-Bibhuti Borkotoky, Freelance Writer

It was during the year 1969, a time when there was no TV and even Radio was a luxurious item.There was no residential telephone, only the govt. offices and a few private business houses had it. For any private telephone call, one had to run to the telephone exchange only.

I was a boy of about 26-27 years and employed in a Central Govt. department with a transferable job. Due to this, I had the opportunity to visit many places. Once, I had to undertake a journey to a place called Sarli (presently in Kukung-Kumey District of Arunachal Pradesh) which practically had no means of communication with the outer world. One could reach Sarli by air but Chopper services were rarely available. Thus, with no means of transportation either, it took 15 days of travelling on foot to reach the location from Ziro (Presently in Lower Subansiri District, Arunachal Pradesh). I was accompanied by a few security escorts. Ration and luggage was carried by local porters.

After reaching the destination, I could see that it was not very far from the mighty Himalayan Range and the continuous snowfall made a beautiful sight. People out there depended on the air services to drop food and other items needed for survival.

Postal service was only through locally engaged special Dak Runners. My letters would take a minimum of one month to reach my folks at home. By the time, I received the replies the topics would often get so stale that often its importance was lost. Yet the letters still held a special place in one’s life.

The days spent in Sarli remain a treasured experience of my life which cannot be explained in plain words. In this era of internet and mobile phones, such living conditions indeed become unimaginable too.

Hi, I am Sripng. Yup, you got it and I did na fumble. I never met sumone so far in life who could pronounce ma name correctly. I don’t know what was in ma parents’ mind when they named me such.
The only memory I have about ma parents is the bloody name I have. I was dumped in the church with a note sayin ma name. Church guys thought they may have a hard time callin me, but Father John stuck to the name. He loved me very much. more

Dear Diary,

In the dictionary of a 20 something unmarried young girl in conversation with society-induced paranoid adults, the word ‘marriage’ means: harassment. Living in an era where skin-deep beauty is revered, physical attention is cherished by those blessed and craved by those unpossessed and “perfect” means not susceptible to any social prejudice at the minimum. And then some more. No wonder that-vampire-in-that-forNOTgoodnesssake-Twilight-saga is a huge rage. more

A couple of weeks ago, a premier English news channel ran something known as a ‘Greenathon’. It’s a well orchestrated drama of a show with 24 hours of live television dedicated to the environment with celebrities, most of them film stars and some of them running in green colored designer shorts and dark cooling glasses, proclaiming their love for the environment, some of them saying inane things like ‘after all, this is the only more

Every time I see my country
I dream of many things
Think of our freedom,
That many died to bring more

She is a girl, more precious than a pearl;
Soft and gentle, beautiful and mild:
She gives much and expects less
Her heart is full of love and care. more

I was taught that
I come from dust
and to dust I must go.
No longer do I care- more

When you are a superstar like Aamir Khan with millions of fans all across the country and abroad, your birthday is quite special. Aamir celebrated his birthday on March 14, Sunday. And despite the fact that he had lost his father only a month back he was kind enough to actually let us in to his home when we reached there to wish him. Of course we were not alone. There was the huge brigade of entertainment media crowding into the home and also some fans – all obliged by the star as he spoke to them, signed autographs and also clicked photographs with them! more

Most of us like biscuits. For us, Indians, biscuits are a part of our everyday diet. Consciously or unconsciously, we have a tendency of eating/offering biscuits whenever we have guests around. And sometimes, we can be really choosy about our biscuits. For all you biscuit lovers out there, we have reviewed a bunch of biscuit brands. Check it out!
more

Life is a journey- They say! Destination – Unknown! Purpose –Debatable, but I am raring to go wherever life takes me.
My feet are weary and I have miles to go before I sleep- Have read it somewhere but why ponder? I am ready to go wherever life takes me.
I may stumble I may trip, but why should I worry? Happens all the time, I am ready to go wherever my feet takes me
I may despair, I may stall. I may rest, and may be halt for awhile, but of course, hey! I will be up again on my feet before you know and on my journey onwards.
I have no great plans, nor any big aspirations of achieving the unknown. I do not question the purpose of my existence because I know I am just an ordinary being.
If I am meant to walk on, then I will, for I fear not to tread where none has dared.
My feet maybe weary. My heart heavy at times but I am raring to go……

Looking at the mirror, she asked me, “How do I look?”
I looked at her.
The polka dotted skirt and the double chotis with matching ribbons.
The Mary Jane shoes and the glowing white socks.
“You look wonderful dear.”
She looked at me with flirting eyes and said,”Dhet!”
It seems she’s already a woman.

He tried to quicken his pace but it was very difficult to maintain a fast pace and drag a half-full vegetable-cart at the same time…It was already 10 pm . He had taken this short-cut for the first time in a bid to save time. It was a narrow untarred bye-lane that lead from the more