Friday, 29 April 2016

The stepping stone



I can recall that feeling.  Sitting on the first desk,  I felt challenged by my best friend sitting beside me.  There were mixed emotions.  I was proud of his effort and the praise he got for having written a poem titled 'Books are theeeeee  best  (the extra 'e' s were for emphasis,  he told me.)  But I also felt left behind as Nikhil and I were pretty competitive academically.  I could not let him get a lead over me.  I just wanted the day to end and get the scores levelled with him .

I don't remember what all ideas came into my end,  but I ended up writing a poem about a farmer.  I literally defined the term (as is the right way of introducing any topic): the first line I wrote was 'The man who works in the field is called a farmer,'  (the second line : he works there from January to December.)

For some reason I was very excited about this effort. It was the last day before summer vacation.  I could not wait for two months to share my effort.  I telephoned Nikhil but could not reach him  I called our mutual friend Keshav,  who listened to my first poem very carefully.  I don't remember what he said,  but it was not discouraging,  at least audibly it was not.

This was the stepping stone.  This ordinary effort and many others got encouragement from people who were close to me.  It took me years to compile poems which conveyed deeper meanings,  were  written in a particular style,  provoked readers to think.

Looking back these ten years,  I know I have enjoyed the process.

Aman Arora writer (29 April 2006-Present)

Tuesday, 26 April 2016

Life of a regular B Ed guy


Today the first  question I was asked in my viva  for art and drama practical  was how I was coping with b Ed.  'Not so bad,'  I replied,  'although I have lost some weight ,'  was my reply.  The next question was directed  especially  at my gender.  While looking at my art work and artifacts,  Sir asked if I did it myself.  'I took help,'  I confessed.  To this Sir mentioned that if I knew how to manage help,  I could do just well in B Ed.' -  a statement that could have multiple meanings.  

Mine is the first batch to study B Ed as a two year course (DU  excluded where the course was 2 years even before) ,  and common sense would suggest that double the time period,  half the workload.  But NO!  in B ed,  this theory does not imply.  Two semesters have gone by,  and I have realised that B Ed is like signing a Yash Raj Films contract:  you are bound to work only for them,  and have no life outside of it.  

If B Ed was a feast,  there would have been assignments in appetisers,  main course and dessert.  No matter where we go,  what we do,  we have to write a report on it.  6 pages.  8 pages,  10 pages.  And they count both sides of a sheet as one page.  What kind of logic is that? We are so scared when they announce that we have a field trip or someone is coming  for a guest lecture  because the event will go on only for an hour or so but we would have to write it in 5 pages, (both sides.) 

And there is one thing called 'conclusion'  which we have to write after every report, every assignment,  every answer,  I was so absorbed by this that I started writing conclusion even for my fb status.  

Entry into a B Ed classroom for a guy is like the official entry to the first coach of Delhi metro.  The penalty is not 200 bucks but even more.  It can cost you your dignity.  Tie and die,  block printing, soft toy,  designing stuff with paper flowers and butterflies was something we ended up doing for our art and drama practical.  And the events in our college included rakhi making competition on rakshabandhan,  mehandi  competition on karwa  chauth ,  but there was no rawan  making or cracker making on Dushera  and Diwali,  something the guys would have enjoyed.  I was carrying RDX  in my bag the whole month in expectation.  We would have had such  a blast. 

Our boys gang end up entertaining ourselves by playing short pitch cricket or football or 'maaram pitti'  with the rubber ball.  We need something to protect our sexual orientation after all.  

Sunday, 24 April 2016

What is to come?

A big hey to everyone using the world wide web!

I have been told by a several people to start blogging, and I reject the plea on the ground that I have nothing important to share. But, I realize that in the world of blogging, you sometimes have to take it easy; plan less and execute more. So, I am not going to do a lots of planning and thinking and coming up with nothing to share. I will just blog!

Although I have planned a few categories that my blog would have. These are.


  • Straight from the heart posts: This is going to come. You know I am a poet. I have a lots to share about a lots of stuff. I would share an unaltered version of what comes to my mind and heart. Honesty guaranteed.

  • Picture poetry: I have friends who are photographers and I have friends who draw, sketch or paint. A good picture speaks a thousand words. And I like adding a few words of myself to them. This experimentation can provide results I myself can't imagine. Visual beauty guaranteed. 

  • Announcements and Updates: I would use this blog to make announcements and sharing updates about my writing projects. My first book, Aman Arora Anthology Volume 1 just released this April. Holding the book was like holding my baby. The only difference is that it took several years to come since ihe point of conception. 

  • Book Recommendations: I am not a hardcore reader, but I have read a few quality books in my life. i would tell you how I liked them.

  • Movie Recommendations: Not a big movie maniac either, but I have seen a few good English and Hindi language films. i can recommend a few.

  • Me and Teaching: I have chosen teaching as a profession. It is a noble field and there is so much to learn about teaching. I will share about my experience as a B. Ed student, teacher-training and actual teaching experiences. 

  • Sketches: I draw sketches occasionally. It is the only artistic thing I do. I am not great at it, but I do it anyway. Visual beauty of this blog might suffer perhaps. 

  •  My random lists: That is what bloggers do primary, right? I am going to share a few lists about things of my interest. 

  • Lot more stuff I am not aware about right now: Let things flow, baby. 

You can tell me what would you like to read. Stay tuned. 



Saturday, 23 April 2016

Aman Arora Anthology Introduction

Aman Arora Anthology welcomes you,


Childhood fantasies, 
memories of yesteryear,
bliss of being,
and a few pretty and noble thoughts.
I contribute my bits 
into an immortal ocean. 

Let's start this journey of blogging. Stay tuned.