dhyan chand featured

Dhyan Chand: The ‘Kohinoor’ of Indian Sportsmen

Foreword, by Lt Gen Kapil Aggarwal (Veteran) Ramener une médaille de hockey (Bring Back a Medal in Hockey) Anointed as the “Wizard of Hockey” by Fuehrer, Adolf Hitler in the 1936 Berlin Olympics, Dhyan Chand will forever inspire generations of hockey players and lovers. When India routed the host team and favourites, Germany, by a margin of 8-1 in the …

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VANITY

  First  published in April 2006 : This little story has come down to me by word of mouth. I heard it from an elder many decades ago, when I was not even a teenager. I shared it with my friends nearly ten years ago. Some recent events have caused me to revive it and post it on our website once again. I …

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Crime, trial, verdict and sentence

From my archives Recently, I read a ‘middle’ article written by Rashmi Oberoi in a newspaper in which the author recounted an incident which was very similar to my own experience, forty odd years ago. Way back, in 1972, I wrote a story based on what I saw in a hospital. I was able to lay hands on it, and when I …

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JHUGGI DWELLERS

  Foreword Like all tellers of tales, I mix imagination with reality. The ratio varies, from story to story. However, the piece given below is all fact with no fiction. It is a narration of an experience from my own life; and it is as true as truth can be.     Jhuggi-dwellers     1962. I had just turned 21, and being young …

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ZEROES and HEROES – A short story by Surendra

Editor’s note Col Surendra has sent us another little story. It is about ‘zeroes’ and ‘heroes’. For those who may have forgotten, a ‘zero’ is defined as a loser; a person with no aspirations or goal. Hero, on the other hand is an amazing mix of all virtues. He is a winner, whom every one admires, because he emerges as the …

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‘THE HIATUS’ a short story by TS Surendra

Editor’s Note. THIRUVAZANDUR SRINIVASA SURENDRA, or TS Surendra joined the NDA in July 1962. His given name was a bit tough for his buddies, so he permitted them to call him ‘Tejinder’.  Academics was his forte. The Army spotted his strength when he won the Gold Medal on the Degree course. He was deputed to go to IIT Delhi in …

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“Moochh” Sahib

  Originally posted on 26 April 2006 : This folk tale pertains to the pre-First World War era. The army was then officered exclusively by British and the highest rank attainable by native Indians was Subedar. There were no cars; therefore, a well bred stallion was the ultimate status symbol for a person of substance. To distinguish him from another …

Death, Be Not Proud

Originally posted on 1st Oct 2010 : The four digit number 2997 may mean nothing to you, but for three long years at the National Defence Academy, it had great significance for me. It was an integral part of my identity. While many more cadets with my name may come and go, there never was and there never will be …

THE “PHOOK” THEORY

The literal meaning of the Punjabi word, ‘phook’ is air pressure. Metaphorically, it is used to describe an ego-state. Thus, if someone is hogging a lot of ‘phook’, he is ‘gassed’ or brash.   The year, 1988. Location: No 3 Base Repair Depot (BRD), IAF, Chandigarh The little man who sat on the hot seat in the office of Air Officer …