close to my home to get the creative juices flowing and the fingers tapping away to glory. Coffee Shops, or cafes, are the best place to write.

    Coffee sure is a wonderful stimulant for the brain cells, but it is about the cafe and not so much about the coffee. The vibe there is what i personally find more stimulating.

    If you have to write stuff that people would eventually read, you better be in the midst of people. Not that i eavesdrop into others conversation but the whole feel of a coffee shop is that much more livelier and happening, filled with energy. There are a gamut of emotions around to observe and learn from and set our minds free. You just need to look up to find your muse. It is sitting right across your table weeping away into her boyfriends shoulders. Keep guessing. Be innovative.

    Coffee and writing sure have a strong connection. how else would one explain the phenomena of a cafe in a book store that is all the rage across cities globally. The oxford bookstore in CP, Delhi is brimming with people all the times of the day. All kinds of people chatting, browsing books, sipping coffee with tidbits and exploring away. That place is one of the most happening places in Delhi to experience a wide array of diverse people engaged in different moods.

    In the end, it all Probably is a marketing genius (Horward Schultz anyone?) at work, and in the pursuit of being cool we end up patronising writing in a cafe culture. But what the heck! it works!

    p.s.: Writing this sipping on my favourite Kenya estate blend pour over in my neighbourhood starbucks. Writing in a cafe indeed!

  • Rainy season life

    There are times when you feel like just writing. Just penning down your thoughts. There is no good time or a bad time for this. Thought strikes, pen it down. Simple. Thanks to the digital age, we have mini assistants in our pockets all the time waiting to capture the thought. This is one such moment.

    Friday evening. Raining outside. The weather has been playing up the last couple of days, and the rains are joyful. Keep aside the fact, that the mosquitoes and all virals also find the rain fascinating and show up their ugly face during the rainy season.

    Everyone would have memories of the rainy season from their childhood. Good. Bad. Both. I still remember the way I used to spend all evenings staring at the rain water flowing through the slope road next to my apartment, merging with the drain. The view from my second floor balcony made it all feel rhythmic and then I would see people rushing with hands or handkerchiefs on their heads scouting for some shelter. I still fail to understand how the tiny handkerchief protects anyone from this torrential rains?

    Gurgaon rains are different. Most of us privileged lot are well trapped in our high rises without even coming to know that it is raining outside. The temperature controlled atmosphere at the astronomical heights of the apartment keeps us away from the earthy smell of the rain. The only thing kids would probably remember is that they were denied going out to play. Such a sad state. Cities trap you within in the process of freeing up your mind. Such is life.

    The drops of rain on my balcony railings splash on my face and some of it in my hot tea cup. The weather gives a completely positive feeling about it. Thank God am at Home. The rainy season in Gurgaon is a nightmare when you are within the car. The car could take forever to get you to your destination. Such is life!

    Off I am to just stare at the water dripping from the well manicured trees below, and transporting myself on a nostalgia trip. Such is life!

  • Fail to Plan.. Plan to Fail.

    Been forever that i have scribbled anything here. A full six months. A lot had been going on in these 6 months. A change in role, new pursuits in life and a gamut of new experiences. All good.

    But still. This is no reason for me not writing anything here. No matter what, some things still need to be pursued. And this requires planning.

    This just proves again the importance of planning. I had read this cliched saying during my growing up years – “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail”.

    Nothing can be more true.

    Lack of a plan implies that you would have to do whatever comes up with no clear destination to get to. Yes, you would get somewhere and maybe that somewhere would not be all that bad, but still – It is not as per your plan. Maybe not as per your ambition. Your dream.

    Planning, be it for a long time frame – like where would you want to be in the next 5, 10 years, or even the seemingly simple thing like – plan for the weekend, is important. Having a plan, and sticking to it as much as possible, help drive productivity.

    Of course, there is a need to build some form of flexibility in the plan to mitigate any external disturbances or unforeseen circumstances, but largely things do go as per envisioned if enough efforts were spent in planning.

    I have been trying to follow this simple method – first thing in the morning, plan the day to the last tee and note it down, and then evaluate the happening at the end of the day. You would observe that gradually within a couple of weeks you are much better at gauging how the day would go. you would be in far better control of your own time and be far more productive.

    In this regimen, you would always find time to write something here, without missing out on any important life event.