Why I Write

"The idea is to write it so that people hear it

and it slides through the brain and goes 

straight to the heart." 

- Maya Angelou

It is difficult for me to fathom since exactly how long I have been writing to express myself. This certainly doesn't include the quintessential writing one does while in school or college. Sometimes, it seems to me as a consequence of my intrinsic behaviour which is keeping things to myself. Growing up, I was not the one growing up with a bunch of kids - neighbours, cousins of my age and my early socialization was limited to my parents and elders for as long as I can remember. Being the elder sister with a considerable age difference, my childhood was solitary. Before class 2 when my family finally moved to Jaipur, my father had postings in different districts and I faintly remember changing schools as well as homes. In fact, even within Jaipur, I have been part of four different schools. This also meant that I never got attached to one particular area, home, school or set of friends. 

Looking back, it is now that I realize that my love affair for writing began nearly a decade back and I am extremely grateful to my parents for their support. I've always been a voracious reader and certain books left imprints on my impressionable mind. Two of the ones that really inspired me to embrace the pen include 'The Diary of A Young Girl' by Anne Frank and 'The Story of my Life' by Helen Keller. Since the time I've gotten to know about their lives, they inspire me and will continue to be my heroes, no wonder they say that the pen is mightier than the sword.

A Leap of Faith

  © Shambhavi Pant

 "With roots secured in the mud  

A stem that grows through water   

And a flower that lies pristinely above." 

We've all heard and read that life ain't a bed of roses, yet deep inside our hearts, many of us aspire to a life that lacks hurdles. Life isn't meant to be a singular uphill journey but is one with crests and troughs. Numerous researches indicate that as human beings, we are innately wired to seek pleasure.  And why should we be surprised when apes are traced to be our anthropological ancestors. Though I majored in Sociology, cognition and brain functioning have always been of interest to me. Under modern civilisation, we seek to fulfil higher order needs much beyond food, sex and shelter as the Psychologist Abraham Maslow contends. Therefore, we tend to chase "highs" through our work, activities and relationships. Those who do innovate, create or work upon things or ideas fight against the natural tendency to relax or just be. According to Maslow's Hierarchy of needs paradigm, their physiological, safety, love & belonging and ego/esteem needs stand fulfilled and they are somewhere near the apex of the pyramid in the quest to self-actualization.

Falling In Love With The Machine: Is This What The Future Looks Like?

Released in 2014, the Academy Award-winning film by Spike Jonze, “Her”, starring Joaquin Phoenix.

“Her” is an atypical love story which brings to screen a technology driven futuristic take on human life and personal relationships. Released in 2014, the movie is definitely worth a watch and it is no wonder that it has won numerous accolades and has been widely screened at film festivals. The protagonist Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix) is a professional who pens customized love letters for an online service. These letters are not in the usual computer font, but a distinct beautiful “handwriting” created digitally. On the personal front, he appears to be a lonely man after a recent separation from his wife and has somewhat of a monotonous life where he does his 9-5 office stint and gets back home.

 At one plane, it reflects the increasing utility of tech artifacts, wherein Theodore is checking e-mails on the go and responding to them via his digital assistant on his Bluetooth earpiece. This and much more became possible when he purchased and installed an intuitive AI software on his computer after filling out essential details. Though the digital assistant does not have a form, the OS who names itself as “Samantha” (the voice of Scarlett Johansson), after Theodore opted for a female voice, fills the void in his life in the beginning. He begins to interact with Samantha quite a lot, initially for work related stuff like attending or cancelling phone calls, responding to e-mails and text messages. 

Development Decoded

President Truman’s speech in 1949 inaugurated the era of development in the way Robert McNamara’s speech in1973 reflected the shift within its discursive field. The Nairobi speech was essentially an address to the board of governors of the World Bank by McNamara, the then President of the Bank. He contested the effectiveness of the accumulation-centric approach in eliminating poverty and discrimination and emphasized on the need for an alternative approach. There emerged a strong case for redefining the objective of development by bringing in the alleviation of absolute poverty as the goal of developmental interventions.

 In the previous decades, the Bank’s lending policy focused on infrastructure building- e.g. Power plants, transport and communications mainly for modern industries in urban areas. Since these investments enhanced productivity in the modern sector, their economic returns were tangible and measurable providing an economic justification of the projects. The Bank moved away from the Social sector and was hesitant to fund health or educational programs because according to the Bank, they were only remotely linked to productivity and growth.

Power to Ideas

The progress of a society is reflected among other things, in the way it embraces its diversity- of its people, their cultures and opinions. We, as self-actualized individuals of a modern society, must try to acknowledge and respect myriad ideas and their expression in all distinct forms. 

Musings of the Culturally Curious #1

 It is really interesting how a sight, sound or smell can trigger umpteen ideas in the mind.

I spotted these intricately beautiful door handles somewhere at Bharatpur, Rajasthan and they struck a chain of fleeting thoughts eventually...

Welcoming the thought of Gay rights

We may not be staying in the US and the Supreme Court ruling may not affect us in any major or minor way. But, we as educated, aware and responsible citizens possess all rights to lend our support to a landmark decision, even though it may have sparked controversy. Embracing Rainbow flags on social media does not simply make us pro-US, or blind to our native cultures and lifestyles, or any less nationalistic. We endorse nothing, but a progressive and bold decision, that we believe is a step in the right direction.

Poison of Comparison

The coffee bean motivates me,

On boiling she transforms the water itself;

Unlike the egg which softens or the carrots that harden.

 I gain inspiration from the pebbles traversing distance vast,

Through all kinds of terrains no matter challenging they still last!

Life is a journey not as smooth as most of us think,

Hell and heaven being stations one's transported in a blink.

Pride kills worse than pills

Ever thought of your significance in this unbounded universe,

leave aside the distance each year you traverse.
An exceptional person shoots to fame,
feeling vain as all know his name.
Famous faces exist everywhere-towns, cities, states, nations, continents and the whole world altogether,
So why to the world claim what all you have gained?

Filmstars, business tycoons, ministers and socialites,
all craving for eternal endless heights,
to which their line of contentment never crossed.
Swaying hot heads basking in the glory of their fame,
if you analyze deeply-its nothing but a shame too lame.
Ruling and influencing other's minds is nothing but mere narrow-sightedness,
just step out and gaze at the blue-black sky-it'll surely tamper those wings with which you once seemed to fly high.

Desires decoded

       A Prada tote, a Burberry coat,

      All what ladies and chicks today dote.

The latest models of Vertu and Blackberry won't guarantee sustained satisfaction,

Until and unless one mends his dirty deceptive actions.

What's the purpose of the brand new Nikon?

When you are unable to extract time for what all you want.

No one to chatter with,

No one to pump us up during moments of broken hearts,

How can anything destroy one's humanity with ruthless darts?

Man was a social animal,

Now a wild beast.

To fulfill his selfish motives,

Destroys other's existent peace.

Nobody to share the good old memories,

How can you expect such from the life less batteries?