Guru Traffic Maharaj - 1

Traffic every morning and evening in peak times... teaches me new things every day.

Started to go to the office. You choose a way. You have a choice to choose any. Then you enter the way to find there is terrific traffic moving terribly slow. You have no choice now, but to endure it till you cross the spot. Eventually you do end up at office albiet a  little late...

In life, you have Freewill. You have a choice to select which way you might want to take. However, once you set off on a way, you might have no choice or Freewill. You need to be patient and persistent until things are finished, you like it or not.

Freewill Vs Choice, for you.

So, what is Destiny?

You being born in this country and having to go to the office in rush traffic to feed your family.

On what bike, in what outfit, at what time, to which office are however results of your past Freewill choices. 

Don't Travel - Don't Waste Time !

I have been struggling hard to travel around. I felt deep inside, an urge to travel and as if this is going to bring in the much required movement in my life.

In 1970s, the Hippie culture ruled. People were unbelievably mobile. I read about an American who was a Hippie... had long hair, long lost bathing habit, travelling with no money in his pocket. Life is an adventure for him, and after this, he gathered guts to prusue his passion, he became an Hare Rama Hare Krishna devotee dedicating his life to Krishna.

Paulo Coelho, the author of The Alchemist was a Hippie himself, who travelled around with vengence... who later on went on to
become the one who had guts to pursue his passion of becoming an author of books. He is a world renouned auther today.

Remo Fernandez, roamed about 12 countries in 1970s, till 1979. Having no money, he performed on streets and underground tube
stations and used to pass on a hat for money. Just hitch hiking, he had the adventure of a life time. Finally, he had the guts to come back to Goa and pursue his passion, Western Music, in a country like India, where there was almost no market for this kind of music. He is today, an Icon of Fusion in our country.

But now, we travel in our minds. We visit all countries and remotest places sitting on our couches, watching TV. Travel means taking leaves. Travel means effort. Taravel means spending money. The whole world seems to have gotten mobiles and have become very much immobile.

I think there is no harm in not being able to travel... in not being mobile and adventurous... what if we grow big tummies? At-least we are keeping up with the world's trend... of getting narrowed down to restricted, constipated, immobile life style. At-least we are up-to-date, man!

What? Do you differ? Or agree? Let me know... :)

Shut Up... Be Silent !!!

Once, at a petrol bunk, a guy on a bike simply cut the line and went ahead. I shouted. And he shouts back at me angrily.  

In a Cinema's parking lot, a guy parks his bike in the opposite direction to the rest of the bikes at the parking lot. I asked what he was exactly thinking... and HE gets terribly angry.  

A flyover was jammed. A guy can't wait, and so enters the wrong side to zoom ahead, against traffic. I asked him, mister, what is this? And he shows me a palm movement that would could be termed as an Indianized " F*** Off !"...

It keeps happening... that when you raise my voice, people get pissed off at us in the reverse. 
It made me upset and frightened and in such instances, my heart beats hard... I would nurse a depressed feeling for one or two days.

After 2 or 3 years of this, I concluded that Hyderabad has become infested with creeps... negative personalities. Driving and Corporate Jobs gave me the BP problem.  

And one day, mother nature, my Ammavaaru gave me a solution. 

 

Shut Up! 
Yes, shut up and you are a cool guy. Open your mouth and tell people they are wrong and the whole hell breaks loose. 

But alas! The peace is not to last. After a while, this ‘Shutting Up’ became a repression. If I did not shout on people, I was shouting silently inside my head. And this made me an irate person.

So the kind Mother Goddess whispered again in my ear... 

The Mind judges, lives in tomorrow, re-lives the past, gets angry, gets depressed... Watch The Mind! Remember you are not the Mind. 

If you have read this far, please, do this with me now...

Close your eyes and bring your attention to the inside.

Watch your breath, feel your body from inside, feel your heart beat.

Listen to the sounds around.

Turn your attention into your torso; you can listen to the sound of your silence.

Yes, that silence is the real you!

When the mind throws a thought or emotion just acknowledge it and come back to that silence. Be with this silence whenever you remember throughout the day.

Be patient... slowly the mind’s power over you becomes weaker and weaker. 

Trust me, now when I am on the road, I can see that people's behaviour is the same.

Seeing them, the mind passes a judgement.

But I am simply watching them both with the silence inside me.

It feels as if they are happening at some distance.

As if they are happening to somebody else. 

As the silence deepens, LIFE emerges - Quote from the Upanishads.

Krrish 3- Film Review

This is one of the best films of Bollywood that I had watched in a long time. Perhaps, I would rate this one of the best films I had watched. And yes, I had watched a truck load of films in this life.

A film being a Hit or a Flop does not depend on it being good or bad. Some incredibly stupid films are declared hits now-a-days. A film being a Hit somehow depends on "Kismat". And this is my observation after being a film buff for more than 30 years. The timing, the planetary conditions, the collective consciousness, the mass psych vibration at a particular time and as such decide the fate of the film. I just don't know what exactly would be the fate of this film...

But for me, this film stands for a memorable Deepaavali afternoon, well spent.

Why is Krrish3 so good, then?

1. It has a story that fits a blockbuster. A story where a Super Hero arouses deep feelings of heroism, altruism and a sense of "apnapan" for many characters in the film.

2. It is made in such high standards, that it stands out from the rest of the 'graphics ka films' that were made in Bollywood till date.

3. Krrish3 has Hrithik Roshan. He has the looks, the 8 pack, the acting talent, the physique, the mannerisms, the dancing capabilities, incredible screen presence, the most penetrating eyes and international standards about him.

4. The songs and the background score are fantastic. The editing, the entire post production, the art work, the casting all are almost absolutely flawless (except for Vivek's attire in the end... he looks like some kind of a steel plated rag picker).

5. Krrish gives you goose bumps, makes you smile, brings tears of excitement and brings out a deep buried feeling of nostalgia that you feel when you re-live the adventures of Super Heros on silver screen.

6. Krrish3 has Kangna Ranaut, it has Hrithik Roshan playing the father of himself to perfection, it has a story line that keeps your eyes glued to the screen all through.

Krrish3 takes off from where the earlier two films left us. Hrithik Roshan, now married to Priyanka Chopra is busy in changing jobs as Krishna and is busy saving lives as Krrish. Enters the villain Vivek Oberoi, and all hell breaks loose. And how actually, this almost invincible Vivek Oberoi is destroyed by Krrish to save the world is rest of the film. (I am never for revealing the film's story to anybody... I would hate it if someone does that to me. The whole thrill is lost...)

There are many charecters in teh film and many scenes that seem like a lift off from many Hollywood flicks. But, what the duck? Super Hero films are a product of the western mind. No harm. Especially if
these are so well adapted to our setting, it is really thrilling to watch.

Raghupati Raaghav Raaja Ram has some super cool movements by Hrithik Roshan. He is undoubtedly the best dancer in India today. The song when Krrish's statue is unveiled gives the kids a kick. And the stealer is Dil Tu Hi Bata shot on Hrithik and Kangna. This woman looks absolutely stunning.

Overall, Krrish3 is a super film.

I dont think that after working in the corporate for this long, I have any child left inside me. But the film made me a child, wide-eyed with enthusiasm!

I went to the film inspite of listening to adverse comments from friends.
But, I was glad I did go and watch it. The child in me is thrilled.

One cool film that should be a Hit, because, it would spread the concept of Good winning over Evil in a society that really needs this vibration at this time.

God bless Hrithik, Rakesh Roshan and Rajesh Roshan and all those who are responsible for this wonderful flick.  

Krrish3 - Music Review

I just happened to listen to the songs of Hritik Roshan's upcoming flick, Krish3.

In the process I came across a few reviews that say that the album is insipid and sounds outdated.

But I thought, I should I beg to differ. I felt this is great music. And the songs are doing well, aren't they? The song Raghupati Raghav Raajaram is already on the lips of children. Dil Tu Hi Bata is on the way to become a national sensation.

Just a couple of points before the review...

This so called modern music, has been, kind of, forced on the Indians. It is too much of a task to be able to, even hum a modern song. Who, if I may ask, is actually asking for so much of a complication in music, in this already complicated life?

The masses are still simple. Simple mass numbers are all hits today and that proves this point. I mean the kinds that Mika sings... I feel most of the modern stuff goes over the heads of masses, frankly.

The old has been forced out, but the new is still coming because it is coming from various foreign lands... it is a confusion, that composers are in, for at least 18-20 years now!

A song should have mystery about it, and yet it has to be hummable. The BGMs and pattern music pieces should be hummable by the masses, should be easy to hold on to and remember. Only this way, music can penetrate masses who are the real heart of a country.
Music that stays with people is that which is mysterious, hummable and is one that touches some deep recesses of their hearts.

Rajesh Roshan belongs to the older generation of music directors. Can we forget his Julie? But for years now, he has been employed only by
his brother Rakesh Roshan...

Rajesh Roshan retains the olden days' style of tunes, and has given the orchestration, seemingly, to the new age arrangers. Yet, he must have supervised the rhythms and melody parts so that they are never complex or overloaded. The sound of the album is good, we could listen to all the instruments quite clearly.

In Krrish3, Rajesh Roshan attempts to merge the old style of tunes that touch the soul, with the new age heavy kick and base guitar patterns... as he did for Kaho Naa Pyar Hai & Krrish earlier...

Coming to the album,

Raghupati Raghav Rajaram, somehow, has a soul that would connect to people. Hritik's dance movements shown for the song in trailers have already caught on with youth.

You Are My Love is a song that seems to have been composed on the lines of the advert "you are my honey bunny". It has a Goan feel, an interesting "teen maar" rhythm. And this number has a potential to remain with people because you could listen to it repeatedly, the orchestration is simple and does not give you fatigue. You could listen to Alisha Chinai and Mohit Chauhan in this number.

God Allah Aur Bhagvan is again an old style tune. Yes, you could say it is slow in the modern sense, but we need to understand that speed has given us nothing except blood pressure and sugar.
In the antra, you could listen to lyrics like "sab mein vo chupaa hai use pehchaanle... vo dostonka hai dost, yaaron ka hai yaar". Good old familiar lyrics by Sameer. "Pyar ka savera leke aayenge hum" says Sameer in the song... What a relief! I don't need to rush to open Google and search for the meaning of words... as I keep doing when I listen to the new numbers.

The album is modern where is needs to be. The rhythm patterns for Raghupati Raaghav Raja Ram are actually groovy... the club stuff, you could say... with a tune that has the flavour and soul of yesteryears sensibilities.

Theme of Krrish is passable. Perhaps it would sound good as background music when Hritik Roshan casts his magic with his impeccable screen presence in Krrish3.

The best song of the album is Dil Tu Hi Bata. I feel this tune will remain with me for the years to come. Hats off to Rajesh Roshan for this tune. The rhythm pattern is fantastic. The selection of instruments lends a mysterious feel. Chorus taken from the keyboards, a trait of Rajesh Roshan, somehow deepen the feel of the song. The base guitar if perfect.

Kyon aaj suni teri dhadkan pehli baar - this line is the best part... Alisha Chinai's vocals push you into an abyss of nostalgia. Aa dilne mere sunlee tere dil ki pukaar, says Zubeen Garg, and this line, tuned in a high note, treated to with an echo effect, gives a haunting feel to the listener.
The antra has an excellent tune with lyrics like Duniya jhooti lagti hai... it will make the listener fall in love with the song... and with love itself...
Ok... I could keep keying a lot of things about this song... but I leave the rest to you to feel. I already listened to the song for 8 or 10 times... and plan to keep going all day today :)
Hey, I almost forgot, the piano piece is something I really loved, you will love it too if you happen to observe it.

Thanks to Rakesh Roshan and Rajesh Roshan. These tunes will keep the Indian music alive... in a

way it should be living...

Krish3 is not a classic. No. But it is something good to have happened to Indian music scene, I feel. Remember? When Sajid Wajid's Tere Mast Mast Do Nain became a hit, Bollywood Music underwent a positive change!

Even this day, you could listen to Kahona Pyar Hai and feel good. How many of today's songs would remain with you in 2023? Yes, same with Krrish3.

While we wait fondly for the best people of Hindi Film Music (who are taking rest now), to return and thrill us once again, let us live on with this music for now :)

CAN You Believe THIS? The Spirit of Hindustan... is Back!

British left us, dry. They cut us off from our own essential education
By destroying our universities...
by not letting us pass on our superior 20.000 year old education to next generations for 200 years!

Result? Our far superior knowledge has become alien to our own selves.

Today, almost everybody thinks Western education is superior.

And sadly, our practices are ridiculed.

But WAIT!

I have seen something that got my heart pounding.

Recently, I made a trip to Gangapur, an energy centre of my Guru Sri Dattatreya and to Akkalkot. On the way, I found youngsters walking in batches.

Most of them had no footwear.
They had backpacks and were wearing colorful shorts and T Shirts.

They were all going to Tuljapur, a place of the Goddess Bhavani.



I halted to interview one traveller, Varun.
The boy was in his plus two.
He was going on foot to Tuljapur.
He had already walked about 50 kilometres
And about 190 kilometres were left to cover.
3 days, he said, it would still take him to reach.
In this auspicious 9 Nights of Navratri, all of them have taken a vow to visit the Mother Goddess on foot.
At night they would sleep in temples and move on in day time.


Imagine, today's youth walking hundreds of kilometres for a spiritual pursuit!
This might be an impossible thought for youth, of especially Andhra Pradesh.
In general, the Telugu people, I observed, don't think spiritualism is something they could think about seriously, forget walking hundreds of kilometres.

These were youth from Maharashtra and Karnataka.
I was awed, I should confess.

All along the way, I had seen hundreds of such walking youth.









I bowed down to The Mother Goddess Tulja Bhavani, in my heart.
I bowed down to these youth who are exhibiting such a powerful desire.
And I bowed down to the Gurus who are now bringing back the lost culture and spiritualism to the place it was born...

Yes, this is the spirit. 

The real spirit of Hindustan! 

The SPIRIT is HERE and it is coming Back!

Thank you for reading :)

I Hate You, New Songs !

1989...
I was watching Chitra Lahari on DD. Mom said "My God! What songs are these! Yuk. The music in my days... they were Golden Days!"

2013... 24 years later...
I am listening to the Telugu Top10 of the week on YouTube. I say to myself "My God! What songs are these! Yuk. The music in my days... they were Golde..."

And I suddenly stop myself from completing the sentence.

Was my mom right? Or am I?

Just because something becomes old, does it become Gold?
Does every generation think that their younger days had better songs than the present songs?
Will the same songs I call no-soul songs, be called golden songs by my children?

No. There is something basically wrong in our judgement of music!

No confusion. Just 3 points will make it clear! Read on...


1. Psychology says that mind simply blocks sad parts, difficult parts of memory from reaching consciousness. It only retains the pleasurable moments. We so associate the 'golden days' with the
songs we listened to at that time. "Tadaaan!" and songs of those days become precious.

2. Mind and it's power over us, slowly grow as we age. The lesser the age, the less influence of the mind and the happier we feel inside. Hence, a song can touch your deeper core at a younger age, more than at your older age. So, old songs feel better, and we cannot connect to the new songs because of heavier influence of mind.

3. This point is my favourite, being a music composer...

Music in earlier days was more "Live". So, more "Alive".
In earlier days, violinists, percussionists, keyboard and piano players and others sit Live at the
studio. Ab
out 10 to 130 people assembled with all their rapt attention.
They play the music when the music director waves his hand.
They are human beings. Artists. When they played, the Cosmic Intelligence flowed through them.
Their playing had the human touch, the human error, the human heart and feelings in it.
All their collective intense intentions of making a beautiful piece, joined them together as ONE ENERGY to produce the piece.
It was soul harmony manifesting itself into a song.
The singer used to sing the song along with the huge orchestra of performers. He/She is very much "present" there.
The song was "Alive".
It penetrates you. It harmonizes and vibrates with that essential inner core you have inside you.
So the olden songs are master pieces.

Music these days is a one man affair.
Basically, the composer composes the tune and the pieces on a sequencer on computer.
Just tracks upon tracks on a computer screen.
Sometimes, if required, some musician comes down and plays his piece on his, say, guitar and leaves. Then another day, a pianist is called to add his piece.
No one meets anyone. There is no transfer of the joy, music is essentially concerned with.
Most of the instruments are computer generated. A computer has no heart, does it?

The song is more of a machine's way of imitating a human art.

There is no human harmony, intensity or power of intention.
And when finally the whole thing is done, the singer arrives to render the song. He/She would sing the song to a dead, mechanical track... not to alive human beings with divine art playing their talent out to the singer's vocals.

Now tell me, how can we compare the earlier songs with today's numbers?

PS: I dream to make music with hundreds of people in a studio playing live...
I dream of making real voices with clarity to sing my tune...
(not singers who sound like patients of nervous disorder singing in their bathrooms...)
I dream of big studios and producers who understand "real" music.
I muse over those Golden Days!
When Lakshmikanth Pyerelal recorded 1-2-ka-4 and Cholike Peeche with heaviest drums, dholaks and tablas with scores of stringed insturments played... Even today, they give goose bumps!
When Ilayaraja had hoards of most talented musicians summoned to play for him in Chennai...
coming down all the way not only from Bombay but from abroad sometimes.

Hey, when did all this down-trend in India start actually? Wasn't it in about 1992 with Ro... ahem...

I see 2 Thieves chased by Cops!

Something interesting happened the other night. 

I woke up at 3am in the morning... there were some sounds on the street. When I came out of the door on the first floor of my independent building in Nallakunta and I saw something we don't get to see often. 

2 Thieves were running and 2 cops were chasing them on a bike.  

The probable thieves, ran to hide behind a parked car.

I could see the cops as I could see the thieves from the top angle I was watching.

2 thoughts zoomed into my oversized head. 

1. Let me tell the cops that these people are hiding behind the car. 

2. No, let them go, they are human beings too... it is horrible for anyone to spend time in confinement.

Then, what did I do? You are right there. I just watched on silently without doing anything.

Further thoughts:

1. If I tell the cops where the thieves were hiding, what if they hold a grudge and hurt my family or me?(I know, this is all the films and useless frightening stuff TV News channels talking). 

2. Why should I interfere in their Karma? If they were destined to be caught, let them be caught. If they have to escape according to the Cosmic Plan, so be it. 

Hey wait! But Spider-Man lets the thieves get away. And the same thieves kill Spidey's uncle in a later scene. What if these same people, come and rob my house or cause us harm? 

Would it not be because of my reluctance to do my duty towards the society by assisting the cops to apprehend them?

In spite of all these thoughts, I had been silent. 

Meanwhile, the cops spot the thieves and yell at them and try to grab them... yet, the thieves escape and continue their run. The chase goes on until I can see them no more... I don't know that happened after that, nor do I care to know... sorry, but that is me. 

Was I right or wrong. Which of my self-contradicting thoughts was right? What should I have done?

My observations:

1. In olden days, say about 30 years back, people had simple minds. They would have simply indicated the thieves' location to the cops. 

2. In these days, with ruthless information flow from all 360 angles in the form of media, minds have become complex. Clarity of thought is a rarity in these days. 

Then what should we do? Ok, let me tell you. 

1. We need to be centered, present in the moment, without the influence of thoughts or emotions. Whatever a thought or emotion tells you to do is wrong, because it is just a collection of past experiences.  

 

2. If we are in the present moment, without any thought, a "spontaneous" response would emerge(as beloved Master Osho says). 

Whatever this spontaneous response would prompt you to do, will be RIGHT in capital letters!

3. For this, we need to learn the art of being in the moment. 

We could read stuff by Masters (perhaps a tome by Eckhart Tolle). 

We need to strengthen the present moment and learn to be steady and rooted in the present. 

This is an ongoing self-training... but when we do give it time, every day sincerely, life becomes a miracle. Things, for a change, become RIGHT and for the first time you are CLEAR!

Thanks for reading. 

PS: Yes, I am still in kindergarten in this process, so in that instance, I had all those contradicting thoughts. Yet, at the end, I did succeed in centering myself into the eternal NOW.