Profound shiz — heard and remembered
We say quite a lot to others and we, in turn, hear a lot too. Most of the words exchanged are buried in the ever-flowing river of time. Unless they are recorded for posterity, of course. Which brings us to the question of the day: Where do all the words we speak go? Given the omniscient virtue of law of conservation of energy, what happens during a conversation? If sound energy is emitted by our vocal chords and tongue playing piano with the air, where would be the next pit stop? Or do our words float around aimlessly before evolving in to an idea and crashing into somebody’s unsuspecting skull?
Questions of the day, actually.
At this point, let me digress a bit and revisit those moments which were marked by the words uttered. The ones who said them may or may not remember the day but I do. In my memory, some unwitting quotes were corralled over time and refuse to leave my head. The reason is quite simple. Those who told me what they told may not have realized it during those instances that they were being profound. Being philosophically vague is one thing but to imbue practicality with wisdom is a different arena altogether.
Although I was fortunate enough to meet some of the most popular people during my sojourn in journalism, I’ve decided to exclude thoughtful celebs from this list.
So, let’s commence.
“Kapde hain. Bheegte hain aur phir sookh jaate hain.” [Clothes will get wet in the rain but then, they’ll dry on their own too.]
- Aamir, childhood friend“Namma’d badavér nagle naadla.” [Find people who are poorer than us and see how they manage with their poverty.]
- Pappa“Be good to everyone but don’t expect everyone to be good to you.”
- Kalyani teacher, tutor, 1994“Yella vyaley seivey.” [Will build a temple as well as a mosque as well as a church as long as you pay me.]
- a mason who helped build our house, 1997“Kiti aale aani kiti gele.” [So many came and so many left this chawl.]
- Aai, our favourite neighbourhood granny“Do martaba padho, yaad rahega. Teen martaba padho, kabhi nahi buloge.” [Read twice, you’ll remember. Read thrice, you’ll never forget.]
- Akbar sir, tutor, 2001“Kab tak?” [For how long will anything last? It has to end some day.]
- Shaheen ma’am, my ex-deputy editor“Izzat ki zindagi hain. Chori-chakari nahin karte. Mehnat karte hain — aur kya chahiye?” [I am living a honourable life. I don’t steal for a living. I work hard. What else can I ask for?]
- Devakiji, our domestic help“Enne daante thu harlujji. Thu daante enne da arthaijji.” [The fire in a diya is because of the oil, meaning we are alive because of God. However, oil is redundant without the fire, meaning God is insignificant without our devotion.]
- Amma“Kuch logon ne naarebaazi ko hi apna pehchaan bana liya hain.” [Some people have made aimless outrage their trademark.”
- Farooque Ansari, mentor, has zero footprint on social media“I am in no hurry to stand up and wait.”
- a fellow lady passenger who, like me, stayed seated when the flight landed“Swalpa adjust maadi.” [Please adjust a bit.]
- the priest while helping me with my dhoti before the wedding rituals“Eee.” [You.]
- Ajji on being asked if God is responsible for all the good things, then who is responsible for all the bad things“Dono bachho ko school bhej rahe hain. Kudh kaamyaab nahi ho paaye, kam se kam woh kaamyaab ho jaaye.” [I am literate but I am sending both my kids to school. I couldn’t succeed in life so I want them to succeed.]
- an autowallah, not realizing his own success“Bas gaadi chal rahi hai.” [My vehicle of life is still moving.]
- an ex-colleague on being asked how is he doing“Ninna bhaagya ninna ne.” [Nobody can steal your fate.]
- Sumati maami“Who isn’t struggling?”
- Sai, brother, on being told that I am struggling in Gurgaon“Chup be.” [Shut up.]
- Tushar and Anu, two of my designated pallbearers, 2011
This list can go on and on but let’s stop here.
