I Want To Take My Blog To The Next Level - #Blogchatter

I was tagged by Navnish  to write this post.

If someone asked, whether you wanted to take your blog to the next level, how much would you ponder, before jumping in, and saying yes ?

Umm...

3 seconds !

Too much?

Yeah, may be!

For most of us, blogging is just passion more than anything else. The natural instinct and urge to , express and share our views trumps everything. 

What may or may not follow, be it, money or followers or fame, is all secondary. 

So a chance to enhance that experience, mutually for the creator and the observer, is one to jump on to !

When #blogchatter floated the idea of elevating the blog to the next level, my first thought was to do something different. In 7 years, I have experimented with language and genre of writing, and I would continue to do so. 

But this time, I decided to have my first #videoblog ! It was a spontaneous decision to record this video and I did that without a written script :). 

In the video, I talk about where I have reached and where I want to be. I recognize the areas where I need improvement and, also, my road map to my goals. I am confident that there would be many like me, with same issues and aspirations.

I hope my stress on evolution, definition of 'next level' and significance of collaboration, appeals to all.

Let's join hands! 

I wish all my fellow #bloggers, good luck and offer unconditional help to anyone who needs it :).

I now tag Neha to write his take on the topic.

I want to take my blog to the next level with Blogchatter. 

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Twitter - @prateekmathur03

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#Photoblog: The Story of Our Wedding...

A Wedding is the celebration of a lifetime to commemorate the beginning of a lifelong journey called Marriage!

Whether marriages are made in heaven or not, is up to interpretation, but I can assure you, Weddings, especially, North-Indian weddings, are made in photo studios!

And I am not complaining :)

Thanks to the craze of sharing photos on social media, especially Instagram, wedding photography has taken a quantum leap in the last 5 years. The photographers of today are not only helping couples treasure their most cherished day but are also helping them create moments that are a reflection of their creative geniuses.

But the best memories are not created by the lens but by those who are covered by the lens.

My wife and I, are forever indebted to our families and friends who took the time to make it to our wedding and make it a memorable occasion. This post is dedicated to, and is my way to thank, all of them.

For my online family, let's relive those magical days which made us feel like the real Rajasthan Royals :).



Engagement !

Here I am! I got my swag on and so does my team! :D

Let's go !

Rang de tu mohe "gerua" !

Rings of Fortune !

Grandparents' Blessings !

And the most important question of all !

"Honey! Are you sure? You still have one more day to decide !"



Wedding Day

And so it begins :)

OK! Drying Mehandi, is not my most manliest of moments :D

But let's embrace it with smiles :)

My younger sister gets the joke, now !

निर्विघ्नं कुरु में देव 

Accessorizing :)

Wedding party all set to go!

I won't caption this :)

No wedding is fun till friends show up! But you know, har ek friend______hota hai! Dancing on "tujhe ghodi kinne chadaya___" :-/

My bachcha getting the swag on :)

Azeem-o-Shehanshah ;)

Once again, my friends were the life of this wedding :)

In the meantime, the bride was still posing.....

Until....

"More poses? Talk to the hand , Mr. Photographer!" 

 "Let's do this thing!"

It's a bird! It's a plane. It's a Groom !

Our Parents :)

That moment, which defines the essence of a Jaipur wedding!

Ever Mine. Ever Thine. Ever Ours.

And if you had any doubts about who would call shots in our home, I present to you....

Reception !

Bachcha Party ! :)

There's a story behind these 'two' boxes. Remember, har ek dost____hota hai ;) !

They wondered how did she say yes to me....

...........and I kind of agreed (not that I am ever going to ask the question ;) ) 

Sincerely Yours,

Mrs. and Mr. Prateek Mathur :)

Connect. Read. Share. Comment. 

Twitter - @prateekmathur03

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Of Context and Timelessness - My College Diaries

I believe in context, in my approach towards everything in life. Nothing makes sense to me unless I understand the bigger picture. My actions, especially, must be in accordance to this philosophy. I apply the same logic while blogging.

What's the context of remembering college days, 5.5 years after graduation? It's almost three years since my Masters graduation as well. Life has changed. It no longer revolves around the Food Court, silly crushes and GPAs. What's there from my late teens to early twenties that I can relate to in my late twenties? As I sit back and introspect, I could see 2 very significant factors that make my college days relevant, even now.

The first and foremost is the relationships that I built there.

Over the years, I have come to realize that it's harder to make friends now. There was something in that age of 18 to 22 when making friends came naturally to us. May be it was the naivety, but it gave all of us some of the best people we have met in our lives.  My core group of friends, still remains the same. Distances, jobs, marriages, and even, not meeting each other for years,  has not affected that. These are the people I share my laughter, sorrows, successes and failures with.  They are, as I often call them, my circle of trust. None of us are overachievers or possess an extraordinary prowess in our respective fields. All of our struggles made us stronger and sharing them with each other made the successes sweeter and the failures easier to live through. That also kept us relevant in each others’ lives. So, whether it was a setback in USA or a roadblock in Hyderabad or a hiccup in Germany, it was shared. It also taught us how parallel our lives still remain despite of all that differs. The assurance to have people, who have known you for a decade, on speed dial, is priceless.

The other thing that  I attribute to my college days is my writing. The first opportunity, applause, feedback and motivation, all came from my college. Writing has also always been cathartic for me. It’s the best outlet for my emotions and opinions. When I left college, on May 19, 2009, I felt devastated and so did most my friends. I felt lost even though I had a roadmap for my future. And writing came to my rescue.

I struggled for a week and finally, on the night of May 25, 2009, sat down and penned a post to calm my inner self. I recounted my last days, the lessons learnt and a promise to move on. It was 1550 words of raw emotions. This contest made me go back in time and read through those words and I would like to share some excerpts –

“Lesson I – A Myth broken- Night of May 9, 2009 (when the first group of friends left)

Boys don't cry. The only occasions when boys do cry is their sister's wedding, that too in the end, hiding and wiping off the tears as fast as possible. However, that night was an exception. There were very few words exchanged but still no tears! The taxi arrived and we started to arrange the luggage. A strange silence surrounded us. Then something happened. 2 friends hugged each other and started crying. It was sudden, like opening the floodgates! I looked up to Naveen, the biggest and the most muscular guy of our group. He was off, totally. He couldn't hold back and dragged all us into a group hug. Strangely, it all felt good. Boys don't cry, alright, but boys can cry, and that’s alright too.

 “Lesson II – A Truth Realized- Night of May 17, 2009 (second last day of college)

In the middle of the night, myself and Udayan started talking of the past and soon we both became quite vulnerable and called up our mentor-Rishi Bhaiya. He made us realize that we will learn to be apart from each other. May be this separation from people, we have been with 24x7 for the past 4 years, is necessary for our growth as individuals.

There was nothing new that he told us. But it was the timing or the way he told us that it struck the right chord. We just looked at each other, shook hands and I left. On my way back, I was thinking about MS in USA, Stony Brook vs Rutgers etc, nothing of the past but every trivial thing of the future. The Rishi Magic had worked."

 " Lesson III-An Era Ended- May 19, 2009

All said and done, we were still leaving the place we loved to hate for four years. There were a lot of people leaving that day. Hence, a lot of goodbyes and hugs. There is no better feeling to be seen off by our best friends. It makes you feel that there are people who care, there are people who miss you and there are people who want to see you again. The train moved and VIT was left behind- a place we loved to hate."

Looking ahead, doesn't mean forgetting the past. My college life did shape me for the future. I have met some amazing people in the past 5 years and, I could build new memories with them, only because of my experiences in my formative years in college. For all that, and a lot more, I treasure my college days.

05BBT215 would always be significant.

In 5 years, one thing hasn't changed, my best friend , Ramya, still oozes the same energy!



The "Circle of Trust"- over the years- from left pic 2- Rohit, Siddharth, Swagat, Udayan and Pankaj



And we meet again. Naveen and I at Times Square, 2013

'This post is my entry for 'My College Diary' contest held by travel blog My Yatra Diary in collaboration with Collegedunia.com' 

I tag Rishikant (http://meetrishi.blogspot.com/),
Udayan (http://udayanzone.blogspot.com/) 
and Aseem (aseemrastogi2.wordpress.com) to write on this topic

Thanksgiving

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

A night before Thanksgiving, I was sitting in a diner with a friend. We were talking about the American holiday and its history, which to my amusement, has absolutely no relevance to the way it is celebrated. It was a dinner between the Pilgrims and the Indians, which can probably be equated to one family welcoming another family in the neighborhood. But no one celebrates it that way now because talking to neighbors is a thing of distant past, at least in the West. It simply is a day for family re-unions and a wait for Black Friday deals! As they say, only in USA, can you be sitting with family and friends, being thankful on one day, and trampling over others for cheap electronics, the very next day!

I have always struggled with the use of the word "re-union" with respect to families. May be its the growing up with the Kauravas vs Pandavas stories, but in my mind, for a re-union, there has to be a falling apart. However, with the modern lifestyles, just being apart, calls for a re-union. Why not use the term "get together" instead?

There were 5 old men sitting on the next table. All of them were in their mid to late sixties, I guess. They looked really happy and content. Their loud  and careless laughter lit up the otherwise dull place. There were college stories, work gossip and, the obvious, wife bickering! It was anybody's guess that they were having a good time.

Quite  clearly, it was a "boys" night out, away from their families and the routine hustle bustle. A  friends' "get together" on a night before the holiday that they would essentially celebrate with their families. Again, friends before family! 

Old habits do die hard!

Then again I thought, why wouldn't they be happy! At this age also, they have the luxury of being with their friends, reminiscing about the good old days and forgetting the age woes. The occasional fun nights and the sense of togetherness, especially at that age, must be invigorating.

These are the moments, we ought to be thankful for! That is a true celebration.

Barriers...

The party had begun.

He was there, as always, the first one! They could trust him.

Finally, he had won their trust! Step 1-check!

Some thought he used to do all this to fit in. Probably, he did.

He had made every effort to make himself feel at home. He was desperate to adjust to this new culture. He had started to enjoy the cuisine too, though it was very different from his native one. Effort, some more effort, and I will be a part of them, he used to tell himself. His efforts were genuine and he honestly enjoyed their company and was eager to learn about their traditions. Sometimes, he would vouch for their viewpoint even in their absence, among his own peers.

Progress

Why was he so desperate?

At first it was forced and unavoidable circumstances that pushed him to an unknown territory. But later it turned into an experience. Spending your life with people who have been brought up in a culture alien to him was exciting. Of course, since he was the “different” one, he had to make the efforts.

But language, his biggest nemesis! The people were very nice and they never let him feel like an outcast. They made the process easy. He started to pick some words here and there, and like a two year old trying to speak his first words, he tried to make some sense. Most of the times he didn’t, but he kept trying! He would try to jump in some conversations hoping he wouldn’t make a fool of himself. Well, only sometimes he didn’t!

The party had started to gain momentum. Drinks were being served and there was light music. He was with his gang!

Yes, it was his gang! Step 2-check!

He looked around in a moment of solitude. There were happy and smiling faces. There was fun, frolic and laughter. He didn’t understand why were they laughing but he smiled in his own space. Language is significant. It’s one’s pride and identity. But for an outsider, it sure is a hindrance! Culture, cuisine and traditions are easy, language is a big one! How is one supposed to be a part of someone else’s life if he can’t understand them 90% of the time? In happier times, it goes unnoticed. It’s the times when you want someone close to you or you want to be close to the people you care about where this becomes suffocating.

Fitting in-it’s all an illusion, a big and dreadful illusion!

He realized he might not fit in, forever, but he enjoyed the illusion.

Somebody called his name and asked why was he away and what was he thinking? Other one pointed at a girl and winked! He laughed and showed the beer he was carrying towards them!

It seemed as if the illusion survived one more night!

Until…

They started another conversation in their language and he missed every bit of it!

Barriers, damn barriers, he thought, still a long way to go!

Searching...YOU..!!!

There haven't been many girls who have influenced me, bettered me, hurt me or made me feel special and good. And those who did any of that, could not be with me for long for some or the other reason.

Circumstance is a cruel word. So is Time.

However, there was one girl who did all. And , as usual, we are apart now. I don't know who to blame for it. I took the decision to leave the country, circumstances favored it and time didn't create any problem..!

Now, here I am, sitting thousands of miles away from her wondering whether or not we will ever meet and searching Her in every new girl I meet. It’s crazy, it’s strange but don't blame me because it’s Inexplicable!

I think Her being a girl is not an issue here. It’s her persona that I miss. Her habits, her energy, her craziness, her concern, her care, her……the list goes on..!

Her carelessness hurt me sometimes because I am a kind of person who likes to have some order in life. But a super-extended sorry, till the “y” starts to sound like “e”, always worked. It’s very human to be attached to someone who makes you feel special. And she did that. She would talk to me when she was happy, sad or tensed. She shared, I shared. What else could I have possibly asked for? Or should I have asked for more? I would never know. She was "just a friend"...and I was contended ! I still am and I always will be.

I am in a strange phase of my life now. I try to find Her in every person I meet. And strangely, I find some or the other trait of Hers in everyone. One is bubbly like Her , other is always in a hurry like Her. One of them seems all tensed and serious about studies and taking notes etc during the class and leaves all the concern before she walks out of the classroom!!! :) Someone is childish like Her and someone suddenly starts talking maturely….a special quality of Hers.

I am still searching but I have realized one thing, I would not find someone else like her. She would always be the yardstick against which I will judge people and possibly rate them.

Desire for More is the root cause of every success in this world.

I agree.

But there is a very thin line that separates Desire for More from Discontentment for Life. Ironically, Desire for More can lead you to such a point where there is just a Void which can’t be filled. So, logically I shall move on. But as I said, it’s crazy, it’s strange but don't blame me because it’s Inexplicable!

So
I am Searching YOU..!