All in a name !

Although the mere purpose of a name is just to attach a tag of identification to an individual, the amount of interest it evokes is immense. With my niece about to get christened in the near future, the amount of team-effort it calls for is very well known to me, so demanding the task is for all the scare of contrite that might spring up owing to the disapproval from the kid in future for whatever reasons.

No doubt, I hardly had regrets for my name being my name, but whenever immaturity ruled the roost, I too had my own reasons for telling my parents that they could have done a better job in choosing my name. In school, the innumerable chat sessions in recess provided equal opportunity to one and all to lament their parents' less-than-average job in naming them so. Most of the times, the cause for displeasure would be one of these:

My name is so unheard-of in the class! Today, I am going to ask mama why she didn’t find a well-known name. ( She probably calmed down when her mom said ‘ Your name is as special as you are, how can anyone and everyone share your name? That's why we opted for a very rare name’).

My name is so very common in the class! There are five people with the same name, and two share the same initials too!

Why did my name start with "R" and not "A"? Don't parents know that call for attendance happens in Alphabetical order? I have to sit in the class room until my name figures.Everyday, I fail to get a seat in the school bus, while Archana always gets!!

Why did my name start with “A” and not “R” or “S” or ….. ? Simply because my name is seen so very easily in the first page of the attendance register, although ma’am says she might ask questions to anyone, she never fails to ask me!

Why is my name so girlish? Everyone mocks me that boys don’t have such names…Why of all, Chaitanya?

Why is my name so boyish? Could a name for a girl not have been anything other than Kiran?

Why should I have been the victim for my mom being a great fan of Dharmendra? I have to share that old-man’s name now!
(No doubt, his younger brother would moan too for the same reason , for he was named Jitendra, for rhyming purpose, you know!)

I don’t know why everyone asks the meaning of my name! When my parents don’t know it , how can I?
(Can’t help being reminded of my colleague who has not left any internet link to know the meaning of his 30 year old name, although every hit has kept him disappointed! Every time he introduces himself, he never fails to quote the disclaimer “Please don’t ask for the meaning, me yet to know!”)


Not for no reason that these memories sprang up. Just recently when my colleague was looking for some name for her nephew, quite some folks ganged up to help her out. In the process, I thought I could land up with a special, hard-to-pronounce, rare and good name starting from “J” for my niece, that cute June-born too! Well, the discussion just drifted when a guy in the gang asked “what is that one ideal feminine name that can make a guy go crazy?” When all the other girl-colleagues were still in thoughts, I said, “Not sure of all, but for one guy in the world, it must be Rashmi!!!” and thus fell the curtains to the discussion.