The Treasure of Kafur by Aroon Raman (Book Review- 4.3/5)!!!

1023rd BLOG POST -->>

   

       There's always a wonderful feeling after completing a book with more than 375 pages. I am done reading one of the latest releases- THE TREASURE OF KAFUR. It's the second book of the author, Aroon Raman, after The Shadow Throne. I haven't read the latter one but what I have heard from people around me that it is an excellent and thrilling story. I got a chance to read his 2nd and the latest book which I did without thinking twice. The book is published by India's one of the leading publishers- Pan Macmillan. The first thing about this book that would attract you is its cover page. It itself has an essence and ambiance of Mughal era. It shows a king riding on his horse with the flag of his kingdom. Even the synopsis does justice to the story as its exactly what's in the book unlike few of our Indian books which has brilliance in the synopsis and depression inside the book. :-) Talking about the publishing quality, the book is well bound with strong pages and wonderful fonts. 

SYNOPSIS:-

Hindustan, 1580 AD. The Mughal Emperor Akbar is at the height of his power, seemingly invincible. But twenty years of war have earned him many enemies and rebellion is brewing, led by Asaf Baig, the tyrannical ruler of Khandesh. Baig has stumbled upon the knowledge that the whereabouts of the fabulous lost treasure of Malik Kafur, which will guarantee victory to Akbars enemies, is known to an old woman called Ambu. Baig kidnaps Ambu to wrest the knowledge of the treasure from her but her twenty-year-old grandson, Dattatreya, escapes and flees across Hindustan to enlist the help of the one person who has the most reason to stop Baig the Mughal Emperor himself. Staying one step ahead of capture and death, Datta is swept up in a world of kings and warrior princesses, of uncommon friendships and an implacable evil and a desperate race against time to save his grandmother and the Empire.

About the Author:-

Aroon Raman, national bestselling author of The Shadow Throne, now brings us a riveting saga of action and adventure set in Mughal India. Aroon Raman is a Bengaluru based entrepreneur and author. His research and innovation company works in the area of materials science and has won critical acclaim for developing scientific talent at the grass-roots level. His debut novel, a spy thriller called The Shadow Throne, quickly became a national bestseller. The Treasure of Kafur is his second novel. He divides his spare time between trekking, advising and supporting NGOs and travel.

          The Treasure of Kafur, for me, reflects the thoughts of the author. A fluid language in which this book is smoothly written makes it a wonderful read that it is. The command of language that the author has and the set of vocabulary that he possesses makes it possible for him to state the story exactly the way he wants to. The good thing is that the story reaches directly to the heart of readers. Aroon Raman has done a great research in making it sure that he doesn't forget to mention any fact about the Mughal emperor and empire. I have already read many books on Mughal and while in school, it was my favorite topic in history. Hence I loved this story because it is a level upper than all the book that I have read previously based on Mughal. 

              The historical facts are accurately mentioned in the book and the way characters are based upon the mythology is also an applauding job by the author. The character of Asif Baig is also portrayed as Aurangzeb of our history book- totally evil and wicked. It takes time to digest so many characters in the book but once you get into the flow of the story, you start enjoying it. The thrilling ride of the group of friends to reach Ambu and destroy their enemies, Datta's super abilities and Mughal's protest against them- all excites a reader who is dying to read something different these days since college campuses and love stories are the only new releases. 

             Each and every character is well defined in the book which helps us to understand them from their base. The protagonists- Ambu, Dattatreya and Emperor Akbar were well-defined and executed. None of them were under-stated in the book. The animal characters and the others from the protagonist's team were very interesting. I loved Manas, Aditi, chief, Shukracharya, Jeta friends and Sheherazad has been my favorite. Even the entry of parrot in the story was entertaining as there was conflict between it and a protagonist. I also liked the interactions that had Mughals involved among each other. Later on, when Mughal Emperor, Akbar comes into the story, the book reaches a totally different level altogether. Book starts with very fast pace, gets slow in between and in the end, it starts screaming BESTSELLER BESTSELLER BESTSELLER with each sentence as the book reaches its end. I would rate The Treasure of Kafur 4.3/5. RECOMMENDED!!! 

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

Review: Jai Ho!!! Audience So!!!

1022nd BLOG POST -->>

      

       Recently, I watched salman khan's latest flick, Jai ho, which isn't doing very well at the box office. There are several reasons which has affected the movie as of now. First, there has been no promotions as such plus even the songs of the movie didn't attract people's soul. There are some movies which the well-known superstars make not for Box office but just because they want to pass a particular message among people or it has been their ambition from a very long time. With Salman Khan and Akshay kumar, the problem is that people don't expect them to do a "Very good boy"'s role. People are happy to see them do nonsensical movies and that's what works for them. I have been quite disappointed with Salman Khan after watching Ready, Dabangg 2 and Ek Tha Tiger. They were something that I couldn't believe a Superstar with 25 years of career have chosen to do. But whatever, let's come back to his latest movie- Jai Ho which he has tried to make as if it's going to be another Taare Zameen Par but for me, it fails. 

            Whenever a movie which has a message imbibed into it, it has to be very careful that it does not turn extremely boring. A care should also be made that the message does not get lost or confused in making the movie look interesting. Therefore, 3 Idiots is known as one of the perfect movies ever made because it has a wonderful life-changing message in it, an educational satirical and motivational yet No. 1 entertainer. The same has been the case with Munna Bhai MBBS and Lage Raho Munnabhai. Jai Ho couldn't provide the entertainment that is been expected from Salman Khan's movie. If you are making a SERIOUS movie-with-message, make sure that you make something like Shahid or A Wednesday. Purely serious cinema. Even that's entertainment for the viewers who love to watch such movies. But a movie that's been made seriously and yet there are some funny incidents happening like Sunil Shetty coming with a tanker at Express Highway all the way from the border just to save Salman Khan, the protagonist is a complete NO-NO for the audience. People were laughing out loud seeing such idiotic scenes. 

          The message that instead of saying Thank You when someone helps you, make it sure that you help 3 more people and ask them to do the same was repeatedly used by each and every character in the movie which made audience tease the movie by saying the boring dialogue in chorus with the actors. Half of the dialogues from Jai Ho has this very dialogue which is repeatedly used. You can not bore your audience by continuously showing the same thing. Right? Again, Salman Khan is shown as the only savior in the whole city. Whenever there's any problem, a call goes to Salman Khan and he comes running from any corner of the world. The inclusion of useless and too many characters has also spoiled the quality of the movie. It seems as if the whole TV world, Bigg Boss House, Sohail Khan's friends and Salman Khan's ex-co-actors are cast in the movie. Even the over-exposure of Salman Khan on television has made it little less interesting to wait to see him on the screen. The action scenes are also repetitive.

            Coming to the very few good points- Genelia D'Souza is wonderful in her cameo.  The picturization of Tere Naina and Tumko toh aana hi tha is wonderful. The work of the child actor- Naman Jain is once again, up to the mark. He is the only child actor whom I have found doing amazingly well in every movie. He is the best part of Jai Ho. Danny Denzongpa has also played a very wonderful villain. One of his best played roles. Daisy Shah dances amazingly in her introduction song. She has also acted fine. To be precise, bearable. In all, I would say that even if you miss Jai Ho, you won't be missing anything. Better watch Salman Khan's Tere Naam again than watching this. :-) 

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

Another Tryst with Celebrities!!!

1021st BLOG POST -->>

     

With Raghu is his car, Land Rover

   Attending any event that has several number of celebrities as its Guest Of Honours or speakers or panelists excites me that I'll get to see them. Though I would have seen more than 75+ personalities in my life but still the idea of being around them fascinates me. There is a lot of difference between just having a glance of these celebrities and personally meeting and talking to them. Every one of them share a wonderful perspective about life that helps you understand your life better. I have never attended a single event in life just to count the names of the people I have met in front of my friends and neighbors. I don't even share my experiences with anyone until they ask. I believe in rejoicing the moment myself, get motivated, come back and start working more hardly to conquer the success like them. 

         

Kiran Rao, just after interacting with her

  Recently, I was been called to India Non Fiction Fest for reporting it. This is a wonderful job as all I get is respect, attention and wonderful opportunity of meeting the great personalities and discussing my Blogs and their achievements. I loved the way Kiran Rao, wife of Aamir Khan, chatted with me regarding my blogs. She said that I'm the first blogger she have met and she'll surely read my work. Even Subroto Bagchi and Ajit B., CEO of rediff.com, said that the nation needs guys like me who'll be tomorrow's entrepreneur. Sneha Mehta, the author, was so excited to meet me. For all the time, she kept ensuring,"Are you really the same blogger who has Amitabh Bachchan's and everyone's comment on his blog?" I loved interacting with her. Later on, I met Amish Tripathi for the 2nd time and it was wonderful and funny when he touched my beard and said,"Ye sub kya rakh liya tumne, Abhilash" and I answered,"Jab tak aap pehchaan rahe ho, sir, tab tak sub sahi hai". Also met Zeenat Shaukat Ali, Islamic scholar, Sabira Merchant, actor and Minhaz Merchant, a wonderful author.

     

With Tisca Chopra, discussing her book with her.

     It was also a wonderful meeting with Mr. Radhakrishnan Pillai, author of Chanakya books. When he came to know that I have written 1000 Blog Posts in just 4.5 years, he wasn't stopping to praise me. Later on, I met Vithal Kamat, owner of 500 restaurants worldwide, who was very confident and bold. I loved discussing how a common man can grow richer and reach highest. I also got a chance to interact with the Biryani King of Mumbai, Jaffer Bhai, the owner of Delhi Darbaar restaurant. Even he was very confident and proud of himself. :-) Rana Dasgupta and Naresh Fernandes are also amazing persons to interact with. Their views on Delhi and Mumbai made me enjoy the interaction. Amazing authors too. 

       

Shruti Seth & Laxmi Dhaul posed for me

   On the last day of the event, I got 5 times the excitement than the first day. In the morning itself, I got a chance to meet and interact with actress Shruti Seth and author, Laxmi Dhaul, whose parents were very close to Gandhiji. We discussed Gandhiji's message in today's age. Later on, Tisca Chopra, actress, talked with me over-sweetly. When I said that she wanted to discuss her book with me, she said that after her session, she will give me all her time. And yes, she did. It was wonderful interacting with her. She took my card, touched it with her heart and said that one day she knows that I would be at heights. It was a wonderful feeling seeing her do that. I also interacted with Imtiaz Ali. She asked me to continue writing until I don't achieve in every sector of writing and not just blogs. I also interacted with Kunal Vijayakar, actor, but not much as I haven't seen much of his works. Later on, chatting with Rishi Piparaiya, the author, for more than 20 minutes was a very friendly talk where he suggested me what to do and what not to do with Blogging. 

       

While he was talking to me- Imtiaz Ali

  S. Hussain Zaidi, the crime journalist and author, was a wonderful person to talk to. Any question that I asked him, I got an amazing answer to it. He didn't ignore any question of mine. Let it be related to Dawood or Jigna Vora case or J Dey's death. He was always open to answer anything I asked. Loved meeting one of the best crime writers in the history of India. Vaibhav Purandare, another man whom I see with high regards, chatted sweetly with me. I discussed his books about Shiv Sena and Sachin Tendulkar and he was open for discussion. When he asked my name, he told me that he already follows me and love reading my tweets and blogs. What a special moment it was. A person whom I read weekly in Hindustan Times also reads me. Wow!

     

with S. Hussain Zaidi

    And last but the best, Mr. Raghu Ram, the Roadies founder, made me look celebrity at the event. The man has great personality and view about himself. He isn't scared of anyone. When I went to meet him, he was smoking. :-) When I greeted him and introduced myself, he poked me lightly on chest and said,"Oh, so you are that guy." After that he asked me regarding the book, gave me his bodyguard's number and said that he'll meet me after his session. As soon as the session ended, his bodyguard even escorted me out of the venue till the car of Raghu. Raghu asked me gently,"Abhilash, ye batao tum jaa kahaan rahe ho?". And when I told him that I have come from a long journey, he said that let's have a car ride and discuss things during the ride. I couldn't believe my ears and luck. :-) And those 10 minutes that I got to talk with Raghu in his car will remain life long with me. The amount of respect and affection that he showered upon me was unexpected. Haha! Thanks for the amazing moment, man.

with Vaibhav Purandare, a great columnist and writer

with Rishi Piparaiya, author of Aisle Be Damned

Kunal Vijayakar, just after chatting with me

Minhaz Merchant, Zeenat Ali, Amish Tripathi & Sabira Merchant

           In the end, I would like to thank you all for always believing in me. Because of my readers, I have got a portal that gives me respect and attention at such events. I don't have to meet these people as fans but as another person who's there because of his work. Thanks for all the support you have given me from last 4.5 years. I hope it shall continue till the end of this Blog.

 Thanks.

 

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

Hope this Republic Day changes our mindset!!!

1020th BLOG POST -->>

     

     Two days ago we celebrated our Republic Day. Congratulations to all of us and let's hope that our country progresses continuously. We are already one of the best developing nations in the world. The only problem is that our Ministers and Governments aren't being ethical. Whenever leadership is being talked, the first quality that's been discussed is of being ethical. The biggest leader is the Government of any country as it has to manage the whole nation and its citizens. It's not a piece of cake to manage but a very big plethora of responsibility. But this can not be the excuse for our ministers to make. They have themselves chosen to be a politician, minister and public servant. If they fail to do it, they should themselves surrender the post and position rather than staying at it and ruining the condition of country day by day. 

            When we criticize our Government, we should make it sure if we are doing our best in nurturing and protecting our nation. It is said that country is our mother but actually, it's like our child. Until and unless, we will not handle it with care, it will never develop into a good country. We never feel privileged of what we have got. We are always interested in complaining and crying over whatever our country does not possesses but we never cherish the properties that we already have. Our own countrymen, while roaming in another country, ensures that they do not spit here and there but as soon as they land in India, they start spitting within an hour itself. This is how we shower our respect towards country. Somewhere down the line, our Government isn't the only one to be blamed. If we want our Government to work appropriately, we should be the one helping them out. 

              Whenever we discuss about our country, we talk only about the worst that has happened in all these years. We never acknowledge the fact that there are so many good things that our country proudly owns. We never talk about the wonderful things Gandhiji had done but we only point out his wrong decision of partitioning India and causing havoc. This is how we have turned pessimistic about out country. Sadly, we have ourselves corrupted our country more than our politicians have. We have not been the citizens that we could have. If we would have tried to be like the American or European citizens who make it sure that they follow the system of their country so that nothing gets out of the track, even our Government had to change itself and bring themselves to the level of Superpowers. Let's hope on this Republic Day we will change our attitude and think a bit about our nation, our child. 

 Thanks.

 

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

India Non-Fiction Literature Fest Season-3!!!

1019th BLOG POST -->>

         

          The third season of India Non-Fiction Fest again takes place at Nehru Center, Mumbai the way its first season took place. It was a wonderful three-day sessions comprising of 75+ speakers and many informative sessions. The speakers weren't as big names as the first season of the Fest had but the sessions were quite interesting if compared with the first season. Kumaar Bagrodia, the organizer of the India Non Fiction Fest was seen running here and there for all the three days and it showed the amount of hard work he was putting to make it sure that every thing goes well. The best part of the event that I appreciated personally is punctuality. Every session except Tisca Chopra's debut book launch started at time and ended accordingly too. Comparing this with the Season 1 that happened in June 2013, the hosts weren't as cool and fluent as they were in first season. 

DAY 1:

   The Festival started with the lamp lighting by Kiran Rao, Ajit Balakrishnan and Subroto Bagchi. And then their session about "India Our Time is now" begun. It was a thrilling session. The moderator Subroto Bagchi made people smile and laugh continuously. The question by a boy in audience regarding the argument "India vs Bharat" was well-answered by Kiran Rao and others. At 2 PM, the next event was the book launch of Minhaz Merchant's latest "The New Clash of Civilization". The pieces of book was read by Sabira Merchant. Also were present at the book launch- Islamic scholar, Zeenat Shaukat Ali and the Bestseller author, Amish Tripathi. Amish ended the session with a wonderful thought over Islam. From 4.15 was the session of Radhakrishnan Pillai where he discussed about his latest book "Chanakya's 7 Secrets of Leadership" with the co-author Mr. Sivanandan. After that a wonderful book launch of Hotelier Vithal Kamat's "Idlis, Orchid and Will Power" happened where he discussed how he used management tactics in his business which grew him from one hotel serving idlis to 500-600 restaurants worldwide. He was quite frank while discussing about his adventure which added flavours to the Day 1. These were the highlights of Day 1 otherwise there were many other sessions taking place simultaneously. 

Day 2:

       There were two sessions that begun simultaneously- One at Hall of Culture and another at Hall of Harmony. At the Hall of Culture, Anil Zankar, Aditya Seth, VS Kundu and Pankaj Butalia discussed about Non fiction through the camera lens. There were many unknown facts that were discussed during this session. On the other side, "Excuse Me Can We Have Our Country Back?" got launched by Fahad Samar and Anish Trivedi along with Suraj Sriram, the author of the book. A very interesting genre in Non-fiction, Mythology- on a whole was discussed by Ashwin Sanghi, Swami Shubh Vilas and Vinod Advani. Ashwin Sanghi, like every time, engaged the audiences very well with his speaking capabilities. "Elections 2014, Media and Women" were discussed in a session that had Uday Shankar, Somnath Batabyal, Nayana Kathpalia and R Jagannathan. On the other side, "Heroes Everywhere & Within" was discussed by Geeta Anand, Faith Johnston and Jerry Almeida. It was quite motivational and the young audiences learnt a lot. Many other sessions also took place along with these events.

Day 3:

        The last day of the Festival was celebrated on the National Republic Day. People were seen in the patriotic dresses and colors. It was a celebratory air around as all were waiting for many TV and movie personalities to come and give them a glance of them. It all started with Laxmi Dhaul's latest book launch which had Shruti Seth as chief guest. Then there was the most awaited book launch by the debutant authoress-cum-actress, Tisca Chopra. She had Imtiaz Ali with her to launch the book where they discussed how a struggler can make his way in Bollywood. It was one of the most interesting sessions of the Festival. Later on, Dr. Rajat Chauhan and Charles Assisi discussed about self confidence and personal achievements. It was one of the motivation sessions. "Chalo! Lets Go!" was a wonderfully funny session where Rishi Piparaiya, Tanushree Podder and Sunil Vaidyanathan discussed regarding the weird, funny and unique incidents that happened during their traveling experiences. The last session at the Hall of Harmony had Hussain Zaidi, Vaibhav Purandare and Harish Nambiar discussing about cities and crimes. It was a hardcore session where audiences were asking tough questions and the panelists were making it sure that they answer every question been thrown at them. 

          The Grand Finale of the Festival had Roadies fame, Raghu Ram for his first book's launch. This was the only session where audiences filled almost every seat and there were hell lot of people standing around. Everyone was smiling, screaming and shouting while they saw Raghu speak, stand and answer their question. He discussed about how he has different images in life and he can not be what he is on Roadies in real life and vice versa. His book received a warm applause and everyone made him feel special. With this, the great season of India Non Fiction Fest ended. Hope it comes back soon to Mumbai again. 

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

The Death of Sunanda Pushkar!!!

1018th BLOG POST -->>

     

       The death of Sunanda Pushkar has surprised all of us. Never ever would have anyone of us thought that something such drastic could happen with an eminent personality within few hours of discussion over a sensitive topic.. Everything was well few hours before and suddenly life changed dramatically for that particular person or say couple. People started estimating the cause of death but its something that shall never come out until and unless someone opens out the secret if its not a natural death. The latest report says that she wasn't poisoned nor an attack has been made on her. It's surprising that a controversy, reactions and then a tragedy- all takes place within the premise of few hours. Astonishing! We have assumed that nothing wrong can ever happen with celebrities regarding love, affairs and marriage issues because they have an approach that makes them change their partners every next month. Well, now we know that we shouldn't generalize statements.

              Few people say that it happened because we, the tweeples, passed jokes on her which resulted in depression that lead to death. If someone like Sunanda Pushkar, a lady who was been observed as energetic and excited towards living life can end it just because of few jokes that we, the non-value people made on her, I would say the statistics of suicide will, then, keep increasing day by day. Considering that the death is due to suicidal attempt, it's something Sunanda should have avoided. Shashi Tharoor has already been through 2 marriages while this was his 3rd. The previous two marriages has ended in divorce. Its evident that Shashi and those two ladies, decided to part ways because Shashi could not manage a heavy relationship called marriage. Considering this, Sunanda first of all, should have thought 100 times before tying knots with him or she should have been prepared for something like this. Because she has been quite positive while expecting something from this marriage, she got disappointed when she got to know about his relationship with Mehr Trar.

                 Now, everyone of us know that Mehr Trar is linked with ISI. There were many possibilities of big secrets been possessed by Sunanda as she read few messages of Mehr and Shashi. Someone can be involved in this mysterious murder but god knows, what's the truth. We, the common people, won't even come to know the real secret of the murder if it is, because the big names will burn all the facts. The secret will remain secret forever. No one knows about the reason of Sunanda's death. We can just hope that it's just a natural death and nothing else. A suicide or murder will seriously be terrifying to hear happening in that elite class where there's lot of literacy, intelligence and education been embedded in their personalities, past and experience. 

               Whenever we are in any relationship, we must make it sure that we aren't messing around too much. If we find that we are at fault, we should stop it then and there informing, directly or indirectly, to our partner. If we find that our partner is wrong, we should make him/her understand that we aren't liking the changes. We should make it sure that we are ending the worst in the first gear itself. If the things get resolved in a conflict or two, all is well. But if it gets out of proportions and we open our eyes then, it would be quite tragic for our present and future. There are lots of problem that's been discussed these days regarding people not taking the tag of 'married' seriously. They take out the issue of breaking up every time there's a heated verbal discussion. There's something called patience which is the first rule of relationship. People don't take it seriously and hence, such cases are been heard of. My deepest condolences goes out for Sunanda Pushkar, the one who's the most neat in the whole issue. Hope Shashi Tharoor gets strength to fight with all the media nonsense that'll take place now. 

THANKS.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

Karma Kurry by Jeroninio Almeida/Jyoti Nanda (Book Review)!!!

1017th BLOG POST -->>

     

    There are some publication houses that publish some amazing wonderful stuffs only. One publishing house that I find perfect in this matter is Jaico Publication. All the books that they have published till now except the commercially popular fiction are some terrific life changing stuffs. I love the way they select books that have immense material to change anyone's bad soul into Mahatma's. Once, I purchased 6 books of Jaico and seeing their synopsis, I said to my mother that if I'll read books by this publisher only, I will leave all the dreams of buying house and earning lots of money; instead I will go to Himalayas and convert myself into a Mahatma. :-) That's the power of books by Jaico Publication. The only problem I find in them is their publishing style of books. All of them looks like school's textbooks. They will have to change their binding and cover page style, even fonts to make their books look like interesting journeys than a burden. 

          I have just completed reading "Karma Kurry" published by them recently. The tagline says,"for the mind, body, heart & soul". The book features some wonderful inspiring stories that tells how qualified and unqualified people sacrificed all their life in helping the poor, needy and all sorts of people who need support and a little bit of concern for others. The book starts with the foreword of Nelson Mandela. Yes- Madiba. Now tell me- if a legend and revolutionist like him recommends this book to the people, a negligible reviewer like me shouldn't even review it. 

         It's very hard to make a book interesting by writing short stories of how few people thought of something new for humanity in spite of being in some other professions. I will not reveal my favorite stories nor will I give any example but I can tell you that the editors have done their job wonderfully. The way they have kept each story short and crisp tells how desperate they were for sharing these amazing stories with us. It seriously inspires you when you read how a man finds a technique of forming glaciers, how someone else opens a school and several similar incidences. Initially, I started noting down some of the stories that I liked but later on, when I realized that if I'll mention all of them here, this blog will itself start looking like one with inspiring one liner messages. Haha! In all, I would say a lovely book if you like reading short inspiring stories. If not, still give a try may be you'll realize how few people are changing this world for good even when they are full of money and satisfaction.

SYNOPSIS:- 

Karma Kurry for the Mind, Body, Heart & Soul is a decade-long journey of discovering soul-stirring narratives that celebrate the triumph of the human spirit. 

“Together as One we can Right every Wrong”. In this energizing book the founders of the Joy of Giving, KarmaVeer, KarmaYuga and REX movements bring together enthralling life stories of Karmaveer award recipients. 

We believe that every human has a hero within; a courageous, compassionate being who has the power to create a better, more humane world. The compelling stories in this book are of ordinary citizens who have unleashed the spirit within, with extraordinary consequences, radically changing society for the better. Their ideas for action and their stories will inspire you at a profound level. They are everyday women and men who have taken their defeats and adversities and turned them into laudable actions for transformation. 

The list includes globally eminent names like Meera Sanyal, Michael Norton, Arun Maira, Bill Drayton and Kumi Naidoo as well as unsung heroes like Lakshman Singh, Thangsingh Chinkholal and many others. Irrespective of their field, these are people who have reached out beyond their own life to help others, to be and to lead the change by practicing Individual Social Responsibility. In Karma Kurry, their stories have been gathered to inspire all of us to recognize the power of one: our own power to be a champion of change, reinforce the positive in society and leave an imprint on the sands of time.

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

And there's no one like our Soldiers!!!

1016th BLOG POST -->>

     

     It's quite late night and I remember the days when I used to blog only after my clock used to strike 2 AM. :-) For a writer, it's fun to put his thoughts into words when he finds peaceful and serene environment. Today, we celebrated National Army Day. Whenever we talk about Army, we always talk with respect. We know how our nation is still standing tall even when we have enemies right across our borders. When we get to know at the personal level that someone in our own town can come anytime to create ruckus at our society or home, we get so scared that we sit with lights closed and door locked from outside. We feel that we should have had an arm or ammunition so that we could have handled the person ourselves. This is how our country, India, is protected by the hands of these great people standing at the border sacrificing all the fun and frolic of life.

             I dream a lot about a foreign job because I want to live in a society that's well developed and systematic. Many people say that you can have World Tours there even if you aren't working there but I insist on going. But the only thing that makes my drop my plan of foreign job is the sacrifices that I will have to make by living away from my family (Well the real reason is that I know I will never get selected for such a designated position abroad :-)). The word "sacrifice" carries a lot of meaning behind it which can only be understood by the person who's sacrificing. When a normal student sacrifices his slumbers, he is seen as if he is behaving like a God and he's not a human anymore. When a sportsman slog for 23 years on field to play Cricket, he is literally termed as God. Can you imagine the sacrifices that our Army have done to make it sure that we feel secure about our life?

           I remember that I was traveling by train to some long distance just after few weeks to the disaster that happened in Kedarnath. A special train meant only for Armies halted on the platform before our train. I looked at the train and realized that all our soldiers, military persons and army men are in the bogie. They were looking at all of us and talking about several loopholes that our Government does not care about which can lead to loss of many lives on the platform. I felt extremely happy to witness that the army of my nation is so dedicated about their job and concerned about their fellow countrymen. Later, when the train started departing, I gave salute to that group of Army men and in reply to that, many soldiers sitting in different bogies saluted me. It was such a proud moment that I started feeling as if I was part of the Army. The gesture that they showed in reply to the respect that I gave them was enough for me to understand what runs in their body along with their blood. PATRIOTISM AND BROTHERHOOD!!!

           I was in Punjab at the funeral ceremony of my youngest uncle. Whenever I went to market, I used to find only Sikhs and Sardars as shopkeepers. I was loving the area as it was the first time when I was seeing a land fully occupied by Sardars. In every shop, I noticed that they had a photo frame which had one or many members of their family dressed in Army's uniform. Every family of Sardar has one young boy sent to military. That is why Sardars live with broad chest depicting the pride they have in protecting their nation. Every family has stories how they lost one of their young sons in a War against Pakistan. My uncle was himself an engineer in Army who lost his life in a calamity that happened at his own home at that moment. And I was feeling so proud of him that whatever years that he lived, he worked for the protection of my country, India. On this Army Day, I salute everyone who's protecting our nation and its people in any way. I am doing nothing for my country and its people hence I have huge respect for Army and I will have it till death. We love you, soldiers. SALUTE! RESPECT!

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

Jo zimmedari nibhaate hain, jataate nahi :-)

1015th BLOG POST -->>

       

    The biggest deed that you can do in life is taking responsibility of anything. I remember when I was in school, whenever a teacher used to ask me to keep a check on few things that she would be needing while conducting a lecture, I used to be the first person to say that I am not capable of it. Teacher would smile at me and give the job to someone else. Later on, when I came in Graduation after getting matured, teachers again tried to give me some or the other responsibility but I kept myself away from it saying that I bunk a lot and hence I am not able to match up to the standards that you have set in your mind. But now, when my teachers ask me to take a responsibility or two, I agree. I agree because now I realize that its just a shameful procrastination which leads a personality towards disgracing itself. 

             Taking responsibility of anything is as difficult as saying it in 1000 people that you have a dream which is as high as becoming a Prime Minister and you will achieve it by the next election even though you know that you are nowhere close to it. I remember when my youngest uncle lost his life by getting electrocuted. All of us in the family got emotional at that moment and wanted to shower more love among each other than before. My mother said to me after coming back to our home that I should study sincerely so that I can take responsibility of his kids who don't have a father's shadow anymore. As soon as I heard this, I found myself under such a big weight that it took me just 2 days to tell my mother that I am not capable of doing this and she shouldn't expect anything from me. My mother was shocked with the way I directly refused to comply to her demand. Within 2 days, I started feeling as if a big pressure cooker has been installed in my brain which will explode at any moment.

      Taking our own responsibility is so tough that taking someone else's responsibility is the toughest job in the world. If someone wants to get their ticket reserved on IRCTC and they ask you to do the favour as they are busy somewhere else. If you say YES to it and later on, you fail in booking a ticket for them or even forget booking the tickets, you will stay in guilt for all your life whenever you'll remember that specific person or hear their name. If you say to your friend that I would be present every time you would be needing me even if you'll be wrong, I would come without thinking any thing just to help you; and a day comes when you receive a call and you are unable to leave your house at 3 AM because of your parental rule, you will never be able to look into the eyes of your friend again. Hence, before you promise anything to anyone, think 100 times.

          There are many friends who tell me that they promised their lover "Kuch bhi ho main shaadi toh tujhse hi karunga", the first thing I tell them is,"Go and say it to your partner the next day itself that you take back that big responsibility of marrying her without knowing the consequences and situations at that very time". My friends do hate me for such bluntness and insisting attitude but only I know what trauma they will go through when they'll find that the situation isn't in their control at the last moment and they will end up participating in a crime to prove how strong they are. Why to take such responsibilities that we are unsure about? If I say that I am going to write 365 posts this year, a post a day, it becomes a very big responsibility as a Blogger to prove it. Hence, I never make such statements. Not in the case of Blogging only but even in small things in life. If my father says that I want you to send a certain mail to certain company on a specific day, I write it everywhere so that I don't forget it. If I take responsibility, I actually use all my notebooks, tablet, mobile, laptop, email ID as a Reminder tool. 

           I would always respect a person who is taking responsibility of many things around him and fulfilling all of them. Even when you celebrate Raksha-Bandhan, you take a big responsibility of protecting your sister. And every brother knows how big and tough that responsibility is. A boy always have a part of his mind thinking about where his sister would be and with whom she would be. Even when couple decides to go for a baby, they take a very big responsibility to nourish a small child into a good and successful human being. I remember an ad by ICICI where the narrator used to say in background, "Hum unka saath dete hain jo apni zimmedari nibhaate hai lekin jataate nahi". And the biggest thing that you should crave for learning every minute is- "I will take each and every responsibility that is been given to me by my friends, elders, boss, employee, teacher, neighbour, relative etc". The day you will achieve this attitude, believe me, you would have won the world around you. :-)

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

Life and Promises by Pulkit Gupta/Ila Garg (Book Review-2.8*/5)!!!

1014th BLOG POST -->>

           There is a different feeling while experiencing the work of someone whom you have seen from the moment the person was a "nobody". I have been talking about books from a long time which has made me friends with many Bloggers and I cherish my relations with them. One of my blogger friends, Pulkit Gupta, is associated with me from a long time. I have accepted writing Guest Post only once in my life and that was because he asked me to. Hence the moment he told me to read the PDFs that has chapters of his upcoming novel, I read it in excitement. Then he asked to send a review of it. Later I saw a cover page been released on his Facebook page with my review printed on the cover page. One needs enough courage to publish a non-author's review/comments on the cover page of his debut novel and Pulkit did it for me. Now its time to review his book in description mentioning the drawbacks too. :-)

           Coming to the authors, I would say that Pulkit Gupta and Ila Garg have done a good job in writing a book collectively. While reading you won't find differences in the writing style which is effective and interesting. I also appreciate the easy language, little twists and powerful poems in between. Well, for the poems, Rachna Sheth has to be complimented as she has scripted all of them according to the demands of the story. Talking about the publishing quality, I would say that Moments Publishers have given a nice treatment to this book with good quality of cover page, white and fresh pages, nice fonts and wonderful binding. In short, if you will ask me to define this book, I would say if you are traveling a short distance of 2-3 hours by bus or train, carry this book. It would be a delight. :-)

           The way story begins is a wonderful way to start a romantic tale. Keeping the book short is another USP of it as the story doesn't have much to speak. When you know that your story is a simple love tale, you shouldn't write it in more than 175-180 pages. It irritates reader. I loved the fact that even when this book was co-written, authors managed to keep the book short and straight without dragging it for 250-275 pages. The whole description of CA and how tough the course is wonderfully done. Even the situation of how he has to leave IIT and join CA is clearly defined. The emotions of father is depicted well. The climax part is an amazing treat to the readers. That's when the story gets life and it goes to an upper level than its normalcy. I will give all the marks to the climax.

           Coming to the drawbacks- I didn't like the usage of double question marks (??) instead of one(?). Then there's another disappointment when I found "lol" written during face-to-face conversations within inverted commas. Authors, now can you please tell me who laughs uttering "lol" in real world? Then, there are few grammatical errors but I can ignore them as they are avoidable. Radhika's diary had a better role than her in the story. In all, I would say that it's for the people who have just got into reading love stories and for the age group between 13-20. I will give the book- 2.8/5.

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

Drop The Attitude "Kal se Karunga"!!!

1013th BLOG POST -->>

          We all see televisions, surf Internet and listen radio. There's no problem in  doing them as even they are source of knowledge along with books, magazines, newspapers and other mediums. One thing that generally fascinates us apart from their usual shows are the interviews of superstars, sportsmen and other achievers. After we hear them speaking how they made most out of their lives which was as ordinary as ours before they came into the field, we want to repeat the same with our lives. We start building lot of plans and strategies in our mind during the break sessions or while the interview is on. It makes us believe that we are of the same potentials and we can also carry success the way they did. We become motivated and inspired all of a sudden. Thousand talks of our parents, five hundred taunts of our relatives, hundred suggestions by our friends, fifty free advises by strangers can not do to our will what a great one-liner quote or a legend's words can. Therefore, I suggest it to everyone to read biographies and autobiographies to learn how to lead life rather than wasting it every minute.

              When you get motivated and charged after listening to life stories of some of the prominent people of this world, you shouldn't just plan at the moment but start executing at least one of the many things that you have decided to include in your regimen. Because with time, the charging gets drained and our mind starts liking what it has been doing since a long time- lazying around and procrastinating. Life is just like a mobile phone, performs best when fully charged and starts showing dangerous warning once its close to exhausting. We are the only one who can make or break our lives. Breaking it only makes us poor in future which adds to complexities in life. And I don't believe that there's anything worst than poverty in life. Once you don't have money to fulfill your needs and wants, you start feeling insecure, ugly and inferior. Money matters before anything in world. I am not asking to be greedy but to be honest with your money and earnings.

             Hence, to avoid these adversities in future, we must follow a mantra in life,"I will never keep anything for tomorrow". Our attitude of "Kal se karunga" or "Kal karunga" sickens our whole life and the potential with which we are born. When superstars like SRK asks in an ad "Have I made it large?", it's definitely fake as it's done for a brand but that's something these people keep asking themselves every now and then. Achievers never feel satisfied and that's what makes them go beyond ordinary and achieve what seems to be impossible for others. They never leave anything for tomorrow. The day we will learn the fundamental with which they have conquered the whole nation and world, we will be what they are. It's not difficult to be a legend or a great personality at a national/international level if you commit yourself in completing all your tasks within a day time.

            Of course, there are few things that are done in parts which takes several days to accomplish the milestones and deliverable but that does not mean you will start dividing a day's work into days' work and show that you are doing everything accordingly. You don't need to prove a point to anyone. You have to do it for yourself. Anything that you do for yourself is an investment. What you do with a perspective of proving yourself to others never gets successful until and unless you realize that you were on a wrong track till now. Your parents want good for you but they don't know the 21st century as you do. Hence, you can not say that your parents didn't guide you. It's not in their hands. They can only pray for you and wish that you achieve what people don't generally possess. Hence, a request to all of you is- Don't leave anything for tomorrow. One day is enough and today is surely enough to complete all the tasks. Be motivated and show it every day in your routine.

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

What my Grandpa's death taught me...

1012th BLOG POST -->>

     

   It has been exactly 6 years since my Grandfather has expired. My last tryst with him still remains in my heart as fresh as it was just the next day after seeing him. He was lying on his hospital bed looking helplessly unable to say anything with lots of tubes and salines inserted in his body to keep him alive for as much time as possible. But finally he gave up his living spirit in the 2nd week of 2008 leaving all of us without a matured and intelligent home leader. I am still proud of being his favorite grandson and I am sure that somewhere in the sky, he would be feeling very happy to see me write blog posts and read novels day and night. He never wrote but I have never seen a reader like him. Every time I saw him, either he was reading a book, gardening or tightening a screw or two of an instrument at home. At the age of 70, the way he carried off his day signified how rich he was mentally and in terms of knowledge.

         In all his 4 sons, I haven't found that fighting spirit or kick-ass attitude in any of them. I have never seen any of them working hard the way he did even at home. He helped his wife like a gentle husband, talked with his sons and daughter as the best father of the world and with his grandchildren, he was the most sweetest person of the Earth. I still miss him sometimes when I try to remind myself with the most mad and crazy reader I have ever seen. Life is too quick and workaholic to remember him each day but there comes some stages in life when you tend to miss a person very much. Every time I find an old man fighting with his age looking similar to my grandpa, I remember him and wish I could have spent some more time with him. I used to meet him only for 7-15 days in 2-3 years because he lived at Kanpur while we lived in Mumbai.

          Old-age is the worst stage in a man's life and we should keep planning how will we beat nature and increasing age easily. If we'll not, then we should be ready to die a bad death. People who drink and smoke should realize that these things are killing them from inside. It's not only them but there are many people around them who will get affected by their bad health or death. If not for themselves, they should at least protect themselves against such evils for their loved ones. People who know that their body is weak and they fall ill continuously, they are gaining weights or loosing the muscles should start exercising, jogging, cycling, gym-ing or indulge themselves in any of the cardiovascular activities so that they remain fit for a long time and do not die suffering but peacefully. Seeing the death of my grandpa closely, I have learnt just one lesson that I have to take care of my old age from now itself and I have already started preparing myself for my old age by exercising and saving money. :-) 

          May my grandpa's soul rest in peace and I hope wherever he is, he is proud of me. 

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!

SACHIN A HUNDRED HUNDREDS NOW by V. Krishnaswamy (Book Review-4*/5)!!!

1011th BLOG POST-->>

      There are plethora of books that have been written on Sachin Tendulkar. If one stands in front of a Sports section in a bookstore or book stall, his head will start rotating seeing the amount of books available on the life and career of the Master Blaster. But how do you decide which one to pick? Well, I would suggest you to wait for some more months as he is in process of publishing his autobiography with the help of Professor Boria Mazumdar who has already published some great books on sports. But till then, if you really want to read about Sachin Tendulkar, I would suggest to go with the biography written by Vaibhav Purandhare. And if after that, you still want to read about THE GOD, it's the book that I am going to talk about now- "SACHIN: A Hundred Hundreds Now" written by V. Krishnaswamy. It is one of the most selling books that has been written on the Legend. This book becomes eligible to be purchased because it has "Introduction by Rahul Dravid" and "Foreword by Ramakant Achrekar". Do I need to say more? 

   

SYNOPSIS:-

The wait is over. For the world’s finest batsman and for a nation of cricket lovers whose hopes and ambitions accompanied Sachin Tendulkar every time he stepped out to bat.

On 16 March 2012, at Mirpur in Dhaka, after opening the innings for India, Sachin nudged the ball to behind square leg in the forty-fourth over to cross the final barrier: a hundred centuries in international cricket. In this account of the master batsman’s incredible journey, sportswriter V. Krishnaswamy takes us through every hundred, every peak scaled on Sachin’s way to the top. With an introduction by former India captain Rahul Dravid and a foreword by Sachin’s first and most famous coach Ramakant Achrekar, this is a book for every cricket and Sachin fan.

About the Author:

------------------

V. Krishnaswamy was born in Kolkata and brought up in Delhi. He has been a sportswriter and commentator for thirty years now. He has followed cricket tours to various countries and has written extensively on the sport, as a reporter with the Times of India and then as the sports editor of the Pioneer and the Indian Express. He is a regular guest expert on cricket and other sports on television and radio.

         Talking about Tendulkar's career, the first thing that people mention is 100 Hundreds that he have scored in the career that spanned more than 23 years. It is been said that no one else can achieve this feat ever or say, at least in 20 years, seeing the kind of Cricket young lad like Virat Kohli is playing. As most of us didn't even start going to school when Tendulkar scored 20-25 centuries of his career, we missed lot of memorable moments. If you are really a great fan of Tendulkar and wish to know about each and every century that he have scored, blindly purchase this book and read it slowly because only then will you unleash the excitement the book holds. The book does not tell about how Tendulkar practiced and became a great player but only describes each of his innings respectfully. 

         I loved the way author gave minute details about how Sachin scored his initial runs, how he reached his 50, how he hit that final ball to touch 50 and 100, who were the bowlers when he touched the landmark, who was the runner at the other end etc. He also tells the situation of the match before describing the innings of Tendulkar. After narrating the innings in a wonderful sport writer's way, he tells us about the records that Tendulkar and others achieved in that particular match in "Did you know?" section. He has divided the chapters according to the years. And then he discusses the number of centuries and half-centuries that Sachin scored in that particular calendar year. After he covers all the centuries, he describes what the two other sporting stars achieved in that particular year, Vishwanathan Anand and Leander Paes. A wonderful job done in letting us know even their development from just a player to a legend. And after that author discusses all the major events that took place in world and nation in the year. Amazingly written. If you loved jumping on each of the centuries scored by Master Blaster, go for this book. I rate it 4 out of 5.

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!