Sunday Snippets
By Venkatesh Raghavan
It was a few decades back when a friend of mine spoke to me about the Jivdani Devi temple at Virar that will grant you any wish that your heart has. Virar happens to be one of the suburban stations way outside the boundaries of India’s financial hub, Mumbai. It was an early morning hop after we managed to catch a fast train from the Western suburb of Bandra.
On reaching the spot, my friend who happened to be much younger than me said she could climb the steep staircase pretty fast. I responded that I prefer to be self-paced and would take my own time to climb. Finally after much panting and making her wait for me to catch up with her at frequent intervals, we both made it to the top.
Now, when I was walking towards the temple foothill and climbing the steep stairs, many thoughts came and left my mind about what wish I should make. Some of those included becoming an editor of a publication or a business magnet. However, when I reached the top, all these thoughts fled from me. I had only one desire in my heart, that of becoming a full-fledged guitarist. Being a fan of George Harrison of the Beatles fame, that was the only thought that occupied my mind. My female friend Sonia also mentally wished for her personal aspiration before we left the temple precincts.
After we climbed down, I wondered, “Have I made a wise choice, wishing for a career that was far removed from journalism? Will this lead me to a breakdown in my profession?” The answers were not easy to come as neither I nor Sonia discussed our personal wishes. Several years have passed since that visit. I was working with Business Barons magazine run by Minhaz Merchant. I and another relative newcomer were faced with a layoff due to a financial crunch.
At that point in time, a senior artist working with the magazine asked me to approach his friend in Bandra (East) to learn the guitar. I had no idea this was telepathy or some coincidence. There was an artist who knew well that I had been a journalist throughout my career. However, he confidently asked me to purchase and pick up a guitar in order to receive guidance from a guru. I did visit my guru’s house and made an offering of grapes that I purchased from the wayside hawker. However, soon after that, my career took a totally different track.
On hearing that I was in between jobs, my friend Stephen advised me to visit Tabur Ashram, which was a long bus journey from Kalyan station on the outskirts of Bombay. I attended a four-day retreat at the Ashram and I also received counselling for my future life. Within weeks of attending the retreat, I got recruited by a multinational. Here again, the mystery surrounding my desire to be a guitarist deepened. Three of my colleagues, namely Garreth D’mello, Deepak Menon (popularly called Zomb) and Tirthankar Poddar who was a project manager were all seasoned guitarists and I was surrounded by people whose love for music ran very deep.
The last I remember about this music trial is when I attended Zomb and his group performing at the Raspberry Rhino. Later that night, Zomb complimented me on the dance I had performed on the floors and said after watching my movements, people in the audience were not sure about my age. But what about my wish of becoming a guitarist? At least there was some start and I am not complaining.
