Wordlists are a nightmare to many GREtakers…
Here’s a simple way to remember the words. It’s not a shortcut though.
See, almost every word in English can be broken into 2 or 3 parts or can be traced to some Greek or latin or some root.
Eg: DISINTER -----à disinter means to dig out.
DISINTER = dis + inter.
‘Dis’ gives a negative connotation to the word “inter”.
To ‘inter’ means ‘to bury something or someone’.
So when u combine dis + inter , you get the opposite of burying ie. exhuming something or someone ….ie. you take someone or something from the ground. And so now you know ‘disinter’ is to ‘dig out’!
Another example: MISOGYNY = mis + gynos
‘mis’ has a negative connotation…. ‘Mis’ means ‘hatred’ and ‘gynos’ has a Greek meaning – ‘females’. So Misogyny means hatred of women.
Try to break the word. Try to trace the roots. Try to feel the connotation ie. whether it is negative or positive.
So, before you start the wordlist, go to the end of the word list of Barrons. There you will find the roots, prefixes, suffixes, etc.
Once you are familiar with that, you can easily remember the words from the wordlist.
Half of the words can be split or can be FELT by their prefixes, suffixes, etc…
Understood??? So, don’t ever directly jump to the wordlist. First create a good foundation upon which you can build your vocab.
Other techniques to remember the words:
1) Create flash cards or use the flash cards available in the market.
Flash cards are basically small chits of paper with one side having the difficult word and the other side having its meaning. So while traveling, it is very convenient to take flash cards with you.
2) Write down. Just like you used to mug up the answers in school, just mug up the words. But after mugging up, make sure that you know what context that word was used in. I would surely advise you to keep note of the sentence too i.e every word in the wordlist would be followed by a sentence. So even if you remember the sentence in which the word was used, you will be able to remember the meaning of the word.
3) Read aloud. Didn’t you mug up the answers in school by reading aloud the answers?? J…
4) Use the words in your day to day life. As I said, DISCOMBOBULATE your friends by using very ABSTRUSE words. And then CONDESENDINGLY APPRISE them of the meaning of the word that you used!
5) Create associations or patterns to remember the words.
Eg: while I was in VJTI, I had a frnd who was very particular about cleanliness, and was very organized. While I was reading the wordlist, I came across a word “STICKLER” which means “someone who is very particular about things”. So I quickly associated the word STICKLER to YOGESH!.... so next time I read the word STICKLER, I know what it means!
Another eg: use human qualities or attributes to remember the words.
Like I have a frnd XYZ who is very arrogant. So while I was reading the words “haughty”, “conceited”, “stuffed shirt”, “presumptuous”, I could easily visualize my frnd XYZ!!!!...get my point?... so in one-go, I now know that “haughty”, “conceited”, “stuffed shirt”, “presumptuous” mean ARROGANT!!!
As simple as that!
Give sufficient time to remember and understand the wordlist. if you don’t know the wordlist, I would advise you to not take the exam…because, seriously, 20 questions out of 30 are going to be based the difficult words… If you are some millionaire, then its ok, go and get low scores as many times as possible!!... Remember that the GRE costs $180!!...
I hope I was able to help u in tackling the wordlists….
Happy WORDLISTing!!
Your comments – negative or positive – will help me improve my advising skill J…so mail me your comments or suggestions at your at dipenambalia@gmail.com. I will try my best to help u...
Friday, 14 August 2009
how to tackle Antonyms in GRE
hi ... ok, this link is on how to tackle Antonyms in GRE.
Antonyms are the most easiest questions on the GRE. you will get around 8-9 questions on antonyms. Antonyms, i feel, are like maths. Either you know the answer or you dont. There will be a very few cases when u will have a dilemma as to which of the 2 most probables one to pick!.. the assumption is that the remaining 3 are a clear-cut NO.
My point is - when you are thorough with the wordlist, you wont have any confusion about the right answer. Just by a glance (i am not even saying a perusal) , you will be able to identify the answer. The best thing about Antonyms is that they are real TIME-SAVERs!... i m not boasting, but i really could answer the antonym questions in just 5-6 seconds. so i used to save 9 * 55 seconds ( i have simple maths here - 30 questions in 30 mins. so a question/min). The thta i saved in Antonyms, i used in RC.
OK, OK, let me tell you how i tackled Antonyms.
In Antonym questions, out of the 5 options, 3 will be a clear-cut NO -NO.
Let me take an example :
find the antonym of DIVULGE :
a) keep secret
b) evaluate by onself
c) refine
d) restore
e) copy.
look at the question first. DIVULGE. divulge bascially means give out some information, not keep back the information.
so you need to look for an answer which says "hold back, dont share, keep secret, dont tell anyone". After having an idea as to what you want from the answer options, now take a look at the answer options:
a) keep secret - hmmmmm...seems pretty good... give it a mental rating of 8/10...
move ahead to see if other options are as good.
b) evaluate by oneself - "evaluating by onself" is no way close to "hold back, dont share, keep secret, dont tell anyone". ..... give it a raing of 0/10
c) refine - "refine" is no way close to "hold back, dont share, keep secret, dont tell anyone". ..... give it a raing of 0/10
d) restore - "restore" is no way close to "hold back, dont share, keep secret, dont tell anyone". ..... give it a raing of 0/10
e) copy - "copy" is no way close to "hold back, dont share, keep secret, dont tell anyone". ..... give it a raing of 0/10
so, now after going thru all the options, you know that the only option that came close to what you thought was the option a) keep secret.... so you can be sure that you have marked the right answer and move ahead confidently.
believe me friends, having a good grip on antonyms is very important...becuase the time that you save here will be used in RC... RCs are very tough. topics on feminism, humanitarianism, some old damn painting, some cultural revolution of 1400 BC....god !! RCs are damn tough and need to time for that... thank the ETS guys for having introduced antonyms!!!
Antonyms are the most easiest questions on the GRE. you will get around 8-9 questions on antonyms. Antonyms, i feel, are like maths. Either you know the answer or you dont. There will be a very few cases when u will have a dilemma as to which of the 2 most probables one to pick!.. the assumption is that the remaining 3 are a clear-cut NO.
My point is - when you are thorough with the wordlist, you wont have any confusion about the right answer. Just by a glance (i am not even saying a perusal) , you will be able to identify the answer. The best thing about Antonyms is that they are real TIME-SAVERs!... i m not boasting, but i really could answer the antonym questions in just 5-6 seconds. so i used to save 9 * 55 seconds ( i have simple maths here - 30 questions in 30 mins. so a question/min). The thta i saved in Antonyms, i used in RC.
OK, OK, let me tell you how i tackled Antonyms.
In Antonym questions, out of the 5 options, 3 will be a clear-cut NO -NO.
Let me take an example :
find the antonym of DIVULGE :
a) keep secret
b) evaluate by onself
c) refine
d) restore
e) copy.
look at the question first. DIVULGE. divulge bascially means give out some information, not keep back the information.
so you need to look for an answer which says "hold back, dont share, keep secret, dont tell anyone". After having an idea as to what you want from the answer options, now take a look at the answer options:
a) keep secret - hmmmmm...seems pretty good... give it a mental rating of 8/10...
move ahead to see if other options are as good.
b) evaluate by oneself - "evaluating by onself" is no way close to "hold back, dont share, keep secret, dont tell anyone". ..... give it a raing of 0/10
c) refine - "refine" is no way close to "hold back, dont share, keep secret, dont tell anyone". ..... give it a raing of 0/10
d) restore - "restore" is no way close to "hold back, dont share, keep secret, dont tell anyone". ..... give it a raing of 0/10
e) copy - "copy" is no way close to "hold back, dont share, keep secret, dont tell anyone". ..... give it a raing of 0/10
so, now after going thru all the options, you know that the only option that came close to what you thought was the option a) keep secret.... so you can be sure that you have marked the right answer and move ahead confidently.
believe me friends, having a good grip on antonyms is very important...becuase the time that you save here will be used in RC... RCs are very tough. topics on feminism, humanitarianism, some old damn painting, some cultural revolution of 1400 BC....god !! RCs are damn tough and need to time for that... thank the ETS guys for having introduced antonyms!!!
Tuesday, 11 August 2009
How I scored 1440 in GRE...
Since 2003 I have been taking CAT, CET, GMAT and GREs..! I knew I deserved something good. So I waited till now.. took GRE on 6th aug 2009… got 1440- verbal 640 + maths-800…even in 2005 I had attempted GRE..that time my breakup was 640+780…. Anyways, this article is just an attempt from my side to help GRE takers…
First of all, ignore what the world hypes about the difficulty level of GRE… people unnecessarily keep saying that ‘GRE is getting tougher day by day’..i don’t agree with that. Its your level of preparation that is going to make the exam sound easy or difficult.
FOR VERBAL: I really wonder what ETS is upto when they want to know whether students can remember the meanings of words that normal human beings never ever use… I mean, come on, have you ever said “hey, I got discombobulated” instead of “hey, I got confused”!!! but anyways, we can’t change the rules of the game, so we just need to know how to tackle the beast…
By the way, you all must be aware that GRE is an ADAPTIVE test..right?... lemme not touch that aspect then…
Ok. There are 4 types of questions that are asked in verbal section :
1) Antonyms (around 8questions)
2) sentence correction (around 7 questions)
3) analogies (around 7 questions)
4) Reading comprehension. (around 8-9 questions)
The first 3 types of questions can be very well handled if your vocab is good.
Of course I m not expecting you to know the whole dictionary! J..just make sure that you are thorough with the word list given in BARRONS GRE. I really feel that BARRONS GRE is the bible for preparation for GRE!.. you would find many people who would say “ dump that barrons first”.. I wonder what makes them feel that!... I scored 640 2 times by using only barrons!
The wordlist in barrons is of 3500 words!... words like – discombobulated, recidivism, appurtenance, hiatus! WHO ON EARTH USES THOSE WORDS!! …someone tell me!
Anyways, there is no shortcut to learn the word list. You have to spend time to remember the words. You do anything to keep the words in your mind – write the words , use flash cards, make silly associations of words and some pictures in your mind, read out the words loud, start using the words in your day-to-day speaking. Discombobulate ur friends!!
I will give you one example. There is a word –stickler. It means a person who is particular about everything, someone who wants everything to be at its own place.! In engineering college, I had a room partner named Yogesh More who was very particular about cleanliness, neatness!... so I created a mental association of STICKLER and Yogesh More! So next time I see the word stickler, I know what it means!!!...understood?
Create ANY DAMN pattern to remember words. Don’t worry about what the stupidity or foolishness of the pattern. Its only till the time you take the GRE, that you need to remember those patterns!..right? J
Once you are done with the wordlist, you start reading a thesaurus. Thesaurus is mainly to give u an idea about the different shades of any word.
Like, the the example of the word – application.
The normal meaning we know is that of a formal letter to get some work done.
But there is one meaning of ‘application’ that normally all don’t know.
APPLICATION also means DILIGENT ATTENTION.
So, thesaurus will give u all the synonyms of a word.
After you are done with the barrons wordlist, you can directly jump into solving questions. Seriously, once you know how a word is used in different contexts, the above first 3 types of questions would be easy for you.
Reading comprehension has been haunting me since 2003!... I still haven’t been able to figure out what the passage said and what I understood! J… kidding! There are many ways to tackle RC. I would tell you what I did to handle RC.
First read the passage slowly! Believe me, you will save a lot of time by solving Antonyms and Analogies quickly. So you can use that time in RC. I m not trying to blow my own trumpet, but really I could solve antonyms in just 5-6 seconds. Btw, there are 30 questions to be solved in 30 mins in verbal section. i.e a min a question. I used to save 55 * 8 seconds and I used to use that time in RC…get my point?
Use you strength to save time on easy questions and use that time wisely on the tougher questions. I used to spend arnd 4 mins to read a 70 line passage!.. I know you must be feeling that I was very slowly. But, I took time to comprehend! This is what happens when you don’t have a good reading habit!
When you read the first paragraph, try to judge what the next content is going to be. If the author is disgruntled about something, then be sure that he is going to propose something that is better than the previously mentioned method. And subsequently he will propose why he thinks the other method is good…etc. GRE passages normally follow a pattern. After solving some 50-60 passages , you will come to know the structure of the passage. You will even be able to anticipate what can be asked!...practice s very very important here. Google for “1000 RC”. use that document for RCs. It’s a sea of RCs. But be sure that you understand what is going wrong after each RC. The NUMBER of ‘RCs solved’ is not important, it’s ‘what you learned’ is important.
After you are done with all this preparation, solve GRE BIG Book. It’s the bible of GRE exams. I had solved some 8 tests and I can surely say that the second question in the main exam came verbatim from the GRE BIG Book.!
And after that don’t forget to solve the tests given in the ETS GRE Powerprep (CD that you get on registering for exam)
Let me know if can be of more help to you. I have a lot of soft copy material with me. Those who want can contact me at dipenambalia@gmail.com . Then you can meet me personally to get the material. I stay in kalyan… needless to say; I will give the material free of cost!
Btw, I m have not discussed MATHS because its damn easy!!
Happy GREing!!
First of all, ignore what the world hypes about the difficulty level of GRE… people unnecessarily keep saying that ‘GRE is getting tougher day by day’..i don’t agree with that. Its your level of preparation that is going to make the exam sound easy or difficult.
FOR VERBAL: I really wonder what ETS is upto when they want to know whether students can remember the meanings of words that normal human beings never ever use… I mean, come on, have you ever said “hey, I got discombobulated” instead of “hey, I got confused”!!! but anyways, we can’t change the rules of the game, so we just need to know how to tackle the beast…
By the way, you all must be aware that GRE is an ADAPTIVE test..right?... lemme not touch that aspect then…
Ok. There are 4 types of questions that are asked in verbal section :
1) Antonyms (around 8questions)
2) sentence correction (around 7 questions)
3) analogies (around 7 questions)
4) Reading comprehension. (around 8-9 questions)
The first 3 types of questions can be very well handled if your vocab is good.
Of course I m not expecting you to know the whole dictionary! J..just make sure that you are thorough with the word list given in BARRONS GRE. I really feel that BARRONS GRE is the bible for preparation for GRE!.. you would find many people who would say “ dump that barrons first”.. I wonder what makes them feel that!... I scored 640 2 times by using only barrons!
The wordlist in barrons is of 3500 words!... words like – discombobulated, recidivism, appurtenance, hiatus! WHO ON EARTH USES THOSE WORDS!! …someone tell me!
Anyways, there is no shortcut to learn the word list. You have to spend time to remember the words. You do anything to keep the words in your mind – write the words , use flash cards, make silly associations of words and some pictures in your mind, read out the words loud, start using the words in your day-to-day speaking. Discombobulate ur friends!!
I will give you one example. There is a word –stickler. It means a person who is particular about everything, someone who wants everything to be at its own place.! In engineering college, I had a room partner named Yogesh More who was very particular about cleanliness, neatness!... so I created a mental association of STICKLER and Yogesh More! So next time I see the word stickler, I know what it means!!!...understood?
Create ANY DAMN pattern to remember words. Don’t worry about what the stupidity or foolishness of the pattern. Its only till the time you take the GRE, that you need to remember those patterns!..right? J
Once you are done with the wordlist, you start reading a thesaurus. Thesaurus is mainly to give u an idea about the different shades of any word.
Like, the the example of the word – application.
The normal meaning we know is that of a formal letter to get some work done.
But there is one meaning of ‘application’ that normally all don’t know.
APPLICATION also means DILIGENT ATTENTION.
So, thesaurus will give u all the synonyms of a word.
After you are done with the barrons wordlist, you can directly jump into solving questions. Seriously, once you know how a word is used in different contexts, the above first 3 types of questions would be easy for you.
Reading comprehension has been haunting me since 2003!... I still haven’t been able to figure out what the passage said and what I understood! J… kidding! There are many ways to tackle RC. I would tell you what I did to handle RC.
First read the passage slowly! Believe me, you will save a lot of time by solving Antonyms and Analogies quickly. So you can use that time in RC. I m not trying to blow my own trumpet, but really I could solve antonyms in just 5-6 seconds. Btw, there are 30 questions to be solved in 30 mins in verbal section. i.e a min a question. I used to save 55 * 8 seconds and I used to use that time in RC…get my point?
Use you strength to save time on easy questions and use that time wisely on the tougher questions. I used to spend arnd 4 mins to read a 70 line passage!.. I know you must be feeling that I was very slowly. But, I took time to comprehend! This is what happens when you don’t have a good reading habit!
When you read the first paragraph, try to judge what the next content is going to be. If the author is disgruntled about something, then be sure that he is going to propose something that is better than the previously mentioned method. And subsequently he will propose why he thinks the other method is good…etc. GRE passages normally follow a pattern. After solving some 50-60 passages , you will come to know the structure of the passage. You will even be able to anticipate what can be asked!...practice s very very important here. Google for “1000 RC”. use that document for RCs. It’s a sea of RCs. But be sure that you understand what is going wrong after each RC. The NUMBER of ‘RCs solved’ is not important, it’s ‘what you learned’ is important.
After you are done with all this preparation, solve GRE BIG Book. It’s the bible of GRE exams. I had solved some 8 tests and I can surely say that the second question in the main exam came verbatim from the GRE BIG Book.!
And after that don’t forget to solve the tests given in the ETS GRE Powerprep (CD that you get on registering for exam)
Let me know if can be of more help to you. I have a lot of soft copy material with me. Those who want can contact me at dipenambalia@gmail.com . Then you can meet me personally to get the material. I stay in kalyan… needless to say; I will give the material free of cost!
Btw, I m have not discussed MATHS because its damn easy!!
Happy GREing!!
Friday, 31 July 2009
Comparisons, comparisons, comparisons....
At the time of writing this blog, i am little over 26 years of age..... the thing that really bothers me till now is COMPARISONS.... i wonder when will this stop... i mean why is that one is compared to the peers, or seniors or juniors??
Take the childhood as an example. when we are kids are compared to the toppers in the class. we are always told to emulate someone... in case of studies , emulate the topper... in case of athletics , emulate the most energetic and active guy... in case you are a fat guy, u are told to slim up like the most slim guy in the class...(i know that the last comparison was an exxaggeration :)).. but still, we are never told to be "us"...always, be "him/them".
Even adulthood isnt exempted from this "Comparison-syndrome". when you get into a company , you are compared even to the remotest friend who works in a better firm . BETTER in this case would mean - more money and better ranking in the Business world or some magazine... people dont take into consideration the type or work or the environment or the responsibility into consideration! salary and ranking of the company are what matter to the people who suffer from by the "Comparison-syndrome".
As far as old age, i dont know what it would be like. but as far as i can imagine- even at old age, people would compare the money you saved, the highest position that you reached in professional life, the number of flats you have, the number of cars you own, the number of children of yours who went abroad to learn and earn!... i sometimes wonder when will people stop comparing!!!!!... every human being in this world is different. That the only thing that i feel is that people should follow the "Appreciate the potential. Dont force anyone to emulate someone else" policy.
One should be motivated. Not be compared.
One should be shown a rosy picture to pep up and achieve that thing. Not be compared.
One should be told about the positive effects of doing a particular thing. Not be compared.
All in all, stop comparing. Tell the child to score 100/100 and not try to be some "Vijay" who scores 95!
Take the childhood as an example. when we are kids are compared to the toppers in the class. we are always told to emulate someone... in case of studies , emulate the topper... in case of athletics , emulate the most energetic and active guy... in case you are a fat guy, u are told to slim up like the most slim guy in the class...(i know that the last comparison was an exxaggeration :)).. but still, we are never told to be "us"...always, be "him/them".
Even adulthood isnt exempted from this "Comparison-syndrome". when you get into a company , you are compared even to the remotest friend who works in a better firm . BETTER in this case would mean - more money and better ranking in the Business world or some magazine... people dont take into consideration the type or work or the environment or the responsibility into consideration! salary and ranking of the company are what matter to the people who suffer from by the "Comparison-syndrome".
As far as old age, i dont know what it would be like. but as far as i can imagine- even at old age, people would compare the money you saved, the highest position that you reached in professional life, the number of flats you have, the number of cars you own, the number of children of yours who went abroad to learn and earn!... i sometimes wonder when will people stop comparing!!!!!... every human being in this world is different. That the only thing that i feel is that people should follow the "Appreciate the potential. Dont force anyone to emulate someone else" policy.
One should be motivated. Not be compared.
One should be shown a rosy picture to pep up and achieve that thing. Not be compared.
One should be told about the positive effects of doing a particular thing. Not be compared.
All in all, stop comparing. Tell the child to score 100/100 and not try to be some "Vijay" who scores 95!
Monday, 20 July 2009
Trek To Rajmachi...!
18 july 2009 was a day to remember the rest of my life...
It was a trip to Rajmachi.. a fort near Karjat... it was a gruelling trek, so to say.
We started at 6.30 in the morning and boarded the 6.45 karjat local from kalyan; reached Karjat by 7.50 AM... we had a bite at the very famous "Karjat cha Vada Pav"... the took a rik and reached the village named Kondhane. Now, it was the time for the real trek! we had to climb for a span of 4 hrs! There was one fear in ours minds; the fear was of getting lost in the forest..So we hired a village boy named "Sunil". He agreed to guide us till the top for rs.300. At the end of the trek we realised that rs.300 was worth !... chances were very high that we could have lost the track to the top.
We were 10 guys. Started the climb uphill. In less than an hour, we passed through a patch that was heavily infested by mosquitoes! Big rocks, small streams, marshy patches, heavenly greens and mild-to-heavy rains - we faced all this. after some 2.5 hrs of gruelling climb, we took rest for some 15-20 mins at a small hutment where we replenished ourselves with some "Kokam sherbet" or "Nimboo Sherbet" or "chai". needless, to say we clicked N number of photos; especially some "orkut" photos to impress friends!
After this small hiatus, we commenced our journey and reached the village at the base of the fort in 30 mins. We decided on the menu for the lunch and then kept our belongings at one of the houses where we fixed we would have our lunch. The fort didnt SEEM too far from this place! but it took us atleast 45 mins to reach the top. This patch, i should say, was a bit dangerous. One needs to be vey cautious while treading this patch. The view from the top of the fort was ineffable! Cold winds, rain and the thrill of being AT THE TOP of the world was just amazing!..
You got to be there to believe it!
We clicked a few more pics and then came back to the base of the fort. The lunch that ensued was one the best lunches we had ever had!(except for the chicken) . The 'Bhurji' and 'Andakari' were class apart! The time now was 5.00 PM.
We had 2 options to go back - 1) retrace the path by which we came. 2) follow a trail of 4.5 hrs and go to lonavla and then take train or some transport to reach mumbai!.
The second option seemed more logical. We started at 5.30 walked for 4 hrs and reached Lonavla at 9.30 PM. The trail was amazing! No lights from 7.30 to 9.30 PM. we had to rely just on torches we had brought and on the strong lights emanating from the resorts nearby!
Somehow we reached Lonavla. We heaved a sigh of relief. And concluded that this trek was one the most difficult that most of us had ever been to!..
We then booked a Qualis and reached mumbai at 12.30 AM... and reached home at 1.20 AM!
For facts about Rajmachi, Google should be of more help!..this article was more about the experience than about Rajmachi!... happy trekking!
http://picasaweb.google.co.in/dipenambalia/TrekToRajmachi
It was a trip to Rajmachi.. a fort near Karjat... it was a gruelling trek, so to say.
We started at 6.30 in the morning and boarded the 6.45 karjat local from kalyan; reached Karjat by 7.50 AM... we had a bite at the very famous "Karjat cha Vada Pav"... the took a rik and reached the village named Kondhane. Now, it was the time for the real trek! we had to climb for a span of 4 hrs! There was one fear in ours minds; the fear was of getting lost in the forest..So we hired a village boy named "Sunil". He agreed to guide us till the top for rs.300. At the end of the trek we realised that rs.300 was worth !... chances were very high that we could have lost the track to the top.
We were 10 guys. Started the climb uphill. In less than an hour, we passed through a patch that was heavily infested by mosquitoes! Big rocks, small streams, marshy patches, heavenly greens and mild-to-heavy rains - we faced all this. after some 2.5 hrs of gruelling climb, we took rest for some 15-20 mins at a small hutment where we replenished ourselves with some "Kokam sherbet" or "Nimboo Sherbet" or "chai". needless, to say we clicked N number of photos; especially some "orkut" photos to impress friends!
After this small hiatus, we commenced our journey and reached the village at the base of the fort in 30 mins. We decided on the menu for the lunch and then kept our belongings at one of the houses where we fixed we would have our lunch. The fort didnt SEEM too far from this place! but it took us atleast 45 mins to reach the top. This patch, i should say, was a bit dangerous. One needs to be vey cautious while treading this patch. The view from the top of the fort was ineffable! Cold winds, rain and the thrill of being AT THE TOP of the world was just amazing!..
You got to be there to believe it!
We clicked a few more pics and then came back to the base of the fort. The lunch that ensued was one the best lunches we had ever had!(except for the chicken) . The 'Bhurji' and 'Andakari' were class apart! The time now was 5.00 PM.
We had 2 options to go back - 1) retrace the path by which we came. 2) follow a trail of 4.5 hrs and go to lonavla and then take train or some transport to reach mumbai!.
The second option seemed more logical. We started at 5.30 walked for 4 hrs and reached Lonavla at 9.30 PM. The trail was amazing! No lights from 7.30 to 9.30 PM. we had to rely just on torches we had brought and on the strong lights emanating from the resorts nearby!
Somehow we reached Lonavla. We heaved a sigh of relief. And concluded that this trek was one the most difficult that most of us had ever been to!..
We then booked a Qualis and reached mumbai at 12.30 AM... and reached home at 1.20 AM!
For facts about Rajmachi, Google should be of more help!..this article was more about the experience than about Rajmachi!... happy trekking!
http://picasaweb.google.co.in/dipenambalia/TrekToRajmachi
Wednesday, 15 July 2009
A Silent Scream....
(This article is a fiction.)
On 27 December 2008 I went to the Rajawadi Hospital at Ghatkopar. Vikas Salunkhe, a member of Bal-Vikas (an NGO) was sitting beside her. She was draped in a white gown. Both her hands were being fed saline. Her face looked very pale. She had become very weak. She didn’t even the energy to move her eyes around. She had lost the count of what was happening around her. She hadn’t seen me before but I had seen her before.
I distinctly remember the day – 21st December 2008. I was in my Chevrolet UVA. I was stuck at the Saki Naka traffic signal. My favorite song was being played on the radio. Suddenly my eyes got stuck on this girl with a red frock. Her frock was striped. There were lots of patches applied on it. She had dark circles around her eyes. She was among the 10-12 kids who were playing football made of a sock that was stuffed with paper. I should say that she seemed like the Maradona of that group. Suddenly a man came from behind and slapped her and started scolding her.
The light turned green and I had to move on. The next day again I got stuck at the Saki Naka signal. This time she was not playing with her friends. She had a bunch of packets of peanuts. She knocked on the window of my car. I lowered the glass and took 10 packets of peanuts from her (even though I hate peanuts.)I complimented her on her football skills. She was stunned – maybe because she was wondering why I was keeping an eye on her or maybe because she herself wasn’t sure what game she was playing..!
She smiled and went away happy that she had done a business of rs.30 in just 2 minutes. The signal turned green and the cars behind started honking and I moved on.
Back to 27th December 2008. I asked Vikas as to what prompted such a sweet girl to get admitted at Rajawadi Hospital. Vikas then narrated the plight of that cute girl. On 23 rd dec ie., 4 days ago, she was subjected to inhumane acts. Abbas Bhai, the head of beggars in and around Saki Naka saw her at the Saki Naka signal and took her to his den. Abbas Bhai was sure that she was the best fit in his ‘beggars Kingdom”. That cute girl was then tormented in every unimaginable way. Drops of acid were sprinkled on her hands and feet. Her hair was cut unevenly. Her tongue was cut; and so were 3 fingers from her left hand. Every attempt was made to make her look like an authentic beggar. That night 3 local goons visited Abbas Bhai. That sweet girl who was tormented during that day was surrounded by all four. Then --------------------------. She was then thrown near the Ramabai Bus stop, near to Saki Naka. When she opened her eyes, she found herself in Rajawadi Hospital. Her name is Bindu. Now, she just stares at the ceiling and wonders why GOD had been so cruel to her. With her tongue cut, she can’t even talk, argue or complain. Tears flow from her eyes. Each tear is like a silent scream. There are so many Bindus in our society. Let’s join hands to fight against child injustice. Let’s get this society rid of such Silent Screams.
On 27 December 2008 I went to the Rajawadi Hospital at Ghatkopar. Vikas Salunkhe, a member of Bal-Vikas (an NGO) was sitting beside her. She was draped in a white gown. Both her hands were being fed saline. Her face looked very pale. She had become very weak. She didn’t even the energy to move her eyes around. She had lost the count of what was happening around her. She hadn’t seen me before but I had seen her before.
I distinctly remember the day – 21st December 2008. I was in my Chevrolet UVA. I was stuck at the Saki Naka traffic signal. My favorite song was being played on the radio. Suddenly my eyes got stuck on this girl with a red frock. Her frock was striped. There were lots of patches applied on it. She had dark circles around her eyes. She was among the 10-12 kids who were playing football made of a sock that was stuffed with paper. I should say that she seemed like the Maradona of that group. Suddenly a man came from behind and slapped her and started scolding her.
The light turned green and I had to move on. The next day again I got stuck at the Saki Naka signal. This time she was not playing with her friends. She had a bunch of packets of peanuts. She knocked on the window of my car. I lowered the glass and took 10 packets of peanuts from her (even though I hate peanuts.)I complimented her on her football skills. She was stunned – maybe because she was wondering why I was keeping an eye on her or maybe because she herself wasn’t sure what game she was playing..!
She smiled and went away happy that she had done a business of rs.30 in just 2 minutes. The signal turned green and the cars behind started honking and I moved on.
Back to 27th December 2008. I asked Vikas as to what prompted such a sweet girl to get admitted at Rajawadi Hospital. Vikas then narrated the plight of that cute girl. On 23 rd dec ie., 4 days ago, she was subjected to inhumane acts. Abbas Bhai, the head of beggars in and around Saki Naka saw her at the Saki Naka signal and took her to his den. Abbas Bhai was sure that she was the best fit in his ‘beggars Kingdom”. That cute girl was then tormented in every unimaginable way. Drops of acid were sprinkled on her hands and feet. Her hair was cut unevenly. Her tongue was cut; and so were 3 fingers from her left hand. Every attempt was made to make her look like an authentic beggar. That night 3 local goons visited Abbas Bhai. That sweet girl who was tormented during that day was surrounded by all four. Then --------------------------. She was then thrown near the Ramabai Bus stop, near to Saki Naka. When she opened her eyes, she found herself in Rajawadi Hospital. Her name is Bindu. Now, she just stares at the ceiling and wonders why GOD had been so cruel to her. With her tongue cut, she can’t even talk, argue or complain. Tears flow from her eyes. Each tear is like a silent scream. There are so many Bindus in our society. Let’s join hands to fight against child injustice. Let’s get this society rid of such Silent Screams.
Sunday, 13 April 2008
12 april 2008 .. one of the best days of my life...
"Thanks a ton for ur wishes...:)" -- is the sentence that i kept on saying the whole day on 12 april 2008... really , yesterday was very special for me... yesterday i completed silver jubilee of my existence on this planet... :)..... yesterday,the dear ones who were there for my 1st birthday were present ... it felt so niceeeeeeeeee.:).. i cant stop smiling....
I got very nostalgic on seeing my "First Bday pic"... there was I , cute, fat and adorable kid , holding a knife and just looking at the cake as if i were going to devour at once...:)... the people standing me (in that Pic) have also grown from being teenagers to being responsible mothers/daugthers-in-law or fathers/sons-in-law ... and they are few of the people with whom i would like to be in touch for years to come...
Even my team-mates had made 11 april a memorable day for me... we had cake, DHOLKA,Khandvi and wafers, and 2 very creatively written Greeting Cards.... and above all, theor love and affection and blessings... :)... (i hope all these best wishes and blessings help me in getting a beautiful and decent wife ;)...)
Another way of looking at all this tells me one thing that "DIPEN, U HAVE COMPLETED 1/3 OF UR LIFE ON THIS EARTH...NOW ITS TIME TO MAKE A MARK...."... now , i have decided that i would do something that would make all my loved ones proud of me.. :).... i will give them an oppurtunity to say " Dipen... oh yes... we do know him... hes like our kid/bro/frnd.... "... i will bring smiles on their faces.!!...
I got very nostalgic on seeing my "First Bday pic"... there was I , cute, fat and adorable kid , holding a knife and just looking at the cake as if i were going to devour at once...:)... the people standing me (in that Pic) have also grown from being teenagers to being responsible mothers/daugthers-in-law or fathers/sons-in-law ... and they are few of the people with whom i would like to be in touch for years to come...
Even my team-mates had made 11 april a memorable day for me... we had cake, DHOLKA,Khandvi and wafers, and 2 very creatively written Greeting Cards.... and above all, theor love and affection and blessings... :)... (i hope all these best wishes and blessings help me in getting a beautiful and decent wife ;)...)
Another way of looking at all this tells me one thing that "DIPEN, U HAVE COMPLETED 1/3 OF UR LIFE ON THIS EARTH...NOW ITS TIME TO MAKE A MARK...."... now , i have decided that i would do something that would make all my loved ones proud of me.. :).... i will give them an oppurtunity to say " Dipen... oh yes... we do know him... hes like our kid/bro/frnd.... "... i will bring smiles on their faces.!!...
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