Perpetually Perplexed

God and Satan had a huge fight about supremacy. They decided they will find out who is mightier using a coding competition as it was the "cool" thing, and as miracles, protecting or decimating were taken over by mortals. They started typing furiously without looking left or right. Satan with a wicked grin on his face and God with an arrogant smirk on his face. Hours passed and the challenge was reaching finale. And the onlookers - lesser gods (and lesser satans?) were sitting on edge, biting their nails. "Dhom" suddenly there was a power cut. We are talking about pre- laptop era and UPS systems were affordable only to ultra rich. And God was not one.  So both systems blacked out. You could hear the shrieks of fans, here on earth. In a few minutes the results were declared and God was announced as the winner. Why? Because God saves! Why am I writing this stale joke now, when one does not  have to save, as laptops have batteries and its users have tai

Madi in Kannada roughly is being in a pure state, bathed (with dripping hair :) ) and wearing madi clothes - silk or silkish. You will see most of the priests in Hindu temples in this madi. Well God expects us to be pure before we can perform any rituals. Or  so we believe. Madi some times also refers to the pure cloth worn for such purpose. Saree or panche. Silk is madi. But when polyester clothes entered Indian households, they were thought to be madi, and more economical too.   But madi is also followed by women on festival days. In the dawn, they bathe, wear silk saree and start cooking. Again these foods will be offered to God, hence madi. 30 years ago, in my native village, the practices were more severe. The women should wear madi everyday because every day, food is offered to God - called Naivedya, before eating. And as a convenience method, women could wear their daily clothes if they are not touched by the unclean. Unclean is everyone who is not wearing a madi. So wome

People call her Ajji and most people do not know her name. She and her cat live in huge house with large garden. Ajji is probably eighty but sharp for her age. Most of the day, she sits by the window. People say she has 5 children. Her eldest son is in America, her daughter who was in Bangalore has died.  Her children, grand children or great grand children never visit her. A maid comes daily to Ajji's house and cleans the house and feeds her town gossip. This maid Sheenamma is her only window to the world. After Sheenamma goes home, ajji analyzes the news Sheenamma gave, with the cat. She talks to the cat as she knows it can understand each word ajji says. If some one comes to their house offering to pluck coconuts or mangoes in the garden, she sells the fruits to them keeping a few for her self. But one day, the cat dies. Ajji telephones a shop keeper Ramanna (I think his name is Ramanna) "Ramanna, the cat is not moving. It is not eating food. Please send some one

ಕಣ್ಣು ಮಬ್ಬಾಗಿಲ್ಲ  ಬಾಗಿಲಿಂದ ಕೀಲಿಸುತ್ತಿಲ್ಲ   ಅಷ್ಟೆ ಕಿವಿ ಮಂದವಲ್ಲ  ಫೋನಿನ ಪಕ್ಕ ಕುಳಿತು ಬಿಟ್ಟಿದೆ ಕೈ ನಡುಗುವದಲ್ಲ ಹಬ್ಬದಡಿಗೆ ಮಾಡಲು ಕುಣಿಯುತ್ತಿದೆ ಮಗಾ ನೀನೆಲ್ಲಿ?  ನಿನ್ನ  ಕೂಸು ಮಡದಿಯರೆಲ್ಲಿ?  

My home town has changed a lot. People have become richer. IT revolution has produced an  engineer in each home with a very good job with fat salary, settled in City or USa, bringing home expensive gifts like cars to parents, or building new home for parents. But there is a dark side to the story. Those young men who are left behind in the village are becoming extinct. They do not have any prospect of ever getting a bride and hence procreation. Hence the village schools are getting closed. They have old parents, mother finding it very difficult to maintain the house. Then there are other parents, who have all their children in cities and are unwilling to come back home. These old people are  migrating  to cities risking ill treatment by sons and their families. Some are staying back in the village with large empty houses, which are very difficult to clean and maintain, farms which are difficult to cultivate as getting farm hands is difficult and expensive. So my place is becomin

Harry is commissioned by his publisher to write a biography of well known writer Mamoon. Publisher Rob, tells Harry to write a sizzling story about the life of author. Mamoon does not know this part, but is willing to share his life story with biographer because he wants to revive his career. Mamoon is in his seventies, and his books are not selling so well. His wife has very expensive tastes. He feels, when this biography is published, his book sales will improve. Harry himself needs this book badly as he is a budding writer with only one book so far to his credit. And he adores Mamoon immensely. Mamoon is an Indian based author settled in London, always in controversies, always rude to people. And as expected he is not willing to shared anything with Harry. Harry starts feeling suffocated in the farm house of Mamoon and would have fled from there. But his girl friend comes as an angle and softens Mamoon with her charms and her massaging skills. She even makes the writer give