Finally,after a big hiatus...

   Its going to be drudgery if I begin this post by saying that "its been a long time since I wrote my last post ".Thats what i usually do.I agree it has been a long time ,really long ,but I have had reasons.I neither had anything happening to write nor the required motivation.A couple of times I even began writing ,but gave up after a couple of lines.Then why all of a sudden today??Well,no specific reason,just felt a very strong yearning and so here I am .I am not even sure whether this will even be read by a single soul.

   So,what am I gonna write about?Nothing happening in particular.I am just gonna vent out things .Pardon me ,for the post is going to be very unorganised,It might not even make sense at times.So where do I start from?

   To begin with,life @ Sungard is good,I have made a lot of good friends here.One thing I learnt at Sungard which is worth mentioning is playing table tennis.Its fun and it has become an essential part of my day's routine in company.And yes,our team is going to Marriot for team lunch coming friday.

   I have started preparing for GRE and I just hope I dont give it up after a while like I have done before.I learnt to solve the Rubik's cube .It had been eluding me for quite a while before I figured it out 2 weeks ago .Felt good for a couple of days only untill I saw a video of a guy solving it in 9 seconds.

   Books..ah..read a couple of books outta which "The Power of your subconcious mind" is an influential one.People ,a strong recommendation,get your hands on this one and peruse it. The gist of the book says that -Whatever you impress upon your subconcious mind has to happen.It says "Ask whole-heartedly and thou shall be given".

    Money..hmm,yeah when you earn your living ,then do u realise how important money is.You get to do all the things which you refrained yourself from doing earlier just because you had no or less money.It feels better.

   Movies..oh..just saw Narnia -the third part today.Lately ,I have seen just one movie with some substance -Guzaarish.The stars in it exemplified whatever Guzaarish stood for.Its a movie with a message-"Kiss slowly, forgive quickly,love truly..Life is too short."

   Addictions....hehe ..,addicted to facebook and twitter just like everyone else, addicted to work ..yeah i have become a workoholic,addicted to playing table tennis in office hours between 5-6 p.m and finally 'sweetest things ' which is an old addiction and most needed one.

   So people ,we are at the end.Goodwill ,hugs and wishes...Adieu!!

Random Post...Cloud No.99!!

 It feels like a decade since I last sat down to write.I guess ,I was too hooked to twitter and SunGard is keeping me pretty busy as well.But blogging will always be my first love(?).

    For all those who visit this page to read something interesting,I would say,it isnt worth it.This is just to satiate my hunger for writing .The past few days have been very fateful and I am so overwhelmed that I need something to channelize this feeling.What better than blogging...

    Well....Yes ,I am on Cloud no 99.Yes..I always knew what fanaticism meant.But the fact that I am fanatic about all the good that has been happening to all the people(TOUCHWOOD..) who matter to me, sets this feeling apart.I wish everyday were the same.Things are happening for the first time and I am glad they are happenning but I am afraid too.Afraid of the time when it would all not be the same.But chuck it,who cares about that for the moment.May be one day everything will make sense.So as of now,I want to enjoy the confusion,I want to believe..everything happens for a reason!!

    Eventually,I would like to thank all who contributed to this feeling..and embellishing this weekend of mine..Thanks for bearing with me...Goodwill ,hugs and wishes!!!!

Political Hell

Here is a must-read article that I found while stumbling on the net.

    A powerful senator dies after a prolonged illness. His soul arrives in heaven and is met by St. Peter at the entrance.
"Welcome to Heaven," says St. Peter. "Before you settle in, it seems there is a problem. We seldom see a high official around these parts, you see, so we're not sure what to do with you."

"No problem, just let me in," says the guy.

"Well, I'd like to but I have orders from higher up. What we'll do is have you spend one day in Hell and one in Heaven. Then you can choose where to spend eternity."

"Really, I've made up my mind. I want to be in Heaven," says the senator.

"I'm sorry but we have our rules."

And with that, St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to Hell. The doors open and he finds himself in the middle of a green golf course. In the distance is a clubhouse and standing in front of it are all his friends and other politicians who had worked with him, everyone is very happy and in evening attire. They run to greet him, hug him, and reminisce about the good times they had while getting rich at the expense of the people. They play a friendly game of golf and then dine on lobster and caviar. Also present is the Devil, who really is a very friendly guy who has a good time dancing and telling jokes. They are having such a good time that before he realizes it, it is time to go. Everyone gives him a big hug and waves while the elevator rises. The elevator goes up, up, up and the door reopens on Heaven where St. Peter is waiting for him.

"Now it's time to visit Heaven."

So 24 hours pass with the head of state joining a group of contented souls moving from cloud to cloud, playing the harp and singing. They have a good time and, before he realizes it, the 24 hours have gone by and St. Peter returns.

"Well then, you've spent a day in Hell and another in Heaven. Now choose your eternity."

He reflects for a minute, then the senator answers, "Well, I would never have said it, I mean Heaven has been delightful, but I think I would be better off in Hell."

So St. Peter escorts him to the elevator and he goes down, down, down to Hell. Now the doors of the elevator open and he is in the middle of a barren land covered with waste and garbage. He sees all his friends, dressed in rags, picking up the trash and putting it in black bags. The Devil comes over to him and lays his arm on his neck. "I don't understand," stammers the senator."Yesterday I was here and there was a golf course and club and we ate lobster and caviar and danced and had a great time. Now all there is, is a wasteland full of garbage and my friends look miserable.

The Devil looks at him, smiles and says, "Yesterday we were campaigning! Today you voted for us! The election is over."

The big switch

    Just five days ago,I used to live a life of a maverick.I used to be an engineering student at COEP.I was living my college life
to the fullest.All things said and done about engineering and about college life,I was experiencing them.Friends used to my family,the 10 X 10 sized
hostel room,my abode.Then suddenly 1st,2nd,3rd and then 4th year is gone and the college life is over...snap ....cuttt........and I am at my home
staring at a walls awaiting a new life,a new challenge.


     As I retrospect my engineering days,I realise that I have still not been able to get over the nostalgia.I badly long for the hilarious lectures(yes they were hilarious) where learning was the last thing we did.I long for the after-lecture chats,the late night discussions,petty fights.I long for the 4.00 clock breakfast at mess and the meal with thousand others like me.
I long to share my secrets with closest friends and I long to have them share their secrets with me.I just cant get over the longing.

    But it is the last day of engineering,the 14th May,that will hound me every now and then.Had the end not been so blissful and memorable,I would not have realised what it actually means to be on cloud no 99.It was nice..surreal but nice.And now everything has been compiled into a souvenir.A souvenir that will remind me of the best days of my life.A souvenir that is going to make it hard for me to move on.

    Now,as I indulge myself in staring at the walls,looking into infinity,I am brought back to reality by my nephew who insists on showing me a magic trick with cards and then I look around and see my nieces and nephew awaiting my attention..I chuckle and let myself to be a subject to their prank.

Dear Mom.....

Dear Aai......,
  You have no idea how overwhelmed I get when I think how proud I am to be born to you.What a wonderful human being you are ,Mom.I just cant find the right words to describe you.I really think,if God really existed,he could not have been better.

        Mom,I must tell you that I still cherish the sight of you waiting for me to get back from school and the way you used to shout when I used to jump down from the running auto.I still vividly remember how patiently u heard me out preparing breakfast for me when I told you about how my day at school was.When you asked me,"What do you want for lunch in your tiffin today?" ,I used to give absurd answers,I used to demand food which took a lot trouble to prepare.But then in school,when I used to open my tiffin and see that you had happily gone and took the trouble to fulfill my demand,I used to be so ashamed of myself and so filled with gratitude.Aai,I am sorry for all the trouble I have caused you.Mom,I badly miss the time when you used to feed me with your own hand while I was busy watching T.V.

      Mom,I fall short of words to describe the solace I find in you lap.I remember how my problems dont dare to bother me when you are around.I appreciate you for keeping me grounded,Mom.Aai,I just want to tell you that even if "Akshay" grows up for the world,I would be the same "pappu" for you.Aai,sometimes when i look at myself,I see reflections of your behaviour in me.If there is even a single thing good about me,if I am or were to be someone tomorrow ,I owe it to you, Mom,to you.....

    Mom,this Mother's day ,I just want to let you know Mom,every moment I crave for your immaculate love and care.I am pretty sure whatever I do for you ,I will not be able to pay off your debt.

    Mom,I simply love you so much..

One night at the Bus Station

    When we started our journey to Water Kingdom this sunday morning we had hardly expected that the day would end like the way it did.We had hell of a fun at the Water Kingdom.The rides were real scary and so fearsome that before every ride there was an apprehension in everyone's mind. But the rides were really worth the fear and thrill .Thus the day was all fun and we were pretty exhausted and badly needed to get back to Pune and to our rooms and get good sleep.We had already had a lot of adventure at the Water Kingdom and there was no room left for another one.But destiny had some other plans for us.

    We reached the hostel late at around 1:15 a.m.So we werent allowed in.We tried to argue with the guards but they didnt budge.They wanted us to submit our I-cards and wanted us to shell some money out.We were adamant too.After having shooed off from there,we thought of going to friends' flats but we were six of us and the flats were pretty far.So we chucked that thought and went straight to 'Shivajinagar Bus stand'.

    We all were so exhausted that we found some benches and let ourselves fall asleep there.But it wasnt cosy there.I had a look around and envied all the people who were sound asleep.I and Jitu had a walk around the bus station to see if there are some benches on footpath where we could lay for some time.But all were occupied already.We just could not help but laugh at our plight.So we just came back and had short naps before it was 5.00 .We headed back to hostel asap and threw ourselves on bed.That was the end of that illfated night.

    Nevertheless ,it is something to be cherished. After all when we are at end of some journey(like the one we are at),it is incidents like this that make the journey and the end beautiful and memorable,isnt it??

 A hard attempt at sleeping....


 Souls deprived of sleep....


I envied all of them...sleeping so peacefully.

Being 21.......

   Turned 21 today with 2 swollen fingers and 2 gifts -the best gifts I have ever recieved on my birthday apart from the ones my parents gifted me courtesy Maddy and Anup and Karan(the sketch is Maddy's yeild) and a lovely greeting card.(Its a mystery though!!!) Here are the gifts...


Rahul and sunny!!!

  Meet Rahul and Sunny....they stay on the footpath just in front of COEP Boys' hostel,met them at the juice center.

First they were apprehensive ....




then they shed their inhibitions.....




And then they happily posed!!!

Sleepless Nights......

      Another sleepless night......3rd in a row.And the next day when I am gonna carry these swollen eyes around,there are gonna be accusations that I do nothing but sleep the whole day.Sleepless nights arent new for me.I have had them before but they have never troubled me the way they are doing now.

      Earlier during sleepless nights, I used to enjoy tossing over pillow,smiling a bit at some joke cracked earlier during the day.I loved to dream with eyes wide open and build my castle of thoughts during such nights.And when I did neither of these things I either found solace in reading,writing or listening to my favourite music.

       But nothing has proved helpful the past 3 nights.I tried to recollect any pleasant thing that happened during the day but could not do so.I took a pen to write and ended up writing crap(like the one i m doing right now..).I tried to read and realised that I had been reading the same page for the past 15 minutes.I put on my headphones to listen my favourite tracks and found them monotonous.

      Huh.....is it the nostalgia about leavin the college thats slowly creepin in? or is it the WAit for something that is elusive? As I write this, I see pages of a half-read "Twilight" thats lying on my bed, flipping over.And I m going to give it a try.Lets see if sleep beckons me this time...

Previous post ...revisited..


Hiya...I just forgot to introduce my team in the pic in the previous post-a mistake on my part-my sincere apologies..

  Anyways...from left to right in the pic we have..the always energetic VINIT,the ever charming SAYALI,then there is me followed by the man who needs no introduction(:-)),the very endearing and always supportive SHYAMA(our dance section head)...the very funny RONAK and finally the always smiling,MADHURI

  Hey..I also forgot to mention our achievements-- 3rd prize for choreography and 2nd prize for group dance.

A brief encounter with the maestro,Shankar Mahadevan.....


       Yes...I was amongst the few priviledged ones who got to be at an arm's distance from the maestro,Shankar Mahadevan.The affair--Firodiya prize distribution ceremony and venue--the always crowded..Yashwantrao Chavan Auditorium.COEP was on a roll that day.Having won two elite Karandaks (Purushottam and Firodiya) in the very same year after a longing gap of 31 years(this feat was achieved by COEP itself 31 years ago),every COEPian present there had a reason to show off and every single person from other college had a reason to envy us.

       Boys clad in white kurta dhoti and pheta...and girls clad in navwari...took Yashwantra natyagruha by storm that day.Waving flags and the noise of Dhol .taashas and slogans of "Aawaaz kunacha .....COEP cha" added to the already established "maazzzz" of COEP.

       Prior to this the atmosphere was built up by Shankar Mahadevan who sang Mitwa and Man Udhan waryache..and took the audience in his awe.Watching him live was a treat to eyes and to hear him was a celestial feeling. I always wondered what was it about a celebrity that everybody goes ga-ga in their presence .It was that day that I realised that its an aura that they carry with them that enchants people.When we walked up to the stage to recieve the 2nd pirze for group dance in firodiya(in the pic)...I could feel that aura ...it was a distinct feeling.

       That evening was special in its own way coz my mom and dad along with tai,jiju and my neice and nephew had come over to watch the performance for the first time.It was an evening that cannot be forgotten....!!!!

Things I badly missed during the last two months........

    Hello people...I am back with a bang(errrr....sounds quite pretentious Akshay...get back to ground..no one has been waiting for u....)

      Well...I believe I have been quite outta circuit for a long long time and now...it really feels great to get back to blogging.Actually I was very much occupied with Firodiya practices.Firodiya is an intercollegiate competition in which we recorded a historic win this year..I ll get back to it in the next post.As of now I m gonna write about things that I badly missed the last two months..

    Hmmm....So during those two fateful months..I badly missed...:-

-->writing a blog...

-->sending mails to people.

-->looking myself into the mirror and grinning..

-->the quality time with my closest friends and the pranks and jokes

-->calling my school friends..

-->I missed my classmates and the lectures.

-->watching a good movie..

-->listening to my favourite songs.

-->reading books..(well not exactly..i did manage to read at least 1 page of a novel a day..)

-->One of the things that I missed the most was the two trips that my classmates had---to Bhimashankar and to Alibagh and I repent failing to attend them..damn me!!

-->Another thing that I missed equally was the weekend Pankhudi class and kids...I am dying to get back with those kids and my friends from Pankhudi.

-->I missed the feeling when I used to just lay down on bed before sleep and just dream with open eyes..... dreams that I know will beat the hell outta me to make them come true..

-->I missed my moments of solitude during which I used to brainstorm to come up with sweetest lines to say.

and last but certainly not the least I honestly missed saying sweetest things that I always do...hehe.

Bubye people and have a blast this holi!!

Sid,my nephew,a wannabe hip-hopper???






    Firstly ,wish u all a very happy and a prosperous new year!!
A few days ago ,I had been to Mumbai at my sister's place where I took these snaps of SIddhu(my nephew) when he had donned my tshirt.

   I insisted that he pose for a photograph.I didnt have to tell him anything ..he got the glasses and happily posed a "YO" gesture.I cud see some signs of a hip-hopper in him.And I am sure that after watching "3 IDIOTS"..Jiju(his father ..) wont mind if he wants to be one !!!

     And people,what do you think about the attitude that Siddhu shows off in these pics?Dont you think he has learnt it from me??..hehehehe:-)


   P.S:- And for my friends from btech Computer and I.T belonging to A.I batch...A.I tshirt ROCKS on my nephew too.!!!