Cricket

Cricket- a game invented by the British and now followed as a religion in the Indian subcontinent, is not a sport, or should I say, not just a sport...it is beyond that. People say,"Life is sport". But it is the original test cricket which teaches you how to live life. To be a real cricketer, besides acquiring skills and knowledge of rules, one requires the temperament, patience, dedication, hard-work, the cricketing spirit, faith and most of all, joy. It was famously referred to as ' the gentleman's game'- a game, which played in its original way, teaches you to be the perfect human(sounds a little far-fetched, doesn't it?).

Test cricket is a matter of five whole days, in which the team which scores more out of the total of two innings, is the winner- as simple as that! Playing a test match is anything but, when cricketers really have to put their heart and soul into the game 8-hours a day for the duration of the match. However, right from early stages of its history, cricket could never be a global sport. That is primarily because of the complexities of the game, and of course nowadays also due to its consuming a long time. It was a prime sport in its place of birth (England), and spread to its colonies, of which the Indian subcontinent was a part. In India it was played by the royal elites- Ranjisinghji, the magical player of yesteryears also belonged to the princely class. Australia also played this game with utmost passion, as it was a part of British rule till its independence in 1900. In fact, the bilateral series between Australia and England involved immense pride, which, due to a famous incident, was renamed 'The Ashes'. A little later it was a team known as West Indies which announced its arrival in the cricketing world and revolutionised it to a large extent.

India played its first match in 1932 against England, which it lost, but not before creating a few flutters. At present, there are ten countries which are the so-called 'cricketing nations', although in some of these nations the primary sport is not cricket. Australia are the champions but, India, by far is the biggest and the most passionate cricketing nation in the world. There have been nine Cricket World Cups and England, the founder of the game, has not yet won a single one. To make it global, cricket has undergone a lot of changes: in its approach as well as the rules. The traditional test cricket still remains, but 50-over matches and most recently the 20-over format, giving rise to animalistic approach to make it more happening and exciting, has wooed spectators like never before. It no longer remains the gentleman's game, although fragments of it can still be found in the way some cricketers play it. Cricket of today involves instinct, intense sledging, cunningness, innovative ideas and aggression. Australia, especially, has shown us the way. Although the excitement and addiction to the game in the shorter versions, especially the micro-mini form of the game, is unmatchable, it is really disheartening to witness its side-effects spilling over to the original version.

It is indeed a matter of amazement that there are people in the Indian subcontinent who are patrons of cricket in the right way, realising the true value of the original game- the subtleties of the traditional forward defence, the off-drives, the pulls and hooks, the prettiness of seamline bowling: the outswings and the inswings, the value of spending time on the crease....A true cricket-lover would never stop sipping this elixir and value batsmen like VVS Laxman, who have made cricket even more beautiful to watch. Most of the 21st Century greats are more brutally efficient, not pretty really. I do accept the growing unpalatable content not with a heavy heart, as I know there are people in this world who'd bring back the true aura. Life is cricket.

Journalism Hons.

Every person has a story to tell; as people say 'life is a lesson', it can also be viewed as a rollercoaster journey towards achieving our dreams. And it is totally mysterious, no person would have any clue about the events that would take place in his or her life or the reasons for it. When we go through tough phases in our short span of career and life, we look above and find the Almighty smiling at us; when we go through happy and successful phases, we again find Him smiling at us exactly the same way, and then we find the answer-everything in this world happens for good.
Personally, I feel my life has been a largely violent joyride, overwhelming me with omens to realise my dreams(although it may seem quite far-fetched). Unlike others, I hardly knew where my future lay till about a month ago.

My greatly dreaded board exam results were a rude shock to everyone, though I had anticipated this. What troubled me most was the reaction of my supposed well-wishers, for whom success is almost the only criteria of judgement-normally success in academics. All of them expected a lot from me, so for them it was kind of an anti-climax. They weren't frank with their perceptions and largely tried to console without being able to say that their opinion about me had changed. My life fell into turbulence and turmoil soon after, when the cut-offs in my dream colleges soared, and I wasn't able to make up my mind about what undergraduate course I'd pursue.

However, I always knew that everyone on this planet is uniquely special and has one's own place. I had by now understood that I was made for Arts; with such horrible result and with the abolishment of entrance tests for the english hons. course, I was in a terrible fix. When I explored more options, I found out about the entrance tests for journalism hons. There was only one college in which I could effectively apply-out of five colleges in Delhi University offering this as an undergraduate course, three were girls' colleges and one other was too far way from my residence. I applied for DCAC and prayed and hoped that I would be through, for this was the best option for boys. On the day of the entrance test, my eyes popped out of my sockets when looked at the count of candidates-465. There was vacancy for only 20.

Results were declared the same day-I was overjoyed to read my name among the 90 selected for interview. I ate, drank and slept interviews after that, till the d-day arrived. Honestly, I think I was able to express myself really well, and the jury seemed to be impressed- I couldn't help leave a philosophical touch in all my answers and statements(which may or may not have worked in my favour). I was so sure this time that I would get through, but my name wasn't in the initial list. I was asking myself and the stars what went wrong.

I had read one of my Orkut predictions-'Pleasant surprise is in store for you' a few months ago. That surprise came in the form of a letter two weeks ago that informed me about my selection.

In Journalism Hons. at DCAC, I have my rightful place among the so called elites of the college. The college is supposed to have got its reputation largely on the basis of this course, so being a Journo student is prestigious. Now I know that I've entered the right doorway since I've got like-minded students as my classmates-peaceful, friendly and matured; and coupled with the fact that I now have a base to achieve heights in the profession which suits me, its like a dream come true. But over the past few months, I've had lots of ups and downs-in fact, more of downs..so I really do have an idea of the stampedes for admissions and the repurcussions an unsatisfactory Board result may have in a student's career.

I have long been an admirer of people with good values and beautiful minds, regardless of whether they have achieved worldly successes. And I wish I could teach this to people..and well-wishers...

Metro

Right from the time I had arrived in Delhi two years ago, I have been travelling to most of the places through metro. I remember the first month of my stay here-Delhi metro was so new to me, and so fascinating that I actually enjoyed sitting in the same seat like a dummy for almost an hour-the time taken for travel to and from school. Through the months and eventually two whole years, I find myself deeply attached to it.

Metro travel is not easy. To arrive at the college in the stipulated time, you have to rush, as the college is far. Entering the train is pleasant indeed, as you get immediately the whiff of cool breeze of the air conditioner. When you get a place to sit, you consider yourself lucky as you imagine the situation inside the train after just a few stations-the number of people increases tremendously and so quickly that you cannot help feel like it's magic. And what a pleasant journey it becomes then, when without a seat you have to stand and feel not just claustrophobic, but unable to stand properly or even move any part of body since there are millions inside the train. It seems the people that surround you always forget to apply perfumes-strong body odour of these people cannot escape you. The best possible situation arises when your head is positioned under someone's armpits, which are given a free licence to publicise their smell when the hand moves forward to get a support. You try to breathe through your mouth but find yourself unable to do so-you've just got to accept it and wait for your destination. This, incredibly, happens more often than not. Needless to say, you are impatient to reach Rajiv Chowk and escape the train.

You, however, still have to wade through an ocean of people wherever you go, since there would again be millions travelling with you in yellow line(the separate route of metro). At Central Secratariat, you heave a sigh of relief as you have finally succeeded in protecting yourself from stampede. On the way back in the afternoon, it is a similar story, but the train, packed to the core, gradually lessens its burden this time.

But even when you get a seat at the metro, you crave for a companion since it is so boring standing or sitting like a statue at the same place.

Boarding and deboarding is a separate worry-there is always an extensive pushing and shoving while the train opens its doors at a particular station. At Rajiv Chowk the amount of people is enormous, and hence the officials have mentioned a specific way of first letting people deboard from the middle, and then allowing people to board from the sides. They have tried their best to explain time and again about how it saves time and eliminates discomfort and stampede. Actually the public is not so cooperative, so there will always be a huge struggle at the doorway of people trying to come out and those trying to go in. I personally sometimes feel I could get crushed anyday. But that's life in India-that's metro travel in Delhi.

Although Kolkata metro is a lot less congested, I, inspite of all that happens to me everyday, have developed an unexplainable emotion towards Delhi metro travel. It is a part of my life for a long time now, and I dread the days ahead, when population of this country would manyfold within no time. But I still do like it. That way I'm not practical, but I cannot blame myself:everyone is peculiar in one's own way.