August

August is my favorite month. You guessed it. I am August born. On the 1st, I enjoyed getting wet in the rain. On the 2nd I was going early to work so I had a lovely drive to my office which is about 30 kilometers away. I cruised along Marine Drive and stopped for a few minutes to enjoy the view. Office was okay and then my ride back was also fun although that took a lot longer thanks to the traffic in the evening.

If i saw beautiful Marine Drive on Thursday, Friday morning I saw Andheri which is usually a filthy suburb look rain kissed and sparkling. While I was in the train heading out towards town, I saw the Meethi River rushing full flow towards the sea. This river usually resembles a gutter and is more filth than water. But thanks to the combination heavy downpour and the high tide, it looked like a free flowing river rushing into the arms of the sea. The sea itself was a scene of nature's immense power and beauty. I specifically went out again at Lunch to see it at the Gateway of India. The perfect place to enjoy the sea on a rough afternoon.

On Friday evening, I had booked tickets for a Barkha ritu concert where Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma and Pandit Chaurasia mesmerized the audition with each interpretation of Raag Malhar. A raga that is supposed to be played in this season and it is believed that it can invoke the rains. I really think these rainy ragas actually inspire Joy more than the rains. Rains are seasonal but the joy this one brings can be attributed to beautiful music.

The whole beauty of the season is that everybody is generally overjoyed and exuberant. You see strangers smiling at each other for no reason at all. Everything has its own special sparkle.

Thanks to the mood that was created by all of the above, I got my veena out on Saturday. Despite not having practiced for ages, I found that I could still play. I liked that feeling. I also remembered all my teachers over the years who enjoyed teaching me as much as I loved to learn from them. I was really partial to the Arts. I was more focused on my training in carnatic music, dance and then the veena than I ever was on my studies. Today, I am glad for that training. It makes me happy.