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My Calender, 2023

/ Paromita Goswami / Leave a comment

And its time for my calendar 2023. Frankly, it was no better than 2021. A little worse I would say. I am glad, its over. I don’t know what is in store for me in 2024 though I am hopeful it shall be better than 2023. So let’s see just how bad it went through.

January

For the first time in so many years, I bought some stationary . I used to buy things almost every week, a few decades ago. But then I didn’t have a computer back then. Everything was on paper. I loved the feel of the paper and the smooth running of the ink on it. My brain storming helped me get ideas while the hours spent in the stationary and music shops in South Extension market, Delhi gave me immense happiness . I couldn’t wait to use my stuff once I returned from my shopping.

So this year for some weird reasons I went shopping some stationary for myself which had never happened for so long because I had switched to digital writing. However, since I had joined Akashwani I had to document my script with a paper and pen. So, yeah I went to the stationary store here in Raipur. I was in for a disappointment because this city is more of “babus”, as in government official’s city rather anything else and they have the habit of purchasing everything in bulk. So the retails were not up to the standard with what I was used to. And those that were, usually cratered to the needs of the students most of the time.

Anyways, I did find myself one which was a small shop but they allowed me a walk-through to checkout their stuff. Yes, I was pretty amazed since a lot have changed since I last bought any stationary. Some smarter kits had replaced the old ones. I got two organizers for myself – one for my writing work and one for my other obligations. I was so happy when I was making plans for the entire year. Never once it crossed my mind that time had other things in store for me.

However, January held both good and bad moments for me. We went out with family friends to Chilpi Ghati to enjoy the New Year eve. The first day of the year was a visit to ancient Shiv temple, Bhoramdev. So the start was fantastic. However, came across a bad news very shortly.

Later, our Bindiya department had our first Akashwani official get together. We came to the conclusion that we needed more of such good times together since we hardly got a chance to meet each other during work.

Also I had a fabulous outing with all my female friends the same month. The picnic was arranged by New Hope Society.     

February

BLANK MONTH

March

I had two special occasion this month at Akashwani. First, I had the opportunity to interact with our listeners on phone directly and second, my special program on Holi festival was scheduled for broadcast. As an RJ, getting to interact with the audience is always a very warm experience, especially when they recognize you through your voice. And I interacted with a very elderly lady who happened to be a regular listener of our Bindiya program on the radio.

We went on road trip to Varanasi.

The trip was planned by hubby so for a change, I took the back seat, relaxed and enjoyed every bit of the stay. From ferrying in the holy Ganges, to visiting the temples and banarasi saree factories we did it all and not to forget the mouth watering street food which is available even very late at night. We stayed there for two nights before moving to our next destination.

April

From Varanasi we went to Gaya, the Moksh Dham, enroute Bodh Gaya.

Stayed there for a night in Bharat Seva Ashram and performed the last rites of our ancestors in the ancient Vishnu Temple. From Gaya we went to Jhumri Taliya and stayed the night in a fabulous five star accommodation. It was a big surprise for all of us. Very budget oriented yet with all the five star amenities. We went to see Taliya Dam the following morning and after spending an hour set off for Raipur. Since it was late in the evening so we halted in Sundergarh, Odisha. Next day we set off again homewards. The road trip was very refreshing for all of us. I vowed to learn driving but haven’t till date .

May

BLANK MONTH

June

BLANK MONTH

July

Took admission in Kamladevi Music college in Loksangeet course.

I was invited in book launch organized by the literary club of Krishna Public School. It was a fantastic experience to interact with young authors.

Celebrated Hareli festival with Akashwani team mates.

Team Akashwani

I got an opportunity to make a special documentary program on Munshi Premchand for Akashwani on occasion of his Jayanti, “Kalam ke sipahi, Munshi Premchand”. 

August

On occasion of Friendship day, my Special program, “Dhai Akhar Prem ke,” was aired in Akaswani.

Friendship Day Program

Our small club, New Hope Society got an opportunity to celebrate Independence Day with the elders in one of city’s oldage home. We were also invited in Saawan event organized by Mahila Mandal Kurmi Samaj.

September

Blank Month

October

Went to enjoy Durga puja in Bangalore. It was a road trip till Nagpur and then we took flight. The road from Raipur to Nagpur was terrible and we were very concerned that we had to come down the same route on our way back on our return journey and that too at night time. My hubby was cursing me for not learning to drive.

November

BLANK Month

December

And my this year’s last program on Akashwani.

Once the summer set in my days just passed by without my knowledge. And before I knew the year was gone. I have lost many dear ones this year. May their soul rest at peace where ever they are. Even my health took a toll this year. Mishaps kept occurring. Maybe I need to take good care of myself now. Me first should be the attitude. Lots of this that I loved doing has taken a back seat this year. All my planning drowned in the drain. Not a very promising year for me. I Don’t know what to expect in 2024.

However, I wish you a fantastic 2024. May all your dreams come true and have a healthy and peaceful life. Thank you.

Vote India, Vote

/ Paromita Goswami / Leave a comment

I got the opportunity to cast my right to vote a few days ago during Vidhan Sabha Elections in the state where I now reside. The experience of feeling so important had never subsided within me since I cast my first vote couple of decades ago. I am least interested in politics. However, little things of my daily life do make me think about whats going around.

It was the morning of our voting day and I was going through the newspaper over my cup of morning tea. I was very pissed off to see the front page that carried a huge poster of vote appeal of a political party. In the consecutive pages the case was similar with different political parties asking for vote. My question as a voter is when the campaign has ended the earlier day then why it is still going on in the media? Shouldn’t it be prohibited from all social platforms both offline and online? How will a voter decide what is good for him or her if the parties are always up on their face day and night.

Visuals are the best way to brain wash a person. Showing a person the same or similar visuals day and night will make the person dull, inactive to think properly. Do you think such a person will be in a good state of mind to decide for the future government. Ferrying a voter to the polling booth, political party booth camps outside the polling stations are also similar gimmicks to lure the voters which should be stopped on the polling day. A political party can help a voter by allowing them to vote without any manipulations.

Also as a voter, it’s my duty to choose the right person to run the government. But I have never got the chance to meet the candidate in person to whom I was casting my vote. My vote was more to a political party rather the individual in the local area or maybe the other way round. However, most of the time we choose by looking at the big picture which these parties paint forgetting the actual facts and figure. Most of the hoardings on rooftops and roadsides announce the benefits a voter will get if the party wins. But what about the previous promises? Were they fulfilled? Did the person really take the initiatives to address the issues that a voter was facing in his her locale? I regret that I had cast my vote without even meeting the candidate. What if he falls short of the promises made? What if he isn’t what was portrayed of him? I would regret my action taken then.

In the polling booth I waited for one and half hour for my turn. No the queue wasn’t big at all. The volunteers inside the room were taking time. When it was finally my turn I went inside the room and saw couple of people working together to execute the process of voting. One person was checking the identity card of the voter and announcing the serial number on the list. One person was taking down the number along side the voter’s name in another assigned sheet and then providing a small chit with all the details to the voter. Three people were verifying the voter details in their assigned sheets. Another person was collecting the given chit from the voter and applying the ink on the voter’s finger before sending the voter to the polling machine. The entire process was manual and took hardly a couple of seconds. However, I found out that our queue was taking so long because the volunteer who was providing the chit was incompetent. She was a senior and probably not that well trained for the job. In fact, I found her nervous and confused. Another person was standing over her head and repeating the numbers for her which she was still not able to write. Now who should I blame for this? The lady or the people who considered her fit for the election duty? And who actually suffered because of it? Along with me there was a young mother who had come with her toddler and she was having a tough time managing the child standing in the queue in the sun outside. There were seniors who were capable of walking but not capable of standing for too long in the sun. I suggest for them there should be a separate queue.

And in the end I would like to mention about the voting age in our country. 18 years. As a parent do you really think your kid is grownup enough to choose a government? Is the child even allowed to participate in the family decisions or is he or she old enough to pay their bills ? If not then how are they allowed to vote? If the right marrying age has been revised from 18 to 21 years then shouldn’t the voting age be reconsidered? Choosing a government is about a mature mind and not about age factor.

It’s about time we think about it and enjoy democracy in its true self.

The Silence – Excerpt (Mirror 2)

/ Paromita Goswami / 1 Comment

The Silence

Everything was going fine. They were eagerly waiting for their wedding day when finally they would be pronounced man and wife in a holy matrimony when fate took a U-turn. They had no clue what was in store for them until the time arrived when their relationship was put to test. The call came uninvited and unannounced. Thankfully they had had enough good memories to keep them going strong during the crisis. But will they survive the challenge was the question.

Mirror 2

#comingsoon #loverelationshipquotes

My Year 2022 Round Up

/ Paromita Goswami / 1 Comment

Wishing you all a very happy 2023. God bless you all.

I maybe a little late posting this calendar but I am happy I did it. My last two years I could not post due to various reasons.

January

I started the year 2022 with a bang.

Two of my special programs for New Year 2022 was selected for telecast at Akashwani Raipur . So it was a big opportunity for me.

In Studio Akashwani Raipur

February

A special program on spring “Basant Ayo Re ” was broadcasted by Prasar Bharathi at Akashwani Raipur.

March

I completed my first assignment as a ghost writer for my firm FICUS BOOK PUBLISHING SERVICES. As a new firm it was a big opportunity for all of us a a team.

After lockdown, we had our first out stationed tour to Mumbai. It was so pleasant to be with family once more.

April

Participated in Aprilbloggingchallenge2022. My theme this year was mental health issues. In this challenge we had to write a blog post everyday in the month of April on the theme selected. I completed the challenge. It was a fantastic opportunity to read other bloggers and interact with them. After lockdown it was a fresh start for me in writting.

May

I was invited for the book launch of the memoir mentored by me.

June

First event of the year, Summer Camp organized by our team New Hope Society. It was a good experience altogether.

July

This year my only book release Mirror: Self Help, Motivational book. Available on amazon.

With the onset of monsoons, our team New Hope Society organized “Poudha Ropan” event.

Comperes of Bindiya program , Akashwani Raipur were invited by Government School, Dumartarai for Hareli Festival celebration. It was an honour to visit the school and meet the teachers and Principal sir.

August

Team New Hope Society celebrated Independence Day, “Azaadi Ek Ehsaas ” with lots of enthusiasm. It was a big and very successful event.

September

Special Program on the occasion of World Heart Day for Askashwani Raipur

October

Durga Puja and Diwali celebrations

November

It was an honour to be invited by Krishna Public School to be part of the judges panel for the interschool event Litfest 2022

December

Got an opportunity to be part of wedding celebration of my niece at Raipur. It was a big family get together after a long gap. We enjoyed a lot.

My friends made by birthday very special.

New Hope Society organized an event “Muskan : A Day with the elders at the Old age Home”. Several people associated with us and helped us make the event a big success. A splendid way to end the year and welcome the new year.

Once again a very happy new year to you all. May you too have a happening 2023 both professionally and personally.

#imhindu and I don’t allow this

/ Paromita Goswami / 1 Comment

आजकल सबकुछ यहां मिलता है । प्यार ख्याति भगवान । बस आपके पास insta aur fb id होनी चाहिए।

spirituality के नाम पे

divine love के नाम पे

बदकिस्मती से हमारे हिन्दू देवी देवताओं को प्रदर्शित किया जा रहा है । शिव पार्वती सीता राम राधा कृषण इन सब की छवि खुले आम किसी की imagination को हवा देती है। मगर सिर्फ हिन्दू देवी देवता ही क्यों। क्या jesus Allah guru govind singh ji ने कभी किसी को attract नही किया??

मन्दिर में जिसकी पूजा पवित्र मन से की जाय उसका आपके प्रेम बंधन से किया वास्ता? रास लीला अब एक वयन्ग ही बनकर रह गया है। भक्ति का स्रोत नही। भजन की भी वही गति देख रही हुँ। मन की पवित्रता lust में खो चुकी हैं । इसलिये बस अपना स्वार्थ ही दीखता है

कुछ लोग तो अपनी imagination में घर भी बसा लेते है यहां। क्यों की उनको पता है यहां कोई responsibility नही होती।

अजादी और responsibility दोनो जुड़े हुए हैं । एक के धुन में आप दुसरे को imbalance करते है । इसलिये दायरे में रहना ज़रूरी है

#imhindu ‘ and I don’t allow this.

A- Alone Behind

/ Paromita Goswami / 3 Comments

This is my first post for the A toZ Blogging Challenge 2022.

Seems like ages since I last took the challenge. Happy to be successful in my last two attempts and hopeful to be this time too. Last two times I did short stories. This year I want to write about mental health. I know I am not the right person to make any judgement or elaborate much on the subject about it however I want to share from my experience only. Maybe you can relate to it.

You know life has its own way of preparing you for the next chapter of your life. Either you learnt it the easy way or the hard way. I learnt it the hard way. The challenge life can throw at you can be very overwhelming. Nobody is ever prepared for it. However, there are psychic who can feel it. No I am not a psychic. Just a normal human being who takes life as it comes but not easily. My stubborn nature makes me very tough and hence the process of transformation needed for the next chapter becomes quite a taskmaster for me. But one thing is always there for sure, I readily accept the challenge sooner or later.

When I was young, I remember an incident which I related much later in my life. I went to my friend’s house one evening. She was in her room with her mother. Both were sitting on the bed sipping tea. I joined them. They were talking casually about the events of day. She talked about her college and her mother talked about her work at home. The conversation was more like friend’s chit chatting instead of mother daughter duo. I was witnessing this for the first time in my life. Not that I wasn’t close to my mother. However, being introvert I wasn’t comfortable enough to speak so freely with anyone. Not even my mother. However, she knew me inside out and that’s a different story. And here right in front of my eyes I was witnessing such a beautiful open bonding. Was I jealous? No. Not at that time because I was awestruck to even feel anything else. After finishing tea, we decided to go for a walk. Of course I thought it would be just me and my friend which we usually did. But she decided to take her mother along. I didn’t say anything but maybe my expression said it all.

She said, “Papa will be late from office today. I can’t leave her alone behind in this house.” And the three of us went for a stroll that evening.  

“I can’t leave her alone behind …..”

This very line was etched in my subconscious forever that day. Years later, when I grew up I learnt to parent my loved ones and never leave them alone behind because I had learnt how it felt when you are left alone behind.