2014 - The Year of Patience

(L to R) Siddheswara Swamy Temple in Solapur, Mahabalipuram, Coorg, Mauritius, Undersea walking, Bathukamma

The Chinese name their New Year. For example, 2015 is the Year of Sheep. I thought of naming the old year, based on my experiences.  

For me, 2014 is the Year of Patience. 2014 has taught me that my predictions about future have a 50-50 % chance of occurrence.

As a recent graduate, I was used to routine. I knew the schedule of exams, when they take place, what is the syllabus etc. I could also guess the outcome of the exam. I realized that in life, the date of exams and the syllabus is unpredictable. I will be tested when I least expect it. I cannot guess the topic of the test nor the outcome.

I am thankful for all the places that I visited this year. Each place had something to take away.

In February, my hubby and I visited our relatives in Mumbai & Solapur. 

In April, we went to Coorg. I experienced homestay for the first time. I understood that homestays are decent.

In August, we visited Mauritius. I learned about overcoming fear. I did parasailing, undersea walking and almost touched a Lion.

In November, I went to Fisherman’s Cove and Mahabalipuram on a team offsite. Now that our team has a critical mass of women, I discovered the sisterhood of working women.

In December, I went to Delhi for a conference. The food in Delhi is out of this world. I will do a week long historical and food trip in Delhi, sometime in future.

I am thankful for the wonderful time I spent with my husband and my family.

I am thankful for my new writing project. I took the decision of splitting the blog based on the number of hits I got for posts. One blog will be dedicated to my stories and other to my life experiences.

 I will start 2015 with a new blog site.

Thanks to my hubby for buying a domain in my name (hint). I bought a blog theme on wordpress. I thought the old posts will magically reorganize themselves as per the theme. They did not! It took a lot more effort than I expected, but I thoroughly enjoyed the process of creating a new home from scratch.

I am sad about the accidents in general, on road and by air.

A few accidents happened to people who are close to me. I pray that they will have the strength to come out of these tough situations.

Ciao! See you in 2015 on a new blog site. Wishing you a great year ahead.  

In case you have missed. These are my top 5 posts in 2014. 

1) Poor Husbands
2) Management Lesson from the Kitchen
3) Telangana - The Birth of 29th State of India
4) Changing India - One Ad at a Time
5) People Say Something Do Something

3 Reasons Why You Need a Hobby

The New Year is around the corner. You should be itching to come up with resolutions for 2015. Here are three reasons why you should renew your passion for a hobby and include it as one of the resolutions. 

#1: Hobbies could help you find the right life partner

In India, arranged marriages are a complicated affair. It is a slow-date between you, your could-be life partner, parents, aunts and uncles from the girl's and the boy's side. 

In between all the hocus-pocus, the boy and the girl will have about 10-15 minutes to take a major life decision. One of the icebreakers during these life-altering conversations is ‘What are your hobbies?’ The boy and the girl scratch their heads to come up an innovative hobby, other than watching TV.

If your hobbies match, that is a good start to keep the conversation going. If all goes well, the conversation can end in a marriage. 

#2: Hobbies are good sources for relaxation

I pursued multiple hobbies as a kid. I used to paint, read, write and prepare greeting cards for near and dear. As a kid, these hobbies dissipated my energy and kept me off my mother’s back.

I pursue only two hobbies now. They are reading and blogging. I am blogging for almost two years now. A good blog post is like a mini-vacation. It rejuvenates me and prepares me to get back to work. I enjoy thinking about the post, writing it and posting it. I will be excited that day about that great blog post. 

#3: Hobbies are bridges of learning between work and personal life.

There are instances when a learning from my professional life seeps into my hobby and vice versa. Whenever there is a simplification drive at my workplace, I think about how to simplify my blog and make it more attractive. 

I am taking an online blogging course. I learned about how to make a blog post reader-friendly. I apply the same principle when I write work emails. I try to write emails which are succinct.

Hobbies also build personal connect in professional relationships and help in networking.

Now you know all the advantages of having a hobby. It is the right time to pick a hobby, learn and grow. 

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Collage created from different images. Sources of images.

camera Photo Credit: _Tophee_ via Compfight cc painting Photo Credit: TonalLuminosity via Compfight cc stamps Photo Credit: TonalLuminosity via Compfight cc books Photo Credit: Jacqui 1686 via Compfight cc running Photo Credit: bgill02 via Compfight cc

How Social Media Helped Me During Stressful Times

Featured Image Photo Credit: mkhmarketing via Compfight cc

Life is made of ‘ups’ and ‘downs’. Social media helped me during both the good and the bad times.

How did I use social media to my advantage?

During good times, I posted pictures on Facebook, to preserve the memories. During bad times, I sought the solace of a few blogs and the latest fads on social media. This trend of taking comfort in social media started during my PhD.

My PhD was a 5.5 year long brain and body-building exercise. Running the experiments was stressful.

I had to run experiments in a lab which was always heated to 80-100 F (The lab was heated to discipline the equipment). I had to stay in that environment for 12-14 hours per day, slide 50-100 pound equipment and lift 20 pound weights, at least 10-20 times per day. This schedule continued for 2-3 months at a stretch.

My only solaces during that time were two things. 

1) I can eat whatever I want and not put on weight 

2) Social media. 

Food blogs were my fad from 2010-2012. I frequently visited a few food blogs and drooled at pictures of food.

The pictures of  food reminded me that life was colourful as well, with different shades.

Sunday afternoons was the only free time I got. I watched recipes of Indian food on youtube, cooked and enjoyed a delicious dinner. Food blogs and youtube helped me get by the penultimate year of my PhD (other than support of my family, colleagues and real-friends).

Shifting gears from the past to the present…

This year, my latest fad is Pinterest.  Pinterest is a site where people post pictures of interesting stuff they find online. I am addicted to the quotes section on Pinterest. People post random life quotes in this section.

Life quotes taught me that life is a taskmaster and a strict teacher. All I can do is be a humble student and note down the lessons, so that I don't repeat the same mistakes.  

I dug up this beautiful poem about life on Pinterest. I hope that you find it inspiring.

Don’t Quit

When things go wrong as they sometimes will,

When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill

When the funds are low and the debts are high,

And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,

When care is pressing you down a bit –

Rest if you must, but don’t quit.

Life is strange with its twists and turns,

As every one of us sometimes learns,

And many a fellow turns about

When he might have won had he stuck it out.

Don’t give up though the pace seems slow –

You may succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than

It seems to a fair and faltering man,

Often the struggler had given up

When he might have captured the victor’s cup,

And he learned too late when night came down,

How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is a failure turned inside out –

The silver tint of the clouds of doubt

And you never can tell how close you are,

It may be near when it seems afar,

So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit,-

It’s when things seem worst that you mustn’t quit.

AUTHOR UNKNOWN.

Food pictures from my favorite blogs in 2010-2012.

Image from  http://www.cannellevanille.com/gluten-free/where-the-apple-trees-are/

Image from http://www.tarteletteblog.com/2011/08/recipes-gluten-free-conchiglie-with.html

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2 Self-Defense Lessons for Women

I did my PhD in Chicago. During my PhD, I took three semesters of self-defense classes. The instructor was a middle aged white male, with a bald head and a strong grip. He taught us two lessons of life.

          1.  Play the survivor, not the victim.

He wanted all the women, who attended the class to takeaway one message. ‘If you are in a compromising situation, fight with all you have got. If something bad happens to you, you will be able to live with yourself, knowing that you did all you could, to escape from that situation.’

         2. Show no mercy on the attacker.

We practiced one self-defense technique every semester. He grabbed us, dragged us, lifted us, pulled us with our hair and choked us with his bare hands. We had to escape from those situations. As the semester progressed, we perfected the technique. A few sessions would be so intense, that he had to clap on the floor three times to escape from us. That was our cue to stop practicing the technique. In such situations, the ‘sorry’ genes of women used to kick in. A few of us, involuntarily told him 'sorry' after the attack. Even though both of us would be tired after the attack, he pounced on us. That was our lesson, ‘Never say sorry to your attacker, no matter who he/she is.’

Do we find any real-life examples of women who practiced these two lessons?

Yes, the Rohtak sisters. The initial version of the story said that they fought back against molestors on a bus. They played a survivor and showed no mercy towards the attacker. The later versions of the stories brand these two sisters as cheap women who go around beating men for no reason.

Before you start bitch-ifying the sisters, I ask you to take into account these two generic facts about Indians.

1.      The behavior of a man is 100 % certified. He can do no wrong. The behavior of a woman is 0% certified. Her character is always questionable & malign able.
2.      We Indians, never recognize the merit of our fellow Indians. We recognize only if a U.S. based agency recognizes them and gives an award. Then we all want to bask in the limelight of fellow Indian-ness.

I want the Rohtak sisters to be given the bravery award. Why?

I am tired of all the rape victim stories in the media. We need survivor stories. This incident is the right survivor story to make that transition.

The Rohtak Sisters

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Image from http://www.tupaki.com/news/view/Haryana-govt-puts-award-for-Rohtak-sisters-on-hold/83417

Can you be happier than what you are right now?

The ultimate goal in life is to be happy. Everybody has a base level of happiness. No matter how happy or how sad we are, we eventually return to that baseline. The baseline of happiness is dictated by psychological and sometimes socio-economic factors. Our busy and stressful lives are taking us farther and farther from our baseline, without giving us enough time to return to it. What can be done about that?

Couple of months ago, I read the book, 'The Happiness Project', by Gretchen Rubin. The author wanted to become happier than what she was. She researched about happiness and tried one theme for every month, for a year. She dedicated one month to decluttering, one month to enriching relationships, one month for gratitude and so on. When I read this book, I decided to practice one theme. I chose gratitude. Can practicing gratitude make me happier than what I am?

I have been maintaining a gratitude diary for almost two months now. I write about three things/moments that I am thankful for everyday. On good days, I am thankful for the interactions I have with my husband, my family members and my colleagues. On bad days, I am thankful for the food I eat. There are also a few silly things I am thankful for. For instance, when I listen to an old favorite song playing on the radio or when I bite into a delicious piece of chocolate. 

Has my happiness increased? Maybe. But, I see some changes in my behavior. I worry about a lot of things. I still do. But ever since I started the gratitude diary, the time span of worrying has reduced at least by 3 times (I am in process of writing my performance appraisal so bear this language). The gratitude habit has helped me get out of the worry cycle by being positive. I am getting to my baseline level of happiness sooner. 

I encourage you to maintain a gratitude diary. It is not at all time-taking. Write 3 to 5 sentences about what you are thankful for everyday. There are many writing apps, like Evernote or Google Notes, which can be downloaded on phone. These apps automatically sync the notes on the internet. It is a simple and inexpensive way to boost happiness. 

Photo Credit: abhiomkar via Compfight cc

Bengaluru Traffic Chronicles - The Tit-for-Tat Dude

Bengaluru is a city known for its perfect weather. The city is also notorious for its traffic. My favorite traffic story is, 'I take 45 minutes to drive 3 km. My husband also takes the same amount of time to drive 15 km.' The non-linearity in time vs. distance is because I have to take a right turn at the badass, 'Graphite India Junction (GIJ)', to go to office. 

Over these two years, I have gained some traffic gyaan. I observed that at the junctions, a few people have psychic knowledge of the traffic signals. Even before the signal turns green, they start honking. When I encounter such a situation, I willfully move slowly the first few seconds to raise the blood pressure of the driver behind me. 

I met a tit-for-tat dude yesterday morning, who raised my blood pressure, and hence his blog post. I was waiting at the GIJ for the signal to turn green. The signal turned green. All the vehicles started moving except for the car in front of me.

I waited for 3 seconds without honking. The car in front of me started moving backwards. I realized that the guy did not know that he was at an inclination. The car was slowly inching towards my car. I gave a long honk, concerned that his car will smooch mine. This dude looked at me from his rear-view mirror and took his own sweet time to move. I understood that he wanted to drive home a lessson, 'Be patient at traffic signals. You are not losing much time if I don't move.' My honk was misunderstood. 

I know that there are plans to organize a Kiss of Love campaign in Bengaluru this weekend. That is not an excuse for your car to kiss mine. It is infectious to our wallets and morning peace. On top of it, this dude got to take a right turn, whereas the signal turned red, just when I was about to take a right turn. I had to wait for another 7 minutes. Time does matter.

Over this whole episode, the learner dude behind me waited patiently without honking and tried to analyze the situation with a perplexed expression. I hope that we will all have the patience of a learner but drive like an expert.    

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On a similar note, the Whitefield Traffic Police Samaritans are redirecting traffic at the Graphite India Junction, starting today (22 Nov 2014). Take time to notice how your route might change. I hope this little plan of theirs works out and I will be home in 10 minutes. 

The picture says, final option. I wonder what their other options were. 

Happy Diwali!

I asked a good friend of mine, who is from Meerut, 'I heard that North Indians give one another gifts for Diwali.'

He thought for some time and replied, 'We believe in receiving gifts, not giving.' That reply brought a smile on my face.

In the South, we feed one another gifts. We eat lot of sweets, of different flavors and colors, which make our tummies wider. We decorate the house with diyas (lamps) and burst crackers, in the evening. The crackers sizzle, pop, rumble and a few of them explode with thunderous sounds. (Any questions about environment are not encouraged) 

Diwali is an Indian festival, also known as the festival of lights. The diya (lamp) is the symbol for this festival. The light signifies victory of knowledge over ignorance and good over evil. There are different mythological roots to this festival. The North part of India, celebrates return of Lord Rama and Sita Devi to Ayodhya. In the South, the victory of Lord Krishna and his wife Satyabhama over the demon Narakasura is celebrated as Diwali. Diwali is mired by an age old controversy between male chauvinists and feminists.   

Narakasura is a demon, who gave no peace to the Gods and troubled them. On top of his bad attitude, he got a wish from Brahma, that he can be killed only by his Mother, Bhoodevi (Goddess Earth). Now, you must be thinking that he is undefeatable. But the Gods are smarter. Bhoodevi reincarnated on Earth as Satyabhama, wife of Lord Krishna. Krishna goes to war with Narakasura, with Satyabhama by his side. Narakasura injures Krishna with his trident in the battle. Krishna becomes unconscious. Satyabhama comes to defense of Krishna, shoots Narakasura with an arrow and kills him. 

The male chauvinists say that Krishna knows that Narakasura can be killed only by Satyabhama, which is why he pretends to become unconscious. The feminists like me argue that Satyabhama protected Krishna from Narakasura. Whatever the interpretation, I wish you all a 'Happy Diwali'. May the festival bring lot of light and happiness in your life. 

For all the folks, who don't want to put on weight. Devour these e-sweets.

For all the environment friendly folks. Celebrate this e-Diwali.

Bhoochakra, Vishnu Chakra

Chichubuddi, flower pot

Sparkler

Pencil Sparkler

Rocket

How to make Bathukamma?

Making Bathukamma is a tedious but entertaining process, if the whole family gets together and helps. It can be made with 5, 7, 9 or 11 kinds of flowers. The flowers used in the preparation are tangedu (cassia), gunugu (celosia), velvet flower, banthi (marigold), chamanthi (chrysanthemum), lotus and pumpkin flower. 

(L to R) Flowers used for making bathukamma, tangedu (cassia), gunugu (celosia), velvet flower, banthi (marigold), chamanthi (chrysanthemum), lotus and pumpkin flower (images collage created from google images)

The cassia and gunugu flowers should be sorted and tied together. Each banthi flower has to be pierced with a short wooden stick so that it will stand without collapsing in the flower arrangement. 

The preparation of the flowers for Bathukamma takes about 5-7 hours based on the size of the Bathukamma. Arrangement of the Bathukamma takes about two to three hours. The waste created after sorting the flowers will be used in the belly of the pyramidal structure. Step by step process is shown in the below video. 

  

Bangari Bathukamma

Bathukamma strikes again! It was celebrated on a grand scale in the new Telangana State. In the struggle for the formation of Telangana State, Bathukamma was celebrated to highlight our distinctiveness from Andhra Pradesh. After formation of Telangana State, the festival was celebrated as a show of victory.

There are different Bathukamma legends. One story is that Goddess Gauri after winning the battle with the demon Mahishasura, gets tired and rests. All the women pray for her revival by making beautiful pyramid shaped flower arrangements and pray Bathuku Amma (Live Mother). The Bathukammas (flower arrangement) will be baded goodbye by placing them carefully in the water to be carried away by the waves.

There is a story behind immersing Bathukammas in the water. A sister comes to brother’s house to visit him. The brother leaves to the town on some work, just before she comes. The sister decides to stay until her brother comes home. She goes to the lake to bathe along with her sister-in-law. Their clothes on the bank of the river get mixed up. The sister ties the saree of her sister-in-law and vice versa. They have a fight and the sister-in-law throws the sister in the river. In the night, the sister comes in the brother's dream and tells him the sordid story of her death. Her brother goes to the river, and on the bank, he sees a tangedu plant. His sister says, ‘I became the tangedu plant after sister-in-law threw me into the water. Make Bathukamma with tangedu poolu and throw it into the river’ and her brother does as he is told and the Bathukammas are immersed in water to this day.

What I love about Bathukamma is the celebration of feminity on a grand scale. All the women are dressed in their traditional attire, in sparkling zari sarees, pattulangas or chudidhars. (My hubby jokes that it is one day of the year, he sees me in a sari). Women bedeck themselves from head to toe. Women wear garlands of jasmine flowers in the hair, gold necklaces, and rows of multi-colored bangles on the wrists, mehendi on hands and anklets on the feet. They carry bathkammas to the nearby temple and dance around the Bathukamma in circles and clap their hands. Later the Bathukammas are placed in a waterbody.    

The velvet flower, also called as Sita jada kucchu

Gunugu flowers, tied into small bunches, and their pointy edges removed

Marigold flowers, pierced with short sticks so that they will withstand without collapsing in the Bathukamma formation

Bangari Bathukamma

Beautiful top view

Women dressed in their best attire and walking towards Padmakshi temple, Hanumakonda

The street was flooded with women of all ages and sizes

The expressions of the women in this photograph have a lot of depth. Needless to say that they are looking at me.

Janasamudram (An ocean of people)

The biggest Bathukamma I have seen

Women dancing around the Bathukammas and clapping their hands

Bathukamma Photographs Courtesy: Pradeep Kumar Gouda

153 Biere Street

A friend recommended this place to me. I was surprised to see that they created a European look alike street in the midst of the busy Whitefield landscape. The food tasted like authentic European food, too much protein with gravy and very less carbohydrates. The ambiance was out of India. The place seemed so artificial to me. It blocked away the street noise and we were among foreigners. I do recommend this place, just for a European experience.

Entrance to 153 Biere Street

The European like street, with bakeries and small boutique shops

The well cooked chicken tasted delicious with the gravy

An open seating. I will go there once again during night time. 

Pretty little horticulture store

Inside a bakery

Why should anybody write?

I subscribe to a few writing blogs. As a wanna be successful writer, I have to keep abreast with the developments in the writers' world, through blogs. I read a wonderful article about why anybody should write. You should write, not to earn millions or booker prizes. You should write because no one else will do it for you. So true! Who else is the best person to put my thoughts on paper other than me. Read the complete article by Jeff Goins here. 

Whenever I think about the long road ahead of me to become a successful writer, I sometimes get discouraged. I know that it will take a ton of time to improve my craft, get my grammar straight and find my voice (If you remember the 10,000 hour rule postulated by Malcolm Gladwell, to perfect anything, I haven't accomplished even a fraction of it).When I feel low about my writing goals, I remember a beautiful quote from Earl Nightingale.

'Never give up on a dream, just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. Time will pass anyway.' 

A beautiful quote, distilled from Earl Nightingale's life time experiences as a motivational speaker and author. This quote is the last thread of hope I hang on to and it propels me forward to pick up a pen and scribble away in my diary. 

I decided to take this craft to the next level. I want to find my voice. Most of the successful writers' recommend setting up some time everyday to write. Write without the internal editor on. Put the craziest thoughts on the paper, come back to it later and edit it. I started waking up half-an-hour early everyday, since last week, so that I can write. I am amazed at all the weird fictional stories my brain thinks. My blog is going to be a bit different from now on. You will see a lot more crazy stories, which are very unlike me. I am discovering myself in that half an hour. Sometimes, I am amazed at the outcome. 

I need your feedback so that I can improve and give 'you' the credit for my accomplishments. Tell me for every story I post

1) What makes my writing unique?

2) What could I do more/less of?

3) How can I improve?

One sentence reply for each question is good enough. You are welcome to write more than a single sentence.
I will also take one more step and submit the stories to online literary magazines. 

Thank you all for reading through this page and for your continued support.

My diary and a sample of my best hand writing

Happy Father's Day

Every morning, on my way to work, I listen to Michelle and Nathan on the radio. A couple of weeks ago, Michelle asked a question, “Do you say, 'Love you Dad' to your father or are you embarrassed to say that? Whenever I am on a call with my Dad, just before hanging up, I say, 'Love you Dad', as though I am in a hurry or something. I don’t know why, but it never comes out in the right tone. Do you guys have a similar experience?” When I heard Michelle, I thought, ‘I never told my Dad, I love you.’ Due to my  Sound Indian Hindu roots, that would feel weird for me and my Dad.

My first lesson from my Father was, ‘Life is a learning process’. It didn't make any sense when I was a ten year old girl. Now that I am much older, I understand the value of his statement. As I grew up, I thought this learning process or whatever it is will end as soon as I complete my studies, but it continued. Every day, at my workplace, I have to learn new things and come up with innovative solutions. I have another good fifty to sixty years ahead of me. I have to be a humble student of whatever life intends to teach me.

When I complained about studying, my father used to say, ‘Imagine a daily laborer. He is working in the hot, scorching sun, which has no mercy at all. He extends his arms up and brings down the hammer, to break the stones. He does that all day. Compared to him, look at the comfort you have. You are sitting under the fan, on a table and chair. The only thing you have to do is to study. You are doing a much simpler task and still you complain’. Well, that got me studying.

I received innumerable lectures from him and their intensity increased during my PhD. He was a Professor himself, so he always reminded me, ‘PhD is not taken. It is given’. He told me all the simple tricks to remain focused on my studies and dissuaded me from getting into Department’s politics. We did fight on several issues as well. Owing to the bad phone connection, sometimes the calls used to drop. I would call him after 5 or 10 minutes, because I was seething with anger and wanted sometime to cool off. My father kept on lecturing into the open-ended receiver, for those ten minutes, and then he would receive a call on his phone.

Now, that I completed my education, these lectures have become scarce. When I look back and recollect all those countless lectures, I realize that he has guided me, ached for me when I was going in the wrong path and strove to put me back on track. He had to be harsh with me and deal with my anger and sullenness. Most of the times, I am thankful for those lectures.  In all those years, he has taught me how to face the ups and downs in life, how the society will perceive me, based on all the prejudices they have and how to fight against them or get along with them.

To my father, ‘Happy Father’s Day’ and ‘Yes, I do love him’.

                                                            My Father & I, at Kanyakumari

Telangana - The birth of 29th State of India

'I am going to roam on the streets until 2 AM tonight.'

 'Hmm ...'

'If you are not coming, I will take the car and go'
'No, it is not safe for you to stay out that late in the night'
'Everybody is out on the streets. Nothing will happen to me. I will go.'
'I will come Madam. How will I not come? If I do not come, first my daughter will, ask, 'How come you left my mother all alone?. Next my son-in-law will question, 'Mother-in-law is outside, why are you at home? I have to come with you'

This was the conversation between my parents on the night of June 1st, just before I stepped out along with them to participate in the birth of 29th state of India.

On June 1st, my Mother was so happy and excited. I have not seen her that happy even for my marriage. She was on the drug of Telangana. For days, my father spoke only about jubilation on the faces of the Telangana people and how everybody will be on the streets to participate in the formation of Telangana.

The festivities were spanned at five locations in the city. The city was decorated as a bride. All the government buildings were lighted up in an array of colors and the sight was beautiful. Our first stop was the collector office. Here, we saw students performing traditional dances, such as Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi on an elevated stage. There was a fantastic dance performance of Shiva Tandavam at other location. Shiva Tandavam was performed overnight during the Kakatiya times, to rejuvenate the soldiers, before they step into battlefield. All these events were organized to bring to limelight the tradition and culture of Telangana, which was belittled and suppressed for 60 years. There was a crowd everywhere. People came out in their best attire and greeted one another saying, 'Jai Telangana'.

Warangal's weather does not need an introduction. It is sweltering hot in the summer. The temperatures shoot as high as 45 deg C. The body works as a machine and continuously generates sweat. The sweat is a  steady laminar stream, which flows from head to toe and gets absorbed by the clothes. It was not at all pleasant to be outside on June 1st night. People could have stayed in the coolness of their home and watched the activities on T news channel. But, they did not. They came out to the collector's house. They stood in front of the Keerthi stupam and even posed in front of it. They were rejoiced to be part of this new state. They were there to tell to the future generations, the story of Telangana formation, the sacrifices that went into the birth of Telanagana and the pomp and grandeur exhibited on the day of it's birth.

I hope that under the able guidance of Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao and his cabinet of Ministers our State will see steady progress and prosperity. The formation of the state was the first step, there is a lot more to be accomplished.

Jai Telangana! Jai Ho Telangana!

    The collector office decorated with lights. In front of the collector office was the Keerthi Stupam, which was built to honor the martyrs who sacrificed their lives for formation of Telangana

The crowd near Keerthi Stupam

                                      People posing in front of the Keerthi Stupam before it was unveiled 

Wonderful dance performance by the kids

                                              

                          Kudos to the kids who performed in the heat and under the glaring lights

                                                  Performers near the Keerthi Stupam

Unvieling of Keerthi Stupam at midnight. This video was captured by my mother (https://plus.google.com/u/0/111536935647647276632/posts). She did stay out along with my father until 1:00 PM on June 1st.