Castles In The Air!

The Impossible Dream "Dream is not something that you see in your sleep, it is what keeps you awake!" These are the words of the great former Indian President A.P.J Abdul Kalam. Over the last two years I have lived my dream - ever since I found about the Permanent Residency mode of moving to Australia, I kept dreaming about it, day in day out. Dreamt about starting a new life, a new job and a new challenge in a new country, the dream of ‘Life 2.0’. Let's call it the 'Sweet Australian Dream', since 'great' is what Americans believe is reserved for the USA! And what is this Sweet Australian dream you ask? It's a life which would ensure the all-important work-life balance, a house in an Australian suburb, a decent car, time to keep yourself fit and get a chance to travel this beautiful continent of a country with my family. My dear friend has been in this country for more than a decade and I became fond of this country through his experi...

The Value of Liberty

When I stepped into the plane aisle at King Khalid Aiport, escaping Saudi Arabia for the last time in my life (hopefully!), I felt exhilarated, euphoric; wanted to raise my arms up in the air, thump my fists and celebrate, much like a goal scorer. I was just happy to fly away from the most restricted country in the world, where the list of ‘Do Nots’ exceed the list of ‘Dos’. Coming from the largest democracy of the world, i.e. India, I feel offended very quickly if I am instructed to follow absurd rules laid down by monarchy. As they say, you understand the true value of something when it is taken away from you and this particular trip made me realise the value of personal freedom and liberty very quickly! And that got me thinking, why is personal freedom important? Let’s divide personal freedom into three parts, the first being moral freedom , i.e. having the liberty of doing what fits into your moral compass. As citizens of any country, we want to choose what is right for u...

Why Did Coldplay's Rendition of 'Vande Mataram' Give Us Goosebumps?

Most of us millennials heard either live or through social media about Coldplay singing 'Vande Mataram' and 'Channa Mere Ya' during the Global Citizen concert on Sunday. Did you get goosebumps? I most certainly did. I am a huge fan of Coldplay. Although I have heard Rehman's version, this one just felt out of the ordinary, it just clicked. Was it Chris Martin's charming voice, or was it the acoustic strumming? When Chris waived the Indian tricolor while rendering one of it's chartbursters, it was probably the rare third time in a year that we felt patriotic. Why did so much emotion boil over in one evening? Was it because all this was carried out by a Gora (White Man)? For centuries and generations together, us browns (Ya the brownest in the Fair and Lovely Fairness Meter) have been abused, harassed, tortured, looted, enslaved by all kinds of foreigners, be it Britishers, Mughals, Portuguese, French. There is huge prejudice associated with ...

A Needle in the Haystack

1 It was a chilly Sunday evening, the clouds had gathered around the 18 hole golf course and the adjoining clubhouse; it could snow anytime now. Inside the club, two people met for the first time. "I’m the CEO of VanGuard Ltd. for the last seven years. Something fishy is on in the accounts and finance department. I don't know what it is, I need you to find out what is happening and who is involved." Simon Zimmerman said. He was a tall, wide chested man in early fifties with a pear-shaped midriff; had a strong voice and an imposing persona. "Do you suspect any particular employee is involved in this?" Michael Wong enquired. "Everyone's a suspect. And don't forget, the person who hires a detective is also a suspect." Simon said as he smiled wryly. The discussion contrasted the dining room setting and the ensemble of people around; couples and families were chattering over meals on surrounding tables. There was th...

Diary of an Excited Immigrant #2 - Finding a Job in Australia (or any Other Country!)

Finding a job, three words which can be stressful, especially when you don't have a job and you are living on your savings in another country. And as these small savings shrink even further, the stress levels keep shooting up. Sounds familiar? Read along, this article might help, or least reassure you that you're on the right track! I came to Australia without a job, got first hand experience of job hunting in this market, which I would like to share with everyone. I'm sure the experience of going to any part of the world without a job would be as daunting if not more. I'm not an expert, just sharing the valuable insights that I heard from a variety of people from either side of the job hunting table. Keeping an Open Mind Finding a job is not just about how many applications you make sitting in front of your computer, it's a lot more people focused. Because finally it's going to be a person who will give you a job, not a company or its webs...

Payback with Interest

The worst of the winter chill of 1958 was fading away. As Pablo Ramos submerged his ankle boots into a muddy lake, he noticed his own reflection - a frail shadow of himself that he barely recognised, having lost the best years of his life. He splashed the cold lake water onto his face, trying to clear his head for the morning ahead of him. This had taken months of planning, perseverance and preparation to materialise, nothing could go wrong now, he couldn't let anything go wrong. His eyes were red - with rage, with pain, with passion. Pablo began his march towards the village market. His oversized jacket hung over his lean shoulders. The gun in his breast pocket brushed against his chest as he took long, determined strides. His skin was dry, pale and wrinkly, having spent the last eighteen years behind bars. He used to be a family man, married with three kids, and earning a decent living from his large farm by the lake. Prison time had taken away everything that ...

A Day In The Life Of An Articles Clerk

Statutory Warning: The writer of this story is completely frustrated with his new life, particularly after having the time of his life in his college days. You are requested to bear with him and his pissed off attitude towards life. Triinnnnnnnggg! The wake-up alarm screams, as if wanting to shake the bones out of me. Its 7.45 am. “Time to wake up, dude” I say to myself, only to find and press the snooze button. (I really wish to thank the person who has invented the snooze button; it lets you sleep more without forgetting about your already-delayed-plan of getting up!!). Couple of snoozes later, I finally decide it was high time. So the aching body wakes up, much reluctantly and in utter disbelief that it isn’t Sunday already. “Race against time...Oh No! Not again!!” The time starts ticking, as it always does. I wonder if I could ever hold the Seconds hand of the clock for some time so that I can have had more time to have breakfast, read the morning newspaper and to enj...