The recent bo
mb blasts in Bangalore and Ahmedabad have brought alive the memories of my ex-colleague (I was working before marriage!!!), Richa Pandey, whom we had lost in the ill-fated Sarojini Nagar Blasts on 29 October 2005.
Richa was in Sarojini Nagar only when the whole incident took place. She had gone there (alone) for some Diwali shopping for her mother and sister (Richa lost her father long time back and she was the only earning member of her family). Who knew that she had gone there NEVER to come back. Only God knows what exactly happened with her at that time. For two days her body couldn't be found and no one, be it her family or friends (that includes her room-mates and colleagues) had any clue about her whereabouts (Richa lived as a paying guest in Delhi, her family lived in some state in UP). Needless to say hell broke on her family when they did find her burnt body.
Her tragic death continues to affect me even after 3 long years. I still remember
Richa so well. In fact it seems like just yesterday. That very day I had met Richa in the morning in the office. I left the office in afternoon in a hurry (actually it was Saturday, half-day and I had to catch a movie) without saying bye to her (that time she wasn’t on seat) as I usually did then (she sat right opposite my seat). Little did I know that the next time I would reach my office, Richa wouldn’t be alive to say either Hi or Good Bye!
Richa’s death shook every nerve in me. It shattered my whole trust in life and it made me realize for the first time how uncertain life is. Every day I used to read and hear about the violent outbursts happening in some part of the world but I used to chuck it as a mere piece of news. But only when it affected me did I realize how terrorism is playing with people’s lives. It raised a volley of questions in me that have still not been answered. Why did it happen? What purpose did it solve? Who gained out of it? How? Does somebody out there have an answer to it?
The whole incident has taught me just one thing. Life is very precious and it is very uncertain. So cherish every moment of it and cherish all those around you. Thank God for each passing day and what it has brought to you. “Har Pal Yahan Jee Bhar Jiyo Jo Hai Sama Kal Ho Na Ho”.
I cannot sum up this post without the poem written by my ex-colleague and my best friend, Manish Joshi for Richa.
How do we get to see those eyes once again
mb blasts in Bangalore and Ahmedabad have brought alive the memories of my ex-colleague (I was working before marriage!!!), Richa Pandey, whom we had lost in the ill-fated Sarojini Nagar Blasts on 29 October 2005.Richa was in Sarojini Nagar only when the whole incident took place. She had gone there (alone) for some Diwali shopping for her mother and sister (Richa lost her father long time back and she was the only earning member of her family). Who knew that she had gone there NEVER to come back. Only God knows what exactly happened with her at that time. For two days her body couldn't be found and no one, be it her family or friends (that includes her room-mates and colleagues) had any clue about her whereabouts (Richa lived as a paying guest in Delhi, her family lived in some state in UP). Needless to say hell broke on her family when they did find her burnt body.
Her tragic death continues to affect me even after 3 long years. I still remember
Richa so well. In fact it seems like just yesterday. That very day I had met Richa in the morning in the office. I left the office in afternoon in a hurry (actually it was Saturday, half-day and I had to catch a movie) without saying bye to her (that time she wasn’t on seat) as I usually did then (she sat right opposite my seat). Little did I know that the next time I would reach my office, Richa wouldn’t be alive to say either Hi or Good Bye!Richa’s death shook every nerve in me. It shattered my whole trust in life and it made me realize for the first time how uncertain life is. Every day I used to read and hear about the violent outbursts happening in some part of the world but I used to chuck it as a mere piece of news. But only when it affected me did I realize how terrorism is playing with people’s lives. It raised a volley of questions in me that have still not been answered. Why did it happen? What purpose did it solve? Who gained out of it? How? Does somebody out there have an answer to it?
The whole incident has taught me just one thing. Life is very precious and it is very uncertain. So cherish every moment of it and cherish all those around you. Thank God for each passing day and what it has brought to you. “Har Pal Yahan Jee Bhar Jiyo Jo Hai Sama Kal Ho Na Ho”.
I cannot sum up this post without the poem written by my ex-colleague and my best friend, Manish Joshi for Richa.
How do we get to see those eyes once again
Thou used to blink in duplicate
How do we get to see that smile
That used to stretch till your eyes
How do we hear that laughter
That u created whenever under pressure
How do we have your presence
Which was so jolly and pleasant
How do we open your eyes
Which were never closed
Cause when world closed them
You chose to keep them open!
We know
We all know
You are there somewhere
In the sky, in the stars
Near god or a new one among us
Creating joy and splendour
Spreading smile and trademark laughter
SomewhereSome where near!
P.S - Hey Manish, sorry for publishing your poem without asking your permission!!! But I hope you will understand.
P.S - Hey Manish, sorry for publishing your poem without asking your permission!!! But I hope you will understand.
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14 comments:
Parul I cried reading this! I dun even know Richa but after reading her story, it seemed like I knew her all my life. Cos she seemed like a nice FRIEND and a girl so like u and me. Im so sorry that she was lost under such tragic circumstances. HUGGGGGGGGGZ! *tearz*
I dun u'stand why ppl go ard killing innocents this way. So many loved-ones, dreams and moments stolen this way, and all for nothing...its so v sad!
May Richa's beautiful spirit continue to shine thru u!
*MWAH*
Keshi.
btw u asked me wut a TAG means. It means someone suggesting u take up that same post in ur blog...basically, getting u to do wut they just did in their blogs :)
So if I tag u on that Picture tag, u hv to take it up and do the same post in ur blog. I hope u u'stood it now Parul? So why dun u do that Mosaic tag here..I'd love to see ur answers and pics.
Good luck cos I just TAGGED ya! ;-)
Keshi.
hey keshi....
thanks for all ur comments...this post is something i wanted to write a long time bk but hesitated somehow....the recent blasts gave me the courage...m glad u could understand what we all must have gone thru....thanks darlin...
it tells me u have a golden heart....may god bless ya...
hugzzz
parul
btw thanks for that tag thing...i ll surely try to take it up....but in a while coz these days i m bit occupied......
:(
Just wanna say one thing, may ?god give her family the never ending strength.
This always looks like as if it happened just now. Yesterday! Moments are etched in memory..standing outside the morgue...looking at Richa..and heaving a sigh of relief..that 'Thanks GOD its not Richa'..and then I moved in...got lost in her face..stared in her eyes as if for ages..and then..she stared back confirming..hey its me. And then I stopped looking in people's eyes as I saw Richa's eyes instead..I remember each body in the morgue..have seen them time and again in dreams. At the same time I saw the very ugly face of humanity... these media guys..capturing deads in their camera outside the morgue and smiling when they got it right, this lady journalist who on every blast anniversary (which I attend year after year just because I don't know what to do on that day) will make this small 7 year old girl, who lost her parents, stand and will ask her questions which for sure will make her cry and then her channel will broadcast it. These routine news that 'City has moved on..'..well ask the deads if you can, ask the injured and ask the close ones left behind - nothing has moved on for them.
And man's idea of beauty..Richa was so beautiful..but she looked different that day..very different..but it was still Richa.....months later I felt ashamed of myself for my...for the way the human being's brain is wired..that actually defines things as beautiful and ugly!
And for a solution to terrorism..there isn't any. Terrorism is a term coined by States to refer to that form of violence which is not in their interest. It took decades for US to declare organisations as terrorist groups operating in India from Pakistan. LTTE is allowed to operate from UK and kill people in Lanka. US can invade Iraq for WMDs while holding maximum in world, and ofcourse not find any. What is expected from a boy who has seen his Dad and Uncle being shot dead in Baghdad, and hasn't found his brother in any morgue's computer (They don't keep bodies in morgues because there are just too many bodies piling up daily outside the morgues, they take their snap, bury them with a number, and then people identify their deads in snaps, body is exhumed and then buried again)....well..driven by hatred with nothing to do in his life..he will take revenge by blowing himself up as a suicide bomber killing 30 others...he can't even be tried after that...Who do you blame..US which attacked Iraq..or Pakistan which gave safe heaven to Al-Qaeda, or UK which created Pakistan in first place as one of the end results of its desire of world wide empire. And hey..we ..peace loving Indians..did nothing when Godhra burnt. And world did nothing when 1,000,000 were butchered in 100 days in Rwanda. Most civil wars in Africa are engineered by West. Not long back Nazis were very organised when it came to eliminating Jews, and US dropped the N-bombs on civilians - TWICE.
All smells of political, business, economical, strategic gains. It resembles the smell in the morgue.
States have been violent all the times...humanity has always endorsed violence..and ofcourse the perpetrators justified their cause to themseLves. A so called terrorist is just another violent human with his own justified cause.
Its not the terrorism..its the violence that needs the solution. Many approaches to that.
1 - Take aways arms from everyone.
2 - Arm everyone!
Better still create happiness world wide - everyone should have food, water, medical care and basic education. Teach people to be content - can be done legally, spiritually, economically. I remember Nigeria banning Mercs because they thought no one has the right to amass wealth and show it off when people are dying of starvation on the road. I agree completely. And of-course its easier said then done..especially as world is more busy with carbon-credits..this will take centuries, and till then learn to live (or die) with terrorism.
Its not a terrorism free world that would be happy - its a happy world that would be terrorism free.
hey manish...
no one can understand that situation more than u....i really appreciate ur courage to remember that hurtful day once again n actually write about it....thanks manish....
no worries, take ur time Parul. :)
Keshi.
m so sory for dis
may god bless her soul n give u peace
i was just carried away wid it
really feel sad
time can heal evrything but yes those places will never get occupied.
dat hw life is
strage n alone at dis end.
Hey tht was a very heart wrenching post!it felt as if i knew Richa even though i hav never known her b4! I knw hw terrible is it to hav someone who died in such circumstances....and such instances do shake u up, and i feel all these questions always remain unanswered! Sad but true....terrorists hav jus one objective as i hav mentioned in my post, tht is to spread chaos and unhappiness. *tears*
You made me cry parul.
I will not feel shy on saying that I cried just because I am boy.
My eyes were filled with tears on reading about her.
you are quite right that life is uncertain and so live it the way you wanted it to be, i.e. hassle-free, violence-free etc.
I lost one of my friend in accident so can feel the same pain.
take care. be safe.
Tejas
this was heart rendering post parul. this is somethin which is irreplacable and worst loss....
i have no words to express my feelings....
you have written this in very subtle and touching way mate!
bay god bless her soul n give her family the courage..
This terrorism is no only killing people but whole families.. i just dont understand what they get outta it..!
Parul richa's younger sister was my school friend. It's really sad but she too passed away in an accident last year..I really wanted to pray for her mother
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