Nasir Zaidi

                                                                   The other day a friend of mine asked me for advice. That’s something I don’t give even when asked. But for a special friend like him I had to make an exception. He said his old flame was in town whom he had not seen for 20 years, so what should he do? I told him that he should give her at least 20 minutes. My wife overheard me giving this advice. Immediately, she asked me, ‘would you have done the same?’ I was stumped by her question. She said, ‘why don’t you answer me? Isn’t my question straightforward?’ I replied that her question, indeed, was straightforward, but unfortunately the answer to it cannot be straightforward.             She raised her eyebrows and said, ‘I don’t understand.’ I said, ‘I also...

Fortune favours the brave but Kane Williamson was not favoured, despite showing exemplary bravery. Hard work pays off but Kane Williamson’s hard work was not paid off. Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out but for Kane Williamson things did not turn out best even after he made the best of the way things turned out. It’s not the obstacle that counts but how you overcome it, but for Kane Williamson the obstacles remained, even as he made every effort to remove them. When you can’t change the direction of the wind - adjust your sails. Kane Williamson did exactly that, and yet he was blown off. Preparation + Attitude + Opportunity + Action = Luck. Kane Williamson prepared, had the attitude, made most of the opportunities that came his way, was in action all the time, but Luck still deserted him. Only you can control the future, but Kane Williamson couldn’t. Never give up. Kane Williamson never gave up. Yet, success elud...

                  They say marriages are made in heaven. Well, if it was so, then all marriages would have been perfect. None of them would have ever failed. But the story is different. The percentage of failed marriages compared to successful marriages is quite high. A failed marriage doesn’t necessarily have to end in a divorce. Couples prefer staying together despite the differences. They do so mainly because of social compulsions, unwillingness to go through the divorce proceedings, settlements, and other affiliated reasons. Leo Tolstoy’s novel Anna Karenina opens with the following line: "All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." The same applies to marriage also. All happy marriages are alike; each unhappy marriage is unhappy in its own way. All marriages that fail, fail because of some defect. Let me first make it clear that failure of marriages  due to dowry demands, dome...

                                                                One of the meanings of nirvana is ‘ an ideal or idyllic state .’ Each one of us would like to be in this state. To attain nirvana is the ultimate goal of every individual. There are actions and situations that help a person reach there.   I thought of sharing with you those actions and situations that take me there. These actions and situations detach me from this world and set me on the path towards nirvana. Here are they: Ø   Prostration (the act of sajdah while praying). It’s a private conversation between me and the Creator.   There’s no barrier. I surrender unconditionally. In this state, I become one with the One and my soul takes flight to uncharted zones in the cosmic world. Life comes to a standstill.       Ø ...

                                      In one of the battles, the enemy soldier said to Imam Ali: ‘If I had your sword, I could also wreak havoc.’ Imam Ali threw the sword at his feet and said, ‘Take it.’ The arrogant soldier bent and with his left hand tried to lift the sword. When he couldn’t, he tried picking the sword with his right hand. He couldn’t. So he used both his hands to lift but still couldn’t. He bent more and used every ounce of strength he had to pick the sword but he was unable to even move it slightly. Horrified, he looked at the Imam and said, ‘Ya Ali, what is this? I can’t lift your sword.’ The Imam replied. ‘I gave you my sword but not my arm.’ Such was the sword of Imam Ali. Only he could hold the Zulfiqar. In the battle of Uhad, the archangel Gabriel gave this sword to Imam Ali saying, ‘ La fata illa Ali, la saif illa Zulfiqar’ (There is no warrior ...

                                                Yes, an ideal lover exists. But he is not so easily found. In today’s fast-paced world, his breed is vanishing. But as long as women’s dreams keep getting shattered, the ideal lover will survive and thrive. The ideal lover is not every woman’s fantasy. Women passing through a crisis - be it personal, professional or hormonal - favour the ideal lover. There is a specific reason for it. The ideal lover is a master at creating an illusion. He is adept at building castles in the air and exactly the way the broken woman wants. The ideal lover is patient and persistent. He gives time to the woman, focuses on her disappointments and disillusionments. He offers her hope. He is the light that can brighten up the darkness in her life. He gives her attention, listens to her, and paints a rosy picture for her. He make...

                                            I’d like to draw a parallel between India’s match against Zimbabwe in the 1983 World Cup and yesterday’s 2019 World Cup match against New Zealand. Both the matches were critical. India had to win against Zimbabwe to qualify for the semi-finals and against New Zealand to qualify for the finals. In both the matches, India started disastrously. Against Zimbabwe, India were 0 for 1 (Gavaskar out for 0) 6 for 2 (Srikanth out for 0) 6 for 3 (Amarnath out for 5) 9 for 4 (Patil out for 1) 17 for 5 (Yashpal out for 9) Half the side was in the pavilion with the score not even 20. Against New Zealand, India were 4 for 1 (Sharma out for 1) 5 for 2 (Kohli out for 1) 5 for 3 (Rahul out for 1) 24 for 4 (Karthik out for 6) The 5 th wicket fell with the score on 71. Against Zimbabwe, Kapil Dev walke...

                                                              Lillee and Thomson. Jaggery and peanut. Vada and pav. Biryani and raita. Greenidge and Haynes. Dilip Kumar and Madhubala. Rain and bhajia. Solitude and Kishore Kumar. Rafi and Lata. Laila and Majnu. Rana Pratap and Chetak. Love and Tajmahal. Bench press and bicep curls. Rice and fish. Nature and silence. Book and bed. Cookies and cream. Sliced mangoes and vanilla ice-cream. Mutter pulao and chicken curry.  Pink and turquoise blue. Red lipstick and black sunglasses. Lord’s and cricket. Tennis and Wimbledon. Borg and McEnroe. Sprint and Bolt. Lemonade and mint. Salt and pepper. Krishna and Radha. Sita and Ram. Salim and Javed. Class and Dubai. Holmes and Watson. Relativity and Einstein. Gravity and Newton. Evolution and Darwin. Roberts and Holding. 1983 and 201...

                               Everyone hates me. I have yet to come across someone who is happy to see me. That’s why you rarely see me during the day. I prefer the darkness so that I don’t upset anyone. But I have seen that in the night when someone switches on the light and I happen to be sighted, screaming and cursing starts. The ladies especially dislike me more, but the men are no less. So many of my siblings and cousins have been killed because of this hatred. Brooms, slippers, shoes, sticks, are some of the weapons used against us. I want to tell all of you that we (the cockroaches) are not bad. We have nothing against the humans. In fact, we contribute so much to the environment. We feed on putrefying and decaying matter (imagine what would happen if we don’t feed on them) and in the process the nitrogen that is trapped in them gets released through our faeces into the soil and is used b...

                                   Conversation 1 ( with a teenage son ) ‘Mummy I am going out,’ says the 16-year-old boy. ‘Where?’ asks the mother. ‘Mummy,’ says the boy. ‘Didn’t I tell you last week?’ ‘I don’t remember, son.’ ‘But I can’t go on reminding you, mom.’ ‘OK, ok, what time will you come back?’ ‘How can I tell you this? I am going out with friends. I’ll be late.’ ‘Whatever. Be home by 9pm.’ The boy reacts as if he has heard the biggest joke of his life. ‘Mom. People go out at 9pm. And you want me to be back by 9pm.’ ‘Ok. 10, that’s final,’ says the mother. ‘I’ll try my best to be back by 2am.’ And the door closes. The mother calls out. ‘I or your father never stayed out so late when we were your age.’ Pat comes the reply. ‘That’s not my lookout, mom.’ *** Conversation 2 ( with a teenage daughter ) ‘Mummy how was I born?’ asks the...

                                        I send my blog only to readers handpicked by me. It’s a very private list comprising my immediate and extended family, close friends, former and current colleagues (both seniors and juniors), and some acquaintances with whom my mental wavelength matches. The one thing unique in this list of readers is that all think differently. Most of them are based in India and the UAE and few in Kuwait, Qatar, Canada, the United States and Netherlands.   Readers who have travelled or are travelling have accessed / or access my blogs in Australia, UK, Slovakia, France and Indonesia. I know who they are because I know they have travelled or are on a holiday. There have been readings in Italy, Singapore, Ireland, Switzerland too but only once or twice and I am guessing they’ve been done by my readers (in transit) though I am not aware who they are – be...

I think therefore I am , said Rene Descartes. But what about those who can’t think? Those who are suffering from Alzheimer’s or are in coma or by yogic powers able to control their thought process. Don’t they exist? By Descartes’ theory they don’t. Then how do we classify them? Do we say they don’t exist even though they do? To me, it doesn’t make sense. I think therefore I am is one of the most profound philosophical statements ever made. Yet it is flawed according to the noted philosopher Nietzsche, who pointed out: You have to be before you think – you can’t think first and then say you are. If Descartes is because he thinks, then God is because we think. That’s perfectly logical and that’s what Descartes himself believed. His argument about the existence of God is based on the following points: a)       Idea of god is of a perfect being b)       It is more perfect to exist than not to exist c)  ...

                                         Meena Kumari - Indian cinema’s legendary actress - was a poet of exceptional sensibility. It’s a tragedy, the way her life was, that her poems are not readily available. Today’s generation, especially those interested in poetry, do not know what they are missing, for her poetry by any stretch of imagination and by all standards is remarkable, in fact astoundingly remarkable. One of her poems start aaghaz toh hota hai anjaam nahin hota jab meri kahani mein vo naam nahin hota & ends din duube hai ya duubi barat liye kashti sahil pe magar koi kohram nahin hota The verses are so full of emotions, so full of sorrow, and the use of imagery is immaculate. She was able to translate her personal experiences into poetry so effortlessly as is evident in another poem of hers: udaasiyon ne meri aatma ko ghera hai ru-pa...

                                    To pick only 10 from among the hundreds of short stories that I have read is a Herculean task. Short stories have the power to impact you emotionally and intellectually. Unlike novels, where thousands of words are required to create an impact, short stories, in a few hundred words can create a bigger impact on the reader. In the hands of a true master, the short story becomes an effective medium to titillate, baffle, shock, surprise, and floor the reader. While reading short stories, I have experienced all sorts of emotions. But when a great story ends, then the mind becomes numbed. And it takes a while before you are out of its spell. But there are some stories from whose spell you can’t come out, even after years have passed. So from the stories that have cast a spell on me, I pick the top 10. Here they are: 1.       Kh...