Is Less the New More?

When I was a kid, birthday parties were celebrated at home. Friends were called in and after a few customary party games and the cake-cutting ceremony, some treats were served. The cake was a big one. A 2 kg one usually, which not only lasted that party but also for the next few days. The parties where you had a small cake served usually didn't have a 'lavish' birthday bash. Lately, I have seen people (usually girls) celebrating their birthday with a just like a 200g cake piece. And all 15 girls eat a small bite from that. Now, why I've written girls and not guys is 'cos guys don't even bother to buy a cake, for them alcohol is the new cake. Coming back to the point, it's not a very revealing or an important observation, but in my diary, is still a noteworthy one. Is it because of health consciousness, us becoming more practical or preferring quality over quantity? That I do not know. But, it has repercussions.

For some of us who have been to Delhi, which places usually come to mind when asked to list the posh places here? Now, I'm sure the list varies, but it remains the same vastly. Most of us would agree that it's incomplete without Khan Market. Now, I intend no hate for Khan Market, but have you looked at the place? Properly? A small, shitty compound which is red with 'pan peek'. There are the typical 'Dilli ke chichore' floating about, holding each other's pinky finger and checking out young girls smoking. The stairways are usually very shady. The whole place is pretty congested and parking is also a problem. The exteriors are poorly constructed, old and the urine vapours in the narrow lanes will definitely not remind you of the grandeur the place boasts of. Having said all this, it is one of the most renowned places in Delhi due to the deluxe brand names which reside in this unpleasantly described shit-hole. The 'coolest' lounges are present too, to lure the youth. The questionable staircase leads to an imposing Bar & Restaurant or to a showroom where a simple dress for a lady would cost an honest Govt. Employee a month's salary. 10 years back when malls weren't that prevalent, Khan Market did come across as the solution to the list of posh places. But still? 

Teenage pregnancies, decline in the 'big fat Indian Marriages', rampant smoking among school kids-  

Is less the new more? 

The Uncomfortable Disarray Within

Ever sit and think about the worst things in life? The worst thoughts, the worst emotions? Most of them are related to others, to people you love or are connected. Yes, you get love, but it comes with huge liability. As a primary school student, getting less marks was frightening. Because of what follows at home, not because the Math score of class 4 will render you jobless the entire life. At 16, your parents overhear you talking to your gf/bf is appalling. At 18, you hide and puff that cigarette, why? At 23, you are scared to remain jobless, why? For most people, it is because living life on your own terms comes with a hefty price, and not everybody can afford it- being a rebel. You hustle, starting with your parents, rustling through relatives, you have to even go against your friends at the end, the very friends who were with you since the start. Sometimes, the fight is so intense and conflicting you have to go against yourself. What does that mean, going against your own self? It doesn't necessarily mean what comes to your mind instantly. It means going against the very grain that was instilled in you since you were a kid, it is scandalizing at times to oppose the moral fiber your life has been based upon. You start to think of the past. Of your seemingly wrong actions, the depth of blunders you committed because you did what was taught. Were those really blunders? Because you acted according to the information at hand. This gives birth to independent thinking. Contrary to popular belief, having a beer or celebrating your 18th doesn't mature you or magically turn you adult. The birth of independent thinking does.

The world's a master manipulator and you can't predict a single aspect of it. By world, I mean human behavior, collective human behavior. The simple reason behind it is that there are tonnes of variables involved, it's a massive equation no one has ever solved, because no one knows what to solve for. There is no solution, because there is no question. It's so simple yet complex, so comprehensible yet so opaque. The more you think about it, the more tangled you get and the farther away you are, simpler it gets.