RANI TOH PAPA NI.

We have a small wall in our hall which serves as a post for our hand ball goal save sessions. Chaitra is the usual goal keeper and I sit or laze on the sofa throwing balls at the wall, the saves are often acrobatic by an agile Chaitra. She has cheer leaders, cheering her to save the ball. Prithvy keeps on running amok in these goal saving sessions. Mummy and Mansi are the spectators and cheer leaders, who are often busy doing some other work amidst our game.
If a goal is scored by me, Chaitra reacts by hurling the ball at me at high speeds, often the ball loses direction and hits the ceiling fan or our tv screen. As soon as I see a smile disappear from her face, I start throwing the ball in a simple manner so as to give her a chance to save the goals. She wins and often comes and hugs me. She is happy and satisfied, rushes to her room to catch up on her homework with a smile beaming from her face.

When I was a kid, my brother used to sit on my lap and we used to play the game of counting cars on the road. We used to stay at my nani's place in Ghatkopar on LBS road way back in the early 80's. The left direction was towards Thane (Down) and the right direction was towards Bombay (Up). The traffic direction was up in the morning and down in the evening. Depending on the time of the day I used to select the direction of least traffic.My brother could count only upto 25 and he used to beat me hands down in this game. He used to giggle and dance around, saying that he always used to beat me in this game. The happiness was evident on his face. I pretended to sulk but I was contented from within.

In Cricket too, I used to let him win often dropping catches and missing the ball so as to hit my stumps. Joy is in giving Joy to others.

A few months back, My dad and me played a challenge match of carrom. My brother and my friends were all rooting for my dad, cheering him 'rani toh papa ni'! a dialogue from munnabhai series, He, despite his age and tremulous hands beat me hollow. I accepted defeat gracefully. This time, I had tried to win and not lose. We were playing after a long time but his age and experience got the better of me. My feelings were mixed but yet, I was happy to lose to my dad. He did not favour me as I was no longer a small child who needed encouragement.
A few days later, Chaitra came up to me bragging that she had beaten my dad in carrom!

I have been competitive in all the walks of life.
When it comes to my loved ones, I love losing.
Their smiles make me happy.
Their laughter echoes in my heart.