Who's your papa ?

Someone recently came to me introducing a person by telling me to keep in touch with this person as his father is a bigshot.This statement put me into a lot of thinking, and as I observed around, I realized ,how inherent it is, for all of us to to judge a person.To make an opinion even before the other guy even gets a chance. It's like we give undue respect to a person just because his father is a renowned person or a bigshot when on the other hand we ignore someone ,who in other words is a nobody. I heard someone discussing about another person saying he is an interesting person and started narrating the person's  parents and background. Seriously, can you just describe a person as interesting because of his parents.(someone should knock some sense into this someone in the first place ,for talking about someone ,to someone, behind someone .)

We have all become so myopic in viewing people we meet in our daily lives , we tend to see them in the light of their wealth ,position, lineage and ignore what really matters.It's so easy to get lost in the mirage of external trappings of an affluent upbringing as we all swoon with our collective ooohh's and aaahh's. I mean forget the higher echelons in the corridors of power wherein the destiny of a billion people is forged ,where mai baap or mera baap is prevalent and who you are depends on who your parents were,but I am talking about you and me common people or the aam admi.We who distinguish between the privileged and the unprivileged.We go "pata hai uska baap laal batti mein ata hai"(did you know,his dad comes in a red beaconed vehicle; i.e.VIP vehicle ) The reply will usually be,kya baat hai (wow).When in fact he might be be a driver of that vehicle.

I've heard a couple of times people ask a newcomer ,who's your papa?(not necessarily in that manner). Now for me ,that's a moot question. The person is judged either way. He is already labeled from the get go.He has to live up to the expectation of what society thinks should be the appropriate behaviour from a son or daughter of, say a principal of a school.
Similarly it's the reverse too.

However what I have written is just one facet in the uncountable ways we judge people and I'm not writing this to preach to you to do this or that because even I find myself guilty of doing  the same thing.This is what is wrong with us today.We refuse to see you beyond the appearances.It's so entrenched in our collective mindset,that other guy never gets a chance. I know it's hard to break years of habit , something that is second nature to all of us which is, to have an opinion about a person, even before they get an opportunity to prove otherwise , so lets make an effort to give this other guy a break, because more often than not people will surprise you. All you ever have to do is , give them a chance.

What's in a name ?

I have been posted in the OPD(out patient department) for well over six months now and one thing I like is, calling people's names out loud as I sent them to their designated rooms.  Unlike in the inpatients ( i.e. admitted patients) where I usually refer patients by their bed number. So I have come across a cornucopia of names since then.Some name's are intriguing and interesting and some outright puerile and funny.

  Our name's are something that we all identify ourselves with. It's ours and ours alone. It's more than an identity. But what happens when your parents who are supposed to give you names ,bungle up.I mean just imagine if your name is the butt end of everyone's jokes.

I recently came across a name called 'Awake'. Man! imagine that.By the way, who names their kids Awake.  And another kid named 'Frooty '. Yea right! I had actually asked the mother and she confirmed that it's the official name. Sometimes I wonder what were the parents thinking while naming their children.It is a heavy responsibility,and it's repercussions are felt throughout the child's life. I can well imagine the years of teasing and harrying these kids might have to face. Then there are names which are exquisite and recherche` that roll from your tongue, effortlessly and fluently with poetic grace.

On the other hand take my name for example. It's ,Manivarnan Chinnathambi '. Anyone mentioned tongue twisters. Yea try saying my name slowly at first and increase the speed as you go. That'll give you a kick.When people hear my name for the first time , almost every time I'm asked to repeat my name. So there I go gracefully obliging them by repeating my name again slooowly. Then the next question that immediately follows is ,"where are you from?". Actually, I'm from the planet 'Kriptine ' part of the ' Nebula Blue galaxy' ' the planet adjacent to ' Krypton ' (Superman's planet.)

Another thing I come across ,when I tell my name,is that I get to hear an assortment of names as I see people try miserably to get my whole name right in the first go. It's more like a polite name calling. I remember being called 'Manivarium' by a friend as she attempted to speak my name.( I don't fault her though , she is an 'angrez',read British, after all.) Then there is 'Maniva' and my all time favourite is "Manivarachitta  blblba what ... Could you repeat that again."

My 22 alphabets name sometimes runs out of boxes in forms so I always count the boxes before filling them up ,you can't go asking for extra boxes in a form now.Can you? It's even bigger pain if there's a straight line in the name column of a form. On a straight line I go all bold and nice with the first part of my name . Then on coming to second half I realize I am running out of space. So I cramp the letters so closely, they are almost jam packed. It reminds me of the Indian Railways; wherein the first  of my name is like like A/C coach all spacious and beautiful and the second half like the general coach with bodies all cramped together and an arm here and a leg there poking out from the windows.

So for practical purposes I use the name ' Mani ',usually for non official and informal situations. However even then too people write my name as 'Manny ' ,Money and 'Moni' but rarely do they write 'Mani'.So at the end of the day I have come to realize and accept that my name's distortion is here to stay ,maybe will be remain so in the future too.Like the lines from Shakespeare's famous play 'Romeo and Juliet' ,in which Juliet Capulet speaks the following lines to Romeo Montague .
"What’s in a name? that which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet;
So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call’d,
Retain that dear perfection which he owes       
Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name...."
So ultimately whether I am called 'Manivarium or Manny or Money it really doesn't matter because who I am as a person will not change with the names that I am called. So all you out there, if people don't call your name correctly, just chill; and join the club of people who oft repeateth Juliet's question"What's in a name ?"

P.S. : So dear readers , How's your experience with your names?