Mumbai Indians v/s Kolkata Knight Riders !

CRICKET UNITES AND DIVIDES INDIA ! We have witnessed so the day India Won the WORLD – CUP... and now when the IPL matches are on ! It was a celebration galore that day, not only in Mumbai, but also amongst Indians all around the world – to see DHONI and his BOYS lift the world cup. Such is the power of Indian Cricketing fans. They celebrate when a TEAM wins, they mourn when their TEAM looses. In the 90’s, If we thought nothing can take away the spot light from Shah Rukh Khan away... The loss of KKR against INDIA witnessed something new – As a nation we may have loved him, but nothing becomes bigger than CRICKET, not even Rajnikant !

And ofcourse – When the GOD himself plays in Mumbai Indians – It is a must watch ! It was decided may weeks in advance that “Hunny” as we fondly called Hassnein, would buy the tickets. After a round of Me + 3 ... Oh actually its ME + 2 only now... Its only ME and Oh, now I want another 5 tickets, the number was 25 of US !! It doesn’t get better than watching the match with a bunch of people together - doesn’t matter whether it is at a modern sports BAR or sitting on the floor with cushions thrown around. But watching it in WANKHEDE, for real – the experience is unparalleled.
So it doesn’t matter if you have to leave work way in advance at about 5ish to make it to the 8 o clock game. It also doesn’t deter you that the SUN is not even negotiation with the cool Westerly winds of the Arabian Sea come in between – Match Goers will fight all odds to make it to the ELIMINATOR !!

Now, watching a match is not just buying a ticket and finding yourself to that seat. It’s about the whole build up ! You walk miles – just after you have found parking – Ofcourse the Mumbai cha Police has assisted you supposedly by making every other lane you h ad mentally thought you would park in ‘a one way’. And you think it is walk able distance – but you only realise that it is quite something when you are returning back. Ofcourse, you even pay Rs 100 for the pay and park – and you know it’s a rip-off, but you go for it anyway, cause there is no time to discuss the right of a citizen just then. Then you run into thousand people who are walking the other way – and you ask 10 people and confirm if GATE 5 – NORTH STAND is actually the way the previous person showed you.

Ofcourse, on the way – you get the TRI-COLOUR painted on your face, you even buy the Vouvouzella, the jersery of the team you are supporting... giving enough business to every other person trying to make a quick buck, thanks to cricket ! You end up paying Rs 500 for something on most days you wouldn’t care less about. Like the FLAG, I have been to so many games, and each time I want it for the next game it has disappeared from my cupboard, means more money is spent on merchandising!
But all this is worth an Investment to see KKR loose 3 wickets in less than 5 overs ! And somewhere down the line when the match gets too slow – you begin to wish that KKR makes atleast a score of 160, just so that you don’t have to pack up and leave within 3 hours of actually getting there. Everybody wants a target that is chaseable but seems like a feat to achieve – if you know what I mean.

Ofcourse, everything is enjoyed with refreshments ! With so many dishes, you are spoilt for choice. But I am yet to find quality food at a big game, like I did in Madison Sqaure Garden in New York City... When I went there once to watch a Lakers game and then to watch my favourite band – GREEN Day play ! Ahh... the joys of organised events ground is something else. But none the less – everything is enjoyeable.
And so – I enjoyed every minute of MI beating the shit out of KKR... !!! Too bad – Shah Rukh Khan wasn’t in the stadium – I would have given him a piece of my mind then... LOL. But what sold me is the MEXICAN Wave – its a wonder why it is called so – but the entire cricket stadium taking part in this wave is something.


Eventually, the match got to an interesting turn... when Mumbai lost. The sissy Rohit Sharma sobbed around for a bit.. Pollard tried but it wasn’t his day. 2 other people who I have no idea where they came from or their track record ... but BHAJJI is the MAN.. !! He finished the match in style – leaving some purple sour grapes in the stadium... while the people in blue chilled out !!!

The walk back to the car seemed like a feat – nothing beats the invention called AIR –CONDITIONING in a CAR... God Bless that soul who did so. Ofcourse, the drive back to Juhu was animated with each one discussing the game followed by the best sleep dreams ever !

The GOD that was... !

I was all but 11 when I got punched in the face on the bus ride back from School for saying, “i don’t like cricket.” As an Indian, you cannot not like cricket. Cricket is like your nationality – you would probably have to change it to be able to say, Yes I do not like cricket. Cricket as a game has grown onto me. But you don’t have to love the game, to love an India v/s Pakistan game. It’s in our blood to LOVE the DRAMA unfold. It is how we remove the passive aggressiveness of dealing with the Kashmir, Kasab and Kontrols taking up half our daily newspaper. Just like that, even if you don’t follow the game – you grow into believing that Sachin is bigger than Rajnikant. Sachin attracts more crowds than all the Khans, or rather Bollywood put together. Or else, why would 1.2 billion sit glued to watch a 9 hour game rumoured to have been fixed with millions of rupees ?

Just like you pop a Combiflam for any ache you have in your body, one trusts the name Sachin Tendulkar to be the magic potion of the Indian Cricket Team. Since 1983, we have come close to winning ‘The cup that matters’ a couple of times, but have failed – sometimes by a little, and on most times miserably ! Alot of Sachin Tendulkar’s peers came and went – but he remained. He stuck in there – with his hard work and dedication to this game. He has been showered with the Padma Vibhushan, Padma Shri, Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, Arjuna Award by the Indian government. He is an ICON for most living souls. He took up a captaincy for a bit – but failed and eventually gave it up. Proving for once – that even GOD has his bad days.

The Indian team has struggled since 1983 – on most grounds for lack of leadership. In my opinion, individually there were many great players made – but as they say too many cooks spoil the broth. Such was the state of the Indian cricket team. Each one shinned – but we were nowhere in the larger picture. But since 1996, Fresh blood came into the scene. We saw brilliant players in the making, Harbhajan Singh, Yuvraj singh, M.S Dhoni, Gautam Ghambir. Each one strong in their own right, adding a little flavour to the Indian cricket team. None rising as high as the GOD himself.

But Cricket is not a singles match of Tennis. Where your individual performance matters. I am not dismissing Sachin’s integrity to the team. I am raising fingers at those who are blinded by the bling called Sachin. For those of you for whom Sachin is everything – Team India is finally a balanced team. It no longer works on heavy weights. I am not a fan of hate mails – but what did Sachin do ? In such an important game and I can point at many such important games where he was out early and did not take a single wicket. It was the new stars that galloped us to Victory !

It has taken 28 long years to form a winning team. And Sachin will always remain MY GOD for his fantastic contribution to Indian Cricket. But today, We can bid good-bye to Sachin with a smile. We no longer are harrowed when we need to chase a 316 runs target. Neither do we shy from taking those wickets. We survived without a KAPIL DEV, We will shine and win future world cups without SACHIN. Yes, they will always be remembered for the legends they are – BUT INDIA and the young INDIAN TALENT are the winners of the coming years under M.S. Dhoni and the future leaders ! WE ARE SORTED.

This is Happiness !

We blew his 45th birthday candles – his age is only an assumption. He claims he is 36 for the last 5 years... i have celebrated 20 of his birthday’s with him personally. 16th August every year in my household is celebrated with Cake, Wafers, Pav Bhaji and Thumbs-up. All of which are his favourites.

He speaks broken Gujarati up until today and he refuses to speak to us in Hindi. He calls my sister Dhwani – Jhonny. He says my little brother Rishi is his Child and not my parents. He sat through my chicken pox with me. He smokes a packet of Biddi every 2 days. He loves Amitabh Bacchan. His favourite colour is Black. He hates wearing closed shoes. He loves Cricket with a passion. Each day even though he doesn’t read the English Newspaper, he will look at the pictures of the Times of India. Our family put him into an Auto-Rickshaw driving school, so that he could earn more money – because this man is very smart. But he refused to part with my family.

When I was little – he taught me how to ride a bicycle. He ran behind me for hours on end until I finally knew how to balance. He drew the X and the Y axis of my graph tables all through my school days, so that the only thing left would be the plotting. Even before curling irons came into the hair-care scene, he knew the right temperature to set on the house iron for my hair.. so that they wouldn’t get burnt.

His name is Tinu. He is a Nepali by origin. He was our house-help for as long as I can remember. We tie him Rakhi each year on Raksha Bandhan – we call her our brother. We like to believe that he has been with our family for the last 20 years. He left to take care of his ailing brother a few years ago. But our doors are always open to him – when his own life gets monotonous he comes back to a place he calls HOME. Come Aug 16th – his birthday, we all are present to wish him the best. It is the birthday of one of us.

Not to boast of my family and our values – but ask yourself this. When is your maid’s birthday ? How long has she been in service ? What’s her favourite colour ? What does she do in her pass-time ? Apart from her daughter and a beating husband that she complains of every time your mother asks, “Kaal Kyun nahi aayi” , what do you really know of her ? What is her favourite food ?

Many of us have Ramu Shamu working for us for years. Some even have generation after generation working with you. What is that one special thing you do for them that makes them love you ? What is that one thing that makes them want to be with you forever ? What is that one thing that they hold onto when their lives get tough ? Do you really know anything about them ??

In this day and age you know what food your dog likes – he doesn’t even talk ! You know because you choose to listen to his voice. Have you ever tried hearing the voice of those silent people around you ? Reach out ! And start by marking your house-help’s birthday in your planner TODAY !