kartik

So glad — once again, to be receiving, the Piece, as well as, your Questions / Queries.

Yes, very much so. As a matter of fact, both, my Father, as well as, myself, have been Members, of, at least, a couple of Literary Organizations. One of them is / has been, the POETRY  SOCIETY,  HYDERABAD  CENTRE ; and, the other, has been, SAHITYA  SANGAM.  

We have been Members, of this POETRY SOCIETY, since January 2005, right up, till the very recent times, wherein, both of us, made it a point, to attend, almost every Meeting / Session — hosted every Month, by some one Member, or, some two to three Members, in combination. This SOCIETY has been in vogue / existence, right since the times of the British, around the Year, 1925, wherein, it started / began, originally, as a series of informal gatherings, hosted in the homes, of the erstwhile womenfolk, belonging to the prosperous upper echelons, of these Twin Cities — in a manner, sharing mutual literary indulgences ( including Poetry ), modelled, on the lines of the Poetry Society, in / of England, which had originated, in the Year, 1909. Gradually, this SOCIETY grew, to become more inclusive ( sometime, around the Year 1929 ), in terms of having, in its midst, professional Poets / Litterateurs ; professional Academics / Academicians — with Literature, as their Field / Domain ; Literary Authors, Writers, Scholars, Editors — of various hues ; and, other connoisseurs, of, Literature, in general, and, of, Poetry, in particular. It would thrill you to know, that, way back, that is, prior to our Country having gained Independence, stalwarts, such as, Sir Rabindranath Tagore, and, Madam Sarojini Naidu, graced a couple of the Meetings / Sessions — of this SOCIETY, which, in the Year 1937, formally, adopted / took the present Name, by which it is now known. And, a few years ago, it was proposed to celebrate / have Celebrations, for a major Occasion, marking the course, of nearly, a Century, of the existence, of this SOCIETY, and, so, some rather disjoint efforts ( as, I was able to gather — sometime later ), were made — to make the same come about. Anyhow, given the Yearly Calendar, of this SOCIETY — save the two months, May, and, June — every other Month is / has been scheduled, to have, some Programme / Event, or, the other, at some Venue ( well, this SOCIETY had changed VENUE, at least, a dozen times, or, so, till now, and, refusing — even, to this day — to have anything, called, a fixed Venue, of its own ! ), wherein, a particular Theme / Topic, and, the relevant / associated Speaker(s), is / are chosen, and, the Meeting / Session, for that Month, is made to take place, courtesy, the Formal 'hosting', as just described, above. Well, my Father and myself have had the privilege, of hosting, at least three, of such Meetings / Sessions, at different times, in the past ( November 2011 ; September 2014 ; February 2017 ). The actual reading out, of, Poems / Poetry, by, Members, of this SOCIETY, is / has been scheduled, for the Month, March, wherein, my Father ( more so ), and, myself ( less so ), have, occasionally, presented, our Poems / Poetry, and / or, Translations / Transcreations, of, either the Poems / Poetry, of, ours, or, the Poems / Poetry, of other Worthies — apart from, on a couple of other occasions, during other different months. The Month, April, is / has been earmarked, for the taking place, of : the Yearly / Annual Round-Up    — of the Activities undertaken ; the Yearly / Annual Budget Profile ; the Election, of the New / Fresh Set of Office-Bearers, as well as, of the Executive Committee Members, of / for the SOCIETY — for the next / forthcoming / subsequent Tenure ; the likely pattern, of the Programmes / Sessions — for the Year ahead ; an engaging Programme / Session — based, on a Poetic / Literary Theme ; and, all of this, of course, followed, by, a Grand Dinner ! The Membership requirements — in the context, of this SOCIETY — have entailed, parting with a rather modest sum, of INR 150.00 ( to the extent, I have last kept track ), every Year. Well, this POETRY  SOCIETY boasted, of a great swell of Members — during times, gone by ; however, down the course of all these Years, the numbers have come dwindling down, to a meagre 15-20 ( at times, rising to 25-30 ) — from, what used to be, once upon a time, in the range of 60-70. Owing to the curse, of the Pandemic, this SOCIETY shrank, further, and, resorted ( just as many other Organizations / Forums did ) to the practice, of Zoom Meetings / Video Conferencing. So, the last regular / physical Meeting / Session, of this SOCIETY, took place, in February 2020 — just a month prior to the imposition, of the so-called Lockdown, in March 2020. Again, it was in July 2022, in August 2022, in September 2022, and, in October 2022, that, we had some physical Meetings / Sessions — post which, the affair turned, once again, to that of Zoom Meetings, for November 2022, and, for December 2022. It was, only, after a long hiatus, that a Physical Meeting / Session, of this SOCIETY took place, in December 2023 — which, I attended, the first time, in the absence, of my Father ( reference / recall — he passed away, on 26 April 2023 ). Well, lately, courtesy, a WhatsApp Group formed, by this very SOCIETY ( apart from the other efforts, on its part ), there came about a Meeting / Session, very recently, on 13 November 2025, wherein, owing to a very peculiar configuration, of conditions and circumstances, on my part, I could not be in the midst of them all — something, I, very deeply, regret. 

The other Literary Organization, SAHITYA SANGAM, came into existence, sometime, around the Year 2016 ; and, both, my Father, as well as, myself, ventured, to become Members, of this Organization, as well. It all started / began, with the efforts of a very Elderly, and, yet, active Lady ( who had retired, as a high-level functionary, in the Reserve Bank Of India ), deep, into Literary endeavours, in multiple Languages — spanning, English, Hindi / Urdu, Telugu, and, of course, Malayalam. This lady, Madam Elizabeth Kurian 'Mona', is / has been, a Syrian Christian, and, she has been, extremely, active, in various other Literary Circles — within the Twin Cities, as well as, outside. Well, the Meetings / Sessions, of this Organization, used to take place, every month, in some good space, within the premises, of a Hospital, somewhere, in Abids — that is, during the initial Years, of its functioning. Later on, sometime, around the Year, 2018, this Organization, shifted base, to a Hotel, by name, RAJMATA ( in Nampally ) — courtesy, the most generous services offered, and, indeed, made to come about, by the Propreitor, of this Hotel, a Sindhi Gentleman, by name, Prakash Bolaki. This Gentleman, well drawn, towards such Literary Endeavours, played, a very major role, in seeing, that, just about every Meeting / Session came about / took place, right within the premises, of this Hotel, to the utter delight, of all of us Members — followed, every time, by a sumptuous dinner, right in the Hotel ! It was here, that, my Father, as well as, myself, had our heyday, with almost every Meeting / Session, devoted to the reading out of a couple of Poems / Poetry, by, nearly, all the Members present ( in a pattern, of a couple of rounds ) — each round followed, by a musical rendition, by me. Both, my Father, as well as, myself, began our association, with this Organization, in July 2018, and, we continued, thus, till, February 2020, wherefrom, affairs tapered off, on, almost, similar lines — with intermittent Meetings / Sessions, over Zoom. Save the physical Meetings / Sessions, we were able to have, at the Residence, of Shri Prakash Bolaki, once again, in October 2021 ( Hotel RAJMATA having been in perpetual Lockdown, since then ), and, in November 2021, over the course, of the subsequent months, this Organization came to a standstill, around June 2023, when, Madam Elizabeth Kurian 'Mona', finally, raised her hands, in despair, at the dwindling numbers, of Members, as well as, at the supposedly, prohibitive costs, of conducting such Meetings / Sessions, over Zoom — wherein, the numbers, drastically, shrank, to a rather dismal 4-5 ( the two us, included ! ) — the Annual Membership, requirements, in context of this Organization, remaining, nearly, the same, as, those, in the context of the POETRY  SOCIETY, as described above. Well, quite obviously, both these Organizations, over the course, mutually, shared, a good deal of Members. Since, it became / was deemed no longer feasible, to steer SAHITYA  SANGAM, in a sustained manner, especially, in the absence, of any other viable Venue ( not amounting to the residence of anyone / anybody, every time — for obvious considerations ), it was left with no other option, but, to wind up, at around the time, just mentioned above ( which, also, incidentally, came about, not very long after my Father passed away ! ). The associated WhatsApp Group, as well — needless to say — ceased, not long after.

The above two apart, both, my Father, as well as myself, have been associated, with a number of other Organizations, in the Twin Cities — each Organization, with a thrust of its own, overlapping, at times, with the concerns, of other Organizations. Well, I do not have to detail anything more, substantially, about the Banaras Hindu University Alumni Association ( BHUAA ) — my having, already, done so, I suppose, in some measure, earlier. Still, I would like to recapitulate, that, this Organization celebrates two major Occasions, during any whole year, and, these are, 5 September — associated, with the Birthday, of, Dr. Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan ( the Second President, Of The Republic Of India, 1962-1967 ; and, Vice-Chancellor, of BHU, 1939-1948 ) ; and, 25 December — associated with the Birthday, of, Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, the very Founder, of the Banaras Hindu University ( BHU ). Well, any convenient Sunday — normally, within those respective Months — or, any other Public Holiday, on similar lines, is chosen, for having the relevant Programmes / Events. Both, my Father, as well as, myself, have been Members, of this Organization, since September 2002 ( when, this Organization got revived — after a long dose of hibernation ), and, very rarely, have we missed attending, any major Occasion, down the course of all these Years, till, the onset of the Lockdown, during which Period, arrangements, like, Zoom Meetings / Video Conferencing would not have been feasible — given, obviously, the nature and scope of networking involved. As a result, it was not until September 2022 ( during the waning phases, of the Pandemic ), that, this Organization could afford to have its major Programme / Event, and, continue, thus. Anyhow, actually, my Father had been, an Alumnus, of the Banaras Hindu University ( BHU ), during the Years, 1958-1962, wherein, the first two Years ( 1958-1960 ), of his, went by, doing his Bachelor of Science ( with the Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry combination ), and, the latter two Years ( 1960-1962 ), of his, went by, doing his Master of Science, in the Subject, Physics — wherefrom, he moved over to the Indian Institute of Technology ( IIT ), Kanpur, for doing his Ph.D., in the same Subject. As a matter of fact, I was born, within the premises, of the Sir Sunderlal Hospital, right within the Campus, of the Banaras Hindu University ( BHU ) — on 7 November 1971. So, though, I am not, technically, eligible, to become ( and, thus, remain ) a Member, of, this, or, any other Organization, of like nature, I am, by default, so to say, considered / regarded / treated, as a Member, of this very Organization !  The Membership requirements, of / for this Organization, entail, mostly, the Category, of Life Membership, for Members, as well as, on-the-spot Registration ( for the different Categories, of Members — Single ; Couple ; Family ; and, so on ) — prior to the beginning, of every Programme / Event ( made clear, just above ). Of course, my Father had the privilege, of serving as Vice-President, of this Organization, during the Periods, 2005-2008, and, 2008-2011, post which, he was unanimously offered, Presidentship, of this Organization, and, which, he, modestly, declined — mainly, owing to considerations, involving his, by then, advanced and advancing age, and the associated weakening, of adequate propulsion. I continue, to the extent possible, to attend the couple of Programmes / Events, of this Organization, apart, from being on, at least, two WhatsApp Groups, so associated / functioming — wherein, I keep making my meaningful interventions, from time to time. It would gladden you all, to know, that, at long last, this Organization — along with, other fraternal Organizations, dedicated / devoted, to promoting, the Ideals, Values, and, Principles, of Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya — has succeeded, in persuading, the right quarters, towards having a ( till now absent ) representative Statue, of the Savant, in /at, one of the prominent Centres, in / of these Twin Cities.

Both, my Father and myself, have been associated, with an Organization, called MANTHAN, wherein, we get to have, on an, almost, monthly basis, a Lecture / Talk / Interactive Programme / Event, organized, with eminent personalities, drawn from diverse walks of life, being invited, to engage all of us, meaningfully— in the context of a Theme / Topic, of, usually, contemporary relevance. This Organization has been in existence / vogue, since the Year, 2005, and, both of us have been associated, with this Organization, since the latter half, of the Year, 2015 — having attended most of the Sessions, since then. Well, every 2nd of October, this Organization takes it upon itself, to have the Annual Grand Programme / Event, MANTHAN  SAMVAAD — wherein, there is a, rather, extended series, of Sessions ( around, half-a-dozen, or, so ; almost, the equivalent, of half-a-dozen, of the regular MANTHAN Sessions, packed into one, single day — from, early, in the morning, till, late into the evening ). During the Years, I had my Father, somehow, our attending the Annual MANTHAN  SAMVAAD, never took place, and, it was, only, after his passing away, that, I made good on the opportunity, to attend such a SAMVAAD, twice — once, in October 2023, and, the next time, in October 2024. I could not, regrettably, attend the October 2025 MANTHAN  SAMVAAD. Of course, for the benefit, of all concerned, MANTHAN ensures, that, each and every Programme / Event is curated, and eventually, uploaded, onto its YouTube Channel — wherein, all those, absent, at the respective Physical Meetings / Sessions, of MANTHAN, could have an, almost, Physical feel, of all of such Meetings / Sessions, any number of times. Of course, many people, even, among all those present, in several of such physical Meetings / Sessions, as well, could, later, avail of going through, any number of times, the whole process, over YouTube — depending upon the desire, and, the associated commitment, on the part, of such people. Needless, to say, all these Programmes / Events are ( and, have been ), free of cost. However, there is a provision, whereby, voluntary donations ( in /of any Amount ), from just about any quarter, are most welcome, that is, for them to keep the spirit of MANTHAN going — and, so, both of us have, occasionally, given our modest bits, from time to time. To the extent, I am ( and, have been ) aware, this Organization does not have any WhatsApp Group associated / functioning. Regrettably, one of the two Founders, of this Organization, by name, Ajay Gandhi ( a Chartered Accountant, by profession ), passed away, in September 2021, and, so, since then, MANTHAN  organizes, every Year, an Ajay Gandhi Memorial Event — nearly, coinciding, with the anniversary, of his demise. The other Gentleman, Shri Mamidipudi Ravindra Vikram ( also, a Chartered Accountant, by profession ), has been steering this Affair, almost, single-handedly, since then. Just, to share, neither my Father, much less myself, ever got to deliver any Lecture / Talk / Presentation, or, be part of any Interactive Session / Discussion Group — for / through MANTHAN.

Then, come the three Literary-Cultural Spaces — quite close to our Residence, here. The First is, LAMAKAAN, a relic, left behind, by a very old generation Naturalist-Photographer and Cultural Connoisseur, whose ardent desire, it was, to preserve, and, even, further, nurture, the plethora of Literary and Cultural endeavours — so true, to this Country, in general, and, to Hyderabad, in particular. It was, with this intent, and, spirit, that, this Space ( a grand house, going back, to the times of the erstwhile Nizam, of Hyderabad ), of this Gentleman, got carried over, to this Trust, which has been steering the affairs, of LAMAKAAN, since the Year, 2010 — when, it was, formally, founded, and so named. It is, here, that, Programmes / Events, Sessions / Meetings, related to : Music ; Classical Dance ; Drama ; Literature ; Book Release ; Long / Short Film / Documentary Screenings ; Lectures / Talks ; Workshops, on Painting / Drawing / Sketching / Etching, Sculpture, Pottery, Claying Figures, Preparing Theme-based Posters — along with occasional Exhibitions, of the Works, so forthcoming ; Group Discussions / Interactive Sessions, on some of the burning Issues / Concerns, of the day — apart from, Themes / Topics, of contemporary relevance — are made to take place. My Father had the Book Release Ceremony, of his Fourth Volume, of Poems / Poetry,  SIGHTS AND  SIGHTS, within the Premises, of this very Domain, in November 2010. Later on, both of us became frequent visitors, to this Space, since, around 2017, on the pretext, of attending, one Programme / Event, or, the other, and, we continued, thus, almost, till the onset of the 'formal' Lockdown, in March 2020 ( with no recourse — for obvious logistic considerations — to any of the arrangements, like, Zoom Meetings / Video Conferencing ). In the midst of all this, prior to the Lockdown, my Father got to read out, some of his Poems / Poetry, as also, at different times, extensively, articulate, his views, in a couple of the relevant Groups / Gatherings, within this Domain. Well, neither of us got to, at any time, formally, address a larger audience — in terms of any Lecture / Talk / Presentation, within this Domain. Even, LAMAKAAN — to the extent, I am ( and, have been ) aware — has no WhatsApp Group, associated / functioning. All the Programmes / Events ( save, those few, involving Workshops ), at LAMAKAAN, are, free of cost. There is a full-fledged Canteen, within this Domain, functioning every day, from morning till night, wherein, all the Items, of food and drink, are, accordingly, charged ; still, after the conclusion, of some Major Programme / Event, or the other, the Chief Presenters of the same — along with, all of us — are treated, to a full Meal ! 

The other two Literary-Cultural Spaces, are, the GOETHE  ZENTRUM ( German Cultural Centre ), and, the ALLIANCE FRANCAISE ( French Cultural Centre ). While, the German Cultural Centre is involved / engaged, in the promotion, of the German Language and Culture — through its Centres / Branches, spread across the Country, the French Cultural Centre is involved / engaged, in the promotion, of the French Language and Culture — through its Branches / Centres, across the length and breadth, of the Country. Of course, both, share ( within their respective Domains ), as also, with LAMAKAAN, all the other engagements / involvements,  endeavours / activities — detailed, just above, in the context, of LAMAKAAN — wherein, fruitful collaborations, are made to come about / take place. It just so happens, that, these two Organizations have been, since quite sometime, a distant stone's throw away, from, our Residence, here — but, in, mutually, opposite directions ( the German Cultural Centre, being, a little farther, relatively ). Earlier, the German Cultural Centre was based, somewhere, in the Secretariat belt, in / of the Twin Cities, and, the French Cultural Centre was based, somewhere, in the West Marredpally belt, in / of the Twin Cities — both, quite far off, in their own ways, from our Residence. Needless to exclaim, Providence seems to have played its part, in bringing, only, these two Organizations, as though, to our very doorstep ! And, over the years, both, my Father, as well as, myself, left no stone unturned, in terms of making good on all the opportunities ( of being associated with these two Organizations ), which came by, of course, till the Pandemic struck ( and, for their respective considerations — no recourse on their part, to arrangements, like Zoom Meetings / Video Conferencing ). Though the French Cultural Centre seems, somewhat, lulled, since quite long, the German Cultural Centre picked up, soon enough, and has been on, with great gusto, and, I have been, intermittently, attending, quite a few, of its Programnes / Events. Having set foot, in this City, in the Year, 2004, this Centre, during September-October 2024, celebrated Two Hearty Decades, of its vibrant course, all through. Well, as above, in the context, of, even, especially, these two Cultural Centres, neither my Father, nor myself, ever got to deliver any Lecture / Talk / Presentation, or, be, formally, part of any Interactive Session / Discussion Group. And, to the extent, I am ( and, have been ) aware, neither of these two Organizations has a WhatsApp Group, associated / functioning. Except for the, sparingly, few Programmes / Events, in the context of both these Organizations, for which there is some scheduled nominal cost, most of the Programmes / Events are free — and, extendedly, so.

Over and above ( all the above ! ), there are many other Venues, in the Twin Cities, wherein, separate Programmes / Events — in the context of each one of the Endeavours, just, enumerated above — keep coming about / taking place, and, I try my best, to attend, at least, a few of them, since, for obvious considerations, it is well nigh impossible, to be present, at all places, at all times, simultaneously, howsoever much, I long / yearn to ! Still, during the days along with my Father, both of us used to attend a greater variety, of such separate Programmes / Events — coming about / taking place, in just about any corner, in / of the Twin Cities, some of such, being / having been free of cost, while, others being / having been, at affordable cost. Needless to sigh, even such Occasions had to take a beating — what with the Pandemic, and, the Lockdown !

I am ( and, have been ) on a few WhatsApp Groups, having to do with Language And Literature, in general, and, English Language And Literature, in particular ( more focused, though, on the latter ) — wherein, I keep, intermittently, engaging, in terms of my meaningful interventions.

For quite sometime now, I have been involved in substantial amount of Translation / Transcreation-related Work, from Hindi into English, of three Collections of Poems / Poetry ( originally, in Hindi ), by one Professor Rana Pratap Singh, a very dear colleague of ours, since our days at Rohtak, Haryana state — he, having been Professor, in the Department of Biosciences, Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak, as well as, in good collaboration, with my Father, during his days of rich involvement, in organizational endeavours, related to Science Communication / Popularization ; Literacy ; People-oriented Writings / Issues ; bringing out, of relevant Periodicals, and, so on. Later, of course, he moved over to Lucknow, and made himself comfortable, in the Department of Environmental Sciences, Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar University, where, he is deeply entrenched, in rather too many Academic, as well as, People-Oriented endeavours — including, an Organisation, by name PROFESSOR  H.S. SRIVASTAVA  FOUNDATION  FOR SCIENCE  &  SOCIETY ( PHSSFFSS ) ; apart from running a ( bilingual ) Periodical, by name KAHAAR — whose hard, as well as, soft copies, we have received, intermittently, in the past, and, which, I continue to receive, even now. This Gentleman has been a Plant Physiologist, and, he stands, formally, retired, from University service.

My Translation / Transcreation-related Work, has culminated, in two of the above-mentioned Collections, getting, effectively, translated / transcreated, into English ; and, these two respective Versions are already off, to a Scientist-Friend ( one, Dr. T. Harinarayana ), of Professor Rana Pratap Singh, and, who is based in Hyderabad — having a Publishing House, of his own. If the already rendered Translations / Transcreations ( from my side ) find adequate favour with him, he may, even, consider, publishing some Selected Poems / Poetry — from among the renditions, in these respective English Versions — under the banner, of his Publishing House. Professor Rana Pratap Singh informs me, that, I would be, very likely, later, entrusted, with the task, of translating / transcreating, from Hindi into English, a series of Modules ( originally, in Hindi ) — having to do with Science Communication, for Children ;  as well as, an upcoming Book ( again, originally, in Hindi ) — having to do with the Social Discourse of Science. Since, both these are, still, in the process of being accorded, final touches, it would be / take some time, before, they are able to be placed, in my hands — for the relevant furtherance. In the context of all these, I got to ( upon this Professor's request — since, he has been on the lookout, for some credible publishers ) put him in touch with the Publisher, of our Magnum Opus ( more, on this — later ), as well as, of one of the earlier Volumes of Poetry, of my Father. The Publisher is, AUTHORSPRESS, and, the Proprietor is ( and, has been ), one Shri Sudarshan Kcherry ( basically, from Kerala ). Well, both of us, from our sides, respectively, wrote our letters, to him — with the appeal, that, a favourable glance be cast upon whatever is sought to be got published, under the banner of AUTHORSPRESS. Professor Rana Pratap Singh, as well as, myself — neither of us has, so far, received, any response from Shri Kcherry. We would, probably, have to wait, a little further, for the same. Meanwhile, I am in the process of making known to Professor Rana Pratap Singh, the details, related to a couple of other credible publishers, for him to pursue, and, for me to make good on — in the context of any of my later, likely, endeavours — though, of course, these publishers would be ( if and when, anything concrete materializes with them ), entirely, new, to me, as well as, perhaps, to Professor Rana Pratap Singh. Anyhow, there would be no stopping.

On top of the just foregoing, I have  ( sometime ago ), gladly, accepted the request of one Shri Gomatham Narasimha Raju Gogulam, to translate / transcreate, from English into Telugu, the first Novel / Book / Work ( with title ANGEL ), of his daughter, Gomatham Bhagvadgeetha Susmitha Manasa. Apparently, they are not left with very many copies of the same, as, almost, all the copies of this First Edition have been, successfully, dealt with. Of course, I have been meeting this Gentleman, personally, off and on ( whenever, he so desires — to meet me ), as, he is, usually, too engaged, making rounds of various places, in the Country — on one count or the other. He has been, quite, into, the most advanced Systems, related to Information Processing — having had his Doctorate, in Artificial Intelligence ( AI ), and associated Systems, as well as, having worked for a few Software-related Companies, including, a stint in the USA. Since, I am, right now, rather taken up, with the Work, from Dr. Rana Pratap Singh, it would be a while, before I am able to plunge, head-on, into the Work related to the Novel ; though, I have, in right earnest, already begun my endeavour, and, I have made myself comfortable, with the first few pages — having, priorly, read the entire Novel, at least, once.

Of course, the Natural Languages, I cover, in the context of Work, related, to Translation, are : Telugu ; English ; Hindi ; Urdu ; also, Persian, and Arabic, to a certain extent ; all of which, very obviously, involve quite a lot of Work — both, Handwritten, as well as, Digital. In such contexts, I am, also, nominally, useful / helpful / beneficial, to / for diverse sections / segments, of peoples, and, diverse quarters, in / through the oral / verbal medium, as well. More often than not, my Work, related to Translation, gets, adequately, remunerated ; though, it is in my hands, to see, that, maximum, of such Work, is made to come within my fold !

This apart, I do intermittent writing ( from my side, as well as, upon request — from diverse quarters ) — in the first Four, of the above-specified Natural Languages ; and, such writing of mine — more often than not — meets with reasonable success.

I write ( hardcore) Poetry, in all the four Natural Languages — Telugu ; English ; Hindi ; and, Urdu. And, by 'hardcore', here, I mean, Poetry, as it should / ought to come forth / culminate, in its profoundly sublimest expression. You shall, in due course, have sufficient occasion, to have a good taste, of the Poetry I write, in the Languages you are comfortable in / with — and, thereby, acquaint yourself, with my 'hardcore' !

I may add, that, our Complex — 'SRI NIVAS' Apartments, Srinagar Colony, Hyderabad City — since quite long, has been calm, quiet, and peaceful, with not even any minor squabble / skirmish taking place, at any point of time — something, which was not the case, even till a few years ago. The neighbours, and the general surroundings are the least troublesome — with none disturbing the other, and, with no interference, whatsoever, on the part of anyone, in the affairs of the other, as well as, no meeting / camaraderie, among any of them, in the context of just about anything. This may / could translate to : no standing of 'one', for the 'other', in times of minor help / support / assistance, which may be required, by just about anyone — much less, standing together, in times of any major crisis / issue, befalling the Complex, as a whole, or, during times of any other minor  matter, having the tendency to snowball into something major. There are occasional spurts of exchanges, between neighbours, though — in the context of certain, unexpectedly, specific 'auspicious' occasions ! 

Although, of course, I continue to have my share of complaints, once I step out of the house  — with respect to the indescribable condition of several roads / pathways ( with frequent stretches / patches of them, relaid, erratically ) ; manhole sewage, strewn all around ; heaps of garbage, littered at many places ; dangling electric cables, randomly fallen ; minor flooding, in abandoned potholes at vital spots ; rampant digging, in the name of laying networks, for facilities, like drainage, cables, network lines, and, the like ; apart from, demolitions and constructions taking place, left and right, with heaps / mounds of construction lying, just about wherever ; old, rickety, haggard, crumbling structures, co-existing, along with, relatively, newer ones — for the most part ; rains tending to make all these, only more beyond description. And, you have the relatively spread out 'python naalaas' ( muriki kaalavalu ), 'adorning' the 'landscape' — all through. The only redeeming feature, in this whole scenario, has been, the 'makeover', a few roads / pathways ( in our neighbourhood ) have been subjected to — graduating, from, having been, 'tar-ridden', to, becoming, 'cement-evened'. And, this is what is making me, these days, come out of my house, into the open, daily, and, get back,— in the spirit of wanting to live on, further ! What, I, however, learn, is, that, this 'great' City, used to be, once upon a time, indeed, 'great' — what with, almost, all the roads / pathways, having been, so 'cement-evened'.

I know, all this rant would hold true, of many an average city / town / place, in this Country. But, what bothers / upsets me, is the frequent claim ( since, already, very long ), from the diverse quarters, to the effect, that, either Hyderabad, is, already, An 'International / A Global / World-Class City', or, it is, on its way, towards becoming one ! Nothing could be farther from ( or, closer to ? ) travesty. Hyderabad, according to me ( and, according to, even, my late father ), is ( and, has been ), actually, nothing, but, a huge ( till as, wonderfully, as you can imagine ) Medieval-Period 'Basthi', with elements of so-called 'modernity', thrust upon — in the form of 'dazzling' Malls ; Showrooms ; Multiplexes ; Towers ;  Large Agglomerated Houses ; Halls / Auditoriums ; Flyovers ;  Expressways ; 'Renovated' Underpasses ; Rail Metros ( the latest addition ! ), and, other 'imports' of like nature.  

The funniest part — in this whole story — is ( and, has been ), the intermittent protest-like meetings, and other like endeavours, on the part of some of these so-called 'activists' and their groups ( who / which seek to make their presence felt, at all possible places ), striving to project themselves as the 'custodians', who are 'destined' to save the 'precious / valuable' Rock Heritage ; Water Bodies ; Gardens / Orchards ; Linings Of Trees ; Forest Areas / Ecosystems ( euphemistically, called Eco-Sensitive Zones ) ; Heritage Structures / Relics, of historical, cultural, and architectural value, and, so on. True, all these have to have the much-required 'protection / conservation', at all costs. Actually, I came to learn ( through various credible / reliable sources ) — much later, in my life, though — that, this City, as the City of the Nizams / Nawabs, was, truly, so wonderful, in terms of the much better presence, as well as, quality, of all the above-mentioned Categories, and, which continued, even well into the later times, as amply testified to, by my late father, when he visited this City, all by himself, in the Year, 1962, as also, later. But, as you know, with all kinds of ( nefarious ) forces picking up momentum — with ample prod from government-related quarters — either, many, of the above-mentioned Categories are / have been made not to exist, or, their condition is / has been made to become such, that, they fall / have fallen into a state of abandon, to a point of no-return, with all the legal / technical / official tangles, related to questions / disputes, of 'selective' authorized / unauthorized structures, in many of such Domains, adding their share, to the already heady mix ! To cite, just one instance, the River 'Musi' ( actually, to be pronounced 'Musa', according to lingual cannon ), used to be such, during the heyday of the Nizams / Nawabs, that, water from the same could be taken, directly, and had for drinking — so much so, that, it was said to have been imbued with certain medicinal properties ; and, it was said to have cured many people, of / brought many people out of many of their illnesses / illness-like conditions. Many of you must have come across this River, anytime, in the recent past — whenever you happened to have visited the City. Another case, in point, is, the Hussain Sagar Lake ( the 'pride' of Hyderabad, once upon a time ! ), which has turned another huge 'muriki cheruvu' — with occssional voices, apparently, 'pleading', for a vital clean-up, of the whole Domain, as also, something larger ( in terms of a scheme ), planned, for the 'restoration' of Musi/a. Even a casual look at it, would tell, what a 'mega python-naalaa', it has become — especially, in recent times. 

In such a scenario, would, seriously, any number of / any amount of raising voice(s), matter / count / make a difference — much less, play a role / part in, vastly, bettering / improving the presently-existing state of affairs ? Needless to say, I leave the answer(s), to you.

The weather here, is ( and, has been ), quite benign, for quite sometime now, and, I am having all the pleasures of this benignness, for / till as long as it lasts, along with, of course, the invaluable gift, of uninterrupted Water, in our Complex — one of the 'life turning' Events here, which, indeed, ought to be called so, solely, owing to the pioneeringly influential role of my late Father, soon after we arrived, here, in the City, and, in the Complex. How it all came to be, would form the bulk of a different story — at some later time !