8

Eight is my lucky number. I was born on that day, the 8th of April, 1991. My birth was a 50 per cent chance - the doctors informed my father that he would have to choose between me and my mother, as some complications with the colon attachment meant that someone would have to die. My dad subsequently chose my mom over me, but fortunately at the time, the doctors were smart and capable enough to bring me to life, against all odds. Yes, that day was undeniably a lucky day for me. You wouldn’t be reading this otherwise.

Allow me to introduce myself. Most people’s names are kept by their parents or close relatives, but I can’t say the same for my name – Sagar. The story of how I’d obtained my name puts me in a position of disbelief even now.

Let me elaborate –my dad had received a job transfer shortly before the time of my birth. The job was in Saudi Arabia, so he had to make my passport which would be prepared by the time I would be born. Back in the day, the formalities that went into making passports weren’t strictly enforced. The details of my passport had been filled down, leaving alone my gender which couldn’t be determined at the time, thus expansively delaying the process. Keeping this uncertainty in mind, my parents decided to play in the safe zone and name me Kiran, an Indian name suited for both the male and the female. But the officer-in-change had a different idea in mind. He decided to wait till the news of my gender came forth. As soon as he ascertained that I was a boy, he named me Sagar, an act my father dutily questioned. He answered that he’d lost his son the month before. And his name was Sagar. No one probed him further, and the name stuck.

I’m not complaining – Sagar is one of the most common names in the country, a fact I had perceived, after running into every alternate person with that same particular name.

Mulga (Marathi for ‘Guy’) is my alias.

I’ve studied a variety of blogs. While a few have turned out to be inspirational, quite a lot of them have taught me what not and how not to pen down. (No offense, fellow bloggers. It’s all good.) I have noticed that people make diaries which help them remember countless events in the long run. I have decided to place my blog along the same lines, although the events I recount on and the thoughts I express shall be presented in a relatively unconventional manner. I started out writing a blog-cum-love story ( http://loveon8.blogspot.com/ ) which was abundant with principally rusty English. But that shall change, with my friend Jason (jay.kay.92@gmail.com) volunteering to polish my articles before uploading them online.

Well, hope this is a suitable introduction. Updates will come rolling around once I have more free time in my hands. See ya.