SHALA by Milind Bokil (Book Review...Personal View)

आयुष्यातील गेलेले क्षण काही आपला पिच्छा सोडत नाहीत, कोणत्या ना कोणत्या वलनावर ते डोळ्या समोर उभे रहताताच! आणि नकळत आपण त्या भूतकालात रममाण होऊंन जातो, आणि ह्या आपल्या भूतकालवारी साठी कोणती ही गोष्ट कारणीभूत ठरू शकते.... 

फार दिवसांपासून मिलिंद बोकिल लिखित शाला या कादंबरी बद्दल ऐकून होतो, आधीच मी Gregory David Roberts लिखित Shantaram चे  वाचन चालू असल्यामुळे विचार केला की आधी हातात असलेल्याचा फडशा पाडेंन आणि मगच 'शाळेत जाईंन'. अस नाहीं की Shantaram  बोरिंग आहे, infact आज पर्यंत वाचलेल्या Non-Fiction मध्ये सर्वात सुंदर अस पुस्तक मी वाचत होतो, पण शाला या पुस्तका बद्दल ऐकत असलेल्या प्रशंसेमुले माजी उत्सुकता ताणली होती, शेवटी न राहून विचार केला की at least पुस्तक तरी विकत आणून ठेवावे, आणि तसही शांताराम almost संपत आल होत, मी संध्याकाळी तड़क ठाण्याच्या जगदीश बुक डेपो मधून नवी कोरी शाला घेउन आलो. घरी आल्यावर मी पुस्तकाचा एक पान उघडून पाहिल आणि फक्त एका ओलीने माजी उत्सुकता शिगेला पोहचली, पुस्तकाच्या पहिल्याच पानावर लिहिले होते, 'शाळेत गेलेल्या सर्वासाठी'. शेवटी न राहून मी शांताराम तात्पुरते बाजूला ठेवले आणि शाला वाचायला घेतले... 

पुस्तकातील कथा जशी जशी उलगडत जाते तस तस धूसर होऊंन professional आणि स्वार्थी जगात हरवलेल्या त्या आठवणी नकळत  रम्य अश्या शालेय जगात पुन्हा नेहून बसवतात. पुस्तक वाचतान अनेक असे प्रसंग समोर येतात जे नक्कीच प्रत्येक वाचकाला स्वताचेच घडलेले प्रसंग आपण वाचत आहोत अस वातल्याशिवय राहत नाहीं, आणि म्हणुनच लेखकाने आपल्या प्रातिभेचा उत्तम नमूना पुस्तकाच्या पहिल्याच पानावर 'शाळेत गेलेल्या सर्वासाठी...' अस नमूद करून दिला आहे.  कथेतील पात्र  जोशी, चित्रे, सुऱ्या, फावाद्या जरी काल्पनिक असतील पण प्रत्येक शाळेत एक जोशी आणि चित्रे असणारच, असणार काय? असतातच!!! आणि प्रत्येक शाळेत एक शिरोडकर असते आणि प्रत्येक शाळेत एक आम्बेकर सुद्धा असते. आणि याला माजी शाला सुद्धा अपवाद नव्हती आणि मी सुद्धा!!!

पुस्तकाच एक एक पान वाचताना मला अगदी शहारून येत होत, वाटत होती की हे सर्व आपल्याच बद्दल आहे, आपणच तो जोशी आहोत आणि चित्रे, सुर्र्या माज्या घनिष्ट परिचयाचे आहेत आणि शिरोडकर ही.... (हा हा हा), शाळेत असताना प्रत्येक इयत्तेत शेवटचे बेंच हे जणू आमच्याच ग्रुप साठी राखीव ठेवले आहेत अस वाटायचा, राहून राहून मला कधीतरी पहिल्या बकावाराच्या मुलांचा हेवा वाटायचा की यांच्या सारखा आपण का इमान्दारित आभ्यास करत नाहीं? पण तो शेवटच्या बेंचचा रुबाब हा मला त्या पहिल्या बेंच वरच्या मुलान्बद्दल वाटत असणार्या हेव्या पेक्षा किती तरी मोठा होता, आणि तो हेवा सुद्धा किती पोकळ होता ते आता कलतय, नुसताच शाळेत जाऊंन फक्त अभ्यास एके अभ्यास आणि घर एके घर केलेल्याना कदाचित ती शालेची खरी गम्मत कधी कललीच नसेल, किवा त्या फर्स्ट बेन्चेर्स ची गम्मतेची व्याख्याच काही निराळी असेल, आसो पण ती गम्मत आमच्या इतकी इरसाल नक्कीच नसेल, ती त्या काचेच्या भान्द्यासराखी गुलगुलीत आणि तितकीच तकलादू आसेल. कदाचित ही प्रत्येक वर्गाची रचनाच असेल की प्रत्येक वर्गात ते पहिल्या २-३ बाकावर बसून चिव चिव करणारे असावेत, आणि प्रत्येक शालेत सुरया-केवडा प्रसंग घडतच असावा. 

   

शाला मी विक्रोली ते ठाणे आणि ठाणे ते कोपेर्खैराने अश्या २-३ लोकल प्रवास फेरीत संपवली आहे, आणि तो प्रवास खरच खुप आरामदायक होता, कारण मी शरीराने जरी त्या गच्च भरलेल्या लोकल मधे असलो तरी मनाने मात्र शालेच्या 'त्या' आठवणीत हरवलो होतो, वाचता वाचता खुदकन हसायला ही येत होत आणि नकळत भरून ही येत होत. 

शाला ही एक केवल कादम्बरी नसून ती शाळेत गेलेल्या प्रत्येकासाठी आठवणींची जंत्री आहे, एक अस जग जे परत निर्माण करण हे पुढे कोंत्याच वयात आणि कितीही पैशाने शक्य होत नाहीं, तेव्हा फक्त करियर नावाच्या कठीण अशा गणिताची बेरीज असते आणि भविष्याचा गुणाकर आणि नेमकी बरोबर उत्तरासाठी मागच्या आठवणींची वजाबाकी करावी लागते.

मिलिंद बोकिल यांनी खरच एक अप्रतिम अशी शाला रेखातली आहे, ती शाला तीच शाला आहे ज्यात तुम्ही आणि मी कधी तरी वावरलो होतो. 

Hats Off to Milind Sir!!! Great Work, Indeed. 

Original or Pirated?

Does it ever happen to you? You just put on headsets and forget to play any music or any Video or Audio file while browsing laptop or computer? And even while playing some track(s), you simply let it repeating and forget to realize? Well, I am a regular victim of this symptom and I really don’t know what it is being called? But I am sure this is common among most of the users.

What bother me these days is, price of BOOKS. Yes, you heard right, I am complaining or in sophisticated way I am raising a concern. Most of the people around me are complaining about high prices of Sugar, Gram, and Oil etc. It does not mean that I am unaffected but C’mon yaar, let me take a stand for something different and something equally important. (Now don’t calculate my IQ level, I am not comparing books with all these daily basic requirements) but since all are already raising voice for bringing down the cost of basic requirement. And yes I also support this. Unfortunately, in this great nation one side we are on continues demand for hike in salary (Majdooro ki Maang) and other way outside the campus we switch this demand to zero down the cost of basic requirement (Aam Janta ki Maang). Between these two activities if we get some spare time we consider it as a leisure, and utilizing it depend upon accessibility to entertainment. As like many others I prefer reading books. Fiction, non fiction I love it.

And I won’t call it rising price, but since non raising monthly salary putting restrictions on calling book price as affordable. In some manner if buying book limits to one or two then somehow cost is affordable. But in this case also I really wonder how students, non working people manage to fulfill their thirst of reading. Somebody said library? A book library? Well I am in search of one, which is accessible in suburban areas of Mumbai and which have storage of updated fiction and non fiction titles. Nowadays we find most of the audio or music library. Book libraries are missing, and even if I find any, it won’t solve my problem completely. Reading is my passion but collecting books to my own personal library is my hobby, and I am very much sure that there are many book lovers who love collecting books as well.

Nowadays e-book term is very much famous or well known to every one that people goes clueless on asking about copy of book. Audio books neither are much promoted nor such accessible easily in Mumbai (except some talking book websites). But reading books page by page is another joy. Normal range of book pricing is 100 bucks. I am talking about general fiction titles. For non fiction it goes beyond 100. Thanks to the book fair which at least offer some 5 to 10% discount? I have seen such regular book fair at Vashi near Assam Bhavan Campus, Other than that till back to Vikhroli via Thane hardly I could find any such book fair. Why is it so? Or are we responsible or our life style that we are running away from books? I remember a one-liner I used to see it on a black board during school days when I was a student, “books are man's best friend”. So where are our best friends? (They are available on demand with high price tags). Or is it an unnecessary demand which is not suitable for today’s speedy lifestyle? Should we start promoting or supporting only e-books and talking books? Does actual reading should be limited to the morning news paper and then continue with the school/college text books?

After banging boom of blogging; tweeting and microblogging is in demand. I wonder how to express specific in microblogging. Even if I try to summaries this, it would echo like ‘please cut down the book price.’ Well Jokes apart, publishing houses might be doing well. Books might be selling on a large scale but are they covering every individual reader? Why should I borrow a book, and why should I search it in library if I can buy it? And why shouldn’t I buy it if it is affordable? Whatever calculation it may be, but book costing Rs 500, 1000, 2000 and more is not fair. I respect the writers who pen down thoughts in the form of words and I appreciate the task of publishers for spreading it to every corner of world. I expect it to be a win-win situation for everyone.

Awareness about reading is requiring in today’s society and thus increasing response will help publishing houses to bring down the cost. Other possible alternative to cut down the cost is, generating revenue by print advertisement in the books. If we don’t work on this issue wisely, it will help piracy industry to grow and mug entire publishing and writer royalty zone. Original books which costing 1000 rupees are available at fort fountain area in pirated version just for 100 to 150 rupees (i.e.$2 to $4), while famous fiction titles are available for fixed price rate of 60/- Only. No wonder if people prefer to buy these pirated versions to fulfill their thirst of reading.

All day Travel Ticket (Best Bus)

This decade is declared as ‘Download Decade’ and some believe it as an ‘Information Decade’ but utilization of information to spread it among end users is really shocking.

I hardly travel by Mumbai BEST buses; I find Local trains more convenient (in the sense of understanding the routes, not for comfort). Standing on any strange bus stop and finding any informative indicator of busses and its route is as rare as my BOSS approving any of report in first attempt. Well Jokes apart, many of the times it happens, you’ll find single Pole with small board displaying stop name & only bus route numbers. Just imagine how tough it is for new commuter to understand the exact bus route number which will help him/her to reach desired destination? Now possible alternatives would be,

1)      Asking any of the co-commuter who is also waiting for bus on same bus stop (you’ll be lucky if he is a daily traveler)

2)      Waiting alone on bus stop and keeping eye on every upcoming buses so that you can read the bus route number and last destination of it (lucky you, if your destination is same as the bus’s or else you need to know geography of city to calculate whether your destination is somewhere near by or on the way to the final destination of bus)

3)      Finally toughest alternative, make the bus stop at the stop and try to ask any of the commuter who is already sitting inside the bus or else to the conductor. You can ask the query but you should have very least expectations for proper and clear response; and in all this exercise you should be very active cuz you may need to follow up for response in bit of running motion and if it is positive and even if you ask conductor to stop, he wont. And you’ll need to run till you catch it or leave it and once you step up inside the bus you’ll find notice/warning board in Marathi adjacent to steps saying, “Chalatya bus madhe chadhu agar utaru naka, tyane tumachya jivala dhoka aahe” (do not get down or board the bus in its accelerate motion, it is dangerous and can be fatal.)

Since last 4 to 6 weeks on every weekend I need to travel by BEST bus from central to western suburb via one of the busiest link roads. Generally while asking for ticket we’ll address it to conductor by desired destination name, e.g. Dindoshi Depo or else Marol Naka etc but in my every journey I found some of the commuters were addressing it by fixed price, e.g. “ek 20 wala dena” (give one of 20Rs). I thought, in that particular bus route 20rs ticket would be of specific place where these people want to go. Next time I changed to different bus route number for same destination but via different route; surprisingly in this bus also some of the commuters were addressing ticket by its cost, Rs 20. I was very curious to ask conductor about this, but he was too busy punching tickets in that over crowded bus, so I skipped it.

Next day to solve my curiosity I phoned some of my friends who are daily Mumbai BEST bus traveler. Out of 6 friends, 5 were clueless and only one who solved it partially, said “With 20 rs ticket, I can utilize it as one day pass for N numbers of round from any locations in suburbs till midnight” in short the BEST has introduced the all day travel ticket.

When I enquired, outcome was shocking. This facility is available since last 1.5 years and surprisingly not been explained anywhere officially, just a small paper cutting in selected news papers and now even after 1.5 years of its launching not all are aware about it. Those who know about it are availing it and people like me need to solve the curiosity by struggling around. Nowhere in/on the bus or bus stop is mentioned about this facility. I appreciate the new facility but what’s the use of it, if it’s not being communicated to every one?

Please find the short details of the ‘Newly discovered’ facility. This is an unofficial circular but verdicts are true, but yet reader are requested to get the updated status by communicating ‘helpful’ conductors of BEST officials rather than waiting for them to explain us.

There are 3 basic options of this ticket; those are (City, Suburb and All zones). The ticket is valid for travel on any route (except AC buses), any number of times on the day of the ticket till midnight. Basic options are explained as follows.

1)      Option 1 (City) : Rs. 15 : Includes, from Colaba/ VT/ Nariman Point/ Churchgate till South of Mahim / Sion

2)      Option 2 (Suburb) : Rs. 20 : North of Mahim / Sion, including beyond Dahisar / Vashi

3)      Option 3 (All zone) : Rs. 25: Anywhere the BEST buses exist in the city

The ticket layout is also different from the regular ticket. Instead of punching in the ‘stop/stage number’ of the route that the passenger got in from, the conductor instead has to make 4 punches: - Date (1 to 31), Month (1 to 12), Gender (Male or Female), Year (eg: "9" for 2009, "0" for 2010, etc.)

The most important of these is the Gender. While subscribing group tickets make sure to specify the gender correctly to the number of commuters in the group. This ticket is available with all the conductors on all the regular routes.

Happy Journey.