What was I thinking ?

Thinking Big…

I still have that moment again and again, when I asked to myself that “What was I thinking ?” when I decided to come to Kolkata for my post graduation in Anaesthesiology.
As any medical student can understand my jovial mood which I had when I was selected in pre-pg exam and got a seat at Apollo Hospitals, Kolkata.

My mind at that time was full of so many thoughts, some were related to my selection, some were related to my struggle, some were philosophical, and some were related to this game called Life.

And sometimes, I was so excited and thoughtful, that there was a period when there were no thoughts, no emotions present in my mind, and I was seamlessly staring the roof while lying on my bed.

Well, honestly, I was not thinking much about the new city, Kolkata, because I was pre-occupied so much with my decision to choose DNB over MD/MS, however, my family members were all busy to assume so much about the new city, as Kolkata, in compare to Bhopal (Capital city of Madhya Pradesh State of India) is different in so many aspects.

The culture, language, weather, people, eating practices, are all so much different, as both are situated in very much different parts of India, Madhya Pradesh being in the centre of India, while the Kolkata is situated in the far eastern part of India.

But as opposed to my family member’s thinking, things here were not as per their assumptions, but so much favourable to me in most of the aspects, in terms of training in hospital or living or nature of new people, all were good and that’s when I learnt a very important lesson in life, that,

We all have a tendency to assume so many things, and most of them are negative, and because of that, we either delay our actions or cancel it…

This blog based on Blogchatter’s prompt “What was I thunking ?” 

Christmas at Kolkata : All Roads leads to Park Street.

Living in the city of joy since two years but still not able to have the taste of Christmas of this city, who has the influence of British time, much more than anywhere I have seen till now.

But this year also I was not in any mood to visit the famous places of kolkata on Christmas, as the burden of finishing my thesis was on my head, and I am still working on it (but could not stop myself to write a blog on Christmas).

But yesterday on 24th, while I was in the hospital, my consultant casually said to me “Take your wife to Park Street, she would love the lights on that street,” I just replied the customary “Ok Sir, Sure”, as I was in no mood to spend time anywhere else except my thesis.

But during yesterday’s evening, after I finished one of the main parts of my thesis, I feel relaxed and suddenly the suggestion of my consultant popped up in my mind, so I decided to visit Part Street at night around 10pm, so that I could just visit that place on my scooter and return within 1 hour.

I had heard a lot about Park Street and its atmosphere on Christmas and New Year, but what I had seen there was totally awesome, it was just a mega celebration, where anywhere you can see youngsters having a Santa hat on their head and selfies were clicking everywhere.

I and my wife also decided to purchase something, I had purchased the Santa hat, while my wife decided to purchase “Tiara”.

And then we started moving to explore the whole street, full of people, full of red hats, full of mobile flashes, full of smell of freshly cooked street side food and also full of alert police personnel.

The street was decorated with beautiful lights and ribbons everywhere, and yes, the long queues were also there in front of famous restaurants like ‘flurys’, ‘Hotel Park’, and many small restaurants and pubs.

We both also clicked so many selfies. Finally when we were about to leave, it was around 11.50pm, suddenly there was a huge roar of youngters, so we decided to be there with them till 12am, and what we had experianced at 12 am is this ;

Someone has rightly said…
On Christmas and New Year, All roads lead to “Park Street”…

Happiness 🙂

Wishing you all a very Happy Christmas 🙂

Kolkata’s Durga Puja : Creativity at its best, Part 2

In the part 1 (read here) I had described, how we all make a plan to go together to do the Pandal Hopping, and had experianced the joy to see the creativity at its best.

Here are some of the pics of that day, hope you may like it… 🙂

Lord Durga. Image : doctorsblogging

Creativity at its best. Image : doctorsblogging

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Lord Durga’s face 3D made up bamboo. Image : doctorsblogging

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Third eye shown of the Women, which shows their powerful character, even if they are a housewife or a working women. Image : doctorsblogging

Picture of a women on sand paper by crayons, how beautiful they are. Image : doctorsblogging

Dr. Anshul

I still have much more pictures of durga puja, if you want to see more than do let me know, will happy to share with you all.

Writing for BlogChatter‘s #dailychatter challenge

Kolkata’s Durga Puja : Pandal Hopping, Part 1

In India, the word West Bengal and Durga Puja, always comes simultaneously, and there is strong reason for it because here the people are madly in love with their beloved God Durga, who is known for destroying the evil forces and bring peace.

If you found yourself in Kolkata during Durja Puja, than you are lucky as you can witness at any place the “Pandal”, which is as grand as any filmy set and as awesome and beautifully made as you can not think of it, because here in Kolkata the pandals of Durga Puja costs in lakhs with hundreds of footfalls during each day.

So I am lucky to be in kolkata since two years and able to witness the madness or I should the correct word devotion towards Maa Durga.

This year in Durga Puja, me with my colleagues done something new. We all had decided to go for “Pandal Hopping” together, so for this we had booked a traveller for 20 persons.

That was an awesome time for all of us to roam on the roads of Kolkata, hopping from one pandal to another, walking on the roads amd experiance the joy in the “city of joy”.

Walking on the roads from one pandal to another. Image : doctorsblogging

I had enquired about the pandals from the local citizen, they had said that the preparation for pandal making starts from 2-3 months before and there was expenditure of about 20-30 lakhs in normal pandals, and I must say that is huge.
But if you observe the pandals, than you would fall in love with its beauty and design, than you could imagine the hard work they had done.

Doctor’s Day Out. Image : doctorsblogging

Overall it was nice outing with all, and making the memories…

In next blog, I will post pictures of Pandal Hopping, and grandness of kolkata’s durga puja, which you can read here.

Dr. Anshul

Writing for BlogChatter‘s #dailychatter campaign.

Eden Gardens : My 1st International Match

My excitement was the same as that of the small child, who has just seen the new toy in front of him, as I had seen the India-New Zealand Test Match Ticket in my hand.

Why not ? I was going to see the International Match first time in my life, that too in the Eden Gardens, “Mecca” of the Indian Cricket.

My search for the tickets starts on the saturday evening at Ticketgenie.com, which is the official website where tickets can be found, but I was dissapointed when it shows no availability. Than I checked about the timings when it could be available on ground, but it could be available only after 10am, which means I was going to loose initial couple of hours, but I had no option.

So on the Sunday Morning, we reached eden around 11pm (because of sunday morning extra sleep), and very easily got tickets from the Mohammedan Sporting Club, which was situated just outside of eden gardens. I was like yeeeeeee….

Finally got Tickets 🙂

Than finally we headed to the ground which is about 200m from where we have purchased tickets and parked our vehicle.

Outside View

Eden Gardens from outside : I was thrilled when I seen it.

Main Gate of Eden Gardens : Memories in Pictures.

Tight Security around the whole ground

Inside the Eden Gardens, the environment were terrific, even it is a test match, but still there were Aahhhh and Uuuuhhhh, whenever the Indian batsman misses the balls and there were roars when he hits fours or sixs.

Yes we were lucky to see almost half of the Indian team batting, as in front of me they had loose 6 wickts within 100 runs.

Inside the whole environment was electric

We have been there for the whole second session that is from lunch to tea, after that we departed.

Tickets were also cheap, only between 100-200 rupees.

Overall it was an awesome outing watching the International Match first time that too in a big place.

Participating in BlogChatter‘s #DailyChatter challenge.

How Mentality driven our Life and Society ?

Taapsee Pannu in a court scene in Pink

This is how a powerful female looks like when her acts are misinterpreted…

This thought just emerged into my mind as I am watching the movie PINK in an Inox theatre in the city of joy, Kolkata, from where the director of this film Shoojit Sircar belongs.

At present writing this small piece in the interval time of this movie, and sharing with you some of the questions which come into my mind..

Q1. When girls become extrovert than why they are considered to be without morals ? They think to express yourself just like boys is crime.

Q2. When they come late in the night, then why we think that they have affairs or are characterless ? They suppose girls do not want to enjoy at nights.

Q3. Why we think like this : “kyuki tum log ladkiyan ho, to kyu ulagh rahi ho ladko se, door raho” (because you are girls, why you are involving with boys, stay away) Why gender comes in between everything.

Q4. Why most of us thinking that the girls talking to boys with a sweet smile, or have a casual or informal conversation, are interested in them in ‘that way’ and not the normal way ? Can’t boys and girls just be friends ?

Q5. Although I am not a drinker, but I have mostly seen that why most of the people think that the “sanskari/cultured” girls do not drink and only the bad girls do ? Drinking alcohol is not the criteria of moralness.

These are some of the questions which come in my mind while watching movie PINK.

What your’s take on this, give me your answers of the above questions.

I want to spread the good words and want to end all assumptions because I really hate them, and want that other’s should not be harmed because of that.

Well stay tuned for the next blog which will be the complete review of this movie, as this movie shows the serious sensible way of expressing important issue.

Dr. Anshul

I am taking my Alexa rank to next level with BlogChatter ‘s campaign.

Photography.

Some said what is special about photography, you has to press one button, do little bit adjustment, and than there you have one good picture. 

I reply to them that photography is much more to just clicking some pictures, because pictures mainly originate in the mind of a photographer. Camera does make a picture beautiful but the contents of the picture decides by the mind of a photographer.

Here are some of my mental frames in the physical form…

How these pictures are.. do share your views..

Participating in Halfmarathon by Blogchatter.

Tum log 120 crore nahi, balki tukro me bate hue ho…

When I have heard this line in Madari (recently released Bollywood movie), I was shocked to hear this, as this is highly correct statement, and very well observed.

India is a vast country, with a huge population, with variety of different cultures, most of the states has its own culture and its own language, it is said that whenever you will travel for 100 metres in India, you will find new type of people.

Being so much diverse, so there will be diversity of opinions also, and when opinions are diverse, there can be a mutual agreement or disagreement.

But what I have observed that there is  “Unity in Diversity”  in India untill and unless everyone’s needs are fulfilled, and when anyone’s needs not met, then they forget about the common interest and think about themselves, and here comes the role of politicians.

They comes up with false promises about the individual needs and do not talk about the nation (as they assume who care about the nation if the individual needs are met) and we the common people, who has developed the habit of narrow thinking or a narrow perspective, falls into their trap.

We have started to think only in terms of States and forgets about our Nation and remembers our nation only on 15th August or 26th January or on Fb and Twitter, but not in our heart.

Common guys lets put India first, lets cherish other’s cultures, languages, festivals so that other’s also feel the same for you and that will make the bonding between Madrasi and Punjabi, between Mumbaikar and Bangali, betweem Kasmiri and Hydrabadi and between Uttar-Purvi (north east) and Bhopali.

And then we the 120 crores people will actually become 120 crores, not only as number but also as a real strength.

Participating in Halfmarathon by Blogchatter. Day 13.

On the Bank of Ganga in Kolkata..

When you think about Kolkata or Calcutta, then the image of the magnificant architecture comes into our mind and that is “Howrah Bridge” or The Rabindra Setu that is made during the British Raj and connects the twin sisters cities that are Kolkata and Howrah.

The above picture I have taken on the bank of the Hooghly River or Bhagirathi-Hooghly is a 260km long distributary of the Ganga River in West Bengal state of  India, that is why local also called it simply the Ganga River.

This river constitutes the important part of the Calcutta and the West Bengal culturally and economically and The East India Company also sailed through this river into the Bengal.

The bridge in the above picture is “The Vidyasagar Setu” or the Second Hooghly Bridge is comparatively new bridge that connects the Howrah and the Calcutta.

So many tourists points developed by the local authority on the “Ghat” or the “Bank” of the Hooghly River, and the most developed one is the “Prinsep Ghat” which was built by the British India in 1841 in the memory of the Anglo-Indian scholer James Princep ( about this I will write in next post).

Above picture is from the Prinsep Ghat.

So friends please share your opinion about this picture and the post..

Have you been to Calcutta or Kolkata ???

Are You Having “Assumptions” ??? Surely Most of them are Negative…

Here are “5 reasons” why you should avoid them so as to have a ‘speedbreaker’less personal and professional life…

” Do not make assumptions unless you know the whole story. If in doubt,ask the person directly. “

1) Most of the assumptions are negative which always pose hindrance in our success. Because we always think about a particular situation, about a particular person, about a particular place, about a particular culture with our limited knowledge and never questions or challenges our thinking with new thoughts or situations.. you know why… because we have a “fear” in our heart from the phenomenon which is called “CHANGE”.

2) Going to the new city for studying or travelling, relative and acquintences would always tell things like in that city peoples are not good,environment is not better,food will have bad quality,all streets have fish markets (important point in conversations of vegeterians). I know all these because this has been told many times to me when i have decided to come to a completely new city, culturally very different from my home city. But what I have found that 99% of the content what I have heard is totally wrong and my new inhabited city is awesome in so many aspects.

3) One of the assumption is that there is no fun while travelling alone. But what I have observed from my experience that there is totally new fun, new experience,  new energy while you travel alone. You roam around in the new city with different attitude. You tends to become more observent to the beauty of new city, to the behaviour of people, their style of living and talking, to the landscape and the architecture. When I had visited the Gangtok (a beautiful tourists place in the Eastern Himalayas, is a capital of Indian State of Sikkim), I had travelled more like my home town, taken the local roads not known where they leads, observe everything and believe me it was a total memorable experience and I had come out with a little bit better character.

4) Don’t talk to strangers,you don’t know how they are : Well this is also prevalent among the masses, that’s why you may have observed while travelling in trains or on a flight that how much people are reserved even if they are travelling with you for the whole day and never say a word. But in my case I usually try to start the conversation during my travelling amd by god’s grace till now I have made some good friends while travelling,one is doctor and another one is artists from South Africa.

5) Don’t make assumtions about your colleague : If in workplace your colleague takes a stand on something that goes against your point of view than it doesn’t mean that he is selfish or is against you,it simply means he is having different thoughts on that perticular issue. Do not make assumptions about the character of person on the basis of small things.. life is big so have a wide perspective on different things, always think on a long term.

These are some of the main assumptions which i have faced in my day to day life.

What are your thoughts on “Assumptions”… please let me know with your comments below and also share your assumptions which you had in past but shattered now.