ohhk. i had seen this many many years before on doordarshan. its a boys birthday. and he cud celebrate it the way he wanted. instead he asks his father how he used to celebrate his budday. his father begins tells him about his own life wen he was almost his age. back then he had attended one of the 'mordern' budday parties where the budday boy had cut a cake and got plenty of gifts including a cycle. so he(the father wen a boy) dreamed about having his own big budday party, cutting a cake, dressing well and getting a cycle. but he belonged to a well-off but 'not-very-modern' family with parents who cared for him but who will always try to make some sense out of everything. they had attended the 'modern-family-boy's budday but i would like to believe now that it was out of respect or some sense of duty. Like some really sophisticated people(e.g. forest gump) budday celebrations (read extravagance) did not make any sense to them. So the boy's budday comes. they start the day early. they cooked nice food. they made him wear real nice traditional kurta pajama ( with some chhotu-pagdi i guess). The boy is happy. he knows that he will have a big budday party in evening. anyway, in afternoon, they(the parents of the father of the boymentioned in third sentence!) distribute kambal and clothes to needy people by boy's hand. they (the poor) blesses the boy. the boy was happy. he will have the big budday party in the evening.

The evening comes. boy looks around. nothing seems to be happening in the house. he is little worried now. i think he was not aware of the idea of 'surprise' parties back then. in panic, he goes to his father and asks ki 'budday kab manayenge mera?' and his dad replies ki 'beta, budday toh manaa liya na?!' the boy is disappointed.

this is one of the very lively memories of father. some of the events that shape up your life as you grow older and come to realise how big they were. the father is proud of his parents. the boy is in a car with his father. the boy, definitely more mature to understand these things than his father was as a kid, most probabily bcus he has had those 'big' parties before, grasps the essence and importance of the story immediately. the car is parked on road with a slum area sideby. he takes few of his toys, that he doesnt play with anymore with him, goes to children, playing in one of the streets of this slum area and gives the toys to them. the boy is proud of his father.

Anyway, i have turned 23 now. earlier i thot that i will not tell anybody and call everyone up the next evening and make them wish me happy budday. but as the day's gone and nobody wished me, i have made it pretty clear to everyone that they sudnt expect any happy budday from me for next twenty years.

and as i was talking to my dear pondy, who was one of the very few people, who knew about my budday but still did not wish me on time; he told me that how noone had wished him on his budday. Guilt and happiness. i felt them both. but it was temporary as he said that a month later his gang arranged a surprise party for him. damn you pondy!