Author: Adi Sathe

  • Let me go – A love story

    Let me go – A love story

    Samar was trying to get the task done. He has been struggling with this particular task since last morning. He was about to lose his calm if he couldn’t crack this in the next half hour. This was a really unusual thing as he was popular for figuring out the quick solutions about the task which were stuck at a point. But was it really the hard-to-crack solution that was bothering him? Or was it something else? Was it what happened a day before with Sneha? Yeah, it was about her. But exactly what part of their conversation bothered him so much that he couldn’t focus on his work?

    It’s been two years since Sneha and Samar started dating. Some six months before they hunted for a cosy little apartment and moved in together. It was not all lovey-dovey in these two years but they have managed to make it up to each other. They fought, even for the silliest reason but they also knew when to raise a flag for peace. They both have been working in the same company when they started dating. Within a couple of months, Sneha got a good deal at another MNC and she grabbed the opportunity. Samar strongly supported her in arriving at the decision to switch. They adjusted their life around the new change. Spending less time together was really tough. However, they got used to it.

    A day before, Samar finished his work rather early and took Sneha’s favourite flowers just to make her happy after a busy day at her office. She just had started leading a new project. Just like every other new project, initial hick-ups which resulted in stress at the end of the day. So once at home, he tidied the rooms, nicely arranged the flowers in vases Sneha bought when they moved in together. He got up from the sofa and just when he got a message from Sneha “See you in 10, dear”. He knew nothing but strong hot coffee would make Sneha happy. As soon as she smells that aroma, her stress is, Puff!!!! Gone……

    Exactly in 10 minutes the doorbell rang, Samar opened the door. They had set is as rule. “If another person is at home, one will not use the key to open the latch.” Seeing happy, smiling, bubbly Sneha at the door shocked him a bit. She had brought a box full of sweets. She came in, almost pushing Samar out of the way. Opened the box and fed him the sweet. She was surprised to see the flowers. It felt amazing when the aroma of brewing coffee hit her brain. Sneha refused to tell anything before they settled in with the coffee. Samar hurriedly poured their mugs and they settled in the sit out.

    Sneha excitedly pulled the envelope out of her bag and put it in his hands. Samar opened it with excitement. It was a letter from her company. He was thrilled with excitement to know about the content of the letter. His face lit with joy as he read it. Her selection for on-site assignment for the new project got him excited. They decided to hit their favourite club to celebrate the offer in excitement.

    It took a couple of hours for Samar to realise that this was going to be the long assignment. As they were returning from the club, the fact of a 5-6 month long on-site assignment was sinking in Samar’s head. He was quiet when they were getting back. Whenever he is upset, he goes into this introvertive cocoon. He almost stops talking. His replies shorten to one or two words. Sneha had sensed the reason behind his silence, but she chose not to push him. She knew he would take his time to get back.

    Since then, Samar was struggling to accept and get himself ready for such a long period of staying away from her. He knew it was going to be the toughest patch in their relationship. He was not sure about how he was going to handle it. From yesterday morning, Samar was trying to figure out how to make these six months liveable. Sneha knew that he was not going to stop her from taking this assignment. Just when Samar was about to call it a day and head home, his phone beeped. He checked the notification. It was a video message from Sneha. With his finger tap, Sneha appeared on screen with a perfect puppy face, saying “Let me go, dear.” 

    Samar had found his answer…

    “This post is a part of Remembering Love Blog Hop hosted by Manali Desai and Sukaina Majeed“.

    Along with this,

    This blog post is part of the blog challenge ‘Blogaberry Dazzle’ hosted by Cindy D’Silva and Noor Anand Chawla in collaboration with Bohemian Bibliophile.

    For more stories, click here.

  • A trip down the memory lane…

    A trip down the memory lane…

    Imagine a room of a kid who’s barely out of his teens. For the sake of the story, let’s call him Bandya. Ohh, you think it’s out of fashion name? So, shall it be Sunny? Good! So, imagine Sunny’s room. What do you see? A single bed towards a wall, flooding with all sorts of thing that you would wonder if it has a mattress on it or not. A clutter of headphones, charger cables, iPad, heap of cloths and Sunny himself. How can you even expect to see a piece of mattress with all this? This is just a one side of the room.

    On the other side, a corner specially designed for ‘studying’ which has not seen much of the use. A stack of course books which would be touched only a couple of days before exams is on the table and a huge paper pile gathered over the years. Another corner is for the sporting equipment for cricket or badminton. A room is incomplete without a special nook carved for a computer desk where you would find sunny if he’s not on his bed.

    The reason for which I am telling you all these details is, so that you can enjoy the story I am going to narrate. Just like us, Sunny’s mum had taken all the clutter in from her vantage point at the door. Sunny had really tested her limits this time. She sprang into action and without giving Sunny a chance to escape, she pulled him out of the bed.

    “If I don’t see this cleared and tidied you are not getting lunch today. So Mr. Sunny, better get going.”, she issued an ultimatum. “Then, I’ll go out for lunch.” He tried acting smart. After giving him a cold stare for a moment, she just left the room. At the door, she turned, closed it and just bolted it from outside. Sunny was so dumbstruck with this mood that he couldn’t even comprehend what has transpired. “Want to head out for lunch? Go if you can!” she roared. “Clean it up and I will open the door.”

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    In a fit of anger, he too bolted the door from inside, as if he was trying to keep the whole family locked up in other rooms. He even tried throwing stuff around. Understanding the futility of the situation, he decided to clean the room at last. Even the room almost gave out a sigh with a thought of getting a much-awaited tidying up.

    Sunny started pulling all the clutter down on the floor. Once everything was on the floor, he sat in the middle and started going through it. If you would have looked at the scene, you would feel like standing in a stall selling second hand things in a weekly bazaar. When he started sorting a pile of papers from the table, he wasn’t sure from when the pile was growing. It had papers almost from his first grade. While looking at all those bits and bobs, he was forgetting that he has to tidy all of this. He was losing himself in a maze of memories associated with all those things.

    He could see all of his friends, and the fun they had during his school days. The pile had bunch of photos taken during birthdays, festivals. Tickets of the movies they watched; class photos taken for every year. A box of greeting cards given by friends collected which he had collected over the years. He was so engrossed in this that he lost the track of time.

    His mum, oblivious to Sunny’s trip in memory land, was waiting for him to plead for lunch. When he didn’t turn up even their usual lunch time passed, she came to check up on him. She tried calling him, but no response. Sunny was so lost that he didn’t hear the calls. She opened the bolt just to find it locked from the inside. This ticked her off again and she gave up on him and bolted the door again. She went on to have her lunch and keep working according to her own schedule.

    When Sunny came back from his long stroll of memory lanes, clock was showing 5PM. A growling tymmy made him realised the hunger. He just tidied everything quickly and went to the door to go to the kitchen for food. When he tried opening it but it didn’t budge. He tried again and then remembered the whole episode which had put him in this space at the first place.

    He called out to his mother to open the door. She was waiting for his calls already so she rushed to his room and opened the door from outside. She started firing all sorts of questions. “What were you doing so far? why didn’t you answered when I came to call him for lun…” She almost froze in mid-sentence as she took a tidied room in. It was a shocking transformation. She just pulled him into her arms and took him to the kitchen for his much-delayed lunch. She was looking at him eating silently with teary eyes…

    This post is a part of Blogchatter Blog Hop. Read more stories like this here.

  • 2024, a new beginning?

    2024, a new beginning?

    It’s already been 10 days into the new year of 2024. Since the world has witnessed, endured and came out (?) from the pandemic, I have seen two types of reactions. One who celebrates every small bit of success, appreciating their new lease on life. The others who feel celebrations are useless, mind filled with uncertainty. I am yet to figure out where I belong. So at the beginning of a new year, it puts me into a difficult position. To celebrate, or not to celebrate, that’s the question?

    What really happened in 2020?

    I wasn’t the person who celebrated new year, birthdays, anniversaries of loved ones with a pomp before this lockdown and all. However I am glad that no harm came to me or my close-ones during that melancholic period of lockdown on accounts of the deadly virus. Yet there was a lot happening in the personal space. Even with the benefit of hindsight, I am not able to figure out that whatever turns life has taken, are they leading to better days ahead or not. After four years, it’s still unclear. Moments stayed with me from these four years are so few that fingers of my two hands would be enough.

    A few of you may find this a very random rumble about a dull life. But I look at this as a way to crystalize my thoughts. I hope some of you will agree with me on the usefulness of putting thoughts on paper (or screen). “Consistency is the key”, they say, when it comes to creativity. Well, it definitely took a toll. You must have seen me writing blogs very rarely in a past couple of years. I had started my own YouTube channel where I recited my poems for you all. It turned out to be a short endeavour. There is one thing I am being consistent with is my reading. I have been reading more and more books per year since pandemic.

    They kept me on track

    Books have been strong and steady companions for me throughout my life. Recently, I went digital and discovered a whole new experience of reading. Nowadays, I read ebooks on kindle and listen to audiobooks. However this doesn’t mean that my love for good old printed books has decreased. The only change is that I rarely buy new paper books. Whenever I want to enjoy reading in old ways, I turn to my collection of my favourites.

    Well in 2024, I am looking forward to continuing my reading journey. I recently bought a whole set of फास्टर फेणे (Faster Fene) written by B R Bhagwat. This particular series has a strong nostalgia attached to it. When you own a complete set, it feels like a dream has come true, which you had left way back in your childhood.

    At the new beginning

    So, here we are, when we have passed that beginning phase. A routine has now settled in. I am beginning a new journey. Where I want to keep walking without worrying about the destination. Maybe this is what being consistent means. Hope you all will read my writings again frequently and share your thoughts on the same. I am glad to be back in touch with you all! See you around…

  • Thrilling story of a crafty work – Book review

    Thrilling story of a crafty work – Book review

    Indian freedom movement is a very huge canvas to paint many pictures which has led to the creation of many stories, novels, films ranging from fact-based historical docuements to the historical fictions building an imaginative story on the backdrop of the events. Swaraj Spy comes into the later category. I received the review copy a long long ago but couldn’t finish reading it sooner. But I am able to finish it now and here are few of my thoughts.

    What to expect

    Vijay has been able to capture human emotions very well when he describes the situations of displacement, oppression, and fearful situations. However, the storyline loses its grip over the readers mind in between. This was the reason that it took me so long to finish this book. And yet, I would say that you would not regret reading this one. The way author has manages to bring in the global events in the story is credible and brings some traction to the story. Vijay manages to bring in some action every now and then but by the end of it, he is able to pull the story together and tie it in a nice bundle.

    From the blurb

    Kumar Nair moves to Singapore after being dismissed from a British paramilitary unit for refusing to disperse unarmed women agitating for India’s independence. But war breaks out and the Great Depression destroys his fledgling business.

    After the fall of Singapore, he joins a secret espionage school set up by Japanese Intelligence and the rebel Indian National Army in Penang, Malaya. When several cadets trained at the school are betrayed by a double agent, Kumar is sent on a rescue mission. But while the Japanese want Kumar to continue the mission with surviving agents, Indian leaders ask Kumar to save as many as possible and hunker down until the war ends.

    Inspired by a true story, The Swaraj Spy will take you on a thrilling adventure through time and history.

    About the book

    • Name of Book: The Swaraj Spy
    • Author: Vijay Balan
    • Publisher: Harper Collins
    • Publication year: 2022
    • Pages: 500
    • ISBN – 10: 9356290741
    • ISBN – 13: 9789356290747
    • Price: ₹ 408

    My ratings

    Stories: 3/5
    Writing Style: 3/5
    Cover Design: 4/5

    Overall Rating: 3/5

    Where to Buy

    Should you read it?

    You won’t regret if you pick this book to read once. Just don’t go in with very high expectations

    If you want more book recommendations, click here.

    This review is powered by the Blogchatter Book Review Program. 

  • Banaras – a Strong Call of an Unknown Connection

    Banaras – a Strong Call of an Unknown Connection

    I felt in my heart that I should not miss this opportunity. It was a strong call to ignore. As if Banaras was calling me. This all started after a virtual get-together of the extended Blogchatter community about earlier this year. Almost everyone was very excited with the idea of an offline retreat coming around September – October.

    By April, the destination was fixed. As soon as I got to know it’s going to be Banaras, I felt a strong pull towards it. I had never been to this oldest city in the world. And yet, it felt that there is something which is calling me back. I had to go. I don’t think I had planned any of my trips this early.

    What an experience it was!

    Our retreat was organized in a very beautifully restored Guleria Kothi on the banks of Maa Ganga. That added to the pull I was feeling inside me. Even though I wasn’t sure what we were going to do in the retreat, I had decided that this had to happen. I scrambled all my resources and just fixed my spot. Boy, oh boy! I am so delighted with those 3 days we all spent together. I enjoyed my time exploring the city, invoking creativity through various sessions, and going on a boat ride on Ganga on a rainy morning. It was a total fun!

    While roaming around the narrow lanes of Banaras, colourful and artsy doors of old houses in the city fascinated me. My mind kept playing Kabir bhajans in a loop. These might be the lanes through which Kabir himself must have roamed in the city humming his own writings. Kumar Gandharvaji‘s tunes of those nirguni bhajans got an additional layer for me after my trip to Banaras. I also got to listen to another flavour of these bhajans from Umesh Kabir during one of our sessions of retreat.

    The return journey from Banaras to Pune via Mumbai was very eventful. Mahanagari express decided to be so late travelling over 1500 km, that it was terminated one stop before the scheduled station. I had to literally run to catch my connecting train to Pune.

    Answering the mystic call

    I summarise my experience of Banaras in this poem answering a mystic call from an unknown connection which I feel that I share with this oldest city of Banaras.

    कुछ है जो आज भी मुझे वापस खींच रहा है।
    वैसे तो रहा था बस ही चार दिन और,
    लौटे हुए कई हफ्ते हो गए है। लेकिन..
    मन अभी भी भटक रहा है उन तंग गलियों में।
    शायद जहा कही कबीर, तुलसी के पैर लगे होंगे।
    मां गंगा का विशाल रूप आंखों में बस सा गया है।
    मजधार में तैरती इस नाव की तरह मैं भी खींचा जा रहा हूं।
    बहता जा रहा हूं ..
    लगता है कोई पुराना रिश्ता है इस शहर से,
    पांच हजार सालों के इतिहास में ढूंढना भी तो मुश्किल है?

    To read more such stories, browse Adi’s Journal pages.

  • Gossip – very tempting but unhealthy

    As I woke up today, it dawned on me that today is September 1st. I am always forgetful about turning a page of my calendars at home, at desks. So before I forget about it again, I turned them to the current month. I started thinking as I read the lines which I wrote for the September page of ‘Amurta 2023’.

    पहिले वळून मागे,
    पाठीवर बोच कशाची?
    वाटते लपून आहे,
    रोखली नजर कुणाची?

    आदित्य साठे

    Sharp sting on my back,
    And I turned around.
    Gaze stared from a corner,
    Shadow lurking around

    Aditya Sathe

    The chain of thought started from the obvious meanings of lines about some piercing gazes we all feel on our backs every now and then. However, it kept growing as new links started to get attached. It settled on the final form which these gazes take. Gossips. It seemed to be a good topic to have a word with you all. Hence, this blogpost.

    Irrespective of your age, gender, nouns, pronouns and what not; everybody enjoys the spicy tadka of gossip every now and then. This temptation gives all the ammunition needed to those chaar log of the society to have a say in every action we take. I am quite aware that I have no moral grounds to lecture anyone about how gossiping is bad. Having indulged in it quite a few times, I strongly believe that a person is a fibber if he or she claims about not being part of gossiping.

    We have witnessed gossiping right from our childhood when your buwa visits you or your mum takes you to mama or maasi’s. Just like a good observant kid, we pick up the vice and start gossiping about our schoolmates. Most of the time we miss the thin line between asking for the well-being of your friends or relatives and gossiping.

    And the game of Chinese Whispers begins.

    “तुम ने सुना क्या?” “You know what he did?” “तशीच आहे अगं ती.” You can easily hear these sentences from any intense gossip sessions of friends or relatives gathered after a long time. Inherent storytellers in us take charge. He starts narrating the story with all the masala one can add to it turning a rai into a pahad. Next day, some other storyteller adds more tadka to this adding a few more grains of rai to it. I have heard stories of gossip reaching back to the same person completing a full circle taking entirely different forms. Sometimes things go out of hand. A story of sipping some cola from a glass might even go too far labelling someone as a drunkard.

    So, I have just one suggestion for you all (and for myself too). Be mindful about this risk of crossing into the unhealthy realm of gossips while you are having fun with your friends and relatives. खैर छोडो, पर आप ने सुना क्या..

    This post is a part of Blogchatter Half Marathon 2023. If you like to read more of my thoughts, please check this…