Tendulkar. Dhoni. Both, Gifted with Hon ranks in the airforce and the army, respectively. Both, Hon captains. In the airforce and the army, respectively. Both, very “Aamir”; after all, this country gave them more than they imagined or perhaps even asked for. Now that they’re a part of the defence forces, will they still promote and play cricket with a neighbour whose mortars and continued shelling claim lives and severed heads of our brave battalions, daily? At times, I wonder, ain’t it sheer blunder to waste the Indian forces’ thunder, who bravely face enemy Guns relentlessly firing up North, while the countrymen rejoice a popcorn series, down under?

Aamir Khan, I support you. As a devoted son to a 70-year old mother, who has entered the 2nd childhood in her life, I fear for her safety, while I am away at work. As a doting “Mama” to two adorable kids back Home – my nephew and niece – I fear for their safety and well-being, even when they’re at school. As an ardent devotee of “Maryada Purshottam” Ram, I fear when His name is evoked to stoke communal disharmony. I fear when the convict juvenile in Nirbhaya case nears his release date. I fear of a back lash if I don’t speak and understand the language of a “Rashtra”. I fear if my salary will be able to match the rising prices of essential commodities 3 months later. The fear repeats; every 5 years, irrespective of the party in power. As for those in power and all those who support, I’d like to extend an invite to all of them and their kin, minus the massive security cordon, “Bas kuch din toh guzaar kar dekho tum raat mein”!

Mr.Bond, my apologies for having missed the Spectre of your histrionics; you see, the cost of the movie ticket was sO mega, that I thought to buy 1 kg tur dal and 100 gms tomatoes instead of a 007 ticket. That said, I have a few themes to suggest for your next flick: Why did Kejriwal hug Laloo? Why did Modi hug Pawar? Is Rahul, Gandhi? Why did Manmohan always keep mum? Does Sonia make Idli? Did Iran's Smriti fail when she mentioned that she studied at Yale? Kaunse class mein kabhi bahu thi? When will real estate be priceless? Why don’t Government reps give up subsidy and sponsorship? Why does the 6.06 pm Thane local run 7 minutes late, daily? How do the likes of Mallya manage to be on-the-fly, despite his airline being grounded? What’s the source from where lizards and insects find their way into mid-day meals? Why are Presidency elections of all other sports, except cricket, conducted in a peaceful atmosphere? Finally, what did a radically-transformed Osama Bin Laden tell Gandhi, when they met for God's "Mann ki Baat" townhall up there? You got it; "Mahatma, don’t bother with the Nation".

Not one to undermine the gruesome attacks in Paris, I wonder if I will/ever have expressed the (symbolic!) “solidarity” by changing my profile photo with a backdrop of the Indian tricolor, in view of countless patriot jawans giving up their lives in the service of the nation, DAILY, while battling terror that lurks "baaju mein". Did I express my solidarity with farmers of Vidarbha and elsewhere in India, whose daily toil brings food on my table? No. Do I ever stand up to help and express my solidarity with someone dying on the road (Nirbhaya, remember?) No, since “I’ve got a train to catch” and “need to avoid policing trouble”. Even today, there are millions of children and women slaughtered in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan, including those killed “inadvertently” through bombing of hospitals and schools by a World Power, that's also responsible for the chaos in the Middle East, as well as doling out gazillions in cash and arms to our cricket-playing-terror-breeding-neighbor who uses these funds to fund terror attacks on the Indian soil. Solidarity. So, will I give up the Great American Dream as a MARK of solidarity? No. No? Kya yaar, Solidarity mein bhi Disparity.

Weapons of Massacre and Death (WMDs) in Afghanistan, Lebanon, Nigeria, Iraq and Syria. Conceptualized. Designed. Manufactured. Funded. By USA. Tested. In Bombay, Nairobi, Paris, Egypt etc. Upcoming test locations: unknown. So, Oil's Well, Mr Bush? Yes? Not really, after Saddam Who's Slain.

दिवाली, हमने तुझे अंधेरों में रौशनी के दिए जलाते देखा है, ज़िन्दगियों में खुशियों की बहार लाते देखा है, एक आशा की लौ को जगाते हुए देखा है, किसी की नम आँखों में तो कभी छोटी खुशियों की फुहारों में, कहीं भूक में तो कहीं अनाज की मिठास में, धरती पर बहती हवाओं में, समंदर की लहरों के उफानों में, एक झुग्गी की छत से लेकर महलों की दीवारों में, रिश्तों में, अपनों में, परायों में, चमकते सितारों में, छुपे हुए बादलों के गलियारों में, हमने तुझे, या शायद तेरी ही जैसी एक रौशनी का इंतज़ार करते देखा है - सागर शर्मा

My mother tolerates me and my tantrums. Parents tolerate children tolerate parents. Relatives (barely) tolerate one another. Hindus tolerate azaan from nearby mosques, while Muslims tolerate sound of crackers in Diwali, loudspeakers on Ganesh Chaturthi, and chimes of bells from the nearby Ram temple (ouch!); all other religions tolerate everything in-between. The girl on the road tolerates lewd comments and gestures; Nirbhaya’s parents continue to tolerate pain and agony of “taareek pe taareek”. HR tolerates admin tolerates sales tolerates IT tolerates payroll tolerates CEO; bosses and subordinates tolerate one another, while clients tolerate delays. A 200-capacity compartment tolerates a 4,000 peak-hour load. Mother Nature tolerates deforestation. Vidarbha and Marathwada tolerate the annual drought despite 50000 crore+ spent. There’s tolerance in long queues at the grocery store, railway station, bus stops, vegetable markets, Government offices and employment exchanges. I tolerate “stupid pedestrians” who cross the road in a hurry; the pedestrians tolerate me, the “idiot” who jumped the signal. Tolerance resonates in PASSIVE traffic jams caused due to convoys of red beacon cars. There’s tolerance in everything from “Mann Ki Baat” to “Ban ki Barsaat”. So, where’s the intolerance? Shah, rukh, Kuch Kuch Bolta Hai?!

NASA, You’re Not Alone. I, too, am baffled as to how Mangalyaan at Rs.7/km costs less than the daily conveyance from Borivali to Badlapur! Of course, I realize what our Hon FM must’ve thought when he fixed the transport allowance at 1600 rupees per month; perhaps, he thought that, you know, we, too, travel Interstellar, daily! Found water on Mars, I hear? Do they also grow tur dal there (Matt Damon, The Martian, remember?) Don’t get me wrong, I ask since pulse prices are, astronomically speaking, stratospherically so sky-high, they appear to be importing from Mars. By George, where's Gravity on Earth? Huh?